BOOK POOL - OCT/NOV 2021

[Erica]

Glad 'Before you knew my name' improved in the second half P.D.R :)

[Kirsten]

Erica wrote: "Participants:


1. Erica
2. Ninitha
3. Bronwen
4. Claude - 2 read
5. Carol - 1 read
6. Kerry
7. Angie
8. Kirsten (3 picks still to come)
9. P.D.R Lindsay - 3 read
10. Kate
11. Carlene
12. Sharlene..."

Before You Knew My Name
The Midnight Library
Quiet In Her Bones

[Erica]

#1
Book - 1 Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family
Read 09/10

4.5* Found this book to be really interesting, thoroughly research and meticulously written. Chapters about the family were interspersed with short chapters about society at the time including progress in the study of mental illness which provided really good context.

[Erica]

Kirsten wrote: "Erica wrote: "Participants:


1. Erica
2. Ninitha
3. Bronwen
4. Claude - 2 read
5. Carol - 1 read
6. Kerry
7. Angie
8. Kirsten (3 picks still to come)
9. P.D.R Lindsay - 3 read
10. Kate
11. Carlen..."

Hi Kirsten, sorry the pool closed on last day of Sept so won't add any more - and those new three books are also already in the Book Pool (message #3) :)

[Erica]

How's everyone's book pool reading going? I'm about to start my second book (Transcendent Kingdom). Looking forward to it :)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "How's everyone's book pool reading going? I'm about to start my second book (Transcendent Kingdom). Looking forward to it :)"

I am just about to do my review for my second book! :)

#5 Book 2 - Ross Poldark Read 13/10

I absolutely loved this book! Three dimensional characters and I had no trouble remembering them. I also have Books 2-6 in this series - I am impatient to start Demelza but it won't be before next month. 5★

[Claude's]

I'm going to start my 4th book when I finish binge watching trashy American firefighter TV series! I think I'll go for Mexican Gothic

[Kerry]

I'm finding Legacy slow going, it's a worthy YA rather than a compelling read so far.

[Sharlene]

Claude was it Chicago Fire? I’ve just started watching it!
I haven’t started reading yet… I’ve got lots of books ready to go though. Might start easy with The Jewel

[Claude's]

Sharlene wrote: "Claude was it Chicago Fire? I’ve just started watching it!
I haven’t started reading yet… I’ve got lots of books ready to go though. Might start easy with The Jewel"

Okay Sharlene I'm about to embarrass myself. To be fair I have a back injury so have been stuck in bed for most of the holidays. I have binge watched all 3 seasons of 9-1-1 and one season of 9-1-1 Lonestar and 4 seasons of Station 19. All on Disney+. Now am adding Chicago fire to the TBR binge watching list. I have wanted to read The Jewel for ages so I'm glad you added it to the list.

[Kerry]

#6
Book #1
Legacy by Whiti Hereaka
3.5*
This YA is about the experiences of NZ's Native Contingent (forerunners of the Maori Battalion) at Gallipoli in 1915, written as a timeslip, where present day Riki ends up in the place of his great great grandfather, Te Ariki.
I enjoyed it, didn't love it and Hereaka seems to have researched the subject well.

[Kate]

#10
Book #1 "The Midnight Library" by Matt Haig
Read: 17/10/21 - finished last night

Rating: 4 Stars -- I liked this book - easy to read. Would recommend :-)

[Erica]

The tally (message #2) is all up to date.

I'm halfway through my second read (Transcendent Kingdom) and really like it. I love this author's style of writing.

[Claude's]

#4 Claude
Book #4Mexican Gothic
Read: 19/10
Rating: 3 Stars
That ruined mushrooms for me!

[Erica]

Claude's wrote: "#4 Claude
Book #4Mexican Gothic
Read: 19/10
Rating: 3 Stars
That ruined mushrooms for me!"

I don't wanna know how that ruined mushrooms for you haha. Love mushrooms.

[Erica]

#1
Book - 2 Transcendent Kingdom
Read 21/10

4* I really like Yaa Gyasi's writing style - it's got literary flare but not overdone, still very readable. Interesting story about family, addiction, and religion.

[Claude's]

21 out of 10! I need to read this Erica!

[Erica]

haha 21st of October :) but I did give it 4*

[Claude's]

Bahahaha! I saw what I wanted to see! Can I use codeine as an excuse rather than stupidity?

[Claude's]

#4 Claude
Book #5 On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
Read: 24/10
Rating: 3 Stars
Trigger warning for animal cruelty about 17% in. Stunning writing throughout but it did make it difficult to really connect with the story or characters.

[Zellian]

#11 Carlene
Book #1 - The Intermission - Elyssa Friedland
Read: 24/10

It flipped between the wife and the husband, I hated reading the wife's chapters! I couldn't connect with her at all.
Pre-warning, this includes separation and cheating.

[Claude's]

Carlene wrote: "#11 Carlene
Book #1 - The Intermission - Elyssa Friedland
Read: 24/10

It flipped between the wife and the husband, I hated reading the wife's chapters! I couldn't connect with her at all.
Pre-war..."
I've just started this one, Carlene! Enjoying it so far 📚

[Claude's]

#4 Claude
Book #6 The Intermission
Read: 25/10
Rating: 2.5 Stars
Cute in parts, frustrating in others but overall an enjoyably simple read.

