I read 44 books in 2011 – not bad!

Rather than keep track on my site, I’ve decided to track my reading in my long-neglected Goodreads account. If you’re a member of Goodreads, here is a link to my profile, where you can see the books and how I rated them. If you’re not a member – it’s free to join! Just sayin’.

Another reason I wanted to reactivate my Goodreads account is because I have yet another resolution this year: Read 50 books. Which is entirely doable, I just have to focus. I have a LOT of books on my Kindle that I haven’t read yet, and this is a great excuse to read them. Plus, my library just started lending e-books, so that’s another way to borrow books without leaving my cozy apartment.

2012 Reading Challenge

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I’m not off to the greatest start, as it’s already January 9th and I haven’t finished a book yet. But it’s still early! There’s plenty of time! And let’s face it – finding more time to read is not a huge sacrifice for me. Unlike, say, exercising. (Let’s just say that resolution isn’t going so well, either.)

How about you? Read any good books lately?

This month’s BlogHer Book Club installment is The Lake of Dreams by Kim Edwards. I really wanted to like this book, you guys. I really did. But it just didn’t capture me. I’m not sure what it was but I just couldn’t get into this book.

It might have been the blatant symbolism. The protagonist, Lucy, is living in Japan with her boyfriend. Things are unsettled, she’s unemployed, and at the same time, the very earth beneath her feet is shaking with earthquakes. (Get it?) Her mother in upstate New York has been in a minor car accident, so she travels home to visit. While she’s home, Lucy discovers some hidden documents in a locked window seat leading Lucy to uncover family secrets. And did I mention that Lucy can also pick locks? (Get it?)

Between the unexciting family mystery that’s tied to the women’s suffrage movement and stained glass windows (yup), I just didn’t really care all that much about Lucy or her family. Characters were one-dimensional and annoying, only Lucy and her mother seemed to have any dimensions at all. In reality, I would have much more enjoyed reading a book about Lucy’s mom.

Oh dear. I think I’ll just stop there. Let’s just say this wasn’t my favorite, and that I’m hoping that the next book I read will be much more enjoyable.

But that’s just my opinion. Check out the BlogHer Book Club site for more discussions about this book and others.

Please note: I was compensated for this BlogHer Book Club review but all opinions expressed are my own.  Obviously.

 The blogger with a pile of books, January 2010

I’ve always been a fairly consistent reader. But this year, thanks to my Kindle and the BlogHer Book Club, I’ve read more than I have in a long time. I went back and figured out exactly what books I’ve read this year, and created a separate page called (you guessed it) “Books I’ve Read: 2011.” You may have noticed the new link in my menu.

One thing I’ve made it a point to do this year is NOT read a book I’m not enjoying. The last time I forced my way through a book I hated put me off reading for quite a while. So if I finished a book, I enjoyed it. Which means all the books on this list I can honestly say I’ve enjoyed, and would recommend. I did note some with a “*” in cases where I particularly liked the book for one reason or another.

Right now I’m reading “Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?” by Mindy Kaling, and I’m loving it. Have you read any good books lately?

A few months ago, Mr. M and I were watching The History Channel’s The Dark Ages on Netflix. It was a pretty decent documentary of a time period I don’t know much about. We didn’t really cover the dark ages in high school world history, except for the Plague. Go figure.

One portion of the documentary focused on Justinian the Byzantine Emporer, and his wife, Theodora. The film touched on the fact that Theodora was a burlesque actress (aka, prostitute), who rose from the lowest ranks to become Empress. But they didn’t really explain how such a feat was possible.

When I saw that the next book in the BlogHer book club was Stella Duffy’s Theordora: Actress, Empress, Whore I was delighted. Finally, a book to fill in the blanks and explain how an actress/prostitute could become the most powerful woman in the Roman Empire.

Duffy details the day-to-day life Theodora, starting from the death of her father through her years of training to become an actress at the Hippodrome. Not particularly beautiful, Theodora has several talents that will serve her well: she can read a room, she’s whip smart, and she’s a survivor. From her success in the Hippodrome of Constantinople, to her conversion in the Egyptian desert, and finally to her orchestrated meeting with Justinian, the book fills in the gaps of how such an ascent would be possible.

Let me be clear – this is a book of fiction, obviously. But Duffy clearly did a great amount of research into the life and times of her subject. Readers with delicate sensibilities – Theodora was a prostitute, so be prepared for some explicit scenes. Personally, I found this book fascinating. Duffy obviously had a great respect and affection for her subject, and this showed on every page. I was intrigued by the politics, the family life, and just the basic descriptions of life in general that Duffy brought to life. If you enjoy well-researched historical fiction from a woman’s point of view, I suggest picking up a copy of Theodora: Actress, Empress, Whore.

But that’s just my opinion. Check out the BlogHer Book Club site for more discussions about this book and others.

Please note: I was compensated for this BlogHer Book Club review but all opinions expressed are my own. 

Julie Klam loves dogs. LOVES them. In Love at First Bark, she describes three different dog-rescue scenarios, and how helping save these dogs affected her life, and the lives of her friends and family. From the streets of New York City, to post-Katrina New Orleans, Ms. Klam works to make these homeless dogs safe.

