Category Archives: Reviews

Things I Will Accomplish Today!

Posted on October 7, 2010 | 5 comments

I don’t know about you, but I feel like my days and weeks are flying by at lightning speed. How did it get to be 7 p.m. last night and I was still at work? How did I not cross as many things off my to-do list as I had planned? Can we please hit the pause button? Or give me just a few more hours in the day? Not to mention that I went to bed at 9:30 p.m. last night! Hubby was actually making fun of me. But I couldn’t help it.

So – to start Thursday off with some strategy, I’ve devised my list of things I want to accomplish today. It’s just a short little thing. Haha. 

  • Writing this work article that has been hanging over my head (and a bazillion other things I need to get done at work today)
  • Leaving work at the appropriate time today (5:00 p.m.!)
  • RUNNING no matter what the weather or how tired I am
  • Unpacking my weekend bag from last week
  • Packing my weekend bag for this week
  • Making dinner (yet to be determined what – likely something super easy…maybe even soup)
  • Vacuuming (you could probably make a sweater with the Murph hair on his favorite chair)
  • Watching Grey’s Anatomy and Jersey Shore (yeah I admitted it)
  • PASSING OUT!

I’m not exactly sure how I’m going to do all this…but I’m giving it a shot. I figured if I wrote out a nice little list and got to cross things off on the blog (such fun), then they will be more likely to happen. 🙂 In my extended 26 hour day, I’d also like to paint my nails and finish reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (say that 10 times fast) because it’s turning out to be a great book – but let’s not get crazy here.

And lastly, the other thing I’m doing today is posting my book recap of Bel Canto! Here it is – have a great day! What’s on your to-do list?

Bel Canto

By: Ann Patchett

I’m still not sure about this one. Have you ever read a book where you are a bit wary of where things are going the whole time? I wondered with this one. I kept waiting for the story to really start, but little did I know that it had already started and I was fully immersed in it.

So what’s the plot overview, you ask? Well, it takes place somewhere in South America. There is a party at the home of the country’s vice president. The party is in honor of Mr. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman. They have invited Mr. Hosokawa’s favorite opera singer, Roxanne Coss, to sing at his party—meaning he cannot refuse the invite. They are hosting this party because they want the Japanese business man to invest in business in their country.

From there, the story really begins when a band of rebel fighters invades the party and holds the entire group hostage. They thought the president of the country was to be in attendance, but he was not. From there, the rebels’ plan goes awry and they have to revise their strategy.

I can’t say too much more than that about the plot because I’d be giving away the highlights of the book—although at the time, I didn’t realize they were the highlights.

This book was different from most other novels I’ve read. I really hadn’t a clue where this was going. I mean there were a few different scenarios running through my head, but I was pretty off. It is a story that really focuses more on how the people cope in this situation than it does the situation. The situation plays a big role, but that’s not the point.

I won’t lie to you and say I loved this book. It had its slow moments. I did not fly through it. And I found myself frustrated with the pace at times. But I think that is sort of what Patchett wants you to feel. She is trying to bring you into the hostages’ world and how slowly it moves.

Maybe I would have gotten into this book if I had connected with the characters more. For some reason, I just didn’t absorb and click with their personalities. However, it’s not for lack of personality. The main characters certainly had them. Perhaps that was the reader’s flaw in not opening up enough to them.

Lastly, I want to warn you about the ending. I didn’t like it. I actually got to the end and kept double-checking that I hadn’t missed pages or that there weren’t more somehow hidden. That couldn’t be the ending I told myself. It was. And I was not happy. Not that I need a “happy ending” by any means. I just need an ending that makes sense to me. This one did not. Maybe that was Patchett’s goal—to have the reader asking “how did that happen?” But it also left me saying: I won’t be running out to buying another book written by Ann Patchett. Sorry.

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Busy & Tiring Day at Social Media Conference

Posted on September 28, 2010 | 4 comments

Hi all. I’m still in Jacksonville, Fl. at the social media conference. I am utterly exhausted. Today we went from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. with really only a 30 minute break for lunch and then a few 10 minute breaks here and there. I am spent.

But, I have to say that it’s been a very good conference so far. To date, social media (blog, Facebook, Twitter) has really only been a part of my personal life because the company I work for has been very slow to accept and realize the benefits. However, I think I see changes coming in our future and I’m very happy that I have this chance to become more prepared.

