What are you currently reading/recommending?

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What are you currently reading/recommending?

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1bibliobeck
Feb 17, 2008, 4:24 pm

Just wondering what everyone's reading at the moment. I've noticed that I don't have any of the most commonly shared books in this group, but I am always open to new suggestions (although my TBR list is in danger of outweighing books read if I keep buying like this). I'm just about to start City of Masks by Daniel Hecht, a new author to me (and one without a touchstone apparently!). Best book of the year so far The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. What are you reading/recommending this year?

2drneutron
Edited: Feb 17, 2008, 7:58 pm

I just finished Gentlemen of the Road. It's my current recommendation to friends. I loved the feel of the story and the classic prose style he used for this one.

3GeorgiaDawn
Feb 17, 2008, 8:02 pm

4TeacherDad
Feb 18, 2008, 12:03 am

I just started Hogfather and The Beak of the Finch... I def. want to pick up the Darfur book...

5timjones
Feb 18, 2008, 7:51 am

I've just started In Cold Blood by Truman Capote and am dipping into the short stories in On the Golden Porch by Tatyana Tolstaya.

6bibliobeck
Feb 18, 2008, 8:09 am

#2 Just added Gentlemen of the road to my wish list thanks to your reply

#3 - I LOVE Pillars of the Earth. Looking forward to the long-awaited sequel, but I'll have to wait for the paperback as I'm not a big fan of hardback books.

#4 Be interested to know your thoughts on The Beak of the Finch when you've finished it.

7nickhoonaloon
Feb 18, 2008, 8:18 am

Just finished Lady in Distress by Martin Thomas and started The Crime Reporter by Rex Hardinge. After that, I`m planning to read Dark Wanton by Peter Cheyney.

8OldSarge
Feb 18, 2008, 8:20 am

Currently reading Blood of the Caesars by Stephen Dando-Collins which is going to send me down the path to reading all of his histories of the Roman Legions.

I've also purchased a Kindle and two e-books to try it out with. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and What's Wrong with the World by G.K. Chesterton.

Frikkin touchstones...

9KinnicChick
Feb 19, 2008, 2:27 am

I just read Into the Wild which was fabulous and I can highly recommend to anyone. I'm reading a bunch of other stuff for the Triple-8 challenge which you can see listed on my book list there. I finished Plain Truth tonight, which was also good.

10MDLady
Feb 19, 2008, 9:02 am

I'm still working on Outlander which I am loving. A great read so far. I have to get it done though so I can move on. I'm also reading the sixth book on the Ranger's Apprenticeseries. I'm hooked.

11ktleyed
Feb 19, 2008, 9:36 am

#10, Outlander is one of my favorite books ever - the whole series is great, I'll be surprised if you can stop after the first one!

I'm currently reading When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman. I recommend all her books, especially her Wales Trilogy beginning with Here Be Dragons, she's one of my favorite authors. My favorite of hers is The Sunne in Splendour about Richard III.

12timjones
Feb 20, 2008, 6:24 am

#10, My son (who's 11) and my wife are both reading the Ranger's Apprentice books & enjoying them - I haven't tried them yet. We had been trying to find another fantasy series he would enjoy after he finished the Harry Potter books - Ranger's Apprentice seems to be the series that has done the trick.

13MDLady
Feb 20, 2008, 8:39 am

#12

In my opinion, the Ranger's Apprentice series aren't as in depth as Harry Potter but they have my attention just as much. A really great story and easy to visialize. I smell movies.

14Sandydog1
Mar 9, 2008, 1:15 pm

Kinic and Teacher Dad,

I loved Into the Wild, especially the digression about others whose judgement just wasn't quite there. It's a chapter about outdoorsmen who really aren't outdoorsmen. Foolish actions with fatal results.

Change of subject (matter). I also highly recommend Beak of the Finch. Not only does evolution occur, but it frequently occurs within generations, not within eons. Fascinating stuff.

15ToReadToNap
Mar 9, 2008, 1:25 pm

Bibliobeck, I really liked The Book Thief, it was different and complex and moving.

I am reading An Incomplete Revenge by Jacquiline Winspear...the latest addition in the Maisie Dobbs series, highly recommended.

Also, I am reading Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn...I loved her first novel.

For non-fiction, I'm reading Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Big by Peter Walsh...he's fantastic and inspiring.

Thanks for the tip on Beak of the Finch...I love those kind of books.

16MDLady
Mar 9, 2008, 3:39 pm

Just finished Outlander and I'm doing a thorough reread. I honestly never thought I'd like it as much as I did being the fantasy lover I am. Even being a woman I never went for the romance stuff. I can in all honesty say that this is the greatest story I have read...yet.
So, I'm doing a reread while waiting for the second book to come in the mail.

17ktleyed
Mar 9, 2008, 6:01 pm

#16 MDLady - Yay! Another Outlander lover! After I read all the books (written at that point) I just turned right around and started them all over again! I loved them even more the 2nd time around - it was like reading them in technicolor!! But, that's mostly because I knew what happens in the later books - it helps!

18TeacherDad
Mar 9, 2008, 8:09 pm

I've been on a Lois Lowry kick this weekend, Number the Stars, Gathering Blue, and The Messenger... juv fic, but still quality...

19alcottacre
Mar 9, 2008, 11:07 pm

#18 TeacherDad: Nothing wrong with juvenile fiction as far as I can see. I loved The Giver by Lois Lowry and just finished up the first book in Catherine Jinks Pagan series, Pagan's Crusade myself. Hey, I missed a bunch of the good stuff in my first childhood!

20GeorgiaDawn
Mar 12, 2008, 3:28 pm

#16 and 17 - I read Outlander a couple of years ago. I have never read any of the other books, but I want to! This summer may be a good time.

I'm currently reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult and still reading Pillars of the Earth. My reading time is scarce these days so I'm taking my time.

21judylou
Mar 14, 2008, 6:54 am

I'm reading an interesting one at the moment by John Ajvide Lindqvist. It is a vampire love story called Let the right one in. I'm really enjoying it.

