*sorry - i was gonna put pix in here too, but blogger isnt working so well today. maybe i'll post them later!
because of extreme heat it was a lot easier to retire to my bedroom early in the evening and get in a solid hour or so of reading before passing out. consequently, i got through quite a few books. this month should be promising as well considering the upped traffic quota (thank you sanity-saving audiobooks) and continued heat wave. hoorah for the written word!
the harmony silk factory by tash aw
this is a nice round about way of telling the story of johnny lim - lowly tin mine worker turned wealthy influential legend. the story is told in three parts: one from johnny's son jasper, one from johnny's wife snow and one from johnny's one-time best friend peter. takes place in 1940's Malaysia and has beautiful descriptions of the land and political changes of the time. you can tell that this is a debut book (the author uses almost too much description to get his points across), but it's a beautiful tale about perspective that fully engaged me.
the second summer of the sisterhood of the traveling pants by ann brashares
just as good as the first book! 4 best friends use a pair of jeans to keep united through a turbulent summer of travels and changes. i enjoy this series because it's like eating a bag of m&m's - really deliciously good but not quite healthy for you. i think this is a pretty realistic perspective of semi-popular 16/17-year-old girls. there is an honesty about sexual feelings, a fierce love/hate bond with mothers and the girls themselves get into tiffs. maybe a few scenarios are a bit romantisized, but it's a work of fiction. candy, juvi-lit fiction. i'll let it slide and enjoy it as is.
runt:story of a boy by v.m. caldwell
runt (robert remick) comes from an incredibly poor, religious household. the middle child and sole male of the family (verbally abusive dad left long ago) runt and his sisters are separated after the death of thier mother. runt goes to live with his eldest sister, helen and her sketchy boyfriend. helen is not much better off than runt was, but her love and protection give runt a haven from his oppresive past. runt meets mitch, a wheelchair-bound boy with lukemia who shows runt just how beautiful trust, friendship and love can be. cute YA book, not too in-depth, but i enjoyed it.
the kite runner by khaled hosseini
beautiful story of the frienship of Amir and Hassan, Afghani children who grow up together, part ways and are "reunited" in an extrordinary way. this is a very intense book about family, love, politics and survival. i found this book somewhat exhausting because as soon as one obstical was conquored, another presented itself. each story is complete and engaging, and all together they complete a story that is truely remarkable and actually keeps hope in a firm embrace.
the open curtain by brian evenson
wow. i was really impressed with this piece of noir fiction. not-yet-released from coffee house press, this is evenson's 7th book (i believe). this is incredibly well crafted - evenson twists the plot and characters without your knowledge. while researching a school project, mormon-raised rudd encounters information about the murder commited by william hooper young (bringham young's grandson). rudd's involvement in the tale immersed with the controversial mormon ritual of blood atonement (sacrifice) gets stickier and closer to home as similar present-day murders in his hometown happen. when it comes out this fall, i highy recommend getting it!
on deck: travels by michael chrichton, the secret life of bees by sue monk kidd, in a sunburned country by bill bryson and, of course, the 3rd installment of the sisterhood.
i did indulge in seattle's best (which, to my chagrin, i was told is now owned by starbucks) and quite a few small indie coffee places. 
