Author: booknutgirls

booknutgirls http://thebooknutdotcom.wordpress.com I read. I blog. I sell books. I chauffeur my kids. What more do you need to know?

Parnassus on Wheels

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First, a definition: Parnassusian (parnassus isn’t in my dictionary) — from the Greek parnasios; Parnassus, mountain in Greece sacred to Apollo and the Muses. Of or relating to poetry.

There. Now everyone’s learned something today.

This was a slim little nothing of a book, wrtitten in 1915 by Christopher Morely . But, it was totally enjoyable. I’m not sure I expected anything grand or life shattering; it wasn’t. The basic story: Helen McGill was completely content to live in the New England countryside baking bread (over 6,000 loaves, as she later calculates) and cooking meals for her brother. That is, until he decides to become “literary” and write a book. She gets increasingly put out with him and his escapades off to gather material for his books. So when Roger Mifflin stops by the farm with a wagon — the Parnassus — wanting to sell it to her brother, she up and buys it. And off starts her adventures. Which really aren’t life-shattering (though they are life-changing for her). It is amusing, though. And completely charming. I’ve been reading a lot of charming books lately, it seems. Not that there’s anything wrong with charming. It was actually quite refreshing to put down a book and think, “Now that was charming.” Maybe I wanted there to be something more — it did tie itself up quite nicely — but that’s quibbling.

Besides, I learned what a parnassus is.

Princess Academy

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Ah, there’s nothing like a good story. And this book, by Shannon Hale, is a good story. So good, in fact, that I devoured it in a few hours. Either it was really good, or I was starved for a good story. Then M picked it up, took it to her room, and emerged the next afternoon, saying (her only criticism): “It needs an Epilogue. Otherwise it’s perfect.” I’d have to agree.

It’s a simple story: the kingdom of Danland has a tradtion. On the prince’s 18th birthday, the priests of the creator god cast about for the name of the town where the prince’s bride will be. They then set up a Princess Academy, to “educate” the local girls in the way of being a princess (though, we’re told, it’s usually a formality; not so this time). The prince, at the end of the academy’s term, visits and chooses his bride. This time, the bride is supposed to be in Mt. Eskel, where Miri (a 14-year-old — my only complaint: what’s with 14 year olds getting married?) lives in a little village with her family. The profession of the village is quarrying linder, a precious stone, but Miri, because of her size (she’s overly small for her age), isn’t allowed to help. So, when the academy comes to town, Miri sees a chance to do something.

Yeah, I suppose some of it is predictable (though the prince’s choice for a bride is a surprise). Yeah, I guess it’s a tale that’s been told many times before. But Hale is such an engaging storyteller. And Miri is a worthy heroine. And, well, dang it, I liked it. A lot. If anything, it’s a great girl book. And I like those.

Criss Cross

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Could someone please tell me why this won the Newbery this year?

I couldn’t even finish it. It was pretentious, boring, and wordy. (And totally without a plot!) Maybe some fourteen-year-old has had a life changing experience reading it. I wouldn’t have, if I were fourteen.

Maybe it’s good that I’m not on the Newbery committee.

Peace Like a River

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Something about this post by Lisa made me want to read this book by Leif Enger. I went back and tried to pinpoint what it was, but couldn’t quite figure it out. Which is kind of what I felt about the book. There is something about this book, but I couldn’t quite pinpoint it. I couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was about — people kept asking me that, and I couldn’t ever really come up with an answer. It wasn’t about anything. It just was. Not that that’s a bad thing. I’m usually a plot-driven person (I usually like my books to be about something!), but I found myself drawn into this one. And I can’t quite pinpoint why. Was it the miracles? Was it the characters? Was it the writing? Don’t know. But I did finish the book, and found myself mulling over it for a day or so after. I guess it must have been good.

The Penderwicks

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This book, by Jeanne Birdsall, was sitting on the shelf of our local (tiny, of course) bookstore next to this year’s Newbery and Newbery Honor books (it won the National Book Award). It caught my eye, though. How could it not with the subtitle: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits and a Very Interesting Boy?

And I was completely charmed. It’s not a deep book — it’s a summer vacation book with four girls who get into adventures at the summer cottage they and their widowed father are renting — but it’s so well written it’s completely captivating. It’s new, yet it has the same sort of feeling about it as, oh, Half Magic or Anne of Green Gables or any of E. Nesbit’s books. It’s not perfect — there are shortcomings, and it does kind of wrap things up pretty neatly in the end. But, I was so completely captivated by it that I was willing to look aside any faults. About a chapter and a half into it, I realized that this was a perfect read-aloud book for my girls (and have since told them that they have to sit and listen to it). I’m always glad when I find a book like that.

These is My Words

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Laura mentioned she liked this one a while back; I looked for the specific post, but granted not very hard, so I didn’t find what excatly she wrote about it that led me to check it out. At any rate, I’m glad I did. It’s a beautiful, simple book. There really isn’t much to say about it: it’s a fictional (based on one of the author, Nancy Taylor’s, ancestors) journal of a woman, Sarah Prine, from 1881 to 1901. There isn’t anything really remarkable about the story; it’s just her jottings from life. Yet, she is one remarkable woman. She is honest, just, fair, hard-working, admirable in just about every way. And yet, she isn’t lofty or unreachable. Sarah is a woman I’d love to know and spend time with. And I was with her through all her trials, her marriages (she was married twice; her first husband died!) and loves and births and deaths. And I admire a writer who can capture that.

Books like this are wonderful for the soul.

Books for Birthing

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I’m about two weeks away from my due date; the fourth girl we will have brought into this world. Don’t ask. We don’t do boys.

I’ve found myself thinking lately (along with the usual WHEN is this baby going to FINALLY come?) about the book I’m going to bring to the hospital with me. I’ve never thought about this before, yet I’ve always ended up wtih a book in the birthing room. And hubby’s either read it to me, or it’s been there for me to pick up afterward. And, yes, I remember each of the books. The Chosen, by Chiam Potok for my first, Megan. Is God a Republican or Democrat?, Tony Campolo (it was a book group selection) for my second, Caitlyn. And Lonsome Gods, by Louis L’Amour for Alison, my third.

So, being the person I am, I’m actually giving some forethought to this rather than just grabbing any book off the shelf. Though, given that labor is what it usually is, I might just do that anyway.

Any suggestions?

Dragonsong, Dragonsinger and Dragondrums

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I first read these two sometime growing up. Don’t remember exactly when; but the images of Pern stuck with me for years. I picked up these two again (they’re by Anne McCaffrey, as if the author of the Pern books could be anyone else) because my oldest is interested in dragon books, and I remembered these, but not well enough to recommend them without at least a cursory re-reading. However, what started out as a cursory reading (so M would have something to read over Spring Break) ended up completely engulfing and devouring my time. After all these years, I still love these books. (Whatever did I do without them?) Menolly’s plight in Dragonsong still tugs at my heart, and I still find myself cheering for her by the end of Dragonsinger. I didn’t want the books to end. They did, though, and now it’s time to pass them on to another soul who will hopefully love the stories as much as I do.

So, because M saw it in the bookstore, we bought Dragondrums. I’d forgotten about that one, and I finally got around to re-reading it (halfway through I realized that it was familiar, and figured I’d read it before). It’s not as good as the other two, but it finishes up the story quite nicely. Actually, what struck me is how well these three books fit into the other Pern series we own: Dragonflight and Dragonquest. We used to have White Dragon, too, but I decided that wasn’t worth owning.

The Orange Trees of Versailles

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I must be getting impatient with youth fiction books.

This one sounded great in the Chinaberry write up (“this delightful historical novel delves into the delicate complexities of royal life and vibrantly brings to life the day-to-day goings on in 17th century France. A truly great read!”): a 14-year-old girl with an excellent nose and memory for smells gets appointed to make perfumes for King Louis XIV’s mistress the Marquise de Montespan. Said girl discovers a plot to poison the queen, foils said plot (entirely on her own — is it really believable that a respected doctor would listen to 1) a new servant and 2) a youngish girl, even if her sense of smell is impeccable??), and then ends up happily ever after in the queen’s service while said marquise gets shunted off to the side.

Could have been a great book. Maybe something was lost in the translation — Annie Pietri is French — but whatever the reason, it really didn’t grab my attention. Nothing about the book. Not even the pages and pages and pages and pages of smells that were described. Not even the murder plot (there was absolutely no suspense or build up). Not even the “oh wait the king knew my dead mother so we can all live happily ever after” ending.

Sigh. I guess the point of catalog write ups is to make you want to buy a book, even if it isn’t all that great. Thank heavens for libraries.

Talk to the Hand

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Okay, I admit this: Lynne Truss’s Talk to the Hand is really one, long, extended whine about how terrible, awful and RUDE people (especially those under the age of 20) are today. Ah, but it’s a terribly funny whine. And I agreed with it. And it almost pulled me out of the 9th-month pregnancy funk that I’ve been stuck in for a while. Therefore, in my book, it’s a good book.

There’s really nothing new about this book, though. Except maybe for her blaming the telephone (rather than the television or the internet) for the downfall of society (she makes a really good case for it, too). And she really doesn’t have any “pointers”, except for maybe, hopefully, if we all pretend to be polite to one another than maybe we will actually want to be polite to one another. Whatever. The point of the book isn’t to change the world. It’s really to amuse those of us who agree with Ms. Truss that the world is going to hell in a handbasket, and by the way, why can’t you just say THANK YOU once in a while?