Updates and the amazingness that is the library hold system

Hello everyone!  OK, so I know I have been M.I.A. for a couple of months, but I've been really busy enjoying my family.  I haven't really been reading too much lately either, so there isn't a lot to update on.  I actually have only read two books since I last wrote.  I do want to touch base on the second aspect of the title which is the amazingness (I know, probably not a word, but go with me) that is the hold system at my public library.  I was first introduced to this system when we were living in California and I loved it so much that I recommend it to anyone who will listen.  I think I even have mentioned it before.  I'm not sure about how it works in other places but in California and Hawaii it works very similar.  The library has a database of all the books that you can usually search remotely online or at the library branch itself.  Most of the time, the libraries work with the other libraries in the county (or in the state as it is here in Hawaii).  This allows the user of said library to be able to borrow a book from any library in the county that they are registered in.  We lived in Riverside county in California so I was able to borrow a book from any library in that particular county.  Now, the cool thing is that you don't have to travel to the library that has the book in order to obtain a copy, although you might need to if you want it quickly because the hold process can sometimes take a long time.  In order to get the book without traveling, you would simply log on to the computer database (either remotely or at the library) and place a hold for that book from your account.  In my case, they offer you the option to choose a pick up library.  The system will then send the book to your library of choice, usually the one closest to your house or the one your frequent most often, and you can pick it up from there.  I love this system because I am no longer limited to the selection at my local library.  Sometimes, my library doesn't have a book I want but another library does so this makes it so I don't have go traveling around to get the book I want or need.  Now some of you may be thinking, well duh.  She joined this train a little late on the journey, and you might be right.  However, I have talked to many people who weren't aware that this service existed and I thought I would share the wonderful program.

So why am I going on and on about this?  Well, my library offers a selection of ebooks and they have a hold system on this as well.  One of the books that I wanted to read was available as an ebook and I placed a hold for this book.  I became number 67 in the list of people that wanted this book.  Finally, after two months of being on the hold list, the book became available and it is the first book I want to tell you about.  My husband is huge into politics and history so I have been trying to broaden my horizons and read some books that allow me to become immersed in that world with him.  The book that I most recently read was 41: A Portrait of my Father by George W. Bush.  This is the first book that I was able to add to my reading challenge for this year.  I liked this book simply for the fact that it allowed me to see a world that I wasn't otherwise privy to.  The major negative for me in this book was that it was more of a rebelling of the history with a few anecdotes thrown in instead of the other way around.  The title seemed promising that I was going to get an in depth look in to the world of the Bush family, but I just felt like I was reading a history book with some interesting stories about the prior president.  The stories and anecdotes that he offered were interesting and they definitely gave a different viewpoint of the events that unfolded but I guess I was just looking for more.  I would recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in history but I just don't think it is for everyone.

I was going to share the other book that I read over the absence but I just realized that it is part of a series and I wanted to wait until I finished the whole series before I wrote about it.  The series is the Sprirt Animals series.  This series has a similar nature and writing style to the 39 Clues series so I would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed that series, but that is all I will say on that for now.

I have a huge "to-be read" pile sitting in my nightstand right now that I am trying to tackle.  I promise I will be updating soon, but I just need to find more time to dedicate to my reading.  I will be starting a new book soon and will update ASAP!  Keep reading and please comment with any thoughts, book suggestions, or requests!

Jodi Picoult is amazing

OK, so I know these two posts are going to be back to back, but I wanted to share the reason why I haven't posted anything in a couple of weeks.  Last week, I got an email that my turn for a book that I had on my hold list had finally came!  I went to the library and found out that since this book is still new and the hold list is long (I had been on it for at least four months!) that I only had a week to read it and return it.  Well, challenge accepted and accomplished!  I just returned the book today, but I had finished it a couple of days ago.  Now that it is returned and completed I have been able to rejoin you all and share my wonderful experience with this novel.

As you probably have guessed from the title, the book is by one of my favorite authors, Jodi Picoult.  I have read a good number of her books and I have the ones I haven't read on my to be read list.  She is amazing and has a way of writing that just hooks me in from the first paragraph.  The first book I ever read by her was Nineteen Minutes as an assignment for one of my first teacher school classes.  This book was so amazing and I recommend it to anyone, but be warned that it is very sad and can be intense.  I especially recommend this book to teachers and parents because it offers a view into a high school shooting, the aftermath, and the events leading up to it that will help you better connect with your students and children in a way I didn't think a fiction book could do.

On to the book of the hour.  The newest book that she wrote is called Leaving Time.  This book is written in the classic Picoult style of many narrators.  This is one of the things that I love about her novels.  She is able to bring you into the story by showing you the plot points from the various characters view points.  She also does a lot of reflection and flashbacks that allow the reader to get a sense of the background along with the current story line.  I love that the reader is able to be immersed in the story like that.  This book does not disappoint.  There are many twists and turns that I was not expecting, and the ending was truly unexpected.  I won't reveal any of the plot points here because I don't want to spoil this wonderful story for anyone who hasn't read it yet.  I do want to post a quote from Jodi Picoult's website that I think completely encompasses the story well:
         "Leaving Time explores the mother-daughter relationship, be it elephant or human, and the idea that those we can't forget are never truly gone."

This book really resonated with me.  As a lover of animals, it frustrated me to read about the treatment of elephants in certain arenas.  As a mother, it really made me think about the relationship I have with my daughter and what I hope that it grows into as she grows older.  I really think she hit the jackpot on this one and I hope that everyone gets a chance to read this one soon.  I will be back to the grind and next week I will update you all on my progress in reading!

Old habits die hard

Hello fellow readers!  I am going to make a confession this week.  Ever since I was younger, I have read Nora Roberts books.  I know, they are kinda cheesy romance novels, but for some reason I am constantly drawn towards them.  My grandmother is the person who originally turned me on to her as an author because she used to have many of her novels that I would gaze at while spending the night at her house.  She let me borrow them (which turned in to keep when she passed away) and I read them all and continue to read new ones as they come out.  Right now, I am currently in the middle of the first book of her newest series, The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy.

The first book starts out by introducing a family in Ireland where the matriarch is a witch.  She is teaching her three children the art of her craft and each of them have an animal that they are connected with for protection.  They are being threatened by a dark witch who wants to be with the woman and he kills off her husband.  The books tell the tale of the modern day cousins who step into the roles of the children.  Each cousin has an animal like the children, a horse, a bird, and a dog.  The trilogy seems to be full of magic and love.  It is progressing well.  I am still in the middle of the first book, but my family got me the second and third ones for Christmas so I have some reading to do.

I haven't been able to finish this book because I took a break to read a book that finally came off my hold list at the library and I was only able to keep it for a week (more on that next post).  I will be continuing to read the series now that I have returned the library book and I will update in a new post how the series turned out.

Nora Roberts' books are great if you like a good love story with some twists and turns.  I like reading her trilogies as well because they tie the stories in well and you get to see the development of some of the relationships that you otherwise wouldn't if it was single book.  Anyone else out there love her storytelling abilities?  If you have any books or trilogies by her that you love, please share them with us in the comments.  I would love to hear about some that I may not have read yet!