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1walterqchocobo
I am going to give this another shot--I made it through 75+ in 2010 even with a new baby. My younger son is now 9 months old and I am still finding time to read. I have found that a few others post their reading lists but I'm not that organized. My goal is to chip away at my way too long to-read list.
In case you care to see what I read in 2010, you can find it here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/81164
In case you care to see what I read in 2010, you can find it here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/81164
2alcottacre
Glad to see you back with us again, Ryan!
4Carmenere
Hi Ryan, Good luck with the chipping away. I find that the more I chip away, the more I add. But, that's half the fun. Happy reading!
5dk_phoenix
Chip away! I also seem to add more than I chip, but that's just the way it is...
6walterqchocobo
4 and 5> Yep, I totally agree. It seems to be one book read, two books added. Oh well. For the most part, my shelves are virtual and I get my books from the library.
7walterqchocobo
I finished my first book of the year already! Even though I started it last year, I finished the last 350 pages in 2011--close enough for me.
1. Dead or Alive - Tom Clancy
I used to really like Tom Clancy. Right around Debt of Honor/Executive Orders, his writing went steeply downhill. This book picks up where Teeth of the Tiger left off with members of The Campus, an off-the-books CIA/FBI type group featuring Jack Ryan's son, Jack Jr. There are plenty of recurring characters in this book and a huge crazy plot that the first third of the book is devoted to establishing. It is definitely better than many books of this genre lately (I'm looking at you, Vince Flynn) but doesn't live up to classic Clancy. Quick read, worth the read but don't get your hopes up for an old school great Clancy novel.
1. Dead or Alive - Tom Clancy
I used to really like Tom Clancy. Right around Debt of Honor/Executive Orders, his writing went steeply downhill. This book picks up where Teeth of the Tiger left off with members of The Campus, an off-the-books CIA/FBI type group featuring Jack Ryan's son, Jack Jr. There are plenty of recurring characters in this book and a huge crazy plot that the first third of the book is devoted to establishing. It is definitely better than many books of this genre lately (I'm looking at you, Vince Flynn) but doesn't live up to classic Clancy. Quick read, worth the read but don't get your hopes up for an old school great Clancy novel.
8alcottacre
Congrats on getting book #1 for 2011 out of the way already!
9walterqchocobo
2. Ahead of the Curve - Philip Delves Broughton (audiobook)
I really enjoyed this discussion about two years at Harvard Business School by a non-business person, a journalist by trade, from the UK. Since I have a business background, it was easier to relate to some of the things that he was talking about but it is a very interesting view on the attitudes of business schools and their students.
3. Across the Universe - Beth Revis
I received an early copy of this book from LibraryThing and it was pretty good. A science fiction/dystopian/teen-YA romance/murder mystery all put together. The teenage romance was a little weak and seemed forced but the rest of the book was well written--the first in a planned trilogy. The basic premise: Amy and her family are cryo-frozen for a 300 year journey to a new planet. She is unfrozen improperly 50 years early and nearly dies in the process. Now other frozen people are dying and Amy and the other teenage hero, Elder, need to find out why. I'd read the next book.
Not bad, three down after only 10 days in January.
I really enjoyed this discussion about two years at Harvard Business School by a non-business person, a journalist by trade, from the UK. Since I have a business background, it was easier to relate to some of the things that he was talking about but it is a very interesting view on the attitudes of business schools and their students.
3. Across the Universe - Beth Revis
I received an early copy of this book from LibraryThing and it was pretty good. A science fiction/dystopian/teen-YA romance/murder mystery all put together. The teenage romance was a little weak and seemed forced but the rest of the book was well written--the first in a planned trilogy. The basic premise: Amy and her family are cryo-frozen for a 300 year journey to a new planet. She is unfrozen improperly 50 years early and nearly dies in the process. Now other frozen people are dying and Amy and the other teenage hero, Elder, need to find out why. I'd read the next book.
Not bad, three down after only 10 days in January.
10dk_phoenix
Ooh, Across the Universe released today, and I'm definitely looking forward to reading it!
11alcottacre
I am looking forward to reading the Revis book too! Glad to see you enjoyed it, Ryan.
12walterqchocobo
4. A Special Place - Peter Straub
This is my first Peter Straub book. It was a novella about a character in his book A Dark Matter and his early days as a serial killer. Short, disturbing but didn't make me want to pick up A Dark Matter.
This is my first Peter Straub book. It was a novella about a character in his book A Dark Matter and his early days as a serial killer. Short, disturbing but didn't make me want to pick up A Dark Matter.
13alcottacre
#12: That does not sound like my cuppa at all. I think I will give it a pass.
I hope your next read is better for you!
I hope your next read is better for you!
14walterqchocobo
5. The Confession - John Grisham
Not his best work but a decent read. This book follows in his "this is how I feel about the issue" book The Appeal. The Confession covers the topic of the death penalty.
Not his best work but a decent read. This book follows in his "this is how I feel about the issue" book The Appeal. The Confession covers the topic of the death penalty.
15alcottacre
I have not read any Grisham other than one of his nonfiction books. I just do not think he is an author for me.
17walterqchocobo
Thanks Whisper1. I have two more to add:
6. Bringing Nature Home - Douglas Fallamy (touchstones aren't loading)
This was recommended by one of the wildflower catalogs that I get and it was a good read. The author is very passionate and gives a common sense, easy to understand reasoning behind his call to plant natives in your garden. Even if it is a small plot, we don't have much left in the United States. The only bummer: he lives on the East Coast so most of the plants/trees discussed were native to New England. I live in Minnesota--not a whole lot is directly transferable.
7. If I Stay (audiobook) - Gayle Forman
Excellent YA novel about a girl whose family is in a horrible car accident and she has to decide whether to stay and fight for her life or die in the hospital. It was definitely a downer in certain parts and the car accident scene was a little jarring (especially when it came out of the blue) but well done.
6. Bringing Nature Home - Douglas Fallamy (touchstones aren't loading)
This was recommended by one of the wildflower catalogs that I get and it was a good read. The author is very passionate and gives a common sense, easy to understand reasoning behind his call to plant natives in your garden. Even if it is a small plot, we don't have much left in the United States. The only bummer: he lives on the East Coast so most of the plants/trees discussed were native to New England. I live in Minnesota--not a whole lot is directly transferable.
7. If I Stay (audiobook) - Gayle Forman
Excellent YA novel about a girl whose family is in a horrible car accident and she has to decide whether to stay and fight for her life or die in the hospital. It was definitely a downer in certain parts and the car accident scene was a little jarring (especially when it came out of the blue) but well done.
18walterqchocobo
A few more books to add:
8. The World Without Us - Alan Weisman (audiobook)
This was a fascinating, scary look at what happens to the Earth if humans suddenly disappeared. What would happen to our buildings, art, farmland, the environment, and nuclear power plants? Highly recommended.
9. A Nation Rising - Kenneth C. Davis (audiobook)
Interesting look at some overlooked and forgotten parts of U.S. history between 1800-1850.
10. Who Fears Death - Nnedi Okorafor
This book won tons of awards in 2010. It took awhile to get started but it was very good. It is hard to describe other than saying it is set in Africa sometime in the future where there is magic and sorcery. The story follows a girl who was born after her mother was raped. This book isn't for the faint of heart as violence against women happens regularly but this is a fantasy type book in a more familiar setting than a Middle Earth. I definitely recommend it.
11. Fated - S.G. Browne
Another pretty good book about Fate and his unauthorized interactions with humans, especially Sara, a woman from his building. It follows the classic "immortal god falls in love with human" type story with a few twists. Pretty funny and a quick read.
8. The World Without Us - Alan Weisman (audiobook)
This was a fascinating, scary look at what happens to the Earth if humans suddenly disappeared. What would happen to our buildings, art, farmland, the environment, and nuclear power plants? Highly recommended.
9. A Nation Rising - Kenneth C. Davis (audiobook)
Interesting look at some overlooked and forgotten parts of U.S. history between 1800-1850.
10. Who Fears Death - Nnedi Okorafor
This book won tons of awards in 2010. It took awhile to get started but it was very good. It is hard to describe other than saying it is set in Africa sometime in the future where there is magic and sorcery. The story follows a girl who was born after her mother was raped. This book isn't for the faint of heart as violence against women happens regularly but this is a fantasy type book in a more familiar setting than a Middle Earth. I definitely recommend it.
11. Fated - S.G. Browne
Another pretty good book about Fate and his unauthorized interactions with humans, especially Sara, a woman from his building. It follows the classic "immortal god falls in love with human" type story with a few twists. Pretty funny and a quick read.
20alcottacre
I have If I Stay home from the library now. I am hoping I enjoy it as much as everyone else seems to have done.
21walterqchocobo
Re #19: I don't mind you asking at all. In addition to being an avid reader, I also enjoy the (sometimes more than) occasional video game. A chocobo is a bird-like creature from the Final Fantasy series. The chocobo also has a great theme song from the games: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A29gDHgPJJw
22jolerie
>#21 I was hoping that was what you were going to tell me it was but I wanted to make sure there wasn't something else out there that was named a Chocobo and I was just being completely ignorant :)
I actually have all the FF series at home as well. It started off as a gift during high school and then I married a guy who loved the games as well so between the both of us somehow over the years we have all the games....haha. We even have FF13 but not even a PS 3 just because the game was super cheap during boxing day.....so silly :)
Nice to meet a kindred spirit...baby and all!
I actually have all the FF series at home as well. It started off as a gift during high school and then I married a guy who loved the games as well so between the both of us somehow over the years we have all the games....haha. We even have FF13 but not even a PS 3 just because the game was super cheap during boxing day.....so silly :)
Nice to meet a kindred spirit...baby and all!
23walterqchocobo
>22 jolerie: It is always nice to find another gamer out there. I also have all of the FF games. FF 13 was okay but not great. It did have a pretty good chocobo song though--with lyrics even!! Hopefully you will be able to play it sometime soon.
24jolerie
I will be sure to look out for it when we ever get a chance to play the game. Still have 10 other FF's to work through and a billion books to read ;)
25walterqchocobo
12. What I Saw and How I Lied - Judy Blundell (audiobook)
This book won all kinds of YA awards but I thought it was just okay. The book focuses on a family in New York after World War II and their family vacation to Florida. It is sort of a coming of age book with the teenage girl falling in live with an older soldier while on vacation.
This book won all kinds of YA awards but I thought it was just okay. The book focuses on a family in New York after World War II and their family vacation to Florida. It is sort of a coming of age book with the teenage girl falling in live with an older soldier while on vacation.
27walterqchocobo
I'm slacking in the update department. Here we go:
13. The Tower, The Zoo and The Tortoise - Julia Stuart
I really wanted to like this book more but there was a layer of sadness and depression that went through the entire book (well, until the very end) that was hard to overcome. Balthazar Jones is a Beefeater, also known as a guard at the London Tower. He lives there with his wife who are still struggling to deal with the death of their son Milo. Their marriage is falling apart when Balthazar is given the task of managing a new menagerie for the Queen in the London Tower. Hijinks ensues. There is a cast of interesting characters including the animals but something was missing for me. This book was funny at times and definitely very quirky but I found that the author found many different ways to show how depressing and sad everything was.
14. Closer (Tunnels 4) - Roderick Gordon
This is the fourth book in the Tunnels series and is very well done. There is plenty of action, interesting world building as the characters explore the inner world of the Earth, and lots of sinister plots set in motion by the evil Rebecca twins. If you don't remember the characters or what happened in the last third of Book 3, you might want to find a refresher--this book doesn't catch you up very well. Highly recommended for the YA crowd.
15. Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely (audiobook)
I would highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you liked Freakonomics. The author comes up with some crazy experiments to explain why we are so crazy and how we might be able to stop, slow down and understand why we do the things we do.
16. Flush - Carl Hiaasen (audiobook)
Another YA book by Hiaasen. Sadly, not as good as Hoot. This time, a father and his kids try to stop a rich casino boat operator from dumping his sewage into the ocean near the Florida Keys.
13. The Tower, The Zoo and The Tortoise - Julia Stuart
I really wanted to like this book more but there was a layer of sadness and depression that went through the entire book (well, until the very end) that was hard to overcome. Balthazar Jones is a Beefeater, also known as a guard at the London Tower. He lives there with his wife who are still struggling to deal with the death of their son Milo. Their marriage is falling apart when Balthazar is given the task of managing a new menagerie for the Queen in the London Tower. Hijinks ensues. There is a cast of interesting characters including the animals but something was missing for me. This book was funny at times and definitely very quirky but I found that the author found many different ways to show how depressing and sad everything was.
14. Closer (Tunnels 4) - Roderick Gordon
This is the fourth book in the Tunnels series and is very well done. There is plenty of action, interesting world building as the characters explore the inner world of the Earth, and lots of sinister plots set in motion by the evil Rebecca twins. If you don't remember the characters or what happened in the last third of Book 3, you might want to find a refresher--this book doesn't catch you up very well. Highly recommended for the YA crowd.
15. Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely (audiobook)
I would highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you liked Freakonomics. The author comes up with some crazy experiments to explain why we are so crazy and how we might be able to stop, slow down and understand why we do the things we do.
16. Flush - Carl Hiaasen (audiobook)
Another YA book by Hiaasen. Sadly, not as good as Hoot. This time, a father and his kids try to stop a rich casino boat operator from dumping his sewage into the ocean near the Florida Keys.
31walterqchocobo
Thanks for all of the birthday wishes!! It was a very nice day.
32Carmenere
WoHo, Happy very belated birthday! Your's is just a day before mine, but I'd like to officially change my birthday to July 22nd because March is still so cold are dreary? How is it by you?
33alcottacre
I am very behind on threads, Ryan, and so missed your birthday. A belated happy one from me!
34walterqchocobo
#32: It is around 55 today and sunny so I can live with that. I would pick June 21st as July gets pretty muggy, even in Minnesota where I live.
#33: I don't know how you keep up on most of these threads. I try to read a couple every day but I'm way behind.
I have read a bunch of books and am behind posting here. I'll update my list after work today.
#33: I don't know how you keep up on most of these threads. I try to read a couple every day but I'm way behind.
I have read a bunch of books and am behind posting here. I'll update my list after work today.
35alcottacre
Looking forward to your update!
36walterqchocobo
Ok, finally getting around to the update:
17. Discord's Apple - Carrie Vaughn (audiobook)
This book was okay--a strange mash-up of end of the world/dystopia/Greek mythology. The ending seemed a little abrupt to me. I enjoyed it enough to give the author another try...
18. After the Golden Age - Carrie Vaughn
I really enjoyed this book that looks at the everyday lives of superheroes and their family. Celia, an accountant, is the daughter of superhero parents. She doesn't have powers and has been trying to get out from under her parents shadow for a long time. She has been called to be involved in the trial of the century to put away the evil Destructor on tax fraud charges. It wasn't big on superhero action scenes but it was a fun read. (Full disclosure: I am an accountant/finance type guy)
19. Now and Forever - Ray Bradbury (audiobook)
Two novellas from Ray Bradbury--one of them being the only way that I have been able to finish the story of Moby Dick (Leviathan '99 is a tribute to the book except that the whale is a comet).
20. Night - Elie Wiesel (audiobook)
I have never read this classic Holocaust story and finally got around to it.
21. Sing You Home - Jodi Picoult
The latest Jodi Picoult book was only so-so for me. The ripped from the headlines plot: husband/wife have problems conceiving, lose baby, they divorce, husband finds evangelical church, wife falls in love with woman, women want to have baby, ex-wife remembers that there are some frozen embryoes at the clinic, trial ensues. The evangelicals seemed a little too crazy for me. Things also seemed to happen so fast that it was not very believable. Overall, a fine book but you can definitely tell where Ms. Picoult stands when reading this book.
22. These Things Hidden - Heather Gudenkauf
I really liked this book about two sisters and the secret they share about a tragic event that happened five years ago. The older sister is getting out of prison and wants to make amends with the younger sister who never completely got over things. Lots of intermingled stories and characters and told with frequent flashbacks that didn't get annoying or contrived.
23. The Secret Soldier - Alex Berenson
Another fine addition to the John Wells series. I see this as the thinking man's thriller vs. the Jack Bauer blow things up/shoot people and worry about consequences later.
Whew, I'm going to take a rest now!
17. Discord's Apple - Carrie Vaughn (audiobook)
This book was okay--a strange mash-up of end of the world/dystopia/Greek mythology. The ending seemed a little abrupt to me. I enjoyed it enough to give the author another try...
18. After the Golden Age - Carrie Vaughn
I really enjoyed this book that looks at the everyday lives of superheroes and their family. Celia, an accountant, is the daughter of superhero parents. She doesn't have powers and has been trying to get out from under her parents shadow for a long time. She has been called to be involved in the trial of the century to put away the evil Destructor on tax fraud charges. It wasn't big on superhero action scenes but it was a fun read. (Full disclosure: I am an accountant/finance type guy)
19. Now and Forever - Ray Bradbury (audiobook)
Two novellas from Ray Bradbury--one of them being the only way that I have been able to finish the story of Moby Dick (Leviathan '99 is a tribute to the book except that the whale is a comet).
20. Night - Elie Wiesel (audiobook)
I have never read this classic Holocaust story and finally got around to it.
21. Sing You Home - Jodi Picoult
The latest Jodi Picoult book was only so-so for me. The ripped from the headlines plot: husband/wife have problems conceiving, lose baby, they divorce, husband finds evangelical church, wife falls in love with woman, women want to have baby, ex-wife remembers that there are some frozen embryoes at the clinic, trial ensues. The evangelicals seemed a little too crazy for me. Things also seemed to happen so fast that it was not very believable. Overall, a fine book but you can definitely tell where Ms. Picoult stands when reading this book.
22. These Things Hidden - Heather Gudenkauf
I really liked this book about two sisters and the secret they share about a tragic event that happened five years ago. The older sister is getting out of prison and wants to make amends with the younger sister who never completely got over things. Lots of intermingled stories and characters and told with frequent flashbacks that didn't get annoying or contrived.
23. The Secret Soldier - Alex Berenson
Another fine addition to the John Wells series. I see this as the thinking man's thriller vs. the Jack Bauer blow things up/shoot people and worry about consequences later.
Whew, I'm going to take a rest now!
37alcottacre
The Carrie Vaughn books have been in the BlackHole for a while now. I hope that I eventually get to them!
Nice update. You deserve the rest :)
Nice update. You deserve the rest :)
