I can Readathon. Can you?

Hello and Happy Tuesday.

I just wanted to make sure that everyone knows about the 24 hour readathon, which is coming up soon!

What is the readathon, you ask? Excellent question! The 24 Hour Readathon is a glorious day when nerds from all over join together on the interwebs to enjoy 24 full hours of reading. As of right now, there are over 200 readers planning to participate in this most wonderful day.You read some books, blog about the reading (and snacks! Readathon people love them some snacks...), and you participate in mini challenges so you can win prizes! And then really awesome people will come to your blog/facebook page/twitter feed and cheer you on!

Let us review.

On Saturday, April 21, you must gather your books. Gather your snacks. Gather your courage (no...you probably don't actually need this). Read to your heart's content or until you need to nap or, in my case, go to a senior class luncheon with a soon-to-be-graduating husband. People will cheer you on! You can win books and stuff! You are awesome!

So those are the basics, friends. I will be joining in sporadically. As I mentioned, we have the luncheon thing and I do have a four year old, so we shall see what happens. Check out my experiences with last year's readathon here and visit the official 24 Hour Readathon site here and sign up!

So...are you in???

It's Monday and it finally feels like spring!

Hello, bookish people! How are you? How were your weekends? Ours was pretty quiet. The husband was gone most of the day on Saturday, so David and I partook in a few rounds of Trouble, some painting, and lots of stories. On Sunday we enjoyed the beautiful weather and spent some time outside before grilling hamburgers for dinner. Yum. 

Book time! 

Read This Week:

Patti LuPone: A Memoir


this must be the place
By Kate Racculia

Reading Now: 

Oracle Night

By Paul Auster


One Thousand Gifts
By Ann Voskamp

Posts From This Past Week:

It's Monday

Wednesdays with David: Why Do Volcanoes Erupt? 

Reviews of Enchantments, Q and American Rose 

Coming Up:

The Slap

By Christos Tsolkas

What did you read this week? Let me know in the comments! 

Review: Q

Q: A Novel

By Evan Mandery

Harper August 2011

355 pages

From the library

The unnamed narrator of this story, a part time history professor and writer of alternative histories, has met the girl of his dreams. The enigmatic and exuberant Q steals his heart from their first meeting in a very awkward movie matinee. As the pair plans their wedding, it seems they are destined to ride off into marital bliss. But he is approached by an old man who claims to be a future version of himself. His other self warns him that he must not marry Q, under any circumstances. Doing so will destroy both of them. Our narrator listens to the advice, but before long another version shows up with new advice. Q is a science fiction romp, a love story, and an examination of lives not lived.

I really enjoyed this book. I think Mr. Mandery succeeded in making a particularly lovable narrator, despite the fact that we don’t ever discover his name. He is as stymied as we are at all of the bizarre things that are happening to him and his frustration matches ours when seemingly endless iterations of himself appear, warning him to take up a new career, stop running, or start meditating. Our narrator has many quirks that make him terribly and wonderfully human.

The time travel component of this novel is very interesting. I have to admit that I don’t read too much science fiction. Despite its subject matter, Q does not read like a science fiction story. Our narrator doesn’t really understand the mechanics of time travel, and so we don’t spend too much time mulling over it. As a disclaimer, reading this book may lead to a long conversation with your husband about the possibility of crossing your own timeline and whether having so many versions of yourself is time traveling or creating multiple universes. But that’s fun, right? Oh. Only I think this is fun? Ok.

Q manages to touch on politics, art, cooking, and literature; but all without taking itself too seriously. A book really can’t be too serious when its protagonist writes alternative histories about what would have happened if Freud studied the reproductive habits of eels instead of people or William Henry Harrison manages to change the course of history…for a few years. This is a fun book to read. I sped through it so quickly that I didn’t stop to make any passages. But be assured, this is a funny modern love story that you don’t want to miss. 

Review: American Rose Audiobook

American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare

The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee

By Karen Abbott

Audiobook Random House December 2010

Library grab

I did it! I did it! I’ve only been listening to this book since December…

I was sucked in from the beginning because I loved the musical Gypsy, which I saw on Broadway a few years ago. The book opens with author Karen Abbott interviewing the elderly June Havoc, sister of Gypsy Rose Lee. She begins the book by saying that if you think you know about her family from that infamous musical, you don’t know anything. Of course I had to find out what really happened!

American Rose is a biography of Louise Hovick, who would become the infamous burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee. The audiobook covers her life from her childhood on the show biz circuit in the shadow of her sister to her death from cancer. It focuses on her relationships with her mother and her sister June, as well as her triumphs and failures as one of the biggest stars of the 20^th century. Gypsy Rose Lee became the face of burlesque, starred in movies, threw over the top parties, and carefully constructed a façade that showed the world exactly what she wanted them to see.

Unfortunately, author Karen Abbott does not stick to the history of Gypsy. Instead, she weaves other notable figures and events of the time into the narrative. This works some of the time. When we hear about the saga of the Minskys, the show biz family that helps Gypsy rise to the top, it enhances the story. But sometimes it's not clear how certain people connect to the story as a whole and I found myself wishing to to hear about strange and fascinating life of Gypsy instead.

This is even more frustrating when you are listening to the book instead of reading it. In addition to so many characters, the timeline is not linear. The writing jumps all over Gypsy’s life, leaving the reader to figure out where exactly they are and what has already happened. I would have preferred a linear telling and fewer auxiliary characters. The life and personality of our protagonist would more than have held up this book.

The narrator for this audiobook was Bernadette Dunn. I thought she did a great job. Her reading was understated. When you are dealing with personalities as big as Gypsy Rose Lee, it’s smarter to let her story and character shine through instead of trying to imitate her.

