Robin M Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Happy Sunday dear hearts! This is the beginning of week 28 in our quest to read 52 books. Welcome back to all our readers, to those just joining in and 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 also below in my signature. 52 Books blog - Ode to the Artichoke: I can hear y'all scratching your heads, scrunching up your noses, and the huh's? :lol: July 12th is the anniversary of Pablo Neruda's birthday and since I've over inundated you with links the last few weeks, figured I'd keep it simple this week. Ode to the Artichoke by Pablo Neruda The artichoke With a tender heart Dressed up like a warrior, Standing at attention, it built A small helmet Under its scales It remained Unshakeable, By its side The crazy vegetables Uncurled Their tendrills and leaf-crowns, Throbbing bulbs, In the sub-soil The carrot With its red mustaches Was sleeping, The grapevine Hung out to dry its branches Through which the wine will rise, The cabbage Dedicated itself To trying on skirts, The oregano To perfuming the world, And the sweet Artichoke There in the garden, Dressed like a warrior, Burnished Like a proud Pomegrante. And one day Side by side In big wicker baskets Walking through the market To realize their dream The artichoke army In formation. Never was it so military Like on parade. The men In their white shirts Among the vegetables Were The Marshals Of the artichokes Lines in close order Command voices, And the bang Of a falling box. But Then Maria Comes With her basket She chooses An artichoke, She's not afraid of it. She examines it, she observes it Up against the light like it was an egg, She buys it, She mixes it up In her handbag With a pair of shoes With a cabbage head and a Bottle Of vinegar Until She enters the kitchen And submerges it in a pot. Thus ends In peace This career Of the armed vegetable Which is called an artichoke, Then Scale by scale, We strip off The delicacy And eat The peaceful mush Of its green heart. ************************************************** History of the Renaissance World - Chapters 47 and 48 ************************************************** What are you reading this week? Link to week 27 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted July 10, 2016 Author Share Posted July 10, 2016 Morning or should I say good afternoon. I was a sleepyhead this morning. I finished the chunkster, apocolypic, dystopian thriller - Swan Song by Robert McCarram, which is an excellent page turner. The beginning starts out a bit bleak so have to just keep going and hope the good guys win in the end. I also read Julia Anne Wallker's 2nd book in her Deep Six series - Devil and the Deep which is sexy and humorous. Meets nautical expectations! :laugh: Currently reading Kay Hooper's Fear the Dark from her Bishop/Special Crimes Unit series. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted July 10, 2016 Author Share Posted July 10, 2016 For inquiring minds about the definition of epic Epic: the genre and it's characteristics Elements of the Epic Epic historical fiction Best Epic Fantasy Greatest Ancient Epics 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethel Mertz Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Busy reading week here. 1. The Sparrow Sisters: A Novel – Ellen Herrick. Magical realism. Excellent read and I hope she is planning a sequel. 2. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia) – C.S. Lewis, (Bingo, Nautical) 3. The Beet Queen – Louise Erdrich (Bingo, cover) 4. Miss Julia’s Marvelous Makeover (Miss Julia #15) – Ann B. Ross. Another in the Miss Julia series. I'm enjoying these light reads. 5. Knee High by the Fourth of July – Jess Loury. Ugh. I only read this one because it had "July" in the title. Each month, I'm trying to read a book with the name of the month in it. One Star. 6. All the Birds in the Sky - Charlie Jane Anders. Riveting novel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 I finished Elena Ferrante's The Story of New Name in just a couple of sessions--the second half grabbed me a lot more than the first half! Very good, and I'll continue the series perhaps in August. I'm about half way through the non-fiction A Midwife's Tale and enjoying it's depiction of early American life in Massachusetts (the part we call Maine) very much. Taking a break from that for two 14-day library books that came up the same day after being on hold for months (grr...that always happens). I'm reading a John Pickett mystery on the treadmill, can't remember the name at the moment. I think it's the 4th one. I've also started Yaa Gyasi's Homegoing which is very good. I'm counting it as my epic simply because it was described as an epic on the best-so-far-of-2016 list where I found it. It covers 300 some years of history, two branches of a family, both in Ghana and America--that definition of epic rather than ancient-poetry-heroic saga type of epic. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Robyn Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 (edited) Any cool magazine suggestions? Aimed toward either teens or adults? Not looking for the popular, run-of-the-mill magazines... looking for some that are off the beaten path. (Want ones that would be available for subscription/paper versions, not just digital versions.) Thanks! I just thought of this this morning. You could subscribe to Stack or, if you're like me and think it's a bit too pricey, just look through their list of previous magazines. Well, the rain cleared up for my grandmother and me last week, and we were able to see Peter and the Starcatcher. It was silly, punny, Jim Carey-ish. I thought, I guess this was what it was like to watch a Shakespearean comedy at the time it was written, when you didn't have to look at the footnotes to understand the pun. I started listening to As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride in the car, and since I had a nice road trip on which to get through a chunk of it, I'm more than half way through. It's light and enjoyable. I especially love the stories about Andre the Giant. And I started reading The Island of Last Truth by Flavia Company as recommended by Stacia last week. I'm half way through and am enjoying it so far. Edited July 10, 2016 by crstarlette 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Happy Sunday dear hearts! This is the beginning of week 28 in our quest to read 52 books. Welcome back to all our readers, to those just joining in and 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 also below in my signature. 52 Books blog - Ode to the Artichoke: I can hear y'all scratching your heads, scrunching up your noses, and the huh's? :lol: July 12th is the anniversary of Pablo Neruda's birthday and since I've over inundated you with links the last few weeks, figured I'd keep it simple this week. Ode to the Artichoke by Pablo Neruda Reaction of DD: 'What a funny thread title' 'Hey, I know that guy, that's the poet in 'Il Postino' ' 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Good reading week: I loved the former book, this one is more sedate This one has been just translated in Dutch, I like her style And I finished the Prologemenus? From the Grotius book I was very impressed by his writing style, very systematically. Of to continue Rousseau... 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 I read Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay - 4 Stars - These Neapolitan books keep getting better. I hated to have to put the book down and to get on with my day, never mind the fact that I spent most of my non-reading time thinking about the characters. I didn't always care for the choices that they made, but that’s not what my high rating is based on anyway. This is the penultimate one in the series and I’m looking forward to reading the last one very soon, although I’m slightly worried that it’s going to have a devastating ending. It is Italian after all. I know that Italian movies (most French ones also, never mind Russian as well as Persian literature), tend to end dreadfully. I once mentioned this to an Italian friend of ours and his response, “Well, of course. Life ends badly. There are never any good endings.†I cannot stand bad endings. I’m not asking for a Disney-style ending where it’s all perfect and everyone rides off into the sunset, but at least some closure, and nothing crazy please! It seems to me that most of the endings that I love are in British and American literature. These books are written under a pseudonym. It’s my hunch, and I could be dead wrong, that they may be partly autobiographical. I thought of P.D. James’s quote: “All fiction is largely autobiographical and much autobiography is, of course, fiction.†MY RATING SYSTEM 5 Stars Fantastic, couldn't put it down 4 Stars Really Good 3 Stars Enjoyable 2 Stars Just Okay – nothing to write home about 1 Star Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Happy Sunday everyone! I continue to read two books started earlier in the week: The Alligator Report is as quirky as the cover suggests. Oh Stacia...this one has your name on it. Yalo is a difficult read. The novel so far has consisted of a police inquisition of a man whose version of reality does not seem to agree with that of his victims. Yet this book is clearly going beyond the descriptions of the perceptions to root causes. What creates a young man whose life is defined by violence? This is not a book for our gentle readers. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Ode to the Artichoke .... I ate a fresh artichoke while visiting friends last week; it was delicious but I'd forgotten how much work eating a fresh artichoke entails! ** These are currently free to Kindle readers ~ Cozy mysteries: RAFFERTY & LLEWELLYN SERIES BOXED SET... by Geraldine Evans Animal lovers might cry with this one: A Night at the Animal Shelter by Mark J. Asher A quartet of paranormal novels by one author: Rainy Nights by J.R. Rain (One of the books has this blurb: "I love this!" —PIERS ANTHONY, bestselling author of Xanth on J.R. Rain's Moon Dance.) Regards, Kareni 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Oh Good Grief! In my google search on "Epic Novels," there was a link listing Captain Underpants as an epic novel. No. Just no. :eek: Note to whoever created that list: :lol: Help me out with the definition of the "epic" category. I assumed it meant "epic" in the poetic sense and was thinking Homer or Paradise Lost. What is an epic novel? ETA: It suddenly occurs to me that "classic" might not mean "written in Greek or Roman antiquity." For epic, I chose The Palace of Illusions, a modern retelling of the Mahabharat from Panchaali's point of view. As with "epic", I think "classic" can have varying definitions. I wouldn't limit it just to Greek or Roman antiquity -- you know that I would include many modern classics as possibilities. In my world, Slaughterhouse-Five is a classic even though it was written in 1969. I did choose Kokoro, a modern-era Japanese novel as my "classic" for BaW Bingo. 17 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethel Mertz Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 As with "epic", I think "classic" can have varying definitions. I wouldn't limit it just to Greek or Roman antiquity -- you know that I would include many modern classics as possibilities. In my world, Slaughterhouse-Five is a classic even though it was written in 1969. I did choose Kokoro, a modern-era Japanese novel as my "classic" for BaW Bingo. I read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens for the "classic" square. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 A recent read here was the contemporary romance Bittersweet (True North) by Sarina Bowen which I enjoyed. "The last person Griffin Shipley expects to find stuck in a ditch on his Vermont country road is his ex-hookup. Five years ago they'd shared a couple of steamy nights together. But that was a lifetime ago. At twenty-seven, Griff is now the accidental patriarch of his family farm. Even his enormous shoulders feel the strain of supporting his mother, three siblings and a dotty grandfather. He doesn't have time for the sorority girl who's shown up expecting to buy his harvest at half price. Vermont was never in Audrey Kidder's travel plans. Neither was Griff Shipley. But she needs a second chance with the restaurant conglomerate employing her. Okay--a fifth chance. And no self-righteous lumbersexual farmer will stand in her way.They're adversaries. They want entirely different things from life. Too bad their sexual chemistry is as hot as Audrey's top secret enchilada sauce, and then some." ** I also re-read a favorite novella by the same author ~ Blonde Date: An Ivy Years Novella (The Ivy Years Book 0) ** A different book by the author is currently free to Kindle readers: Coming In From the Cold (Gravity Book 1) by Sarina Bowen Regards, Kareni 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-M- Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Here are a few from the piles, stacks, and shelves. â– Shylock Is My Name (Howard Jacobson; 2016. Fiction.)We will see The Merchant of Venice with Jonathan Pryce at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater next month, so I am reading the Hogarth Shakespeare retelling and rereading the play. p. 16 He knew what she was nudging him about. One of the traits of his character she had always disliked was his social cruelty. He teased people. Riddled them. Kept them waiting. Made them come to him. â– Dubliners (James Joyce; 1914. Fiction.)I am rereading this for an online book club / MOOC and am once again reminded that many books were wasted on younger versions of me. Of the many valuable resources the club / course has provided so far, I thought the link to Mark O'Connell's "Have I Ever Left It?" (Slate, May 2014) was particularly worthwhile. From the conclusion of "Araby": Gazing up into the darkness I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger. â– Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis (J.D. Vance; 2016. Non-fiction.)I picked this up after reading after reading Vance's piece on The Huffington Post. p. 7The problems that I saw at the tile warehouse run far deeper than macroeconomic trends and policy. Too many young men immune to hard work. Good jobs impossible to fill for any length of time. And a young man with every reason to work -- a wife-to-be to support and a baby on the way -- carelessly tossing aside a good job with excellent health insurance. More troublingly, when it was all over, he thought something had been done to him. There is a lack of agency here -- a feeling that you have little control over your life and a willingness to blame everyone but yourself. This is distinct from the larger economic landscape of modern America. p. 9But I love these people, even those to whom I avoid speaking for my own sanity. And if I leave you with the impression that there are bad people in my life, then I am sorry, both to you and to the people so portrayed. For there are no villains in this story. There's just a ragtag band of hillbillies struggling to find their way -- both for their sake, and by the grace of God, for mine. â– Fell, Vol. 1: Feral City (Warren Ellis; 2007. Graphic fiction.) 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 I finished listening to The Sex Lives of Cannibals. I enjoyed it. There was very little sex, and no cannibals, but it was a catchy title for a funny, satirical, and highly irreverent memoir about the author's time on Kiribata in the South Pacific. It's definitely not PC, he takes the piss out of everyone, natives, colonials, and foreigners, with special disdain for the corrupt government and the misguided NGOs. But underlying it all you can tell that he has a genuine love for that part of the world and respect for the people he got to know. It was an enjoyable listen on the Pacific theme. Currently reading through all the Sherlock Holmes books with my big girl, getting back into Battling the Gods, and kind of struggling with an intelligent sci-fi - Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer. It's good, but very, very complex - it's making me work awfully hard for what was supposed to be my light read! I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? Books finished in July: 125. The Sex Lives of Cannibals - Maarten Troost 124. Of Love and Other Demons - Gabriel Garcia Marquez 123. Sergio Y - Alexandre Vidal Porto 122. The Sunne in Splendor - Sharon Kay Penman 121. Pastoralia - George Saunders 120. The General in his Labyrinth - Gabriel Garcia Marquez 119. Leaf Storm - Gabriel Garcia Marquez 118. Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez 117. The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham 116. Homer's Daughter - Robert Graves 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Today, I finished The Plover by Brian Doyle. I loved it. Just loved it. A few years ago I read a completely different book that had a quote that somehow applies to The Plover & to my reading of it. “Sometimes when she told stories about the past her eyes would get teary from all the memories she had, but they weren't tears. She wasn't crying. They were just the memories, leaking out.†(The quote is from A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki.) The Plover is not my book. Not my story. It doesn't hold my memories. But when the tears leaked out of my eyes while reading, that quote is exactly what I thought of. It doesn't even make sense in a way, yet it does somehow. The Plover touched my heart & mind in so many ways. This story is well- & beautifully-told, a mix of reality & magic (not magical realism, more the magic of wonder & awe of the world we live in & with); true characters full of flaws, & wonder, & hope. A book that gave me some tears, smiles, & hope in our world. Gorgeous. From the V.J. Books website: Brian Doyle's The Plover is a sea novel, a maritime adventure, the story of a cold man melting, a compendium of small miracles, an elegy to Edmund Burke, a watery quest, a battle at sea---and a rapturous, heartfelt celebration of life’s surprising paths, planned and unplanned.Declan O Donnell has sailed out of Oregon and deep into the vast, wild ocean, having had just finally enough of other people and their problems. He will go it alone, he will be his own country, he will be beholden to and beloved of no one. No man is an island, my butt, he thinks. I am that very man. . . .But the galaxy soon presents him with a string of odd, entertaining, and dangerous passengers, who become companions of every sort and stripe. The Plover is the story of their adventures and misadventures in the immense blue country one of their company calls Pacifica. Hounded by a mysterious enemy, reluctantly acquiring one new resident after another, Declan O Donnell’s lonely boat is eventually crammed with humor, argument, tension, and a resident herring gull. As I also loved Brian Doyle's book Mink River, I think I now have to say I'm officially a Brian Doyle fan-girl. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? Having read one of the three, I enthusiastically vote for Anna Karenina! 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin M Posted July 11, 2016 Author Share Posted July 11, 2016 I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? My vote is War & Peace. Enjoyed it so much more than Anna Karenina! 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? I haven't read any of them. But, I'm not a Dickens fan, so I'll vote for Tolstoy! 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) Going back to my post about The Plover. I said it's not magical realism. Yet, there are some touches there too. To me, though, they were so natural to the story that I see it more as an honoring of traditions or beliefs that all living things communicate, be they human, or animal, or plant. I'm mostly saying this because Pam gave me a hard time over the talking gecko in The Book of Chameleons. :tongue_smilie: ;) :lol: So, just to clarify: In my world, talking geckos (or other animals or plants) are normal in some stories, but may be categorized differently by other readers. Ymmv. :hat: :leaving: (Hey, Pam. Where are you??? We miss seeing you here!) Edited July 11, 2016 by Stacia 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 The Alligator Report is as quirky as the cover suggests. Oh Stacia...this one has your name on it. Yalo is a difficult read. The novel so far has consisted of a police inquisition of a man whose version of reality does not seem to agree with that of his victims. Yet this book is clearly going beyond the descriptions of the perceptions to root causes. What creates a young man whose life is defined by violence? This is not a book for our gentle readers. Thanks, Jane. Looking forward to it. Quirky + knowing it is from Coffee House Press = sounds great to me! Looking forward to your comments after finishing Yalo. I started Khoury's Gate of the Sun earlier this year but his subject matter is heavy &, while beautiful, was heavier than I could deal with at the time. It's one I will visit down the road. I just thought of this this morning. You could subscribe to Stack or, if you're like me and think it's a bit too pricey, just look through their list of previous magazines. Well, the rain cleared up for my grandmother and me last week, and we were able to see Peter and the Starcatcher. It was silly, punny, Jim Carey-ish. I thought, I guess this was what it was like to watch a Shakespearean comedy at the time it was written, when you didn't have to look at the footnotes to understand the pun. <snip> And I started reading The Island of Last Truth by Flavia Company as recommended by Stacia last week. I'm half way through and am enjoying it so far. Wow. Wish I had the money for that subscription! Glad the rain cleared out so you & your grandmother could enjoy your outing. Also glad to hear The Island of Last Truth is holding your interest so far. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I couldn't remember what I had read last week and then it hit me - I had listened to a book! It was a re-read/first time listen for me of a favorite book - True Grit by Charles Portis and read by Donna Tart. Loved it even more this time around. Really great read, great listen and so so so much better than the movies!! Still chugging along (or should I say 'sailing'?) with the crew of the Surprise, headed for Desolation Island. :) 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) Finishing up J. Frank Dobie's collection of folklore of fabled and elusive gold and silver mines of the American Southwest and northern Mexico, Apache Gold and Yaqui Silver. ... and with a finger dipped in his own blood wrote on the cotton: "Follow Dogs. I am Dying." Then he wrapped the rag around a nugget of gold-- I haven't quite decided what to read next. Oh Good Grief! In my google search on "Epic Novels," there was a link listing Captain Underpants as an epic novel. No. Just no.Ha!... well then I think I may just go with Paradise Lost after all. Edited July 11, 2016 by Violet Crown 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 A couple more currently free Kindle books that might appeal to some ~ The Dolan Girls by S. R. Mallery The Girl in Seat 24B by Jennifer Peel Regards, Kareni 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Those who enjoy urban fantasy might enjoy seeing author Melissa F. Olson's list of urban fantasy recommendations here. (I've enjoyed Olson's urban fantasy books.) One of the books on her list, Annie Bellet's Justice Calling (The Twenty-Sided Sorceress Book 1), is currently free to Kindle readers. (I've posted this title before.) Regards, Kareni 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennW in SoCal Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) I started Remains of the Day on audio, and while it has a very good narrator I decided I'd rather read it in print so as not to miss a word. I found I was missing some sentences while driving, which doesn't matter so much in general fiction, but with such beautiful prose it seemed a crime. For the car I'm now listening to Jim Butcher's Aeronaut's Windlass, which I believe several of you have read. It's funny how glaring an author's vocabulary and syntax ticks become in the audio version. There is a heck of a lot of blinking going on in this book. One character says something surprising, then the other character blinks before responding. Sometimes a character blinks multiple times! But not a chapter goes by without two or 3 people blinking at what someone says. Other authors can be equally annoying. One of Brandon Sanderson's epics drove me nuts with all the sentences constructed "verb with adjective-noun" combinations. It went far, far beyond "he looked at her with hungry eyes" to just silly, random combinations. John Scalzi's books can sound really clunky because the dialog is nothing but "he said", "she said". Will Wheaton does his best as the narrator to make it flow, but there is only so much that can be done. The week is shaping up to be a good one for reading. Besides Remains of the Day, I've got a nice stack of mysteries and a stack of in-progress non-fiction. ETA Just googled "Aeronaut's Windlass blinking" and a Goodreads review popped up with the same blinking criticism! The reviewer also used the same wording I did, calling it a "tick" and further commented how noticeable and extra irritating they are in audio format!! I'm not alone!! Edited July 11, 2016 by JennW in SoCal 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? I liked Anna Karenina. I think it is pretty readable for a Russiona Author. I like the recent BBC mini serie edition of War & Peace. Reading the book I realized they skipped most of the battlefield scenes. In the book they cover many pages, in a long winded tone. I try to find some courage to finish the book. I like David Copperfield. It keeps me reading due to the tension of it. 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I l.o.v.e. this book: therefore I went too late to bed last night :) I really like this 'type' book. I found the book accidently, and discovered our Library has more from the same author :) 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoseInABook Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I finished John Green's Looking For Alaska which was good but pretty predictable. Now I'm trying to make myself finish Hammered by Kevin Hearne which keeps getting put aside for an actual paper book seeing that I have it on my Kindle. I love my Kindle when I have babies but it also comes with the drawback of being super easy to fall asleep with because I tend to read it in the dark. :p The sensory experience of paper books keep me awake more. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I finished John Green's Looking For Alaska which was good but pretty predictable. Now I'm trying to make myself finish Hammered by Kevin Hearne which keeps getting put aside for an actual paper book seeing that I have it on my Kindle. I love my Kindle when I have babies but it also comes with the drawback of being super easy to fall asleep with because I tend to read it in the dark. :p The sensory experience of paper books keep me awake more. I love the beginning and endings of the Iron Druid books. The middle drags endlessly for me generally. My advice is to speed read to the last 100 pages when it will hopefully be interesting again! So glad the babies have you to take care of them. I started Remains of the Day on audio, and while it has a very good narrator I decided I'd rather read it in print so as not to miss a word. I found I was missing some sentences while driving, which doesn't matter so much in general fiction, but with such beautiful prose it seemed a crime. For the car I'm now listening to Jim Butcher's Aeronaut's Windlass, which I believe several of you have read. It's funny how glaring an author's vocabulary and syntax ticks become in the audio version. There is a heck of a lot of blinking going on in this book. One character says something surprising, then the other character blinks before responding. Sometimes a character blinks multiple times! But not a chapter goes by without two or 3 people blinking at what someone says. Other authors can be equally annoying. One of Brandon Sanderson's epics drove me nuts with all the sentences constructed "verb with adjective-noun" combinations. It went far, far beyond "he looked at her with hungry eyes" to just silly, random combinations. John Scalzi's books can sound really clunky because the dialog is nothing but "he said", "she said". Will Wheaton does his best as the narrator to make it flow, but there is only so much that can be done. The week is shaping up to be a good one for reading. Besides Remains of the Day, I've got a nice stack of mysteries and a stack of in-progress non-fiction. ETA Just googled "Aeronaut's Windlass blinking" and a Goodreads review popped up with the same blinking