The Zahir

Ok. I have come to the realization that Paulo Coelho is one of my favorite authors. He tells a story like a poet. I want to sit on a curb with him, some wine at our side, the night sky above our heads and talk about life, love, beauty and literature. I would have to tell him to read my favorite book-The Club Dumas and it would go from there and be a night to remember. Here are some things I took away from the book: the book is about a famous author whose wife disappears. Did she leave him, was she kidnapped? He just doesn't know. But he becomes an obsessed man in search for the answers, while still keeping up appearances, etc. After a few years he starts to date again, but still wonders what happened to his wife. He starts to use the words "ex-wife". He has ultimately come to the conclusion that she left him and ran away with her translator (she was a journalist).
One day, at a booksigning, he gets some answers when he leasts expects it, and the story begins.
This one is about love, loss, finding yourself again, and the hardest part-going in search for yourself. It reminds me of Revolutionary Road in a sense where, there has got to be something bigger out there than just sitting back and watching life pass you by. The major difference between the two books is that this one goes on a more spiritual journey, and that's where I became a little disinterested. Don't get me wrong, I love spiritualism and I believe in all that stuff, but the book is heavier on new age stuff than I had anticipated.
Also, this book opens up with a great poem called "Ithaca" by Constantine Cavafy (1863-1933) I suggest you look it up! :)

Jaws

This book is as amazing as the motion picture! A great summer read. And did you know, the movie leaves out a scandalous love affair? I can see why they didn't use it for the film, but it makes for a great story in a novel!
I can't believe I made it through this book. I am glad its short!!! I was scared at times, but I think traveling through Mordor with Frodo and Samwise was scarier. I def went to sleep with nightmares then!

Revolutionary Road

Wow. Wow. Wow and wow. One of the best books Ive ever read. The writing was superb, the emotional was real and the characters were amazing. A fantastic novel that hits you somewhere in the gut and doesn't let go. This book was written in 1961...with themes that are difficult to discuss even now.

Something also very rare...usually I side with one character and stick to my guns with them, but in this novel, I see both sides and they conflict within me. I want to hug Frank and not let go, and April I want to take her out and show her off, but I can't do both. Both characters are strong, and they all have ideals I can relate to. This book is amazing and I doubt any will top it.

The Traveller

I thought the concept of this book was interesting. The novel, in the end wasn't. Though I am still fascinated by the author and how he "lives off the grid", I do not care for his writing or style. I did finish it, but not because I liked it enough. I finished it because I didnt think the author could screw it up so badly. He had something and went nowhere with it. I was disappointed. :(

Feast of Love

I really loved this book, and I fell in love with this passage..

"Inside the stadium, I feel the hushed moonlight on my back and sit down on a metal bench. The August meteor shower now seems to be a part of this show. I am two thirds of the way up. These seats are too high for visibility and too coldly metallic for comfort, but the place is so massive that it makes most individual judgements irrevelent. Like any coliseum, it defeats privacy and solitude through sheer size. Carved out of the earth, sized for hordes and giants, bloody injuries and shouting and so massive that no glance can take it all in, the stadium can be considered the staging ground for epic events, and not just in football, in 1964, President Lyndon Baines Johnson announced his Great Society Program here."

The author is talking about the stadium at the University of Michigan. Wow. That paragraph took my breath away. I love the "hushed moonlight on my back" part. Mmhmm. This author has a way with words very few authors have nowadays.

Firmin

I LOVE IT! If you love literature and are a bit romantic about it, you will too!!!!! This little guy was the voice of my soul when it comes to reading.

Miracle in the Andes

Its possible to experience all things with this book. Pain, anger, frustration, fear, religion, morality, joy. Above all, this book takes you on a journey through humanity and you dont come out the same way you went in.

Yes yes, I read this one for a third time. I can't help it, I wanted to be comforted. I read this one in between other books and when other books fell through, when they weren't interesting, I gave up and this one prevailed.
Richard, he yields the sword of truth with a mission of setting things right, and my favourite, he falls in love. I don't think I have ever read a book more than this one, i love it so.

