Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group discussion
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ABOUT BOOKS AND READING
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What are U reading these days? (PART SEVEN) (2011) (ONGOING THREAD for 2011)
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Joy H., Group Founder
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May 30, 2011 09:29AM
Interesting the way both Jackie and Nina found problems with the stories they were reading. I hate when there are too many down-sides to a story or characters. I can take a few, but not a lot.
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I'm still reading and enjoying Cutting for Stone. And I have a couple more books on the back burner which I'm still in the middle of.Am getting to the last few discs of the audio of Cheever: A Life. Interesting but distasteful at times. I can't believe they were allowed to publicize what Cheever wrote in his private journals and the comments from his friends' and his relatives' letters. Seems such an invasion of privacy.
Cheever had his ups and downs in life. I guess that's what makes the book/CD interesting. But I wish he hadn't been so vulgar at times.
But the man did win a Pulitzer Prize. You can't take that away from him, however one values (or doesn't value) a Pulitzer (which I am beginning to be less in awe of... the more I read and the more I learn).
I generally work the same way. The key is to find someone who wants to read what you're going to read next. I belong to a few Fantasy groups and have a lot of friends who are into fantasy so it's not hard to find someone willing to read a specific book with me. It keeps me motivated to read more.
Also, Joy, with buddy reads, you don't have to read exactly at the same times or at the same pace with your buddy, as long as you stay roughly in tandem. And for readers who read more than one book at a time, if your buddy needs some time to catch up with you, you can just read out of your other book(s) until he/she does. It actually can be quite enjoyable; it's fun to compare your reactions, questions and insights with a friend in more or less real time as you read!
When Werner and I read the Robin Hood series last year, it was a great experience. Discussing the book in depth at an ongoing basis is really something you cannot get from a group read. We were lucky in that our natural pacing was similar and we kept pretty close to one another throughout the entire series.We had so much fun, we plan on doing it again this year.
Jackie and Werner: I can see how buddy reads could be very enjoyable. I enjoy it when Eddie reads a book right after I've finished it. It gives us dinner conversation. Unfortunately, he isn't into delving into details. He makes one comment or two and then he's finished. LOL
Jackie wrote: "When Werner and I read the Robin Hood series last year, it was a great experience. Discussing the book in depth at an ongoing basis is really something you cannot get from a group read. We were lu..."Jackie, I can see how Werner would be great for buddy reads. He is definitely into analysis and has a lot of background knowledge which he can inject. In fact, I would say that Werner is excellent at "creative analysis". He sees lots of things which others may miss. I can also see how your enthusiasm, Jackie, would make the project even more fun.
Joy, in the pre-facebook days, Anthony and I would read the same books, me first because he's a slower reader and we'd discuss the book as he was reading it. It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed it. Now, however, FB interferes with his reading time and he has 'currently reading' books for years, I can't wait that long, so our discussions of books are over.
Joy, thanks for your kind words! (And yes, Jackie's a great reading buddy --she's not only enthusiastic, but excellent at assessing the characters, etc.) Barb likes to read, too, and often enjoys sharing long plot summaries of books she's reading or just finished and is excited about. But we don't do very much in-depth book discussion. That's partly because she says my discussions are too analytical. :-) Then too, when we're reading to ourselves, we tend not to like the same genres; she's heavily into Westerns and romances, neither of which are usually my cup of tea, while the supernatural and books with old-fashioned diction aren't generally her thing. We do have areas of overlapping tastes, and those are often the books we choose to read out loud; but while we comment briefly on those, we're usually not apt to discuss even them at very great length.
Jackie wrote: "Joy, in the pre-facebook days, Anthony and I would read the same books, me first because he's a slower reader and we'd discuss the book as he was reading it. ... Now, however, FB interferes with his reading time... "Jackie, I can't believe how FB eats up my time. But that's because I'm just getting established friending my relatives. I'm sticking mostly to relatives because I want to keep connected to aunts, uncles and/or their progeny. I've also been busy putting up albums of very old family pictures which Eddie scanned from slides. So that's been very time consuming. It's also been very satisfying, reminiscing about old times and seeing my nieces and nephews enjoying them.
