The Book Challenge discussion
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Brianah's book challenge for 2008
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i think you must be a Janet Evanovich fan! :)(i am too.)
I certainly am. They are great books to read at work b/c I can put them down and pick them right back up w/o trying to figure out where I am. I am trying to diversify a bit. I'm hoping to start The Time Traveler's Wife this weekend.
i really loved The Time Traveler's Wife. i hope you enjoy it! happy reading!
I love your format here...including when you started & finished the books, plus a little blurb. Sounds like you are really enjoying your reads! You're getting through your books a bit faster than me, but I've been picking up some steam & I'm still confident that I'll get my 50 books in before the end of the year (and hopefully the A-Z author AND title challenge too!) Thanks for the suggestion of the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die for ideas. You're almost halfway there and it's only April! Great job!! (Oh, and I also loved the Westing Game when I was younger! *L*) Anyway, just wanted to check in & see how your challenge was going. Happy reading:)
I didn't like Playground at all, it was a lot of drugs, a lot of celebrity name dropping/famous club dropping and I really couldn't connect with the author.Definitely not my favorite Playboy Mansion book.
I also loved this book. Gene Wilder did a documentary about the exposition about 10 years ago called The Magic of the White City. It makes an interesting companion piece.http://www.amazon.com/EXPO-Magic-Whit...
2008 Reviews (part 1)11. See How They Run by James Patterson
Very interesting book...I would recommend to anyone that has an interest in the Holocaust and it's long term effects. Kind of a conspiracy theory type book about what could have happened.
March:
12. Plum Lovin by Janet Evanovich
13. Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneger
Time Traveler's Wife was excellent! I had a lot of trouble getting into it and getting used to the way it jumped around. Once I got into it I couldn't put it down! It was an excellent book and I would certainly recommend it to anyone! Very exciting with a hint of science fiction (which I'm not really into) and a very sweet love story. Not crazy about some of the language as I felt it detracted from the characters, but I was more than willing to look past the language for the well-written story.
14. Marley and Me by John Grogan
This book is amazing! I read it in 2 days (a new record for me), laughing and crying my way through. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves animals or has had to deal with a nutty dog. This book mimics very closely our puppy, Charlotte, and makes me appreciate all of her quirks. This would make a very nice break in between two larger, more involved books (it was great for me after yielding 3 weeks to The Time Traveler’s Wife).
15. Metro Girl by Janet Evanovich
started: 3/12
finished: 3/19
16. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
started: 3/12/08
finished: 3/26/08
This was one of the first true-crime novels I have read and it was very interesting! I also enjoyed it due to the fact that I am from Kansas City and personally knew of many of the towns they spoke of. I have to admit that I probably had certain ideas of what this book would be like due to the opinion I had of the author after seeing the movie Capote. I have to admit that I was very pleasantly surprised by the style of writing in the book and actually found it to be a challenging read for me and I very much appreciated that.
17. Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich
started: 3/29/08
finished: 3/29/08
Not sure if I am just getting used to the flow of these Between-the-Numbers books, but this on was the best of the three. Not as much focused on the supernatural and was pretty interesting. Very short (less than 200 pages) but I needed a pick me up after reading In Cold Blood and in the middle of The Age of Innocence. Read this book in 3 hours (good for me since I read slowly).
APRIL:
18. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton*
started: 3/27/08
finished: 4/22
This was a re-read for me, read it first in high school. I have to admit that my very naive high school self didn't appreciate the full scope of the story but I was much better able to understand some situations at this point in my life (thought only 6 years later). I did enjoy this book and the social complexities that it presents. It is interesting to see the changes over time of the way people thought of any number of situations and relationships. I very much liked this book, though I now found it more of a sad story than the romantic memories I had of reading it before. A very good book that I would recommend to anyone who likes all kinds of love stories.
19. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (YA)
started: 4/2/08
finished: 4/9/08
Very cute book. I loved this book in grade school and must have read it 3 or 4 times in 4th and 5th grades. Still a cute story now and one I will pass down to my kids. It is a true mystery book and I still enjoy trying to figure out what happens in the end (since I can never remember).
20. The Beach House by James Patterson
started: 4/10/08
finished: 4/16/08
This was by far one of the best books I have read by James Patterson! I was completely enveloped in the story from the very beginning. I have never found myself as outraged, sad, and happy during one book! Very fine writing and so incredibly interesting! I could hardly put the book down after I got past the first few chapters. I would highly recommend this book to anyone!
21. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides*
started: 4/16/08
finished: 4/18/08
I saw the movie "The Virgin Suicides" several years ago and it is by far one of my favorite movies. When I began the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list...I came across this and decided to read it since I loved the movie so much. This book is now one of my favorites! It really filled in some open spaces in the movie and helped to explain the parts that seem a bit vague. I can't say what it is exactly about the movie/book that I find so incredibly endearing. Perhaps it is the narrator/narrators and the uniqueness of how the narration is presented. The book is written from one perspective and told as if by one person when, in actuality, it is being told by one group of boys. Their utter infatuation and love for the Lisbon girls in this story is very touching.
I love one line from the very end of the book and it really sums up the story, "It didn't matter in the end how old they had been, or that they were girls, but only that we had loved them, and that they hadn't heard us calling, still do not hear us...and where we will never find the pieces to put them back together."
22. Katie's Will by Tom Micheltree
started: 4/24/08
finished: 5/1/08
This was a quick re-read for me. I read this book when I was in sixth grade. So much has changed in my life and I certainly know more about life than I did then. I have to say that this book always stuck with me, but reading it again was an excellent idea. Looking back I realize that I didn't understand a lot of the small things in the book, like the intricacy of the relationships and even some of the references (one in particular to Jean Paul Sarte). My only criticism is that it felt as though it ended very quickly and I would have liked it to have been tied up a bit better in the end.
MAY:
23. Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich
started: 5/1/08
finished: 5/6/08
Very cute...a bit of a mystery. It probably is the one book that has reminded me most of the Stephanie Plum books. Fast read and pretty mindless.
24. You've Been Warned by James Patterson
started: 5/7/08
finished: 5/8/08
Very good book! My stomach was in knots all the way through the book! Very suspenseful and a great thriller. I would recommend this to anyone who likes who-dun-it type books. It was a quick read. The only thing I will mention is that all ends aren't tied up by the end but it gives you enough room to draw your own conclusions w/o feeling like you just get dropped.
25. The One-Minute Cleaner Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin
started: 5/9
finished: 5/18
This book has so many wonderful ideas in it! It has recipes for truly green cleaners that are often cheaper to make than to buy pre-made chemical cleaners. I am actually going to spend the money to purchase this book...which hasn't happened in quite some time!
2008 Reviews (part 2)26. The One-Minute Organizer Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin
started: 5/19/08
finished: 5/20/08
This book was awesome as well! I am definitely going to be buying both of these "one-minute" books. If anyone has trouble keeping things tidy and organized, these books will give you tons of suggestions. I am definitely motivated to get my house in order.
27. Naughty Neighbor by Janet Evanovich
started: 5/20/08
finished: 5/23/08
Quick read in true Evanovich style. Very cute story with a bit of a political scandal thrown in. Always like reading these for a quick read that makes me feel as if I've accomplished something.
28. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin
started: 5/22/08
finished: 5/29/08
This was a great book! I really liked following her through her though processes on how to deal with life given her different situations. It was interesting to see how other people reacted to her amnesia. I have often wished I could forget certain things that happened in my lifetime, but this book made me think about how much all of your experiences really influence how you feel/react/live your life.
JUNE:
29. PS, I Love You by Cecilia Ahern
started: 4/22
finished: 6/10
This book took me a while to finish b/c it was one of 3 books I have been working on and, somehow, was pushed to the bottom of the list for a while. But this book was so sweet! It was everything a good summer read should be (except for short)...funny, sad, sweet, romantic. I loved seeing how she interacted with her family and how she was able to develop those relationships. I have a rough relationship with my sister and it has changed and morphed and grown over the years, so I loved seeing her interactions. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romantic comedies.
pages: 400
30. Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot
started: 6/4/08
finished: 6/12/08
This was cute. Nothing profound, but entertaining. I have to admit that by the end of the book I was tired of hearing about her plans to be a detective/singer/jeweler/whatever-else...and her 3 unborn kids that she has already named. That and the whining really got to me. I doubt I will read another one of these books, but who knows.
pages: 272
31. The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen
started: 5/12/08
finished: 6/13/08
Wow. This was definitely not something I would normally have picked up, but was recommended to me by a girl at work and it was very interesting. It is basically about the battle between good and evil and is pretty interesting. I was sort of reminiscent of Davinci Code.
pages: 368
32. Hef's Little Black Book by Hugh Hefner
started: 6/12/08
finished: 6/16
This is by far the most poorly written book I have ever read. It is basically Bill Zehme trying to write a book around many random quotes by Hefner. After getting beyond the incredibly poor writing, the book was fairly interesting and gave some insight into why he is the way he is. I really think it will be interesting when he does pass away because I think it will come out that he has some mental issues, judging by much of his behavior...but that is just my opinion.
