Zelda’s Cut

Zelda’s Cut by Philippa Gregory

What was this book about?

Isobel spent years with her husband letting him support her before he gets sick and it is her turn. He isn’t interested in anything – so she handles all the money. What he doesn’t know is that her books aren’t earning the money they once were. As he starts to feel better he gets bigger dreams about what he wants and what they need – and those dreams cost money.

She is an author of literary works – she knows that this other “fluff” is easy to write. When financial difficulty sets in she decides she will write one of these books – only for the money. But she doesn’t want her life and works ruined by a book for money. So she creates an alternative character – an author named Zelda.

She couldn’t do all this without her agent Tony. He is her support. And as time progresses he takes his turn at being Zelda too. It is alluring and sexy and they love this alternate person they created?

But what does that mean for Isobel’s life at home? What about her husband?

What did you think about the book?

I love Philippa Gregory’s historical fiction. It is great. I have read many of her other books and the best word to describe it is just different. They cover topics that you never read about in a way that you really don’t see elsewhere. But despite the intriguing and new storylines (much like this one) they really just don’t hit a resounding note with me.

This one had great promise. I love the idea of a wife who was supported by her husband (emotionally, financially) having to turn around and become the breadwinner and supporter when he is sick. She is almost saintly in the way that she has decided he did so much for her that she should do this for him. And in many ways the fact that she does this leads to her behavior in the later chapters.

I understand her need for an alternate lifestyle. I also understand how it can all get away from you. The allure of the clothes, the face, the makeup. And for someone who lived a relatively sheltered existence – even the fact that it became sexual in many ways. So she liked it when Tony becomes Zelda just as much as when she did. It became something they could share. Something that linked them in so many ways.

Was Tony a transgender person? Did she bring it out in him? How did the trust she have in him relate to the fact that she couldn’t seem to trust her husband with the facts of what was going on in their life? Do you think she had a reason to keep that from him?

What genre would you consider this?
Fiction

Overall:

Question for You!
Have you ever kept a secret life from those that you love?

Mr. Touchdown

Mr. Touchdown by Lydia Phillips

What was this book about?

Eddie Russell and three other African American children are picked to join in the desegregation process. They are to go to the local “white” school. It is a tough place to be. No one really knows what to do or how to act. They are hated and harassed by many – and the danger to them is not minimal. It is a brave thing to do – but more then anything what they want is to belong.

Several of the other teens – like Nancy Martin will stick up for what they belive is right. Some of the teachers will also. For Eddie – he wants nothing more then to play football. And when given the opportunity he will show the community who he really is.

What did you think about the book?

This book was very, very good! I have to admit that this period of history was not one that I was alive through. It wasn’t one I studied (with the exception of a few paragraphs in a history book in high school). It was one that I had heard about – but nothing really touched me or made me think about that period of time and the people that were part of the movement.

This book had me thinking. It had me empathizing with many of the characters. To think that it wasn’t really that long ago that all of this was going on really has to make you think.

I think that anyone should read this – teens and adults. It makes you think and appreciate where you are in life.

What genre would you consider this?
Fiction

Overall:

Question for You!
Do you think you could have been brave enough to stand up for what was right?

Gods Behaving Badly

Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips

What was this book about?

Picture the gods and goddesses of legend living in modern day London. They have to have jobs and live in a sty of a house. Their powers are waning and they have no idea why.

So what would you do if you were a god with nothing else to do? Torture each other. They are constantly playing “tricks” on each other that have horrible repercussions on others. One of these ends up almost ending the world.

Artemis (goddess of hunting and chastity) finds a woman – Alice – to clean her house. What she doesn’t know is that Apollo (god of the sun and healing) and Aphrodite (goddess of beauty) have their own drama going on behind the scenes that is going to affect Alice.

Alice is an everyday girl who needs a job and feels like she must clean their house. She and Neil have a relationship that is really just starting. She likes him and he likees her but both are too shy to say anything about it.

