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Reads & Challenges Archive
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Kiwi’s 2015 Reading Challenges
Kiwi wrote: "Ok, I might have a bit of a problem: I have become a reading BINGO addict.After finishing my last bingo, I felt I was missing some of the fun picking up my next reads, so I’ve started to create m..."
LOL, a reading BINGO addict! Off to look at your square.
later Kiwi, your link just sends me back to this thread. So I still haven't seen your 3rd square :(
That's odd Leslie, works for me on my laptop, perhaps doesn't work on different devices? The link directs to message 21 of this thread.
Alternatively, you should be able to see the square in my photos (that's where I store my progress), it's the last one (brown background with stars :)
Now I know the message number, I have seen it. Looks great!
Finally an update on my recent reads:I Feel Bad about My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman, 2 stars
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood, 3 stars
All Creatures Great and Small, loved it! 5 stars
Altered Carbon, 2 stars
Through the Woods, 2 stars
Eldest, 3 stars
Currently reading: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail and All the Light We Cannot See
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, 2 stars.A lot more informative but less entertaining than my earlier read by Bill Bryson (The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid), still a good read if you are interested in nature books.
All the Light We Cannot See, 3 1/2 stars rounded to 3.
There are wonderful reviews on GR that eloquently list all the book good points, nothing for me to add. As a minor criticism, I will add I felt that although the language was beautiful towards the end of the book it dragged on a bit in places, almost over flowery. A thoroughly enjoyable read.
Mod
I did like them both Greg, I particularly enjoyed All the Light We Cannot See. I was just saying in another thread that my 3 stars rating may seems a bit unfair but I tend to round upwards only when the author is unknown or I think the book deserves to be better known. There is quite a hype associated with All the light we cannot see (especially since it won the Pulitzer prize this year) so I think my leaving off a 1/2 star does not affect its ratings that much :)
Howl's Moving Castle: An unusual and imaginative fairy tale with wonderful characters. A charming read. 3 starsI read this as part of my TBR favourites but also doubles as a bingo square: a movie that’s been made into a movie. I need to find the movie now.
Also finished a brilliant read by by Liane Moriarty
Big Little Lies, 5 stars, my review:
This book is a window into school mum cliques, parents’ hierarchies and social circles. Moriarty carefully describes the women’s inner lives beyond the playground dynamics and politics common in any primary school. Spot on character development even of the minor characters through snippets of conversations, gossip and catty remarks. The story has a brilliant pace, a true pace turner for me. The format of the book is also unusual, in a murder mystery the perpetrator is normally the unknown but in this book you don’t even know who the victim is.
I liked the Australian setting, so familiar for who, like me, lives just across the ditch. I guess Big little lies can be categorised as chick lit but is not the fluffy and insipid type. It would be a great bookclub pick, so much to talk about but also a perfect beach read. Loved it!
I read The Husband's Secret by the same author, and rated it a respectable 3 stars, but I absolutely loved Big Little Lies, I thought it far superior.
Kiwi wrote: "Howl's Moving Castle: An unusual and imaginative fairy tale with wonderful characters. A charming read. 3 starsI read this as part of my TBR favourites but also doubles as a bingo squa..."
Oh that was an excellent animated movie. I guess it counts as anime (although it was produced in part by Disney); the director Hayao Miyazaki has won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film for "Spirited Away".
Thanks for the info Leslie, I'll look it up :)
Kiwi wrote: "Howl's Moving Castle: An unusual and imaginative fairy tale with wonderful characters. A charming read. 3 starsI read this as part of my TBR favourites but also doubles as a bingo squa..."
Till now I've loved all the animated movies by Miyazaki. The one I liked the most was Spirited Away. I hope you will find the movie(s), they are really worth.
I have seen Spirited Away long ago, although I'm sure I could have appreciated better if I knew better the Japanese mythology, I found it confusing. Speaking with a Japanese colleague of mine I leaned some of the meanings behind the demons and spirits. Fascinating.Is Howl's Moving Castle in the same vein?
Another vote for Spirited Away! I also loved Howl although I didn't know it was based on a book
Kiwi wrote: "Is Howl's Moving Castle in the same vein?..."It has some magic (after all, it is a moving castle!) but I didn't get the feeling that it was based on Japanese culture.
Mod
Thank you guys for all the movie recs!PS: Greg, I finally got to watch Smoke signals and I liked it very much. Thanks for recommending it to me :)
Mod
PS: Greg, I finally got to watch Smoke signals and I liked it very much. Thanks for recommending it to me :)"
Great Kiwi! :)
Kiwi wrote: "Is Howl's Moving Castle in the same vein?"Like Leslie said, there is magic but, if I don't remember wrong, there are less spirits of the Japanese culture.
