book reviews

Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. This series is apparently quite popular, and I have no idea why. The plotting is sloppy, the main character more that of a graphic novel than of a literary one, and over a third of the book is taken up by an extremely dull side plot that is only loosely connected to the main plot. It's not a bad book, for all that, but nothing about it made me in the least curious to read the next one.

Louis L'Amour, Crossfire Trail. Another gem. This one had some unusual twists, including the main character being put on trial for a gunfight, in addition to many of the standard L'Amouresque characters and plot points. It didn't feel as carefully constructed as many, but it was still highly enjoyable.

Erle Stanley Gardner, The Case of the Lazy Lover. Unusually for Gardner, the title here seemed like a bit of a stretch. The book wasn't bad, with some nice changes to the way he picked up his client, but the client herself was even more annoying than usual with her refusal to play things Mason's way. Overall, not one of his best, but not too bad.

Anne Perry, Seven Dials. Better than the previous few for its lack of grandiose conspiracy theories, I enjoyed this one because it returned to the people's lives a bit more, had two parallel plots being investigated - one international and one domestic - and was overall less preachy and filled with overblown speeches than many of the other recent books in this series.

happy summer vacation!

Slept in till 9, check.
No alarm clock, check.
Catching up on laundry, check.
Nothing on the schedule, check.
To-do list in progress, check.
Three children begging for food and already starting to fight, check check.

Yep, seems like we have everything!

last day of school

Today the third and last kid gets out of school! This has its pluses - no more alarm clock; lazy unscheduled days; the kids home to hang out with - and its minuses - no more quiet house with everyone in school or asleep; lots more fighting; children needing to be entertained.

It was a good school year. The kids did some good growing, all of them had fun in school and learned a lot, and now it's summer, with all that nice warm sunny weather. Hoping to do some exciting things with them amongst a lot of aggressive hanging out.

book reviews

JoAnn Levy, They Saw the Elephant: Women in the California Gold Rush. This book was written before women's history, or domestic history, was popular, but it still holds up well, even after all the books that have been written since. It's well researched, covers a number of different topics, and uses quotes from women's letters and diaries thoughtfully.

Sydney Taylor, All-of-a-Kind Family Downtown. I love this series, a sweet little set of stories about a Jewish family in turn-of-the-century New York. This one was a little weaker than some of the others - the chapters were too choppy, the tone changed between chapters too quickly, and the overarching storyline kept getting lost in the change between chapters. Nonetheless, it's still a nice story.

Thomas J. Farnham, Travels in the Great Western Prairies. This is a travelogue of a man's journey across country to the Oregon territory in 1839. It's written very dryly, but from a research standpoint is invaluable, filled with information about the author's travels, the scenes he passes through, and his thoughts about same. I can't see myself reading it cover to cover again, but I can imagine consulting it again.

Rick Riordan, The Sea of Monsters. I'm really enjoying this series. The second installment was an interesting adventure, with tidbits of history and mythology thrown in (an author who credits Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain with changing the course of the Civil War definitely gets a bonus in my book!), and an underlying theme of family and friendship and finding out who you are that's not too subtle but doesn't hit you over the head either.

5 things that make me happy today

The cobwebs are clearing very slowly from my brain, after being awakened in the middle of a very sad dream. What I need here (besides a nap) is energy.

1. Hot water. Showers, baths, coffee/tea, you name it. The energizing properties of hot water are not to be sneezed at.

2. Sun. Okay, hot rays of sun beating down also tend to make me sleepy, but it's a happy kind of sleepy.

3. School. (And naps.) In a single short hour, I will have two children in school and one napping. Sadly, I won't be following her example, but I will be basking in the quiet moments.

4. Escapist literature. Currently in the middle of the second Percy Jackson book. It's not deathless prose, but it's fun and interesting. (And bonus, I get to talk about it with my kid!)

5. Did I mention coffee? Coffee good.

figures

On a shelf in my medicine cabinet, I had a box of Yardley's Olde English Lavendar soap. It was my Aunt Jennie's favorite brand. I think it was actually her box of soap. (Considering she died in the late '80s, that's quite the box of soap.) I'd hung onto it, saving it, feeling a certain kinship to my family, through countless moves. So the other week, at last, I opened the box.

Inside was some cheap bar of hotel soap. And I thought, really, could it be any more symbolic? I hold onto something, treasuring it as an emblem of my family, and it turns out to be only pretty packaging around a cheap generic item that means nothing.

Fortunately, I'm somewhat beyond being saddened by this. Mostly I just figure it's typical and am glad to be raising my own family, immune to the issues created by my family of origin.

book reviews

Robert Newton Peck, Trig Sees Red. This is a book I remember reading when I was a kid, and loving. It did not translate that well to reading aloud to the boys, though! I enjoyed it, and they mostly tolerated it.

Rex Stout, Too Many Women. This installment in the series was notable for showcasing Archie's banter and his obsession with women (as the title suggests) far more than anything to do with Wolfe. Since Archie's banter is most entertaining, it was an interesting read, but I prefer a little more investigating and a little less playing around.

Anne Perry, Southampton Row. Oh, hey, more conspiracy theory. Imagine that. Granted, having started this metaplot, I can understand how it would be hard to get out of, but I wish she would go back to murders that don't have 'save the world' hanging from them. Additionally, the painfully slow-moving romance between two of the secondary characters either needs to move, or end. Her books are entertaining reading still, but she seems to be losing her enthusiasm for the characters and focusing more on the plot, which is the opposite of what I wish she would do.

Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief. Really enjoyed this one. There were a couple of plot issues, particularly at the beginning, but overall it was a well-imagined world alteration, and I enjoyed both the plot and the characters. I look forward to moving on to the second book.

week of Greyson

And so the week devoted to the activities of my oldest child has passed. Birthday went well; piano recital went well (he was so serious, and played so nicely); passed his ATA fitness test; tried what he thought of as his best at the black belt testing; birthday party was fun for all.

Whether he tried hard enough to actually receive his full black belt is another question. Lessons will be learned either way. In some ways, I hope he doesn't pass, so he can get (or be given!) the idea that when you want something, you sometimes really have to work for it.

And now we're back to a semblance of normalcy, with a week full of standard activities for the kids, and a little more than standard for me. Which means I need to get off the blog and get some things done!

5 things

that have kept me busy this week! It's been (for me) an unusually busy week, and these are some of the reasons why.

1. Tae kwon do. My big guy is testing for his full black belt this weekend, so there's been lots of extra practice time this week as well as the fitness test.

2. Dog. No question this animal is a people person. He's so underfoot I have to be careful not to step on his head every time I get up. Add to that the hair all over the kitchen, and he has certainly added complexity to this week.

3. Writing. Both the stories I'm writing are a bit behind where I like them to be given my posting schedule, and I've been struggling to keep up with them.

4. Work. I don't have so much in, but there's been enough that I've had to make time to keep up.

5. School stuff. Between finishing up my duties as room parent for Veronica's class, Veronica finishing up school for the year, Charles's half-day schedule, Greyson's regular schedule, and discussions/scheduling beginning for next week's book fair and next year's directory, school has been a fairly large part of my week.

Next week has a fair amount on the calendar as well, but won't be quite as frantic.

last day of preschool

It's a bittersweet moment. Miss Bunny loves her school, loves her friends, loves to be going somewhere of her own, and is not going to be happy to be home with Mommy the rest of the summer. Mommy loves Miss Bunny going to school, and is going to be frustrated and challenged by my 4-year-old for the summer.

On the other hand - it's one less pick-up/drop-off to worry about. I will no longer be room parent, hallelujah! (Halle-e-lujahhhhhh!!!!!) And I fully expect next year to be even more fun for her. We might be able to do some fun things with Charles before the boys get out of school. And there's a lot to be said for time spent with my little girl, who is growing up so fast.

book reviews

J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Yes, I'm behind. I only just finished reading this to my boys. Overall, I like Harry, but I'm not rabid about him. In the first two books, there are entirely too many times when he should talk to Dumbledore instead of stumbling about on his own, and it's too unbelievable that three novice magicians resolve these issues when the best wizards in the kingdom have not. Nonetheless, quibbles aside, it was a fun little book and the boys enjoyed it.

Jeffry D. Wert, The Sword of Lincoln. This book follows the trials and tribulations of the Army of the Potomac throughout the war, focusing largely on the changes at the top, but with a lot of reference to soldiers' letters and diaries to get their viewpoint as well. It's a good overview, and due to its nature covers quite a few areas that don't get a lot of attention normally.

Roger Lea MacBride, On the Other Side of the Hill. These books are interesting when you try and view the events from Laura's perspective rather than from Rose's. In this one, with droughts and fires and various other setbacks, you see the restless Laura of her own books straining against the ties that keep her in debt on a struggling farm, while at the same time pushing onward toward her ultimate goal of making it prosperous.

Edith Hamilton, Mythology. I could swear I tried to read this classic once before, and couldn't make it through. I can't imagine why. I found this a well-written, in-depth, entertaining overview of Greek mythology, with dabbles into Roman and Norse, as well.

the birthday boy

Today my giant blond kid turns 8. Which seems like a big number when you think about it. He's suddenly very tall, and he's learning so much, which makes him so interesting to talk to. When he's paying attention, which he's often not. Overall, he gets better with every passing year, and I don't really mind him getting bigger. Not as long as I still get the occasional snuggle, which I do (as long as it's not in front of anyone, that is!).