The Next Best Book Club discussion
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What are you reading?
I also find it interesting that one of those involved in the scandal is now selling gold on TV commericals. HA!
Lori wrote: "Finished On The Beach. Great apocalyptical novel that makes you peek outside to make sure the world is still out there, unharmed!Moving on to The Three Musketeers!"
Ooh The Three Musketeers. Is it the one by Dumas. It really tickled my fancy literally and figuratively. A fun read.
Just finished Every Last Cuckoo A Novel. It was better than I anticipated (4 stars). The main character, Sarah, is a mature mother and wife who continues to grow as her years move along, actually being quite hip in her thinking. I also loved the Vermont scenery and references...brought back good memories. I am now reading The Magician's Assistant .
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I'm telling you Jessica, you are reading all the right books right now :) I loved both of those!
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Moving on to The Three Musketeers!"
Ooh The Thre..."
Yupper. I am only just into the first chapter. I was out all day running errands (school clothes shopping, oye vay!) but so far its great.
I started The Glass Castle A Memoir today for my real life book club. The next book we'll be reading is Stiff The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, so I was glad to see people saying good things about it a page or two back.
Ann from S.C. wrote: "I am reading ANNA KARENINE and I am finding that I can't put it down! Really good."You are a more tenacious reader then me. I really only read about 1/2. then went to the end. I may try it again in a few years.nah I won't who am I kidding.lol
Currently reading Trust No One by Gregg Hurwitz and listening to The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch.
Akittykat wrote: "Ann from S.C. wrote: "I am reading ANNA KARENINE and I am finding that I can't put it down! Really good."You are a more tenacious reader then me. I really only read about 1/2. then went to the ..."
I also tried to read it...twice. Both times the book clubs that I was involved in died because no one could finish the book. My son found my copy the other day with the bookmark still in it at about 2/3 done. I admire you Ann, glad you are enjoying it.
Bhumi wrote: "I just finished City of Ashes, which was AMAZING (see my review)!
I can't wait to read City of Glass! "
Hi Bhumi, glad you like it. I enjoyed the whole Mortal Instruments.
I can't wait to read City of Glass! "
Hi Bhumi, glad you like it. I enjoyed the whole Mortal Instruments.
I've moved on to The Woman in White after finishing Rift in the Sky. Talk about a change of gears, to keep things interesting.
I finished The Time Traveler's wife almost two weeks ago and LOVED it. Usually I can read a book in 3 days but since I was so into that book everything I try to read now can't grab my attention like that book. It's STILL sticking with me, haha. But I'm reading The Memory Keeper's Daughter since it has gotten such mixed reviews and I'm interested to see where I will fall.
Dorie wrote: "I've set aside "The Girl Who Played With Fire" because it was boring me senseless. I'm now reading Jonathan Tropper's newest This Is Where I Leave You."Dorie,
You'll have to let us know how you like This Is Where I Leave You. Tropper is one of my very favorite authors, but I haven't picked up his latest...have you read any others by him?
Lindsey wrote: "I finished The Time Traveler's wife almost two weeks ago and LOVED it. Usually I can read a book in 3 days but since I was so into that book everything I try to read now can't grab my attention li..."Lindsay,
Somebody in another group called that "literary afterglow" - when you love a book so much that you're worried about starting another one because you think nothing else could compare! Same thing happened to me when I finished A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Tolz. Loved it so much that I couldnt' fathom starting another story!
I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will probably start The Bell Jar at some point soon.
Stardust is one of my all-time favorite books. I've also read Coraline and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and I think Stardust trumps them all.
Leslie wrote: "I started The Glass Castle A Memoir today for my real life book club. The next book we'll be reading is Stiff The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, so I was glad to see pe..."Leslie, The Glass Castle is one of my alltime faves. Actually I read it when a friend borrowed it from the library and then went out and bought my own copy after I had read it. And Stiff is hilarious!!!!!!!
Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will probably start The Bell Jar at some p..."Liz, I read the entire Twilight series and I have a hard time describing my feelings for it. It wasn't the best story I have ever read, but somehow I couldn't put them down...read them all in a month.
