The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker

When Truly Plaice's mother was pregnant, the town of Aberdeen joined together in betting how recordbreakingly huge the baby boy would ultimately be. The girl who proved to be Truly paid the price of her enormity; her father blamed her for her mother's death in childbirth, and was totally ill equipped to raise either this giant child or her polar opposite sister Serena Jane, the epitome of femine perfection. When he, too, relinquished his increasingly tenuous grip on life, Truly and Serena Jane are separated--Serena Jane to live a life of privilege as the future May Queen and Truly to live on the outskirts of town on the farm of the town sadsack, the subject of constant abuse and humiliation at the hands of her peers.

Serena Jane's beauty proves to be her greatest blessing and her biggest curse, for it makes her the obsession of classmate Bob Bob Morgan, the youngest in a line of Robert Morgans who have been doctors in Aberdeen for generations. Though they have long been the pillars of the community, the earliest Robert Morgan married the town witch, Tabitha Dyerson, and the location of her fabled shadow book--containing mysterious secrets for healing and darker powers--has been the subject of town gossip ever since. Bob Bob Morgan, one of Truly's biggest tormentors, does the unthinkable to claim the prize of Serena Jane, and changes the destiny of all Aberdeen from there on.

When Serena Jane flees town and a loveless marriage to Bob Bob, it is Truly who must become the woman of a house that she did not choose and mother to her eight-year-old nephew Bobbie. Truly's brother-in-law is relentless and brutal; he criticizes her physique and the limitations of her health as a result, and degrades her more than any one human could bear. It is only when Truly finds her calling--the ability to heal illness with herbs and naturopathic techniques--hidden within the folds of Robert Morgan's family quilt, that she begins to regain control over her life and herself. Unearthed family secrets, however, will lead to the kind of betrayal that eventually break the Morgan family apart forever, but Truly's reckoning with her own demons allows for both an uprooting of Aberdeen County, and the possibility of love in unexpected places.



After reading the back of this book, I really wasn't sure what to expect when reading it. This book centers around Truly Plaice. When Truly's mother is pregnant, the whole town places bets as to how big the boy is going to be, and the guesses are high due to the enormous size of her belly. When Dr. Robert Morgan examines her, he notices a lump in her breast, a lump she keeps secret, even though it will kill her. When her water breaks and contractions start, Dr. Robert Morgan tries to help her through the delivery to the best of his ability, but the size of the baby proves to be too much. When he asks her what name she has chosen the last word she utters is Truly. Thus is the beginning of Truly's existence.

Truly is destined to be miserable. Her sister Serena Jane is beautiful by anyone's standards, and not only is Truly homely, she is enormous besides. Her father blames her and the doctor for the untimely death of his wife (even though she would have passed from cancer shortly after her birth) and refuses to seek medical attention for his daughter, even though it is obvious there is something wrong with her.

After the death of their father, the girls are separated. Serena Jane, who is treated as a princess by most of the town, but especially by Amanda Pickerston, is welcomed with open arms into their home. But there is no way they are going to take in something as homely and huge as Truly. Instead, truly is sent to the Dyerson farm, a home of outcasts where she is bound to fit in.

The girls continue to meet weekly, but grow apart even more...not that they were ever really close. They both fall into a pattern with their new families. And Truly continues to grow.

She does have a friend in Amelia, the daughter of the Dyerson's, who becomes like a sister to her. She also catches the eye of Marcus, even if he is the smallest boy in the class, he is full of knowledge and love for Truly, something that get exploited by Bob Bob Morgan, the son of Doctor Morgan, and a boy destined to be the next town Doctor, a tradition that goes all the way back to his great-great-great-grandfather, and his wife Tabitha, who it was rumored was a witch. Bob Bob also has his eyes on Serena, and one night he finally gets her where he wants her, a union that prompts a swift marriage due to her unexpected pregnancy.

Serena and Bob Bob move away and Truly doesn't hear from them for quite some time, with only the occasional letter and picture of her nephew Bobbie. So, when they move back to town she is hopeful that things will change. They don't. That is until Bob Bob (who is now called Robert) comes to tell her that her sister has left and wants her to help him raise Bobbie.