Gypsy Rose Lee is a fascinating character. When Ms. Abbott focuses on her, this biography shines. When she veers too far away from Gypsy, readers are left counting the minutes until we return. I would advise you to read the book instead of listening to the audio. The erratic timeline and plethora of characters are hard to keep track of in your head. If you are at all interested in burlesque or the seemingly larger than life Gypsy, American Rose is a good read for you. 

Wednesdays with David: Why Do Volcanoes Erupt?

Why Do Volcanoes Erupt?

By Wil Mara

Marshall Cavendish Corporation 2010

Part of the "Tell Me Why, Tell Me How" series

From the library

The story: This book explains the what, why, and how of volcanoes. It is broken up into chapters that are only a few pages long and it has lots of pictures and questions to ensure comprehension. You can find the classical baking soda and vinegar volcano experiment, a glossary and further resources at the end of the book.

Mama opines: I'm trying to get David to branch out into some non-fiction books. My husband recently had the joy to come home and discover me reading to David about Nascar...it was a strange experience for me as well. We've also taken books out from the library about dogs (which we are still not getting!), astronauts, and now volcanoes are our current interest. I thought this book was perfect for the preschool/early elementary age group. The chapters are short and accessible, but still give a lot of information. David now knows things like the three layers of the earth, and the difference between magma and lava. The "Tell Me Why, Tell Me How" series has books on a ton of subjects like hibernation, rain, seasons, and plants. We will definitely be looking for more of these books as I try to mix things up on our library trips.

Thoughts from David: I like it because I really really love the part where the volcano erupts. I love this part where it says "why do volcanoes erupt?" (the cover).

Favorite part: I love this part! (points to the layers of the earth diagram)

Happy Reading and watch out for those volcanoes!

Review: Enchantments

Enchantments

By Kathryn Harrison

Random House March 2012

 311 pages

From the library

After the death of her infamous father Rasputin, Masha and her sister are sent to live with the Romanov family at the imperial palace. The tsarina hopes that Masha may be able to help her son Aloysha, who suffers from hemophilia. While she is unable to reproduce the miracles her father performed, a friendship develops between the two. Masha weaves fanciful tales to entertain the bed-ridden prince. As their relationship shifts from friendship to romance, the Bolsheviks place the family under house arrest. What will happen to the Romanovs? Will Masha's story forever be connected to the Rasputin and the royal family? 

The strongest part of this novel is the relationship between Masha and the enigmatic Rasputin. Ms. Harrison makes the relationship complicated, but sincere. Although the story opens with his death, his influence hangs over the whole book. In Masha’s memories, Rasputin is often away and paying attention to those seeking his healing or his love instead of his children. But his love for them is obvious. It’s easy when dealing with a real person to make them into a hero or a villain. But Harrison has created a very complex character and her writing allows the nuance of his personality and relationships to come through.

As Masha buries her father, she has to deal with complicated feelings. “Though I well knew the difference between sleep and death, covering my father’s body with a blanket of dirt, of the soil he loved, felt like pulling up the bedclothes, tucking him in tight. Standing by the grave, watching the progress of the gardeners, seeing the hole as it was filled in, I found relief under my misery. For months I’d worried for the safety of my father, who refused to take even the simple precaution of telling the tsarina’s police where he was headed and whom he planned to see when he left the apartment. He’d predicted his death and left me no choice but to wait for it. Now it was done, his prophecy fulfilled, his body washed and dressed and laid to rest.”

It’s fascinating to discover how much of this story is truth and how much is imagined. Rasputin did have a daughter named Masha who escaped from Russia and became a circus performer. Part of the fun in reading Enchantments is discovering what is factual and what is story. Reading this book will give you great insight into the Rasputin and Romanov families. But the details of the Revolution and the civil unrest remain unknown to the reader, since they are basically unknown to our young protagonists.

The only downside is the strange perspective. Masha is looking back on her time with the Romanovs. We know from the beginning that Aloysha, at least, will not have a happy ending. She often notes that “this will be the last time Aloysha does such and such” or “that he will be dead within a year.” The tension that remains is caused by our lack of knowledge about what will happen to the rest of the Romanov family and what will happen to Masha and Varya between the present and the time that Masha is remembering. I wonder if the story would have been even more compelling if it were told without knowledge of what would happen later.

Enchantments is a novel that will entice its readers to rediscover the beauty and tragedy of Russia at the beginning of the 20^th century. Kathryn Harrison masterfully weaves a story of a girl who is forced to grow up in a moment with a young romance, a fascinating look at the history, and the magic that exists in the simple act of telling a story. If nothing else, you can close this book and sing “Have you heard? There’s  a rumor in St. Petersburg…”

It's Monday - Happy Easter!

Hi there and a very happy Easter or Passover to you! We had a great weekend around here. I got some reading done as well as some work on a few freelance projects currently on my desk. On Sunday, the Easter Bunny paid a visit, we went to church, and then had a big lunch with my family before visiting the husband's family. We are a well-fed, tired bunch! Wait...you want some pictures? Well, alright...

Ok, enough with the pictures. I get it. Book Time!


Read This Week:


Enchantments
By Kathryn Harrison


Q
By Evan Mandery


Entwined
By Heather Dixon


I finally finished listening to:

American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare
By Karen Abbott


Posts from This Past Week:
It's Monday
March Wrap-Up
Wednesdays with David: Wayside School is Falling Down
Reviews of Carry the One and Half Blood Blues


Reading Now:

Patti LuPone: A Memoir


Coming Up:

Oracle Night
By Paul Auster

Tell me what you read this week in the comments - should I add it to my to-be-read list?