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FA11 Reading w/Style Completed Tasks - Fall 2011
Denae wrote: "+150 Back to School Completion Bonus"Yippee!! Good job!
20.9 Reading with IMPACThe Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Highly recommended! This book was just fun, pure and simple. It was the kind of book that makes you feel smart just for choosing to read it, and included because you get to share in the lives of the people in the story.
The two primary characters, who share narrating duty, are an apartment building (for the rich) concierge named Renee, and one of the tenant's children, a precocious pre-teen named Paloma. Both spend an exorbitant amount of time hiding their intelligence from others, but it ends up getting the best of them.
Paloma is someone any avid reader could probably identify with from their childhood days, and Renee - well, we are all either a Renee or know someone who is; that person who is gruff and unapproachable from the oustide, but just spend 2 minutes with them, and it's a whole new world.
I was not a fan of the ending, however. It felt too... Jodi Picoult-esque (and I can't emphasize enough how little I think of JP). Setting aside the ending, I had a hard time putting this book down, and my first thought after finishing it was... 'who can I give this to?'
+20 task
+10 review
+10 translation (original is in French, read in English)
+10 combo (20.5, 10.2)
Grand Total = 995 + 50 task = 1,045
(only 3 more books to add/review!)
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Denae wrote: "+150 Back to School Completion Bonus"Yippee!! Good job!"
Thank you!
Since I won't finish all the RwS tasks this round, I'm going to shift the 10-point tasks up to 20-point tasks where possible.In Post #310, I claimed Girls of Riyadh for 10.7. I'd like to move it to 20.4 instead.
In Post #332, I claimed The Girl Who Fell from the Sky for 10.8. I'd like to move it to 20.5 instead.
20.5 They Read
The Peach Keeper
I've enjoyed Allen's other novels even though all of them are quite light. But the clever magic that made the other novels tolerable is lacking here. There are illusions to a devil or devilish man who carries the scent of peaches and attracts birds and continues to manifest long after his death. But it never felt magical -- just predictable.
The story traces the lives of several thirty-year-olds who are trying to figure out where they belong as adults. But the preaching about the importance of love and friendship wore thin quickly. And the plot was just silly. To make a love story work, one of the characters (view spoiler) Ugh.
Read one of Allen's other books instead.
+20 Task
+10 Review
New points this post: 30 + 10 + 10 = 50
Grand total: 660
10.1 List LoversWorking on the 2006 1001 Books to Read Before you Die
White Noise by Don DeLillo
+10 Task
+5 Oldies (1985)
10.2 Highly Rated
The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
+10 Task
10.6 Fall Freebies (3rd book)
The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
+10 Task
20.4 We Read
Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn
+20 Task
+5 Combo (10.2)
Back to School Pt 2
15.4 World Literature Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe
+15 Task
+5 Oldies (1964)
Post Total: 80
Season Total: 1560
BtS 15.5 History Catherine: The Great Journey, Russia 1743 by Kristiana GregoryTask +15
Grand Total: 400
20.5 They readYour Republic Is Calling You by Young-ha Kim
Review: Different and interesting! Young-ha Kim tells the story of a Seoul, Korea family-husband, wife and teen daughter-over a 24 hour period. Each chapter is an hour of the day. Unbeknownst to his family, the father/husband is a spy from North Korea. At the time of the story he has spent half of his life in the north and half in the south. On this day, after 10 years of silence, he receives an order from his handlers to return to Pyongyang. As he tries to figure out why and debates whether to go or not, we see his ideological struggle and his trying to determine which is the safer course for his family. A very interesting and different conflict.
I read an English translation of the original that was written in Korean and the copy of the book that I have is an advance reading copy. Some of the language is awkward and abrupt. I don't know if that is due to the translation or if it was improved in the final published edition.
Task: 20
Review: 10
Translation: 10
Task total: 40
Previous total: 305
New Total: 345
Denae wrote: "Rebekah wrote: "Kate S wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Kate S wrote: "10.7 Muslim Mind SetThe Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by
+10 Task
+5 Oldies (pub 1966)
+5 Combo (20.1)
..."
Thi..."
Ok I have to read it then. it sounds fun!
10.2 – Highly-ratedI read Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris
Deedee gave it 5 Stars. I only gave it 3 stars. It was not one of my favourite Charlaine Harris novels. I don't know if I am going to complete the series.
+10 Task
Total Task: 10
New Grand Total: 245
Yeah! Tonight's bedtime read with my kids finished the last chapter. Now I am a mega!BtS 15.3 (American for me) Lit
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
+15 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Oldies (1961)
20 pts - Task Total
+100 - BtS completion
1070 pts - Grand Total
Rebekah wrote: "Yeah! Tonight's bedtime read with my kids finished the last chapter. Now I am a mega!"A hearty congratulations!!!!
20.1 I ReadThe Trouble With Islam Today: A Muslim's Call for Reform in Her Faith by Irshad Manji
Review
Irshad Manji is a brave woman. Her book is an open letter to all Muslims demanding an explanation and accountability for allowing what has become custom rather than true spiritual faith to dominate her religion today. She asserts what she calls “Foundermentalism” is truly Saudi Arabian colonization imposed upon all Muslims in other countries as they were converted to the Islamic Faith. She holds that many of the tenets of Shira Law are nothing more than tribal culture of archaic Arabian beliefs and has nothing to do with the actual faith. Like Europeans who colonized new lands by sending missionaries first to convert the natives to Christianity for the good of the crown rather than for the good of the original peoples , so did Saudi Arabia with Islamic countries from Turkey to Pakistan to Indonesia. This book is a wake-up call to modern educated Muslims to engage in “Ijtihad” which is a form of Jihad opposite of current Fundamental Islamic practice. It is rather to entreat its people to spread education, enlightenment and to “throw off” the old irrelevant traditions that allow a trampling of human rights especially for women and those who dare to disagree with the mullahs. She obtains credibility not only with her direct, blunt questioning . She’s included a forward to her book from a leading religious leader in the USA who teaches Islamic studies in San Diego. Although his Muslim sensibilities are shaken by the fact she is a Lesbian, he still is fair and objective enough to agree she has a point and that right now Islam’s worse enemies are Muslims themselves. I highly recommend this book.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.7 Moslem Mindset,20.4 We Read)
+10 pts - Review
40 pts - Task total
1110 pts - Grand Total
10.6 Fall FreebieA Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
Review
Flavia du Luce rides again! On faithful Gladys (her bicycle), she gets into more mischief and into life-threatening situations, still entertaining us with her quirky, random and chemical thoughts. I was a little let down by the end and don’t want to give a spoiler, but Bradley still manages to keep this intrepid character fresh and although not exactly charming, still a character that a reader can love. This installment in the series involves gypsies, a long-missing child, one murder attempt, one death by lobster fork, a strange underground religion and abandoned water works. Have I got you wanting to know what in the dickens is going on with this child?
+10 - Task
+ 5 - Combo(20.1 I read)
+10 - Review
25 pts - task Total
1135 - Grand Total
Rebekah wrote: "Yeah! Now I am a mega!..."Woooohooo! Congratulations!
Now let's make sure your points are properly mega, as well.
965 previous total
+20 15.3
+150 BtS finish
+200 mega finish
1335 Grand Total
10.1 List Lovers - Gone with the Wind by Margaret MitchellI'm using the GR BBC 100 list which can be found here:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
My first attempt at a roll gave me a number for something I'd already read then I rolled a 21 so it was finally my push to read this book.
Let me preface this review by saying I've never read this yet or seen the movie!
I’m not sure what I can say about this book that hasn’t already been said. I will say the first 150 pages or so were very slow moving for me and about halfway through I wondered if the reason Mitchell made this such a long novel was to give the reader an idea of just how long the war was for those involved in it because it sure did seem to go on forever!
Being from Canada, I sure don’t know a lot about this period in American history and I learnt a few new words along the way. I have a desire now to take some American history courses so I can understand some things better. A few words that came to my mind during the reading of this novel: selfish, spoiled, conceited, aghast, hard working, inconsiderate, unforgiving, miscommunication and a whole host of others.
In the end, I’m sure glad that I finally took the time to read this classic, and a classic it is to be sure! I thoroughly enjoyed the story even if I didn’t always understand the time it was set in.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+5 Oldies (published 1936)
+25 Jumbo (my kindle edition was 1448 pages)
+5 Combo (10.2 - Rebekah gave it 5 stars)
Task Total=55
Grand Total=375
Now let's see if I've scored this correctly as I seem to be having some issues with that this challenge! :-)
20.5 They Read Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens 5 starsOh, Mr. Dickens, I left your side for too long! This may not have been well-received when first published, but it found me reading and reading and looking forward to reading some more.
There are plenty of characters and sub-plots. There are the nefarious and uneducated poor, and there are the upstanding and uneducated poor. Dickens throws in a few unfeeling rich, and a few rich who have a sense of justice. For all of Dickens being accused ot anti-semitism, there is a good Jew. Throw in plots that include a murder, an unusual will, greed, and a love story (or two?). Stir the pot.
Dickens had a few names that made me laugh out loud (though he's not as good as Trollope at this.) How about some superficial rich people named Veneering? Or a fellow whose nickname is Gaffer and who makes his living redeeming trash from the river? Or a school headmaster named Headstone?
Looking forward to some more Dickens! The reading adventure just gets better!
