Tina's Inaugural Orange January

I'm very excited to join this group and begin my first "Orange January"!! Thanks so much for organizing this, Jill! What a wonderful idea!

To begin, I'll list the "Oranges" I've read previously:
Winners -
none (sad, huh?)

Short Listers -
Room Emma Donoghue
The Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood Rebecca Wells

Long Listers -
The Secret Life of Bees Sue Monk Kidd
The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold
The Help Kathryn Stockett

A very short list indeed! I have lots of catching up to do since I generally read for escapism and pleasure :) I plan to begin with Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout.

I'm enjoying reading everyone's threads and I'm getting tons of ideas. If only there were more hours in the day...

Hi Tina, it's good to see you here. I'll be interested to hear what you think of Amy and Isabelle. I have three Elizabeth Strout books on my shelves. I really must pick up one of them this year!

Welcome Tina! I really enjoyed Amy and Isabelle ... hope you do, too!

Stick around this group long enough, Miss Tina, and your book stacks will grow exponentially! =) Have fun!

Looks like a great list Tina.
Amy and Isabelle has somehow missed my radar, I'd be really interested to hear what you think of it, if lindsacl says she enjoyed it that is high praise indeed.

I read
Room and The Help last year, have to get used to saying that now about 2011. Both excellent.

I''ve heard so many good things about The Secret Life of Bees but I still haven't read anything by Sue Monk Kidd yet.

The Lovely Bones was one of those storylines where I enjoyed the film more then the book, that really doesn't happen very often for me!

Hope you enjoy reading your Oranges ;)

Hi Tina, welcome to the group! I'm looking forward to your comments on Amy and Isabelle.

Thanks so much for the welcomes, everyone! I appreciate it :)

KimB:

Agree wholeheartedly about Room and The Help. Both were fantastic!! It has been quite a while since I read The Secret Life of Bees but based on our similar reactions to the first two, I think you will enjoy it if you give it a read. Also, I have to agree with your comment on The Lovely Bones. I almost never like the movie better, but I also found the movie a bit better than the book. :-)

Amy and Isabelle was just an okay read for me, but I loved loved loved Abide With Me by the same author. It's not on the Orange lists, but I highly recommend it!

I really liked Amy and Isabelle; for mother-daughter fiction, I found both characters equally credible, whereas often one rings more true than the other for me. Hope you enjoy it too!

About 3/4 of the way done with A&I... Opinions on what to read next??

Prep or The Girls or Digging to America or The Poisonwood Bible or Time Traveler's Wife or Bel Canto?

Wide variety, but they are in the TBR pile for OJ :)

Oooh, forgot I also have Swamplandia! and have been wanting to read that one as well...

I keep checking out all these lovely threads instead of reading my book :)

I really enjoyed The Time Traveller's Wife, and I think Bel Canto is just great. Those would be my pick, although they all sound good!

Which is the nice thing about Orange reads, they do all sound good. :)

The Girls or Digging to America or The Poisonwood Bible or Time Traveler's Wife or Bel Canto?

I've read all of these. I'd definitely rate The Poisonwood Bible and Bel Canto the highest--they're at the more literary end of the scale. I liked Digging to America, but many didn't, and it's more popular mainstream style, along with the Time Travelers Wife. I didn't like The Girls. Don't know the other two you listed.

Going out on a limb here and stating that this is just my personal opinion, based on what you have listed in post 11 above that I have read, I recommend Bel Canto followed closely by Time Traveler's Wife. I give a thumbs down to Digging to America, but like I said, that is my opinion. ;-)

Prep might remind you of being in a dorm! I think you might like The Time Traveler's Wife too

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone! I guess I'll go with Bel Canto first since it was mentioned the most... I most definitely will have to make time for Prep, Jill if you recommend it ;-)

I think Bel Canto is a great choice. It is a very original story eventhough it was based on a real event.

Here's my review of Prep, if that helps: http://www.librarything.com/work/26902/reviews/72976370

And I loved Bel Canto! Hope you do too!

JILL!!! LOVE that review. Definitely moving Prep to slot #3 since I just started Bel last night!! Now I can't wait :)

I'll be very curious to know what you think of it. I was a tad bit disappointed with the ending, but obviously still enjoyed the book as a whole. =)

So I finished Amy and Isabelle last night. Not sure how to describe my initial feelings other than that it took me a while to 'get into it.' I didn't really identify with either the mother or the daughter at first. Frankly, the mother annoyed me in the beginning. BUT... as good books go, I ended up liking both characters, sympathizing with both and rooting for the happy ending. I also ended up reading swiftly through when I originally thought the book was quite slow going and just okay for me. Mother-daughter fiction usually makes me cry, but at least I didn't here! I wanted a reallllly happy ending for these two, but then again I'm the romantic sort who reads to escape reality and the mundane. So, if I were rating, I'd say Amy and Isabelle gets 4 to 4.5 stars from me.