This is the beginning of a fascinating relationship, and a story full of love and incredible deceit. I found the story to be excellent, and truly loved the way the author described the characters. I went through a full range of emotions while reading this, and although it had a happy ending, it was really bittersweet when you realize everything that led to it. Highly recommended!



Tiffany Baker lives in Tiburon, California with her husband and three children. This is her first novel.

Thanks so much to Miriam Parker, of The Hachette Book Group for sending me this ARC to review!

Wicked Game by Lisa Jackson and Nancy Bush

About the book:

ONE BY ONE, THEY’LL DIE…Twenty years ago, wild child Jessie Brentwood vanished from St. Elizabeth’s high school. Most in Jessie’s tight circle of friends believed she simply ran away. Few suspected that Jessie was hiding a shocking secret—one that brought her into the crosshairs of a vicious killer…

UNTIL THERE’S NO ONE LEFT…Two decades pass before a body is unearthed on school grounds and Jessie’s old friends reunite to talk. Most are sure that the body is Jessie’s, that the mystery of what happened to her has finally been solved. But soon, Jessie’s friends each begin to die in horrible, freak accidents that defy explanation…

BUT HER…Becca Sutcliff has been haunted for years by unsettling visions of Jessie, certain her friend met with a grisly end. Now the latest deaths have her rattled. Becca can sense that an evil force is shadowing her too, waiting for just the right moment to strike. She feels like she’s going crazy. Is it all a coincidence—or has Jessie’s killer finally returned to finish what was started all those years ago?

My Review:




20 years have passed since the disappearance of Jezebel “Jessie” Brentwood, but the case is back in the news after bones are discovered at St. Elizabeth’s school. Detective Sam NcNally is hoping that he will finally get the break he deserves, and prove to all of the skeptics that she was murdered all those years ago.

Becca Sutcliff is shocked when she receives a phone call from her ex-boyfriend and true love Hudson Walker. The group of friends that hung out with each other at the time of Jessie’s disappearance is meeting to compare stories. The common belief is that the remains will be identified as Jessie, but they want to make sure that their stories haven’t changed. There seems to be a dark cloud hovering among the members of the group, and when tragedy starts to strike, Becca feels it’s only a matter of time before she’s next.

This paranormal romantic suspense thriller was well thought out and it was impossible for me to tell that it was written by two sisters. I have a feeling I know where the added romance came in, as this isn’t common in most of Lisa’s books. I felt it added nicely to the storyline, and made it appealing to a more diverse crowd.

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

About the book:

In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers"--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.

Brilliant and entertaining, OUTLIERS is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.

My Review:

I received this book audiobook from Anna Balasi with Hachette Book Group. This is the first audiobook that I had listened to in a very long time, and boy was I glad that I started with this one. To be honest, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I started listening to it.

I found this book to be fascinating! Although some of the things he talks about may seem like common knowledge, for instance the fact that if you look at some of the best in their field and corelate that with the amount of time they spent to get there, you will see something very similar. The best musicians, The Beatles included, owe their success to the amount of time they spent practicing. While this may seem like a "duh" moment, the way the author brings these facts to light is new and innovative. It really makes you think.

There are many aspects of this book that I enjoyed, but quite possibly my favorite was the section on the hockey players and birth order. It actually had me looking on the internet to check birthdates of the "best" hockey players that ever played the game (by the way, Wayne Gretzky was born on January 26).

Truly a thought provoking book and one I would highly recommend!

About the author:

Malcolm Gladwell is a staff writer for The New Yorker. He was formerly a business and science reporter at the Washington Post.

Testimony by Anita Shreve

About the book:

At a New England boarding school, a sex scandal is about to break. Even more shocking than the sexual acts themselves is the fact that they were caught on videotape. A Pandora's box of revelations, the tape triggers a chorus of voices--those of the men, women, teenagers, and parents involved in the scandal--that details the ways in which lives can be derailed or destroyed in one foolish moment.

Writing with a pace and intensity surpassing even her own greatest work, Anita Shreve delivers in TESTIMONY a gripping emotional drama with the impact of a thriller. No one more compellingly explores the dark impulses that sway the lives of seeming innocents, the needs and fears that drive ordinary men and women into intolerable dilemmas, and the ways in which our best intentions can lead to our worst transgressions.

Review:

Believe it or not, this is the first book by Anita Shreve that I have read. And am happy to say that it will not be my last. This book centers around an act at a prestigious private school in Vermont - an act that is sure to change the lives of more than a few people.

When the headmaster (Mike Borden) is handed a tape by his secretary, he has no idea what he is about to view. Never in his wildest dreams did he expect to view a sexually explicit tape involving a 14 year old girl and 3 other students. The thing I enjoyed the most about this book is the fact that it is told from so many different view points. I believe that there are people that did not like this aspect of the book, but I for one found it very intriguing. Maybe in the hands of a lesser author this wouldn't have worked, but that certainly isn't the case with this book.

That said, this certainly is not a book that can be rushed through. You really need to take your time reading this one, or you are sure to become lost and disoriented easily. Some characters are more involved in the story telling, but there are some "blurbs" by characters that are just a few pages in length. All in all it is a very interesting way to write a book - I would love to hear how she kept things straight while writing it.

Thanks again Miriam Parker and The Hachette Group for allowing me to review this fantastic book!

About the author:

Anita Shreve is the critically acclaimed author of 14 novels, including Body Surfing, The Pilot's Wife, which was a selection of Oprah's Book Club, and The Weight of Water, which was a finalist for England's Orange Prize. She lives in Massachusetts.

is it just me or is everything shit? by Steve Lowe and Alan McArthur

Reviewed by Tim Gleichner

About the book:

An encyclopedic attack on modern culture so hilariously bitter that it actually becomes uplifting. Based on two runaway UK bestsellers, this new American edition has been ingeniously adapted and features exclusive new material for US audiences by Brendan Hay, a former Daily Show headline producer and contributing writer to America: The Book.

If you hate chick lit, Che Guevara merchandise, pop Kabbalah, cosmetic-surgery-gone-wrong-as-tv-programming, DVDs with ads you can't skip, or any of a few hundred other insanely annoying modern things, then this book will finally lend creedence to your frustrations.

Say NO to the awful ideas, terrible people, useless products, and infuriating doublespeak that increasingly dominates our lives. Never before has there been a book so completely full of shit.

Clearly, it isn't just you...

Inside the book jacket this book is referred to as "the standard reference for everyone who believes that everything is shit". It also stated that "never before has a book been so entirely full of shit." I couldn't agree more. I think I understand what the authors were going for. Quick 4-5 paragraph bits of commentary on a wide range of common topics or themes that most everyone can relate to. Sort of Seinfeld, only with a lot more attitude.

The problem for me was I wasn't seeing enough humor. Instead, I saw more long winded rants that were less funny, more whiney, and punctuated throughout by quite a big of vulgar language. Profanity, when used properly and in context, can be quite funny. I didn't find that to be the case in this instance.

I believe the authors would have been better served to narrow down the list of topics, keep them current, and focus on shorter, sharper, commentary. This was just not my type of book in it's present form.

Thanks to Anna Balasi, and the wonderful people at The Hatchette Book Group for providing me with this book to review -you guys rock!

The Bible Illuminated

Let me first start off by saying that I have never read the Bible. I have browsed through it, and read passages but truly it seems like a stuffy piece of work (sorry if this offends, it is just my humble opinion). That is part of the reason why I signed up to see this version, all I had to do was see the cover to know that this was something totally new and innovative...and it did not disappoint.

The glossy pages and descriptive pictures are inviting, and are sure to draw in a new crowd of people who may not have been willing to read the Bible previously. I know there will be many critics but that's ok too - to each their own. The pictures add such depth to something that, less face it, is not an easy read. I only had an issue with one of the pictures, the one of a child holding a handgun. I wasn't sure exactly how this was supposed to fit in - I didn't think it was appropriate for this book, or any really.

Overall, I think this is an excellent tool to draw a "new" crowd to a very old book, and might make it easier for the churches to bring in the youth. Definetely worth checking out.

Thanks again to Lisa Roe for inviting me to be part of this endeavor!

Against Medical Advice by James Patterson and Hal Friedman

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (October 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0316024759
ISBN-13: 978-0316024754

About the book:

Cory Friedman woke up one morning when he was five years old with the uncontrollable urge to twitch his neck. From that day forward his life became a hell of irrepressible tics and involuntary utterances, and Cory embarked on an excruciating journey from specialist to specialist to discover the cause of his disease. Soon it became unclear what tics were symptoms of his disease and what were side effects of the countless combinations of drugs. The only certainty is that it kept getting worse. Simply put: Cory Friedman's life was a living hell.

AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE is the true story of Cory and his family's decades-long battle for survival in the face of extraordinary difficulties and a maddening medical establishment. It is a heart-rending story of struggle and triumph with a climax as dramatic as any James Patterson thriller.

I must admit, the story itself is heart wrenching. I'm sure anyone who reads this book will feel a small sense of the desperation and despair that the Friedman's felt for the best part of 13 years.

And the courage shown by the entire family in general, and by Cory specifically, shows what special people they are. To even share the story at all took an enormous amount of courage, and for that they are to be commended.

With all that said though, I personally had a hard time reading this book. While I understand the need to explain the behaviors, "tics" as they are called, since they are central to the story itself, I felt it was over explained and made the book drag and become difficult to read.

Also, I didn't feel it was necessary to spend as much time as was devoted to medications. Again, while some of that information was certainly necessary, I felt it was discussed too much.

"Against Medical Advice" isn't a bad book. It surely is a triumph of the spirit and I applaud the Friedmans for having the courage to share this very intimate journey with us all. The writing, as always, is fantastic, and although the details bored me at times it is no fault of the authors. This book just wasn't for me.

Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris

Hardcover: 176 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (October 8, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0316035904
ISBN-13: 978-0316035903

About the book:

David Sedaris's beloved holiday collection is new again with six more pieces, including a never before published story. Along with such favoritesas the diaries of a Macy's elf and the annals of two very competitive families, are Sedaris's tales of tardy trick-or-treaters ("Us and Them"); the difficulties of explaining the Easter Bunny to the French ("Jesus Shaves"); what to do when you've been locked out in a snowstorm ("Let It Snow"); the puzzling Christmas traditions of other nations ("Six to Eight Black Men"); what Halloween at the medical examiner's looks like ("The Monster Mash"); and a barnyard secret Santa scheme gone awry ("Cow and Turkey").

I am a big fan of David Sedaris. I find his writing to be consistantly funny. His humor is both droll and sarcastic in equal measure. This holds true with "Holidays on Ice". While I found some of the stories personally funnier than others, they were all very witty and delightully readable.

My favorites were "Seasons Greetings" about an annual holiday newsletter, and "Six to Eight Black Men" which points out a number of different ways a seemingly familiar story can be told.

Sedaris is a satirical giant who never fails to please. Whether you are looking for a good read, or just a good laugh, "Holidays on Ice" should have you covered.

Coming Soon: Bible Illuminated

Bible Illuminated: The Book: New Testament, is scheduled for release on October 28.

I was really intrigued to get a chance to review this book before it's official release. I haven't looked at the bible in many years and to be perfectly honest I find it quite boring. This book is described (in the promotional material) as not just a Bible but "art". I think this is a great idea, try to show The Bible in a new light to appeal to a larger audience.

I am no expert when it comes to the Bible so I will be giving a totally unbiased view of this book. I won't compare it the the "original" Bible, but will make sure to express my thoughts about this book, and how I feel it can help people. I am excited to receive my copy and get started, the photos I have seen are marvelous!

Thanks so much to Lisa Roe for this opportunity!

Booking Through Thursday

Suggested by JM:

I was looking through books yesterday at the shops and saw all the Twilight books, which I know basically nothing about. What I do know is that I’m beginning to feel like I’m the *only* person who knows nothing about them.

Despite being almost broke and trying to save money, I almost bought the expensive book (Australian book prices are often completely nutty) just because I felt the need to be ‘up’ on what everyone else was reading.

Have you ever felt pressured to read something because ‘everyone else’ was reading it? Have you ever given in and read the book(s) in question or do you resist? If you are a reviewer, etc, do you feel it’s your duty to keep up on current trends?

This is a tough one - at times I do feel pressured to read books, you read so many fantastic reviews you think to yourself "I really need to read this book". I have learned to try and curb this because I honestly like reading whatever suites me. I have also read fan favorites in the past and not been impressed. I have stacks of books and sometimes I just close my eyes and grab one. It might end up being my favorite book of the year.

As far as reviewing book, I feel the same applies. I do add a lot of books to my TBR list, but prefer to review more obscure titles. But that's just me.

Happy Thursday!