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I am currently reading aloud Treasure Island to my kids because I never read it. So I get to kill 2 birds with one stone.

I am also reading Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson and Peacemaking for Families by Ken Sande.

I just put Kindle on my pc and have downloaded a whole bunch of classics. Uncle Tom's Cabin is one that I absolutely must read.

 

I also have a reading list from Worldview Academy. Instead of listing the books, here is the link: http://www.worldview.org/index.php/resources/recommended-reading

 

I have a long list of books to read...but the forums are wonderful!

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The Wind in the Willows and a Martin Luther book are on my short list. I also have Phantom of the Opera, Ivanhoe, the Three Musketeers, a couple of books on King Arthur, and Moby Dick on my list to read over the next couple of months.

 

I have been working on the 52 books in 52 weeks using a lot of classics and that is tough. I have been mixing it up with some children's classics that I never read, and an occasional shorter book just to try to keep up. So far I am still about 3 books behind.

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What books have you read recently that you loved, or do you have on a list of books you want to read?

I love threads like this. :D

I keep a list of books I've read, thanks to the Book-a-Week thread (my favorite thread on these boards :)). I also keep a list on Good Reads and Library Thing. I love that they recommend books that one might like.

Here's my list of favorite books.

 

ABSOLUTE AND ALL-TIME FAVORITES

Pride & Prejudice - if you want a classic, this is my absolute all-time favorite

Jane Eyre

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harry Potter books

A Thousand Splendid Suns

The Help

The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende and anything else by her, but this is her best. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Allende :D

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy .. but the first book is quite boring and confusing in the first 60-70 pages. Hang in there. It does get better! Yes, they are graphic. But I tend to look beyond that and just focus on the story

Roots by Alex Haley

The Geography of Bliss – non-fiction, very insightful

Food Rules – one of my favorite health books

Mindset – non-fiction, a book that one should read at least once – really gets you thinking

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LOVED (not in any particular order)

The Kite Runner

The Five People You Meet in Heaven - if you're in the mood for a very, sweet and easy read - as are all of his books - Tuesdays with Morrie - and pretty much any other Mitch Albom book – we even got the DVDs of three of his books and really liked them

Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg and most of her books - very sweet and light - and quite funny

Funny in Farsi - if you need a nice laugh as well as her other book Laughing without an Accent

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

The Secret Life of Bees

The Book Thief

Books by Maeve Binchy – light, fluffy, but also very accurate about human interactions and relationships

Outliers … and all Malcolm Gladwell books

The Anti-Cancer Book – great overall health book not just for those concerned about cancer, and full of hope and action

Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl – best self-help book ever, fabulous

Positive Thinking Every Day by Norman Vincent Peale – wonderful book of short daily readings

The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise – sweet, humor, and some sadness, very British, just lovely overall

Confessions of a Prairie B*tch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated – some painful stuff, very engaging, entertaining, lots of humor – loved this book - but more enjoyable if you liked the TV series

Middlesex – Jeffrey Eugenides

The Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver

The Housekeeper and the Professor

The Da Vinci Code

Sold by Patricia McCormick

Yellow Crocus

The Top Five Regrets of the Dying

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LIKED (not in any particular order)

The Scarlet Pimpernel - another classic I really like

A Respectable Trade by Philippa Gregory - my favorite Phillipa Gregory

Room by Emma Donoghue

Dave Barry’s Only Travel Guide You’ll Ever Need – funny, funny, funny

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man – very interesting and a real eye-opener

She’s Come Undone – Wally Lamb

Stones from The River – Ursula Hegi

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency

Someone Knows My Name – Lawrence Hill

The Orchard: A Memoir

Bel Canto

Fall of Giants

The Garden of Spells and The Sugar Queen – Sarah Addison Allen

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I love these threads, but I wonder if I could find a way to determine the emotional risk of the books you all recommend.

 

I'm not in a place in my life where I can read about a child's death or war atrocities or someone's losing their loved one to cancer. Other times in my life, maybe. Just not now.

