Pretty Reads: Favourite Books of 2012!

Hello hello!

I hope you all had a very enjoyable holiday!! Unfortunately, I was having some pretty awful allergy problems so it wasn’t the best it could be but I’ve definitely had worse.

This year, I found that I had a lot of books that I loved which is terrific. Thanks to Goodreads, I’m actually able to remember them by the time December rolls around. Honestly, what did I do before Goodreads? I love it so much! Also, I easily achieved my goal of reading 60 books this year. This went a lot better than last year’s goal of 50 that I kept putting off until the fall and then rushed to complete. Using goodreads to track books actually reminds me to make more time for reading. It’s so easy to put it off when you can easily spend an hour on your iphone doing nothing.

Anyway, here are my favourite books for 2012!

1. Favourite Thriller: Before I Go To Sleep – S.J. Watson

This was easy for me. I literally could not put it down. It’s a quick read but I was so anxious about the outcome that I couldn’t stand to wait until the morning. I think I stayed up until about 3 am to finish this. Then I just laid back, stared at the ceiling and thought about it some more. I loved the layout as you discover what’s happening at the same time as the main character. Fantastic!

2. Most Unexpected Favourite: The Sisters Brothers - Patrick DeWitt

This was a book club selection. Otherwise, I’m not sure I’d have ever picked it up. I mean, it’s a Western and that’s not really my think, is it? However, I really found this book to be so interesting. It was another one of those stories where you don’t really have all the information until the end so even if it’s not really a mystery there are some things you’re curious about. This book details the relationship of The Sisters brothers who are hired hit men as they go in search of their latest job. The dynamic between the brothers was really interesting and I liked how their roles changed throughout the book. I also really enjoyed how much joy they got from brushing their teeth for the first time.

3. Favourite New (to me) Series: Her Royal Spyness – Rhys Bowen

Easy for me to pick this series. I love it so much as you may have read here. I have to say I really enjoyed watching the Downton Abbey Christmas Special where they visit Scotland. I thought that Lady Georgiana would approve.

4. Favourite Memoir: Paris in Love – Eloisa James

I am a sucker for an expat in Paris memoir. Unfortunately, I never enjoy them as much as I think I’m going to. Fortunately, I really loved this book. Their life in Paris wasn’t really a non stop drama like many of these memoirs are. It was really just a snapshot of their day to day lives. That’s always the part of travelling that I love the best. The imagining that you live in that particular city at that moment. This is why I never really come back with a lot of stuff. I can’t stand to be in stores when I can be walking the streets!

5. Best Travel Fantasy: Beautiful Ruins – Jess Walter

Speaking of travel, I don’t think I visualized a book more this year than Beautiful Ruins. It was such a lovely story combining all of my favourite things : old hollywood, Italy and mystery. It really made me wish I were luxuriating on the coast of the Italian Riveria. {Book Image}

6. Best Chick Lit: Ten Girls to Watch – Charity Shumway

This was actually a recommendation I found on Freshly Pressed! I’m not sure I would have come across this book otherwise. The basic premise is that Dawn finally has her first proper magazine job which is to research the previous winners of a magazine’s Ten Girls To Watch for its 50th Anniversary. Of course there’s roommate and boyfriend drama but that’s not really what I was so impressed with. It’s embarrassing to say this but it was one of the few books I’ve read in this genre where all the women mentors are really very supportive. There’s no Miranda Priestly types here.  I honestly expected some kind of backstabbing, manipulative woman to show up at some point. However, that’s not the purpose of the book. It’s about navigating her life as a new professional  not how many times can she be humiliated in 400 pages.

7. Favourite Ensemble: A Game of Thrones – George RR Martin

You all know how obsessed I am with this series. Hence the scarf:

Now that my holiday presents are complete, I should be able to finish this by the end of the weekend. Nerdtastic!

8. Favourite Historical Fiction : The Queen of Last Hopes: The Story of Margaret of Anjou – Susan Higginbotham

I didn’t read as much historical fiction as I did last year which surprised me. I really liked this book as I knew very little about this particular part of history. This was a Goodreads European Royalty Book Club pick. I find it so interesting that many of these stories have suspicions about the heir’s actual parentage. It’s as though the easiest way to bring down a house is to imply that the wife was unfaithful. Sadly, this continues through to the present day. However, at least now there’s DNA testing to silence the critics.

9. Favourite Real Life Book Club Pick : The Forgotten Garden – Kate Morten

This was one of my picks for our book club this year but that’s not the reason it’s on the list! I really loved it! I loved that this story had many different plot points that worked so well together. This story has romantic elements but it’s essentially about the inner dynamics of a family and what you’re willing to give up to keep others happy. This was the first book I’ve read from this author and I can’t wait to read the rest!

10. Favourite Book that lived up to its Hype : Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn

I really did not want to read this book. I didn’t like the title or the cover art for some reason. On that basis alone, I decided it was not the book for me. However, I couldn’t ignore how often I read about it on one book blog or another. In the end, I decided to pick it up from the library and just give it a go. I had no expectations except maybe wanting to not like it. Well, this was a literal don’t-judge-a-book-by-its-cover moment. Much like Before I Go To Sleep, I could not put this down. I think I was up until 3 or 4 am with this. I had put it down a few times in a effort to go to sleep but I was too anxious about what was happening. I literally gasped three times during this book and once I finished, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

What was your favourite book this year? Let me know! Also, please join me on Goodreads!

WIPW (make that Thursday): Rosetta Stone Italiano Level 1

I really meant to post this yesterday but wow Wednesday really ran away from me. I don’t even know what happened. lol. I went to a networking cocktail party last night and only meant to spend an hour or so. I was there until 10 pm! Hey, it was a good time! I’d just be working anyway.

Before I even start the Rosetta Stone review, I’d just thought I’d tell you a bit about my learning language background. When I really started to think about it, it seemed relevent to how I’d receive Rosetta Stone. I started learning French in school at the age of 8 and I continued to take French class up to and including first year of university. It was elective from Grade 9 up. I always did really well in it. Well, at least in tests, I never really felt confident speaking the language. 

With 10+ years of classroom teaching, a besherelle and living in the one of the largest French communities in Canada outside of Quebec, you’d think I’d be completely fluent. But I’m really not at all. Not only is that disappointing, it’s frustrating. All those years and for what? Granted, I can read French very well and when I was in France I was able to buy train tickets and get around town but I expect more. Now, I know this all comes down to confidence. I should just speak French when I go to Le Croissant or my local bibliothèque but I just get freaked out. You know what I do? I think about what I want to say. Then I translate it in my head from English to French. Then I worry about what verb tense to use, if the ending’s ok, if it should be tu or vous and if there’s a masculine / feminine issue. If I go through all that for one sentence how can I ever expect to carry on a conversation? It’s exhausting!

So now that you know where I’m coming from, it’s time for the review:

Every since the first time I saw a Rosetta Stone commercial, I wanted it. It’s just so convincing.

But yikes it was so expensive! However, I tried the online demo and was convinced this would be right for me. I was probably on their mailing list for over a year before I saw the offer to get the full Totale package at about half price. I guess I was feeling wealthy at that moment because I bought the Italiano package immediately. And then I completely panicked. What if it doesn’t work? How could I spend this much money? Oh my God what am I doing?

Here’s what I got:

Rosetta Stone Italiano Totale : Levels 1-5
Headset
Audio companion disc for MP3  players

Here’s what I like about it:

1. You don’t translate anything.
Of course, you do some mental translating when put a picture and word together but there’s no English to be seen. From the moment you log on you’re completely immersed in your new language. You’re not worrying about masculine & feminine. My Quebecois friends tell me that English speakers always complain about masculine vs feminine words. I think it’s really funny that we get hung up on it but I know I can’t wrap my head around why a word becomes one or the other. In Italian, there’s the masculine vs feminine issue too but it’s not discussed or explained. I don’t have to debate it because I’m learning that it’s onlyl one way and that’s just the way it is.

2. You learn in every way.
The way it works is that each Unit has one core lesson and then smaller detailed lessons. One lesson is on pronounciation, one on grammar and one is writing, etc and so on. It really helps you remember. You not just repeating a word you hear, you also read it, say it and write it.

3. It really makes you think.
I found that particularly in the later units of this level that it’s a lot like problem solving. You have to figure out what’s going on because no one is going to tell you. You might get it wrong but so what? You’ll get the right answer and find out where you went wrong.

4. It’s funny.
Some of the photos are just so ridiculous that I actually laugh outloud.

5. The online segment is INCREDIBLE!

This is by far my favourite part of buying Rosetta Stone. With the program, you get access to an online community where you can play games with yourself, with another person or in a group. Each game challenges a different part of learning. For example, in one game you click on all the words you hear in a story that’s being narrated like a bingo. In another, you have to dig for treasure. You only get to see if there’s treasure under the section you’ve clicked on if you conjugate the sentence (described by pics) properly. In fact, for about two weeks, I just stopped with the regular lessons and just played the games. I found that they challenged me more and I didn’t want to just keep moving forward in the lessons if Iwasn’t really comfortable in the subject. Playing against other people is really helpful as well. I was shocked the first time I heard someone talk because I wasn’t expecting that but it really is helpful. After all, in the real world I’m not going to be talking to a computer in Italian. I also appreciated that they organzied an Italian Game Night. They sent an email suggesting a certain date and time for all Italiano users to be online so we could play games together. Sometimes, you might be online by yourself and not get the chance. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend that one but I loved that they thought of it.

The other really great part about the online portion is that at the end of every unit, you can schedule a studio session with other people who are learning the same language and an online native speaking tutor. This video describes it.

I was incredibly nervous about my first studio session. I was actually going to speak Italian in public?! But once we got started my nerves melted away. I was just so impressed that I could understand what she was saying in real time.

What I think could be improved:

1. The online portion expires.
This sucks. I only received 3 months of online access so now I have to pay a monthly fee if I want to join back in. I know some people got 6 months but still it would be nice if that was included for up to a year particularly since I bought the complete set which includes 5 levels. At this point, I’m just going to leave the online portion for awhile and wait until I complete Level 2. Then I might get it for a month, catch up and see how it goes. They even took away the app you could get for your iphone! The app wasn’t the greatest to begin with but now I can’t even use it.

2. A reference guide would be nice
I don’t expect a full on dictionary or grammar guide but a little book of common phrases so you can practice away from the computer would be nice. The kit does come with an MP3 disc as well so you can download lessons to your ipod but you can’t beat a book!

Final thoughts:

That’s really it. For me, this is a great program and I’m getting a lot out of it. Of course, I won’t know how much I really get out of it until I’m in Italy or the next time I watch I am Love. Another great thing about Rosetta Stone that I love is that it has a lot of diversity. Honestly, all ethnicities and ages are included. They also have multiracial families which is really nice to see.  I also feel that I get a lot of bang for my buck but for the $500 I paid for it (still pains me to say it). According to their website each level will take 50-60 hours to complete plus the extra time you spend online. So that’s 300 hours of learning in my kit. It’ll cost me $1.67 per hour I spend using it. To me, that’s well worth it. Plus after shelling out that kind of money I’m definitely going to finish it.

I don’t expect that I’ll be fluent by the end of this. However, I feel like if I went to Italy today I would have the basics down. By the end of Level 5, I hope that I will have a really strong base so that I can explore other ways to become fluent which is my ultimate goal. Perhaps I’ll follow this guy’s lead.

Have you ever became fluent in a second language? What worked for you? What are your thoughts on Rosetta Stone? Share your tips I need all the help I can get!

Out & About: The Fighting Days at the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre

For the last few years, my parents have had season tickets to the MTC. As a result, I’m often called at the 11th hour to accompany one of them when the other is ill or working. The last couple of times I’ve attended have not been the best. One time I was really bored and another my mom fell asleep but still wouldn’t leave at intermission. lol. So when my mom called me on Tuesday night, I was a bit skeptical but since I haven’t been in awhile I was actually pretty excited to go. Plus, I love pre-ordering drinks for intermission. For some ridiculous reason it makes me feel fancy.

Without a doubt, The Fighting Days is one of the best plays I’ve ever seen. Sadly, its run ends on Saturday but I still wanted to tell you about all about it. The Fighting Days takes place in Winnipeg prior to World War I as women are trying to get the vote. Immediately after reading the synopsis, I thought it would definitely be focused on Nellie McClung. Of course, Nellie was included (how could she not be) but the focus was primarily on Francis Beynon someone who I knew nothing about. I really commend Wendy Lill (the playwright) for taking that angle.

What I found so incredible about this production was that the votes for women aspect wasn’t the main plot point. In fact, the Suffragette movement was just the catalyst for Francis’ growth as an independent thinker. We get to see her blossom from a timid country mouse to a journalist with a very unpopular opinion on conscription. Wendy Lill did such an amazing job on making these women three dimensional characters which isn’t always easy when it comes to historical figures. I also appreciated that she didn’t shy away from the more disappointing viewpoints held by many suffragettes at the time. The set design was also fantastic! I’m a big fan of set design (the only thing that got me through Brief Encounter last year) and I thought they did such a terrific job.

This play made me grateful for two things: one, I’ve never known a world where I didn’t have a voice and two that someone else did all that fighting for me. Honestly, I don’t know how they did it. I was exhausted just watching it. I’ve never taken for granted that I have the right to vote and that’s why I never miss the opportunity to do it. I know that my grandmother (89) and her sister (101!) were not considered “people” under law when they were born. That’s what gets me to the polls even when our political options aren’t very inspiring. Anyway, if you have the opportunity to see this production in the future, please do so. It’s fabulous. In case you’re interested, here’s a link to a review (with video) on CBC’s website.

Have you seen any great plays lately? Let me know and I’ll keep an eye out!