HOME by Marilynne Robinson

Marilynne Robinson won the Pulitzer for her book GILEAD. I still haven't read GILEAD but I was anxious to read her follow-up, HOME, after reading several glowing reviews. HOME is a prodigal son story. It revisits several of the characters from GILEAD but it is not necessary to read GILEAD in order to understand the plot.

Prodigal Jack Boughton returns home after an extended absence to visit his ailing father and sister and tries to find some sort of redemption. The story is a quiet one that is very character-driven. For readers that crave fast-moving plots and lots of action, this would be a very difficult book to get through. However, it offers a great deal of reflection on religion and family and whether people can truly change. Extremely thoughtful if sometimes a bit slow.

I'm looking forward to reading GILEAD for a different perspective and viewpoint on this tale.

Comfort

I went to the doctor today and she offered some good suggestions and ideas for me so I think things will improve soon. As for my SuperBaby, he is as healthy as a horse and in the 99% for height and the 50% for weight. A long tall drink of water indeed. I'll post a six month photo soon.

I am all about comfort and nesting right now and I just saw this bed jacket in the Company Store catalog and decided it is just what I need to stay warm while I snuggle down and read during the winter months. I decided to splurge. Don't tell my mom though...I'm getting one for her too!

I may not post again before Thanksgiving so I just wanted to say how thankful I am for so many things in my life: healthy baby, family, home, job, personal health....and YOU!!!

One Foot in Front of the Other

Hello Friends.
Thank you for all your support and well wishes. They are needed and appreciated. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow and hopefully she can help me figure things out. In the meantime, I am trying to rest (unsuccessfully) and read (fairly successfully). I just finished HOME by Marilynne Robinson and will post a review soon. I am also close to finishing the FIRE by Katherine Neville.

I hope you are all preparing for a special Thanksgiving this year. I know I have lots of things to be thankful for. Such as blogging friends like you!

YES WE DID!!!

I can hardly believe it. I haven't felt like this since 1992. Could this really be change that we can believe in? I'd like to think so. I think Sen. McCain's speech was very moving and gracious. And Obama's speech blew me away. I can hardly wait for the inauguration. We now have the chance to come together as a country and effect some real change. What a wonderful opportunity!!!

I am very sad that California passed Proposition 8. I hope that someday, we will look back on this time and think, "How could we have ever denied rights to our fellow citizens?!" Whatever your stance on gay marriage, I would like to think that people would realize that it is very wrong to deny rights to our fellow Americans. Just as it was wrong to deny women and African-Americans the vote for so long. Sometimes I think we take two steps forward and one step back. Still, progress is being made. I'm just a little impatient.

Rumored to be posted at Obama Campaign HQ:

"Rosa Sat So Martin Could Walk
Martin Walked So Obama Could Run
Obama Ran So Our Children Can Fly"

McCain Supporter Denies Candy to Children

This is so disgusting but it seems to be par for the course these days.

Why I'm Voting for Obama

I thought I'd be very specific about why I am choosing Obama for President. We have to decide something so important on much more than the basis of political party or a single issue.

1. He supports an increase after-school programs for lower-income families and affordable child-care options. Anyone with a child in college would get a sizable tax credit. (The only McCain changes would be a possible credit that families could use to pay for private schools.)

2. He supports an expansion of family leave benefits especially for employees of small companies. (McCain sees no need to change current requirements for maternity leave or family leave)

3. In his health care plan, participants could change job while keeping their insurance plan. Insurance companies could no longer deny coverage to individuals who have pre-existing conditions. This would directly affect my mother. ALL children would have health care coverage. (McCain's plan covers none of these things. However, there MAY be slighter lower prices for insurance in his plan. McCain would also tax everyone's health care benefits which would only be offset by a $5000 credit. My plan is worth $1500 a month. $5000 wouldn't get me very far.)

4. Under Obama's plan, 95% of American would get a tax cut. However, if you earn OVER $250,000, there would be a tax increase. (Under McCain's plan, the more money you make, the LARGER your tax cut would be. We have already seen under Bush how "effective" tax cuts for the rich have been.)

5. The next President will be choosing several new Supreme Court justices. We can't afford to lose legislation such as Roe v. Wade because it would be giving license to the government to tell ALL of us what we can or cannot do with our bodies.

6. I have people that I care about in the military and I'm ready for them to come home. We need a CLEAR definition of what success in Iraq looks like and a plan/timeline to get our troops home so that we stop bleeding money and losing lives.

We have the opportunity in this election to effect some real positive change. I respect Senator McCain. He has served his country well and I admire his efforts at campagin finance reform. However, in spite of calling himself a Maverick, Senator McCain has voted with President Bush 90% of the time. Even Republicans can now see that the current Presidency has set us back. Do we really want to continue that? Also, what if something happens to McCain? Gov. Palin is not ready to lead. She doesn't even know what the Vice President does and can't name any Supreme Court decisions other than Roe v. Wade. That is really scary. If we are going to accomplish some good things over the next four years, it will take ALL of us. Not just liberals and not just conservatives. Any real change has to come from both sides. I hope we can do it. I believe we can.

INTO THE FOREST by Jean Hegland

A friend of mine at work lent this book to me and it proved to be a very quick read. INTO THE FOREST explores the lives of two sisters (ages 18 and 17) who are left to fend for themselves in a semi-apolcalpytic world. They live in a house on the edge of a forest thirty miles from the edge of town and manage to survive by growing their own food and making use of the "junk" their father accumulated while alive. In the midst of their efforts, tragedy strikes and the girls must decide whether to take their chances on the road or to remain on the edge of the forest.

This was a good quick read although it often felt as if the story was developed too quickly and was often simplistic. I feel that the author could have done a lot more. However, the book really makes you think about what you would do in a similar situation. It made me want to run out and read ANIMAL VEGETABLE MIRACLE again so I could learn to be self-sustaining. This would be a great companion book for McCarthy's THE ROAD. You could make it a weekend of apocalyptic reading.

GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson

I hadn't read a mystery/thriller in awhile when I came across this posthumous book by Swedish author Stieg Larsson. This international bestseller was very engrossing. The first fifty pages or so got a little bogged down in a description of a libel case. I almost gave up. Once the mystery got introduced, however, I was hooked. I must warn you..this book is not for the faint of heart. There is a great deal of violence towards women and gruesome depictions of sadism. I couldn't put it down, though. After the resolution of the mystery, the story gets bogged down once again in the libel case. I can't understand the reasoning behind such a clunky plot device. I still enjoyed the book, however, and look forward to the release of the next book in the trilogy.

A New Controversial Magazine Cover

The cover of October 21's W MAGAZINE has been leaked and it shows Angelina Jolie breastfeeding one of her new babies. And you know what? It's really beautiful. I don't care what people think...that woman looks radiant!!!!

See the photo here.

GARDEN OF LAST DAYS by Andre Dubus III

I never read HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG but I thought the movie was really compelling. I was interested to see what Dubus' latest offering would be like. GARDEN OF LAST DAYS follows the lives of several individuals surrounding a strip club in Florida in the days leading up to 9/11. To me, the novel felt as if it could have been a Paul Thomas Anderson film. I was reminded of the feel of "Magnolia" several times. The characters in the novel are all loosely connected and yet they impact one another in interesting ways. I especially found the character of the terrorist especially interesting. Overall, I liked the novel although I felt Dubus could have done more. I felt the story unfolded a little slowly at times. However, I like that it covers a period of time during the 9/11 tragedy that is seldom addressed.