The Next Best Book Club discussion
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What are you reading?
Still reading The Fountainhead. I like the story but am probably too old for the writing to have the same effect as it would have if I'd read this in my teens or early 20s. I'm enjoying it but will be happy when I get through this one.
Michelle wrote: "I'm now reading The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. This will be my first Amy Tan book and I hope it's good!I need help deciding which book to read out of my "recentl..."
I really enjoy Amy Tan's books and I hope you do, too! I think The Kitchen God's Wife is my favorite, but The Bonesetter's Daughter is also very good.
Petra X wrote: "The Last Jews of Kerala. Its not written by anyone Jewish or from a Jewish point of view, but from what its like to be the final handful of people, all past child-bearing years - of a group that ha..."This sounds like a very interesting book. I've put it on my TBR list. Thanks!!
Katie wrote: "I'm just starting The House at Riverton by Kate Morton."Katie, I really liked House at Riverton and I hope you do too!
Diane wrote: "Mary wrote: "Linda wrote: "Just finished South of Broad by Pat Conroy and really, really liked it. This is coming from a person who read Prince of Tides and gave up on Pat Conroy there and then. ..."Diane, I'm about a third of the way in to South of Broad and really liking it so at this point I'd say buy it but I'll post again when I've finished it.
I am currently reading The Glass Castle A Memoir and am finding myself so angry with her parents I can hardly continue. Anyone else have this experience?
Ann from S.C. wrote: "I am having a hard time with THE SHADOW OF TEH WIND. I have heard such great things about it, but it is just a little boring. Does it get better?"I read this a couple of weeks ago and had the same problem at first. It does get better and things start to fall into place about 100 pages or more in. I had a hard time with the language. Maybe something lost in the translation?
Jennifer wrote: "I am currently reading The Glass Castle A Memoir and am finding myself so angry with her parents I can hardly continue. Anyone else have this experience?"
I did with Mary Karr's The Liars' Club A Memoir. I don't think I could read Glass Castle...
EDIT to add: also with Finding Fish A Memoir -- both were excellent, but tough going.
I did with Mary Karr's The Liars' Club A Memoir. I don't think I could read Glass Castle...
EDIT to add: also with Finding Fish A Memoir -- both were excellent, but tough going.
Lori wrote: "Yay for Watership Down. I saw the film many many years ago and only read the book this year. I enjoyed both!"
I loved Watership Down and plan on doing a re-read of it soon. I didn't know there was a movie but I do vaguely remember an animated version.
Glad you're enjoying it, Sophie...
I LOVED "The Tea Rose". I need to get into "The Winter Rose" soon.
Mary wrote: "Diane wrote: "Mary wrote: "Linda wrote: "Just finished South of Broad by Pat Conroy and really, really liked it. This is coming from a person who read Prince of Tides and gave up on Pat Conroy th..."Take it from the "Pat Conroy sceptic" it does not disappoint. You know how sometimes you go through a book and all of a sudden it just seems the author runs out of gas? This one never did.
Linda wrote: "...You know how sometimes you go through a book and all of a sudden it just seems the author runs out of gas? ..."
I've had too many of those recently... and a few that didn't start with any gas at all. :-(
I've had too many of those recently... and a few that didn't start with any gas at all. :-(
Katie wrote: "I'm just starting The House at Riverton by Kate Morton."Ooh, Katie, let us know what you think of it - I loved The Forgotten Garden
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Jeane wrote: "Shary wrote: "Just finished Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris. Good book. I will definitely continue with the rest of the series. Next up: The Graveyard Book. "That was my first and only book wri..."
I'll let you know how the others are.
Linda wrote: "Mary wrote: "Diane wrote: "Mary wrote: "Linda wrote: "Just finished South of Broad by Pat Conroy and really, really liked it. This is coming from a person who read Prince of Tides and gave up on ..."Thanks Linda and Mary for the positive feedback. I guess I know what my next "splurge" will be.
Jennifer wrote: "I am currently reading The Glass Castle A Memoir and am finding myself so angry with her parents I can hardly continue. Anyone else have this experience?"YES, absolutely! By the time I finished, I thought her mother was worse of the two. Many times I wanted to throw the book across the room I was so angry with them.
Diane wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "I am currently reading The Glass Castle A Memoir and am finding myself so angry with her parents I can hardly continue. Anyone else have this experience?"YES, abs..."
So glad I'm not alone, Diane. I, too, feel that the mother is the more frustrating of the two! At least her dad, when he wasn't totally drunk, was interactive and seemed genuinely interested in her life and interested in wanting to make an impact. Her mom just seemed totally selfish.
I started "The Remedy", by Michelle Lovric.
I LOVED "The Tea Rose". I need to get into "The Winter Rose" soon.
*whispers* The author's having a live chat thingy in the Wild Things group...
Oh shoot, I missed it!
I totally gave up on "The Garden" after 100 pages. It was just too out there for me and imho verged on being sacraligious. I'm not the most religious person out there but it was just too much for me. I'm now reading "The Help".
Just finished The Time Traveler's Wife (which I am now in love with!) and about to start A Place Called Here.
So I changed my mind... instead of starting She's Come Undone I started M.J. Hyland's How The Light Gets In!
WOW okay Donna, I am almost done Tallgrass and can't wait to finish it.
Katie and all. I am really looking forward to reading House at Riverton thanks for helping me look forward to it.
Mary, Jennifer, BJ Rose, Diane and anyone else I missed. The Glass Castle bothered me on so many levels, I am surprised I finished the book. However looking back on it and using my small knowledge of mental illness and disease, it is clear to me that the mother was mentally ill (perhaps bipolar) and the father was an alcoholic. To me it was one of the those books where you knew it was going to get worse. We all are given challenges to overcome. Some are pretty significant - like the parents they had. I certainly acknowledge that neither parent was the best parent. Now having said all that = what I took from the book is the strength and courage that the children had. How they dragged themselves away (it would have been easier not to) and made a better life for themselves and each other. That was the redeeming feature and what made me stand up and cheer. They were able to understand their parent were not someone they could save and they did not need to emulate. I also think (at the risk of lynching) that the parents did instill some positive qualities and care and love with the children.
Carol - so what do you think about Edgar Sawtelle???
Amanda wrote: "Just finished The Time Traveler's Wife (which I am now in love with!) and about to start A Place Called Here. Let me know what you think of "A Place Called Here", Amanda. I listened to it not long ago.
I started reading Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson. I am enjoying it so far. It is neat reading a YA book from a male teenage perspective.
I just finished The Help (wonderful book!) - Now I'm reading What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman. I believe it's a re-release. It's pretty good so far...
Melissa wrote: "I just finished The Help (wonderful book!) - Now I'm reading What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman. I believe it's a re-release. It's pretty good so far...Glad to see you liked "The Help". I'm just starting it and really liking it so far.
I won't spoil it, but I loved the characters, and the story line was something I was very interested in. I learned a lot from this book:-)
I just finished Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and am starting The Lacquer Lady by F. Tennyson Jesse. She is the great niece of Tennyson, Lord Alfred. I am very excited to read this book and quite looking forward to it!
Jennifer wrote: "I am currently reading The Glass Castle A Memoir and am finding myself so angry with her parents I can hardly continue. Anyone else have this experience?"Yes, Jennifer, I had the exact same experience! (I just read it a few weeks ago.) I'm glad I finished it, but I had to put it aside several times for a little while just to stop fuming!
I read it, too, but don't remember how much I liked/disliked it...Now I wish I could!
Just finished How The Light Gets In by M.J. Hyland! Starting Bowery Girl by Kim Taylor!
Marti wrote: "Carol - so what do you think about Edgar Sawtelle???"
I'll pipe in: I loved the way it started (description of small farm life and Edgar's "handicap") and then it lost me in the middle when it started talking about the philosophy of dogs and training. I tried to skim through that and get to the story, but I realized that I didn't really want to know about Claude... what did you think?
I'll pipe in: I loved the way it started (description of small farm life and Edgar's "handicap") and then it lost me in the middle when it started talking about the philosophy of dogs and training. I tried to skim through that and get to the story, but I realized that I didn't really want to know about Claude... what did you think?
Paula wrote: "I totally gave up on "The Garden" after 100 pages. It was just too out there for me and imho verged on being sacraligious. I'm not the most religious person out there but it was just too much for ..."Paula: I read The Help recently and loved it. Everyone I have lent it to loved it and there is so much to discuss on this one with my friends. Enjoy.
It's been a while since I've been on here. Now that Fall has come I'll be able to be around more. Well, I finished Coffin County by Gary A. Braunbeck and it was great! Now I'm reading The Birthing House by Christopher Ransom and I'm sooo disappointed in it. It sounded like such a cool idea but it's just painful to read.
Now I'm reading "The Constant Princess" by Philippa Gregory.
I almost gave up on "Outlander" also. It started getting much better when she traveled from 1945 to 1745. It turned out to be a great book. I was a bit upset with the second book but you'll have to give me your opinion of it after you read it.
Finished The Bloody White Baron last night and had to drag myself through it. I thought it woudl be interesting - the story of a crazy Russian who managed to take over Mongolia in the early 20th century to the point where he was considered a god. It was the story of how he was a sadistic, egomaniac who loved torturing his underlings in the military and regular civilians. Generally, I really like history, but this was painful (no pun intended) to get through. I can't decide if it was just a boring topic after all, or the author is a boring writer. Probably a little bit of both.Oh well. Needed something fast-paced to pick me up, so I have just started John Lutz's In for the Kill
Linda wrote: "Paula wrote: "I totally gave up on "The Garden" after 100 pages. It was just too out there for me and imho verged on being sacraligious. I'm not the most religious person out there but it was just...Thanks Linda. I made it to a little over 50 pages last night before falling asleep. I am really enjoying the story so far and hope to have more reading time today.
Just finished The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. I gave it three stars. I know a lot of you really liked it, but it was just a little to young for me, I think. Anyway - on to Little Women.
Just finished CityBoy by Geraint Anderson. I had picked it up a while back, but being about the current global downturn, it's depressing subject made me put it down.It was definately a good read. Set in London's golden business district, it is an autobiographical tale of how a young banker saw the economy gradually melt, and how it could have been avoided. It made me realise how materialism has jeopordised our youngsters futures.
Will be reading something a lot lighter next!
I just started Push by Sapphire. It is about an illiterate girl growing up in Harlem who gets pregnant by her father twice!!! A lot of crude language but the first paragraph had me hooked.
Pamela wrote: "Now I'm reading "The Constant Princess" by Philippa Gregory. "Pamela, I read 3 or 4 other of the "Queen" books but The Constant Princess I just could not get into and gave up at about page 20. Maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance. How are you doing with it?
Marti wrote: "WOW okay Donna, I am almost done Tallgrass and can't wait to finish it.
Katie and all. I am really looking forward to reading House at Riverton thanks for helping me look forward to it.
Mary, ..."
Marti - I think your analogy of the "redeeming qualities" of the book were perfect. I was shocked that except for the youngest daughter, the children were able to really grow up and make a positive life for themselves. Also, I don't recall them ever harboring negative feelings about either parent (I read it about 2 years ago).
Jessica wrote: "I'm about halfway through Like Water for Chocolate and really liking it."I love this book and the movie!
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Anyhow, totally worth grabbing if you can get your hands on it. I believe Lance is selling them on his website, but check it out to be sure!
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The Next Best Book Club
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I need help deciding which book to read out of my "recentl..."
The Bonesetter's Daughter was the first Amy Tan I read and I loved it. I also enjoyed the Kitchen God's Wife and the Joy Luck Club is in my TBR.
(I so wanted to read this book so my Mum borrowed it from a friend. Then she foolishly left it on a low shelf and their 'Mad Mutt' nicely serrated all the edges. The friend kindly said there was no need to buy a replacement and luckily the naw marks and dog slobber have not rendered the pages illegible!)