I read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas while on the train, travelling from Bedford to Nottingham, on the day I was travelling there to start my new job three months ago. The train journey is only an hour & a half, but luckily, this isn’t a very thick book (it’s only 214 pages long), so I had read most of it before I arrived at my destination. This is such a great book, that upon arriving, because I was sooo close to finishing, I had all I could do to not just sit on the train & finish this book. I really wouldn’t have cared if the train had left the station with me on it still – I needed to finish reading this book!
Luckily, sense prevailed & I waited until I got to my hotel room to finish devouring The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. I was not disappointed!
For those of you who might not have read this book yet, I suggest that you do so. When I had bought this the movie had already come out, so there was lots of hype surrounding it. I have yet to see the movie & I’m not sure that I ever will. I really don’t see how any Hollywood celluloid facsimile could ever live up to the printed version of this story. It is heart-wrenching, thought-provoking and generally a brilliant read. If you do choose to read this, please try to avoid reading any reviews about it. (& try to avoid the soft cover versions of the book as they give the plot away, which the hard cover doesn’t. The hardcover lets you read this book as it’s intended – innocently, like a child.) You will be taken in by it. You will love it (which may seem odd, given the subject matter), you may well cry (I did) & you sure will be left both thinking & talking about this very poignant book. That’s no bad thing!
My understanding is that this book has been marketed as a children’s book. Well, I think that the subject matter would be lost on anyone under 10, I would recommend it for older children, though. I can easily see this becoming a book that is read in classrooms, much like when we read “To Kill A Mockingbird” when I was at school. I can easily see this becoming the kind of book that parents & teens read & discuss together, which, I think, is as it should be!
From the Dust jacket on the hard cover version:
In each soul, a secret…
Philadelphia homicide detectives Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balzano’s first assignment from the Cold Case files is the brutal murder of a young runaway. The lifeless body of Caitlin O’Riordan was found carefully posed in a glass display case in the desolate Philadelphia Badlands but, as Byrne and Balzano rapidly discover, she was just the first pawn in the killer’s twisted game…
A mysterious phone call leads them on a scavenger hunt for a second victim. This time a young girl has been dismembered, her body parts left in three boxes in the basement of a deserted house. More clues lead to other victims and, as the body count rises, it becomes clear that there is a serial killer on the loose, hell-bent on completing the ‘performance’ of a lifetime.
As more runaways vanish, Byrne and Balzano come to realize that the homicidal mastermind plans to complete seven depraved tricks in his dark and dangerous magic act. With Balzano increasingly obsessed by a case that haunts her, and Byrne struggling with a loss of his own, the stakes are mounting. But this is one game they can’t afford to lose…
Play Dead is the latest installment (that I have read, anyway) in the Jessica Balzano & Kevin Byrne series of books. Again, this one was sent to me by Charm, of the Book Club Forum (one more to go, Charm?), so to her I say “Thank You!”. I like Play Dead better than I did the last one in the series, not that The Skin Gods was bad in any way, mind, I just liked Play Dead better!
There are certain murder/mystery novels that I can sit down to start reading & not get back up again until I have finished – they are rare & only a few authors have had the ability to draw me in like that. Jeffery Deaver is a prime example – I never want to put his books down until they are completely read. Well, this is what Play Dead was like. I sat down to read it one weekend when I was home from work & practically didn’t move; I had to finish reading it before anything else could be done that day. This book had me gripped from start to finish & while I did eventually figure out who done it (managed to not read the ending first with this one), I only figured it out just before the killer was revealed! Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book & would say that it was the best Monanari I’ve read so far!
So, Charm, when are you sending me the last one in the series? lol!
What would you do if you discovered that the family who were your closest neighbours had been murdered? What about if you subsequently begun to suspect that they had been murdered in error, that it had been your family who were supposed to have been the victims of this supposed random killing?
These are the questions asked in Too Close to Home, by Linwood Barclay. To me, it’s a pretty scary proposition. Not one I would like to think about too much, thank you. Unfortunately, this is exactly the scenario in Linwood Barclay’s Too Close to Home.
Though this is the first book I have read by Barclay I have heard a lot of good things about his other book, No Time for Goodbye. I was in Waterstones one day & ran across Too Close to Home, so I picked it up & after reading the back, just knew that I wanted to read this book! Other than the ending, which I thought was a bit of a cop-out, I really loved this book.
Linwood Barclay wrote very believable characters – especially Jim & Ellen & their relationship with each other. Jim was by far my favourite of the characters in the book – he had a kind of sarcastic wit which I love in a person. The story flies, but by the time the killer is revealed the story starts to lose its way, which was a shame. Luckily, this didn’t ruin the story completely, but it did dampen the enjoyment of it & won’t stop me from reading Barclay’s 1st book & any others that may come.
So, recently my world has been a bit topsy turvy. In February I quit my job & was unemployed by the end of April, only to have a fantastic opportunity fall into my lap when I needed it the most. Suddenly I found my self over 190km from my boyfriend & living in a hotel, something I haven’t done in 3 years. What was supposed to be a 3 month job turned into a permanent job in a new location, but another 2 months living in a hotel, with sporadic internet access. Luckily all of that has come to an end & my OH & I are now moved into our new house in Nottingham & we (read: me) finally have internet available any time I want it.
This is great, but I am sooooooooo far behind on my book postings & I have 2 posts sitting on here that have been waiting for my attention since the 1st of September! Right, time to get posting!
I would like to start by saying that I have been struggling with writing this review since the 7th of August. It isn’t that I didn’t like A Lifetime Burning, I am just not sure that I can put into words the emotions this book aroused in me. It is a brilliantly written book about some very sensitive subjects & to borrow from a review I read by Michelle Moore on Amazon.co.uk
A Lifetime Burning is the third of Linda Gillard’s books which I have read & while I loved it, I am so glad that it is not the first one I read. The subject matter is, well, difficult & somewhat controversial, but do not let that put you off reading this book. I am pretty certain that this is one I will not be passing on to my Mom to read, though.
A Lifetime Burning follows the lives of the Dunbar Family, specifically the relationship of twins Rory & Flora & the impact their relationship has on the other members of their family & the people around them. Flora and Rory start out life with an amazing connection that only twins could have & they seem to be the yin to the others yang, something each of the other must have for their world, their life to be complete. Early into their lives it is demonstrated to us that theirs is no simple sibling relationship. Flora is the beauty & Rory the brains, Flora is the bad one & Rory is the good. Flora is the extrovert, Rory the introvert. But, even these are not 100% accurate. Yes, Rory is an introvert, but he is also egomaniacal, demanding, & destructive (especially where his sister is concerned). Flora may be the beauty, who also has a brain in her head, but because of Rory’s musical prowess, her intellect seems to take a distant back seat when it comes to the family’s recollecting on the twins’ attributes/abilities.
Flora grew up thinking that she was a bad person, that everyone knew she was good for nothing & managed to do everything in her power to live up to that estimation. Rory grew up knowing that he was the “chosen” child, that he had the world in the palm of his hand & grew up with the attitude to accompany that knowledge.
I honestly think that Rory being sent away for school was the beginning of the end for both he & Flora. They needed to be a constant presence in each other’s lives & I think that them being seperated from each other is what inevitably lead to their relationship becoming what it did & their lives becoming what they did, ultimately leading to Flora’s death & her funeral, which is where the book begins.
A Lifetime Burning was an emotionally charged read for me, but one that I am so glad I read!
My favourite genre of books is the Thriller, or “Murder Mystery Mayhem”, as I like to call it. This is what I read the most & I have my definite favourites, including Jeffery Deaver (the man is a genius!), Kathy Reichs & Linda Fairstein, to name but a few. Now, the reason I ask the above question is this:
I would say that 90 % of the time when I read a thriller, I start at the beginning (always a good place to start 
) & read until I really get into the book, then this irresistible force seems to take me over & I have this undeniable need to read the final few chapters to see what happens! It’s an unstoppable force & when the urge surfaces, I always give in! Resistance, as they say, is futile!
