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FA 2015 RwS Completed Tasks - Fall 2015

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. I have corrected the GR data as the final publication of the serial was in November 1865. See wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Mut...

The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron
Virginia
15 Task
10 Bonus
Task Total = 25
Grand total = 220

The Upgrade: A Cautionary Tale of a Life Without Reservations by Paul Carr (I started reading this one in late August, but had read less than a half by the time the Fall Challenge started)
Review:
Paul Carr, a journalist/blogger/author living in London, suddenly realized that the rent of his tiny flat (plus utilities and council tax) costs significantly more than staying in fancy hotels anywhere in the world. Since he is the sort of a man who can work from pretty much anywhere that has internet, he decided to actually give it a go: he sold all his possessions, except for things that fit in one suitcase; cancelled his rental contract and travelled to New York. The goal was to stay in superior hotel rooms for 3 months, get to know the city, enjoy life and to see if permanently living in hotels could actually work.
I started reading this book on the premise that I'd find out whether his experiment worked out and what sorts of tips and tricks he used to get good deals. Well, much of the book didn't really seem to be about his experiment, but about how his life spiralled out of control: parties, booze, bad hangovers, women, more parties, booze, waking up and not knowing what he had done the previous night, getting arrested, some more booze. There was also lots of him trying (and mostly succeeding) to get into parties he wasn't invited to for the free drinks, and of going to events just for the afterparties.
His writing is hilarious though, so for a while it was all quite funny, if you tried not to think about how crazy the lifestyle really was. After a while, it seemed to be getting repetitive though. In the end, it was much more about him trying to sort his life out than about the experiment of living in hotels.
+10 task
+10 review
+10 Not-A-Novel - non-fiction (memoir/autobiographical)
Task total: 30
Grand total: 150

Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
I have to admit, I am still very confused by the interconnected short story / novel distinction, and reading this hasn't helped. I am still more convinced that it is a collection of short stories, especially since the stories included change over editions.
Reading it as short stories, some engage me more than others, probably more to do with the characters and the problems / circumstances they were battling and how they approached them more than anything else. How mush of their Indian heritage they wanted to embrace seemed to have a big impact on how each character would manage and survive through the obstacles that life would place before them, for good or bad. It was never something they could fully embrace or deny and it would seem that the only thing one can really do is embrace oneself.
+20 task
+5 oldies
+5 combo (10.3)
+10 review
Task Total = 40
Grand Total = 545

Amnesia Moon by Jonathan Lethem
This was an odd book. I like Jonathan Lethem’s writing, I like apocalyptic science fiction, and I like quirky characters and stories and it had all of these elements, but it just didn’t come together for me to make a satisfying whole. The first third was ok and I really liked the middle third with the road trip and town that moved homes every few days, but then I just couldn’t get anything much out of the last third. It just seemed convoluted and far-fetched even for the genre. The writing was still solid and if you like quirky fiction, you might still give it a try, but if you’ve never read Jonathan Lethem before, I would start with some of his other popular works and then try this one.
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.9 Kevin Bacon Approved Author Post 373
+10 Review
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 720

15.4 Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs
South Carolina
+15 pts - task
+10 pts - bonus
Task total - 25 pts
grand total - 445 pts

Crossing the Border: Fifteen Tales by Joyce Carol Oates
+20 task
+10 combo (10.4 - fifteen; 10.9 - post 127)
+10 Not-a-Novel (short stories)
+ 5 Oldies (1976)
Task total=45
Grand total=715

Fortune Smiles by Adam Johnson
Although the subject matter of these six stories was dark and sometimes challenging to read, this was an expertly written collection. Johnson made me connect on some level with what should have been unlikeable and sometimes downright revolting characters (George Orwell Was a Friend of Mine and Dark Meadow) and that was quite an achievement. Each story pulled me in and each had a satisfying conclusion. The form tends to lead to uneven achievements in many collections --- some stories miss the mark and others ring true in the typical collection. This collection is not typical because each story is well crafted. I came close to giving it a 5 star rating, but in the end it fell just short of that mark.
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.9 Kevin Bacon Approved Author Post 373
+10 Review
+10 Not a Novel
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 755

Dracula by Bram Stoker
+20 task (no. 81 on list)
+25 combo (10.7 - shelved 10 times, 10.8 - no 4 on list, 10.9 - post 26, 20.2 - pub 1897, died 1912, 20.6)
+10 oldies (1897)
Task total: 55
Grand Total: 285

Ferry to Alaska
The Cruelest Miles: The Heroic Story of Dogs and Men in a Race Against an Epidemic by Gay Salisbury
+15
Grand Total: 200"
This photo appears to have been taken as the Columbia heads north out of Ketchikan! She is the pride of the fleet, by the way.

