April'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. April's Book of the Month is:

A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve   

  Published as: A Change in Altitude in September 2009

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company



Birth Name: Anita Shreve
Born: 1946 in Dedham, Massachusetts

Canonical Name: Anita Shreve
Pseudonyms: None

A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve was the twenty-fourth book that I read in 2016. I have had this book on my TBR shelf since April 2, 2011 and my reread of it took me two days to read. This book is definitely a keeper for me.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

I Think That I Can Safely Say That my Reader's Block Has Officially Passed!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

Things are going very well for me, actually. I just finished another whole book of sum-doku puzzles last night, Friday April 29th! I'm not quite sure how I've managed to finish three full puzzle books in April, but it seems like I have! :) Earlier this morning, I picked up another sum-doku puzzle book and started doing some of the puzzles.

As for my reading, I finished reading The Language of Sisters: A Novel by Amy Hatvany on Tuesday morning, April 26th! Since I had started reading the book on Saturday morning, April 23rd, it only took me three days to read. I was initially trying to find my copy of My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier when I came across A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve - which I had read for first time over three days in April of 2011; from April 21st, to April 24th, 2011. I changed my mind and decided to reread this book instead.

I started my reread of A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve on Tuesday afternoon, April 26th, and finished it two days later on Thursday afternoon, April 28th! I'm still looking for my copy of My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier, but until I actually find it I'm still reading anything that I can get my hands on. I started reading A Friend of the Family: A Novel by Lauren Grodstein on Thursday evening, April 28th! This is another reread for me from about three years ago.

This is a really intriguing book and I actually just started rereading it. According to Goodreads, as of Saturday, April 30th, I'm on page 111 of 302; or approximately 36 percent into the story. So far, the book is really good.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Anita Shreve - A Change in Altitude

Reread. A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve (2009)

Length: 468 pages 

Genre: Historical Fiction 

Originally Read: 24 April 2011

Reread Finished: 28 April 2016

Where did it come from? Originally from Paperback Swap, then from my "keeper" shelf.

Well, I guess that one way to break through an especially stubborn case of Reader's Block is to reread like there's no tomorrow! LOL!!! For the past few days, I have been having some trouble choosing what book I wanted to read next.

I had initially started to read Firestarter by Stephen King on Tuesday morning, April 19th! By Friday morning, April 22nd, I really wasn't that far into the book so decided to set it aside for a while. I finally started reading The Language of Sisters: A Novel by Amy Hatvany on Saturday morning, April 23rd and actually finished the book three days later on Tuesday morning, April 26th!

I was actually looking for another book to read by Tuesday afternoon, April 26th: My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier. Since I couldn't find that particular book, I chose A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve to read instead. This book actually came into my possession in 2011 as a 'just because' gift for April from Mareena. The book arrived in Saturday afternoon, April 2nd's mail in 2011.

I read this book for the first time over three days in April of 2011 - from April 21st, to April 24th, 2011. My reread took place five years later and lasted over two days in April - from April 26th, to April 28th, 2016! I'm definitely going to be keeping this book to read again later.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Amy Hatvany - The Language of Sisters: A Novel

23. The Language of Sisters: A Novel by Amy Hatvany (2002)

Length: 312 pages 

Genre: Contemporary Fiction 

Started: 23 April 2016

Finished: 26 April 2016

Where did it come from? From a Library Book Sale 

How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 1 June 2015

Why do I have it? I like contemporary fiction and Amy Hatvany is a new author for me.

It has been a decade since Nicole Hunter left her troubles behind her. Ten years since she made the decision to leave her dysfunctional family and troubled home, and search for contentment elsewhere. She loves her family deeply, yet also finds herself unable to cope with the demands of living a life with her severely disabled sister, Jenny. While she has always felt somewhat guilty for leaving, Nicole tells herself that at the time she was doing the right thing.

Although her continuing search for happiness - both in her career and in love - has fallen somewhat short of her dreams, Nicole still pretends to everyone that all is well. Then an earth-shattering phone call sends her rushing back home to be with her family. As Nicole's world is turned upside down, she soon finds herself back in her hometown, caring for her pregnant sister and attempting to heal her contentious relationship with her mother. While it may be difficult for her to do, Nicole views her return to her hometown as a chance to reconnect with her family.

