Usually, I tend to shy away from books in the chick lit genre. When I saw "Baby Proof" on the shelf, I was instantly drawn to this book for some reason. After reading the book jacket, I knew this was definitely going to be an interesting read to say the least.

Claudia and Ben are the perfect couple...at least to everyone around them anyway. Claudia is a successful book editor and Ben is a successful architect who are both enjoying their married childfree life. Although they both agreed in the dating stage that neither wants to have children, the issue come back up when the find out that their mutual friends are going to have a baby. Claudia sticks to her guns about not wanting children but Ben is now not so sure and decides he may want kids after all. Claudia forces Ben to make a choice in the matter; either be happy and childfree with her or be single and have a child with someone else. Once they realize that neither one is willing to compromise, they get a divorce.

During their separation and divorce, Claudia does a lot a soul searching to figure out why she doesn't want kids. She likes kids (loves her niece and nephews) yet she doesn't view herself as the motherly type. I completely share the same opinion as Claudia when it comes to kids. I like kids but can I see myself as mother? Not so much.Fortunately, she has a great support system to help her figure out her feelings on both side of the issue which include her friend Jess as well as her sisters Daphne and Maura.

Also during Claudia and Ben's time apart, she begins to question whether or not he really was her soulmate. After all, if he was her soulmate, wouldn't her want the same things she wants in life? Should she be willing to compromise what she wants for the man she loves? Are children the ultimate deal breaker in marriage?These are just some of the questions that are tackled in this book.

While I was planning on just skimming through this book, I could not put it down. It was very well written and the characters were extremely thought out. The dialogue was realistic as well as the situations that occurred within the book. I really enjoyed this book and am happy with the way the book ended. Having read this book, I think I might give Chick Lit or at least other books written by Emily Giffin, another try.

"The Power" is an interesting novel in that it is presented as a historical novel originally written by a man by is published using a woman's name so it it better embraced by the public. Through the course of "The Power," a ten year time period is explored during which time, women are endowed with the physical power to kill and men are eventually made subservient.

The novel begins with a brief written correspondence between Neil Armon, an author from the Men's Writer's Association to his colleague, Naomi Alderman. Neil sends Naomi his manuscript for "The Power: a historical novel," and asks for her honest feedback. Following their written correspondence, the the novel begins with an excerpt from "The Book of Eve" which provides an explanation of how "the power" forms in the hand of the woman.

"The Power" focuses on four characters: Roxy Monke, a 14 year old London girl with a tough family background, Tunde Edo, a rich 21 year old Nigerian man, Margot Cleary, an ambitious mayor of a American city, and Allie Montgomery-Taylor, a foster kid in the southern United States whose religious parents hide their true nature.

Through the course of ten years, then eight years, then six years, then one year, all four of these characters grow and change as "the power" awakes in young girls and women. Some of the characters adapt and find a role in the newly changing world while other struggle with newly emerging power struggles not only between other countries but also between men and women.

I enjoyed this novel not only because of the way in which each character has a very distinct voice and personality. In addition to liking how the author transforms each character, I also enjoyed the use of illustrated artifacts presented throughout the novel to support that "the power" has been around much longer than initially thought.

The novel ends as it begins with a written correspondence between Naomi and Neil with Naomi praising Neil for the fantastic story telling but questioning the plausibility of only male soldiers and male police officers since all the textbooks and education they have both been given says that such a thing is not possible. This is a thought-provoking novel if for no other reason, it provides the reader with a idea of what type of world would exist if women were endowed with physical power: would they use it for good, evil, or a hybrid of both?

"The Strange Library" is a quick, quirky novel that occurs in during a boy's visit to his local library. Through "The Strange Library," the reader follows a nameless narrator as he returns his library books to his city library and the bizarre situation he finds himself in after asking for help finding more library books.

The book begins with the narrator entering the library and his worry of breaking the silence of the library space since he is wearing new, squeaky shoes. After the narrator returns his library books and they are stamped by the librarian, he asks for assistance with finding more books. The unnamed librarian instructs the narrator to go room 107. As the narrator travels to room 107, he is curious since the room is located in an previously unknown area of the the library.

Upon entering room 107, the narrator encounters an old male librarian and after a brief conversation, the old man brings the narrator the books he has asked for. When the narrator attempts to leave the room with the books, the old man informs him that the books are for internal use only and therefore, he can't leave the room.

After hearing the news that he can't leave the room, the narrator becomes worried about his mother and pet and tries to reason with the old man to no avail. Eventually, the narrator is lead to an even more hidden area of the library and is given an ultimatum by the old man. The remainder of "The Strange Library" focuses on the narrator plotting his escape from the old man's prison.

The "Strange Library" is book is interesting due to the way in which the book cover is presented with a seal and top and bottom book laps instead of the traditional front book cover that opens from right to left. I also liked the way in which the book is presented as a library book with wording on the side which says "for internal use only." Lastly, although the book is sparsely illustrated, the images that the author uses are powerful in that to me, the images work to support the overall storyline.

I was drawn to this book because it takes place in my hubby’s hometown of Bakersfield. As I continued to read the book, I became deeply invested in Willow’s story and inspired by how she survives after the suddenly death of her parents as well as the ability for strangers to become her community and lift her up during her time of loss.

Willow Chance is a twelve year old gifted girl who loves plants as well as medical aliments. When Willow begins to attend middle school, she doesn’t fit in with other students and is accused of cheating when she gets a perfect score on an standardized test in record time. She is introduced to middle school counselor Dell Duke since she is viewed as a behavioral problem.

As Dell gets to know Willow, he realizes she is not a behavioral problem at all, but is a genius who is misunderstood. Willow is intrigued by Dell and his lack of organization and direction.

Over time, Dell and Willow develop a decent relationship which is going well until the day Willow arrives to Dell’s office early one day and meets Quang-ha another student Dell counsels and his sister Mai. Willow is instantly drawn to Mai due to her strong personality and decides to gain her friendship by learning to speak Mai’s native language of Vietnamese.

Willow’s life seems to be starting to improve when her parents are killed in a car accident. The death of Willow’s parents causes her to shut down. Since Willow was adopted and her parents had no other close relatives to adopt Willow, she has no where to live. Mai is extremely concerned about Willow so she lies to the police and says that Willow is a lifelong friend so that Willow can stay with her.

Another side character of note in this book is Jario Hernandez who is a local taxi driver who establishes a relationship with Willow by picking her up from a traumatic school day experience. As the novel progresses, the relationship between Jario and Willow transforms from that of customer and a driver to friends. By the end of the book, Willow has positive transformed the lives of all of those around her but they have also transformed her life positively as well.

I really enjoyed this book in how it begins with Willow focuses on her small inner world of plants and medicine but her world is forced to become bigger through tragedy. I love the author’s development of community that is built around her through grief and those who help her do so since they see parts of themselves in her.

An entertaining retelling of Cinderella told from the perspective of a young girl cursed by a fairy with the “gift” of obedience. Throughout Ella’s life, whenever someone commands her to do something, she must obey or suffer from headaches and pain.

The remainder of the novel focuses on Ella’s quest to break the fairy’s curse. The author manages to create an story which embraces the reader from the start and doesn’t let go until the story has ended. Although this story is a retelling of Cinderella, Levine creates such an engaging story that you forget the original Cinderella story until it is presented towards the end of the book.

Having grown up watching the tv show “Spencer For Hire,” this was an enjoyable read since I picture the tv show characters acting out the scenes in my mind. The plot of the book involves a bitter custody battle between two parents and their fifteen year old son. As the novel begins, the mother Patty hires Spencer to retrieve her son from her ex-husband Mel. When Spencer first meets teen Paul, he is nonchalant and care about nothing. After Spencer returns the teen to his home, the mother is surprised as Spencer’s speed in retrieving her son since she was planning to go out on a date.

As the novel progresses, Spencer as well as the reader realize that Paul is being used as a pawn between his two parents. Later in the novel, Spencer finds himself taking Paul into the woods to teach him life skills to become independent from his parents. I really enjoyed this book and like the witty repartee between Spencer and Hawke as well as between Spencer and his girlfriend Susan.

Although this book had an ambitious goal of covering a century by having a different person tell a story for each year, to me, instead this book read as disjointed and clunky at times.

A collection of thirteen stories with slight twists on classic fairy tales. My personal favorite stories were “Cinder Elephant” which reimagines Cinderella as a unattractive annoyed girl and the prince as an avid bird watcher and “Becoming Charrise” which provides a modern day comparison to the ugly duckling story. Overall, the book was entertaining and also brought up feelings of nostalgia of childhood and hearing the original stories.

This was a poignant, insightful book which consists of what the author calls five essential questions.

At the root of each question is a need to pause and reflect internally in an effort to ask good questions.

The first question: “wait, what” provides the question asker an opportunity to get a clarification which is the first step to understanding something.

The second question “I wonder” is at the heart of all curiosity. The author actually divides this question into two separate questions “I wonder why” and “I wonder if.” By asking “I wonder why,” this allows the question asker to remain curious. By asking “I wonder,” this allows the question asker to remain engaged with the world and provides a way to try something new.

The third question “couldn’t we at least...” is the beginning of all progress and acts as a way to get unstuck and come to a consensus. The author expands this third question into the questions “couldn’t we at least begin” and “couldn’t we at least agree” as a way to find common ground and make progress.

The fourth question “how can I help?” is at the base of all good relationships and is an effective way to nudge others to identify, express, and confront their own problems.

The fifth and final question “what truly matters?” helps you strip away the unnecessary information and get to the heart of life.

I love that this book is a quick read yet it provides a wealth of information. After reading this book, I’ve purchased my own personal copy of this book to refer to in the future.

By reading this book, I have already started asking these questions to others and a surprised by how receptive people are when you start to live a life of wanting to try new things, help and learn from others

This novel starts with a scene from the past in which a

woman is being sacrificed in front of a crowd of her neighbors and family before moving to the present day.

Silvie is a seventeen year old girl who is on a vacation with her parents during which they are participating in a historical re-enactment of the British Iron Age. Silvie’s father is a bus driver and her mother is a cashier at a store. Although Silvie’s father is a bus driver, he excels at his knowledge of British History and is excited to find a local college professor who is doing a re-enactment which will be held for two weeks.

As the novel progresses, the reader sees that Silvie’s father is obsessed with theIron Age time period and is upset when the professor makes concessions such as using cutlery to eat food. Silvie’s father also is upset what he feels is rebellious behavior exhibited by Molly who is the only other girl of the trip.

The relationship between Silvie and her parents are strained at best and abusive at worst. Silvie behaves in a way to constantly please her father and avoid his wrath yet somehow, she manages to upset him. Silvie’s father is verbally and physically abusive to both his wife as well as Silvie and even abuses her while they are on vacation.

As the vacation continues, Silvie befriends some of the college students. Silvie is at a crossroads when it come to her future after finishing school and her father has already forbid her from going to college. With Silvie’s continual interaction with Molly, she begins to have romantic feelings towards her but she is also torn because she knows that her father will react violently to anything that she does.

Silvie’s mother Allison is a sad example of a woman who has been so beaten down by her husband, that she has given up on life. Allison often blames Silvie and herself for her husband’s violent attacks. By the end of the book, the reader is left to wonder how aware Silvie’s mother was in regards to knowing her husband’s ultimate plan for Silvie.

As I reached the end of the book, I was left with more questions than answers. What will happen to Silvie now? How does her mother view her? How has Molly changed Silvie’s life?

Overall, this book does a decent job of taking readers on a dark ride into the regression of society and provides a portrait of male behavior, class warfare and women’s relationships.