The Happiness Project (Gretchen Rubin)

To be published 12/29/09...

Anyone who knows me well knows that I love a great self-help book. There are a plethora of these titles in any bookstore, and unfortunately, many of them are just too abstract for the everyday person. What makes "The Happiness Project" so wonderful is that anyone can relate. Who doesn't want to be happy?

One year, Gretchen Rubin decides to forego the specific New Year's resolutions that so many of us break by January 3rd. Eat right, exercise more, watch less TV, blah, blah, blah. Instead, she decides that she wants to become happier. To accomplish this, she decides on 12 specific areas where she would like to become happier in her life, and then sets mini-goals for herself each month. For example, the area to be happier in May is "Leisure". Rubin's goals in May are find more fun, take time to be silly, go off the path, and start a collection.

I found myself laughing, nodding my head with understanding, and "Ah-hah-ing" at almost every page. I found the month about contemplating the heavens to be most profound. To be happier, read memoirs of catastrophe?? Yes, if you want to be happy with and appreciate what you have, read the diaries of people who have just been diagnosed with cancer or survived a plane crash. Maybe the little things in life (Why isn't he going the speed limit?) won't bother you as much.

Journal writing is way too overwhelming for me to do each day. Rubin suggests a one-sentence journal, where you write one thing that happened that day that you never want to forget. It's the little things like these that make this book joyous to read and makes you think about starting your own happiness project. Don't worry, be _____.

MY RATING - 5

This review can also be found on http://www.bookloons.com/.

Her Fearful Symmetry (Audrey Niffenegger)

Audrey Niffenegger is not yet a household name, such as Grisham, Patterson, or Dan Brown. Yet she is making a huge name for herself in the movies, as her debut novel, "The Time Traveler's Wife", did well in theaters. I am not normally a fan of books being made into movies ("The DaVinci Code", anyone???), but "Her Fearful Symmetry" was made for one.

Haunting, tension-filled, psychological...read this on a cold winter's night with a steaming cup of tea in your hand. It begins with the death of Elspeth Noblin in London. Before she died, she stipulated in her will that her American nieces, Julia and Valentina Poole, be asked to live in her flat for a year. In exchange, they would each receive a hefty trust. All bets would be off in Elspeth's twin, Edie, and her husband, Jack, set foot in the apartment. Why? One of the central mysteries in the novel is what happened between Elspeth and Edie.

Along the way, we meet Elspeth's neighbors in London...Robert, her young conquest; Martin, who is suffering from crippling OCD; and Marjilke, Martin's estranged wife. Highgate Cemetary, which is located right next to the flat, is its own character, as the plot turns quickly into a ghost story. What will the Poole sisters find in the flat? Will Elspeth ever be able to rest in peace? Those are the questions that will be answered very satisfyingly.

I would give "Her Fearful Symmetry" a 5 if not for the ending. Some questions remained unanswered. However, the story is pure knuckle-tension. Read it and weep.

MY RATING - 4

Highest Duty (Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger)

Have you ever had one of those days where everything just seems to go wrong? The bus never comes to pick up your kids. Your umbrella blows inside out during a torrential rainstorm. You accidentally staple your finger. Your airplane hits a numerous amount of birds in flight and loses thrust in both engines. On a day when you have lost all faith in humanity, pick up this book.

Co-written with Jeffrey Zaslow, this is the story of Sully, the pilot of Flight 1549, which landed in the Hudson River with nary a life lost. Beginning with the first flight by himself when he was very young and ending with the nailbiting, armchair-gripping account of the crash, Captain Sullenberger writes a very honest portrayal of his vocation in life...flying. Along the way, we are introduced to his devoted wife, Lorrie, and two daughters, Kate and Kelly.

Captain Sullenberger makes sure that the reader understands that he did not pilot that plane into the Hudson by himself. His entire crew saved lives that day. He lets us read some of the letters he has received from both passengers and everyday Americans who were affected by Flight 1549. One of the letters comes from a man who says Sully is not a hero. He was just immensely prepared for his job, did it well, and all of us are very thankful for that.

MY RATING - 5

This review can also be found on www.bookloons.com.

Currently reading - "Her Fearful Symmetry" by Audrey Niffenegger

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane (Katherine Howe)

Since historical fiction is my favorite genre, I was eager to read "The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane". Taking the reader back in time to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, Katherine Howe's book had a lot of promise. I sat down to begin reading it one Sunday afternoon about two weeks ago and could not put it down. It all went downhill from there.

Howe does what seems to be the trend nowadays began by the master, Jodi Picoult...interweaving two or more narratives. Howe's take on it is more ambitious...not only going back and forth between stories but also between time periods. Connie Goodwin is a Harvard grad student beginning her dissertation in 1991. Her esteemed professor suggests that she find a unique primary source that no one has ever seen before. As she is cleaning out her deceased grandmother's home, Connie finds the name, Deliverance Dane, in a Bible. She eventually comes to realize that Dane authored a physick book back in the days of Salem, so her mission becomes finding that. Howe's other story is the actual story of Dane, along with her daughter and granddaughter.

This book had so much going for it in the beginning, but just couldn't get there. I found it harder and harder to pick up, because eventually it just got too wordy. If Howe had concentrated more on Deliverance's story, it would have made for a far more interesting tale. Instead, she got hung up on Connie's story. The ending is like a Scooby Doo cartoon, when the criminal is finally revealed. Pick up "The Crucible" instead.

MY RATING - 2

The Food You Crave:Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life (Ellie Krieger)

I decided to expand my repertoire a little when it comes to reviewing and every now and then, review another passion of mine...great cookbooks. For someone who used to mistakenly put cabbage, instead of lettuce, on her nephew's sandwich, and stuck a whole can of tomato soup in the microwave without water, something finally clicked when I moved to Philadelphia. No longer does my poor husband get a 3-course meal of meat, potato, and vegetable served 15 minutes apart. Now I pride myself on being able to put a delicious, healthy meal on the table in less than 30 minutes.

Ellie Krieger's "The Food You Crave:Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life" is by far, my favorite cookbook. Ellie is a Food Network personality, but first and foremost, a nutritionist. She believes that food can be healthy and full of flavor if you just make some minor adjustments. Shop the perimeter of your grocery store, and revel in all of the delicious fruits, vegetables, herbs, meats, seafood, and dairy. Who wants to eat the "chemistry experiments" in the middle of the store? If you can't pronounce it, don't put it in your body.

My favorite recipes include Apple-Pecan Muffins (with applesauce substituting for butter), Scrumptious Scramble, Blueberry Blast Smoothie (which my husband asks for all the time), the Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Dip (which I use with chicken), Lemon Pepper Grilled Shrimp, Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs in Spicy Tomato Sauce, and Vanilla Hot Cocoa (once you taste this, your days of drinking the powdery stuff will be over).

Many recipes include a picture for easy following. Here's to your health. You will not be disappointed.

MY RATING - 5

Currently reading..."The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane" (Katherine Howe)