Watcha Reading in January/February

[Michelle, Overrun By Pets]

This is going to come as a shock; still reading Gravity's Rainbow. My only New Year's Resolution is finishing this book in 2016.

[Michelle, Overrun By Pets]

I've ploughed through 35 percent of Gravity's Rainbow since my last post, thus completing the big whale that is Section 3. This section makes up almost half of the book's volume and allows us to connect with many characters we have already met. Narrative bounces back and forth between the outlandish cast as they navigate The Zone post-war.

I am 2 chapters in to Sycamore Row which follows the primary character from A Time to Kill. I have previously read Ford County which is set in the same locale as the previously mentioned two books, but is a set of short stories about completely different residents. I'm quite excited to see what John Grisham has to say about Jake Brigance 2.5 decades after his first novel. I have to say that the movie version of Grisham's first novel has already ruined my visualization for this book as I keep picturing Matthew McConaughey in the primary role - sweaty and frantic in the town of Clanton.

[Michelle, Overrun By Pets]

I'm on vacation at the Oregon coast, awake into the wee hours of the morning because I started reading Sycamore Row well after midnight. My husband is snoring away on the bed adjacent to the blue pull-out sofa I've designated as my reading headquarters. I'm sipping Laphroaig scotch, which by the way gives all the best parts of a campfire in your mouth and nose without the work of actually building a fire and completely avoids the smoke asphyxiation danger, and I have no idea when I will actually put this book down and go to sleep.

This book appeals because I like rooting for an underdog and delighting in a rags-to-riches story. I can't stop reading because I want to know HOW MUCH MONEY ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? This correlates to dreaming the unfathomable dream of winning the Powerball and doing the "taxes math" and pretending you are going to win (insert large dollar number here) tomorrow and everything about your life will change. If I win the Powerball today I could just sit here on this sofa as long as I want, reading books and posting on Goodreads and not worry about making it back to work on Monday; I guess I could probably buy this hotel if I so desired. Fingers crossed!

Twenty pages in, you know the premise of the book. The plot execution is swift and furious. This isn't unappealing to me. When I see a roller coaster at an amusement park, I generally know the layout of the ride that is about to take place and it doesn't discourage me from getting on. I still get on and scream during the exhilarating bits and put my hands up and embrace the adrenaline and politely decline to purchase the un-photogenic and overpriced photo offered at the kiosk. I just really enjoy the ride.

[Deborah]

Michelle, just so you don't feel like you're talking to yourself, I'll add my current reading. I'm trying to read all of the books in the Tournament of Books that I either own or can get at my library before the ToB starts in March; I'm currently on my last one, Bats of the Republic. It's a beautifully illustrated novel, but its unusual narrative structure is making a slower-than-usual read for me.

On the review front, I'm overdue to write my reviews of The Sympathizer and The Invaders. I generally don't like to start another review book until I've finished the reviews that are hanging over my head, but I nevertheless decided to start Fardwor, Russia!. So far, I am bored with it, but I'm going to keep slogging (eventually) because I try to honor my review commitments.

Next up is either On the Edge, the group read for Three Percent's Reading the World book club, or Try Not to Breathe, which I need to read and review before its February 23 publication date.

[Andrew, Wound Up]

After having not read many books for 2015 I've jumped into 2016 at a good clip of a book a week. Three of those books were Percy Jackson tween novels which I read since they are, according to my 11 year old niece, the best thing since sliced bread. I can see the appeal for that age range but the series doesn't have the more universal appeal of something like Harry Potter.

The first book I finished this year was The Narrator which was frustrating. I personally don't enjoy novels where the author presents an outlandish world unlike our own but then fails to fill in the details. I don't mind being held in suspense but feel quite let down when there is no final payoff.

Tonight I plowed through most of The Old Capital in between bothering my wife with snores and capturing Digimon (we are lounging at a seaside inn and relaxing to the sound of waves crashing into the craggy shoreline - and drinking some wonderful scotch). Murakami cited The Old Capital as an influence which led me to read it. That influence can be seen in the writing style and handling of themes which made the book feel like a comfortable glove. I didn't love the novel because it felt distant and un-relateable on a personal level. I am interested in reading at least one more novel by Kawabata from the trilogy cited when he was awarded the Nobel.

This morning I finally started Gods Without Men which seems quite promising as I wade into the first chapters. It's been on my too-read list for years after being recommended by a close friend.

[Michelle, Overrun By Pets]

I finished Sycamore Row. It was a nice easy read in comparison to Gravity's Rainbow. I read almost all of Grisham's books and it was fun to peek in on Jake Brigance again after all of these years. Many of the characters in this book have been mentioned in other Grisham novels so it felt a bit like coming home and easing in to a comfy chair. I liked the investigative nature of searching through Seth Hubbard's past in order to determine why he authored such a highly contested last minute will. I thoroughly enjoyed the new character of Portia Lang she added a youth and vigor to the story.