2001 Books

Our first book was chosen by Kyle after much persuasion to get Will to read a John Grisham. Will takes little interest in any movie or book about law and its unending complexity. Yet, after hearing 'A Painted House' being read on NPR on a trip back to Branson, Will realized the possibility of this book.

This is a simple story of a child in the cotton fields of Arkansas. Besides a good story, there is little to this book. I enjoyed the light read, but a thought-provoking dive into the complications of law this is not. Don't confuse this Grisham book with his other books. I can see how many Grisham fans would be disappointed and be left wanting more from a perfectly good tale. So, if you are searching for a fun read that will keep you busy then you have found it. I was actually happy to keep away from the law and more to a book that could be enjoyed by the young readers of Mark Twain.

Not your typical John Grisham book, 'A Painted House' lacks the edge-of-your-seat suspense that is worked into the Grisham law thriller books. However, this book, taken on it's own merit, is a very enjoyable book. It is the story of a farm kid growing up in rural Arkansas, and many people with a small-town background will find that much of the book hits very close to home. This was a very good book, but it's not what you're looking for if you want one that makes you think and challenges you. Still, it's rated a four because of the enjoyment you can get from such a simple book.

The hill people and the Mexicans arrived on the same day. It was a Wednesday, early in September 1952. The Cardinals were five games behind the Dodgers with three weeks to go, and the season looked hopeless. The cotton, however, was waist-high to my father, over my head, and he and my grandfather could be heard before supper whispering words that were seldom heard. It could be a "good crop."

Thus begins the new novel from John Grisham, a story inspired by his own childhood in rural Arkansas. The narrator is a farm boy named Luke Chandler, age seven, who lives in the cotton fields with his parents and grandparents in a little house that's never been painted. The Chandlers farm eighty acres that they rent, not own, and when the cotton is ready they hire a truckload of Mexicans and a family from the Ozarks to help harvest it.

For six weeks they pick cotton, battling the heat, the rain, the fatigue, and, sometimes, each other. As the weeks pass Luke sees and hears things no seven-year-old could possibly be prepared for, and finds himself keeping secrets that not only threaten the crop but will change the lives of the Chandlers forever.

A Painted House is a moving story of one boy's journey from innocence to experience.

One weekend I stayed in St. Louis and had time to search through amazon.com to find some books that I would enjoy reading. Well, Kyle didn't like any of my list except for "The Catcher in the Rye."

Classics come and classics go, and this classic should never have been. A man going through a depressive time in his life is not a good story unless his depression brings about side stories, as does occur in ?Invisible Man? by Ralph Ellison. This book seems to go nowhere leaving the reader to continue to hope for the expected conflict that never transpires. ?The Catcher in the Rye? is quite a disappointment.

This book chronicles two days in the life a disturbed teenager, Holden Caulfied. He talks candidly (almost too candidly at times) about the events of those two days, complete with tangents and side stories. The Catcher in the Rye is often considered a "classic," but I had my doubts throughout much of the book. It definitely does not stack up to what I would consider a classic. I was never absorbed in the book, and I never had a strong feeling for the main character, except that I thought he complained too much and never seemed to take responsibility himself for being in the position he was in. The book did have its good points, though. Many of the stories relayed in the book were a humorous and realistic-sadly enough-look at life. Plus, the book takes place in New York. After traveling there a few months ago, it was very neat to read about places I had been and remembered.

Ever since it was first published in 1951, this novel has been the coming-of-age story against which all others are judged. Read and cherished by generations, the story of Holden Caulfield is truly one of America's literary treasures. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature
Novel by J.D. Salinger, published in 1951. The influential and widely acclaimed story details the two days in the life of 16-year-old Holden Caulfield after he has been expelled from prep school. Confused and disillusioned, he searches for truth and rails against the "phoniness" of the adult world. He ends up exhausted and emotionally ill, in a psychiatrist's office. After he recovers from his breakdown, Holden relates his experiences to the reader.

This book had been suggested to Kyle by many different people for quite some time, but he had not had the opportunity to read it. During a trip to the bookstore one day, he suggested to Will that it be the next book they read. After Will agreed, it joined the book club list.

