Charlotte's Web of Books

There is so much to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day.

The last year of my life has been like something out of a Chick Lit novel. A year ago, I would have never imagined that this man would be back in my life, let alone engaged to him. I thank God everyday that He is giving me the "Happy Ever After" that I have always dreamed of.

I am also so very thankful for my family & friends. This past year has been the Year of Decisions for so many of my friends, family, and of course myself. Not every decision has been an easy one, but I am so very thankful for the support my family & friends have given me. They might not always be the best decisions, but I know with the support of the ones I love, every decision can turn i nto the right one.

I am especially grateful that my lil brother has moved back to the area and for the first time in years we have gotten to spend some time together. The ability he has to make me laugh has grown over time. Between Andy & David, I have never laughed so hard!

There is a lot of things happening in my life in the next few months that will likely create many memories and many times to reflect upon. But right now. In this moment, I am thankul to be alive. Thankful to be healthy. And thankful to be loved.

Life doesn't get any better than this.

Why My Third Husband Will Be A Dog is a bit of a deviation from the Lisa Scottoline that I am familiar with. I am used to reading her gritty & sexy mystery novels, but apparently there is more to Ms. Scottoline than meets the eye.

Unbeknownst to this Midwest girl, Lisa Scottoline is a regular columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer. Obviously her regular columns are not the dark & twisty tales she writes in her books. They are mostly her observations and comments on daily life. Ranging from pet issues to parent issues to kid issues, Lisa Scottoline proves that Best Selling Authors are just like you and me.

Why My Third Husband Will Be A Dog is a compilation of all of those columns. The book is a fast read, each column is no more than a couple pages long. Not very challenging reading material, but entertaining nonetheless. Being the author groupie that I am, I enjoy the "behind the scenes" look at her life. No matter how boring it may be.

Are you in need of a good laugh? Not just a chuckle, but a laugh so big and so hard that your sides ache when you are done? Then waste no time getting your hands on This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper.

This Is Where I Leave You is a book about Judd Foxman & his family. Not only has Judd recently discovered that his wife has been screwing a radio shock jock, the guy happens to be his boss. His father just passed away from a long battle with cancer. He has requested that his family sit Shiva. Judd is just a little shocked by the request and with this line, I knew I was going to love this book.

Dad didn't believe in God, but he was a lifelong member of the church of Shit Or Get Off The Can.

Judd does honor his father's wishes and he finds himself in his childhood home with his sister, two brothers and their various significant others. In the seven days following their father's burial, the Foxman children find themselves trapped in the house dealing with the current issues in their lives as well as reminiscing about their childhood and the father they just lost.

From Wendy's recounting of the day she first got her period to the boys setting off the sprinklers while smoking a joint in the Temple bathroom I laughed & laughed. But it was the part with the poorly placed baby monitor & Uncle Stan's flatulence problem that had me laughing so hard the pets were looking at me funny. Holy Crap (pun intended) it was hysterical.

I have read Jonathan Tropper before, but this is his best book by far. In fact, this may be the best Fiction book of the year. Judd Foxman and his siblings are like any other family out there. They have their inside jokes, they have their go-to insults. They have their major dysfunctions. But most of all, right now, they share the pain of missing their father. For every brilliantly written Foxman mishap, there is the kick in the gut they feel when they remember their Father has died. Hysterical. Poignant. Engaging. Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful.

The perfect book to take with you in the car as you are traveling to wherever your family may be this Thanksgiving holiday. Either you will relate with the Foxmans or you will Thank God there is a family out there worse than yours. Bottom line is you will enjoy it and thank me for it later.

My first holiday book of the year!!

I am a huge fan of Cecelia Ahern. I have been ever since I listened to PS, I Love You on audio. Long before the movie, if I might add. The Gift is a wonderful Christmas tale.

Lou Suffern is on the fast track to the big time. He works hard and despite that he has a wife and children at home, he plays hard. And not with his wife. Lou Suffern is a real asshole.

One day out of the blue, he decides to give the bum on the street a cup of coffee. And before he knows it, Gabe (the bum) is working his way into Lou's life. In unbelievable ways, Gabe inserts himself in Lou's out of control life.

Is Gabe the wake up call that Lou needs to get his priorities in order? To get his life in order? Or is it too late?

The Gift wasn't my favorite Cecelia Ahern book, but it is not a bad book. A bit predictable, but nice Holiday book, nonetheless.

Finally! A thoroughly enjoyable book!

The Girl Next Door is the third book I have read this year set in a NYC community. First there was, Mercury In Retrograde which was okay, but not great. Then, more recently, there was Prospect Park West, which frankly I didn't like at all. Thankfully, Elizabeth Noble does not disappoint.

Elizabeth Noble tells the story of a co-op in New York City. In a brief bit of autobiography, one of the main characters, Eve, is an English woman who follows her husband and his career to New York City. Eve found the perfect apartment on her first time out with the agent. The Girl Next Door tells the tale of Eve and her neighbors. Told in alternating voices in month by month chapters you become friendly with several of the building's inhabitants.

There is Trip, the trust-fund playboy. Charlotte, the dowdy librarian & Emily, her overachieving friend. You also meet Kim and her husband Jason. Rachel & her husband, David. And of course, you get to meet Violet Wallace. The woman who becomes instrumental to Eve surviving life in New York City.

The Girl Next Door is an absolutely delightful read. The characters, even with warts and all, are very likeable and easy to relate to. Elizabeth Noble uses her incredible talents to paint the story of this co-op and it's people. Their triumphs and their tribulations. It is very easy to imagine this delightful book as a movie. It would make the perfect chick flick and one I would love to pay money to see. The book does not hit the shelves until late December, but it would be the perfect book to curl up with after the dishes are done and all of the presents have been unwrapped. Very enjoyable.

I am in such a book slump. It seems to have been a while since I read a book that really just trapped me in it's pages.

Cheerful Money is touted as being "hysterical", but frankly I made it to page 138 without laughing once. Maybe it is a cultural divide. I am not a WASP, I am an Iowa farm girl. So maybe I just don't get it.

Anyway. I have moved on.

Sometimes, there are movies out there that are better than the book. I have a feeling that Push is going to be one of those movies. Excuse me, Precious is the name of the movie. I suspect, given the names of people involved with the production of the movie, it will be worthy of every award it wins.

The book, not so much. The book, written as if it were written by an illiterate sixteen year old, is tough to read. Grammar Nazis will go insane trying to read the book. But the writing is not consistent. One paragraph may be so hard to decipher what is being said, the next paragraph is completely comprehensible. Like I said, it is inconsistent.

Forget the writing. The story will captivate you. Precious Jones has lived the life that nightmares are made of on the streets of Harlem. She was twelve years old when she got pregnant with her first child, by her father. She is currently pregnant with her second child, by her father. Her mother is physically, emotionally & sexually abusive. She has now been kicked out of school, junior high school, and has started at the alternative school.

It is here that her teacher, Ms Blue Rain, shows Precious the first display of compassion she has ever experienced in her life. Precious starts to learn how to read & write and learn that is more to life than the ghetto.

The story is heart wrenching. The writing will drive you nuts, but whether you read the book or watch the movie, this is one story you shouldn't miss. Just in case you have missed it, here is the trailer:

What would you do to save your daughter? To what lengths would you go? Would you break your daughter out of prison? Would you agree to a radical treatment that might cause her to live with her terminal kidney disease?

Those are the questions at the heart of this book, The Courage Tree. The Courage Tree is a book about two mothers and two daughters. Janine took a risk with Sophie's life and let her go to Girl Scout camp. When she doesn't return to the designated pick up spot with the rest of the girls, Janine & her ex-husband, Joe fear that their daughter will not be found in time for her next treatment & dialysis.

On the other end of this story is Zoe & Marti. They were living a charmed, privileged life when Marti was convicted of murder. Zoe is so convinced that she was wrongly convicted and sets a plan into motion that will free them both from the prisons of their lives.

It is here where the worlds of the two mothers collide. But is it in time to save the daughters that mean so much to them?

I really like Diane Chamberlain's books. I have read several of them now, they are very reminiscent of Jodi Picoult books, but the difference being you don't want to smack the author when you are finished reading. They are well written, thought provoking stories that will leave you feeling happy & satisfied with the end. Whether it be a "happy ending" or not. Her books also usually have Readers Guide questions for book clubs.

This looks PHENOMENAL! Will you be watching it?

For more eyecandy, err, I mean Robert Downey Jr, check out this Sherlock Holmes blog.

I officially am in a slump. I was somewhat was excited to read a trashy fluff book. I mean in the first pages the woman is masturbating. So I thought, this will be a great, trashy, Sex & The City kind of novel.

Wrong.

I will just say that I like my trashy novels without the author pushing their political agenda and we will leave it at that.

This is what I am reading now. It is, um, interesting to say the least. LOL.

My reading time is far too valuable these days to continue reading a book that I do not find engaging or entertaining.

This one gets chalked up to a "Did Not Finish" and I will move on to the next one.

*sigh*

I want more time to read. How about we just pass a law adding about two extra hours to the day to devote entirely to reading. It would happen if I were Queen.

Once In A Blue Moon is one of those "what if" type of books. What if there were two sisters were placed into foster care? What if one of those sisters were adopted by a loving family and the other one wasn't? What if almost thirty years later one sister needs a family more than ever?

Lindsay is a somewhat successful business owner who lives in Half Moon Bay, California. She is a treasured member of local society who has a corporate fight of massive proportion on her hands. She has always known of her younger sister, Kerri Ann, but has never been able to find her. Kerri Ann has not had an easy life. Her battle with drugs have caused her to lose her young daughter to the very system that "raised" her. While struggling to put her life back together and get her daughter back, she discovers that she has a sister. Hoping the judge would be more forgiving know that she has family support, Kerri Ann seeks out her sister.

The two sisters are night and day. But over the next several months, they learn a lot about each other, and themselves. They help each other fight their respective battles and learn that family is more than just cozy holidays and happy endings. Being a part of a family is tough, but love will pull you through the bad times as well as the good times.

Once In A Blue Moon was a good book, but it was a bit slow going. Dragging in parts and a bit cliche in others. It is worth the read, though. A heart warming story about overcoming tough obstacles.

One of the perks of my job is that every now and then REALLY cool things happen. After I got back from Casper last week, I was met by my Community Relations Manager with "Guess What!! Guess What!! Jim Brickman (warning - music will play if you click link) is coming!!" I literally started jumping up and down and squealed like a little schoolgirl. Ask her. She will tell you! Star 102.1 was bringing Jim Brickman to Kansas City for a Breast Cancer Awareness fundraiser and they wanted to have it at our store. In one week. OKAY! If anyone can pull it off in a week, it is Sherry Polito.

If you are not familiar with Mr. Brickman, let me introduce you to him. He is this amazingly talented musician that I have loved ever since I was introduced to him at work through an "In Store Play". In our store you

will find his CD's in the New Age section, but I would consider it more "easy listening". During his Q&A session with the customers, he mentioned that you will never hear him sing about break ups. His music is meant to be more upbeat & uplifting. Like the title song of his new album.

Prior to Jim Brickman singing, the man who did the vocals on A Beautiful World, Adam Crossley also sang a few songs. He has a new album due out next month, and I think he is one to watch. He sung Fields of Gold, and let me tell you, he sung it better than Sting did. And I am a HUGE Sting fan. Not only does he have a voice of silk, but he is absolutely stinking adorable. My first impression of him was him putting hot pink shoelaces in his shoes in order to complete his Breast Cancer Awareness ensemble.

Both men were absolutely fabulous. Kind, funny, & generous. I would be thrilled to see them in concert again, whether it be in our solarium or the Sprint center. Count me in.

Here are more photos from the day.

October is Mystery Month!

Fear The Worst is the perfect mystery novel to read on a cold, rainy October night. It is not a gruesome murder mystery. But instead, the book is about your normal, average 40-ish year old car salesman living and working in the Connecticut suburbs. Tim Blake is excited to have his seventeen year old daughter staying with him for the summer. Until one day she doesn't come home from work.

Tim & his ex-wife, Susanne, have their world turned upside down. A month has passed with no leads & no Sydney. Tim feels as if he is just spinning his wheels. Until the website set up for Sydney gets a hit. And it sends Tim on a cross country wild goose chase to find his daughter.

There is not much that I can say without giving away the ever evolving plot. It is fast paced & thrilling. Without being confusing, if that makes sense. Tim Blake is a likable guy, he is the kind of guy you would want for an "ex". He is smart, without being unrealistic. He is a man on a mission. Nothing will stop him. Just proof that when a man's family is threatened, he can turn into the the SuperHero that every little girl thinks her Daddy is under the Dockers & button-down shirts.

Great book. Wonderful mystery. You will enjoy this thrilling mystery!

Have you heard of Postsecret? It has been such an intregal part of my Sunday routine for many, many years now. It is hard for me to believe that there are people out there that haven't heard of Postsecret, but I imagine that it is possible.

I guess you could say that Postsecret is a social experiment. People send their deepest, darkest secrets to a random Post Office Box and every Sunday a guy by the name of Frank Warren posts them on his blog. It is actually pretty dern cool.

I have never sent in a secret, but many of the secrets posted could be applied to my life. It is reassuring to see that there are other people out there with the same struggles, same hopes, same dreams as myself.



While I did not write that Secret, I recognize that wrapping paper. I recognize those signs. This secret could have been written by any one of my colleagues. It was a secret from a few weeks ago.

The new Postsecret book came out this week. The secrets it contains focus on Life, Death, & God. It is a fabulous little book. The difference between the new book and the others in the series, is that this book is actually shaped like a post card. It is one postcard per page. The book is thicker than the others, but I think I like this format better. You don't get distracted by all of the postcards on one page, you can just focus on one person's secrets at a time. It is pretty cool.

If you haven't checked out the Postsecret Blog before, then I encourage you to do so. And the next time you are in a bookstore, pick up one of the Postsecret books. You never know when someone elses's secret might change your life.

This was really a cute book. Pieces of Happily Ever After could have been ripped from a tabloid headline. But what happens after the husband leaves his wife for the Hollywood Starlet?

How does the wife hold it together? How does the precious four year old child deal with it when her father leaves and her mother is reduced to daily bouts of tears?

Alice is barely holding it together. Her husband just left her for a Hollywood Starlet. Her mother is disintegrating from Alzheimer's , her fairy-tale obsessed daughter is in trouble at school for yelling profanities, and the paparazzi is camped outside of her house. Will life ever get better for Alice? Will she ever find her "Prince Charming"?

Like I said, "cute". The characters are "real". Gabby is freaking adorable. Even through the pages I wanted to reach out & give her squishy hugs. Well written, fast read, somewhat fluffy, but somewhat real. A good read.

Twilight fans, have I got news for you!

Angels are the new vampires!

In her new book, Hush, Hush, Becca Fitzpatrick introduces us to a whole new realm of Folklore. Nora Grey is dismayed when her biology teacher decides to shake up the seating chart and Nora gets stuck with transfer student and badboy Patch Capricio as her lab partner. Nora is torn between being attracted to Patch and being afraid of Patch. And when he starts showing up at the most unexpected places and really bizarre things start happening, Nora starts to really question his motives.

At the same time Patch is invading her life another transfer student has caught the eye of her best friend, Vee. Nora’s “spidey senses” go into overtime and she is sure that Elliot is someone other than he claims. Will Nora be able to keep the dark forces at bay and sort this all out without getting hurt? Both physically and emotionally? Will she be able to resist Patch’s charms? Is he a Fallen Angel or a Guardian Angel.

Hush, Hush is a teen romance/thriller along the same vein as the Twilight Series. But it goes a different route with the whole Fallen Angel theme. The author has done some incredible research about the mythological Angel’s that find their way into Nora’s life. It is fascinating and just as every bit romantic as Twilight. Hush, Hush was a fast and suspenseful read that you are guaranteed to devour in one sitting.

With strong, non-whiney, characters and immortal Angel’s, the possibilities are endless. Hopefully Ms Fitzpatrick will not go the route of Stephenie Meyer and JK Rowling and keep us waiting years before the story continues. While Angel’s may be immortal, we are not…

I read this book in virtually one day. Of course, I was trapped in airplanes, but traveling is a good way to get caught up on my reading. I traveled to Casper, Wyoming to be with my Future Husband (I like the way that sounds better than “fiancée”) He is here for work & we will drive back to Kansas City together. I was looking forward to get away from the city in hopes of getting some reading done, little did I know The Company's condo has neither Wi-Fi nor a television! OH THE HORROR! So, yes, I will be getting some reading done in the next few days!

I like Laura Moriarity's books because they could be considered somewhat local. Based on her “acknowledgments” I even wonder if she has been a customer of mine. Her new book, While I Am Falling takes place in the KC metro area. Half of it is set in the suburbs of Johnson County, and the other half is set in Lawrence at KU. Lawrence is just a hop, skip & a jump from my store. We get a lot of customers from the Lawrence area, in fact I have have had employees that drove from Lawrence to work at my store.

While I Am Falling is a book about divorce and how the members of that family survive the disintegration in the first year after their family falls apart. It is a hard book to read, especially if you have had to deal with the tragedy of divorce in your own life. The book focuses mainly on the youngest daughter, Veronica and her mother, Natalie. The divorce has completely unraveled Natalie and she finds herself relying heavily upon her daughter, Veronica, for the very basic of needs. The stress that Pre-Med Veronica is going through is almost enough to make her unravel, too. Instead she learns a lot about what it means to be a strong woman.

There are some parts of this book that are just downright scary. For that I am thankful, it took my mind off of the fact that I was in an airplane smaller than most SUV's. There are other parts of the book that may reduce you to tears. It is so worth the emotional roller coaster to get to the message, I took away. Strong women role models don't have to be doctors or lawyers. Strong women role models come in all shapes, sizes, and walks of life. They survive the worst of circumstances and come out stronger than ever.

Well worth the read.

ETA - Sorry for no "Happy Tuesday" post. My Future Husband was able to get us dial up through our Blue Tooth on our cell phones, but there is NO way I can post pictures for my post. I do know that the new Postsecret book hit the shelves today as well as many many others.

This was probably my most anticipated book of the year. When we find an author that touches our hearts, we long for something else to read that evokes those same emotions. The Time Traveler's Wife is one of my all time favorite books. I still well up when I think of Henry & Claire. To get my hands on an early copy of Her Fearful Symmetry was like getting my Christmas gifts months early.

Ms. Niffenegger did not disappoint. Her new novel is a dark, gothic, ghost story. One could even say it is a dark, gothic, love story. The story features two different generation of twins. Elspeth & Edie. And Valentina & Julia. Valentina & Julia are living in America with their parents Edie & Jack when they receive word that Elspeth has passed away. The girls were left everything, on the condition that they move to London and live in Eslpeth's flat for one year.

The girls, kind of floundering after high school, decide to go. They discover that not only is England another country, it is a whole other world. They meet the family that Elspeth created for herself. The tenants of her building. Including her grieving lover, Robert. And the agoraphobic, Martin. Then the twins discover that they are not alone. That Elspeth is still very much present in their flat. Soon they are communicating with her on a regular basis. Elspeth's haunting soon takes on a more sinister meaning. Will the twins figure it out before permanent damage is done? Or will the ghost of Elspeth ruin their lives in ways that once was thought to be fictional?

Audrey Niffenegger has written a chilling ghost story. I am not a twin, I do not know what it is like struggle with the identity crisis that faces twins at some point in their lives. The Noblin twins make it seem that being a twin is almost destructive. . Her Fearful Symmetry is an engrossing love story that will chill you to the bone, and keep your imagination working overtime. It is well written and incredibly engrossing. Be prepared to pick your jaw up when you get to the last couple of chapters, the conclusion of this story will shock you. Her Fearful Symmetry is the perfect read for this ghoulish season. Be prepared to keep the lights on and the desk drawers unlocked....

I know this is a departure from books that I normally read. I wasn't even going to "count" it, but it *is* a book. So I am counting it.

I was standing in the Children's Department at work tonight , I had just given my five minute warning when this book caught my eye.

It is freaking ADORABLE!!! Tarra is a retired elephant who went to an elephant sanctuary to enjoy her retirement. Bella is one of the stray dogs that live on the property.

They become the BEST OF FRIENDS! They go everywhere together. They do everything together. Bella gets injured & has to go to the "big house" to heal. And Tarra misses her friend! She goes to the "big house" and pitches a fit until they carry Bella down the stairs to see her. Oh. My. Goodness.

This book is all sorts of cuteness. The story is touching, the pictures will melt your hearts! And if I am getting all gushy over the book, imagine what your child will do?

This movie is getting a LOT of buzz. Even some Oscar buzz. It is from the same people who brought you Monster's Ball. What do you think?