High on Arrival by Mackenzie Phillips eBook edition

In the interest of full disclosure: I did not see the Oprah interview and I was never really a Phillips fan. I picked up this book because everyone I know was talking about it. Flat out curiosity was my only motivation.

Whatever else you can say about the book, it is a quick read. I didn't spend a lot of time or energy on it. Basically it took me an afternoon to read. I have to constantly remind myself that, really, the only thing I lost in the transaction was a few bucks.

Let me get this part out of the way, her revelation that she had a sexual relationship with her Dad (consensual or not) is one of the least shocking parts of the book. The real shocker is the extent to which Mackenzie and her brother were chronically abused and neglected by their hapless, feckless parents. The sex is almost anticlimactic.

If she is to be believed, the abysmal lack of responsible adults in her life is horrifying. In the end none of the supposed adults look good. Not her father or her mother or her many step parents or even her aunt who at least tried to intervene.

The "if she is to be believed part" is also troubling. This is a women who by her own account was pretty chronically wasted on drugs. Yet she has an uncanny recollection of events, conversations and her motives when it suits her purpose.

The book is really nothing more than a long rambling "drunkalog" in which she names names, settles a few scores, blames a lot of people and justifies her life choices. The resulting story, all 300 pages of it, is sad and frustrating.

Abuse, whether neglect or incest, has long term, serious consequences and at a year of sobriety most people are unable to sort out the wreckage. And even if they can, it is not exactly something to do out loud and in public. It is a job that requires time, hard work and a lot of help from someone: a therapist, spiritual advisor or 12-step sponsor.

Admittedly she has a story to tell. The problem is that by telling it too soon she has set her self up become a victim. Creating a media circus and implicating others guarantees more isolation for a person who's whole life has been about being alone and different.

Here is the publisher's synopsis:

Not long before her fiftieth birthday,Mackenzie Phillips walked into Los Angeles International Airport. She was on her way to a reunion for One Day at a Time, the hugely popular 70s sitcom on which she once starred as the lovable rebel Julie Cooper. Within minutes of entering the security checkpoint, Mackenzie was in handcuffs, arrested for possession of cocaine and heroin.

Born into rock and roll royalty, flying in Learjets to the Virgin Islands at five, making pot brownies with her father's friends at eleven, Mackenzie grew up in an all-access kingdom of hippie freedom and heroin cool. It was a kingdom over which her father, the legendary John Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas, presided, often in absentia, as a spellbinding, visionary phantom.

When Mackenzie was a teenager, Hollywood and the world took notice of the charming, talented, precocious child actor after her star-making turn in American Graffiti. As a young woman she joined the nonstop party in the hedonistic pleasure dome

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her father created for himself and his fellow revelers, and a rapt TV audience watched as Julie Cooper wasted away before their eyes. By the time Mackenzie discovered how deep and dark her father's trip was going, it was too late. And as an adult, she has paid dearly for a lifetime of excess, working tirelessly to reconcile a wonderful, terrible past in which she succumbed to the power of addiction and the pull of her magnetic father.

As her astounding, outrageous, and often tender life story unfolds, the actor-musician-mother shares her lifelong battle with personal demons and near-fatal addictions. She overcomes seemingly impossible obstacles again and again and journeys toward redemption and peace. By exposing the shadows and secrets of the past to the light of day, the star who turned up High on Arrival has finally come back down to earth -- to stay.

eBooks in Education: 10 eBook Resources for High School Students

I want to thank Donna for this great piece about eBooks in educational settings. She addresses this to high school students, but really, it is applicable to all students. For more info about Donna and her work see the link below.

If you’ve ever researched ebooks online, you’ve probably found lots of resources and ebook titles for very young children. Playing on these sites is a good way to teach preschoolers and elementary age children about reading and technology, and it gives them a safe, educational space to experiment with the Internet. But older students can also benefit from ebook resources, as they offer an engaging, convenient opportunity for students to explore reading and catch up on homework assignments. Here are 10 ebook resources for high school students.

1. eBooks.com: This website has a great selection of non-fiction books and guides about economics, architecture, art, current events and computers, providing students with supplemental study materials and books that can help them research future careers and college majors.
2. Scribd.com: This website features open source high school textbooks and resources for chemistry, math and physics.
3. Ebookexplorer.com: Here you’ll find books that teach marketing, financial tips, sports and fitness tips, and more.
4. Project Gutenberg: Project Gutenberg shares an extensive online book and reading collection with periodicals, fiction, non-fiction books, biographies, plays, travel books, and more.
5. Mobipocket.com: On Mobipocket.com, teens will find fiction books, including classics, young adult books, mystery, science fiction, humor, short stories, poetry, theatre and more. Mobipocket.com also offers dictionaries, medical books, and other elearning resources.
6. eReader.com: Purchase books from Barnes & Noble’s eReader.com, which markets itself as “the world’s largest eBook store.” There is also a free ebook section with classics by authors like Jane Austen, Victor Hugo, Edith Wharton, Robert Louis Stevenson, and more.
7. TextonPhone.com: This resource lets iPhone users download full-text books to their phone via a Facebook app.
8. Amazon.com Kindle Store: If your child or student has a Kindle, you can purchase or find free Kindle fiction, non-fiction, newspapers, magazines and more at Amazon.com’s Kindle Store.
9. E-library.net: This site has a directory of over 11,000 ebooks and can connect you to the original bookseller site.
10. Microsoft Reader: Download Microsoft Reader for free to find over 60,000 ebooks. Microsoft Reader includes a note-taking feature, text search for each ebook, font features, annotation storage, and more.

