spacepotatoes: Andrea's trying it again in 2010

Happy New Year! And here we go again!

I reached my goal of 50 for the first time in 2009 so I'm hoping for a repeat this year. I decided to make a few changes to the way I organize my thread this time around. I'll be keeping a running list of my books here in this first post as a quick reference. My reviews will have ratings with them this time (I don't know why I never included them before since I always had to give a star rating when cross-posting to Amazon anyway) and will include anything of note like awards the book has won. I'd also like to include my favourite passages more consistently than I did last year.

I only have a couple of goals for my reading this year:
a) Read more books from my own library! The stack has been steadily growing while I keep borrowing from the public library and reading those books instead. So, I want to cut down that pile and be able to post proper LT reviews for books in my actual catalogue.
b) This will be the year of the reread. Inspired by Bonnie (bonniebooks), I'd like to make time to reread my favourites and/or read something by one of my favourite authors that I haven't read yet.

The first book of 2010 will be The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill, which I have been waiting a year and a half to get to and which has been, so far, worth the wait. That will be followed by The Cellist of Sarajevo for my book club.

Happy reading :)

(My 2009 challenge thread can still be found here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/56235)

BOOKS READ IN 2010

1. The Book of Negroes (aka Someone Knows My Name in the US, Australia, and New Zealand), Lawrence Hill, 4.0/5.0 stars
2. The Cellist of Sarajevo, Steven Galloway, 3.5/5.0
3. Fashionably Late, Nadine Dajani, 3.0/5.0
4. In the Skin of a Lion, Michael Ondaatje, 4.0/5.0
5. Miles from Nowhere, Nami Mun, 3.5/5.0
6. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray, 3.5/5.0
7. The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why, Amanda Ripley, 4.0/5.0
8. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Steig Larsson, 3.0/5.0
9. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie, 2.5/5.0
10. Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself, Judy Blume, 3.0/5.0
11. A Thread of Sky, Deanna Fei, 4.0/5.0
12. Mistress of Nothing, Kate Pullinger, 3.5/5.0
13. Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, 4.0/5.0
14. The Surrendered, Chang-Rae Lee, 3.5/5.0
15. Cobalt Blue, Mary Borsky, 4.0/5.0
16. The Book Thief, Markus Zusak, 4.5/5.0
17. The War Memoirs of (HRH) Wallis Duchess of Windsor, Kate Auspitz, 3.0/5.0
18. The Barrio Kings, William Kowalski, 3.5/5.0
19. Living Oprah, Robyn Okrant, 2.5/5.0
20. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J. K. Rowling, 4.0/5.0
21. Ragged Company, Richard Wagamese, 3.0/5.0
22. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling, 3.0/5.0
23. A Collection of Beauties at the Height of Their Popularity, Whitney Otto, 3.0/5.0
24. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling, 4.0/5.0
25. Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer, 3.0/5.0
26. Bel Canto, Ann Patchett, 3.5/5.0
27. The Girl Who Played With Fire, Stieg Larsson, 3.5/5.0
28. The Solomon Sisters Wise Up, Melissa Senate, 3.0/5.0
29. The Wife's Tale, Lori Lansens, 3.5/5.0
30. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J. K. Rowling, 3.5/5.0
31. Good to a Fault, Marina Endicott, 4.0/5.0
32. T is for Trespass, Sue Grafton, 3.5/5.0

Best of Luck Spacepotatoes - i'll be looking forward to hearing your review of The Cellist of Sarajevo as I've heard great things about it.......

Congrats on reaching your goal last year and good luck keeping the pile down this year! LOL. BTW, I really like you name. ;) Happy New Year!

Good luck, Space! I hope you enjoy Cellist! It was terrific! I have my 2010 Challenge started over here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/79486

Starred. I'll be anxious to read your review of The Book of Negroes. My new thread is here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/79238

Fantastic start, Andrea! Both are great books! I'm laughing at your introduction (at me, not you) because I keep buying new books and those requests keep coming in at the library. Wolf Hall is waiting for me now--Whoo hoo!

Hi Andrea, I really enjoyed your thread last year so I will try to post more often on this one. Like you, I am easily distracted by library books, and I always seem to have the maximum number of reserves on my list, plus a 50-something wish-list on the library website...But I also have some books at home that I mean to get around to reading. I must exercise more control over the reserve button! Good luck with the 2010 challenge.

Wow, nice to see so many familiar "faces" already!

My husband and I took our weekly trip to the library this morning and I have already given in to temptation. But I blame the library for this one - they set up a shelf devoted to the Canadian Award Winners and it was full of books on my TBR list so I HAD to pick up a couple. I managed to limit myself to just two: Margaret Atwood's Moral Disorder and Michael Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion. The last thing I needed was more books on the pile but my excuse is that these ones are on the TBR so at least I will still be making some progress!

Susan - our library system added that list feature last year too and I know what you mean, it is just too easy to rack up the titles!

Andrea,

"set up a shelf devoted to Canadian award winners"

I have yet to read a Canadian author I didn't love :)

Hi, spacepotatoes! Nice to see that you've decided to stay in the 50 Book Challenge group (like I myself have done). Have already starred your thread.

My new 50 Book Challenge thread for 2010 is here,

http://www.librarything.com/topic/80925

I'm looking forward to following your posts this year! Happy new year!

Good luck for 2010! Sounds like you've got a good pile to choose from.

I went to my library today and returned five books, and managed not to take any more out! Quite amazing. However, I looked up The Book of Negroes and it might have to go on my wish-list...

Hello Andrea! You are starred! I'm staying in the 50 group too.

Book of Negroes was one of my fave books of 2008. I received a breathtakingly beautiful illustrated copy as a Christmas gift. I am anxious to know your thoughts on this one.
Cellist of Sarajevo? Well, everyone is sick of hearing me rave about that one, right?

You recommended Three Day Road which I loved, and there were similar qualities in the writing styles of Joseph Boyden and Steven Galloway. I mean no disrespect to anyone who has ever served, lived through, or lost someone to war, but Boyden and Galloway both turned horrific subjects into beautiful books. I won't say more until you finish. I had planned to post a review of 3dyRd, but am so far behind in my reviews.

>9 brenzi: Bonnie(brenzi) I have yet to read a Canadian author I didn't love

I take a bow, on behalf of all Canadians....!!!

>14 L-Anne: I take a bow, on behalf of all Canadians....!!!

You beat me to it, Louanne! Years ago, I used to avoid Canadian authors because they always seemed somehow "different" to me, which is weird because I AM Canadian, but I've learned to appreciate that now and have been reading much more CanLit in recent years. I can't believe all the good stuff I was missing out on!

I've got about 70 pages left in The Book of Negroes and I'm torn - I want to just plow through it because it is so incredibly good that I don't want to put it down, but at the same time, I am not ready to say good-bye to these characters and leave the story. It's the perfect way to begin a new year of reading!

Louanne - that's interesting that Galloway reminded you of Boyden. I actually thought that Lawrence Hill's style was a bit like Boyden's too in the parts of The Book of Negroes where Aminata is in London and reflecting on her past. I'm glad you loved Three Day Road :)

Andrea- Aminata will stay with you for a long time to come. I read Book of Negroes in 2008, and she is still with me. I had to read it for book club, and it was a surprise, because I went into it thinking the topic of slavery would 1. offer no surprises, and 2. it was going to be weighty and serious. Wrong. It was uplifting, educational and beautiful. Can't wait for your review.

