Deedee’s
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(group member since Aug 04, 2010)
Deedee’s
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from the Reading with Style group.
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Task 20.4 - TravelOn January 27, 2014 this book was #77 on the list: Favourite Travel Books.
Assassination Vacation (2005) by Sarah Vowell
Review: This meandering non-fiction book follows Sarah Vowell as she visits places related to the assassinations of Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley, including places related to the presidents and places related to their assassins. Vowell’s trademark style is to explain things as if she were an entertaining and knowledgeable tour guide. I learned some facts about, both relevant and random, about the presidents and their assassins. Vowell includes commentary about her dislike and disapproval of President George W. Bush and his Iraqi war policies – remember, this was published in 2005. This book is easy to dip in and out of. Recommended for light reading.
+20 Task
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 10 = 40
Grand Total: 660 + 40 = 700
Task 10.6 - Beginnings/Endings: Debut novel and, as of December 1, 2013, the only novel this author has in print.
The Beautiful Land (2013) by Alan Averill (Goodreads Author) (Paperback, 362 pages)
Review:This is the debut science fiction novel of Alan Averill. The backcover says: “The switch is thrown, and reality begins to warp—horribly. And Tak realizes that to save Sam, he must save the entire world…” (Takahiro is the hero, and Samira is the heroine.) The “feel” of the novel is similar to the “feel” of the movies “The Matrix” and “Inception”. There is a lot of action, and enough info-dumps are included to understand the story. The story involves parallel universes, which, confusingly and inaccurately, the novel refers to as “time travel”. The shifting frames of reality are easy to follow – which is not always true in this kind of novel. The reader gets to know the two main protagonists through their memories and dreams – so they seem “real” and not just pawns. Overall, I liked this novel.
Recommended for science fiction fans, especially for those who enjoyed the movies “The Matrix” and “Inception”. Readers who don’t care for science fiction should probably skip this one.
+10 Task
+05 Combo (10.5 Goodreads Author)
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 + 10 = 25
Grand Total: 635 + 25 = 660
Task 10.6 - Beginnings/Endings: Read an author's most recently published book as of December 1, 2013.
Longbourn (2013) by Jo Baker (Hardcover, 352 pages)
Review:We’ve all read Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. That, at least, is the assumption the author made before writing Longbourn. This is the story of the servants at the Bennett’s house. The author includes every scrap of a mention of a servant in Austen’s story. She then adds historical information about the duties and behavior of Napoleonic-era servants. And, to keep the reader’s interest, she includes a love triangle centered on one of the Bennett’s housemaids (Sarah).
I liked the IDEA of this novel more than the actual novel. There were many, many passages like this one on p. 123: “The house was in a flurry all afternoon, and Sarah, as she finished curling Kitty’s hair, could have wept with the pain from her chilblains: they throbbed red and tight, and grew worse each time she crouched to heat the hair irons at the fire.”
Overall, the novel was good but could have been better.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 615 + 20 = 635
Task 20.6 - Best Books of the 20th Century . On January 22, 2014 this book was #167 on the list.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1994) by John Berendt
Review:This book is considered non-fiction. I’d say it was non-fiction with an asterisk: the author states in his Author’s Note that “I have taken certain storytelling liberties, particularly having to do with the timing of events. Where the narrative strays from strict nonfiction, my intention has been to remain faithful to the characters and to the essential rift of events as they really happened.” In other words: not a valid source for one’s history paper.
The first half of the novel consists of the author interviewing various longtime residents of Savannah, Georgia. All of this is presented with a light touch, even when dealing with subjects like prostitution or gun violence or anti-Semitism. Several of the anecdotes are proof that truth is stranger than fiction --- oh, wait, MAYBE it’s truth, or MAYBE it is “storytelling liberties”.
The second half of the novel is centered on the murder of an individual mentioned (but not focused on) in the first half of the novel. In between trial updates, the author includes sketches of eccentric Savannah residents. Recommended for light reading.
+20 Task
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 10 = 40
Grand Total: 575 + 40 = 615
Task 10.5 - Goodreads authorized: Read a book written by a goodreads author.
Doll Bones (2013) (YA) by Holly Black (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 250 pages)
Lexile 840L
Review:I was really impressed by this YA novel. Holly Black has successfully described how children actually play with their toys and with each other. In this story there are 3 pre-teen children. They have an elaborate, many-day play going, starring their dolls/action figures. (mermaids, pirates, etc.)
