View Full Version : What Are You Reading in 2013?
AmeliaJane
1-4-13, 10:32pm
Time for a new reading thread! I hadn't actually planned this, but I am celebrating the 200th anniversary of Pride and Prejudice by finally reading it! I have now read all the other Austen novels and P&P was the last one left. I had been stalling on P&P because I have seen and read so many adaptations and variations that I really wondered if there would be any enjoyment left in reading the book.
Turns out I am enjoying it a great deal. I am reading a few pages a day using this free service, which I have mentioned before: www. dailylit.com. They will email you or give you a blog feed every day with a short excerpt from your chosen book. It has been a great way for me to read some of the more challenging classics that I would probably get bogged down in and give up on without the little push. I went back to my records and I have read about 35 books that way in the last five years, some quite long.
What are you reading this year?
awww thanks for starting this!
My first novel of the year is a dud: The Virgin Cures by Ami Kay. I am 203 pages into this 315 page novel and keep thinking: it's going to get better soon, right?
I'm skipping forward to the end to get this over with.
Time for a new reading thread! I hadn't actually planned this, but I am celebrating the 200th anniversary of Pride and Prejudice by finally reading it! I have now read all the other Austen novels and P&P was the last one left. I had been stalling on P&P because I have seen and read so many adaptations and variations that I really wondered if there would be any enjoyment left in reading the book.
Turns out I am enjoying it a great deal. I am reading a few pages a day using this free service, which I have mentioned before: www. dailylit.com. They will email you or give you a blog feed every day with a short excerpt from your chosen book. It has been a great way for me to read some of the more challenging classics that I would probably get bogged down in and give up on without the little push. I went back to my records and I have read about 35 books that way in the last five years, some quite long.
What are you reading this year?
I'm glad you are enjoying your Austen. Truthfully, I can seldom remember the subplots and sometimes even the main plots of the big 4: P & P, Emma, S & S, Mansfield Park. They are always about young ladies getting married and I love them all.
Just read "The Lovely Bones" (a sad but lovely book and good movie too). Also Tolkiens "Simillion" (boring but interesting after re-watching the LOTR triology).
I just finished "Educating Esme," which is about a teacher's first year in an inner city classroom, which was an enjoyable quick read. It was really like a collection of quick snapshots rather than a comprehensive narrative, though. Also "When This You See" by Elaine Reichek, which was fun to browse through. Reichek is a textile artist who combines historic sampler motifs with modern prose quotations, and this was a catalogue of some of her work. Interesting!
I have finished two books The Crowded Grave by Martin Walker (if you haven't met Bruno Chief of Police in St. Denis, you are already 3 books behind) and The Boy who Loved Anne Frank by Ellen Feldman. Both were very good.
I am currently reading
Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander
Feathers: The Evolution of a Miracle by Thor Hanson
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789 by Robert Middlekauff
Leading on Empty by Wayne Cordiero
ToomuchStuff
1-7-13, 12:16am
Left Snowball, the story of Warren Buffet, at a family members over the holiday's, and haven't picked it back up yet. The whole Tightwad Gazette thing has been on my mind since reading that thread (read the first one years ago), so reading Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich and America's Cheapext Family, by the Economides. This after reading online, several books that were recommended and how everything you would want from the TG, pretty much being online and in forums now. Want to get through these before I switch to some fiction books I have.
I just finished In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson. It is the account of William Dodd as he becomes the American ambassador to Germany during Hitler's rise to power in the 1930's. He meets Hitler and much of Hitler's staff in the course of his duties and provides some insight into the truly bizarre and evil personalities. It also gives some insight into how the intelligent and generally decent German people were duped or forced to follow the Nazi leaders. I would say it was a very good book, but not excellent.
I also read Proof of Heaven. It was a quick read as a library loaner. I am a fan of NDE type books and this one was pretty good. Worth a couple of evening if you're into that sort of thing.
Currently reading Into the Silence by Wade Davis. He is among my favorite authors.
The Big Book of Paper Beads by Kimberly Clarkson, which is neither big nor a book by my standards as it's a Kindle download. After scoring a wonderful long Ugandan paper bead necklace at VV, I'm interested in trying to make one.
And a book that should be read on Kindle: Far From the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity by Andrew Solomon. It's one of those big, meaty books that made me love sociology--kind of like Studs Terkel's Working--nearly a thousand pages of close-packed text and references. I'm not a slow reader, but I can see this is going to take awhile. Even though it weighs about as much as the average cat, it's not warm or cuddly so in fact is a pain to hold for long. So far, it's the best book I've read in some time. (Next best: Real Aliens by Brad Steiger.)
I'm reading Scott Pecks' People of the Lie, a modern popular classic. It's about "evil" in humankind as something different than sickness. He considers it as something that science should really pay attention to. He dips into the theory of evil as a tangible thing (as in using an excorcism to erradicate.)
Mainly I have not been reading but have been I've been jamming in film viewings. I'll start a film thread one of these days.
I'm reading Scott Pecks' People of the Lie, a modern popular classic. It's about "evil" in humankind as something different than sickness. He considers it as something that science should really pay attention to. He dips into the theory of evil as a tangible thing (as in using an excorcism to erradicate.)
I read that a long time ago and really liked it.. and never thought I would. He certainly had an interesting mind. Apparently he was also a very interesting personality, with some "demons" of his own.
I'm reading 50 Prosperity Classics by Tom Butler-Bowdon. I love his series--you get so much bang for the buck with those books (50 Success Classics, 50 Spirituality Classics, 50 Self-Help Classics).
Currently reading Anarchy and Old Dogs by Colin Cotterill. This is the 4th Dr. Siri Investigation set in Laos. These mystery novels are written by a Brit ex-pat who lived in Laos for several years. They are set just after the end of the Vietnam war. Lots of fun.
Also in the middle of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. Here's the synopsis from the cover:
"Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.
Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave and her children can't afford health insurance."
I've recently read:
Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan by Paton. This was my first-time reading it, and it is now one of my all-time favorite novels. It's truly a beautiful piece of art.
In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alverez. I've had this book on my shelf for years and made a couple of attempts to read it but couldn't get into it. This past week, I decided to spend time with the book and either finish it or declutter it. I ended up loving this book. I appreciate how the author lets the story unfold rather than race to the end. In fact, the reader knows the ending of the book from the very beginning so there is no need to rush through to find out what happens. I really loved the pacing. I also enjoy reading about historical events through personal lives, and this book does just that. It's set in the Dominican Republic during Trujillo's dictatorship.
The Jesus Dynasty by James Tabor. A historian's look at the life of Jesus. I enjoy books like this, and I thought this one was well-written.
Gardenarian
1-22-13, 6:56pm
"Rambunctious Garden: Saving Nature in a Post-Wild World" by Emma Marris.
This is the most important and thought provoking book on nature conservation that I have read ina very long time. Marris has a sometimes irritatingly sarcastic style, but there is lots of solid information here on how humans effect the Earth and what we can, perhaps, do about it. Highly recommended!!
"A dance to the Music of Time" by Anthony Powell.
Anglophilia delight - I don't know why I never read this before. A 12 book series - should get me through the month! "The story is an often comic examination of movements and manners, power and passivity in English political, cultural and military life in the mid 20th century." Wikipedia
"Back to Blood" Tom Wolfe. I enjoyed "A Man in Full" by the same author. This feels almost like the same book, but set in Miami - exploring the same themes of racial tension, class, and power. I didn't like it much.
...
Also in the middle of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. ...
I read and enjoyed that not long after it came out. I was fascinated by her amazing cell line years and years ago.
Just started The World Until Yesterday by Jared Diamond. About how the world has changed more in the past 100 years than in all the previous milennia and what we can learn from traditional cultures. Thus far, it's a bit dry but interesting stuff like why we now have high blood pressure.
23 years after the first volume was published, the final "Wheel of Time" book has been published. I've spent most of 2012 reading summaries and commentaries on the previous 13 volumes. (I would have reread the books themselves, but I couldn't imagine how long it would have taken me to reread 12,000 pages; 4,000,000 words!) I've actually still got half of Book 12 and all of Book 13 to re-familiarize myself with before I can start Book 14, which is just as well because they're releasing the e-book three months later (What's with that?), and there's no way I'm going to put my wrist through holding a 912 page novel up night after night, squinting to read the small type, for weeks, when I can wait a few months and read it on my Kindle, in whatever size type I want.
I tend to read two books at once, one for entertainment the other for enrichment. I'm "in between" enrichment books right now, but I've loaded my Kindle up with The Open Society and its Enemies by Karl Popper and An Essay on Man by Alexander Pope. I'm also responsible for creating a discussion session for church on Skepticism, and another one on community covenants, so I'll probably have to slot in some fast reading on those topics somewhere.
God's Hotel: A Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine by Victoria Sweet
http://amzn.com/1594488436
This is a fascinating book. Written by an M.D., it chronicles her time at the nation's last "alms hospital" in San Francisco, in an aging building that predates modern hospital design by at least a century. She is at the same time studying medieval medical history and trying to relate the methods of Hildegard of Bingen to modern medicine, and finds many connections. She spends a sabbatical in Switzerland and her insights on the culture there as it relates to medicine and culture are really interesting.
Currently Reading:
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution 1769-1783 by Robert Middlekauff
Legacy of the Dead by Charles Todd (Ian Rutledge mystery #4)
Recently finished:
Feathers: The Evolution of a Natural Miracle by Thor Hanson. Very well written on a subject I knew nothing about. Just how did feathers evolve? Was flight from the bottom up or from the top down? Lots of interesting material written in a casual talking with a friend style.
Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry. #2 in The Giver series. Science fiction which I don't usually read or like but this series is really good!!
I'm in the midst of reading House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. It's my 4th time reading this book - I do love it, though it is a downer and I don't like the main character, lol. My teen daughter is reading it for the first time, and she is not liking it.