 

I'd appreciate the reason you love the book. If it's insightful or moving or just absolutely breathtakingly beautiful, I want to put it on my list. If it's going to tear my heart to shreds and leave me paralyzed, please leave a disclaimer.

 

Thanks!

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I love these threads, but I wonder if I could find a way to determine the emotional risk of the books you all recommend.

 

I'm not in a place in my life where I can read about a child's death or war atrocities or someone's losing their loved one to cancer. Other times in my life, maybe. Just not now.

 

I'd appreciate the reason you love the book. If it's insightful or moving or just absolutely breathtakingly beautiful, I want to put it on my list. If it's going to tear my heart to shreds and leave me paralyzed, please leave a disclaimer.

 

Thanks!

 

Tanya, I am in the same place you are. I just can not deal with emotionally jarring material. I need upbeat, encouraging, rah rah sisboombah.

 

I often look at the reviews on Amazon before ordering from the library.

 

That said, I really need a happy....joyous....fulfilling...life changing book right now. NOT a self improvement one. Those always make me feel like cr@p. (you too can be good enough if you only do THESE things:glare:).

 

Faithe

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That said, I really need a happy....joyous....fulfilling...life changing book right now. NOT a self improvement one. Those always make me feel like cr@p. (you too can be good enough if you only do THESE things:glare:).

 

Faithe

 

I know! I have "6 Weeks to _____" or "30 Days of ______" or "3 Steps to _____" all over my shelves and I just can't deal with those, either.

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I love threads like this. :D

I keep a list of books I've read, thanks to the Book-a-Week thread (my favorite thread on these boards :)). I also keep a list on Good Reads and Library Thing. I love that they recommend books that one might like.

Here's my list of favorite books.

 

ABSOLUTE AND ALL-TIME FAVORITES

Pride & Prejudice - if you want a classic, this is my absolute all-time favorite

Jane Eyre

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harry Potter books

A Thousand Splendid Suns

The Help

The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende and anything else by her, but this is her best. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Allende :D

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy .. but the first book is quite boring and confusing in the first 60-70 pages. Hang in there. It does get better! Yes, they are graphic. But I tend to look beyond that and just focus on the story

Roots by Alex Haley

The Geography of Bliss – non-fiction, very insightful

Food Rules – one of my favorite health books

Mindset – non-fiction, a book that one should read at least once – really gets you thinking

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LOVED (not in any particular order)

The Kite Runner

The Five People You Meet in Heaven - if you're in the mood for a very, sweet and easy read - as are all of his books - Tuesdays with Morrie - and pretty much any other Mitch Albom book – we even got the DVDs of three of his books and really liked them

Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg and most of her books - very sweet and light - and quite funny

Funny in Farsi - if you need a nice laugh as well as her other book Laughing without an Accent

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

The Secret Life of Bees

The Book Thief

Books by Maeve Binchy – light, fluffy, but also very accurate about human interactions and relationships

Outliers … and all Malcolm Gladwell books

The Anti-Cancer Book – great overall health book not just for those concerned about cancer, and full of hope and action

Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl – best self-help book ever, fabulous

Positive Thinking Every Day by Norman Vincent Peale – wonderful book of short daily readings

The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise – sweet, humor, and some sadness, very British, just lovely overall

Confessions of a Prairie B*tch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated – some painful stuff, very engaging, entertaining, lots of humor – loved this book - but more enjoyable if you liked the TV series

Middlesex – Jeffrey Eugenides

The Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver

The Housekeeper and the Professor

The Da Vinci Code

Sold by Patricia McCormick

Yellow Crocus

The Top Five Regrets of the Dying

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LIKED (not in any particular order)

The Scarlet Pimpernel - another classic I really like

A Respectable Trade by Philippa Gregory - my favorite Phillipa Gregory

Room by Emma Donoghue

Dave Barry’s Only Travel Guide You’ll Ever Need – funny, funny, funny

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man – very interesting and a real eye-opener

She’s Come Undone – Wally Lamb

Stones from The River – Ursula Hegi

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency

Someone Knows My Name – Lawrence Hill

The Orchard: A Memoir

Bel Canto

Fall of Giants

The Garden of Spells and The Sugar Queen – Sarah Addison Allen

 

I love looking at your lists! I've read most of these and I'd have to agree with you.

 

I also adore Barbara Kingsolver's books. And A Prayer for Owen Meaney is one of my all time favorite books.

 

I have so many books that I want to read that it would be impossible to keep a list! I do have some on my want to read page on Goodreads.

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Currently reading A Distant Land of My Father (excellent!) and War of the Worlds (eh...).

 

Sitting by the bedside for the next few weeks...

 

The Room

Pale Horse, Pale Rider

Fahernheit 451

To Kill a Mockingbird (pre-read for DS)

 

Sitting on the Kindle...

 

Les Miserables

A Passage to India

It Happened on the Way to War

The Last Good Day

The Housewife Assissin's Handbook

Postcards From Nam

Stealing Trinity

Nazareth Child

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I always have a "to be read" list going.

Right now, Divergent and Insurgent by Veronica Roth are on it.

I am also always waiting for new books from a few favorite authors.

Jim Butcher

Seanan McGuire

Cassandra Clare

Ilona Andrews

Jeanine Frost

Michael Scott

Kevin Hearne

Faith Hunter

Richard Kadrey

Clive Cussler

 

I always have a "to read again" list too, for when I am feeling down or just need something familiar.

I am about to have a family read a thon with the Harry Potter series because I miss them and I need comfort reading.

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How timely! I just put together a 5 year list of classics to read ( I joined the Classics Club that A Room with a View is hosting) - I posted it on my bookclub blog:

 

http://momsandclassics.blogspot.ca/2012/06/classics-club-tracys-list.html

 

Right now, I've started Gulliver's Travels.

 

A fellow Classics Club member here! I'm in the middle of A Suitable Boy, among other things. My lists are on my blog (in my sig line). Happy reading...

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I just finished Charles Darwin's autobiography, and Origin of Species. I pre-read the Evolution of Calpurnia Tate before dd reads it, and I am working on Interview with the Vampire.

 

I am only reading before bed, which is not working well because I get too tired and barely finish a few pages!

 

I have the same problem. I don't even try to read in bed anymore. For me it's during mealtimes, or while waiting for my dc at YMCA classes, etc.

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I recently finished Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail and it was really, really good.

This afternoon I am starting The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King.

I was thinking this morning that I need a good Bill Bryson book so I may read Seeing Further: The Story of Science, Discovery, and the Genius of the Royal Society next. I love his sense of humor and his attention span seems to fit mine right now.

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I always have a giant list going, too, but I can't stick to it. I listen to NPR on my way to work and more often than not hear about a book I need to read. The first thing I do when I get to work is put it in my cart at Amazon so I can look at it later and decide whether or not to purchase. Therefore, my ongoing book list keeps getting longer and longer.

I hear ya about the heart wrenching books or those that cause stress. I can't stand them. If I absolutely must read one I just resolve to read it as quickly as possible, like ripping off a bandaid. :tongue_smilie:

I have a dear, wonderful client who likes to bring me books. He is in the senior set, maybe in his early 80's or late 70's, we have some of his property listed at all times. He is a voracious reader and loves to stop in and discuss them with me. Awesome, right? Well, he is awesome, his book choices are killing me and I feel so horrible about it. You know how some people are just hell bent on winning you over to their religion? Well, he is what we've dubbed an "evangelistic atheist." Let me just make you all aware that I am not religious. However, I love that others are and think if it is good for you and you don't hurt anyone with it, by all means, have at it. We are Christians, don't attend church, are very socially liberal, don't believe in a literal translation of the Bible, are diving into Buddhism as a philosophy and feel that Buddhism and Christianity work so well together, and love where we are spiritually. I do believe so strongly in God and I am happy with that place and I'm digging in. I love that my sweet little old client in John Deere suspenders has found peace with being an atheist and support him. I just don't want to read about it for a solid week! Last week we had such an informative conversation, we really do believe so many of the same things, I just need him to stop trying to convince me...know what I mean? Right now I have his copy of The God Delusion sitting on my desk and I know I need to read it for him, just because he loves having me read his books.

