Happy Sunday! Looks like today going to be a good day – sunny and warm here in Minnesota – even at 7 am! Al and I went out and had dinner last night to celebrate father’s day early. Today I need to tear down from our serving week for the homeless, which means I will spent many hours today at Giant Wash, washing all the bedding and then putting it away for our next serving dates in September.
On the upside… I am taking Laptop, Coffee Cup, and a book….
Speaking of books…. I think at least for the summer I will add books that have come in to my morning meandering posts. I just don’t have the time to create the long one I usually do for In My Mailbox this time of year. I will just put a few on as they come in daily, if there are any.
I really want to keep my focus on the reviews, the pondering moment book discussions, meanderings, and of course the Monday, What Are You Reading. On that note…. here is a little of what I seen come in this week:
Ehhhhhh? I know, right? The sequel to The Farfield Curse. Woo Hoo – thank you Sourcebooks!
FSB and Associates sent this one over… it is supposed to be written in a Janet Evanovich style, so a funny, mystery.
I recently read Kris Radish for book club, and would like to see how this book is.
Later I need to – I have to put a review up…. I must catch up on these! 🙂 Hope you have a wonderful Fathers Day everyone!
Meet Samantha “Sam” Kingsley. She’s popular, she’s pretty, she has “the guy” and she has the friends who back her up. She’s the girl in high school you wish you were, and if you couldn’t be her, it would be really nice for her to know you. Knowing Samantha…. meant you were in.
Now when I said meet Samantha, I mean do it now. Because life for Samantha is about to change drastically. In fact… I think it is safe to say without spoiling anything – that Sam’s life is about to stop… and in a flash of a few words – Sam’s life is over.
Or is it?
It seems that for some freakish reason – Sam keeps waking up to that last day. The alarm ringing at the same time… her little sister comes rushing in to greet her… her friend Lindsey waiting impatiently outside to driver her to school. And what starts out as what seems to be a second chance to change things to save herself… becomes something so much more.
◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊
Ok … let me be honest. I met Lauren Oliver in New York when I was there in May and enjoyed talking to her about her writing and this book. While I loved the thought and the idea behind the book I really didn’t know if it was one I would enjoy and with so many “bookortunities” at BEA, I passed this one up.
So now you are scratching your head and thinking, “But Sheila… you are reviewing it. What changed?”
Thank you for asking. There were a couple of factors. One was Reagan at Miss Remmer’s Reviews. She was on Twitter gushing about this book. G-U-S-H-I-N-G. It was annoying. 😉 She was one of my roommates while in New York. She knew I passed on the book. She should stop the gushing. STOP IT! Secondly, it was Jay Asher. Jay is the author of Thirteen Reasons Why. Which, honestly? Blew me away. I read it. I reviewed Thirteen Reasons Why (with “gushsto” – yes, my word) and then I interviewed him. Jay Asher is the author quote on the front of Before I Fall and he says, “You’ll have no choice but to tear through this book!”
So between Reagan and Jay… merely days after I returned from New York with loads of books traveling my way by UPS, Fed Ex, and the post office…. I made my way to our local book store and purchased this book.
When I started reading it I still wasn’t sure. As I said, the book breaks in to the same day, again and again. Seven times to be exact. And the first couple times I wasn’t seeing the point. The characters were developed well and I could picture the scenario…. but what was the benefit of rewriting the same day over and over?
And then things changed. Samantha changed. And a light bulb went off for me. Each day Sam relived again…. she was different. She went through all the phases of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally, acceptance.
I’ve never really thought about it before but it is a miracle how many kinds of light there is in the world, how many skies: the brightness of spring, when it feels like the whole world is blushing; the lush, bright boldness of a July noon; purple storm skies and a green queasiness just before lightning strikes…
~page 187
Sam grieves. For what was lost, for what could have been, for what she had and didn’t realize… she grieves.
I stayed up late into the night, and was up early the next morning and finished the last pages in bed, refusing to get until I knew how it all ended. There is so much more I would like to share about what this book brought up in me… but to have that conversation, you will need to read the book. When you are done, pop back this way and join me on the Spoiler Page.
Book Journeys map has been updated to include Before I Fall
When in Connecticut, make a stop at The Vanilla Bean, rated one of the top three coffee stops in Connecticut.
480 pages
Cover Story: The first time I seen it, I was unsure if I liked it. Although it works well with the book, and it definitely is noticeable, I am still not sure if it is the best fit for this book.
me and Lauren Oliver
I purchased my copy of this book at Bookworld in Brainerd, MN
Other thoughts:
One thing I would like to share is this book made me think of near misses in my life. One instance that comes to mind is back when I was 16. My best friend Traci and I were in my car. It was nighttime and winter, and we were cutting it close to making curfew. I was speeding down a back road trying to get us home on time. I even remember what was playing in the car – Prince: I Would Die For You. We were belting this out at the top of our lungs… young and invincible.
The main highway came up faster than I had anticipated and as we rounded a corner the stop sign was there and I hit my breaks. The road we were on was ice-covered and I went into a slide heading straight through the stop sign. A semi went by inches ahead of us as I Dukes of Hazard style hit the highway and launched over 4 lanes of traffic into the ditch on the other side. Hearts pounding we couldn’t believe we were alive.
Through the years, Traci and I have referred to that story. I sometimes wonder why I survived that and am content in knowing it wasn’t my time and there are other plans for me. This is one instance. I have others. If you think about it you probably do too.
Good morning! We finally had a gorgeous day in Brainerd on Friday after some severe storms in the area on Thursday night. I met three of my good friends on the bike trail and we went for a morning ride.
Heidi, Cindy, Sara
These three friends of mine are girls I used to work with. To stay in touch, each month we take a turn choosing an activity we do as a group. Sometimes it is as simple as getting together for lunch or a movie. Other times we have spent weekends doing murder mystery parties, Wisconsin Dells, camping, weekends on the North Shore… We have done this for years.
We each have a charm bracelet that we add a charm to for each event. Doing this for years, we now have three charm bracelets of memories. (The picture below is not any where near as clear as I wanted it to be, but you can see some of the charms):
The banana: when we pretended we were all too busy to do something for Sara’s birthday and then donned masks and kidnapped her from her home by banana point.
Two hearts: Ole and Lena’s Wedding – a play in Duluth Minnesota, a surprise event for my birthday
The flag: 4th of July camp out at Cindy’s with food and a camp fire and lots of laughs
Wine and Cheese: Is our formal overnight stay at the mansions in Little Falls
Each charm tells a story, and yesterday we added a bike charm to our bracelets. I love spending time with these girls. Next month (July) is my month to plan. I am hoping we are going to be able to go to the Blueberry Festival up North and stay at our cabin for the weekend.
Upper left: Heidi, Sara Lower Left: Me and Cindy
Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay awhile, make footprints on our hearts and we are never, ever the same.
Tornadoes swept through Minnesota Thursday night doing severe damage in Wadena , a town about 45 miles from where I live in. There will be a lot of work needed to be done in that area and at this time they are not taking volunteers until they can assess the damage better. Thank you to those who checked in on me… the blogging community never ceases to astound me – thank you to Sharon (Sharon’s Garden of book reviews) who checked on me through Facebook and Esme from (Chocolate’s and Croissants) who called me to make sure we were ok.
This one is a brief one… I was hoping to have more time this morning, but I am not at home, stayed over night for our homeless program and have been running since 6 am. I am cleaning up here and then on the trail with my friends for a morning bike ride and then a late breakfast to catch up and chat.
I will be back later with a review and maybe a giveaway…. have a few I need to get posted. Have a wonderful start to your weekend. Any fun plans?
Oh… I will leave you with this picture. This is what happens at my house if I bring the laundry upstairs but do not fold it and put it away right away:
Thank you to Hachette for this opportunity to give away three copies of this book!
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED
Greg and Tess MacAvoy are one of four prominent Nantucket couples who count each other as best friends. As pillars of their close-knit community, the MacAvoys, Kapenashes, Drakes, and Wheelers are important to their friends and neighbors, and especially to each other. But just before the beginning of another idyllic summer, Greg and Tess are killed when their boat capsizes during an anniversary sail. As the warm weather approaches and the island mourns their loss, nothing can prepare the MacAvoy’s closest friends for what will be revealed.
How To Enter this Giveaway
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This giveaway will end on July 1. USA and Canada entrants only please.
Dracula wasn’t a teenage brooding heart-throb who looked good in designer jeans. No. He was creepy looking. Dark and spooky. Pretty sure he probably smelled like something dead too. Because he was.
Bachelor #1
Bachelor #2
I will admit (and have here on this blog) to enjoying the Twilight series… not because it was the most brilliant thing I have ever read, but because I do like books that take you out of the box and Stephanie Meyer did that. She made vampires…. not so scary. The Twilight books are not horror… they are a love story.
And look at all the series and books out now that fall under this theme, and are being devoured (no pun intended) by readers of all ages. We have seen the market saturated with spin offs and books about teen age vampires, the occasional sea monster, and hot looking werewolves. This ain’t no era of teen wolf. 😉
Bachelor #3
Bachelor #4
And while these books really don’t draw me, I am open to trying new reads, and am willing to try the occasional tale of good vs. evil with a vampire/werewolf hero.
Where I do have trouble crossing that line is when these paranormal creatures creep and crawl their way into the classics.
I wonder, does Jane turn over in her grave? Is it right to take a story that we studied both book and author in our school days… and shake it up and reformat with a pinch of paranormal? Will the youth of this age and the next read the original classics, or skip right past Austen for Seth Grahame-Smith.
“Jane who?”
I shudder to think….
My two cents….
I just can’t sink my teeth into the vampires mixed in our classics. Not even a full moon can make me howl in favor of the werewolves hanging out with the Darcey’s and I seem to be unable to get my sea legs for Sea Monsters in any form of literature.
I am up. Vertical is good. Coffee is good, and my light croissant with peanut butter is good. Last night I came home and fell asleep on the couch about 7:30 pm. Then woke up at 9:00 and read…. then asleep again at 10 and didn’t get up until 6:45 this morning.
I am stretched, pulled, tired out, over booked, over whelmed, and over committed. And… I am pretty sure I have lost my muchness.
Yup. There it is.
Am I the only one that does this? Says “Yes, Sure!” “Oh absolutely!” “Let’s see I have four minutes between 6:15 and 6:19, yeah, count me in!”
Today I work until 3. Then I need to go to the post office because I have much to mail. At 4:20 I pick up the people from the day center who are part of the program I am working with this week. I make sure the people coming in to serve dinner tonight are comfortable before I make a run for it home, shower, grab my clothes and a blanket and hurry back, because it is my night to stay over night for the homeless program. Then I take them back to the day center by 8 am where I will then hurry home, load up the bikes, and meet my girl friends on the bike trail at 8:30 am where we are biking to Nisswa (18 miles one way) to shop and hang out for the afternoon and then bike back home.
I picture this version of me (I think it is me) with a smile plastered on my face laying passed out next to my bike.
Ok… I am done whining. It is another gorgeous day in Minnesota. I believe the forecast called for severe storms but I don’t see it. Its sunny and welcoming and exactly what I need. 🙂
I have what I think is a fun post coming up later today… hope you will pop in for it.
Imagine you are a mother who lost your young son to a terrible accident a little over a year ago. Your grief has been this aching ever with you passenger in your life but you have done everything you can to move forward. You have closed his room, unable to deal with putting away your sons things, so instead you leave his room – just as it was. Then one day you are sure you see your son in a passing car, and then messages start showing up on a chalk board in his room:
Not Dead… Not Dead… Not Dead…
Dean Koontz was one of my favorite authors when I was in my late teens and early 20’s. At this time I had a handful of authors I read. He was the author I could not wait for his next book to come out. As time went on and I widened my reading horizons, Dean still held a spot in my heart. Not as intense as Stephen King, and not quite as light as Harlan Coben, Koontz writes books that I usually enjoy.
Eyes of Darkness was an interesting listen on audio. I was hit with the plot almost immediately with Tina sighting of her son, Danny. The book continues with Tina juggling her career and ex husband as strangle things begin happening. First it is the sighting, then the messages on the chalk board, Tina is hearing noises at night and the temperature during these activities, seems to drop in the room.
While listening to this audio I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but this book did not have the Dean feeling to it. It almost felt amateurish compared to what I am used to finding in his books. The scenes were a bit unreal, the characters a bit underdeveloped.
It wasn’t until the end of the audio when Dean did one of the things I love about his books, that I figured out what was missing. Dean Koontz always has a little synopsis in the back of his books as to how the book came to be. He is funny and quick-witted and I really enjoy that. What I discovered is that this is actually one of his older books, this one came out even before I had started reading him all those years ago. He had not yet developed his flare, and says so in this end piece. He also said that the book was re-released because it was going to be made into a movie. Was. The story behind this – the development team, the agents, all of it, is told in hilarious Koontz fashion. This alone made the time I spent in the audio worth while.
Is it wrong to rush the coffee pot? I am zipping around this morning as I have a full day and I am starting it off with a big 9 am meeting that I want to look brilliant for. I have a couple of things I need to prep prior to this meeting in order for the “brilliance” to have full effect. Part of this meeting is I need to have read chapters 19 and 20 out of the book the me I want to be by John Ortberg. Love Ortberg so this is no homework assignment at all…. this is – dessert.
😀
And when today is all said and done I am going to enjoy what is supposed to be a beautiful day by rollerblading with my friend Wendy. The last week has been rainy, drizzly, damp, overcast, gloomy, cold…. and darn right frustrating. I have roller bladed and biked in this last week in rain sprinkles. I really want to be done with that. My final award of the day being this:
My favorite reading spot
This is my back deck and this is where I love to sit and read when the sun is out. I took this picture this morning – pre sun…. but it is coming. The weather man said, so it has to be true right? Right? Oh please let it be true….
Before I rush out the door I want to say that yesterdays discussion about Bookaholics was so fun! And you probably (hopefully) have seen I have the survey up now. I will leave that as top post for a while and then move it to the sidebar. I hope each of you will take a moment to fill out the survey so I can get an idea of what sort of reader base I have. It’s very short and I appreciate your help.
Have a super day! I am back later with a review… maybe something more. I have a couple drafted discussions that I can’t wait to pull out but they may wait….. 😉
Ehhhhhh? I know, right? The sequel to The Farfield Curse. Woo Hoo – thank you Sourcebooks! 
FSB and Associates sent this one over… it is supposed to be written in a Janet Evanovich style, so a funny, mystery.
Book Journey 