Library Loot: Second Trip in August

New Loot:

• The Time Traveler's Guide to Elizabethan England by Ian Mortimer
• North of Nowhere by Liz Kessler
• The Beautiful Land by Alan Averill

Leftover Loot:

• Charlotte & Leopold: The True Story of the Original People's Princess by James Chambers 
• I, Claudius by Robert Graves
• Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina by Robert Graves
• 1759: The Year Britain Became Master of the World by Frank McLynn
• English History Made Brief, Irreverent, and Pleasurable by Lacey Baldwin Smith 
• Macbeth: A True Story by Fiona Watson
• The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman
• The Vikings by Robert Ferguson
• Forged in Fire by Ann Turnbull
• The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England by Dan Jones

   Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire and Marg that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.  

© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

These Books Came Home With Me

Today was the Friends of the Library book sale at my library. And these are the books I was able to fit into my bag!   

• Crucible: Spock: The Fire and the Rose by David R. George III
• The Cat Who Had 14 Tales by Lilian Jackson Braun
• The Death of King Arthur: A Retelling by Peter Ackroyd
• Death Comes To Pemberley by P.D. James
• Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells
• I, Elizabeth by Rosalind Miles
• The Wise Woman by Philippa Gregory
• The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory
• The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory
• Mrs. Jeffries Learns The Trade: The First Three Mrs. Jeffries Mysteries (The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries, Mrs. Jeffries Dusts For Clues, The Ghost and Mrs. Jeffries) by Emily Brightwell
• Debby by Siddie Joe Johnson (1940)
• A Prologue to Love by Taylor Caldwell 
• In The Land of the Big Red Apple by Roger Lea MacBride
• New Dawn on Rocky Ridge by Roger Lea MacBride
• King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Howard Pyle 

© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

Royal Mistress (2013)

Royal Mistress. Anne Easter Smith. 2013. Simon & Schuster. 489 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

Royal Mistress is not my favorite historical novel set during this dramatic time in English history--the reign of Edward IV and Richard III. Half the novel is seen through the eyes of Jane Shore, the mistress to King Edward. The shifting between characters was necessary to tell the full story, to round it out, in places but it was also uneven. It was odd to spend so much time with just Jane's point of view, and then suddenly shift into the mind of Richard, for example, or Hastings, or whomever.

Edward IV has never been a favorite of mine. The more I read about him, the more disgusting I find him. And in a way, I feel the same towards Jane Shore. I didn't exactly look upon her with favor. Royal Mistress, of course, presents her completely sympathetically. She's presented as more than beautiful, having a certain something, a definite wit that every single man--no matter his marital status--finds irresistible.

The book opens with Jane Shore falling madly, deeply in love with Sir Thomas Grey (Elizabeth Woodville's eldest son by a previous marriage, the stepson of Edward IV). Though she's only seen him the one time, though she's only spent at most half an hour with him, she knows it is TRUE LOVE. And she knows that he just HAS to feel the same way about her. So when they next meet privately, it is humiliating. She essentially telling him, you better hurry and go see my father and tell him you want to marry me! I've not stopped thinking about you since we met! I can't wait to be your wife! It will be so fun to yours forever and ever! After awkward silence on his part, he essentially says: I never said I wanted to marry you! Where did you get that idea! I thought when you said you wanted to meet, you wanted to be in my bed, of course! That's all I care about. True, I've been thinking of you since we met last week, but I've been thinking about getting you in bed. When she next hears from him, she eagerly goes to him: YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND! You do love me! You want to marry me! Again awkward silence, his response: I told you I am not interested in marrying you. I thought you would have changed YOUR mind by now. Oh, by the way, I'm married.

Jane does get married; she gets married to a man of her father's choosing, a business arrangement. Her husband being a lot more interested in what he can get out of the marriage. He is shown as having no interest in Jane as a woman, as a wife, as the future mother of his children. There are plenty of awkward conversations, Jane starts them, of course. Her husband, William Shore, wanting to run away from her as fast as possible whenever she starts asking why or complaining.

Jane happens to catch the attention of Lord Hastings (Will Hastings). She is not as easy to persuade into a life of sin as he initially thought, so nothing comes of it. Except that he talks a lot about her to the King. The King sees her. The King wants her. The King sends for her. He sends a present along with his note. She comes. She comes oh-so-willingly.

Since I do not care for smut, you can imagine I did not care for most of the novel.

So how does the novel present Richard III. Well, Jane hates him because Richard looks unfavorably upon her. Richard hated the fact that Edward was so immoral, so unfaithful. Jane now represents the immorality of his brother's reign. BUT. While Jane hates Richard III. Through other perspectives, the author reveals several things: 1) That Richard III is innocent of killing the princes in the tower; she places the blame on Henry Stafford (Buckingham). 2) That the pre-contract with Eleanor Butler was real; that Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville should not have been allowed, and was in fact illegitimate, that the king and one or two of his closest knew this and did all they could to cover it up forever. 3) That when Richard III learned the truth--it is presented as truth--that changed everything. Richard had more of a right than an illegitimate boy.

Though I didn't exactly care for Jane Shore through most of the book, I did find the last part of the novel to be fascinating.

You might find The Tragedy of Jane Shore by Nicholas Rowe to be interesting.


© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

Duke (2013)

Duke. Kirby Larson. 2013. Scholastic. 240 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

I really enjoyed Kirby Larson's newest novel. Duke is set in 1944 and 1945. Hobie Hanson, our narrator, has a dog he loves and adores. Duke is his very best friend in the world. Hobie doesn't have that many friends; Scooter has just left town with his family because of the war. Max Klein is a new kid in his class. But Hobie doesn't know if he has friend potential. Especially since the other kids in his class have chosen to pick on him. Some days he thinks it might be better to have no friends than to team up with the loser kid. So early in the novel, Hobie makes the hardest decision of his young life. It is a decision that haunts him, a decision that changes everything. He decides to loan Duke to the army as a recruit in their K-9 division. It breaks his heart; it breaks his sister's heart. (Her name is June). But there is a small part of him that knows it is the right thing to do, the brave thing to do, the selfless thing to do.

I loved reading about Hobie's life at school, at home, and on the baseball field. I loved reading all the letters. His father who is a pilot writes when he can as does Duke. I loved the historical details, loved getting a sense of what it was like to be a kid during the war. I thought the family details were great too. I really liked Hobie and June and their mom! I liked his growing friendship with Max as well. It is a complicated relationship, but, I think Hobie becomes a better person by the end of the novel.

I would definitely recommend this one!

© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

Highway Robbery (2008)

Highway Robbery. Kate Thompson. 2008. HarperCollins. 128 pages. [Source: Library]

Highway Robbery is an interesting historical adventure. The narrator is a young boy intent on selling a horse to the reader. But not just any horse, mind you, this is a special horse. He's offering you a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own the legendary Black Bess, THE horse ridden by Dick Turpin. The book relates how he happened to come into possession of the horse. How a mysterious rider--tired but kind--told him to hold the horse and wait for his return. Dick Turpin was captured and subsequently hanged, and so now the horse is his, or so he tells us.

Highway Robbery resonates as story because it borders so closely to legend. I enjoyed this one. It is a VERY quick read--at least if you're an adult. This little book is for a younger audience (7-9?). The text is large and there are so many illustrations. 

You may also enjoy this wonderful Horrible Histories song:

© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

Pride and Prejudice and Kitties (2013)

Pride and Prejudice and Kitties. Jane Austen, Pamela Jane, and Deborah Guyol. 2013. Sky Horse Publishing. 208 pages. [Source: Library]

"Netherfield Park is marked at last."
The news caused much romping at the Bennet household for, as every cat knows, a handsome young tom in possession of his own territory must be in want of a mate.
"What a fine thing it would be for any of our five kittens to catch a rich mouse--I mean spouse," said Mrs. Bennet. (1)

Pride and Prejudice and Kitties is a fun, cute adaptation of an Austen classic. It was just the right length too. If the chapters had been longer, it might have grown tiresome. As it was, it was perfect. Just enough dialogue, just enough change of scenery. So the adaptation imagines all the characters as cats, as you probably guessed. And I thought it was just clever enough.

I liked this one. I would definitely recommend it to cat-lovers and Austen-lovers!

Favorite moments:

"We are not in a way to know what Mr. Bingley likes," sniffed Mrs. Bennet, "since we are not to visit."
"But you forget, Mama," said Elizabeth, "that we shall frolic with him at the assemblies."
At that moment, Kitty began coughing up a hairball.
"Not another hairball, Kitty, for heaven's sake!" cried Mrs. Bennet. "Have a little compassion on my poor nerves!" (3)

"If a cat conceals her affection with the same skill from the object of it, she may lose the opportunity of securing a home. Who will want to pet and pamper such a cat?" she said. "Jane should therefore make the most of every half hour in which they are playing or napping to command his attention." (13)

"All cats accomplished! My dear Charles, what do you mean?"
"Yes, all of them, I think. They all walk across fresh paint, making delightful paw marks, stretch out full-length on a table, obstructing their owners' plans, and claw net purses to pieces."
"Oh! Certainly," cried Caroline, "a cat must have a thorough knowledge of purring, yowling, and leaping...and besides all this, she must possess a certain something in her hair and manner of stalking."
"And to all this," added Mr. Darcy, "she must yet add extensive napping."
"I am no longer surprised at your knowing only six accomplished cats," said Elizabeth. "I rather wonder now at your knowing any!" (21)

"Almost as soon as I entered the house, I singled you out as the companion of my future life," he assured Lizzy solemnly. "Twice," continued he, "has Lady Cat condescended to meow pointedly on this subject; and it was but the very Saturday night before I left Hunsford--while we batted about a spool of thread--that she said, "Mr. Collins, you must marry. Choose properly, choose a pure-bred for my sake; and for your own, let her be an active, useful sort of cat, able to make a small rodent go a good way. This is my advice. Find such a creature as soon as you can, bring her to Hunsford, and I will visit her." (56)

In Lydia's imagination, the dazzling prospect of Brighton afforded every possibility of earthly pleasure...she saw the beaches crowded with sleek, handsome toms. (126)

© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews

Cotillion (1953)

Cotillion. Georgette Heyer. 1953/2007. Sourcebooks. 362 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

Cotillion was one of the first Georgette Heyer novels I ever read. I appreciated it even more as a reread. When I (first) read Cotillion, I didn't know Heyer yet; I didn't LOVE Heyer yet. I didn't know her style, her wit, her techniques. Now I do. And it made quite the difference. In my first review, I complained about the slow start. Now, I see Cotillion as being a joy from the very start! I now love it cover to cover!!!

I love how Cotillion begins: with some confusion and a bit of a fuss. A room full of men talking about their eccentric great-uncle, about his money and his will, about his ward, Miss Kitty Charing. Almost all the men in the room feel they know the reason they were invited to visit. Great-Uncle Matthew wants one of his great-nephews to propose to Miss Kitty. The happy couple will receive an inheritance. Otherwise, he will leave his money to charity. Not all the men are eligible. At least one is married already. Not all the men are willing. Three potential suitors are noticeably missing from the party. One of the three is a soldier, he never is part of the story. The other two, however, are key players! Freddy Standen and Jack Westruther. Several proposals are given that weekend...

Freddy Standen is late in arriving. In fact, Miss Kitty encounters him only because she is running away from home. (The whole situation is so embarrassing for her!) He was clueless about the weekend, about the reason for the family get together. Miss Kitty has an aha moment. She does something surprising: she proposes to him. She convinces him that a FAKE betrothal would be just the thing. She could go with him to London, to stay with his family; she could see the sights, she could go shopping, she could go to parties, she could have a life. The betrothal would only last a month or so at most. Just enough for her to have a great time away from home. Perhaps just long enough to make a certain other 'cousin' jealous. He says yes. It's a reluctant yes; Freddy isn't as clever at scheming as Miss Kitty. (And this is Miss Kitty's very first scheme! But it won't be her last...)

Cotillion was enjoyable from start to finish!!! The ending is oh-so-satisfying!!! I enjoyed Miss Kitty and I adored Freddy! I would definitely recommend this one.


© 2013 SukaYuka.com of SukaYuka's Book Reviews