All Rileyed Up

Sometimes I think that if I had to choose between an ear of corn or making love to a woman, I’d choose the corn. Not that I wouldn’t love to have a final roll in the hay—I am a man yet, and some things never die—but the thought of those sweet kernels bursting between my teeth sure sets my mouth to watering. It’s fantasy, I know that. Neither will happen. I just like to weigh the options, as though I were standing in front of Solomon: a final roll in the hay or an ear of corn. What a wonderful dilemma. Sometimes I substitute an apple for the corn.

The above paragraph is taken from chapter one of Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. The book is quirky and funny, demented and tragic. Such is the circus life, I guess.

I read this book for my book club and tonight is the meeting. I skimmed over the suggested discussion questions at the end of the book and in one of them, Ms. Gruen says she incorporated Jacob’s story from the Bible. Yikes! I did not see that coming. In fact, I was a total lidiot (my own made up word: literary idiot, the reader who JUST DIDN’T GET IT), saying to myself, well, his name is Jacob I can see that connection. But what else?

After giving it more thought, I have come up with these:

There’s the woman Jacob loves, Marlena. You could make the argument that Uncle Al is a sort of Laban, extracting unpaid work from Jacob, although there’s no promise of anyone’s hand in marriage. Also, what does that make August?

Jacob’s ladder. In Water for Elephants, the ladder is important to life on a circus train (as well as bootleg liquor, hey hey). The ladders enable one to jump atop train cars and move from one to another, which happens from time to time when you’re on a train as often as these fine folks. Maybe the circus people are like the angels ascending and descending the ladder.

If Jacob’s Ladder is to signify the Jewish exiles, then you might say the ladder of a circus train is symbolic of the exiles of the circus performers, like Kinko/Walter, who has nowhere else to go because his mother sold him. And really, one might consider the whole circus an exile, given the multiple occasions on which they are run out of town.

Jacob’s Ladder leads from earth to heaven, and since the circus train ladder leads from inside the stock cars to atop them, maybe that means both heaven and earth are the circus train? For these circus performer, life takes place, essentially, on the train. The train only stopped to put on the show, so when they were off the train, they were working to set up, put on, and take down the show. So earth is the insides of the stock cars, these people’s homes and livelihoods. Heaven is looking upon the train from atop the roof, like when Jacob Jankowski ascends the ladder:

I climb to the roof. He moves over and when I sit down next to him he claps a hand on my shoulder. “Turn around. I want you to see something.”
He points down the length of the train. It stretches behind us like a giant snake, the linked cars jiggling and bending as it rounds a curve.
“It’s a beautiful sight, isn’t it, Jacob?” says August.

In the case of the circus performers, I tend to think that heaven could well be the view of the train from above, because it is a home and employment during the Depression when both were scarce.

Camel. Well, the name alone works with the stretching muscle. There were camels in the Bible, right? Camel also has the problem of having done something bad that he hasn’t forgiven himself for, and though we never do find out if Camel’s family forgave him, we know they were willing to take him back. All that forgiveness talks seemed to have “Biblical imagery” written all over it.

I think the best parallel to Biblical Jacob comes when Jacob Jankowski realizes that it is up to him to protect the circus animals from the treatment they receive under Uncle Al and August:
I am their shepherd, their protector. And it’s more than a duty. It’s a covenant with my father. While I realize that Jacob is referring to his biological father, I think it’s safe to assume this sentence is meant to carry more meaning than just that.

We’ll see how it goes tonight at the book club meeting. In case I’m totally amiss with my interpretation, I’m bringing a copy of one of the books of circus photos that inspired Sara Gruen to write the book. “Wild, Weird, and Wonderful: The American Circus as Seen by F.W. Glasier.” I had to drive to not-my-usual library to check it out. Extra effort like that should count for something, right?

All I know is, parallel to Biblical Jacob? If she says so.

Good read? Definitely.

Meet Daniel X, a 15 year old alien hunter ridding the earth of incorrigible aliens. The Dangerous Days of Daniel X is book one of a series, and this particular, um, episode gives us a glimpse of Daniel’s life and family history as well as his encounter with Seth Ergent, number six on The List of Alien Outlaws.

According to the Young Adult Library Services Association, boys more often than girls don’t like to read because they find it “boring,” they “like other activities better” and they “can’t get into the stories.” I checked in with Beth Patin, head librarian of The Holy Cross School in New Orleans, an all boys school grades 5-12, who said, “Boys do read. They just don’t associate themselves with the type of books that most English teachers suggest. Teachers often assign classic novels that are perceived as uninteresting. It would liven things up if a teacher would assign a current story, that maybe has an Ipod in it.”

