February Booklist

[eattheolives.livejournal.com]

 

1. Chosen, PC and Kristin Cast

 

The anti-Christian message seems to get stronger with each book. The plot and characters are strong enough to carry the series without resorting to stereotyping and denigrating an entire religion, and it's disappointing to see the authors take the easy way out.

2. Fit Bodies, Fat Minds: why evangelicals don't think and what to do about it, Os Guinness

 

A quick read pointing out how far mainline protestantism has come from the deep thinkers of past centuries, but I didn't find much in the way of ideas for how to change that.

3. Whose Body, Dorothy L. Sayers (audio book from librivox.org)

 

I don't read enough Lord Peter books. Great British mysteries.

4. Stardust, Neil Gaiman

 

I recall hearing rumblings that the movie is far and away better than the book, but I found it a charming bit of storytelling with, perhaps, a childlike feel but a sprinkling of decidedly unchildlike content. If this is the way Gaiman can tell a story, however, then I need to explore his work more. The only other thing I've read (besides his collaboration with Terry Pratchett) is Coraline, which is also very good.

5. Villette, Charlotte Brontë

 

Okay, so I knew Villette wouldn't replace Jane Eyre in my affections, but I did expect a little more out of this. It's generally dark and bitter in tone, and it took me almost the entire book to really care about any of the characters. In the end, though, I did care - and so what a unsatisfying end!

6. Stretching for Dummies

 

Very helpful ... and self-explanatory. :)

7. Sunshine, Robin McKinley

 

I'd heard about this book over and over again as an antidote to the vampire image put forth in Twilight. It's very different. There's a facinating post-apocalyptic world, and very clever takes on the supernatural, and the inhuman aspects of vampires are amazingly well portrayed. I didn't really buy it as a love story, but it worked on every other level.

8. The Open Door, Elizabeth McGuire

 

A depressing and rather boring book based (loosely?) on the relationship between Henry James and Constance Fenimore Woolson, but notable for its portrayal of the collapse and death of a friendship - something not often discussed in fiction.

9. The Second Shift, Arlie Russell Hochschild

 

Studies on the emotional toll (especially in relationships between spouses) when both parents work outside the home, with the woman assuming most of the household duties as well. Interesting. Depressing.

10. Eating my Words, Mimi Sheridan

 

Ah, another food critic book. :) Mimi Sheridan was a resturant critic for the New York Times during the 70s and 80s, and of course she has lots of interesting stories to share.

11. Untamed, PC and Kristin Cast

 

SOMETIME during the month I read this book, but I neglected to record it either in my paper notebook or online. Ironically, I thought it was the best of the series - finally, something interesting happens. All of my earlier criticisms still stand, though.