Alli's CBR-III Review #20 - Little Children

After reading Clementine Bojangles' review I immediately requested the book from my local library and devoured it in no time at all. I then got right onto Netflix and watched the movie, which was an interesting experience.

Little Children by Tom Perotta follows the lives of suburban parents, mainly Todd and Sarah but also their partners and other associates. There is also Ronnie, a "pervert" recently out of jail for flashing a girl scout but also suspected in the disappearance of another child.

To me this book is seems to be about is the choices that we make and the repercussions that come from them. Sarah made a choice to marry an older man, most likely for the security but then finds herself unsatisfied with her marriage and the other vacuous and vacant mothers on the playground. She then meets Todd, dubbed "Prom King" by the other Moms. Todd himself is a stay at home Dad, unable or unwilling to pass the bar exam. Together they take refuge from their real lives and create a situation for themselves to make things seem better.

Alli's CBR-III Review #19 - Some Girls

I feel like I am doing a lot better this year with getting books read and reviewed, but apparently I am a few books behind on my pace from last year so I had better get on it!


Some girls by Jillian Lauren is her memoir, focusing mainly on her time as a member of the harem of Prince Jefri of Brunai. Lauren pulls no punches in telling of her beginnings as a peep show worker, stripper, call girl and eventually harem girl. Lauren to me was a relatable narrator, which sounds odd since I have not been any of the items on her list. I started off the book wondering how I would relate to a person like Lauren, but something about the way she writes put me on her side. It also doesn’t hurt that she is unapologetic for her choices, they are what they are.

Lauren takes us with her on her mysterious trip to Brunai, not many details are revealed to these girls that are brought over to “entertain” at parties for the prince and his friends. Lauren was asked to surrender her passport to them, which even she admits seems like a bad idea. I anticipated the worst for her, but seeing as she made it back to write the book, she was obviously okay.

The book is not gratuitous in nature, it seems like the biggest pain that Lauren suffered was boredom and lack of attention. It must be difficult to be a beautiful woman in a room full of beautiful women with few men to dote on them. At least they were paid well to be there, but Lauren wanted more, she wanted to make the prince fall in love with her, she wants the fairy tale ending. We all know how that usually works out.

Parts of this book were very interesting, and as mentioned above, I found Lauren’s writing style appealing and I may seek out other works of hers in the future.

Alli's CBR-III Review #18 - Juliet Naked

I read this book simply because I have enjoyed the movies were based on Nick Hornby books. I am glad that I took the chance since I most definetly enjoyed “Juliet Naked”. This book follows a couple, Annie and Duncan, who have been together for 15 years but who have really just settled with each other for matters of convenience. At the start of the book they are on a pilgrimage to sights related to reclusive singer songwriter Tucker Crowe. Duncan is obsessed with the singer and spends a lot of his time on a website devoted to analyzing minute details about Crowe. Annie is along for the ride, although she doesn’t share Duncan’s obsessions she has put up with them so long that Crowe has become a fixture in her life as well.


This book follows the couple, and later even Crow himself as we cover themes of complacency, obsession and loss and waste of years and time. Can relationships that have been neglected for years and years ever be repaired? Are we really unhappier now then people were in the past, or have we been brought up expecting too much happiness to ever be satisfied?

There is not a whole lot to say about the plot without spoiling too much, but Hornby’s writing style was very comfortable to sink into and the pages just flew by. I was sad that it ended as fast as it did, even though it was 400 pages. I will be checking out more of his works in the future.

Alli's CBR-III Review #17 - All Together Dead

I just finished book 7 of the Southern Vampire Mystery series by Charlaine Harris. Here are my other reviews from this series: Definitely Dead, Dead to the World, Dead as a Doornail and Living Dead in Dallas.

There is not really a heck of a lot else to say about these books. There may be spoilers if you haven't read the previous books. Sookie is still a telepath and working for the vampires. This time she has headed out to a vampire summit at a fancy pyramid hotel. She reunites with fellow telepath Barry, they are both working for different vampire royalty to listen in on human minds.

Of course there are murders, and a mystery to be solved. For me it's all about the sexual tension between Sookie and Eric. It must be because of this. Sookie is currently dating the weretiger Quinn, which I guess is pretty good too. Quinn didn't factor much into this book, his company was arranging a lot of the summit so he was always otherwise occupied.

I am already starting on book 8 but I just got a bunch of holds in from the library so I might have to leave this for a while (I bought a few of these books since I got a gift card at Christmas). But I'm hooked and I will see this series through to the end. Plus season 4 of True Blood Starts June 26!!

Alli's CBR-III Review #16 - Breaking out of Bedlam

Breaking out of Bedlam by Leslie Larson was a good quality fluff read. It was really what I needed after taking so long to finish my last book. This book is told from the point of view of Cora, an 82 year old woman who is taken out of her home by her children due to her being incapable of looking after herself. Cora is overweight, depressed, on prescription drugs and her home has become a bit like something that you would see on A&E.

It sounds depressing, but Larson maintains a light tone and the assisted living place that she goes into could be related to a high school or boarding school. I have often thought that this would be the case in places like these as there will always be cliques and bitches and all that, no matter what your age.

Cora feels betrayed by her family, and we are made to relate to her struggle to adjust to her new environment. Soon after her arrival, she meets a man and that gives her the motivation to improve her situation and her health. All is not perfect however, things are getting stolen all over the place and Cora is one of those who is under suspicion. To pass the time, and to extract her revenge upon her children, Cora writes a tell all journal with all her secrets. The novel goes back and forth in flashbacks in this journal and to her current situation.

Overall, this book didn’t change my life, but it was entertaining enough and I would recommend reading it. Cora's tale is relateable. I work in an industry where I have to deal with the elderly quite a bit, this book helped me to relate to my clients more. It must be very difficult to have to leave your home at that age and start all over in a scary new place.

Alli's CBR-III Review #15 - Ender's Game

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card came highly recommended by a friend at work, so I gave it a go. I don't normally read science fiction because it has always been something that my brother was really into and we are like oil and vinegar so I always stayed away but I generally enjoyed this book.

Ender's Game is set in "the future" although since it was published in 1985 (and parts of it are from a short story published in 1977) in all reality it could have been intended to be set in our present day. Certain aspects of the book certainly are actually eerily accurate to the way things are now. The characters in the book have "desks" that seem to be like iPads, and there is discussion of "the nets" and discussions on them that are a more intelligent version of the internet.

As for the plot, we start out the book from the point of view of Andrew "Ender" Wiggin. He is a third child in a society that has a limit of two children per family. The Wiggins got an exception for Ender since his older brother tested very well to the international fleet, but he was too vicious to qualify for battle school. The fleet is looking for someone to train to command their fleet for the third invasion of the buggers. We follow Ender through battle school, then onto command school. In these schools, they are trained using a variety of games, hence the title. He is tested, pushed and isolated, but ultimately still succeeds.

Parts of the book focus on the other two Wiggin children and their life after Ender goes up to school. Peter is the aforementioned vicious brother, and there is also a sister named Valentine. Ender and Valentine have a close relationship and it helps him survive throughout the book.



Although on it's surface it is a science fiction book, it is really about relationships, manipulation and the mistakes and perils of war. I would recommend checking it out.

Alli's CBR-III Review #14 - Wasted

I have been so bad, I have barely read anything in the past month and a bit. I did finish the book I am about to review a few weeks ago but I didn't get around to writing about it until now.

After I read Unbearable Lightness, Youthfulzombie recommended reading "Wasted" by Marya Hornbacher as a more accurate memoir of someone with an eating disorder. I bought the iBooks version and read it over a couple of days. I could relate to quite a bit of it. I have eating issues that are now mostly resolved, but I am currently on a calorie counting plan and it is sometimes hard to know the difference between being dedicated to my health and being obsessive.

Wasted in some ways offers little hope to eating disordered people. Hornbacher doesn't sugar coat her realities, and it is appreciated. That was one of my main issues with Unbearable Lightness, De Rosi spent 95% of the book detailing her obsessions and 5% saying how magically one day she was all better. Hornbacher also details her processes and the ins and outs of her disorder, but she is clear that there is no magic solution. She also spent the time and did her research, and so it feels that her information is coming from a more authoritative place.

I also appreciated the fact that Hornbacher mentions that pretty much all women suffer from eating disorders. Although not all women have anorexia or bulimia, the majority have an unhealthy images or are constantly dieting. I have a skewed view of this, as I spend a lot of my time on a diet community online. I also read something similar in the book In Defense of Food where it indicated there is a new disorder called "Orthorexia" which is an obsession with eating healthy.

It seems no matter what you do, if you are predisposed to eating disorders then you will find one that fits you. Some of us are just not wired to be able to eat normally. Then again, what is normal? All we can hope for is a balance, to be able to not be self destructive and to try and enjoy all that life has to offer.