Goodreads Ireland discussion
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What Are You Reading
I read Malcolm x a few years ago Barbara. Really enjoyed it, a great incite into his background and philosophies. Heavy reading at times
Once again I am a crowd of one. I loved Life after Life. I found it very inventive and riveting once I got into the swing of it. I even drove 2 1/2 hours each way to hear her speak. Emma, I really wouldn't classify Watership Down as a children's book. It is very grown-up in theme. It's more like Animal Farm than Bambi.
I have started a book called Knights Shadow by Sebastian De Castell. Its the second in a series which is pretty much Dumas' Muskateers in a fantasy setting. Very good so far. The guy writes sword fights as well as Cornwell writes battles .
Susan, I have to say that I enjoyed 'Life After Life' as well, although not perhaps to the same extent as yourself. As I primarily use the Android app to access the group, I often see your original post in this thread about going to see Kate Atkinson reading from the book. Is it still in your Top 10? Have you started the new one btw?
Susan I loved Life After Life it was one of my favorite reads from last year.I'm a little nervous about reading A God in Ruins I don't know if it can live up to Life After Life but of course I will read it soon.
I just finished The Fields and I did not like it at all except the first section after that it went from ok to what and why did I waste time on this novel. Now I'm moving on to one of our quarterly reads A History of Loneliness
Colleen wrote: "I just finished The Fields and I did not like it at all except the first section after that it went from ok to what and why did I waste time on this novel. Now I'm moving on to one ..."Colleen - funny you should mention The Fields. I saw Anne Enright tonight and she mentioned there are some writers who portray working class Irish folks in a very derogatory light. I spoke to her when she signed my book and mentioned The Fields and Broken Harbor that really irritated some of my Dublin friends and the portrayal in these books of working class lives. She did mention Roddy Doyle as doing a bang up job of conveying the language and wit of regular Dubs.
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@Collen, The Fields was not very popular with the group when we read in last year
This week I finished 3 books (well 2 books and a literary magazine) all of which earned 4 stars from me, so I call that a successful week of reading!
Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet No. 27
Jimmy's Blues and Other Poems
Bertie Plays the Blues: A 44 Scotland Street Novel
Next up:
Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne, the First Lady of the Black Press
Under Wildwood: The Wildwood Chronicles, Book II
And a YA read about New Orleans, Ninth Ward
I'm struggling to find time to listen to To Kill a Mockingbird. Since it's on the Audio CD not Audible the only really good places to listen are in my car (where I'm not spending) much time or at my computer (where I'm usually doing work I need to focus on). Audible is definitely better for listening to audiobooks in multiple locations. I may have to renew my subscription soon. I may pick up a paper copy when I go to the library tomorrow.
I just read Proxopera by Benedict Kiely this morning. As Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention is going very slowly (not even on page 20 yet), I wanted some sense of completion.
Just finished
was a good read.
I have to finish
not what I thought it was but will finish it all the same.
Starting
was a good read.I have to finish
not what I thought it was but will finish it all the same.Starting
I'm on page 101 of Room and I still don't like it but I think it may get better (I Hope) but for right now I'll take a break from it and start reading A History of Loneliness
Last week, there was an article on the "best" traditional mysteries, so I'm reading one of the books on the list--The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. It's light reading, but it has clever plotting, and Christie used it to introduce Hercule Poirot. So far, a run read.
How can you go wrong with Agatha Christie?
Susan wrote: "How can you go wrong with Agatha Christie?":) There have been several spots where I've chuckled. She creates such quirky characters.
I started and discarded Karin Fossum's The Murder of Harriet Krohn (see my brief review). Then after looking on my shelves to see if I had Glenn Patterson's Lapsed Protestant - I don't - I put his book Number Five on the top of my TBR pile and started The Emperor of Ice Cream by Brian Moore which both Patterson and Ciaran Carson rave about.
Barbara, Number 5 is one of my favourite Patterson novels, so I am confident that it'll be a book that you will enjoy. Hopefully the Moore is going well!I'm actually tempted to abandon Frog Music by Emma Donoghue myself, having yet really to warm to it, but given that I'm nearly 200 pages in, I'll perhaps give it a rattle for a while longer. I'm just not liking the characters, which is a shame, given that this is my first foray into Donoghue's work. Hopefully it will grow on me...
I've started two new books today-the second in the Ferrante trilogy, The Story of a New Name on audio, and a book that I bought nearly a year ago, A Detroit Anthology-one of the many books I'm determined to read rather than buying any more in the short term! :)
I requested 2 books from my library - Perks if Being a Wallflower and the new Ellys Griffin in the Ruth Galloway series. Trying to buy less and read what I have. So busy this week I am not getting much reading in but almost done with The Emperor of Ice Cream which is a kind of Catcher in the Rye set in Belfast.
I am reading a great book Company of Liars by Karen Maitland recommended to me by Paul. My only complaint? It's so good that I sat up until 2:30 am reading it because I couldn't put it down.Barbara, the new book in the Galloway series is great. Someone told me she has a new stand alone book called The Zig Zag Girl. It won't be out for some time in America so you guess it. On-line to Kenneys. I just enjoy her books so much.
Susan wrote: "I am reading a great book Company of Liars by Karen Maitland recommended to me by Paul. My only complaint? It's so good that I sat up until 2:30 am reading it because..."Fortunately she is not so super popular that there are long waiting lists so I should get it soon from the library. I have been avoiding the library because when I go in I end up picking up too many books and don't get to the piles in my house.
I just finished The Ghost Fields about five minutes ago. I had a gift card, and as soon as I knew the new Elly Griffiths book was available, I ordered it. They're always good, my guilty pleasure. I'm also reading A Dark-Adapted Eye, but I'm not quite sure about it yet.
You made me laugh, Cathleen. I wouldn't say Elly Griffiths was a guilty pleasure. Now if you'd said James Patterson or Janet Evanovich, I would understand the guilty pleasure. :)
Susan wrote: "You made me laugh, Cathleen. I wouldn't say Elly Griffiths was a guilty pleasure. Now if you'd said James Patterson or Janet Evanovich, I would understand the guilty pleasure. :)"Susan - Cathleen and I, as academic college professors, have to feel guilty when we read for pleasure. But I got over this several years back when I went to see Ian Rankin and Peter Robinson and mentioned that I concealed my mystery book reading from colleagues. It turns out that both Rankin and Robinson worked on PhDs in literature. I don't think either finished - but currently according to The Chronicle of Higher Education, around 50% don't finish.
Why is there such a high drop out rate do you think Barbara? I would have thought it's an enjoyable course other than the research element
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I've been really enjoying the audiobook version of To Kill a Mockingbird, but it's going slowly due to lack of time to listen in the car. I should be done by early next week though.. I'm also liking The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, but due to heat I don't think I've felt much like reading. It's a funnier book than I expected.
Next up is A History of Loneliness!
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I won it in a GR giveaway. Blurb says it is a follow up to Shamus nominee Bear is Broken. Central character is Leo Maxwell, criminal defense attorney.
I love our local library. I requested both The History of Loneliness and The Perks of Being A wallflower just yesterday, and I've gotten an email that they have both ready for me.
I love our local library. I requested both The History of Loneliness and The Perks of Being A wallflower just yesterday, and I've gotten an email that they have both ready for me.
Seraphina wrote: "Why is there such a high drop out rate do you think Barbara? I would have thought it's an enjoyable course other than the research element"I think you got it Seraphina - it's doing the actual dissertation that trips up many. I have never had any luck getting doctoral students to understand that the "easy" part of their degree is the coursework. That's because it is structured. Many will say they are almost done because they've finished their courses. In the US, that is about 20 plus courses. We also have students fail their two exams. But compared to the UK, Ireland, and Europe it is easier here to get the degree here. I was on a PhD bank for someone from Barcelona and his dissertation was 700 pages! In the US we try to keep them under 300 though that is probably not a requirement.
Cathleen wrote: "I love our local library. I requested both The History of Loneliness and The Perks of Being A wallflower just yesterday, and I've gotten an email that they have both ready for me."Cathleen - I appreciate our wonderful system of public libraries as much as I love our national parks - both need our support and $$$.
Gradually I am catching up with updating my bookshelves. I've had a few dodgy audio books so this time I've downloaded one from my library that gets several good reviews from GI members. Company of Liars by Karen Maitland isn't my usual fare but there is nothing wrong with that. Here's hoping that it will be good to knit to.....
I think its one of those books a lot of people will love. I was worried while Susan read it as I'd recommended it but thankfully she loved it as well. I keep trying to get Trelawn to read it as well
Trelawn hasn't read it? That surprises me. I should be able to make a start this weekend.
Trelawn doesn't read much Medievil history at all. I think Susans review might push it up her list a little
I will read it at some point but I am trying to work my way through my own mountain of books at the mo.
But I'm the boss. No waitt a second....
Paul wrote: "But I'm the boss. No waitt a second...."I'd say you are delusional....
Thats exactly what Trelawn said while I made up my bed on the sofa
Thankfully we don't have a shed or dog kennel ...
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I won it in a GR giveaway. Blurb says it is a follow up to Shamus nominee Bear is Broken. Central charact..."
Followup to above:
Recommended for: legal mystery fans
I received an autographed copy of this book from the author through the Goodreads giveaway program. Thank you Lachlan Smith!! I give it 4.5 stars(rounded up to 5). It was a fast, easy read--2 days.
Leo Maxwell is a criminal defense attorney who is out for a morning bike ride when a passing car hits him a glancing blow. The driver, an attractive blonde, stops, picks him and his bicycle up and takes him to his car. Later, she comes to his office to hire him to defend her brother. She gives him $10,000 in cash.
She tells him that his brother will call him from jail. The brother does and Leo agrees to speak to him. Then things go bad. The prisoner brought to him is not the man he talked to on the phone and he already has a lawyer.
The characters are well written and the plot twists are numerous. This is book 2 in the series, but it read ok as a standalone.
I plan to read books 1 and 3.
The book author bio says that the author practices civil rights and employment law in Alabama. There is a separate thread in the book where Leo defends an accused child molester. I found the courtroom scenes to be authentic.
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I'm guessing you are talking about the Kate Atkhinson book. I listened to it on audiobook and just didn't get what all the fuss was about
I've started Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable for my book club on the last Saturday of the month. I knew it'd take a while to read but am finding it even denser than I imagined. At nearly 500 pages (without all the end notes) I will probably read it a chapter at a time. Nonetheless, it is already impressive.