Book a Week 2017 - BW2: Happy birthday Haruki Murakami!!!

[prairiegirl]

Nan, hugs to you. I am sending you wishes for quick healing.

 

ErinE, I have not read Outlander but there was a lot of online buzz about it last year. It sounded like something my 17 yr old would like so I got the first one for her for Christmas. Soon after I start hearing it being referred to as 'mommy p*rn'. I quickly took it back from my daughter and said that I wanted to read it before she did but I wasn't too sure that I really wanted to read it Now in reading your defence, I will put it on the top of my reading pile.

[fastweedpuller]

Interesting things coming up in the threads this week. 

 

Re:  tv watching...I don't, but when I do, it's to power watch some *cozy* or another like Lark Rise to Candleford, any and all Jane Austen/Bronte sister production, any Shakespeare (okay I've gone off "cozy" with WS) and dang even Call the Midwife.  And, hah, Outlander!!  I swear the first season at least of Outlander was the first tv anything that ever (in my dim eyes anyway) had something like a completely female hetero point of view.  Rawr.

 

But dang I won't ever watch something like The DaVinci Code, and I read it only because my mom threw her copy at me on a holiday. 

 

What does it say if I will avoid reading cozies (exceptions being the Greats Jane, Emily, Charlotte, Anne) but will gladly, eagerly, spend hours watching such!  Flufferton Abbey my stars yes.

 

I hope Kareni is doing ok.  I think I might need to expand my (romance) reading horizon.

[ErinE]

Nan, hugs to you. I am sending you wishes for quick healing.

 

ErinE, I have not read Outlander but there was a lot of online buzz about it last year. It sounded like something my 17 yr old would like so I got the first one for her for Christmas. Soon after I start hearing it being referred to as 'mommy p*rn'. I quickly took it back from my daughter and said that I wanted to read it before she did but I wasn't too sure that I really wanted to read it Now in reading your defence, I will put it on the top of my reading pile.

Just as a warning, there are scenes in Outlander with explicit violence which is why I mentioned The Song of Fire and Ice series.

[Ellesmere]

We've talked about the sadness of books that don't get checked out of the library often getting pulled from the shelves...

 

Chuck Finley would be one of the most well-read men in Florida… if he were real

 

 

I love that!! If you all need me to, I will get a library card and check out whatever you tell me to in order to save it.

 

I was in the library yesterday morning, thinking of that article because I had noticed quite a few are no longer there. I was tempted to take out some that we have that I know don't get checked out often just to keep them circulating.

 

Ug.  Found out the results of the mri yesterday and I've torn up all sorts of things in my shoulder and need surgery.  Sigh.  I'm glad I didn't find out before we had our family ski vacation. This came on top of some other family upsets, and the day before, I embarked on a paint-a-landscape-a-day project as part of ramping up to try to make a go of it as an artist.  Looks like that is going to be cut short.  We need to schedule the surgery as soon as possible so I am semi-functional by August, when we go sailing.  Maybe I should paint two a day to make up for it.  It would be my dominant arm...  But the thing that really bothers me is that my real job is helping my mother and I am going to be less than useless for awhile.  I've already seen the negative effects of this.  Ug.  Meanwhile, I am still reading mostly internet stuff about starting a business, all very useful but not exactly exciting, and listening (for the umpteenth time) to Tied up in Tinsel before bed.  We listened to 101 Dalmatians on the long car trip to up to our friend's ski lodge, and I tried several other books that were no-gos and Rattle His Bones, my total fluff read, expired on me.

 

I haven't read other people's posts since before Christmas, life here being a bit chaotic, and I apologize if I missed any congratulations or tea-and-sympathy.  Hugs to all.  I'm sure I'll be back to devouring each post as it comes out soon!

 

Nan

:grouphug: Been thinking of you and so sorry to hear about all the upsets. Hoping the surgery can be done soon.

[Ellesmere]

I'm jealous of all of you that can listen to audio books.  I have never been able to listen to someone else read aloud.  My mind just starts to wander off.

 

I'm reading Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff.  It's amusing and entertaining.  I think if I weren't so tired (peri-meno insomnia), I'd find it even funnier so I'm trying to decide if I should switch to something else and come back to it later.

 

My mind still wanders but I actually found audiobooks work for me after all. Sort of. I'm not saying it would work for everyone, but I use a cheap bluetooth earpiece so I can walk around and listen while cleaning up or doing chores. I do best when it is a play or something funny. Cabin Pressure, which I didn't count as a book, is a radio comedy that worked well for me on audio. I thought Frankenstein was not going to work for me on audio but Dan Stevens did a great reading and really kept me engaged.

 

I got through some Great Courses lectures much more quickly because some of them were fine if I listened at 1.4 or 1.5x speed. Slow talkers were driving me mad! 

 

I can't listen in the car, though. I put on audiobooks for the kids but don't really pay attention or I'd go off the road!

 

Now see, Venetia is one of my favorites.  It's actually one of the GH books that I like even more now than I did in my youth. I love her character, she's someone I'd love to be friends with. And Lord Damerel!  So dreamy!!. I could see myself falling in love with a rake who quoted that much good poetry.

 

Apparently I have a thing for dark, dreamy poets. I'd go out with Adam Dalgliesh, too.

 

I will keep that in mind when I tackle Cover Her Face! 

 

I was so bewildered at first that I wasn't really thinking in terms of likeability -- but yes, she does seem like she'd be a wonderful friend. The scenes with Damerel and Oswald did make me laugh.

A very diverse crowd here. And some of us are wantonly diverse in our book choices!  

 

I really enjoyed Da Vinci code and the first Outlander book. Never really enjoyed the next entries by either author, but both initial books were fun page turners for me. I read the entire Twilight series only because I was surrounded at the time by teens who were obsessed with the books. They appealed to my inner 12 or 13 year old self -- I would have gobbled them up at that age. I even saw a couple of the movies with my college aged niece. I remember threatening one of my young teen boys that I'd make him watch the Twilight movies as a punishment for some minor infraction or another! 

 

I would NEVER have tried any of Georgette Heyer's books if it weren't for all the really intelligent women I know and respect, both in IRL and here, who LOVE them! I've enjoyed the few I've read. I've also read a few romance books thanks to Kareni's example and recommendations.  Perhaps it is time to repeat her guest post on the romance genre?

I never heard of Georgette Heyer until I met a well-read, very intelligent friend who just loves her books and I had thought maybe I should try one. But I forgot for years and I was reminded of Heyer from lovely people here,. When I remembered Venetia was on my Kindle and saw a Flufferton square on the BAW Bingo, I knew it was time to dive in. I definitely should have timed it better (NOT right after coming from reading The Vegetarian and Fahrenheit 451!) and maybe re-read a Flufferton-type book first to get my mind in gear for it!

 

Re:Kareni's romance suggestions -- I always think of one of my relatives when she posts about them because she was a well-read lady who loved a good bodice ripper. I remember looking at them when I was a kid and thinking, oh, gross! No one is embarrassed about anything they read in my extended family.  :lol: 

 

Speaking of Kareni, hoping all is well with you.

Edited January 10, 2017 by Ellesmere

[CadenceSophia]

ErinE -- Thank you for defending my beloved Outlander! I was gasping in shock that Diana Gabaldon would be lumped in with bodice rippers, or heavens, 50 Shades (which I did read at one point so that I could participate in discussions intelligently) . No no no. My favorite parts of the Outlander series are the ideas about what type of medicine you really could practice back in time, with the right knowledge but without proper tools. Fascinating. And all the botany/herbal discussion. And the history. And to an extent the adventure. To each their own of course. :) I had to quit reading Song of Ice and Fire because of all the descriptive s*x nonsense but that is never a complaint you hear from people. Outlander is unbelievably mild by comparison. 

 

Can I just say how much I am loving this group? I haven't had women to converse with in this way in a really long time. I really enjoy the thread and I hope to keep getting to know all of you :)

[Alice]

This probably isn't the right thread to admit to disliking Murakami, is it ?!

 

 

I am with you, and the other Murakami dislikers. I rarely stop reading a book but 1Q84 was one I stopped. I gave it a good try but just couldn't do it. 

 

I'm jealous of all of you that can listen to audio books.  I have never been able to listen to someone else read aloud.  My mind just starts to wander off.

 

 

I am similar. I think I'm such a visual learner that listening to stuff is hard. I really don't like listening to other people read-aloud and I had a really hard time listening to lectures in school. I have gotten into audiobooks though if I'm the car. I also used to do it when exercising. I would get something reasonably light, usually a mystery and only allow myself to listen when exercising. That gave me incentive to exercise so I could find out what happened. Maybe I should try that again, now that I think about it. 

 

One thing about book titles, I suspect they are totally in the eye of the beholder. We (as in BaWer's know what many titles are) but the average person I wonder.....other than things like Sex and Girls does the average person actually know unless the book cover screams rubbish? After standing on the other side of the library desk issuing books to people I can honestly say most people just don't read what I would expect. Remember I live in a small place and know most at least a bit. It can be hard not to ask if they really plan to read that book....

 

Family funny, at least they thought it was funny........my family does make fun of my book titles frequently. I fully admit that I like fluff. I read good things intermixed and I read high volume. Normally their comments are sort of a vampires or werewolves? Which century for the book with Dukes etc? Normally I can return a huge stack of silly books without much being said.

 

But the other night we were watching telly and dh was on Amazon so asked if I had any Amazon returns(overdrive).....I was feeling pretty good about this one, wait for it ladies......me, Hillbilly Elegy can be returned. As soon as I said the name they all erupted with laughter and decided that had to be the most rubbish sounding book that I had ever read. Someone in my family asked if I wasn't embarrassed to have read that? They were serious. I tried to explain that it was not fluff but with a title like that no one believed me. They said impossible to rise above that title. I just gave up.

 

 

 

This reminds me of when I read The Agony and the Ectasy in middle school. No one would believe me that it was about Michelangelo. 

 

There is very little I would be embarrassed to read in public unless it was something like a biography by certain politicians or something overtly racist or offensive. 

 

I had to skim the rest of the thread because as usual it got away from me. I'm determined to stick with it this year and I think the trick might be giving myself permission to skim and not feel like I have to read all the posts. At least until it calms down a little. 

 

I read Hillbilly Elegy last week. It was fantastic and I would highly recommend it. I also read The Noise of Time by Julian Barnes. It's about Shostakovich who is someone I know virtually nothing about so that was interesting. I'm currently reading Seinfeldia about the TV show Seinfeld. It's fun so far. 

[Jane in NC]

I am with you, and the other Murakami dislikers. I rarely stop reading a book but 1Q84 was one I stopped. I gave it a good try but just couldn't do it. 

 

 

I am similar. I think I'm such a visual learner that listening to stuff is hard. I really don't like listening to other people read-aloud and I had a really hard time listening to lectures in school. I have gotten into audiobooks though if I'm the car. I also used to do it when exercising. I would get something reasonably light, usually a mystery and only allow myself to listen when exercising. That gave me incentive to exercise so I could find out what happened. Maybe I should try that again, now that I think about it. 

 

 

 

This reminds me of when I read The Agony and the Ectasy in middle school. No one would believe me that it was about Michelangelo. 

 

There is very little I would be embarrassed to read in public unless it was something like a biography by certain politicians or something overtly racist or offensive. 

 

I had to skim the rest of the thread because as usual it got away from me. I'm determined to stick with it this year and I think the trick might be giving myself permission to skim and not feel like I have to read all the posts. At least until it calms down a little. 

 

I read Hillbilly Elegy last week. It was fantastic and I would highly recommend it. I also read The Noise of Time by Julian Barnes. It's about Shostakovich who is someone I know virtually nothing about so that was interesting. I'm currently reading Seinfeldia about the TV show Seinfeld. It's fun so far. 

 

Having recently finished Sputnik Sweetheart, I can't say I'm enamored.  Puzzled, yes.  Intrigued to read more Murakami?  Maybe next January.

 

The Shostakovich book looks great. Thanks for bringing that to my attention.

 

My opinion of Dan Brown is so negative that I hesitate to write about The da Vinci Code.  I have a similar distaste for Nicholas Sparks.  I finished the former because a friend wanted to talk to me about the book.  I returned The Bridges of Madison County to the library with the comment that life is too short to read bad books.

 

 

[Raifta]

 

Re:Kareni's romance suggestions but I always think of one of my relatives when she posts about them because she was a well-read lady who loved a good bodice ripper. I remember looking at them when I was a kid and thinking, oh, gross! No one is embarrassed about anything they read in my extended family.  :lol: 

 

Speaking of Kareni, hoping all is well with you.

 

True confession time:  when I was a young teenager my entire locker at school was filled from top to bottom with romance books I'd taken out of the library.  I would read 6 a day some days.  And would buy lots from the second hand store then trade them in to get more.

 

My other source of romance novels was my best friend's mother.  She was a judge and was one of the sharpest, most intellectual women I knew, who just happened to have a subscription to Harlequin Romances so that 4 or 6 were delivered every month to her house.  

 

So I've always had her as a model of a romance reader and never felt bad about my former devout readership of them.  Of all the hundreds or more likely thousands I read, I kept 4 that really stood out and I reread those on occasion.  I keep trying to find some current ones that appeal but so far have had little luck.  I'm going to be stalking Kareni's posts to see if any of her recommendations sound like something I'd like to try.

[Caroline]

I love to read romance, especially historical romance. My grandmother had tons of historical romance novels that I had shipped to my house after she died. I have moved those books several times; they are like old friends. However, I did not like Outlander. I read the first three because my sister-in-law loved them so much. (The sister-in-law that I get along with. The other one gave my widowed mother-in-law 50 Shades to read while at the beach one summer. Who wants to watch their mother-in-law reading that???) Anyway, so many people say wonderful things about Outlander. It's just not for me.

 

What is Amish fiction? Is it written by Amish?

 

I should write an engineering romance novel...

[Angelaboord]

Wonder if your dh's family is descended/related in any way...?

Possibly... Dh used to get emails occasionally from a Boord in England who said it was so, but I don't know if any connection has ever been definitely established. I first discovered the name when I was thumbing through a book on the spice trade.

 

 

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[SereneHome]

You guys are all reading such fancy stuff!!!

 

I am still reading In One Person from last week and started Confidence Code.  I feel like such an overachiever

[Butter]

I only like romance if it's like Moonraker's Bride or something like that that isn't explicit and is nice and gentle and sweet.  My mom's friend is really into hot and heavy bodice rippers and got my mom to read a couple once.  She said they weren't bad, but definitely not what she preferred to read.

 

Norwegian Wood became available.  I wonder if the person who was on the list right before me didn't download it within 48 hours because that was quick.  So I've started reading it.

[mumto2]

Nan, I hope the surgery goes well. :grouphug:

 

True confession time:  when I was a young teenager my entire locker at school was filled from top to bottom with romance books I'd taken out of the library.  I would read 6 a day some days.  And would buy lots from the second hand store then trade them in to get more.

 

My other source of romance novels was my best friend's mother.  She was a judge and was one of the sharpest, most intellectual women I knew, who just happened to have a subscription to Harlequin Romances so that 4 or 6 were delivered every month to her house.  

 

So I've always had her as a model of a romance reader and never felt bad about my former devout readership of them.  Of all the hundreds or more likely thousands I read, I kept 4 that really stood out and I reread those on occasion.  I keep trying to find some current ones that appeal but so far have had little luck.  I'm going to be stalking Kareni's posts to see if any of her recommendations sound like something I'd like to try.

My mom loved Harlequins. Before I was old enough to read them she took me to used bookstores to sort through the piles and find ones she hadn't read. I could pick by cover picture. As soon as I got a bit older I read stacks of them. My mom had subscriptions until she died last summer at 94. I have cut way back but read a best of Betty Neels last month that I saw on overdrive. It was such an easy happy read......I think Betty Neels was the first Harlequin author I read. I ran out of book on a long car vacation and had to read something!

