Orange January 2012

It's time! I hope you're looking forward to Orange January as much as I am! This morning, I posted a blog post with the details for OJ. Please comment on my blog or RSVP to the OJ Event Page on Facebook to let me know that you're participating!

For this group, I recommend starting your own personal thread about your Orange January selections and reviews (or continue an existing thread). There are also numerous threads about specific Orange books that I recommend looking through and adding your comments.

Finally, please spread the word to your book friends. I appreciate your help and support!

I'm in! I'm in !!

I'm in , Jill! I'll go and check your blog.

Signed up on your blog, Jill.

Thanks, Laura and Deborah! It should be a fun month! =)

I have Bel Canto on my TBR shelf so January may be a good time to pull it out. I've already lined up Matterhorn so those two may be it for the month.....well maybe a thin TIOLI. I'll check out your blog too.

I'll be giving Wolf Hall another shot. Last time I just didn't have enough time to read it, even though I did like the first two chapters I managed to read a lot.

Just a reminder too that Orange January can start a wee bit before January. Sometimes, I start reading during the last two days of the month, knowing I'll finish the book on January 1 or 2. So, if it's December 28 and you want to get started, go for it! =)

I've got The Observations by Jane Harris, A Spell of Winter and The Siege as well as The Girls lined up as possiblities for January....

I was originally planning on just observing this round but I think I will participate instead :)
I hope to read at least one book

I'll be reading Orange in January!

January will be a good month for me to read Bel Canto and Wolf Hall, both of which have been in my TBR mountain long enough. Thanks, Jill, for hosting and organizing!

I think, for January, A Spell of Winter.

I have a pile of Oranges to read, don't know how many I'll get to in January, but surely some of them. I want to read about China in January. Any suggestions for Oranges to fit?

Yay! Orange January!

Joyce, I tried a tagmash (http://www.librarything.com/tag/China,+Orange+Prize) and it gave me these titles:

A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers by Xiaolu Guo
The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan
The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard
The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan
Digging to America by Anne Tyler
Ursula, Under by Ingrid Hill
The Dissident: A Novel by Nell Freudenberger
White Ghost Girls by Alice Greenway
Old Filth by Jane Gardam
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

Not sure how accurate it is (neither Salman Rushdie nor Jeffrey Eugenides is eligible for an Orange prize, I'm sure ;), but it's a start.

Thanks so much, Wookie. I think my first choice would be The Inheritance of Loss, but I'm pretty sure that's only about India. It looks like I'll probably go with White Ghost Girls and The Dissident with A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers and Old Filth being possibilities, but neither title grabs me. When the Emperor Was Divine was the first book by Julie Otsuka I read, and I liked it very much, but it's about Japanese-Americans.

Yes, as I said, I don't think it's very accurate! :) I'd also check and see if the ones you choose are actually Orange Prize nominees, it can be mildly annoying to read something for a challenge only to find out the book you chose didn't fit the bill! (Only mildly, because they're usually worth reading anyway. :)

I'm in, but I don't know which book I'll be reading. The Hiding Place and The Colour are two I've talked about reading, but I'm not sure I'm in the mood for either.

I have A Concise Chinese English Dictionary for Lovers sitting on a shelf -- I'll try to get to that in January.

I've got the following ready, set, go. Don't know how many I'll get to or in what order: Bel Canto, The Girls, Small Island, The Tiger's Wife.

I am in. Not sure what books I will read in January but I do plan on starting a new personal thread to capture my 2012 Orange reading so will post there when I have time.... hopefully before Jan 1st!

I plan to read A Spell of Winter for sure.

Maybe The Road Home if I don't get to it in December.
Other January possibilities: Girl in a Blue Dress, Fingersmith, The London Train

I have a bunch to choose from, but am thinking of re-reading Bel Canto because I consider it one of my favorite books but I don't remember very much about it! Some other possibilities:

The Little Friend by Donna Tartt
Small Island by Andrea Levy
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna
The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

A Spell of Winter is beautifully creepy... can't wait to see what y'all think of it.

Adding The Tiger's Wife to my list for January reads. Oh boy. Not quite enough to make me wish the winter break away, but some good reading to look forward to in January. :-)

Everyone has great books on their OJ lists! =) Speaking of great books, I just posted my list of books that will be given away during Orange January. Check it out!

Jill, I've put a link on my thread , and I've read your new blog post! You are the bestest hostess!

I am participating and working hard on book choices, although I have pinned down one title for sure, The Night Watch by Sarah Waters.

#26> Thank you, Deborah!

#27> Welcome, Michelle!

I'm in. But not sure how successful I'll be. I'll be on holidays for most of January.

I'll join you. I just got a copy of Room from my favorite book store. I'll hold off reading it until January. I could also try Fugitive Pieces or The Lacuna, both of which I already own but I've not yet read.

I have Room, Gilead, and Wolf Hall, so I think I might just join in as well! Sounds like fun!

Edited to add I just checked the Orange list and shortlisted books. Gilead appears to be a Pulitzer winner, not an Orange winner. I will have to find something else, but there's lots of choices.

But Gilead was a longlisted book, so it is still part of Orange January.

Right, any book that won or was nominated for the Orange Prize is eligible. You're good with Gilead.

