Where My Heart Belongs

by Tracie Peterson
hardcover, 330 pages, Carver County Library

Basically a retelling of the prodigal son story, this book takes place in modern day Kansas. Sunny (aka Amy / Sunshine) took off with her share of the inheritance as an 18-year-old. Her older sister Kathy called off her marriage and stayed on the farm to care for her mother, then her father. Twelve years later, Sunny's return makes new waves for Kathy.

I liked it. Jodi thought it was way too sappy. We had a great discussion at Book Club tonight! I love how we all bring different perceptions and attitudes to the books we read. Yes, this one was a little much at times (and the ending was waaaaaay too pat), but there were some good lessons on forgiveness, judgmentalism, and what it means to live out your faith.

Great Love: The Mary Jo Copeland Story

by Michelle Lynne Peterson
hardcover, 249 pages, Carver County Library

Wow! I have to go to work, so this will be short. I was very impressed with this book. What an amazing story! She went through SO much in her life and she has made such a tremendous impact on others! I would seriously consider buying a copy of this book. It was kind of hard for me to deal with some of the Catholic, holy Mary mother-of-God stuff, but who am I to judge? Her faith in the Lord and her passion to share the love of Jesus with the poor are inspirational. She's living out her faith in a bold and life-changing way. Very, very good book. (Not in the literary sense so much, but definitely worth the time you spend reading!)

The Year of Fog

by Michelle Richmond
hardcover, 369 pages, Hennepin County Library


I really liked this book! After hearing Lupe pan it, I didn't have my hopes up. Granted, after about a hundred or so pages, I was sorely tempted to go to the end and find out if they ever found Emma. I resisted temptation, though, and tried to focus on the beauty of the language - very evocative and descriptive. I also got caught up in the analysis of memory and what a tricky thing it can be. What an interesting coincidence that Louie and I just watched "50 First Dates" on Sunday night! Memory is an interesting phenomenon indeed.

It will be really fun to discuss this with book club next week, especially the ending. One thing I really liked: Goofy asking Abby if they can be family. Cool! I also loved the character of Anabelle. Classy.

Sharing and Caring Hands: My Mondays with Mary Jo Copeland

Additional subtitle: A Story of Friendship and Conversion
by Nancy Jo Sullivan
Hardcover, 124 pages, Carver County Library

I requested this online via interlibrary loan to show Dan Thompson's students how easy it is to request books, but I'm not sure those sixth graders were ready to do that level of work in finding heroes' biographies. As long as I had this book, I decided to go ahead and read it. I knew a bit about Mary Jo Copeland, but not a lot.

Wow. What an incredible woman! This particular book is much more about the author's life, but I'm also reading another biography of Copeland, so I'm getting a double dose. This book shows clearly her intense love for all God's people. The author herself is moved and affected by her time with Mary Jo, and sees how poor people's lives are transformed as well.

The only thing that bothered me about this book was the continual focus the author placed on her one daughter with Downs syndrome. What about her other two girls? Finally, in a later chapter, she draws one of her other girls into the storytelling. But even her author picture is just her and her daughter Sarah. I wonder - is it because the other two didn't want to be included? It just seemed weird to me - as though she favored Sarah over the other two.

Around the World in a Bad Mood

Subtitled: Confessions of a Flight Attendant
by Rene Foss
paperback, 200 pages, Hennepin County Library

Based on the review I read, I thought this book would be hilarious, laugh-out-loud funny. Not so much. Most of it seemed like a bitter rant about the misery of her job. Quite a few times, I thought about just returning the book to the library without finishing it. I'm glad I stuck it out - it gave me some insight and made me consider my own behavior (not so much on planes, since I don't get to fly often, but anytime I encounter people in the service industry). The last few chapters were the best, and it was interesting to read about this becoming a show. I wonder if the show isn't a bit more enjoyable than the book . . . I especially loved her last few pages. She finished the book on 9/6/01, and was working a flight on 9/11. Her tribute to those who died in the plane crashes brought me to tears.

The Wright 3

by Blue Balliett
Illustrations by Brett Helquist
318 pages, CMSW hardcover

Rene (a student) kept pestering me to read this, so I finally took it home. I had heard people rave about "Chasing Vermeer" and hadn't loved it as much as my students, so I wasn't super excited to read this one.

I really enjoyed it! I liked the mystery elements better than in the Vermeer book. I liked the clues about the house and the Frank Lloyd Wright history that was woven throughout it. The relationship between the three kids was believable and developed nicely.

The sandwich code took me a little while to figure out. At first, I was making it harder than it needed to be. The "sandwich" was just junk letters framing the actual message letters. Once I caught on, it was much quicker to read than the pentiminoes code in the first book.

All in all, a delightful story. And a very quick read.

Harmless

by Dana Reinhardt
on CD, Carver County Library, 5:57 on 5 disks

Read by Lynde Houck, Donna Rawlins, and Staci Snell

Spoiler alert! I give away major plot info in this response!

This book was hard to listen to. . . it's about three "good" girls - Emma, Anna, and Mariah - who tell a lie to stay out of trouble. Only the lie grows and gets worse and eventually unravels everything for them.

What I didn't like - Emma losing her virginity to Owen, a virtual stranger, while she was drunk and not really aware of what she was doing. The way people around her didn't really understand why she was withdrawn. It really bugged me when the kids were arrested in class in front of their peers, but then the rationale is given and it does make sense. As I listened, though, I said, "No Way! That just would not happen like that!"

What I did like - the ending! It made me cry when David Allen's statement was read. What a fantastic lesson in forgiveness! I liked the fact that the story showed how actions have consequences. I like how the story was told from all three girls' perspectives and came full circle.
I liked the rich character development, especially for Emma's family members (less so her mom). I loved the character of Silas - I wanted to know him for real!

All in all, I ended up liking it much better than I expected when I started it. If I bought it for CMSW (debatable. . . ), I would only want the 8th graders who are more mature to read it. Definitely a good one to put on the "problem novel" list for lying and first sex as topics.

Schrodinger's Ball (with an umlat over the o)

by Adam Felber
paperback, 244 pages, Hennepin County Library

This caught my eye because of the title and the lime green cover. I kind of (but not really) "got" the concept of Schrodinger's Cat. My youngest son Nick has a t-shirt that says "Schrodinger's cat is dead" on one side and "Schrodinger's cat is not dead" on the other. (Yes, my children are much smarter than I am.)

I almost ditched this book after a few chapters because the f-word was flying freely and there was some casual sex that while it wasn't graphic, wasn't exactly the type of book I usually enjoy reading. There were four (or five or six) interwoven stories. It was a wonderful intellectual challenge to find the connections between them. The parts that talked about Dr. Schrodinger were the ones that made me really wish my oldest son Morgan would read the book and give me his opinion. But should I recommend a book that's somewhat trashy to my 20-year old?

My favorite part was when Dr. Schrodinger was pegging the patio door with pingpong balls and the home owner challenged him on his theory of observation. This was a very curious book . . . and I really would like to hear Morgan's opinion on it!

Princess in the Spotlight

by Meg Cabot
listened to it on CD from the Carver County library
second book in the Princess Diaries series

Okay. I really liked the Princess Diaries movie. I thought it was cute & sweet & fun. Then I read "Ready or Not" by Meg Cabot and was appalled! It was insipid, vapid, and comes off as promoting risk-free sex by immature teenagers. Maybe, I thought, it was just that series of "All American Girl" books that was the problem. . .

No. This book drove me crazy! Mia is an annoying protagonist, with a shallow and immature view of the world. I tried to stop and think, "how would I have liked this as a 14-year-old?" Cabot seems to hit her demographic well, judging by the popularity of her books. To me, they are an utter waste of time! The only part of the book I truly enjoyed was when Martha Stewart pulled a glue gun out of her purse and made a wand and tiara for Mia. Funny. The drawbacks are too numerous to list, but suffice it to say that the "algebra teacher" line was only funny for the first half dozen times (generously) and really irritating after two dozen or so uses.

Two thumbs down!