"The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch

This is one of the most moving books I have ever read. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon and was asked to give a "Last Lecture" to the students there. These lectures are meant to be an opportunity for the speaker to reflect on their life and to say what they might say if they were preparing for their own death. For Randy Pausch, though, this really was a final speech.

He was dying of cancer. And gave his Last Lecture with that in mind, but spoke of optimism and joy and accomplishing hopes and dreams. This book was compiled after his lecture and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone. He presents so many little gems of wisdom and his positive attitude was an inspiration to me as I read about his life and the love he had for his family.

It's a quick read, so don't hesitate to pick it up. I've found that ALL I want to read lately is memoirs. I wonder if that means I should write mine someday... but I hope you enjoy this one!

"The Middle Place" by Kelly Corrigan

If I was going to recommend one book this year, Kelly Corrigan's memoir would be IT. It has been a long time since I have so completely fallen in love with not only the people in a story, but the way the story was written.

Kelly Corrigan is a breast cancer survivor and "The Middle Place" is her collection of memories from that battle, as well as from her childhood, adult years, and motherhood. I was completely hooked by the end of the first page and couldn't put it down until I finished - a very short time later.

Corrigan presents her story in such a real way. And it was so easy to become attached to each "character" and to laugh and cry along with them as they went through good times and bad. I was in tears through the story of her husband's proposal, couldn't stop laughing at her father's antics, and truly felt like I knew those people as if they were my own friends and family. I know I read this in March and that there is a lot more 2009 to come, but I really think that this will be my book of the year. If I could be as brilliant a storyteller as Kelly Corrigan... well then my work would be cut out for me, wouldn't it?

Word of warning to the rest of you: There is quite a lot of strong language in this book. I recommended it to my mother and she said, "I wish she didn't use the F word so much!" but I think next time I read it I'll go through with a black marker. And I really wouldn't let that drawback stop me from experiencing this wonderful story.

"The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

This was my first Sue Monk Kidd novel and I loved it! Now a "major motion picture" starring four amazing actresses, this is one of the most wonderful stories I have ever read and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is looking for a moving and thought-provoking read.

I think the reason I loved it the most is because it shows that race should not be a barrier to love or companionship. A young, white girl born and raised in South Carolina (I think that's right... correct me if I mixed up my North and South!) finds herself living with four wonderful black women, each of whom is unique and special in their own way.

Just like any other story that truly takes me away, this one made me laugh and cry and love the characters for who they were and for what they were going through. I still haven't watched the movie (I wanted to read the book first), but I'm excited to see it, especially since Sophie Okonedo is in it. Kelly and I saw her on the London Underground last summer and she's one of my favorite actresses anywhere.

Read it first. Then come watch the movie with me!

Coming Soon

I know I'm behind, but I promise I'll soon be posting reviews for the following books:

• "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd
• "The Middle Place" by Kelly Corrigan
• "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch

And I recently picked up several books that I want to read as soon as possible... in addition to the seventy zillion titles already on my "To Read" list. Don't worry. It'll happen. And I'll review.

"Dean & Me (A Love Story)" by Jerry Lewis

If I wasn't a fan of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis before, I definitely am now!

I just discovered that my boss had this book and was totally sucked in by the very first page. It changed my entire view of the comedic duo, but only for the better! There's something about getting to know the people playing characters in a play that makes the act just that much more enjoyable to watch.

Their story is an interesting one and I love the way that Jerry writes - as if he's having a conversation with you and telling you exactly what happened and how he felt about it. It's a very honest, down-to-earth representation of a pretty incredible journey. If you're a fan at all, I'd definitely recommend reading this one. Except for one thing...

There is a lot of swearing in this book. Not surprising coming from an Italian (Dean), a Jew (Jerry), all of New York and Hollywood, the mafia, and everything in between being thrown into the mix. Jerry writes things exactly as they happened - and exactly as they were spoken. If you can't handle reading that kind of language (it's pretty frequent), then you might just want to ask for a more extensive review of this one. But other than that!

Top notch! Five stars! Or at least four and three quarters . . . a quarter off for strong language. I think Jerry would approve!

Under Construction . . . again.

I'm reformatting my page. Hold tight for a better look and for more book reviews.

"Atonement" by Ian McEwan

Out of sheer curiosity, I finally read "Atonement," and am happy to say that I made it through the entire book. Unfortunately, it's not one that I will pass on or recommend to others - it's pretty depressing and quite slow for the first half. But! As I have done so many other times, I have to commend the author for writing a novel that really made me think, and for writing characters that I truly fell in love with.