In more ways than one. Gilead is a fabulous book.

Gilead sounds religious, is it?

Sounds great! I only saw the Winners and Short-Listed books when I looked up the Orange Prize on wikipedia. Sounds like I'm good to go then. I've also got a copy of The Inheritance of Loss. With those 4, plus my other reads, that will do me the whole month of January!

OtherJoyce - yes, Gilead is religious--the main character is a retired minister. However, it has all the good parts about religion, and none of the crap that one comes to expect from religion as we see it in the media, or the nasty religious people you've met in your life. The minister is full of doubt, and completely non-judgmental. It's not the most exciting book in the world, but it's really lovely and I enjoyed it very much.

It's not the most exciting book in the world
I definitely agree with this part of the sentence!

And I pronounce Gilead with 3 syllables!

How else could you pronounce it?

OtherJoyce, You do make Gilead sound readable but not anything I'm going to go out of my way for. Thanks for the info.

I am going to stick my oar into the Gilead discussion as I find it an interesting one considering the book is hard to pin down. For me, I found it to be a great trip down the memory lane of the main character with a candor that is refreshing while conveying to the reader how with age and experience comes wisdom and the ability to examine earlier, younger impressions and judgments with a view that the earlier impressions may have been misguided or even harsh.

The story is a mix of examination of family relationships, history, the 'did I do the right thing' mental ponderings anyone experiences from time to time when revisiting the past. Theology is there but there is so much else on offer in this book in the form of fatherly advice to a son that the atheist in my loved this book! My review over on the 11 in 11 challenge can be viewed here at post 27: http://www.librarything.com/topic/113215#2630733

I thought Gilead was a truly beautiful book. Written in the form of a letter from the aging minister to his (very) young son, I found it more philosophical than "religious". The title has a dual meaning, being the name of the town in Iowa where he lives, as well as having the biblical meaning. I loved it, and plan to go back and read it again sometime - and I don't do that with many books.

When you start your Orange January thread, would you mind adding a link to this thread? That way, we can find it! Thank you, Orange peeps!

Happy to oblige Jill:
Laura's Orange January 2012

Yes: Darryl's 12 Oranges in 2012

Let's have some speculative fun! Please let us know who you think who get nominated for the 2012 prize in this thread.

I signed up on the FaceBook page and I don't know which book I will begin Orange January but will probably end the month with The Tiger's Wife as that is also our R/L B/C choice for January. I always read those the last weekend of the month as we meet on the following Monday.
Thank you for setting this all up so nicely. And I have set up my January thread:

http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=128026

belva's Orange January 2012

I couldn't figure out how to set it up like Laura and Darryl were able to. Computer stoooopid! ;-)

Squeeeee! So excited! My thread can be found HERE.

My thread is Here
Looking forward to starting

OK - I have been busy with a hammer and some nails and built my little 2012 thread here

Looking forwards to starting :)

Mine is here.

I love perusing all of the threads. Everyone has great books on their lists, and I am loving everyone's graphics! It's a wonderful tribute to Orange books!

Speaking of graphics, the lovely Her_Royal_Orangeness was kind enough to share her Orange January graphic. It's on the main page of this group, or you can check it out on my recent blog post.

Hope to post my Orange January selections (or choices, more than likely) today.

My Orange January thread is up!

I started a new thread for this year: raidergirl3 Orange 2012

Here is a link to my 2012 Orange thread.

I have started my new thread for my 2012 Orange reading: Lori (lkernagh) reads Orange in 2012

>53 mrstreme: - :)

Got my 2012 thread up and running here: Orange Letterpress

Edited to fix link. Sigh.

Jill, I signed up for your blog and I definitely plan to participate, but I don't think I'll start a separate thread. I have a pretty hard time keeping up with my regular thread, reading others' threads, and still trying to read m books! But, all that said, this will be my first Orange January and I'm excited to read some great novels along with others. My planned reads (so far) include:
Bel Canto
Wolf Hall
The Tiger's Wife
and maybe one more.....

Ellen, I've read all three of your picks and loved them all. Happy reading!

Ellen, no problem on a separate thread! And I've read your three picks too, and I think you're in for a treat. Enjoy! =)

Oh boy -- not that I want to wish away the slightly slower pace at work over the holidays, but Anne & Jill, you've got me looking forward to January! :-)

Oh boy for sure! Here I am.

My Orange January 2012 thread is right HERE.

I made my thread a while ago, and forgot to post a link here, and then I couldn't find it myself! But all is well, now---here it is.

Several of us are planning to read Beyond Black in January. CBC Writers and Company is rebroadcasting this 2005 podcast with Hilary Mantel, available 27 December. This originally aired around the time of Beyond Black's publication.

Thanks, Laura. I will try to remember to listen to that.

I am following Ellen's idea and am not creating a separate thread for Orange January. I have only lined up Bel Canto so what's the use I can just as easily post my thoughts on this thread or post a link to my review. Is that ok? I'm a newbie at OJ too.

I, for three, am not creating a separate thread for Orange Jan. I find it's just too much to keep up with. Think I'll identify my orange reads on my own thread as such:

70: I like that idea!
I may use this if it works.

I'm only planning on reading one Jan book at this stage. I'll probably make a thread as I'll read a few Orange books through the year for my 12in12 challenge.

