Book Review: Manitou The Sky People Saga

So a friend asked me to review a book she'd just written.

No wait, not a friend exactly, more like someone I've never met and only had contact with through email. So an online acquaintance.  But not one I ever spoke with before agreeing to review the book.  You know what I mean, so don't even pretend you don't.  In any case, I'd say we're friends now. (Or at least frienquaintances.)

Anyway, she put out a plea on this indie book publishing message board I belong to and just hearing her enthusiasm for her story made it sound interesting to me.  So I thought why not, if nothing else, I'd get a free ebook out of the deal.  (I think she's a she. Maybe she's a he?? As it turns out, I have no idea. But I'm going with she.  OK, fine, I just checked and she's definitely a she. I told you.)

Of course, now we get to the harder part of the equation. The book has been read and must be reviewed. I don't review too many books on here, even though I read dozens and dozens. It's not because I don't like them, either, but just cause by the time I finish one, I move on to the next and the moment is gone.

But not this time. This time, I have to write a review. The panic actually set in as soon as I agreed to review the book. What if I don't like it? How do I even write an actual book review, you know, beyond the "it's good and you should buy it" kinda of thing? I don't even know if I have that skill. Book reviewing is a skill, right?

Well, the good news is, I really liked the book. So it'll be much easier to tell you how good it is and that you should buy it.  And in my attempt to be like a real reviewer type person, I'll start with a synopsis:

Manitou The Sky People Saga by Lexus Luke is the first in a series of YA novels about a young girl adopted into the modern Ute Tribe.  Wray Sky's parents were murdered and she has been transported from her New York home to live with her Ute great grandmother in Colorado.  Wray firmly believes in good solid logic and scientific facts. But one day she comes face to face with with some ancient Ute magic and she begins to believe that science may not always have the answers.

This is pitched as a YA story, but I think it will appeal to younger and older readers.  It definitely kept my interest throughout and, even though my reading time was limited, I managed to finish it in just a couple of days. (Honestly, I stayed up way later than I should have, too!)  I even found myself thinking about what would happen next when I wasn't reading, which is always a great sign of well-developed, engaging characters and an intriguing story-line.  I don't want to give anything away, but let's just say that the story isn't as predictable as you think it might be and the twists are definitely surprising.  Overall this was an enjoyable read and I'm glad I was able to review it.

And the best part? That the story isn't over yet! I can't wait to review Book 2.

Oh, I almost forgot...if you want to buy it (and you do!) check it out at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Book Heaven

I've found it!

Book Heaven is not just a myth, it's a real place and I've been there.

OK, it's not really called Book Heaven. It's called The Book Center, which is a super boring name for such an amazing place, so I felt the need to re-name it.

I had to take these pics, cause I was just so completely overwhelmed by so many books, piled floor to ceiling down these narrow rows, just packed into this little shop. Honestly, my little pictures don't really do the place justice.

My boss found out I was going to Rochester last week and she told me about this place, in Spencerport, which is a cute, cute little village with shops and other quaint stuff. Including this independent used book store.

I'm a fan of places where books live, like libraries and book stores. Especially used book stores.

There's just something about all those lovely pages with lots of lovely words written on them all in one place, just waiting for someone to read them.

I read or heard this quote somewhere recently and it's perfect for this place: "All books wait. They sit patiently on their shelves collecting the most refined dust until their cover is opened and the pages are turned by the proper person."  I feel a little sad, cause I can't remember where I found it, so I can't give credit to whoever it was that said it first. I almost think it might have been an episode of some old show from the 80's that I was watching. But I'm not sure.

In any case, I almost wasn't able to get there, but on the last day I was in Rochester, I got together a group of like-minded friends (well, all my real friends are like-minded) and we ran out there for a bit. We only had about an hour and I didn't have too much cash on me, but I still managed to come out with eight books.

I only wish I'd had more time. 

Book Studies

What is it with novels having study questions at the back these days? Do I just somehow keep grabbing books from the YA section without realizing it?

No seriously, these aren't classics or anything. Just random everyday novels. So what do I care why someone did what they did or how they felt about it?

I just want to read the book and be entertained and move on. I don't want to keep thinking about it afterwards or dissect the whole thing.

Am I right or am I right?

My First Novel

The other day I got to thinking about my first novel, which was based loosely on the 1960's version Harlequin romance novels. My lovely neighbor Mrs. Ward, who took an early interest in teaching me to read (I could read before Kindergarten), would lend me her books as part of a group of neighbor ladies who loved those romances. Initially, of course, she lent me (and taught me to love) more classic authors, like Mark Twain and Jules Verne, and I forget who else. Probably the books left behind by her two grown daughters. Her oldest daughter was and still is best friends with my sister who is 15 years older than me.

After instilling me with a love of reading, she then made me a part of the book group and we all shared the romances. She would, of course, hold back those she felt were too racy for me, since I was probably only 10 or so when she had run out of children's literature for me. I know I started writing that novel in one of those composition notebooks when I was in about 6th or 7th grade and I recall, dimly, that the heroine was named Faith Matthews, which clearly sounded romantic to me. The opening scene was Faith sitting out by the pool with a daquiri or some other random mixed drink which I knew nothing about then, and still don't.

When Mrs. Ward died, I was in my early 20's and her daughter told me she wanted me to have all those books. I went over with a box and loaded up dozens and dozens of Harlequins, all our initials in the front so we could remember which ones we'd already read, and her notes in the ones she felt were inappropriate for someone of my tender years to read. A few years after, when Mrs. McQueen (another of our group book ladies) passed away, her husband loaded up her books and came walking down the street, grocery bags in his arms, to give those to me as well.

I still have them all. Because some things are too precious to give away.

2010; The Year of the Books

Lately, I've been thinking about how marriage has dumbed me down. I'm not blamng my husband, really, but I used to read. Of course, I'm much busier now than I used to be, but I do still find time to read a little. But basically everything I read now is at 8th grade level. You know, Harry Potter, Twilight, Vampire Diaries. Sure, I have my genre, but that doesn't mean that I only like sci-fi or fantasy. I used to love to read historical books, some fiction and some non-fiction. I can remember reading textbooks about medieval architecture and crazy stuff like that.

Since it's the start of a new year, it seemed like a good time to make some changes. For one thing, I plan on blogging more, both here and on my TV blog, and I plan on reading more. Of course, I also plan on thinking more about losing that 100 lbs I need to lose, too. I didn't quite start that exercise program on New Year's Day, but maybe tomorrow. ;)

I did, however, start reading several books. Yay for me! I have already completed one, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Predators and Prey (Season 8, Vol. 5) graphic novel. Alright, clearly not a serious tome, but still, I did read something.

I am also currently reading The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake. Yes, you read that correctly. I'm about half way through right now and I'm still not exactly sure what I think. The stories are interesting, at least one was pretty creepy, but in a good way, and overall they have a folksy feel. Pancake set his stories in rural West Virginia and he wrote them as though he were uneducated, which he definitely was not. Sadly, he took his life when he was only 26. This book was published posthumously from his published and unpublished stories.

On the non-fiction side, I'm reading The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives, Leonard Mlodinow. I'm really enjoying this one way more than I thought I would. I'll take a stab at explaining it, but I'm not sure I can do it justice. Words like statistical, mathmatical, analysis, problem-solving all come to mind. Think historical background meets gambling. No, that's not right. Anyway, it makes for much easier reading than you think.

Plus, I was able to take out lots more good reads at the library. So at least my year is starting out right.