Reads at Kelli Diane

Reads

Currently Reading:

Currently keeping me up at night.

My Life by Bill Clinton

Finally getting through the White House during my runs, thanks to audiobooks from the library.

On Hold:

Written by the founder of the Seattle Underground Tour, I picked up this book for more detail of Seattle history. It’s been taking me a while to get through it, while working on a myriad of other things…but I’m committed to finishing ~~this by the end of the year~~ eventually.

To-Read:

The River by Bill Hamilton and Edward Hooper

For all the devastation and suffering AIDS has caused worldwide, we have devoted surprisingly little attention to its beginnings. Former UN official and BBC correspondent Edward Hooper hopes to find the source of AIDS in The River, a stunningly comprehensive yet deeply engaging scientific history of the disease… (Amazon.com)

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

With The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown masterfully concocts an intelligent and lucid thriller that marries the gusto of an international murder mystery with a collection of fascinating esoteria culled from 2,000 years of Western history.

Reviews:

Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business
by Fred S. Steingold

A wonderful reference for anyone considering starting a small business. With topics from selecting business names and structure to customer service and legal issues, this book provided much more information than I expected. Serving as a terrific primer to some of the issues I’m certain to encounter in my own business, it also introduced me to areas that I hadn’t given thought to and need to plan for. While I enjoy the thought of using this book for reference down the line, the truth is that I wouldn’t likely refer to it. Doesn’t seem worth the cover price just to have it looking pretty on my bookshelf when I can check it out from the library.

My Own Country by Abraham Verghese

Truly an incredible and unique view of HIV and AIDS in small-town America. Verghese struggles for acceptance and respect as a young Indian doctor while fighting for tolerance and love for his closeted patients. The emotion is difficult to ignore and the stories so incredibly real. On the one hand, I walked away from this book realizing how far we’ve come in the fight for recognition that HIV and AIDS deserves our all of our resources. And on the other hand, I was faced with the reality of stigmas that still remain after so many years and so much information.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

I picked up the Half-Blood Prince right after finishing the Order of the Phoenix with high expectations. At the very least, it couldn’t be more drawn out than the previous book. Of the 400 pages that should have been cut out of the fifth book, 200 of them could have been put into this book and I would have been a happy camper. At the end, I was dying to keep going with the seventh book. doh! My only real regret is that I read this too early. I was perfectly happy with where I’d left off after the fourth book, and now I’m anxiously awaiting the release of the seventh with the rest of the world.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

After reading the first four books over three years ago, I finally picked up the Order of the Phoenix in preparation for the sixth book. I’d waited so long and was perfectly content with where I’d left the story. Good book, but horribly drawn out. Really, I would have been perfectly fine if she’d left out about 400 pages in the middle. Too many visions about Voldemort, too much of Harry’s scar, and way too many dreams about the stupid prophecy. Good story, does a great job of setting up the next book, but that’s about it. Way too many pages with not enough going on.

Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

Beginning with a brief outline of her childhood, college years, introduction to politics, and her courtship with Bill Clinton, Clinton covers a wide variety of topics: life on the campaign trail, her troubled tenure as leader of the President’s Task Force on National Health Care Reform, meeting with foreign leaders, and her work on human rights, to name a few. By necessity, she also addresses the various scandals that plagued the administration, from Travelgate to Whitewater to impeachment, though she does not go into great detail about each one; rather, she seems content to simply state her case and move on without trying to settle too many old scores…(Amazon.com)

Nickled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich