Cut

Cut: The True Story Of An Abandoned, Abused Little Girl Who Was Desperate To Be Part Of A Family by Cathy Glass
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Although the subject matter of this story is quite sad (it's about a child that harms herself and has dealt with emotional and physical abuse), Cathy Glass did a phenomenal job in writing the story. Even though Glass was one of the main characters in the story she did not take away the true main character of the story, which was the child she was a foster carer to, named Dawn. Glass was able to project her wonder as to how this polite girl got to be so stressed and anxious that she was walking in her sleep and when she was awake she revolted by not going to school, and when in secret she cut herself using sharp objects. I was suggested this book by a teacher of mine and i wasn't really excited to get it and read it at first. Sometimes when teachers suggest reading it's more like a text book style and dry as a piece of burnt toast. This book was amazing though. It captured the child's perspective as well as the perspective of Glass and her husband. It was very humbling for myself as a reader also because it gave me chance to reflect on my childhood and be thankful for how lucky i was and the experiences i was able to have with my family. The ending of the book was great ant i will be heading to the bookstore to buy my next story by Cathy Glass as i am interested to read about other children that she has fostered. The other fabulous thing about this story is that it was actually true. Glass had to change some names and places for privacy issues but the premise and the story were true. Gives a whole new meaning to a 'hard knock' life and what some people may consider as having it tough.

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A Lion Called Christian

A Lion Called Christian: The True Story of the Remarkable Bond between Two Friends and a Lion by Anthony Bourke
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was an easy read. It was a wonderful tale about 2 best friends and their journey with owning a lion cub and then releasing him back into the wild with teh assistance of George Adamson. There were lots of quirky stories but the entire book left you with a warm fuzzy feeling. Cannot begin to describe how much i enjoyed the book. I even went so far as to dream what it would be like owning a lion cub!

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Deeper Than the Dead

Deeper Than the Dead by Tami Hoag
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

The premise of this book is great as it revolves around See no evil, Hear no evil, Speak no evil. As the story unfolds it becomes more predictable. I will admit that i had figured out the killer by page 174, which is a tad unfortunate. The dynamic between Anne Navarre and her cop boyfriend is enough to make you puke. The one thing that i really enjoyed reading about was the character of Dennis Farman. He was such a derranged child and the way his mind worked had me in awe. It was almost an inside view of what a homicidal maniac would be in his childhood years. The story line was very basic and not very exciting. I didn't really enjoy reading this book and i'm glad it's over.

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WhiteOut

Whiteout by Ken Follett

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


When i read the bio on this book i was really excited because it was about a virus that was cast on the same scale as Ebola. After the initial few chapters the book more was about whether or not the criminals were going to get their opportunity to expose the virus in the public sector. The book played out more like a cop drama where the chief inspector was chasing after the bad guys, therefore making the story predictable. This wasn't the worst book i've read but there's no way in hell it compares to RICHARD PRESTON'S HOT ZONE. Ken Follett is a talented writer and it was interesting to see how he managed to fit in the variety of characters while trying to keep the story based on a a possible breakout. Mediocre read.



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The Tiger

The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival by John Vaillant

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book was only ok. I really liked the tiger hunting the people/ people hunting the tiger, but the story could have only been 25 pages. The rest of the book was about Russian myths and beliefs as well as the illegal tiger trade. A lot of the information had such little bearing on the story it was irrelevant. A fact finder would love some of the info, me= I thought it was pointless to the story. If you have watched the movie the Ghost and the Darkness, this is slightly similar but in a totally different climate which adds a whole new element.



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The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I decided to read this book because I really would like to see the movie (since it looks really good) and I would like to know what the book was like before watching the movie. At the beginning i really found the premise of this book lame. There was a lot of getting to know the characters and learning about their families and lives.......WHICH I REALLY DIDN"T CARE ABOUT. Then once it got into the actual Hunger Games, I had a hard time putting the book down. It was almost like a futuristic gladiator competition. The motives and types of challenges the characters had to surpass while in the games was really intense. When i read the ending of the book my jaw had dropped about a foot and i was shocked at what just happened. Peeta had made an effort to help Katniss (even though she didn't know it at the time) and then it was almost like she spat in his face. After going through what they had together and she still is dreaming about Gale, come on! How rude! Even though Peeta has an unfortunate name, he did his best and he survived, allowing him and Katniss to be the only district couple to win the games. I am curious how the next book will go and i want to know where this will take them. Maybe the people will still be pissed and they will want to challenge Katniss and Peeta to a harder, more intimate games against each other. Maybe when Katniss reunites with Gale she will see how ordinary he is and be more drawn to Peeta. So many possibilities. Another character that i really didn't care about was that of Haymitch or Effie. They were supposed to encourage Peeta and Katniss and instead it was more like they were in the story for the irritative factor. Haymitch was always drunk, which sometimes provided a laugh, ie. him falling off the stage. Effie was like the Anne Landers of etiquette but she really only cared about how things were for herself, and for some reason i continually pictured her with this terribly nasal high pitched voice. I can't wait to see the movie to see how Katniss and Peeta were introduced to the crowds. I really hope they do the whole costumes being lit on fire because the imagery of that scene was so breathtaking and interesting.



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Remarkable Creatures

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book was interesting in the fact that I have never read a book about fossil hunting. The book was only ok but it was read-able. Different treasures mean different things to diffrent people and this was a great book that carried that idea right through to the end. The underlying story was about a friendship that comes to be, there is a problem and a slight breakdown, but then the characters re-unite.



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