Monday's Postcard: Tikal

I visited Tikal in 2002 and sent this postcard to my Granny.

Monday's Postcard: Newport Beach, CA

A postcard from my family visiting Newport Beach, CA. Thanks so much!!

Monday's Postcard: Plymouth Rock

Plymouth Rock, yes there is an actual rock and here is photographic proof!!

Books I read in February 2012

The Children's section of the Camarillo, CA public library! I just love those columns that look like stacks of books.

The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz--fun if you like Evanovitch, try these

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer (library) and incredibly sad, I have to make sure I don't read stuff like these around Ryan. He hates it when I cry and I do cry while I read. I also cannot watch sad movies around him. In fact, he has already forbidden me to watch this movie. And I don't know if I can watch it after reading the book. --might have to wait a year or so.

Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors (library) YA Romance/literary fun read it for valentine's day

Pauline Kael A Life in the Dark by Brian Kellow (library) Bio of New Yorker film critic

Sister by Rosamund Lupton (library)

Talk Talk by T. C. Boyle (library)-thriller with a deaf protagonist who is a victim of identity theft enjoyed it

V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton (library) love these, unlike Evanovitch, Grafton seems to grow with each book, her mysteries are unique and not the same old same old

Shine by Lauren Myracle (library)

The Paper Garden by Molly Peacock (library)-wonderful!

Life as We Knew it by Susan Beth Pfeffer (library)-YA dystopian fiction--good

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler (library) Fun YA timetravel

20 Times a Lady by Karyn Bosnak (library) book was the basis of the movie "what's your number"

Feng Shui for Beginners by Richard Webster -wanted a little info while decorating the new condo :-)

Barry Manilow The Biography by Patricia Butler -yeah, I'm a fan

Unwind by Neal Shusterman (library)-YA really good

The Children of Men by PD James (library)--a bit different from the movie of course

Adverbs by Daniel Handler--Handler is Lemony Snicket and I love those books. These are short stories

Bad Haircut by Tom Perrotta (short stories)Perrotta wrote Election which was made into the movie with Reese Witherspoon. So I love his stuff. If In Zanesville was teenage girl angst, this is teenage boy angst. Great

The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam by Chris Ewan-fun reminded me of the Donald Westlake novels about Dortmunder (a thief) and very good in their own right.

The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen (library)-Thumbs Up, Spanish Flu in small town in 1918

I'm Not the New Me by Wendy McClure -very cute memoir about weight loss and life of a single gal in Chicago

Favorite quote from a book this month: From Mad Love, they are talking about romances that have happy endings:

"'Bella and Edward have a happy ending', I said...'Bella ends up an undead, married teenage mom. If that sounds like a happy ending to you then you've got issues,' Realm said."

Part of what makes it funny to me is that the Realm character is such a dark, goth character and number two, I feel the same way about the Twilight books!!

21 books read

abandoned books:

A Small Hotel by Robert Olen Butler (library) too sappy romantic for my taste at the moment
Swan Song by Robert Mc Cammon (library) got tired of post-apocalyptic fiction but might give this one another go at another time.

Monday's Postcard: Mono Lake

Happy Birthday to my sister and this postcard is from her! She visited here in 2008 on a photography field trip. The crazy rock formations are called tufa towers, they are made of limestone.

Monday's Postcard: Malaysia

A postcard of some palaces in Penang, from my Dad in 1993. Penang has a huge expatriate population from many other Asian countries and the UK. Many folks from other countries retire to Penang, they promote this through a special visa program that allows people to stay for 10 years at a time.

Monday's Postcard: Casares

A postcard from the Costa del Sol in Spain.