She encourages her students to read by “Finding out what they are interested in and then making a connection with a book in that subject area. Boys love technology: audio-books, the Amazon Kindle, and electronic books are great formats for guys.”

So will Daniel X make the cut?

I asked Patin to help me out in a completely unscientific survey and asked all the students who stopped by her library during lunchtime whether or not they would read this book based on the description above. Out of ten students, seven said yes, one asked for more details, one said he’d read it already (nerd alert) and one, interestingly, repsonded “I don’t read.”

James Patterson, the father of a ten year old boy himself, aims to give boys something they’ll want to read. Seizing on the facts that boys like action and are more inclined to read comics and graphic novels over other forms of fiction, Patterson included in The Dangerous Days of Daniel X all the action, dialogue, drama, aliens, and superpowers one might expect to find in a comic book or graphic novel, replete with jokes and gross-out material (think scum, ooze, earwax, and the word “spaghetti-like”). Surprisingly, no skateboarding, which I had fully expected.

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X is quick reading and does feel like I’m reading the thoughts of a boy. Some of the dialogue gets a little silly for me, but then again, I’ve overheard boys’ conversations and they sometimes sound silly too (and yes, I’m sure they think I sound ridiculous). As a mother, I give this the mom-stamp of approval for boys. It’s clean and it follows all the basic elements of novel writing, so it’s a good starter book to interest boys in reading before they move on to heavier stuff. All in all, I’ll pass this copy on to my nephew and I think he’ll enjoy it.

Things to know:

Buy the book here.

The book’s website here.

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P.S. On another note, congrats to Beckie, who won the CD giveaway.

The Cure for Modern Life is Lisa Tucker’s fourth book. And for the fourth time, I’ve enjoyed reading a novel by her.

The Cure for Modern Life is the story of Matthew Connelly, a top exec at a pharmaceutical company and several of his friendships: Amelia, the only woman he ever loved, who is determined to take down pharmaceutical companies in general, for their manipulation of the medical industry and pushing of prescription drugs (hey, who can blame her); Ben, his best friend and a skilled scientist who, shall we say, isn’t so good with the ladies—or for that matter, anything that isn’t science; and Danny and Isabelle, the sweet children of a heroin addict who enter Matthew’s life one random night on the Walnut Street Bridge.

I first learned of Lisa Tucker when I signed up for a Beginning Novel Writing class with her through the UCLA Extension. One of the first things she emphasized was the importance of the first sentence, the first paragraph, the first three pages, and finally, the first chapter, all of which we submitted in increments.

So let’s look at her first chapter. The opening line? “Was Matthew Connelly a bad man?” Does it set the stage for the novel? Yup. This novel goes around and around on the question, “What constitutes ‘good’? That could keep you up every night for the rest of your life: what is good? What is doing good? Who are you to decide what is and is not good? When a drug can heal some but hurt others, what does that make it? Good? Bad? Neither? How do you answer the question do the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few (cue the ending to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn)?

I love that this novel begins with such a simple sentence, and a question too. Because you will read this whole book wondering if Matthew Connelly is, in fact, a bad man. Which brings up another interesting aspect of this novel, and another thing they like to teach in beginning writing classes. Is your protagonist likeable? What about the supporting characters? Are they likeable? Do you root for them? These characters all have such strong flaws, there are times when I just want to reach into the book and wring their necks, but then they come back and remind me that hey, you’re not perfect either. We’re all only human. They get rash when they shouldn’t and over-reflective when they needn’t. I love how human they are.

There are few authors that I can say I’ve read everything by them. I’m glad I came across Lisa while she still had only two books out. It was easy to get up to speed and now I can read along with her. Her books have gotten better with each one. I feel like her characters’ complexities get more in-depth with each book. They always revolve around hardships experienced during childhood and the need for love—sometimes giving it, sometimes rejecting it. The Cure for Modern Life is another fascinating journey into the human desire to be accepted for who they are, problems and all.

So go on and read it. Love Lisa. I sure do.

Things to know:

Buy the book here.

Go to Lisa’s website here.

Lisa’s other books: The Song Reader, Shout Down from the Moon, Once Upon a Day .

Want to read review books like this? Go here.

Short Summary: Josh Ryder is hurt in a bomb explosion and begins reliving past lives. As he tries to work out the anxiety he feels from these past life moments, he encounters other people with past lives who intersected with his own past lives. Through the course of this book, you will meet power-hungry rich folks, devout archaeologists, lusty pagans in Rome circa 391 A.D., and jumped up New Yorkers at the turn of the century living out their own Hamlet-inspired life.

