Couldn't see a thread for this week so thought I'd start one.
Just finished heat and dust which was amazingly well written but a bit lacking in a cathartic ending (which perhaps was intentional.)
Today just started Blood on the strand - I love Susanna Gregory books but try to balance them with 'literature.' Still, only 15 pages in and already there's been one murder, one royal procession, lots of mud and filth on the streets of Restoration London and several insulting political jibes. Bliss.

I just finished Embers, and am about to begin reading Clark Gable; Tormented Star.

I just finished Sex Lives of Cannibals (loved it!) and The Maltese Falcon, so I'm going to start My Life in Art and then I'll have to go back to the library!

I've just finished Lighthousekeeping and started Music for Torching last night. Next will be The Safety of Objects.

I'm working on an ARC of Mistress Shakespeare by Karen Harper, and loving it so far. Also still listening to Emma - hopefully I'll get that finished up this week.

Reading The Somme by Peter Hart and The Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko.

I've started Imagined London by Anna Quindlen, which is a memoir of her outings around London looking for famous literary sites such as the area the Forsythes lived, Sherlock Holmes' apartment, etc. Very interesting.

I finished Jeremy Mercer's Books, Baguettes and Bedbugs today, about his stay at Shakespeare and Co. in Paris. This lunchtime I made a pile of toast and coffee and started Remotely Controlled: How Television is Damaging our Lives and What We Can Do About It by Aric Sigman. I might have to start a novel alongside it, depending how heavy going it turns out to be...

I started reaing The Safe House by Nicci French this week.
I am already half way through, very good psychological thriller.

The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. Really looking forward to read one since it won the Bookers.

I've just read White Tiger and thought it was excellent. I'll be interested to see what you think of it.

Almost done listening to Frankenstein and almost finished with The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, both of which are excellent.

I'm reading Kafka on the Shore and loving it!

I finished The Bordeaux Betrayal by Ellen Crosby last night. I am going to start The Map Thief today.

Just bought myself a new trilogy yesterday! The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix. Just started and am already intrigued!

I'm slowly working my way through Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz. The more I go on, the more I enjoy it - the first 100 pages were a bit of a slog. Now that things are starting to happen to the family I'm more interested. And there are two more in the series if I get really interested.

Message edited by its author, Jan 17, 2009, 1:22pm.

Killeymoon, I've read all three of the Mahfouz trilogy. It's nice to spread them out with a few reads in between. Then it is like coming home to familiar slippers when you pick up the next one.

Killeymoon, I agree with hemlokgang. I spread them out over about 18 months. The second and third books do not pick up right where the previous ones ended, so there's no need to go back and try to remember what had been happening.

I finished For Whom the Bell Tolls which I loved and am now reading Pat Barker's Regeneration which is somehow not quite what I'd thought it would be.

I finished Farthing and I've already started Ha'penny, both by Jo Walton.

Getting deeper into The Children's Hospital by Chris Adrian.

I'm a quarter of the way through The Obscene Bird of Night by José Donoso Yáñez. It's slow going, but good so far.

I've finished Friday Night Knitting Club, The Lightning Keeper, and The Sisters Mortland and have started reading The Emperor's Bones. Fiction seems to be my thang lately. I liked but did not love the first, could have lived without the language and the ending on the second, and was not sorely disappointed with most of the third save the fact that not a single character, major or minor, ended up happy.

I've noticed that several folks are reading the Booker-winner The White Tiger , which I only finished myself last month, but Adiga's book just didn't work for me at all, in fact, I think it's the poorest Booker pick since Vernon God Little.

I just finished Fair and Tender Ladies. I was pleasantly surprised by the book. I'm not usually a fan of Lee Smith. This should also teach me not to start reading a book club book 2 weeks before the meeting because I always end up with a week to spare and start reading something else. So I'm starting with the oldest book in my library: Stories from the Greek Tragedians by Alfred J. Church. I just figured it out so I'm sharing. This book was printed in 1890 or so. I think that's really cool. :)

Does anyone else have issues with the authors' names loading? They never pop up for me.

Message edited by its author, Jan 17, 2009, 7:36pm.

I just finished The Inn at Lake Devine, my first book by Elinor Lipman which I really enjoyed, and I'm reading Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott (I'd been listening to the audio, and then found out it was abridged...).

I finished up Confessions of a Thug yesterday. It's a pretty enjoyable book which presents the fictional exploits of a 19th Century thug, though the novel is allegedly based on a real person. Next, I'm planning to read Masters' The Deceivers which is a wholly fictional account of Thuggee. (That's all I know about it so far,)

I've also been reading Santiago Dabove's La Muerte y su traje (no touchstone), which is an intriguingly dark collection of short stories, some of them science-fiction.

Just finished Samuel Beckett's Murphy and now reading:

Two Lives by William Trevor
First Love and Other Stories by Ivan Turgenev
The Birds by Aristophanes
The Greco-Persian Wars by Peter Green
Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens

I've got MLK day off (one of the joys of being a university employee) and am hoping to spend the entire day reading.

I just finished Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy and really loved it. What a great story and a surprisingly easy read for a classic! I loved Hardy's world of Weatherbury, Casterbridge and Wessex. His characters are human and full of foibles and disappointments that keep your attention. I highly recommend it!

Currently reading The Good Guy by Dean Koontz. Then I want to read either Pale Horse Coming by Stephen Hunter or The Terror by Dan Simmons.

Still reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Haven't gotten all that far yet, but I can't say I've put my full attention into it. I shall definitely finish it this week though.

I have put A Tree Grows in Brooklyn on the shelf. I may finish it later, and I may not. It just didn't click for me.

I am now reading Radio Freefall by Matthew Jarpe for a RL SFF book group.

My husband bought me Reading the Morning Paper for Christmas and I just started it but am enjoying so far. I finished An Irish Country Christmas which I enjoyed and saw they had at B&N the first one in the series in hardback for $5.98. I scarfed up the book along with my 10% discount An Irish Country Doctor I am excited to start it.

B&N actually has some really good deals right now - I love after Christmas shopping!!

I am also reading Graveyard Eyes by David Chacko
It is a mystery set in modern day, Istanbul, Turkey. It is the start of the series about police officer Onur Levent .

Reading The Queen of Bedlam and it is GREAT. McCammon is such a great writer, he lives only five minutes from me and I keep hoping that I will run into him at the grocery store. But back to the book, early NY, murder, interesting characters with great prose.

I just finished The Leper, by Steve Thayer. It's a novel that follows the life of a man who contracts leprosy during WW1 and is sent away to a leper colony in Lousiana. It was astonishing and tragic to learn about such places. Very good story.

Besides reading Blood and Roses, I also started Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn.

Just finished both Mort and The Princess Bride. Both are great books.
Today I started Sourcery and might start up on Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell as well.

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 2:10am.

I have sent Dear American Airlines back to the library with only 50 pages read. It didn' do anything for me. I am starting Alias Grace tonight.

Still reading The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro. It's pretty amusing, and I think I'll add another one of her books to my TBR pile.

I'm just finishing up One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, will probably complete it tomorrow. After that, probably will start In Cold Blood as well as continue with Requiem for a Dream, which I've had on the go for quite a while now.

I believe I will begin Requiem today. Still mulling it over with my morning coffee...

