Cyndy’s Comments (group member since Jun 27, 2015)

Cyndy’s comments from the 2017 Reading Challenge group.

I read Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews. The movie is due out in November 2017. Definitely recommended. There is a movie coming out later this year (Nov 2017) based on this book. The movie should be really good, but I haven't seen any trailers. The second book in the trilogy is out and the third is scheduled for release in late August 2017. I have both on my to read list. New-ish male CIA recruit and new-ish female Russian spy attempt to recruit each other while stationed in Helsinki - and that's just the start of the book. There's some love / lust interest between the two, but much more intrigue. I have the two sequels on my to read list.

I also read A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman. I highly recommend this book. It wasn't a page turner for me, but I loved the characters and wanted to know what was going to happen to them. Ove made me think of the movie Grumpy Old Men - he's mostly a less vocal version though!

I read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi for this category. It was recommended by a cousin that reads as mush or more than me. I highly recommend this book. It was a page turner for me, even though at the beginning of each chapter I went back to the geneology to see who was who in the eight generations of this family saga. It might be looked at as each chapter is a short story about an individual. Favorite quote and something worth remembering - "We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must always ask yourself, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth?" -- Gyasi, Yaa. Homegoing: A novel (Kindle Locations 3847-3849). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

For this category I read Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson. Pete is a social worker in rural Montana. The children and parents that Pete works with have issues. These issues make this a difficult read at times, but it was an interesting book and definitely worth the read. Pete is also dealing or not dealing with his own issues.

I read Serendipity by Louise Shaffer for this category. Highly recommended. Four generations of women. The book is written from the daughter's (Carrie) perspective and her struggles in coming to terms with her life and her mother's death. Her mother (Rose) was married to a Broadway playwright / composer / lyricist. Her grandmother (Lu) was a famous Broadway actress. The great-grandmother (Nonna) raised Rose.

Wendy wrote: "My Reading Life by Pat Conroy. I found this book by accident, but I love it. I was pleasantly surprised that the author grew up within an hour of where I live so I recognize his old ..."
I have had this as a to read for a long time. I started it once, and put it back - I don't remember why. I'll have to give it another go!

I read Ring of Fire by Brad Taylor. First appeared after issuance on Jan 10, 2017. I think this might be the best Brad Taylor terrorism thriller yet. Pike, Jennifer, and other task force members trek to Morroco, Gibralter, Norfolk, VA, and Charleston, SC. Terrorism attacks are planned for Houston, LA, Norfolk, and Charleston. How is the task force able to track the terrorists and are they really operating on US soil this time? Highly recommended!

I read Sounder by William H. Armstrong. Newberry Award winner - Sounder is the hunting dog that appeared at a sharecropper's cabin one day. The sharecropper, his wife, and their children live in the cabin. The book, in my opinion, is more about the oldest son and his relationships with Sounder and the family. Recommended reading.

I read Brooklyn by Colm Toibin. Highly recommended. I have not seen the movie, but choose to read the book based on the movie trailers. A young Irish girl, with minimal prospects at home, leaves her family in Ireland and moves to Brooklyn. I felt the book ended too soon, maybe there will be a sequel at some point.­

I read Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult.
"You’re destined to do small great things,” she told me. “Just like Dr. King said.” She was referring to one of her favorite quotes: If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way. " --- Picoult, Jodi. Small Great Things: A Novel (p. 173). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. ---
Highly recommended. I think Ms. Picoult covered a difficult topic in a thoughtful and readable manner.

I read The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick. I decided to read this based on liking the Amazon Prime series first season. I had difficulty with the style - incomplete sentences or thought trails. For example, "Body of yin, soul of yang. Metal and fire unified. The outer and inner; microcosmos [sic] in my palm." That said, the concept is interesting - what happened if the US had lost WWII?

I read The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson. I enjoyed the Longmire TV series from a few years ago and decided to read the books based on the series. I wasn't disappointed and will continue reading the series - some day...

I read Fieldhouse by Scott Novosel. This is the story of a young man that went to the walk-on try outs for the University of Kansas Jayhawks basketball team. It teaches kids to believe in themselves and work for what they want.

Wendy wrote: "Fun idea to read an author from each letter of the alphabet."

Thanks, since the list was so long, I decided to make it a little more of a challenge for me. I might not read much outside my comfort zone, but I'll read authors new to me and make a dent in all of those $1.99 Kindle specials!

My Goodreads goal is 60 books this year, currently at 69/60. I plan on 52 within this challenge - 26 of these will be new authors to me (one for each letter of the alphabet). DONE!!!! The other 26 are planned as authors I have read in the past, but I haven't read a book from an author for each letter of the alphabet before, so... 20 letters of 26 will be previous. DONE!!!!

2 1910s
----The Sins of Severac Bablon by Sax Rohmer
--------R - new
8 1930s
----Dirt by S. L. Dwyer
--------D - new 2 - BOOKCLUB
11 1960s
----Friday the Rabbi Slept Late by Harry Kemelman
--------K - new
13 1980s
----Motor City Blue by Loren D. Estleman
--------E - new
15 family
----Sail Upon the Land by Josa (Keyes) Young
--------Y - previous, but new
16 actors/theatre
----Serendipity by Louise Shaffer
--------S - new
18 artists or art
----Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream by Neil Young
--------Y - new
19 sports-hockey
----Beartown by Fredrik Backman
--------B – previous - BOOKCLUB
21 collecting – antiquities
----The Infltrator by Brad Taylor
--------T - previous 3
30 investigators
----The Innocent (P.I. Jack Marconi Book 1) by Vincent Zandri
--------Z - new
33 military
----Awesome Sh*t My Drill Sergeant Said by Dan Caddy
--------C - new 2
36 policing
----The Intercept: A Jeremy Fisk Novel by Dick Wolf
--------W - new
37 politicians
----In High Places by Arthur Hailey
--------H - previous
41 comedian author
----American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson
--------F - previous
43 eccentric char
----A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
--------B - new - BOOKCLUB
44 child narrator
----What the Waves Know by Tamara Valentine
--------V - new
45 hero
----The Fallen by Ace Atkins
--------A - previous
47 similar job
----The Fix by David Baldacci
--------B - previous 3
50 crime novel
----Angel Eyes by Lauren Estleman
--------E - previous
63 graphic
----Fieldhouse by Scott Novosel
--------N – new
64 historical fiction
----O’Hara’s Choice by Leon Uris
--------U - previous
66 memoir
----The Secret Piano: From Mao's Labor Camps to Bach's Goldberg Variations by Zhu Xiao-Mei
--------X – new
67 mystery
----The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson
--------J - new
71 Sy Fi
----The Man in the High Castle by PK Dick
--------D – new
72 short stories
----Good Behavior by Blake Crouch
--------C - new
75 bad event
----Murder in Little Egypt by Darcy O'Brien
--------O - new
76 animals
----Dog on It by Spencer Quinn
--------Q - new
77 books
----Camino Island by John Grisham
--------G - previous 2
78 friendship
----Cottonwood Whispers by Jennifer Erin Valent
--------V - previous
81 war
----What it's Like to Go to War by Karl Marlantes
--------M - previous
84 slavery
----Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim
--------I – new
88 trial
----Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
--------P - new – BOOKCLUB
92 beach read
----Brooklyn by Colm Toibin
--------T - new
95 2017 movie
----Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews
--------M - new
96 loved author
----The Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson
--------J - previous
97 new-to-you author
----The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
--------W - previous, but new
99 favorite author
----A Dangerous Woman from Nowhere by Kris Radish
--------R - previous 3
100 everyone
----Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
--------K - previous-but new - BOOKCLUB
101 over 500 pgs
----The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X
--------X - previous, but new
102 pub 2017
----Final Target by John Gilstrap
--------G - previous
103 Recommended
----Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
--------G - new
104 different country
----The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith
--------S - previous
107 France & 50s Cuba
----Topaz by Leon Uris
--------U - new
110 free
----The Senator by Ken Fite
--------F - new
111 translated German
----The Play of Death by Oliver Potzsch
--------P - previous
112 under 150 pgs
----Getaway by Nelson DeMille
--------D - previous
113 Month
----Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson
--------H - new
114 number
----The 500 (Mike Ford, #1) by Matthew Quirk
--------Q - previous, but new
115 One word title
----Daybreak by Viktor Arnar Ingolfsson
--------I - previous, but new
116 season
----Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch
--------K - previous
117 three-word title
----Use of Force by Brad Thor
--------T - previous 2
118 interesting title
----American Appetites by Joyce Carol Oates
--------O - previous, but new
122 pictures
----YUGE!: 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump by Garry Trudeau
--------T - new 2
125 disliked but finished
----Skywriting by Word of Mouth by John Lennon
--------L - new
128 own haven't read
----Bailey's Café by Gloria Naylor
--------N - previous, but new
135 award
----Sounder by William H. Armstrong
--------A - new
137 lifespan
----The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson
--------J - new 2
138 color in title
----The Black Echo by Michael Connelly
--------C – previous
139 fav color
----Under a Raging Moon by Frank Zafiro
--------Z - previous, but new
140 NYTs
----Ring of Fire by Brad Taylor
--------T – previous
141 bookstore pick
----The Complete Adventures of Curious George by Margret Rey
--------R - previous 2

