Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures by Emma Straub

The enchanting story of a midwestern girl who escapes a family tragedy and is remade as a movie star during Hollywood’s golden age.

In 1920, Elsa Emerson, the youngest and blondest of three sisters, is born in idyllic Door County, Wisconsin. Her family owns the Cherry County Playhouse, and more than anything, Elsa relishes appearing onstage, where she soaks up the approval of her father and the embrace of the audience. But when tragedy strikes her family, her acting becomes more than a child¹s game of pretend.

While still in her teens, Elsa marries and flees to Los Angeles. There she is discovered by Irving Green, one of the most powerful executives in Hollywood, who refashions her as a serious, exotic brunette and renames her Laura Lamont. Irving becomes Laura’s great love; she becomes an Academy Award­-winning actress—and a genuine movie star. Laura experiences all the glamour and extravagance of the heady pinnacle of stardom in the studio-system era, but ultimately her story is a timeless one of a woman trying to balance career, family, and personal happiness, all while remaining true to herself.

Ambitious and richly imagined, Laura Lamont’s Life in Pictures is as intimate—and as bigger-than-life—as the great films of the golden age of Hollywood. Written with warmth and verve, it confirms Emma Straub’s reputation as one of the most exciting new talents in fiction.

Goodreads Summary

I wasn't used to reading a book like this.  It was really interesting-I didn't really love the main character, Laura, but I didn't hate her either.  She did a lot of things that I simply wouldn't do or even consider; however, I also felt like I was living vicariously through her.  This story follows a plotline that the readers can likely guess-small town girl makes it big in Hollywood and gets more than a little carried away.  In some ways, I was reminded of Marilyn Monroe or Madonna.  I liked how the author showed a great deal of the main characters' background because she seemed much more real and sympathetic.  The secondary characters were good supporting characters that emphasized a lot of Laura's more interesting qualities.  

The plot itself wasn't anything new, but the author carried it out well.  I didn't hate or like the main character and I thought the author did a good job developing the characters and keeping a fairly impartial look at what goes on in the story.  This book is recommended to adult readers.

3 Stars

Find this book:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
The Book Depository

This product or book may have been distributed for review, this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.

Back Before Dark by Tim Shoemaker

Praise for Code of Silence: 'Deliberate, plausible, and gritty whodunit.' --Booklist Starred Review Taken! A detour through the park leads Cooper, Gordy, Hiro, and Lunk straight into a trap, and Gordy is abducted! For the kidnapper, it's all a game, a way to settle an old score, with no one getting hurt. But evil has a way of escalating, and once his identity is discovered, the rules change. Despite the best of police efforts, the hours tick by without a clue or a ransom call, leaving everyone to their own fears. Gordy is gone. Cooper descends deeper into a living nightmare, imagining the worst for his best friend and cousin. Hours stretch into days, and talks of a memorial service begin to surface. But Cooper still feels his cousin is alive and develops a reckless plan, changing all the rules. Now the one who set out to rescue his friend needs to be rescued himself. Sometimes rescuing a friend from darkness means going in after them.

Goodreads Summary

I thought that this book was a perfect read for a rainy summer or fall day.  I was able to finish it in one sitting and felt like everything was completely tied up at the end of the novel (which is always nice- no cliff-hangers!).  Gordy, one of the four friends that the reader is used to from a prior novel, is kidnapped.  This leads to panic and confusion among the rest of the gang.  In an odd way, this book reminded me a little bit of the Scooby Doo show.  I really liked how the friends worked together and never gave up on their friend.  There were numerous goofy decisions that will make the reader groan out loud; there were parts when I literally cringed.  

I really liked a lot of the characters.  They were very easy to root for during the mystery.  I thought that the author did a terrific job of creating the spooky atmosphere necessary to carry out his plot.  Young adult/teen readers will really enjoy this novel.

4 Stars


Find this book:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble

This product or book may have been distributed for review, this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.

Counting by 7's Blog Tour!

 

 

 *Enter for a chance to win this book here*
 

Welcome to the Counting by 7s blog tour! Willow Chance is a 12-year-old genius who finds it comforting to count by 7s. She’s never really connected with anyone other than her parents, but when they both die in a car crash, she’s left completely alone. We asked author Holly Goldberg Sloan to share her 7s – from the seven favorite books to seven things her fridge can’t do without, follow Holly on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays as she counts her own 7s.

 

Holly’s Guest Post:

 

7 things my kids said that I'll never forget

1. When my oldest son was just a toddler I took him along with me to work.  This meant that he was around adults a lot. He was a quiet kid and followed instructions.  Right before we would enter the office I would turn to him and say "Remember to behave."  One day we were leaving and I asked how he was doing.  He answered:  "I'm being Hav, but I don't know who he is."

2. My second son loves words.  He made up his own when he was little.  When he was five he said that I should write the people who made the dictionary and tell them that the word should be 'earthshake' not 'earthquake'.

3. The same son requested a 'milkquake' once the people who wrote the dictionary didn't honor his request for earthshake.

4.  I was standing with my firstborn in the market and a very old woman was in front of us in line.  My young son blurted out "What happens when you die?"  I said we would discuss this later. He then pointed at the woman and said "What happens when she dies?"

5.  When my two sons were 4 years old and 2 years old we were on a flight from Los Angeles to New York.  The boys were sitting next to me looking at a picture book.  I shut my eyes for what seemed like two seconds and when I opened them, the boys were out of their seats and heading down the aisle.  I jumped up and went after them, saying "What do you think you're doing?"  My oldest son answered "We're going outside to play on the wing."

6.  The first time my son Max saw fireworks he was only three years old.  I asked him if he liked what he had seen.  He said "It is very loud when clouds explode."

7.  We live in Southern California and it doesn't rain much.  One winter we had a heavy rainstorm and I put a coat on my young son and we walked out to the sidewalk to watch the water rush down the street.  My son squatted down to look at the things streaming by in the water.  He then got to his feet and said "If you are a worm, it's a good day to travel."

 

Counting by 7s Synopsis:

 

In the tradition of Out of My Mind, Wonder, and Mockingbird, this is an intensely moving middle grade novel about being an outsider, coping with loss, and discovering the true meaning of family.

Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now.

Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.

 

About Holly Goldberg Sloan:

 

Holly Goldberg Sloan was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and spent her childhood living in California, the Netherlands, Istanbul, Washington, DC, and Oregon. She has written and directed a number of successful family feature films. The mother of two sons, Holly lives with her husband in Santa Monica, California. I'll Be There was her debut novel (she earlier had written a middle reader book called Keeper).

 

Follow along the Counting by 7s blog tour to read all seven of Holly’s posts.

 

9/2: Live To Read

9/4: To Read, or Not To Read

9/6: I Am A Reader, Not A Writer

9/9:  Making the Grade

9/11: There's A Book

9/13: Abby the Librarian

9/16: The Book Muncher

 

 

Kevin by Paul Kupperberg

Kevin Keller, the first openly gay character in the history of Archie Comics, premiered last fall to an overwhelming favorable response. He will star in his own series of comics starting in June and his story will continue in this special paper-over-board novel to be released in time for Gay Pride (June 2012). This book is a perfect gift for anyone who loves Archie Comics or just wants to feel good about themselves.

Goodreads Summary

My mom introduced us to "Archie" comics. I loved them-the characters, the stories, and the illustrations. This new book has the flavor of the "Archie" comics that I love, but it's a little too different for me to be comfortable with right away. The "Little Archie" strips were so much fun. I liked to see how they looked as kids.
Kupperberg's "Kevin takes us back to Kevin as a little kid, but there are no colorful drawings. The story isn't silly and fun. I liked Kevin; he's straight-forward, honest, and well-meaning. There are shades of Reggie as the bully, Eliot Kingman; but Reggie had redeeming qualities. I was looking for characters like Veronica, Betty, and Jughead in Kupperberg's story too; they are there, but they're not as good.
On its own, the story has a strong message from loyalty and caring toward friends to support and understanding from parents.Kevin's character is likeable. However, I have trouble blending this story and the Kevin character into the "Archie" group that I've known and loved for years. I think my lack of enthusiasm has more to do with its being a novel, rather than the comic that I'm used to.  But it is difficult to see this story as belonging to my favorite comic. The message is a little too for my fun Archie gang.

3 1/2 stars

"Reviewed by Colleen"

Find this book:
Amazon
Barnes and Nobles
The Book Depository

This product or book may have been distributed for review, this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.