Book Concierge’s Comments (group member since Feb 12, 2016)

Book Concierge’s comments from the Who Doesn't Love a Classic? group.

Lara wrote: "My sister-in-law and I went to this little pop-up used bookstore in her neighborhood this weekend. It was their last weekend so everything was half off the already super cheap prices. We figured th..."

What a great haul!

We're going to try a different approach for our discussion of Crime and Punishment.

We all miss the nested replies that we had on Shelfari, and want to try to create a format that will approximate that. So, we're going to start a new FOLDER for C&P and each question will be a separate topic. That way all member responses to that question will be grouped together.

If you want a sample for how that might work check out this group: Shelfari 1001 Group (and they happen to be discussing another Russian work - Anna Karenina

We think it's worth a try ... and we don't like it, we can always try something else.

Happy reading!

Audra wrote: "Any discussions yet?"

Usually the first month of the book we spend reading it, and discussion takes off in the second month. So you should see some discussion questions / topics coming up towards the end of August or beginning of Sept.

Megan wrote: "I got the book from the library and tried to start it, but other books kept getting in the way and I finally gave up and returned it. Maybe another day..."

Ditto what Megan said....

A nice, light, summer read ...

La’s Orchestra Saves the World – Alexander McCall Smith – 4****
Alexander McCall Smith has a gentle way of introducing the reader to his characters. La and the other residents of the town go about their business in this small Suffolk village during WW2; they worry, rejoice, are fearful, find love, relish friendships, enjoy simple pleasures and take action when they can. I applauded La’s resilience and her ability to maintain her faith in the basic goodness of others. Her scope of influence may have been small, but she was a treasure to those within that circle.
Full Review HERE

Lara wrote: "We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas

★★★★★
..."

This sounds really good. Great review.

Lara wrote: "So in the book I'm currently reading (We Are Not Ourselves) one of the main characters is reading Crime and Punishment for school. Thought that was a funny coincidence :)"

Maybe it's A SIGN!

Jgrace wrote: "This could be a very long list. It's a good thing you didn't ask for just one. I would refuse to participate on principle.
..."

Oh, yes Louise Erdrich ! I've read only three of her works and enjoyed them all.

I'll edit my list to add some titles.

Lara wrote: "It had been a while since I bought any books, so I went to Half Price yesterday and loaded up.

Here's my haul:
Coriolanus by William Shakespeare (I always pick up a new Shakespeare ..."

Wow, that's quite a haul! Has Mike built you a new bookcase?

Edited to add some of the works I particular enjoyed

John Steinbeck
* East of Eden and Of Mice and Men

Edith Wharton
* The House of Mirth

Stephen King
* The Stand - Dolores Claiborne - 11/22/63

Isabel Allende
* Paula and Daughter of Fortune

Donald E Westlake
* The Ax and The Hot Rock

Agatha Christie
* Murder on the Orient Express and And Then There Were None

These are all authors I've consistently enjoyed and appreciated; though I have read "duds" by a couple of them, I'm still a fan.

One of my all-time favorite books. I first read it when I was a junior in high school. Just flew through it in one weekend. Completely captivated by the psychology of it. I read it again when I was in college, and a third time a few years ago.

Looking forward to the discussion (though I'm not going to re-read it at this time).

Again, a little too "new" (first published 1987) to be considered a classic, but I'm pretty sure this one will last ...

Beloved – Toni Morrison
– 4****
This is a challenging book to read (and to listen to) because Morrison uses multiple narrators, switches time frames without notice, and dribbles out clues to what really happened in a way that keeps the reader off balance and unsure where the story is headed. I did think the “atmospheric” writing sometimes got in the way of the storyline. Still, I loved Morrison’s use of language; I felt immersed in the story, the timeframe, the magic, the brutal reality.
Full Review HERE

NOT a classic, but gripping Non-fiction/history ...

Ghost Soldiers by Hampton Sides – 4****
Sides crafts a story that is gripping, informative, horrifying and inspiring; the forgotten tale of an “impossible” mission to rescue hundreds of American and British POWs from a Japanese camp in the Philippines. I was captured from page one and mesmerized throughout. I felt that I really got to know the men involved – prisoners and rescuers. This is a history that will appeal to fans of Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken or Doug Stanton’s In Harm’s Way.
Full Review HERE

Lara wrote: "Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson
★★★★

Erik Larson’s latest book is the story of the last voyage of the Lusitania. It was in the middle of WWI (before th..."

I really liked this as well.

I never used all the tags here than I used on Shelfari, because of that huge scrolling issues (I really only JUST discovered the ability to start typing and Voila!) ... still, my list of tags/shelves is pretty long. But I no longer care if I use every tag that might apply. I just read Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission for example ... I will ALWAYS use "concierge" and "library"
In this case it was an "audio" and about "world war ii"
The only other one I added was "Philippines" (I'm trying to track settings/locations).
I'm sure I could have added "adventure" or "soldiers" or "military" or just the generic "war" ... but I'm really trying to limit the number of tags I use for each book.

Just the way I approach it.

Lara wrote: "Am I the only one that HATES the way you have to tag books on this site?
I loved it with Shelfari because the word cloud would come up with everyone else's tags and your most popular tags were bel..."

I always type my review in a word document first (spell-check, etc). I have started to also type out my TAGS in that document.

When I copy/paste it into Goodreads I then click on the "Choose shelves" ... but ...I've recently discovered that rather than scrolling down I just start typing. So I'll type conc which bring up "concierge" and then I just hit enter ... then I start typing the next tag/shelf.

You do have to pay attention if you have tags that are similar - for example HISTORICAL FICTION vs HISTORY. You either have to type past the "R" to get the definitive tag, or click on the one you want after you've typed HIS ... but still, it eliminates all that scrolling.

If you type in a tag that you have not previously used it will ask if you want to add that shelf ... click on "add XXX shelf" and voila! (The next time you want to use that shelf it will already be in your list.

I always clear the line of TAGS from the review, before I hit save/submit. But there's no harm done if I forget and leave it there.

Hope that helps.

ilikeboox wrote: "Should I post non-classic books in "Carriage House"?"

Post non-classic books in the Other Reviews thread.

I think you could also EDIT it to take away the all caps ... that might make it seem less "in your face."

Lara wrote: "Question: is there any way to delete a discussion post/topic? For example, the "Looking for a new moderator" thread. I did close it to new replies but I was wondering if there's a way to remove it?..."

I'm not sure ... but I would leave it. It will drop off as other posts are more current. And we might, at some point, want to see if any of the people who asked questions are interested in volunteering for a one-time task.