The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. - Nichole Bernier

Lots and lots of great reviews on this book, but it was Beth Fish Reads that pushed me over the line.  That girl can write a compelling review.  

So, despite the HUGE PILES of print books on my bedside (the ones that are screaming at the tops of their lungs to be read), the multitude of potentially amazing books I got from SIBA, the silent but growing list of books on my Kindle, I ordered this one from my library.  That is just how inspired I was to read it.

Synopsis:  Kate and Elizabeth were circumstantial friends.  Their kids played together, they were neighbors, and found in each other a kindred spirit without really knowing too much about each other's background.  When Elizabeth tragically dies in an airplane crash, leaving a husband and three small children behind, it devastates everyone involved.  More perplexing, Elizabeth leaves her journals, kept since she was an adolescent, to Kate, to do with as she wishes.  The move confuses Kate and frustrates Elizabeth's widower...why would she entrust all of her secrets to a circumstantial friend of only a few years?

So Kate takes the trunk full of journals to the beach, where she will be spending the summer with her husband and two kids.  As Kate struggles through her own inner conflicts about her sacrificed career and the soundness of her marriage, she learns about a whole different side to Elizabeth that nobody knew.  Family tragedy, an unhappy childhood, and Elizabeth's gifted talent as an artist, her true thoughts on motherhood and sacrifice...all topics suppressed and hidden from those who knew her.

In a story about love, friendship, motherhood, and marriage in a fraught post-9/11 world, Bernier has crafted a thoughtful, moving novel that sure to affect any woman who reads it, young or old.

My thoughts:  This is one of those books that bubble up in your subconscious when you aren't expecting it.  Probably the most troubling concept is the one that hits you square between the eyes at the beginning of the story...the sudden and tragic death of a wife and mother.  The image of a husband now raising three young children on his own.  I wonder what would happen if something happened to me?

But that is just the starting point of this provocative plot.  Do I allow my friends to get close, or is it just easier to be who they want you to be?  Would my husband or friends still love me if they knew all the dark stuff?  How do I really feel about things?  Then there's the woman's age-old dilemma of sacrificing work, passion and career to raise a family.  Or the panic that grips your soul at times when you know you cannot protect your loved ones from the horrors in the world, the diseases, the terrorists, the drunk driver, from loss, from grief.  

I love books that make you think.  Once in a great while you stumble across one that stops you in your tracks (I had a similar reaction to "What Alice Forgot" last year.)  It really makes you check yourself. 

The setting of this book...a small island accessible only by boat...was a nice touch.  It also offered the perfect backdrop for Kate to deal with her own issues, and the disquieting discoveries in Elizabeth's diaries.  

Don't be fooled to think that just because you see sand on the cover that this is an easy chick-lit beach read.  It is a deep and touching read that you won't ever forget.

4.5 out of 5 stars

    

Not So Wordless Wednesday: Happy Halloween

So Happy Halloween to you all!  I didn't think it would be appropriate to post a lovely picture of a lighthouse today.  So instead you get Pennywise, who I think, next to the Exorcist girl, is the scariest image ever.

It is always a bit of a bummer to celebrate this holiday mid-week.  You know things will not be good tomorrow for school.  Too much running around, too much sugar, late bed times.  For a couple of years, we had a teacher who seemed to intentionally give homework on Halloween night.  Not a popular move!  

What makes me sad is that my kids are pretty much over the whole thing.  Last year, they threw together unimaginative costumes at the 11th hour, gathered candy, then gave it all away.  At this point, I'm not even sure what we will do tonight.  Half-hearted candy gathering?  Pizza and scary movies?  Stay tuned...      

The House Next Door - Anne Rivers Siddons

In the lineup of books for which I need to write reviews, this one was actually scheduled for sometime mid-November.  But it is actually the scariest book I've read in awhile, and therefore really deserved to be posted the day before Halloween.

I have one person, and one person ONLY to blame for me reading this pleasant-looking book.  And that would be Raych.  Thanks Raych.  I lost a little of my soul with this one (but I loved every minute of it).   


Synopsis:  Doesn't this book look peaceful and pretty?  Nothing menacing here.  Until you open the first chapter, and the narrator, one Colquitt Kennedy, tells you that the house next door is haunted, that she and her husband are warning the world, and they probably won't live much longer as a result.

