A Fifty Year Silence - Review

A Fifty-Year Silence: Love, War and a Ruined House in France by Miranda Richmond Mouillot
Rating: 4 Stars
Source: NetGalley

Description:  As a child Miranda's grandparents seemed so unalike and so distant that she was shocked to learn that they had once been married.  As she gets older and gets to know her grandfather more she becomes fascinated by their story.  What happened to them?  What were they like as a couple and what does a ruined house in France have to do with it all?

Genre: NonFiction

Why I Picked This Book: I'm fascinated by family secrets and the lives of regular people in history.

My Impression:
Pro:  I think going in I was expecting a simpler book.  The story of her grandparents - what they went through and what ultimately caused their parting of ways.  But this is a story about real people and so of course it's never simple.  While we do get the story of Anna and Armand we get the story of Miranda as well.  How her family past influences her present and her future.  How the ghosts and the weight of their history affects her choices.  We see the story unfolding through her eyes and through her pace.  It's organized not chronologically the way it happened but chronologically the way she uncovered it.  While that didn't make for the most coherent story of the past it really made me understand who Anna, Armand and Miranda are now and it made me think quite a bit about my own family and the secrets that are hiding back through the generations.  On a side note - there are a handful of pictures scattered throughout the book but they work very well in e-book format.

Con: I would have liked some clarification on the background of both her grandparents.  They were in France during World War 2 and Armand is originally from Switzerland but I'm not 100% clear on Anna's heritage.  There were hints that she was Romanian but that part was a little too vague for my list making little brain.  This did get clearer but only at the end.  While in general I enjoyed how the story unraveled I think I would've enjoyed it more if this had been nailed down a bit more.

Overall:  I think anyone interested in the history of ordinary people would enjoy this.  While I enjoyed the read all the way through I didn't realize until the end what a truly powerful story this really is. I felt the heartbreak of it for days. It's a unique style of narration and interesting look into people who lost the right to be ordinary.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?: Yes, though not necessarily an auto-buy.

Would I Recommend this Book?:  Yes.  I think history lovers would find this interesting.

Challenges Met? Alphabet Soup (F), New to Me (Author)

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten 2014 Releases I Meant to Read

Today's Top Ten Tuesday topic from The Broke and the Bookish is Top Ten 2014 Releases I Meant to Read but Didn't Get To.  I believe the expression that would describe my list for this is - a hole with no bottom.  There's so many great books I really wanted to get to but just haven't yet!

1.  So We Read On by Maureen Corrigan (pub. September 9, 2014) - I love books about books and this book on why The Great Gatsby went from popular novel to the enduring classic it is today sounds fascinating.

2.  It's in His Kiss by Jill Shalvis (pub. August 26, 2014) - I was literally checking NetGalley every few minutes to see if this request had gone through for DAYS.  This was in August.  I have the next 2 as well and haven't read them either.  I have no explanation for this except maybe not wanting the series to end?

3.  The Poppy Factory by Liz Trenow (pub. August 28, 2014)- The Forgotten Seamstress made my list of favorite reads from 2014.  Obviously I was excited to get my hands on her next book.  This was in August.

4.  Murder at the Book Group by Maggie King (pub. December 30, 2014) - It's a murder in a book club.  How did I not read this?  Though this one isn't super late so I'm not sure if it counts as "missed" yet.

5.  The Red Book of Primrose House by Marty Wingate (pub. November 4, 2014) - When I looked at my November schedule the second book in the Garden Plot series was one I could not miss.  Except it's January and I did.

6.  How to Ruin a Queen by Jonathan Beckman (pub. September 2, 2014) - I've been fascinated about the story of Marie Antoinette and the diamond necklace for years though I know almost nothing about other than it didn't end well.

7.  Silent Witness by Nigel McCrery (pub. September 1, 2014) - This is a nonfiction about forensics which is one of the most fascinating subjects ever for me.

8.  Night of a Thousand Stars by Deanna Raybourn (pub. September 30, 2014) - a book from one of my absolute favorite authors set in one of my favorite time periods with excellent reviews.  It's been sitting on my Kindle untouched since August.

9.  Secrets of Hallstead House by Amy Reade (pub. July 17, 2014) - I have no idea why I haven't gotten to this bit of gothic-y goodness.

10. No River to Wide by Emilie Richards (pub. June 24, 2014) - Another book by one of my favorite authors that has been sitting on my Kindle for months.  No idea what happened or how I didn't get to this one!

So what books were you excited for 2014 that just didn't quite get read?

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Review

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Rating: 4.5 Stars
Source: Loaned from a friend
Description:  Charlie Bucket is barely scraping by eating a diet of cabbage soup with a bar of chocolate once a year on his birthday.  When the announcement that reclusive chocolate factory owner is going to let five children tour the factory if they find a golden ticket Charlie barely dares to hope.  But with the help of Grandpa Joe Charlie's dream (and more!) come true!

Genre: Children's

Why I Picked This Book:  I've enjoyed the movies and always meant to read the book but somehow never did

My Impression:
Pro: When I first picked up the book I thought how can this little book have all the weird and wonderful imagery of the movies?  But it really did!  Augustus Goop, Veruca Salt, Violet Beuregarde and Mike Teavee are really just as awful as possible.  Willy Wonka is eccentric and the Oompa Loompas are vividly drawn even though their only lines are songs inspired by the misbehaving children.  The sketches really add to the overall feel of the book.  This is a super quick read and one I thoroughly enjoyed.  Dahl's world is wonderfully weird and one that was fun to visit.

Con:  This isn't really the book's fault but I found that the movies are so ingrained in my head and the story is so vivid that I was constantly comparing the book to the movie.

Overall:  I really enjoyed this one though I do wish I had discovered it before I watched the movies.  I'm looking forward to reading it aloud to the Tornado in the next year or two as I think he'll really love it.  If you haven't read it yet you really should just be sure to have some chocolate ready for when you finish!

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?: I'm already planning on searching the library for Charlie and the Glass Elevator next time I'm there

Would I Recommend this Book?:  Absolutely!

Challenges Met?: Alphabet Soup (C), The Reading Assignment, Classics Club, Foodie Reads

This Week in Reading - January 11

It's Sunday Post time!  This is hosted by the awesome Caffeinated Book Reviewer and gives everyone a chance to recap their week.

What I Got:

A Kitchen in France:  A Year of Cooking in My Farmhouse by Mimi Thorisson - This book is massive and absolutely gorgeous.  It's basically a coffee table book with recipes.  I haven't had a chance to really look at the recipes here but I loved that they're divided up by season. I saw some delicious looking soups in the winter chapter.

First Time in Forever by Sarah Morgan - I discovered Sarah Morgan last summer and then went on to finish off the O'Neal series in a matter of months.  I'm still a little sad that that series is over but I have high hopes for this one set in a small town.

Death of a Liar by M.C. Beaton - I'm undecided how I feel about Beaton - especially her Hamish Macbeth books but I can't stop reading them!

Currently:

Reading: Teardrop Lane by Emily March and Relish by Lucy Knisley

Listening: I finished Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan and am now listening to The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender.  Next up I think will be Wild by Cheryl Strayed.

Watching:  Finally had time to sit and watch the Christmas special of Doctor Who and I will never sleep again.  Other than that J and I have been enjoying The Taste.  We watched Jack Ryan the other day on Netflix and really enjoyed it.  It's an action movie but a lot of fun.

Off the Blog:

After reading Living Well Spending Less I have pronounced this month No Spend January.  I think J is hoping I won't be reviewing anymore self help books anytime soon. Because we're staying home more we've been watching more movies off Netflix or Amazon which has been really fun.  And I've been cooking more so I'm trying out my Pinterest boards more often.. I'm enjoying actually doing all the things we never get time to because we're always rushing around. So far the only real challenge is not stopping at the Vietnamese sub shop down the street for bubble tea or one of their amazing sandwiches.  So far I've held strong!

