OCTOBER READS

115. Sweeping Up Glass (Wall)

116. If I Stay (Forman)

117. A Circle of Souls (Grandhi)

* Red Dog (Page)

* A Clerk's Life (Parker)

* Time Will Tell (Phelan)

118. Undiscovered Gyrl (Burnett)

119. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Bauby)

* Night Court (Rozan)

* Hard Blows (Swingle)

120. Prayers for Sale (Dallas)

* Custom Sets (Wallace)

* Bang (Zeman)

* Going Under (Fairstein)

121. The Prosecution Rests (Edited by Fairstein)

* An Ex-Mas Feast (Akpan)

* I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down (Gay)

122. The Lovely Bones (Sebold)

123. Sorrow's Anthem (Koryta)

* A Death in the Woods (Gay)

124. The Watchman (Crais)

125. Same Kind of Different As Me (Hall & Moore)

* Bonedaddy, Quincy Nell and the 15,000 BTU Electric Chair (Gay)

* The Paperhanger (Gay)

126. Slam (Hornby)

127. Such a Pretty Girl (Wiess)

128. Monster (Myers)

129. Shadow Prey (Sandford)

* The Man Who Knew Dylan (Gay)

130. Body Bags (Golden)

* Short Story (not counted)

BOLD titles made my Best Reads List

Clicking on a title will link you to "Thoughts of Joy...".

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Monthly - Yearly Genre Stats:

Chick-Lit: 0 - 5

Classic: 0 - 1

Fiction: 3 - 31

Memoir: 2 - 7

Mystery: 3 - 20

Non-Fiction: 0 - 1

Non-Fiction Graphic Novel: 0 - 1

Short Story Collection: 1 - 4

Thriller: 2 - 23

True Crime: 0 - 2

YA Classic: 0 - 1

YA Fiction: 5 - 18

YA Graphic Novel: 0 - 4

YA Non-Fiction: 0 - 1

YA Science Fiction: 0 - 6

Children's Historical Fiction: 0 - 1

Children's Thriller: 0 - 1

Children's Sci-Fi/Fantasy: 0 - 3

Short Stories: 14 - 52

Audiobooks: 9 - 75

Books: 7 - 55

Total: 16 - 130

Best Reads: 0 - 16

Series: 3 - 48

DNF: 2 - 6

BODY BAGS

Author: Christopher Golden

Genre: YA Medical Thriller, Series #1

Published: 1999

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Yearly Count: 130

Jenna Blake's first days as a freshman in college include some unexpected events. As she begins to get acclimated to college life, she decides to apply for a job with a medical examiner to determine if it would be a good career choice.

I loved reliving the first days of college with Jenna, and I'm glad I didn't personally experience a professor dropping over dead in class! Most of the characters Jenna encounters were realistic, but the plot - not so much. However, once Jenna applies for the job, the action begins and doesn't let up. It's a good, fast read.

THE MAN WHO KNEW DYLAN (5 of 13)

Author: William Gay

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down, 2002

Personal Rating: 3/5 (just okay)

(ss) Yearly Count: 52

A television salesman with a lost dream seems to just go wherever the wind blows.

That's a very poor description and probably not as accurate as it could be, but that's all I got. I'm used to Gay's dreary tone now, and my mind's eye gets filled with pictures from his words; however, with this one - I didn't get invested, so it left me with a just okay feeling. The ending was interesting, but still - just okay.

SHADOW PREY

Author: John Sandford

Genre: Mystery, Series #2

Published: 1990

Personal Rating: 3.25/5 (better than just okay)

Yearly Count: 129

A group of Native Americans are killing officials across the country that have demonstrated prejudice against them. Police lieutenant, Lucas Davenport is on the case, along with a policewoman from New York.

I wasn't too impressed with this story line, so it didn't hold my attention very well. And, then there's Lucas. This is what he says about his philandering ways, "I can't stop it." How unbelievably absurd! This book did nothing to change my initial thoughts about him. Hopefully the third book in this series, Eyes of Prey, will have a better story line, because I don't think Lucas alone is going to keep me coming back for more.

MONSTER

Author: Walter Dean Myers

Genre: YA Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2001

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Yearly Count: 128

Sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon is accused of murder that took place during a botched up robbery. As an aspiring filmmaker, he reveals his court case through a movie script format.

I liked the format of the story and the trial itself, but I would have liked it to contain a little more depth and length. It was a very short and simple book. It leaves you with things to ponder, though.

Give-Away Winners!

AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE WINNERS:

Diane

Bonnie

Stacybuckeye

Julie P.

Bookfool

CONGRATULATIONS!

Please Note: I already have e-mail addresses for all of you, so you

DO NOT have to comment here. :)

SUCH A PRETTY GIRL

Author: Laura Wiess

Genre: YA Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 127

Meredith, a 15-year-old, is petrified when she learns that her father is being released from prison for child abuse, and at the same time, her mother is thrilled.

This story had me intrigued right from the start until the very end with its predator and prey scenario. It was told in very realistic terms, yet not with all the nitty-gritty details. For the most part, the characters were believable, as well as most of the plot. My one complaint is that there were a few times when I wasn't sure what time period Meredith was describing - now or back when she was a young child - little confusing. Other than that, it was a solid, good read. I will be seeking out more novels by Laura Wiess.

SLAM

Author: Nick Hornby

Genre: YA Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2007

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Yearly Count: 126

Sam is a typical, teenage boy that discovers how great his life was - after he gets slammed by reality.

My first Hornby book turned out to be a good experience. I liked the main character, Sam, and was entertained by the humor. Sam had some interesting quirks and was forthright with the reader which made him endearing. The plot was true to life, but eventually I became mildly bored with it. The one thing I didn't care for was being "whizzed into the future" of Sam's life. It isn't a technique that I like, but it worked okay for this book.

I have several more Hornby books ready for listening and look forward to see what else he has to offer.

Give-Away: WHAT THE DOG SAW

WOO! I'm so excited about this give-away, because I can't wait to listen to it myself! I love Gladwell's work. There are 3 Audiobooks available, courtesy of Anna from Hachette Audio.

What the Dog Saw

and other adventures

Malcolm Gladwell

Product Description:

What is the difference between choking and panicking? Why are there dozens of varieties of mustard-but only one variety of ketchup? What do football players teach us about how to hire teachers? What does hair dye tell us about the history of the 20th century?

In the past decade, Malcolm Gladwell has written three books that have radically changed how we understand our world and ourselves: The Tipping Point; Blink; and Outliers. Now, in What the Dog Saw, he brings together, for the first time, the best of his writing from TheNew Yorker over the same period.

Here is the bittersweet tale of the inventor of the birth control pill, and the dazzling inventions of the pasta sauce pioneer Howard Moscowitz. Gladwell sits with Ron Popeil, the king of the American kitchen, as he sells rotisserie ovens, and divines the secrets of Cesar Millan, the "dog whisperer" who can calm savage animals with the touch of his hand. He explores intelligence tests and ethnic profiling and "hindsight bias" and why it was that everyone in Silicon Valley once tripped over themselves to hire the same college graduate.

"Good writing," Gladwell says in his preface, "does not succeed or fail on the strength of its ability to persuade. It succeeds or fails on the strength of its ability to engage you, to make you think, to give you a glimpse into someone else's head."What the Dog Saw is yet another example of the buoyant spirit and unflagging curiosity that have made Malcolm Gladwell our most brilliant investigator of the hidden extraordinary.

TO ENTER THIS GIVE-AWAY:

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post!

(And, make sure you come back to see if you have won.)

OTHER IMPORTANT DETAILS:

~ Winners will be drawn and posted on Tuesday, November 10 , 2009.

~ Winners are responsible to contact me on the post where the winners are announced, if a winner has not responded by Thursday, November 12, 2009 - another name will be drawn on Friday, November 13, 2009. So, please come back to see if you won! :)

~ The give-away is open to people with mailing addresses from the USA and Canada. (No PO Boxes)

HAPPY ENTERING!

THE PAPERHANGER (4 of 13)

Author: William Gay

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down, 2002

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 51

A doctor's wife is having a new house built and decorated, until tragedy strikes.

This is another good story, but again it has a dark overtone. Gay's writing really draws me in - no question. I'd like to see what he can do with a happy plot.

Bonedaddy, Quincy Nell and the 15,000 BTU Electric Chair (3 of 13)

Author: William Gay

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down, 2002

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 50

A young girl catches the eye of a womanizing, older man.

The description above pretty much tells it all. There are no revelations or anything profound, but a good story nonetheless.

SAME KIND OF DIFFERENT AS ME

Author: Ron Hall & Denver Moore

Genre: Memoir, Standalone

Published: 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 125

An alternate title: International Art Dealer Meets Homeless Man

Funny how life works. When I was in the middle of this book, I happened to post a comment on a friend's blog explaining why I didn't watch the posted video. I shared that I was not in the mood for "being moved to tears," which is the behavior it was likely to provoke. Little did I know - it was coming around the corner whether I wanted it or not.

Both Ron and Denver share their thoughts with raw honesty in alternating chapters. Most are short and move their story along quickly, but not without emotion. I found it to be a serious and interesting book. It is one that can bring about change in one's life, plant a seed, or at the very least - shed more light on the homeless. There are two topics that may be a stumbling block for some: Christianity and Cancer. Both are prevalent in the book and both - yes, moved me to tears. However, as much as they made a statement, I was enthralled with the homeless man's life prior to being homeless. Slavery has always been a topic that I have been drawn to.

Ultimately, I am very glad I read it, but I am still a bit miffed that I had to endure weeping.

PEONY IN LOVE

Author: Lisa See

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2007

Personal Rating: DNF #6

I love Lisa See's work, so I'm a bit saddened that this one didn't appeal to me at the moment. I listened for over an hour, and it wasn't engaging me. So - with a big lesson learned close behind, I decided to set it aside. Hopefully I have better results when I try again in the future.

THE WATCHMAN

Author: Robert Crais

Genre: Mystery, Series #1

Published: 2007

Personal Rating: 3/5 (just okay)

Yearly Count: 124

Their roles have been reversed. Instead of being the sidekick of Elvis Cole, Joe Pike is the lead in this book. Pike has a debt to pay, so as payment he accepts the job as bodyguard of a young heiress who finds her life in jeopardy after a traffic accident.

What I liked best was learning more about Pike's past and the appearances of Elvis Cole, but other than that, I wasn't too impressed. The plot seemed drawn out, and I didn't develop any connection to the characters.

A DEATH IN THE WOODS (2 of 13)

Author: William Gay

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down, 2002

Personal Rating: 3.75/5 (better than good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 49

A man is found dead in the woods on the property of a married couple.

Well, this makes 2 for 2 stories that are in the gloomy range of emotions. Despite that, I really like Gay's writing style. It's very descriptive and thought-provoking. The gloom isn't all that fun, but the stories are interesting anyway.

SORROW'S ANTHEM

Author: Michael Koryta

Genre: Mystery, Series #2

Published: 2006

Personal Rating: 3/5 (just okay)

Yearly Count: 123

Private Investigator, Lincoln Perry discovers that his estranged, childhood friend is in trouble, and he is determined to help him. Lincoln enlists the help from his partner, Joe Pritchard, a retired cop, to investigate the suspicion of arson and murder.

I read the first in this series, Tonight I Said Goodbye, over three years ago and liked it more than this one. I was encouraged by Lincoln and Joe's relationship and looked forward to seeing them again. However, in this book, I didn't feel the connection or observe any banter between the two. The plot focused more on Lincoln's past friendships, but that shouldn't have prohibited the partners' relationship. Unfortunately, it was bland and disappointed me.

As for the plot, it was pretty good. It had a lot of twists and turns, but at times I was bored. I do like that I learned more about Lincoln and hope that the third book can provide a bit more oomph and visible bond between him and Joe. However, the ending to this book may have provided that missing ingredient. I really hope so. The title, Sorrow's Anthem, was the perfect choice.

THE LOVELY BONES

Author: Alice Sebold

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2002

Personal Rating: 2/5 (not enjoyable)

Yearly Count: 122

Fourteen-year-old Susie is brutally murdered on her way home from school. She tells the story of how her family and friends deal with her death from her heaven.

I started this book years ago and put it aside because I just wasn't in the mood for it at the time. Due to the movie coming out, I thought this would be the perfect time to pick it back up.

I think at the time it was written Susie may have had an interesting and unique perspective, but now it didn't seem like anything special to me. I actually found it to be a bit boring and lacking tension. The characters (and the story line) were unrealistic and frankly, a bit ridiculous. I do think that some of the emotions of some of the characters throughout the years were genuine, but there was just too much hokey stuff with Susie in heaven that I didn't care or connect with much of anything.

Give-Away: AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE

I have the pleasure of giving away

5 paperback copies

of Against Medical Advice (Patterson & Friedman),

courtesy of the Miriam from Hachette Book Group!

Thank you, Miriam!

Patterson's First Non-Fiction Book:

Against Medical Advice

Patterson & Friedman

My Thoughts

From the cover:

One morning when he was almost five years old, Cory Friedman woke up with the uncontrollable urge to shake his head. From that day forward his life became an agony of irrepressible tics and involuntary utterances. Cory embarked on a thirteen-year odyssey of medication upon medication, treatment upon treatment-a constantly changing regimen that left him and his family feeling like guinea pigs in an out-of-control experiment. It soon became unclear which tics were symptoms of his condition and which were side effects of the countless combinations of drugs. The only certainty was that it kept getting worse. Simply put: Cory Friedman's life was a living hell.

Subjected to debilitating treatments and continuous ridicule, Cory became devastatingly aware of how he appeared to others. With the love of his family and the support of a few steadfast teachers and medical professionals, he fought for his very life, and you will cheer his amazing successes.

Against Medical Advice is the true story of Cory's battle for survival in the face of extraordinary difficulties and a sometimes maddening medical establishment. Written by James Patterson and Cory's father, Hal, with the relentless pace of a Patterson thriller, this is a heartrending story of one family's courage, determination, and ultimate triumph.

TO ENTER THIS GIVE-AWAY:

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post!

(And, make sure you come back to see if you have won.)

OTHER IMPORTANT DETAILS:

~ Winners will be drawn and posted on Tuesday, October 27 , 2009.

~ Winners are responsible to contact me on the post where the winners are announced, if a winner has not responded by Thursday, October 29, 2009 - another name will be drawn on Friday, October 30, 2009. So, please come back to see if you won! :)

~ The give-away is open to people with mailing addresses from the USA and Canada. (No PO Boxes)

HAPPY ENTERING!

THE LAST EMBER ~ Mr. Joy's Thoughts

Author: Daniel Levin

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2009

Mr. Joy's Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Guest Appearances: 2

Please Note: While being thankful for the opportunity to receive and read this ARC, I feel the need to post the blurb from its cover. However, in my opinion there is usually too much disclosed. Read at your own discretion.

From the ARC cover:

A secret that reaches back millennia. A desperate search for a legendary relic. A fanatic's quest to erase the past.

When fragments of a stone map of ancient Rome mysteriously resurface, Jonathan Marcus, a young lawyer and a former classics scholar, reluctantly reunites with a former friend from his students days at the American Academy in Rome to search for clues to the location of the fabled Tabernacle Menorah, a priceless historical artifact taken from Jerusalem 2,000 years ago. but as they search, so, too, does the mysterious Salah ad-Din, a radical bent on erasing all remnants of Jewish and Christian presence from the Temple Mount.

What follows is a treasure hunt like no other, a race to control a historical perspective and determine who can define - or redefine - the past. By turns a riveting page-turner and a compelling character study set in the high-stakes worlds of art, politics, and terrorism. The last Ember is a gripping literary thriller that explores the deadly world of illicit antiquity excavation and ancient intrigue.

Once I got past all the Italian names and locations, this turned out to be a fun book. There was a lot of action and intrigue along with a splash of romance. The plot to erase history was an interesting idea and with all the mysterious societies and historic references, it had a Da Vinci Code feel to it. This is an author with a promising future, and I look forward to his next book.

Thanks go to Riverhead Books for providing this ARC. The Last Ember was released on August 6, 2009.

I HATE TO SEE THAT EVENING SUN GO DOWN (1 of 13)

Author: William Gay

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down, 2002

Personal Rating: 3.75/5 (better than good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 48

An old man walks out of his current residence - a nursing home, to return to his own family home, only to discover that another family is living in it.

I was eager and concerned to find out how this one was going to pan out. The writing put me right there, so I had a front row seat; however, it had a negative undertone that made me uneasy. I hope all the stories in this collection are not like that.

AN EX-MAS FEAST (1 of 5)

Author: Uwem Akpan

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Say You're One of Them, 2008

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 47

The eldest daughter of a poor, homeless African family is relied upon to provide for the family. She is only 12-years-old. Her younger brother is the narrator.

This story depicts deplorable conditions that alone make one cringe, then there's the manner in which they survive that breaks one's heart. I hate it that it probably bares more truth than we would like to admit. The flow of the story was interrupted due to the language (foreign words here and there), and they caused me to lose the emotion. I still thought it was good, though - nothing special, but good.

THE PROSECUTION RESTS

Author: 22 individuals - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 121

I decided to read this collection in-between other books, so it has taken almost 3 months to get through. However, I looked forward to getting back to it every time. I was really surprised at the diversity of stories and for the most part I enjoyed them. There was one that I did not finish and one that received an "excellent" rating, but like all my ratings, they are purely subjective and could very well have had different outcomes if I read them at different times. The overall rating average came to 3.5/5 (good), but as a whole, I enjoyed them more than that, hence, my 4/5 (very good) final rating.

The following are the individual titles and links to my thoughts:

1. The Secret Session (Hoch)

2. Designer Justice (Cohen)

3. Follow Up (Dereske)

4. By Hook or By Crook (Drees)

5. The Letter (Dunbaugh)

6. Spectral Evidence (Gallison)

7. Knife Fight (Goldman)

8. Death, Cheated (Grippando)

9. My Brother's Keeper (Hale)

10. The Flashlight Game (Hansen-Young)

11. Mom is My Co-Counsel (Levine)

12. Quality of Mercy (Lundin)

13. The Mother (Martinez)

14. Red Dog (Page)

15. A Clerk's Life (Parker)

16. Time Will Tell (Phelan)

17. The Evil We Do (Putre)

18. Night Court (Rozan)

19. Hard Blows (Swingle)

20. Custom Sets (Wallace)

21. Bang (Zeman)

22. Going Under (Fairstein)

Thank you Miriam, from Hachette Book Group, for sending me a copy of the book.

GOING UNDER (22 of 22)

Author: Linda Fairstein - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 46

A female police officer vows to herself that she would do anything to earn the shield of Detective.

One must be fully cognizant of what one vows! I could feel the anxiety the situation created - even more so when I envisioned myself in her position.

BANG (21 of 22)

Author: Angela Zeman - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 2.75/5 (better than eh)

(ss) Yearly Count: 45

A woman is determined to find the murderer of her friend that was poisoned by radiation.

I wasn't drawn into this story mainly due to the topic. It just didn't interest me. There were some scenes that kept my attention, but for the most part I just wasn't into it.

CUSTOM SETS (20 of 22)

Author: Joseph Wallace - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 4.25/5 (better than very good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 44

A young girl is forced to participate in illicit behavior and eventually seeks revenge.

This was a tough one to read. I was repulsed and held my breath at various times. It wasn't that it was extremely explicit, but what it implied was horrifically pathetic. Wallace apparently has a way with words being that he drew me in and created such emotion in such a short period of time.

PRAYERS FOR SALE

Author: Sandra Dallas

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2009

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Yearly Count: 120

Hennie Comfort and Nit Spindle find themselves in the mining town of Middle Swan, Colorado during the depression. Hennie, who is an older woman and has lived in Middle Swan for decades, befriends newcomer Nit as she settles in with her husband in a home nearby. As the two become acquainted Hennie shares her knowledge of the town and eventually her life stories.

Hennie tells numerous stories - each being unique and interesting. They focused on her family, the townspeople, and general experiences throughout her lifetime which included some twists and turns. She was a nice and proper character of that time period. The charm of the book was in the present day (in the book) as we watch the friendship grow between Hennie and Nit. Quilting and mining played an important role as well.

Even with the stories being interesting, I got tired of, "Would you like to hear a story?" Other than that, no major complaints - it was good. Sandra Dallas does a great job depicting the timeframe in her stories.

HARD BLOWS (19 of 22)

Author: Morley Swingle - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 43

Jack Hogan is practicing his closing argument while he waits in the bleachers for his daughter to finish her gymnastics class. He is interrupted by an unfamiliar face that says he knows him from 14 years ago.

This was a very realistic scenario - one that I could visualize easily. As the story began to unfold, I knew some of what was to come, but not all. So, there was a little surprise involved. And, I liked Jack.

NIGHT COURT (18 of 22)

Author: S. J. Rozan - Edited by Linda Fairstein

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: The Prosecution Rests, 2009

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

(ss) Yearly Count: 42

Since Murph has handled night court, the crime has gone down; therefore, the townspeople are experiencing peace and quiet.

This was one of the shorter stories in the collection, but it was well done. I really liked that I was surprised. Actually, I love when that happens!