Summer in Review: Books I Read

Blogging has fallen by the wayside since Liam's arrival, along with several of my other hobbies. :) Bookreading, however--happily--has not. I've been able to keep up with my New Year's "resolution" to read more books in 2009 than I have in recent years. That said, here are my mini-reviews of some of the books I read over the spring and summer:

Middlemarch, by George Eliot: This is one of those classic novels that I've had on my "to read" list for a long time. I finally picked it up this spring and managed to finish it just before Liam was born. I have to say, I don't think Eliot will become my favorite novelist. I had a really hard time getting into the story at first, mostly because I didn't care for any of the characters. I did finally warm to Dorothea, the heroine, about halfway through, and after that the reading went much more quickly. The short synopsis of the plot is this: Dorothea, a young and naive but nevertheless passionate woman, agrees to marry a very old, uninteresting, scholarly fellow against everyone else's advice. She ends up regretting this decision, but all turns out alright for her in the end. To be honest, I was much more interested in the less important "sub heroines," Rosamund and Mary. But you'll have to read the book to find out who they are. :) It's still a worthwhile read with a satisfying ending, even though it wasn't my favorite classic. Four out of five stars, considering its classical merit.


Playing for Pizza, by John Grisham: I have read a few of Grisham's novels and while they're not all masterpieces, they are relatively entertaining. In April I found myself in an airport with nothing to read for the flight so I ducked into the terminal bookstore and bought a copy of this in paperback. It was entertaining enough; the story is about Rick Dockery, a down-on-his-luck NFL quarterback who has been blackballed from every football team in the league. Needing money and not yet ready to give up on football, Rick reluctantly agrees to quarterback for the Panthers . . . that is, the Parma Panthers . . . in Parma, Italy. Needless to say, American-style football doesn't have nearly the popularity in Italy as it does in the States, but Rick finds himself warming to his new teammates and his new country. I liked it because it was a story about football and Italy--two things I love but would otherwise never consider together. It's light, easy reading and perfect for entertaining you on a plane flight if you're looking for a distraction. :) Three out of five stars.

The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls: This New York Times Bestseller had been on my reading list for over a year, after a friend recommended it to me last summer. It's an autobiographical memoir detailing the author's bizarre upbringing during the sixties and seventies. Her father was a shiftless, alcoholic drifter who would uproot the family and leave town every time his creditors caught up with him. Her mother was a self-professed artist who never bothered to embrace the responsibility of raising her children. So, they ended up raising themselves, often going hungry and moving from place to place like gypsies. In spite of their hardships the children managed to become normal members of society in the end. The story was so odd it was hard to believe it was true, but its oddity made it intriguing . . . intriguing enough that I couldn't save it for our plane trip back from the east coast like I was supposed to and instead read it during our vacation. :) Four and a half out of five stars. Note: I should point out that if the book were a movie it would be rated "R" for profanity, so keep this one away from the kids. :)

Uglies, by Scott Westerfeld: I picked this up in a tiny bookstore in a tiny town in North Carolina while we were on vacation . . . because I had finished The Glass Castle prematurely and needed something for the plane ride home. :) The bookstore didn't have a huge selection and I had read another person's review of this book awhile back, so I decided to give it a try.

Uglies is the first in a three-volume series. The books are written for young adults so I found the dialogue a little on the immature side. However, the story was entertaining enough that I finished the book and even checked out the second volume, Pretties, from the library this week.

The story is set about 200 years into the future, after modern mankind (unaffectionately referred to in the book as the "Rusties") has pretty much ruined the earth with warfare and unsustainable environmental practices. (Take note: The author could be a spokesperson for Green Peace.) Futuristic mankind has figured out a way to avoid these unpleasantries by grouping everyone into solar-powered cities and turning them all "pretty" at age sixteen. Tally is almost sixteen and about to become pretty when she meets Shay, another almost-sixteen-year-old ugly. But Shay is different from Tally; Shay doesn't want to be pretty. So Shay runs away just before her sixteenth birthday. Tally is sent after her and during her journey Tally learns the truth about the difference between uglies and pretties. All in all, an entertaining story. Three and a half out of five stars. As I said, I will be reading the sequel; we'll see if the series can hold my interest. :)

Currently I'm in the middle of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne--another classic I've been meaning to read for a long time. It's pretty short--much shorter than Middlemarch--so hopefully it won't take long to finish.