August's Book of the Month

Hello Everyone! I chose the picture posted above because it reminds me of reading to my daughter Mareena when she was little. Every afternoon until she was about eight or nine years old, we would take one of her books that she wanted to read or that she was reading and we would curl up together on my big bed. 

We would spend an hour or so reading a chapter of her book, and then take a nap together. Her absolutely favorite author at that time was an English author named Enid Blyton. Ahh, nice memories...

My picks for 'Books of the Month' will be decidedly more adult these days, but they will be from almost any genre. August's Book of the Month is: 

Bloodroot by Amy Greene

Published as: Bloodroot in January 2010

Publisher: Vintage

Birth Name: Amy Greene

Born: 2 October 1975 in Morristown, Tennessee

Canonical Name: Amy Greene

Pseudonyms: None

Bloodroot by Amy Greene was the seventy-third book that I read in 2013. I have had this book on my TBR shelf since June 1, 2013 and it took me four days to read. I sent this book off to another good home on August 14, 2013.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Stephen King - From a Buick 8: A Novel

83. From a Buick 8: A Novel by Stephen King (2002)
Length: 356 pages
Genre: Horror
Started: 28 August 2013
Finished: 30 August 2013
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 22 August 2013
Why do I have it? I like horror and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

The officers of the Troop D state police in rural Pennsylvania have kept a secret since 1979. Since then, stowed out behind the police barracks in Shed B, has been a classic car - a Buick Roadmaster. In 1979, Troopers Ennis Rafferty and Curtis Wilcox answered a call from a gas station just down the road and came back with the abandoned Buick. Curt Wilcox knew old cars, and he knew immediately that this car was...wrong, just wrong. A few hours later, when Trooper Rafferty vanished without a trace, Curt and his fellow troopers knew the old Buick Roadmaster was worse than dangerous - and that it would be better if John Q. Public never found out about it.

With Curt's avid curiosity taking the lead, they investigated Trooper Rafferty's disappearance as best they could, as much as they dared. Over the years, the troop eventually absorbed the mystery as part of the background to their work; the Buick 8 sitting out there like a still life painting that breathes - inhaling a little bit of this world, exhaling a little bit of whatever world it came from. In the fall of 2001, some time after Curt Wilcox is killed in a gruesome auto accident, his 18 year-old son Ned starts coming by the barracks. Ned does various odd jobs around the barracks - mowing the lawn, washing windows, shoveling snow.

Sergeant Commanding, Sandy Dearborn, knows it's just the boy's way of holding onto his father, and Ned is allowed to become a part of the Troop D family. One day, Ned happens to look through the window of Shed B and discovers the family secret. Like his father, Ned wants answers, and the secret begins to stir; not only in the minds and hearts of the veteran troopers who surround him, but in Shed B as well...

I must say that I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would. It was very exciting and my goodness, what an imagination Stephen King has. I've said before that I'm always a little wary of reading Stephen King's longer novels - the plots of many of his books start off brilliantly, and then they seem to go off the rails slightly, at least in my opinion. Anyway, while I found that some passages in From a Buick 8: A Novel were slightly verbose, overall, the book managed to capture my attention and successfully hold it until the end. I give this book an A!

A! - (90-95%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Charles Preston - Exceptional Acrostics to Keep You Sharp

82. Exceptional Acrostics to Keep You Sharp by Charles Preston (2008)
Length: 64 pages
Genre: Non-Fiction
Started: 25 January 2012
Finished: 29 August 2013
Where did it come from? From Barnes and Noble 
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 25 December 2011
Why do I have it? My friend Pamela knows how much I enjoy crossword puzzles and other types of mind-sharpening games, so she gave this book to me for Christmas of 2011.

I have an immense collection of mind puzzle books - from brain-teasers to sudoku, and everything else in between. From time to time, in between actually reading books as well, I'll pick up one of these mind puzzle books and try my hand at one or two of the puzzles. I have so many puzzle books stashed away, that I have no idea how many I actually have. 

Hence, I can have a particular puzzle book for years and still not finish it until several years after I receive it. So far though, these mind puzzles seem to be working excellently for me - I think...Maybe! :) I give this mind puzzle book an A+! 

A+! - (96-100%)
     
Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Anne Rivers Siddons - Sweetwater Creek

81. Sweetwater Creek by Anne Rivers Siddons (2005)
Length: 444 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 25 August 2013
Finished: 27 August 2013
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 22 August 2013
Why do I have it? I like contemporary fiction and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

At twelve, Emily Parmenter knows about loneliness only too well. Left mostly to herself after her beautiful young mother disappeared and her beloved older brother died, Emily is keenly aware of yearning and loss. Rather than let the sadness consume her, she has built a life around the faded plantation where her remote father and hunting-obsessed brothers raise the legendary Lowcountry Boykin hunting spaniels. To some, it may seem that she lives within a meager, narrow, masculine world, but to Emily that life holds its own special magic: the storied deep-sea dolphins who regularly come to frolic and play in Sweetwater Creek; her extraordinary bond with the beautiful dogs she trains; her almost mystical communion with her own spaniel, Elvis; the dreaming old Lowcountry itself. Emily hides from the dreaded world here. For her, it is enough.

And then along comes Lulu Foxworth, troubled daughter of a truly grand plantation, who has run away from her hectic debutante season in Charleston to spend a healing summer with the quiet marshes and river, and the life-giving dogs. Where Emily's father sees their guest as an entree into a society he thought forever out of reach, Emily is at once threatened and utterly mystified. Lulu has a powerful enchantment and a charm of her own, and this, along with the dark, crippling secret she brings with her, will inevitably blow Emily's magical water world apart and let the real one in - but at a terrible price.

In my opinion, this book was just alright. I found the story to be a bit too long; with too many descriptive passages for my liking. Ultimately, the book boasted a promising build up to a rather disappointing ending in my opinion. My feelings might just be because of the type of mood I was in while reading, but this book never fully delivered on its promise for me. It was a bit of a disappointment for me, because I've read several other books by this author that I absolutely loved. I had to give Sweetwater Creek by Anne Rivers Siddons a B+! 

B+! - (89-85%)     


Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Sidney Sheldon - The Sky is Falling: A Novel

80. The Sky is Falling: A Novel by Sidney Sheldon (2000)
Length: 317 pages
Genre: Contemporary Mystery
Started: 22 August 2013
Finished: 24 August 2013
Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 22 August 2013
Why do I have it? I like contemporary mysteries and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

If America were to have a royal family, the Winthrops would wear the crown. The popular, charismatic Winthrops have captured the imagination of the entire nation, as well as the world with their public service, their myriad acts of altruistic charity, and their glamorous lives. But in a single year, all five members of the family were killed in a series of unexplained accidents.

Dana Evans, a beautiful young anchorwoman with a Washington television network, believes there is a more sinister motive behind their deaths. She begins an investigation and starts uncovering compelling evidence that she can hardly believe.

In Dana's determined pursuit of the truth, she never anticipated the cat-and-mouse chase that would ultimately lead her through a half dozen countries on the trail of a remorseless killer. As she closes in on her suspect, the shocking secrets Dana then unearths place both herself and her young son in dire jeopardy. In an unexpected turn of events, Dana soon becomes the hunted. 

Will Dana be able to outwit her pursuers and finally expose the truth that will astound the world? Readers should prepare themselves for skillful twists and turns in the plot of a dynamite thriller that has become Sidney's Sheldon's hallmark.

I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. According to Shelfari's synopsis of The Sky is Falling: A Novel by Sidney Sheldon, the character of Dana Evans made her first appearance in The Best Laid Plans. However, this book can be read on its own. I give The Sky is Falling: A Novel an A!

A! - (90-95%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Our Library Visit For August

Hello Everyone! How are you on this fine Thursday? I'm doing just fine. :) Today is my birthday, and in honor of that we decided to go to our local library and then brought home two bagel sandwiches and a box of donuts for lunch.  We came away with three overflowing bags of books - pretty good, considering the last time we went to the library was only two months ago, in June. :) Surprisingly, both Mareena and I seem to have gone to the library every two months this year! :)

We had a wonderful time together - as we always do! It has become something of a birthday tradition for Mareena - and apparently now for me. We spent about an hour and a half at the library - from about 11:30 A. M. to 1 P. M.

Between us, we bought 12 hardcovers, 27 paperbacks as well as 2 oversized paperbacks. We spent a whopping $30 for a total of 41 books. A pretty good haul, if I do say so, myself. :)

At the moment, I'm reading The Sky is Falling: A Novel by Sidney Sheldon, which I started almost as soon as we came back from the library.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Michael Phillip Cash - Brood X: A Firsthand Account of the Great Cicada Invasion

79. Brood X: A Firsthand Account of the Great Cicada Invasion by Michael Phillip Cash (2013)
Length: 297 pages
Genre: Horror
Started: 19 August 2013
Finished: 20 August 2013
Where did it come from? Many thanks to Michael Phillip Cash and to Red Feather Publishing for sending me a copy of this book to read.
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 19 August 2013
Why do I have it? I like horror and have read and enjoyed Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island by the same author in the past.

The evening news issues its ominous warnings nightly - reports caution that a swarm of cicadas, known as Brood Ten, are expected to overwhelm the entire Northeast. The swarm is considered vicious and is expected to invade sometime during the summer. Preparations are strongly advised.

Seth is laid off from work. His wife Lara - a teacher - has just found out that they are expecting a baby this summer. Seth plans on documenting her entire pregnancy with his brand new digital camcorder.

During a sweltering summer night, Brood Ten emerges and begins to wreak havoc with the electric grid. Phone and cell service goes down, wi-fi connection is disrupted, food and water supply are the next casualties. Civilization as they once knew it has disappeared.

Seth and Lara find themselves thrown back to the stone age while living in their own home, with trillions of cicadas trying to deposit their eggs and breed. The plague known as Brood Ten has begun...

This book is actually Michael Phillip Cash's debut novel, although it's the second one that I've read by this author. I was immediately drawn into the story - it took me a day to read. I found that the plot was extremely fast-paced and suspenseful. Sometimes, the plots of books that try to deal with natural terrors can become almost comical in their portrayal of potential threats, at least in my opinion.

However, that was not my experience while reading Brood X: A Firsthand Account of the Great Cicada Invasion by Michael Phillip Cash. I found the horror in this book to be entirely realistic and totally believable. I can tell you, I won't ever look at cicadas in quite the same way again. I give this book an A! 

A! - (90-95%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight