Porch_Reader (Amy) Reads in 2015 - Part 1

Hi! I'm Amy, and this is my 8th year in the 75ers. Welcome to my 2015 thread.

I read a variety of books, including literary fiction, mysteries, and assorted non-fiction. I have two sons (an 8th grader and a 5th grader), so I read some YA/juvenile books that they've recommended to me, as well as some that I want to check out before making recommendations to them. You'll also see some management/leadership books here that I read for the classes that I teach at the University of Iowa.

Favorites from 2014:

To give you a sense of the types of books I read, here are some of my favorites from 2014 (in no particular order):

Fiction:
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena – Anthony Marra
The Keep – Jennifer Egan
And the Mountains Echoed – Khaled Hosseini
My Son's Story – Nadine Gordimer
The Twelve Tribes of Hattie – Ayana Mathis
Lila – Marilynne Robinson
Some Luck – Jane Smiley
Into the Beautiful North – Luis Alberto Urrea
Eventide – Kent Haruf
All the Light We Cannot See – Anthony Doerr

Non-Fiction:
Me Talk Pretty One Day – David Sedaris
Five Days at Memorial – Sheri Fink
The Closer – Mariano Rivera
This is the Story of a Happy Marriage – Ann Patchett
The Journey: Walking the Road to Bethlehem – Adam Hamilton

YA/Juvenile:
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock – Matthew Quick
The Maze Runner – James Dashner
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes – Chris Crutcher
The House of Hades – Rick Riordan
Fortunately, the Milk – Neil Gaiman

A Quote:

I try to keep track of quotes from the books that I read. This one seems appropriate for a thread starting in January:

"Sometimes in the theater of winter, a day will appear with such spectacular mildness that it seems the season can almost be forgiven for all its inappropriate hostility, inconveniences, and even physical assaults. With a balmy sky overhead, melting snow underfoot, and the sounds of creeks running, the bargain made with contrasts doesn't look so bad: to feel warm, one must remember cold; to experience joy, one must have known sorrow." ~David Rhodes, Driftless

A Brief History of Threads:
This is my seventh year in the 75 book challenge. Just so I can keep track, here are all of my previous threads.
2008 Thread

2009 Thread 1
2009 Thread 2

2010 Thread 1
2010 Thread 2
2010 Thread 3
2010 Thread 4

2011 Thread 1
2011 Thread 2
2011 Thread 3

2012 Thread 1
2012 Thread 2
2012 Thread 3

2013 Thread 1
2013 Thread 2
2013 Thread 3
2013 Thread 4

2014 Thread 1
2014 Thread 2
2014 Thread 3
2014 Thread 4

Reading Plans:

I don’t have many structured reading plans for 2015. I will read most of the authors in the American Author Challenge. I’d also like to read a bit more non-fiction than last year. I also have lots of books on my shelves waiting to be read, so I’m hoping to read quite a few books from my own shelves. Of course, I’m sure that many of your recommendations will catch my eye as well, so I’ll leave some space for serendipity.

I haven't visited the threads for 2015 yet, Amy, but I read you were leaving town tomorrow. Happy New Year a few days in advance! You got some great books for Christmas that should keep you busy for a little while. Here's to more good books in 2015!

Dropping my star, Amy!

Welcome back!

Hi Amy! Found and starred!

Starred again! Maybe I'll actually comment more this year... :)

Bing!! Am looking forward to seeing what you read in 2015.

Starred, Amy ! I hope 2015 will bring a meet up at the book festival. Remember to send me dates when you know them. Happy New Year.

Hi Amy! I think non-structure is the best way to go when reading. :)

ETA: Though I over-structure myself constantly....

Hi Donna, Mamie, Jim, Carrie, Katie, Cushla, Beth, and Rachel! It's so nice to have some visitors to my new thread! I hope that all of you have a great reading year in 2015 as well.

>12 BLBera: Beth - I will definitely keep you posted on the dates for the Iowa City Book Festival. A meet-up would be fabulous!

I found two Kindle Daily Deals that caught my eye today - The Best American Short Stories 2014 and The Best American Essays 2014. I have so many unread Kindle books that I'm pretty sure that I'll never be caught up. But I share Kindle books with my mom, and she manages to keep up much better than I do.

Just marking my spot so I don't lose you. (Hope springs eternal!)

Thanks, Linda! Keeping up just gets harder and harder, doesn't it? I just got caught up on all of the new threads, but I know that won't last long.

Thanks for coming over to visit my thread, and for the kind words about the topper image.

Jumping over here to drop a star...

You are one of my top 50 shared libraries so I'll be following along. We have similar tastes with fiction and nonfiction. I also do some leadership reading for courses I teach. Looking forward to reading along with in 2015.

Hi Amy! I really liked that quote from Driftless and was even happier to see my library has a copy.

Hope you have a great 2015!

Hi Amy, and Happy New Year to you! I'll be along for the ride (the read?) this year :) I just put Fortunately, the Milk on my book order list for my library. Thank you!

Checking in on the shiny new thread. Happy new year, Amy!

>18 mahsdad: - Thanks for stopping by, Jeff! Happy New Year!

>19 witchyrichy: - Hi Karen! I just went to check out your thread since we have so many books in common!

>20 phebj: - Hi Pat! Driftless is one of my favorites - an excellent story about small town life. Happy New Year!

>21 AMQS: - Hi Anne! My fifth grader loved Fortunately, the Milk. Hope it's a hit in your library.

>22 lunacat: - Happy New Year to you, Jenny!

>23 MickyFine: - Thanks for stopping by, Micky!

Amy,



Happy New Year from your friend in Kuala Lumpur

Hi Amy and Happy New Year. I've had Driftless on my shelf for a good five or six years. I'd like to think I might get to it this year.

Happy new year Amy!

Happy New Year, Amy. I hope we do have a meet up this year.

Happy New Year, Amy! May it be filled with fabulous!

Happy New Year, Paul, Bonnie, Rachel, Beth, and Mamie! We celebrated with a Maroon 5 concert in Las Vegas last night, followed by watching the fireworks over the Strip from our hotel room. We are resting up today and tomorrow we head out to Death Valley for a couple of days of exploring. It's supposed to be around 55-60 degrees F there. Much warmer than it is back home in Iowa.

Have a great time on your trip, Amy! Las Vegas sounds like a great place to celebrate New Year's. It's 18 degrees here so I'm very jealous of your weather.

Happy New Year, Amy!

Happy New Year, Amy! You are lucky to be away from the Iowa deep freeze right now. I'm enjoying your photos of the trip over on Facebook.

Wishing you all the best in 2015, Amy!!

>31 phebj: - Pat - It was cool the first couple of days we were here. There was even a chance of snow! But today was warmer, and it should be quite nice in the desert, especially for us Iowans!

>32 scaifea: - Happy New Year, Amber! Sending healthy vibes to you!

>33 rosalita: - Julia - I had heard Iowa was chilly. It will be quite a shock when we come back to that!

>34 EBT1002: - Thanks, Ellen! All the best to you too!

>35 ronincats: - Hi Roni! What an inviting beach scene. It looks a lot like your part of the country!

I am going to try to keep a journal this year. I've never been very successful at journaling, but I like the idea of having a place to sort our my thoughts. On her website Brain Pickings, Maria Popova had this to say about journaling:

"Journaling, I believe, is a practice that teaches us better than any other the elusive art of solitude — how to be present with our own selves, bear witness to our experience, and fully inhabit our inner lives."

That's what I'm after! We'll see how it goes.

>37 porch_reader: Great minds think alike, maybe? I just started a "30-Day Digital Journaling Challenge" from Easy Journaling.com. I get emailed daily prompts (which have been a mixed bag, frankly, but at least provide a reminder to write something), and other info.

Are you going full pen-and-paper or digital?

Great minds, indeed! I've gone back and forth between paper and digital. For this latest attempt, I'm going with a very plain notebook. I tend to overwrite when I'm typing, so I'm hoping that a notebook will encourage me to do more thinking and focused writing. But I'm intrigued by the digital options too. I'm considering using one of the apps to track what happens in my life. I'll have to check out Easy Journaling.com

What are you using for your journaling?

>38 rosalita: >39 porch_reader: I've been journaling all my life and I did a 30-day challenge last year. I *tried* to use a digital journal called Day One on my computer but I ended up back with my spiral bound notebook and Precise pen. Like, porch-reader, I tend to overwrite when I type rather than focusing on the words and thoughts.

I use Day One on my Mac and iPhone. I really like the ability to take a picture with my phone and attach it to an entry. Even if I make the connection weeks later it's still smart enough to attach the picture to the right day, which is really nice.

I totally understand the "overwrite" concern and I share it to some extent. I also love writing and have several lovely fountain pens and beautiful ink. But I have found that if I try to keep exclusively a paper journal I usually end up skipping days and eventually stopping because it's just not as convenient. I'm toying with the idea of keeping my Day One journal as my primary journal but also doing some sort of regular journal-type writing in a paper notebook as well, perhaps a "gratitude journal" or something similar that wouldn't need to be written in every day but could capture memories I'd like to preserve.

Karen and Julia - thanks for sharing your journaling strategies. I'll likely try several things before I settle into a routine. I do take a lot of pics that would be a good start to a journal of things I'd like to remember, so I may try Day One too. Hopefully I'll be able to keep something going all year!

Happy Reading in 2015, Amy!

Hi Amy, I bought Some Luck as a Christmas gift to myself. I'm glad to see it on your favorites list!

I'm impressed by all the journaling going on. It's something that I've thought about doing and tried for a while but I wasn't very good at keeping it up. :(

I need to start keeping a journal again. I have a very sporadic history of journaling. I will be really good for a while and then just stop. I think it's really important to do though. I like the quote in >37 porch_reader:.

>30 porch_reader: I've always wanted to go to Death Valley! I hope you enjoy yourselves.

>37 porch_reader: I'm not very good at journaling, but I'm ok at blogging on and off, and I write to my cousin once a week (more sometimes), and that's sort of like journaling. I can always look back at what I've written and see what state of mind I was in. It's interesting. And a good way to remember things.

>41 rosalita: I have written three long hand pages every morning since December 2001 using the morning pages strategy from Julia Cameron: http://juliacameronlive.com/basic-tools/morning-pages/ It has to be the first thing I do or, like you, it doesn't get done. I also maintain two blogs and am thinking about replacing the long hand journal with blog posts since I don't keep them up very well.

>47 witchyrichy: I've tried The Artist's Way method of writing morning pages and unfortunately my schedule just doesn't accommodate doing something like that first thing in the morning. Also, my mental fog is severe in the mornings, and I found the stuff I was putting out was painfully stupid. But I know it works for many people, and it sounds like it works well for you. I do remember that it was really nice to have it out of the way early every day.

I have had two blogs as well, one of them strictly for book-related things, and I am on the fence about keeping them. I'll probably keep the book one for sure because I like having all my reviews and such in one place, but I have very few readers on the other one and I might just put all those "deep thoughts" into my journal instead.

It's been really interesting to see the ways and reasons why we all journal or are thinking about starting to journal. It seems the right method is whatever works for you personally, and that the act of journaling or some sort of reflective writing (which could just as easily be a blog) is the key. It's a cliché, but "just do it" comes to mind.

Sadly, I have never been able to keep a journal. I like the idea of journaling, but I never stick with it.

Happy Saturday, Amy!

>49 Crazymamie: Mamie, I feel exactly the same way. I can't tell you how many journals I've got tucked away here and there with a handful of entries and then a whole lot of blank pages. *sigh*

>43 alcottacre: - Stasia! it's always great to see you.

>44 Copperskye: - Joanne - I hope you like Some Luck as much as I did. I can't wait for the second book in the trilogy.

>45 nittnut: - Jenn, I'm not sure my journaling can even be considered sporadic. I usually manage to string only a day or two together.

>46 The_Hibernator: - Rachel - we are going to try to start a travel blog, so I may be able to share some Death Valley pics soon. It was beautiful!

>47 witchyrichy: - Karen - That is disciplined! I try to do my writing for work first thing in the morning. It does feel good to have some writing accomplished by 9 am.

>48 rosalita: - "Just do it" seems very appropriate here, Julia!

>49 Crazymamie: - Happy Saturday to you too, Mamie!

>50 scaifea: - I have the same problem, Amber. It doesn't help that I really like to buy journals as well

Today is my birthday. Usually, my birthday is pretty low key, coming right after Christmas. But this year, we decided to take a Christmas break trip, so I spent my birthday in Death Valley. We rented a jJeep and went off road through Titus Canyon. It was beautiful. We did a moonlight hike last night and saw the canyons where part of Star Wars was filmed.

Tomorrow we will attempt to fly back to Iowa. There's snow predicted though, so I may get some "quality" reading done in the airport!

Amy, best wishes to you on your birthday and every day!

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday, Amy! Your trip sounds like a lot of fun!

Happy birthday, Amy! Yeah, you're likely to yearn for the temperate climes of Death Valley upon arrival.

Happy Belated Birthday, Amy!

Happy Birthday, Amy, and safe travels back to Iowa!

Happy birthday! Your trip sounds intriguing. Best wishes for easy travel.

Happy Birthday, Amy. Many happy returns and safe travels.

Hi Amy, Happy New Year, and Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Amy! Your trip sounds like loads of fun - wishing you a safe journey home.

Happy belated birthday, Amy! Hope everything goes smoothly with your flights back home.

Thanks for all of the birthday wishes! We had a four hour delay coming home yesterday, but we had such a great time on our trip that I couldn't complain about a little extra time in the airport. We had books and movies, so the time passed pretty quickly. And I finally have a couple of books to report!

Book #1: Earthquake Terror - Peg Kehret - Finished January 1, 2015

Category: juvenile, off-the-shelf
Pages: 132
Rating: 4.5

This was a Christmas present from my fifth-grade son Matt. Both his third-grade teacher and his fifth-grade teacher are Peg Kehret fans, and both of them read Earthquake Terror to their classes. This book is a great read-aloud book with lots of cliffhangers. Jonathan and his sister Abby are on a camping trip with their parents when their mother injures her ankle. Jonathan's parents decide to leave the kids behind so that they can get to a hospital quickly. And that's when the earthquake hits. And that's only Chapter 2.

Jonathan is resourceful. He faces a number of roadblocks (both figuratively and literally) and feels overwhelmed plenty of times. He has the help of his dog Moose and some unexpected help from his sister Abby, but will it be enough?

I love it when my kids want to share the books they love with me. My boys always seem to enjoy these types of adventure stories.

Book #2: Station Eleven - Emily St. John Mandel - Finished January 4, 2015

Category: post-apocalyptic
Pages: 333
Rating: 4.8

I've seen this on several of your "best of 2014" lists, and I was not disappointed. Station Eleven pulled me in from the beginning. It has the typical plot devices of a good post-apocalyptic book, leaving readers to wonder how the drastic changes to the world - in this case, a severe flu outbreak - are going to impact civilization. Not surprisingly, different people approach the challenges differently. A group of musicians and Shakespearean actors form a traveling group that performs symphonies and plays. The slogan on their lead caravan explains why: because survival is insufficient. However, life is difficult in this post-apocalyptic world. Violence and the lack of technological advances challenge the survivors. As these challenges play out, we gradually learn how the survivors are connected through events and relationships from before the outbreak. In this way, Station Eleven integrates elements of a mystery, with its gradual reveal.

But as much as readers may try to classify Station Eleven into a genre, I found that the book resisted that categorization. For me, it became simply a story about how lives unfold in the face of challenges and about the motivations that drive us forward. Whether in the world before the outbreak or in the post-apocalyptic world, Mandel's observation holds: "First we only want to be seen, but once we're seen, that's not enough anymore. After that, we want to be remembered." The ways in which the characters attempt to be remembered differentiates them and helped me understand them deeply, despite the number of characters portrayed. Don't let the post-apocalyptic label stop you from giving this book a try.

Great comments on Station Eleven, Amy. You said better than I could -- it certainly is not just another post-apocalyptic novel. I liked the way they poked fun at the zombie p-a novels...

I'm another sporadic journalist with half a dozen lovely blank paged books around with only a few pages written in. I never was able to keep up a book journal, even, before LT. I love the physical act of writing but find that ideas tend to dry up as I sit there with pen in hand.

A slightly belated Happy Birthday to you, Amy! Hope you made it back to Iowa safely.

I bought Station Eleven on New Year's Day and should get to it before too long, so it's good to know you liked it.

Found you and starred! My husband loved Station Eleven and I am debating whether to read this next or The Sixth Extinction.

Hi Amy - great review of Station Eleven which I also enjoyed, especially the way in which the main characters were connected to the long-dead leading man.

I've just started Some Luck which is one I believe you really liked. I'm having a little difficulty with the baby/toddler POV, but I understand this is a necessary part of her every-year device. I'll definitely stick with it but am not enthused yet.

A belated happy New Year (and happy birthday!).

I'm glad you had a good birthday in Death Valley, Amy. Something about that juxtaposition made me smile. I think everyone enjoyed Station Eleven more than I did. I may have to blame it on my mood at the time, though I can't really remember. I did love the Shakespeare connection. Happy Reading in 2015!

>68 BLBera: - Beth - I do think that Station Eleven has avoided being classified as "just another" post-apocalyptic novel, but I find it hard to describe it to people without invoking that label. I wonder if it would have been on more best of 2014 lists if it hadn't been seen, at least in part, as a genre novel.

>69 ronincats: - Roni - I think that Station Eleven will be right up your alley. I look forward to seeing what you thought of it.

>70 lalbro: - Liz - Station Eleven really pulled me in. I think that you'll like it. But I hadn't heard of The Sixth Extinction, so I hopped over to the book page to read about it, and it sounds fascinating too. You've got some good reading ahead!

>71 vivians: - Vivian - I actually liked the baby/toddler POV in Some Luck. I thought she was spot on in describing how babies might see their world. But I do remember thinking that it could get old fast! Luckily, with only one chapter per year, you get out of that stage pretty quickly. I hope it picks up for you.

>72 Donna828: - Donna - I know what you mean - it did strike me as funny that my family decided to take me to Death Valley for my birthday. I'm trying not to see it as a subliminal message. I remember that you were quite as big a fan of Station Eleven as others have been. There were parts of the story that seemed a little unbelievable to me too. I saw your comment on Bonnie's thread about why it took so long to get electricity back. I thought the same thing. But I was impressed enough with the structure of the story that I was willing to overlook that.

And, speaking of Station Eleven, the shortlist for the 2015 Tournament of Books was announced today. For those of you not familiar with the TOB, it is complement to the NCAA Basketball Tournament, which is held in March. But this version of March Madness pits 16 of the best books of the previous year against each other. Celebrity judges pick a winner of each match-up and discuss their reasoning. Tournament followers comments as well. And at the end, one book receives the coveted Rooster. Why a rooster. . . why not? Like most aspects of the TOB, it is all in fun.

As always, I've only read a few of the books on the list (Station Eleven, All the Light We Cannot See, Annihilation), but I'll try to read a few more before the Tournament begins in March. Here's the list:

Silence Once Begun by Jesse Ball
A Brave Man Seven Storeys Tall by Will Chancellor
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante
An Untamed State by Roxane Gay
Wittgenstein Jr by Lars Iyer
A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James
Redeployment by Phil Klay
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill
Adam by Ariel Schrag
The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld

Hi Amy! I decided to read Station Eleven. I think I'm really going to like it!

Wow! The TOB selections came out earlier than I remembered. I've read All the Light We Cannot See, An Untamed State, Station Eleven, and All the Birds, Singing. I have a few others on my TBR list. It will be interesting to see what happens; it always is a surprise -- at least in the few years I've been following it. Thanks for bring it to our attention, Amy. It is great fun.

Hi Amy! Great reviews of both Station Eleven and Earthquake Terror -- both sound like good ones!

>74 porch_reader: Thanks for posting the link! I always think it would be interesting to read some of the books on the list, and never make it through (partly because I never find it until March a couple rounds in...). I haven't heard of a few of those titles, so it will be interesting to read what the judges say about them.

>75 lalbro: - I can't wait to see what you think of Station Eleven, Liz!

>76 BLBera: - I'm going to try to read a few more of the selections before the TOB starts, Beth. Interestingly, All the Birds, Singing wasn't picked by the TOB organizers. For one selection, they went to a small independent bookstore (in Elgin, IL, if I remember right) and asked them for a recommendation. They are the ones who suggested All the Birds, Singing.

>77 AMQS: - Hi Anne! They were both great, and I just finished my Christmas present from my older son (Whale Talk), which was also a good read. 2015 is off to a good start.

>78 bell7: - I usually don't get many of them read either, Mary, but it is always interesting to see what the judges have to say. I don't quite know how they come up with this list, but it is always rather eclectic.

Book #3: Whale Talk - Chris Crutcher - Finished January 5, 2015

Category: YA
Pages: 298
Rating: 4.7

This was a Christmas gift from my eighth-grade son. This fall, he read a book by Chris Crutcher in his English class called Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. He liked it so much that he talked me into reading it, and I liked it too. So when we opened up our Christmas presents, we had each gotten each other a Chris Crutcher book - luckily, two different ones.

I wasn't sure that Whale Talk was going to be quite as good as Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. It started off a little slower. Crutcher introduces us to the main character, T. J. Jones, quickly. T. J. is adopted and of mixed heritage. That alone makes him different in the small town where he lives. Although he's a good athlete, he has avoided organized sports, until his English teacher tells him that he's starting a swimming team. T. J. sees this as an opportunity not just to excel at a sport he's good at, but also to build a team of kids who don't fit in anywhere else. In providing the backstories of the swim team members, of T. J.'s family, and of his nemeses from the football team, the story slows a bit. But as the swim team starts competing and becoming a cohesive team, the story picks up. By the end, I was rooting for these kids and was ready to accept what seemed like it might be a storybook ending. . . until Crutcher caught me unaware. I was willing to roll with a few plot twists. In the end, I appreciated an ending that might be called both uplifting and heartbreaking at the same time.