Each of the three children have a unique and different backstory. Only the minimum details necessary from the backstory are included. The focus is on the three children and their one last adventure (“quest”) related to their many-day play. The quest involves an ancient doll owned by the mother of one of the children. (mild) (view spoiler) The adults act like real adults also, which is not always the case in YA novels. Overall, recommended for fans of coming-of-age stories.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 555 + 20 = 575
Task 20.10 - Between the Wars: Read a book written by an author born between the Civil War and WWI (1866-1913). H.G. Wells
Born:September 21, 1866
Died: August 13, 1946
Love and Mr. Lewisham (1900) by H.G. Wells
Review: H. G. Well’s first published novel that was not a “scientific romance” was the 1896 novel lauding bicycle riding, The Wheels of Chance: A Bicycling Idyll . (Scientific romances like: The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man.) This book, Love and Mr. Lewisham, was the second “mainstream” novel Wells published.
H.G. Wells as a young man attended “the Normal School of Science” (later renamed as the Royal Academy of Science). He found his romantic life challenging. He was also acquainted with spiritualists. In this novel, a young man is a student at “the Normal School of Science”. His romantic life is challenging – the conventional young lady or the modern young lady who is also a student at the School of Science? And – later on in the novel – spiritualists become involved with the plot. Write what you know, right?
Wells was part of the “free love” movement, and he was anti-nuclear before the nuclear bomb even existed (he extrapolated the likelihood of nuclear weapons from “airships” and the events of World War I). His 19th century “scientific romances” are interesting even today in the 21st century.
The pacing of this 1900 novel is slower than modern novels. I’m OK with that but the modern reader may be tempted to skim or even toss. The first chapter describes our hero’s bedroom – the second chapter he leaves it, never to return! Maybe Wells was being nostalgic about his student days?
Overall: Recommended for fans of H.G. Wells; for those who like to read novels loosely based on the author’s life; and for those who are interested in novels written in the midst of (or just before) great world changes.
+20 Task
+10 Oldies -76 to 150 years old: 10 points (1864-1938)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 +10 = 40
Grand Total: 515 + 40 = 555
I won't be able to finish RWS because (oops!) I forgot to post a New Year's Resolution. I'll come close, though. I have books picked out for TtPR and so I'll concentrate on that part of the challenge.Thrilled to see that H. G. Wells qualified for 20.10 as he was born on September 21, 1866. He wrote mainstream novels as well as "scientific romances" :0)
Task 20.2 - Picaresque: Picaresque Novel From the linked list:
Roxana, Or The Fortunate Mistress (1724) by Daniel Defoe (Paperback, 416 pages)
Review: This was Daniel Defoe’s last published novel. The novel is told in first person by “Roxana”. Now at the end of her life, she looks back over the events of her life, and this novel is the result. She explains how she travelled from being a wife to being a mistress. The writing was surprisingly comprehensible despite having been written almost 400 years ago (the Penguin notes helped with the obsolete words and contemporary references). This novel held my interest until the end. I was amazed by the number of children that Roxana gave birth to --- and then, apparently, gave away for others to raise. I didn’t think women in the 18th century could safely have so many! Roxana tells us what she was thinking at various times in her life, and what her motivations were. She had surprisingly modern views on love and marriage -- (view spoiler) Recommended for those looking for an accessible 18th century novel.
+ 20 Task
+10 Review
+20 Oldies -251 to 400 years old: 20 points (1614-1763)
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 20 = 50
Grand Total: 465 + 50 = 515
Task 10.6 - Beginnings/Endings: Read an author's most recently published book as of December 1, 2013.
Unfamiliar Fishes (2011) by Sarah Vowell
Review:This non-fiction book is about the Anglo-Americans from the United States who arrived in Hawaii as missionaries in 1820. The book covers events in Hawaii from 1820 until 1898, when Hawaii officially was annexed by America. The material is presented as if an entertaining and knowledgeable tour guide were explaining things to a tourist. I had seen Sarah Vowell on BookTV talking about this book. She writes likes she talks, so when I read this book I was able to readily envision her talking about it. She is not in agreement with the missionaries’ religious goals, and she reveals that lack of agreement through humorous comic asides to the basic material that she is presenting. Recommended for people who like unconventional humor. Not recommended for readers who are easily offended by anti-Christian-missionary humor.
+10 Task
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 10 = 30
Grand Total: 430 + 30 = 460
Task 20.5DisturbingOn January 14, 2014 shelved as “disturbing”
7 times.
