false 24983 17 Connie Willis labored five years on this story of a history student in 2048 who is transported to an English village in the 14th century. The student arrives mistakenly on the eve of the onset of the Black Plague. Her dealings with a family of "contemps" in 1348 and with her historian cohorts lead to complications as the book unfolds into a surprisingly dark, deep conclusion. The book, which won Hugo and Nebula Awards, draws upon Willis' understanding of the universalities of human nature to explore the ageless issues of evil, suffering and the indomitable will of the human spirit. 2439628 book 1992 Doomsday Book total:2904|5:45|4:27|3:19|2:4|1:3| 2904 12064 4024 457 1 12 false false Sat Mar 24 07:14:47 -0700 2007 Sat Mar 24 07:39:24 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 7 false false Tue Nov 11 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 11 12:41:22 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 27 23:49:30 -0800 2009
The book straddles an uncomfortable line--neither a full-on science fiction novel nor a historical, it manages to encompass the m...more...]]> 2 4 false false Tue May 05 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 27 14:57:51 -0700 2009 Tue May 05 20:32:37 -0700 2009 One too many more...]]> 5 6 false false Tue Jan 01 19:40:19 -0800 2008 Mon Sep 10 21:11:44 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 01 19:34:59 -0700 2007
If you haven't read anything by Connie Willis, I highly suggest that you stop whatever you're doing and go out and get one of her books.

Willis is sort of a giant in the science fiction world -- she's won Hugo and Nebula awards, among many others. This is the thir...more...]]> 5 3 false false Fri Jul 25 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 23 13:32:00 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 25 18:12:44 -0700 2008 Connie Willis for way, way too long. This is the second book of hers that I've read and the second of hers that I've adored. It wasn't nearly as funny as To Say Nothing of the Dog, but given that a large part of the book was set in the early 14th century in England rath...more...]]> 5 2 false false Tue Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 1998 Sun Sep 30 23:02:17 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 30 23:27:37 -0700 2007
The novel bounces back and forth between a "modern" time (set in the future in Oxford) and past times in...more...]]> 1 2 false false Sun Jan 18 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 16:49:45 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 17:02:40 -0800 2009
I read a lot. The number of books I list on my read list here is a fraction of what I read. And for the most part, none have reviews, just ratings, because I have little time to write reviews. But I just had to comment on "The Doomsday Book". I...more...]]> 3 2 false false Sat Apr 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 03 16:23:54 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 12 15:27:47 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 1 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Sun Dec 21 17:13:40 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 21 17:29:20 -0800 2008
I think many writers just like to read, their own writing. They can't get over their genius, and they have to ram...more...]]> 3 1 false false Mon Sep 22 20:19:57 -0700 2008 Sat Sep 20 15:25:20 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 22 20:19:57 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 0 false false Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 01 01:40:02 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 01 14:55:14 -0800 2009
Here are some tips for the people res...more...]]> 5 2 false false Fri Oct 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 08:21:53 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 08:38:03 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Sep 29 14:06:31 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 29 14:19:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Sep 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 19 07:00:40 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 19 07:15:02 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 11 false false Sun Aug 31 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 31 09:42:37 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 31 10:50:20 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 3 2 false false Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 20:58:01 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 21:10:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu May 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 11:02:55 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 11:55:52 -0700 2009 examiner.com who lists it as her favorite book of all time.

So here it is--why I didn't think this was the best book I've ever read. The first 100 pages were a hard slog. There were too many characters introduced too quickly...more...]]> 1 3 true false Mon May 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 22 12:47:12 -0700 2009 Tue May 26 09:49:47 -0700 2009 1
Pardon me while I rant.
...more...]]> 5 1 false true Wed Aug 05 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 31 08:07:09 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 06:35:26 -0700 2009 To Say Nothing of the Dog, by the same author. Boy was I wrong. About the only thing similar was the fact that the subject matter was time travel, and the method by which it was done.

Doomsday Book is serious. Deadly seri...more...]]> 3 1 false false Wed May 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 01 03:16:38 -0700 2009 Wed May 06 05:47:15 -0700 2009
The story is set in a post-pandemic Earth in the year 2054. The ability to travel through time has been developed and is used by historians to do 'field research'. Time travel is not a simpl...more...]]>