The House On Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Only a house quiet as snow, a space for myself to go, clean as paper before the poem.

The House on Mango Street is written as a compilation of vignettes, a style of writing that's easy to maneuver. I was impressed to read a story loaded in such detail but told in so few words. Each chapter is a single moment or thought in time. A book of fragmented stories that continue unfolding in your mind long after the chapters end.

The consistent theme throughout the book was Esperaza's desire to get out of her impoverished neighborhood. She dreamed of independence with a house of her own. Esperaza wanted more than the life she'd grown to know. Coming from small town America myself, I felt a kinship with her. By no means did I live in a ghetto but I grew up in a family that didn't have much money and in a community too small to support very many opportunities. In that scenario you get two choices. Be comfortable with where you are or push to develop your potential of being more than you thought you could.

Esperaza opted for the bigger picture and the heartwarming part is the selflessness attached to her pursuit. She vowed to escape poverty then return for her family. So much sweeter the fruits of labor when you share it with the ones you love.

Though you leave the story with no account of how Esperaza's life continues, you feel confident that if you met up with her today, she'd be living the life of her dreams.

The Dead Fathers Club by Matt Haig

Only a third of the way through and I called it quits. After two weeks of trying to barrel through the text, I subconsciously, or perhaps purposely, tossed the book in the corner and buried it under discarded clothes. It was a week before I decided to try again, but within a few pages I was ready to return it to its hovel on the floor.

It's unfortunate that the story itself is an interesting idea but you can't appreciate it for the heaps of poor writing. Its fatal flaw is the complete fail in dialogue. I understand the book is written through the experience and words of an eleven year old boy but I've read other books from the same perspective and they managed to accomplish the task fluidly.

The trend of not using quotation marks to separate dialogue is a feat better left to few. It's a style of writing that's tricky to pen and can hinder the story from flowing coherently. Once reading the book became more chore than pleasure, it was time to call it a wrap.

This review remains open as I intend to give the book another crack after I recover from the first go round. Check back in a couple months for a complete review.

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

A grasshopper, spider and worms, oh my!
A centipede, ladybug and child, but why?

This fantastically peculiar group of friends survive an epic journey aboard an airborne peach while encountering many obstacles along the way. Over the countless years since I last read this book, I'd forgotten much of the story. Reading it this past week felt like the first time, all over again.

I found a favorite character in the Centipede. Despite his harsh nature throughout the book, he ultimately won me over with his witty and funny outbursts into song. Oddly, the character I had the least attachment to was James. I sympathized with the loss of his parents and the cruelty of his Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker, but his appeal seemed to waiver when presented aside the array of lovable bugs. The insects were well written and they easily overshadowed the other characters by their presence.

The "where are they now" ending of the book brought the story full circle. A fitting end to such an elaborate escapade spanning one continent to another.

Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom

Read this book. That's all the reviewing I need to do.

That may seem generic but there has to be a one time exception when you find the book that penetrates to the core and lingers beyond the cover's closure.

I read this book over a year ago and I still struggle with the words to review it justly. I'm cautious to label it the best book I've read as that's a heavy claim to make of any book but I feel it deserves the title. I learned so much about life and spirituality and human kindness. There were chapters that hit so hard that I had to set the book aside while I digested it. I'd never experienced a story that made me consider myself and how I am as often as this.

I refuse to further attempt a review. As always, every try is met with a blank page, the contemplative stare into the distance, a warming in my soul then the release into a smile.

Epiphany! This book isn't something to discuss, it's something to feel. Opening this book is an honest look in the mirror where you keep your mouth closed, your defenses down and your mind open. Sign up for the journey.

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

To live is to be marked.

As a five hundred page read during the Thanksgiving holiday, this book was quite the investment. The story of an American missionary family living in an African village wasn't the foundation for an action packed novel but it held its own despite the slow speed.

I sensed the story was written at this snail's pace as a representation of the long and mostly uneventful lives of the characters. It gave me a fly on the wall look at how daily life would drag by without television, telephone and transportation.

The eccentric antics of the overbearingly religious father made him an outcast who was feared and disliked. His practice of forced baptisms and accusatory sermons puts him in the league of so called religious leaders who end up turning more people away from religion than they draw in. My disdain for that behavior made it difficult to read the book without anger.

Having the chapters randomly told from the perspective of each female proved vital to the story's flow and success. The women have vastly different personalities. I became most attached to Ruth May and Adah. Their individual stories tugged at my emotions.

The book's end didn't play out the way I had hoped but I appreciated the unpredictability. My heart is always rooting for a happily ever after but my mind wants the element of surprise. This ending packed a sting that gave me just enough to be content with how the characters turned out. It was a story of circumstantially ever after.

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