The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Gaiman

Title: The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Author: Neil Gaiman

Published: 2013
Genre: YA Fiction
Rating: 3/5- Good. Read it, have a good time and move on. Or not.

Book Source: Library

Recommended if you like: Fiction, YA, Horror tales

What Its About: 

Our narrator, a 50-something man visiting his childhood hometown for a funeral, stops by his old neighborhood for a quick visit. But this isn't just any old visit, or any old home for that matter. As a seven year old boy, it turns out, our narrator experienced a horrible and unexplainable event and this neighborhood, or something, draws him home to remember.

When he arrives, he heads to the big farmhouse and pond, or "ocean" as his friend Lettie used to call it, as the end of his street. He knocks and is confused when an old woman answers. He's not surprised to see the woman, he is just unsure which woman she is. Given the years, it could not possibly be Old Mrs. Hempstock, Lettie's grandmother. It must be Lettie's mother, Ginnie. Except...it's not. And Old Mrs. Hempstock invites him to visit the Ocean and remember...

Years ago, his parents took in a lodger who committed suicide and then things went from uneasy to strange and dangerous. This singular event seemed to have unleashed a spirit, or malevolent force, who wanted to exist permanently in their world. The Hempstock women are left to clean up the situation while ensuring the boy's safety.

The Bottom Line:
A good read. Billed as an adult novel, it reads more like a YA novel. As always, it sucks readers, even adults, into its world and offers the typical Gaiman thrills and chills.

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Tuesday Tunes - 08/26/14

A good lyric is like a great book...

Keeping the Faith

Billy Joel, Artist & Writer


If it seems like I've been lost
In let's remember
If you think I'm feeling older
And missing my younger days
Oh, then you should have known me much better
'Cause my past is something that never
Got in my way
Oh no

Still I would not be here now
If I never had the hunger
And I'm not ashamed to say
The wild boys were my friends
Oh

'Cause I never felt the desire
'Til their music set me on fire
And then I was saved, yeah
That's why I'm keeping the faith
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Keeping the faith

We wore old matador boots
Only Flagg Brothers had them with a Cuban heel
Iridescent socks with the same color shirt
And a tight pair of chinos
Oh
I put on my shark skin jacket
You know the kind with the velvet collar
And ditty-bop shades
Oh yeah
I took a fresh pack of Luckies
And a mint called Sen-Sen
My old man's Trojans
And his Old Spice after shave
Oh

Combed my hair in a pompadour
Like the rest of the Romeos wore
A permanent wave, Yeah
We were keeping the faith
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Keeping the faith

You can get just so much
From a good thing
You can linger too long
In your dreams
Say goodbye to the
Oldies but goodies
'Cause the good ole days weren't
Always good
And tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems

Learned stickball as a formal education
Lost a lot of fights
But it taught me how to lose O.K.
Oh, I heard about sex
But not enough
I found you could dance
And still look tough anyway
Oh yes I did
I found out a man ain't just being macho
Ate an awful lot of late night drive-in food
Drank a lot of take home pay

I thought I was the Duke of Earl
When I made it with a red-haired girl
In the Chevrolet. Oh yeah
We were keeping the faith
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Keeping the faith

You know the good ole days weren't always good
And tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems

I told you my reasons
For the whole revival
Now I'm going outside to have
An ice cold beer in the shade
Oh, I'm going to listen to my 45's
Ain't it wonderful to be alive
When the rock 'n' roll plays, yeah
When the memory stays, yeah
I'm keeping the faith
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Keeping the faith
I'm keeping the faith,
Yes I am

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Mondays - 08/25/14

This meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Now Reading:

To Selena, With Love (Chris Perez)

All Souls (Michael Patrick MacDonald)

Just Finished: 

Leaving Time (Jodi Picoult)

On Deck

Traveling reading...

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Leaving Time - Picoult

Title: Leaving Time, A Novel

Author: Jodi Picoult

Published: 2014
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4/5- Great. Push it on your friends and family.

Book Source:  I received this book from the publisher, Ballantine Books, free of cost, in exchange for an honest review.


Recommended if you like: Picoult, Fiction, Elephants/Animals, Mysticism

What Its About:  
Jenna Metcalf was abandoned as a child. Her father, the director of an elephant sanctuary, was admitted to a mental institution.  Her mother, a researcher of grief in elephants, disappeared one night after a terrible accident in which a fellow employee was trampled to death.  For most of her thirteen years, Jenna has dreamed of finding her mother, who surely would never have left her willingly. Finally, she is able to utilize the information that she has been gathering from the internet and from her mother's research journals to aid in her search.

Understanding, however, that a thirteen year old can only do so much, Jenna draws Serenity Jones, a washed-up psychic, and Virgil Stanhope, a worn-out detective, into her search efforts. Both are drawn to assist in the venture due to previous failures in their own careers.  Jones seems to have lost her previous psychic abilities after an embarrassingly public mistake where she assured a prominent family a child was living when he was not.  Stanhope was the detective who investigated the trampling death, who finds himself haunted by the case and his doubts as to whether it was correctly resolved.

With the help of Jenna's childhood memories, Jones' sixth sense, and Stanhope's keen officer's eye and sensibility, the three struggle to rediscover and understand decade old clues to Alice Metcalf's disappearance. It is only by assisting one another that they can answer the questions that lead up to an exciting and fascinating finish.

The Bottom Line:
Pure Picoult, this book is a terrific read that readers, fans or not, will love! More mystery, no court battle, this novel grips you from the get-go and hangs on until the last second. You cannot help but become enthralled by the Jenna, Jones, and Stanhope characters. Their stories are so enticing.

Furthermore, this book offers a wonderful educational feel as well, offering much information as to the plight of elephants, whether in captivity or the wild. After reading, you will certainly think twice about visiting your local zoo or circus event.