Reunited with her family and forced to confront the guilt that still haunts her, Nicole recognizes that she finally has the chance to be the sister she always wanted to be. A second chance to be the sister she always wished she had been when she was younger. She soon comes to the realization that her feelings of guilt are almost entirely subjective. And when she is faced with the most difficult choice of her life, Nicole rediscovers the beauty of sisterhood - and receives a special gift that will change her life forever.

First of all, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The story was well-written and sharply developed. I found myself connecting with the characters and really feeling for them and what they were all going through. In my opinion, Ms. Hatvany's writing style is both compassionate and extremely poignant. Having said that, I also must admit that the story seemed just the slightest bit predictable. I would still give this book a very strong A!

A! - (90-95%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

I Think That my Reader's Block is Finally Over!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

I'm officially a sum-doku puzzle fanatic! I finished another whole book of sum-doku puzzles on Wednesday night, April 20th! Since then, I immediately started another puzzle book from my March supply, but only have finished maybe four or five puzzles.

As for my reading, I had started reading Firestarter by Stephen King on Tuesday morning, April 19th. However, by Friday morning, April 22nd, I had decided to set the book aside for a little while. Don't get me wrong, Firestarter is an excellent book; I just thought that it was a bit too involved for my reading pace at present.

I'm still looking for my copy of My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier. I know that the book is somewhere, I just can't find it yet. However, I'm happy to say that I've found another book to read in the meantime: The Language of Sisters: A Novel by Amy Hatvany.

This is a really intriguing book and I actually just started reading it yesterday morning! According to Goodreads, as of Saturday evening, April 23rd, I'm on page 61 of 278; or I've read approximately 21 percent into the story. Since my copy of The Language of Sisters: A Novel by Amy Hatvany actually has 312 pages; my having read 61 pages means that I'm approximately 20 percent into the story.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

I Just May Have Too Many Books...Nah...That Has to be Impossible - Right?

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

I finished another whole book of sum-doku puzzles on Wednesday night, April 20th! That means that I have finished two books of puzzles during the month of April. I've received ten new sum-doku puzzle books between Christmas and March and so far have finished two books from my Christmas supply and two from my March supply.

As for my reading, I recently finished reading A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal on Saturday, April 16th! I started reading Firestarter by Stephen King on Tuesday morning, April 19th. After three days - as of Friday morning, April 22nd - I'm really not that far into the story. To be perfectly honest - while I'm enjoying the book - I just can't seem to be able to get into the story. I may have to put the book aside for a while.

I've been looking for my copy of My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier. I actually started looking on Saturday afternoon, April 16th, but haven't been having the best of luck finding the book. I know that I still have the book somewhere in my collection, I just haven't located it yet.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

I Think That I'm Suffering From a Slight Case of Reader's Block!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

I've been doing quite a number of sum-doku puzzles from out of my small collection of puzzle books. Since I already finished one entire sum-doku puzzle book on Thursday night, April 7th, I immediately started in on another one out of my March influx of books - the package of six books that I received on Friday afternoon, March 4th! I usually finish two puzzles a day (or at least try to) and there are approximately 100 sum-doku puzzles in each book. I think that I'm about halfway through this particular book - perhaps a little bit more than that.

As for my reading, I recently finished reading A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal on Saturday, April 16th! Since I started reading this book on Tuesday morning, April 12th, it only took me four days to read. I have been having some trouble choosing another book to read since I finished A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal.

I was perusing several horror books that I recently received through the mail and it hasn't been easy to settle on which book I actually want to read. That being said, I'm seriously thinking of reading Firestarter by Stephen King. It's probably been close to 25 to 30 years since I last read the book, so I think I'm due to read it again some time soon.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Tatum O'Neal - A Paper Life

Reread. A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal (2004)

Length: 285 pages

Genre: Non-Fiction

Originally Read: 22 July 2009

Reread Finished: 16 April 2016

Where did it come from? Originally from a Library Book Sale, then from my "keeper" shelf.

Alright, so after I finished reading my last book on April 8th, I picked up a book that Mareena had received for review back on Monday afternoon, March 7th! A Man of Genius by Janet Todd is an historical novel set in Venice, Italy during the Napoleonic era. It definitely looks intriguing, but after I had read several pages in to the story I decided to set it aside for a while. Mareena has it on her radar to read for herself, so after she reads this book I think that I'll read it next.

