Firefly Lane book review

This past weekend, I actually had one whole hour to myself, and I was able to read outside, uninterrupted, for that entire hour!  I can't remember the last time that happened, and I enjoyed every second of it.  I used that time to finish Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. The book tells the story of Tully and Kate, two girls who become best friends at the age of 14 in the 1970s and remain best friends for the next three decades.  Here's an excerpt from the summary on the author's website:

For thirty years, Tully and Kate buoy each other through life, weathering the storms of friendship---jealousy, anger, hurt, resentment. They think they've survived it all until a single act of betrayal tears them apart…and puts their courage and friendship to the ultimate test.

I gave the book three stars out of five on Goodreads for a few different reasons.  My favorite part of the book (and this is going to sound really shallow) had to be all the different descriptions of the clothing and hair styles throughout the years.  I'm definitely not someone who keeps up on the latest fashion trends, but it was fun to read about the high-powered working woman suits of the 80s (complete with shoulder pads):


And popular hairstyles like "The Rachel," from Jennifer Aniston's character on Friends in the 1990s:


Parts of this book were entertaining, and the primary setting was Seattle, which I don't know a lot about, so it was interesting to read and I learned a lot.  However, I didn't particularly care for either of the main characters or their relationship (which is unfortunate, since that's what the book was based around).  Tully is self-centered, prideful, and unapologetic (her rough childhood made her this way, so I get it), and Kate is meek and content to be in Tully's shadow.  Throughout the whole book, both characters yearn for the life the other has (your typical "grass is always greener on the other side" idea), and Kate pretty much lets Tully walk all over her (with brief moments of courage throughout).  All of this wouldn't bother me as much if one or both had been dynamic, but by the end, I didn't really feel like either one of them had changed.  Maybe that was the idea or the goal, and Kristin Hannah wanted to show that they had stayed the same through years of change around them.  I'm not sure.  Also, and I won't give away a spoiler, but the end was hard for me to read because it was extremely emotional and a little too close to something I've experienced recently in my own life.  As I finished the book, I had tears running down my face, and that was not enjoyable to me.

All in all, I enjoyed reading the book as long as I didn't think too hard about it :).  I started The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, so I will be blogging about that soon.

Has anyone else read either of these books?  I would love to know your thoughts!

"We all want to be good parents"

This past weekend, I finished reading Defending Jacob, by William Landay (see previous post for a summary).  I obviously won't give away any spoilers, but the ending...wow.  Just wow.  To be honest, I don't know if I can say that I really liked this book, BUT I couldn't stop reading it.  Does that make sense?  Kind of like how when you see an accident on I-75, you don't WANT to look, but you can't stop yourself from looking.  I think this book had such an impact on me because I'm a mom of two boys, and the fourteen-year-old boy in this book is being accused of murder.  The story really grapples with the idea of how far parents will go for their children.  I read an interview that Landay gave, and this is an excerpt from the interview that hit home with me:

I have two kids myself, boys who are seven and ten years old as I write this, so I understand how vulnerable our children make us, emotionally. We all want good things for our children. We all want to be good parents, make good decisions, do the right thing. And of course we all want to feel proud of our kids. But for a certain percentage of us, an unlucky few, it won’t work out that way. Inevitably some good parents — smart, well-meaning, conscientious people who do everything right — will see their kids wander into trouble anyway. It’s a risk you take when you have kids, and every parent knows it.  http://www.williamlanday.com/books/defending-jacob/defending-jacob-qa/

Ugh, if that doesn't give me even more to worry about with regards to parenting, I don't know what does.  As I read, I tried to put myself in the mom and dad's shoes...and then I got so bothered and disturbed about trying to do that, I had to quit.  I had the same experience one time when I read Jodi Picoult's book Nineteen Minutes, about a school shooting.  It's just a scenario that's a little too close to home, I think.

I won't tell you if Jacob is innocent or guilty, but I do want to share a picture of "Jacob" from Landay's own web site:


It seems as though Landay is wanting a certain message to be portrayed about his character, don't you think?  Yikes.

