A Touch of America

A Touch of America

A Touch of America: Memoirs of an Austrian Fulbright Scholarby Wilma Shine

Set in America after World War II, this book details an Austrian woman’s adventures when she journeys to the United States as a Fulbright scholar. She starts in Arizona, where she meets up with her beau and has adventures in Mexico, Tombstone and the Grand Canyon. She then travels around several States, including New York, Pennsylvania and California. 

I was interested in reading this book because I was excited to see what America looks like from a foreigner’s eyes. However, it is more of a journal style play by play of where she went and what she did. It is not really spiced up as much as it could be. I feel like she went to many interesting places that could have been described in a bit more detail and with more pizazz. I don’t mean to say that she needed to needlessly embellish something that was nothing special, but I do think that more description was needed.  I would have liked to hear more about her impressions of where she went, and what it looked like for the first time. 

I also felt like the man that she came to visit in the beginning kind of disappeared all of a sudden. At first, I thought the book would have more of a tale of what happened to them, but she kind of stops talking about him and never really picks it back up. Also, the book was kind of hastily wrapped up, without a lead in to the conclusion. 

I was very interested in her tales of what it was like to be a Fulbright scholar, as far as what she had to do. She had to do a lot of public speaking, where she explained what life was like in Austria, to both children and adults. She also talked a lot about the relationships she formed, especially with the Native Americans, while she was traveling. I would have liked to hear more about her adventures as a representative of her country. 

I don’t want you to get the idea that I think this book was bad. I just feel that it could have been more descriptive. I give it a 3 out of 4. 

I received a complimentary copy of A Touch of America: Memoirs of an Austrian Fulbright Scholar as a member of the  Dorrance Publishing Book Review Team.Visit dorrancebookstore.comto learn how you can become a member of the Book Review Team.

In My Queue

In My Queue

I recently joined the local library, right after I went to the thrift store and bought about 400 books. Okay, maybe it was more like 10, but still. Now I have a queue of books on "hold" at the library AND I am lugging around 400 books on top of that. It's a disease folks. And I like it. Except when I have to lug around 400 books. Having a spare book (or 400) around makes me feel good. Kind of like going to the grocery store and buying food I know I don't really need makes me feel good. If there is ever a natural disaster and I am out of power for a while, I will be fine. I have food and books. What else does a person need?

On top of already having a large queue and boxes of thrift store books in my possession, I can't stop finding more books that I need to have. My Goodreads "to-read" shelf is overflowing. And every day someone I know tells me that I should read this or that or the other. And I want to! Someday.

Have you ever heard of NoveList? It is like, the coolest thing ever. If you like a book, lets say...John Grisham, it will tell you what you should read next based on whether what you like is the setting (the south), the topic (law) or the author. It's pretty cool. I think it knows me. Or you can describe a book, like "San Francisco, WWII, love" and it will tell you which one you were looking for. Neat, huh!?

So, I guess you are probably wondering, with so many books out there, and in my queue, and in my VERY heavy suitcase, what books will I read next!?

First, here is what I am reading now:
The Scent of Rain and Lightning - Nancy Pickard (blogger book club book) 
Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer (audio book) 
Secrets of an Old Typewriter - Susie Duncan Sexton

What's next?!

Room - Emma Donoghue
The Paris Wife - Paula McLain
On Writing: The Memoir of the Craft: - Stephen King
Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

You can go to my Bookshelf to see what I have read this year and where I stand on the Bookmark Break Challenge. So far this year I have read 45 books, but the top reader is at 115!!

I got this idea on Ruby's Reads "In My Mailbox" but then I googled it and original credit may go to The Story Siren. I will link to both of them. 

**If you haven't already entered, don't forget to enter my giveaway, where you can use the scrapbooking software to make buttons, headers, photo albums, calendars, birthday cards, and MORE! Enter HERE!!**

So tell me, have you read any of the above books? What are YOU reading right now? What's in your queue? And...do you know of any books that I MUST read? 

Olga, A Daughter's Tale

Olga, A Daughter's Tale


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Olga, A Daughter's Tale by Marie-Therese Browne

This is a story of both England and Jamaica, the people and cultures of both countries and the racism that existed there during the early 1900s. Olga, the daughter of a White English woman and a Black Jamaican man, goes to London to study dance and ends up living in London as a colored single woman during WWII. She has some hardships due to her race and her social status but gets through them in the end.

I liked this book. It is written in journal entry form, both from the viewpoint of Olga, who is the main character, as well as her mother, Becky and her Aunt Lucy. It also has a few newspaper articles and letters from others thrown in. It flows easily and I did keep turning the pages to find out what would happen next.

It talks about the prejudices of color in Jamaica, even between blacks and coloreds, who were the lighter skinned blacks. It speaks of obeha, or voodoo, and how it was outlawed in Jamaica for a long time. It talks about the war and some of the stresses there were being in London at the time.

This book was thought provoking. I always like hearing a story in a voice that I can understand. Olga’s voice was just right.

I give this book at 4 out of 5.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the LibraryThing Members Giveaway in return for a review. All opinions in this post are my own. I am not entitled to give a favorable review.

Have you read any good books lately?  Have you ever been to Jamaica?
Book Review: Thalo Blue

Book Review: Thalo Blue


The Author says: "I began writing my novel, THALO BLUE, after two seemingly random events in my life intersected: the attempted but unsuccessful break-in at my home one black winter night, and having my wisdom teeth surgically removed then nearly bleeding out on my bathroom floor while under the spell of heavy painkillers. Once recovered from both sets of circumstance, I wrote the first draft of the story over a fevered three month winter stretch."

I won this book at a giveaway at Reading, Writing and the World of Words. Thanks Genna! 

At first I had a really hard time getting into this book. It starts off with the main character getting attacked and the narrative goes from one person’s mind to the other. For the first couple of chapters it is like this, but with additional characters still, and frankly, I was a bit confused.

Then it starts to level out. It still switches back and forth, but it does it slower, and you have more time to process each section. After this happened, I started to like the book. The main character is an unhappy artist who has been bossed around by his father and is kind of still trying to find his place in the world. His mother left when he was young and he has issues with women and life in general.

Then this attacker comes into his life and everything changes. I will not tell you what happens, but the author has made it an interesting read, especially when he ends it. You do close the book (or turn off the Kindle) with a feeling of closure, which I find important.

The only thing I didn’t know was that it is a fantasy book to a certain degree. Not fantasy like dragons and elves, but Stephen King fantasy-like. I won’t tell you any more than that. I also had no idea that “thalo blue” is a type of blue. See, you do learn something new every day!

I give this book a 3 out of 5. 

If you haven't already voted, vote for me (#35) HERE for Best in Travel at FTLOB! 
Cheap Reads

Cheap Reads

Wow, it's been a while since the last time I updated my 2011 Reading List! Here's what I have read since then. You can see the entire list at my Bookshelf page. Total Current Book Count: 28

Last Chance Saloon - Marian Keyes ***
This book was total girl fluff, but a great book to read at the beach or on a plane when you don't want to have to think too much about it.

Tarantula Woman - Donald O'Donovan (review here)

Sea of Glory - Nathaniel Philbrick ****
This book was about the exploring expedition of the United States, when they went out for four years and discovered land in Antarctica (before they didn't know if it was all ice or not). They also explore the Polynesian islands and the West Coast of the US, which belonged to Mexico and the British at the time. This book is historical, but not boring, like some of them can be.

Surviving the Extremes - Kenneth Kamler ****
This book was good! It is broken down into categories -- desert, jungle, high altitude -- and talks about what happens to your body in such extremes and how to combat the issues that you face. The author is a tad hung up on himself, but he is very knowledgeable and this was a very interesting read.

My Korean Deli - Ben Ryder Howe (review here)

Forrest Gump - Winston Groom **** (I won this at JC Martin - Fighter, Writer)
The book was very different than the movie, but I enjoyed it just as much! The only thing that sometimes bothered me was that it is written in 1st person and the grammar is (purposefully) horrible. Sometimes I have a hard time getting around that.

Beyond All Measures - Dorothy Love (review here)

Crossroads Road - Jeff Kay **
To be honest, this book was a little strange. It started off good. The premise is that this guy's overbearing mother in law wins the lottery and gives them a house and 2 million dollars, BUT they have to live in the same cul-de-sac as she does. They have funny in-law fights, but it gets a little ridiculous at a certain point.

Dirty Little Angels - Chris Tusa (review on it's way)

Just as a side note, I think I spent a total of 12 dollars on all these books, and most of that went towards Sea of Glory, which I bought at Borders at full price. The rest have been bought at Goodwill (.70 cents for paperbacks!) or were giveaways, either from LibraryThing, BookSneeze or other bloggers. I also frequently visit Amazon and get free classics for my Kindle. 

What books can you recommend to me for summer reading? What is your monthly book budget? Do you have any cheap reads tips? 

Don't forget, you can friend me on Goodreads if you haven't already! I want to see what you are reading!
Beyond All Measure

Beyond All Measure

Beyond All Measures by Dorothy Love

Paperback: 320 Pages
ISBN-10: 1595549005

Just after the civil war, Bostonian Ada Wentworth goes to Hickory Ridge, Tennessee to take a job as a lady's maid.  Not only does she encounter a different life that she was used to financially, but she also encounters some of the prejudices of a post civil war era. Attempting to eventually start her own business, she runs into problems due to her gender and her background, as well as also running into love. But, will her love prevail, or will her past come back to bite her? You will have to read to find out.

This book was a very quick read, as many romance novels are. I won't spoil anything for future readers, but it pretty much follows the same plot as several other romance novels I have read. However, the author does bring history into it as well and it was definitely interesting to think about how hard it would be to live in such a tumultuous time, especially if you are a woman in a man's world, a northerner in a southerner's world, or a white among recently freed blacks, in a place where prejudices still run rampant.

I haven't read a romance novel in a long time, and the reason is they are usually too much silly romance and not enough hard evidence or a believable story. However, this one did keep my attention and I finished it in about a day and a half. The characters are likable, the setting is interesting and the story does keep you turning pages. I would recommend this book to anyone is into a bit of fluff interspersed with history. The author could have made it more Historical and less Romance but if you like it better the other way around, it may be just the thing for you. However, I would give it a 3 out of 5 for that reason alone.

You can find more information about this book HERE. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
My Korean Deli

My Korean Deli

My Korean Deli by Ben Ryder Howe

This is the story of a self proclaimed "tight bummed Puritain" from Boston who is married to a Korean woman. They live with her parents in Staten Island (in the basement). Their grand plan is to pay her parents back for their generosity by buying them a deli in Brooklyn and helping them run it.

There are all sorts of problems. The wife's family immigrated to the US from Korea and they still have some "old country" values that clash with Ben's Puritain ways. He ends up slacking on his real job in order to take care of the deli. He meets some suspicious characters in his days of working in the deli.

I liked this book. I liked it because the author doesn't lie about the fact that he has troubles with this. He and his wife have troubles with their relationship as well as the relationship with her parents. It is not easy. He doesn't try to hard to make it a funny book or a witty one. He just tells the story like it is.

In fact, sometimes I almost wished he would be a little more reactive. He seems so blase about some of the things that happen. As if he is a journalist reporting the story, and not someone who it actually happened to. For example, in the store, which they take over from a previous owner, there are several "regulars" who come in every night and drink beer in the store and just hang out getting drunk. Ben does not express very much fear or worry. He just seems to go with the flow, whereas I would be a bit stressed. Maybe he is but just doesn't portray it in the book.

It was also interesting to learn about some of the Korean traditions, which I had never heard of. Some of them are strange, but intruiging. I also love the description of the hard assed, hard working, take no nonsense, immigrant Mother-in-Law. She would be a great person to have on your side but a horrible one to have against you. I could totally see myself butting heads with her.

The wife is also interesting. A child of immigrant parents, she is torn between the Korean and American ways and values. It would be hard, I assume, to have to deal with her American husband and her Korean mother. She is often put in the middle, but luckily she is a strong character and comes out of everything just fine.

This book was a quick read and I enjoyed it very much. I had no problems turning the pages on this one.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

NOTE: I recieved this book for free from LibraryThing in return for a fair and honest review. The opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.
Yes, It's A Review

Yes, It's A Review

This weekend I am heading to the Bay Area for (hopefully) Snack-a-palooza TAKE II. (You can see Snackapalooza I here) I am very excited. More to come on that later. Happy Memorial Day to all!

But now, I give you...a book review.

Tarantula Woman by Donald O'Donovan

This is a story about an American man living in Juarez, Mexico. He has a job translating and writing letters in English for his clients in Juarez, who are mainly whores. Aside from them being his clients, he is also frequently theirs.

It seems the author does have a personal experience with Juarez, or at least Mexico. He details the city and the characters well. However, other than that, he does not really seem to have a very intriguing story line. The book goes on and on about the main characters exploits with different whores. Other than that, the main character never seems to have any money, but always seems to have plenty of drink and women.

I did find it fascinating to imagine this life that I have no idea about, this life in Juarez, one of the more dangerous cities, and it’s seduction to Americans who can easily go over the border and enjoy what it has to offer. The author makes Juarez seem like a fun and exciting place to be, whereas I always pictured it as a mixture of gangs, violence and drugs.

I was also interested when he spoke a little about the Mexicans trying to marry an American in order to get a green card. In one passage a girl he liked at the time wanted to marry him but he wasn’t ready so she tried to sneak over the border through a culvert. It rained really hard and she and several others got washed from the culvert and caught by the authorities. Again, the struggle intrigues me. I like to be able to feel what others feel and by reading this section of the book, I had an idea of how hard it must be.

I think this author is trying too hard to be a modern day Hemingway. Just like Hemingway, the focus of the book is on booze and women. The only thing he is missing is fishing or bullfighting or some other manly sport. However, as fun as booze and women can seem, I think it is missing an actual story.  You can’t have an entire plot based on getting drunk and getting laid.

In conclusion, I would have to give this book 2 out of 5 stars. Although the characters had the potential to be very interesting and several of the scenes were eye-opening to me, it did not have a very developed story line.

Note: I received this book free from LibraryThing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.  
Bookmark Break Update

Bookmark Break Update

After a few days on the beach and a couple of long bus rides, my book list is finally getting longer! At my last update we were at 13 books.

Add to that:

With No One as a Witness - Elizabeth George **** (great Mystery read if you are looking for a new author. She often uses the same characters)

Whirl of the Wheel - Catherine Condie ***(free ebook from Amazon. Kind of a kid‘s book, but it was cute enough and it was definitely short and sweet)

Compromising Positions - Jenna Bayley-Burke ** (totally chick romance beach book)

Meridon - Phillippa Gregory *** (I had heard she did great Historical Fiction, but this one was a little strange, and not that historic in my opinion, but it was still a fun read)

New Moon - Stephany Meyer *** (I am getting tired of the main character. She seems like a melodramatic pain in the butt. I will probably read the rest of the series though)

So now we are up to 18! I am still way behind many of the others, but ahead of the average, so I am not doing too bad!

What I am currently reading:

The Girl Who Played With Fire - Steig Larsson

For more book info and fun and to see the entire list, you can go to my Bookshelf page!

What book are you reading? Is it any good? If it is, let me know -- I will read just about anything! Also, if you want to join in on the Bookmark Challenge, it’s not too late. All you need is a list of whatever books you have read in 2011.

Note: This is day two of the A - Z blogfest. B is for Bookmark.

Click HERE to see A (A is for A Day).
Good Reads

Good Reads

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I was going to make a list of my ten favorite books from 2010 (books I read, not necessarily books that came out in 2010), but although I read a lot of books last year, not very many of them were really great. Here are a few I would recommend.

1. Nine Lives: Death and Life in New Orleans – this book tells the tale of nine different people who lived in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina. Starting in the 1960s it leads you through their (very different) lives going up through the events of the storm and telling of the aftermath. This was a good book, which was heightened by the fact that I worked for several years doing recovery work for Katrina and lived in New Orleans for quite some time.

2. Gumbo Tales – This is another book about New Orleans. Again, this was a good book no matter where you are, but is even better if you are in NOLA. It tells of the history of several foods that are “typical” New Orleans food, such as Po Boys, Snoballs and Gumbo. It was very informative and funny.

3. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo – I read this for book club and never ended up going to the club meeting, but I enjoyed the book immensely. It is a murder mystery, set in Sweden. The characters are strange but funny and the story is ridiculous but at the same time interesting and serious. I can’t wait to read the other two books in the series.

4. The Historian – This is a vampire book about a girl who goes looking for her family roots and finds out that they lead back to Vlad the Impaler. She travels to several countries, including Romania, to find out about her roots. It has danger, travel, suspense and history. All these together made for a great read.

As always, you can friend me on Goodreads to find out what else I have liked (and hated) in the book world.