Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweetby Jamie Ford

Published in 2009. 285 pages.

Jamie Ford's first novel explores the age-old conflicts between father and son, the beauty and sadness of what happened to Japanese Americans in the Seattle area during World War II, and the depths and longing of deep-heart love. An impressive, bitter, and sweet debut.

– Lisa See, author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

I read Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet with my book club in May. I had put the book on my to-read list in January when it was selected as a Salt Lake County Reader's Choice nominee, so I was happy to "have" to read it. Because my mother-in-law and her parents were interned in the camps during World War II, I am always interested in accounts of that regrettable part of American history. Two that I have particularly enjoyed are Snow Falling on Cedars and When the Emperor Was Divine. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is now another.

Despite the predictability of some aspects of the plot and a few anachronisms concerning the use of technology, I found Jamie Ford's writing to be lovely and heartfelt. Here are few of my favorite passages:

School was out of the question for the day. The thought of being tardy and facing the ridicule of his classmates was almost as horrible as the thought of enduring their happiness - their joy and satisfaction at knowing that Keiko's family, and her whole neighborhood, were being taken away. All smiles. Victorious in their home-front battle with a hated enemy. Even if that enemy spoke the same language and had said the Pledge of Allegiance alongside them since kindergarten. [p. 136]

Like so many things Henry had wanted in life - like his father, his marriage, his life - it had arrived a little damaged. Imperfect. But he didn't care, this was all he'd wanted. Something to hope for, and he'd found it. It didn't matter what condition it was in. [p. 142]

Henry was learning that time apart has a way of creating distance - more than the mountains and time zone separating them. Real distance, the kind that makes you ache and stop wondering. Longing so bad that it begins to hurt to care so much. [p. 245}

For more information, check out the following:

• Literary Feline's Review (May 19, 2009)


• Trish's Review (January 27, 2009)


• Reading Group Guide


• Jamie Ford's Website

2010.29

I Can't Keep My Own Secrets:Six-Word Memoirsby Teens Famous and Obscure

Edited by SMITH Magazine.
Published in 2009. 184 pages.


From the preface: This is a book with over 600 authors (all aged thirteen to nineteen) and 600 characters (all real, as far as we know) and 600 stories (which can be read in any order). What every story has in common is that each was written about the author's own life, and that each is the exact same length: six words.

Why I read this book: This was one of the 2009 Cybils nominees in Non-Fiction. I saw it at my local library one afternoon, so I decided to read it while I was waiting for my son. Then I recommended it to my teenage daughter. Today I read it again.

Some of my favorite memoirs, silly as well as profound:

I live bigger than your labels.
- Samantha N.

Finally learned "weird" is a compliment.
- Teagan E.

Because the chicken was a nonconformist.
- Dillon W.

The exits were entrances in disguise.
- Shannon B.

I always spell my name backwards.
- Hannah F.
2010.34

Jane Austen Ruined My Lifeby Beth Pattillo

Published in 2009. 270 pages.


Unlike some of my friends, I am not a fan of Jane Austen. (I tried to read Emma with a book club a number of years ago and ended up renting the movie with Gwyneth Paltrow instead.) Accordingly, I never would have picked up Jane Austen Ruined My Life had it not been a book club pick. I do have a passing knowledge of Austen's novels and characters, and that was enough that I was able to enjoy this chick lit novel about an Austen scholar who discovers some things about herself as she embarks on some research into Austen's life.

As the Emma of this novel tries to determine who she is and what she wants to do with her life, she ponders on the advice of both her parents and her now-former husband. Her parents pushed her to become a college professor because they saw that as more providing more security than being an author. Her husband was more blunt: "Don't waste your energy chasing some pipe dream." In a favorite passage of mine, Emma says:

I'd believed them, of course, Edward and my parents. Why shouldn't I have? Doing the right thing meant doing the safe thing [page 85].

I do want to say that I liked the ending of the novel a lot. I was going to be disappointed if it had ended in the way that I was anticipating it would end - so I was pleasantly surprised.

