What are you reading August 2014

[Pam]

Pam wrote: "Melissa wrote: "Feeling guilty because I am not loving The Fault in Our Stars."

Yay! Two of my recent favorites. Did you know Ridley Scott optioned the rights to The Martian, with..."

Oops. This was meant to posted to Debbie!

[Becky]

Melissa-I like the word you used better than "commiserate"…..which to me sounds negative…..Affirmation seems better…..thanks!

[Gerald]

Pam
Yes the Martian announcement was made a couple of months ago. As for Damon and Scott Damon I am not sure is my perfect idea for Watney and Scott has a history of moving away from the original story. I am still excited to see this maybe in 3D. BTW Andy Weir is very active on Facebook.

[Linda]

Another thing I like with GoodReads is that when I go to a title, I can see which of my friends has added the book to their queue - whether it's already been read or just added to the TBR list.

I'm starting The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress

[Becky]

Linda wrote: "Another thing I like with GoodReads is that when I go to a title, I can see which of my friends has added the book to their queue - whether it's already been read or just added to the TBR list.

I'..."

I like that too Linda, seeing who has read it or plans on reading it

[Michelle]

Where Angels Fear to Tread by E.M. Forster

[Melissa Wiebe]

Melissa wrote: "Feeling guilty because I am not loving The Fault in Our Stars."

Don't feel guilty; I didn't love it either.

[Anna]

Just finished reading The shock of the fall. Thought it was a really good book .. The way it is written I think helps the reader feel where the main character Matthew is with his state of mind ... It is a tragic story but ultimately it feels there is hope .... Deals with issues such as mental health and bereavement and guilt .... I felt it wasn't flippant but it also wasn't too dark .. It tried to walk an even path ... Worth reading ... Hope everyone's having a good summer :)

[April]

Currently reading:

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami and

One Summer: America 1927 by Bill Bryson

[Marion]

Julie wrote: "Summer reading/vacation reading has been EXCELLENT for me. Finished , , and


I read and it was wonderful. Brought back memories when I was a bookseller for a mom-n-pop store many years ago.

Here's my review: http://marion-hill.com/book-review-53...

Marion

[Kate]

Back from vacation and I re-started , The Sparrow which I could not get through the first time. I am very happy that I am enjoying it so much more this time around- proof again that sometimes it is all about the timing.

[Victoria]

I just finished . Highly recommend for anyone who likes history, true adventure, etc.

[Gerald]

Victoria just saw that reviewed today in the NYT. Looks similar to a book I am listening to now about Shacketons voyage to Antarctica several years later.

[Janet]

Just finished Station Eleven a well written novel about a post-apocalyptic world. The release date is 9/9 but I managed to snag an ARC. I have one more book to read for Asheville The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II. I expect I'll be reading it on the plane.

[Teresa]

Divergent, Insurgent, GOT #2

[Karen]

I just started

[Carol]

Victoria wrote: "I just finished . Highly recommend for anyone who likes history, true adventure, etc."
This is on my list. Glad to hear you are recommending it.

[Carol]

Kate wrote: "Back from vacation and I re-started , The Sparrow which I could not get through the first time. I am very happy that I am enjoying it so much more this time around- p..."

Like, Ann, I loved this. I think it does take a bit of concentration to get into the story. Glad you didn't give up Kate. I think you'll like it.

[Becky]

Finished a re read of Valley of the Dolls & reading When We Were the Kennedys: A Memoir from Mexico, Maine

[Kathy]

I've tried for months to pare down my owned but unread volumes, but interlibrary loan titles have dragged my attention away. At the moment I'm halfway through playwright George Middleton's rather dull autobiography and feel compelled to finish. Once that's out of the way I'll tackle a more light-hearted memoir called Bedpans and Bobby Socks: Five British Nurses on the American Road Trip of a Lifetime. After that: movie historian Anthony Slide's Banned in the U.S.A.: British Films in the United States and their Censorship, 1933-1966; Marco Page/Harry Kurnitz's 1938 novel Fast Company; a slim nonfiction work called The Troubled Face Of Biography; a collection of humorous "epitaphs" written by Homer Croy; and a battered paperback of Agatha Christie's Poirot Loses A Client picked up at a yard sale.

[Victoria]

Thanks Ann, I just finished . I really liked it, although I wasn't sure it sounded like something I would like before starting. I'm sure I wouldn't have picked it up without Ann's recommendation on the podcast.

[[deleted user]]

Everything you want in a play. Zingers. Secrets revealed. Moments of action and danger. Strong female characters ripping each other, and their men, new ones.

Don't see the movie. (A play adapted into a movie is never as good as seeing a live play).

Don't even read this play, unless you have a mind to perform in it, or direct it..

Just wait for a chance to see it performed in your area.

[Janet]

Eric wrote: "
Everything you want in a play. Zingers. Secrets revealed. Moments of action and danger. Strong female characters ripping each other, and their men, new ones..."

I've seen it twice, once on Broadway and once in Arizona.

