Daddy's Delight

Daddy's Delight by Karia Bunting
Moody Publishers, 2010
223 pages
Inspirational; Non-fiction
3.5/5 stars

Source: Received a free ebook via Netgalley

Summary: Guidance on how to embrace God's design for you as a woman.  Includes insight into singlehood, married life, friendships, and ministry.

Thoughts: I requested this back in May so I can't remember what specifically about it attracted me.  I think the title is interesting because I only call my earthly father "daddy." But why wouldn't I?  He loves me far beyond what any human can.  I think I was held back by the fact that Father seems more respectful and I want to be respectful to the Lord.  I'm rethinking that position now but it still makes me feel a little rude to think of Him as my daddy.

On to the actual content: my favorite part of these kinds of books is always the personal content and I wish this had contained more.  She does provide several examples and they're well-balanced with scripture and analysis.  I just prefer more stories from real-life.

My favorite part was Bunting's rejection of women being blamed for sin.  Yes, Eve sinned in the garden by listening to the snake but Mary carried and gave birth to Jesus, our Savior thus wiping out that sin.  I also liked how she didn't just say women should be in the house but recognized the valuable contributions we can make to the economy and our family's finances.

Overall: Nothing new or groundbreaking but useful guidance and very readable.

Cover: It's always hard for me to evaluate netgalley covers because covers can look different online than in person but this one is okay.

9/11

So this is the ninth anniversary of 9/11.  I was quite young when it happened although I do have some memories of that day.  I was in Pennsylvania, some ways away from NYC but also from where Flight 93 crashed.  I didn't know anyone who died.  And I didn't know why somebody would do something like that.  I still don't really understand how people can kill each other like that.  I just want to offer prayers for those who lost loved ones and for the whole country as a whole.  I don't feel very talkative today but I'll be back tomorrow with a book review and through the rest of the week and onward.

The Princess Test

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The Princess Test by Gail Carson Levine

This was the first Biddle tale I read and I loved it immediately.  It is a retelling of The Princess and the Pea with Lorelei as the pickiest person ever.  Her companion grows tired of her and decides to lose her.  After wondering through the forest, Lorelei arrives wet and shivering at a palace where Prince Nicholas lives.  By luck, they had already met and begun to fall in love.  By further luck, his parents are conducting a series of princess tests whereby they will determine who is a real princess and should marry Nicholas.  And with more luck, she pretends to be a princess.  The tests are crazy stuff but they culminated in a stack of mattresses on top of a tiny pea.  Of course Lorelei feels it (although she's not sure what it is) and wins the prince's hand!

Just a really funny take on the story with a bit more background for the princess.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World

Scott Pilgrim vs the World, 2010
Based on the graphic novels by
Starring Michael Cera as Scott Pilgrim, Anna Kendrick as Stacey Pilgrim, Kieran Culkin as Wallace, and Jason Schwartzman as Gideon
4/5 stars

Summary: Scott Pilgrim plays bass in a band and dates a high-school girl.  Then he meets Ramona Flowers and immediately tries to woo her.  Along the way, he has to fight and defeat her seven evil exes.

Warning: I believe this movie skews younger: my parents who were quite interested in the concept and actors, did not enjoy it very much. My sister and I quite liked it.

After seeing The Other Guys recently, I was very excited about seeing some women even if they weren't the stars.  I LOVE Anna Kendrick and cannot wait for her to star in a movie (not to be mean and off-topic but why does Kristen Stewart get so much love? Is sullen and withdrawn really that hard to do? I think sparkling and peppy is harder but Anna does it!)  She plays Scott's sister and there's not nearly enough of her but I was happy every time she appeared.  Then Aubrey Plaza (from Parks and Recreations) plays Julie, a foul-mouthed woman who works many jobs and is able to give Scott lots of advice. Ellen Wong as Knives, Scott's high-school girlfriend, is great as the dumped girl who ends up growing a lot.  Mae Whitman plays one of the exes and I've really liked her ever since "State of Grace;" nice to see her reunited with Arrested Development costar Michael Cera.  Two other ex-girlfriends of Scott's, Alison Pill as drummer Kim and Brie Larson as newly famous Envy Adams are also quite funny.  I also liked Kieran Culkin as Scott's roommate/best friend who says SO many funny things and just generally seems to be having fun.

Unfortunately Michael Cera as Scott and Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Ramona were somewhat blah for me.  What do they see in each other?  They were so flat compared to those around them.  And I really wanted him to get a haircut (this is addressed in the film).

Looking over what I've written, I clearly preferred Scott's everyday life to his battles with the exes although they provided some good moments and some comic bits.  By the end they were just too long and I kept hoping for more of the real-life stuff.  I also would also call this a pretty nerdy movie-not in a judgemental way because I really liked it and I consider myself a nerd but because of the style and the characters.  I would definitely recommend Scott Pilgrim vs the World.

Bleak House, Chapters 14-19

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Sum Up: I'm growing to appreciate Esther's talents as a narrator a lot more.  There are a lot of occurrences in this section although I'm not entirely sure how they will all tie together or if they're important to the main narrative (which seems to me to revolve around Esther rather than the court case).

Chapter 14: So Richard leaves them in London; Ada and Esther meet up again with Miss Jellyby who is determined to separate herself from her mother and the imminent bankruptcy of their household.  She now has a fiance, Prince Turveydrop (what a stupid name) who she met while learning how to dance as well as his father Mr Turveydrop who has Deportment.  We also return to Miss Flite and Krook.

Chapter 15: Ugh-Skimpole rears his ugly head with more debts and money schemes.  I'm afraid I don't remember hearing about the Coavinses before but I was uncomfortable with Dickens's portrayal of the eldest Charley who's taking care of her younger siblings as very womanly and brave of her.  There is also Mr. Gridley who is in a similar position as Mr Jarndyce in regards to the court system.

Chapter 16: Then back to Lady Dedlock who disguises herself and pays Jo, the illiterate boy, to help her go over the circumstances of Nemo's death.

Chapter 17: Mr and Mrs Badger come back! Once I remembered who they were (seriously there are so many characters), I was laughing-I really like them.  They express concerns about Richard pursuing the study of medicine (I don't think he'd be really good at any profession as he seems to lack perseverance and ambition).  Esther is concerned.  Mr Jarndyce is able to reveal a bit more about Esther's life.  And Mr Woodcourt takes his leave (not sure if he will be important later on).

Chapter 18: Richard continues to be stupid with his bizarre theories about spending money.  Ugh-Mr Skimpole is back.  I'm not sure if he's meant to be a comic character (maybe Victorians would have found him funny?  I certainly don't) or what purpose he will fulfill.  Sir Leicester and Lady Dedlock are seen by our main characters with Lady Dedlock making quite an impression on Esther.  There is an odd instance as a French maid walks without shoes through the wet grass-do any other readers know the significance of that?  It just seems weird to me.

Chapter 19: So much description in this chapter (zzz) before a portrait of an Evangelical Mr Chadband who with his wife are visiting the Snagsbys.  Jo is caught with the leftovers of the money received from Lady Dedlock (although of course he doesn't know it's her).  Mr Guppy also returns (seriously he's probably my favorite character at this point; followed by the Badgers)!  And it turns out that Mrs Chadband used to be in charge of Esther, not sure how or why she no longer is.

Forget You

Forget You by Jennifer Echols
Gallery Books/MTV Books, 2010
292 pages
YA; Contemporary; Romantic Drama
3/5 stars

Source: Bought

Summary: Zoey thought she was going to meet Brendan.  But then she wakes up from a crash with Doug.  And now Doug is acting like he's her boyfriend and Zoey can't remember anything about that night.

Some spoilers-don't think it will ruin the book but...

Thoughts: This was a real mixed bag for me.  The things I liked, I really liked but the things I didn't like, I hated.

Liked: Echols writes steamy scenes very well so even when I didn't really like the characters (see below), I enjoyed those passages.  They were probably the most engaging part and I could see them as a couple then.

