Wreck This Journal - The Guts - Part II

I didn't get that much done on the journal this week. Too much painting and running into the big city for supplies and stuff.

Here's a few pages I managed to work on:








Create a Nonstop line: I admit I was inspired by a page I saw on the Flickr group for this one. It's going to take some time to finish it up. I have an idea on how to make it go a little faster.















Make a Paper Chain: I was dismayed to find out that this page was on the back side of one of the fruit sticker pages. I couldn't possibly cut it up. So I decided to color the page (I'm working on that) and use some coloured paper and to make the chain. Next I'll figure out how I'm going to close the book once the chain is in place.















Tear this Page Out, Put it in Your Pocket, Put it Through the Wash, Stick it Back in: This was rather fun. I'm surprised that the page survived at all. I'm also surprised that the page shrunk (or it that shrank?). Anyway, it's a little smaller. I was pretty careful in folding the page and shoving it as deeply as I could into the change pocket of a pair of jeans. I figured that would give it the greatest chance of survival. When it was dry, I wrote in the particulars of the event and added some colour to the page. The picture here shows the page before it was inserted back into the book.



















I did a little on the sewing page and collecting stamps page, but not enough to warrant photos.

Links to other updates: The Beginning, Part I.

Update: Check out Cindy's progress over at Cindy's Love of Books.

See you next Sunday for another update.

Book of Souls by Glenn Cooper

In Book of Souls, Will Piper, newly married and retired, is once again pulled into the mystery surrounding the ancient library he discovered a year ago. This time two former Area 51 workers, representing the 2027 Club, contact him regarding one of the books. The one from 1527 has landed in an auction and they want help recovering it. At first Piper's a little reluctant, but then agrees to help them. They soon garner the attention of the watchers (government agents) who want to keep the book's contents and its existence a secret from the world. Things get even complicated for Will when a beautiful young woman enters the picture and a secret document is found hidden in the book. He's going to have to do a lot of work if he hopes to solve the mystery "that will affect the fate of all humanity."

After reading Cooper's first book, Library of the Dead, I anxiously awaited the publication of this book. Now that I've read it, I can tell you I was not disappointed; I devoured it in a matter of hours.

This book recaps some of the information discovered in the first book, but still contains plenty of mystery and intrigue as well as a whole new set of surprises. Like the first book, the story jumps around to three different time periods. This time it's the 14th century, 16th century and present day. Cooper masterfully constructs the story so that it's very easy to follow and fun to read.

I loved how the author created a scenario in which one ancient book affected the lives of three influential figures: Shakespeare, John Calvin and Nostradamus. It's was ingenious how Cooper imagined these three would have come across the book and how it shaped their lives.

My one small complaint is that this book seemed to lack a little of the punch the first one had. The revelations from the first book were so stunning, it would be hard to top them. That's not to say this book isn't exciting. It's just that if I had to pick a favourite it would be the first one where the idea of the library and its implications were ground-breaking.

Cooper is slowly convincing me that this library of the dead exists. That's because the characters in this book are waiting the "Caracas event", which isn't all that far from Haiti. With what happened there (January 2010) and the number of dead, it's not hard to see that perhaps Cooper is onto something. Pretty spooky. ;)

I'm pretty sure this book can be enjoyed as a standalone book. However, if you haven't read either of the books, I'd suggest starting with the first one. If for no other reason than it makes sense to start at the beginning of the story.

New Words Alert:
licentiousness (page 251) - depravity
primogeniture (page 259) - first-born's right of inheritance
enigmatic (page 277) - mysterious
lassitude (page 284) - exhaustion
truculent (page 322) - hostile

Highly recommended. I can't wait to read more books by this author.

For more information about this book, please visit the HarperCollins Canada website.

For more information about the author and other interesting stuff, please visit Glenn Cooper's website.

I'd like to thank those nice people at Edwards Magazine Bookclub and HarperCollins Canada for this review copy.

This review is also available on Edwards Magazine Book Club website.