Crutcher works as a child and family therapist, and it is clear that he understands the challenges that no child should have to face, but many do. This adds a level of realism to the story that makes this book stand out from other YA books of its type. Some of the characters are a bit unidimensional, but having good guys to root for and bad guys to root against was one of the elements that drives this book forward. My son finished his Crutcher book (Period 8) about the same time that I finished this one, so we both have another Crutcher book to look forward to soon.

Hi Amy. Great review of Station Eleven. I loved it as much as you did and want to look for more of her work. Last Night in Montreal sounds good. Have you read that?

Thanks for posting the link to the ToB. I always try to follow that but am not successful. I've only read a couple of the books.

Belated Happy Birthday!

A belated Happy Birthday! The 4th is also my Mother's birthday, so who knows? I might remember your birthday too. :)

>80 porch_reader: It's lovely that you and your son share a love for some of the same books and authors. That's such a special bond.

Happy New Year, Amy! I'm finally getting around to starting my 2015 thread and dropping my stars. Hope your year is going well so far.

>81 brenzi: - Bonnie - I haven't read anything else by Emily St. John Mandel, but Last Night in Montreal sounds outstanding. I'm hoping to get to it soon.

>82 nittnut: - Jenn - That sounds like a good way to remember, although remembering your mom's bday is probably more important. ;)

>83 cbl_tn: - Carrie - Yes, I love to share books with my kids. I'll read anything they recommend, although some are better than others. My son also loaned me a biography of Lebron James, which I'm not so excited about, but I'll take the bad with the good.

>84 RebaRelishesReading: - Reba - Hapoy New Year! I just went to find your thread. So good to see you here!

Tonight my younger son is celebrating his upcoming birthday with a sleepover. They are old enough that they don't want me around much, but young enough that I need to keep an ear open for them, so I'm hanging out in my bedroom. I'm hoping to get some The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter read. It is so good so far!

Hi Amy, and happy (belated) birthday!

I've just started reading Station Eleven and am enjoying it so far. There are three other books I want to read on the tournament of books list: Annihilation, The bone clocks, and All the light we cannot see.

Hi Ardene! I hope you like Station Eleven as much as I did. All the Light We Cannot See is probably my favorite of the Tournament of Books entries that I've read. Annihilation was quite good too, although I haven't read the other two in the trilogy yet. It'll be fun to see what the judges like best!

Amy, I've read six books on the Tournament list. I'll check into some that are new to me, and hopefully, get some more read before March. I'm so glad books are moving into the sports realm! Haha.

Book #4: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter - Carson McCullers - Finished January 11, 2015

Category: classic, American Author Challenge
Pages: 361
Rating: 4.8

Like many of the rest of you, I've been enjoying Carson McCullers this month! Thanks to the American Author Challenge, I read The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. Literature serves many purposes, but this is a book that does the important work of marking a place and time. Through these pages, we are taken to a small Southern town in the 1930s. The stories of a handful of characters bounce off one another and provide the texture that is necessary to illustrate the contrasts of their experiences and the enduring elements of the time. It is hard to imagine how the stories of the main characters - a mute, a Black doctor, a restaurant owner, a labor activist, a teenage girl - will cohere into a whole, but McCullers layers them to show that despite their differences, all of these individuals experience struggle and isolation. In their connections, there is a glimmer of hope, of the possibility of connection, but it is only that - a glimmer.

It is surprising that McCullers wrote this, her first novel, at the age of 23. It is a book filled with perspective and wisdom. It is also beautifully written. Consider this:

"Wonderful music like this was the worst hurt there could be. The whole world was this symphony, and there was not enough of her to listen."

Important and readable - this is a classic that deserves the label.

Nice review of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Amy. You convinced me. I need to get to that one some day.

>90 porch_reader: Looks like you really enjoyed that one. I'll get to that one some day. I ended up reading The Member of the Wedding instead.

>90 porch_reader: Great review. I read The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, but I think I will have to read this one as well.

Nice review, Amy. Agree with your assessment - I loved it when I read it last year, and I know that it is one that I will read again. Happy Wednesday to you!

Finished Station Eleven, Amy. You were right - I loved it. I really loved the mystery elements. It completely drew me into the story. Now, however, I want to reread King Lear and the Book of Revelation and see how those stories are manifested in the story!!!

>91 jnwelch: - Joe - I'm pretty confident recommending The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. It seems to have hit a home run with lots of LTers.

>92 thornton37814: - Lori - I'm a McCullers fan now. I think I'll be looking for The Member of the Wedding soon.

>93 nittnut: - Jenn - The Ballad of the Sad Café sounds like another good one!

>94 Crazymamie: - Mamie - The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is definitely one that I can see myself reading again. I loved the story and the writing.

>95 lalbro: - Liz - I'm so glad that you loved Station Eleven. I loved the mystery parts too. That book really was so much more than a post-apocalyptic novel It would be interesting to see how people in those times might have interpreted King Lear and Revelations.

I enjoyed reading your thoughts on The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Amy. It's a favorite of mine from many years ago.

Book #5: Everything I Never Told You - Celeste Ng - Finished January 15, 2015

Category: Tournament of Books
Pages: 292
Rating: 4.6

"Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet." So begins this story of the Lee family. Marilyn met James when she signed up for a course that he was teaching as a graduate student at Harvard. They marry, despite the concerns of Marilyn's mother, and she leaves her dreams of becoming a doctor behind to move with James to a small town in Ohio in the early 1970s. James becomes a professor and they begin a family. Their children, Nate, Lydia, and Hannah, are the only Chinese-Americans in their small town. As the story unfolds, we learn that there is much that this family does not tell each other. We have to fit their stories together to learn what has happened to Lydia.

I was drawn to this family and their secrets. At its heart, this is a book about identities - those that we cling to, those that get left behind, and those that we can never escape. I was frustrated, at times, at the Lee family's inability to pull together, to attack their challenges as a united force. Other than the connection between Lydia and Nate, they were each on their own. But, sadly, their struggles were believable. At times, the plot that drove the book forward - Lydia's death and the search for its cause - felt secondary, a device that allowed us to get to know this family and their struggles. A tighter coupling between these elements of plot and character would have made this an even stronger book.

>97 Copperskye: - Joanne - I think that The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter is one that will stick with me for a while. I can see why it's a long-time favorite of yours.

Wow, Everything I Never told You sounds good, Amy. I've read mixed reviews on this. Someone else was not as captivated by it... Still, it's on my list.

Beth - I've read mixed reviews too. I went into the book thinking it would primarily be a mystery. You can see how the first sentences set you up for that. It was disappointing as a mystery. I agree with the review that Donna posted that it was a little slow compared to others of that genre. But I love stories about family dynamics, and on that level, it worked for me.

Adding Everything I Never Told You to the TBR list!

HI Amy! Happy weekend. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Everything I Never Told You. Looks interesting.

Hi Amy! Dropping a star - it was great to meet you on Saturday! And we have somewhat similar reading tastes, so I'm not quite sure why we've never interacted?! :-)

>67 porch_reader: Nice review - I'm desperately hoping to read this at some point this year.

Just stopping by to say that I'm so glad you could make it on Saturday, even if just for a little while! So good to see you. How did the guitar playing go?

>102 lalbro: - Liz - Glad I could add to your TBR. Everything I Never Told You was a quick read for me. Hope you enjoy it when you get to it!

>103 The_Hibernator: - Hi Rachel! I hope you had a good weekend. Everything I Never Told You was an interesting one. I just finished another really interesting one - Dept of Speculation. More on that below!

>104 DorsVenabili: - Hi Kerri! It was great to meet you too. I loved your story about the bargain you got at Prairie Lights. I love that store! We do have similar tastes. I'm looking forward to keeping up with your reading.

>105 scaifea: - I hated having to leave the meet-up so soon, but was glad to get a chance to at least say hi. Show Choir was amazing. My son's group didn't compete since it was our home festival, but they did get critiqued by the judges, who specifically complimented the guitar and drum accompaniment. Whoo hoo! I spent four hours at the admission desk and I think fine arts made about $15,000, so all in all, it was a success! Hope Charlie is feeling better!

Books Purchased Recently:

Last year, I kept track of all of the books that I purchased. I bought more than I read, so I considered not keeping track this year. But instead I've decided to just modify my system. This year, I'm not going to keep track of Kindle Daily Deals. Am I fooling myself? Maybe, but I'm OK with that. ;)

Even though I could only stop by the Iowa City Meet Up for a few minutes, I still managed to walk out of Prairie Lights with a book.

#1: Dept of Speculation by Jenny Offill - This was one of the books chosen for the Tournament of Books. Plus, the good news is that I've already finished it.

Book #6: Dept. of Speculation - Jenny Offill - Finished January 19, 2015

Category: Tournament of Books
Pages: 177
Rating: 4.7

The story of a relationship told in the most spare prose possible. This is less a narrative, and more a series of observations, as the author attempts to make sense of a relationship that has gradually and then suddenly lost its luster. Given the format, I did not come to identify with these characters as strongly as I might have in a more traditionally told story. I missed the flow of a good narrative. But I was constantly pulled up short by the clarity of the observations, by how much can be conveyed in only a few words. At times, it was the juxtaposition of the insights that made me think. Like these, the first two paragraphs of the book:

"Antelopes have 10X vision, you said. It was the beginning or close to it. That means that on a clear night they can see the rings of Saturn.

It was still months before we'd tell each other all our stories. And even then some seemed too small to bother with. So why do they come back to me now? Now, when I'm so weary of it all."

I also can't tell you how many times I read a paragraph that felt as though it came from my own experience, like these:

"My Very Educated Mother Just Serves Us Noodles. This is the mnemonic they give her to remember the order of the planets."

"Some women make it look so easy, the way they cast ambition off like an expensive coat that no longer fits."

In the end, this book provides room for the reader. It provides a captivating sketch that made me think more than I might have if the author filled in all of the blanks.

>107 porch_reader: Last year, I kept track of all of the books that I purchased. I bought more than I read, so I considered not keeping track this year. But instead I've decided to just modify my system. This year, I'm not going to keep track of Kindle Daily Deals

Ha ha ha ha ha! I love that logic, Amy. Also, you already read the book you bought at the meet-up Saturday? That's just crazy, woman. I was feeling pretty good because I took the books i bought out of the bag.

>108 porch_reader: Amy, I learned the space mnemonic this way: "My very eager mother just served us nine pizzas." Well then those nasty scientists had to go and take Pluto away from us! I guess we'll be eating noodles from now on!