School has started back for everyone though it's hard to take Emma's schedule seriously.  She doesn't have to show up until 11:30 and is only there a few hours.  Other than that life is back to normal which is nice after the craziness that was last month.  The Tornado is almost back to being on his regular sleep schedule which improves his behavior immensely.

I haven't had nearly as much time to read as I've wanted so I'm starting to feel behind.  Luckily I am building a stack of reviews for books off the TBR shelf so that should help some with keeping up my resolution and keep the panic reading at bay.

On the Blog:

What Happened:

Monday: Meet Your Baker Blog Tour Review

Tuesday: Top Ten New to Me Authors for 2015

Wednesday: I'll Have What She's Having Review

Thursday: Twisted Threads Blog Tour Review

Friday: Friday Linkups featuring Ex Libris

Saturday: Home for Dinner Review

What's Coming Up:

Monday: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Review

Tuesday: Top Ten 2014 Releases I Didn't Get To

Wednesday: A Fifty Year Silence Review

Thursday: TBD Review

Friday: My Regular linkups with whatever book I'm reading

Saturday: Relish Review

Happy Reading!

Home for Dinner - Review

Home for Dinner: Mixing Food, Fun, and Conversation for a Happier Family and Healthier Kids by Anne K. Fishel, Ph.D.

Rating: 3.5 Stars
Source: NetGalley
Description:  The benefits for family dinners seem to be what everyone is talking about right now.  Family therapist Anne Fishel breaks down the benefits and provides tips to make the act of getting everyone to the table possible and more stress-free.

Genre: Non-Fiction

Why I Picked This Book:  To be honest I didn't fully read the blurb so I was under the impression that this was more of a weeknight meals cookbook with conversation tips.

My Impression:

My Thoughts: We're big believers in eating dinner together but it can be challenging.  With 4 kids and 3 close together in age it seemed like for years someone had something every night and that was with us limiting the number of activities they could sign up for.  There was a lot of juggling, a lot of planning (every Thursday was slow cooker meal night for YEARS), and some crazy late dinners but for the most part we ate dinner pretty much every night together.  Even now with Eleanor at college and Emma barely here and a revolving door of their friends who show up to be fed we still eat dinner together most nights.  At 6 (ish) whoever is here sits down to dinner.  Sometimes it's just J, the Tornado and myself and sometimes we're trying to see how many extra chairs we can squeeze around the table.  After reading this book I interrogated Emma (I'd interrogate Paul but teenage boys aren't the most observant and he'd just stare at me blankly) about how many of her friends eat with their families.  It seems to be split.  For some of her friends family dinner is pretty normal though it does seem that it is more frequent with families where 1 parent is at home.  For others it never happens.  For those that don't it was a mix of everyone on their own and 1 person would prepare something or pick something up and then everyone would go to their own rooms to eat at whatever time they felt like eating.  Now most of Emma's friends are 17 or 18 so they're perfectly capable of using an oven.  I don't know how things were handled when the kids were younger.  She did say that all of her friends who came over who didn't eat with their families always commented on how we eat together and in a positive way.

Pro: Obviously I'm not a new convert to the eating dinner together thing so I went in agreeing with her overall point.  I loved how she talked about statistics. Eating dinner together causes countless benefits but she discusses the sample sizes of the studies and that dinner doesn't exist in a vacuum.  There are other things going on in the family other than that they shovel chicken into their mouth while sitting across from each other.  I liked that she addressed this point and even talks about starting with dinner and essentially "fake it till you make it".  She broke her ideas down by age group which was useful as eating dinner with an 11 year old offers different challenges from eating with a 4 year old.  She even talked about eating together once the children have left which isn't something I'd actually thought about.  Fishel covers a wide range of topics from how to get your family to eat and talk as well as situations she dealt with in her family therapy practice.  I really appreciated that her attitude isn't "This is what we do and and if you don't you're wrong" but instead offered examples and stressed finding what works best for your family.  There's plenty of tips for those that already eat together and lots of good ideas for those that are trying to work towards that.

