Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die discussion
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Which LIST book did you just finish?
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Genia
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Mar 04, 2012 11:44PM
Finished Vathek - a lurid and somewhat moralistic Gothic tale, but mercifully short.
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Around the World in Eighty Days -VerneWhat a fun, all around exciting read! Felt so easy to read after what I have been enveloped in lately.
Linda wrote: "Just finished Atonement By McEwan. Didn't end as I expected and I'm a bit confused. Didn't the real criminal ever get exposed and punished - What??"I agree while I like an ending that surprises me, this novel irritated me no end. Superb writing in the first half, then he changes tack and writes a completely different novel in the second half with a "surprise' ending, grrr
I just finished Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Honestly, I enjoyed Gatsby more, but it was still a good book, even though I felt Rosemary was immature & her paramour Dick overall was a bit of a jerk, even though in the beginning he does the honorable thing & tries to resist her advances given the fact that he's married. I thought Rosemary's mother was a bit reprehensible for sending her off with these people alone & unchaperoned as well, given the fact that Rosemary has always led a sheltered life & knew nothing of how men really are.
I just finished this month's group read, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, and am writing up my notes on it now.
Finished Beloved last night and this past weekend finished with Cryptomicon. Unrelated to the 1001 books, I read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire to support my daughter who started a book club at her high school. These books were their first read for the group and she was excited the whole family reading them. I know Hunger Games and Catching Fire are not on the list though. : )
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Last night I finished A Fine Balance. A fine read!my review "
Glad to hear it. I will be reading it soon.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Last night I finished A Fine Balance. A fine read!my review "
FYI, your link is broken Elizabeth.
Velma wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Last night I finished A Fine Balance. A fine read!my review "
FYI, your link is broken Elizabeth."
Thank you, it had extra information. I fixed it.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Last night I finished A Fine Balance. A fine read!my review "
I'm so glad you liked this book Elizabeth. I read it many years ago but it is one that has remained with me all this time.
Just finished The Nice and the Good which I found to be an excellent read, but then I've loved all the books I've read by her.
Charity wrote: "Finished Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston."was this good? It's on my bedside with the great gatsby and I don't know which one to read first!
I've been AWOL for a while as Emile Zola's Nana had me holed up - thank god I finally finished! It wasn't difficult or even unenjoyable - it just felt like a molehill that became a mountain.After that I breezed through Lolita and the Yellow Wallpaper, both of which where beautifully written but the subject matter was of course less than cheerful. I don't mind that much however, and continuing on in this 'strange and dark' theme I've got going on I've just cracked open Crash by JG Ballard. I may just need a fairytale after this!
Last night I finished Rabbit, Run. Thank God that's over with.... What's that? What's that you say? There's 2 more Rabbit books on the list?! Nooooooo!
Jennifer W wrote: "Last night I finished Rabbit, Run. Thank God that's over with.... What's that? What's that you say? There's 2 more Rabbit books on the list?! Nooooooo!"And there is a 4th book, Rabbit Redux, not on the list, but is next in the series.
My last two books I read-Hideous Kinky which was a great fun yet serious story and Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit which was full of great wit and well done as the author was 24 when she wrote it as her debut. Both books were quick reads ( under 200 pages per book ) so I would recommend these for anyone who is looking for a short novella type book.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Jennifer W wrote: "Last night I finished Rabbit, Run. Thank God that's over with.... What's that? What's that you say? There's 2 more Rabbit books on the list?! Nooooooo!"And there i..."
Actually the fourth in the series is "Rabbit at Rest" and "Rabbit Redux", which is the second, is on the list.
I just finished "Rabbit Redux" last month, so I'm quite up on Rabbit!
Yes, I meant there are 4 in the series, of which only 3 are on the list. I guess I was confused about which one is not on the list.
A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift, at only a few pages long was a very quick read and quite amusing.
Maldoror -Lautreamont This was challenging but very interesting, odd in a good way. And,
Notes from Underground -Dostoyevsky
I have yet to read his work and not come away better.
Finally finished Kristin Lavransdatter. It was an interesting, but an incredibly long, and sometimes much too melodramatic read. Toward the end I began to seriously lose steam.
I just finished and reviewed Crash by JG Ballard, but I wouldn't advise anyone to read either the book or my review unless you want to be brought down. A less than ideal addition to the list that may just see me steering clear (wahey) of Ballard in the future. Wonder if anyone else thought this was a terrible book?
Dbolden wrote: "I just finished and reviewed Crash by JG Ballard, but I wouldn't advise anyone to read either the book or my review unless you want to be brought down. A less than ideal addition to the list that m..."I was unimpressed as well. I read it a few years ago and promptly forgot most of it, but I remember feeling like I was reading the same scenes repeatedly. Usually I am tempted to watch the movie version of any list book I have finished, but have never felt the urge to watch this one!
Diane wrote: "Just finishedThe Optimist's Daughterby Eudora Welty."
What did you think? I have that one coming up later this month.
I really enjoyed it. It was a short/quick read. The characters are interesting and their interplay is terrific. Ms. Welty's writing is so wonderful, of course. She won the Pulitzer Prize for this novel in 1973. It's been on my shelf for probably 6 years, and I'm so glad I finally read it. I hope you enjoy it.
Diane wrote: "I really enjoyed it. It was a short/quick read. The characters are interesting and their interplay is terrific. Ms. Welty's writing is so wonderful, of course. She won the Pulitzer Prize for this n..."Thank you. Yes, it's the one on my short-list that allows me to check off one from both the Pulitzer and the 1001. ;-)
I just finished The Castle of Otranto which is the first gothic novel. My review is up on 1001everything.blogspot.com
Just finished the audio book of A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka. I found this book usual, yet very enjoyable. Even at the end I found it hard to like Valentina. The stories and screats from the war just shows how close it is, even in our 'modern' age it's always just under the surface. A short history of tractors in Ukrainian, will teach you something new about tractors, Ukrainia and the crazy confusion which is family.
Just finished both Great Expectations and Super-Cannes which were both great. The Dickens offering was the best of the two, but I could really go for some more light hearted reading next.
Kristine wrote: "Just finished both Great Expectations and Super-Cannes which were both great. The Dickens offering was the best of the two, but I could really go for some more light hearte..."Loved Super-Cannes and it set me off on a Ballard reading binge (Still lots to go)
Katherine wrote: "Dbolden wrote: "I just finished and reviewed Crash by JG Ballard, but I wouldn't advise anyone to read either the book or my review unless you want to be brought down. A less than ideal addition to..."No, I don't think I will either - I've had to visualise the scenes and that was bad enough!
Finished Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens.I REALLY loved this story!!! My first ever read of Dickens was a complete success! The characters were so well developed! I loved Smike, Mr and Mrs Browdie etc, and Mrs Nickleby was a real laugh! The only problem with such a long book, is that when it finishes you really miss it.
I finished The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins last week and thoroughly loved it. Even though I did guess a few of the twists, I was completely hooked and just read and read and read.
I just finished The Catcher in the Rye. I really liked it; I thought Holden was really funny and relatable. It annoys me, though, when people name it as their favorite book because most of the time, it just means that it is the only book they have ever read because they were forced to in high school. I find a similar thing happens with To Kill a Mockingbird.
I've just finished Bram Stoker's Dracula. I'm glad I've read it but I did find it hard going at times.
I just finished Oroonoko by Aphra Behn, not exactly an uplifting little tale and not nearly as progressive as I had been led to believe it was. Full review here.
I've finally finished War and Peace by Tolstoy. At this point I think I enjoyed it more than Anna Karenina, but I probably need more time to pass in order to be sure. The last thirty pages were the hardest for me, because Tolstoy at that point is just working through his ideas on power, freedom, and historical theory. Otherwise, when he allowed his characters and their movements to embody his theories and represent his ideas, I found it gripping and moving. Plus, I learned a ton about the Napoleonic Wars, which my U.S. public school education never quite got to for some reason....
Alyson Of Bathe wrote: "I just finished Oroonoko by Aphra Behn, not exactly an uplifting little tale and not nearly as progressive as I had been led to believe it was. Full review here."Wow!You're my hero!!! I'm still nervous about starting it! One day soon I will;probably during summer break!! : )
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