Maus Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Baby actually went to bed, and stayed in bed, before 10:00 p.m. last night. If we can make a habit of this, maybe some of my brain cells will come back and I can pick up the pace! Slowly working on: "The Wives of Henry VIII" by Antonia Fraser "Too Loud, Too Bright, Too Fast, Too Tight" by Sharon Heller "St. Peter's Fair" by Ellis Peters Completed: Book #5 - "Monk's Hood" by Ellis Peters. OK, so obviously I'm on a Cadfael kick this year!! Book #4 - "Flash and Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #3 - "Spider Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #2 - "One Corpse Too Many" by Ellis Peters. Book #1 - "A Morbid Taste for Bones" by Ellis Peters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 That is, if I can give up my Kindle for a few days. I haven't had my Nook for awhile. My ds is hording it. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Still holding down the low end of the curve for everyone by only being on my third book. You're welcome :). Currently working on Balzac's Droll Stories, a book banned everywhere when it first came out. Anyone planning to join me? It's only risque by 19th-century standards. Pfui. The library copy has gone missing. I borrowed the Penguin volume Selected Short Stories wondering if the stories within were "Droll", so to speak. I suspect not. Sharon, I guess this means I either have to download the Kindle app for my tablet or borrow my husband's Kindle. New technology! Books not on paper! Philosophically I'm not so sure about this... Dragging her feet, Jane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakeside Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 If you have been to Europe then I recommend Bryson's Neither Here Nor There. Thanks, I'll check this out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 I've never participated in this thread before, but would like to try. So far this year I've read: Let the Great World Spin Bossypants Heart in the Right Place Waiter Rant The Magic of Reality (half-way finished) Home to Woefield (half-way finished). I just have to rave about Home to Woefield. Oh my gosh, I am laughing so hard over this book! It's sort of written like a quirky memoir, so if that's your thing, I highly recommend it. I saw it recommended on Chinaberry and I can't put it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 (edited) Today I finished Broken Glass Park by Alina Bronsky. Alina Bronsky did a superb job with writing in a teen's point of view. Sascha (the main character) is tough, tender, smart, acid, & painfully realistic. Her story is both heartbreaking & funny as it blows by you at a breakneck pace. (However, there is one point where the pacing changed somewhat & it threw me to the point that I flipped back a couple of pages, thinking I had somehow skipped a page or two....) An unflinching look at an immigrant life lived on the fringe, surviving violent circumstances, moving forward (sometimes backward) in spite of it all.... Broken Glass Park/review from Booklist: "Growing up in a rough city neighborhood in Germany, Sacha, 17, is a brilliant student, the only Russian immigrant in her elite Catholic high school. But everything is on hold when her brutal stepfather murders her mother. Sacha’s obsession is to kill him, in prison or out, even as she nurtures her little brother and sister in the violent projects. A lot happens in this first novel, but more than the fast plot, it is the striking narrative voice that will grab readers. Translated from the German, the present-tense narrative nails the contemporary teen voice—wry, furious, hilarious, heartbreaking, “wired but wrecked at the same time.†Rooted in the immigrant experience (struggling with a new language, forgetting the old one), the coming-of-age story is universal. When a guy threatens to make Sacha’s life a living hell, she says, “Too late; it already is.†Yes, she hates men, and maybe she hates women, too. Her anger makes you laugh and cry." My Goodreads Page 2012 Books Read: 01. Mozart's Last Aria by Matt Rees (3 stars) 02. Oh No She Didn't by Clinton Kelly (2 stars, if you're in the right mood, lol) 03. The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt (4 stars) 04. In a Strange Room by Damon Galgut (4 stars) 05. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling (5 stars) 06. The Infernals by John Connolly (3 stars) 07. Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto (2 stars) 08. The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott (3 stars) 09. Zeroville by Steve Erickson (4 stars) 10. Broken Glass Park by Alina Bronsky (4 stars) Edited January 31, 2012 by Stacia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Pfui. The library copy has gone missing. I borrowed the Penguin volume Selected Short Stories wondering if the stories within were "Droll", so to speak. I suspect not. Sharon, I guess this means I either have to download the Kindle app for my tablet or borrow my husband's Kindle. New technology! Books not on paper! Philosophically I'm not so sure about this... Dragging her feet, Jane Go for the Kindle, I say. I was all against the Kindle until dh bought me one and I discovered (1) it's a lot more portable than 1550 pages of Tolstoy, and (2) the larger font and gentler contrast is so easy on my middle-aged eyes. :tongue_smilie: I'm a few stories in and Balzac is just about killing me with his double-entendres. I'd say I feel like I need to go to Confession after each story, except "going to Confession" is one of his favorite euphemisms for, um, tea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 I'd say I feel like I need to go to Confession after each story, except "going to Confession" is one of his favorite euphemisms for, um, tea. :lol::lol: I downloaded it this afternoon. Then the phone started ringing off the hook. So much for reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Yes! I should hope so! :D Rosie Okay, if it's funny, I'm game to try it, even though I'm a P&P purist. I don't mind something funny on it, but the PP sequel I read where every second chapter was steamy s*x, etc, was horrific. Since I don't remember which of the pages you posted the title last week, could you remind me of the title? Today I finished and loved Fall of Giants. I can't wait till the other two books are published. I've enjoyed most of Ken Follett, pretty much all of them, since my teens or early 20s. Can you start with this one (I've read a lot of Ken Follett, but nothing by him lately) or do I need to read something else first? Reading Pride and Prejudice. The fact that I have the BBC's version practically memorized is very distracting. Outdoorsy Type- I read Escape last year. What did you think? Yes, I would find that distracting also, particularly since the BBC version is said to be the closest to the book. I loved the book and the BBC movie. :) By BBC version, you mean the one with David Rintoul, right? To me, he did such a spectacular job of being Mr. Darcy that no one else will ever be able to do it as well, and that includes Colin Firth, who did it much later. I'm still reading Papa's Daughter (did I mention that one last week?), The Hour that Changes the World (I've read more, but I like time to digest each chapter) & I've started one my dd read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Okay, if it's funny, I'm game to try it, even though I'm a P&P purist. I don't mind something funny on it, but the PP sequel I read where every second chapter was steamy s*x, etc, was horrific. Since I don't remember which of the pages you posted the title last week, could you remind me of the title? Not Rosie, but I think she was talking about The Darcy's and the Bingley's. I read this two years ago. It wasn't steamy s*x but there was an awful lot of references and talk about it, something to do with this "book" that either Bingley or Darcy has about s*x. Kind of threw them way out of character. Other than that the rest of the story was fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scholarly Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Oh no!!! I just checked this out of the library in non-audio format. But I MUST finish Phantom before I start it. But I'm very intrigued to start it. What didn't you like about it? I can't really pinpoint what I didn't like, except to say that it wasn't what I expected. I was bored. I felt like there was way too much exposition before he actually got to the effect of the internet on the brain. The last 1/8 of the book was what I expected the whole book to be like. I hope that you enjoy more than I did! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Can you start with this one (I've read a lot of Ken Follett, but nothing by him lately) or do I need to read something else first? Karin, Fall of Giants is the first one in this particular trilogy. The 2nd book will be out in September. Although I loved this book, I slightly preferred Pillars of the Earth, but this was also fabulous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosyl Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I have finished 2 this week and have several others going: Vanity Fair, Jo's Boys, Growing up Amish and Breaking Intimidation. i might have a pretty good finish this week. 10) The Healing by Wanda Brunstetter Unimpressive 9) Christmas in Sugarcreek by Shelley Shepard Gray nice 8) The Dark Tide 7) Little Men, Louisa May Alcott on Audio 6) Winter of the Red Snow. 5) The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory. 4) A Wedding Quilt for Ella by Jerry Eicher 3) Longing by Karen Kingsbury. 