Good morning. It is super early here in Duluth this morning. 4:20 a.m. to be exact. I am the first one up in my room as I hate waiting to get ready to go somewhere so I got up early, got ready…. and am now in the lobby. I need to go wake my roommates pretty quick here and at 5 a.m. we all will be shuffling our tired bodies to the starting line up for the MS 150 bike ride.
A friend of mine, also named Sheila, has a dad who had MS. This is my second year participating in bike rides for MS, my first time doing this big one. It will be two days, 75 miles a day…. late afternoons are filled with food and fun. (I believe my late afternoon may include a nap.) 😛
Current temp in Duluth, MN: 46 degrees.
yay. *sarcasm*
Anyhoo – I am out, have a great day….pictures soon
J R R Tolkien is one of those authors who fascinates me. I am amazed when authors can create a whole other world out of their imaginations and the more believable it is…. the more it blows me away. (J K Rowling does the same thing to me…. I am just in awe…)
I actually had a creative writing class in High School that was all about Tolkien. We watched the animated version of the movie, wrote reports, discussed Tolkien and I for one was in my kind of world. 😀 Tolkien soon became an author I was just fascinated with, and love the thought of he, CS Lewis and other authors meeting and discussing their books in a pub called The Rabbit Room. (For this reason I have named my own Library the Rabbit Room as it is marked over the doors to enter it.)
The Inklings was an Oxford writers’ group which included C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Charles Williams and Hugo Dyson. From late 1933, they met on Thursday evenings at Lewis’s college rooms at Magdalen, where they would read and discuss various material, including their unfinished manuscripts.[4] These meetings were accompanied with more informal lunchtime gatherings at various Oxford pubs which coalesced into a regular meeting held on Mondays or Tuesday lunchtimes at the Eagle and Child, in a private lounge at the back of the pub known as the ‘Rabbit Room’.
Recently when I made the decision I wanted to listen to this on audio, Heather at 30+ A Lifetime Of Books had made a similar decision at around the same time. We decided we would post our reviews at the same time and ask each other our thoughts about the audio. We both had the same narrator (gah… I feel awful, I returned my copy to the library and can not remember who the narrator was but I bet Heather knows! :razz:)
Here is what Heather asked me and my responses:
1. Was the audio what you expected it to be? Did it surprise you in any way? You know, I read this in High School Uhh…. *cough cough* that was quite a few years ago, and honestly many of the details of the story I had forgotten. When I started listening I was pleasantly surprised to find myself sitting outside the hobbit hole with Bilbo and as our narrator read on I was engulfed with memories of the book from all those years ago.
2. What did you think of the narration? I just checked my library reserve and it looks like the narrator was John Robert Reuel. I think he did a wonderful job. This is not an easy book to narrate as there are many voices and even quite a bit of singing (more on that later)
3. This was originally written as a children’s book – do you think the book would appeal most to children? Teens? Adults? I gave this question quite a bit of thought. I think children can and will still appreciate this book as they will enjoy the imagery the story put sin your mind…. hobbits, dragons, wizards – whats not to love? I also think adults can appreciate this one for the history of the story – love of a classic read, and secondly many of us grew up with these stories floating around in the background of our lives… this was our generations paranormal before paranormal was cool…. 🙂
Sadly though, I am not so sure this book/audio would bring in much interest from todays YA crowd. While an amazing work of literature by my standards, I don’t think it had the elements that the YA readers are looking for – romance, dystopia, paranormal… if I am wrong on this let me know… I would love to be wrong on this point. 🙂
4. Did you have a favorite part? Least favorite part? I have to admit when Gollum entered the narration I was excited. Usually one to feel for the under dog, I always have had a soft spot for Gollum/Smeagal…. when the voice came through my car speakers I got chills of excitement… obviously I did not like who Smeagal had become (the rings fault!) but I think in better circumstances, perhaps in another life…. Gollum could have been a lot like Dobby (HarryPotter books)
Least favorite was all the singing. I get that it is part of the story, but I have never been one for poetry so even reading song after song in the book I remember got old fast. On audio… it was just as disturbing to the point that I had to make sure my windows were up when driving through town as I really did not anyone hearing Hobbit songs coming out of my vehicle 😛
I already confessed this to Heather when we chatted at BEA this year, but at one point the songs (song after song after song) became so much while driving that I grabbed a piece of scratch paper and wrote out my own words to a song that came to mind. I will share it with you on a separate page as I do not want to take away from my thoughts on this audio and review with my crazy thinking. For inquiring minds you can find the song here:
Ok…. moving on… I enjoyed this refresher course in The Hobbit as it reminded me of the story I read so long ago. I am excited about the movie, which is really what inspired me to want to listen to the audio, and I am glad I did. Here is a link for those of you who are curious to know more about the movie. While Orlando Bloom was missing from the latest Pirates Of The Caribbean movie, he has been confirmed for The Hobbit.