Book of Souls by Glenn Cooper, HarperCollins, ©2010. ISBN 9781554683116(Trade Paperback), 426p.

Eternal on the Water by Joseph Monninger

Eternal on the Water is about love at first sight, living with a devastating illness, fulfilling promises and enjoying the time we have. For Mary, an expert on crows, and Cobb, a professor, it was love at first sight when they met along the Allagash river in Maine. Cobb soon learns that Mary might have a devastating illness, but he isn't deterred. Together they travel the globe; the waters of the Allagash, to kayak, camp and talk to the Chungamunga girls; Indonesia, to visit Mary's brother; Yellowstone National Park, to study crows; and finally back to where it all began. To fulfill a promise. To say goodbye.

I adored this book. It's beautifully written, expressive and lyrical without being wordy. Monninger is a wonderful story teller. He takes his time with the story and focuses on the joys in Mary's life. His descriptions of wildlife and nature are outstanding and gives the reader a real sense of being there. He doesn't spend a great deal of time describing the illness (Huntington's disease) or it's symptoms. However, he does give the reader a sense of what Mary and her loved ones are experiencing. In that way, the book is incredibly sad.

The story possessed a dream-like quality. There was a little tension and conflict here and there, but for the most part it was even keeled and felt otherworldly.

Mary's study of crows was fascinating. The book is filled with stories and interesting facts about them. I learned something new and gained a new appreciation for them.

I loved both the main characters, Mary and Cobb. Even though I'm not sure I believe in love at first sight, I knew they did and I felt their passion for each other. I deeply respected Cobb's choices and wished many times that I could be as brave as he was.

The ending was incredibly sad and because of that, I had a hard time finishing it. Even with just 4 pages to go, I had to put the book down twice because I couldn't bear to go on. I knew what was going to happen, but I didn't know the specifics and was not prepared for it. Despite that, I loved every minute.

Favourite quote:
Mary to Cobb after she present him with an everything-knife. In a way, Mary was describing their relationship:

Remember, it may decide to leave you. Don't fight against it and don't blame yourself if it happens. The knife may be on a journey of its own(page 298).

Highly recommended. This is not a book I'll forget anytime soon. I look forward to more works by Joseph Monninger.

For information on Huntington's in this country (Canada) and how you can help, please the Huntington Society of Canada.

For more information about this book or to browse inside, please visit the Simon and Schuster website.

For more information about the author, please visit Joseph Monninger's website.

I'd like to thank those nice people at Simon and Schuster for this review copy. Thanks Anneliese.

Eternal on the Water by Joseph Monninger, Gallery Books (Simon and Schuster), ©2010. ISBN 9781439168332(Trade Paperback), 344p.

Wreck This Journal - The Guts - Part I

If you read my post earlier in the week, you might remember that I decided to join Cindy from Cindy's Love of Books on her journal wrecking adventure. We are both using Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal for this project.

I've decided that some of the pages are going to be works in progress. I'll do a little each week until I'm either happy with the result or I just can't possibly do anymore with it. Progress will depend on inspiration and time. I've included all of the pages I've started on and will post more photos as more work is done on them.

Anyway, here's what I have done to date:

This Book Belongs To: A work in progress. Needs more colour.

















Poke Holes in This Page Using a Pencil:I'm somewhat happy with this one. I'll probably doodle a little more to fill in some of the white space.



















Collect Fruit Stickers Here:Needless to say I've been working on this one for awhile. We eat lots of bananas, Ambrosia apples, avocados and lemons. No rhyme or reason. Pick up a piece of fruit, peel off sticker, place in book. Not that imaginative, but it works for me.















Sew This Page Sewing on paper is not as easy as it looks. It takes time. It was fun, though. This is another one that I'll work on as time permits. It just occured to me that I could cut the page from the book, do some more sewing and then glue it back in. That would be so (or sew) much easier. I'll give it some thought.



















