SqueakyChu's 75 Books Challenge - 2010

I read 53 books in 2008 and 65 books in 2009 so I'm back trying again for at least 75 in 2010!

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Welcome to my thread and be sure to check out the Take It or Leave It (TIOLI) Challenge!

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COMMENTS INVITED!
Grab your preferred drink and then come to chat about what we're reading...

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Ticker moved to my current thread.

Books 1-10

1. Skipping Christmas - John Grisham (3)
2. The Extraordinary Nature of Ordinary Things - Steven Z. Leder (3.5)
3. A Pigeon and a Boy - Meir Shalev (3.5)
4. Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre - TIOLI: debut book (4)
5. Apparition & Late Fictions - Thomas Lynch - Early Reviewer (3)
6. Brooklyn - Colm Toibin - (4)

That's all, folks. I'm now in another thread!

Books 11-20

Books 21-30

books 31-40

books 41-50

books 51-60

books 61-70

books 71-75

Ha! If I ever make it here!!

*runs off to choose ticker*

Hi, Madeline! Of course I'm starring your thread.

Ha! You're here already, and I didn't even have my ticker on yet. Welcome to my thread, Daryl.

Hi Madeline - I'm just sneaking in to star your thread. Very cute ticker by the way.

Aw, thanks, Kerry. I used that same ticker with my very first challenge (whatever it was, wherever it was, and however long ago it was!).

Welcome back!

Thanks, Jim. It's great to be here.

Glad to see you back, Madeline. I am looking forward to more recommendations from you in 2010.

As always, I'll be glad to dole them out, Stasia. :)

Hello there!

I like the way you set up your challenge this year. Saving a space for every 10 books that you read certainly acts as an incentive. Happy reading.

Great system for listing your books - kinda like a mental tick-sheet, very motivating. Starring you for 2010!

Another star! Looking forward to seeing what you read in 2010!

> 19

Hi Luxx!

It was nice to "meet" you on the welcome page. Plus, it's always fun to meet another person from Maryland right here on LibraryThing.

By the way, each year a few of us meet in real life at the National Book Festival at The National Mall in DC. Perhaps I'll get to meet you in person then?

> 20

Hi Lynda,

There was a method to my madness. This past year, I had my books divided into 25-book sections. That made the Touchstones go absolutely bonkers in IE8! I figured they'd be easier to work with if I limited each post to ten books with ten authors. We'll see how it goes. Wish me luck!

> Hi Eleanor,

If you noticed, my whole list is completely blank!! There's nothing I hate worse than having to read a book. In this way, when I finish one book, I have the fun of selecting my next book from a rather huge TBR collection. I like doing it this way much more than listing books ahead of time.

>22 tymfos:

Hi Terri,

I'm looking forward to seeing what I'll be reading in 2010, too! I have no idea yet. :)

*waves* glad you're sticking around for 2010!

Hi missylc,

*waves back*

This is getting to be such fun. I can't wait to get started with my new list. I wonder if I'll get any closer to 75 next year. Probably not! :D

You're so close this year, I'll bet you make it in 2010! :o)

Actually, I'm surprised I've made it to over 60 books so far this year. Instead of reading, I have much too much fun just talking about reading. :)

>24 SqueakyChu: Wishing you luck, as you requested.

Great to be in the same group with you again, Madeline!

> 31

Thanks!

>32 bonniebooks:

Ha! So glad I've convinced you to join us. You'll *love* it here. Guaranteed.

#23 - It was nice to meet you as well. ;) I'm a little bit embarrassed to say I've never been to the National Book festival. Sadly, this was the first year I had even heard of it, and I was far too pregnant to have an interest (although I stuck in there with the Renaissance Festival until just before the big day!).

Checking it out in 2010 - and meeting some fellow LTers - sounds good to me, though!

I'll let you know about The National Book Festival when the time comes around again. These days it gets very crowded as it's becoming more well known. They usually have a fabulous line-up of authors, and everything is free!

I'm always blown away by at least one author. This year it was Tim O'Brien.

Thanks! I'm looking forward to seeing who will be there this fall.

I always intend to go to the festival too. I somehow always seem to be out of town though. Since you are in the DC area you may want to look at the National Cathedral's line up. Ok let me check again and make sure I am thinking of the right place. Be right back.

OK. I was completely wrong. I am think of the PEN/Faulkner series at Folger. I know that Isabelle Allende is speaking in April. I would really like to see that. Here is a link.
http://www.folger.edu/wosummary.cfm?woid=542

Oh wow -- thanks for the heads up on Allende's talk -- she's one of my fave authors!

I really want to see her speak too. Unfortunately, I think I will be in NH for a wedding. Figures.

I love any excuse to go to the Folger.

I'm talking about the National Book Festival sponsored by the Library of Congress and held on the National Mall (near the Smithsonian Institute) in Washington, DC. The festival is usually held in the fall around September.

More information (including podcasts of past events) can be found here.

For a snowy day (and we're getting 6" of snow in the Dc area this weekend, I hear), grab a cup of hot cocoa (or something stronger) and listen to some of these podcasts. I saw a few of these talks live. These authors were very impressive, I must say. It's always fun to see which authors are featured the following year. Often there are repeat authors so don't feel as if you might be missing someone who was already once featured if you come to the festival in 2010.

For other author events in the DC area, check out Politics and Prose bookstore. The only problem with that venue is that parking is somewhat tight.

In addition, some coming bookfairs that will be featuring local authors this coming year will be the Kensington (Maryland) Day of the Book and the Gaithersburg Book Festival (brand new for 2010!).

Enjoy, people!

I do know about the National Book Fest. I usually have a conference that I run at the same time, so I am always out of town for it. I do know about Politics and Prose, though I never get there. I live in the city and have no car. I am sure I could get there by bus, but I am too lazy.
Today is the last day of the Carpe Librum book sale at 2000 Pennsylvania NW. www.turningthepage.org for details.

It's too cold to go out today! :)

Are you bracing for our first snowstorm of the season?

I live in the city and have no car

You're smart! I started taking the Metro to my work in DC after I did substantial damage to my car in the tight entrance to the garage in my work's building. Bah!

Love reading on the train. Hate that I can never tell which books the Kindle owners are reading, though. :)

I am not very happy about the snow. I walk to work and do not Metro, cause I live about 3/4 mile from work. Someone just informed me the DC is now in the 2 feet of snow bubble. Most of the time I really like not having a car. Except when it snows! The crazy people in their cars that do not know how to drive in the snow because they are from Arizona or Florida or have diplomatic immunity make me afraid for my life. And I have to walk by a bunch of embassies and they are the only people in the city who are not required to shovel. Snow in DC is dangerous to my health.
Of course I try not to leave the house when it snows, but my boyfriend's cousin is coming in to town tonight and we have to entertain. He is from Michigan, so the weather does not bother him. All-in-all, I am dreading the weekend. And because I walk to work, I do not get the same leniancy as others do when they are coming in to the office. They still expect me to be on time.

Also, I do agree with you on the Kindle users. It is quite aggravating not knowing what they are reading. I love reading over people's shoulders. It makes me happy. It is like a little game. I am trying not to get caught.

>46 jmaloney17: That's interesting, it's often exactly when there's a lot of snow that I'm happy to be on foot rather than in a car! I love to see the cars crawling along while I walk past them.

> 46

Yeah. The good thing for me is that, by Tuesday when I return to work, the snow should have been ploughed a bit. I don't like being out in it any more, but my 27-year-old son (a snow-boarder) is ecstatic about it.

I love reading over people's shoulders. It makes me happy. It is like a little game. I am trying not to get caught.

Hehe! I can relate to that.

>47 _Zoe_:

It's not the snow I don't like so much, but the cold. Give me a hot, muggy summer day over the snow any time - even in Washington, DC.

I used to think I had the advantage until the crazy drivers started trying to run me over. It is bad enough when the weather is dry. The longer I live here the angrier the drivers seem to be. I think I would be angry if I had to drive in that traffic too.

I spotted that your list was blank! :-)

What I meant was, by breaking the challenge down into 10-book posts you can really see them building up, it's a good feeling! I always find looking back at what I've achieved so far quite motivating when my reading slows off a little bit, but when it's one long list you can't always SEE the progress, if you see what I mean...

The real reason I broke them down into 10-book sections is that I mostly use IE8. With that browser, the touchstones get weird if the list of books is too long. I'm hoping that this will help.

However, what you say is true also. I'm one of those pople who often break larger challenges down into mini challenges. For instance, with my 50 States Fiction Challenge, I'm doing it in sections of ten. I don't think I'll ever get to reading books set in all 50 states. I might stop that challenge after 30 or 40 states, depending how old I'll be at the time. Ha!

Hmmm... I've been thinking about how I want to keep track of my progress, and I might have to borrow from your idea of sectioning books read, Madeline.

I really had to do the sections this way for the coming year, Caroline. With the 2009 challenge, I put the books into 25-book sections - which made the Touchstones go so *absolutely* bonkers, I ended up ingoring them completely! :)

Starred you, Madeline, for another great year of lurking!

