Book #39 – The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

This is my second Frances Burnett novel, having read A Little Princess about 5 years ago. What? You read them both in your youth? To be honest, I’m not entirely certain I didn’t. Because either I watched the movies enough to remember certain details about both books or SOMEBODY (Mom?) read them to me when I was still learning to piece together English. Either way, major parts of this novel were just chilling in the back of my memory waiting to spring forward and remind me of what the next plot twist was before I got there. Vaguely annoying, and sort of makes me wish that novel-amnesia pill was a real thing.

Though the book for A Secret Garden was not published until 1911, the book was serialized in The American Magazine between 1910 and 1911. Like many books at the time, it had two publishing companies, one in the US and one in Great Britain. This, along with the book becoming public domain in 1987 has led to a variety of abridged and unabridged copies, including several different illustration styles. The book has spawned several movies, tv series, and at least 1 play. Possibly the most interesting adaptation I’ve found is The Misselthwaite Archives, a YouTube series that’s a modern take on the novel.

Book #318 – Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg

So, for Alabama, I chose a book that follows the life of Ninny Threadgoode and all of those she interacted with, both in the suburbs of Birmingham and across the US. There were a couple choices for Alabama, but there was much flustered gasping and hand gesturing when I revealed this book was on my To-Be-Read list. So, to the Darling who made such a fuss, I’ve read it now, go get the movie so we can watch it together.

Fannie Flagg, mostly known for her work on the old game show Match Game, published Fried Green Tomatoes in 1987. The book, despite dealing with controversial themes even in the late 80s, stayed in the top selling list for over half a year. It was later made into a movie in 1991, which was nominated for Oscars, and BAFTAs, and Golden Globes. The book deals with a lot of heavy themes, so how about I just dive right in?

Book #606 – Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

This is the first of the Mercy Thompson series, now with 16 main books and several novellas. The first book was originally published in 2006 and introduces a world where the fae folk are starting to come out hiding, including Mercedes Thompson, a skin-walker coyote. The book introduces the werewolves, vampires, and other beings that habitat the Pacific Northwest. Surprisingly, despite the rather risque cover, the book is almost entirely a mystery that barely even allows swearing from the cast of characters.

While the story follows the mystery behind a death and the attack of a local pack of werewolves, it is mostly set up of all the relevant characters. There’s a lot, but more on that later. If I were to compare it to anything, think the paranormal show “Lost Girl” with a more PG-13 rating.

Book #244 – Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Originally published in 1998, Stardust is one of many books by Neil Gaiman (in fact, there are about 7 on the list). According to Gaiman himself, the book went through many iterations, once being called simply “Wall”. It was not until a party in early 1990 out in the Arizona desert that the idea of the book being about a fallen star came to him. Thus, the book took shape, as all books do. It was later made into a movie in 2007, staring Claire Danes and Michelle Pfieffer. (Which I absolutely love, even if it differs quite a bit from the book.)

The book follows Tristan, the son of a shepherd, who promises to fetch a fallen star for a girl he loves (even if she doesn’t really love him). He then journeys past the Wall which stands between fairy and the real world, and ends up on a magical quest he never expected. In part, it definitely follows The Hero’s Journey that I mentioned back in my reivew for The Alchemist, but in other parts, it completely diverges because that’s just how fairy tales are. As for how this incorporates with Spook Month, there’s a band of ancient witches after the same star, and they cause quite a bit of mayhem in the center of the book.

Book #240 – The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy

The first in publication order of the Jack Ryan novels, Tom Clancy first introduced the character in 1984. The Jack Ryan universe is now 26 novels long, with the newest being published this November. The series has been turned into several movies, and most recently an 8-episode series on Amazon. The Hunt for Red October was turned into a movie in 1990 starring Sean Connery as the Soviet captain Marko, and Alec Baldwin as CIA analyst Jack Ryan. Aside from Connery’s rather hilarious Russian accent (really, having someone with that Scottish brogue do Russian was just strange judgement), I didn’t remember much of the movie until I read through the book.

The novel follows the defection of Captain Marko Ramius, who effectively commits piracy by stealing the nuclear submarine he’s commanding. This causes a rather mad rush by Russian, American, and British forces to figure out where the nearly silent sub has gone.