It sounds like Saturday was a big day for you. I'm glad you made an appearance at the meetup and got included in the first photo. And you even managed to buy a book. Good for you!

I enjoyed your review of Dept of Speculation - you really hit it on the head when you said it made room for the reader to fill in the blanks. I'm continuing to think about it weeks after finishing it - an indication that it had real impact for me.

Hi Amy - I almost picked up Department of Speculation! Darn. I guess I'll have to make another trip to Prairie Lights. Nice review, by the way.

>109 rosalita: - Julia - The problem was that I pushed aside the 100's of other books that are waiting on me to read my new one. But after the first chapter, I couldn't put it down.

>110 Donna828: - Donna - Yes! I think we had the pizza mnemonic too. I miss Pluto! Saturday was a big day - a meetup and a show choir competition! I had to have a nap on Sunday!

>111 vivians: - Vivian - At first, I thought that all of the space for the reader would make me like Dept of Speculation less. It didn't feel fully formed in a way. But as I kept reading, I realized that was an excellent strategy. I think it will stick with me for a while too.

>112 BLBera: - Another trip to Prairie Lights sounds like a great idea, Beth! Julia and I will meet you there anytime!

Oh my goodness! I was another big day in the Colbert household. My oldest son got his driver's permit!!! In Iowa, you can take the written test and get a permit to drive with a parent when you are fourteen. So, we let him get out of school early and took him to take the test. He was pretty nervous, but he did great. Then he got to drive to pick his brother up from school, to basketball practice and home, and to church youth group and home. I'm not sure I'm ready for this. My hair is going to be grayer than it already is!

Amy - I was SO happy when my kids finally had their licenses. The learning to drive thing was the hardest part of being a parent. A good friend moved to Anamosa, so be careful, I could pop up again. She has been asking me to come for the Grant Wood festival...

Congratulations to your son, Amy!

Wow, congrats to your son on the permit!

Oh my, that is a big milestone -- for child and parent both. One has to be 15 1/2 to have a learner's permit in CA. I got mine the day I turned 15 1/2 and boy was I excited. My son also got his the first day possible and I taught him to drive. I took him to a near-by industrial park on Sunday's. There was no traffic but streets and signs were all there. It was a great place to practice. Fun memories (but, you're right, I'm sure it's part of the reason my hair is so white lol). Congratulations and good luck to you both.

>114 porch_reader: Thanks for the warning. I'll keep an eye out when I'm out and about around town. ;-)

I didn't start driving until I was in driver's education in high school, because my mom just wasn't up to teaching me herself. It was probably a wise choice for everybody!

14 sounded so young to be driving until I remembered my grandfather talking about starting to drive at age 6. He was born in 1909, so this would have been around 1915-16.

>115 BLBera: - Beth - I've never been to the Grant Wood festival, but it looks like fun! I'm glad we might get you back to Iowa soon.

>116 swynn: and >117 scaifea: - Thanks, Steve and Amber!

>118 RebaRelishesReading: - Reba, I like the idea of practicing in an industrial park. My husband has just been letting him drive all over town. I volunteered to let him use my car if my husband would do most of the early teaching. So far, so good!

>119 rosalita: - We've been spreading the word all around West Branch, Julia! Forewarned is forearmed (or something like that). I grew up on a farm, so I had some driving experience before driver's ed, but I still managed to hit a parked car the first time I drove the driver's ed car. That's not something you live down quickly!

>120 cbl_tn: - Wow, Carrie! 6 seems very young to drive. My 14-year-old can just barely see over the steering wheel. Maybe cars weren't so big back in the early 1900s.

One of my goals was to read more non-fiction this year, and I've just finished two excellent ones!

Book #7: College Unbound: The Future of Higher Education and What It Means for Students - Jeffrey Selingo - Finished January 22, 2015

Category: non-fiction, higher ed, audio
Pages: 256
Rating: 4.6

As a professor at the University of Iowa, I'm very interested in all of the commentary about the cost and the value of higher education. Selingo's book, College Unbound, provides a research-based overview of the benefits of having a Bachelor's degree while also exploring why college is so expensive and how higher education may change to become both more affordable and more impactful. Selingo draws from lots of examples, which made the book quite readable.

I listened to this on audio, and it worked quite well in that format, but I'm glad that I have the book on my Kindle as well. As my kids get closer to the age of picking a college, I will likely refer back to this book. At the end, there is a list of questions that students and parents may want to ask at college visits. I also appreciate all of the information on alternatives to a traditional four-year college education. While that format may work well for some students, many more students are gaining the competencies and credentials they need in a variety of other formats. Even though I've spent most of my life on college campuses, I learned a lot from this book.

Book #8: Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle that Set Them Free - Hector Tobar - Finished January 23, 2014

Category: non-fiction
Pages: 320
Rating: 4.8

NPR's Morning Edition is hosting a book club this year. The book for January, Deep Down Dark, was chosen by Ann Patchett (one of my favorites). It is the story of the 33 men who were trapped for over 2 months in a Chilean mine. There are a number of factors that made me question whether I would like this book. First, I knew the ending. Even if you don't remember the coverage of this tragedy, the subtitle gives it away. Second, the rescue itself involved complex engineering solutions and throughout the process, the 33 men were stuck in the mine. This provides plenty of psychological and relational drama, but I wasn't sure how exciting the storyline would be. Also, with 33 men stuck in the mine and a number of others involved in the rescue effort, I wasn't sure the personal stories would stand out.

But Tobar does an excellent job telling the story, propelling the narrative forward, and putting us inside the heads of the men in the mine. I was fascinated by how leaders and routines emerged and how the men survived a seemingly impossible ordeal. Faith and religion played an important role in daily life in the mine, and Tobar shows the variety of ways that faith sustained the men. Even though I knew the ending, Tobar also managed to build suspense about how the men would negotiate the various obstacles they faced.

This is a great example of compelling narrative non-fiction.

Great review of Deep Down Dark, Amy. I added it to my list.

<123 compelling narrative non-fiction Then it's just up my alley, Amy. Thanks for a compelling review. You also managed to add The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and Dept. of Speculation to my teetering tower.

In New York State, where we are professionals at adding cash to the public coffers, we get an extra $5 from anyone getting their driver's permit on their 16th birthday, the first day of eligibility. We had to pay it for both of our children, along with most other parents.

>123 porch_reader: I had meant to look for this book so I could read along with the Morning Edition book club and then life happened and I didn't get around to it. But your review, along with the author segments on NPR, are making me really want to get to this one soon. Well done!

>123 porch_reader: Great review, Amy. I'll keep that one in mind.

Wow. You've been busy! Congratulations on the teenage driver. :) Our teenager isn't driving yet. He wasn't keeping his grades up, so we are not paying for driver training, and he has no money. Lol.

I can't think of a better motivator. I was motivated to get my son driving because he was very active in a youth theater group about 30 minutes from home and I was really tired of driving him and picking him up. I'm not sure who was happier on his 16th birthday when he got his "regular" license and could take himself.

Oh my goodness. . . this was a busy week! My boys played four basketball games. My husband had three school board-related meetings. I led a leader's retreat this morning. But with a big snow storm on the way, my son's show choir competition for today was canceled, so we are all home and waiting for the snow to start!

>124 BLBera: - Glad to add to your TBR list, Beth. Since I wanted to read more non-fiction this year, I was glad to find Deep Down Dark.

>125 brenzi: - What a smart idea, Bonnie! I think my son would have contributed his own $5 to get his permit right on his birthday!

>126 rosalita: - I enjoyed the author segments about Deep Down Dark on NPR too, Julia! It was interesting to hear more about how the story came together.

>127 RebaRelishesReading: & >129 RebaRelishesReading: - I will be very glad when my son is able to drive on his own, Reba. We live very close to the school, but I still spend quite a bit of time sitting in the parking lot waiting for practices to end.

>128 nittnut: - That is a good motivator to raise grades, Jenn! Our boys have so much competing for their attention that sometimes school gets a short shrift.

Book #9: We Were Liars - E. Lockhart - Finished January 23, 2015

Category: YA
Pages: 227
Rating: 4.7

I rarely have the opportunity to read a book straight through. But I came home from work last Friday, exhausted after a day heavy on office politics, and found the rest of my family doing their own things. I pulled this Christmas present off the shelf and was immediately pulled into the story of the Sinclair family. Three generations spend each summer in their summer homes on an island near Martha's Vineyard. Three cousins and a friend are about the same age and have grown up together. But it soon becomes clear that the events of one fateful summer are not as they seem. It seems that the family would rather forget that summer, and unraveling the mystery isn't easy. With a title like "We Were Liars," it is not surprising that the narrator, Cadence Sinclair, is unreliable. It is even hard to know what to make of the book's opening lines:

"Welcome to the beautiful Sinclair family.
No one is a criminal.
No one is an addict.
No one is a failure."

The book pulled me forward to its surprising end. I would recommend this to all fans of YA novels, to those who are fascinated by unreliable narrators, and to those who wonder what it's like to be a part of a "perfect" family.

Book #10: 100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write on Umbrellas and Sword Fights, Parades and Dogs, Fire Alarms, Children, and Theater - Sarah Ruhl - Finished January 25, 2015

Category: essays
Pages: 218
Rating: 4.2

I received several collections of essays for Christmas. This one has the best title. Sarah Ruhl is a playwright who has three young children. With three young children, she is circumspect about how much writing she'll be able to accomplish. In the first essay, she explans:

"I could lie to you and say that I intended to write something totalizing, something grand. But I confess that I had a more humble ambition - to preserve for myself, in rare private moments, some liberty of thought. Perhaps that is equally 7.

My son just typed 7 on my computer." (P. 4)

My kids are older now, but I still remember those days when they were small and all consuming and I rarely had a complete thought of my own. I looked forward to Ruhl's thoughts on what that was like. But in most of the essays, she leaves her home life behind. She reflects on theater and writing, on acting and audiences. While I was less interested in these topics, I was fascinated by the very brief essay form that Ruhl used to develop her ideas. I'd like to write, mostly as a way to reflect and think about what is most important, and these short essays seem to be a realistic way to think about the topics that preoccupy me, the topics that are my life. Again, in the first essay, Ruhl observes that writing is ultimately entwined with life, again drawing from her experiences as a young mom:

"There were times when it felt as though my children were annihilating me (truly you have not lived until you have changed one baby's diaper while another baby quietly vomits on your shin), and finally I came to the thought, All right, then, annihilate me; that other self was a fiction anyhow. And then I could breathe. I could investigate the pauses.

