An Equal Music

Wow. This book was intense and heavy on the musical lingo. It was very intricate and extrordinarily beautiful, but way too heavy. I was relieved when I had finished it.

Hank and Holler: Opening Soon

The cover of this book was very promising. A Diner/Cafe... And it was about a girl who came from somewhere only to find herself nowhere. So she got a job at the diner. Working at a diner? Not very exciting, is it? And it was as boring as it sounds...

Wizard of Oz

This is around Feb 2002. I took a week off and read like 6 books in one week. I was really glad that I was able to finally read this book. I don't think I'll ever read this much in a week though. By the end, I was sick of reading. And the rest of the books weren't that great.

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

I am actually surprised at how much I like this book. I guess it stirred something in me, from my past. I remember reading it one day, I was alone. And there was this chapter that took a hold of my heart. I was sobbing when Joe came home and he thought something was really wrong. Well, just my childhood. This book brought that out.
You see, there is this one chapter where the woman, her name is Sidda, she finds out something about her past. In the book, she gets in a fight with her mom. She then gets *kidnapped* by her moms friends and they sit her down and tell her why her mom is the way she is. And so that chapter that grabbed me is the chapter where Sidda as a little girl writes a letter to her mom asking her why she left. This little girl is pouring out her soul because she thinks her mom left because of something she did. But Sidda, as an adult, finds out that her mom had gone to rehab..so it was a moving chapter. And it made me cry a lot because I always feel responsible for everything negative in my life.

Bell Jar

Someone at B. Dalton recommended this to me and Slyvia Plath is one of Chris Cornells favourite writers..so it couldn't go wrong. But it was oh so wrong. I didn't like it one bit. I can't put my finger on why I didn't like it...

A Bend in the Road

tragic tragic tragic tragic....

Wizards First Rule-again

So...after reading the last book in the series months before, I felt like I maybe missed something in the series. An entire book or something. I felt like I needed to go back and just remember what it was to love this book again. I did. And it was loved again. :)

Because of Winn-Dixie

Oh wow. I loved this book. The little girl in this book was so so so lonely and man oh man, I felt her lonliness. But she found a little buddy and named him after a grocery store. :) It was good!

Dearest Friend, Dear Stranger

So I don't even remember reading this book. :( I guess it's vaguely familiar...two women who find friendship through the internet. I had to look it up though..

Talking to Addison

This book was too cute. Online romances and cute emails and texts..its a chick lits dream. :) I wish I could still be amused by cute...but too much time goes into a book to get a mere laugh out of it. I need more...I need characters to hold me in the dark when its too frightening to go to bed. I need a hero's tough decision on which course to take to inspire me to be stand strong..it'll all turn out okay.

Pillars of Creation

The last book I read in this installment. Eh. I was really disappointed. Some weird new girl took over most of the plot and Richard and Kahlan were sort of seperated and I was all like "wtf?"....It didnt feel like it was a part of the series. It felt like it was more a spin off..

The Chronicles Of Naria-almost all of them anyway

Hmm, I read most of this...it was too much for one go though, so I stopped after Prince Caspian. I read it around the Holidays of 2001. Good holiday book to read. I really love how the lion, Aslan, looks on this cover. He was an amazing figure in this book. Patient, noble, virtuous and kind...my favourite traits in people...and lions :)

A Mothers Gift

First of all, this is all about singing. A girls dream. It used to be my dream. Music and love. All I ever wanted when I was growing up..so yeah I wanted to read this. I wasn't a fan of Britney Spears at the time. I don't think I ever was at any point of my life. Her ex, Justin Timberlake? Heck yes. He brought sexy back, after all. :)

The Notebook

So, I read this and yes yes yes it was all about love but it was all so so so sad. Why is love always tragic?

Christmas Box

For a few years I tried to read christmas themes around the holidays but I got pretty sick of the holidays around the holidays in the end. Sad, isn't it? I actually like very few christmas songs. Nat King Cole has a place in my heart for christmas music and not much else. :( Yeah, makes me a little sad, too.

