Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner

Jennifer Weiner is one of my favorite authors. Her characters are living, breathing creations that I can relate to and imagine having a conversation over coffee with them. I started reading her books five or six years ago with Good in Bed and I eagerly await each new novel.

Fly Away Home is a novel that sounds like it is ripped from headlines. Sylvie Serfer Woodruff has changed herself over the years into the perfect politician’s wife. Her husband, Richard Woodruff, is a high powered senator from New York with dreams of being the president. They have two daughters, Diana and Lizzie. Diana is a doctor with a seemingly perfect life with her husband and son, if you don’t count that fact that she doesn’t love her husband. Lizzie is a troubled twenty-four year old recovering addict who is trying to find her way in the world.

All of their worlds are changed forever when it is discovered that Richard had an affair with a young staffer and helped her to get a job. Without Richard to take care of, Sylvie realizes that she has not been taking care of herself. Diana realizes that she is more like her father than she thinks . . . as she is having a torrid affair with a young intern. Lizzie finds purpose in life by taking care of Diana’s son Milo and then her father Richard, who is lost without Sylvie. The book explores what it is like to be the woman who stands behind the man confessing his extramarital affairs at the podium.

I wasn’t sure at first that I would like this book, as I have politician scandal fatigue, but I loved the focus and character development of the three women. The story wasn’t really about the scandal per say, but about how these women discovered or rediscovered themselves and were able to move on from their experiences.

I did have a hard time connecting with Diana. I understood her drive for perfection, but to marry someone you don’t love or feel attraction for just to be married is something I really don’t understand or have sympathy for. I like how she also had to hit rock bottom to start to understand herself again.

Sylvie reminded me a lot of my grandmother who was very focused on my grandfather and not on raising her child. This caused problems for poor Lizzie in the novel as well as Sylvie when Richard was suddenly out of the picture. Lizzie had a variety of problems, and I loved her growth to a mature young woman throughout the book and her ability to put the problems behind her.

I also loved reading Sylvie’s back story on how she and Richard got together in the first place and how their marriage evolved to the point it was at. I just wish the book could have continued on, I wanted to continue the journey with these characters!

While the story was serious, Weiner’s trademark humor was every apparent and you can see below in my favorite quotes:

When Sylvie’s mother Selma is talking about her sex life with her father, Sylvie thinks, “Somewhere in the world, there was surely a conversation taking place that she’d less enjoy hearing. Trouble was, she couldn’t imagine what that conversation might be.”

Later in that same conversation Selma says, “I just wanted you to know that you never know what’s going on in someone else’s marriage, behind someone else’s bedroom door. Nobody’s perfect.”

I laughed out loud at this quote, “If your grandmother wouldn’t recognize it, don’t eat it, her nutritionist had said. Well, too bad, nutritionist, because Selma’s grandma would have recognized Crisco just fine.”

Overall this was a great character study and a hard book to put down. It tackled serious issues, but was relatable and had plenty of humor. I highly recommend it.

Book Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence

Lady Chatterley’s Lover is a beautifully written novel about a woman’s realization that she needs the physical part of her marriage as well as the spiritual and mental.

Constance (or Connie) Chatterley met and married her husband Clifford one month before he shipped over to Europe during WWI. During the war, Clifford was injured extensively causing him to be paralyzed waist down. After Clifford has healed, he and Constance move back to his country estate. There they work together on Clifford’s writings. They enjoy a good relationship, but Constance soon finds herself tired by the physical demands of caring for Clifford, and finds herself yearning for a child. Clifford tells Constance that he would also like a child and that he would be okay with Constance having another man’s child as long as she remained in love with him.

Almost against her will, Constance finds herself having a love affair with the gamekeeper, Mellors, at the Chatterley estate. She almost seems to dislike him as a person at first, but cannot help but being drawn to him physically. Interestingly, the problem that most people have against Mellors is his social class. He is from the working class, although he became a lieutenant while serving in the military in India and is a well read, well reasoned individual. Constance soon realizes that she loves Mellors, but they both have a spouse and are caught in an “impossible” situation. Mellors had joined the military to get away from his domineering wife, Bertha, but never divorced her. Constance has Clifford, a man who she finds herself drifting further away from every day. When Constance finds herself with child, will she stay on as Clifford’s wife and “Lady Chatterley” or will she leave it all to find love?

