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Book report
Apr. 2nd, 2010 06:15 pmMy life is a little crazy as of late. I’ve been on the phone with movers, realtors, and attorneys; and I have been searching for temporary accommodations in case we can’t find a new home in time. I think and hope that no matter how crazy things get, I’ll still have time to read! I’m a bit sad, though, as I write this book report. Most of the books in it were checked out of my local library. Since I’m moving in just over 3 weeks, and since I own like 22 books now, it doesn’t make sense to be checking much more out from the library. I don't really even have much time to be making trips to and from the library, so this is a good time to fall back on the stock of books I own. My next book report will likely contain mostly books that are mine. And the report after that...hopefully will contain books from my new city’s library!
Letters of a Woman Homesteader by Elinore Pruitt Stewart – I loved this audio recording. The recording is made up of the real-life, non-fiction letters of a woman in the early 1900’s who, being a young widow with a daughter, decided to head West and work as a homesteader. The actor’s voice was perfect for the role; she was a delight to listen to. I enjoyed hearing Stewart’s stories of life at that time. She had a true love for life and was determined to look for the good in everything and be happy – which worked out very well for her. She lived very simply and just loved the land. She enjoyed writing and telling others about the West; she would’ve really been into blogging and it’s too bad she wasn’t born 100 years later! One major downside: given that these letters are 100 years old, they are peppered with racist attitudes. I understand that “that’s the way it was then”, but it was really disturbing to hear this otherwise easy-going woman refer to someone using a term that is now considered a racist slur. Even if that term was ‘ok’ back when she used it, it’s disturbing now. On the other hand, maybe editing those passages out wouldn’t have been the right thing to do either since there’s no point in pretending that things were different. Grade: B
The Guardians by Ana Castillo – These were my thoughts while reading this novel. ‘It’s not off to a great start. I like the setting and the concept though. It’s about a Mexican-American woman, her nephew, and her brother who has gone missing when he tried to cross the border. It’s got to improve.’ Several pages later…’Okay, it hasn’t improved. Do I put it aside? But I’m 60 pages into it and it’s only 210 pages. Maybe I can just muscle it out. It’s a bummer, though, how the author attempts to write through the perspective of four different characters but to me they just don’t sound authentic. Something is lacking in how each one is written. And the plot isn’t as driven or compelling as I’d expected. On the other hand, the setting is still good. I think the author means well; I like how she tells about impoverished immigrants and how they are just struggling to survive and feed their families. I’ll keep going even though it’s not thrilling me.’ I really should’ve gone with my first instinct on this one. Grade: C-
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Letters of a Woman Homesteader by Elinore Pruitt Stewart – I loved this audio recording. The recording is made up of the real-life, non-fiction letters of a woman in the early 1900’s who, being a young widow with a daughter, decided to head West and work as a homesteader. The actor’s voice was perfect for the role; she was a delight to listen to. I enjoyed hearing Stewart’s stories of life at that time. She had a true love for life and was determined to look for the good in everything and be happy – which worked out very well for her. She lived very simply and just loved the land. She enjoyed writing and telling others about the West; she would’ve really been into blogging and it’s too bad she wasn’t born 100 years later! One major downside: given that these letters are 100 years old, they are peppered with racist attitudes. I understand that “that’s the way it was then”, but it was really disturbing to hear this otherwise easy-going woman refer to someone using a term that is now considered a racist slur. Even if that term was ‘ok’ back when she used it, it’s disturbing now. On the other hand, maybe editing those passages out wouldn’t have been the right thing to do either since there’s no point in pretending that things were different. Grade: B
The Guardians by Ana Castillo – These were my thoughts while reading this novel. ‘It’s not off to a great start. I like the setting and the concept though. It’s about a Mexican-American woman, her nephew, and her brother who has gone missing when he tried to cross the border. It’s got to improve.’ Several pages later…’Okay, it hasn’t improved. Do I put it aside? But I’m 60 pages into it and it’s only 210 pages. Maybe I can just muscle it out. It’s a bummer, though, how the author attempts to write through the perspective of four different characters but to me they just don’t sound authentic. Something is lacking in how each one is written. And the plot isn’t as driven or compelling as I’d expected. On the other hand, the setting is still good. I think the author means well; I like how she tells about impoverished immigrants and how they are just struggling to survive and feed their families. I’ll keep going even though it’s not thrilling me.’ I really should’ve gone with my first instinct on this one. Grade: C-
More behind the cut.
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