Tamara’s
Comments
(group member since Mar 26, 2019)
Tamara’s
comments
from the 2025 Reading Challenge group.
Showing 261-280 of 542
I read this a couple of years ago. I thought it was amazing. I loved everything about it--the setting, the authentic characters, and the realistic dialogue. I thought it was a much better book than The Thirteenth Tale.
Goal: 52 Books12/52. The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera.
It is a young adult novel set in New Zealand. I didn't realize when I picked it up that it is a young adult novel. So it's not really for me.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books11/52. The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson, translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal.
An unusual book depicting the battle of wills between two women and which explores the lies we tell ourselves and each other.
Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
7/10. The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson, translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal.
Goal: 10 Books in Translation
3/10. The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson, translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books10/52. Deacon King Kong by James McBride.
I loved it! Hilarious, energetic, with delightful characters, authentic dialogue, and an exciting plot.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books9/52. Crows: Encounters with the Wise Guys of the Avian World by Candace Savage.
A light, entertaining, and informative introduction to crow-dom. Peppered with beautiful illustrations and photos.
Goal: 10 books by Women Authors
6/10. Crows: Encounters with the Wise Guys of the Avian World by Candace Savage.
Goal: 10 books of Non-Fiction
4/10. Crows: Encounters with the Wise Guys of the Avian World by Candace Savage.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books8/52. Pond by Claire-Louise Bennett. A first-person narrative of a quirky narrator who delights in the mundane. Some may find her self-indulgent and pretentious. I enjoyed her meanderings and observations.
Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
5/10. Pond by Claire-Louise Bennett.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books7/52. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy.
This is a re-read for me. I'd forgotten it since it's been years since I last read it. I was reminded of how much I love Hardy's vision--as bleak as it is, or maybe because it is so bleak :)
Goal: 10 Classics
1/10. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books6/52. In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez.
Blending fact with fiction, Alvarez tells the story of the Mirabel sisters and their heroic struggle against General Trujillo, the former military dictator of the Dominican Republic.
Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
4/10. In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books5/52. The Heroine with 1001 Faces by Maria Tatar.
Tatar interrogates Joseph Campbell's definition of the hero and heroic quest. She argues it is masculine-centered and ignores the heroism of women because they operate under a different paradigm. Women use words as weapons through storytelling. And when denied voice, they will spin, weave, and write to demand justice and warn others. Tatar's examples are wide-ranging--from mythology to social media.
I thought it was great.
Goal: 10 books by Women Authors
3/10. The Heroine with 1001 Faces by Maria Tatar.
Goal: 10 books of Non-Fiction
3/10. The Heroine with 1001 Faces by Maria Tatar.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 books4/52. The Return: Fathers, Sons, and the Land in Between by Hisham Matar.
A haunting memoir about Matar's search for the truth concerning his father's fate after his incarceration in Libya's notorious prison during the Ghaddafi regime. His language eloquently describes the trauma experienced by family members of the disappeared.
Goal: 10 Books by Authors from the Middle East and Africa
1/10. The Return: Fathers, Sons, and the Land in Between by Hisham Matar.
Goal: 10 Books of Non-Fiction
2/10. The Return: Fathers, Sons, and the Land in Between by Hisham Matar.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 books3/52. Writers & Lovers by Lily King.
It was a light, entertaining read about an aspiring author. I wasn't as enthused about it as I thought I would be.
Goal: 10 books by Women Authors
2/10. Writers & Lovers by Lily King.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books2/52. The Celestial Hunter by Roberto Calasso.
Calasso moves at such a dizzying speed that it's hard to keep up with him. A fascinating theory of the shift in consciousness from man as hunted to man as hunter. Calasso weaves mythology, rituals, cults into his discussion. He cites philosophers, historians, and all manner of academicians. His leaps and bounds are difficult to follow at times. His knowledge is extensive. An amazing book.
Goal: 10 Books in Translation
2/10. The Celestial Hunter by Roberto Calasso, translated from the Italian by Richard Dixon.
Goal: 10 books of Non-Fiction
1/10. The Celestial Hunter by Roberto Calasso, translated from the Italian by Richard Dixon.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 52 Books1/52. The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller, translated by Philip Boehm.
A powerful and compelling narrative about life in a labor camp in the Soviet Union in 1945 by the winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Goal: 10 Books by Women Authors
1/10. The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller, translated by Philip Boehm.
Goal: 10 Books in Translation
1/10. The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller, translated by Philip Boehm.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My 2021 challenge was to read 80 books. I exceeded my goal by reading 88 books. I intentionally set a lower challenge for myself this year because I hope to read some chunkier books this time around. My goal this year is to read and review at least 52 books. Of the 52, I want to read at least
*Ten books by women authors
*Ten books in translation
*Ten books by authors from the Middle East and Africa
*Ten books of non-fiction
*Ten classics
Goal: 80 books87/80. Dracula by Bram Stoker.
I read this as a group read. It's my first vampire novel. I enjoyed it and got a lot out of the discussion. But I probably won't be reading any more vampire novels. Vampire novels are just not my cup of tea.
Goal: 12 classics
14/12. Dracula by Bram Stoker.
Goal: 80 books86/80. The Last Hours by Minette Walters.
The novel is the first in a historical trilogy about the Black Death in 14th Century England. The research was impressive, but the characters were flat and the pacing dragged. A little disappointing.
Goal: 50 books by women authors
59/50. The Last Hours by Minette Walters.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 80 books85/80. The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales from 1001 Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale and edited by Paulo Lemos Horta.
It took several weeks of intermittently dipping into it while reading a few other books in between, but I finally finished the 700 page The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales from 1001 Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale and edited by Paulo Lemos Horta.
This stunning tome provides a wealth of information, its pages adorned with beautiful illustrations. It is a volume to be read slowly, savored, and enjoyed.
Goal: 50 books by women authors
58/50. The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales from 1001 Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale.
Goal: 25 books in translation
34/25. The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales from 1001 Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale.
Goal: 24 books from the Middle East and Africa
26/24. The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales from 1001 Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 80 books84/80. Latitudes of Longing by Shubhangi Swarup. I loved the first section. Her writing in this section was lyrical and quite beautiful. But she became increasingly incoherent in the remaining sections. I think she overreached and rambled, which is a pity because she is obviously capable of some great writing.
Goal: 50 books by women authors
57/50. Latitudes of Longing by Shubhangi Swarup.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 80 books83/80. The Girls of Slender Means by Muriel Spark.
The setting for this short novel is London in 1945. I've read and enjoyed Sparks novels, but this one just wasn't for me.
Goal: 50 books by women authors
56/50. The Girls of Slender Means by Muriel Spark.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Goal: 80 books82/80. The White Book by Han Kang; translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.
A compelling autobiographical meditation using fragmented images of objects in the color white to serve as the backdrop for the narrator’s grief at the death of her older sister. The format is unconventional.
Goal: 50 books by women authors
55/50. The White Book by Han Kang; translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.
Goal: 25 books in translation
33/25. The White Book by Han Kang; translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
