AVogt221 is going for 55

Greeting all,

This sound like a great idea. Enough competition to keep me quite motivated (even if it is just against myself). So my official goal will be 55 books by December 20th 2009.

Happy Reading.

1. How To Be Good --Nick Hornby

Deeper then expected.

2. The Gates Of Rome --Conn Iggulden

Gotta love the Romans, though with some questionable historical accuracy.

3. Heart Of The Tiger --William Forstchen

A reread that didn't quite stand up second time around.

4. Siege Of Heaven --Tom Harper

This series started out quite good but by the end was average.

You are off to a good start!
--BJ

5. The Historian --Elizabeth Kostova

Great book. I admit that it took me far longer then expected to finish but that is in no way a reflection on my opinion of the book. If anybody has read this and can suggest similar books or good fiction/non-fiction about medieval Eastern Europe I'm all ears.

6. Never Sniff a Gift Fish --Patrick McManus

Short essays on all manner of things outdoors. Great to read when you don't have a lot of time.

7. Thirteen Reasons Why --Jay Asher

A young-adult book on an intertwined series of events leading to a teenage girls suicide. It was hard to put down. I just kept thinking one more chapter...

8. Darkwalker on Moonshae --Douglas Niles

I remember reading this quite awhile ago and really enjoying it. I suppose that just goes to show how my reading tastes have changed over time. Nevertheless I shall have to read the next two books in the trilogy.

9. The Queen's Man --Sharon Kay Penman

Though I have quite a collection of Penman's book in my library this is the first one I've read. Worth the read. It didn't smack you in the face with period language or anything like that there are enough details to give you a sense of England at that time.

10. Game Night --Jonny Nexus

A novel about gaming....very badly. Sadly I saw myself and my fellow gamers in most of the characters. Still very funny.

11. Dragons from the Sea --Judson Roberts

It is book two in a young adult series about the viking age that I am enjoying quite a bit. I now await the paperback version of book three.

What other Penman books do you have? I have been interested in reading more historical fiction.
--BJ

12. Notes on a Scandal --Zoe Heller

An interesting book quite well written. I saw the movie before I finished the book but it is really quite different.

13. Black Like Me --John Howard Griffin

I'm afraid that I failed to truly see the significance of this book. I think I may be too far removed from the time period during which this is written. While intellectually I know the history I don't connect to it on a gut level because things like Jim Crow seem so unbelievable to me.

14. Cruel as the Grave --Sharon Kay Penman

Better than the Queen's Man. So far the series has been a couple of fun quick reads that while they may not be completely historically accurate (the main characters are products of the author's imagination) still have enough historical accuracy to put me in the mood to read a couple of non-fiction books on Richard I, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and John. My only complaint was that this mystery was a little easier to figure out then the last one.

15. I Am Legend -- Richard Matheson

Not really what I was expecting at all. I have seen two movies based on it, the recent one with Will Smith and an older one with Charlton Heston. The book is quite different than either movie. Short stories make up the last half of the book and some of them are better than the novella.

I've becoming a fan of apocalyptic fiction so if anybody knows of any good books lemme know.

I saw a third movie based on the book called, I think, "The Last Man on Earth." It was black and white and I think maybe had Vincent Price in it. (Can't recall for sure!)
--BJ

I think I'll have to netflix it.

16. The Witches -- Roald Dahl

I have been a big fan of Roald Dahl for a long time. On of the first memories of my Dad reading to my brother and I was James and the Giant Peach. I think that I'm going to have to collect all the Roald Dahl books I can. Too bad there isn't a collected works or something similar.

Just found your thread, so these comments are coming a bit late! Re: Black Like Me I guess that's good that things have maybe changed enough that you would find them so outside your life experiences. This book was so gripping to me because I was in high school when I read it, and all the civil rights demonstrations were still happening. I watched on the daily news people (including children) being attacked by dogs, sprayed with fire hoses, screamed and yelled at, physically threatened--even murdered--for asking for the right to eat in a restaurant, sit where they wanted to on a bus, or for wanting to go to a school that was closer to their home. NPR still plays those programs if you haven't seen them before.

On a lighter note, I still remember how much my son giggled as I read James and the Giant Peach to him. We read one of the poems in that book so many times, he could recite it with me by heart. I love the BFG as well, and get such a kick out of his word play.

I've seen some of the short video clips from that time and I took a class (not all that long ago) about the american civil rights movement but even considering that it just seems so far removed from reality. I am not so naive as to think that racial prejudice is gone. However I cannot imagine a time when it was sanctioned by a government. It is almost like trying to imagine a time we the only way to get from Point A to Point B was to saddle up and ride a horse or to walk.

17. Sharpe's Prey -- Bernard Cornwell

Bernard Cornwell kicks arse. I have yet to read a book by him that I disliked (now that I've said that I find one). This is a book in the Sharpe Series about a soldier in the Napoleonic Wars. As with most historical fiction it makes be want to read about the time period when it was set. So if anybody has any recommendations about books (fiction or non) from that time period I'd love to hear them.

18. Sharpe's Rifles -- Bernard Cornwell

The next book in the aforementioned series. Now they're in Spain. On to Portugal!!

19. Sharpe's Havoc -- Bernard Cornwell

20. Sharpe's Eagle -- Bernard Cornwell

21. Sharpe's Gold -- Bernard Cornwell

22. A Time to Be Born -- John Vornholt

It has been a while since I picked up a Star Trek novel. I know that it is unlikely that Star Trek will ever be great literature but there are certain authors that I enjoy their concept of the Star Trek Universe, Peter David being one. I though that I had remembered John Vornholt being another but my memory seems to have failed me. He doesn't seem to stay true to the characters and the plot seems rather forced. All in all not terrible but a bit disappointing.

23. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao -- Junot Diaz

A great read. Only speaking a little Spanish I think that I may have missed out on some of the subtleties that the Spanish phrases Junot uses provide but I still think I got the gist. Goes in directions that I didn't expect and the prose sucks you into the story. I think I'm going to have to add a history of the Dominican Republic to my reading list, so if you have any suggestions lemme know.

24. Brothers in Arms -- Ben Weaver

A military science fiction book with a C rating.

25. The Price of Freedom -- William Forstchen

A book set in the Wing Commander universe. C+ rating.

26. The Blade Itself -- Joe Abercrombie

A fantasy novel that at first did not grab my attention but the further I got into the book the more I liked it. The one quibble I have is that the characters use a lot of American curse words. The cursing itself is not what bothered me but somehow it seemed to hinder my suspension of disbelief. Maybe it's just a personal problem. B+.

27. The Dying Animal -- Philip Roth

This was my first Philip Roth book. I'm not entirely certain what to make of it. I've read several reviews which talk about the deeper issue of morality. I don't seem to be able to delve beneath the surface to reach that issue. Even from a surface perspective the prose alone made it worth the short time it took to read. C+

28. Roman Blood -- Steven Saylor

A good historical mystery. Saylor uses enough period specific details to put you in the time frame but not so many that you feel bogged down in the details. A-

I've been debating whether or not to read a Philip Roth book myself this year - it seems like it's a big gap for me, but nothing 'out there' has yet made me take the leap.

I noticed in your first post that you Hornby's How to Be Good - have you read any of his other works? He's one of my favorite authors.

29. Arms of Nemesis -- Steven Saylor

Further adventures of Gordianus the Finder. Not quite so good as Roman Blood but I still enjoyed it. B.

30. When You Are Engulfed in Flames -- David Sedaris

My fourth or fifth Sedaris book. He can make me laugh every time. Proof that you can think sometimes nasty things and still be a good...or at least funny person. B

31. Agincourt -- Bernard Cornwell

I enjoyed it but it is far from his best work. He seemed to focus more on the descriptions of blood spray and guts spilled than the actual plot. C.

32. Dragon's Lair -- Sharon Kay Penman

I think this is my favorite of her mysteries so far. I'm pretty sure that in the near future I'm going to read one of her non-mysteries.

33. Me Talk Pretty One Day -- David Sedaris

My favorite David Sedaris book. I laughed out loud twice when I was reading it in a restaurant.

34. Acing Your First Year of Law School -- Shana Connell Noyes

This was recommended to me by the woman that checked me out at the Widener bookstore. It was worth the read and I'll probably read it again before the semester is out.

35. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim -- David Sedaris

Another entertaining book by Sedaris. Sometimes he writes the things that I only dare think.

36. American Courts -- Daniel John Meador

A good overview of the American judicial system. A bit dry at times but still quite readable.

37. Anatomy of a Lawsuit -- Peter Simon

I finding the key to reading about legal cases is to make them stories (which essentially they are). Hopefully this holds true in all cases.

38. Storm Front -- Jim Butcher

The start to, what I hope will be, a really good series. It a detective novel with magic thrown in.

39. Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them -- Al Frankin

A bit dated as far as the politics go but still it had it's funny parts.

40. Fool Moon -- Jim Butcher

41. Grave Peril -- Jim Butcher

42. Q-Squared -- Peter David

43. Elfshadow -- Elaine Cunningham

44. Elfsong -- Elaine Cunningham

45. Crucible: The Trial of Cyric the Mad -- Troy Denning

46. Dissolution -- C.J. Sansom

47. Savage Love: Straight Answers from America's Most Popular Sex Columnist -- Dan Savage