A Visit From The Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
I enjoyed and understood this as more of a novel than Love Medicine, and perhaps saw it more in line with Cloud Atlas in the way that it was structured, never a direct link but more a subtle hang-over of one character from one chapter to another, although the time and place was completely changed.
Having been a music freak in my late teen years ( djaying on the school radio station, keeping scrapbooks on obscure bands my friends had never heard of ) I "got" the characters in this book, so round it relatable and enjoyable ( although the time frame is out for me by about 10 years ).
I found the last chapter disturbing. I guess the chapter before, and the way it was presented in infographics, should have been some kind of introduction or clue, but perhaps the way the future ( and not so distance future ) world was presented was a little too possible, and it made me feel a little sad.
+20 task
+10 review
+5 combo (10.9 - post 297)
Task Total = 35
Grand Total = 580

Don (The Book Guy) wrote: "20.10 Interconnected
Wait for Signs: Twelve Longmire Stories by Craig Johnson
Wait for Signs is one of those wonderful lucky finds. This set of 12 stories by Craig ..."
+5 Combo 10.9 post 366

The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
+20 Task (Pub 1907, author died 1924)
+10 Combo (10.9-post 263, 20.1)
+10 Oldies (1907)
Post Total: 40
Season Total: 420

Before You Know Kindness by Chris Bohjalian
+10 Task (post 106)
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 430

The Blindness of the Heart by Julia Franck
+10 Task (author born in Berlin)
+5 Combo 20.1
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 445

Ulysses by James Joyce
+20 Task
+10 Combo (10.9-post 93, 20.2)
+10 Oldies (1922)
+15 Jumbo (819 pages)
Post Total: 55
Season Total: 500

Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
YA1000
+10 Task post 263
+5 Oldies (1960)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 515

The Inimitable Jeeves (Jeeves #2) (1923) by P.G. Wodehouse (Paperback, 240 pages)
Review:This is a book containing 18 interconnected short stories. The stories are all told by Bertie Wooster, an upper-class British aristocrat. His butler/valet, Mr. Jeeves, gets Bertie (and his friends!) out of scrapes and other uncomfortable situations. The two main vices of Bertie & friends in this volume are gambling and unsuitable romantic relationships. (Later volumes of Jeeves stories adds ‘heavy drinking’ to the list of vices.) The lighthearted stories are all set post-world-war-one, pre-world-war-two, and give a glimpse of life at the top of the British Class Food Chain. I laughed out loud at the end of “The Metropolitan Touch” (big spoiler: (view spoiler) ) There is also an overabundance of 1920s slang – words and phrases like: Great Scott!, toodle-oo, pip pip, right-o, I say, “it’s a bit thick”, etc., etc. Overall impression: stories that don’t take itself – or its readers – too seriously.
+10 (Group Reads)
+10 Combo (#10.9 Kevin Bacon Post Post #47; #20.10 Interconnected Stories)
+10 Oldies -76 to 150 years old: (1865-1939)
+10 Not-a-Novel: Short story collections
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 50
Grand Total: 245 + 50 = 295

Towards Zero by Agatha Christie
Good old, reliable Agatha! This was a pleasure to return to the Christie's with. Superintendent Battle seemed familiar ( he is the detective focus of a minor series of books by Christie ) as he has crossed paths with Poirot on a number of occasions, and refers to Poirot at one point in this, on his way to solving the case.
This mystery has a wonderful double feint in it, which I didn't see coming ( I never do! ), and some very unconvincing romantic pairings ( as always ), but was a very enjoyable read. I probably gave it 4 stars after the disappointment of the last one, rather than being a particularly fine piece of writing.
+10 task
+10 review
+5 oldies
+15 combo ( 10.2, 10.3, 10.9 - post 123)
Task Total= 40
Grand Total = 620

American Gods by Neil Gaiman
This past summer, my now-ten-year-old niece (whom I reference in my postings far too often) had a unique request for her birthday present: she wanted something to do with mythology--but not a book (as she'd already read all the books she could find on an assortment of world mythologies). I decided to make her a Trivial Pursuit-style game that covered not only the Greek and Roman pantheons (with which I was already quite familiar), but also included the Norse, Egyptian, Hindu, and some Celtic deities and legends. Those I had to research like crazy.
With that in mind...this book starts by introducing us to Shadow, a prisoner who is on the verge of being released after three years behind bars. After a series of unfortunate events, he meets Mr. Wednesday (a man with one glass eye) who hires him to be his bodyguard.
After all my study for the aforementioned game, I immediately recognized this as Odin (for whom "Wednesday"--"Odin's day"--is named) and knew I was in for a treat.
The gods of old are losing their power to the new gods of media and technology and a major battle is brewing. Shadow finds himself right at the heart of it. It truly is about "American" gods--gods brought to the "New World" from all corners of the earth--Norse, Hindu, Egyptian, Russian, Hungarian, Icelandic, Native American, and so many more make an appearance on the stage that is being so artfully set by the author. The story is a journey into the heart of America (they criss-cross the country, stopping at several and strange landmarks along the way) and into the heart of the nature of individual belief and in true Gaiman fashion, it's an utterly enjoyable read.
Huge fan. Couldn't recommend it enough.
+20 Task (#86 on the list)
+20 Combo
-10.3
-10.8: Neil Gaiman is #26 on the list
-10.9: post 148
-20.6: 366,669 ratings
+5 Jumbo (656 pgs)
+10 Review
Task Total = 55
Grand Total = 595

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
This book is about so much that I don't even know where to begin...it's about a poor family in Louisiana--a father, three boys, and one girl--who is each burdened with a heavy responsibility. It's about a boy who loves his dog more than the world. It's about a boy with a dream of becoming a basketball star to lift himself out of the poverty he was born into. It's about a girl who is in the strange anteroom of adolescence--not quite a child, not yet a woman--who is dealing with some very grown-up issues. It's about a father who struggles with the loss of his wife, drowns himself in drink to hide himself from his sorrow, and tries to care for his children in the flawed and sporadic manner of the alcoholic.
They all find themselves in precarious situations that are about to be torn apart by a little hurricane named Katrina.
I can't quite put my finger on why I liked this book, but the writing was engaging and I felt strongly about each of the characters.
+10 Task (soooo bummed that it doesn't work for 10.5! I didn't notice until I was ready to post it that it was just a nominee and not a runner-up :-/ humbug)
+10 Review
Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 615

The Lower River (2012) by Paul Theroux (Hardcover, 323 pages)
(Post #372)
+10 Task
Task Total: 10
Grand Total: 295 + 10 = 305

Read an author you've never read before.
Capricornia by Xavier Herbert
This is one of those books which have languished on my shelf for years! An Australian classic that took on a challenging view on the treatment Aborigines received by the invading whites. The first third of the book was a bit slow as author sets up the world of Capricornia; beginning with the first exploration until our main protagonist, Norman Shillingsworth, was born. Despite its slow beginning, author shows his passion for the Aborigine people and was very clear in his comments how unjust the Aborigines have been treated (like animals). Their culture is different but was in no way, Uncivilised. In fact, the way they have deteriorated as a people is because of the treatment they have received from the invading ‘civilisation’. He, then, proceeded to show just how different things could be, if only, an Aborigine person is treated with respect and given all the opportunities accorded to a white person. Norman Shillingsworth is born of a white father and an Aborigine mother. With an inauspicious beginning, he came under the protection of his uncle and was taken away from Capricornia. Later on, he appeared in the story as a ‘civilised’ person with education and neatly pressed slacks. As he returned to Capricornia where everyone but himself knows his background, he began to struggle with who he really is and society’s view of him. The struggle is real and whilst the book does not provide the full solution, it does suggest a beginning of reconciliation. Not just between the two clashing cultures in society but also as it is found inside onself.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+10 Oldies (pub 1937)
+5 Jumbo (594 pages)
Total this post: 35
Total points: 95

The Scroll of Seduction by Gioconda Belli
+10 Task (first use)
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 525

Finders Keepers by Stephen King
+10 Task
+10 Combo (10.3-F K; 10.9-post 20)
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 545

Death and Mr. Pickwick: A Novel by Stephen Jarvis
+10 Task (2nd Use)
+15 Jumbo (816 pages)
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 570

The Deep Range by Arthur C. Clarke
+10 Task (post 268)
+5 Oldies (1957)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 585

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride - Cary Elwes
So first off, let me just say, with a HUGE sigh of relief, how happy I am that this book was good! I love The Princess Bride, and I love Cary Elwes, so I already had (probably unreasonably) high hopes for this book. And I'm thrilled to report that it's every bit as good as I'd hoped, and better!
From the very first page, I was in love with this book. Cary is just as charming in print as he is on screen. I loved all the little snippets from the different cast members, from Rob Reiner, from William Goldman. This book had me stifling giggles while reading in public, and (I'll admit it!) had me getting a little misty-eyed too. Cary did such a great job of capturing his experiences while managing to keep the same kind of charming, magical feel that the movie had. I found the parts about his connection with Andre the Giant in particular were just really sweet and touching.
I really don't know what else to say except that this book is FANTASTIC and anyone who even vaguely enjoyed The Princess Bride should absolutely be reading it IMMEDIATELY!
+10 task
+10 review
+10 not a novel
+5 combo (10.9 - post #42)
Post total: 35
Grand total: 35

Inverted World - Christopher Priest
Wow. It isn't often that I read hard sci-fi, and even less frequently that I'm blown away by the genre, but this one did it. Priest has written a wonderful, unique novel, with just the right amount of scientific(ish) details to make it seem realistic. The concept is wholly original, and I loved every single page.
The narrative style of switching perspectives between not just characters but between first and third person is something that I don't think I've never seen done in any other novel. It was almost jarring, but in the best way possible. I loved how the very telling of the story played into the idea of perception, which becomes so important to the plot itself.
It's hard to gush over the details of this novel without giving too much away, because even the most subtle things play back into the overall plot. That's how detailed and thought-out this novel is, where every aspect of it has a part to play in the grand scheme (much like the various characters and members of the city of Earth). It's beautiful and bleak and nuanced, but it's also a page-turner that keeps you wanting more. It's a hard balance to hit, but Priest got it just right.
+10 task
+10 review
+5 oldie (published 1974)
+5 combo (10.9 - post #341)
Post total: 30
Grand total: 65

Us - David Nicholls
post #143
The blurb on the cover from Jojo Moyes does a good job of summing up this book: what happens after Happily Ever After. Douglas Petersen's wife unexpectedly drops it on him that, once their 17-year-old son leaves for college, she may or may not leave him. Determined to win her back, Douglas strives to make their already-planned "Grand Tour" of Europe the best vacation their family has ever been on, and to show his wife that he can still make her happy. But of course, that isn't how things go...
I liked the style of flashing back into the past to the first days of Douglas and Connie's relationship, their son Albie's childhood, and the ups and downs of their married life, as a way of showing how they ended up where they did. Nicholls is a fun author, and his writing is enjoyable in this one as with all his other novels. But I didn't really connect with the characters at all, outside of Douglas, but even he was a little flat and boring. Both Connie and Albie were just kind of jerks throughout, which is fine, except that they didn't have enough character depth for me to see anything other than "oh, unhappy, sourpuss wife and brooding, "complicated" teenager, yawn." Still, it was a fun read, and I liked it, but I don't think it will be one of my more memorable reads of the year.
+10 task
+10 review
Post total: 20
Grand total: 85

The Ice Storm - Rick Moody
Set in Connecticut
+15 task
Post total: 15
Grand total: 100

A Replacement Life - Boris Fishman
Set in New York
+15 task
Post total: 15
Grand total: 115

The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick
Set in New Jersey
+15 task
Post total: 15
Grand total: 130

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh - Michael Chabon
Set in Pennsylvania
+15 task
+10 bonus
Post total: 25
Grand total: 155

Dead Witch Walking - Kim Harrison
Set in Ohio
+15 task
+10 bonus
Post total: 25
Grand total: 180
PHEW! Was really worried this one wasn't going to end up working, but it ended up being juuuust over 50% in Ohio!

The Circus in Winter - Cathy Day
Set in Indiana
+15 task
+10 bonus
Post total: 25
Grand total: 205

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
+20 Task
+25 Combo (20.9 ; 20.2 - published in 1605, died in 1616 ; 10.9 ; 10.7 - 8 times ; 10.3)
+25 Oldies (1st book published in 1605)
+20 Jumbo (982 pages)
Task total = 90
Points total = 135

Back When We Were Grownups by Anne Tyler
Maryland
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task Total = 25
Grand total = 245

