Sunday Salon

We definitely had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend together here. My son came home from college last Wednesday evening and just left this morning. And my fater-in-law came for a visit from South Dakota on Thursday and he just left this morning also.

Thursday I must admit that I made the best turkey that I have ever made in my life! I brined the turkey, which I have never done before, and the flavor and moistness was like none I have had before. I will definitely be brining a turkey in the future and would recommend it highly!

After stuffing ourselves with turkey, sweet potatoes, and pie, I ventured out with my kids on Thursday night to Wal-Mart and we bought a wii. Boy is that a fun game and it sure is a workout! So I told my daughter that when we have a disagreement we can take our frustrations out through the wii game!

In the spirit of Thanksgiving I am thankful for so many things including:

My family

My church

My home

My job, which so many are without

My bookclub friends

My blog and new blogging friends!

I am also thankful for winning a copy of Testimony from Redlady's Reading Room.

Well I am off to get some laundry done so I am ready for the week ahead. Try to get a little bit more reading in today, even though all my favorite shows are on tonight!

2009 What's In A Name Challenge

Now this sounds like a challenge that I can handle! All you need to do is read one book in each of the 6 categories during the year. The categories are as follows:

1. A book with a "profession" in its title
The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner--Completed 5/10/2009


2. A book with a "time of day" in its title.
The Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz--Completed 4/20/09


3. A book with a "relative" in its title.
Two Brothers-One North, One South by David H. Jones--Completed 6/16/2009


4. A book with a "body part" in its title.
BoneMan's Daughters by Ted Dekker--Completed 9/15/2009


5. A book with a "building" in its title.
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace...One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin--Completed 10/3/2009


6. A book with a "medical condition" in its title.
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger--Completed 12/10/2009


To join in the fun click here.

Teaser Tuesday-Nov. 25

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 (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

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!

Please avoid spoilers!

My teaser is from This One is Mine by Maria Semple:

"May I draw your attention to the office building across the steet."

Violet passed his car. It looked like he was taking off his shirt.

pg. 58

Review and Giveaway: Names My Sisters Call Me by Megan Crane

The following is a summary of Names My Sisters Call Me by Megan Crane from Hachette:

Courtney, Norah, and Raine Cassel are as different as three sisters can be. Norah, the oldest, is a type A obsessive who hasn't forgiven Raine, the middle sister, for ruining her wedding day six years ago. Raine is Norah's opposite, a wild child/performance artist/follow-your-bliss hippie chick who ran off to California. The only thing the two have in common is their ability to drive Courtney, their youngest sister, crazy.

When her longtime boyfriend proposes, Courtney decides it's finally time to call a truce and bring the three sisters together. After all, they're grown-ups now, right? But it turns out that family ghosts aren't easily defeated--and neither are first loves. Soon Courtney finds herself reexamining every choice she has made in the past six years--including the man she's about to marry--and the value of reconnecting with the sisters she knows she needs, in spite of everything.

My Review:

When I picked up Names My Sisters Call Me I really was expecting a fun, light read. Well I certainly did get what I expected, and more! One of the big themes in this book was not wanting to let go of first loves, but then finally learning to let go and move on. The family dynamics between the sisters and their mother was also another important aspect of the book and was very realistic.

Courtney has kept a close, yet somewhat strained relationship with her older and bossy sister Norah, but has not kept in touch with Raine since she fled from her family six years earlier. As Courtney is now engaged she is hoping that her sisters will be able to set aside their differences so they can share in the happy event of Courtney's nuptuals together as a family.

As Courtney's sisters reunite in their hometown to celebrate her engagement party, Courtney is tempted by the feelings that she has or had for her first love. Luckily, this part of the novel helped to reveal some underlying family issues in Courtney's life. It helped her to realize why she let her sisters treat her the way they do.

Even though the mother had a small part in the novel, I feel she made a very important statement. Knowing how different each of her daughters were, she showed her love and support for each of them even during the most trying times. One of my favorite parts of the book was when they were having 'Family Dinner', and mom brought out three cakes, a different cake for each daughter because they all had different tastes. For me, this was a way of embracing their differences instead of trying to fix or change them.

