Challenge: 50 Books discussion
Finish Line 2011
>
Susan & Raven's 2011 Reading List
33. The Distinguished Guest by Sue Miller (audiobook) ** A reread. Not my favorite Sue Miller, and it took me quite a while to get through it this time. The author is boldly realistic in allowing her characters to unsympathetic in extreme, and in this particular book it was hard to overcome my dislike of all of the characters. TOTAL PAGES: 4,475 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 136 hrs., 10 mins. + 10 hrs., 45 mins. = 146 hrs., 55 mins.
33. The Colour by Rose Tremain *** I am giving this three stars, but after I think about it awhile, I might raise it to four stars. I am a fan of Rose Tremain's novels, and her books that I have read so far have widely differing locales, historical times and circumstances. In this novel, a newly married couple, and the man's mother, travel to New Zealand to start a new life, and be rid of the past. Joseph, the husband, has a shrouded secret and crime in England that he wants to leave behind. Harriet, the wife, is excited about finally starting her own life after twelve years of being a governess. Lilian, the mother, is in enforced exile after the humiliating death and financial ruin of her husband. They arrive in New Zealand at the time of the gold rush there, and waves of hopefuls are coming to find "the colour" gold for themselves. Gold fever and the land itself affect Joseph and Harriet differently, and change the lives they had planned. They have important involvements with other characters: the nearest neighbors on the next sheep run, a maori woman, a Chinese vegetable grower, and a young boy seeking his own type of fortune on the gold fields. I guess a truly good novel surprises you with where it goes, and so I was surprised on many occasions. I find myself mystified by the the story of the maori woman and the neighbor child, and have not been able to fathom where this mystical relationship was supposed to accomplish (What were the gods saying?). This novel will keep me thinking for quite a while, however.TOTAL PAGES: 4,475 pages + 282 pages = 4,757 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 136 hrs., 10 mins.
34. The Bird Sisters by Rebecca Rasmussen * This book annoyed me terribly. I found the scene with the priest leaving to be worthy of SNL sketch and the dialogue seemed terribly flippant. Also, anachronisms abound: the term "time out" was not used in the '40's -- you got spanked; participants at the Catholic Mass did not give each other the "sign of peace" until the 1960's; the phrase "hello" as a method of pointing out someone's error was not used until the 1990's, for Pete's sake.TOTAL PAGES: 4,475 pages + 304 pages = 4,775 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 136 hrs., 10 mins.
I think you're the first person to point out the anachronisms. It would've made me bang my head against the wall. Hope you don't have a headache.
I'm sure there are more anachronisms, since after about page 50 I just skimmed the book. Of course it helps to pick out anachronisms when you have lived through the era!
Ah, the folly of youth; thinking how things are now are the way they've always been. I still have that vague sense of unease when taking communion because the nuns had us convinced if anyone but the priest touched the host bad, bad things would happen.
When I think of all the taboos that are now routinely broken, I'm amazed that the earth is still spinning. One of my funniest memories in Book Club was one of us 50-somethingers explaining to the amazed 30-somethingers how a sanitary napkin used to be put on. It was like describing a chastity belt.
35. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (audiobook)***** Reading another good book (Fieldwork by Mischa Berlinski) which was about missionaries, I thought of The Poisonwood Bible and decided to reread it. It was, and remains, one of my favorite books. An ex-GI minister with horrific guilt from WWII, believes he has a calling to convert Africans. Without knowing anything about language or customs of the area, he takes his put-upon wife and four young daughters to the Belgian Congo of the 1960's. Driven by his desire to convert the Africans, he puts his family in grave physical danger, and all four are indelibly marked by Africa. Told by turns in the first person by the five female members of the family, the story is amusing, terrifying and tragic. A true classic. Nonetheless, Eisenhower will always remain a benign grandfatherly figure to me.TOTAL PAGES: 4,775 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 136 hrs., 10 mins.+ 15 hours, 33 mins. = 151 hrs., 43 mins.
36. A Mercy by Toni Morrison (audiobook) *** I listened to this on an audiobook, and that was my problem. It was read by the author and Miss Morrison has a very strange, halting way of speaking, continually stopping after two or three words, accenting words strangely, etc. She even spoke like that in the interview included at the end of book, which really makes me wonder why she decided to read her own book. I vaguely recall that I listened to another of her books on an audiobook and she was the reader then, too. It made the book very difficult to follow. She also did not pause between sections, and as the book moved from one character to another, there was no indication from the narrator that that was happening. It was puzzling that one second she would be talking about one character, and then be in another characters mind a second later, without a pause. Other than that, I enjoyed the story, and particularly found the ending thought provoking. Four women, a slave owner in 1600's America, and her three slaves, are the subject of the book. Some tell their own story, others' stories are described. All of it is heartbreaking as it recounts the separation, by death, disease, slavery, abuse and misunderstanding, but it is the true varied experience of women through the ages.
TOTAL PAGES: 4,775 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 151 hrs., 43 mins. + 6 hrs., 30 mins. = 158 hrs., 13 mins.
i should never come here. my 'to read' list is already too long.b.t.w. i loved The Little Prince ... especially the part about taming the fox ... how he sat just a little closer each day, and how he came at the same time each day so the fox could come to anticipate the arrival of the little prince. and i often remember that caution that we become responsible for that which we have tamed.
37. The Revenge of the Radioactive Lady by Elizabeth Stuckey-French ** I read this for my book club. I believe that I was misled by the comments on the dust jacket. Many authors interviewed remarked that the book was "hilarious." I was into it a while and didn't think it was funny at all. In fact, the situations presented were very serious. Of course, I have read books that were on serious topics, but were still funny, but this was not one of them. It was very quirky, and everyone in my club seemed to like it better than I did. Taken from a real situation, a woman who was involuntarily subjected to a medical study on radioactivity while pregnant in the 1950's, tracks down the doctor responsible with the intention of killing him. She finds him living with his daughter's family in Florida, and, without having her killing plan well formulated, she begins interacting with him and his family. Hilarity does not ensue.TOTAL PAGES: 4,775 pages + 333 pages = 5,108 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 158 hrs., 13 mins.
38. One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (audiobook)**** Nine people are trapped in a basement office of the Indian Consulate in an American city after an earthquake. To take their minds of their horrible predicament, one young woman, who has been studying The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, suggests that they each tell a story. It takes a while for the story (and stories) to get started, but one they did, I was captivated. The stories actually seem to get better as they progress. The story of the older woman, Mrs. Pritchard, the teenager Lily, and the Uma, the story's protagonist, struck a mystical and transcendent chord with me.TOTAL PAGES: 5,108 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 158 hrs., 13 mins. + 8 hrs. = 166 hrs., 13 mins.
39. Night by Elie Wiesel (audiobook) **** Utterly heartbreaking and appalling. I have read many books about the concentration camps, but this one brings home the loss of humanity of the victims caused by their abominable treatment by the Nazis.TOTAL PAGES: 5,108 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 166 hrs., 13 mins. + 4 hrs. = 170 hrs., 13 mins.
40. (Yay, my halfway point -- I'm trying for 80). The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. **** I don't think that I would have done well in 1920's Paris because 1) I can't drink that much; and 2) I would have beat both Ernest and Pauline over their heads with a baseball bat, and if I couldn't find a baseball bat in Paris, I would at least have used a very stale batard.
I really did enjoy the views of the life the Hemingways led. The were terribly strapped for cash and lived in a dive, but had a maid/nanny, and took skiing vacations in Austria, summer vacations on the Riviera, and traveled yearly to Spain for the running of the bulls. A number of years ago I read The Hemingway Women by Bernice Kert and found it fascinating, and I think I will look at it again. Hemingway's life is so interesting to me, but I do not like his writing. Reading The Paris Wife, which covers the time Hemingway was writing The Sun Also Rises, makes me want to read that book. But, maybe I'll just rent the movie.
Thanks to my friend Joanne for lending me the book.
TOTAL PAGES: 5,108 pages + 317 pages = 5,425 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 170 hrs., 13 mins.
41. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald ***** I reread this for one of my online group discussions. I had not read it in a long time, and I was surprised at what a quick read it was, and what a short book it was. I am giving it five stars based on the beauty of its language. The description of Daisy and Jordan when we first meet them is worth five stars alone.TOTAL PAGES: 5,425 pages + 180 = 5,605 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 170 hrs., 13 mins.