I know, I know – this is sooooooooo wrong. Or, at least that is what everyone tells me (the rare few I have been brave enough to reveal my hideous secret to , at least!). They insist that I am ruining the book, that OBVIOUSLY the idea of this particular genre especially, is to keep you in suspense, keep you guessing what is going to happen, to as close to the end of the book as possible. So, by skipping forward & reading the ending before I have read the middle, I am destroying what the author has created. But am I really?
I know that I am far from alone in this despicable habit, but I have to be honest & tell you that it is not a habit I intend to break. I love reading the beginning & the end first, then tucking into the middle (hmmmm, Mom, if you’re reading this does this remind you of anything from my childhood? Maybe my teachers were right!). To me at least, the middle of the book is the best bit. The beginning & the end are just (to compare a book to a sandwich) the bread & the middle is the lovely chicken salad filling. The beginning & the end are almost irrelevant & to me, there is no greater feeling than knowing who the killer is, a few chapters into a book (not by figuring it out, but by reading it), then spending the rest of the book trying to guess how in heaven’s name the author is going to get you there. That’s what I love!
So, while I may be strange, I have no intention of changing & besides, who says that you lot who read a book cover to cover aren’t the strange ones? lmao!
On the cover of The Sleeping Doll it says that this book is the one which introduces Kathryn Dance, though someone tells me this is not strictly the truth. Regardless, this is the first book of Deaver’s I have read which had Dance in it.
From Amazon: “Daniel Pell is a contemporary Charles Manson. A petty criminal with a history of antisocial behavior and obsession with controlling other people, he had a group of women living with him in a quasi cult in central California. Eight years ago, he and another man viciously slaughtered a family for no apparent reason, though the three women in his “Family” were absolved of any part in the deaths. Now, present day, Pell has escaped and Kathryn Dance, the famed interrogator and kinesic analyst (body language) and her team, must find out where he is and why he’s staying near the prison he escaped from. She brings together the three women, now leading normal lives, to help her find out where Pell is and what he’s up to. Pell, for his part, and a young woman he has manipulated to help him, tries to outguess the police and fulfill his mission, as he learns that Kathryn Dance is perhaps his most dangerous opponent.
This is a typical cat and mouse Deaver novel, in which conflicts abound–finding the killer, as well as reconciling the emotions within Pell’s three ‘Family’ members, which have simmered over the years. The ‘Sleeping Doll’ refers to the one surviving daughter of the original murder eight years ago–a nickname because she was asleep with her toys and not seen by the killer. Dance has to find her and see what she remembers about the night of the killings.
Nothing is quite what it seems to be . . . “
Katherine Dance is an officer with the California Bureau of Investigation & she has been tasked with catching a cold-blooded killer who escaped after he had been brought to her for questioning after evidence came to light which appeared to tie him to another murder. As the Amazon description says, this is typical Deaver cat & mouse & while I say it may be typical, that does not take away from this being another Deaver masterpiece!
I only read this book because it’s supposed to be the introduction to Katherine Dance & Deaver’s book Roadside Crosses picks up where Sleeping Doll left off (chronologically), so I thought it would be a good idea to have read The Sleeping Doll. I am really glad that I did! The Lincoln Rhyme series is still my favourite, but I can see the Katherine Dance series becoming a firm favourite as well!
If you are a Jeffery Deaver fan & have yet to read this book, then I say – Get moving & read it!
From the Dust Jacket -
“Suicide bombers are easy to spot. They give out all kinds of tell-tale signs. Mostly because they’re nervous. By definition they’re all first-timers.
There are twelve things to look for. No one who has worked in law enforcement will ever forget them.
New York City. The subway, two o’clock in the morning. Jack Reacher studies his fellow passengers. Four are ok. The fifth isn’t.
The train breaks for Grand Central Station. Will Reacher intervene, and save lives? Or is he wrong? Will his intervention cost lives – including his own?
As the dust jacket says, Reacher gets involved in a situation where he thinks that there is a suicide bomber on the subway. The “action” he chooses to take results in a lot of action happening to & around Reacher. He gets caught up in a network of crime & intrigue involving the Taliban, a US Senator & lots & lots of men with guns!
I have read (and loved) all of the Jack Reacher books, so I was very eagerly awaiting the arrival of this one. Then, life kinda got in the way & I didn’t buy it as soon as it came out, like I usually do. Well, I can happily report that once I did finally get around to buying Gone Tomorrow, I was very pleased I had! It was another typical Reacher page-turner. I read it in little better than an afternoon, though it has taken me far far longer to get my act together & write this blog (I have had it on a draft since the 28th of June!)
If you have read (and enjoyed) any of the Reacher series, then I can safely say that you will not be disappointed with the latest in the series. Jack gets up to his usual tricks & saves the world (lol) & meets a beautiful lady at the same time. Hmmm, never really thought about this before, but maybe these books are the James Bond for the 2000’s? A rough & tumble, sexy man who does his utmost to protect the world – only he doesn’t have the techno gadgets that come courtesy of Q – using his wit, physical strength , strength of character & the skills learned from a lifetime around the military. Sort of formulaic, but it works. It must work or I for one wouldn’t be rushing out to buy the next installment every time Mr. Child releases a new Reacher book!
In short, this is an excellent book & I am sitting at home on my sofa counting down the days until I can have my next Jack Reacher fix!
Happy Canada Day!
Well, I suppose that there are a lot of people out there who didn’t know that today was Canada Day (well it was today when I was writing this). You are forgiven! Just mark it in your Calendar for next year. July 1st.
Growing up in Canada, for us, it was a family day. We would all get together – aunts & uncles & their partners & all my cousins (there are about 30 of us – my Mom is from a very large family) & we would have a bbq, play games, go swimming, have cake & beer (for the adults) & they would gather on the lawn & play horseshoes & gossip, or watch hockey in the basement. In short – it was a great day!
Since moving over here Canada Day has had to out of necessity become very different. The only family I have over here is my OH & we don’t have a back yard, so the bbq is out! In the past (before there was an OH) I would make sure I had the day off work & would head into London, to Covent Garden – Maiden Lane, to be exact. There, every year, they would cordon off the street & thousands of Canucks would gather on the street, in the bars & pubs & have a big party. We’d stand on the street singing Canadian songs, drinking Canadian beer, wearing our Canadian hearts on our sleeves (and tattoo’d all over our bodies with temporary tattoos that had been bought at the Canada Shop, or sent over from home).
After a few hours those brave enough to risk not getting back onto Maiden Lane would amble down the Strand to Canada House for a rousing rendition of O Canada at noon, followed by Canadian entertainers performing for us, more Canadian beer (free this time), Canadian Wine & a couple slices of Canada Day birthday cake. Slowly we would make our way back to Maiden Lane & shimmy into spot (hopefully a prime spot!), where we would remain for the rest of the evening. Those were great nights – I remember one year reading an article in the national press the next day an article about the party, commenting that there were 5000+ people crammed into one tiny street & the worst thing that happened was that someone was arrested for climbing a street light. I made many great “friends” those nights – none of whom I have ever seen again, but they were my best friends at the time.
I guess you could say it was kinda like my Glastonbury, only the people doing the singing were 100% amature. Sadly the last football world cup brought an end to the Canada Day celebrations on Maiden Lane. The Government/police got involved & wouldn’t allow us to have the party because England were playing that day & they were afraid that if England lost the celebrations could turn ugly if they were infiltrated by football fans looking for a fight. There were no Canada Day celebrations that year.
Luckily, the celebrations are back, but now there are very different. It’s now become a bit of a business, & a lot less like a family party. It all takes place in Trafalger Square where you can have bison burgers, drink Canadian Beer & Tim Hortons coffee & eat timbits. You can listen to Canadian entertainers & sign up for the street hockey tournament, chat up a couple Mounties in full dress uniform or visit the Tourism pavillion to plan your next trip to Canada………………………I miss the old Canada Day!
Oh well, I guess something is better than nothing – gotta make sure I am able to get back there next year!
Happy Canada Day everyone!
I was searching through my unread posts on The Book Club Forum a while ago & came across a post from iisaying that she was addicted to this site: free rice – but it didn’t say anything else. I was intrigued, so I went to check it out. In the “About” section of the website, this is what it says:
About FreeRice
FreeRice is a non-profit website run by the United Nations World Food Program. Our partner is the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.
FreeRice has two goals:
- Provide education to everyone for free.
- Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.
This is made possible by the generosity of the sponsors who advertise on this site.
Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your education can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.
Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you.
So, I’ve been playing & have so far have donated over 2000 grains of rice – while having fun learning the meaning of new words & testing my world geography. While taking a break from trying to tell the location of Uzbekistan from Tajikistan Afghanistan and Turkmenistan I decided to have a wander around the website & found Poverty.com, which lead to this post. I read the front page & then went on to the “A solution” section, which lead to the embarrassment at being Canadian.
Annually donating 0.7% of our National Income shouldn’t be a difficult thing to do – otherwise why would we have agreed to the initiative? Thing is though, how many Canadians are actually aware that our government has agreed to this? I wasn’t aware. Were you? 0.7% per person isn’t a great amount (for me it would be about £168 – which I would gladly give the UN if it meant we eliminated world hunger!
So far only 5 countries have met the pledge they made – Sweden, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Norway & Denmark. The rest of the 22 countries are severely lagging behind! 6 countries haven’t even identified when they expect to have reached the 0.7% goal – Canada amongst them.
From Poverty.com:
“Why the 0.7% Agreement?
The countries made this agreement because they realized that it was hard for each country on its own to give a consistent, minimum level of aid each year. Despite good intentions, a country would find that the aid it wanted to give was eaten away by competing political interests, concern about budget deficits, “problems at home,” “problems abroad,” and so on. So they agreed to a minimal, flat rate that each country could afford each year regardless of its current political or economic state.
The 0.7% figure may sound complicated, but it is actually quite simple. You take the total income earned by all the people in the country and then the government gives 0.7% (seven tenths of one percent) of that as aid. Or to look at it another way: for every $100 earned in the country, the country gives 70 cents in aid.
How are the countries doing?
… five countries have already met the goal to give 0.7% of their income in international aid: Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.
In 2002 and 2003, five other countries set up a schedule to give 0.7%: Belgium, Ireland, Finland, France, and Spain.
In July 2004, the United Kingdom set up a schedule to give 0.7%.
In April 2005, Germany set up a schedule to give 0.7%.
In May 2005, Austria, Greece, Italy, and Portugal set up a schedule to give 0.7%.
It was not easy for many of the countries to set up a schedule to reach the 0.7% goal. In some cases, such as Britain and Germany, it took the combined effort of many thousands of citizens writing and petitioning their government to get it done.
The remaining six countries
Only six countries have not yet set up a schedule to give 0.7%. These are Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United States. To raise the $195 billion a year, these six will need to reach the goal.
These six countries are all democracies. All that is necessary for them to reach the 0.7% goal is for enough of their citizens to show their support.”
So – about the support – give yours, please. Print off the letter that is provided & send it off to Ottawa (or Washington, Downing Street, Canberra, Tokyo, or Wellington depending upon your nationality) & encourage your friends/family to do the same. It’s literally the least we could do – lets force our collective governments to honour the pledges they have made! Lets make our actions & voices speak louder than our government’s empty promises!
