What are you currently reading? Showing 651-700 of 1,649

[Ann]

Welcome, Booksexy! Glad you joined us. I had the same problem with the characters at the beginning of The Children's Book, but they all straighten themselves out along the way. If you like her writing style and that's the only issue you are having, then you'll be fine if you keep going.

Libby, I'm tempted to go on an Alexander McCall Smith marathon myself. I loved the HBO series of No. 1 Ladies, and it made me want to read all of the books.

[Laurie]

Libby wrote: "I was on vacation and had a marathon reading of some of Alexander McCall Smith's Isabel Dalhousie books. Earlier I had read "The Sunday Philosophy Club" in one sitting. On vacation (including a 8..."

I am also going on an Alexander McCall Smith bookathon. I'm currently reading "Friends, Lovers, and Chocolate" in large print so that I can see it while gasping on the treadmill at the gym. I am listening to "The Kalahari Typing School" in my car, and have downloaded "The Full Cupboard of Life" on my Kindle. It is very pleasant reading and listening material. I am enjoying the HBO series too when I am able to catch it on TV.

[Tara]

Suzanne wrote: "I am on Volume 5 of Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust *taking a bow*; when I need to take a break from that I am reading Oliver Twist for a discussion group at my library.
I am listenin..."

Suzanne - I'm listening to the audio book of Year of the Flood now on my ipod. It's a great book - thought I wish I'd read rather than listened to it. (Mainly because there are "hymns" throughout the book that are actually performed with music in the audio version, and I'm finding it a little disconcerting). Have you read Oryx & Crake yet? If not, I'd recommend putting it on your list - even though Year of the Flood is good as a stand alone, I found that the reviews I came across really didn't do justice to how closely tied it is with the original book.

[[deleted user]]

Booksexy wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I am on Volume 5 of Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust *taking a bow*; when I need to take a break from that I am reading Oliver Twist for a discussion group at my library...."

I did read Oryx and Crake but I didn't care for it. I may have to read it again though after The Year of the Flood, because I'm really enjoying it so far.

[[deleted user]]

Tanya wrote: "Ann wrote: "Oh, Peace ............. you are in for a treat. One of my favorites of last year. Incredibly powerful. If you can, try to read it in one sitting.

It also just won the Dayton Literary P..."

I just finished PEACE by Richard Bausch this afternoon. It was a sparely written but evocative novel about soldiers trying to retain a sense of themselves as humans against the backdrop of war. The setting is near Cassino, in the mountains of Italy, WWII. The passages conjure time, place, mood and character with amazing clarity.

I'm now onto AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE, fourth in the WWI series by Anne Perry. Basically, I'm just killing time until DystopYA begins!

[[deleted user]]

Suzanne wrote: "Booksexy wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I am on Volume 5 of Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust *taking a bow*; when I need to take a break from that I am reading Oliver Twist for a discussion gro..."

I read ORYX AND CRAKE, specifically in preparation for THE YEAR OF THE FLOOD. I loved it until the end, which still outrages me! Would it have really killed Margaret Atwood to write just one more sentence, i.e. "He stepped forward..." or "He stepped back...?" I still have THE YEAR OF THE FLOOD on my radar (I think I'm something like 3/21 on the holds list at my library system) but I'm not going to go jump the gun and plunk down $$ for it.

[Kokeshi]

I am reading The Occupied Garden: Recovering the Story of a Family in the Wartorn Netherlands
by Kristen Den Hartog. A little slow to start, but it is becoming increasingly interesting.

[Elhara]

The School Of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister. As a late bloomer cook myself, this book's title was calling me. At almost half way through I am really enjoying it.

[Tara]

Tanya wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "Booksexy wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I am on Volume 5 of Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust *taking a bow*; when I need to take a break from that I am reading Oliver Twist for ..."

Suzanne - from what I understand (and at halfway through I'm beginning to be able to confirm it), The Year of the Flood is a companion novel. Both Crake & Snowman have appeared in it,though only briefly so far, and I'm hoping they will have a bigger part in the second half. It's interesting to see them viewed by outsiders as just two sad, lonely teenagers - to be honest I did not find either of the particularly sympathetic the first time around. Now, I don't want to mislead - this book is very much about a different set of characters. But I think their worlds overlapped in a significant way. You may not get all your answers, though. I've been trying to figure out, and no one seems to have asked Atwood in interviews that I can find - did she have The Year of the Flood in mind when writing Oryx & Crake, is it actually parts of the book that were edited out, or did she just decide years later she wanted to go back and expand the story? Does anyone know?

[[deleted user]]

I finished Anne Perry's AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE, the fourth in her WWI series. I've always thought that these should have been subtitled "Morality Tales of WWI!" After having read the first three titles, I can forebear the moral relativism in this book better, though at times I still found it heavy-handed.

This particular title requires more than the usual suspension of belief in the events that unfold and I nearly laughed aloud when I came across the scene wherein the protag was involved in an aerial dogfight with no less a personage than the Red Baron (To fully appreciate why I was laughing is to know that I predicted it when I was reading SHOULDER THE SKY, the title immediately preceding this one in the series!)

For those who are into WWI-fic, I would recommend Jeff Shaara’s TO THE LAST MAN (book,) Sebastien Japrisot’s THE VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT (book/movie,) Erich Maria Remarque’s ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (book/movie) or even the 1981 movie Gallipoli (starring Mel Gibson.) Though none of these titles address the British perspective, they are much more evocative of time and place. For those interested in WWI-fiction-mystery), I would recommend Sebastien Japrisot’s The Very Long Engagement (book/movie) in particular.

Now I'm on to THE GIVER (by Lois Lowry) as part of the DystopYA Challenge.

[Lekeshua]

Tanya wrote: "I finished Anne Perry's AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE, the fourth in her WWI series. I've always thought that these should have been subtitled "Morality Tales of WWI!" After having read the first thre..."
My mother-in-law is a fan/collector of WWI novels and I was wondering if any of the books you recommended have any curse words in the book? She won't read a book with what she calls"inappropriate language" in it. I am trying to get my christmas list together and want to find her a new book to read over the holidays and add to her collection.

[[deleted user]]

Lekeshua wrote: "Tanya wrote: "I finished Anne Perry's AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE, the fourth in her WWI series. I've always thought that these should have been subtitled "Morality Tales of WWI!" After having read ..."

I'm pretty sure TO THE LAST MAN (by Jeff Shaara,) ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (by Enrich Maria Marquez) and, NO GRAVES AS YET (First-in-Series, WW1, by Anne Perry) would all be appropriate for your mother-in-law and; of the three, I would recommend NO GRAVES AS YET foremost. The Anne Perry novels feature a priest (Anglican?) as the protag and I think the strongest expletive ever used might be an occasional "Hell," but always in that understated, repressed English way :-)

[Laurie]

Elhara wrote: "The School Of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister. As a late bloomer cook myself, this book's title was calling me. At almost half way through I am really enjoying it."

Thanks for your comment. I have put this on my TBR list. I hadn't heard of it until you mentioned it.

[Tara]

Tanya wrote: "I finished Anne Perry's AT SOME DISPUTED BARRICADE, the fourth in her WWI series. I've always thought that these should have been subtitled "Morality Tales of WWI!" After having read the first thre..."

I would also add Pat Barker's Regeneration trilogy to the list. For non-fiction, I enjoyed The Guns of August and In Flander's Fields: the 1917 Campaign.

I had no idea that The Very Long Engagement was a book! I loved the movie... thanks for the info!

[Melissa]

Completely off of the topic of WWI, but on the topic of "I never knew it was a book" - I just finished Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney. It was very plot-driven, but interesting given the historical context. I have seen all three movie versions, but I had no idea it was a book.

[AM]

I am currently listening to Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk, because of the wonderful Books on the Night Stand review and I am reading Soulless by Gail Carriger, which is really funny so far.

[Linda]

I finished Mitch Albom's latest Have a Little Faith The Story of a Last Request. I enjoyed it as much as I loved Tuesdays with Morrie An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson which was my introduction to Mitch Albom. This one, too makes me think and brings tears to my eyes. I found it very profound and poignant.

Now on to The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin for my book discussion next week. Only 212 pages. Have a bunch of library books waiting for me including The Girl with the Dragon TattooThe Piano Teacher, The Help and Sarah's Key. I think I have a quiet week ahead of me so I can read.

