Book a Week in 2011 - week twenty two

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday! Today is the start of week 22 in our quest to read 52 books in 52 weeks. Welcome to everyone who is just joining in, welcome back to our regulars and to all who are following our progress. Mr. Linky is all set up on the 52 books blog to link to your reviews. The link is in my signature.

52 books blog - U is for unicorn pegasus kitten. Last year an artist painted a picture including Wil Wheaton and John Scalzi and a fan fiction contest was born. The result - Clash of the Geeks. Check it out. All for a good cause supported the Lupus Foundation.

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

 

Link to week 21

[Robin M]

I'm currently reading "The Perfect Poison" by Amanda Quick aka Jayne Krentz. (Arcane society book # 6). Next book up after this historical novel by Ben Kane called "The Silver Eagle". He sent me two copies so will be putting one up for giveaway soon.

[Negin]

Still reading The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and really enjoying it. Flavia is a blast. :D

 

[Rosie_0801]

Finally I've come back to these threads! It's taken me about 5 weeks to finish the book on the history of the Latin language because I haven't been feeling clever enough to read! And yesterday I read a Terry Pratchett novel :)

 

Rosie

[Ali in OR]

I've been slowing down a bit reading-wise. I finally got through Radical Homemakers by Shannon Hayes. I have to say that I found it a bit tedious. I don't have the energy to analyze it much further than that. Is it so unusual that some smart women choose to focus on home and family instead of a career? It's not earth-shattering to me that many find the lifestyle healthier and happier. And it doesn't strike me as being all that radical, but maybe because it's not so unusual where I live. Anyway. Finally finished it and had to pay a small fine for not getting it done during the 14-day checkout period.

 

Next up is the pick for June for my book club: Stay With Me by Sandra Rodriguez Barron. From Amazon (Booklist): In the aftermath of a devastating hurricane, five children are discovered alone aboard a luxury boat in a Puerto Rican harbor. Adopted by different families, the children share a special bond, considering themselves siblings despite their mysterious origins. Now adults, Taina, Raymond, Adrian, Holly, and David have gathered at the home of David’s former girlfriend, Julia, for a long-overdue reunion. The house, a part of Julia’s family for generations, is an aging, isolated pile, the ideal setting for the theatrical revelations that are sure to follow. David, recently diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer, believes their time together could not only help him heal but also reunite him with the beautiful and saintly Julia. The remaining siblings, all with their own agendas, must also decide whether to find out, with the help of science, if they are truly related. Be-careful-what-you-wish-for rings true as the siblings veer toward their breaking points, and the truth about their early lives is uncovered. Part mystery, part romance, this is an intriguing story that explores the meaning of family and the role of history in defining who we are.

 

2011 Reading List

 

26. Radical Homemakers-Shannon Hayes

25. Heaven is for Real-Todd Burpo

24. Under the Tuscan Sun-Frances Mayes

23. Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother-Amy Chua

22. These Three Remain-Pamela Aidan

21. Chocolat-Joanne Harris

20. Where the Red Fern Grows-Wilson Rawls

19. Duty and Desire-Pamela Aidan

18. An Assembly Such As This-Pamela Aidan

17. Left Neglected-Lisa Genova

16. Classics in the Classroom-Michael Clay Thompson

15. True You-Janet Jackson

14. The Samurai’s Garden-Gail Tsukiyama

13. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet-Jamie Ford

12. God’s Middle Finger-Richard Grant

11. Kristin Lavransdatter-I: The Wreath-Sigrid Undset

10. The Housekeeper and the Professor-Yoko Ogawa

9. A Lucky Child-Thomas Buergenthal

8. Three Cups of Tea-Greg Mortenson

7. Run-Ann Patchett

6. The Red Queen-Philippa Gregory

5. Agnes Grey-Anne Bronte

4. The Daughter of Time-Josephine Tey

3. Mythology-Edith Hamilton

2. Phantom Toll Booth-Norton Juster

1. Her Fearful Symmetry-Audrey Niffenegger

[eaglei]

Very busy week for me, so I am still reading:

 

#40 - Decision Points, by George Bush. Enjoying it very much. Interesting and enlightening to read the process that went into the decisions.

[prairiegirl]

#40 - Decision Points, by George Bush. Enjoying it very much. Interesting and enlightening to read the process that went into the decisions.

 

:iagree: I found this book to be very fascinating.

 

Another memoir that I am finding to be a breath of fresh air is Ashley Judd's 'All That is Bitter and Sweet.' This book is about her personal growth coming from a very dysfunctional family as well as her social activism. I found this book to be quite interesting as well. I am hoping to finish it tonight.

 

I am also hoping to finish "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" then I will move on to "Major Pettigrew....." Sorry, I can't remember the rest of the title nor the author. :D

[Imprimis]

Still reading The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and really enjoying it. Flavia is a blast. :D

 

Isn't she great?! I'm looking forward to reading the other books in the series.

[edithcrawley]

I'm going to read "O Pioneers" by Willa Cather. Not sure what I'll read after that.

[ladydusk]

I'm reading Aunt Jane's Hero (by Elizabeth Prentiss) for book club. I still have some other reads going too ...

[Mom-ninja.]

Finally I've come back to these threads! It's taken me about 5 weeks to finish the book on the history of the Latin language because I haven't been feeling clever enough to read!

 

Rosie

 

Nothing like some light reading for you!

[dangermom]

I read a classic (but now almost forgotten) British mystery, The Rising of the Moon, and The Great Typo Hunt, a chronicle of one man's quest to fix typos across the USA.

[Stacia]

Flavia is a blast. :D

 

:D

 

And yesterday I read a Terry Pratchett novel :)

 

Which one??? :001_smile:

 

Next up is the pick for June for my book club: Stay With Me by Sandra Rodriguez Barron.

 

That sounds like an interesting book!

 

Tonight, I finished The Dream of Perpetual Motion. I really enjoyed the book; it was interesting, unique, & thought-provoking. Common & surreal at the same time. If you're interested in trying steampunk, I'd definitely recommend trying this book.

 

 

"Product Description

 

 

 

A debut so magical… so extraordinary… it has to be read to be believed….

 

 

 

Imprisoned for life aboard a zeppelin that floats high above a fantastic metropolis, the greeting-card writer Harold Winslow pens his memoirs. His only companions are the disembodied voice of Miranda Taligent, the only woman he has ever loved, and the cryogenically frozen body of her father Prospero, the genius and industrial magnate who drove her insane.

 

 

 

The tale of Harold’s life is also one of an alternate reality, a lucid waking dream in which the well-heeled have mechanical men for servants, where the realms of fairy tales can be built from scratch, where replicas of deserted islands exist within skyscrapers. As Harold’s childhood infatuation with Miranda changes over twenty years to love and then to obsession, the visionary inventions of her father also change Harold’s entire world, transforming it from a place of music and miracles to one of machines and noise. And as Harold heads toward a last desperate confrontation with Prospero to save Miranda’s life, he finds himself an unwitting participant in the creation of the greatest invention of them all: the perpetual motion machine.

 

 

 

Beautifully written, stunningly imagined, and wickedly funny, The Dream of Perpetual Motion is a heartfelt meditation on the place of love in a world dominated by technology."

Not sure what book I'll start next...

 

Books read in 2011:

The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag

People Die

Three Ways to Capsize a Boat

The Perfect Man

The Abyssinian

Food Rules

Empress Orchid

Sister Pelagia and the Red Cockerel

A Voyage Long and Strange

All the Names

When We Were Orphans

Her Fearful Symmetry

Meeting Faith: The Forest Journals of a Black Buddhist Nun

The Guinea Pig Diaries

13, rue Thérèse

The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno

Twelve Fingers

Fatu-Hiva

Apartment Therapy

Haroun and the Sea of Stories

The Broom of the System

Well-Schooled in Murder

A Red Herring without Mustard

Treasure Island

I Have America Surrounded

Kafka on the Shore

The Dream of Perpetual Motion

[Rosie_0801]

Which one??? :001_smile:

 

Small Gods. I think I'm reading Pyramids next.

 

:)

Rosie

[Negin]

Isn't she great?! I'm looking forward to reading the other books in the series.

Me too. :)

 

Robin, I've been meaning to thank you for starting this thread every week. Love it and look so forward to it. Thank you for being so consistent and thoughtful. :grouphug: :)

[Heather in Neverland]

Finally reading Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and loving it!

[Lizzie in Ma]

Finished all the Mercy Thompson books, moved on to Rob Lowe's autobiography.

[nd293]

I am mortified to share my list, as I slacked off in Week 4, or somewhere around then, but as the days get colder and all the TV series I enjoy have reached the end of the season I am inspired to start reading again. I am determined to catch up before the end of the year...

 

7. Crying Blue Murder – Paul Johnston

6. Look for Me – Edeet Ravel

5. The Last Red Death – Paul Johnston

4. The Red Tent

3. The Housekeeper and the Professor

2. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert

1. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down

 

I am currently reading The Almond Blossom Appreciation Society, and have The 19th Wife and The Golden Silence on reserve at the library.

 

I find looking for books while at the library almost impossible with ds4 running around, and get so miserable when I waste my time on a book that I don't really enjoy, so I am going to start relying more on recommendations and reviews, and reserving books in advance.

[Mommyfaithe]

I'm going to read "O Pioneers" by Willa Cather. Not sure what I'll read after that.

 

I loved this book!!

 

I am reading Black Ships before Troy by Rosemary Sutcliffe and Just So Stories by Kipling...aloud.....and even though they are childrens books, I am counting them because I love them...and they are feeding my inner child.

Faithe

[Violet Crown]

I am also hoping to finish "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight"

Oooo! In Middle English? Is it the Tolkien edition?

 

I'm still fighting my way through The Peloponnesian War with Thucydides. One of the shocking things is the scale of the killings; the sizes of towns, armies, and navies are so small, and then suddenly an attacking army will kill a thousand or so inhabitants and sell the women and children into slavery. This would be a staggering death toll for a war in this country just in raw numbers; when you think about the relative proportions, it's just unimaginably murderous.

Edited May 30, 2011 by Sharon in Austin

[eaglei]

Robin, I've been meaning to thank you for starting this thread every week. Love it and look so forward to it. Thank you for being so consistent and thoughtful. :grouphug: :)

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

Thank you, Robin.

 

And thank you, Negin in Grenada, for thoughtfully posting this. :)

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I finished The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest last night. That was my Week 20 book. I've been listening to The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield for Week 21, and I should have it finished after I drive an hour to pick sis up from airport tonight. Will start Still Alice by Lisa Genova tonight for this week's book.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Robin, I've been meaning to thank you for starting this thread every week. Love it and look so forward to it. Thank you for being so consistent and thoughtful. :grouphug: :)

 

Ditto.

[Storm Bay]

Finally reading Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and loving it!

 

It was one of the favourite novels I read last year (was it last year? I think so.)

 

Still reading The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and really enjoying it. Flavia is a blast. :D

 

 

I want to take a look at this just because of the title, so I'm going to see if it's our library network since I'm on a temporary ban from buying books after going to a homeschool convention, etc., even though I'm not usually a mystery reader.

[Stacia]

.

[Robin M]

Aw shucks! It's been a pleasure and having fun, thanks to all of you. Keep on reading and we'll keep on playing. :grouphug:

[prairiegirl]

Oooo! In Middle English? Is it the Tolkien edition?

 

.

 

Yes, it is Tolkien's translation. I finished it last night and am all ready to read it with dd in a few months.