Anna Dressed in Blood (Anna #1) (2011) by Kendare Blake
(low lexile, so no combo points)
+20 Task
Grand Total: 410 + 20 = 430
Task 10.5 - Goodreads authorized: Read a book written by a goodreads author.Secrets of a Summer Night (Wallflowers #1) (2004) by Lisa Kleypas (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 274 pages)
Review:This novel was designed to be a lighthearted romance! It is the first of a series. The premise: there are 4 young women who are searching for husbands. For various reasons, each of the 4 have been unsuccessful. At balls and dances, these 4 inevitably wind up as wallflowers, standing to the side whilst others dance. Near the end of the season, they begin to talk with each other. They decide to join forces and help each other find appropriate husbands. Each book in the series focuses on one of the 4 “wallflowers”. (There’s a 5th book too, a Christmas special, set sometime after the 4 have married.) This the first installment focuses on Annabelle. (Love that name!) Annabelle’s gentile family has become impoverished following the death of her father. She has no dowry and no title. The nouveau riche American sisters (Bowman girls) provide her with new gowns, and use their influence to have all 4 “wallflowers” invited to a houseparty (where the majority of the novel takes place).
Overall, this novel was a pleasant way to pass the time. That said, I would have liked a bit more clever repartee. Recommended to romance readers.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 390 + 20 = 410
Task 15.3 - Travel the Pacific Rim - "Seafarer"Third Stop
Cambodia
A/ Author born in Cambodia
C/ Novel set in Cambodia
In the Shadow of the Banyan (2010) by Vaddey Ratner
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task Total: 15 + 10 = 25
Grand Total: 365 + 25 = 390
Task 20.8 - Disastrous Reading: I read a non-fiction book about the volcanic eruption in 1902 of Montagne Pelée on the island of Martinique.
The Last Days of St. Pierre: The Volcanic Disaster That Claimed 30,000 Lives (2002) by Ernest Zebrowski Jr.
Review:This book is aimed at the educated lay reader. It concerns the volcanic eruption in 1902 of Montagne Pelée on the island of Martinique. The author includes enough scientific detail so that the reader can understand what is going on with the volcano. The emphasis, however, is on the actions of various humans before, during, and after the eruption occurs. The authorities on Martinique lacked the knowledge regarding volcanic eruptions; alas, this resulted in a high death toll. The book includes contemporary newspaper articles, excerpts from contemporary correspondence, and contemporary photographs (before and after, and, amazingly, one photograph taken during the eruption – it is on the cover). Recommended for anyone interested in natural disasters and how people act during a natural disaster. (I gave it 5*.)
+20 Task
+10 Not-a-Novel
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 10 = 40
Grand Total: 325 + 40 = 365
Task 20.3 - Post-ColonialR.K. Narayan
Born: in Chennai, India : On: October 10, 1906
Died: May 13, 2001
Author and book is on the linked list for post-colonial writers.
Waiting for the Mahatma (1955) by R.K. Narayan
Review:The novel is tightly focused on the experiences of a young man who chooses to follow Mahatma Ghandi. Our young man has had a very indulged, comfortable upbringing. His motives are rarely idealistic, though his actions often are. The author spends a lot of time describing our young man’s thoughts and feelings as he follows Mahatma Ghandi. The novel feels very real – I can easily imagine young men like the one in this story getting swept up in the “romance” of “revolution” to expel “the British” from India. Recommended for anyone interested in India; also recommended for anyone interested in reading excellent “literary fiction”.
+20 Task
+05 Combination (#20.10 author born 1906)
+10 Review
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: 5 points (1939-1989)
Task Total: 20 + 05 + 10 + 05 = 40
Grand Total: 285 + 40 = 325
Task 20.10 - Between the Wars: Read a book written by an author born between the Civil War and WWI (1866-1913). Edward Eager
Born: in Toledo, Ohio, The United States On:January 01, 1911
Died: October 23, 1964
Half Magic (Tales of Magic #1) (1954) by Edward Eager (Hardcover, Fiftieth-Anniversary Edition, 217 pages)
Lexile 830L
Review:What a delightful children’s novel! I wish I had found it when I was in elementary school, I would have really enjoyed it then. (And wanted my OWN magic coin, LOL). The premise is that a family of 4 young children from 1 family (3 girls, 1 boy) find a magic coin. An idly stated wish comes true. Once the the kids figure out how the magic works, they use the coin to play, with amusing consequences. The story is aimed at the K-3rd grade group of children; however, Lexile gives it 830L, not really sure why. (Maybe the K-3rd grade children of today are not as advanced in reading ability as were the K-3rd grade children of the 1950s?) The ending is such that a sequel is possible. (Checking goodreads, I see that there IS a sequel.) Recommended for elementary school readers who are reading chapter books.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: 5 points (1939-1989)
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 05 = 35
Grand Total: 250 + 35 = 285
Task 10.5 - Goodreads authorized: Read a book written by a goodreads author.Renfield (2006) by Barbara Hambly (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 320 pages)
Review:This novel is a re-imagining of Bram Stoker’s Dracula using modern English. The point of view narrator of the novel is Renfield. The novel begins with Renfield as a patient at Dr. Seward’s Insane Asylum, eating flies and spiders to become more powerful. The first half of the novel is a re-stating of Dracula; having recently read Dracula, I found it slow going. The second half is more interesting. Hambly recounts Renfield’s backstory, as well as the backstory of other secondary characters from Dracula. The ending to this novel is unique and, simultaneously, does not contradict the original Dracula. Recommended for fans of Dracula.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 230 + 20 = 250
Task 10.4 - Read a book with one of the astrological signs in the Chinese horoscope in the title:
Snake(s)
This book is listed as her second novel. She has a third novel due to be published in “2014”.