Everything did come together nicely at the end of the book, but not too nicely that it seemed unrealistic. The three sisters obviously still had some relationship issues to work out. Personally, this book really tugged at my heart, since I grew up without a father myself. I also want to share the line in the book that really impacted me, from pg 290, "I never learned how to love something that could love me back."

This was a great book that I would suggest for a book club or for personal reading, especially if you have a sister! I just can't wait to see how the rest of my book club liked it. I will be sure to share some of their comments after we meet to discuss it.

Feel free to check out Megan Crane's website to find out what kind of sister you are.

Giveaway:

Miriam from Hachette is offering to give away one copy of Names My Sisters Call Me by Megan Crane. To enter this giveaway you must be 18 or older and live in the US or Canada.

For one entry leave me a comment below.

For an additional entry, link this contest to your blog.

Please make sure I have a way to contact you if you win.

You have until December 6th to enter and I will draw for a winner on December 7th.

I've Been Tagged for Wyn's Sunday Meme

Jessica from Living Between the Pages tagged me for Wyn’s Sunday Meme. Make sure you check out both blogs. Thank you Jessica for being the first one to tag me!

The meme:
1. What book is on the left hand side of your computer or closest to the left hand side?
2. Are you reviewing it, is it your favourite, or is it there for some other reason and specify.
3. Go to page 38 and write down from the 2nd paragraph, the first 4 sentences.
4. Tag 4 friends and pass them this avatar.

The closest book to the left of my computer at home is Gardens of Water by Alan Drew. It is there because my bookshelf is to the left of my computer and it just happens to be the last book that I put on my shelf because it was just returned to me from friends that had borrowed it. I read this book about a year ago when my entire book club won Advanced Reader's Copies from Random House. This is one of my favorite books and one of the few books that was overwhelmingly enjoyed by almost everyone within my book group. This book deals with many different themes including, first love, family obligations, and differences in cultures and religions. Two very different families are thrown together to deal with their differences after living through a natural disaster. You can see a complete synopsis of Gardens of Water here.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would not hesitate to suggest it to someone for a leisurely read or for a book club discussion.


pg 38

He came to finally and found himself wrapped around the twisted mess of wrought iron. His shirt had caught on the metal, and it was pulled up over his head so that when he opened his eyes he faced the darkness of the material. For a moment he thought he was dead, then the pain at his temple shocked him into consciousness. His legs dangled over the edge of the rooftop.


Now to tag 4 fellow bloggers:

Julie at Julie's Jewels
Bonnie at Redlady's Reading Room
Lisa at Books and Cooks
Betty at Betty's Books

Teaser Tuesday-Nov. 18

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 (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

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!

Please avoid spoilers!

I'm still reading Names My Sisters Call Me from Megan Crane, so here is another teaser from that book:

Their casual, and thus evidently long-term intimacy hung around them like a sepia tent.

I may have been naive, but even I could see the freaking obvious.

pg. 175

Sunday Salon

Well it has certainly been a busy weekend for us here in Northern Wisconsin. And boy has it been cold! It has been lightly snowing off and on all day, which I don't mind if I am in a nice warm house all day!

I actually started my weekend on Thursday night, when I went out for Mexican with some friends and family. We originally planned it for Friday night, but then realized that wouldn't work so we had to move it up. Boy did we have a good time with our margaritas, salsa and chips!

My daughter is a senior in high school this year, and she is in the drama club that is performing 'It's a Wonderful Life' this weekend. So we went to see the play on Friday night, which was their first performance. My daughter thought the play was horrible that night, because they had a few kinks to work out, but I think those little mistakes make it even that more endearing. We had a great time and hats off to the young man that played the role of Old Man Potter...he was just a hoot!

Saturday I spent the afternoon with some friends of mine at a baby shower. The baby was also there so that was a special afternoon. She is just a couple of weeks old but you really do forget how tiny those precious ones are when they are born!

This afternoon I have just been trying to get caught up on some paperwork. How it multiplies I will never understand. One piece of information that excited me this weekend is that I found out that The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne has been made into a movie. I received that book as a Christmas present last year, so now I will definitely have to read it soon!

Well I am off to enjoy the rest of my Sunday with a book in my recliner, before I have to start a busy week all over again.