Artist of Disappearance; Chronicles of Old Las Vegas; Read My Hips; Return to Peyton Place; Peyton Place; Hidden History: Stories from the Grace Chapel Inn

"Artist of Disappearance" by Anita Desai was also nominated this year for the PEN/Faulkner award for fiction. The winner was announced yesterday, and it went to Julie Otsaku for "Buddha in the Attic". I enjoyed this collection of three novellas set in modern day India as well. Good nominees this year.
"Chronicles of Old Las Vegas" by James Roman took a look at the history of the city and how it started it out. It was quick but thorough and interesting. For instance, I had no idea that the Strip is actually not really in Las Vegas proper, but the nearby towns of Paradise and Winchester. Interesting.
"Read My Hips" by Kim Brittingham was very uplifting and encouraging. She chronicles her journey, how she started dieting as a teen and tried everything under the sun (boy, doesn't *this* sound familiar!!) until finally reaching the point in her life where she is happy and comfortable with who she is. Good for Kim! I hope I get there someday, too.
Years ago I wanted to read Grace Metalious's sequel to "Peyton Place", "Return to Peyton Place", but I could never find it. Well I finally did and read it. It was pretty bad. Metalious didn't want to write it, and I don't blame her, so she really half-assed it. It was pretty unforgettable.
After that I pulled out my worn, tattered, falling apart copy of "Peyton Place" and reread it (perfect for a lonely rainy day weekend, I might add). I bought it years ago for fifty cents at a used bookstore and tore through it, eager to find out what all the fuss about this scandalous book was about. I remember being very disappointed, since it's not terribly graphic to modern day readers. I could see why it made such a scene back in the 50s, but not so much for today. Still, I enjoy Metalious's book. I like her characters, they seem very real.
And finally, a gentle Christian fiction to round out the smut :) "Hidden History: Stories from the Grace Chapel Inn" by Melody Carlson. The three sisters who run the B&B find their father's old journal from when he was a teenager in with some paperwork of his, and they start reading it and discover his journey from atheist teenager to believer after the death of his mother. It was sweet and kind and utterly predictable.