43: I just read that last week :)

Currently reading Shadowmoor, just to demonstrate my nerdyness.

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 8:21am.

~so, did you like it??

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 8:21am.

I did, but I like just about everything. It kept me interested throughout and I rather liked how it ended. I was satisfied with it.

#20 jhowell - I put Regeneration down a while back. (Like last year). But I've tried to send it off to the thrift store or bookmooch and am reluctant to, so guess I'll pick it up sometime down the road.

#30 ktleyed - I love Thomas Hardy! Tess of the d'Urbervilles and The Mayor of Castorbridge are also good reads. I still haven't read Jude the Obscure, but it's on my tbr pile.

I'm reading China Road by Rob Gifford, a very good book about his journey along Route 312 in China. I'm also reading Green Tea and other Ghost Stories by J. Sheridan LeFanu. The writing is very convoluted, but the stories are engrossing and there's lots of irony and subtle humor.

Remotely Controlled looks like being quite a slow read - interesting, but not one for sleepy moments or reading before bed - so I've started The Complete Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby for bitesize reading in between... looks to be really good, like LibraryThing but in a book - how have I not discovered it earlier?!

Almost finished with Lisa Kleypas' Secrets Of A Summer Night, much to the chagrin of my friends and boyfriend! Apparently there seems to be a stigma surrounding romance novels -- I just directed them to the Smart Bitches, Trashy Books blog! :)

I think I'm going to tackle Geraldine Brooks' March after this -- I've been looking forward to reading it for a while, but somehow keep pushing it back.

Dipping in and out of The Complete Tales of Nikolai Gogol which a kindly soul gifted me with; perfect for lounging around with on a snowy winter Sunday.

i'm in the last chapters of Empires of the Monsoon by Richard Hall; same with The Face of War by Martha Gellhorn; just started Don Quixote and Days of the Consuls by Ivo Andrić.

I am reading two books-The Outlander by Gil Adamson and The Whisperers: Private Life in Stalin's Russia by Orlando Figes. Adamson's book is very exciting as she relates the story of a woman on the run in 1903 and Figes account of life in Russia is fascinating.

Finished Deaf Sentence by David Lodge and just started Ice: The Nature, the History, and the Uses of an Astonishing Substance by Mariana Gosnell.

Just finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. Wonderful read! I am almost finished listening to Frankenstein and I am about to start reading Drop City by T.C. Boyle.

> 42: Eddie- You are knocking out some classics! One Flew Over and In Cold Blood are two giants from the 60's. Enjoy!
>48: ellie- I also loved the Nick Horby books about books. I love his wit. I heard he has a new volume out, that I need to track down.
>54: hemlokgang- Glad you were completely satisfied with Edgar Sawtelle. I wish I could have felt the same way, the second half fell apart for me, promising writer though! I hope you enjoy Drop City! It's a stunning novel. One of the best books I've read in the past decade.
A lot of incredible activity on this thread! Keep it up, guys!!

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 11:01am.

Reading War and Genocide by Doris Bergen and Politics of Knowledge by Richard Ohmann for classes, and still trying to find time to read something from my TBR pile for personal reading. Sigh. I want to start The Glass Castle next, I think.

Just started with The final solution by Michael Chabon. I think I will like it.

On my Kindle, just finished Octavia Butler's Fledgling and I'm now back to Kim Harrison's "The Hollows" series with #4, A Fistful of Charms.

For dead-tree reading, I think I'm going to get started on Charlotte Bronte's The Green Dwarf.

#47 karenmarie wrote: I'm reading China Road by Rob Gifford, a very good book about his journey along Route 312 in China. I'm also reading Green Tea and other Ghost Stories by J. Sheridan LeFanu. The writing is very convoluted, but the stories are engrossing and there's lots of irony and subtle humor.

Wasn't China Road great! It was the only nonfiction on my top 10 list from last year. It really opened my eyes and gave me a lot to think about. I read it because my new boss is Chinese-American ~ born, raised, and educated in China, with continuing ties to the business community there ~ and I wanted to learn about that culture to better understand him and his business. I also read Green Tea and other Ghost Stories by LeFanu last year and enjoyed it, though I found some of the stories more enjoyable than others.

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 12:52pm.

I'm still reading Company of Liars by Karen Maitland. But I'm also reading a book for a professional book club: Literacy Work Stations: making centres work by Debbie Diller. I'm enjoying both, although for different reasons. Company of Liars is purely for fun.

I finished Regeneration by Pat Barker - Meh. Am now reading Dreams of my Father by Obama which is engaging and so far pretty well written, but I've just gotten started.

I'm loving Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult and also just about finished with I'll Fly Away edited by Wally Lamb.

>55 msf59 - I've just been looking for any more volumes of Hornby's bookish essays, but I can't work them out! There seem to be three volumes of essays but I can't work out whether there's an overlap, and whether 'The Complete Polysyllabic Spree' which was published more recently actually pulls together all three... very confusing.

Anybody got any or all of the collections and can offer some insight?!

I'm reading The Code of the Woosters by PG Wodehouse which is fantastic (no surprise there)! I'm also reading How Proust Can Change Your Life but I'm feeling more silly than philosophical right now, so it isn't going well.

I am reading Johnstown Flood of 1889. I can't remember the author right now. Then I don't know what I will be reading...

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.. starting it today!

I may bite the bullet and start Edgar Sawtelle today.

I'm about halfway through On Chesil Beach. I was a little slow to reading books by Ian McEwan, but after seeing the movie Atonement felt like I needed to go read the book right away. Then after reading that book felt like I must go out and buy other books by McEwan.

And only a chapter into The History of Texas Music (for school). I'm taking a History of Texas class this semester. From only a few days of class, I can already tell that Texas love Texas. (Too bad I'm originally from Missouri I guess.)

Still have The Devil in the White City going in the car and The Titan's Curse going on the IPod at the gym.

Message edited by its author, Jan 18, 2009, 4:17pm.

>67 mckait, weelllll if you MUST. I say give it a miss and wait for his second novel since this one has so many first-novel flaws that a good editor could/should have slapped out of him. Can you say "portentous piffle?" I knew that you could!

>68 Shannon, that is a huge truism. You'll get to where you don't really hear it anymore.

I'm finishing up Inventing Money this evening. It's been a disappointing read. The book came highly recommended by reviewers who claimed that it did a good job explaining the mathematics of the options and derivatives trading on Wall Street and how that lead to the failure of Long Term Capital Management in the late '90s. In my opinion, the superficiality of the discussion leaves far more questions than answers. Explanations are often rushed and opaque. The occasional graph would have clarified much of the discussion.

Next up is Fooled by Randomness. Nassim Nicholas Taleb strikes me as being a bit of an arrogant jerk convinced of his own brilliance. It will be interesting to see if he actually has anything substantive to say.

Okay....I read half of Drop City and could not force myself to go on. So I am going to start reading Head Cases: Stories of Brain Injury and its Aftermath by Michael Paul Mason.

richardear~
I meant to, I did.. a friend wants me to read it..
I tried to reach for it but instead came away with Don't Get Me Started
by Kate Clinton. good choice!

I just took a break for a minute to see what goes on here...

Just finished Reading the Morning Paper, if you are a Jane Austen fan get this book and read it. It is very short but stays with you after you read it.

Now starting Gift from the Sea, my mother-in-law got me this for Christmas.

Go Steelers!!!!!!!!!

I read Gift from the Sea in college years ago for my women's history class and abhorred it. Maybe I should give it another try now that I've outgrown some of my younger obstinance :)

Just finished The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro. I thought it was amusing and light. I especially loved her essay on her mother getting email for the first time. It's not for everyone, given her choice of language and some of the subject matter. Still, I added another of her books to my TBR pile.

Up next is Rock Bottom: A Novel by Michael Shilling which is what I received through the Early Reviewer program for December. Here's hoping it's good!

I'm reading Kara Kush which means "Eagle" in afghan by Idries Shah and am being totally blown away by the insight into the Russian occupation into a world that most people don't even know exists. These Afghans have a code of ethics and honor we can only aspire to. And this author? hard to find a place to stop.

Should finish Civilisation by Kenneth Clark in a couple of days. Wonderful. Next up, Ivan Doig's latest The Eleventh Man.

I'm in the middle of The Woman Who Can't Forget. This is a nonfiction book about a woman with a superior memory. The topic is interesting, but the book is not. Too bad!

Message edited by its author, Jan 19, 2009, 12:30am.

I finished The Map Thief which was an okay, easy read but I found the historical chapters captured my attention more than the modern day suspense chapters.

I have started The Various Flavours of Coffee this evening and find it to be highly entertaining!

I've just started reading Bitter Lemons by Lawrence Durrell and I really like his prose. It's so lyrical and so detailed that he's not only building images of old Cyprus in the 50s, but he's making me seriously think of planning a little trip there myself this fall.

Has anyone read anything by Diana Gabaldan? Is so, what do you think? Two people have recommended her books to me, but I am not familiar with her writing.

#81 You'll find there are plenty of Diana Gabaldon fans here at LT - I'm one of them! Her Outlander Series is my favorite series. It's rich in detail, romantic, exciting (a little over the top yes) but a very enjoyable read. I could go on and on - do yourself a favor and read these books!

>39 - I just loved The Princess Bride - it's one of my all-time favorites!

Right now I'm about 2/3 of the way through Kevin Brockmeier's The Brief History of the Dead - it's great so far, and I'm quite curious to find out how it turns out.

Finished Ellen Foster very quickly last week, then picked up De Niro's Game and finished it over the weekend. It's not too often I read two books in a week.

Ellen Foster is written to be read in a sitting. The author, Kaye Gibbons, has bi-polar disorder and apparently wrote the book in a manic phase. The narrator is an 11-yr-old girl in a foster home who recounts the series of events that led her there. A breath-taking little book.

I read De Niro's Game because it was the 2008 IMPAC Dublin Award, which I've become rather fond of. It's about two childhood friends, maybe 18(?), living in Christian east Beirut during the Lebanon Civil War. The title refers to a game of Russian Roulette apparently played by Robert DeNiro is the movie The Deer Hunter. An excellent book, I found it one of the most satisfying I've read in awhile.

Next up is an Early Reviewer book: Strangers in the Land of Egypt* which I just started. I'm hoping it gets better.

*no touchstone, link here: http://www.librarything.com/work/6833505

OK, as previously mentioned I started Remotely Controlled on Saturday. Very interesting, but a bit heavy for bedtime reading, so I then started Nick Hornby's 'The Complete Polysyllabic Spree' to fill in the gaps with something lighter. Then last night, I felt absolutely dreadful, stayed up til 2 watching 'Sweet November' on telly, then woke up this morning with a cracking headache.

Well, I needed something VERY light and fun that I could read while my painkillers were kicking in, and to distract me from thinking about the day ahead, so I've burrowed into Never Hit a Jellyfish With a Spade, a very funny little book by Guy Browning which nearly finished off my mum when she choked on her coffee laughing.

Finished American Gods by Neil Gaiman. I absolutely need time before I can write anything about it. It was so incredible I felt like I was holding my breath all the way through.

Finished A Three Dog Life. Poignant description of a very difficult situation. Good that it was short, though, because it felt repetitious after a bit. Still deciding what's next. I think a book from the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die.

got in before 100 came around

I just finished Essential Rumi. I enjoyed it, don't ask me to discuss it. i read it because it was a square on my library's BINGO game and I needed it to finish a line.

Now I can finish Abhorsen and get back to Passing of the Armies.

# 80, cameling, Let me know if you do decide to visit Cyprus -- I used to live there. It isn't anything like what it was in the 50s, though.

A decision has been made. I'm going to read Wild Swans by Jung Chang next.

Started Princeps' Fury by Jim Butcher last night and am so far enjoying it. Earlier in the day started an early Repairman Jack novel, which I was also enjoying, but put it aside to read Princeps' Fury because I doubt I'll be able to renew it and it's due back in a few days, whereas the Repairman Jack novel is due back in a week or so.

Have decided to purchase Blood and Roses, because it's not one of those books you can careen through. It needs to be savored slowly, and ya can't do that with a library book that's due back in 2 weeks (or, for me now, two days).

#91, snash: I just read Jung Chang's Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China in Nov. and mightily enjoyed it. I'd also read her biography of Mao when it came out, and it's quite an exceptional book too.

Out of my library stack I finally settled on Frostbite by Richelle Mead.

>86, that is a great title! I want to read it now based on that alone.

# 39 & 83 – I’m a huge Princess Bride fan, too, it’s one of my favourites.

# 81 – what ktleyed said. The Outlander series (Cross Stitch if you’re in Australia & some other countries) is brilliant. It has romance, history, time-travel, adventure. A warning though: the books are all big and once you start there is no stopping. My husband knows if I’m reading one, that housework won’t get done, dinner will be quick, we won’t be going anywhere; cause all I want to do is read.

I'm nearly finished No Logo and Get Shorty and picked up Beloved for a RL bookclub from the library yesterday.

#50> Hey Richard! I love Chekhov. A lot. So I'm glad you've got those stories to read. But, seriously, "gifted me with?" Oh, well. I guess we all must vocabulate to our own drummers. :)

She gifted me! With science!*

*Sorry, obscure (unless you were around and watching MTV in the 80s) Thomas Dolby reference.

Last night I began The Centaur by Algernon Blackwood, a horror novel first published in 1911.

Message edited by its author, Jan 19, 2009, 6:06pm.

Finished Cane River yesterday, and started The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde - so far I am absolutely loving it!

Darkmans - Nicola Barker - Good writing , interesting style

maybe I should have said different style



Vonnegutish like

She's humorous too- very , even though the story is moving into the supernatural realm

Message edited by its author, Jan 19, 2009, 6:26pm.

#93, Louis Branning, I agree with you that Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang was an interesting book, and certainly benefitted from her access to some previously unavailable material, but I felt her prejudices (not surprising given her own experiences) were so obvious that I couldn't be sure of her interpretations/presentation of much of the information. Although I haven't read them yet, I did buy two other books about Mao to try to get other perspectives.

I'm well into 2666 by Roberto Bolano (the second book of the three-book paperback edition, which is the 4th part of the novel) and am also reading How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas by David Bornstein.

I'm going to start Eclipse tonight for a complete guilty-pleasure break. I hope it's better than the second book. Twilight was so fun, but I was disappointed in New Moon.

#57 I know you will like The Final Solution. Just finished it for mystery bookclub. DH, daughter and I are reading all books by Robert Morgan.Gap Creek, This Rock were both terrific. Reminded me of Cold Mountain.

I did a reread of Maeve Brennan’s novella, The Visitor. It’s the story of a 22-year-old woman’s return to Dublin after her mother’s death. The writing is so lovely, and the characters so richly drawn, that I wished the book had been a full length novel. And the story is told with such an economy of character and setting that I can’t help but think Maeve’s love for the theatre was an influence. The damn thing would make a great play.

And speaking of theater, recently I noticed that I have a lot of Beckett that I haven’t read, and so this year I’m going to try and read at least a couple of novels and plays. Yesterday I started with Waiting for Godot since I’ll be going to see a local production of it next month. Beckett’s achievement with this play on the personal as well as aesthetic level is surely one of the great wonders of Irish literature.

I also did a reread of John McGahern’s powerful 1965 masterpiece, The Dark. Reading it in 2009, it’s impact at the time can only be fully understood with reference to the social realties of the time. In a society where the authority of the Catholic Church and pater familias was absolute, the concepts of domestic violence and clerical abuse could not be exposed. In rural areas particularly, the victim of abuse, whether physical or sexual, had no support at all. The beaten child “deserved it” and the raped woman “was asking for it” and if they complained further they were ostracized or worse, locked up. McGahern was vilified by the Church and state after the books’ publication, fired from his teaching job and had to emigrate to England. Although it was only McGahern’s second novel, it might well be his most powerful.

Currently I think I may begin Lark and Termite since it arrived in the mail yesterday.

Message edited by its author, Jan 19, 2009, 7:13pm.

By page 80 of my current read, 2 dogs were killed. I may not continue.. it ws not necessary to the story in either case...

that just ruins my pleasure in a book.

sorry, I didn't "hear" you~

I've just finished Cost by Roxana Robinson. It's early in the year so you never know, but I'll be surprised not to find this one on my best of the year list at year end.

Sean, I think you're gonna love Jayne Anne Phillips' wonderful novel Lark & Termite. She begins with an epigraph from The Sound and the Fury, and as her story progresses, you consistently hear the familiar echoes of Benjy resound in her character Termite, but leaving all Faulkner references aside, I think this one's absolutely the real deal, not just a great book, but an out-and-out masterpiece that shouldn't be missed by any serious reader of contemporary fiction.

I just finished A Wolf at the Table by Augusten Burroughs. I didn't like it. The story felt wildly over told and like it was trying to hard to get you to feel bad/horrified. It was this month's selection for my 2nd book club.

I started Holiday in Death by J.D. Robb today.

#104 mckait, what were you reading? I know what you mean -- once I read a book I really enjoyed until about 50 pages from the end when the dog was killed, and I was devastated. I kept going, though, and found the ending dissatisfying. It would have been an okay read if it hadn't been for the dog :(.

Will start The Secret of Lost Things Sheridan Hay. Any comments on this book?

I'm working my way through The Magician's Book. I like it, but I think I need some fiction to intersperse it with. Unfortunately, the last time I tried that I picked up Sharon Kay Penman's Sunne in Splendor and wasn't able to read anything else.

I've started The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. It's a YA book that I probably wouldn't have considering reading except that I heard the author talking about it on NPR and it seemed interesting (and it is!). Oh and I'm way past YA age! ;)

Reading Crazy for You by Jennifer Crusie, was in the mood for some easy reading chick lit. :)

Reading Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill for the Orange January thread in Girlybooks. Sad but unsentimental portrait of motherless child with a junkie father. So far so good.

Reading Kipling's the Jungle Book after having discussed Gaiman's the Graveyard Book.

Also still stretching out So Many Ways to Sleep Badly by Sycamore.

Message edited by its author, Jan 19, 2009, 10:14pm.

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. There's a short Introduction (PPC edition) with a Thomas Hardy citation and I gotta admit, so far I'd second that one: 'a ponderously warm manner of saying nothing in infinite sentences'.
Man, that guy was throwing in more commas (and by that I mean relative clauses ;) ) than I've ever seen in any english book. Ever. Kind of charming though.

Also started Jane Eyre and snack on the second Legends II anthology.

i've just started The Siege of Krishnapur by J.G.Farell

I finished Radio Freefall by Matthew Jarpe, for my RL SF group. It seemed a like it would be a bit iffy based on the description: an updated version of The Moon is a Harsh Mistress set on earth with cyber culture and rock & roll.

While not as good as The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, it was enjoyable, and blended everything together well. I would read the author again (this was his first book).

I am now reading Graveyard Eyes by David Chacko, a mystery set in modern day Istanbul. Follows a police inspector there, and is the start of the Onur Levent series. I am enjoying it so far, and it seems to have a better sense of place, than some of the other mystery books set there.

Have put A Tree Grows in Brooklyn down. Don't know if I will go back or not. Tried to read it for about 8 days and couldn't get to page 70.

# 97: rocketjk
#50> Hey Richard! I love Chekhov. A lot. So I'm glad you've got those stories to read. But, seriously, "gifted me with?" Oh, well. I guess we all must vocabulate to our own drummers. :)

She gifted me! With science!

I thought it was: "She blinded me with science" ?

Currently reading These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer, it's my second novel by her :)

I just started Dead until Dark by Charlaine Harris. I wanted to give this series a try after hearing so much about True Blood on HBO.

Just finished both Head Cases: Stories of Brain Injury and Its Aftermath and Frankenstein. Just about to start reading The Bad Girl, an Early Reviewer book, by Mario Vargas Llosa. I think I will start listening to Six Sacred Stones by Matthew Reilly.

Just started the sorrows of young werther - be interesting to hear if anyone else has read it.

> Sean & Louis- The buzz is really building on Lark and Termite. It might already be in contention for best book of the year, wow, I better start tracking it down.
I finished Beautiful Children by Charles Bock. I thought it was a very good first novel but clearly not for everyone. Speaking of great buzz, I'm starting The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb. I have a feeling this is going to be so good!

msf59, you're so right about Lark & Termite, really can't recommend this one any higher. I saw your review of Bock's Beautiful Children too, and couldn't agree more. I also see you've already read the new Charlie Huston book, and I'll get to it as soon as I'm done with Joyce Carol Oates' Wild Nights!, which has been pretty good so far.

Well, I couldn't wait any longer and read a good chunk of Lark and Termite last night, and so far I'm under it's spell. It's turning out to be one of those rare books where everything comes together for me - the story, the characters, the setting and the gorgeous writing. Word of advice: read this real, real slow so you can fully appreciate the beauty.

Last three messages (#124-126)...ackkk!...another book to put on my voluminous TBR list. Must use more willpower. :-)

I just finished Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin. LOVED the writing but, not being a fantasy lover, the story was a stretch for me.

Next up is Property by Valterie Martin, a book about slavery that won the Orange Prize in 2003.

#47 Karenmarie - Wait until you read Jude the Obscure! I think that it's Hardy's best. The main character struggles with the pull of the responsibilities of ordinary life while striving and longing for books and education. Unfortunately the two are unable to merge comfortably and it ends in tragedy. And then see the movie with Kate Winslet just called "Jude".

I am still reading Hostage to the Devil by Malachi Martin. This is such a fascinating read! I've had the book for years but never got to it until now (inspired by my reading of The Exorcist). Now I'm looking for other good books about demon possession.
I wish I didn't read so darn slow, though! I have so many books and will probably be unable to read them all in my lifetime - and I'll just keep buying more! Can't help it.

Pam

Finished A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare: 1599 by James Shapiro.
Now reading The Grand Idea by Joel Achenbach.

Still reading After Elizabeth, but I'm now thinking it should have been my previous book so I could be reading The Summer of 1787 (which was that previous book) today.

I am reading The Eight by Katherine Neville and contrary to so many LTers, I am enjoying it. I am only about 1/3 of the way in, so that is subject to change at any moment. Interesting it was written 20+ years ago. It is keeping me entertained and I hope it will continue to interest me.

Touchstone not correct.

Message edited by its author, Jan 20, 2009, 12:39pm.

Just finished Work Hard, Be Nice and have started on Edgar Sawtelle. I love Sawtelle so far probably because I had been reading nonfiction and Work Hard was pretty good.

Just finished Work Hard, Be Nice and have started on Edgar Sawtelle. I love Sawtelle so far probably because I had been reading nonfiction and Work Hard was pretty good.

101- No! Don't tell me the second book was no good. I'm about to start it...well...as soon as I finish the first book in the Left Behind series... These were two series that I refused to read when they first came out. I figured that since I ended up liking Twilight I might as well try Left Behind... I haven't been able to put it down...It's one of those books that I wish I didn't have to work just so I could stay home and read... I've only had a few of those lately...hmm

I'm reading Politics of Knowledge by Richard Ohmann, Admitting the Holocaust by Lawrence L. Langer, and Writing and Rewriting the Holocaust by James E. Young for classes, and just started my ER book that I received over the long weekend, Boston Curiosities by Ted Clarke.

Busy busy!

Change of plan. Instead of The Six Sacred Stones I am going to listen to Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling.

Hi jk, it was Gogol not Chekhov, but she gifted me with art is still the Dolby-ization of it.

Been watching all the inaugural hoopla, haven't touched a book except to pick up the mail. Got Maimonides: The Exceptional Mind as an Early Reviewer book.

Finished Dreams from my Father by Obama almost at the exact same time he was being sworn in. It was both powerful and rather eerie to be reading this very personal book about his life written before he could have ever forseen today. Anyway - it was pretty good. Refreshing to have a president that can actually string together thoughtful and articulate sentences.

Started Enduring Love by Ian McEwan and have been sucked in.

>134 - Don't worry, I liked New Moon - it wasn't QUITE as good as Twilight but it was still a great read!

>138 - Hear hear! I'm looking forward to reading Dreams from my Father very soon - and cried at Obama's inauguration speech (I always cry, surely the mark of a brilliant orator)...

# 119 > I thought it was: "She blinded me with science" ?

It was. I make zee leeetle joke.

# 137 > Richard, Ah, Gogol. I really like him too. "The Overcoat," and "The Nose"! So wonderful to be gifted by a friend with a book by a writer so wonderful and gifted.

Message edited by its author, Jan 20, 2009, 7:55pm.

Richardderus, what a coincidence, I have just started Maimonides by Sherwin Nuland for a bookclub, not your er book but what are the odd of two people reading about him?

I just finished The Magic Toyshop, a wonderful VMC, and have started Blown Coverage by NFL Player Jason Elam (my first ARC).

Just finished I'll Fly Away edited by Wally Lamb. It was interesting to read the writings of women in a maximum security prison. At the end of the book, it gives a small summary of each writer's life and what they were convicted of ~ when you look at the group photo on the back of the cover, read the poetry or prose of each woman, and then see what crime put them in prison.....it gives one pause, to realize what any person might be capable of in a given situation.

I'm nearing the end of Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult, which I'm finding very good indeed.

I'm reading Keeping The Moon right now by Sarah Dessen. At Christmas I read her latest book Lock and Key, and loved it, so now I'm reading the rest of her books. I'm on the fourth one and have four to go. They are young adult books which I don't normally read, but it's kind of nice to get back in touch with my teenage self. It makes me wish I was that young again.

I have just started reading the Diary of Anne Frank, i read it once before with my primary school class, and ever since then i have wanted to read it again.

Spent yesterday evening hiding from Edgar and watching tv instead.
( Inaugural festivities)
I really do not like the book so far, but have to read it to be nice. woe is me.

I started The Pagan Stone last night which is the last book in my first series by Nora Roberts. I thought the first one was okay and the second one better so I guess it is up to this one to decide me on if I will seek out more books by this author (not that she really needs my input LOL!)

Just finished reading Clark Gable: Tormented Star and will shortly begin The Catcher in the Rye.

>146 - I can still remember the day my school librarian (a very nice woman who liked kids who, shock horror, actually liked to read!) put her head on one side, asked me if I'd read Diary of a Young Girl, and ushered me enthusiastically towards the history section. Now it's never leaving my bookshelf.

As I head off to have lunch I am going to start Disquiet by Julia Leigh. Considering it's a scant 100 or so pages I expect I will finish it up on the subway ride home this evening. Looking forward to it after hearing so many positive things about it.

Hi all, I'm new here and I love this site. I'm trying to finish The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb. It's a whopper of a book, and even though I'm almost at the end, I just haven't connected to the characters like I did in his other books, I Know This Much is True and She's Come Undone. To me, the characters in those books were so compelling and unforgettable.

For Christmas I got Awakenings by Oliver Sacks and Uncle Tungsten also by Sacks. I bought myself a memoir new in paperback entitled My Lobotomy which just sounded so interesting, so those are in my stack to read.

Looking forward to getting to know you and hearing about your good reads!

Jessica

Message edited by its author, Jan 21, 2009, 4:22pm.

I am having the Devil's own time writing a review of The Elegance of the Hedgehog. I have finished it, several days ago; I have started three reviews and tossed them. I can't decide what I think about this book, and that's not a common occurrence for me at all.

I understand perfectly why it's a best-seller, and I know why it's garnered so much praise. I don't know if I should let fly at the book's real, and somewhat troubling, faults, or simply add to the chorus of well-earned praise. It's really down to what I want others (presumably at least a few people read my reviews, they get votes after all) to take away from the book.

Pondering...pondering...pondering....

I picked up and finished off Esio Trot by Roald Dahl this morning, sort of like a palette cleanser between bigger books. Very cute. I wonder if Mr Hoppy will ever tell his new bride the truth about her tortoise, Alfie.

Now reading The Virtu by Sarah Monette.

Welcome, goofgirl!! Nice to have a new member join the madness! :o)

I'm waiting for the paperback version of the new Wally Lamb book ~ thanks for sharing your view of it.

I, too, have My Lobotomy by Howard Dully in my TBR pile. I have a feeling that some here at LT might think a lobotomy is just the therapy I need! LOL I wonder if that would cure my addiction to buying books?

Anyway, glad to have you on board! :o)

porchypooh, no one here would want you to have a lobotomy! No one! Really!

(pssst mckait...got the ice-pick ready? jude, make with the Band-Aids! elliepotten, make a lotta noise, we gotta work quick!)

