I Can’t Believe I Read the Whole Thing

I just finished a biography of Mary Queen of Scots. I think it took me like three months to read. Or it felt like it at least. I just don’t get the time to read like I used to. I just wanted to get done with it before we leave for Mexico because a) it’s not exactly beach reading; and b) who wants to carry that heavy book on a plane?

I had originally bought another biography of her by Antonia Fraser, who is apparently quite the biographer, but reading it was like chewing sawdust so I set it aside. Then I found this one that got good reviews as far as readability went. I had to order it used from some random seller on Amazon and then a week later I saw it on the Publisher’s Remainders table at the book store for about half of what I paid for it. Typical.

I was actually impressed at how easy it was to read. It was just really really long. I did get confused by all the names - Moray and Maitland and Mar and Argyll and Huntley…. wow! It is a long cast of characters. But it was surely fascinating. Really all I knew about her was from both of the Elizabeth movies which of course were told from Elizabeth’s point of view. Truly interesting and tragic stuff.

The minute I finished it, though, my head was about to explode with knowledge so I had to pick up some fluff to read. I’ll probably live, in a literary way, on fluff for a while before diving back into another serious book. I’m looking for a good, readable biography of Elizabeth I if anyone knows of one.

It’s Like Rekindling an Old Friendship

In the past month, I’ve read two books by Stephen King. I should say here that I love Stephen King books. Mostly the old stuff but really almost all of it. The Shining and It are probably my two favorites of his. I also am convinced that the reason so many people of my generation don’t like clowns is due in no small part to having read It. I don’t like the Dark Tower series but other than that, I’m a fan. I don’t know why I hadn’t ready anything of his in a while but I just recently picked up Lisey’s Story and Cell at the Half-Price Books that just opened near my house.

I love to read and sadly that’s been one of the “me” time things I’ve given up the most since having Bridget. I just don’t get to go off in a corner or spend a weekend with my nose in a book. No matter what, I usually do read a few pages every night before bed, but the going is slow. And Stephen King books do tend to be a bit long. However, I made it through Lisey’s Story in a little over a week, and Cell in about the same.

Cell really grabbed me from the minute I opened it and I stayed up way too late way too many nights in a row, but I just finished it today. I love when a book gets my heart pounding and I have to remind myself that I’m not actually in the story. It was so good! Scary and amazing but so good. I’m even making Jake read it next, and he’s never read any Stephen King before. I don’t know that he’d like the classics that I love, but I think the subject matter of this one will really strike his fancy.

I’m actually pretty disappointed that I finished it, sort of how I felt when I finished the last Harry Potter. But I have a big stack of to-be-read books on my nightstand awaiting me, so off I go to see what will be next. Probably something light-hearted after that scary one. Maybe some Sweet Potato Queens are just what the doctor ordered.

Our Little Bookworm

Have I mentioned how much Bridget is obsessed with books? For the past month or so, she can’t be more than a foot from a book of some sort. When she wakes up in the morning, she immediately points to her book shelf and demands “Boo!” That’s pronounced like “book” only without the k at the end, by the way. On the changing table, she continually asks for a book. The challenge is to look through the pile of books on the nightstand to figure out which “boo” it is she wants. Because she knows exactly which one and it’s our job to deliver the goods. It’s absolutely funniest when she’s on the changing table because she’ll take her book and lie back, then cross one ankle over the other knee and flip through the pages.  We have books upstairs, books downstairs, books in Jake’s office, books for the car. She even has a couple bathtub books.

One of my favorite things in the world is when she brings me a book then backs down into my lap for me to read it to her. Whenever she does it, I just want to squeeze her, but I can’t. She doesn’t wait that long. She usually won’t let me get through more than a page or two before she is up and getting another book. Sometimes she’ll close the book and say “buh-bye”, other times she’ll just get up and go without a word. There’s no rhyme or reason to it that I can tell.

But tell me - is it awful of me that some of her books I hate so much that I daily consider throwing them in the trash while she’s sleeping so I never have to read them again?

Yeah, I thought so too.

Interesting Quote from Book

From A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby:

People go on about places like Starbucks being unpersonal and all that, but what if that’s what you want? I’d be lost if JJ and people like that got their way, and there was nothing unpersonal in the world. I like to know that there are big places without windows where no one gives a shit. You need confidence to go into small places with regular customers - small bookshops and small music shops and small restaurants and cafes. I’m happiest in the Virgin Megastore and Borders and Starbucks and PizzaExpress where no one gives a shit, and no one knows who you are. My mum and dad are always going on and on about how soulless those places are, and I’m like, Der. That’s the point.

