Books that linger

Do you have a book or books that have stuck with you for years? While I have read several great works of literature during my time as an English major and just trying to be a well-read individual, the one book series that stands out most in my mind is one I read in elementary school — the Ramona series.

There are so many things in those books that I remember so vividly, descriptions so wonderfully painted that still resonate with me now. There's the scene where Ramona makes slacks for her stuffed elephant but fails to account for her rump, leaving the elephant with saggy knees and pants that don't cover her behind. I think of this whenever I wear leggings, worried if I, too, have saggy elephant slacks knees.

Of course, there's Ramona's classmate with the curly blonde hair and Ramona who just itches to pull one of those locks to see if it bounces like an actual spring. She eventually does and, of course, gets in trouble because that's just what happens to Ramona.

Other moments that stand out are when she describes being curled up in the booth at Whopper Burger with her dad, and the coziness of that booth mixed in with the warmth of the french fries — crispy on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside. Or when she squirts the whole tube of toothpaste into the sink because it looks like frosting, only to have to put all of the toothpaste into a jar and use it herself (because the whole family dipping their toothbrushes into one jar would be unsanitary).

And there are many, many more I could list (turning the Q of her last name into a cat, the "No Smo King" signs, throwing up at school) …

For whatever reasons, these images have stuck with me for 20+ years. As a writer, I can only hope that one thing I've ever written lingers with one person for longer than a week, so it's awesome to think of generations of children growing up with this character and her impact lasting past childhood. Scenes so perfectly depicted like in this series are one of the reasons I fell in love with words and writing in the first place. What seems simple so accurately captures an idea or moment that you can't help but carry it with you long after the book is finished. That's an impressive thought.

So, share with me. What book or book series still sticks with you today?

Book review: Bringing Up Bébé

Every year before vacation, I sit down and decide on what books will be my beach reads. Last year I finally read the Hunger Games trilogy after being excruciatingly late to that party. The year before it was Tina Fey's Bossy Pants and Russell Brand's Booky Wook (I was in a memoir mood, I guess). This year's choice was a little more reflective of my current situation.

I had downloaded Bringing Up Bébé on my Kindle last August and only found time to read a chapter of it. I realized that, with a 1 year old in tow, this year would not have a lot of time for leisurely beach reading, so I might as well finish what I had, especially since it pertained to raising a child, which I currently find myself doing.

The book takes a look at the American style of parenting next to the French style of parenting the author witnesses upon moving to France with her husband and infant daughter. While such comparisons can be controversial — one is seen as "right" and the other "wrong" — Druckerman does a good job of avoiding that. At first, she isn't even sure she likes living in France, and she questions some of the parenting tactics she witnesses and slowly warms to them, so she's not obsessed with French culture and unfairly biased.

I haven't read many (OK, any) parenting books because I view them as too psychological, touchy-feely, and judgmental, developing my method from trial and error, asking others, and Googling (always a quality choice). And while Bébé is more of a book about parenting rather than a parenting book, I found this one entertaining to read and thought provoking as well.

One of my favorite ideas presented was the cadre, or framework, approach to parenting that the French parents Druckerman observes use. The French create a strict framework inside of which the child has freedom. She gives the example of her friend who implements a strict 8:30 bedtime for her children, but they are free to play, read, or do whatever in their room after that time but must stay in their rooms. After a while, the child will put himself to bed because he's tired. It gives the child an opportunity to play an active role in obeying.

I especially loved the chapter about food and how to help our kids learn to enjoy a wide range of flavors, explaining that children's demands for a diet only of white pasta, ketchup, and chicken tenders isn't something innately in them, that they have the ability to eat a variety of things. The problem is in giving into these demands versus teaching them about foods and flavors.

It was also very interesting to see how another culture views working mothers (stay-at-home mothers are pretty rare in France), daycare (a scary word here, but government subsidized and awesome in Paris), maintaining the marriage relationship between spouses, child autonomy (they feel that children need to have freedom and space, even infants, and not suffocating parents following them around the playground narrating their every move), and discipline.

There are some things I didn't completely agree with (she notes that the French aren't very pro breast-feeding and that they limit praising their children — which also made sense to a point ... but it's too much to cover in a parenthetical statement), but overall it has made me think about the kind of person I want to raise and has given me some helpful insight on how to navigate that path.

I would definitely recommend it, in part because I really loved it and in part because I know Scott would love for me to have someone else to talk to about it. He's heard enough about French parenting philosophies to last him a lifetime.

Off the bookshelf: The Help

"You have to read The Help." 

When I got my Kindle, that book was recommended once for every other book suggested. So, never one to ignore good advice, I downloaded it as one of my beach reads. When I finished, I knew it was definitely worth all of the eager recommendations.

Set in the civil rights movement era in Jackson, Miss., the book follows Aibileen and Minny, who are black housekeepers, trusted to raise the children of their white employers but not allowed to use the same restroom, and Miss Skeeter, a recent graduate of Ole Miss who received a degree but not a husband much to the chagrin of her mother and yearns to be a writer. Together the trio document the secrets of the household help to change their surroundings and themselves in the process.

The author created such strong characters you feel that they are real, living and breathing people. Her villain, Hilly Holbrook, is so vividly described that it's easy to really, truly dislike her. She's really terrible. You know it's a good book when you audibly gasp, feel your blood pressure rise with anger, and tear up at a sweet moment. And I did all of these things.

I join the chorus of those who recommended this book to me because you should really read this book. It's been made into a movie and will come out in August, so you have time to read it before then if you're one of those types. If not, do it anyway. You'll thank me for it. I'll be waiting right here.

Off the bookshelf: The Girl who Played With Fire

The wonderful thing about a book series is that, by the second book, you already know the key players. You don't have to go through the awkward introductions and background history like you would on a first date. By now you are comfortable enough with each other to maybe let them see you without your makeup or burp in front of them or something. In The Girl who Played With Fire, we get to know the characters even better and figuratively burp.

In the last book, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the team of journalist Mikael Blomkvist and computer hacker Lisbeth Salander hunted down and solved the mystery of a serial killer; now it is Lisbeth Salander being hunted. Charged with several murders, Salander is on the run while Blomkvist seeks to prove her innocence. And while the current matter at hand is thrilling enough, the exciting thing for me was to finally learn more about Salander's past. Notoriously private, Salander shares very little with anyone, and in this book you learn more about what has made her so protective and of the scars from her past. The book ends with a cliff-hanger, launching into the third and final book in the series with the same nail-biting drama as the last.

Only one more to go! I'm sad that it marks the end of my reading-for-pleasure days for a little while, as I'm about to be eyeballs-deep in education textbooks and Faulkner novels for the summer. I welcome any good suggestions for beach reading, though!

Off the bookshelf: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

While it's slightly counter intuitive, for me, when the weather warms up, I want nothing more than to dive into a pile of books. Wouldn't such an inkling be better suited for cold winters curled up on the couch? I chalk it up to afternoons on the front lawn. Those warm days, taking up a swing and getting the stink eye from couples and their new spring romance while reading a book not assigned in class were some of the best. 

So, in keeping with my spring book fever, I found myself in the Brackett Library's best seller row with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo tucked under my arm. I had really no idea what the book was about other than the fact there was probably some reptilian body art involved and that a movie version was in the works. And I like to read a book before its film version comes out. It's the purist in me.

The novel, in a nutshell, follows journalist Mikael Blomkvist and the titular character Lisbeth Slander, a computer hacker, as they work to unravel the decades-old murder of a young girl within a prominent, Swedish business family. 

I'm skittish to write a full-on review of the book because I feel like I could get fairly SNL Miley Cyrus about it and claim that it was all "pretty cool," so I'll keep it brief. 

For me, the first few chapters were slow going. You first meet Blomkvist in the midst of a libel lawsuit. The story behind all of that was heavy with business and economic jargon which I didn't quite follow. Once you got into the meat of the novel though and his working to piece together the mystery before him, it got good — really good. Edge of your seat, I'll skip lunch to finish reading, "What do you mean I have to go back to work now?" kind of good. As one more point of reference, it made me sad when my 20 minutes of sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's was over after my allergy shots. I mean, shouldn't I wait until the end of this chapter, just to make sure I don't fall into anaphylactic shock? And what sane wants to voluntarily sit around sick people?

I was so sad when I reached the final page but not nearly as distraught as I was when I found out someone had already checked out the next book in the trilogy, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and I would have to wait patiently until April 5. That is, unless they renew it — which they won't, if they know what's good for them.

I give it a 4 out of 5 stars with so-so hand motion in regard to bad language and a few violent scenes. You know, because my momma reads this.