LOL!

Hey, why have I got to be the one making all the noise?!

Have I mentioned how much I enjoy the Baby-Sitter Club graphic novels by Raina Telgemeier? Books 1, 3, 4, and 7 are in graphic novel form. I just finished Claudia and Mean Janine. (and of course I can't get the right touchtone).

> 153: richard- In regards to your review, you seem to be a straight-shooter type, tell it like you feel! Warts & roses, dude!
Welcome Goofgirl- Sorry you are having problems with the latest Wally Lamb. I'm about 150 pages in and I'm loving every minute of it! See you on the threads!

>158 ellie, I figured it was less icky than the improvised surgery itself, but if YOU want to wield the pick, hey who am I to deny you? ;-P

>160 msf, you've put your finger on precisely the issue I want to resolve...hairy-wart-on-pink-rose syndrome. Are those sorts of reviews really helpful to others? I guess it's best simply to write the consarned thing and let the chips fall where they may. Won't be my first review to get no votes.

# 161 richard: I agree with msf59. I like to read if people didn't like the book, or if they thought that a particular bit was a bit laboured or whatever. I want to hear what the flaws are, so I can decide for myself if I can deal with them.

yes, richardear

I was going to say the same thing. Don't try to write a literary masterpiece. This time, just speak from the heart and be true to your feelings and the spirit of the story.

Just finished Abhorsen. Can't understand how I hadn't read it until now when the paperback came out in 2003 and I had read and enjoyed the first two parts Sabriel and Lirael. It was a wonderful and compelling conclusion to this trilogy.

I also managed another chapter in The Passing of the Armies but I feel it is a more technical book than I really like on the Civil War, but I shall finish it anyway - slowly.

Tomorrow I get my chance at a library copy of Mounting Fears. Love Stuart Woods books and even got to hear him speak when he came to Scranton a couple of years ago.

Went to B&N tonight and saw the book Promised Land by {Jay Parini}. It is about 13 books that has truly made a change in America. At the back of the book is a list of 100 books that he things also fit the category. Has anyone read this? It sounds very interesting and I would like to have the time to read all 100 books on the list.

msf59 post 160: Thank you for the welcome! I shouldn't say I'm having problems with the new Wally Lamb book, it's just very long and at this point it feels like he's belaboring the story and the characters. However, I have experienced that sometimes the end is SO perfect and ties everything together so wonderfully, that the whole book becomes the "best book ever!" I'm hold out hope.

porchsitter55 post 155: I had to edit my post because I first typed "I bought myself My Lobotomy for Christmas"... it just didn't sound right!! LOL!

goofgirl..........rolling on floor laughing!!!! That's great, I loved it!!

You're going to fit in just great here. :o)

I finished The Code of the Woosters, which is wonderful for all Wodehouse fans and probably less so for those who are not (are you out there, non-Wodehouse types?). Next up is The History of the Siege of Lisbon by Jose Saramago. The first chapter is an incoherent stream-of-consciousness bit, which intimidated me at first but I remembered that I love that sort of thing. Very good book, so far.

ETA: "incoherent" is due to me and my reading comprehension skills, not Saramago and his writing skills. I didn't get it at first, but it wasn't his fault.

Message edited by its author, Jan 22, 2009, 12:13am.

# 168 jfetting - I would love to hear what you think of The History of the Siege of Lisbon. I recently read my first Jose Saramago, Death with Interruptions, which I loved!

I have finished The Various Flavours of Coffee by Anthony Capella. I thought this was a fantastic historical fiction as it had a little bit of everything: some light humour (reminiscent of P.G. Wodehouse), descriptive detail, captivating storyline, travels to far off places (Africa and South America late 1800's, early 1900), all in an easy to read, enjoyable format (considering I was reading this while recovering from a head cold it was exactly what I was up for).

Haven't decided what to pick up next... currently leaning towards Zugzwang by Ronan Bennett.

Message edited by its author, Jan 22, 2009, 12:40am.

Currently I am reading A PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN - JAMES JOYCE. I am not sure how I feel about this book. Haven't gotten very far into it yet. not sure what book I will read next. HAPPY READING TO ALL!

#62 porchsitter55: Did you read the first compilation Wally Lamb did with the women in prison, Couldn't Keep it to Myself? He has obviously done some fine work with them in that writing class. I believe it must be thoroughly theraputic for them to have an outlet for what they all have undoubtedly been through. Did you enjoy I'll Fly Away? Don't know why I didn't pick it up this time. I'll be sure to put it on my TBR list. But it will have to wait until I'm done with My Lobotomy... Guess i just can't let that one go!! LOL... hehehehe

The Double Image, by Helen MacInnes, just started, after finishing Dog Eat Dog, by Laurien Berenson, with was a nice light read, especially for dog/poodle owners and/or dog show people...though there was a murder, a supposed robbery and an exhusband/deadbeat long-lost father's appearance, as well as a hint of sex. Something for almost everyone!

Still slogging through Edgar, and hating it more every chapter.
It goes home tomorrow, I think a week is enough of my life to give to a gook I don't like. I will keep reading until then.

I've just finished Bitter Lemons - I thought it'd be a quick read when I first picked it up because it's relatively thin, but boy does it pack a lot of detail in there. There's so much to love in this book. It's so well written, I think, full of great detail but not excessive detail.

I learned alot about the history of Cyprus in the 50s as well from this book, and I loved that Mr Durrell captured the confusion, anger and angst of the Cypriots as well as the bungling arrogance of the British administration during the times. He brought through to the reader the desperation, despair and determination during the violence that unfortunately and inevitably took place and more importantly, the souls of those who could recognize humanity,friendship and trust beyond nationality. There's alot that can be learned from the residents of Bellapaix.

And I'm now determined to plan a trip to Cyprus before I'm old, blind and deaf.

After that, I wish I had something light and fluffy with me on this trip, but I didn't think to pack one. So I'm on to The Cigar Roller by Pablo Medina as my next read.

Just started The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson. What a gruesome (and captivating) opening chapter it has! Yikes!!

>164 koalamom - If you liked the Abhorsen trilogy, I'd definitely recommend picking up Nix's Across the Wall. It's a short story collection, but the first is more of a novella featuring Nicholas Sayre. The rest of the stories are good reads, as well.

I started reading Metropole by Ferenc Karinthy last night, but became so annoyed with it by the end of the third or fourth chapter that I pitched it across the room, where it slid far under a bookcase, nearly missing cat in the progress. If anyone's interested in this sort of thing, just read The Castle instead.

After that, it was necessary to sooth my temper by dipping into The Collected Stories of Rudyard Kipling.

thanks to #176 - I had noticed Across the Wall in the Nix titles on Amazon and was intrigued and was wondering if he had started anything new with these characters.

>161 Richard - Maybe I'll just stand over the whole operation looking thoughtful and muttering the occasional 'hmmmm...'

Still ploughing through my three, slowly but surely. Remotely Controlled is interesting but there's so much packed into it - I think I liked Marie Winn's Plug-in Drug better. The Complete Polysyllabic Spree is turning out to be very much like LibraryThing in book form (yay!) and Never Hit a Jellyfish With A Spade is just as funny as I remember!

I finished Blown Coverage this week. Don't think I will read another by Jason Elam and company, but it may work for some.