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Many times I have thought to read this, but each time another book gets in the way. I had even convinced my daughter to read an abridged version months before I got around to pick this up.
I hang my head in shame.
I had watched the tv series growing up, and have seen at least one of the movie adaptations multiple times, and had always been engaged with the story of the grumpy children who come good and healthy through tending a secret garden.
Simply and beautifully written, the children, Mary and Colin, come across as spoilt but not unlikable, and perhaps it is seen to be more the neglect or disinterest of the adults in their lives that have made them the way they are. Once they are allowed to roam and explore the world as children, particularly the natural world, they find something new within themselves, opening them up to the wonders of the world around them.
+10 task
+10 review
+10 oldies
+15 combo (10.9 - post 92, pub. 1911, died 1924, 20.9)
Task Total = 45
Grand Total = 665

Coal: A Human History by Barbara Freese
Review
Barbara Freese begins with the making of coal and its anatomy, followed by its history in human society. Interesting facts come to light about coal. How it was valued, not for its source as a fuel but as a pretty stone for the making of jewelry, and when it was first discovered as a heat source in Europe, it was not well though of because of its smoke and dirtiness. At that time wood was much preferred. Then the forests started disappearing and coal came into its own. The author gives extensive coal use as bringing about the industrial revolution, one of the massive jumps in civilization that brought us to the mechanized and electrical world of today. Now comes the downfall. The smog, smoke, general pollution, the poisonous elements in coal such as arsenic and the resultant global warming to to mention the destruction of the land and poisoning of the waterloo obtain it, is a calamity that may lead to a downfall of civilization as it once led to the ascension of civilization. This book is timely and very thought provoking but isn’t stale. The author’s able to take what could be a dry scientific subject matter to create a read that is enjoyable and enlightening.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Review
+10 pts - Not a Novel
Task Total - 40 pts
Grand Total - 485 pts

Single, Carefree, Mellow: Stories by Katherine Heiny
I think I'm doomed for the Fall challenge...this is the second book I've read and realized on completion that it doesn't fit the category I'd planned for it. At this rate, I'll never finish! Even in the goodreads review it states: "Maya, who appears in the title story and again in various states of love, forms the spine of this linked collection, and shows us through her moments of pleasure, loss, deceit, and kindness just how fickle the human heart can be."
Based on that I thought surely this would work. Not really...
There were three stories that Maya "starred" in and possibly a couple more (two written in first person, one in second person...could maybe be about Maya), but not all of the stories certainly.
Most of these stories were about sex: sexual tension, losing virginity, affairs that begin on Facebook, affairs between single women and married men, between married women and a wide variety of men...a lot of sex. Some were quite funny, some were heartbreaking, some I just wanted to take a shower after reading.
The titular story was my favorite. It highlighted Maya and her boyfriend (whom she wants to leave when they're apart, but when they're together she doesn't want to be anywhere else...a sentiment I have certainly felt in the course of my romantic life) and her dog...I don't want to give anything away, but I cried like a baby and my heart swelled and it made it worth reading this book.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+10 Not-a-Novel
Task Total = 30
Grand Total = 660

California Suite by Neil Simon, California
+15 Task
Task Total = 15
Grand Total = 675
**Note: the MPE for this title is the novelization by Robert Grossbach and it shows that it's 0 pages...I read the actual play by Neil Simon, 132 pages, not a novelization**

Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery
Review: The first sequel to Anne of Green Gables is sweet and fun, but not full of quite the same whimsy as the original. Perhaps it’s just that Anne has grown up, although in the introduction to the first book, Margaret Atwood said even L.M. Montgomery herself didn’t feel her follow-ups weren’t as successful as the original. I’d like to go back and reread some of her other books, since I remember loving Emily of New Moon even more than the Anne stories when I was a kid. I’ll eventually catch up with most of her catalogue eventually, I hope, but I think it’ll be a while.
+10 Task (shelved as librivox 8 times)
+10 Review
+10 Oldies (pub 1909)
+10 Combo (10.9, 20.4)
Task Total: 40
Grand Total: 475

Summer People by Aaron Stander
Set entirely in Michigan
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 500

Over and Under by Todd Tucker
Set entirely in Indiana
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 525

Magic Shifts by Ilona Andrews
Review:This is book eight in a series, so the review is kind of useless to anyone who hasn’t read the previous seven. While each book has its own plot, the authors have created a world that would be super confusing to anyone who didn’t start at least close to the beginning. That being said, I’ve been following it from the start, and it’s one series I basically drop everything to read every year. This installment felt a little like filler, but it’s setting things up for a really interesting conclusion a couple books down the road. I’d recommend the series to anyone who likes urban fantasy, with the caveat that the first book is a little confusing and not their best – even the authors agree.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.9)
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 550
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Books mentioned in this topic
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Indiana
15.2 Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
Task Total = 15
Grand Total = 505