Book #64 – Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Originally published in 1961, Catch-22 gives a rather harsh, but hilariously convoluted adventures of the  256th Bombardment Squadron. The book mostly follows John Yossarian as he tries to keep from doing combat missions as a bombardier, but does switch to the various commanding officers and staff that affect and are affected by Yossarian. I should warn that the book enjoys being non-linear at times, and likes to jump around with the timeline for several chapters at a time.

The novel’s depictions of war, military incompetence, and general insanity have made it one of the most known anti-war novels along with Hemingway and Vonnegut, among others. While it depicts the European front of WWII, Heller stated the anti-war was sentiment was due to the Korean War and McCarthyism. Joseph Heller simply used his experiences as a bombardier in WWII as a basis for his statement.

Book #15 – Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Originally published in two parts “Little Women” and “Good Wives”, this 1868 novel has been a combined book since 1880. It has been a constant favorite of young women ever since, even if the rhetoric inside no longer applies to the faster pace of the modern woman. Little Women follows the girls as they grow into adulthood, with small, loosely connected stories. Good Wives tells about the girls’ adventures in love and is a tad more consistent with the plot line.

It did take me a bit longer than I would have liked to complete the book, and not because my particular copy was 777 pages long. (I read Deathly Hallows in less than 24 hours while working as a Playground assistant.) I think it’s because you can tell that the author didn’t like what she was writing. Louisa Alcott actually hated the book, didn’t want to marry Jo to anyone, and was greatly confused by how famous the book became.

Book #6 – The Fellowship of the Ring

I should premise this by saying I own all of the extended versions of the film trilogy, and my father made sure we went to all the midnight premiers, so I’m familiar with the Hollywood version of this story. The fact that my high school English teacher has a life size cut out of Orlando Bloom as Legolas that wore various hats throughout the year… yeah, I’m pretty familiar with most of the characters. However, the trilogy published in the 1950s has so much that was left out of the movies. For example, I spent 9 hours of audiobook just getting to Rivendell. If you are familiar with the movies, the books provide a much richer and more expansive world, and explain a lot of the background of the various characters.

I did mention in an earlier review that I chose Hitchhiker’s Guide over this book for Father’s Day. I had attempted to reach Fellowship some time ago, and got so frustrated with wandering hobbits that I gave up half way through the book. I think it was the influence of other fantasy novels that made the same sort of “the journey is the entire point” stance that helped me enjoy Fellowship this time around.

Book #76 – Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Originally published in 1908, this book was so well received that it went on to become a much longer series which depicted the lives of Anne and her children. It’s set on Prince Edward Island, an island off the cost of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the smallest of Canada’s provinces by area. Anne is brought to live in a small farming village with a single school house and just enough people that gossip spreads quickly. I was also able to pin down the years in which the novel took place using a historical fashion site; Anne grew up in the mid-1890s based on her love of puffed sleeves.

At first, I struggled a bit with this particular turn-of-the-century novel. There were a couple of reasons, but the main one was Anne herself. A common critique, as I grew to find when talking with others about the book, was that Anne seriously needed Adderall, or some other ADHD medication. She wasn’t just talkative or precocious or daring; she was textbook attention-deficit-hyperactive-disorder, and it was exhausting. I have ADD and I just wanted to shove a sock in Anne’s mouth for half the book. But then, I met a character that has apparently captured the hearts of generations…

Book #7 – The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

At first, when I read this book, I thought that whomever had put this on the Great American Read needed their head examined. The first section of this book is so horrific that I had no idea how they were going to turn it around. Spoiler and warning: This book contains the rape and murder of a teenage girl. It’s not graphic, but it’s certainly got enough detail that I was uncomfortable. Honestly, anytime the narrative gave way to Harvey’s thoughts, I was uncomfortable. It’s good writing that can do that, but not my cup of tea.

However, the book also gives some closure to anyone that’s known a missing person. Susie Salmon is the face on the milk carton, and from her heaven, she watches her family and friends unfold around the tragedy of her disappearance and assumed death. While the case grows cold, the family all learns to move on in their own way, and the book goes into some of the more destructive methods of coping. While some of the other books in the Great American Read have certainly detailed misery, I don’t think any that I’ve read so far have been this dark. (Except maybe Along Came a Spider, but it’s a crime novel, so…)