McEwan uses an interesting literary technique, where the final chapter is a sort of glance back at the rest of the book. I haven't seen the movie, but have heard that it does the same thing. The entire novel is in third person, but in the end, the main character, Briony, narrates in first person, revealing that she had become a novelist and had written the account of the horrible mistake she made as a child and the effects it had on her family. It's a technique I have seen before - though not often - and love!

It took me a long time to finish and had some pretty graphic parts that will keep me from reading it again, but everyone knows I can't resist WWII novels . . . and I especially loved reading the passages that took place in London. How amazing to be able to picture the places being described and to remember being there myself! It was an interesting read. Don't hurry to buy it or pull it from the shelf at the library, but trust me when I say it's not the last book on earth I would read. I was happy to get to the last page and am looking forward to my next read. Still undecided . . .

"The Pelican Brief" by John Grisham

What an amazing book!!! I've loved every Grisham I've ever read and "The Pelican Brief" doesn't fall short in any way. It's probably the most political one I've read of his, and I have to admit not my favorite, but that might also be because I saw the movie first. And loved that! The book exceeds the movie (of course!) in intensity and content, but knowing what happens in the end when I started the book made it drag on more than I think it would have otherwise.

If you haven't seen the movie, read this first! And then take yourself over to Blockbuster Video and prepare yourself for a thrill!

My next John Grisham will probably be "Runaway Jury," which I have also seen (with John Cusack - of course I've seen it!) but am looking forward to reading. In the meantime, stay posted for more reviews and please, KEEP READING BOOKS!

"The Trial of Mary Lou" by Ron Carter

I've decided to start posting reviews on a weekly, or at least semi-weekly basis. My goal is to read two books a month, but for the weeks when I don't reach that goal, I think I'll just post a review for one of my favorites.

So! "The Trial of Mary Lou" by Ron Carter. If you haven't read this, please pick up a copy today at your local Barnes & Noble. Don't borrow it from the library, or from your sister, or from anyone who doesn't allow you to leave it on your shelf permanently. It's definitely worth having in your collection!

Although Carter's writing is weak, this is one of the most hilarious books I have ever read in my entire life! I remember my parents reading it to us when I was a kid, but also remember falling asleep to the soothing sound of their voices . . . so I never did know what happened to Mary Lou in the end.

After a years of curiosity (and a few years ago now), I asked my Mom about it and she found a copy for me. We started reading it together (out loud - the best way!) late one night and ended up reading the entire thing, with tears of glee rolling down our cheeks and our bellies aching from laughter.

Read it! And then wait a few years and read it again. It's just as good the second time, as I'm sure it is the 27th.

"Breaking Dawn" by Stephenie Meyer

Although I was so against reading this book, I finally caved and started this week. Tara had a copy in the car and I finally couldn't resist anymore, despite my dislike for Stephenie Meyer and her horrible (in my opinion) writing style!

And . . . well, I must say (as I've said before) that Meyer has her creativity going for her. Her story is great, her imagination far surpasses anything I could ever come up with. All things vampire and werewolf, and even things human, come into a fascinating light in her books. But . . . and here it comes . . .

I still think she sucks. My overly-critical mind, when it comes to any form of writing, once again pulled through for me. I found only one or two typographical errors the entire 754 pages (at least she has a good editor!), but I also found a couple of spots with GLARING inconsistencies. If you're reading this, and haven't read the book yet, please stop now because I'm not holding back anything for the sake of "review" or anything like that. If you have read it, then please continue.

There is one part in the book, after Bella becomes a vampire (at last!), where she speaks to her father face-to-face for the first time. I was nearly driven mad by that whole confrontation, because Meyer kept dropping in little lines about Bella holding her breath. She's immortal now, and it's already been established that vampires have no need to breathe. She's holding her breath so she doesn't smell her father's blood, which makes perfect sense, but then it says something or other about her oxygen supply running out, so she HAD to take a breath. Oh, come on now! If that's not glaring, I don't know what is. Of course . . . no one else in their right mind would probably even pick up on such a thing, but this is my forte. I can't help it.

I finished the book and am perfectly satisfied with the happy ending. Edward and Bella are together, as it always should have been. I just wish it hadn't taken so long to get to that point. The story seemed to stretch on for eons, without any significant climax. There was just a LOT of deliberating . . . and more deliberating . . . and MORE deliberating . . . on the side of the good guys and the bad guys . . . LAME!

So, anyway. I should stop my ranting. It's true that I'm probably just jealous. A woman with my name and less literary skill (I'm not bragging, it's just how I feel) than I have, is now world famous. Ugh. Don't even compare her to J.K. Rowling or I might puke. J.K. is enormously talented. Meyer has some work to do.

Maybe I should write her a letter . . .