Continuing with the book review catch up this weekend ....

I probably should have read Long Way Round before reading Long Way Down which is Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman's second motorcycle journey.  But from reading reviews of Long Way Down, perhaps I have played it well because it has been largely panned in comparison to the Long Way Round.  Sequels rarely measure up to the original anyway.  I'm not sure if Ewan and Charley actually do write the book or if someone just transcribes it from the video footage.  I've seen a few episode of Long Way Down on the telly and it's all remarkably similar, almost like a transcript.  So you wouldn't read this book in search of some beautiful pieces of writing because there really isn't any.  What I took from it was a sense of adventure in the wonderful country of Africa which I have just started to explore over the last couple of years and am just amazed by its abundance of natural beauty and wonders. So I just loved that about the book and also some of the amazing charity work that goes on down there.  Very inspiring.  Makes you want to really get involved. 

I liked this book and I'll definitely get to reading Long Way Round as well if it's meant to be much more inspirational.

Three out of five   

I devoured this little gem of a book one afternoon when I wasn't feeling particularly well.  What a great choice.  Easy reading and a pick-me-up type book which is interesting given the subject matter of being cheated on when 7 months pregnant with your husband's baby.  Nora Ephron is of course from When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle fame so I wasn't expecting to be disappointed by this book.  I think Helen Fielding is probably a Nora Ephron fan as both authors have the same knack for bringing humor to relationship problems in a very contemporary way that people now attribute to Bridget Jones but Heartburn was written in the 80s.  I got through this one so quickly that it will definitely deserve more than one read and further examinations due to the recipes that she sprinkles into the story.  Gives a bit more meaning to the title Heartburn.  Food has definitely helped define several moments in my life and you associate certain foods with very specific experiences and I love how Rachel (the main character) does the same in recipes that I hear are really good.  I have a feeling this book will turn into an old favorite along with some of the recipes after I try them out in the kitchen.

Four out of five    

I had high hopes for this one after reading a bunch of positive reviews.  I kept it on my to read list and then had my book club pick it for our next selection.  I can't wait to hear what the other girls thought because I was severely disappointed by Away.  Away starts off in a NYC of the 1920s.  For me, that was a promising start as I love books that can give me a historical flavor of one of my favorite cities.  Lillian is a Jewish immigrant from Russia who arrives in NYC and becomes the mistress of a father and son.  Her family was killed back home but then she learns that her little daughter escaped and is still alive back home.  She travels cross country to Seattle, Alaska, and up to Siberia in order to make her way back home to find her daughter.  It was during her travels that the book really fell apart for me.  Her life in NY wasn't riveting but I wasn't quite so dispirited while reading that bit.  As she travels to Seattle and beyond, the story is over the top with her meeting up with a prostitue and pimp, getting sent to a woman's prison/rehabilitation center, etc. It was too much packed into a 200 pg book and wasn't believeable.  I couldn't wait for the book to end.  Can you guess if she finds her daughter?  Do we care? Eh.

Two out of five