Billy Joel by Fred Schruers

I just finished the Billy Joel biography I got from Blogging For Books. This is a comprehensive history of the musician's life and career.
My Pluses and Minuses:
Pluses:
1. The author  has some actual quotes from Billy Joel himself, so you know these are authentic stories that get Billy's seal of approval.
2. He covers the marriages, the car accidents, the tiffs with Elton John, and even interviews the ex-wives.
3. You really come off the book liking Billy Joel even more. He's a good guy. There's nothing in the novel that would make you think differently about him.

Minuses:
1. The only minus were the parts that got a little wonky about the music business. I skimmed over the manager troubles, it's just not of interest to me.

Overall, I give it 4 out of 5 stars. It was everything a biography on a star like Billy Joel should be.

Gone Girl

Some of my pluses and minuses from Gone Girl:

Pluses:
1. Amy's a Nutcase. There's nothing like a well written Nut, they just make for good reading.

2. The plot is unique. Amy starts as a likeable lovey-dovey wife and flips the story halfway through.

3. This book never put me to sleep. Not one nodding-off, so it really is a page turner.

Minuses:
1. Amy's plan of revenge is toeing on the line of implausible (The jar of vomit)

2. The writing gets too be pretty hipster or 'meta' or whatever you call it.

3. Amy 'gets away with it'. You have to read it to know what I mean. Desi should get a little justice.

Overall, the book lives up to it's hype. I'd give it 4 and a half stars.

A Thanksgiving to Remember (A Harlequin book)

Oh, Harlequin....This story from 2000 features a nurse tending to a man with amnesia. The man has been seen fleeing a murder scene with a gun with the ID number chiseled off, a fake ID, and an address from a field in Missouri. So what does Nurse Tina do? She invites him over for dinner, and a week later asks him to move in, because 'He can't be guilty! He's too handsome!'
 Of course he's not guilty! He hits his head on the counter and remembers everything - He's a FBI agent!! So he's the good guy Tina thought he was after all. Still.....Tina's a Ditz for trusting him.
 A head shaking, yet enjoyable read!

Knitting Block By Block by Nicki Epstein

I was really excited to receive the latest book from #BloggingForBooks-Knitting Block By Block. I'm a big fan of knitting and this book is LOADED with design ideas!

 The best part about this book is you don't have to be a fancy advanced knitter to do these projects; if you know how to knit and purl, you can make any of the designs in this book. The amount of projects you can make with these squares is endless. You could sew them together in a blanket, a scarf, a pillow, a handbag....I'm currently making a diamond weave in navy blue with a 3-D twining rose and I still haven't decided if it will be a bag or a pillow. Your creativity will go wild with these patterns! Play around with the colors, the textures, the size...anything you want. There are print patterns, panda patterns, skull patterns-mix and match for a one of a kind creation.

 This book comes with a 5-Star recommendation from me. This would be an awesome present for any knitter you know (hint,hint!). With Christmas coming up and a long winter ahead, this would be the perfect gift.

 Here is my project. This is about 3 days work at an hour a day:

Knockout Knits by Laura Nelkin

The latest book I received from #Bloggingforbooks is Knockout Knits by Laura Nelkin.

Knockout Knits features scarves and accessories in fun new patterns, including a new style that incorporates beads into your knitting.
 The designs features in this book are probably best suited for intermediate to accomplished knitters. Beginners can try their skills on the write cuffs and work their way up to lacy shawls and beaded tams as they get more comfortable with the advanced skill levels. New skills are described in detail among the pages, with graphics to help you along.
 I've been a knitter for 10 years now and I like learning new advanced skills. I can't wait to start the beaded tam, and I'll post pics as soon as I start!
 Note: Circular needlles and cable needles are good supplies to have if you plan to complete some of these patterns :-)

Time for some fun....

The latest book I received from Bloggingforbooks.org  is Draw-a-saurus by James Silvani and a personal favorite.
 Draw-a-saurus is a fun novelty book for leisurely doodlers and sketchers. It's written in a friendly style that makes it accessible from ages 8 and up, but if you're an adult, don't be afraid to check out the book, too! No one is too old to enjoy the occasional dinosaur drawing!
 The book offers step by step pictorials to start the outline of your dinosaur (with many varieties to choose from) and shows you how to fill in the details. Real fun for all ages.
 Here is my first attempt and you can see the stages advance from the basic stick figure dino to a more detailed one....

Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope

I got this book in a box with a bunch of others at an auction this summer for a dollar. I'm not big on politcal tomes, but here it goes....

This book features Obama's views on a variety of political issues. It's a rather long book, probably most suitable for the political wonk. There's nothing really new here if you're already familiar with the Democrat's stance on most issues. Each chapter is written with Obama's style, conversational and to the point.

Skim it and you really won't miss anything, but you'll still get the gist of this novel.

The Tiki Barber Biography

   My next book to review came from a free box (Sorry, Tiki ) after what looks like some water damage. It's not the type of biography I'd typically read since I have no interest in football. But...I've heard of Tiki, so I rescued it from the free box and added it to my summer reading pile.
  Tiki's early life is upset when his dad walks out on the family, but with a strong-willed mother the family thrives. Tiki and his twin brother Ronde excel at school and then on the football field. The detailed chapters about Tiki's football games drowsed me, but for a fan of the game they'd probably be eye-openers. I dig the familial backgrounds of all biographers, so the only chapter that really held me was the first chapter and the pictures.
 There are no real juicy stories here, just a typical biography with a positive message.
 Off to my recycling pile it goes! (sorry again, Tiki!)

Bend Your Brain Review

This book is fun with a capital F. Loaded with a variety of puzzlers of varying levels, there is something here for everyone: Rebus, Chain Game, Dominant Eye Tests.dot-to-dots....every page is a new activity.
  Anyone 13 and older would enjoy these puzzles. They're a pleasant change from crossword puzzles and search-a-words that you normally find in the puzzle book section. Seek this book out! As a puzzle connoisseur, I give it my 5 star recommendation.
#BloggingForBooks

Sample puzzle pages:

Long Lost by Harlan Coben

  The last novel I read was Long Lost. I got this book a few years ago at a church garage sale for 25 cents, and it's been waiting in my to-do pile since then. So here it goes...
 Long Lost starts with Myron Bolitar getting a mysterious phone call from a long lost ex-lover, Terese. She asks him to come to Paris and at first he thinks it's crazy, but after he finds out his current girlfriend is taking off to her parents house down south and he gets into a rumble with her son's basketball coach, he decides to go for it and meet Terese in France. He's got  nothing left to lose in the states.
 He arrives in Paris, and as soon as he leaves the plane he senses trouble. He's detained by the French police  for questioning, but he's at a loss as to what they're talking about. His ex-lover's husband was murdered?? She had a husband?! He had no idea. The story unfolds from there as the two lovers reunite. Toss in a mysterious blond girl and umbilical cord blood for plot twists and you have a one-of-a-kind plot.
 The characters are intriguing without being boring. I liked Myron's friend who reminded me of Better Call Saul from Breaking Bad.  I thought my eyelids would go south when I read the name "Mohammad Matar", It didn't- the story kept it's pace and there was never a dull moment.

Bend Your Brain

Well, now that I've reached beyond my IQ, let's attempt Bend Your Brain word puzzles!
 I am ready! I'm going to fry my brain with some neuron-bursting puzzle conundrums!

Beyond IQ

The next book I am going to review is called Beyond IQ by Garth Sundam. You don't need a genius IQ to figure out what this book is about, it's all about ways to boost your creative thinking process. Like the title says, smarts are more than just being able to solve complex mathematical problems in your head, it's about how you process the information you receive. When you see a problem what are all the different ways you can think of to solve it?
 I absolutely loved this book. Each chapter features puzzlers and problems for you to solve using the technique that was described on each topic, like The Book of Nonsense or Retrain Attention, Retrain Intuition. They are challenging and really get your brain to use all of it's thinking power. If you're like me, there is not a puzzle too difficult to give up on. Have at it, and have fun! That's the main point in Beyond IQ!  #BloggingForBooks

 Some sample questions to get you started:
 
 How is a butterfly like a sunbonnet? A pumpkin like a propeller?

 Finish this limerick: There was an Old Person whose habits/Induced him to feed upon rabbits......

 Jane and Janet are sisters born five minutes apart to the same parents and yet they are not twins. How is this so?

A Curious Man by Neal Thompson

  A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not" Ripley

  I grew up enjoying the Believe It or Not cartoons, yet I seldom gave a thought to the man behind them, so I was especially eager to dive into this novel from Blogging For Books. The title alone makes me want to read on...
 Robert Ripley led-as the title suggests-a Strange and Brilliant life. This biography gave a good background of his early years, you can see from the start that  he was a man full of creative ideas. He was a hard worker, yet a happy-go-lucky guy who didn't let his setbacks bring him down.
  Bob Ripley's travels are covered extensively in this book, giving a peek at a time when travel was an exotic luxury. The tales of his adventures are a real treat, plus I loved the bits of Believe It or Not trivia mixed in with the chapters.
 The book also doesn't gloss over Mr. Ripley's personal faults. He had some ideas about women and secretaries that would never be accepted in this day from a man of his status.
 The one redeemable quality about him was that even in his cad-like ways he was still sweet on his one true love, Oakie.
 I learned a lot about Robert Ripley in this book and I would recommend it for anyone. 
 Dig in and uncover some curious facts behind Believe It or Not's Curious Man.

I'm Creating Luminous Works with Innovative Materials and Techniques...

I have begun my new book, The New Colored Pencil by Kristy Ann Kutch! Thanks to Blogging For Books I had the chance to check out this new book all about creating works of art using colored pencil.
  This is the kind of book you don't sit down and read like a novel. Gather your supplies and pick a chapter to start a new technique. The first few chapters are devoted to finding the best supplies. Since I'm a beginner at colored pencil, I haven't gone out and bought a lot of expensive supplies just yet. First, I'm going to try a few designs with my standard school colored pencils and some fancy resume paper I had laying around. Regular colored pencils like Faber Castell that you buy in the back-to-school section at Walmart are not going to have the same effect as a more expensive pencil, they don't blend as well, but they're ok for some early sketches to see if you like working in this medium.
 I started by finding a picture of a flower in a magazine and started applying some of the techniques, such as playing with color contrast and layering colors. I had a lot of fun trying to make the picture more realistic, although I think I was too ambitious in picking my first design....To start, stick with a simply design...
  Here is my first attempt using the color contrast and layered color design. (And it is still a work in progress)

 I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in trying a new creative art. Open to any chapter and dive in. And if you find you really enjoy this art, go out and buy some good quality supplies. I'm going to!

My First Book Has Arrived!!

It's here!!!
RandomHouse Bloggers sent my first book to review and I chose The New Colored Pencil by Kristy Ann Kutch. I've always liked to draw, but my technique could use some work. I think I'm too formal and stiff, so tomorrow I crack this open and start learning some new techniques.....

Summer House With Swimming Pool by Herman Koch

I've finally found my blogging niche: Book Reviews. Since reading is my life, naturally this is the topic for me.

Now....Review Time, Break it down!

   This is my first Herman Koch novel. The cover says he also the New York Times best selling author of The Dinner, and after reading this novel I'm intrigued. I would check out more from this author.
  Summer House With Swimming Pool actually takes place in Europe, not in California like I thought for the first few chapters. The book starts with Dr. Marc Schlosser in his doctor's office. My first impression of this guy was 'narcissistic sociopath'. I would never want a guy like this for my doctor. The story then backtracks three years to the time he meets Ralph Meier and receives the invitation to stay with the Meiers for a brief vacation.
 I loved the relationships in this story and how they entertwined. Dr.Marc remains a cad, but his wife and daughters have a likeable quality. It's a carefully crafted plot expertly written.
 My only questions at the end were about Marc and Judith. I would've liked more resolved between these two. Did Marc's wife ever find out what happened? Did Judith continue seeing him? And I'm still a little foggy on what really happened with daughter Julia on the beach. Was the crime for real, or did her boyfriend implied she made up the story?
 Over all, three and a half stars out of five.