Goodbye July & A Book Review: The Bungalow

So, today is the last day of July … wasn’t it JUST June?? Where is the summer going!? Slow down please!! There is so much more I want to do! (I sure wish that the winter moved this fast!!) I feel like I need to create yet another list of things to get going on before the summer is over! I actually only have 3 weeks 2 weeks and 3 days of summer school left!

Last night I finished reading a new book (I know I said that “The Happiness Project” was next, and it has been – I’ve just been reading it intermittently between other nonfiction reading). This book was one that I couldn’t wait to pick to read, so I thought it was a “must share!” Without further ado, I give you, “The Bungalow” by Sarah Jio.

I was a little apathetic about trying another Jio novel, as I wasn’t a HUGE fan of “Blackberry Winter” – but I thought, “aw, what the heck?” I’m so, SO glad I did! The synopsis reads:

“In the summer of 1942, newly engaged Anne Calloway sets off to serve in the Army Nurse Corps on the Pacific island of Bora-Bora. More exhilarated by the adventure of a lifetime than she ever was by her predictable fiancé, she is drawn to a mysterious soldier named Westry, and their friendship soon blossoms into hues as deep as the hibiscus flowers native to the island. Under the thatched roof of an abandoned beach bungalow, the two share a private world-until they witness a gruesome crime, Westry is suddenly redeployed, and the idyll vanishes into the winds of war. A timeless story of enduring passion, The Bungalow chronicles Anne’s determination to discover the truth about the twin losses–of life, and of love–that have haunted her for seventy years.”

The book stars in the present and then flashes back into the life of Anne Calloway during the War for the majority of the book; it does come back to the present for the end of the book. I’m actually surprised that I enjoyed this book as much as I did, since it was another “war story”, and that’s usually not my niche – (I feel like that’s one of the things we read to death in MS/HS English) – Remember my run with “The Storyteller”? While I was reading, I actually got so wrapped up in reading the “past” story, that I completely forgot the beginning of the book! When the story flashed back to the present I was A: disappointed and B: totally confused about what the beginning of the story was! That almost never happens!

Not only did I feel like the story was very well-written this time around, but I felt like I was a part of it. I came to really like and care about the characters, and I was sad when the book finished. I also had a strange need to jump on a plane and visit Bora Bora and/or find a yellow hibiscus flower! The book had everything that I could want written it to it: love/romance, a mystery, character growth, and happy endings 😉 The story touched on and brought up such topics as:

• Can love really last forever?
• What is justice? Can it mean different things to different people?
• What is the price for justice?
• How much can your past decisions affect/haunt your future?

I would highly recommend this book to a friend – (aka YOU!) – it’s an easy, entertaining read, but without all the “fluff” of a more typical “chick lit” style. Plus, it’s a well-developed story. If you decide to give it a go, let me know how you like it J Sarah Jio redeemed herself in my eyes with this one!

On another book note: Before the Bungalow, I finished “Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn – which has been highly regarded in the blog world and the literary world. I actually had to put a hold on the book to get it at the library, and had to wait about a month or so for it to be mine. To say I was excited to finally read it was an understatement. I truly enjoyed most of the book – I loved that it was written from different perspectives, and the “twist” actually caught me off guard!! Sadly, the end of the book was …. Blah. To me, it felt like the author was done writing, and just wanted to finish the book. All of the sudden the book was moving at rapid fire pace, and at the end, I was left feeling totally unsatisfied! Disappointing to say the least. Perhaps I let the hype get to me, again. No matter, I’ll try another Gillian Flynn book anyway – perhaps it will be another “The Bungalow” experience!

Answer me this: What should I read next? Do you have a favorite author(s)?  Ever read Sarah Jio or Gillian Flynn? What are your plans for August and/or “must do” things before the summer is over?

~ Brittany

Book Review: The Storyteller

On Monday, I spent the most of the morning finishing this book:

I’ve had this one in my stash for quite a while … you may remember from this post that this is the book that Jodi Picoult signed for me J I’d been holding off on reading it and letting the anticipation for the story rise!