22beatles1964
Mar 14, 2008, 8:55 am

Senjmito I too own Tatyana Tolstaya's On The Golden Porch and also The Slynx although I haven't gotten around to reading them yet. I can remember reading Truman Capote's In Cold Blood for my 12th Grade English Class back in the 1976-77 School Year. I found it to be a very disturbing book. I recently picked up a copy of the book and also got Capote: A Biography which I haven't started yet either.

Librarianwannabe

23timjones
Mar 24, 2008, 12:32 am

#22: The Slynx sounds interesting: when you do read it, beatles1964, let me know what you think!

24nickhoonaloon
Mar 24, 2008, 8:24 am

I`ve read a few things since I last posted in this thread - names that spring to mind are Arthur Maclean, Richard Williams (Speak Ill of the Dead, actually written by Rex Dolphin, John Hunter and Terry Pratchett.

At present I`m reading Large Type Killer by Richard Williams (actually by Jack Trevor Story) and dipping into In These Times by Bernard Levin on an occasional basis.

Just remembered, I`m also reading Marie Smith (ed), Golden Age Detective Stories, but I read that literally at a rate of one story every two or three weeks, depending how the mood takes me.

25nickhoonaloon
Apr 26, 2008, 12:56 pm

Currently reading The Gunner by Edgar Wallace. As to whether I`ll be recommending it, the jury`s still out on that one.

26MDLady
Apr 28, 2008, 7:53 am

I'm now on book five in the Outlander series, The Fiery Cross. I am in love with this story. Such a mix of fact and fiction and humor and lust...all the things that make a great book.

27ktleyed
Apr 28, 2008, 10:04 am

I'm reading The Bronze Horseman and so far it's great. I heard about it here on LT, recommended by many who read the Outlander series. So far, I love it!

28KromesTomes
Apr 28, 2008, 10:41 am

I'm about 3/4 of the way through Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov ... ideal for anyone who enjoys post-modern David Foster Wallace-type novels, I'd think ... for my nonfiction, I'm reading Patriotic Gore by Edmund Wilson ... another great stylist, Wilson in this book takes a critic's look at writings (nonf9ction and fiction) produced around the time of the civil war.

29GeorgiaDawn
Apr 28, 2008, 9:13 pm

#26 MDLady - As I said in an earlier post, I have only read the first one. You've inspired me to read the others! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying them!

30MDLady
Apr 29, 2008, 7:24 am

GeorgiaDawn..do yourself that favor and read the rest. What a ride!

31KinnicChick
Apr 29, 2008, 2:35 pm

I'm currently reading Michael Ondaatje's Divisadero. I believe this is the third novel that I've read by him. I chose it because at the end of May he'll be coming to St. Paul for MPR's Talking Volumes and I may go see him. Figured I may as well work this into my 888 Challenge. The English Patient is one of my favorite works by Ondaatje, so I decided I could not go wrong here.

I've not fallen as deeply into the story here as I did into TEP. (The many times I read it...) My first time through that one had it's bumps in the road, as well. The first section had me hooked and those early days of the characters sucked me in. Now, 80 pages into it, they've fallen away from each other and I wonder if any of them will ever find one another...

But his prose is perfection to me.

32fionadyer
May 3, 2008, 1:18 am

I am reading nineteen minutes but I really don't like it!

33vlakoma
May 8, 2008, 8:40 am

Just finished Divisadero myself. Eagerly awaiting The River Why from my Amazon book order. Hope it comes in time for the weekend.

34alcottacre
May 10, 2008, 3:01 am

Currently recommending The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. For me, this was one of those books that sucked me in to the story and just would not let go.

35GeorgiaDawn
May 13, 2008, 7:42 pm

I loved The Shadow of the Wind! It was amazing!

I'm currently reading The Day the Martians Came by Frederik Pohl.

36alcottacre
May 13, 2008, 8:39 pm

#35 GeorgiaDawn: I have been told that Zafon has another book out, but because it is in Spanish, I will have to wait for the translation. I cannot wait. I hope it lives up to Shadow.

37GeorgiaDawn
May 21, 2008, 8:14 pm

#36 - Wow!! I would love to read another Zafon book! I'll keep a watch for it. Thanks!

38Whisper1
May 21, 2008, 8:48 pm

I finished reading Whatever you do: Don't Run by Peter Allison. It was a delightful book. Last night I began to read The Disappearing Act of Esme Lennox

39KinnicChick
Edited: May 22, 2008, 2:16 am

Finished Divisadero and ended up really liking some things about it. Have posted a review on my book blog. Will keep the book around for another read some day. Still thinking about going to the Fitzgerald next week if there are tickets still available to see/hear Mr. Ondaatje speak with Kerri Miller.

Currently reading Happier for my 888 Challenge and recommending friends pre-order The Wednesday Sisters because I loved it.

And finally, finished reading some fanfic written by a girlfriend whose creative flow is really running. So she dived into her NaNo from last November and the 50k she wrote then turned into 90k on a quick rewrite and it turned into a terrific tale of merfolk and magic and muggles.

40SouthernGirlReads
Edited: May 27, 2008, 10:00 am

I just finished THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN by Garth Stein and loved it! I posted a review on my blog. While I wait for some ARC's to arrive, I picked up THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING by Joan Dideon that I started awhile back. I stopped reading about 1/3 of the way thru because my Dad got diagnosed with Prostate Cancer and I guess I wasn't ready to go on with the book. My Dad is fine for now and I'm ready to start reading it again.

41drneutron
May 27, 2008, 10:25 am

Kingdom of Bones was a really good mystery/thriller set in Victorian England and America. Night Train to Rigel has been out for a bit, but was new to me. It's a really neat sci-fi spy thriller with lots of plot twists. Bad Monkeys was a spy/conspiracy story with lots of mess-with-your-mind twists.

I'm sensing a theme...guess I've been reading stuff with intricate plots lately!

