Facebook fun with lists

Facebook was teeming with a copy-paste-and-annoy-all-your-book-and-non-book-friends-fun-thing that asked people to list ten books that meant something to them.

It went like this:

I have been challenged by XXX to list 10 books that have stayed with me for some reason. Don't think too hard. They don't need to be the "right" books or even great works of literature, just the ones that affected you in some way. Tag 10 friends, including me, so I can see your list. I would like to see lists from: XXX x 10

This was my list. Hard to make up a list when you love a million books but I just spouted out books from my memory file to my finger tips:

1. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis
2. Little House on the Prairie (The Long Winter mostly) Laura Ingalls Wilder.
3. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
4. You or Someone Like You by Chandler Burr
5. We Band of Angels by Elizabet M.Norman.
6. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
7. Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh
8. Revelations in the Bible. (as well as other books)
9. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
10. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
11 Every book by my author friends. (I know I am cheating here.. but it's only fair)

Then we took it a step further. Why do they mean something to us? 

It took it to a higher realm and boy howdy we had fun. 

So I wrote this: 

1. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis At first I read these books when I was young for fun then I found a Narnia companion which solidified my faith even more, such great books as they can be read on several levels. Which, to me, is genius.

2. Little House on the Prairie (The Long Winter mostly) Laura Ingalls Wilder. LOVED Laura and family as they taught us to get out there and go for your dreams .. the grit and determination and love they had for the land and each other to survive through all the elements of wanting to live on the prairie is phenomenal. This book in particular is a true story of what to do when life hands you a blizzard! I felt their chill and their determination to stay alive until the spring.

 3. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
THIS book was painfully long and yet after all was said and done when I closed the Kindle I wanted more. So much more. I read this over Christmas into the new year and didn't pay much attention to it then all of a sudden that strange feeling overcame me that I was reading one of the great American novels, which sounds crazy but I think some would understand what I mean. That world she created so dramatically and wonderfully through words will always stay with me.

 4. You or Someone Like You by Chandler Burr
Why this resonated.. a couple move to Cali, she holds a book club for directors and producers (they want ideas for movies and she wanted to bring literature to the.) It's about a marriage, faith (Jewish) and finding our way back to where our heart lies in our faith and how it fits into our marriage. And books, lots about books.. brilliant story.

 5. We Band of Angels by Elizabet M.Norman.
This book is a book that every nurse should read. It's the historical story of military medical professionals (focusing on nurses) who had an idyllic deployment to the beautiful Philippines. WW2 breaks out and their world shatters as they have to run for the jungle. From there, their heroic efforts (while very ill themselves) in aiding the physicians in everything from wound care to surgical procedures in the wild eventually hiding out in a cave will never leave me. These people are the truest form of nursing and heroism.

 6. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
You can love people from afar on the premise of sharing books in every sense. It's a love story but the love is based on literature.

 7. Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh
I have yapped about this wonderful comic/narrative book about depression ad nauseum. If you have depression and/or simply need to explain it to others because they just don't get it, buy it for you and for them. It's perfect. 

 8. Revelation in the Bible. (as well as other books)
I love to know what is going to happen even if it's in symbolic language. This prompted a deep investigation into what was being told to us by God with our future. I am nosy like that.

9. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Society. The book resonates today, how we can absolutely manipulate other humans through class distinction and within that class a single subtle look. One of the best books I ever read/ This is about why we have social norms and how they hurt us on so many levels. 

 10. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
When I stopped reading for a while this was one of the books I bought used that took me to Spain a bookstore with the most rich characters and plot ever. I can't even recommend it enough I would give everyone a copy if I could. It was a perfect book to jump back into the literature world. 

 11 Every book by my author friends. (I know I am cheating here.. but it's only fair) I have good friends (and a husband of a friend) who have written books, they have stuck to my ribs, heart and soul as I know the authors and their friendships. It's like they sat me down in a coffee shop and told me a story. Love them all.

I had to cheat there, I do love them all but needed to be fair. 

The second part of this exercise was fun, not everyone participated as for one, it totally constipated everyone's wall with all the tagging going on but the lists! The lists were amazing, books I never heard of, books I wanted to re-read, and books that said BUY ME NOW DAMMIT! I was subdued into a vast gratefulness to be surrounded by book lovers from all over on my social networking home.

Freebies and other book newsy things

David Simpson's PostHuman series is one of my all time favorites. In these epic four books he tells a fast paced story of artificial intelligence and the effects on mankind. Rich in character development as well as plot, I highly recommend them. For this holiday weekend you can get all four books for free (dated August 30th) on Amazon, so download while the offer stands! 

My friend Robin wrote such an exciting review on King's 11/22/63 the other day that I instantly downloaded it, for the second time. Why? I have it on my Kindle but wanted it on my eReader so I can read it in the dark. My Kindle (given to me by said reviewer best friend above) is an older version, no back light and though it is packed with great books and I would simply fail to exist without it, it's a day time reader. Now I can read this in the wee hours of the night without waking up the spouse. 

Need a small book to pass some time between two heavy reads? Small as an Elephant by Jennifer Richard Jacobson is a compelling story of a young boy left by his mother in a campsite in Maine. His goal is to get back to Boston. His journey is sweet, agonizing and innocent. Highly recommended. Buy it. 

Here is what I do when I need some peace. I gave up cross-stitching years ago (thank you, Internet) so I Pin. It's relaxing and it's a place filled with a billion books and everything in the book world. Not to mention everything else in the entire world. So I made this board last night:

 http://www.pinterest.com/cherylmusgrove/book-clubtbr-covers/

And then I thought about chairs. 

And reading in a chair.

How vital a good reading chair is.

You only discover such things when you hit middle age.

Which led me to this:

 http://www.pinterest.com/cherylmusgrove/reading-chairs/

Check out David Simpson's series, Posthuman, don't forget, they are free for the Labor Day weekend. 

Have a great Saturday.

Cheryl

Instagram book photo

Nothing like our very own piles of books sitting patiently next to us. .

The Hot Zone by Richard Preston

Being a new reviewer, so to speak, I am a bit nervous about writing my second non fiction review. The Hot Zone was an amazingly terrifying read. My husband I bought a copy for each of our Kindles so we could read it together and discuss as we go. I guess you can call that a "read-date." Very good for your relationship!  And you must not read this alone.

First, I want to say this to Mr. Preston publicly,  I am sorry,  Mr. Preston,  for thinking your book was about hot flashes.  I never even had the decency to look at your cover. I do hope you forgive one of your newest fans, as I will promote the beans out of this book for my blatant ignorance and for the fact it is one hell of a read.

Sincerely, 

Cheryl

Richard Preston is very similar to Micheal Crichton in how he approaches a story for the reader. It's daring, it's concise,  it's detailed and it's very powerful in keeping you from exhaling very often. One of the best qualities in a writer.

This story is about Ebola, it is a non fiction book, of course, and he weaves the magic and terror of Ebola (we call it The Alien here at home) form Africa to America. 

Preston starts out with a French man who visits Kitum Cave, Mt Elgon, Kenya. This man ends up with Ebola and the story kicks into high gear from there. The author centers the story around the protagonist, the deadly virus, and what it does to a human down to a cellular level without causing a medical terminology  induced coma on the reader. He interviews a vast number of people involved and magically places them into a story based book. 

Leaving Africa we end up in a town near Washington D.C. where a monkey containment center starts to experience monkeys dying off rather quickly. What happens there is the heart of the book and I don't want to spoil it. By the time the reader is finished they will see how well the author infuses himself into the story. It is truly like he is a part of it and that takes the reader right into the monkey containment center with a feeling of all of your senses being assaulted without YOU being there.

So love that.

There is a character list in the back of all the scientists, US Army and CDC personnel and other people who were involved in this story. 

It's a book I will not forget as the Ebola threat at this current time is real. It may be at a small percentage but with the lack of information they can't seem to acquire from this alien virus that has four proteins they cannot figure out, a potentially shape-shifting mode of transmission issue as well as no point of origin I fear it can be a world wide issue if things change. And like most viruses, they are alien enough to change quite dramatically.

