Marley and Me

When I was just a little girl, I thought I was more of a cat person than a dog person. I’d spend hours while pretending to do my chores, mainly focused on playing with the kitties and searching out new ones in the barn. They’d get so tame, that if you went pick up a bale, they’d scurry on to it to get your attention; or you decided to sit down for a rest, they’d climb right up on to you. I was personally hurt when my brother took to torturing the poor things, swinging them around by their tails and whatnot.

When my sister scoured the want ads and listened to “Swap Shop” on the radio religiously to find a suitable dog for the farm, I wasn’t too interested. When “Katy” arrived on the scene, I was annoyed that I couldn’t run barefoot on the lawn, or lay outside without the slobbering Collie all over me. She was a dumb dog. She stood in the middle of the road and barked at traffic. She climbed up the stairs on to the school bus. She got hit by tractors, the slowest moving vehicles on the planet. I was not her biggest fan.

When a lovable Golden Retriever/Labrador cross took her place; however, I changed my tune. Nelly was (and still is, as far as I know) a beautiful dog. A hot blonde. Gentle, more intelligent, so adorable that everyone in the family began giving her treats for the hell of it. If I decided to lay in the grass, she’d sit beside me with her tail thump-thump-thumping away.

It’s because of Nelly that Marley and Me by John Grogan was such a wonderful reading experience. It was easy to relate to the demeanor of Labs, the way the Grogans fell in love with the little pup, the unconditional love when Marley devoured the house and failed out of dog training. While our experiences with our beloved family pets were quite different, I couldn’t help but love this tale.

Before I start to gush too much, I feel the need to inform everyone that I haven’t seen the movie. A co-worker loaned me the book with her own story about how tears sprung to her eyes at opportune moments, warning me that if I was a crier (which I totally am) I was doomed. I don’t know if it was the fact that I carried this book around everywhere with me on the off chance that I’d get to read a couple pages here and there that prevented me from tearing up at the end of the story or not, but I didn’t cry. However, the fact that I wasn’t moved to tears didn’t ruin my impression of the novel.

Marley and Me is a relatable story about the impact a family pet can have on your life. Certainly, for anyone who had a dog growing up, or has one now, it’s easily to nod your head as you read about the trials and tribulations the Grogans face with Marley. Though we all come from different backgrounds, different family situations, and experiences, Marley and Me is the type of story that brings people together. This is probably why when John Grogan wrote the obituary for his pet in the paper he worked at, he received more calls, e-mails and letters than he had for any other piece of his career.

I spoiled it, but c’mon, you had to know that was coming.

Do yourself a favour, pick up Marley and Me and remember your own favourite childhood pet as the story unfolds.

A Bed In Heaven

::Peace Turkey waves "hello" to the Book Me In community::

I found this short, amazing novel by Tessa de Loo on the "featured reads" shelf at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh on a rainy, boring day when I was taking a break from studying last fall. Six months after finding this book, it's sticking with me like few books have.

A brief 128 pages in length, I gobbled up this book in one sitting in a dark, isolated corner of the library that day. And I've reread it many times since.

A cross between historical fiction and a family drama, A Bed in Heaven is the story of a Jewish Hungarian family deeply affected by World War II. Focused on Kata, the daughter of a man given shelter from the Nazis by a stranger at the height of the war, this novel broaches controversial topics about which novels are rarely written - incest, the power of female sexuality and a frank look at oft overlooked effects of war.

de Loo's writing style is sparse but descriptive at the same time. Certain sentences haunted me and made my heart ache. I would reread whole passages over and over again. If you feel like taking a break from the light-hearted, easy reads we're all wont to read during the holiday season, A Bed In Heaven is a great book to start with. Get your Kleenex ready and have a teddy bear or loved one on hand as you reach the last page. You're going to need a hug when you're done with this one.

How To Be Single

I just finished reading this book by Liz Tuccillo. She co-authored the book He's Just Not That Into You with Greg Behrendt which some women have dubbed The Dating Bible (and which is in production of becoming a movie, apparently). I have to say that I do own that book and after reading it, things started to make a lot more sense and I stopped taking crap from guys. But that's another post for another day.

How To Be Single. I had seen this book many months ago and picked it up but never bought it. Even though it seemed like a good read and not your typical chic-lit book (sassy is not chic-lit), I just didn't want to read it because of the title. There, I said it. I don't want to know how to be single. I've been single for a long time. I know how to be single and it sucks (sometimes). I'll admit, the not having to check in on anyone and having the freedom to do what I want, when I want without the need to think of my boyfriend first, is kind of liberating. But the flip-side is that I don't have a guy that I can kiss when I feel like it. There is always a down side to that bright side.

But I digress.

