905 and counting …

• Posted in Books I've Read

Finished Swine Not? by Jimmy Buffett. Not sure if I’m mentioned this on the blog before or not, but I’m a huge Parrothead. I’ve got all his albums and all his books, and one of my dreams is to see him live in concert. So anytime Buffett comes out with something new, I buy it. (Much to Wheezley’s chagrin. He is not a fan of the Buffett, although he was nice enough to buy me this book anyway).

Buffett’s previous books have been about kooky characters doing kooky things in the tropics. But Swine Not? is actually a kids’ book about a Tennessee family who moves to New York. The family has a pet pig named Rumpy, and since their hotel has a no exotic pets policy, they’re forced to hide Rumpy from the hotel staff — including a psychotic chef who’d like to make tenderloin out of poor Rumpy.

The story is sort of in the vein of Stuart Little, as Rumpy explores New York and looks for his twin brother. There are talking pigeons and more. Also, the chapters alternate between Rumpy’s point of view and that of Barley, one of the kids who’s obsessed with soccer.

It’s a cute story, but nothing really new or different happens. If you’re looking for another life-in-the-tropics novel by Buffett, you’ll want to skip this one. But if you or your kids like pig tales or talking animal stories, you might want to pick this one up (or try the Redwall series by Brian Jacques, which is quite good). But overall, Swine Not? was cute enough for me to give it a thumbs up.

Up next: Thrill Me to Death by Roxanne St. Claire.

Books in my TBR pile: About 18.

What about you guys? What are you reading right now?

5 Responses to “905 and counting …”

  1. Amy says:

    I’m (finally!) reading Jinx. I’m only about 10 pages in, but loving it already. :biggrin:

    I’m also expecting Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse books to come in today’s interlibrary loan delivery. I managed to get myself hooked on TrueBlood and now need to read the books the show is based on.

    The days need to have more hours so I have time to sit and read without giving up my precious few hours of sleep. :rolleyes:

  2. Tez Miller says:

    Jeff Somers’ The Digital Plague. Only 100 pages in so far, but it seems to be even better than its predecessor (The Electric Church) 🙂 We all could do with more cyber-noir novels!

    Have a lovely day! 🙂

  3. Jennifer Estep says:

    Amy — Glad you’re enjoying Jinx. :biggrin:

    I read the first Sookie book. I liked it okay, but it didn’t really hook me. I think I recommended it to Nick one time, though. Vampires in the bayou. You know he’d love that.

    Tez — I’ve never heard of Somers before. Must go look him up on Amazon …

  4. Kerry Allen says:

    Just finished Every Last Drop by Charlie Huston, the fourth book in his vampire noir series. (Words cannot adequately express my lurve.)

    And I also must check out Jeff Somers. For more cyber—more UF than noir, though—I recommend Kelly McCullough’s WebMage (first in series). The Greek pantheon plus digitized magic and a smartass hacker hero equals happy dance.

  5. Jennifer Estep says:

    Vampire noir? That sounds really cool. Sort of like P.N. Elrod (who does a 1920s/1930s vampire private investigator series).

    WebMage sounds really cool too. Must find more time to read! :buttercup:

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