Rue La La got me again. I simply couldn’t help myself. I haven’t had a set of bedding that made me feel like a fairy princess in years, and the Amanda Duvet from Blissliving is seriously pretty pretty princess purple and I love it. I can’t wait to re-do our bedroom in shades of purple! Thankfully CK is a very easygoing boyfriend. I could probably festoon the room in glitter and paper cranes and he’d just lay beside me happily snoring away. Besides, a lady’s bedroom should be her sanctuary and right now my bedroom looks like man central with a side of cats. Dear: CK, Watson, and Dexter – look out! There’s a new sheriff in town and she carries a mean wand.

Anyway, aren’t the sheets, pillows, and shower curtain fantastic? I’m in love!

Don’t Panic. There’s Still One Prince Left!

Delirium (a word I can’t seem to type without the aid of spell check) is the first YA novel in awhile that I loved from cover to cover. I have yet to read Lauren Oliver’s debut novel, Before I Fall, but it has certainly been added to my unwieldy wish list.

One of the first things I loved about Delirium was that it takes place in Portland, Maine. A city I love and lived in for several years after college. Following Lena, our heroine, around the streets, beaches, and landmarks of Portland was fantastic and really fun. I could almost always picture exactly where the action was taking place as I’d been there before. Although, as an aside, it got on my nerves a bit when Oliver referred to The Old Port as just “Old Port” or the Eastern Prom as Eastern Promenade as though they were the same as Brown Street or Smith Ave. I know a single article in a sentence isn’t that important but I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone refer to THE Old Port without adding a “the” to the phrase. But I digress…

The Portland I know and remember is drastically different in this dystopia. The world weaved is one of isolation, governmental brainwashing, disinformation and an intense amount of fear. The United States has closed her borders and declared love a disease. To cure this “affliction” citizens are essentially lobotomized after graduating from high school. The operation is supposed to cure all symptoms of Amor Deliria Nervosa [love] and then men and women are paired for marriage by a scientific committee. Anyone who shows too much emotion, laughs to loudly, is caught dancing, or even caring too much about their children can be prosecuted and potentially sent to The Crypts, a dungeon where inmates are left to rot in deplorable conditions.

At the beginning of the novel Lena goes along with this reality. She is resigned to the fact that her operation is scheduled for a date merely a few months away. She’s complacent and obedient — the perfect sheep, but then Lena meets Alex and everything changes.

I found myself able to relate to Lena wholeheartedly. She was a fully realized character with nuance and extreme likability. While light on actual romance, what there is was handled sweetly and believably. This book is part of a trilogy so thankfully yet another cliffhanger ending will be resolved at a later point. But this does bring out my continued annoyance with the trend for YA, as of late, to always be multi-parted. Even if I’m absolutely in love with a collection of characters sometimes it’s nice to have a succinct and tidy wrap-up to a book. What do you think? Is this sequel happy world getting a bit much? Or do you subscribe to the “more is more” camp?

In all honesty I requested an arc of Hold Me Closer Necromancer by Lish McBride thinking that it would be completely absurd, but I simply couldn’t resist the title. I should have checked my prejudice immediately upon opening the envelope the book came in.  Sherman Alexie, aka the god of all things amazing, blurbed the book calling it a “scary funny book or a funny scary book” and then continued, “in either case, it is a great book. I love it.”  Even with such a serious stamp of approval I still tossed my copy on the bookshelf and went about with life.

Then I walked by it 12 dozen times or so, often chuckling at the title and then getting Elton John’s Tiny Dancer stuck in my head until finally I picked it up and started reading.

It was love at first sight. The book takes place in Seattle (only one of my favorite places in the world), the main character, Sam, works in a fast food joint (been there, done that) and then his life is turned on its head after an ill-timed hockey puck breaks the taillight of a very evil dude’s car. Hilarity and danger ensue! The pace of the book was a good strong gallop and while there certainly could have been a horrible fall into an overwrought “Twilight” mood, McBride does an excellent job of boldly steering her first novel quickly away from that train wreck. The magic and mythology referenced seems more edgy here and Sam’s love interest is a kick-ass female Werewolf who would be more likely to shank you than moon and brood.

I found this story to be fantastically packed with pop-culture references. For instance each of the chapters is labeled with a song lyric such as “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades” or “Don’t Rock the Boat Baby.” And I loved how refreshingly frank the characters in the book were when talking about drugs, sex, and other such topics that will no doubt send conservative mothers everywhere into a great big tizzy. I did wonder if perhaps this book was originally geared towards adults and was then marketed to a YA audience — no matter though it’s such fun that I’m simply glad it was released.

So do yourself a favor and read this book! Just ignore it when people look at the title while you’re on the subway or at work and raise their eyebrows in judgment. This is a unique debut YA novel that is not to be missed and I thoroughly hope that there is a sequel (or two) in the works.

As my extended holiday vacation comes to a close today (thank you higher ed workplace) and I attempt to not feel sad about returning to the 9-5 grind (remember: you like your job, you like your job) I suppose I should set some goals (not resolutions). In the spirit of new beginnings I’m going to attempt to complete the following tasks over the next 30 days

1. Follow the Four Hour Body diet. After reading the book over vacation I’m definitely intrigued by the premise – basically sticking to a slow carb diet 6 days per week with a planned cheat day where you’re allowed to eat anything you like. I’ll keep you posted as to how that works out…

2. Write. Write. Write – which wont be a problem as I’m taking another Grub Street 8-week class. This time I’ll be putting my non-fiction chops to the test.

3. I’ve also decided to complete the Yoga Journal 21-day challenge. This begins on January 10th. The last time I considered myself to be “thin” was five years ago when I was doing a tremendous amount of yoga. Maybe this will help?

