The Book Bit: April 2019 Ed.

I'm so on my game this month, I'm shocked! I finished all my books with a week to spare. Good thing too, because we've been crazy busy. Anybody else feeling the pressures of Spring Cleaning, gardening, and getting the house ready for the upcoming summer? It probably doesn't help that I'm about to have my third (yes, third!) kid in two weeks. I look around and only see all the work that still needs doing, but have absolutely no energy to do it! My poor husband has been run ragged every spare minute he's not at work. Anyway, I hope everyone's April has been great. We love the weather now that all the snow is gone. We still get the occasional cold day when the heater needs to be kicked on, but overall, we're delighted. Now, let's talk about books!


"The Dinner" by Herman Koch

If you didn't already know, this book was made into a film co-starring Richard Gere. That was literally all I knew about it when I picked it up from the library. It is set at a dinner table in a fancy restaurant with two brothers and their wives wherein they discuss some trouble between their teenage sons. What starts off as an annoying and required dinner date quickly turns as the reader is fed backstories on the boys and the families as a whole. Though the book was quite interesting, I was hard pressed to find a character I actually liked let alone relate too. These people live in a completely different world, and that made it hard to understand their motives and decision making. There were some interesting twisty bits, but honestly, I was expecting a little more. I haven't watched the film adaptation yet, but I will eventually. Overall, this book was easy to read, but not my favorite.


"The Mountain Between Us" by Charles Martin

Yet another book that was turned into a film, but this one was enjoyable. Two strangers, desperate to get home, decide to share a private flight after the airport grounds all planes due to an oncoming blizzard. Fighting the clock and the weather, three people (and one canine) pile into a small aircraft to make the trip from Salt Lake City to Denver. Just when Ben Payne and Ashley Knox think they've hit the jackpot, something goes wrong. When Ben recovers consciousness, he realizes they've crashed, Ashley's leg is badly broken, and the pilot is dead. Stranded in Utah's most remote wilderness, he wonders if they can survive a few hours, let alone long enough to get rescued.

Told from the perspective of Ben Payne, doctor and wilderness junky, we follow their path as they descend the mountain in search of rescue and survival. Days turn to weeks. You won't get bored reading this tale of survival, companionship, and pain shared between strangers. Get this one the next time you're at the library. The ending is the best thing I've read in a long time.


"The Terranauts" by T.C. Boyle

The book club selection for this month hit the spot. This compelling novel follows two years in the lives of scientists who've been chosen to live inside a closed ecosystem in the name of preserving life on Earth. Set in the early 90s, there's already talk of our natural resources being depleted, overpopulation, and irreparable damage to our ozone and atmosphere. So, some really spiffy scientist convinces a bunch of rich people to build a closed system, E2 (Earth 2) in which there are five biomes (rainforest, savanna, desert, ocean, and marsh) and choose eight candidates to live within the closed system using the natural wildlife, vegetation, and water to sustain themselves. Extremely fascinating, and maybe a bit rash, but entertaining all the same. Add in the ability to communicate with the outside world and a mission control command center that watches every move the Terranauts make, what wouldn't be interesting about this story? The reader is presented with the story through the memories of two people inside and one person who did not get chosen for the mission. Read as the tension rise between people who want nothing more than to see the mission succeed and one person who wants to get inside more than anything. It can get a bit tedious here and there with the day to day nonsense, but I found it very interesting. I, personally, think it would make a good TV series.

That's all I have for this month. I hope everyone is enjoying the lovely weather and blooms of spring. Do you have any suggestions for me? I always love a good recommendation! Follow, like, subscribe; you know the drill! See you in May.