An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon - A Rant...

Dear Diana -

I have been entranced by the saga of Claire and Jamie for almost 10 years now. I laughed when they got married, cried when they were separated, angry when they fought -- I have put a lot of my hard-won emotion into your creative thinking. I have read, re-read and re-re-read the first four books more times than most people change underwear. And all I can say upon finishing your latest is WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU!? Did you get lazy? Did you get just a little too much money that trips to Figi cut into writing time? Did you decide to bring yet another 1000 page book into the series in which you will complete ALL of the freaking story lines that you left ridiculously hanging in this book?

Seriously, LEFT HANGING...not suspense "ooh, can't wait to read the next book and find out what happens" but more that you went to get some tea and FORGOT that Jim was stuck in a closet...that the Cameron guy had Bree at gunpoint...where the hell did Roger and William B EVEN END UP?? Jamie didn't react about Lord John and Claire...Willie didn't react about Ian and Rachel....Jamie didn't talk to Willie really at all! Did your hand start to hurt from writing about NOTHING for 90% of the book and then trying to stash 100 different things into the last 10%???

And then lets go into the whole new level of mysticism you decided to introduce. I was with you when standing stone transported people across centuries - that I get, its crazy but I get it. I was kind of there when Jamie as a ghost could see Claire. I felt your need to have Jamie able to see the children when they returned to the 21st century but Diana....you know what? That Jim and Mandy have some sort of ESP and can "see each other in red" and "feel each other" from far away....you. lost. me. I mean really? Did you not think you were selling the mystic side enough? Did the whole family have to be freaks? Maybe this is a form of cancer or mutation they developed from hurling themselves through time over and over again.

And here is another bone...Claire got through the stones just fine by falling the first few times. Later I got the introduction of gems as maybe a way to steer but then to make it a necessity... and discussing the possibility of fire or sacrifice? Could you not make up your mind? Did you forget things you had already written? Oh but I guess you did because you totally picked up a fight that Jenny and Claire had already resolved...THEY WEREN'T STILL FIGHTING! Claire KNEW why Jenny called Loaghaire to the house....Come on Diana, we all read the books fanatically...we catch these things.

Diana...I am disappointed but also at a disadvantage...because I know if you put out another 1000 pager with only 10% content, I'll still buy it and spend weeks reading it...because Jamie and Claire are my drug of choice. Damn you for your abusive of power.

Disgruntledly yours,

Tanya

Run by Ann Patchett

This book by the author of Bel Canto is about what makes a family and how it's not necessarily blood ties. Most of the book takes place in a very short time span and involves how an unusual family reacts to a crisis, how parents sometimes try to control their children's lives, etc. Very good character development and a very interesting story. It's not as lyrical as Bel Canto but still a very good read.

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

Indiana Jones-esque Robert Langdon is once again pulled out of his Harvard classrooms to solve another puzzle thriller, this one that centers around the Masonic origins of the United States. I liked this book for the same reasons I liked The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons - it is crazy interesting information and fascinating to know all the back stories to where many modern actions/words come from.

But maybe the third in line is a bit much for me, I felt like it was completely repetitive to his previous books. He once again is inadvertently called in to help solve this impossible that historians have debated for years and has the authorities chasing him while he is trying to find the answer (people KNOW him, why do they chase him??). In this one though, he kept pulling away and decrying the goal as a myth and no point to follow....very cynical of him I thought.

Rather than the in-depth analysis of art that the other two have, this one has a lot of science in it - that the book claims to be true (upon some research, there is a lot of research going on in the fields). It seemed completely bogus to me though and I'm still not entirely sure I see how it all fits in with the main plot. Basically, the main scientific study was of Noetics - which in my own layman's terms - is the power collective thinking can have on organisms....dubious I say.

I did like to hear about the Masonic activities of the founding fathers - Washington layed the cornerstone of the Capital Building in a Masonic ceremony, Jefferson took apart the King James Bible and reedited it together to find a hidden, deeper meaning! I've always heard that the founding fathers were fiercely religious so I was surprised that they would be involved in the Masons considering the negative connotation they have always had but this book makes the point that they were Masons and for the most part believed in a "higher being" but not necessarily the Christian God.

A recent article in the Baltimore Sun said that the Masons are hoping this book will revive interest in membership, apparently it has fallen off dramatically since the '60s.

The Last Lion: The Rise and Fall of Ted Kennedy

We always hear about the Kennedys - the glitz, the glam, the curse, the politics. This book, written by reporters/editors from The Boston Globe, was a very interesting look into the Kennedy world and I feel like they did a good job of giving a balanced portrayal.

The book follows Ted's whole life - from the heavy expectations his parents put on him as the youngest child of nine, to Chappaquiddick, to all the legislation he engineered in the Senate. I've heard many times of how forceful Joe Kennedy Sr was on his boys to go into politics but I had never heard how similarly tenacious Rose Kennedy was for her children to forward their philanthropic lives. The kids were always expected to come to the table having read the newspapers and to "have something to contribute" to the conversation - a far cry from most kids now playing PSPs while their parents play on their blackberries at dinner.

I don't think I've ever seen Ted Kennedy speak so I had virtually no perception of him going into this book other than my dad always saying he never wanted Hilary Clinton to be President because "it would be worse than even the Kennedys." When reading the book, I began to realize what dad was talking about. Ted pushed for a lot of very liberal legislation - WIC, immigration reform, healthcare reform, voting rights, rights for women and minorities, etc. On a lot of his legislation I agree with dad - I'm not a huge fan of all his policies but I respect his vision and the general thought of making the world a better place. I think many of my liberal tendencies went away when I graduated from college unfortunately...that bleeding heart has bled out I think.

Having no preconception about Kennedy I was still surprised to read that he was quite the jokester - apparently he had to be as the youngest of nine - and the lengths he went to to make everyone feel good. After 9/11 he called each individual person in Massachusetts who had been directly affected by the tragedy to offer his condolences and his assistance on anything they needed. He remained in contact with these people up until he died and actually followed up on his offer for help. He put together a seminar with about 10 different reps from different agencies to help give the widows and families information on how to fill out the specific paperwork, what questions to ask, etc.

This was a great book and I definitely recommend this book to anyone who has a negative impression on Kennedy and for anyone who knows virtually nothing about him.