Week 7: The Darker Half

This week's book:
The Darker Half
By Stephen King

With IT just coming out in the theaters and Halloween just around the corner, I thought I would read Stephen King's The Darker Half for this week's book. I have read a few Stephen King's books and even one of his son's books too.

Yet another reason I picked this book was, I have been doing book challenges the last two years and one of the books on this year's list was a book written by an author writing under a different name. I thought a book about someone's alter ego killing people, which is written by King who has written under another name himself.

King is in good company with other authors using different names then their own. In the 1800's female authors often used male names just so they could be published such as Jane Austin and the Bronte sisters. But women aren't the only ones: Mark Twin is a member of this club as well.

Back to The Darker Half though. It wasn't my favorite. It took four hundred pages to finally kind of make sense. If you don't know the plot, here is a quick summary; a writer has been writing under a fake name and created an alter-ego. When the truth comes out, he and his wife make a mock funeral and say this other fake author is dead. Well, people start showing up dead and it looks like this alter-ego is the one killing them, but since he's not real, who's killing everyone? All fingers are pointed to the original author.

I have always said that as awesome as King is at writing stories, he never knows how to end a book. His books sometimes end up being a million pages because he doesn't know how to end the book. The little boy in "Stand by Me" (the movie version of King's The body) doesn't ever know how to finish his made up stories. Autobiographical, anyone?

I can't say I would recommend the book. I know at one point I saw the movie they made of this book, but I really can't remember a darn thing about it. If you are wanting to read some scary Stephen King go and out and read IT. IT is my favorite of King's scary books and is everywhere for cheap due to the new version that can't possibly be better then the one from the early 90s with Tim Curry.

Or if you really want to be scared stupid read Night Shift by King, which is a very close  second to IT. It's a collection of his storter stories and has Children of the Corn in it. Children of the Corn literally scared me for like a week to drive through a cornfield, which stinks because if you didn't know, our subdivision is surrounded by cornfields on three sides.

Week 6: A Bear Called Paddington

This week's book:
A Bear Called Paddington
By Michael Bond

We finished Paddington (the original one, not some picture book from Kohls) with our big kindergartner the other night. The hubs and I had been reading it to him a chapter off and on again for what seemed like months. He always said that he would want to read something else but when Hubby would start to read, little man would perk up and listen.

A few months ago at kindergarten round up, one, if not all of the teachers said there would be no homework for the new kindergarten students. All they really wanted the parents to do is read to your kids twenty minutes a day. I mean yes, encourage the kids to work on writing and math and social skills and such, but reading was key. I heard all of these parents in the bleachers where all us new school aged parents were nervous, sitting, just gasping and saying "twenty minutes a night? How are we going to fit that much time of reading EVERY DAY?" I was shocked at their response. I love to read to my babies; it's actually my favorite part of being a parent. I mean it's a way that you can have your too-old-to-snuggle little ones want to cuddle up and listen to a story. I will gladly read Dragons Love Tacos five times in a row if it means both of my kids are listening and not trying to kill themselves or each other.

I also love that it sets a good example for the kids loving to read. Almost every night, if you were to sneak into our little guy's room he is reading a book, and if he's already asleep he's surround by books in bed with him. Our two year old princess loves to "read" her books too. She already has favorite books and if you ask her to get out a certain book she has no problem going over to get said book.

But back to Paddington, I have always loved him. When I was little my parents got me a Paddington music box and piggy bank when they went to London. I'm remembering it being because my dad had a research trip for one of his books or something, but don't quote me. I have loved that marmalade loveing bear ever since. I can honestly say I still liked the book twenty some years later. I think it's adorable and watching your little one listen to a story while holding the stuffed animal from the book (yes i am a sucker for the stuffed animal book tie in, thank you Kohls very much) makes it that much more cute. I would recommend to read to your little ones or to go back to your childhood. And don't worry the book isn't anywhere as dark as the movie version with Nicole Kidmen, no taxidermy at all. Have a great week!

Week 5: The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat

This week's book:
The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat
By Edward Kelsey Moore

I did it y'all, barely, but I finished this week's book just earlier today. I started reading a kinda scary book and then noticed that I am leading the book discussion at my church book group. I thought I probably should read the book and take notes and such, be prepared instead of wait the last minute and try to read the whole book two days before we are going to discuss it like I normally do. So I started the book late last week and life just kept getting in the way. Such is life.

This week's book is The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat and I really liked it. For how much I love to read, I am a harsh critic; a lot of the time I don't love books by the end. But in no time flat I knew I was going to like this book. I even went and bought the sequel/prequel on Saturday before I even finished the book.
I don't know if this has anything to do with it either, but the book is based in Indiana and the author is also from Indiana. Gotta love those local authors!

The book is about three women's friendship since they were in high school. All three are going through major issues that can be sad and sometimes the plot becomes a little far fetched, but it's a fun book. I felt like it was a combination of the book version of The Help (the flashbacks are in the 1960's racist past), Fried Green Tomatoes, and Big Stone Gap.

I can't wait to lead the group discussion next Sunday and hear what others thought of the story. I am also excited to dive into the second book by this author.  I would super duper recommend this book if you want an enjoyable read.

Week 4: The Hobbit

This week's book:
The Hobbit
By J. R. R. Tolkien

I married a nerd.

He would say he prefers geek, but however you phrase it, he is who he is. He plays D & D, plays videogames, and can quote all of Monty Pythons Holy Grail, you be the judge. He says "I was nerdy before it was cool", which is the truth. I love him, so I buy him Mario shirts or Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy shirts whenever I can find them.

That loveable dork's birthday was this past Saturday and so I thought I would read something up his ally, with quests and dragons and all that jazz. We had a copy of The Hobbit and I thought, "perfect, I've never read any of those books, might as well jump in by reading the most light hearted of the series."

I will be honest, it wasn't my cup of tea. Whatever, no big loss. I somewhat had the same response that I did after reading the first Harry Potter book; wasn't for me, but I can see why people could get into it.
So it took me over a week to read it, which is shocking because it's only about three hundred pages, but I finished it. I proudly tell the hubs I finished the book and I can join in all the nerd talk and discuss the themes and plot and whatnot of the story of little people fighting dragons and stealing rings.

Ready for the punchline? He hasn't read it.

I'm not recommending because if you haven't already read it you aren't going to and if you have you don't need me to tell you to. I now know what second breakfast means and understand some more of what my high school crush was talking about  (holy smokes I think nerds have always been my type eeek).

Other than that, I think it's time for scary Halloween themed books. Oh it's only the first week of September...but the pumpkin flavor stuff is out and there is a chill in the air...boo hoo.