The Road

wow. more later. still reflecting on this one.

A Partisan's Daughter

So, I would like to take this time and introduce to you one of my favorite authors. He is wonderful and I love the images I get in my minds eye when I read his words.
The first time I read one of his books I knew exactly what I wanted to read for the rest of my life.
This book, though it was incredibly captivating, I felt like it was missing something. i kept reading to find out what happens next, and nothing seemed to have happened next. Though it did manage to keep me on the edge of my seat the entire time, I felt a little saddened when it was over. The ending was lovely, the more and more I think about it.

Paper Towns

This is a teen book. I picked it up on a whim, and I am oh so glad I did.
It takes place in Florida, with a guy named Quentin as it's main character. Quentin is in love with his childhood friend and neighbor, Margo. They have grown apart though, now that theyre in high school.

Then one day, Margo knocks on Q's window late one night dressed up as a ninja and asks to borrow his car, and asks if he can drive it. Hesitatingly, he agrees. (Q doesn't like to get in trouble, Margo does) :) But he is in love with her, so what is he gonna do?! Of course he is going to say yes. They spend the ENTIRE night getting revenge on all of Margo's friends who aren't really her friends, she realizes. And then, just like that, she disappears the next morning.

Q is distraught and can think of nothing but trying to find her. In his search he comes to find that he never really knew Margo at all. And this is my favorite part. He stumbles on her music collection and finds out that she loves stuff like Bob Dylan, Woodie Guthrie and Billy Bragg. Walt Whitmans Leaves of Grass also plays a really important part in Q's search for Margo.

This one was very well written. It was extraordinarily dark at times, and also very humorous (Q's friends are a riot). There were times when i was reading it late at night and I had to put it down because it was getting a little too dark for me...but I loved it a lot a lot a lot.

The Reading Group

I re-read this book and fell in love with it all over again. The characters are breathtakingly real. Elizabeth Noble is a fantastic writer. She writes about mothers and friendship extraordinarily and brilliantly. She writes about books beautifully. There was not one single character I didn't understand and there was only one character I didn't love (because you weren't supposed to) Everyone was just so so so so so so amazing.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

This book is told from the perspective of a dog. A dog named Enzo. (good name). Oh, that dog was wonderful. I wanted to hug him!
I wasn't sure about the title when I first started to read this one. I assumed that Enzo was into racing other dogs playfully. Nooooo. In this story, Enzo's owner is a race car driver who is known for racing in the rain better than anyone else. Enzo's favorite thing to do is to sit down with his owner and watch racing tapes. Denny talks to Enzo about technique and racing, and Enzo takes it all in.
Enzo is a beautiful dog and what he brings to Denny is more than companionship. What he brings to Denny cannot be described or explained. And what Denny brings to Enzo is so much more as well.
This book has a lot of sadness. Denny goes through some unfornuate times, which were so sad, I almost stopped reading it. It started to make me almost upset. (as upset as a book can make someone). There was something about Denny. Something I understood. I could understand his reaction to things, they would have been my reaction to things. Down to the conversations he had with his daughter...and so when things started to go bad for him, it hurt me a little more. So it was tough to read at times, but it was a wonderful book. And when I get another dog, you bet he is going to watch some dvds with me.

My Custom Van

The title of this book is "My Custom Van: and 50 other Mind Blowing Essays that will Blow Your Mind all Over Your Face." Ahahahaha. How could you not laugh at that?
With essay titles like,

"An Open Letter to the Hair Stylist Who Somehow Convinced Me to Get a Perm When I Was in Sixth Grade."

