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May 27
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Colleen
gave
 
to:
American Gods (Paperback)
by Neil Gaiman (Goodreads author!)
bookshelves:
fiction,
magical-realism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: people who like myth and/or magical realism
read in May, 2008
Colleen said:
"I'm not sure if I liked this so much because it was really good or if I just love the thought of myth made real and the overall ideas it evokes. In any case, I enjoyed it and I liked trying to figure who the gods were and what culture they belonged ...more
I'm not sure if I liked this so much because it was really good or if I just love the thought of myth made real and the overall ideas it evokes. In any case, I enjoyed it and I liked trying to figure who the gods were and what culture they belonged to. This book made me want to start reading the myths of various pantheons. Overall, this was a fun read and was much better than his later book Anansi Boys. ...less
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Colleen
gave
to:
The Monsters of Templeton (Hardcover)
by Lauren Groff
bookshelves:
fiction,
magical-realism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"This was mostly a good book, but there are some sticking points for me in the plot. The main character's self-centeredness is pretty amazing and not totally believable outside the realm of slight personality disorders. The main plot point seems a l...more
This was mostly a good book, but there are some sticking points for me in the plot. The main character's self-centeredness is pretty amazing and not totally believable outside the realm of slight personality disorders. The main plot point seems a little antiquated as well, and the mother daughter relationship comes across as a little fabricated--i.e., built to make other plot points work. In the end, I guess the characters could have used a little more fleshing out in some cases. On the plus side though, there's a good monster that's easy to sympathize with, the plot is pretty interesting, and it moves along at a fairly quick pace. Good airport material, but at slightly higher level than a lot of airport books....less
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Colleen
gave
to:
The Inheritance of Loss (Paperback)
by Kiran Desai
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"I enjoyed it and thought it was really well-written with interesting characters. I also learned about a bit of India I didn't know anything about. On the down side, it was depressing. That wouldn't be a bad thing if it weren't for the fact that al...more
I enjoyed it and thought it was really well-written with interesting characters. I also learned about a bit of India I didn't know anything about. On the down side, it was depressing. That wouldn't be a bad thing if it weren't for the fact that all the fiction I've read that involves India, Indians, Indian-Americans, etc. have also been pretty sad. ...less
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March 18
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Colleen
gave
to:
Anansi Boys (Mass Market Paperback)
by Neil Gaiman (Goodreads author!)
bookshelves:
fiction,
magical-realism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in January, 2007
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Colleen
gave
to:
Motherless Brooklyn (Paperback)
by Jonathan Lethem
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"I'm surprised this isn't a movie yet. Lionel, a man with Tourette's, is an assistant to a small-time wannabe gangster who gets in over his head and gets himself killed. Lionel wants to find out who killed him, in line with their detective agency fr...more
I'm surprised this isn't a movie yet. Lionel, a man with Tourette's, is an assistant to a small-time wannabe gangster who gets in over his head and gets himself killed. Lionel wants to find out who killed him, in line with their detective agency front. Hijinks ensue, littered with Lionel's outbursts and twitches, but much of the book is spent inside Lionel's head, which was a pretty interesting place to check out. Overall, a good book. ...less
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Colleen
gave
to:
Water for Elephants (Paperback)
by Sara Gruen
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: people who like animals
read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"This was simply a really good story. No difficult prose or technical marvels...just a good story.
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Colleen
gave
to:
Special Topics in Calamity Physics (Hardcover)
by Marisha Pessl
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"This book went beyond gimmicky into some new realm, but the gimmicks didn't seem to add to the plot. This really slows the book down until the mystery emerges (in the 2nd half of the book). The mystery is a pretty good one--it's solvable but not ob...more
This book went beyond gimmicky into some new realm, but the gimmicks didn't seem to add to the plot. This really slows the book down until the mystery emerges (in the 2nd half of the book). The mystery is a pretty good one--it's solvable but not obvious and made the 2nd half of the book pretty compelling. However, I skimmed the gimmicky stuff in the 2nd half to get to the meaty stuff. Overall I liked it ok, but thought it could have used another round or two of editing....less
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Colleen
gave
to:
A Spot of Bother (Hardcover)
by Mark Haddon
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in March, 2008
Colleen said:
"At first I was irritated because the plot seemed essentially the same as The Corrections--older couple, man losing mind, adult children whose lives are in a bit of chaos, etc. Despite some glaring similarities though, they are totally different book...more
At first I was irritated because the plot seemed essentially the same as The Corrections--older couple, man losing mind, adult children whose lives are in a bit of chaos, etc. Despite some glaring similarities though, they are totally different books. I enjoyed these characters, despite their frustrating lack of communication, and overall really enjoyed the book. ...less
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February 26
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Colleen
gave
to:
Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness (Paperback)
by William Styron
bookshelves:
memoir,
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in January, 1998
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Colleen
gave
to:
Sex in History (Paperback)
by Reay Tannahill
bookshelves:
nonfiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in January, 2001
Colleen said:
"This was really interesting until she gets into the 20th century--at that point Freud makes a debut and I lost interest.
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