 

Kareni finds great romances. I love it when she says it's a unique to her book.....I hunt it down if at all possible because they are always fun! She is also the one who started me reading my historical romances. :) She has also increased my paranormal choices hugely.

 

 

  

mumto2, I finished The Guineveres. It definitely fits into the subgenre of 'girls coming of age in a convent', lol. I enjoyed it the further I got into it, and it had a really nicely timed ending. The twist on the subgenre is the wartime, American setting, I think. Lots of riffs on family, and suffering, and redemption. There are in-between chapters on the saints, and tbh, I skipped most of those. I wouldn't buy it, but if you can get it at the library, it's a lovely read.

Thanks, Right now the audiobook is all that I can find. It's sounds like a book I would be happier reading so I can go quickly at times. I normally really enjoy that type of a setting so I will give the audio a try in a few months if a copy doesn't appear otherwise.

 

Fyi, for those who have been talking about how slow audiobooks can be my trick is I try and get a print (kindle or paper) available while listening. When I get bored I read through a couple of chapters and start listening again.

[mumto2]

I love to read romance, especially historical romance. My grandmother had tons of historical romance novels that I had shipped to my house after she died. I have moved those books several times; they are like old friends. However, I did not like Outlander. I read the first three because my sister-in-law loved them so much. (The sister-in-law that I get along with. The other one gave my widowed mother-in-law 50 Shades to read while at the beach one summer. Who wants to watch their mother-in-law reading that???) Anyway, so many people say wonderful things about Outlander. It's just not for me.

What is Amish fiction? Is it written by Amish?

I should write an engineering romance novel...

  

It's - mostly but not always - romance, in an Amish setting. Lots of lovely food descriptions along with the lovey dovey stuff, lol

The Amish romances are good. Lots of food. :) There are also some great Amish mystery books. Not cozy because they are actually rather violent but have a romance thread through them. I read all of the kate Burkholder https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6115138-sworn-to-silence?ac=1&from_search=true series last year after Jenn discovered them. I also really like some of Karen Harper's https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/373455.Dark_Road_Home?from_search=true.

[Ellesmere]

True confession time:  when I was a young teenager my entire locker at school was filled from top to bottom with romance books I'd taken out of the library.  I would read 6 a day some days.  And would buy lots from the second hand store then trade them in to get more.

 

My other source of romance novels was my best friend's mother.  She was a judge and was one of the sharpest, most intellectual women I knew, who just happened to have a subscription to Harlequin Romances so that 4 or 6 were delivered every month to her house.  

 

So I've always had her as a model of a romance reader and never felt bad about my former devout readership of them.  Of all the hundreds or more likely thousands I read, I kept 4 that really stood out and I reread those on occasion.  I keep trying to find some current ones that appeal but so far have had little luck.  I'm going to be stalking Kareni's posts to see if any of her recommendations sound like something I'd like to try.

Just to be clear, when I was thinking, "oh, gross" about my relative's books -- I was really little and thinking, Oh, gag, these are kissing books!

 

I love to read romance, especially historical romance. My grandmother had tons of historical romance novels that I had shipped to my house after she died. I have moved those books several times; they are like old friends. However, I did not like Outlander. I read the first three because my sister-in-law loved them so much. (The sister-in-law that I get along with. The other one gave my widowed mother-in-law 50 Shades to read while at the beach one summer. Who wants to watch their mother-in-law reading that???) Anyway, so many people say wonderful things about Outlander. It's just not for me.

 

What is Amish fiction? Is it written by Amish?

 

I should write an engineering romance novel...

I don't think anyone kept my relative's romance books when she died (they were not in great shape) but her sister had a lot of books in good shape and I got to have them after she passed away. I have moved with them twice so far. I recently broke a bookcase so I know I need to think of passing some books on but the ones from my family are keepers. 

 

Edited January 11, 2017 by Ellesmere

[Ellesmere]

I know I'm a month or two too late for this discussion but I'd love some recommendations on healthy eating books.  DH had some blood tests come back a little concerning and it's likely because of unhealthy diet - high fat, high salt, high sugar diet.  (We really hope it is anyway! The other options according to Google are things like bone marrow cancer and hepatitis which are so unlikely.  I shouldn't have googled it.)  There's been a lot of fast food and ramen and eating out in the last few months at my house and we have just got to knock it off. 

 

Cookbooks with whole food recipes?  Books that offer encouragement to eat healthy?  Books with easy healthy recipes?  Book on the importance of good nutrition?  I would love suggestions on any of those. 

 

Thank you!

Not really what you asked for but if anyone is looking specifically to go with less sugar, Baking With Less Sugar by Joanne Chang is interesting for dessert recipes that are low (but not no) sugar. I wouldn't have bought it but it was on a Kindle special last month. Just for encouragement to change eating habits, The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung worked for us, one struggling with weight, the other with cutting sugar and being thin but not eating well. But I am not giving that book out as advice for someone with your dh's issues since that sounds a bit different from what we were concerned about.

 

Also not a book (sorry, I just can't really seem to actually recommend what you are looking for!) -- but Simply Recipes has some recipes organized by categories like quick and easy, budget, paleo, etc. I find hers reliable, not too fancy or fussy, and maybe helpful if you need recipes to get out of the fast food cycle and more into whole or healthier stuff. 

 

Also ...

I am pea-green with envy that you might get to meet Stacia!

 

[Robin M]

Karen should be back in a couple weeks. But in the meantime:

 

I still have 4 harlequin romances I saved from the 70's sitting in my shelves.  I run the gamut from clean christian romances such as Julie Lessman to the super x rated vampire series from Laurel Hamilton.  There is something for everyone out there.  Ultimately I prefer paranormal! 