As a self-described crazy cat lady, I absolutely understood Ms. Klam’s desire to keep these animals healthy and happy and placed in homes that would love and care for them. The stories of the rescues themselves were fascinating in the complexity and determination it takes to save the life of an abandoned animal.

The book itself, though, was rather thin. To me, it felt like it started abruptly, as if the author believed she was writing for an audience that had already read her previous two books (I hadn’t). The book itself only detailed three rescue stories in three lengthy chapters. Reading them felt more like three essays might have belonged in another, longer book.

That said, I loved Ms. Klam’s sense of humor (self-deprecating and punny, my favorite combination). I’m actually more curious now to read her other memoirs, both dog and non-dog related. And since reading this book, I find myself perusing Petfinder more often, looking for adult dogs who need forever homes. For a crazy cat lady, that’s something worth noting.

But that’s just my opinion. Check out the BlogHer Book Club site for more discussions about Love at First Bark.

Please note: I was compensated for this BlogHer Book Club review but all opinions expressed are my own. 

I have been absolutely devouring Kate Atkinson’s series featuring Jackson Brodie (he used to be a policeman). (That last bit was funny for folks that have read the series.) (Moving on.) There are four books in the series, and even though I’m reading them out of order, they are still fabulous: Case Histories, One Good Turn, When Will There Be Good News and Started Early, Took My Dog.

Kind reader Jules gave me a heads up that the first three books have been made into a BBC miniseries, which is scheduled to show on PBS this month. My local PBS channel is scheduled to start the series on October 16 – check your local listings for times.

If the gentleman above playing Jackson Brodie looks familiar but you can’t quite place him, just picture him with a long, platinum-blond wig. That’s right – he’s played by Jason Isaacs, also known for his role of Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter films.

Between this series, Downton Abbey returning in January, and the next Sherlock series coming in May 2012 (if you can believe Wikipedia), I am one happy PBS viewer. Thank you, public broadcasting!

OK, folks, I’ve got a good YA pick for you: Populazzi, by Elise Allen. I loved, loved, loved this book.

I feel I need to point out right from the start that I know Elise. We were college friends, and Elise is one of the funniest, funnest, most creative people I’ve ever met. It’s no surprise that she’s harnessed this creativity into a supremely successful writing career – she’s done everything from TV and DVDs to co-writing books with Hilary Duff (yes, that Hilary Duff). Her work has been nominated for an Emmy. She’s written for The Muppets, folks. This woman is good.

When I started Populazzi, Elise’s first solo YA novel, I had no doubt it was going to be a fabulous read. I wasn’t disappointed. The book is the story of Cara, a girl starting her junior year at a new school. After being something of a loner at her previous school, she and her best friend Claudia take the opportunity of a new school as a fresh start to achieve something Cara has never had: popularity. Claudia devises a plan called The Ladder, a way of transporting Cara up the social ladder to achieve the ultimate Queen Bee status at her new high school.

I’m making it sound rather obvious and like a Mean Girls knockoff, but this book is so much more than a typical “I want to be popular” escapade. It’s all about the characters – Cara is whip-smart, funny, insecure, witty, and someone you just can’t help but want to root for, even when she’s doing really dumb things (the same dumb things we’ve all done, granted). I also appreciated that the adults in the story aren’t perfect or complete villains – they’re three-dimensional characters who aren’t perfect but are human or just doing the best they can.

For those with a delicate nature, I feel I need to point out that the teenage characters in this story talk about s-3-x and drugs and underage drinking. None of it is glorified, none of it is over the top, but handled the way a teenager would deal with it. So if you’re sensitive to these themes, or feel you want to read the book before passing it along to younger readers, I’m just putting that out there. I didn’t feel it was explicit or gratuitous, but very realistic.

Since fall is just starting, the school year is still in the early stages, I couldn’t think of a better time to check out Populazzi. I think it’s a great take on the high school experience, finding true friendships and finding your true self.

Today I am writing about the latest BlogHer Book Club book – Slow Love by Dominique Browning. Oh, you guys. I really wanted to like this book. It is a memoir, describing the events of her life following her layoff from House & Garden magazine.

Considering my recent stint of unemployment, I thought I’d be able to relate. But really, I could barely find any common meeting ground between me and the author. Her writing is absolutely lovely, but I just couldn’t connect. What makes it even harder to say this is the fact that this is a memoir, and it’s the details of her life that turned me off. Her on-again, off-again relationship with a married man, her house in New York, her second home in Rhode Island, her grand piano and her seemingly limitless wealth combined to make me resent her more than sympathize with her. Let’s just say that my time of unemployment did not see me buying pajamas at Brooks Brothers. I don’t begrudge her the hard work it took to get her in that position; I just didn’t see how her comfortable early retirement and rediscovery of her kitchen and garden should make me feel much of anything.

While I’m happy that Ms. Browning found joy in the small things after her rush-rush NYC lifestyle, I wish I had been able to give this book a pass.

But that’s just my opinion. Check out the BlogHer Book Club site for more discussions about Slow Love.

Never fear, though, I have a book that I’m going to talk about next week that I loved. Stay tuned!