Anika’s
Comments
(group member since Dec 25, 2011)
Anika’s
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from the Reading with Style group.
Showing 781-800 of 2,796
20.1 JemisinDeacon King Kong by James McBride
The Sellout by Paul Beatty
20.2 King
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
Last Night in Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel
20.3 Vonnegut
Lysistrata by Aristophanes
20.4 Saramago
Imagining Don Giovanni by Anthony Rudel
20.5 Faulkner
Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
20.6 Coleridge
20.7 Cervantes
Gypsy Ballads by Federico García Lorca
60.75 G55, Title has a word with a double GTagged for Death by Sherry Harris
Sarah's life has been turned upside down: her husband of 18 years impregnated his mistress, so she divorced him and moved into a small apartment. Problem is, he was military and they lived on base so now she has to get "sponsored" every time she wants to visit her friends or go to her job at the thrift shop on base.
Having left the spoils of her yard sale scouring in her Suburban overnight, she starts the processing of unloading. She finds a garbage bag in there that she doesn't remember purchasing. In it, she finds the bloodstained shirts of her ex-husband and his girlfriend.
Thus begins this cozy-ish mystery. I really enjoyed the first half, though the last half became a bit disjointed and the denouement was a bit of a disappointment. I *might* pick up another in this series, but with so many of my favorite authors/series dropping new books in the next couple of months I probably won't any time soon.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+50 Fifteenth bingo: B3, I30, N34, G55, O67
Task total: 115
Season total: 3665
60.74 G59, GYPSUM Mary Jane by Mary Jane
Another case of book synchronicity—a book set mostly in Baltimore, revolves around music, chosen families, and coming-of-age themes…SO echoey of the last book I finished.
Set in the mid-‘70s, Mary Jane, an upper-middle-class WASPy fourteen-year-old, takes a job as a nanny to the new family in the neighborhood. Her mother approves only because the dad is a doctor. Mary Jane worries that her mother will make her quit if she finds out he’s a psychiatrist (not a surgeon, as the mother imagines) and how very eclectic the family is. Mary Jane is torn between the cold, loveless home she was born into and the free, accepting, artistic Cone family.
I can’t quite put my finger on *why* I loved this so much, but I really did.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+50 Fourteenth bingo: B14, I24, N44, G59, O73
Task total: 115
Season total: 3550
B 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
60.73 N34, Nebula AwardA Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker
I've been having...hmm, not quite reader's fatigue....decision fatigue? For the Booker Prize, Nebula Prize, GYPSUM, and double "G" tasks I've read between 50-150 pages of a ridiculous number of books before changing my mind on them and searching out something else. After attempting four different books for this task, I am SO glad that I kept searching for the perfect book rather than settling for something I just wasn't that into.
This book was AMAZING.
Luce Cannon was just hitting it big: one of her songs has become so popular that she's finally gotten her first headlining gig, her name on the marquee. The night of the big concert, a terrorist bombing targets a baseball stadium and thousands die. The President asks people to stay home until things calm down. Luce and her band decide to have the concert anyway. It ends up being the last "big event" of the Before.
Terrorist threats continue to come in and then a plague hits (this was written pre-Covid, which is NUTS because it hits eerily close to the mark) and in the After, large gatherings are illegal and the only way to socialize (work, school, dating, extracurricular activities) is online using a "hoodie" (an immersive VR technology)--and it's all monetized by the Big Businesses who run them.
Rosemary Laws, a child of the After, only knows social distancing and hoodie life. A sweet job finding and promoting underground musical acts falls into her lap, but will require her to quite literally go outside of her comfort zone.
It's got a little bit of everything: some Almost Famous, a fair amount of Ready Player One, a lot of current social commentary: social media and the way it can distort real life; the detrimental effects of Big Business (mostly feeling Amazon/Walmart and iTunes/Ticketmaster here); GLBTQ+ alienation, especially in relation to religion. It also deals with universals such as what makes a family/community and the transcendent power of Art.
+60 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 3435
B 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
Congrats on the exciting news, Deedee! And Elizabeth! I was perusing all the plans for the EoTP sub-challenge and happened to notice that you're deciding between a couple of books for 2018: I so hope you choose A Gentleman in Moscow! It is sooooo good and I would love to read your review of it!
