MOVIE - Cowboys and Aliens

There have always been aliens from afar...now or in the past....right?  Great storytelling!
Released 7-29-11
PG-13 (1:58)
RT:  cag:
Director:  Jon Favreau
Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Keith Carradine

65. A Discovery of Witches - Deborah Harkness

Viking, 2011
43 chapters, 580 pgs.
HC $28.95
for: adults
Rating:  5 (I really don't want to give it a 5, but it was lovely writing, a hard-to-put-down plot and storyline, characters that were so well defined I felt as if I knew them,  and a strong, smart, librarian/scholar protagonist.  Everything I love in a book.  And I loved this book.....)

First line/lines:  The leather-bound volume was nothing remarkable.  To an ordinary historian, it would have looked no different from hundreds of other manuscripts in Oxford's Bodleian Library, ancient and worn.  But I knew there was something odd about it from the moment I collected it.

Setting: Contemporary Oxford, for the first third of the book; in the countryside near Lyon, France for the second third; and upstate New York for the third third.
OSS:  Diana Bishop, a noted American historian and college professor who has always tried to ignore her roots as a witch, becomes involved with a vampire while trying to unravel the secret of an ancient book of alchemy.

As I read the last page, I was quite disappointed that I didn't know the final, "final," outcome, but decided to like the ending because of the hugely entertaining possibilities, and started to examine the fine print of the book.   A DISCOVER OF WITCHES IS PART ONE IN THE ALL SOULS TRILOGY.  LOOK FOR THE NEXT NOVEL IN 2012.  NO NO NO NO NO !!!!!

How will I ever remember every character and their part in the story between now and when a sequel comes out?

Witches and vampires and daemons.  All hate each other and have for millenniums.  Humans factor very little in this book (if at all), all the main players are creatures - namely witches, vampires, and daemons.  They are not supposed to mix, to fraternize, and a natural animosity usually even keeps them from being friends.  Until Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont meet.  KABOOM!  Sparks fly.  Literally.

Diana has always suppressed her witch tendencies.  She wants to be ordinary.  But a subhuman amount of adrenaline keep her running, rowing, and doing yoga whenever she's not researching.  She has no close friends (oddly), and the two aunts that raised her after her parents' murder worry obsessively about her. Although she is very attractive and has had lovers before, there are no males in her life. She has kept herself aloof emotionally, which is the perfect for what is about to happen.

Diana is no wimp.  She is no Bella - thankfully.  She is more of a Hermione, with a touch more determination and spunk (though Hermione did gather those possessions as she matured.)  Diana comes from a long line of Bishops, originating, she thinks, from Bridget Bishop who was killed during the Salem witch trials in the late 15th century.

I loved the first third of the book, the part that took place in Oxford.  The French part was really interesting, the American third had so much change and new information to absorb that I didn't enjoy it quite as much.  I can't believe that I decided to read an almost 600 page novel, but I'm really glad I did!

Walking in Tucson: JDRF Walkathon

Can I do it in my Birks?  I'm gonna try!

Wednesday I signed up to walk in the 5K (that's 3.1 miles!) JDRF Walkathon here in Tucson On October 29th.  However, I am in mucho, MUCHO poor shape.  So, I'm in training for the 17 days I have left.  Scary.  But not only do I want to do this, I WILL do this!

The link to my pledge page is here.  There's a really annoying group of noises when you first sign on....the thermometer rises with a very racious sound, and then people cheer because I've already made my goal of $100.  SO, so exciting...but the accompanying cacophony is a bit irritating!  Apologies.

I'm going to estimate 2100 steps to a mile to figure my mileage.  But I must remember, every step is...well....a step! ! !  My body feels it, especially mty lungs.  And the intense heat and sunshine we're still feeling here in Tucson doesn't help.

Thursday, Oct. 13th:  Brandi Fenton Park (700 steps, .333 miles) 102 degrees outside!  A third of a mile doesn't seem like much, but it's a start!

Friday, Oct. 14th  ooooooopsssss...

Saturday, Oct. 15th: Agua Caliente Park (1175 steps, .56 miles) late afternoon, still 95 degrees, lots of shade and a surreal oasis setting.

Sunday, Oct. 16th:  Pantano River Walk & Lowes (1820 steps, .867 miles) a mere 93 degrees, mid afternoon, thank goodness half the walk was shaded by buildings and trees as the sun was in the west.

Monday, Oct. 17th:  Reid Park:  It's a flat, paved, 3 miles around the park - 'course I'm not ready for thant yet.  Parked in the Randolph Way lot. (2240 steps, 1.07 miles) 94 degrees at 4:45 pm.

Tuesday, Oct. 18th:  Part of the Rillito River Walk: Holy Cow, an unintentional 2700 steps (1.29 miles)!  I parked in the lot on Swan and walked west, first 1350 steps on the "trail," then returning on the paved bikeway (there were oodles of bikes).  Nice.

Wednesday, Oct. 19th:  Palo Verde Park, just south of Broadway a block or so east of Wilmot.  There's a sidewalk around the park, partial sun, some shade, that was 1850 steps around (.89 miles), so I added another 435 steps to ensure I walked over a mile.  I did.   (1.09 miles)

Thursday, Oct. 20th:  TWO WALKS!
First:  Tohono Chul Park.  After viewing the Day of the Dead exhibit, I hit the trails...for 2175+ brisk steps through the blazing midday sunshine!  (Just a tiny bit over a mile.)
Second:  Out my front door, north to Fifth, east to Chalet, then home.  About .8 miles

Friday, Oct. 21st:  Pantano River Park (from Michael Perry Park) 2825 steps.  Walked along the GARDENS OF THE ANCIENT SIGNS - pretty plantings, signs, and markers (and even under the Golf Links bridge!)  92 degrees on return, but it had gone down a lot since the beginning of my walk.  1.35 miles

Saturday, Oct. 22nd. Around the El Con Mall (through JC Penney, it was way too dark around the old Robinson's May end) just before going to the movies.  Added steps in the parking lot to increase the walk to over a mile.  2350 steps, 1.12 miles.

Sunday, Oct. 23rd.  Reid Park. From Randolph St. parking lot, along Broadway for a bit, and then back.  Hot sunshine.  3133 stps, 1.49 miles (I should have taken a few more steps to hit that 1.5!!!)

Queen of the Falls – Chris Van Allsburg

Illustrated by the author
Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2011
HC $18.99
40 pgs.
Rating: 4.5
Endpapers: Silver-gray
Illustrations Brown & white, most of them squared off
Lots of text
Author’s note: full page at end of book
Title page: 3 X 5 illustrations of a barrel in foaming water

First line/s: Imagine being as small as a flea, standing on a sidewalk next to an open fire hydrant. This is how visitors to the waterfalls at Niagara feel. The water drops from a height that is as tall as a seventeen-story building, roaring like a locomotive and sending up an endless cloud of mist as it crashes onto the rocks and water below.

Setting: Niagara Falls, 1901
OSS: The true story of how Annie Edson Taylor was the first person to ride a wooden barrel over Niagara Falls and survive.

First of all, how cool to have found someone with such an interesting story that had never really been told – or heard – by most of the general public. Apparently this prim and proper senior citizen cooked up this scheme to earn herself enough money to live through her senior years. And , unfortunately, it never made her any money! So here’s the story. Very different from VanAllsburg’s usual tales of magic and wonder. Nice writing and still-magical trademark illustrations.

64. Twelve Sharp - Janet Evanovich

Audio read by Lorelei King
Audio Renaissance, 2006
7 unabridged cds
7 hours
320 pages
Rating:  4

OSS:  Stephanie Plum helps Ranger find his kidnapped daughter.

Yup, that's right.  We learn a bit more about Ranger and his past in this book, and the antics are just great.  Laugh out-loud funny in some places.  Lula has started singing in a rock band and chooses outrageous outfits to wear (and Grandma Mazur joins the group for a bit....).  A gay male couple now runs the funeral home.  We are introduced to Melvin Pickle, a sad, shy, guy who is the most recent addition to Stephanie's conglomerations of weirdo friends.

Evanovich is so clever when it comes to some of the apprehensions that Stephanie attempts.  How does she keep coming up with such ideas?  Funny, silly, crazy...and sometimes, she really does get her man (or woman).  This time the crew is looking for a new bounty hunter and the array of applicants they get is downright hilarious.  But the kidnapping of Ranger's daughter and the daunting task of trying to find and catch the kidnapper - who is impersonating Ranger - gets pretty hairy.  It helps to know that Stephanie will always overcome.

Ranger AND Joe are shown about 50/50 in this one.  FFFFUUUUNNNNN!

63. The Dark Tide - Andrew Gross

Audio read by Melissa Leo
Harper Audio, 2008
9 unabridged cds
11.5 hours
434 pages
Rating:  5 at the beginning, 1 after about the halfway point,  so.....2.5 I guess.....
Setting:  Contemporary Old Greenwich, Connecticut
OSS:  When Karen Friedman's husband is killed in a terrorist train bombing, she meets Greenwich Investigator Ty Hauck, and together they try to unravel a mystery that ties Charlie Friendman's death and another death in the area.

First line:  As the morning sun canted sharply through the bedroom window, Charles Friedman dropped the baton.

This is a very good story, which starts out tight and clear.  But once the mystery begins full throttle and Ty and Karen begin to "like" each other, it slows down....a lot.  But the really, really irritating thing for me is the way that whenever the characters have a dialogue with one another, they say each other's same repeatedly....over.....and over....and over again. Blech.

The bad guys are very bad.  The good guys have flaws.  The rich don't know how good they have it, or want more.  High finances, hedge funds....if you're not on top of that sort of thing, you're more or less along for the ride, because the details went right over my head.  I was excited about this author when I began reading, but don't think I'll be reading another of his for awhile, unless I forget.

61. State of Wonder - Ann Patchett

Harper, 2011
HC $26.99, TPPL
for:  adults
353 pgs.
Rating:  5

First Line/s:  The news of Anders Eckman's death came by way of Aerogram, a piece of bright blue airmail paper that served as both the stationery and, when folded over and sealed along the edges, the envelope.

Setting:  First 50 pages, Minnesota; remainder of book, the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, particularly west of Manaus, where the Lakashi tribe live.  Contemporary.

Dr. Marina Singh:  American mother, Indian father, born and raised in Minnesota with her mother, visiting, as a child upon occasion, her father in Calcutta.  Trained until residency as a doctor - on obstetrician, then switching to pharmacology and working for Vogel Pharmaceutical.  Now 42, she shares an office with fellow cholesterol researcher Anders Eckman and is seeing her boss, the head of Vogel, in secret, since that's how Mr. Fox wants it kept. As a secret.

But Anders, after being sent on a mission to find a Vogel researcher in the Amazon of South America, dies of a fever in the rainforest.  And it's Marina that's sent to figure out what happened and how the vague research of Dr. Annick Swenson is progressing.  It's not easy to find Dr. Swenson, who has made sure that her location in the jungle is a total secret.  Dr. Swenson had been Marina's mentor in her med school days, and there's a mysterious connection between the two that we slowly discover. Marina's search for Dr. Swenson and what happened to her friend and coworker becomes quite a story.

Magnificent writing.  Fascinating setting.  A mystery to solve.  A great amount of research.  And a satisfying story, that I hated to end.

Marina thought of the crickets and the meadowlarks, the rabbits and the deer, the Disney book of wildlife that slept in the wide green meadows of her home state.  "No bullet ants," she said.  Her scalp was soaked, her underwear, the ground beneath her feet loosened as streams of water sluiced between the trees.  The heard a high whistle piercing through the thunder and wondered if it was their imagination.  Imagination played a major role in the jungle, especially during a storm.

What a wonderfully satisfying story, the perfect way to pass a weekend of laziness.  I read her Magician's Assistant awhile ago, I've got to put some of her other's, particularly Bel Canto, on my upcoming radar.

60. Sweethearts - Sarah Zarr

Little Brown & Co., 1988
paper $7.99
220 pgs.
for: YA
Rating:  3.5

First Line/s:  A dripping faucet.  Crumbs and a pink stain on the counter.  Half of a skin-black banana that smells as old as it looks.  If I look at these things and at nothing else, concentrate on them and stay still, and don't make any noise, this will be over soon and I can go home without Cameron's dad ever knowing I'm here.

OSS:  When Cameron Quick reappears in Jennifer Harris' life after being the closest of friends as children, she is thrown for a loop.

Setting;  A ruralish area in Salt Lake City, contemporary times.

Cameron and Jennifer were best - and only - friends when they were young and they were both outcasts and bullied and unhappy.  They had each other, and that made their lives a lot better.  But then Cameron and his family disappear without a word, and Jennifer is left unsettled and wondering...for years.  She sheds weight, gains confidence, changes schools, and has a good life.  And then Cameron reappears.  Mysteriously.  And keeps disappearing, then reappearing.  Jen has a great boyfriend, lots of great friends, a stepfather that has helped stabilize her life, but with Cameron's reappearance she thinks, rethinks, remembers, and makes some interesting choices and decisions. 

Some of those memories involve learning about and watching the abuse that Cameron's father inflicted upon his family, particularly his son, and once, on her.  This was a very interesting book to read.  I kept thinking I'd already read it, but it must have been some of the scenes reminded me of other stories, because I'm quite sure I haven't read this before.  Okay.  Checked and saw that I read it when it first came out.  Guess it wasn't as memorable the first time around....

MOVIE - Horrible Bosses

Sheila hated it and left early....that says a lot....
wide release 7-8-11
R (1:37)
at Crossroads with Sheila
RT 70 cag 74 (It wasn't THAT bad...)
Director:  Seth Gordon
Warner Brothers
Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey

Three employees are having terrible times with their bosses.  Their plans to "off" them, of course, go awry, and there are quite a few laughs.  For some reason, the Jennifer Aniston dentist really turned me off, I'm not sure why.  And Kevin Spacey was great and justly hated.  Colin Farrell was....well.... Colin Farrell!

Olivia's Birds: Saving the Gulf - Olivia Bouler

illustrated by the author
Sterling Children's Books, 2011
HC $14.95
32 pgs.
endpapers - vertical lime green stripes zentangled

Olivia Bouler is 11 years. old.  She loves birds and draws them simply and beautifully.  An aspiring ornithologist, she was devastated by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and offered her help to the Audubon Society -- sending bird paintings to contributors.

So far, this young lady has earned $150,000 for the Save the Gulf campaign!

For the first 23 pages, Olivia describes, discusses, and shows different birds, including some weird birds, birds in their habitats, fierce birds, beautiful birds, and endangered and extinct birds.  Though the information is certainly not complete, it is simply stated, written in a font that is fun to read, and is a great start for kids who are interested in helping the plight of our world.

Bravo, Olivia!  You're an inspiration.

Beatrice's Dream - Karen Lynn Williams

A Story of Kibera Slum
photos by Wendy Stone
HC $17.95
Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 2011
24 pages
Rating:  4
Endpapers:  Purple with vertical streaks

Kiberia is a huge slum in Nairobi, Kenya.  There are no roads and almost no electricity, plumbing, or drinking water.

13-year old Beatrice lives here with her brother and his wife.  Both her parents are dead.  But she's lucky to go to school every day and dreams, even in her extreme poverty, of becoming a nurse.

This simple photo journal tells of her daily life.  Well, the words are simple.  It's the photos that show her life.  A good one to share with my fourth graders when studying Africa and discussing poverty.

56. Divergent - Veronica Roth

First in a new series
Katherine Tegen Books (Harper Collins) 2011
HC $17.99
for:  Young Adults
487 pgs.
Rating:  4

First Line/s:  There is one mirror in my house.  It is behind a sliding panel in the hallway upstairs.   Our faction allows me to stand in front of it on the second day of every third month, the day my mother cuts my hair.

Setting: Chicago, somewhere in the future.
OSS:  Beatrice Prior has come to the vital point in every 16-year-old's life, when they must choose one of society's five factions  in which to spend the remainder of their days.

Dauntless (the brave), Candor (the truthful), Abnegation (the selfless), Amity (the peaceful/happy), and the Erudite (the smart).  Beatrice has been born and raised as an Abnegation.  She loves her family - her parents and her brother, Caleb.  But when the time comes to choose the faction in which she best fits, it's more than difficult.  Because if she chooses anything other than Abnegation she will have to leave her family, her home, everything she knows.....forever.

In a story that intertwines a somewhat recognizable dystopia with rethinking the parameters of war and peace, we watch the initiation of Beatrice (who renames herself "Tris") into a new and exciting faction, where she finds new friends, new foes, (a boyfriend, of course), and a life that she could have never imagined.

I read this in one day....staying up late.  Tris is a great character, brave, smart, loving....and really, quite real.  I was quite drawn to her.  You had your stereotypical nasty peers, lots of action and adventure, and the requisite layers of bad guy vs. good guy. It's left so that you know there will be sequels.

55. Pray for Silence - Linda Castillo

Book No. 2 in a series set in Ohio's Amish Country
Minotaur Books, 2010
HC $24.99 TPPL
for: Adults
Rating:  4
First Line/s:  Officer Chuck "Skid" Skidmore wished he hadn't indulged in that last cup of coffee.  If it wasn't for the new waitress at the diner, he would have stopped at just one.  But damn she was cute.

Setting:  Contemporary Ohio Amish Country (a tourist town)
One sentence summary:  Ex-Amish Police Chief Kate Burkholder,with the help of State Bureau Investigator John Tomasetti (with whom she has an off-again on-again relationship since her last big murder investigation), investigates the brutal murders of an entire Amish family.

This one is pretty gritty...a whole family tortured and murdered.  Mother and father, a baby, two sons, 10 and 14, and two daughters, 15 and 16.  The girls' murders have been particularly horrendous, and Chief Burkholder is reminded of her own past.  She relates to Mary Plank, the 15-year old who appears to be the person whom the murder revolves most around.  She finds Mary's diary that explains her affair, her drinking, and the unspeakable things that were done to her while she was under the influence.  But she's very much in love. However, she never names her lover, or gives enough clues so that Kate and her crew can pinpoint him.

There are a number of suspects, and as they gather more clues, getting closer and closer to the killer, it's pretty hard to put the book down.  I can remember being grossed out by the first book, although this one is pretty graphic and horrendous, it's a good...but sad....murder mystery.  It's been over a year since this was published, so I'll have to check and see how prolific Linda Castillo has been!

54. Darkness Becomes Her - Kelly Keaton

Simon Pulse, 2011
HC $16.99
274 pgs.
for:  Young Adults
Rating:  4.5

First Line/s: Under the cafeteria table, my right knee bounced like a jackhammer possessed.  Adrenaline snaked through my limbs, urging me to bolt, to hightail it out of Rocquemor House and never look back.

Setting:  Over a decade after the 2009 hurricanes ruined New Orleans, now called New 2.  It's no longer part of the USA, and it's home to people that are.....different.

One sentence summary:  Ari, a 17 year-old searching for her mother and her roots, discovers the horrifying legacy that has been passed down to her through centuries of tormented women.

Yes, this one held my attention completely.  I guess I enjoy these dystopian adventures.  This one, of course, includes the smolderingly handsome love interest. Sebastian is the interestingly different part vampire whose family is one of the Novem, the ruling elite of the new New Orleans.  However, Ari holds a power that she doesn't understand at all - many people that she encounters, the ones that know of her mother, show that they are ... afraid ... of her.

I slowly figured out the mystery before it was revealed, but it was fun doing so.  Someone with more of an interest/background in Greek mythology would probably figure it out long before I did.  But I'll read the sequel when it comes out, A Beautiful Evil, coming in February, 2012.  It will continue the adventure, I'm sure.

If I knew New Orleans, the layout and the history, it would be even more enjoyable, because the description is excellent.

Yuvi's Candy Tree - Lesley Simpson

illustrated by Janice Lee Porter
Kar-Ben Publishing, 2011
HC $17.95
32 pgs.
Rating:  3.5
Endpapers:  Gold
Title page: all-over gold with painting of burro
Based on a true story from 1980's

Yuvi is traveling from Ethiopia to Jerusalem, stopping at a refugee camp and being flown from there to Israel.  They have no food, drink muddy water, and are robbed many times.  There is a donkey that she is able to ride for part of the way, but most of the way is on foot.  She dreams of trees made of candy, and when she arrives in Israel, she finds her candy  tree -  a tree covered with juicy, sweet oranges.

This was a really nice story, but I wish it had a little more....I guess it's good for very young children, but might be even better with just a little more information, it needs to be a tiny bit grittier to see the hardships, distance traveled, and unease, I didnt' feel like it had that, it seemed more like a simple trip to go to Israel.