2) Little Women by Alcott 1) Midummer Night's Dream by Shakespeare Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I liked Little Men better than Jo's Boys. I also am realizing that so much that was in Little Men came directly from Alcott's father and how he taught in his schools. Louisa was obviously influenced heavily by him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paisley Hedgehog Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganCupcake Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I finished Walden. I feel like I needed a guide to some of the references and to determine what was sarcastic and what was not. On to book 6: A Heart for Freedom by Chai Ling. I'm about 1/3 of the way through already. China is very special to me, so I am really enjoying it, as difficult and distressing as some of it is. I really just can't read the same way I used to, now that I have small children. Some things are just too upsetting. Does that ease as the children get older? Or will there then be other things I can't read about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganCupcake Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I am completely bored with everything that I'm reading, so I've decided to shelve all my current reads and start fresh. Since February marks Charles Dickens 200th birthday, I have decided to dedicate this month's reading to him. I blogged about it here if anyone cares :D The Smithsonian.com has a great article this month about all the goings-on to mark Dickens's bicentennial plus an overview of the man himself. Going Mad For Charles Dickens :lurk5: This is wonderful! I love Bleak House! Dickens is great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 A big Thank You :001_smile: to ??? who sent me a copy of The Nun by Simonetta Agnello Hornby! I plan to start it very soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleopatra Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Well, I did it! I finished Anna Karenina last night! Whooo hooo! While it wasn't my favourite book, I'd have to say, I really enjoyed it. It just took awhile to get into the characters and their extreme emotional responses. :001_huh: I'm continuing with The Iliad and Cicero's Defence Speeches ....... not sure what else I'm going to add to that. When I finish such a thought-provoking book as AK, I usually need some time to sit with it and ponder before I begin anything else. I'm not sure if anyone else feels the same way .......???? By BBC version, you mean the one with David Rintoul, right? To me, he did such a spectacular job of being Mr. Darcy that no one else will ever be able to do it as well, and that includes Colin Firth, who did it much later. I'm still reading Papa's Daughter (did I mention that one last week?), The Hour that Changes the World (I've read more, but I like time to digest each chapter) & I've started one my dd read. You're kidding! Colin Firth was always the only Mr. Darcy for me but I haven't seen the other one. I'll have to give it a try. I do love David Rintoul (wow, that man ages well!) :001_smile: Books for 2012 _________________________ 1. The Book of the Ancient Greeks - Dorothy Mills 2. A Midsummer Night's Dream - William Shakespeare 3. Anne of Green Gables - Lucy Maud Montgomery 4. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde 5. The Forgotten Affairs of Youth - Alexander McCall Smith 6. The Two Towers - J.R.R. Tolkien 7. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosyl Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I liked Little Men better than Jo's Boys. I also am realizing that so much that was in Little Men came directly from Alcott's father and how he taught in his schools. Louisa was obviously influenced heavily by him. I agree. We have sort of done a mini unit on Louisa May Alcott. I had never realized how influenced by her father she was. I have not delved into her darker stuff, have you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I really just can't read the same way I used to, now that I have small children. Some things are just too upsetting. Does that ease as the children get older? Or will there then be other things I can't read about? Yep, I'm the same way. I just cannot handle disturbing things anymore. I have no idea if it gets better as children get older. I told DH there are a lot of books that my kids will have to wait until college to read and go over with someone because I can't do it. My boys will read a lot of Jane Austen though! A big Thank You :001_smile: to ??? who sent me a copy of The Nun by Simonetta Agnello Hornby! I plan to start it very soon! :001_cool: Well, I did it! I finished Anna Karenina last night! Whooo hooo! While it wasn't my favourite book, I'd have to say, I really enjoyed it. It just took awhile to get into the characters and their extreme emotional responses. :001_huh: I'm continuing with The Iliad and Cicero's Defence Speeches ....... not sure what else I'm going to add to that. When I finish such a thought-provoking book as AK, I usually need some time to sit with it and ponder before I begin anything else. I'm not sure if anyone else feels the same way .......???? You're kidding! Colin Firth was always the only Mr. Darcy for me but I haven't seen the other one. I'll have to give it a try. I do love David Rintoul (wow, that man ages well!) Yes, there are books that I need to digest before moving on. I like AK too. I will reread it in a few years. I've never seen David Rintoul as Darcy either. Colin Firth has been my one and only Darcy. However, I guess I'll just have to force myself to watch the BBC version to compare. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I don't know about the rest of you but I do sometimes wonder about the VAST gaps in my education from a "normal" education. But I just found this quote in Why Read Moby Dick? and I love it, "Melville's example demonstrates the wisdom of waiting to read the classics. Coming to a great book on your own after having accumulated essential life experience can make all the difference." (location 601-17 in the kindle) I have found in my life, that I could not sit and read Shakespeare very well before. But now I adore it. I can hear the resonance in my head of a good Shakespearian phrase. I cannot wait to delve into Much Ado too. I am wondering if finally settling down to Moby will feel the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Well, I did it! I finished Anna Karenina last night! Whooo hooo! :party: I heart Tolstoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 This week, I finished "The Physic Book of Deliverance Dane," by Katherine Howe. It was fine, nothing special. As I think I said last week, it really desperately wanted to be a combination of "A Discovery of Witches" and "Possession," and it wasn't as good as either of them. I was also irritated by the main character for a couple of reasons. First, she was not nearly concerned enough about her dog. Also, she overlooked a big, giant clue about midway through the book that would have solved the puzzle much earlier had she noticed it. I actually bookmarked the page, because I knew it was going to be the significant clue. I'm currently reading "Madame Bovary," one of the titles in my personal quest to add checkmarks to the 100 titles covered in "The Book of Great Books." When I want a break from that, I'm dipping into Loren Pope's "Colleges That Change Lives." I hope to finish both this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Okay, if it's funny, I'm game to try it, even though I'm a P&P purist. I don't mind something funny on it, but the PP sequel I read where every second chapter was steamy s*x, etc, was horrific. Since I don't remember which of the pages you posted the title last week, could you remind me of the title? No I won't. You don't want to read it. Save yourself the heartache and go re-read P&P itself. ;) Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I finished Hygiene and the Assassin by Amélie Nothomb. Pretentious repartee. I realize that was a main point of it, the irony of it, but it does not necessarily lead to an enjoyable read, imo. Meh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Finished Fahrenheit 451. What a gripping story. A few parts had me on pins and needles. I'm glad I finally got around to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 The Hunger Games Catching Fire Mockingjay The Hunger Games Companion The Naked Lady Who Stood on Her Head Spontaneous Happiness The Bi-Polar Disorder Survival Guide. The Giver I am about 1/3 of the way through The Historian now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganCupcake Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Well, I did it! I finished Anna Karenina last night! Whooo hooo! While it wasn't my favourite book, I'd have to say, I really enjoyed it. It just took awhile to get into the characters and their extreme emotional responses. :001_huh: Did you read the newish Pevear/Volokhonsky translation of AK? I have that translation on my shelf, but I haven't read it yet. Apparently it is better than the old Constance Garnett translation. I love AK and if a new translation is even better, then sign me up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcjlkplus3 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Last weekend I finished the Hunger Games books. I couldn't put them down, but afterwards I realized I really did not care for them. I did blog about them though...http://jennysgate.wordpress.com So far my list is: 1. Storm Front - Jim Butcher 2. Eldest - Christopher Paolini 3. Brisingr - Christopher Paolini 4. A King's Ransom - Jude Watson 5. Inheritance - Christopher Paolini 6. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins 7. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins 8. Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins 9. Minx - Julia Quinn dd10's list 1. Son of Neptune - Rick Riordan 2. A King's Ransom - Jude Watson 3. The Clue in the Diary - Carolyn Keene 4. The Railway Children (currently reading, although she told me tonight that it got boring) 5. The Throne of Fire - Rick Riordan (currently rereading - she read this last year, but I told her I would count it anyway) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Hi everyone! I finished Mrs. Dalloway today and went to my classics book club. I'm oddly disappointed. The old English teacher no longer leads it and although there are several new faces, they don't have the bite for the harder stuff anymore. Several people didn't actually read the book this month (about half) and the new criteria seems to be to go for the short stuff. Like ONE essay from Thoreau, instead of a collection. The stream of consciousness writing is hard to read but that's why you read the classics - they STRETCH you. I ended up liking it and may read more Woolf at some point. It was hard to follow but there were really good nuggets in there. I loved where one of the main characters muses that the ambulance may be one of the main signs of civilization - the way eveyrone pauses and yields as they go by and the people that send a little wish out that the injured person makes it... I'm going to give that club a couple more months but if it continues like this, I'll bag it. So I knocked off Mrs. Dalloway in a week and I'm almost done with Why Read Moby Dick? And now I'm in the mood for some Dickens to celebrate his birthday.:lol: After Moby and after whatever Russian we decide to do... You all may have to be my classics bookclub from now on. Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maus Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Slowly working on: "The Wives of Henry VIII" by Antonia Fraser "Too Loud, Too Bright, Too Fast, Too Tight" by Sharon Heller "St. Peter's Fair" by Ellis Peters Completed: Book #6 - "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" by Amy Chua. Somehow, from all the press, I expected something more ... , I don't know, ... shocking? She admits to calling her kids names, which isn't good. And to yelling at them, also not good (ok, I sometimes yell, but I'm trying not to... :001_unsure: ) But I actually like the idea of holding our kids to a higher expectation. And the idea of sitting with kids while they practice. I sometimes sit with my kids when they practice, and when I do, they make more progress than in a whole week of practicing on their own. I think maybe they are too young to focus on their own and my being there to remind them to count, name the notes, whatever, helps. Book #5 - "Monk's Hood" by Ellis Peters. Book #4 - "Flash and Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #3 - "Spider Bones" by Kathy Reichs. Book #2 - "One Corpse Too Many" by Ellis Peters. Book #1 - "A Morbid Taste for Bones" by Ellis Peters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainySunday Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I finished We Bought a Zoo Benjamin Mee, this week. I am still working on Beastchildby Koontz, and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. I wanted to see the EL&IC movie after reading the book, but Mom wanted me to go with her to see it, so I did. Interesting movie, definitely interested to read the book and see what was left out/changed. So that will be this week and into next's project is to get those two done. Here is my completed list: 5. We Bought a Zoo-Benjamin Mee 4. The Hunger Games -Suzanne Collins 3. Ahab's Wife -Sena Jeter Naslund 2. When Will There Be Good News -Kate Atkinson 1. 77 Shadow Street -Dean Koontz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isabella Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 This week I read F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Beautiful and the ****ed'. Very depressing book, and I had to push through the lacklustre plot every day. I thought it might get a bit deeper, but no - finished the book & wondered why I pushed through it! ETA that the title has been changed to asterisks by the computer, it seems - it should be 'dammed' with an 'n' in place of one 'm'! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleopatra Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Did you read the newish Pevear/Volokhonsky translation of AK? I have that translation on my shelf, but I haven't read it yet. Apparently it is better than the old Constance Garnett translation. I love AK and if a new translation is even better, then sign me up! Yes, I read the Pevear/Volokhonsky translation. I have the Constance Garnett translation but I forgot and bought the P/V one. :tongue_smilie: The P/V version claims that other versions have "softened the robust and sometimes shocking quality of Tolstoy's writing" I did a brief A-B between the two and didn't find too much difference in the parts I read. The P/V translation tends to use simpler words but not so much that it's really noticeable. I did enjoy the P/V translation, but in a year or so I'd like to re-read it in the Garnett translation to get a better idea. Right now, however, I just long to read a shorter book! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 This week I read Memories Before and After the Sound of Music. Sweet memoir written by the oldest von Trapp daughter, Agathe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I haven't finished one this week, so I'm glad I'm ahead. The weather here has been too nice to stay inside and it's hard to read while you're riding!! Still working on Lonesome Dove and waiting for Ahab's Wife. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paisley Hedgehog Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcjlkplus3 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 :iagree: This was totally me! I thought they were great while I was reading them. Then I was like "WHY did I like that??" It was the same thing with Twilight. :lol: I plead temporary insanity. For me, it wasn't so much thinking that they were great while I was reading them as wanting to know what happens next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcjlkplus3 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Still holding down the low end of the curve for everyone by only being on my third book. You're welcome :). Currently working on Balzac's Droll Stories, a book banned everywhere when it first came out. Anyone planning to join me? It's only risque by 19th-century standards. I just got this for my Kindle - I'll have to try it :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I haven't finished one this week, so I'm glad I'm ahead. The weather here has been too nice to stay inside and it's hard to read while you're riding!! Still working on Lonesome Dove and waiting for Ahab's Wife. I read Lonesome Dove a summer or two ago and while I loved most of it...let me know when you finish it. I'd love to hear what you think! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJ. Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I finished Ahab's Wife on Sunday. I have to say I had a love/hate relationship with this book. I did not like the book initially but was determined to finish. Then I became invested in the characters (as I usually do!) so I couldn't put it down when I had the time to read. While reading I turned down many pages to go back to for further thought. If I ever get it down on paper I will share my musings with you and welcome your thoughts :) I wish I had read Moby Dick first, why was the challenge structured the other way? I feel that in reading Ahab's Wife first I have a strong idea of Ahab, I would rather have gotten my ideas about him from Melville and not another author's interpretation. I admit that this week I have been pretty lazy. My booklight is either broken or needs batteries so that has also decreased my reading time. If we get the blizzard that they are proposing for this evening/tomorrow maybe I'll snuggle up with my friend Roland (main character in Dark Tower Series :tongue_smilie: ) and get some reading done. Currently Reading: 3. Wizard and Glass, Stephen King 4. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, JK Rowling 5. America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money, Steve Economides Finished: 1. The Waste Lands, Stephen King (588) 2. Ahab's Wife, Sena Jeter Nasland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane Elliot Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I'm a few stories in and Balzac is just about killing me with his double-entendres. I'd say I feel like I need to go to Confession after each story, except "going to Confession" is one of his favorite euphemisms for, um, tea. Sharon, are you reading this on your Kindle? Is this the one you downloaded. I'm game to give it a try, but couldn't decide which one to download. I can get so hung up on these minor decisions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thessa516 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 11. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs ----- From my blog: I wanted to love this book. But I didn't. Maybe I just went into it with too big of an expectation. I found the book trailer so wonderfully enchanting, but the book didn't live up to it. The photographs being part of the story is a great idea. But why have the photographs if you never get around to fully introducing the characters behind the photographs? I wanted to know more about the other characters than I did the main character, and it just never panned out. Bummer. I wanted more magic, more horror, more twists and turns. It's not all bad, just didn't meet my expectations and all the hype. It's a decent book, and I'll read the next just to find out what happens. ---- Up next: Losing Control and Liking It by Tim Sanford, Simple Country Wisdom by Susan Waggoner, and a pile of youth fiction to read to keep caught up with the children. Moby Dick is sitting on my night stand just staring at me :001_huh: I'm scared of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Sharon, are you reading this on your Kindle? Is this the one you downloaded. I'm game to give it a try, but couldn't decide which one to download. I can get so hung up on these minor decisions. I haven't started, but that's the one I downloaded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Sharon, are you reading this on your Kindle? Is this the one you downloaded. I'm game to give it a try, but couldn't decide which one to download. I can get so hung up on these minor decisions. Yes - it's the same translation as my dead tree version, so I can go from one to the other depending on whether I'm at home or away. I think it must be the Leclercq translation, but it doesn't seem to say anywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 11. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs ----- From my blog: I wanted to love this book. But I didn't. Maybe I just went into it with too big of an expectation. I found the book trailer so wonderfully enchanting, but the book didn't live up to it. The photographs being part of the story is a great idea. But why have the photographs if you never get around to fully introducing the characters behind the photographs? I wanted to know more about the other characters than I did the main character, and it just never panned out. Bummer. I wanted more magic, more horror, more twists and turns. It's not all bad, just didn't meet my expectations and all the hype. It's a decent book, and I'll read the next just to find out what happens. I'm not sure why I was even attracted to this book. At this point I am more than half way through it, but I will admit that I stared at it last night and sighed. It is not that I need to be enthralled--I am just bored with it. Time shifting is a cheap trick in my book. (Having said that, I can think of another book set in Wales that uses the time travel concept--and I adore it! The book is A String in the Harp.) Yes - it's the same translation as my dead tree version, so I can go from one to the other depending on whether I'm at home or away. I think it must be the Leclercq translation, but it doesn't seem to say anywhere. This is the one I downloaded. Let the Kindle test begin. By the way, Sharon, I also borrowed Moliere's The School for Wives from the library. In TWTM and/or TWEM, Susan recommends Richard Wilbur's translation of Tartuffe which emulates Moliere's couplets in English. I was delighted to see that Wilbur has also translated two other plays in a similar fashion. Wilbur's translation of Tartuffe is a delight so I look forward to this work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thessa516 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I'm not sure why I was even attracted to this book. At this point I am more than half way through it, but I will admit that I stared at it last night and sighed. It is not that I need to be enthralled--I am just bored with it. Time shifting is a cheap trick in my book. (Having said that, I can think of another book set in Wales that uses the time travel concept--and I adore it! The book is A String in the Harp.) Oh, I'm so glad you don't like it, too. :lol: I don't feel so bad now. And now I have another book to add to my booklist - thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 (edited) Not Rosie, but I think she was talking about The Darcy's and the Bingley's. I read this two years ago. It wasn't steamy s*x but there was an awful lot of references and talk about it, something to do with this "book" that either Bingley or Darcy has about s*x. Kind of threw them way out of character. Other than that the rest of the story was fine. No I won't. You don't want to read it. Save yourself the heartache and go re-read P&P itself. ;) Rosie Thanks, I won't read it. It was pre-Victorian, so I'm sure lots went on back then ( as it did during the Victorian age), but it isn't Jane Austenish to have s*x in a book, and P&P is the only book of hers I really like, including its humour. Karin, Fall of Giants is the first one in this particular trilogy. The 2nd book will be out in September. Although I loved this book, I slightly preferred Pillars of the Earth, but this was also fabulous. I liked Pillars of the Earth when I read it (when it was new), but didn't care for the sequel as I was tired of the perverted man in power using women sadistically. That doesn't happen in all of Follett's books. Does it happen in Fall of Giants? You're kidding! Colin Firth was always the only Mr. Darcy for me but I haven't seen the other one. I'll have to give it a try. I do love David Rintoul (wow, that man ages well!) :001_smile: The one with David Rintoul is closer to the book in many ways. There's a great comparison review on Amazon, but I think that link is on my old, now unconnected computer. Also, it's easier to tell who is who & the two characters for whom looks are important to the story (Jane & Charlotte) look much more as they should. ie, in the one with Colin Firth we all thought the plain spinster was prettier than Jane in my family. Plus, we Jane Austen purists (okay, I admit, I'm only a purist with Pride & Prejudice) often prefer that one because the A& E one (that's the one with Colin Firth) added at least one extra scene that wasn't in the book (tut, tut ;)). I should add that the only reason I ever decided to read P&P was because of the BBC poduction of Pride & Prejudice with David Rintoul et al (he wasn't the only actor/ress I liked in it.) I read the others about 10 years later when I read all of her completed novels. I've read P&P about 6 times or so, and have maxed out on it now as the last time I read it I didn't enjoy the first half nearly as much as I used to, only the second half. Perhaps someday I'll get to see that old miniseries again, though. Edited February 2, 2012 by Karin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cani e porci Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 I'm not sure why I was even attracted to this book. At this point I am more than half way through it, but I will admit that I stared at it last night and sighed. It is not that I need to be enthralled--I am just bored with it. Time shifting is a cheap trick in my book. (Having said that, I can think of another book set in Wales that uses the time travel concept--and I adore it! The book is A String in the Harp.) I'm relieved that I wasn't the only one who thought Miss Peregrine's Home was a dud. :iagree: about A String in the Harp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.