Not a very cerebral review, but there it is....

I seem to remember finding both characters annoying at various times, but they felt "real" to me. It will be interesting to compare the daughter herein with the narrator in Prep and in Swamplandia! and the sisters (when younger) in Kingsolver's novel. For that reason, I would have chosen (as you have) one of the other books, to shake things up a bit, but I think these other combos will be interesting too.

I know several people are kinda ho-hum about The Girls and I was the same way until a good chunk into the story, when I suddenly realized that I was far more attached to some of the characters than I'd expected. I can't say much more than that, without risking a spoiler, but I was expecting to find myself more attached to at least one of The Girls themselves, and that never really stuck for me (although I found their story very interesting), but the community of characters drew me in all the same!

I'm enjoying bel canto a lot! Thanks for the recommendations! Started listening to The Weight of Water on my drive today. Loving Orange January!

Has anyone ever listened to The Weight of Water on audiobook?

No, I find that my mind wonders when I listen to audiobooks.

>26 mrstreme:: me too! I've tried them during my commute and I always end up spacing out. I do better listening to podcasts because they are more like radio programs.

I stayed up late last night to finish Bel Canto. It was a very intriguing premise and read, but I was hoping for a happier ending. I guess I am quite naive when it comes to wanting things to end on a nice note....

Will start Prep today - tonight or as soon as I can work it in!!

I found a used bookstore online and picked up some of the other 'oranges' that are getting good reviews, so my reading list may change slightly. When my books arrive, I may dance a jig!! :)

I know you posted it on another thread, but I will thank you here for the link to thriftybooks.com. Great find! Hope you enjoy Prep!

Hey... can somebody tell me how to post a picture on these threads or where to go to find out how?

**29: And, you're welcome, Jill! I was so excited!

For others --

Great online used bookstore with super low prices on some wonderful Orange reads
www.thriftbooks.com

Tina, this thread should help with the HTML (so you can insert a picture): http://www.librarything.com/topic/129158

Thanks Jill!! :)

The ending in Bel Canto was a bit of a downside for me as well.... I felt it could have been handled differently and better. But that was my only real quibble with it.

I remember being a bit underwhelmed when I read Bel Canto some years back but I was impressed with the writing in The Magician's Assistant and am wondering if I missed something when I read Bel Canto. I might try it again one day!

I'm one of those people who loved Bel Canto. It was one of my faves of 2009. I've only read one other Ann Patchett book Run which was only okay for me. Have you read State of Wonder?

~~#35: No I haven't; are you nudging?? ;)

Just finished Orange #3 The Weight of Water via audio book on my drive home today. I am interested to see what others thought of this one. I found the premise very interesting -- the re-imagining of an actual murder into a fictional account -- and once I fell into the historical back story I enjoyed it a lot. I was disappointed by the ending though, as I had hoped for a brighter day for the 'current day' main character of the story.

>36 TinaV95: Hi again Tina. I was wondering if you had read/liked State of Wonder. I have that one on my ever-growing list to read this year. I've heard mixed reviews, but it sounds like one I would enjoy.

>37 TinaV95: Anita Shreve is very popular, but I've never read any of her work. This one sounds interesting.

Hello all... I finished Prep last night and thought I would talk a bit about my thoughts. I don't plan on reviewing the work, because Jill (mrstreme) has an exceptional review if you'd like to read it (see #19).

All in all, I liked Prep, but became frustrated with Lee throughout the book. I think that is because I identified with her on several levels... I didn't attend boarding school, but went to a very small Christian school and was the dreaded 'teacher's kid'. I also went to a small women's college (on scholarship like Lee) and found her discussions on dorm and campus life quite reminiscent of my own experiences. But I wanted to LOVE Lee as a character. I rooted for her -- I wanted her to grow and become a different person. I saw so many similarities to my angst filled teen years of insecurity (and I'm sure to many other teen girls) and I was expecting / hoping her struggles would lead to a different ending. While I found her to be an interesting and likeable character at times, at other times I wanted to scream at the book... Maybe I was a bit too involved?? ;)

Psychoanalysis welcomed (hahaha)....

I was disappointed with the ending of Prep, but as you know, sometimes things don't work out well for young girls. Remember all our fellow students who had similar endings to Lee?

(For those of you who don't know, Tina and I went to the same all-women's college!)