I keep giving him books from my collection. Last week was Red Sorgham. I have hoped that maybe he would see what I have read and loved would make him switch topics, it isn't working. :tongue_smilie:

Oh, I'm going to skim through it, it will make me a little more enlightened and seeing his view as well as the perspective of Richard Dawkins will make me a more insightful person and I will be grateful I did it. Dang it. Thanks for letting me vent. :D I love being surrounded by sweet, smart people who force me out of my little patch of comfort.

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Currently reading:

Ordinary Jack

A Chance in the World (this is summer reading for my ds's)

 

I usually read whatever my sons have assigned for summer reading:

Lord of the Flies

Unbroken

 

Other books for summer:

Defending Jacob

The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection (on audio)

 

That's all I have right now.

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Recently read -

A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

No Place for Truth by David Wells

Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

Roughing It by Mark Twain

Quiet: The Power of Introverts by Susan Cain

Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Help

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I just finished Circle of Sisters, which was quite well written and interesting, covering a period of artistic/literary history that I didn't know much about. I have also enjoyed Ivington Diaries and The Jewel Garden. I'm reading I Capture the Castle, then have on my library list Fate and Fortune and Bring up the Bodies. I seem to be reading an awful lot of historical fact/fiction and gardening books.

 

Laura

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In the past six months:

 

The Soul of Science: Christian Faith and Natural Philosphy

Courage and Conviction: Chronicles of the Reformation Church

Crime and Punishment

A Study in Scarlet

The Sign of the Four

The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (I obviously had Sherlock tunnel vision for a while.)

Don Quixote (finished it...I plodded through it over the course of a year)

Gulliver's Travels

Feminine Threads: Women in the Tapestry of Church History

 

Currently, I'm reading Oliver Twist.

 

As far as what I plan to read, I'm working through the novels list in The Well-Educated Mind. I also want to be reading a non-fiction book at the same time. I'm currently waiting on my copy of Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy.

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In no particular order, some of my all-time favorites (also listed on my Goodreads 'favorites' shelf):

The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Master & Margarita
by Mikhail Bulgakov

Colony
by Hugo Wilcken

The Night Circus
by Erin Morgenstern

The Raw Shark Texts
by Steven Hall

Zeroville
by Steve Erickson

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
by J.K. Rowling (if you like YA)

The Sisters Brothers
by Patrick deWitt

Darkmans
by Nicola Barker

Slaughterhouse-Five
by Kurt Vonnegut

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Remains of the Day
by Kazuo Ishiguro

All the Names
by Jose Saramago

The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexandre Dumas

The Eyre Affair
by Jasper Fforde

The Wee Free Men
by Terry Pratchett

Fatu-Hiva
by Thor Heyerdahl

Sleeping in Flame
by Jonathan Carroll

C
by Tom McCarthy

Kafka on the Shore
by Haruki Murakami

The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
by Dai Sijie

The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack
by Mark Hodder

I, Claudius
by Robert Graves

The Beekeeper's Apprentice
by Laurie R. King

Middlesex
by Jeffrey Eugenides

Eat, Pray, Love
by Elizabeth Gilbert

Heart of Darkness
by Joseph Conrad

The Guinea Pig Diaries
by A.J. Jacobs

The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear
by Walter Moers

The Historian
by Elizabeth Kostova

Into Thin Air
by Jon Krakauer

Dancer
by Colum McCann

Born to Run
by Christopher McDougall

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
by Jack Weatherford

A Red Herring without Mustard
by Alan Bradley

Good Omens
by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Bel Canto
by Ann Patchett

Some books I really want to read:

The Cellist of Sarajevo
by Steven Galloway

1Q84
by Haruki Murakami

One Hundred Years of Solitude
by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

2666
by Roberto Bolano

Gillespie and I
by Jane Harris

Equator
by Miguel Sousa Tavares

Hopscotch
by Julio Cortazar

Wittgenstein's Mistress
by David Markson

Expeditions to the Mountains of the Moon
by Mark Hodder

Head in Flames
by Lance Olsen

the rest of the Iron Druid series by Kevin Hearne

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I am currently reading aloud Treasure Island to my kids because I never read it. So I get to kill 2 birds with one stone.

