Review Catch Up

There are still books that I read in 2008 that I haven't reviewed yet so I'm going to have to play catch-up with one long list of reviews. I prefer to post one review at a time but desperate times call for desperate measures. :)

After the Funeral by Agatha Christie was my second mystery by this legendary author. I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first one I read but it was still pretty good. I do like mysteries. Sometimes I try to guess "who dunit" and sometimes I just enjoy the story. So far with Agatha Christie's novels, she has kept me guessing til almost the end. That's fun for me.

Audiobook

4/5 stars

I found The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck to be a very sad book. I'm glad I read it but it was not a happy book. It made me think a lot about money, pride, greed, women's rights, love and family. I think this would make a good book club selection.

Audiobook

Rating: 2.3.1

4/5 stars

Hallelujah by J. Scott Featherstone was our book club's selection for December. It probably wasn't the best choice for that month because it is a chunkster and only a few of us were able to finish it. We were not very impressed by the overall writing of this book. It's a little too sentimental and fluffy in parts as well as being repetitive but I did still like it quite a bit. Despite it's problems, I really liked learning about Handel and especially about The Messiah oratorio.

Rating: 1.1.1

4/5 stars

I listened to this audiobook while traveling. French Women Don't Get Fat is a book I'd heard quite a bit about a couple of years ago. I thought it would be interesting and it was. If you are the kind to be easily offended about the stereotype that most Americans are fat, then this book is not for you. When I listened to it I felt inspired to try to look at food in a different way. The author has some great ideas and I can see how they could be effective in weight management. They don't really work for me but that's not saying a lot.

Audiobook

3/5 stars

Our book club read How Angel Peterson Got His Name together with Hatchet by the same author, Gary Paulsen. In Angel, Paulsen tells several stories of his growing up in a small mid-western town where he and his buddies pulled some really crazy stunts. This is the kind of book that pre-teen and teenage boys love but makes their parents worry. All I can say is that Gary Paulsen is lucky to still be alive today. It was interesting to read these books together to get an insight into the author's life.

3/5 stars

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Rating: 1.2.2

Recommended audience: Pre-teen and up

Category: Juvenile, Newbery, Realistic fiction

Rating: 4.5/5

I really enjoyed this Newbery Honor book. This is the story of 13 year old, Brian, who gets stranded in the Canadian wilderness. He fortunately has a hatchet that his mother had given to him and it proves to be crucial to his survival. I loved the way he learned through experience what he needed to do to survive, but I loved even more the progression of his emotional and mental survival tactics. My 3rd grader's teacher read this book to her class and I get the impression from my daughter that it kept them on the edge of their seats. I can believe it. Great book! Highly recommended.