Yes, Fifty Shades of Grey.

It's hard to really go anywhere or talk to anyone lately without Fifty Shades of Grey coming up.

It's been called the book of the year. Chances are almost everyone you know, including your mother or your grandmother, has read it. And wanted to discuss it with you....

Initially when I heard about this book series I was confused, concerned and didn't really know what to think. I had planned to swear off them, but when my sister decided she wasn't a fan and passed along the first book to me, I thought, what the heck?

Turns out, I got hooked. The Fifty Shades of Grey series by EL James turned out to be so much more than I had anticipated. Yeah, it's shocking. There's no question about it. But it ends up being so much more than a shocking S&M relationship and how far it can be taken.

The first book certainly hits the shock value factor. And I think it's part of the point. I would venture to guess a good majority of people don't really have any knowledge of what goes into a relationship like Christian has. And if you do, well, power to you! So sure, reading those very descriptive details was shocking. But once you get passed that and pick your jaw up off the floor, you realize how much more there is. It's an amazing love story. I am of the school that relationships that matter are difficult. Not in a bad way necessarily, but if it's that important,there will be serious obstacles to overcome. The love that Christian and Ana find is simply amazing. Not without it's many complications, obviously, but they overcome each and everyone with honesty, trust and love. It's really wonderful to read and see come to life in your mind.



With the second and third books, the story lines become more fascinating than I would have every imagined. The shock value dies away and the twists and turns of the intricate plots take over. As I read my way through the second and third books, I was enraptured. These books becomes serious page turners, with fascinating hooks and twists I never saw coming. The writing flows almost seamlessly (there were a couple of word choices that irked me but that's just personal preference) and Christian and Ana truly come to life as the stories become more in depth. It goes from an "erotic romance" to a mystery and a thriller and it sort of jumps around between genres without feeling like it's being pulled in too many directions at once. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next and how Christian and Ana would handle it.



Fifty Shades of Grey is, at it's surface, a shocking trilogy bringing to light a very taboo subject, but in it's depth, a great love story and a thrilling read.

Review: Gunn's Golden Rules

Manners matter. Whether it's holding the door open for someone behind you, saying "bless you" when someone sneezes or simply following the golden rule, behaving kindly toward others should be second nature. And it's always welcome. I am always appreciative of someone who holds a door for me, offers me a seat or any other random act of kindness. I try to act in the same way. Of course I don't always succeed (I am human after all) but remembering your manners doesn't only make the person on the receiving end happy, it makes you happy too. When you make someone smile, you can't help but smile back, can you?

Well Tim Gunn is a big promoter of manners. As evidenced by the fact that he wrote Gunn's Golden Rules: Life's Little Lessons for Making it Work.

Now I have to say, I love Tim Gunn. I love watching him work with the designers on Project Runway and watching him champion them on, help them through tough times and offer advice.

Gunn's book sounds just like him. So much so that while reading it I heard his voice in my head reading the words to me. (Which, by the way, was hilarious.) I enjoyed this book. Not only is it an etiquette book, which is find an interesting topic here in the 21st century, but he also inadvertently offered me advice on life, dating and behaving in public.

This book is written in a clear and concise way without a lot of fluff and stuffing. it's easy to read and follow and the chapters flow well and tie in to each other pretty cohesively. I enjoyed hearing Gunn's thoughts on life and manners, and I was certainly amused throughout the book with his stories.

That being said, I was a little surprised by some of the stories. They painted some of fashion's most famous people in a rather harsh and unflattering light. At times, it felt a little bit like a bash session, gossiping over the water cooler about "Can you believe what she said?" and "Did you hear about he behaved?" I realize they were examples of people who feel overly entitled and let that get in the way of behaving well, and the stories were, of course, amusing. I just found it interesting.

Overall, I truly enjoyed Gunn's Golden Rules and I believe he had a lot of intelligent things to say. I also believe his advice is helpful and his suggestions are legit.

The Help.

I know I'm about 100 years late in this but..... I finally read The Help.

I remember when it came out last summer and how big the craze was. It was all I heard about for a while and I've definitely had it on my reading list since then. But other books came into my possession, time passed and it still hadn't been crossed off. Then the movie came out and I couldn't see that without reading the book first, obviously.

The book was just as good as everyone had said, and therefore, as good as I had anticipated. I had a hard time putting it down to be honest. I just wanted to find out what was going to happen next and I couldn't get enough of the stories. I also thought that it was interesting that it was told from various viewpoints, especially since those viewpoints are so distinct and individual. That said, I thought they flowed quite well together and they were sewn together with excellent and flowing writing. The writing itself was very accessible and engaging. As were the characters. The characters were so well fleshed out that they came right off the page and became real life.

Because of that, The Help this book made me angry a lot of the time. As someone who doesn't really understand inequality- whether its sex, skin color, religion, whatever- it's frustrating to experience such blatant and deep founded inequality and racism. I understand of course that that's just how it was in those times and they didn't know or didn't choose to know better. But I appreciate that I had such a strong response because that means the writing was successful. It didn't fall flat and because of that, I'm sure many people aside from myself had strong reactions.

Although I'm another 100 years late in telling you, I enjoyed the movie as well. I thought it was a successful portrayal of the book and it was exciting to see the characters brought to life.

Review: Balancing Acts

Balancing Acts by Zoe Fishman tells the story of four women who meet up again at a 10 year college reunion and form a friendship like they never expected. Ten years after they've graduated, Charlie- a yoga instructor, Bess- a tabloid writer, Naomi- a single mom and web designer and Sabine- a romance novel editor, meet up at a New York get together for the college class. Though the women were not necessarily BFF in college, Charlie convinces the other three to try yoga with her. With that, these women's lives begin to change in new ways, both separately and as part of their newly formed group. They begin to open themselves up to new experiences, let down walls to allow people in and start to see the world in a new light.

From the first couple of pages in, I was totally hooked. Fishman's writing is accessible and relatable. As each character was introduced I found myself drawn to them, wanting to learn more about their different lives and careers. Fishman does a great job and creating uniquely distinct characters and it's clear that each woman has her own strong personality that shines through both narrative description as as well as through the dialogue.

From a personal aspect, I love that the story as a whole revolves around a yoga class. As both a fitness instructor and a person who practices yoga, I was instantly connected to the idea of the yoga class. Charlie, who left her job on Wall St. to open a yoga studio convinces her fellow classmates to try out her studio by signing up for a six-week yoga class with just the four of them. Initially skeptical in their own ways, Sabine, Naomi and Bess agree and as the weeks progress they find themselves getting more comfortable with the practice, with each other and within themselves. Displaying the changes yoga can inspire both physically and mentally/emotionally is accomplished quite well throughout the novel and I was pleased to see that.

I had trouble putting this book down. I carried it with me every where and was reading whenever I could. Normally I like to savor books and take my time, but I just couldn't wait to continue the story and find out what would happen next or where Fishman would take these characters. I become 100 per cent invested in the characters, which kept me engaged in this novel from cover to cover.

Zoe Fishman

Balancing Acts proves to be an inspirational story for anyone who loves the restorative power of yoga and of true friendships.

Review: Now and Then

Now & Then by Jacqueline Sheehan tells the story of Anna and her nephew, Joseph. Starting in present time, Anna has just returned from a trip to Ireland to find her brother has been in a life threatening accident and her nephew is in police custody for stealing a car. After checking in at the hospital, Anna is sent to retrieve Joseph. Joseph spends the night at his Aunt Anna's house and, propelled by a dream he has, he rifles through Anna's yet to be unpacked suitcase. Anna catches up and something spirals them back in time to Ireland 1884. They are separated, each taken in by different families, and left to try to piece together what happened to them.

Jaqueline Sheehan

While I did enjoy the writing of this novel, for the majority of the time I spent reading it, I felt the presence of the wholes in the story and found myself longing for answers to open ended questions. It's not until the end up of the novel do you find out just what happened to Anna and Joseph that capitulated back in time. It makes sense that that scene is placed where it is, but it also causes confusion throughout because it was difficult to fully accept that the pair somehow magically just time traveled back to the 19^th century. I had a hard time suspending my belief to completely accept the story line.