Oh yeah, and a kid.

Hmm, and romance.

Ooh, it also has—oh forget it… this book has a little bit of everything.

I used to read thrillers all the time. Now, I generally read them when I’m flying or if I’ve heard a lot about it. When the opportunity came up to review this book, I signed up because the idea of a past life in Rome sounded interesting. As far as airplane reading goes, this book lives up: a compelling weave of plotlines, action, adventure, and characters to create drama and excitement for me while I’m sitting in between two strangers in my cozy Southwest Airlines seat, chugging Ginger Ale and eating cracker sticks and cheese dip. There is a scene where a man strategically places large gemstones on a woman before making love to her, and let me tell you, when you’re reading that, you do not care that the thigh of the somewhat overweight woman next to you is resting on your own thigh and making movement virtually impossible (heh, I had the last laugh, though, because she had NO IDEA how dirty my jeans were).

Basically, the book is entertaining and interesting. She could have sped up the beginning a bit. If I had been in a library and only read the first couple chapters, I might not have checked it out and brought it home, but since my only other option was to cheat on the middle level crossword puzzle in Spirit magazine, I kept reading. I’m glad I did, because it really picked up.

In some parts, I thought it made too much emphasis on HOW IMPORTANT THE DISCOVERY IS. I honestly tried to go with this idea that “the Church” (if the book ever becomes an audience participation movie, you would all say “booooo” right now) would explosively lose their minds and world chaos would ensue if it could be proven beyond scientific doubt that reincarnation does exist (GASP!!!!!), but alas, I wasn’t biting. Ms. Rose could have removed the entire Church-vs-reincarnation and the book would have been fine for me. In fact, if she had removed all the Church-vs-reincarnation bits and replaced them with sex, it probably would have been much better (cue the 9 1/2 Weeks score).

So, there you have it. A book to read on your next airplane ride. Hope you’re going somewhere fun. And give me a call if your rental car floods. I know how to handle that now.

Things to know about this book:

Buy the book here.

More on the author here.

Want to read books like this? Go here.

I end with a spoiler/warning: superfluous rape scene on p. 13. Only a few sentences a long. I hate reading them, especially when they’re thrown in for no good reason.

BOB Books have apparently been around for a while, but this is my first introduction to them. I have Set 1 for Beginning Readers, comprised of 12 short booklets. And boy howdy, do they mean short. I wish all books were like this, because as un-motherly as it sounds, sometimes I can’t stand reading aloud with the kids. I used to enjoy reading kid books, but when I’m reading something for the 950th time, it wears on my interests somewhat. Fortunately, no matter how bored I might get of reading BOB books, at least they’re short. Anyone can handle a minute, right?

My kids, ages 3 and 4, enjoy BOB books. They don’t read aloud much (yet), but they will point to the pictures. The sentences are nice and simple (“Mat sat. Sam sat.”) and at the beginning of every booklet, they tell you which sounds are being emphasized (no more than four per book), which is nice for the older children because you can make them point them out while reading. The books are also stick drawings with bits of color, so you could extend the reading activity to an art activity by encouraging your kids to draw them freehand or trace them, and color them. You could even re-enact these stories, as most of them involved easy things like “Dot and Mit sit on a mat” that could get funny when they sit on each other.

I like this one guy, Mac, who looks a little bit like a robot. “Dot and the Dog” involves the story of Dot, a little girl who looks like her hair is permanently in curlers, and her dog, as they try to figure out what is in a bag that Dot has. In the end, they discover “The bag had a hot dog.” I don’t know about you, some mystery bag containing a hot dog sounds pretty suspicious to me.

Then there is “Lad and the Fat Cat” — easily my favorite. First, it contains the sentence: “Lad sat on a keg,” followed up with “Lad had a nap” where he is sleeping against the keg (aka “barrel”). This book also talked about the “fat, fat cat” who at the end we find out was pregnant! Yes! Let’s call the pregnant animals fat! That will make all of us mommies feel great.

In “The Vet,” a veterinarian who goes to the zoo to help the hurt lion, which includes a page where “The cat ran zig zag. The vet ran zip zap.” The picture of the vet makes him look like he is a figure skater, and frankly, I don’t think it’s a good idea to move like that around a big cat (we all saw what happened to poor Roy, of “Siegfried and” fame ). But no worries from The Vet – he and the lion shake hands at the end (“O.K. Cat! O.K. Vet!”)

