Books, Books and More Books #blogtober14

As an avid reader, I use Goodreads to track what I've read and whether or not I liked the book or not.  I have bookshelves dedicated to books I have read, want to read and one shelf just for books I couldn't get through.  Life of Pi, kill me know.

I wouldn't say I have a specific type of book that I typically fall into, but since creating a book club with some girlfriends I'm definitely learning more about and reading books from all different genres.  We've read memoirs, classics, historic fiction and best sellers.  I've even blogged about some of the books we've read (here, here and here) and enjoyed if you're looking for a couple suggestions! 

Picking just one book for today's #blogtober14 prompt is just hard.  I have more than 20 books that I have given a five star review of...  So I'm bucking the rules and listing more than one!  Rebel without a cause, right here.

In no specific order here are just a few of my faves:
Marley and Me: Life and Love With The World's Worst Dog.  I was a mess of tears finishing this one!
Orphan Train
Tuck Everlasting
Attachments
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption. Wow.  Just wow.
The Hunger Games Trilogy
Still Alice
The Help
Water For Elephants
Harry Potter, #1-7.  It's true, I'm a Potterhead!
To Kill A Mockingbird
Half Broke Horses
The Forgotten Garden

What are some of your favorite books?  Do we have any cross-overs?

Linking up with Helene and Taylor.

Book Review: A Dog's Purpose

Calling all dog lovers!!  If you haven't had the chance to read A Dog's Purpose yet, you absolutely need to add it to your list!

This delightful book is told from one dog's perspective as his soul is reborn and lives four different lifetimes.  We are first introduced to a stray mutt, a Golden Retriever who loves his boy and learns what it means to be a 'good dog', then a German Shepard and finally a Black Labrador.  Each time his soul is reborn he is able to apply lessons from his previous life to his current situation, all while striving to find purpose in his existence.

A Dog's Purpose was a quick read that made me smile at the dog-eye view of the world and laugh at, among other things, what they may be thinking when we use our sing-songy voice to tell them to go do their business in the yard!  Most of all, I spent the weekend really watching Bella to see if I could tell what she might be thinking about her life with us!

And wondering, how much did she really love or loathe when I dressed her in that tutu?!?!  I mean she looks happy, but what was really going on in her head?  I know that Matt thought I was absolutely ridiculous...

Want to join in on the fun?

Next month we are reading Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline.

Book Review: Calling Me Home

How many of you out there read and loved The Help?!?!  

If you were, like me, immediately swept away with the story and characters I urge you with a hot poker to read Calling Me Home!  

The chapters alternate between describing a forbidden love in rural Kentucky in the 1930's and a present day friendship between an unlikely duo.  

Although you may be able to guess at some of the prejudices that Isabella McAllister will face when she chooses to pursue a relationship with a boy that so many believed was all wrong for her, you will be blown away by the twist and turns!  One of my friends said it best, "I hadn't connected the dots 'til the author literally drew the line for me!"  The story of love and heart ache unfolds as eight-nine year old Isabella and her traveling companion, Dorrie, make their way towards Cincinnati for an epic reunion.  

I was blown away by this novel!!  In my opinion, author Julie Kibler wrote a fantastic debut novel and told an amazing story about the devastating ramifications of a forbidden love set during a very sad time in our history. 

If, by chance you have read Calling Me Home, were you as enthralled with it as me?!?  If not, please go read this book!  When you have, come back and let me know what you thought!

Want to join in on the fun?  

Next month we are reading A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron. 

I'm linking up my book review with (Jenni, Khala, Samantha & Reneé) for Tuesday Tea!

Book Review: The Book Thief

Way back last spring, I added The Book Thief to my 'to-read' bookshelf on Goodreads.  It was a suggested read from Amazon after I'd finished Sarah's Key and The Baker's Daughter, both of which are set during and/or discuss World War II and the Holocaust.

When my book club was looking for options for our February get together, it was at the top of my list!

The story is set in a small German town in 1939, the height of the Nazi Germany and is narrated by Death...

Liesel Meminger's mother has given her up and she is placed with a foster family living in Himmel, which translates to heaven.  After overcoming the shock of being abandoned by her mother, Liesel warms up to her accordian-playing foster father who teaches her to read the books she steals.  The family gets by on pea soup and a meager salary generated from being a washwoman and a house painter.  Things get tougher when the family agrees to conceal a young Jewish man in the basement of their home!

I thought this book was excellent!  It was beautifully written and the character development was wonderful.

Oh and if you're a sucker for a happy ending like me, it won't take much to imagine it for yourself!

So tell me, have you read it too?  What did you think?