New! The Help

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

About: Four peerless actors render an array of sharply defined black and white characters in the nascent years of the civil rights movement. They each handle a variety of Southern accents with aplomb and draw out the daily humiliation and pain the maids are subject to, as well as their abiding affection for their white charges. The actors handle the narration and dialogue so well that no character is ever stereotyped, the humor is always delightful, and the listener is led through the multilayered stories of maids and mistresses. The novel is a superb intertwining of personal and political history in Jackson, Miss., in the early 1960s, but this reading gives it a deeper and fuller power. (from amazon.com)

My sister and mom both read this book and enjoyed it a lot. They are very much wanting to see the movie when it comes out and dragging me along. So I need to quickly read this book before we all venture to the theaters.

Review: Castle in the Air

Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones

About: Abdullah the rug merchant leaves his humdrum life far behind when he purchases a threadbare magic carpet from a mysterious stranger. Almost immediately, Abdullah is whisked off on a series of adventures that bear an uncanny resemblance to his own daydreams. He meets the love of his life only to have her kidnapped by a fierce djinn. With the help of the magic carpet--and an ornery genie--Abdullah sets out to rescue his bride-to-be. His travels take him to the fairy tale land of Ingary.

Review: I just have to say, I absolutely love Jones' writing. I've read Howl's Moving Castle, and House of Many Ways, both sequels like Castle in the Air. I enjoy her books so much, they are fun fantasy books with witches and djinns and castles and princesses. This book had a very Aladdin feel to it, with a genie and magic carpet too. Her books are easy reads but so full of adventure and comedy. If you're a fan of Jones other books then you'll appreciate that Howl and Sophie are in this book as well. I did feel myself slightly rushing through the end. I'm not sure if I just wanted it to get done, or I was just a smidgen bored, or that I needed to return it to the library.  I have to admit I enjoyed House of Many Ways more than Castle in the Air, I liked the characters just a bit more. Abdullah, Flower-in-the-Night and the Soldier were all really good character's I just didn't feel more of a connection than I would have lived. The book keeps a good pace, as something is always happening, so it is fun. But despite cramming the last 70 pages in a few breaks at work, I highly recommend this book for any avid readers or fantasy lovers. It was a nice break after reading Candy which was very different also.

New! The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary by Allison Hoover Bartlett

About: In the late 1990s, John Gilkey stole his way through a significant number of expensive antiquarian book collections. Ken Sanders, a book collector and security chair for the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association, noticed the pattern of thefts and began pursuing Gilkey, whose obsession with his precious old books led him to commit a flurry of other crimes—stealing credit cards and forging checks. Bartlett opens up the quirky world of book collecting fanatics with respect but occasionally too much adulation—a perspective that Judith Brackley is guilty of in her more effusive moments. But on the whole, Brackley's enthusiasm is welcome; she excels when exploring the minutiae and arcana of the book collecting subculture and executes the male voices well, with a clear distinction and depth.

I saw this one while browsing at a local book store Golden Braid Books and I instantly wanted it. The story sounds so enthralling and I actually just found this one of sale at Borders 70% off. Sadly they were closing down. But I got a book I've been wanting so it worked out. Also Ken Sanders owns a bookstore right down the street from me!

Review: Candy

Candy by Luke Davies

About: Candy depicts heroin addicts set in Australia. "Candy" is the slang name of the unnamed narrator's two great loves: his girlfriend and heroin. He introduces her to the drug, and they descend from being high on life, love, and drugs, to being shamed through prostitution, crime, addiction, and recovery. With no character background, the book reads as a string of scams to score money and heroin: some hilarious, some desperate, and some both at once. One scam starts when they answer a ringing public phone that the caller mistakenly believes is a suicide prevention line. Candy and the narrator are ruthless but human; their likableness and the immediacy of their dramas make them sympathetic even when pathetic. The writing is lean and strong but offers no resolution. Although that reflects junkies' reality, sometimes the pacing is jarring as the characters take action long after the audience is ready. Still, the good writing, realistic portrayal, and affable characters plunge readers into the junkies' world, safely returning them with veins intact.

Review: When a book starts out like this..."Everything's fucking beautiful!", you know it's got to be good. Candy is a book about a nameless author who takes us on his journey of meeting Candy, whom he's in love with, and heroine, who he's even more in love with. The book is actually fun, not the heroine part, but the way him and Candy are in love, go on adventures and basically just lay around all the time, waiting for their next hit. Davies is an amazing writer. From start to finish I was so involved in the story and the characters. Even the one's that quickly come in and out of their life from using, random connections, or friends. Davies does an amazing job really letting you understand the main character without even giving any descriptions of him, or even naming him in the book. It's interesting the way the book is laid out, he meets Candy, they go through their lives together, trying to get clean, going back on smack, the repetitiveness of their stupidity, yet you feel so much for these characters. The last chapter ends with Candy's first hit. It's breath painstakingly beautiful, every word Davies writes. Please read this one, it's absolutely phenomenal.

Review: The Stranger

The Stranger by Albert Camus

About: Through the story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach, Camus explored what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd." (from amazon.com)

Review: The Stranger is a very interesting book. Even though I should have finished the quick read of 123 pages, it took me a bit longer (school and work will do that). The entire book the main character did hardly anything. He sat by his window, watched people, talked about his neighbours, drank, smoked, talked to his neighbours, sort of fell in love. Basically it was the life of an ordinary man who randomly kills someone else. The second half is his trial and it's interesting the way he thinks about life. It's insightful, interesting and I love that it's set in France. I enjoyed this book, it's not necessarily a dry read, but I think you have to be able to really imagine this book to like it. I recommend it for the avid book reader.

New! The Long Weekend

The Long Weekend by Savita Kalhan

About: Sam knows that he and his friend Lloyd made a colossal mistake when they accepted the ride home. They have ended up in a dark mansion in the middle of nowhere with man who means to harm them. But Sam doesn't know how to get them out. They were trapped, then separated. Now they are alone. Will either of them get out alive?This gripping and hypnotic thriller will have you reading late into the night... 

All of the reviews for this book have been really positive! I love thriller mystery books. I hope I read this one soon.

Public Library

It should be obvious as a avid book reader/lover that I would support my public library. As a contribution I wanted to feature how much I love my library. First of all it's four floors of amazing books, cafe's, shops, children's play area, roof top garden. Also it only takes me 3 minutes to walk there. Spending all day there is always appealing to me, sadly I'm too busy to. Here's a glimpse of the beautiful library I get to check out books and movies at. 

Need To Read

I feel like I'm finally finding the time to sit down and read books. Even if it means skipping a day of classes (like today) to do so. The books I am currently reading or need to read are as follows:

-The Stranger by Albert Camus (currently reading)
-The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (I just bought this vintage version from a local bookstore)
-The Island of Dr. Moreau
-Purge: Rehab Diaries by Nicole Johns

Review: Looking For Alaska

Looking For Alaska by John Green

About: Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps. (from goodreads.com)

Review: I enjoyed this book rather a lot. I liked the characters, mostly 'Pudge' aka Miles Halter. A good thing about the book was his friends didn't over power the main character like sometimes the quirky friends do, Pudge held his own, despite having no friends before he went to boarding school at Culiver Creek. I liked reading it through the author's voice. It felt like everything was a direct story from his life, although I don't know if it was, I liked to pretend. The whole book was great and kept me reading from start to finish. Also, I liked how he ended the book with a little bit of an essay from Pudge, it made me smile. One character I found interesting was Alaska Young, she made such an impact on everyone's lives at school, and  made me realize how one person can change someone, or a lot of people's lives. It was a very good and easy read, I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to jump and gain their 'Great Perhaps'.

New! The Stranger

 The Stranger by Albert Camus

About: Through the story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach, Camus explored what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."

 I do believe that is the shortest book description ever. But I'm excited to read this book, it was actually  referred to me by a very good friend and I can't wait to start reading it.