Werner wrote: "Joy, thanks for your kind words! (And yes, Jackie's a great reading buddy --she's not only enthusiastic, but excellent at assessing the characters, etc.) Barb likes to read, too, and often enjo..."Werner, I agree that Jackie is good at assessing characters. She can carry on an excellent in-depth discussion.
I can see that you and Barb have different tastes and different ways of enjoying books. It's the same with Eddie and me. He enjoys the books I would call men's books. However, he will read absolutely ANY book I put in front of him! He amazes me. He's always been a reader, even as a young kid when he had rheumatic fever and had to stay quiet for months. I suppose that's where he gets his great vocabulary. He's very articulate... when there's a subject he's interested. Otherwise, nada. (lol)
Nina wrote: "Jim. I finished, "Lord of Misrule," and mostly didn't like it. The characterzation was good but I didn't like any of the characters or the theme or the setting. I think if it's horseracing there ar..."It wasn't a pleasant book, that's for sure. Seems true to life, but not what I want in a book about horses. I know some of the crappy ways people treat animals & it makes me sick.
The lack of structure bothered me the most, though. I didn't like having to struggle to figure out who said what out loud to whom or what they were thinking. Confusing & turned me off.
Joy H. wrote: "Jackie, the idea of buddy-reading sounds like it could be fun. Unfortunately, I can never fit my reading schedule in with somebody else's. I don't have a routine; I just go the way the wind takes me."I agree. I rarely seem to fit in group reads properly. If I do, it's usually because it's a book I've read before, so I just re-read it quickly.
Jim, you're lucky you can read fast. I'm slow as molasses! Always have been. I took a speed-reading course but it didn't do me any good. I take too much time reading and I take MORE time copying down interesting lines from book. I'm such a word junky! If I see something well-said or if it resonates with me, I'm compulsed to copy it down. You should see all the loose-leaf notebooks I have, filled with scribbling. Although I don't own many books, I do own lots of LINES from books. (lol)
I've just started Out of This Nettle (1939), another of Norah Lofts' historical novels, this one set in the 18th century in (or at least beginning in) Scotland. (My copy is actually titled Colin Lowrie, which was the original title it was published under.) It's the common read this month in the Norah Lofts fan group here on Goodreads (it wasn't my first choice, but since I participated in the selection discussion, I thought I should take part in the read, too :-) ).
My son read, "Cutting for Stone," and liked it but did say it wasn't the best book he'd read. I am into Lisa See's "Shanghi Girls," and so far so good. A relief after, "Lord of Misrule," however; I really did like, "The last Chinese Chef." I would give it five stars. nina
I'm still reading _Cutting for Stone_ but I'm getting to the end. I hate to see it end.I read Shanghai Girls and enjoyed it but the end made me feel that there should be a sequel.
One of these days I'll get back to reading another book by Norah Lofts. I remember reading her books a long time ago.
Joy, the sequel to "Shanghai Girls," is "Dreams of Joy. nina
Nina, thank you so much for telling me about Lisa See's new Dreams of Joy: A Novel! I see that it was just recently published 5/31/11. I surmised when I read _Shanghai Girls_, that the ending was a set-up for a sequel. I'll put the new book on my to-read shelf.
Joy H. wrote: "---"Currently there's a Goodreads bug which makes it hard to post comments. They keep being rejected. Feedback has a thread going about the problem at: http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/5...
A trick is to hit reply and then delete the quote of the previous post (if you want).
Meanwhile save your comments somewhere on your computer before trying to post. Or at least copy them to your clipboard before posting. (i.e., click on "select all" and then click on "copy".)
