Bev's 180 Book Challenge

[Beverly]

I guess I never actually posted that I finished my challenge this year on November 2nd! I am thrilled with the number of books finished this year and am hoping I'll be just as productive next year!! I'll be shooting for 200.

[Beverly]

The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman
3 stars

This audio was read by Gloria Reuben, Tina Benko and Santino Fontana, all of whom I thought provided just the right tone for the story. I would probably actually rate this at 3.5 because there were parts of the story that I really liked, especially the first half of the book when it was about Rachael in her youth and early motherhood. Living on the island of St. Thomas in the early 1800's in a small community of Jewish refugees, she has a happy childhood but struggles in the relationship with her mother. Rachael is much too headstrong. In her late teens, in order to help save the family's business she is forced to marry a widower with several children. She adapts, loves the children and has more with her husband. When he dies, because she's a woman, they send for his nephew to come and take care of things. When he arrives, they immediately fall in love and are basically ostracized by the community because it's considered unseemly for 2 people in the same family to have a relationship. They remain together, very much in love and more children are produced. In fact, they become parents to the painter Camille Pissarro; the Father of Impressionism. Once Camille started narrating the story, I had a more difficult time following the story, it just seemed to jump around a bit and I couldn't keep up with all the threads. But, overall, a good read that ended up teaching me about a painter that I had no knowledge of.

[Beverly]

Kindness Goes Unpunished by Craig Johnson
4 stars

I really enjoy the Longmire series. Not only because this is just a well written series but because we watch the television show as well and I love being able to visualize the characters and the surroundings as I read. That being said, this particular story actually takes place, for the most part, in Philadelphia. Walt decides to tag along to the big city with Henry Standing Bear so that he can visit his daughter, Cady. They hardly make it to the city before Cady, who has unknowingly become entangled in a dangerous political cover-up, is viciously attacked and hospitalized in a coma. Walt and Henry, along with Deputy Vic Moretti and her extended family are suddenly in a whirlwind of activity between keeping up with Cady's recovery and tracking down exactly why she was attacked. Certainly an action packed book, even though I prefer the crew being out west in Absaroka County where they belong. I really love these characters and intend to move along to the next book in the series shortly.

[Julie]

Beverly wrote: "I guess I never actually posted that I finished my challenge this year on November 2nd! I am thrilled with the number of books finished this year and am hoping I'll be just as productive next year!..."

Well done! I have certainly enjoyed your reviews and have read several books based on your critique.

[Beverly]

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
4 stars

One of the few books that I have to say I enjoyed the movie more than the book itself. Of course, I also saw the movie before I read the book which may have had some bearing on it. What I loved about the book were the photos--I loved the both the tone and the content of them and thought they conveyed the appropriate atmospheric setting to go with the story. The story line, for those few who have not yet read this, is about 16 year old Jacob whose grandfather has always told him wildly imaginative stories about a group of youngsters he knew in his own youth. They each had a peculiarity (i.e. overly strong, able to float, filled with live bees) and lived together in a type of "orphanage". After Jacob's grandfather dies under very strange circumstances, Jacob decides to visit the island mentioned in the stories and do some research. Amazingly enough, his grandfather's imaginative stories turn out to be less wild than the truth.

[Beverly]

Julie wrote: "Beverly wrote: "I guess I never actually posted that I finished my challenge this year on November 2nd! I am thrilled with the number of books finished this year and am hoping I'll be just as produ..."

Thank you so much Julie. I am not a knowledgeable reviewer like so many that I follow--just took high school literature. I just write what I think so that I'll remember what I thought. If it helps someone decide on a new read, so much the better. It's so nice to know that someone appreciates the reviews! :) I hope you enjoyed the books that you read based on them.

[Beverly]

The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo
4 stars

Fascinating book. Li Lan, a young Chinese girl in Malaya, has been asked by her bankrupt father to become the ghost bride of a deceased young man from a good family. This would secure her future. Although her culture still lives by this ancient practice and she understands what it would mean to her father and her own future, she is reluctant. The "bridegroom" begins haunting her dreams and she is even more certain that she wants no part of this arrangement. And so begins a fantasy journey through the Plains of the Dead. Li Lan assumes a ghostly half-life and goes in search of the answers she needs before she can decide what to do. Once she discovers the truth she seeks, will she be able to get back to her real life and continue on with her regular life? I really enjoyed reading about being a ghost bride and other customs of the Chinese. Great historical fiction with a paranormal element.