I actually changed my mind about what I wanted to read next after Unsinkable: A Memoir by Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway. I was initially having some trouble settling on which book to read next. Out of four potential choices: A Man of Genius by Janet Todd; Night Whispers by Judith McNaught; Three Junes: A Novel by Julia Glass and Ashes to Ashes by Tami Hoag - I was still at a loss to decide which book I wanted to read. Then Mareena mentioned to me that I hadn't read A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal in several years.

I had acquired A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal during a Library Book Sale that Mareena and I went to in June of 2009. I read this book for the first time over the span of four days in July of 2009 - from July 19th, to July 22nd, 2009. My reread took place over two days in July of 2010 - from July 8th, to July 10th, 2010. My third reading of this book took place over the span of four days in April of 2016 - from April 12th, to April 16th, 2016. 

I've since posted this book on every book swapping website that Mareena and I belong to; reading the book three times over seven years seems like the maximum number of times that I can legitimately read it, I think. Now I'm willing to send the book off to someone else for them to enjoy.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Thursdays Are Always my Days to Run Errands!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

Well, Thursday is my day to run errands. Usually, I go to the post office, grocery shopping and sometimes to Walmart as well. It takes me approximately an hour and a half to two hours to get all these things done and I come home by about 2:00 P. M.

Every week, I almost always have books to mail at the post office and this week was no exception. Someone who is a regular listener to the radio show on Sundays called in about a month ago and said that she was recently diagnosed with diabetes. She was terrified by receiving such a diagnosis but because I also have diabetes and have had it for about a decade, I promised to send her some diabetic cookbooks and also some books on how to deal with being recently diagnosed.

Since I last talked to this lady, Mareena has requested three books about diabetes from Paperback Swap. The books arrived on Monday afternoon, March 28th, Wednesday afternoon, March 30th and Thursday afternoon, March 31st. I actually kept The Diabetes Heart Healthy Cookbook by The American Diabetes Association and The American Heart Association - which arrived on Wednesday afternoon, March 30th - to read for myself.

However, I sent the other two books - Diabetes A to Z: What You Need to Know About Diabetes - Simply Put by The American Diabetes Association and The Complete Diabetic Cookbook by Mary Jane Finsand - off to that lady on Thursday afternoon, April 7th. I haven't yet received word on whether or not she has gotten the books, but it will probably take a few weeks or so. Not that I'm overly worried about when the books will arrive, but I do like to keep track of which books I sent to whom and when they are received.

As for my reading, I'm currently reading A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neal for the third time. I started this book on Tuesday morning, April 12th! According to Goodreads, as of yesterday morning - Wednesday, April 13th - I'm on page 35 of 285; so I've read approximately 12 percent of the book.

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Sum-doku Puzzles and Watching a Little Television Are in my Plans!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

Well, I'm definitely keeping myself busy these days. I'm slowly working my way through my small but growing number of sum-doku puzzle books, and am delighted to say that I just finished another entire book of puzzles on Thursday night, April 7th! As I said last week, Mareena and I also love watching shows like 'Madam Secretary' and 'The Good Wife' - although, with 'The Good Wife' being off for the past two weeks we have been watching 'Madam Secretary' instead.

As for my reading, I've found that my reading in April started out fairly well - although I may have slowed down slightly since the beginning of the month. First up on my TBR pile was a book that had been there for approximately five months - The Return by Bentley Little. I started reading this book on Friday evening, April 1st and finished it four days later - on Tuesday evening, April 5th!

Up next for me was a book that came in during Thursday April 5th's afternoon mail - Unsinkable: A Memoir by Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway. I started reading the book immediately, and it only took me three days to read. I finished reading it on Friday morning, April 8th!

Since then, I have been trying to choose another book to read. I have perhaps three or four books on my radar, but each book looks so interesting that I just can't make up my mind. Oh well, I suppose that it isn't the worst dilemma to have! :) LOL!!!