I finished A Storm of Swords and I cannot say enough good things about this series. I'm buddy-reading it and the next one with a friend. She's a little behind so I'm taking this opportunity to catch up on my challenge. The books in A Song of Ice and Fire series are long, very long and have put me behind on my challenge. So I'm currently reading the following:The Thirteenth Talewhich Joy graciously gave me quite a while ago and I'm anxious to get started.
Castle Dreams for some lighthearted silly scifi-fantasy.
Shadowmancer which once again was mislabelled as fantasy when it's really Christian fiction.
And finally, an ebook Towards Yesterday which author sent me that I really want to read but have only gotten a few pages in. This will take me a long time to get through as I can't read much on the computer.
I have finished House Rules and also read a quick mystery, The Hard Way.I have now started a science fiction novel by C. J. Cherryh, Hammerfall.
Looks like posting is working now, hope it stays that way!
Yes, the posting problem seems to have been fixed.Jackie and Mary JL, you're really doing well with your reading! I should never have started with Facebook. It's taking me away from my books. As soon as I finish friending all my long, lost relatives, I think things will slow down for me at FB. It took a while to figure out all the features of Facebook... just as it took me a while to get used to all the Goodreads features. I think that once the novelty wears off, I'll be able to catch up with my reading.
Jackie, please be sure to let us know your impressions of _The Thirteenth Tale_. If I know you, you'll probably be able to predict the ending well before you get to it. The plot is starting to become vague in my head but I know that I enjoyed the book. Hope you do too.
Joy, I know it took me a while to get to it, and I didn't get very far, maybe 25 pages, but enough to be intrigued by the mysterious author who wants to tell 'the truth' and also by Margaret, the girl who, presumably, will learn that 'truth'. I like books like this because it gives me a puzzle to try to solve. And I've been too obsessive with the Fantasy, I needed to take a small break. As much as I love it, I can easily forego all else and I don't want to limit myself that way.
I've got guests this week so I may not get a lot of time to read but I will try....
Enjoy your guests, Jackie. The book can wait. (I have quite a few book waiting myself!) LOL I had promised myself I wouldn't buy anymore flowers in pots, but yesterday we went to Garden Time and now I have a lot of plants to look after. (geraniums, impatiens, and begonias).The nice weather competes with my books too. I've been sitting outside on our glider finishing up Cutting for Stone (fiction). I hate to see it end. It's another book I think you'd like. The author, Abraham Verghese, a doctor, writes so well and he's so readable as well! Part of the story is set in Ethiopia. The story is about people in the medical field treating the lower classes. There's romance and a bit of suspense as well. Hard to explain... but compelling.
Aside from reading your review of Cutting For Stone, I was intrigued by the word "glider," as I haven't heard that term since I was a child. We had one. But do they even sell them now? Curious, me.
Nina, I searched online and they do sell gliders nowadays. Ours is a double glider like the one in this picture but ours is a more delicate-looking mesh design in black aluminum:http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/...
Ours doesn't need cushions but sometimes I use a light one.
We also have a white double glider with pretty patterned cushions, in a pretty white tubular design. Both glide very smoothly. Romeo and I both enjoy them. We have one in the front and one on our back deck. I haven't ever seen another one like it. We bought it years ago in Caldor, I think.
We also have one of these:
http://www.porchswings.com/outdoor-gl...
I call it a "roller-glider" because it goes back and forth on little wheels. The table on ours is wider. We bought it years ago when it wasn't as expensive. Wow, prices have really gone up!
Here's a picture of ours when it was new:
http://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj...
I've had to cut off the fringe because it deteriorated over the years. I liked the fringe but nothing lasts forever.
I LOVE gliders!
I'm really enjoying the book, Joy. It's got me hooked. I've read about 1/4 of it already.
I'm glad you're enjoying it, Jackie. I thought you would! :)
Joy, thanks for sharing your glider pictures. I just assumed, wrongly, that they were things of the past. I have never seen one in any of my friends' gardens here or in CA or ID or WI, where I visit in the summertime. Your own is lovely. Are they common in your area? Is this at your summer place? IS that where you are now?
