PAET OHANA: September 2007

*Currently Reading*

Cutting for Stone - Abraham Verghese Sep10 Book Club Pick
Graceling - Kristin Cashore **** Nov09 A *wonderful* YA adventure. Recommended. May Book Club Pick
Heart of Gold - Jessica Bird *** Nov09 Pure romance fluff. Fun.
The Doomsday Key(Sigma Force 6) - James Rollins *** Nov09 Rollins stays true to his style of adventure.
Leviathan - Scott Westerfeld *** Nov09 Excellent 12+ for boys. Centers around a parallel WWI Europe. The illustrations are amazing.
The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance - Elna Baker **** Oct09 uproariously irreverent. I laughed.
Await Your Reply - Dan Chaon ****Oct09 I was paranoid and captivated for the entire read. Identity-Theft is a scary thing!
Forest Born(Bayern #4) - Shannon Hale ***** Oct09 Truly beautiful story-telling.
The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman **** Oct09 YA award-winning macabre. October Book Club Pick
Shadow Kissed - Rachel Mead ***1/2 Sep09
The Lost Symbol - Dan Brown ***** Sep09 Dan Brown does not disappoint. Fascinating, captivating, thrilling. November Book Club Pick
The Immigrants - Howard Fast *** Sep09 Epic-like but with few redeeming values. September Book Club Pick
Austenland - Shannon Hale **** Sep09 A really cute book.
Catching Fire(book 2) - Suzanne Collins ***** Sep09 Awesome. I really love this series.
The Actor and the Housewife - Shannon Hale **** Sep09 Charming book.
Judgement in Death(book #11) - J. D. Robb **** Aug09 one of the best in the series.
New Moon - Stephenie Meyer ***** Aug09 Again! this time I listened to the Audiobook. Awesome!
A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini ***1/2 Aug09 kinda heartwrentching August Book Club Pick
Daring to Dream - Nora Roberts
Something Borrowed - Emily Giffin **** Jul09 quirky Chick-Lit
Dead and Gone(book #9) - Charlaine Harris **** Jul09
To Catch a Pirate - Jade Parker *** Jul09 cute YA story, quick read
The Whole Truth - David Baldacci **** Jun09 REALLY excellent action packed story.
I Am the Messenger - Markus Zusak **** Jun09 very unique enjoyable author
The Ultimate Gift - Jim Stovall ***** Jun09 EXCELLENT! A fine jolt of gratitude. Highly Recommended.
From Dead to Worse(book 8) - Charlaine Harris *** Jun09 another installment of the Sookie Stackhouse series.
All Together Dead(book 7) - Charlaine Harris *** May09 fun. fun. fun.
Lover Avenged - J. R. Ward **** May09
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time - Greg Mortenson **** May09 Book Club Pick
Hold Tight - Harlan Coben *** May09 listened to the audio book.
The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming(book 2) - Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni *** May09
Dead to the World(book 6) - Charlaine Harris *** May09 fun.
Dead as a Doornail(book 5) - Charlaine Harris **** May09 fun fun.
Bite(book 4.5) - Charlaine Harris ***May09 short story
Dead to the World(book 4) - Charlaine Harris **** May09 fun.
The Conch Bearer(book 1) - Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni *** Apr09 My first venture into India's culture from a YA perspective.
A Bend in the Road - Nicholas Sparks **** Apr09 Tried and True Nicholas Sparks. Good love story with an underlying mystery. Listened to the audio book.
Men of the Otherworld - Kelley Armstrong ****Apr09 fantasy
Club Dead(book 3) - Charlaine Harris ***Apr09 Less Bill the vampire = more enjoyable. Southern vampire series. quirky.
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood * Apr09 What a bunch of angry-feminist driven drivel. sheesh.
Living Dead in Dallas(book 2) - Charlaine Harris ***Apr09 Southern vampire series. quirky.
City of Glass(book 3) - Cassandra Clare **** Apr09. Been on a roll with wonderful YA fantasy books. This is the final book in a captivating series.
Eldest(book 2) - Christopher Paolini ***** Apr09 EXCELLENT audiobook. Listened during workouts Mar & Apr. Can't wait to get my hands on Brisingr.
Broken - Kelley Armstrong *** Apr09
Dead Until Dark(book 1) - Charlaine Harris **** Apr09 Southern vampire. ha ha ha
Dark Fire(book 6) - Christine Feehan *** Mar09
Girl with a Pearl Earring - Tracy Chevalier *** Mar09 Kept me hopeful and interested, but rather dry reading.
Witness In Death(book 10) - J.D. Robb **** Mar09 One of my favorites in the series.
