The Snow Queen by Michael Cunningham

The Snow Queen, Michael Cunningham, Book Journey

November 2004.  Barrett Meeks has once again lost love.  While walking through Central Park he looks up at the sky and sees a bright light almost like an eye watching him from the sky.  While Barrett does not believe in God or a superior being, he can not deny what he has seen.

Barrett’s brother Tyler at this time, is trying to write the perfect love song for his terminally ill soon to be wife.  It needs to be the perfect sentiment of love.

While Barrett turns towards faith after his night of seeing the light, Tyler believes that only drugs can bring him the creativeness he needs to write music.  Both brothers searching…. for something more.

 

 

I wish I could say I loved this book.  I can say, I love the idea of this book.  I am not sure what did not work for me but I just did not get into it the way I know I do when I really enjoy a good read.  I liked Barrett’s story line and perhaps I was hoping for more.

At the end of the audio (and I would believe the book as well) there is an interview with the author that I thoroughly enjoyed.  Hearing the vision for the book through him, I almost with that interview would have been in the beginning of the book as I feel it may have flowed better for me with that knowledge.

I think this is one of those, it is not the book, it is me things 🙂

Narration by Claire Danes was wonderful.  Just another of her many talents!

 

 

  • Audio CD: 6
  • Publisher: Macmillan Audio; Unabridged edition (May 6, 2014)

 

Morning Meanderings.. New Look To A LONG Overdue Room

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Good morning!  Happy Tuesday to you!  Yesterday was an odd day in Minnesota.  It has been around 50 degrees over the weekend and all our snow was gone.  Then yesterday afternoon it rained HARD for a few hours and by evening it turned to snow.  Now we probably have about three inches on the ground again.  *sigh*  Minnesota.

 

Over the weekend I painted our living room.  It was a LONG TIME coming.  When it was painted 10 years ago (I know, I know…) I never really liked it.  It was a pinky, rosy…. well you will see…. anyhoo…. I have no idea what took me so long to change it…. but here it is… before and after:

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(Above)  This is before.  The one wall… bottom right, is the wall that leads downstairs, the large space I painted about a year ago.  I did not like that wall either.

 

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After!  Oh my gosh I LOVE IT!!!  It is a rich chocolate color.  It is officially called Study Brown (boring name!) but to me it is chocolate.  It is a much warmer color and I love just sitting in the room and looking at it.  Yes… I just look at it.

Funny note… I never tell Al (hubby) when I am taking on a project.  I just do it.  When he came home Sunday evening he looked in the living room and he says, “Oh, where did that table come from?”  (Referring to the table that I moved from one side of the recliner to the other….)

I responded, “Is that all you notice?”

Al looked carefully around the room and could not pick out any other change.

*sigh*…. 4 1/2 hours of painting and arranging and nada….

LOL

Today I am working off a check list of things to do.  Why does it keep getting longer???  It is our oldest sons birthday and he is coming over for dinner tonight.  I have errands to do in town, and clothes to drop off to charity.  I am on a de-clutter mission.  It will be an audio day.  😀  (Although last night I did start Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.)  Give it up for the Harry Potter Re-Read along!!!!

Brutal Youth by Anthony Breznican

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St. Micheal’s Catholic School has stood for decades but now appears to be on its last legs.  With a plunging reputation as well as budget things are not looking good for the future.  Now even the selected students seem to be of a lesser value, a group of delinquents all trying to find their place before they are popped out into the real world.

Peter Davidek comes to the school his freshman year following in his fathers footsteps. On this very first day Peter gets a real sense of the school when a student snaps and throws himself off the roof.  The faculty looks the other way when in comes to the real problems of the school and Peter is seeing first hand that it is every man for themselves.

Peter friends a boy named Noah Stein who has a strange burn mark on his face, and a pretty but troubled girl named Lorelei.  The trio starts out working together to keep bullies at bay, but even their friendship is tested by the upper class men and the popular students.  And what about the mysterious girl named Hannah, the one that everyone says to avoid at all costs as she has no friends and she is always watching always taking mental notes for the day when she will unleash all the secrets she has collected over the years of students and teachers alike…

and why does she have her eye now on Peter?

Brutal Youth is a hard book to describe.  In one way I think it is a little like Lord Of The Flies, and in other ways it is like The Chocolate War.  It is about right and wrong, defending what you believe is right no matter what the consequences. It is about that crazed teacher that had it all as a student and let it slip away who now looks at her misspent youth as a personal revenge on this new generation. It is secrets and lies… friendships and enemies…  relationship status and self value.There are many lessons within these pages and I don’t think it matters what your age is to appreciate them.

I found Brutal Youth to read like a jagged edge, both dangerous and strangely exciting.   I kept digging into this book every chance I had to see the outcome. It is a crazy wild book that is great for discussion.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

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Hello!  Welcome to It’s Monday What Are You Reading?  The meme that we use to share what we read this past week and what our plans are for the upcoming week.  It’s a great way to see what others are reading and add to your own To Be Read list. 😀  You never know where that next great read may come from!

I have had a busy “project week”.  Being at home has led me to work on things I have put off.  This week I cleaned up the bathroom closet, our bedroom closet as well as purging a lot of clothes to go to those in need, and today I painted our living room (pics later this week).

I also found time to read and listen to audio, audio of course while I was working on the projects.  Here is what I posted this week:

 

Party Hangover – a GOOD book club night!

 

Interview With David Baldacci

 

The Bookshop Book by Jen Campbell (Excellent gift idea for the book lover you know!)

 

The Year Of Reading Dangerously by Andy Miller

 

Winter Street by Elin Hildebrand

 

2014 My Year In Review – The Events, The Crazy Stuff, The Fun (wow… I change my hair a lot!)

 

The Hypnotists Love Story by Liane Moriarty ( an excellent author!)

And dont forget the fun challenges coming up:

First Book Of The Year Challenge (OOH this will be fun!)

Library Challenge 2015

 

Not a bad week!  This week should be pretty good too.  I plan to get to these reads:

 

For my Ears

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The bed and breakfast was hidden in the hills of West Virginia. Wary guests wondered how it could stay in business at such a creepy, remote location, especially with its bizarre, presidential decor and eccentric proprietor. With the event hotel for the national Iron Woman triathlon accidentally overbooked, competitor Maria was forced to stay at the Rushmore. But after checking into her room, she quickly realized she wasn’t alone.

First her suitcase wasn’t where she put it. Then her cell phone was moved. Finally, she heard an odd creaking under the bed. Confusion quickly turned to fear, and fear to hysteria when she discovered the front door was barred and the windows were bricked over. There was no way out.

One year later, four new female athletes have become guests of the Inn. Will they escape the horrors within its walls? Or will they join the many others who have died there, in ways too terrible to imagine?

 

 

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After film critic Gene Siskel asked her, “What do you know for sure?” Oprah Winfrey began writing the “What I Know for Sure” column in O, The Oprah Magazine. Saying that the question offered her a way to take “stock of her life”, Oprah has penned one column a month over the last 14 years, years in which she retired The Oprah Winfrey Show (the highest-rated program of its kind in history), launched her own television network, became America’s only black billionaire, was awarded an honorary degree from Harvard University and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, watched friends and colleagues come and go, lost beloved pets and adopted new ones, and celebrated milestone birthdays. Throughout it all, she’s continued to offer her profound and inspiring words of wisdom in her “What I Know for Sure” column in O, The Oprah Magazine.

Now, for the first time, these thoughtful gems have been revised, updated, and collected in What I Know for Sure, a beautiful book packed with insight and revelation from Oprah Winfrey. Organized by theme – joy, resilience, connection, gratitude, possibility, awe, clarity, and power – these essays offer a rare and powerful glimpse into the mind of one of the world’s most extraordinary women. Candid, moving, exhilarating, uplifting, and dynamic, the words Oprah shares in What I Know for Sure shimmer with the sort of wisdom and truth that listeners will turn to again and again.

 

 

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Summer is a busy season at the inn, so proprietor Jo Marie Rose and handyman Mark Taylor have spent a lot of time together keeping the property running. Despite some folks’ good-natured claims to the contrary, Jo Marie insists that Mark is only a friend. However, she seems to be thinking about this particular friend a great deal lately. Jo Marie knows surprisingly little about Mark’s life, due in no small part to his refusal to discuss it. She’s determined to learn more about his past, but first she must face her own – and welcome three visitors who, like her, are setting out on new paths.

Twenty-three-year-old Ellie Reynolds is taking a leap of faith. She’s come to Cedar Cove to meet Tom, a man she’s been corresponding with for months, and with whom she might even be falling in love. Ellie’s overprotective mother disapproves of her trip, but Ellie is determined to spread her wings.

Maggie and Roy Porter are next to arrive at the inn. They are taking their first vacation alone since their children were born. In the wake of past mistakes, they hope to rekindle the spark in their marriage – and to win back each other’s trust. But Maggie must make one last confession that could forever tear them apart.

For each of these characters, it will ultimately be a moment when someone wore their heart on their sleeve – and took pen to paper – that makes all the difference. Debbie Macomber’s moving novel reveals the courage it takes to be vulnerable, accepting, and open to love.

 

For my Eyes

 

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On January 26, 1996, Dave Schultz, Olympic gold medal winner and wrestling golden boy, was shot three times by du Pont family heir John E. du Pont at the famed Foxcatcher Farms estate in Pennsylvania. Following the murder there was a tense standoff when du Pont barricaded himself in his home for two days before he was finally captured.

Foxcatcher is gold medal winner Mark Schultz’s memoir, revealing what made him and his brother champion and what brought them to Foxcatcher Farms. It’s a vivid portrait of the complex relationship he and his brother had with du Pont, a man whose catastrophic break from reality led to tragedy. No one knows the inside story of what went on behind the scenes at Foxcatcher Farms—and inside John du Pont’s head—better than Mark Schultz.

The incredible true story of these championship-winning brothers and the wealthiest convicted murderer of all time will be making headlines this fall, and Mark’s memoir will reveal the true inside story.

 

That’s my week.  What is yours?  Please add your What Are You Reading where is says click here below 🙂

 

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The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Liane Moriarty

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Ellen O’Farrell is a hypnotherapist with an at home office inside her inherited beach front house.   She uses her training of hypnotism to assist people with their relationships, habits, and hang ups.  Ellen herself has never had a serious relationship… at least not until she met Patrick.

Patrick is everything she liked in a man.  He was attractive, fit, held a good job and the fact that he had a son from a marriage where his wife died of cancer was not a deal breaker.  Ellen found herself falling for Patrick until one day he told her they needed to talk.

The dreaded talk.

When Patrick explained that an ex girlfriend stalked him, Ellen, always the therapist, found this to be a bit intriguing.  What Ellen did not understand was that this woman followed Patrick everywhere… refusing to let go… and you would just be surprised at where she shows up…

and…

that it turns out, Ellen already knows her.

 

 

 

It is no secret that I enjoy Liane Moriarty’s books.  It has been a little over a year since I discovered this author, and I guess in a way… I have stalked her books.

The Hypnotist’s Love Story is engaging.  With a twisted theme of a stalker it was a little different from anything I had read before.  I enjoyed the alternating chapters between Ellen and Patrick… and then the stalker’s chapters.  How the stalker justified her actions are a bit hilarious.  It is like she knows she is crazy to do what she does, but then twists it to (in her mind) completely innocent.  “Oh, I just happened to be here at the same time as you!”

I did enjoy this book on audio.  Tamara Lovatt Smith was excellent.  She managed all the characters flawlessly.  I felt the book went on a bit longer than it needed to.  At the point that I felt the story was complete, it goes on.  By that point I was satisfied with the book and would have been happy for it to end.  The rest was like bonus material, it was ok, but I was ready to be done.

 

 

  • Audible Audio Edition
  • Listening Length: 13 hours and 6 minutes
  • Program Type: Audiobook
  • Version: Unabridged
  • Publisher: Penguin Audio
  • Audible.com Release Date: June 14, 2012

 

Morning Meanderings… A Few Books a Lot Of Color

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Good morning!  It was a fun evening last night for my hubby’s company Christmas party.  We went to a restaurant where you grill your own steak, shrimp, chicken, or pork chop.  It is fun to stand around this large grill and talk while we are all cooking.  The guys said they would like a grill like this at the shop.  Hmmmm…. would work get gone, or would it just be a daily grill fest?  🙂
A few books came in this week:

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It Happened In Boston by Russell Greenhan (Audio)

 

Dress Shop Of Dreams by Marisa de los Santos

 

Belong To Me by Marisa de los Santos (for Harper Collins Book Club Girls)

 

Walking The Bible by Bruce Feiler (for Harper Collins Book Club Girls)

 

The Secret Wisdom Of The Earth by Christopher Scotton

 

Those are the books in the house!  This afternoon I am seriously considering painting our upstairs living room.  It is currently this pepto bismo type color that has bothered me forever but I did not have time to work on it.  I have an idea…. if I do it there will be pictures 🙂

I am off!  I have a busy morning, and possibly a busy afternoon.  It will be an audio day 🙂

 

Have you listened to audio while doing household projects?  Have you thought about it? 

2014 in Review – The People, The Events, The Haircuts….

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At the end of each year I like to take a look back and see what the past year has looked like as a whole.  As things happen throughout the year I tend to either forget about them, or forget they happened this year.  It is a fun “year in review” for me… and I thought this post would work wonderfully for Saturday Snapshot.

*Note all links lead to the original posts written on these events.

 

January 2014…

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This was the first year I hosted the First Book Of The Year meme and it was sooo much fun!  50 people from around the world joined me by sending in a picture of then with the first book that they planned to read for the New Year.  It seriously brought tears to me eyes!  (I am hosting this one again if you would like to sign up)

 

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My friend Amy and I also started off the New Year by running the Polar Dash 5K on January 1st in St Paul, Minneapolis.  Yes, it was cold but a great way to start out the New Year!  (There are some great shots on this post including a guy who ran the MARATHON version of this run in a speedo.)

 

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Harper Collins blessed our Book Club with copies of the Labor Day book by Joyce Maynard as well as tickets to go see the movie and a gift card to purchase goodies to enjoy with the movie!

 

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Going to the Pink Concert!

 

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A few of us drove to see author Wendy Webb on the release day of her newest book, The Vanishing.

 

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Spending time with Author Patrick Ness!  (Author of an excellent series, The Knife Of Never Letting Go.

 

 

February 2014…

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Dog sledding for my friends birthday!

 

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Bookies out for horduerves and then to the Labor Day Movie!

 

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I asked my College son for the gift of levitation for my birthday.  I had found instructions of how to do it on Picmonkey and Justin came through!

 

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Locking myself our of my car at the cabin… on the North Shore… on a Sunday.  Egads.

 

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Detroit Lakes getaway with friends – Sara, Heidi, and Cindy

 

 

March 2014…

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The Bookies trying coke and salted peanuts for our review of The Secret Life Of Bees.

 

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The Get Lucky run – 5k!

 

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The Glow Run with Laura and Amy!  I did not write a post up on this… it was a run at night and it was hard to get any pics 🙂

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Spring Library sale!

 

April 2014…

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April… and still snowing.

 

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Cabin weekend of books and time with Sammy the dog.

 

 

May 2014…

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Justin graduated from college in May!!!

 

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Jon Hassler Library Dedication event.

 

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Harper Collins party in New York during BEA and AWKWARD Twitter moment….

 

 

June 2014…

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Nathan Jorgenson Author event.

 

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Speaking at the Blogger Con in New York on Taking Your Writing to the next level.

 

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More details on the Harper Collins party in New York.

 

BEA Author breakfasts:  Neil Patrick Harris, Jason Segal, and Jeff Kinney (DIary Of A Wimpy Kid)

 

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My five year Blogiversary!

 

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Camp Benedict – a camp for those infected and affected by AIDS

 

 

July 2014…

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The Bookies Queen event!

 

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The GIGANTO rabbit in my yard all summer!

 

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Author Julie Kramer event.

 

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Tour of Saints 50 mile bike ride.

 

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A New Normal.

 

August 2014…

 

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Wisconsin MUCKFEST! 

 

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More about the Muckfest.

 

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Bookies going to an author event!

 

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Author Christina Baker Kline Event!

 

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Learning to extract honey right from the hive!

 

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Wine and Words The Event!!!  212 awesome guest!

 

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Wine and Words after the party!

 

September 2014…

 

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Hair cut 😉

 

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The Fall Book Sale – going to the next level 🙂

 

October 2014…

 

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Wine and Words wins best new Friends event in Minnesota!

 

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The big author event in St Paul Minnesota and I think I honestly forgot to recap it! Good grief!

 

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Monster Dash with my friend Wendy (I dont think I posted this either…)

November 2014…

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Harry Potter World in Florida with Justin!

 

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My thoughts and review of the Gringotts Bank Ride at Universal Studios

 

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Working in Florida with bees

 

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Thanksgiving with the family!

 

December 2014…

Nothing going on at this time in December.  I have been working in the house and writing.

 

SO that’s the year so far.  It has been one of many different hair styles, events, friends, family.  It has been a year of change that is for sure.  I am excited to see what 2015 will hold.

PicMonkey Collage

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Winter Street by Elin Hilderbrand

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Kelley and Mitzi Quin are the owners of Winter Street Inn in Nantucket.  Kelly has three adult children from his first wife, news anchor Margaret Quin;  and together he and Mitzi have one son, Bart who recently joined the Marines.

As the holiday season approaches and Kelley anticipates having the Inn filled with his children and grandchildren, Kelley walks in on Mitzi kissing Santa Claus.  Literally kissing the man they hired each year to be the Santa for the Inn…

let the dysfunction begin.

Each of the three Kelley’s children coming to the Inn come with their own troubles.

Patrick is a hedge fund manager that may have made some deals that are not all on the up and up.

Kevin has secretly been seeing the French housekeeper of the Inn, Isabelle.

Ava is in a relationship which makes her heart pound, but has the inkling that he is not as committed as she is.

All of this as well as the news of Mitzi is going to make for a very interesting Christmas at the Winter Street Inn.

 

 

I read very few Christmas related stories mainly because they tend to be a little too sweet and a little too neat for my liking.  I decided to give Winter Street a try because I have enjoyed this author in the past, and by reading the synopsis I felt this book might just have some meat to it.

And Winter Street does have meat.  Dysfunction surrounds this family as they gather for the Christmas weekend.  Relationship statuses change like the wind and do not blink because a break up one second is a new (or renewed) relationship the next.

While I did enjoy the story line, I found the books pacing to be too fast.  As things fell apart on one page they were fixed by some thing else on another.  On one hand someone may be heartbroken over a messy breakup and the next minute they are welcomed to dinner.  I had to wonder how deep love went within this family as relationships truly were interchangeable.

The book also leaves you right on a horrible cliffhanger.  You know there has to be more to this story and I imagine that there has to be a sequel as things are no where near being wrapped up.

Personally I am not sure if I will pick up the next book.  Some of the characters are not very likable and one in particular I wanted to slap.  I know life is messy but the Quins have more stock in messiness than most.

Delightfully narrated by Erin Bennett.

  • Listening Length: 6 hours and 51 minutes
  • Program Type: Audiobook
  • Version: Unabridged
  • Publisher: Hachette Audio
  • Audible.com Release Date: October 14, 2014

Morning Meanderings… Dogs Life

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Friday!  Wow!  I am home from an early morning coffee date with a friend and have been staring at this screen for the last 15 or so minutes looking for my topic.  I know I know… I could have let it pass, prepped my review for later and been done with it, but no… for whatever reason.. I wanted to write something.

So..

you get my dogs 🙂

Dog people, you will get this.  Dogs are so great.  They love you no matter what, dont care what you look like or what mood you are in.  They are loyal to a fault.  I adore them.  Yesterday afternoon I took these pictures of the dogs in my home.  They crack me up.  They are wherever I am like guards always on duty.  If I move they move.  They are not disgruntled in their life goals of following me around, but instead embrace it. I think this sums up their personalities:

Sammy... my "If you jump I jump" dog.
Sammy… my “If you jump I jump” dog.

 

Mater my "Whatcha doin? Is it food? Are you getting food? Are you thinking about food? Will there be food? I will just follow you in case there is food," dog.
Mater my “Whatcha doin? Is it food? Are you getting food? Are you thinking about food? Will there be food? I will just follow you in case there is food,” dog.

 

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Bailey (16 years old) my “DO NOT wake me unless it is time for me to get off the bed and go and sleep on the couch. AND if you could carry me from one cozy spot to the next that would be great. Thanks,” dog.

 

There they are… triple trouble.  Do you have pets like this?  Guardians of your heart?

The Year Of Reading Dangerously by Andy Miller

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Nearing the age of 40, Author Andy Miller has a family and has a job.  His life is full and he has no time to read.  Yet, for some reason he can not let go of all the great reads that he has never taken the time to experience himself.  Andy decides to take on a self-inflicted project, a year of reading.  A year that he will spend connecting with the books that have stood the test of time, the books that are whispered and shouted about “you must read.”

 

 

 

Both a memoir and a list of detailed book reviews, The Year of Reading Dangerously was funny and interesting.  I imagined, going into this read, that I would find within this book a book or two that I must read myself.  In the end, I am not sure if that happened, but I sure did get a funny take of Andy Miller’s thoughts on some of the books that I myself had not read.

Among the 50 titles that Andy read in that one year time were: Middlemarch by George Eliot, Post Office by Charles Bulowski, The Sea The Sea by Iris Murdoch, War and Peace Tolstoy, Catch 22 by Joseph Heller, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin, Anna Kerenina by Leo Tolstpy, and Twenty Thousand Streets Under The Sky by Patrick Hamiloton.  *The entire list is at the end of his book/audio

The titles that Andy chose are for the most part heavy reads, many of which that are considered classics, and some I admit, I have never heard of.

Andy discusses his reads some in more details than others, some he struggles with and then amazingly goes back and reads again, some he doesn’t get at all and others he finds to be the greatest works of our time.  At times, his comments cracked me up.  Andy is totally real on his thoughts on the books and thoughts on the authors.

I listened to this on audio.  Andy Miller narrates this himself and while all the books did not appeal to me or my future reading wish list, his narration is delightful and made it well worth the listen.  If you have ever made a wish list of the great reads you hope to one day try, I suggest you give The Year Of Reading Dangerously a whirl… it may have you adding (or dropping) books from your own list.

 

 

  • Narrated by: Andy Miller
  • Length: 9 hrs and 1 min 
  • Unabridged Audiobook