Who By Fire - Review and Giveaway

Last year I was contacted by Diana Spechler to read and review her novel Who By Fire. I was extremely honored but a little nervous. What if I didn't like it? I really don't enjoy Lifetime Channel-y books. But I am so glad that I said yes. I can't believe this is her debut novel because it is really really good.

The story is about a family who's youngest daughter was kidnapped when she was six years old. Her body was never found. Thirteen years later the family is still trying to come to terms with her disappearance. The story mainly focuses on the remaining siblings, Bits and Ash. Bits, the sister, is kind of a wild-child. She has a sort of sex addiction and sleeps around. Ash has dabbled in various things and has converted to Orthodox Judaism, moved to Jerusalem, and pretty much cut off ties from the family. The father left early on after the abduction while the mother is a compulsive worrier. She thinks Ash has joined a cult and enlists the help of Bits to go to Israel and get Ash back.

So it's kind of a weird story premise, I think, but it works. The family dynamics is fascinating and I love how she depicts the struggle of a grieving family who is unable to move on because they never found the body. How instead of coming together, the tragedy splits the family and each grieves in his or her own way.

But the story doesn't come off as depressing. Diana Spechler is an amazing writer. Bits and Ash could be annoying characters but they aren't. I really felt for them. And there are some interesting side characters, like the crazy girl Ash meets or the cult-ish man the mother falls for.

I was going to keep this book but then I thought that I want to pass it along and let some one else read this. So please post a comment on why you want to read this by April 10th and I'll choose a winner. This is open to anyone anywhere.

Check out a couple of great interviews with Diana at Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin'? and Musings of a Bookish Kitty

Also Reviewed by:
Bookfoolery and Babble
Presenting Lenore
Musings of a Bookish Kitty
The Book Lady's Blog

Anna Talkin'

Anna likes to tell me where the treats are. She's kind of bossy sometimes. Charlie on the other hand, well, he just looks a little confused.

I See You Everywhere - Julia Glass

I recently found a hardback copy of I See You Everywhere by Julia Glass at the library near my work. Honestly I was just drawn in by the cover. For some reason I just love it. I've seen it around a bit because it's a pretty new novel. I didn't even know what it was about, but for a dollar fifty I thought, why not?

The story is about two sisters, Louisa and Clem. Louisa is the eldest by a few years. She's more reserved, creates pottery, and edits art magazines. She wants to find "the one" guy and have a family. Clem, on the other hand, is young and reckless. She always has a guy or two in the reserve. She studies wildlife and has exotic adventures in Patagonia, Alaska, and other places.

The story spans twenty-five years, from 1980 to 2005, with each chapter alternating perspectives from the sisters. It's usually during some crisis or another when we pop into their lives.

Honestly, I thought the writing was amazing...well usually. Sometimes her descriptions blew me away and her words just carried the novel. But it took me at least half of the book to get a somewhat good grasp on the sisters. I honestly liked both sisters but they both had faults. Louisa has a love/hate relationship with Clem, mainly stemming from jealousy. Clem always had it easy with guys and was always their mom's favorite. Clem seemed freewheeling but she always appeared to be running away from her jobs, her boyfriends...just constantly moving. And while the sisters are never truly close, they always seem to drift back together during a crises.

Something was missing that made me love this book. I think it was how slippery the characters were. I don't feel like I ever really knew them. And sometimes the writing was a bit confusing. For instance, she'd describe things with animal terms but during the chapters with Louisa, the art person, narrating. And it would sometimes take me a while into a chapter to realize it was about Clem or Louisa, so that made it a bit confusing.

But all in all I liked it. I have a sister so I sort of understand that love/hate/competition/support thing that sisters do. I'd recommend it for the writing which was usually just wonderful, the odd side characters, and the last few chapters which are just heart-wrenching.

Also Reviewed By:
S. Krishna
The Book Lady's Blog
She Is Too Fond of Books

And now for some other covers:

This one is ok but I like that it shows the two sisters:
And this one is weird, but I get what they're doing. The pottery is for Louisa and the shells are for Clem (she did a lot of marine biology stuff). But it's just a bit too clunky looking for me.

***Just a side note: This will be one of the books I'll be giving away in an upcoming contest!

1001 Book Update - If on a winter's night a traveler

I was at the library the other day when I saw If on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino. I've heard of the title somewhere and it just sounded good. Then I realized it's on the 1001 List so I said why not.

This is a TOUGH review to write. I loved it, then I got confused at Chapter 6 and almost gave up, but then I re-read Chapter 6 and moved on and I loved it again because Chapter 7 seemed to be speaking to me. Not like "it moved" me or whatever...it was REALLY talking directly to me. It told me, in a lot more words and way more eloquently, that I, the Reader, was on a plane, on descent to the airport, but I really wanted to finish the book. And I WAS on an airplane, going to Vegas, and we had just started the descent, and I was almost finished with the book!!

Ok. Let me back up.

This book is odd. Very odd. You, the Reader, are a character in the novel. You had just picked up a copy of If on a winter's night a traveler and are somewhere relaxing, kicking up your feet, and reading the book. And then the novel begins. And it's interesting. And then it stops. What? You, the Reader, get mad and go to the bookstore for another copy. But ALL the copies are like that. What's going on? At the bookstore you meet a lady (yes Reader, you are male, apparently). She too has the book and is trying to figure out what's going on. And you are attracted to her so you strike up a conversation and go on a quest with her to figure out what's going on.

Crazy, right? The book has Chapters which describe the Reader's search for the book, and interspersed are a number of short stories...all different, completely different.

I loved it. I was frustrated. Each chapter sucked me in and I wanted to know more. But each story just stopped. But I loved it. And the Reader falls for the other Reader, Ludmilla, the lady from the bookstore. So you have a tad bit of romance as well.

Has anyone read this book? Liked it, hated it? Did my review make any sense?

For the curious, here's an excerpt from the first chapter of the book. Doesn't it just suck you in?

**Note: The other covers of this book are pretty boring. But I LOVED this cover. A train is mentioned in the book, and you can't see it on the image above that well, but the steam from the train is all shreds of lines from the stories. Very cool.

Once Upon a Time III

Last time Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings hosted the Once Upon a Time Challenge, I missed it. So this time I'm definitely participating. The challenge runs from March 21st to June 2oth. Please head over to Carl's post for the Once Upon a Time III challenge to sign up. Please post your reviews here or just check them out!

For those of you who haven't heard of it, the challenge is to read books on fantasy, folklore, fairy tale, and mythology.

There are many different Quests you can choose but I'm choosing Quest the First - read 5 books that fit somewhere within those genres.

I'm excited because while I love these genres, I haven't read too much of them. So this will give me a chance to read some books I wouldn't normally get around to reading. Here are some of my ideas:

1. The Looking Glass Wars - Frank Beddor (Finished April 6, 2009)
2. Godmother - Carolyn Turgeon (Finished April 9, 2009)
3. Practical Magic - Alice Hoffman (Finished April 22, 2009)
4. The Good Fairies of New York - Martin Millar (Finished April 24, 2009)
5. Garden Spells - Sarah Addison Allen (Finished April 29, 2009)
6. Photographing Fairies - Steve Szilagyi (Finished May 04, 2009)
7. A Madness of Angels - Kate Griffin (Finished June 18, 2009)

The Forgotten Garden - Kate Morton
Seeing Redd - Frank Beddor
Enchantment - Orson Scott Card

Definitely No Twilight

So I came across this preview for a Swedish movie called Let the Right One In. A vampire movie...vampire children...and it's no Twilight.

**Note: The clip is not for the faint-of-heart. I watched it without sound and it's plenty scary enough.

Staten Island Ferry - It's Free!

A couple of weekends ago my husband and I were traipsing around the city. My husband's little cousin sent us a Flat Stanley so we were going to go places to get some photos for her class. Except my husband didn't bring Flat Stanley along! I was so confused. Apparently he doesn't think that Flat Stanley needs to be in the photos. Hmmm. I disagree. What are your thoughts? Anyway...

We decided to go on the Staten Island Ferry because A) it was a beautiful day and B) it's free.

It's a great place to get a good view of the Statue of Liberty. I loved the sun behind her:
Here's a random view from the ferry. It was SO windy:Here's looking back on the city as we're headed to Staten Island:And in case you didn't notice, the ferries are a lovely shade of bright orange:
Here's the deck as I'm sheltering from the wind:
But you get some great views of Manhattan on the return trip:
Here's a close up as we're approaching the ferry terminal:I love the bridges:I kind of like this one. I had to be all sneaky so she didn't know I took the photo. I hardly ever use the flash but it means I have to stand VERY still:And here's what happens when my husband tries to take a photo (I actually kind of like it):
And here's the ferry port as we're docking:
Hope you enjoyed the free Staten Island Ferry ride!

***What are you favorite FREE things to do in your city or town?