What Should I Read Next?

[JC]

I'm getting ready for the fall challenge and need a suggestion for task 10.3: Visit the "What should I read" thread and read a book that someone recommends to you there. So recommend away! I'm first and foremost a traditional fantasy fan: dragons, wizards and the like. And I couldn't fit any fantasy in this challenge, but recommend what you will. Thanks!

[Terri]

Hi JenC
I recommend.
Acacia: The War with the Mein
I really enjoy this author and it is supposed to be good. It is on my list of books to get next.
Although I am going to guess that perhaps you are meant to pick from those books recommended for other people in this thread?
Just a guess, I could be wrong though.

[Jamie]

JenC. wrote: "I'm getting ready for the fall challenge and need a suggestion for task 10.3: Visit the "What should I read" thread and read a book that someone recommends to you there. So recommend away! I'm fi..."

How about Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot? It is a YA book that is a mixture of HF and fantasy. If you like epistolary novels, I recommend checking it out.

[Jamie]

There's always Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, too. I've read part of it and thought it was pretty good, but it is extremely long and the footnotes are bothersome.

[JC]

Terri wrote: "Hi JenC
I recommend.
Acacia: The War with the Mein
I really enjoy this author and it is supposed to be good. It is on my list of books to get next.
Although I am going to guess that p..."


Thank you for your recommedation - I told myself I would read the first book recommended, as long as my library has a copy and they do, and an audiobook as well!

I was slightly confused as to the wording of the task at first, but it reads: "a book that someone recommends to YOU", so I took that to mean me personally.

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

I need a recommendation too.

[LemonLinda]

Jayme, if you want a good read but not a HF, try The Secret Life Of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain. I just finished it and it was a true page turner. I had a hard time putting it down until I finished.

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

i will take a look at that.

[Terri]

JenC. wrote: "I was slightly confused as to the wording of the task at first, but it reads: "a book that someone recommends to YOU", so I took that to mean me personally. ."

Excellent. That way works out well for you then JenC as you get to squeeze a fantasy fiction into your challenge list. :-)

Enjoy the book. I can't wait to get my hands on it myself.

[Lisa]

Always up for good recommendations :-) (And also here for the challenge category)

My favorite authors- Diana Gabaldon, Ken Follett, Orson Scott Card, Francine Rivers (to name a few).

I love a book that within a few pages I am hooked completely and totally in the story.

So... those of you who have similar tastes... who else will I love to read?

[JC]

Lisa wrote: "Always up for good recommendations :-) (And also here for the challenge category)

My favorite authors- Diana Gabaldon, Ken Follett, Orson Scott Card, Francine Rivers (to name a few).

I love a bo..."

Lisa, I'm also a big DG fan and am doing an Outlander series reread for the fall challenge, as well as fitting in the Lord John books for the first time. I used the 'compare books' feature (love this!) with your profile and mine and it seems the only book I have read that is in your TBR shelf is The Hunger Games, so that is my recommendation to you.

[Silver]

Like many others I am here for the Challenge, looking for good recommendations. I would highly welcome books in the HF genre and am also a huge fan of classics but I am open to other genres as well.

Just preferably nothing romancy.

[Katie]

I too am here for challenge reccomendations. My reading is pretty varied, as you can see from my bookshelf here. In terms of historical fiction, I enjoy Sarah Waters, Daphne du Maurier, Sharon Penman, Philippa Gregory, Joanne Harris and Tracy Chevalier.

My list of read but unread but owned books is here: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Y... Given the enormity of that list *cringe*, it would be wonderful if someone could reccommend me so that I can avoid buying any more books for now, but I'm open to all suggestions.

[Becky, Moddess]

Well just browsing at the first page, I would say to go for A Thousand Splendid Suns...

I'd also say to avoid The Reader. It was just... bad.

[LemonLinda]

I absolutely agree. If you own A Thousand Splendid Suns but have not yet read it, you should definitely go for that one. It is an amazing book - very sad - several tissue worthy - but amazing especially that it was written by a man. He certainly got into the mind and spirit of the two women he was most writing about in that one.

[Jackie]

Katie, I looked at 2 pages...that's a loooonnngggg list! LOL! I 2nd Becky with A Thousand Splendid Suns. I also love Isabel Allende: Zorro and Eva Luna...I lean more towards Zorro though. I also loved, loved, loved Memoirs of a Geisha and the movie is great too.

[Jackie]

Silver wrote: "Like many others I am here for the Challenge, looking for good recommendations. I would highly welcome books in the HF genre and am also a huge fan of classics but I am open to other genres as well..."


I took a quick peek at your HF Shelf. I saw that you have Lisa See...I haven't read Shanghia Girls, but I've read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and really enjoyed it. You might also like something by Amy Tan or Gail Tsukiyama.

I also saw you liked Sarah Dunant. I liked both In the Company of the Courtesan and her latest Sacred Hearts.

I also saw you liked The Red Tent...you might like Sarah: A Novel or The Blood of Flowers.

[Jamie]

I'd like to request recommendations for Challenge #4 also. I tend to prefer HF that is arts/music-focused, classic, YA, or literary fiction. I'm not a fan of the romance novel genre; I appreciate a good "clean" book. Thanks! : )

[Jackie]

Jamie wrote: "I'd like to request recommendations for Challenge #4 also. I tend to prefer HF that is arts/music-focused, classic, YA, or literary fiction. I'm not a fan of the romance novel genre; I appreciate a..."


Hmmm, my recs for you would be:

Girl with a Pearl Earring- Art
Music & Silence- music
Journey to the River Sea- YA
A Northern Light- YA

[Julie]

I need recommendations for challenge 4 also. I'd like to pick something already in my GR to-read list. I don't care if its HF or not...just something on there that you thought was great!

[Silver]

Julie wrote: "I need recommendations for challenge 4 also. I'd like to pick something already in my GR to-read list. I don't care if its HF or not...just something on there that you thought was great!"

After browsing your TBR list, out of the books I have already read, I would have to receomend.

The Handmaid's Tale
The Stranger
Catch-22
Shanghai Girls
The Odyssey

[Jamie]

Thanks for the great recommendations, Jackie! I think I'll go with Girl with a Pearl Earring, since I've been meaning to read it for quite some time. (A Northern Light is one of my all-time favorites, though.)

[Silver]

Jackie wrote: "Silver wrote: "Like many others I am here for the Challenge, looking for good recommendations. I would highly welcome books in the HF genre and am also a huge fan of classics but I am open to other..."

Thank you for all the great recommendations. I already have an Amy Tan book, so I think I might go with that one.

Funny I actually plan on reading The Company of a Courtesan as part of one of the other challenge tasks.

[Terri]

Julie wrote: "I need recommendations for challenge 4 also. I'd like to pick something already in my GR to-read list. I don't care if its HF or not...just something on there that you thought was great!"

Hi Julie,
Looked at your TBR and my recommendations would be
The Clan of the Cave Bear
Slaughterhouse-Five

[Julie]

Thanks Silver and Terri. I actually had The Clan of the Cave Bear on my list for the last challenge but never got to it! I think I may do The Handmaid's Tale though because I had it on my list this time and took it off in favor of something else. I have Shanghai Girls already under another category.

[Terri]

Try and get to Clan of the Cave Bear. It has been a long, LONG time since I read them, but I remember really liking the series.

[Kristi]

I need some recommendations for Challenge #4. I'm loving WWII books right now, anyone got some recommendations for a great WWII book? It can be fiction of non-fiction. Thanks in advance!

[Jamie]

Hi, Kristi! I recommend Flags of Our Fathers and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - my favorite WWII books. I'm sure others will have more to offer, though.

[Silver]

Kristi wrote: "I need some recommendations for Challenge #4. I'm loving WWII books right now, anyone got some recommendations for a great WWII book? It can be fiction of non-fiction. Thanks in advance!"

Catch-22 I thought was a great book about the war.

The Book Thief though it is a YA book, I think it is still quite good.


Empire of the Sun I really enjoyed.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Claythis one is kind of on the fence, but because I really enjoyed it, I thought it was worth mentioning. It is not so much about the war itself, but about the lives of Jewish refugees in America during the outbreak of the war, so the war is sort of in the background of thier lives.

[Kate]

Shining Through by Susan Isaacs - fantastic WWII book about a German-Jewish secretary from New York who works for a CIA bigwig, and thanks to her native German she ends up being a spy in Berlin. Fantastic thriller with a strong, realistic heroine. Also several by Robert Harris, Enigma about the Bletchley Park codebreakers in Britain, and Fatherland which is about the absolutely terrifying prospect of what Germany in the 60s would be like if Hitler had won WWII. Can't recommend these highly enough.

[Jamie]

The Power of One offers a different perspective and is another wonderful book set during and after WWII.

[Terri]

The Power of One is good. I only recommended that to Susan of this Group yesterday (Susan was searching for HF set in Africa).
There are so mnay good WW2 fiction books that it would take up too much space to list them all. Here are a select few.
I recommend, if you can find them;

The Great Escape
Brave Ship Brave Men
Killing Rommel: A Novel

Then there's the ever popular;
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
Snow Falling on Cedars
Schindler's List
Sophie's Choice

[LemonLinda]

Also for great WWII books - War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk. The first in that series is The Winds of War which I read probably in the late 70s. I recently reread War and Remembrance and really enjoyed it. They tell the story of a family in connection with the war, but also give a lot of detail about the worldwide significance. Excellent.

[Joyce]

I loved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It's locale-specific, but gave me insight into a part of the war I had never thought about. It's a great book, but I'll admit, the title put me off a bit. I thought it didn't really reflect the story's mood, but the publishers must have known what they were doing, as witness the sales and reviews.

[LemonLinda]

I have read a huge number of WWII books this year - Sarah's Key, Hiroshima, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Book Thief, Schindler's List, Good Night, Mr. Tom, The Bronze Horseman, Tatiana and Alexander, Snow Falling on Cedars, War and Remembrance and Night. I think I gave every one of them either 4 or 5 stars. Some really great books there.

[Terri]

Historical Fictionistas group member southpaw285 and I were just talking (under the 'what I'm reading next' thread) about another WW2 book that being an Aussie, I really should have thought of.
A Town Like Alice

[Gabriella]

I came across a recommendation for The Innocent a while back, its set in England in the late 1400's and I really enjoyed it. I ended up reading the rest of the triology and am now looking for anybooks that are similar. They don't have to be set in the 1400's they could be 1800's even but I am hoping that they have some romantic element tucked away in the pages. PLEASE AND THANK YOU!! :):)

[Katie]

Gabriella wrote: "I came across a recommendation for The Innocent a while back, its set in England in the late 1400's and I really enjoyed it. I ended up reading the rest of the triology and am now loo..."

Have you tried Sharon Penman's books, Gabriella? She's written some great books set around the time of King John. I particularly recommend Here be Dragons which is about the bastard daughter of King John who is married to Llewellyn of Wales in order to preserve peace and is one of my favourite books.

You might also enjoy Elizabeth Chadwick, who writes medieval books. Shadows and Strongholds is excellent. Technically it follows after her Lords of the White Castle, but I read it without realising and it stands up perfectly well on its own.

[Gabriella]

Nope haven't heard of them, but I will be checking them out currently :)

[Terri]

I was going to recommend Elizabeth Chadwick also.
And I was going to recommend The Love Knot if you can get it. The lead female character is a healer and the story is linked to the royal court, both similar storylines as The Innocent by the sounds of it.

[Silver]

Gabriella wrote: "I came across a recommendation for The Innocent a while back, its set in England in the late 1400's and I really enjoyed it. I ended up reading the rest of the triology and am now loo..."

I haven't read The Innocent yet, but I am glad you hear you liked it, since I am looking froward to reading it, but I would reccomend The Witch of Cologne which is set in the 17th century, and I thought it was quite good, and it does have romantic elements to it.

[Joyce]

Katie wrote: "Gabriella wrote: "I came across a recommendation for The Innocent a while back, its set in England in the late 1400's and I really enjoyed it. I ended up reading the rest of the triol..."

Both Penman and Chadwick are personal favorites of mine. All the books I've read from either author are great, and I don't think you can go wrong with them.

[southpaw285]

Becky wrote: "Well just browsing at the first page, I would say to go for A Thousand Splendid Suns...

I'd also say to avoid The Reader. It was just... bad."

Oh Becky. I've got The Reader scheduled for this challenge. It is part of my task #25.5, Post World War II. Do you happend to have a recommendation to replace it? Along side it, I've chosen to read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, which takes place in the UK. I chose The Reader because it is Post World War II, and takes place in Germany.

I need another Post World War II taking place anywhere but the UK.
Somebody...Help!

[southpaw285]

Terri wrote: "Historical Fictionistas group member southpaw285 and I were just talking (under the 'what I'm reading next' thread) about another WW2 book that being an Aussie, I really should have thought of.
[bo..."

I have to second [book:A Town Like Alice|107301] by Nevil Shute. It was really good.

[Joyce]

Re WWII books, I haven't read it yet, but one of the book clubs I belong to read The Book Thief and it provoked a lively discussion. I know it's considered YA/Crossover, but these were all women, most of whom had grandchildren, and they talked about the characters as if they were real. That's a tribute to a book. It's on my TBR shelf.

[Tasha]

Lisa wrote: "Always up for good recommendations :-) (And also here for the challenge category)

My favorite authors- Diana Gabaldon, Ken Follett, Orson Scott Card, Francine Rivers (to name a few).

I love a bo..."

@Lisa and anyone looking for a book that will grab you right away. It is a HF mystery/thriller that not only grabbed me right away, but my mom too. It came highly recommended to me from another group so I am highly recommending it to all of you :)


Child 44

[Tasha]

A Town Like Alice really does sound good. I think I'll use this one for 10.3! Does someone have to personally recommend this to me to get the credit? If so, someone please recommend to me ;) thanks!

[Evelina C]

Jamie wrote: "Thanks for the great recommendations, Jackie! I think I'll go with Girl with a Pearl Earring, since I've been meaning to read it for quite some time. (A Northern Light is o..."

A NORTHERN LIGHT has been on my TBR list for a very long time. I've read THE TEA ROSE and THE WINTER ROSE and think they're great(isn't a third book in the offing?). I think I'll take your recommendation for a Challenge #4 task. What do you think?

[Jamie]

I'm sure you'll enjoy it, Evelina, since you liked Donnelly's other two books. (The Wild Rose is supposed to be the third in that series; also, Revolution is coming out soon.) A Northern Light is one of my all-time favorites, so I can't recommend it highly enough. : )

[Maude]

Tasha, I love A Town Like Alice and I highly recommend that you read it!!!