Review: LOST AND FOUND by Carolyn Parkhurst

Similar to The Amazing Race, Lost and Found is a reality show where contestants are sent on a world wide savenger hunt. Each pair of contestants are carefully selected by producers to provide the maximum drama for the show. One pair is an evangelical married couple who were "cured" of their homosexuality and are on the show to promote their anti-gay agenda. Another mother/daughter pair are still realing from the daughter's hidden pregancy and the giving away of her child. Other pairs include a couple of Internet entraprenures, a couple of former child-stars, a reunited pair of high school sweethearts, a set of brothers and a couple of sexy stewardesses.



Told from rotating points of view, Lost and Found is a wild journey through all corners of the earth. Part travelog, part humor and part moral lessons, this book has something for everyone. I loved the insider look at "reality" television where situations are contrived and film is editted for maximum entertainment value...often at the expense of the contestants on the show. In many ways, the show is a pressure cooker forcing the characters to confront truths about themselves and their lives.
 Sometimes, books with rotating points of view can be confusing or difficult to read, but Parkhurst is able to create unique voices for each character, lending a realistic quality to the narrative. The sarcasm and humor was smart and fun. This was an enjoyable read!


Overall, I give Lost and Found...

Plot - 4 bookmarks
Character Development - 4 1/2 bookmarks
Humor - 4 bookmarks
Dream Cast (otherwise known as who I pictured while reading) - My cousin Salena (Cassie) (Sorry, I know you don't know her, but that's who I saw in my head), Anna Torv (Abbie), Jake Gyllenhall (Justin), Oliver Platt (Carl), Laura Linney (Laura), Anne Hathaway (Juliet)

Review: UNDOMESTIC GODDESS by Sophie Kinsella

Samantha Sweeting is a 29 year old London lawyer who is on the verge of partnership in a prestigious firm when a gigantic mistake derails her career.  Samantha fleas the office in a panic and ends up hopping a train to the country.  Half-drunk and suffering from a colossal headache, Samantha approaches a large home to ask for help.  The nouveau riche woman who answers assumes Samantha is there to interview for the housekeeping position.  Before Samantha knows it, she is hired.  The problem is, she doesn’t know how to do even basic house work and the extent of her cooking ability is being able to put the kettle on for tea.  Unable to face going back to London where she is the joke of the legal community, Samantha decides to make the best out of it and set her intelligence and ambition toward mastering the domestic arts. 

What this book loses in predictability, it makes up for in humor and heart.  My favorite books are those that can be entertaining while at the same time making a comment about a greater issue.  So many people are married to their careers and don’t even realize that life is passing them by.  This is not a book pitting career women against house wives; rather it is about finding a work/life balance in your life. 

Overall, I give Undomestic Goddess…

Plot – 3 bookmarks

Character Development – 4 bookmarks (Kinsella takes stereotypical characters & infuses them with heart.)

Humor – 4 ½ bookmarks

Love Story – 3 bookmarks

Dream Cast (otherwise known as who I pictured while reading)- Emily Blunt (Samantha), Tom Hardy (Nathaniel), Christine Barabski (Trish), Helen Mirren (Iris), Jude Law (Guy)

Review: AMERICAN ON PURPOSE by Craig Ferguson

I heard somewhere once that many people become comedians in order to hide their inner demons.  Think about all of the brilliant comedians out there who have died from suicide or substance abuse over the years.  Andy Kaufmann, John Belushi, Richard Jenni.  Richard Pryor set himself on fire during a heroin binge, for Christ’s sake!  Craig Ferguson could have ended up this way as well.  His inner demons were drug and alcohol addiction.  While Craig’s checkered past gives him some funny material to draw on for his act, this incredible honest autobiography follows the role substances played in his life—including how he almost killed himself.

Aside from his sordid past, American On Purpose follows Craig on his journey from working-class Glasgow to a millionaire citizen of the United States.  It truly is a modern “American Dream” tale.  From the time he was a little kid watching the first moon landing, Craig dreamed of coming to the United States—the land of possibilities.  As an American myself, I sometimes take those possibilities for granted.  While the book isn’t all “Kum-bi-yah” and “the U.S. is perfect”  (it isn’t), it does serve as a reminder of our country’s good qualities. In America, a C student can become President and a tacky chick from the Jersey Shore can become a household name.  The possibilities that exist for us are virtually limitless.  Of course, most of us are not rich or powerful or famous—that’s not the point—the point is that the possibilities feed our dreams and with dedication and hard work, those dreams might become real. 

Okay, back to the book.  It wasn’t the most brilliantly written book I’ve ever read, but it was touching and funny and honest.  What more can one expect from an autobiography? 

Overall, I give American On Purpose…

Plot – 3 bookmarks (Follows Craig’s life)

Honestly – 4 ½ bookmarks (You might wonder how I am able to judge a book’s honesty.  Let’s just say I know it when I read it.  Craig did not pull any punches when discussing his past.)

Dream cast (otherwise known as who I pictured while reading) – That’s a no brainer.  There are several pages of photos in the middle of the book.