I just finished a re-read of Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie". It was written rather late in his career and is the non-fiction account of his voyage through the country which he calls a search of America. Sometimes I wonder if and how the general personalities of American have changed in the last several years with urbanization, population growth, and computerization. The book at least hints at a more rural and less paranoid country where a person might walk up to a stranger's house and ask for a glass of water or invite a family of strangers into a camper for an evening of conversation. He also talks about the sense of wanderlust that seems to lurk in many of us, but never seems to reach realization.
DocHolliday
1-25-13, 9:55am
Just started The World Until Yesterday by Jared Diamond. About how the world has changed more in the past 100 years than in all the previous milennia and what we can learn from traditional cultures. Thus far, it's a bit dry but interesting stuff like why we now have high blood pressure.
That sounds like something I would enjoy.
I am currently reading A Nation Rising by Kenneth C. Davis. A collection of several stories that history has mostly forgotten from the years between the founding and the Civil War.
Just finished 1776 by David McCullough.
I just finished a re-read of Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie". It was written rather late in his career and is the non-fiction account of his voyage through the country which he calls a search of America. Sometimes I wonder if and how the general personalities of American have changed in the last several years with urbanization, population growth, and computerization. The book at least hints at a more rural and less paranoid country where a person might walk up to a stranger's house and ask for a glass of water or invite a family of strangers into a camper for an evening of conversation. He also talks about the sense of wanderlust that seems to lurk in many of us, but never seems to reach realization.
Are you familiar with the article by Bill Steigerwald called Sorry Charlie ? He claims it is a lot more fiction than non fiction. It kind of stirred up a bee hive among Steinbeck fans. You might find it interesting.
Are you familiar with the article by Bill Steigerwald called Sorry Charlie ? He claims it is a lot more fiction than non fiction. It kind of stirred up a bee hive among Steinbeck fans. You might find it interesting. Boy, I'd not heard of that. I looked it up and don't know if I got inspired enough to buy the ebook, but it looks like there are some free articles on it.
I just finished a re-read of Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie". It was written rather late in his career and is the non-fiction account of his voyage through the country which he calls a search of America. Sometimes I wonder if and how the general personalities of American have changed in the last several years with urbanization, population growth, and computerization. The book at least hints at a more rural and less paranoid country where a person might walk up to a stranger's house and ask for a glass of water or invite a family of strangers into a camper for an evening of conversation. He also talks about the sense of wanderlust that seems to lurk in many of us, but never seems to reach realization.I read Travels with Charley a long time ago and loved it. Loved Charlie! I fondly remember that true story (or so I thought and will continue to believe) when Ihave traveled long distances with my dog(s) .Lots of similairities - especially since much of my travels have been in Steinbeck country in central Calif.. I love all of Steinbeck but Travels with Charley is one of my favorites.
AmeliaJane
2-10-13, 11:56pm
I just finished two "Americana" books. "Hallowed Ground" by James McPherson is a retelling of the Battle of Gettysburg framed around a walking tour of the battlefield. It also touches on the way the battle has been remembered and memorialized, and debunks some of the myths that have grown up. It was a quick, enjoyable read and I have put the film Gettysburg on my Netflix list since much of it was filmed on the battlefield.
I also just finished "American Places" by William Zinsser. It is older, published in the early 1990s, and is a series of essays about Zinsser's travels to various places that are American icons, from natural wonders like Niagara and Yellowstone to historic sites to Disneyland and Rockefeller Center. I really enjoyed it. One of his main points is about the connection to American culture and history to be found in actually going to places, and I wondered what his perspective would have been in today's Internet-connected world.
Lost Prophet--about Bayard Rustin who was a gay, black Quaker, did a lot of pacifist work and organized the March on Washington. He wasn't widely visible because of prejudice against gays, but those who worked with him knew and learned from him. King learned a lot of his pacifism from Rustin.
The Autobiography of an Execution by David Dow. Dow is a death row defense attorney with years of experience. He has integrity as a lawyer but is not a bleeding heart pushover. He estimates he's done last chance appeals for about 100 death row inmates, of whom he believed 7 were actually innocent. Very powerful.
(and I apologize if that book was already suggested here, sometimes I forget where I get these recommendations, but if it was, thanks!)
frugal-one
2-12-13, 4:50pm
"How to find out anything" by Don MacLeod. Excellent... learned a few new tricks.
Just picked up "The richest woman in America". About Hetty Green who at the time of her death in 1916 was worth at least $100 million (about $2.5 billion in today's money). Says she was a Quaker and "men mocked her and women scoffed at her frugal ways". Supposedly the Warren Buffett of her time. Have a few other books to get through before I can dig in... but sure looks interesting!
And Still Peace Did Not Come by Agnes Kamara-Umunna
In 1990, Liberia plunged into the hell of 14 years of civil war. The war scarred every living soul in the country. Atrocities were committed by all sides and perhaps the worst atrocities of all were done by and to the children who were kidnapped, drugged, and forced to become child soldiers.
Eventually, the war ended with the country ravaged and the population decimated, mutilated, and devastated. How does one pick up a life and go on when so many atrocities have been committed by your next door neighbor or by their child?
In And Still Peace Did Not Come Agnes Kamara-Umunna tells how after the war was over and the fighting ceased, peace still did not come. It could not come until some how reconciliation could begin. Modeled on the Truth and Reconciliation Council set up following apartheid in South Africa, the TRC in Liberia began taking statements from Liberian citizens. For people to live together without falling into an endless cycle of revenge, truth must be told by both victims and perpetrators and the work of reconciliation begun. So much easier said than done.
Agnes Kamara-Umunna hosted a radio program straight from the Heart which allowed people to tell their story. Early on she discovered that the former child soldiers were virtual untouchables. They either had no family left or had been rejected by their family or their community. They were now living on the streets with no home, food, school, or friend and many were addicted to drugs or alcohol. Agnes began to help them with food and shelter. She brought them onto the radio program so that the population could see that they were children and were every bit as much victims as they had been perpetrators.
The book is well written and conveys the horrors of what happened without descending into ghoulishness. The work of building peace through telling the truth and beginning reconciliation is well expressed. It gives both a vivid picture of both the horrors that humans can inflict on one another and the hope that peace can come through truth and reconciliation.
Lost Prophet--about Bayard Rustin who was a gay, black Quaker, did a lot of pacifist work and organized the March on Washington. He wasn't widely visible because of prejudice against gays, but those who worked with him knew and learned from him. King learned a lot of his pacifism from Rustin.
Did you see that PBS show last week on Ruskin? I missed that he was Quaker.
BarbieGirl
2-13-13, 7:42pm
I just finished Allison Weir's book called Mary Boleyn. I enjoy reading about history, both biographical and historical fiction.
The only pet peeve I have is when people believe that the fiction (as it relates to historical topics) is historically accurate. For example, Phillipa Gregory's, The Other Boleyn Girl while based on historical information and some facts it is still fiction.
A little late joining in, but oh well!
AmeliaJane--I love P and P! Have you finished it yet? What did you think?
bUU--Karl Popper sure is an interesting fellow. I am fascinated by his theory of disconfirmation and how it relates to more religious arguments.
Rogar and Spartana--I am a Steinbeck fan, too! Have you ever read "Driftless" by David Rhodes? When it came out, Rhodes' descriptions of the Midwest were compared to Steinbeck's writings of Monterey and Salinas. Being that I love Steinbeck and am from the Midwest, I had to check it out! :-)
So far this year I read a book called "You Can Buy Happiness and It's Cheap" by Tammy Strobel. I really enjoyed it. I also re-read "Keeping House: The Litany of Everyday Life" by Margaret Kim Petersen. It is really intelligently written; I think most ladies looking for purpose at home from a Christian perspective would enjoy it. Then I read "Killing Lincoln" by Bill O'Reilly. I don't mean to offend anyone here who likes that book, but I thought it was horrible. It boasts some of the worst writing I have ever seen (and I teach introductory college English, so that should tell you something! ;-) ), and it is absolutely riddled with historical inaccuracies. For example, it has Lincoln and Grant meeting in the Oval Office. Um...Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. The Oval Office was not completed until 1909. A very sloppy attempt at scholarship, indeed!
iris lily
2-13-13, 11:52pm
I just finished Allison Weir's book called Mary Boleyn. I enjoy reading about history, both biographical and historical fiction.
The only pet peeve I have is when people believe that the fiction (as it relates to historical topics) is historically accurate. For example, Phillipa Gregory's, The Other Boleyn Girl while based on historical information and some facts it is still fiction.
I know! Our local film board is currently talking about Lincoln (the film) and someone is very cranky because it represented 2 Connecticut Congressmen as voting against the 13th amendment when inf fact all of the Conn delegation voted in favor.
I don't understand why he's so het up about it, it is a dramatic film. It's entertainment.
However, I will say that I don't understand the dramatic intent of changing this fact.
BarbieGirl
2-14-13, 4:03pm
Iris lily,
Lol, I'd be upset too! I think it's because once a fiction is looked on as fact, we lose something of our history. That makes me sad.
Rogar and Spartana--I am a Steinbeck fan, too! Have you ever read "Driftless" by David Rhodes? When it came out, Rhodes' descriptions of the Midwest were compared to Steinbeck's writings of Monterey and Salinas. Being that I love Steinbeck and am from the Midwest, I had to check it out! :-)
I've not heard of it. Thanks! I've run out of Steinbeck books to read without re-reading them. I'll have to give it a try.
After reading The Road, which was about the most downer fiction I think I've ever read, I didn't know if I could ever swallow another post-apocalyptic themed book. But I just finished two. The Dog Stars and The Bird Saviors. Both are set in my home state which added to my interest, but I think they would be stand-alone for anyone. The Dog Stars was more of a wild adventure/action romp with something of a happy ending, considering the world as we know it has imploded. The Birds Saviors takes place in the not too distant future with the effects of climate change and peak oil just starting to surface and was a little more of a believable character study, again with a fairly happy ending. They were both quick reads and worth a few evenings of entertainment.
I finished Still Alice, a novel about a college professor who gets early onset Alzheimer's disease at 50 years old. It's interesting how she and her family approach this disease.
Also read Desert Flower by Waris Dirie. It's a biography of a Somali nomad girl who runs away from her life in the desert to escape an early marriage to an old man. She ends up in London, and is discovered by a photographer and becomes a model. Because she endured female circumcision, she became a worldwide spokesman against that practice.
A novel I'm enjoying a lot is City of Thieves by David Benioff about a young man in WWII Leningrad who is charged with finding a dozen eggs in that city where everyone is starving. The eggs are for the plice chief's daughter's wedding. If he doesn't find the eggs, he is imprisoned.
The author is a screenwriter and so know how to keep it lively.
I finally, after decades of hearing about Angela Thirkell's Barchester novels, tried the first one, High Rising. It's just too flat for me. Too bad, I though this would be a batch I could read in retirement.
I just finished Maeve Binchy's last book (sob), "A Week in Winter."
Now I am reading "The Last Runaway" by Tracey Chevalier. It's excellent!
AmeliaJane
2-28-13, 7:06pm
I liked some of the later Thirkell books much better than High Rising. I had read a few from the middle, and meant to go back and read the whole series from the beginning, and also found High Rising a bit of a snore. I am usually adamant about reading things in order, but had not in this case and it was fine. So you might give another book in the series a try.
I just finished "On the Way to the Gates," about Christo's Gates project in NY City a few years back. It was a bit repetitive--they included four different interviews from his career which all pretty much covered the same ground--but I enjoyed learning more about his and his wife Jeanne-Claude's process. It was interesting that they thought of the long public permitting/hearing/negotiating process behind public art as a way to get people like ranchers and parks department officials who don't really engage with art on a regular basis to do so.
"Ambulance Girl" by Jane Stern. A true story of her midlife crisis, sub-titled "How I Saved Myself by Becoming an EMT."
You might recognize her name as half of the Stern duo who are foodies and wrote one of their most popular series on Road Food.
I loved City of Thieves. I picked it up while on vacation last summer and couldn't put it down. Seems like it would make a good movie.
I loved City of Thieves. I picked it up while on vacation last summer and couldn't put it down. Seems like it would make a good movie.
Ohgod. I just decided not to read any further after last night's read. At 1/3 of the way through there is too much brutal maiming and death and it stayed with me all day. But yes, it's lively and cinematic, and certainly it has interesting characters and plot.
I liked some of the later Thirkell books much better than High Rising. I had read a few from the middle, and meant to go back and read the whole series from the beginning, and also found High Rising a bit of a snore. I am usually adamant about reading things in order, but had not in this case and it was fine. So you might give another book in the series a try.
That is such a good tip, thanks so much!
I'm backing off City of Thieves, while lively, it's so brutal. Need me some village novel fluff right now to make me forget the scenes outside of Leningrad.
Just bought 2 awesome reference books for my collection. "Be Your Own Doctor" by Rachel Weaver and "Homeopathy Made Simple" by Dr R Donald Papon.
The Storyteller
3-2-13, 11:07pm
The Dude and the Zen Master, by Jeff Bridges.
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelly.
And whatever is in my tag line.
The Dude and the Zen Master, by Jeff Bridges.
I suppose that is about that cult film, what's it called? Big Lebowski or something like that. I watched it once and thought, hunh?
The Storyteller
3-4-13, 11:59am
I suppose that is about that cult film, what's it called? Big Lebowski or something like that. I watched it once and thought, hunh?
It isn't for everyone, but it is in my top ten favorites.
But the book isn't technically about Lebowski. It merely uses the film to make Zen more approachable to the average person. Like me. When I read some of the Buddhist threads in Spirituality here, my eyes glaze over or I just nod off. The Dude makes it simple and real.
According to Bridges' Zen master, The Big Lebowski is full of Zen concepts.
The Storyteller
3-4-13, 6:52pm
Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12986375-babylon), by Paul Kriwaczek.
The author tends to minimize the effects of agriculture on the development of civilization, which annoys me, but I realize my personal biases. So far it is just okay.
I have 4 books going now:
Watchers of Time by Charles Todd (Ian Rutledge mystery #5)
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution 1763-1789 by Robert Middlekauff
The Diversity of Life by Edward O. Wilson
For Love of Insects by Thomas Eisner
I am mostly marking time until the next Maisie Dobbs comes out March 26.
I am reading American Gypsy right now - about a Romani family who immigrates to the US in the 80s as told from the daughter's viewpoint.
Ascent of Humanity by Charles Eisenstien
Natural Capitalism by Paul Hawken
A Handmade Life: In Search of Simplicity by William Coperthwaite
EntreLeadership by Dave Ramsey
Lee Child's Wanted Man. Reacher started out with a broken nose and cannot pronounce the letter M. Will he save the day? Will he rescue someone? Will he come to metaphorical blows with authority? Will he ever be able to breathe through his nose again????
Gardenarian
3-6-13, 6:00pm
Jilly - I'll have to read Wanted Man! I'm writing a book and one character breaks her nose - I could use it as research :)
Homeland by Cory Doctorow - A sequel to his excellent Little Brother, this book loses the plot halfway through and comes across as a bit preachy. Still, a fun YA read, with a great description of Burning Man (tho' I've never been - it still sounded real!)
The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown - the story of three sisters who are grown up and all come home to help care for their sick mom. Their father is a Shakespeare scholar, thus the "weird sisters." Entertaining but not really special.
Lionel Asbo : State of England by Martin Amis - If you've read Amis then you have some idea what to expect. The very darkest humor. See what dogmom said in a thread about the "poverty of aspiration" and you've got it. Excellent and depressing. Includes pit bulls.
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward - A masterpiece, really. Also includes pit bulls, so I'm putting it here though I read it a few months (?) ago.
Crispin: the End of Time by Avi - in the "J" section of the library, but really for all ages, the Crispin books by Avi are a wonderful series of books that vividly depict life in the Middle Ages. Loved it.
Farside by Ben Bova - standard science fiction fare. What I think of as an airplane book.
The Promise of Stardust by Priscille Sibley - A woman is brain dead and pregnant; should she be kept alive so the father can raise the baby? A first novel (and it shows) written in an almost journalistic style. A sincere effort but deeply flawed.
I am in the Science & Nature group on GoodReads and this month we are reading The Diversity of Life by Edward O. Wilson. Although it is definitely not light reading, I am enjoying floundering through it as Wilson examines and discusses evolution and natural selection. He goes into much detail and gives many examples. I am a real fan of his.
recently read:
The Virgin Blue and Remarkable Creatures, both by Tracy Chevalier. Enjoyed both. The latter was based on the life of Mary Anning, fossil hunter circa 1820, an uneducated and impoverished woman in England who found several new species and taught herself how to prepare and arrange fossils for display.
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech - middle-grade fiction, and a very satisfying read even for adults. It caught my eye at DD's school's book fair and I got it from the library... have now passed it on to her, saying "you know how some books are very satisfying when you get to the last sentence, and you are very glad you read them? <she nods> For me, Tuck Everlasting, Ann of Green Gables, and Brighty of the Grand Canyon were all like that." <books we read aloud together - she nods again> This one is like that."
frugal-one
3-17-13, 7:18pm
Just read a fiction book for the first time in probably a year. I started it last night and finished it today. An easy read and enjoyable.... The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier.
Summary: Forced to leave England and struggling with illness in the wake of a family tragedy, Quaker Honor Bright is forced to rely on strangers in the harsh landscape of 1850 Ohio and is compelled to join the Underground Railroad network to help runaway slaves escape to freedom.
I just finished Middlemarch. It was a bit slow in the beginning but it grew on me.
Now I'm rereading Dicken's Pickwick Papers. I read it when I was in my 20s and remember enjoying it, but have forgotten most of it.
I must remember to put myself on the waiting list at the library for Maeve Binchy's last novel. I'll really miss her.
Just read a fiction book for the first time in probably a year. I started it last night and finished it today. An easy read and enjoyable.... The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier.
Summary: Forced to leave England and struggling with illness in the wake of a family tragedy, Quaker Honor Bright is forced to rely on strangers in the harsh landscape of 1850 Ohio and is compelled to join the Underground Railroad network to help runaway slaves escape to freedom.
I just finished it too. I really enjoyed it.
I just downloaded a couple of sci-fi anthologies onto my Kindle app. Total outlay: 99 cents. Time will tell if they were worth it.
Someone here recommended The Enchantment of Everyday Life by Thomas More. I am enjoying it immensely.
"Why I Left Goldman Sachs" by Greg Smith. True story of his rise and disillusionment with the greed and callous treatment of its customers. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_7/181-3926434-3295340?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=why+i+left+goldman+sachs&sprefix=why+i+l%2Cstripbooks%2C305
For pure pleasure - "Decades" - a huge coffee table book about women's fashions from 1900. No where near enough info re designers, the history of the period, etc but lovely to look at!
AmeliaJane
3-23-13, 9:48pm
I just finished Main Street by Sinclair Lewis. I read Babbitt probably 25 years ago and remember it as being quite satirical. Whether the books are very different, or I have a different perspective, I found the protagonist and her husband in Main Street to be much more complex, sympathetic characters. Also in my classics project, I am currently reading Call of the Wild (I think this would be very hard for an animal-lover to read) and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain. I had not realized how much that book is a critique of 19th century America--it is usually described as humor.
Simplemind
3-23-13, 11:41pm
Bed Wetter by Sara Silverman.
AmeliaJane
4-10-13, 2:26pm
Have now finished Pride and Prejudice, Call of the Wild, and Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. I have seen so many adaptations of P&P that reading the novel was really about appreciating Austen's writing rather than discovering characters or plot. I was surprised firstly by how long the novel goes on after Lydia and Wickham's trouble is resolved. I was under the impression that was nearly at the end. I was also a little startled by the ending, in which Austen runs down the final disposition of pretty much every character down to Miss Bingley and Mr. Collins--but never says anything directly about Darcy and Elizabeth other than as they are mentioned in connection to others.
Call of the Wild certainly moved along quickly, but I was not crazy about Jack London's writing style--a little too florid for me, especially in the inner life of the dog. I enjoyed the peek into Gold Rush Alaska, though, and you could tell London had spent time in the Klondike. Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court was an interesting look at 19th century society through the eyes of someone with very strong opinions (Twain's critique of slavery via feudalism was fascinating) but it was more of a political statement than a novel with human characters, tight plotting, etc.
I have now moved on to the original Phantom of the Opera (more plot than you can shake a stick at) and Country of the Pointed Firs (practically no plot, in fact I looked it up on Wikipedia to see if I was missing something. Turns out no, Wikipedia specifically mentioned this as a "plotless novel.") Have recently also read "Decisive" by Chip and Dan Heath. Their books are quick and easy reads and I found "Switch," on persuading people to change, incredibly helpful in my job. I liked Decisive, on effective decision-making very much too.
Leaving Everything Most Loved by Jacqueline Winspear.
George C. Marshall by Charles A. Stoler
Up and Down in the Dales by Gervase Phinn
Six Degrees by Mark Lynas
Sherman Alexie's Blasphemy. I read the first story at lunch today and it nearly blew my socks off. Alexie is one of the greatest storytellers ever. Later tonight I will be watching The Exiles. Bliss.
Just about to finish Kate Atkinson's Life After Life - edge of the seat awesome! Also picked up her "Case Histories" along with this new one.
Magazines on the free Zinio service through my county library, starting with American Patchwork and Quilting and American Craft--also available for smart phones and tablets. What fun!
iris lily
4-12-13, 11:36pm
Bed Wetter by Sara Silverman.
Sarah Silverman makes me laugh. I don't think I read that book, though.
I just finished "The Warmth of Other Suns" by Isabel Wilkerson. It is about the black migration out of the Jim Crow South from 1915-1970, and specifically focuses on three people who migrated to three different cities in three different decades.
I was shocked at the violence depicted against blacks. Having been born and raised in Seattle, I had heard of Jim Crow, but had no idea how bad it really was. The only complaint I have about the book is that the author had a tendency to repeat thoughts, sometimes nearly verbatim in the same chapter. It was like she had forgotten that she had already said something.
iris lily
4-12-13, 11:40pm
Magazines on the free Zinio service through my county library, starting with American Patchwork and Quilting and American Craft--also available for smart phones and tablets. What fun!
My library will be signing up with Zino, it's a fabulous service. You get to keep anything you download and there is no limit on the number of people who can download the same issue. Subscription to each title costs about the same as a print subscription.
"The End of Your Life Book Club" by Will Schwalbe - true story of Will and his mother using their life-long love of reading to become closer during her final months.
"Slow Love - How I Lost My Job, Put on My Pajamas, and Found Happiness" by Dominique Browning. An editor at House and Garden who lost her job when the magazine folded in the 2007 recession and then slowly but surely remakes her life. Beautifully written.
I just finished "The Warmth of Other Suns" by Isabel Wilkerson. It is about the black migration out of the Jim Crow South from 1915-1970, and specifically focuses on three people who migrated to three different cities in three different decades.
I was shocked at the violence depicted against blacks.
AnneM, I read the book too and I was glad to hear this history directly from those who had experienced it.
One scene that sticks out in my mind is the poor sharecropper couple who have to secretly sell their things and then wait til the boss pays them for the season before they can sneak out of town on the train at night. They did so because if it was known you were leaving to go up North, then things might "happen" to the pay you earned. Or at least in one instance, a couple was challenged by the police at the train station about where they were going and why. People learned not to bring much so as not to arouse suspicion.
happystuff
4-17-13, 5:49pm
Just finished Crossing Over by John Edward and started his newest Infinite Quest. Just the right time in my life for these books.
Leaving Everything Most Loved by Jacqueline Winspear ( Maisie Dobbs #?).
Letters from the Hive by Stephan Buchman.
Up and Down in the Dales by Gervase Phinn.
Death Comes to Pemberley by PD James. Pride & Prejudice sequel, six years later, with a murder mystery. I don't normally like Austen fan fiction, but this is in a different league. It's charming and fun.
treehugger
4-17-13, 10:47pm
Just started Game of Thrones #4 last night, A Feast for Crows.
Kara
Just started Game of Thrones #4 last night, A Feast for Crows.
Kara
I'm partway through #2.
iris lily
4-18-13, 12:31am
I'm partway through #2.
I came here from just looking up a bunch of photos of Peter Dinklage, gotta get my favorite Lannister fix. haha. I won't be reading GOT but will be watching it.
I just finished In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson. It is the account of William Dodd as he becomes the American ambassador to Germany during Hitler's rise to power in the 1930's. He meets Hitler and much of Hitler's staff in the course of his duties and provides some insight into the truly bizarre and evil personalities. It also gives some insight into how the intelligent and generally decent German people were duped or forced to follow the Nazi leaders. I would say it was a very good book, but not excellent.
I also read Proof of Heaven. It was a quick read as a library loaner. I am a fan of NDE type books and this one was pretty good. Worth a couple of evening if you're into that sort of thing.
Currently reading Into the Silence by Wade Davis. He is among my favorite authors.
I am listeing to In the Garden of Beasts on an mp3. I've been neglecting exercise of late and so, not listening to it enough!
Ramsey's workbook. First thing by him I've been able to read and it's great. I always feel like if I get one thing from any book, movie, etc, it's worth it. The best thing so far from this book is to put my emergency/retirement fund in the budget--I was doing it just as "whatever's left over" because it's bare bones with the other items, but what's left over isn't even a category.
treehugger
4-18-13, 12:28pm
I'm partway through #2.
I sped through 1-3 [of Game of Thrones series] and then needed a break to read other books. Looking forward to getting back into it. Enjoy the journey!
Kara
The Storyteller
4-18-13, 9:35pm
I'm partway through #2.
Me too.
Reading of the entire Ice and Fire series, that is.
Rogar, I read In the Garden of Beasts last year. Very interesting. The ambassador's daughter was quite the personality.
Gardenarian
4-22-13, 2:51pm
"Downsizing your home with style : living well in a smaller space" by Lauri Ward. I'm not moving anywhere, but this book had lots of great tips for anyone who wants to live with less fuss. She is the author of "Use what you have decorating", another great book. I've been spring cleaning and generally fixing up the old homestead. Many practical ideas for making your home function well.
"20 years younger : look younger, feel younger, be younger!" by Bob Greene. I found some useful tips in this book, though like all books of this type it is heavily padded (with exercise programs and recipes no one will use.) I found the sections on dietary supplements and skin care useful. I have been using his skin care protocol and darned if my skin doesn't look better! I already exercise quite a lot but after reading this I realize that I do skip days, and I am being more conscious of being in touch with my body all the time. Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who is feeling a little older than they'd like!
"What we talk about when we talk about Anne Frank" by Nathan Englander. A collection of short, often hilarious, stories about the American Jewish experience. Pretty good.
"Insane city" by Dave Barry. Inspired to read this by Fidgiegirl's post about funny books. This wasn't very funny. Very predictable hi-jinks.
decemberlov
4-22-13, 2:59pm
I need a new book and will be checking here for some suggestions.
At the moment I'm reading Weird NJ Vol. 2.
Weird NJ is a travel guide and magazine to places you won't find on state funded maps or located on any tourist attraction pamphlets.
I find it so incredibly interesting reading about old abandoned places and just plain weird stuff.
smellincoffee
4-24-13, 9:45pm
I just finished digesting The Plain Reader, which was stirring, and am now starting on Crunchy Cons, which is fantastic so far.
I just finished digesting The Plain Reader, which was stirring, and am now starting on Crunchy Cons, which is fantastic so far.
We used to have a poster here with the screen name of Crunchycon. I miss her!
I am reading a good book about the fey world (an abduction) called Some kind of fairy tale by Graham Joyce.
True Wealth by Juliet Schor - written from an economist's point of view about how our world and way of living and doing business needs to change in order to remain viable.
I am thoroughly enjoying Letters from the Hive by Stephen Buchmann. Did you know that there are many prehistoric caving paintings depicting ancient honey hunting? Neither did I. I didn't know that the Maya in the Yucatan peninsula still practice the ancient ways of keeping their stingless bees in log hives. And lots more. Very interesting and pleasantly presented.
That latest Piers Anthony. It is part of a series, but I have not read any for decades, so it is all new to me.
I have been having trouble finding books that I am willing to finish. I have borrowed three books from the library this month that I am not smart enough to get. All were fiction, but beyond my ability to understand what the heck was happening. I should probably be willing, even eager, to stretch my thinking process and read things that are stimulating, brain-wise, but I just do not want to add any more challenging stuff right now, just want to coast and have fun. So, back to popular fiction and non-fiction. Thank goodness there are always Newbery books to be re-read.
Letters from the Hive
I found this charming book very interesting and informative. For example, I had no idea there were many prehistoric cave paintings depicting ancient honey hunting. But once you look at the figures, it is obvious what they are doing. The book takes you back through the history of honey hunting and bee keeping. It takes you on treks through Maya villages in the Yucatan peninsula, to Nepal, Australia, and India to learn the history and current practices of bee keeping and honey harvesting. I also didn't know the prominent place of bees and honey in many ancient creation myths. The book has an interesting section on the many types of honey. Did you know that certain types of honey can be toxic, such as honey from azaleas or the yellow Carolina jasmine?Honey figures prominently as a medicinal not just in ancient times but is currently used in the dressings on burn patients. Two of the most fun chapters were on cooking with honey and making (and imbibing) mead. Lots of references for further information.
A pleasant, informative, good read.
Wheat Belly Cookbook Has an awful lot of almond flour and eggs, 10 eggs in the loaf of rye bread. Good source of protein, I guess.
Diane Ackerman's 100 Names For Love
Forks Over Knives
A couple of zombie novels
A few pages left of the Anthony
Simplemind
5-1-13, 10:52pm
Just finished Gone Girl and I really enjoyed the plot twists.
The Little Way of Ruthie Leming by Rod Dreher
Wow! What a book! Just when you think you've got a handle on the situation, another layer is pealed back and you get a closer look and things aren't quite what you thought.
I've been a Dreher reader since Crunchy Cons and BeliefNet. I knew he could write but this book takes it up a notch or three. Man can he ever describe a place and a way of life! (However, I wonder if my family would be so happy with me if I so clearly put our family out in the open the way Rod has.)
The Little Way had me in tears and it had me nodding my head up and down in agreement and it had me so aggravated with Rod that I wanted to shake him and tell him to get a grip.
It is partly a cancer saga, partly a coming home saga, and partly a family generational saga. But that doesn't really describe the depth and reality of it; it is soul searching. Well, worth reading and I'll bet once you pick it up, you will read it cover to cover within 48 hours.
iris lilies
5-7-13, 9:21pm
The Little Way of Ruthie Leming by Rod Dreher
Wow! What a book! Just when you think you've got a handle on the situation, another layer is pealed back and you get a closer look and things aren't quite what you thought.
I've been a Dreher reader since Crunchy Cons and BeliefNet. I knew he could write but this book takes it up a notch or three. Man can he ever describe a place and a way of life! (However, I wonder if my family would be so happy with me if I so clearly put our family out in the open the way Rod has.)
The Little Way had me in tears and it had me nodding my head up and down in agreement and it had me so aggravated with Rod that I wanted to shake him and tell him to get a grip.
It is partly a cancer saga, partly a coming home saga, and partly a family generational saga. But that doesn't really describe the depth and reality of it; it is soul searching. Well, worth reading and I'll bet once you pick it up, you will read it cover to cover within 48 hours.
ok you convinced me. I put in on reserve at the library.
I just tarted Burn Palace by Stephen Dobyns and I am not happy with it.
Iris, I have to warn you: I have an abysmal record when it comes to recommending books to people; inevitably, they aren't nearly as enthralled with the book as I was.:(
SevenSeven
5-10-13, 12:50pm
I've gotten exactly 13 books for this year that I am aiming to finish before the end of the year. The Futurica Trilogy by Alexander Bard is a modern gem for those up for some crazy-interesting philosophy, but the 800 pages can be a drag at times...
At the moment I am all into the Darren Brown "Tricks of the Mind" - I find it suprisingly fascinating, especially the parts on Loci method of teaching (purged by the Puritans in UK in the XV!), and memory training with Linking system...I do recommend it to everyone!
Tussiemussies
5-10-13, 4:30pm
Thanks sevenseven, your sharing about the "Tricks Of The Mind" book. I am recently looking for a new method of memory training and will look into this book. Thank you!
I just finished The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult. It was excellent!!
Gardenarian
5-13-13, 3:34pm
Just finished re-reading "Possession : A Romance" by A.S. Byatt. I love this book, how the relationship between the scholars, the 19th century poets, the poems and fairytales, all reflect back and enlighten one another. What an amazing writer.
I am reading Eaarth by Bill McKibben. It is so depressing that I'm thinking of slitting my wrists. Not really, but he does paint a really bleak picture.
If It's Not One Thing, It's Your Mother, by Julia Sweeney. A witty look at international adoption and middle-aged love. Sort of. Also The Paleo Slow Cooker by Arsy Vartanian (the mulligatawny looks particularly good), and Ann Rule's But I Trusted You. The usual deep stuff.
Gulp. All about your alimentary canal and its activities. Chapters on saliva, poop, why we eat what we eat, etc. Interesting book. One factoid I learned is that your own spit makes a great stain remover. Haven't tested that yet though.
AmeliaJane
6-4-13, 10:43pm
After having seen "The Great Gatsby" in the theaters, I am now reading the original novel. So far I am surprised at how closely the plotting of the book and movie align. From the movie reviews, I was under the impression they were more divergent.
ToomuchStuff
6-5-13, 12:53am
Was recommended Do the Work by Stephen Pressfield, by someone who knows the odd hours I have been working, have been hampering me lately. It was pretty rainy today, so I knocked it out, then went on to another book in my to read list. Randy Pausch's, the Last Lecture. Lately my reading time has been LATE LATE at night, so I am trying to change it to bad weather days (or when I am somewhere waiting on something). I was given a Nook for Christmas, so I am hopping that helps (keep in the car).
After having seen "The Great Gatsby" in the theaters, I am now reading the original novel. So far I am surprised at how closely the plotting of the book and movie align. From the movie reviews, I was under the impression they were more divergent.
I am on the waiting list to get it from the library. I have never seen the movie or read the book.
The Weatherman's Daughters, by Richard Hoyt, a murder mystery written with humor. Enjoying it as it is set in my area in Washington State/Portland area.
Eaarth by Bill McKibben
As much as I applaud Bill McKibben, as much as I am certain that climate change is real and that our lives will be altered dramatically by it, the only thing I got out of this book is depressed. The first half is unrelentingly grim and the second half is not focused on anything concrete that I either didn't already know or on things that, while touchy, feely good, aren't likely to be applicable to me.
Just finished re-reading "Possession : A Romance" by A.S. Byatt. I love this book, how the relationship between the scholars, the 19th century poets, the poems and fairytales, all reflect back and enlighten one another. What an amazing writer.
I love that book, too! The parts about the academic world seem so real to me.
Just finished Gone Girl and I really enjoyed the plot twists.
Gone Girl! Loved it!
Iris, I have to warn you: I have an abysmal record when it comes to recommending books to people; inevitably, they aren't nearly as enthralled with the book as I was.:(
This is so funny! yep, I did NOT like the RUthie Lemming book and barely got through 30 pages. I thought his writing was flat and uninteresting. I could not get interested in Ruthie.
I am interested, though, why you wanted to slap this author.
I wanted to slap him because of his needy wanting approval from his father. He left home to go to boarding school partly because he didn't fit his father's picture of what a son should be, he came back in his early 30's and left again because of paternal disapproval, and finally after his sister's death, he moves back and is gobsmacked to find that his father and sister had discussed him disapprovingly. So I wanted to smack him, tell to stop being so knocked to the floor with his father being who he is. You are a grown man, get a grip. I think things were more or less resolved by the end of the book.
Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures and Raincoast Sasquatch, both cryptid non-fiction (some might argue).
San Onofre Guy
6-13-13, 12:18am
American Savage by Dan Savage
After sharing that I love Louise Penny mysteries culturally based in Quebec, a friend suggested that I look at Donna Leon mysteries. They seem darker but include a cultural view of Venice and Italy which is kind of fun.
Gardenarian
6-19-13, 10:26pm
"The Sky so Big and Black" by John Barnes - This excellent science fiction novel is the first thing I've read by John Barnes. This is his second book set in this world (on Mars, about 200 years from now.) I've ordered the first one, "Candle", from the library. Excellent characters, wonderful use of language, great story - I'm very excited to have discovered this author!
"Rule 34" by Charles Stross - another sci fi author I'm excited about. He's from Scotland and that permeates his writing. This book is set in a not-too-distant future Edinburgh. Fun stuff.
"Some Kind of Fairy Tale : a Novel" by Graham Joyce. "For twenty years after Tara Martin disappeared from her small English town, her parents and her brother, Peter, have lived in denial of the grim fact that she was gone for good. And then suddenly, on Christmas Day, the doorbell rings at her parents' home and there, disheveled and slightly peculiar looking, Tara stands. It's a miracle, but alarm bells are ringing for Peter. Tara's story just does not add up. And, incredibly, she barely looks a day older than when she vanished." Highly recommended!!
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I'm only 80 pages in and am hooked!
The Judgement of Paris by Ross King. This is about the Paris Salons in the decade 1863-1873 when the Impressionists were coming into prominence. Excellent.
Roosevelt's Centurions by Joseph Persico. The commanders under FDR during WW II. Excellent.
The American Plague by Molly Crosby. You do not want to get yellow fever, ever, ever, ever. Excellent.
The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. Post-apocalyptic flu. I like end of times stuff, and this one had a great review on our library's web site, and it turned out to have a nice and different viewpoint. No zombies, though, so disappointing. :~)
Let's explore diabetes with owls by David Sedaris. I always feel that whatever book of his that I just finished reading is the best of his work, but then a new one comes my way and that becomes my current favorite. Although, all of them are completely my favorite books. Just like with Sherman Alexie. Their stuff is so good that I never have to wait for a new book to enjoy them.
River Road by Suzanne Johnson. Supposed to be similar to the True Blood books by Charlaine Harris. Looks to be paranormal hijinks in New Orleans. Weremen (no merbabes????), wizards, all kinds of were-creatures, some new species, probably all really scientific and everything.
Dummy: A memior by David Patten is next on the pile.
When life gets all cruddy, all I want is fun and escapism...and Sedaris, of course.
Wow, Gardenarian, now I have three new authors to read. I already reserved the fairy tale one, and Partial Eclipse, short stories.
I think I read that The Tooth Fairy was nominated for a Booker and won some other domestic award that same year. It is on my reserve-reserve list.
iris lily
6-25-13, 11:31pm
...[B]"Some Kind of Fairy Tale : a Novel" by Graham Joyce. "For twenty years after Tara Martin disappeared from her small English town, her parents and her brother, Peter, have lived in denial of the grim fact that she was gone for good. And then suddenly, on Christmas Day, the doorbell rings at her parents' home and there, disheveled and slightly peculiar looking, Tara stands. It's a miracle, but alarm bells are ringing for Peter. Tara's story just does not add up. And, incredibly, she barely looks a day older than when she vanished." Highly recommended!!
I read that! It was good, really liked it. It got me to go off on a Graham Joyce junket and I read his How to Make Friends with Demons, not as good as the first one, but ok. He's got a teen novel in there somewhere, too that I took home but didn't get beyond a few pages.
IshbelRobertson
6-26-13, 9:16am
I'm just about to start The Quarry, the very last novel by one of my favourite local authors. Sadly, he died recently.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jun/15/iain-banks-the-final-interview
Thanks to people in our forums, two great books: Plastic-Free and Elizabeth and Amelia Warren's book about getting your budget under control.
I am halfway through Some Kind of Fairy Tale, and am loving it. I also have the short story one, cannot remember the title right now, starts with a "P." I have put all of my other holds on longer-hold, so that I can read more of G. Joyce's books. Thanks, Gardenarian!
Gardenarian
7-1-13, 6:16pm
The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. Post-apocalyptic flu. I like end of times stuff, and this one had a great review on our library's web site, and it turned out to have a nice and different viewpoint. No zombies, though, so disappointing. :~)
Sounds like my cup of tea! Putting it on order at the library now...
The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. Post-apocalyptic flu. I like end of times stuff, and this one had a great review on our library's web site, and it turned out to have a nice and different viewpoint. No zombies, though, so disappointing. :~)
I thoroughly enjoyed Dog Stars. It takes place in my home state and the geographic references were correct and interesting. I think I read it in two or three days. I had a more lengthy satiation of my end of the world zombie reading desires with The Passage and it's sequel, The Twelve. I'm am not a fan of teenage vampire type stories, but these two definitely kept my rapt interest. The "zombies" are actually somewhat of a cross between vampires and zombies.
Rogar, putting them on hold in a moment. Thanks.
I'm reading Robert J. Sawyer's Red Planet Blues. He's the one author that I'd recommend every book and have read every book. It's my type of sci-fi - some hard science, but is more about the "what if" scenario and the characters, who are generally normal people, often Canadian. Red Planet Blues is more detective genre, but is set on Mars.
I'd recommend Rollback and the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy as the best off the top of my head. But I can't remember every book. They are all worth reading if you like sci-fi.
Gardenarian
7-2-13, 6:31pm
I'm just about to start The Quarry, the very last novel by one of my favourite local authors. Sadly, he died recently.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jun/15/iain-banks-the-final-interview
Ishbel, I hadn't heard that Iain Banks had died. What a wonderful writer he was. I'll be putting The Quarry on hold.
Well, the world is a poorer place. :(
Gardenarian
7-17-13, 12:32pm
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki. This was a thoroughly absorbing book, one of those so packed full of story and wisdom that it is hard to describe.
From Publisher's Weekly:
Ozeki's absorbing third novel is an extended meditation on writing, time, and people in time: "time beings." Nao Yasutani is a Japanese schoolgirl who plans to "drop out of time"—to kill herself as a way of escaping her dreary life. First, though, she intends to write in her diary the life story of her great-grandmother Jiko, a Zen Buddhist nun. But Nao actually ends up writing her own life story, and the diary eventually washes up on the shore of Canada's Vancouver Island, where a novelist called Ruth lives. Ruth finds the diary in a freezer bag with some old letters in French and a vintage watch. Ruth's investigation into how the bag traveled from Japan to her island, and why it contains what it does, alternates with Nao's chapters. The characters' lives are finely drawn, from Ruth's rustic lifestyle to the Yasutani family's straitened existence after moving from Sunnyvale, Calif., to Tokyo. Nao's winsome voice contrasts with Ruth's intellectual ponderings to make up a lyrical disquisition on writing's power to transcend time and place. This tale from Ozeki, a Zen Buddhist priest, is sure to please anyone who values a good story broadened with intellectual vigor.
I just read Inferno from Dan Brown. It is a great book!
Now I began an other book from Jorge Bucay, he is a great author. He is a psychologist and for every question in life he is telling a little story. Just great. I can really recommend his books: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorge_Bucay
Here you can find very good book recommendations, critiques and all you want to know about books, I find it great: http://e-njoy.us/books-2/
Happy reading!
I just finished Roosevelt's Centurions but Joseph Persico. It was excellent!! A must read for WW II history buffs.
@Gardenarian I think I am going to start reading "some kind of fairy tale: a novel" sounds like a book that is right up my alley! Thank you for sharing!
Reading a book about Nikola Tesla right now. The man is pretty amazing!
Gardenarian
7-22-13, 4:47pm
Ishbel - have you finished The Quarry?
Wondering what you thought of it. I think the voice of the narrator was excellent...
softweave
7-24-13, 12:33pm
Reading a book about Nikola Tesla right now. The man is pretty amazing!
Tesla certainly was an amazing person. If you like the book, please share the title.
I am 3/4 of the way through The Passage. It is so good. I am finding that I pick it up during the day, just to read some pages, and then find that an hour or two has passed.
I finished Partial Exlipse, as well as Deeply Odd. If anyone likes those Koontz books, this one is interesting in a couple of ways, advancing the narrative and, whilst I love all of those stories, I am now impatiently looking forward to the next book.
I have decided that I will not again allow books to linger here, never wanting that wrenching experience of having to let thousands of them go at a shot. So, I took the most recent finished ones and shared them out with my neighbors. It was a nice way to meet one of them, and to give more to my back-flat neighbor, who might be inspired to share more of her basil with me. :):~)
I do not know what is next. Maybe Dandelion Wine. Maybe I should just get more organizing done.
I am listening to Centennial by James Michener on audio CDs from the library. Do you know how many CDs to record that giant book? 41 CDs. Since I checked it out for 3 weeks and I can renew it for another 3 weeks, that gives me 42 days to listen to 41 CDs. I've been listening while I do my quilting each day. Can't fall behind. :)
You go, Alice, listen as fast as you can!
AmeliaJane
7-25-13, 12:57am
Recent reads: "The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman and "World War Z" by Max Brooks, since I had just seen the movie. I liked the Gaiman--it was a nice, short read and a change from the children's books he has been doing lately (which I also like). I was not as in love with World War Z as many people seem to be...the "Oral History" format means you never really get any character development since you see only one or two people more than once. Also, since it's an oral history, there isn't a lot of suspense since you know 1) the humans win and 2) everyone you're hearing from lives. I think it was more unique when it first came out in 2006...the onslaught of zombies in fiction was just getting started then.
Spiritual Ecology by Thich Nhat Hahn
Don't you love it when a book puts into words what you have felt but couldn't articulate? That is what this book did for me-- things I had pondered and felt but couldn't quite turn into words.
This is a collection of essays by several thoughtful, spiritual people writing from a variety of perspectives. All point toward a lack spiritual groundedness at the core of the ecological devastation we are currently participating in.
It is not a book to be read in one easy sitting but should be read slowly, carefully, thoughtfully.
It would be difficult to pick a favorite but if I did, it would be Wendell Berry's
"Contributions."
I think it was someone up thread who mentioned Louise Penny's mystery books. I'm finishing my 3rd book of hers and really enjoying it.
Reminds me of Jacqueline Winspear's books - mysteries with smart, thoughtful, intriguing characters.
When I finished Cronin's The Passage, I was able to fetch the next book, Twelve, the following day. I am a bit more than half finished with it and went on-line to research the next book in the series. This one is taking longer to read because I am so busy.
There I found some truly terrible reviews about Twelve, from people who loved the first book, but despised this second one.
I must be reading an entirely different book, because I am liking this as much as the first one. It has a slower, more considered pace and is filling in all of thoughts I had about certain people and issues from The Passage. There have been some significant and sort of astounding changes for some characters; this may be a factor in series books, something with which I am not familiar, not having read any other series. Does anyone have any insights about this? It is very satisfying, although the third book has not yet been published. I suppose I can wait, as there is no other option.
For the person who introduced me to this author, thanks, and I am at the part, about halfway through, where can be found Sara, that car and the introduction of a completely new dynamic. I wonder if there will be a reunion at some point.
Jilly, I like The Twelve even more than the Passage, which I really liked. It obviously takes a little imagination to appreciate the two books, but I thought the Twelve got just a little too fantastic for me towards the end, but I don't want to ruin it. It was still a greatly fun read. It's funny, because I am not normally entertained by the mainstream vampire stories and most of the zombie plots are little more than cheap entertainment (which I can sometime appreciate). But I thought the two books were a class act of good plot and character development.
Actually, one of the scariest books I have read was Stephen King's "Salem's Lot", which is a vampire story. I remember that it gave me bad dreams and have to desire to re-read it, but it was pretty much the quintessential vampire story for me. I could see some similarities between The Twelve and Passage to King's The Shining, which was also a favorite of mine.
The first time I read The Shining, I was not able to read it at night or when I was alone in the house. My daughter's favorite King is The Stand. She is probably on her 8th or 9th copy, mostly because she keeps getting paperbacks. I will have to give Salem's Lot another go; I do not remember it freaking me out.
I really like zombie books. I think they are a nearly perfect reflection on the compromises we make in our lives, the societal stresses we all face, and they offer an interesting viewpoint on the politics of religion and, of course, of politics. It is big-picture stuff of the highest order.
I especially like Handling the Undead, by John Ajvide Lindqvist, and one by another Scandinavian author, escapes my mind right now. Frankly, I will take a taste of just about anything even remotely dystopian lately.
Have you heard or read anything about when Cronin's third volume is to be published?
I'm reading Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan. Liking it very much, as it really separates a lot of fairytale from reality, and gives a good historical view of the social/economic/political times in the Middle East at that time. Not without its flaws, but interesting nonfiction nontheless.
The Orphan Train
Life in a Jar--the Irena Sendler Project
The Sandcastle Girls
The Quiet Storm
The Light in the Ruins
And the Mountains Echoed
and then some fun stuff!!
I am in the Goodreads Science and Nature group and this month we are reading The Social Conquest of Earth by Edward O. Wilson. Just started reading and it seems very interesting. We shall see.
What the Robin Knows which is about deep bird language - apparently a skill that primitive humans had once and have lost.
Gardenarian
9-3-13, 4:23pm
Pinkytoe - I really enjoyed that book! (What the Robin Knows.) I have been to several workshops with the author; Jon Young is one of the founders of the wilderness program my daughter is in.
In Beauty May She Walk by Leslie Mass
A 60 year old woman completes a thru hike on the Appalachian Trail in 2001. Fabulous story telling. Great read for hikers!
I just finished a couple of books.
The Anti-Romantic Child by Priscilla Gilman. It is an excellent story of her son's and family's experience with hyperlexia. It tells that story from her son's birth through age 9. It was fascinating, and would be for anyone even if they do not have experience anywhere on the autism spectrum (hyperlexia is not a manifestation of autism, but has many similarities). Ms. Gilman is an English professor and widely references her experience with Wordsworth's poetry. Unfortunately, she is way smarter than am I and I was into the second chapter and found myself first irritated and then hating Wordsworth, who has always been one of my favorite poets. And, because I am dumb, I found her writing and perspective to be pretentious and condescending, especially in regards to her relationships. I find myself disappointed in her and myself for not loving this book more. Just sad.
S.M. Wheeler's Sea Change is wonderful. It is a slightly insane adult fairy tale and I think it was intended to be a coming of age story as well. I think I read that on the book jacket. Anyway, I just loved it. It has some explicit and frightening passages, but the original Grimm brothers' stories are pretty scary, and I like those, too. There were moments when I thought I might have to skip some descriptions, but I am glad I stuck with it. It is a quest story of the highest order, with villains aplenty, a hero or several, dangers and the most unlikely person in distress.
I am finishing Partial Eclipse, Graham Joyce, and I like it very much. On the recommendation of someone here I read his Some Kind of Fairy Tale. I lost the book in my house and had to keep reserving it so that I would not have to pay for it. I found it yesterday and fell right back into those weird stories. I am waiting for The Tooth Fairy and The Limits of Enchantment.
I am also reading Reviver, by Seth Patrick. It may be his first novel, and it is the first in a trilogy. The protagonist is someone who can briefly revive dead people, which is something that law enforcement and grieving families have come to appreciate. So far the suspense is nicely structured, but it has a quality similar to the Anita character in Laurel Hamilton's books. Mr. Patrick is from Ireland, so I am hoping to find reference and resonance in there.
I actually have several books going at once, which is very unusual for me! I am (and have been) reading Les Miserables and a book on the history of Zen - the title which escapes me at the moment. I'm also reading The Last Bookstore In American and Off The Grid - freebies on my kindle. I guess all are "okay", but I'm thinking the fact that I'm reading four at once may be a sign that none are really catching my interest.
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Bailey. What an interesting book! While an illness keeps her bedridden, she watches a wild snail that has taken up residence on the nightstand. She discovers the solace and sense of wonder that this creature brings and comes to a greater understanding of her own confined place in the world.
"Maphead" by the Jeopardy champ Ken Jennings. subtitle is "charting the wide, weird world of geography wonks."
A captivating read because Jennings explores geography on so many levels: the buyers/sellers of antique maps, the National Geographic Bee, Google maps, geocaching, The National Library of Congress map division, etc. Jennings also writes with a light wit that can make an academic subject really engaging.
I just finished Captured by Scott Zesch and really enjoyed it. It is the true stories of several children and teenagers who were taken captive by Indians in raids on the early homesteads of the Texas frontier. Most of the youngsters went through an indoctrination period and were adopted into the tribes of their captors. As the Indian wars came to and end and the tribes were pushed onto reservations, all the captives were eventually "liberated" and returned to their white families.
As a point of interest from a human nature and simple living standpoint, most of the captive preferred their lives with the Native Americans and had to be taken forcibly from their tribes. Several ran away from their white families with decent homes and farms to return to their old way of life living in tepees and frolicking on the plains.
frugal-one
10-4-13, 7:29pm
Just finished the first book in a series of three by Richard Paul Evans. It is an easy read. I finished it in one night. It is light and inspirational.
Here is a synopsis.....
Enhanced Descriptions from Syndetics:
"My name is Alan Christoffersen. You don't know me. 'Just another book in the library,' my father would say. Unopened and unread. You have no idea how far I've come or what I've lost. More important, you have no idea what I've found." Prologue: What would you do if you lost everything---your job, your home, and the love of your life---all at the same time? When it happens to Seattle ad executive Alan Christoffersen, he's tempted by his darkest thoughts. A bottle of pills in his hand and nothing left to live for, he plans to end his misery. Instead, he decides to take a walk. But not any ordinary walk. Taking with him only the barest of essentials, Al leaves behind all that he's known and heads for the farthest point on his map: Key West, Florida. The people he encounters along the way, and the lessons they share with him, will save his life and inspire yours. Richard Paul Evans's extraordinary New York Times bestsellers have made him one of the world's most beloved storytellers. A life-changing journey, both physical and spiritual,The Walk is the first of an unforgettable series of books about one man's search for hope.
I finished Graham Joyce's Tooth Fairy, and thanks to the person who told me about Joyce. It was super weird and I loved every word of it, including the dumb ending. It is my third book of his and it is my intent to read all of his work.
I tried two Michael Flynn novels. The synopsis of each at our library sounded so intriguing. The January Dancer and In The Country of The Blind. I have started each of them several times, even jumping into the books at different places. No luck being grabbed by anything. However, they interest me, so I am not taking them back to the library for another week, just to give each another shot.
I grabbed the new Terry Pratchett, co-written with Steven Baxter (completely new to me), The Long War, which was, according to the dust jacket, preceded by The Long Earth. Alternate and currently inhabited Earths. It is very interesting and has Pratchett's easy dialogue and likeable characters, and a whole new lexicon. I am only 40 pages in and am liking it very much.
I also brought home Trudy Chase's When Rabbit Howls. I grabbed it because of the cover illustration, not the worst reason I have ever chosen a book, by the way. I do not know how I feel about the content and whether or not I will actually read it, well, just have to see what happens.
iris lilies
10-4-13, 10:39pm
Who recommended that Walden on Wheels book? I am into it and liking it a lot. It reminds of that book written by a young man several years ago about how he started with nothing and wanted to show that he could work his way up in the world. He purposely started with nothing and had to live in a men's homeless shelter, had to stand on the corner to get day jobs, etc. Someone remind me the name of that book please. ?:
But I digress, the Walden on Wheels book will be good, I think.
If these kids were my sons I would be worrying about them yet admiring of their steel willed determination to be independent. This kind of life is unfortunately unsafe for females. I wouldn't want my daughter doing it because there is too much opportunity for violence against her.
I think I recommended Walden on Wheels in another thread. I too loved his determination - a rare quality these days.
Right now, I am midway through a book called You Are Now Less Dumb. It is an interesting look with research study examples at why humans believe and behave the way they do. It helps me understand why we are in our current political stalemate. Even though we live in the high-tech modern world, our brains act as they did milennia ago.
I'm a little more than halfway through Grain Brain, by David Perlmutter, MD. His hypothesis is that grains--particularly wheat--cause various health problems, notably dementia and related disorders. It's a provocative position that dovetails with William Davis, MD's Wheat Belly. I'm inclined to believe that modern pharmaceuticals are at least as likely to be the culprits in this particular scourge, but I'm willing to be convinced as the evidence accumulates.
I just finished Oil & Honey by Bill McKibben and enjoyed it very much.
Currently I am reading What a Plant Knows by Daniel Chamovitz for the Coursera class of the same name that I am taking.
Also, I am listening to Audio CD Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks which is excellent. I have loved everything she has written.
Gardenarian
10-7-13, 7:00pm
Code name Verity by Elizabeth Wein.
In 1943, a British fighter plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France and the survivor tells a tale of friendship, war, espionage, and great courage as she relates what she must to survive while keeping secret all that she can. YA fiction, excellent characters, I really enjoyed this book.
Gods and beasts : a novel by Denise Mina.
It's the week before Christmas when a lone robber bursts into a busy Glasgow post office carrying an AK-47. An elderly man suddenly hands his young grandson to a stranger and wordlessly helps the gunman fill bags with cash, then carries them to the door. He opens the door and bows his head; the robber fires off the AK-47, tearing the grandfather in two. DS Alex Morrow arrives on the scene and finds that the alarm system had been disabled before the robbery. Yet upon investigation, none of the employees can be linked to the gunman... Pretty good standard British police procedural. Fun, not particularly enlightening or anything.
May we be forgiven by A.M. Homes.
Feeling overshadowed by his more-successful younger brother, Harold is shocked by his brother's violent act that irrevocably changes their lives, placing Harold in the role of father figure to his brother's adolescent children and caregiver to his aging parents... Well-written, depressing. I really disliked this book. Just awful.
Shaman by Kim Stanley Robinson.
A saga of life thirty thousand years ago during the Ice Age depicts the lives of the shaman Thorn, an outsider named Elga, and Loon, the next shaman, who is struggling to find his own path in a treacherous and uncertain world...Possibly the best book I've read this year. The first section stands alone as one of the best short stories I've read. Fascinating, suspenseful, intelligent.
Newsflesh trilogy by Mira Grant. (Feed, Deadline, Blackout)
Follows two bloggers through the zombie apocalypse. "Our story opens where countless stories have ended in the last twenty-six years: with an idiot - in this case, my brother Shaun - deciding it would be a good idea to go out and poke a zombie with a stick to see what happens." Darkly funny, beautifully constructed and paced, definitely not for everyone.
Gardenarian
10-7-13, 7:02pm
Also, really looking forward to One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson.
Shaman and Newsflesh just went on my reserve list at the library. I can hardly wait.
Also, really looking forward to One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson.
+1
"Her" by Christa Parravani, a memoir of life with her closely-bonded identical twin until the twin committed suicide in
her 20s. Tough read, but well-written.
frugalone
10-16-13, 3:13pm
I just finished "The Racketeer" by John Grisham. Could not put it down! now I'm reading "The Litigators."
P.S. I don't recommend "The Wicked Girls" by Alex Marwood. Highly overrated.
Something fun: a map showing the most famous book set in every state
http://www.businessinsider.com/most-famous-book-set-in-every-state-map-2013-10
pinkytoe
10-17-13, 10:30am
Eating on the Wild Side by Jo Robinson - about finding/eating/preparing the most nutritious produce possible. I have already learned that many fruits are being developed to be much sweeter - some with more sugar than a candy bar so best avoided. Example - Golden Delicious apples. Or that the more bitter a green is, the more nutritious. Very interesting...at least to me.
I'm currently reading The History of Our Community, a book written about the little village my partner and I just moved to recently. Next is The Rhythm of Life by Matthew Kelly and after that, Audition by Barbara Walters and five books by Margaret Atwood, one of my favorite authors.
HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN by Louise Penny is the satisfying sequel to Beautiful Mystery in a lot of ways but complete in itself.
Well done character and mystery development.
I requested it from the library and got the audiobook version. I spent several night listening to 7 of the 12 CD's and returned the audiobook to the library and bought the actual book at a discount. I will circulate the book to friends who are fans of this author as well. No regrets about buying it.
As soon as it arrives, I will be reading "Damned To Eternity" by Adam Pitluk. It is one for amateur Sociologists, as it deals with the case of a troubled young man who is convicted & imprisoned for vandalizing a sandbag levee along the Mississippi River in 1993. The resulting break caused a Flood & washed out several bridges. The reviews sounded favorable, and the author has good credentials, so I'm looking forward to it. BTW, it is a used book that I purchased, so I can take my time reading it. When I'm finished, I'll be glad to lend it to anyone here.
I just finished Dr. Sleep, Stephen King. It was very satisfying and I might read it again when I catch up on other books.
I started Strain, by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan. I am about a hundred pages in and like it very much. Fortunately, this first book of a trilogy is older and the two following are in print, so I will not have to wait before starting the others.
Lainey, that link is so interesting. It was kind of cool that I had read almost all of them, and still found a book that was completely new to me. It is Drown, by Junot Diaz. I just reserved it at my library. It is at my branch, so it should be waiting for me when I go in to work on Wednesday. I love short stories!
"Lottery" a novel by Patricia Wood. What happens when a mentally disabled young man wins the lottery.
I especially liked the author's neat trick of putting the speech that his greedy family members would say right in front of him in italics - even though the main character couldn't understand all of the words they were saying, he'd usually get the gist of it and then repeat what he'd understood in his own words.
Nature Writing by John Muir. Fantastic!!
Zero Waste Home by Bea Johnson. Inspiring.
pinkytoe
11-19-13, 10:18am
Pilgrim's Wilderness - a true story about a family with 14 children who move to Alaska to pursue their "old time" lifestyle. I haven't gotten far but apparently it gets kind of creepy.
JaneV2.0
11-19-13, 11:06am
Lost Girls: an unsolved American mystery by Robert Kolker--a detail-rich non-fiction treatment of the Long Island Craigslist escort murders.
I am close to done with Bryson's, One Summer America, 1927. I had a gift card and splurged to buy a new copy. It has met my expectations. Good writing and an interesting story. Aside from the human dramas it is amazing to me to think of how much the world has changed since then and then project what the future might hold. For example, in 1927 radio was just coming into its own and a third of furniture sales were radios, eclipsing book reading as a main form of home entertainment. I suppose it becomes obvious with a little thought but I guess radios were indeed furniture then. There was no means to drive coast to coast without significant stretches of dirt road. Quite a bit of the book comes back to Lindbergh's transatlantic flight. As the picture is painted, he was many times more the hero of modern astronauts. I have wondered if a person picked another year at random, if he would have come up with an equally interesting set of events. A very pleasant read. Not too detailed or too shallow. Hopefully not too many teasers to spoil the book for others who have it on their list.
Gardenarian
11-19-13, 3:47pm
Bryson's, One Summer America, 1927 - Had a little too much baseball and Lindbergh for me. I was hoping for a broader picture, more jazz age stuff. My dd loved it.
Bryson's, One Summer America, 1927 - Had a little too much baseball and Lindbergh for me. I was hoping for a broader picture, more jazz age stuff. My dd loved it. Gardenarian, I can easily see that take on it. It won't go down as one of my notable books of the year, but still a good read. Perhaps if we'd have been there in the summer of 1927, the Lindbergh and baseball would have been appropriately balanced for the significant mainstream events of the day. Or maybe not. I think my hoped for take away would be to get a flavor of life in the day. Could have been a little better or a lot worse.
frugal-one
11-21-13, 6:43pm
Really enjoyed "One Thousand White Women, the Journal of Mary Dodd" by Jim Fergus.
LibraryThing.com review
This work of historical fiction has roots in a real peace conference that takes place in 1854 between the U.S. Army and the chief of the Northern Cheyenne. At this meeting it was suggested that because the tribe is a matrilineal society that it would only take 1000 white women to assimilate the Native Americans into the "white man's" world. The novel speculates on what would have happened if this idea had been implemented. This fascinating novel is presented as a series of journals written in the late 1800s by a women who heads west as part of this "mission". — Review by user eduscapes
Enhanced Descriptions from Syndetics:
Mountains & Plains Independent Book Association Regional Book Award-Winner -- When May Dodd journeys west into the unknown, it's a far better fate than the life she left behind. Committed to an insane asylum by her blue- blood family for loving a man beneath her station, May's only hope of freedom is a secret government program sending "civilized" women to become the brides of Cheyenne warriors. This is the story of May's breathtaking adventures caught between two worlds, loving two men, living two lives.
Three mysteries in one volume - The Sixth Commandment, the Seventh Commandment and the Eighth Commandment all by Lawrence Sanders with different heroes interesting topics.
For the dog lovers - A Man of his Own by Susan Wilson. She also wrote One Good Dog and the Dog Who Danced, both of which I will look for at the library.
I just started Drown, by Junot Diaz, from that book map that Lainey shared. I forgot I had it with me and was able to read only two of the stories when I was at the laundromat. They are really good. Really.
"Happens Every Day" by Isabel Gillies. Her memoir of the end of her marriage. Authentic and beautifully written.
The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg. Just started last night --would have finished it, but DH insisted on turning off the light. Good, light, funny.
Edited to add:
I finished it last night and enjoyed it all the way to the end. 5 stars!!
I just finished reading The Alchemist by Paul Coelho, which I enjoyed, despite it not being typical of the books I read. I'm currently reading Celebrity Detox by Rosie O'Donnell. I purchased the book, along with a number of other books, at a local used book store recently, for $1.00. I previously read Find Me, by Rosie O'Donnell, and was struck by her distinctive, clean prose, her candidness and her wisdom, so I didn't hesitate to purchase this book when I found it. So far, I'm not disappointed, as I'm quite enjoying it.
In Celebrity Detox, Rosie writes about the time just prior to, during and an extended period of time away from the spotlight she took after her 1 year stint on ABC's The View, a daytime talk show and the valuable lessons she learned about what she refers to as "the fame game".
I am reading a fiction book called Plainsong by Kent Haruf about the lives of several characters in a small eastern Colorado town. It held appeal because I have memories of visiting my grandfather in just such a place. At first, I thought it was moving so slowly, but then I realized the grace unfolding among the simple story line and the interaction of the characters. I will now read the rest of his books.
Just finished The Passion of Artemisia by Susan Vreeland. A fantastic fictionalized telling of Artemisia Gentileschi. She lived in the time of Galileo and was the first woman admitted into the Academie dell'Arte in Florence Italy. The story is remarkably told through her eyes. The story is all about respect for a woman. She struggles all her life for the respect of the men around her.
Just finished The Passion of Artemisia by Susan Vreeland. A fantastic fictionalized telling of Artemisia Gentileschi. She lived in the time of Galileo and was the first woman admitted into the Academie dell'Arte in Florence Italy. The story is remarkably told through her eyes. The story is all about respect for a woman. She struggles all her life for the respect of the men around her.
I thought there was a movie about this once - either on TV or on big screen. Oh yeah, here it is:
http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0035498/?ref_=fn_ch_ch_2
I just worked my way to the top of the library waiting list for The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith. ( I think I started out at 147.) So far it is really good!!
I'm currently reading I Remember Nothing by Nora Ephron, after recently finishing her other book, I Feel Bad About My Neck. I am really enjoying Nora Ephron's humor and writing. Both books are quick reads and quite pleasant, ideal for reading in smaller doses, as my busy days permit.
Appalachian Trail books! Not a hiker at all, but I have found reading these accounts of hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT) very pleasurable. I don't quite understand the appeal but I cannot stop reading them! It started with Wild by Cheryl Strayed on the Pacific Crest Trail,
then Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods,
then In Beauty She Walks- 60 year old woman who through hiked .
I just finished Walking Home by Kelly Winters. Each book was different but nearly impossible to put down.
Then there is Earl Shaefer Walking With Spring- rather lyrical.
The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith
This is an old fashioned, gritty, down on his luck private investigator novel. It just so fits the genre that even his girl Friday is there. The characters are well drawn and quite interesting and the plot is plausible enough. It drags on a bit but is well worth waiting for the end (even if you had guessed who dunnit already.)
Finished Sarah Ban Breathnach's book "Peace and Plenty." Had the same reaction as another poster here, that it didn't have any big spiritual insights on the financial aspects of life despite the subtitle "Finding Your Path to Financial Serenity."
I think I just can't get my head around the fact that she made at least $7M from her earlier book "Simple Abundance" and apparently blew threw about all of it. Yikes.
Eating on the Wild Side, by Jo Robinson. Not exactly a book to read cover to cover, but full of useful and sometimes fascinating information about produce. I might buy a used copy.
The Barefoot Bandit by Bob Friel--a great read in the tradition of Tommy Thompson and Randy Shilts, lovingly told with layers of detail. I highly recommend it.
"... unfinished business ..." by Lee Kravitz, subtitled "One Man's Extraordinary Year of Trying to Do the Right Thing."
After Kravitz was let go from his high-level publishing job, he took a year off to go back and reconnect with old friends, relatives, etc. Sounds cliche, but he did so on a very deep, thoughtful level and wrote wonderfully about the results.
iris lilies
12-27-13, 8:24pm
I'm slowly working through The Orphan Master's Son, a novel about life in North Korea and the especially brutal parts of it. It's fascinating.
My last book of the year: In Defence of Food by Michael Pollan
Neil Young's autobiography, Waging Heavy Peace.
I just finished And Ladies of the Club by Helen Santmyer. It was ungodly long (1176 pages) but the characters were so well done that I just I to find out what happened to them, their children, and their grandchildren. Good historical novel set in Ohio just at the end of the civil war.
I just finished And Ladies of the Club by Helen Santmyer. It was ungodly long (1176 pages) but the characters were so well done that I just I to find out what happened to them, their children, and their grandchildren. Good historical novel set in Ohio just at the end of the civil war.
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