What are you reading February 2015

[Susan]

I have found that I enjoyed the audio version of some books that I just couldn't get into in print. Jasper Fforde's Tuesday Next novels come to mind as an example of this. For some reason, I was slogging through the first few chapters in the print version, but couldn't stop listening to the audio.

I don't mind multiple narrators most of the time. However, I sometimes get annoyed when the narrator attempts to speak in thevoice of the opposite gender. Sometimes that makes the narration seem more of a performance.

[Ellen]

I think I understand what Gerald was saying. I personally am getting a bit tired of books written in alternating chapters between two or more first-person characters. My current listen, Euphoria, is written like this, with some breaks into 3rd-person for extra confusion. Why is (nearly) every novel written like this now?

[Kokeshi]

The Collector by John Fowles

An excellent FIRST novel by John Fowles. On the surface this is a very suspenseful novel about the kidnapping and imprisonment of a young woman. Beneath the surface is a debate on class and intellectual division. I agree with the reviewers that say you won't forget this book as it the topics and events within it can be endlessly discussed and debated. Absolutely a 5 star book.

[Gerald]

Since I am listening to I am reading and reading on e reader.I was introduced to Steven King and Kurt Vonnegut by the same reader in the 1970's.He was way ahead of his time but I have never read them so Vonnegut is first. Good luck to me.

[Pam]

My book club read The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach. I liked the book but many did not so it made for a very interesting discussion. I also read the short novella Ajax Penumbra 1969 by Robin Sloan. It is definitely peaked my interest to read Mr. Penumbra's 24 hour Bookstore.

I just finished The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith, which is the 11th in the series The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. It is one of my favorite series. There is not much action or suspense but I love reading Mma Ramotswe's philosophy on life. She is always able to look at the good things in life and find lessons from other people's lives. She credits her father for having the right approach to life and she learned meaningful lessons from him.

"Do not complain about your life. Do not blame others for things that you have brought upon yourself. Be content with who you are and where you are, and do whatever you can do to bring to others such contentment, and joy, and understanding that you have managed to find yourself."

Valuable thoughts indeed!

[Amy]

I loved "The Art of Fielding." What didn't your book club friends like about it, Pam?

[Cindy]

Just finished How To Be A Victorian by Ruth Goodman. Excellent book. Makes me appreciate my modern life, but admire those who flourished during this period of time. Think how many of our favorite classics were written by these people who were constantly cold, bathed in basins most days a week with soap that didn't work well in cold water, and wore corsets!

Her portrayal of the laboring/working class, while not quite Dickensian, was certainly grim,especially pertaining to children.

Recommend this book to those of you who love the history of real people and want a picture of real daily life!

[Adore]

How to be a Victorian sounds great!

[Karen]

Since I loved the Masterpiece Classic I decided to read this book: I love Irene and Soames!

[Gerald]

Karen, my MC was the 1967 BBC production. Being a teen at the time I fell in love with Susan Hampshire playing Fleur Forsyte!

[Karen]

I'll have to watch the 1967 version, bet it's on Netflix. Thanks!

[Gerald]

The 1967 version is not but I bet if you search for it you will find it somewhere. You Tube streams some of the old BBC shows like the old Sherlock Holmes series and the Wimsey series.BTW BBC shows might be taken off Netflix if Netflix and the BBC cannot come up with a new contract.

[Trish]

Just finished A Kim Jong-Il Production: The Extraordinary True Story of a Kidnapped Filmmaker, His Star Actress, and a Young Dictator's Rise to Power by Paul Fischer and it is an absolutely astonishing book of creative nonfiction about the North Korean Kim regimes. I believe I heard about it from Michael Kindness originally. Definitely worth checking out.

[Valerie]

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks on Kindle

Keeping Hope Alive: One Woman: 90,000 Lives Changed on audio

Dans la nuit blanche et rouge to pratice my French

Trespassing on Einstein's Lawn: A Father, a Daughter, the Meaning of Nothing, and the Beginning of Everything in hard copy

[Sue]

I'm all over the place lately - getting ready for a vacation, so trying to finish some things up and not start anything new until I'm poolside!

I finished Sweetland and absolutely loved it. A solid 5 stars for me.

In the car, I've been listening to Descent and have an hour left to go. The ending is proving to be very dramatic, but it does not make up for the rest of the book which was rambling and disorganized in terms of pacing, structure, and plot.

I started Get in Trouble as a palette cleanser and have been blown away by Kelly Link's story telling and writing ability. I don't read a lot of magical realism, but hers is absolutely accessible - vivid, witty, dark, and smart. I'm also still reading The Whole Story and Other Stories and Ali Smith is also an acrobatic wordsmith, like Link. They're both so talented.

For the trip, I'm packing A Tale for the Time Being, A Month in the Country and maybe one of the two story collections above. Plus, I'll be bringing along my current postal book club book.

[Peggy]

Just finished "Where did you go Bernadette?" Found it funny and insightful, I did not expect the rant on living in Seattle! Also "The Boys in the Boat"....read Kenneth Brannaugh is working on the movie, yay. Tried to like "In the Company of Liars" (a book group pick)but did not like the - begin with the end, end with the beginning format :(

[Gerald]

Finished Slapstick or Lonesome No More!last night. This fable of the end of the USA is still relevant after over thirty years. This is the first paper book I have read in many months and alas I cracked the spine since it sat on my shelf in the basement for many years. RIP.

[Gerald]

Finished . This book sat on my basement base so long that I cracked the spine while reading. Rest In Peace. Still relevant humor after more then 30 years however.

[Rhonda]

Jill wrote: ... I have on my Kindle. ..."

I love Charles de Lint but haven't read anything in the Jack series. Enjoy!

[Rhonda]

As far as fiction I have put The Miniaturist on hold to pick up Orphan Train. The author, Christina Baker Kline will be speaking at my local library soon and I want to have the book finished before then. I'm also reading The Lake of Dreams. For non-fiction I'm reading A Walk to Wisdom by Trog Trogdon.

[Gerald]

Reading on the Kindle.

[Adore]

i just started both of these:

Cat's Eye
and
Love's Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy

i haven't read atwood in maybe ten years. really enjoying revisiting her work!

[Sue]

I think I'm going to give up on A Tale for the Time Being, at least for the time being (tee hee). I took it on a beach vacation last week and it required way more time and attention than I expected, so I'm cranky about not having the fun, easy beach book reading time I wanted and for only making it through the first 1/4 or so. I'm not disliking it, but it demands to be read slowly and there are too many books on the nightstand for that right now. Maybe I'll go back to it, but I find that putting aside books is similar to putting things into the attic. They usually don't reappear.

I did finish The Whole Story and Other Stories on the trip and loved it. There is such energy in Smith's writing; the sentences practically pulse on the page. I can see how her writing is considered experimental, but it is completely accessible. Unique, funny, warm, sad - she conveys so much with such economy. She's quite a talent.

I'm continuing with Get in Trouble and will probably start Fram or Rainey Royal next. An early birthday present arrived while we were away, so I also have Almost Famous Women: Stories and Brother of the More Famous Jack: A Novel to add to the tottering pile.

On audio, I'll be starting The Girl on the Train Monday morning.

[Steven]

Reading Tammy Kaehler's "Dead Man's Switch" Next is "Twenty Thousand League's Under the Sea."

[Janet]

Sue wrote: "I think I'm going to give up on A Tale for the Time Being, at least for the time being (tee hee). I took it on a beach vacation last week and it required way more time and attention..."

Beach read....Crazy Rich Asians...I'm listening to the audio and it's a hoot!

[Sue]

Thanks, Janet. Crazy Rich Asians has been on my radar. I'll save it for my next vacation!

Janet wrote: "Sue wrote: "I think I'm going to give up on A Tale for the Time Being, at least for the time being (tee hee). I took it on a beach vacation last week and it required way more time a..."

[Kokeshi]

A beautiful book. Each image and its accompanying "story" is a novel within itself. One series of images had me in tears. You must, must, must read this book. 5 stars.

[Nancy]

I'm making my way through the audiobook of the latest Flavia de Luce mystery, As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust. Adolescent chemistry whiz and amateur detective Flavia has been shipped off to boarding school in Canada to learn her role in a secret society has been involved in for generations, a fact that she just discovered in the previous book. A body conveniently falls out of the fireplace chimney in her room on the very first night, but without her the resources she has at home—her own lab, a network of friends and acquaintances, familiarity with the surroundings—how can she solve this crime (and deal with homesickness!)?
I've also recently read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, which wasn't as much of a fluffy piece as I had expected, thank goodness; The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon, a ghost story; Nora Ephron's book of essays, I Feel Bad About My Neck (I didn't care for the title essay, but some of the others in the collection were much better); The Good Lord Bird by James McBride (excellent!), And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini, and Tuck Everlasting (a reread; I discovered it years ago when my son read it as an elementary or middle school student and decided to reread it when the title came to mind recently).
My current read in print is a collection of essays called Winter: Five Windows on the Season. Fascinating. I'm not sure where I stumbled across this title, which I had to acquire by interlibrary loan, but I'm very glad I did.

[Louise]

½ way through - a very different and interesting anthology :-)

[Becky]

Reading 2 books, one is an arc( e book) from net galley, The Forever Bridge & the other an actual book ,

[Shannon]

In print I am reading the very well written and fascinating The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and my audio listen is currently The Goldfinch. They are both so good, I am having a hard time deciding whether to read or listen!

[Becky]

Shannon wrote: "In print I am reading the very well written and fascinating The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and my audio listen is cu..."

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics is on the list for a small group read in my book group!

[MLO]

I'm a little late to the party but I read The Quantum Thief, The Fractal Prince and The Causal Angel...all by Hannu Rajaniemi. Not for everyone but if you like your sci-fi with lots of sci, give it a try.

[Gerald]

MLO wrote: "I'm a little late to the party but I read The Quantum Thief, The Fractal Prince and The Causal Angel...all by Hannu Rajaniemi. Not for everyone but if you like your sci-fi with lots of sci, give i..."

Your not late for the partay your running it!