42. Passage by Connie Willis. ** Whew! This book is incredibly long, and people keep running this way and that, getting lost in passageways, trying to avoid people they don't like, not spending enough time with people that they do like, turning off their communications. It was exhausting. The book could easily have been cut in half. In the end, was it worth it? No, not really.TOTAL PAGES: 5,605 pages + 594 pages = 6,199 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 170 hrs., 13 mins.
43. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Linda Hillenbrand (audiobook) **** I admire the research that went into this book. I enjoyed parts of it, but at other parts I had to stop and give myself a break. I am amazed that anyone survived this.The audiobook was narrated by the incomparable Edward Herrmann.
TOTAL PAGES: 6,199 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 170 hrs., 13 mins. + 14 hrs. = 184 hrs., 13 mins.
44. The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie **** I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of short stories about life in Africa, but mostly about the African-American immigrant experience. It gave me great insight into the complex situation. Very, very well done, and, since I listened to it on an audiobook, excellently narrated as well.TOTAL PAGES: 6,199 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 184 hrs., 13 mins. + 7 hrs. = 191 hrs., 13 mins.
45. Brooklyn by Colm Toibin ** A young woman is packed off by her family to Brooklyn in the 1950's because of a lack of jobs in Ireland. Things are arranged for her by family friends and clergy. She meekly follows along with their plans. A guy likes her. She doesn't really know if she likes him back. A family emergency calls her home. Should she stay or should she go? Don't worry, someone decides for her. This thoroughly passive character could not engage me at all.TOTAL PAGES: 6,199 pages + 262 pages = 6,461 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 191 hrs., 13 mins.
47. Before I Go To Sleep: A Novel by S. J. Watson **** A woman with a brain injury forgets everything each night when she falls asleep. How will she ever know who she really is? Excellently crafted novel.TOTAL PAGES: 6,461 pages + 259 pages = 6,720 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 191 hrs., 13 mins.
48. New Deal or Raw Deal?: How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America by Burton Fulsome Jr. (audiobook) **** I learned a lot from this book, although some things I could not comprehend, and some things didn't interest me. It has a lot of parallels to the present day political controversies. It questions whether all the policies that FDR put into motion (social security, the farmer's administration, and the CCC) were really good policies for the country and for the citizens. There is a lot that was well meaning, but didn't do as it was supposed to. There is also a lot of disappointing revelations about Roosevelt, who is oftentimes looked upon as a hero and one of the best presidents. It shows him as an inept businessman who understood nothing about business, and a cold blooded seller of government privileges for votes. He basically started the idea of Federal money going to the states, and demanding support for these monies. Upon until this time, States took care of their own. The book also questions what caused and what ended the Depression. The book starts out with the famous quote of trusted Roosevelt advisor and Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morganthau to the House Ways and Means Committee in 1939, ten years after the crash on Wall Street:“We have tried spending money. We are spending more than we have ever spent before and it does not work. And I have just one interest, and if I am wrong…somebody else can have my job. I want to see this country prosperous. I want to see people get a job. I want to see people get enough to eat. We have never made good on our promises…I say after eight years of this administration we have just as much unemployment as when we started…And an enormous debt to boot!”
Does history repeat itself? Yes, it does. And there is every appearance that the White House and the Congress intends to repeat many of the errors of the last Depression that came to be known as Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal.
TOTAL PAGES: 6,461 pages + 259 pages = 6,720 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 191 hrs., 13 mins. + 12 hours = 203 hrs., 13 mins.
49. The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney (reread)***** I reread this book because I loved it, and because I suggested it and am leading the discussion on it this month in the Goodreads book group "You'll Love This One . . . A book club and more"TOTAL PAGES: 6,720 pages + 370 pages = 7,090 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 203 hrs., 13 mins.
Susan wrote: "33. The Colour by Rose Tremain *** I am giving this three stars, but after I think about it awhile, I might raise it to four stars. I am a fan of Rose Tremain's novels, and her books..."