I found that life intruding on writing was, in fact, life. And that tempting as it may be for a writer who is also a parent, one must not think of life as an intrusion. At the end of the day, writing has very little to do with writing, and much to do with life. And life, by definition, is not an intrusion." (P. 4-5)

Book #11: Neverhome - Laird Hunt - Finished January 28, 2015

Category: historical fiction
Pages: 246
Rating: 4.5

When Ash Thompson enlists with the Union Army to fight in the Civil War, it might seem to be an unremarkable event as many soldiers go off to fight the war between the states. But Ash Thompson isn't like the other soldiers. She has left her husband behind and disguised herself as a man in order to fight in the war. Hunt puts us on the battlefields and Army encampments beside Gallant Ash. He excels at helping us to understand the sights, the sounds, and the smells of war. I turned the pages wanting to know what became of Ash. But just as Ash must stay distant from those around her, we too learn little about her fellow soldiers or the others who she meets on her journeys. Because of this, I felt somewhat removed from the story. I would have liked to have understood Ash and her motives more deeply.

Lots of good titles here that I'm adding to my TBR list. I appreciate your taking the time to write reviews and am trying to do the same. And thanks for the tip on the NPR book club. I just don't seem to have time for a local book club commitment. I couldn't find the title of the next book on the website...any ideas?

Hi Amy - You got to me with We Were Liars and the Ruhl essays. I just got Ghettoside from the library, and it looks promising, if you are interested in nonfiction... I've read positive reviews of it and learn the author, I think on NPR.

Hi Amy - I also really liked We Were Liars and haven't seen it talked about much on LT. I just finished Neverhome and, like you, felt a little frustrated about not getting a better understanding of Ash/Connie.
Sounds like your most recent snow is coming our way - 10 inches expected here tomorrow night. That probably means another snowday...my 8th grader is not thrilled with all these missed days and at this point would rather be in school.

>108 porch_reader: - Dept. of Speculation sounds very good and your comments have convinced me to put it on the wishlist!

Glad to hear you're all safe and sound during the storm. It's pretty bad here... :-(

>134 witchyrichy: - Hi Karen! At the end of the last NPR Book Club, they said next month's selection would be announced soon, but I haven't seen anything yet. I hope that they go ahead and do it. My "real life" book club stopped meeting because we were having so much trouble finding time when everyone could come, so I like the NPR book club option.

>135 BLBera: - I saw the author of Ghettoside on The Daily Show the other night. It sounds like an interesting one. I'm looking forward to your thoughts on it, Beth!

>136 vivians: - It's still snowing here, Vivian. I haven't been out to see how much we have, but it looks like 6-8 inches so far. I'm hoping it will stop in time for school tomorrow. We haven't had too many snow days yet, which is fine with me. We do much better when we are in a routine!
I think we had similar reactions to Neverhome. It did make me want to read more about women soldiers in the Civil War. I hadn't seen much buzz about We Were Liars when it came out, but I saw it on several year-end "Best of" lists. I'm glad I read it. I'm thinking my eighth grader might like it at some point.

I'll have to look for that Daily Show episode.

Book #12: Me, Myself, and Us: The Science of Personality and the Art of Well-Being - Brian Little - Finished January 30, 2015

Category: work
Pages: 270
Rating: 4.6

I read this for work. It is a good summary of research on personality and well-being, but it is written in a very accessible way and is intended for a broad audience. Little has devoted his career to research on personality and well-being, and his experience allows him to tell a complex, evidence-based story about how who we are affects our health and happiness. Because some aspects of personality are relatively stable, it is sometimes difficult to know what to do with the evidence linking personality and well-being. Changing personality is a difficult proposition. But Little also discusses free traits, or the ways in which we act that may contradict our stable personality traits, and personal projects, our choices about what we spend time on, and how those elements of personality impact well-being. Readers of this book will likely come away with increased self-awareness as well as a few ideas about how to improve well-being.

>139 BLBera: - I think it was Tuesday (1/27), Beth.

Book #13: Simple Church - Eric Geiger and Thom Rainer - Finished January 30, 2015

Category: religious
Pages: 296
Rating: 4.6

I led a leader's retreat for my church yesterday. Our goal was to discuss our purpose and the process that we are using to achieve that purpose. Our pastor recommended this book, and I found it very helpful in structuring our conversation. The key idea is that most churches are too complex. We need to help people move through the stages of encountering God, growing spiritually, and serving the world. This book provides lots of examples of how other churches have successfully achieved these goals and questions for discussion.

>137 DorsVenabili: - I missed you up there, Kerri! It's a great day to stay home. The snow is pretty, but I've got a feeling that it's going to be hard to shovel - so wet and heavy. Be careful if you have to get out!

January Summary

January was a pretty good reading month for me. I was glad to read several non-fiction books and lots of my own shelf!

Books Read = 13
Fiction = 8
Non-fiction = 5
Off-the-shelf = 12

Best Fiction of the Month: Station Eleven
Best Nonfiction of the Month: Deep Down Dark
Other Great Reads: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, Dept of Speculation, We Were Liars, Whale Tale

Wow, look at that Off-the-shelf statistic! Way to go!

Just got a copy of 100 Essays off the hold shelf at the library - so looking forward to it - I didn't realize that it had a theatre theme - my twins and husband are way into the theatre space so this makes it even more appealing to me to read!

Found the interview, Amy. Thanks. I've read the first forty pages, and wow! This is a book that is going to be talked about.

What a great reading month you had.

Happy weekend Amy!

Impressive work on off the shelf reads! I've also added We Were Liars to the pile. :)

>145 ronincats: - Thanks, Roni! I'm hoping that I can keep reading off my shelves. I've got plenty of books waiting for me.

>146 lalbro: - If you've got a connection to theater, Liz, I think that you'll love 100 Essays. I look forward to seeing what you think of it.

>147 BLBera: - That's enticing, Beth! I love it when a book grabs me from the beginning.

>148 The_Hibernator: - Thanks, Rachel! I hope you had a great weekend.

>149 nittnut: - Thanks, Jenn! I loved We Were Liars. Hope you enjoy it when you get to it!

Book #14: Redeployment - Phil Klay - Finished February 1, 2015

Category: Tournament of Books, award winner
Pages: 304
Rating: 4.9

I became aware of this book when it won the National Book Award. I knew it was about the Iraq War and that, like all war fiction, some of the subject matter was bound to be difficult. But as a small body of fiction about the Iraq War emerges, it seems important to bear witness to this event. As Dexter Filkins noted in his review of Redeployment in the New York Times,

"The war in Iraq is finally over, at least for Americans, which means, in a way, that we may finally begin to comprehend it. I don’t mean in a historical sense: A multitude of books have already dissected the war’s origins, costs and wider implications. I mean in a human sense: what the war felt like, what it did to people’s brains, how it changed the lives it did not consume. This is not, strictly speaking, the realm of journalism or history, but of fiction and memoir."

And this is what Phil Klay does in Redeployment. Each chapter is told from a different perspective. Some take place in Iraq, some explore the challenges of coming home. From those on the front lines to those involved in reconstruction, no two people experience the same war. Klay shows us that the experience is difficult in so many different ways. But just because each story is told in only a chapter doesn't mean they are only snapshots. Using simple, well-chosen language, Klay communicates richly. He does the important work of bearing witness, of helping us comprehend the human aspects of war. This is an even more notable feat when you consider that he is describing a place that I've never been, an experience that I've never had, a role that I've never played.

The passages that I highlighted reflect the mix of perspectives that are communicated in this book. Some are cynical, like the chaplain who observes in his sermon that people try to make sense of death. "As if mortality is a game with roles where the universe is rational and the God watching over maneuvers us like chess pieces, His fingers deep into the sides of the world." Or like the Marine who has just returned home: "We took my combat pay and did a lot of shopping. Which is how America fights back against the terrorists." But there are also moments of hope, as when the chaplain observes that God doesn't promise that we won't suffer. "In this world, He only promises we don't suffer alone."

This was not a book that I enjoyed, but it is a book that I admire. I am very glad that I read it.

Thanks for this review - I've had my eye on this since it won the National Book Award so I'll have to push it up a little higher on the list!

Sounds like a most interesting and worthwhile book...but I'm not sure I'm up for it.

Hi Vivian and Reba! Thanks for stopping by. I don't think that Redeployment is for everyone. My mom read it at the same time that I did, and I don't think that she liked it as much as I did. The stories are told in a very direct way that can be disturbing. But I do think it is amazing how Klay brings these experiences to life with words.

I ran across the BBC's list of the 21st Century's 12 Best Novels. I supposed that 15 years into the century is as good a time to start making lists as any. I have read 9 of these 12 books, and I have two others on my TBR shelf. So now I feel the need to go out and buy The Known World - the only one that I haven't read or bought. Here's the list for those of you who are interested (along with my quick reactions:

12. Middlesex - read and liked
11. White Teeth - on my TBR shelf
10. Half of a Yellow Sun - read and loved
9. Atonement - read and liked a lot
8. Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk - read and liked a lot
7. A Visit from the Goon Squad - read and loved
6. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay - read and loved
5. The Corrections - on my TBR shelf
4. Gilead - read and LOVED, should have been #1
3. Wolf Hall - read and liked a lot
2. The Known World
1. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - read and liked a lot

Well, I've read six of them (Middlesex, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, A Visit from the Goon Squad, The Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Clay, Gilead and The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao) and am just about to reread Gilead because I recently read Lila and felt the need to revisit it's "sequel", which I loved. I have Wolf Hall on my Kindle but haven't read it yet and I'll keep my eye out to see how you feel about the ones you haven't read yet.

Hi Amy - Some good choices here. My book group is reading The Known World this year. I also haven't read Middlesex, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, The Corrections or Wolf Hall. I will read all of them at some point except The Corrections - not interested.

Interesting list. I've read Atonement, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, A Visit From the Goon Squad, and Gilead. I own Wolf Hall and Oscar Wao. Most of the others are on my "to borrow" list, with the exception of The Known World which I'm not really familiar with. Well done to you, Amy, for having read so many of them!

Nice, thoughtful review of Redeployment, Amy. It really got through to me, too. More than once while reading it I wondered how it would come across to a woman reader. The soldiers often are crass and juvenile, aren't they, but it rings true. Good for you and your mom for taking it on.

Interesting list in >155 porch_reader:. I loved Gilead, too. Have you read Lila yet? It was my best book of the year for '14. It's beautifully done.

I'm about 2/3 through White Teeth right now. Impressive.

Amy, I think it's hilarious that kids can get their driving permits on their 14th birthday (same deal in KS) and, in Sadie's case, can't sit in the front seat until she is 13! I was in Texas at that age and had full driving privileges at age 14. At that time the legal age was 13 in LA!

I am putting up my BB shield! Redeployment is already on the list. I have only Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk to read from the BBC list. I'm looking forward to it; it's ready and waiting on the iPad. I agree with you that Gilead should be No. 1!

Oops, just read the list again. I also have Oscar Wao to read.

>156 RebaRelishesReading: - Reba - Most of the time, I've read very few of the books on these lists, so I was surprised that I'd read so many of these. I've been thinking about re-reading Gilead too. Robinson's prose is so beautiful that I could read her books over and over and still find something new.

