Dark in the City of Light by Paul Robertson | Book Review

This doesn't happen often, and I hate when it does, but I just never clicked at all with this book.  2 of 5 stars.

My aunt sent this to me to help with my PopSugar Reading Challenge, as it's "a book with antonyms in the title."  She only rated it a little better than I did.  I think part of the disconnect was the setting; I'm not in any way familiar in the least with 1870s Paris or with the machinations of the Franco-Prussian War.

The book follows a family as they navigate politics and intrigue in Paris in the lead-up to the Franco-Prussian War.  The family is Austrian, but the father figure's position as Austrian ambassador to France means they live in Paris.  There's Baron Ferdinand, his son Rudolph (roughly college-age), and his daughter Therese (late teens).  The Baron's wife is the owner of Europe's largest cinnabar (used to make military-grade mercury) mine, and three countries are vying for private contracts.  After her sudden death, the Baron is in charge of the mines, until Rudolph turns 23.  Now those three countries (France, Prussia, and Britain) are courting the men in the family.  

I think there was supposed to be a feeling of build up in tension?  But it was a lot of talking and plotting.  And Therese was supposed to be involved somehow, but I just felt like she got in the way.  I don't know... I suppose someone with more knowledge of or interest in European history would enjoy this book much more than I did.

I totally appreciate that my aunt sent me this.  It was a unique read for me; the last French historical novel I read was Les Miserables, and that was three years ago.  It's good for me to step slightly outside my usual reads.  I don't regret the time spent reading it (it's not overly long), and it gave me another check off on my reading challenge.  Has anyone else read this one?  Did I just miss something?

*I received my copy of Dark in the City of Light from my aunt.  Thank you!

The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud | Audiobook Review

Today I'm over at Tynga's Reviews talking about how much I loved this book, and how much I'm looking forward to the rest of the series!

*I checked out my copy of The Amulet of Samarkand from my local library.

Laughing at My Nightmare by Shane Burcaw | Book Review

This is a really unique book, and I loved it!  And I'm not just saying that because the author has spinal muscular atrophy.  (I think everyone who has read and reviewed this book has thought about that angle.)

I was literally laughing out loud through Laughing at My Nightmare.  Shane takes a situation that could knock most people flat on their backs into a cloud of depression and uses humor to confront common misconceptions and difficult situations.  Because of his illness, Shane is reliant on others for everything physical- including necessary bodily functions- but he definitely doesn't suffer from any mental (or mood!) deficiencies.  

Shane is a typical young adult guy in nearly every way- so be aware that the movie version of this book would probably be rated "R" for frank discussion of bodily functions and sexual activity, and for a mild sprinkling of profanity.  Also, Shane is rather blunt in his descriptions of activities with other physically and mentally impaired youth, and he's not always kind in his descriptions.  I would recommend this book to mature teens who are able to differentiate between a single disabled person's experience, and the making of generalizations to an entire group of persons.

Not only is Laughing at My Nightmare full of laughs, but it is also full of triumphs.  Shane talks openly about his doctors' prognoses for his future, and how he is defiantly remaining very actively involved in life.  He is determined to experience everything possible, including road trips and first drinks, even though he has to do a little more planning than your average Joe.

If Shane ever came to my town for a speaking engagement, I'd totally go see him live.  This kid has got the perseverance and humor of someone three times his size, and I love it!

*I checked out my copy of Laughing at My Nightmare from my local library.

The Sweetheart by Angelini Mirabella | Book Review

If I remember correctly, this was kind of an impulse-hold at my library.  By the time it arrived for me and I started it, I'd completely forgotten about it.  But that just means that it was a pleasant surprise!  It's so unique.  The main character is a female professional wrestler in the 1950s.  How cool is that?  You can also tell that the author really did her homework to present an accurate picture of professional wrestling of the period.

The Sweetheart opens with a prologue that you're going to want to pay attention to.  I'm the worst at barely skimming prologues; I want to get right to the meat of the book!  But I actually had to go back and reread the prologue along about chapter 3 to find a missing piece of info.  The entire story is set up as a flashback.  It is Leonie Putzkammer/Gwen Davies/Leigh Kramer reflecting back on her time as The Sweetheart.  

When I started the book, I was immediately excited about the totally unique plot.  How many books do you see featuring 1950s wrestling?  Especially women's wrestling!  And I was not disappointed.  I found myself looking up even extra info on my own, as I was so intrigued by the history.  I'm not even a contemporary pro wrestling fan!  This book appeals more to the reader emotionally connecting with Leonie/Gwen/Leigh than with all the finest details of the wrestling, so anyone and everyone could enjoy it.

The Sweetheart is definitely a coming-of-age book.  If I remember correctly, the MC is in her very late teens when she is recruited for wrestling.  As she trains for her new career and learns to fly solo while traveling, she's also learning some hard life lessons.  One of those lessons:  her decisions affect others, too.  And sometimes people get hurt.  But the reader also gets to see the MC grow and mature into quite the extraordinary young lady.

Only one little hiccup:  the entire book (save the prologue and epilogue) is written as though the contemporary MC is talking to the 1950s MC.  So nearly every sentence is structured so:  "You go to the store and buy milk."  (Not an actual book quote.)  It felt quite awkward, and took me about the half the book to get used to.  So just a heads up.  The plot, though, was more than enough unique and interesting to keep me going!

I kept thinking to myself that this would probably make a good ladies' book club book.  So there's that recommendation for you. 

Overall, I'd say 3 out of 5 stars.  But at the same time I'd like someone else to read it so that I could discuss it.  This is the author's first book, and I'll be watching to see what she does next.

*I checked out my copy of The Sweetheart from my local library.

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  For more information, or to join the fun yourself, check out their blog!

Top Ten Books I've Read so Far in 2015
This week was a "freebie" week, where I got to choose the topic.  I'm writing this kind of late on Monday night, about to go into Day #9 at work... so I'm going easy on myself!  And the books below aren't ranked:  I gave all of them 5 stars on Goodreads!


1. Laughing at My Nightmare by Shane Burcaw- hilarious!


2. Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan- hilarious!


3. Confessions: The Paris Mysteries by James Patterson with Maxine Paetro- mysterious!


4. A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd- creepy!


5. The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett- bibliotastic!


6. Dreamfire by Kit Alloway- fantastic!


7. Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige- page turner!


8. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas- femmetastic!


9. The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes- mysterious!


10. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand- survivalistic!

Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith | Audiobook Review

I had to think long and hard about how to rate Tears of the Giraffe.  I was leaning toward 2 or 3 out of 5 at first, to be honest.  But then I started mentally listing the reasons why I was deducting stars, and I realized I'd be totally remiss to rate this book below 4 stars.  You see, the only problems I could find with the story were personal problems, not actual factual plot problems.  So long story short:  Tears of the Giraffe gets 4 of 5 stars!

This is the second book in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books, and has more mystery than the first book.  (Probably because the reader is already assumed to be familiar with the characters and setting, so the author skips right to the plot.)  In this one, Mma Ramotswe solves mysteries pertaining to a wayward wife, a missing child, and a devious maid.

I do love Mma Ramotswe's forthrightness and confidence, both in herself and in her precious Botswana.  She is easily one of the strongest female characters I've read.  Unfortunately, this is also a detractor in a way; she kind of overpowers her fiancee in a few situations.  But underneath it all she has a heart of gold, and always tries to help the people who come to her detective agency.

Another reason to love these books:  the setting, in Botswana.  Alexander McCall Smith lived in Botswana for a number of years, and you can feel his love for the country.  Before reading these books, I honestly didn't have Botswana on my "want to go" list.  I still can't say it's on my horizon (that's a looooooong plane ride), but I am intrigued.  Sounds like a gorgeous country.  And I love how Mma Ramotswe holds her country to such high moral standards!

The book lost a star, however, with the narration.  I listened to this on CD, and the narrator had a lovely lilting accent.... too lilting.  My mind would kind of wander away sometimes.  And the pacing was definitely on the slow side.  At the end of the book, I felt like there was no action.  I had to reflect to remember that there were actually some mysteries solved.  They were just so spread out that the story felt blase.  I think I'll read the next book in the series in physical form and see if that fits me better.  One undeniable benefit to the audiobook version of this series:  pronunciation of the characters' names.  I'm not familiar with pronunciation of Setswana names, and it helped to hear them out loud.

And finally, the disclosure of my bias:  I'm not thinking I'm much of a fan of the "cozy" mystery genre.  Not quite enough "bang" for my buck, I guess.  But I'm very aware that is just a personal bias, and nothing against the book itself.

*I checked out my copy of Tears of the Giraffe from my local library.

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith | Audiobook Review

Flashback Friday Review!

I will be reviewing The Tears of the Giraffe on Monday, but I wanted to be thorough and post my review of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency first.  I originally listened to it in May 2010, and I gave it 5 of 5 stars.

Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:  Precious Ramotswe in Botswana sits in the shade and ponders the wisdom of her cattle farmer father, observes her neighbors, and cares for employers and subjects with humor. A clinic doctor has two different personalities depending on the day of the week. A Christian sect member vanishes. A witch doctor may have the bones of a kidnapped boy in his magic kit.

I thought the main character, Precious Ramotswe, was very well-developed, and I enjoyed the setting, in Botswana.  The narrator spoke clearly, but was a little slow-paced for my taste.  Not slow enough to make me give up on the CDs, though.

*I checked out my copy of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency from my local library.