4. Start a YA book club with Pam. I’ve tried and failed at doing this for years. This time I’m going to make it happen.

Wish me luck! This list should keep me busy and therefore help to stave off the January doldrums.

I’m not handling the holidays very well this year. We have a pretty tree, stockings, gifts and unfortunately I don’t feel a drop of Christmas spirit. I’m hoping it will miraculously appear on Thursday at noon when my office officially closes until the new year. We’ll see. In the meantime I’m trying to force myself to feel EXCITED. Operation “Finding My Inner Christmas Queen” began today with a simple little craft that I found in Real Simple.

I originally wanted to have a themed tree this year, and in typical delusional-Erin-fashion, I thought I was going to string popcorn and cranberries and then festoon the tree with oodles of cinnamon stick ornaments, but that didn’t happen. Of course, before I decided that was way too much work and that I’d just use my usual hodgepodge of wacky mismatched ornaments, I had already purchased several feet of skinny red ribbon and a pound of cinnamon sticks.

In the end I figured I might as well try making a few. At first I used some clear craft glue to hold the cinnamon sticks together before tying them with ribbon, but then I realized that the bundles held just fine simply with a firmly secured bow. The living room smelled amazing while I made about a dozen of the cute little crafts. Then I hung them on the tree with hooks and felt accomplished. I’m thinking that next year I might make more and tie them with a variety of colored ribbons. What do you think? By the way, the cranberries in the picture are part of another craft I’m going to attempt later this week. Wish me luck!

Note: The tree is sitting in a stand that is literally screwed into a ridiculously heavy piece of wood.

Are you guys sure Prince William is engaged to Kate Middleton because it sure looks like I have the ring.

Just kidding. This mega-gem is from Avon circa…I was probably in Kindergarten. My grandmother’s neighbor was an Avon Lady and I coveted her sample knock-off Princess Diana engagement ring so much that she gave it to me. Obviously you can see that I had “champagne wishes and caviar dreams” from a VERY young age.

Jennifer Donnelly’s initial foray into young adult fiction, A Northern Light, was the first and only selection in the Young Adult Book Club Anna and I tried to start when we were living in Portland. We even bought a copy of the book for our friends Jaime and Kelly, who lived across the street from me, and left it in their mailbox, gently “encouraging” them to participate. In the end our failed book club consisted of Anna and I sitting in the Barnes and Noble Cafe drinking lattes. Although, to our credit we did discuss the book. That’s not something you can claim with most book clubs, right?

As much as I loved A Northern Light, I have to admit that Revolution trumps it completely. Donnelly’s ability to weave her extensive historical research into such tight and cohesive plot is uncanny. I simply couldn’t put the book down and found myself extremely sympathetic to the main character,  Andi Alpers, and her struggle with depression and the guilt she harbors over the tragic death of her young brother.

Andi’s life is one of privilege. She attends a posh New York city school with the creme de la creme of society. She’s a gifted musician and guitarist but she has become completely consumed in the deep blackness of a depression she can’t escape. She’s addicted to prescription drugs, her geneticist father has left the family, and her mother is in a constant state of mourning for her brother. When Andi’s grades reveal that she may not graduate high school her father drags her to Paris so that he can monitor her activities as she attempts to write an outline for her required thesis.

In Paris, Andi discovers the diary of Alexandrine, a passionate actress who worked as the companion to the young son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Via Alex’s diary entries Andi uncovers an amazing story of heroic proportions. It’s difficult to write about the book as I truly don’t want to give an iota of real plot away. Trust me. The scenes that take place in 18th century Paris are just as outstanding as those that deal with the present day.

As an added bonus there is an immense amount of music, both present day artists and classical works, mentioned throughout the novel. A quick Google search doesn’t appear to show any listing for an official author’s play list so maybe I’ll take the time to scour the book’s pages and pull something together? In the meantime, definitely read this book!

I received an arc of Room via Shelf-Awareness during my summer of moves. It sounded intriguing at the time but a bit dark for a summer read so it was packed away for future consumption. Now several months later it’s on numerous bestseller lists and everyone is talking about it. In case you’re wondering if you should pick up the book on your next bookstore excursion or Kindle splurge I’m going to offer up a resounding yes!

Room by Emma Donoghue is the first book in quite some time that made me want to stay up all night reading. I literally couldn’t put it down and practically broke my leg one morning when I was so engrossed in the pages that I didn’t notice the escalator had arrived at the top of Porter Square Station. If a book makes you look like a fool then it has to be a keeper.

Admittedly I was a bit wary of the subject matter examined in the story. Lately the press has had a field day recounting the stories of kidnapped women who were held captive for years by sadistic people — did I really want to read about that sort of horror in my free time? To help the reader overcome these feelings Donoghue has quite brilliantly written this harrowing and heartbreaking tale from the point of view of Jack, the captive woman’s five-year-old son. A son she conceived against her will during her years of imprisonment.

Jack and Ma live in Room which is essentially a fortified shed in their captor’s backyard. Room is the only world that young Jack has ever known. The only contact they have with the outside world is via an old television and the nightly visits from “Old Nick” their jailer. The imaginative use of language and the world that Ma is able to weave for Jack is truly astonishing. I believe you’ll find yourself simply overwhelmed by the creative ways she manages to teach, inform, protect, and entertain her son in such a hostile environment.

I know I’m bordering on gushing over this story but I honestly don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like it. I promise you’ll fall in love with Jack and revel in his bravery and perseverance. Don’t shy away from this title just because it’s “ripped from the headlines” a la a Law and Order episode. Room is a book that begs reading and then a prompt hand-off to your best friend so that the two of you can discuss it over wine.