Book a Week in 2011 - Week Twenty Nine

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday! Today is the start of week 29 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 - B is for Book and Blogs. Introducing a few blogs and books sites including new imprint Mulholland books. An imprint of Little,Brown and Company and includes new author Marcia Clark. Yep, that one. She is writing murder mysteries now.

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

Link to week 28

[Robin M]

Right now I'm reading Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk. Yep, another paranormal. Seem to be on a roll with those.

 

In my A to Z challenge by title just finished L is for Lawless by Sue Grafton. I'm trying with the audio books so listening to James Rollin's The Devil's Colony while doing the treadmill. In the car, I've been listening to Nora Robert's Black Rose. Pretty much decided with audio books they need to have two narrators - one for female and one for male voices. Otherwise one person doing all, kind of throws me out of the story when they try to do opposite s*x.

[hsbaby]

I am currently reading In the Woods by Tana French. I want to read the new memoir by Jaycee Dugard next. I have been amazed by how well adjusted she seems in recent interviews. Good for her!!

[prairiegirl]

I got alot of reading done this week. I finished "Caught" by Harlan Coben, "The World is Much Bigger" by Euna Lee (impressed by this story of her capture in N.Korea in 2009) and "Teach Like Their Hair is on Fire" by Rafe Esquith (inspiring!)

 

I am now reading Book #38--"Livewire" by Harlan Coben.

[Ali in OR]

Total fluff reading this week. Finished The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley--the second Flavia de Luce mystery. Then I read At the Sign of the Sugared Plum by Mary Hooper which I got my dd for her birthday and then decided to read it myself! It's historical fiction about the Black Death in London in 1665. I need to choose a book for this week--lots more pre-reading I could do for our history studies this year, or I my choose from my pile of books from the library book sale.

 

 

2011 Reading List

 

33. At the Sign of the Sugared Plum-Mary Hooper

32. The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag-Alan Bradley

31. Do Hard Things-Alex and Brett Harris

30. Anna of Byzantium-Tracy Barrett

29. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie-Alan Bradley

28. Cutting for Stone-Abraham Verghese

27. Stay With Me-Sandra Rodriguez Barron

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

[T'smom]

I got alot of reading done this week. I finished "Caught" by Harlan Coben, "The World is Much Bigger" by Euna Lee (impressed by this story of her capture in N.Korea in 2009) and "Teach Like Their Hair is on Fire" by Rafe Esquith (inspiring!)

 

I am now reading Book #38--"Livewire" by Harlan Coben.

 

 

Oooh, I LOVE Harlan Coben!!! He's one of my favorite authors!

[Rosie_0801]

I'll be finishing a book on William Marshall today. I am not enjoying the writing style at all. I'd have liked something written in a more scholarly fashion. This reads like it should be performed, as though the author is projecting his voice right through me to the wall behind. I am reading it, though, because one of the local SCA groups runs a tournament in his honour each December.

 

Rosie

[Stacia]

.

[Stacia]

"Livewire" by Harlan Coben.

Oooh' date=' I LOVE Harlan Coben!!! He's one of my favorite authors![/quote']

 

I'm not sure I've ever read one of his books. But, I loved the French film of his book Tell No One. (Of course, the movie had subtitles, even if the preview doesn't, lol.)

 

I'll be finishing a book on William Marshall today.

 

I wonder if this is the same William Marshall that was a character (played by William Hurt) in the 2010 movie version of Robin Hood?

[Rosie_0801]

I wonder if this is the same William Marshall that was a character (played by William Hurt) in the 2010 movie version of Robin Hood?

 

Probably. The time period fits. I haven't seen that version of Robin Hood though. I get tired of Russell Crowe. :nopity: Is it any good?

 

Rosie

[Stacia]

Probably. The time period fits. I haven't seen that version of Robin Hood though. I get tired of Russell Crowe. :nopity: Is it any good?

