11/22/63

11/22/63 by Stephen King.

I bought this book a year ago. Meant to resell it as the thickness scares me a bit. Never tthought I would be able to read the book, leave alone finish it. Started reading two days ago though. I thought, I haven't been reading anything on the physical book for quite some time. How about making it worth the effort with something such as Stephen King's master pieces.  So I started reading and don't seem to be able to stop. By today I've done with the first 220 pages from the 848. Last night, it was 2am, my eyes were so heavy I really had to put down the book but nope, I just continued right until I finish the 2nd part.
I feel that it's important to write after few chapters, otherwise, by the time I finish the book, and yes, I definitely will finish the book, I may not remember the good stuff.

Before I started reading, I did not bother to read the introduction on the back page. Several pages inside, gosh, it was really good. Don't remember what was my last Stephen King's read. I do remember though having to memorize several pages of "It" and dramatically retell the story as part of my matriculations program. Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) program it was, more than 22 years ago.

This particular book by Stephen King is really gripping. Yes, right from the start. Jake Epping the main character sounds like just a simple ordinary man in the beginning. What he was meant to do,  and how he got into the whole rabbit hole action is so exciting. I still don't understand how Al got his lung cancer overnight though. He was supposed to catch the cancer while he was in the 1950s and carried it with him in 2011? But as Jake had said, he was absolutely fine just the day before. Then again, that is very minor compared to the story of Jake in his first two adventures in 1958. I'll just go and go now.
........................ till the next review..............

I'm at page 309 when I write this, and I'm still totaly engulfed by this narrator. He even refer to us readers as "you....in case you are reading,...." and "if you will ever read this...". I thought this is totally awesome. Only one so accomplished such as Stephen King can do this and make us readers feel good instead of being mocked.

The story picked up even to a higher gear so fast from Part 3; that is after Al died and Jake went back to Derry down the rabbit hole to prevent the killings of Mrs Dunning and the Dunning 3 children by Frank Dunning. This amendment of the past was done with much less drama compared to Jake's first attempt of saving the Dunning family. He just waited for the man at the grave yard when he knew Dunning would be visiting his dead Mom and Dad, and shot him twice (if I'm not mistaken he shot him twice). Well, that detail doesn't matter much I guess as Jake the main character feel that his taking Frank Dunning's life so swiftly is justified. I must say I'm not very hapy with how that was done. Jake should have at least found out the reason for Dunning who's supposed to be a ruthless killer when he's under the influence of alcohol, to obediently still visit his parents' grave yards. Why? Maybe the "window of uncertainty" which Al talked about would result in Jake finding out that Dunning is not as guilty as he is deemed to be. One more thing I'd like to state, I don't remember whether Al died or committed suicide. I somehow missed that part. I guess it will not matter much which one happened.

Jake also managed to stop Carolyn Poulin from being shot and her spine wounded by Andy Cullum. This he did also quite too easily I think....by engaging Cullum into training or learning session of cribbage. Gosh I've never come accross this word and have no idea at all what it is until a quick google search revealed that it's a card game played with wooden board and "colored pegs". I never heard of this game. It's to me something like snake and ladder with  the game piece token as the pegs, and instead of using cards to determine moves, the snake and ladders's players roll the dice. I hope this would make you understand the game of cribbage if you like me have never heard of that game.

Okay, I'll continue reading shortly. The last few pages have gotten me for some reason reading each word, and I so enjoy doing this. The words seem to let out sweet music as I read them. I think Mr King has consciously and brilliantly wrote pages 300 onwards so poetically.

........till the next pit stop........
I had to stop and write this out. Excellent note. "...stupidity is one of two things we see most clearly in retrospect.  The other is missed chances". (Chapter 12, page 311).
..........................
Chapter 12 onwards till now have been very emotion ladden in my opinion, with love at first sight, deaths, theaters, school kids's affection towards good teachers, deaths, break ups and alone-again moments. I still don't get who Sadie is,...Was she someone Jake knew in the preprevious time travel or in the to-go time?

Fast forward I have finally finished reading. Took me a good one month though, pathetic. So how do I find this book? One, I think the ending is an anti climax. For a fiction, I don't understand why Mr King chose to not have a 'kaboommm' ending. Something very extreme which would do justice to the highly thrilling dramas. Jake in the end submitting to his conscience,  not wanting to pursue with his plans to go back through the rabbit hole and let everything start over so that he can save Sadie, is so boring. I was hoping that he would go back and find ways to save Al from his untimely death so that Al can be the one instead to go back in time and save Kennedy, that would be interesting.

The last few hundred pages were quite too melodramatic for me, more suited for a love novel and this is not supposed to be a love novel. Too much is given to illustrate Jake's relationship with Sadie and his association with matters related to Sadie. I really could have assessed this wrongly, it's just the way I remember it.

I also wished so much for Jake somehow to go back in time and change the way he dealt with Frank Dunning. That scene on the grave yard and the fact that Jake didn't think important enough to rectify must have started my slight dislike against Jake.

Looks like Jake is the romantic who prefers to believe that women and children need to be saved against all crimes at all cost. That's fair from a hero from the 60 and 70's era I guess. Still, Î decided to read this book expecting a long winded, crooked, mind boggling, twisted thriller, not a love tale.

Free reads to share with my cyber friends

Dear kind readers,

It's my pleasure to share with you quite a good read received from Bookboon.com "Seven Milestones for a Better Life". Here's a quick info

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the bookselller

I found out about this book by accident, that I remember. The exact reason for finding it I don't remember. But I think it has something to do with me looking for recent popular ebooks for free download. It's tough time everywhere in the world okay. Several thousand people downloading popular ebooks for free once in a while will not hurt, I think.

Anyhow, I started reading this book by Cynthia Swanson with high expectations. The reviews indicated that it's gonna be worth my time. Yes, I do enjoy this book and found that the main characters Kitty and her friend Frieda and Kitty's "dream" husband Lars very interesting. I especially love the occasional description of sellable books and lessons in operating a book store me being a book seller myself. Like Kitty and Frieda, I love books and the feeling of being surrounded by books thus getting in this particular business fits us real nicely.


Back to the story, I agree that it's a page turner. In fact I found having to leave it to attend to everyday chores very frustrating. I so wanted to just keep reading. I found that I could understand her so well. The dream life is dreamy, what with a fantastic hubby and lovely kids, even later on Michael the less-than-perfect child into the picture, gives her excitement and something to look forward to every now and then. How Kitty or Katheryn in her other life met her hubby is also ordinary yet not very ordinary. And to add to that, he's non American. This adds spice to the scenario. Lars Andersson, exotic name indeed.

I have actually emerged myself so happily in the two lives of Kitty. I think it is really nice to have a not so bad life in the real life, with one as nice as Frieda to call you sister and for the longest time, stay close to you, supporting you and sharing a career with you in a world of books albeit the store doing just so-so. I know for a fact that opening and maintaining our sanity and keeping smiles on our faces to keep a book store afloat is tougher than tough. Then, Kitty seems to be too much involved and affected by her role as a Mom and a wife in the dream life. That was when I started feeling frustrated. I did not think that she would prefer her life as a domestic without Frieda and the book store they have nurtured and loved to that extent. I started feeling angry toward her. I think she's not being fair to Frieda especially. I think she's being ungrateful and selfish and that's the best way to describe her.

In the end, I could not believe she did what she did to Frieda. For the life of me, I could not believe that I would feel this way towards the end of this book. I've enjoyed it so much in the beginning and most of it. Well, that is my own thoughts surely. Others may not share this sentiment. The last fews pages were especially difficult for me as I have become more and more dissatisfied with Kitty. She shouldn't have felt so guiltless for leaving Frieda. I could have been bias for....whatever, I still think Kitty should have been nicer to Frieda who has definitely given more of her life for her. Yes, she might have chosen that path for her motherly instinct, wifey responsibility or whatever. I still think she's being unfair and I so don't like how this book ended.

