Dreams From My Father by Barack Obama

Genre: memoir, non-fiction
Pages: 264, paperback
Published: 1995
Rating: 4/5
FTC Disclosure: Bought from Target

I never knew that President Barack Obama was a writer before he entered the political world. So I decided to pick this one up last year and read more about my new Commander-in-Chief, the first African-American President of the United States! I'm so glad I did. He has a beautiful way with words. He came from so many different worlds and he tried to understand them all...his white mother and Kenyan father. He lived in Indonesia for a few years as well. He tried to understand who he was and where he came from. He only met his father once...

He eventually went to Chicago to be a political organizer, to help get things turned around in neighborhoods that didn't have too much. And he eventually makes it to his father's native land of Kenya where he meets all of his family. Where he learns that "if everyone's your family then no one is."

This book was so insightful not only on race and life, but on the man himself, how he thinks and feels about the stuff of life. He's a down-to-earth guy who's trying to make life better for those around him. And in the end I like who he is what he thinks.

Some wonderful quotes: "That's what the leadership was teaching me, day by day: that the self-interest I was supposed to be looking for extended well beyond the immediacy of issues, that beneath the small talk and sketchy biographies and received opinions, people carried with them some central explanation of themselves. Stories full of terror and wonder, studded with events that still haunted or inspired them. Sacred stories. "

"It was as if he had come to mistrust words somehow. Words, and the sentiments words carried."

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Summary: Lily Owens is 14 in 1964 in the South. She accidentally killed her mother when she was four years old, has an abusive father, and breaks her nanny Rosaleen out of jail. They hit the road to escape their lives and to find out about Lily's mother, her past. They are led to Tiburon, South Carolina and to the home of August Boatwright. Lily learns about love and life and forgiveness.

I really loved this book. It's a wonderful coming of age story and it contains so many truths about love and life. Lily is confronted with her feelings about whites and blacks when she comes to live with August and her sisters. All of them are intelligent and cultured; Lily had always assumed she would be the smartest in the room. Just one of the many truths she learns on her journey and at the same time it makes us the readers examine our own prejudices and long-held "truths."

I also watched the movie right after reading this and was pleasantly surprised by how close they stayed to the novel. They changed a couple of things for dramatic effect, but overall they were true to the source. Dakota Fanning plays Lily perfectly and Queen Latifah is always wonderful!

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

I was expecting some good things from this book and I was not disappointed. It's full of action, thoughtfulness, love and romance, and zombies. All things I love in a novel. Though, the ending was a bit disappointing. I'm hoping that the ending means their are more books to come in this world of the Unconsecrated. I am informed that yes, there is a sequel The Dead-tossed Waves due out in March, I think.

We see the world from the perspective of Mary. She lives in a small village in the middle of a forest that is infested with zombies. They are the last remnants of the human race uninfected or so the Sisterhood tells everyone. But soon the village is finally overrun by the zombies and her, her brother, her friend, and the two men she loves escape with her into the forest. Her mother has told her stories of the world before the zombies came into it and she sets out to find the ocean and this world that may be free from the zombies.

There are a few things not patched up for me and a few plot twists that I didn't like, but I feel that it is another great zombie classic and am looking forward to its sequel!

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Summary: Ani is born with the ability to learn animal languages and her aunt helps her through her young years, but her mother the queen finds this animal-speaking abhorrent and ends up giving her daughter to another kingdom for marriage when she turns sixteen. Along the way her lady-in-waiting and her cronies mutiny so Selena can take Ani's place and become queen in Bayern. But Ani escapes and learns to survive by becoming the king's goose girl and befriending others.

The Good: It's a cute story, clean, and has morals to teach, such as finding who you are. Ani is a strong character and so are the others that we meet. Shannon Hale writes this story well.

The Bad: This just wasn't my style. I enjoy a good fantasy novel, but this one didn't hold my interest. But I can see why so many people like it. I just haven't found a Hale novel that I've really enjoyed yet.

The Christmas Clock by Kat Martin

I won this delightful book from Margot @Joyfully Retired. It was a great holiday Christmas read. The book introduces us to the little town of Dreyerville and its various residents. They all have their secrets, their disappoints, and their hopes and dreams and it centers around little 8-year-old Teddy and his desire to give his grandmother something special, the Christmas clock in the window.