I enjoyed this book very much!

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Tuesday Tunes - 8/19/14

A great lyric is like a great book...

Alyssa Lies
Jason Michael Carroll, Artist & Writer




My little girl met a new friend
Just the other day
On the playground at school
Between the tires and the swings
But she came home with tear-filled eyes
And she said to me "Daddy, Alyssa Lies"

I just brushed it off at first
Cause I didn't know how much my little girl had been hurt
Or the things she had seen
I wasn't ready when I said you can tell me
And she said

[Chorus]
Alyssa Lies
To the classroom
Alyssa lies
Everyday at school
Alyssa lies
To the teachers
As she tries to cover every bruise

My little girl laid her head down
That night to go to sleep
As I stepped out the room I heard her say
A prayer so soft and sweet
God bless my mom and my dad
And my new friend Alyssa
I know she needs you bad

[Chorus]

I had the worst night of sleep in years
As I tried to think of a way to calm her fears
I knew exactly what i had to do
But when we got to school on Monday I heard the news

My little girl asked me why everybody looked so sad
The lump in my throat grew bigger
With every question that she asked
Until I felt the tears run down my face
And I told her that Alyssa wouldn't be at school today

She doesn't lie
In the classroom
She doesn't lie
Anymore at school
Alyssa lies
With Jesus
Because there's nothing anyone would do

Tears filled my eyes,
When my little girl asked me why Alyssa lies

Daddy tell me why
Alyssa lies

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Mondays - 08/18/14

This meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Now Reading:

Leaving Time (Jodi Picoult)

All Souls (Michael Patrick MacDonald)

Just Finished: 

Rare Bird (Anna Whiston-Donaldson)

On Deck

Who knows...

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Tuesday Tunes - 8/12/14

A great lyric is like a great book...

If wishes were changes, there'd be no goodbyes. So long to the heart I have given...  Miss you kitty.


If Wishes Were Changes
Nanci Griffith, Artist

I wish that you loved me the way that I love you
I wish I had Angels who sang in my dreams
If wishes were changes, we'd all live in roses
And there wouldn't be children who cried in their sleep

And he wishes I loved him, the way that I love you
If wishes were changes, I'd dry all his tears
If wishes were changes, I'd make him my anchor
And he'd be my Angel who sang through the years

So long to the blue days of wishing
If wishes were changes there'd be no goodbyes
So long to the heart I have given
'Cuz wishing won't bring back the love in your eyes

And I wished that I had your wings of desire
I wish I had seen you as I see you now
I wouldn't feel sorrow, you've left here inside me
But wishing won't change right from wrong for you now

So long to the blue days of wishing
If wishes were changes there'd be no goodbyes
So long to the heart I have given
'Cuz wishing won't bring back the love in your eyes

I wish that you loved me the way that I love you
I wish I had Angels who sang in my dreams
If wishes were changes we'd all live in roses
And there wouldn't be children who cried in their sleep

If wishes were changes we'd all live in roses
And there wouldn't be children who cried in their sleep

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Mondays - 08/11/12

This meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Now Reading:

Leaving Time (Jodi Picoult)

All Souls (Michael Patrick MacDonald)

Just Finished: 

Rare Bird (Anna Whiston-Donaldson)

On Deck

Who knows...

Read More

July 2014 ReCap...

JULY 2014

A tough month over all...


This month I read: 
Total Read: 2
YTD: 16
Adult: 1
YA/children's: 1
Abandoned: 0

Including:
Rare Bird (Anna Whiston-Donaldson)
The Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman)

Abandoned: 
None


Favorite Book(s) of the Month:
Rare Bird

Challenges Update: 
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge = 16 of 58
A-Z Book Challenge = 14 of 26
Library Reading Challenge = 2 of 36
E-Book Reading Challenge = 11 of 25
What's in a Name 6 Challenge =  2 of 6

Year of ReReading Challenge - 0 of 1-4

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Rare Bird - Whiston-Donaldson

Title: Rare Bird: A Memoir of Loss and Love  

Author: Anna Whiston-Donaldson

Published: 2014
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 3/5- Good. Read it, have a good time and move on. Or not.

Book Source:  I received this book from the publisher, Convergent Books, free of cost, in exchange for an honest review.


Quote:
"I wish I had nothing to say on the matter of loss, but I do. Because one day I encouraged my two kids to go out and play in the rain, and only one came home...."  

Recommended if you like: Memoirs, Christian, Insprirational, Stories of loss

What Its About: 

A mother's story of survival and hope in the face of horrible loss.

Jack Donaldson was a typical, though mature, thirteen year old that September 2011 day. He enjoyed acting, legos, and playing with his friends. Then, in a moment, he was gone. While playing outside with friends - with his mother's approval - during a freak rainstorm, he fell into a creek that had swelled to river proportions and was carried away to his death.

His parents and sister were left to struggle to come to terms with this horrible event, in light of their faith and beliefs. How could this happen? Where was God? How could he allow this to happen to such a young and vibrant life? Though each handled their grief differently, struggling to find answers, each finds peace. Donaldson even finds that she can take comfort in signs and indications that lead her to believe that Jack is safely with God.

Heartbreaking, yet hopeful.

The Bottom Line:
A surprisingly well-timed gift. Having just lost a beloved pet this past week, I joked when this arrived that this was the last thing I wanted to read. But, for some reason, I was drawn to it. And, as I couldn't focus on any other reading options, I acquiesced.

Though heartbroken, Donaldson manages to focus her thoughts on surviving and accepting, rather than hurting and sadness. Her references to God and religion are interesting and enlightening, rather than preachy.  It was actually quite helpful in my similar journey.       

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