"Running Record" Thursday

Book #17: The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella

This book was about a woman named Samantha, who is an attorney who makes a big mistake (something she has never done before) & has just lost her chance at becoming a partner in the firm she works for. She leaves in the middle of the day, in shock, & ends up on the doorstep of a big, beautiful house where she is mistaken for a housekeeper applicant. She knows nothing about anything domestic, but gets herself hired anyway. She ends up learning to cook, clean & do laundry as well as several other important lessons along the way.
I really enjoyed this book & had never read anything by this author before, but I will definitely be reading more of her books! I liked the idea that she was able to find "peace" in normal everyday domestic jobs. I could identify with her in that respect because I know that I feel most at peace when my home is in order too (it's just too bad that it never stays that way :) There were several times in this book where I literally "laughed out loud" & that rarely happens even when I do think the material is humorous. It also reconfirmed for me that I would never want to be a lawyer!
Thanks to one of my coworkers for letting me borrow it! :)


Book #18: Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wished Their Adopted Parents Knew by Sherrie Eldridge

To be honest, I did not really enjoy reading this book & not because I am insecure about anything related to being an adoptive parent, but because I felt like it portrayed adopted kids as always walking around under a "cloud of sadness." I agreed with this book on the idea that there are many issues that are tougher for adopted kids & that adoptive parents need to be open to being able to talk about those things freely with their children. I did think that this book would be fantastic for a child/parent who was part of a closed adoption & who may only know very little or nothing about the birthparents of the child. I also think it would be great for anyone whose adoption has been hidden from them & told that their biology was the same as that of the adoptive parents or whose family refuse to talk about anything related to the adoption.
Since, Scott & I have always been very clear with each other (& hopefully Luke & any future children will think we have been with them too down the road) about the fact that our child(ren) will know that we are always willing & open to the idea of talking about the adoptions, discussing what we know about the birth families, helping them to connect with them if they want to at some point, or anything else that may cross their minds in relation to their adoptions-I was left more with the feeling of "How could those parents react that way?" in regards to the examples given in the book. I did, however, think that a few of the sections did offer very good advice for us too even though we are fairly comfortable with this "adoption stuff", especially the section on iniating conversations with the child about their birth families & the section on why certain special occasions could be difficult for them as well. Most of the information in this book was good, it just isn't the 'right fit' for us at this point.

Book #19: Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner

This book was about 4 women who have entered the world of new motherhood & how they dealt with loss, changes in their marriage & themselves. Ayinde is the wife of a pro basketball player, Becky is an overweight chef, Kelly is an overstressed event planner, & Lia is an almost famous Hollywood actress who has suffered a tragedy. This story is about how their friendship forms & how they help each other with challenges in their lives over the course of a year.
I liked this book & identified with those "early" days of motherhood & its effects :) I can say that I did not identify with the "Kelly" character at all & was actually tempted to skip some of her parts because I found her materialism very annoying, however, I "got it" as to why she was the way she was finally towards the end of the book & loved how she turned it around eventually. I just wish she could have been more like she was at the end of the book at the beginning of the book :) I loved "Becky" though & felt that she probably thought more like I did. I identified with the whole "do I look pregnant or just fat?" mentality, but of course, mine has always been the opposite "i hope i don't look pregnant, it's just fat!" :)
I would recommend this book if you're into "chic lit" & overall, I thought it was okay, but I am beginning to think that maybe I am just not a fan of this author's style...I'll probably have to try at least one more of her books just to be sure though.