The Hot House Flower and the 9 Plants of Desire by Margot Berwin

It isn't what you think! I saw an ad for the book in the Times Book Review and read that Julia Roberts is going to star in the movie version. I read a few reviews which sounded promising and ordered it from the library. It is not the steamy, fluffy romance novel that the title suggests. Instead, I would call it the botanical equivalent of Indiana Jones. Protagonist Lila Nova buys a bird-of-paradise from a ruggedly handsome plant man who introduces her to the myth of the Nine Plants of Desire. When she meets Armand, Laundromat owner, who claims to have all nine plants in his back room, the plot takes off. Lila travels to the Yucatan, encounters scorpions and snakes, meets a few more mysterious characters and finally returns to New York in this mysterious, entertaining adventure novel. Beach reading at its best.

A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev

The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee

Apologize, Apologize by Elizabeth Kelly

The book jacket claimed that Kelly's debut novel begs comparison with John Irving and I would have to agree. Protagonist Collie Flanagan's family contains raging drunks and selfish millionaires who cannot escape the heartbreaks of life. Kelly's quick pacing keeps the story moving from one agonizing moment to the next. The only flaw for me was the ending which, like life, did not offer much resolution.

Their Dogs Came With Them by Helena Maria Viramontes

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I am just back from grading AP Literature and Composition test essays in Louisville, Kentucky where the professional night speaker this year was Helena Maria Viramontes. She read from this novel and from Under the Feet of Jesus, as well as entertained the crowd of teachers and college professors with her stories about growing up one of nine children in Los Angeles. Their Dogs Came With Them follows several separate characters through the mid-1960's turmoil in L.A. The four female protagonists, Turtle, Ana, Ermila and Tranquilina, struggle with gang violence, family issues, Civil Rights, gender issues and mental illness in this sometimes violent, sometimes lyrical novel.

Callisto by Torsten Krol

Torsten Krol, whoever you are, I loved Callisto. Published under a bizarre pseudonym, this raucous novel was described as a modern-day Catch-22. Protagonist, Odell Deefus, is the unluckiest bumbler to ever have his car breakdown on a country road. Deefus stumbles from a murder scene, into espionage and finally spends time in a terrorist holding cell before his travels end. This crazy novel entertains.

Welcome to the Departure Lounge by Meg Federico

Meg Federico applies her journalistic flair to chronicle the hilarious and heartbreaking escapades of her 80-year-old mother and step-father. Caring for aging parents is a subject on my mind a lot these days, and Federico made me grateful for the fact that at least my mother hasn’t woken up in a hospital screaming, “I demand an autopsy”. At least not yet!

Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

I like to read along with my students when they are reading their self-selected American novels, so I chose Geek Love, a novel I have picked up and put back down many times in the bookstore. I would describe it as a cross between John Irving and Chuck Palahniuk, heavy on the Palahniuk. I was alternately fascinated and disgusted by this story about a family of circus freaks and their freakish behaviors. Crystal Lil and Art Binewski breed an assortment of children - Arturo the Aqua Boy who performs from a tank; Siamese twins who play four-handed piano; Oly, the narrator, who is an albino dwarf; and Chick, who they initially try to leave on the side of the road because he is "normal" just as his telekinetic powers are revealed. I've read some pretty weird fiction, but this National Book Award Finalist is way, way out there.

A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena de Blasi

Spring break took us to Delaware to reconnect with family and spend a few days near the ocean. I wanted a true escape from my normal reading, and A Thousand Days in Venice proved to be just perfect. Marlena de Blasi was a food writer visiting in Venice, when a handsome man approached her, told her she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and promised to pursue her. Their love story is accompanied by recipes and lovely descriptions of Venice. I was drawn into the beautiful landscapes and am excited to read the continuation in A Thousand Days in Tuscany.