Like you, I used to read much more American material, but there are so many terrific Canadian novels out there now! I will post a list on my thread of fave Cdns and their titles. Just for others like Bonnie(brenzi) who need a Northern Connection!

Your first two books are excellent choices. I have fond memories of reading both of them. I've starred you and look forward to following your thread this year. I've over here on the 75 Book Challenge.

So many of you have commented on Book of Negroes that I went to see if I could find it at the library. They didn't have it. However, it seems like they might purchase it given how popular it seems to be. I'll give it a shot.

>18 lbradf:, Lois, Just so you know, it is call Someone Knows my Name in the US - The Book of Negroes is the Canadian name.

>19 sydamy: "it is called Someone Knows My Name in the US

Well that explains why I couldn't find it in our public library database. Duh. Thank you:)

I absolutely loved Somebody Knows My Name (what most of you are calling The Book of Negroes). One of the best books I have read in the last few years. Yes, Aminata does stay with you a long time. BTW, I'm new at this--how do I make the title blue?

I liked The Book of Negroes, especially hearing about the Canadian history, but I had read a lot of books like that, and the one that impacted me more was Property, a much smaller, simpler book.

>21 sharonmoe: "how do I make the title blue"

Just enclose the title in the brackets that are next to the letter p on your keyboard.

Thank you, brenzi!

>18 lbradf: - >20 brenzi: - Oops, I had the same trouble.

Thanks for clarifying the name!

According to Wikipedia, it was also published as Someone Knows My Name in Australia and New Zealand. So, if anyone is from those two countries, that's what you're looking for. Everywhere else, it is The Book of Negroes.

>22 bonniebooks: Thanks for the recommendation, Bonnie! I have not read many books on this subject at all but I am interested in more now so I will keep Property in mind. There is also a good list at the end of The Book of Negroes, I especially want to track down Olaudah Equiano's memoir since it turns that it actually exists.

I finished the book last night and hope to get the review done asap, but I'm not sure if I can do it justice. It was amazing. For now, see Louanne's comments in message #16, she hit the nail on the head!

22: I second Property as a worthy book on slavery and nominate A Mercy by Toni Morrison for consideration. It is one of her more accessible books.

I'm glad you loved Someone Knows My Name, Andrea. It made a deep impression on me as well.

Oh, I'm glad you valued Property as well, Donna. I'm going to go talk about it on my thread because I don't want to take over yours, spacepotatoes1 ;-)

No worries, Bonnie :)

1. The Book of Negroes, Lawrence Hill
Tags: Canadian author, historical fiction, slavery
Countries: Nigeria, United States, Canada, Sierra Leone, England
Awards: Rogers Writers Trust Fiction Prize 2007, Commonwealth Writers’ Prize 2008
Rating: 4.0/5.0 stars

In a CBC interview, Lawrence Hill said the following about the protagonist of this novel:

“It had to be a woman. I believe you locate the story in the shoes of the person who has the most to lose.” (http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/book_of_negroes.html)

Aminata Diallo has everything to lose: her parents, her freedom, her innocence, her husband, her children, and many times, she comes to close to losing her life. Aminata is sold into slavery as a child, taken from her village in Africa and shipped to South Carolina to work for an indigo plantation owner. She struggles to make sense of what happened to her and is determined to return to her homeland one day. Through all of the pain, misery, and betrayal, Aminata fights to survive and maintain her dignity. Somehow, she never loses hope even when it appears that there is nothing left to hope for.

Since this one is from my own library, the full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/2402163/reviews/49855535

There were many passages that I loved but here is one that particulary resonated with me and that I think shows why Aminata is such a memorable character. This is a conversation she has with her second owner, Solomon Lindo:

(mild spoiler alert!)


"And what is a 'wench'?"
"Woman," he said.
"Is Mrs. Lindo a wench?"
He sat up straight. He rubbed his hands, then looked at me directly. "She is a lady."
"I'm not from Guinea," I said suddenly. The anger in my own voice surprised me. I jumped up from the table, knocking over an inkpot. "And I'm not a wench. I had a baby and I would have it now but Master Appleby stole him away. I am no wench. I am a wife. I am a mother. Aren't I a woman?"


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Currently Reading: The Cellist of Sarajevo, Steven Galloway

Somebody Knows My Name, the American version of The Book of Negroes is on its way to me from the library. I'm just going to follow along behind you and louanne and pick up the crumbs Andrea;-)

Great review.

Great review, spacespuds! Love that quote as an intro to your review. I thumbed you!

Space- Terrific review! I also have Somebody Knows My Name buried somewhere in my tbr! Time to unearth it?

I was able to put it on hold at the library once I had the right name. :) I hope you're enjoying Cellist - I loved it!

That was a terrific review Andrea. I knew you'd like it too! Did you know that the author Lawrence Hill is the brother of singer Dan Hill who had that chart-topping love song 'Sometimes When We Touch'???

Already have it on my wish list, 'course now I have it under the correct US name! Ditto #30 Brenzi's comments about the crumbs.

Hey Andrea, got yourself a hot review. Excellent!

Thanks everyone! This really was the perfect book to start the new year with. Those of you planning to read it soon, I hope you all love it as much as I did.

Mark - definitely time to move it closer to the top of the stack!

Coppers - I am enjoying Cellist so far, though it is not as great as I was expecting. I wonder if it wasn't the best idea to read it right after Book of Negroes, that is a tough act to follow!

Louanne - I had no idea they were related! That is hilarious. The bios I've read only mentioned their parents, who are well-known for civil rights work, nothing about Dan Hill. Ha!

brenzi - I can't believe I missed it! I don't see it listed on the homepage, though I do see your review for Still Life there, congratulations :)

I've just reserved it too ;-) For some reason, my library catalogue has both titles, but more copies of The Book of Negroes than Someone Knows My Name. Now I have to read my other things fast, as there don't seem to be any outstanding reserves on it!

Andrea, just to let you know, I wasn't as taken with The Cellist of Sarajevo as I had hoped. Here is what I wrote about it in the 50 Book Challenge: I sought out this book from the library because of the chatter about it on LibraryThing. It seemed that lots of people had read it and most said they loved it. I did not love The Cellist quite as much as I hoped I would. It's odd but I think I was influenced by the fact I knew the book was written by a creative writing professor from the University of British Columbia, not by someone who lived through the Siege of Sarajevo or reported on it. In fact, at the time of the siege, he was only 17. My "willing suspension of disbelief" would have been more intact if I hadn't read the author blurb on the dustjacket.

Andrea,

As of right now your hot review is still up. You need to click on the pencil at the top left of the hot reviews and let it show all 10 reviews. You're not seeing them all.

Andrea,

You're now in the #4 position:)

Andrea - Congrats on the hot review!!

How exciting! This was one my goals for the year, I guess I can put my feet up now that my work is done ;)

And, it goes to show how much time I spent on the homepage before, I had no idea you could change how many books appear on that list (actually, on any of the lists there)! Thanks for the tutorial, Bonnie!

>39 lbradf: Thanks for your comments on Cellist, lbradf! I don't have a problem with the author's lack of experience with the events in Sarajevo, but there is something about the writing that just seems like he's trying too hard. I think also that my judgement of the book was partially clouded by an article I read about the real Cellist of Sarajevo being angry about the book. I think he is overracting somewhat but Galloway was asked for his side of things and I found his comments to be disingenuous and a bit immature. The article is here, in case any of you are interested (it doesn't contain any spoilers):

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article4...

I'm trying to just judge the story on its own merits but it's hard not to have this in the back of my mind. I wish I hadn't found it until after I read it but came across it while looking for information about Albinoni's Adagio, which is mentioned right at the beginning of the book.

I'm really glad that I didn't read that article before reading Cellist of Sarajevo. I think I would have been negatively impacted as you were. Now I don't know what to think because I did love the book. I guess I'm a natural troublemaker because I like having to think about dilemmas like this.

Aarrrghhgh! I'm so disappointed about what was one of my top ten reads last year. You're right Andrea, his remarks are very disingenuous. It never occurred to him to contact the cellist?? Seriously! Thanks (I guess) for bringing this discouraging news to my attention.

Thank you for sharing the article, Andrea. It really brings together my feelings of discomfort regarding the book.

I read this interview last year as well, but AFTER reading the novel. I did get a stabbing twinge in my heart, but my initial love for the book was what was real and true. Andrea, I think it might be hard to reconcile this knowledge while you are still reading the book. I hope (because I think the novel is wonderful) that you can judge the story on it's own merits, as you said.

A bit more info on the Cellist controversy:

It’s hard not to sympathize with Smailovic, but based on the info in the CBC piece, it sounds as if Galloway only ever meant to pay homage to the man, and that he did so in a fairly respectful fashion. The Smailovic character is prominently featured only in the first five pages of the book, he never speaks, and he is mostly used as a thematic device to link the other three characters. Galloway even sent Smailovic an autographed copy of the book, which suggests that he expected Smailovic would like it.

Full article here:
http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/2008/07/18/cellist-vs-cellist/

I hope I haven't ruined anything with that article, I didn't mean to! Thanks for the Q&Q article, Louanne, it does help balance it out a bit. I stopped looking for more information after I found the first one because I was afraid of what else I might come across!

The compensation thing didn't bother me, I agree that it's not necessary. I just think it's ridiculous that Galloway interviewed all those people about their experiences but it never occurred to him to speak to the actual cellist, after whom he titled his book? He thinks "I got my information off the internet" is sufficient?

It sort of makes me wonder if he knew on some level that the real cellist would not want himself used this way and Galloway just didn't want to have to fight anyone to get the book published as he wanted it. It's sad that it resulted in such bad blood between them when it didn't have to be that way.

I must admit to being slightly influenced by the controversy surrounding the author when I read The Cellist of Sarajevo in 2008. I didin't want to give away too much in my review, but I did say the book was "bordering on exploitation." I rated it 4 stars to assuage my conscience.

Well, I finished Cellist and while I didn't love it, I did like it. I think that if the author had set it up as three individual stories rather than the alternating chapters, I would have liked it a lot more. I'm still getting my thoughts together for a review but I am planning to get my review for Last Night in Twisted River (from 2009) up first, it's almost done.

I felt like I needed something light after these two emontionally heavy books so I just read Fashionably Late, by Nadine Dajani. It was a really pleasant surprise and a nice mini-vacation since the main character took a trip to Cuba in the book!

Now I can't decide what to read next! I have those library books waiting for me but I also feel like I could go for some Jane Austen or maybe Anne of Green Gables, which I was planning to reread this year anyway. We shall see....

I decided to start the Margaret Atwood book, Moral Disorder, and ended up abandoning it after the first story. Maybe I'll come back to it eventually, maybe not, but it didn't feel like the right book for right now. Instead, I'm now reading In the Skin of a Lion and am liking it so far. More reviews coming soon!

In the Skin of Lion made me fall in love with Ondaatje! I'll be curious to hear what you think in the end :)

Hi whitewavedarling! Your review was one of several that convinced me to read the book next. It was the third Ondaatje novel that I've read (the first two being The English Patient and Divisadero) and of the three, it was definitely my favourite.

I'm glad! I've got Anil's Ghost and Divisadero both waiting at home for me to enjoy, but with the new semester having started, I'm afraid it might be a while. I want to read more of his poetry as well--from what I've glanced over, it actually looks more straightforward than his prose, strangely enough!

Yes, that's thing about his novels - gorgeously written but not always easy to follow! That was the issue I had with Divisadero, it was lovely but I still can't figure out what it was actually about and I read it two years ago! I think part of why I liked In the Skin of a Lion so much was that not only was it beautiful writing but I could also keep up with it, for the most part. Have you read The English Patient? I just learned on Wikipedia this morning that it is a sequel of sorts to Skin of a Lion since it features both Hana and Caravaggio, and we learn what happens to Patrick. I never even made that connection!

That's interesting that there is a sequel to The English Patient which I really enjoyed. The only other Ondaatje novel I've read is Anil's Ghost which, I must say, didn't appeal to me at all.

If you liked The English Patient, you will probably like In the Skin of a Lion too. Skin... tells the story up to 1938, when Hana is 16. The English Patient picks it up four or five years later.

I did not know it was a sequel either. Good to know before I read it. Thanks.

Space- I'm also a big fan of The English Patient and of the film, as well! I did not know there was a sequel, either. I've been meaning to get back to his other works. I also have Divisadero buried in the tbr! One of these days!! Is that our new mantra?

I actually read In the Skin of a Lion last summer because I knew I'd be reading The English Patient in the fall--I loved them both! I'd be curious to hear what you thought of his poetry; I've got one of the volumes laying around here somewhere, but with school pressing right now, I don't know when I'll get to it. Well, good reading all!

How did I manage to get so behind with reviews again?? I need to get moving! I finished one more book after In the Skin of a Lion, it was Miles from Nowhere by Nami Munn.

Right now I'm working my way through Vanity Fair, which will be this year's Big Read at 800+ pages. So far, I am really liking it - kind of like Jane Austen but much juicier! It takes place around 1813 so as I read, I still have The Book of Negroes in my head because there is some talk about the abolitionist movement and there is even a reference to Wilberforce, who is briefly mentioned in BoN.

>61 whitewavedarling: I haven't read any of Ondaatje's poetry yet but I probably should, I was completely mesmerized by his writing in Skin of a Lion and if it's easier to follow his poetry, then it will be right up my alley!

Hey there! I enjoyed following you 2009 thread and am looking forward to this year's reviews. I read Vanity Fair a couple of years ago and also really enjoyed it. Have fun!

Andrea, I've just finished The Book of Negroes and I loved it - thanks to you (and others!) for the recommendation.

susanj67 and Andrea - Wasn't Book of Negroes just fantastic??? Andrea, I'm not sure where you live in Ontario, but I'd read somewhere that the author Lawrence Hill lives nearby in Burlington, Ont.

>63 japaul22: Thanks for stopping by! Vanity Fair is starting to get a little tedious but is pretty fun for the most part.

>64 susanj67: I'm so glad you liked it, Susan!

>65 L-Anne: I saw that in the back of Book of Negroes, I was surprised. He is pretty close, I'm in the London area - aka Alice Munro country.

My review for The Cellist of Sarajevo is up!

2. The Cellist of Sarajevo, Steven Galloway
Tags: Canadian author, historical fiction, siege of Sarajevo, war
Countries: Bosnia
Awards: Giller Prize longlist 2008, CBA Libris Award nominee 2009, Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize finalist 2009, Galaxy British Book Award shortlist 2009
Rating: 3.5/5.0 stars

The Cellist of Sarajevo is not really about a cellist, though it is the cellist’s music that provides the unifying thread between the three main characters. Arrow, a young female sniper, has compromised her beliefs and basically given up her youth in the siege. We follow her over the course of the cellist’s 22 days as she watches him and protects him. Dragan is an older man whose family has fled to safety while he stayed behind and now isn’t sure what he has left to live for. Kenan still has his family and struggles every day to provide for them and maintain some semblance of happiness.

Full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/4738661/reviews/54679276

The opening chapter really blew me away and it was the repetition of the following paragraph that had a stirring effect, so I'm choosing it as my favourite quote from this book:

It screamed downward, splitting air and sky without effort. A target expanded in size, brought into focus by time and velocity. There was a moment before impact that was the last image of things as they were. Then the visible world exploded.

----------------
Currently Reading: Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray (about 400 pages in, another 400 to go!)

Andrea- Another fine review! I liked the book a lot more than you but I feel you described your feelings perfectly! Nice job!

Hi Andrea, I also enjoyed Cellist more than you did. I loved your well considered review and gave it a thumbs up. I also wanted to mention how much I enjoy the tags, countries and award info you add to each book post. Thank you!

Hi Andrea - Nice review of the Cellist. I felt the same - not a masterpiece, but some really nice moments and I enjoyed reading it. Did you feel, as I did, that it was written almost with the "movie version" in mind? Maybe it's his natural writing style, but I could really see the screenplay developing and wondered if the author intended that. I thought the book had very vivid visual descriptions, but not the intricate and subtle character development that you can get with the best books.

Hey there Andrea, great review. I thumbed it and guess what? You're a hottie again! Good job.

I really loved Vanity Fair when I first read it. For an 800 page book it moves rather quickly.

Hi Andrea...
I enjoyed Cellist much more than you did, but I thought you had a wonderful review. It was very insightful into what you found lacking in the novel. I often find it easier to describe what I liked about a novel than what I didn't like.

I loved how you ended your review: it makes you think about how you would react in a similar situation, at the same time praying that you never have to experience anything like it. That's so true. Very thoughtful review. Thumbs up for you!

Thanks for the kind words, everyone! That review took a long time, I knew that I was in the minority about my feelings for it so I wanted to make sure I could explain properly. I'm glad it turned out :)

>69 Copperskye: Joanne, thanks! I'm trying to make my catalogue more functional this year and so far, doing reviews this way has helped. I'm glad you find it useful too!

>70 japaul22: japaul - I did feel like that at some parts, especially the Arrow chapters, but not throughout the entire book. There was so much internal thinking for Dragan and Kenan that I'm not sure how it would translate to film. I read that the movie rights have been sold, I figure they'd have to flesh those stories out quite a bit for the movie.

>73 murahta: murhata - the pace has been a pleasant surprise for Vanity Fair! Some parts (Thackeray's personal essays) get tedious but they're never really long enough to make me want to put the book down. When I started, I thought I'd read a chunk of it and then switch to a shorter book to break it up but so far, I haven't felt the need to do that.

>74 L-Anne: That's funny, I find I am the opposite - it's easier for me to explain what I don't like than to describe why I really loved a book! A lot of time, it's just a feeling that the book is really good.

@75 (& 74): Agreed - it's easier to point the finger at what was lacking than at what really worked for me. Interestingly, I'm also a glass half empty (if even that full) gal. It all seems to fit together in that context...

I think I'm going to have to stop reading your thread spacepotatoes as too many books are going on my TBR list because of you! I just ordered The Cellist of Sarajevo and The Book of Negroes on line!

Thanks a million for your fantastic reviews.

*waving hi* I generally like the books I read (mostly 4's on the 5 scale), but I think I am a better critic than a PR person. Perhaps that's because I don't want anyone to read a book on my recommendation and then have them be disappointed.

I know exactly what you mean. I usually read books that I rate 4 or 4.5 and when I get feedback that is negative I feel terrible. But what other way is there to do it than to give an honest opinion and let it fly. I've got The Book of Negroes coming up later this month and I'm really looking forward to it.

I'm sorry I've been AWOL recently, I have a good excuse - I got my job back! I started this week and haven't had pretty much no spare time. I'll be back later this weekend to catch up on all of your threads!

>77 Feefy: Thanks for the kind words, Bookbugg. I hope enjoy both books!

>79 brenzi: I always worry that if I gloss over those things that bugged me, someone else will be bothered by those things as they read too and blame me for the crappy recommendation! Enjoy BoN when you get to it, I hope you love it too!

Yay Andrea, you got your job back! Good for you.

Congrats on getting your job back, Andrea! It's funny, I can really love--or hate--a book, but still agree with much of what someone else says even when they had a very different reaction to that same book. So much of my experience with a book comes from what I've read before, my own life experiences, what I'm in the mood for right then, as well as my expectations of a book based on what I've heard about it. Overall, I'm more critical of the books I read than many of my friends, including those on LT, so I like honesty. Tell me you love or hate a book, I don't care, as long as I get a feel for whether I'll be interested in it--or not!

Space- Great news about the job! I'm very happy for you! Hope to see you around this weekend!

Yea! Such good news - congratulations Andrea!!

Congratulations Andrea!! Hope they appreciate you like we do. :)

That's great news about the job!

I thought of all the people on this thread the other day when I read about a new book by Andrea Levy, The Long Song, which is about slavery in Jamaica, told from the point of view of a slave. It sounded interesting from the interview with the author and has just been published in the UK, with other markets to follow soon.

OK, I realise that sounds like a press release, LOL - honestly I don't work for the publisher! It just reminded me of The Book of Negroes and I've added it to my library wishlist.

Andrea, glad to hear you got your job back!!

>80 spacepotatoes:: That is good news about the job and should be on the front page of your local newspaper to spread a little hope to those who have been laid off.

>82 bonniebooks:: Very well stated, Bonnie. I try not to be too critical in my reviews, but sometimes I will offer a cautionary statement about language or something else that irked me. Honesty is always the best policy!

Congrats about the job! Now you can get more books... ;-)

Re the Cellist controversy -- I've been pondering this as the book is sitting on my Kindle unread, and perhaps one reason he didn't speak to the cellist himself is that the person he is creating is a fictional one? If you get too involved in the 'real' person, maybe it's harder to create someone to play the fictional role you've envisaged for them in a novel? I agree that it would have been interesting to have seen the same story told from the POV from someone who lived through the siege, but on the other hand, where would we be if novelists couldn't exercise their imagination or could only write about their personal experiences? There's an interesting debate about ownership of narratives and voices -- can a white woman write about a black woman's experiences, or a man write a convincing female character -- but IMO it just creates a different novel.

Sorry to jump in and go so far back in the thread, but I was ruminating on this subject before I read the book for my 1010 challenge...

Thanks for all the congratulations, everyone! Another instructor quit at the centre where I'd worked, so there was room for me again. It was definitely a relief to get the call back! I really miss my LT time, though. I'm catching up on threads, but very slowly. I missed a lot in just a week, some of you have nearly 90 posts waiting to be read!

>86 susanj67: Thanks for mentioning The Long Song, Susan, I will check that out.

>89 ljbwell: I've already been taking advantage of having more book $$$, only problem is that now I have less time to read them! The pile just grows.

>90 Chatterbox: I get what you mean about wanting to separate the fictional character from the true one, but I'm not entirely convinced that is what Galloway's reasoning was. I don't know, something about his comments in interviews just really rub me the wrong way and I have a hard time giving him the benefit of the doubt. I completely agree with your other point about novelists not having to be bound by their own personal experiences. By that standard, a lot of my favourite books would not exist!