Just started The Time Traveler's Wife and am enjoying it so far.

#171.......goofgirl, I have the book you referred to on my wishlist......I am looking forward to getting that one ASAP. I got the I'll Fly Away book first because I found it unexpectedly on bookcloseouts.com.

It was good. There was some poetry, but mostly just assorted short stories or snippets of their former lives, by the women. One gal talks/writes very "ghetto", even in her poetry. Others are very eloquent. A very eclectic mix of personalities and backgrounds.

I finished Enduring Love by McEwan. Loads better than Saturday, but not as good as Atonement IMO.

Am about to start The Lace Reader --an LT-inspired read.

Just finished Secrets Of A Summer Night yesterday; immediately jumped into Milkrun by Sarah Mlynowski. I'm sticking with lighter books lately -- I have a cold and can't seem to concentrate anything serious! :)

Got my library copy of Mounting Fears, read another chapter in Passing of the Armies and did another decade in the New Yorker Cartoon book

Message edited by its author, Jan 22, 2009, 7:11pm.

I am finishing up Amitav Ghosh's Sea of Poppies.

Just starting Good People by Marcus Sakey.

Oh you guys make me laugh...will now have to check out The Lobotomy.

Goofgirl Welcome! Hope you enjoy this site as much as we all do. Lots of chuckles and of course never ending book talk!

Mckait--I am reading Edgar Sawtelle too--although I don't hate it--I thought it would be so much better than it is. I keep getting stuck and put it aside.

#182
Atonement is one of my favourite books, but when it comes to McEwan I think it's all downhill from here. Perhaps I'm the only one who feels that way but I'm always afraid of trying new books by the same author when I really loved one book. Enduring Love was a serious disappointment.
If anyone knows of another book by McEwan that is as good, pray tell.

I just read Edgar Sawtelle and thoroughly enjoyed it. Not the best writing, but the plot, characters, and all the dog breeding aspects were really good. It's an awfully long book to read all the way through if you dislike it.

Right now, i just started reading a book called princeta. its really great so far.

#188 Sibylle.Night - which have you read? Just Atonement and Enduring Love? McEwan is a little touch-and-go with me, too (I have nothing nice to say about Saturday) but I also loved Atonement, so my recommendation to you would be to try Amsterdam. Even better than Atonement, IMHO.

Chipping away at my TBR Challenge slowly but surely- it has really served as great motivation! Anyways, am very much enjoying what I've read of Here Be Dragons and think it will be very satisfying to cross it off my list.

Just finished The Secret River by Kate Grenville which was a fantastic, brilliant book. Contemplating what to read next, might depend on which books on my 'to read' list are in at the library tomorrow...

>188 sibylle, I second jfetting's suggestion of Amsterdam as another stab at McEwan. If you don't like that, then it's sealed: You and he aren't aetherically matched up.

Ok... I should be finishing Left Behind (touchstone not working) tonight. I have choice of The Divide by Nicholas Evans or Little Altars Everywhere....not sure yet which one I want to start.

#185: mefs - I'd love to hear you thoughts on Sea of Poppies. It's on my to-buy list.

#193 bronwenanne - I'll 2nd your opinion of The Secret River, quite a book.

Just finished Gift from the Sea by {Anne Morrow Lindbergh} It was different than I first thought it was going to be. Interesting, more of a reflective type of book. It was given to me as a Christmas gift.

Now time to start a new book.
#180 Lisa Morr - tell me what you think of Time Travelers Wife I got it for Christmas also and haven't picked it up yet.

195 - I've toyed with the idea of trying the "Left Behind" series especially with all that's going on right now. Is it worth it?

Started Wild Swans last evening. It's a bit long but I can already tell that's not going to be a problem at all. I'm fully into it. I'm also reading poetry in bits and pieces from 180 More Poems for Every Day and A Hurricane is by Angelo Verga. I was at a poetry writing conference this past weekend and met Angelo.

I started reading "Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" by Chelsea Handler while I was bored at work earlier. My friend let me borrow it saying it was good, so I'm reading it now. :)

Message edited by its author, Jan 22, 2009, 8:14pm.

198> I was actually very surprised by this series. I guess I had preconceived thoughts about them and had never picked them up b/c of that. I'm glad I did! I haven't been able to put the first one down. I've since mooched the second one, so we'll see if it continues to capture my attention. If you would like to email me your address, I'll be happy to send it to you so you can give them a try.

Am still reading Princeps' Fury and have started listening to The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, which is fantastic so far. No wonder it won the Pulitzer. I couldn't stop listening last night and stayed up way past my bedtime. Thank goodness my iPod ran out of juice or I might've been up all night.

#174 - Although it is fiction and a mystery, Decision at Delphi, by Helen MacInnes also does a pretty great job of giving the reader an idea of what went on during and immediately after WWII in Greece. This author did her homework well!!!

#191 and #194 - I support the suggestion that you read Amsterdam, and agree with the idea that, if you don't like this one, McEwan and you are not a good match.

#195, #198 and #201 - My husband has read the entire series. He is not a reader, so for him to be gripped by the entire series is a testimonial in and of itself. Go for it! However, keep in mind, these books are fictional, although based on Scripture which I believe to be true.

#197 - A Gift From the Sea is a wonderful book by an inspirational writer. I suggest you read more of her when you need something similar for an emotionally satisfying read.

118: I liked Siege of Krishnapur. Works as a present too.

168: The only non-Wodehouse fans are those that have not read Wodehouse. Code of the Woosters is an excellent place to starr for the Bertie/Jeeves set but I think the Mr. Milner(?) stories are a good place for someone new to Wodehouse/ They are great story yarns and they are short. Owrell defended Wodehouse when he was held captive by the Nazis and did some radio "camp pieces" for German radio before he was released to England.

Oh, BIG fan of Wodehouse here!! How cool about Orwell!!!! Thanks for the post, Smiley!!!

I'm reading:

Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare. Probably his first tragedy. Despite all the violence, it's very interesting.

Ny jord by Knut Hamsun, one of his first novels. Not much appreciated now.

One of my projects is to spend two or three years rereading Hamsun's complete works.

Message edited by its author, Jan 23, 2009, 3:21am.

Just finished Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard. I really enjoyed this, Leonard is such a fun writer. I have nearly finished No Logo, but am finding it heavy going in parts.

Then for the long weekend I have Beloved and am joining the bandwagon with Twilight.

I've been ravenously reading Good People by Marcus Sakey.....it's so good I've been taking short naps in between reading (all night long)!!!! Super fast reading and a top notch thriller ~ I love this author! I don't usually get through a book this fast but it's un-put-downable. I've read one other by Sakey, The Blade Itself, which was also very good. But this one is better yet. Highly recommend!

I just started reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I was almost late for work the other day because I was reading it before I left and had trouble putting it down!

I'm hoping to finish that up this weekend and then start reading Stardust by Neil Gaiman for a book club. I've heard such great things about his work and never got around to reading any of it, so it'll be nice to finally get a chance to do that.

I abandoned the siege of krishnapur because, although it was well written and comical, I just couldn't move past the language used somehow. Hard to explain. I went on then to read heat and dust and for me, although partly set in roughly the same time period, this worked much better. A much more realistic piece of writing.