pages: 182
JULY:
33. Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
started: 6/17
finished: 7/4
This was a reread for me and I still loved this book! It is touted as a historical document written by a novelist and that rings so true to me. Larson does an excellent job explaining the Columbian Exposition of 1892 and switching back and forth between the building/running of the fair and the story of H. H. Holmes who was murdering and cheating people just blocks away. I just love to read the history behind the fair and the enthralling telling of the story of Holmes. I would recommend this book to anyone with a mild interest in history and anyone who loves true-crime or murder-mystery books. Excellent read!
pages: 447
AUGUST:
34. Shoot the Moon by Billie Letts
started: 8/1/08
finished: 8/20/08
I really enjoyed this book, but I don't know that I would have enjoyed it quite as much had I not lived in Oklahoma (where the book is set). The characters are clever and rather funny at times, the nature of the book is very sad and serious, and the narration was great! All in all, I would recommend this book to others.
pages: 352
35. Back to the Bedroom by Janet Evanovich
started: 8/23
finished: 8/29
Typical Evanovich...good read and fast.
pages: 272
36. Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich
started: 8/30/08
finished: 9/5/08
Typical Evanovich. Was happy about the ending, though there wasn't much of Ranger in this book :(
pages: 320
2008 Reviews (part 3)SEPTEMBER:
37. Predator by Patricia Cornwell
started: 9/7/08
finished: 9/27/08
Eh. I used to really love Cornwell's writing; it is what got me into reading in my "adult" years. Perhaps it is because I have branched out so much since I started reading these books or maybe her writing style has changed too much. Whatever it is, I feel Corwell's writing is very detached and mechanical. Still have interesting twists in the books, but not nearly as fulfilling for me as they used to be. I also disliked how this just ended. It was like she got to the end and said, "crap, I need to wrap this up in the next 75 pages...well here goes." Writing style is unique (compared to what I normally read), but feels disconnected. I will read more of her books, but they lost a bit of their appeal after this one.
pages: 464
OCTOBER:
38. Escape by Carolyn Jessop
started: 9/27/08
finished: 10/7/08
Heart wrenching! There are just no words to really describe this book and the horror it describes. It is amazing that someone could live through this and be able to have made such a wonderful life for them and their children. This was an incredibly empowering and helpful book for me as it deals with the idea of repressing who you truly are and how scary it can be to come out of that. I would highly recommend this book to anyone!
Pages: 304
39. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling
started: 10/7/08
finished: 10/28/08
Wow! I love the movies and my friend, Kara, convinced me to read the books. It really adds to the movies! I still love the movies and actually told myself I would stop reading the books if it made me like the movies less ;)
I was not disappointed!
Pages: 309
40. Katie’s Gold by Tom Mitcheltree
started: 10/23/08
finished: 10/30/08
Follow up to Katie's Will. I just love the characters, but it was difficult to figure out who the villain was...ended up not being the person I thought it was. Interesting read and very quick. I think you would certainly be lost if you hadn't read Katie's Will first.
Pages: 253
NOVEMBER:
41. The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler
started: 10/29/08
finished: 11/6/08
I really enjoyed this book! It reminded me of Sex and the City a bit, but was much less sexual and raunchy. It was great getting to meet all of the characters and was written so that you never quite knew everything about them. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who knows anything about Jane Austen...very cute!
Pages: 304
42. Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
started: 11/6/08
finished: 11/14/08
Very interesting book. I really enjoyed learning about the different aspects of these three presidents: their lives, the lives of those who killed them, and how it all intersected. I could have done without some of the author's commentary about how much she hates President Bush. I'm not a huge fan either, but he still deserves respect for the simple fac that he IS the president--in my opinion. But if you can get beyond that, which (even for a very staunch liberal) was hard for me to do, then the book is informative and written in a way that makes history fun to learn. I would recommend it to those I feel can look beyond the cheap shots at Bush and enjoy the history.
pages: 258
43. Full House by Janet Evanovich
started: 11/14
finished: 11/21
Typical Evanovich...as usual. This series seems a bit more refreshing than some of ther others. Perhaps due to the fact that there wasn't a grandma in this book or one overly crazy dog. There was a crazy man chasing an average/attractive female lead who was, of course, being wooed by someone typically out of her league. And it all ends pretty well. Quick read, and was perfect for filling the gap between two books that are out of my normal path.
