The Time Traveler's Wife & The Handmaid's Tale Reviews

Another two reviews for the SRT. Stop by at Katrina's blog to get the details and free book give-aways!
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

This was added to my SRT list after I saw it on another list. I scooped it up from the library, eager to begin it. However, it quickly became clear that I wouldn't be devouring this one in the usual way. I had to read this in doses, the prose especially drove me a little crazy. Even then, I couldn't stop reading, it had me hooked.

The story opens in a chilling scenario of our world in the future. It is bleak and meaningless. After the deterioration of society-increasing rapes, pornography, violence and the rise of the women's movement, a regime of religious fanatics called the Republic of Gilead take over the government and control of America. Men have all the power, women are reduced to groups. The Wives are respectable women, married only once, the Aunts are older women who train the others, the Marthas as well are older or cannot produce, the Handmaids are women taken and distributed for their viable ovaries. The spirited ones, the resistant, are Unwomen, sent to live in colonies saturated with nuclear waste. Also, not known to all, are the Jezebel's, women used for their bodies.

The regime tries to eradicate the horrors of the past with control. Pictures are used in place of words since women are no longer allowed to read. People who do not follow the regime's rules end up on "The Wall" hung in public for all to see what crimes they are guilty of by a sign hung around thier neck with a picture to signify the offense. Only those worthy may have the privilege of children. Due to nuclear spills and toxins among other things, many babies do not survive. So Handmaids are distributed to the Commander's and their Wives where they are attempted to be impregnated by the Commanders once a month. No touching, no passion, no love is allowed in these relationships, so far in fact, that the wives are present during the "ceremony." And this very thing is where the regime finds it's fault line; for nothing can deter the force of human nature. And to be human is to feel, to pursue relationships of love.

Margaret Atwood has written a very believable and horrifying tale. It certainly gives you the heebie jeebies just thinking that it is not altogether impossible that fanatical groups could go so far as to destroy our society and strip us of control. Overall, I think that I did take something away from this book and recommend reading it. It is one that will take a while to dissipate....






The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Neffenegger


This turned out to be a book I can add to my favorites list. I will say though, that after loving it and recommending it to a friend, she did not like it at all. I was so puzzled, we like many of the same books. For her, it was the time travel. So I will prelude my review by echoing a reviewer I read on Amazon; if you do not like time travel in a book, this one will not change your mind.

That said, I cannot emphasize enough that in my opinion, this book is the furthest thing from science fiction. I think that for time travel, it was altogether unique and unprecedented.

The Time Traveler's Wife is the story of Henry and Clare De Tamble. Henry has a chrono-displacement condition that causes him to time travel when he is nervous, anxious or upset. Usually he travels to his own past-particularly places or events that are significant to him, like his beloved mother's death or his wife's childhood. This is in fact how they meet-Clare meets Henry as a child over the course of her childhood he will appear and she eventually finds herself so comfortable with their unusual relationship, she isn't surprised when she falls in love with him. She knows this is how it will be, since this is what eventually happens.

Later, Clare finds Henry in the "present" time, where he is meeting her for the first time; and so it goes. However, although you see them in different times, the novel manages to progress beautifully. Henry is unable to change or alter the future, so he can only accept events as they occur. The story chronicles their marriage and frustrations as he and Clare seek medical help for his condition, struggle through failed pregnancies, navigate through every day situations which are more unorthodox than most couples. The author's depth and reality of the characters is fresh and believable. Although it was a story about the stresses and commitment of love and marriage, it also examined the frailty and complication of other relationships between people in the story; family and friends. I truly loved this story and will probably be reading it again soon. Highly recommended.

**And here's a litte fun trivia: this movie is in production for the big screen. For details go here. Even better? Rachel McAdams, the up and coming beautiful actress that starred in The Notebook is casted as Clare. It is scheduled to be released in 2008. I will definitly be seeing this one!

Book Reviews on 1st Three Completed SRT Books

I have finished three books from the Spring Reading Thing! I am having so much fun reading non stop, and I can clearly see I will have to add A LOT more books to my list which will not be a problem after reading all those lists! I have done reviews on the ones I have finished.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon This one had me hooked from the first paragraph which made me laugh out loud. See below:

"It was 7 minutes after midnight. The dog was lying on the grass in the middle of the lawn in front of Mrs Shears' house. Its eyes were closed. It looked as if it was running on its side, the way dogs run when they think they are chasing a cat in a dream. But the dog was not running or asleep. The dog was dead. There was a garden fork sticking out of the dog. The points of the fork must have gone all the way through the dog and into the ground because the fork had not fallen over. I decided that the dog was probably killed with the fork because I could not see any other wounds in the dog and I do not think you would stick a garden fork into a dog after it had died for some other reason, like cancer for example, or a road accident. But I could not be certain about this."

