More mermaids but darker this time

Almost as good as the first one

If I was actually doing a TPGP this year, these books would be on it.

Grown up Harry Potter

Southern tale

Insite into adoption

Another futuristic teen read

Page turner

Lord of the Flies meets X-Men

Good one!

Films

Knit one

Snow Flower

Summer Read

Beautyshop

RVing

Circus

No envy here

Lean In

Sloucheroo

"Slouching Toward Adulthood" is a book that tells the story of what the children of helicopter parents are becoming/will become. Sally Koslow extensively interviewed families and recounts their stories of drifting young adults who often end up returning home after university.

Part of the "damage" helicopters parents create is the "I'm Special" generation. " Every decision parents make on their kids' behalf becomes a tiny Lego block whose ultimate destination is creating a monument of self-esteem with a big brain, sports mastery and suberb social skills. The destiny of each child, parents have grown to believe, is to realize and maximize their own brand of dinstinction" (p. 32). Koslow quotes a Harvard lecturer " We have a discomfort with discomfort. By the time they are teenagers, kids have no experience with hardship. Civilization is about adapting to less than perfect situations, yet parents often often have this instantaneous reaction to unpleasantness which is " I can fix this" (p. 32). I totally relate to this and am aware of letting my own children experience discomfort, After a recent birthday party, one of my kids got quite upset when their balloon popped. Part of me wanted to rush out to the store and replace the balloon but I realized the value in learning the lesson that balloons pop, and managing feelings of disappointment. Cha ching!

More gold... " It is up to us as parents to let our adult children determine their fates. This means being the gemeration that acts more like tough but tenderhesrted athletic coaches than fairy godparents with limitless credit cards and an indefatigable ability to solve problems" "If you want to raise children to be problem solvers and decision makers, you allow them to make reasonable choices and expect them to be responsible for their outcome. If you step back, they'll be able to step forward." (P254.)

Apocalypse Now

I am a huge fan of zombie movies, so it is about time I read a zombie book! After waiting for months on the library's wait list, I finally got my hands on "World War Z". I was lucky enough to get the large print text edition which made it faster to read! I couldn't put this one down, and finished it in two days. I was bracing myself for vivid zombie dreams but they have not happened...yet.

I was first turned on to this book after seeing the trailer for the upcoming movie of the same name due out in June. The story is written in interview format, years after the "Great Panic" when a zombie uprising affected the entire world. Fascinating recounts from all over the globe are included, from Canada's arctic to life aboard a Chinese submarine ( zombies in this war can survive under water).

I am next going to read this book's prequel, "Zombie Survival Guide". A great read! Enjoy it zombie fans!

Keepin it real

I first saw "On the Outside Looking Indian" at Chapters last summer. It struck my eye and I jotted down the title to read at a later date. I am glad that I finally got around to reading it!

This witty book is a memoir in which the author recounts her childhood growing up in Ontario in a fairly strict Indian family. She felt like she missed out on many "typical" childhood experiences, and so she sets out to fulfill those missed out opportunities in adulthood. My favourite part of the book was the numerous mentions of eighties pop culture, from food to tv shows. Each Chapter is named after an 80s sitcom! You will enjoy the author's sense of humour as you read about her learning to swim, visiting Disneyland and attending her first summer camp. Happy Reading!

Pack it up pack it in...

Well, I found a readable book after quite a break from this blog! In the past few weeks I have opened and closed several books without being able to finish them. I also lost much time to random ipad cruising, but I am back!

I just finished " Gone Girl" and my head is spinning. A whodonnit page turner, this book literally left me in shock! Crazy crazy crazy is all I can say. This book reads easily and turns out to be a thriller genre, although I did not realize that going in, You will not easily forget the characters in this bookl Reserve it at the library now!!

Kitchen House

"The Kitchen House" is set on a southern plantation in the time of slavery. It is told from the point of view of Lavinia who is an Irish child taken as a sort of slave, and Belle the kitchen house slave to whom she is assigned. The story takes place over many years and recounts the terrible practice of slavery and gives insight into how a plantation was run and the roles of the master, overseer etc. The characters are fascinating and as a reader, I really wanted to know what would happen to them. In the book notes at the end of my copy, the author indicated that she may write a sequel...I sure hope she does.

A life through books

"The End of Your Life Book Club" by Will Schwalbe is a must read! I first heard of this book in a write up in a magazine I used to subscribe to, and then suddenly it has been popping up everywhere. I didn't realize that it was non-ficton until I got my copy from the library.

This book recounts the author's story of spending two years enjoying his mother's company and companionship as she battles terminal cancer. Both Will and his mother Mary Ann love books and they form a sort of book club together between her chemotherapy appointments. The two book lovers discuss everything from children's books to religion in their book club and the reader is pulled in for the ride. At the end of the book is a list of all the works that their club discussed, and this list will certainly lead you to discover many wonderful tales.

Throughout the story, I ended up feeling as though I actually knew Mary Ann and one cannot help but wish they actually knew her in life, she is just so wonderful. You will be inspired.

A journey through life and death and books. An amazing book.

Why Have Kids?

"Why Have Kids, A New Mom Explores the Truth About Parenting and Happiness" is a thought provoking page turner. Guaranteed to spark debate and conflicting emotions, this is a super quick and extrememly fascinating read.

I was hooked from the beginning, as Valenti describes her initiation into parenting which involved bringing a 28 week old infant into the world, and all of the uncertainty and heartbreak that went along with it. Having a personal connection myself, I related to her introduction in which she describes disappointment with how her birth experience played out. Valenti writes honestly, and says the things that some of us maybe have wanted to but don't. "This feeling was something else. Something that no baby book or words of wisdom prepared me for. It wasn't unhapiness, so much as an unsettling sense of dissatisfaction, an itch of emptiness that was accompanied with overwhelming shame for not feeling "completed" by parenthood. This was not what I expected." (Xi). At the root of Valenti's thesis, is that parenting today "needs a paradigm shift" and that "the ideal that we're taught to seek and live out- doesn't come close to matching the reality". (Xi).

The book is divided into two sections, "Truth" and "Lies". Although your first impression of this book, especially just the title, might be that this book is anti-kids. It's not at all anti-kids, but it really explores the reality of parenting and the state of parenting expectations that are in place today.

Here are some passages in the book:

Women are still stuck believing that the most important thing they can do for their children is be there for them. All. The. Time. ...I simply don't believe that putting every bit of energy I have into parenting -at the expense of my career, marriage, and social life- will be the difference between [my daughter's] becoming homeless or the president. But too many women are made to believe that every tiny decision they make - from pacifiers to flash cards- will have a lasting impact on their child. It's a recipe for madness. (Page 75).

Women with children also suffer in the workplace in distinct ways that men do not. Male parents who work often have a wife ( either at home or at work) who does the bulk of child care. This support at home frees men up to work more hours and to network outside of work and after work hours- golf games, happy hours. For women with children at home, however, it's incredibly rare that they have similar support from their husbands. Women have a " second shift" at home, filled with child care and responsibilities beyond their work outside the home. (Page 148).

The truth about parenting is that the reality of our lives needs to be enough. Once we let go of a maternal and paternal ideal that doesn't exist, we can do the real work of loving our kids, and having fun doing it. (Page 166).

Read this book parents!

Ballet Book

I have always been fascinated by the world of ballet. I love ballet documentaries and movies ( even the cheesy ones like "Center Stage"). So when I stumbled upon " The Cranes Dance" at the library, I had to check it out.

Reading this book was a definite flashback to the movie "Black Swan". I had to check the publishing date to see if it was written before or after the movie... It was after. The story is told by the eldest Crane sister,Kate who is a dancer at a major company in New York. Her sister Gwen is also a principal dancer at the same company, but is struggling with a mental illness. There are lots of behind the scenes ballet tidbits as well as the mad flashes of insanity that made "Black Swan" so compelling. A good read!

Silver Linings Playbook

"Silver Linings Playbook" presents a fascinating character study. Pat has recently been sprung out of a mental institution by his mother and is trying to put his life back together. He is a hilarious narrator, I enjoyed seeing life through his eyes and especially liked following his intense daily workouts, which often involved running for ten miles wearing a garbage bag.

I watched the trailer for the movie version that is currently in theatres and it looks quite different from the book. Read the book first!!

Flashback

My daughter and I finished reading our first chapter book together, E.B. White's classic "Stuart Little". In fact, after reading two chapters a night and finishing it over a week, we read it again!

Stuart Little is a mouse born to the Little family in New York. He loves adventure and seeks to explore the big world around him through toy boats, model cars and flights with birds.

This story brings me back to my childhood, although now I obviously have a grown up take on it. My daughter enjoyed the story, especially the parts with Margalo the bird. I was a bit critical of a few parts and out of date points in the story...

- Stuart asking for a "nip of brandy" after spending the night in the fridge
- characters smoking in the story
- Stuart runs away and does not tell his family where he is, the story ends and his family is never mentioned
- Stuart meets a girl of his own size and then sulks throughout their blind date ( I kind of liked him for this, but felt sorry that he could have missed out on the love of his life!)
- when Stuart's canoe is destroyed on the blind date, he tells the girl something along the lines of " a woman can never understand these kind of things"

This book is certainly a classic and makes for an entertaining read! We are now onto our next series of chapter books " The Rainbow Fairies". I do not have high expectations from these...no one can outdo E.B. White!