Marley & Me - John Grogan

This book has been sitting on my to be read pile for quite a while, and I was finally in the mood to read it this last weekend. I grew up always having a family dog, and have always loved them. The bond between a dog and their owner is undescribable - they truly are man's best friend. My parents had a golden lab, and she was such a great dog with such a loveable personality.

This is a must read book for all dog lovers. It is a heartwarming story of a growing family and their loveable golden lab, Marley. Marley is quite a dog with quite a large personality. He never really does learn to "behave," which just made him that much more charming. His antics had me laughing out loud several times over. He is laughable, lovable, and unforgettable. This book is a true gem. It is one of those rare books that you will remember for a long time after you put it down.

The Pact - Jodi Picoult

I decided to read another Jodi Picoult book. I keep stumbling across her books when I'm out shopping at the thrift stores, so I keep picking them up. Because they are a relatively easy read, I have read a good number of her books in the recent months. They are generally easy to read, albiet a little predictable, now that I have read several others.

This book is based on the Romeo and Juliet tragedy, but with a twist. It's about two kids (Chris and Emily), who grow up together as best friends. The families are best friends and neighbors, and the two kids follow suit. To the delight and approval of both sets of parents, Chris and Emily start to date and fall in love in high school. However, this story-book romance tragically ends when Emily is shot in the head and dies as a result of a suicide pact between the two friends. The rest of the book follows the story of the two families and how they deal with the aftermath of this tragedy, including Chris' arrest for the murder of Emily.

This book was in the ok range for me. Not my favorite Jodi Picoult book, but definitely not the worst I've read. The subject matter was intriguing and new to me. However, the book was fairly predictable. A good mindless read, but not much else.

The Road - Cormac McCarthy

This was my first McCarthy book. I did not know a whole lot about him and his work. The little I did know, did not really appeal to me. I avoided this book for a long time. But, on a whim, I finally decided to pick it up and see what all of the talk was about.

At its simplest, this is a book about the relationship between father and son. It is about survival and unconditional love and the lengths a father will go through to protect a child. The father and son live in a postapocolyptic world where we are never completely sure what happened. McCarthy lets your mind wander and form your own opinions about a lot of these details.

The bottom line was that I really did not like this book. I admire McCarthy for the creation of this book, for giving us this story. It was cutting edge, it really makes you think about so many difficult and disturbing issues and situations. But I just did not like the book. This book so deeply disturbed me that I had a difficult time sleeping the few days I was reading it. I actually ended up reading this book through very quickly just to get to the end and get it over with. I just couldn't handle it emotionally.

The Year of Fog - Michelle Richmond

I packed this book for the mini 3-day Mexico cruise my husband gave to me as a Christmas present. We had a balcony room and I had visions of sitting on the balcony with this book.

The plot to this book looked engaging - the story revolves around a life changing moment when a child is lost. She simply vanishes into the San Franciso fog. It's every parent's worst nightmare. Where did she go? Will she ever be found?

This book really kept my attention. I wanted so badly to turn to the end of the book and "prepare" myself for what could possibly happen to Emma. I was hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. I was able to really feel what these characters were feeling as they delt with the loss and search for Emma.

The book did drag a little through the middle section. And I found the ending a little too "convenient." But it was a good novel. It held my attention and was difficult to put down. I was always anxious to pick it back up and find out what happened next. I felt emotionally attached to the characters, and really wanted the best for all of them. A good overall read.