I am almost halfway done with Water for Elephants and I am still LOVING it! I am very impressed with this author's style of writing. And while I envision Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon, I have no trouble making up the other images in my imagination. (And REALLY, it's not too stressful to picture RP or RW!)
Normally I really struggle with books that contain animal cruelty... I just CAN'T read them. But I am doing surprisingly well with this one... I just keep telling myself, "It's ONLY a book! Those animals never existed!" (Though in my head, and heart, I know that animals are often not treated well at these venues).
I am very anxious to see how the plot turns out-- AND to see the movie for comparison! I mean, I GUESS I can watch Robert and Reese for a couple of hours... if I HAVE to!
;-)
So I finally finished Unbearable Lightness by Portia DeRossi! It didn't take me forever and day because the book was bad or slow or anything like that... I just lost my reading train of thought for awhile. Plus things got hectic at home and school, which interfered with my reading time.
I liked this book a lot. As I said before, I do not typically read biographies, or even a lot of nonfiction for that matter. I like to be taken away from the real world when I read. That said, I did enjoy this book. I commented before about the author's complete honesty-- and this held true until the end.
My only negative is that parts of the book seemed very repetitive. I found myself feeling like I was reading the same line over and over. I think Ms. DeRossi's writing is great, I feel the editing could have been better.
Still I would recommend this book for anyone dealing with an eating disorder (your own or someone else's), or even anyone that is just a fan of Portia or even Ellen.
I gave this book 4/5 stars
Whew! Things have gotten a bit crazy in the last couple of weeks! School has been NUTS-- as have the kids! The hubby and I also joined a gym-- so that has eaten into my reading time a bit-- but I have also lost 6 lbs, so it's worth it I guess. :)
Right now Justy Mac and I are reading Unbearable Lightness by Portia De Rossi. I don't usually read biographies or autobiographies, so this is something different.
So far (I am about 30% done), I am enjoying the book. It deals with the author's battle with weight, self-esteem, and eating disorders. I am familiar with Ms. De Rossi from Ally McBeal mainly. (I never really got into Arrested Development). I find she writes very well-- she is thoughtful and, at times, painfully honest.
I guess my biggest shock so far is how she describes the set and cast of Ally. I LOVED that show, and while her character ("Subzero Nell") was a complete BEYOTCH, it certainly added to the show's quirky characters. I always envisioned them as buddies off-set as well. Apparently this was not the case. Not that they were not friendly to each other, but they just didn't hang out, or really talk much it seems.
I am also impressed more so with her acting after reading what I have. I imagined she was just as confident (though not as hateful) as Nell. Turns out it is quite the opposite. I have always found Portia De Rossi to be beautiful- so her low self image is intriguing.
Has anyone else read this book? Thoughts? Opinions?
On a sidenote, I just finished a GREAT audiobook-- A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley. This is the 3rd in the Flavia DeLuce mysteries. I LOVE these books and the way they are written-- but I especially LOVE the woman that narrates the audiobooks, Jayne Entwistle. This is a series that I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Sorry I have slowed things down recently. Justy Mac zipped through The Help, but I seem to be taking my sweet time. I have noticed that I read REAL books slower than I do my eBooks. Weird. As a friend had loaned me this book, I saw no reason to download it to the Kindle.
I am still not done, but WHOA! I am loving this book. One of the ways I determine a good book is does it make me FEEL? So far I have been through a range of emotions-- anger, humor, sympathy, confusion for how anyone could treat another human being the way some of these women do.
The characters are extremely well developed-- you can SEE them clearly in your head as you read. (Though I have heard this is being made into a movie, so have no doubt my pictures will be distorted by Hollywood).
Right now the adjective I am thinking about is brave. Abileen, Miss Skeeter, and Minny are all immensely brave. This takes place during such a crazy time in US history. A sad time. A dark time. But nonetheless, a time of true bravery from many people.
We will be going over the Civil Rights Movement at school soon. It is interesting to teach this to 5th graders, and to see their reactions. We touched on it a bit last week-- having just finished the Civil War while discussing the celebration of Martin Luther Kin, Jr holiday. One student (and not one of my smartest either) said to me, "Why can't everyone just get along? We are all the SAME afterall."
Exactly.
I'm on pg. 166-- and I promise to get a move on!
Sidenote-- I've started a new audiobook-- Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger. So far I like it. I've heard good things. I'll keep you posted.
