The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (Unabridged Audio Version)

Since its release a few years ago, I've heard so many great things about this book but when a few people compared the main character, Don Tillman, to Sheldon Cooper of The Big Bang Theory my interest soared and since I'm a big fan of that show, I knew I couldn't put off reading it any longer.

THE ROSIE PROJECT is a charming, funny story about a highly intelligent, very regimented, genetics professor with Aspergers who has come up with what he thinks is the best way to find himself a partner for life. The Wife Project basically consist of a detailed questionnaire that will provide him with all the facts about the prospective mate without having to waste time in actually getting to know them. His plan may look good on paper, but then he meets Rosie.  Wires are crossed and Don thinks she is one of the applicants, though he quickly sees that she is totally wrong for The Wife Project.  Rosie is actually in need of his genetics knowledge to help find her biological father.  Despite their opposite personalities, the two become friends and work together to locate Rosie's father. Along the way, Don opens himself up to things he's never considered and lets loose of his regimented schedule and begins to enjoy life's unexpected joys. 

My Thoughts on the Story:

This is such a fun book and I flew through it.  I instantly fell for Don Tillman. His logical thinking about every situation is charming and he's funny without even trying to be. That said, I do, however, think that being in a relationship with him would be trying at times. The ROSIE PROJECT is a breath of fresh air that had me smiling throughout. Along with Don, I loved Rosie. She knew exactly the kind of guy Don was yet that's what she liked about him.  She encouraged him to try new things and she enjoyed his quirkiness and that made her a very likable character.

This is not a complicated story, just a sweet story about a complex man venturing into unknown territory and being open to what may happen. It had an innocence that I loved and made it endearing. 

My Thoughts on the Audio Version:

I'm really glad I chose the audio version of this book and I thought the narrator, Dan O'Grady, did a wonderful job of portraying Don. I do listen to more audios than I ever have these days but I'm very selective as to which ones I choose. This was a great decision and I thoroughly enjoyed it.. For much of the book, I was outside raking leaves, which if you'd ever seen my yard, can be a bit of an overwhelming task, but listening to THE ROSIE PROJECT gave me something else to focus on while I worked and the time flew! I found myself laughing out loud and then looking around to make sure none of my neighbors saw or heard me. It was a fun treat and I recommend it highly.

THE ROSIE PROJECT was a wildly successful literary phenomenon for Simon & Schuster and the word is that a screenplay is being written for a feature film version.  According to IMDb, it is still in the development stage, so no word on any of the specifics. I'll definitely be looking forward to that.  It should be great fun!

THE ROSIE PROJECT (Unabridged Audio Version)
Author: Graeme Simsion
Narrated by: Dan O'Grady
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Published: 10/1/2013
Length: 7 hrs 32 mins 

The Vacationers by Emma Straub (Audio Review)

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(This review contains no Spoilers!)
Emma Straub's new novel, THE VACATIONERS, is a quirky, enjoyable read that though it has a good amount of family angst and problems, was not at all full of knuckle-biting, full on drama. The story centers around a Manhattan family, the Posts, and their two-week vacation in Mallorca, an island off the coast of Spain. On the trip are Franny and Jim Post, their daugher Sylvia, who just graduated from high school, her older brother Bobby and his girlfriend Carmen who live together in Florida. Also on the trip is Franny's close friend Charles and his husband Lawrence. They'll be staying in a house owned by one of Charles' friends.

Early on we learn there is something going on with Franny and Jim's 30-something year marriage, but that isn't divulged right away. Hints are dropped and conclusions are made by the reader. Sylvia, the only child still living at home, knows what's happening and just wants to start her new college life in the fall. Bobby and Carmen don't know what the trouble with his parents is but they do have a hidden agenda for coming on this trip with Carmen being the driving force and Bobby feeling very uncomfortable about it. Charles and Lawrence are at a point where they are ready for the next step in their lives but it brings a lot of uncertainty and they aren't quite yet ready to tell anyone, even Charles' best friend, Franny, who thinks Charles tells her EVERYTHING. With all of these diverse personalities and complicated issues, this family vacation is full of surprises and realizations. Hopefully they can all get through it.

My Thoughts:
I was looking for something a little different when I chose this book. I wanted an entertaining summer read that was fun but also had a good story. The Twitter-verse was buzzing about Emma Straub and her new book and I was looking for my next audiobook. After sampling the narration, I knew this was exactly what I was looking for.

The Post family, though flawed, is a great family. One thing I liked right away was that the story was told by different family members, giving a broad knowledge of all their personalities and their perceptions. My favorite was Sylvia in all of her young, sometimes naive knowledge, and the innocence of not yet living life on her own yet. Honestly, I liked all of the characters and they liked each other, though there were some issues.

