EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club discussion
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The Last Book I Read Was...
I finished suffering through
Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rating: a very generous 2 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading
Head On by His Grand Snarkiness John Scalzi
Roger Ebert was a Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic, but before that, he was a classmate and friend of mine, so of course I've always enjoyed his reminiscences. I wrote some comments about his memoir, Life Itself, but I didn't 'rate' it, just gave it "two thumbs up"!
My thoughts about "Life Itself"
This is a sweet new children's picture book by Japanese author/illustrator Akiko Miyakoshi with a message that's relevant to our times in lockdown: I Dream of a Journey.
4★ Link to my link review with illustrations
The creator of the fantastic Charlie Fox thrillers, Zoe Sharp continues her police thriller set in England's Lakes area -
Bones in the River
My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3288298188
I enjoyed this excellent, timely read that Aussie author and journalist Julia Baird has been researching for a long time. Phosphorescence: On Awe, Wonder and Things That Sustain You When the World Goes Dark just happened to be launched during a pandemic, right when we need it!
4.5★ Link to my "Phosphorescence" review
I finished
Wild Fire by Nelson DeMille
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading
The Man Who Risked His Partner by Stephen R. Donaldson writing as Reed Stephens
Several people suggested I'd like The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, and they were right!
4★ Link to 'Ocean' review
I finished Susannah Cahalan's
The Great Pretender.
She investigated the seminal study by a Stanford professor in which 8 healthy people faked symptoms in order to infiltrate psychiatric hospitals. My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3115629932
Just finished She Went All The Way, by Meg Cabot, again. This book was the highlight of my tween years
Ever wanted to drop out, disappear, become somebody else? The Last Flight by Julie Clark brings to mind the old saying "out of the frying pan, into the fire"!
4★ Link to my 'Last Flight' review
Recently finished the good old young adult staple Fangirl. Undeniably cute and I simply adore Rainbow Rowell's writing style.
I've had a couple of political reads recently. Colombiano is about the terrifying situation of kidnappings, guerrillas, and drug wars in Colombia.Aussie-born author Rusty Young spent a lot of time there and wrote this compelling, fictionalised, first-hand account of a child soldier.
4.5★ Link to my "Colombiano" review
On an entirely different political note, I just enjoyed this children's biography Work It, Girl: Michelle Obama by Caroline Moss. Written to inspire girls to become leaders, it has lots of details and includes more resources at the end.
4★ Link to my 'Michelle Obama' review with a few illustrations.
I finished Cailin O'Connor and James Weatherall's
The Misinformation Age: How False Beliefs Spread
My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3319212521
Finished reading The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood. The second book in The MaddAddam Trilogy.
Winter Soldier: Second Chances, written by Kyle Higgins and artwork by Rod Reis.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
Finished reading All Systems Red by Martha Wells and two short stories: Kashtanka by Anton Chekhov and Butterball by Guy de Maupassant.
Don wrote: "Finished Slaughter House-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.."I finally read that not long ago. I was surprised I hadn't read it before. What did you think of it, Don? Did you write a review.
A new favourite, the terrific Mystic River by Dennis Lehane. A 20-year-old classic that's lost none of its punch. Great story, great characters, first-rate writing.
5★ Link to my Mystic River review
PattyMacDotComma wrote: "Don wrote: "Finished Slaughter House-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.."
I finally read that not long ago. I was surprised I hadn't read it before. What did you think of i..."
No, I hadn't posted a review. But your question spurred me on to write one! It is at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finally read that not long ago. I was surprised I hadn't read it before. What did you think of i..."
No, I hadn't posted a review. But your question spurred me on to write one! It is at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Don wrote: "PattyMacDotComma wrote: "Don wrote: "Finished Slaughter House-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.."I finally read that not long ago. I was surprised I hadn't read it before...
No, I hadn't posted a review. But your question spurred me on to write one! It is at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
Well done, Don. And a good review it is, too. :)
After Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel won the Booker Prize in 2009 and was short-listed for the Golden Booker in 2019 (best in 50 years), I figured I should read it again and write something. So I did.
Link to my comments
Finished Gretchen McCulloch's
Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language.
It's an interesting look at how emojis, memes, and punctuation replace in person facial expressions and tones of voice when we communicate online. My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3115627649
I finished a good one:
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Rating: 4 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
Finished David Treuer's
The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee,
which is part history of Native Americans, part reportage of contemporary Native Americans, and part memoir as he is Ojibwe. At times difficult to read but oh so thought provoking. I describe more of the book in my review - www.goodreads.com/review/show/3301740604
I finished:
The Man Who Risked His Partner by Stephen R. Donaldson writing as Reed Stephens
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
A Murder of Quality by John le Carré
Finally readThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
Also read The Pearl by John Steinbeck.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
Also read The Pearl by John Steinbeck.
I finished:
The Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy, 2019 Edition edited by Rich Horton
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
The Howling Man by Charles Beaumont
I'm sure a lot of readers are familiar with Montessori schools, but I bet they don't know Maria Montessori was the first woman in Italy to go to medical school. Maria Montessori by Mª Isabel Sánchez Vegara is designed for little kids, but I learned a lot, too.
4★ Link to my 'Montessori' review with illustrations
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, written by Carson McCullers when she was only 23, has become a classic of the American South - 1930s Georgia. Great characters!
4★ Link to my 'Heart' review
I finished a short one but a good one:
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Rating: 5 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
'Salem's Lot by Stephen King
I just finished reading:The Dispossessed
I really enjoyed this book, and I'm glad I finally read it! I've been really interested in political theory lately and am trying to get back into sci-fi, so this was the perfect read.
I finished:
Arm of the Sphinx by Josiah Bancroft
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
Death's Master by Tanith Lee
Peace Like a River by Leif Enger appealed to me on every level. I've got a soft spot for a child's point of view, and when there's humour and terror and adventure and tragedy and romance all mixed with a hint of magic, what more could I want?
5★ My 'Peace Like a River' review
I finished another one, bringing me to 31 for the year so far:
A Murder of Quality by John le Carré
Rating: 4 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell
I finished Pulitzer prize winner Emily Nussbaum's
I Like to Watch: Arguing My Way Through the TV Revolution. I'm not an avid tv viewer but still enjoyed her astute critiques. My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3335234587
You Are Lovely! by words&pictures is a clever little board book for tiny tots.
5★ Link to my review of "You Are Lovely" with illustrations
John Boyne probably broke all kinds of rules writing his new novel, A Traveller at the Gates of Wisdom, so of course, I loved it!
5★ My review of 'Traveller'
Thanks to Goodreads friends, I enjoyed a delightful short story, by Amor Towles who wrote the highly acclaimed A Gentleman in Moscow. This story, A Whimsy of the World, is a real treat. Trust me. Read it and enjoy!
5★ My 'Whimsy' review, with a link to the story
On a completely different note, I recently read Taboo by much-awarded Australian Indigenous author Kim Scott, about contemporary SW Western Australia. (the bottom left corner of the country) Pretty strong stuff. Australia's Black Lives Matter.
4★ My review of 'Taboo'
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Emily of New Moon (other topics)
A Murder for the Books (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Gretchen Jeannette (other topics)L.M. Montgomery (other topics)
Victoria Gilbert (other topics)
A.J. Pearce (other topics)
Jasmine Guillory (other topics)
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The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and I started reading:
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman