#4 Girls in Trouble by Caroline Leavitt ****

From Amazon: Leavitt's uneven but earnest eighth novel examines the emotional price a bright Massachusetts teen pays when she chooses "open" adoption for a baby she gives birth to at 16. It's 1987, and smart Sara Rothman has fallen in love with "black sheep" Danny Slade. When he vanishes after learning she's pregnant, Sara gives the baby up. Leavitt (Coming Back to Me) poignantly depicts the consequences of that choice for everyone concerned: Sara, who misses her baby and Danny both; Abby and Jack, Sara's well-meaning parents; Danny, the young father; George and Eva Rivers, the attentive but naive adoptive couple; and Anne, the child. At first, Sara visits the Riverses daily-she loves Anne, and the Riverses had cared for her while she was pregnant. But her presence becomes intrusive, and eventually, Eva takes a stand: "We adopted Anne," she tells Sara. "We didn't adopt you." Sara then makes a desperate attempt to steal the infant, and when she's found, the Riverses move and deny Sara visiting rights ("Open adoptions are only enforceable in Oregon," a lawyer tells her). Fifteen years pass, and Leavitt's focus wavers; a fuzzy reunion between Danny and Sara is particularly unconvincing. The novel's portrait of dreamy, adolescent Anne and her relationship with the older Riverses is sharper, as is the realistic, bumpy reunion of birth mother and daughter. An unflinching depiction of maternal need and the dynamics of adoption, this tale is a sharp reminder of the importance of honesty in life decisions.

02/07/06
Finished this book up today and truly loved this touching story. I think Caroline Leavitt covered all her bases and left none of my questions unanswered about all of these truly endearing characters. I'd like to thank her for stopping by and posting a comment to this blog entry. Very cool! However, would love to know how the rest of Sara's life unfolded for her. I'm left imagining only bigger and better things.

#3 Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris ***

Me Talk Pretty One Day is the second book I've read by Sedaris. Also, read Holidays On Ice which was a nice fun read in between other reads. So I'm hoping for the same with this one.

So far my favorite chapter has been Youth in Asia. Funny and poignant in that Sedaris way. It's about pets. Coincidently, I'm having a struggle with some unnamed neighbor who keeps complaining about my dogs barking too much. I got my second notice from metro yesterday. I've kept them inside at night from 8:00 pm - 6:00 am. So today I let them back in before going to work and let them out for about 30 minutes at lunch. They barked more than they normally do in my opinion. Granted the mail came and tree service was across the street. Guess if I can't get this under control I'll have to consider the Youth in Asia. Maybe they'd like a couple of yappy Pomeranians.

02/03/06 I'd have to say that I prefer Sedaris in small doses. I enjoy him but prefer him here and there and will keep that in mind for the next Sedaris book I read. I think a chapter in between some more heavy reading would be just the thing.

#1 Must Love Dogs by Clair Cook ****

This book couldn't have came along at a better time! Claire Cook is a delight and I look forward to reading more from her.

From Library Journal: Sarah Hurlihy is 40 years old, divorced, and happily teaching preschoolers a multicultural curriculum. But her interfering, overzealous Boston Irish family thinks that she should be dating, and with much love she is pushed into answering a personal ad from a gentleman seeking a lady "who enjoys elegant dining, dancing and the slow bloom of affection"; the clincher is that he's a man who "loves dogs." That man turns out to be the last man on earth any woman would want to date, but Sarah pushes on, slowly falling headlong into the dating game with decidedly mixed results. Meanwhile, Sarah's widowed father has his own dating troubles, brother Michael is deep in marital problems, and sister Carol is having difficulty at home with her temperamental teenage daughter, who turns to her favorite aunt for comfort and body-piercing support. Somehow, they all seem to end up on Sarah's doorstep at the most inopportune moments, keeping the laughs going all the way to the not-quite-storybook-perfect ending. Suitable for all public libraries

01/20/06 This was just a delightful read I could relate a little and gave me a little hope.

Brokeback Mountain the movie*****

This was truly one of the best movie experiences I have ever had! The written story was powerful. The movie was extraordinary. How often can you say this?

Jake Gyllenhall and Heath Ledger were incredible. Hopefully they were driven to do this movie for more than the Oscar potential. I feel they must have been in it for deeper reasons than that. How else could they pull off such an intimate and vulnerable look at a relationship.

Mostly women attended this movie and being from Wyoming there was a lot of chatter in the beginning when references were made to things that only we could appreciate. However, after the first "romantic" scene you could hear a pin drop. I'm not sure anyone was even breathing. Very fierce, compelling and again I have to say powerful.

Inspiring both on an emotional and creative level. I would so much love to talk to the actors and director to learn about their experience making this movie. Hope the DVD is packed full of special features. I usually think of the "movie business" as a fun and easy job. However, this movie must have been work though hopefully a labor of love, the best kind of work.

I could go on gushing about this movie for some time. I will say if you are uncomfortable with homosexuality this may not be the movie for you. Must see in my opinion. Also, I typically expect to be disappointed in a movie that gets the "Oscar buzz" this was not the case with this one at all.