The Posts were in beautiful Mallorca for two weeks so Straub broke down the chapters by days. There was a different chapter for each day and I thought that was a great idea for the theme of this book. There wa such great ebb and glow with this novel. I literally breezed right through it in a matter of a few days. The house in Mallorca sounded so fabulous, I just wanted to be transported there so badly, I think I lived vicariously through them.

I've never read anything else by Emma Straub but I can easily say that I did like her writing style. Listening to this book was was much like sitting down with a group of friends and chatting. I'm positive that the printed version would be a quick, easy-flowing page turner. Her writing is not complicated its straitforward and to the point.

This character-driven story was full of complicated issues and conflicting personalities but I was pleasantly surprised their weren't more actual arguments. These are mature, intelligent charterers and even when punches were being thrown, it wasn't awful, just surprising, like 'Wow! I can't believe he actually did it!' I really enjoyed this story and the people in it and because its only 301 printed pages, I think its a great book for summer and I think its going to be a big hit this season.

AUDIO REVIEW:

As you well  know, narration can make or break an audiobook and for me, Kristin Sieh did an awesome job. To be honest, at first I wasn't sure, but soon her somewhat raspy voice won me over. I thought it was especially conducive to Sylvia's character, though she did an amazing job with all of them, even the minor characters with thick accents. Ms. Sieh completely pulled me in and made me forget I was being read to and put me right into the story. That is the mark of a great narrator!

Overall, I think THE VACATIONERS would be a great book to take on your summer vacation or to the beach. Its fun, light and a little quirky but underneath all that is a meaningful story about family, change, and the bonds of love that keep people connected.  

THE VACATIONERS (Unabridged Audio Version)
Author: Emma Straub (@emmastraub)
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Published: May 29, 2014
Length: 6 Hrs 39 Mins
Printed Length: 301 pp

Review: All The Lonely People by Jess Riley

 A few years ago I read a book by a new author that I discovered while reading blogs. The book was DRIVING SIDEWAYS by Jess Riley. Reading that book was a fun experience and I became a fan immediately.  When I realized she had released another book, I knew I wanted to read it as well. If you are familiar with Jess Riley's blog, you are also familiar with her smart wit and great sense of humor, which spills over into her books. ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE is a story that is easy to relate to. We all have family's and I don't care who you are, within those families, there more than likely, is some sort of tension. This is the story of how one woman dealt with her dysfunctional family during one of the hardest times of the year: The Holidays.

About the Book: (No Spoilers Included)

Its been six months since Jaime Collins' mother passed away from cancer. She and her husband, Erik, lived with her mother and cared for her up until the very end.   Now Jaime has the task of sorting and packing up the house, putting it on the market and selling it. All while still mourning her loving mother. Jaime has two older siblings, Clint, who is married with a daughter still living in their hometown in Wisconsin, and Gwen, the over-achiever lawyer living in Atlanta.  They are not exactly close with each other and the stress of selling their mother's home only makes things more awkward. Clint, the outspoken, bullish one of the family, doesn't hide his feeling that Jaime isn't doing everything she can to get the house sold and Gwen is too busy perfecting her life that she gives the impression she just doesn't want to be bothered by any of this.  Gwen's complete lack of a sense of humor only adds to the strain in her relationship with Jaime, whose sense of humor is fully intact, albeit, maybe a little warped at times.

Things come to a head at the Thanksgiving dinner table when a terrible argument erupts and in a fit of anger, Jaime flings a hearty spoonful of mashed potatoes at Clint, but instead nails her niece, Hannah as she comes out of the kitchen.  Visibly upset by all of the fighting, Hannah runs crying from the room leaving Jaime feeling like a complete jerk and everyone glaring at her.

It's nearing Christmas and Jaime hasn't heard from her family and begins contemplating a lonely Christmas. Half kidding and a little buzzed from a bottle of wine, her friend, Frankie, suggests she put an ad on Craigslist for a new family to spend Christmas with. Not thinking it would amount to anything, Jaime  posts the ad. What follows is what happens when you invite complete strangers into your life to take the place of people you feel you have no connection to within your own family. Sounds crazy, right? But honestly, I, myself, have felt this way with my own family and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Jaime, on the other hand, had the guts to go through with it.

My Thoughts:

Having really enjoyed Jess Riley's previous book, I had an inkling of what to expect from ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE.  I'm thrilled to say that my expectations were met and surpassed.  I had an easy time relating to Jaime Collins, the protagonist on many levels. I'm the youngest sibling in our family, I tend to not stick up for myself, and I was in a childless thirteen year marriage when most of my friends were having babies and growing their families. So, right away, I connected with her. And I liked her. Alot.

I loved the idea of this story: Getting so fed up with your real family that you want a new one. Who hasn't secretly wished for that at some point in your life?! But the idea of putting an ad on Craigslist and actually following through with it, gave a glimpse of what it might really be like. Honestly, I don't know many people who would do it, so I was able to experience it without inviting strangers into MY life! I thought this storyline was so original and funny. Jess Riley moves the reader through the story at a perfect pace, allowing us to get to know each of these 'new' people, and the baggage they brought with them, while keeping the momentum intact.

