Review - Princess Diaries

I recently finished another audiobook, The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot and read by Anne Hathaway. This was a fun book. But, it was very different from the movie.

The premise of the book is the same, Mia Thermopolis discoveres that her father is a prince, and her grandmother is a queen, or rather Dowager Princess (widow who holds the title derived from her deceased husband) of Genovia. Mia's father is alive, having been diagnosed with cancer (the kind that prevents him from having any more children). He breaks the news to her so that she can carry out the title. She is furious with him. As if she didn't have enough problems (she feels ugly, has few friends, and her mother is dating her algebra teacher), now she has to be a princess. She eventually discovers that her impressions of people around her were wrong and that looks are more than skin-deep.

This is definitely a young adult book. There are themes and words that some will object to. It was a Best Books for Young Adults selection of the American Library Association in 2001.

I am now listening to The Undertakers Wife by Loren Estleman.

Review - Mr. Chickee's Funny Money

When I have a few moments of free time on the bookmobile, I have been reading Mr. Chickee's Funny Money by Christopher Paul Curtis. I have enjoyed his novels in the past and thought this would also be a fun one.

The premise of the novel is that Mr. Chickee gives Steven a quadrillion dollar bill (Soul singer James Brown is the portrait on the bill). It turns out the bill is real and the Feds are trying anything to recover it. The book was okay, but not excellent. The feds were written as fools, the premises of many of the sub-plots were ridiculous. If the book had been written as more of a fantasy, I might have believed it. There were funny parts and the concept of a quadrillion bill would be fascinating (lots of Disney trips) but the other parts of the book really kind of ruined it for me.

Appropriate for young children and adults with no sense of humor. About 150 pages.

Next up is Al Capone Does my Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko.

Review - Santa Cruise

This morning I finished Santa Cruise by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark. This the fourth book written by the mother-daughter pair, combining characters from their books.

This time, Alvirah and Willy, lotter-winners-turned-amateur-sleuths, win a cruise on the Royal Mermaid's maiden cruise. The invite as their guests Jack and Regan Reilly and her parents Nora and Luke along. The cruise, supposed to be a public relations event, quickly turns into a mystery cruise after guests report seeing ghosts, Santa suits are missing, and other strange events happen.

The book is a fun and fast read (261 pages). Chapters are normally short and the action is swift. It concludes in a totally predictable ending, my only disappointment, though the plot development has twists and turns you would not expect.

My next read will be The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, another children's novel.

Rexburg

Having an extra day off, we decided it would be nice to visit Julie & Dan in Rexburg, along with a nice drive up and back. Our route took us through Logan, Bear Lake, Montpelier, Alpine, past Palisades Reservoir, and into Rexburg.

Our hotel room, AmericaInn, was a very nice room, one of the nicest we have enjoyed in a long time, complete with a fireplace and jacuzzi tub.


We enjoyed a dinner with them and another friend, Jane, at Texas Roadhouse in Idaho Falls. Excellent prime rib, ribs, and tater skins, though the wait for a table took over 30 minutes while everyone else was seated almost immediately.
We drove up to the new LDS temple (under construction), attempted to visit the BYU-Idaho Bookstore (closed) and the Teton Dam Museum (closed), so we took Julie & Dan home and left town.

Our trip home took us past the Teton Dam, up and over the Tetons, into Jackson (lunch at Bubbas--BBQ chicken and beef brisket--yummy!), then down home through Star Valley, Evanston, Heber City and home.

Review - Donutheart

The latest book I read, Donutheart by Sue Stauffacher was a fun, lighthearted young adult book. Franklin Delano Donuthead is obsessed with cleanliness, hygiene, and risk avoidance. Fortunately, he has Sarah to fight his battles and help him out of difficult situations. In the end, he ignores his obsessions in turn for helping Sarah, his best friend.

Our library has classified the book as a young adult book, but it could be recommended for older grade school children as well. The content and language are not offensive, but some of the words and content would not be understood by younger children. It's a short 208 pages, and reads fast.

Now it's on to Santa Cruise by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark.

San Diego, Part 4

Some more pictures a little commentary about our recent San Diego trip.


San Diego has one of the most beautiful harbors I have ever seen. The water always looks so clean and fresh. With boats, yachts and ships all berthed one longs to become a Commodore.
The beaches at San Diego are just as beautiful as the water. This one is behind the Hotel del Coronado, a luxurious resort. Here a loving couple strolls the beach.


If you ever visit Sea World, take the signs that say "Soak Zone" seriously. Here I am at the dolphin show post a large splash the dolphins decided to make. Notice the couple "trying" to cover themselves up so they will not get saltwater all over themselves.

Another warning. If you don;t want to get wet, don't go on this ride. Of course, when we came down the hill we were fairly dry. It was the watter cannon that shot off and got us wet! But this was one of the most interesting rollercoaster rides I've been on in a long time. After this point, which is about 1/4 of the way through, you go up another rise, and then the entire ride car enters an elevator, is tilted right then left, then propelled out a door, down a 20 feet hill, through water, and then around a series of twists and turns.

San Diego, Part 3

Saturday was spent at the Wild Animal Park just outside of San Diego. It was a nice drive off I-15 and through a short canyon.

We met up with more family (DeeAnn's aunt and her family) and spent the day with them at the park. The first attraction was the railway ride through the park. We didn't know it at the time, but we were there two days before the railway was to retired for good. Talk about good timing on our part.

Sunday was spent traveling home, picking up the dog, and getting scolded at by the cats for the audacity of leaving them alone.

And for those wondering, yes we are planning our next trip.

San Diego, Part 2

Our second day in San Diego was spent at Sea World.

We enjoyed several shows featuring dolphins, seals, pet dogs, cats, and other assorted creatures and whales.

We only got a "little wet" during the dolphin show, a "little wet" during the "Pet Rule" show and stayed dry in the seal show. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the Shamu show. Apparently there was some kind of wind or other supernatural force that kept Dale and Kathy dry while we were soaked when Shamu decided to flip a little water up into the crowd.

After the shows, we enjoyed walking through the park, enjoying the flowers, doing a little shopping, and visiting with a family member who came to visit.

The evening was topped off with a dinner at Cafe Coyote, a Mexican restaurant in Old Town. That was followed by a quick stroll around Old Town.

We visited the Mormon Battalion museum, took in a short film (which I slept through), then made it back to to the room.

Review - Gideon the Cutpurse

With a little time sitting on the plane and in the airport, I was able to finish Gideon and the Cutpurse by Linda Buckley-Archer. The cover actually caught my eye (you will see what I mean when you see the book) and so I bought it for the library.

Peter Schock and Kate Dyer are transported in time from the present to 1763. Gideon Seymour sees their amazing appearance out of thin air and takes them under his protective wing. At that point, they try to piece together what has happened to them. The Tar Man, a villainous henchman, has stolen their hope of returning to the present day and challenges them to meet him in London. Along the way the have to deal with highwaymen and other treachery. Meanwhile Peter and Kate's parents are desperately trying to find the missing children, along with a clever police investigator.

This is the first book in the trilogy. The ending of this volume definitely leaves the reader wanting for more. The books is for readers ages 10 and up. There are a few offensive words and some violence, along with graphic descriptions of 18th century prison life. Overall, it was a fun book to read. Children who enjoy the Magic Tree house books and want a little more challenge in a longer book (400 pages) will enjoy this trilogy.

Now it's on to Donutheart by Sue Stauffacher. I am also working on Mr. Chickee's Funny Money by Christopher Paul Curtis.

San Diego, Part 1

We just returned from our latest trip, to San Diego while enjoying the company of friends Dale and Kathy. Our adventure started off on a rainy Thursday morning. We drove to the Salt Lake airport, had a fairly uneventful flight to Los Angeles. Once there, we rented our minivan and began the drive to San Diego. Along the way we stopped to take some pictures of the beautiful San Diego Temple. We then headed for our hotel, a lovely Holiday Inn Express located in Old Town, a very convenient location to Old Town and the freeway.We walked over to Old Town area, a historic district of the town, where we caught the Old Town Trolley for a city tour.The tour featured 9 different stops, including stops at the cruise ship docks where the USS Midway is docked and now a museum, the Gateway district (another historic district now home to shops and restaurants), Horton Plaza ( a beautiful outdoor shopping mall), and Coronado. We got off the trolley at the Coronado resort, walked through the gardens and down to the beach. Then, with time short, we re-joined the trolley tour and completed the rest of the tour which featured a few stops throughout Balboa Park. It was then back to Old Town, back to the hotel for a short rest, and then off to supper at the Cheesecake Factory.