19: Mini Shopaholic

Mini Shopaholic, by Sophie Kinsella, continues the story of Becky Brandon (Bloomwood)  and her husband Luke, and their two-year old out of control daughter, Minnie. The book follows a very traditional storyline that Sophie Kinsella has mastered with these books, in that Becky messes up, makes a big act of something else, and then manages to pull it together, all while spending way too much money and annoying everyone in her path.

This time, Luke hires a Super Nanny for Minnie, because he wants to get her under control before they agree to have another child (something that Becky really wants). The nanny catches all of her behavior on tape, and Becky tries to justify everything. Throw in the fact that Luke is having a huge birthday party and Becky manages to give him the most extravagant party of her life, even in the midst of a global recession. It really bothered me that she was throwing this out of control party (fire-eaters, jugglers, etc) while her parents had lost all of their money. Have some compassion, Becky!

These books are getting old. Becky has never learned any lessons and she continues to spend to the point of ridiculousness, and now she buys for Minnie (I did laugh at the “Pocket Money” fiasco). I had a hard time finishing it only because Becky has never learned to grow up and be an adult. Everyone has to at some time, and it’s about time Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) does.

I give this a 5/10. I think I’m done with Shopaholic books for a while.

18: Comfort Food

Comfort Food, by Kate Jacobs, is the story of a soon-to-be 50 year old cooking show hostess, who dreads aging and the birthday party she is expected to throw for herself. But all of this changes when her boss adds the spicy Spaniard, Carmen Vega as her new cohost to her very traditional show. (The whole time I read this book I pictured Paula Deen).

This book was cute. It was a super easy read, and was very funny in parts. Some of the food things were funny (when Carmen made octopus, EW) and some of the parts were unrealistic (uh, the wedding scene in general). I wasn’t attached to any of the characters, but I definitely liked the book overall. I think I liked her other book, Friday Night Knitting Club, even more though.

I give it a 6/10. Nothing spectacular, but a good, simple book about love and hope.

17: Like Water for Chocolate

Like Water for Chocolate, written by Laura Esquivel, is a book written in the magic realism genre and is about a Mexican family and their traditions, their love and their family drama. It was recommended to me by someone else, and I have to say, I liked it.

The style of writing reminds me of the movie Big Fish , which I absolutely loved. It’s exaggerated and embellished, but aren’t most stories? It tells the story of Tita, who is the youngest daughter, and must never get married, because she has to take care of her mother until the day she dies, per tradition. Well, the boy she loves (and who loves her) is Pedro, but Pedro ends up marrying her sister, Rosaura, but he does not love her. Tita learns how to cook and while she cooks, her emotions end up in the food and anyone who eats the food will certainly feel the same emotions as Tita. So the wedding is a terribly sad event and everyone cried because Tita was crying when she chopped the onions. And another family event is bitter because Tita is bitter when she is cooking. This cracked me up, because aah… what story would my food tell some nights?

The story develops into more of a drama, with brothels and death and soldiers and rape, but it retains its very magical-style of writing. Like I said earlier, I liked this genre more than I thought I would and I am excited to rent the movie that is based off this book and read it.

The only thing that disappointed me was the recipes were not very useable for me. I’m not planning on making Ox-Tail Soup anytime soon, at least  :)

I give this book a 7/10. A good, solid but funky love story. 

16: Backseat Saints

Backseat Saints is written by Joshilyn Jackson, who wrote Gods in Alabama and Between, Georgia and The Girl Who Stopped Swimming. The past three were all books that I loved. But Backseat Saints? Eh?

The story is focused around domestic abuse. I just don’t understand this (thankfully) and have a really hard time relating to it, so I struggle with reading it. The opening chapter was so far-fetched and weird and she shoots her dog (she lives) and not her husband, but then continues to eat and sleep and live with her husband AFTER she tried to shoot him (he never knows it was her). She finally takes off, leaves her husband and does a weird cross-country trip to see her dying father (who abused her as a child) and her crazy mother who now rescues abused women.

The story was choppy and I really never connected to Rose. I didn’t like her as a character – too mean and the way the new Rose was written against the old Rose was weird. It brings in some characters from her previous book, but you never get to know them – it’s just a quick description and then she moves on.

I really didn’t like this book. I give it a 5/10. I like her voice and her writing style, but this one was not for me.

(Weird sidenote: Joshilyn Jackson lives in Atlanta. While I was reading this I had a VERY VIVID dream that my friend Holly and I went to lunch with her and CRITIQUED HER BOOK to her face! And I woke up embarrassed but happy because maybe her next book will be as good as Gods in Alabama after my dream-critique over lunch!)

15: Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty

Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty, written by Jody Gehrman, is a young adult book about the trials and tribulations of love in high school. It’s witty, funny and easy to read.

The main character, Genna, has planned the perfect summer with her best friend and wild child Amber, and her pristine and virginal cousin, Hero (named for Shakespeare). However, like oil and water, these two do not mix. Throw in some boys, the heat and a few summer parties, and the fact that they all work together at the coffee shop and you have the recipe for a good story.

There was more sex stuff than I expected in this book. The storyline loosely follows Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing play, and I would love to see a high school class read this as a supplement to the play, but as a teacher it would get awkward reading this with students.

This book is the first in a series. It’s good, and definitely an easy and fun read, especially for high school girls. I give it a 7/10.

14: Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison

Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, by Piper Kerman, is the story of a girl who gets put in jail for a year on a ten-year old drug related charge that she performed in college. At the time she’s put on trial, she’s a professional woman and not the same twenty-year-old who ran a suitcase of drugs for a “friend” across international borders. The book showcases Piper’s days in jail, and the relationships (not that kind!) that form when women band together.

I liked this book. It reads like a blog, and I like those, so this was just good reading. It wasn’t super engaging. Good, but forgettable. I think I expected more at the end… it just kind of ends. No wrap up of whether she keeps in touch with friends, no discussion on how she’s doing now, no talk on how her year behind bars affected her relationships with her parents, her fiancé and her friends (who all came to visit her weekly). I think her experienced was probably different than many people’s experiences in jail. Piper came from a wealthy family, she had as much money as she wanted to spend in jail, she was already a healthy person, so she did her yoga and ran her 10 miles (allegedly a day, but I find that hard to believe!) and she tried to eat healthy. She knew she was only in there for a short period of time and not ten years like some of the women she met.

Those criticisms aside, it is a good book. It’s fast-paced. It doesn’t drag. It’s easy to pick up and easy to put down. I give it a 7/10.