I love Rose Tremain, and have bought all her books in hardback. I enjoy how she is a different author each time--her books are never the same. What a gifted author!Rose
Susan wrote: "48. New Deal or Raw Deal?: How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America by Burton Fulsome Jr. (audiobook) **** I learned a lot from this book, although some things I could not comp..."
I thought The Tenderness of Wolves was a wonderful book! It's not my usual preference, but I read it for a book club (the beauty of book clubs--expanding one's horizons). The author made me feel every minute of those harrowing experiences in the freezing cold snow. I add my recommendation that more people read this book!Rose
Rose, I agree with you on both points. Book clubs do get you to read books out of your comfort zone, which is a good thing. And, this book has not gotten enough recognition. I am surprised and pleased that your book club picked up on it. Most people I talk too have never heard of it.
We were very lucky, in this particular group, to have a member who always suggested unique, wonderful books. She has since passed away, but I think of her so often as I read.Rose
I am sorry for the loss of your friend. We just lost one of our book club members two weeks ago, very suddenly and unexpectedly. She was such a presence in our club, and very knowledgeable about books, that it is hard to think of the club without her.Susan
Yea, I made it to 50.50. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (audiobook) *** I read this a second time (I several years ago) for my contemporary literature class. This time I was more critical of it. I enjoyed the voice of it, but I do not think why Oscar life was wondrous.
TOTAL PAGES: 7,090 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 203 hrs., 13 mins. + 9 hours = 212 hr., 13 mins.
51: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (Audiobook) *** I had never read this before. Cute book.TOTAL PAGES: 7,090 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 212 hr., 13 mins. + 6 hrs. = 218 hrs., 13 mins.
52. The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma **** I really enjoyed Mr. Palma's style of writing. And, I am amazed that someone could write so complex a novel.TOTAL PAGES: 7,090 pages + 309 pages = 7,399 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 218 hrs., 13 mins.
53. Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran ***** I am feeling generous today with my stars, but sometimes I just need a quick, uplifting read. I thoroughly enjoyed this book about three sisters who have fled from the turmoil of revolution in Iran in the 1980's and find themselves in a small town in Ireland, where they open a cafe. It is definitely a feel-good book, but it does not insult one's intelligence at the same time. It tells the sisters' story of what happened to them in Iran.OTAL PAGES: 7,399 pages + 222 pages = 7,621 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 218 hrs., 13 mins.
This was one book that I had such a hard time with! I'm so glad your experience was different. I think I was expecting something else when I picked it up. I did love the cover though, lol.Susan wrote: "52. The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma **** I really enjoyed Mr. Palma's style of writing. And, I am amazed that someone could write so complex a novel.
TOTAL PAGES: 7,090 pages + 3..."
It was the cover that got me too! So, based on your opposing reviews it is now solidly in the middle of the to read priority list.
Lillie, I saw that you had not liked it. I really liked the way Palma wrote, and if I get in sync with the writing, I am happy. It was different than it was portrayed to be, but I think if it had been portrayed honestly it would have spoiled what was unique about it. Sometimes, though, I think I appreciate "cleverness" in a book too much.So, Donna, you've got one "yes," and one "no," so you're going to have to make up your own mind!
Susan-I think for me, mood really plays a big part in whether I like a book or not. I was expecting and wanting a certain type of book and it wasn't what I thought, lol. I was very interested in the first third. Would've loved it if it had continued that way.Donna-you should give it a try and be our tie breaker :)
You know this guarantees I'll be right down the middle of the road, right? It'll be a bit before I get to it. I have three non-renewables out from the library that are coming due. And my godson is getting married tomorrow, so you can imagine the time crunch. I am so off the pace!
54. Burmese Days by George Orwell (audiobook)**** An excellent story of the British Raj in Burma. I had never heard of this book before, but picked up the title from a good recommendation from someone here on Goodreads. I can't remember who it was, but I thank him or her because it was a wonderfully written book.TOTAL PAGES: 7,621 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 218 hrs., 13 mins. + 11 hrs., 30 mins. = 229 hrs., 43 mins.
55. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton **** I loved it. A story that covers five generations of women. A small girl arrived in Australia alone aboard a boat and is taken in by loving family. But, she longs to find the secret of birth family back in Cornwall, England. After her death, her granddaughter takes up the mystery.TOTAL PAGES: 7,621 pages + 552 = 8,173 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 229 hrs., 43 mins.
56. Private Life by Jane Smiley (audiobook)**** At the turn of the 20th century, Margaret Mayfield is an old maid. There are few opportunities and choices for a young woman at that time, and when a chance for her marry finally presents itself, it is a foregone conclusion that Margaret will accept. Thus begins the saga of her marriage to an intelligent, difficult, and possibly deranged man. This story is based on an aunt and uncle of the author. I found the beginning tough going, but once I got into it, I found the story interesting. It points out the lack of options open to a woman at that time, and how our practical ideas of marriage have changed (or not) over the years. The most compelling character in the book was Dora, Margaret's friend, who resolutely and joyously forges a different kind of life for herself. I gave it four stars because it got me thinking on the nature of marriage.TOTAL PAGES: 8,173 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 229 hrs., 43 mins. + 13 hours = 242 hrs., 43 mins.
I have really slowed down lately. No. 57 Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier *** Two children, one a boy from the country, the other a girl from the city, befriend the poet William Blake in 1792 London, and inspire his classic Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. A decent look at 18th century life in England, but the plot was far from riveting.TOTAL PAGES: 8,173 pages.
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 242 hrs., 43 mins. + 11 hrs., 30 mins. = 254 hrs., 13 mins
Susan wrote: "I have really slowed down lately. No. 57 Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier *** Two children, one a boy from the country, the other a girl from the city, befriend the poet William Blake..."Me too! And thanks, I kept going back and forth on this book. Now I can let it go.
I also have Chevalier's Remarkable Creatures out of the library on audiobook. If it isn't way better, I am going to pass on any more of hers.
58. The Warlord's Son by Dan Fesperman ***It took me absolutely forever to get through this book. I actually liked the writing, but I am intrigue-challenged. I could follow and appreciate what was going on in the various sections of the book, and I enjoyed and liked the three main characters, and thought they were well developed. But, in the end, I could not put it all together. The individual events were to me like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and I could not get the pieces to fit. It was to me like a spy movie, the Bourne series, for instance, in which different scenes are interesting and understandable, but I can never figure out who is the bad guy and who is the good guy, and whose side everyone is on, and at the end of the movie I have to ask my husband what happened, and his explanation confuses me more. I am lucky I did not become a diplomat or a member of the CIA, and the world is a much better place because I have never been appointed Secretary of State. The reason I persisted in reading this book is it was assigned reading for my contemporary fiction class, the theme of which this semester is cultural differences. My class is tomorrow, and perhaps the discussion will shed some light on this book for me. I think this was a good book; I just did not understand it.TOTAL PAGES: 8,173 pages + 333 = 8,506
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 254 hrs., 13 mins
I loved reading your take on this book. Gave me my first laugh of the day :) Susan wrote: "58. The Warlord's Son by Dan Fesperman ***It took me absolutely forever to get through this book. I actually liked the writing, but I am intrigue-challenged. I could follow and appr..."
59. Still Alice by Lisa Genova (audiobook) ***** Forget Stephen King an Dean Koontz, this is the most frightening book I have ever read. A distinguished Harvard professor is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease. The story is told from her point of view, and gives examples of the tests she is given to diagnose her illness. I immediately wondered how well I would do on such tests, and found myself frantically naming all the four legged animals I could in one minute, and burning into my brain the address "John Black, 42 West Street, Brighton." At the end of the book it seems that the scenes fade in and fade out, mimicking Alice's waning memory. Extremely well written, but so tragic and scary.TOTAL PAGES: 8,506 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 254 hrs., 13 mins + 7 hrs., 30 mins. = 261 hrs., 43 mins.
I always say it's not the monsters under the bed who are scariest. It's the ones that live inside us.
Challenge: 50 Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (other topics)11/22/63 (other topics)
Becoming Jane Eyre (other topics)
The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt (other topics)
Mr. Chartwell (other topics)
More...
TOTAL PAGES: 4,475 pages
TOTAL LISTENING TIME: 136 hrs., 10 mins. + 11 hrs. = 147 hrs., 10 mins.