Sundays at Tiffany's

Title: Sundays at Tiffany's
Author: James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet
Original Publishing Date: 2008
Genre: General Fiction, Chick Lit
Rating: A

James Patterson truly is a writer with the ability to capture the wide range of human emotions. I am always amazed how he can go from writing psychological thrillers to writing touching and heart-wrenching love stories.

In this story, Jane Margaux is the lonely daughter of a high-powered Broadway producer, Vivienne Margaux. Jane's mother is constantly busy making deals and producing award winning shows, but every Sunday, Jane and Vivienne make a trip together, just the two of them, to Tiffany's. It is the one chance a week where Jane feels like a loved and appreciated daughter. For the rest of the time, Jane is alone... at least outwardly. What most people don't realize is that Jane has a very special friend, her imaginary friend named Michael. Michael is a very kind, loving person with an knack for listening to Jane's childhood problems and making her feel better about herself, even when no one else seems to care. Then, as most imaginary friends do, Michael has to leave Jane. "But don't worry" he promises, "you won't remember me."

After twenty-three years, we see Jane again as an up-and-coming Broadway producer herself. Jane is still very much alone and thinks every day about Michael, her long lost imaginary friend whom she never forgot despite his promise that she would. One day, Michael reappears in her life, though neither understands why.

The story is very original (though it reminded me a lot of the movie City of Angels) and seemingly well thought out. I was left with a few questions of my own curiosity, but none of them would have had any effect on how the story plays out and probably would have just been thought to be filler. I feel that for the sake of the story, all was explained very well and should leave most readers very satisfied. It is also a very quick read, partly because of how Patterson writes and partly because I could not put it down (I love books like that!). Over all a very good read and I would recommend it to almost anyone.

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Title: Their Eyes Were Watching God
Author: Zora Neale Hurston
Original Publishing Date: 1937
Genre: African-American Literature, Classics
Rating: A


My husband, Jerry, recommended this book to me. He, like so many others, had read it in high school and remembered it to be pretty good. Since I have embarked on this mission to read the classics, he thought it would be a good addition to my internal library.

I began the book without any real expectations. Jerry warned me that the dialog was written phonetically in rural Southern black dialect and therefore might be difficult to read, so at least I was prepared for that. I also had limited knowledge that it was written by one of the premier writers of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1930s and 40s, Zora Neale Hurston (**Note: visit Zora Neale Hurston's official site to listen to Ruby Dee read the fist couple of pages of the book! Its awesome!).

So, I began reading the book a few months ago and while its been slow going because of my busy lifestyle and because I was ambitions enough to start two books at once, I did find it to be a very enjoyable read. The story flowed remarkably well and kept my interest piqued from the very beginning.

Their Eyes Were Watching God is the story of Janie Crawford, a beautiful, middle-aged woman of African-American and Caucasian decent. The book begins on the porches of several of Janie's neighbors in her all-black community of Eatonville, Florida. Her neighbors watch (and gossip) as Janie returns home from a long hiatus, under "mysterious" circumstances dressed in a pair of overalls as opposed to the fancy satin dress she left town in. Janie's self-appointed best friend, Phoeby Watson, is elected to go find out what happened to Janie during her absence and report back to the neighbors. They are also quite curious as to the whereabouts of the the young man, Tea Cake, that Janie had left town with. Knowing her neighbors like she does and how they would speculate until her name was dragged through the mud and back, Janie decides to tell Phoeby her story from the beginning.

Janie was raised by her grandmother, Nanny, who was born a slave and was freed at the end of the Civil War, shortly after her only daughter was born (the progeny of one of those master-slave mistress affairs). Nanny loved her daughter dearly and vowed to give her a fabulous life after she was freed from the bonds of slavery. Unfortunately it was not to be and when her daughter turned up pregnant after being raped by a white man herself, Nanny had to rethink her views on free life. When Janie was born, her mother more or less took off, leaving the baby girl to be raised by her grandmother. This time, Nanny's plan was to have Janie married off to a man of prosperity and substantial social status, ensuring the girl's security, at the first inclination of her maturity, which in Janie's case was at the tender age of 16. The man that Nanny chose was Logan Killicks, a much older farmer and landowner. But Janie longed for love and to find her own identity and she certainly did not love Logan and he certainly wouldn't allow her to be herself. Finally, after several months of mediocre married life, Janie finds the opportunity to escape and pursue her chances to fine love and her sense of self.

Janie's story takes us through her trials and tribulations and the events that lead to her return to Eatonville, alone and under a cloud of neighborhood gossip. It was beautifully told. Hurston had an almost poetic way of writing and often used powerful metaphors to drive her descriptions home. The dialog really was not an issue for me because I have read several books with that type of writing before, particularly my all time favorite, Gone With the Wind, so I was used to it. There were some instances when slang terms that have long since died were used and I had trouble understanding that she was referring to, but in most cases, I was able to discern what the author was talking about through the context.

I do plan to read this book again in the future and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in African-American literature, or who, like me, is interested in the classics. This one definitely falls under that category. Next time I read it, though, I will be sure not to read any other books at the same time, and will spend much more time absorbing the story and the writing style.

My First Reviews from PaperBackSwap

These are reviews that I wrote on the books that I have read since joining PaperBackSwap (PBS). They are fairly brief and don't offer a lot of information, but my reviews following these will be more detailed and thought out from here on out, but I thought I'd post these anyway to get the ball rolling.