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway - Unsinkable: A Memoir

21. Unsinkable: A Memoir by Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway (2013)

Length: 306 pages

Genre: Non-Fiction 

Started: 5 April 2016

Finished: 8 April 2016

Where did it come from? From Bookmooch

How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 5 April 2016

Why do I have it? I like non-fiction and Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway are new authors for me.

Unsinkable is the definitive memoir written by film legend and Hollywood icon Debbie Reynolds. This book offers a deeply personal perspective on Hollywood and its elite - from the glory days of MGM to the present. It shines a spotlight on this resilient woman whose talent and passion for her work have endured for more than six decades. Debbie Reynolds - legendary actress, comedienne, singer, dancer and performer - offers readers an intimate glimpse into her extraordinary life, spanning Hollywood's Golden Age to today.

In her engaging, down-to-earth voice, Debbie shares private details about her various troubles; both with money and the type of men with whom she chose to spend her life. She invites readers into the close-knit circle of her family, speaking with deep affection and great honesty about her relationships with her children, Carrie and Todd Fisher. She looks back at her life as an actress working during the Golden Age of Hollywood - chronicling the highs and lows of her professional career.

Debbie reveals anecdotes about her lifelong friendship with the legendary Elizabeth Taylor - as well as speaking of the period of years-long estrangement between them. She also shares stories about her experiences as the foremost collector of Hollywood memorabilia, intimate details of her three marriages and family life with her children. Here, too, are memorable stories about numerous celebrities, such as Ava Gardner, Clark Gable, Frank Sinatra, Mick Jagger, Gene Kelly, and many more.

Debbie also takes the reader on a delightful guided tour through her movies, sharing poignant, whimsical, often hilarious behind-the-scenes anecdotes. Written with a frankness and a forthright honesty that has always been her trademark style, the woman known as "America's Sweetheart" - the remarkable Debbie Reynolds - writes a story of heartbreak, hope and survival; her own story. Picking up from where Debbie: My Life left off, Unsinkable: A Memoir features dozens of previously unseen photos from Debbie's personal collection. This is a revealing portrait of a woman whose determination is an inspiration.

To be perfectly honest, I really didn't know all that much about Debbie Reynolds before I read this book. Oh, I probably knew the basics about her; Hollywood actress, had a public feud with Elizabeth Taylor over Eddie Fisher, mother of Carrie Fisher - but that was all just basically what I gleaned from reading tabloid press headlines as I went through the grocery store. What actually made me want to read her latest autobiography was hearing about the death of Elizabeth Taylor in March of 2011. I also have a copy of Debbie: My Life sitting somewhere on my bookshelf but I haven't located it yet.

This was such an amazing book for me to read; I really felt for Ms. Reynolds and what she went through. In my opinion, despite being a Hollywood celebrity in her own right, Ms. Reynolds still lived a tremendously difficult life. She went through so much in her personal life - so much of what she experienced would probably have 'sunk' a weaker person - but not Debbie Reynolds!

She has always come back stronger than before and her resilience is definitely something to be admired. I would give this book five stars. In my opinion, it deserves an A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Bentley Little - The Return

20. The Return by Bentley Little (2002)
Length: 354 pages

Genre: Horror 

Started: 1 April 2016

Finished: 5 April 2016

Where did it come from? From Bookmooch

How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 18 December 2015

Why do I have it? I like horror and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

The population of the tiny town of Springerville, Arizona is steeped in a variety of legends and myths. Perhaps the most famous of those legends is that of the Mogollon Monster - a hideous half-human, half-animalistic creature that thrives on influencing the mentalities and emotions of either human beings or any species in the animal kingdom. The creature then basks in the resulting chaos that is created by such heightened tensions. The story of Springerville's Mogollon Monster has certainly become legendary, if only because of the number of times the story has been told and retold.

Yet everyone understands that there is really no such thing as the Mogollon Monster. It's all just a legend - an elaborate campfire story told by the locals to attract gullible tourists. After all, visiting tourists love to hear all about the mysterious legends associated with the town; perhaps it gives Springerville something of a macabre reputation - but everyone loves to be scared, right?

This is the most prevalent way of thinking, anyway. At least, it is until an excavation team unearths something very strange. The figurine of screaming woman, the jawbone of a deformed animal, and a child's toy are all found buried together. While this is definitely an odd occurrence, no one expects what happens next.