I find that I really identify with this quote. I prefer to remain completely alone when shopping, in most cases. I don’t want help. I’d rather look for what I want on my own for half an hour than spend the two minutes in the company of a store employee showing me where the item is.

I don’t want to discuss it with someone. I don’t want advice from the employee. I would prefer to buy almost anything online with no human contact.

I don’t want to book my airfare with some disgruntled airline employee who might or might not be an idiot and screw up my reservation.

If I want to buy something and my only option is to call an 800 number to do so, I’ll think long and hard about whether I really want that thing.

I am not really a shy person, I think that the issue is that I don’t really like people all that much. I mean, I like my people, but I am no Will Rogers. I think this is a side effect of working in HR for too long.

I don’t assume that just because some jackass got a job for minimum wage at a book store that he knows anything about books or that even if he does know about books, that I will place any stock in his opinion.

I always assume that when you ask for help in stores, you are just begging to be upsold on stuff you don’t need or want. It’s much easier to look at a price tag and quickly walk away (or click away) without someone standing over you. I find it hard to say no to a person’s face so I’d just rather do my own thing and not be bothered.

I like Starbucks because I can count on it. I know that I can get what I want there and not worry about not liking how it’s been made. I can count on what they have there. And I don’t want to be chatted up while I’m getting coffee. I don’t typically sit and drink there - I just want to get in, get my drink and get out. I don’t care about someone knowing what my “usual” is and getting it started as soon as they seem me walk in the door. So Starbucks serves my purposes just fine.

What do you think this says about me? Am I just a hateful person? Is there anyone out there who identifies with me? Are you a loner when it comes to shopping or do you prefer personal attention? Do you accept or even seek out a person to help you? Tell me, I’m curious.

Bummed

I stayed up until 1:30 this morning finishing Harry Potter. And now I am bummed. Not because of the ending. Just that I’m done with it and there will be no more. At least I have movies five through seven to look forward to (no I still haven’t seen Order of the Phoenix but I hope to very soon).

I won’t give anything away but if anyone wants to dish about the ending, feel free to comment and I’ll email you. I have no one to talk to about it around here.  Jake doesn’t read them and no one else I know except in blogland is finished yet.

Hurry up!

Son of a Bitch

One of the sites I moderate includes a Harry Potter wiki and I’ll be goddamned if some asshole didn’t just post about the ending of the last book.

Fuck.

Damn Muggles

This weekend was full of things designed to keep me from reading my new Harry Potter book.  I had been so diligent, re-reading books five and six (to prepare for the movie as well as the new book). I finished book six at about 5 p.m. on Friday afternoon, just in the nick of time for the arrival of book seven on Saturday. Except it didn’t arrive until after 1 p.m. and finally showed up just as I was on my way to run about a zillion errands. I had exactly 15 minutes to lay around Saturday evening before getting ready to go out so I read chapter one. Then I got home around midnight and had the energy to read chapters two and three. I don’t think I got to read any yesterday, and today I sneaked some reading in while work was quiet. I think I am on chapter six or seven now. And I love it!

But really  I had a great weekend. My cousin came in town with her boyfriend, whom we all believe to be The One. So Friday I packed up  Bridgie and we met them for lunch just for a bit. Then that evening all of us cousins went out and left all three kiddos with Grandma and Grandpa. We had wonderful margaritas and Tex-Mex at Chuy’s. Saturday night I went with my lovely sister-in-law to see Kathy Griffin. I DOUBLE HEART Kathy Griffin and was so thrilled when I checked her website a few months back to see that I hadn’t missed her by a few days, as is usually the case.  So I snatched up tickets, and then found out Jake had no interest in going. Which worked out perfect for us, because I had been hoping she and I would get to have a girls’ night out soon and we did. Complete with yummy Mexican food!

Sunday we went to my brother and SIL’s house to cook out and swim. It was Bridget’s first time in the pool. At first she wasn’t impressed, but once she was in for a while she dug it. Plus R&M have this really cool floatie toy for their daughter that we used for a bit when she was done with it. Bridgie could float and be in the shade and chill. She liked that.

Anyway, I am off to bed very soon to make some serious progress on my Harry Potter book. Is it wrong to be this excited about it?

