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TOB 2020 Longlist
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Janet
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Dec 02, 2019 06:36AM
I just started Mary Toft; or, The Rabbit Queen and already I can tell this is my kind of story....hope it continues to be as interesting as it is right now. I think Dianah was the first to post how much she loved it....good pick!
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So far I've read about 4: The Nickel Boys, The Old Drift, Lost Children Archive, and Black Leopard, Red Wolf. They were actually all great, though I felt the relative brevity of LCA and Nickel Boys puts them over the longer two.I have a ton of reading ahead of me: Trust Exercise and Normal People on ebook and Fleishman, Disappearing Earth, Inland, and Bangkok Wakes To Rain coming in at the library.
this was probably not a wise time to start my graduate studies.
Elizabeth wrote: "Lauren wrote: "Notes for audiobook listeners - Bangkok Wakes to Rain should be read in print. The various characters and timelines were too difficult to keep straight through the au..."Yes, for me, Rules for Visiting was a nice palate cleanser read since I typically read books with some dark and tough subjects. This was nice and breezy, and the writing was easy to follow. My only complaint is that it did what I'm finding most novels do, which I think is so unnecessary. (view spoiler) Because that annoying part took up such little space, I'll still gave this book 4 stars and was glad I read it.
Monica wrote: "Has anyone read Trump Sky Alpha? I'm in the middle of it. I think it's good, but perhaps a bit too "clever." Haven't made up my mind."I'm almost done with it, and I'm of the same opinion as you. There's a lot to like about it, but there are a couple of chapters that should have been much shorter, if they had to be included at all.
A Cosmology of Monsters has a little more production to it in a way that heightens the story. Eerie mood music comes in for the creepier parts, really liking it so far.
Amy wrote: "I know I’m not the first to say it, but Say Say Say is quietly wowwing me."I'm glad to hear this...I've been debating over whether I want to read it, my mother suffered from a form of early dementia that quickly took away her words, so I was scared it might be too painful. But maybe it will help a bit with closure and acceptance. It sounds like a beautiful story...
Elizabeth wrote: "Amy wrote: "I know I’m not the first to say it, but Say Say Say is quietly wowwing me."I'm glad to hear this...I've been debating over whether I want to read it, my mother suffer..."
The Kirkus review calls it mundane or boring but I felt like it really captured the way life actually IS and sometimes it really is about those types of things.
Amy wrote: "I know I’m not the first to say it, but Say Say Say is quietly wowwing me."I really enjoyed the first 80% of it but felt that the end wasn't as strong as I hoped it would be (although it was realistic, at least). I was glad (view spoiler)
Elizabeth wrote: "Amy wrote: "I know I’m not the first to say it, but Say Say Say is quietly wowwing me."I'm glad to hear this...I've been debating over whether I want to read it, my mother suffer..."
I would say that this book is more about the caretaker than the woman suffering from brain damage, but those struggles are still present. I'm not sure it would bring much closure or help with your heartache around the subject though. Maybe wait and see if it makes the shortlist? It's a short read at least, so it doesn't go into too much detail on the tough stuff.
I'm sorry about what your family has been through. <3
Heather wrote: "Anyone else read Queenie? I loved it a lot more than I expected to."Yes! I enjoyed it, but it was seriously not what I expected. All of the marketing was about how it was "black Bridget Jones" and it is very much not that. It's a totally different thing! Quite a bit darker, and dealt with some big issues.
Sduff222 wrote: "Heather wrote: "Anyone else read Queenie? I loved it a lot more than I expected to."Yes! I enjoyed it, but it was seriously not what I expected. All of the marketing was about how..."
Good to know! The "Black Bridget Jones" description didn't pique my interest, but it sounds like this goes deeper, so I'll move it up a few spaces in my longlist TBR stack. :)
Lauren wrote: "Sduff222 wrote: "Heather wrote: "Anyone else read Queenie? I loved it a lot more than I expected to."Yes! I enjoyed it, but it was seriously not what I expected. All of the market..."
