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

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

35 - The Quest of the Missing Map
I like to revisit Nancy every now and then. This wasn't one of the better visits. 2*

36 - The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
I loved the first half, but then stopped caring who the next husband would be. It did pick up towards the end. Probably a 3 1/2 overall, but I gave it 4*.

37 - Demon Copperhead
LOVED it. Barbara Kingsolver rarely disappoints me. She has a unique way of combining sadness and beauty. 5*

32 - Finding Me
I can see why Viola Davis won an Audie for this. 4*

33 - The Green Mile
I'm not a big horror fan but I AM a fan of Stephen King's writing, so I appreciated this departure from his usual fare. 4*

34 - Lord of the Silent
Ok, parts of it were silly but it was so much fun I'm rounding up to 4*.

29 - In Other Rooms, Other Wonders
An apt description from the cover "Richly textured stories reveal the complexities of Pakistani class and culture...". 4*

30 - The Lady in the Lake
I do enjoy Chandler's noir detective fiction. 4*

31 - Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations
A tad dated since it's from 2016, but I am always impressed with Friedman's research and analysis. 4*

27 - Stitches: A Memoir
Sad and lovely memoir. I was glad to happen upon this. 4*

28 - The Book of Goose
This year's winner of The Tournament of Books. I didn't love it - felt uncomfortable anticipation throughout, like something horrible was about to happen. 3*

24 - The Easy Life in Kamusari
Delightful, plus I learned a lot about sustainable forestry. 4*

25 - Life After Life
FINALLY got to this after 10 years on my TBR! It was very good, but by the end I was starting to get a little weary of the time jumping. 4*

26 - The Last Cuentista
Great middle-grade Dystopian thriller. Newbery winner 2022. 4*

21 - The Return of Faraz Ali
Great characters and atmosphere. Historical fiction may be my favorite genre. 4*

22 - The Dark Hours
Another solid entry in the Bosch series, but I'm still deciding how much I like Renee Ballard. (view spoiler)[I thought the ending was a stretch, with her (or anyone) intentionally taking on the two serial rapists on her own. (hide spoiler)] 3 1/2*

23 - When Life Becomes Precious: The Essential Guide for Patients, Loved Ones, and Friends of Those Facing Serious Illnesses
Some good ideas, but dated and somewhat repetitive. 3*

19 - The Violin Conspiracy
I really wanted to like this. I respect the author, and I loved the parts about music. The "mystery" and the character development...no. 2*

20 - The Collected Plays, Vol. 2
And it's on to Volume Two of Neil Simon plays. I will add each play here as I finish it:
- Little Me
- The Gingerbread Lady
- The Prisoner of Second Avenue
- The Sunshine Boys
- The Good Doctor
- God's Favorite
- California Suite
- Chapter Two (6/8/23 - Finally finished this volume!)

16 - The Looking Glass War
Dark, but well-written and absorbing. 4*

17 - The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida
Uncomfortable, powerful, unique. I learned a lot about Sri Lanka. 3 1/2*

18 - Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
I'm getting a little hooked on these stylish Smiley books. Hoping to finish the series this year. 4*

13 - Half of a Yellow Sun
Stellar historical fiction. 5*

14 - Mercury Pictures Presents
A bit disjointed and overwritten in places, but I found the characters fascinating. 4*

15 - The Night Fire
I enjoy listening to this series on audio (esp. with Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch). 4*

10 - The Poet X
Excellent young adult novel in verse. 4.5*

11 - The Hours
Lovely writing, but I never really got involved with the characters. 3*

12 - Now Is Not the Time to Panic
The perfect author for this quirky novel. Makes me want to read his short stories. 4*

7 - Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster
So good. 5*

8 - Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Great writing and character development. I thought the beginning and end were better than the middle. 4*

9- Writers & Lovers
EXACTLY the book I needed right now. I stayed awake half of last night finishing the audio. 5*

Exanimis wrote: "75 books this year, that's a big challenge. I've only reached that number twice since joining Goodreads back in 2012. Good luck."

Thanks! Hope 2023 is a great reading year for you, too.

4 - Evil Under the Sun
I've said it many times, but I'll say it again. I love Agatha Christie mysteries! 4.5*

5 - The Daily Show (The Audiobook): An Oral History as Told by Jon Stewart, the Correspondents, Staff and Guests
Recommended for fans of The Daily Show. 4*

6 - Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
I liked this a lot, although I couldn't quite grasp all the magical translation stuff. Also a tad long. 4*

1 - Spider's Web
Fun novelization of a Christie play to start off the year. 4*

2 - The Collected Plays, Vol. 1 (in progress)
I needed to read a play for a challenge last year, so I thought "why not read all four volumes of Neil Simon plays"? Haha. I'm counting each volume as only one book, so I'll keep track of the individual plays under each book heading. Read so far:
- The Odd Couple (read last year, but didn't 'count' it)
- Come Blow Your Horn
- Barefoot in the Park
- The Star-Spangled Girl
- Promises, Promises
- Plaza Suite
- Last of the Red Hot Lovers (1/27/23 - finished the book)

3 - The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times
Just as inspiring as I expected it to be. 5*

Oh, I sympathize. The "physical piles of owned to-read-books" is out of control for me, and yet I keep adding more! *Sigh*

Best of luck in meeting your reading goals this year!

I have lowered my goal a bit this year, because I need to devote some of my reading time to other projects. Also, I plan to tackle a few chunksters. Wishing a Happy New Year and many happy reading hours to all!

Tiffany wrote: "I have 2 more books sitting on my nightstand that I had planned to finish this year. But HLN has been showing a marathon of "The West Wing" that goes until early Monday morning, and all of my plans..."

The West Wing is the BEST!! Worth giving up some reading hours ;)

ETA: I haven't watched the last season yet. Setting recording now. Thanks for the tip!

100 - Sea of Tranquility
And...*drum roll*...met my goal of 100 with an excellent read. 4 1/2*

My ploy of picking several short books for December worked!

96 - From Doon With Death
Rendell didn't fool me in her first Inspector Wexford novel. I like the Inspector, though, and will continue the series. 3*

97 - Casino Royale
Not a big Bond fan, but I get to cross another off the 1001 Books list. 3*

98 - Hotel du Lac
I really liked this Booker-winning tale of an intelligent, complicated single woman in her 30's. 4*

99 - Cold Comfort Farm
Especially delightful on audio. 4 1/2*

93 - The Rabbit Hutch
So many emotions during this one. Gunty has great writing chops, but in the end I admired it more than enjoyed it. 3.5*

94 - Shopgirl
Lost steam at the end, and there were a couple of scenes that annoyed me (involving a woman, but screaming they were written by a man). 3*

95 - The Mistletoe Promise
A few too many eye rolls, I'm afraid, but I needed a book with "Holiday" genre for a challenge. I rounded up 1/2* on GR because he's a local author. 2.5*