Immediately Colquitt draws you into the story.  She starts with the first family...a young couple about to have their first child...that buys the beautiful wooded lot next door and hires a genius architect to build their dream house.  Colquitt and her husband Walter are affluent, Southern yuppies who love to have drinks on their back porch and have barbecues with their neighbors, so they welcome the couple, and the architect, with open arms.  Things start to go wrong almost immediately, but is chalked up to really unfortunate accidents.  (Since Raych warned you, I will too.  Dead puppies ahoy...and more.)

With each family that moves in and moves out of the house, the "incidents" get progressively worse.  It seems that the house, or the malevolent presence within it, seeks out the inhabitants' weaknesses and preys upon them.  And if the friendly neighbors get too close or too invested?  Well, no one is safe. 

My thoughts:  This is classic, organic horror...an evil house, an undefinable presence, human frailties laid out for all to see, with horrible consequences.  It is the stuff of Stephen King (in fact he named this book as one of the best 20th century novels in the genre).  It shocked me to learn that the book was written in 1978 by an author not even known for writing in the horror genre, but Southern fiction.  

This story is not gentle.  Sure, it is presented to us with Southern grace and charm.  Parties and cocktails and gardening and country clubs.  But behind the polite smiles and propriety is shocking, horrifying, grimace-inducing violence, destruction of lives, heavily laced with sex.  There were moments when my eyes were popping out of my skull, screaming "Oh my God!".  There is also a dark menacing cloud hanging overhead that is emphasized by Siddons' plentiful use of foreshadowing...you know the bad shit is coming, and you can't stop it.  I found it terrifying to imagine who or what would get it next.  Siddons has no sacred cows.  The cows can get thrown under the bus, right along with everyone and everything else.

I loved the characters scurrying around in this story.  Siddons had to have based them on people she knew, they were all so quirky and real, you could imagine them standing right in front of you, gossiping, crying, raging.  They weren't all likable, but they were unforgettable.  

For those who like classic, literary horror, served on a crystal platter with a round of mint juleps, you shouldn't miss out on this one.

5 out of 5         

    

Monday Matinee: Halloween Edition - My Scariest Movies

In honor of Halloween this week, I thought I'd cover a little formerly-traveled but oh-so-fun ground of my favorite scary movies!  Stop rolling your eyes.  I know 98% of you hate them based on the comments I get from my oft-reviewed horror viewings, but tis the season!  I mean, if you ever are sitting around and suddenly have a hankering to have the crap scared out of you, then I am here to serve your needs.

It IS really very hard for me to narrow these down.  I've seen a whole array of horror flicks...the super-bloody Italian ones with the bad music, the '80's slasher ones, the classic black and white Hitchcock ones, the Japanese ones with the white-faced, black-haired demonic children.  How to really judge?  I have found that like any movie genre, many horror movies have a great premise, and do a great job of scaring you at first, but ultimately fall flat by over-explaining, or it turns hokey and unbelievable, and by the end you are ready for it to be over.

It's the ones that you are still thinking about a week later.  The ones that keep you up at night.  The ones that, when the credits are rolling, you feel a chill going up your spine.  These are the ones that stand the test of time.  So without further ado, these are the movies that never fail to entertain me:        

The Ring (2002) - Speaking of white-faced, black-haired demonic children, here we go.  This movie was based off the 1998 Japanese movie "Ringu".  Crazy as it sounds, this movie is rated PG, but I can barely sit through it.  The plot surrounds a mysterious, cursed video tape that shows bizarre disturbing scenes...once it is watched, the viewer gets a phone call that informs them they have seven days to live.  I know, it sounds like a million movies that pander to teens, but it works.  Starring Naomi Watts and Amber Tamblyn.       

The Exorcist (1973) - But of course this one would end up on just about anyone's list.  A demon possesses a young girl, and various priests attempt to exorcise it from her body.  Spinning heads, pea-green vomit, spewing vulgarities in a demonic voice from the mouth of a child, bloody crotch-stabbing with a crucifix...it's all in there.  Starring Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, and Max von Sydow, and brilliant theme song by Michael Oldfield.      

The Paranormal Activity Franchise - As of today, there have been four movies released (PA 4 just came out a couple of weeks ago), and we have seen them all.  PA 2 and 3 are prequels to PA 1, and the 4th installment is a sequel, and all follow a family that is cursed but don't know it (or I guess maybe they are starting to figure it out at this point).  The bad things that happen to these folks are all recorded on security cameras at night, making one feel like a bit of a voyeur.  These films are insanely low-budget, making them the some of the most profitable movies ever made, as they have risen to a cult status.  In my opinion?  They get progressively scarier, which is not what you would expect in a franchise.  If you are looking for a marathon, I'd sit down with these.        

Silence of the Lambs (1991) - No ghouls or ghosts here.  Just pure, unadulterated psychotic serial killers.  And phenomenal acting.  Buffalo Bill is kidnapping, killing and skinning young girls.  FBI Agent Starling (Jodie Foster) must enlist the help of imprisoned killer Dr. Hannibal Lechter (Anthony Hopkins) to profile him catch him.  This movie is as good as it gets.  I've seen it no fewer than 3 dozen times and it has never lost its lustre.

Have you seen any of these?  What did you think?  What are your favorite scary movies?    

Mid-Florida Champions!

It may be hard for you to see the score, so let me just tell you.  WE WON!!!  36-16.  At the half, it was tied 16-16 and I was not happy.  But when we came out for the second half, we were a team possessed.  We intercepted two of their passes, allowed almost no yardage, and literally crushed them.  It was amazing.  And a wonderful birthday present for my son.  Drink wine and eat a steak I shall.

We now begin to compete against teams outside the Central Florida area.  Our next game is Saturday in Winter Springs, FL (on the outskirts of Orlando) against a team from Tampa.  No rest for the weary.  I shall take nothing for granted and be appreciative for every bit of extra time we have in this season. 

Sunday Salon: The Week of Sandy

 You know, there are weeks that are busy but fly by and you're able to just roll with it, and there are some weeks that just TAKE EVERYTHING OUT OF YOU!!!  That was this week!  It wasn't all bad, just physically and emotionally exhausting.

And honestly, I can't blame Storm Sandy.  (Although I think it is kinda cool to have a storm with my name on it!)  It was really really windy on Friday and Saturday, and my yard and pool look like a battlefield, but negligible rain (it only rained on Friday morning when I wanted to do my long run - thanks a lot.)  I AM seriously thinking about the zillion of my friends up there in the Northeast.  I hope it isn't as bad as the media is surely making it.  But just be safe and make sure you have batteries, water and wine.  

No, actually my week started out with some guy at school backing into my car. Just bumper damage, nobody hurt, but we didn't get a police report because it was so minor, and now the guy is all jerky because he thinks I was trying to steal his parking spot or something.  Which I wasn't.  Either way, dude just threw it in reverse and didn't take a peek into his rearview mirror.  *sigh*  So now I have to deal with insurance, and arguing and all the fun that goes along with crunched fiberglass.

And I got an iPhone 5!  Woo hoo!  Very exciting stuff, once I was able to sync everything up (I only pouted for maybe an hour while I was trying to figure it out, which highly annoyed my husband).  A couple of things that I find to be the coolest is that you can text vocally, thus eliminating my old fat finger mistakes.  And this Siri system!  You can vocally query anything and she has an answer.  I'm starting to worry if she might be as smart as HAL from 2001 Space Odyssey!  And then there is the panorama photography:

Which brings me to The Boy.  He played in his 3rd round playoff football game Wednesday night (under the lights as you can see) and decidedly won 25-0.  So for the second year in a row, he goes to the Citrus Bowl today to vie for the Mid-Florida Championship.  Last year we lost.  This year we go up against the same team and are pretty primed to take some revenge.  I'd be at peace, I think, if this is as far as we got, but wouldn't it be great if they went on to compete for the Southeast Region or National?  So stay tuned.  If he wins today, you might get another post coming at you.  Oh and also, today is his 13th birthday.  My baby is a teenager (although he has been there in spirit and hormones for about 9 months).

A friend from high school was in town for a conference, so I went out to dinner with her on Tuesday night (after shuttling Boy to extra football practice).  I've known this girl since I was in Kindergarten, and I do see her a couple of times a year, but it is always nice to hang with her.  I also had to make an appearance at our annual Chili Cookoff fundraiser at the school.  I wasn't thrilled to go...I was wrung out by Friday night...but I went for a couple of hours, ate chili, and was in bed by 9:00pm.  (My husband couldn't go because my son's coaches were practicing these boys to the moon and back, and he had to pick him up and feed him.)  My husband and I also had dinner out with friends last night.  Naps were required.    

My reading and blogging are pathetic.  I'm trying, I truly am, but it just isn't happening for me.  Oh well.  You will be happy to hear that I did finish "Beautiful Ruins" on the Kindle.  Took me two weeks, but I have so much love for this book, I can't even verbalize it yet.  On audio, I finished "The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry" which was very surprising!  Pretty serious and even a little twisty, and I felt affection when I finished.  I'm now most of the way through "City of Women" on audio and, hmmm, not sure what to say.  A little gritty?  Harsh?  Lots of sex?  I'm going to need some inspiration to write that review.

So if you are a lover of youth sports, and have good Karma today, please send a little positive energy down to the Orlando Citrus Bowl for my son's team.  And if you are in the area and want to stop by, kickoff is at 1:00pm.  I'll be the one with my head between my knees.

Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake - Anna Quindlen (Audio)

There are a gazillion people out there that are Anna Quindlen apostles, but I have only discovered her recently.  No doubt, one of my top books (listens actually) of 2012 will be "Every Last One".  It only took this one book to make me realize that Ms. Quindlen GETS family dynamics.  (She also knows how to freaking pull the rug out from under a girl.)  After a little poking around, I found out that Quindlen did have two sons and a daughter (like the book) who have all grown up and become contributing citizens.  AND SHE IS ALIVE TO TELL ABOUT IT!  These days, I have a great deal of admiration for a parents who makes it through the teenage stage sane.  Well, most of them do, but it is nice to see.

So when Quindlen came out with this memoir, from the perspective of a woman who has basically seen it all, and is sitting in the second half of her life, I figured I've got stuff to learn from her.

Synopsis:  Anna Quindlen has opinions and nuggets of wisdom on a variety of topics, and in a musing, humorous, and slightly snarky voice, she imparts.  She talks about spending decades with the same man, the importance of sticking out the tough times, of being a team.  She talks of the accumulation of stuff, of raising children and then watching them leave.  Of the aging body, the attempt to keep it from falling apart, but making peace with what you've got.  Of lightening up.  Of religion.  Of the beauty of having alone-time.  And most of all, the importance of girlfriends.  

She doesn't claim to have all the answers, but she throws out thoughts to ponder and observations of life, with the astute eye and a turn of a phrase that makes her such an exceptional author.  

My thoughts:  Quindlen is 10 to 15 years older than I am, so she has gone through phases in life that I am currently dragging my way through.  For this reason, I loved reading this memoir.  It gave me hope!  My marriage may make it through these years!  My kids may actually emerge from high school and college and be respectable!  Some day I might actually learn to relax!  I shouldn't feel compelled to inject my face or lips or suck the fat out of my butt, just because everything is a little droopy!  

I found Quindlen to be very grounded and wise, kind of like a mentor.  She allows the reader to see what is in her heart, what and who has motivated her or defeated her, and some of her own life lessons.  With a dose of piss and vinegar I might add...sister has some moxie.  The part I loved the most, though, I admit freely, is her bit on girlfriends.  There was a perfect paragraph where she talks about the definition of a true friend, but of course this book was on audio, I didn't write it down, and now I've deleted it from the iPod.  So I will share another quote that I found on Amazon:

“Ask any woman how she makes it through the day, and she may mention her calendar, her to-do lists, her babysitter. But if you push her on how she really makes it through her day, she will mention her girlfriends. Sometimes I will see a photo of an actress in an unflattering dress or a blouse too young for her or with a heavy-handed makeup job, and I mutter, ‘She must not have any girlfriends.’ ”

I know, right?  Throughout the entire portion of this chapter, my eyes kinda went dewy and I kept smiling, feeling blessed to have my girlfriends.  Here is another jewel about old friends:

“The thing about old friends is not that they love you, but that they know you. They remember that disastrous New Year's Eve when you mixed White Russians and champagne, and how you wore that red maternity dress until everyone was sick of seeing the blaze of it in the office, and the uncomfortable couch in your first apartment and the smoky stove in your beach rental. They look at you and don't really think you look older because they've grown old along with you, and, like the faded paint in a beloved room, they're used to the look. And then one of them is gone, and you've lost a chunk of yourself. The stories of the terrorist attacks of 2001, the tsunami, the Japanese earthquake always used numbers, the deaths of thousands a measure of how great the disaster. Catastrophe is numerical. Loss is singular, one beloved at a time.”

I wouldn't say the memoir is life-altering, but it was a wonderful, warm, hilarious diversion, and so beautifully written.  And I don't believe you have to be in the middle of your life to appreciate it.  In fact, some of the pearls of wisdom in here might just help those in their 20's and 30's avoid a pitfall or two.

A few words about the audio production:  I was delighted to see that Anna narrates this book herself.  I'm not sure I'd want to hear her narrate, let's say, a Jo Nesbo book, but in this case, she knows the material and delivers it in the spirit in which it was written.  She has a dry sense of humor, and this completely comes through in her spoken word.  She was a pleasure to listen to.

4 out of 5 stars