The Virgin's Lover - Philippa Gregory **** Mar09 16th Century England, Queen Elizabeth.
The Book Thief - Markus Zusak ***** Mar09 A fresh take on 1940s WWII Germany. Recommended Reading. April Book Club
City of Ashes(book 2) - Cassandra Clare **** Mar09 Action adventure YA urban fantasy.
The Queen's Fool - Philippa Gregory **** Mar09 16th Century England, Queen Catherine.
City of Bones(book 1) - Cassandra Clare ***1/2 Feb09 YA fast paced good vs. evil urban fantasy
Cry Wolf - Patricia Briggs *** Feb09
The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel - Diane Setterfield **** Feb09 This book is like reading a grown-up V. C. Andrew's novel. Think Flowers in the Attic: an academic's version.
Bone Crossed(book 4) - Patricia Briggs **** Feb09 Fun. Urban fantasy.
Cravings - Eileen Wilks *** Feb09 I picked up this book for the second story out of the four. Fantasy.
The Surgeon - Tess Gerritsen **** Feb09 Such an intelligent novel. The author is a former internist. She's very descriptive in the autopsy room Ah, ya. But it was a fast-paced thriller.
The Lucky One - Nicholas Sparks **** Feb09 Why, Nicholas Sparks do you play with my emotions so?!? Good book. Listened on CD. There's a reason for why the demand for this book at the library is so high. February Book Club
The Girl Who Could Fly - Victoria Forester ***** Jan09 Recommended by Stephenie Meyer. This was a really great book. If you liked The Goosegirl I think you'll like this one, too.
Blue Noon(book 3) - Scott Westerfeld *** Jan09 Final book in the series. YA spooky suspense.
On the Prowl - Patricia Briggs, Eileen Wilks **** Jan09 four short stories by four authors. I picked up the book for the first story and read the second, too.
Industrial Magic(book 4) - Kelley Armstrong *** Jan09 The author departed from the characters of the first two books and now I'm hanging with the series to get to book 6 where it picks up with the story line I like.
Loyalty in Death(book 9) - J.D. Robb **** Jan09 Suspenseful, futuristic, murder mystery.
Princess Academy - Shannon Hale ***** Jan09 I loved this book. I'll be reading it again. It's a book I look forward to seeing my daughter read. Full of lyrical prose and imagination. March Book Club
Dark Challenge(book 5) - Christine Feehan *** Jan09 Carpathians are cool. This one was very syrupy, however.
The Star Garden(book 3) - Nancy E. Turner ***** Jan09 EXCELLENT series. HIGHLY recommended.
River Secrets(book 3) - Shannon Hale ***** dec08 This series is an instant classic. I love them.
The Book of a Thousand Days - Shannon Hale **** dec08 A charming fairy tale.
Succubus Blues - Richelle Mead ** dec08 I was like, 'what's a Succubus?' Then like, 'oh.'
Enna Burning(book 2) - Shannon Hale ***** dec08 The sequel to The Goose Girl. Very Good.
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury ***** dec08 Wow. Really a good classic. Find out why this is a 'banned book'.
Vampire Academy - ** dec08 kinda so-so
North and South - Elizabeth Gaskell Dec08 ***** a very nice classic.
Rapunzel's Revenge - Shannon Hale Nov08 *** A very unique Tall Tale. Cloe enjoyed it too.
The Hunger Games(book 1) - Suzanne Collins Nov08 ***** Such an interesting Young Adult novel. I was completely captivated.
Midnighters (book 2) - Scott Westerfeld Nov08 ***
The Goose Girl - Shannon Hale Nov08 **** Sweet, charming fairy tale. A positive story. January 2009 Book Club
Conspiracy in Death(book 8) - J. D. Robb Nov08 **** The characters are so great. Fun balance of crime and romance.
Eragon - Christopher Paolini Nov08 **** Excellent for young and old alike. An epic story with a compelling cliffhanger ending.
Midnight Sun - Stephenie Meyer Nov08 ****** The most enjoyable 264 pages ever. Now if only there were more. . .
Dime Store Magic(book 3) - Kelley Armstrong Oct08 *** Supernatural fluff. Easy reading.
The Secret Hour(book 1) - Scott Westerfeld Oct08 *** Now I know what goes bump in the night. Fun, clean, imaginative YA read.
Monkeewrench - P. J. Tracy Oct08 **** Quirky Murder Mystery with action and twists.
Dark Magic (Carpathian Series Book 4) - Christine Feehan Oct08 ****
Holiday in Death(book 7) - J. D. Robb Oct08 **** The characters are so great. Fun balance of crime and romance.