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Oldie (pub 1865)
+15 Jumbo (880 pages)
Task Total = 55
Grand Total = 455
Liz M wrote: "Rebekah wrote: "Yeah! Now I am a mega!..."Woooohooo! Congratulations!
Now let's make sure your points are properly mega, as well.
965 previous total
+20 15.3
+150 BtS finish
+200 mega finish
1..."
Thanks, Liz! I couldn't remember if the 200 represented the total mega value or if it was in addition to the points earned for indiviual challenge completions.
oh and Happy Thanksgiving!
20.9 IMPAC Swallows of Kabul by Yasmina KhadraA small book with a lot of impact. A psychological study on how such a cruel and merciless government can drive men and women to desperate acts. In a society in which survival is such and over whelming burden, with no relief as anything as pleasurable as music or laughter in public is banned, how can anyone keep their sanity? The pillaging of human rights, where life is cheaper than breathing air, the renunciation of all that is humane can lead to strange actions by survivors, straining their personalities but also when you least expect it a revival of human spirit leading to compassion and ultimately to altruistic sacrifices for human happiness. This is a five star book.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo(10.7muslim mindset, 10.2 highly rated by Karen GHHS & Joanna)
+10 pts - LiT
+10 pts - Review
50 pts - Task total
1385 pts - Grand Total
10.6 Fall Freebie #3Soul Identity by Dennis Batchelder
Review
An interesting concept, especially for those who believe in reincarnation. Why not leave your wealth to yourself when you die? And how will anyone know you are who you are supposed to be when you re-claim your inheritance? By the windows to your soul of course. Your eyes. With high tech technology, your individual eye marks are obtained. No one matches them except the one soul. The print is not repeated with anyone else on earth until after you die. Therefore the repeat of a unique soul print can only be the person who had it before they died. It is a little complicated. This society has been existence for hundreds of years. Before technology, each soul identity was once drawn by hand. This does lead to some conundrums, lost souls and a way to regain someone else’s soul inheritance with all this new technology. I think I’m making this review too laborious but the bottom line, it’s good. I immediately bought the second book in the series.
+10 pts - Task
+10 pts - Review
20 pts - Task Total
1405 pts - Grand total
Task 20.6 Unreliable Narration: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey; Publ Feb 1, 1962 (On my 2nd Birthday!) Review:
What a spectacular book! I watched snippets of the movie as a kid, and was put off by the whole story. That was such a shame. I'm glad I finally read it. (Thanks again to Reading with Style!) The story was just so compelling and the characters finely drawn.
It's a story set in an Oregon mental institution, but the truly crazy people aren't the usual suspects.
“Chief” Bromden narrates the story and interleaves what he sees happening on the mental ward with memories of what it was like growing up Native American along Oregon’s Columbia River before the big dams were built on the river. The Chief is certainly an unreliable narrator in some areas, but we get the sense that he is correct in his telling of the gist of the story.
From the first day that Randall P McMurphy sauntered onto the ward, everything was turned upside down. His goliath battle of wills with “The Big Nurse”; and his treatment of his fellow wardmates are told through the Chief’s observations.
This really was a stunning book. If I hadn’t already made my Group Reads selection before I finished this book, I would have selected this book instead of “Something Wicked This Way Comes”. I guess there’s always the Group Reads selection next quarter.
Task Points:
+20 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo (10.2, Liz and others;
+ 5 Oldies (1962)
Task Total = 40
Grand Total = 140
Krista wrote: "Task 20.6 Unreliable Narration: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey; Publ Feb 1, 1962 (On my 2nd Birthday!) 10 Combo (10.2, Liz and others; 10.4 Native Reading -- Not 100% sure this qualifies for 10.4, but thought I'd include it and get a ruling)
..."
I looked at his genealogy online and there is no native heritage on his father's side for at least 2 generations. Apparently his mother is still living, and that information remains private.
Task 20.5 - They Read: A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer EganReview:
I listened to this book in audio format, and that might not have done it justice since there was a PowerPoint presentation in one section, and footnotes in another. This book was a set of lightly interlocked short stories. Some of the stories I liked, some were okay and a couple I really disliked. I skipped through a lot of story about the "journalist" who attempted to rape the young Hollywood starlet. Even before we got to that part of the story, the narration by the journalist was SO annoying.
I cared about some of the characters and storylines, but not as much as I'd hoped. I only gave this book two stars.
+20 Task
+10 Combo (10.2, Amy W; 10.10)
+10 Review
Task Total = 40
Grand Total = 180
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Krista wrote: "Task 20.6 Unreliable Narration: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey; Publ Feb 1, 1962 (On my 2nd Birthday!) 10 Combo (10.2, Liz and others;..."
Tobey wrote: "10.1 List Lovers - Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
I'm using the GR BBC 100 list which can be found here:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1......"
