Review – Page 11 – Book Journey

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Published on January 4, 2015January 4, 2015 by Sheila (Book Journey)31 Comments

On a snowy night, an actor collapses during a play. A man rushes from the audience to help him. A young girl witnesses it all. A caregiver weeps because she is so much more. A relationship is ending it just doesn’t know how. And around the world a flu is rushing through the air like pollen and the next 48 hours are the end of the world as we know it.

There are no phones. No television. No cars or buses or planes. No internet. No Facebook. No updated status. All communication to the rest of the world, if there is a rest of the world, has

stopped.

Whew. Station Eleven was the book I chose for my first book to read in 2015. I had read reviews, seen this book on the best of the year lists, and honestly could hardy wait to dive into the book.

Station Eleven is an extremely entwined dystopian novel of the world taken out by a flu virus that leaves only 1% of the population in its wake. The book focuses around the actor, his life, his wives, and the people who surrounded him. As the book goes on, you see that our main characters have all been connected to the actor in some way. The book flashes back to before the flu, and then to present time, where the years started over to One after the epidemic. It is now year Twenty. At times I do not like flash backs, but it works here. Kirsten, who was the little girl in the play, is now part of a Traveling Symphony that travels to areas where people are and the group performs Shakespeare. She is obsessed with all things about the actor who died the night before the flu outbreak, collecting whenever she can find them – magazine articles, newspaper clippings, and she has copies of the two graphic comic books that the actors first wife had created, the first one called Station Eleven.

Sound complicated? It is and it isn’t. There is much to love about this book. The threat of a world-wide flu obviously works and puts the fear factor in the novel. It is written in a unique way which I love, centered around a Traveling Symphony that merely plays for their passion for Shakespeare and music (and really… what else are you going to do in this new world?), there is also a group at an airport that have been there since their plane emergency landed there that twenty years ago. There is a group at a hotel that have taken over rooms as their homes and live as normal a life as they can. And there is a Prophet. A scary man who believes that those who survived the virus are chosen by God and he takes whatever he wants… whenever he wants… food, ammunition, women, and lives.

There is a moment towards the end… an “aha moment” that impressed me when I put a key plot together. I did not see it coming. I was impressed.

But… and I do hate but’s…

There are things I did not enjoy. After the beginning and the big flu scare… the rest of the book is fairly mellow. Any “crisis” is wrapped up too quickly and too neatly. The fear of this new world… is not much. There is also the fact that as you read you have to wonder why some of these groups did not do more… why did the group stay at the airport all that time? I get that they were scared at first to venture out, but after a few months/years wouldn’t you go out and see what is happening? And the book left me feeling there should have been more. I knew as I was reaching the final pages that there was no way this book could wrap up all the loose ends. I then thought that since this book had the same title at the first graphic novel in Kirsten’s possession that surely there must be a plan for a follow-up novel with the title of the second one…. but as of this writing, I seen no signs that the author has plans for a second book.

Hmmmm.

This review is longer than I had planned because there was much to say. I did like the book. Very much. I do think it needed more action. More scare. Yet I did devourer it as it is unique and I do love unique reads. I am glad I chose it for my first book of the year. If there is no more to this story, then it is one that leaves you with a lot to think about as far as what happened next, and maybe, that is the way the author intended it to be.

Dystopian lovers will enjoy this read and I do recommend it.

Ok, I think we need a spoiler page on this one. I want to talk about the book 🙂

Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: Knopf; First Edition edition (September 9, 2014)

Pie Girls by Lauren Clark

Published on January 2, 2015December 31, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)13 Comments

Searcy Roberts grew up in small town Alabama and when she married her high school sweetheart, Alton, moved to Atlanta and enjoyed the unlimited funds that his successful career brought them, she swore she would never go back. Living the dream of having a personal shopper, a doorman to carry her bags, and expensive lunches out, you can imagine Searcy’s surprise when Alton says he wants out.

Out?

Suddenly Alton seems to be having a midlife crisis. He decides he does not want his job anymore, is cancelling credit cards, and filing for divorce. He tells Searcy that their apartment will be leased out within the month and he will help her relocate wherever she decides, within means. And then he leaves.

Searcy is shell-shocked. Her beautiful clothes! Her unlimited credit. Her husband who she does truly love!

Unsure of what her next move should be, a timely phone call from her mother asking her to come home and help out with the family business, Pie Girls, is what normally Searcy would say no to, however considering the circumstances, maybe a get away is exactly what she needs.

Pie Girls is a sweet (pun intended) chick lit read that I really enjoyed. Ceecee is an interesting protagonist with a high-class attitude that changes throughout the book as her life as she knows it crumbles before her eyes. I absolutely loved the southern twang of narrator Mary Hollis Inboden, she made the audio fun to listen to! Jobe Cerny is also on this audio as the voices for the men, an interesting fact about Jobe is that he is most known for his role as the voice of the Pillsbury Dough Boy (although there were no “Dough Boy” voices in this book 😉 )

Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 8 hours and 27 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Camellia Press
Audible.com Release Date: December 23, 2014

Left Neglected by Lisa Genova

Published on January 1, 2015December 30, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)22 Comments

Sarah Nickerson. Married. Mother of three. Home owner. Career driven. Vice President of Human Resources at Burkley Consulting. Between the shuffling of husband, home, kids, sports, family/friends obligations, and her job of 80 hours per week, she is nothing short of…

super mom.

Sarah thrives on keeping a tight agenda and there is little room for error. On the days when she wins the rock,paper,scissors for who does not have to take the kids to school, she loves the rush of being able to go directly to work.

On one such of these days Sarah decides that her drive time is an excellent time to catch up on a few phone calls and while dialing a number – in the blink of an eye, everything goes…

white.

When Sarah awakens she is in the hospital having been in a horrible car accident that has left her with a brain injury that has erased the left side of her world. She can not feel or see her left arm or leg, and her brain acts as though they do not exist. Suddenly Sarah who prided herself on being fiercely independent now finds herself at the mercy of those around her for all her needs including flossing her own teeth.

As Sarah struggles to make herself whole again with visions of returning to her job and her life she once had, that vision begins to fade and a new vision may very well be taking its place.

Left Neglected was an amazing audio book to listen to. I was fully engaged in this story line of a woman whose life was too full… too busy… and then it all came to an end. Who hasn’t at least for a time had a schedule like that? And who hasn’t made a phone call or talked on the phone while driving? I sure have.

Lisa Genova really did her homework on this book. I had never heard of left brain neglect but it is a real thing. For Lisa to place herself in this characters world of relearning how to find her left side, how to see things on her left and how to use her left side is amazing. I can just imagine the struggles of this independent woman who has to retrain her mind just to engage in simple things like eating and walking. I can imagine her struggles as people visited her and she wanted so much to appear whole… to appear healing… to be complete.

Narration by Sarah Paulson, another new to me narrator. Sarah was a wonderful easy to listen to narrator who captured the essence of this book.

Fantastic read! I recommend Left Neglected highly.

Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 9 hours and 12 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Audible.com Release Date: January 4, 2011

Good Night June by Sarah Jio – Audio Review

Published on December 31, 2014March 30, 2015 by Sheila (Book Journey)26 Comments

June Anderson is a professional. Her job as Vice President of Finances at her bank is fulfilling and she has found that she has a gift for being able to close doors on struggling businesses saving her bank a lot of money. It’s not personal, it’s business, is her motto and struggling mom and pop shops do not have a chance to win her over.

When June receives a letter that her beloved Aunt Ruby has passed away she is devastated. Ruby owned a Children’s Book Store called Blue Bird Books in Seattle and June is surprised to learn that the store has been left to her. Taking a planned short leave from her job, June heads to Seattle to plan the selling of the book store. However, the quaint book store floods her with memories from her childhood… and June soon finds out that Ruby still has a few surprises for June as well. Perhaps June’s future is not at all what she thinks.

What a beautiful listen! I absolutely love books with book references and Goodnight June is filled with them. Plant the setting in the center of a beloved book store and you have me hooked! Reading this book was like spending a day with a dear friend. At the spa. In Jamaica. 🙂

Goodnight June reminded me of the movie You’ve Got Mail, another struggling book store and every time I see the movie I cry when they have to close the doors. In fact I tear up as I type this… egads… what a wimp!

The storyline is sweet and feels real in today’s economy and struggling small businesses. Put a good-looking guy as owner of an Italian restaurant next to the book store and we have the makings of a pretty amazing read.

Sarah Jio is a fairly new author to me but one that I want to spend more time with. This is my second book by her and I loved them both. Narration of this audio book was by Katherine Kellgren and was a smooth fit. Kellgren had just the right mix of vocal skills to make this an excellent listen. I do not think I have heard Kellgren’s narration before but found I enjoyed her very much.

Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 8 hours and 30 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Audible.com Release Date: May 27, 2014

Confessions The Paris Mysteries by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

Published on December 30, 2014December 27, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)Leave a comment

The Angel children all live with a relative in Paris now that their parents are dead. While looking around their new surroundings, Tandi Angel finds boxes marked with her older sisters name, the sister who was killed. Suspicious items found within these boxes makes Tandi question everything she thought she knew.. and wondering is she and her brothers are really safe at all.

First off… I clearly did not do my homework on this read. I did not realize this was part of a series called Confessions. This left me feeling that I had been dropped into the middle of a story line. By the time I enter this book, the Angel children’s parents are dead and it clearly feels that I am missing some back story… which I was. 🙂

I would say that even knowing I was missing part of the story line I do not feel this is a series I would have stuck with even if I had started with book one. There are some very weird components to the book including mind altering drugs that were given to the Angel children by their parents. Something they now try to avoid, but I am picking up some sort of “the kids were an experiment” vibe. I found the direction the story was going in to feel choppy and I finished it mainly because it was a short listen.

Narrated by Lauren Fortgang who has a wonderful accent that fit well with the book.

Confessions is a YA series.

Age Range: 12 and up
Grade Level: 7 and up
Series: Confessions
Audio CD: 4 cds
Publisher: James Patterson -Young Readers; Unabridged edition (October 6, 2014)

Love Letters by Debbie Macomber

Published on December 28, 2014December 27, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)6 Comments

Jo Marie Rose knows that summer is the biggest season for the Inn so she and handyman Mark Taylor have been working side by side to prepare everything. While she and Mark has been friends for a while now, Jo Marie is surprised she knows little about Mark and decides that this will be the season when she finds out about this mysterious man.

Ellie Reynolds is coming to the Inn to meet a man she has been corresponding with for the past few months. Eliie is frightened on her soon to be encounter but can not pass up this opportunity to meet someone she feels she may be falling for.

Maggie and Roy Porter’s marriage is in a rocky state. The trip to the Inn is one that they are both hoping will possibly save their marriage. Maggie is working hard to forgive Roy, but at the same time knows that has something she must confess that may destroy any chances they may have of putting their marriage back together.

What is it about writing words of love on paper? And how can such letters for these people at the Inn change everything?

I used to read Debbie Macomber frequently many years ago. I enjoyed the people you meet in her towns. I found it brilliant how she created a series set around a town and named each book an address where you met the people within that household and how they interacted with the other characters you would meet book by book.

Love Letters took me back to that town I enjoyed reading about all those years ago. This time centered around the Inn. While Love Letters was sweet, it did not hold me like the earlier books had. I found the relationships to feel forced and I never connected with any of them.

A pleasant read,yes, and fans of Debbie Macomber may find this book to be a great fit. For me, my time in Cedar Cove may have passed, or perhaps it was just a bad visit and at some other time I may come back again.

The Innovators by Walter Isaacson

Published on December 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)7 Comments

There are certain names in our lives and in our history that stand out as innovators…. those who had the ideas and the knowledge to move us forward in the computer and internet world. Names such as Vannevar Bush, Alan Turing, John von Neumann, J.C.R. Licklider, Doug Engelbart, Robert Noyce, Bill Gates, Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs, Tim Berners-Lee, and Larry Page, may ring a bell and that is just to name a few.

From computers first being thought of, to making them affordable and available to everyone. To the invention of blogger, twitter, and more, Innovators shares with you the ups and downs on the wired (and wireless) world we live in.

I have always been fascinated with those who can come up with an idea, run with it, and make it work. I think I have watched the Facebook movie about 10 times, read about Steve Jobs, and listened to audios about the inventions of gaming sites and Twitter. Innovators, was the obvious next choice.

‘Visions without execution are hallucinations.’

I of course loved some information more, such as the whole creation of blogs was interesting. I love that they said they were so surprised how it took off and how everyone had something to say about something! Isn’t that the truth!

It is also interesting to hear about the behind the scenes of the powerful people… the fights… the terminations…. the brains…. none of it came easy.

Walter Isaacson writes a well informed book. I enjoyed this on audio, narrated by Dennis Boutsikaris, it was well read.

Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 17 hours and 28 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Audible.com Release Date: October 7, 2014

2014: The Books That Made My Year!

Published on December 17, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)45 Comments

2014… what a year of great reads in both book and audio format! A few days ago I posted my highlights for 2014, but I did not post about the books. Now in this roundup, here are the books that made my year of reading even better.

Early in the year, The Bookies Book Club read and enjoyed a heavy discussion because of the book Me Before You. This book is about Will, a quadriplegic young man who lost his vibrant active life to an accident. Enter Lou, a girl hired to be a companion to Will, spend time with him, talk to him and honestly, keep an eye on him. The book is incredibly engaging, definitely opinion enhancing, and over all an excellent read for yourself or for a group discussion.

In March I discovered The Martian on another blog and loved the idea of it. I listened to it on audio and loved it from the very first line. Log Entry: Soul 6: “I am pretty much f*****.” When Mark Watney is one of the first people to walk on Mars that was pretty cool. The fact that he may also be the first person to die on Mars…. not so cool. Wonderfully narrated by R C Bray, The Martian is all about one man’s journey of trying to get back to earth. It is so down to earth (no pun intended) and just a fun fun listen.

Love Life by Rob Lowe is one I had to think about before I added it to this grouping. Not because it was not worthy, but I had to consider if it really was best of the best. It makes the list because Rob Lowe’s autobiography’s have both been excellent to listen to. Rob is an amazing narrator and as someone who grew up in the 80’s, I really enjoy hearing about his life. While Rob’s first book was more about his childhood and getting involved in movies, Love Life is more of a look at where he is now as a husband and father… and that is pretty darn cool.

Don’t you just love books that make you go “WHOA!” and you know you need to read again at some point just to get the full impact? We Were Liars is such a read. This book centers around 4 teens Cady, Johnny, Mirren, and Gat who spend their summers at a beach house belonging to a grandparent. When Cady wakes up naked on the beach she has no idea how she got there… and for whatever reason, her family is not giving her the details either. Everyone in fact seems to be treating her as though she is fragile…. We Were Liars is a definite do not miss!

For the Foodie Book Lovers ( ME! ME! ME!) Delicious by Ruth Reichl offers up a fun fictitious (sort of) read about a girl who takes on a job at a food magazine as the person who handles the complaint calls. It is an incredible read and after hearing Ruth Reichl speak at the Book Expo this year I discovered that not all in the fiction read is fiction. 😉 I highly recommend this book. I listened to it on audio and it was wonderful.

Little Mercies is a hotbed topic and I devoured this book! Ellen Moore is a Social Worker who has seen the worst of people and their actions. Yet when an early morning call involving children and domestic dispute calls Ellen to the scene, she finds herself on the other side of her position. Accused of child endangerment, Ellen finds everything to turn full circle and now she may lose everything.

It wouldn’t be a full roundup unless I included something from one of my favorite genres, YA. When I first discovered The Young World it was from a poster in the women’s bathroom at the Book Expo this year. No kidding. The poster said, “Flush while you still can!” and I knew I had to find the book. Wrapped around a dystopian world, a group of teens set out in the dangerous terrain of New York to try to find some sort of relief to this new world. Crazy awesome good… you know I am waiting for it to become a movie!

A little known title (from what I have seen), Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer amazed me and sucked me right in. I thought it was brilliant and gushed about it to everyone I knew and probably a few people I did not know. A YA setting, Jam is sent to a school for kids who are going through a hard time. With the sudden loss of her boyfriend, Jam has had a hard time coping in the real world. When their teacher assigns them the Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath to read and a leather bound journal to write in weekly, Jam thinks things can not get much lamer. Yet there is something amazing that happens when she writes in her journal, and when she opens up tot he other students, she finds out they are all experiencing similar happenings. Belzhar should remain on your list of books out keep an eye our for.

The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain not only blew me away… it opened my eyes to a whole lot of great reads by this new to me author. The Silent Sister is Diane Chamberlains newest release about a girl names Riley who’s older sister had committed suicide when Riley was very young. After Riley’s father passes away, Riley returns to the home of her childhood to prepare his home for sale when she comes across some papers that may very well mean that her whole life has been a lie. Breathtaking twists and turns – treat yourself to this author and this book!

There it is. That is my great reads of 2014. There are obviously many books that I never got around to reading that may very well have been on this list if I had made it to them. Perhaps next year… 🙂

The Snow Queen by Michael Cunningham

Published on December 16, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)6 Comments

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)

Brutal Youth by Anthony Breznican

Published on December 15, 2014December 21, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)10 Comments

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.