Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Teaser Tuesday-Oct. 29

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from Should Be Reading. TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

This week my teaser is from In the Land of Blue Burqas by Kate McCord:
In Afghanistan, virtually every aspect of the culture finds its support in some Islamic teaching.  Religion and culture are intertwined; the first justifies and defends the second.

pg. 164

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Audiobook Review: Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin

Title:  Golden Boy

Author:  Abigail Tarttelin

Narrators:  Christian Coulson, James Langton, Abigail Tarttelin, Keith Nobbs, Kate Reading, Anita Sabherwal

Unabridged Length:  12 hrs, 40 mn.



Here is a summary of the book from the publisher's website:
The Walker family is good at keeping secrets from the world. They are even better at keeping them from each other.

Max Walker is a golden boy. Attractive, intelligent, and athletic, he's the perfect son, the perfect friend, and the perfect crush for the girls in his school. He's even really nice to his little brother. Karen, Max's mother, is a highly successful criminal lawyer, determined to maintain the façade of effortless excellence she has constructed through the years. Now that the boys are getting older, now that she won’t have as much control, she worries that the façade might soon begin to crumble. Adding to the tension, her husband, Steve, has chosen this moment to stand for election to Parliament. The spotlight of the media is about to encircle their lives.

The Walkers are hiding something, you see. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. When an enigmatic childhood friend named Hunter steps out of his past and abuses his trust in the worst possible way, Max is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won't his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition and from each other? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds, especially now that he's starting to fall head over heels for someone for the first time in his life. Will his friends accept him if he is no longer the Golden Boy? Will anyone ever want him — desire him — once they know? And the biggest one of all, the question he has to look inside himself to answer: Who is Max Walker, really?


My Review:
I have to start this review by saying this is probably one of the best audiobooks I ever listened to.  I am sure the fact that the book is pretty amazing also had something to do with that.  I must admit I was a little cautious with the intersex subject because it seems that other authors that have taken on this theme turned it into something dirty or racy.  Tarttelin did the opposite.  We get an up close look into young Max's heart as he comes to terms with his oddity.

The chapters of this book are told from various perspectives, including Max's younger brother Daniel, both his mother and father, his friend Sylvie from school, and even a Dr. who suddenly comes into his life.  One of my favorite things about this book was that there were different narrators for each of our main characters, depending upon whose perspective that particular chapter belonged to.  Could any of these narrators have possibly done a better job?  I don't think so as I felt that each of the narrators embraced their character in such a way that it seemed each character was brought to life for me.

One of my favorite parts of this book was that even though Max knew he was different from everyone, he never felt insecure about who he was until one life-changing moment.  When a friend violates their friendship, Max finds himself questioning everything about himself.  What will happen with the other boys start getting muscular and growing facial hair?  How could he possibly ever have a family of his own?  These are just a couple of the problems Max must face in the near future.

Although I listened to most of this book, I did have to read the last 50 pages due to technical difficulties with my iPod.  I think I can safely say I would have enjoyed this book just as much had I actually read it.  Can you tell that I really loved this novel?  With themes of secrets, family, truth, and personal identity, I think many of you would love this book as much as I do.  I highly recommend this novel for either personal leisure or as a book club selection.

My Rating:  5/5

 Disclosure:  This audiobook was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.



 
The Walker family is good at keeping secrets from the world. They are even better at keeping them from each other.

Max Walker is a golden boy. Attractive, intelligent, and athletic, he’s the perfect son, the perfect friend, and the perfect crush for the girls in his school. He’s even really nice to his little brother. Karen, Max’s mother, is a highly successful criminal lawyer, determined to maintain the façade of effortless excellence she has constructed through the years. Now that the boys are getting older, now that she won’t have as much control, she worries that the façade might soon begin to crumble. Adding to the tension, her husband, Steve, has chosen this moment to stand for election to Parliament. The spotlight of the media is about to encircle their lives.

The Walkers are hiding something, you see. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. When an enigmatic childhood friend named Hunter steps out of his past and abuses his trust in the worst possible way, Max is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won’t his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition and from each other? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds, especially now that he’s starting to fall head over heels for someone for the first time in his life. Will his friends accept him if he is no longer the Golden Boy? Will anyone ever want him—desire him— once they know? And the biggest one of all, the question he has to look inside himself to answer: Who is Max Walker, really? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Golden-Boy/Abigail-Tarttelin/9781476705804#sthash.QBn5SQrm.dpuf
The Walker family is good at keeping secrets from the world. They are even better at keeping them from each other.

Max Walker is a golden boy. Attractive, intelligent, and athletic, he’s the perfect son, the perfect friend, and the perfect crush for the girls in his school. He’s even really nice to his little brother. Karen, Max’s mother, is a highly successful criminal lawyer, determined to maintain the façade of effortless excellence she has constructed through the years. Now that the boys are getting older, now that she won’t have as much control, she worries that the façade might soon begin to crumble. Adding to the tension, her husband, Steve, has chosen this moment to stand for election to Parliament. The spotlight of the media is about to encircle their lives.

The Walkers are hiding something, you see. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. When an enigmatic childhood friend named Hunter steps out of his past and abuses his trust in the worst possible way, Max is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won’t his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition and from each other? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds, especially now that he’s starting to fall head over heels for someone for the first time in his life. Will his friends accept him if he is no longer the Golden Boy? Will anyone ever want him—desire him— once they know? And the biggest one of all, the question he has to look inside himself to answer: Who is Max Walker, really? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Golden-Boy/Abigail-Tarttelin/9781476705804#sthash.QBn5SQrm.dpuf
The Walker family is good at keeping secrets from the world. They are even better at keeping them from each other.

Max Walker is a golden boy. Attractive, intelligent, and athletic, he’s the perfect son, the perfect friend, and the perfect crush for the girls in his school. He’s even really nice to his little brother. Karen, Max’s mother, is a highly successful criminal lawyer, determined to maintain the façade of effortless excellence she has constructed through the years. Now that the boys are getting older, now that she won’t have as much control, she worries that the façade might soon begin to crumble. Adding to the tension, her husband, Steve, has chosen this moment to stand for election to Parliament. The spotlight of the media is about to encircle their lives.

The Walkers are hiding something, you see. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. When an enigmatic childhood friend named Hunter steps out of his past and abuses his trust in the worst possible way, Max is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won’t his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition and from each other? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds, especially now that he’s starting to fall head over heels for someone for the first time in his life. Will his friends accept him if he is no longer the Golden Boy? Will anyone ever want him—desire him— once they know? And the biggest one of all, the question he has to look inside himself to answer: Who is Max Walker, really? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Golden-Boy/Abigail-Tarttelin/9781476705804#sthash.QBn5SQrm.dpuf

Monday, October 21, 2013

Mailbox Monday-Oct. 21

Mailbox Monday is a great meme that has us list the books that we receive.  Different bloggers now have the opportunity to host this meme for a month at a time.  This month you can check out what everyone received over at Book Dragon's Lair.

Here is what showed up at my house:
The Rosie Project by GraemeSimsion (audiobook)

Red Hill by Jamie McGuire (audiobook)

Well last week was exhausting for me, but I think I was able to rest up this last weekend and I am hopefully back in the groove of things.  I am excited to listen to both of these books so we will see how they turn out!  Have a great week of reading everyone!

Friday, October 11, 2013

Review: Rescue by Anita Shreve

Here is a summary of the book from the Goodreads website:

 A rookie paramedic pulls a young woman alive from her totaled car, a first rescue that begins a lifelong tangle of love and wreckage. Sheila Arsenault is a gorgeous enigma--streetwise and tough-talking, with haunted eyes, fierce desires, and a never-look-back determination. Peter Webster, as straight an arrow as they come, falls for her instantly and entirely. Soon Sheila and Peter are embroiled in an intense love affair, married, and parents to a baby daughter. Like the crash that brought them together, it all happened so fast.

Can you ever really save another person? Eighteen years later, Sheila is long gone and Peter is raising their daughter, Rowan, alone. But Rowan is veering dangerously off track, and for the first time in their ordered existence together, Webster fears for her future. His work shows him daily every danger the world contains, how wrong everything can go in a second. All the love a father can give a daughter is suddenly not enough.

Sheila's sudden return may be a godsend--or it may be exactly the wrong moment for a lifetime of questions and anger and longing to surface anew. What tore a young family apart? Is there even worse damage ahead? The questions lifted up in Anita Shreve's utterly enthralling new novel are deep and lasting, and this is a novel that could only have been written by a master of the human heart.


My Review:   
I think one of the reasons that I enjoy Shreve's writing so much, is she can take a situation that could happen to anyone, and delve into the hearts of all involved.  Her characters are real, and even when you don't like them, or some of the things they do, I believe events unfold in a way that they probably would in real life.

Webster is our main character in Rescue.  He is a young man with hopes and dreams ahead of him.  He fell in love with a piece of land not far from where he lives now, and he plans to build a home there, hopefully for the family he will have one day.  As an EMT worker he knows he will never be rich, but should be able to support a family somewhat comfortably.

Everything changes for Webster one day when he is called to the scene of a car accident.  When he rescues Sheila from the wreckage of her car, his life takes off in a new direction.  He finds himself drawn to Sheila, overlooking all the warning signs that come along with her lifestyle.  Before too long he finds himself with the family he dreamt of, but not yet being able to provide all the things he wanted.
  
When I think back to this novel, I fell that it truly went full circle.  As we follow Webster and Sheila's lives together and watch Webster's hopes and dreams fizzle and then evolve again.  Many parts of this story were not happy, but honestly, that is what happens when you try to take someone under your wing with demons that will not be contained.

I'm not going to give away any more of this novel but I can tell you I thoroughly enjoyed it.  With themes of love, anger, addictions, and forgiveness, this book would be great for a book club discussion or read for personal leisure.  I don't hesitate in recommending this novel.

My Rating:  4/5

Disclosure:  This book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Teaser Tuesday-Oct. 8

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from Should Be Reading. TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

This week my teaser is from Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin:
Maybe they thought by introducing him to it at a young age he'd grow up okay with it.  But you can start out with all the good intentions you like and still everything can go wrong.

pg. 291

Monday, October 7, 2013

What are you Reading?

Sheila over at Book Journey hosts this meme that gives you the opportunity to share the books that you have been losing yourself in lately and also the ones that you are looking forward to picking up next.

Here is what I finished:
Rescue by Anita Shreve has been on my shelf for the last two years so I finally decided to read this one.  Shreve is one of my favorite authors so I don't know why it took so long!  I enjoyed this novel and I will try to have my review up this week.

What I'm reading now:
I started listening to Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin on my iPod, but for some reason the book did not download in it's entirety.  So I decided to find the physical book to be able to finish it.  This was an awesome book and I can't wait to write my review for it.  Amazing!

What's next?
Our next book club selection is In the Land of Blue Burqas by Kate McCord.  Our group only reads one non-fiction book a year and I have a feeling this one is going to be a winner!

So what's been keeping you busy lately?  I've had so much going on in my life it has been kind of crazy.  One book I didn't list in this post is The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.  This was our latest book club selection and although I didn't finish the book in its entirety before our meeting I have read it before.  I found that I loved more about that novel than the first time I read it.  I was surprised at our meeting to find that most of the ladies did not appreciate this gem as much as I did.  That is one of the great things about our book club though, how we all have different tastes and preferences.  You can read my review here if you are interested.

Have a great week everyone!

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Audiobook Review: The Third Son by Julie Wu


Title:  The Third Son

Author:  Julie Wu

Narrator:  David Shih

Unabridged Length:  aprox. 10.5 hrs

Here is a summary of the book from the publisher's website

It’s 1943 as air-raid sirens blare in Japanese-occupied Taiwan, eight-year-old Saburo is in no hurry to go home to the abuse he suffers at the hands of his parents and older brother. In the peach forests of Taoyuan, he encounters Yoshiko, whose loving family is like a glimpse of paradise for him. Their brief meeting is a memory he cherishes from that moment forward, and for years after he tries to locate her again. But when he finally does, she is by the side of his eldest brother and greatest rival.

As the Chinese Nationalist Army lays claim to the island after the war, Saburo bravely struggles to break free of the future assigned him by heritage and circumstance and to go in search of new frontiers.


My Review:
I love reading books that give me a glimpse into another time and place and with Julie Wu's first novel, she did a pretty good job.  She introduces us to Saburo, a young Chinese boy living in Japanese-occupied Taiwan.  We follow Saburo through his life triumphs and struggles as he strives for a better life.

I think the beginning of the book was my favorite part as we look at life through young Saburo's eyes.  Everyone is struggling to put food on the table and the air raids keep children close to home, not knowing when they will strike or who could be wounded.  Children are taught to run for cover holding their backpacks over their heads, no matter how bulky they are and how much this can slow them down.  The day Saburo meets Yoshiko he finally realizes how silly this action is, knowing a schoolbook will not offer protection from a bomb.

Saburo creates an instant friendship with Yoshiko and even when they seem to disappear from each others lives, she is always in his thoughts.  When he ponders his future he learns that he desires more for his life than his parents expect from him.  Since he is not the first-born son, he is not given priority for better schooling and other opportunities.  So Saburo quickly learns that if he is going to find any success for himself, he is going to have to work hard and make it happen on his own.

This is a story about a young man with the odds stacked against him.  Saburo does not accept his fate as he studies harder than any other family member setting him on a track that will allow him to escape the turmoil that has been cast upon Taiwan.  It was a heart-wrenching and difficult journey for Saburo but he does persevere, allowing him to achieve his dreams.

I don't want to give any more of this book away, but it was enjoyable.  David Shih brought Saburo's character to life for me and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to his narration.  As much as I enjoyed this book, I have to admit that I didn't love it, but I do think Wu is off to a great start with this novel and I definitely look forward to her next book.  With themes of love, war, family obligations, and perseverance, you may enjoy this book just as much as I did, or even more!  I recommend this novel as a book club selection or for personal leisure.

My Rating:  3/5

Disclosure:  This book was provided to me by the publisher through the Audio Jukebox program in exchange for an honest review.