While My Sister Sleeps

While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

LOVE IS LOVE.

This book was essentially about love.  A love for your family, a love for who who we are destined to become, and a love for what we are.  The storyline of the book is about a motivated and driven woman named Robin who suffers from a massive heart attack while running and falls into a deep coma.  All the while, it leaves her family to discover who Robin really is and what she kept from the rest of her family.  The book focuses around Robin's sister Molly who has always lived in her sister's shadow.  Throughout this horrific ordeal, Molly learns who her sister really is and discovers who she is destined to become.  We grow up being who our parents mold us to be.  At what point do we break away from what they want into what we want?  Will they still love us?  Will they let us be "us?"  This is a book about family, love, being our true self, and fate.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Art of Racing in the Rain is narrated by a beloved dog named Enzo. Yes, it is narrated by a dog. This was a book club selection and I was pretty skeptical to say the least. Don't get me wrong, I am a dog lover, but a book narrated by a dog? Seemed a little sketchy to me! The book takes you on a journey of Enzo's life with his owner(s). The dog reminded me of an old soul trapped in a dog's body. Throughout the story, the dog has much to say about life and how us humans tend to ruin things without even knowing it.

The book is about love, loyalty, tragedy, and fate. As I read this book, my dog Bugsy had to be at my side. I began to look at Bugsy and wondering . . . . . . hmmmm. This book is for anyone who loves dogs and loves a good story.

If I am Missing or Dead

If I Am Missing or Dead: A Sister's Story of Love, Murder, and Liberation by Janine Latus

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked this book up thinking is was a novel. After starting the book, I shortly realized it was a memoir. I think it would have been easier to read knowing it was fiction.

The book is about the author's life, beginning as a young girl. Her life is molded by an assortment of awful men, including her father. Throughout her life, both her and her sister are abused both mentally and physically by the men in their lives. The book spoke to me in regards to how much are you willing to endure to find happiness or what you think is happiness? What are women willing to put themselves through to please their someone else. when is it abuse? It is a book about liberation and standing up for yourself even when you feel like you are all alone.

I really enjoyed this book. In fact, I couldn't put it down and when I did, I couldn't stop thinking about it.

A Dirty Job

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was wacky, zany, and funny. I never thought I would enjoy a book about death, but I did. I was laughing outloud throughout the book.

The book is about a man named Charlie who becomes death after witnessing his wife's soul vessel being taken as she dies. His new job becomes DEATH by collecting soul vessels for people who have died or are about to. If that wasn't wacky enough, he begins fighting with the underworld. I know what you are thinking. Why is that funny? Well, first of all, it's Christopher Moore. Secondly, don't you have to have a sense of humor doing a job such as this? I loved Charlie and his sister, Jane. They were such smart asses, which is something I could relate to. ;o) My favorite line in the book was, "not in the butt . . . not in the butt. . . not in the butt." You won't understand that one until you read it, then you will laugh your butt off!

I loved the book . . . . if you need a good laugh, pick this one up!!

Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman Bible Study

Esther: It’s Tough Being a Woman by Beth Moore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my second Beth Moore study and I really enjoyed it. I certainly got more out of it than I thought I would. Really, the study of Esther?? I had read that book in the Bible before and didn't really get much out of it. Boy did I miss A LOT! If you've never experienced a Beth Moore bible study, you need to. The book, along with the accompanying DVD is awesome. I could listen to her all day long.

Some of the things captured in the study were:

*The book of Esther is about the redemption and unexplainable survival of the Jews.

*It's tough being a woman . . .
in another woman's shadow.
in a world where beauty is a treatment.
in a mean world.
thrown a gian size weight.
in the tight fist of fear.
who can balance passion with patience.
who feels responsible for the "how."

*Our human nature not only sets us up for selfishness but to feel uncomfortable and incompetent when faced with someone who needs more than we have.

*Sometimes God wants to show us what we can do rather than let us find someone who can do it for us.

*We can love God and still be liked by people.

*I believe in the sun, even whin it is not shining. I believe in love, even when I do not feel it. I believe in God, even when He is silent.

*Look at the following comparison: In 1941 the Nazis forced the Jews in Poland into the Warsaw Ghetto. This became the unlikely breeding ground for an insurrection against Hitler's Nazi forces in 1943. The vastly outnumbered and overpowered Jews actually held the evil giant back for a time. The story of Esther and Purim were not lost on the Nazis, who killed any Jew in the prison camps possessing a copy of Esther. Yet the incarcerated Jews wrote copies of it from memory. The story of Esther was most precious to the Jews facing mass death, because in it they found assurance and hope that they, not their enemy, would triumph. Had Hitler had his way, the Jews would have been completely exterminated.

*Here is a quote from a Rabbi in Jerusalem regarding the holocaust: "Our Deliverer did indeed come. He just came a little later than we expected. Had our enemy had his way, none of us would have survivied."

*But trust reverses the detours of adversity into highways of destiny.

Remainder

Remainder by Tom McCarthy

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Weird, intriguing, disturbing, monotonous, and did I mention weird? The beginning of the book starts you off knowing something happens to the author, but has been sworn to secrecy. It is about a man who is involved in an accident of some kind (again, he can't talk about it) and then receives a HUGE sum of money for enduring all the pain and suffering. So what is he going to do with all that money? He begins trying to find that piece of happiness he so longs for. That place of normalcy. It is happiness he seeks, yet it is weirdness he invokes. His life becomes one big reenactment. All the while, I kept thinking that we would eventually find out what happened to him and is he mentally insane or just on his way?

I walked away from it wondering what happens to him and where does he go from there??? And why don't we ever find out his name???

The Time Traveler's Wife

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book had been on my "to-read" list for quite some time. With the movie coming out, I decided to read it since I can't see the movie before I read the book!

The book is about a man who discovers at a young age that he can time travel. The author takes the reader to the past and future piecing together people and the things that take place in his life. He is traveling through time all the while, staying connected to his one true love, Clare. He loves Clare, but he can't just stay. It is the kind of love story that makes you long for them to be together and be happy. It is a very unique love story.

In the beginning, I had a hard time figuring out where he was and what he was doing there. All the time traveling and being in the future, past, left me wondering where the book was taking me??? About half way into the book, things seemed to finally click for me. I couldn't put it down. I loved this book. It was like no other book I have ever read. I liked how the author took you along with each character in time, but didn't give you all the information at once and made you piece things together. Once I got to the end, I didn't want it to end. I wanted to just keep reading . . . this is one of the few books I definitely would re-read. There is so much going on in the past and present, I'm sure I missed something. This is a a must read!