Poison Study by Maria Snyder

I heard about this book on a blog and put it on hold a while back. Once I started reading it I finished the same day because I couldn't put it down! Poison Study is about a young woman named Yelena who is condemned to die but spared in return for becoming the food tester for the 'king'. With recent political unrest, varying factions, no family and no friends to call her own, Yelena struggles and grows as she learns to survive. I couldn't wait to see how the story would resolve and to solve the big mystery- why did Yelena kill someone in the first place and how is she going to come to terms with her life? Between the setting of the story, the relationships, the elements of her past, the food, the physical and mental growth she experiences, I was really entertained and impressed. I loved this book and would recommend it as a coming of age and growing up despite hard times story over the silly Hunger Games any day.

Juliet by Anne Fortier

I've been reading a ton of books lately and fallen behind! Here's a book club book I read over the summer- Juliet by Anne Fortier. The story focuses on a young woman named Julie who is floundering through life until the death of her Aunt (and mother figure) sends her to recover a mysterious inheritance in Italy. She learns that she may be related to Juliet (as in... Romeo and Juliet) and discovers more about herself and her history along the way. There's action, history, love, speculation, mystery, and even some intrigue. It was a good read although a little slow in parts. The author obviously loved Italy and did a great job sharing details that made me feel like I was there.

Heaven is Here by Stephanie Nielson

I read Stephanie Nielson's new book "Heaven is Here" about a month ago. 'Nie Nie', a popular blogger, Mormon wife and mother, was in a terrible plane crash a few years ago. This book recounts her life before and her recovery. It was pretty heart wrenching to hear of her loss but triumphant to see your recover, grow stronger each day and share her hope and message of the love of our Savior and the importance of our families. It made me want to be a better mother, to be more patient and appreciative. And never to ride in a small plane! I know that's terrible but this book was really inspirational and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to change their perspective for the better.

Lord of the Rings- Fellowship of the Ring

For Christmas my husband asked that I read the Lord of the Rings books. It was free (minus 50 hours or whatever my mom pointed out) and he really wanted to so I said yes. The, a couple days after I cracked open the first book I dusted off a book I'd picked up at a book signing a few months ago. It was shiny and red and sounded interesting though I didn't know much about it. Three weeks and thousands and thousands of pages later I'd read the entire Outlander series and the Fellowship was gathering dust. I finally finished it last week (helped out a by the proximity of my new Kindle) and I have to say I did enjoy it. It was a little rough getting into but the story of good and evil is always relevant. Tolkien was obviously an incredible writer and it's not hard to get lost in his world, imaginative and vast yet strikingly similar to our own.

A few impressive quotes-

"Such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere." -Elrond

I'm sure this could apply to a million things but to me of course motherhood comes to mind.

"'I wish it need not have happened in my time,' said Frodo.
'So do I,' said Gandalf, 'and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.'"

I'm a little bit into the second book (seamless transitional on the Kindle, it's pretty great). Hopefully I'll finish before another Outlander book comes out, haha!)

These is my Words

Book club has started at Church again. I have a hard time with this because people are really unpredictable in their book choices and preferences. I hate to recommend a book and be told off that it was terrible and inappropriate and then feel that I must be too by extension. So I'm along for the Church book club ride for now. But I jumped on the wagon to reread this book because I loved it so much when I read it a few years (for the first time in 2008 I think). This time I read it, I couldn't help but think about Claire and Jamie and their relationship compared to Sarah's. These is my Words is a beautiful novel, inspired by a true story of Nancy Turner's ancestor. She lives in the Arizona Territory, overcomes loss, disaster, death, and the run of the mill stuff that would probably kill the rest of us (primitive standard of living, limited women's rights, etc). This book inspired me to be stronger, to suck it up and be grateful I have a washing machine and remember that I can do hard things. And to hold my babies close and enjoy them- life can change on a dime and while it's not helpful to stress over that, it is important to stop and be grateful every day.

The Time Traveler's Wife

I posted about The Time Traveler's Wife last year but since I intend this blog to be a sort of personal reading log I'm posting again. Last night I was stashing something in the hall book case and saw this book and thought I should reread it. So I started, put in two or three hours last night and then finished this morning. I didn't mean to have a marathon session (particularly since I knew the ending already and easily started to tear up at all the foreshadowing) but I couldn't put it down. I love the characters and this reading I really saw a lot of my husband in Henry. I know it's easy to project when reading but I normally feel that way. This was another book that reminded me to treasure my life and my husband, to appreciate the everyday and not stress over the little things. A beautiful book to treasure and read again and again.

See it on Amazon.

The Hunger Games Trilogy

I wasn't in a huge rush to read this book (having recently neglected laundry and more devouring the Outlander series) but figured I might as well put The Hunger Games on hold and read it eventually- I was number 300 in line so it would probably be next year or something. Apparently, though, people devour these books and the library has a million copies because it came up for me not two months later. After reading thick, historical, adult-oriented books, I flew through this YA novel in about four hours. The story of 17 year old Katniss Everdeen, struggling to survive and protect her family in post-apocalyptic North America was very interesting. I couldn't wait to see how the author would resolve some of the issues presented. Although some of the story was predictable, I still enjoyed watching it unfold. The underlying issues of hunger, desperation, growing up, corruption were difficult and made me think about my own life and how I would react. After I finished the first one I read the next two the next day (unlike Outlander, it actually only takes a couple hours to read one of these, so that was nice). Some of my predictions did come true as the story resolved itself but I was mostly pleased with the way the story wraps up, particularly the resolution of the love triangle between Katniss and Gail and Peeta. I liked the way Katniss explained her final decision and felt it was realistic. Reading the story from her perspective was entertaining, as well- lots of action and good insight into her thoughts.

Did these books change my life? No. They were engrossing but at times I felt like the pace was off- too fast at the end, making me wonder if I had missed things. I felt like the ending flew by. There is a ton of symbolism (often kind of blatant- like she wanted people to rip the books apart and find things barely hidden) and lots to think about. I'm not sure I would want my 12 year old to read them (though I did appreciate that there wasn't a blatant sex scene like I almost expected). I haven't seen the movie since I wanted to read them first but I'm not sure how disturbing the teens killing teens theme would be on screen. For now, I am grateful for my docile, uneventful life.