42valleymom
May 30, 2008, 11:21 pm

I read Garden Spells a couple of months ago and have just finished Sarah Addison Allen's second book, The Sugar Queen. Both are delightful and light. They're a lovely break from reality and an opportunity to see the magic that is truly all around us.

43TeacherDad
May 30, 2008, 11:50 pm

Just finished an ER book I will highly recommend, America America, and I'm half way through The Year of Living Biblically which is pretty good also...

44judylou
May 31, 2008, 2:25 am

34, 35, 36 Loved Shadow of the Wind. Has to be one of my all time favourites.

I am currently reading Ursula, Under by Ingrid Hill. It is a fascinating story about a little girl who falls down a mine shaft - the story is told through a series of tales about her ancestors, starting from 1,000s of years ago and up to the recent past. Each of the tales is really absorbing and each one equally as good as the last.

I haven't finished it yet so can't tell you if it is a happy ending or not. I'm hoping it is!

45SouthernGirlReads
May 31, 2008, 8:34 am

I just finished The Year of Magical Thinking and I didn't like it. Some things should just not be put into prrint. JMO

46FAMeulstee
Jun 1, 2008, 7:21 pm

This message has been deleted by its author.

47FAMeulstee
Jun 1, 2008, 7:21 pm

I just finished the Hobbit for the 10th time or so, love that book ;-)
And of course started The Lord of the Rings after that. I red those for the first time when I was 12 and have re-read them every 3 to 5 years.

On my profile page is a list of all books I have been (re-)reading this year.

48KinnicChick
Jun 4, 2008, 11:43 am

Wow, Lamos. Fascinated to hear about The Year of Magical Thinking and will be headed to your blog to see if you've posted a review with more info about this. I have it on my Triple 8 list to read, so am very interested in hearing more.

49Copperskye
Jun 4, 2008, 10:00 pm

I'll probably finish Skeletons at the Feast tonight. What a great story.

#38 I read Whatever You Do, Don't Run a couple of months ago. It was a lot of fun.

50Sandydog1
Jun 7, 2008, 12:25 pm

I'm reading Dead Souls while listening to The Bible during my commute. The former is funny, the latter, not-so funny. That Old Testament stuff sure has a lot about geneology, violence, sexual perversions, ethnocentrism, culinary arts, royalty, public health codes and building really sporty houses of worship. I'm looking forward to reading some of the more beautifully-written books.

51MDLady
Jun 8, 2008, 6:04 pm

The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. I am pushing it on anyone who will listen!

52valleymom
Jul 9, 2008, 3:33 pm

I've finished Cool Jew and am rereading The Tightwad Gazette. Still in the middle of a couple more.

53benitastrnad
Jul 9, 2008, 4:34 pm

I am reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes one of the Outlander series by Gabaldon and like all the others before it, it is a truely wonderful book. I just started Name of the Wind and 200 pages into it I am really liking it. In my car I listening to American Gods by Neil Gaiman. I am intrigued by the ideas in that one. What are the American Gods and what has happened to our sense of mystery and wonder? His style of writing is a bit masculine but the ideas being explored are so pertinent.

Like everybody else in this group I love the Outlander series. They are wonderful romances, but just chock full of tidbits of historical facts, not to mention the plant lore and the chemistry and biology that is discussed on every page. I also like the characters. They are all fully rounded and people you would like to meet. Great stories.

54Copperskye
Jul 10, 2008, 12:51 am

I'm finishing up Sight Hound by Pam Houston and am about halfway through The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Both are very good. I'm shocked by how much I'm enjoying Tim O'Brien's book. It's not something I would normally pick up but it's listed as an option on my son's HS summer reading list and I picked it up for him.

55SouthernGirlReads
Jul 16, 2008, 9:22 am

KinnicChick - I'm anxious to hear your thoughts on Magical Thinking after you read it.

I'm currently reading House and Home by Kathleen McCleary, but next on my list the Mudbound by Hillary Jordan. I've heard great things of this book and I'm so excited to read it.

56TeacherDad
Jul 23, 2008, 12:05 am

finished, laughed throughout, and recommend Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans... will finish soon, and really like, in an odd/cool kind of way, Mr Sebastian and the Negro Magician...

(next: anything with a monosyllabic title)

57drneutron
Jul 23, 2008, 8:35 am

Just finished up The Day Freedom Died about Reconstruction-era conflict between blacks and white supremacists in central Louisiana. Really good read, but not a pleasant subject. I picked it up because it happened very near where I'm from, and it was really weird to read about all the places I know now, but didn't have any idea this event happened back then.

Up next is Christine Falls, a mystery set in Ireland in the 1950s. I'm two chapters in and so far, so good.

58MDLady
Jul 26, 2008, 12:57 pm

Just finished Pillage by Obert Skye. I got it as an early reviewer book. It was a good YA book. Quick read.
Now I'm back to finishing up The Tailor's Daughter by Janice Graham. I'm really liking this book.

59msf59
Aug 3, 2008, 9:02 am

I finished "This Boy's Life" by Tobias Wolff. It's a terrific memoir. I'd love to read his short stories. Any suggestions? I started reading "In the Woods" by Tana French. What an excellent young writer! I'm loving it!

60megwaiteclayton
Aug 4, 2008, 11:11 am

Just found this thread. KinnicChick, thank you (very belatedly) for your The Wednesday Sisters recommendation! I've had a very slow reading summer for me. I'm just about to start Somebody Else's Daughter. But I've been getting so little reading done this summer that my TBR pile is about to teeter and crash from its height.

61flemingt
Aug 4, 2008, 11:51 am

I just finished Dirty Diplomacy by the former Brit ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray. I was living in Uzbekistan at the time he served there, and so his book is of particular interest to me. Unlike the rest of the diplomatic corps, Murray spoke out against the Uzbek government's practice of torture on its citizens. The question arises, is it a diplomat's place to voice opposition? An interesting read.

62Whisper1
Aug 19, 2008, 1:34 pm

I'm currently reading The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

63Karen5Lund
Sep 30, 2008, 3:01 pm

The World Without Us by Alan Weisman.

So... If human beings vanished, what would happen to Earth? And how long would it take?

A really strange thought experiment, but fascinating.

64valleymom
Edited: Sep 30, 2008, 9:52 pm

I loved The Book Thief. I was charmed by The Magician's Assistant. Bel Canto wasn't the "great book" that so many others recommended. On the other hand, I rather enjoyed Run. Now I'm on to Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen. It's slow going. I'll give it another day or so to reel me in.

65GirlFromIpanema
Edited: Oct 2, 2008, 2:55 am

#61, flemingt: There was a BBC mini-series a while back, in which one of the characters was inspired by Murray, it seems (The State Within). The story of the series is mainly set in the USA, but the "Tyrgyztan" subplot has a few similarities to Murray's story, it seems. Thank you for reminding me of the book, put it on my wish list. (Edited to add: The UK title of Murray's book seems to be Murder in Samarkand: A British Ambassador's Controversial Defiance of Tyranny in the War on Terror.

Currently reading Kristin Lavransdatter with the Reading Group here at LT, and Jane Eyre for the first time (*sniffle*).

66TeacherDad
Oct 1, 2008, 10:45 pm

re #63... I remember as a kid, while the folks drove us various places, imagining how the plants would take over and the buildings would crumble if there were no people around...

67Sandydog1
Oct 28, 2008, 9:20 pm

I just finished A Confederacy of Dunces a Pulitzer prize winner about some N'awlins crazies.

68TeacherDad
Oct 29, 2008, 7:20 pm

that's a good one, SD1, one of the few books I have re-re-read in my life, about once a decade probably. Beloved is another, and the Adams Hitchhiker's Guide...

69vq5p9
Oct 29, 2008, 10:35 pm

I am listening too The Story of Edgar Sawtelle on my commute. So far, I love it.

70Copperskye
Oct 29, 2008, 10:48 pm

#64 valleymom - I also enjoyed The Magician's Assistant but struggled with both Run and Bel Canto. If you haven't read Patchett's Patron Saint of Liars, I would recommend that as well.

#69 I keep hearing both really good and really bad things about Edgar Sawtelle. I'm next on the library's hold list but I've kept it frozen there for weeks. I hadn't thought of listening to it - maybe that would be better...

I'm currently enjoying Obama's Dreams from my Father.

71robbieg_422
Oct 30, 2008, 2:19 am

The Savage Garden. The jury's still out....it seems to be moving along slowly, and the gratuitous sex is...well...gratuitous, and completely unnecessary to the plot and character development, and is of the calibur of a pretty trashy romance novel (which I can't stand), and doesn't match up with the literary style and quality of writing at all (which would otherwise be quite good).

72appydo1
Oct 30, 2008, 3:41 am

{The Crossing}, by Cormac McCarthy. Not your cliche western by any means. I have read the previous book in this trilogy, {All the Pretty Horses}, and this one looks to be, so far, very similar in style. I have the third book, {Cities of the Plain} on my TBR pile. The three make up the Border Trilogy. This writer reminds me a little bit of Hemingway in his way of simple language but very strong descriptions so that a mental picture is very easy to form. He reminds me even more of Edward Abbey in that author's {The Brave Cowboy}, very reminiscent in style and subject.

73MDLady
Oct 30, 2008, 8:14 am

If you're into the Tudors era at all I think you'll like Plain JanebyLaurien Gardner. I myself was totally ignorant of that whole era until I started watching the show The Tudors on Showtime. Now I can't get enough.

74starfishpaws
Oct 31, 2008, 3:39 pm

I just finished Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold. I especially enjoyed it because the heroine was 40-ish and I don't think I've run across that in a good fantasy story before. Not only that but she succeeds in re-creating herself, and has great adventures. If you like fantasy I recommend it.

I'm listening to Small Gods on my commute because nothing relaxes me on the way to work like Terry Pratchett. The turtle moves!

75vq5p9
Nov 4, 2008, 5:27 pm

#70 Finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I can't speak for the text, however, the mp3 from audible was mesmerizing. A great modern day version of Hamlet.

76TeacherDad
Nov 5, 2008, 3:31 pm

I just saw that reviewed somewhere... looks interesting, but they said it was too long and confusing (?)... still, goes on my wish list.

77megwaiteclayton
Nov 7, 2008, 6:21 pm

I just read my first Pratchett recently, PDeebs. Going Postal. Very bizarre compared to my usual reading, but very funny.

78starfishpaws
Nov 10, 2008, 3:01 pm

#77 Funnily enough, Going Postal was my first Pratchett novel too. I can't believe I overlooked him all these years - maybe it was a case of having so many people recommend him that some part of me got rebellious and refused to even try him.

The audio books of his novels are wonderful, if you like listening in the car or somewhere. It's almost Hogfather season and that's a wonderful book to listen to in Nov/Dec.

79benacre
Nov 10, 2008, 4:18 pm

I am well into Shaun Hutson at the moment, currently reading. Necessary Evil. By the end of tonight I wll be starting Hell to Pay. Then I will start getting back into Richard Laymon again.

80RitaFaye
Nov 10, 2008, 7:05 pm

Just finished reading Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay. My mom loaned it to me. Very moving story about WWII France. Quite tragic, but very touching.

81Karen5Lund
Nov 28, 2008, 10:06 am

Reading several things at once (as usual), but one is Finding Beauty in a Broken World by Terry Tempest Williams. Started earlier, but now even more timely in light of what's happening in Mumbai. Our world is broken, indeed.

82Copperskye
Nov 28, 2008, 11:47 am

I am thoroughly enjoying Kate Atkinson's When Will There Be Good News?

83GeorgiaDawn
Nov 28, 2008, 4:07 pm

I'm rereading Great Expectations and finding it absolutely wonderful. I had to read this book when I was in the 7th grade for school and never could understand what was so great about it.

I'm also reading The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt. I'm enjoying it very much.

84MsGemini
Dec 6, 2008, 10:15 am

I am reading The Slow Moon by Elizabeth Cox. I have less than 75 pages to go, so I should finish it today. It is an interesting story.

I recently finished Matters of Faith by Kristy Kiernan. I highly recommend the book.

85megwaiteclayton
Dec 12, 2008, 1:30 pm

>I'm rereading Great Expectations and finding it absolutely wonderful.

I've read GE several times. I loved it even in high school, when I would never have admitted I did since everyone else was groaning about the length.

86Sandydog1
Dec 13, 2008, 8:15 pm

I liked Great Expectations more than any other Dickens novel.

I've just finished The Master and Margarita and strongly recommend it.

87Sandydog1
Dec 13, 2008, 8:15 pm

I liked Great Expectations more than any other Dickens novel.

I've just finished The Master and Margarita and strongly recommend it.

88GeorgiaDawn
Edited: Dec 13, 2008, 8:23 pm

I have not had much time to read of late. I finally had the chance to finish Great Expectations this morning. What a amazing novel. It's one of those books that you don't want to end.

I have several waiting in my TBR pile and I'm not sure what to read next. I think it will be The Centurion's Wife from LT's ER program. It shouldn't take too long; the books is not long at all.

89Sandydog1
Dec 26, 2008, 5:54 pm

I also enjoyed the easy-to-read, entertaining Outliers. You'll "learn" why Hockey players are often born in January, why Software millionaires are born in 1955, why Asians are good at math, why certain Jewish law firms succeeded in NYC and why you shouldn't necessarily fly into JFK if your pilot is Colombian.

90alcottacre
Edited: Jan 10, 2009, 2:35 am

I am currently recommending a couple of books that I read in December and loved: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson and World War Z by Max Brooks.

91appydo1
Jan 10, 2009, 4:01 am

#73 - thanks for the recommendation, I'll check those Tudor books out.

RE: GE and other "hated" high school required reading...I'm of the opinion that perhaps they push the really good stuff onto us too soon!! I think it takes a certain maturity to really enjoy them, for several reasons!

I'm still enjoying Dog Eat Dog, by Laurien Berenson, poodle lover that I am. It's a better series than you might think, and definitely fun to learn more about the dog show world, particularly from the poodle owner/handler/ breeder point of view!

92LesMiserables
Jan 10, 2009, 4:18 am



Well I just finished reading Midnight's Children} by Salman Rushdie last night and am now making my way through The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

93TeacherDad
Jan 10, 2009, 11:17 am

Most of the way through David Sedaris' You Are Engulfed in Flames -- not his funniest or most shocking, but still hilarious enough in parts to get me banished downstairs at night...

94benitastrnad
Jan 10, 2009, 1:06 pm

I just finished reading Glass Books of the Dream Eaters and found it highly entertaining. While I agree with all the criticism of the book (too long, too much advance to the author, too convoluted, and too many women in bondage) I found it a fun read. Each chapter ended in a cliffhanger and I will read the sequel. Perhaps not right away, but soon. Last night while standing in Barnes & Noble at their new paperback releases table I recommended it. Unfortunately for Dahlquist and B & N that B & N patron was going to go to the library to check out the book. Hooray for the library! And Batam should have known better than to give a first author a 2 million dollar advance for a two book contract.

95megwaiteclayton
Jan 18, 2009, 8:21 pm

I'm reading Cost by Roxana Robinson, which started out a little slowly but by midnight last night was tough to put down.

96SouthernGirlReads
Jan 27, 2009, 2:10 pm

I'm reading Bound South, a debut novel by Susan Rebecca White. It's witty, dramatic and it's southern fiction, which I love. It's release date is Feb. 9th. I'm about half-way thru and I'm liking it a lot.

97TeacherDad
Jan 28, 2009, 11:43 pm

just started the newest Newbery winner: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman-- only a few chpters in, but excellent so far!

98benitastrnad
Jan 29, 2009, 4:12 pm

The selection of Graveyard Book was a bit of surprise. Somewhat unusual for the Newbery committee. They are not known to be adventurous with their choices. I have not read this book, but have read other Gaiman books - American Gods but decided to go get Coraline from the library. I hope that they have it as a recorded book. I want to read it or hear it before I go see the movie.

99CarolO
Jan 29, 2009, 6:27 pm

I recently finished Peace Like a River by Leif Enger and I am now reading Sex Lives of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost. Both are good reads.

100Copperskye
Jan 29, 2009, 11:43 pm

#97 & 98 - I finished The Graveyard Book just a couple of days before the Newbery announcement. I thought it was great and was very happy that it won.

101alcottacre
Feb 4, 2009, 5:45 am

I am currently caught up in Drood by Dan Simmons. It is lengthy, but very good thus far (p. 354).

102anna_in_pdx
Feb 4, 2009, 11:51 am

OK, I asked another list to recommend a James Joyce novel for someone who has not read him before, and was told about a book of short stories, The Dubliners, which I just bought and will start once I am finished with a couple of library books. I also just bought Le Clezio's Le Desert and forced myself not to read past the intro until I finish the library books and return them. Has anyone read either of these? Thoughts?

103RitaFaye
Feb 6, 2009, 5:44 pm

I have just picked up A Thousand Splendid Suns. I was really moved by The Kite Runner and look forward to this one.

104Sandydog1
Feb 7, 2009, 11:49 am

I'm a huge Teaching Company fan and am currently listening to "The Greek and Persian Wars" (I'm not gonna bother trying to hunt down the touchstone).

It is excellent. It has really helped me with that 9-book monster, Herodotus.

I'm concurrently reading Pere Goriot and Mark Twain

105jennylynn
Feb 9, 2009, 11:04 pm

The Janissary Tree; Garden Spells; Storm Thief -- three very different books!

106MDLady
Feb 10, 2009, 1:35 am

jenny, I am currently reading Storm Thief. Quite an interesting read so far. I catch myself rereading parts just to make sure I'm getting it.

