Ann A’s Comments (group member since Apr 18, 2010)

Ann A’s comments from the Challenge: 50 Books group.

Congratulations on reaching your goal! Looks like you read a variety of interesting stuff this year...

109 - Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe
Entertaining audiobook. I don' t know if I ever saw the movie, but I'll probably watch it now. 4*

That's it for me for 2017. I exceeded my overall goal, although I didn't get as many read from the 1001 list as I wanted to. Hope everyone had a great reading year!

108 - Ubik
Another in the PKD omnibus (see #106 above). 3 1/2*

105 - Family Matters (1001 books)
Mistry is a wonderful storyteller - plenty of sadness and misery, but also hope and beauty. 4 1/2*

106 - The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch
I enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and decided to read the others in the Philip K. Dick omnibus I got from the library (Four Novels of the 1960s) He's got quite the imagination. 3*

107 - The Song of Achilles
Well-written and entertaining, but I'm not a huge romance or mythology fan. 3 1/2*

101 - The Age of Innocence (1001 books)
I got fed up with the "appearances above all else" society, but the writing! Oh, my goodness. 4*

102 - March: Book Three
These graphic novels are very effective in telling John Lewis' story. He's an amazing man. 4 1/2*

103 - The Man in the High Castle
Interesting premise for a novel, but I didn't especially connect with any of the characters and felt several times like I didn't really "get" what was happening. 3*

104 - Fire Watch
Liked some of the stories, disliked others - overall average 3*.

98 - Looking for Alaska
A good book, but I'd like to think these are not the typical lives of kids in boarding schools. 3*

99 - Appointment with Death
Dame Christie is a clever one. She fooled me yet again! 4*

100 - Something New: Tales from a Makeshift Bride
Fun fluff. 4*

And.....I reached my goal for the year!

95 - The Reluctant Fundamentalist (1001 books)
Gripping fiction which made me think hard about some complex issues. 5*

96 - Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened
Ok, I didn't love the WHOLE book, but Allie gets 5* stars for courage and cleverness.

97 - The Far Side Gallery 2
Ha ha ha! 5*

92 - Death of a Travelling Man
More adventures with Hamish. 3*

93 - A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea
I enjoyed this somewhat random pick. I did have a few issues with it, but the writing was lovely and I'd read more by this author. 4*

94 - The Professor's House (1001 books)
I liked the first half better than the second, but Cather is one heck of a writer. 4*

89 - Atlas of World History
I hated history in high school, but now I find it fascinating. Go figure. 4*

90 - The Ultimate Happiness Prescription: 7 Keys to Joy and Enlightenment
I felt like this was slapped together (not very effectively) from his other writings. 3*

91 - George
Another one on the "most challenged" list. 4*

86 - The Sign of the Twisted Candles
I revisit my childhood pal, Nancy, a couple of times a year (during Dewey's Readathon). 3*

87 - Y is for Yesterday
I love the way Grafton writes, but this didn't grab me like most of her others have. 3*

88 - Midnight in Austenland
Liked the first one more. 3*

83 - Ageless Memory: The Memory Expert's Prescription for a Razor-Sharp Mind
Interesting techniques for improving memory. Now - to PRACTICE them and keep my mind sharp!! 4*

84 - This One Summer
Well-done graphic novel about early teen girls and the challenges of growing up. On the "10 Most Challenged Books" list. That's why I checked it out from the library and read it! 4*

85 - Drama
Also on the "list". Thoroughly entertaining, with great characters. 4*

80 - Death of a Glutton
Hamish is a lovable guy, but this one was a little too unpleasant and silly for me. 2*

81 - Bertie's Guide to Life and Mothers
I keep saying A.M. Smith's series' are losing steam, but I still keep reading them... 3*

82 - The Little Book of Mindfulness: 10 Minutes a Day to Less Stress, More Peace
Nothing ground-breaking, but good reminders/suggestions for taking a little time "out" each day.

Looks like you HAVE had a great year of reading! That's an impressive list of books.

77 - The Closers
Another solid entry in the Harry Bosch series. 4*

78 - Einstein's Dreams
Very unique little book,imagining Einstein's dreams about different concepts of time. 4*

79 - This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection
I do enjoy memoirs from show business icons. I listened to this audiobook (read by Carol) and was totally entertained. 5*

76 - What Happened
I was enthralled by this. No political opinions here - I just felt this was an honest take on what Hillary felt happened during the campaign, the problems we face as Americans, and what she thinks we can do to come together and solve them. 5*

And....I'm caught up. Whew! I rarely write a 'real' review, so it's fun for me to look back on my brief comments on the 100-ish books I read each year.

73 - To Have and Have Not (1001 books)
I'm not a Hemingway lover and I loved this less than usual. Another tick off the 1001 list, however. 2*

74 - Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1001 books)
I'm always surprised when I really enjoy science fiction, but there's a reason this is a classic. 4*

75 - Crime Beat
Some of Connelly's crime reporting as a journalist. I always wondered what his background was (I'm a big fan of Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller). 4*

70 - The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe
Some of Hawking's lectures. Interesting, but 'A Brief History of Time' was better - editing does matter. 3*

71 - A Brief History of Time
Parts were certainly over my head, but much of it was very interesting. Now I feel like I need to research the advances that have been made since this was published. 4*

72 - Doomsday Book
Had to think about this a bit before rating it. Longer than it needed to be, and one section was difficult to read. In the end, I decided the author was brave for handling that subject realistically, and overall, it was a rip-roaring good read! 4*

67 - My Life in France
Fascinating! I wasn't expecting this to be such a page turner, but I really loved it. 5*

68 - The Lady and the Unicorn
Very interesting historical facts about medieval tapestries, but the characters didn't really grab me. 3*

69 - Sophie's World
Great review of/introduction to philosophy in the form of a novel. 4*

64 - Al Franken, Giant of the Senate
Love Al, think he's a great public servant, and oh yeah, he's funny! Recommend the audio read by him. 5*

65 - As You Like It
I read this in preparation of seeing a live performance. For maybe the first time with Shakespeare, I enjoyed reading it much more than seeing the actual play. 4*

66 - A Mind to Murder
I do enjoy British murder mysteries, and James is one of my favorites. 4*

61 - Hidden Figures: The Untold True Story of Four African-American Women Who Helped Launch Our Nation into Space
Really enjoyed reading about these amazing women. 4*

62 - The Nightingale
Great story, but I felt the writing didn't live up to it. 3*

63 - Commonwealth
Patchett has been hit and miss for me, but I loved this one. 5*