Lindsey wrote: "I finished The Time Traveler's wife almost two weeks ago and LOVED it. Usually I can read a book in 3 days but since I was so into that book everything I try to read now can't grab my attention li..."Lindsey, have you read anything by Jodi Picoult? If you liked Time Traveler's Wife and if you like Memory Keeper's Daughter you might like her books. She is one of my favorite authors.
Shona wrote: "You'll have to let us know how you like This Is Where I Leave You. Tropper is one of my very favorite authors, but I haven't picked up his latest...have you read any others by him?"I'm about half-way through and really enjoy it so far. A lot of things happening in the book are sad, but there is a great deal of humor in the way he writes it. Sad and hilarious at the same time. Of his books, I've read all of them but "Plan B". I'll have to put that one on my list, because I've enjoyed all the others.
Shona, P.S. -- Did you hear Steven Spielberg is going to be directing Tropper's script for an update of the movie "Harvey"?
Alisha wrote: "Stardust is one of my all-time favorite books. I've also read Coraline and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and I think Stardust trumps them all."I loved Coraline! It was awesome. I also loved themovie and went out and bought it about a week after it was released on DVD.
Dara wrote: "Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will probably start The Bell J..."I found Bella whiny and naieve and I thought Meyer's writing left a good deal to be desired. However, I think I will finish the series because I've heard it improves and I'd like to find out what happens.
Liz wrote: "Dara wrote: "Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will probably sta..."Yeah I would agree with Bella being whiny and naive.
Dorie wrote: "Shona, P.S. -- Did you hear Steven Spielberg is going to be directing Tropper's script for an update of the movie "Harvey"? "I hadn't heard that - that's definitely something to look forward to!
The other day, I received an advanced copy of Evil At Heart by Chelsea Cain. If you haven't read anything by her (and you like suspense), I would highly recommend reading her work. This is one of those books that keeps me up at night!
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Could it be that Coraline and Graveyard are YA books, where as Stardust is adult fiction? Just a thought. Not saying anything against YA, but it tends to be less heavy on the details and more story focused, imo....
Just finished The Picture of Dorian Gray, which was SO MUCH better than I thought it would be, and now on to The English Patient.
Just started The Post Birthday World by Lionel Shriver (a bit tough getting into and I'm not really sure why) and still reading When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris and also The Dive From Clausen's Pier by Ann Packer. Anyone have some thoughts on The Post Birthday World?
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Lori wrote: "Alisha wrote: "Stardust is one of my all-time favorite books. I've also read Coraline and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and I think Stardust trumps them all."Could it be that Coraline an..."
That could probably be it. Although, I do love YA books, I think I'd probably prefer Neil Gaiman's adult fiction rather than his YA. I feel that even though his YA does leave a lot to be desired, it hasn't put me off his writing. From now on though, I think I'll stick with his adult fiction.
Melissa wrote: "is it bad????"I actually liked Wuthering Heights more than I thought I would. I started reading it with the impression that it was going to be dragged out and boring. This of course was the wrong attitude, because, as the story progressed, I was pretty much absorbed into the story.
Bronte did an excellent job in developing her characters, especially Heathcliff. I liked how the plot spans over a lifetime, and how each of the characters changes under certain circumstances. I especially liked the second half of the book. I was afraid that I wouldn't like how the story would end, but the bittersweet ending was simply perfect.
The only flaws I can think of at the moment are the following (no spoilers):
-- Bronte names the children after the parents. So, it gets confusing and becomes hard to get the family tree straight with all the Catherine's and Linton's.
-- I didn't like how the story was told by Ellen Dean. It just seems unrealistic that she was in the corner of every room while every significant or personal event in the story unfolded. Also, she isn't very reliable, and there isn't much evidence that what she narrated was correct.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book. For me, it's one of the better classics. =)
I just started Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey. I like it so far, although it seems a bit slow going.