Collect the Stamps Off of All Your Mail: Now that we are getting less snail mail this one is going to be harder to complete. However, I recently found a stack of old stamps a relative had been saving. Some of them will complete this page nicely.














A Page for Four-Letter Words If I'd been thinking I would have varied the letter size and used different writing utensils to create this page. It's pretty plain and maybe too literal.



















Anyway, that's it for now. Click here to see what Cindy did this week.

I forgot to mention that if you'd like to play along, check out Cindy's original post about the book. [You don't need to buy the book to do so.]

See you next Sunday for another update.

Wreck This Journal - The Beginning

Recently, Cindy from Cindy's Love of Books came up with a great idea. She purchased Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal and invited others to join her on a journey of journaling. Her original post about the book can be found here.

Having purchased the book some time ago, but not having really done that much with it, I decided to join Cindy and post about my journal-wrecking adventures.

Tune in on Sundays for updates.

Last Words by George Carlin with Tony Hendra

Last Words is the autobiography of George Carlin. With the help of his friend, Tony Hendra, George started writing his autobiography in 1993. When George died in June 2008 at the age of seventy-one, the book remained unpublished. Tony was left to finish the job and give us George's "last words".

I loved this sensational, well-written autobiography from the man who loved words. It starts off with a bang and remains interesting throughout. Tony Hendra provides an excellent introduction about how and when the book was written. The book then goes on to cover George's life: childhood, days in radio, comedy with Jack Burns, meeting Brenda (his wife), his on stage live performances and much more. Before I read the book, I really didn't know much about Carlin, but I suspect that the book doesn't hide much. It outlines his triumphs and failures, the drugs (his addiction), the alcohol (Brenda's addiction), the comedy, the arrests and the heart problems.

Each chapter is preceded by a photo. It was neat to see how George changed/aged over the years. The story also detailed the changes George experienced in his lifetime. As the world changed, he changed. As he changed, his comedic focus changed. While his comedy is not the whole focus of the book, fans will be glad to see that some of his more famous routines have been included (at least snippets of them anyway).

I was familiar with some of Carlin's earlier work ("Dirty Words", "Stuff"), but his later routines were new to me and surprised me a bit. I was particularly intrigued by his "The Planet is Fine" notions as well as his take on groups. Funny and thought provoking.

Favourite quotes:
On the way George and Patrick were raised by their mother:

The way Patrick [George's brother] puts it is concise: Mary wanted two Little Lord Fauntleroys. What she got was a pair of hardened dog turds. (page 45)

On his long hair:

...I always had long hair -- only I used to keep it inside my head.(page 141)

From one of his routines:

I got fired last year in Las Vegas for saying shit. In a town where the big game is called craps.(page 147)

On why his "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television" is one of his favourites:

...if for no other reason than the grief it caused people who deserve to have grief caused to them.(page 162)

On his responsibilities to his audience:

Get laughs, of course, dazzle them from time to time with form, craft, verbal fireworks, but above all engage their minds.(page 246)

Highly recommended. This book is a definite must read for fans. Those looking for a really good biography/memoir will also enjoy it.

For more information about this book or to browse inside, please visit the Simon and Schuster website.

For more information about George Carlin and his work, please visit George Carlin's website.

I'd like to thank those nice people at Simon and Schuster for this review copy.

Last Words by George Carlin, Free Press (Simon and Schuster), ©2009. ISBN 9781439172957(Hardcover), 344p.

Canada Also Reads - Time to Vote!

Way back on February 14, 2010, I posted about the Canada Also Reads competition sponsored by the National Post.

Now it's time to vote for your favourite. Click here to do that.

As I stated before, one of my all-time favourites is in the running: The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Buchanan. I just adored this book. Here's my review in case you missed it the first two times I posted it.

Don't just take my word for it. Tish Cohen (author of Inside Out Girl and Town House) is defending the book in the competition and has written some lovely things about it. Click here to see what she has to say. She's pretty convincing, eh?

I've already voted. Don't miss your chance to vote for your favourite.

Oh and good luck Cathy!