Took a mini-vacation from Orange January... Just started my next pick as someone suggested The Book of Fires. I've only made it through the first chapter last night, but I already like it :)

I am midway through The Book of Fires now and the writing is lovely. Thank you to whoever suggested it!! :)

I have just finished The Book of Fires and it is a 5 star read for me!! I huge thanks to soupdragon who suggested it!

I don't generally do reviews, but I have to give this one a go since I liked it so well. **I also have to note that although I have not usually been a huge fan of historical fiction, this book may have changed my mindset.

The Book of Fires by Jane Borodale is set in 18th century England. The narrator -- and unlikely heroine -- is Agnes, a country dwelling girl with an incredibly tough life. Early in the book she is raped (my word, not the author's) and becomes pregnant. In this century, her fate is unimaginable so she runs away from home after stealing money from a dead neighbor. Sounds odd? It was.... but an interesting sort of odd. In London, she walks until she can no longer bear to move and knocks on a random door. She begs to do any type of work and the home / business owner (Mr. Blacklock) agrees to a temporary arrangement. Mr. Blacklock is a pyrotechnician -- a maker of fireworks. Agnes becomes his apprentice and shows remarkable talent for the craft.

The characters in the tale are real; some likeable, some not but Borodale gives each character a great voice and personality. I fell in love with Agnes, faults and all. I also fell in love with Borodale's writing style. Here, Agnes describes the first time she sees fireworks (keep in mind this is in the days before the science of colored fireworks was discovered)...

"It is so close that I can hear the hiss of the quick match rush to the lifting charge of each flight of rockets, before the pound and roar of the ignition, and then the burst, and the sky is riddled with twists of fire, feathers of fire, billhooks of light, snakes of fire and smoke. The breaks are a spill of prickling white light across my eye, crackling the glaze of the sky into bitter shards. I blink. I cannot breathe for whiteness everywhere. I am blinded by it. The sky is burnt with purple shadows when the whiteness is done, when there is a pause for darkness, though the smoke swirls about, and then more gerbes start up, pulsing sheaves of orange sparks, with stars shooting out like grains of polished light that lift, drift, stop and then fall slowly, smooth as glass, winking out into the darkness. The world is either fire, or water, or darkness, nothing else. An unformed sob gathers in my chest."

I have been longing for an Orange read with a happy ending -- or at least not a depressingly sad one. I'm not giving any spoilers and it doesn't end as you might imagine, but the ending was a nice and though it does not meet my actual definition of "happily ever after", at least I can categorize the ending as comfortably contented.

I'm so pleased you enjoyed it so much, Tina and love that review!

edited to add: I've just read your thoughts on Prep. I haven't read it but your reaction reminded me a lot of how I felt about the narrator of another of Sittenfeld's books: The Man of My Dreams. Initially I identified with her because I could see similarities between her and my own awkward and self-conscious teenage self. As time went on, I was hoping she would gain confidence and that life would improve for her but she didn't and it didn't which was extremely exasperating! However, the narrator (can't remember her name) does develop some self awareness at the very end of the book which brings it with some hope!

Tina, that's quite a review! Definitely adding that book to my wishlist!

I'm intrigued by your review #43: sounds great!

As for Prep, I did find aspects of the novel frustrating, but ultimately I felt that my frustrations reflected how realistically she had created her character and the situations she faces (more and less successfully). After just reading that one book, I still had doubts about that, but now that I've read her others, I now feel, more than ever, that that was intentional on the author's part, because some of her other writing is (in my opinion) very different, stylistically and in terms of how she develops her narrators' voices.

With both Man of My Dreams and American Wife, I was just planning to peek at the book, but I ended up finishing them both and being quite impressed (for different reasons). I don't remember Prep very well now, but I do remember wishing that I could talk to someone about her when I'd finished, because I felt so completely immersed in her world.

#46 - I may have to give Sittenfield a break and try some of her others. I think I was identifying so closely with the character is why I was frustrated with her lack of progress -- and that is psychologically telling on myself as well ;)

A general question -- I can't find The Book of Fires on my Orange lists that I copied from our site. Is it not on a list?? If not, what a tragedy!

The Book of Fires was shortlisted for the now-defunct Orange New Writers Prize.... =)

Started reading The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin.... Trying to finish by Feb 1, but not sure if I will make it... :)

It's okay if it spills over to February!

Ok now you're the second one to love The Book of Fires so I've really got to start making more of an effort to find it Tina.

I just finished The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin as my last Orange January read... finished on Feb 2, but I'm still counting it as February! :)

It was an oddly composed story with multiple narrators, but I quite enjoyed it once I got into the flow and learned the character's names.

I loved The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives was one of my top reads last year :)

#53 I thought it was very unusual and it really kept me reading!! :)