Rating: Buy it

Published: 1995

Monkey mind and reading

We all know how crazy life is now that we are online. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, email, Goodreads, and every other web nook and cranny we like to immerse ourselves into. And it has taken quite a toll on how people read books. Not a scientific source here (please do NOT quote me, ever) but most of my friends tell me that when they read they either fall asleep or tune into a thousand other places and give up on a book all together. Some manage all three things at the same time and they are Gods to me.

I understand and do the very same thing. In fact even this blog is taking away from precious reading time. But this is how we are now and I am trying to accept it, as well as figure out a way to read more while dealing with all my favorite online stops.

I miss reading a book. One book. Singular. For long periods of time.

In fact, I miss having that one book as my source of pleasure. Not that I am a hermit and sit in a corner but I did like the old days of actually sitting in the quiet of my home and reading A book. Now - electronically - we have thousands right at our finger tips. My Kindle is bulging, my eReader on my iPad was not even going to be USED until I figured out that there was another place where I could get cheap books rather quickly. I fear I will insanely pack it before I know it. And we will not discuss my real book hoarding issues. Maybe a pic when I trust all of you enough to allow a good chuckle.

So I am reading about five books at one time, though my right hand column says three.

I am digging The Hot Zone the most. It's fast paced and the writer weaves science into a huge story. I like that. And viruses.

I take turns reading the five books, but most often stick to one I find "the most" compelling.
My chief want is to read one book at a time, though I am not so sure the Interwebs will allow this.
Ever again.

Why I am here...

I like to number things or DOT them so I can stick to the point. If I don't then this will be one long winded run-on sentence and no one has time for that.

So here I go. 

Why I am here.

• I have loved books since I could hold one all by myself. I have devoted a life time of excitement at the mere sight of a library, bookstore or simply a blanket of books lying on the ground at a yard sale. It's what I love the most. 
• I am a critical care nurse (I belong to the unmatched socks above). I love nursing, but for now I am home for a while with a foot injury, so I have loads of time to do things like start another blog! And I love patients, especially the elderly, who need all the love they can get. Enough of job talk...
• I must inform you that Cheryl is my real name; however I started a book blog long ago and it has my real name on it and well, I forgot my password and all the vital information. So if you stumble across a few of the same photos on a VERY similar blog, that's mine. That's my lost blog. Please direct me to it. Thanks.
• I am NOT a writer, I speak in acronyms at work which completely ruined the voice, my inside and outside voice, the "inside" meaning brain. That one does not have very good grammar either. On the good side of things, my husband and a few of my friends are EDITORS. If I have a blog that you feel needs cleaning up, just tell me I will sic them on it. Not you. Never you. Okay, well, if you are mean yes, you.
• I have a very nice closed (sorry, you know how Facebook is) book group. This group was started by yours truly with close family and friends. Some stuck in there, but you know how some of your rellies (aka relatives) and friends are. They say, okay I gave you a number count, (to make it look good) I am not participating, or worse yet, I am leaving because you put up really complicated books that I would hate to read. I have forgiven them. Now, thanks to my dear normal family friends and friends of their friends it is a thriving group. Let me know if you are interested, we can go over the rules in private and I will add you (they are so loose it's not even funny.)
• Lastly, I have always been a reader of a few genres, then I started reading other genres and felt that my life was somewhat complete as a reader. Well, that's never true as our lives as readers are NEVER complete. And that's a great thing! So my blog is really about all the books I get into, covering all kinds of genres and why. And I swear I won't ruin it for you by screeching out crazy spoilers and the like.
• I welcome you with open arms and open books. 
• I may write about movies too. 
• Or memes. I love memes.
• Or things that are just funny at times. 
• And this blog is homegrown. No fancy stuff flickering and making your eyes go insane. My H said it looks like the Drudge Report - very severe. But I like plain and simple.
• I can be very serious too. Seriously.
• Thank you for being here.