?The Poisonwood Bible? is a book of perceptions. We receive an idea of the life of the Congo from those who live there and from the unknowing Americans. We receive an idea of religion from the Congoese and from those who wish to change the Congoeses? views. Not only do we get the chance to see these different lifestyles, but we also get to glimpse them from the views of four very different daughters. This writing style makes it always exciting and despising at the same time. It is an awesome experience to receive all the different views of the daughters and of the mother as the story progresses, but it also causes us to despise the thinking of one character over another. I found myself often picking my favorite of the girls in certain circumstances while disliking another. The story line was as good as the character development. Yet, the book slowed after the mother-daughter escape from the hold of a determined-to-Save husband and the uncivilized lifestyle of the village. This book is amazing in the way it makes you think and the imagery that it leaves in your mind. It makes you question your religion and what mistakes the United States government can make.

THE POISONWOOD BIBLE was a very thought-provoking, entertaining, and satisfying book. The story is told from the perspectives of four daughters and their mother who go to the Congo on a mission with their father/husband, a Baptist missionary. The story is told through the perspectives of the five very different women; it was truly an amazing piece of work by the author. Each storyteller is different, and the differences show through when they write about the experiences they encounter. The reader is drawn closer to each of the characters because he knows each on her own level. I oftentimes heard myself asking while one girl was explaining the situation how another would have seen it. What starts as a Bible mission, however, quickly turns into something different. Each girl changes, and these changes become a very big part of the book. They begin to question God, America, and everything they once believed in, including their father. I was often asking myself how I would see God and America if I had seen and gone through what the women in this book went through. Toward the end of the book, I became reliant upon hearing each of the girls? different perspectives of their events. However, this is where the book began to jump around and skip years. That had to be the only disappointment in the book. Overall, it was a great book.

The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it--from garden seeds to Scripture--is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa. The novel is set against one of the most dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the order of its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Taking its place alongside the classic works of postcolonial literature, this ambitious novel establishes Kingsolver as one of the most thoughtful and daring of modern writers.

This was a book chosen by Will. Kyle's not sure why, but he thinks it looks decent and doesn't like to be difficult.

Watership Down is a classic book of journey, but that is not the best part of this book. The adventures these usually cowardly rabbits have are enjoyable and enthralling. Yet, it is the rabbit culture that makes this book so good. Few have perceived everyday animals as Adam's has shown us the simple rabbit. This book flows well and always leaves you wanting more. The only drawback is that it gives the reader little room for thought. Only a few places in the book does Adam's give us some sort of mystery, but they are small and often predictable. I loved the book and can't wait to read Tales from Watership Down.

I must admit that I was a little skeptical when we started reading a book about rabbits. However, I was immediately drawn into the story of this group of rabbits, and I continually wanted to read more about them. Richard Adams creates an amazing rabbit culture (with rabbit dictionary included!) that produces incredible stories of adventure, hardship, and conflicts among the main rabbit group and with other rabbits. Their story mimics that of human activity, as power is sought after and fought over, ?borders? are created and then broken down, good and evil is debated, and friendships develop. I definitely recommend this book about rabbits, and I think you?ll think differently when you see your next rabbit!

One of the most beloved novels of our time, Richard Adams's Watership Down takes us to a world we have never truly seen: to the remarkable life that teems in the fields, forests and riverbanks far beyon our cities and towns. It is a powerful saga of courage, leadership and survival; an epic tale of a hardy band of adventurers forced to flee the destruction of their fragile community...and their trials and triumphs in the face of extraordinary adversity as they pursue a glorious dream called "home." Welcome to the warren.WATERSHIP DOWN is a remarkable tale of exile and survival, of heroism and leadership...the epic novel of a group of adventurers who desert their doomed city, and venture forth against all odds on a quest for a new home, a sturdier future,

We started our first of the punish the other exchange. The purpose of the next two books was to swap some of our favorite books. Kyle read The Long Walk by Stephen King while Will read The Testament by John Grisham. You will find both of our reviews below eventhough we did not read these books at the same time.

The Long Walk is all about thoughts. The thoughts that would go through your mind if you were walking with 100 kids trying to be the last one standing so that you won't get shot. The concept itself is absurd, but it still holds possibility in our messed up world where Ultimate Fighting is becoming a huge sport. This book will stick in your mind for the rest of your life.

I?ve never been a big King fan, so this exchange had me a little worried. This book, though, actually intrigued me. With an increasing interest in reality shows, you have to question how far we, as a society will go. This book makes that question a reality. Beyond this, it also makes you take a hard look at yourself. Would you be willing to risk your life for any type of ?game?? (And why would anyone do that?!?) And if you did, would you have the internal drive and ability to keep walking after your body and your mind both want to stop? This book is not one that I would list among my favorites, but I definitely think it?s worth taking the time to read.

