Tamara’s Comments (group member since Mar 26, 2019)

Tamara’s comments from the 2025 Reading Challenge group.

Goal: 52 Books
33/52. The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit.
A breathtaking memoir. Solnit's insights and delicate sensitivity shine on every page.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
21/10. The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
11/10. The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
32/52. Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes.
A feminist exploration of famous women in Greek mythology. Haynes interrogates the patriarchal lens with which these women have been viewed and offers a refreshing and more nuanced interpretation. An enjoyable read.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
20/10. Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
10/10. Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
31/52. Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson; translated from the Norwegian by Anne Born.
A sixty-seven-year old man moves to an isolated village in Norway and reflects on his life. It was a poignant and compelling meditation on aging and loss. I loved it.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
9/10. Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson; translated from the Norwegian by Anne Born.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
30/52. Salka Valka by Halldór Laxness; translated from the Icelandic by Philip Roughton.
An epic novel. I enjoyed it but not as much as his Independent People. I thought it got a little too bogged down in political discourse. Laxness has always excelled in establishing setting and character portrayals. This was no exception. His portrayal of the villagers, and especially of the young female protagonist Salka Valka, was as brilliant as ever.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
8/10. Salka Valka by Halldór Laxness; translated from the Icelandic by Philip Roughton.

Goal: 10 Classics
6/10. Salka Valka by Halldór Laxness; translated from the Icelandic by Philip Roughton.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
29/52. The Sentence by Louise Erdrich.
I have mixed feeling about this novel. Parts of it were good, but I think Louise Erdrich tried to cram too much into the novel. It seemed very disjointed.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
19/10. The Sentence by Louise Erdrich.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
28/52. Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane.
A fascinating exploration of what lies beneath our feet. The writing was lyrical; the underland was inspiring and humbling.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
8/10. Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
27/52. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.
I first read this decades ago. I enjoyed it but didn't quite "get" it. I re-read it for a group read, and this time around, it just blew me away. What an incredible novel! Powerful, moving, poignant, and brilliant.

Goal: 10 books by Women Authors
18/10. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.

Goal: 10 Classics
5/10. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
26/52. Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel.
Loosely modeled on the Indian epic, the Ramayana, Patel re-fashions Kaikeyi as a feminist heroine who challenges patriarchal norms. Those who are familiar with the epic may be disappointed with the extent to which she deviates from the original tale. I am familiar with the Ramayana since I taught selections from it in my Early World Literature course. I wasn't expecting a faithful adherence to the epic and so wasn't bothered by the changes. I thought Patel told a good story and told it well.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
17/10. Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
25/52. White on White by Aysegül Savas.
This is a quiet novel that sneaks up on you. The narrator acts as an objective, dispassionate observer. The novel has strong echoes of Rachel Cusk's Outline. I thought it was excellent.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
16/10. White on White by Aysegül Savas.

Goal: 10 Books by Authors from the Middle East and Africa
4/10. White on White by Aysegül Savas.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
24/52. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak.
I enjoyed the story and thought the characters were interesting. But I was bothered by the choice of assigning a narrative voice to a fig tree. I found it intrusive, out of place, and weird. It just didn't work for me although it didn't seem to bother other people based on some of the reviews I read after I posted my review. So it is probably just me.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
15/10. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak.

Goal: 10 Books by Authors from the Middle East and Africa
3/10. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
23/52. A Strange Woman by Leylâ Erbil.
Published in 1970. Erbil is the first Turkish woman to be nominated for the Nobel Prize. English translation by Amy Marie Spangler and Nermin Menemencioglu. It is unusual and was ahead of its time in terms of content and format. It was a bit of a challenge for me since I know little about the history and culture of 20th Century Turkey.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
14/10. A Strange Woman by Leylâ Erbil; translated from the Turkish by Amy Marie Spangler and Nermin Menemencioglu.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
7/10. A Strange Woman by Leylâ Erbil; translated from the Turkish by Amy Marie Spangler and Nermin Menemencioglu.

Goal: 10 Books by Authors from the Middle East and Africa
2/10. A Strange Woman by Leylâ Erbil; translated from the Turkish by Amy Marie Spangler and Nermin Menemencioglu.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
22/52. The Hidden Life of Trees: what they feel, how they communicate : discoveries from a secret world by Peter Wohlleben; translated from the German by Jane Billinghurst.
Full of fascinating insights about trees. The author is passionate about trees and may go a little overboard in the degree to which he humanizes trees.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
6/10. The Hidden Life of Trees: what they feel, how they communicate : discoveries from a secret world by Peter Wohlleben; translated from the German by Jane Billinghurst.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
7/10. The Hidden Life of Trees: what they feel, how they communicate : discoveries from a secret world by Peter Wohlleben; translated from the German by Jane Billinghurst.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal 52 Books
21/52. Optic Nerve by María Gainza; translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead.
The author braids snapshots of her life and family with analysis of paintings that hold significance for her. She demonstrates the profound impact art has had on her perceptions and her life. A compelling and engaging read.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
13/10. Optic Nerve by María Gainza; translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
5/10. Optic Nerve by María Gainza; translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
19/52. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
I'm embarrassed to admit this is my first reading of this classic. I was a little disappointed and didn't write a review.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
12/10. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Goal: 10 Classics
4/10. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Goal: 52 Books
20/52. Approaching the Qur'an: The Early Revelations by Michael A. Sells.
This is second time I read this book. The detailed analysis of the early Suras (chapters) is very impressive. A wonderful contribution to the study of Islam for Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
6/10. Approaching the Qur'an: The Early Revelations by Michael A. Sells.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
18/52. The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow.
A 700-page tome, the product of a decade's worth of extensive research on new evidence in anthropology and archaeology. The authors debunk many of the conventional narratives about human history and the assumptions on which they are based. It is long, unwieldy, intellectually stimulating, and absolutely fascinating.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
6/10. The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
17/52. The Women of Troy by Pat Barker.
I enjoy reading and writing mythic re-tellings and thought this was one of the better ones I've read. It focuses on Briseis and the enslaved women in the aftermath of the Trojan War. I preferred it to The Silence of the Girls.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
11/10. The Women of Troy. by Pat Barker.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
16/52. Songbirds by Christy Lefteri.
The novel focuses on the plight of Nisha, a migrant domestic worker in Cyprus. I was really looking forward to this because I loved Lefteri's The Beekeeper of Aleppo. I was disappointed because it isn't the same quality of work.

Goal: 10 books by Women Authors
10/10. Songbirds by Christy Lefteri.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
15/52. The Yield by Tara June Winch.
A compelling narrative unfolding in three related threads that tell of the abuse and oppression of the indigenous population of Australia. It won the 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award. I thought it was very well done.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
9/10. The Yield by Tara June Winch.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
14/52. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.
It won the 1975 Pulitzer for non-fiction. I enjoyed it although I think she went a little overboard with excessive detail and frequent intrusions of personal reflections.

Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
8/10. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.

Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
5/10. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.

Goal: 10 Classics
3/10. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Goal: 52 Books
13/52. Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.
I think I enjoyed it this time around more than I did decades ago when I first read it.

Goal: 10 Books in Translation
4/10. Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.

Goal: 10 Classics
2/10. Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...