I've read both The Siege of Krishanpur and Heat and Dust. For me, they were very different kinds of novels, but I enjoyed both. The Siege of Krishnapur probably made more of an impression on me, but that could be because I read it as part of J. G. Farrell's whole empire trilogy, or because I read it more recently.

>197, Investory - I'm about 100 pages in, and I'm really enjoying it. A friend of mine said don't read it - she didn't think I would like it. I think she was expecting more to happen. I had seen some good reviews here, and I appreciate it for what it is, which is is a unique presentation of a love story. I'll give an update when I finish.

Just started Coraline.. haven't read any Neil Gaiman before.

Finished The Catcher in the Rye last night, and am a few pages into Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China.

Just finished Mummy's Little Girl by Jane Elliott. I read another one by the same author a couple of weeks ago( Sadie) and really enjoyed them both

FinishedThe Coffee Trader yesterday....am trying to write a review..short and to the point. notice i didn't say "sweet"....am still hopping with Hopscotch...no Scotch yet, but Time is tight, and Cortazar's prose is not so much....
;-p

I started The Jewel Trader of Pegu at lunch but it isn't captivating me yet. It is interesting, but I don't feel like I HAVE to read it. Perhaps this is partially just let down from The Sunne in Splendor though.

#217 - I seem to feel that way after I finish with one of Penman's books. They just tranport you to another world and it is hard to move on.

On a different note, I am considering pouring through the old threads to snuff out all of you who raved about The Lace Reader. I am finding it -- well, rather mind-numbing -- would be putting it nicely.

>218,
I'm one of the ravers (I believe richardderus, mckait, and bnbooklady were all as well). What are you finding to be mind-numbing about it?

>218 jhowell, oh dear! Mind-numbing isn't good, is it? Well, well...I hated Doomsday Book that got so much praise heaped on it, and even went so far as to consider causing grievous bodily harm to the one who made me read it (*cough*mckait*cough*), so I relate. Sorry it wasn't a match for you!

I reviewed The Elegance of the Hedgehog at last. On balance, such a nice little book! I want, though, to let all and sundry know that there is NO happy ending here, and for a particularly irritating reason. That said, I still recommend it to anyone who wants to spend some time with two female narrators who specialize in pondering Life's Eternal Verities in an amusing way.

219- I am just finding it silly, melodramatic, unexceptional to poor writing -- kind of reminds me of a bad after-school special with a weird kinda Buffy the Vampire vibe. I don't know - maybe I just am not into all the new-agey stuff. I am only half-way though maybe it will get better for me.

>220, 221 - Isn't it funny how people can read this same work by the same author and basically read two completely different books? C'est la vie.

#222 - It certainly is -- now I am really trying to pinpoint exactly what my problem is with this book and I think it is just that I am not buying into all the psychic stuff -- the author has not been successful in "suspending my disbelief."

I am a few chapters from the end of Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community and War by Nathaniel Philbrick. Fascinating history -- the kind I thought I knew, but really didn't. It's been strange celebrating the inauguration and feeling so excited and hopeful about our country while reading this book -- somehow it has really tempered my joy by reminding me what a terrible price was paid to create this country. If it had not been the pilgrims, it would have been someone else -- still, it's sobering.

I, personally, like the Lace Reader} and am looking forward to the next one.

But I do understand that one persons favorite book can be the same book that someone else couldn't get through 10 pages of - been there.

>Porchy- Glad you are loving Good People! It's great finding a new exciting young author and from Chicago too!
#220>Richard- I read your review. Nice job and you stuck to your guns, unfortunately the book has now lost it's appeal for me, although with a few encouraging words, I'll probably put it back on the wishlist.

I liked The Lace Reader, but I also like watching Charmed occasionally. A little gothic fluff never hurt anyone. Truthfully, I was expecting more because of all the raves here, but it was nice enough.

On the other hand, I am loving The Elegance of the Hedgehog. I haven't gotten too far into it yet. I have it from the library and I, um, bought it today. I know already that it is one I want to own and perhaps even reread.

Yes, msf59.....Good People is awesome!!! Hubby said he will read it after he finishes the book he is into now, so once he is done, I will contact you. It might be awhile yet, he works long hours and doesn't get alot of time to read. This is really one of the best and most easy reads I've had in this genre in awhile! I don't have far to go and I'll be done.....and this is one I hate to see end.

I'm a bit miffed though.....I ordered it through bookcloseouts.com and a few of the pages were damaged somehow, and the dust jacket is creased on the inside. :o( This was not supposed to be one of their "scratch & dent" books. Oh well.

>226 msf: put it back on the list, it's worthy of a read. I think there is more to like than dislike if one is willing to give the writer a little wiggle room. Read, read! Report back!

And thanks for the validation, I appreciate it a lot.

I finished Graveyard Eyes by David Chacko.
It is the story of a torture murder of a prominent Turkish/English woman in modern day Istanbul. The POV is a police inspector and he has to find the killer while treading carefully. There are powerful people in the country who want to make sure the investigation and the killer don't reflect badly on the country, or upset any of them during the investigation and there are powerful foreign relatives who want the killer found quickly.

I enjoyed it very much. The sense of place was spot on, and the characters were great. A bit slow in patches, but still very good.

I am now reading non-fiction set in modern day Iraq, with House to House by David Bellavia. The story of the battle for Fallujah. I am reading it for a RL book group.

Right now I'm reading Black Wave by John and Jean Silverwood, which is a non-fiction account of a boating family who had an accident at sea. The tone is a little too sentimental for my tastes but I'm getting used to it in favour of the story, which is pretty interesting.

After this I need to finish some reading for my Medieval Lit course, including a volume of Petrarch's poems and The Decameron.

seitherin has started the new week's thread over here for our comfort and convenience.

I must be reading too slowly, since this thread has gotten so long. I just finished The Black Girl Next Door, which was quite good. Definitely worth reading!

yep.. raver for Lace..AND Doomsday. Poor misguided richardear didn't like Doomsday, but he did seem to like Lace, the darling man has moments of brilliance.

Lace is not a book to read with your head, it is a book to read with your heart.

For those who liked Lace I suggest Birth House..

{whatever happened to bnbooklady? I haven't seen any posts recently}

ahhhhh disbelief, jd? I see the problem. sorry to hear that~ disbelief is hard to overcome. My belief is solid

Message edited by its author, Feb 10, 2009, 6:02am.

I'm about to start Modern Magic by Anne Cordwainer (Touchstones not working.) It's my first ARC ever so I'm very excited. It looks very good. :)

I started Tales From The Marquette Hardwood, a history of Marquette Warriors basketball at my beloved alma mater Marquette University

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.

I'm going to start Finding Nouf by Zoe Ferraris if for no other reason than it is the 30th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution.

Don't waste your time on the last book I read, Lost in my Backyard: A Walk in Yellowstone National Park by Tim Cahill. Cahill probably thinks he is at least droll but mostly he is just annoying with a tediously self-rightous grin on his face. Worse, I love Yellowstone and have been there many times but he didn't give me any insight or make me think about the park differently. There are rooms full of better books on the park and more engaging, less self absorbed writers.

Good heavens! This thread's woken up after near a month of dormancy! We do have a Week of 7 February thread if y'all want to join the big kids' table....