Finally available in a single volume edition under Stephen King's name! In the near future, a young boy has been one of 100 selected to take the Long Walk--a deadly contest of endurance and determination, in which each step can literally be your last. Follow the contestants' tortured footsteps as they struggle with each other, and themselves, to survive the race. Includes the Introduction "The Importance of Being Bachman". Vintage King, this harrowing tale was originally published under the Richard Bachman pseudonym.

We started our first of the punish the other exchange. The purpose this and the previous book was to swap some of our favorite books. Kyle read The Long Walk by Stephen King while Will read The Testament by John Grisham. You will find both of our reviews below eventhough we did not read these books at the same time.

Ok, so John Grisham continues to surprise me. My lack of interest in law junk is overcome by a well-written story. The characters are very believable and the whole concept is interesting to the bone. It is easy to see that Grisham is not the best of adventure writers as he puts the lead character into predictable circumstances. His return trip to the jungle was much more exciting and left me thinking why they didn't just do it that way the first time. I still give a thumbs up for a good book and great read.

One of my favorite Grisham books, The Testament is not like a lot of Grisham?s books, dealing with law first and story lines second. Instead, Grisham brings many characters into the book, each with very different characteristics. He weaves any several different story lines (so many that it often seems he skims over several of them) and eventually gets to a somewhat-shocking end. Over the course of the book, you get a little of that fun law information, you realize how wonderful simplicity can be, and you read an all-around good book.

Troy Phelan, a 78-year-old eccentric and the 10th-richest man in America, is about to read his last will and testament, divvying up an estate worth $11 billion. Phelan's three ex-wives, their grasping spawn, a legion of lawyers, several psychiatrists, and a plethora of sound technicians wait breathlessly, all eyes glued to digital monitors as they watch the old man read his verdict. But Phelan shocks everyone with a bizarre, last-gasp attempt to redistribute the spoils, setting in motion a legal morality tale of a contested will, sin, and redemption. Our hero, Nate O'Riley--a washed-up, alcoholic litigator with two ruined marriages in his wake and the IRS on his tail--is dispatched to the Brazilian wetlands in search of a mysterious heir named in the will. After a harrowing trip upriver to a remote settlement in the Pantanal, he encounters Rachel Lane, a pure-hearted missionary living with an indigenous tribe and carrying out "God's work." Rachel's grave dedication and kindness impress the jaded lawyer, so much that a nasty bout of dengue fever leads him to a vision that could change his life. Back in the States, the legal proceedings drag on and Grisham has a high time with Phelan's money-hungry descendents, a regrettable bunch who squandered millions, married strippers, got druggy, and befriended the Mob. The youngest son, Ramble, is a multi-pierced, tattoo-covered malcontent with big dreams for his rock band, the Demon Monkeys. Will Nate get straight with Rachel's aid? Do the greedy heirs get theirs? What's the real legacy of a lifetime's work? The Testament is classic Grisham: a down-and-out lawyer, a lot of money, an action-packed pursuit, and the highest issues at stake. It's not just about great characters; it's about the question of what character is. --Rebekah Warren --

Since this book is in the 'fantasy' section of a bookstore, it's definitely not a typical book for me. It's always listed among must reads though, so I decided I wanted to read it and also get in on all of the recent excitement over the movie. -Kyle
Can you believe it? Kyle chose this book. I know, you didn't think he had it in him. -Will

When you spend too much time in the Shire you become a short fat hobbit. That is what this book did in the beginning by taking up too much time for the adventure to start. It does get better once they have finally started the real adventure of taking the ring to it's destruction. Now that we are ¾ through the book we only get a small showing of how good a Tolkien book can be. Overall it is a good book and everyone has to read it. I think this will be one of the rare books that are portrayed better as a movie.

This book started slow and got slower. There were many times when I would sit this book down and not want to pick it back up. I knew that when I picked it up again I would be forced to read about this group who took forever to get from Point A to Point B then had to take extra time when they got to Point B to recount exactly how they had done it. It finally got to an adventurous part of the book after it was more than half over. That part then ended quickly and got back to the normal: boredom. I was again disappointed in a ?must read? classic, though I am glad that when people tell me to read it I can say that I have.

Frodo Baggins knew the Ringwraiths were searching for him--and the Ring of Power he bore that would enable Sauran to destroy all that was good in Middle-earth. Now it was up to Frodo and his faithful servant Sam to carry the Ring to where it could be destroyed--in the very center of Sauron's dark kingdom.

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