Janny's comments
(member since Apr 10, 2009)
Janny's comments from the The Next Best Book Club group.
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Jayme wrote: "Janny wrote: "I'm nearly finished Fool's Errand, and will probably pick up Blood and Iron before starting our neighborhood book club read."You have a neighbourhood book..."
We do, and it is awesome. We meet once a month, and pot luck a dinner related to that month's book.
I'm nearly finished Fool's Errand, and will probably pick up Blood and Iron before starting our neighborhood book club read.
Our next book club read is going to be Spangle by Gary Jennings.Has anyone read this?
The only book I read by this author was Aztec, and that was years ago. I recall it as being muscularly raw - spectacularly graphic in blood and guts and sensational death.
Just asking - today I'd avoid a read like this before bedtime, to avoid the vivid dreams. The subject matter doesn't seem at all alike, but I thought I'd inquire ahead.
Finished Someone Knows My Name, which turned out to be beautifully researched. I was tickled to note in the author's afterward, an acknowledgment of the nonfiction history book, Black Cargoes A History of the Atlantic Slave Trade 1518-1865 by Daniel P. Mannix, which I read years ago. He was my landlord for 11 years, and quite an extraordinary man.
I am into the early chapters of Someone Knows My Name, about an African snatched up as a young girl by the slave trade. I loved the sharp edge of irony in this sentence from chapter 1:"About me, I have a clutch of abolitionists - big-whiskered, wide-bellied, bald-headed men boycotting sugar but smelling of tobacco and burning candle after candle as they plot deep into the night."
I have to read this quickly for a book club, but it's been well done, so far.
Lyn wrote: "Sounds intriguing Janny, I just added it to my TBR to see if I can work it in for next year. Good luck."That's exciting, and thank you for the nice wish! I hope you will enjoy the story - I'll warn that the intensity of the ending has caused readers a burned dinner, or a missed train or bus stop on their way to work. I'm delighted to hear you'll give this a whirl when the time's right.
JG wrote: "I'm reading The Guns of Avalon right now. I should finish it soon, then I'll probably pick back up with my Halloween-y books and read I Am Legend."JG - nice to see you reading Zelazny. One of my favorites.
I just finished All the Windwracked Stars, a strange mix of Norse myth, dystopia, and techno-magic. It did not have all the allegory or allusions found in Zelazny's work, the characters had more human interest (the author is a woman) - but she had some of the same tendencies to mix ideas with imagination and fearless disregard for logic.
I'll probably be starting Treason's Shore next, to see how Sherwood Smith ends her Inda series.
I'm pleased to be able to add that this title is now made available for the Kindle.
I finished The Woman in White, and have started Forge of Heaven. Our local book club has chosen Someone Knows My Name, so that will be next.
I am nearly done The Woman in White, though finding the social manners of the period slow going, despite the wonderful story. One thing: I'd have hated the conformity and the straight laced helplessness of being a woman living in that era!
Mosca wrote: "I've just finished Stone Junction by Jim Dodge--an engaging anarchist fable. And I've written This Review.It appears that I've begun reading [b:Rivers of Gold ..."
If you are interested in fantasy told from a more mature angle with a lot more poignancy and depth, I'd highly recommend Guy Gavriel Kay's work, or Carol Berg's first trilogy or latest duology.
Or go back to Tolkein, who set the bar for so many other works...the above mentioned authors, I ought to add, are NOT in that style at all.
Donna wrote: "Janny wrote: "Our local book club is reading Summer of the Red Wolf A Novel for Thursday, which is one of my favorites. I just finished The Course of Honor by [a:L..."I enjoyed it - for the mood I was in, tired from a very hard trip, this book was just exactly the right pick. What fascinated me was the shift in narrative style from this standalone, and Davis's series. I hadn't expected that - but it made sense, since she was choosing to write from the perspective of a historical character.
I hadn't chosen the story for the sake of gaining historical perspective - Davis has a particular gift for making a place feel alive. I am no scholar on that particular period, and so am in no position to be critical.
For anyone who enjoys stories set in ancient Rome, I also enjoyed Search the Seven Hills by Barbara Hambly to be exquisitely well done.
Our local book club is reading Summer of the Red Wolf A Novel for Thursday, which is one of my favorites. I just finished The Course of Honor by Lindsey Davis, and am about halfway through The Woman in White.
I have finished The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane for our local book club tonight. For me, the most unique part of the entire read was the description of the old house and garden run wild.Next I'll be treating myself to a new author, well off the beaten path, in that, she's traditionally published in hardback, but I've never seen a mention of her title by readers anywhere. If the book turns into a delightful discovery, I will post the title shortly.
Maverick, me. I'm gunning for the Guy Kay/Tigana...it's a stunning cross-cultural read with more relevance than most fantasy - it borrows off the meltdown that occurs when a conquering culture tears the fabric of society apart. Although Kay's world is imaginary, it handles some truly hot issues with the gloves off. People from real world nations obliterated by Nazi conquest have been known to write to the author and ask, "Were you writing about us?"The book is a haunting experience most do not forget.
Little Women and Grapes of Wrath too...hard choices!
I've moved on to The Woman in White after finishing Rift in the Sky. Talk about a change of gears, to keep things interesting.
Ana wrote: "The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón - few more pages left to go. Very good book. "I keep trying to get this title at the library - always checked out. I'm determined - eventually I'll lay hands on this book! It sounds wonderful.
DyinOrion wrote: "I'm reading The Drowned Life by Jeffrey Ford. I actively seek out Twilight Zone type stories (Stephen King and Richard Matheson are great examples) and I was elated when I picked this book up and s..."Jeffery Ford's work is extremely well respected, in the genre. I hope you enjoy it.
I was not into all the punk references, or the music - but I just let those details slide past. The characters were into their "era" and, so would a reader be, who shared that pop cultural background. I didn't feel "left out" that the references didn't ring in for me.But I've been a longtime reader of historical and fantasy, so details that don't connect to my own modern life just add to the atmosphere.
It's interesting (to me) to realize that becomes a deal breaker, for some folk's enjoyment.
Different strokes, certainly.
I finally found a copy in at the library, today - better late than never! the book does look intriguing.