I don't know if gliders are common in our area. I really don't do that much visiting or shopping around. So it's hard to say.
Today, I started reading Blood and Bitter Wind, by the late Earl Murray. It's a Western set in the California goldfields of 1852; I'd gotten it for Barb's birthday last year, and she read it soon after that, and recommended it. Right now, I wanted a quick read I could finish before starting the July common read in the Norah Lofts group; and since I'm off work this week and our car as in the shop, I wanted a book that was here and not in the piles in my office. :-)
Have a good week off, Werner.Here's a fun link to read, the harshest author-on-author insults of all times:
http://flavorwire.com/188138/the-30-h...
Just finished,"We Are the Mulvanneys" by Joyce Carol Oates. It was good writing but sad; break up of a once good family; I just bought, "The Elegance of the Hedgehog," by Muriel Barbery and a Lisa See book, "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan." I bought the latter as I really liked, "Shanghai Girls," by the same author. She delves so much into the Chinese culture it is surprising that she is only one eighth chinese. I am also reading, "Mayflower," by Nathaniel PHilbrick. It is excellent. I haven't started the others.
Nina, I read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. I gave it 2 GR stars out of 5. Below is an excerpt from my review:===================================================
Today (1/9/11) I finished this book. I didn't really enjoy it. I found much of it boring. I also found it repetitive, especially in its descriptions of the Chinese customs. The plot was thin even though it covered many years in the characters' lives. There was no real depth to the characters. Basically, it was the story of a friendship gone wrong and the sorrows suffered by the protagonists. The writing seemed stilted or perhaps that was just the style of writing. It didn't appeal to me. I kept reading just to see where the story was going. The ending wasn't satisfying; it seemed flat. I liked Lisa See's Shanghai Girls better. However, the ending to that book wasn't satisfying either."
MORE AT MY REVIEW: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
=========================================================
Werner, enjoy your week off. Enjoy your reading.I had to return Women of the Silk to the library without finishing it. I couldn't renew it because someone else had a request in for it. I may get it again. However I found it to be a very non-compelling book even though the story was interesting. It was a cozy-type read with a slow plot. Other more compelling books slowed down my reading of it. I do plan to go back to it.
I finished Cutting for Stone and loved it. Hated to see it end.
I finally finished listening to Cheever: A Life. There were about 22 discs to the CD album. It was very compelling. I was amazed at the frankness of the biography, especially Cheever's sexual escapades. It was also interesting to get an inside view of the world of a writer and the publishing world as well.
Now I'm listening to a CD of Tina Fey's Bossypants. That girl is a hoot!
Had to return a CD of Bill Bryson's At Home: A Short History of Private Life to the library. Couldn't renew it; someone else wanted it. It's chock full of interesting facts. I definitely will get it again.
Now I'm going to start reading The New Woman: A Staggerford Novel by Jon Hassler. I like his writing.
Once again, I'm reading a historical novel by Norah Lofts, Madselin, set this time in England soon after the Norman Conquest. This is another common read in the Lofts fan group here on Goodreads, and this time I was asked to be the discussion leader.
Werner wrote: "Once again, I'm reading a historical novel by Norah Lofts, Madselin, set this time in England soon after the Norman Conquest. This is another common read in the Lofts fan group here ..."Werner, I'll bet you make a great discussion leader!
My records (made before I joined GR) show that I read _Madselin_ a long time ago. Unfortunately, I can't remember a thing about it. I've read 6 books by Lofts, according to my old records. I haven't put them on my GR shelves because I can't remember the stories.
Below is my review of The New Woman (2005) by Jon Hassler:=====================================================
I finished reading this book around July 2011. I enjoyed the story and the characters. The main character, Agatha McGee (87 years old), was drawn well. The book is an easy, pleasant read. It kept my interest but wasn't compelling. I read it at my leisure.