>157 BLBera: - Beth - I've been putting off reading The Corrections for a while. I bought it at a library book sale, but it just hasn't motivated me to pull it off the shelf. I'll look forward to your thoughts on The Known World.

>158 rosalita: - Julia - I thought it was an interesting list too! It still feels a little early for a "best of the 21st century list," but I do like lists!

>159 jnwelch: - Joe - I think that the fact that Redeployment felt so real was what drew me into it. There were definitely some crass parts, but they seemed important as a way to show what the whole experience was like.

I loved Lila! I got to see Marilynne Robinson read from Lila right before it came out. I think she is brilliant! I'm looking forward to your comments on White Teeth. I'll definitely read it in 2015.

>160 Donna828: - Donna - The move from the back seat to driving does happen fast! I feel like Ben has grown up so fast. He's always been fairly independent, but lately he seems like he's taking giant steps. I'm not sure I'm ready for the transition to HS next fall!

Gilead is a beautiful book, isn't it? I haven't read many like that one in the 21st century!

Book #15: Gillespie and I - Jane Harris - Finished February 8, 2015

Category: fiction
Pages: 504
Rating: 4.8

Several of you had very positive things to say about this book when it came out a few years ago. So I bought a copy, but (like many other books) it got put on the shelf. With my renewed effort to read off my shelves this year, I decided to pull it down. This book started a little slow for me. We spend a lot of time getting to know Harriet Baxter, an unmarried woman who visits Glasgow for an extended period of time during the International Exhibition in 1888. Harriet becomes friends with the Gillespie family after saving matriarch Elspeth from choking. She becomes a frequent visitor to the home of Annie and Ned Gillespie, Elspeth's daughter-in-law and son. Ned is an artist whose reputation is on the rise, and although he declines the commission to paint Harriet's portrait, he comes to trust her advice. But when tragedy strikes the Gillespie family, we come to realize that perception is not always reality.

The pace of the book picks up as we are pulled forward in pursuit of "the truth." Occasionally, the story flashes forward to Harriet's life in 1933 as she reflects back on her time in Glasgow, adding another layer to our perception. In the end, I was enthralled by the way that Harris brings the reader into the story by making our perceptions a part of the narrative. This is a book that made me want to go back and re-read it so that I could pay attention to how Harris works her magic.

>159 jnwelch: I recently read Lila} and absolutely loved it. It prompted me to want to reread Gilead which I'm now doing (listening to a wonderfully read audio version actually) and loving even more than I did the first time through. I highly recommend reading both of them, ideally Lila first imho.

Book #16: The Empathy Exams - Leslie Jamison - Finished February 13, 2015

Category: non-fiction, essays
Pages: 226
Rating: 5.0

This collection begins with the title essay, which describes Leslie Jamison's experience as a medical actor. As she acts the part of a patient, she experiences the empathy or lack thereof displayed to her by medical students. She weaves this experience toward with her experience as a patient getting an abortion. The essay reads like story. It is put together well, evoking empathy from its readers. But its real strength is in the insights that Jamison pulls from her experiences. These insights often jolted me out of the narrative, but this was not a bad thing. Instead, it made me an active participant in these essays, considering my own experiences of empathy. It's almost impossible to describe these insights without a few examples:

"Empathy means realizes that no trauma has discrete edges. Trauma bleeds. Out of wounds and across boundaries."

"Dave doesn't believe in feeling bad just because someone else does. . . He thinks imagining someone else's pain with too much surety can be as damaging as failing to imagine it."

"This confession of effort chafes against the notion that empathy should always rise unbidden, that genuine means the same thing as unwilled, that intentionality is the enemy of love. But I believe in intention and I believe in work. I believe in waking up in the middle of the night and packing our bags and leaving our worst selves for our better ones."

Jamison moves on to other topics - extreme races, incarceration, undiagnosed illnesses, poverty - using each as an opportunity to probe deeper into the experience of empathy. The insights remain true to the context from which they arise, but also layer together to provide a study of empathy that I felt as though I barely grasped on my first read of this collection. This is a book that will definitely need to be re-read.

Book #17: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up - Marie Kondo - Finished February 13, 2015

Category: non-fiction, organization
Pages: 224
Rating: 3.5

I enjoy reading books about time management and organization much more than I enjoy applying the principles found in them. In fact, I don't mind if the information is a bit redundant because mainly what I need is the motivation to get back on track. So I was excited when I heard several positive things about Marie Kondo's book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. The book is very easy to read, interspersed with stories from Kondo's organizing business. Her approach is a bit difficult from other conventional wisdom about organizing. She recommends going through an entire category of items (clothing, paper, memorabilia) in a single session. She suggests touching each item and asking if it brings you joy. She claims that this method has resulted in her clients greatly reducing the number of possessions they have. Only after this step should you evaluate storage and find places to house your remaining items. She also recommends doing this in a specific order, starting with items like clothing, which have fewer emotional attached and thus should be much easier than paring down photographs.

While I can see the benefits to this method, two aspects of the book made it less useful for me. First, the summaries that I had read of Marie's method (similar to my summary above) really capture most of the useful information in the book. There were a few other details (about how to store clothing, for example) that added some value, but in general, the book was light on content. Second, Marie has a tendency to personify objects. She advises you to thank you clothes for their service before getting rid of them and to consider how they would be happiest being stored. She suggests emptying your purse every night so that it can rest. This may be more consistent with her Eastern philosophy (she is from Japan) than my Western one, but I found it a bit distracting.

Books Purchased Recently

I just purchased my second book of the year (not counting Kindle Daily Deals).

2: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

So far, I'm doing pretty good reading them as I buy them this year!

Hi Amy, I've read all but one of the books on the BBC list and that one, Oscar Wao is on my shelf and could be read anytime I guess. I can't believe The Corrections is on there; hated that book. I would've had Wolf Hall at number one myself.

Gillespie and I----GAH!!! What a book!! I can't wait for her next book. Did you read The Observations? I really love Jane Harris.

>155 porch_reader: of that list, I've only read 3, 10, and 12. But I loved them all!

>165 porch_reader: Ha! If I emptied my purse each night so it could rest, I would inevitably end up in the line at the grocery store without my wallet.

Also, I would put Gilead at number one on that list as well. I've read 5 of the 12 and started Half of a Yellow Sun and couldn't get into it. I'll have to go back to it one day.

Hi Amy - Your review of The Empathy Exams got me. Onto the list it goes. I am attracted to books about organization, too, for the usual reasons. I like thinking about things in terms of joy -- that might make it easier to toss things. I always think in terms of future use, usually post apocalyptically -- and end up keeping weird things. On the upside, my daughter did find several pairs of old glasses she is going to use for dress up.:)

>167 brenzi: - Bonnie - Gillespie and I was my first book by Jane Harris. I will have to put The Observations on my TBR list.

>168 The_Hibernator: - Rachel - It's been a while since I read Half of a Yellow Sun, but I loved it. I have Americanah, Adichie's newest book, on my shelf waiting to be read.

>169 nittnut: - Hi Jenn! The only way I ever have anything that I need is by leaving it in my purse. That's how I keep my boys organized too. They have a school bag, a basketball bag, a show choir bag, etc., etc., with everything in it they need. Although now I feel guilty that I haven't been letting those bags rest.

>170 BLBera: - Beth - I know exactly what you mean. I always think of things in terms of future use too. And as soon as I get rid of anything, it seems like I need it. I think there's some benefit to having a few things lying around for dress up and such!

Book #18: Claire of the Sea Light - Edwidge Danticat - Finished February 18, 2015

Category: fiction, favorite author
Pages: 238
Rating: 4.8

Danticat is one of my favorite authors. I've loved everything that I read by her - fiction, short stories, or non-fiction. But her fiction is sometimes quite difficult to read, dealing with war and oppression in her native Haiti. Claire of the Sea Light is different. It does not deal with horrors that cut as deeply as those in her other fiction. But her beautiful use of language and her talent in telling a story are clearly on display once again.

The story begins on the seventh birthday of Claire Limye Lanme, Claire of the Sea Light. Claire's mother died in childbirth, and she is being raised by her father, a fisherman, in a small Haitian seaside town. As Claire's father worries about whether he can continue to raise Claire, their lives intertwine with others in the town, each of whom is dealing with their own struggles. Danticat takes us back in time to help us understand the forces that have shaped the unique bonds between these people and that will determine their fates. In some ways, this is a quiet book, but one that is surprising in its impact.

Nice review of Claire of the Sea Light; it does have a fairy tale quality, doesn't it? I, too, love Danticat.

I like that review, too, Amy, thanks. I haven't yet read Edwidge Dandicat, but I will.

Oh no! Another book bullet. Nice review ( as usual) Amy.

>155 porch_reader: Interesting list! I've read six. I think I might actually agree with #1. I also loved A Visit from the Goon Squad.

>162 porch_reader: Ooh, I liked this one too! Except for the court room scene. That kinda wore me out.

I'm late to the discussion of The Empathy Exams, which is par for the course for me these days, but I have to say that I cannot imagine emptying my bag every night to let it rest. I would be forgetting things right and left! I can't imagine how people who change handbags to match their outfits possibly manage it without losing their minds. They must have an extra brainspace that helps them remember stuff.

Hi Amy - I am with Julia about the emptying the handbag. I take a backpack to school during the week, and when I switch to a bag on the weekend, I always forget to transfer things.

>173 BLBera: - Beth - That's it exactly! Claire of the Sea Light does have a fairy tale quality in places. I love Danticat's ability to tell a story.

>174 jnwelch: - Joe - You must try Danticat! I loved Brother, I'm Dying, which is autobiographical. And Krik? Krak! is one of my favorite short story collections.

>175 RebaRelishesReading: - Thanks, Reba! I had Claire of the Sea Light on my shelf for quite a while before I picked it up, but I'm glad that I did.

>176 DorsVenabili: - Kerri - I loved A Visit from the Good Squad too. I also read The Keep by Jennifer Egan not long ago, and it was almost as good! And I agree with you about the courtroom scene in Gillespie and I. It was certainly detailed!

>177 rosalita: & >178 BLBera: - Julia and Beth - I am with you on the issue of changing purses as infrequently as possible. I spent the weekend at a show choir festival (more about that later), and I had so much in my purse that I think I pulled a shoulder muscle. But I had all the necessity - snacks, program, video recording equipment, cell phone to post social media updates, more snacks, etc., etc. My purse definitely needed a rest after this weekend.

***************************************

Those of you who have been following along know that I've attended a few show choir festivals in the last couple of months. This weekend was a big one - the Pella Dutch Masters competition. My older son, Ben, plays guitar in the band for both the Middle School and High School groups. The High School band won best show choir band in their division. He was so excited! They have practiced a lot, so I was glad to see them get some recognition for hard work!

Congrats Amy! Will things slow down a bit now?

Thanks, Beth! Things will not slow for a bit, but they seem to be hitting their stride, so that is OK. They have a competition next Saturday, and another the following Friday and Saturday. Then after spring break, both show choirs and the MS and HS jazz bands do a "swing show" here in West Branch. They do 3 or 4 performances. It's a nice end to the season!

