Favorite Authors

I have been rather busy at work, so I haven’t finished any new books. I do however want to share some of my favorite authors.

Christopher Pike: He writes young adult novels as well as adult novels. Sometimes in the category of fantasy, but most of his work would be categorized as thriller. I have been reading him for years, and my favorite book by him would probably have to be “Fall into Darkness”. I highly recommend reading all of his books.

Sophie Kinsella/Madeline Wickham: Before she wrote the shopaholic series, Sophie Kinsella was writing under her real name (Madeline Wickham). All the books written by her would be considered chic-lit. They are candy books..just fun to read and I find myself reading her books over and over again. She is such a talented writer, it is hard for me to decide what my favorite book by her was. The great thing about the shopaholic series is the main character is so easy for me to relate to..her name is Becky Bloomwood. So far in the series there are: Confessions of a Shopaholic, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Gets Married, Shopaholic and Sister, Shopaholic and Baby, and Mini Shopaholic. Books by her that aren’t in a series that are at the top of my list would have to be: Twenties Girl and Remember Me?.

So those are just a few suggestions…I’ll put together more of a list later.

Becky’s 2nd Book Review: “Bite” by Laurell K. Hamilton, Charlene Harris, MaryJanice Davidson, and Angela Knight

“Bite” is a collection of short stories including a Anita Blake story and a Sookie Stackhouse story. I’ve got to say that I was a little disappointed by it. I thought that the Anita Blake story and Sookie Stackhouse story would be new…but it turns out that they were both published in different collections that I’ve read before. I believe that Laurell K. Hamilton and Charlene Harris are both very talented writers and so I would recommend the book to most people. The two other stories in the book were pretty entertaining although I have never read either author before. I’m definitely planning on looking up more of MaryJanice Davidson’s work, I actually think that I own some of her books already. But I wasn’t a big fan of the last story by Angela Knight.

Overall, I would say that I enjoyed three out of the four stories featured in “Bite”.

Becky’s 1st Book Review: “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett

Reading “The Help” was a very interesting experience for me. It has been awhile since I read anything that was really substantial. I have been reading mostly candy books. You know the kind of book that you enjoy while you’re reading but don’t spend much time discussing because it was such an easy read? It took me a few chapters to get into the book…and since I was reading it on my kindle and I usually only read my kindle during my lunch break this took more time than it should have. Once I really got into the book I could barely put it down.

The author uses different characters to tell her story–an approach that allows the audience to know what everyone is thinking at different intervals during the book. I am a big fan of this technique and am testing it out myself. The basic plot of the novel is that one character “Skeeter” is trying to become a writer and decides that she wants to put together a collection of stories from different black maids in her town. The novel goes into the minds of all these different woman, black and white, and tells each person’s story. I don’t want to give too much of the novel away…so that is where I am going to stop my description.

While I was reading the book I did spend a lot of time getting angry. (I pour my emotions into books and over-identify with characters, something I am trying to work on). There was so much going on in the book that I am well aware actually happened/does happen as far as racism goes but what Stockett does with her book is she puts you in the middle of it. During the book we hear perspectives of rich white ladies, the woman working on the book nicknamed “Skeeter”, and the black maids with whom Skeeter is working with.

What I don’t really understand is how there was a time when people were convinced that black people carried diseases that were very contagious, so much so that all that “separate but equal” bulllshit emerged. The question I kept asking myself is, if white people were so afraid of sharing bathrooms and water fountains and such…why was it okay that their food was cooked by black people and their children were cared for by black people?

Would I recommend this book to a friend? Yes. I think that Stockett put together a book that is accessible to a wide audience first of all and secondly, her novel makes you think.

Hello world!

When people ask me what I do for a living I always hesitate before telling anyone that I am a writer. Why? I don’t feel like I have submerged myself in the world of writing enough to call myself one. My life has its ups and downs and I’m going to try to not use my posts as a means of whining about the world. It is what it is.

I want to use this site as an opportunity to focus on my writing. I decided that the best way to go about doing this, at least to start, is going to be book reviews. I love to read. I am so passionate about it which is part of why I want to become a writer in the first place. I’ve been reading since I was three years old and usually am reading more than one book at a time. Thanks to the invention of ebooks and my fancy kindle I get to carry around an assortment of books at all times.

Currently I am reading “Bite” a collection of short stories edited by Charlaine Harris and a few others. I am also reading “Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison. This is my second time reading the book and I am hoping that I will be able to enjoy it more this time around. These are my stay at home books. I am reading on my kindle “Pirate Latitudes” by Michael Crichton with my boyfriend Adam and I am reading “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas. I just finished reading “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett and plan on doing my first review on it.