Jenifer’s Comments (group member since Dec 05, 2011)

Jenifer’s comments from the Reading with Style group.

Can I get approval for a couple of books please?

From The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time:
Captain Corelli's Mandolin and Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Task 10.4 9, 10, 11

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Review:
It be a few pages to realize but I really really loved this book. It took a few pages because this being my second Gaiman novel, I am still getting used to his ideas and style of writing. We jump right in with two parallel stories of a Scottish man named Richard Mayhew and a strange girl named Door in a strange place with a some bad guys possibly trying to kill her.

Door is the type of girl that can open doors where there are no doors and can speak to rats when necessary. Richard is your ordinary businessman engaged to a woman he thinks he loves. The story is strange. The setting is even stranger. But with Gaiman's writing, it is just spectacular. I don't know what it is about his writing style and word choice but I absolutely love it.

Neverwhere is another one of those books that I was enjoying so much I didn't want to be away from it so I ended up buying the audio version as well. That way, when I was unable to sit and read, I could listen to Neil Gaiman reading his own story to me while I washed dishes or drove in my car.

Reading (or listening to) a Neil Gaiman novel is like wading through a dream. Things are never how you expect them. I don't think he is everyone's cup of tea but if you don't mind insane imagery and a bit of darkness, you will love Neverwhere.

+10 task
+10 review

Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 145 points

Task 10.8 Comfort Read

The Secret Place by Tana French
(I've previously rated three of her books with 5 stars)

Review:
I love Tana French. I've devoured every one of her novels and could not wait for #5 to come out. I quite literally counted the days until The Secret Place was available for purchase. I did the "whispersync" thing and alternated between reading on my kindle and listening via the audible app. So, I read and listened to The Secret Place and I have to say that I was not as completely impressed with it as I have been with her past novels. I think my main disappointment was French's attempt at alternating viewpoints. I didn't love that. I generally love French's characters so much that I enjoy getting immersed with their thoughts and perspectives. I wasn't able to do that with this book since the chapters were constantly switching between teenage Holly and Detective Moran.

That being said, the story was great. Wickedly good as only a Tana French novel can be. There were so many twists and reveals that I felt like I was going to have whiplash at times. With some authors, this many reveals could feel forced but with French's writing and with the setting being an all girls school, the secrets and the reveals were seamless. I loved French's ability to really get into the mind of a 21st century teenage girl and show us all the intricacies of not only friendships but also the father-daughter relationship of Holly and her father, Frank (one of my favorites of Tana French's past protagonists).

The story had some great bones and still had all the strength of Tana French's storytelling. I think I just didn't like the change of perspectives since it isn't something that I usually expect from this author. I will probably give The Secret Place a re-read at some point in the near future.

+10 Task
+10 Review

Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 120 points

Task10.7 Honored Authors

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_...

Review:
I've read one or two novels by Agatha Christie in the distant past but have never read her debut novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. I picked this book up as part of a reading challenge and am so glad I did. This was a delightful short read, with quite a you-won't-see-it-coming twist at the end .

Not only is this Christie's debut but it is also the debut of one of literature's best loved detectives, Hercule Poirot. I found the relationship between Poirot and his narrator,Hastings, to be quite interesting. At times, they seemed both friends and adversaries, at least from Hastings' viewpoint. Actually, Hastings was sometimes a bit whiny and seemed to overshare a bit much. I found myself wondering why, he as the narrator would be sharing some of his more embarrassing moments. But all that aside, I enjoyed Christie's first novel and will be reading more of them soon. Perfhaps, I'll even figure out which ones I've already read.


+10 task
+10 oldie (pub 1920)
+10 review
+5 combo (10.4)

Task Total 35 points
Grand Total = 100

Task 20.1 19th Century

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Review:
Sometimes you read a classic and think "What's the big deal?". Other times you read a classic and immediately feel a connection and an understanding to the timeless quality that makes a classic. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is one of the latter books for me.

I've tried to read it a number of times but never got past the first few pages. This time, I chose to alternately read and "listen" to the book via the Kindle's whispersync capabilities. The narration was lovely (read by Dan Stevens of Downton Abbey fame) but even better was the story. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was a story of such deep insight into the human psyche that I am utterly amazed that it was written in the very early 19th century. The wants and desires that she gave the creature were the same wants and desires that every human being has. Shelley used the creature to look at what the result is when the basic human need for love and acceptance are withdrawn. As someone who had only had experience with Hollywood's version of Frankenstein, I loved being able to read the creature's viewpoint. It was painful at times, as he had his hopes continually dashed by the so-called civilized society.
It was scary at times, as well. The creatures determination to ruin Frankenstein was scary as well as Dr. Frankenstein's own willingness to destroy his creation without even trying to understand his (it's?) needs.

Now, I understand why this book is on every book list. It is not on enough lists! Everyone should read Frankenstein. I am so glad that I finally gave the time to read it. Now to find the time to give it a second reading.

+20 task
+10 review
+15 oldie
+20 combo (10.2/#80 on first list, 10.5/#5 on list, 10.7/approved, 10.9/approved)

Task Total = 65
Grand Total = 65

Does this work for Mary Shelley?
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly Award for Imaginative Fiction

Oh, I forgot to say that if anyone is still looking for a quick read for this task, Hounded might work. The whole series is chock-full of specific mythological references.

What a fun thread this has been to read!

Would Frankenstein work for this task? The subtitle is "A Modern Prometheus". Prometheus from Greek mythology and was a titan who created man. I've also found where Mary Shelley refers to the creature as Adam from the Garden of Eden.

1. All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner
2. Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter or Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
3. The Collector of Dying Breaths: A Novel of Suspense by M.J. Rose
4. Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell or The Girl You Left Behind by JoJo Moyes
5. Her: A Novel by Harriet Lane
6. It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas
7. The Perfect Husband by Lisa Gardner or The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner
8. The Revenant of Thraxton Hall: The Paranormal Casebooks of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by Vaughn Entwistle or Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
9. Timeless by Gail Carriger
10. The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley or Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks or When the Duchess Said Yes by Isabella Bradford

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Jenifer wrote: "Am I correct in reading that we can skip letters as long as the order stays ascending/descending?"

Yes, you've got it!"

Thanks!

Am I correct in reading that we can skip letters as long as the order stays ascending/descending?

Karen Michele wrote: "Jenifer wrote: "Would A Midsummer Night's Dream qualify?"

Yes, it would count."

Great! Thanks.

I'm surprised that Frankenstein is not on this list. Or maybe I don't quite understand what slipstream is?

Would A Midsummer Night's Dream qualify?

Between the Wars


1919-1920 The Mysterious Affair at Styles or Main Street
1921-1922 Siddhartha or We
1923-1924 Whose Body? or Murder on the Links or A Passage to India (lexile 950) or Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
1925-1926 Mrs. Dalloway (lexile 950)
1927-1928 To the Lighthouse (lexile 1030) or Elmer Gantry or All Quiet on the Western Front (lexile 830)
1929-1930 The Sound and the Fury (lexile 870) or As I Lay Dying (lexile 870)
1931-1932 Brave New World
1933-1934 The Postman Always Rings Twice
1935-1936 Jamaica Inn (lexile 1070)
1937-1938 Their Eyes Were Watching God (lexile 1080) or Rebecca (lexile 880)
1939-1940 For Whom the Bell Tolls (lexile 840) or The Big Sleep

15.3 - AtA

Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook

Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 55

15.2 - AtA

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 35

Liz M wrote: "Jenifer, I had some trouble with both your author chains. :(

Lisa Gardner does not appear on the Nicci French's similar authors page. Luckily, Tess Gerritsen does. So if you don't mind some s..."

Thanks. Just saw this. I'll switch it up just in case I'm able to do a second chain. :)

15.1 AtA

Morning Glory by Sarah Jio

+15 task

task total: 15
grand total: 15

I'd like to read Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. Wikipedia shows her birth date as 10/2/1964.

Can I also get the lexile score checked? I believe it is at 1020.

Thanks!