#81 - Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou

I have a confession to make.  I don't know why the caged bird sings.  I have read some poems and speeches by the treasured Maya Angelou but I have never read any of her novels all the way through.

I love autobiographies, especially when the author reads their work themselves but I came away from this story a little bit underwhelmed.  Her life is fascinating and there was a great lesson to be learned about forgiveness, even under seemingly insurmountable circumstances,  and the power of parenting with an open heart in the pages of this book.

In the end - I just wanted more from this book.  It is beautiful in its simplicity, but at times it was just too simple.  Some of the stories and situations warranted just a little something more.  Major issues were sort of glossed over but small details were emphasized.  In the end, the good and the bad balanced out and  I was completely neutral.

Goodreads rating: 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 for the candor and the author read.

In progress: The House of Hades by Rick Riordan
On Deck(audio): Cruel and Unusual by Patricia Cornwell

#80 - Fakebook by Dave Cicirelli

A BIG thank you to Sourcebooks Publishing, Dave Cicirelli, and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book, now available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and your local book seller.

Almost 10 years ago, Facebook changed the way that relationships were formed and maintained.  Since the "social media" world began, it has been waiting for someone to shake it up and challenge all of the pretenses on which it was built.  Enter Dave Cicirelli who took his profile out of the mundane and created the very first documented Facebook Fiction, sending his profile on a wild adventure.  Each post from "Fake Dave" stretched the limits of belief of his following audience and gave "Real Dave" both a vacation from himself and soak in some of the unintentional consequences on taking a fictional journey armed with nothing but Facebook and Photoshop.

I found the book itself to be compulsively readable.  The narrative was interspersed between Fake Dave's posts and the subsequent responses and Real Dave's as it continued to evolve.  The result is a nice easy read.

I could almost envision myself stumbling upon Fake Dave's adventures and getting sucked into following his craziness.  To a point.  Maybe its just because there is a decade that separates the author and the reader but there came a point where the philosophy that started Dave's journey started to become muddled and I lost track of how a six month lie was proving a point.  On the other hand, I did find myself thinking, as some of his other followers did, that liberation from the mundane would move life forward rather than holding life back.

Look this one up, it would definitely be great road trip material and a nice break from reality.

**personal reflection** I just finished book 80 on this journey to read 100 books this year, surpassing the total that I read for all of 2012.  What started off as a sort of crazy goal is now 10 weeks and 20 books from being a reality! Craziness!!! **

Goodreads rating: 4 stars (closer to 3.5 but rounded up)

In Progress: Mom and Me and Mom by Maya Angelou
On Deck: The House of Hades by Rick Riordan

#79 - Creation In Death by JD Robb

Listening to the adventures of Eve Dallas on audio is like wrapping yourself in an old stretched out sweatshirt with a cup of coffee.  The characters are warm and familiar and never waiver from the persona set up for them 25 books earlier.  There's something to be said for that.

In this installment, "The Groom" a killer from nine years ago resurfaces in New York with a new agenda and his signature moves of torture and tattoos. Yes, it was predictable. Yes, there were moments of unnecessary drama built in.  Yes, I still have a literary crush on Roarke and his Irish brutishness.

That about sums it up.  A solid addition to the Dallas serial but nothing to jump up and get crazy about.

Goodreads rating: 2.5 stars (rounded up)

In progress: Fakebook by Dave Cicirelli
On Deck: Mom and Me and Mom by Maya Angelou

#78 - The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis

Yup, I got curious about the latest "Oprah's Book Club" offering. It wasn't what I expected at all but that didn't mean I didn't find it enjoyable.  It's hard to pinpoint exactly  how I feel about this novel in stories.

I enjoyed Hattie as a character - there were parts of her that I really related to, especially in the "Bell" chapter when she observed that Hattie the mother had to be harder edged than she ever was in private.  Raising children is one of the hardest jobs in the entire universe.  All you can do is love on them, keep them safe and fed and healthy and pray that it is enough.

...there is the other side of how I felt about this book.  At some point, we have to let our children go and we have NO idea how they are going to assimilate the knowledge and love that we tried to give.  Are they going to be happy? Choose the right people to love? Take care of themselves the way we would take care of them?

Sadly, for Hattie's tribes, they all seemed to move astray.  Interestingly, as the stories progressed, many of them looked back to their mother and realized why she had to be the way she was and what she went through, much the same way I looked back and marveled at all that my parents did for me after that turbulent late teens time subsided.

The main complaint I have about this book was probably the setup.  There was very little resolution for any of the stories, a brief window opens into their lives and then closes again, some stories I was done with by the time the chapter ended , others I wanted to know more after the story closed.

Goodreads rating: 4 stars

In progress: (paper) A Secret Kept by Tatiana DeRosnay
(audio) Creation in Death by J.D. Robb

#77 - The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach

I forgot how much I missed being around baseball but Chad Harbach brought me right into the heart of what I used to love about this game.

Wait wait hear me out - even if you have never been a baseball fan there is still PLENTY to love about The Art of Fielding.  Set in the fictional college town of Westish, the book is crafted out of little moments that seem insignificant when they happen but can scuttle the course of someone's (or in this case, several someones') life.  There was an undercurrent running through the lives of each character of the struggle of living out the dreams you think you have, overcoming obstacles and the insidiousness of self doubt.

Harbach moved us through his imaginary campus as if he were giving a tour of Westish College to an incoming freshman.  I'll confess, I even Googled Westish Wisconsin to see if it was a real place and wanting to see the haunted Melville statue myself.

The ending got a little morbid and esoteric for me. It almost put a blemish on the symbolism that ran through the rest of the book to manufacture a major "galvanizing event" but the last 10 pages were simple perfection.

Release your fears.  Pick this one up.  You won't regret it!

Goodreads rating: 4.5 stars
In progress: (paper) A Secret Kept by Tatiana DeRosnay
(nook) Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis