Books 5 through 9 were written just as delightfully as the first 4 books. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Precious, her family and Botswana. The author is very insightful and is very good at keeping each character in character throughout all 9 books. The other day I was at a clinic where they said to ring the bell or say “hello” and I almost said “Ka, Ka” instead!
Serena: A Novel
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
A great historically-woven novel about the timbering business and the beginning of our National Parks during the depression. Our book club decided we liked the book, the writing is wonderful, but we don’t like the main character one bit – Serena.
Morality for Beautiful Girls (No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Book 3)
Morality for Beautiful Girls by Alexander McCall Smith
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Interesting to find out how the beautiful girls get picked for the beauty contest! Just as cleverly written as the first 2 books.
Tears of the Giraffe (No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Book 2)
Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
The giraffe (who is very near and dear to my heart) is hardly mentioned in this wonderful 2nd novel in the detective series. It is wonderful to learn more about this country of Botswana, the history and its people.
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Book 1)
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Absolutey delightful reading. I am going to read all the rest of this series about a woman in Botswana who opens her own detective agency. Very cleverly written and insightful.
The Witch of Portobello
The Witch of Portobello by Paulo Coelho
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another insightful, interesting novel by Coelho. It is so well-written, it is almost believable as non-fiction.
The Rest of Her Life
The Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriarty
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Part of our everyday nightmare, hitting someone with our car when we think we are distracted, is the basis of this book. At first I was annoyed by the mother, then I started to relate to her in the most scary way! Part of her character development was her personal opinion of the people that were in her life the most, yet she did not vocalize her opinion. Then when these people confronted her about her aloofness, she started to open up and speak her mind! Does it take a great tragedy to finally find yourself?
Peony in Love
My review
rating: 5 of 5 stars
Clearly along the lines of Amy Tan (which I hope Lisa See does not mind this constant reference to her) but this book was not anything like what I expected after reading the first few chapters. The twists and turns of what happens to Peony in the book, which if I mention anything past the first few chapters it will spoil the book for anyone who has not read it. The book is set at one point in Chinese history but referencing another. The historical setting makes it the type of book that is much more geared to the types of books I like to read.
Breaking Dawn
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
My review
Clearly not a book that your 10-year-old should read. This book covers the marriage of Bella & Edward, and what vampires like to do all night long when we are sleeping. But once again, the book keeps you reading as you cannot ‘guess’ where each chapter is headed. The addition of Jacob’s special ability in the 2nd book definitely added that extra element to make the last 3 books much more interesting than the first.
Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
One of the best of the 6 I have read. The book is quite thick but moves quickly. It would be almost impossible to keep up with what is going on if you had not read all the previous books. Not much else to say, as you can watch the movie when it comes out this summer.