December Books That Did Not 'Make the Grade'

Although I read two amazing books this month, there were a few that just didn't engage me enough to be reviewed. So, here are the books for December that, unfortunately, did not “make the grade”:

The 100 year old Man Who Climbed Out if the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson- This was a fascinating story with great characters but the continuous flashbacks to the main character’s previous life was unnecessary and after a while they did not correspond to the story.  I understand Jonasson was trying to give back-story but it was, as previously stated, unnecessary; which brought the rest of the story down as a result.

Asta in the Wings by Jan Elizabeth Watson- The critics say that Asta is one of the most ‘appealing heroines of our time’ but unfortunately, I couldn’t find the patience to trudge through the many pages of seemingly unimportant information before I found the actual plot and see what they saw in Asta.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell- Right off the bat, the storyline eluded me. The story is broken up into several storylines sectioned off by chapters, but I couldn’t past the first one because Mitchell wrote the story was in a mix of Old English and Modern English, making it difficult to read and understand as well as making the story even more confusing and unappealing.

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin- I had high hopes for this novel but I found myself falling asleep as I tried to wade through the meaningless detail before getting back to the story. (This seems to be a common issue.) Personally, with Historical Fiction, it is a 50/50 chance if the book will be a success. This is because if there are people, like me, who know the truth behind the matter they are writing about, it will take a lot to make me a believer but sadly, this book didn’t take me to any kind of Wonderland but only land of disappointment. 

Thanks again for reading!

~Shelly-Beans

The Art of Giving Flowers by Callie Craumer

Illustrator: Fiona Kwan

Genre: Nature Guide/Non-Fiction

Date of Publication: March 6, 2012

Memorable Quotation: “One of the best reasons to send flowers is no reason at all.” (pg. 47)

Lasting Impression: This simple guide unlocks the secrets to not only the art of giving flowers but as well the components that will make your next bouquet of flowers that much more special and sentimental.

NOTE: This will be the first non-fiction book (more specifically the first guide) I am reviewing so my rating system will be different from the fictional novels.  Here are definitions to my rating components so no one is confused:

(This rating system will be for guides; for non-fiction, there will likely be a different system.)

Accessibility: Was the guide easy to understand for a wide audience?

Content: Was the subject interesting?

Creativity: Was it told in an interesting way or was it simply a bore to read?

Layout: Is the amount of text overwhelming? Are there pictures to break up the text to make it more visually appealing?

Overall Grade: Self- explanatory.

Accessibility: A+

Content: A+

Creativity: A-

Layout: B+

Overall Grade: A

Giving flowers to someone has become a customary way of showing one’s appreciation, support, sympathy, or any number of emotions that words cannot rightfully express.  Now, the secrets florists have known for so long about the importance behind certain flowers paired with the proper occasion is now accessible to the public with Callie Craumer’s remarkable guide, The Art of Giving Flowers.

 I reviewed a novel a few months ago called The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh, which focused on the meaning or ‘language’ of flowers but this guide goes beyond the meanings (although it does have a chapter on it) and explores the proper steps as to how to select the perfect arrangement for someone. Craumer takes you through colors, the characteristics of certain flowers that make them unique, and the arrangements that go best with each holiday, leaving nothing to question and giving you all of the information you need to create a truly unique floral gift for anyone.

This floral guide is only 56 pages long but to my surprise it was not a quick read; it was packed with more information than I thought could fit into such a little book.  In saying so, that does not mean the content seemed to be squeezed into the pages; Craumer does an excellent job being thorough with her descriptions but not so much so that she will lose your interest.  What helps break up the guide are the beautiful watercolor drawings of many of the flowers describes, illustrated by Fiona Kwan.  The flower illustrations are simple yet full detail as they help tie all of the information Craumer is describing together.

The only downfall to this guide was the layout. Although I like how the sentences are broken up frequently with flower illustrations, the guide could have flowed better if the flowers described in certain arrangements had those flowers illustrated on the page.  Instead, the flower ‘arrangement’ on the page was at times random, leaving me disappointed in not being able to see what Craumer was trying to say due to the lack of visual aid.

Other than that small setback, everything is written beautifully in an informative, yet warm way. The Art of Giving Flowers is a must have guide for anyone who is interested in gardening, floral arrangement, or would like to know the secrets up to now only the florists knew about when it comes to ‘the art of giving flowers.’

~Shelly-Beans

Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson

Genre: Psychological Thriller/Fiction

Date of Publication: February 7, 2012

Memorable Quotation: “I feel like I ought to ask more questions, ought to show more interest, but there is little point.  Anything he tells me now I will have forgotten by the time I wake tomorrow. Today is all I have.” (pg.30)

Lasting Impression: An electrifying novel of an amnesiac who plays both the detective and the victim as she tries to discover her memories and the secrets they hide about her past.

Storyline: A

Pace of Story: A+

Characters: A

Ending: A+

Overall Grade: A+

Memories: they define us.  Who are we without our memories? Who can we grow to be without remembering our experiences to learn from?  For most, these questions cannot be answered because not until we become elderly do we have to worry about them.  For forty-seven year old Christine Lucas, however, she wakes up every morning not remembering anything; rebuilding them throughout the day only to have them erased as she sleeps.

The cause of her rare kind of amnesia is due to by a terrible incident that happened twenty years before.  To help her find her memories that she believes are still in her mind but have been suppressed, she takes her psychologist’s recommendation to write about her daily events in order to remember what had occurred and hopefully something would stay in her memory for more than a few hours.  Before we begin our journey through Christine’s written memories, we are confronted with three words that immediately give the readers a jaded view of Christine’s husband: DON’T TRUST BEN.  As we begin to read and understand Christine, the reader must ask: Are these three simple words just a way to mess with the reader’s sense of who to trust, as Christine would feel, or is this really a beacon of light that will help us see through the darkness that falsities have brought into Christine’s world and mind?

The story itself is incredible, and the amount of detail Watson puts into Before I Go to Sleep makes it hard to believe this is actually his debut.  From the first page, I was immediately sucked into the story and had a difficult time putting it down.  Watson has a wonderful way with words, arranging them to create emotion and sound in ways visual aid would normally be needed to express.  Christine’s journal is also broken up well, with interruptions to the flow and breaks that make it sound more realistic.  (I wish he would have used a different font for the journal entries but that is only a minor criticism.) 

What really made this novel stand out more than any psychological thriller I have ever read was the amount of twists Watson was able to incorporate into the storyline and not lose the reader in the chaos that he creates.  Not only does he do well keeping the reader’s attention with the twists to the story but more importantly, he has Christine roll with the punches her memory brings her as it slowly returns and the missing pieces of her life finally reappear, and the epiphanies they bring will continuously blow the reader’s mind. 

For such an intense novel, there had to be a powerful ending to conclude it properly, and Watson does not disappoint.  The ending is exceptional, tying everything together with a neat bow.  After everything is said and done, you may find yourself almost exhausted and with a slight headache from everything that had happened, but it will be worth the journey. Before I Go To Sleep left me with chills, even a day after I had finished it, and has left a chilling question stuck in my head: If you can’t trust your memories, who can you trust?

~Shelly-Beans