The main character of this book is a 15 year old autistic boy named Christopher who decides to investigate the murder of his neighbor's dog. As he maps out his reason and logic, you are able to glimpse into his very practically thinking mind. Sometimes he explains how he doesn't understand gestures, facial expressions and generally can not relate to other people's emotions, instead he trusts facts. As Christopher uncovers clues, he also discovers some truths about the demise of his parents marriage. The reader watches him put all the pieces of his life together and ascertain what they mean to him. Mark Haddon has given us a truly unique narrator and it is funny, sad and touching to hear Christopher's thoughts. I really enjoyed it.

The Rapture of Caanan by Sheri Reynolds This is the story of Ninah Huff who is the granddaughter of the founder of the "Church of Fire and Brimstone and God's almighty Baptizing Wind." Her grandfather doesn't give an inch for any infractions on his compound which consists of his extended family. Worse, he makes the rules and sets humiliating and terrible punishments for those found guilty of breaking them. Ninah is a wonderful character who has the sense to question some of the practices and beliefs of her family and the church. However, when she gets pregnant by her prayer partner, she is in new territory and her secret, when found out rocks the community and brings members of the church to a close self-examination. The characters are flawed but likable. I really liked the Grandmother's character and her relationship with Ninah. This was a quick read, just a couple of days, and I enjoyed it, but was a little disappointed with the ending. You know those books where there isn't really closure and you are left to imagine the end? It's one of those.

Marley and Me by John Grogan

You know those books you can't put down? I finished this book in one day! It was a wonderfully light read and had me laughing so much in the first few chapters my husband finally said, "WHAT is so funny?" Dog lovers will love all of Marley's antics, my favorite being his episodes at Obedience Class. It is also a sweet chronicle of a couple just beginning a family. A wonderful novel about a capricious pet and the family who loves him. Definitely recommended! More about the book can be found at www.marleyandme.com.

Spring Reading Thing

Okay, so I haven't posted in forever. But since only about 3 people read my blog, that's okay. :)
I just had to participate in Katrina's Spring Reading Thing since reading is about the only thing I can commit to. Most nights my hubby watches the History Channel while I curl up on the couch beside him and read whatever book I am currently enthralled by.

I just finished The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield which was GREAT, and The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd which is a treasure. I am currently reading Jodi Piccoult's Picture Perfect, but I won't count that. ;) Jodi is my new favorite author-if only she could shell them out as fast as I can read them!

Most of the books I am listing come from my "Books to Investigate" list in my book journal. Which is a great idea, I am having fun writing my thoughts after each book I read. (I added some info to some of the books.) So, here goes in no particular order:

The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian Quote from none other than my favorite writer, Jodi Piccoult: "The story centers on Laurel Estabrook, a young social worker and survivor of a near-rape, who stumbles across photographs taken by a formerly homeless client and tries to understand how a man who'd taken snapshots of celebrities in the 50s and 60s might have wound up on the streets. However, an author's note tells us that Bohjalian conceived this book after being shown a batch of old photographs taken by a once-homeless man; and the actual photos of Bob "Soupy" Campbell are peppered throughout the text. In another neat twist, Bohjalian's resurrects details from The Great Gatsby, which become "real" in the context of his own novel--Laurel lives in West Egg; part of her hunt for her photographer's past involves meeting with the descendants of Daisy and Tom Buchanan." Okay-intertwining the Great Gatsby which I include in the list of best books ever written? Had to check it out.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards-
This stunning novel begins on a winter night in 1964, when a blizzard forces Dr. David Henry to deliver his own twins. His son, born first, is perfectly healthy, but the doctor immediately recognizes that his daughter has Down syndrome. For motives he tells himself are good, he makes a split-second decision that will haunt all their lives forever. He asks his nurse, Caroline, to take the baby away to an institution. Instead, she disappears into another city to raise the child as her own. Compulsively readable and deeply moving, The Memory Keeper's Daughter is a brilliantly crafted story of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of love.

