Stephanie Boothe's blog

Let's all take a few minutes here on the blogs to honor the veterans and soldiers in our life and around the country. Veteran's Day isn't until Wednesday, but I personally don't think we need to wait two days to show our appreciation.
 
To all of the soldiers and veterans who read The Examiner blogs, thank you for your selfless acts in defending our country and our freedoms. Thank you for being the brave ones to keep us safe at home.
 

I promised myself I would read Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" this year, and I am happy to report I finished the book. Having never read a book like this, I have to say I am proud of myself for staying with it. I really enjoyed it. I like Capote's writing style and the way he makes you feel like you know all the characters. His descriptions of places are not over the top and he does not take four pages to describe a tree (I really hate it when authors do that). The fact that this is a true story barely weighed in as I read the book.

I promise I haven't just been neglecting my blog on purpose... things have been a little crazy in the Boothe house as we make preparations for our little girl – Juliet Louise if you wanna' keep score.
 
With all our free time spent daydreaming and planning what God has in store for us in January, I've found little time to read (and if I'm truly honest with my blogging friends, I'll have to admit I'm still reading "In Cold Blood," which I'm still really enjoying).
 

I borrowed the book "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield from a friend. At the time, I was unsure if I'd like it. But just a few pages in, and I was hooked.
 
The story focuses on a girl who's hand-picked to tell the true biography of a well-known author. Most of the story is this author's interesting, parentless childhood. It's the story of the author and her twin and how they were raised by the nearly-blind maid and the aging groundskeeper on the family's huge estate.
 

I must confess, I've not been a very dilligent bookworm this summer as I've only managed to fully read one book on my summer reading list. The second, I put down, and the third I really enjoy so far, but I'm having trouble finding time to concentrate long enough to read a page.
 

I realize combining a 600-plus page book into a 2.5 hour movie means certain parts of the story will be cut, and I've found my way to make peace with the drastic cutting of characters in the Harry Potter movies... I still think they should play up Percy Weasley's story a little more, but I'm just one Potter fan who loves the Weasley family.
 

I'm getting ready to read "In Cold Blood," having given up on Chelsea Handler.
 
I admit, I'm more intrigued with how Truman Capote wrote this novel than the story behind it (although the story is compelling, too). The idea that he could remember all the details without taking notes on some of his subjects. I'm really excited to start this book because I've been telling myself FOREVER that I had to read it.
 

So I've been doing a horrible job sifting through my summer reading list. I may have to put Chelsea Handler down and try another book on the list as the only pages I've read in the last couple of weeks are straight from "What to Expect When You're Expecting," and then I only read the parts that don't scare me.
 
To fill the void of my summer reading update, I'm posing one question:
When it comes to reading, what is your guilty pleasure?
 

While I love chick lit and still find myself drawn to the genre for a quick, predictible read, it may surprise some that my all time favorite book is one assigned to me in high school.
 

As our homes are rattled with fireworks this weekend, I encourage everyone to take a step back and remember the men and women who saccrificed everything so we can celebrate and continue to enjoy our freedoms.
 

I read assigned chapters of "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien my senior year of college, but by the end of the assignment, I decided to go back and read the rest of the book.  I have also reread the book since that time in 2001.
 
It was one of the first non chick lit books I'd chosen to read, and it was amazing.
 

 It only took me a week to read My Sister's Keeper. I could not put this book down.
 
Anna is such a lovable protagonist, and the author does an amazing job drawing readers into her story. Even in the many plot twists. I certainly never saw this ending coming, and I have to say after a day of reflection I'm OK with the way it ended.
 

With my list of summer books in mind, I finally picked up the book all my co-workers have been telling me about.
 

When I did book reviews for The X, the Examiner's former entertainment magazine, I came across an author who had written a book about a fictional woman from my hometown (Hiawatha, Kan., for those who may not know).
 
I contacted this author eagar to read his book, and he told me he'd heard about Hiawatha on the Internet and thought it sounded like a fascinating little town because it had the moniker "City of Beautiful Maples" and it had a Maple Leaf Days Festival.
 
 

With Monday being Memorial Day, I guess we can say summer is on it's way. In the spirit of summer, I've compiled a list of books to read this summer.
 
Teacher Man by Frank McCourt – I've had this book forever and never finished reading it. I loved Angela's Ashes and Tis, and this book appears to be in the same simplistic yet descriptive style that makes me love McCourt.