My Jan book: The Hunter by Julia Leigh (longlist: 2000)
My thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/129289

#70 I like that idea too, consider it stolen. Thanks

Yeah, I may share (not steal!) that orange icon for my 75 Book thread too.

#74 Oh, now I feel bad.

#74 (how is it that we have two of them?): Well, I wanted to steal it but couldn't figure out how to do so! So I went and found my own. But I may be violating some copyright laws.
lit_chick, I like yours better. :-)

#73 No, no...don't feel bad! It's just that I think Santa is watching me, see!

#76 EBT, you're more than welcome to use my little orange. I made it (added the logo) on my computer. Anyone else who wants to use, share, borrow, steal, whatever ... help yourselves! I've uploaded it to my PhotoBucket: http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb430/lit_chick/OrangePrize02.jpg

Cute graphics! Don't forget about the Orange January one that Her_Royal_Highness made: http://mrstreme.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/orange-january-graphic/ (more specific to Orange January than the Orange Prize).

#78: Thank you!

Thank you all, you talented people! I will be borrowing something for my January 75 thread for sure!

My 2012 thread is here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/129097

I must admit, I'm cheating as I've already started!

Thanks to Laura (lindsacl), we now have a wiki page for this group! Here you'll find links to the nominees and winners lists, book discussions and LT members' threads.

Thanks, Laura, for your awesomeness!

I've also done a shiny new 2012 thread for myself.

Welcome to all the new peoples!!! So much Orangey love! Wow, it's gonna take me ages to catch up, and to keep up. o:0

The wiki page is FAB-U-LOUS! Thanks Laura!

Orange January starts tomorrow! Here are 10 things you need to know!

Just started my first Orange book for 2012 The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

First giveaway is posted! http://mrstreme.wordpress.com/2012/01/01/orange-january-2012-giveaway-1-when-i-l...

If you just can't get enough of woman authors, come on over to the Virago Modern Classics group where we are beginning a year-long celebration of Elizabeth Taylor, a lesser-known but wonderful British novelist. 2012 is the centenary of her birth. In January we will read her debut novel, At Mrs Lippincote's. Her second and third novels will follow in February and March.

General Discussion thread
January thread

So, I started my first Orange of the month and my first book of the year this morning - Oryx and Crake. I purchased my copy secondhand, and on about page 100, I discovered that the previous owner suddenly decided to start using Wite-Out to block out certain words and even whole paragraphs! This goes on for at least the following 50 pages; I stopped checking after that.

Arrrrrrrrgh!!!

My local library doesn't have a copy, so I guess I'm going to have to order one. Moving that book to the bottom of the list for the month. And I was enjoying it SO MUCH. :(

Makes you wonder about some people, doesn't it?

> 91 - They whited out words and even whole paragraphs?!?!? Good grief, if you don't like to book, by all means give it away but don't censor it first!

Oh my! That's terrible!

>91 Her_Royal_Orangeness: Fortunately my library had a copy of Oryx and Crake. No whiteouts in it, thank goodness.
I will be reading it for my Orange January read (haven't started my own topic yet), and for 12 by 12 group.

Okay, not only is the white-out thing unacceptable, it's weird. It seems like a terrible investment of time --- "I object to this book so much that I'm going to spend my time whiting out the parts I find objectionable -- that'll show 'em." Really? I hope you can get a copy from the library soon.

I finished Half of a Yellow Sun this morning and I'm about 1/3 through Swamplandia!. So far, it's a very Orange month. :-)

I agree on the unacceptable and weird nature of the white-out thing. That's just nuts.

Lots of you have added personal threads in the past few days (yay!). I'm trying to list them all in our Group Wiki, but I have a sneaking suspicion I've missed some. Please have a look -- if your thread is missing you can either add it (if you're comfortable editing the Wiki), or let me know about it and I'll take care of it.

Thanks!

>91 Her_Royal_Orangeness:: I've seen many strange things in used books, but that beats all! How frustrating for you. I'll be reading Oryx and Crake later in the month, too.

I've started with One by One in the Darkness. The first ten pages are great. ;-)

>98 lauralkeet:: Good job on the wiki, Laura. I'm there right under the CO Donna!

Now I'm very curious about precisely WHAT was whited-out. I agree that besides being annoying (for you), it is downright weird.

I have to chime in on the weirdness of the whiteout. And like Anne, I can't imagine what this person found in *O&C* to white out!!! But then to sell the thing at a second hand store! Incredible nerve! Incredible arrogance!

Oh, yes, the Greatly Annoying Incident of the Wite-Out was all about censorship. I scraped away the first bits I found, and they were words/phrases that mentioned s*x or body parts - "flushed with the energy of his latest erotic tussle," "hormone-sodden love bunnies," "tried not to look at her breasts" - or naughty words like "buggering off" and "sh*tty." Unfathomable that someone would find that so offensive they had to obliterate it!

Thank you everyone for sympathizing with my rant....I was in a rage. :)

I'm off now to enjoy The Russian Dreambook of Color and Flight (which has hopefully not passed through the hands of angry censors ;) ).

I guess you are lucky that the crazy reader did not burn this dangerous book !!!!!!!!

You know, the last thing I would do if I read the term "hormone-sodden love bunnies" is to white it out. Maybe highlight it, and put lots of fluoro coloured arrows pointing to it. The phrase is just too funny, can't wait to find out what it is in context. :)

My copy of O&C is second hand, I'm now thinking I should run over and make sure it's not whited-out anywhere...

I've started The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam (great title!) as my first January read. Then I'll have to do some non-Orange reads before getting stuck into Oryx and Crake (I hope!).

Now I just have to find a copy of Oryx and Crake nothing like a tale of censorship to make something seem even more desirable :)
Raises the question, heaven forbid, I wonder if any Oranges have been officially banned anywhere?

I would have been incensed that someone disfigured a book with white-out! Wookie I think you have the right idea with "hormone-sodden love bunnies". He he.
Thanks for sharing your rage H_R_O.
I just want LT to introduce the like button, love everyone's sympathetic comments.
Hope to start on Gilgamesh in a couple of days time, once I finish Lilian's Story by Kate Grenville which was published before The Orange Prize started and was, I think, around too early to be nominated.

I loved Gilgamesh, hope you do too Kim.

I've loved everything I've read by Joan London including Gilgamesh and wish her short story collections weren't so difficult to find so that I could read Letter to Constantine. I have her other short story collection, Sister Ships which I've partly read but am rationing!

Purple Hibiscus is up for grabs today on my blog. Come by and check out how you can win!

>105 KimB:: nothing like a tale of censorship to make something seem even more desirable :)
No kidding. I can't wait to read this now, I'll be on the lookout for the "offending" passages!

Oh shoot! I loved "hormone-sodden love bunnies," and I'm enraged to think that a perfectly good book was ruined and that another reader might have missed that phrase altogether thanks to some sanctimonious little #*(*&@^!!!

I, too, want a like button. ;-)

I finished Beyond Black. Well, actually, I didn't. Not my thing ... review posted on my thread. I deserve something good now, so I'm going to read Lullabies for Little Criminals, which has been widely praised in this group!

I don't know your taste well enough to really say, Linda, but I enjoyed lullabies for little criminals when I read it last summer. I hope it goes down better for you than Beyond Black.

Oh no, Beyond Black was going to be my first Orange for the month. Hm, might have to rethink it.

I'm about 100 pages into Sorry by Gail Jones and the writing is taking my breath away. Stunning.

I have finished Sorry and felt the same whilst reading it as Bonnie. A beautifully written and haunting read.

I'm reading Beyond Black and really enjoying it so far at pg. 193. I'm finding it quirky and interesting. "The Time" called it 'chilling, creepy and endlessly inventive' in a quote on the back. I'm not sure I agree with chilling or creepy, but it does appear to be endlessly inventive! :)

Beyond Black does seem to divide readers. Will have to find a copy and check it out for myself! And I'm so glad people are enjoying Sorry! It was a marvelous book. I have some of her others that I must read too.

>117 Neverwithoutabook:: I'm really glad you're enjoying it! I can't wait to hear your comments when it's all said and done. I'm sure you can help me appreciate things I missed.

Well, I'm about to start on Beyond Black. I'll see which side of the fence is mine. I wasn't in love with Wolf Hall when I read it, but it made a big impression that I return to on occasion. This one is supposed to be entirely different, I do hope this time we know who's talking.

Today's giveaway has been posted. Come by my blog to enter to win a copy of The Magician's Assistant!

I finished The Tiger's Wife last night and it was great! I've added my review here

Ready to start Gilgamesh Yay! My expectations are very high :)

Just finished tonight: What I Loved: A Novel****+ by Siri Hustvedt 2003 longlist. Intrigueing, disturbing, well written, as always. A long sometimes sad tale of artists and their friendship. Highly recommended. Also read by this author:The Blindfold***, and The Sorrows of an American****.

Another giveaway has been posted on my blog! Up for grabs: Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld.

My first - and hopefully not only - Orange read for January is Property by Valerie Martin. It was a random pick off my shelves and I was pleased to find it was an Orange winner!

Hm, I had such a good analysis planned, then I went to your musings, Laura, and found that you loved Wolf Hall while you hated Beyond Black. I thought maybe the latter was your first experience with Hilary Mantel and you just didn't like her who's-talking-now style. I found it very disturbing in Wolf Hall, but maybe I got used to it because I'm finding it easier to flow with in Beyond Black. That could, though, be because of the more familiar subject matter of the the spirit book. I find I'm liking it very much, and it's made me think I must read her autobiography. She must have had an unpleasant childhood. So, I'm back to not knowing why you didn't like, but some books just don't jibe, I know.

Well I gave up on The White Woman on a Green Bicycle - just couldn't cope with the dialects of the local people - so many people have loved the book - and even LibraryThing thinks I "...probably will like The White Woman on the Green Bicycle (prediction confidence: high)..."

Whereas I have just finished Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam and have given it 5 stars!!!! However LibraryThing predicts I will probably like it but the prediction confidence was only medium!!!

Does anyone else choose books by using the LibraryThing - should I "get over" the dialect thing and give that Green Bicycle another chance?

I'm half way through The Siege by Helen Dunmore and I am finding it to be a most enlightening and wonderful read.

I just got a message from my library saying I can come pick up The Tiger's Wife, so I'll be starting that one tomorrow. Here's to hoping I'll like it as much as everyone around here!

128 > I don't know what formula LT uses to make predictions about whether one will like a particular book or not --- if it's based on books in one's library or if one's star ratings are weighted into the prediction in some way. I've only occasionally used that feature and I think I tend to rely more on recommendations and conversation among LTers whose taste I've started to know.

I have The White Woman on a Green Bicycle on my shelf, but haven't given it a try yet, so I can't help you there.

I totally ignore the LT prediction thing...it's rarely accurate for me, whatever it's based on. As far as the dialect thing...that's so individual. My husband simply cannot read and "get" dialect on the page, no matter how well it's done. I fall right into it, if it's well done, and stop seeing the spelling entirely. Of course, if it's a dialect I have never heard spoken, that's different. I'm not familiar with White Woman yet, so I don't know how it's handled in that one.

I just finished Beyond Black one of the weirder books I've ever read, horrible and wondrous at the same time. What a mind at work (both Alison's and Hilary's).

I am giving away a copy of Abide With Me by Elizabeth Strout on my blog today!

>133 Citizenjoyce:: horrible and wonderful ... that's interesting but I could see how it would be that way.

I'm still reading Lullabies for Little Criminals. Liking it well enough, not blown away. I haven't had as much reading time as I would like this week. I returned to work and somehow the evenings ended up busy with other things. So that may be part of my problem. Hope I can find some time to curl up this weekend.

Like laytonwoman3rd, I don't find it difficult to read dialects. In fact, I feel it often adds to the authenticity and sense of place in a book. If this isn't true for you, though, I can see that The White Woman on the Green Bicycle could be a challenging read. Really, though, I think it's worth it to tackle the challenge, because it's a marvelous book! And the dialect isn't as prevalent as it is in some books, like Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Second try and I'm finding Fugitive Pieces much more readable. I'm halfway through already!

>137 Neverwithoutabook:

So glad you're giving it another go, it's a story that definitely needs to be read in the right mood and have some time devoted to it, but I found it more than worth the effort. I hope you do too!

Oh happy day - it's another giveaway! Today, stop by and enter to win The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives.

Finished my first Orange January read.
Gilgamesh
I enjoyed being taken on the journey. One I'd recommend.
I'll be looking out for more novels by Joan London.

Now sticking with my Aussie theme, I'll be reading another Australian writer, Shirley Hazzard, and her novel The Great Fire.

I finished Beyond Black and that link takes you to where I munched on it a bit. Now I must go read Laura's review, and a couple others that I have been avoiding 'til I had composed my own thoughts.

>140 KimB: I just finished The Great Fire in December and thought it was a great read with beautiful language, but Hazzard writes the kind of paragraphs that I often have to read twice to understand their meaning. Perhaps it is easier for others.

Just posted another giveaway on my blog! Up for grabs is The Last Nude by Ellis Avery.

Oh! I'll be popping by your blog and I've finished by first " Orange" for January, The Siege . The review for it is on my thread here , as well as on the main review page.

You are so generous Jill!

I loved The Siege so much that I'm reading the second book in Helen Dunmore triology- The Betrayal. It's great, but not an orange, I fear! I'm hoping to fit in at least one more Orange in this month.

#144> Thank you, Deborah! I am enjoying the giveaways, especially everyone's responses!

I've started The Tiger's Wife, but I do have some questions. (Posted here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/129097#3158425) I know there's a discussion thread about this book, but I don't want to accidentially get spoiled, so I'm afraid to look for the answers there.

I've been wanting to reading The The Tiger's Wife for a long time as well. Is it any good?

I'm late to the party - just added my thread for Orange January. I'm going to read Jamrach's Menagerie.

147> So far, yes, it is. Different than what I normally read, but then again, so are most Orange reads. Still, I was intruiged right from the start.

Finished The Girls last night; I reviewed it on the book's page. Hoping to start The Outcast this evening; it's one I didn't think to put on an Orange January list, but there it was : ).

Wanna win a copy of Scottsboro? Come by my blog and enter to win!

I'm starting The Hiding Place. I tried this for an Orange July a few years ago and found it soooooooo boring, so I gave it away. It came back to me with a good review, so I will give it one more try. It was also nominated for the Booker Prize, so there has to be something to it that I'm missing.

A much better novel by the same author, Joyce, is Remember Me. I found The Hiding Place bleak in content, but lovely in writing.

I finished Fugitive Pieces but was quite unimpressed with it. Next up will be Scottsboro.

I finished Lullabies for Little Criminals, wasn't as wowed by it as some here. Next is Fault Lines and I read about 30 pages over my lunch break today ... totally hooked. Whew. I was beginning to worry that I was heading for a reading funk.

155: I think you were unlucky with your first Oranges, Laura. I've just finished Lullabies. I liked it more than you did and some aspects of it I loved but it took me a while to get there and I had some problems with the structure of the story.

I'm very pleased Fault Lines has you hooked at page 30 and look forward to hearing more!

I finished The hunter by Julia Leigh. I read her Disquiet a couple of years ago, and this is completely different. Books to admire rather than fall in love with, but both well worth reading. Not sure why I chose the book for OJ but I was interested in the Tasmanian setting.

If I have time I'll try for another Orange book this month but have to get onto other reading commitments for a few days.

#149: I loved The Tiger's Wife, I hope you enjoy it.

Today, a copy of Lottery is up for grabs on my blog. Come by and enter to win!

I am racing through Fall On Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald. Totally hooked!

YAY for Anne!

159> I added Fall On Your Knees to my hold list at the library based solely on "Totally hooked!" I doubt I'll get it before the end of January, but I'll read it when I do get it.

Anne, I'm delighted you're loving Fall On Your Knees. It's one of my all-time favourites.

Swamplandia! is up for grabs on my blog today! Come by and enter to win!

Finished my first Orange of the new year. White Ghost Girls by Alice Greenway. Longlisted in 2006, it was an interesting,and short read.

I'm about to complete a non-Orange book, and feeling undecided about my next read, which will be an Orange:

Wolf Hall OR
Bel Canto OR
The Tiger's Wife.

Decisions, decisions...... :-)

Finished Property...my first Orange for this group. Review will follow as soon as i gather my thoughts, and they are many.

#165 I'd always vote for Bel Canto because I loved it but that is a good list you have there.

Needing suggestions! Is there any Orange that has a happy ending out there? I'm starting to get depressed by all this wonderful literary fiction but no happy endings.... Maybe this is a naive question and I might just need to move on to my guilty pleasures for a break...

The first "happy ending" Orange book I can think of is Lottery by Patricia Wood. Or how about Case Histories by Kate Atkinson?

I finished Fault Lines yesterday and really enjoyed it -- my best read so far this month. I should have a review up tomorrow. I'm going to take a short break from Oranges this week but will be back to read Oryx and Crake before the end of the month.

>168 TinaV95: Tina, read my all-time favorite, The Road Home. I love it because it has real depth AND a happy ending!
(And was I supposed to report in here? I've finished one Orange, Fall on Your Knees, which I thought was amazing! Now I'm cooling down with Molly Fox's Birthday before jumping into The Tiger's Wife. YAY ORANGE!)

#165 Ellen you can't go wrong with either Bel Canto or The Tiger's Wife, they were both excellent! I would say read the Tiger's Wife first just because I just finished it and loved it.
Can't comment on Wolf Hall though because I haven't gotten there yet

I'm just starting The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

I finished A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers by Xiaolu Guo, but forgot to post on this thread after posting on my individual Orange thread.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sojourn of a young Chinese woman who travels to London to learn English and while there, falls in love with an older man. Zhuang's story is related in a journal, organized less by dates, than by vocabulary words - words through which she learns not only English, but the strange ways of a different culture, philosophical differences, and the wayward meanderings of the heart.

And the cover is orange!

I'll try to get to Property this month, but I have a few other books I have to read first.

Continuing with The Great Fire. Just finished Sarah Thornhill by Kate Grenville my first e-book borrowed from the local library (amazingly quick way to borrow a book! A quick log-in and a download- I didn't have to move from my seat!).
Sarah Thornhill is a quick read and deserving of a wide readership (as a good friend said in her Bellatrisa review), it may even be a nominee for this years Orange, good writing and Kate is a past winner.

In my Sunday Salon post today on my blog I talk about women as authors, equality, and the Orange prize. You can read it here: http://bookwormsandtea.blogspot.com/2012/01/sunday-salon-celebrating-womens-writ...

168: If you like historical fiction, I'd recommend The Book of Fires by Jane Borodale which has a satisfying, if not 100% happy, ending!

For something completely different, I'd recommend The End of Mr Y by Scarlett Thomas.

175: Now off to check out Samantha's blog...

I'll follow Dee out too, but I just finished and loved Molly Fox's Birthday and will start The Tiger's Wife this very now!

Opinions needed!

I went to my library today to look for some of the oranges with 'happier' endings that y'all suggested. the only one I could find was the Book of Fires. I also picked up The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives. My question is -- what should I start with? Either of these two or The Time Traveler's Wife or The Magician's Assistant?

Thanks in advance for opinions and suggestions....

The Time Traveler's Wife doesn't have a happy-ever-after but it is a phenomenal book!

I haven't read The Time Traveler's Wife or The Secret Lives but would recommend The Book of Fires if you're in the mood for historical fiction.

Forgot all about posting here. I've finished two Oranges so far: Sorry by Gail Jones lovely prose, very dark subject matter set in Australia = 4.5 stars and Zadie Smith's rowdy, rollicking tale of multiculturalism in North London in the years preceding the 21st century = 4.3 stars. Now I'm reading the un-putdownable The Observations by Jane Harris. It's all good.

181> Harris's newest, Gillespie and I, should be in the running next round. Loved it!

>182 Cariola: - Just added Gillespie and I to my wish list!

I'm looking forward to reading Gillespie and I; hopefully it will be selected for the Orange longlist in March.

Gilgamesh is up for grabs on my blog today! Good luck!

Finished The Observations. If you liked Fingersmith or Rebecca this is the book for you.

I finished The Tiger's Wife, my full review can be found here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/129171#3178174

Finished Sorry by Gail Jones today. . . What a great read! A compelling story, intriguing characters, beautifully written, just a great book.

If The Observations is on your wish list, stop by my blog to enter for a chance to win a copy!

Ah...finally!! A book I don't already have. Yay!

My January ER ARC arrived today - Arcadia by Lauren Groff. Did anybody else get this one? Has anybody read it? How about The Monsters of Templeton?

I also won the ER ARC of Arcadia. I'm about halfway through it. It's engrossing....but I wouldn't quite say I'm totally won over, yet. I finished The Monsters of Templeton just before beginning Arcadia...I found it very clever and enjoyable, and it convinced me that Lauren Groff has some enormous talent just waiting to come to full bloom.

soupdragon I have just started the Book of Fires :)

The Book of Fires is yet another owned and unread book. (I think I have a lot of moldy oranges on my bookshelf. ;0) Borodale has a new book scheduled for publication in May - The Knot (touchstone doesn't work). Hope you enjoy The Book of Fires, TinaValdes.

Finished The Outcast last night - a compelling read which I highly recommend! I posted a review on the main book page.

Today, I am giving away a copy of The Personal History of Rachel DuPree. Come by and enter to win!

I just want to say how absolutely wonderful I found The Personal History of Rachel DuPree. Enjoy, whoever wins.

Jill, do we have a list somewhere of ALL Orange books (winners, SL, LL) in alphabetical order? That'd be great.

I have a complete list that is sorted by year. You can see it HERE as a google doc. (Hope that's ok to post...if not, someone just yell at me. :) )

Your Royal Orange Highness, thanks so much. It's always a pain looking here and there to find the Orange nominees. Your list is a wonderful time saver.

HRO to the rescue!

THANK YOU, your RO! I am thrilled beyond saying to have the new writers included in a list! I'll print it out to replace my current cobbled-together lists.

#199 Oh, thank you so much!!

That's excellent. I'll bring the list for my
little trot around the library in search of my next Orange read.

193: Hope you're enjoying it, Tina.

I've recently started The Siege and as many of you already know, it's wonderful.

Another giveaway! Come by and enter to win a copy of The Lacuna.

Glad to help out by sharing the complete Orange list. :) (I ♥ lists.) Maybe it could be added to the group wiki?

The Orange list is great! But why is there no new writers award for 2011? Has it not been awarded yet? *is ashamed to admit she's really ignorant of the Orange prize, despite being a member of this group*

They phased out the new writer's award. Now they feature a debut writer each month.

I'm starting Molly Fox's Birthday by Deirdre Madden.

209> Ah, that makes sense! Thanks.

The New Writers Award was only issued from 2005 - 2010. The weird thing with the monthly featured new writer is that it includes both male and female authors, which seems to go against the basic principle of the prize - to highlight the work of women writers.

>207 Her_Royal_Orangeness:: HRO, I added a link to the Group Wiki! Let me know if it looks OK or if you have any suggestions.

212> That's weird indeed. Perhaps since it's not really an award they feel they can give equal time to men and women? Maybe show the world how things should be?

>213 lauralkeet: - Fantastic! Thanks so much!

>214 Samantha_kathy: - I don't know. I can't imagine what the reasoning is. But even if it does seem to subvert Orange principles, it is a way to highlight talented authors who might otherwise go unnoticed, of which there are far too many.

I finished and REVIEWED Jane Gardam's excellent 2005 SL novel Old Filth. That'll wrap it up for my Orange reading this time around. I had a terrific OJ. Thanks Jill for all you do to make January and July so much fun!

I'll be starting my last Orange January book today, Oryx and Crake.

With classes having started up, it's unlikely I'll get to a second Orange book this time. But the one I'm reading now, The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey, may well end up on next year's list. It's a 20th-century take on Jane Eyre, based in part on the author's own life.

I just finished The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney. It's not on the Orange list....yet. It was fabulous and will surely make this year's shortlist.

For Orange January I have read Fall On Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald (review here) and also A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore (review here).

Today, I am giving away a copy of Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks on my blog. Come by and enter!

I finished The Hiding Place yesterday while waiting for the ferry that never left dock (huge windstorm shut everything down, but I managed to get home this morning). Anyway, loved, loved, loved The Hiding Place. I had tried to read it a couple of years ago and it just didn't click with me, but this time I found it to be fabulous. I will post comments on my ClubRead thread later today. But I got up at 4:30 AM, however, and am too tired to put together anything coherent.

I've posted my thoughts on The Hiding Place on my thread here at the Orange group for anyone who is interested ( http://www.librarything.com/topic/128445#3193160) now I've started We Need to Talk About Kevin. I'm a big Tilda Swinton fan, and I'm tempted to go see the film, so I thought I should read it first. Who here has read it?

I read We Need to Talk About Kevin last fall and was blown away by it. Shriver has become one of my favorite writers. Hope you like it as much . . .

Awesome list HRO! Thanks!!

#225 I am enjoying it SO much, soupdragon!! :) Thank you again.

Has anyone heard of the Stella Prize? It's a newly launched award, the Australian equivalent of the Orange Prize. Sounds very intriguing! (I wonder if it will make books from Oz more accessible to purchase in the US and the UK? Some of the big names and publishers make it across the pond, but most of them remain difficult and expensive to purchase.)

HRO, yes, I have heard of the Stella Prize and looking forward to seeing what books they feature. We may have to do a Stella September. =)

Today, on my blog, I am giving away a copy of Homestead by Rosina Lippi. Great book! Come by and enter!