My only criticism is that the story names too many characters. They're easy to keep track of but I found it annoying having to keep track of so many minor characters.
The author, Jon Hassler, uses words well. He keeps them simple but they're a pleasure to read.
=====================================================
Thanks, Joy! I don't know how good I am at discussion leading (I haven't actually done it much), but I'm giving it the ol' college try. :-)Before Goodreads, it never occurred to me to keep any record of my reading; so there are a lot of books I read that I can't remember the titles/authors of. My practice is to list all the ones I can identify on my shelves; but some I'll have to re-read before I can review them properly.
Werner wrote: "... Before Goodreads, it never occurred to me to keep any record of my reading; so there are a lot of books I read that I can't remember the titles/authors of. My practice is to list all the ones I can identify on my shelves; but some I'll have to re-read before I can review them properly. "Yes, Werner, that's the problem. I feel that I can't really review a book which I can't remember a thing about. However, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to put a book on my shelf with a standard notation about not remembering much about it because I read it a long time ago. At least it's an indication of my taste (or lack of taste ) in books.
As far as leading discussions, you are a "natural" in that respect. I can tell this from your many informative and analytical GR posts in the past. You're good at analysis. It takes a certain kind of mind to be able to analyze books so well. You make wonderful comparisons too.
Having finished Hammerfall, I am leaving SF for a mystery series set in Elizabethan England.Leonard Tourney writes a series about Matthew and Joan Stock, and i am on #6 Knaves Templar.
I have read a few others in the series and they are very well done.
I can say with confidence that Werner will be an excellent discussion leader. It is my experience with our buddy-reads that leads me to this conclusion, we had many great discussions. The group read will just be on a larger scale.
Thanks, Joy and Jackie! (Blushes sheepishly, and scuffs toe on the rug to distract attention. :-) )We are having a lively discussion over there already, partly because Lofts' writings have a way of engendering that. Her characters are so lifelike and nuanced that they're apt to generate strong reactions, as do the differences between our society and the much less free and comfortable world of Old England.
I just finished Oryx and Crake. I didn't find it all that great. I'm not quite sure what the hubub over this book was all about. I had bought The Year of the Flood and didn't realize that O&C came first. I borrowed it from the library and I must say I'm glad I didn't pay for it. I'll read YotF eventually; I did hear it was better.Now I'm going back to the exceptional A Song of Ice and Fire series. Next up: #4 A Feast for Crows while I wait for #5 to arrive in the mail. This is the first time I ever tried to pre-order a book and it was already on back-order more than a month before the release date. Impressive.
I'm buddy reading both books with my friend Christine and that makes for an even richer reading experience. I can't wait to get started...
Mary JL wrote: "Having finished Hammerfall, I am leaving SF for a mystery series set in Elizabethan England. Leonard Tourney writes a series about Matthew and Joan Stock ..."Enjoy your mystery, Mary JL. I'm bogged down again in my reading. Somehow all the summer activity here takes away my desire to read. It's as if there are too many distractions and I can't settle down with a book. I can't even find time to watch my Netflix DVD, which at present is "My Sister's Keeper" (2009). Of course it's adapted from the book, My Sister's Keeper (2004) by Jodi Picoult.
Jackie wrote: "... I'm buddy reading both books with my friend Christine and that makes for an even richer reading experience. I can't wait to get started... ..."One of these days I'll have to try a "buddy read". Unfortunately, I'd probably have a hard time scheduling one. My every day activities are too erratic. I don't keep a steady routine, especially when it comes to reading.
Werner wrote: "... We are having a lively discussion over there already, partly because Lofts' writings have a way of engendering that. Her characters are so lifelike and nuanced that they're apt to generate strong reactions ..."Werner, I like your words "lifelike and nuanced" in regard to Norah Lofts' character descriptions.
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Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group
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