He mea hoihoi - Interesting Things

Stockett, Kathryn. The Help. [on order]
Just before Winter Break, I started seeing a lot of references to the book The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I had also finished the last audio book that I had downloaded to my iPod for "reading" as I ran. So I went to audible.com and downloaded The Help. I loved the audio version with the three narrators all represented by a different reader. The story was interesting as Skeeter, a budding writer who is white, decides to write a book about the African American maids that work for her society friends. In Jackson, Mississippi in 1962, this needs to remain secret and is very dangerous for the maids that are telling their stories. Great book. Since returning from break, I have heard others that have enjoyed the print version. Cooke Library has copies on order but if you are interested, you can put your name on the hold list.

This year, I discovered Goodreads (http://www.goodreads.com) which is a social networking site for readers. According to their website, it is "a place for casual readers and bona-fide bookworms alike, Goodreads members recommend books, compare what they are reading, keep track of what they've read and would like to read, form book clubs and much more." Your comments can be private or shared. Check it out.

Thank you to everybody that contributed to this posting.

Continue reading "February 2010 - Good Reads Galore!" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 3:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was drawing a blank when I was trying to think of my own book choices for this entry. Then I had a request from a teacher for recommendations for free-choice reading for her students with the theme of identity or "who am I". That request combined with the fact that I just read a riveting book (The Bite of the Mango) reminded me of the following biographies of individuals that have been shaped by their experiences in war-torn countries. The subject is grim but they all show the resilience and courage shown by individuals facing difficult situations.

Kamara, Mariatu with Susan McClelland. The Bite of the Mango. 2008. [B K123]
Mariatu is 12 and living in Sierra Leone when her village is attacked by heavily armed rebel soldiers. She is kidnapped and tortured and then child soldiers are ordered to cut off both her hands before leaving her. Be forewarned - I read this book in one sitting. For a fiction book from the point of view of a boy soldier, read Uzodinma Iweala's Beasts of No Nation. [Fic Iweala]

Ung, Loung. First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers. 2000. [959.6 Un3]
Loung was the child of a high-ranking government official in Phnom Penh. When she was five, her family fled Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army in April of 1975. They moved from village to village hiding their former life of privilege. Loung's story of survival still haunts me long after I read the book.

Bok, Francis. Escape From Slavery: The True Story of My Ten Years in Captivity - and My Journey to Freedom in America. 2003. [305.5 B63]
Seven-year-old Francis was captured by Arab raiders in southern Sudan. For ten years, he lived as a slave until he finally escaped after two other aborted escape attempts. He persevered through prison and refugee camps until finally being granted passage to America. What is the What by Dave Eggers is a novel that tells a similar story of a refugee from the Sudanese Civil War. [F Eggers]

Read on for recommendations from other faculty and staff - hopefully not all grim!
-Deb Peterson

Continue reading "Fall 2009 faculty and staff picks" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 8:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Collins, Suzanne. Hunger Games. [F Collins]

I normally limit my own suggestions to adult fiction for this blog but I have to break the mold this time and suggest a Young Adult fiction title. Good YA fiction also makes great reads for adults. I recently finished reading Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and could not put it down. Imagine a combination of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, The Giver by Lois Lowry, and Survivor reality series and you will have a taste of Hunger Games. Katniss lives in a future North America where the rulers of Panem have organized a competition between the twelve districts. Everyone between the ages of 12 and 18 must be entered in a lottery and each district draws two names, a boy and a girl, to be entered into a televised competition where the winner is declared after a battle to the death. Katniss impulsively volunteers after her younger sister's name is drawn. Grim topic but gripping. It's the first part of a promised trilogy so I'm anxiously awaiting number two.

Read on for recommendations from others.

Continue reading "Summer is here again!?" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 7:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As I started gathering my thoughts about the books that I have read and enjoyed lately, I found myself not only coming up with books that I have "read" in the literal sense but also audio books that I have listened to in the past months.

Preparation for the Honolulu Marathon (and just keeping in shape) demands a lot of time spent in solo running. Though I sometimes listen to music, I have discovered that I enjoy taking advantage of the the time and listening to audio books. Here are some of my favorites!

Wood, Patricia. Lottery [F Wood]
Having learned essential life skills from his dedicated grandmother that have helped him overcome his low IQ, Perry finds himself without a caregiver at the age of thirty-one and wins a fortune by playing the lottery, a lucrative windfall that brings him more family than he has ever wanted.

Zusak, Marcus. Book Thief. [F Zusak]
Living with a foster family in Germany during World War II, a young girl struggles to survive her day-to-day trials through stealing anything she can get her hands on, but when she discovers the beauty of literature, she realizes that she has been blessed with a gift that must be shared with others, including the Jewish man hiding in the basement.

Setterfield, Diane. Thirteenth Tale. [F Setterfield]
When her health begins failing, the mysterious author Vida Winter decides to let Margaret Lea, a biographer, write the truth about her life, but Margaret needs to verify the facts since Vida has a history of telling outlandish tales.

McCullough, David. John Adams. [B Ad12m]
Chronicles the life of America's second president, including his youth, his career as a Massachusetts farmer and lawyer, his marriage to Abigail, his rivalry with Thomas Jefferson, and his influence on the birth of the United States.

Diaz, Junot. Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. [F Diaz]
Living with an Old World mother and rebellious sister, an urban New Jersey misfit dreams of becoming the next J.R.R. Tolkien and believes that a longstanding family curse is thwarting his efforts to find love and happiness.

Lahiri, Jhumpa. Interpreter of Maladies. [F Lahiri]
A debut collection of short fiction blends elements of Indian traditions with the complexities of American culture in such tales as "A Temporary Matter," in which a young Indian-American couple confronts their grief over the loss of a child, while their Boston neighborhood copes with a nightly blackout.

Kostova, Elizabeth. The Historian. [F Kostova]
Discovering a medieval book and a cache of letters, a motherless American girl becomes the latest in a series of historians, including her late father, who investigate the possible surviving legacy of Vlad the Impaler. I picked this one to read because it is the book that James Kakos chose for his READ poster. (Thanks, James!)

Not enough time to read and do the 60 minutes of exercise that is recommended each day? Try combining the activities by "reading" on the run.

Here are recommendations by others. Enjoy your break and read or listen to a great book!

Continue reading "What can I read over Winter Break???" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 9:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thanks to everybody who took time out of their busy schedules to send book recommendations. I'm anxious for shorter hours for Summer School to allow extra time to catch up on reading. Right now, I am reading Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth (see Tim Dyke's comments below). It is really hard to put it down to do anything else. My television hasn't been on much since I started reading it.

I have been reading other people's suggestions and would like to add my recommendations for the following:
Hirsi Ali, Ayaan. Infidel.
Dallas, Sandra. Tallgrass.
Weisman, Alan. The World Without Us. (I listened to the audio version)

Another one that I enjoyed was suggested to me by Carol Lee but it must not have been submitted to the blog so I'll pass on her recommendation for Tess Uriza Holthe's, When the Elephants Dance. [F Holthe] This is about the Philippines under Japanese occupation during WWII. It centers around one family and what is happening to them just prior to the Americans retaking the Philippines. There are also long stories of the past as the family members hide out during air raids, etc. Very good!

So much for what I've been reading, here are the other recommendations.

Continue reading "Just in Time for Summer Reading" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

With Spring Break just around the corner, I asked the Punahou 'ohana for books that they would recommend to others. I have had a lot of great suggestions, so set aside some time to delve into another world while you are on a plane, at the beach, or curled up on your couch.

Continue reading "Spring Break Reads (2008 picks)" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 6:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As we begin a new school year, I asked faculty and staff for their favorite summer reads. Two of my favorites this summer were Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards and Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen. Very different from each other, they were both difficult to put down.

Edwards, Kim. Memory Keeper's Daughter. 2005. [F Edwards]
Memory Keeper's Daughter looks at how one decision changed everything for Dr. David Henry and his family. Forced to deliver his own twins during a snowstorm, he can tell immediately that his daughter has Down's Syndrome and asks his nurse to take her to an institution to be raised. He tells his wife that the baby girl has died.

Gruen, Sara. Water for Elephants. 2006. [F Gruen]
Water for Elephants moves between Jacob Jankowski's time with the circus during the 30s and his current situation in a care home at the age of 93.

For other recommendations, read on!

Continue reading "Summer Picks" »

Posted by Debra Peterson at 2:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)