Yeah it starts out like that, and then it really does go a lot deeper and darker. Also I think it's a great look at the racial micro and macro aggressions that women of color have to put up with, particularly in the data arena.
Janet wrote: "I just started Mary Toft; or, The Rabbit Queen and already I can tell this is my kind of story....hope it continues to be as interesting as it is right now. I think Dianah was the f..."I hope you love it, Janet!
Is anyone reading Isabella Hammad's The Parisian? It is 500+ pages so there's a serious opportunity cost in tackling it, but I'm enjoying it so far (60 pages in). I'm finding it well written and slow but in a good 19th-century novel kind of way. The geographic sweep and historical setting are providing everything I love about historical fiction.
Lauren wrote: "Elizabeth wrote: "Amy wrote: "I know I’m not the first to say it, but Say Say Say is quietly wowwing me."I'm glad to hear this...I've been debating over whether I want to read it, my mother suffer..."
I would say that this book is more about the caretaker than the woman suffering from brain damage, but those struggles are still present. I'm not sure it would bring much closure or help with your heartache around the subject though...."
Does anyone remember the name of the ToB book from a year or two ago that dealt semi-comedically with the professor/father having dementia and his daughter and students tried to jolly him along. We had just gotten to the end of my MIL's 15-year decline from dementia, and I found the book itself and some of the discussions of it to be painful. So Elizabeth, good luck to you with Say, Say, Say! I plan to read it and am hoping I'll be in a better place this year, and that the book won't feel as off-kilter to me as the earlier one did.
Jan wrote: " .Does anyone remember the name of the ToB book from a year or two ago that dealt semi-comedically with the professor/father having dementia and his daughter and students tried to jolly him along. ."It may have been Goodbye Vitamin.
I also find this topic difficult.
Heather wrote: "Anyone else read Queenie? I loved it a lot more than I expected to."Yes!! I agree the marketing did this book no favors. There were some lovely comedic elements, but it was much more a portrait of a young woman collapsing under the weight of family dysfunction, racism and misogyny in modern-day London. It had some nice overlap with Girl, Woman, Other, so if those both make the short list, we could have some interesting analysis.
Are people reading GWO, by the way? It's another longish one and with the Booker win I'm sure the library holds are long, but IMO it is worth negotiating with Santa for!
Ace wrote: "Jan wrote: " .Does anyone remember the name of the ToB book from a year or two ago that dealt semi-comedically with the professor/father having dementia and his daughter and students tried to jolly him along. ."It may have been Goodbye Vitamin.
I also find this topic difficult.
..."
That was it! Thanks...and sorry for the experiences that have ade this topic difficult for you as well.
Jan wrote: "Ace wrote: "Jan wrote: " .Does anyone remember the name of the ToB book from a year or two ago that dealt semi-comedically with the professor/father having dementia and his daughter and students tr..."Ugh, was reading Goodbye Vitamin while putting my dad in memory care. Super bad timing. Sorry about your mother-in-law. Life is hard...
Jan wrote: "Are people reading GWO, by the way? It's another longish one and with the Booker win"Absolutely loved that book! Easily top 5 of the year for me!
I read Black Light by Kimberly King Parsons and if you believe the blurbs I'm supposed to be impressed by the darkness. I'm so over the self-destructive and gross female narratives that seem to be the gem of MFA programs right now. But those of you who like Moshfegh will probably eat it up. Here is my longer review.
Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "I read Black Light by Kimberly King Parsons and if you believe the blurbs I'm supposed to be impressed by the darkness. I'm so over the self-destructive and gross female narratives ..."I like Moshfegh's books because I think they're smart and well-written, so there is that.
Currently Disappearing Earth is a real pleasure to read. I hope she sticks the landing!
Having just finished Disappearing Earth, I felt the ending worked well. I had some trouble keeping track of how everyone was connected but overall I did like the writing, the overall focus on women (and how an event like this would affect them) and the look at a part of Russia I don't think I've ever even considered.Next up is, I think, Fleishman is in Trouble.
Dianah wrote: "Jan wrote: "Ace wrote: "Jan wrote: " .Does anyone remember the name of the ToB book from a year or two ago that dealt semi-comedically with the professor/father having dementia and his daughter and..."I had just lost my Dad and to me, it was a balm. It's interesting how books can either be exactly wrong or exactly right depending on where you are in the grief process and what you need.
Finished Disappearing Earth and thoroughly enjoyed it. The focus on women's experiences in each chapter/month, unfolding out from the central tragedy of the missing girls was a unique approach that I thought totally worked. Phillips has an eye for detail. Happy ToB pushed this one to the top of my pile.
Kyle wrote: "Having just finished Disappearing Earth, I felt the ending worked well. I had some trouble keeping track of how everyone was connected but overall I did like the writing, the overall focus on women..."I agree with all you said, Kyle. I listened to the book on audio, and while it was well performed, it made it even harder to keep track of the different characters and their relationships. I enjoyed this book enough that I may read the paperback version when it comes out.
Bob wrote: "Jan wrote: "Are people reading GWO, by the way? It's another longish one and with the Booker win"Absolutely loved that book! Easily top 5 of the year for me!"
Glad to hear it, Bob!
I started Olive, Again on audio and it’s great so far!
Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "Dianah wrote: "Jan wrote: "Ace wrote: "Jan wrote: " ...[Jenny wrote:] I had just lost my Dad and to me, it was a balm. It's interesting how books can either be exactly wrong or exactly right depending on where you are in the grief process and what you need...."
That's so true and interesting, Jenny. I guess it's a variant of the different strokes for different folks phenomenon that makes a lot of ToB discussions so lively. . Also...sorry about your father. :-(
I recently finished four of the longlist books:Girl, Woman, Other - I loved by the time I finished, but several times I felt like it really dragged and was losing my attention.
Normal People - I enjoyed and was an easy fast-paced read, but wasn't my favorite since I got burned out on teenage relationship drama.
Nothing to See Here - My current favorite of the long list books that I've read. Has the potential to feel too light for a lot of people, but I loved it.
Death is Hard Work - Really enjoyed, beautiful, hard story about family and death and war
Disappearing Earth is pretty much my favorite book from the past year. I hope it makes it into the ToB, genre though it may be. Everyone I've recommended it to has felt the same way. Impatiently awaiting the shortlist. I never try to guess because I'm always, always wrong, and the one year I tried to read off of the longlist in order to have a leg up, not one of the books I picked made it on to the shortlist, and I didn't like them all that much, either. So I will keep doggedly reading what happens to be in my pile until the shortlist is published. The only longlist book in there, I think, is Girl, Woman, Other.
Ellen wrote: "...Impatiently awaiting the shortlist. I never try to guess because I'm always, always wrong, and the one year I tried to read off of the longlist in order to have a leg up, not one of the books I picked made it on to the shortlist, and I didn't like them all that much, either. So I will keep doggedly reading what happens to be in my pile until the shortlist is published. ..."I'm kind of in the same boat, Ellen, or at least an adjacent boat. :-) I'm reading longlist stuff like The Parisian that I already had around, but mostly reading backlist stuff, nonfiction and new fiction that didn't make the longlist. I'm rounding up some longlist titles that I want to read regardless of whether they're on the shortlist and figure I'll be ready to focus on the shortlist when we do get it.
I am reading from the longlist but I just went through it and picked ones I wanted to read anyway or ones I hadn't heard of that intrigued me (like Mary Toft). It will be good to have the shortlist and get down to business.
Adding myself to the “just getting to Disappearing Earth and love it” list. I’m glad I had it on hold long before the long list came out -I’m excited that so many people are eager to get their eyes on this book!
Just finished A Girl Returned. It’s incredible, I highly recommend it. I also finished Trump Sky Alpha, which I did not care for. There is a chapter from Trump’s perspective that was basically a caricature. Next up: Normal People.
I've already read 10 on the list, definitely want to read 12, on the fence for 9, and I'm going to use the discussion on this thread to decide about the rest. So thanks in advance, everybody! Disappearing Earth has already moved off the fence and onto my definitely column!