 

For all who like paranormal romances - check out Deadline Dames.  I've read the majority of their books

 

Literary Escapism reviews mainly paranormal and urban fantasy.  She has a long list of authors, plus release dates for 2017

 

Heroes and Heartbreakers list of Paranormal Romance news.

 

There are cozy romances same as cozy mysteries out there.   I recently finished Debbie Macomber's Rose Harbor series which was very clean and sweet. 

[Robin M]

Fyi, for those who have been talking about how slow audiobooks can be my trick is I try and get a print (kindle or paper) available while listening. When I get bored I read through a couple of chapters and start listening again.

My trick with audiobooks is to listening to a books I've already read and while doing something else - mainly driving or drawing.   That's how I trained my brain to listen without tuning it out.  Keep busy with muscle memory tasks so it doesn't distract me from the story. And it helps to have an excellent narrator.  I'm very picky when it comes to voices. 

[Just Robyn]

I know I'm a month or two too late for this discussion but I'd love some recommendations on healthy eating books.  DH had some blood tests come back a little concerning and it's likely because of unhealthy diet - high fat, high salt, high sugar diet.  (We really hope it is anyway! The other options according to Google are things like bone marrow cancer and hepatitis which are so unlikely.  I shouldn't have googled it.)  There's been a lot of fast food and ramen and eating out in the last few months at my house and we have just got to knock it off. 

 

Cookbooks with whole food recipes?  Books that offer encouragement to eat healthy?  Books with easy healthy recipes?  Book on the importance of good nutrition?  I would love suggestions on any of those. 

 

Thank you!

 

 

My sister got me a couple of Skinny Taste cookbooks for Christmas that have been goon. I also love Jamie Oliver's cookbooks.

 

I have a Skinnytaste cookbook checked out from the library right now - Skinnytaste Fast and Slow. I have made one recipe so far, and it was good. This book does include calories and sometimes serving sizes, which are, oddly and unfortunately, not included in many healthy eating cookbooks I look at. I'd also recommend the low calorie dinner plan from eMeals, and Buzzfeed has some clean eating challenges (2014, 2015, 2016), though they need to be modified to work for families.

[Guest]

I love to read romance, especially historical romance. My grandmother had tons of historical romance novels that I had shipped to my house after she died. I have moved those books several times; they are like old friends. However, I did not like Outlander. I read the first three because my sister-in-law loved them so much. (The sister-in-law that I get along with. The other one gave my widowed mother-in-law 50 Shades to read while at the beach one summer. Who wants to watch their mother-in-law reading that???) Anyway, so many people say wonderful things about Outlander. It's just not for me.

 

What is Amish fiction? Is it written by Amish?

 

I should write an engineering romance novel...

 

:lol: 

 

I'm trying to imagine how this would go..... "As our eyes locked while reviewing the CAD designs, we knew at once things would never be the same....." 

[Angelaboord]

I feel like I need to defend Diana Gabaldon! The Outlander series, while it has romantic elements, is not a bodice ripper. It's more time travel historical fiction. The Song of Fire and Ice series has plenty of s*x (with less romance) and I've never heard anyone say they're embarrassed to read those books. I've read all the Outlander books, and Gabaldon does a great job of mingling history, biology, and medicine, and the conflict between modern (WWII and 1960s) vs. historical cultural norms.

 

I understand people may not like her books and I have no issue with it, but to group her writing with Twilight or 50 Shades of Grey... Ack! I had to say something. If you've never read her (and you don't mind a love story), give the first book a try.

I still haven't finished the thread, but I had to add my "me, too". [emoji5] I guess I am a hopeless romantic, but I liked Outlander and the next several books. I stopped reading around A Breath of Snow and Ashes (I think) but mostly because her books were too big to hold while I nursed. Lol. I didn't think the quality of her writing was bad, really, and the story (whatever you would think of it) was definitely not generic. Or at least it wasn't at the time.

 

Ok, back to catching up on the thread again!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Angelaboord]

Shoulder surgery does not sound like fun. I'm sorry it's going to keep you from doing stuff. I hope you recover quickly.

.

 

Nan and Erin, I will be thinking about you both!

 

 

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[Stacia]

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Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Stacia]

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Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Lady Florida.]

True confession time:  when I was a young teenager my entire locker at school was filled from top to bottom with romance books I'd taken out of the library.  I would read 6 a day some days.  And would buy lots from the second hand store then trade them in to get more.

 

 

I used to read Danielle Steele books back in the 80s.  :ohmy:

 

My mother read a lot of best sellers and popular books of her time.  I often got bored with what was available to me (our library was so tiny then and my high school library didn't have much either) so I borrowed the books from her bedside table while she was at work. I'd keep my page number in a notebook and would put the book back where I found it before she came home. Years later she said she would have let me read them if I just asked. Anyway, using my sneaky method I read:

 

The Godfather

Peyton Place

Rosemary's Baby

The Valley of the Dolls - I didn't understand most of it but I felt like an adult because I was reading it.

Airport - The movie adaptation and the movie sequels launched an era of disaster movies. 

 

My mother read a lot, but few of her novels were classics. :D

 

 

 

Norwegian Wood became available.  I wonder if the person who was on the list right before me didn't download it within 48 hours because that was quick.  So I've started reading it.

 

I don't know why I downloaded the Kindle sample but I did, and it seemed okay. Neither my local library or the one where I have a paid membership have Norwegian Wood in ebook or audio book format. They have other Murakami novels but not that one. I put the paperback on hold and it should arrive from another branch tomorrow. I'll give it a try. Since I have no problem abandoning books I don't like, I won't lose anything except maybe a few hours.

 

My husband read and loved the entire Outlander series. He watched a bit of the show too.  Even though I hated it, I have nothing against those who like it. We're still married. ;) If I can happily live with someone who liked Outlander, I can still like my internet friends who are fans of the series.  :001_tt2:

Edited January 11, 2017 by Lady Florida.

[Lady Florida.]

My book update -

 

I started Like Water for Chocolate earlier today. This is a dusty book for me because it's been on my to-read list for 5 years. I forgot I put the Kindle edition on hold, and it came in. It's moving along much more quickly than I expected though so far it's just okay. The magical realism isn't over the top. For some reason I was expecting it to be along the lines of One Hundred Years of Solitude in the magical realism department.

 

I'm almost finished with Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End. It's very thought-provoking. FIL is 90 and I know he, as well as dh and his siblings are eventually going to have to face some decisions. Plus someday in the not too distant future we will be there ourselves.

 

Still plugging along with Doctor Thorne. I really like Trollope.

Edited January 11, 2017 by Lady Florida.

[wendy not in HI]

I always want to jump in to these threads but I can't quite keep up! Thanks to you, I jumped up and grabbed my library cards and signed into my overdrive account - when overdrive updated (6months ago?) it was just too hard to go get my card out of my wallet. So, thanks! I just checked out 3 books!

 

Adding to the Diane G discussion, I'm currently reading (re-reading) Outlander. I know it's not everyone's cuppa, but I love it. I like that the series is the ongoing life/love/romance of a married couple, which seems normal in regular life, but so unusual in a book. I also like Jamie's parenting advice from his dad. I want to print up a little booklet of things to have my dh tell my son. I rarely read romance, and all the tEa is a little over the top for me, but... I read most of the series during a long deployment several years ago. They seem like old friends, you know? I haven't loved the most recent books as much, but I'm still a loyal Diane fan.

 

I'm also reading Better than Before by Gretchen Rubin, also a re-read. I love setting goals and thinking about habits. Reading a book a week is one of my goals (though I love to read, I seem to have gotten out of the habit and instead, spend my reading time cruising around the web) and this thread is the perfect spot for a little accountability for my obliger self.

 

And I'm just finishing up The Secret Rooms by Catherine Bailey. It started off so great, but it is just dragging now. The mystery isn't all that exciting, and feels like the whole thing could have been wrapped up about a hundred pages ago.

 

Thanks for the lovely book chat!!

Edited January 11, 2017 by wendy not in HI

[Raifta]

 

 

I'm almost finished with Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End. It's very thought-provoking. FIL is 90 and I know he, as well as dh and his siblings are eventually going to have to face some decisions. Plus someday in the not too distant future we will be there ourselves.

 

.

 

 

I read that in March 2015 and promptly told everyone I knew that they should read it and handed my library copy to my dad.  He read it and felt much the same way I did.  I think it's something I would actually like to own so I can reread it from time to time as some of these issues start to arise in the lives of my family and friends.

[aggieamy]

Re : Outlander

 

I have two friends undergoing surgery this week and will be laid up for a few weeks.  I've fixed them both care packages and in there I put Outlander.  There's some racy scenes but I figure that will be good for them.  I read it first a long time ago when DH and I were dating.  His mother had a stroke so he had to go to the hospital and spend the night there.  He asked his then new girlfriend (me!) to come and please spend the night with his very young daughter.  I took along Outlander to read and boy was I surprised.  I thought it was supposed to be a time travel story!  :001_tt1: :rolleyes:

 

Re: Nan

 

Sorry to hear about the surgery.  Please check in with us when life calms down a bit.

 

My sister got me a couple of Skinny Taste cookbooks for Christmas that have been goon. I also love Jamie Oliver's cookbooks.

 

I picked up both of these at the library today and am headed to bed with them shortly. 

 

If your cooking or meal planning skills aren't strong, I love Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner. She has a few, regular, low carb, etc. They are older books but just simple good stuff you can actually get on the table organized with weekly shopping lists.

If you are looking for a crash course in nutrition biology Sarah Ballantyne's The Paloe Approach is awesome. It is NOT light, encouraging reading but leans closer to a college text book in many sections.

Two completely opposite recommendations but I am sure others will have more.

 

Thank you!  My library didn't have either of these but I ordered through ILL. 

 

Really?!? Really!?! That would be too cool! :hurray:

 

(Uh.... I'm a celebrity???? In like a classic Hollywood star way, the eccentric recluse from the studio way, or a reality tv way? Just want to clarify... <hoping I'm not cringing at the answer>! ;) :lol: )

 

 

I need to go for healthier eating & more home cooking too. (But I just don't wanna! But I have to....)

 

You might like The Fat Chance Cookbook, Amy. See if your library has it so you can check it out.

 

In the lovely classic glamorous type way of course! 

 

Thanks for the cookbook recommendation.

