Monday, November 30, 2009

Winners: Celebrate My 2 Year Blogiversary: Giveaway

Thanks again to Anna of Hachette Books for this giveaway!

Thanks to everyone who entered and to those of you who stopped by to wish me a happy Blogiversary.  It really means a lot to me!

Now for the prizes and the winners:


The winner is...


Wanda

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.



The winner is..


Clenna

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.


The Winner is...


Sheila

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 4:49 PM 7 comments  

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Winner: My 2 Year Blogiversary: Giveaway- Take Two: International


Thanks to everone who entered!

The Winner is...




Ruby

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 4:13 PM 3 comments  

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Saturday, November 28, 2009

ARC Reading Challenge 2010




January 2 - December 30, 2010

Last year we had a great turn out for this challenge and I have request to run it again for 2010.  Since so many challenges start on January 1st and end on December 31st, I decided to change the date a little bit this year.  However, if you post a review for January 1st, you are welcome to use it for this challenge. 

I use the term "ARC" loosely,any book a publisher or author gives you with the expectation that you review it, counts for this challenge.

Please note that there are some changes, so please read the rules! 

Here are the rules:

1. To sign up, leave a direct link to your blog post about this challenge that includes your list from rule #2, using Mr. Linky below.  Please leave a comment as well.

2. List all of the ARC's that you have to read right now. Then throughout the year, you must continue updating that list as you receive more ARC's. (This is important). You should also strike out the ones that you finish.

3. The Levels

Level Bronze: .a. All of us who have or will have less than 12 ARC's must read all of the ARC's we have. Note, that if you have 11 ARC's and then receive a 12th one you will be bumped up to catagory a.

b. All of us who have or will have more than 12 ARC's must read and review 12.

Level Silver: Read 24 ARC's

Level Gold: Read 25 or more ARC's

4. You don't have to make a list of which ARC's you plan to read, but you can if you want.

If you choose a lower level, you can always change it to a higher level if you like.  However, you cannot go from a higher level back down to a lower level.

5. Crossovers with other challenges are allowed and Audio-books are allowed as long as they are ARC's.
6. Read the books and review them on your blog. If you don't have a blog, you can post your review on sites like Powells, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.

7. Please subscribe to my blog, as I will be doing a monthly post with MR Linky.  Please add your reviews for each month in MR Linky in the monthly post.  For your Name, please use this format Name: (Your Name, Book Title and Author's Name) for example: (Teddy, Obsessive Reading by Helen Reader).  Please be sure to use the direct link to your review, not just to your blog.  Then please leave a comment.

8. Enjoy!

Posted by Teddy Rose at 11:03 PM 44 comments  

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Wednesday, November 25, 2009

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton


 



I scoured my already read list trying decide which book to choose for the letter "A" and it was tough going for awhile.  I thought of a couple a books and then thought, "darn, they are memoirs.  Historical, yes but not fiction.  Then I came up with two great contenders.  Then thought, I reviewed those just last year.  I know they would be acceptable but I was hoping to come up with something better and better, I did!

I read The Age of Innocence back in 2006, before I started my blog and before I started reviewing all the book I have read.  I did keep track of the books I read, with a spiral notebook and pen.  I included the Title, author, my rating, and a few scribbled thoughts.

I think The Age of Innocence deserves more from me.. so here it is.

I saw the movie when it first came out years ago.  I really loved it but didn't think to read it.  Then a friend recommended the book to me.  She couldn't believe I hadn't read it.  She said, "you love the classics but you have never read The Age of Innocence?"  She was almost outraged.  LOL!  So I got a copy and read it.

Since it has been awhile since I read it, I am going to use the description on the back of the book for those of you who haven't read it:

Into the narrow social world of New York in the 1870s comes Countess Ellen Olenska, surrounded by shocked whispers about her failed marriage to a rich Polish Count. A woman who leaves her husband can never be accepted in polite society. Newland Archer is engaged to young May Welland, but the beautiful and mysterious Countess needs his help. He becomes her friend and defender, but friendship with an unhappy, lonely woman is a dangerous path for a young man to follow - especially a young man who is soon to be married.

