Mirkwood Reflections

Warriors: I Bring the Fire Part V by Carolynn Gockel 2/6/2015 Good Fantasy -  301 page Kindle When tragedy strikes Amy’s beloved mutt Fenrir, and Odin strikes Bohdi’s best friend Steve, they have to work together again. Amy’s knowledge of science, Bohdi’s talents for theft, and both of their survival skills are put to the test. But more than Steve and Fenrir’s lives are at stake. Amy and Bohdi may unlock the key that saves mankind from the gods … or bring about the apocalypse. This series captivated my interest and even though Loki is no longer a central character, I've kept reading. There is one more installment and a short story to finish up the series. I've purchased them but haven't made time to read them yet, partly because I don't want it to be ove r. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand 2/14/2015 Excellent Non-fiction - 473 pages Print Telling an unforgettable story of Louis Zamperini’s journey into ex...

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien - 3/6/2014 Excellent - Fantasy 480 pages - Audio 19 hrs and 11 mins Frodo Baggins, a hobbit of the Shire, inherits a dangerous magic Ring which must be destroyed, so he sets out on a quest accompanied by 8 companions. James requested to read Lord of the Rings for literature, so I decided to read along with him. He read it much faster than I did. I actually found it difficult to get through FOTR this time around, which is at least my 4th reading of this book. Maybe next time I'll be in the mood. Fates: I Bring the Fire Part IV by C. Gockel - 3/21/2014 Good - Fantasy 407 pages - Kindle Amy Lewis and Bohdi Patel team up with Thor to find Loki who hasn't been seen for two years. I adore C. Gockel's modern mythology of the Nine Realms. Yes, I started reading because of Loki. But I kept reading because of her interesting take on the mythology as well as her capable and compelling storytelling.  Water for Elephants by Sara ...

  Cranford  by Elizabeth Gaskell - 3/13/2013 Good -  Classic 138 pages, Kindle The old ladies of Cranford live their lives traditionally and quietly.  Book club selection for March. I took a while to get into this choice, but eventually liked it. I did find the narration to be uneven; portions of the book moved me to tears, others were skillfully drawn characterizations, but some were just dull. Heaven for Kids  by Randy Alcorn - 3/25/2013 Excellent - Inspirational 224 pages, Kindle Alcorn answers questions that kids might ask about what heaven will be like.  Loved this and read aloud it to the kids. The questions are practical and thoughtful and the answers are backed up with Scripture wherever possible. When not backed with Scripture, Alcorn admits it and gives his reasoning.  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban  by J.K. Rowling - 3/29/2013 Excellent - Children's 435 pages, Audio/Print Re-read of the 3rd Harry Pott...

Clara & Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland - 3/1/2011 Fair - Historical Fiction Clara is a designer at Tiffany Studios around the turn of the 20th century. I listened to this on audiobook and I didn't particularly like the narrator. It was a good story, though. GOVERNESS: The Lives and Times of the Real Jane Eyres by Ruth Brandon - 3/2/2011 Fair - Nonfiction This was more about the lives of several real women who were governesses at some point. So, more about the TIMES than the LIVES of governesses. Mildly interesting and somewhat lurid (because one of the women was Byron's mistress and another was the mother of Mary Shelley), but not what I expected. I had expected something else, as this didn't seem like a fair account of the average governess. But I did learn a lot! Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo - 3/5/2011 Excellent - Chick Lit Emma Grant, college professor in disgrace, travels to England hot on the trail of some previously unknown Austen letters. Enjoyed...

Five books in March. Fewer than I'd have preferred due to my new part-time job and to reading Wuthering Heights . See below... Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier - 3/3/2010 Good - Fiction Elizabeth Philpott and her spinster sisters move to Lyme and befriend Mary Anning, a fossil hunter who discovers complete skeletons of never-before-seen creatures. This was interesting, something different than usual. I love Chevalier's books. Brava, Valentine Adriana Trigiani - 3/9/2010 Good - Fiction Valentine's brother joins the business and they investigate production of the ready-to-wear shoe line, plus Valentine reconnects with Gianluca from Italy, and family secrets explode all over the place. I liked this one better than the original Valentine novel. In fact, I've enjoyed this one more than any Trigiani I've read since Big Stone Gap. Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte - 3/17/2010 Difficult - Classic Classic tragedy of Heathcliff and Cathy - read it yourself if you want to ...

Eight books again in March. Making good progress toward the 999 Reading Challenge. Deadly Reunion by Florence Case - 03/09/09 Poor - Inspirational Police officer Angie is sure that Warren Detry killed his wife and is now planning to kill Angie's sister and maybe Angie as well. Can her former love Boone protect her? I really wanted to like this book which I won in a blog contest, but I just didn't. I found it confusing and cliched. Soup by Robert Newton Peck - 03/09/09 Excellent - Read-aloud Misadventures of Robert and his mischievous friend Soup are described in this pithy and humorous memoir This is one of the books from my own childhood that I'm reading aloud to my children. Not politically correct at all, but very very funny! Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani - 03/14/09 Good - Fiction Valentine Roncalli is apprentice to her grandmother, a master shoemaker and owner of the Angelini Shoe Co in NYC, an 100 year old financially unstable company that makes custom wedding s...

My plan was to write write write in March. Sadly, it was one of those plans that did not come to fruition. Ah well, there's always tomorrow. So, I only read a little in March. I think I paid for it with some depression. If I'm not reading, then I'm not quite alive. The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold - 03/02/08 Fair - Fiction Helen and her mother have had a rocky relationship and as her mother ages, things don't improve. I enjoyed The Lovely Bones also by Sebold. I did NOT like this one. Don't even know why I read it. The heroine was unlikeable in every way. Finding Hope by Brenda Coulter - 03/15/08 Excellent - Romance Hope befriends a rich heartless doctor but his lack of belief in God is a stumbling block to any further relationship This book could not be more different than The Almost Moon. I stayed up far too late reading this two nights in a row. It is part of the Steeple Hill Love Inspired series from Harlequin and I think it's one of the best examples of t...