BOOK REVIEW - ALISON SMITH'S "NAME ALL THE ANIMALS"

This is a memoir written by Smith which tells the sufferings she and her parents had gone through when her brother was killed in a road accident, despite the fact that her father and mother were religious. They just could not move on and the death seemed to be haunting them for almost eternity. The book also describes the time and experience she went through as a student of an all girls' missionary school - with story of friendship and an unexpected twist of event.

An interesting read but I found the tone of the writing dark and sombre throughout - there was no colour at all, depicting the kind of life the writer was having.

BOOK REVIEW - JENNIFER WEINER'S "BEST FRIENDS FOREVER"

The story line of this novel is of a Hallmark's drama kind of thing. It is about the relationship of two best friends who once had a conflict, separated and not talking to each other. Then, they got back together again for an adventure (or misadventure) and everything ended on a happy note. Don't we all love a happy ending? This should be a good choice for those who don't like complicated plots and there is a lot of comedy intertwined in between.

This should be another achievement for me - to finish reading my second book. And the third book is already pulled out of the shelf.

BOOK REVIEW - JODI PICOULT'S "THE PACT"

I challenged myself to read a book and finish it - and it was a success. In a way, a strong will would be the most important factor to finish up the whole novel when there were other temptations, especially the internet.

    This was a story of two families and the parents were close friends, and their children, Chris and Emily, who were once childhood friends established a serious relationship as they grew older and were about to leave high school. One day, Emily was found dead, shot - either a suicide or murder. Chris was the only suspect as he was the only person beside Emily when it happened. The question is: did Chris kill Emily, the love of his life, or did Emily take her own life? It would not be logical as the two were deeply in love. At the same time, Emily was actually 11-week pregnant and the fact was only revealed after the autopsy. As usual, there was the courtroom drama in the last one third of the book, so you have to read it to find out the answer.

I have taken out another book from the shelf, and if I manage to read more, I am going to the new bookshop in Sunway Bigbox to get new books for myself. Hopefully I will be motivated with the reward put on hold.

This should be my 11th Picoult's novel I have read. Here's the list of her other books read before.

(1) Change of Heart

(2) My Sister's Keeper

(3) Plain Truth

(4) House Rules

(5) Picture Perfect

(6) Perfect Match

(7) Mercy

(8) Keeping Faith
(9) Lone Wolf

(10) Sing You Home

BOOK REVIEW - "VELOCITY: A MEMOIR"

I read another autobiography - this time written by an Australian, Mandy Sayer. She was telling about her difficult and troubled childhood, coming from a broken family. Being a single mother, her mom seemed just could not be independent without a man beside her and unfortunately, she chose to live with someone who was abusive. The mother herself was an alcoholic and had attempted suicide numerous times. They ran away from Sydney to Melbourne, and yet, the man still managed to track them down. Despite all the difficult times she had to face, the writer still attended school, completed her education and survived.

I think almost all the autobiographies I read had very sad beginnings, especially when the writers were all growing up. Sayer had successfully told her story living in Sydney in 1960's and I am glad I am familiar with many of the places mentioned in the plot. 

I am already reading another book, but I don't think I could finish it before the school reopens next week.

BOOK REVIEW - UNBOWED: ONE WOMAN'S STORY

Wangari Maathai came from the village in Kenya and was among the earliest Kenyans to be chosen to further her studies in the US. However, being an intellectual was actually a threat to the husband and the male-dominated society. She was a person who had the heart of steel - being very persistent and determined in her endeavour to conserve the forest in Kenya, despite being a single mother to three young children. What she did mostly was to teach and ask uneducated women of the rural areas to plant trees.

Being an environmentalist had actually made her deal with the corrupt political state of her country and she was being seen as a danger who was always outspoken and loud in viewing her opinion against the government. This happened especially when deforestation took place because of (illegal) logging and development. Despite all the obstacles, she managed to gain international recognition and was later announced as a Nobel Peace Prize winner. 

A truly inspiring story and her auto-biography should be read by young people out there, especially those who aspire to be politicians one day.

BOOK REVIEW - "ALL BALLS AND GLITTERS: MY LIFE"

This was the only book I managed to grab before leaving home for hospital. I thought I would just be staying one week minimum in the ward and I was so wrong.

This is an autobiography of a successful London-based choreographer Craig Revel Horwood. He is actually an Australian, and to be where he is now, required a lot of determination and perseverance. Starting his career at the bottom of the ladder, he gradually climbed up to fame and was getting popular and becoming a celebrity when he appeared in the BBC reality show, Come Strictly Dancing, well-known among the TV viewers as a mean judge. 

This book should be an inspiration to the young ones out there who are about to venture out into the real world. The moral of the whole story: there is no short cut to success.

BOOK REVIEW - JODI PICOULT'S "SING YOU HOME"

The story of a husband and wife , Max and Zoe, who had to opt out for in vitro method to conceive. After several failed attempts, Max finally filed for a divorce and soon after that, turned into a very religious person. On the other hand, Zoe met a new life partner, got married but her spouse was a woman. They then tried to get the frozen and fertilized embryo as Zoe still wanted to have a baby, and here the conflict started as Max did give his consent. Then the courtroom drama began and in the readers would have to anticipate the ending who would be awarded of the custody of the unborn child. You have to read this on your own to find the answer.

Picoult has been writing quite a number of courtroom drama series it seems and I wonder if all of her books are in the same genre by now.

This should be my 10th Picoult's already. Here are her other books that I have read:

(1) Change of Heart

(2) My Sister's Keeper

(3) Plain Truth

(4) House Rules

(5) Picture Perfect

(6) Perfect Match

(7) Mercy

(8) Keeping Faith
(9) Lone Wolf

BOOK REVIEW - JOJO MOYES' "AFTER YOU"

This is the sequel to Jojo Moyes earlier book "Me Before You". After Will had decided to (legally) end his life, Louisa, his caretaker cum lover, had no choice but to continue living. The biggest problem of all was she could not move on. And according to Sam, her new boyfriend, they could not get into a more serious relationship as she was still in love with a ghost, and this reminds so much of the classic novel "Wuthering Heights" which I read when I was in university. Then there was this Lily, Will's daughter born out of wedlock whom he himself did not know about which had made Louisa's life became too complicated and miserable, and reading the book was depressing at times. Thanks for its happy ending - I swore I would burn the paperback if it was ended in a sad note. Go read this novel but not after reading the first book first.

BOOK REVIEW - "THE MERYL STREEP MOVIE CLUB"

The four women, Aunt Lolly, Isabel, June and Kat, were having all sorts of personal crisis in their lives. They watched movies starring Meryl Streep and found that there were similarities between the characters, plots and conflicts of the stories with what they were facing. The movies in a way had brought them back together as a family as they tried to solve the problems with each others' help.

This is the kind of book that makes you feel good once you are done reading especially with the happy ending it provides. I would have to find other books by Mia March. 

This is another book bought during the Big Bad Wolf Sales many years ago, and glad I managed to finish reading it. I am now torn between reading another new novel already borrowed from a friend or watching the movie version of "The Meryl Streep Movie Club".

BOOK REVIEW - "INFIDEL: MY LIFE" BY AYAAN HIRSI ALI

This book tells about the author's life growing up in Africa, and after reading this autobiography, I am thankful to be born in Malaysia. She lived in oppression throughout her life and but she was actually a bright girl. She ran away to Netherlands and managed to secure a Dutch citizenship, and continued her studies in university. And she then suddenly had a change of heart. I believe her decision was made solely because of her horrible past and her comparison with the living standard and system in a modern and developed country.

This is my third book this year so my reading pace so far is a book per month which I think should at least keep up. 

BOOK REVIEW - DAVID BALDACCI'S "ONE SUMMER"

This was the book I finished reading during my travel to and from Osaka.The long flight to and fro had made it possible for me to finish reading the 339 pages story, a light family drama that does not require a lot of thinking to be done while digesting it. I better write about this while I still remember what the story and the names of the characters.

Jack, a war "veteran", was diagnosed with a (rare) terminal disease that could not be cured and was waiting for death to come. (I suddenly remember the line in the poem I learned in college:  because I could not stop for death so he kindly stopped for me.) He was worried that he had to leave his very much beloved wife Elizabeth and the three children, but thing was turned: Elizabeth died in a car accident when she was getting his husband's medication. The plot got complicated as who would now take care of the three children as Jack was immobile and he himself needed others' assistance to live. To know how the story ends, you better read this yourself. I just can tell you it ends in a happy note, to my delight.

I just found out Baldacci has other novels too and there is a movie adapted from this very novel. One of these days, I will need to check it out.

BOOK REVIEW - "ME BEFORE YOU"

I stayed up until 1:30 a.m. to finish up my reading and found the ending too depressing, I regretted staying up. Lou was the carer to Will, the son of a filthy rich family, who was bound to the wheelchair after an accident. Lou had not only to take care of him, but her mission was actually to change Will's mind to (legally) end his life as he felt that he was a hopeless. Instead, Will had made Lou changed her outlook towards life and Lou fell for him. Unfortunately, Lou's love for her was not enough and nothing could change his ultimate decision to die.

I only watched the movie (online) halfway so I thought they would live happily ever after eventually.

I need a story with a happy ending, please. *sobs*

BOOK REVIEW - "THE BOY WITH NO SHOES"

This is one very sad book. It tells the story of James Rova who had a depressing childhood and growing up time. He never met his father and his mother did not love him as she should, and was sometimes treated him cruelly. At one time, she even hit his girlfriend, Harriet, until her love for Rova died. He had a brother who bullied and looked down on him all the time and later was mentally unstable and was sent to live in a mental hospital. The only person who loved him so was his grandmother. And surprisingly a few people in the neighbourhood who accepted him and showered him with their affection, and he to them. Rove however survived the tough time and managed to get a first class honour from university and still the novel ended in a sombre note.