July is proving to be one of my most successful reading months so far, with another couple of 4 stars reads. The Boleyn Inheritance:
Novel set in Henry VIII court focusing on the aging monarch relationships. Three women POVs: Anne of Cleaves (4th wife only for 6 months), Katherine Howard (15 y.o. and 5th wife) and Jane Boleyn (lady-in-waiting and Anne Boleyn’s sister in law) in the usual diary format.
A very enjoyable read, a bit repetitive and not as good as The other Boleyn girl. 3 ½ stars rounded up
The Emperor's Blades:
After reading The Emperor’s Blades I believe I can safely add Brian Staveley to my short list of favourite fantasy authors. This novel develops along three story lines following the three children of the Malkeenian emperor. Kaden, the heir, training with an oriental style religious order, Valyn, the second son, training as an elite air force soldier, Adare, a daughter and the eldest, already risen in the empire hierarchy to the post of minister of finance. A conspiracy, that has already killed the emperor, now threatens all three.
The book is a page-turner with a satisfying twist at its end. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. Full 4 stars.
Currently reading The Reptile Room, the second book in A Series of Unfortunate Events and Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind.Very different but equally enjoyable
The Reptile Room, a solid 3 stars for this enjoyable YA novel, I will be continuing the series to find out what the Baudelaire orphans are up to.The 10pm Question, I feel bad to rate a NZ book only 1 star, but I wasn't interested in the story nor the characters, apparently is a popular book, just not for me.
Defending Elysium, 2 stars. Once again I'm disappointed by the Sanderson's novellas as much as I love him for his larger works (Mistborn and Stormlight Archive series).
The Eagle of the Ninth, 3 stars, my short review:
A classic of the historical fiction genre set in Roman Britain during the second century AD. A good companion to the MOOC run by Newcastle University (Hadrian's Wall: Life on the Roman Frontier available online at Futurelearn) as many elements covered in the course are also present in the book (the castrum structure and Roman military organization, entertainment and religious customs, jewellery objects, relationships with slaves and local tribes, etc).
The novel has some confusion about dates. In the introduction the author suggest 117AD as the year of the disappearance of the Legio IX Hispana, however later in the book it refers to the death of the emperor Trajan occurring before the legion was lost (Trajan death occurred in 117 AD, at Gazipaşa, Turkey). This generic reference ties up with other historical sources, which maintain that the legion was still in action until at least 120 AD. Nonetheless, it is clear that the novel is well researched and, as far as I can tell, historically accurate. Well worth a read.
Continuing Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind and just started The Snow Child.
Mod
A fast fun read Kiwi. I've read a number of them :)
Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell Finally Mr Sanderson! this novella gets a full 4 stars from meThe Snow Child:
What is the snow child? Is she a Russian fairy tale creature out of a blue leather-bound children book? Or the an elderly couple living in a remote homestead and trying to cope with the painful loss of a premature child? Or is she a semi-feral girl, the daughter of a drunken trapper left to fend for herself in the woods? The possibilities and the true nature of the mysterious girl are the subjects of this charming novel where the beauty and isolation of the Alaskan winter landscape is the true protagonist.
If you like magical realism this book is for you.
In August I’d like to complete the two remaining challenges (except for the two monthly ones which are ongoing till the end of the year). So my planned reads will include:* The Man of Property (TBR favourite genre – classics)
* A Scanner Darkly (SF&F 2015 Bookshelf Challenge)
Plus:
* The Nightingale (read-along)
* The Age of Innocence (group read)
* Some mystery books for August monthly fiction (Murder at the Vicarage and The Beautiful Mystery but probably I will read more)
* Christie: A Family's Tragic Loss and a Mother's Fight for Justice or Phenomena: The Lost and Forgotten Children True story/True crime/Current Events for August monthly non-fiction
* A few books for the Bingo
* A couple of books that I already own to clear up my bookshelves :)
I will be interested in learning how you like A Scanner Darkly…
Sure Leslie, it's up next :)I don't have high expectations for the book, I know it's one of the sci-fi classic but personally I tend to prefer the newer books rather than the ones written in the 70s. Did you like it?
Redwall:In this first book of the Redwall series, we follow Matthias’ adventure on his quest to find the lost sword of Martin the warrior. He and his friends will need to solve a number of riddles, deal with quarrelsome sparrows, handle a band of shrews and confront a powerful adder. All these feats in order to defend Redwall Abbey against Cluny the scourge army of rats.
