You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion
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Chit Chat About Books
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Jan 2013 - What are you reading & why?

Thanks, Chrissie. I don't know that I like them, but in some books they fit in better than others and can ma..."
You are welcome.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13..."
Welcome to You'll Love This One, Mark.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13......"
Thank you :-)



A word of warning. The subject matter is not going to fit everyone.
I have begun
The Professor & the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity & the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. How come so many people liked this book? Its topic seemed rather boring, but having listened to several chapters, I concur. It reads like fiction. It is interesting and exciting. You are pulled in immediately.


I see you have stumbled upon my favorite author although I enjoy his sigma series more than individual novels hope you enjoy

The Professor & the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity & the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. How come so many people liked this book? Its topic seemed rather boring, but havin..."
So far, it is good, but NOT as good as Colum McCann's writing. That is exceptional.



Chrissie wrote:
I have begun The Professor & the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity & the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. How come so many people liked this book? Its topic seemed rather boring, but having listened to several chapters, I concur. It reads like fiction. It is interesting and exciting. You are pulled in immediately. "
I think the title of my edition sounds more enticing than yours - The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary. Now that promises something.
I have several more Winchesters sitting awaiting attention.
I have begun The Professor & the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity & the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. How come so many people liked this book? Its topic seemed rather boring, but having listened to several chapters, I concur. It reads like fiction. It is interesting and exciting. You are pulled in immediately. "
I think the title of my edition sounds more enticing than yours - The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary. Now that promises something.
I have several more Winchesters sitting awaiting attention.


Glad to here his Sigma series is good I'll be starting it soon. I'm really liking this one so far so I think this one'll be a winner.

What great ideas! How often does your book club meet? Ours meets every other month so only 6 books a year.

I have a couple of his books to read - Drood and The Terror. I can't wait to read them.


He actually introduces most of the main characters in the 2nd book of the series so I usually tell people to read the first two because the first one is a little different than the rest. I have


I thought those 2 looked good also

I read The Terror by Simmons last year and loved it. It was a great mixture of horror and historical fiction.

I don't think they have read The Terror and with a birthday coming up in April...



My reading choices are erratic but I like the term eclectic better.

My review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
I am going to try and stick in the free, 45 minute long audiobook that I got from Audible: The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle by none other than Arthur Conan Doyle. It is a Christmas story so I must read it before Xmas. I LIKE getting free presents from Audible!
The book I will really be starting is Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin. I figured I had to listen to this before "They Have Killed Papa Dead!": The Road to Ford's Theatre, Abraham Lincoln's Murder, and the Rage for Vengeance, which deals with Lincoln's death! So I am doing an intensive Lincoln study for Xmas.
I cannot recommend No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt more highly! This is also by Goodwin.

Interested how team of rivals is since that is my G author for the ABC

Well, if it is anywhere near as good as Goodwin's No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt then I will be happy! Have you read this one about the Roosevelts? Can I convince you to read this too? My review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...


If I like team of rivals maybe I'll give a look at the Roosevelt's


You're lucky Chrissie! I'm dying to read Team of Rivals but I'm #89 out of 173 on the hold list for the library. I'm looking forward to seeing what you think of it.


Now I'm reading




I'm halfway through amazonia and it so far is great


I read this book while on holiday, and I loved it. As far as the ending goes, it won't let you down - very powerful and thought provoking!

My review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
and am continuing with "They Have Killed Papa Dead!": The Road to Ford's Theatre, Abraham Lincoln's Murder, and the Rage for Vengeance. I enjoy reading this after the other. I know who is who and recognize what is going on! I guess I have actually learned something from the first book!

I hope I can get my SUV started because I'm supposed to go out to the kids' for my granddaughter's birthday tonight.
I'm about to start reading Middlesex for my irl book club... another reason to stay under a blanket all day.


Aww :( I love that book (haven't finished it but I love it).


I'm reading it to complete a rainbow too.


Aww :( I love that book (haven't finished it but I love it)."
I'm sticking to it, hope it will be fine once I get through some more pages.




I finished reading


My review of the latter: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/... Recently I linked to my review of the former.
Now I need a book with a completely different setting and theme. I need to know what I will think of The Reader. Some think it is great; others abhor it.
I'm still reading The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. And I have such a stack of books waiting for jan 1st. It's not awful, it's just taking me such a long time to get through it. Lots of long & slightly tedious digressions on the state of religion and Russia and god know what that I think a modern editor would insist was removed. Over half way, at least.

My review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/... Campbell Scott is a good narrator!
Tomorrow I better listen to the freebie I got from Audible: A Christmas Carol.


This is my review;
www.goodreads.com/review/show/254426802
I finished A Possible Life

This is my review www.goodreads.com/review/show/481015642
Also finished

This is my review;
www.goodreads.com/review/show/354545864

Helen, I am glad to hear someone capture what I thought about the book too. It was not bad, just LONG. I thought parts were very interesting, but all of the long tedious stuff just got in the way and made it so hard to get on with it.


Aww :( I love that book (haven't finished it but I ..."
I'm not really into it so far (10% on my Kindle), hopefully in a little more time...

A lot of those classic books suffer from the same problems for contemporary readers - endless digressions on the state of life, the universe and everything. Maybe someone should start a series of 'Stripped Down' classics - same main plot/story, but written with a modern style and all the digressions cut?
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Not all that many. Maltese as mother-tongue; English (its an official language in Malta but it never comes naturally to me ugh); learned German in school (and I have a pretty good grasp on it, also was living three months in Hamburg which helped very much) and Norwegian since that is the language of my host-country :)