Book #19: The Memory of Love - Aminatta Forna - Finished February 22, 2015

Category: audio
Pages: 445
Rating: 4.8

Forna takes readers Sierra Leone, a country attempting to recover after a civil war. Through the eyes of three men, we gradually come to understand that impact that the war had on individuals, families, and the country. Elias Cole, a University professor carries secrets with him from the civil war, secrets that he will reveal to Adrian, a British psychiatrist who has come to Sierra Leone to escape a failing marriage. Adrian also comes to know a surgeon who survived the civil war, Kai. The story unfolds through these three voices. Through most of the book, the war isn't discussed directly, but its effects are everywhere, and gradually Forna reveals the horrors that came with the war and the different ways that individuals coped.

Beautifully written. Although the audio was well done, at times, I thought it would be better to have read the book so that I could appreciate the language.

Those band kids all work so hard! Congrats for a job well done!!

Book #20: The Rosie Effect - Graeme Simsion - Finished February 22, 2015

Category: fiction, series
Pages: 352
Rating: 4.8

This is the sequel to The Rosie Project. Although Don Tillman is happily married and adjusting to life in NYC, he's about to face a new challenge. His wife Rosie is pregnant. Don has no trouble learning all about pregnancy, nutrition, and the process of giving birth, but that's not enough to convince Rosie that he'll be a good father. Once again, Simsion does an excellent job of helping us see the world through Don's eyes, and although it is once again clear that Don does not always pick up on subtle social signals, there is something about him that made me root for him. This was a fun read. It was great to be back with Don and Rosie, and their new challenges and new friends make this a satisfying sequel.

>183 Copperskye: - Thanks, Joanne! It's really fun to see them getting better and better as the season goes on.

>179 porch_reader: Congrats to Ben!

>179 porch_reader: Thanks, Amy. I'm liking Claire of the Sea Light so far, and I've made a note of the others you mention.

Like you, I had fun with The Rosie Effect and found it a satisfying sequel.

Amy ! Stop - two more added to my list. I've been wanting to read Forna for sometime, and this one sounds like a good place to start.

So glad to hear the show choir did so well, Amy! What's their name again — something to do with jive but I am drawing a blank. High Jive? Jive Wired? I remember thinking it was really clever, but my memory is terrible!

>165 porch_reader:
I enjoy reading books about time management and organization much more than I enjoy applying the principles found in them.. Most definitely agree, Amy, and I would include books on running and other vigorous exercise! I congratulate you on being a runner...my body rebels and appreciates the less jarring walks it gets.

Wow, congrats to your Ben and the show choirs. It keeps you guys busy, and then you have soccer season to look forward to!

I have Claire of the Sea Light on my iPad and look forward to reading it. Thanks for that inspiring review.

>186 The_Hibernator: - Thanks, Rachel!

>187 jnwelch: - Joe - It will be interesting to see how long Simsion can keep the Rosie series entertaining.

>188 BLBera: - Beth - I'll definitely be reading more by Forna. I think you'll like The Memory of Love.

>189 rosalita: - Your memory is not so terrible, Julia! You are right. The Middle School group is called Jive Wired. The High School group is Christopher Jive and the Uptown 45. (The director is Chris Reed, so that's where Christopher Jive comes from).

>190 Donna828: - Donna, you are right! Soccer season is right around the corner, so hopefully the snow will melt soon! I'm not looking forward to sitting out at soccer games until it warms up a little bit.

_______________________

It was another show choir weekend. Matt had a basketball tournament, so my husband went with him, and I went to show choir by myself. My GPS failed me (insisting I had arrived at my destination when clearly I was in the middle of nowhere), so I fell back on my non-technology navigational skills and asked a couple of guys who were having lunch at the town's gas station. Five minutes later, I pulled up to the door, just in time to hear my son's group perform. They didn't win anything this weekend, but I still thought they did a great job.

My reading fell off sharply in February, but I still read a few good ones.

February Summary
Books Read = 7
Fiction = 5
Non-fiction = 2
Off-the-shelf = 4

Best Fiction of the Month: Redeployment
Best Nonfiction of the Month: The Empathy Exams
Other Great Reads: Gillespie and I, Claire of the Sea Light, The Memory of Love

Book #21: The Coxon Fund - Henry James - Finished March 1, 2015

Category: American Author Challenge, novella
Pages: 60
Rating: 3.8

I had this novella by Henry James on my Kindle, so I read it for the February American Author Challenge. The story features Mr. Saltram, an intellectual and much sought after house guest. However, he is unable to support himself, and this is where the Coxon fund comes in.

I think that the novella must be one of the hardest forms to write. Character development and plot must occur in a relatively short space, and my expectations are higher than they would be for a short story. Perhaps because it is short, The Coxon Fund didn't draw me in, and I found it hard to care much about what happened to its characters. This was my first experience with Henry James. I'm intrigued enough that I'll try one of his novels though.

Book #22: At the Water's Edge - Sara Gruen - Finished March 1, 2015

Category: early reviewer
Pages: 360
Rating: 4.4

I read Water for Elephants years ago and remember enjoying it. I wasn't as excited about Gruen's follow-up Ape House, but I was intrigued by the description of this book. Set during World War II, At the Water's Edge is the story of Maddie Hyde, a newlywed who goes with her husband Ellis and his friend Hank, both of whom have been kept out of the war by disqualifying medical conditions, to search for the Loch Ness monster. But once they arrive in Scotland, Maddie realizes that the monster is not the only mystery that she's is faced with. In fact, nothing in her life is as it seems. But the friends that she makes at the inn where they are staying give her the strength to figure out what's real and what's just an illusion.

This story required me to suspend disbelief a few times. I would have liked a bit more of the historical context to be reflected in the story. But I highly enjoyed this book because I liked Maddie. She was easy to root for. Together with the women that she meets at the inn, she is a force to be reckoned with. This was an enjoyable story.

De-lurking Amy to say that I have At the Water's Edge on my radar so I'm glad to see you gave it a positive rating. I really enjoyed Water for Elephants as well but I haven't read Ape House yet. Thanks for the review! :)

Book #23: Crooked Letter Crooked Letter - Tom Franklin - Finished March 3, 2015

Category:mystery, audio
Pages: 304
Rating: 4.6

A satisfying mystery that spans two decades. Silas "32" Jones was a high school baseball star when a girl disappears after going on a date with outcast Larry Ott. The mystery is never solved and now 32 Jones, the town constable, is faced with the disappearance of another girl. Could Larry Ott be involved again? Franklin weaves the stories of the two mysteries together, revealing much about the events in the two incidents, but even more importantly revealing much about the people involved.

I listened to this one on audio, and the narrator, Kevin Kenerly, did an excellent job. The voices were distinct and matched my visualization of the characters perfectly.

>195 jolerie: - Valerie - I was pleasantly surprising by At the Water's Edge. It's not great literature, but I loved the story.

Wow, Amy! You have done a ton of good reading thus far this year. I have added several books to the BlackHole.

Hi Amy! I liked The Memory of love when I read it last fall. I read it right before the Ebola outbreak became the top news story, and the hospital scenes gave me a better ubderstanding of the Ebola crisis than I would have had otherwise.

I liked Ancestor Stones when I read it several years ago. Have you read it yet?

Amy, I will have to look for that Gruen. I enjoyed both Water for Elephants and Ape House, though I agree the latter was a bit more problematical.

I really liked Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter when I read it a few years ago. I thought the characterization and portrayal of Southern race relations had a lot more nuance than many mysteries, but not at the expense of the mystery portion of the plot.

Hi Amy - So, I just added two more books to my wishlist. I haven't read Gruen yet, but it sounds like I would enjoy her.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter also is one I'll look for.

Happy Friday.

I appreciate your honest reviews. I may add At the Water's Edge to my list. I also liked Water for Elephants.

Hi Amy - I see The Tournament of Books has started. I spent an enjoyable 30 ,minutes reading the first round comments. I really want to get to the new David Mitchell book.

I enjoyed Crooked Letter Crooked letter several years ago when I read it. I also liked The tilted world, which he wrote with his wife, just not as well as the mystery.

Congratulations to the choir & the band! I enjoyed singing in high school, and last year got involved with a threshold choir that I enjoy.

Hello, everyone! Thank you for keeping my thread going. These last few weeks have been out of control - work, the kid's activities, a sinus infection, some church projects. I am so looking forward to spring break - which starts tomorrow! The weather just turned lovely though, so who knows when I'll get any reading done.

>198 alcottacre: - Hi Stasia! It's good to see you here! I know that you are busy too. Hope all is going well!

>199 cbl_tn: - No, I haven't read Ancestor Stones, Carrie, but onto the TBR list it goes. I love it when books give me a clearer view of the world.

>200 rosalita: - Julia - Good observation about Crooked Letter Crooked Letter. I think you are spot on. It was a great mystery, but the context was rich too.

>201 BLBera: and >203 BLBera: - Beth - Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter is a great vacation book - one to really sink into! And I'm loving the Tournament of Books. I've picked the winner in all four of the match-ups this week. My bracket is looking much better than it usually does for NCAA March Madness. I just got The Bone Clocks from the library. I'm hoping I get a chance to read it before it has to go back!

>202 witchyrichy: - Karen - I'm not sure that At the Water's Edge is quite as good as Water for Elephants, but it's been a long time since I read Water for Elephants. I just remember being drawn in by the story.

>204 markon: - Ardene - I've got The Tilted World on my Kindle waiting for me. I'm excited to get to it. Good for you for continuing to sing. I hope my boys continue with their music. Ben just texted on the way back from a concert band competition. They got a 1+.

No way to dodge all the BB's here. I may just go over to Amazon and pick up Claire of the Sea Light. It sounds fabulous. I am a big fan of Danticat. Her Breath, Eyes, Memory was absolutely stunning.

^ What Jenn said! Especially about Danticat :)

Hi Jenn and Katie! Glad I could send a few BB's your way. Claire of the Sea Light is a magical story. I love Danticat! I'm so glad to hear that Breath, Eyes, Memory is a good one. I haven't read that one yet, but I have it on my Kindle.

One thing about being busy is that I don't have much time to buy books (or milk apparently, since we ran out this morning)! But last weekend, during a break in a show choir competition, I discovered a new little bookstore in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It's called The Next Page Bookstore. It had just opened that week. It is an adorable little shop, bright and airy. The owner had clearly carefully chosen the stock. Without much space, the inventory wasn't large (I think that I have more books in my house!), but I think she was able to hand sell just about every book. Plus, they sell chocolates and were handing out samples.

I had to support a new small business owner, so I bought two books.

Books Purchased:
#3: Taft - Ann Patchett - I love Ann Patchett, but I haven't read this one.
#4: The Island - Victoria Hislop - I haven't heard of this author, but several of her books were featured prominently on the store's display, so I'm excited to give it a try.

Book #24: The Coroner's Lunch - Colin Cotterill - Finished March 12, 2015

Category: mystery, series, audio
Pages: 272
Rating: 4.2

I know that many of you are fans of Colin Cotterill's Dr. Siri mystery series, and I can see why. This first book in the series introduces us to Dr. Siri, a 72-year-old coroner in Laos. Set just after the 1975 Communist takeover, we learn a lot about this transition. While there were a couple of mysteries running through this book, what I enjoyed most was getting to know Dr. Siri and being dropped into his world. Dr. Siri is clever, and I loved him from the beginning. I love his style of building understanding and solving mysteries, as well as his cutting insights about the shift to Communism. This one worked well on audio, read by Clive Chafer.

>209 porch_reader: Books and chocolate? Time for a little road trip! I think I read an article in the Gazette about that bookstore, if it's the one that used to be New Bo Books. Is it all new books, or used, or a mix?

Yay for new book shops! I'll have to check that one out if I ever get to Cedar Rapids...

So lovely that you can support small businesses and better yet one that sells books!
Hopefully everyone is back to full health!

>209 porch_reader: Books and chocolate? Sign me up!

I just found your thread, but will be back - so many lovely books here. I'd not come across the TOB but it sounds intriguing, will go have a look.

Love the sound of that book shop!

Also took a BB for The Coroner's Lunch. :)

Yes! for new bookshops. I'll have to stop off on my next visit to Iowa City. :) Maybe for the book festival in Oct.?

I am all for new bookstore openings…and the chocolates were a nice touch. I hope this is one of the independent bookstores that are able to stay in business. It sounds like Spring Break came just in time, Amy. I know you've been on the road a lot with your sons' activities. It's very cool that they are into both music and sports.

I still have my ER copy of At the Water's Edge to read. I'm glad you liked it. I'm not very good at suspending belief but I'll do my best.

Catching up as usual -- I've been wondering whether to read The Rosie Effect or not. Your 4.8 put it on my list.

Hello, everyone! Once again, thanks for keeping my thread alive! We had spring break last week and went to see my husband's little sister. She's 20 years younger than us and graduated from college last May, so we were excited to get to see her new apartment. I did get a chance to do a little book shopping over break too:

Books Purchased Recently

5: The Book of Unknown Americans
6: Cloud Atlas

This week, Ben started driver's ed and is preparing for the last show choir performances of the year. This weekend, they do four shows at our high school. It's a nice celebration of all of their hard work.

Book #25: The Bone Clocks - David Mitchell - Finished March 24, 2015

Category: Tournament of Books
Pages: 640
Rating: 4.8

I was completely fascinated by this book. The six sections of the book are linked by a single character, Holly Sykes. On the surface, she begins the book as a normal teenage girl with normal problems - a cheating boyfriend, a fight with her mom, an attempt to run away from home. But it soon becomes clear that there are some supernatural elements in Holly's world that add another dimension to her life. As the book progress, Holly grows older and we come to understand more about how her world is different from ours. Mitchell is master at gradually revealing details and building this alternate world, but despite the focus on the supernatural elements, I was most engaged by Holly, her life, her challenges, and her relationships. My favorite section of the book was the final one because of the way that Holly's character had developed by that stage in the story.

This is a hard book to describe, and at times, the threads of the story were almost too loosely woven to pull me forward. But in the end, I was amazed at Mitchell's skill in telling this story.

Hi Amy - just catching up - great reviews! I've been following the Tournament of Books too and was disappointed The Bone Clocks didn't make it past the early rounds. It was one of my favorite reads last year and I'm eagerly looking forward to his next, which I hear I is due out fairly soon. I'm not a fan of magic phenomena but I agree that the character of Holly completely spoke to me, despite all the weirdness.

I also agree on the Clive Chafer narration of the Dr. Siri books - they are great to listen to.

I'm rereading two of my past favorites in anticipation of their sequels: Life After Life and Doc and both are holding up the second time around!

I have to get to The Bone Clocks. I have a suspicion that A Brief History of Seven Killings is going to win ToB. One of my colleagues was raving about it, so I'd like to read it. The only problem is that I tend to be squeamish...and I'm not sure it would work for me.

Hi Amy, I loved Claire of the Sea Light. I need to read more Danticat- that was my first.

I'm enjoying the Dr Siri books on audio, too, even more than reading them, as it turns out. They're fun.

My husband and I stopped in at The Boulder Bookstore a few weeks ago and I was so surprised to see him leave the store with a bag (he mistakenly believes we already have too many books). Turns out he bought a couple sea salt and carmel chocolate bars that had been calling to him. Figures!

Ah yes...driver's ed. Is he about ready for his license?

>221 vivians: - Hi Vivian - I was really surprised The Bone Clocks didn't have more success in the Tournament of Books. It seemed like the kind of book that could go far. The finals today surprised me too. I loved Station Eleven, but I thought All the Light We Cannot See might beat it.

>222 BLBera: - Beth - I thought A Brief History of Seven Killings had a good chance to win too. I haven't read it yet, but it keeps jumping in front of me. Marlon James was at the Iowa City Book Festival last year. I didn't get to see him read (he read during the 5K I was running that weekend), but thought about getting the book then. Then it showed up in the ToB, and I thought again about reading it. But like you, I'm not sure that I'm ready for a long, raw book.

>223 Copperskye: - Joanne - I saw your review of Claire of the Sea Light. I'm so glad you loved it. Danticat is a master! I've decided that it's OK with me if bookstores stock chocolates. In the small shop that we visited, the owner seemed to notice each time my husband or son was about to interrupt my browsing and brought them more samples!

>224 RebaRelishesReading: - Reba - He'll be able to get his "school license" (allows him to drive to and from school events) next fall. He's becoming a pretty good driver. We're giving him lots of practice!

Book #26: The Summer Guest - Justin Cronin - Finished March 26, 2015

Category: fiction
Pages: 369
Rating: 4.8

I bought this during a 2014 meet-up at Prairie Lights. It was a bit of an impulse buy. I knew Cronin as the author of post-apocalyptic books like The Passage. But this book came before that series and is a much different type of book. The Summer Guest centers around a fishing camp in Maine. We gradually learn the backstories of the camp's owners, Joe and Lucy Crosby; a frequent guest and wealthy businessman, Harry Wainwright; and camp employee, Jordan Patterson. But the action centers on one day, a day marked by what may be Harry's final visit to the camp and that may change the lives of everyone associated with the camp. Although the shifting viewpoints slows the pace of the story a bit, it is handled masterfully and adds depth that sets this book apart. I felt connected to each character, to their struggles and their deep relationships to the camp. It is a high compliment from me to compare this book to the journeys to Maine that I've taken with Elizabeth Strout.

March Summary:

During March, I attended 5 show choir performance and took a spring break trip, so not a lot of reading got done. But I did read several good novels!

Books Read = 6
Fiction = 6
Non-fiction = 0
Off-the-shelf = 4

Best Fiction of the Month: The Bone Clocks, The Summer Guest
Other Good Reads: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, At the Water's Edge

Hi Amy - I was shocked that Station Eleven won, but very pleased. I liked it more than All the Light We Cannot See. I heard about Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter from you! Thanks. It was really good. I want to read The Bone Clocks soon, too.

>226 porch_reader: Oh, yay! You're the only other person I know who's read The Summer Guest and I'm so pleased you loved it. I thought it was really well done and a shock that it was written by the same guy who wrote The Passage. I've been meaning to read some of his other non-dystopia books but haven't gotten to them yet.

Oh, I loved The Summer Guest when I read it several years ago! I remember being so disappointed when I heard he was working on a post-apocalyptic book, a series no less. Not that I didn't like The Passage, but it was such a surprise. I have Mary and O'Neil here somewhere, unread.

>230 Copperskye: Well, that shouldn't surprise me, Joanne, since you and I seem to be book doppelgangers. :-)

>225 porch_reader:, >228 BLBera: I was a little surprised that Station Eleven won the ToB. I don't think I gave it a proper chance or maybe it wasn't my kind of book. I do like dystopian but this one had a different feel to it and I wasn't crazy about the backstory. Oh well, All the Light We Cannot See came in second. Not too shabby!

I was also a big fan of The Bone Clocks, Amy. I didn't know Mitchell had another book coming out soon. He is cranking them out. I don't know how he does it. His books are intricately written. I am saving them for rereads.

>220 porch_reader: Well, I'm way behind, but just to say thanks for your review (and reminder that I want to read) The Bone Clocks: I loved Cloud Atlas so really do want to get my hands on this! Your review has intrigued me with the mention re the interconnected stories - thought the way he did this in Cloud Atlas was so clever.

Hope you and yours have a wonderful Easter!

Happy Easter!

Here's a little treat

>228 BLBera: - Beth - I was glad about Station Eleven winning too, but I liked All the Light We Cannot See just slightly better. Still it was nice to see two such good books in the finals.

>229 rosalita: - Julia - I remember you encouraging my purchase of The Summer Guest, Julia, so thank you for that. My mom just finished it too, and loved it.

>230 Copperskye: - Joanne - I haven't read anything else by Justin Cronin. I'm tempted to try The Passage, but maybe I'll go to another of his non-post-apocalyptic books first.

>231 rosalita: - And I'm content to follow in the reading footsteps of you two doppelgangers!

>232 Donna828: - Donna - I was surprised to see that Mitchell had another book coming soon as well. I can't imagine how long it takes to write such intricately plotted books. The only other one of his I've read is The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet.

>233 charl08: - Charlotte - I'm glad to know that you liked Cloud Atlas. I was traveling while I was reading The Bone Clocks, so I picked up a copy of Cloud Atlas at a bookstore I dropped into. I'm going to read a few palette cleansers before I go back to Mitchell, but I'm sure I'll get to it soon.

>234 RebaRelishesReading: - Thanks, Reba! I hope you enjoyed a Happy Easter too. My boys didn't want to hunt eggs this year, but they were more than happy to partake of the Easter chocolate!

>235 nittnut: - Happy Easter to you, Jenn! That makes my mouth water!

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I must get a new thread up soon, but I'm not sure it will happen tonight. I'm off to a church meeting. We are raising money for a renovation that will include an elevator - a big task for our small church, but so important, I think! And we are monitoring the results of the local school district's instructional support levy. My husband is on school board, and I've learned a lot about how hard it is to cover the costs of high-quality education. Fingers crossed that voters support the continuation of the current level of funding!

Fingers crossed that you rlocal levy passed - we had a referendum up for vote yesterday, too, and it looks like ours passed, thank goodness!

Ours passed too, Amber! Our teachers and administrators work so hard. I'm glad that they are getting at least some of the support they need.

>238 porch_reader: YAY!! And yes, I agree. Teachers work so hard and don't get enough recognition for all that they do.

Finally, I have time to start a new thread! We had some rain and a little hail tonight, which cut down on my trips to and from soccer practice.