Happy Trails: Crappy chick lit

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

Maureen Corrigan, NPR's book critic, said the only lame thing about this book was the title. And on her recommendation, I read it. Now I want my 5 hours back, because this book was L-A-M-E. Very predictable, very sappy, very happy-ending-for-everybody. So why did I read through the end? I don't know. OCD, I guess.

It's about Addie, who used to be fat. She is thinner now, but still lonely and unhappy. (What? Being thin doesn't solve a person's problems? What a cruel, cruel world.) Then her ex-best friend, Valerie, shows up after committing a crime and they go on the lam together. Then Addie gets a boyfriend, Valerie realizes she never should have thrown Addie under the bus, and everybody lives happily ever after. (Sorry about spoilers -- but it will save you the trouble of reading to the end.)

Happy Trails: Another book review

I finished another book last night and have decided that I'll call this blog series "Happy Trails." (It goes with the adventure/Western theme of the blog and it references the happy little trips I take via literature.)

The Women by T.C. Boyle

I read this on the iPhone Kindle app and found that the reading experience was totally satisfying -- until I got to the end. I didn't even know I was approaching the end, because I wasn't turning pages in a traditional way. It was strange and anticlimactic to be unable to shut the two covers and be done. So, that's my review of the reading experience (my first e-book).

The book itself (i.e., the content) was really interesting. I read Loving Frank by Nancy Horan about a year ago and I liked The Women better. Both are about Frank Lloyd Wright and his disastrous love affair(s). The Women covers all four of the major loves of his life, while Loving Frank is just about Mamah Borthwick. The story is full of very flawed characters (especially Wright himself). Some bits are melodramatic, but it's all based in history. I really enjoy historical fiction, and this is a well-written and engaging novel.

Introducing a new series

Mike had an idea for our blog that we're going to try out. Those of you who know us well know that we are HUGE fans and supporters of NPR (National Public Radio). On NPR they occasionally run a series of related stories (like Climate Connections or Planet Money) that focus on one particular issue. Mike's idea is that we can run our own occasional series on our blog, on topics that we care about.

Soooo, my series will consist of very brief reviews of books that I read. I'm a big reader -- you can see my list of everything I've read since July 2007. I need a good name for this series, so if you have suggestions please comment. I consider it an extension of my professional work as a librarian to offer reader's advisory in this forum. ;) The first review follows.

You or Someone Like You by Chandler Burr.

The protagonist of this novel, Anne Rosenbaum, accidentally becomes the leader of a prestigious and exclusive book club in Los Angeles for people "in the industry" (she ends up with multiple book groups: one for producers, one for writers, one for directors, etc.). I thought the book would be fluffy fun: literary snark featuring Hollywood stars. I was surprised when the book took a more serious turn, but enjoyed it all the more for that unexpected element. Recommended for anyone who will simultaneously enjoy hundreds of literary references and discussions (this is about a very serious book group, after all), allusions to famous Hollywood folks, and also some tender family and identity issues (including religious and sexual identity).

Hiking in the Snowies

Once Melissa and I returned from the Family Reunion Tour, we thought one of the best ways start feeling at home in Laramie area would be to do some hiking. After all, we love hiking, and Laramie is a very outdoorsy kind of place. We decided to hike a trail in the Snowy Range, which is about 40 miles west of Laramie. The Snowy Range is part of the Medicine Bow National Forest, and Medicine Bow Peak is the highest mountain in the Snowies. The trail we hiked, the Tipple Trail, passed through some beautiful landscape and had excellent views of Medicine Bow. Here's what we saw.

An old miner's cabin.

A trail marker.

This is an old broken-down mine with a vertical shaft.

I have to say that the photos don't really do justice to our experience. The elevation of the trail we hiked was about 10,000 feet. The trailhead is located at an overlook with Medicine Bow Peak directly above and vast stretches of the Snowy Range below the trail. To stand at that elevation with a chilly wind whipping at us, we felt exposed but also inspired. Most of the trail we hiked was under the cover of trees, so we were sheltered from the wind.

This is a photo from one of the overlooks.

As we drove down from the mountain after our hike we saw this huge moose just off the road. Amazing.

Family Reunion Tour '09

Just after we moved all of our stuff to Wyoming and got (mostly) unpacked, we jumped in the car for another road trip! This time, we went to Utah and Idaho for three, yes THREE, family reunions. The first was in St. George with the Broughs.

Here we with Mom and Grandma and Grandpa at Tuacahn to see the musical Annie. (McKenzie is peeking at the camera.)

Part 2 of the Brough Reunion was to hike a section of the Narrows in Zion's Canyon. Here we are starting the hike.

I was particularly excited to hang out with my brother Bob. We hadn't seen each other since May 2007!

This was the high adventure part of the hike. Grandma wasn't afraid to get her feet wet!

Emily and McKenzie are loving it.

After spending a couple of days with Broughs in Southern Utah, we headed up to Central Utah, to Nine Mile Canyon for the Terry Family Reunion. For some reason, Melissa and I didn't take any pictures there, but Bob and Emily certainly did. You can see photos on their blog by clicking here.

After the Terry Reunion, Melissa and I parted ways with my parents and Bobily to go visit her family in Preston, Idaho.

Here we are on the farm with Rob and Sarah. Rob's taking us on a tour to show us some of the farm animals.

The "Pig Penthouse"

On a walk with horses and goats.

Here's Justin teaching me how to run a tractor.

While we were in Cache Valley we attended the Hansen Family Reunion, which was really fun. We got to visit with a lot of Melissa's relatives. We also went camping with several members of the Hansen clan, and we went to That Famous Preston Night Rodeo.

Melissa's cousins Matt, Phoebe, and Chloe show off their fancy belts before the rodeo parade.

Melissa and I show off our Wyoming Cowboy pride before the parade.

We had a great time with all of our family members who we got to see during the Reunion Tour '09. Thanks to everyone for making it so memorable and fun!

Hello Laramie!

We're thrilled to be living in Laramie, Wyoming. We love the bright, blue sky, the quaint downtown, and the numerous bike lanes throughout town! One of Laramie's charms is the farmer's market that happens every Friday afternoon during the summer. A couple of downtown streets are actually closed to cars to facilitate the market (not pictured, yet).

We found this downtown sign pretty intersting.

We thought this double rainbow was a very auspicious sign to begin our time in Wyoming.

You can tell that Melissa's a happy camper living here in Laramie. Here she is on her first day of work.

Goodbye Illinois

Melissa and I moved from Illinois to Wyoming last month, so here's a post to say adios. We spent a lot of time at the University of Illinois over the last two years, and here's us saying goodbye to a couple important landmarks on campus.

The Alma Mater.



And a statue we affectionately call "the tickler."

Also, our church family threw us a going-away party, so here's us saying goodbye to them.

Finally, here's Simone saying goodbye to a handy hiding place.

Thanks to all of our Illinois friends for helping to make our experience in the Land of Lincoln fun and memorable! We wish you all the best.