This post was contributed by Donna Scott, who writes about the online school. She welcomes your feedback at DonnaScott9929 yahoo.com

World eBook Fair Top 20 eBooks

The World eBook Fair has been tracking what people download and here are the preliminary results in order of popularity:

1       Emma, By Jane Austen
2       Linux Complete Command
3       Little Woman, by Lousia May Alcott
4       Nostromo, by Joseph Conrad.
5       Workbook in Higher Algebra
6       A Child's Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson
7       A Journey to the Center of the Earth, by Jules Verne
8       The Decameron, by Giovanni Boccaccio
9       Overview of Servlets and JavaServer
10      RedHat Linux Unleashed
11      Win XP Pro
12      Cousin Bette, by Honore de Balzac
13      The Beautiful Book Of Nursery Rhymes, by Frank Adams
14      Workbook in Higher Algebra
15      C+ Programming
16      MY SQL manual
17      Colonel Chabert, by Honore de Balzac
18      The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, by  Arthur Conan Doyle
19      The Art of War, by Sun Tzu
20      The Time Machine, by Herbert George Wells

This is a fascinating mix of literature and technology. I am sure there there is a message or at the very least some interesting conclusions to be drawn from looking at this list.  I am still trying to figure them out.  Any ideas?

In the meantime remember this:

eBooks About Everything and the World eBook Fair are offering a 15% discount on any book in the store. Remember that new books and the best sellers are already discounted 10% which means a 25% discount on those categories.

Just use this coupon code at check out -- z9WebF4

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The Wild Water Walking Club by Claire Cook eBook edition

Wild Water Walking Club falls into the category of a great beach read.  This is the fourth Claire Cook title I have enjoyed, starting with Must Love Dogs and Summer Blowout.  She is an entertaining author who understands the complexities and inherent contradictions between love, good sense and human behavior.

One of the things I enjoy most about her books is that even though the usual heroines are middle aged women, there are always an eclectic blend of multi-generational characters.  These kids, young women, middle aged and seniors interact and create a comfortable mix,

Another aspect of her writing that I always enjoy is here ability to mix totally believable story lines with a couple that stretch credibility.  And yet they somehow work together.  Probably because you sense that she is more interested in the characters than in some carefully derived plot line.

I am a daily walker -- walk from 2 to 3 1/2 miles a day.  A more or less useless urban ritual to keep me fit and clears my head.  But all those miles never really seem to add up to anything tangible.  These women counted steps and miles and made them count for a concrete goal -- a trip across country.

I love the idea of walking to a goal.  The smell of lavender makes me happy.  But the whole clothesline thing seemed out of place and kind of lost me.  I admit, however, that it makes for a very funny urban guerilla scene later in the book.

I am seriously considering where I want to "walk" to this year.  I'll keep you posted.

Here is the publishers recap:

Just put one foot in front of the other. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But when Noreen Kelly takes a buyout from her job of eighteen years and gets dumped by her boyfriend in one fell swoop, she finds it hard to know what that next step is—never mind take it. At first Noreen thinks maybe her redundancy package could be an opportunity, a chance to figure out what to do with the rest of her life while her company foots the bill. Sure, she may have gotten high to “Witchy Woman” and grooved to “Sweet Baby James” back when James Taylor had hair, but she isn’t ready for her AARP card. Not yet.

But it’s the first time in a great many years that Noreen has time to herself—and she has no idea what to do with it. When she realizes that she’s mistaken her resume for her personality, Noreen knows that she has to get moving, so she puts on a new pair of sneakers and a seriously outdated pair of exercise pants, and walks. She doesn’t get very far at first—just to the end of her street, Wildwater Way—but she perseveres, and when she’s joined by her neighbors Tess and Rosie, Noreen realizes that walking is not an extreme sport. It can actually be fun.

As the Wildwater women walk and talk, and talk and walk, they tally their steps, share their secrets, and learn what women everywhere are finding out—that time flies and getting fit is actually fun when you’re walking with friends. Throw in a road trip to Seattle for a lavender festival, a career-coaching group that looks like a bad sequel to The Breakfast Club, a clothesline controversy that could only happen in the ’burbs, plenty of romantic twists and turns, and a quirky multigenerational cast of supporting characters, and the result is an experience that’s heartfelt, exuberant, and above all, real.

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Big Brother and the Kindle

Irony is my most favorite form of humor!  And last week Amazon provided me with a great "laugh out loud" funny moment.

Seems that Kindle owners who bought copies of 1984 and Animal Farm woke up one morning to find that Amazon had deleted their copies.  No notice; no indication that anything was wrong.  They just remotely zapped the copy of the book off the machine.

Someone (I can't remember who or find the quote) noted that this would be like Barnes and Nobles coming into your house in the middle of the night and stealing back books you bought from them.

Which of course made me curious about the actual Amazon Kindle User Licence Agreement.  I actually went to the source and read it.  Lots of legalize, intended, I am sure, to confuse the average person.  But there are a few thing in actual English.

One of them is this sentence:  "Amazon grants you the non-exclusive right to keep a permanent copy of the applicable Digital Content and to view, use, and display such Digital Content an unlimited number of times..."

Now if you are me and you see the word permanent, you figure it means unchangeable, enduring and everlasting.  And I would further opine that my purchase was a purchase of real intellectual property even if it is in bits and bytes and not between covers.  Evidently Amazon (and their lawyers) think differently.  

The whole concept of someone being able to delete electronic material you have paid for (at will) is pretty scary and brings up legitimate questions about eBook ownership; but the fact that it was 1984 that got zapped is truly delicious!!

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Everyone She Loved: 'A Novel by Curran, Sheila eBook edition

It is always nice to see a writer improve their skills and abilities!  Sheila Curran  has done it with Everyone She Loved.  Her last book Diana Lively is Falling Down was a fun read and you could see that this was a writer with potential.

The part about Diana Lively is Falling Down that I really liked best was her ability to create fully dimensional, complex characters that practically walked off the page into my living room. These characters had complex and surprising inner (and outer) lives that somehow made sense even when they shouldn't have.

Everyone She Loved shows that Curran's skill at characterization is still in tact and that her ability to plot a story has markedly improved.  Her characters still make sense; even when they shouldn't.  She is beginning to live up to her full potential as an author. 

This is an intricately plotted novel with at least eight distinct story lines interwoven through out the book.  And happily, Curran actually resolves all of them by the end.  And if that is not enough, she manages to take a bunch of basically very unlikable people, in wildly unlikely circumstances and makes you care about them and what happens to them.  That in and of it's self is an amazing feat!

The premise that a rich, neurotic philanthropist would somehow arrange for all of her friends to either work for her foundation or move into the town her family "owns" is a little strange.  The idea that her husband would agree to having her friends could pick his next wife in the event of her demise is implausible.  The idea that her British cousins somehow gain unfettered access to the foundation is unlikely.  But somehow, against all odds, the story works. 

Mostly the characters are self involved and clueless.  A couple are downright despicable. But they are fully developed and much like watching a train wreck -- you can't stop watching; or in this case, reading.  The character's actually pulled me through the plot twists and turns. 

If you are looking for an engrossing read, start here.

A wise and triumphant novel about four women who've come of age together only to discover that -- when it comes to the essentials -- life's little instruction book will always need revising.

Penelope Cameron, loving mother, devoted wife and generous philanthropist, has convinced her husband and four closest friends to sign an outlandish pact. If Penelope should die before her two daughters are eighteen, her husband will not remarry without the permission of Penelope's sister and three college roommates. For years, this contract gathers dust until the unthinkable happens.

Suddenly, everyone she loved must find their way in a world without Penelope.For Lucy Vargas, Penelope's best friend, and a second mother to her daughters, nothing seems more natural than to welcome them into a home that had once belonged to their family, a lovely, sprawling bed-and-breakfast on the beach. This bequest was only one of the many ways in which Penelope had supported Lucy's career as a painter, declaring her talent too important to squander. But now, in the wake of a disaster that only lovable, worrisome Penelope could have predicted, Lucy has put her work on hold as she and Penelope's husband, Joey, blindly grasp at anything that will keep the girls from sinking under the weight of their grief.With the help of family and friends, the children slowly build new lives. But just when things start to come together, the fragile serenity they have gained is suddenly threatened from within, and the unbreakable bonds they share seem likely to dissolve after all.

In this entertaining and uplifting novel, Sheila Curran explores the faith one woman placed in her dearest friends, the care she took to protect her family and the many ways in which romantic entanglements will confound and confuse even the most determined of planners. A story about growing up and moving on, about the sacrifices people make for one another and the timeless legacy of love, Everyone She Loved is, above all, about the abiding strength of friendship.

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The eBook Reading Device Mystery solved

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday about eBooks and how they are priced.

But the statement that really caught my attention wasn't about pricing at all. It was a prediction by Sarah Rotman Epps:

Ms. Epps, the Forrester analyst, estimates that by year end there will be more than three million dedicated e-reader devices in the U.S., with two million sold in 2009.

All of the press about the Kindle makes it sound like they are flying off the shelves and in fact almost everyone has one. Of course, I have yet to see one in real life. . . Until now I have just chalked it up to a vague idea that maybe I am just too sheltered; don't get out enough.

But this article has made me actually sit down and do the math.

The estimated US population in 307 million. An estimate three million devices means that approximately .01% of the population will own one by the end of the year. No wonder I haven't seen one yet!

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New Bookeen Reader Soon -- The Opus

Bookeen, the maker of the Cybook, are showing off thier new reader called the Opus. Shown below is a picture that compares the current Cybook with the New Opus. Was originally supposed to be available in June . . .

MobileRead lists the new specs below:

• 5" high definition e-ink screen (200dpi, 600x800 pixels)
• Ultra light-weight : 150 grammes.
• 1go internal memory (twice the capacity of the Cybook Gen3)
• Truly pocket-sized !
• Excellent ergonomy with convenient well-placed page-turning buttons on the side of the screen for one-handed use.
• An accelerometer allows you to use it in either hand.
• ePUB and PDF support (with or without DRM) via the Adobe Reader Mobile SDK. 12 different type sizes
• Folder support !
• User replaceable battery.
• Memory card expansion slot (Micro SD).

Here are a lot more pictures (and more info if you read french)

Looks like an interesting alternative. Stay tuned for actual release date and pricing.

You or Someone Like You by Chandler Burr

This is a fascinating book that explores the limits of culture and identity. It is a book that I wanted to like. In fact, tried very hard to like. But whether or not I liked it is almost beside the point. Because in the end this is a book that (if you persist to the end) will stick with you. It is one that you will find yourself thinking about for a long time to come.

Chandler Burr is an intelligent and skilled writer. His books on perfumes are informative, well-researched and interesting. When I heard that he had a new fiction title, I was curious to see if he could bring those qualities to fiction and still make the book work.

You or Someone Like You is a truly literary novel; informative, well-researched and interesting. Since I had an excellent British education I am familiar with most of the authors and many of the works written about. Many of them quite obscure and a lot of them poetry.

After a while it dawned on me that to really appreciated this book you need either a better memory than I have or a PhD in English literature. Yes, it is beautifully written, but it is hard work. Highly intellectual and quite enigmatic. Frankly I was almost stiff with boredom about half way through.

Fortunately I persisted -- the advantage of being stubborn, I guess. When Burr finally gets to the issues of religion, culture and identity the story once again engaged my interest and not just my intellect.

Read the synopsis below and if you interest is peaked, read a short excerpt and decide for yourself.

Anne Rosenbaum leads a life of quiet Los Angeles privilege, the wife of Hollywood executive Howard Rosenbaum and mother of their seventeen-year-old son, Sam. Years ago Anne and Howard met studying literature at Columbia-she, the daughter of a British diplomat from London, he a boy from an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn. Now on sleek blue California evenings, Anne attends halogen-lit movie premieres on the arm of her powerful husband. But her private life is lived in the world of her garden, reading books.

When one of Howard's friends, the head of a studio, asks Anne to make a reading list, she casually agrees-though, as a director reminds her, "no one reads in Hollywood." To her surprise, they begin calling: screen-writers; producers, from their bungalows; and agents, from their plush offices on Wilshire and Beverly. Soon Anne finds herself leading an exclusive book club for the industry elite. Emerging gradually from her seclusion, she guides her readers into the ideas and beauties of Donne, Yeats, Auden, and Mamet, with her brilliant and increasingly bold opinions.

But when a crisis of identity unexpectedly turns an anguished Howard back toward the Orthodoxy he left behind as a young man, Anne must set out to save what she values above all else: her husband's love. At once fiercely intelligent and emotionally gripping, You or Someone Like You confronts the fault lines between inherited faith and personal creed, and, through the surprising transformation of one exceptional, unforgettable woman, illuminates literature's power to change our lives.

eBooks, Digital Publications and Publishers

If you wonder why bookstores keep going out of business and why publishers are losing money, here is a clue:

I don't think I've ever heard a reader say: "I want more fancy digital stuff in my eBooks! I want videos and audio and animations!" . . . The publishing business ought to concentrate first on their core value: getting books people love to readers who love them. --- Anonymous "Publishing Professional"

First let me give the guy (I assume it is a guy) credit for the statement that he hasn't heard a reader say they want more "digital stuff" in their books.  This is a depressingly accurate statement.  Readers, the dying breed that still exist probably don't say that.

 

The problem is that there are several generations (GenX,Gen Y, the Millennials and whatever comes next) that have been raised to EXPECT digital stuff (videos and audio and animations and links) as a part of any media they consume.  What would FaceBook, MySpace or even Twitter be without digital stuff?

Sure, they read.  Text will always be with us.  But it is mostly a big stretch to call them readers.  They are in fact consumers and creators of digital stuff. 

They are not patronizing Borders or Barnes and Nobles.  They are increasing relying on information they download from the Internet.  Much of it free.  Who needs bookstores?

When it comes to publishing the problem is slightly different.  The Internet has enabled almost anyone with something to show, say or sing to publish their work.  This is incredibly artistically liberating.  It is, however, rarely lucrative.  Most of the owners of the intellectual property do not make any money at all. 

As people come to expect more interactive publications there is an unfortunate downside.  Many works of genius may never be commercially viable because the author lacks the skills or the ability to assemble a team. 

This is where Publishers become incredibly important.  Their role in this new world is to find those geniuses, help assemble teams and promote the finished publications.  If  the current batch of publishers want to remain in business they will have to substantially change their outlook and attitude.  I'm rooting for them!

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eBook And Publishing News . . .And Spring Fever

Most days I sit down to write this blog and the biggest problem I have is narrowing it down to just one or two topics.  This week, for some unknown reason, I haven't been able to find anything interesting enough to write about.

I seem to be in some sort of spring fever state which makes it impossible to focus on any of the list of possible topics:

• The London Book Fair and the IBS questionnaire on eBooks
• The rumored $100 Android based netbook/eTablet
• The IDPF February eBook Sales report
• Random House's enhanced eBooks which might have been the one except that the link to any meaningful info is broken
• The Pulitzer Prizes
• The Wall Street Journal story on eTextBook rentals
• The Wall Street Journal story on eBooks

Not one of them really caught fire with me this week; but PLEASE check them out for yourself.  There is some really interesting stuff going on I'm just too fevered to fix on anything!

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Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout eBook edition

Olive Kitteridge may be the most honored book of 2008.  People, USA Today, The Washington Post Book World and even The Wall Street Journal named it the best book of 2008.  And then, early this week Olive Kitteridge was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.

I decided, what the hell, why not give it another try.  I say another try because this book has been on my eReader for quite a while.

In fact I have read the first chapter at least three times.  Each time I hope that this will be THE time that I become engrossed and read more. . .

It would seem that this is a book I should love.  Elizabeth Strout is an amazing writer.  Amy and Isabelle is one of my all time favorite books.  This is a collection of thirteen loosely related stories about people and their humanity.  The language is beautiful and the characters are full bodied and three dimensional, the insights profound. 

So I tried again. 

This time I skipped the first chapter.  I thought maybe the problem was reading about Henry and his low level depression.  Perhaps it was the weight of his isolation and loneliness that put me off.  This time I started with Chapter 2: "Incoming Tide."  In this cheery chapter the low level depression has ratcheted up to actual suicidal depression. 

Third time is the charm right?  So I skipped over to the chapter entitled "Tulips."  I figured a story about those beautiful spring flowers had to be a little more cheerful.  I was wrong.

The writing IS beautiful.  The descriptions are vivid and often stark.  The characters fully dimensional and perhaps even sympathetic is some sort of way.  All of that is true.  And yet, one more time, I put the books down with a big sigh.  I just couldn't do it.

Perhaps I am just perverse.  Maybe it is my mood.  Maybe I just have no class. Whatever the reason I could not get into this book and stay there. 

Make up you own mind by reading a sample.  And then let me know what you think. 

At times stern, at other times patient, at times perceptive, at other times in sad denial, Olive Kitteridge, a retired schoolteacher, deplores the changes in her little town of Crosby, Maine, and in the world at large, but she doesn’t always recognize the changes in those around her: a lounge musician haunted by a past romance; a former student who has lost the will to live; Olive’s own adult child, who feels tyrannized by her irrational sensitivities; and her husband, Henry, who finds his loyalty to his marriage both a blessing and a curse.

As the townspeople grapple with their problems, mild and dire, Olive is brought to a deeper understanding of herself and her life–sometimes painfully, but always with ruthless honesty. Olive Kitteridge offers profound insights into the human condition–its conflicts, its tragedies and joys, and the endurance it requires.

 

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eBook Discounts for Earth Day

You might notice a theme here. . . All of us at eBooks About Everything are all about Green. . . not just today (Earth Day) but all year long. To celebrate we are giving a 10% discount this week on any eBook in the store. Use coupon code EARTH09 to get your discount at checkout. No more books on dead trees.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Green Careers eBook edition by Parks, Barbara The career opportunities of the future ? Green-collar jobs are on the rise according to Businessweek magazine. The Green Jobs Act of 2007 anticipates a growing labor need for thousands of green-collar workers with $125 million in annual funding for training and research. More Info List Price : $14.95 Your price $11.51 (Using your 10% discount and $ .61 points in eBook Reward points)

Shamus in the Green Room eBook Edition by Kandel, Susan Los Angeles writer Cece Caruso is thrilled that her biography of the legendary Dashiell Hammett is headed for the big screen. When the dead body shows up neither the ""facts"" nor the hunky star's alibi add up—Cece might end up pulling the plug on the movie—if someone doesn't pull the plug on Cece first. More Info List Price : $14.95 Your price $12.78 (Using your 10% discount and $ .67 iin eBook Reward points)

Haley's Hints Green Edition: 1000 Great Tips to Save Time, Money, and the Planet! eBook edition by Haley, Graham, Haley, Rosemary A budget-friendly, time-saving collection of green ideas. Because Mother Earth never wrote a guide for humans on caring for her, the authors of Haley¿s Hints now offer a collection of Earth-friendly tips for around the house More Info List Price : $14.00 Your price $10.77 (Using your 10% discount and $ .57 in eBook Reward points)

Before Green Gables eBook edition by Wilson, Budge A must-read for generations of book lovers. This remarkable, and heart-warming prequel to the classic Anne of Green Gables was specially authorized by L.M. Montgomery's heirs to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the publication of the original novel. More Info List Price : $22.95 Your price $19.62 (Using your 10% discount and $1.03 in eBook Reward points)

The Gorgeously Green Diet (Mobipocket) eBook edition by Uliano, Sophie Sophie shows how to lovefood, live healthily, lose weight, and save money and the planet.Uliano offers three different lean and green eating plans: Light Green,Bright Green, and Deep Green. Each offers a cornucopia of the healthiestand most gorgeous food you've ever eaten. More Info List Price : $25.95 Your price $22.19 (Using your 10% discount and $1.17 in eBook Reward points)

Our guarantee: If you have bought one of these titles from eBooks About in the last 15 days -- we will gladly offer you a rebate on the book; just contact us

The Piano Teacher by Janice Y. Lee

The Piano Teacher is complicated, eloquent, haunting and thought provoking.   Not one of the characters is particularly sympathetic, never mind likable.  The story jumps between decades with wild abandon.  The plot is violent and explores the highly disturbing, damaging nature of war and its aftermath.  It is the story of love and ultimate betrayal.

If that sounds negative, than consider my other observations. Janice Lee's portrayal of Hong Kong are so vivid you can almost smell and hear the market place. The description of life in Colonies is pitch perfect; the gossip, the intrigue and the boredom. The language is eloquent.  The plot is carefully constructed. The character development is extraordinary.

The story presents two snapshots of life in Hong Kong.  The snapshots are ten years apart. Life before the war life is circumscribed by social status and ritual.  The Europeans, especially the English have created their own alternative universe right on the top of Victoria Peak.

Once the war is over the survivors (of both the war and the occupation) are deeply scarred.  They emerge forever changed by the circumstances of incarceration. starvation and torture.  And yet, apparently nothing much has changed.  Life has more or less picked up exactly where it left off.  The colony is back in business and the rigid social structures and rituals have survived. 

Claire Pendleton, the piano teacher, provides a stark contrast between the cynicism of the old and the naivety of the new.  In the end, she effectively provides a focus and a rather harrowing catharsis.

This book is a real hybrid; part historical fiction, part romance and part mystery.  I suspect you will either love or hate it.  I, personally, loved it.

In the sweeping tradition of The English Patient, a gripping tale of love and betrayal set in war-torn Hong Kong

In 1942, Will Truesdale, an Englishman newly arrived in Hong Kong, falls headlong into a passionate relationship with Trudy Liang, a beautiful Eurasian socialite. But their love affair is soon threatened by the invasion of the Japanese as World War II overwhelms their part of the world. Will is sent to an internment camp, where he and other foreigners struggle daily for survival. Meanwhile, Trudy remains outside, forced to form dangerous alliances with the Japanese in particular, the malevolent head of the gendarmerie, whose desperate attempts to locate a priceless collection of Chinese art lead to a chain of terrible betrayals.

Ten years later, Claire Pendleton comes to Hong Kong and is hired by the wealthy Chen family as their daughter's piano teacher. A provincial English newlywed, Claire is seduced by the heady social life of the expatriate community. At one of its elegant cocktail parties, she meets Will, to whom she is instantly attracted¿but as their affair intensifies, Claire discovers that Will's enigmatic persona hides a devastating past. As she begins to understand the true nature of the world she has entered, and long-buried secrets start to emerge, Claire learns that sometimes the price of survival is love.

Read an excerpt here

del.icio.us Tags: ebook,e-book,ebook reviews,The Piano Teacher,Hong Kong,Janice Y Lee

eBook Discounts for April 15, 2009

At least a few of us have been watching TV, some have read my blog, a few are headed to the future and at least a few are looking for a man. Use Coupon code DH59Y at checkout to get these discounts.

Always Looking Up eBook edition by Fox, Michael J. There are many words to describe Michael J. Fox: Actor. Husband. Father. Activist. But readers of Always Looking Up will soon add another to the list: Optimist. Michael writes about the hard-won perspective that helped him see challenges as opportunities. Instead of building walls around himself, he developed a personal policy of engagement and discovery. . . More Info List Price : $19.95 Your price $15.36 (Using your 10% discount and $ .81 points in eBook Reward points)

Tribute eBook Edition by Roberts, Nora Virginia's Shenandoah Valley is a long way from Hollywood. And that's exactly how Cilla McGowan wants it. Cilla, a former child star who has found more satisfying work as a restorer of old houses, has come to her grandmother's farmhouse, tools at her side, to rescue it from ruin. Sadly, no one was able to save her grandmother, the legendary Janet Hardy. . . More Info List Price : $26.95 Your price $21.33 (Using your 10% discount and $1.12 in eBook Reward points)

The Code of Love eBook edition by Linklater, Andro Andro Linklater skillfully weaves the many fascinating parts of this tale together into an unforgettable narrative. From the mesmerizing siege of Hong Kong, to the romantic roller coaster of a truly great love, to the unbelievable efforts of the mathematician who finally cracked the encoded diary, The Code of Love is storytelling at its very finest. More Info List Price : $16.00 Your price $13.68 (Using your 10% discount and $ .72 in eBook Reward points)

Buyout eBook edition by Irvine, Alexander One hundred years from now, with Americans hooked into an Internet far more expansive and intrusive than today’s, the world has become a seamless market-driven experience. In this culture of capitalism run amok, entrepreneurs and politicians faced with rampant overcrowding in the nation’s penal system turn to a controversial new method of cutting costs: life-term buyouts. More Info List Price : $14.00 Your price $11.97 (Using your 10% discount and $ .63 in eBook Reward points)

All the Rules eBook edition by Fein, Ellen The two bestselling phenomenons now together. First, The Rules I, has time-tested techniques for finding the man of your dreams. Controversial and effective, these 35 rules changed millions of women's lives all over the world. In their sensational sequel, The Rules II, the authors showed readers how they could follow The Rules in even the most difficult situations More Info List Price : $9.99 Your price $8.54 (Using your 10% discount and $ .45 in eBook Reward points)

Our guarantee: If you have bought one of these titles from eBooks About in the last 15 days -- we will gladly offer you a rebate on the book; just contact us

The Code of Love by Andro Linklater

Astonishing, amazing, remarkable, and incredible, all apply to Linklater's The Code Of Love. You could add fascinating, riveting, captivating and engrossing.  This is a true story that is a romance, a war story and a mystery all rolled into one. 

Linklater moves seamlessly between the story of Pamela and Donald Hill's romance, Donald's horrific war story as a prisoner of war and the saga of decoding Donald's journal. 

The early part of the book makes you feel as if you are living in England in the early 1940s.  He paints a picture of daily life that is vibrant and clear. 

He is equally clear when describing the world of ciphers and codes.  In easily accessible language he tells the story of Philip Aston's attempts to break the code.  This part of the story is fascinating all by its self.  An added impact comes from the realization of just how brilliant and disciplined Donald had to have been to create and use  such a code. 

In many ways this is a book that broke my heart.  Donald's fight for survival was heroic.  I marveled at his sheer determination and grit.   The courage it took to hold his mind and body together under appalling conditions and dreadful psychological trauma is almost unbelievable. He should have had a happy ending. . .Lord knows, he deserved it.

And yet, it was not to be.  He obviously suffered from a severe case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which was unnamed and untreatable. In many ways his struggle to create a normal life, medicate himself with alcohol and bury the trauma are even more courageous than his basic survival.

If his story were not so familiar today I might have been able to shake it off.  But over the last few days I have thought about the veterans of the current war.  It is shameful that with all the information we have about PTSD our veterans are still untreated. They too, must struggle to create a normal life, medicate themselves and bury their trauma.  What a miserable statement about our society!

Reading this book, however, will remind you of what really matter in life: the power of love.  If you don't read another book this year, read this one!

An astonishing true tale of secrets, love, and war.

Pamela Kirrage, beautiful and impulsive, met and fell in love with the dashing RAF pilot Donald Hill just months before Hill was shipped off to the Far East to protect the British colonies against Japanese aggression. They exchanged rings the day before he left, a promise to marry as soon as he returned. Little did they know that five years would pass before they saw each other again.

The Code of Love tells the stirring tale of Donald's experiences in the front lines of the Pacific Theater and Pamela's war efforts back in England in a dramatic, deeply moving portrayal of the World War II era and its aftermath. On the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, they also moved into Hong Kong, where Donald had the misfortune to be part of a small group of officers in charge of a meager five planes. He spent the rest of the war in a POW camp, keeping a journal of the indignities he faced in complex, nearly unbreakable code. Meanwhile, Pamela was swept into the frantic swirl of a wartime society eager to live to the fullest. She cooked meals for secret agents and danced the nights away with handsome soldiers. But her love for Donald never altered, and the two married within weeks of Donald's release at the end of the war. The scars Hill bore from his years of emotional encoding would eventually wear away at their relationship, though never their love.

Andro Linklater skillfully weaves the many fascinating parts of this tale together into an unforgettable narrative. From the mesmerizing siege of Hong Kong, to the romantic roller coaster of a truly great love, to the unbelievable efforts of the mathematician who finally cracked the encoded diary, The Code of Love is storytelling at its very finest.

del.icio.us Tags: ebook,e-books,ebooks about people,codes,Donald Hill,Philip Aston,World War II

Weekly Specials -- eBooks About Taxes at 20% off!

This is for those of you who waited till the last minute to do your taxes.  We are offering them at a whopping 20% discount.  With the discount and your eBook points you may want to get these now so that you can start planning for 2009! Use coupon code C2MJ4 at checkout to get your discount on these titles.

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JK LASSERS 1001 Deductions & Tax Breaks for 2009 T by Weltman, Barbara
J.K. Lasser's 1001 Deductions & Tax Breaks 2009 will help you take advantage of every tax break and deduction you may be entitled to. It's clearly organized by subject matter so you can easily find situations that may apply to you. Each tax benefit is also clearly explained-along with the eligibility requirements for claiming the benefit-while planning tips and common pitfalls associated with the benefit in question are discussed in detail. New tax law alerts are also included throughout the book, so you can make the most informed decisions possible....

List Price: $19.95.  Your Price is 15.16 (includes a 20% discount and $.80 in eBook points)

JK Lasser's Guide for Tough Times: Tax and Financial Solutions to See You Through (Adobe Reader) by Weltman, Barbara
With the credit crisis, sluggishness on the stock market, and the fall in home prices, individuals around the country are licking their financial wounds and wondering what to do. Fortunately, help is still available in these rocky times - if you know where to seek it.

JK Lasser's Guide for Tough Times will show readers how to handle nearly every aspect of their lives given the current market:

• home
• investments
• everyday spending needs
• education costs
• employment
• medical issues
• and more.

Yes, it is tough out there. But, with JK Lasser, life looks a little better.

List Price: $18.95.  Your Price is 14.40 (includes a 20% discount and $.76 in eBook points)

 

JK Lasser's Small Business Taxes 2009: Your Complete Guide to a Better Bottom Line by Weltman, Barbara
J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes 2009 contains a complete overview of
small business tax planning, and outlines the tax facts and approaches needed to maximize deductions and reduce payments to the IRS on 2008 returns and beyond.

Small Business Taxes 2009 is divided into four parts:

• Organization
• Business income and losses
• Business deductions and credits
• Tax planning for small businesses

List Price: $19.95.  Your Price is 15.16 (includes a 20% discount and $.80 in eBook points)

del.icio.us Tags: ebook,e-book,2009 income tax,income tax preparation,1040,irs,taxes

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eBooks, Blogs,Twitter and the Future of Digital Reading

My  favorite April Fool's joke this year was the announcement that The Guardian Newspaper was closing down their presses and set to start transmitting all news via Twitter.  The press release carefully noted that "experts" agree that you can tell any story in 140 characters. . .

I was still laughing about the Guardian faux press release when I stumbled upon an article by Gord Hotchkiss entitled The Wiring of the Digital Native. 

Mr. Hotchkiss argues young people are learning the language of digital technology from birth, the rest of us are trying to catch up as adults.  We may become quite proficient but will never have the fluency of the younger generation. In effect they are digital natives while the rest of us are immigrants. 

I know that my daughter and I have very different ways of finding and processing information.  She consumes her information in small rapid bursts. Google, blogs, tweets and wikis are her "go to" sources. She intuitively knows that all information is linked.  She also expects that she can easily find a community who knows something about anything she wants to know.  All she has to do is tweet.

I instinctively immerse myself in a topic and spend hours digging out the important bits. I know, intellectually, that information is linked but struggle to find out how.  Twittering doesn't occur to me because the idea that 140 characters is the key to communication is an anathema to me.

We look for, read and process information in very different ways. She has an ability to quickly grab information that I will never have. Her's was built in a connected world.  My abilities were honed in libraries with card catalogs, index cards and bibliographies. The pathways in our brains are incredibly different.

The implications for the future of education, publishing and reading are enormous.  In a world where readers believe that all information and people are linked, you can't help but wonder how long, one dimensional and analytical books will survive. 

del.icio.us Tags: ebook,e-book,digital reading,twitter

I'm Perfect, You're Doomed: Tales from a Jehovah's Witness Upbringing eBook edition by Kyria Abrahams

The first half of Kyria Abraham's I'm Perfect You're Doomed is like taking a trip to strange land.  It looks familiar, the people sound the same but the culture is very different.  The inhabitants have peculiar superstitions and curious rituals.

Kyria takes us on a tour and explains.  In this land the Devil is hiding in Smurfs and lurking at yard sales. Only repeating the word "Jehovah" over and over again will drive out evil.  Inhabitants do not dance or smoke but alcohol is permitted.  The people do not celebrate holidays, value education or socialize with foreigners.

Growing up this was her world.  A world in which these beliefs were accepted without question.  And where it was hip to be holy and zealous.  Her (slightly twisted) sense of humor keeps you entertained and amused.

The tone change as she enters her teenage years and battles with OCD, her sexuality and a creeping apostasy. Her solution?  Get married!

From here on the story is like the proverbial train wreck. Disgusting and riveting.  Abrahams carefully chronicles her depression and loneliness as she attempts to replace the void left by her religion.  She is painfully honest about her ventures into adultery, alcohol and suicide. 

This book ends as she finally seizes responsibility for her life and begins to grow up.  I suspect that is a more interesting story in the long run.  Hopefully she will write it someday.

I was deeply affected by this book. I found it by turns disgusting, exhilarating, terrifying and hopeful.  With all those conflicting emotions it is hard to write a simple review.  In the end I was glad I read it and you will be too. 

Here is the publisher's note:

I'm Perfect, You're Doomed is the story of Kyria Abrahams's coming-of-age as a Jehovah's Witness -- a doorbell-ringing "Pioneer of the Lord." Her childhood was haunted by the knowledge that her neighbors and schoolmates were doomed to die in an imminent fiery apocalypse; that Smurfs were evil; that just about anything you could buy at a yard sale was infested by demons; and that Ouija boards -- even if they were manufactured by Parker Brothers -- were portals to hell. Never mind how popular you are when you hand out the Watchtower instead of candy at Halloween.

When Abrahams turned eighteen, things got even stranger. That's when she found herself married to a man she didn't love, with adultery her only way out. "Disfellowshipped" and exiled from the only world she'd ever known, Abrahams realized that the only people who could save her were the very sinners she had prayed would be smitten by God's wrath.

Raucously funny, deeply unsettling, and written with scorching wit and deep compassion, I'm Perfect, You're Doomed explores the ironic absurdity of growing up believing that nothing matters because everything's about to be destroyed.

del.icio.us Tags: ebooks,e-books,ebook reviews,abrahams,jehovahs witness,ebooks about religion

Discounted eBooks - April 1, 2009

Thought proving non fiction: thinking like men, thinking about food and thinking about business. Favorite Fiction authors: Trigiani and Cussler. Great reading for spring. Use coupon code A9JG4 at checkout to get your discount on these titles.

Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man eBook edition by Harvey, Steve When it comes to relationships, women can't figure out what makes men tick. Why? According to Steve it's because they're asking other women for advice when no one but another man can tell them how to find and keep a man. Steve lets women inside the mindset of a man . . . More Info List Price : $23.99 Your price $18.46 (Using your 10% discount and $ .97 points in eBook Reward points)

Very Valentine eBook Edition by Trigiani, Adriana Meet the Roncalli and Angelini families, a vibrant cast of colorful characters who navigate tricky family dynamics with hilarity and brio, from magical Manhattan to the picturesque hills of bella Italia. Very Valentine is the first novel in a trilogy and is sure to be the new favorite of Trigiani's millions of fans around the world. More Info List Price : $25.95 Your price $22.19 (Using your 10% discount and $1.17 in eBook Reward points)

Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table eBook edition by Wizenberg, Molly In A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table, Molly Wizenberg recounts a life with the kitchen at its center. From her mother's pound cake, a staple of summer picnics during her childhood in Oklahoma, to the eggs she cooked for her father during the weeks before his death, food and memories are intimately entwined. More Info List Price : $25.00 Your price $19.24 (Using your 10% discount and $1.01 in eBook Reward points)

Corsair eBook edition by Cussler, Clive With Jack Du Brul For five novels, Clive Cussler has brought readers into the world of the Oregon, a seemingly dilapidated ship packed with sophisticated equipment, and captained by the rakish, one-legged Juan Cabrillo. And now the Oregon and its crew face their biggest challenge yet. Corsairs are pirates. . . More Info List Price : $27.95 Your price $21.51 (Using your 10% discount and $1.13 in eBook Reward points)

Rain eBook edition by Fox, Jeffrey J. RAIN is the first business parable written by bestselling business book author Jeffrey J. Fox. The parable follows a young New England paperboy, named Rain, as he learns the business of being in business and quickly becomes the best paperboy in town. More Info List Price : $18.95 Your price $16.20 (Using your 10% discount and $ .85 in eBook Reward points)

Our guarantee: If you have bought one of these titles from eBooks About in the last 15 days -- we will gladly offer you a rebate on the book; just contact us