For your reading pleasure

Ever since I finished my Physical Science class, I've been doing A LOT of reading. SO fun. Here are some of the books I've enjoyed and I thought I'd pass them along.

*Invasive Procedures by Orson Scott Card
Not your typical OSC sci-fi book. This was more of a medical thriller. Reminded me of Robin Cook a bit, though a little more "out there" with futuristic genetic manipulation. It was a fast-paced adventure and I enjoyed the ride.

*Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
This is book is marketed as juvenile fiction and was a Newbery Award winner. It's definitely an easy read. It's about a teenage girl going through some difficult trials. I loved the characters (though the Grandma seemed a little over the top for me) and was interested to see what would happen next.

*The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby
This is a short collection of memoirs written by a man who had a massive stroke and was left completely paralyzed except for the use of one eye. His mind remained active, creative, and thoughtful. The entire book was written by someone reading the alphabet out loud and Bauby would blink when they got to the letter he wanted. Amazing.

*Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
This is also marketed to teens, but for an easy read, I really liked it. There are three books in this series out now and I read the first two. I didn't like the ending of the first one. It seemed to wrap up a little too easily. The second one was better. Looking forward to reading the third one soon.

*Nordie's at Noon by Patti Balwanz, Kim Carlos, Jennifer Johnson, and Jana Peters
This book is the personal stories of these four women who were "too young" to be diagnosed with breast cancer. (All four of them were in their late twenties/early thirties.) They share their ups and downs through treatments, tough decisions, and lessons learned from dealing with this disease. They are candid about their experiences and all have amazing attitudes and perspectives.

*Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
This was the latest selection from my book club and it is a great book. It is written in first person from the perspective of an 11 year old boy growing up in the 1960's. There is a lot of poetry infused into the story, which was refreshing. (I never read poetry--does anyone else?) I don't know if it was just my post-baby hormones, but it was a very emotional story for me. And toward the end, I got really mad at the turn the story took, but then it recovered. Phew.

*Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by by Mary Roach
This was the book club choice a couple of months ago. I've always liked science and studied on cadavers during anatomy class at BYU, but there were parts of this book that tested even my strong stomach. The author is very humorous and light-hearted without being disrespectful to the dead. I learned some really interesting things and have had second thoughts about being embalmed and buried. Freeze-drying anyone? If you have a little morbid curiosity, I totally recommend this book...just don't try to read it on your lunch break. Ewww.

There you go. Since I plan to continue reading at a frantic pace during these all-day-spent-nursing-Caroline marathons, feel free to share any good books you've read lately. I'll add them to my list.

Speaking of Caroline, here are a couple updated photos.

Cute two week old girl.
She had been sleeping well the whole time we've been home....
until last night. She woke up three times, which is very normal
for a baby her age, but I'd gotten spoiled by her five-hour stretches!
I'm hoping last night was a fluke.
PLEASE sleep tonight, Caroline. Please?
One of the adorable things about her, though, is she doesn't
cry when she wakes up in the night. I just hear her in her
little bassinet trying to suck on her hands and making cute
little grunting sounds until I come and pick her up.
What a sweetie.

She can do the Billy Idol lip.
Pretty talented, huh?

Peek a boo!