Abduction - Wanda Dyson

Finished 5/30/05:

Karan loaned this book to me before I left for Dallas; I started it at Seatac, and finished it up in the San Francisco airport on my way back. It was an enjoyable read, but not a very memorable book. It's Christian fiction, but not overtly so... at least, I think it could be enjoyed by a wider audience. And I really appreciate the fact that while she wrote a suspense/thriller story of a serial killer, she left the gore and violent details to be filled in by the imagination.

Abduction follows the stories of Karen, the flutter brained mother whose infant child was stolen from her crib, the psychic Zoe whose powers enable her to find the bodies of missing children, and the handsome police detective Josiah Johnson, or JJ as he prefers to be called. A number of little girls have been disappearing without a trace, and JJ reluctantly resorts to consulting Zoe's powers when the police are unable to produce any leads. Under the influence of her Christian neighbor, Karen refuses to allow the psychic to help find her missing daughter, and becomes herself a chief suspect in the case.

Not really one of my favorite genres, but as I got caught up in the suspense and twisting plot lines I finished the 300-something-pages in five or six hours. If you enjoy suspense but dislike the usual gore of serial killer stories, I'd highly recommend this book. Or perhaps if you're looking for something to take on a lengthy flight... :)

Beauty - Robin McKinley

Read 5/27/05:

This book's going on my all time favorite list. Abigail recommended McKinley to me as one of her favorite authors, so I'd picked this up from the library to read on my flight back to Dallas, but finished it before my ride to the airport picked me up.

I was somewhat skeptical at first as the book was listed in the children or youth areas at the library. It was an easy read in a couple hours, but most enjoyable. It's a romantic retelling of the story of Beauty & the Beast, with all the magical charm you'd expect.

Beauty is the ironic nickname of Honor, a rather plain looking girl who prides herself on her riding and intelligence, but struggles with low self-esteem and . McKinley begins with the family's background, introducing Beauty's two beautiful but kind older sisters, and the fall of their family fortune. Most of the pages follow the story of Beauty's growing friendship with the Beast, in which you'll (assuming you're a girl, which if you're reading this book is probably a safe assumption) fall in love with him along with her.

I also appreciated the details McKinley portrayed of the Beast's castle - the library with the as yet unwritten books, the invisible servants trying to force glamourous dresses on the unwilling Beauty, and the hallways that constantly rearrange themselves. It's truly a magical setting for this fairy tale.

I haven't read many retellings of this well-known fairy tale, but McKinley did a wonderful job at fleshing out the familiar story. My one regret was that the ending was so short, I wasn't quite ready for the book to end... but then again, I have that problem with all of my favorite stories.

Star Spangled Summer - Janet Lambert

Read around 5/23/05:

My mom had often mentioned Lambert as one of her favorite authors when she was growing up, but her books are difficult to find as she's been out of print for awhile now. I bought this book used from an online seller for a Mother's Day gift, but decided to read it before I left it with her on my recent trip to Dallas.

This is the first book in the Penny Parish series, and I can see why she enjoyed them so much. While definitely geared towards a younger audience, the light-hearted story of Penny and her friend Carrol and their summer adventures on a military base was a welcome break from my studies of church history.

Penny's large and boisterous family is a stark and welcome contrast to Carrol's life with her wealthy but absent father and her very proper grandmother. Carrol is staying with the Parish family for two months over the summer break, and she and Penny spend their days horse back riding, hanging out with friends at the soda fountain, and dreaming up new adventures.

Janet Lambert wrote a number of related series, of which the Penny Parish stories are generally considered the core. The series starts with Penny at age around 13, and follows her as she grows up, considers life on Broadway, falls in love, and has a family of her own. I think later series continue with the lives of her children, but not entirely sure. Another six books records the life of her younger sister Tippy, while a separate series tracks the Johnson family. In the later books, the Parish and Johnson families come together, but that's outside of my limited knowledge of Lambert's books.

Highly recommended, but difficult to find. These books are starting to be published on demand, but rather expensive. And if you read one, you'll want to find the whole series.

Of Mice and Men - Steinbeck

Read around 5/16/05:

Missed reading this one in highschool, so picked it up from the library a few weeks ago and read it in a day or two. I was rather suprised by how short it was, I'd forgotten it was a novella (or short story, whatever you want to call it...)

Basically, it's the story of two migrant farm workers, George and Lennie, who've formed a friendship unusual among the roaming men. Lennie is the sweet but simple-minded giant who doesn't understand his own strength, and George the somewhat intelligent but otherwise average farm worker who watches out for his friend.

They share the American dream of saving up and buying a piece of land of their own, and are close to reaching their goals when Lennie inadvertently runs into trouble with the boss's wife.

I really enjoyed this book, though I would have hated it for its ending if I'd read it in highschool. Like all of Steinbeck's writings that I've read, it's depressing with its portrayal of the hopeless pursuit of the American dream by the workers and the rottenness of human nature. On the brighter side, a rare friendship exists between George and Lennie, though it ends in tragedy.