Tag Archive for reading

The Probable Future by Alice Hoffman

27/01/2012 Joh gratitude, reading

This book was gorgeous. I am sold on Alice Hoffman’s writing and I want to read everything she’s written. There is a long list. This is her 16th.

The story is about a family line of women who discover a gift on their 13th birthday. Stella, the latest in the line of Sparrow women rewrites the past. I find she writes such empowering female characters. Flawed, human women who use their strength to have what’s important to them. This quote from The Times says it better than I could:

Alice Hoffman hits bulls-eyes on the incomprehension between the young and the old, on the magic and pain of ordinary life. She is erotic and romantic, funny and clever and humane.

Finding a new author with troves of books I haven’t read, is like the first days of summer. I have been reading in my lunch hour by the Lake in Sale some days, or when I’m in a rush I just read for some of the time. Things are getting busier as my half holidays draws to an end. I do more when I’m busy and more important things. I think holidays are a little overrated for me. I enjoy the life I’ve created, including work.

Popularity: 1% [?]

One comment , , , ,

Gravity by Scot Gardner

12/12/2011 Joh reading, work

The back cover of Gravity reads “Saturday night. Nowheresville.” How many teenage regional dwellers have this to say for the place they live in? I related to this story because I was busting to get out of here when I was a young person. I’d love a massage for every kid I’ve taught that has plans of heading elsewhere as soon as… I certainly didn’t have the heavy home life that Adam (the protagonist) lived with. His mum has already shot through.

I enjoyed this book. I have been meaning to read Scot Gardner’s books for a long time. He is a local author and I want to use some texts created in our area next year with my students. He names local towns that students are familiar with. I am aiming for connection. Not just to school, but to community and place. I’m not sure I will use this novel, cause I think it would be more relevant to older students. Scot Gardner has written many books so I’ll work my way through them and find a suitable one I’m sure.

Popularity: 1% [?]

One comment , , , , ,

Aleph by Paulo Coelho

18/11/2011 Joh reading

I am a fan of Paulo Coelho. I have read all his books and this latest ‘Aleph’ was a return to his writing about his personal and spiritual journey. He has written some great stories. The quest type stories are rich as his tales, yet different I think due to their personal nature. In this story he adventures on a train across Russia. There are many reflections about travel in this book.

I related to the start of the novel where he met with his ‘Master’ yet felt disillusioned and doubtful about his whole process. I really enjoyed the discussion about routine as I mentioned in a recent post about work I have recently noticed how my change of routine has given me my life back. I feel happier and more connected.:

“Go and re-conquer your kingdom, which has grown corrupted by routine. Stop repeating the same lesson because you won’t learn anything new that way.’ (pg9)

When I read those pages I knew the tale was for me. I haven’t travelled across continents and rediscovered past lives, recently, yet stepping out of the familiar routines doesn’t always need such things:).

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , , , ,

Ads R Us by Claire Carmichael

27/10/2011 Joh reading

‘Ads R Us’ is set in a dystopian world where advertising has taken control. In many ways like our own:). The main character, Barrett comes from ‘Simplicity’ an alternative lifestyle commune that rejects the ‘Chattering World’ he nows finds himself in. When his uncle, the founder of ‘Simplicity’ dies, he goes to live with his aunt.

Barrett’s sudden exposure to the new world reveals the manipulations and persuasions of advertising as he uncovers his value to his aunt and uncle. It has many themes including ‘cliques’ and popularity, privacy, personal freedom, power and corruption, materialism, addiction, all the things that come with a society that revolves around consumption.

I read this book with my Wednesday students. It’s the year 8 text at their school. In the US it’s been published under the title ‘Leaving Simplicity’.

Here is a Reading Guide from the authors web page.

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , , , , ,

The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld

24/10/2011 Joh music, reading

‘The Last Days’ begins with a chance meeting over a puzzling occurence in New York. Why would a woman be throwing her own precious stuff out the window and seeing it smash on the streets? In the bid to rescue a rare and valuable guitar, two musicians connect. So begins a musical journey set in a world of plague.

An unlikely band forms with dreams of success, however poor timing necessitates that their performances are of higher importance to civilisation than the aspirations they began with.

This is a companion book to ‘Peeps’. That’s next on my young adult reading list. The plague is a vampirish infection, a popular theme with young adult readers . It also had a music theme and the chapter titles are all band names. I enjoyed it.