I didn't know you were lurking, Karen! Come out of hiding sometime and talk to me. :)

Add me to the list of lurkers.

Hi, Bonnie! How can I unlurk you?

ETA: Not to make you stop lurking, but to make you start talking! :)

LOL I've been a lurking lurker as well... maybe I'll come out of hiding this year and chat it up on your thread :)

Faith! You finally spoke up! It's so nice to hear from you.

Have you made any New Year's resolutions yet?

I'm here and I'll talk! (but perhaps not much for the next couple of weeks.)

Hi, Cushla. Okay. I'll be waiting to hear more from you in 2010 then.

Hi, Cushla. Okay. I'll be waiting to hear more from you in 2010 then. Happy Holidays!

I'm a lurker too, and I'll contribute if I feel it is warranted.

Yes Madeline - I have lurked around your place a lot. I will try to talk, but tend to be a watcher rather than a doer and try not to make too many inane remarks in case my cover is blown!!!

Merry Christmas to you!

This sounds like confession time. Okay, I've been lurking, too.

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Welcome, Deidra and Lorraine!

Great to have you here. I'd love to hear your thoughts about books and others things. Please don't stay hidden...

*whispers* another lurker;)

calm, I can barely hear you and, for sure, can't see you! Speak up so I can find you. :)

not even been lurking a lot this year, but try to do better with the 2010 threads ;-)

I'm a lurker too - I wonder how many of us there are?? :D

Apparently quite a few of us - but then, can you imagine the amount of posts if we all talked!

You can take Madeline out of the organization (though no one would want to), but you can't take the organization out of Madeline! ;-) Now that we're back in the same group again, it will be fun to see if get into a same book/same time routine again. I'm know for sure that I'm going to be reading Wild Swans, and Half Broke Horses because I brought those books with me. And Wizard of the Crow is waiting for me when I get back home. Oh, and I asked for Half the Sky for Christmas. Got any of those on your shelf?

You can take Madeline out of the organization (though no one would want to), but you can't take the organization out of Madeline! ;-) Now that we're back in the same group again, it will be fun to see if we get into a same book/same time routine again. I'm know for sure that I'm going to be reading Wild Swans, and Half Broke Horses because I brought those books with me. And Wizard of the Crow is waiting for me when I get back home. Oh, and I asked for Half the Sky for Christmas. Got any of those on your shelf? Wishing you a great start to your New Year, Madeline! :-)

eta: missing word

Add me to the list of lurkers...

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Hi Frank, Angela, Marcia and Cait!

It's so much fun to know you're all here. Can't wait to hear about your reads for 2020. Have a great holiday season!

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I am truly excited that you've moved over to the "75-ers", Bonnie. I think you'll feel at home here.

Hooray for the 75 Book Challenge (even though there's no way I can read than many books in a year!)

Wild Swans is a book that my former OB-gyn doctor recommended to me. He wrote the recommendation on a prescription pad (we always used to talk about books until I couldn't afford the health care plan he was on and had to drop him). I never got the book. I'll see if I can find a copy of it, though, the next time I'm in my used bookstore.

In the meantime, I just got a book by Xinran called The Good Women of China. Perhaps that would be a good read to do when you do your read of Wild Swans.

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I definitely will look for Half Broke Horses because I throughly enjoyed reading the story of Jeanette Walls bizarre childhood in The Glass Castle.

The other two books you referenced look excellent although I haven't read them yet.

The book you must read, (I see it in your library, Bonnie so I think you already read it - so I'll recommend to others here) is Water for Elephants*. It is so...er, readable! I'm going to snuggle down this morning with a hot cup of coffee until I finish it. What a book! I can see why everyone has given it rave reviews. More about it later when I finish the story...

*ETA: Water for Eelephants has 478 reviews here on LT. Wow!!

Idea!!!

If all of us (lurkers, too) begin to list our currently read books in our thread(s), perhaps more of us can then read the same book(s) on or about the same time. I think that would make talking about those books even more fun. Whatcha think?

Currently Reading:
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
Brooklyn - Colm Toibin
Sixty Stories - Doanld Barthelme - This book will take me forever to finish.
Skipping Christmas - John Grisham

Esteemed 75-ers,

Sonya liked my idea about doing a LibraryThing 24-hour Readathon. I am stoked! It looks as if this event will take place in January.

Be sure to follow along and contribute your own ideas of what to do and how to do it on this thread

Another idea!!

I'm full of them today, aren't I? I wonder what was in the coffee I drank at my husband's niece's house last night?

We can do a Fun Challenge!

I took this idea from my idea in post #79. Someone starts this challenge by naming a broad theme. Everyone very broadly incorporates this theme into what they read for the month. One selection is all that is needed. It would operate like the Reading Globally group only it would be lighter, not only include fiction, and not be confined to geographical areas. We could even use a category from one of of 999 or 2010 challenges. The book you choose could easily be incorporated in all other challenges you have planned for the year, I'm sure.

Everyone then reads his own book of choice and discusses that book with others. Since there would be a common theme, there would be more actual conversations about what we read rather than just "I read this" and "I read that".

During the last week of the Fun Challenge, the person who chose the book in the first place would then name a contributor to the conversation to choose the theme for the following month.

This Fun Challenge would be just that. Fun and nothing else. Best of all, there would be no stats to keep (great, eh?)!

Comments? Too confusing? Hate it? Love it? Does it need its own group? If so, who volunteers to start it? :D

To those of you who celebrate Christmas worldwide, the happiest of holidays to you!

#80: I will take part, although I guess it would depend on when it is. I have to work weekends, so I could not read 24 hours straight on those days :)

#81: I am in for that one. Surely something I read will qualify!

#81 sounds like it could be a lot of fun. With a little imagination one could make a book fit almost any theme. I'm in.

Well I finished A Highlander's Temptation on Christmas Eve. Then I was bored but did not want to start a tome. What to do? Luckily for me an ARC came called Letter To My Daughter. Finished on Christmas Day. Now totally itching to start Under The Dome which has had mixed reviews here on LT. I have to see where I rank this and am glad that my mom gave it to me for an X-mas present. Here is weirdness. Letter To My Daughter costs as much as Under The Dome at 30% off, yet Letter To My Daughter was only 126 pages. Somehow that doesn't seem right to me.

Re: The Fun Challenge

Do I hear anyone volunteer to start a group of it?

*turns up volume on both hearing aids (seriously)*

I just read Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. This was a great stay-at-home-and-read book. It's a very engaging story about an elderly man who remembers his life as a young man when he was a circus vet. If interested, you may read my full review.

ETA: Oops! I posted this in the wrong thread. I read it in --- 2009! I moved the picture, etc. to the correct thread.

I believe I have mentioned this before, but I also loved this book! I recommended it for my book club and was voted down, so I just read it on my own. They don't have a clue what they have missed, it is a very special book.

Do you have any idea why they voted it down? There are so many subjects about which to talk in this book (e.g. aging, animal cruelty, poverty, mental illness, etc.).

My friend's book club also recently did this book. I have to get back to her to see what they said about it.

I thought this book was excellent. It was also interesting to read the author's note at the end of the book where she detailed which of the incidents in the book were actually things that supposedly really happened in the past.

The worst part of the book, for me, was reading about the abuse of the elephant. It was so sad. I had to keep telling myself that I was only reading a novel. Now I feel bad for any caged animal, even if they aren't abused. I wish all animals could be free to do what nature intended for them to do and live in places where human encroachment could be avoided. Such is not life today. :(

Loved Water for Elephants.

It's so hard for me to pick the next read when I've just finished such a good book. LTers like it, too. It has a rating of 4.14. Now *that's* good!

For those who have already read Water for Elephants...

Warning: But NOT for the faint of heart (animal cruelty):

Videos of bullhook use on elephants during training.

I am not a PETA advocate, but I was interested in seeing just how bullhooks were used after reading Water for Elephants. Sadly, circus patrons don't know the half of what goes into training some animals.

Picture of a bullhook

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My husband just started Under The Dome, but he's only on page 143 (of its 1,073 pages!) and the book is due back at the library on Monday. The reviews the critics gave that book were very good. I'd like to read it eventually, but I've not yet read The Stand (also very long).

I love Stephen King's books but hate to start books that are too long. Have you read Duma Key yet? I really liked that book. Now that's become my favorite King book. I just liked the main character. I felt sympathy for him and his problems.

Ooh, a progress ticker! I'll definitely have to look into one of those for myself this time around. Cool idea!

I also loved Water for Elephants. Very well done. I followed it with House at Riverton which I also liked very much but after two books concerning rememberances of ones past I was ready for something totally different.

I'm beginning to enjoy Stephen King as well. He seems lilke such a nice guy in interviews. Silly me, took out Duma Key and The Stand from the library a week ago and haven't even lifted a cover. I think I should just buy SK novels and read them at a leisurely pace.