Okey doke -- I think I misundertood task 10.4. I thought it could be written by, or be about a Native American. My bad. I'll edit my points posting.
Thanks Elizabeth!
Krista wrote: "Okey doke -- I think I misundertood task 10.4. I thought it could be written by, or be about a Native American. My bad. I'll edit my points posting.."And maybe I forgot the "about" part of the task. Liz will probably be more literal here, and I'll keep my fingers crossed.
Back to School15.5 - Government: Betrayal of Trust by J.A. Jance (Police detectives investigate teen murder/suicide at the Governor's mansion. Legal system and elected officials)
+15 Task
Task Total = 15
15.6 - Economics: The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis
+15 Task
+ 5 Non-Fiction
Task Total = 20
Post Total = 35
Grand Total = 215
20.5 – They readSapphique by Catherine Fisher 570 Lexile
Incarceron is a prison that has a life of its own. It is difficult to write a review of Sapphique that doesn’t spoil Incarceron for those who haven’t read it. The premise is so unique, and so many mysteries are explored and revealed in the first book that effect the action in the second book, that the separation of the two stories is almost impossible. The characters, Finn, Claudia, Attia and Keiro have many challenges to meet inside and outside the prison, and the story alternates between the two settings complete with cliffhangers at the ends of most of those alternating chapters. Occassionally, I found myself a little overwhelmed by all of the details of the two very different worlds, but overall it’s a great series.
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
20.5 – They read
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
I have to admit that although I liked this book and was able to give it 4 stars, it took me the three months of the challenge to get through it. I think I learned by reading the second half of the book without setting it aside to read other shorter works in between that it is a book that should be read that way. There are a lot of main characters and points of view and I found it difficult to have the different threads of the story interrupted for such a long stretch between chapters even when I was putting my full concentration into the book. I found myself more engaged in some of the story lines than others as well. I know many readers love these books and so perhaps my expectations were just too high. I was bothered by some aspects of the writing as well, but had to keep in mind that it was the first of the series. I was bothered by the spelling of "ser". It just seemed an unnecessary change and I kept thinking I should be pronouncing it differently than the usual spelling "sir". I know that's just being picky, but it really bothered me. There were some other inconsistencies, too, that jumped out at me. Sometimes a slang term was used that struck me as modern and something that didn't fit with the usual way the characters spoke. I will probably continue with the series at some point, especially to find out what happens to Dany. Her storyline was my favorite in the book. I also liked the way George R. R. Martin took the point of view of each character (3rd person limited again) making me struggle with my own allegiances throughout. The more I write, the more parts I remember that I really enjoyed, so all in all, it was worth the effort!
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo: 10.2 Highly Rated/ 20.3 He/She Reads
+15 Jumbo (835 pages)
Task Total: 55
20.6 – Unreliable Narration
I Am the Cheese by Robert Cormier 810 Lexile
Robert Cormier was one of the first masters of "darker" and literary writing for young adults. I Am the Cheese was written in 1977 and although dated in some ways, the intrigue of Adam's quest to figure out his past still stands keeping the reader turning the pages. Two stories are unfolding throughout the book. Adam is being interviewed by someone who appears to be a doctor at some kind of hospital or institution and Adam is on a journey by bicycle from his current home to Vermont with a package for his father. As you read, however, you wonder more and more what is really going on in both stories and what truth will be told. Cormier keeps you guessing as does Adam until the end. One of my favorite authors again writes a powerful and engaging story.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo 20.1 I read
+ 5 Oldies (1977)
Task Total: 40
Points this Post: 115
Grand Total: 1855
Krista wrote: "Task 20.6 Unreliable Narration: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey; Publ Feb 1, 1962 (On my 2nd Birthday!) Review:
What a spectacular book! I watched..."
The task does include "about Native Americans" and the narrator for thsi novel is Native-American Chief Bromden. I'll accept it.
Task 10.7 Muslim mindset City of Veils: A Novel by Zoë Ferraris
Task points 10
+5 combo (20.5 They read)
Task total 15
Total points 930
And according to my figures that is a wrap!
+100 RwS finish
+200 Mega finish
Grand total 1230 points
And now I am free to get serious about this great looking winter challenge!
Task points 10
+5 combo (20.5 They read)
Task total 15
Total points 930
And according to my figures that is a wrap!
+100 RwS finish
+200 Mega finish
Grand total 1230 points
And now I am free to get serious about this great looking winter challenge!
nsfancy wrote: "And according to my figures that is a wrap!+100 RwS finish
+200 Mega finish"
Congratulations!
Liz M wrote: "Krista wrote: "Task 20.6 Unreliable Narration: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey; Publ Feb 1, 1962 (On my 2nd Birthday!) Review:
What a spectacular book..."
Okay thanks! Would you rather that I edited my original post for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' to include the Combo points again -- or do you want to to that when posting the points?
Or -- see the message below --- I've added the 5 points in the new new Completed Task message I just posted.
Task 20.8 - It Ain't Over: The Turn of the Screw by Henry James Publ 1898.Review:
It's sometimes hard to imagine how thrilling book this must have been when it was first published in 1898. We're now so thoroughly satured with horror concepts and ever wilder paranormal plotlines that this story almost seems quaint. But I think that when it was first published it must have been extremely creepy and cutting edge.
I can't decide of the governess was really an unreliable narrator. Was she crazy, or were the kids crazy? Were there really ghosts? -- Did the secluded setting drive the governess crazy? Or did the kids and their antics push her over the edge?
Now I'm curious to see this performed in it's operatic format! I only gave this 2 stars, but I think that's mainly because the story didn't seem all that fresh to me.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+20 Combo (10.2, 10.5, 20.6, 20.10)
+10 Oldies (1898)
Task Total = 60
+ 5 Combo Points from 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest originally posted in Msg 572.
Grand Total = 280
Task 20.10 ASam's Mosnterfest III (#5 on the Gothic Novels and Ghost Stories Goodreads' list): The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Tales of Terror by Robert Louis StevensonReview:
It's hard to be thrilled by a thriller when you already know the premise, and the eventual outcome. But in spite of that, this book was worth the time invested to read it. It wasn't bit investment since the book is so short. But now I know what REALLY happened (as much as the author let's us know what happened) to Dr Jekyll.
The real question probably is how much of our "Mr Hyde" will any of us allow to have free rein at any time one time? It really is an interesting question. If you let your evil side rule just a little, just once in awhile -- will it eventually take over all aspects of your life?
+20 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo (10.2, Drew)
+10 Oldies (Publ 1886)
Task Total = 45
Grand Total = 325
If you want an answer to your question Krista, I think we need to acknowledge our evil sides but not give into them. If you get Evil an inch, he will take a mile. However completely denying we have an evil side is just as harmful. So you need to find acceptance and balance.
Task 10.6 Fall Freebies (2nd Freebie read): The Art of Fielding by Chad HarbachReview:
This book review was originally written for and published on the LuxuryReading.com book review website.
--------------------------
The college years are usually full of angst, longing, uncertainty and growth. The main characters in Chad Harbach’s debut novel, “The Art of Fielding” experience all sorts of conflicting emotions and life experiences as they each struggle to define who they are within the small rural Wisconsin campus of Westish College; and who they will become when they leave college. This book has been billed as a baseball story. There are plenty of pages devoted to the discussion of baseball philosophy (the Zen of Baseball if you will) and lots of descriptions of baseball games. For those of you who aren’t baseball fans or who normally shy away from sports centered books I’d suggest that step up and (ahem) take a swing at this book anyway. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
To me this story was reminiscent of John Irving’s, “A Prayer for Owen Meany” or David James Duncan’s “The Brothers K”. Like “The Art of Fielding”, both of these books had strong baseball themes; and like “The Art of Fielding”, they were both about so much more than baseball. At more than 500 pages, Harbach has given himself a broad enough canvas to also be able to throw in some Herman Melville history and other 19th century poets and philosophers. Guert Affenlight, the current Westish College President became a Melville scholar and changed his intended career because of a discovery about Melville that he made as a Westish undergrad. The Westish teams are called the “Harpooners” and Melville is a symbolic mascot for the campus.
The story centers around five main characters. Henry Skrimshander is the phenom short-stop recruited by Mike Schwartz who is himself still just a sophomore at Westish when the story opens. Schwartz is a motivator and mentor to his teammates, but he has higher aspirations for his life than just coaching. Owen Dunne is Henry’s erudite gay roommate who also happens to be an exceptional batter on the Westish baseball team. Pella, Guert’s daughter, arrives back in Wisconsin the day that Henry makes his first ever throwing error. Owen is seriously injured and hospitalized by the throw. Guert is so preoccupied by his unexpected obsession with Owen that he barely has time to acknowledge that his daughter has fled back to him, leaving her depressing marriage behind in San Francisco.
How all the characters react to the consequences of that one errant throw propel the story arc for the remaining bulk of the book. If the story seems overly tinged with soap opera angst the fault lies with my abridged retelling of the bare plotlines. The book feels lively and character driven as Harbach takes his time to tease out the nuances of the story. Overall, I thought Harbach only copped out with the resolution of the relationship between Guert and Owen. Otherwise this memorable story about friendship and coming of age reminded me how tough it was to work through all the issues the college years presented.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Jumbo (512 pages)
Task Total = 25
Grand Total = 350
Wow, Krista is on fire today.
I thought that I'd better get these posted before time totally ran out. I always pleaded with folks not to wait until the last minute to post the books read during the challenge when I was keeping score. Liz --- please accept my apologies! I'm guilty of doing just that this quarter. I have 4 or 5 more books to post, but I think I'm done for today.
20.5 They ReadDearly, Departed by Lia Habel
*
Yeah...this was definitely not my thing. Both facepalmed and hoity-toity should not be in the same book. "Extra sparkly unicorn fart kind of special" also made an appearance. I use these to illustrate one of the most annoying aspects of the book; the bizarre swings between quasi-Victorian language and contemporary youthful slang. I also found the characters flat and, honestly, the basic premise of girl on zombie kind of grossed me out. I think I can quite definitely say that I will not be reading anything additional by Lia Habel. (Oh yes, did I mention that the series is named Gone With the Respiration. Seriously.)
+20 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 30
20.2 You Read
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
*****
Incredible. Parts of "How to Tell a True War Story" come to mind regularly. I love Tim O'Brien's writing. Those were the three things I had to say about The Things They Carried when I initially "reviewed" this book. I hold to all of those. This is my third reading and I found the book even better than it was eleven years ago. "How to Tell a True War Story" has probably influenced my views on writing and literature more than anything else I have ever read. There is a beautiful clarity and painful honesty that permeates this book. I can't say enough good things about it.
+20 Task (on Wikipedia page listed in task)
+5 Combo (10.2 Highly-rated)
+5 Combo (10.3 Meta-reading: frequently switches into discussions of writing and storytelling)
+10 Review
Task Total: 40
Post Total: 70
Grand Total: 1535
Denae wrote: "20.2 You ReadThe Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien..."
+5 combo (10.5 - Sebastian Junger)
Task 10.2 - Highly Rated (5 Stars from Donna Jo): The Moon Is Down by John Steinbeck Publ 1942Review:
I came across this title in my little local Thrift Shop. It was title by Steinbeck that I've never heard of. The introduction to the book which gives the background and commentary/criticism is almost longer than the little novella. This book was written by Steinbeck as propaganda during WWII. It was rejected several times because it just didn't paint the occupation forces with a black enough brush. He showed that there were human beings involved on both sides, and thus he highlighted the futility of war.
The story is about a fictional Northern European country that is overrun by an opposing army one day. The opposing army thinks that by winning the invasion, they’ve won the war. But they soon learn to their detriment, that the invasion is only the beginning of the conflict.
It’s written in a style that is easily adaptable to the stage. It almost reads like a stage play and was put on as an underground play in Denmark during WWII. I gave it 5 stars because I thought that the story is universal and still holds true today.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Oldies
Task Total = 25
Task 10.5 Bedtime Stories (Beth Harbison's list): Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie
Review:
I gave this book 4 stars. But now maybe thinking about it again, that's probably one too many stars for this romance book. It was pretty funny in spots, especially about the exorcism plotline. The book centers around a creepy house that was moved to the outback of Ohio stone by stone from England.
Apparently the resident ghosts made the journey with the house and are continuing to bedevil the orphan children and their atrocious housekeeper to this day. The story is about how the ex-wife of the children's uncle is sent down to castle to help get the kids ready to move. Of course the romance between Andi (the ex-wife) and North (the kid's uncle) is rekindled in the midst of all the ghost stories.
Eventually all's well that ends well, but the ride was certainly a bumpy one.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total = 20
Task 20.4 - We Read: Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith
Review:
This book is told as a series of letters that Ivy Rowe writes to various people throughout her lifetime. It’s set in the very rural mountains of Virginia. It spans from early 1900’s through to the late 1970’s. I so enjoyed Ivy’s voice and her honest depiction of the things that went on around her, including her own decisions with their accompanying consequences. Ivy is a country girl that doesn’t flinch at the truth. That often gets her in trouble, but she plows ahead in her own inimitable style.
This book reminded me how much has changed technologically from the early 1900’s to today. I gave it 5 stars because the story was so charming, and I’m a sucker for a strong pluck heroine. (Although Ivy would NEVER have described herself as a heroine.)
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.2, Donna Jo; 10.5, Sarah Dessen)
Task Total = 40
Task 20.10 Sam's Monsterfest III: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury Publ 1962
Review:
What a fantastic book! I was stunned by all the extraordinary descriptions and creative phrasing used throughout the book. The story is so imaginative. One of my favorite descriptions that still sticks with me was, "She was as cold as an albino frog." She wasn’t just cold as a frog, but cold as an albino frog – which must be so much colder than a regular frog. There are so many examples of these stunning turns of phrase. I was pulled along by the narrative and captivated by the descriptions.