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , ,

Cool for Cats by Jessica Adams

04/10/2011 Joh reading

Linda Tyler is existing. She’s a small town dweller engaged to a man who is as puzzled by her as she is uninspired by him. She’s an assistant cook at the local Chines restaurant and it’s the 70s. Food is not cool – music is.

She knows and loves music. Every memory is attached to a track. An ad in a music paper for a writing job leads her to a whole new life.

‘Cool for Cats’ is the story of the chaos and upheaval that setting off after your dreams can create. If you are familiar with music from that period, it’s an added bonus to the story. Jessica Adams brought back many of my own musical memories attached to the punk, new wave era.

I enjoyed the resolution of the story. It twisted into something I wasn’t expecting.

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , ,

Strange Attractors by Kim Falconer

18/09/2011 Joh astrology, reading

Book Three of the ‘Quantum Enchantment’ series was the best yet. I put a lot of it down to becoming familiar with the characters and having a sense of the lands and time travel. These books are vastly interesting with a great mix of magic, technology, time travel and astrology.

I loved the twists in this book. The characters are interesting. This time I paid more attention and noticed An’ Lawrence was a Virgo p242:). Should have paid more attention in the first book and I could have won Mystic Medusa’s competition:). If you are into astrology you will love this series. I can’t wait to begin the next trilogy.

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , ,

The Pipers Son by Melina Marchetta

02/09/2011 Joh love, reading

I finish this with a tear tracked face. I am glad I’m not wearing makeup on my days off or I would look pretty messy now.

‘The Piper’s Son’ is an immensely clever and touching tale about a young man rebuilding a life after grief drives him to oblivion. It’s not just him, it’s his whole family who experience loss. The story reveals the triumph of love and I loved it for it.

I texted my son because I remembered he had told me to read ‘Saving Francesca’ which has the same characters. He’d already been on to it. ‘finished it 3 weeks ago’ was the reply I got to my recommendation. Good to know he doesn’t wait around for me to recommend books to him any more:).

Melina Marchetta creates endearing characters. I just went through his boxes of books to find ‘Saving Francesca’ because starting a new book with those people I have grown to love will make the sadness of finishing ‘The Piper’s Son’ more bearable.

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , ,

Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld

29/08/2011 Joh reading

The second in the Midnighters series was even better than the first. I read this post on Scott Westerfeld’s blog, a fan has a tattoo from the novel. That’s keen:).

Touching Darkness (Midnighters, Book 2) reveals more of the history of Bixby and introduces a Midnighter we haven’t met yet. I’ll share some of my favourite parts:

Didn’t any of these brainless wonders ever notice that TV shows were called programs? The same word that meant a bunch of numbers stuck into a computer to make it dance for its masters

pg 53

and then

‘In the summer of 1949, I had just turned eleven. We played all day until it grew dark, which in summer was very late. young children and teenagers together, while the adults sat on the porches, visiting. Everything was in the open, everyone could see each other.’……….

…….’Hang on – you’re saying you lost to the darklings because of air-conditioning?’

Madeleine lifted a finger sternly. ‘And television. You can’t discount television. You see, Dess after that first evening the adults stayed inside, watching Mr. Jack Benny instead of looking after our childish games.’

p155-156

I can’t wait to read the next in the series:)

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , , , , ,

Pay the Piper by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple

27/08/2011 Joh reading

‘Pay the Piper’ is a modern retelling of the ‘Pied Piper of Hamlyn’ fairytale. Years ago I read ‘Briar Rose’ by Jane Yolen, based on Sleeping Beauty. Briar Rose was a story about a young journalist’s connection with her grandmother, who told her many versions of the ‘Sleeping Beauty’ fairytale. It lead her to uncover her grandmother’s story by visiting Europe and gathering how she survived the holocaust. It was haunting and the modern retelling had quite a depth to it. I read it very quickly.

‘Pay the Piper’ was for a younger audience and again a young journalist (though for a school paper) in contemporary American town uncovers the truth about a musician(the piper). It is a different retelling than I have heard before and it was a fresh approach involving the fairy world and old stories that needed to be deciphered.

Jane Yolen has written over 300 books for young people.

Popularity: 1% [?]

No comments , , , , ,
« Older Entries