So, um, yeah. That’s my review of this book. Enthusiastic thumbs up for the little kids! And a few snickers for Mommy and Daddy too.

Important things for you to know:

Buy the book here.

Read more about the book here.

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BTW, Kailani of An Island Life is holding a giveaway to Warm Biscuit Bedding Company. Stop by before September 28th for all the details. They have nice fabric (and I’m into sewing lately).

You can also check out Kailani’s sidebar for info on the Carnival of Family Life, to which this book review is being submitted. See Real Life after Sept 30 for more posts.

James Patterson’s Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports is a book that lives up to its title, complete with gangs, explosions, and romance (hoo ha!).

Quick summary minus spoilers: Maximum Ride, better known as Max, is a smart-talking, fourteen year old girl who is the oldest of six children called bird kids. The bird kids are the result of experiments performed by genetic scientists heck-bent (PG-rated book, folks) on curing the world of war and greed and environmental destruction. How do these megalomaniacs plan to cure the world of said evils? Why, by killing everyone who contributes to the problems and creating a stronger, more powerful human species. It’s up to Max and her trusty flock to save the world from this “Re-Evolution.”

Now, some of you more faithful readers may know that I have issues with eagles. Although Patterson never specifies any particular species of bird the bird kids’ DNAs have been spliced with, I feel confident saying that Max would be a terrifying person to behold. She has WINGS, people, WINGS! (A point Max makes herself with such lines as “I blame you for altering my DNA! I mean, I have wings, lady! What were you thinking?”) Yet I read this entire book in one day because it was THAT CAPTIVATING AND ENJOYABLE. (I also thought this review was due a couple days ago and had put off reading it to the last minute, but do not let that deter you from the original point that this book is THAT CAPTIVATING AND ENJOYABLE).

My overall thought is this: if you are a boy or girl between the ages of 9-14, you will enjoy this book and likely get a decent vocabulary lesson out of it (and if you’re really good, you might catch the grammatical error in the first sentence of chapter 37). If you are the parent of said child, you may have just stumbled upon a book that will open your child’s eyes to the wonderful world of reading.

Why will boys like this? Danger. Excitement. Fight sequences. This book is quite comic book-esque, with its genetically altered heroes and snarky one-liners (Wolverine or Gambit, anyone?). See, the bird kids are considered an imperfect experiment, and those heck-bent scientists wish to “retire” them (a euphemism I’m sure you can interpret). This aspect gives every fight sequence the admirable quality of “fighting for one’s right to life.” Everyone deserves the right to live, no matter how different they are.

Why will girls like this? In short, Max. Max is one hundred percent female and one hundred percent bad mamma jamma. The leader of the flock, her catchphrase throughout the book is “There’s always a plan.” She is quick-thinking, assertive, confident, strong, and many more adjectives that lend themselves readily to the word “Heroine.” This girl takes care of herself, her friends, and the world (ie, she cares about her fellow people). If you really want to get a feel for Max, consider this line: “I know this will surprise you, but I don’t damsel well. Distress, I can do. Damseling? Not so much.” Come on, you know you prefer your daughter reading about tough witty girls like her instead of Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield (not that I know anything at all about Sweet Valley High).

Why will both boys and girls enjoy this book? Power in the hands of youth. It’s a book that rallies the young to take a stance for the world they are to inherit – it reminds children that they CAN make a difference, that it is within their grasp to foster new understandings of how to take care of the world, and that it’s okay to express dissatisfaction with the way “the grown-ups” (yes, that’s the word the book uses) handle things.

As for setting (which I’m a big fan of), Maximum Ride takes us to a handful of locales, thereby ensuring a future movie with beautiful “filmed on location!” sets. I’ve never read a book by Patterson before, although my cousin raves about the Alex Cross books. There are a couple point of view shifts that I didn’t catch until after the first couple sentences (personal pet peeve), but other than that, the pacing is excellent, and easy to read. While Patterson does capture the voice of a fourteen year old accurately, Max makes references to pop culture that I daresay a fourteen year old of today wouldn’t make. Do you know any fourteen year olds who reference Yogi Bear? Do they even know who Yogi Bear is? It’s only one sentence here and there, and not a big deal, because us “grown ups” will get those jokes.

On that note, I think I’m going to go participate in a beach clean up or protest a pharmaceutical company, or, I don’t know, start a blog and save the world. Happy reading.

Important things for you to know:

Buy the book here.

Read more about the book here.

Want to review books like this? Go here.

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