That said, I did enjoy the characters in this novel. They are interesting and have a depth that brings them off the page. Anna is a strong woman and although her world is turned upside down, she works hard to make sense of what's happening to her. It's touching how worried about her nephew she is and that she makes it her main priority to find him after they've been separated. Joseph is a fascinating character because he comes of age in many ways throughout his (unexplained) time in 1884 Ireland. He's taken under the wing of a wealthy English man who makes Joseph into an unbeatable wrestler. Joseph relishes in his success and also finds love. He's torn between wanting to please his new master and wanting to be with the girl he loves. It's touching to see him deal with these struggles throughout the novel.

Now & Then is an entertaining read, especially if you've read other novels by Jacqueline Sheehan. Her writing style stays consistent but I felt unsatisfied throughout my reading until the very end when every single question is left to be answered.

Review: Someone Like You

Someone Like You by Cathy Kelly tells these story of three women who meet randomly on a trip to Egypt and forge a friendship that proves to be lasting through both happy and trying times. Leonie is a divorced mother who decided to treat herself with a relaxing vacation. She loves her children but is also looking for the love of her life. Emma was dragged along by her overbearing parents- a father who thinks he's the end all be all of everything and a mother who caters to his every need-and she needs an escape. Hannah is an independent American expat who is done with men and focused on bettering herself and her career. Although they seem like an unlikely pairing, these women form a true bond and as their lives carry them on, they are continuously intertwined in each others lives, for better or worse.

Cathy Kelly delivers yet another wonderfully engaging, emotionally captivating novel. What I love most about Kelly's novels is the way she creates such relatable characters. Although it took me a bit to get past the exposition and really dive into the story, once I did I was fully involved in each woman's story. As I continued to read I felt like Leonie, Hannah and Emma were not only friends with each other but friends of mine as well. Kelly's descriptive writing makes it easy to feel like you are personally involved in the character's lives, allowing you to cheer them on or hoping they make the right decisions. These women are exceptionally relatable, to the point that, at times, I felt like I was reading about my own life. I have several pages dog-earred because of quotes I related to so much I wanted to remember where they were.

Cathy Kelly

A big reason for all of this is because Kelly truly has a way with words. She's skilled in knowing just how to describe situations or emotions in order to bring them to life. The stories flow without awkward transitions and each of the three story lines meld together and never feel jumbled. A few times I thought chapters ended abruptly and I had to double check to make sure the next chapter was indeed starting, but I found myself often unable or not wanting to put the book down. I wanted to dive further into the stories and see how things would unfold.

My other favorite aspect of Cathy Kelly novels is how she deals with love. Once again, I found myself entranced by the notion of love between these women and the men that are in or come into their lives. What was new for me, though, with Someone Like You, was that this novel also deals with meeting the wrong men and what that does to a women. While I was cheering on one couple, warmed by their apparent love for each other and could bask with them in the glow of finding each other; I was simultaneously hating another man for hurting one of the women and hoping that soon he would get kicked to the curb.

Someone Like You proves to be a wonderful story of how important girlfriends are, how comforting love can be and also how important finding your independence is.

Review: If You Were Here

Just finished reading If You Were Here, Jen Lancaster's first fictional novel, and couldn't wait to discuss it.

As I said in my previous post, this book was everything I hoped it would be. And more. Lancaster's unique voice shines through her characters, keeping right on point with the clever wit and hilarious sarcasm. At several points throughout the novel, I literally laughed out loud at the comedy of phrasing and the situations these characters, Mac and Mia, get themselves in. One of my favorite lines in the entire book comes after a local gang member in the Chicago neighborhood tries to throw a Molotov Cocktail at their rental home. He fails and Mia remarks, “One second he's standing there looking all smug and menacing in his ski mask, and the next, he's covered in turpentine and flaming harder than Boys Town on Pride weekend.” HI-larious. Humorous remarks like this land throughout If You Were Here.