2022, PEN/Faulkner, Carolyn Ferrell, Dear Miss Metropolitan
2021, BPL Literary Prize, Dawnie Walton, The Final Revival of Opal & Nev
2020, Dayton Literary Peace Prize, Alice Hoffman, The World That We Knew
2019, Jerusalem Prize, Joyce Carol Oates, Rape: A Love Story, The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror, or After the Wreck, I Picked Myself Up, Spread My Wings, and Flew Away
2018, Duff Cooper Prize, Anne Applebaum, Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933
2017, T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry, Ocean Vuong, Night Sky with Exit Wounds
2016, Andrew Carnegie Medal, Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Sympathizer or Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk
2015, National Book Award, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Between the World and Me
2014, James Tait Black Memorial Prize, Richard Benson, The Valley: A Hundred Years in the Life of a Family
60.72 B3, Booker Prize winners and nomineesThe Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
This lovely gem of a book alternates between the journal of a ninety-something-year-old woman who has spent the bulk of her life in a mental asylum and the case notes and observations of the asylum psychiatrist.
The writing is lovely, the ideas it deals with are universal (family, love, the fallibility of memory, the subjective nature of "history"), and I really didn't want it to end.
+60 Task, 2008 Booker nominee
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 3370
B 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
60.71 O67, Owned book, get it off your shelf!Stories I'd Tell in Bars by Jen Lancaster
I've had this on my Kindle bookshelf for years, one of my ten-at-a-time allowed Kindle Unlimited reads in fact...it's been clogging a slot for ages but I couldn't bring myself to return it without having read it yet so many other books got in the way...
So glad I finally read it! With the same sharp wit as Lindy West (The Witches Are Coming) and the heart of Andie Mitchell (It Was Me All Along) these essays hit a perfect balance of laugh out loud situations and insightful observation. I highly recommend the audio version (read by the author, with a P.S. to each chapter written and read by her husband).
+60 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 3305
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Anika wrote: "So, this is weird...I was going through the Completed Tasks thread, writing down in my book journal all of the books I've read this season, and noticed that one of my posts (for my I..."
Thank you sooo much, Elizabeth! I thought I had somehow managed to bungle the bingo horribly…so relieved that wasn’t the case!
So, this is weird...I was going through the Completed Tasks thread, writing down in my book journal all of the books I've read this season, and noticed that one of my posts (for my I22 task, two word title) has disappeared...I finished it back in June, the book was used in a Bingo, and I *remember* writing the review for it. I just want to make sure I'm not having selective amnesia...do you have a book in that slot for me already, Kate, or have I truly lost my marbles?
60.70 O73, OutdoorsHatchet by Gary Paulsen
Have you ever seen Alone on the History Channel? It's this insane show where ten contestants are dropped in a remote wilderness location (each in a separate location) with ten items of their choosing and the person who lasts the longest in the wild wins. They encounter bears and other terrifying wildlife, have to build a sustainable shelter, and figure out how not to starve all the while documenting it on camera.
I feel like the people who came up with that show were heavily influenced by this book.
Thirteen-year-old Brian is headed to Canada to spend the summer with his dad. Unfortunately, the Cessna's pilot has a heart attack and Brian has to land the plane on his own once it finally runs out of gas. He crashes it into a lake and barely survives the landing. Now starts the business of survival until he's either rescued or dies.
While the writing wasn't fabulous, the story was compelling and I think if I were a teenage/preteen boy, this would be my favorite book on the planet.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+5 Oldies, pub. 1987
Task total: 70
Season total: 3240
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
60.69 N44, Author has two sets of double letters in nameStrangers We Know by Elle Marr
Oh, lordy....it's been a long time since I've read something this BAD. I've been walking around screaming, "POOP! It's utter POOP!" since finishing it.
The characters are infinitely unlikable, the plot absurd, the writing painfully poopy. I wish I had a more eloquent review, but "poop" pretty much covers it.
Between the whining of the main character about her unnamed and unexplained yet mentioned-ad-nauseam health issues, the serial killer's "jeans strain[ing] against [his] growing chub" every time he thinks about killing someone, and the weird religious cult aspect that felt like an afterthought to explain things, I wanted to tear this atrocity up and put a match to it (despite my strong feelings against book burning). It was soooo bad. Poop.
+60 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 3170
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
60.68 B14, Set in BC, Brazil, Belgium, Botswana, BahamasThe Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao by Martha Batalha
This had the feel of One Hundred Years of Solitude or The House of the Spirits without the magical realism...a family epic, giving the stories up and down the family trees of multiple families, with a decidedly Latin flavor.
Euridice and Guida are sisters, talented and ambitious each in their own way. This is the story of how life tumbled them about, tried to take them down, and yet they remained strong and standing.
It was relatable and funny and better than I thought it was going to be when I first picked it up.
+60 Task, Brazil
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 3105
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
60.67 I30, Book published in the '30sMurder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
Finally! I've been waiting on this from the library since the beginning of June! It was entirely worth the wait :-)
When I first started listening to it, I was confused at it being a male reader: Miss Marple is, well, a "Miss"! That's when I realized that it was mostly being told from the PoV of the vicar, Leonard Clement. It was entertaining to hear his take on things: the busybodies of St Mary Mead, the way he perceives his marital relationship, and wishes of death for a certain Colonel Protheroe.
That wish comes to pass all too soon and, in the words of another famous detective, "the games is afoot." Many people in the sleepy town had reasons to wish Protheroe dead, so whodunit?
I had a few laugh-out-loud moments and definitely got tied up in some red-herrings but thoroughly enjoyed being along for the ride.
+60 Task, pub 1930
+5 Review
+5 Oldies
Task total: 70
Season total: 3040
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
60.66 I24, In search of--Adventure!Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo
I am *dying* for more Grishaverse! This most recent installment has me slavering for more...
I felt like we got satisfactory stopping points (not endings, by any means) for all of our characters though certainly not in the way we ever could have expected and we DEFINITELY have crumbs that are leading to another book (hopefully another trilogy, duology at the very least!)...
If you've never read any of these books and you're a fan of the worlds built by George R.R. Martin or J.R.R. Tolkien I really think this would appeal to you--the world building, the languages created for the different peoples, the politics and the mythologies...it's a pretty stunning creation--I feel like the YA designation is kinda bullsh*t for this writing. IMHO.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+5 Jumbo, 592 pages
Task total: 70
Season total: 2970
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Anika wrote: "While trying to decide on a book for N34, Nebula winners and nominees, I found Big Girl, a collection of stories, on the list--but it was for "Best Novelette" for only..."Thank you! =)
While trying to decide on a book for N34, Nebula winners and nominees, I found Big Girl, a collection of stories, on the list--but it was for "Best Novelette" for only one of the stories ("The Pill"). Could I still use this book for this task or since the nominated work was only a part of the book am I out of luck?
60.65 O62, On another RwS member's shelfThe Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman
Thank you to all the members who have this on your shelves! As soon as I finished the first in this series I knew I wanted to grab the second one immediately but had no idea where I could get it to fit...you guys came through for me!
If possible, I liked this one even better than the first.
The Thursday Murder Club is down one member and they all rally around him to show their support and exact their revenge on the hoodlums who hurt him--don't mess with the 70+ crowd!
The tandem story line brings us someone from Elizabeth's past who shows up with a story of stolen diamonds and a target on his back.
Can't wait for the third installment to come out already :-D
+60 Task
+5 Review
+50 Thirteenth bingo: B2, I21, N45, G51, O62
Task total: 115
Season total: 2900
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
60.64 G51, Glass slipper: any retellingAriadne by Jennifer Saint
After finishing A Thousand Ships, I knew I wanted more mythology retelling in my life so when I saw this on the "Retelling" page I ran to get it.
Sadly, it wasn't nearly as good as I'd hoped. Maybe it paled in comparison to the glory that was Thousand Ships. Maybe my brain wasn't in the right place. Or maybe it really just wasn't as good.
It was a good refresher of the Ariadne story...I knew the whole Minotaur/Theseus/thread situation but it was good to remember how the Minotaur came into being (view spoiler).
I think the most annoying part for me was they way the author inserted other mythological stories by having the characters tell them to each other. It felt like Jennifer Saint cut a story off of Wikipedia, pasted it into her manuscript, and threw quotation marks around it. It wasn't egregiously bad, but it was definitely my least favorite mythological retelling treatment.
+60 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 65
Season total: 2785
B 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29
N 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 60
O 61, 63, 64, 65, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75