It's been waaaaaay too long since I posted a review! Here's my very belated review for book #3 of 2010:

3. Fashionably Late, Nadine Dajani
Tags: Canadian author, chick lit, finding yourself, vacation, immigration
Countries: Canada, Cuba
Rating: 3.0/5.0 stars

After two emotionally draining books, I needed something a little lighter. Something fun. And, having a cold at the time, something that would make me forget that I was stuck on my couch in the middle of a Canadian winter. Fashionably Late turned out to be the perfect choice.

Full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/2716769/reviews/41386870

It turns out that the author has another novel out now called Cutting Loose, which is kind of a sequel but the focus is on a minor character from this one. I'm planning on reading it eventually too.

My goal is to get a review done for In the Skin of a Lion done this weekend, we'll see how that goes!

Congrats on posting a review...FINALLY!!! LOL. Only three behind. Same as me! I am in a light-weight reading mode myself and enjoying it immensely. I find myself trying to read more high-brow books in a row than I really enjoy sometimes. I mean how much anguish can a girl take?

I hear ya, Berly! Sometimes I pick up those heavier books because I feel like I should be reading them, but I'm getting better at putting them aside when I just can't get into them. "Everything in moderation" applies to books too!

Andrea, have you read The English Patient? It was interesting to have the overlap in characters.

Bonnie - I did read The English Patient many years ago and never realized that it was a sequel to anything. I liked it, but not nearly as much as I liked In the Skin of a Lion. I may reread EP at some point, now that it will probably have more meaning for me, but I'm still undecided.

#91, Now that I've finally read Cellist (for my 1010 Challenge), I suspect the reason he didn't end up speaking to the cellist was that the performances were simply the axis around which the rest of the action revolves. The cellist may have been a real person, but Galloway isn't trying to climb inside his head and create him as a character. I do know what you mean about someone's comments rubbing you the wrong way, however... Happens the other way, too -- you hear someone talk about their book, and it sounds like the greatest thing -- you buy it and read it only to discover it's tedious, dreary and indifferently written.

For those of you who've read The Book of Negroes/Someone Knows My Name - Lawrence Hill was in town last night for a reading and book signing, and I went to see him with my book club. He was not what I was expecting - he turned out to be very laid back, very softspoken, and very funny! He read a little from Any Known Blood before getting into reading from The Book of Negroes, and he had a Q&A session with the audience. He said some things that I thought were interesting, so I thought I'd share in case it interests any of you.

He was asked about the different titles for the US version of the book. Hill said that his publishers initially told him that it would be fine to publish the book as The Book of Negroes in the US, but while on vacation in Germany (I think it was Germany...) with his daughter, he got a last-minute call saying that it had to be changed and he had 24 hours to give the publisher a new title for the US version. In that 24 hours in Germany, he came up with Someone Knows My Name. He said that the publisher felt that the use of the word "Negroes" in the title was potentially too incendiary and alienating to the very people that it intended to engage.

Hill was also asked about how he was able to write from a child's perspective so effectively. He said that when began working on the book, one of his daughters (the one to whom the book is dedicated and who shares a middle name with Aminata Diallo of the book) was eleven and he imagined the events of the story happening to her. He tried to put himself in his daughter's shoes and used that to help him write Aminata's story.

One person asked a question that I was very surprised by - she felt that Hill treated the subject of the slave trade too lightly and wondered if that was a deliberate choice or why he did that. My thought when asked that was "Did we read the same book, lady?!" He was very gracious about it, only saying that it was definitely not his intention and that he personally didn't feel that he'd been light on it at all but that he understands if she feels that he was. I'm still not quite sure what she meant by that.

Last thing, for anyone who's ever done research work - someone asked Hill to talk about the process of researching the book (it took him five years) and he started out by saying "as anyone who's ever done research can tell you, research is really just an excuse to avoid doing real work!" Since some of the book club girls and I have recently finished grad school, we couldn't help but laugh and agree with that :)

Andrea- Thanks for all the info on Lawrence Hill. My copy is a Someone Knows My Name version and I hope to get to it this year!

Wow, sounds like you had a great time. Thanks for sharing Andrea!

It's always fun to get the inside scoop. Thanks for sharing!

What could be better than being able to hear an author whose book you love? How wonderful for you Andrea! I hope to get to Someone Knows My Name in April.

Thanks for the post, Andrea! It sounds like a great event. I wondered about the name change too, and I was surprised that it came out here in the UK as The Book of Negroes (although my library had copies listed under both names). That was an interesting comment about treating the slave trade too lightly. Maybe she meant that by focusing on one person, the number of people/ships etc was lost - i.e. that it was a personal story but it might not have been clear that it applied to x number of other people, who went through the same thing? But then with a personal story you're never going to get that. You just assume that people will know, from other things they have read, how many other people were also taken as slaves and probably experienced something similar. It wasn't the sort of book in which the character would have looked back and included those facts and figures herself, not least because they probably weren't known at that time. It sounds like the author handled the question well, though. I think if someone criticized something that I had taken five years to research and write, I wouldn't take it too well!

It was a really interesting evening. I hope all of you who have yet to read it end up loving it too!

Susan - I hadn't thought of that, but you could be right. My take on it was that the person had expected Hill to take sides on the issue and overtly come down on one side or another. I thought she maybe she didn't think he'd done that to her satisfaction. But it was a story, he was trying to show the experience, not pass judgement on it. And at the risk of sounding like snob here, if you can read Aminata's story (and the historical notes that follow) and consider it a LIGHT treatment of the slave trade, what will it take to make a stronger case?!

Thanks for sharing! Others shared experiences urges me to put the book closer to the top of the pile!

Andrea, I absolutely loved Someone Knows My Name and it was so great hearing your comments from the author. I've enjoyed the few author chats I've been to. It's good to know the stories behind the books and also to appreciate them as being "regular" people.

A little later than planned, but here's my review of In the Skin of a Lion. This one was borrowed from the library so the full review is below.

4. In the Skin of a Lion, Michael Ondaatje
Tags: Canadian author, historical fiction, Toronto, immigration, love
Countries: Canada
Awards: Trillium Award 1987, Governor General’s Award nominee 1987, City of Toronto Book Award 1988
Rating: 4.0/5.0 stars

In the Skin of a Lion is many stories in one: a solitary farm boy trying to make it in the Big City, a story of passion and obsession, a story of a city’s forgotten history, and a story about the immigrant experience in 1920s Toronto.

As with Ondaatje’s other novels, the story can be dense and difficult to follow at times. The writing, however, is wonderful and makes you keep reading even when you’re not entirely sure what exactly you’re reading about. Ondaatje’s writing is like poetry. He has such a beautiful way with words, I found myself rereading passages regularly just to feel the words again.

I read that one of the things Ondaatje intended to do with this novel is shine a light on a part of Canadian history, and Toronto’s local history that often gets overlooked. The Bloor Street Viaduct and the R. C. Harris Waterworks are Toronto landmarks that were built by immigrants who, once the work was done, were largely forgotten and not acknowledged. Ondaatje does a masterful job of bringing the building of these landmarks to life. He captures the sense of grandeur, adventure, danger, and frustration of the times. These were my favourite parts of the novel.

Very highly recommended! And for anyone who missed the discussion about it upthread, The English Patient is actually a sequel to this novel.

The Bloor Street Viaduct: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenifa_taught_me/1534355780/
The R. C. Harris Waterworks: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldchevychic/3583343248/

One of my favourite passages:
Then summer. Blackflies and mosquitoes. Leaping not into hay but into the black underwater colour of the creek, walking naked to the farmhouse, chewing rhubarb, clothes under one arm. You bit the glossy skin of the raw rhubarb and ripped its fibres open and sucked the flavour out. You put the smallest pellet of raspberry onto your tongue and opened it delicately with your teeth. You stood in a field on a hot day obsessed with this precise taste. (p. 53-54)

And because it's so hard to pick just one, here's one more:
Nicholas is aware of himself standing there within the pleasure of recall. It is something new to him. This is what history means. He came to this country like a torch on fire and he swallowed air as he walked forward and gave out light. Energy poured through him. That was all he had time for in those years. Language, customs, family, salaries. Patrick’s gift, that arrow into the past, shows him the wealth in himself, how he has been sewn into history. Now he will begin to tell stories. (p. 149)

Andrea- Terrific review! I have only read The English Patient and loved it. I think I have one or two of his books on my shelves, not this one though.
BTW, great quotes!

Thanks! Rereading the quotes almost makes me want to get the book, to flip through again! I didn't mention it in my review but this was one of the few books where, right after I finished it, I turned back to the first page and skimmed my way through it again. Then I skimmed it once more before bringing it back to the library! If you loved The English Patient, I think you will definitely like In the Skin of the Lion.

Andrea,

You never cease to entice me with interesting Canadian titles. My hubby's mother is from Toronto and he spent many summers with his large extended family in the city and at Wasaga beach. We still visit there often to see all the relatives. I love to read books that remind me about places I know. Add to that the fact that I loved The English Patient and In the Skin of the Lion is going onto the pile.

Bonnie - I hope you love In the Skin of the Lion too! It's funny, I'm only 2 hours away from Toronto and we really don't go often at all, though I'd like to make time to get there more. I actually didn't know anything about the landmarks in the book but it motivated me to do a little research and now I have some things to add to my list of places to visit next time we go.

Is Wasaga beach still as crazy as it used to be? I haven't been in a long time, but I remember it being pretty crowded!

No I haven't been to Wasaga Beach since I was a teenager. I've heard that it's completely changed and I wouldn't recognize it now.

My husband is from Toronto and used to go camping at Wasaga Beach many years ago. I enjoy reading about familiar places too, and making those connections.

>107 spacepotatoes:: Huh, I had no idea that The Skin of the Lion was a prequel to The English Patient. I thought I had a copy of the Lion book but it turned out to be Anil's Ghost. Grrrr! Sorry, bad pun, but my brain has been Disneywashed.

We took a family vacation to Toronto many years ago. Saw the (sleeping) Pandas at the zoo. Loved the city, although we didn't get to spend much time there.

Another library book...

5. Miles from Nowhere, Nami Mun
Tags: coming of age, dysfunctional families, street life, addiction
Countries: United States
Rating: 3.0/5.0 stars

If you plan to read this book, here is something I wish I had known before I started: this is not a novel proper. It reads much better as a collection of short stories. In fact, several chapters appeared in literary publications as short stories before ending up in the book. Knowing this in advance, and knowing that the chapters don’t necessarily appear in chronological order would have saved some confusion and would have made the sense of disconnectedness I felt while reading it make more sense.

All of the chapters tell the story of Korean immigrant Joon, a teenage runaway in 1980s Bronx, NY. Her father left the family, her mother had a breakdown, and Joon took off on her own. She experiments with drugs, prostitution, petty crime, and a stint in a homeless shelter. Joon’s story should have been deeply moving but I was never really able to connect with her or sympathize with her completely. It was written so matter-of-factly, with such a detachedness (that is odd considering how autobiographical some parts of the story are for the author) that I never felt much of an emotional pull. If I had not been expecting a proper novel, I probably would have appreciated the way the story was told much more than I did, and would have not have found it so forgettable.

For a story with similar themes, I’d recommend something like Lullabies for Little Criminals instead.

Well there's a lukewarm recommendation if ever there was one.

Yes...that was pretty much how I felt about the book: lukewarm. It was ok as I was reading but as soon as I put it down, I didn't give it a second thought. When I got to the end and read about the chapters appearing as short stories, I had bit of an "aha!" moment where some of it made more sense, but I didn't end up caring about it enough to want to go back and try it again.

I'm going to skip ahead to my most recently finished book, since it was an Early Reviewers book and I needed to post the review. This was my first ER book and it turned out to be a winner!

11. A Thread of Sky, Deanna Fei
Tags: China, grief, dysfunctional families, cultural identity, women’s roles, LT Early Reviewers, fiction, immigration, travel
Countries: United States, China
Rating: 4.0/5.0

After the death of her husband, Irene feels the strain of loneliness and the resentment of her daughters, who hold her responsible for the circumstances of their father’s death. Her three daughters are estranged from her, and from each other. Irene is estranged from her own mother and sister. This is a family that just doesn’t know how to be together. In an effort to reconnect, Irene plans a two week tour of China for herself, her mother, her sister, and her three daughters. They all grudgingly agree, with very low expectations.

Full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/9047886/reviews/57685469

---------------
Currently Reading: The Mistress of Nothing, Kate Pullinger (for book club)

I have gotten woefully behind on everyone's threads again! Work has been keeping me busy/brain dead for the last while. The good news, though, is that I have finally gotten into one of my local school boards as a supply teacher - my foot is now officially in the door :) I just wanted drop in a say hello, if any of you are still checking this thread from time to time.

I've been getting some good reading in, despite the lack of free time. I've also finally given in and discovered the benefits of audio books - when my eyes are too tired to read, I just listen to my curren book. Thank goodness for the library's digital catalogue! I just finished Three Cups of Tea, which was an amazing story. I'm now on The Surrendered, a Member Giveaway book from February.

Hope you're all enjoying your current reads, and I hope to be back to catch up properly soon!

Hi Andrea,

I miss seeing your thoughtful posts but I'm glad to hear you have a chance at a position that will fulfill you (financially too). Guess what came to me for my birthday? Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden. Now all I have to do is try to fit it in LOL. Take care.

Hey Andrea...Yup, I'm still checking your thread. I know how busy life can get. Just keep on doing the best you can here on LT. I think for the most part we're pretty patient people.

Congrats on your foot in the door! Will you have your summer off? Maybe you can catch up on threads then. Btw, I like the sound of A Thread of Sky. It's fun to get those ER books ahead of the masses, isn't it? And the price is right!

Good luck with your reading. Three Cups of Tea is also on my challenge list. From the sound of things I can look forward to it.

Hello Andrea. Congrats on the "new" job posting! (Sorry, it was "new" a month ago when you posted, but I haven't been on LT much either.) Hope you are happy in your new position. Which Board are you with? Have you had any long-term postings yet? It's wonderful to get that foot in the door. I'm happy for you!

Well, Andrea, you are behind on posting and I am behind on reading. So we are a matched set! I love Three Cups of Tea and was fortunate enough to meet him when he came to speak at my son's school. What a thoughtful, generous guy. Congrats on the foot in the door!

I haven't read Three Cups of Tea but my husband gave me Stones into Schools for Christmas. It immediately went onto my two stacks for the Books off the Shelf challenge. Unfortunately, not much progress yet. However, I have downloaded the audio version from the library and hope to eventually conquer it through those means.

Andrea-- Hey? Are you still here? Posting somewhere else? All is well I hope.

Hi everyone! I know it's been ages since I've posted anything on LT and I'm sorry to have stayed away so long. I've missed you all! Work kept me very busy through the end of June, between my regular full-time job and the supply teaching (I ended up getting into the other school board in my area as well). Then July came and I just needed a break from everything. But I am back and I hope to start catching up with my reviews soon. I've been reading, though not at the pace I would like. I'm barely past the halfway mark of my 50 book challenge. The first post in this thread has been updated, if you'd like to see what I've been reading.

Thanks for continuing to check in on me these last couple of months, I'll be visiting all of your threads again very soon :)

Brenzi - I hope you liked Through Black Spruce!

Berly - I've been checking Greg Mortenson's website every so often to see if he's coming to my area anytime soon. No dice yet, but you never know. It must have been an amazing experience to get to meet him in person!

Louanne - Hope the end of the academic year treated you well! I'm currently supplying for Thames Valley...unfortunately nothing long-term yet. Lots of postings went up in my areas but I have no seniority and don't really know anyone in the board, all of my previous experience had been with a different one. Maybe next year!

It's so good to see you back Andrea. You haven't been gone long enough to miss my reading Through Black Spruce. I haven't gotten to it yet.

I hope you can get caught up and keep posting but I understand that you're very busy.

Andrea- Welcome back! It's great to see you! And it looks like you've been reading some good books too! Hope to see you around a lot more!

I'm another one who has missed you, Andrea. Life just gets incredibly busy sometimes, doesn't it? Post when you can...and we'll be here. :-)

Nice to see all of you again, too :)

I forgot to mention in my previous post what I'm currently reading. I think there were quite a few posts a while back about Lori Lansens' books and I finally decided to give her a try. I've got The Wife's Tale on the go right now and so far, really love the writing style.

Now off to see what you've all been up to...lots of thread reading ahead for me!

Ok, here we go with the reviews! Just a couple of quick ones to get back into the groove for now :)

6. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray
Tags: classic, satire, social commentary
Countries: Brussels, England, India
Rating: 3.5/5.0

Going into Vanity Fair, I had expected it to be something like Jane Austen meets Anna Karenina. I planned to read it just like I did Anna Karenina, in (roughly) 100 page blocks with breaks for shorter books in between. As it turned out, I got so into the story that I read it straight through. It was entertaining and funny. I enjoyed Thackeray’s commentary on society. There were parts where he rambled on unnecessarily (in my opinion, at least) but never long enough to make the story drag. All in all, a satisfying read. I’d suggest, however, not getting the version of this novel with Reese Witherspoon on the cover. She is NOT Becky Sharp and I found her picture really distracting because it made it that much harder not to picture Becky as her.

7. The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes and Why, Amanda Ripley
Tags: non-fiction, disaster, survival, psychology, sociology
Countries: all over!
Rating: 4.0/5.0

I found the information presented here really interesting and eye-opening. Ripley takes us through the three stages of response in a crisis: denial, deliberation, and decision. I learned quite a lot that I didn’t know before, for example: talking on a cell-phone causes tunnel vision, even for a short period after the call has ended (making talking on the phone while driving that much more dangerous!), one can have a genetic pre-disposition to PTSD, and the requirements for a situation to cause panic. That last one was particularly interesting to me since I have had my share of anxiety attacks in the past and one full-on panic attack which was scary at the time. I now have a much better understanding of why that happened. One of the things Ripley tries to stress throughout this book is that it is crucial to know your own “disaster personality,” and have a well rehearsed plan in place so that when disaster does strike, you can jump into action right away. It made me more confident about my own ability to handle a crisis situation.

8. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson
Countries: Sweden
Rating: 3.0/5.0

Given the amount of hype surrounding the Millennium Trilogy, I had high expectations when this novel got picked for my book club. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. The novel started off with a lot of information to absorb at once, most of which ended up being irrelevant. The pacing was awkward since it started off that way, then got intriguing, then got bogged down by too much detail again. By the time the mystery was solved, it was already pretty clear what the twist was going to be and some of the details seemed included just for the shock value. Larsson’s writing style didn’t really do it for me; his constant need to specify the exact brand or model of everything the characters are using drove me crazy.

Despite the criticisms, though, I will say that Larsson has created some interesting characters, especially Lisbeth Salander. I was interested enough in her that I ended up reading The Girl Who Played With Fire, which turned out to be a much more satisfying read.

Hi Andrea,

So good to "see" you. Sorry the Larsson book didn't really appeal to you. I read all three and loved them and was sorry to see the series end.

I'm adding Vanity Fair. (another classic that I missed along the way)

Andrea - I also loved Vanity Fair. And I agree with you about Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, especially about the annoying product placement. But, like you, I'll probably read the rest of the series, though with different (lower) expectations. Glad to hear you liked the next book better. It's in the TBR pile.

When the movie version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo hit our local theatres, I went to see it with my book club and we all agreed that the movie was much better. A lot of the extraneous stuff was left out so the movie had a much tighter story and I gained a new appreciation for Larsson's story telling and character development as a result (the movie was faithful to the book aside from the material that was cut out). I was already interested in learning about Lisbeth from reading the book but I'm not sure if I really would have picked up the second novel without having seen the movie.

I really did like the second book better than the first, especially since I already knew what to expect from the writing so it didn't bother me as much. It was more of a page turner, which I liked. Of course, it ended in a cliff hanger so now I absolutely HAVE to pick up the third book to find out what happens :)

Hi! Good to have you back. :-)

I’ve read (and reviewed) the entire Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson. I found the whole experience kind of ‘meh’. All three books were quite the page turners. I found it interesting that each book seemed to be from a different genre. The first one was like a mystery, the second one was like a thriller and the third one was like a spy thriller. These are o.k. books but I don’t see why anyone should go nuts about them.

Vanity Fair is one book that I’ve been meaning to read forever. Glad to have your opinion on it.

Happy long weekend to all of my LT friends in Canada and the US!

I was so excited to be picking up some momentum...and then I saw that my next book to review was Midnight's Children. That was a tough one. I cheated a bit and cobbled my review together using my comments from the group read threads.

9. Midnight’s Children, Salman Rushdie
Tags: historical fiction, magical realism
Countries: India, Pakistan
Rating: 2.5/5.0

Salman Rushdie’s writing style is easy to fall in love with, but it didn’t take long before I realized that no matter how much I loved the way the words flowed on the page, I didn’t always get what was going on. Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children is a densely packed tale of babies switched at birth, a nation divided, magic, history, love, prejudice, and war. It’s beautifully written and often laugh-out-loud funny. It can also be confusing and frustrating.

"Midnight’s Children" are those born within the first hour of the newly independent India. The story of Saleem’s life is intended to parallel the events in India at the same time. It may be my own lack of historical knowledge of India and Pakistan during the 1960s/70s that made this a more difficult read than I’d anticipated. It definitely felt like I was missing something, especially when reading about the war in Book Three.

I found that I had a hard time connecting with the majority of characters. The ones I was most sympathetic to were only around for a chapter at a time. The use of Padma as a means of addressing the reader got very tiresome after a while and didn’t seem to be necessary. The whole novel seemed to be leading up to some sort of payoff that, in the end, never materialized. After a month of slogging through this novel, it was disappointing and unsatisfying.

------

Overall, that doesn't sound very positive, but I really did enjoy Rushdie's writing despite not entirely following the story. Here are some quotes that I especially loved:

The world was new again. After a winter’s gestation in its eggshell of ice, the valley had beaked its way out into the open, moist and yellow. The new grass bided its time underground; the mountains were retreating to their hill-stations for the warm season.

“No, little rich boy; there is no third principle; there is only money-and-poverty, and have-and-lack, and right-and-left; there is only me-against-the-world! The world is not ideas, rich boy; the world is no place for dreamers or their dreams; the world, little Snotnose, is things. Things and their makers rule the world; look at Birla and Tata, and all the powerful: they make things. For things, the country is run. Not for people. For things, America and Russia send aid; but five hundred million stay hungry. When you have things, then there is time to dream; when you don’t, you fight.”

Aaah, interesting that the Larsson films are better. Must see them, then, as I agree that the books could have used some editing!

Andrea- Good review of Midnight's Children! I think you nailed it perfectly. You want to praise some of the writing but overall unsatisfying.
Hope to see you more often!

Hi Andrea,

I couldn't agree with you more about Midnight's Children. It just fell flat for me too. I think I gave it 2 stars.

10. Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself, Judy Blume
Tags: YA, coming of age, 1940s, WWII, Florida
Countries: United States
Rating: 3.0/5.0

One of my reading goals this year was to reread some my old favourites. I read my share of Judy Blume books way back when and Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself (along with Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret) has stayed with me. I was curious how the story would hold up over time and if I’d still be able to appreciate what I loved about it the first time.

The story is set in 1947, when Sally is ten years old. The Freedmans – Sally, younger brother Douglas, their mother and grandmother - relocate from New Jersey to Miami so that Douglas can recuperate from an illness. Sally has to negotiate a new home, a new school, new friends, a tense relationship with her mother, missing her father, and spying on their elderly neighbour whom Sally is convinced is really Hitler is disguise. With all of this going on, it’s no wonder I always remembered this book being much thicker than it actually is!

Full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/96001/reviews/55866103

11. A Thread of Sky, Deanna Fei
Tags: China, grief, dysfunctional families, cultural identity, women’s roles, LT Early Reviewers, fiction, immigration, travel
Countries: United States, China
Rating: 4.0/5.0

I already posted this one a while ago since it was an Early Reviewer book, but for the sake of completeness, here's the link again:

http://www.librarything.com/work/9047886/reviews/57685469

Hi Stranger! I, too, have been off-line at LT lately. Nice to see you again! Thanks for saving me on Midnight's Children. I have tried, twice to get into it to no avail. Now I think I shall skip it. I have read the first of the Larsson books and enjoyed it. Will have to look for the movie next!

Hi Berly! You won't be missing much with Midnight's Children, it took me a full month to get through it and it was a slog. Enjoy the Dragon Tattoo movie, it's very good!

Here's my next review, for Mistress of Nothing. This was a book club pick, and our thoughts on it were pretty consistent with my review. I didn't mention it anywhere in the review but I do want to say that the book reminded me a lot of Remains of the Day. Some parts of it could have been Remains told from a woman's perspective, with Sally's commitment to her job and her mistress. Also, the book's cover is gorgeous, which is was really drew me to it.

12. Mistress of Nothing, Kate Pullinger
Tags: book club, historical fiction, Canadian author, travel, love, betrayal, women’s roles
Countries: England, Egypt
Awards: Giller Prize Longlist, Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction 2009
Rating: 3.5/5.0

In 1865, Lady Lucie Duff Gordon’s Letters From Egypt were published, telling of her experiences as a well-respected English woman forced to relocate to a warmer climate in order to survive tuberculosis. In her letters, she mentions Sally, her lady’s maid, but gives very little information about her. With this novel, Kate Pullinger attempts to fill that gap and tell Sally’s story.

Full review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/8164090/reviews/58473570

Here's a passage I really liked. It appeals to the traveller in me:

What happens when you leave everything behind? When you leave everything familiar, not just houses and streets and wet windy winter-time, but husbands, children, friends? For me: the train into London on my day off; the arriving back home again. The branch of the oak tree that knocks against the roof of the stable. The postman who comes down the lane. None of these things have followed me to Egypt. Does this mean I am no longer the same person? Does this mean that I too have changed?

13. Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Tags: non-fiction, education, philanthropy, inspiration, middle east
Countries: United States, Pakistan, Afghanistan
Awards: Kiriyama Prize 2007, Dayton Literary Peace Prize runner-up 2007
Rating: 4.0/5.0

In 1993, Greg Mortenson attempted to climb K2 and ended up lost on a mountainside in Pakistan, extremely sick. He spent several weeks recovering in the mountain village of Korphe and during his time there, he made a promise to the village that one day, he’d return and build them a school. What makes Mortenson’s story so incredible is that even after he realizes how much money the project would require, how difficult it will be to get the supplies and bring them up the mountain, and how confounding it can be to deal with a culture and politics so different from his own, Mortenson keeps his word. Three Cups of Tea chronicles his experiences and details how the Korphe school led to several others in Pakistan, and eventually to the founding of the Central Asia Institute.

Mortenson’s drive to get things done under the most hostile of circumstances is inspiring. At one point, he is even kidnapped by extremists near the Afghan border. Through it all, Mortenson persists where others don’t even try, maintaining that the most effective way to fight terrorism and extremism is through education and attempting to understand each other rather than bombing. We do get to find out about how some of the first graduates of Mortenson’s Korphe school fared and their success is a very convincing argument for his philosophy.

My only criticism of this book is that David Oliver Relin’s writing style leaves a lot to be desired. Relin is lucky that Mortenson’s story is compelling enough to overshadow the often inconsistent writing. Towards the end of Three Cups of Tea, Mortenson makes a promise to build the Central Asia Institute’s first school in Afghanistan. This is where the next book, Stones into Schools, picks up. I’m very much looking forward to this second book, especially as it was written by Mortenson himself.

I know you only gave it 3.5 stars Andrea but Mistress of Nothing sounds really good to me so I'm adding it.

It was still good, Bonnie, just had a couple of things about it that left me scratching my head. My mom borrowed it after it I finished and she loved it. Hope you enjoy it!

Andrea- Very good review of Three Cups. I really enjoyed it too and am also looking forward to Stones into Schools.

I so agree with you about Reese Witherspoon vs. Becky Sharpe, but I hate all movie star covers--I much prefer my own imagination, thank you! I might try Mistress of Nothing too, since you compared it to Remains of the Day. And I felt the same way as you about Midnight's Children, but I didn't even finish it--and not regretting that one bit! Finally, I started The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo and just couldn't understand the hoopla over this book! Of course, I'll probably eventually read at least one of them, because I'm as much of a lemming as anyone else. (Not saying that's why everyone else is reading it--just would be my only motivation.) I did like the movie though.

P.S. I didn't even notice that Three Cups of Tea had a ghostwriter while I was reading it. I remember thinking that the writing was not all that good, but just forgave him ("him" being the author--I thought!) because Mortensen had such a good story to tell, and I admired him as a person.

I enjoyed Three Cups and have Stones Into Schools waiting for me. My son's school actually did the penny fundraiser for Greg and he came to speak at his school. That was two years ago I think. Really good guy. I wish him and the girls the best of luck.

That's great, Berly! I've been keeping the penny drive in the back of my mind for when I get a regular teaching job.

I've hit some "reviewers block" in writing the review for the next book on my list, but I'm hoping to get it posted soon. Work has started up again so things are a little slowg going.

Andrea- It's great to see you posting! Looking forward to your reviews!

Something about Three Cups of Tea has not really grabbed me; not sure what it is as I know lots of people loved it.

Bonnie, do you mean you've started it and couldn't get into it? The author's writing style, especially at the beginning when he is setting up Mortenson's story and personality, can be really grating. I had a tough time with that but at a certain point (I don't remember exactly where), the story itself took over and the writing didn't bother me as much anymore.

Three Cups of Tea is sitting on my TBR pile, thanks for the good review.