 

When hubby and I needed a reset we went with  Dr Andrew Weil's guide to optimum health, threw out every thing with hydrogenated oils and started from scratch.  Also got a wonderful cookbook that even though we aren't vegetarians, had super yummy recipes - 1001 Low fat Vegetarian recipes.  Yes, we modified some because you just have to have some fat in your diet.   ;)    Blood tests will be affected by what you eat the week before.  Processed foods, pasta or meat will show up as high sodium, high cholesterol, etc.     Start with fresh vegetables and knock out the ramen. Really high sodium in Ramen.  Go with angel hair pasta, spritz with olive oil and Parmesan cheese and so much tastier.  You'll have to experiment. We did and now the guys love salmon.  

 

How do you guys fix salmon?  It's one of those super foods that I know we should be eating more often.  We love the smoked salmon that Whole Foods sells but we aren't multimillionaires so at $20 a pound I have to limit that to once a month!

 

I got no commercial before the SNL skit.  Is that because I have both Comcast tv and internet so NBC knows that and doesn't give me a commercial sort of like only cable customers can watch some episodes on the internet and yet I never have to prove it in any way?

 

 

 

I finished my second book on Saturday which was a gift from my Secret Santa (do I relieve who that was here?). 

2. Death in Cyprus - M. M. Kaye    This is a  mystery that is based on an actual trip M M Kaye took to Cyprus in 1949 when she was with her husband in Egypt while he was stationed there for British military.  I really liked the story and plan to look for more of her books if they are mysteries too.

 

 

I'm so happy you liked it.  I plan to read more of her mysteries too.  A year or so ago Robin read The Far Pavilions (I think ... correct me if I'm wrong) and enjoyed it.  It's also on my MM Kaye to-read list. 

 

I should write an engineering romance novel...

 

I would totally read that.  I'm an engineer.  My DH is an engineer.  My mother is an engineer.  My father is a computer programmer.  I do love a good engineer story!

 

Not really what you asked for but if anyone is looking specifically to go with less sugar, Baking With Less Sugar by Joanne Chang is interesting for dessert recipes that are low (but not no) sugar. I wouldn't have bought it but it was on a Kindle special last month. Just for encouragement to change eating habits, The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung worked for us, one struggling with weight, the other with cutting sugar and being thin but not eating well. But I am not giving that book out as advice for someone with your dh's issues since that sounds a bit different from what we were concerned about.

Also not a book (sorry, I just can't really seem to actually recommend what you are looking for!) -- but Simply Recipes has some recipes organized by categories like quick and easy, budget, paleo, etc. I find hers reliable, not too fancy or fussy, and maybe helpful if you need recipes to get out of the fast food cycle and more into whole or healthier stuff. 

Also ...
I am pea-green with envy that you might get to meet Stacia!
 

 

Thank you for the suggestions!

 

Re: all the back & forth on various reading choices.

 

I think any book or any genre or books that each of us here enjoys is great. I support each person in the right to her (or his) choice 100%. I may not like or enjoy a genre or particular book myself, but I am totally fine with others enjoying things that are different from my own choices. (Heck, my own choices have changed throughout my life & I wholeheartedly reserve the right to change my choices down the road too! Maybe I'll get into erotica when I'm in my 90s. Maybe I'll read engineering books in my 90s. Who knows?) There is beauty in variety, in individual choice. There is beauty in having the freedom to choose! What a boring book world we would all inhabit if we all liked only the same things & the same things were the only options available. I'm pretty sure I would lose my mind.

 

:grouphug: , everyone. And :cheers2:  to your reading choices, whether they be high-brow, low-brow, or somewhere in between. (And if you want to debate a particular book that we've both read, I'm game. I have no problem having a friendly debate over a particular piece of work.)

 

What she said!

 

 

Also Caroline ... looks like there might be a future market in engineering erotica.  Look into that!

[aggieamy]

Finished:

 

A fluffy silly Georgette Heyer wannabe novel that I blush to mention here.  There weren't any bodice ripped but there was a kiss at the end.

 

I also read Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John Ratey.  A great non-fiction book that I thought was motivating and informational.  As with books like this there were a few parts that got a little too "science-y" and technical but those paragraphs were easy to skim.  Highly recommend to everyone.  If you suffer from anxiety or depression or love non-fiction books then I double recommend this to you. 

[Mothersweets]

I only like romance if it's like Moonraker's Bride or something like that that isn't explicit and is nice and gentle and sweet.  My mom's friend is really into hot and heavy bodice rippers and got my mom to read a couple once.  She said they weren't bad, but definitely not what she preferred to read.

 

Norwegian Wood became available.  I wonder if the person who was on the list right before me didn't download it within 48 hours because that was quick.  So I've started reading it.

 

I loved that one! So nice to know someone else likes it, too!!  Tregaron's Daughter is another favorite of mine. I can't read too many in a row by Madeline Brent because they're all pretty much the same plot with different details but I don't care. :)

[Mothersweets]

Now see, Venetia is one of my favorites.  It's actually one of the GH books that I like even more now than I did in my youth. I love her character, she's someone I'd love to be friends with. And Lord Damerel!  So dreamy!!. I could see myself falling in love with a rake who quoted that much good poetry.

 

Apparently I have a thing for dark, dreamy poets. I'd go out with Adam Dalgliesh, too.

 

I really liked Venetia, too! I also listened to the abridged audio with Richard Armitage doing the  narration. 

I love Georgette Heyer too.  I thoroughly enjoyed Sylvester (The Wicked Uncle) and most recently A Civil Contract.  Venetia was good too but I kinda didn't like the ending (but I won't post spoilers).  Faro's Daughter is my favorite in terms of Pride and Prejudice type tension between the lead characters.  