Linda

[[deleted user]]

I finished THE GIVER and GATHERING BLUE (by Lois Lowry) and have just started MESSENGER. After I finish Messenger, I'll post comments on the DystopYA thread.

I also wrapped up DEAD I WELL MAY BE (by Adrian McKinty; narrated by Gerard Doyle) which was amazingly good, but more of a suspense or vendetta tale than a mystery. The story is about Michael Forsythe, an illegal Irish immigrant who gets involved with an Irish Gang in NYC c. 1992. The immediacy of the city isn't as keenly felt as, for example, in Lush Life (by Richard Price; narrated by Bobby Canavale;) but there is a certain poetry to the tale that raises Dead I Well May Be quite a few notches above pulp fiction (a la The Hunter (by Richard Stark.)) I've got The Dead Yard, the sequel in the Michael Forsythe series, in the listening queue

I've joined a Man Booker reading group and this month they are covering A BEND IN THE RIVER (by V.S. Naipaul.) I'm listening to the audiobook which is narrated by Simon Vance. Though I love the narrator's voice and delivery skills, the sound quality isn't too great. As for any thoughts on the actual book, it's still too early to tell.

[Rita]

I'm currently reading The Hunger Games as part of the BOTNS DystopYA challenge.

[Ann]

I"m finishing up the newest John Saul, which I got sucked into reading thanks to some reminiscing that Michael and I were doing in prep for this Wednesday's podcast.

Also in the middle of a cool book called The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep (and Didn't Have to).

On Chapter 11 of TWILIGHT, which my daughter and I are reading together, but since she's going away to camp with the rest of the 5th grade for this entire week, we agreed to put it on hold until she returns.

I need to finish all of these, because I have a super secret manuscript (the third book in a trilogy) that I am dying to read and many of you are dying to hear about. ;)

[[deleted user]]

Lmj wrote: "I finished Mitch Albom's latest Have a Little Faith The Story of a Last Request. I enjoyed it as much as I loved [book:Tuesdays with Morrie An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Gre..."

Your to-read from the library pile is very good -- I haven't read The Piano Teacher but the other three were fantastic books.

Ann, how long are you going to tease us with your super secret manuscript? I know of what you speak and I am so envious!

[Shona]

I had a relaxing week and long weekend so I had a lot of time to read - I finished The Girl Who Played with Fire (absolutely loved it and can't wait for the third book to come out); Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenberger (just OK); Plan B by Jonathan Tropper (great read) and my first graphic novel called The Imposter's Daughter (loved the graphics, plot didn't draw me in). Now trying to decide what to read next :)

[Eric]

Finished Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk and I loved it. Thanks Ann and Michael for this great recomendation.

[[deleted user]]

Shona wrote: "I had a relaxing week and long weekend so I had a lot of time to read - I finished... Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenberger (just OK)..."

I just picked up HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY this past Saturday (1st in the Hold queue at the library!) and plan on tackling it this week, before returning to the DystopYA Challenge. I've heard nothing but raves; but your "just OK" remark reminds me not to invest in the hype!

[Linda]

I'm in the queue forHer Fearful Symmetry. When I love a book as much as I did The Time Traveler's Wife, I'm often apprehensive about whether the second book will meet the bar. One notable and pleasant surprise to this was Khaleid Hosseini's follow-up to The Kite Runner. A Thousand Splendid Suns was even better than the original - in my humble opinion.

I'll be interested in your opinion, Tanya. It looks that my library isn't purchasing a copy (with the deep cuts our libraries in Ohio have had). I discovered that I'm in the queue through interlibrary loan. I knew this was going to happen at some point. Just wished it would have been later than sooner.

[Rita]

Ann wrote: "I"m finishing up the newest John Saul, which I got sucked into reading thanks to some reminiscing that Michael and I were doing in prep for this Wednesday's podcast.

Also in the middle of a cool b..."

this wouldn't happen to be a book that's already released elsewhere but just not on this continent?

[Shona]

Tanya wrote: "Shona wrote: "I had a relaxing week and long weekend so I had a lot of time to read - I finished... Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenberger (just OK)..."

I just picked up HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY ..."

About Her Fearful Symmetry - Maybe I was expecting to like it as much as I loved The Time Traveler's Wife, and I didn't. It was still a good book. It immediately had me hooked from the beginning, but I just wasn't satisfied with the last half of the book.

[AM]

Eric wrote: "Finished Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk and I loved it. Thanks Ann and Michael for this great recomendation."

I finished Trofimuk's book yesterday. Wonderful! I second the Thanks to Ann and Michael. A simply beautiful book.

[[deleted user]]

AM wrote: "I am currently listening to Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk, because of the wonderful Books on the Night Stand review ..."

I finished Trofimuk's book yesterday. Wonderful! I second the Thanks to Ann and Michael. A simply beautiful book. "

I saw in an earlier post that you listened to it and I'm totally psyched that you liked it!

[Ann]

mm m m m mm mmm m mmhmh mmhh

gee, every time I try to tell you what the super secret manuscript is, someone puts duct tape over my mouth!

[AM]

Tanya wrote: "AM wrote: "I am currently listening to Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk, because of the wonderful Books on the Night Stand review ..."

I finished Trofimuk's book yesterday. Wonderful! I sec..."

The audio production is really good. Good voices and excellent pacing.

[Tracy]

I am loving the Best American Travel Writing series. Just finished the 2009 anthology edited by Simon Winchester, and I'm now reading the 2008 edition edited by Anthony Bourdain

[[deleted user]]

Tracy wrote: "I am loving the Best American Travel Writing series. Just finished the 2009 anthology edited by Simon Winchester, and I'm now reading the 2008 edition edited by Anthony Bourdain"

I have the Anthony Bourdain edition on my to-read pile.

[Rita]

I was so taken by The Hunger Games that I had to immediately skip over other books on my TBR list to read Catching Fire.

[Ann]

Yay, Rita!

[Tracy]

I second that! The Hunger Games is one of my favorite reads of 2009. And Suzanne-- lets compare notes on the 2008 Bourdain when you get to it!

[Elhara]

Only a dozen more pages and I will be finished North River by Pete Hamill. I'm enjoying it everytime I pick it up. Often I find myself reading a page or 2 as I'm trying to be ever patient with my terribly slow computer.

[[deleted user]]

Finished A BEND IN THE RIVER (by V.S. Naipaul.) I had started listening to the audiobook version of it, but for a number of reasons switched to print. My initial impression is that it could be subtitled "Existential Tales of Zaire," but hopefully more developed thoughts will form over the next couple of days as discussion kicks in with the Man Booker Group I've joined.

I've started HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY (by Audrey NIffenegger) and so far I am completely underwhelmed. I've deliberately shied away from pre-pub press so I can't say it's the "hype" that lead me to expect better. The story so far looks fairly predictable and pales in comparison to THE THIRTEENTH TALE (by Diane Setterfield) both in term of evocative writing and plot originality. It's hardly dense material, so I should be able to finish it off over the week-end and move on.

[Deb]

My mother-in-law is a fan/collector of WWI novels and I was wondering if any of the books you recommended have any curse words in the book? She won't read a book with what she calls"inappropriate language" in it. I am trying to get my christmas list together and want to find her a new book to read over the holidays and add to her collection.


Rebecca West's The Return of the Soldier is a WWI story that might be a good Christmas choice for your mother-in-law if she has not already read it. Also the Maisie Dobbs mysteries written by Jacqueline Winspear.

As for my nightstand, I am reading Ivy Compton-Burnett's A House and its Head; decided to read it because she is the author of the first book the queen reads in Alan Bennett's immensely enjoyable The Uncommon Reader. And because I tend to like all the British women writers of the mid-20th century (Muriel Spark, Iris Murdoch, Barbara Pym, etc.). Also on the 4th volume of the 13 volume Garnett translation of Chekhov's short stories. There may be more accurate translations but none that convey the Russian people and landscape in finer English prose.

[Linda]

I started reading The Help and I started listening to Almost Moon. I liked her The Lovely Bones a lot and hope this book meets that level. Just from the fact that there hasn't seemed to be as much buzz about Moon I wonder if it isn't as good.

[[deleted user]]

Lmj wrote: "I started listening to Almost Moon. I liked her The Lovely Bones a lot and hope this book meets that level. Just from the fact that there hasn't seemed to be as much buzz about Moon I wonder if it isn't as good"

I read THE LOVELY BONES in print and listened to the unabridged audiobook of THE ALMOST MOON as narrated by Joan Allen. I loved The Lovely Bones, but The Almost Moon was a completely different beast, with a psychologically damaged character clearly written by a psychologically damaged author.

