Which LIST book did you just finish? Showing 6,551-6,600 of 10,248

[Sean]

George P. wrote: "The History of Love by Nicole Krauss. Guys, don't avoid this book because it sounds "romantic"; it's good, and pretty amusing in parts."

100% agree. One of my mostest favoritest

[Mia]

Orlando by Virginia Woolf. This one was better than the others I've read from her but I still don't like her.

[Maggie]

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

I wondered why, of all of Agatha Christie's mysteries, this is the only one featured on the list. I wonder no more. I've always liked Agatha Christie's stories, but this is possibly the cleverest mystery I've ever read. The many red herrings threw me off, and even though I knew the ending would be a twist, it still surprised me, and while I made a hundred guesses about who the murderer is, I never suspected the actual murderer. Best yet, once the murderer was revealed, I realised all the clues had been there, with nothing of importance hidden from the reader.

[Kayla]

How did you like The Goldfinch? I’m about 10ish percent through and am enjoying it so far

[Karen]

George P. wrote: "The History of Love by Nicole Krauss. Guys, don't avoid this book because it sounds "romantic"; it's good, and pretty amusing in parts."

I really enjoyed it! Loved Bird!

[Karen]

Celestina by Fernando de Rojas

[Diane]

Sean wrote: "I finished Grande Sertão: Veredas by João Guimarães Rosa.

AKA: The Devil to Pay in the Backlands. This is how I read it. I kept reading about how the E..."

I loved it, too. It must be absolutely incredible in the original language and dialect.

[Diane]

Finished The Elementary Particles by Michel Houellebecq. Not my thing.

[Nocturnalux]

Castle Rackrent by Maria Edgeworth.

[Kayla]

Thomas of Reading by Thomas Deloney

Wasn’t “bad” by any means, for me though, the old English was so difficult for me to read that trying to grasp what was going on and being said proved difficult. Despite the short length of the book it took me nearly a month to finish it because I could only grasp small bits of it at a time. For the most part I believe I understood the story- it just took me time to get through it. Onto the next...

[Peter]

White Teeth by Zadie Smith

[George P.]

Finished Fatelessness by Kertesz. Teenage Jewish boy’s experience in WWII concentration camps, told in a first-person rambling almost stream of consciousness style.

[George P.]

Kayla, I am one of the few other people who have read Thomas of Reading. It was historically interesting to get a sense, in reading this short piece, of fiction‘s early days.

[Kayla]

George, I complete my agree. I think part of what I found most interesting, and perhaps it’s because of my difficulty understanding the language that opened my eyes to it, was realizing how much the English language has evolved over time- between the spelling, word choice/usage etc. I very much felt like I was reading a book in a language I vaguely knew but wasn’t fluent in so I could “get through it” but perhaps not get as much out of it as someone who was fluent in that same language, if that makes sense. I’m glad I read it though, it was very interesting to see that in so many ways fiction has evolved and yet in many ways it remains consistent at its very base. Definitely enjoyed it more than Miss Lonelyhearts, just took me longer to read it.

[Kayla]

After the Quake by Haruki Murakami

Very much loved how it makes you stop and question life and our own existence/purpose even when some of the stories were rather odd.

[Karen]

Two by Graham Greene --
The Power and the Glory and Brighton Rock

[Fran]

Middlemarch by George Eliot

[Thomas]

Kayla wrote: "Thomas of Reading by Thomas Deloney

Wasn’t “bad” by any means, for me though, the old English was so difficult for me to read that trying to grasp what was going on and being said proved difficult..."

It is surprising how quickly the English becomes readable. Just a hundred years later it is hardly distinguishable from modern English

[Thomas]

I have a general question.
Does anybody have a blog where it is possible to discuss the individual books? With 1000+ books on the combined lists this is very difficult with a single thread.
I would offer my own blog, but I have only written about 37 books so far.

[Karina]

I finally finished The Once and Future King by T.H. White last week! Really enjoyed that one.

[Kayla]

Thomas wrote: "Kayla wrote: "Thomas of Reading by Thomas Deloney

Wasn’t “bad” by any means, for me though, the old English was so difficult for me to read that trying to grasp what was going on and being said pr..."
Yes, a hundred years over the grand scheme is so quick, especially when you consider to the extent that it evolved. It's definitely interesting to say the least.

