Sydamy's 2014 challenge

Ready for another year of great reading! My top reads for last year were:

Hope : A Tragedy by Shalom Auslander
May We Be Forgiven by A M Homes
& Sons by David Gilbert
Round House by Louise Erdrich
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
Night Film by Marisha Pessl
Oryx and Crake, Year of the Flood, MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood
Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra

Welcome back! Several of those were on my list too.

1. The Silent Wife by A S A Harrison

3.5 star

Being compared to Gone Girl but really shouldn't be, not as fast paced, not as exciting, and it was psychological but not a thriller. Worth reading and I would recommend it, but, not amazing

2. Wonder by R J Palacio

4.25 star

A wonderful story about a boy with a facial disfigurement and his year at school. Courage, strength and friendship abound. Yes, I cried.

3. The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

4.5 star

Such beautiful writing. Highly Recommended.

4. The Martian by Andy Weir

4.5 star

A funny, sciencey survival story. Highly recommended

5.Hyperbole and a half by Allie Brosh

4.5

Not even sure how to describe this graphic novel. But the sub title might explain it better...Unfortunate situations, Flawed coping mechanisms, and other things that happened.

6.The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

5 star

Totally engrossing, loved it

I am on a roll of amazing books, love it!!

I think it was Mark (msf59) that read The Martian and recommended it to me. I've got it on my list for later thus Spring. Given that I work in the space biz, it's right up my alley! :)

7.The Tuner of Silences by Mia Couto

2.5 star

Read this because of its inclusion in the Tournament of Books. Not even really sure what to say, very flowery writing, overly poetic and lots of craziness. Basic story had potential, father takes sons into a deserted game reserve to live, telling them the rest of the world is gone. For most of the book we don't really know why, the mother is dead, killed by father? we don't know. The book didn't work for me. The poetic insights into life and love were abundant, but that doesn't make for a good story.

8.Long Division by Kiese Laymon

4.25

Also a Tournament of Books book. Very Meta. Involving the same character in different time periods. Time travel is involved, but so is a book that seems to tell the story of what is happening. It takes place in the South and shows the tensions and life of a young African American at different times in history (1964, 1985, 2013 are the years they travel between), but also of a young boy trying to figure out life and love. Very cool concept.

Yikes, looks like I'm spending time reading not updating, this will bring me up to date...

9. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
10. The Enchanted by Rene Denfeld ***** Highly recommend
11. The People in Trees by Hanya Yanagihara
12. At Night We Walk in Circles by Daniel Alarcon
13. Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi ***** Highly Recommend
14. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
15. Bleak House by Charles Dickens
16. The World Without You by Joshua Henkin
17. Locke & Key, Vol 1 by Joe Hill --- First Graphic Novel - love
18. Want Not by Jonathan Miles
19. We are all Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
20. On Such a Full Sea by Chang-rae Lee
21. The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North
22. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith ---I actually quite enjoyed this
23. Eleven Scandals to Start to win a Dukes Heart --- Yea, Romance wanna make something of it??? It was a darn good series too.
24. The Quick by Lauren Owen
25. The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud ***** Highly Recommend
26. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty ---blech
27. Countdown City by Ben H Winters
28. Child of God by Cormac McCarthy ********Highly Recommend
29. The Giver by Lois Lowry *****Highly Recommend
30. The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock ***** Highly Recommend
31. Strange Bodies by Marcel Theroux ---still teetering, definitely a recommend, but maybe not highly

That brings me up to date. Just started East of Eden so that should keep me busy for a while.

32. Is Everyone Hanging out Without me? by Mindy Kaling

4.25 star

I want Mindy to be my best friend.

33. We Were Liars by E Lockhart

4.25 star

The prose took a bit of getting used to, as is used fragmented and repeated sentences, since it was told through the voice of Candence, a 17 year old girl. Once used to it, it suited the story well. Family dynamics and power, first love and a very big secret are explored over the course of the book. It's a good one.

34. A Feast for Crows by George R R Martin

4 star

Not as great as the others but still pretty darn good. I will finish the next book before Martin does!

35. East of Eden by John Steinbeck

5 star

A whole lot of awesomeness.

36. Dept of Speculation Jenny Offill

4 star

Experimental in the telling of the story, but kind of cool.