The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

"Ancient walls that sing the distant hours"

Every so often you get a book for which you have no expectation. I ordered this book into my library queue on the suggestion of some list or another, just because. When it came, I thought; "Romance?" because of the castle on the cover. Romance and castles are a cinch- right? Oh, and there is romance. Pretty much the twarted kind. And, it's a whodunit, and a bit gothic, and a slice of Grimm's, and a dash of mother-daughter angst and reparation. Controlling fathers, controlling daughters, insanity, love, war, lies, secrets, bald truths. Beautiful days, creepy rooms, bad history. At times I wondered if I was reading a scary novel. I don't do scary. But, then, I never was scared, so...I guess not. What it is is full of wonderful twists, grand prose and wonderful abandon. I can't wait for my Eldest to read it. I think Middlest will like it too.
AS far as flags? I can recall no foul language, romance in place of sex and the violence is of individual sort and accidental kind. I do think it will take a more mature mind to enjoy the novel, so for older kids.
Loved it.

Backwards in High Heels, the Impossible Art of Being Female by Tania Kindersley and Sarah Vine

I love the feel of this book, the art in it's pages and the spirit of the premise. I thought, perhaps, this would be a book I could hand over to my teen girls- a primer. NOPE. This is for the female who is already an experienced adult. Kapisch?
That being said, many chapters I felt could've been penned by my sister, Elizabeth. She has a similar voice in her writing, familiar, wry, down-to-earth. So, Elizabeth were she British. Some chapters were thought provoking, and some just plain fun. It covers all sorts of topics from love to money. And the book is a joy to hold in your hands and read. Savor, if you will.
A chick-lit nonfiction book, a book for the sisterhood. And, I think, a keeper. Except I'll probably give it to Elizabeth to enjoy....

Birdology, by Sy Montgomery

I think, books can be many things. They can be a wonderful escape into a different world, they can be deadly boring text you must attempt to focus upon, they can be a record, painful, frightening, sweet. But, my favorite books are ones that make me think. I mean really think. And muse and wonder and excite. Sy Montgomery has managed to really hook me with Birdology. If you have spent much time with me in the past week, I have probably brought
up birds; language, homing instincts, yarak, dinosaurs- I have read each section, then thought about it for days. One of my blogs( A Velociraptor of my own) on the other blog I keep, Cowfeathersfarm, was a result of some of these meditations.I wouldn't doubt there are more in the works. Because when a moment of brainstillness comes, there are birds now. I have watched Snowball- a yellow crested Cockatoo, dance on youtube. His dance to "Another one bites the dust" is magnificent. I have thought about my friend, Tim, in Oklahoma that is a falconer, and I wish I had pumped him for more information when we lived in OK. I have always been fascinated by the huge murders of Crows, or Starlings, or Red-Winged Blackbirds as they turn the sky and ground black and loud, turning in a uniform cloud. But now I'm thinking more about that, not just accepting, but marvelling. Birdology is making me see the world differently. That is a book worth reading.

P.S. I should mention that the author uses the phrase "bird s___" a few times in the book. Also, during the last pages there is some politically active beliefs. Right or wrong, they are there. Climate change, factory farming, meat eating...the scourges of humanity. I think it stole a bit from the magic of the book, but don't let it discourage you!

Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

This copy also had three other short stories by Mr. Capote. I have, of course, seen the iconic movie with Audrey Hepburn. I had found the movie a bit odd and was kept a bit confused. I think I understood much better, the complicatedly shallow Holly Golightly in the book. Although I'm still a bit in the dark about how to earn money from gentleman by going to the powder room....
Capote's characters are interesting and not mainstream. But, his writing, even though it may be about prostitutes and orphans, is poetic and not written for shock value. I really did enjoy Breakfast at Tiffany's even though I was a bit annoyed by and didn't particularly like Holly. I think the book is a good choice for the high school age teen- and great for a discussion to follow!