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Hi Krys,

You can pick up a ticker easily at www.tickerfactory.com and configure it whichever way you want. Have fun with it. I love how it makes the challenge pages a bit brighter. If you need any help with it, just ask. Which challenges are you going to be doing?

I see you belong to the cookbooker group here at LTR, but have you ever checked out Cookbooker, a new website where you can rate recipes in your own cookbooks? It's fun!

I see you're reading a Tim O'Brien book. That's one I haven't read yet. He's turned into one of my favorite authors since hearing him doing a reading in person at The National Book Festival this past September. I truly loved the two books of his that I did read, both based on the Viet Nam war. They were The Things They Carried and Looking After Cacciato. If you've not read either of those yet, grab them right away. Both are excellent!

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Lynda, you are also onto another of my favortie authors, Stephen King. Both my husband and I very much enjoy reading his books. I think he's a much underrated author, probably based on two things. The first is that his work seems inconsistent: some is extraordinarily good; others of his books are simply not worth reading. The second is that he is often written off by readers who say, "I don't like to read horror books". King's more recent books have been more surreal than they have been books of horror.

To me and my husband, Duma Key was a knock-out. We both loved it. Stephen King nearly lost his life after being hit as a pedestrian by an SUV on a night the author was walking on a Maine road near his home. In Duma Key, King instills much of his feelings about being the victim of a sudden, severe accident (although the accident in the novel was totally different from his own circumstances). It rang through loud and clear. Great book, by the way. I have every intention of sometime reading Under the Dome as well. He tomes seem like thin, little books once read. Most of King's books that I've liked the most became real page-turners in my hands.

By the way, if King's tomes are too much (page-wise), try his excellent book of short stories called EveryThing's Eventual. Some of the stories are okay, but some are simply great. Enjoy!

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Lynda, you are also onto another of my favorite authors, Stephen King. Both my husband and I very much enjoy reading his books. I think he's a much underrated author, probably based on two things. The first is that his work seems inconsistent: some is extraordinarily good; others of his books are simply not worth reading. The second is that he is often written off by readers who say, "I don't like to read horror books". King's more recent books have been more surreal than they have been books of horror.

To me and my husband, Duma Key was a knock-out. We both loved it. Stephen King nearly lost his life after being hit as a pedestrian by an SUV on a night the author was walking on a Maine road near his home. In Duma Key, King instills much of his feelings about being the victim of a sudden, severe accident (although the accident in the novel was totally different from his own circumstances). It rang through loud and clear. Great book, by the way. I have every intention of sometime reading Under the Dome as well. He tomes seem like thin, little books once read. Most of King's books that I've liked the most became real page-turners in my hands.

By the way, if King's tomes are too much (page-wise), try his excellent book of short stories called EveryThing's Eventual. Some of the stories are okay, but some are simply great. Enjoy!

Have you read Insomnia by Stephen King? I think it is probably one of his "lesser" books, but I hope it doesn't fit in the category of "simply not worth reading" because I have a hardcover signed edition. I worked at an independent bookstore in Colorado Springs in the mid-90's when he was one of our guest authors. We had to rent space for his reading and talk to the public. He only signed 100 copies which were available by lottery. Somebody didn't pick theirs up so I got it. Had to pay full price for it, though.

I did, in fact, read Insomnia. What I remember from that book were the auras in different colors flaoting as balloons over the characters in the story (if I remember correctly). Stephen King has a fantastic imagination. When he takes his thoughts of what

I think the book I liked least of King's was The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. A girl gets lost in the woods, imagines she see her favorite baseball player, and then... (won't tell the whole story here). So what?

*thumbs down*

I read Duma Key - well, actually listen to it. I had no idea how big the book was until after I finished listening, it didn't seem that long, just really good. I haven't read a lot of current King, but definitely want to read Under the Dome. I read tons of King in high school. The Shining scared me to pieces - I remember actually being afraid to read the next paragraph, and some nights, closing the book as I was too scared to read what was coming.

I've never gotten that scared from a book, but then I usually don't read frightening books. I remember my husband being scared out of his wits by Stephen King's It. After reading that book, he was looking for clowns everywhere! I, personally, have never liked clowns.

Yay I picked up Duma Key at our library's "Read Before" bookstore for a buck - glad to hear it's a good one.

So Madeline, back to message 81 - any takers yet? (hee hee...)

I so want to read Duma Key but I keep finding other recommendations on LT that are also going on the wish list. If anyone has an old paperback they'd be willing to send my way I'd be jumping up and down with excitement. I sniff my books and wiggle my fingers with glee when I get any book I have not read before. I am really not just a Scarpettajunkie but a bonafide book junkie. Books really ring my bell and I'll never get enough of them. I refuse to admit I'm obsessed because I don't see what the big deal is. I love books. I got so many for Christmas I don't see how I can slip Duma Key pas hubby without help from LT. So how about it? Who wants to keep the junkie in Stephen King nirvana indefinitely? I'd trade books from my LT library BTW.

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No takers for a group starter (which will definitely *not* be me). Perhaps I'll just announce Fun Themes each month here on my thread and see if anyone wants to take me up on them. Sounds a lot simpler, doesn't it? :)

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Best dollar you ever spent!

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Deirdra, how can a book junkie exist without being a member of BookMooch? For just a few dollars (under three dollars), you can ship books via media mail to all parts of the United States. In return, you get points for free books. You might have to wade through tons of books you don't want, but ultimately, you'll find some great books. Try it!

ETA: This is the list of Stephen King books now available on BookMooch. Personally, I'd recommend Hearts in Atlantis and The Green Mile.

>105 scarpettajunkie: I'm soooo like you Scarpjunkie! I was just explaining to my mom how I would never, ever want an electronic book. You've captured my feelings precisely!

ETA: I read Tom Gordon a month or so ago just because I wanted King and it was small. I thought it pretty good simply because of the anxiety created from King's other books and you never know what he may throw out at you.

Never tried bookmooch but I'll take a look.

>96 SqueakyChu:
Thanks for the ticker idea! It really does brighten up one's post. I think I'll enjoy playing around with it this year.

Re: Cookbooker, what a fun website! There go my next several hours--I could really get addicted to this one. It looks like it'll be really useful.

I am technically reading the Tim O'Brien book--technically, in that I read the first chapter, put it down, and haven't remembered to pick it up since. I do think I'll probably like it, though, once I finally get around to reading it, so I'll definitely check out your recommendations.

>101 SqueakyChu:
Haha, agreed on The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon! I'm glad to see someone else express that opinion--I thought I might be the only person who didn't think that book was a work of genius. :P

> 108

I still exist without "being a member of BookMooch" LOL
I do buy many books second hand. For non-English readers / non USA inhabitants the market is very different ;-)
Anita

I belong to Bookins and shop Amazon.com for most of my books. Wal-Mart and Sam's Club are also great places to get books on discount.

In lieu of a "Fun Challenge" (too complicated/too much work). I'm just going to do a Take it Or Leave It Challenge right here on my thread.

Each month I'll tell you what I'm challenging myself to read and you can "take it or leave it". In other words, you can do it along with me or not.

I'll post each challenge at the top of my thread so that you can always see what my current month's challenge is.

Hint: I already posted one for January, 2010. Click on Post #1 above to see what it is.

By "debut book," do you mean simply an author's first published book, or should it be something hot off the presses in January? I'm probably overthinking it, haha.

Hey Madeline...I suggest you start out with Krys and read "Heat."

Wow. I think you've got Stasia in a dead heat for most-used thread status!

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You're overthinking it. Any debut book.

Hint: When picking books for the Take it or Leave it Challenge, it's always best to check your TBR pile first!

-->116 richardderus:

I suggest you start out with Krys and read "Heat."


Have you read Heat? What did you think of it?

I think you've got Stasia in a dead heat for most-used thread status!

That's probably because we chat on each other's thread. :)

How funny, for this challenge I was considering saving my library book called Cold: Adventures in the World's Frozen Places.

Hey, Milda! That book looks good.

For cold places, though, have you ever read Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer? It's an exciting read about an ascent gone wrong. Just reading about the author's scaling Mount Everest made my husband short of breath. :)

I have a cousin who's now trekking on Mount Everest (not scaling it to the top, I hope!) with his fiancée. I love the pictures he's been sending me from there. I'll stay inside my own warm house, though, thank you very much.

I'm hoping to get to Into Thin Air in 2010. It's been languishing on my nightstand for about five years. It actually fits into two different categories for my 1010 challenge so I'm thinking I'll actually read it :)

Madeline, I did read Heat and laughed and cringed and sweated right along with him. Loved it. Had to return it to the liberry before reading a second time so never reviewed it. Highly recommended, though.

Good to hear someone else enjoyed Heat! I'm really looking forward to it, at this point.

And thanks for the clarification, Madeline. I think I'll get either The Devil Wears Prada or Lucky (or maybe both!) off my TBR pile for your challenge.

Wow... I unplug for a few days, and look what's happened on this thread! Ideas and challenges galore!!! LOL. That's fantastic.