The synopsis reads: “Sage Singer is a baker, a loner, until she befriends an old man who’s particularly beloved in her community. Josef Weber is everyone’s favorite retired teacher and Little League coach. One day he asks Sage for a favor: to kill him. Shocked, Sage refuses—and then he confesses his darkest secret – he deserves to die because he had been a Nazi SS guard. And Sage’s grandmother is a Holocaust survivor. How do you react to evil living next door? Can someone who’s committed truly heinous acts ever atone with subsequent good behavior? Should you offer forgiveness to someone if you aren’t the party who was wronged? And, if Sage even considers the request, is it revenge…or justice?”

When I went to hear Jodi Picoult, I heard a lot about this story came to be, especially in regards to the research that went into it (like all her stories), and how she weaved many holocaust survivor’s memories into the book… that in itself interested me – I’ve always found that part of history intriguing, although also very thoroughly taught in school curriculum.

My review? I’ll preface my thoughts by saying this: I enjoyed the book. It took me a little while longer than usual to get into it, but once I was immersed in the story, I was reluctant to put it down. As is typical of Jodi’s books, the story was told from many different perspectives – Sage, her grandmother, the Nazi guard, and a lawyer who formed cases for war crimes. I enjoy that Jodi writes this way and like that I can see many people’s perspectives.

However, to be honest – this book disappointed me.

I found that a huge chunk of the book took place through Sage’s grandmother’s, (Minka), eyes – she was a survivor of the Holocaust and therefore, the story was mostly about her during the Holocaust and her time spent in concentration camps. I felt like the character of Sage was never really developed, nor were her relationships with other people – her part of the story felt haphazard to me. Case in point: Sage has a scar on her face that she is extremely self-conscious about, and is part of what adds to her “loner” status – she doesn’t want to be seen by anyone. But the story behind this scar is thrown in during the last few chapters. I feel like it could have added more to the story, and I wish I felt like I had really gotten to “know” Sage better. Sometimes, the story just felt like yet another account of what happened to those of the Jewish faith and concentration camps during that time. I wanted more depth.

Even the “twist” at the end wasn’t all that surprising to me.

The title of the book came from a story that Minka wrote – it started before the Holocaust, and she continued to write while she was at the concentration camps – readers are led to believe that the story was one thing that saved Minka – and parts of the story are sprinkled throughout the novel, and are also used as a microcosm for what was happening with other characters.

I am used to Picoult books tearing at your heart strings while also making you really think about morality. This book was supposed to be centered on forgiveness versus revenge and justice. Those issues seemed to just get thrown in at the end. Usually, I start to really understand the “bad guys” in Jodi’s books – this time, I didn’t really connect with them at all. This may have been due to my background knowledge and the atrocities that were committed during the Holocaust – but still, usually, Jodi seems to be able to write about all perspectives. Perhaps she took on too many stories this time, or perhaps I just really built it up in my mind?

Overall, “The Storyteller” was a good story, and I did enjoy reading it – it was even a page turner! Sadly, I just didn’t find it as thought-provoking or significant as I would have liked – not up the caliber that I usually associate with Jodi Picoult’s work. It did prompt me to think about myself forgiveness – we’ll save the post for another day.

Favorite quotes:

“Nobody, who looks at a shard of flint lying beneath a rock ledge, or who finds a splintered log by the side of the road would ever find magic in their solitude. But in the right circumstances, if you bring them together, you can start a fire that consumes the world.”
― Jodi Picoult, The Storyteller

“Forgiving isn’t something you do for someone else. It’s something you do for yourself. It’s saying, ‘You’re not important enough to have a stranglehold on me.’ It’s saying, ‘You don’t get to trap me in the past. I am worthy of a future.”
― Jodi Picoult, The Storyteller

Next up? This book:

This will be a totally switch up from what I usually read and I’m looking forward to it!! I also have “Happier at Home” which is by the same author! However, I may have gone a little book crazy on my latest trip to the library? (Who am I kidding – this always happens!)

Happy Reading 🙂

PS: tomorrow is my 4 mile race — called the Firecracker — I’m so nervous! Any advice for prepping for a longer distance in extreme heat (again) would be most appreciative!!

Questions: Best book you’ve ever read? favorite author? genre?

Meeting Jodi P and Some Yummy Eats {recipe}

I wish I could describe to you the experience I had last night getting to meet Jodi Picoult in VT last night … it was truly a remarkable, indescribable, mind-blowing experience. (I will never chastise P again for listening to talk radio!) Even P admitted that she impressed him — and that’s really hard to do! Jodi Picoult was down-to-earth, funny, and just so real!! She signed both “The Storyteller” and “House Rules” for me and then we listened to her speak to Joe Donahue from WMAC radio – he was interviewing her for his show “The Book Show.” She talked about her stories, her life, her ideas, and her craft — so, so, cool!There was also a Q & A segment portion afterwards as well.

oh you know, just hanging out with my friend Jodi Picoult 🙂

In case you really enjoy her books, here’s some interesting (ok, random) things that I picked up while listening:

• All her book covers in Poland are cartoons
• 47 % of her readers are actually men
• She reads and answers every piece of fan mail that she receives
• If there are children in the story, Jodi tends to write them when her children are not at the same age (i.e., when she wrote her book about teen suicide, her oldest child was 5) – there were 2 exceptions to this: When she wrote “Sing You Home”, one of her sons told  her that he was gay (through his college application essay) … I can’t remember the other one now – boo!
• There are some chracters that Jodi actually hates – one is Amos Duncan from the book “Salem Falls”
• Jodi always starts her books knowing the begining and the ending, but not the middle
• The next book is tentatively titled “Elephant Graveyard” and is about elephant’s elaborate grieving process as well as a woman who is studying them, and goes missing – when her daughter turns 13 she wants to know what happened to her mother
• Her next goal is to make herself a “household name” – like James Patterson is
• several of her books are in the works for being made into a movie, and House Rules is being made into a series, by Hallmark, I believe

Mom came too!

Pretty cool right? I’m was so impressed by her, and still all warm and fuzzy about getting to meet her 🙂 PS – we did make it to Cilantro for dinner afterwards!

Moving on to food — here is the recipe for Rigatoni Lasagna that I promised you! This recipe is adapted from a recipe from a magazine, but I never wrote down where it came from, so I can’t give credit to the original source.

Rigatoni Lasagna

Ingredients:

• 1 lb rigatoni, penne, or other tube-shaped pasta
• 4 italian sweet sausage links (casings removed) or  chopped chicken sausage  (last time I used sun dried tomato chicken sausage and it was awesome!)
• 1 jar marinara sauce (26 oz)
• 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons italian seasoning
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder (approximae)
• 2 teaspons basil (approximate)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions:

1. Coook pasta in a large pot of boiling salt water, according to package directions & drain ( I suggest using the “al dente” cooking method)
2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium high heat -add sausage, cook until no longer pink -or heated through, if using chicken sausage- (about 5 minutes). If you’re using sausage, remove from the skillet and discard the drippings, and then return sausage to the pan
3. Add marinara sauce to the sausage and bring to a simmer over medium heat
4. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together rictotta cheese, parmesan cheese and seasonings.
5. Toss drained pasta with the ricotta mixture
6. Place pasta in serving bowls and top with sauce
7. Enjoy!

I hope you all have some wonderful and relaxing plans for the weekend 🙂

Questions: What’s your favorite Jodi Picoult book?

The bookworm in me :)

I don’t even want to talk about the weather right now. Stupid, stupid snow. Hate it. And it’s really coming down right now — I think we have more kids out then actually in school at the moment.

Anyway – how was your weekend? Our St. Patty’s day celebration was lots of fun on Saturday — our friends definitely go all out, which makes it evven more fun. Lots of good food and leprechaun punch and silly antics – and of course plenty of green flair for everyone!

Me and P decked out in our green flair!

And I so love people watching.. and the outfits that people choose — I’m not a fan of leggings – and I’m definitely not a fan of leggings as actual pants… like with a shirt that stops at the waist.  Even worse — black tights as pants. Not okay… I have no interest in seeing your underwear color or your actual butt cheek. That’s not hot on anyone. Ok, PSA over.

 

I also saw a girl drop trouser and pee in front of a bush while walking back from the parade. Sure, ok – do what you gotta do 🙂 People amuse me.

Me and our friend who takes St. Patty’s very seriously 🙂

 Moving on -Sunday was a good mix of relaxing and getting things done around the house.  I just started a new book – The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand – I am loving it!!! I got sucked right in and can’t seem to put it down for some reason (Maybe it’s because the world blue is in the title?) I haven’t even finished it yet and I would recommend it!

Book description: “Adrienne Dealey has spent the past six years working for hotels in exotic resort towns. This summer she has decided to make Nantucket home. Left flat broke by her ex-boyfriend, she is desperate to earn some fast money. When the desirable Thatcher Smith, owner of Nantucket’s hottest restaurant, is the only one to offer her a job, she wonders if she can get by with no restaurant experience. Thatcher gives Adrienne a crash course in the business…and they share an instant attraction. But there is a mystery about their situation: What is it about Fiona, the Blue Bistro’s chef, who captures Thatcher’s attention again and again? And why does such a successful restaurant seem to be in its final season before closing its doors for good? Despite her uncertainty, Adrienne must decide whether she’ll move on,as she always does–or finally open her heart…”

Speaking of books — I have some super duper exciting new – at least for me 🙂 This morning I was checking emails while drying my hair  and saw that P had sent me a link already — when I clicked on it, I actually did a little jig in my bathroom (Bet you’re sorry that you missed that!)

Friends. Jodi Piccult. She’s one of my most favorite authors EVER. If I was home right now I could snap a shot of my bookcase and you could see all her books on there — I don’t buy many books (I read them too fast and would run out of room like yesterday! The library just makes more senes) – but hers – I collect. Her books always make me think and I love, love, LOVE how she tells her stories from different perspectives – the first book I read – Nineteen Minutes- is about a school shooting and it totally changed the way I looked at such a tragic event. I’ve been obsessed with her books ever since.

Anyway, I digress. Jodi Picout is coming to Manchester VT on thrusday to do a book talk on her new book – “Storyteller” — and tickets are only $33 for 2 seats, her new book, and she personalizes it, and will also sign anothr book as well. And I’m going!!!! P and I bought tickets are headed to Manchester after work — to say I’m freaking excited is an understatement!!!! 😀 😀 I’m currently like a little kid waiting to see Santa — I cant even sit still! Is that sad? I’m such a bookworm!So, you know – that’s where I’ll be on Thursday. No sweat 😉 And maybe i can talk P into eating at Cilantro again!?

You can check out the event here: http://www.northshire.com/event/shelf-authors-conversation-new-york-times-bestselling-author-jodi-picoult-presenting-storytell 

I hope that you are having a great tuesday, and are not staring at the artic tundra like I currently am. Does shoveling count as my upper body workout?

P.S. I’m working on getting the rigatoni lasgna recipe up in case youre interested in it!

P.P.S we made a cheeseburger casserole from skinnytaste.com on Sunday night —  it’s awesome!!! Tastes just like a cheesebuger! The only change I made was to use sweet relish instead of dill pickles — mostly because I hate pickles, but love relish. This will definitely be a frequent flier on our menu plan – AND we have leftovers!

Questions for you:

Are you a bookworm? What do you like to read? What should I ask Jodi P?!!