The Collectors: 2 Stars

The Collectors by David Baldacci

I need to be honest on this one:  the poor rating is based on the audiobook readers and not so much the novel.

The Collectors is the second in the Camel Club series. Once again we follow the rag tag team of misfits as they look into government conspiracies. I must state again that I love Oliver Stone's character. He lives (mostly) in a tent in the park across from the White House with a sign demanding the truth. He's not your typical hero and I love that.

This novel had two stories going that eventually collided. The book introduced a new character, Annabelle Conroy. Annabelle is a con-artist with mad skills who decides to rob a casino. She eventually ends up helping the Camel Club. The book ends with Annabelle in serious danger and find out what happens, Baldacci makes you have to read his next book.  Genius yet frustrating.

My main issues with this book revolve mostly around the audiobook readers.  Yep, that's right, I said readers. Instead of having just one, there were three. There was the main guy who did all the narrative and then a woman and a man to do all of the dialogue. That fact alone was incredibly distracting. Add in the fact that the dialogue readers used the same voices for all the characters and the narrator sounded like a used car salesman trying to get me to buy the car I don't want, and it all adds up to a miserable listening experience. I seriously almost gave up. I want to read the next one, but if they have the same readers, I'll be reading the book and not listening.

John Adams: 5 Stars

John Adams by David McCullough

Nerd alert!  I love non-fiction books.  Not only that, but I love John Adams.  So the combination of non-fiction and Johns Adams was too good to resist.  Plus, I love David McCullough's writing style, so this was an easy choice for me.

John Adams was a bull-headed, stubborn man. He couldn't help but argue his point of view and try to sway people to his way of thinking. It is for that precise reason, that we are the country we are today. While Congress danced around the issue of independence, Adams refused to back down.  He continually brought up the issue again and again until Congress finally acted upon it.

But this was not the only thing he did for this great country.  The man also served as president. 

If I wrote about all the amazing things I learned about in this great book, I could go on forever.  Instead, I will simply tell you it is a great read.  If you are not into reading long non-fiction books, there is a great HBO special starring Paul Giamatti based on the book.  Check it out!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Book Turn-Offs

This weeks' Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and The Bookish, is Top Ten Book Turn-Offs.

I feel like we did something slightly similar a few weeks ago with the Top Ten Topics That Will Make You NOT Pick Up a Book, but since this is a lot broader, I will create a new list.

1. Excused unfaithfulness: Unfaithfulness is a sad part of life, but it happens, therefore I expect to see it in books.  What I hate is when authors portray the unfaithfulness as justified or excused, as if it was okay.  That bothers me.  I will stop liking a book immediately if I feel that the cheating is justified.

2. Sexual abuse: I know this happens in life, but I hate reading about it.  Its even worse when its graphic.  I can't handle it.  The scene will haunt me for weeks, so I avoid it.

3. Dropped plot lines: Have you ever read a book that has a few storylines and one seems to be dropped and never mentioned again?  By the end you are like, "Hey, what happened to so-and-so?".  Ugh, annoying!

4. Recommendations that start with "If you liked.....": I find that these recommendations are for copycat books.  The first was good, so why read a subpar version?  And if it is a good book you are recommending, let it stand on its own.  Don't compare it.

5.  Unnecessary sexual details: If I walked in on a sexual encounter, I would close my eyes and run out.  Awkward!  So why would I want to read about it?  It feels intrusive. If the details are applicable to the story, okay, I get it.  But if not, you are adding sex to get more readers.  Its a cheap tactic and I lose respect for writers that do it.

6. Too much detail: Do you ever feel like the story gets lost in the details?  I find myself yelling "I get it! Now get back to the story!"  Details are necessary but too many makes for a bored reader.

7. The phrase "Modern Day Classic": A classic is a classic because it stands the test of time. Modern Day Classic is a contradiction in terms.

8. Twilight: Just....no.

9. Grammatical errors: I will stop reading if there are more than a few grammatical errors.  Too distracting.

10. Really thick accents written out: I get that some characters have really thick accents and you want to convey that the listener is likely struggling to understand just like the reader, but the more complex it is, the more likely I am to get frustrated and stop reading it.