It's a very touching story and a very quick read so you can enjoy it in one sitting. I highly recommend it!

*part of the 2009 Holiday Reading Challenge.

Relentless by Dean Koontz (audio CD)

My friend recommended this one to me since she's a big Dean Koontz fan and I'm not. She said this was Koontz at his best. So I figured I give it a try through an audio CD. This was my first audio book and I was not disappointed. I listened through in just a few days and even my hubby was anxious for the ending.

Cubby, his wife Pennie, and their prodigy son Milo, and their magical dog Lassie are running for their lives when a psychotic book critic threatens their lives. But the conspiracy seems to go even farther up the chain than first realized and they are determined to put an end to it one way or another.

The storyline is a bit unbelievable with government conspiracies, magical dogs, and a too-genius son. But it's fun and entertaining. But not enough to make me a huge Dean Koontz fan.

Violet Wings by Victoria Hanley

Victoria Hanley introduces a wonderful set of characters in a wonderful and magical world. We have fairies that have magic and use wands and keep themselves hidden from the humans. The premise does have overtones of Harry Potter, but it can stand on its own.

Zaria is fourteen and ready to become an adult fairy, to gain her wand, and learn how to use magic. She's also wondering what has happened to her parents and her brother that disappeared five years before. Once she gains her wand she realizes she is a Violet fairy meaning one of the most powerful fairies in all the world. She must go up against her mentor Lily Morganite who has ulterior motives as well. She and her friends must save her world and that of the humans as well.

I wanted more. An excellent setup and story, but it failed to deliver for me. It was too simple. The end is left open for a sequel so maybe Hanley will give more detail in the sequel. Great setup, just too simple.

Soulless by Gail Carriger

 Summary: Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.

Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.

With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?

SOULLESS is a comedy of manners set in Victorian London: full of werewolves, vampires, dirigibles, and tea-drinking.

This was a perfect blend of mystery, romance, steampunk, and the supernatural! Alexia Tabarotti is sensational; she's a wonderfully strong female character! Gail Carriger opens up a whole new world of the Victorian era of England. What would life be like if the natural and supernatural worked in league together?

Alexia just happens to be a preternatural, one who neutralizes the powers and characteristics of those who are supernatural...and thus they call her the soulless one.

There are a lot of Jane Austen homages in this book as well...the dress, the decorum, Alexia's family! Her mother is Mrs. Bennet and her two sisters are Lydia and Kitty. And her Lord Maccon is Austen's Mr. Darcy! Just lovely.

Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox

From Goodreads: Laura comes from a world similar to our own except for one difference: It is next to the Place, an unfathomable land that fosters dreams of every kind and is inaccessible to all but a select few, the dreamhunters. These are individuals with the ability to catch larger-than-life dreams and relay them to audiences in the magnificent dream palace. People travel from all around to experience the benefits of the hunters’ unique visions.
     Now, fifteen-year-old Laura and her cousin Rose, daughters of dreamhunters, are old enough to find out if they qualify to enter the Place. But nothing can prepare them for what they are about to discover. In the midst of a fascinating landscape, Laura’s dreamy childhood is ending, and a nightmare is beginning.

I had a feeling I was going to love this book when it was suggested for my book club. I'm a big fantasy and YA junkie so this seemed like the perfect fit for me. This is unlike any book I've ever read before. I was drawn into Laura's world of the dreamhunters. This takes place in the early twentieth century and has a steampunk feel; an alternate history since the dreamhunters entered the world. I enjoyed the struggle Laura felt as she has to grow up once she realizes she is also a dreamhunter like her father. Her cousin is not and she has to do things on her own in order to find out why her father disappeared and what The Place actually is.


The relationship between Laura and her cousin is beautiful. Even though Rose couldn't go with Laura into The Place she was still there for Laura. Their relationship is one I wish I could have with my own sisters.

It's a unique and interesting story; I loved it! January I start reading its sequel, Dreamquake!

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

I saw the previews for this one and I got really excited about it, so I thought I'd head out and buy the book and read it! I'm glad I did. This was a really fast-paced novel and I got through it pretty quickly.

Back jacket description: The year is 1954. U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels and his new partner, Chuck Aule, have come to Shutter Island, home of Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane, to investigate the disappearance of a patient. Multiple murderess Rachel Solando is loose somewhere on this remote and barren island, despite having been kept in a locked cell under constant surveillance. As a killer hurricane bears relentlessly down on them, a strange case takes on even darker, more sinister shades -- with hints of radical experimentation, horrifying surgeries, and lethal countermoves made in the cause of a covert shadow war. No one is going to escape Shutter Island unscathed, because nothing at Ashecliffe Hospital is what it seems. But then neither is Teddy Daniels.
This book has a lot of twists and turns and until the very end I should've clued in but I didn't. Some smarter people will probably get it before it's over, but I enjoyed the psychological ride. But this book is not for the faint of heart. It has language galore, such as the F-bomb and their are some pretty graphic visualizations of crimes, sex, etc. But if you can enjoy a story for its story then check this one out. I won't be seeing the movie since I know that it will contain some pretty graphic violence and language and reading it in a book is one thing, but seeing it on a big screen is quite another! So enjoy!

Three Wise Cats: A Christmas Story by Harold Konstantelos & Terri Jenkins-Brady

This was a great little book to keep the Christmas reading season going! We follow three cats on their journey to find the Messiah; they are following the new star and soon join up with the three wise men along the way. They also meet many other people on their journey and they learn what paths they must take after they find the Son of God. I knew I would really enjoy this book since it has cats as the main characters! The ending was especially touching as they meet the Savior and feel of His love for them. It was a great way to keep Christ in Christmas and remember the reason for the season.

Remarkably Jane: Notable Quotations on Jane Austen by Jennifer Adams

Some quotes from the book:

"One of Jane Austen's greatest talents is that she presents sexual tension with such subtlety."

"For all the body's powers and vulnerability, [Austen's:] novels demonstrate that, for her, the real dance of life lies in language and in understanding."

"Each of us has a private Austen."

This was a wonderful collection of quotes on Austen and her works. This book even throws in the criticism and condemnation quotes! Yes, I can't believe they're out there! Great read for Austen fans everywhere!

*Part of the Everything Austen Challenge

The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini

This does get a bit steamy in parts and there is some language, but overall this was a really fun love story. The author did a wonderful job of modernizing the story of Pride and Prejudice.

The story rests around Lizzy and Darcy, she's a lawyer and he's the judge...sparks soon fly in out of the courtroom. They have a steamy romance in England, but they have to break up once they're back in the States...do they find a way to be together despite the courtroom ethics?

We still have Jane and Bingley, his witchy sister Caroline, and the rest of her family...but the author introduces Lou to us, Lizzy's best friend who is gay. It adds a wonderful dynamic to the story. There is no Wickham in this adaptation. I like that, though, since the story turns into how two people finally realize what true love is (i.e., plot isn't quite as complex).

So read P&P first and then pick up this delightful adaptation!

*Part of the Everything Austen Challenge

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

I'd heard about this book on goodreads.com and became really interested in reading it. So when I headed to the library last week I saw that it was in stock, I picked it up and carried it home! This was a really fast read; I read it cover to cover in a day.

We see the world through the eyes of Melinda in your ninth grade year, her Freshman year in high school, how she deals with being raped the summer before by an acquaintance from school. It's shocking and horrible, really. Her parents don't seem to notice that there could actually be something wrong with their daughter since she's become withdrawn, sullen, depressed. They just assume she's acting out for some reason to hurt them. All of her former friends have ceased being her friends this year, none of teachers care. Except her art teacher, he seems to notice she has a talent for art and he encourages her talent throughout the year. It's a story of how she's been silenced through this horrible and traumatic experience and how she eventually finds her voice to speak out and to speak up for herself.

It's an amazing novel and can clearly see why it's becoming a modern classic. Everyone should read this in order to gain better understanding not only for rape victims, but those victims of any kind of abuse, those who are depressed. Let's reach out to those in need. Let's be informed and educate and talk about sexual abuse, how it's horrible, how to prevent it.