Sushi for Beginners

By Marian Keyes.

This is my first experience reading of Keyes' work. I guess it's as interesting as the praises said it would. And the fact that I have actually finished every page means that it's still my type of drama. Then again, for some reason, I don't feel so lifted by it. I think I had this excitement of absorbing every page hungrily probably somewhere in the first quarter of the book. Can't really remember now. But I think it has something to do with Ashling's story. She is definitely my favourite character.

Oh yes, I found Clodagh's way of escaping her wive-y sexual obligations very funny and totally familiar. I went "what"...I thought only I do that!".. So yes, I found Clodagh quite interesting in the beginning of the book. I totally dislike her past knowing of her very bad-and-not-naughty in any way, disgusting in fact or just plain stupid, choice to be unfaithful to Dylan. Well her doing it with Marcus I think is just out of bad taste...but her not feeling guilty about it with Ashling and Dylan makes me sick with disgust. Then again, I still can associate with her on this....and that's because I know for a fact that I have not been so un-ridiculous myself.

Lisa is a character I have the least feeling for. But I kind of still like her for her loyalty and deep love for one man, Oliver....for a beauty with brains and lots of ego, I think that is admirable... I guess she has mellowed down in between which is good for her and she gets what she deserves in the end which is great.

I think I've somehow been misled to believe that the three leading ladies would become best of friends in the end when in fact it is almost the opposite but not in a bad way, for Lisa and Ashling, yes though for Clodagh. She totally deserves it. And the title "sushi for beginners" I think only explains Ashling's experience...I don't see it related much to Lisa and definitely not with Clodagh...

All in all, I'm glad to have found this book. Yes, I've always been interested to read more about the people, the culture, the ways of people in Ireland, they seem such romantic and interesting features, I think this I see after watching Cecilia Ahern's......

in between books

Happy mother's day all Moms all around the world.

image from www.techhug.net. TQ

It's been some time since I last posted in this blog. Truth is I'm in between books, never seem to be able to finish any of them; Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson; Sushi for beginners by Marian Keyes; Quiet by Susan Cain; The One Minute Manager by Rana Muhammad Abbas....

now that's not very nice of me yup...guilty as charged

Have been too busy doing this and that...will try harder to finish at least one in the next week or so.

till then

visit this page for books at fair price

yes this link

And, for little gifts for beloved Moms, you could probably find one or several here

image from mamanyc.net. TQ

Gone with the wind

One of the thickest books I've read no doubt. No regrets what-so-ever though. Scarlet O-Hara is a vision, at the beginning and in the middle. Towards the last quarter, I am not her big fan any more. I like her strong willed, ruthless but too much over her head being selfish, wanting richness above all else, including the love of her children, and her devoted husbands, nope. Can't really agree. No matter how much suffering she was made to go through because of the war and everything that goes with it.....Well, then again, come to think of it, maybe her slightly rotten attitude is justified. I don't know...Anyways, I love the character of Mr Rhett Butler. Irritating but loyal, subtle but strong opinionated, gentlemanly and most importantly for me, he is a father figure, for Scarlet's children and especially so for his own daughter. I must admit one more thing, the way the wars are described or the setting is narrated, I kind of not like the Yankees. I find it very easy to understand why the Southerners should be left alone with their so-called-slaves. In this book, from my understanding at least, they are more companions and right hands of the white people. Of course, this is a romantic story, always told from one side's perspectives. I'd not want to delve into this issue though. That's definitely the opposite reason why I read this book in the first place; to forget the serious stuff, the never ending boring conflicts and get lost instead with mushy love story. I am not happy with the ending.

Wild Designs by Katie Fforde

My first comment is that the synopsis offered on the back cover did not do much justice to this wonderful book. I read with much skepticism actually, just committing to read the novel since it is English based in England. The first few pages were to me quite mundane and uninteresting. I just continued reading and to my delight, come Chapter two, the book became so very lovely. It started when Althea first connected to Patrick Donahugh. Firsdt description of him is rather plain. Well and good though. So he's not like many leading men in love stories. What happened in the episodes following Althea's meeting with Patrick are simply lovely in a funny way. Really glad I decided to read 'wild designs' as my first of Katie's work. Yes, will definitely try to read her other books. This is the first time I read a novel which makes being a less than perfect past 28 year old gal sound so appealing. The praises are well justified though. This is a really good example of a feel good read especially for us women in the early forties. Do read if you feel like feeling warm and loved ladies!

The Witness by Nora Roberts

Very nice over-the-weekend read. Simple story line yet contains rather interesting twists here and there. Romantic guy. And I really love the name Liz chose for her identity; Abigail. Complicated yet sweet. Very fitting. I just wish that in the end, there is closure between Liz and her mom.

Oranges of Dubai

I am so very glad to have come across this original novel by Cristina Costa. It is beyond awesome. I wanted to rate is 10 stars. A fantastic read to start my new year, bringing me the taste of sweet refreshing orangy bliss. The book is translated from Italian, about the memories of a group of Sicilian children now 50years old. Actually more from the narration of Paolo son of village reknown pharmacist, who left Sicily when Italy decided to sell this small southern Mediterranean haven to the Sheikhs of Arab. Paolo went to Boston to master his chosen career of pediatric heart surgeon, and then lives un Paris for most of his life. His perfect lovable other half Teresa who is also his high school sweetheart, with the help from her best friend Anna arrange for Paolo to return to Palermo Sicily for his 50th birthday, to walk again the streets of his childhood, to breathe again the air of his roots. What he experiece during his few days vacation in Palermo is just delicious self discovery amidst small things which further define him as a worthy man. The narration is almost poetic, seamless with beautiful expressions and wonderful descriptions of feelings, thoughts, observations. In a way the story says, your politicians can betrsy you, sell you off yo the Arabs, put you at risk of losing your heritage, culture and identity, but only you can decide if they can succeed. Sometimes life can proof you wrong, the world can choose to let your light flicker off, but only you can decide if you want to live a beautiful live worth living. Does this make sense? Is this reasonable or realistic? Probably not often so O:-) Whatever... I totally love reading this book. Let me know if you'd like to read too, I'll send you a link. Happy hopeful new year friends!

Sycamore Row by John Grisham

Oh Dear I loved this book...reading it has been a breeze. I was telling my hubby that I just "needed" to get lost in the pages every free time I get. It's a story of a young lawyer Jake Brigance, how he was named as the inheritance administrator by a rich man just days before he hung himself. Jake is kind of a guy one would like, with good looks without being too overwhelming, speak his mind well, not a complicated life with a nice and pretty school teacher wife and one little daughter. He is though one with a high morale, great commitment and motivation, sticking to his believes and to the trust of the dead man all way through. I think the story line is just nice, fast paced, bringing with it some kind of light thrill. I like it and would definitely consider reading another Grisham's lawyer material.

The Ultimate Gift by Jim Stovall

I am thankful for the chance of reading this book. It is short and sweet, easy to read and grasped my attention from the first page. I thought it's a non fiction but upon completing and searching on the book's background, found out that it's the best of both genres; fiction written so close to the reality of life. My most favourite is the gift of learning. I dream of being with enough resorces one day to open up libraries to enrich the lives of many people. Reading and learning from merely living our lives meaningfully, are for me some of the best "simple things we can all afford and should enjoy before we die". I truly wish that my children would one day want to read this book, at least out of curiosity, ...then let nature take its course. I wish for the same for you :)