"Castle In The Air"

"Castle In The Air" is Diana Wynne Jones' sequel to "Howl's Moving Castle" which I saw as a movie version and may have also read but it has been quite some time ago so it didn't dawn on me (nor did the author let me in on this secret) that Howl and his family would be in this book, too.  They play a very important part as the end of the book nears.  There is a third book in the series, ""House of Many Ways" that I just requested from my local library.

The hero in "Castle In The Air" is a young carpet dealer named Abdullah -- a day dreamer.  His father has died and his older siblings (to his dismay) try to interfere in his life.  When he purchases a magic carpet, meets a princess he wishes to marry and discovers a genie in a bottle, his life is changed forever.  What was once sedate becomes an adventure with many interesting encounters along the way.  It took me a bit to get into this book but it has been a fun read.  pazt

"The Stolen Child"

"The Stolen Child" by Lisa Carey was a book I picked up at the library off a shelf of either new books or books recommended for reading.  It is the first book I've read by Lisa and the title led me to believe it might be a mystery which is my favorite type of reading.  However, it is not...it's a story set on St. Brigid's Island off Ireland and is full of Irish mythology.

Although I found it interesting, it didn't hold my interest well enough so it was easy to put it down or choose not to pick it up at all.  I read about half the book then last night I decided to skim through the rest to learn what happened to Rose, Emma and Niall, and Brigid.  Once I'd done that I no longer had a need to finish reading the details of the story.  That doesn't mean I won't try another of Carey's book as she has won awards for her writing.

However, I was told several years ago that you take your age and subtract it from a 100 and that's how many pages you need to read of a book before you decide if you want to finish it or not.  I'm not going to tell you how many pages that would be for me but I will say that there is probably not enough time left in my life to read all the books on my "wish to read" list.  I don't think it would matter how old I am and it would still be true.  I'd love to hear others opinions of Carey's books.  pazt

"Stargirl"

"Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli is a teen book and what a great read!  Even though I'm no longer a teen, I am aspiring to be more like Stargirl.  I want to have her freedom and spontaneity!

At age 12 Leo Borlock moved from Pennsylvania to Arizona and his Uncle Pete gave him the porcupine tie Pete wore that Leo had admired all his life.  At age 14 Leo's collection grew when a porcupine tie showed up wrapped as a birthday gift and left on his doorstep after a write up in the local paper about his "collection" of porcupine ties.

In 11th grade Leo's life began to change when a new student arrived at school - "Stargirl."  She was a tenth grader who had previously been home schooled and she was nothing like anyone he'd ever met before.  She had her own style as far as clothes and actions were concerned and, at first, she captured the attention and affection of almost everyone at school.

However, eventually her unorthodox actions turned her into an outcast just as she and Leo were becoming an item.  So, as she was shunned by the school, so was he and he didn't like it.  He convinced Stargirl that being different wasn't such a great thing.  To his surprise Stargirl vanished and was replaced by Susan Caraway.  Susan was as different from Stargirl as night from day.  Susan didn't behave outlandishly or have a pet rat or carry a ukulele and Susan wore designer clothes.  Susan didn't perform spontaneous kind deeds or sing happy birthday to her classmates.

At first, Leo was pleased with Susan and being seen with such a beautiful girl but Susan noticed that nothing changed - She was still being shunned.  So Susan disappeared and Stargirl returned and Leo eventually backed off so their relationship ended.

He didn't take her to the Valentine's Ocotillo Ball nor did he go himself.  Stargirl went alone making one of her usually spectacular entrances.  He heard all about it later and the Bunny Hop dance she led that is still being talked about to this day.  Although some have tried to repeat it, they haven't met with the same success.

It was that summer that Stargirl disappeared again and her family home was up for sale.  Fifteen hears later Leo is still single and still remembers Stargirl.  He wonders where she is now and every time he reads in the paper about someone doing a good deed he thinks of her.

Leo's class has a reunion every 5 years but he hasn't returned.  He has kept in touch with his good friend, Kevin, though.  Leo wound up in television and Kevin is an insurance salesman.  Kevin says talk always turns to Stargirl at class reunions.  The high school has a new club that requires members to do one nice thing a day for someone other than themselves.  The band has a ukulele and the cheerleaders cheer for the opposing team.

In the meantime, Leo wonders about Stargirl but he doesn't feel alone  - he feels watched.

I hope there is a sequel -- or will I have to write my own?  pazt

"Found Guilty At Five"

"Found Guilty At Five" is Ann Purser's 12th book in the Lois Meade Mystery series and the story begins with a wedding.  Lois' daughter is marrying the nephew of Inspector Cowgill making them family.

Jamie, the Meade's youngest son, is home for the wedding and has brought a friend who performs musically with him, Akiko.   Akiko's cello appears to be safely locked up in Jamie's car while they're staying with his parents until it is stolen one night.  Since it has great value, Inspector Cowgill is called in to investigate.

The tale goes beyond the theft of a cello, though, when Akiko is kidnapped and her father is left for dead by one of his employees who later ends up dead himself.  Jamie and Lois work in cooperation with Inspector Cowgill (and at times without his cooperation) as well as with the assistance of the former lady of the manor, Mrs. Tollervey-Jones.  The plot is an interesting one that kept me guessing at times as to who were villains and who were not!  pazt

"Manchester By The Sea" - The DVD

The DVD, "Manchester By The Sea," is very popular at our local library so, when I received it, I only had seven days to view it because there were over 200 individuals on the hold list waiting to check out a copy.

Since I knew it had been nominated for 5 Golden Globe Nominations, I was pretty excited to watch it even though I really didn't have an idea what the movie was about.  The acting was great but the movie itself is pretty dark so wasn't exactly what I needed to lift my spirits while getting over a spring cold.  Am I glad I watched it - yes!  Would I recommend it -- I honestly don't know....pazt

"Night School"

"Night School" is another novel in the Jack Reacher series by Lee Child and it is complex and great!

Reacher has just received another medal and is being sent to school.  Actually, being sent to school is just a way to get him, an FBI agent and a CIA analyst under the radar so they can work on a highly sensitive case.  It involves a Jihadist sleeper cell in Germany and an American who has something to sell for a million dollars -- What is it and who is the American?

We're taken on a pretty wild ride with Reacher, his assistant and the others involved to determine what is going on and who is behind it -- another convoluted tale and I loved it!  pazt

"Dead Line"

"Dead Line" is the 4th work of fiction from Stella Rimington, the former head of Britain's MI5.  This series features MI5 officer, Liz Carlyle, who is called on again to investigate- this time the possible sabotage of a Middle East peace conference being held at Gleneagles resort in Scotland.

In the meantime her boss, Charles Weatherby, is leaving her to fend more and more on her own and to rely on other colleagues while he is spending time working from home while his wife is dying.  This means Liz is forced to work with the likes of Geoffrey Fane as well as interface with U.S. and Mossad intelligence.

What appears to be the work of one country trying to sabotage a peace conference turns into something entirely different but will Liz discover what?  As she herself is run down by a car that puts her in the hospital for a short time and leads ending up as corpses, she is running out of time to find out who is behind the sabotage and why and can she stop it in time?  pazt