107robbieg_422
Feb 10, 2009, 8:38 pm

I just started The People of the Book. So far, so good. I really love books about books....

108appydo1
Feb 10, 2009, 11:37 pm

Just about a third of the way through Eaters of the Dead, by Michael Crichton. Not what I thought it was and actually enjoying it! Early storytelling talent evident. Just finished another Helen MacInnes mystery, Double Image, which wasn't as good as some of the others I've read. On deck is End of the Battle, by Evelyn Waugh, which I will start soon, as the one I'm reading now is a quick read.

109bibliobeck
Feb 11, 2009, 4:19 pm

#102 Anna, I'd be really interested to know what you think about The Dubliners. It was one of my A Level books (back in 1984!) and I HATED it! It was my first taste of James Joyce and I've never wanted to read anything else by him since. I wonder if it's true that we're not 'ready' to enjoy some of the classics (although other A level books were The Canterbury Tales, Othello and The Return of the Native all of which I loved). I'd be interested to know your impressions though.

I'm currently reading and enjoying Now You're One Of Us by Asa Nonami a book recommended on another forum. I'm really enjoying Asian fiction at the moment, especially horror/thriller, so any other recommendations gratefully received!

110mejix
Apr 1, 2009, 12:16 am

finished out stealing horses by per petterson last sunday night. best fiction i've read in quite a while.

111vlakoma
Apr 4, 2009, 9:55 am

What is the What - Dave Eggers
and
The Book Thief - Markus Zusak

mejix, I agree. Out Stealing Horses was terrific!

112anna_in_pdx
Apr 6, 2009, 5:22 pm

109: I loved the Dubliners, but I don't think I would have liked them at all if I had read them in school. Because, nothing happens. They are really stories of place and character more than action. As I get older I appreciate other things than plot more and more...

There are lots of books I hated as a young adult / preteen that I think now I was just too young to "get". For example:
- Madame Bovary
- The Sun Also Rises
- Robertson Davies' Deptford Trilogy

...and they are on my list to re-read someday.

I also recently read Portrait of the Artist as I was preparing myself for Ulysses. I started Ulysses as a group read here on LibraryThing. I am still slogging. Tough going.

113kaida46
Apr 9, 2009, 1:53 am

Currently reading Dracula, as I refuse to read any Twilight Books but wanted a vampire story. Somehow, I never read this one in school, but I don't think I would have appreciated it as much then! I'm enjoying the suspense, and the Victorian take on the story. I am on a nineteenth century kick recently reading Austen, and Bronte, as well. Also just finished What is the What.

114KimB
Edited: Apr 9, 2009, 5:58 am

#113. If your after a great vampire story The Historian is wonderful on so many levels.

ETA I have a few 40 something friends who enjoyed Twilight, but I think I'll leave it to my tweenage 12 year old daughter to read. The movie didnt do anything for me and she's watched it 5 times! A story about a girl interested in a boy vampire who could eat her at any stage, breaks-up and then goes for a werewolf, was a bit too much for me to suspend disbelief and enjoy ;-)

115Lori_OGara
Apr 9, 2009, 3:15 pm

#113, Dracula is a good read. I agree I didn't appreciate it at all in high school.

I just can't read Twilight....I tried but nope, couldn't do it.

116timdt
Apr 9, 2009, 4:01 pm

If you are looking for a vampire story, I would recommend giving Let the Right One In a try. It's a very interesting take on the vampire lore. It's neither the erotic vampire novel of today's fashion nor from the same group of vampire tales by the likes of Stephen King (although very good) or other genre writers.

117KinnicChick
Edited: Apr 9, 2009, 7:03 pm

#64 (I'm way behind around here) I very much appreciated The Magician's Assistant. The next book of Ann Patchett's that I found was The Patron Saint of Liars (while looking for Bel Canto, I believe). I really liked that quite a lot, as well. So maybe you should try that next? :)

I just finished Let Me Eat Cake and enjoyed it quite a lot. It is light and fluffy. :) I also recently read Inkheart which thrilled me and reminded me of the days reading to my daughter by flashlight. I'm now reading Inkspell. Wonderful series.

118Copperskye
Apr 9, 2009, 9:51 pm

#113 I loved Dracula when I read it in high school. It may have been that I was home sick with the flu right after it was assigned and I had nothing else around to read, but I fell right into the story. I keep meaning to reread it but I think I'm afraid I won't like it as much.

119robbieg_422
Apr 10, 2009, 9:33 pm

#114: I LOVED The Historian. It's on my list of all-time favorite books.

#117: I'm reading Inkdeath. it IS a wonderful series; a treat for the imagination, and a lot of underlying themes. I'm sorry this is the last one:(

120yoga-gal
Apr 10, 2009, 9:35 pm

About to start Devil in the White City by Erik Larson after finishing a collection of Eudora Welty's novels. Am finishing A Thousand Splendid Suns on audio.

121Lori_OGara
Apr 11, 2009, 3:32 pm

I read Mrs. Dalloway in two days. I love it. Now I am working on Jane Eyre. Both examples of the books I hated in high school. I wonder why it is different now? Maybe life expirences?

122CarolO
Apr 13, 2009, 1:53 pm

Just finished reading Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar... and really enjoyed it. The book uses jokes to explain philosophy making it very accessible and I think everyone will find something to relate to.

123KimB
Apr 18, 2009, 8:11 pm


Earlier this week I finished The Gift of Rain and loved it!
I was participating in a challenge to read the 2007 Booker prize short-listed and some long-listed nominees and it is the second last one!
It is one of my top 3 for that year along with Animal's people, which made it onto the 2008 edition of the 1001 list, and Mister Pip which should make it onto everyones must read list, in my humble opinion ;-)
The Welsh Girl was also an original story that I'd recommend.

Interesting enough none of these were the winner ;-)

124robbieg_422
Apr 19, 2009, 10:25 am

I just started The Glassblower of Murano, by Marina Fiorato. So far, so good, but I'm only on chapter 3!