[Kokeshi]

The books that helped make my summer amazing:

The Boys from Brazil 5 stars

A Kiss Before Dying 5 stars

[Janet]

Kokeshi wrote: "The books that helped make my summer amazing:

The Boys from Brazil 5 stars

A Kiss Before Dying[bookcover:A Kiss Before Dying|12..."

Wow, that second book won the Edgar the year I was born.

[Gerald]

That might be a good topic for the podcast. BOOKS WRITTEN THE YEAR THAT I WAS BORN.

[Becky]

Just finished When We Were the Kennedys: A Memoir from Mexico, Maine . loved it!

[Michelle]

Kim by Rudyard Kipling & Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis

[Mindy]

This month I read The Year of Sacrifice , Salmon Fishing in the Yemen , and We Have Always Lived in the Castle. All were five star reads, which is very exciting. Last month I read Nantucket Sisters for my book club, and it was truly horrible. lol As soon as I finished Castle, I turned back to the beginning and started over. There is just so much to the book and I'm sure I missed some tidbits my first time through.

[Anna]

Books written the year I was born sounds like a good topic to explore :)

[Shona]

Just picked up Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. ♥

[Gerald]

Just finished .

[Jackie]

Gerald hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. An incredible story.

[Gerald]

Jackie It's an amazing story and very well narrated. I got weepy eyes when it came to and end.

[Jackie]

I understand, I felt the same way.

I think there were some pictures recently recovered that were from Shackleton's adventure. You can probably google them out of your computer.

[Gerald]

I know that the trip was very well documented with brilliant photos.

[Kristen]

I'm reading "Another Bullshit Night in Suck City" and finally getting to "Divergent" so I can see the movie. I actually started reading best sellers from the year I was born and working my way up to present (obviously digressed a little)

[Victoria]

I'm reading The Bone Clocks which I won as an ARC through Goodreads. I was afraid to start since I think I am intimidated by David Mitchell after just trying to watch the movie version of Cloud Atlas and turning if off after not too long and based on the mixed reviews I've seen for that book. That said, I am really enjoying The Bone Clocks a lot. I'm about 1/3 through. I love the main character from the first section, Holly Sykes. Most likely this is helped by the fact that we are the same age and I am loving all the 80s and 90s pop culture references.

[JP]

Apologies if this is the incorrect forum for this but how do the ARC copies work? How do I throw my name in the ring to get one?

[JP]

I'm currently reading by John Scalzi. I've never been a big fan of science fiction but so far this is a riveting read.

[Victoria]

JP wrote: "Apologies if this is the incorrect forum for this but how do the ARC copies work? How do I throw my name in the ring to get one?"

As one way, at the top of the Goodreads page there is an item "Explore". Within that menu there is a link to the giveaways. You could spend hours looking there! The only books I've won as ARCs came through Goodreads.

[[deleted user]]

Sometimes the ladies around here bust my chops about not liking books "that I wouldn't be expected to like", because I'm a man. But I believe I can recognize good writing, no matter what genre a book is intended to be. I think my mind is large enough to encompass all kinds of high quality stuff.

That having been said, I want it to be noted for the record that I enjoyed the above-pictured book and gave it four stars, even though it may fall into the "chick lit" category, or at least even though it appears to marketed exclusively toward women.

So there!

[JP]

Victoria wrote: "JP wrote: "Apologies if this is the incorrect forum for this but how do the ARC copies work? How do I throw my name in the ring to get one?"

As one way, at the top of the Goodreads page there is a..."

Thanks so much for this. I entered for 3 books. We will see how it goes.

[Adore]

Kristen wrote: "I'm reading "Another Bullshit Night in Suck City" and .."

haha, i love that title!

i'm reading:

Excellent Sheep: The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life and Sisters. The latter is adorable and a nice companion to her earlier book, Smile.

[Janet]

Eric wrote: "

Sometimes the ladies around here bust my chops about not liking books "that I wouldn't be expected to like", because I'm a man. But I believe I can ..."

Ha! Once again you have shown yourself to have excellent taste.

[Linda]

JP wrote: "Apologies if this is the incorrect forum for this but how do the ARC copies work? How do I throw my name in the ring to get one?"

Also, JP, sometimes individual publishers or authors offer books in their newsletters, so sign up for newsletters (I use a "junk" e-mail account so to not clog my "good" account.)

As to the GoodReads giveaway, once you get through all 90 pages (or however many) I just check those about to expire and the newest listings every day. The former is in case I missed something the first time. That does NOT take hours with the possible exception to the end / first of the month when the bulk come in or stop.

[Linda]

I always knew Eric had good taste! In books, in plays, in women (Amy-Anne), in beer, in music, in friends (Bobbi)...

[Karen]

Just started

[Kate]

I finished , The Sparrow and absolutely loved it! I am now reading , Mapp and Lucia which is for one of my book clubs.

[Gerald]

Linda As a human with a long history of being a man I will read any book that I want to read even if it is considered a book not for a man. I don't consider THE GOLDFINCH to be a manly book. Does anybody?