You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion
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January 2016 - FOUND YOU!! (Reporting thread)
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Kirila wrote: "The first words I spotted were raw, green and monster. I read Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. I had added this book to my to-be-read list just because of the title. It so..."I am glad you liked the book, Kirila. In case you don't know, there is a movie version of this book out there that is very good too. It was made in 1991. "Fried Green Tomatoes". Kathy Bateman and Jessica Tandy have the staring rolls along with Mary-Louise Parker and Mary Stuart Masterson.
After I read your comments, I was thinking how difficult some of the subject matter would be to understand for someone from another country and language. I don't think some of us USA readers stop and think of those issues sometimes.
Fried Green Tomatoes is a great story. I read it about a year ago, because the movie was something special my mom and I used to watch together. I always meant to rewatch it then, and never did. I'll have to remember to do so, now.
My three words were monster, pill, and feast. I went with The Sleuth Sisters by Maggie Pill
This was a cozy mystery and a fun, quick read. The characters were likable and I especially enjoyed the interaction between the middle age sisters who start their own detective agency. It had a good story that wasn't always predictable. I will definitely read more of this series.
My words were lion, leg and feast. In trying to save some $$ for other challenges this year I decided to reread an old favorite. I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This is a classic in children's / young adult books and has been made into tv and movie editions. A fantasy looks at what happens when a family of children are transported to a world that is always winter and never Christmas. It features Giants, witches, magic, greed and grace. 5 stars.
Started Sacred Monster by Donald E. Westlake and finished it today. Quick read.Known for his comic crime caper stories or his mystery noir, this book was quite different. Many hardened Westlake fans were not impressed.
As a Westlake fan myself, I find his mind remarkable. Loved this book. It was a unique departure.
Interesting. There is no summary for this book on GR, Almeta. I don't recall if I have read any Westlake. Should this be the first?
I found your summary in the other thread. Bit the bullet and added it to my TBR list. One question then. What/where is the setting?
Cherie wrote: "Interesting. There is no summary for this book on GR, Almeta. I don't recall if I have read any Westlake. Should this be the first?"I had not returned the book yet, so I updated the synopsis with the one on the flap of the book. (It doesn't resemble MY synopsis at all!)
As a first Westlake read, remember it is not typical of him.
Cherie wrote: "I found your summary in the other thread. Bit the bullet and added it to my TBR list. One question then. What/where is the setting?"The setting is primarily the Los Angeles area, Hollywood, Malibu, Santa Monica...
Cherie wrote: "I am glad you liked the book, Kirila. In case you don't know, there is a movie version of this book out there that is very good too. It was made in 1991. "Fried Green Tomatoes". ..."Thanks Cherie! I've added it to my to-watch list :) Just watched the trailer and it seems focused on Evelyn, whereas in the book I was more involved with Idgie's story.
Kirila wrote: "Cherie wrote: "I am glad you liked the book, Kirila. In case you don't know, there is a movie version of this book out there that is very good too. It was made in 1991. "Fried Green Tomatoes". ..."..."Yes, the movie goes back and forth between Evelyn and Idgie. It is definitely worth watching. :)
Almeta wrote: "Cherie wrote: "I found your summary in the other thread. Bit the bullet and added it to my TBR list. One question then. What/where is the setting?"The setting is primarily the Los Angeles area, H..."
Thanks, Almeta. Understand about it being "not the norm". Doesn't look like it will fit into the Geocache challenge then.
One of my words was Monster, so I read The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff. I have had this book for quite awhile and was wanting to read her newer books, so this is perfect timing.I gave it three stars, it wasn't at all what I expected. For some reason, I thought that it was going to be more of a gothic haunted house story (although I have no idea where I got that idea), but after I got used to the actual story, I enjoyed it. It definitely was slow at times. A lot of the chapters are told from different ancestors' perspectives and I would get into those sections and feel cut off when having to come back to the main story. My favorite section was Charlotte and Cinnamon, I would definitely read a novel about them. Overall though, I enjoyed it.
My three words were Yes, take and Down. I read Yes Please. I read it because it had won the Goodreads Choice Award for Humor. It was not as fun as I expected it to be. There were a lot of name-droppings, copy pasted email and footnotes which were not interesting. The book did not follow any chronological order or it did not make any sense how the years moved back and forth. So it was a disappointment for me.
My words are Take, Wood, Web and History. My completion is as below:Just Take My Heart; 01/08/2016
Princess of the Silver Woods; 01/11/2016
The Spider's Web; 01/18/2016
The Secret History: A Novel of Empress Theodora; 01/27/2016
Way to go Viji! I had a hard time finding one book to fit my three words.
I can't remember what all 3 of my words were! Had them written down, but can't find the post-it note. Anyway, one word I found was ANT. I read Empire of the Ants.Here's my review:
This was an amazing book! I wish the other books in this series were translated to English. I was so invested in the human and ant characters I didn't want to put the book down. I loved learning about ants and their civilizations. It's just unbelievable how advanced they are and their are gazillions more of them than humans, and they have been around a whole lot longer than us. The human side of the story was a mystery as it progressed... what was happening in that cellar!? I could go into all the symbolism and such, but that's not really my style. I read for pure enjoyment! I highly recommend this book!
I finished Anne of Green Gables, for the word 'green'. I really enjoyed it and rated it 4 stars. In the beginning I was afraid I might be the only person in the world not giving it 4 or 5 stars, because Anne's constant chatter worked on my nerves. But I really grew to like her, just like the other people in Avonlea :) I will go on with the series.
My words were feast, green and air. I went with the first one and read The Feast of the Goat. It was not light reading! Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I read The Lion in the Lei Shop: A Novel by Kaye Starbird for the word 'lion.' It is set in WWII and told in alternating voices of a mother and daughter, which I really enjoy. Comparing the differences in the way the two view the same events makes the book quite interesting. The historical information in the book is folded in seamlessly and although I have read many WWII books, I learned a significant amount of new material by reading this book. The characters are quirky and fun, too.
The words I found were May, take, and pier. And in spite of a very large TBR list, I had to go gophering to find a book with one of the words. I read Love May Fail by Matthew Quick. This is my third or fourth book by Quick and I find he always writes a good story. In this book I particularly liked how Portia related to her hoarder mother. She was able to show respect for her mother, accept her "disability", and finally have a relationship of sorts with her, albeit with the encouragement of her new love interest. I thought her continuing quest to save her old teacher was unrealistic, but an interesting read nonetheless.
Oops. I haven't reported mine yet. I found take, kill, monster, and decided to read Broken Monsters.I absolutely loved this book. It was clever, well crafted, and well balanced with real world and fantastical elements. Set in Detroit after the financial crisis, the city was a huge part of the book and a looming character throughout. While no doubt, there are many cities like Detroit all around America, it was perfectly picked. The fine line between art and horror element is brilliant, and even just the police murder mystery was well done. Throw in an interesting set of characters and you have a great novel.
While i loved Lauren Beukes's writing before, I think over the years (I haven't read The Shining Girls which is between the two) she's taken what I really enjoyed in Zoo City and tightened and improved on it. Hat off.
My words I found were girl, game, lionI read The Good Girl and I wished I had read what I originally wanted to read.
by Mary Kubica1 Star
I know that I'm in the minority here with GR reviewers, but I HATED The Good Girl. I didn't like Gone Girl either. According to both books' blurbs I should have because I love me a good thriller, especially a good psychological thriller.
Sadly, The Good Girl missed the mark for me. I didn't like Mia, didn't really care for her or her father or her sister, Grace. I did like her mother, Eve, a little. The detective and the kidnapper did arouse some interest in me.
But seriously I couldn't suspend disbelief with what happened in that Minnesota cabin. And the ending? I wanted to throw my Kindle out my door and run over it with my car! Talk about an absurd ending.
And the writing? Just plain bad. The construction of the story line? Just God awful. Was there anything I liked about the novel? ...well, I did like the cover.
I read
Monster. Monster is the name of a guy who captures yetis, trolls, and a lot of strange creatures. More of them are showing up and their appearance seems to be centered around a woman named Judy, who's a slacker without much personality. At first the story is all over the place, but as we learn more it all comes together and makes sense. A bit uneven, but a great take on the possible end of the world. The ending is what makes the book worth it.
I found Kill, Easy and Green so I read 1. To Kill a Mockingbird; it is wonderful, such great characters, excellent description of setting, multiple well developed plots and a cleareyed view of the complexities of prejudice. I will be reading more works by Harper Lee though maybe not Go Set A Watchman because I'm not convinced that she wanted it published.2. Death Over Easy, It is the first book by the author and the crime investigator has potential but I can't recommend it, too many rumpuses jumbled together and too many insider jokes.
3. Black Swan Green was recommended by many in YLTO. It is great..beautiful use of language, compelling characters..reminds me of Portrait of An Artist as a Young Man by Joyce.
I finished my book, Red Queen, just under the wire tonight and commented in the discussion thread. Overall, I thought it was a good book and will probably give it 4 stars. There were some things about it that I didn't care for - repetitive thoughts of the main character who was a bit 'poor me' for a while, mostly expected twists, and a big cliffhanger ending, but it held my attention and was entertaining enough.
One of my three words was "Take". Finished reading on 1/22/16. In my TBR pile was Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now.
Maya Angelou has accomplished so much during her life and her anecdotes are earthy, honest, inspiring and sometimes blunt. She's my favorite author when I feel it's time to do some reflecting about life, relationships and the rest of the world.
Jenna-Marie wrote: "[spoilers removed]"Hi Jenna-Marie. I'm not entirely sure about what your comment means. However if it means you are starting to read a book now for this challenge, I am afraid it finished on the weekend. Janice has a great challenge going for Feb at the moment over here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
So I'd go check that out and join in if you can!
Um...I don't see a hide and seek badge on my wall. I did report my words and book in message 37. Did I miss something?
Hi Susan, I saw a badge on the wall for Susan B. Is this you? I do not know if we have two Susans or not.
I looked at all of the walls that had new badges posted for the glue stick for this challenge and could not find one. I don't know if she made on for this challenge, since we did not have scores.
Cherie wrote: "Hi Susan, I saw a badge on the wall for Susan B. Is this you? I do not know if we have two Susans or not.
I looked at all of the walls that had new badges posted for the glue stick for this cha..."
I'm Susan G. It looks as though Susan B participated as well. There are a few Susans and Sues.
I snagged the badge from Rusalka's photobucket and have updated your wall, Susan. It does get confusing when there are duplicate names. But, we get it all worked out eventually.
Apologies Susan. Completely not intentional. Just an oversight. Looks like Janice has fixed you up. But let me know if you need anything else.
Rusalka wrote: "Apologies Susan. Completely not intentional. Just an oversight. Looks like Janice has fixed you up. But let me know if you need anything else."
No worries. I know it must be maddening to keep track of all of us. Thanks to all the mods for everything that you all do!!
Rusalka,Thanks for the badge and conceiving the challenge - you lead me to a wonderful book
You'll love this one...!! A book club & more
Books mentioned in this topic
Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now (other topics)Red Queen (other topics)
Monster (other topics)
Gone Girl (other topics)
The Good Girl (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Mary Kubica (other topics)Lauren Beukes (other topics)
Kaye Starbird (other topics)
Lauren Groff (other topics)
Donald E. Westlake (other topics)
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It takes place in Alabama between 1930s and 1980s and follows the story of a family / community. The story is slowly pieced together through stories told from the perspective of different characters at different times. It was a bit confusing in the beginning. Somewhere in the middle I thought it was a nice book, but nothing that caught my attention. But by the end I realized how involved I had become with the characters, without even noticing. And I appreciate all the different points of view. The reader gets to know the complete story, even though none of the characters do.