On The Street Where You Live

Book: On The Street Where You Live
Author: Mary Higgins Clark
Read: September 2007
Notes: #1 New York Times Bestseller

I used to read Mary Higgins Clark non-stop. I loved her books - and how I remember why: they are so easy to read! I think I finished this one in three days. For those of you who don't know, Mary Higgins Clark is a widely-read suspense novelist. In my opinion, she is Stephen King with a woman's touch.

Her novels are light and airy, but are still spellbinding and often chilling. This read was about an attorney, Emily, who moves from Albany to a small coastal town in New York where her family has roots. She moves into the old family home and on her first day there the contractor discovers a skeleton in her backyard while digging for a pool.

As it turns out, there are two skeletons in her back yard, one of her great great grand aunt who disappeard in the late 1800's and another of a woman who disappeared within the last couple years.

I really enjoyed this read because Clark took pieces of the town's history and the killings (yes, there was more than one killing) and interwove them into the current story. I personally enjoy historical fictions and I like thrillers even more, so this was a great combination of my two loves.

Having read many of Clark's books, I predicted the ending about half-way throught the book, but her fluid writing style and the intricate story-line still held my attention - plus, it was such a quick read, I didn't have much time to loose interest!

One thing that I also really love about her books is that she introduces a lot of characters. At the beginning it can be a bit overwhelming, but by the end you really feel like you've experienced the event through the entire town's eyes and seen it from every possible angle.

Anyone else read this one?

The DaVinci Code

Book: The DaVinci Code
Author: Dan Brown
Read: June 2007
Notes: Practicaly best selling book of all time, save the Bible, of course

So, I finally read the DiVinci Code. Great book. Great read. Everyone should read it - but . . . Angels and Demons was better. I think the DiVinci code was meant to be more cerebreal, but mainly the story was just not as satisfying.

There are some increadibly intriguing facts in the book - if for nothing else, read it to learn things like why Friday the 13th is considered such a haunted day and some Where's Waldo kind of stuff about DaVinci's The Last Supper.

I think what was more exciting about Angels and Demons, though, was that it really got into Robert Langdon's back-story and provided for a lot more physical action - much more Indiana Jones - and who doesn't love Harrison Ford! Oops, I mean Indiana Jones (sorry, Freudian slip). In the DiVinci Code, Langdon does most of his traveling by car or plane, wheras in Angels he got to run around the city and experience many of Rome's historical sites while divulging interesting tid-bits about their history to the reader.

The story in the DiVinci Code is similar to that in Angels in that Langdon stumbles upon a mystery larger than he originally anticipates and gets to jet around with a lovely lady on his arm. It all starts when Langdon is told that his future dinner date, the curator of the Louvre, has been found murdered. Langdon is called upon as a possible suspect and finds himself dashing around Europe and the UK with the curator's granddaughter, following clues that the dead man and his secret society have left behind for them.

Where does DaVinici come in? Why, he was once a member of this illustrious seceret society - put together to guard the Holy Grail, of all things!

As a Catholic, I really enjoyed the conspiracy theories surrounding Jesus' death and possible marriage, etc. I, personally, don't have a very strong opinion on it either way, but I think that anything that makes you think about your faith more in depth and look into the life of the most famous being in our history can't really be all that bad of a thing - but that's just my personal opinion.

What are your thoughts on the book? What were your favorite factoids of Dan Brown's? It's so hard to remember them all! Please share!

We Were The Mulvaneys

Title: We Were The Mulvaney's
Author: Joyce Carol Oates
Read: August 2007
Notes: Oprah's Book Club book

It used to be that I saw one of Oprah's Book Club stamps on the front of a book and I got all giddie. She chose ringers . . . then I sensed a pattern. Oppression, family turmoil, sexual abuse, poverty . . . all Oprah's book-choices tend to focus on the less fortunate side of life and those who move up, or at least through, oppression.

We Were The Mulvaney's is no different, although, it is probably my least favorite so far of Oprah's choices - at least of those that I have read. The story is of a family named - you guessed it - Mulvaney who live in a rural town in New York. The family is all boys save one, Marianne, who becomes the victim of rape while still in High School.

The book provides an interesting outlook on a family suffering through tragedy, but I found it to be just one heart-wrenching misfortune after another with not much substance.

The entire book I felt terrible for all the characters and, I tell you what, it was EXHAUSTING! The story follows Marianne after High School through her various jobs and explores her interesting way of coping with her abuse through steadfast faith; however, to me the focus of the novel was on one of the brothers, Patrick who, in hindsight, is a peripheral charicter, save one scene - and THEN - just after we get in to Patrick's story - he disappears!

There were some tearful moments and it is an interesting take on how rape can affect a family, but until the final chapter I couldn't tell much where the story was going and what tied all the chapters together.

I'm really interested to hear other people's insight - so please let me know how you found the book and what your take was on the way Oates presented the characters and organized her chapters.

Welcome!

I have decided that there is a lack of candid book reviews out there for everyday readers. What I mean by everyday readers is people like myself - people who love to read, but who don't necessarily want to spend their precious spare moments delving into the deeper meaning of life or experiencing a novel just for it's 'literary value.' I experience books solely for extracuricular value - and what I gain along the way is purely savored extra.

This is not to say that I don't like literary classics or life-changing novels - much to the contrary - I just don't seek them out solely for the purpose of making myself that much more important for having read them.

The purpose of this blog is two-fold: I first decided to create it to keep some kind of living list of the books I have read. I was recently given a bag of books by my mother, who is a member of several book clubs herself, and couldn't remember if I had read any of them, although about half of them looked familiar. I then decided that a book journal of sorts would be a great idea as there have been many books that I have enjoyed thoroughly and very few that I'd like to forget.

The second purpose is to create a forum for amateur readers. This is a place for anyone and everyone who likes to read. This is not a place for people to get high and mighty about the value of a book to the literary world, but a place for people to talk about the books they have read and loved and would like to discuss with others.

I invite everyone to comment on my 'reviews' (for lack of a better word). I am by no means the end-all be-all for opinions on books and welcome any and all feedback and, even more so, ongoing discussion. I also love recommendations of good books to read.

So, please - enjoy my commentary, post your own responses or rebuttals and let me know what I should read next!