My thoughts:

I totally got lost in this sumptuous book.  I had no idea I was reading, as I became a character in the story.  It felt like I was witnessing first hand.  This book is a feast of words,  with biting humour and institutionalized hypocrisy of the upper-class late 19th century New York.  This is a must read for all historical fiction and classics lovers.

4.5/5

Also reviewed by:

Book-a-rama

Did I miss your review?  Please leave me your link in the comments. 

This post is also for Woman on Wednesdays (WOW).  Want to know about other excellent female authors or do you have any to share?  Go to West of Mars' Rocks 'n Reads every Wednesday and look for Susan's WOW post.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:39 PM 19 comments  

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Monday, November 23, 2009

Fox on the Ice by Tomson Highway

 

In the last of the Caribous Song trilogy, we find Joe and Cody ice fishing with their mama and papa. They had a nice picnic with the fish that they caught earlier. After eat their fill and cleaning up, Joe and Mama get into the dog sled for a nap while Papa and Cody fish. Papa and Cody were setting up the fish net when all of a sudden the sled dogs woke up. They smelled a stranger, a fox. They barked and growled and took off with Mama and Joe still in the sled.

Mama dug is her heals into the snow to try to slow the sled down but Joe thought it was fun. Want to know the outcome? Read the book.

I really enjoyed the entire trilogy but especially the adventure in the Fox On the Ice. Tomson Highway really knows how to weave a great story that both kids and parents can enjoy together. Brian Deines was the illustrator for the series and made the characters come to life on the page. Highly recommended!

Also reviewed by:

Books and Quilts

If you would like to participate in Short Story Mondays or just find out about some great short stories, go to John of The Book Mine Set. He has a short story review every Monday and a place for you to link your short story reviews. Come join in the fun!

Posted by Teddy Rose at 4:25 AM 4 comments  

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Friday, November 20, 2009

Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill


I won this book back in March from Joanne of The Book Zombie. Can you believe I haven't had a chance to read it yet. Me either since it was one of my most coveted books then. My only excuse is my out of control ARC's.

Then one day recently, my husband Bill asked me if I had The Book of Negroes. I was surprised he asked because he rarely reads fiction. I handed it over to him with the stipulation that he would have to write a guest review of it for my blog.

Without further ado, here is Bill Rose's Review:

Book of Negroes, the fourth novel by Canadian author Lawrence Hill, is a truly remarkable work of historical fiction. It details the life of Amanata Diallo, who was kidnapped from her home in West Africa when she was only 11 years old, and sold into slavery. The book opens in 1802 when she is living in London, and being wooed by British abolitionists to speak publicly on behalf of their cause. The reader is then led back into her childhood describing an idyllic life in the village of Bayo, where she was born into a Muslim family and learned midwifery skills from her mother. This life is tragically interrupted one night when she is captured with others and led in chains on a three-month trek to the coastal port where they are placed on a slave ship for transport to America.

It is a voyage many will not survive, and at the end of it she finds herself in Charleston on the way to an indigo plantation on the South Carolina coast. The land is completely strange to her, and she only speaks the languages of homeland. Meena (as she is now called) learns English and is eventually put to work “catching babies”. From there we follow her as she is sold to another, seemingly more benevolent owner who teaches her to read and write, skills she masters well. Eventually he takes her to New York where she teaches English to other blacks (slave and free) while the American Revolution begins. The British offer freedom to all slaves who will fight for them, and with the end of hostilities approaching, she is hired by them to record the names and data of those who will be taken to Nova Scotia. She sails with them to finally be formally emancipated.

The life they find there is exceedingly hard, and when Meena is offered passage to England by an army officer sympathetic to the abolitionist cause, she accepts. Though she is now free, she finds London to be a strange place, and still yearns to return home to her village Africa. At the urging of her abolitionist friends, Meena agrees to be resettled in Freetown, a settlement for freed slaves ironically close to the slaving port she was shipped from decades previously. Our heroine is then faced with the momentous decision whether to risk a long and dangerous journey back to Bayo, without even knowing if it still exists.

