The Girl Who Lived

I'm happy to be able to make that statement in connection to my surgery last week. Didn't have the motivation or energy to do anything when I first got home, but have managed to get the bibliotherapy going in the past few days -- much nicer than the utter wasteland of satellite TV and a great comfort when - despite a longing I can taste - I cannot sleep.

The list so far:

Take This Bread - An interesting story of family legacies, the spiritual power of food, and faith.

Queen of Babble - Oh, Meg Cabot, the perfect fluff for the flagging soul and healing body!

The Omnivore's Dilemma - Completely fascinating - especially for a Midwestern girl from butcher stock - but I admit to skipping the chapters on animal cruelty & slaughter. Not up for images of blood or any other nausea-inducing stuff at present.

Rebel Heart - Imagined this as a guilty pleasure like the Des Barres groupie book - but instead got a portrait of a very lonely, sad, wasted life. Poor Liv - what a life.

Audrey Hepburn: An Elegant Spirit - Learned a bit about Audrey, but mainly read treacle from her son's analysis of her life. Great photos, though.

The Nanny Diaries - Didn't know if I could get past the first chapter - so much name and brand name dropping made me dizzy. Looks like the film is hyping the love angle. Most fun: right after finishing this I happened upon the Simpsons episode parodying Mary Poppins. Priceless.

The Burnt House - Always enjoy these. Serious police work (ie slow and methodical), real emotions, believable villains (ie no psychotic cannibals) and the infusion of Judaism all work.

Stuck in the 70's - Not what I expected. The sexual content was a surprise. But I enjoyed the denouement and did laugh at some of the anachronisms.

In Search of Mockingbird - A solid little book about a search for meaning and connection. The peripheral characters are charming and the heroine's "discovery" believable.

Resurrection Men - Wow. What a dark, disturbing book. Sheesh!

World of Pies - Flaky crust with lots of familiar ingredients. Tasty anyhow.

Call Me Hope - A bit didactic, but still a compelling heroine.

How Elizabeth Barrett Browning Saved My Life - right up there with Meg Cabot for perfect post-surgery fluff.

First Light - An icy version of City of Ember.

Monkey Town - I love reading historical fiction about events of which I have precious little knowledge....

Finding Stinko - A mute street kid survives with the help of ventriloquism.

Way Down Deep - Orphan girl finds a new home, an old home and a new home again with the help of a cast of colorful mountain town residents.

Someone Like Summer - Romeo & Juliet in the Hamptons: flour face gal & Colombian illegal boy.

Invisible Lives - Luscious cross-cultural romance in a Seattle sari shop.

Does My Head Look Big in This? - Really great novel about Muslim teens in Australia.

Eclipse - Nothing like a giant vampire romance on a night without sleep.....

Size 12 Is Not Fat - Oh, Ms. Cabot - a series of girl detective mysteries? Delicous.

A Thousand Splendid Suns - Heartbreaking and horrifying - but ultimately life-affirming.

Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree - Quirky heroine attempts to solve the problems of 7th grade using cool logic and keen powers of observation - with interesting results.