Krista’s Comments (group member since Jul 24, 2010)

Krista’s comments from the Reading with Style group.

Rebekah wrote: "A-Z
15.10 Z,A

Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan

Task -30 pts
Bonus - 100 pts

Task Total-130 pts
Grand Total - 360 pts"

Hi Rebekah:

Congratulations on finishing the A-Z sub-challenge!

10.1 Square Peg
The Martian by Andy Weir

Review:
Wowie, wowie – what a wild ride this book is! The action starts on the first page, and doesn’t let up until the last one. Sci-fi is not a genre I normally read, but I really enjoyed this book. I’ve heard this described as a mashup of the movies, Apollo 13, and Castaway. I agree with that assessment.

Mark Watney is part of the crew sent on a mission to Mars. On the sixth day on Mars, he has an accident, and his crewmates leave him for dead and start their return journey to earth. Mark wakes up to find himself stranded on Mars, and from there it’s a race against time to survive until someone can figure out how to get back to Mars quickly enough to save him.

Even though there are a lot of scientific explanations, and discussions involving botany, physics, computer stuff, and math – the book made me think about those concepts, but they didn’t derail or distract from the fast-paced narrative. Be forewarned, there are a few ‘F’ bombs at the beginning of the book, but they tail off quickly, so if you’re sensitive to strong language it doesn’t last too long. I mean, this guy is stranded on Mars, I supposed I’d drop a few expletives at first too. This was a great tale about the power of the human spirit to continue to persevere.

Rating: 5 stars

+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 410

10.6 Foreign Language
Language = Spanish
The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vásquez

Review: (4 Stars)
This book was nothing like I thought it would be based on the information in book blurb. Thankfully there was not as much violence as I thought that there might have been since it dealt with the rise and fall of the Colombian drug trade and how it affected the general population. How does the constant threat of unprovoked violence affect a society, or a generation?

This followed the story of two intertwined characters from the early installation of Peace Corps volunteers in Colombia in the late 1960's through the late 1990's.

I liked the main narrator of the book, Antonio Yammara, who was thoughtful and quiet and so very human in dealing with the aftermath of the experiences he went through because of his association with Ricardo Laverde.

+10 Task
+ 5 Combo (Task 20.10 w/Goldfinch)
+10 Style Non-Western
+10 Review
Task Total = 35
Grand Total = 390

A-Z Task
15.7 P-H

The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby

+20 Task
Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 355

15.6 I-K
The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

+20 Task

Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 335

Tobey wrote: "Thanks Elizabeth, that is what I thought but I just wanted to make sure. I think I am going to read it anyways."

Hi Tobey: I read The Book Thief a few years ago, and I can still vividly remember some of the really compelling scenes. I think I rated it 5 stars. Go for it! :-)

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Have you seen the list in the Quick Links thread? We will continue to add to the list, but those are authors we have already designated non-western."

No, I haven't seen that yet. I'll check it out.

Thanks!

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Non-western applies only to the author. When an author is designated non-western, all of his/her books qualify for the non-western style points.

In deciding if an author is designated non-western ..."

Hi Elizabeth, thanks for the quick answer. I appreciate the expanded explanation. I'll have to look for authors who don't have such wandering feet next. :-)

-Krista

Rebekah wrote: "Welcome Home, Krista!"

Thanks Rebekah! It's fun to be participating again. I missed you guys!

Happy New Year!!

Karen Michele wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I was wandering through the list of Realism authors from last season. When Liz had suggested that task, I was truly excited, because I feel those are *my* authors. I need..."

I have Those Who Save Us penciled in as one of the finalists for this task. Karen, your 5 star review may have just pushed up to the finalist book for this task.

There are a TON of great books on my TBR shelf that fit this task.

Thanks for the review of this book.
-Krista

Hi --- It's me again. :-)

I have a question about the Non-Western Style points.

My reading of the Non-Western Style points rules seems to indicate that this is awarded all based on the author's country of origin, and current (or final) country of origin. Is that correct?

Specifically, I'm almost done reading Catherine the Great by Henri Troyat. The non-fiction book certainly qualifies as Non-Western since it's about Russia in the mid to late 1700's. But Troyat was born in Russia and was eventually exiled to France. He's been approved for the Exiles and Emmigrants task.

I'm thinking that the book doesn't qualify for Non-Western Style points, but I may be splitting hairs here.

The same question would apply to works by Isabel Allende since she was born and raised in Chile, but now lives in the US. Would The House of the Spirits qualify for Non-Western Style points?

Deedee wrote: "Which new to you author from 2014 do you look forward to reading again (and again)?

Quammen, David (non-fiction science), plus sequels of novels by Scott Lynch, [..."

Oh goodie! Two more books added to my TBR pile. :-)

I just put [author:Tsitsi Dangarembga|91947]'s book Nervous Conditions on hold at the library. It will work for the 1001 Books task. (Of course I have about 6 books selected for that task now. LOL)

I too am interested in your opinion of An Unnecessary Woman.

Thanks!

Karen Michele wrote: "I finally took a look at my 2014 books. For my favorite, I'm going to go with Some Luck, but others that stand out are All the Light We Cannot See, Orfeo

I just finished a non-fiction book by Luis Alberto Urrea (The Devil's Highway: A True Story) as part of the A-Z challenge. It was the first time I've read anything by him. Although I had his short story collections Six Kinds of Sky: A Collection of Short Fiction checked out for quite awhile, I didn't get a chance to read it before I had to return it to the library.

Which of his books have you read? If you've read multiple books, which one have you enjoyed most?

You are the second person recently to recommend author John McGahern. I've just added his book, Amongst Women to my TBR shelf. Arghh! :-)

Rosemary wrote: "I got a smartphone for Christmas ... mainly because my old phone couldn't take pictures ... and I was wondering at first if it was worth it, but today I got Google Sheets on it, and downloaded my 1..."

Yay! Isn't if fun to find bargain books? My library has a little 'Book Garden' book store where they sell donated books and library books that have been removed from the shelves. The books range in price from 50 cents to $2. I ALWAYS have to stop in there on the way to pick up my books that have come in from my Hold queue. I am a library junkie, but can't seem to keep myself from buying some of these bargain books too!

What was your favorite book of 2014?
Do I have to choose only one? :-) Here the two most memorable (at the moment...) from 2014:
All the Light We Cannot See and Burial Rites

Which new to you author from 2014 do you look forward to reading again (and again)?
Anthony Doerr I'd forgotten that I had a copy of The Shell Collector: Stories on my bookshelf before I listened to All the Light We Cannot See. Now I HAVE to read that this year.

Which book of 2014 was the biggest surprise?
My biggest surprise was probably how much I loathed The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. It's on the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list, and had so many great reviews. But oh boy, I thought it was a stinker. If I hadn't committed myself to it for the Winter Challenge, I would have abandoned it, and I RARELY ever give up on a book.

Thanks for the education, Elizabeth and Liz. You are both so on the ball! Glad to know this book will work.

Cheers!

How do I find the most popular version of a book? I'd like to read Enid Bagnold's book, A Diary Without Dates. But some versions are under 100 pages. I want to make sure that this will qualify for the Persephone task.

Thanks!
-Krista

15.5 F-S

A Fine And Bitter Snow by Dana Stabenow

By finishing this book I made my goal of reading 100 books in 2014. Wa-hoo! I just squeaked in under the wire. LOL

Happy New Year -- All the Best in 2015

+20 Task
Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 315

Happy New Year everyone -- all the best in 2015!

Using the arrows on The Goldfinch

Mary Coin
Ordinary Grace

Thanks!