Review: A Cousin’s Prayer

From Goodreads: Kumme to Amish country, where the simple ways of life lead to hope and healing. Katie Miler is traumatized after her boyfriend is killed in a van in which she was also a passenger. How will she find her way out of the valley of her depression? Freeman Bontrager will make any excuse to be near to Katie, hoping to win her love. But how far will he go to gain her trust. . .and her heart? What will bring this girl out of the shadows of fear, and open her heart to life—and love?
My Review: This is the second book in the Indiana Cousins series. The book can be read as a stand alone. Like the previous book before it, it focuses on one character in each book so you can see how each character grows and changes over time.
Katie is still not over the tragic death of her boyfriend Timothy who was killed in a car accident. Ever since Katie has these attacks where she has a feeling of unreality and a sense of panic and like she is going to die. Her good friend Freeman is the one who tells her it is panic attacks and helps her get over them.
Over time her and Freeman draw closer and a romance starts to brew. There is one hitch, there is a woman who wants Freeman for herself. I felt that the love story in this books was authentic and relatable. You could see where each character was coming from and it was easily to become emotionally invested in the outcome. You find yourself rooting for Katie all the way.
Like the previous book this book provided insight into the Amish lifestyle which I enjoyed. It even has some Amish vocabulary words and refers to the things that the Amish would. It also does not gloss over difficulties such as a woman spreading gossip about Katie which we can all relate to.
This is a book that I would recommend to anyone wanting to get a glimpse into the Amish way of life and for those looking for a sweet inspirational and or romance.

Review: Sex on Six Legs

From Goodreads:

Insects have inspired fear, fascination, and enlightenment for centuries. They are capable of incredibly complex behavior, even with brains often the size of a poppy seed. How do they accomplish feats that look like human activity— personality, language, childcare—with completely different pathways from our own? What is going on inside the mind of those ants that march like boot-camp graduates across your kitchen floor? How does the lead ant know exactly where to take his colony, to that one bread crumb that your nightly sweep missed? Can insects be taught new skills as easily as your new puppy? 

Sex on Six Legs is a startling and exciting book that provides answers to these questions and many more. With the humor of Olivia Judson’s Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creation, Zuk not only examines the bedroom lives of creepy crawlies but also calls into question some of our own longheld assumptions about learning, the nature of personality, and what our own large brains might be for.

My Review: I have to admit  when I saw this at the library it was the title that drew me in. My first thought was sex life of insects? Who would write a book on such things? Then I picked it up and saw that it compared human processes and insects process and was hooked.

I never thought of insects as having any redeeming qualities. I see one and I stomp on it. This book opened my eyes. It described how insects can be social and how they communicate various things. For example, wasp can tell when another wasp not of its nest intrudes and will fight the intruder. What I found most fascinating was the fact that a researcher actually got a hold of a wasp and painted their faces to test this fact. I want to know how they do these sort of things without getting stung.

The biggest thing that the book does is to show that even though we think of humans has having special qualities and insects are nothing like us they are in fact. They do not have brains per se so everything boils down to neurons. We can see how neurons influence behavior and this in turn can lead us to discover more about humans and the why we act the way we do.

This was a fascinating book. I could not put it down, The author writes in a way where lay people can understand it. The author injects a sense of humor throughout the book that makes it a funny and delightful read.

Review: Becoming a man of Unwavering Faith

From Goodreads:

During the course of his 60-year ministry, John Osteen combined an extraordinary love for people with a vision for ministry best described in his own words: "No limits." In this hardcover volume not only includes content from John's sermon transcripts, but also a foreword and commentary written by his son, Joel; the principles of this "no limits" faith come alive again for a new generation.
For the moments of struggle and temptation that every man faces, and the times in life when he feels surrounded and under attack, John's message is profoundly simple-those moments are precisely the time for an unwavering faith. In this book, John schools today's believers in seven qualities of unwavering faith:
1. It hears and sees what the world cannot see or hear.
2. It prays earnestly even though it has already heard the answer.
3. It is strong when there is no evidence of the answer.
4. It always says, "Go Again!"
5. It goes on when there's just a little evidence.
6. It believes for the big when it sees the little.
7. It begins with nothing but ends up doing mighty things for God.
Osteen also provides principles for those times when faith doesn't seem to be working. BECOMING A MAN OF UNWAVERING FAITH is a guidebook to stronger faith, from a man who spent a lifetime testing its limits.

My Review: If you have ever wondered what it is like to live a life of unlimted faith then this book explains how. It describes the seven things people do to get the most out of life and how to trust God for everything. People think that faith is something you have but this book also explains that faith is something that you do. It goes into depth of each of the seven steps that you do. This book was short but there is a lot of information packed in this book.

Review: Blood Red Road

From Goodreads:

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

 

My Review: I have been attempting to branch out from my usual fare of Literary Fiction. I head good reviews from several bloggers on this Young Adult book and when I saw it in the library decided to give it a try. I am glad I did..

This is a book that is fast paced so you will never get bored. It seems that from the very first page there is action. The world building is done through the plot. And what a world it is! It is set in a dystopian future where chaal (a drug) is used to control people and they have barbaric cage fights using humans and stuff. There is some points where I thought there was no way Saba (the main character) could get out of this one but yet she always did. I came to admire her strong independent spirit. I loved the characters in this book. It was easy to connect with them and imagine myself in their place.

The narration style is different than what one would be used to. It took me a few pages to get used to it but once I did it quickly fit in with the characters and the plot and only added to the story.

I would encourage everyone to read this book. This is one book that lives up to its hype.

Review: The Loving Dead

From Goodreads: Kate and Michael are roommates living in the Oakland hills, working at the same Trader Joes supermarket. A night of drunken revelry changes their lives forever, but not in the way that anyone would expect. A slow-spreading plague of zombie-ism breaks out at their house party, spreading amongst their circle of friends, and simultaneously through the Bay Area. This zombie plague - an STD of sorts - is spread through sex and kissing, turning its victims into mindless, horny, voracious killers. Thrust into extremes by this slow- motion tragedy, Kate and Michael are forced to confront the choices they've made in their lives, and their fears of commitment, while trying to stay alive and reunite in the one place in the Bay Area that's likely to be safe and secure from the zombie hordes: Alcatraz.

My Review: I was looking for something to read for Halloween when I saw this book in the library so I picked it up. I was not sure what to expect from this book. Would it be gory? Would it give me nightmares? Would it gross me out leaving me unable to eat for a week?

Thankfully expect for a few gory details it was none of the above. It was a quick fun read.  It is good for people just getting into zombie reads.

The story while it drew me in was not such that I was willing to suspend me disbelief and become emotionally invested in the characters. For some people this can be a deal breaker and for me in some books it is. This story had enough of a plot though to keep me moving forward. The characters do not have much of an arc they stay static for most of the book. There were some points that were so unbelievable that it snapped me out of the book. Such as the group taking a paddleboat across the bay to Alcatraz. I mean the ocean is so rough there that it was near impossible to escape and I am supposed to believe that inexperienced group managed a paddleboat? Other than a few plot points such as these the plot was good.

While I did not love this book. It was tolerable. Maybe zombies not my thing.

Overall I would recommend this book to a person who is looking to get into zombie reads. The ones who are more experienced might think this is too light to read.

Readathon Introduction

1)Where are you reading from today?

Northeast Ohio
2)Three random facts about me…

I love the color purple

I am addicted to caffeine

I love to meet new people.

3)How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?

4- Coffee talk, Elizabeth Tudor Secret Vampire Slayer, The Amber Spy Glass and the Stuble Knife
4)Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?

To stay awake as long as possible.
5)If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first time? Pick a book that is interesting and fast paced.

Review:Squirrel Seeks Chipmunks

From Goodreads:

Featuring David Sedaris's unique blend of hilarity and heart, this new collection of keen-eyed animal-themed tales is an utter delight. Though the characters may not be human, the situations in these stories bear an uncanny resemblance to the insanity of everyday life.

In "The Toad, the Turtle, and the Duck," three strangers commiserate about animal bureaucracy while waiting in a complaint line. In "Hello Kitty," a cynical feline struggles to sit through his prison-mandated AA meetings. In "The Squirrel and the Chipmunk," a pair of star-crossed lovers is separated by prejudiced family members.

My review: I got this from the library because I loved David Sedris older work. I was unaware that this was a collection of convoluted fairy tales. I was a bit disappointed if only because it was different than what I  originally anticipated.

Once I got into the stories though I could see how the related to his older work. Those familiar with his previous stories will be able to pin point what he is referring to in this book.

As long as you don’t go in expecting his usual stories about his life and prepare yourself for a sort of fairy tales you should like this book.