I am glad I picked up this book at the book sale many years ago and continued reading despite its monotonous and slow introduction chapter. This book is actually a memoir based on the author's boyhood growing up story and that is the reason the storytelling is so honest and real. I need to get more William Horwood's books after this. 

BOOK REVIEW: "READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN"

This is one book I took months reading. There was no plot development, and everything seemed to be just monotonous with no rising action or climax right until the end, but I never gave up and finished it finally. I guess that should depict the life in Iran at that time - dull and nothing exciting.

The writing is a description of life in Tehran/Iran from the eyes of the author, who was a lecturer in a university, as well as the girls in her literature class which then later became some sort of a book club. They really took their literature novel seriously, relating the characters and the events from the books to their the happenings in their every day life. When I was in university, reading literature novels was more of a course requirement activity but these people were really obsessed with what they had read. 

One thing for sure after reading this book is I am really thankful for being born and raised in my country. Reading the memoir of Nafisi should provide an insight of the life in Iran in the 90's and I wonder how things are now. AirAsia has direct flights to Tehran now if I really want to find out more. This after effect of reading could be quite bad. And I just found out that there are other novels by Nafisi which I could try to get hold on one day. 

BOOK REVIEW - RYE BARCOTT'S "IT HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO WAR"

An inspiring autobiography of Rye Barcott - the founder of an NGO, CFK (Carolina for Kibera) and an ex-Marine intelligence. The book tells the story of a young college student who wanted to make a difference by doing two things which contradicted each other - a charity organization to help the poor people of a slum area in Kenya called Kibera AND to fight a war in Iraq. While he was trying hard to provide shelter and care to the under privileged people of the squatters, he also had to see violence and torture in places like the infamous Abu Gharib prison.

While the readers are introduced to a few strong characters like Tabitha and Salim, Barcott himself is the strongest of all as he struggled and persevered. The world will definitely be a better place if we have more people like him.

Now that I have finished the book, I need to get back to marking the students' exam papers. Pray that I will persevere.

BOOK REVIEW - NORA ROBERTS' "THE NEXT ALWAYS"

This was the book I finished reading while invigilating mid-year exam. And I did the calculation - I could finish reading 25 pages within half an hour.

A simple love story between Clare, a widow of 3 boys and her old high school friend cum secret admirer. The culprit was Sam, a spoiled kid from a rich family who had been eyeing Clare and had gone psychopathic at one point. Thank God Beckett (read: the knight in the shining armour) was there to save her. And in the end, he proposed to her in front of her three boys. How sweet!

Don't we all love a happy ending.

I should continue reading my next book.  

BOOK REVIEW: "I AM MALALA"

Malala is a girl who once lived in a place called Swat in Pakistan.

She was one brave young lady who fought hard for education and was almost killed when she was shot in the head by a Taliban man.

She believed that only education could change one's destiny, especially women's. And she was firm with her stand although she had to risk it all.

You have to read this book on your own to see the misery she had to go through just to be educated.

For one thing, after reading the book, I am always thankful for the kind of life I have. Sometimes I feel that life is hard and unfair, but somewhere out there, other people are praying hard to live another day.

BOOK REVIEW - "SCISSORS PAPER STONE" by ELIZABETH DAY

This is a story of a wife who had to live a life with a husband who had been having affairs with other women in the neighbourhood, and a daughter who was sexually abused by her father. They just could not break away from the same man, the mother for the fear of losing the husband and the daughter for losing her father. They were just too weak to accept the fact that they had been the victims of a vicious man but strong enough to endure a life full of pain and misery. There was no climax in the story - everything just ended when the father died because of old age. I was expecting someone to pull off the plug in the hospital ward so everything could end earlier, but that did not happen.

BOOK REVIEW - "KISSES ON A POSTCARD" by TERENCE FRISBY

This book was surprisingly good. It tells the story of the lives of two young boys living in London but were sent to the countryside by their parents as there was intense fights going on against the Germany during World War ll. The two boys had to stay with their foster parents, Uncle Jack and Auntie Rose. They were innocent and carefree, and enjoyed their time under the supervision of two complete strangers. When the war ended, the two children had to return home to their parents. And there was this heart-wrenching scene at the railway station when Uncle Jack and Auntie Rose had to bid them farewell.  

I hope they could adapt this novel and produce a film which would be something I would definitely watch. I have already found the theatrical version of this book on Youtube but I think that is not the full version which has been posted. 

BOOK REVIEW - CECILIA AHERN'S "IF YOU COULD SEE ME NOW"

Ivan was some sort of the guardian angel to Luke, a small kid. Other than Luke, there were only 2 people who could see Ivan: Luke's mother who had run away and his auntie who adopted Luke mother in a way. Then, Ivan and Elizabeth fell in love with each other but everything had to end as Elizabeth was a human while Ivan was not. The end. If this This would be the kind of story if turned into a movie, people will find too many dialogues and very little action and only one kissing scene, *yawn* unless I am made the director.

Thanks to Puan Mazzelina for lending me this book. :)

I have taken another book from the shelf already.

Other Ahern's books I have read:

(1)P.S. I Love You

(2)Where Rainbow Ends

(3)The Gift