[Erica]

I've update the tally in message #1 :) Enjoying getting some reading in this long weekend. Enjoying The Midnight Rose so far.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "I've update the tally in message #1 :) Enjoying getting some reading in this long weekend. Enjoying The Midnight Rose so far."

hi Erica

I've read 2 books see messages 47 & 56. :)

[Erica]

Sorry Carol, don't know how I missed that! Updated now :)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "Sorry Carol, don't know how I missed that! Updated now :)"

No worries. I've started the Robin Hyde but haven't had much chance to read this weekend. :)

[Erica]

#1
Book - 3 The Midnight Rose
Read 31/10

4* My first Lucinda Riley book - the author so famous for her beloved Seven Sisters series. I can see why she's so popular. A great storyteller. If you like books by Kate Morton, Diana Gabaldon I think you'll like Lucinda Riley.

[P.D.R.]

#1
Managed to get 'American Dirt' last week. Again hard to read for me because it's so bleak and frustrating. A good bit of social commentary and a good poke at Trump and those appalling policies.

Makes me positive never to visit Mexico!

Sorry not to read more. Heavily into research for the new novel!

[Erica]

Hi P.d.r - so have you only read 1 books from the book pool? From your comments in messages 46 and 50 I thought you'd read those books already. Can you confirm either way and i'll update the tally in message #2. Thanks :)

[Erica]

Just picked up two more books from the libs...Blood Moon and Poldark. looking forward to reading them :)

[Erica]

#1
Book - 4 Before You Knew My Name
Read 4/11

4.5* Not your typical murder-mystery. Gripping story and well-written.

[Erica]

#1
Book - 5 Blood Moon
Read 09/11

3* I think this was a very impt topic to be included in YA literature. Was written in verse so very quick to read. I've added YA in verse before (Sarah Crossan) and really enjoyed it, but wasn't sure it added anything in this book. Felt a bit surface-level. But young adults, the target audience, will probably enjoy it more :)

[Kerry]

Erica wrote: "#1
Book - 5 Blood Moon
. Was written in verse so very quick to read. I've added YA in verse before (..."

I've read lots of YA verse novels, really enjoy most of them. Will try to get to this one, library has the e-book available.

[Erica]

#1
Book - 6 Ross Poldark
Read 17/11

4*
Enjoyed this historical fiction. Liked the writing style, plot, interesting characters. Have already reserved the second book in the series 'Demelza' from the local library. Thanks to whoever added this one to the pool - it had been on my TBR since 2015 so was great to finally read it!

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "#1
Book - 6 Ross Poldark
Read 17/11

4*
Enjoyed this historical fiction. Liked the writing style, plot, interesting characters. Have already reserved the second book in the series '..."

That was me! I've been trying to get a copy for years - & then I ended up with two!

Hope to get to Demelza next year.

[Erica]

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Erica wrote: "#1
Book - 6 Ross Poldark
Read 17/11

4*
Enjoyed this historical fiction. Liked the writing style, plot, interesting characters. Have already reserved the second book i..."

Thanks Carol :) I've started Demelza already and enjoying that too.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

#5
Book 3 Check to Your King
Read 21/11 I'm trying to decide how I feel about this book - it certainly slowed down my reading pace (that & having the house reroofed) I enjoyed the light whimsical tone at the start, but it kept veering between a non fiction history & a historical novel. 3.5★

[Erica]

Updated the tally.

How's everyone else going with their reading? Only a few days left of November and the book pool. Can't believed it's going to be Dec by next week. Crazy!

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "
How's everyone else going with their reading? Only a few days left of November and the book pool. Can't believed it's going to be Dec by next week. Crazy!"

Ha! Not well. Check to Your King & another NZ book got me bogged down & my reading rate slowed.

Before You Knew My Name was briefly in stock in my library, but with three books on the go, I decided not to borrow & the dead tree copy is now on loan. I'll go into the library today or tomorrow to see if one of the librarians will help me download the ebook on to my phone.

[Kerry]

#6
Book #2 The Garden of the Finzi-Continis by Giorgio Bassani
3.5*
Finished a few days ago. I admired this more than I loved it. It's about a young man's interactions with a rich Jewish family in the months before WW2 in northern Italy and as Jewish life becomes more and more restricted.

I'll probably not get another book read. 'Before you knew my name' just came available for me at the library and 'Mrs Mohr goes missing' has a slow start so I never got going on it.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

& I found out the way my library does their ebooks it doesn't show whether the book is in stock or not. :(

I still want to read Before You Knew My Name & the Catherine Robertson title, but I probably won't get to until next year.

[Erica]

And that's the Book Pool done - the last one for 2021. Can't believe it's Dec!

Thanks so much to everyone for participating whether that be reading the books or picking them, or both :)

[Claude's]

Erica wrote: "And that's the Book Pool done - the last one for 2021. Can't believe it's Dec!

Thanks so much to everyone for participating whether that be reading the books or picking them, or both :)"

Thank you for organising this, Erica! I started off with a hiss and a roar but then stalled. I still intend of reading some of the titles as they looked really great❤📚

[Erica]

Just a PSA: I'm planning on bringing back the Book Pool in Feb-Mar next year so hopefully you'll join me :)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Erica wrote: "Just a PSA: I'm planning on bringing back the Book Pool in Feb-Mar next year so hopefully you'll join me :)"

Looking forward to it!😊

[Angie]

Erica wrote: "Just a PSA: I'm planning on bringing back the Book Pool in Feb-Mar next year so hopefully you'll join me :)"

Ka pai! Looking forward to some reading suggestions outside of my usual choices.