A product of the Christian publishing house Guideposts, this novel isn't overtly religious in tone, but I liked this question in the Reading Group Guide at the back of the book (which addresses a concept I've been pondering lately in watching the television serves FlashForward):

Emma's father [who is a minister] taught her that God had a plan for her life. Do you believe this is true? If so, how specific is God's plan? How much choice do we have in the matter? If not, do you believe that life is a matter of random choices and consequences? What led you to this belief?

Jane Austen Ruined My Life was a Salt Lake County Library's Reader's Choice nominee for January to April 2010.

For some additional reviews, visit S. Krishna's Books, One Literature Nut, Puss Reboots, and Confessions of a Book Habitué.

2010.23

A Crooked Kind of Perfectby Linda Urban

Published in 2007. 214 pages.


A Crooked Kind of Perfect is a 2010 Beehive Award Nominee in Children's Fiction, and I found it to be a delightful middle grade novel about 10-year-old girl Zoe, who wants to play the piano.

As an accountant, I found myself relating a little to Zoe's mother, who is a controller. At Career Day, Zoe's mom explained her job this way: "In any organization there are distractions. Personalities. Drama. It is a controller's job to ignore these distractions and focus exclusively on the money" [pages 7-8]. (Boy, she is so right about the drama!)

One passage was just so laugh-out-loud funny:

At our next lesson, Mabelline Person gives me a CD and a stack of Perfectone songbooks: Marvelous Movie Memories, Hits of the Fifties, Hits of the Sixties, Hits of the Seventies, Hits of the Nineties.

"What about the eighties?" I ask.

There were no hits in the eighties," says Miss Person. [page 63]

I highly recommend A Crooked Kind of Perfect!

2010.20

Blue Heaven by C.J. Box

Published in 2007. 344 pages.
2009 Edgar Award for Best Novel.


Despite my love of suspense thrillers, I had never read any of C.J. Box's novels prior to Blue Heaven. One of the Salt Lake County Reader's Choice picks for 2010, it caught my eye when I visited the library a few months ago. Box's first stand-alone mystery - which has been called a "modern Western" not only for its setting but also for its structure - was a compelling and pleasurable read. I doubt it will be the only C.J. Box I ever read.

2010.6

20-10 Plus 20-10A Personal Challenge

I am planning to limit myself to six reading challenges in 2010, two of which began in 2009. Here are the six, with links to the challenge blogs:

• 2010 Countdown Challenge (a total of 55 books, of which I've already read 25 - so I'm almost way-half there),


• Book Awards 4 (a total of 10 books),


• Women Unbound (a total of 8 books, one of which I've already read),


• 42 Challenge (a total of 42 items, which will likely include at least six books),


• A to Z Challenge (a total of 52 books),


• and Social Justice Challenge (at least three full-length books plus other requirements).

Additionally, I'm going to challenge myself to read "20-10 Plus 20-10" from four book lists in which I'm interested. Those books better fit into the parameters of the other challenges too, or else I'm going to have to far exceed my goal of 104 books for the year (an average of two a week).

• 20 Books from the Salt Lake County Library Reader's Choice. Recently published books are chosen twice a year by the Salt Lake County Library staff as books they enjoyed reading and think library patrons will enjoy too. Patrons vote for their favorites. My picks will come from the 2010 nominees or past winners.


• 10 Books from the Midvale Middle School Book Challenge. The students at the middle school that my daughter attends are encouraged to participate in a "book challenge" in which they are to read 30 books from a list of recommended YA titles. I want to read some of the 2009-2010 school year recommendations (which I've put on one of my goodreads shelves), and, if necessary, some of those for 2010-2011.


• 20 Books from Finalists for The Cybils Awards. These "Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Award" finalists for 2009-2010 were announced on New Year's Day, with the winners to be announced on Valentine's Day.


• 10 Books from the Beehive Awards. The Beehive Awards - in five categories - are sponsored by the Children's Literature Association of Utah (CLAU). Winners are chosen from the nominated books by the children of Utah, who vote for their favorites. My picks will come from the 2010 nominees (which can be found here) and/or prior year winners (which can be found here).

Happy reading in 2010!