I am still hoping for a list from this group for 2017. I'll be out of commission for a few days, maybe more. Hopefully, when I check back in we'll have a list.
If not, I think I will read the alphabet. I glanced through my Kindle and I have at least two or three books from authors I haven't read with last names starting with A - Z. That will make up 26 books and then I'll have 26 wild cards left - maybe they will end up being A - Z authors that I have or haven't read before.

Frogli wrote: "Cyndy wrote: "Not necessarily a suggestion for 2017, but I ran across a "read harder" challenge from Book Riot.

http://bookriot.com/2016/12/15/book-r......"

Dang, Frogli! I thought that list was in the realm of making reading un-fun!

Not necessarily a suggestion for 2017, but I ran across a "read harder" challenge from Book Riot.

http://bookriot.com/2016/12/15/book-r...

Some of the "tasks" are from authors and some are really restrictive. Interesting list though. :-)

I finished this year’s challenge Oct 16th, nine days earlier than our 2015 challenge. This year’s challenge was easier for me, because I didn’t have to buy a graphic novel – no offense intended, I am old and comic books are not something I want to spend any money on. My favorite categories last year were color in the title, number in the title, and an author with your initials. My favorite categories this year were the wildcards. I much prefer the categories that allow you to pick from any genre, rather than the genre based. I’m a fan of thrillers, spy novels, and mysteries. I did have a few shorter books within the challenge, but my average book length was still 310 pages, so I don’t feel too bad about the shorter books. Looking forward to next year's challenge.
My top recommendations from the books I read this year are marked with *s below and any of the thriller / spy novels!
Oath to Defend by Scott Matthews
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday
The Forgotten Soldier by Brad Taylor
The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine by Alexander McCall Smith
Falling into Grace by Michael Dietrich
The Rosie Project by Grame Simsion
The Art of War by Stephen Coonts
The Opposite of Everyone by Joshilyn Jackson
The Death of the Great Santini by Pat Conroy
Flight of the Sparrow: A Novel of Early America by Amy Belding Brown
Partners by John Grisham
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Mrs. Mike by Benedict & Nancy Freedman
Shadow Tag by Raymond Khoury & Steve Berry
The 14th Colony by Steve Berry
The Last Mile by David Baldacci
Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy by Carlos Eire
The Life We Bury by Allan Eskens
Running for Water and Sky by Sandra Kring
Mislaid by Nell Zink
* The Martian by Andy Weir
2 A.M. at The Cat's Pajamas by Marie-Helene Bertino
Theodore Boone kid lawyer by John Grisham
Time to Run by John Gilstrap
Maud's Line by Margaret Verble
* The Dinner by Herman Koch
Foreign Agent by Brad Thor
P.S. Be Eleven by Rita Williams-Garcia
Gone Crazy in Alabama by Rita Williams-Garcia
Liberty's Last Stand by Stephen Coonts
Friendly Fire by John Gilstrap
The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
Ghosts of War by Brad Taylor
Bucky F&%@ing Dent by David Duchovny
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
The Innocents by Ace Atkins
Antarctica: Penguins, Whales, and Happiness by Anna Huddleston
The House of Secrets by Brad Meltzer
Girl in Translation by Jenn Kwok
* The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende
Meridian by Alice Walker
The Frog Princess by E. D. Baker
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
Johnny Tremain by Esther Hoskins Forbes
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
House Reckoning by Mike Lawson
Tales from the Odyssey - Part 1 by Mary Pope Osborne
Tales from the Odyssey - Part 2 by Mary Pope Osborne
The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katerina Bivald
* Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd by Alan Bradley
Witness to a Trial by John Grisham
* The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
* Light of the World by James Lee Burke – this was my final book for the challenge
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Nick of Time by John Gilstrap
House Rivals by Mike Lawson
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Divas Do Tell by Virginia Brown
The Target by Brad Taylor
Flamingo Sunset by Jonathan London
Order to Kill by Kyle Miles
Precious and Grace by Alexander McCall Smith
* The Witness by John Grisham
* No Man's Land by David Baldacci
Dark Trojan by Scott Matthews
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
No Way Back by Andrew Gross – currently reading

I'm liking the sound of it!