JMC's Wrap-up (unless I manage to eke out a couple more reviews)

The "Something About Me" reading challenge is wrapping up now, and I obviously committed to reading MANY more books than I am going to be able to finish. My original list of the books I wanted to read is here, though I did add I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak to it later. Unfortunately, it is becoming fairly obvious that unless I figure out a way to halt the world around me while I do nothing but read the books that I have yet to complete for the challenge, I am not going to be able to read everything that I had hoped to read. I have read Oh My Goth by Gena Showalter, and will be posting a review soon. I hope to get one or two more read and briefly reviewed this week, but don't hold your breath.

I do intend to read all the books that I selected. I have all but two of them sitting on my dresser. No one has these two listed on Bookmooch and my local library does not have them. They are The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes, suggested by Christina, and Papa Married a Mormon by John D. Fitzgerald, suggested by Suey. They will remain on my Bookmooch wishlist, until I break down and just order them, as I really do want to read them at some point.

The ones I did manage to read up to today:

From Bonnie's list: Booked to Die by John Dunning

From Twiga's list: The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers

From Chasida's list: Good Grief by Lolly Winston

From Dewey's list: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

From Jill(mrstreme)'s list: Christ the Lord by Anne Rice

From Booklogged's list: From the Corner of His Eye by Dean Koontz

From Vasilly's list: East of Eden by John Steinbeck

From alisonwonderland's list: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

From Becky's list: Ender's Game (Ender, Book 1) by Orson Scott Card

From Stephanie's list: Oh My Goth by Gena Showalter

From Sarah Miller's list: The Giver by Lois Lowry

My favorite of these is The Time Traveler's Wife, no question.

This was a great idea for a challenge, and I loved getting all these suggestions of reading material. I read and enjoyed several books that I wouldn't have normally read. So thank you for expanding my horizons via my reading list!!

From the Corner of His Eye

I read From the Corner of His Eye by Dean Koontz for the "Something About Me" reading challenge. It's the story of a boy who can stay dry in the rain by walking where the rain isn't, a man who can toss quarters into other worlds, a girl who can see all the ways things are, a narcissistic killer who suffers terrible physical ailments when he kills, and the ways in which their lives intersect.

I found this novel to be quite interesting and I enjoyed reading it, though I did miss the dry wit found in many of the characters in Koontz's other works, most notably (for me, who hasn't read ALL of Koontz's work) the Odd Thomas trilogy. While the wit and non sequiturs are absent, the novel makes up for it with many diverse characters. In addition to the main characters mentioned above, there are twin brothers obsessed with disasters, one with natural disasters and one with man-made; the twins' sister, also the dry-in-the-rain boy's mother, the amazingly generous pie-lady; a pharmacist who takes to constant walking once his beloved polio-stricken wife dies; the Baptist minister, whose sermon about "This Momentous Day" serves as a common thread throughout the various stories, and his wife and daughters; the doctor who delivers the girl who sees all the ways things are, who had lost his wife and twin sons; Maria, a seamstress from Mexico; a piano-playing landlord-from-hell; a private investigator with perfect teeth; and a lawyer with morals.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. There were a few places where I felt like things may have dragged a bit, where I felt like, "come on already, bring these stories together," but I'm glad that I read it. Koontz has a perspective on good and evil that resonates. The novel makes one think about the ways in which each decision, regardless of its seeming import, a person makes can affect his/her life and the lives of many, or even all, others.

I chose this book from Booklogged's list. She said that Koontz is one of her "chocolate" authors. I can definitely relate; I have a TON of "chocolate" authors myself.

East of Eden

So finally, after a long long time of no book reviews, I am getting around to writing one for the "Something About Me" reading challenge. I still have a bunch to do, so I've got to get crackin.' I finished reading East of Eden by John Steinbeck over a month ago, but being the huge procrastinator I am, I am just now getting around to the review. I decided to read this book for the challenge because I don't normally read classics just for the heck of it, but I always feel that I should read them. So basically, I need a reason. When Vasilly listed East of Eden, a book which I had always thought I'd get around to reading some day, I decided that here was my reason.

East of Eden is about two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, their lives and how they intersect and affect one another. There is sibling rivalry akin to Cain and Abel, and love, or its absence, plays a pivotal role. Good and evil, and the measure of each in a person, is a continuous thread through the work. For me, this novel was not a fast read. It was not an edge-of-your-seat, have to know what happens next immediately type of read. It was interesting and satisfying, and at times surprising in its modernity. I'm not sure what I expected from a book written in the 50s and set in the late 1800s to early 1900s, but modern urban slang wasn't it. "Frigging" was used in place of "fucking" in one instance, and the word "crib" was used as a place to live, albeit one run-down and decrepit, whereas today it can mean any type of home. I also didn't expect a sociopath or a gang rape.

What I liked:

I liked the character Lee, the way he faked who he was to be what people expected, but then was able to be himself later, and his humble and wise ways.

I found it interesting that Steinbeck himself is a character in the novel. As a descendant of the Hamilton clan, the book is told as if he is telling the story, which made me wonder if, in fact, this is an autobiographical work. I quick perusal of the Internet, and consensus seems to be semi-autobiographical.

I liked A LOT of the observations Steinbeck makes throughout the novel. He inserts them seamlessly into the text, yet they easily stand apart from it. There are so many passages that I would like to quote here, but then this review would be entirely too long. So just one particular favorite:

Our species is the only creative species, and it has only one creative instrument, the individual mind and spirit of a man. Nothing was ever created by two men. There are no good collaborations, whether in music, in art, in poetry, in mathematics, in philosophy. Once the miracle of creation has taken place, the group can build and extend it, but the group never invents anything. The preciousness lies in the lonely mind of a man.

Okay, one more:

Humans are caught - in their lives, in their thoughts, in their hungers and ambitions, in their avarice and cruelty, and in their kindness and generosity too - in a net of good and evil. I think this is the only story we have and that it occurs on all levels of feeling and intelligence. Virtue and vice were warp and woof of our first consciousness, and they will be the fabric of our last, and this despite any changes we may impose on field and river and mountain, on economy and manners. There is no other story. A man, after he has brushed off the dust and chips of his life, will have left only the hard, clean questions: Was it good or was it evil? Have I done well - or ill?

There wasn't anything in particular that I recall that I didn't like. It was well-written and interesting. It was obvious why it is considered a classic.

What does this choice tell us about Vasilly? Well, I actually couldn't tell much from this one choice, but looking over all five of her choices, I think I can deduce that she is a spiritually oriented person, in that she looks within herself to her spirit and beliefs when faced with difficult situations. Am I close?

The Time Traveler's Wife

This review is also posted here.

I was staring at my pile of books for the "Something About Me" Reading Challenge and wondering what I should read next. I decided to go with The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, since I had been enjoying the new TV series "Journeyman" and had really liked "Quantum Leap" as well. It was a great choice! The book was absolutely WONDERFUL!!

The novel is about Henry and Clare. Henry, from time to time, and completely outside of his control, "jumps" to another time period in his life or Clare's. Clare meets him when she is six and he is thirty-six, but he doesn't meet her until she is twenty, which is when he is twenty-eight. So when they meet in Henry's "real" time, she knows him very well, yet he doesn't know her at all. I can't talk about this novel in my usual way of what I liked and what I didn't like, because this isn't so much a story with a beginning, middle and end (except from Clare's point of view), as it is a story in which everything takes place simultaneously. So to talk about any particular happening in the story is to possibly give something away, even though for much of the book, the reader knows what is coming, because it already happened from someone's point of view. The only question is from whose point of view and at which point in time the reader will discover the how and why of whatever it was (s)he knows happens. A bit confusing, no? Besides, there was only one thing I didn't like, and it was something that Clare did that, to me, seemed completely out of character for her. I'll have to leave you to figure out what that is when you read this book. Because you should read this book. It immediately became one of my favorites.

I have always had a fascination with quantum physics/mechanics. That is not to say I understand them much, but I find them absolutely intriguing. I think that is why I can't stop thinking about the novel. I keep trying to compare things that happen to Henry in the novel with what little bit I sort of, kind of, but not really understand about quantum physics. Schrödinger's cat kept coming to mind. In what state was Henry at various times in the book? Was he ten, or was he thirty-two? Was he injured or was he perfectly fine? Was he in this state or in that state at any point in time? Well, he was all of the above, all at the same time. Which, of course, makes sense and nonsense simultaneously.

One thing I wonder, and I don't think it gives anything away, is why we never see MORE than two Henrys at a given time. It seems that occasionally, there might be a time when multiple Henrys ended up at the same place at the same time, since he traveled to places and times that held some import in his life.

Although I am not doing my what I liked and didn't like thing, I have to say that I absolutely LOVED the character Kimy. Her complete ho-hum acceptance of a naked Henry suddenly appearing under her dining room table or on her kitchen floor, and the fact that she kept changes of clothes in various sizes for him, and was just exactly the type of neighbor you wish you'd known as a child, or you wish your children had in their lives, and that it's all wrapped up in this tiny elderly Asian woman, was totally endearing and funny. She is a fabulous character.

So to summarize, really only one thing needs to be said: If you haven't read this novel, you should immediately rectify that situation.

I originally chose this book from Dewey's list. It then appeared on Heatherbird's list as well. Dewey grew up in Chicago and enjoyed reading a story set in an area with which she was very familiar. I understand that completely, as that is one reason why I love Pat Conroy's novels, besides his amazing writing of course. Dewey also has a relationship with her husband that is similar to that of Clare and Henry. Heatherbird chose this book because she likes science fiction that seems realistic.

Good Grief

This review can also be found here.

I read Good Grief by Lolly Winston for the "Something About Me" Reading Challenge. Before I start this review, I have to take a little break to sing

Lolly Lolly Lolly, get your adverbs here!
Lolly Lolly Lolly, got some adverbs here!
Come on down to Lolly's, get the adverbs here!^**

Okay, that's enough. She probably never got THAT growing up.

As I was saying, I read Good Grief by Lolly Winston, which is about a 36 year old woman, Sophie Stanton, who loses her husband to cancer, and her grieving process over the following year or so. It covers her relationship with her mother-in-law, her relationship with her best friend, depression, grief groups, jobs, dating again, psychiatrists and the wonderful medications they prescribe. Written from Sophie's point of view, the novel seems to me to be a realistic portrayal of the feelings someone in Sophie's situation would have and the actions one would take.

What I liked:

I liked Sophie's sense of humor. She couldn't help the things she was doing, but at the same time could see how her behavior might appear to someone else as the behavior of someone at the very least mentally unstable. That was just funny. And I found it SO easy to relate to being able to see a situation from an objective point of view, but still behaving in the situation as someone with a very subjective viewpoint.

My favorite realization Sophie comes to:

Maybe she [Marion, Sophie's mother-in-law] needs me to be her basket case. Just as sometimes you need a person to be strong for you, maybe sometimes you need a person to be weak for you. Maybe I am to Marion what Cops is to me. Kooky screwups who help you tell yourself: Hell, I could be worse.

I liked the relationship between Sophie and her 'Little Sister,' Crystal. Actually, now that I think about it, it was a lot like what Sophie says in the above quote about needing someone to be weak for you. It was when Sophie had to be strong for others, Crystal, her best friend and later her mother-in-law, that she really began to heal.

I'm not going to do a 'what I didn't like' section, because there's nothing that I remember that struck me in an overly negative manner. Overall, it was a fairly quick and enjoyable read with realistic characters.

This novel was from Chasida's list, where she said she chose it because she lives in Silicon Valley and because of her husband's job. So my guess is that her husband has a high-tech job that keeps him busier than they would like. I can relate. I don't live in Silicon Valley, but my husband is Chief Technology Officer for a local bank, which requires long and sometimes lousy hours.



** As a footnote, I miss "Schoolhouse Rock," and really think it should be brought back to Saturday mornings. Along with Mr. Yuckmouth and the little western dude that made the healthy snacks, the wagonwheels and the pineapple and cottage cheese "sundaes" that I think he called "saturdaes."

Booked to Die

As usual, this review can also be found, here.

I read Booked to Die by John Dunning for the "Something About Me" Reading Challenge. It is about a policeman, Cliff Janeway, who loves books. He spends a lot of time in the old and rare bookstores and knows some of the store owners and bookscouts. When a bookscout gets murdered, he thinks it fits the M.O. of his arch-enemy, whom Janeway knows has committed many atrocities, but the evidence is never quite enough to nail him. Janeway goes after his rival with a vengeance, and something happens between them that causes Janeway to give up his badge and become a bookman himself. He gets himself a store and an employee, and immerses himself in the booking business. But the unsolved murder of the bookscout is never far from his mind. Ultimately, events transpire that cause him to decide to solve the crime himself. I really enjoyed the novel. Mystery is one of the genres I read regularly, so it was right up my alley.

What I liked:

I found the whole old and rare book business fascinating. It made me want to go right out to the thrift shops and see if I could find a rare item myself. I didn't, but I wanted to. It made me wonder about the autographed first edition book I just bought in a junk store when we were on vacation. I hadn't even noticed that when I bought it, but I looked at it and the few others I had purchased there while reading this novel. But I never heard of the author, and apparently no one on the Internet had either, and he's still alive and teaching college somewhere in California. So nothing there. From now on, though, I will always look for a little nugget on the bookshelves in a thrift store or at a garage sale.

I liked Janeway's mixed-up political outlook. I think the self-contadicting nature of it is common to many of us. Here's what he says about it:

Today I'm a mess of contradictory political views. I believe in human rights: I liked Jimmy Carter for that reason alone, though I later came to believe that he had sold out his own cause in the game of pure politics. I think the Miranda ruling has generally been good, though the public will never know what a pain it can be to work with. I believe in due process, but enough is enough: I'm a fan of just and swift execution where vicious killers are concerned. It's just ridiculous to keep a guy like Ted Bundy on death row for ten years. I don't believe it when psychologists tell me the death penalty doesn't deter - take a look at kidnapping statistics in the 1930s, when it was made a capital crime after the murder of the Lindburgh baby, before you start to argue with me. I think justice started collapsing under its own weight when they let shrinks into the courtroom. The plain fact is, for some murderers, I just don't care whether they were incapable of reason, were whipped as children for wetting the bed, or had a mother who bayed at the moon. Gacy, Bundy, Manson, Speck - you'll never make me believe the world is a better place with that quartet alive and kicking. I hate abortion, but I'd never pass a law telling a woman she couldn't have one. I believe in the ERA, find it hard to understand why two hundred years after the Bill of Rights we're still arguing about rights for half our people. I like black people, some of them a lot. I supported busing when it was necessary and would again, but there's something about affirmative action that leaves me cold. You can't take away one man's rights and give them to another, even in a good cause.

What I didn't like:

There wasn't really anything in particular I didn't like.

Overall, it was a good read. It might have been fun to have had Pinky, Janeway's employee, or Ruby, another store owner, or both as the crime-solving sidekicks. It would have allowed the reader to get to know those characters better, exposed us to more of Pinky's sense of humor, which I liked, and allowed for an interesting twist that I can't get into because it may give something away. I liked the book, and if anyone is considering reading it, I'd say go ahead, you'll probably enjoy it.

This book was on Bonnie's list, so what did it tell me about her? Well, when she chose this book, she said she had worked in a rare and out-of-print bookstore like those described in the novel. Then she managed a bookstore and now owns her own bookstore. So I'd say she knows a whole lot more about books than the average bookworm. :)

Stargirl

This post can also be found here, except for the part at the end regarding what it says about alisonwonderland.

I read Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli for the "Something About Me" reading challenge. It is a young adult novel that takes a look at the conflicting emotions teenagers face when presented with someone different than themselves. The character Stargirl is, well, weird. But in a sweet and endearing way. The other kids don't know what to make of her. Our narrator, Leo, becomes torn between his growing feelings for her and his desire to conform and be accepted by the rest of his peers. The novel was a well-written super fast read. It was enjoyable and I found it easy to relate to the characters.

What I liked:

I think it was a fairly realistic view of kids of high school age (well, except for the complete lack of smoking, drinking and drugging, but those issues weren't the point of the novel, so we'll forgive the omission). I think we all knew someone like Stargirl, an outcast for no other reason than that she was a unique personality and didn't bother to try to conform. Looking back, I think the reason other kids would steer clear of kids like Stargirl was that they envied them their fearlessness, the ability to just be who they were without worrying about the opinions of others.

I liked her random acts of kindness. In particular I LOVED what she does with spare change. So much so, that I intend to do it myself. Which leads me to my favorite excerpt from the book:

Throughout the day, Stargirl had been dropping money. She was the Johnny Appleseed of loose change: a penny here, a nickel there. Tossed to the sidewalk, laid on a shelf or bench. Even quarters.

"I hate change," she said. "It's so... jangly."

"Do you realize how much you must throw away in a year?" I said.

"Did you ever see a little kid's face when he spots a penny on a sidewalk?" she said.

I liked the old man who had become a kind of mentor to a group of the kids. He was a font of wisdom, yet he didn't just dole it out, he made the kids come to the realizations on their own.

What I didn't like:

Well, to be honest, I can't really think of anything. Oh, wait, there is something. Spinelli spelled Hillari with an "i." That replacing the "y" with an "i" thing for the sole purpose of... well, nothing really, annoys the hell out of me. A byproduct of growing up with a bunch of girls named Candy, Mandy, Tracy, Wendy, Becky, etc., who on the same whim everyone was having back then, became Candi, Mandi, Traci, Wendi, Becki, etc., I guess. They're parents didn't do it to them, they did it to themselves, and then they did it to their kids. Oh, the 80s. :) So I didn't like that, but that's just a petty thing.

Overall, great book! My daughter said she hadn't gotten to it yet, so I'm going to push her on it. And I will be getting her the sequel, which I will also read.

So what does this book say about alisonwonderland? I could state the obvious and say that I think she picked it because Stargirl reminded her of herself or of who she wanted to be as a teen but maybe didn't have the courage. And then I could say that I would think it's the former, because hey, look at her name here in cybertopia: alisonwonderland. Kind of like Stargirl. After that I could say that I looked at her list of choices and why she chose them and they all have a lot to do with finding yourself, that is, figuring out your place in the world in relation to everything around you, embracing it and exploring it and being true to it. To conclude, I could say that alisonwonderland has made this journey herself, and is satisfied with the results. I could say all that. So I will.



I borrowed the image from 3M's review, because the image from Amazon looked like it was glowing like neon.

JMC's Reading Choices

I have posted my choices on my blog. The post is reproduced below:


A while back, I joined a reading challenge. It is now close to the time to begin fulfilling the second part of the challenge, the first part being listing 5 books that say something about me. The second part of the challenge is to read books from the lists of others who are participating in the challenge. After scouring the lists for books that I hadn't read that looked interesting, I have decided on the following, in no particular order except that in which my notes ended up after I dropped them:

From Bonnie's list: Booked to Die by John Dunning

From Twiga's list: The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers

From Chasida's and Margo's lists: Chocolat by Joanne Harris, because I love chocolate and it's usually part of what I sacrifice during Lent.

Also from Chasida's list: Good Grief by Lolly Winston

From Dewey's list: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

From Wendy's list: Place Last Seen by Charlotte McGuinn Freeman

Also from Wendy's list: The Borrowers by Mary Norton, because we have it and it can double as my 6- and 4-year-olds' bedtime story.

From Christina's list: The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes, because I, too, am interested in genetics and genealogy (though I'm too lazy to actually DO any genealogy).

From Jill(mrstreme)'s list: Christ the Lord by Anne Rice

From Suey's list: Papa Married a Mormon by John D. Fitzgerald, because I was raised Mormon (though I am no longer one).

From Booklogged's list: From the Corner of His Eye by Dean Koontz, because coincidentally, I had just asked to mooch this book on Bookmooch when Booklogged posted her list.

Also from Booklogged's list: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo, because my oldest daughter has it and also said it was good.

From Vasilly's list: East of Eden by John Steinbeck, because I had to throw a classic in there somewhere, and this is one I have been meaning to read for years.

From alisonwonderland's list: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, because my daughter has it so I have easy access to it.

From Becky's list: Ender's Game (Ender, Book 1) by Orson Scott Card, because I am not a huge sci-fi fan, but Becky said she hadn't been either until this book.

