Some excellent books listed! I've made note of a few to find for myself.
Arizona down, now jumping the pond to finish a book for the European Challenge
I was excited to realize that
Watsons Go To Birmingham - 1963 takes place mostly in Michigan...then I realized I already had a Michigan book. Oh well, it still counted toward my "Newbery Challenge"
Patrick,
I read On Agate hill, too! I thought it was kind of unknown, so it surprised me to see it on your list.
Love it when someone adds a review to a Work that didn't have one! It tells you so much more than just the Description. I probably wouldn't like this book because of the metaphysical aspect. But your review was great!
I picked
Shattered Dreams specifically for this challenge to represent Utah - so I was a little shocked when, as reading it, I discovered that they actually live in Mexico. But, the first 1/3 of the book is entirely in Utah and she pops back and forth throughout the book, so in the interest of making another checkmark on my 50 state challenge list, I am taking the easy way out and listing this for Utah.
Just realized I hadn't included District of Columbia in my list. I just finished one of my least favorite books of the year
Grief, and it's set in DC, so it gets to fill that spot. I'm sure I've read other books this year set in DC that I liked better, but this is the book which made me think of it, so this is the book I will list. But if you're looking to me for recommendations...go find another book in DC
In a desperate attempt to fill in some "missing" states, I stumbled across
In Search of L.L. Bean. At the time I didn't realize it was a business book about L.L. Bean written 25 years ago (there were no reviews on LT), but I'm glad I read it. Because of its age, the book served a completely different purpose - a trip down memory lane of business practices in the days before internet. Almost useless as a true business book (although there are actually some details about mail order business which probably still hold true), it's still an easy read (but you may want to skip the chapter dedicated to the construction of the Maine Hunting Boot...)
Oregon is now covered - thanks to an ARC for The River by
Mary Jane Beaufrand. The book has a link on LT, but I couldn't get the touchstones for the title to work (too many books with "River" in the title, and I could never find the right one). A teen read. Not a favorite, but worthy of a look. Admittedly, someone more familiar with Oregon (I've never been there) may relate more to the setting, but it's simple enough to read without that kind of knowledge as well.
Interesting review! (But sounds like a book that I'll pass by.)
Since I enjoyed that review, I went over to see what you posted for the L.L. Bean book. From your description of it, I was surprised to see it owned by 18 LTers!
I covered West Virginia with Colson Whitehead's
John Henry Days. A disappointment. His
Apex Hides the Hurt was good, so I had high hopes, but it was a long and winding tale and not worth the effort.
. . . still chuckling after reading your review . . .
I have conquered Vermont with
Jungle Law by
Victoria Vinton. Consisting of a fictionalized back story of Rudyard Kipling's time in Vermont - during which he was writing the Jungle Book - the story equally involves the young, poor neighbor boy who identifies with Mowgli from Kipling's tale.
Well written with the interweaving of several different characters and their "stories", I found the development of Kipling entertaining. How much of his life in the book was fact (I assume he did live in Vermont, I assume he was married, etc.) vs. how much was fiction (did he have trouble with money, was he truly writing Jungle Book during this time, etc.) is secondary to a well rounded book.
#16, Jungle Law -- Sounds like an interesting book! I don't have a pick for Vermont yet. . . : )
I just finished
Looking for Alaska by
John Green. And it just goes to show you that it pays to properly research your reads. The book doesn't take place in Alaska. So, my Alaska read still sits empty. This would actually count as an Alabama read, but since I have already covered that state, this serves as a bonus.
Here is the mini review I wrote for my 50 Book Challenge Post:
I had high expectations for this book. Somehow I read his books out of order and read his most recent book first, and now just finished his first book last. Paper Towns and An Abundance of Katherines were both very well written and enjoyable. Looking for Alaska didn't disappoint.
I will admit that once the countdown reached zero (you'll understand once you read it), I did start to drift a little. I didn't like what was happening to the characters, and as an adult looking at the lives of teens, I guess I couldn't embrace it. But the end ties things up nicely (and not in a generic, formulaic way) and fully redeemed the book.
CONNECTICUT -
Something Missing by
Matthew Dicks - 5 stars
Martin makes his living as a house thief - but not your common, run of the mill burglar. He carefully chooses his "clients" and then methodically steals from them over a period of years. Most of the time, his items of theft are items his clients wouldn't miss (extra salad dressing, several tablets of aspirin he pours out of their containers into his), but really supplements his income by bigger items (wedding presents wrapped up in a closet) that his clients won't notice are missing.
The book is an enjoyable read as this very likable criminal outlines how he does his job (very methodical, slightly OCD) and then the tale turns. He realizes that while on the "inside" of his clients' lives, he is in a position to serve as their guardian angels and help them as well. This kicks up the pace of the book a little and saves it from becoming a one trick pony.
#19 Looks interesting - I've added it to the wishlist. Thanks for the recommendation.
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