What I'm Reading FEBRUARY 2014

[Larry]

Ahh, hopefully I'm reading more books and fewer financial statements in the month of February. I did just finish Bad Things Happen and Very Bad Men (David Loogan #2), both by Harry Dolan. They are the first two books in a continuing series of mysteries featuring an editor of a mystery magazine and his girlfriend, a homicide detective. They're both set in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I enjoyed them both a lot.

[Cateline]

Hey Larry! Good to see you back. :)

I've read at least the first Harry Dolan, enjoyed it. :)

I'm reading a couple of things right now. One being Far from the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity, another might be The Line of Beauty by Alan Hollinghurst. Still on the fence about the latter.

Or something completely different. heh

[Carol]

Pulled Shantaram off the shelf, put it back , and picked upThe Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll instead. I needed something a bit lighter after The Things They Carried. Hoping this will be.

[Cateline]

Carol, I think Shantaram is very much a marmite book. And heavy it is, indeed.

[Sara]

Cateline wrote: "Carol, I think Shantaram is very much a marmite book. And heavy it is, indeed."

Meaning an acquired taste? :-)

[Cateline]

LOL yeah, kinda sorta. You either love it, or cannot abide it......

I have read scathing reviews, and can somewhat sympathize, some of the criticisms are correct. But it is still a great story.

[Larry]

I just bought (as a Kindle book) Kate DiCamillo's Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures. (Nice on a Kindle Fire ... not so nice on a black and white Kindle ereader, even though the illustrations are in black and white) DiCamillo just won her second Newbery for this one ... I love everything she writes.

[Sheila]

Continuing with my Middle Eastern theme and have been reading Kader Abdolah's The House of the Mosque I'm about 2/3 of the way through this lovely family saga set in the changing times just before, during and after return of Ayatollah Khomeni to Iran. Very readable, good storytelling.

[Elizabeth]

I am reading Oliver Twist - since the book I read in grade school was abridged - and I am rereading Tolkien's The Lord of the Ring: The Two Towers.

[Ann D]

I just finished The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain by Maria Rosa Menocal. Thank you very much for this recommendation, Sue. I was able to get it from the library.

We are planning a trip to Spain, so this book was a wonderful introduction to the Muslim influence on that part of Europe. This was a period when Arabic culture flowered, especially in poetry, science, and philosophy. Andalusia was also a place where Muslims, Christians, and Jews often lived in harmony. I got a bit bogged down in the discussions of poetry (which is one of Mendocal's specialties), but otherwise I really learned a lot from this book.

[Barbara]

Larry wrote: "Ahh, hopefully I'm reading more books and fewer financial statements in the month of February. I did just finish Bad Things Happen and Very Bad Men (David Loogan #2), ..."

Larry, thanks for mentioning these two books by Harry Dolan. I live near Ann Arbor and spend a lot of time there. Love to read good books based in places I know. I read reviews of these books in a local paper but forgot about them. I just checked our library and they own both in audiobook productions.

[Connie]

Thank you also for mentioning this book, it looks to be a very fascinating read!


Ann wrote: "I just finished The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain by Maria Rosa Menocal. Thank you very much..."

[Connie]

I am reading San Miguel for this group's virtual book club and the The Moonstone. I have just finished 2 haunting books for my "real time" book club: Housekeeping and Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity.

I was wondering if anyone can recommend some light hearted novels or humor books beyond Bill Bryson and David Sedaris (have read most). I need a bit of a change! Thanks!

[Sherry, Doyenne]

Connie wrote: "I am reading San Miguel for this group's virtual book club and the The Moonstone. I have just finished 2 haunting books for my "real time" book club: [book:Housekeepin..."

Anything by Carl Hiaasen, if you don't mind a little weird, but often very funny.

[Connie]

Thanks - I haven't read anything by him yet!!

Sherry wrote: "Connie wrote: "I am reading San Miguel for this group's virtual book club and the The Moonstone. I have just finished 2 haunting books for my "real time" book club: [b..."

[Ruth]

Just finished Goodnight, Nebraska by Tom McNeal. Well-written, but I doubt this one sticks in my memory. I’ve read way too many small town with interesting characters books. This one doesn’t stand out above the pack.

[Larry]

Barbara wrote: "Larry, thanks for mentioning these two books by Harry Dolan. I live near Ann Arbor and spend a lot of time there. Love to read good books based in places I know. I read reviews of these books in a local paper but forgot about them. I just checked our library and they own both in audiobook productions. ..."

Barbara, there's a third book in the series also ... I've reserved it at the library. It's a prequel to the first book.

[Lyn]

If I'm enjoying a novel, I dislike it ending and my having to transition to another one, so I really enjoyed Shantaram! It definitely has depth, is a very adventurous story, and yeah, goes on for awhile!

[Sue]

Larry wrote: "I just bought (as a Kindle book) Kate DiCamillo's Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures. (Nice on a Kindle Fire ... not so nice on a black and white Kindle ereader, even tho..."

Larry I just read the description for this and added it to my list. I like to read children's books periodically and my Kindle Fire likes to be used for more than Words With Friends once in a while.

[Peggy]

I just started Wool. I've heard good things about it, from different circles of friends, but it hasn't grabbed me yet.

[Nicole]

Connie wrote: "I am reading San Miguel for this group's virtual book club and the The Moonstone. I have just finished 2 haunting books for my "real time" book club: "

You might try Christopher Buckley for some light-hearted humor. He wrote Thank You for Smoking, which is the best known, but also several other books which are easy to read and fairly amusing. I enjoyed No Way to Treat a First Lady.

[Sheila]

I finished Kader Abdolah's House Of The Mosque and thoroughly enjoyed it and reviewed it on my blog.
Now have moved onto David Ashton's Shadow Of The Serpent which someone here on CR recommended in a discussion of detective novels - sorry I have forgotton who it was :(

[Bernadette]

Ann wrote: "I just finished The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain by Maria Rosa Menocal. Thank you very much..."

The mash up of cultural influences is wonderful Andalusia and still evident in everyday life. If you are planning a trip, do include Tarifa, located on the southernmost point of continental Europe. You can see the African continent, the Mediterranean sea and the Atlantic Ocean in one view.

[Ann D]

Thanks for the recommendation, Bernadette.

[Sue]

Bernadette wrote: "Ann wrote: "I just finished The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain by Maria Rosa Menocal. Thank y..."

I read that book with MENA last year and it created a new world of interest in me. Now to find the time for those books. I'm currently reading Leo Africanus but it is essentially on hold while I finish or get started with some others. so far I can recommend it as another view on those times.

[Ann D]

I found the MENA discussion of ORNAMENT OF THE WORLD, Sue. That's a very erudite group of people.

[Sue]

It's a very interesting group, Ann. So many threads of discussion. I've found some excellent reading ideas there. Write me and maybe I can give some ideas.

[John]

Larry wrote: "Ahh, hopefully I'm reading more books and fewer financial statements in the month of February. I did just finish Bad Things Happen and Very Bad Men (David Loogan #2), ..."

I listened to both of those - complete with some characters' heavy Michigan accents. The next one I understand is due out right about now.

[Cateline]

I finished Octopussy and The Living Daylights by Ian Fleming. Short and action packed. My review is here... https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Carol]

I used to read Ian Fleming all the time . My first foray into the espionage world, followed by John le Carre and Robert Ludlum. It must be over 40 years since I last read a Bond, James Bond.

[Lisa Hope]

The Dead in their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley, The Portrait of Dorian Gray by Wilde and Works of Love by Søren Kierkegaard. The last is the one I am really loving. The first I just started, but not in the mood for.

[Cateline]

Carol wrote: "I used to read Ian Fleming all the time . My first foray into the espionage world, followed by John le Carre and Robert Ludlum. It must be over 40 years since I last read a Bond, James Bond."

/giggle/ Yeah.....well, I read them around that time as well. Only recently I decided to give them a go again. When the new Casino Royale came out I reread it, and was very surprised at how well it held up. Also more than very surprised that except for the technology, the film was very similar to the book.

Love le Carre. :)

[Carol]

:) ditto

[Beth]

Sherry wrote: "Connie wrote: "I am reading San Miguel for this group's virtual book club and the The Moonstone. I have just finished 2 haunting books for my "real time" book club: [b..."

I second that recommendation!

[Beth]

I'm reading THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield. It's not fabulous but I want to know what happens.

Then I'm going to start SAN MIGUEL, which I am looking forward to reading.

[Sheila]

Beth wrote: "I'm reading THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield. It's not fabulous but I want to know what happens. ...

Beth, I just watched a BBC adaptation of this with Vanassa Redgrave as the dying writer - great performance as usual - and Olivia Coleman(well known on UK TV) as the young journalist . I haven't read the book so can't compare them but it certainly worked for film.

[Sheila]

Ann, Sue, I am also a member of the MENA group. I joined because I wanted to expand my awareness of the literature of that region. It has certainly given me some titles I would never have come across without their involvement.

[Gina]

I'm so backed up on my reading right now. I've been reading Dracula by Bram Stoker and loving it. Stoker scares you without ramming the violence down your throat. No wonder it's such a classic. Also reading Tree of Smoke which has been compared to the Vietnam War's Catch-22. For a book club, I'm reading The Diviners by Libba Bray. I'm not a fan of this book but I must lead the discussion on this so I need to finish it. Bray is so heavy-handed with the violence and doesn't employ any subtlety. I respect Stoker even more. Now I need to start reading San Miguel. I need more hours alone with my books.

[Donna]

I'm reading Arundel, a great historical fiction classic dealing with the Revolutionary period in Maine and Benedict Arnold's march on Quebec. Also picking away at The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany- harrowing.

[Nicole]

Gina wrote: "I need more hours alone with my books.
"
Yes, me too.

This month I'm reading two books for my in-person book club (both German novels in translation). One is Juli Zeh's Décompression (Textes allemands), which I have almost finished and is pretty enjoyable. The other one is The Wall, which I have yet to start.

I also need to start the T.C. Boyle when it finally arrives in the mail. I've only read short stories by him before, and few of those, so I'm looking forward to it.

I'm trying also to make progress on the read my own books front; I hope to start Infinite Jest tonight. Much to my shame, I have never read it. I hope it's good, because it's plenty hefty.

Finally, I have a stack of library books from a recent eyes-are-bigger-than-my-tummy visit: I've got oHotel du Lac, Continental Drift, and the last of the Margaret Atwood novels still unread, Surfacing.

I'm not sure how I will do it all, but I don't want to give anything up. Maybe a reading vacation is in order.

[Sheila]

Nicole wrote: eyes-are-bigger-than-my-tummy visit"

Love it!

[Ann D]

Beth and Sheila,
I thought THE THIRTEENTH TALE was a good read. I'll have to check out the film.

Donna,
I read ARUNDEL many years ago and remember liking it a lot.

[Sara]

Ann wrote: "Beth and Sheila,
I thought THE THIRTEENTH TALE was a good read. I'll have to check out the film.

Donna,
I read ARUNDEL many years ago and remember liking it a lot."

I really enjoyed The Thirteenth Tale too. I'm not sure the film has made it to the U.S. yet.

[Beth]

Sheila wrote: "Beth wrote: "I'm reading THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield. It's not fabulous but I want to know what happens. ...

Beth, I just watched a BBC adaptation of this with Vanassa Redgrave as the..."

I'll have to check that out!

[Beth]

Sara wrote: "Ann wrote: "Beth and Sheila,
I thought THE THIRTEENTH TALE was a good read. I'll have to check out the film.

Donna,
I read ARUNDEL many years ago and remember liking it a lot."

I really enjoyed ..."

I'm having trouble connecting with the characters. I find myself rolling my eyes from time to time. Perhaps I'm not in the right frame of mind to be reading it--I want to tell them to get over it. Not terribly empathetic on my part.

[Ann D]

Well, I think it's a good read, Beth, which doesn't necessarily mean good literature. :-). It did hold my interest. The film is not on Netflix yet.

[Cateline]

In addition to Far from the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity, I'm reading The Sisterhood by Helen Bryan, and From Russia With Love by Ian Fleming.
I seem to be on a Bond kick. The books are far superior to the films. And, they are practically new to me, as I haven't read them in at least 40 years, for the most part.

[Joan]

I just finished Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth My thoughts: Reza Aslan sets the stage of the political and religious climate in biblical Judea relying on Roman documents, which are the only factual materials that exist. He refers to the New Testament, though the actual authors of the gospels are in question, and most likely he stories are oral versions handed down and over time, reassembled. The Messianic atmosphere of that age seems analogous to American Idol with all sort of contenders vying for the position of The Chosen One. Aslan relies on probabilities so that the historical Jesus seems more of a statistic. Aslan writes like the scholar he is which means there’s a good deal of repetition to make a point and the writing overall tends to be on the dull side.On the positive side, the section on the spread of Christianity after the crucifixion is interesting, probably because more real evidence exists.

[Larry]

Cateline wrote: "Hey Larry! Good to see you back. :)

I've read at least the first Harry D..."

Cateline, as much as I enjoyed the first Harry Dolan book, I did think that there were a few too many twists. I think that the sequel is better and I'm really looking forward to the third book.

[Larry]

I just started Robert Littell's A Nasty Piece of Work: A Novel. Noir-ish with humor.