I moved on to the book Firefly Lane, by Kristin Hannah.  I had heard of this author by looking through Mrs. Palmer's "read" books on Goodreads, and the book was a monthly Kindle deal this month, so it seemed like the perfect time to give her a shot.  I'm about 25 % of the way through the book, and I'm enjoying it.  It's about two eighth-grade girls who have unexpectedly become best friends, and it takes place in the 1970s, so I love the fashion descriptions.  More on this book is to come, so stayed tuned!

Question for my readers:  In this post, I shared two books that disturbed me, yet I read them anyway.  Have you ever read a book that affected you emotionally but you kept reading?  Let me know!

100 Books to Read In A Lifetime

Several weeks ago, I ran across an article about how the editors at Amazon compiled a list of 100 books everyone should read in their lifetime.  I LOVE lists, and I LOVE books, so this had my name written all over it! Here is a link to the list:

100 books everyone should read in their lifetime

I looked through all the titles, and I've read 32 of them.  32.  Yikes.  I must admit at first, I felt a bit like a failure...until I remembered that this list is opinion-based, and then I felt a little better.  In all seriousness, it's a pretty fascinating list.  It encompasses all genres, age levels, and interests, everything from Goodnight Moon to The Autobiography of Malcolm X.  My challenge to you is to see if you can read at least one of these books yet this trimester and then blog about your experience, including why you think it made the list.  I encourage you to select a grade-appropriate choice (Charlotte's Web, while a terrific read, may not be quite grade-appropriate), but even if you just revisit a classic you used to love, you would be fulfilling the challenge.

How many books have you read from the list?  What book(s) will you try to read this trimester?

My March Reading Wrap-Up

Hello all!  I've been a busy reader since my last post.  I spent a lot of time on airplanes and in airports earlier this month, and I always find that I am able to read a lot in that setting.  I was also on a little mini-vacation, so I did lots of reading by the beach.  I finish Kate Manning's My Notorious Life, which was historical fiction loosely based on a real person.  You can revisit my previous post about this book for plot information.  It was an interesting read, but I'm not sure I would recommend it.  The dialogue formatting bothered me throughout most of the book (again, see previous post), and without giving any spoilers, the ending just didn't seem like a plausible and / or authentic way to end the story.  I did break out of my usual genre of reading, however, and overall, it was a good reading experience.

I then moved on to John Grisham's newest novel, Sycamore Row.  This was on the New York Times bestseller list for quite a while, and I thought the summary sounded interesting.  It's actually sort of a sequel to his book A Time To Kill, and while I never read the book, I did see the movie years ago and thought it was excellent.  Here is a clip of John Grisham talking about the book on the CBS morning show:

The main character, Jake Brigance, is so relatable, and I couldn't help but root for him throughout the story because he is the underdog (and who doesn't love an underdog?).  This book was a quick, engaging read that threw in a twist at the end and gave the necessary motivation for certain plot events, which I very much need and appreciate as a reader.  

I have now moved on to William Landay's Defending Jacob.  I've been wanting to read this book for a long time, but I just never have because the subject seemed a little too "heavy."  Here is the Goodreads summary:

Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.

Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy. Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him. Andy must. He’s his father. But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own—between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he’s tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.

Award-winning author William Landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis—a suspenseful, character-driven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control.

As a mother of two boys (and as a teacher of 14-year-old students), I am already struggling to read parts of this book, because I literally cannot imagine being put in this situation.  Absolutely terrifying.  My biggest problem so far with this book (and I'm about 1/4 of the way through it) is that I don't particularly care for the main character, Andy Barber.  The book is written in first person, and I feel like at times, he is saying things or thinking things just to convey something to the reader, and it doesn't sound like what someone would actually say or think.  For example, at one point, Andy thinks, "I was tempted to hide Jacob's laptop...but I worried that stashing the computer would hurt him either way:  if the computer went missing, that would be suspicious, given his online presence; on the other hand, if found it might contain devastating evidence" (Landay 97).  It just feels a little too explanatory to me.  It's a small annoyance, however, in an otherwise intriguing story.  

Since spring break is coming up, I'm looking for some new book suggestions.  Does anyone have any for me?  I would love to hear them!  

Thanks, and keep reading!

Welcome to Third Tri!

Hello, students!  Welcome to your Honors English IB class and your second trimester of blogging.  We have a few changes this trimester in regards to blogging, which can be found on the sheet provided in class.  As an overview, you are required to write one solid, detailed blog post per week and comment on two other students' blogs (again, detailed, thoughtful comments).  We are also going to provide you with  multiple blog post topics, so you should never say, "I don't have anything to blog about."

Since today is the first blogging day of the new tri, you have a couple of tasks with your blog:

 1)  On my blog page, you need to click on "Enter your blog information here" located on the right-hand side near the top.

2) Enter your blog information.  (To do this you need to log in to Google, go to Blogger, and click VIEW BLOG).  Your URL is what you see in the top window.  It should NOT look like this:
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8841072407200182#editor/target=post;postID=9509676772139
If your URL has the word "blogger" in it, you are in edit mode.  Your URL should look something like this:
http://brossclassroomz323.blogspot.com/
Enter the information and your class period.

3)  Log in to Goodreads.  Enter what book you are currently reading and update the page number.  Also, update your reading goal if needed.  (You may still be working on your reading goal from last trimester, and that is okay.  But if you exceeded it, please set a new one).

4) Friend Mrs. Bross in Goodreads.  To do this, click on the drop-down arrow to the right of your name.  Select "Friends."  Then,  on the right-hand side go to "find by name or email."  Type in "Mandi Bross."  I am the only person with that name on Goodreads, so it should be fairly easy to find me.  Friend a few other people in the class as well.  I can't WAIT to see your updates.

5) Your final task: write a new post!  Your topic idea can come from the handout provided to you today in class.  Or, you can tell me what your favorite book was from last trimester and why you liked it so much (you could even make it like a book review for your peers).  Aim for a solid two paragraphs and show me that you can do at least one of the following: insert a hyperlink to a webpage, article, etc.; insert a video; or insert a picture.

Once you have accomplished all of the following, I would like you to spend the rest of the class time exploring Goodreads, especially checking out your recommendations and adding books to your "Want to read" list.  If you don't have recommendations yet, spend some time going back and rating books you've read in the past so you can get recommendations.

A Different Sort of Read...

I finished reading The Rosie Project several weeks ago, and I was just kind of neutral about it.  I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, but it wasn't one of my worst reading experiences.  Have I convinced you to read it?! :)  Don't worry, I'm not trying to!  The plot line was just so predictable, and I'm one who likes some twists and turns in my stories.  This was very much your typical romantic / comedic structure (boy meets girl, they seem like an unlikely match, they start to fall for each other, conflict happens and they stop talking, they reconcile...you know the drill).  My philosophy is that any time spent reading at all is time well spent, so I guess I should just chalk it up to being a step closer to my 2014 reading goal. 

The book I'm currently reading is called My Notorious Life by Kate Manning.  I hadn't heard of this book or author, but it was a Kindle Daily Deal a few weeks ago and it got lots of high ratings, so I thought I'd try it out.  I don't usually pick up historical fiction, but that's the genre of this book.  It's set in the Civil War-era New York City.  The main character, Axie Muldoon (is that a great name or what?!), is the child of impoverished Irish immigrants.  The Goodreads summary says that "she grows up to become one of the wealthiest and most controversial women of her day," while advocating for women's reproductive rights (a very controversial topic during that time).  In fact, the book is "inspired by the true history of an infamous female physician who was once called the 'wickedest woman in New York.'" I've honestly never read a book like this before.  Axie is a little spitfire of a girl, which I like because she is so feisty and independent, and since the story is told in first-person point of view, I feel like I am really getting to know Axie.  I'm about 50 percent of the way through the book, and while it started slowly, I'm now fully engaged and can't wait to find out what happens to make her such a hated figure in New York. 

One of the reasons it took me a while to "get used to" this book, I guess you could say, is the way the dialogue is formatted.  It's not in quotation marks, like dialogue is supposed to be written.  Here is an excerpt from the book that shows you both the dialect and the formatting of the dialogue:

     -For faith they've their home here.  It's not no castle, sure, but it's ours.
     -The best of all asylums for the child of unhappy fortune is the farmer's home.
     -I lived in a farmer's home all me life and it's just why we emigrated.
     -Madam, it is your duty to get these children away to kind Christian families in the country, where they will be better off. 

It took me a long time to get used to this formatting, but now, it doesn't really bother me.  I hope to finish the book within the next week...but with grading creative non-fiction projects, this may not be a realistic goal!  We shall see! 

Have you ever read a book that used some kind of strange formatting that made it difficult for you to read at first?  What was it? 

Happy reading!

My goals for 2014

Happy New Year!  I must confess that it's been a while since my last post.  That being said, one of my goals for 2014 (see post title) is to post more frequently on my blog.  I find that it holds me accountable with my reading, pushing me to read more often and reflect more carefully during and after my reading. 

Since my last post, I've finished two books and started a third (yay me!).  I finished Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman.  I really enjoyed this book and the break from fiction; I typically always read fiction because that's what I enjoy, but it's good to break out of my Jodi Picoult / Veronica Roth-filled comfort zone every now and then.  My previous post mentioned that I have a bit of a strange obsession with the prison system, and this book pointed out a lot of the disfunctions within the prison system in our country.  The fact that it's written from a female's perspective also gave me a different "appreciation" (not really the right word, but I don't know what would be for this description) for the struggles female prisoners deal with daily that are different from those of male prisoners.  For example, many are loving mothers who have made bad choices, sometimes with the intent of providing for their children.  It brings up a lot of interesting questions about poverty and inequality in our country. 

Over break, I read Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell.  One of the main reasons I read it was because it was a Kindle Daily Deal last month, and it's always a satisfying feeling to be able to purchase a book for $1.99.  I also read the description and was intrigued when I read that the setting was the 1980s.  As a true child of the 80s (born in 1980, thank you very much), I am in love with that time period and all things that go along with it (leg warmers, Cabbage Patch dolls, "Hair Bands", etc.).  I recently read Tell the Wolves I'm Home, which also takes place in the 80s, so I guess I was on a roll.   Here is the Goodreads summary of Eleanor and Park:

 TWO MISFITS. ONE EXTRAORDINARY LOVE. 
It's 1986 and two star-crossed teens are smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you'll remember your own first love--and just how hard it pulled you under.

 A cross between the iconic '80s movie Sixteen Candles and the classic coming-of-age novel Looking for Alaska, Eleanor & Park is a brilliantly written young adult novel.

I found the book entertaining, and it was a pretty quick read for me.  The author does a terrific job of developing the relationship between the two main characters, and also manages to make the sassy, angsty Eleanor a sympathetic character by showing all the trials she must deal with at home.  My heart breaks for her in more than one place in the book, especially when she is being bullied by other girls at school, which was hard for me to read.  This book is a little "gritty" and raw, with questionable language in some parts, but it's a relatable read for anyone who is or has been in high school and in love. 

Currently, I am reading The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion.  It's another Kindle Daily Deal, and I'm not completely sold on it, even though I'm over 1/3 of the way through it.  Here is the summary:

An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.

Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.

Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

The Rosie Project is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges.

I find Don and Rosie to be somewhat predictable, and their love story so far also seems to fit that description.  It's entertaining, and I am enjoying their interactions, but the book just hasn't grabbed my attention and probably won't by this point.  However, I am invested and enjoying it enough to keep going, so I'll try to get it finished over the upcoming long weekend. 

All that being said, my reading goal for this year is to read 30 books.  While it doesn't seem like I'm currently on track, I know that I typically read much more in the summer, especially while my two little boys are sleeping.  What are you reading right now?  How did you pick this book?  What is your reading goal for the year?