[rhrice3]

Thanks to "MyTwoBlessings!" for starting this. I have so enjoyed it, especially since I don't have time for a "book club" and you guys have recommended some great books.

 

I somehow ended up with all your suggestions on request at the library so I checked out "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." I finished reading "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" last week early and picked up "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie". What a delight it was, and yes, I adore Flavia - she reminds me of my youngest child. Anyway, I read through it pretty quickly (I was avoiding a knitting project) and started "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" which I find interesting.

 

It is a good thing that I am ahead of reading this week since my son graduates from high school on Fri night, and we have family coming in town - no reading for me. Well, I'll use this quiet time on Memorial Day to do some more reading.

Thanks ladies again for all your suggestions.

ReneeR

P.S. My daughter and I are finishing "Masterpiece" by Elsie Broach. It has lead to a unit study on Albrecht Durer and drawing, which dd loves!

[Mom-ninja.]

I too look forward to this thread every week. I love it. It's a lovely tradition here now. I've learned about all us regular posters' interests in books. :) I know who I share interests with, and some other posters have intrigued me to try books I normally would not have. This is my book club. :D

 

I finished Last Child in the Woods. It was not a fascinating book like The Scientist in the Crib. However, it's still very much worth reading. I did get tired of all the non-stop statistics throughout the book. My eyes glazed over as I read, "In one study...." over and over. I wanted to say to the author, "Ok, enough already. I get it."

 

I did like the part about the obstacles to why children don't/can't go outside. I found myself being described when he discussed fear. I really need to take a look at my fear and work through it so that my children are able to connect with nature as they should....or at least more than they do.

 

There's a small patch of woods behind our house that is between the back yards on my street and the back yards of the next street. I've never considered letting my boys play there. My fear got in the way. I would look at the woods and think of the wild animals in there such as snakes, spiders, ticks, raccoons, and fox. We have venomous critters in our area. I regularly see fox run through our back yard. So I'm afraid of my kids running into a rabid fox or raccoon. I'm afraid they'll get bitten by a rattler or black widow or brown recluse. I'm afraid of Lyme disease.

 

Then I'm afraid that there's some disgusting child predator in one of the houses in the next street over that borders the woods. I'm afraid they'll notice my boys playing there (especially on a regular basis) and harm them.

 

Sigh. So I never suggested that my kids play there. I do find it telling that they never asked. It never entered their mind. Last week, due to this book, I told my kids to go play in the woods. They looked at me like I was crazy. I felt sad. To think that my kids don't even know what they are missing makes me want to cry.

 

I have such great memories as a child of roaming woods with my friends and by myself. I used to go to my friend's grandmother's house in the back woods of MS and play all day in the woods. We would take off and only return for food when we got hungry. These woods were full of wild animals, huge trees that we climbed, cliffs, and ravines. I remember once seeing an alligator at the bottom of a ravine. We sat at the top throwing things down at it. :001_huh: At any time one of us could've fallen. I shudder now, but I had a blast then. As a child I was *always* outside in nature. I always found woods, streams, fields to play in. Always. My kids do not have that freedom and it does make me sad.

 

Getting back to my kids....I took them to the woods and pushed them in. ;) I gave my 10 yr old his pocket knife, put bug spray on them, and told them to go in the trees and figure out what to do. Then I walked away, came in the house, and hyperventilated while pacing. My boys loved it. My 7 yr old who was afraid at first now asks to go into the woods every day. One of their complaints about playing outside is that it is so hot where we live. They happily discovered that it is much cooler in the woods.

 

Now, I sit back and repeat to myself that statistics are on my side when it comes to their safety. Yes, something could happen to them while they play unsupervised in the woods, but the chance of them being in a car accident is much higher, and that doesn't stop me from driving with them.

 

I do recommend the book. It has helped me to realize that my children deserve and need more. I plan to check out the list of resources from the back of the book. They look great.

 

Whew, that may be my longest review ever. :lol:

[K in MI]

I haven't been good about posting on the threads, but I am still reading! I'm working on Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science (Gawande). I've added books 26-29 to my list.

 

 

29. The Great Escape (Meserole)

28. Beyond the Surgeon's Touch: One Miracle Away From Death (Teague)

27. Usborne True Desert Adventures (Harvey)

26. Triumph, Tragedy, and Tedium: Stories of a Salt Lake City Paramedic/Firefighter, the Sugar House Years (Makarewicz)

25. Snowstruck: In the Grip of Avalanches (Fredston)

24. The Doctor Wore Petticoats (Enss)

23. Faith Behind the Fences (Taylor)

22. Snowbound: The Tragic Story of the Donner Party (Lavender)

21. Nurse! Nurse! (Frazier)

20. Usborne True Sea Stories

19. Usborne True Stories: Crime and Detection

18. You Want Me to Declaw WHAT?! (Toia)

17. Before My Heart Stops (Cardall)

16. The Deadly Dinner Party (Edlow)

15. Across the Red Line (Karl)

14. All My Patients Have Tales (Wells)

13. Ten Days in a Madhouse (Bly)

12. Heaven is For Real (Burpo)

11. Silas Marner (Eliot)

10. Doctor of the Heart (Rosenfeld)

9. White Fang (London)

8. Ask The Animals (Coston)

7. Call of the Wild (London)

6. The 7 (Beck)

5. Rogue Wave (Moriison)

4. Mockingjay (Collins)

3. Catching Fire (Collins)

2. Hunger Games (Collins)

1. Tales of An African Vet (Aronson)

[ladydusk]

I finished Aunt Jane's Hero. I read this a couple of years ago and some of the ladies from my book club wanted to read it. I learned more the second time around :)

 

My 2011 Reviews:

 

1. Her Daughter's Dream - Francine Rivers

2. Island of the World - Michael O'Brien (AMAZING!)

3. Mennonite in a Little Black Dress - Rhoda Janzen

4. Cinderella Ate My Daughter - Peggy Orenstein

5. Devil's Cub - Georgette Heyer

6. Keeping a Nature Journal - Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E Roth.

7. Politically Incorrect Guide to Western Civilization (Audio Book)- Anthony Esolen

8. Excellent Women - Barbara Pym

9. The Abyssinian - Jean-Christophe Rufin

10. In the Company of Others - Jan Karon

11. One Thousand Gifts - Ann Voskamp

12. Regency Buck - Georgette Heyer

13. Bath Tangle - Georgette Heyer

14. The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer

15. The Organized Heart by Staci Eastin

16. Your Home: A Place of Grace by Susan Hunt

17. Christian Encounters: Jane Austen by Peter Leithart

18. Bambi: A Life in the Woods by Victor Salten

19. Aunt Jane's Hero by Elizabeth Prentiss

[LostSurprise]

CloudsFinished:

 

1. The Secret Life of Houdini: the Making of a Superman by William Kalush

2. 13 Treasures by Michelle Harrison

3. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

4. The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

5. Blink: the Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell

6. The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux

7. Phantastes by George MacDonald

8. Napoleon's Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed the World (LeCouteur)

9. Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin

10. Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

11. Mountains Beyond Mountains (Kidder)

12 Tipping Point (Gladwell)

13."Don't Bother Me Mom--I'm Learning!" (Prensky)

14. Her Fearful Symmetry (Niffennegger)

15. The Terminal Experiment (Sawyer)

16. The Theory of Fun for Game Design (Koster)

17. Under the Banner of Heaven (Krakhauer)

18. To Say Nothing of the Dog (Willis)

 

Working on:

Operatives, Spies, and Sabateurs (O'Donnell)

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat (Sacks)

A Thread of Grace

Cloudsplitter (Banks)

The Norby Chronicles (Asimov)

[Mom22ns]

I have been slacking in my posting but here is my current list:

 

1: Graceling

2: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

3. A Single Shard

4: The Fiery Cross

5: A Season of Gifts

6: Otto of the Silver Hand

7: A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver

8: Harry Potter

9: Watership Down

10: Master Cornhill

11. A Breath of Snow and Ashes

12. Catherine Called Birdy

13. Shadow of the Bull

14. I Juan de Pareja

15. The Second Mrs. Giaconda

16. Leonardo DaVinci

17. Mary, Bloody Mary

18. Luther: Biography of a Reformer

19. To Kill a Mockingbird

20. The Shakespeare Stealer

21. The Westing Game

22. The Three Musketeers

23. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

 

I enjoyed Ben a lot more than I expected. I see it on a lot of reading lists and thought I'd try it. It was fairly quick and light, but quite interesting.

[T'smom]

I finished Aunt Jane's Hero. I read this a couple of years ago and some of the ladies from my book club wanted to read it. I learned more the second time around :)

 

My 2011 Reviews:

 

1. Her Daughter's Dream - Francine Rivers

2. Island of the World - Michael O'Brien (AMAZING!)

3. Mennonite in a Little Black Dress - Rhoda Janzen

4. Cinderella Ate My Daughter - Peggy Orenstein

5. Devil's Cub - Georgette Heyer

6. Keeping a Nature Journal - Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E Roth.

7. Politically Incorrect Guide to Western Civilization (Audio Book)- Anthony Esolen

8. Excellent Women - Barbara Pym

9. The Abyssinian - Jean-Christophe Rufin

10. In the Company of Others - Jan Karon

11. One Thousand Gifts - Ann Voskamp

12. Regency Buck - Georgette Heyer

13. Bath Tangle - Georgette Heyer

14. The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer

15. The Organized Heart by Staci Eastin

16. Your Home: A Place of Grace by Susan Hunt

17. Christian Encounters: Jane Austen by Peter Leithart

18. Bambi: A Life in the Woods by Victor Salten

19. Aunt Jane's Hero by Elizabeth Prentiss

 

 

Thank you for your reviews! I've read several and added The Organized Heart, Your Home: A Place of Grace, Cinderella Ate my Daughter, and Island of the World to my to-read list!

[ladydusk]

Aw, Thanks! I definitely would encourage Island of the World and The Organized Heart to be the top of any list :)

[Mom-ninja.]

I stopped reading Beyond Survival after about 60 pgs. Her assumption that every home schooler is the same branch of Christianity as she is annoyed me.

 

I also stick to the WTM method so her suggestions just aren't anything I'm interested in.

 

Moved on to my next book Harry, a History

[Negin]

I stopped reading Beyond Survival after about 60 pgs. Her assumption that every home schooler is the same branch of Christianity as she is annoyed me.

:iagree:

Couldn't stand this.

 

Moved on to my next book Harry, a History

This looks interesting. Please share as you move further into the book. :)

[Mom-ninja.]

Couldn't stand this.

 

 

This looks interesting. Please share as you move further into the book. :)

 

Negin, I should have asked you about Beyond Survival before requesting it on PBS.

 

Since I've started reading the HP book, I've had a dream about HP every night. :D

[Negin]

Negin, I should have asked you about Beyond Survival before requesting it on PBS.

 

Sorry. :grouphug:

I should ask you when I have doubts about some books also. :)

 

Since I've started reading the HP book, I've had a dream about HP every night. :D

Lucky you! I want the same dreams. Think I need to read this book. :D

[Lizzie in Ma]

Finished up the Patricia Brigg's Alpha and Omega books, now I am beginning to pre-read the books for our modern history course in the fall as well as the summer reading list....

The Guns of August about WWI, extremely readable and I love her use of great vocabulary words!!

Oxford History of the US, Grand Expectations, James Patterson

[Robin M]

link to week 23