I am also reading Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson and Peacemaking for Families by Ken Sande.

I just put Kindle on my pc and have downloaded a whole bunch of classics. Uncle Tom's Cabin is one that I absolutely must read.

 

I also have a reading list from Worldview Academy. Instead of listing the books, here is the link: http://www.worldview.org/index.php/resources/recommended-reading

 

I have a long list of books to read...but the forums are wonderful!

 

have have stared UCabin on e-reader 3x now and can't get into it -- bad me

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I've got a few books written by foreign correspondents on my shelf atm for when I finish up 'Two Gentlemen of Verona' and a book on quantum physics for laymen. I'm probably only understanding one word in three, but I'm sure it is good for me. :p

 

Rosie

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I'm almost embarrassed to admit...I've been reading the Song of Fire & Ice series. (Game of Thrones, etc.)

 

I've read books 1-4 already and should receive book 5 from the library in the next week or so.

 

The reason I'm embarrassed is that the books are a little trashy (s*x)... but, they are so well written. The author has done a fantastic job of creating a different world, and the characters that go along with it.

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Currently have 171 books waiting on the shelves to be read. The top 10 looking most forward to reading are:

 

Beautiful Sacrifice - Elizabeth Lowell

Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon

Faithful Place - Tana French

I'll Be Watching You - Charles De Lint

Inheritance (#4 Inheritance cycle) - Christopher Paolini

Justice Hall - Laurie R. King

Night of Long Knives - Rebecca Cantrell

Salamander - Thomas Wharton

Snakes Pass - Bram Stoker

Tenth Stone - Bodie Thoene

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I love these threads, but I wonder if I could find a way to determine the emotional risk of the books you all recommend.

I'm not in a place in my life where I can read about a child's death or war atrocities or someone's losing their loved one to cancer. Other times in my life, maybe. Just not now.

:iagree: and I hear you. :grouphug: I'm sort of in the same place at the moment.

Let me re-do my list for books that are not likely to be very disturbing - death of a child, war, terminal illness, atrocities, etc.

I'll try my best. Books are so subjective. It's hard to recommend them to others.

 

ABSOLUTE AND ALL-TIME FAVORITES

Harry Potter books

The Geography of Bliss – non-fiction, very insightful

Food Rules – one of my favorite health books

Mindset – non-fiction, a book that one should read at least once – really gets you thinking

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LOVED (not in any particular order)

Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg and most of her books - very sweet and light - and quite funny

Funny in Farsi - if you need a nice laugh as well as her other book Laughing without an Accent

Books by Maeve Binchy – light, fluffy, but also very accurate about human interactions and relationships

Outliers … and all Malcolm Gladwell books

Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl – best self-help book ever, fabulous

Positive Thinking Every Day by Norman Vincent Peale – wonderful book of short daily readings

 

OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE LIKED (not in any particular order)

Dave Barry’s Only Travel Guide You’ll Ever Need – funny, funny, funny

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man – very interesting and a real eye-opener

The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency

Bel Canto

The Garden of Spells and The Sugar Queen – Sarah Addison Allen

 

NOT a self improvement one. Those always make me feel like cr@p. (you too can be good enough if you only do THESE things:glare:).

:iagree:

 

I always have a "to read again" list too, for when I am feeling down or just need something familiar.

Me too. :)

 

a book on quantum physics for laymen. I'm probably only understanding one word in three, but I'm sure it is good for me.

:lol: Yes, this would be me also. :lol:

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