Challenge: 50 Books discussion
*Retired* 2008 Lists
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Abby's Reading List
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3. Sammy's House, Kristin GoreNot as cute as Sammy's Hill but still not bad.
Next up is The Entitled by Frank Deford or The Amateurs by Halberstam.
4. My Horizontal Life, Chelsea Handler. Racy and maybe slightly inappropriate for public reading but hilarious nonetheless.
5. Later at the Bar, Rebecca BarryA novel in 10 short stories. It was pretty good but I got a little tired of it by the end.
6. Matrimony - Joshua Henkin7. God Save the Fan - Will Leitch
Meh on the first, loved the 2nd (a must-read if you read Deadspin or love sports)
9. The Giver, Lois LowryIn my senior year English class, my teacher gave us the assignment of re-reading a book we had read when we were younger to see if we had a new perspective on the book and its main themes. The Giver was definitely one of these books. I think I understood it much more then when I read it when I was in junior high. Still very good and a little creepy. I'm thinking about re-reading Catcher in the Rye for the same reason.
10. Complications, Atul GawandeThe book I've been working on every Tuesday when I have an hour to kill in the library.
I agree about The Giver! I just read it myself and I also thought it was creepy! I couldn't put it down. I had to read the next book though, because the end confused me, but I guess it was supposed to.
Yeah, the ending confused me too. I'm not really a fan of vague and abstract endings. I barely remembered it from the last time I read it. I guess that means it didn't make any sort of impression on me and I just kind of forgot it? I still enjoyed it again despite that.
11. Plum Lucky, Janet EvanovichI really liked this one, even though I've been unhappy with her as of late. In my opinion, the most recent books have been very similar to her earlier books and less funny.
12. Bringing Down the House, Ben MezrichPhenomenal book. It was a quick read but fascinating. It was clearly written and easy to understand, and you sympathized with all the characters. I'm excited to see the movie they are making based on this book.
I don't recall reading The Giver as a child; I'm not sure when it was published but I went from reading Nancy Drew books straight to reading classics like Moby Dick in about the fourth grade, so I missed out on a lot of exceptional children's literature.I read The Giver for the first time in college, in a course on literature for elementary grades, and it was one of the first books that really opened my eyes to the fact that there are some great messages in children's books that I never understood as a child. This revelation was actually part of what made me decide to become an elementary school teacher, rather than what I had been studying for before.
It made me realize that I need to get kids involved with what they are reading so that they can critically analyze the story and grow from it rather than plow through it to say they've finished another one. The Giver will always be special to me because it lead to all of this for me.
I am also looking forward to reading Plum Lucky. I have never read Janet Evanovitch but I've heard she's great and I am big into girl detectives (left over from my Nancy Drew days), so I can't wait to read that one.
13. Restless Virgins, Abigail Jones and Melissa Miley.I felt compelled to finish it even though I didn't like it all that much.
15. Without You, Anthony RappEasy to read, well-written and interesting subject material.
16. Can You Keep A Secret, Sophie KinsellaAnother one of my Tuesday in the library books. Easy to read, funny and well-written. I'll have to read more of her books!
18. Seeing Me Naked, Liza PalmerNot a difficult read but still pretty good.
I started listening to Steve Martin's "Born Standing Up" on my ride to work this morning. Fascinating and read by him so it's even better. I'm trying to read Omnivore's Dilemma although I keep misplacing the book and I'm hoping to start What is the What today.
19. Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella. I went stagnant for a while, both because of books I didn't want to finish and because of a lack of time. This book was a good one to get back in the habit with, because it was funny, cute and very easy to read.
20. When You Wish, Kristin Harmel.Cute and fluffy but an entertaining read nonetheless.
21. The Art of French Kissing, Kristin HarmelDitto the comment on 20.
22. Born Standing Up, Steve Martin (book on cd)
Absolutely worth listening to. He may not have had the most interesting life, but he's got a way with words, and you really get more out of it by having him read it to you.
23. Candy Girl, Diablo CodyIt wasn't bad at all. She writes well, and didn't try to paint an overly sympathetic picture of herself and her coworkers.
24. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Ann Brashares25. Second Summer of the Sisterhood, Ann Brashares
Two easy reads I enjoyed very much. Sometimes Brashares does try to get a little too deep, and it comes off as detached and vague, but the books seem very realistic. I own the fourth book but need to get my hands on the third.
26. Undomestic Goddess, Sophie KinsellaA slightly different twist on the girl-meets-boy, girl-loses-boy, girl-gets-boy-back story. A pleasant surprise and I liked it much better than I had thought I would.
27. Girls in Pants, Ann Brashares28. Forever in Blue, Ann Brashares
Finished off the series.
29. The Bright Side of Disaster, Katherine Center
30. Are You There, Vodka, It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler.Not for the easily offended, but hilarious. She has so many strange and wacky adventures. I hope she writes another book!
I'm currently working on Snuff by Chuck Palahniuk. It's my first one by him, and I'm kind of ambivalent on it.
31. Deep Drive, Mike Lowell with Rob BradfordMike Lowell is wonderful, so I really enjoyed this book.
33. Under the Banner of Heaven, Jon Krakauer
34. Bright Shiny Morning, James FreyIt took a little while to get used to the strange syntax but I really enjoyed this book.
35. Firefight: Inside the Battle to Save the Pentagon on 9/11 by Patrick Creed and Rick NewmanA quick read, and very interesting, but the subject matter's pretty grim. For some reason, disaster management fascinates me.
36. Bringing Home the Birkin, Michael TonnelloEntertaining and quick.
38. Waiter RantVery good - I could barely put it down!
Ooh...I saw something about this in some magazine somewhere. Off I go to put it on my to-read list.
39. Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer, Warren St. JohnAn interesting view into Alabama football fans and their love for the team.
40. Good Luck, Whitney GaskellChick lit, and kind of predictable, but cute nonetheless.
41. Cohn-Head, Linda CohnThe memoirs of a prominent female anchor on ESPN. It was quite interesting and a very quick read.
42. Exposed - Memoirs of a Wedding Photographer, Claire Lewis.I'm hoping I can make it to 50...we'll see.
43. Punching In, Alex Frankel.Interesting insight into people who work on the front lines of retail and service jobs.
44. Jemima J, Jane GreenIt was okay. Not my favorite chick lit book but not my least favorite either.
I really liked this book, although it was a little uncomfortable to read for me. I usually have a hard time getting through books when I don't feel a particular connection to one of the main characters, (in this case, I didn't like Florence at all) but I was glad that I pushed through. McEwan has a beautiful prose.
I'm excited to push myself to read and finish 50 books!