Stop over to Heathers at 30+ A Lifetime of Books and see her review today of The Hbbbit and how she answered my questions.
And for giggles as I am in a very Middle earth mood, I found a Hobbit Name Generator. For the record… In Middle Earth I would be known as Ruby Hardbottle. 😉
Hopefully you were able to stop by yesterday for the all day blog party. It was a lot of fun and as usual your comments make laugh… and smile. Great job fellow book lovers!
This morning I am announcing the 4 winners from yesterday in this post – but first need to cover a couple of other things so hang in there…. these tib bits of life may be interesting.
1. Audiobook Week sadly, ends today over at Devourer Of Books. It has been a blast and if you have not checked it, go and do so. For me however, it does not end today as I have a narrator interview going up tomorrow. Kate Reading has chatted with me about narrating books, how it all began, and how it works for her, posting tomorrow.
The question on Jen’s blog today was – what are our best audiobook resources. For me, I find I use audible.com frequently. I had first heard about it on Twitter about a year ago and went over and checked it out. The prices are good, they offer frequent sales, and they download to ITunes and then right on to my IPOD. I use audible constantly as I always have a book downloaded on my IPOD (I call my IPOD Milton Podricker). *Fact…. embarrassing fact: I have no music on my IPOD. I bought it strictly for books. 😯 Yup.
(I do however have a nano that I call Podette, and Podette has all my music for working out, riding bike, etc on that.)
See? I am not completely goofy 😛
Today I leave in ummm…. about an hour for the cities. About 20 of us are doing a bike ride this weekend called the MS 150. I am pretty excited about that and whelmed at the same time. The whelmed part is that there goes my entire weekend…. as I will not be back until Sunday afternoon and then I have to help with an event Sunday eventing. GAH. I hate being over scheduled (all on me, I do this to myself I know…)
I am taking Laptop with me and hoping he survives the trip as a truck carries our luggage for us each day to the next stop where we stay in hotels and I am a little worried about Laptops well-being, but really…. can’t bear to leave him. (ok, I see now I am back to being goofy…) 😀
Ok… finally… yesterdays winners. I have to say – I wish you all could win. You are so fun to chat with and I love to come home and see who had what to say. You…. complete me. (Oh man…. I really have the goofies bad today…… :razz:)
Random.org has spoken! 😀 Winners please email me your shipping info to journeythroughbooks@gmail.com and I will get these out to you early next week.
Thanks again everyone… I have to get a movie on it here but have an awesome post coming up later today with Heather from Age 30+ A Lifetime of Books. 😀
Oh I am just giddy with excitement!!! Today officially marks my two-year anniversary of my step into the book blogging world. Whoever thought that this day would come? I sure didn’t! When I first discovered book blogging I would never have dreamed what a life changing experience it would be… I did not know that by chatting books I would:
start having conversations with authors
be part of a Minnesota book event panel
Go to New York – not once, but twice for BEA
meet many awesome book bloggers throughout this wonderful and crazy hobby
and of course, get to chat with all of you
Life is really not as it was before I book blogged. 😀
This party is to really celebrate you, because honestly…. if I was talking to myself every day…. I know I would not do this blog, at least not to the extent and to the love that I do now. SO please, come on in!
