Richard Paul Evans- The Christmas List

James Kier was a real estate mogul, who one day, woke up to find himself in the obituary. The obituary was a revelation to how little love he had in his world. The only person who truly loved and cared for him was his ex-wife, whom he had abandoned for a younger materialistic woman. As he realised how much damage he had done to his life, he tried to make amends to the people he should have cared about. The plot isnt something original or new but I guess, it serves as a reminder to how we should live our lives, and a reminder of  the important things we should really care about.

Daniel Mason- The Piano Tuner

Quite a fascinating historical book, set in the 1800s, in the jungles of Burma and England. The story revolved around a French-made piano- the Erard and a piano tuner Edgar Drake. Edgar Drake was, unwittingly dragged into the politics of war when he was sent an unusual request by the British War Office to repair and tune the piano of a mysterious doctor- Anthony Carroll. How the piano had managed to cross the terrains between England and Burma, was a mystery in itself. More mysterious was what use Dr Anthony Carroll had for a piano in the jungles of Burma. It seemed as if Dr Anthony Carroll wanted to use music to make peace with the people of Burma but as Edgar found out too late, there was more than meets the eye. All that had seemed innocent, such as the strange sheet music sent by Dr Carroll, became evidence for treason, which Edgar was being accused of.
This was a strange and unusual story with a lot of hardwork put into researching the history of the wars between the British and Burmese. Not exactly what I could call leisure reading but definitely intriguing enough to capture the readers' minds.

Sophie Kinsella- Remember Me? and Twenties Girl

Borrowed 5 books during the last trip to the library. Have forgotten the title of the 5th book I borrowed. I wonder what is wrong with my memory (after some serious brain scratching, I finally remembered the title). Memory, a topic closely related to the book Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella. The book opens with Lexi, a gal who was down on her luck. She had barely any money, a terrible boyfriend who stood her up, a career that was going nowhere, bad teeth, etc. Just when things couldnt get any worse, she fell, bumped her head, and landed herself in a hospital.

To her surprise, she woke up being somebody else with a great body, perfect teeth, and plenty of money. Was there a body switch? Nah, it was just Lexi, 3 years later, just that she couldnt remember what transpired in that 3 years.The new Lexi was a successful, rich, and beautiful 28 year old, with a gorgeous looking husband. Lexi thought she had struck gold but she didnt know that along with the material wealth she had gained, she had also lost the essence of who she was. She had lost all her close friends and was stuck in an unhappy marriage with Eric. The story continued with Lexi trying to put everything right and getting acquainted again to the love of her life, Jon, a down-to-earth architect, who worked for her husband.

There wasn't much of a plot here but the book was quite an enjoyable and funny read. Good for some unwinding and for times, when your brains are fried. 

Another funny and casual book for mindless reading. Lara was attending the funeral of her great-aunt, Sadie, who was someone nobody remembered or gave a hoot about. It was there at the funeral, that Lara saw the ghost of Sadie. The ghost of Sadie was a 20-something(I think), with a fiesty and carefree spirit, who loved doing the Charleston. Knowing that only Lara could see her, she started haunting Lara, and demanding that Lara find her her favorite dragonfly necklace. Her last wish that must be fulfilled before she could leave the world in peace. And so the hunt, the haunt, and the fun began! During the hunt, Lara uncovered some dark secrets of her uncle and the love story of Sadie. At the end of the book, Sadie was no longer a nobody that noone cared for, but a famous someone who will always be remembered.
Is it important that we are remembered after we are gone? I remember having a similar conversation with a friend, who said he would want to live his life so that he could be remembered when he was gone. But I couldnt seem to agree with that. If we die, how would we know if we are being remembered? Why is it even important to be remembered? Wouldnt it make more sense to live your life so that while you are alive, you are being surrounded by people whom you love and who love you in turn?I dont and really can't care about the aftermath of my death.   

The Evil Seed- Joanne Harris

Have always loved her books, from Chocolat to its sequel, The Lollipop Shoes/ The Girl in the Window. There's always something a little magical in her books, you will know what I mean if you had read Chocolat. The Evil Seed is a little different, since it was her first book after all. And they had just had it re-issued some time back. Nonetheless, it's quite a great book especially if you are into vampires, which is all the rage now. I I like this phrase from the book:"Something inside me remembers and will not forget". Apparently the author saw it on a tombstone and got the inspiration for the book from there. Anyhow, I'm feeling a little stupid trying to write the sypnosis. It's a well-written book but the plot wasn't too amusing. It's basically a bunch of vampires feeding, seducing men... What I liked was the idea that as long as someone remembers Rosemary, she can never die. and she will raise again from her grave to haunt the earth once more. This was the reason why she had always had the need to find a man who loved her unconditionally and crazily. Oh well, read this if you liked Twilight, minus the romance.

The Understudy- David Nicholls

Okayy, my brains ran out of juice today and I did practically nothing for the whole day- il dolce far niente.. The Italians couldn't be more right, what's missing today was a nice cup of espresso...
Anyhow, I read this before One Day coz I knew David Nicholls wrote One Day and since I couldnt get the book, I borrowed an alternative book from the library. Quite disappointing.
It talks about the life of Steve McQueen, a guy who's always being casted as The Dead Guy on Cops show, and as a fleeting ghost in theatres. The story revolved around him and Josh Harper, a handsome, rich, vain, and famous actor. Steve was his understudy for a theatre show and was just waiting around for the day that Josh would break a leg, so that he would have a chance to be the lead.
But Steve must be the unluckiest guy in the world. Never getting his big break, always waiting, and waiting. He was hopeful, but that hopefulness, was what drove his wife away.
He later fell in love with Josh's wife, and things just got a lil out of hand. In the end, he ended up with the gal, and well, that's that. There you have it, the story of an underdog who never got lucky until the very last few pages of the book.

One Day- David Nicholls

I was actually quite excited by this book after reading the sypnosis on its book cover. And all the more so, when I heard it was made into a movie. So I traipsed to MPH to try to get a copy of it but was told that it was sold out and that it had been sold out since January this year. That was a little strange as I had seen plentiful copies of it in Popular. Anyhow, managed to get one at 20% off at Popular and I was trying hard to resist the temptation of opening the book, as I still had plenty of assignments to do and exams to study for. Alas, the temptation proved too great to resist and I started reading it; a mistake really coz as always, I read instead of work.
I had thought the book was about a couple who got together for a day and never saw each other again, until one day, they met and fell in love all over again. I thought that would make a rather bittersweet love story. But I was wrong. This book opened with Emma and Dexter getting together for a one night stand on their graduation day. After that one night, they remained as good friends and Emma saw Dexter going through strings of girlfriends and becoming a successful TV presenter, while she remained stuck and unhappy in her life. Life did not pan out as she had envisioned and dreams became safely lodged at the back of her mind.
This story is rather frustrating. It was obvious that Emma loved Dexter, and vice versa. But both chose to anchor safely to their friendship, never wanting to rock the boat. Then Dexter became an alcoholic and Emma decided to quit their friendship. Years later, they met again and Dexter was soon, going to be a husband and a father. Things did not work out eventually for his marriage, with his wife, Slyvie cheating on him, with his best friend and employer. Heartbroken, he turned to Emma. In Paris, they finally, finally, got together after almost 20 years.
Married life was well, married life. The excitement died off, the passion died off. But I supposed they were happy. Until almost 2 years of marriage, while cycling to meet Dex after an argument about having kids, Emma met with an accident and died. Honestly, I was shocked by this revelation. It should have ended with a happily-ever-after. I mean, c'mon they got together only after 20 years, and just after 2 years, you are killing them off? What kinda author is that?! A rather cruel one, I suppose.
I think I would have liked the book better if it had a happy ending. Anyway, the book rewound back to the past in the final two chapters. Back to that one day. You realise then that Dex had loved Em right at the beginning. Why it took him so long to realise and do something, we do not know...By realising it so late into their friendship, they had cut short the amount of time they had as a couple. Fortunate or unfortunate, we do not know either.
I really liked the character, Emma. Geeky but sharp, intelligent, witty, and funny. I wished I had that kind of wit around me. But I guess that's genetic and something that's impossible for me to master.

The Notebook-Nicholas Sparks

His books sometimes made me feel a little embarrassed to be reading them. Anyway it was through the movie that I knew of Nicholas Sparks. Prior to that, I had no idea who he was. I loved the movie probably coz of the chemistry between Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling, I think they are perfect for each other. It makes it all very believeable and I guess, it makes sceptics, hopeful that love does exist. I also love the era that the movie was set in, where people go to fairs, have cotton candy, sit on the ferris wheel.. there's something incredibly simple and romantic about that way of life.
But alas, having watch the movie plentiful times, since 2004, I had never had the urge to pick up the book and read it. That is rather strange for someone like me. Usually if I like a movie well enough, I would get the book. And sometimes, it's vice versa. But generally speaking, I would always prefer the book more than the movie. And I hate having watch the movie first before the book coz it kinda limits my imagination and I would often see the book characters as the actual actors/actresses of the movie.
Oh well, I didnt like the book version of the Notebook. It was all rather amateurish and dead. I couldn't really feel any romance or excitement from the book. It wasn't very engaging for the readers. It was quite disappointing, really. I had thought with the book on the bestseller list, and garnering him so much attention upon its publication, it should be SOMETHING. But it wasn't. I was left scratching my head, wondering why it sold like hotcakes.
But on a positive note, his subsequent books were better, although still kinda, I dont know, one-dimensional. However, like what I had mentioned before, his books are sometimes like comfort food. Bad for you, perhaps, but comforting...