Thursday, January 8, 2009

book talk

do you want to know what i'm reading? i'll tell you, no arm twisting required.

physical books

1. gone with the wind: one of the true epics. i'm just beginning this one. it's overwhelming because it's so huge. i have a really old mass market edition that i picked up for $2.99 in a used bookstore, and i've wanted to read it ever since ponyboy was reading it to johnny in the outsiders. thankfully it is relatively light. when i was a kid at sleepovers, parent's used to put on the movie to make us fall asleep. i don't remember the movie at all, which is how i like it. books are always better.



2. the independence of miss mary bennett: a novel. this one was written by the same author as the thornbirds and it's kind of a sequel to pride and prejudice but the focus is on mary bennett, the only unmarried sister, and it's twenty years later. it's an interesting read so far. the only thing i don't like is that they are implying that elizabeth's marriage to mr. darcy turned sour quite quickly. nooooooooooooooooo! how dare someone ruin my mr. darcy fantasy! anyhoo...



3. the devious book for cats: a parody. i got this book for christmas and it's a bathroom reader type of book. it's hilarious. i'm pretty sure it's a parody on those daring books for boys and girls, but i don't know much about them so i can't be sure. the book is written for cats, by cats, and talks about different things like cardboard boxes, kitty litter, and "your human." obviously you have to have a cat or be a cat lover to appreciate this. there is also one for dogs.



audio books
if you didn't know i listen to audio books in my car, and sometimes load them onto my mp3 player and listen whilst walking on the treadmill.

1. run by ann patchett. i don't think i would enjoy this book if i had to read it, but i like listening to it. it takes place over 24 hours and is a complicated story about a family. a family in which the mother dies, after having one child of her own and adopting two boys. the father (after the mother's passing) becomes the mayor of boston, and so their lives are somewhat public. one night after the two adopted boys are grown, the father takes them to a lecture on a snowy night. after the lecture, one is going to be struck by a vehicle but is pushed out of the way at the last second by a woman. this woman turns out to be the adopted boys' birth mother! she has an eleven year old daughter who is with her. the oldest son (not adopted) has just returned from africa where he was stealing and reselling AIDS medication. see... complex plot. but interesting... and the reader has a very pleasant speaking voice.



2. clara callan: a novel by richard b. wright. this story is neat because it's about two sisters from small town ontario in the 1930s, and it's all written in letters (to each other) and journal entries. one of the sisters moves to new york to become a radio actress, and the other deals with some pretty heavy stuff back at home. there is also more than one person reading, which makes it feel like an old radio program.



for breakfast this morning i made an egg white wrap with 100g microwaved egg whites (1 point), a flat out wrap (1 point) and a TBSP of salsa (0 points). it was a pretty hearty breakfast for only 2 points.

my bum is a little sore from yesterday's goddess booty dvd, and that's excellent. i was never one for derriere exercises so there is no time like the present to start becoming bootylicious.

8 comments:

Jen said...

Wah about the Pride and Prejudice book...I agree, don't ruin a girls hopes and dreams!!!

I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE Gone with the Wind, seriously one of my favorite books/movies ever!!!! (I actually loved both)...the only parts I found hard was when Mammy or anything of the other servant/working people talked...I actually had to "read aloud in my head" to understand what they were saying (most of it is written phonetically!)...I read "Scarlett" a couple of years ago - not really worth it...but interesting to say the least (I won't give anything away since you don't remember it!)

Vanessa said...

I love your book posts! I haven't read The Outsiders for years.

Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy's marriage was perfect and they lived happily ever after. Anything else is a lie!

Sara said...

hot dayum girl - certainly no shortage of books!

Sara said...

jinx!

I did the tri with just my mtn bike but for 20km it was hard, and I was one of the only ones!!

I'm not getting a road bike though I'm going to get a fitness hybrid.

I did the sprint - 750m swim, 20k bike, 5 k run. There is also a super sprint that is 373 m swim, 10k bike, 2.5 k run. More people in that race had mtn bikes and cruisers.

The Milton one was fun b/c it was all women but the women were still pretty hardcore - esp in our age group!

There is also one on Toronto Island that would be fun (and super flat) but I hear that the swim in touch and go since it does get canceled if Lake Ontario is to choppy.

Randi said...

OOOOOooo! I love GwtW!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Maybe I'll dust off my copy and read it again (I also have a used bookstore copy and it's 100 years old, but I like to pretend it was a first edition or something.) I don't own many books, only my very favorites and this is one. You'll love it. I feel like "swooning" just thinking of it! I also had to read Scarlett when I was done because I just wasn't ready for it to be over yet.

I dunno how you can keep so many stories straight! That's why I have to read books in 1 or 2 sittings because otherwise I confuse characters or forget who somebody is. Impressive!

HC said...

I love me some audiobooks -- I'm listening to Ruth Reichl's Garlic and Saphires right now. Awesome.

fittingbackin said...

aw I do the same thing! Makes the time go FAST! Wow - you read a lot at one time! And Run sounds really good, and interesting! Do they have a book like that about dogs? I'm going to go find out... :) Sounds hilarius!

Cat said...

Gone with the Wind is my mom's fav book of all time. I'm saving up to buy her an early edition for her next birthday...(those suckers are pricy!)

I love getting recomendations for good reads!!