Book a Week in 2010 - Week 36

[Robin M]

Today is the start of book week 36 and the quest to read 52 books in 52 weeks. Have you started Book # 36 yet? Mr. Linky is all set up on the 52 books blog and ready for you to link to your reviews.

 

Happy Labor Day weekend. Hope everyone is having a restful and relaxing time. This week on the 52 books blog - J is for Justice and I have a mini challenge for you. The letter of the week is J. I did a random search on Amazon and came up with five books with Justice in the title. Your job is to decide which book I should read. State your pick either here in the thread or leave a comment on the blog. If you want to play along, pick a word that starts with J, pick out some books, let us know what they are and we'll pick one we think you should read.

 

What are you reading this week?

[Robin M]

I am 3/4's of the way done with Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind. I stopped midway to read Cherry Adair's paranormal romance "Black Magic." She is one of my favorite authors.

 

Almost forgot - I'm having a giveaway of Diana Gabaldon's Echo in the Bone. It was just released in paperback so put your name in the hat if your interested.

[6packofun]

I just finished Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon and thought it was great!! I love reading local authors (to my Cleveland), too, so that was a bonus. I'm going to try his other novel, You Remind Me of Me soon.

 

Starting Mockingjay now so that dd and I can finally discuss. LOL

[Stacia]

I am still working on The Black Nile and The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie.

 

Robin, for your "J" challenge, I'm voting for Laurie King's "Justice Hall" for you. I read the first one in that series & really enjoyed it. I need to read some more of that series.

 

For the "J" challenge, I did a little searching & ended up requesting 2 books: The Day of the Jackal and The Verse by the Side of the Road: The Story of the Burma-Shave Signs and Jingles.

 

Books I've read in 2010: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; Good Omens; The Palace of Dreams; Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World; Lying Awake; The Remains of the Day; Iron & Silk; Lottery; The City of Dreaming Books; Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel; Clutter Busting: Letting Go of What's Holding You Back; The Power of Less; Stop Clutter from Stealing Your Life; The Bonesetter's Daughter; Life of Pi; Orphans Preferred: The Twisted Truth and Lasting Legend of the Pony Express; Whatever You Do, Don't Run: True Tales of a Botswana Safari Guide; Waiting for Snow in Havana; The Happiness Project; Ella Minnow Pea: A Progressively Lipogrammatic Epistolary Fable; The Dante Club; Conquering Chronic Disorganization; City of Thieves; Throw Out Fifty Things: Clear the Clutter, Find Your Life; Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen; Dead Until Dark; The Color of Magic; Fernande; Special Topics in Calamity Physics; Medicus; The Blind Contessa's New Machine; My Name is Red; The White Tiger

Edited September 5, 2010 by Stacia

[JennW in SoCal]

Too many books waiting for me to look for a "J" book for the challenge! But Robin, I second the recommendation of Laurie King's Justice Hall.

 

I am almost 3/4 of the way through Moby Dick -- almost there -- but still no sign of the white whale!!! No wonder people give up on this book. I'm still enjoying it, but it is certainly not a page turner.

 

I am in the middle of a page turner, though. Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson -- your basic fantasy fiction but done well.

 

I finished another Discworld book, this time Thud! It made me laugh and want to get to the end of the book to see what happens.

[eaglei]

Finished:

 

#47 - Dance of a Fallen Monk: A Journey to Spiritual Enlightenment, by George Fowler. While there were a few (very few) redeeming points to this autobiographical work and the writing was well-done by an obviously well-educated person, I was overall disappointed. Not agreeing with his views was only a part of it. He was way too introspective for my liking and, in my opinion, seemed rather snobbish. Glad to be done with it.

 

Currently reading:

 

#48 - Living by God's Surprises: The Glory of Prayer in Suffering, Mystery, Weakness, and Joy; A Personal Journey, by Harold L. Myra. Just started this book. It is mostly about the authors' month-long experiment with prayer. So far, I've encountered a few tidbits containing unusual perspective (or perhaps musings thought but generally left unspoken?), but nothing really meaty. Looks to be a quick-read.

[dangermom]

I put up two posts this week--one is two literary criticism books by C. S. Lewis and the other is two light novels, Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer (it was slap up to the mark) and The Machine's Child by Kage Baker (I think its about #6 in the Company series).

 

The C. S. Lewis books were really enjoyable, and I'd highly recommend them to anyone trying to shepherd a high-school kid into a passing familiarity with The Faerie Queene or Paradise Lost. Since I've always had terrible trouble with FQ, I went looking and found an old book called "Stories from the Faerie Queene"--a retelling in intelligible English for children. I'm reading it now and it's quite good, so if you want the Spenserian equivalent of "Black Ships Before Troy" or something, this is it.:001_smile:

[Rosie_0801]

I'm about a third of the way through Four Elements and I'm thoroughly enjoying it!

 

Rosie

[Storm Bay]

I'm reading The Hour that Changes the World.

[Kareni]

For the "J" challenge, I did a little searching & ended up requesting 2 books: ... and The Verse by the Side of the Road: The Story of the Burma-Shave Signs and Jingles.

 

My daughter and I both enjoyed reading The Verse by the Side of the Road when she was studying the modern period in 9th grade. It was a fun and interesting read.

 

 

 

... Since I've always had terrible trouble with FQ [The Faerie Queene], I went looking and found an old book called "Stories from the Faerie Queene"--a retelling in intelligible English for children. I'm reading it now and it's quite good, so if you want the Spenserian equivalent of "Black Ships Before Troy" or something, this is it.:001_smile:

 

dangermom,

 

"Stories from the Faerie Queene" sounds intriguing. Who is the author?

 

For a highschooler or adult reader, you might also wish to look for Fierce Wars and Faithful Loves: Book I of Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene by Roy Maynard.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[WiseOwlKnits]

I finished Mockingjay tonight and next on my list is Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult because it's my church book club book this month.

 

I'm actually on schedule. Woohoo!!

[laughing lioness]

I finished Pagan Christianity and Mockingjay last week.

 

I'm reading 10 Things You Need to Eat and Sonic Boom: Globalization at Mach Speed this week.

[Stacia]

I finished "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" last night. I so thoroughly enjoyed it. Flavia is a great, spunky character & I just adored her. Good, fun mystery.

 

I'm still working on "The Black Nile". I need to finish it so I can return it to the library this week. It's somewhat interesting, but not exactly riveting reading, imo.

[Storm Bay]

I finished Pagan Christianity and Mockingjay last week.

 

I'm reading 10 Things You Need to Eat and Sonic Boom: Globalization at Mach Speed this week.

 

What did you think of Pagan Christianity? I saw it on my mother's shelf. If it's controversial, feel free to PM me.

[Mommyfaithe]

Oh Jeeeesh...I totally lost count!! BUT, I am still reading and probably hitting a book a week by the # of times I get to the library. This week I am finishing up the HP series reading book 6 and with # 7 waiting patiently. I also read Mockingjay to finish up the Hunger Games trilogy. I also have The Giver on my night table because ds said I had to read it....so, next after HP. I have read so much teen fiction this ear it is sort of scary. I think my brain up and left .....and I just needed easy and fun...non-realistic reads. Oh, I am also 1/2 through The Help....but I am slugging through that one....

 

Faithe

[Imprimis]

I finished "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" last night. I so thoroughly enjoyed it. Flavia is a great, spunky character & I just adored her. Good, fun mystery.

 

 

 

I have been having the hardest time sticking with a book the last few weeks---must have started and put down 4 of them.

 

I picked up "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" on your recommendation :001_smile:, and, so far, it has held my interest.

 

I anticipate finishing this one ;).

[dangermom]

 

dangermom,

 

"Stories from the Faerie Queene" sounds intriguing. Who is the author?

 

It's Mary MacLeod. If you google it, you'll find it full-text online, but it amounts to a nearly 400-page book.

For a highschooler or adult reader, you might also wish to look for Fierce Wars and Faithful Loves: Book I of Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene by Roy Maynard.

 

Regards,

Kareni

Thanks, I'll look for that!

[WiseOwlKnits]

reads. Oh, I am also 1/2 through The Help....but I am slugging through that one....

 

Faithe

 

:iagree:

 

 

I had a really hard time reading that one too. Our church book club picked it one month to read, but I had the hardest time getting into it and then finishing it.

[Stacia]

Oh, I am also 1/2 through The Help....but I am slugging through that one....

 

:iagree:I had a really hard time reading that one too. Our church book club picked it one month to read, but I had the hardest time getting into it and then finishing it.

 

I'm glad to hear these reviews. Everything I've seen prior to this is a glowing report.

 

I haven't read it yet, though it's on my 'to read someday' list, lol.

 

I picked up "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" on your recommendation :001_smile:, and, so far, it has held my interest.

 

I anticipate finishing this one ;).

 

Yay! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I see there are a couple other Flavia books out there, so I'm going to be reading them too....

 

I decided to give up on "The Black Nile". It's fine, but just not holding my interest.

 

Instead, I started reading a book I got through PaperbackSwap: The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists. It has been mildly amusing, though not as rip-roaringly funny as the reviews made me think it might be. The book I have also has "The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab" in it, so I'll probably read it too. Each book is around 100 pages & they are very quick to read. I guess I'd say they're quirky, bizarre, & mildly amusing -- the type of book to read for those 'brain dead' type times, lol.

 

 

 

"The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists

 

 

 

Not since

Moby-Dick

...No, not since

Treasure Island

...Actually, not since Jonah and the Whale has there been a sea saga to rival

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists

, featuring the greatest sea-faring hero of all time, the immortal Pirate Captain, who, although he lives for months at a time at sea, somehow manages to keep his beard silky and in good condition.

 

 

 

Worried that his pirates are growing bored with a life of winking at pretty native ladies and trying to stick enough jellyfish together to make a bouncy castle, the Pirate Captain decides it's high time to spearhead an adventure.

 

 

 

While searching for some major pirate booty, he mistakenly attacks the young Charles Darwin's Beagle and then leads his ragtag crew from the exotic Galapagos Islands to the fog-filled streets of Victorian London. There they encounter grisly murder, vanishing ladies, radioactive elephants, and the Holy Ghost himself. And that's not even the half of it.

 

 

 

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab

 

 

 

Fresh from their mishaps with Charles Darwin and the evil Bishop of Oxford, the Pirates set sail in a bouncy new vessel–purchased on credit. In order to repay his debts, The Pirate Captain is determined to capture the enigmatic White Whale, hunted by the notoriously moody Ahab, who has promised a reward.

 

 

 

Chaos ensues, featuring the lascivious Cutlass Liz, the world’s most dangerous mosquito, an excerpt from the Pirate Captain’s novel in progress (a bodice ripper, of course), whale ventriloquism, practical lessons in whale painting, a shanty-singing contest in a Las Vegas casino, and a dramatic climax in which the Pirate Captain’s Prize Ham saves the day!

 

 

 

Move over, Herman Melville."

 

Edited September 9, 2010 by Stacia

[laughing lioness]

What did you think of Pagan Christianity? I saw it on my mother's shelf. If it's controversial, feel free to PM me.

 

The authors are trying to present a strong argument against the "givens" of the church. I think they make good points. The organization of the Christian church as we know it enforces a passive spoon fed faith rather than a vibrant, life giving one.

I think it is very controversial, but it also made some kind of best seller list so I think the authors are really tapping into an issue that resonates for a lot of people that are really searching for a vibrant life of faith.

However, my dh, who is a Bible scholar, was not that impressed with their scholarship/ historicity.

All that being said, it put words to something that has bothered me for a very long time.

I put a longer review on my blog.

Edited September 9, 2010 by laughing lioness

[Kareni]

"Stories from the Faerie Queene" sounds intriguing. Who is the author?

 

It's Mary MacLeod. If you google it, you'll find it full-text online, but it amounts to a nearly 400-page book.

 

Many thanks! I'll check it out.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Jane in NC]

In a previous thread, Stacia noted that she was reading My Name is Red by Turkish author Orhan Pamuk. Intrigued (because I have never read anything by a Turkish author), I borrowed the book from the library.

 

In addition to this fictional work, I am reading a memoir, Flyaway: How a Wild Bird Rehabber Sought Adventure and Found Her Wings by Suzie Gilbert. As though I don't have enough of my own bird adventures.

 

And I am listening to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn which I am finding very depressing. I know, there is hope, but the poverty in the tenements is beating me down.

[Storm Bay]

The authors are trying to present a strong argument against the "givens" of the church. I think they make good points. The organization of the Christian church as we know it enforces a passive spoon fed faith rather than a vibrant, life giving one.

I think it is very controversial, but it also made some kind of best seller list so I think the authors are really tapping into an issue that resonates for a lot of people that are really searching for a vibrant life of faith.

However, my dh, who is a Bible scholar, was not that impressed with their scholarship/ historicity.

All that being said, it put words to something that has bothered me for a very long time.

I put a longer review on my blog.

 

Thanks, I've looked at your review. It's a different book than the one my mother has. I'm going to look for this book; I have read things about the pagan origins of many things in the Christian church before and think that there is something to it even if it's not as much as some people think. If nothing else, it gets me thinking & I'm trying to steer away from fiction right now.

[TechWife]

Well, review wise I am up to 29, but I plan to post several tonight. I do seem a bit behind, though. I'll have to get some good stuff from the library this weekend! First up tonight, is The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. Check back later tonight for reviews of Chosen and Crazy Love.

 

ETA: I managed to add a total of 6 reviews tonight to bring my total up to 34 books - not as far behind as I thought!

Edited September 11, 2010 by TechWife

[ChiknGirl]

Hi. I'm new to the forums, hopefully no one minds if I jump right in here. I'm on book #43 for the year. I haven't written reviews of them, but I keep a notebook by my bed to write the title in when I'm finished it. It helps me not reread too many books. :blush: Right now I'm finishing up a fun, light read: Shakespeare Undead by Lori Handeland. This is the 3rd based-on-the-life-of-Shakespeare book I've read this year, seems to be a theme for me.

Edited September 11, 2010 by ChiknGirl
had to fix a typo

[eaglei]

Hi. I'm new to the forums, hopefully no one minds if I jump right in here. I'm on book #43 for the year. I haven't written reviews of them, but I keep a notebook by my bed to write the title in when I'm finished it. It helps me not reread too many books. :blush: Right now I'm finishing up a fun, light read: Shakespeare Undead by Lori Handeland. This is the 3rd based-on-the-life-of-Shakespeare book I've read this year, seems to be a theme for me.

 

Jump right in! The more the merrier! :)

Shakespeare Undead - sounds intriguing - I'll have to look it up and see what it's about!

[Kareni]

Right now I'm finishing up a fun, light read: Shakespeare Undead by Lori Handeland. This is the 3rd based-on-the-life-of-Shakespeare book I've read this year, seems to be a theme for me.

 

 

Welcome, Emily!

 

If you haven't already read it, you might enjoy Bill Bryson's Shakespeare: The World as Stage. It's a short read but informative and amusingly written.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Storm Bay]

Hi. I'm new to the forums, hopefully no one minds if I jump right in here. I'm on book #43 for the year. I haven't written reviews of them, but I keep a notebook by my bed to write the title in when I'm finished it. It helps me not reread too many books. :blush: Right now I'm finishing up a fun, light read: Shakespeare Undead by Lori Handeland. This is the 3rd based-on-the-life-of-Shakespeare book I've read this year, seems to be a theme for me.

 

Welcome! I don't write book reviews, so not to worry.

[Robin M]

 

Link to Week 37

[Stacia]

In a previous thread, Stacia noted that she was reading My Name is Red by Turkish author Orhan Pamuk. Intrigued (because I have never read anything by a Turkish author), I borrowed the book from the library.

 

How are you liking this, Jane?

 

Hi. I'm new to the forums, hopefully no one minds if I jump right in here. I'm on book #43 for the year. I haven't written reviews of them, but I keep a notebook by my bed to write the title in when I'm finished it.

 

:seeya:

 

I don't really write reviews either, except for what I post in this thread. Like you, I keep a list of books read -- it helps me remember the good ones & bad ones, lol.

[Jane in NC]

How are you liking this, Jane?

 

 

 

I have not spent that much time with My Name is Red. I have a bird rehabber meeting on Wednesday so my priority is to finish Flyaway. This is a book what should resonate with other volunteers so I want to be able to pass it along.

 

The art imagery is lovely in Pamuk's book. My favorite line so far is "Painting is the silence of thought and the music of sight."

[Shawneinfl]

Just finished 703: How I lost More than A Quarter Ton and Gained a Life by Nancy Makin. Truly inspiring. I'm still reading Whatever You Do Don't Run and saving up Mockingjay for my next free weekend.