KimB: that's the thing about "must read" lists....everyone's is different:)

125Carmenere
Apr 27, 2009, 7:39 pm

Hi, I'm just an interloper from 75 book challenge because, well, I'm 40 something......I am recommending The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane to everyone I possibly can. It is the story of a young woman who needs to clean out her deceased grandmother's old, deserted home in order to put it up for sale. While doing so she stumbles upon a key with the name Deliverance Dane tucked inside. Off she goes discovering who Deliverance Dane was and her relationship to her, the Salem witch trials and the other women in her family who preceded her. A little mystery, little romance. A fictional history that I highly recommend.

Thanks for letting me interlope and I'll be loping back again, you've got a lot of great recommendations.

126luv2read97
Apr 27, 2009, 9:29 pm

TeacherDad, love Lois Lowry. If you enjoy young adult fiction I highly recommend The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

127valleymom
May 17, 2009, 4:20 pm

I recently read Boys Adrift by Leonard Sax. It was very interesting and provided food for thought that I hadn't previously considered.

128KimB
May 17, 2009, 8:20 pm


>126 luv2read97: more young adult fiction. I just read The boy in the striped Pyjamas. Quite an interesting slant on a terrible time in history. There is a similar adult novel that a friend was telling me about called something like "A beautiful life", but I can't seem to find it.

129luv2read97
May 18, 2009, 9:21 pm

Life is Beautiful was an Italian movie about a father and son in a concentration camp. The actor won an Oscar for his performance. Maybe that is what they were talking about. I think I have the Striped Pj book on my tbr list.

130valleymom
May 24, 2009, 10:56 pm

I just finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It was delightful! Historical fiction and a romance wrapped up into one fairly thin tome.

131KimB
May 25, 2009, 6:38 am


#129 That was it! Thank you!

#130 I keep hearing how good that book is must look out for it.

132Sandydog1
Jun 27, 2009, 9:36 pm

I just finished Ulysses (for the first time - it is always important to clarify when talking about that monster) and then Falling Man.

I am now reading that horrific anti-war classic Johnny get your gun.

133bonie
Jun 28, 2009, 12:02 am

nineten minutes is a cool book !

134bonie
Jun 28, 2009, 12:02 am

nineten minutes is a cool book !

135KimB
Jun 28, 2009, 5:29 am


132 - I found Falling Man a very different book to what I normally read, but well worth it.

Recently finished, Sorry an outstanding Australian novel.

136emaestra
Jun 28, 2009, 6:17 pm

#132, Johnny Got His Gun is an extremely powerful book. I teach All Quiet on the Western Front and I've always wanted to pull some parts from Trumbo's book to share with my students. I've just never known which because there are so many good parts.

I have just finished Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game and I already have students in mind to recommend these books.

137Lori_OGara
Jun 29, 2009, 9:32 am

I am reading The Shack...just started it.

138KinnicChick
Aug 20, 2009, 1:19 pm

Just finished The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel (from LT Early Reviewers) and can get back to American Prometheus now.

139mefreader
Aug 20, 2009, 9:52 pm

Just finished Short Girls by Bich Minh Nguyen (pretty good stuff) and picked up In the Kitchen by Monica Ali again, which I started a few months ago but decided to put down for a while.

140cal8769
Aug 21, 2009, 9:15 am

I'm in the middle of The Stand, a group read for 2 different groups. Also reading (slowly) George Washington:A Life and Trunk Music. My next ups are The Keep and Dark Symphony. My next, next ups are...... heh, just kidding.

141anna_in_pdx
Aug 21, 2009, 11:30 am

Finished Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell and really enjoyed it. I am now working on an early reviewer book (nonfiction), Where the Wild Things Were about the demise of predators in world ecology and what it means for the biosphere, it is really interesting though rather depressing. I plan to start The Master and Margarita next month with a group.

142dianestm
Aug 24, 2009, 11:34 pm

#139 Short Girls looks good, its been added to the TBR mountain.

I am currently reading Trouble by Jesse Kellerman and finding it okay. The reviews are very average so I wasn't expecting great things.

143Culisa2188
Aug 25, 2009, 4:12 pm

I read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater about two weeks or more ago and have read at least two other books since than and I still cant get that book out of my head. Shiver is definitely my on going recommendation. Currently I am reading silver kiss (cant remember author) decent read the two characters are definitely individually interesting.

144AHS-Wolfy
Aug 25, 2009, 4:46 pm

Finished off reading JG Ballard's Millennium People earlier today. A dystopian view of what could happen if the middle-class society were to actually take the actions, so often espoused at dinner parties, to rebel against their lot in life and the system that keeps them there. Narrated through the eyes of a psychologist personally affected by one of the acts of violence we get to delve behind the scenes of why these people are rioting against their own existences.

I'm finding it slow going to get into Tokyo Year Zero by David Peace though.

145pink_angel
Sep 3, 2009, 11:33 am

I read "Shutter Island" by Dennis Lehane and could NOT PUT IT DOWN during vacation, I recommended it to all my friends. The Martin Scorsese movie comes out in October!

146ljbwell
Sep 6, 2009, 1:12 pm

I've just started diving into Bleak House by Dickens. I loved Great Expectations in high school, so we'll see how this one goes...

147cynthiadogmom
Sep 7, 2009, 9:18 pm

Just finished Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips - a contemporary fantasy/comedy about the Olympian gods living in modern day London with waning powers. I enjoyed it - they do behave very badly...

148benitastrnad
Sep 8, 2009, 5:17 pm

#141 anna_in_pdx

What group is reading master and margarita? If its a librarything group I'd like to join. That is a book that i have had on my TBR pile for several years and just keep moving it back down whenever it rises to the top. Maybe now is the time to read it!

149calm
Edited: Sep 9, 2009, 9:37 am

148 I am not taking part but here is the group http://www.librarything.com/groups/thequestforthelastpa#forums

Hope that is what you need:)

ETA well one of the groups, popular book at the moment=time to check it out:)

150sqdancer
Sep 8, 2009, 6:55 pm

151anna_in_pdx
Sep 10, 2009, 12:07 pm

148: I am in the group mentioned in 149. We've got several pretty good resources including a couple of people that know Russian at least one of whom is reading the book in Russian. Hope to see you there!

