Book Review: The Secret Life of Bees

And finally, one more for book review week. It’s a book I’ve put off for awhile, but found I really quite enjoyed it! (I’d probably even watch the movie. Oh, heck. Who am I kidding? I would totally watch it.)

Book Review for: The Secret Life of Bees
By Sue Monk Kidd

I liked the twists and turns as well as the never-really-knowing-the-answer to certain things in the character’s life. She doesn’t know, so neither do we.

The main character (I love her moxi) breaks her housekeeper out of jail (yes, you read right) and runs away. But wait, there’s more. Her housekeeper is Black and it is during the civil rights upheaval. And she’s White. And just a kid. And she pulls it off. And that’s just the beginning.

She has one destination in mind when she runs away, and no real plan. But somehow things work out like her ‘trip’ was preordained. Not only does she find a home, but she finds some of the answers she’s always been seeking.

I think the reason I steered away from this book for so long was the bee part. Being raised a beekeeper, I often find that books about bees or beekeepers are often incorrect. This one had one thing that wasn’t quite right, but otherwise, she did a fantastic job of working bees and their world into this novel. Without the bees the book just wouldn’t have been quite as sweet.

P.S. Thanks to my mother-in-law for handing this book down to me some time ago. Thanks! I enjoyed it immensely. And, er, sorry about the spaghetti I spilled on page 106 and 107. I gather you were giving the book to me, but if you want it back, I’ll buy you a new copy. Sorry about that. (Who let me become a keeper of books–aka librarian–anyway?)

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Book Review: Push

Book Review: Push
By Sapphire

Written like an ongoing journal (without date entries), a girl from Harlem tells the story of her life. She is sixteen, expecting her second baby (by her father) and is barely literate. She’s in grade nine and has the mouth of a sailor. Her story starts out like it is being written by someone who has troubles with spelling and grammar (however, it isn’t difficult for the reader to decipher) and as the story progresses, so too, do the writing skills.

While this book deals with difficult topics (incest, poverty, racism, abuse–physical, sexual and emotional) there is something inspiring and freshly real about the main character that makes it not just an important story that may open your eyes, but also a compelling and entertaining story as well. Will she get to keep this baby? Will she graduate high school? Will she be able to get her own house? Will she be able to break the cycle of abuse? Will she get off Welfare? Will she ‘get away’ from her abusers? Will she be a good mother? So many questions and so many possible answers.

P.S. This book has also been made into a movie called ‘Precious.’

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Book Review: Hand of Fate

Book Review: Hand of Fate
By: Lis Wiehl with April Henry

A vocal radio host is killed in studio, leaving three heroines to find the killer. Jim Fate is a man (sorry, was a man) who spent his hours on air bringing his listeners to a froth with his extreme views and uncanny ability to poke his finger right into the middle of any hot spot. Loved and hated, the list of suspects includes half his hometown city of Portland, Oregon. It’s up to Cassidy (TV crime reporter), Nicole (FBI agent), and Allison (Federal Prosecutor) to get through the suspect list while dealing with their own personal issues.

I have to admit that I am not the biggest reader of crime fiction. However, I have read enough to know what to expect. Lis Wiehl’s (with April Henry) book Hand of Fate was a bit different in that regard. While it was an easy and fast read with plenty of drama, mystery, and twists, whenever you got to the good and exciting parts–like someone delivering a round house kick to the bad guy–suddenly you were swept off into a new chapter where things were calm and the characters were summing up events over yet more chocolate. That bugged me. I’d rather be swept right through the action and drama and not be told how it all ended. I want to see it, feel it, be gripped by it.

I received this book through ThomasNelson’s Booze Sneeze program and you can get your own copy through Amazon:

Book Review: The Alchemist

Book Review: The Alchemist
By Paulo Coelho

This is a story about following your Personal Legend. Santiago, a young shepherd in Spain, has a reoccurring dream about finding a treasure. Through a string of omens he finds what he needs to set about following his dream. Over the span of two years, he grows into a man who learns the value of listening to one’s heart whether literally or metaphorically. Although he loses everything several times over during his quest, Santiago discovers that if you are following your true dream, you will always have what you need, doors will open, and you will find yourself fulfilling your dream.
The funny thing about traveling the world to find your treasure (or yourself), is that it can lead you right back to where you started.

This story uses omens quite a bit. While I quite like the idea of omens, I do fear that they can be easy to miss, misinterpret, and even make false assumptions that something might be an omen, when in fact, it isn’t. The question that keeps coming back to me is: How do you know if something is an omen or simply a coincidence? Are there such things as coincidences? Maybe it is as Coehlo often repeats, Maktub. It is written. And when it is written, there simply is no way of getting around it.

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Book Review: 5 Cities That Ruled the World

Book Review: 5 Cities That Ruled the World: How Jerusalem, Athens, Rome, London and New York Shaped Global History
By Douglas Wilson

Well, sadly, I have to admit that this book was not for me. I suppose I was expecting more of a social history or a socio-geographical history that linked the past great cities to today. And yes, there was some of that, but the book was heavy on the religious history which is not currently an area of interest for me.  If you are into ancient history and religious history, then you will find this to be a great, fascinating book.

Wilson covers Jerusalem (talk about a long history of fighting there–wow), Athens (city of ancient philosophers), Rome (amazing how much of current law originated there), London (literature), and New York (commerce). Personally, I found the history of London and New York to be the most interesting. Did you know London has burned at least 20 times in its history? Yikes. (Better buy fire insurance if you live there.) And New York is also a intriguing city that, indeed, seems to be currently the world’s center. I enjoyed Wilson’s perspectives and insights on New York. Although the city is relatively young (but older than I realized), it has become a center for the world. He also discusses how and why it became a target, and more.

In every nonfiction book there is usually a statement that makes me pause and look at things a little differently. In this book it was: “England’s greatest achievement–in terms of long-range impact–was the creation of the American colonies and the subsequent creation of the United States by losing those colonies.” Hmmm. What would today look like if England hadn’t lost the American colonies? Would it be the same anyway? Or would it be different? And if so, how? Maybe Montreal or Toronto would be the New York.

Book Review: King by Right of Blood and Might

Book Review: King by Right of Blood and Might
By Anna L. Walls

Young Prince Harris has been raised in isolation and has no clue how to go about being a king. His father, very much aware of how trapped and innocent his son is, arranges to have him fostered in a neighbouring country. Slowly, Harris learns what he needs to know about ruling a land. After his father’s murder, Harris strives to pull his kingdom back together, even going as far as to personally fight bandits who have taken control over his land and his people.

This fantasy story has some magical elements which adds another dimension and layer to the story. While Walls is a new writer who has self-published this story, and her writing is rough in places, she is an author to watch as she has great potential and has a natural ability to weave a tale that pulls readers into foreign lands. I rooted for Harris and you will too.

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Book Review: All the Tea in Chicago

Book Review: All the Tea in Chicago
By: Susan Blumberg-Kason

I love tea. Chai tea, green tea, you name it, and name it tea, I’ll probably drink it. Yet, I’ve always resisted going for high tea. Or afternoon tea, British-style. I’m not sure why. I suppose it is the idea of paying approximately twenty dollars for tea and a few crustless sandwiches. I did have ‘proper’ tea in England at least a decade ago, but day-old scones with jam somehow didn’t do it for me. However, after reading some of the descriptions in Blumberg-Kason’s book, I am ready to jump on a plane, fly to Chicago and sit down and cough up twenty dollars for tea, chicken salad on walnut bread, crepes with peanut sauce, chocolate canele and more. Much, much more. (She mentions which places gracefully and willing to serve seconds and thirds.) If that isn’t enough to sell you on going for tea, how about the idea of slipping into a seat at a place called Infini-tea or Serenitea?

If you aren’t up for the whole tea and meal deal, there is a section that lists and describes restaurants, shops and tea houses. The guide mentions which places are child friendly (some places even have special tea for children), have wifi, and are wheelchair accessible.) It also contains tea facts and quotes, a list of tea websites, and a glossary. Just reading the guide (thousands of miles from Chicago) I learned that green tea in Japan is often made from a powder (crushed leaves) and that tea fights harmful bacteria and viruses. As well, loose tea is better than bags and there is this crazy new-fangled tea called bubble tea that has tapioca in it. Yum!

There are tea people in this world. Are you one? If so, you’ll enjoy this book, even if you never set foot in Chicago.

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Book Review: Goodnight Nobody

Book Review: Goodnight Nobody
By Jennifer Weiner

Take suburbia, take cookie-cutter, large, new homes, take the scariest uber, super-dee-dooper mom you know and magnify her, then multiply her, put it all together along with some literal backstabbing…and you have the backdrop for Goodnight Nobody.

Kate Klein is a former-reporter who has 3 children who are all 3 and under. Due to a stroller-napping int he big city, she finds herself safely tucked away in the Land of the Lost, i.e. suburbia. It all seems like a typical ‘I don’t fit in, please help me God’ day until she arrives at a playdate to find the uberest super-mommy lying in a puddle of her own blood. Kate slips into detective mode (but only while her children are in playschool) and resolves that come hell or high water, she will solve this crime. Naturally, she ruffles many feathers, freaks out her over-protective husband and maybe, just maybe, collects the attention of a former flame.

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