This is a story punctuated by marvelous historical detail and character development. The numerous cruelties of the slave trade are detailed in ways that will shock the conscience. That its effects still reverberate to present day race relations, comes as no surprise after reading this book. The narrative voice of our heroine matures throughout the novel and adds to its richness. Though I am not normally a fiction fan, I found this novel certainly deserving of the buzz it has generated and a very rewarding read. It is highly recommended.

5/5

Please note:  In the U.S.A. this same book is titled "Someone Knows My Name".   Thanks to Wendy of Caribousmom for alerting me to that.

Also reviewed by:

If I missed your review, please leave the link in the comments.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:02 PM 17 comments  

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Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Celebrate My 2 Year Blogiversary: Giveaway- Take Two: International


Like I said in the previous post, November 1st marked the second year of So Many Precious Books, So Little Time!
I can't think of a better way to celebrate other than to thank all my readers and subscribers with a giveaway.

Note: This giveaway is for my international readers only.  If you live in the USA or Canada, please do not enter!   

I have one copy of this gently used audiobook to giveaway:

Product Description:

On June 9, 1865, while traveling by train to London with his secret mistress, 53-year-old Charles Dickens -- at the height of his powers and popularity, the most famous and successful novelist in the world and perhaps in the history of the world -- hurtled into a disaster that changed his life forever.

Did Dickens begin living a dark double life after the accident? Were his nightly forays into the worst slums of London and his deepening obsession with corpses, crypts, murder, opium dens, the use of lime pits to dissolve bodies, and a hidden subterranean London- mere research . . . or something more terrifying?

Just as he did in The Terror, Dan Simmons draws impeccably from history to create a gloriously engaging and terrifying narrative. Based on the historical details of Charles Dickens's life and narrated by Wilkie Collins (Dickens's friend, frequent collaborator, and Salieri-style secret rival), DROOD explores the still-unsolved mysteries of the famous author's last years and may provide the key to Dickens's final, unfinished work: The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Chilling, haunting, and utterly original, DROOD is Dan Simmons at his powerful best.

Here are the rules (please follow exactly or you will be disqualified):

1. For one entry, leave a comment on any of my posts other than this one.  Then, come back to this post and let me know that you did it. Please be sure to include your email address (if it isn't available in your profile), so that I can contact you if you win. If I can't find your email either in the comments or your profile, you will be disqualified!

2. For two more entries, post about this giveaway on your blog and leave link to your blog post in the comments. You will also get an entry for each person who tells me that they learned about this
giveaway from you.

3. For another 5 more entries: Become a Follower of my blog or subscribe to my blog through Google Reader or other subscription service. If you are already a subscriber or follower you still get the
five extra entries! Please do not comment that you are a follower five times! I will give you the extra entries myself. I will delete any extra entries that you make as it will just confuse me when I go to pick the winners.

Only one entry per household/IP address.

This giveaway will end on Sunday November 29th 11:59 P.M. E.S.T. The winners will be notified by email, so remember to include your email address in the comments, if it isn't available in your profile! Winners must respond within three days or will be disqualified.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:23 PM 10 comments  

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Celebrate My 2 Year Blogiversary: Giveaway


November 1st marked the second year of So Many Precious Books, So Little Time!
I can't think of a better way to celebrate other than to thank all my readers and subscribers with a giveaway.

Thanks to Anna of Hachette Books I am giving away up to 3 copies of the following audiobooks.


Product Description:

Margaret and Patrick have been married just a few months when they set off on what they hope will be a great adventure-a year living in Kenya. Margaret quickly realizes there is a great deal she doesn't know about the complex mores of her new home, and about her own husband.

A British couple invites the newlyweds to join on a climbing expedition to Mount Kenya, and they eagerly agree. But during their harrowing ascent, a horrific accident occurs. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Margaret struggles to understand what happened on the mountain and how these events have transformed her and her marriage, perhaps forever.

A Change in Altitude illuminates the inner landscape of a couple, the irrevocable impact of tragedy, and the elusive nature of forgiveness. With stunning language and striking emotional intensity, Anita Shreve transports us to the exotic panoramas of Africa and into the core of our most intimate relationships.



Product Description:

#1 bestselling author Nicholas Sparks's new novel is at once a compelling family drama and a heartrending tale of young love.

