The Next Best Book Club discussion
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What are you reading?
i finally finished the life and many deaths of harry houdini, but i'm still working on invisible man for school. as soon as i get a free moment, i'm going to start the amber spyglass too.
Jeane,I went and read the synopsis to
Plan B 2.0 Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
and it disturbed me---because I agree with the premises. But primarily because these issues of planetary crises have been under discussion for a long time with almost no action.
There is a related book--The Limits to Growth--published in 1972!!
When will we wake up?
Yesterday I started People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks (I'm only about 40 pages in, so don't really have an opinion yet, other than that her job sounds awesome!). I am about 2/3 of the way through The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. I am really liking The White Tiger. I don't think I have every actually enjoyed a Booker winner before (not sure I have ever finished one, actually--though I have started and been unable to finish several). Some of my all-time favorite books are Booker runner-ups though, how funny is that?It is weird to go back and forth between these two books, they are very very different in style.
I am still stuck in the library queue to get back Stuffed and Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It may be June before I get Stuffed back.
I want to read all of those Dree... who knows when I'll get to them!
I'm at the beginning (p 65) of Sacred Games A Novel, over 900 pages (!). Started really slowly, but now the major flashback has begun, the story is unwinding and I'm loving it.
I'm at the beginning (p 65) of Sacred Games A Novel, over 900 pages (!). Started really slowly, but now the major flashback has begun, the story is unwinding and I'm loving it.
I finally finished "A Breath of Snow and Ashes" by Diana Gabaldon. Enjoyed it, but after almost 1000 pages I'm eager to read something else. But it's going to be something light. So I picked up "Flipping Out" by Marshall Karp. I've enjoyed the first two books in this series.
I just finished The Infinite by Douglas Clegg and I'm now starting Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguru. I'm only about 10 or so pages into it but it's interesting so far.
I finished HP and the Deathly Hallows on Friday and Pride and Prejudice this morning. I love reading so many great books back to back! Yesterday I began listening to Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella on audio, and now I'm starting Come Closer by Sara Gran. I need to hurry and finish it before the afternoon is over though - I'm a weenie and I can't read creepy things at night.
Mosca wrote: "Jeane,I went and read the synopsis to
Plan B 2.0 Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
and it disturbed me---because I agree with the premises. But p..."
I know Mosca. I was reading it also during my way to work and was thinking how annoying it is...I was reading the book, really realize that we are destroying everything that makes it possible for us to live...and I continues my day the same way like before and like after.
And we can talk about it on here too but probably nobody willa ctually do the most obvious things in their daily life. Like changing the cars we use, reduce the food we buy in several packages ......
Maybe cruel to say but maybe we deserve it to be extinct by our own actions.
I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum.
im reading Stardust! i love that movie,so im excited about reading the book.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum."Elizabeth, the title says 'what are you reading' and I told what i am reading and what I thought about it. Moska, told em what she tought about the summary of the book and recommended another book related to the same toppic. Where is the political part? If politics would be as interested as this books was I might get interested in it. If you prefer us jsut to post the title of the book we read and nothing more, then TNBBC doesn't seem the right place. We share what we think about a book here. I am not pushing my thoughts on anyone, just sharing.
I'm finally (albeit hesitantly) dropping my several-year boycott against Joyce Carol Oates and am reading A Garden of Earthly Delights. I started it this morning and have already made considerable headway. I understand this is the first book in a quartet, so if I maintain this eagerness throughout this one I look forward to going after the following three as well.
I've never read anything by Oates. Why were you boycotting her?
I'm reading Fool by Christopher Moore. My first Moore book, it was sent to me by a friend. So far, I love it!
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum."If you're looking for a sterile environment in which people do not feel free to share ideas, perhaps you need to find another forum.
Reading Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I was hesitant to read this at first because it didn't sound like something I would enjoy. But it has become quite a pleasant surprise! Also slowly trekking through the Omnivore's Dilemma. I started it last summer, put it down for many months, and recently picked it back up again. Very interesting read.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum."What? lol. I'm not even sure what to say. I'm pretty sure, firstly, that you are not Lori..and secondly..have you not noticed the banter that is on this thread about the books we have read?I'm pretty sure Jeane wasn't trying to have a political discussion but rather to share a book she is reading and then someone else found that interesting and there was a discussion about it for a post or two. I'm not sure where this huge political discussion is coming from. I love that these threads are so interesting like this! I would be bored if people just posted what they read and that was it.
Jenna wrote: "Reading Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I was hesitant to read this at first because it didn't sound like something I would enjoy. But it has become quite a pleasant surprise! Als..."
I can't wait to read Guernsey! I wasn't sure about it until everyone started raving about it and telling me how I would really enjoy it!
Jamie, you're going to love Guernsey. It's a fabulous read.
El, just curious, why did you boycott JCO? I've only read We Were They Mulvaneys.Patricia
Laura wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum."If you're looking for a sterile environment in which peo..."
I don't think you'd like to hear my thoughts on this subject.
Reading a book and saying what you liked about it is one thing, suggesting what other people should do having read it is another.
I read Guernsey a week or so ago and loved it. I was very unhappy to learn that one of the authors has passed away because I was really hoping for some sort of a sequel. I sooooooo want to know what happens next with the characters!
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Laura wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "I think it would be really good if you wanted to have a political discussion that you take it to another forum."If you're looking for a sterile environm..."
Well, Elizabeth, like others here, you have a right to your opinion.
Just finished the Geometry of Sisters by Luanne Rice and The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand. I enjoyed both books... I have also been reading A Bright Red Scream, which is a non-fiction book about self-mutilation. It is interesting, but a disturbing topic.
Today I finished Dracula, which I loved, and started on Coraline. I also need to start and finish Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot by Wednesday and will on the side of those two be working on bits of John Dryden's translation of Virgil's Aeneid.
I've heard Coraline is good, Liz, are you enjoying it?
I just finished Mercy by Jodi Piccoult. I am now starting Amazing and Death Defying Diary of Eugene Dingman by Paul Zindel.
April, I totally agree with your review of Mercy. I hope you don't let that one book influence you. I couldn't even finish that one, but I loved some of her others.
Dorie wrote: "April, I totally agree with your review of Mercy. I hope you don't let that one book influence you. I couldn't even finish that one, but I loved some of her others."Thanks Dorie, the book just really bothered me a lot! What are her others that you have loved?
Count me in on those that could not finish Mercy. I think I probably got like two chapters into the book before I decided to bring it back to the library. I just finished Handle With Care and I just have to say that while I enjoyed the book, it was extremely frustrating. It was also too similar to another book of hers. I hate it that the author tries to throw in these twists and make it seem like "hmmm, bet you never saw THAT coming". Which is fine for some books, but if it doesn't fit in to the novel, that it's just stupid. So, that was a three star book for me.Now, I'm reading A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray. It seems to be liked by a lot of people in this forum (mainly (G)Emma)and since I do love YA, I think I'll like this one.
Hayes and Patricia - I started reading Joyce Carol Oates maybe ten years ago because I had heard good things about her, and as I was going to a primarily women's college at the time felt that it was about time I read something by an author all the students were raving about. I picked up a few different books by her (I think they were all earlier in her career, however) and after reading them realized I had read the same story each time. There was little variation and I found that so disappointing. Equally disappointing was that the reason the students at my college were raving so much about her was because of her subject matter, often dealing with rape with an occasional racial issue thrown in for good measure. It felt to me an attempt at feminist literature, but all it really seemed to be was Oates trying to exorcise her personal demons over and over again. I'm all for that form of exorcism, but if it doesn't work the first few times, well... you might want to change your hobby to something else instead.However, a very good friend of mine has made me promise that I would try reading either Oates's essays or short stories, and until now I haven't been prepared to read the same drivel again. For the Spring Challenge I found A Garden of Earthly Delights and decided it sounded unlike the previous books by Oates that I had read - so far that has remained true. I feel like I'm reading Flannery O'Connor with a little John Steinbeck mixed in. I'm enjoying it a lot.
Interestingly I've heard the argument that you're either an Oates or an Atwood... very rarely do fans of both come about. I don't know if there's much truth to that, but I have consistently gotten more out of Atwood than I had out of Oates. We'll see if that changes now.
Alisha wrote: "Count me in on those that could not finish Mercy. I think I probably got like two chapters into the book before I decided to bring it back to the library. I just finished Handle With Care and I j..."I LOVED The Gemma Doyle trilogy, you'll def have to post about what you thought of it!
April wrote: "Thanks Dorie, the book just really bothered me a lot! What are her others that you have loved?"Of the ones I've read, "My Sister's Keeper" was probably my favorite, but "Nineteen Minutes" and "Salem Falls" were also very good. Picoult does seem to gravitate toward stories that evoke strong emotional reactions. Mostly this is good but I felt a bit angry at Mercy, as though it had been a bait-and-switch. I was ready to explore mercy killing, not adultery.
I think all of Jodi Picoult's books try to move you out of your comfort zone. Keeping Faith has a little girl who sees God (a woman) and who is the object of a child custody battle, and The Pact is about teenage suicide, while Salem Falls deals with sexual abuse, My Sisters Keeper has parents who choose to have a second child as spare parts for their (potentially) terminally ill daughter, Perfect Match with pedophilia in the Catholic Church, and Plain Truth with infanticide. No thinking person wouldn't be at least slightly disturbed reading about any of these topics.