#228 Oh, that's a very good book, everybody. You'll want to read that one!

>227 mrstreme:: Ooh, great idea Jill!
>228 mrstreme:: you temptress.

Another blog giveaway! Come by and enter to win A Mercy by Toni Morrison.

I finished my last book for Orange January yesterday (Oryx and Crake). My review is posted ... visit the book page or my OJ thread. This has been a fun month for reading!

I've read and reviewed two Oranges this month The Siege by Helen Dunmore , loved it! and The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami. Great month of Orange reading for me! Thanks Jill!

Finished Anita Shreve's The Weight of Water. Compelling, enjoyable read. Admittedly, I was surprised to find Shreve on the Orange List, but she deserved the recognition on this one.

#234 - That's good to hear! I have Weight of Water on The Orange Mountain of Unread Books.

Happy Sunday! Stop by my blog and enter for a chance to win Untold Story by Monica Ali.

I had a terrific OJ. Thank you again Jill for all you do to make it so much fun. I'm already looking forward to Orange July. I think I'm going to read some Sarah Waters and see what the new Orage Prize nominees look like.

Finished my second January Orange: We Need to Talk About Kevin.

I held my nose when I picked up this one --I was really expecting this to be manipulative and in the long run, lame. So what a great surprise it turned out to be! I can see why this won the Orange Prize.

Full comments to appear on my Orange thread later today.

I've started my third Orange for January--Property by Valerie Martin. It's short, so I shoudl be able to finish it in time.

Anne - can't wait to see what you think of Property!

Here's my Orange wrap-up, copied from my own Orange thread....
I thought I'd end by saying that I had a memorable Orange January.....read three good ones: Fall on Your Knees (best), Molly Fox's Birthday (better), The Tiger's Wife (good) (I've never written something in that order. I see why.) AND won Homestead from Jill's Orange January event! Wow! I'll be reading Arcadia in February, seeing whether I think it will be nominated. I'd be thrilled to be one ahead on the new long list. AND I ordered a number of Oranges from PBS, which are wending their way across country to me even as I type. Bliss! I hate to send it end, but I'm looking forward to The Siege soon!

General question... Does anybody usually post here about Oranges in the non themed months?

242 - After last July's Orangestravaganza, we were challenged to read one a month until January hit so most of us kept going. No reason to limit our orange diet to two months - feel free to post anytime! I know I will keep at it.

#241 Peggy, from amazon uk it looks like Arcadia isn't published in the UK until April which I think would make it eligible for the 2013 prize but not the 2012 - but then think how far ahead you would be if you managed to read something off the 2013 longlist!

227> A bit late perhaps, but I'd be totally in for a Stella September!

#242: Tina and others: We will continue what I now call "Darryl's Monthly Orange Challenge" this year. So, around the first of the month, I will post a thread where you can post your Orange books for that month. Plus, feel free to update your personal threads at any time!

Yay!!

My review of Property:

http://www.librarything.com/work/12846/reviews/72425286

...finally!

Well I managed to finish my second Orange book - so January goal met.

It was The Idea of Perfection by Kate Grenville - not a great book - but a very nice read.

I've just started A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers. I've heard some conflicting opinions about it, maybe it's because of the dialect which is always a little jarring. So far I'm enjoying it. I can't imagine moving to a foreign country where I barely speak the language and living on my own at the age of 23, or any age for that matter. Immigrants are very brave people.

OtherJoyce - I liked a lot of things about A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers when I read it, but it's one of those books that quickly faded after I was finished. I think the author did an excellent job of capturing the protagonist's English skills --growing up and living in Vancouver, I have been surrounded by Chinese accents daily. A lot of authors fail to transfer that accent into written English.

What I remember from readers' objections to the book is her attitudes toward sex and her boyfriends. I have to agree that they have a point. So I'm looking forward to your thoughts when you're done.

Our last Orange January Giveaway! Come by and enter to win Wolf Hall.

I'm offering my nearly-new copy of Swamplandia! to anyone in the group who would like to have it. Just because it didn't ring my chimes doesn't mean someone else won't love it. Any takers?

Linda, if no one claims Swamplandia, I would be happy to add it to my pile for Orange July giveaways. Yes, I have a pile already! =)

OK, Jill...shall we say if no one asks for it here by Friday, I'll send it off to you?

I didn't make my goal of OJ books this month, but do plan to read at least one a month and will also try for 6 Orange books in July. I didn't do to badly, tho. Finished these:

Beyond Black
We Need To Talk About Kevin
A Spell of Winter
Fugitive Pieces

I started Gilead as well, but have to put it aside as I found an ER book I had misplaced that I need to get read and reviewed pronto! then I'll get back to Gilead and hopefully a couple more Oranges so I can catch up to where I want to be! LOL

#255> Sounds good, Linda!

I finished A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers and liked it very much. Z certainly didn't do things I would do or relate to the world as I would, but I thought her character was consistent within itself. I thought the way she used word definitions to guide her exposure to the west and western concepts was pretty clever. It wouldn't have surprised me if Xiaolu Guo won the prize her year.

The Orange February thread is up! This is where you post your Orangey reads from February. Lively conversation too!