Seventeen year old Veronica "Ronnie" Miller's life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alientated from her parents, especially her father...until her mother decides it would be in everyone's best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie's father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church.

The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story of love on many levels--first love, love between parents and children -- that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that love can break our hearts...and heal them.


Product Description:

Once in a generation a novel comes along that taps a vein of universal human experience, resonating with readers of all ages. THE LOVELY BONES is such a book -- a #1 bestseller celebrated at once for its artistry, for its luminous clarity of emotion, and for its astonishing power to lay claim to the hearts of millions of readers around the world. Now in an audiobook edition read by the author, with movie tie-in art.


"My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973."

So begins the story of Susie Salmon, who is adjusting to her new home in heaven, a place that is not at all what she expected, even as she is watching life on earth continue without her -- her friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her killer trying to cover his tracks, her grief-stricken family unraveling. Out of unspeakable tragedy and loss, THE LOVELY BONES succeeds, miraculously, in building a tale filled with hope, humor, suspense, even joy.

The major motion picture version of THE LOVELY BONES, directed by Peter Jackson and starring Rachel Weisz, Susan Sarandon, Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, and Saoirse Ronan is scheduled for release on December 11, 2009.

The number of entrants to this giveaway will determine how many copies of each book I will giveaway:


1-10 entrants= 1
11-20 entrants= 2
21-30 entrants= 3
31-40 entrants=4
41 or more entrants=5

Here are the rules (please follow exactly or you will be disqualified):

1. For one entry, a) leave a comment on any of my posts other than this one. b) Then, come back to this post and let me know that you did it. c) Tell me which title or titles you would like to enter for. Note, you can enter for all 3 but you can only win one.   Please be sure to include your email address (if it isn't available in your profile), so that I can contact you if you win. If I can't find your email either in the comments or your profile, you will be disqualified!

2. For two more entries, post about this giveaway on your blog and leave link to your blog post in the comments. You will also get an entry for each person who tells me that they learned about this
giveaway from you.

3. For another 5 more entries: Become a Follower of my blog or subscribe to my blog through Google Reader or other subscription service. If you are already a subscriber or follower you still get the
five extra entries! Please do not comment that you are a follower five times! I will give you the extra entries myself. I will delete any extra entries that you make as it will just confuse me when I go to pick the winners.

Sorry, the giveaway is only open US and Canadian residents only.  However, I will be posting a different giveaway for my international readers.

The winner’s mailing address: NO P.O. Boxes.

Only one entry per household/IP address.

This giveaway will end on Sunday November 29th 11:59 P.M. E.S.T. The winners will be notified by email, so remember to include your email address in the comments, if it isn't available in your profile! Winners must respond within three days or will be disqualified.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:02 PM 14 comments  

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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

The Alphabet in Historical Fiction Challenge



Over at Historical Tapestry, we are hosting this fun challenge. Thanks to the inspiration of Kerrie's Alphabet in Crime Fiction, we are doing the same challenge but with historical fiction.

Of course, I have to participate in this one, being an historical fiction fanatic and a member of Historical Tapestry. LOL!

Here's how it works:

Each fortnight you have to write a blog post about an historical fiction book of your choice (it might even be something you already read before), but it MUST be related to the letter of the week.
You have several possibilities:
- the first letter of the title
- the first letter of the author's first name or surname
- the first letter of a character's first name or surname
- the first letter of a place where an historical event took place
You just have to choose one of them and participate.
Check in at Historical Tapestry on the 1st and 15th of every month to find out the letter for that episode, then link your post through Mr Linky at their site. Finally, come and check to see who else has posted and visit their blog to find out all the details of the book they were reading.

You have until the end of each fortnight to complete your mission.

The first letter in the challenge is.. you guessed it:

Posted by Teddy Rose at 11:37 PM 10 comments  

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Winners: The Gate House By Nelson DeMille


 Thanks to Valerie Russo of Hachette Book Group for making this giveaway possible. 

Thanks to everyone who entered. 

The 3 winners are:


409cope
Twifanheather
Esme

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 7:34 PM 5 comments  

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Winners: Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan-Audiobook


 
Thanks again to Anna of Hachette Book Group  for making this giveaway possible!

Thanks to everyone who entered and commented on my short story post.  I really enjoyed reading your comments on my short story review. For those of you who did not follow the rules to post a comment on my short story post, I had to disqualify you.  Sorry!

The 3 winners are:
Melanie
Winning Readings
Deb K.

Congratulations! I emailed you, please contact me within 3 days to claim your prize.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 4:04 PM 3 comments  

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Dragonfly Kites by Tomson Highway




This is the second book in the "Songs of the North" trilogy. I reviewed the first book, Caribous Dream here.

This time we find Joe and Cody are at their summer home, which is a tent by a lake in northern Manitoba. They live with their mom and dad but there are no other people near them.

Joe and Cody fill their long days playing games with each other and making friends with the animals. Dragonflies are their favourites. They like to tie a string to them and hold it while they fly. They are like living kites. Then when Joe and Cody are ready to let their "friends" go free, they let go of the string. They also enjoy flying in their dreams.

This is an enchanting story that children will enjoy. It is written in English and Cree and is beautifully illustrated by Brian Deines.

Also reviewed by:

Books and Quilts

If you would like to participate in Short Story Mondays or just find out about some great short stories, go to John of The Book Mine Set. He has a short story review every Monday and a place for you to link your short story reviews. Come join in the fun!

Posted by Teddy Rose at 1:29 PM 4 comments  

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Mailbox Monday


Visit Marcia every Monday at The Printed Page to share what arrives in your mailbox each week.

So, I know that today isn't Monday, however Internet was down all day yesturday.  Here are the books I received last week.



Thanks to Robin Maxwell.  Stay tuned for an announcement about a game Robin Maxwell will be having to help launch this book.  You could win a copy of it.




Thanks to Anna Balasi of Hachette Books.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 1:16 PM 8 comments  

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Monday, November 9, 2009

Caribou Song / atihko Nikamon by Tomson Highway


Brothers, Joe and Cody live with their mother and father. They don't live in any one place, rather they follow the caribou all winter long. Joe and Cody love to play, dance, and sing and they often sing a song while they travel, to attract the caribou.

This is a wonderful adventure book that children of all cultures will enjoy. The Illustrations by Brian Denies are stunning. Give your children a treat and a small glimpse into Cree culture, read this book with them.

Written in both English and Cree, Caribou Song is the first in a trilogy of children's books. I plan to read the other two as well, so stay tuned.

Also reviewed by:

Books and Quilts

Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:28 AM 5 comments  

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Monday, November 2, 2009

Stephanie's Ponytail by Robert Munsch, Art by Michael Martchenko




Stephanie decides to have a ponytail and asks her mom to do it for her. When she arrived at school, all the children chanted, " Ugly, Ugly, very ugly. Stephanie says, "It's my ponytail and I like it." The next day to Stephanie's dismay, all of the girls were wearing ponytails. She called them "copycats."

The next day she wore her ponytail to one side. The kids at school did the "ugly chant again. However, the next day the children, even some of the boys were wearing ponytails on the side. This went on for a few days, Stephanie would wear her pony tail a different way and the next day the kids wore theirs the same way.

Stephanie finally got fed up with all of the copycats and announced that she was going to shave her head. Read this book to find out what happened next.

This is a really fun book that teaches about conformity and individuality. It's a wonderful book to read with your kids and then discuss it with them. The art work is colourful and creative. Highly recommended.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 6:02 PM 11 comments  

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Sunday, November 1, 2009

Challenge Roundup


This is an update on my progress for my 2009 challenges:

Here is a list of all of the challenges that must be completed by the end of 2009, some of them end sooner.  my progress is noted at the end of each(these do not include perpetual challenges):

The Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 1st Jan 09 to 31st March 09 Completed
Book Awards II Reading Challenge August 1, 2008 to June 1, 2009 Completed
What An Animal Challenge July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009 Completed 
The 2nd Canadian Book Challenge July 1, 2008 to July 1, 2009 Completed
The 2009 ARC Reading Challenge 25/26 (1 more book to go)
The PUB Challenge - 2009 Completed
New Author Challenge 2009Completed
Themed Reading Challenge - 2009 Completed
Read Your Own Books Challenge 2009 24/25 (1 more book to go)
2009 TBR Lite Challenge Completed
World Citizen Challenge Completed
2009 READ & REVIEW CHALLENGE  So far this year, I have reviewed every book I have read
The Chunkster Challenge 2009 Completed

To summarize, I only need to complete 2 more challenges in 2009!  I only have one more book to read in each.  I can feel the finish line approaching!