pages: 352
44. The Starter Wife by Gigi Levangie Grazer
started: 11/21/08
finished: 11/26/08
I started out not really thinking I would finish this book. I had trouble getting into it and just wasn't digging reading a book about Hollywood tabloid fodder. Boy, I was really wrong! I loved this book! I cried and laughed out loud at the antics of the main character and her escapades. This was incredibly well written and would make for a wonderful summer book.
pages: 359
45. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
started: 11/27/08
finished: 11/29/08
Wow! I wanted to read this book before seeing the movie, but hadn't really been too keen about reading it right now until my mother in law gave it rave reviews. This book is all about the strength of women and how we can help eachother through our struggles. It embodies what true friendship is all about and how to persevere through adversity. I would recommend this book to all the women in my life! And I finished all 400+ pages in two days. I couldn't put it down!
pages: 464
DECEMBER:
46. The White by Deborah Larsen
started: 11/30/08
finished: 12/3/08
This book was incredibly interesting! I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in history. It follows the life of a girl who, at a very young age, is taken by indians and essentially sold into slavery with another indian tribe. She ends up marrying two indians from two different tribes and having several children. Her stories are amazing and it is shocking to realize this is all based on the actual life of this woman as she described it. Truly a worthwhile read!
pages: 240
50 books in one year
A-Z Author Challenge
**UPDATE** This is the compilation post for all the books I read in 2008. I will continue with this thread for my 2009 challenge. I was 4 books short of my goal of 50 books in 2008 and short of my author challenge by 6 authors. Shooting for the same goals in 2009...we'll see what happens.
A-Z Author Challenge
A: Cecelia Ahern
B: Billie Letts
C: Truman Capote, Meg Cabot
D: Donna Smallin
E: Jeffrey Eugenides, Janet Evanovich
F: Karen Joy Fowler
G: John Grogan
H: Hugh Hefner
I:
J: Carolyn Jessop
K: Sue Monk Kidd
L: Erik Larson
M: Tom Mitcheltree
N: Audrey Niffenegger
O:
P: James Patterson
Q:
R: Ellen Raskin
S: Nicholas Sparks
T: Tess Gerritsen
U:
V: Sarah Vowell
W: Edith Wharton
X:
Y:
Z: Gabrielle Zevin
JANUARY (288):
1. At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks (288)
FEBRUARY (2,928):
2. Visions of Sugar Plums by Janet Evanovich (240)
3. Eleven on Top by Janet Evanovich (368)
4. Twelve Sharp by Janet Evanovich (320)
5. Hot Stuff by Janet Evanovich (352)
6. Thanksgiving by Janet Evanovich (256)
7. Manhunt by Janet Evanovich (256)
8. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks (224)
9. Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich (304)
10. The Rocky Road to Romance by Janet Evanovich (272)
11. See How They Run by James Patterson (336)
MARCH (1,946):
12. Plum Lovin by Janet Evanovich (164)
13. Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneger (518)
14. Marley and Me by John Grogan (320)
15. Metro Girl by Janet Evanovich (384)
16. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (368)
17. Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich (192)
APRIL (1,424):
18. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton* (336)
19. The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin [YA:] (192)
20. The Beach House by James Patterson (384)
21. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides* (224)
22. Katie's Will by Tom Micheltree (288)
MAY (1,704):
23. Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich (272)
24. You've Been Warned by James Patterson (376)
25. The One-Minute Cleaner Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin (288)
26. The One-Minute Organizer Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin (256)
27. Naughty Neighbor by Janet Evanovich (224)
28. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin (288)
JUNE (1,232):
29. PS, I Love You by Cecelia Ahern (400)
30. Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot (272)
31. The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen (368)
32. Hef's Little Black Book by Hugh Hefter and Bill Zehme (192)
JULY (447):
33. Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (447)
AUGUST (944):
34. Shoot the Moon by Billie Letts (352)
35. Back to the Bedroom by Janet Evanovich (272)
36. Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich (320)
SEPTEMBER (464):
37. Predator by Patricia Cornwell (464)
OCTOBER (866):
38. Escape by Carolyn Jessop (304)
39. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling (309)
40. Katie's Gold by Tom Mitcheltree (253)
NOVEMBER (1,737):
41. The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (304)
42. Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell (258)
43. Full House by Janet Evanovich (352)
44. The Starter Wife by Gigi Levangine Grazer (359)
45. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (464)
DECEMBER
46. The White by Deborah Larsen (240)
Total Pages Read (to date): 14,220