The House on First Street

This book kicked ass.

It had everything that I look for in a book: houses, interesting people and an interesting city.

Julia Reed is an excellent writer. She kept me entertained almost the whole time I was reading the book. She lost me a couple of times in her long descriptions of all the food and various alcoholic beverages she and her friends consumed, but over all it was a fascinating book.

I was just hoping to get a little insight on what it's like to live in New Orleans and to restore a house, but the book was so much more that that. It was a first hand account of living thru Hurricane Katrina which I had never read before. It was sad, entertaining and also immensely educational. Not only that but it seemed as if Ms. Reed knew every single person in New Orleans. There were more characters in this book than I could easily keep track of, but still I muddled through.

As I research my way through New Orleans further I am getting sucked deeper and deeper into this city. I can't seem to find anyone who does not fall in love with it as soon as they arrive. This book only made an actual trip there more inevitable.

My Book Reviews

Now if anyone is reading this, they might say...... "your book reviews suck".

I might agree with you, but I would also point out that I am not trying to write an Amazon Quality book review. If you want a plot synopsis then go to Amazon. If you want to know if the book was readable without kissing any ones ass, then read my reviews.

Yes they are all about what I think. That's all I can tell you when I read a book. I can only tell you if it struck a chord with me. So I'll tell you honestly if I couldn't get through the first paragraph, if the book felt like it was being written by a screen writer with all dialog, or if I was swept away into a magical world and couldnt' stop myself from turning pages well past 11 pm.

So read them with that in mind.

I'm gonna give away lame plot twists.

I'm going to call bullshit on shitty writers.

I'm going to praise others and worship at their feet.

That's just how I review.

How to Write?

I'm am not going to read any more books on 'How to Write'. They all say the same thing. I learn more about how to write reading than I do wasting the time reading the how to books.

I came to this conclusion after I had read my hundredth sentence contradicting a book I had read previously. Some of the books say you have to struggle for so long and amass hundreds of rejection letters and others say to just write and know the right people. It just all seems like bullshit and doublespeak.

The only really helpful books on writing have been written by authors I actually read and enjoy like Stephen King's book. Most of these books are however not written by authors of the caliber of Stephen King are seem to be written by editors and magazine writers who are looking for a paycheck from Writer's Digest. I dont' know if I can take their advice seriously. They are not the writers I want to become.

I am of the opinion that we all know how to write. If you read regularly, can communicate your ideas in basic correct grammer, then go for it and write. Everything else is just polishing. Yes it is a craft, but we all have the basic tools and we don't necessarily need an instruction manual to put them to use.

So now that I've crossed about 10 books off of my June reading list I'm going to add some fun into the mix. I'm spending a little time researching New Orleans and found a fabulous book at the library by Julia Reed called, The House on First Street. It is amazing so far and I should finish it by this evening and then I'm tempted to read Anthropology of an America Girl by H.T. Hamann (the new edition of the book she has a diferent name) but it looks so long and very heavy on teenage angst. Then I'm going on to a second Dickens book (yes I did finish A Tale of Two Cities) and then hitting up Mansfield Park. So many pages to get through, but those books will be better teachers than any writing program or writing book.

Called out of Darkness

 I am not particularly religious, but I do believe in God, so this book intrigued me. I love Anne Rice and had always wondered why she changed the type of books that she wrote. It was a huge mystery to me. I had always thought it came about due to her near death experience in a diabetic coma and the death of her husband Stan. Those things added to it, but this book describes in detail how she went from an atheist to a Roman Catholic again after 38 years away from the church. It was fascinating. I had to skip over a few overly religious bible stories, but other than that I loved it. I think you have to be a big Anne Rice fan to read this or else wanting to know about New Orleans in the 40's and 50's.

Now that I finished this book it has given me insight in to the stories inside some of her books. i just had to rush out to Barnes and Noble this morning and purchase the following Anne Rice books:

                                  1. Belinda
                                  2. Christ the Lord
                                  3. Violin

As the when I actually get around to reading them? Heaven only knows.

                   

3000 Words a Day

Okay, so it's day 3 of my 3000 words a day.

That is so not going to work.

So far I've averaged 1000.

That's not too bad. it's about 3 double spaced pages. Maybe after all the kids and I get settled into a schedule I'll be able to find more time to write every day, but the hour-hour and a half it takes to write three pages seems like just enough. I'm not getting burned out or stressed and it still feels like I'm accomplishing a little bit towards my goal and I'm writing daily.

I'm not going to say I'll only write 1000 words a day, but I'll write at least 1000 words a day. It's nothing to sneeze at. Maybe it's like working out.... you have to build up your stamina.

Plus I still need so much time to read....... That's just an obvious excuse.

June 2 Book Aquisitions

I bought some classics that I was missing yesterday at Barnes and Noble.

1. Lasher - Anne Rice

2. Less than Zero - Bret Easton Ellis

3. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote

4. Valley of the Dolls - Jacqueline Susann

5. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay - Michael Chabon

The 39 Clues

I've been reading these books since they first came out in September of 2008. While the story is good enough, what I really love about them is the fact that I know I have a good book to buy every 3-4 months. It's the consuming and the collecting that I love the most.

The story is overall good, entertaining and fast paced, but sometimes it's a little too much action and too little story. Now that we're on book 9 things are starting to get a little juicy. I love that Nellie's (the au pair) connection to the kids and the clues is finally being revealed. It makes the story a smidge bit more believable. There are just way too many coincidences and close calls most of the time, but now that Nellie is part of the mystery it's making a lot more sense.

I think the next book is the last one. There are a lot of loose ends that are going to need to be tied up quickly. I can't wait to see if Dan and Amy take over as the head of the Cahill clan.

Overall I recommend them highly. I haven't been able to get my 10 year old hooked on them, but they sucked me in on the first book.