Book Review: Spin by Catherine McKenzie

I received Spin from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program and I'm so glad I did!  I've been in a reading rut lately: it feels like all I ever read is YA or Paranormal Romance.  I tend to stay away from bestsellers, and the people who usually recommend books to me have been as busy as I have with the holidays and simply Life in general.  Also, if I have to choose to spend money on books or art supplies--I have plenty of books, so art supplies are where my attention has been directed.

The basic storyline of Spin: A Novel by Catherine McKenzie is that Kate is a journalist trying to get her dream job with a music magazine called The Line.  She finally gets an interview which happens to fall on her birthday.  To celebrate, she joins her friends the night before the interview and what starts out as "one drink, then I'll go home" ends up with her showing up at the interview looking as badly hungover as she is.  Needless to say, Katie will not be the best new writer at The Line.

One of the editors at The Line who witnessed Katie's hungover interviews is also the editor of a gossip magazine.  One of America's favorite young movie stars, Amber--The Girl Next Door--just entered rehab, and Katie is the perfect undercover spy for a tell-all feature by going to the same rehab center as Amber.  If Katie can pull this off, she'll get her dream job at The Line after all.

What begins as a job assignment soon turns into a serious reality check--instead of faking an addiction to get the undercover exposé of a movie star stripped bare in rehab, Kate sees how her own drinking has become out-of-control.  Against her own will, she's feeling all kinds of emotions she never expected and finds herself experiencing the 12 steps of her own.

I enjoyed this book immensely.  It's already an International Bestseller, and I think America will fall in love with Kate's story as well when it's published next month.  The story can become a little slow at times, but never so much that I had to switch to another book and come back to finish Spin later.  It took me about 2 days to read the whole book, although I did stay up late last night to finish it.

I love Kate's conversations with her conscious and I sympathize with her unwilling self-awareness.  I found Kate's unique way of naming the other characters in the story, (The Producer, The Banker, Mr. Fortune 500, etc. - even her target Amber is TGND) to be brilliant!  It's much easier to remember the characters this way.

I've saved my favorite thing about Spin until the end of my review: the story does not end at Kate's release from her 30 days of rehab.  I honestly assumed the book would end with Kate's decision to write the tell-all article for the gossip magazine or her refusal to hurt her new friend this way.  Instead, the story kept going, and Kate's (and Amber's) stories show what life is like after rehab.

I like the movie 28 Days, but it pretty much ends with Sandra Bullock's release from rehab.  Spin is an excellent novel that provides the satisfaction of knowing how the characters try to fit the lessons from the 12 steps into their real lives.

A solid 4 stars out of 5!

REDUCE: Missing Out on Moments Like These

I am annoyed at Blogger at this particular moment, but I'll get over it.  Because you know, there's no way it could be MY fault that the post I was editing somehow got deleted, and I easily forgive technology for its shortcomings.

So, from what I can recover: 

...Missing Out on Moments Like These:

James, Christmas Morning, literally seconds before tearing into his gifts

Do you remember this feeling?  On Christmas morning, just the very idea that some stranger brought you the perfect gifts?  And everything looks different, and it's like the perfect dream come to life.  These are the days I hope to remember as he graduates high school, gets married--those days when you think back to when life was simple (even though it isn't) and it was so easy to make your child happy (even though it isn't.)  I'm so very, very happy with my memories of the holidays this year.  We were "unplugged," no laptops, no phones full of texts or drama.

Since my "One Word, One Goal, One Year" is REDUCE, I can see how I'm missing out on my son's life.  I take pictures--but then they have to be uploaded, edited, emailed around.  I talk to my husband and son every evening, except that at least 50% of my attention is focused on my computer, simply strolling Pinterest for Eye Candy.  My husband is usually doing Facebook games or playing World of Warcraft with his Dad online--but he's better at the whole "divided attention" thing.  I have 600+ pictures of projects I will never get around to doing or furniture I'll never be able to afford, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the day will NEVER come when I refinish and paint my own "accent pieces."

So I sit, and I stare, and I'm not actually happy being so lazy and disconnected.

But.... I have no clue at all what ADVENTURES my son is conquering with his toys just 5 feet away from me.  If the choice is between getting more and more depressed as I see more and more of what I cannot do, obviously playing with James is much more fun and satisfying.

Quick back story: My brothers are 10 and 7 years older than me.  They have joined forces to make every Christmas and birthday "miserable" for me by buying the loudest, most annoying and, to be honest, usually the most fun toys possible for my child.  (Was I really that bratty as a kid?)  James was 2 when he got a toy drum set and a RC car that made the most horrible noises ever (I will admit here that the car "stopped working" due to having the batteries removed ;P)  Similar toys followed, and it's been fun to see them top the obnoxiousness of last year's gifts.  We got a very cool 2 loop inversion-type car track last year--but 2011 brought this awesome toy into our lives:

I wonder if the creator of this set grew up in Atlanta?  Or does every major city have a point where at least 2 major interstate highways intersect?  Anyway, it's fun, but loud, which doesn't matter because it makes James laugh so much.  He LOVES this thing.  It's supposed to have several cars going at once, which takes more dexterity than we have at this moment--but just one car is still fun.  Oh, a fair warning though: the cars also tend to go flying off the track and into your walls, so that's why it's on our large coffee table in the middle of the room.

Hot Wheels Criss Cross Crash Track Set

Last night though, I knew the track was on and cars were flying, but I didn't really pay attention until I heard the roar of a dragon.

Yes, that is a dragon (Christmas 2009) eating a "whale" (a plush dolphin purchased for $1 at a school fundraiser.)  (I especially love this dragon because I think he sounds just like my husband waking up in the morning....)

So where does the race track join the show?  Apparently the dragon had been at sea to catch a whale, and was bringing his "take-out" home to eat. Along the way he found traffic was especially bad, so of course it was a good time for a good game of Dragon Stomp:

Total annihilation is awesome stress-relief ;p

All this destruction was accompanied by my son's maniacal "evil laugh," which is most likely the source of my amusement.  I didn’t play with him, but it was enough for him to have an adoring crowd.

What I've learned so far : 

As adults, we think about "what goes together."  We think and focus on the full scene that's in front of us: these dishes go with those glasses but a different tablecloth; this old side table is too small to use as a nightstand but looks terrible in the living room; the comforter in the guest room looks terrible with this paint. 

Kids see everything as equal and useful--it does not matter that Superman and Thomas the Tank Engine could never join forces to destroy The Joker's evil lair which is comprised of wooden building blocks, Lego's and the pizza box from last night's dinner.

**I wonder how much more we could accomplish if we tried these ideas ourselves: what’s fun about this table setting for Valentine’s—oh, those cute scrapbook stickers can dress up the plain napkin holders and I can use the red Mardi-Gras beads around the chandelier to make the dining room look special.**

**This small table can go in the library so we have a place for a lamp in there.  We can move that extra rocking chair in there too and make it a fun place to read as well as store books.**  
**Since we never have company and have yet to have an actual “guest” use the “guest room,” let’s move that old sofa and the “pre-flatscreen”TV in there and have a mini Family Theater room.**
**Or, I can check the thrift stores for a comforter cover that matches the room.**

Kids play and use whatever they've got close-by to contribute to the action.  What do I have close-by to use in my art journal or to make a very cool bracelet or how can I use my craft stash to come up with something completely awesome....  Let's play!

One Word, One Goal, One Year

I found a great idea on Less Cake More Frosting--choose a word to focus on all year long, instead of making New Year's Resolutions. I've traced this idea around blogland, and found this with a similar idea: Ali Edwards' project: One Little Word 2012 | The Words

I always forget my resolutions, or feel guilty about them and end up feeling ashamed. This is a new year, and I'm going to try something new.

I love words!

I really do. Words can be used to heal and to hurt. Words can change emotions and even the future. As James learns more and more sight words, I really notice just how amazing--and confusing--our language can be. The subtle differences of a color are a good representative: this Wikipedia page actually names over 20 versions of pink!

I'm a true bibliophile and I L-O-V-E my books. I love books from when I was little all the way to the one I'm reading right now! I've read books to my son almost every day of his entire life. Recently I've been able to read WITH him as well :)

I spent time really listening to my soul on this One Word One Year thing, and I've chosen:

Reduce

There are so many different meanings, so I'm cautiously excited to see where REDUCE leads me this year. Some ideas already:

• reduce time in front of my computer and playing with family instead
• reduce money wasted on grocery shopping by sticking to a list
• reduce my fears
• reduce regrets
• reduce not listening for God's guidance
• reduce unhappiness
• reduce my useless drive for perfection
• reduce my horribly unorganized & out-of-control craft supplies
• reduce shame
• reduce loneliness

Hmmm, I'm starting to get a little freaked out now....

• Reduce making lists that only trigger more anxiety!!

So, let's see where "Reduce" leads me this year :)

And then...

Blogger is not cooperating with me.  I shall avenge the death of my beautiful post by plotting its demise tonight :P

UPDATE:
I conquered the evils of random computer malfunction and got my post published.  In a random "God-wink," the post labeled "A Matter Worth Defining" was the post that was giving me trouble.  I said then that I thought I could feel something on its way, one that may even have multiple definitions.  Indeed so!  I learned about the "One Year, One Word" idea only yesterday.

I believe I'm on the path God has planned for me :)

A Matter Worth Defining

I like the "She Art" by Christy Tomlinson, and I saw that there is a new class she'll be starting soon.  I would love to take one of her classes, but I need to learn some more art education before I take that plunge. For this post, the reason I mention her is this: I have "abandonment issues," and I see many family members and friends all struggling as well.  I think tons of people have the same challenge, but we all seem to be dealing with it on our own instead of sharing our emotions and fears with each other.  I think it's almost like abandonment is the foundation of our lives.  I can feel the rumbling even now, just the very idea of leaving THIS me and creating a new one who makes better choices. So I've come to think of "abandonment" as a big bad scary creature living in between the cracks of life and doing its best to make the cracks deeper and more painful at all opportunities.  Like this: abandonment But........................... As I looked at the NAME of the new class, I realized something.  It's called "The Art of Wild Abandonment" and I first thought it was a class to express your emotions into art or facing the stuff in your past to make art now.  But then I realized something: there's more than one way to define that scary "A" word. "Abandon" does mean "to leave completely and finally; forsake utterly; desert: to give up; discontinue; withdraw from" etc.  And everyone has faced these feelings at one point or another.  You, me, the fencepost, everyone. ***But*** it also means: To yield (oneself) without restraint or moderation; give (oneself) over to natural impulses, usually without self control. and THAT's when I figured out what the class is about.  It's about letting your inner critic take a nap so you can create without fear.  It's about being a kid again; it's about leaving your problems at the door and taking a ride on the roller coaster of LIFE.  It's interesting how the same word has sort-of opposite meanings. So I guess that's the road I'm on now.  And I’m opening my heart and soul so that when I get to where I’m going, I’ll be able to fully immerse myself in what I have to learn.  Random back-story:  Another one of my favorite words is "temper."  I first became aware of it when my brother was living above a couple who were tattoo artists and they had named their son "Temper" and I loved it for a name.  It has several meanings that are opposite as well: to soften (as hardened steel or cast iron) by reheating at a lower temperature to harden (as steel) by reheating and cooling in oil  to anneal or toughen (glass) by a process of gradually heating and cooling to make stronger and more resilient through hardship : toughen <troops tempered in battle>  Amazing how the same word can mean "soften" and "harden."

I bought a pad of art paper at Wal-mart last week.  It has a smooth surface on one side and rough on the other.  Crayons and colored pencils use rough surfaces, while paint and markers do better on smooth.  This only matters to "Artists" and I've always just used whatever was around me.  So this was a step-up!  I was very happy with my "grown-up art supplies", and I wrote on the cover "Duel-Sided Paper" with my favorite marker.  Jason saw it and laughed and told me that there was a huge difference between "duel" as in a fight and "dual" as in having 2 of something.  Apparently my paper is the "to-the-death" kind!
I'm beginning to see a pattern here.......   I'm sensing something coming, and it apparently has multiple, maybe even opposite meanings.

