Doghandling by Clare Naylor (#30, Chick Lit)

Ahh chick lit, how I hate thee. Well, that is not true. I didn't hate this book. Clare Naylor's Doghandling seemed a fitting follow up to Why Men Love Bitches, as both books seem to agree that men need to be trained. This theory is not a farfetched one, as I have at least one friend who has admitted to me that she indeed had to train her boyfriend to behave the way she wanted him to. But is this really doghandling? What about people handling? 

Every new relationship features two people with two sets of behavioral patterns. Each person will treat the other person a certain way as long as the other person lets them. Similarly, dogs will behave a certain way as long as they can get away with it. The secret to training a dog? Be firm when setting boundaries and letting them know what behavior is okay and what behavior is not okay. Through a system of checks and balances (treats, kenneling, etc) you guide the dog to the correct behavioral pattern. 

Is this how we girls should deal with guys? Do we really need to employ the same techniques used to train dogs to train our boyfriends? Perhaps. A guy will treat you how you let him treat you. When you aren't being treated how you deserve to be, you definitely have to lay down the law and demand to be treated better. This usually starts with a conversation where you address the wrongdoings. But what about when nothing changes? When talking doesn't work, your actions speak louder than your words and you just might have to treat Brian like Rover. 

Why Men Love Bitches by Sherry Argov (#29, Nonfiction)

This might be the most embarrassing book to post yet. You might be asking some questions at this point. Why did I read this book? More importantly, why did I buy this book? A new friend (and self-proclaimed bitch) recommended it to me. After hearing my stories from this summer and my entire relationship history, she decided that I needed a huge dose of bitch. I am the quintessential nice girl. I shudder to think how in the dark I have always been and how I have been playing a game where I didn't fully understand the rules. 

Now let me straighten one thing out for you. Sherry Argov (who writes for magazines like Cosmo and Glamour) uses the term bitch not in the way you might think. Her "bitch" is not the self-centered crazy woman who cares about no one, gets off on being mean to people, and goes out of her way to put men in their place. Argov's bitch is the woman who is confident, knows who she is, knows what she wants, and is unwilling to put up with the bullshit that men try to get away with. She respects herself and therefore demands respect from the men she dates. Guys who show her less respect than she deserves get the boot. 

There are several instances in the book where Argov uses a table to show the difference between the nice girl and the bitch. I was shocked to see that more often than not I fell into the nice girl category and by Argov's standards I am a textbook doormat. If only I had read this book four months ago! As I said before, I have been playing a game without knowing all the rules. Argov's humorous satire has enlightened me and perhaps the next time I deal with a guy, he might be getting the bitchier side of me. No one wants to date a doormat. 

The Bounce Back Book by Karen Salmansohn (#28, Nonfiction)

Remember back in January when I declared 2008 the year of the self-help book? Well, I am still going strong. I am still reading books that will supposedly help me become a better person. Karen Salmansohn's The Bounce Back Book was an impulse purchase at the book store, but not one that I have come to regret. 

I rather enjoyed this little collection of tips on how to bounce back after going through a rough time.  It read like a magazine--it was fun, colorful, and most of all captivating. My biggest pet peeve when reading these self help books is how they lose steam halfway through. The writing becomes repetitive and boring and I eventually stop caring. Not so with this one. I was excited to open it up every time I got the chance. And while my own problem was not as horrible as Salmansohn's own personal tragedy, I felt like the solutions and tips she offered were still pertinent to my own situation. I will certainly be looking for more of her work and I would recommend this one to anyone who is looking for clues on how to bounce back.

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (#25, Contemporary Literature)

When it came time for me to actually make the pick for book club I felt a huge amount of pressure. I've torn apart a few of the books that have been picked, and I didn't want to have book "road kill" on my hands.

Unfortunately, the book club has lots of "rules." Basically I was warned that everyone is too busy to read a classic, or a book of more than 400 pages. They suggested that I pick something that was beach read-y, since my choice fell on the last month of the summer. Ugh. I checked out some best seller lists and tried to find something that fell within the criteria... I fear best seller lists though... and I quickly returned here, and sifted through the books steph has read. And here I found The Shadow of the Wind.

Two glowing recommendations from avid readers--Sarah and Steph. Although, we know about some of Steph's recommendations, and according to Sarah's myspace she loves Phillipa Gregory.... but, I then checked on B&N dotcom and found 50+ reviews--all with 5 stars. Like Steph says in her post, any book about reading already has me intrigued. So, I made the pick. (side note: I got some not so thrilled responses from book club---OMG...it's 480 pages ....)

And the verdict? I really liked it! I wasn't sure if I loved it when I was halfway through, but it continued to grow on me and I found myself at work, in my office, quickly finishing the last 20 pages that I just couldn't wait until tonight to read! For starters it is well written, even if you don't love the story, you can't complain about its structure, word choice, etc. It has a great mystery, and as I am thinking about it I find the writing and storytelling somewhat similar to Margaret Atwood. (thoughts Steph?)

There were points when I was reading at night where I found myself checking under the bed and around corners for the faceless man... just a bit scary! It was a really great story, and I love the message it sends about the importance of reading and the love of books.

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (#27, Young Adult)

I finished Breaking Dawn, the fourth and final book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, not five minutes ago and here I am blogging about it. I realize that my credibility as a book snob seems to drop a point with each young adult guilty pleasure read I throw on here but my friends, I am a sucker for a series. How can you not love reading about great characters book after book? I have always had a thing for books in a series and I think it's because I get so attached to the characters that it is hard for me to let them go. Case in point is the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon--it may not be groundbreaking literature but I sure do love me some Jamie and Claire! 

I was super excited to read the final installment of this series and I am pretty surprised that I didn't shoot out and buy a copy myself at the beginning of August when it first came out. I waited patiently for the book to come to me when the time was right and it did. I loved the twists and turns of the plot, I loved how the characters developed and changed, and I loved the complete and utter absorption I was able to achieve while reading. Meyer's vampire world is vivid and exciting; I will miss Bella, Edward and Jacob. 

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (#26, Young Adult)

I know, I know. What is with all the young adult books that I keep reading? First it was the Golden Compass series, then the Twilight series, and now this. 

Let me introduce you to Percy Jackson, the equivalent of Harry Potter in a world controlled by Greek gods and goddesses. While it is not nearly as well written as the Harry Potter series, it is still a worthwhile foray into young adult fiction. I rekindled my interest in Greek mythology and found myself laughing at the pop culture references aimed at tweens. I found myself enjoying Percy's adventures and I may have sighed a few times as he went about learning his destiny. 

Was I floored by the writing? No. Was I completely absorbed in the world depicted? No. Was I entertained and intrigued? Yes. You can count on the next few books in the series popping up on here but it might not be for a while. I feel like I need to put some quality reads up soon or else I will lose all credibility as an English major. 

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcom Gladwell (#25, Nonfiction)

I was fairly excited to read this book when I found it on the shelf of my new/temporary home. Who doesn't want to learn about making the "right" split second decision? I'm sure I can use a little education on making better decisions-- that is for certain.

Blink was interesting at first and I immediately started relaying the studies to friends, because the results of some are astonishing. The mind is an amazing thing, and this book shows you that often times your mind has made a decision without you even being aware of it yet. Pretty cool. And of course I liked the section where they interview couples and the lead psychologist could predict with 90+ percent accuracy whether or not the couple would stay together after watching them interact for a mere 15 minutes. Maybe I can take him around with me on all of my first dates--save myself the time! ;)

But....then.... I got bored. I talked with a friend about it last night, and she said that maybe it's because Blink is more of a book you may be assigned to read in a sociology or psychology class. I'm not sure I agree, but there was something about the second half that lost my attention. Maybe it's because it didn't reveal the secret to how I am supposed to make these split second decisions! Come on book, I need you to solve all my problems!

Either way, it had its interesting moments and I really enjoyed some of the information I learned about the mysteries of the brain.