criticism! The reviewer also used the same wording I did, calling it a "tick" and further commented how noticeable and extra irritating they are in audio format!! I'm not alone!! I have been read Jim Butcher's other series in audio format and it definitely has repetition issues. I can't remember what the movement was, mght have been blinking. :lol: I am currently on vacation from the series because I couldn't take it anymore! I totally plan to go back to the series but i need a couple of months.... I think having to listen to the same thing repeated verbally many times in the course of an audio book is far more irritating than reading it multiple times. Easy to skip over when reading. Those who enjoy urban fantasy might enjoy seeing author Melissa F. Olson's list of urban fantasy recommendations here. (I've enjoyed Olson's urban fantasy books.) One of the books on her list, Annie Bellet's Justice Calling (The Twenty-Sided Sorceress Book 1), is currently free to Kindle readers. (I've posted this title before.) Regards, Kareni I will be getting The Twenty Sided Sorceress. Thanks for Olson's list. I bookmarked it because I am not in the mood for that genre currently but suspect it's a great list. Many of my favourites are on it and a couple of series I gave up on too. The ones I quit say start reading later in series and I would have stsrted with book 1. I have been immersing myself in comfort reads, which for me means series. I finished the Linda Castillo Amish series and am waiting for the new one to be released. I know they aren't comforting in the traditional sense but I found them additive. My overdrive had the novellas so it all staggered nicely between long and short. Also read some historical romances. I just finished Mary Jo Putney's latest https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27204476-once-a-soldier Once a Soldier. Loved it. It is supposedly the start of a new series but is really more of the Lost Lords series. Just started The Royal Nanny by Karen Harper. The first 15 pages are good.... 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) . Edited November 8, 2016 by ErinE 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastweedpuller Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Hello! It heartens me to hear that so many of you are enjoying the Elena Ferrante Naples series. Rose, having read all your choices, War and Peace is my winner...but it depends on the translation. So I recommend again the Pevear/Volokhonsky one (I read the Maude translation when I was much younger...comparing them side by side the Maude (Oxford) translation was more heavy lifting IMHO). M--, I also think about the books (especially classics like Dubliners) that were "wasted" in my youth. The corollary, however, is re-reading certain books you loved when you were younger and discovering they haven't the shelf life you think they should have. Sigh. Things speak to you for a reason in the time you read them, I suppose! As a new-ish (since the winter holidays) Kindle owner, I am a bit miffed by how the juggling of the library free-reads has likewise juggled my preferred reading order. Do any of you feel like you NEED to finish a luxurious read just because something else is coming down the pike? Maybe I am just mad at myself that I forgot to download the renew of a book on a long list so it went poof before I realized my mistake...and I now have another month or two before I can get it again (Purity, by Franzen) after I had read a third of its many pages. That, and I see things available on my wish list and grab them without really charting out how much time I truly have to read them. Summer is very busy for me professionally and farm-wise. I feel I need now to manage my reading self...not happy! But I did manage to finish and truly enjoy Lab Girl by Hope Jahren. So much to say about this: friendship, work relationships, science, botany, family life...it's an autobiography; she's a handful. I do not abandon books very often. (I have commitment issues apparently.) But I abandoned this one: Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Aliexevich. I am immensely interested in historic and contemporary Russia and this book was just too much reportage and not enough directed narrative for my tastes. It is an odd book. She interviews "ordinary" citizens of the USSR pre- and post-dissolution to the present day. Protecting her sources is primary, so all you read are their thoughts: no background information except that willingly volunteered by the citizens themselves. It just hopped around too much for me and perhaps might have been better in print form. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I just thought of this this morning. You could subscribe to Stack or, if you're like me and think it's a bit too pricey, just look through their list of previous magazines. Well that is cool. But I admit that I completely focused on one of the magazines in the Stack, a travel and arts magazine called Boat. I was debating subscribing to it when I saw I could buy a back issue on Reykjavik. With a weak pound, I could not resist. The Iceland obsession continues... I need to pick a meaty classic to take with me on my vacation next month. Right now, it's between Anna Karenina, War & Peace, and David Copperfield. What do you guys think? Anything but Dickens? Masterpiece Theater does great stuff with Dickens but I cannot bear to read him. I l.o.v.e. this book: therefore I went too late to bed last night :) I really like this 'type' book. I found the book accidently, and discovered our Library has more from the same author :) Another book goes on the list.... The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave-Breeding Industry by Ned and Constance Sublette – American History. An in-depth look at the rise of slavery in the colonial, revolutionary, and pre-emancipation United States. This book expands beyond politics to include business, geography, and society with a wealth of detail, much of which I didn’t know even though I consider myself well-read in American history. Highly recommended. Wow. There is a really good review entitled The 'Capitalized Womb' here. I need to find the internal strength to face this one. 