Books Read in 2011

I just finished reading the "Mortal Instruments" for the second time, so I think it's safe to assume that I have now completed 40 books this year.  I set a challenge for myself to read 75 books in 2011. I made it through 40 books, which is not so bad.  I was on a real World of Warcraft streak for a while, so that was about 2 months of this year.

40 books in a year means.... 
40 books =3.333 books/month (or 3 books + a third of a different book.)
40 books=.76 books/week (or almost finishing a book every week.)
40 books=.1095books/day (or I read about 10% every day.)

There were good books, bad books, tedious books and some that were completely awesome.  I didn't make notes on every book; I'm terrible with reliability.  So, I guess....

if you are what you READ, this is me :)

1. Where She Went by Gayle Forman (ARC from LibraryThing Early Reviewers program) 5 stars
2. Last Sacrifice (Vampire Academy, Book 6) by Richelle Mead 5 stars--so ridiculously amazing and perfect, and if you read just one YA paranormal series, it should be Vampire Academy!
3. Secret Society by Tom Dolby 3 stars
4. Matched by Ally Condie 3 stars
5. Devil's Kiss by Sarwat Chadda 5 stars--unlike anything else on the YA market, very "girl-power," and if you don't want your daughter to read the Twilight books, let her read this.
6. Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood by Eileen Cook 3 stars
7. Virals by Kathy Reichs 3 stars
8. Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon 4.5 stars
9. Department 19 by Will Hill (ARC from LibraryThing Early Reviewers program) 5 stars
10. Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin (ARC from LibraryThing Early Reviewers program) 1 star
11. Hunger (Riders of the Apocalypse) by Jackie Morse Kessler 4.5 stars
12. On the Edge (The Edge, Book 1) by Ilona Andrews 4.5 stars
13. Just Between You and Me: A Novel of Losing Fear and Finding God by Jenny B. Jones 4 stars
14. Night Myst (Indigo Court, Book 1) by Yasmine Galenorn 4 stars
15. Kiss Me Deadly: 13 Tales of Paranormal Love 4 stars overall
16. Blood Heat (Blood Lines, Book 4) by Maria Lima 5 stars, I love this series and it deserves a lot more attention than it has.
17. I Am Number Four (Lorien Legacies) 4 stars, and I'm not listing "Pitticus Lore" as the author because he isn't, he's a character in the series.
18. The Sight by Judy Blundell 4 stars
19.The Left Hand of God by Paul Hoffman 2 stars--I really had to struggle to stick with this one. Also, I received it as an ARC from the LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.
20. I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn't): Telling the Truth About Perfectionism, Inadequacy, and Power 5 stars--If you've ever struggled with Perfectionism, READ THIS!
21. Paranormalcy by Kiersten White 5 stars, and one of the best I've read in a long time!
22. Rise of the Wolf: Book 1 (Wereworld) by Curtis Jobling 2 stars--I just couldn't get into the setting/world at all. Younger male readers may really enjoy this one though. I'm having to compare it to 5 star books like Nightshade and Linger, so it's not fair. (ARC from LibraryThing Early Reviewers program)
23. Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon 3.5 stars
24. Blood Sacrifice by Maria Lima 5 stars! Superb ending, though I hope to see more of Keira and Adam one day.
25. Bloodlines by Richelle Mead 3.5 stars, and a slow start to a new series set in the same world as Vampire Academy. I'm enough of a fan to be sure the storyline will pick-up in future books.
26.Wolfsbane (Nightshade, Book 2) by Andrea Cremer (I much prefer the previous cover art, but oh well.) WOW!! One of the best books this year!! 5 stars
27. Dark Descendant by Jenna Black 4 stars, an excellent Urban Paranormal
28.Firelight by Sophie Jordan 2.5 stars..not my cup of tea. maybe for a younger audience?
29. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa Wow! I can see why everyone is excited about this series--it's very good! 5 stars for making the "generic" faery tale new again!
30.The Fallen 1: The Fallen and Leviathan by Thomas E. Sniegoski 3.5 stars
31. Hounded (The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book One) by Kevin Hearne 5 stars, seriously, I'm so in love with Atticus...or Oberon--and you will not read a funnier paranormal novel like this one
32. Hexed (The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book Two) by Kevin Hearne 5 stars, same feeling as with book 1--freaking awesome, don't miss this one!
33.The Magnolia League by Katie Crouch totally dropped the ball at the end 3 stars at most
34. As an ARC from the Early Readers group on LibraryThing: Tempest: A Novel (Tempest - Trilogy) by Julie Cross Finished and loved! read my review :)
35. Split by Swati Avasthi loved! read my review :)
36.Cast in Shadow (The Chronicles of Elantra, Book 1) by Michelle Sagara Not too bad, a solid 3.5 stars and now I'm on to book 2!
37. Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves This got a little "out there," even for me... If you're living in a strange, seriously messed-up town, why don't you simply MOVE? I couldn't really believe in the story because I kept wondering why people still lived in that town. 2.5 stars :(
38. AGAIN and still loving every second of it!City of Bones (Mortal Instruments book 1) by Cassandra Clare
39. AGAIN and still loving every second of it! City of Ashes (Mortal Instruments book 2) by Cassandra Clare
40. AGAIN and still loving every second of it! City of Glass (Mortal Instruments book 3) by Cassandra Clare

Safe and Sound--on the web :)

Ever get one of those OCD projects, where you realize halfway into it that you didn't need to do all this, but by then you've put time and effort into it so darnit, better to just keep on....  Add in that it's also one of those times where you know you created something on your computer but it insists that you didn't? 

Yup.  All night long.

So now I'm going to make use of this amazing electronic world and "store" my beautiful OCD list of World of Warcraft books in mostly chronological order here on my blog, where I'll probably never look at it again.....  Not very interesting to most, I know, but here it is so I never have to do this again!  I've also emailed it to myself. :)  But maybe someone else can find this list if they need it one day.

I'm also working on a general list of all the series books I read.  I plan to print this sucker out and tape it on a shelf where each series books are stored.  Another part of my OCD is that I cannot start a book or series unless I've read the previous books.  Even if I'm loving the book, I'll put it aside until I get caught up with the one I'd started.

I'm a sick, sick person sometimes....

I did manage to find two excellent chronological lists, and without them, well, it wouldn't have been pretty this morning at all!
So thank you:

Eric J. Weldon for his "Warcraft Books In Order" list on Amazon.com, 

and since I can't find a name to honor, I'll just say that the WoWWiki is so incredibly helpful, especially this completely awesome "Novel Guide" which helped me along my way.  It's an  extremely helpful resource for a game as complex as World of Warcraft., no matter how long you've played.  

I also for the sake of my family decided not to try to hunt down some of the stray short stories; I'm not really into "short stories" on their own, and I also made a choice to stop when I did, although I've been sitting here playing around with the colors, etc, and I am seriously stopping this now!

World of Warcraft fiction

The War of the Ancients Trilogy by Richard A. Knaak:

The Well of Eternity

The Demon Soul”

The Sundering”  And using the info from the WoWWiki, "ancient" is seriously ancient, being set a whopping 10,000 years ago and yet still being somehow relevant to the present.......

*Day of the Dragon by Richard A Knaak

*Lord of the Clans by Christie Golden

*The Last Guardian by Jeff Grubb

*Of Blood and Honor by Chris Metzen

=The Warcraft Archive Omnibus

Cycle of Hatred by Keith R. A. DeCandido **this book begins exactly one year before (“vanilla”) WoW**

***Rise of the Horde by Christie Golden

***Tides of Darkness by Aaron Rosenberg

***Beyond the Dark Portal by Christie Golden and Aaron Rosenberg

+”*The Last Guardian” by Jeff Grubb

***=Chronicles of War Omnibus

Night of the Dragon by Richard A. Knaak

Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden (this prologue and epilogue take place just before WotLK)

Stormrage by Richard A. Knaak

The Shattering: Prelude to Cataclysm by Christie Golden

Wolfheart by Richard A. Knaak

Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects by Christie Golden