"Announcing the Imminent Arrival of the Handlebar Mustache Certain People Said I'd Never Be Able to Grow"

and my all time favorite,

"Hey, David Sedaris-Why Don't You Just Go Ahead and Suck It?" You can only imagine the essay that follows, and it is laugh out loud funny and gross me out disgusting. Oh, I love Michael Ian Black. Always have, always will. :)

Tigerheart

I have never ever read Peter Pan, nor have I seen any movies. I've seen "Hook", yes. And I have seen "Neverland" but this book made it quite clear, I need to read the book.
This story is about a boy named Paul whose Father tells Paul all the stories of adventures that The Boy takes place in...in a land called anyplace.
One day, Paul stumbles across a dead pixie and succeeds in bringing her back to life by believing. And the pixie then informs Paul of why she died in the first place. Because The Boy ceased believing in her...and she is eager to seek revenge on PP.
Together, Paul and the pixie travel to anyplace and find that The Boy is now a pirate! The story pretty much continues to be amazing and adventurous! It actually reminded me a little of the Matrix. Apparently, anything The Boy believes is possible is possible. And if he believes he is in danger, he is in danger. So the similarities are def. there.
This book is a story of dreamers, the imagination, pirates and the wonderful world of youthful hope. I loved it...and to be honest, I loved that this book isn't a childrens book, but one for adults. Heehee, there were some subtle adult like things mentioned..or left to the imagination. I liked it a lot.

The Book Thief

It took me a while to really get into this book. It took me a really long time to get used to the Narrator-Death, and his way of explaining things.
In the end, I warmed up to him and I love love love the way he gave you a glimpse of what was going to happen without giving you any details until he got to that part of the story. And for me, knowing the outcome and finding out how it happens is actually pretty exciting!
I liked this book a lot and I liked all the characters. I even liked Liesels foster mother!!! I was actually quite fond of her and her determination.
But, yes, mostly I loved Rich and Max. Max for his compassion and Rich for his personality. Both of them were really great characters. I am extraordinarily glad I read this book it gave me a few new insights to life. :)

I Love You, Beth Cooper

So, I needed a book like this today. And let me just tell you, aside from helping me cope with the last 24 hours, this book was pretty great. It made me laugh and I loved all the references to motion pictures and I really loved the character "Rich". :) He was a cutie pie and I love the friendship he shares with Denis. Def a mix between Superbad and Weird Science. Plus the opening chapter had a quote from a James Dean movie. That pretty much seals the deal for me in literature. :)
It really is a great read and I totally pictured the whole thing in my head as a movie.

New Moon

Ok, so I don't want to give too much away, but listen...minor characters from Twilight had a major role in New Moon and Stephenie Meyer did a really good job at keeping me interested. She pulled a J.J. Abrams (you remember when all your favourite Lost characters fell to the background and "the others" became the main story line...yeah I hated it!) but Stephenie Meyer really did a good job. Though I missed my favourite characters like crazy, she really did have me caring for the new ones.

You know what's weird though, in my Twilight post, I wrote that she knew love as Shakespeare did. And it's funny because New Moon completely revolves around Romeo and Juliet. Not only does New Moon reference it a whole bunch, but the story seems to mirror the tragic play a little bit. It's kind of interesting. And it happens to be my favourite play, so I am not complaining. At first, I got a little sad when Edward (vampire) said that he had no respect for Romeo because he made really bad decisions, but he takes it back in the end for good reason! :) <3 See, I love love love Romeo. Yeah, he made some bad decisions, and even he knew he did..but he really did love Juliet. <3 And Edward really loves Bella.

Love Walked In

This one was really cute. I love that Cornelia was a cafe manager, and I loved her enthusiasm for old Katherine Hepburn movies. Hell, I am not much of a Katherine Hepburn fan, but even I got excited as Cornelia would reference a scene from one of her movies.
I liked it enough to read the sequel, but I didn't fall in love with the characters as much as I felt I should...Several characters had some realistic flaws, but the kind of flaws that make me lose faith in humanity. Even some of the background characters! But overall, it was good. And I smiled a whole lot with Cornelia's character.