The Rapture of Canaan

I managed to sneak in one more book before the end of my vacation. That was six books for this month. My sister had "The Rapture of Canaan" in hr bathroom for months (actually, close to two years). I took it and finished it in two days.

The book tells the story of Ninah, a 14-year old girl living in a religious community in the South. Growing up in such a community she has always felt close to God, but high school forces her to a public school and contact with outsiders causes her to begin questioning what she's been taught. Pregnancy by her prayer partner convinces her she's carrying Jesus's child. It also leads to tragedy. Ninah's growing rebellion begins to bring a change over her entire church.

I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Kimmie

In the Cut

I picked this book up for $4.98 a couple of weeks ago and just finished reading it. It's a very fast read.

Frannie is a teacher who lives alone and does research on street lingo. One night while out with a student she stumlbes on a man and woman in a "delicate" position. The woman is murdered that night. Frannie is then drawn into an affair with the lead detective. And she has reason the think he may be the killer. The book contains sex, violence and "impolite" language. Even the title is a vulgar term.

It was interesting, but not the type of book I'm used to reading. But overall I did like it.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

I finished "A Midsummer Night's Dream." This is off my "Book of Great Books" list. I enjoyed it. I was only vaguely familiar with the story. I did enjoy it but it did get a little confusing at times. I had to backtrack several times to keep the characters straight. I watched the DVD in the middle of the play, which helped. I had planned on waiting until I was finished with the play. This one sleeping here and that one sleeping there. This one getting dosed and that one following the other one. It did fall in place at the end though. Bottom was my favorite character. Laugh out loud in a couple of places. Kimmie

New Site

I bought three new books on the way home from work last night. I ordered "House of Mirth" two and a half weeks ago. It came in Monday so I finally made the time to go get it.

I got a new Jack the Ripper book to go with my collection. I watch the crime shelves for Jack and this one has never been there. It never crossed my mind they bring in books just to put them on sale. Live and learn.

And the last book is just a little thriller I got for $4.98. It's "In the Cut" by Susanna Moore. The Meg Ryan movie is based on it.

Anyway, I went to LibraryThing to catalog them. Well, they didn't register so I went trying to find out why not. I didn't, but I did find a nifty site. It's whatshouldireadnext.com. You enter a book you like and it will pull up a list of similar books. I'll be happy when I get my TBR list done and can use the site. That is, if I quit adding to my TBR list.

Kimmie

Summer Reading

Crime and Punishment as summer reading? Who'da thunk it? Actually just as soon as I read the post on TCC I went straight to Wikipedia. After reading the first part of the section (before spoilers) I wound up wanting to read some Tolstoy too. All I need on my TBR list is a couple of thousand page books.

And speaking of spoilers, I usually like to get some background on a book before I read it. I read the intro to "House of Mirth" and lo and behold there's more than I needed to know. So I guess from now on there'll be no more intros read untill the book is read.

Kimmie

Crafts

January
brown afghan

February
sage floral square afghan

April
"Exquisite" doily
"Goose Girl" handtowel

TBR

House of Mirth Ж Edith Wharton
A Midsummer's Night Dream Ж William Shakespeare
Lolita Ж Vladimir Nabokov
Vanity Fair Ж William Thackeray
Moll Flanders Ж Daniel Defoe
Mrs. Dalloway Ж Virginia Woolf
The Other Boleyn Girl Ж Philippa Gregory
Vanishing Act Ж Jodi Picoult
The Alchemist Ж Paulo CoelhoStones From the River Ж Ursula Hegi
Crime and Punishment Ж Fuodor Dostoyevsky
To Kill A Mockingbird Ж Harper Lee
Macbeth Ж William Shakespeare
Eleanor of Aquitaine Ж Marion Meade
In the Heart of the Sea Ж Nathaniel Philbrick
The Secret Life of Bees Ж Sue Monk Kidd

Books I've Read

January
A Farewell to Arms Ж Ernest Hemingway

February
Republic Ж Plato
The Memory Keeper's Daughter Ж Kim Edwards
A Midsummer Night's Dream Ж William Shakespeare
In the Cut Ж Susanna Moore
House of Mirth Ж Edith Wharton
The Rapture of Canaan Ж Sheri Reynolds

March
A Shot in the Dark Ж Gale Copeland
Pompeii Ж Time Life Civilizations
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Ж J K Rowling
Moll Flanders Ж Daniel Defoe
Eleanor of Aquataine Ж Marion Meade

April
Lolita Ж Vladimir Nakokov
The Other Boleyn Girl Ж Phillipa Gregory
In the Heart of the Sea Ж Nathaniel Philbrick
The Awakening Ж Kate Chopin

May
The Color Purple Ж Alice Walker
Murder off the Books Ж Evelyn David
Kiss Them Goodbye Ж Stella Cameron
Temptations of a Proper Governess Ж Cathy Maxwell
Moby Dick Ж Herman Melville

June
Vanishing Act Ж Jodi Picoult
Here on Earth Ж Alice Hoffman
A Doll House Ж Henrik Ibsen
The Secret Life of Bees Ж Sue Monk Kidd
The Road Ж Cormac McCarthy
The Remains of the Day Ж Kazuo Ishiguro
The Known World Ж Edward P Jones
The Vicar of Wakefield Ж Oliver Goldsmith
All Quiet of the Western Front Ж Erich Maria Remarque
Now You See Him Ж Stella Cameron
Touching Evil Ж Kay Hooper
The Picture of Dorian Gray Ж Oscar Wilde
Black and Blue Ж Anna Quinlan
Vanity Fair Ж William Makepeace Thackery
Great Expectations Ж Charles Dickens
The Count of Monte Cristo Ж Alexandre Dumas

July
Kiss Them Goodbye Ж Stella Cameron
Northern Lights Ж Nora Roberts
Gilead Ж Marelynne Robinson
Ethan Frome Ж Edith Wharton
To Kill a Mockingbird Ж Lee Harper
A Tale of Two Cities Ж Charles Dickens
Year of Wonders Ж Geraldine Brooks
Shiva Descending Ж Gregory Benford/William Rotsler
Shopgirl Ж Steve Martin

August
Deep Freeze Ж Lisa Jackson
Harry Potter (last 6) Ж JK Rowling
The Plague Ж Albert Camus
The Alchemist Ж Paulo Coelho

September
The Executioner's Song Ж Norman Mailer
The Echo Maker Ж Richard Powers
The Magician's Assistant Ж Ann Patchett
Prior Bad Acts Ж Tami Hoag
Candide Ж Voltaire
Rose's Garden Ж Carrie Brown

October
A Passage to India Ж E M Forster
The Wrong Hostage Ж Elizabeth Lowell
Don Quizote Ж Miguel de Cervantes
Shoot the Moon Ж Billie Letts
Middlesex Ж Jeffrey Eugenides

November
Love in the Time of Cholera Ж Gabriel García Márquez
A Widow for One Year Ж John Irving
Ricochet Ж Susan Brown
The Jungle Ж Upton Sinclair
Veronika Decides to Die Ж Paulo Coelho
The Good Earth Ж Pearl S Buck

December
O Pioneers! Ж Willa Cather
The Locket Ж Richard Paul Evans
Mr. Ives' Christmas Ж Oscar Hijuelos
The Bridge of San Luis Rey Ж Thornton Wilder

Republic

"The unexamined life is not worth living."

I finally, finally finished Plato's "Republic". This is the hardest book I've ever read. I don't know if people are sophisticated enough today to already understand the points he was trying to make, or if the whole thing is over my head. Confuscious says "To know what one does not know is characteristic of one who knows." I don't claim to be wise, but I kept up with him. But I'm just not sure where we went.

The book is a dialog. Plato, through the voice of Socrates, leads his audience on a quest to figure out what justice is. Is it better to be a just man perceived as unjust or to be an unjust man perceived as just? In trying to answer the question of who would be happier, Plato builds up a theoretical Republic from the ground up. He covers art, education, religion, politics and family matters and their place in his perfect state. He envisions a state where everyone is happy working with their own talents. Yet he builds in classes.

I was reminded of "Animal Farm."
All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.
It's nowhere I would want to live.
Kimmie