Lori wrote: "Alisha wrote: "Stardust is one of my all-time favorite books. I've also read Coraline and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and I think Stardust trumps them all."Could it be that Coraline an..."
I haven't read The Graveyard Book and am not too far into Stardust, but Coraline is definitely a fairly easy read, so that could well be it.
Just finished Diary by Chuck Palahniuk. I wasn't a huge fan of this book. I found the first half to be really dull. This is my first book of his, so I don't really know if I started with a good one. I've heard many great things about him so I might have to try a different book.Now on to The Dogs of Babel. This one has been on my shelf for over a year.
Jenna, I'm looking forward to hearing your opinion on The Dogs of Babel. There are a few of us who own it on her that have had it for a while and have still not picked it up.
I started reading "The Merchant of Venice", by Shakespeare.
Liz wrote: "Dara wrote: "Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will probably sta..."Liz, I disagree with you on your critique of Meyers writing. She writes for the YA genre. Read with the eyes of a teenager. She did not write the books for the discerning eyes of adult literary critics. It's a bit unfair to compare apples to oranges. I have read other YA novels and find her to be on par with her contemporaries. I think if she were to write like Faulkner or Joyce Carol Oats, teens would drop the book in a New York minute, bored to TEARS by page after descriptive page about the color of the leaves and the feel of the wind as Bella and Edward strolled through the woods. . .they have the attention span of gnats and Meyers streamlines her story to accomodate that factor. I found the sophomoric writing a nice break from heavier reading-I read all 4 novels in about 2 wks! I guess all I'm saying to Meyers critics is, remember that you're reading a great book written for teenagers and enjoy it for what it is!
Tara wrote: "Liz wrote: "Dara wrote: "Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will ..."I am no longer interested in books for YAs. I guess that is why I have never read those books. I must confess I did not read Harry Potter either. The genre has not appealed to me in the least.I know it is a loss for me,because everyone generally likes both Rowling and Meyers' formats.
I just started reading The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry about an Irish lady who is almost 100 years old and has spent most of her life in a mental institution.
SillySuzy wrote: "I just started reading The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry about an Irish lady who is almost 100 years old and has spent most of her life in a mental institution."I had started that but then needed to take it back to the library. It seems interesting and would love to get it again. I would love to hear what you think about it.
I finished The Time Traveler's Wife yesterday, and have started reading The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen.
I tried to start Prozac Nation but had to put it down for now. Too depressing. So I am biting the bullet and starting A Suitable Boy. I expect I will not surface for awhile lol. So send out a search party if you don't here from me hahahaha
Tara wrote: "Liz wrote: "Dara wrote: "Liz wrote: "I just finished Twilight, which I didn't care for much, although I will read the rest of the series at some point. I'm also in the middle of Stardust and will ..."I've read YA which I thougt has been more well written, but I'll agree to disagree. Also, when I say I didn't care for her writing style, I didn't mean that in comparison exclusively to classics or more adult literature, I included YA. I really wasn't trying to compare Twilight to anything else in my post, so I apologize if that was unclear. When I give it a bit more thought, I feel that I might be able to enjoy Meyer's writing with the use of a different narrator, so my dislike of Bella probably skewed my perception. I probably would have enjoyed it more at a younger age. I'm definitely willing to try The Host.
Also, Joyce Carol Oates did wrote one YA book entitled Big Mouth and Ugly Girl--I read that roughly at the age of 15 and remember enjoying it. However, I haven't read any other Oates, so that's not a fair comparison for me to make. Wehn I think of a writing style that's not really suited to teens I tend to think of Virginia Woolf, because I read To the Lighthouse in high shcool and it's one of my all time favorites, but other people I'd heard read it disliked it.
I've completed reading Cloud Atlas, a remarkable book. And I written a review Here.Now, after much effort, I've returned to Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami.
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The last thing I want is to set people up in arms over the YA genre....
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The Next Best Book Club
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I have been working on All the President's Men by Woodward and Bernstein. I saw the movie Frost/Nixon and that was all I knew about Watergate. I had no idea that was just a small part of the story. Very interesting.