guiltlessreader aka screamingbanshee Female.

Seriously difficult reading for me, taking me a month to finish. But well worth it.

A probe into globalization, what it is, and what it means for the world's future. Like it or not, globalization has spreads its profound influence in the smallest and most mundane things (what we eat, watch, read, surf online) to the very economies of the countries. It's a sink or swim.

More rollicking fun in the Bookworld. Thursday Next now has 3 kids, Landen is un-disappeared; she also has 2 new Jurisfiction agents in tow (who are they, they're closer to her than she cares to say). Another adventure towards raising reading in the Outerworld, finding the secret recipe for time travel, and wondering who her son, Friday, *really* will be in the future.

I have read two Gregory books so far (The Other Boleyn Girl and The Boleyn Inheritance) and maybe I'm not reading these in order, but I don't feel too confused despite the many Elizabeths and Marys that have figured so far.

Just a little historical background: Mary Stewart is the only surviving heir of King James V. By marriage, she became a French Queen, but for a short while. She was widowed and she remarried to her first cousin Henry Stewart, who became Scots king. This husband died under strange circumstances. She married an Earl, who was believed to be her ex-husband's murderer; this controversial union led to an uprising, forcing Mary to abdicate her throne to her one-year-old son. Mary tried to regain her throne, and she sought the help of her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I, whose crown she hoped to eventually inherit. (Hence Mary is often referred to in the book as being a queen three times over.)

The book focuses on the first few years that Mary was under house (er, castle arrest) under Elizabeth through the Earl of Shrewsbury and his wife. Mary was considered a threat because many believed that Mary was the rightful heir to the throne. The story is a tug-of-war when Elizabeth reneges on her promises to provide sanctuary and Mary plots her release with her powerful French and Spanish allies. An interesting twist is how Mary makes George Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury fall in love with her, putting George in a bind between the woman he loves and his allegiance to his queen.

Like The Boleyn Inheritance, this story is told by several people: Mary's "jailors" George Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury and his wife Bess of Hardwick; and Mary, Queen of Scots. These different viewpoints give us an insider look at how both sides plot and connive while maintaining the so-called dignity of royal life. But The Boleyn Inheritance is hands down the winner, where you feel even for the most despicable of characters - in particular Jane Boleyn, the wife of George Boleyn who was responsible for sending both her husband and his sister Anne Boleyn to the gallows.

And here The Other Queen fails miserably. The portrayal of the two queens is skewed in heavily in favour of Mary. You can't help but fall in love with her, just like the Earl of Shrewbury did. She comes across as regal yet childlike, a beautiful strong woman, and very, very dignified. Then there is that small, rather annoying detail of how she pronounces Shrewsbury - Chowsbewwy - a small detail obviously aimed at making you want to go awww.

On the other hand, Elizabeth, in the very few instances where she does appear in the book, comes across as cold and a mere puppet of her powerful advisor Cecil. It makes me wonder why Gregory didn't make Elizabeth one of her storytellers -- didn't she have enough material to make Elizabeth more human?

I liked the portrayal of Bess of Hardwick, who in this day and age, was a "self-made" woman who rose from poverty and learned the hands-on running of her estates, albeit her estates are by virtue of marriage or the spoils of the overthrown papal rule. But as the novel wore on, her constant complaining of how hosting Mary was driving them to ruin, was getting on my nerves.

The story plods along. There is little action but there is quite a bit of psychological action, though it can wear you down after a while. And probably because 19 years is a long time to cover, the story skips on to the end where there is a strange dream sequence of Mary's execution, where Mary is the heroine, George is watching with tears in his eyes, and Bess - now separated from George and with her wealth intact - hears about it through others.

Full review here: http://guiltlessreading.blogspot.com/2010/03/other-quee…

I loved this book, and Anne Lamott is an incredible writer. It's a very honest look at a mother-daughter relationship, and the honesty with which both sides are told will both break your heart yet make you uncomfortable. Meant to address the very real issue of teenage drugs, I'd recommend this for every parent. I loved the book up until the last few chapters which sort of digressed into a brochure for a recommended way of treating teenage drug use.

I got just a bit of an eyeroll from the hubby when he saw the title of the book. I've sort of sworn off trashy romance novels - and this is what this book seemed to be about - an illicit romance with lots of steamy sex scenes! The cover design sends off mixed signals too - despite the cool mountain panorama, the flowered detail at the bottom again suggests romance. I had a little explaining to do, that it was historical fiction based on the tribulations of pioneering Americans migrating to California. I found the subject matter fascinating, provoking, if not a bit depressing, but highlighting the tenacity of the human spirit despite whatever life throws. The fact that it is a well-researched piece of fiction underscores that history can become alive, especially told from a first-person point of view; Tamsen Donner is a force to be reckoned with as she is the epitome of the stubborn lover, the ferocious mother, and the strong woman of the time. I had a bit of a problem with the chronology of this book as it got a little confusing, despite the highly detailed accounts and lists of people in the story.

(I received this as an Early Bird Review Book!)