#28: The Magician's Assistant

I just finished The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett.  This was the story of Sabine.  She was the assistant and wife to a magician named Parsifal.  Parsifal was gay and in love with a man named Phan who died.  Parsifal married Sabine, who was like a best friend to him.  At the beginning of the book, we find out that Parsifal died of an anuerysm.  When the will is opened by the lawyer, Sabine learns some secrets about Parsifal's past.  The biggest secret is that his mother and sister is alive while he told Sabine he had no family alive.  Sabine learns more about Parsifal's secrets while meeting his family and having dreams at night containing Phan and Parsifal.

I was really hooked on this story at the beginning.  I couldn't wait to find out the big secret of Parsifal's past.  Once I heard the secret I was very sad.  There was so much struggle for Parsifal's family.  I enjoyed meeting all the characters.  I also liked that Sabine was able to be so comfortable around the family she never knew existed.  I found the end to be a little predictible, but it was a very good story.

Up Next:  The Husband's Secret

#27: State of Wonder

State of Wonder was the first book I read by Ann Patchett.  This author was recommended to me by Lindsey, who has a pretty similar taste in books to me.

State of Wonder is the story of Dr. Marina Singh.  Marina's co-worker, Anders Eckman, was on a work trip to the Amazon jungle.  After a few months in the jungle, Marina and her boss receive news that Anders has died.  They have to break the news to Anders' wife and she wants someone to go back and find his possessions and body.  Marina is volunteered as the new person to head to the jungle.  She is to find out more about Anders' death and to find out how the research is going that her college professor, Dr. Swenson, has been working on for years.

In the jungle, the doctors are faced with many troubles: lack of supplies, no communication, no transportation. etc.  They also encounter scary snakes, insects, cannibals, and more.  In addition to all these troubles and fears, Marina also learns the true story behind Dr. Swenson's research.

This was a very interesting story.  I can safely say I am terrified to visit the Amazon jungle now.  I am looking forward to reading more books from Patchett.

Up Next:  The Magician's Assistant

#26: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

I saw Lindsey give this book lots of praise, so when I saw it for sale at the Book Shoppe in town, I had to buy it.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews is the story of Greg Gaines, a high school senior.  Greg is just trying to get through his life and high school without being noticed.  He doesn't really have any good friends except Earl, who he likes to make films with.  The story is written in a screen play type of way, which makes it kind of unique.

Greg's senior year is off to a good start until his mom makes him befriend a girl he went to Hebrew school with who gets cancer.  Greg and Earl befriend Rachel and even share their movies with her.

The story, which should be super sad based on subject matter, is actually funny in some parts.  We see the life of a high school boy just trying to fit in (by not fitting in).  We see him use humor to be himself.  We also see how doing something good for someone else, doesn't always make your life immediately better.

As Greg points out, this is not some cancer love story.  I don't want to spoil the story for you, so I just recommend you read it.

Currently Reading: State of Wonder

#25: Unbroken

I've got some book blog to catch up on due to vacation.

Before leaving for vacation, I started reading Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.  This is the WWII story of Louis Zamperini.  This was a book that I had heard great things about and really wanted to see the movie.  In the beginning we learnined about Louie's childhood and his racing career.  I found all his troubles and how he got into running very interesting.

Then Louie had to go to war.  I knew this book was about war, but I found the beginning of the war stories very boring.  It was really hard for me to stay interested in the book.  I've heard people say that if you can't get into a book the first 100 pages, you should give up.  This is what I wanted to do at some points, but then Louie and 2 other crew members crashed over the Pacific Ocean and found them selves on an inflatable life raft.  This was the turning point for me where things started getting interesting again.

We learn how they survived on the raft with stories of food, sharks, storms, hunger, thirst, etc.  So many emotions were also shown for the men during this time.  I also found the rest of the story very interesting.  Louie suffered so much during the war and after, but was still able to inspire others.  A truly remarkable story that I am glad I finished reading.

#24: Big Little Lies

Last night I finished Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty.  I have heard mixed reviews on this book, but I really liked it.  I found the characters really interesting and was really wanting to know what would happen next.  I also thought the timeline and suspense was good.
We knew right away that there was a murder at Trivia Night, but didn't know who was killed until the last few chapters.  Along the way I was trying to guess which of the characters was murdered and I never guessed it until it happened.
I loved the conversations with the police in each chapter too.  It really gave some of the side characters more personalities.  I recommend to anyone looking for a different kind of "crime/suspense" book.  It was really more a story on friendship and understanding.

Up Next:  ?  Maybe Unbroken since all the other books I want are checked out.

#23: House Rules

I always say I'm not going to read any more Picoult, and then I get sucked into another one.  I just took a really long time to read my last book, so I need a quick read and thought a Jodi Picoult book would be the perfect thing for me.  Usually I get sucked into them and finish in a few days.  I briefly looked at the shelf at the library and found one about a boy with Aspergers.

House Rules is about an 18 yr old boy named Jacob who has Aspergers and is obsessed with crime scenes.  He is accused of murder when his social tutor goes missing and is found dead.  It was interesting to see how Jacob acted when questioned about the murder.  Some of the behaviors he showed we very perfect for an Aspergers child/adult.  I really liked Jacob and was interested in most of the characters in the book.

What I didn't like about the book, was that it was too predictable.  Usually there is some moral dilemna or shocking twist in the end, but this one just seemed to drag on.  It seemed like we knew exactly what happened towards the begininning.  There wasn't a huge shock at the end and I didn't feel torn on which side to be on in the book.  I also didn't like how we really didn't see what the jury decided at the end.  So as far as Picoult books goes, this wasn't my favorite.

Up Next:  Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

#22: The Goldfinch

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt was a story of a boy named Theo.  He is faced with lots of challenges in his life after a tragedy in his childhood.  He steals a painting during an art museum bombing and every thought in life he has is related back to the painting.  

I really liked the idea behind the story and liked Theo, but things just never worked out as they should for him.  He becomes a very unstable and addictive person who just can't seem to get on the right track.

The story was good, but really long.

Up Next:  House Rules by Jodi Picoult