I didn't get this book at first because I didn't want to read a book that would give me advice on how to do this (be single) accordingly. But when I finally picked it up, I had a hard time putting it down. Before I get into the story, I need to say that Liz Tuccillo is a fantastic writer. It makes complete sense that she was an executive story editor for HBO's Sex and the City. The book felt like it could have been a complete season of Sex and the City. It was witty and funny and clever and heart-wrenching and joyous all at the same time. As soon as I turned over the last page, my immediate thought was that I would read that book again sometime soon. And I don't do that. Especially with the looming pile of books that seems to never end.

Again, I digress.

Tuccillo had some interesting research to be done for this book and she was able to travel around the world to get the information that she needed ... mainly, how women coped with being single in different countries in the world.

The narrator of the book, Julie, embarks on a similar journey while she leaves her four friends in New York to deal with how to be single in their own lives. Before Julie takes this trip, she and her friends go out to try and get Georgia's mind off the fact that her husband had left her for a younger Brazilian tango dancer. She pulls in reinforcements (her other 3 friends) to help Georgia have fun. This night is something of an epiphany to Julie. Here she is, sitting with her beautiful and successful late 30-something friends, and they are all alone. And she doesn't know why. The night ends with a trip to the hospital and it's there that she meets two Parisian women who give her some insight as to how women from other parts of the world deal with their relationships (or lack thereof) in much different ways. This is where her idea of traveling to interview single women is born. Throughout her travels, she comes to some insights of her own as her friends do the same back home. Her four friends were only acquaintances with eachother, their tie being Julie, but by the end of the book they are friends who have been there for each other and not only for a good time.

This story celebrates friendship and heartache -- heartache that is necessary to see what you have when you have it (and what you deserve and shouldn't settle for) and friendship to see you through it. It teaches us that no matter what life throws at us, or no matter how despondent our situation may seem, there is always love to be had, you are not alone, and miracles do happen.

My Sister's Keeper

"Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood."

This was the first book I’ve read by Jodi Picoult and I have to say, the story line totally pulled me in. It was fascinating, heartbreaking and hopeful wrapped in suspense. She managed to write this story in the voices of all the main characters, which only enhanced the story because the reader is able to look at the plot from different angles … a sort of placing oneself in the shoes of everyone involved.

There are 7 main characters (7 voices) that are involved in this story. Anna and Kate (the sisters), Jesse (their brother), Sara and Brian (their parents), Campbell (Anna’s lawyer) and Julia (Anna’s guardian at litem).

When Kate was 2 years old, she was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. Her only chance of prolonging her life was if she could find a donor. Because this alone could take years (and she didn’t have years), her parents decided to fashion her a sister who would be a genetically perfect match through in vitro fertilization. A year later, Anna was born and made her first contribution at attempting to restore her sister’s life, by donating the blood from her umbilical cord. This was supposed to be her only contribution, however when Kate’s leukemia returned, Anna donated blood and bone marrow. Fast forward to Kate being 16 years old and Anna being 13. Kate’s kidneys are failing and Anna is expected to donate one of hers to save her sister’s life. Instead of going through with this, Anna does something that is unthinkable. She retains a lawyer (Campbell) to be medically emancipated from her parents and gain the right to make the decision herself.

Throughout the novel, we hear the voice of Anna who goes through with this for what the reader might think are selfish reasons (but the truth comes out at the end why she even initiated this lawsuit in the first place), the voice of her father, Brian, who loves both of his children and can understand Anna’s point of view, but still would do anything to save Kate, the voice of her mother, Sara, who is beside herself when the lawsuit comes to be and can’t understand why Anna would do such a thing, the voice of Jesse, the kid who in the midst of his sister’s illness has been cast aside by his parents, deemed the lost cause. We also hear the voice of Campbell and Julia, who happened to be past loves, and in their fight for a just cause, find their way back to eachother.

This book was so well written and had me hooked from the start. The twist at the end was so devastating and so unexpected (but I won’t give that away), but it also served to save that family and pull them back together. It was a fantastic read and one I would definitely recommend.

Truth & Beauty

Recently I fisnished reading Truth & Beauty by Ann Patchett. This book is one of the best I've read in a long time and I'll tell you why.

For one, it's a story about friendship. It's about two writers who meet back in college, go on to be roommates in grad school, work together, and become the closest of friends, experiencing life, love, illness, etc. together throughout their lives. I was first told about this book by another blogger actually, and was excited to read it, as I had heard such great things about it from her.

Lucy Grealy is the main character in the book, a woman who died before the book was published (I'm not giving away anything, dont flip!). Lucy has a rare form of jaw cancer, and because of such had surgery after surgery through her youth and adult life, and Ann was by her side through all of this. The author adds in little excerpts of letters that were written to her from Lucy over the course of their friendship, and I found this to be a really sweet touch.

I'd say this book is probably more geared towards women. Not than men wouldn't enjoy it, and it's not a "chick lit" type thing either. I think it would be like if I wrote about my friendship with my roommate. How we met in college, that night we drank a bottle of gin and then hid in a coat room at a cocktail party. How I go to family bbq's at her house, how she borrowed my black camisole when we went out for martinis on Wednesday night, and how we stay up for hours talking about men with good heads of hair. Sure, some men might like to read bits of it, but I'd suspect that it's just generally a more woman type thing. But frankly, what do I know? The book just struck me more as something a woman would enjoy. That's all I'm sayin.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book. So much so, that I then sought out a book by Lucy Grealy, Autobiography of a Face, which she wrote about her struggle with cancer. I havent started that one yet, but I'll be back to report in on that at a later date!

If you're looking for a quick, equally funny and bittersweet read this is a good go to.

**I had this all spaced out nicely, but apparently blogger (my old friend!), isn't cooperating.**

The Dive From Clausen's Pier

This is easily one of my most favourite books. This is a story that reminds us of how precious life is and how easily (and tragically) it can change. There will be a time in our lives where we will be faced at a cross-road and we must decide which route to take knowing that this can be a life-altering decision. Do we choose the path that is to our best interest, or do we choose the path where we assume the role of martyr (placing ourselves in our own personal and suffocating hell), where the needs and wants of those around us will forever come before our own?

Sometimes people fall into a monotonous pattern in their life. This is something that could work perfectly for some, but in time can prove to be trying for others. You grow up with the same people around you. The same friends. The same hang outs. You date your highschool sweetheart, go to college with your highschool sweetheart, and become engaged to your highschool sweetheart because it just seems like the logical step to take. You haven't set foot out of your home town because everything you have or would ever want is right there, so why leave? Why explore? For some, this life could be the most comforting in the world. But for others, and for the main character of the story, Carrie Bell, this could prove to be a life that you can't get away from fast enough.

Carrie is engaged to her high school sweetheart but has fallen out of love with him. She is devastated by this discovery because the last thing she wants to do is hurt him. And funnily enough she feels torn since they share the same friends and doesn't want to hurt that dynamic as well. When she finally comes to grips with how she feels and finally decides that she can't go on living this lie and that she must tell her fiance, tragedy hits in the most unexpected way. They, along with their friends, are spending time at Clausen's Pier. Mike (her fiance) senses Carrie is slipping away. He decides that he's going to dive off the pier in an attempt to impress her. Only he doesn't realize that the water is not that deep and there are rocks at the bottom of the lake. He shouldn't be diving head first. Only he does, and he becomes paralyzed. A quadriplegic. People expect Carrie to be the caregiver for Mike, but unable to justify it to herself and unable to shake the feeling that she doesn't belong there (and having wanted to leave before the accident), she goes to New York to find herself. She has hurt a lot of people in the process who feel she is running away from her responsibilities, but it is something she must do for herself.

This story is about Carrie's journey to self-realization. It is a story about taking responsibility not because you HAVE to but because you WANT to. Eventually, Carrie's past catches up with her and she is forced to make a decision of what is best for her and for the situation at hand. Is she able to forget the past and start a new life? Or are her roots too deeply embedded?

Here is an excerpt of the book:

When something terrible happens to someone else, people often use the word "unbearable." Living through a child's death, a spouse's, enduring some other kind of permanent loss–it's unbearable, it's too awful to be borne, and the person or people to whom it's happened take on a kind of horrible glow in your mind, because they are in fact bearing it, or trying to: doing the thing that it's impossible to do. The glow can be blinding at first–it can be all you see–and although it diminishes as years pass it never goes out entirely, so that late some night when you are wandering the back pathways of your mind you may stop at the sudden sight of someone up ahead, signaling even now with a faint but terrible light.

Mike's accident happened to Mike, not to me, but for a long time afterward I felt some of that glow, felt I was giving it off, so that even doing the most innocuous errand, filling my car with gas or buying toothpaste, I thought everyone around me must see I was in the middle of a crisis.

Yet I didn't cry. The first days at the hospital were full of crying–Mike's parents crying, his brother and sister, and Rooster, maybe Rooster most of all–but I was dry-eyed. My mother and Jamie told me it was because I was numb, and I guess that was part of it, numb and terrified: when I looked at him it was as if years had unwound, and I'd just met him, and I couldn't stand not knowing what was going to happen. But there was something else, too: everyone was treating me so carefully and solicitously that I felt breakable, and yet I wasn't broken. Mike was broken, and I wasn't broken. He was separate from me, and that was shocking.

A national bestseller, Ann Packer was definitely able to write this story in such a way that can make you want to both root Carrie on in her attempts to find herself during such a tumultuous period and want to simultaneously hit her upside the head.