A big reason why the story worked so well for me was the characters. Her 'real' family characters were so authentic, I could actually relate them to people in my own life! I loved meeting the people who answered Jaime's ad. They were an odd mix of very real people and each one quickly became endearing to me. Even Paul. (No really, I did like Paul.) I thought Ms. Riley did an amazing job of incorporating this diverse group of unusual people into the complex family drama that is ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE. One of my favorite characters, though, was her loyal husband, Erik, He was the king of the Good Sport. Another character I really liked was Chris, the transgender man who desperately wanted to be accepted as a woman. I loved his sense of humor and the quick bond that he and Jaime developed.

I was especially impressed with the way in which many serious subjects were brought up and dealt with in this book. Don't get me wrong, it's a humorous look at the family dynamic, but there were also serious things happening: Domestic violence, bullying, attempted suicide and theft. I thought it culminated into such a well-rounded story. This could be anyone's family. The realness of it is what made it a great read for me.

There is so much more I could say about this book, but I will leave that to you to discover on your own. This was a truly enjoyable read for me and I think alot of people can relate to it. The moral of this story: All families have a certain level of dysfunction. But the bottom line is, no matter how insane they make you, they're still your family and you wouldn't trade them for anything.

ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE
Author: Jess Riley
Publisher: Create Space Independent Publishing Platform
Published: December 5, 2012
Printed Length: 276 pages
Source: Purchesed

Review: The Lost Art of Mixing by Erica Bauermeister (TLC Book Tours)

This much anticipated follow-up to Bauermeister's THE SCHOOL OF ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS takes the reader back to Lillian's restaurant, but not for more cooking lessons. Lillian's is once again used as the cozy backdrop for the story but in a more subtle way. You still get the loving feel of the ingredients that go into the dishes she serves there, but a few characters from the first book are the obvious stars, along with some new faces who help tell their life stories.

The story picks up several months after the first book ends while the cooking classes are in between sessions. Lillian is, of course, front and center and we learn how her life has changed in those months. Others from the cooking class that are big parts of the story are Chloe, the insecure, former busser that Lillian hired; Isabelle, the older woman who is struggling to hold on to her precious memories; and Tom, the widower who lost his chef wife way too young to breast cancer. We add to them, the story of Al, Lillian's accountant who has made Lillian's an important part of his daily life; his wife, Louise, who has never been to the restaurant, nor ever met Lillian; Finnigan, the very tall, perceptively quiet dish washer who seems to know more than his nineteen years should allow; and we also meet Isabelle's son, daughter and grandson.  Each of these additional characters create more layers to an already developing storyline that, like each course of a fine dining experience, is like a memorable, delicious treat.

My Thoughts:

I can honestly say I didn't have any idea where this second book was going to lead. With so many interesting characters in the first book, there were many options for the author to take. I had really taken a liking to Chloe and even had a protective feeling over her, so I was really happy that she was a center point in this book. It was nice to see how she was becoming more sure of herself and I especially enjoyed her relationship with Isabelle. The character of Al was a complete surprise and.  I initially found him to be a bit odd. His relationship with his wife, Louise, was also a bit strange yet later in the story, I felt bad for her for being left out of so much of Al's life. It certainly proves a point I, myself, learned in my own marriage: That you can live with the person you are supposed to be the closest to in life, but much later down the road find that not only does that person not know the real you, but you begin questioning everything you thought you knew about them. Its a harsh reality that some can overcome but many cannot. I'd have to say, however that the new character of Finnigan was my favorite. He is wise for his age, kinder than most, and has such a subtle way with people and that really struck a chord with me. I like the possibility of he and Chloe making a go of it. (It's OK, I really didn't give anything away there!)

To wrap this up, I'll simply say this book was the perfect sequel that also leaves so many more possibilities for future releases.  Not surprisingly, the prose was lovely and had the same warm ebb and flow as we've come to expect from this talented writer. Erica Bauermweister, with the help of Lillian, had me yearning to be in a kitchen, laying out fresh goods and produce just collected from the farmer's market, and planning what herbs and spices to add to make delcious treasures to serve people I care about. That is how chefs and people who love to cook feel about food and this book brings all that out while at the same time telling the character's stories beautifully. If you couldn't tell already, I really enjoyed this book and I will always look forward to what is next from this author

There are many stops on this blog tour and you can find the entire list here. Be sure to visit these other blogs for more insights and opinions to this nove..  Special thanks to Lisa @ TLC Book Tours for allowing me to participate in this tour.

THE LOST ART OF MIXING
Author: Erica Bauermeister
Publisher: Putnam Adult
Scheduled Publishing Date: January 24, 2013
Pages: 228
Source: Publisher via NetGalley