Tuesday Book Review

I started a book on Friday night at the hotel after we got to Austin. It was 11:30 or so when we checked in, and I was exhausted, but I was also wired from having had to stay awake to drive, and plus I just really can’t go to sleep without reading a little bit, no matter how tired I am. So I started The Pact: A Love Story by Jodi Picoult on Friday night. And I finished it Sunday night right before I went to bed. I can’t even remember when the last time I finished a book in one weekend was. This is the third book by Picoult that I have read and I like them, but I think I am getting sick of them. I read My Sister’s Keeper first, which I thought was incredible. Such a unique story idea, and I totally did not see the ending coming. Then I read Salem Falls, which I got for Christmas, and I started to see a theme. Picoult seems fascinated by the legal system and sensational trials. In fact, the defense lawyer in Salem Falls is the same one we meet in The Pact. I’m not sure which one was written first, but I find it strange to see a repeat character in a scenario like this where the books aren’t based on the character, like Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta or James Patterson’s Alex Cross. But then again, there is no main character in any of the Picoult books I have read, as every story has been told from multiple points of view. And that is one of the things I actually like about her books. It’s interesting and I haven’t made up my mind about her yet. I have one more that was also a Christmas present - Perfect Match, and I’ll get around to reading that one day soon. There are many other Picoult books out there and I’ll see how this one goes and maybe I’ll work my way through the rest of them. The Pact was interesting, and very sad, but at the same time, I just couldn’t identify with what was going on. The story in a nutshell is of the trial of a teenage boy, whose girlfriend was shot in the head. He claims they had a suicide pact, but that he passed out after seeing her kill herself and didn’t get the chance to carry out his own suicide.

I just started Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins. I’ve never ready anything by him before, but this is one book I have always thought I should read, so I bought it. I am only a few pages in and am a little concerned. It’s strange. But I think if I stick with it, I will enjoy it. I’m a very impatient reader and books that are verbose for no apparent reason tend to annoy me. We’ll see if I can get past it. Robbins has written quite a few books and I’d be really happy to have a new author in my pocket. It may be strange, but I really enjoy going to a bookstore and saying, “Oh! There is a new book by so-and-so!” and buying it knowing I’ll enjoy it. Not that I don’t enjoy finding new authors and books, but I like the comfort of an author I love. I’ll keep you posted on how I do with this one.

Night Fall

I just finished a great book! Night Fall by Nelson DeMille. I’ve read some of his stuff before, and I like most of it. I really enjoy the character Detective John Corey, who is the main character in this book.

Corey is a former NYPD homicide detective who now works with a group of FBI and CIA agents on the Anti-Terrorism Task Force or ATTF. He’s a total smart-ass and cracks me up all the time. He was also in Plum Island and The Lion’s Game.

This book opens with the memorial for the fifth anniversary of TWA flight 800 which exploded shortly after takeoff from Kennedy airport, bound for Paris. That happened, if you’ll remember back, on July 17, 1996. The explosion was witnessed by over 200 people in the Long Island/Hamptons area. And apparently, there is some dispute over the cause of the crash. Officially, the NTSB ruled that it was an electrical problem in the empty center fuel tank, which caused two explosions. The problem with that is that almost every one of the 200 witnesses say they saw what looked like a rocket or missile rising from the ground, zig-zagging as it approached the the plane, and then the explosion. The conclusion of those people is obviously that the plane was shot down, either by terrorists or by accident by the US military. You can see more information on those theories here.

So back to the book…. Corey attends the memorial on Long Island with his wife, an FBI agent who worked on the investigation right after the crash. It comes to light that a couple was on the beach that night, making a sex tape of themselves, and accidentally recorded the missile and the explosion. But since they were both married to other people, they were reluctant to come forward. And the government, eager to hush up the idea that it was not an accident, covers up the trail of this couple. Corey of course, has to go against orders and starts to investigate on his own.

Now, if you do the math, you will note that the fifth anniversary of this tragedy was in July of 2001. So as a reader, you know what the characters don’t - that there will be an undeniable terrorist attack within two months. But you don’t know what the fate of these characters will be.

It’s an action-packed book. I love that the World Trade Center is almost like a character. It was slightly eerie, I thought, but not terribly so. I read this book faster than I have read anything lately; I simply couldn’t put it down.

Note to readers - this is not the book you want to take with you to read on a plane. I was reading it on my last trip to DC. Best to avoid all mention of plane crashes while you are actually in an airplane. Just a tip.

Go read this book.

Harry Potter

I currently have a large stack of books on my nightstand, just waiting for me to crack the spines and dig in. I actually started a great book, but set it aside so that I could re-read the fifth Harry Potter book. I like to re-read the one previous each time a new one comes out so that it’s fresh in my memory where we are starting from.

The problem is that, this time, I started re-reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix just a little too late. Now I have Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince sitting there, taunting me. I am reading people’s blogs about how they have already finished book six, and I am still trying to make it through the fifth one. It’s killing me! I want to know who dies! And I just can’t seem to make enough time to read like I want to. I think I should take tomorrow off to read my book.