LOL, Dorie, I definitely don't think I'm going to be picking up Mercy again anytime soon if it's going to have me exploring killing someone. It also doesn't help that I, while looking for the number of pages that book had (a little reading quirk I have), accidentally read the verdict of the trial. And that's really what I want to know when reading her stories, so knowing what was going to happen also put me off continuing it.That being said, I do tend to like Jodi Picoult's novels. My favorites were Plain Truth, followed by My Sister's Keeper, but I have enjoyed most of what I read, regardless of how much they frustrate me sometimes.
I feel like I definately am going to have to attempt some more Jodi Piccoult. I'm not opposed to being moved out of my comfort zone, it's just adultery deeply disturbs me. Although, it sounds like My Sister's Keeper would disturb me as well, although the premise certainly sounds interesting. Alisha, if I wasn't using it for Spring Challenge, I definately would have put it down.
Alisha, LOL -- I didn't mean to imply mercy killing would be better or more ethical than adultery. It just annoyed me that what I read about the book didn't communicate that it focused more on adultery. I have a knee-jerk negative reaction to the topic, and would never have picked up the book if I'd had an inkling. Since I didn't finish it, I don't know how successful it may have been in examining the topic.
Yeah, April, you definitely should pick up more Jodi Picoult. I recommend Plain Truth. I thought it was great and the characters to me were less selfish than some of her other novels. The lifetime movie is also pretty great (mostly cause I love Mariska Hargitay and she stars in it).
Alisha wrote: "Yeah, April, you definitely should pick up more Jodi Picoult. I recommend Plain Truth. I thought it was great and the characters to me were less selfish than some of her other novels. The lifeti..."Yay Law and Order:SVU!!
Dorie, it went into mercy killing quite a bit, about 1/3 of the book deals with that, but the other 2/3s deal with adultery.
I started Watermelon yesterday afternoon and wow I jsut want to stay home today and finsih it. I read more than 400 pages eysterday and jsut didn't wanted to stop. I don't know how it comes that when I take one of her books i think it will be fluffy, empty and stupid but then just love it! And apparently the image you get off this Irish family was very realistic during that period, also very unpolitical.
Jeane, you said:also very unpolitical
heh heh heh ;)
I've just finished reading Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury. This book was disappointing for me; maybe I don't connect to Bradbury like I used to. I'm not sure. But I wrote this Review.
Next I'm planning to read Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson.
El wrote: "Hayes and Patricia - I started reading Joyce Carol Oates maybe ten years ago because I had heard good things about her, and as I was going to a primarily women's college at the time felt that it wa..."
Interesting points. I love Atwood, actually, what little I have read. If I find an Oates at the library here I will try, otherwise will avoid. Thanks for the review.
Interesting points. I love Atwood, actually, what little I have read. If I find an Oates at the library here I will try, otherwise will avoid. Thanks for the review.
I finally finished The Pillars of the Earth. There were parts that were so very brutal I almost gave up on the book, but once I finished I was glad I stuck it out. It was a solid 4-star book.Now I'm starting Bound South A Novel for another group's read. I'm already "Oh my gosh"ing and giggling hysterically at the end of the first chapter!
Jeane wrote: "And apparently the image you get off this Irish family was very realistic during that period, also very unpolitical. "Hee hee! :-D
i just finished The Robe by Lloyd Douglas... Maybe I'll read Pride and Prejudice... soon!
JG wrote: "I finally finished The Pillars of the Earth. There were parts that were so very brutal I almost gave up on the book, but once I finished I was glad I stuck it out. It was a solid 4-st..."JG - I just finished Pillars of the Earth, too, and I felt much the same way. The repetitive brutality to the women, in particular, got to me, but I felt the author tied up the ending and drew together all of the plot threads to make an excellent ending. I was quite glad I finished.
I am reading People of the Book now, and enjoying it very much so far.
Finished The Life of Elizabeth I last night, which was very good, and have started The Glass-Blowers, by Daphne du Maurier, which I am enjoying.
I am halfway through,Everything Is Illuminated A Novel
Jonathan Safran Foer
and just started,
Snuff
Chuck Palahniuk
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The Next Best Book Club
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I almost finsihed this book and it is soooo interesting. it is written in a way that you ...oh well I just feel like sending this book to everyone I know! I want to convert everyone!:-))))
there is also the update version now Plan B 3.0.
Every politician should read this, even those in regional positions. I mean, open your eyes!!! It isn't not going to affect you.