Clever one liners aside, the story itself is quite interesting. If You Were Here tells the story of Mac and Mia, a Chicago based couple who decide it's time to make the move to the suburbs. After looking at an endless supply of almost houses, they settle on a money pit of a house in need of total renovation. The story retells their adventures in DIY home repair, hiring contractors, renovation nightmares and all things in between. What I loved was the twists and turns this novel takes. There are many unpredictable points reached that I never saw coming. They added a captivating element that made it hard to put the book down. I also really enjoyed that just when you think things can't get any worse or go any further, they do. Lancaster does a great job of setting up scenes and then taking it to the brink, keeping the reader engaged and entertained.

Mac and Mia (who slightly resemble Jen and Fletch in some ways from the memoirs, in a good way) have an interesting and realistic relationship that you can't not root for all the way to the end. Lancaster delves into the other side of happily ever after and hits at real marital problems stemming from financial woes, house disrepair and disagreements. We, the readers, get to see this couple work through such looming problems, making Mac and Mia seem more like old friends than simply characters on a page.

My only (minor) gripe is that I wish Mia was a little more confrontational up front when having to deal with overbearing neighbors and pushy executives and the like. In the end though, she steps up and makes her voice heard in a fantastic way.

Lancaster has successfully made her mark on the fiction world and I can't wait to see where she takes us next.

World Book Day!

Happy World Book Day everyone!

Today, March 3, is world book day, and in honor of that, I believe it's time to update about the books I've been reading.

I got a whole stack of books for Christmas this year and since then I have been reading through them quicker than  I can write about them. So far I've enjoyed them all which is always a pleasure. I've gotten lost in many different worlds, the stories keeping me drawn to the pages so I can't put the book down.

Most recently (just yesterday in fact) I finished The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks. The Guardian tells the story of Julie, a recently widowed, small town hairdresser. After the death of her husband, she receives a special gift from him he set up in advance to ease her through her grief, a great dane puppy Julie names Singer. Singer becomes more than just a pet, but a friend who is a little bit like a person. Julie is also best friends with her ex-husband's best friend Mike (who's also in love with Julie). After a couple of dates with a hair client, Richard, Julie figures it's not going to work out and realizes that Mike was who she was meant to be with after all. Things don't go quite as planned and take a scary turn, Julie and Mike fearing for their lives and their relationship.

I was just glued to this book. Sparks does a good job of balancing the thriller aspect with the love story she while I was cheering on Mike and Julie, I was also right there, afraid for them while they fought for their life together. Their story is sweet and touching. Mike's love for Julie is honest and unwavering, and it's always refreshing to see (or read about...) a man so devoted to his love. I found myself just waiting for Julie to come to realization that her feelings we mutual and when they finally get together I gave them a little cheer.

Unfortunately Richard turns out to be nothing like anyone expected, becoming obsessively scary and increasingly dangerous. The deeper into the story I got, the harder it became to put the book down. It was literally a thrill and I wanted to get through each detail, needing to know more and more until my eyes were literally burning with exhaustion and I had to put the book down.

The Guardian is certainly unlike a traditional romance novel but the love story, after everything, stays in the foreground and offers a little something for lovers of romance, thrill and Nicholas Sparks.

Review: Once in a Lifetime

In the small town is Ardagh, Ireland rests a successful and popular department store, Kenny's. Many lives of the people in this town revolve around Kenny's. They own it, are married to the owner, work there, have relatives who are employed there or have some other connection. These connections run deep through the town, connecting not only the people to the store, but the people to each other.

In Cathy Kelly's novel, Once in a Lifetime, she introduces fascinating characters with wonderful, albeit sometimes heartbreaking, stories to tell. Although probably considered chick lit Once in a Lifetime takes twists and turns that are unexpected and take the characters in directions that allow them to become fully realized and more relatable.

Stories start out typically enough, following patterns you would assume. Not to say that's a bad thing, they are enjoyable and captivating stories on their own. Yet at a certain point each story takes an unexpected turn and I found myself unable to put the book down for wanting to find out more details. The depths these stories go to is fascinating and they become real. It's not all fluff and sugar, but real problems are dealt with and I think that's something people can really relate to.

Aside from wonderfully twisting stories, the characters are widely diverse and as a result, they really have space to grow. They take their roots in certain stock characters (the strange old woman, the powerful working mom/wife, the cast off daughter, etc) but the grow from their and take on their own forms. Mainly female lead characters, they are all strong woman in their own ways and it's enjoyable reading about them maneuvering through their lives.

I thoroughly enjoyed Once in a Lifetime and appreciate that Cathy Kelly kept me intrigued from the moment I opened the novel to when I closed the back cover.

Review: Dogs of Babel

A few weeks ago, I meandered my way through Book Leggers, a used book store in my neighborhood, looking for some good reads. As I perused the shelves, I stumbled across a book with a sleeping woman and dog on the cover called The Dogs of Babel. Intrigued by the title and synopsis n the back of the book, I took it home and began reading.

The Dogs of Babel tells the story of Paul Iverson and his dog, Lorelei. Lorelei is the only witness to Paul's wife, Lexy's, death. Lexy, it seems climbed up the apple tree in the their backyard and fell. The police rule it an accident, but Paul, stricken by grief, begins to find inconsistencies around their home that lead him to believe her fall might have not be an accident. Paul also gets hooked on the idea of teaching  Lorelei to speak in the hopes that she can tell him just what happened in the backyard that day.

This novel started out a little slow for me, with the first couple of chapters dragging a bit. It quickly picks up the and the interest level rises immediately. As I got deeper into the story of Paul and  Lorelei and the lengths he was willing to go to to get her to communicate with him, I found myself being sucked in and getting caught up in their world, unable to put the book down.

What I found most fascinating is that this story is written by a woman, Carolyn Parkhurst. The author is female and the narrator is male. What fascinates me is that it genuinely feels like man speaking. I recall at one point I turned the book to the back cover to check over something in the synopsis and I saw the author's head shot. I was shocked for a second, having forgotten that the author was actually a woman. Parkhurst does a wonderful job of capturing the male voice and not wavering in her masculine narration.

The novel is punctuated between the present with Paul and  Lorelei and the past with Paul and Lexy. The reader meets Lexy through a series of flashbacks and recalled memories from Paul. Therefore, the impression the reader gets of Lexy is a little biased because of how Paul remembers her, and it's interesting to see what he divulges of her. Initially, clouded by grief, Paul only remembers the good parts of Lexy. The happiness, the fun and the spontaneity. As the reader gets further into the book, Lexy becomes more human as Paul remembers her flaws, such as a wild temper that tends to run rampant when unleashed. I was interested in seeing this character develop from a state of perfection into one more humanized. And although it's all trough flashbacks, Lexy feels like a fully fleshed-out character.

Paul's connection to  Lorelei is quite touching. She is essentially all he has left and it's obvious she means a great deal to him. As a pet owner myself, I know just how strong that bond can be and that comes across clearly in this novel. Their journey together through their grief is also incredibly riveting. Simply, Paul wants to teach  Lorelei to speak. After a few failed attempts and actually speaking words, he tries to teach her how to type, even going to far as to have a special keyboard made that uses symbol and pictures instead of letters to type out sentences. It's easy to feel for Paul and develop a connection to his character as he desperately tries to solve the apparent mystery of his wife's death.

Paul's new work with  Lorelei leads him to some shady places. A big part of his research resolves around the character of Wendall  Hollis, a man jailed for trying to surgically enhance dogs in order to extract human speech from them. Also a man who famously got a dog to speak and it took the stand at his trial. Paul writes to Hollis, telling him of his own work, and Hollis in turn sets Paul up with a group of his followers. With a naïve hope of learning, Paul attends the meeting but quickly realizes he has gone down a very wrong path. Unfortunately, here and a few other points in the novel, Parkhurst has introduced the topic of animal cruelty. It's a big unsettling to read, and I wouldn't recommend it if you can't stomach it. It's tragic and really tugs at the heartstrings. This is my only real problem with this novel as I wasn't quite expecting it and it really took me off guard, momentarily turning my off from continuing.