152anisoara
Apr 4, 2010, 6:14 am

#28 - KromesTomes, Pale Fire is one of my all-time favourite books. I've never read anything by David Foster Walllace, but based on your comment I might give him a try.

153anisoara
Apr 4, 2010, 6:16 am

I used to read The Master and Margarita in Russian once a year, but then I lost my copy in a move! Fortunately I've acquired a new one (after a nine-year gap).

154tammathau
Apr 4, 2010, 8:30 am

I am currently reading The Irresistible Henry House. My favorite book in 2010 is The Time Travelers Wife.

155megwaiteclayton
Edited: May 8, 2010, 11:19 am

Just emerging from an intense period or writing (the new novel is done!) and have time to read and post about what I'm reading again. I read in manuscript some time ago two WONDERFUL novels, both historical, both just out last month, that everyone should read:

The Heretic's Wife by Brenda Rickman Vantrease
The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli

I've just started the new Jane Smiley, Private Life. I'm introducing her at a reading at Kepler's in Menlo Park - lucky me!

156KinnicChick
May 26, 2010, 7:43 pm

Just finished reading Neil Gaiman's American Gods (LOVED it - first NG I had read but will not be my last) and a second reading of Louise DeSalvo's Writing As a Way of Healing.

157megwaiteclayton
Edited: Aug 14, 2010, 4:08 pm

Such a quite thread here. Have you 40-somethings moved the book chat to hide it from the graduates of this group who just won't leave? ;-)

I just finished A Stranger Like You by Elizabeth Brundage - one of the best books I've read in some time. Wonderful story for anyone - women's fiction, book clubs, thriller lovers, mystery fans - but writers in particular will admire the invisible seams. (I so so so admire the way this one is written!) My review at http://www.librarything.com/profile_reviews.php?view=megwaiteclayton

158enaid
Aug 17, 2010, 12:28 am

I finished Visit from the Goon Squad last week - I liked it but I need to reread it because there is a lot of time shifting and lives that are interconnected in subtle ways. The writing is very good. I loved her earlier novel The Keep.

I reread Turn of the Screw also and, once again, did not find it creepy or eerie. The governess seemed almost eager to fall to pieces. I thought Woman in Black by Susan Hill was more of what I like in a ghost story.

I have so many new books to look for that I have found on this thread. Thank you!

159anisoara
Edited: Aug 24, 2010, 5:50 am

I've just finished Andrei Makine's Le Testament Francais, which well deserves all the praise it's received. I've gone on and ordered several more of his books. (I already have two unread on my shelves, which means I now have at least five to enjoy!)

I'm also reading Elias Canetti's Auto da Fe. Comical and very uncomfortable to read at the same time. I have Crowds and Power on my shelves; haven't read yet but he won the Nobel Prize in the wake of its publication, and I am looking forward to reading it. May take on hol with me. Canetti is, for me, a new favourite.

160LisaStens
Jan 22, 2011, 12:48 pm

I just started The Pastor's Wife by Elizabeth von Arnim and am enjoying it a great deal. I have read a succession of really dark, heavy books and it was beginning to affect my mood so this has been a very welcome change.

161BONS
Jan 31, 2011, 5:38 pm

#160 Lisa, I'm going to try to help you keep this thread going a little longer.

I just finished Water For Elephants which if you seen me on any other thread, you know I dreaded hoping I could get thru any downers with animals.

The book was very good, the audio was fabulous---just speed through any animal parts and there aren't many but you know how we animals lovers are.

Reading The Distant Hours now. I'm on page 158 of 560 and I'd like to get it going. Morton's The Forgotten Garden is on my TBR pile hope it's not as slow moving.

162anisoara
Oct 23, 2011, 12:46 pm

I've just finished two of the three books in Polina Dashkova's "Source of Happiness" (Источник счастья) trilogy. I haven't read the Da Vinci Code, but this seems to me like a Russian version. Dan Brown is criticised for his poor writing, but Dashkova writes very well indeed. The premise of the books is that in the early 20th century a Russian surgeon, Sveshnikov, comes upon a brain worm (I know, sounds gross) that prolongs life. A Russian billionaire in the early 21st century is keen to turn back the clock, and so pursues the lost discoveries of Sveshnikov. All plausible enough in the first book. The second book stretches the limits of this reader's suspension of disbelief, but I enjoyed the book nonetheless, and I will have to track down the third and read it as well. Both books one and two were around 550 pages each, but it goes by quickly. The drawback is that it's not yet available in English, but it's been translated into many other languages, if anyone is interested in reading it and has other languages.

163anna_in_pdx
Oct 27, 2011, 12:30 pm

162: That plot sounds like so much fun. I wish it were in English but will look for French if available here in the States.

164anisoara
Edited: Oct 31, 2011, 3:53 pm

Anna, it probably is available in French. Aha, yes, you can get it from Amazon France: http://www.amazon.fr/s/ref=nb_sb_noss/278-5187181-2994825?__mk_fr_FR=%C5M%C5Z%D5...

The first two volumes are there, but I don't see number three yet.

... Ignore me. These are still in Russian.

165anna_in_pdx
Oct 31, 2011, 4:04 pm

Ah, shucks. Thanks for looking!

166moods
Nov 1, 2011, 6:50 pm

Just finished Jude the Obscure, which I liked well enough... now I'm on to The Poisonwood Bible which I recently picked up at a thrift store for .65 cents. I've always meant to read it, but I don't know if I'm really in the mood for it.

167ljbwell
Nov 3, 2011, 5:45 pm

Agreed that the Dashkova books sound interesting. I'll have to wait for a language I can understand.

Currently reading Floating Worlds: The letters of Edward Gorey and Peter F. Neumeyer and once that's done, The Woman in White seems like a good, dark, late fall/winter book.