I definitely like the idea of adding 'currently reading' to our threads, I think I just might do that! I always forget to include it on my profile page, but I bet I'd remember to update it on my thread...

That said, I'll admit that I've never... *gulp*... read any Stephen King, aside from his On Writing book, which I loved and found to be one of the best writing craft books I'd ever read. I fully intend on reading some of his fiction in the future... perhaps I'll start with Duma Key, since everyone has so many good things to say about it!

Just to reference back to Half Broke Horses - I just finished it and it was an enjoyable read.

I picked it up because it was on the 5 top books for NYT so I was intrigued. It was a smooth, enthralling read so now I want to get to her other one. It really gives a good insight into the Wild West of the early 1900s.

So I am trying to remember the other 4 top reads - the only one I can remember is Jonathan Lethem's latest. Anyone read it?

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Start with The Green Mile. That's more of a down-to-earth story. Duma Key eventually goes off into the surreal which might be a turn-off if you're not already familiar with King's writing. Hearts in Atlantis would be a good choice as well although that story gets a little flakey (not too much) as well. Enjoy King's writing. His sense of humor is tops in my book.

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I have the new Lethem book (a library book for me) here at home but probably will not get to it. I'll see if I can get my daughter to read it in the mean time.

All my 2009 unfinished reads have been transferred to this thread. I don't believe I'll finish any of these books until 2010. I'm eager to move on into the 2010 challenges.

>119 Milda-TX: - that looks a fascinating book. Onto my wishlist!

#118: You might need to begin a new thread January 1st at the rate this one is growing, Madeline!

>126 SqueakyChu:: Ah, okay! Thanks :) I'll make a note of it and try to find The Green Mile first!

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Ha! How would I keep track of them all, though? I'm having enough trouble switching from the 2009 challenges to the 2010 challenges! I already gave up on the 2009 ones. There's no way I'll finish two of them. :)

The Problems with Reading These Books...

1. A problem for me with reading books such as the one I'm reading now, A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev, is that this book and others of its kind transport me back in time and space. Since I had once lived in Israel, I keep reading fragments of sentences that take my attention from the book and place me in my own past, remembering with love small happenings during the year I lived in Israel ("a jar of her homemade pickles", "to pick pomegranates", "those cypress trees"). I love remembering such things, but, at this rate, I'll never finish reading my book! Does this ever happen to you?

2. A problem with reading moving books is that they make me cry. Usually I'm in tears as something sad is revealed in the ending of the story. What does that say about A Pigeon and Boy whose characters I already love and have moved me to tears by page 54?! Am I going to cry throughout this whole book? Do you cry over what you read? Is that the mark of a good book for you? It is for me.

I, too, like the way your list is set up, in sections of ten. Without shame, I shall steal your idea and try to set up a list of my own.

Good luck! Skipping Christmas seems like a book I might like to read in a little less than a year's time...

Skipping Christmas is actually a small book that I'm listening too on CD whenever I'm travelling alone in my car (which will be today - for I'll be out doing my grocery shopping!).

>133 SqueakyChu: - I always think it's the mark of a good book if I cry over it. No matter how clunky the writing, no matter how twee the story, if it can make me cry it marks it out as something worthwhile. I always seem to cry over Nicholas Sparks, for example, and I sobbed and sobbed over The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. It just lifted the whole thing up for me!

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I've never read a Nicholas Sparks book, although my husband has read most of them. As a matter of fact, he's reading The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks now. He says it's pretty good. Which one of Sparks' books would you recommend as a starter for me?

ETA: The Boy in Striped Pyjamas is already on my wishlist.

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks was a real tear jerker when I read it originally. And I know it's not Nicholas Sparks but Tuesdays with Morrie also had me sobbing.

Madeline, We read Pigeon and a boy for one of my book clubs last year. It was interesting, some people really liked one character and others really disliked the same character. Everyone really enjoyed the pigeon storyline.

I think it is wonderful to remember while reading, if it brings good memories. I think a book is so much more meaningful when you can personally relate to any part of it. Usually for people it is the story line - death of a parent, divorce or relationship issues. It is more rare to connect with the location in such a personal way, but just as meaningful, especially if the memories it evokes trigger other special memories. It might take you longer to read the book, but it will hold a special place in your heart when you finally finish.

I can't wait to read your review when you are finished as there was great discussion in our group about the epilogue. No peaking!!!

On the Sparks issue - I've only read The Notebook and A Walk to Remember so far, but both of them made me cry, well... most of the way through to be honest. I mean proper, can't-see-through-the-tears, heaving-shoulders crying. And I'd already seen the movie of A Walk to Remember so it's not like I didn't know the plot!

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So it looks as if The Notebook is the Sparks book I should kread. The funny thing was that I had a copy of it, but bookcrossed it because I didn't think I'd be intereested in reading it. I'll keep the next copy of it that I find until I read it.

I enjoyed Tuesdays with Morrie but don't remember crying over that book.

In past memory, the book I cried the hardest over was My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Piccoult. I was listening to it on tape when I was so overwhelmed, Ihad to stop driving!

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Susan, I haven't gotten all that far into A Pigeon and a Boy yet, but I find that, with books that touch me, and also with favorite authors, I tend to read more slowly so I don't finish the books too fast. Often, believe it or not, with my very favorite authors, I don't read their books because I don't want to have to finish reading books they wrote. Go figure!

I promise not to peek! :)

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Eleanor, I've found myself crying all the way through a movie, but not all the way through a book. Now you have my curiosity up!

And I'd already seen the movie of A Walk to Remember so it's not like I didn't know the plot!

LOL!

I cry whenever I read Little Women, even though I have read the book innumberable times now. You are obviously not the only one, Madeline. I think that any time I get emotionally engaged in a book the possibility of tears is always near!

Yikes! I read Little Women so long ago that I can't remember a thing about it (My age is showing...). I don't remember crying over it, though. You know what books I did weep over as a kid? Those about dogs (specifically collies) that were written by Albert Payson Terhune. My favorite of those books was Lad: A Dog

Absolutely. Dog book equals crying. I was weeping at the end of Garth Nix’s Abhorsen, but then there is this really cool dog…

For a different perspective on dog books, there's always No More Dead Dogs ;).

#114: I am joining in your challenge for January, Madeline. I managed to snag a book at my local library today that not only is the author's debut novel, but it also appears that no one else on LibraryThing has a copy of it either :)

Stasia, don't keep us hanging, you must share which book no one else here has on their wishlist yet! lol!

The name of the book is The Echoing Cliffs by Hjalmar Thesen. The cover of the book caught my eye when I was in the library. The book is set in South Africa. It was first published in Great Britain in 1963 and in the US one year later.

>148 alcottacre:: You may just propel an unknown book onto the Best Sellers lists, Stasia. Sometimes it's fun to take a chance on a book, but I rarely do that anymore. Maybe I'll be more adventurous in my reading in 2010.

I love your January challenge, Madeline. I've chosen The Solace of Leaving Early by Haven Kimmel right out of my own stash. One TBR almost down and so many to go!

I've just ordered Cold Earth as my January-debut-novel-mini-challenge.

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...and what about Marley & Me? That was such a sweet story about life with a yellow Labrador retriever, but that book, too, made me cry.

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I am joining in your challenge for January, Madeline

That's really cool, Stasia. Thank you! It will be fun learning from each other about these debut novels!

I've chosen a book called The Effects of Light by Miranda Beverly-Whitmore which I found on BookMooch, know nothing about other than it's the author's debut novel. It just looked like an interesting read.

Can't wait to see who got the good book and who got the dud! :)

By the way, how am I going to fit in all these books in January? I also want to read an "Orange January" book.

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Donna, I'm excited that you're also taking me up on this challenge. We'll have to compare notes later to see who found the best book!

ETA: Perhaps later (namely, at the end of the month), if you give me the star rating from your mini-challenge book, I could list them all (as long as there are not too many) from the best to the worst. Whatcha think?

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Thanks for joining the mini-challenge with us this coming month, wandering_star!

I'm wondering if I should compile a mini-list of our mini-challenge choices and put them all together on one post (for easy reference). What do all of you think of that?

Hey, I'm reading a first novel for my 2010 thread even as we speak! Shooting an Albatross -- I'm mid-second read for a review on 1/1/10.

Madeline, what about starting a thread in this forum for "Read a First Novel First Thing" or something? Others could then join as they wish...?

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Wouldn't we have too many people if we did that? Or would that be better?

...or, what about if you, Richard, starts it?

...or, I could make a separate thread on the 75 Books Forum for my mini-challenges? I don't want to start a new group, though.

#158: Do you already have ideas what you want to do for the 12 challenges, Madeline? I would think that one topic such as 'Mini Challenge - January: Debut Novels' would work, obviously changing it from month to month. What do you think?

>158 SqueakyChu: Oh no, I think you should start the thread, since it's your mini-challenge! But I was thinking of a thread for this first-novel challenge, here in the 75 group. Certainly I think a whole group *could* be started, but that isn't what I was contemplating. Just a thread in this forum.