Bob wrote: "Jan wrote: "Are people reading GWO, by the way? It's another longish one and with the Booker win"Absolutely loved that book! Easily top 5 of the year for me!"
High praise! I'm looking forward to it even more now.
I just finished We Cast a Shadow. It wasn't easy to read, but I hope to see it in the ToB so we can discuss it thoroughly. My review: I happened to be visiting New Orleans while reading this, so it was quite obvious where it takes place. He refers to parishes, which are only in Louisiana and Alaska, "Bienville" law firm, and "Liberia" prison, which is Angola in real life. Sure enough, I looked up the author and found that he's from New Orleans.
This was a difficult read. Almost as difficult as reading/following the news and finding reality so close to the racial horrors captured in this book. A writer friend of mine often mentions how challenging it is to write satire these days, since it's difficult to come up with crazy terrible things that haven't happened by now. And of course the racism captured in this novel is reflected in our past, present, and potentially our future as well, unless we do the hard work we've been avoiding for so long. Sometimes I prefer a little more subtlety with these stories, but we haven't earned that. I hope more people read and discuss this novel, and I would like to read more from this author.
I'm close to finishing A Girl Returned, so I'll save my comments on that one.
It sounds like we'll be seeing the shortlist soon - yay!
I just finished The Unpassing and I can see why it's getting some attention in the end of year lists and for various awards. It's an odd, almost quiet novel where a ton of huge things happen to a family of immigrants from Taiwan who are struggling to make a life in Alaska. There are some debut novel weaknesses, but over all this novel is very, very good. I'm hoping it makes the tournament as it would be fun to discuss.
With reluctance I started Normal People but I'm really enjoying it so far. I was reluctant because of how much I disliked her previously longlisted book Conversations with Friends.
Bob wrote: "With reluctance I started Normal People but I'm really enjoying it so far. I was reluctant because of how much I disliked her previously longlisted book [book:Conversations with Fri..."Is it better than Conversations? I hated that one and was left scratching my head as to why various places were anointing Sally Rooney as the First Great Millennial Author. I failed to see how that book was any different than the hundreds of books written about middle class white people from around the globe.
Amanda wrote: "Is it better than Conversations?"Much better so far. I thought one of her strengths as a writer was her dialogue. My main issue with Conversations were the insufferable/unrelatable/shitty characters. So far, about 1/4 of the way through, I'm enjoying the characters, the characterization, and of course the dialogue. The story is kinda pedestrian (he's poor, she's rich...will they?) but the strengths outweigh in this one.
Bob wrote: "Amanda wrote: "Is it better than Conversations?"Much better so far. I thought one of her strengths as a writer was her dialogue. My main issue with Conversations were the insufferable/unrelatable..."
Good to know. I had issues with the characters in Conversations and the overall tone of their political beliefs. It's easy to call yourself a communist when mum and dad are paying all of your bills, and the book just glossed over that vital fact.
So in Normal People, one of the characters is poor. I find that interesting because I believe my idea of poor and Sally Rooney's idea of poor are very different.
I recently finished two short, heartbreaking books: The Remainder (3.5 stars) and Say Say Say (4.5 stars). I would say... the Kirkus review of Say Say Say makes me not want to read or trust "professional" book reviews anymore. Both worthy reads, but both very dark.
Bob wrote: "With reluctance I started Normal People but I'm really enjoying it so far. I was reluctant because of how much I disliked her previously longlisted book [book:Conversations with Fri..."That was exactly how I came into it. Conversations with Friends left me cold and I only bought Normal People because I found it cheap and needed to make up an order for free shipping. I thought it was terrific. I do think Rooney has a problem with dull book titles, but Normal People made me excited to read what she does next.
Bob wrote: "Jan wrote: "Are people reading GWO, by the way? It's another longish one and with the Booker win"Absolutely loved that book! Easily top 5 of the year for me!"
And here we veer in completely different directions. I thought this was the weakest Booker winner since White Tiger. I found it sprawling and inauthentic full of virtue signalling tropes with very little to recommend it. It was this year's An American Marriage or The Mothers for me.
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