Corelli's Mandolin-again

Re-reading Corelli's Mandolin. Mmhm...oh this book. It why I learned Greek, it's why I bought a mandolin. Its why I love historical fiction and its why I love to read. Louis De Bernieres is an amazing author. The stories he weaves are just so beautiful. He is a true artist.

The Fellowship Of the Ring

The Fellowship, yeah...the fellowship. The first time I read this I knew only one thing. I really adored Sam. Samwise Gamgee! :) He made me so happy. So Strider was always a favourite but I adored Sam. Strider was someone I didnt quite understand. You know, years later i find that i identify with Stider a lot more and less with Sam. Heh...I didn't realise that until just now. I guess I *have* changed a little bit..

Girlfriends

Patrick Sanchez. He is a local author and he did a few signings at B. Dalton. He signed a book for me. :)

From the Dust Returned

I really wanted to like Ray Bradbury. I really needed to read something dark and beautiful and gothic. This book was just not good. :( I never did find that book. House of Leaves came close (I FINALLY BOUGHT IT LAST YEAR) but I didn't finish it. :(

The Kiss

I bought this book in hardcover. The picture on the book is one of my favourites of all time. Klimt. I love it. I have never owned a reprint of it. It never seemed to belong in my life. So I had to read this book. I couldn't resist a kiss. :) And the book was really great. :)

Alexander: Child of Dreams

Ok, let me just say that this is the best looking book in my collection. I own all three books in the series and seeing them next to each other is pretty much as close to heaven as one can get when looking at books.
All three books are identical in style, except the others are blue and green. I think they make my mouth water a little bit. Yeah, books!
Alexander is my favourite historical figure and I love his name and its greek counterpart-Aleksandros. Mhmmm..even just Alex. Beautiful right? I really love these books. I love that I own them and that they are mine.

What Dreams May Come

This book was really food for thought for me. It kept me up endless nights..wondering...supposedly this guy did a ton of research on death and it all comes back to this. Though its published as fiction, there seems to be this ring of truth around it. Am I a believer? Nah...who can believe in the unknown? I guess thats Faith, then... But tell you what, this book sure is interesting. I would very much like to re-read it.

I Wish I Had A Red Dress

I loved it! I loved the culture, the sadness, the hopefullness of this book. I's about a woman who never had to the courage to wear a red dress. I used to feel that way growing up about dresses in general...so i knew what she was talking about...

I think this one was also one of Oprahs first book club picks when she started out.

The Vampire Lestat

Time for some repeats. yes! I love love love re-reading this book! You know what else? I have my original copy from Los Angeles. Mhmm..I love the familiar pages. They way they leaf through my fingertips..

Little Women

I really adored this book and I remember that I didn't watch the movie until years later. The movie was perfectly cast as well, and yet another character to tie Christian Bale to. :) (first one was Mandras in Corelli's Mandolin, though I didn't know that the first time I read it, but the other two times, you bet your bottom dollar I thought of Christian Bale as Mandras) I knew ahead of time that he was in the movie version, who I knew who to cast him as in the book. :)
This book made me feel like maybe its not such a bad thing to be a girl. I don't get that feeling a whole lot..

Sublte Knife

So, ya think they're going to make a second movie?

The Princess Bride

Hahaha, yes! Oh Princess Bride. Oh..this is a good one. Mmmhmm...I actually like it more than the movie. Just seeing the book on my bookshelf and at work makes me really happy and gives my heart that quick jump of adventure right around the corner.

She's Come Undone

This book I read for a book club. Just looking at it makes me a little sick to my stomach. This book is whack. The main character is whack. A lot of people really like this book but I couldn't stand it. It was well written and all..but I just didn't like the main character at all...there was this part in the book where she would try to lose weight and the way she did it just bothered me so much. People get so crazy about trying to lose weight...it makes me uncomfortable...

Knight of the Sacred Lake

Dang! I got sucked into reading the series...I love stories about King Arthur! (except for when Clive Owen is King Arthur-sorry dude)

Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas

I wanted to see Patterson's lighter side. Even though I had never read any of his other stuff. And you know what, his lighter side is Nicholas Sparks. Who would have thought?

A Year In Van Nuys

I think I saw this in an ADVANCED READER magazine, and I ordered it into the store. I had to read it. Van Nuys! Cmon, thats around the corner from where I lived when I lived in Los Angeles! And I loved this one. Non-fiction, essays type...and I loved it. I tried to staff rec it but no one wants to read about Van Nuys. Another book I really want to read about home is the book about Laurel Canyon. Laurel Canyon and me have been best friends. Its one of my favourite streets back home and I have lots of memories of Laurel Canyon. And there is a book about it and I still haven't read it yet. There is also a movie about Laurel Canyon, with Christian Bale. Ah, the landscape is beautiful.

China Garden

This one was a teen book. Since I was the childrens dept person, I felt like I wanted to actually know what I would be recommending to teens. I couldnt just recommend anything. So I read a lot of teen books. :) This one was ok. The cover was better than the book.

Cider House Rules

Ah, back when I liked Tobey Maguire. This book gave me the creeps. And everytime I think of apple picking, this book comes to mind. I dunno. This book was so dark. It made me sad. It wasn't as hopefull as the movie was. Plus I didn't like *any* of the characters. :(

Watermelon

Marta used to talk about this book all the time. And how she loved it so. I love it also. A woman who goes back to her family after her own family falls apart. It's a great read and Marian Keyes is a great writer. She's witty, she's descriptive and she's just wonderful.

The Doll People

One of my favourite kids books ever. I love this one. I've given it to a few of the little kiddies in my life. :) Its sort of like a "Toy Story" for girls. The illustrations are amazing. There's a page where there is a drawing of a spider web and I really love drawings of spider webs. What a thing to like! Since I hate spiders and all. I do think that spiders are kind of beautiful though. Beautiful and creepy. Spiderwebs are just beautiful. Except when I walk through one. Ew. I dont like that at all.

Guenevere

Ah..the legend of King Arthur and of Lancelot. You know, these books were really femme. I kind of would have liked a guys perspective better... these were more focused on the love triangle than any action. Eh..they were ok.

The Hobbit

This is still 2001 guys. I can't believe I read this book SOOO long ago! Oh, Tolkein, you make my heart sing. You make everything groovy! =D This book cover sort of looks funkadelic, too..

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone

I read this book and it was cute. Harry was a good character. Hagrid was even better. But I didn't get overtly excited about the book. And I didn't picture the world as magical as the movies made it seem. The movies are gorgeous. I remember being angry at my imagination for not measuring up to a movie. :)

Poisonwood Bible

This book was really really really amazing. I am sad that it is an Oprah book, but that isnt going to stop me from reading it. I loved it. And to this day, I'm very hesistant to drink unfiltered water. Even if they were in a different country, still!!!!!

Best Friends

This book stood out to me because I was super lonely. I hadn't made any friends here yet. I knew people at work, sure. And we were all pretty much amazing friends at work..but I only talked to 1 of them outside of work and it wasn't the type of friendship I needed in my life. So I read this book. I guess it only made me miss what I didn't have more. And it wasn't even a happy book, but friends are so important to ones life. It doesnt mean just somebody to be there for, they just help shape your life. They inspire you. And paths appear when it seems that there were none. Friends are important. And now my heart is full.

Golden Compass

Golden Compass, I liked you a lot. I wouldn't go as far as love...but see that Bear on the cover. Yeah, he made me really happy. :) He was awesome!

Cranberry Queen

I bought this book for the cover. I felt like i wanted to be in that world that this girl was in. And doesn't everybody like cranberries?
Overall, the book is completely forgettable and it makes me really sad when that happens. :( I took away nothing from it in the end.