The Facts Of Winter

This was a highly appropriate book for me to read... this time of year. The Facts of Winter by Paul Poissel is a lovely (although not always so pretty) collection of dreams recorded during January, February and March of 1881. Each dream is a quick little blurb, but sometimes you've really got to read them more than once to really get the message.

What I liked most about this book was as I was reading, all I could think of was what great illustrations would come from these! They're very visual and some seem to tread of deeper meanings. They are mostly melancholic, however, but I think this is to be expected from dreams about this time of year. 4/5 Stars.

Because Time's a Goon....

I had high expectations for A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. I have several Goodreads recommendations for other books by Jennifer Egan, plus there were several other readers I follow with great reviews for the book, so I figured "Meh! Why NOT?" Plus I was standing in the recent publications section of the library and it was looking at me - begging me to take it home.

I think the red flag to start out with is that people are either criticizing or raving about the chapter that's made up of a "Power Point" presentation. It's a bunch of slides with diagrams and charts. Actually, the content of that chapter was the most interesting from the whole book. To me, it felt like a flow chart for Egan to diagram a new novel (like an outlining tool,) so it doesn't quite sit right with me. What was in that chapter I feel has the makings of a really great book. I'm just certain now she's started an odd trend which is a bit too gimmicky to put into any other books. So if you've writing a novel, please STOP and THINK before copying her method!

I think what really threw me out of balance was the clutter of point of views. It didn't bother me so much that there were multiple point of views, but that they just felt thrown together. I noticed at the start of the book their were remarks about bits and chapters here and there actually appeared as magazine articles and stories, which I think adds to the cut and paste feeling to the book. It probably would have flowed together cleaner if it had read in chronological order. I'm sure others would argue that that's the point... blah, blah, blah! Sorry, it was just harder to digest (for me), and it made the book feel really "clippy" to run back and forth in time AND change the voice of the story.

I can't say that I HATED the novel. Music means a lot to me, but books about music or musicians (failures or not,) just turn me off. I really thought this book would be different, since it was so highly regarded from 2010. The basic subject matter of the book is just plain not-my-thing, so it was a struggle for me to keep attention throughout. Now, I can't shake the image of Iggy Pop out of my head. Plus I really hated the klepto and she was kinda a prominent figure in the story. From the get-go we weren't off to a great start!

I'm not going to shy away from Jennifer Egan's other books. Her writing IS good and her there are still a couple of her other works which were listed as highly recommended. But for the Goon Squad, sorry Egan: 2/5 Stars.

Everything is Illuminated

Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer is one of the best books I've read... you know since the end of last year. Hope I'm not peeking in pleasurable reads already! Thank God for recommendations, eh?

The second I clapped the covers together all I could think was, "I've gotta see the movie!" It's been on my recommend Netflix list for quite some time. I was convinced that I would have to read the book first, because that's just the way I roll. I'd love to read Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close real soon but since the film just popped out into theaters, I figure it'll be a while before I can get my hands on a copy from the library.

I have to admit, I mocked this book before reading it - based on looks alone. The text point is just below my comfortable read size. The scale of the font size may have been an illusion, since I was overwhelmed with text ALL OVER the pages. It's as though someone sat down and thought "how can I get this book under 300 pages?" I know it's petty and not really anything to seriously pick at, but it left a negative first impression on me. Seriously hesitant not to read the book. And then the snow storm came.... I started reading this book by candlelight (which I will not recommend). And then I slowly read through the broken English.... I restarted last week and fell in love with the book. Despite all that: 5/5.

The Singer's Gun

I ripped right through The Singer's Gun by Emily St. John Mandel. This is probably a book I would have read in a single sitting if it were not for "bedtime" and an excess of other obligations. Le sign... that's January for yah! I'm not usually one for suspense and mystery, so I am walking away from this novel with little-to-no fingernails. I must say, for a novel with little "action", the story line kept me wondering. Still wondering, in fact... so it receives: 4/5 Stars. I really want to know what would've been in that damn envelope! Amended: The author responded on Twitter. I should've known... but now you want to! ;-)

Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim

I love Sedaris! I've also been tempted to read Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, for a while now. I've been systematically making my way through his collection. Basically, I don't want to wet my pains from laughing every day, so I've been spreading out the "funny" over my regular reads. I really wished this book were longer; I started and finished so quickly. By FAR one of the funniest essays I've read in a long time has to be "Six to Eight Black Men". 4/5 Stars.

Movie #1: Mona Lisa Smile

So, Mona Lisa Smile: All I can think is "should I get married? or have a career?" I can't think of much to say about this movie except that it was basically The Dead Poet's Society for women. It was enjoyable - a "feel good" movie. I'd probably watch it again if I was really craving. My sister and I had a lot of fun picking on the film as it played. We agreed that Julia Stiles was very fitting for a Fifties Gal and that Kirsten Dunst does "bitchy" really well. Also I really liked the shirt Julia Roberts was wearing towards the end of the film. 3/5 Stars.

Book #1: The Land of Oz

I think we can finally leave the Oz, Toto! I have a lingering illustration project featuring The Wizard of Oz, but I think this story caps off my visit into the Emerald City. This Wizard of Oz sequel is a little more humorous than the original story, (which I found to be a little on the darker side). Jack Pumpkinhead's permanent smile, the stupid Saw Horse and the "High Magnified & Thoroughly Educated" Mr. Woggle-Bug, will be missed! Eh... and maybe Tip, too.

I must admit a small semi-cheat, since I'd started this book about 2 months ago, and made it through... uh 2 chapters before I became fully engrossed in Maguire's Wicked Series! Of course after polishing off Out of Oz, I had to head back to The Land of Oz and check out what kicked off the inspiration for the Maguire collection. I must say I was quite pleased with the outcome of this book. I didn't expect to enjoy/giggle as much from this story, as I did! 4/5 Stars.