 

I'm actually not much of a Russell Crowe fan either. However, I enjoyed the Robin Hood movie & thought it was quite good (Crowe actually did a really good job in it). I liked the way they did the story as a background to how Robin Hood became Robin Hood....

[Lizzie in Ma]

I have really slacked off on reviewing books but I am keeping track on GoodReads. Reading the last book in the Maximum Ride series. Enjoyable.

 

Wasted a few hours of my life reading The Genesis Plague. Awful, that one.

 

Tried to read Steve Tyler's autobiography, need to bleach my brain after that one.

 

On deck this week, A Stolen Life and a few others.

 

http://www.aworkinprogress.net/2010/12/100-reading-challenge.html

 

My GoodReads Shelf

http://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/75381?utm_medium=api&utm_source=challenge_widget

Edited July 19, 2011 by Lizzie in Ma

[Angel]

We've had a busy couple weeks and I haven't had much time to read. I finished "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander and "The Conquerer" by Georgette Heyer this weekend. I've lost track of what number that brings me to, maybe 28 or 29.

 

I enjoyed "The Book of Three." The characters were fun and it moved at a quick pace. I think my dd's might enjoy it.

 

I had picked up "The Conquerer" to see if my older dd might enjoy it for a history read. She would not have, but I found myself loving it. It had a lot of history which kind of slowed the story line down, and I knew what was going to happen at the end. But still it gripped me. I found myself not knowing which side to root for. I'm glad I picked it up.

[Guest]

Finished Safely Home by Randy Alcorn. One of the best books I've ever read. (Fiction book about the persecuted church in China.)

[Medieval Mom]

I (finally) finished Springtime in Britain (Teale). Unfortunately, I lost my copy of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress at the dentist's office. I was right in the middle of Christiana's story... Sigh. I've decided to read The King's Fifth (O'Dell) this week, previewing it as a potential read-aloud.

[Sparkle]

I don't believe I posted last week. I read Mrs. Pollifax Pursued by Dorothy Gilman, Murder on the Moor by C. S. Challinor, and I got about 100 pages into Treason at Lisson Grove by Anne Perry, and decided I didn't like it enough to finish. Currently reading The Long Quiche Goodbye by Avery Aames - pretty good so far; and Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity by Stephen Brown and Khaled Anatolios.

[Angel]

I I've decided to read The King's Fifth (O'Dell) this week, previewing it as a potential read-aloud.

 

We did this as a read aloud a couple years ago. Dd's didn't love it. I thought it was ok. It was a bit sad. It looks like you have a boy so maybe he'll feel different. I look forward to seeing what your opinion is.

[rhrice3]

Well, I have not posted in a few weeks, but I have been reading and keeping up with my book/week. Two weeks ago I finished "Dancing With Degas" by Kathryn Wagner. I knew nothing of this book, but I kept seeing it on display at our local library. My oldest dd was a dancer and loved Degas' ballet sculptures and pastels so I thought that I would give it a try. It was very good and enjoyable. It reminded me of "A Girl With a Pearl Earring" where the author takes something famous and adds historical fiction to it.

Last week I read "13,Rue Therese", and although I found it intriguing, I am not sure that I would recommend it to anyone. It was difficult to follow at times, but I think that I was distracted by the pictures included.

The week's book is "Cutting For Stone" which I found from you ladies - thanks. I am enjoying it and find it well written. I would recommend it, but beware, it is over 600pp long. I am glad that I started it early and have a few extra days with it.

 

P.S. I just watched the Russell Crowe "Robin Hood" and enjoyed it. William Hurt did a nice job, I thought, and it was too much "Crowe" for those that are not fans!

 

Have a great week,

ReneeR

[Mom22ns]

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks, but here is the 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

24. An Echo in the Bone

25. The Amulet of Samarkand

26. The Golum’s Eye

27. Jane Eyre

28. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

29. The Scarlet Pimpernel

 

I read The Scarlet Pimpernel as a pre-read to see if it would replace a SL book for ds this fall. I am pleased to say it will! I enjoyed it a lot. I think he will too in spite of the romance. I think there is enough action and danger to keep him happy.

[-M-]

I've been fairly productive since I last contributed -- read The Winter's Tale for our recent trip to the Illinois Shakespeare Festival; listened to My Man Jeeves en route to said Festival; re-read Ender's Game for the Girls Rule! book club; finished another round of short stories for our summer lit studies; and consumed The Sister Knot.

I've still got bookmarks in Lars Kepler's The Hypnotist and a few others. Let's see how much reading I can squeeze out of the rest of the month, especially now that summer swim season has concluded.

 

 

 

 

Books read in 2011 (to date): 58

 

 

July

 

 

■ Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout (Lauren Redniss; biography, graphic book)

■ A Short Course in Canon PowerShot S5 IS Photography (Non-fiction)

■ Short Stories (Doyle, Henry, Poe; fiction)

■ The Winter's Tale (William Shakespeare; classic, play)

■ Ender's Game (Orson Scott Card; science fiction)

■ The Sister Knot (Terri Apter; psychology)

■ My Man Jeeves (P.J. Wodehouse; fiction, audiobook)

 

June (reviews/discussion

here)

 

 

■ The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth (Alexandra Robbins; non-fiction, education)

■ Confessions of a Prairie ***** (Alison Arngrim; memoir)

■ Pitch Uncertain (Maisie Houghton; memoir)

■ The Silent Land (Graham Joyce; fiction)

■ A Midsummer Night's Dream (William Shakespeare; play, classic)

■ The Hound of the Baskervilles (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; fiction)

■ Robopocalypse (Daniel H. Wilson; science fiction)

 

May (reviews/discussion

here)

 

■ Daughters-in-Law (Joanna Trollope; fiction)

 

■ Sempre Susan (Sigrid Nunez; memoir)

■ Gardening Step by Step (Phil Clayton, et al.)

■ John Brookes' Natural Landscapes (John Brookes)

■ Month-by-Month Gardening in Illinois (James A. Fizzell)

■ The New Gardener (Pippa Greenwood)

■ Glorious Gardens (Jacqueline Heriteau)

■ Midwest Top 10 Garden Guide (Bonnie Monte, ed.)

■ Midwest Gardens (Pamela Wolfe)

■ Low Maintenance Garden (Jenny Hendy)

■ The Complete Beginner's Guide to Archery (Bernhard A. Roth)

■ Know the Sport: Archery (John Adams)

■ Sherlock Holmes: More Short Stories (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; fiction)

■ The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton; YA fiction)

■ The Raising (Laura Kasischke; fiction)

■ The Life before Her Eyes (Laura Kasischke; fiction)

■ No Time for Goodbye (Linwood Barclay; fiction)

■ Too Close to Home (Linwood Barclay; fiction)

 

April (reviews/discussion

here)

 

 

■ Things a Brother Knows (Dana Reinhart; YA fiction -- the book that reminded me that I am, in fact, a reader)

■ Illyria (Elizabeth Hand; fiction)

■ The Merchant of Venice (William Shakespeare)

■ Model Home (Eric Puchner; fiction)

■ Mouse Guard, Volume 1: Fall 1152 (David Petersen; graphic novel)

■ Mouse Guard, Volume 2: Winter 1152 (David Petersen; graphic novel)

■ The Worst Loss: How Families Heal from the Death of a Child (Barbara D. Rosof)

■ Beyond Tears: Living after Losing a Child (Ellen Mitchell)

■ Love Never Dies: A Mother's Journey from Loss to Love (Sandy Goodman)

■ After the Death of a Child: Living with Loss through the Years (Ann K. Finkbeiner)

■ Trapped (Michael Northrop; YA fiction)

■ Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; fiction)

■ The Colony (Jillian Marie Weise; fiction)

■ The Sandman, Vol. 3: Dream Country (Neil Gaiman; graphic novel)

 

March (reviews/discussion

here)

 

 

■ The Source of All Things: A Memoir (Tracy Ross; memoir, review copy)

■ Heaven Is for Real (Todd Burpo; memoir, religion)

 

January (reviews/discussion

here)

 

 

■ The Nest Home Design Handbook (Carley Roney)

■ Decorating Ideas That Work (Heather J. Paper)

■ Speed Decorating (Jill Vegas)

■ Flip! for Decorating (Elizabeth Mayhew)

■ Home Decor: A Sunset Design Guide (Kerrie L. Kelly)

■ Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother (Amy Chua; memoir, parenting)

■ Macbeth (William Shakespeare)

■ The Other Side of the Island (Allegra Goodman; fiction)

■ A Lantern in Her Hand (Bess Streeter Aldrich; fiction)

■ Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (Winifred Watson; fiction)

[Medieval Mom]

We did this as a read aloud a couple years ago. Dd's didn't love it. I thought it was ok. It was a bit sad. It looks like you have a boy so maybe he'll feel different. I look forward to seeing what your opinion is.

 

Thanks for the head's up. I'm only on page 41, but I don't think The King's Fifth is going to make our list of read-alouds this year (for 3rd grade). I'll have to read it to the end to decide when/if we'll include this book.

 

It was recommended in the Beautiful Feet Guide to Geography using the Holling C. Holling books. (I think it was for Tree in the Trail.) I don't think we missed out by omitting it from 2nd grade. ;)

 

Ds loved the Holling C. Holling books so much, that I was considering re-reading them again (along with Minn of the Mississippi) in 4th.

 

So, to make a short story long, I was thinking of using it this year (we're reading about Colonial America), or next (when we re-read Holling). We'll see!

[Angel]

Thanks for the head's up. I'm only on page 41, but I don't think The King's Fifth is going to make our list of read-alouds this year (for 3rd grade). I'll have to read it to the end to decide when/if we'll include this book.

 

It was recommended in the Beautiful Feet Guide to Geography using the Holling C. Holling books. (I think it was for Tree in the Trail.) I don't think we missed out by omitting it from 2nd grade. ;)

 

Ds loved the Holling C. Holling books so much, that I was considering re-reading them again (along with Minn of the Mississippi) in 4th.

 

So, to make a short story long, I was thinking of using it this year (we're reading about Colonial America), or next (when we re-read Holling). We'll see!

 

We read it as a read aloud as part of the only SL Core we ever did. Almost every book we read was sad or depressing and there were plenty that I pre-read and didn't even include. Out of the whole year we loved three books (that I remember).

[DSAcademy]

I just finished Moonwalking with Einstein:The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer and quite enjoyed it. Not being a visual thinker, I found the various memory techniques explored fascinating, especially the memory palace. I also read Mansfield Park.

 

This week Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond and Persuasion will accompany me on vacation.

[ladydusk]

Yikes! I'm really behind now! I did finish Persuasion, though. I'm working on Sense & Sensibility as well as Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies.

 

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 - Georgette Heyer

15. The Organized Heart - Staci Eastin

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

17. Christian Encounters: Jane Austen - Peter Leithart

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

19. Aunt Jane's Hero - Elizabeth Prentiss

20. The Magician's Nephew (Audio Book) - C.S. Lewis

21. The Horse and His Boy (Audio Book) - C.S. Lewis

22. Beauty for Truth's Sake - Stratford Caldecott

23. A Mother's Rule of Life - Holly Pierlot

24. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

25. Persuasion - Jane Austen

[eaglei]

I am late posting this week, but here is what I read:

 

#49 - Page After Page: Discover the Confidence and Passion You Need to Start Writing and Keep Writing (No Matter What!), by Heather Sellers. I had mixed feelings about this book. She was down-to-earth and honest in her assessments of writing, and the skills and development thereof. OTOH, her choice of words and writing style grated on me, though I'm hard pressed to say definitively how - sometimes I thought she was trying to be cute, other times trying to show how *cool* she is - I'm just not sure, but it made for slow, dragged-out reading (13 days - yikes!) for a book that typically would've taken me two or three days.