I don't know...what do you think about the whole siize issue? Is more merrier or is this a small, initimate pleasure read? I have an idea that it will be a well-attended thread, but that could work out well for you since you've *already* got almost 200 posts! It could keep your thread to a manageable size if you made a second thread for the mini-challenge.

Your call--I like the idea no matter what!

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I have no more idea of what I want the other mini-challenges to be than I know what book I'll be reading next! Ha! The fun for me is the spontaneity of it. To see what I'll choose next month, you'll just have to stick around! :D

I don't think I want to do a forum thread. That's too structured and time-consuming (speaking of time-consuming, what am I doing typing on everyone else's threads all evening long?!).

Anyway, if anyone (i.e. you or Richard or both of you) wants to copy my idea and start a thread, that's fine and dandy with me. You can even copy my monthly mini-challenges. I think I'll just keep my mini-challenge(s) within my own thread. I have too many challenges to keep track of as it is. Have you recently checked all those challenges I have listed on my profile page? That's already waaaaay too many!

I have another idea. Why can't all the 75-ers who want to do the mini-challenges just do what I did and incorporate them into their own 75-er threads. We'd be able to track the books since we read each other's threads anyway.

Gulp! Have I thoroughly confused the whole issue now? LOL!

Nah....that's what I'm doing too ... only because it's an easier way for me to keep track of the books I'm reading, and save me time posting in multiple threads and groups.

After pondering on this a while, I finally decided to start another thread with The Take It or Leave It Challenge. I started to worry that, if I didn't, my own thread would become only that challenge. Yikes!

So I hope that this pretty much explains it and that people know to incorporate this within their own 75 Books Challenge.

If we are doing the same monthly mini-challenge, obviously we'll be talking about our books on each other's threads. That will be fun.

In addition, it might help us have more in common among the various 75-ers lists other than just a long list of books. Perhaps, in a way, it might make the 75-ers group even more cohesive than it is (although it's an amazingly cohesive group already).

Let me know what you think of it or how to improve it. I was just doing it for myself, but I see that others also like this idea so I'm happy to share it.

I'm getting exhausted just reading about the challenging attempt to initiate the mini-challenge and I've just woke up! I'll look at how you and others are doing this and perhaps I'll jump in.

LOL @ Lynda! Basically what I've done is to separate the mini-challenge from my thread and put it here with an explanation of how it should work.

I originally did it just for me, but by separating it from my thread others can also do it without getting confused.

I'm taking bets that you're going to be the first to need a 2nd thread before January 1st. ;-)

Oh, I was hoping that would be Stasia. I even moved my Take It or Leave It Challenge to another thread. ;)

Whee! Here we go! I'm posting my first book even though I know it's not quite 2010 yet. It's just that I can't wait to get started. My first read of the year was...

1. Skipping Christmas - John Grisham



This is not a book I'd normally read as I'm not a much of a John Grisham fan. Although, if I don't have to read a legal thriller, I'm more apt to read this author. This is actually the fourth book of his I've read. Anyway, I only picked this book because it was one of the few CDs that looked interesting and were available for me to borrow from my library. The CD was due at the library so I borrowed the book itself just to finish the story. I didn't expect too much from this book, but did get a cute tale which had me laughing out loud on the Metro train (how embarrassing!). My full review is here.

Rating - 3 stars

#167: Hey, I get to be second for once! Love it.

Not sure of that yet, Stasia!

I enjoy Grisham myself but haven't read Skipping Christmas I'll put that one on my wish list. Happy New Year!

I'm not much of a Grisham fan and I didn't like Skipping Christmas at all, but I loved The Painted House by him. Just a quiet little book about growing up in poverty in Arkansas.

The book Grisham wrote that I like the best was The Innocent Man, an outrageous, but true, story of a man on death row for a crime he did not commit. I don't read Grisham's lawyer novels, though. I'm just not interested in that kind of fiction.

175 messages already! You're the 75 Thread Homecoming Queen! =)

ETA: My thread if you want to lurk too!

Grisham wrote a book that made you laugh out loud? Wow, that alone would make me check this one out. Well, there you have it ... just hours away from 2010 and you've already made me add a book to my wishlist!

I'm not a Grisham fan ....got bored with his formulaic books after a while and I've stopped reading him for quite a while now. I do have Playing for Pizza somewhere in my TBR tower and I have read some rave reviews here in LT, but I've yet to pull it out for a read.

Truthfully, I liked Playing for Pizza better than Skipping Christmas, but neither of these is very stimulating reading. Both are just kind of fun books to fill in a time slot. I was really not liking Skipping Christmas until I got to one funny scene which did make me laugh out loud. Only one! ...and it just happened to be while I was on the Metro train.

There are indeed better things to read than these side novels of Grisham's. They're both short books so, if you really hate them (and many people do), not much time is lost in reading them.

Well, if Skippinng Christmas is a short one, I may read it at the bookstore. I tend to read little books while in a bookstore and waiting for my husband to finish his browsing... and no, I don't feel guilty about this because I usually buy quite a few books with each visit anyway. :-)

Sounds like a good plan to me! My copy is from my library.

Madeline, I thought of you when I was at Powell's Bookstore today. They had a whole section of "debut books." In this case, it meant an author's first published book and there were lots of good ones there. I wonder if you could go to Powell's online and type that phrase in and get a list?

I wish I could visit Powell's. I've heard so much about that bookstore. I love debut novels - which is why I picked that as my first category. There is something so exciting about finding a new author who excels at writing a good story.

Once I picked up a debut novel at my local library from the new book shelf because I liked the author's last name. It sounded middle eastern. I liked the book so much, I ended up emailing the author afterward to tell him so. That book went on to become an international bestseller. The author was Khaled Hosseini, and the book was The Kite Runner. I discovered his book when it was brand new! :)

#182: Cool story!

I still have the original email responses from this author. He always seemed like such a kind and genuine person to me.

Many times I've found that an author's debut novel is their best novel. I usually love debut novels and I love your Kite Runner story.

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My husband just finished Skipping Christmas and thought it was funny. He could relate to the story, stopping to read me some quotes at one time during his quick read of it. My husband's a devoted John Grisham fan, though. I think he has read just about all of Grisham's books and especially liked the author's legal thrillers. Me? I'd just as soon be "Skipping Legal Thrillers." :)

Current read: Brooklyn by Colm Toibin

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I thought John Grisham's Playing for Pizza was a quick, cute book. I listened to it on audio (via CD in my car). Beware! The story contains a lot of football pay-by-play description which you'll love if you're an (American style) football fan and probably hate if you're not.

>186 SqueakyChu:: Just saw where Brooklyn is the Fiction pick for the Cosa Whitbread Prize. I'll get to it one of these days. Last year's winner, The Secret Scripture, was a personal winner for me.

I'm liking Brooklyn and can see why it's a prize winner, but it's not among the books I like best. I've actually put that book aside today to continue reading A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev. I'm just a softy for Israeli novelists, and Shalev is one of my favorites.

Hi Madeline, I'm confused... the link for 'Brooklyn' in your thread above is pointing me toward http://www.librarything.com/work/649645 which is 'The Brooklyn Follies' but i think it should point me to http://www.librarything.com/work/7636753. Both actually look intriguing :)

Don't get confused. I fixed the touchstone in post #189. I often don't even bother with the touchstones* any more because they don't "stick" when I edit, and I edit my posts so often. It is Toibin's book I'm reading.

*I did request that Tim do something to make touchstones stick. When that happens, I'll be more serious about using them correctly.

thanks for the heads up!

This was my sticky touchstone request.

I can't wait to start A Pigeon and a Boy, but I've committed to so many January mini-challenges I have to put it aside for now.
I received 2 books from Israel today - The man who fell into a puddle and Amos Oz's Rhyming Life and Death. It was a lovely surprise.

Wow, I take a few days off to start up my new year, and you have 194 posts for me to plough through... and its full of interesting things to talk about too.. challenges... fun... I'm adding Water for Elephants to my TBR.

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LOL! It wasn't my idea to have 195 posts by January 5th. :)

Hope you choose to do the TIOLI Challenge. I'm going to have a lot of fun with that. I keep getting more and more ideas for it. I don't want to spill the beans on any of my ideas yet because that might spoil the fun.

Ah! Water for Elephants. I enjoyed that book so much. I gave it to my husband to read, but he didn't like it that much. Upon questioning him further, I found out that circuses, described just like the one in the book, are what they had in El Salvador when he was growing up, including the cooch car and two tier social system of performers and lower class workers. He didn't see what interested me so much in the book. I was reading it as a historical novel, while he was reading it as a contemporary story. Interesting, eh?

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Yeah. I'm really enjoying reading A Pigeon and a Boy, but I'm getting anxious because I think it's going to have a sad ending. I get very tied up with characters in Israeli novels. I always think I know them in real life.

Have you read A Tale of Love and Darkness yet? It's Amos Oz's biography, and it's terrific. Oz grew up in pre-Israel Jerusalem. I just got a copy of that book (I'd read it before) from my rabbi to give to a friend. If you haven't read it yet, don't miss it. It explains how Oz developed into the peacenik that he is today.

What's The Man Who Fell into a Puddle? I have to check that out now!

ETA: I finished checking it out and, suddenly, the book jumped onto my wishlist!

A Tale of Love and Darkness is one of my favourite books, definitely one to keep. The Man who fell into a puddle looks very promising and I wouldn't mind reading it straight away.

I figured you probably already read it. :)

Mine is message #200. Do I get a prize?

I'm planning to read A Tale of Love and Darkness this year, so I'm glad to hear that you and Kerry both recommend it highly.

> 200 i highly recommend it too, darryl.

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Yeah. You do. For the 200th post, you get a book from your wishlist - that is, only if I ever read it and have it available to send to you. :)

So tell me, Daryl, is A Tale of Love and Darkness part of your Asian category for 2010? ;) Good choice of book, either way!

Oh wonderful. I'm looking for good memoirs/autobiographies to fill that category for my 10/10. This one sounds really good. Thanks:)

found you...but I'm not reading 200 messages. :) I'll try to keep up from here.

I'm interested to see what you think of The Effects of Light, Madeline. I read it a few years ago and thought it was quite good.

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Good plan, Daniel. :) I had to do some searchin' but I found your thread as well.

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I'm excited that you liked that book, Marcia. I love to pick books about which I know nothing simply because they look interesting. The Effects of Light was one such book.

Madeline, A Tale of Love and Darkness will be in my Biography category for the 1010 Challenge. Somehow I can't envision Israel as being in Asia. :)

oh, i think she is serious about Israel being in Asia ;-) just take a look at this (esp. the list of territories and regions)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia

Thanks for that link, deebee.

After I thought about it yesterday, I realized that Madeline was right; what other continent would Israel be in? However, I don't think I'll include Middle Eastern countries in my "Asian/Asian-American" category, so that I can knock out some of the books by Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan writers that have been languishing on my bookshelves.

I think I'll add an 11th category, for Middle Eastern writers, to my personal 1010 Challenge, as I do have several books by Israeli, Palestinian and Lebanese writers that I want to get to this year. I'll try to read at least five of these books, not including A Tale of Love and Darkness, which will remain in my Biography category.

found you and starred you. You are off to a great start!

Your thoughts invited...

The books I'm now reading, A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev, tells me right up front a main character is going to die. Another book I liked that was set up that way was The Secret History by Donna Tartt. It is very upsetting. It also makes reading such a book painful.

1. Do you think that such a way of developing a plot is effective? Why or why not?
2. Does it give too much of the story away?
3. Does it affect how much you'll let yourself become involved with the affected character?
4. Does that technique have any other effects on your reading of a novel?
5. What other authors make effective use of this technique?
6. Would you read books by other authors who use this technique - if you know that ahead of time?

...and, no, I'm not a teacher (I'm a nurse!), but I wanted to hear your thoughts. :)

I've read books like this where the author tells me up front what's going to happen to the main character and it hasn't stopped me from reading it. Yes, on one hand, you know how it's going to end ... but only for the main character. You still don't know anything about his journey, or the people he meets along the way. For me, it's the telling of his journey that will form the main purpose of his story (I'm thinking of Through a Glass, Darkly as I type this) and at times there are some surprises at the end anyway.

the best example I can think for the "advanced notice" concept is Art of Racing in the Rain. I was crying by page 10 and blubbering throughout the last chapter as the Notice comes due. Didn't matter in the least. It's likely my favorite book of all time - or at least of recent memory.

And if you think about it, in less obvious ways, the technique is really common. If a mystery, suspense or anything is written in the first person using the PAST tense, you know that whatever the horrible thing is that's happening to them (oh, no Lassie, Timmy's fallen down the well), you know they will get out - or they wouldn't be writing the narrative. But you still get to enjoy the WAY they get out.

If an author ONLY uses that writing style, though, I think it would become more of a one trick pony and I'd likely tire of it. Variety is the spice of life.

1. Not necessarily. Characters go on journeys, just like we do...knowing that your mother-in-law is on a plane to Tehran doesn't mean you know which Ayatollah she's going to kill in her secret identity as a CIA assassin.

2. It depends on what the author does with us once s/he has us, really.

3. Not usually. I like to take the tour as the guide planned it.

4. Makes me mistrust the action on the page, if it's done poorly.

5. Few. No examples leap to mind, though.

6. It's not a sort criterion for me, so I'm neutral.

Hehe! Richard, always the skeptic!

Skeptic is so much nicer a word than "cynic," which is what I usually get. Thanks, Madeline!

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Patrick, I'm like you. I keep thinking, "Stop reminding me that this character that I like so much is going to die!", and then I have to read through tear-filled eyes (as if my aging, blurry vision weren't enough). This happens over and over again in The Pigeon and the Boy, the book I'm now reading.

What's really funny is that this character is only known as "Baby", and his girlfriend is called "the Girl". You wouldn't think I'd become so involved in such characters, would you? They don't even have real names, for heaven's sake!!

How about that book by Marcus Zusak called The Book Thief? The narrator was "Death" so you know that unwanted character was sticking around. The only thing you didn't know was whom he would take away from the story. A different approach, but, to my mind, one that worked well in that excellent young adult novel about the Holocaust.

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I like "cynic", too, Richard. I'm one of those as well so I can relate. :)

>218 SqueakyChu: - The Book Thief has now officially become our family favorite. I finally got my wife to read it just a few weeks ago - and although she loved the book, she was disturbed by exactly what you mentioned - pending death - particularly that of one of the characters (no spoilers here). What was funny though was that since I read it last year, I had blocked all of those "advanced notice" points out and what remains in my mind is a thoroughly enjoyable book. And "Death" was just so likable!

Hey, Madeline! You're famous! I saw a video of Tim Spalding explaining LT to a bunch of librarians in New Zealand and you got a "shout-out" complete with that picture of you and your family sitting on the steps of (I forget where now). I'm so excited--I can say I knew you when...

Re: your questions, I'm in a bit of a hurry, so will come back, but I think it's interesting how the opposite is so much true too--we know some terrible thing almost happened, but the narrator lived to tell the story, and I still feel all the tension and fear as if I didn't know that! That's good story-telling I guess. I like your questions, so I'm going to come back, but I gotta go meet up with arubabookwoman. I'm always late and don't want to be this time. :-)

I personally don't think it takes away from the story because the author usually then backtracks to tell how it happened. It's this storytelling and character development that makes the narrative memorable and I'm not at all put off by this method, as long as the story is worth the effort.

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I had blocked all of those "advanced notice"

Other than the book was about the Holocaust, I can't remember who died either! :)

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That's hilarious, Bonnie! Which video was it? I don't watch all the videos Tim posts, but I'd love to see which one I'm in. :)

The people on the steps of the Museum of Natural History (National Mall, Washington, DC, during the National Book Festival) are LibraryThing members (not my family) who meet once a year for the Joint Annual Bookcrossing-LibraryThing Meet-Up. I've been getting people to do this for four years now, but it's really hard to get LT people out in real life. Bookcrossers do this naturally and love to meet each other.

I found the video!! How cool is that?! :D

ETA: By the way, we did get Collections. Have you noticed? :)

ETA2: We're at 3:38 on the video. I'm on the left.

Very cool!

When are you going to be in a video, Daryl? You're very photogenic!

Hey, I'm already a video star! (Hmm, somehow that doesn't sound right...) Several years ago, the hospital system I work for asked me to participate in a 10 minute training video on customer service toward patients and their families. I played an ER doctor, and my co-stars were a young boy, his mother and a couple of ER nurses. There were two scenarios: the impatient and harried ER doctor, who blew by the nurses and tortured the kid (the real me, as one of my wiseacre partners said), and the nice ER doctor, who took time to listen to the mother and interact with the boy (who was now horrifically bored after two hours of preparation and shooting) at his level. I don't know if it is still on our Intranet's Learning Center or not.

To my great dismay and surprise, no one from Hollywood, Broadway or the West End, or even Fox TV, has contacted me with movie, theater or TV scripts in hand. I remain hopeful.

Where is the Collections section?

We have a niece who's an actress. Should I ask her to send you a business card from her agent? :)

I'd love to see you starring in a video. Perhaps if we all here held up signs demanding your hospital release the film to the public, we'd get to see you starring as that nasty ER doctor?

I was once on a video broadcast on TV, but I'll never do that again - after I saw what I looked like on film. I'll leave the TV programs to our niece. Anyway, the program was filmed in a patient's home, and I, as a visiting nurse, talked about my experiences working with the family which was featured. It was kind of fun to do.

"Collections" is just the name given to all ways one can classify books in our LT catalog. At the time we were demanding "collections" (or, as Tim would say, we "forced" him into creating a new feature), we had no Wishlist nor did we have options to create our own individual sub-libraries. He simply wanted us to use tags, which had been okay with me. Now that we have "Collections", I'm pretty impressed with its usefulness!

That's great about your niece! Uh, I'll pass on getting her agent's number; I think we'd have a very short and unproductive phone conversation, after he laughed his @$$ off.

Then again, the floor nurses were howling with laughter when they saw the video. Maybe there is a future for me on Fox TV.

Performing in that video was fun for me, too; I had zero experience before then.

I was looking at the "Connections" section, which showed information about my LT friends and the 50 people (or members, in the case of Archipelago Books and City Lights Bookstore) whose libraries were most similar to mine. I especially liked the ability to look at a friend's activity; lriley, for example, is an LT friend who doesn't post very often, but I could see, in one location, his recent reviews and purchases. He and rebeccanyc are the LTers who I have the most in common with, in terms of books we like, so it was useful to see what he's been reading.

#212 Madeline

Two thoughts come to mind. One is Kurt Vonnegut's quirky "8 Rules For Writing Fiction." (here is a link with the list: http://www.novelr.com/2007/11/15/kurt-vonneguts-8-rules-for-writing-fiction )

Rule 8 is: Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To heck with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.

The other is that I can think of a few examples where this was very effective, and I can imagine numerous other possible ways it could be effective. Oddly, I think it tends to add suspense. For a good example see The Brief Wondrous of Oscar Wao.

I adore the wise sayings of Kurt Vonnegut and am only too sad to know that he's no longer alive. I still enjoy his books though.

In lieu of looking at your example, why don't I just pull my copy of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao off the top of Mt. TBR and just read it? Sounds like it might be just right for my Off the Shelf Challenge!

For me, the repetition of the impending death in A Pigeon and a Boy was getting me agitated. I finally got to the part where the character died, but I felt as if he died over and over again. That was painful to read. :( I'm not saying it was a bad read (*much* to the contrary, in fact), only that I was emotionally upset by it.

Interesting discussion going on over here... I'm not going to weigh in too much, except to say that the death that opens The Secret History didn't affect the rest of the book for me. I found that character really quite irritating anyway - so perhaps, as you point out, I didn't invest as much in him - and I was more interested in the strange, intense little group behind all the mischief. It's one of my favorite books!

Oh, and I'll be back later when I'm on a 'real' computer (and not an old wreck) to watch that video! :-)

Re foreshadowed deaths, Fugitive Pieces opens with a short newspaper article reporting the death in a hit-and-run of poet Jakob and his wife. Two-thirds of the book is narrated by Jakob, with the narration then abruptly handed off to another character for the last section (I now can't remember whether this is after Jakob's death, or whether he dies during this final section).

Anne Michaels' argument was that she had to be upfront about the death that was coming - that she felt it would be much crueller to the reader for them to spend most of the book in Jakob's company and then have him torn away unprepared. I see her point, but I still felt Jakob's loss keenly, and had almost forgotten the warning by the time it actually happened; I think I was maybe secretly hoping that he wouldn't die until after the book was over.

I think I was maybe secretly hoping that he wouldn't die until after the book was over.

Yeah. There is that feeling of "I know the character is going to die, but does that really happen in this story?" When it does happen, even the foreshadowing or the outright telling often doesn't seem to lessen the blow. By then, you've already gotten attached to the character who subsequently loses his life. :(

2. The Extraordinary Nature of Ordinary Things - Steven Z. Leder



This is a slim volume I pulled from a box of books destined to be given away after a used Jewish book sale. It looked short and interesting so I thought I'd give it a go. It wasn't quite as meaningful or deep as I'd hoped, but it was a quick and kind of nice read nevertheless.

Here's my full review.

Rating - 3.5 stars.

Thumbs-upped you on this one, Madeline!

Thanks, Richard.

I was really expecting that book to be a bit more profound. It's a kind of comfort book, I guess.

Your description of it reminded me of the venerable genre of the reflective essay, and the Rabbi sounded like he was putting his mental house in order so he could move on to other things.

I like that sort of stuff well enough, but frankly won't be reading any more of it after The Last Lecture. Just -- overloaded, I guess.

Madeline - love the excerpt quoted in your review.

I particularly like that quote because I have a dear friend whom that quote describes *exactly*. I can't believe that I'd been searching for that description for years and this rabbi ... just simply put those words to paper ... and there it was!!

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Well, Richard, The Last Lecture looks as if it's a book I'd enjoy reading. It did just jump itself onto my wishlist.

>242 SqueakyChu: Oh yes, you'll enjoy the book! He was using what he knew was his last bit of time on this earth, and he made it count. I just reached my limit while reading that one.

Did you watch his Last Lecture? I think they have it on you tube, but I saw it on tv. I think 60 Minutes had a segment on him. It was incredibly moving. I bought the book after.

It was heart-wreching and heart-warming at the same time, wasn't it? So moving to see him doing what he loved doing, while in full knowledge he wouldn't do it again.

3. A Pigeon and a Boy - Meir Shalev



It's very hard to describe this book and hope I did well in my review. I could really not tell if I liked, disliked, or felt luke-warm about this book. My feelings kept changing throughout the entire time I was reading it. I need to talk to others who have read it because I still have lots of questions about it. The overall feeling I have now that I'm finished is ... unsettled.

Rating 3.5 stars

#246: I will have to read that one just to find out what unsettled you, Madeline.

The cover art is beautiful! Ditto what Stasia said.

I think it says something when you can describe a book in positive terms (or a certain number of stars) even though you can't decide if you actually liked the book. Great review.

Madeline : This was a book I picked up because it sounded interesting, but then when I brought it home and read over it again, I didn't feel compelled to read it straight away. So it's submerged in my TBR swamp. Your review is making me want to swish around to swamp to find and read it.

Thank you for your review of The Extraordinary Nature of Ordinary Things. You were the first on LT to write one. I was thinking whether to buy this book for the library of my shul, but based n yours I won't. Still plan to read it when I get my hands on a copy.

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The cover art is not only beautiful but it *really* makes me want to climb over that window wall and walk down into that valley which I know so well. I simply adore that cover page.

WARNING: DO NOT DO THIS if you haven't read the book yet. Too many critical SPOILERS are there. However, I replied to sydamy on her profile, talking about my complaints regarding this book. I REPEAT, do NOT look there if you haven't read A Pigeon and A Boy book yet. Read the book first, then check out my response.

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The problem with this book is that I loved it and hated it. How can I rate a book like that? Apparently, I was not the only person who felt this way. If anyone else here chooses to read it, I'd love to hear your thoughts about it, but please do not put spoilers here on my thread. You may, however, put them on my profile page.

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If you decide to read it, I'd be delighted to hear your thoughts about it. SPOILERS will ruin part of it for you, so no reading reviews that are too detailed! :)

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Gabor, you'd probably be interested in knowing that I got The Extraordinary Nature of Ordinary Things from my rabbi. He was donating it after a used Jewish book sale. Apparently he didn't think it was worth keeping either.

The book is a good book. It's just that it's rather light reading, and so I felt that I knew pretty much everything the author was going to say. I like to read religious books with a bit more depth. I found a few worthwhile quotes, but I'll be giving this book away at a book fair I'm doing with my Bookcrossing group in April.

To be fair to the author, though, this book did have blurbs of praise from Harold Kushner and Joseph Telushkin.

4. Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre



I read this book for my January TIOLI challenge (an author's debut book). This is the kind of book a reader will love or hate. I seriously doubt if this book will provoke anyone to just give it a "Meh!" More about why this would be so is in my review. Although I liked this book a lot, I'm not sure why it has garnered such rave reviews/awards (winner of the Man Booker Prize, NYT Notable Book, San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year, and others). I look forward to hearing what others of you who have read it have to say about it.

Rating - 4 stars

I thumbed your review Madeline because you let people know that although it's an award winner and some people love it, not everyone will. I've got to remember to take that tack myself more often. I'm interested enough to consider reading it myself.

Excellent review, Madeline, and a thumbs-up from me!

I'm averting my eyes to all references to A Pigeon and a Boy as I'm hoping to start reading it in the next few days. Love your review of Vernon God Little and while in the past I never thought it would appeal to me, you have now caught my interest and I'll add it to my list.

In case you didn't notice torontoc reviewed Tel Aviv: short stories a few days ago.

Nice review, Madeline! I think I'll give it a go sometime soon.

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Kerry, I'm so excited that you are going to read A Pigeon and a Boy! After you read it I'll mail to your profile my in-depth (with spoilers) reaction to it. ireally did love it and hate it and can't wait to see what you think of it.

I did miss torontoc's review of Tel Aviv: short stories. I can't find the review on the work page. Where is it?!

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Bonnie, Richard, and Darryl...

I'm pretty sure you'll like Vernon God Little.

Er, I'm not so sure about Richard...who's unpredictable. :)

Hi Madeline~
I was glad to read your opening message. I didn't hit my challenge targets for the past two years either, but I also read more books each year than I did in the previous one. Good luck (and have fun :) getting to 75 this year!
Shauna

261> it was just on his 75 thread http://www.librarything.com/topic/79028#1650281 #45. Nothing in depth but I thought the book might interest you.

RE; Tel Aviv Stories I didn't post a "real" review- still in recovery mode- I liked the idea of the short stories but the quality was varied- from really good to not so good. However there was a cross section of experiences.

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Hi Shauna,

There's no way I'll get to 75 this year either. I usually read in the vicinity of 50-some books a year. I find the 75-er group chattier (like me!) and so much more fun than the other groups I've been in.

I love reading. I don't like to take it too seriously, but I do like to read in depth. Does that make any sense?

Now I'm not only reading more 75-er columns here on LT, but I'm also distracted by the TIOLI challenge I created. It's a good thing I have some reading time on my Metro commute to and from work each day. At home, I just play around on the computer too much. :)

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So is it worth looking for this book? You know me. :)Think I'd like it?

Mmm- there are better books to look for-if you see it- then try it- because the stories are so short- it suited me in the past couple of weeks. When you find the good stories-there are at least double that are not so good.

:( Maybe I'll pass and look for something better.

As far as good books of short stories about Israel, have you read Apples from the Dessert by Savyon Liebrecht (she's Israeli) or Arafat's Elephant: Stories by Jonathan Tel (he's not)? Both are terrific!

No- I must put them on my wish list! thank you!

You're welcome. You'll *love* them!!

#269: I am stealing them for inclusion in the BlackHole too. Thanks for the recommendations, Madeline!

Great choices, Stasia.

How big is that Black Hole anyway?

10,000 strong and growing every day . . . I wonder if I can live to be 150 or so?

:)

Loved your review of Vernon God Little, Madeline ... it's got me interested in checking this out

If you read it, I'd love to hear your thoughts about it.

5. Apparition & Late Fictions - Thomas Lynch



It is so hard to write about a book that is mediocre when it will be viewed by the publisher. This was an Early Reviewer book with five stories, two of which I liked, and three which pretty much left me cold. I tried my best to express what I most liked and disliked about this book and hope my review does it some justice.

Rating - 3 stars

Hehe! I just finished my 5th book for 2010. I'm hardly keeping up a good rate to finish 75 by the end of the year. I'd do better to sign up for a 75 Comic Books challenge. :D

The good news is that I've just started reading a very good book. It's Husband and Wife by Zeruya Shalev. This is a book that my daughter bought for me when she was in Israel about a year ago. The author is a cousin of Meir Shalev who wrote the book featured in post #246 above!

I'm interested in learning more about your current read. I'm sure your review will be another thumbs up.

#279: Your mantra should be: "It's not the quantity, but the quality . . "

".......the numbers don't matter." That's another 75er favorite to add to Stasia's mantra.

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Yeah, Stasia. That's a good mantra, but the books I read so far were not all that memorable. :(

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the numbers don't matter

Lynda, isn't that already part of the 75-er's mantra? :)

Yup. 8^}

"I'm hardly keeping up a good rate"

I just finished my fifth also and I'm thinking I'm doing pretty good because I read a lot more in the summer when I'm off. But it's very true that it's the quality.

6. Brooklyn - Colm Toibin



This was a book I remember that kidzdoc liked very much. It took me forever to read it, not because I didn't like it, but because I was listening to it on CD, and I'm not in my car that often any more. The story is a rather quiet one, unlike most books I read, but the prose is tight and well-written so it kept up my interest. More about the story can be found on my review.

Rating - 4 stars

Another great review Madeline!

Nice review - good to see you finish a book and post on your own thread instead of having to post yet again on the TIOLI threads.
I want to read Toibin's The Master this year.

Thanks, Linda and Kerry.

I don't intend to post my reads on the TIOLI thread. I like having only one thread on which to post my thoughts.

In fact, I'm thinking of dropping the 1010 (categories) challenge for next year. The TIOLI is satisfying my hunger for categorization without having to assort my books into different categories on yet another thread. I also like the ability to change categories monthly as opposed to sticking with pre-set categories for the whole year. I get tired of them after a while. :) I also like being able to see our book choices on a composite list and then being able to choose and read the same book as another person at the same time without joining a "group read".

The Master is supposed to be really good.

Now my husband just started reading Brooklyn. I'm curious as to whether or not he'll like it because it's a rather slow-moving book, the type he usually doesn't like.

How are you finding A Pigeon and a Boy, Kerry? I had such mixed feelings about that book.

I just meant all your TIOLI posts about the rules, seems like a neverending job for you at the moment.
I haven't got that far into A Pigeon and the Boy though I can see that I'll have to dedicate some time to reading it. I started Dreamers of the day yesterday and have flown through the first 100 odd pages. I'm always starting a lot of books and then buzz from one to the other until one takes off on me!

I can't believe it took about 50 posts to explain I only have ONE TIOLI rule!! I knew this was going to be a problem when we changed months. I think I *finally* got everyone out of January's thread/wiki. Phew!!

I found myself wandering away from A Pigeon and a Boy while I was reading it as well. Are you reading it in Hebrew or English?

English - my Hebrew is really only good for speaking and basic reading. I do want to try reading the first Harry Potter book this year in Hebrew though. I think my strategy will be to get my hubby to read short passages aloud to me and then I'll tackle reading it.

Nice review of Brooklyn, Madeline. I'm glad that you enjoyed it.

Great review of Brooklyn Madeline. It's one that I also enjoyed last summer.

Thanks, Darryl and Bonnie. My husband's halfway through Brooklyn now (the book, not the burrough!) and seems to b enjoying it.

I'm so excited! I'm going to be hosting a BookCrossing booth (where my local Bookcrossing group will be giving away free books) at three different books festivals, one each in March, April and May. The first will be a small one in Gaithersburg, Maryland, to rally up enthusiam for the coming census. The second one will be a fun one in Kensington, Maryland, that I hosted two years ago. The third one will be a huge one and the first of its kind in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Now I have to start collecting books to give away. I'm up for another trip soon to The Book Thing in Baltimore which supplies me with some really good, free books.

Anyone who lives nearby is welcome to stop by and pick up some new reading material at those festivals (and come meet me as well!).

That sound so fun - I wish I lived closer!

Hhhmmm, Gaithersburg. It's probably a lot closer than I think it is. When I taught there it would take me 1.5-2 hours to get there, but that's with traffic on the Beltway. I'll have to show the link to my partner - it could be a nice afternoon out for us!

Both the Kensington festival and the larger of the two Gaitherburg festivals should be worth the drive down if the weather is nice. A rainy day ruins everything, though. :(

By the way, the Kensington festival is located in the heart of the antiques district, so if you enjoy browsing in antique stores, that's another plus for that festival.

That sounds lovely!

Plus, if you stop by our BookCrossing booth, you can take home as many free books as you can carry! :)

Here's a pic of our booth from two years ago at Kensington as we were setting it up in the morning:

Free books? You temptress!

:)

Last year we gave away over 1,000 free books. This year, two of our most active Bookcrossers will be away at the international convention in Amsterdam (or at least just coming home from there), but we who remain stateside will do the best we can in the circumstances. We always have fun doing that festival. This will be the fourth time I'll be doing it. The first time, it was just me giving away 25 books at a lone table covered in a blue tablecloth. It has grown since then!

The festival itself features music and local authors. Check out the website in post #298.

Now off to work I go...

>303 SqueakyChu:: That's a mouth-watering picture, Madeline. Looks like a fun time! Is anyone else's heart doing the pitter-patter at the mention of free books? Now if only you lived in the midwest...

I wonder if I can move Texas closer to Maryland?

We have plenty of snow to go around this week...

Going to Maryland is like going to another country. I live in D.C. and never leave except on vacations. I might be able to get to Kensington, but I definately cannot get to Gaithersburg (unless I want to spend a couple of hours on the bus). I have no car or license. In fact, alcottacre, your trip from Texas might be faster ;o) Someone should do a BookCrossing booth at Adams Morgan Day. Your books would go in no time! (I live down the street.)

There's no place to park in Adams Morgan, Jennifer! I can't haul books on the Metro (which made me late to work again today - the infamous Red Line!).

Good Point. I am sorry you have to take the Red Line. I walk to work :o(

*Runs away giggling*

I actually like taking the Metro to work. I get a lot of reading time in. It's just that, when the train is delayed (the Red Line in Bethesda was running on one track both ways this morning), I end up using my annual leave to cover my missed time. :(

My husband finished Brooklyn today. Even though he liked the writing, he said there were too many loose ends and didn't feel satisfied with the ending. The ending was just fine with me, though.

Oooh, that is a bummer. My office just lets the time go, since we often stay late without taking OT. I would be very angry if the metro was the cause of eating away my precious vacation time.

Good luck with the book fair(s)...I will have to check map quest to see how far away you are from where I live in Bethlehem, PA

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Funny you should mention that, Jennifer. I don't stay late at work any more since I now take the Metro to work (after bashing my car in the garage at work). Tomorrow I'm taking a day off of work just because I've maxed out my annual leave and have to use it!

My thread continues here.