The townspeople soon begin hearing strange noises in the night, then there is an exceedingly foul odor lingering in the air, and a man's face is found hanging from a tree. Now the locals are making sure to lock their doors. Because after sundown, the campfire stories can seem to take on lives of their own - and legends become very, very real.

First of all, let me say that I really enjoyed reading this book. The story was certainly very well-developed and captured my attention right away. In my opinion, this was a uniquely intriguing plot that dealt with the horror in an unusual way. However, I also have to say that I found the story to be slightly longer than I thought it actually needed to be. I would give this book a B+!

B+! - (85-89%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Crosswords are the Puzzles of the Day!

Hello everyone! I hope that you're all just fine this morning - I certainly am! :) Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on how I'm doing so far.

Since the last time that I posted about my extra curricular activities - back on Monday, March 28th - not too much has been going on. I'm still doing puzzles in my spare time - mostly crosswords and sudoku puzzles from the newspaper. Mareena and I also like to watch television shows like 'Madam Secretary' and 'The Good Wife' on Sunday nights. We haven't exactly watched 'The Good Wife' every week, but 'Madam Secretary' is a definite 'must see' show for us on Sunday nights!

As for my reading, I have to say that March was a relatively slow reading month for me. Having said that, though, I am happy to announce that I did finish reading a fourth book - Criminals: A Novel by Margot Livesey. I had started reading this book on Saturday afternoon, March 26th and finished it on Thursday evening, March 31st! Overall, this was a really good book and I enjoyed it very much.

I have since started reading a book that has been on my TBR pile since Friday afternoon, December 18th - The Return by Bentley Little. I picked up this book on Friday evening, April 1st, and according to Goodreads as of today - Sunday, April 3rd - I've read 171 pages of the story. As this book actually has 354 pages, having read 171 pages means that I have read approximately 48 percent of the story. Even though the book is slightly longer than I was expecting it to be, the story is still pretty good!

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

Reading Wrap-up For March at Moonshine and Rosefire

Hello everyone out there and I hope that you all had a terrific reading month for yourselves. I am known as Rosefire around the Internet and this is my new personal reading blog. I originally posted my reviews over at my daughter's blog, Emeraldfire's Bookmark but am now in the process of transferring them all over to my own blog. My daughter makes blogging look like so much fun that I thought that I would try it out for myself! :)

Anyway, I started out March with 1,043 books lying around the house and ended the month with 1,039 books unread. All the books that I acquired this month came from an author, Paperback Swap and Penny Dell Puzzles.

Let me try to break down the influx for you:

Changes to the TBR pile

Rereads
- While I Was Gone by Sue Miller 

Read from my TBR pile (Yes! I am a reading machine :))
- Capitol Murder: A Novel of Suspense by Phillip Margolin
- An Unexpected Family by Joan Mendlicott
- Criminals: A Novel by Margot Livesey

Added to my TBR pile (oh well, you win some and you lose some! Not too bad though, I suppose:))
- Tongues by Sam Joyce
- Collector's Series Sum-Doku Puzzles 6-pack: (Volumes 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13) by Dell Magazines

- The Open Channel by Jill Morrow
- Engaged to Murder: The Shocking True Story of the Nation's Most Brutal Triple Murder by Loretta Schwartz-Nobel
- Diabetes A to Z: What You Need to Know About Diabetes - Simply Put by The American Diabetes Association
- The Diabetes Heart Healthy Cookbook by The American Diabetes Association and The American Heart Association
- The Complete Diabetic Cookbook by Mary Jane Finsand

Taken off my TBR pile and sent to a new home (Yay! Happy Dance! :))
- Tongues by Sam Joyce
- Friends and Lovers by Helen MacInnes
- Dearest by Peter Loughran
- Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend by Robert James Waller
- Big Girl: A Novel by Danielle Steel
- Handsome Women by Judith Henry Wall
- Last Kiss by Luanne Rice
- A Good Woman by Danielle Steel
- Best Friends by Martha Moody

Well, there it is...the breakdown! All in all, a very good reading month for me. Here's a further breakdown:

Books Read: 4
Pages Read: 1,108
Grade Range: A+! to A!

So, there you go! The reading month that was March. I hope that you all had an equally good reading month; if not a little better. :) See you all next month! :)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight