Jen's comments (member since Feb 01, 2008)

Jen's comments from the The Next Best Book Club group.

I love this discussion all the titles. Congrats on teaching the class! The list compiled is fantastic and you should be in great shape with it. Another one that I would like to suggest for boys (not sure if it qualifies for honors, but it's loved by both teens and adults) is Little Brother by Cory Doctorow.

Good luck and have fun with it!

Jamie wrote: "I'm not saying these types of things can't happen to people, .... The way it was written just didn't seem believable. In addition, I never warmed to the character of Delores for some reason..."

I completely agree with you, Jamie. I felt bad for not caring about the character, but I just didn't. I felt like she was a little whiny and pathetic. Again, I felt bad for feeling that way given the events, but I just couldn't help it.

Yeah! The Shadow of the Wind is a wonderful book! I can't wait to join in the discussion and might even try to re-read this one.

(ScottK! ScottK! They picked it! They picked it!)

Jaime, you're a woman after my own heart. I haven't read The Double yet but have read two his others and it is on my shelf at home...just waiting for me....

I'm reading the third Sookie Stackhouse book right now and am loving it. I had no idea I could get sucked into this series. It is such a guilty pleasure. They are slightly embarrassing to read in public yet I think this is the most fun I've ever had reading a series.

I am dying, let me say that again, dying for Carlos Ruiz Zafon's newest to come out in June, 2009 - The Angel's Game. From what I understand, it's a prequel to Shadow of the Wind which is one of my favorites. The Spanish version is already out, but I'll have to wait for the translated version.

1. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
2. Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
3. Persuasion by Jane Austen
4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
5. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
6. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
7. Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
8. A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah
9. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
10. Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres
11. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
12. The Gawgon and the Boy by Lloyd Alexander
13. Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith
14. The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian
15. A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earthbound Travels in the Far East, by Tiziano Terzani
16. Dissolution, by C.J. Sansom
17. The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
18 The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
19. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
20. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
21. Blindness - Jose Saramago
22. The Giver - Lois Lowry
23. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
24. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
25. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
26. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
27. Suite Francaise- Irene Nemirovski
28. The Fountainhead- Ayn Rand
29. The Horse Whisperer - Nicholas Evans
30. The Things They Carried-Tim O'Brien
31. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
32. The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
33. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
34. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
35. Little Women-Louisa May Alcott
36. The Island - Victoria Hislop
37. The Crown Conspiracy - Michael J. Sullivan
38. House of Mirth - Edith Wharton
39. Time and Again - Jack Finney
40. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hossieni
41. Watership Down by Richard Adams
42. Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry
43. Mistress of the Art of Death - Arianna Franklin
44. Everything that Rises Must Converge - Flannery O'Connor
45. Widow of the South by Robert Hicks
46. Book of Lost Things - Connolly
47. Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett
48. Interred With Their Bones- Jennifer Carrell
49. Shantaram - Gregory David Roberts
50. Just one look - Harlan Coben
51. Water For Elephants by Saru Gruen
52. East of Eden by John Steinbeck

Ichaerus - I read Oscar Wao earlier this year and absolutely loved it! I hope you enjoy it.

A few (?) months ago we read The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly as a group read and it was extremely entertaining. Reading it reminded me of reading books as a child. It was completely absorbing.

Sherry, that portion of the book that introduces Cathy as a character was brilliant to me.

Lori, I think you might be right about the plot. Connie's comment about the journey is pretty spot-on. The book does have a definite them (the Cain and Abel story) but mostly offers insight into human nature. I'm not as well-read as some of you, but for me Steinbeck has more insight into human nature than any author I've ever read. He's just an absolute master.

Sherry, I would agree with you completely. I started off liking Johnny's more but switched to Zampano's when they were further into the house.

Yay, Sherry!

Mad props to you, Lauren, for reading with the girls and for caring about what matters. I wouldn't worry too much about the possibility of setting unrealistic expectations if they have you to discuss the book(s) with. Honestly, anything that gets them reading is great. I read nothing but Mary Higgins Clark and Dean Koontz when I was young and while I can't say that it enhanced by vocabulary, it did pave the way for other books that did. The key is that you are reading these books when them and can have that discussion.

Deb - This book might not be "your cup of tea", so to speak, but it seems like at least you got it. I don't think it is meant to be a typical horror book, so I can see that anyone going into it with those expectations would be disappointed. That said, it's no secret that I loved it.

Honestly, that's not something I would have figured out on my own so thank you!

This is a great question and I love to see everyone's responses - so many great titles. Honestly, I'd have a few to list as well, except that I read East of Eden this year and it has become my favorite book of all time. I cannot recommend it enough.

Kristie Faye - I was doing audible.com as well. It's a pretty good program. Recently, I quit to try to save money and have been getting my audio books from the library. It has been great and I've been amazed at how many titles they have. You do have to wait for some of the new releases, but there are always others to listen to in the meantime.

***Spoilers***

My husband and I went to see the movie last week. I'll preface this by saying that my expectations were very low - movies can never quite do justice to the book. That said, I thought the movie was brilliant. There were a few scenes where you can only hear what is going on while watching a milky white - that was a little cheesy, but other than that, they REALLY nailed it. Julianne Moore was freaking brilliant as the doctor's wife. She really brought the character to life.

In the book, I was quite bothered by the doctor's wife but in the movie, it is much more understandable why she waits to make some of the difficult choices (read, the scissor scene). They didn't edit much from the first half of the book but did condense and do some composite scenes in the end.

I will warn that it was pretty disturbing to see. I'm not kidding when I say I think they nailed it. Has anyone else seen it yet? Thoughts?

Darn you, Ikiwiki! Because it includes spoilers, I won't be able to read the wikipedia information until I'm done. Then I will have to check it and will see a bunch of things I've missed causing me to want to read the book again.

...too many books...

RE: The read straight through vs. skip around question. For what it is worth, I have read this straight through with the exception of the letters from Truant's mother and the pictures in the back (the artists' representations, etc.). I think reading the letters when the book suggests (there is a footnote that directs you to the appendix at some point) is very helpful in developing Truant's character.

Yah Kate Shrew! I'm so glad someone is feeling the same way. I have had a few nightmares with this one. I've also found myself taking a second look at things in the house at night. This book has been pretty intense for me. I think it's an imagination thing. The book has planted a few seeds and my mind has just taken off with it.