You may drop your coat at the coat check (be sure to get a claim number), and help yourself to the beverages and snacks. Excuse me a minute while I get the music going…
*runs into other room*
*runs back*
There. Nothing like a little cheesy 80’s background music. 😛
At this party – the gifts are for you! It’s easy to participate – simply leave a comment on this post about how you arrived at the party (have fun with this) and what virtual gift or food item you brought with you, such as you rode your scooter and brought flaming shish kabobs. (I did this last year and the sheer imaginative comments had me laughing for days after…. :D)
This giveaway is open for today only – tomorrow morning I will announce the winners using random.org on my Morning Meandering post. If you have a preference (package 1,2,3, or 4) you can say that in your comment and if your name is drawn that will be yours if not already won by someone else – otherwise no need to say which as you will be eligible for all.
Ok… let’s get to the good stuff:
An advanced reader copy of Forever by Maggie Stiefvater, Between by Monica Warman, Camerons Coffee (Caramel Brownie), Ghiradelli Chocolate, and a Mysterious Benedict Society puzzle
Nazareth Child by Darrell James, Ghiradelli Chocolate, Cameron’s French Vanilla coffee, The Soldiers Wife by Margaret Leroy, and Crooked Letter Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin.
The Art Of Choosing (AUDIO!), Dark Legacy and Secret Legacy by Anna DeStefano, Lethal by Sandra Brown, Lindt Truffles, Cameron’s Cinnamon Sugar Cookie coffee
The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly, The Taker by Alma Katsu, The Sandalwood tree by Elle Newmark, Ghiradelli Chocolate, and Java delight Hazelnut Creme Coffee
*Personal thank you to publishers who gave me copies of these books to give away for this event.
Thank you readers of Book Journey – You make me smile with your comments, nod in understanding, and occasionally I laugh out loud. I am so appreciative of all of you!!!
Let’s get this party started!!!! I am opening the door….
Adam March is a married well to do man. He has a wife who loves her who likes the comforts of having money and a teenage daughter who wants for nothing. On the brink of becoming CEO of the company he has worked hard in for years, a lapse in judgement, a snap decision, causes Adam to lose everything. My the mighty have fallen when Adam loses his job, his, home, his wife, his daughter, and his dignity. Now working off a community service sentence at a local soup kitchen Adam needs to find out where he goes from here.
Chance is a pit bull. He has born in captivity to pit bull parents who are caged and breed for dog fights. Chance is pretty proud of his standings, he has a few scars, but usually comes out the victor in his matches. While life is ok, Chance knows it is not great. He sees his mother old and tired, they live in fear of the men who cage them never knowing if they are going to eat that day or be beaten. When Chance has an opportunity to escape, he does and finds himself living as a free dog on the streets.
In a “chance” meeting… both Adam and the dog wind up together. But what can a man who has nothing to give do with a dog who has known no other life than fighting? What can a dog offer a man who is broken, bitter, and self-absorbed?
Pit Bulls: Many areas restrict pit bull ownership such as Canada, Miami Florida, and Denver Colorado. They are a member of the terrier family and bull-dog family. These dogs are a popular breed used in dog fighting.
While looking for an audio a couple of weeks back this one came across my path. I liked the sound of the read (the synopsis on the audio was kind of funny) but… I was concerned about reading about a dog.
Side note – I am really sensitive when it comes to animals.
But the book pulled me in and I even made a note on a post that this dog better be ok throughout the whole book because I will be mad if this is another book that breaks my heart.
SO?
I am not going to tell you.
What I am going to tell you is that the alternating parts told from Adams point of view, and then Chances are wonderful. Usually if I am reading about a dog he is cute and lovable and Chance is not that. Chance is a pit bull. He had half an ear and many scars. He is a fighter and does not know how to be pet (and not really sure he would want to be one!) Yet the story is told so well that you come to love Chance for who he is on the inside, really just a dog who needs to catch a break.
I even enjoyed Adam and he is not a likable guy. He is rough (get it? “Ruff!”… oh, never mind…) around the edges and angry with the world. The story, while maybe predictable, still felt unique to me in its telling. This was one of those audio I could not wait to get back to.
Esther Kaminsky is a young Orthodox Jewish girl around the age of 12 who lives in the holy city of Jerusalem. In this time, a woman is expected to marry and produce many sons to hasten the arrival of the Messiah. While Esther understands this role she is to play, she has trouble accepting it. Secretly she desires to draw and wonders about exploring beyond her religion to possibly study in Paris. When her teacher catches her extraordinary talent for drawing, he gets her colored pencils and art lessons. Again Esther wonders if perhaps God has chosen her to be an artist and now a mother.
When tragedy strikes her family, Esther puts aside her dreams and instead follows the path that was chosen for her and becomes an obedient “Jerusalem Maiden”. Yet its hard to smother a strong desire and that desire still burns within Esther. When an opportunity arises Esther has a clash of faith and passion… and forces her to confront the most difficult question of all… “to who must she be true?”
In a word: passionate.
Talia Carner had me from the first pages of this well written, well thought out book. Even as I type now I find myself taking a deep breath as I recall turning the pages, at once fascinated and curious with where I would be taken on this particular book journey.
Divided into 4 important parts of Esther’s life: Maiden, Marriage, Motherhood, and Artist, each opening into pages of deliciously detailed descriptions of life, and family, and dreams. Historically beautiful…. seriously here – I am looking for the words to let you know this book amazed me
It made me think about passions and talents in general and how our lives are shaped, much like Esther’s by choices and life happenings beyond our control. It made me think about how does one choose between right and right?
A page turner for sure, but know that while this book speaks of faith, it is not (not exactly anyway) Christian Fiction, nor is it marketed that way. There are a few parts in the book that will make that quite clear to you as there are a couple of sex scenes and a few situations that I found fitting to the nature of the book.
Overall, if you enjoy Historical Fiction this is a wonderful read. I was delighted to not find it to be a heavy read, but instead it was like taking a journey with Esther walking together through Jerusalem and through her life.
Side note: I had the opportunity to meet the lovely and talented Talia Carner at the Harper Collins Book Blogger Reception a few weeks ago when I was in New York for BEA. She was wonderful to talk to and I find myself now curious about her other books, China Doll and Puppet Child.
Thank you to TLC book tours for a chance to read this book
Thank you to Harper Collins Book Blogger Reception for the chance to meet Talia Carner.
Good Morning! What a week huh? So much going on but I am working hard to keep on top of it all…. Audio Week (woo hoo!!!) is happening and if you did not see my giveaway you can still check that out, and the current mid-week audio thoughts are here:
Current/most recent audiobook: I listen to 3 at a time (different locations people…. don’t be afraid! :razz:) In my car is Every Last One by Ann Quinlin. In my IPOD is Bossy Pants by Tina Fey (hilarious!), and in my kitchen CD player is the Maltaise Falcon (which honestly is freaking me out a bit… is is performed by The Hollywood Theater Of The Ear…. and it takes a bit of getting used to.)
Impressions: One good, one great, one ummmm….. (you can guess which is which :D)
Current Favorite Audio: So touch to choose but I really enjoyed The Art of Racing In The Rain by Garth Stein. (*sob) That’s all I’m saying.
One narrator I wold choose over print: I am not “there” yet. When it comes to narrators, I am still a rooky. Sitting on the bench waiting for the coach to let me in the game. 😛 (It’s early yet – first cup of coffee….)
Genres I most often listen to: I really am all over the genre field. I think with audio I am more daring… a classic or what looks to be a hard read I may try in audio and have had good luck with that.
If given the choice I will always choose audio when: … When I am traveling. I am actually bummed when I have to ride with someone somewhere as most will not tolerate my “do you mind if we listen to hours of audio? 😛
If given the choice I will always choose print when: If it is a book I really want to know well, I need to be able to go back and forth… and repeat as necessary.
Ok – BUT the real real REAL reason for this post title is that tomorrow is……My Blogiversary! SQQQQUUUEEEEEEE!!!!! Seriously SSSQQUUUEEEEE!!!! 😀
If you have been around here for any length of time you will know that I go all out for my blogiversary and I have HUGE giveaways as thank you to my awesome readers (YOU!). If you are new to my blogiversary madness you can get a sneak peak of what happened here in previous years:
Yup….. soooooo much fun. AND tomorrow it is happening again so please stop by! I have awesome giveaways thanks to incredible authors and publishers. I will give yo a hint I have a copy of the not yet released __________________!!!! (I know right!) And if you were drooling over this one I picked up at BEA, know that I have a second one that will also be on the giveaways! As always there will be books, coffee, and chocolate too. All you have to do is come to the party 😀
I am soooo excited but have a busy day ahead of me….. need to have the blog cleaned, the decorators arrive late this afternoon, caterers will be here in the morning… oh I should check on the giant ice sculpture too!
Have an awesome day – a book tour yet to come and later…. an awesome audio review.
This week is Audiobook week and our host Jen from Devourer Of Books has been posting themes each day as well as audio giveaways. Todays topic was on sound effects in audio books. originally I wasn’t planning on writing this post as I fall somewhere in between. As the day went on and I thought about it… I decided maybe I did have something to say to this after all.
If you read my “No Excuses” audio book post yesterday, you may recall I mentioned that my first audio was a James Patterson, Worst Case. (Which – shameless plug here… this particular series with Michael Bennett are clean and excellent audio… you can not say that about all of Patterson’s work). Now no matter where you fall on the whole Patterson issue (love him, hate him….) this is not so much about him as it is about the narrators and the sound effects. The narrators of these books are so fantastic, and as this was my “debut into audio”, the sound effects were icing on the audio case. An occasional gun shot, a door slamming, the sounds of footsteps…. not cheesy, not consistent throughout the reading, but occasional and like they belonged. I remember I was so into that first book when that gun shot sounded I jumped. Now that my friend…. is good audio.
Now on the other side of this…. it can also not work. Be considered cheesy, over the top, and just basically too much and I want to say STOP IT. Just STOP IT. 😛 I am currently listening to an audio (it shall not be named…) where I am experiencing this over the top dramatic sound effects. It is a classic so I am thinking they meant it to be this way, but I am finding it takes away from the experience and I am finding in this case that it distracts me from the story line.
This particular discussion – is really the listeners preference. For more thought son this topic stop by the discussion going on at Devourer Of Books and see the other audio listeners links to their thoughts on sound effects in audio.
How about you? If you listen to audio – what do you prefer?
Rococo: also referred to as “Late Baroque” is an 18th century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful. Rococo rooms were designed as total works of art with elegant and ornate furniture, small sculptures, ornamental mirrors, and tapestry complementing architecture, reliefs, and wall paintings. It was largely supplanted by the Neoclassic style. In 1835 the Dictionary of the French Academy stated that the word Rococo “usually covers the kind of ornament, style and design associated with Louis XV’s reign and the beginning of that of Louis XVI”. It includes therefore, all types of art produced around the middle of the 18th century in France.
Bartolomeo di Crespi, “B” has a dream. He has always wanted to get his interior decorating hands on his church, Our Lady Of Fatima. Seriously…. this church could do with a make over and B has just the plan. When the opportunity arises renovate the church, B is beside himself with joy and that is really where the fun begins!
B soon learns that his “one man plan” is not going to work as there is no “I” in Team. And as if working with other artistic types isn’t hard enough, he also is dealing with his large Italian family and loads of drama… his sister Toot is desperate need of a post divorce make over of her own and relies heavily on her brother, Capri the daughter of the richest woman in New Jersey was long ago told she would marry B, and as much as B loves her…. he doesn’t love her in that way, Father Porporino does his best to keep his flock scandal free (even as we slowly uncover one of his own), Eydie the international designer is stepping to close into B’s dream for the church, and B’s cousinChristina is drowning in a grief that consumes all who come near…
What this adds up to is a funny adventure with delightful characters centered around a family that still sticks together no matter what, a church that is the center of them all, and B the artist who would love to just do his job and avoid all the rest but has too much a sense of family to shut them out.
Adriana with friend and comedian, Mario Cantone
There is no secret that I adore Adriana Trigiani. She is an amazing woman, writer, and author. I have been lucky enough to spend time with her and this is where I stumbled on to this treasure of audio. Adriana is an amazing story-teller…. not only in her books, but in everyday life. Recently at a lunch in New York, Adriana shared stories about her books and about her good friend Mario recording Rococo. (You may recognize Mario from the Sex In The City movie).
When I left that luncheon I knew I had to find Rococo (which I had never read) and I had to find it in audio with Mario narrating. I did find it on audible.com and anxiously awaited for my current audio to end so I could give this one a try.
If you are talking awesome narrators – Mario Cantone hit the spot. This audio was amazing to listen to! I laughed through much of it, delighted in all the Italian characters who were loud and opinionated and lovable. Honestly – Adriana did it again.
What I love about the books I have read of Adriana’s is the family. I am not sure if all her books are like this, but the ones I have had the privilege to experience are centered around family that cares about one another. I come from a small family that is not all that close and reading or listening to such family is an experience for me. I bask in what that would be like – big meals, family gatherings, opening your home and your heart when there is a need….
This audio is truly a treasure. If you have a chance to listen to this one, I encourage you to do so. Mario reads with such a passion and while it is a fun listen, there is also a great story line and in the end… I was emotionally choked up, already missing characters who had now become family in my mind.
Did any of you ever watch Gilmore Girls ? If you watched it like I did (every episode and then I bought the seasons….) you may remember that in a particular episode or two they talked about Luke’s “Dark Day.” I don’t recall all the details of his “dark day” but I think it had to do with the passing of his dad and Luke would just disappear for a day.
Yesterday was my dark day.
June 6 is a hard day for me, It is an anniversary of a loss and even though it has been 15 years, it can still hit me like a ton of bricks. (Does this happen to anyone else?)
My point of sharing this really is multi-fold. One is, as much as I try to keep my posts on a happy note, occasionally there is stuff in our lives and I don’t mind letting you in. Two, this is where many things come into play that make me thankful… and without dark days… we may not always notice that silver lining. 🙂
Yesterday – I would have rather just been gone for a day. I was feeling bad, and if it were not for factors in my life and on this blog that I commit to – I would have had a “dark day” and not posted at all….
however…
It was Monday. And… the Monday meme is a privilege for me to host and I enjoy it. AND it was the start to Audio Week which I have so been looking forward to as I do love my audio and I am going to hopefully bring some of you nay sayers around to audio throughout this week. 😀 So my point is… no dark day… I had things to post.
As the day went on I left work early, came home with a plan to get some things done and instead I wallowed a bit in a dose of self-pity and then…. my College son called. He checked in on me, made sure I got the card he sent (he amazes me), and asked my plan for the day. I told him that I was home… that I was supposed to go out to dinner with a few friends but was going to pass. He told me I had to go out to dinner and if he had to he was going to text me friend and tell her to make me go.
So at 5:30 I went mainly because we were celebrating Key’s birthday and I did not want to miss out on that. As I drove through town I was down… but there is something about friends…. soon we were sitting outside the restaurant at a table with the warm sun and cool breeze, with the smell of lilacs next to a small waterfall. Tension and sorrow melted off me. We talked, we ate, we shared until 9:30 pm. It was getting dark when we left, and while I had no intentions of staying that late. I am so glad I did.
My point (I believe) in sharing this is that we all have these moments where we would just rather not let others in. The first part of June is hard on me.. has been for many years as memories pour through…. BUT, even my daily rituals of chatting with you makes it a little easier, and friends… are icing on the cake called life.
l: Julie,Key,Me, Sandi
Ok – enough. One more thing this morning. I mentioned it is audio week (SSQQUUEEE). If you did not get a chance to read my introductory post yesterday, I hope you do. There is a giveaway. If you want to join in – check out Devourer Of Books as there are daily things and giveaways. Also – pop over to The Literate Housewife for the start of something fun… introducing: Shaken Not Stirred!
Book Journey 