BOOK COLLECTION: 2010

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Marley & Me

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family in the making and the
wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life

John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of a puppy. Life would never be the same.

Marley quickly grew into a barreling, ninety-seven-pound streamroller of a Labrador retriever, a dog like no other. He crashed through screen doors, gouged through drywall, flung drool on guests, stole women's undergarments, and ate nearly everything he could get his mouth around, including couches and fine jewelry. Obedience school did no good—Marley was expelled. Neither did the tranquilizers the veterinarian prescribed for him with the admonishment, "Don't hesitate to use these."

And yet Marley's heart was pure. Just as he joyfully refused any limits on his behavior, his love and loyalty were boundless, too. Marley shared the couple's joy at their first pregnancy, and their heartbreak over the miscarriage. He was there when babies finally arrived and when the screams of a seventeen-year-old stabbing victim pierced the night. Marley shut down a public beach and managed to land a role in a feature-length movie, always winning hearts as he made a mess of things. Through it all, he remained steadfast, a model of devotion, even when his family was at its wit's end. Unconditional love, they would learn, comes in many forms.

Is it possible for humans to discover the key to happiness through a bigger-than-life, bad-boy dog? Just ask the Grogans.

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love dare

As most people might already know, this book is based upon the Christian movie "Fireproof", which is about a man who saves his marriage by completing a character-testing, 40-day list of "dares" suggested to him by his father. Like the movie, the book of course is Christian based as well.

I loved the movie and the book is more of the same. However I looked at both of them from the perspective of a person happily married for over 15 years. I can tell you that while I don't practice all the dares in the book, my spouse and I are good about doing many of them- and of course there's always room for improvement. From my personal experience, I feel like concentrating on the kinds of ideas presented in the book have been absolutely key to making our marriage last.

Now the book itself also consists of a 40-day list of dares. For each day, there's about a page and a half or so of advice, followed by a specific dare and some space for you to write down your personal reflections. Dares range from things such as practicing patience to writing out a renewal of your vows. The guys will probably particularly like Day 32!

As you can tell, I highly recommend going to see the movie and reading the book. In a society that places a high value on looks and money, while sporting a 50% divorce rate, its nice to see more movies and books coming out that get people more focused on the right values in life. Even if you don't do anything more than just glance through the book, you're going to be given something to think about. Other self-help books I enjoyed include "Finding Happiness in a Frustrating World" .

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The Golden Tree

The Dark Green Tunnel

Fablehaven: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary

Brace yourself for a shocking secret. Two hidden artifacts have been found. Three more remain unrecovered. More preserves face destruction as the Society of the Evening Star relentlessly pursues new talismans. Reading in Patton's Journal of Secrets, Kendra learns the location of the key to a vault housing one of the artifacts. In order to retrieve it, the Knights of the Dawn must enter a death trap a dragon sanctuary called Wyrmroost. The mission cannot proceed without stealing a sacred object zealously guarded by the centaurs. Anybody seen Seth? The race is on to acquire all five of the artifact keys to the great demon prison. Will the Knights of the Dawn conquer Wyrmroost? Who can stop the Sphinx? Can Vanessa be trusted to help? What artifact will be found next? Find out in Fablehaven: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary.

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dragon age

Product Description

Another thrilling prequel to Dragon Age: Origins, the hit role-playing video game from award-winning developer BioWare.
About the Author
David Gaider has worked for video game developer Bioware since 1999. He is the lead writer on the Dragon Age: Origins role-playing game and has previously worked on such titles as Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and Neverwinter Nights. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

t to someone who hasn’t. This novel is clearly targeted to those who have familiarity with Thedas, Grey Wardens and the dread of the Blights. If you have played the game and are thirsting for more, I highly recommend reading The Calling. You’ll learn of Duncan’s cutthroat origins and follow him, King Maric (King Cailan and Alistair’s father from the game), and a sundry crew of Grey Wardens on a journey through the Deep Roads to discover a possible way to end all Blights to come. Reading the previous novel, The Stolen Throne, however, is completely optional. The Calling will not leave you lost or missing any information. Any reference to the occurrences of The Stolen Throne are minimal and fleshed out for new readers. Gaider never leaves us in the dust.

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No Humans Involved

Synopsis

It’s the most anticipated reality television event of the season: three spiritualists gathered in one house to raise the ghost of Marilyn Monroe. For renowned medium Jaime Vegas there’s just one problem. Unlike her colleagues, Jaime is the real deal: and she knows that the house is truly haunted. Not by dead film stars, but by something even stranger and much more disturbing…

A tragic mystery lurks in the maze of gardens behind the house: trapped spirits that only Jaime can here, spirits that refuse to let her rest. Distraught, she looks to her fellow supernaturals for help.

As the whispers within the garden grow more frantic, Jaime – and the attractive and unobtainable werewolf Jeremy Danvers – are forced to embark on an investigation into a shocking underworld of black magic and ritual sacrifice.

As events culminate in a psychic showdown, Jaime must use the darkest power she has to defeat a terrifying and previously unforeseen enemy.
The Review

No Humans Involved is the seventh book in the Otherworld series by best selling fantasy author Kelley Armstrong. Each novel is a stand-alone story and while you don’t have to read the books in order, characters often refer to past events that have happened in the previous books so it might be less confusing to read them in sequence.

Established fans of the Otherworld novels will know that some of the books concentrate on werewolves with stories told in first person by Elena (a rare female werewolf) and other books concentrate more on magic and are told in first person different narrators.

No Humans Involved is narrated in first person by Jaime Vegas - a character who has already appeared in several previous books in this series. Jaime is a necromancer. She can communicate with ghosts and has the power to raise and control the dead in the form of zombies. As well as being a necromancer Jaime is also a glamorous celebrity and a woman who wants to be noticed by alpha werewolf Jeremy as well as be taken more seriously by her supernatural peers.

Jaime’s character comes across as warm, likeable, realistic and a little frustrated at not being allowed a more active role in investigating supernatural problems. This frustration soon leads her into plenty of dangerous situations as she becomes determined to prove that she can take part.

No Humans Involved encompasses a diverse supernatural world of zombies, ghosts, angels, werewolves, witches and magic. What about vampires - I hear you cry! Well actually I have to ‘fess up that there really aren’t any vampires in No Humans Involved. Vampires are mentioned in passing because they exist in the Otherworld universe but there aren’t any vampire characters in this story. Sorry.

Apart from the lack of vampires No Humans Involved has everything else an urban fantasy reader could want, supernatural thrills, a solid mystery plot, plenty of action and a little romance. Well written, exciting and fast paced (and published in hardback) No Humans Involved is definitely worth the extra money for the hardback edition.

Recommended reading.

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"Joe Cronin

"Joe Cronin had an incredible baseball life, and Mark Armour has chronicled it every step of the way, in a rich, detailed biography that expertly takes you through the game’s decades. This is a book that belongs in every baseball fan’s library.” —Bill Reynolds, author of ’78: The Boston Red Sox, a Historic Game, and a Divided City and Fall River Dreams

"For so many decades, Joe Cronin has defied the ambitions of biographers ... until now, as Mark Armour finally brings us a revealing portrait of this towering figure in the game's history." — Rob Neyer, ESPN.com

"Early in his Hall-of-Fame playing career, Joe Cronin became a longtime player-manager, and later ascended to the offices of general manager and league president. Mark Armour’s book is as comprehensive as Cronin’s career, and his treatment is both thorough and (equally important) very readable.” — Bill Nowlin, author of more than 20 books on the Red Sox, including Red Sox Threads.

"In this engaging, well-researched biography, Mark Armour perfectly captures both the details and the major themes that shaped Cronin and baseball." — Daniel R. Levitt, author of Ed Barrow: The Bulldog Who Built the Yankees' First Dynasty.

“Mark Armour has given us a fully researched and well-written account of Hall of Famer Joe Cronin’s half-century in baseball.”—Lyle Spatz, co-author of 1921: The Yankees, the Giants, and the Battle for Baseball Supremacy in New York, and author of Bad Bill Dahlen: The Rollicking Life and Times of an Early Baseball Star.