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 As a new-ish (since the winter holidays) Kindle owner, I am a bit miffed by how the juggling of the library free-reads has likewise juggled my preferred reading order. Do any of you feel like you NEED to finish a luxurious read just because something else is coming down the pike? Maybe I am just mad at myself that I forgot to download the renew of a book on a long list so it went poof before I realized my mistake...and I now have another month or two before I can get it again (Purity, by Franzen) after I had read a third of its many pages. That, and I see things available on my wish list and grab them without really charting out how much time I truly have to read them. Summer is very busy for me professionally and farm-wise. I feel I need now to manage my reading self...not happy! . :grouphug: I sometimes feel library due dates completely control my reading choices! I have found the best way to not lose books to Overdrive is to only turn the kindle wifi on when I know my return situation for the book I am currently reading. Since I have had kindles since the beginning I now have an old one I update every week or so. I don't particularly like reading on it but at least I don't have a book that I am reading "stolen" from me completely. ;) 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I’m looking for recommendations for literature survey courses as well as any books with descending character arcs. In many books, the characters either stay the same or ascend (change for the better). I’m looking for something like Othello or Breaking Bad, where the character, through his own flaws, ends up morally compromised. I’m open to any genre. Hmm, a few ideas: The Picture of Dorian Gray Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde The Metamorphosis (not sure if he is morally compromised at the end, but definitely a descending character arc!) Anna Karenina Lord of the Flies Macbeth Oedipus Rex 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Hmm, a few ideas: The Picture of Dorian Gray Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde The Metamorphosis (not sure if he is morally compromised at the end, but definitely a descending character arc!) Anna Karenina Lord of the Flies Macbeth Oedipus Rex I've read everything except Oedipus Rex. Maybe I'll reread the above to understand them. I've found it to be a difficult arc to find, but interesting when done well. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) Once again I'm behind on these threads. I was also behind on updating my Goodreads lists, so you guys aren't alone. :) The week we finally got away from philosophy I was thrilled, especially because it was about cozy mysteries - one of my favorite genres. Yet, I didn't read any cozy mystery that week and while I wasn't reading philosophy, I was reading about philosophers in Battling the Gods. I've also been watching The Greeks on PBS. While that isn't just about the Greek philosophers, it fit right in with my reading. Finished reading: -Jar City - Thank you to those who recommended it and brought it back to light recently. I will be reading more of this series - the ones I can find that have been translated into English. -Battling the Gods: Atheism in the Ancient World - I was determined to finish because there aren't many books about this subject, but I can't say I enjoyed it. It was much more textbookish and academic than I expected or was hoping for. Still, it was interesting. -Donnie Brasco - I've been watching The Sopranos on Amazon Prime, and as I often do when watching a series, I started googling. One link led to another and before I knew it I was reading about Brasco/agent Joe Pistone. I remember the news stories about this but didn't pay much attention to it at the time. I found the book fascinating, and though I didn't see the movie with Johnny Depp I know it was quite different. For one thing, Pistone/Brasco never lost himself in the mob world like his character in the movie does. He was always an FBI agent throughout his entire time undercover. -Persepolis - This was our most recent book club book. Our meeting is tomorrow night, and we'll be reading the second part for our next book. I'm not a fan of graphic novels - none of us are, but we agreed to leave our comfort zones to read this book. I loved it, and am looking forward to the next one. It's a fascinating look at Iran's Islamic Revolution through the eyes of a young girl who was growing up in a modern (for the time period) secular Iranian family. Actively currently reading: -Founding Mothers - I made the mistake of turning on my Kindle wifi after this book loan expired. Fortunately there isn't a waiting list, so I was able to borrow it again right away (my library doesn't have a way to renew ebooks). I love that ebook loans will keep track of your progress, so when I borrowed it again it automatically opened where I left off. How Green Was My Valley The Brothers Karamazov - trying again. I couldn't get through it the first time, but it seems easier this time. It's been a while since I first tried to read this, so I started from the beginning again. Red Bones - Ann Cleeves' Shetland Island Mystery #3 The Voyage of the Beagle - Yep. Still at it. Determined to finish. Ready Player One - my current audio book. I'm enjoying this, and am wondering why I resisted for so long. Now, off to multi-quote and respond to some posts. :) Edited July 13, 2016 by Lady Florida. 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 I’m looking for recommendations for literature survey courses as well as any books with descending character arcs. In many books, the characters either stay the same or ascend (change for the better). I’m looking for something like Othello or Breaking Bad, where the character, through his own flaws, ends up morally compromised. I’m open to any genre. Maybe Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe? Totally different genre, but what about The Godfather? Not sure why those two popped into my head! lol 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 This week's (first) read was settled for me by discovering there's a confusing but interesting event being offered this week by our local Shakespeare group and chamber orchestra, combining to present Scenes From Henry VIII, which I've never read. So I've assigned it to Middle Girl too, and we need to read quick. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Finished reading: -Jar City - Thank you to those who recommended it and brought it back to light recently. I will be reading more of this series - the ones I can find that have been translated into English. -Persepolis - This was our most recent book club book. Our meeting is tomorrow night, and we'll be reading the second part for our next book. I'm not a fan of graphic novels - none of us are, but we agreed to leave our comfort zones to read this book. I loved it, and am looking forward to the next one. It's a fascinating look at Iran's Islamic Revolution through the eyes of a young girl who was growing up in a modern (for the time period) secular Iranian family. Credit Jenn with introducing us to author Arnauldur Indridason. I have been busy promoting his books and a meet up in Iceland. ;) Glad you brought up Persepolis. Although I live with graphic novel fans, I only read a couple a year, usually the political sorts (like Persepolis or Safe Area Gorazde about the Bosnian War). But it is no surprise that I really like a particular Japanese series, Oishinbo, which focuses on two rivals creating an ultimate menu of traditional Japanese foods. In fact, I just started reading the volume entitled Pub Food just last night. After you read the second volume of Persepolis, you might want to see the film too. 