Review: A Christmas Carol: A Pop-Up Book by Charles Dickens, Chuck Fischer, and Bruce Foster

A Christmas Carol is one of the few stories that seems deeply embedded in our collective cultural consciousness. It has been retold many times in many different ways and I'm always game to watch it play it out all over again when a new one comes to my attention.

I was VERY excited to hear about A Christmas Carol: A Pop-Up Book for this very reason. And it is absolutely stunning.

Please do not assume that because this is a pop-up book it's for children only. Instead, I think this book makes a great way to read A Christmas Carol as a family...there are six pages each with delightful and detailed illustrations. Really they are stunning. Additionally, the entire text of the book is included in small booklets divided up over the pages and included with each. Furthermore, there's a fantastic introduction to the historical significance and cultural impact of the story.

A Christmas Carol: A Pop-up Book is a delightful piece of visual art to enhance your festive celebration.

Source of Book: Review copy provided from publisher
Publisher: Little Brown

Review: All She Was Worth by Miyuki Miyabe (Detectives Around the World)

A name only exists because another person calls you by it. If someone had cared for her, she'd never have tossed her name away like an old tire. There's love in a name.

When Jen of Jen's Book Thoughts first announced that she was doing a Detectives Around the World theme week, I was excited to participate and my first choice was to do a detective in Japan. The only problem, of course, is that I didn't actually know any. Jen was sweet enough to help me find one I could do and I'm really glad that I participated in this week, because it's been ages since I've read crime fiction, and I forgot just how good it can be.

Shunsuke Honma was recently shot on the job and now has an injured leg. He's on a leave of absence to give his leg time to heal when a distant relative, Jun, shows up and asks him for some help. His fiancee, Shoko, has mysteriously disappeared and he has no idea why. The last he saw her, he'd been trying to get her a credit card, but she was denied all credit because she had declared personal bankruptcy some years before. When Jun confronts her with this information, she panics and disappears.

Honma takes on the case and is surprised by how quickly he is drawn into what is a much bigger mystery than it initially appears to be. Is Shoko even really Shoko? His investigations takes him all over Japan.

I completely enjoyed this book. While I was drawn into the mystery, I was also impressed with the sharp social commentary and the almost unbelievable relevance it has to our own current economic conditions. Shoko, after all, was in deep debt. Miyabe explores the world of debt, how things spiral quickly out of control for people, and through the various characters she questions who is really responsible when one individual finds themselves deeply in debt. Consumerism, growing individualism, the desire to own in order to become all play a role in this story.

Readers who aren't Japanese will also probably find the situation of identity theft in Japan to be very interesting as well as the different ways in which Japanese culture plays into the story. What I enjoyed was that Honma was a single dad raising an adopted son. (his wife had passed away)

I was also impressed with the way in which Miyabe paints even the criminals in a sympathetic light....in fact, I would say that coming to a deep understanding of why people do what they do, even when it's horrible and hurtful is an important element in her storytelling.

This is why I love crime fiction and why I'm glad Jen's week pushed me to move it up in priority. The very best of crime fiction examines our humanity, our motivations, our relationships to one another. It looks unflinchingly at our society and takes us into the heated moments that so often define a life. I'm glad to say that All She Was Worth fits right in there with the best.

Rating: 4.5/5
Source of Book: bought a used copy
Publisher: Mariner Books (Houghton Mifflin)

Review: Anything but Normal by Melody Carlson

I have to admit when I started reading this book (which I accepted because of the author alone) I was nervous it was going to be nothing but a Christian version of Juno and Secret Life of an American Teenager. And in some ways it was, but it occurred to me that there wasn't a good book for YA girls from a Christian perspective about getting pregnant. I think there have been a lot of books for the adult market in Christian fiction but not so much the YA market.

Anything but Normal is the story of Sophie, a girl who gets seduced by a boy at church summer camp and winds up pregnant. Sophie made a purity pledge at her church and her best friend is the pastor's daughter, but Sophie's parents aren't involved in the church or even her life really. This makes it extremely possible for Sophie to hid her pregnancy for a long period of time.

I thought a lot of things Sophie went through were realistic, from living in denial to all of the issues she faced with her judgmental friends. I was a little nervous that the book was going to focus heavily on being pro-life at the expense of Sophie's genuine emotions and experience, but I was actually pleased that while there was a little bit of that mixed into the story, this was more the story of how Sophie dealt with being pregnant. I was pleased that Carlson took the approach she did, that she didn't glorify purity pledges and didn't demonize Sophie. In this way, I often find Melody Carlson's books refreshing, she's not as conservative as many other Christian fiction writers.

Having said that, I think she's almost too prolific. The writing is very simple and the whole second half of the book was much too rushed and didn't dig deeply enough into Sophie's reality for me. Still, it's a much needed conversation starter for the Christian YA market. And parents? Don't wait until your teens are 17 to let them read this. I recommend much younger. It's not graphic or explicit.

Rating: 3.75/5
Things You Might Want to Know: Christian fiction
Source of Book: Review copy received from publisher
Publisher: Revell

Short Story Review: An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce

I chose to read this short story as part of the LOST books challenge, and am choosing to post my long overdue review today on the day of the season 5 finale. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" first makes it appearance in Season 2 of LOST when John Locke is reading it in the hatch. It looks like Locke is reading a book.
I don't really understand where that book came from, because not only is this a short story, it's a really short story! But it's a good one, and introduces a plot twist that is believed to have later influenced some other great stories and films.

The story opens with a man about to be executed on a bridge by hanging. The opening scene sets up with the man's last thoughts and his contemplation of how he might escape this almost certain death. We then cut to the past, and details of how the man came to be on the bridge about to die come to light. This is also quite a short section and then we are back to the execution. However, when he falls to his death, he realizes he is not actually dead and swims to his escape. And so he is cleverly trying to escape and just reaching home when....well that's all I can say.

I read this story in about 15 minutes. I think I read it much too quickly, because I thought it was good, but forgot about it. Until later, when I was driving I started thinking about it again. I think this little story is actually quite effective and packs a little punch. But I feel it's hard to say much about it without spoiling it completely!

Relationship to LOST
Well, there's a few things. First, there's the format of the story. Present/past/present. Very much the way the story of LOST is told. Secondly, there is this gem of a line!
"The wood on either side was full of singular noises, among which--once, twice, and again--he distinctly heard whispers in an unknown tongue."
If that doesn't remind you of LOST, I don't know what would! :)

I really recommend taking the short amount of time it takes to read this story...I look forward to having more time to read Ambrose Bierce's stories.

Rating System for 2009

For 2009, books, movies, magazines, television shows, and restaurant reviews will be accompanied by a star rating. The system will be based on 5 stars and utilize quarter star ratings to further clarify. (i.e 4.25 stars) These are based on my own gut reactions and there is no exact method as to how ratings will be assigned.

Additionally, I will point out sensitive elements that might offend some readers or of which they want to be aware using the following code at the end of each review:
L=offensive language
S=explicit sex
V=graphic violence
MC=openly mocks Christian beliefs
CF=Christian Fiction

*please note that if the book contains any of these elements at all, I will attach the code. If there is what I feel to be an unusually high amount of any one element it will be openly mentioned in the review.

I hope this will better clarify how I feel about books and whether or not they are a good fit for you!

Review: Love Starts with Elle by Rachel Hauck

About the Book: Elle's living the dream-but is it her dream or his?

Elle loves life in Beaufort, South Carolina-lazy summer days on the sand bar, coastal bonfires, and dinners with friends sharing a lifetime of memories. And she's found her niche as the owner of a successful art gallery too. Life is good.

Then the dynamic pastor of her small town church sweeps her off her feet. She's never known a man like Jeremiah-one who breathes in confidence and exhales all doubt. When he proposes in the setting sunlight, Elle hands him her heart on a silver platter.

But Jeremiah's just accepted a large pastorate in a different state. If she's serious about their relationship, Elle will take "the call," too, leaving behind the people and place she loves so dearly. Elle's friendship with her new tenant, widower Heath McCord, and his young daughter make things even more complicated.

Is love transferrable across the miles? And can you take it with you when you go?

My Review:
This has been one of the books I've been anticipating the most this year due to the gorgeous cover and the title. After I read Sweet Caroline, I was looking forward to it even more. I was not disappointed.

This is a bit of a departure from the chick lit fare that Rachel has been writing for the last few years and is billed as a straight up romance. It's a beautiful book of two people finding healing, finding art, and finding life again.

I've been trying to figure out what it is I've loved so much about these books. Part of it is that Rachel creates characters with a lot of believability and heart. She has created a town with likeable and funny characters. She weaves humor into the storyline, and unexpected turns. But more than anything, I think, like Elle in the book, Rachel taps into a spiritual depth that just feels real. It does not feel contrived. There is not an overabundance of Scripture quotation or pat and easy answers, yet it is unapologetically Christian. The God Rachel talks about in her books seems real and good. And I, for one, love that and find it refreshing and challenging.

At one point in this book, Elle asks, "What if failing is really succeeding?" I think that sums up the theme and heart of this book quite nicely and I couldn't say it better myself. (though I've tried!)

The ending had me both laughing and crying. If you are looking for a heartwarming romance that pushes you just a little...well then I couldn't possibly recommend Love Starts with Elle anymore.

Check out Love Starts with Elle on Amazon.

Visit Rachel's blog.

Read the first chapter.

Read my review of Sweet Caroline.

Embrace Me by Lisa Samson

About the Book: Biting and gentle, hard-edged and hopeful...a beautiful fable of love and power, hiding and seeking, woundedness and redemption.

When a "lizard woman," a self-mutilating preacher, a tattooed monk, and a sleazy lobbyist find themselves in the same North Carolina town one winter, their lives are edging precariously close to disaster...and improbably close to grace.

My Review: I've mentioned before that I love Lisa Samson and this book is no exception. If you enjoy a novel with rich characterization, unique voice, and hope then this book is for you.

I remember when I was very little going to the state fair and seeing the many sideshow booths set up. I was interested in one that involved a human but my sister pointed out..."what would you say to them?" I don't think I really understood that it was a real person on display at my age and that drove the point home. I opted to see a tiny horse instead.

This book takes a look at the lives of some of those people at the sideshows.
I have to admit, it took me a little while to get into it at first. The novel weaves together two different stories from two separate first POV characters in two different timelines. This can feel a little disjointed at first but you'll easily see how the stories come together and that will help tremendously. Samson's themes of social justice are strong in this book as well and she once again provides many unique looks at the various parts of the Body of Christ. Additionally, if you read and enjoyed Songbird, you'll be happy to know that Charmaine is a fairly significant character in this book as well.

Once you get into the book and caring about the characters, it all unfolds beautifully with so much heart and grace. It's a powerful story of healing and forgiveness.

Check out Embrace Me on Amazon.

(If you reviewed this book and want to exchange review links let me know!)

Cindy Morgan's Beautiful Bird

When it comes to Christian music, few compare to Cindy Morgan. I have many fond memories of her music, after all she was the free concert my college had when I went there for campus preview in high school. I met her briefly at the time and she was pure graciousness.

Her album, The Loving Kind, is one of my most beloved themed CDs. I love the song about The Lord's Supper especially, as it communicates a bit of what the mood must have been like so beautifully. I have all of her cds and her book.

So, when the opportunity to be a part of the blog tour for her new album came up, I jumped at the chance. Please note that I am no music expert. So this is completely the review of a fan and lover of music who knows very little if anything about the technical aspects of it.
The stand-out tracks for me are "Lay Me Down" which has a spiritual sound. I absolutely believe that I'll be listening to this about a million times in a row once I own it. It has such a great feel to it. LOVE.

I also really like the beautiful "The Sun Shines Through" which is a song about having hope during the difficult times in life. It's got a really gorgeous sound and I imagine will be a true comfort to many.

I also really loved the songs "In These Rooms" and "Most of All"

There are also some songs with a pleasant pop sound to them, like "Fine" and "I Wish" that I imagine will be good fun listening to with the windows rolled down on a sunny day when I'm out for a drive. :)

"Lion and the Lamb" is an interesting song with a sort of ethereal feel that seems to be about a renewed earth.

Overall, I actually probably like this album better than the last few Cindy Morgan albums. I think I will be listening to quite a bit.

These are my initial thoughts. But CD reviews are different for me than book reviews because I need time to let the songs seep in and become a part of my life. I have no doubt that will happen with this album.

This album will be available on iTunes Monday May 20 or at cindymorganmusic.com

Sincerely Mayla by Virginia Smith

About the book: Kregel Publications is pleased to announce the release of SINCERELY,
MAYLA: A NOVEL by Virginia Smith. In this heartwarming sequel to JUST AS I
AM, Mayla Strong’s life is finally starting to seem normal. She has been
working at the same job for four years, living with a good friend, and
enjoying a deep relationship with God. But when Mayla is suddenly laid off
from her job, the placid surface of her life is shattered. Taking
advantage of her newfound “vacation time,” Mayla flees to her
grandmother’s house in Florida. But one by one, her problems follow . . .
literally.

My Review: I enjoyed Just As I Am, and figured I would enjoy this follow-up as well. Boy, did I! This book is an exquisite piece of Christian chick lit with snappy dialogue, a completely loveable and real heroine, and a host of alternately amusing and touching events that take place. It reminds of exactly what this genre can be and sort of makes me want to dive into a pile of chick lit for the next month. :)

Mayla is just so real. It's so easy to identify with her, she is not a fashion princess, she doesn't always say or do the right thing, but her heart is in the right place. I blew through the book and am hoping hoping that we will get a third. The ending was satisfying, but there is just so much more story that can be explored with all of the delightful and well defined characters in this book.

These are the first books I've read by Virginia Smith but they won't be the last! I already own Stuck in the Middle and plan to hunt down everything else she has written. If you love well written chick lit, I think you will love this book!

Dream Lucky by Roxanne Orgill

About the book: The time: 1936-1938. The mood: Hopeful. It wasn't wartime, not yet. The music: The incomparable Count Basie and Benny Goodman, among others. The setting: Living rooms across America and, most of all, New York City.

Dream Lucky covers politics, race, religion, arts, and sports, but the central focus is the period's soundtrack—specifically big band jazz—and the big-hearted piano player William "Count" Basie. His ascent is the narrative thread of the book—how he made it and what made his music different from the rest. But many other stories weave in and out: Amelia Earhart pursues her dream of flying "around the world at its waistline." Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., stages a boycott on 125th Street. And Mae West shocks radio listeners as a naked Eve tempting the snake.

Critic Nat Hentoff praises the "precise originality" with which Roxane Orgill writes about music. In Dream Lucky, she magically lets readers hear the past.


My Review: I really enjoyed having the chance to read Dream Lucky by Roxanne Orgill. This is probably not the type of book I would normally pick up and I would be missing out!

What I loved about this book is that it totally transported me to the time period and really brought it to life! The chapters are short and the book is filled with pictures so it is easily digestable. She did her research so well, that she's able to tell the story like a novel and seamlessly weave in quotes and ideas from the time period. I also really really want to read more about some of these people now. If you like learning a little bit about history in a non-threatening way or if you have an interest in this time period or jazz music, I think you'll enjoy this!

Dream Lucky is published by Harper Collins and is available in stores now.

By Reason of Insanity by Randy Singer

The legal thriller genre is one of my favorites. I love John Grisham, William Bernhardt, Steve Martini to name a few authors. There's something so exciting about the combination of courtroom tension and the unraveling of a case, lawyers matching wits and of course the awesome education in law I get. I feel I'm an expert you know!

But Randy Singer may well be my favorite author in this genre. The cases he highlights are always so interesting, unique looks at different situations. His characters are varied and interesting and his pacing is great. His latest, By Reason of Insanity, is no exception.

Here's a little bit about the book: After a series of kidnappings and murders in Virginia Beach, newspaper reporter Catherine O'Rourke experiences disturbing dreams that detail each crime. In an effort to aid the investigation, she shares them with her confidential source--a detective working on the case. Catherine's intimate knowledge of the crimes immediately makes her a prime suspect. When scientific evidence corroborates her guilt, she's arrested and charged with murder. As she begins to doubt her own innocence, Catherine turns to Las Vegas lawyer Quinn Newberg, a high-priced specialist in the insanity defense. Quinn believes in justice, Vegas-style. But he doesn't believe in the supernatural, or that Catherine's dreams are anything other than the result of a fractured personality disorder. Who can understand the human mind? Quinn knows that insanity cases are unpredictable, but nothing had prepared him for this! To win, or even survive, Quinn will need more than his famed legal maneuvering and biting skepticism. On this case, he needs a miracle.

This was another great title from Randy Singer. From the first few pages, you're drawn into the idea of whether or not the insanity plea is a good one. Throughout the book, it's impossible to tell what's really going on with Catherine and you may switch your opinion several times! The book is fast-paced and hard to put down. Perfect for the lover of the legal thriller or any mystery in general.

Best news? It's now available!

Review: Sweet Caroline by Rachel Hauck

Read the book synopsis here.

I'd only read one book previously by Rachel Hauck, which was Georgia on Her Mind. Both of her Nashvegas books sit in my TBR pile, but I haven't had a chance to get to them yet. I think the main reason being that while I enjoyed Georgia on Her Mind, it wasn't the kind of book that screamed at me that I must immediately read everything she'd ever written.

Sweet Caroline, I'm pleased to say, is quite the opposite. It's an absolutely lovely book from the sweet cover to the delightful cast of town characters.

Hauck does an excellent job of bringing the town of Beaufort to life, giving it rich character, and investing you in the fate of the Frogmore Cafe. Meanwhile, it was very easy for me to identify with Caroline's dilemna of worrying she wasn't living up to her potential. The love story and her conversion both felt authentic to the story as well.

I was dismayed when the book was over, and I hope we might get to revisit Caroline in the future. While this story may seem simple, it has the ring of truth and it's hard not to be moved by it.

A Couple of Questions

1) Do you read reviews? If so, for what? TV shows, movies, products, books, restaurants, etc.

2) When reading a review for something that involves a plot...how much do you want to know from the reviewer?

Thank you, you all will bless me if you answer!