While Zoey's dad is a huge jerk (he cheated on her mom and knocked up his 24 year old coworker; they elope to HI after Zoey's accident), he was interesting.  He's very selfish, is a poor excuse for a father and I would hate to meet a real-life him but in the context of a book, I liked it.

Didn't Like: Let's start small: the timeline seemed a bit confused to me.  It seemed like more time should have passed than apparently did.

Then this is more of a quibble but Doug has been to juvie.  In many books, he would be the alluring bad boy who fascinates most of the girls but in this one he's a dangerous outcast. That just seems weird to me although I very rarely cheer for the bad boy when I'm reading (and he's not so bad anyway).

And biggest: Zoey is an idiot. She spent all summer listening to Brandon tell about the different girls he slept with (it seems like at least a new one every week) but then he sleeps with her, so she thinks they're a couple.  And it's not like they talked about it, she just assumed because they had been friends so long.  Plus he was obviously avoiding her and hanging out with Stephanie (why does Stephanie have to be a ho?  We're really not like that).  Zoey is justifiably protective of her mom (who was hospitalized after a suicide attempt) but how did she think such a thing was going to be contained?  And finally it takes Zoey way too long to admit that she has no memory of that night and start really digging for answers.

Overall: Some well-written passages but the story as a whole lacks.

Cover: It's okay from a distance but up close, Doug's stubble is heading in to perv territory.

The Ivy

The Ivy by Lauren Kunze with Rina Onur
Greenwillow Books, 2010
312 pages
YA; Contemporary
1st in series
3/5 stars

Source: Won from Goodreads Firstread program

Summary: Callie Andrews has finally arrived at Harvard where she meets her three very different roommates, cute boys, new enemies, and struggles with course work, peer pressure, and money troubles.

Thoughts: I was really excited about the premise of this book as I'm not familiar with many YA books set in college and like many of those raised on the East Coast, I have a fascination with the Ivies.

I didn't really like Callie; she's supposed to be so great and has four potential romantic partners but I don't know what they see in her.  I mean, she's blonde and from CA but is that really enough?

Of those guys, I did not like Gregory (at first-wait till you see why I do) because he WAS a jerk and his hotness did not compensate enough.  Plus I really hate when the idea that a guy who is mean to you actually likes you is promoted-so wrong! And he's a total whore with a revolving bedmate each night (it seems-this wasn't detailed every night but it could fit). But then it turns out that he loves to read, especially Jane Austen, especially Persuasion, and that almost redeems him except that the book ends with a cliffhanger and without him around.  I did not like Evan, her ex-boyfriend still in CA, nor did I like Clint but I did like Michael, who seemed like a really nice guy.

The other characters include Callie's three roommates who are French girl, NYC Prep girl, and Fundamentalist Christian girl.  They develop a bit more personality but not as much as they should have. The final other character is Callie's enemy as she is Clint's ex-girlfriend and is in a position to make Callie miserable.

While I can't say much of this aligns with my college experience at all (I'm not at an Ivy), I can see how some people at a college near me have a similar work hard, party harder mentality.  The social analysis of Harvard's chauvinistic instances and the realities of money were probably the most interesting part.  I actually go to a women's school so I deal with a whole different set of issues and I'm quite fortunate in the financial department although I am still working and will graduate with debt.  Plus I have no interest in paying thousands of dollars for exclusive parties; I like to read which is free when I get books from the library/my new love Netgalley. There is a focus on the "compromises" women make in order to be successful and Callie desires much more money in order to be able to compete with her peers.

The other thing I didn't like was that this was a collection of vignettes more than one coherent story and while it usually focused on Callie's POV, it also randomly shifted to some of the other people.  It was a bit disorienting.

Warning: Language, underage drinking, and some sexual content.

Overall: Intriguing beginning with a cliffhanger that left me curious for more. Not in love with the series.

Cover: I don't really like the cover-the red is overwhelming for me but that is very much a personal preference.