The Taking (Group Read - June 2012)

[Jaice]

Maciek wrote: "All of them are. I was referring to the newset one, The Last Airbender - even though he wrote the script the characters & the universum belong to the anime series "Avatar"...."

That's what I thought.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Maciek wrote: "Dustin, if you like Zooey you might be interested in watching 500 days of Summer - a romantic comedy/drama. I saw it some time ago and liked it. :) "

She's in that movie? I'll have to see it now! :-)

[Maciek]

Yes. She plays the main character's love interest - Summer. Personally I think that she's the perfect choice for that role - Zooey has this special femininity that borders on girlishness, she's got great charisma. I think you'll enjoy this movie though I shall warn you - it's not a love story. In fact, it opens after the couple breaks up - and the main character recalls various moments from his 500 day long relationship with Summer.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

The Taking has been chosen as our June 2012 Group Read. Are you ready to experience or re-experience this great story?

One rainy night, the end of the world began.

"In my beginning is my end."
-T. S. Eliot

[Nora aka Diva]

Honestly the best part of The Taking (imnsho) was the T.S. Eliot quotes. I'll chew my foot off before I read this one again.

[Lynn]

A quick read, but I gotta agree with Nora. I will have to take a pass this month :-).

[Linda]

I have this book, I need to look for it and jump in....

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Nora aka Diva wrote: "Honestly the best part of The Taking (imnsho) was the T.S. Eliot quotes. I'll chew my foot off before I read this one again."

I agree - loved the T. S. Eliot quotes, but I plan to re-read the book rather than chew my foot off :-)

[Maryann]

I liked it. Won't mind re-reading it.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Basically, you can either read the book with us in June or you can chew your foot off first (during the month of May) and then read with us in June. The choice is yours :-)

[Paul]

just found my copy of this ready for the group read

it's another one of those books I have read previously but cannot remember it

might go and check out some of the group reads from before I became a member here, keep me going with koontz books for the second half of the month

[Rachel]

I got my copy yesterday and am looking forward to reading and discussing it next month with the group

[Rachel]

i just started this book (on pg 56) and so far the entire book has revolved around weird bright smelly rain- will stick with it but i'm hoping something actually happens soon:).

Just curious-but do you guys think that dean's writing style is different in his more recent books? Alot of the books i've read were written in the 90's or before and unless i'm remembering incorrectly those books were more action packed.

[Marina]

The Taking to me is more straight horror- lots of build up, people's reactions etc. before anything actually happens.

@Rachel- it's funny you say that because a LOT of people complain that the "new" Koontz style is less epic and more high concept/action. The truth is, he varies from book to book, always has.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I really like The Taking - I didn't the first time for some reason, but the book has grown on me. I'm currently listening to the audiobook - this is my 3rd time with this story :-) I think you should stick with it Rachel there are some fun and interesting things ahead.

Dean's writing style is always coming up in various discussions, with readers classifying books as "Old Koontz" and "New Koontz". Masha makes a good point - I like some of his newer works but not all of them and I feel the same way about his older works. He writes such a varied spectrum of genres that most people will not love every one of his books, even if they love many of them.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Rachel, have you read Relentless? It is a more recent one that is definitely "action-packed" and one of my very favorites :-)

[Rachel]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Rachel, have you read Relentless? It is a more recent one that is definitely "action-packed" and one of my very favorites :-)
"

I haven't read this one. thanks for the recommendation dc- i just added relentless to my to read list.

[Rachel]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I really like The Taking - I didn't the first time for some reason, but the book has grown on me. I'm currently listening to the audiobook - this is my 3rd time with this story :-) I think you shou..."

I'm gonna stick with it :)

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Good News Rachel - on both of those posts :-)

[Paul]

enjoyable read, just read it over the long holiday weekend

going to see if i can find the audiobook, sounds like it should be good in audio version

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

If you like The Taking, try Winter Moon.

[Marina]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "If you like The Taking, try Winter Moon."

However, if you REALLY liked The Taking, Winter Moon might disappoint. It doesn't quite reach the same level IMO.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Masha wrote: "However, if you REALLY liked The Taking, Winter Moon might disappoint. It doesn't quite reach the same level IMO."

:-) I can see your point. Reading THE TAKING, I can't help thinking about WINTER MOON - some of the same ideas/subject. The Taking does seem more concise & powerful.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

My Favorite Character in The Taking is the doll. That doll just makes me laugh :-)

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Rachel wrote: "i just started this book (on pg 56) and so far the entire book has revolved around weird bright smelly rain- will stick with it but i'm hoping something actually happens soon:)"

Rachel, have you gotten to the Tavern yet? When you get to the Tavern, that's when the fun starts :-)

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Paul wrote: "going to see if i can find the audiobook, sounds like it should be good in audio version"

Listen to the audio just so you can hear the doll - I love the doll :-)

[Rachel]

finished the taking and i have to say i'm so happy to be done with this book. other than a few highlights- (virgil the german shepard and the scene with the freaky doll were both enjoyable) i just couldn't get into this book. i thought the pace was VERY slow and i kept waiting for something more which i thought this book didn't deliver. hopefully the rest of the group will enjoy it more than i did.

[Rachel]

on an unrelated note, i recently got a copy of Strangers and was surprised to see it is 700 pages :0

I meant to get this book in april but didn't get around to it. the story sounds very interesting so i'm not going to let the length of it scare me off-just hope i like it better than the taking. there was a thread for this book but i can't seem to find it- was it deleted?

[Jaice]

Rachel wrote: "...there was a thread for this book but i can't seem to find it- was it deleted?"

If you mean the Strangers thread, it's right here, under the Koontz's Many Stand Alone Novels section: http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/3...

[Rachel]

Jason "plasborgma" wrote: "Rachel wrote: "...there was a thread for this book but i can't seem to find it- was it deleted?"

If you mean the Strangers thread, it's right here, under the Koontz's Many Stand Alone Novels secti..."

thanks jason- i don't know how i missed it :)

[Marina]

I liked Stranges much better as well; it's in my top 10. Funny, it didn't seem that long when I was reading it, not like some other Koontz "epics."

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I really like the ending of The Taking :-)
I found it very thought-provoking.

[Marina]

The Taking is one of those rare books where the ending is better than the rest of it. I like how DK leaves it open to interpretation. Kind of like an X-Files episode; everyone can fill in their biases and still leave satisfied.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

The Doll, T.S. Elliot and the Ending are the parts that I love the most about The Taking - it's enough to win me over.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Rachel wrote: "thanks jason- i don't know how i missed it :) "

On the group homepage, only the most current topics are shown. You'll need to click on the folder name, showing _ of _ , "Discussion Board" or "More Discussions" link to see them all. There are several ways to find the hidden discussions - just keep clicking :-) There are over 40 threads in the Koontz's Many Stand-Alone Novels folder.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

"When you're alone in the middle of the night and you wake in a sweat and a hell of a fright..."


- T.S. Eliot, Fragment of an Agon

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

A few minutes past one O'clock in morning, a hard rain fell without warning.

-opening sentence of THE TAKING

[Rachel]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Rachel wrote: "thanks jason- i don't know how i missed it :) "

On the group homepage, only the most current topics are shown. You'll need to click on the folder name, showing _ of _ , "Discussion ..."

thanks dustin :)

[Lacey]

I just finished the part about the fungus healing itself. I think that I need a pocket knife and start poking at the plants around...creepy!

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Sounds like the book is really impacting your life. I hope you survive :-) Look for some dogs - they will help lead you through this crisis.

[Rachel]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Sounds like the book is really impacting your life. I hope you survive :-) Look for some dogs - they will help lead you through this crisis."

especially a german shepard or golden retriever :)

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

The human imagination may be the most elastic thing in the universe, stretching to encompass the millions of hopes and dreams that in centuries of relentless struggle built modern civilization, to entertain the endless doubts that hamper every human enterprise, and to conceive the vast menagerie of boogeymen that trouble every human heart.

-THE TAKING, Chapter 32

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

The mortician's stitches had not in every case held, and one among these nightmare parishioners had both eyes open.

-THE TAKING, Chapter 38

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

The mystery of evil is too deep to be illuminated by the light of reason.....

-THE TAKING, Chapter 40

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

"But at my back in a cold blast I hear
The rattle of the bones, and chuckle
spread from ear to ear."

-T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

[Lacey]

Rachel wrote: "Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Sounds like the book is really impacting your life. I hope you survive :-) Look for some dogs - they will help lead you through this crisis."

especially a German Shepard and golden retrievers..."

I am so down for those two dogs helping me lol love goldens!

[Lacey]

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Sounds like the book is really impacting your life. I hope you survive :-) Look for some dogs - they will help lead you through this crisis."

Naw not impacting me...but it does make me think of my favorite plants...carnivorous plants :-)

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Sounds like you live in a Little Shop of Horrors :-)

[Lacey]

Lol no sadly my carnivorous plant, who I called hogwarts because it was a butterwort, bit the dust a while ago because the place where I live sprayed and I didn't know. So yea they poisoned my baby. I need to get another one though. Only plant kept alive for over a year.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Lacey wrote: "Only plant kept alive for over a year. "

Well, that is an accomplishment :-) And it would have lasted even longer if not exterminated. How do you care for a carnivorous plant? I've never had one - I've been kinda scared of them. I guess they would eat flies and insects that get into your living space, but do you have to feed them extra? I saw Little Shop of Horrors so that is what I have in mind - do you cut your finger and let it bleed into the plant's mouth? Do you feel like the plant has a personality of it's own? I am very curious.