The Dogs of Babel wraps up nicely in the end, a year after Lexy's death. Paul has gotten some closure and things begin to settle down. For the most part, I really enjoyed this novel save for the uncomfortable parts I just had to get through.

An Ode to Jen Lancaster

Earlier this year I was at a loss for something to read. I had finished my current book, wasn't able to get to a bookstore and nothing looked appealing as a reread on my personal bookshelf. Then my friend Jen asked me if I had ever heard of Jen Lancaster, an author from Chicago who writes memoirs and calls people “asshats” and is funnily bitter? No I hadn't and so the next day at work Jen brought to me Bitter is the New Black, Lancaster's debut memoir. After then reading all the memoirs of Jennifer Lancaster, dot com goddess turned author, I feel like I have a new best friend. Lancaster's writing is so witty and inviting you feel like you've truly come to know her as a person by the time the back cover closes.

The first memoir, Bitter is the New Black, opens with an almost archetypal portrait of a typical, rich, city-girl diva. Lancaster does not try to shy away from who she is and fully divulges that she was not the nicest or most concerned person in Chicago, While this might be initially off-putting, it's refreshing to see someone who is self aware and not afraid to put it out there. Lancaster herself admits with her subtitle, "the bitch had it coming." Throughout the memoir, though, Lancaster loses her big money-making job and subsequently faces the challenges of unemployment. Through this the reader sees a very clear metamorphosis which can only be described as touching and insightful. There's a definite switch throughout where the reader can truly get to know Lancaster as a person and can, because of her unique writing style that pulls the reader right in, really empathize with her situation.

Bright Lights, Big Ass, Lancaster's second memoir, is just plain, laugh-out-loud entertaining. She takes the most mundane occurrences, like grocery shopping, cooking dinner and working temp jobs for example, and turns it into a noteworthy adventure. Combining letters to city officials, emails to friends and first person narratives Lancaster pieces together a portrait of Chicago living sure to amuse both those from the city and those from others.

Such a Pretty Fat, is not only a pleasure to read but an inspirational story. Lancaster's third memoir explores her desire and quest to lose weight, get in shape and get healthier. She keeps her sarcastic, larger-than-life witty tone but the reader can see the real struggle she goes through while attempting different diet fads and trying to make peace with working out at the gym. As Lancaster relays her trials and tribulations, it's easy to enter into her world and go along for the ride. The reader can easily feel Lancaster's frustrations and triumphs throughout the memoir. In the end you are cheering her on as well as gearing up for your own health and fitness makeover.

Pretty in Plaid, explores her past and the events that led up to where she is now. This memoir offers terrific insight to where Lancaster comes from, what makes her what she is and how she became the person she is. Through thoughtfully chosen details from her girlhood, adolescence and early adulthood the reader gets to see the depth of Lancaster and put into perspective her three previous novels. Also, the novels layout, chronicled by wardrobe choices is a brilliant idea and absolutely fitting to Lancaster as a character.

Throughout each memoir, Lancaster achieves a light, entertaining tone that keeps the reader in stitches, literally laughing out loud at the ridiculous and outrageous things that occur in her everyday life. She is able to take the seemingly uninteresting and morph it into something worthy of being shared with others through her friendly writing style and her sarcastically cynical attitude (in the best possible sense). Reading Lancaster's memoirs is like sitting down to coffee with an old friend and catching up on recent events, leaving with a renewed sense of connection to a dear friend.

Not that long ago, Jen and I had the delightful privilege of meeting Jen Lancaster at a book signing for her latest memoir, My Fair Lazy. Truly one of the best nights of my life to date. Lancaster read aloud one of my favorite parts of the memoir, answered questions from the audience and signed copies. She's just as funny and entertaining in person. And My Fair Lazy did not fall short of expectation. Lancaster sets out to “culture up” because, she realized, she watched almost every single reality T.V. show ever created and really didn't do much else. As always, it's an entertaining adventure as Lancaster tries different foods from around the world, learns about wine, takes in a traditional Chinese tea ceremony, eats food created through molecular gastronomy at Moto and finds other ways to become a more cultured person.