Lady of the Snakes (2008) by Rachel Pastan (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 308 pages)
Review:The novel revolves around a thirtyish woman, a literary scholar who is pursuing an academic career. She is fortunate enough to have a loving husband and a delightful, healthy young daughter. However, she doesn’t feel fortunate, she feels stressed – too much to do and not enough time to do it all. The events feel real. I read that the author is also a thirtyish woman, a literary scholar who is pursuing an academic career. The standard advice to new writers is to write what you know, and Ms. Pastan seems to have done exactly that. The ending is more optimistic than the novel’s events warranted. I’m OK with a happier than justified ending, but I recognize that some readers would not be. Recommended for when you want to read a novel about life in modern academia.
+10 Task
+10 Combination (#10.5 Goodreads Author; #10.06 most recently published book as of Dec. 1, 2013)
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 10 = 30
Grand Total: 200 + 30 = 230
Task 10.8 - BINGO! Cory (Bigler)'s task In honor of December's designation as BINGO month, read a book written by an author whose name contains the letters "b i n g o" (such as Barbara Kingsolver or Stella Gibbons).
I mog en Rob ertson
From the book cover: Imogen Robertson is a former TV, film, and radio director. She won the London Telegraph’s First Thousand Words of a Novel competition in 2007 with the opening of Instruments of Darkness, her first novel.
Instruments of Darkness (Crowther and Westerman #1) (2009) by Imogen Robertson (Hardcover, 374 pages)
Review:This is the first novel of a historical mystery series. The setting: West Sussex, England; the time: 1780. Our hero is an “anatomist” and a student of “natural history”. Our heroine is married with children; her husband is a ship's captain currently sailing the seas. Thrown together by circumstances, our hero and heroine investigate and solve a series of murders in the community. I found the protagonists personality and relationship believable, due to the backstory the author has invented for each of the investigators. The solution to the mysteries requires that the reader indulge in a “willing suspension of disbelief” (mild (view spoiler) I’ll be reading the second in the series *one of these days*. Recommended for fans of historical mysteries.
+10 Task
+05 Combination (#10.06 debut novel)
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 + 10 = 25
Grand Total: 175 + 25 = 200
Task 15.2 - Travel the Pacific Rim - "Seafarer"Second Stop
Malaysia
A/ Author born in Malaysia
C/ Novel set in Malaysia
Evening Is the Whole Day (2008) by Preeta Samarasan(Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 340 pages)
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task Total: 15 + 10 = 25
Grand Total: 150 + 25 = 175
Task 10.5 - Goodreads authorized: Read a book written by a goodreads author.With A Single Spell (Ethshar #2) (1987) by Lawrence Watt-Evans (Goodreads Author)
Review: This novel is listed as #2 of a series; however, it is a stand-alone novel. What makes it a “series” is that it is set in the same world as book #1 and, presumably, the later books as well. No characters were the same between book#1 and book#2. This novel was a lighthearted fantasy novel concerning a young man who only wants to settle down to an everyday life in a small town where everyone knows his name. Alas for our hero, life hands him an adventure instead. The rest of the novel reads like a game of Dungeons and Dragons, with noble quests, erstwhile companions, beautiful age-appropriate women, enchanted objects, and even mild (view spoiler). Recommended for fantasy fans only, and then only if you’re looking for well-done predictability rather than originality. (Book #1 of the Ethshar series, The Misenchanted Sword, was a better novel.)
+10 Task
+10 Review
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: 5 points (1939-1989)
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 05 = 25
Grand Total: 125 + 25 = 150
