DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Singapore

     It has been almost 20 years since I last visited Singapore.  I had no memory about that place other than seeing the Merlion and posing in front of the maroon Ngee Ann City.  When we went there this May, although it was A and M's first time, it felt like my first time, too.  Somehow browsing through Facebook friends'/online braggarts' Singapore photos was not enough to plan our trip.  So,  I used DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Singapore to help me draft our itinerary.

     You can't go wrong with this book.  If you're not fond of reading, you'll be glad to know that the entries are short and there are lots of pictures.  My goal is to start a mini-collection of DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 books for future trips!

Rating: 5 stars!

The Diary of a Young Girl : The Definitive Edition - Anne Frank

     Long before the Diary of a Wimpy Kid, there was the Diary of Anne Frank.   I wouldn't normally pick up this book because it seemed like required reading for high school English class (books that usually turn you off from reading).  But for some reason, I was drawn to it.   I remember that I used to have a diary where I poured my heart out about my crushes along with the silly mundane things that happened in my day.  I stopped writing in a diary because I lived in fear of having someone snoop and discover it.

photo from amazon.com

     I was surprised to find out that there are a lot of versions of Anne's diary.   From the book's foreword, I learned that her original unedited diary is referred to as diary A.  She rewrote her diary to make it more interesting; this is diary B.  Upon her death, her father created version C where he personally chose entries from diaries A and B, omitting those about Anne's curiosity about sex and bad references to people who lived with her in the secret annex.    This definitive edition that I read was compiled by Mirjam Pressler who supplemented version C with more entries from A and B so that readers can have a more detailed picture of Anne's life.
     Anne's family had gone into hiding for 2 years in what she called The Secret Annex, hidden behind a bookcase.  Anne wrote a lot about living in fear of discovery.  She wrote about not being able to look out the window, to make noise, even to flush the toilet at certain times of the day.  Living in close quarters also led to a lot of quarrels with the other members of The Secret Annex, the Van Daans (Van Pels, in real life).  To no one's surprise, she eventually fell in love with one of them, Peter Van Daan.  Near the end, Anne wrote, "I want to go on living even after my death."  Through her diary, she got her wish.

      I did find the story of Anne's life interesting to the point of googling it on Wikipedia and visiting the restored Secret Annex virtually.  However, I did not find it gripping enough to read her day by day entries, hence Anne's note "Paper has more patience than people."    I am guilty of skipping most entries after a quick scan.  But, if I stumble upon the diaries of my girlcrush or my facebook frenemies, I'd read them from cover to cover! Hehe!

Rating : 2 stars!

Tell No One - Harlan Coben

photo from lovereading.co.uk

Newly wed childhood sweethearts David and Elizabeth Beck were vacationing at their favorite cabin when the unthinkable happens.  They are attacked; David is left unconscious, having no memory of what has just transpired while Elizabeth is taken and believed to have been murdered by a serial killer.  8 years later, David is still not over his wife's death.    On the eve of their anniversary, David receives a strange email containing information only he and Elizabeth know.   The email sparks a lot of questions:  Is Elizabeth alive?  What really happened that night 8 years ago?  Things get complicated when new evidence prompt the police to label David as a possible suspect in Elizabeth's murder.

Harlan Coben did not disappoint.    This is the first book I read among his novels and I consider this one of his best ones.  This is my second time to read this book and I still found it as exciting and as fast paced as before.  I found myself rapidly turning each page eager to find out if Elizabeth is still alive, and if she is, where has she been all this time?

As much as I liked this one, I didn't enjoy Coben's previous books with Myron Bolitar as main protagonist.  If you are looking for a suspenseful book you can't put down, this would be it.

Rating: 4 stars!

National Bookstore's Cut-Price Sale August 2012

     It's that time of the year again.  National Bookstore will be on sale from August 3 to 19, 2012.  I'm targeting the cooking and arts and crafts section this sale season.  See you there!

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor - Lisa Kleypas

     Lisa Kleypas is one of my favorite romance authors, so when Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor came out, it was one of the books on my birthday wishlist.

from amazon.com

     Mark Nolan's sister dies in a car accident leaving him as the guardian of her 6 year old daughter Holly.  Coming from a dysfunctional family, Mark has no idea how to raise a child, let alone a young daughter.  So he begins just by loving her and just follows his instincts.  Holly begins to live with both her uncles, Mark and Sam, but she goes through an episode of selective mutism likely due to the trauma of losing her mom at a young age.  At a visit to a new toy shop on the island, Holly makes a connection with shop owner,  Maggie Conroy,  and begins to talk again.  Maggie and Mark are attracted to each other but both have issues.   Maggie is afraid of attachment after losing her husband to cancer while Mark is dating someone else. 

       

     I personally think that the single-dad-who-loves-his-kid/s-so-much type of character is always one of the most attractive heroes in a romance.  Mark Nolan may not be the biological father of Holly but you see how much he cares for her when she begins to talk again and when he gets so anxious when she gets sick.  Add to that, he owns a coffee roasting business whose coffee, when described in the book, makes me want to chuck my instant sachets and roast some real coffee beans.  Maggie Conroy is also a likeable character and she would make a great stepmom.  She makes a mean Macaroni and Cheese, 4 cheese,  drizzled with buttered bread crumbs.   For some reason, this book really made me feel hungry.

     The setting, Friday Harbor and the San Juan Islands are actually real places found in Washington.  The landscapes and the shops were vividly described by the author; it sounds like a real charming place one would want to visit.

      If this is going to be your first time to check out Lisa Kleypas,  you are better off reading one of the books from her Wallflower series.   Her historical romances were much more romantic and endearing.    Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor may not be one of Lisa Kleypas' best works but it is still a light and enjoyable read especially during the holiday seasons.  Don't forget to check out the rest of the Friday Harbor series: Rainshadow Road, Dream Lake and Crystal Cove (coming in January 2013).

Rating: 4 stars!