[Kayla]

Thomas wrote: "I have a general question.
Does anybody have a blog where it is possible to discuss the individual books? With 1000+ books on the combined lists this is very difficult with a single thread.
I woul..."

Hi Thomas,

This community has a thread dedicated to each of the list books that have been read as a group (not all of them quite yet but getting close) Linking them here for reference :-)

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

[Karen]

The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster

[Sean]

Kayla wrote: "Thomas wrote: "I have a general question.
Does anybody have a blog where it is possible to discuss the individual books? With 1000+ books on the combined lists this is very difficult with a single..."

In addition to the group read books, feel free to start a new thread on Kayla's first link to any book you like.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

Finished Mother by Maksim Gorky. Not really a fan.

[Ellinor]

Finished The Crime of Father Amaro. Outstanding.

[Diane]

Mercedes wrote: "I just re-reviewed my copy of the list... The Virginian is not on it? I could have sworn I'd seen it listed."

No, although it probably should be.

[Diane]

Finished Under the Skin by Michel Faber.

[Kirsten]

Mercedes wrote: "I just re-reviewed my copy of the list... The Virginian is not on it? I could have sworn I'd seen it listed."

Maybe it's on an earlier list, I know it's on the Guardian 1000 Books list.

[Karen]

Diane wrote: "Finished Under the Skin by Michel Faber."

Strange book!

[Karen]

The Princesse de Clèves by Madame de La Fayette

[Karen]

Mercedes wrote: "The Virginian should be, I agree. I guess it's from The Guardian list that I saw it and erroneously thought it was on both lists. How did Boxall skip this one but included numerous Elmore Leonards?..."

I agree -- it is a classic of western literature and very readable. Leonard and Cormac McCarthy are so violent.

[Diane]

Karen wrote: "

Strange book!"

Yes, indeed!

[Diane]

Finished The Iron Heel by Jack London.

[Mia]

I finished Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad. I liked Heart of Darkness more.

[Karina]

I finished The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham.

[Carol]

Just finished Justine by Marquis de Sade

Very boring, pedantic speeches by main characters. I wouldn't have wasted my time if it had not been on this list.

[Tim]

To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
The Voyage Out by Virginia Woolf

[Carol]

I just finished Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis.

[Karen]

The Grass Is Singing by Doris Lessing

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

I don't know if I'll live long enough to get to de Sade's books, but I'm not really looking forward to them.

A book (or play, actually), that was interesting to me was The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade by Peter Weiss. The play was filmed back in the 70's or late 60s, and was available in its entirety on Youtube, where I watched it. I thought it was quirky and odd and had that 60s/70s vibe to it, which was kind of nostalgic for me. Anyone looking for something unusual (but not so experimental as to be incomprehensible) might find it worthwhile. It would probably help, though, to know a little bit about Marat's role in the French Revolution. Wikipedia could give you all the relevant information.

[Maggie]

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
The bleakness of the book got to me and my spirits were rather low the whole time I was reading this. It's a sign of how emotive the writing is, but it wasn't good for daily living! I liked the metaphors, but didn't really like the repetitiveness of the writing.

[Amanda]

A Room with a View by E.M. Forster. Review is up on http://www.1001everything.blogspot.com. :)

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

So many people liked The God of Small Things, but I really thought Roy went out of her way just to make things as awful as she could, without there being any real reason for it. I mean, yes, tragedy is tragic, but whatever the opposite of gilding the lily is, that's what TGoST seemed to me.

[Bob]

Diane wrote: "Finished The Iron Heel by Jack London."

Not quite what I was used to from London.

[Diane]

Bob wrote: "Diane wrote: "Finished The Iron Heel by Jack London."

Not quite what I was used to from London."

I agree.

[Diane]

Finished:
H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
The German Lesson by Siegfried Lenz
The Victim by Saul Bellow

[Diane]

Finished Complicity by Iain Banks.

[Joy D]

Not my taste at all:

Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer - 1 star - My Review

[Diane]

Finished
What Maisie Knew by Henry James
The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster