I Did It For You, Kate!

I finally finished City of Lost Souls and City of Fallen Angels, both by Cassandra Clare.  These are the fourth and fifth books of The Mortal Instruments, a series with which my daughter is completely obsessed.  Now, I really liked them, but if you have a teenage or older girl in the house, THEY WILL LOVE THEM.  Angels, demons, vampires and werewolves populate these stories, and all are unfailingly HOT.  Also, the plots are pretty darn good, and as I mentioned before the movie of the first book, City of Bones, comes out in August.  So, get them for yourself or said younger female.  Either way, you won't be sorry.  TBC

The Language of Flowers

Wow.  I just finished The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh.  Again, wow.  This is a a GREAT book.

Victoria has been in the foster system from birth.  She is nine-years-old and has lived in 32 homes, at least that she can remember, and now she was being given one last chance.  (Go ahead and read that again.  The social worker told a nine-year-old girl she had one last chance to belong to someone. If it didn't work out she'd be put in a group home until she was 18.) Victoria has learned to not expect anything good to happen, and when she arrives at Elizabeth's vineyard she does her best to protect her wounded heart. For how can she love others when she has never learned to love herself?  But Elizabeth slowly chips away at Victoria's defenses, and the little girl dares to hope that this placement might be different.  In her time with Elizabeth, Victoria learns many new things, but it is Elizabeth's love of flowers and the messages they send that literally save Victoria's life and teach her that she is worthy of someone's love.

Not only is The Language of Flowers a fantastic book, but it also covers a subject that is close to my heart.  I have had the privilege of working with a wonderful group of women who support San Pasqual Academy here in San Diego County.  It is a boarding school for foster teens, and it is the first of its kind in the country.  Like Victoria, a foster child moves an average of 10 times before the teen years, fostering a feeling of impermanence and instability.  San Pasqual Academy changes all of that.  The school takes children from a broken system and gives them a new start.  Please check out their website at www.sanpasqualacademy.org, and watch the video below.  It is truly an amazing place!

Happy New Year!!!!

I love most everything about Christmas and New Year's, except that all of the hullaballoo keeps me from my book addiction.  But the New Year is here, and I'm back to my favorite pastime!

One of my happy discoveries last year was D. E. Stevenson, who wrote Miss Buncle's Book way back in the 1930's.  Luckily she didn't stop there, but soon came out with Miss Buncle Married, which continues the story of Barbara and her new husband/publisher Arthur as they move from London to a small town in the English countryside.  Almost immediately Barbara is drawn into the small and large dramas of her neighbors, but only because she has such an innocent and sympathetic heart.  People just seem to TELL her things, on purpose and by accident, and it is her unintentionally astute observations that make her such a great friend.  Once again she transforms her personal experiences into a potential best-selling book, but can she risk publishing it?? You'll have to read it to see...

What I love about D. E. Stevenson is how much her books apply to our life today, despite the almost 80 years that have passed.  We may think our problems are unique to 2013, but that's not really true. The more things change, the more they stay the same.  What for SURE doesn't change is the gift of a new book to read, and thank goodness for that!

Happy 2013!!
TBC

And Now for Something Completely Fun and Fluffy

Janet Evanovich is back with her latest novel Notorious Nineteen, and not a moment too soon! When all the news is bad, and you are completely holidayed-out, it's time to take a break from reality.

In her latest adventure, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is on the hunt for Geoffrey Cubbin, a high bond skip. He has a really good reason to disappear, considering he embezzled 5 million dollars from the local retirement home.  So, when he is out on bail, has emergency appendectomy surgery and then vanishes from the hospital, it seems that all of his problems have conveniently been solved.  Or HAVE they????  It seems Geoffrey is not the first patient to disappear in the middle of the night from Trenton's Central Hospital, and Stepanie soon finds herself in the cross-hairs of some real meanies.  Now add in the steamy Ranger and hot Morelli, a supposedly telepathic Tiki statue and a psychotic ex-special forces munitions specialist, and Stephanie is up to her neck in peril.  And she'd like to keep her neck.

Janet Evanovich is my go-to gal for escapism, and boy do we all need to escape!  That doesn't mean she writes about puppies and teddy bears, quite the contrary, but the good guys are sure to come out on top at the end.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and enjoy a happy New Year!
Mary Kay

One of My Favorites

Joan Walsh Anglund

I loved her growing up!

I practiced drawing her sweet characters.

She makes me smile:)

Merry Christmas!

Heaven Is Here

Why do bad things happen to good people?  I am sure today we are all asking ourselves that question, as have countless people countless times before.  Bad things happen to good people everyday, making us realize just how fragile this life and these bodies really are.

Heaven Is Here is a memoir by Stephanie Nielson.  By her own admission she had a pretty perfect life, with a loving husband, four beautiful children, a large extended family and an unshakable faith in God.  She started her blog (nieniedialogues.com) in 2005 when she was living in New Jersey and missing her family in Utah.  It quickly drew a large and loyal following attracted to her positive outlook and eclectic sense of style. Then they moved back to Mesa, Arizona, close to her in-laws, and life couldn't have been better.  Until the small plane Nie and her husband were flying in crashed, and she was burned over 80% of her body.  

What followed was a journey of body and mind: three months in a drug-induced coma, innumerable surgeries and excruciating procedures followed by physical therapy to learn to walk, eat and even lift her arms on her own again.  But the hardest part was finding the courage to see her children, and to see herself for the beautiful person she still was.

Heaven is Here is a testament to the power of love and the strength of the human spirit, and a reminder that a person who isn't beautiful on the inside, won't ever be beautiful on the outside.  So hug your children, husband, boyfriend, girlfriend, dog, cat, etc. Remember how lucky we all are and count your blessings, for no matter how bad things seem, someone else has it worse.

So read Heaven is Here by Stephanie Nielson!  And check out nieniedialogues.com.  You will fall in love with her adorable family.  I'm off to hug mine!!

TBC

What I've Been Doing...

I have been shopping, making, mailing, light hanging, tree decorating, wrapping and planning.  I have also been reading these:

The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare.  If you have a daughter between the ages of 12 and 20, you have probably heard of this series.  If not, you will soon...

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones comes out August 2013.  Get ready!!  Also, read the books.  They are a great story and a great escape.

My brain is full of jingle bells.
More later....TBC