Books Read: Winter 2014

26. Learning to Swim by Sara Henry
In this story, a woman rescues a boy who has been thrown off the back of a ferry. She instantly loves this child and vows to protect him - while trying to uncover the people who kidnapped and then tried to kill him.
25. Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man by Fannie Flagg
Fannie Flagg is the author who wrote Fried Green Tomatoes, and I wanted to read more by her. Daisy Fay is a charming character - she reminded me of Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. They are both precocious (a word I learned in high school English discussions of Scout), and you have to look through what they are observing to find out what is really happening.
24. How to Be Good by Nick Hornby
I really enjoy Nick Hornby's writing: it's heartfelt and insightful. This story was about a woman considering leaving her husband, and his sudden conversion to consideration and unselfishness.
23. An Acre of Time: The Play by Jason Sherman
This play was based on the book, but it was a bit bizarre - it added more characters, and kept jumping between past and present in a disjointed fashion. (Cdn)
22. An Acre of Time by Phil Jenkins
This book takes a small piece of land in Ottawa, and tracks everything that happened there and around there, since prehistoric times when ocean covered North America! I thought that was a really interesting concept. (Cdn)
21. Doctor Who: Demon Quest: A Shard of Ice by Paul Magrs (audio book)
I borrowed this audio book from the library because Amanda has been so smitten by Doctor Who lately. The novella follows the plot where someone has sold their soul to the devil. It wasn't great - but at least it was short.
20. Forbidden City  by William Bell
This was a story of a 17 year old Canadian boy who was living in Beijing in 1989 at the time of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. It was a fascinating look at what happened in that tragedy: how the Chinese government brutally put down a peaceful student demonstration just asking to meet with the leader. (Cdn)
19. Frommer's Ottawa by James Hale
This book helped me identify what I wanted to see and do in Ottawa! (Cdn)
18. Nancy Drew 4: The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Carolyn Keene
17. The Novel Cure: An A-Z of Literary Remedies by Ella Berthoud and Susan Elderkin
16. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg
This story of a small town in the 1930s, recounted by an old woman in the 1980s, draws the reader along by its alinear story line.
15. Mennonites Don't Dance by Darcie Friesen Hossack
This collection of stories, mostly set in Saskatchewan, mostly about Mennonite people, was deep and heartfelt and definitely worth reading.  (Cdn)
14. The Happy Baker: A Dater's Guide to Emotional Baking by Erin Bolger
This was a fun book. Recipes for goodies are interspersed with humorous tales of the author's dating life. Hearing her write unabashedly about her childhood crushes and first date adventures made me recognize how uncomfortable I still am with choices my younger self made. I can't wait to make "Maybe It's Destiny Dream Bars" - a chocolate brownie sort of thing with peanut butter chips and sweetened condensed milk on top!  (Cdn)
13. Boy O'Boy by Brian Doyle
I checked this young adult book out of the library because it is set in Ottawa, and I like reading stories about places I am planning to visit. It is the tale of a young boy growing up in Ottawa at the close of WWII, who has a run-in with a pedophile. The diction is a quaint reminder of what it's like to be 9 years old.  (Cdn)
12. The Schopenhauer Cure by Irvan Yalom
This book combines a biography of the philosopher Schopenhauer with a modern-day story of a therapy group, one member of which is a proponent and embodiment of the philosopher. I'm not sure I came out of it with a very clear idea of what Schopenhauer thought, but it was a very interesting read.
11. The Vinyl Cafe: Out and About by Stuart McLean (audio book)
Stuart McLean's stories are always so entertaining. But I need to remember (by title) which vignettes I've already heard and learn which books are compilations of stories also included in other books - this one had some repeats for me.  (Cdn)
10. The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho (audio book)
A man goes to the Cannes Film Festival following his ex-wife, who is with another man. He hopes to send her the message that he still loves her and would welcome her back - but he communicates this by murdering innocent people. His logic was haunting, but the story was interesting.
9. Nancy Drew 3: The Bungalow Mystery by Carolyn Keene
8. Margaret Powell's Cookery Book by Margaret Powell
The cover page description of this book is "From the author of Below Stairs, the memoir that inspired Upstairs, Downstairs and Downtown Abbey; 500 Recipes from everyone's favourite kitchen maid and cook." Of the 500 recipes, there were only about 7 I'd want to make though. 
7. Un Amico Italiano: Eat, Pray, Love in Rome by Luca Spaghetti
This is the story of one of the Italian characters in Eat, Pray, Love. He discusses his Roman upbringing, and his adventure of developing a friendship with Elizabeth Gilbert.  It was okay.
6. Vinyl Cafe: Story Land by Stuart McLean (audio book) (Cdn)
5. Essential Do's and Taboos: The Complete Guide to International Business and Leisure Travel by Roger Axtell
I think that international etiquette is an important subject.  Actions that are neutral in one culture can be offensive in others, and it's hard to know how to avoid offending people if you haven't done some studying.  However, this book wasn't all I hoped it would be. It was more focused on businesses and exporting than leisure travel, and it barely seemed to skim the surface of what I was interested in.  
4. Nancy Drew 2: The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene
Everything in Nancy Drew's life is quite perfect - everyone is slim and beautiful and relatively rich and confident. I looked it up on Wikipedia, and discovered that the books were originally written in the 1930s (and have been significantly revised since then - old editions are actually different than the ones published now). I also learned that "Carolyn Keene" is a pen name for a number of (mostly) men who wrote stories!
3. Nancy Drew 1: The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene
I had tons of Nancy Drew books when I was young. As I grew up, I gave them to a younger cousin, and I think she eventually got rid of them.  Now I have become nostalgic for my childhood reading, and I've thought of repurchasing Nancy Drew books - but I've realized that borrowing them from the library is a much better idea.
2. Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie (audio book)
I got a stack of audio books from the library to amuse me during my Christmas travels. This one was okay, but the conclusion was something the reader (er, listener) could never guess. I prefer it when the solution to the mystery is just barely beyond my grasp, but I can see how the whole story was leading up to it.  Still, I read (or listen to) Agatha Christie stories as a tribute to Mara.
1. Turn Right at Machu Picchu by Mark Adams
I purchased this book for my Mom back in the summer because she would love to go to Machu Picchu. When I gave it to her, I asked her to lend it back to me when she was finished. I don't know much about South American history, so this wasn't as fantastic as if I had more knowledge to fit it into, but it was very interesting. Maybe Mom and I will make it there someday!