White Oleander

I really enjoyed this book. It was down to the wire finishing it up yesterday...last week was a busy one with very little time for reading. The changes Astrid goes through as she bounces from one foster home to the next are insightful - a great character development. You don't always like her, but you always feel for her situation...

This week I'm reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer...borrowed from Erin & Paul.

White Oleander by Janet Fitch

My pick this week is White Oleander by Janet Fitch. I'm coming into this with very little knowledge of it. I didn't see the movie when it was out, so I don't have any preconceived notions of it. I generally prefer to read a book before I see a movie, usually because the book tends to be better in most cases.

On another note, I may have found a loophole in my ban against buying new books. Paperbackswap.com is my new favorite website. You can post any of your books that you want to get rid of. When someone orders one of your books, you get a credit for a free book. The only cost is the cost of shipping the book when it is ordered. Also, when you sign up, if you post 10 books you get 2 credits. So right off the bat, I have 2 books coming my way at no cost to me! And, of course, after reading them, I will post them back up on the site so someone else can read them.

Ugly Stepsister...finished!

I enjoyed it, thought it was far from the Cinderella story I grew up on. I have always been a fan of stories told from the "bad guy's" point of view. This one makes Cinderella's stepsisters seem not so bad, both Cinderella and her stepsisters are the victims of their parents' greed.

Not as good as Wicked, for me, but still worth a read if you like that kind of thing.

New book tomorrow...

Ugly Stepsister...day 2

Another trip to Ally's dance class this afternoon...and lots of time for reading. I'm about halfway through the story of Iris, the ugly stepsister of the title. Iris, her mother, and her "simple" sister Ruth have come to live in the house of a wealthy Dutchman, whose beautiful daughter Clara fancies herself a changeling. It is interesting, though I have yet to see much of the traditional Cinderella story.

A quick read so far...I anticipate finishing it well before the end of the week.

"Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" by Gregory Maguire

I've been carrying this book around in my purse for weeks now, intending to read it on my lunch hour at work but have been sidetracked and never actually got to it.
I am a fan of Gregory Maguire - I enjoyed both Wicked and Son of a Witch in his Oz series, and am looking forward to reading A Lion Among Men one of these days.

This one is the Cinderella story from the point of her stepsister, Iris. And since, like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, "I want the fairy tale," I'm looking forward to seeing Gregory Maguire's take on this one.

The Dwelling...done

It's Saturday, and I'm only a third of the way through this book. Partly because I've been reading "The Devil in the White City" for book club - and that book so fascinated and horrified me that I couldn't put it down. But mainly because The Dwelling is not fascinating or horrifying me.
I can't even work up enough interest to want to read it. I'm disappointed, really, because it sounded good. But last night, when I found myself opting for the Magic Treehouse book that my nephew loaned me instead of The Dwelling, I knew it was time to call it.
As much as I hate to give up a book in the middle...I am bailing on this one. I guess there's a reason why it was $3.99 at Job Lot...

New choice coming on Monday...

Week 2 - "The Dwelling" by Susie Moloney

I picked this book at random out of a box in my closet. According to the price tag on the front of the book, I bought it at Job Lot for $3.99. I'm guessing it was at least a couple of years ago, as I don't really even remember buying it.

It looks like a horror - a story about a house that is on the market over and over...I'm assuming because it's haunted. According to the book flap, it covers three different owners of the house, and their experiences there. Should be interesting, I love a good scare-the-crap-out-of-me story.