I really enjoyed this novel. Lady Chatterley’s Lover has a reputation as a “bad” and very sexual novel and I have always been curious to read it. It took the Classics Challenge for me to finally pull it off my shelf. Truthfully, compared to today’s racy romances, the language is no longer shocking or as detailed in the novel. It is shocking though thinking about a book with such frank scenes of sex being published in 1928. I think even more shocking and still unique to even today’s novels; the novel discusses a woman’s need for sexual satisfaction in detail. It was actually rather refreshing to read this as it was a unique and modern prospective even in today’s standards.

Besides being a “racy” novel, Lady Chatterley’s Lover also dealt a lot with class issues. Clifford takes a great interest in the coal mines on his estate and tries to get them to be run more efficiently. It was interesting how Clifford, his friends, and even Connie’s own sister Hilda, view everyone not in their social class as inferior beings. They are disgusted by the fact that Connie could be having relations with such a person although Mellors is an educated man. I also thought it was interesting that Clifford, the model for the aristocracy is a crippled man, while Mellors, the model for the working class individual is a strapping, educated fine figure of a man. I think that this novel is a case for why the aristocracy is a strange and wrong situation. To determine one’s worth in society based on the fact that one’s ancestors made a lot of many and may have somehow obtained a title, does not mean that you are a better individual than your gamekeeper.

Overall, I loved the lyrical pose, the overall storyline, and class discussion in Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Although in the past I have found myself usually disliking books of adultery (Madame Bovary and The Awakening to name two), I found myself drawn and understanding Connie’s predicament. I highly recommend this novel.

This is my second book for the 2010 Classics Challenge.

Book Source: I have an old used hardcover copy that I purchased either at a used book sale, antique store, or garage sale.

Lean Mean Thirteen, Fearless Fourteen, and Finger Lickin’ Fifteen by Janet Evanovich

I love the Stephanie Plum series with its fantastic characters, great love triangle, riveting mysteries, and laugh out loud moments. Whenever I need to pick up a book to relax too and give me a good laugh, I can’t go wrong with one of Evanovich’s Plum series. While I was down and out with morning sickness back in April and May, I caught up on the series (except for the between the novels books).

In Lean Mean Thirteen, Stephanie helps out Ranger by planting a bug on her slimy ex-husband, Dickie Orr. Dickie ends up missing shortly thereafter and Stephanie is a prime suspect. Dickie’s mysterious law partners all start looking for Dickie and unfortunately Stephanie. Stephanie also has found out that Dickie has reunited with her nemesis, Joyce Barnhart. My favorite laugh out loud moments of this book pertained to Stephanie’s take down of a skip and his problems with the cable company.

Life gets a bit crazy for Stephanie in Fearless Fourteen. She is hired by Ranger to help watching aging singer Brenda who is performing in Trenton. And as if she doesn’t have enough on her hands, she is taking care of a teenager named Zook whose mother has disappeared. Rumor has it that Zook may be her boyfriend Morelli’s illegitimate child. Poor Morelli has people in and out of his house constantly looking for a missing bank robbery lout that is rumored to be buried somewhere on his property. Lula may or may not be engaged to Tank, much to his dismay.

Lula witnesses the beheading of celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle in Finger Lickin’ Fifteen. Lula decides to track down the killers by entering a BBQ contest, with the problem being that she doesn’t really know how to cook. Grandma Mazur decides to help out and they are off on an adventure. Stephanie helps Ranger solve a string of mysterious break-ins at Rangeman security properties.

I enjoyed all three of these novels, mostly because I love the humor and the colorful characters so much. Stephanie is definitely my favorite with her quirky, yet everywoman ways. Lula is a close second though. The former “ho” always has hilarious lines and I love her self-confidence. Grandma Mazur is a pretty crazy grandma, but also laugh out loud funny. I love both of Stephanie’s love interests, man-of-mystery Ranger and the bad boy turned good, Joe Morelli. My only complaint is that after fifteen novels, Stephanie still finds herself in a love triangle and unable to commit. I would really like it if she would finally make her choice and move on in life as this series continues.

I read these three books for the Stephanie Plum Reading Challenge and I am really looking forward to reading the next in the series Sizzling Sixteen. I also still need to catch up on the “between the novels” books.

The good news is I have now officially reviewed all of the books I read while I was down and out with morning sickness. The bad news is I still have a pile of ARCs that I need to read and review. Hopefully I will get caught up soon!

Book Source: All three novels were from the Kewaunee Public Library.

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner was a quick and easy reading novella set in the Twilight universe. Bree Tanner made a brief, but memorable appearance in the novel Eclipse. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner tells of Bree’s life as a young newborn vampire in Seattle trying to survive among the irrational newborns in her coven. Bree and her love interest Diego are smarter than the rest of the newborns, but not smart enough to thwart their destiny as their leader Riley and Victoria lead them on a path of vengeance in the small town of Forks.

This novel is different than the other Twilight novels as it is not about “civilized” vampires, but more classic vampires who are out for death and destruction. Although the ending was inevitable, I rooted for Bree and wished she had a different destiny. The novel was also an interesting read after the Eclipse movie as it seems that many parts of the book were incorporated into the movie.

Overall, if you are a fan of the Twilight series, this is a must read book. I enjoyed it and was not disappointed.

Book Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

New Moon and Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

I read New Moon and Eclipse for the second time while I was sick back in April and May to gear myself up for the Eclipse movie. I enjoyed reading them again and noticing details I had either forgotten or not noticed on my first round of readings. Truthfully though, even though it was good to read them again, I didn’t get the thrill I got out of them when I read them for the first time and they were a new story to discover. In other words, it was enjoyable, but not the same as a book like Pride and Prejudice or Outlander that I can read over and over and over . . . Do you have certain books that you can read over again and always love and others that are okay the second time around, but not as good as the first time?

For more information on the novels, read my original review here.

Book Source: I purchased these books from amazon.com at some point last year.

Eclipse (2010)

My FLICKS Book and Movie Club went together to see Eclipse last Wednesday evening. It is always fun getting together with the ladies and enjoying a movie, and we all had been looking forward to this movie for quite some time. Twilight was my book choice pick for the club last fall and I managed to get many of my friends addicted to the series.

I know there are a lot of “haters” out there of the books and the movies, but I am not one of them. I read books of all types as you can tell from this blog and the Twilight series was great escapism reading that I literally could not put down. While it is not a literary masterpiece such as Pride and Prejudice, I think there is room in this world for fun reading. While I enjoy many types of books, not too many keep me wrapped up in them the way the Twilight series did.

To me, the movies follow the same principle. At times the first two movies were good campy fun, but they are fun to watch. I enjoyed Eclipse and thought it was a better movie than the first two. I thought the screenplay, acting, and special effects all had enjoyed a boast as the movies have come along. I enjoyed Eclipse as I have the other two movies as it is really enjoyable to finally have a movie that is about romance and not just sex. It’s also nice to have the action without gross out violence. I thought I was the only one that has gotten tired of super violent sexed up movies, but I think the popularity of the Twilight movie series shows that many people feel the same way. Bring back the romance!

My favorite line of Eclipse was when Jacob entered the tent and said something along the lines of “I’m hotter than you” to Edward. It made me laugh out loud. I also LOVED the back stories of Jasper and Rosalie. I was sad the back stories got mostly cut out of the other two films and hope they are put back in Breaking Dawn.

My only complaint about Eclipse was that Bella really needed a jacket after the tent scene. She was almost frozen to death in the night, but yet the next day she wanders outside with no hat, mittens, or coat. While that is okay for Edward and Jacob, it is not okay for Bella. I know it isn’t as romantic to have her kissing Jacob all bundled up, but it would be more realistic!

As I posted on Facebook, I realized after this movie at the grand old age of 32 I might be getting old as I decided I am “Team Charlie.” Charlie is funny and not bad looking. I especially liked his attempt to have “the talk” with Bella in Eclipse.

I am looking forward to Breaking Dawn, although I am not looking forward to seeing “the birthing scene” on the big screen. I’m also not thrilled about it being broken into two movies. The first one will just probably include the marriage, honeymoon, and baby birth with the large action scene at the end being movie two. I think it could have easily been one movie like the previous movies and think it’s just a way for the movie makers to make some extra cash . . . which they will out of me as I will be there! I’m only sad that Breaking Dawn Part 1 won’t be out until November 2011.

The Blind Side (2009)

My family and I finally watched The Blind Side. Now that I have two kids with a third on the way, my husband and I are finding it more difficult to sit down and watch adult movies. I think we would have more luck if all movies were on our DVR. Luckily although this movie was rated PG-13, we watched it with my 4 and 2 year old sons. They were mostly interested in the football scenes and then went back to playing when non-action scenes were on the screen. There was a brief scene of violence and some foul language in the movie that was inappropriate for the boys, but they were not football related and unwatched.



We all enjoyed The Blind Side. It is so nice to watch a positive movie about how one family can make a big difference in another person’s life. It was an inspiring movie that I confess brought a few tears to my eye thinking about the sad life that Michael Oher had growing up and knowing there are many other kids out there like him. It is wonderful that Michael got the chance to have a loving family that would help him to make his dreams come true. The Touhy family was also a great family to take the time to care about someone and to ask the questions about the strange new kid in school. It is great that they are able to use their wealth to make the world a better place. So often these days it seems that people don’t take the time to care about their fellow human beings, especially if they are different in terms of color or economics.


I loved Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Touhy and can definitely see why she won the academy award. I think the secret scene stealer for me was M.J. (hopefully I have his name right!), the Touhy’s young son. He was a great kid who went out there and tried to befriend Michael from the start.


My favorite line in the movie was from Leigh Anne Touhy to some thugs from Michael’s old life, “"I'm in a Bible study with the D.A., and I'm a card-carrying member of the NRA and I’m always packing.” Or something along those lines. It really took courage for her to face up to them like that!


Overall, this was a great movie about family and caring for others. It was one of the best movies I’ve seen in a long time. At the end, 4-year old Kile wanted to watch it again and my husband also really liked it.


Movie Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Farm Fatale by Wendy Holden

Rosie is an illustrator in London who dreams of moving to the country with her boyfriend Mark. When her boyfriend finally receives a new column about finding a new life in the country, Rosie is sure all of her dreams will come true. The hunt for a cottage is not exactly what they were expecting, but they eventually find a home in Eight Mile Bottom. Once in the village however, their lives don’t go exactly as planned.

Samantha is a not even D list (can there be an F list) actress with a rich husband named Guy. After Guy suffers a heart attack, the two buy “The Bottoms” in Eight Mile Bottom. Samantha looks forward to being a big fish in a little sea until she discovers a former Bond girl is a neighbor and a reclusive rock star also lives nearby. Samantha throws the party of the season and much adventure ensues.

Overall, this novel was okay, but I wasn’t drawn in as much as I could have been. I think the major problem was that half of the story was about Samantha and I really didn’t care for her character at all. Rosie’s story was also unexpected as her love life moves on from Mark in unexpected directions. Her eventual suitor is a very last minute addition and felt rushed. I also didn’t really like the name of the novel . . . Farm Fatale leads one to think that Rosie or Samantha will be a farmer or fall for one, but that is not the case. Rosie was an enjoyable character and I did like the funny antics of the novel. If you are looking for a quick, light read, this could be your book.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

Bookends by Jane Green

I enjoy Jane Green’s brand of British Chick Lit. I’ve read previous Green books in the past, and picked up Bookends while I was laid up with super bad morning sickness last April.

Bookends is a story of friendship. Catherine Warner has great friends in Simon and the happily married Josh and Lucy. While Simon and Cath are both on the lookout for the perfect man, Josh and Lucy seem to have the perfect marriage until a long lost college friend, the beautiful Portia arrives back in their lives. Soon Cath suspects Josh may be having an affair with Portia. Cath has a new love interest in her life at the same time, James. Will the friends be able to all reconnect and find love in the process?

I enjoyed this book and the complicated web of friendship and love. And of course any book that mentions the Tartas is a good book to me!!

Book Source: I bought this at my hometown Dime Store in Michigan before it went out of business.

The Dark Rose by Cynthia Harrod Eagles

The Dark Rose is book two in the Morland Dynasty series. The War of the Roses and the family Matriarch, Eleanor, has passed away. The family is now living during Henry VIII’s tumultuous reign. Paul, the great-grandson of Eleanor Morland, is the new family patriarch. His niece, Nanette, grows up with the Katherine Parr and becomes one of Anne Boleyn’s maid-of-honors.

I loved Nanette’s story and her close relationships with Anne Boleyn and Katherine Parr. In particular the end of Anne Boleyn’s reign and live was especially poignant. The only thing I didn’t like about Nanette’s story was her main love interest, which seemed too incestuous for me. I won’t say more to ruin the plot.

I grew to like Paul more as the book went on, but I had a hard time with him as a hero at the beginning o the book. He was actually rather boorish and cruel. I was sad to see how the cute children from book 1 ended up as such unhappily married adults. Luckily his character has major growth and becomes more sympathetic by the end of his life.

The overall book was great, but the beginning of the book moves rather slow. It tries to race through the history between books 1 and 2 a little too quickly. I think it might have been better to skip it or have to mention in passing after starting the main action of the novel. If you start this book and are bored by the beginning, keep on reading, it is worth it!

I am really enjoying the Morland Dynasty Saga and can’t wait to read more of it!

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!