Title: My Sister's Keeper
Author: Jodi Picoult
Publishing Date: 2005
Genre: Chick Lit
Rating: B+

I have read a couple of Jodi Picoult's books prior to this one and I have always like them. This one is no exception. I like her style of writing, telling the story from several different points of view and from different time periods. Some might find it difficult to follow, but I feel like it just adds to the mystery and suspense of the story. I will definitely be reading more of her books in the future.


Title: The Other Boleyn Girl
Author: Philippa Gregory
Publication Date: 2003
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: A+

I have wanted to read this one for a while, after hearing friends discuss it. PBS gave me the opportunity when it became available and I snagged it before it acquired a long waiting list. I have always been fascinated by the history behind the six wives of Henry VIII and this book puts a dramatic spin on the factual history. The author, Philippa Gregory, tells the story of "the other Boleyn girl," Anne's sister Mary. While Anne's story is well known throughout the world, Mary's is one that has been shoved to the back burner so to speak. Mary was the beautiful younger sister of Anne Boleyn, whom we all know was Henry VIII's ill-fated second wife. Mary was the first Boleyn girl to capture the handsome king's wandering eye and while much of their relationship is speculated on in the history books, Ms. Gregory takes what few facts are known and spins a wonderfully fanciful tale of love, betrayal and the bonds of sisterhood. While the book is over 600 pages, I found it to be a fast read because you get locked in, wanting to know what happens next (even thought you already know the fate of Anne Boleyn).

Title: The Bluest Eye
Author: Toni Morrison
Publication Date: 2000
Genre: African American Literature
Rating: B+

I bought this one for a class in college and ended up dropping the class before I could read it, so it sat on my bookshelf until I joined PBS. I figured that I should read it before I posted it to be swapped. It is a short book, little more than 200 pages, making it a fairly fast read. However, with the way that author Toni Morrison writes, I often found myself going back several times to reread certain passages. Ms. Morrison tends to get a bit wordy in her writing and while it does flow beautifully, I sometimes lose the train of thought and have to go back to remind myself of what she is describing. In this book, she tells the story from a few different perspectives and voices, making it a very interesting read. The story itself is the heartbreaking tale of Pecola Breedlove and how she wishes for the beauty that is associated with blue eyes, but receives a horrifying blow to her innocence instead. I would recommend this book to someone with the caution to read it slowly and deliberately. This is definitely not one to fly through on a plane or beach.

Title: Call of the Wild/White Fang (2 novels in 1)
Author: Jack London
Publication Date: 1991
Genre: Classics
Rating: C+

Call of the Wild (1903): While this book was somewhat predictable and a bit graphic in places, it was very beautifully told. I can see why it is [considered] a classic. Jack London paints a beautiful and realistic picture of Alaska and the trials of dog sledding during the gold rush of the late 1800s from the dog's point of view.

White Fang (1906): I had a really hard time getting into this one. It ended up being very good, but it was very slow getting started and I had to force myself to keep reading several times. Jack London tends to be very wordy, often describing something several times before continuing and [repeats his description] several times during the story. I felt that some parts could have been left out as they did nothing to further the story or provide any kind of a back story. They were simply there. Other than that, the overall story was very good and heartwarming. I am glad that I stuck with it until the end.

Title: The Virgin's Lover
Author: Philippa Gregory
Publication Date: 2005
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: A-

While this one was very good, I had a hard time trying to get through it. I'm not sure what it was, maybe personal conflicts, maybe the language was starting to get to me, maybe the extent of the content, maybe I was just tired of reading all together. I did enjoy the book however, so it stumps me. The last 200 pages or so were very good and kept me going until the end. I really liked Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl and this one wasn't far off from that, though it did have a lot more information about the political turmoil that Elizabeth had to deal with at the beginning of her reign, whereas The Other Boleyn Girl seemed to be based more on the scandals that Anne Boleyn caused, leaving out a lot of the other political deals that were going on at that time. The characterization of the three main characters leaves a little to be desired. Elizabeth is painted as a flighty woman who has a hard time making decisions on her own. Not at all the way history portrays her. Amy Dudley come across as very whiny and annoying and completely oblivious to her husband's feelings and attitudes. I would think that after 9+ years of marriage, Amy would have figured out what her husband likes, doesn't like, how he feels about certain situations, and so on. Gregory has her play the simple-minded woman part a lot. Robert Dudley is not a good person throughout the whole book and I find it hard to believe that both of these women would be so infatuated with such a person. I might have to try to read this one again when I [am] more motivated. Until then, I think I will hold off on giving it a rating, just so I give it a fare assessment.

Title: P.S. I Love You
Author: Cecelia Ahern
Publication Date: 2004
Genre: Chick Lit
Rating: A

I really loved this one. Holly is a young, grieving widow and the book takes us though her grieving and recovery process. This process is unique though, because her husband, Gerry, who knew he was going to die due to a brain tumor, guides her with little notes that he left for her instructing her what to do. It had its moments where it was entirely predictable, but in the end, it surprised me. Throughout though, there were times when I laughed out loud or was brought to tears. I love books that have that effect on me. I will definitely be reading this one again and am adding it to my personal library.