What Alice and Neil don’t know is that these gods are starting a game that could end the world. They must be brave enough to stop it. And by the end it may be that they can all help each other.

What did you think about the book?

I was very much intrigued by the plot of this book. I haven’t read anything in a very long time (if ever) that had to do with old Greek Gods and Goddesses alive today. Set in modern day London it uses the historical stories of these gods and sets them to what it would be like if they were around.

Generally speaking I enjoyed the book. It has some interesting points in dealing with immortality and what it means to be alive forever. Add to that the problem with power. Many of these gods have good powers and bad powers and they really do need to use them both. What does that mean to the world? Can you cheer for a god that wants to produce war?

The gods in this book are really not likeable but the premise is fun.

What genre would you consider this?
Fiction

Overall:

Question for You!
What sort of supernatural thing do you find the most interesting – vampires, witches, or greek gods and goddesses?

A Jolly Good Fellow

A Jolly Good Fellow by Stephen V. Masse
What was this book about?
Duncan Wagner has had a tough life. He is barely making ends meet and he is doing it through illegal means. But he has a plan that will make things better. He chooses his prey and picks up the young son of a prominent politician. He is going to kidnap the kid and make his father pay ransom.

But Gabriel Booker, the child, can't help but not behave in the way that Duncan expects. He wants to be friends with his kidnapper. The child teaches Duncan some lessons in life and gives him the chance to redeem himself. What does this child mean to Duncan?

What did you think about the book?
To start with Stephen wrote a guest post for me that I really enjoyed. I gave him free reign and told him to write whatever he wanted - finding that an open field can sometimes give me the best insight into the author. He chose to wrote about book blogs. I found the post to be fun and interesting and I really enjoyed it. It made me want to pick up his book.

So that is what I did - I picked it up. Overall I enjoyed it. It jumps right into the story which in some ways are good because it leaves you guessing - wondering what is going on and how things came to be the way they were. Why the guy wanted to kidnap this kid?

The only thing I didn't like about it was I just wasn't sure if the guy was a good guy. And it scared me. I didn't want the guy to turn out to be some evil guy looking to find a kid and do bad things to him. I guess that is my problem that I immediately think of that sort of thing. I admit that you should feel sorry for any future children that I have because I will be a bit overprotective (which I have to say is nothing compared to my husband).

Anyways I have said it before. I enjoy that a man would write about something that isn't classic literature written by a man (not a mystery, science fiction, thriller etc). It emotes feelings and thoughts. It isn't something I see enough of.

What genre would you consider this?
Fiction

Overall:


Question for You!
What guest posts or bloggers have you read - that makes you want to read their book?

American Wife

American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

What was this book about?

This is the book of an average American girl who grows up to become the first lady of the white house. The girl definitely isn’t perfect –she is even involved in a car accident in her teens that kills someone. She has now married into the powerful Blackwell family and she must learn to navigate through it and her life.

Alice Lindgren is bookish and loves being a librarian. She is the only child of her two parents and is raised also by her grandmother (who has her own secrets). So she – a staunch Democrat – never saw herself giving up her politics or her own career to be the wife of Republican politician. Yet when she meets Charlie rather later on in her life (compared to many women of the time) she can’t help but be drawn to him.

The years pass and he makes his way through the political circuit with her by his side. But it isn’t always easy.

What did you think about the book?

I was really excited when I heard about this book. It was controversial with it being loosely based on Laura Bush’s life (or at least had some similar experiences though since it is not a memoir all details/thoughts are fiction) and of course I expected some extra drama thrown in. But when it came down to reading it – I just couldn’t get that in to it.

I think part of it for me was I spent the whole time picturing Laura and George bush when they spoke or were intimate. While I appreciated the details it just wasn’t fast moving enough for me.

It is possible that at a different time it may intrigue me – but having tried two separate times to get into this book – I don’t think for me right now is it.

What genre would you consider this?
Fiction

Overall:

Question for you:
What expectations did you have of this book? Are there books that have totally exceeded your expectations? Or not even come close to them?