Interview with the Vampire - Anne Rice Oct08 ** Gruesome. Not my kind of vampire.
The Wednesday Letters - Jason F. Wright 2Oct08 ***** Excellent. October Book Club
Carpathian Series Books 1, 2 - Christine Feehan Oct08 ***
Valhalla Rising - Clive Cussler Sep08 **** Just when you think it will slow down so you can take a breath there's more action. Good book.
Dark Prince(Carpathian Series book 1) - Christine Feehan Sep08 ***
Twilight Begins(books 1 & 2) - Maggie Shayne Sep08 *** total fluff. I don't know what I was thinking. . .well, it was the title that sold me. Ha ha. Pales in comparrison.
The Last Oracle(Sigma Force book 5) - James Rollins Sep08 *** Anti-bio-terroristic scientists with guns. Pretty good.
Vengence in Death(book 6) - J. D. Robb Sep08 ***** A futuristic, murder-mystery. My favorite of the series so far. Book #60 in 2008
Black Dagger Brotherhood Series (books 2 - 6) - J. R. Ward **** Aug08 spicy, paranormal romance, fluff
Sarah's Quilt - Nancy E. Turner Aug08 ***** Excellent. Highly Recommended. A favorite
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - James Rollins *** Aug08 Good fun - this one.
Return to Summerhouse - Jude Deveraux 16Aug08 **** Enjoyable, worth the read.
These is My Words - Nancy E. Turner Aug08 ***** Excellent. Highly recommended. A favorite
Breaking Dawn(book 4) - Stephenie Meyer August 2&3 ***** Wow. The Saga is complete. Book #50 read in 2008 September Book Club
Eclipse(book 3) - Stephenie Meyer ****** Counting down to the FOURTH book!July08
The Judas Strain(book 4) - James Rollins *** July08 It's the new-wave Indiana Jones. Pretty cool.
Black Dagger Brotherhood(book 1 Dark Lover) - J. R. Ward **** July08 spicy
Ceremony in Death(book 5) - J. D. Robb *** July08 not the best of the series.
Iron Kissed(book 3) - Patricia Briggs *** July08 The first two books were just a warm-up to this more intensely interesting book in the series. (urban fantasy)
Blood Bound(book 2) - Patricia Briggs *** July08 Mercy Thompson has to go fight the vampires now. What's a girl to do? (urban fantasy)
The Testament - John Grisham **** Jun08 A good page turner. Recommended.
The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards ** Jun08 Eh, it was okay.
Rapture in Death(book 4) - J. D. Robb **** Jun08 Good addition to the series.
Moon Called(book 1) - Patricia Briggs *** Jun08 Clean. Interesting series. Supernatural with a believable modern, human, day-to-day story.
Immortal in Death(book 3) - J. D. Robb *** Jun08 A futuristic, bawdy, murder-mystery.
Sunday's at Tiffany's - James Patterson **** May08 A sweet, modern, fairy-tale, love-story with a cherry on top.
Gathering Blue(book 2) - Lois Lowry *** May08 Reads like a disparaging dream. Or maybe it just kept putting me to sleep.
Glory in Death(book 2) - J. D. Robb **** May08 The characters are growing on me. Bring on book #3.
Imperial Woman - Pearl S. Buck May08 **** I felt like I just took an AP course on the Manchu Dynasty. This story is about the last Empress of China. A wealth of knowledge. Very fulfilling.
The Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls May08 **** Intriguing memoir of an adult having lived her childhood with astonishingly careless parents and how her choices break the mold.
The Host - Stephenie Meyer May08 ***** REALLY GOOD.
The Last Promise - Richard Paul Evans May08 **** Ah, Amore. Viva Italia.
The Other Boleyn Girl - Philippa Gregory May08 ***** What a scandalous romp. I devoured this book.
Stollen(book 2) - Kelley Armstrong Apr08 *** Mush and Fluff. Easy reading. *werewolves + witches + a vampire. Oh, my.
Life As We Knew It - Susan Beth Pfeffer Apr08 *** Elementary, end-of-the-world, apocalyptic, fiction from a 16 year-old's point of view.
Naked in Death - J. D. Robb Apr08 *** A futuristic, raunchy, murder-mystery, romance.
Bitten - Kelley Armstrong Apr08 **** Pure adrenaline and mush. A fun reprieve from my serious reads of late. *werewolves
Kindred - Octavia E. Butler Apr08 **** The fantasy of time travel combined with the reality of pre-civil war slavery. Excellent.
The Woods - Harlan Coben Apr08 **** Ooooooh, good one. Mystery, twists and turns, Harlan Coben delivers.
Playing for Pizza - John Grisham Apr08 *** Think testosterone laced ravioli.
The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger Apr08 *** Finally complete. I read the last 1/2 from where I stopped last year. It's kinda 'R' rated. 0:-/
Extras (Book 4) - Scott Westerfeld Apr08 *** A cool concept, though a step away from the original trilogy.
The Giver - Lois Lowry 30Mar08 *** An answer to "what would happen if all our choices were taken away."
Missing Persons - Stephen White Mar08 *** A who-done-it from a psychiatrist's point of view. Led into some ethical challenges for the protagonist. Unique to other murder mysteries I've read.
The Magic Garden - Gene Stratton-Porter Mar08 *** Oh, the drama of a pampered child. Sadly, she had everything but love. Published in 1927.
The True Story of Hansel and Gretel - Louise Murphy 20Mar08 ** On the surface very horrific. I'd recommend you pass on this one.
Specials (Book 3) - Scott Westerfeld Mar08 *** good. less 'bubbly' more 'bogus-making' ha.
Pretties (Book 2) - Scott Westerfeld Mar08 **** "Totally Bubbly"
The Road - Cormac McCarthy Mar08 ***** deeply tragic, moving. A father and son's journey fraught with peril. I felt their life was dependant upon me turning the pages. I couldn't put it down
Peeps - Scott Westerfeld Mar08 *** Parasites, anyone? Might have learned more than I wanted.
Uglies - Scott Westerfeld Mar08 **** Worth the read. A great young adult sci-fi. I'd recommend it to teenagers. Nothing inappropriate. Thought provoking and a good conversation starter.
The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett Feb08 *** What a journey. 950+ pages. It's a five star story with some one star medieval violence and crude language throughout :-/
Children of the Promise (5) - Dean Hughes Feb08 ***** REALLY, REALLY GOOD
Children of the Promise (4) - Dean Hughes Jan08 ***** REALLY, REALLY GOOD
The Sunflower - Richard Paul Evans Jan08 ***** Extra Special and very easy to enjoy
Children of the Promise (3) - Dean Hughes Jan08 ***** REALLY, REALLY GOOD
Children of the Promise (2) - Dean Hughes Jan08 ***** REALLY, REALLY GOOD
Children of the Promise (1) - Dean Hughes Dec07 ***** REALLY, REALLY GOOD
A Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale (I'm reading it with Cloe) Dec07 *** cute, kinda slow at times
Sandstorm by James Rollins Dec07 *** It was okay. Mr. Rollins writes good books. They are just a little too much to take back-to-back. Book #1 in the Sigma Force Series
Subterranean by James Rollins Nov07 *** His first novel. Nice effort. Very different. (To be fair, I'm still stuck on the Twilight Saga. It seems like everything else just pales in comparrison.)
A Girl Named Zippy: Growing up... - Haven Kimmel Nov07 **** Cute.
Twilight & New Moon & Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer Oct07 Oh, yea. I'm reading them again.
Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer Oct07 ****** Wow, so good. This whole series is so consuming. In a great way. Where's the FOURTH book?!?! I just read 1690+ pages in 7 days.
New Moon - Stephenie Meyer Oct07 ****** Excellent! Excellent! Oh, I'm reading these too fast. They'll be over too soon!
Twilight - Stephenie Meyer Oct07 ****** I LOVE THIS BOOK! Can't wait to read the next two.
P.S. I Love You - Cecelia Ahern Oct07 **** excellent. Hopefully the movie will do it justice!
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte Oct07 **** classic * smooth * genuine goodness *
Walking Across Egypt - Clyde Edgerton Sep07 *** southern charm with most things PC out the window :-+
Ella Minnow Pea - Mark Dunn Sep07 *** unique, don't be tempted to skip to the end. So glad I didn't.
Gone for Good - Harlan Coben Sep07 ****
Daughter of Fortune - Isabel Allende Sep07 *** an anti-climactic epic
Enchantment - Orson Scott Card Aug07 *** Sleeping Beauty on a caffeine fix
Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas - James Patterson Aug07 ****
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Aug07 ******
Harry Potter 5 & 6 again! Jul-Aug07 *****
Black Order - James Rollins Jun07 ***** Book 3 in the Sigma Force Series.
The Innocent - Harlan Coben May07 *****
No Second Chance - Harlan Coben May 07 *****
Map of Bones - James Rollins Apr07 ***** Book 2 in the Sigma Force Series.
Return to Summerhouse - Jude Deveraux 16Aug08 **** Enjoyable, worth the read.
The Whole Truth - David Baldacci

Thursday, September 27, 2007

William Tell Overture for Moms

If you haven't seen this, then please sit for 3 min. and enjoy:

A mom (Anita Renfroe) has condensed everything a mom might say to her kids in 24 hours into less than 3 minutes - to the tune of the William Tell Overture. You can find her at www.anitarenfroe.com

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Good Eatin'!

I have a new favorite site for down home cookin' thanks to my sister Amber. Bless you Amber. I'll dedicate the added inch on my waist to you. MUAH!

The Pioneer Woman Cooks

**update
On October 8th I made the Pioneer Woman Chocolate Sheet Cake. Oh my. So moist, rich and decadent!

Saturday, September 22, 2007

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRAN!!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRAN !!!

Gabriel has a new talent! Enjoy!!! >:-)

Cloe Spotlight

Cloe lost her first tooth on September 15th and her 2nd tooth on September 16th!

Friday, September 21, 2007

September 21, 2007

A Birthday Shout Out!!!
Happy Birthday Uncle Kevin!!!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

September 16, 2007

It's a Birthday Shout Out!!
Happy Birthday Joshua Todd Lemmons
and to my nephew on Sep. 15th
Happy 2nd Birthday Todd!!!

We were so lucky to have Lucien, Corban and Eli come out for a quick visit. We missed having Delight and Marain there, too. I'm forming an anonymous complaint, next time I want all the Las Vegas Paets to hug!! *smile

Eli and Lucien