Return to Paradise by Simone Elkeles

Reading Level: Young Adult
(4 out of 5)

Return to Paradise is the sequel to Leaving Paradise. For the review on Leaving Paradise click here: Leaving Paradise

When this book first came out the library didn't buy it so I went and bought it but didn't sit down to read it until the other night. But the library owns it now and you also have access to Leaving Paradise. I read Return to Paradise in 3 hours. I couldn't put it down once I got started. I'm very happy with the ending.

At the end of Leaving Paradise Maggie has found out the truth about who was really behind the wheel of the accident and Caleb has left her to go to Chicago. Eight months later Caleb finds himself in trouble again and instead of going back to jail his old probation officer is taking him and five other teens traveling around giving talks on reckless driving. Maggie just so happens to be on this little excursion as well. In the four weeks they are together tempers fly, sparks ignite, and the truth comes out. Can Maggie and Caleb get a fresh start?

52 Michigan Weekends by Bob Puhala

The mark of any good book I borrow from the library, is when I have found it so fabulous or useful, that I need to buy a copy for my OWN library. "52 Michigan Weekends" is such a book.

Perhaps it's because Michigan is a neighboring state to our own Indiana that I found the information so useful. Perhaps it's because the economy is so bad that we find ourselves taking many short trips with the kids instead of the traditional long vacation that makes the information this book contains more practical for us. Whatever the reason, "52 Michigan Weekends" has proved to be worth its purchase price.

The book is divided into sections, based on what season you should see these sights, starting with Spring (and I'm not just trying to be alliterative there!) Some highlights of interest to residents of Northwest Indiana include Tulip Time in Holland, Michigan, and things to do in the area around New Buffalo. We've been through New Buffalo a number of times, little knowing what to do or where to go once we got there besides use the bathroom and buy a burger at Redamak's! But now that we have this book, we've got a little inside knowledge that will prove helpful next time we're in town, including hints on nice places to spend the night, should we so choose. There is a little something for everyone; those who like to be physically active will especially enjoy the Winter section. Those of us who prefer to read and relax will enjoy Pulhala's writing style about the region, even if the towns are too far away or the activities not on our usual list of things to do.

In short, if you're from the region and are tired of fighting the traffic to head to Chicago for your fun, you may want to pick up this book and heard north instead! There are at least a few weekends worth of good times listed for everyone.

Submitted by Gerti

Awakenings by Oliver Sacks

This is the second book I've read by famed neurologist Oliver Sacks, and while different in subject matter than his book "Uncle Tungsten" which involved his experiences as a boy fascinated by chemistry, the brilliance and humanity of the great doctor come through the same way in this book, which involves his treatment of patients institutionalized because of encephalitis lethargica, or "sleepy sickness."

It took me more than my allotted 6 weeks to read, mainly because even when I got to the epilogue, I couldn't stop reading, because Sacks couldn't stop writing! Even after the many chapters on the patients he's treated, Sacks talks about the stage and screen adaptations of this popular text (most notably the film version by Penny Marshall starring Robert DeNiro and Robin Williams), and about the history of the "sleepy sickness" that occurred during and after WWI and which so changed the lives of the people it touched, patients, and families. I checked out the movie while reading the book (since it took me so long!), so it was interesting to see Sacks' take on the filmmaker and her 2 main stars, whom he calls Bob and Robin. This chapter itself makes it worth the fine I'm paying right now, because it is a fascinating look at all the effort the Hollywood team made to meet and study the patients with this particular disorder in order to portray them accurately in their movie. I am dismayed that the library doesn't have another famous play about such patients, called "A Kind of Alaska" by famed playwright Harold Pinter. Hint, hint, library book buyer!

As for the background of the disease, it is terrifying to think that one can have a cold or flu, and 20 years later end up with Parkinson's-like symptoms that may lead one to being institutionalized. Unfortunately, such a nightmare did happen for hundreds of people, and although I have studied the Great Flu Epidemic of 1918 before, this particular disease, while occurring around the same time, has gotten no Nova specials, even though it is horrifying in its own way that sufferers were condemned not to death, but to a form of living death that Dr. Sacks (among others) awakened them from decades later thanks to a drug called L-Dopa. Their stories are truly inspiring and show the resilience of the human spirit despite impossible odds and challenges. One patient especially (Ed W., who is portrayed by DeNiro in the movie as Leonard) strikes me as brilliant and his comments on his own condition and how he is trapped within his frozen body are among the most heart-breakingly moving.

If Sacks can be said to have a flaw as a writer, it is that he can't stop writing (a flaw we share, it seems!) Sometimes on a page, I couldn't decide whether to concentrate on the voluminous footnotes or the text itself, and sometimes upon turning a page, forgot which of the two I was actually reading. But that's my problem. I strongly recommend the book for those with interest in medicine, psychology, or Parkinson's disease, because it provides brilliant insights on them all. I have checked out another book from Sacks, and another book on the disease he describes here, and eagerly look forward to reading them both.

Submitted by Gerti

Jewish Holiday Cookbook by Joan Nathan

Let me start this review by saying that you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy this cookbook, just as you wouldn't have to be Christian to enjoy a book on Christmas cookies. I'm not Jewish, but found so many of the recipes perfect for the current needs of my family, that I had to buy a copy after checking this out from the library. Several of my family members have mild allergies, and this cookbook provided great recipes for those with that allergy in particular, since the Jewish religion has rules governing kosher, parve, and unclean foods and food combinations, among them being the combination of milk and meat. So this recipe book works perfectly for our family, with each recipe not only being delicious, but rich in cultural and religious context.

Nathan is a renowned scholar of Jewish cuisine, and this book provides seven chapters on holidays: Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Hanukkah, Purin, Passover, Shavout and even Israeli Independence day. There is also a long chapter on the Sabbath meal. Besides the recipes themselves, I found the book an excellent study in the history of the Jewish people, and their migration throughout the world, as recipes found here bear a resemblance to recipes from the Middle East, but also mirror the cooking styles of various parts of Europe. I found it fascinating that European recipes in this book were very similar, in name and ingredients, to those passed down by my German grandmother, showing that people from different religions are not that very different after all in the way they celebrate and live their lives. In short, this book is a fabulous find, whether you're looking for a great meal or snack, or a look at the history, festivals, and dietary prohibitions of the Jewish people.

Submitted by Gerti

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

When I found out that Ms. Clare was coming out with three more books in the Mortal Instruments series I was excited. Then when I started thinking about it I got scared. I loved her first three books and I liked the way the trilogy ended. I had closure. The bad man had been put down and love was in the air. Jace wasn't Clary's brother and you knew Simon might be getting his groove on with Isabelle or Maia. So for me to read three more books and have my beloved characters thrown back into chaos I wasn't sure about that. All I have to say after reading the fourth book is that everyone better have a happy ending by the end of the sixth book.

Then I was curious as to why Ms. Clare decided to write three more books and I found the answer on her website.

Taken from Ms. Clare's FAQ page:

"How did you go from having decided to write the Mortal Instruments as a trilogy, to deciding that it would be four books and then six?

I had indeed initially planned not to write more Mortal Instruments books after City of Glass. Two things happened to change that: One, I had written a plot for a graphic novel about what would happen to Simon after the events of Glass. When the graphic novel didn’t work out, I was left with this storyline and nothing to do with it — it wasn’t enough for a whole book on its own. However, while I was writing the first book in The Infernal Devices, Clockwork Angel, which deals with Jace, Clary, and the Lightwoods’ ancestors, the way events played out in it gave me the idea for a new villain and conflict that might beset the cast of characters from The Mortal Instruments, and connect up to the plotline from the planned graphic novel. I’ve always liked stories where the distant past comes forward to affect the future, so, without being spoilery, when I realized I could connect the events of Infernal Devices to the few loose ends left at the end of Glass, I realized I wouldn’t want to pass up writing that story, especially considering how much chaos I knew it would bring to the lives of Jace, Clary, Simon, Alec, Magnus, Isabelle and the rest!

Then, in October of last year, I sat down to start writing the story of City of Fallen Angels. I had a detailed outline based in part on the graphic novel idea I had had, but when it came to expanding the outline and writing the story, it just wasn’t working for me. I was on a writing retreat in Mexico with a number of other writers, and when we sat down to go over the issues I was having, I realized that the story I had thought I was telling was really a much bigger story — that my smaller, Simon-centric story had morphed into something much bigger, much more epic, and deeply involving the whole cast of characters from the first three Mortal Instruments books. I realized that what I had on my hands was not a single book that would wrap up the story begun in The Mortal Instruments, but rather the beginning of a new trilogy about these characters. (The fun part was calling my agent and editor to explain “You know that one book I was going to write? Well, actually, it’s three books!” I like to think I could hear heads hitting desks all through Simon and Schuster. But when I submitted the outlines for the new Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, and City of Heavenly Fire, they were thrilled with the idea of the new trilogy — and I hope readers will be as well!"

These three new books in the series have a lot more to do with Simon but the rest of the cast of characters are present. I am excited to read more about these characters but there is something nice about a series ending and then as the reader you can just fantasize about what happened to your favorite characters. Fans of Ms. Clare won't be disappointed. City of Fallen Angels was an excellent read.

Crossfire by James Patterson

Reading Level: Adult Fiction

This is the latest of Patterson's series about Alex Cross and his family. He is a policeman who lives and works in Washington DC. Alex again meets his nemesis and finally overcomes him in one of the most exciting stories. He finally marries his girlfriend.

Submitted by Rose

The Sisters Who Would Be Queen - Mary, Katherine, and Lady Jane Grey: a tudor Tragedy by Leanda Delisle

Reading Level: Adult Non-Fiction

Like most people who care about Tudor history at all, I have to admit that I have always loved the character of Elizabeth I. I have spent a lifetime admiring her courage in the face of such adversity - seeing her mother (Anne Boleyn) get her head cut off by her father (King Henry VIII) for a start, and then having to survive her siblings (Edward VI and Mary I) time on the throne. One would think having to live through all those hardships would have made Elizabeth a more empathetic, softer person. However, if this history of her cousins, the Grey sisters, is to be believed, it instead gave Elizabeth I a will of iron and a heart of stone.

The three girls in the title - Lady Jane Grey and her younger sisters, Katherine and Mary, were brought up in the shadow of the throne, and yet only one, Jane, would ever sit on it, and that for only a short period of time. However, due to their kinship to Queen Elizabeth I, the Queen kept the other two sisters locked up for most of their lives, along with their husbands. The book has totally changed my opinion of Elizabeth, and lost her much respect in my eyes. While Elizabeth was not responsible for the death of Lady Jane Grey, her older sister Mary did that while she was queen, Elizabeth did go out of her way to make the lives of the younger girls miserable. Both girls married without the Queen's permission - a mistake, for sure - but neither deserved the harsh and cruel punishments for that which the Queen metted out. And to lock up their husbands, too, and send their children to others to raise... it is shameful behavior on the part of Elizabeth.

A fascinating look at Tudor times, and the struggles that put and kept various figures on the throne. Leanda DeLisle does a good job of debunking various myths about the romantic but reluctant girl who would be Queen, Lady Jane Grey, and also about the Queens who followed her to the throne. Brilliant scholarship, if hard to read at times.

Submitted by Gerti