Below is a list of all the challenges that don't end until sometime in 2010 and my progress:

What an Animal II Challenge 1/6, This ends Feb. 28th, so I need to pick up the pace.
The Canadian Book Challenge 3 3/13 This ends July 1st, so I need to pick up the pace.
China Challenge! 0/1 This challenge ends Sept.1st, so I have time yet.

Challenge Roundup is hosted monthly by Chris of book-a-rama.  If you have a challenge up-date, please link it to her update.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 11:13 PM 15 comments  

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Completed: 2009 TBR Lite Challenge


Thanks to Jenn for hosting this challenge.

To Complete this challenge, I read 6 books:


5.The Brightest Moon of the Century by Christopher Meeks
6.Etta by Gerald Kolpan

Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:30 PM 3 comments  

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Completed: New Author Challenge 2009



Thanks again to Literary Escapism for hosting the New Author Challenge for 2009.

To complete this challenge, I read books by 20 new to me authors: 

16.The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner
17.Crazy for the Storm by Norman Ollestad 
18 .Etta by Gerald Kolpan
19 Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran
20.Sunflowers by Sheramy Bundrick

Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:05 PM 5 comments  

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Completed- A Well Rounded Challenge 2009


I hosted this challenge this year.

I completed the challenge by reading 5 books for 5 different challenges:

 1.The Canadian Book Challenge 3:


Etta by Gerald Kolpan

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:42 PM 2 comments  

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Sunflowers by Sheramy Bundrick




Rachel, a young prostitute enjoys the peace and beauty of the city garden in Arles. She falls asleep there and when she awakes, she finds a man sketching her. He turns out to be none other than Vincent Van Gogh. After their first encounter, Vincent visits Rachel at her brothel, 1, Rue du Bout d'Arles. He comes with a bouquet of wild flowers in hopes of convincing Rachel to let him paint her. This is the start of their romantic relationship.

As Rachel's love for Vincent deepens, her friend from 1, Rue du Bout d'Arles, Francois warns her not to get pulled in. She questions Vincent's love for Rachel and worries that Rachel is being set up for disappointment and possible ruin. Yes ruin, Rachel could be thrown out of the brothel and it's protection and be out on the street.

Vincent does seem to love Rachel however , he is supported financially by his brother Theo and does not think that he or his family would approve of the relationship. As Rachel and Vincent's love deepens Vincent all of a sudden goes mad. He comes to the brothel to give Rachel "a gift", part of his ear that he cut off. Vincent ends up going into a hospital, where Rachel isn't able to see him very often. From then on he gets better for awhile and then relapse often. Eventually the mental illness Vincent suffers forces him to leave town to get better treatment. Will Rachel and Vincent's love endure this separation? Read the book and find out.

Sheramy Bundrick writes in first person narrative with Rachel being the narrator. I loved how Bundrick takes Rachel, a little known person and writes an entire book about her. Her beautiful prose describes Van Gogh's paintings so well that I could picture them in my head.

Bundrick weaves a good tale of romance between Rachel and Vincent but after awhile I found the relationship monotonous. Rachel seemed to have a lot of freedom to come and go from the brothel. She went where and when she wanted to go and I question how realistic this is. Some of the women in the brothel are written as either really good or really bad, hardly any in-between which, also seems unrealistic to me. I also would have liked to have had more of 1889 Aries to bring more of the historical into it.

Once Vincent's first bought with illness comes, I found that the book picked up and I especially enjoyed the last few chapters. If you love historical romance, you will probably enjoy this book.

3.5/5

Thanks to Sheramy Bundrick for sending me this book. Sheramy did a guest post back in August on my blog, here.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 8:52 PM 6 comments  

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