Con: This is a pretty dense book.  There's a lot of information and while she does a good job mixing in personal stories it still reads like a textbook in part.  The handful of recipes that were included weren't something I can see my family eating.  While dumplings - particularly as a group activity for making dinner - sound like a lot of fun I think my family would mutiny.  Obviously, this is strictly personal as your family may be willing to eat interesting foods.

Overall:  While definitely not a cookbook there is a lot of useful information in here about how to get your family sitting for a meal and enjoying each other's company.  While there is a certain textbook feel it never felt like Fishel was preaching or saying "You must do it my way."  This is definitely an interesting read for families of any age.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?: Yes, definitely.  I really liked how she made her points.

Would I Recommend this Book?:  Yes.  I think this would be a good resource for any family.

Challenges Met?  Foodie Reads

Friday Linkups: Ex Libris

It's Friday Linkup time!  I'm linkup up with Book Blogger Hop hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Book Beginnings on Fridays hosted by Rose City Reader and the Friday 56 hosted by Freda's Voice.

This Week's Question:
If you could have dinner with your favorite character,who would it be?

My Answer:
Miss Marple without question.  Can you imagine the gossip!  Plus her observations about the people around us would be extremely entertaining.  She'd be the best person ever to people watch with!

My book this week is Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman.  This was a Christmas gift from my grandmother who is without a doubt the biggest influence on my reading. I talk about books with her more than probably anyone else. I can never resist books that are about books and this one is just pretty with it's simple cover.  I'm thoroughly enjoying it!

The Beginning (from the Preface):
"When the Irish novelist John McGahern was a child, his sisters unlaced and removed one of his shoes while he was reading.  He did not stir."

My thoughts:
I can definitely relate to this.  When I read I can shut out everything that's going on around me.  I'm not quite as good as this as I used to be (something about kids made this a little harder to do) but when I was a child I could read absolutely anywhere with no problem!

The 56:
Unfortunately - since George married me anyway and has retained his affection for both fish and Joseph Mitchell - my words were preserved for good."

My thoughts:
Since I haven't gotten to page 56 I have no idea what she's talking about other than it's book related.  I'm guessing either a misquote or an unfortunate opinion written in a book!

So what do you think?  Keep reading?  How do you feel about books about books?

Twisted Threads - Blog Tour Review

Twisted Threads by Lea Wait

Rating: 4 Stars
Source: Blog Tour
Description:  Angela Curtis left Harbor Haven, Maine as soon as she was handed her high school diploma.  Growing up in the shadow of her mother's disappearance not even her close relationship with her grandmother could make for a happy childhood.  But now Angela's mother has been found and it isn't the happy reunion she had hoped for.  Now with her own mother's murder to solve, her grandmother's needlepoint business to save and another murder that happened too close to home quiet little Harbor Haven isn't looking so peaceful.

Genre: Mystery

Why I Picked This Book: I can't resist family secrets and cozy mysteries!
My Impression:
Pro:  I love when main characters in cozies have a job that makes their murder investigating make some sense so I was thrilled that Angie had been a private investigator in Arizona.  It made her investigating make sense.  I loved Harbor Haven.  It's a pretty town filled with interesting people but it's also a town that's been hit hard by changes in the lobster industry and it's struggling to survive.  That was portrayed very well without over doing it.  There were really 2 different mysteries going on but it didn't feel overwhelming or chaotic.  The characters were interesting and even the ones I didn't like were believable.  The pacing was good and even though I figured out the why before the book was through there were still plenty of twists and turns to keep me interested.

Con:  For the most part I loved this book but I did find Angie's interactions with Officer Pete Lambert a little strange.  I liked that she took the time to deal with her pistol carry permit but then her calling and dealing with him over her mother's murder in a vaguely flirtatious way didn't seem to fit her character.

Overall:  I really enjoyed this mystery but I'm even more excited to see where the series goes.  There's a lot of potential for some great mysteries and I look forward to visiting Harbor Haven and the Mainely Needlepointers soon!

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?: Absolutely!  The 2nd book is already on my GoodReads wishlist!

Would I Recommend this Book?:  Definitely!

Challenges Met?  New to Me (author), Road Trip (Maine), Alphabet Soup (T)