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Before I forget to post about it I just finished The Royal Nanny by Karen Harper. Really enjoyed it. It followed the life of the British Royal family from 1900 on. Told from the nanny's perspective. Lots of perspective on Edward VIII personality. Interesting. I thought the book was complete fiction, rather like the Royal We when I started reading it. As I read things started falling closely in place and I turned to Wiki to verify. Itfollows the families story closely and the nanny was real. Still pretty fluffy but higher quality fluff then I intended to read :lol: 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loesje22000 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Before I forget to post about it I just finished The Royal Nanny by Karen Harper. Really enjoyed it. It followed the life of the British Royal family from 1900 on. Told from the nanny's perspective. Lots of perspective on Edward VIII personality. Interesting. I thought the book was complete fiction, rather like the Royal We when I started reading it. As I read things started falling closely in place and I turned to Wiki to verify. Itfollows the families story closely and the nanny was real. Still pretty fluffy but higher quality fluff then I intended to read :lol: That sounds interesting! 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) Help me out with the definition of the "epic" category. I assumed it meant "epic" in the poetic sense and was thinking Homer or Paradise Lost. What is an epic novel? ETA: It suddenly occurs to me that "classic" might not mean "written in Greek or Roman antiquity." Well, for my Epic square I put The Bible because it is epic that I read the whole thing. I started listening to As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride in the car, and since I had a nice road trip on which to get through a chunk of it, I'm more than half way through. It's light and enjoyable. I especially love the stories about Andre the Giant. I found it fun to watch the movie as soon as I finished his book. As for my reading....um, nothing. Seriously, nothing. I think I have read 5 pages in my current book this past week. I'm working on my praticum during the time I'm not doing school with the boys, taking care of house stuff (I think my dh left during the height of lawn mowing season on purpose!), and single parenting 24/7 has sucked up my reading time. And Google docs people. The amount of time I am taking to figure out Google docs is depressing and frustrating. Any of you here older than say 35 who remember pen and paper? I miss those days at the moment. When did I start falling behind in knowing how to use technology? Edited July 11, 2016 by Mom-ninja. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 My brain is working about like hopscotch these days, so I'm just now getting around to some of last week's posts... I've really enjoyed Piecework, the magazine that Jane has often talked about. It is a needlework magazine with patterns, but each issue has lots of interesting articles on the history of a particular style of needlework, or on the history of the women -- and men -- who carried on a tradition or started an industry. I just sent in a renewal for it. "Ever eat a pine cone? Many parts are edible." Thanks for the heads-up on Piecework. And, now I'm going to have to look up how to eat a pine cone. I have a gazillion in my yard & could greatly save on groceries if I can convince my 15yo ds that pine cone eating is the way to go. ;) I am curious, though, since they are so darn prickly & sharp. My favorite "off the beaten path" magazine is AramcoWorld. If you deal the fact that it's linked to an oil company, it's really a high quality, wonderful (and non-political) magazine about the Arab world, and it's free! Here are some examples of their articles (click the photos), and here's a general description and link for a paper subscription. It's printed on nice paper too. We enjoyed , for example, Saving Sarajevo's Literary Legacy and Capital of Baklava. Also, to keep this in the spirit of a book thread, The Poetics of Suspense, an article about crime novels. This magazine is really good for getting all kinds of information about a part of the world that not often discussed in positive terms in the U.S. these days. Very cool. Thanks for sharing the info & links. It's so nice to hear something positive & interesting about areas that often get routinely negative coverage here. The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar (I was captured by this on the back cover: In The Bookman, Tidhar writes a love letter to books, and to the serial literature of the Victorian era: full of hair-breadth escapes and derring-dos, pirates and automatons, assassins and poets, a world in which real life authors mingle freely with their fictional creations--and where nothing is quite as it seems.) I thought this sounded familiar & it turns out that I read it a few years ago. Let me know what you think of it when you're finished..... I finished Sergio Y this morning. What a beautiful book. Sad, yet full of hope. "Many manage to improve on the first drafts of the lives they are given. But for that they need the courage to jump off a diving board fifty meters high, blindfolded, not knowing if it is water or asphalt that awaits them below." These were my favorite lines from the book. That first sentence really made me think about the life ("first draft") my father was given, and how he managed to turn it into something so much better and different than what was expected. And I loved the metaphor in general, which if it's expanded, includes an implicit acknowledgement that some are given first drafts that are almost complete novels, and others just a few pages of scribbles of an unformed thought or vague idea. Rose & idnib, I agree that these were favorite lines. I found it such a touching story which was a bit unexpected given the cool, clinical tone in which it was written. A little gem of a book. I finished Of Love and Other Demons by Marquez. It was beautiful writing, but a horrible, horrible story. Marquez the journalist uncovered the story, and Marquez the novelist created it - the story of a girl ignored and neglected by her horrible parents and then victimized and ultimately murdered by the Church. Just awful. I'm not sure there was anything really redeeming about it. Blech. Stepping away from Marquez for awhile. I think I'm going to read some Saramago next. What Saramago are you planning to read? I really enjoyed All the Names. I have Blindness on my shelves but don't know that I'm up to tackling something that seems so sad/serious. Will you enjoy his no punctuation writing style? :lol: Well, I love the magazine Oxygen but none of the three library systems I'm a part of have it. It's an exercise magazine for serious fitness people. It's not filled with ads and articles about beauty products. That drives me crazy about magazines such as Health, Women's Fitness, Shape, etc. is that 95% of the articles are about clothing, hair, or makeup. Um, if I read a fitness magazine I don't want to read about which lip stick is in vogue to wear in and out of the gym. I also don't want to read "20 Things He Wished You Did in Bed" in my fitness magazine. Unless they're talking about doing lunges and squats on a mattress, which would be an extra balance challenge causing thereby making lunges and squats extra challenging, it shouldn't be in a fitness magazine. I also do not care what gym clothes Jada Pinkett wears for working out. Yes, she is very fit but her clothes don't make her fit. Great points. I've never heard of that magazine (probably because I'm not a serious fitness person :tongue_smilie: ) but I love the fact that it's not fluff & filler. So many magazines these days are you paying to look at a bunch of glossy ads. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Oh Rose, forgot my vote. I vote for Anna Karenina 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Well, for my Epic square I put The Bible because it is epic that I read the whole thing. <snip> Any of you here older than say 35 who remember pen and paper? I miss those days at the moment. When did I start falling behind in knowing how to use technology? For the first part, that is epic! :thumbup1: Congrats. I keep thinking I need to tackle the whole thing someday too.... And, me. Yes, I'm older than 35. And I definitely miss pen & paper. I still use it as often as possible. Still pretty fluffy but higher quality fluff then I intended to read :lol: Those sneaky authors! :toetap05: :laugh: Credit Jenn with introducing us to author Arnauldur Indridason. I have been busy promoting his books and a meet up in Iceland. ;) Glad you brought up Persepolis. Although I live with graphic novel fans, I only read a couple a year, usually the political sorts (like Persepolis or Safe Area Gorazde about the Bosnian War). But it is no surprise that I really like a particular Japanese series, Oishinbo, which focuses on two rivals creating an ultimate menu of traditional Japanese foods. In fact, I just started reading the volume entitled Pub Food just last night. After you read the second volume of Persepolis, you might want to see the film too. I just returned Jar City to the library today unread. My stacks were too big & when that happens, I often return everything & then try to start from scratch to see what I want to read. I still want to go to Iceland, so I guess I'm going to need to grab it again soon! Lol. -Persepolis - This was our most recent book club book. Our meeting is tomorrow night, and we'll be reading the second part for our next book. I'm not a fan of graphic novels - none of us are, but we agreed to leave our comfort zones to read this book. I loved it, and am looking forward to the next one. It's a fascinating look at Iran's Islamic Revolution through the eyes of a young girl who was growing up in a modern (for the time period) secular Iranian family. <snip> Ready Player One - my current audio book. I'm enjoying this, and am wondering why I resisted for so long. I really need to read Persepolis. I have seen it recommended so much. Like you, I am not necessarily a fan of graphic novels, but this sounds really good. My ds loved Ready Player One. He was so excited to have a fiction book he loved (& hadn't already read). Hmm, a few ideas: The Picture of Dorian Gray Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde The Metamorphosis (not sure if he is morally compromised at the end, but definitely a descending character arc!) Anna Karenina Lord of the Flies Macbeth Oedipus Rex Rose, would you concur with a recommendation of Memoirs of a Porcupine by Alain Mabanckou as a suggestion for this category? ErinE, since you've already read Jekyll & Hyde, have you read Hyde by Daniel Levine? Maybe The Infatuations by Javier Marias would fit. Maybe. The Tenth Circle by Mempo Giardinelli. Perhaps Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas? Perfume? (Gah! How I hated this book!!!) For the car I'm now listening to Jim Butcher's Aeronaut's Windlass, which I believe several of you have read. It's funny how glaring an author's vocabulary and syntax ticks become in the audio version. There is a heck of a lot of blinking going on in this book. One character says something surprising, then the other character blinks before responding. Sometimes a character blinks multiple times! But not a chapter goes by without two or 3 people blinking at what someone says. Other authors can be equally annoying. One of Brandon Sanderson's epics drove me nuts with all the sentences constructed "verb with adjective-noun" combinations. It went far, far beyond "he looked at her with hungry eyes" to just silly, random combinations. John Scalzi's books can sound really clunky because the dialog is nothing but "he said", "she said". Will Wheaton does his best as the narrator to make it flow, but there is only so much that can be done. I have been read Jim Butcher's other series in audio format and it definitely has repetition issues. I can't remember what the movement was, mght have been blinking. :lol: I am currently on vacation from the series because I couldn't take it anymore! I totally plan to go back to the series but i need a couple of months.... I think having to listen to the same thing repeated verbally many times in the course of an audio book is far more irritating than reading it multiple times. Easy to skip over when reading. I can totally see that. While I figured The Aeronaut's Windlass would be fine (but I didn't finish it from time constraints; dd read it & enjoyed it), it isn't even in the same category as Uprooted, even though both were nominated for Nebula (& Uprooted won it). Repetition like that (in wording, in style, chapter set-ups, etc...) is part of the reason I don't tend to enjoy series. The repetitive parts stick out too much for me & end up distracting me too much from the overall story. I started Remains of the Day on audio, and while it has a very good narrator I decided I'd rather read it in print so as not to miss a word. I found I was missing some sentences while driving, which doesn't matter so much in general fiction, but with such beautiful prose it seemed a crime. I love that book. It's perfectly written. 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 M What Saramago are you planning to read? I really enjoyed All the Names. I have Blindness on my shelves but don't know that I'm up to tackling something that seems so sad/serious. Will you enjoy his no punctuation writing style? :lol: No, I will not love it, but having survived The Autumn of the Patriarch, I can take Saramago!! I've read Blindness and The Gospel According to Jesus Christ. The one that appeals to me the most is Cain, so I've put that on hold, but I'm also intrigued by Death With Interruptions, All The Names, The Stone Raft, and The Tale of the Unknown Island. I might have to do a Saramago marathon, but I will take punctuation breaks between books! His writing style makes me so breathless. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Rose, would you concur with a recommendation of Memoirs of a Porcupine by Alain Mabanckou as a suggestion for this category? ErinE, since you've already read Jekyll & Hyde, have you read Hyde by Daniel Levine? Maybe The Infatuations by Javier Marias would fit. Maybe. The Tenth Circle by Mempo Giardinelli. Perhaps Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas? Perfume? (Gah! How I hated this book!!!) Yes, I agree, and I thought the suggestion of Things Fall Apart was an excellent one too. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 (edited) I might have to do a Saramago marathon, but I will take punctuation breaks between books! I wish we could still post random pictures here. But, here. A funny punctuation respite for when you need it. And here. You're welcome. ;) :p Edited July 11, 2016 by Stacia 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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