 

The one thing that struck me most was this quote by a surgeon, Gawande, from his book, Complications:

 

“Skills, surgeons believe, can be taught,†says Gawande. “Tenacity cannot. ... And it works. There have now been many studies of elite performers - concert violinists, chess grand masters, professional ice-skaters, mathematicians, and so forth - and the biggest difference researchers find between them and lesser performers is the amount of deliberate practice they’ve accumulated. The most important talent might be the talent for practice itself.â€

 

Yesterday I went to the library and purposely removed myself from my comfort reading zone, and deliberately looked for a couple books whose titles and authors I had never heard of. First up is:

 

#50 - The Bride's House, by Sandra Dallas. I'll start it later this evening. Here is what Amazon says:

 

Editorial Reviews

"a winning combination of solid historical fiction,vivid enduring characters,and an interesting story that pulls the reader right in. Sandra Dallas is at the top of her game with THE BRIDE'S HOUSE...an excellent read."

--bookreporter.com

 

Product Description

From the New York Times bestselling author of Whiter Than Snow and Prayers for Sale comes a novel about the secrets and passions of three generations of women who have all lived in the same Victorian home called the Bride’s House.

 

It’s 1880, and for unassuming seventeen-year-old Nealie Bent, the Bride’s House is a fairy tale come to life. It seems as if it is being built precisely for her and Will Spaulding, the man she is convinced she will marry. But life doesn’t go according to plan, and Nealie finds herself in the Bride’s House pregnant---and married to another.

 

For Pearl, growing up in the Bride’s House is akin to being raised in a mausoleum. Her father has fashioned the house into a shrine to the woman he loved, resisting all forms of change. When the enterprising young Frank Curry comes along and asks for Pearl’s hand in marriage, her father sabotages the union. But he underestimates the lengths to which the women in the Bride’s House will go for love.

 

Susan is the latest in the line of strong and willful women in the Bride’s House. She’s proud of the women who came before her, but the Bride’s House hides secrets that will force her to question what she wants and who she loves.

 

Sandra Dallas has once again written a novel rich in storytelling and history, peopled by living, breathing characters that will grab hold of you and not let you go.

[readinmom]

Working on...

The Postmistress, Sarah Blake

On Folly Beach, Karen White

Don Quixote, new translation by Edith Grossman

 

Gave up on...I, Claudius, Graves. I will try this one again when it's not so darn hot out!

 

22. The Unwritten Rules of Friendship: Simple Strategies to Help Your Children Make Friends

21. Dragonhaven, Robin McKinley

20. The Summer of Us, Holly Chamberlin

19. Lord of the Flies, William Golding

18. The Red Garden, Alice Hoffman

17. The Missing, Beverly Lewis

16. The Secret, Beverly Lewis

15. The Girl Who Chased the Moon, Sarah Allen

14. One Week in December, Holly Chamberlin

13. The Thorn, Beverly Lewis

12. Salting Roses, Lorelle Marinello

11. The Well Trained Mind, 2004 Edition

10. Night, Elie Wiesel

9. Last Light Over Carolina, Mary Alice Munroe

8. Homeschooling, A Family's Journey, Gregory and Martine Millman

7. Time is a River, Mary Alice Munroe

6. Commencement, Courtney Sullivan

5. The Redemption of Sarah Cain, Beverly Lewis

4. Thursdays at Eight, Debbie Macomber

3. The Three Weismann's of Westport, Cathleen Schine

2. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier

1. The Search, Nora Roberts

[Joy at Home]

Reading Same Kind of Different as Me Wonderful read so far. Just finished The Other Daughter. Just okay. Also listening to William Bennett's America, the Last Best Hope, Volume I. Excellent survey of US history.

 

Next on my list is The Warmth of Other Suns.

 

Happy reading,

Lisa

[Robin M]

Link to week 30 - please continue the conversation in the new thread