Extra Book #8 - Fun Home

This book I am reviewing today is called

Fun Home

This book is a graphic novel.  I read it because I was interested in seeing the Broadway Show, and I do like the music.  So I picked up the book.  It is a fast read, because it is a graphic novel.  The story is also a true story of the author's life.

Here is what Amazon says about this book:

Meet Alison's father, a historic preservation expert and obsessive restorer of the family's Victorian home, a third-generation funeral home director, a high school English teacher, an icily distant parent, and a closeted homosexual who, as it turns out, is involved with his male students and a family babysitter. Through narrative that is alternately heartbreaking and fiercely funny, we are drawn into a daughter's complex yearning for her father. And yet, apart from assigned stints dusting caskets at the family-owned "fun home," as Alison and her brothers call it, the relationship achieves its most intimate expression through the shared code of books. When Alison comes out as homosexual herself in late adolescense, the denouement is swift, graphic -- and redemptive.

I enjoyed the graphic novel.  She had an interesting and somewhat tragic childhood which lead to a tragic loss of her father when she was 20 years old.  After reading the book, I am curious to see how it plays out in a Broadway play.

If you have seen the musical, or have heard about it, I think it would be worth the read.  Please be aware that this book is not for children/pre-teens.  There are a lot of adult scenes/conversations in this graphic novel.

Stars:  3 1/2

Extra Book #7 - The Last Town

Last of the Pines Triology

This book was called:  The Last Town

Time moves slowly in these books.  Between the start of the last book and this one, only a week has passed.  Ethan has learned that the children at the school have been being taught that David Pilcher - the town's founder - is a god.  No one is allowed to leave.  If you ask questions, you take a chance of being killed.

But Ethan knows the towns secret, and he is one of the only people.  He is trying to decide if he should keep this secret to himself, or share it with the towns people.  His decision will change everything.  (whether that is good or bad, you will have to wait to find out).

Interesting end to the series.  The books was going along great, but the ending was a bit of a let down.  I think it was because it left me wanting more.  I wanted the story to continue to see where it went.  Maybe the author will write another book.  Or maybe the TV show will further the story.

I would say read all three.  Each book covers such a small time period, it would be hard to just read one.

Stars:  3 1/2

Extra Book #6 - Wayward

Book #2 in the Pines Triology!

This book was called Wayward

Two weeks have passed since Ethan has arrived in the strange town of Wayward Pines.  He has found out that there are only 461 people that live in the town, he has found out the truth of the fence, and the town, and he has found his ex-partner.  He has also been made sheriff.   None of the residents know how they got there.  As Ethan starts to talk to them, most of them were in some kind of accident and ended up where they are.  They are told where to work, how to live, how to marry.  Some think they are dead.  Some think they are part of an experiment.  But Ethan knows the truth and what lays beyond the fence of the town is terrifying and worth staying where they are.

Again - I know, vague.  But I don't want to give it away.  It is more fun to figure it out yourself.   This book was kind of like the TV show, but mostly went its own direction.  It wasn't a bad direction at all, though.  The TV show just chose a different direction and chose to feature different characters.  I enjoyed this book as much as the first.  It is an easy read, so I say continue to book three!

Stars:  4

Extra book #5 - Pines

Oops!  I was reading and not posting.  I have read 4 books since my last post, so I will post one a day.
Today's book that I am going to review is called

Pines

This book is a trilogy and I read all three.  I decided to read these because Mat and I watched the TV series called "Wayward Pines", and it just got renewed for a second season, so I wanted to see what was coming.

Unfortunately, the TV show and books were not that much a like.  Well, I shouldn't say unfortunately - both are good, but both went different ways.  And from what I can tell, it took all three books to tell the story that was the first season of "Wayward Pines" so who knows where the second season will go.  Reminds me a bit of "Under the Dome" - but that show just went crazy, so let's hope not.

Anyway - Pines.  This story is about a secret service agent named Ethan that is sent on a mission to Wayward Pines, Idaho to look for his missing ex-partner and another agent.  He is a car accident on his way into Wayward Pines, and wakes up in the hospital.  He is confused and agitated and escapes the hospital several times trying to find his ex-partner and his way out of a town he doesn't understand.  He isn't able to get phone calls through to his wife and son.  He doesn't know why there is an electrified fence around the town.

Now - this is as much as I am willing to tell you because I don't want to ruin what the main plot of the book is.  I did love this series, and I thought it was a neat idea (and something I could see happening), so I recommend you picking it up and trying it.  Hopefully you will enjoy it and will want to read the other two.

Stars:  4 1/2

They keep on coming! - Thirteen Reasons Why

These last two books I read were two fast ones.

The book I am reviewing today is called Thirteen Reason's Why

This book is about a high school girl who commits suicide.  The whole town is reeling with why it happened.  One day, our main character receives a package at his door - inside are cassette tapes.  He doesn't know who they are from or what they are doing at his house, but he finds an old tape player and begins to listen.  He quickly realizes they are from the dead girl.  She wants to take an opportunity to explain what lead her to her decision to kill herself and the 13 people who were involved with that decision.  Each person on the tapes is to receive them at some point, and then pass them on to the next person.

Our main character, Clay, is a good guy.  He takes the time to listen to the tapes and follow her path to what lead her to commit suicide.  And in the end, he passes the tapes on to the next person who is to receive them hopefully to help everyone heal.

This was an easy read.  It was definitely a young adult novel, and a good read for those in high school.  It talks about the signs of suicide and how one thing that happens to lead to many more, and for young people, it should not be taken lightly.  She made connections to everyone on her list and why she made her decision.  It was a little sappy, but again, it was YA.  If you are looking for something that talks about a very serious topic but does it in an easy read, then this book is for you.

Star rating: 3 1/2 

Book Review - Dark Places

Still waiting for the year to end so I can start our next challenge.  So now I am just reading things that were on my shelf or that didn't fit in a category from last year's challenge.

This books was Dark Places

This is a story of a girl whose mother and two sisters were murdered when she was 7 years old.  She believed that her brother was responsible, and he was jailed for the murders.  Now she is in her early 30s, and people are questioning if she was right.  She spends the time interviewing people from her past and her brothers past to uncover the truth.

I enjoyed this book.  I enjoyed Gillian's first book - Gone Girl - so I was excited to read something else by her.  I wasn't disappointed.  I thought the story was well written and I think it flowed well.  I do wonder if Gillian has a very dark past, though.  She seems to write very dark stories.

I recommend this book.  And I think if I am given more time for free reading, I will pick up another one of her books.

Stars: 4 1/2

Another Book - The House of the Seven Gables (Book #52)

I am going to keep reading, so there for - keep posting!  Still several weeks left in 2015 before the new challenge can begin, so I am cleaning off my shelves with a few books I had wanted to read this year.

Today I am reviewing the House of the Seven Gables.

This is a story that takes place in Salem, Massachusetts at the famous House of Seven Gables.  The story is fictional, but the house is not.   The story takes place in the 1800s, 200 years after a tragic death of is original owner.  The story is about the (fictional) Pyncheon family.  The story is that the house was built on land that was swindled away from its rightful owner, Matthew Maude, by the local Colonel Jaffrey Pyncheon.  After he took the land from Maude, he had Maude executed for witchcraft.  (which is what Salem is known for).  However - before Maude was executed, he placed a curse on the entire Pyncheon family.  The Colonel wasn't phased by the curse and he built the house on the land.  The Colonel even hired Maude's son - who was a carpenter - to build the house.  At the grand opening, Colonel Pyncheon is found dead at his desk from an unknown cause.

Fastforward 200 years, and we meet Hepzibah, one of the last remaining heirs to the Pyncheon's fortune (which isn't much of a fortune at all at this point).  The Maude's curse continues to bring bad luck to the family with an alleged murder of Jaffrey Pyncheon IIs by his nephew, Clifford.  Clifford appears in the story after spending 30 years in prison for this accusation.  (which was a murder he did not commit)  He is the last of the Pyncheons that has first hand knowledge of the family's secrets.  He returns to the House of the Seven Gables to be cared for by his sister, Hepzibah.

Clifford supposedly knows of a deed that was hidden by the original Colonel Pyncheon for miles and miles of land in Maine.  An uncle appears - Judge Pyncheon - wanting to question Clifford on the deed and where it is hidden, so that he can take the land for himself.  The deed is never found, and the uncle is found dead in the same place Colonel Pyncheon was those many years ago.

In the end there is a wedding that seems to rid the house of evil spirits.  But in the end, the Pyncheons move away from the home to find peace.

This book was written in 1850, so if you have a hard time with language at that time, this book is not for you.  I found it difficult to read, but as long as I concentrated (and didn't try watching TV at the same time), I could get through it.  I tried to limit it to 20 pages a day so that I could take my time with it and truly understand its meaning.  The copy that I have has a notes section in the back, and that was very helpful.  It also has an after thoughts section to discuss the book on the whole, which I also liked.  Reading this book reminded me a lot of The Master and Margarita - without the added bonus to help you understand it, it would have been tougher for me to get through.

The reason I chose to read this book was because in October my family and I went to Salem, MA (which is only 45 minutes from where we live) to enjoy their Halloween festivities.  We toured the House of Seven Gables and it was fascinating.  Its true story can be found here:  http://www.7gables.org/ if you wish to find out more.  It is a great place, and I encourage you to put it on your list of "must dos".    We really enjoyed the grounds, and the house is huge.

If you are into romanticism writing, and writings from the 1800s, then I encourage you to try this book.  I understand it is not "A Scarlet Letter" (Hawthornes most famous book), but it was a good read.  I enjoyed it because I have visited the house, and loved to see what Hawthorne came up with.

Stars: 3 1/2