The Lake of Dead Languages by Carol Goodman (16/100)

The Lake of Dead Languages: A Novel by Carol Goodman

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I had a hard time getting into this book. I think it may have to do with the sort of blah main character. She doesn't really seem to have much enthusiasm for life, and that is hard to get into. I also might have had a hard time with all the Latin / classics references. But once I got a little into, I really liked it.



It is a sort of whodunit where the past comes back to haunt someone. Again, I thought the main character could've used a little more pizazz, but I found myself really wanting to pick the book back up to see what happens.


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Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (15/100)

I chose this book because of raves on the nest. It is about Lily, a young girl in ancient China, who is paired up to be life time best friend of Snow Flower. The book talks of the trials and tribulations of growing up as a girl in China. It was a good book, and my heart was beating really fast when they were talking about foot binding. It was heartbreaking and painful to be a woman in China. I thought it was a bit slow though, and I didn't think it was nearly as good as Memoirs of a Geisha. 3 stars

Graditude Part 1

I have not started my gratitude journal yet so as I was thinking of things that I am happy about just now, I decided to write them down. There will most likely be a lot of these since I want to get 1,000 and I don't want to just write things down for the sake of coming up with numbers. I want to write things as I think of them.

So, in no particular order.
I am grateful for:
1)Books. I was thinking about how happy reading makes me and I am so grateful for being able to lay out on my deck swing and read with Daisy
2) The library. Holy cow I have really killed them this summer. I have gotten every book I could have dreamed of and all for free!
3) Knitting. I am so happy I learned how to knit. It frustrates me at times but it is great to be able to produce something.
4)My job at Re/Max. Seriously, could I have gotten anything better? Well, sure I would like to be paid more, but do you know where I am right now? Work! Doing what I want. And getting paid for it.
5)Target. In Manahawkin. With a Starbucks. Heaven.
6) My relationship with my father. I love him so much. Truly. He is one of my best friends.
7)The shopping day I recently had with mom. It was actually fun. I am so glad we had a good time together.
8)Game night. The whole reason I decided to start this post right now was because I was excited for game night tonight. And best of all, it is free!
9) My in-laws. I really lucked out and got wonderful in-laws.
10) My stomach growling. With my new diet plan, I am really glad my stomach is growling to tell me that I am hungry. Therefore I am not just constantly shoveling food in my mouth all day.

Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison (14/100)

Ahh adolescence. This book reminded me exactly why I am so glad to not be a teenager anymore. However, it was sort of like reliving the most awkward parts of my own adolescence without any of the fun. I thought the book was going to be funnier than it was. Maybe I am too old for young adult reading, so it may not be fair to rate it, but I wasn't really amused. 2 stars

The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle (13/100)

Finally! After reading some books that were a chore to get through, I FINALLY found a book that I couldn't put down. I absolutely loved this book. I began reading it after work and ate up 200 pages before bed. I finished it within 24 hours of starting. Warning to the faint of heart: this book deals with VERY heavy material (incest, child abuse, etc.) but it still somehow comes out on top. I loved the 3 characters chosen to tell the story from their perspective.

The story is about a boy who tries to kill himself but is saved by his former best friend's mother. At the hospital, it is discovered that he has been the victim of sexual abuse. His father flees and his mother is jailed as an accomplice. The woman who rescued him, Sarah, who also happened to be best friends with his mother, takes him in as a foster child. Everyone involved is torn over their prior relationships, and try to mend for the future.

My only complaint (although a minor one) is at the end. I don't really understand why the younger brother wound up being gay. I just didn't think it was necessary and didn't really add anything to the story (in my perspective at least) so I thought it could've been left out. But it didn't affect anything in a major way, so it wasn't a big deal. Overall, one of the best reads this summer. 5 stars

Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella (12/100)

Sophie Kinsella is a huge British chick lit author that I am pretty sure I tried before but did not like. This book was long-ish but it was a quick and easy read that I finished within a couple days. At first, I thought it was way too hokey - amnesia, wakes up to the perfect life, etc. On page 178 I told Dave that it must all be a dream and that was how it was going to end. Luckily, that was not the case. Overall, it was cute, and I liked the ending. 3 stars

The Constant Princess by Phillippa Gregory (11/100)

This was my first foray into audiobooks (stupid broken Ipod) and I actually enjoyed it. In my new quest of (sort of) reading for the satisfaction of finishing a book and adding it to my list, I have been staying away from books that have more than 350 pages. Therefore, an audio book was a perfect way to get in some Phillippa Gregory. I loved TOBG and The Constant Princess was a sort of prequel to it that explained the life of Queen Katherine and the childhood (and then adulthood) of King Henry VIII. Although it was long (16 CDs!) I thought it was very well done, and I hope to get the third in the series, The Boleyn Inheritance on audiobook as well. 4 stars