Blackbird Pie: December 2008

I haven't been posting as many crafts on here lately, partly because I forget to take pictures of them before I give them away and partly because I have had my nose in a book for a lot of the past few weeks. I did a blog on books I read in September and here is my list since then. I was lucky enough to read some very, very good books in the last little while and wanted to share.

October 2008

The Future of Your Only Child

I didn't get a chance to finish this one before it was due back at the library but I think I may buy a copy for future reference, it was good.

The Secret Scripture- Sebastian Barry

This was a good book, it alternated from the point of view of an old woman who has spent most of her life in a mental hospital to the doctor who is trying to sort through her file and figure out why she was initially committed. The writing was very pretty and the story was set in Ireland, which sets a lot of the tone.

What Was Lost- Catherine O'Flynn. I really liked this book. From Publishers Weekly, via Amazon:

Stirring and beautifully crafted, this debut novel recounts how the repercussions of a girl's disappearance can last for decades. In 1984, Kate Meaney is a 10-year-old loner who solves imaginary mysteries and guesses the dark secrets of the shoppers she observes at the Green Oaks mall. Kate's unlikely circle includes her always-present stuffed monkey; 22-year-old Adrian, who works at the candy shop next door; and Kate's classmate, Teresa Stanton, who hides her intelligence behind disruptive behavior. Kate's grandmother has plans for Kate: send her to boarding school. But Kate doesn't want to go. Fast forward to 2003, where it's revealed through Lisa, Adrian's sister, that Kate disappeared nearly 20 years ago, and Adrian, blamed in her disappearance, also vanished. Lisa works at a record store in Green Oaks and is drawn to Kurt, a security guard whose surveillance-camera sightings of a little girl clutching a stuffed monkey hint that he might have ties to Kate's disappearance. Teresa, meanwhile, now a detective, has her own reasons for being haunted by Kate's disappearance. Gripping to the end, the book is both a chilling mystery and a poignant examination of the effects of loss and loneliness. (July)

Once Upon a Tomb: Stories from canadian graveyards- Nancy Millar.

A historical look at interesting tombstones and Canadian history through graveyards.

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist- by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

I read this book after seeing the movie and reading about the book on this post at feministing. I liked the book a lot and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys YA literature. B, you'd probably like it.

The Host- Stephenie Meyer (audiobook)

Interesting premise, some good characters but again the book was flawed, as I've complained about Meyer's work before. WTF is up with guys hurting women to show how much they love them?

Interview with the Vampire- Ann Rice (audiobook).

I still love this story. I thought I might get into the rest of the series (I read them years ago around the time the Interview movie came out) but found listening to Lestat way too boring!

Catcher in the Rye- (unfinished, due back at library)

I've always heard references to Catcher but hadn't ever read it. Why the hell did I think it was a story about a young boy growing up in the Prairies?? I plan on finishing this book sometime, maybe as an audiobook.

November 2008

Vinegar Hill- A Manette Ansay

I didn't have a hard time reading this book, but it never really grabbed me either.

Dead Until Dawn- Charlaine Harris

Total vampire cheese. Good for a bathtub or beach read. I really want to see the True Blood series when it comes to DVD.

Gods Behaving Badly- Marie Phillips

I found this book a lot of fun.

Second Glance- Jodi Picoult

I usually find Jodi Picoult's work interesting but not always satisfying.. sort of like watching a movie of the week vs a really good theatre movie. This book however, immediately caught my attention and kept it. I really liked it and would recommend it to anyone who found the premise interesting.

The Flying Troutmans- Miriam Lowes

Loved this book! I'm so glad I bought it so I can reread it. Not a lot happens and the characters are a bit over-the-top, but it was a lot of fun to read and I really enjoyed the characters, especially the kids.

December 2008- so far

Three Day Road- Joseph Boyden

2 young cree men raised in the bush after escaping residential school enlist in WWI. The story is told by the lone survivor of the two and his aunt who is paddling him home, a three day travel along the river. Cree people refer to dying as traveling "the three day road". The young passenger remembers the war and the events that lead to his friends' death and his aunt tells him stories of her own life as she was been raised to be a windigo killer.

I fell in love with this book. I don't mean in a way that it was a lot of fun, or I really liked it but in that it really touched me and I want to pretend the characters are real because I care about them so much. I requested this book as I was interested in Through Black Spruce, which won the Giller prize in Canada recently. When I picked up the hold at the library I was not very thrilled to see it was a war novel as I didn't think I would find it very interesting. I was so, so wrong. Some of the content is ghastly, but the writing was so beautiful. I could weep just thinking about Niska, Xavier and Elijah. Highly recommended.

Boy's Life- Robert R McCammon
The Graveyard Book- Neil Gaiman
Due South- Robert R McCammon
Vanishing Acts- Jodi Picoult
The Way the Crow Flies- Ann-marie MacDonald
Me Talk Pretty One Day- David Sedaris
Through Black Spruce- Joseph Boyden
Living with the Dead- Kelley Armstrong
Tales of Beetle the Bard- JK Rowling