From Kristin's list: The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Sutterfield

From Nattie's list: Fool's Puzzle by Earlene Fowler

From Stephanie's list: Oh My Goth by Gena Showalter

From Sarah Miller's list: The Giver by Lois Lowry, because it's another one my daughter has, so it's readily available.

From Faith's list: Uglies (Uglies Trilogy, Book 1) by Scott Westerfeld and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

From Juli's list: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle, because it's yet another that is in my daughter's room that I haven't read.

So I will be reading for quite a while. I selected them all because they sound interesting, and some for more specific reasons as mentioned above. Since the time limit for posting each participant's five books isn't over yet, I'll have to reserve the right to add to the list.

In addition, the books on other participant's lists that I have already read (and thus may join in the discussions of) are:
Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (but it's been so long, I may have to re-read in order to discuss)
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (also may need to re-read)
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (another probably need to re-read)
Beach Music by Pat Conroy (which was also on my list)
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) by J.K. Rowling
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (another need to re-read, but I do have very vague recollections)
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1) by JK Rowling
A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank Gilbreth, Jr. (LOVED this, and read it multiple times growing up. Frank Gilbreth, Jr., ended up in my hometown of Charleston, SC, as a humor columnist for the Charleston Post and Courier. He used the pseudonym "Ashley Cooper," which as anyone from Charleston knows, are the names of the two rivers on either side of the Charleston peninsula that come together to form the Atlantic Ocean. ;) Once a year, he would 'fess up and admit who he really was.)
The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

JMC's Five

This challenge sounds like fun. I've already found some of the ones I want to read when the challenge starts. I'll be diligently working through the pile on the floor beside my bed so I can devote the time to this challenge come August first. Here's my list:

Beach Music by Pat Conroy
I chose this book because it is my absolute favorite book. I'm from the area in SC where it is set, and I feel that Conroy captures it perfectly. I love when you're reading a novel and can completely relate. I even recently wrote a post about it. Also check out another of my posts about the Cooper River Bridge. It's brief mention in the novel actually plays a large role throughout, because of what happened on it.

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Okay, I haven't read this book since high school, but I chose it because strangely enough, I do think about it quite a bit. Mainly because, while I would NEVER consider committing a crime, I do often think about if I DID want to commit the perfect crime, how would I go about it. It wouldn't be easy considering all the advances in forensic science. Just a little mental exercise you may want to try as you're standing in line behind that person with a full grocery cart in the 15 items or less lane.

Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz
I just recently re-discovered Dean Koontz. I didn't care much for his earlier work, where he is trying to channel Stephen King, because I don't usually like the supernatural intertwined into my murder mysteries, so I had given up on him. Then a few months ago, I picked up something else by him, and while it still had a little supernatural stuff going on, it was a compelling read. So I gave him another chance, and I am now enjoying his newer stuff, particularly the Odd Thomas trilogy, of which this is the first novel. I chose it here because of the dry sense of humor interspersed with non sequiturs in the dialogue of the characters. It's my sense of humor exactly, which is why it is so difficult to find anyone who understands just exactly what the hell I am talking about.

The Redhead Handbook by Cort Cass
I selected this book because I am a redhead. I hated my hair as a kid. I can still remember when I was elementary school age, being out in my yard and having high school boys ride by on their bikes yelling, "I'd rather be dead than be red on the head." Nice boys, they were. And I actually was a redheaded step-child. Anyway, now I love it. It is unusual. Other people want it. Other people have to dye their hair to get it (and it doesn't always turn out so well). There are songs written about it, there are books written about it, there are entire photo anthologies devoted to it. Now, being a redhead is great. Except for the sunburn. That part sucks.

And finally...
Stick Kid by Peter Holwitz
Yes, it is a children's book. But hey, it'll only take you a few minutes to complete one of the other people's books you are supposed to read. It's like a college crip-course. Easy "A." All that aside, there is actually a good reason why I chose this book. This is a fantastic children's book. I have children. Four of them. All girls. The stick kid in this book is a boy, but the sentiment is the same. It made me cry. It will make you cry. Unless you are cold and heartless.

And there you have it. After you read these books, you will know all there is to know about me. Except these things. And some others that I won't mention here or there, but maybe you'll find them in one of BookishJudith's five books: Postsecret. ;)