The Next Best Book Club discussion
note: This topic has been closed to new comments.
Book Related Banter
>
What Are You Reading - Part Deux
message 2701:
by
Paula
(new)
Dec 06, 2015 11:41AM
Just starting
reply
|
flag
Carrie by Stephen King – 4**** I first read this back when it was a new book in 1974. I was fascinated and horrified. The movie, starring Sissy Spacek as Carrie, was excellent, and I have to admit that re-reading it now, I can’t help but picture images from the film.
Full Review HERE
Mr Ives’ Christmas by Oscar Hijuelos – 4**** This Pulitzer finalist (1996) is a lovely, contemplative novel – a character study and philosophical exploration of one man’s search for spiritual peace. Hijuelos paints a picture of a gentle man, with a quiet strength born of his circumstances, and of the influences of both the Church and his adoptive father. It is through them that he learns to love and to endure. I’ll be thinking about this gem for a long time, and I’m certain I’ll re-read it.
Full Review HERE
Dragonfly in Amber by Diane Gabaldon – 2.5** Book two in the Outlander series continues the story of Jamie and Claire. I was bored by much of this. The plotting seemed very uneven to me. Several interesting characters were introduced in the Paris setting, but they simply disappeared in the second half of the book. The political “intrigue” wasn’t intriguing to me. Davinia Porter, however, is spectacular narrating the audio version of this series. Her facility with voices makes me believe she IS Murtagh, Raymond, Claire, Fergus, the Duke of Sandringham, Jenny, Jamie, et al.
Full Review HERE
Finished The Snow Child which was good but not great.Now I am reading Girl, Interrupted which is a very quick read and more enjoyable than I had expected.
Iain Banks - The Wasp Factory
I'm going to start reading A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale today.
I am reading Flip This Zombie. It's a fun book about a couple who are zombie slayers
I recently finished Skeleton Crew and Searching for the Sound: My Life with the Grateful Dead.Now I'm reading The Wise Man's Fear. I've been waiting to read this one.
Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple – 3*** I’m not a huge fan of satire and it took me a while to get into the spirit of this book. But once I surrendered to the craziness I found myself enjoying the ride. The book is structured as a series of journal entries, emails, letters, etc jumping from one character’s point of view to another. It’s great fun to read some of these missives, but at times the interruption in the story arc is just distracting and even boring. Kathleen Whilhoite does a fantastic job performing the audio. She is by turns dead-pan, enthusiastic, calm and serene, and totally hysterical.
Full Review HERE
The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall Smith – 3*** Book thirteen in the series featuring Mma Precious Ramotswe, her associate Mma Grace Makutsi, and their husbands, friends and clients. I think I’ll never get tired of this gentle cozy series, where the mysteries are usually of the financial or political kind, and not typically murders. Reading one of these books is simply a balm for my soul.
Full Review HERE
Finished Girl, Interrupted (5 stars) and have started The Martian . I am just hoping it will continue as well as it started.
I started Child 44 last night. I really like it so far.
Wow, some good books are being read right now! I've just started reading something light --Monk's Hood by Ellis Peters.
Marisa wrote: "I started Child 44 last night. I really like it so far."I've been listening to this on audio and am enjoying it so far. 3 more CD's to go.
Marisa wrote: "I started Child 44 last night. I really like it so far."I liked Child 44 and it gave horrifying insight into the Soviet Union of the 1950s
Since owning a Kindle, I've read *so many* books, I've failed to update this list! Erk! However, I have managed to squeeze in around 12 books at this stage and am currently reading "What If - Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Questions" and "War Against The Weak" and am just starting "The Danish Girl", having just finished "The Quiet Earth" and "The Devils Notebook".
Yea, Kindle is pretty much like that - take anywhere, read anytime - the best thing since sliced cheese!
Esther wrote: "Marisa wrote: "I started Child 44 last night. I really like it so far."I liked Child 44 and it gave horrifying insight into the Soviet Union of the 1950s"
Good to know, Esther! I've got it on my kindle to read.
Alexander wrote: "Since owning a Kindle, I've read *so many* books, I've failed to update this list! Erk! However, I have managed to squeeze in around 12 books at this stage and am currently reading "What If - Ser..."
I was surprised at how many books I have read on my Kindle too! And it is easy to take places, especially on vacation! But when I'm going to work or to a doctor's appointment, I find I still like to carry a paperback -- then if I somehow forget it some place, I don't figure I've lost much.
Oh, *especially* on vacation, at the doctors office, eating lunch in the office, on a bus, on a train ... they say you're meant to charge the Kindle once every 4-5 weeks, but I find once every 2-3 weeks is my standard. This is most likely due to wireless being 'on' and the backlight set to ~ 14 ... The paperbacks are still nice, though ... something tactile and that smells like a book (yes, I admit to smelling a book before I buy it!) ...
LOVE my Kindle. I read so much more because I can carry it with me. I read so much when I travel and can buzz through 2-3 books per trip, I like being able to have access to another book when I finish with one...without having to lug around multiple books. On another note, I am listening to The Killer Next Door and reading What You Left Behind.
The Christmas Letters by Lee Smith – 2** A multi-generational saga told through some of the annual Christmas letters written to friends/family from 1944-1996. I was bored for much of this, but at least it was a quick read.
Full Review HERE
The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey – 4**** Updating a traditional Russian folk tale, Ivey gives us the story of an older, childless couple, and the little girl they find and “adopt” in the snowy woods of Alaska, circa 1920. I really liked how Ivey explored the relationship between Mable and Jack, and how it evolved throughout the book. I also liked that Ivey kept me guessing about Faina. Ultimately, the message of this charming novel is to encourage us to “choose joy over sorrow.”
Full Review HERE
I just started 23 Shades of Black by k.j.a Wishnia
I just finished The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. It is our group read for January and I was planning on reading a few chapters but finished the book late last night. This is a great book about books that was funny, sad, and had a few shocking moments I didn't see coming. What a great light read to end the year!
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed – 3*** I am not a great fan of these kinds of navel-gazing self-realization memoirs, and I wasn’t expecting much from this one. Perhaps it was the connection with her mother or the way that she obviously did grow to adulthood on the trail, but I liked this more than I expected to.
Full Review HERE
LORI ... wondering if we should have a new thread for 2016?
I just finished The Third Angel by Alice Hoffman and really liked this book. Beautiful writing and characters.I am now starting Outlander. This is an awwwwfully long book. I hope it is worth the time.!
Beware False Profits by Emilie Richards – 2** It’s a fast read, but not a great mystery. The characters are mostly stereotypes and the plot is unnecessarily complicated. And there is really no need to keep breaking and replacing the Women’s Society’s prize antique punch bowl.
Full Review HERE
I've started Seventy Times Seven by John Gordon Sinclair today.
I'm reading The Selector of Souls. It was a little hard to get into at first, but the plot appears to be progressing now.
City of Shadows by Ariana Franklin – 3*** Set in Berlin from 1922 to 1933, this was a very atmospheric novel, with the city and time frame central to the plot. Franklin crafts an intricate plot and gives us wonderful characters. Already familiar with the historical events during this time frame, I grew increasingly nervous about how they would endure the coming political changes.
Full Review HERE
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury – 4**** Bradbury’s first published book (1950) is an anthology of connected short stories centering on men escaping an Earth about to be destroyed by war for a chance at a new beginning on the red planet. I first read this in about 1962 and it remains a favorite. I decided to re-read it because of the hoopla around Andy Weir’s The Martian. I’m glad I did.
Full Review HERE
I am currently reading Stars Over Sunset Boulevard by Susan Meissner, one of my new fave authors.
A Rocky Mountain Christmas by William W Johnstone – 2** The characters were all stereotypes and the message was heavy-handed. I don’t think I’m spoiling much by saying that the bad guys get what’s coming to them and the good guys win. It wouldn’t be a Western romantic Christmas story otherwise. At least it was a fast read.
Full Review HERE
I'm currently reading Inside the Dream Palace. The Life and Times of New York's Legendary Chelsea Hotel and am listening to the audiobook of Ready Player One. (How do people feel about counting audiobooks as "reading"? I have mixed feelings on this issue.) I also have The Book of Lost Things knocking around but haven't picked that one back up in a while - would love to finish Dream Palace and Lost Things before my Oyster books subscription ends next week. Eek!
Purity by Jonathan Franzen. It's getting good now, but it was a slow start for me.
I am starting Lafayette in the Somewhat United States, Lafayette, a young 19 Frenchman who was on Washington's staff, returns fifty years later as a 69 year old doing a grand tour.
Patricia wrote: "I just finished The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. It is our group read for January and I was planning on reading a few chapters but finished the book..."Good to know, Patricia, because I was considering reading Fikry sometime -- If I ever work down the pile of books I have. Right now I'm reading for a local book club Three Junes by Julia Glass. Now that I'm about halfway through the book, I've got the pace and framework but still not sure I'm all that interested in the characters. They are slowly growing on me ...
Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher – 2** This is a clever satire of academia and the changes wrought by a society that does not value English majors. Fitger’s letters of recommendation give insight into his thoughts on the status of “higher learning,” the increasing encroachment of technology, and the various personalities he encounters among students, fellow faculty and administrators. They are frequently hilarious, and at other times deeply sad.
Full Review HERE
I read that book quite a while ago, and really enjoyed it - once of those books that stick with you. Hope you enjoy it too!Paula wrote: "I'm reading
"
Pamk wrote: "I read that book quite a while ago, and really enjoyed it - once of those books that stick with you. Hope you enjoy it too!Paula wrote: "I'm reading [bookcover:In the Heart of the Sea: The Traged..
Thanks Pam. I finished it and did think it was good. It will stick, I'm sure. : )
I'm just a few pages into Hello From the Gillespies by Monica McInerney.
Moved on to Take Me with You. Hits all the feels. Loving it.
This topic has been frozen by the moderator. No new comments can be posted.
The Next Best Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
High Heat (other topics)Mai Tai One On (other topics)
Any Ordinary Day (other topics)
Death By Honeymoon (other topics)
Murder in Murloo (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Lee Child (other topics)Jill Marie Landis (other topics)
Leigh Sales (other topics)
Jaden Skye (other topics)
Brigid George (other topics)
More...