A fun read full of brave and cute furry creatures. 3 ½ stars
The Murder at the Vicarage:
Classic murder mystery investigation brilliantly solved by shrewd Miss Marple. What I liked most about the book is Agatha Christie’s humour. 3 ½ stars
Favourite quotes:
Melchett is a wise man. He knows that, when it is a question of an irate middle‐aged lady, there is only one thing to be done ‐ to listen to her.
Nothing is more dangerous than the well-meant efforts of the younger generation to assist you and show their sympathy.
His poems have no capital letters in them, which is, I believe, the essence of modernity.
During all this, Mary had been extracting eyes from potatoes with such energy that they had been flying round the kitchen like hailstones. At this moment one hit me in the eye and caused a momentary pause in the conversation.
Continuing Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind which is far better than I expected and The Man of Property.
His poems have no capital letters in them, which is, I believe, the essence of modernity.
XD
Great quote
XD
Great quote
indeed Giorgia, I laughed out loud when I read it :P
Leslie wrote: "I will be interested in learning how you like A Scanner Darkly…"Well, that didn't go well. I did not like it. At all. I liked Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by the same author but I found A Scanner Darkly too confusing. The subject matter and the world of junkies wasn't interesting enough I suppose. It's strange as I enjoyed watching Braking Bad, somehow I couldn't care about the characters in the book.
I abandoned it at 1/3.
The Man of Property, 3 stars:I blame the superb TV mini-series for partially spoiling my reading experience this classic, probably I was expecting too much. I loved the adaptation and I decided to read the book to see how the author explored the intimate relationships within the Forsyte extended family and how incompatible temperaments can lead to marriage dissolution, as it is in the case of Soames and Irene.
I was not disappointed by Galsworthy’s style and his descriptions of the characters’ weaknesses and their family relationships were splendid.
On the other hand, I did not feel close to any of the characters and I found the pace of the story a bit patchy: some parts were riveting others (e.g. when Galsworthy’s goes on a tangent with some minor character reflections) too slow. My 3 stars rating reflects this inconsistency and the fact that surprisingly, in the end, I did not like any of the characters.
I must be in a reading slump currently as I've started The Nightingale but not liking it very much either.
Kiwi wrote: " I did not like any of the characters.
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I find it very hard to enjoy a book if I don't like the characters, not necessarily the protagonist, but there must be someone I care about in the story, otherwise I'm not involved and soon lose interest in the story.
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I find it very hard to enjoy a book if I don't like the characters, not necessarily the protagonist, but there must be someone I care about in the story, otherwise I'm not involved and soon lose interest in the story.
Totally agree Giorgia, I don't necessarily need to like the characters but at least be interested in them. Some of them I intensely disliked yet I loved their story.What surprised me I that I though that I would feel for Soames or Irene, but although the author does a wonderful job with their psychology, they both felt too distant.
Soames defined Irene as "made of stone" and I tend to agree.
Finished Christie: A Family's Tragic Loss and a Mother's Fight for Justice for this month non fiction challenge (True story/True crime/Current Events). I rated it 4 stars, my review:This book conveys Tracy Marceau’s torment, the unbearable pain of a mother who has been witness to her child killing. Christie was murdered in her home on 7 November 2011, after a disturbed young boy had kidnapped and assaulted her in September 2011, and while awaiting trial on the charges, was bailed by the court to an address just 300 metres from Marceau's home, despite calls from Christie and the police to not grant bail.
Her death was preventable and it was facilitated by the judge decision to release her attacker on bail, that decision was sound in the legal sense but contrary to common sense. The family launched a campaign with the aim of changing the bail’s act and making the judges, who make decisions on whether violent offenders are allowed out of prison or not, accountable for such decisions. It is called “Christie’s Law.
I admire Tracy’s strength in her decision to go public to raise awareness on our country laws deficiencies, where the right of the accused is higher that the victim right to feel safe in her own home. She is a remarkable woman fighting to avoid the chance of another family tragedy, in Tracy’s words “It will not bring Christie back, but perhaps it will save someone else”.
The first-hand accounts of what happened the day Christie died as well as the consequences on her family members are gut wrenching. Heart-breaking but an important book to read.
Kiwi wrote: "Leslie wrote: "I will be interested in learning how you like A Scanner Darkly…"Well, that didn't go well. I did not like it. At all. I liked Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by th..."
I also found "A Scanner Darkly" disappointing after loving "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep". I read it in a buddy read & the other person liked it more than I did -- I found it distasteful.