I don’t think anyone is supposed to “like” much less “love” this book and I think if I met someone who said they did, I would raise an eyebrow and try not to invite further comment from that person. I suspect that most readers fall into two camps: 1) Those who do not like the book because they DON’T get it and 2) Those who don’t like the book because they DO get it. The latter are more likely to appreciate the writer’s effort. I consider myself in the second group.

I thought of this book as a particularly astute portrait of a mentally ill person. I recognized it as such from the start and instinctively knew that this was not going to be about poetic justice, moral redemption or even psychological emancipation (though I’m sure a case could be made for the latter).

I would rate this book a solid “B” but it’s a hard book to recommend.

I'll be particularly interested in what you have to say about it when you finish listening. Perhaps you might consider starting a book specific thread?

[Rita]

I just finished Catching Fire and now I'm reading The Book Thief as my third installment of the DystopYA challenge.

[Linda]

Tanya,

This morning I glanced at Amazon's customer reviewer's ratings for
Almost Moon where it got 2 and a partial star. I will still finish it (partially because I have nothing else to listen to at the moment). I will most certainly start a separate thread about the book after I finish it. Be forewarned that since I live in a small town and get anyplace in about 5 minutes, it takes lots of 5 minute drives to get an audiobook "read". but, I do it. Occasionally, I get drives to Springfield or Columbus and really relish the time with the audiobook.

Linda

[Deb]

Lmj wrote: "Tanya,

This morning I glanced at Amazon's customer reviewer's ratings for
Almost Moon where it got 2 and a partial star. I will still finish it (partially because I have nothing else to listen ..."

Tanya/Linda,

Thought you both might like a look at this if you have not already seen it. I remember reading this review the day it appeared and thinking this might not be the book for me. It is as scathing a review as I have ever read in the Times.

Deb

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/21/boo...

[Tara]

I've just started reading Ellis Peters Brother Cadfael Chronicles...I'm not even sure if they're still in print but I've been scavenger hunting them in used bookshops. They remind me a lot of Agatha Christie... imagine Hercules Pierrot were a 12th century Benedictine monk.

[Tara]

Ann wrote: "I"m finishing up the newest John Saul, which I got sucked into reading thanks to some reminiscing that Michael and I were doing in prep for this Wednesday's podcast.

Also in the middle of a cool b..."

What do you think of Twilight Ann? I'm embarrassed to say that I read all four books last Thanksgiving while visiting family. I can't really say they're good - but they sure are addictive.

[Rita]

oops, I lied. The Book Thief isn't dystopic.

So, I'm reading Uglies by Scott Westerfeld as my third installment for the DystopYA Challenge

[Ann]

Booksexy,

Twilight is OK - I confess that I read part of a satire that is coming out this fall (called Nightlight, by the Harvard Lampoon) and so I am enjoying Twilight even more now because I will "get" the rest of Nightlight when I read it.

I can see how it is easy to get swept up in the story, and there is nothing wrong with that!

I'm not sure how I feel about Twilight for young girls, which is why I'm reading it at the same time as my daughter. So far it seems pretty innocent.

[[deleted user]]

I've just started listening to THE DEAD YARD by Adrian McKinty; narrated by Gerard Doyle. This promises to be as good, possibly better than the first-in-series, Dead I Well May Be. Michael Forsythe is cornered into infiltrating an IRA splinter group/cell in the USA, c. 1997. Right now, the action takes place in Boston, MA, one of my most favorite places ever and, as a result, has really struck a chord with me...

Anyway, I'm pretty much avoiding finishing Her Fearful Symmetry (by Audrey Niffenegger.) I won't officially DNF it for at least another two weeks, during which I'll clean my house, my car, and the dog as procrastinating measures. I know I'm definitely the outlier opinion on the novel, but I'm really hating it. I think the only reason I may finish it is a certain masochistic tendency to prove I'm right.

[Caro]

Rita wrote: "oops, I lied. The Book Thief isn't dystopic.

So, I'm reading Uglies by Scott Westerfeld as my third installment for the DystopYA Challenge"

I loved the Uglies series (up to Specials), Scott W. will be in Miami this weekend promoting his new book Leviathan, I'll be taking my copy to have it signed.