Why did I wait so long to read this book? Thanks again to the Reading w/Style challenge to pull me out of my comfort zone. I’m not a big sci-fi or horror fan, but Sam’s recent challenges have stretched my reading genres and allowed me to find this gem. While the storyline was rather creepy and often fantastical, the language and phrasing were astounding. It was an incredible coming-of-age story.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.2, Rebekah; 20.5)
+ 5 Oldies (Publ 1962)
Task Total = 45
Grand Total = 480
20.7 The War to End All WarsThe Ghost Road by Pat Barker
Review
The narration of this Booker prize novel of about WWI is difficult to categorize. There are actually two main characters. Both are officers. One is the medical officer and psychiatrist, Dr Rivers and the second is Billy Prior. At the beginning their paths cross as Prior is a patient of Dr Rivers in the military psychiatric facility. Billy suffers from both asthma and shell shock and is determined to return to the fighting in France. Through his first person daily entries in his journal we learn about his homosexual encounters beginning with the local priest as a child and continues with a small circle of army comrades and chance encounters as he returns to the front. He also has a fiancé with whom he is sexually active and whom he may or may not love and has been to female prostitutes as well. This singualt thoughts are recorded here. This whole side of the war shows the total depredation of war, the loss of morals and the wasted loss of young life. Yet, is Prior a reliable narrator in view of his psychiatric illness? Dr Rivers makes a counterpoint to the story although his narrative is told in third person. He is interested and concerned for his patients and reserves judgment. When he is stationed at a tropical island for behind the lines care of soldiers in that part of the war theater, he is concerned with the natives and goes to much trouble to learn their customs and language. This book is quite depressing as most books of war are as it tries to get into the heads of the ones who lived it.
+20 pts - Task
+20 pts - Combos(20.1 I read, 20.4 We read, 20,5, They read, 20.10 moster fest 2)
+10 pts - Review
50 pts - Task total
1455 pts - grand Total
20.10 MonsterFestThe Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells
Review
The Island of Dr Moreau was written in 1896. This era was “wondrous Strange” as scientific thought boomed, modernizing of factories, an explosion of invention, evolution and better understanding of the human body defined the times and is reflected in HG Wells’ writings. Coming on the heels of the popular The Time Machine, this book was not received as well. Because of all the social, cultural and scientific changes, there was also an undercurrent of unease and pricking of consciences. The rapidity of change did not allow a gradual transition of thought from a superstitious to a scientific thought, making readers uncomfortable with the nature vs. nurture argument and men trying to imitate god with new creations. This story is much on the theme of Frankenstein. The mutilation of animals, exchanging parts to make them into men and daring to compete with the Divine Creator only ends in unmitigated disaster and the death of those arrogant to try.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.2 highly rated - Harold & c.nick, 20.4 We read. (this is a journtal by Mr Prendick)
+10 pts - Oldies (1896)
+10 pts - Review
50 pts - Task total
1505 - Grand Total
20.8 It ain't overCamille by Alexandre Dumas-fils
Review
Written by Alexandre Dumas-fils in 1844 where the trend was all young men of any means could keep a mistress and a married woman a lover as long as there was no untoward scandal. However, for a young man to plan to spend the rest of his life or ruin himself financially over a professional mistress was scandal indeed. That is the sad story of Armand and Camille. Camille the beautiful courtesan who is slowly dying of consumption and the young man who falls hard for her but cannot maintain her lifestyle that she can obtain with her royal lovers. However, she is willing to throw it all over for a simpler life with Armand but for Armand’s family, this liaison would be disastrous. Thus is the tragedy as told to the author by the suitor and the letters of the dead beauty. A tragic, sad, romantic story common in this era of romance. In this day and age it is hard to sympathize with the values, society, hypocrisy and angst that drive this novel.
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Combo (20.4 we read)
+10 pts - LiT
+15 pts - Oldies (1844)
+10 pts - Review
60 pts - Task Total
1565 - Grand Total
Liz M wrote: "Denae wrote: "20.2 You ReadThe Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien..."
+5 combo (10.5 - Sebastian Junger)"
Do you want me to edit the post or is this already on your sheet?
20.1 I ReadAmerican Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
***
Well, I have now read American Psycho. I now feel completely justified in my previous suspicion that Bret Easton Ellis is not the author for me. Oh, when it isn't taking itself seriously, the book is very well-written. Even the originally incredibly irritating repetitive detailing of brand names and prices and food became a part of the rhythm of the book in a way I was not expecting. Patrick Bateman is certainly a psychopath, whether his crimes are only in his head or real. With all of these things though, I would still love to give this one star. The reason it gets three is because of the way a consistent crawling horror was maintained. There was no respite, even in the seemingly innocuous sections. This takes talent. I still found it anything but enjoyable, and towards the end became annoyed when Ellis tried to make it somehow meaningful in a greater sense. Oh, and it's certainly gory in every sense of the word, in case there was someone who missed that. I need a stiff drink now.
+20 Task
+5 Combo (10.2 Highly-rated)
+5 Combo (20.6 Unreliable Narrator)
+10 Review
Task Total: 40
Grand Total: 1580
Liz M wrote: "Deedee wrote: "War and Peace (1869) by Leo Tolstoy (translated by Rosemary Edmonds ) (Paperback, Penguin Classic, 1472 pages)..."+5 combo points for 20.5 - They read."
Yeah! I can always take 5 more points.
I lost focus on this season’s tasks and so I will not be getting a mega-finish :0(. However, I can add the following to my total:
Task 10.4 – Native Reading
Ten Little Indians by Sherman Alexie
+10 Task
Task Total: 10
Task 10.2– Highly-rated - 5* by members (Donna Jo Atwood)
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
Lexile Score 810L
And, while the book is over 500 pages, I don’t want to claim style points for length because over half of the pages are either pictures or have less than 100 words of text on it. Cute story. I think they made it into a movie.
+10 Task
Task Total: 10
Grand Total: 785 + 10 + 10 = 805
20.6 - Unreliable NarrationHeart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Review:
It is difficult to write after closing a book by a master. Conrad's words sing, terrorize, and hollow you out. This is a story told by a seaman on the deck of a yacht in the Thames River about his time in Africa on a river boat penetrating to the heart of darkness of European exploitation on the "dark continent". Men of smugness, ineptitude, blindness, and greed bleed the continent of ivory while destroying the inhabitants and their cultures.
There seems to be a debate over whether this book is racist. I thought the narrator, Marlowe was appalled by the treatment of Africans by the Europeans but he also was not sure about the idea of "europeanizing" the Africans.
Task: 20
Combo: 5 (10.2 Highly rated--Katie and others)
Review: 10
Oldie: 10 (published 1899)
Task Total: 45
Previous Total: 305
New Total: 345
Denae wrote: "Liz M wrote: +5 combo (10.5 - Sebastian Junger)"Do you want me to edit the post or is this already on your sheet?"
I got it, thanks!
itpdx wrote: "20.6 - Unreliable NarrationHeart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Previous Total: 305
New Total: 345..."
In post 559, your total was 345. So with post 598, I have your Grand Total as 390.
10.1 – List LoversPrintz Honor Books: #27
Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
I am so glad I finally read Airborn by Kenneth Oppel! I have heard from so many of my students, both girls and boys, how good this is series is, and I have picked it up many times and just not plunged in. I was hooked with both the writing style and the story after the first couple of chapters. Matt Cruse is a ship's boy on an airship and is following in his father's footsteps. He meets Kate on board the ship and together they search for the answers to the mysteries set forth in her grandfather's journal. It is an old fashioned, swashbuckling adventure story complete with pirates and shipwrecks. The action scenes were well written and kept me on the edge of my seat until the last page was turned. I'm already looking forward to book 2 of the Matt Cruse series, Skybreaker.
760 Lexile
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20
20.6 - Unreliable Narration
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
What a deliciously creepy and unsettling story this is! Kate tells the story of a life lived in isolation with her older sister Constance, her cat and her uncle after the rest of the family has perished from a poisoning for which the older sister went to trial and was acquitted. Kate's (aka Merricat) life is ordered by many rules of her own making and pretty soon you figure out that something is just not quite right about the story she is telling. When Cousin Charles comes to visit, events are set in motion that lead to an interesting conclusion. It is a horror story told from the psychological perspective that I read in two sittings and rated 5 stars. Shirley Jackson is a writer whose fascinating book I will stick with me like her famous short story, The Lottery, has since high school!
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo: 20.10 Monsterfest(Horror List)/10.2 Highly Rated
+ 5 Oldies 1962
Task Total: 45
Points This Post: 65
Grand Total: 1920
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The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
I know this was listed under the "monsterfest" lists, but it is comedy when read today. I imagine it might have been a little... unsettling... to the contemporary reader, as it involved giants wielding swords and dropping 2 ton helmets on helpless princes.
Considering what we have today for 'horror,' this book came across as more fun than scarey. It is still an enjoyable tale, full of a scandalous king, a tale of a lost prince, a princess in distress, a love triangle, and other fun little bits. It is a short read, barely over 100 pages (but read the intro, if you get this version!) and adds a bit of levity if you've just read a bunch of heavier books.
I read this shortly after finishing All Quiet on the Western Front and Clockwork Orange, so definitely appreciated the humor!
+20 task
+10 review
+20 oldies (published 1764)
+5 combo (10.2)
Grand Total = 925 + 15 points (corrections from Liz M) + 55 task points = 995