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, fantastic read, 5 stars:Extensive mix of human history, philosophy, economics and other social sciences. I found this book informative, entertaining, challenging, thought provoking and sometimes uncomfortable (in a good way). I can see how this book could be considered controversial.
It would be a great choice for a book club: many topics are bound to generate interesting group discussions. A brilliant book, I can recommend this book highly enough!
The Nightingale, disappointed by this book only 2 stars, here's why:
The historical aspect is what attracted me to the book: the role of French women and resistance during WWII. Unfortunately, I don’t think Hannah managed to pull it off.
The characters’ development lack depth, it felt only superficial and unauthentic. I have the impression that the author dutifully studied the events of the period and then built characters and a story around it, but the result lacks soul, it doesn’t feel like “lived” but rather “staged”.
The rebellious Isabelle is too perfect and artificial, not only she is beautiful but courageous, brave and even heroic, but from the beginning so “right”: (view spoiler)
Vianne had more potential, she is the meek wife left at home with a small child and she is friend to a neighbour who is also a Jew. A handsome German captain (sporting a de rigueur iron cross) is billeted to her house; some attraction between the two is unavoidable.
Lots of action happens and the reader will not get bored but I was expecting the characters to develop and mature as the story progressed, but it never happened. The writing, especially at the beginning, is too flowery and includes plenty of clichés. In the descriptions, there is such a profusion of adjectives and similes that are distracting rather than evocative. The dialogues are equally disappointing, peppered by corny “mon dieu” and “merde” and even some of the most moving episodes felt melodramatic.
What bothered me most is that, although the historical facts are there, the atmosphere is not and the characters sensibilities and actions are too modern for the period. I did not get the sense of what the life of women living in Nazi occupied France was really like and the horror of anti-Semitism felt simplified and trivialized, everything in the book is so black and white.
I am clearly in the minority and I know this review will not be popular with some of my Goodread friends who loved this book. That’s OK, we like what we like and we can agree to disagree in this case. I don’t normally write long reviews but with this one I took the time to explain the reasons why I rated it an OK read, it could have been better.
Leslie wrote: "I also found "A Scanner Darkly" disappointing after loving "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep". I read it in a buddy read & the other person liked it more than I did -- I found it distasteful. ..."I agree Leslie
Kiwi wrote: "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, fantastic read, 5 stars:Extensive mix of human history, philosophy, economics and other social sciences. I found this book informative, ente..."
That's good to know you enjoyed this one so much.
Yes, Pink I loved it. It's one of my best reads of the year so far.
Finished Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Nagasaki atomic bomb. 3 starsCurrently reading Half Way Home (first book by one of my favourite authors) and Cathedral. I read a couple of stories of the latter but did not enjoyed them much (I have a feeling I won't be a fan of precisionist realism)
I decided to abandon Cathedral, but finished:Half Way Home, 2 stars
Whose Body?, 3 stars
The Beautiful Mystery, 4 stars, my thoughts:
I had a fascination with mysteries set in monasteries since I read The Name of the Rose. This book is successful in reproducing the abbey atmosphere, the repetitive simple monastic life and the obscure religious order close-knit community (the Gilbertines was founded
around 1130 and closed down in 16th century at the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries).
The murder victim is the prior and choirmaster, close to the abbot but generally considered strong minded and hard to handle. The investigation soon reveals a hidden rift among the monks: those is in favor of recording of the Gilbertines' chants, which would provide much needed financial rewards to the abbey, and those who would remain faithful to the original vow of silence and solitary life, away from the secular world.
This was my first novel by inspector Gamache series, but is not a good place to start. I would have probably appreciated more the private lives and interior struggles of the characters had I read the previous books in the series. In addition to solving the mystery, Chief Inspector Gamache and his collegue Jean Guy Beauvoir have to face their own demons, the memories and the effects of a botched up warehouse operation in which four officers died.
The inquiry is impeded by the actions of Sylvain Françoeur, Gamache superior, who harbours a resentment towards him and the arrival of Frère Sébastien, a Dominican monk, nicknamed “the hound of the Lord” (the Dominican order's mission was to teach and preach: to employ the power of reason in support of faith, on the negative side they were often recruited as inquisitors by the Catholic Church).
I really liked both the characters and the story, which is centred on “the beautiful mystery” of Gregorian chants. This book made me want to start at the beginning of the series with Still Life.
following my interest in ancient Greece history, I've read recently:A History of Greece, 1300 to 30 BC, 2 stars
Ancient Greece: An Illustrated History, 3 stars
Ancient Greece: From Prehistoric to Hellenistic Times, 4 stars
currently continuing with another two books:
Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History and The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Greece
Also read:
The Age of Innocence, I am surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. A fascinating portrait of New York’s fin de siècle high society, their views on propriety and the personal choices that it forced upon its members. 3 ½ stars
Phenomena: The Lost and Forgotten Children, sad book on the reality of mental hospitals, 3 stars.
The Big Sleep, 2 stars, great movie but disappointing book.
Antigone, 3 stars.
The Ruins of Gorlan, YA fantasy, 3 stars, which allowed me to complete my third BINGO square. I've now run out of bingos :(The Blackhouse, excellent mystery, 4 stars, my thoughts:
I really enjoyed this mystery and I am happy to see that it is the first of a trilogy. I loved the evocative descriptions of the windswept island landscapes (the setting is Lewis Island, part of the Outer Hebrides, off Scotland), the descriptions of the people and their stories. The protagonist, Fin Macleod is a troubled detective in a failing marriage and who has recently lost his only son. He left the island 18 years before, but is now sent back to investigate the murder of a local man. In the book, Fin’s past unravels through the memories of his childhood and youth and eventually he will confront the ghosts of his past. The ending was a bit predictable, but overall a splendid read, I’m looking forward to reading the next book.
Kiwi wrote: "The Ruins of Gorlan, YA fantasy, 3 stars, which allowed me to complete my third BINGO square. I've now run out of bingos :(..."
LOL! I bet you could find some new squares if you really wanted to. But completing 3 squares already is amazing! Congrats :-)
haha, thank you Leslie. I had a look around, there are some Bingo with interesting elements but they also contain other squares that are very specific and for which I have no interest.
I would need to leave the BINGO incomplete since I don't want to read a book that I dislike just to finish a challenge (I confess I have a compulsion to finish things, an OCD trait probably).
I'm working on creating my own version, with loose and broad definitions so that picking a book to fill the squares won't be a problem, maybe it will be ready for next year :) in the meantime I've got lots of other books waiting!
abandoned The Winter Rose:I wanted something light and fluffy for a change. I bought the book ages ago because I liked reading The Tea Rose so I decided to read the sequel to clear my physical shelves. Unfortunately, despite having low expectations for the book, I can’t bring myself to read another 600+ pages to finish it. I guess my tastes have moved on, oh well... life is too short to read books that don’t interest me any longer, this goes into the "to donate pile" and I'll be onto the next book.
Finished A Betrayal in Winter, 3 stars:
Sequel to A Shadow in Summer, this fantasy novel has an original oriental setting (a pseudo Chinese world) and an emphasis on magic based economics rather than the usual military power struggle. If you prefer royal murders, court conspiracy, political intrigue and Machiavellian characters rather than bearded magi, magic swords and epic battles this series is for you.
Finished and thoroughly enjoyed a couple of books on the Cathars, one fiction: Stigmata, 3 1/2 stars ( my review)
and the other non fiction:
The Cathars: The Most Successful Heresy of the Middle Ages, 4 1/2 stars, ( my review)
Almost finished another couple of books on Ancient Greece, currently reading Poison Study and planning my September reads
In August I reached my goal of 180 books for the year. Looking back, I have abandoned 9 books, that's 5% of the total (the actual percentage is a little less since I read at least 3 books that are not in GR). I'm very happy about this result because this year I really pushed myself to pick books outside my comfort zone of tried-and-true authors and genres, so there was potential for disaster.In September I will continue to chip off my TBR (I read 100 Books from my pre 2015 list Yay!).
Sci-Fi is this month fiction theme, so many books to choose from…I might even attempt a colossal read this month. I will start with Nexus.
Non fiction looks more challenging: Science/Maths/Technology, maybe something by Michio Kaku, which is a new author for me. I got How to Cut a Cake: And Other Mathematical Conundrums from the library, I’ll go from there.
Also planning to read more fantasy and books from my physical shelves.
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Books mentioned in this topic
The Grownup (other topics)The Gospel of Loki (other topics)
The Middle Ages: An Illustrated History (other topics)
The Gospel of Loki (other topics)
The Gospel of Loki (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Leslie Marmon Silko (other topics)James Wright (other topics)
Roald Dahl (other topics)
E.M. Forster (other topics)
John Green (other topics)
After finishing my last bingo, I felt I was missing some of the fun picking up my next reads, so I’ve started to create my own BINGO square. I’m not exactly highly skilled at graphic design so the process was taking a bit of time and then while searching the net for ideas I stumbled upon an already made square, how could I say no? :P
Voila' my third bingo !