Talbin (Tracy) in 2011

Hi, I'm Tracy. This is my third year in Club Read, and yet again I'm looking forward to being tempted to add to my ever-growing TBR pile. I mostly read fiction with the occasional non-fiction book thrown in for variety. In the second part of 2010, my participation on my reading thread was almost non-existent, a situation I hope to remedy in 2011. Welcome to my thread!

TBR Pile 1/1/11: 157

Pages Read in 2011: 604

Books Read in 2011:

1. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, 604 pages. Finished January 9, 2011. Review. 4/5 stars.

I initially created this post to list my reading plans for 2011, but I'm beginning to realize that any attempt to organize my reading generally results in rebellion. I think my main goal is to make a dent in my 157-book TBR pile. That means I need to read more than I buy, a seemingly simple concept . . . . :-)

Hi Tracy - got you on the stalking list! Hope the new year brings the best for you! Are you having "weather" in Minnesota?

What's on your list, Tracy? I'm hoping that by posting mine, I'll get some CR's to keep me company.

#2. Never happens that way, Tracy, I don't care how simple the concept. It's a delusion, actually. Or maybe a hallucination. Not sure.

>3 fannyprice: Kris: Oh, I'll be stalking you, too! As for weather, it was all weather all the time here in December. You probably saw the video of the Metrodome collapsing? That about says it all. :-)

>4 bonniebooks: Bonnie: Okay, I'll go out on a bit of a limb, but only a few books out! I'm starting Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel today. I plan to read The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver fairly soon. I keep looking at du Maurier's Rebecca sitting on the shelf, along with Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

>5 Joycepa: Joyce: I know, I know, but a girl can hope!

>4 bonniebooks: Bonnie: Oh, and if you want to see my entire TBR list, here it is: http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?view=Talbin&collection=3&shelf=l...

Hi Tracy. I'm glad to I'm not the only one who petered out in 2010. I'm back to try and be better this year, but I'm terrible at challenges, reading lists, plans, etc. so we'll see. I hope you enjoy Wolf Hall. I loved it--and Rebecca, too. The Lacuna sits on my TBR so I'll look forward to reading your comments about it.

I thought The Lacuna was terrific, possibly Kingsolver's best book.

>6 Talbin:, I did see the video! Amazing! At least no one was hurt.

It's interesting that you are going to track your pages read. Never thought of that.

So from your TBR, I have read and loved Brideshead Revisited, The Good Earth, Olive Kitteridge, Things Fall Apart, and Zeitoun. I have read and didn't like The Corrections. Some I would like to get to this year are 2666, The Reivers, Suite Francaise, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, and Vanity Fair. A couple I am still considering for this year are Ines of My Soul and Sense and Sensibility. Those which will probably continue to languish on the pile - Atonement, The Devil in the White City, Empire Falls, The Master and Margarita, Middlesex, and A Passage to India. Good luck trying to knock it down some. :)

>11 janemarieprice:, Oh Devil in the White City is fantastic! Don't let it languish!

>11 janemarieprice: Thanks, Jane, for the great recommendations. Zeitoun has been pulling at me, as has 2666 and The Master and Margarita.

>11 janemarieprice:/12 My husband read Devil in the White City and loved it, so I know I'll get to it sooner rather than later. I usually read about 5 fiction to 1 non-fiction, and I have to be in the mood for non-fiction. But I'll get there.

Oh my gosh! Sooo many good books as yet unread on your shelves. Thanks for the link--you've got my number! Of course, I could just click on someone's name and go there on my own, but I'm just too lazy. Give me a link, though, I can't resist. Happy reading! I'll be finishing up Lacuna in the next couple of weeks as it's my RL book group's selection this month and if I don't wait until closer to our meeting, I only have vague generalities and emotional reactions to share.

Hi Tracy. I enjoyed Wolf Hall a lot - easily flowing, interesting, I will definitely go for the sequel. I also plan to read Lacuna fairly soon....

Hi Tracy, I've got you starred and can't wait to see your thoughts on your novels this year. I'm sure we'll share many excellent reads! :o)

Hi Tracy,

I'm in the 75 BC group but will be lurking over here to follow you and a few other likely suspects for doing damage to my wishlist. I hope you like Wolf Hall as much as I did. I'm the same as you with planning - it's ike my brain reacts badly every time I try to impose order on it ahead of time.

OK, now I'm going through your TBR list... I liked Brideshead Revisited a lot, and Agent Zigzag was a good fast read. I wasn't keen on The Coffee Trader but finished it, and I've just finished Case Histories and really really liked it. (Geez, these are such profound comments...) Oooh, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil was excellent. And I'm starting War and Peace soon.

You have some interesting VMCs and very little overlap with mine - I often wonder if the ones that turn up in New Zealand secondhand bookshops are different (e.g. quite a few of the Australian authors seem to be easy-ish to find at home.)

>7 Talbin: so many good books there! But I know what you mean about the psychology. Try pulling The Book Thief off the shelf with no notice, it'll capture you before your rebellion kicks in. And Ex Libris is a treat, an essay at a time.

>7 Talbin:, Just looking over your TBR list. The Book of Lost Things is so wonderful. Read it when you want to be totally transported and end slightly melancholy. Ex Libris is such a treat, to echo detailmuse. The Eyre Affair is one of the most creative books I've ever read.

Hi, all! Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions on my TBR list. Maybe I can actually reduce the net number of books on my TBR shelves by the end of the year? I'm not holding my breath, but it's a worthy goal. :-)

>17 cushlareads: cmt: That's interesting about the VMCs - I would guess that it's true. I have a hard time finding any of the Aussie writers here. But then, I've also noticed that it's been harder to find green-cover VMCs at all, at least here in Minnesota. Although I was browsing through Abebooks the other day and found one online store that had quite a few. But I haven't found any while browsing at a bookshop for at least a year.

1. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, 604 pages. Finished January 9, 2011. Review. 4/5 stars.

Although I didn't love this book, I really liked it. I thought that perhaps Cromwell was too perfect, too modern, and that it dragged a bit in the middle. Otherwise, though, a good read.

Here's the end of my review: However, all in all Wolf Hall is a good, solid book, a book about the impact of words. Hilary Mantel breathes life into Henry VIII's court, the Church, and 16th century English society. Her characters comes to life: Cardinal Wolsey, Anne Boleyn, the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas More - these historical figures became almost three dimensional under Mantel's watch. The reader learns about the subtlety of religion, the importance of relationships and the judicious use of words.

>21 Talbin:, Fantastic review, Tracy. I'm still going to get to this one, I just need to clear off some reasonable measure of unreads from my shelves first, especially since I wasted a purchase on a stupid sci-fi novel that I ended up disliking and being confused by!

hot review, Tracy! I too gave the book 4 stars and, to be honest with you, I plan on rereading it before Mantel publishes the follow-up. For some reason, I can hardly remember it--except for the fabulous kicking scene early on.