Review: The Happiness Project

One rainy day Gretchen Rubin sat on a New York City bus contemplating her life. What she discovered was, while she was relatively happy, she wasn't nearly as happy as she wanted to be and further, she was not living her life to the fullest. Rocked by this epiphany, Rubin launched The Happiness Project, a 12-month long experiment in creating resolutions for a happier, fuller life. This experiment became her happiness memoir of the same title.

Rubin offers several great ideas on how to improve happiness. Of course, some are 100 percent self-specific and only work toward her happiness. But a lot of her resolutions are broad enough that anyone, after reading her novel, can adapt and apply them to their own lives. I particularly loved the section on mindfulness and staying in the moment. Rubin offers helpful suggestions on how to achieve this and they are easily accessible to her readers. I also enjoyed her 12 personal commandments and secrets to adulthood. I found them very relevant and useful, not only while reading, but in my own life as well. "Act the way you want to feel" and "be [your name entered here" are reasonable yet beneficial rules to live by and it's fun to watch Rubin work on them.

For all I liked about The Happiness Project, I wish I would've fallen in love with it. Unfortunately I found it a little too research heavy and that weighed it down. At times, I found the reading a little slow-going and the pages had a tendency to drag at certain points. Although at certain points Rubin become a self-proclaimed Pollyanna, working towards extremes with being nice to others and such, it was a little overwhelming. Very few people, Rubin included as she was not able to fully keep her Pollyanna resolutions, can live or work at an extreme like that and while I appreciate the attempt to push herself, it was a little too much for a fellow woman living in a big city. It just seems unreasonable and therefore, unnecessary.

Overall though, I think Rubin have some very creative and interesting ideas on how to improve happiness. They are suggestions that are easily applicable to anyone's life with a bit of personal tweaking. It was certainly a respectable experiment, and one I think that was worthwhile to share.

Review: Her Fearful Symmetry

In Audrey Niffenegger's Her Fearful Symmetry, twins Valentina and Julia travel to London to spend a year in their recently deceased aunt's flat that she left them in her will. The stipulations: live there a year before they sell it and never allow their parents to cross the threshold. What follows is a whirlwind adventure of ghosts, cemeteries and self-discovery.

Niffenegger creates characters that go beyond the flat and archetypal. The twins are intriguing copies of each other, making them similar yet different in distinguishably important ways. This saves them from becoming dull and further examples of overdone. They create a power play between themselves, not intentionally but due to their natures, and it's fascinating to watch them play out. The characters they meet in London are also anything but ordinary. Niffenegger really worked to explore character psyches and this shows through the character development. The reader can actually witness growth and change, allowing them to sincerely come to know these inhabitants of the building. The relationships that build between the twins and the Londoners are unusual but believable. It's not a real stretch to see watch them unfold and they don't bring up any serious questions of believability.

Throughout Her Fearful Symmetry are many different, interweaving story lines. Niffenegger does a good job at tying them together and to not leave any hanging for too long before returning. There's a well-thought-out balance between individual character's stories and the overarching story as a whole that offer many vantage points and points of view for the reader to consider. It keeps the novel interesting and helps flow it along. Where the novel falters is in the ending. After so many unusual and unique plot twists and extraordinary occurrences, the ending feels mildly anticlimactic and a little open. It certainly wasn't expected but it left me wanting more and feeling a little let down.

My only (minor) gripe with Her Fearful Symmetry is that, while the plot is mostly unpredictable and has the reader wanting to keep flipping pages, some points may be slightly challenging to grasp. If you are not a fan of ghost stories and cannot believe in such happenings, even in fiction, this book will be a little hard to digest. But if you can alter reality to accept the novel for what it is, you will enter a fascinating world centered around the London cemetery full of all sorts of ghosts.