I’ve found out about a bunch of great resources through this conference, and I’m sure that many of you social media gurus out there already knew about them, but they are pretty exciting to me:

Tumblr
Four Square
Compete.com
What the Hashtag
Paper.li
Blogpulse.com
bit.ly.com
posterous
Yammer
flipvideospotlight.com (non-profits can buy one flip camera and get one free)
Haro
Profnet
WeFollow

I’m not going to go into what each of these sites is for – you can browse if you haven’t already checked them out. Some are geared toward social media and others toward more PR-based efforts. I’m very excited to have a list like this started to help us with our efforts.

Ok – enough of the boring stuff. I don’t have much exciting food to share with you because we haven’t had many choices. However, my co-worker and I did make it to a decent restaurant last night called Marker 32. We started off by sharing a shrimp cocktail and beet salad. The salad was amazing!! Then we both ended up ordering the same thing for dinner. A fish called Trigger with a quinoa pilaf and artichoke sauce overtop. It was simply amazing!!! I am not a huge fish person, but the waiter sold me on this and he was soo right. It was delicious.


Seriously amazing!!! So good. We were stuffed afterwards. And it sounds awful, but we might go back to this place again for dinner.

Ok – it’s getting close to dinner, so time to log off. Hope everyone had a great Tuesday. My question for today is:

What is your favorite social media tool? And what social media tool do you most often (Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Blog, etc.)

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The Results Are In…I’m Competitive

Posted on September 22, 2010 | 5 comments

Happy hump day all. I hope today flies by for everyone. I am in training all day again today. Yesterday’s training was actually really interesting. It’s being given by the American Management Association and the class is Getting Results Without Authority.

I’m not exactly high up on the power list in my office, so it should be very helpful for me. It was also interesting because we took a Personal Style Indicator test by the Consulting Resource Group and it was pretty enlightening. Basically it told me I am a combination of Cognitive and Behavioral or C-B. What that amounted to was the label “Competitive.” Oh yes, I guess I have to face the truth now that this test confirms it. And after reading the description in the accompanying booklet, I have decided not to fight the label. It described me to a T, 100%.

Apparently it means I can be sensitive and challenging; I pay attention to detail; I find it difficult to adjust to unexpected changes; I accumulate stress and tension without releasing it; I can be a bit overly critical of myself and others; and I should engage in plenty of cardiovascular exercise to help release blocked tensions.

No seriously, it really said the last part about cardiovascular activity and I thought that was hysterical. Another page said that people under this descriptor feel the need to be very active, but then can also relax 100% when they know things are accomplished. That’s me!!

It was so funny to read this material that really speaks to me directly in almost all cases. And it explains why I react the way I do in certain circumstances and why, for me, running is all about goal setting and achieving milestones. And now I don’t feel as bad about it – it’s just who I am!

Have you ever taken a style or personality test? What did it tell you? Was it on the mark or way off?

I’ve taken another one before and it was pretty accurate. I enjoy taking them and like reading about my strengths and weaknesses.

Restaurant Review: Gonzalez y Gonzalez
After my full day of class, I met up with my friend Katie for dinner in Soho. We went to Gonzalez y Gonzalez for some Mexican food and margaritas. We contemplated starting off with guacamole, but at $16.25 for an appetizer, that seemed a bit steep.

Instead, we both ordered the passion fruit frozen margarita and had some nachos (much more reasonably priced).

I have to say that the nachos we just meh. I don’t think a plate of nachos means 8 chips smothered in beans and fake cheese with salsa, guac and sour cream on the side. I want a heaping plate of chips, with melted shredded cheese, some pico de gallo and beans. Yes, the salsa, guac and sour cream should be on the side, but you need to build the base of the nachos with love. 🙂 Sorry – I am a bit of a nacho freak.

Anyway, our main courses did not disappoint at all. I had the Burrito Vegetariano filled with zucchini, yellow squash, corn, tomatoes, cheese and black beans with brown rice on the side. YUM!!

Katie had the steak quesadillas and she enjoyed that entrée as well.

The only other thing that slightly annoyed me was that they were offering a happy hour special from 5 – 7 p.m., but only at the bar. I contemplated having us go get our drinks at the bar ($5 vs. $9) and then get a table, but Katie had a train to catch and we didn’t have time to dilly-dally. Still, I think if someone is coming in to spend money on your food, they should most certainly get the same deal on their alcoholic beverages as other bar patrons.

After dinner I headed home, read for a bit and then went to bed early. I didn’t watch Biggest Loser, but Tivo-ed it, so that might be on the agenda for later tonight.

Have a good hump day all!

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Finally Friday and Finally A Book Review

Posted on September 17, 2010 | 5 comments

Happy Friday all!! I was pretty busy at work this week, but the first week back after vacation is always rough and it seems to have taken years to get to Friday. Thank goodness it’s here!!

So far I am doing pretty well with my half marathon training plan. I headed to the gym yesterday after work because they skies were looking ominous and when I was about a block away from the gym is started pouring! It was insane here. The floor of the women’s locker room at the gym actually flooded a little bit. But I ignored the minor flood and hopped on the treadmill for a quick three miles in 26:26. Don’t worry – there was no water near my machine. 🙂

The skies were clear when I emerged from the gym after my run, so it worked out perfectly.

This weekend we have no major plans. It’s going to be the last weekend that Hubby and I will have together for a while because of conflicting travel schedules. So low-key sounds perfect.

Before I leave you on this fine Friday, I offer you a little book review that is looong overdue. Here you go – enjoy – and have a great weekend!

Once a Runner

By: John L. Parker, Jr.

I have to first tell you how I came to select this book. I was spending my lunch-hour browsing around Borders downtown. I had stopped in to pick up a specific book and then the comfort and expansiveness of Borders sucked me and I started lingering in the Fiction/Literature section (always my drug of choice). As I slowly walked from shelf to shelf reminiscing over previously read and much-loved books, and eyeing some new release here and there, a book on a shelf just above my head caught my eye and seemed to jump out at me. The cover had the outline of runner. I stopped. Reached up. And pulled down “Once a Runner.”

Not all that strange you say? Well, it just so happened that I was going through a little running rut at the time and had been struggling to force myself to get back into a running routine after my last marathon. The title described exactly how I felt: I was “once a runner,” but wasn’t so sure anymore. I felt that fate had placed that book in my line of sight, so I bought it.

I didn’t get around to reading it for quite some time, however. I think because I knew I’d feel a little guilty once I dove in. And I did. The narrator of the book, Quenton Cassidy is a collegiate runner at fictional Southeastern University and he is hard-core. Even my 20-mile pre-marathon training runs don’t stack up next to this runner’s training.

Admittedly, I felt like a lesser runner almost immediately. Chalk it up to my running rut circumstance or my less than speedy times, but it seemed that Quenton was there to show me what a real runner was—and that wasn’t me. I think this made me a little resistant to the book at first. But finally, about halfway through I dropped the jealousy and guilt and found myself gladly accompanying Quenton on his most difficult training runs.

And shockingly, I understood just how he felt on many of those runs. Parker was able to articulate those strange and intangible feelings that runners face on particularly trying runs and even on amazing runs. Soon I found myself wanting to put on my running shoes, sign up for a race and share in Quenton’s experience.

This book is considered a cult classic in the running world. It was originally rejected by many publishers and Parker took to selling it out of the back of his car at races and meets. But it was an instant hit with runners and a buzz began to develop. Eventually, it was picked up and printed officially by a publishing house.

I won’t say that this book changed my life or the way I look at running. I’ll just say that it renewed some excitement in me and reconfirmed that all the sweat and pain is really worth it in the end. Not just because I might set a new personal speed or distance record, but more importantly because of those wonderful indescribable feelings you have after you finish a run that takes you to the brink and back, and shows you exactly what kind of person you are on the inside.

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A Friday Book Review: The Hour I First Believed

Posted on August 13, 2010 | 2 comments

Happy Friday everyone! We made it through another week. In two weeks from now, I will be packing up my bags and getting ready to travel to the Emerald Isle!! I can’t wait. I’m like a kid counting down to Christmas. 🙂

In the near term, I’m just excited that this weekend is finally here! I don’t have any major plans and I’m really hoping that I can get out tomorrow morning for a nice longish run. It’s been a while. I also started a new running book last night, which I’m hoping will serve to inspire me: Once a Runner. I’ll let you know how it is.

And that means that I finally finished The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb!! YAY! So I will leave you all on this fine Friday with a nice little book review. Have a great weekend!

The Hour I First Believed

By: Wally Lamb

This is the second Wally Lamb book I’ve read. I read “She’s Come Undone” a long time ago – I think when I was in high school and to be honest, I can’t recall very many details about that book. I probably need to read it again. I do remember that it was about some very traumatic and sad things. So I went into this second book kind of expecting some grizzly events and Lamb certainly followed through.

“The Hour I First Believed” spans several years (I want to say 15-20 years) of a man’s life. This man has a connection to the Columbine shooting and that event basically shapes and drives the course of the rest of his life. As you can imagine, it doesn’t exactly shape it in a positive way.

The main character, Caelum Quirk ,is very well-developed by Lamb. He isn’t perfect and his tone and sarcastic nature come across very well in the book. His anger can also be distinctly felt by the reader. I felt like his wife, Maureen, wasn’t as well-developed and I wasn’t able to connect with her as much.

If you ever thought you got a raw deal in life, please read this book and you will probably feel a little bit better. Every time something bad happened in Caelum’s life, I thought that was going to be the end of it. That was the last blow and now he was going to have a chance to start putting the pieces of his life back together. Umm, no. It pretty much stays tough for Caelum right up until the end of this book. I guess you could say that frustrated me. But maybe that was Lamb’s point; that in real life, the bad or difficult times don’t just come to an end forever, we will constantly have ups and downs and it’s unrealistic to think that at any point in your life the tough stuff will be over.

I will say that I thought for the most part, Caelum remained pretty positive in the face of such adversity. He definitely had his raw moments, but I always felt that he was going to pull through and work it out—he always made me believe (I know, how cliché right?).

Overall, I definitely recommend this book. It’s a long one with 700+ pages, but when you’re taking a journey through a decent chunk of a person’s life, you can’t expect it to be quick and easy. I wouldn’t say it’s a feel good book, but it might just make you appreciate some of the things in your life a little more as you work your way through the catastrophes in Caelum’s.

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Fun and Exhausting Girls Weekend

Posted on August 9, 2010 | 5 comments

Good morning all. How can it be Monday already? I’m not ready for it. The weekend seriously flew by. My Friday night was low-key, as Hubby went to the Yankees game with a co-worker. But then Saturday was very busy and fun-filled.

I headed out around 10:00 a.m. to catch a Metro North train to Stamford, CT to meet up with a few of my girlfriends from college. Upon arrival, I met this new little arrival:

That would be little Miss Kendall. She is seriously precious.

The rest of Saturday day was spent grabbing some lunch and walking around an outdoor festival area in Norwalk, CT. It was really cute, fun and was a lovely afternoon.

After the festival, we headed back to my friend’s house to change for dinner and drop off little Kendall with her daddy for a few hours. Then we headed to this cute restaurant called Market in Stamford. We’d had a rather filling Mexican lunch, so I wanted to keep my dinner a little lighter. I ordered the chopped salad which was made up of local greens, jicama (actually not included), corn, apple, basque cheese with a champagne vinaigrette. No picture of my salad, but it was delicious.

Of course, we had to have dessert. We ordered two things, first these mini ice cream cones:

These were so cute and very yummy. But the star of the meal was definitely our second dessert:

This was called Crack Pie “Momofuko” and was described as NYC’s famous gooey, rich pie with coconut gelato. It was AMAZING!! This one was devoured.

And finally, here we are enjoying our nice dinner.


Katie, Kate, Me and Kim.

After dinner, the two Kates and I headed into NYC to watch a band play and proceeded to party well into the night. It got so late that when we hit up a diner at the end of our fun, I may have snoozed a bit – signalling it was time to go home.

Unfortunately, our partying and fun meant that Sunday was pretty much a complete waste of a day. Oh boy – I’m getting old. I managed to rouse myself enough to watch True Blood and then went straight to bed.

And as you may have guessed, on the running front – none was done this weekend. However, I just bought a book on running that I’m hoping will inspire me to get back into it, it’s called “Once a Runner.” Has anyone read it? The reviews on the back say it will make you want to go running – I sure hope so! But first I’ve got to push through “The Hour I First Believed” by Wally Lamb. It’s a good book, just long. I’m only about 250 page through the 700-page book.

What did you do this weekend? What were some of the highlights?

Have a good Monday all!

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I’m Still Here & a Restaurant Review!

Posted on July 15, 2010 | 3 comments

I swear – I haven’t disappeared. I’ve just been really busy. The past two days were spent in a Leadership Development Class I was selected for about a month ago. They were full day classes about Communicating Up, Down and Across an Organization. It was taught by someone from the American Management Association and it was a really great class. However, since it was all day on Tuesday and Wednesday, I came into work early both days and stayed a little late to get things done, so blogging fell to the bottom of my list.

So anyway – I’m here and trying to catch up on quite a few blogs. But I also promised you a restaurant review! Last Wednesday, my friend Katie and I went to a little restaurant in the East Village.

Tsampa
212 E. 9th St., New York, NY 10003

We arrived at Tsampa fairy early (we’re the early-bird people hehe) and could very well have been the only people in the place. This Tibetan restaurant is conveniently (for me) located off the 6 line and I got off at Astor Place.

If you recall, last week in NYC was pretty sweltering. Wednesday was a really tough day and it didn’t seem like Tsampa’s air conditioning was up to par. As we walked inside, we noticed it was a little cooler, but not too much. We tried not to dwell on the heat as we were shown to our table in the front corner.

We were both ravenous, so we set to work on choosing an appetizer to hold us over. We ordered two 1) Khampa Momo With Chicken and Vegetables – which were dumplings and 2) Tibetan Salad Shredded Cabbage, Carrots, Greens, Cucumber with Sesame Vinaigrette.

one dumpling left


Both appetizers were delicious!

We also decided to try one of their “signature” drinks, which I can’t remember the name of, but looked a lot better than it tasted.

To me, this sort of tasted like soured milk. It looked so refreshing and milkshake-like, but it was not. We were very glad we decided to share this drink and not each get one.

For my entrée, I ordered one of the specials which was made with chicken, rice, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens and spices.


It was sooo good!! And it was really filling as well. I wish it was on the menu all the time.

Overall, our meal was delicious and super cheap. The NY Magazine review of this restaurant also states that all their chicken is free-range. While we both chose chicken dishes, there are a TON of vegetarian options. I would say more veg options than meat dishes actually.

All in all, I think we found a great little place to come back to for healthy, cheap and delicious food!

So that’s all for me today folks. I’ve got a lot of catching up to do. I hope you all have had a good week. I squeezed in a nice 5 mile run on Tuesday night and am going to try to run outside tonight. I’ve got a 4 mile race planned for Saturday morning and I’m hoping it’s not too hot, although the forecast is showing high temps. 😦 I know I shouldn’t complain about the warm summer weather, but sometimes it just makes running feel so awful!

Have a great Thursday all!!

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Back from Break & A Book Review

Posted on July 6, 2010 | 6 comments

Hi all – welcome back to the work week. It was so nice to have a little break, but Tuesday really felt like it came fast. At least we’ve got a short week right?

How was your 4th of July? What was the most exciting part of your weekend?

My 4th was filled with family, friends, fun…and lots of driving. Ugh! I am really getting sick of the car. I didn’t take many photos this weekend. I wanted to just spend some quality time with family and friends. So I don’t have any exciting pics to share.

I did eat a lot of good and bad food this weekend, and squeezed in a 6.5 mile run with my friend Lauren on Friday. I’m not sure if I’m completely ready for the Boilermaker this Sunday, but it’s too late to squeeze in much more training now. I have a feeling that most of my running during this week will be done in the gym on the treadmill anyway. The brutal heat is just not conducive to a good run for me. So I’ll be playing it safe inside.

But, I do have one thing to offer you all! Another book review. I know – just call me speed reader. 🙂 I can’t remember the last time I finished a book this long so quickly. It was really good. So, here it goes:

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

By: Stieg Larsson

I picked this book up because I had literally seen about a dozen people reading it on the subway or elsewhere in NYC. I figured there had to be something to it. And there was. I started reading this book on a Tuesday and finished it the following Monday. This book is 500+ pages, so that is superfast for me. It was a total page-turning thriller.

So what’s it all about? A Swedish financial journalist, named Mikael Blomkvist, is convicted of libel because of a story he wrote about a successful (but shady) businessman. But that’s just the intro to the story. After his conviction, he is offered a freelance job by on old industry titan. The first part of the job is to write a family history, but the real objective is for him to research the mysterious disappearance of the titan’s niece over four decades ago, and try to figure out what happened to her. The “girl with the dragon tattoo” ends up being investigator Lisbeth Salander, who Blomkvist brings on as his assistant.

There were definitely some disturbing scenes and themes in this book, but in understanding it’s a thriller, you’ve got to accept that there will be some drama and disconcerting episodes. The plot of the book and investigation completely drew me in and kept me intrigued and curious. I could not wait to find out what happened next and who was behind it all.

Throughout the novel, there are a few storylines going on—which means just when one mystery is solved, you remember that there are others that are still floating around. Beyond that, the characters are unique and interesting in their own right. I ended up wanting to find out more about them and what would happen—especially to Lisbeth.     

I was satisfied with how Larsson tied it all together and wrapped up the different stories and mysteries. I was not entirely thrilled with how Lisbeth’s story ended, but then realized that she appears in his second book, which made her conclusion understandable. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers or mysteries – or to anyone who is simply looking for an entertaining read. Just remember that it’s not all flowers and butterflies. It contains explicit material which might make some people cringe. I will definitely be reading the rest of the trilogy as well: The Girl Who Play with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.

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Book Review: Olive Kitteridge

Posted on July 1, 2010 | 6 comments

Good morning all! As promised, here is my book review of Olive Kitteridge. And I am flying through The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. That one shouldn’t be too far behind! Have a great weekend. Today is technically my Friday and I am pumped. 🙂

Olive Kitteridge

By: Elizabeth Strout

This Pulitzer Prize winning book has a different narrative style than most of the novels I typically read. It is broken up into several separate stories, told by different narrators. The only commonality between all the stories is Olive Kitteridge.

So, who is Olive? Well, she is a large woman, who is a wife and a mother, and tends to present a hard demeanor with resolute ideas and principles. I found her to have many characteristics as I learned about her throughout the stories. She was a bit judgmental at times, strong-willed and powerful in some stories, very vulnerable in others, a voice of reassurance and strength in a few, and even somewhat annoying here and there.

Each story is told by a different author and although at first I thought I’d need to remember all these people because they would show up later in the book and everything would tie together – that is not so. These characters do not serve as a plot device, they serve as the lense through which we gain a better view and understanding of Olive. She is the only person that is the constant and returning idea throughout the book.

It took me a while to understand the flow of the book and what I needed to retain and focus on. About one-third of the way through, I finally got it and began to enjoy the book more. It was hard for me to really like or dislike Olive, I think because she was crafted to feel like a real person. And real people have both positives and negatives to them. In one story, I would find myself siding with Olive and then in the next I would wonder what the heck she was doing and become annoyed or angry with her.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I wouldn’t say it’s the most exciting in terms of plot or intricate story lines—it is definitely more about character development and understanding. I came to feel that I understood Olive on so many different levels and watched as she passed through various phases of her life. It was also a nice change of pace, as far as the way the book was set up. I enjoyed each unique slice of life in every chapter once I realized that was how it was set up.

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Book Review: Cutting for Stone

Posted on June 17, 2010 | 2 comments

Okay guys – I finally have that book eview for you! Here it is. This is a good one, check it out! 🙂 BTW – All my book reviews are also accessible on the right side of the page under “Pages.”

Cutting for Stone

By: Abraham Verghese

Let me start this review off by saying that I wasn’t that into this book at first. It took me some time to become involved in the story and the characters. For whatever reason, I was a little standoffish. I think part of it might have been because it seemed a little bit like John Irving’s The Cider House Rules at first. A poor hospital where a baby is born (in this case two babies), but has no mother to care for him. And of course, the talented doctor who runs the show.

At the time, I don’t think I knew that’s why I was hesitant, but looking back, I think these similarities played a part. I love Irving and simply thought no story could compare to Cider House, nor should it even try.

But, I’ve digressed. Cutting for Stone is completely different from Cider House. Besides the details I described above, everything is different. Once I realized things weren’t going the same way, I settled in and enjoyed the story. This book spans generations and continents.

It starts with a nun going from India to Ethiopia and meeting a doctor on her voyage. She ends up catching up with that doctor again and then works alongside him at Missing Hospital. I don’t want to give away too many details, but years later – that nun gives birth to two children and dies in the process. The twins are named Shiva and Marion and their story takes over from there. The reader watches as they grow up, which is narrated by Marion. They live through a lot of political turmoil in Ethiopia and it shapes their lives and destinies.

Don’t be fooled though, this is not a political novel. Marion recounts some of the political happenings throughout his narration, but remains very removed and distant from it all.

Overall, I thought this book was wonderful. I felt I came to understand and love all the characters, even the ones that maybe I wasn’t supposed to. The end of the book was very emotional and I found myself crying at numerous points. Typically, it takes a lot to make me cry in a book – so be prepared if you decide to read it. I highly recommend this book – tears and all.

P.S. – Interesting sidenote is that Verghese took John Irving’s writer’s workshop. So perhaps my feelings of similarity are not completely unwarranted.

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