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1vancouverdeb
I confess I was unaware of the Orange prize until just lately! ;)
A month or so ago I read Long Song by Andrea Levy - which I loved - and I realized it had been listed in the Orange Prize Long List. Immediately after I read the Orange Prize winner - Small Island also by Andrea Levy --which was a 4.5 star book for me -and thus my interest in the Orange Prize began.
So - my first Orange Prize Winner was Small Isand.
From there, I realized I'd read Annabel which is short listed for the 2011 Orange Prize -and gave it 4 stars - at least that is what I think I gave it.
So - having looked over Memory of Love and purchased it - I am in the midst of reading it. I'm loving it -and I coud see it winning the Orange Prize for 2011. That said - I've still got another 200 pages to go.
I also picked up Grace Williams Says it Loud , which is also short listed for this years Orange Prize and intend to read it before the prize is given out.
Oh! and I've also got Room in my TBR pile - also short listed for this years Orange Prize.
Touchstones not working! Sorry!
A month or so ago I read Long Song by Andrea Levy - which I loved - and I realized it had been listed in the Orange Prize Long List. Immediately after I read the Orange Prize winner - Small Island also by Andrea Levy --which was a 4.5 star book for me -and thus my interest in the Orange Prize began.
So - my first Orange Prize Winner was Small Isand.
From there, I realized I'd read Annabel which is short listed for the 2011 Orange Prize -and gave it 4 stars - at least that is what I think I gave it.
So - having looked over Memory of Love and purchased it - I am in the midst of reading it. I'm loving it -and I coud see it winning the Orange Prize for 2011. That said - I've still got another 200 pages to go.
I also picked up Grace Williams Says it Loud , which is also short listed for this years Orange Prize and intend to read it before the prize is given out.
Oh! and I've also got Room in my TBR pile - also short listed for this years Orange Prize.
Touchstones not working! Sorry!
2vancouverdeb
I'll post a little more about Orange Prize books I've read in the past - short listed or actually prize winners.
I confess, I could not get through The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver which was the 2010 Orange Prize winner. I've read several other books by Barbara Kingsolver in the past and loved them - but The Lacuna was too dry / too full of political facts for me to get through. I've read and loved The Poisonwood Bible and it's one of my favourite books of all time - but the Lacuna - well! The Poisonwood Bible was an Orange Prize shortlisted book in the past, I believe.
I confess, I could not get through The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver which was the 2010 Orange Prize winner. I've read several other books by Barbara Kingsolver in the past and loved them - but The Lacuna was too dry / too full of political facts for me to get through. I've read and loved The Poisonwood Bible and it's one of my favourite books of all time - but the Lacuna - well! The Poisonwood Bible was an Orange Prize shortlisted book in the past, I believe.
3lauralkeet
Welcome Deborah!
I really enjoyed Small Island and The Lacuna (which I felt improved in the second half). I've heard great things about The Memory of Love; it seems to be a front-runner in the minds of LTers.
I hope you enjoy being part of the group. We all go a bit crazy in January and July especially, with focused reading of Orange winners & nominees !
I really enjoyed Small Island and The Lacuna (which I felt improved in the second half). I've heard great things about The Memory of Love; it seems to be a front-runner in the minds of LTers.
I hope you enjoy being part of the group. We all go a bit crazy in January and July especially, with focused reading of Orange winners & nominees !
5raidergirl3
Hi Deb, I recognize your name from a Canadian group. It's a little quiet here now, but I expect it'll get much busier come June and July. I have Annabel here to read - I'm looking forward to it a lot.
6vancouverdeb
Thanks everyone for the wonderful welcome!! I''ll try to visit your threads a little later.
7lit_chick
Hi Deb! Found your Orange thread : ). You are on a roll ... way to go! I've read some, but not all, of the Orange reads you have ... The Poisonwood Bible, The Long Song, Room. I've been making great use of my public library this year ... of course, there are queues for the great reads, and Annabel is one I may not even have until July. I'm very interested in your remarks so far about Memory of Love.
8LizzieD
Welcome, Deb! I want NEED Memory of Love and you haven't helped a bit! It will have to come down in price a bit before I can snag a copy though. This is one I really, really, really wish were available on Kindle for the good old USA.
9lkernagh
Hi Deb - I have found your thread! You are streets ahead of me in reading any of the shortlisted for this year's Orange prize. As some have already commented, this group will start getting busy soon!
10vancouverdeb
Okay - finished The Memory of Love and wrote a bit of a review
I was initially just going to write a few comments about The Memory of Love but with the friendly encouragement of Whisper1 - I turned my comments into a a review.
What a beautiful and elegantly written book! One caveat that I would give is that because the story goes back and forth in time, as well as having several threads with different characters - the book can initially seem a wee bit confusing. But by the time I was about 60 pages into the book, I no longer had any difficulty with the nonlinear time, nor the who was whom It's a wonderful read on so many levels. The many strands of the story give us insight into different perceptions of several characters as to what happened both back in time and in the current time. One of the characters, Adrian, a psychologist who goes to Sierra Leone to assist in the war torn country helped me realize something that had never really occured to me. Possible small spoiler alert - it would seem that the author feels that those that have survived the Sierra Leone civil war are all suffering witha degree of PTSD. Perhaps that is true of anyone who has survived a war, at least for some time. One thing that really amazed me is how of all of the separate strands all came together by the end of the book.
The Civil War is more a part of the background to the story - though an essential part of the story. The characters come to life so beautifully and fully . Truly a beautiful though tragic story -and yet Memory of Love does not get bogged down in sorrow.
Like it's title, this book really is about love at it's heart. 4.75 stars from me. I'm still so carried away by the different characters' , the entire story -and the way that everything comes together in the end. I'm willing to bet that this book takes the Orange Prize for 2011. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time.
I was initially just going to write a few comments about The Memory of Love but with the friendly encouragement of Whisper1 - I turned my comments into a a review.
What a beautiful and elegantly written book! One caveat that I would give is that because the story goes back and forth in time, as well as having several threads with different characters - the book can initially seem a wee bit confusing. But by the time I was about 60 pages into the book, I no longer had any difficulty with the nonlinear time, nor the who was whom It's a wonderful read on so many levels. The many strands of the story give us insight into different perceptions of several characters as to what happened both back in time and in the current time. One of the characters, Adrian, a psychologist who goes to Sierra Leone to assist in the war torn country helped me realize something that had never really occured to me. Possible small spoiler alert - it would seem that the author feels that those that have survived the Sierra Leone civil war are all suffering witha degree of PTSD. Perhaps that is true of anyone who has survived a war, at least for some time. One thing that really amazed me is how of all of the separate strands all came together by the end of the book.
The Civil War is more a part of the background to the story - though an essential part of the story. The characters come to life so beautifully and fully . Truly a beautiful though tragic story -and yet Memory of Love does not get bogged down in sorrow.
Like it's title, this book really is about love at it's heart. 4.75 stars from me. I'm still so carried away by the different characters' , the entire story -and the way that everything comes together in the end. I'm willing to bet that this book takes the Orange Prize for 2011. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time.
11vancouverdeb
I've now just begun Grace Williams Says it Loud.
12mrstreme
Welcome, Deb! You have me excited over The Memory of Love!
13lauralkeet
>10 vancouverdeb:: oooh, that sounds really good. Thanks for the review!
14vancouverdeb
Finished of Grace Williams Says it Loud by Emma Henderson. 4.25 stars from me. More comments on the book later.
15vancouverdeb
Just finished up an escapist murder mystery - next book will Room by Emma Donoghue. I will have read 4 out of the 6 short listed books Orange Prize books for 2011. I'm kind of excited about that! :)
16vancouverdeb
Here are my quick comments on Grace Williams Says it Loud -
Grace Williams Say it Loud by Emma Henderson got 4. 25 stars from me. Grace Williams suffers from a variety of mental and physical challenges from birth -as well as suffering polio and ending up in a iron lung at the age of 6 Grace survives polio, but is in even worse shape that before. A few years later,after she has a seizure, her parents decide to put her into a mental institution where she suffers many horrific events and is forced into a cruel environment. Yet Grace - in her way -and the majority of her fellow "inmates" make the best of a dreadful situation. The cruelty and even sexual abuse towards the " patients" is truly eyeopening and shocking. One of the saddest things is that I very much suspect that this story is very true to life. The story spans 1947 to 1987. We are able to understand so much through Grace's point of view. She is the narrator.
The author, Emma Henderson, had a sister who was also institutionalized for similiar reason to Grace Williams, so I think the author knows her topic.
Kudo's to the Orange Prize Judges for bringing this book forward to the Shortlist for the 2011 Orange Prize. The writing of the book is nessesarily rough and not elegant at all - because Grace, with an intellectual handicap and her lack of education is the narrator of the story. I think this a very important story for anyone to read - to understand what instutionalizing did to people years ago - and very likely still happens. I think it furthers our ability to understand and show caring and tolerance to those who may be physically and or mentally challenged .
I hope that those who read this book understand more deeply people who are challenged and look more deeply into who they are. For this reason I think this is a very important book.
Grace Williams Say it Loud by Emma Henderson got 4. 25 stars from me. Grace Williams suffers from a variety of mental and physical challenges from birth -as well as suffering polio and ending up in a iron lung at the age of 6 Grace survives polio, but is in even worse shape that before. A few years later,after she has a seizure, her parents decide to put her into a mental institution where she suffers many horrific events and is forced into a cruel environment. Yet Grace - in her way -and the majority of her fellow "inmates" make the best of a dreadful situation. The cruelty and even sexual abuse towards the " patients" is truly eyeopening and shocking. One of the saddest things is that I very much suspect that this story is very true to life. The story spans 1947 to 1987. We are able to understand so much through Grace's point of view. She is the narrator.
The author, Emma Henderson, had a sister who was also institutionalized for similiar reason to Grace Williams, so I think the author knows her topic.
Kudo's to the Orange Prize Judges for bringing this book forward to the Shortlist for the 2011 Orange Prize. The writing of the book is nessesarily rough and not elegant at all - because Grace, with an intellectual handicap and her lack of education is the narrator of the story. I think this a very important story for anyone to read - to understand what instutionalizing did to people years ago - and very likely still happens. I think it furthers our ability to understand and show caring and tolerance to those who may be physically and or mentally challenged .
I hope that those who read this book understand more deeply people who are challenged and look more deeply into who they are. For this reason I think this is a very important book.
17vancouverdeb
I was somewhat disappointed in Room and my review is more or less here - http://www.librarything.com/profile_reviews.php?view=vancouverdeb.
It was a 3.5 read for me.
It was a 3.5 read for me.
18vancouverdeb
I wrote a bit of a review for Annabel . I'm not sure how to link it up - but here it is - In 1968, a baby was born to Jacinta and Treadway Blake. This takes place in a remote town in Labrador. The baby is born a hermaphrodite. Only the parents and one trusted neighbour are aware of the situation. The father wishes to raise him as a boy - Wayne Blake. His mother wishes to secretly embrace his female side - Annabel. As time goes on - Wayne realizes slowly and subtley that somehow he does not feel comfortable in his body.
At times I felt that the story could have proceeded at a faster pace - but that slow pace is part of the magic and feeling of Labrador, I suspect. One gets a real feel for Labrador in days gone by - and at times the prose is nearly lyrical. Though a slow moving book in places - the story does move along through Wayne's school days, high school days -and further.
The story is also a study of what makes us female or what makes us male - and what we have in common with both sexes.
The ending is most satisfying - at least for me - though no defiinite answers are found.
A very readable book, another wonderful look into Canadian living-and a most interesting topic for a book to delve into. I highly reccomend this wonderful read! 4 stars.
At times I felt that the story could have proceeded at a faster pace - but that slow pace is part of the magic and feeling of Labrador, I suspect. One gets a real feel for Labrador in days gone by - and at times the prose is nearly lyrical. Though a slow moving book in places - the story does move along through Wayne's school days, high school days -and further.
The story is also a study of what makes us female or what makes us male - and what we have in common with both sexes.
The ending is most satisfying - at least for me - though no defiinite answers are found.
A very readable book, another wonderful look into Canadian living-and a most interesting topic for a book to delve into. I highly reccomend this wonderful read! 4 stars.
20wookiebender
Deborah, you can always just get the link to your review (look for the little chain link icon at the bottom of your review on the work page) and just paste it in. LT will automagically turn it into a link, you don't need to know any HTML.
Voila: http://www.librarything.com/work/9789330/reviews/65528515
Voila: http://www.librarything.com/work/9789330/reviews/65528515
21vancouverdeb
Thanks @19, Danielle, for liking my review... And thanks @20 Tania I think .. :) for showing me how to link up my reviews. Here is the one for Grace Says it Loud - at least I hope so! :) http://www.librarything.com/work/10103972/reviews/73175719
22Nickelini
Deb - July is only one month away! (hard to believe with our weather and all the hockey!!) Do you have any books lined up for the Orange July read? I plan to read The Colour, by Rose Tremain and The Swimmer, by Roma Tearne. I have a few more in Mnt TBR, so if I can fit them in, I will.
23vancouverdeb
I just wanted to bring my Orange Thread alive!
I managed to read quite a few Oranges earlier in my thread -as you can read.
For July - I have not entirely decided on what I will read for Orange July but I have in mind as possiblities
Lullibies for Little Criminals By Heather O'Neil
Brick Lane by Monica Ali - which would also be a book of the shelf for me! :)
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson - which I'm sure that I would love.
I certainlywill commit to reading at least one Orange in July - maybe more!
I managed to read quite a few Oranges earlier in my thread -as you can read.
For July - I have not entirely decided on what I will read for Orange July but I have in mind as possiblities
Lullibies for Little Criminals By Heather O'Neil
Brick Lane by Monica Ali - which would also be a book of the shelf for me! :)
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson - which I'm sure that I would love.
I certainlywill commit to reading at least one Orange in July - maybe more!
24Yells
Lullabies is awesome so I would highly, highly, highly recommend that. Difficult subject but handled very well by O'Neil. I have a copy of Case Histories and will give it a go if you want to. I have never read one of Atkinson's but have a few kicking around.
25mrstreme
Sounds like great books to choose from. I haven't read any of them yet, so I will be curious to learn which one you decide on.
26wookiebender
Oh, I've had Brick Lane languishing unread on my shelves for too long as well! Must get around to that one soon.
I haven't read Lullabies for Little Criminals, but I did love Case Histories. Crime (a favourite genre of mine), but oh so literary. Great stuff.
I haven't read Lullabies for Little Criminals, but I did love Case Histories. Crime (a favourite genre of mine), but oh so literary. Great stuff.
27AnneDC
I loved Case Histories and haven't read the others on your list though I have Lullabies for Little Criminals on a shelf somewhere
28vancouverdeb
I rec'd Case Histories via Amazon ca today! :) Can't wait!
29BiblioEva
I loved Case Histories and Brick Lane! And I have a copy of Lullabies for Little Criminals around here somewhere. :)
