Constant Reader discussion
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Constant Reader
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What I'm Reading - July - August 2021
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Gina wrote: "Ken wrote: "spoko wrote: "Just finished Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles, which I liked a lot. I had wanted to read Circe, but haven’t yet gotten around to it. Read this one i..."They’ve been on my TBR list for quite awhile; I’m starting to think they deserve to be removed.
I really liked Circe but never wrote a review. I do plan to read Achilles at some point too. I enjoyed reading the story from Circe’s viewpoint as I had read The Odyssey not very long before.
I, too, enjoyed CIRCE, very much and ACHILLES less so.
Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee – Dee Brown – 5*****
Subtitle: An Indian History of the American West. Brown’s interest in the history of the American West took him to many resources that were previously ignored in crafting the official textbooks from which millions were taught American history. This work is one attempt to correct the information so many thought they knew. Brown relates the systemic plunder of Native lands region by region, tribe by tribe, battle by battle, broken treaty by broken treaty. It is a very personal account. And it is heartbreaking.
My full review HERE
Mary wrote: "SEVENEVES by Neal Stephenson. This is a fascinating story and I was eager to continue reading it. I thought the epilogue, however, was unnecessary. I would have been more satisfied with the ending ..."Mary , I finally finished Seveneves after many interruptions. I liked the arc of the story and how just when you had forgotton about certain last minute happening at the time of the apocalypse they come back to pull the story together. The other thing that struck me was his preoccupation with jargon and how good he was at coming up with names and words for things. At some point in time try another of his.
One of the interruptions mention in my previous post has been the virtual talk for the Edinburgh Book Fest. The one by Richard Flanagan was excellent, making me add his latestThe Living Sea of Waking Dreams to my to be read list. He had been working on a completelly different novel when those terrible Australian fires started last year, it propelled him into this one instead. He speaks very well about cimate change and clearly has had first hand experience of fires on this scale, his description of their impact, of 'fire freeze' was incredible. If you've seen the movie Day After Tomorrow where bodies instantly freeze in extreme bad weather, think similar but with total desiccation - horrific.
Sheila, I loved ANATHEM. I’m definitely now a fan.
BOX 88 by Charles Cumming, a former secret service recruit himself, describes the mixed-up world of international intrigue. We may know who the enemy is, but with so many 'agencies' of spies today, nobody is quite sure who the bad guys are. Great read!
4.5★ Link to my review of Box 88
Keep the dream alive! This little book is a great introduction to Martin Luther King Jr.. It's part of an excellent series to inspire little kids (and their parents!). Author Mª Isabel Sánchez Vegara has produced an amazing library of these.
5★ Link to my review of MLK Jr with several illustrations.
Mary Anne wrote: "I recently finished The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare. It's a very good book, but I recommend the audio version, which helped me get through the dialects."I liked this one too
Just finished listening to the audio verion of fellow Scot Jenni Fagan's debut novel from 2012 entitled The Panopticon. A Scottish grime novel somewhat in the vein of Trainspotting, with great voice for the first person narrator, a child of the care system. My review
A very quick and thoroughly satisfying and enjoyable read which I highly recommend - New Zealand author Maurice Gee's In My Father's Den, see My Review
Sheila wrote: "Just finished listening to the audio verion of fellow Scot Jenni Fagan's debut novel from 2012 entitled The Panopticon. A Scottish grime novel somewhat in the vein ..."That sounds interesting, but I've yet to recover from the horrors depicted in SHUGGIE BAIN.
Since Elizabeth George's 21st "Inspector Lynley" novel has been delayed till January 2022, I'm rereading IN PURSUIT OF THE PROPER SINNER and really enjoying it.
It's not often I'm current (the day I was born, the obstetrician said, "Here's an old soul!"), but I managed to read one of this year's Booker short listers, The Promise.If you're considering it and canvassing for opinions, my review is as follows (your click)...
Kitchen Confidential – Anthony Bourdain – 3.5***
Subtitle: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly. This is a wonderful memoir, as well as a bit of a tutorial, a travelogue, and a warning of what NOT to do. Bourdain is honest, profane, funny, enlightening and engaging. As a plus, he narrated the audio version himself.
My full review HERE
Book Concierge wrote: " Kitchen Confidential
– Anthony Bourdain – 3.5***
Subtitle: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly. This is a wonderful memoir, as well as a bit of a tuto..."
I read this when it first came out. Loved it! Never order fish on a Tuesday!
After the book came out, they changed it to Wednesday.
I remember the New Yorker article by Bourdain that started it all. I loved it but could somehow never get into Kitchen Confidential. My son, who is a chef and a foodie but rarely a reader, loved it however. In fact, he loves everything associated with Bourdain.
Kiki wrote: "Sheila wrote: "Just finished listening to the audio verion of fellow Scot Jenni Fagan's debut novel from 2012 entitled The Panopticon. A Scottish grime novel somewh..."Kiki, I'm doing them in the opposite order, so I've yet to Read Shuggie past a browse of the first chapter.
Scots literature does have a "grime" face, post -Irvine Welsh through to current times which reflects the social deprivation and realted problems that much of the country faces, including its historical drug problem emflamed by flooding very cheap smack (less than the price of a beer/cigarettes/coffee ) on which today manifests itself as one of an aging addict population and of the highest level of drug related deaths in the world see https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotlan... .
I am however looking forward to read Fagan's third and most recent, just out this year, novel Luckenbooth, I'll post about it once I've read it to let you know how it goes
PattyMacDotComma wrote: "I loved Akwaeke Emezi's debut novel, Freshwater, but I think other readers will enjoy The Death of Vivek Oji more than I did. Love, sex, acceptance..."I liked Freshwater too, and have Death of Vivek Oji to read which actually was the first one of here I bought.
I just read Costa Book of the Year 2020(https://www.costa.co.uk/behind-the-be...) winner Monique Roffey's The Mermaid of Black Conch. Enjoyable listen. My review(Corrected)
Sheila wrote: "I just read Costa Book of the Year 2020(https://www.costa.co.uk/behind-the-be...) winner Monique Roffey's The Mermaid of Black Conch. E..."Sheila, your review link goes to the book page. (I look forward to seeing what you think of Vivek Oji.)
I loved Michael Ondaatje's much lauded Warlight, which begins in London, 1945. Bomb flashes were what lit the way for those sneaking around during curfews - criminals, spies, and kids.Terrific read!
5★ Link to my Warlight review
PattyMacDotComma wrote: "Sheila wrote: "I just read Costa Book of the Year 2020(https://www.costa.co.uk/behind-the-be...) winner Monique Roffey's [book:The Mermaid of Black Con..."Thanks for the heads up Patty. Here is the link https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... and I've edited the post
PattyMacDotComma wrote: "I loved Michael Ondaatje's much lauded Warlight, which begins in London, 1945. Bomb flashes were what lit the way for those sneaking around during curfews - criminals,..."Warlight was our Reading List discussion a couple of years ago. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Finished The President's Daughter, a good escape read.Now starting Hello Darkness, My Old Friend: How Daring Dreams and Unyielding Friendship Turned One Man's Blindness into an Extraordinary Vision for Life.
Friends Like Us – Lauren Fox – 3***
I really enjoyed this exploration of friendship and the choices one makes as one matures. I remember close friends I had in my twenties … I have witnessed (and been part of) break-ups that hurt so badly you wondered how you would ever survive. And I recognized how a best friend can say just the right thing to help you through what you believe to be the darkest moments. So, the relationships between these people and their emotions were completely relatable to me.
My full review HERE
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The Secret Life of Violet Grant – Beatriz Williams – 3.5***
Williams uses a dual timeline and dual narrators to tell this story of Vivian Schuyler, Manhattan socialite and wanna-be advertising exec in 1964, and her aunt Violet Schuyler Grant, who endured an unhappy marriage to pursue her dreams of scientific research in 1914 Europe. I was quickly engaged and continuously interested in this story line. While I’ve grown tired of the dual timeline that is so popular these days with historical fiction, I thought Williams did a very good job of using this device.
My full review HERE
Here's a nice article about Louise Penny for all her fans here:https://www.chatelaine.com/living/lou...
I just finished #16, All the Devils Are Here.
Mary Anne, I’ve saved the link to the article for later. I’ve become a Penny fan since I discovered her as a result of comments about her books on Constant Reader. This morning on my walk I started A Rule Against Murder, her 4th I think.
Cormac McCarthy’s BLOOD MERIDIAN, narrated by Richard Poe. This is a wonderfully written book. Although books like this are not my usual reading taste, I’m glad I decided to read this one. It is the second Cormac McCarthy book I’ve read. I enjoyed it so much I think I’ll read another of his one of these days. Suggestions?
Mary, my favorite Cormac Mc is Suttree. It actually has some humor in it — if you can imagine CM cracking a smile.
I've just rushed headlong into reading Jon McGregor's most recent book Lean Fall Stand after hearing him online speak on Monday afternoon at the Edinburgh Book Fest . It is excellent, I'd highly recommend it. Here is my review
I've enjoyed all of the Cormac McCarthy I've read, although I know he's not for everyone. You do have to be prepared for some rough and ready scenes!
Strange Bliss: Essential Stories is a collection of six of Katherine Mansfield's excellent, quirky short stories. People are just as selfish and awkward and silly today as they were when she was writing. 
Link to my review of Strange Bliss
Apples Never Fall is the latest from Aussie author Liane Moriarty. It's a family tree of tennis players, the kind of varied group of characters she's so well-known for. I wish I'd liked it better.
Link to my review of Apples Never Fall
I usually like Francine Prose, Ruth, but I had my doubts about this one.
This Tender Land – William Kent Krueger – 4****
Krueger references both The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain and Homer’s The Odyssey in this epic adventure set in America’s upper Midwest during the Great Depression. Krueger is a marvelous storyteller, and he keeps the plot moving with a variety of incidents. The travelers show intelligence, resourcefulness, and tenacity. They are also children - immature and prone to misunderstanding or misinterpretation of information they gather. And, of course, they are vulnerable. I loved watching them grow, both individually and in their relationships, through these experiences.
My full review HERE
Mary Anne, taking some “me time” this afternoon. Just read the article you posted about Louise Penny. I enjoyed it a lot and appreciate knowing more about her and the connection of the Gamache character to her life; it will enhance my pleasure in reading her books. Many thanks.
Mary, I’m glad you mentioned that. I want to read that. I have the whole series ahead of me and everyone I know likes it.
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan is a little gem that tells a big story. Excellent!
5★ Link to my review of Small Things Like These
Family is the first in Owen Mullen's new Glass Family series. Two crime families vie for supremacy, but don't think the Glass siblings are the good guys!
Link to my review of Family
Kadir Nelson’s HEART AND SOUL: The Story of America and African Americans. Technically, this book is considered juvenile historical fiction because the history of blacks in the USA is told by a 100-year old fictional character and is intended for young readers. It is excellent. Debbie Allen’s narration is wonderful and is about 1-1/2 hours long. I have recommended it to my grandniece and her brother.
Sheila wrote: "Kiki wrote: "Sheila wrote: "Just finished listening to the audio verion of fellow Scot Jenni Fagan's debut novel from 2012 entitled The Panopticon. A Scottish grime..."Thank you for that information, Sheila. Since I've discovered so many Scottish ancestors, I've become very interested in Scotland's literature. I always loved its landscape.
Tom wrote: "Mary, my favorite Cormac Mc is Suttree. It actually has some humor in it — if you can imagine CM cracking a smile."My favorite of his, too.
I finally was able to finish my rereading of Elizabeth George's IN PURSUIT OF THE PROPER SINNER and loved every second of it. She really is the most superb mystery writer, and I love her characters.
Death And Judgment – Donna Leon – 3.5***
Book # 4 in the Commissario Brunetti mystery series, set in Venice, Italy. This was definitely one of the darker works in this series. As usual, the Commissario relies on his wife for advice and comfort, but his daughter insists on helping and that gets uncomfortable very quickly. Leon crafts a good mystery, with enough clues keep the action moving forward and a logical solution. It’s a series I’ll continue reading.
My full review HERE
I've just opened a new thread for Sept-Oct and am closing this one to new posts. Please continue your discussions in the new thread.
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Constant Reader
Books mentioned in this topic
Death and Judgment (other topics)Suttree (other topics)
Panopticon, The (other topics)
Family (other topics)
Small Things Like These (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Jenni Fagan (other topics)Owen Mullen (other topics)
Claire Keegan (other topics)
Liane Moriarty (other topics)
Katherine Mansfield (other topics)
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I am also mystified about their high ratings. I read both books and they were good but not what I would consider outstanding.