Going to See the Elephant by Rodes Fishburn

I was given this book by a fellow AP grader I met in Louisville last year who teaches at Emory and Henry College in Virginia where Fishburn went to school. What a pleasant spring break surprise this novel turned out to be. Journalist Slater Brown arrives in San Francisco and takes a job at a failing newspaper, The Morning Trumpet. He quickly realizes that he needs to find great stories in order to keep his job, and through a serendipitous happening, he gains access to the secrets of the city. He meets and falls in love with a beautiful chess champion, wards off the evil politicians and finds a happily-ever-after solution to his personal unrest. I was enchanted by this little fable.

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

I just finished reading this gem of a novel after months of avoiding it. Since my mother is currently suffering from dementia and speech loss due to strokes, I didn't know whether a book narrated by an early onset Alzheimer's patient would be too close for comfort. Genova draws on her own expertise as a Harvard educated neuroscientist to render an authentic view of the world from inside the mind of one slowly slipping into the darkness of dementia. I did not weep as I supposed I would, but rather appreciated Genova's frank portrait of struggle so many people are dealing with as parents and loved ones live with this disease.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

After hearing the Gaiman had won the Newberry Award, I became intrigued by the awesome reviews I was reading of the movie Coraline in 3D. Of course, I figured I needed to read the book before seeing the movie. Coraline is

The Soloist by Steve Lopez

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The Witches of Eastwick by John Updike

The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker

The Dying Animal by Philip Roth

After reading two very long books back to back, I decided to finish off Christmas break with a short one. I had never really read any Philip Roth, and, against my best judgement, I had bought this one with the movie-tie-in cover a while back, wanting to read the book before seeing the movie. It is a very erotic story of 60 plus year old professor who repeatedly falls for young women he teaches. But last woman, Consuela Castillo, is the one who nearly undoes him.

The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb

This was a gift from David for Christmas, and I started in on it on the 26th, my favorite reading day of the year. At first I was not comfortable in the details of the lives of the narrator and his wife, both employees at Columbine High School at the time of the shooting. I had to let myself get through those early pages to realize the greater subject of loss and post-traumatic stress that Lamb was addressing. It is a very ambitious book -- almost too much so.

My Christmas Break Reading 2008 - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

I had read all of the advance buzz when this book was released for the first time in America in October after experiencing international success. I bought it right away, read the first (slow) chapters, and because of its length, set it aside for Christmas break. I'm so glad I did. Once I let myself into the murder mystery and tangle of similarly named Swedish characters, I loved the intrigue and ruthlessness of the investigation. I recommend it and wait for the next book which is due out in August.

Requiem Mass. by John Dufresne

I am a huge fan of Dufresne's humor, so when I happened upon an autographed copy of his new book in a bookstore in Amherst, Mass, I felt the connection. Unfortunately, this book was tougher to get through, which characters more pitiful than laughable.

Goldengrove by Francine Prose

This tender novel is narrated by a thirteen year old girl named Niko whose older sister, Margaret, drowns in pond as the book opens. The title comes from Gerard Manley Hopkins's Spring and Fall (which begins Margaret, are you grieving/ Over Goldengrove unleaving?) Niko and Margaret's father is a bookseller, which makes the connection even more interesting when Niko finds the poem in a book in his shop and tries to use it to explain her pain and loss.

A Mercy by Toni Morrison

This slender Morrison novel reminded me of Beloved more than any other novel since. I have read all of Morrison's novels and the last several didn't hold me. This one did.

Salvatore Scibona Nominated for National Book Award

National Book Award Site

Ms. Hempel Chronicles by Sarah Shun-lien Bynum

A great collection of interlocking stories about Beatrice Hempel, middle school English teacher. This book was a gift from Salvatore Scibona, who thought I would enjoy the humor and honesty of the classroom that Bynum perfectly paints.

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

In October, our book club read Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. This cautionary tale would pair well with Brave New World, since both deal with the intersection between scientific experimentation and human rights.

Home by Marilyn Robinson

David bought me Home for my birthday since I am a big Marilyn Robinson fan. This new novel revisits Gilead and follows three characters, Glory, Jack and Rev. Boughton, as they putter around the house contemplating the true definitions of faith and family. I am reading slowly and enjoying her lovely sentences.