Daily Archives: June 4, 2010

Hand of Isis by Jo Graham

Posted on June 4, 2010
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Hand of Isis Hand of Isis by Jo Graham

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Even though I was a bit weirded out by Black Ships I really did enjoy it – especially as I did not know quite a bit about the Trojans.

In Hand of Isis, Jo Graham follows the journey of Charmian and Iras, Cleopatra’s half-sisters who became her closest handmaidens. The three made quite the trio and it was a fascinating look at what might have gone on behind the scenes. That aspect is what kept this book from getting a one star rating.

However, she really pushed the limits with this one. The graphic level of the relationship between Charmian and her lovers was just too over the top for me and made me feel uncomfortable. I could not recommend this book because of the passages in it (and honestly there were parts that had me going.. huh? – Dion, for example.)

Also, the language seemed much more modern in Hand of Isis then I remember it being in Black Ships – for example there were a few very modern insults and I just couldn’t imagine Charmian’s daughter calling her “ma” all the time. It really broke the spell of the book and made it difficult to feel immersed in the story.

I’m really sad about this one, because I really did love Black Ships quite a bit.

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The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman

Posted on June 4, 2010
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The Imperfectionists: A Novel The Imperfectionists: A Novel by Tom Rachman

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When I finished this book my first thought was: “Just what genre is this supposed to be?”. I suppose it’s .. Literary Fiction? But I’m not really quite sure.

I’m also in the middle on it. The entire book felt as if it were short stories all circling about one central theme, the newspaper. I got the feeling the author wanted to make the paper itself the main character of the book and to an extent he succeeded. However, I’ve already read a book this year with an inanimate object as the main “character” (see: A Romance on Three Legs) and was thoroughly impressed by Katie Hafner’s treatment of the subject and the people involved around it. Sadly, Tom Rachman’s book fell a bit short as a result.

That’s not to say it wasn’t interesting, because it was. The issue was – I was more interested in the people who worked and were connected through the newspaper then I was with the newspaper itself. I had little to no interest in the history of the paper or the people who created it because their lives, in comparison to the others stories being told, were dull.

And this is a big pet peeve of mine but in no way influenced my rating of this novel. I really dislike pages upon pages of italics being used, especially when they could have been avoided by a simple date/place stamp. It’s difficult to read and really off-putting and made me struggle more than I should have. Does anyone else have this problem when it comes to huge chunks of books italicized?

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48 Hour Readathon

Posted on June 4, 2010
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Yay! I finally have a weekend where I can participate in a readathon.  And I plan to!  I have to knock out several books before heading out of town on Tuesday so I have my list set up all ready to go!  MotherReader is hosting this challenge and if it’s something you are interested in, head on over and sign up!

I’m aiming for the 20-30 hour mark (but would really like to hit 30-40!).

I started this morning at about 8:30AM.  As of 4:30PM EST I’ve already knocked out 4 1/2 hours of reading – finished one book and am halfway through the next.  So don’t be surprised if you see some spamming of blog posts over the weekend, I plan on updating and cranking out those reviews!

What I’ve read already:

  1. Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show by Frank Delaney (Finished last 230 pages)
  2. The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman (336 pages)
  3. Hand of Isis by Jo Graham (479 pages)
  4. Romancing Miss Bronte by Juliet Gael (417 pages)
  5. The Last Summer of the Death Warriors by Francisco X. Stork (352 pages)
  6. My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira (364 pages) ((Review up today))

Here’s the list I need to get through:

Wish me some luck!

———-

Time devoted(all times EST):

Friday, June 4, 2010

  • 8:30 AM – 10:30AM – 2 hours
  • 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM – 30 minutes
  • 1:00PM – 3:00 PM – 2 hours
  • 4:15 PM – 5:15PM – 1 hour
  • 5:30 PM – 6:00PM – 30 minutes
  • 6:45 PM – 7:15PM (Networking/Blogging) – 30 minutes
  • 7:15PM – 7:35PM – 20 minutes
  • 8:00PM – 9:00PM – 1 hour
  • 9:ooPM – 9:15PM (Networking/Blogging) – 15 minutes
  • 9:15PM – 10:15PM – 1 hour
  • 10:15PM – 10:30PM (Networking/Blogging) – 15 minutes
  • 10:30PM – 11:40PM – 1 hour 10 minutes
  • 11:40PM – 11:55PM (Networking/Blogging) – 15 minutes

Saturday, June 5, 2010

  • 12:15AM – 12:45AM – 30 minutes
  • 7:30AM – 9:00AM – 1 hourr 30 minutes
  • 9:30AM – 10:00AM – 30 minutes
  • 11:00AM – 12:00PM – 1 hour
  • 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM – 1 hour
  • 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM – 1 hour
  • 4:30 PM – 4:45 PM (Networking/Blogging) – 15 minutes
  • 4:45 PM – 5:30 PM – 45 minutes
  • 7:00 PM – 9:30 PM – 1 hour 30 minutes
  • 9:30 PM – 9:45 PM (Networking/Blogging) – 15 minutes
  • 9:45PM – 11:30 PM – 1 hour 45 minutes
  • 11:30PM – 12:15 AM (Networking/Blogging) – 45 minutes

Sunday, June 6, 2010

  • 12:15 AM – 2:15 AM – 2 hours
  • 2:15 AM – 3:15 AM (Networking/Blogging) – 1 hour
  • 7:00 AM – 8:00 AM – 1 hour
  • 8:00 AM – 8:30 AM (Networking/Blogging) – 30 minutes
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Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show by Frank Delaney

Posted on June 4, 2010
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Venetia Kelly's Traveling Show Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show by Frank Delaney

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In another life I think I would want to be an Irish writer. Several years ago I fell in love with the lyrical writing of Frank McCourt and now I’ve found another writer to fully explore.

I’d heard of Frank Delaney’s other books before but never found the time to pick them up and read them. Then one day, at B&N, I saw this book sitting there and I was fascinated by the cover of it. When I was a young girl I remember watching a movie about a blind horse jumper and the whole idea of a traveling show (not quite a circus) really appealed to me then and still lingers to this day.

What I didn’t realize, however, was the depths to which this book would go. Instead of a pleasant story about a fantastic performer this book explored politics, fear, betrayal and mixed in a healthy dose of a coming-of-age story in Benedict (Ben), the main character.

This book was a pleasure to read. The short chapters and constant diversions into learning about other characters and other places made me feel as if I was listening to a master storyteller at work.

However, I was still confused at times and plan on doing some research to find out what exactly was real and what wasn’t. In and of itself, it makes for some fantastic reading though and I enjoyed my introduction to Frank Delaney’s work.

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Book Blogger Hop – June 4-7, 2010

Posted on June 4, 2010
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Jennifer over at Crazy for Books hosts the Book Blogger Hop on Friday’s.  I’ve found some great blogs each week that I’ve participated and encourage you to head over there, enter your link and start visiting!  While you are here however, take a moment to enter my competition for a copy of Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman.

BLOGS I’VE VISITED TODAY!

Thoughts Interred in Phrase

Book Snob

A Room Without Books is Empty

Literary Musings

Books are a Garden


ABOUT THE HOP:

In the spirit of the Friday Follow, I thought it would be cool to do a Book Blogger Hop to give us all book bloggers and readers a chance to connect and find new blogs that we may be missing out on!  So, I created this weekly BOOK PARTY where book bloggers and readers can connect to find new blogs to read, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books!  It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs that they may not know existed!  So, grab the logo, post about the Hop on your blog, and start PARTYING!!

The Hop lasts a full week so if you don’t have time to Hop today, come back later and join the fun!  This is a weekly event!

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