The author, at the end of her book, talks about how she's gotten a lot of letters from boys that really liked the novel, but don't understand why the character Melinda was so disturbed about being raped!!! She was shocked and appalled as I am. It just goes to show how our society sends the message that sex is no big deal and thus why we have so many sexual assault cases. I'm a mother of a little boy and I want him to grow up knowing why sex IS a huge deal, the impact it can have, I want him to realize that despite what our culture says about women, it's wrong...we're important, we're real, we have feelings. If I can help him learn that essential part of humanity, I'll have accomplished my one true mission on this earth.

*Part of the Women Unbound Challenge

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

What makes a great book? When you are yelling at the characters while reading! Yes, I did this. Katniss and the rest of the districts are slowly rebelling against the evil Capitol...President Snow retaliates by sending all the previous victors of the Hunger Games into the arena to fight it out. Can Katniss save Peeta or herself and thus her family?

This is an excellent series and I can't wait for the third book! Katniss is an unassuming hero and that's why I love her. She knows what's good and right and she doesn't even realize it. We also have another love triangle with Katniss and her two guys Gale and Peeta. We love them both! Well, I do anyway.

The world of the Hunger Games is just scary. Could our society ever become as debase and freedomless as this one?

This series is definitely one I'll repeat again and again!

Secrets of a Christmas Box by Steven Hornby

I won this book from Trina at Bloody Bad and so I was very excited to get it and finally read it! I wasn't disappointed! This was a fun and cute Christmas story. Ornaments on a Christmas trees come to life each year...Larry the snowman can't find his brother Terrence this year and decides to find him beyond the tree's border with the help of his two friends Debbie and Splint. It did take on a bit of a dark turn towards the end, but I think you can use this as a good learning opportunity for kids. I heard this was originally a screenplay so sometimes the dialogue is a bit off, but I thought it was a sweet story overall and brought out the magic of Christmas! I'm going to enjoy reading this one to my son as he gets older each year for Christmas! The book also has many drawings throughout the book that are really fun!

Part of the 2009 Holiday Reading Challenge

Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman

Seedfolks follows the perspectives of various people within a community. It starts of with little Kim trying to get her seeds to grow in a vacant lot right outside her apartment building. With each new perspective we see this little garden grow and how it brings together a small and diverse community. We see hate turn to love and to respect. Instead of phrases like "that Chinese woman" turns into "the school teacher." It's little things like this that make this short story so magical.

Character observations: Gonzalo: "The older you are, the younger you get when you move to the United States."

Wendell: "There's plenty about my life I can't change...But a patch of ground in this trashy lot--I can change that. Can change it big."

Nora: "Yet we were all subject to the same weather and pests, the same neighborhood, and the same parental emotions toward our plants...We, like our seeds, were no planted in the garden."

Amir: "The object in America is to avoid contact, to treat all as foes unless they're known to be friends."

Each character has these little quotes and observations as they each partake in some way of the community garden. It's full of life's rich lessons and one I will continue to read to my child.

The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans

A man learns how to appreciate and love his family through the help of Mary, the lady they stay with. It's a short, fun read, but the edition I read had a lot of editing errors. Also the narration is in first person, but later it would change to first-person omniscient? Not very readable...really annoying. It feels like this was a first draft and was printed without any editing...maybe the later editions are a little more cohesive.

But overall, the idea is within the Christmas and Holiday spirit and for that it's worth a read.

*Part of the Holiday Reading Challenge

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Katniss is one of those beautiful characters that doesn't realize how great they are! She lives in a brutal post-apocalyptic world where the government uses brutal hunger games to keep the population in line. It reminds me a lot of the Running Man type reality. It's brutal and horrible. I feel it's kind of a social commentary on where our world could be heading...It's the first book in a trilogy and it doesn't disappoint!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

My Review in another Haiku:

Lizzie has spirit
Mr Darcy is too proud
Love overcomes all

I really enjoyed rereading this one. It was a pleasure, but not guilty, I promise! I won this version with the lovely cover from Velvet at vvb32 reads! So I just had to get it on my blog! If you haven't read any of Jane Austen start with this one. And don't forget to watch the movies...the BBC 1995 version is excellent with Colin Firth as Darcy, but my personal favorite is the 2005 version with Kiera Knightley and Mathhew McFadyen. He's just my yummy Darcy! And Lost in Austen is also a treat. Check out my links for reviews!

Isn't this the greatest cover! It's so pretty! Thanks again, Velvet!

*This is part of the Everything Austen Challenge hosted by Stephanie.