[Beverly]

Gingerbread Cookie Murder by Joanna Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier
3 stars

A trio of stories written by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier which revolve around gingerbread cookies and murder. My favorite story was the last one by Leslie Meier which had a character carried over from the last book I read by her, Candy Corn Murder. If you like cozy mysteries filled with Christmas celebration, murder and silliness, grab a cup of hot chocolate and dig in for a lovely holiday read.

[Beverly]

The Twelve Clues of Christmas by Rhys Bowen
4 stars

This was such an enjoyable cozy. I hate when I have to read out of order but this was the book (#6) we're discussing for our mystery book discussion this week and I just couldn't get the other 5 read before I tackled it. Fortunately, this lapse did not keep me from enjoying this delightful mystery. Lady Georgiana Rannoch is 35th in line to become the queen of England. Currently, due to her financial situation, she is living with some relatives who are less than thrilled to have her and now, with the Christmas holidays fast approaching, the threat of even more family descending upon the household has her wondering what she is going to do to save her sanity. She applies for a position with a family who needs someone to keep the young people entertained during a grand Christmas celebration. When she arrives, not only does her mother show up in town with Noel Coward but her errant boyfriend turns out to be one of the guests. the town is in a bit of a stir as one of the neighbors fell out of a pear tree and another has accidentally driven off a bridge...not a good start to the holidays. But as the deaths keep on coming, it starts to occur to Georgie that all these accidents just may not be accidents. A cute read that kept me wondering just exactly what the solution would be. Now to get to those first 5 in the series.

[Beverly]

Silas Marner by George Eliot
3 stars

Finally I can check Silas Marner off my list of books to read!!!! When I first started reading the book, which we read for one of my book discussion groups this month, I thought...Oh no, this may be a short read but I don't know that I can make it through this. I just could not get into the story, for whatever reason, Silas was just not a character that I was interested in although I did feel somewhat sorry for him. However, the turning point was when the child appeared at his little home. Not only did I suddenly care about Silas--because he blossomed and actually became a person with a personality--but the entire story just took a turn for the better. So, if you give this book a go, don't give up...it will get better and I think you'll appreciate the story and the outcome.

[Nicole D.]

Beverly wrote: "I guess I never actually posted that I finished my challenge this year on November 2nd! I am thrilled with the number of books finished this year and am hoping I'll be just as productive next year!..."

WOW! Congratulations.

[Beverly]

Thanks so much Nicole!! :)

[Beverly]

Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand
3 stars

Although I'm not a huge horse or horse racing fan, I still found this to be an interesting read. Pretty much what you'd expect, this is the story of Seabiscuit's racing history. Along the way the reader also learns quite a bit about the jockeys, how they maintain their racing weight, the type of injuries they may suffer and their love and loyalty to the horses they ride. This was read by Richard M. Davidson who did an adequate job.

[Beverly]

Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh
4 stars

This was such a unusual book, nothing at all like I thought it would be. A young man, Paul Pennyfeather, is in school studying to enter the ministry. One night as he's crossing the campus he's accosted by some other students looking to cause trouble. They steal his clothes and because he runs back to us dorm unclothed, he ends up being expelled for indecent behaviour. And so begins the steady decline and fall of Mr. Pennyfeather's life. Just a strangely funny account of how this naive young man, and some of his acquaintances, run into one stumbling block after another just trying to get through life.

[Beverly]

Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
4 stars

I enjoyed this sequel to Parable of the Sower very much. I was a little concerned when I realized that Olamina's daughter was narrating the story but was quickly assured that we would find out everything that happened since the first book ended. The trials and lives of the small community of Acorn are carried on as sections of Olamina's journal are read by her daughter. She and her daughter are separated for the majority of Larkin's life so she is learning about what happened to her mother in all those previous years, just as the reader is. And the religion of Earthseed is carried on as well. This is an extremely interesting and, in my opinion, believable look at the attempt to rebuild a cohesive society based on new beliefs after catastrophic events and a corrupt political power comes into rule.