**Also, a little side note; Sue Monk Kidd said this was "Absolutely Mesmerizing." Love it!

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon This book is written from the perspective of a 15 year old autistic boy. That is enough to make it an intriguing read in my opinion.

The Rapture of Caanan by Sheri Reynolds

Marley and Me by John Grogan

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah In A LONG WAY GONE, Beah, now twenty-six years old, tells a riveting story. At the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he’d been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. Eventually released by the army and sent to a UNICEF rehabilitation center, he struggled to regain his humanity and to reenter the world of civilians, who viewed him with fear and suspicion. This is, at last, a story of redemption and hope.

Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, gun-loving organic gardeners, evangelical free-range farmers, hip homeschooling mamas, right-wing nature lovers, and their diverse tribe of countercultural conservatives plan to save America (or at least the Republican Party) by Rod Dreher Referred by a friend and it looks interesting: At a time when the Republican Party seems to be fracturing from within, commentator Rod Dreher says it's time for the GOP to return to its roots. And he thinks conservatives could find inspiration from fellow Republicans who embrace a counter-cultural yet traditional conservative lifestyle -- what Dreher dubs "Crunchy Cons."

And may I add, if you have this book from the Grapevine Library, PLEASE RETURN IT. I'm patiently waiting.

Our Snow Day

Today being a snow day and all, we did a little of everything. But the best part was, after a study of volcanoes we have been doing we constructed our own! And Daddy was even home to help!

We started off the morning with a little of this:

Then we got up built and made one of these:Jason even made a huge pot of chili. Mmm...nothing like comfort food when it's cold out! Then, we got down to business! Here is the beginning of our volcano:

Someone kept taking off with our "rock." He looks innocent but don't be fooled.

We used a vase as our base with our "magma pool" at the bottom :) Crumpled newspaper became layers of rock forming our volcano. Next we covered it with tin foil and spray painted it:

Here's a close up taken by Trace:

After we finished, it looked pretty real! We took it outside, bundled up and prepared for the grand finale!

Very cool! It was lots of fun. Here's the cool website we found out a lot of our info on and you can even make your own cyber volcano! It was a great snow day all in all.

Oinks and Giggles

I have been picking up a friend's son after school. She is an old friend that just moved back home after the loss of her middle child and a rough divorce. He was 4 1/2 and chronically ill. She is struggling to get on her feet here with a three year old and a seven year old all while grieving. She is a strong and amazing person.

Her seven year old that I pick up is struggling the most. He is angry and withdrawn. Most days I pick up a whole horde of children; 4 not including my 2. The seven year old sits silent and solemn while the others excitedly chatter about their respective days.

The other day my hubs was at home, the other kiddos had choir and dance and I found myself on my way to pick him up alone. I knew the moment we met in the drive through could go either way-either very well or very wrong. But alas, I had the upper hand because without any additional passengers, he was guaranteed to the coveted front seat position. Not only that, but I had taken the pickup to get him, his favorite.

I wait, listening to the radio, loving the few moments alone. The bell rings and he comes skipping out-a good sign. Our eyes meet and he flashes me a toothless smile. Fate is on my side! Squeezing through the crowd of children he finally reaches the truck, propelling the door open. "Oh, sweet, I get the front seat and in the TRUCK!" We maneuver out of the school zone and I ask him what color he got. (This is the part that is hard-he hasn't been doing well with behavior in class) He grins. "A yellow!" For those who might not know-yellow is under green but before red. It means less than satisfactory-a warning. Usually this means he is upset. But the wide grin throws me off.

"What was the crime?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh, don't worry, it wasn't my fault today." he replies, while digging through his backpack.
"Oh?" I ask, wondering what possibly had happened.
"I got a yellow for making pig noises in the hallway. But our rule chart in the class definitely doesn't say you can't make pig noises. I checked. It says, "Be Quiet in the hallway." And I was making the pig noises quietly, so it can't be my fault." Still relaxed and happy, he pulls out his folder. Sure enough it is marked, "Making pig noises in the hallway" with a yellow dot.
Suddenly, involuntarily, a snort of laughter escapes. I can't help it! I look at him and he giggles. I lose it and we are both giggling the rest of the drive home.

When we get home he goes off to play by himself as usual. Jason asks how his day was and he mumbles, "Fine." But I know better. I know there are pig noises and laughter and joy hiding deep inside that little boy just waiting to emerge. Maybe they will only reveal themselves a little at a time. But I know they are there. And for today, that is enough to be thankful for.