 

I've also listened to the audible version of Sylvester read by....guess who? Richard Armitage. :)  I also read A Civil Contract last year and liked it so very much. A couple of my daughters keep trying to get me to read Faro's Daughter as it is their favorite GH - I think 2017 will be the year for it! 

 

 

 

Did you listen to The Nightingale or read it?

 

 

 

 

 

GH is my favorite author but Venetia wasn't one of my favorite books.  I agree that the language takes some time to get used to and some books are worse (better?) than others. 

 

I read The Nightingale on my kindle. I found it on the Modern Mrs. Darcy "kindle deals" page for a few dollars and thought I'd give it a go. I'm so glad I did!

 

I love that there are so many of GH's books to choose from, don't you? :)

[Loesje22000]

Wow, I've never met someone IRL who admitted to read Harlequin or Bouquetpockets :)

It was a discussion under libraries if they has to provide them considering their content when I was student.

My mom allowed us to read them, expecting we would overgrow them. I did.

 

Is romance one word for everything about a love story?

We dived them up in castle romance, dokter romance, country romance etc.

And when 'literature' also covers a love story it is not covered as romance - the genre.

Is that the same in English?

(Just wanting to use the right word in the right context)

 

For the moment I'm not that into romance fiction (in Dutch meaning)

Just too rosey for this moment in life.

But I don't mind a happy end :)

[Negin]

As much as I'd love to read all the posts, I don't believe that I'll be able to catch up for quite a while. 

 

Not all authors are for everyone.

:iagree: . Absolutely. 

 

 

I didn't like The Night Circus either....

 

I am pretty much the book equivalent of a fussy eater, I think.

And that's a good thing :D. "The Night Circus" was a bit overrated IMHO - mostly description and very little plot. When choosing a book, I prefer story and plot over beautiful descriptions. I love my daughter's review. 

 

I read Gift from the Sea in 2016 for book club and really enjoyed it. We did an overnight trip to the beach to discuss it which was amazing!

I read that a few  years ago and remember liking it. Your book club's trip sounds lovely!

 

Wise decision! It's not a race nor a competition. Reading is fun.

 

And yeah, that aweful, internal 'I didn't meet that goal'-list...we need to get that as short as possible, like....non-existant. And only keep fun lists, if at all. (Says the woman with a mile long 'I didn't meet that goal-list', so I know exactly what you mean :closedeyes: .)
 

I couldn't agree more. I've said it before and I will say it again. In fact, when I first joined these boards, I stayed away from this thread for quite a while, because the title inhibited me. I thought that I had to read a book a week. Then Stacia kindly told me that it's not quite like that. Phew! Talk about relief  :lol:! I like having a list of all the books that I've read, but I really don't like the race/competitive way of thinking. I just want to enjoy the books I read and to avoid getting caught up in the number of books read. Some books are short and some are exceedingly long. Some I read for a while and then give up on. 

[Alice]

Quote is not working right for me: 

 

Re AggieAmy and Salmon:

 

I didn't use to cook much salmon because cooking fish intimidated me but also know it's something I should eat more of (fish in general). My favorite way is to do it in foil. It's fine with the salmon fairly plain (I usuallly brush with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper) and wrap in foil and bake at 350-375 for about 15-20 min. You can also get fancier with what you put on it although it's still fairly simple....garlic butter, maple mustard, lemon, etc. If you google "salmon in foil" there are tons of recipes. 

 

 

[Jane in NC]

Amy--we probably more seafood than most but it comes with the geography. When The Boy was home for the holidays, we stuffed him full of seafood since he did not eat a lot of it when working in the Midwest.  But salmon was the one thing he did eat regularly.  I wanted to mention something that he discovered at Kroger:  pre-planked salmon.  It had a marinade or rub on it already.  He and his colleagues would grill this.  He said it was very good.

 

We grill fish year round but then our weather allows for year round grilling. Whether you grill, bake or saute, the thing to remember about fish is not to overcook it.  Fish--or any protein for that matter--continues to cook as it rests. 

 

And now for a book note: thanks to the person who recommended The Lost Art of Dress.  I read far more fiction than non, but I am thoroughly enjoying reading ten or fifteen pages of this book in the morning with my first cup of coffee.  The author is a bit snarky which has me chuckling and missing my best friend who will adore this book when I eventually pass it along to her.  So thank you!

 

 

Edited January 11, 2017 by Jane in NC

[Narrow Gate Academy]

Urm, isn't Strange LIbrary only about 96 pages long and a novella? You may not have been around for the conversation relating to the bingo guidelines.

I'll post them for everybody and put them up on the 52 books blog for reference. Bingo Guidelines

Page count minimum is 200 pages. Novellas and rereads don't count as that would be too easy.

Book has to be started and completed this year, no carry overs from last year.

No double dipping.

Free space is book of your choice. Yes, you have to read a book to tick off free space.

Audiobooks are fine as long as it has substance and the actual book is over 200 pages in lengthClarifications:

There isn't a category for play this year so no plays.

Children and Young adult books are iffy and depend on if they have substance. The young adult novels today are like the regular adult novels of the 70's. Yes Harry Potter counts. Use your best judgement.

Finance – Can be fiction or non fiction

Western - As in cowboys, outlaws, lawmen and indians up through 1900's. Can be fiction or non fiction and from any country and just not U.S. related.

Debut author – Author’s debut from 2016 or 2017

Outerspace books -- space as in outer space, not of this planet, no air. Space beyond the atmosphere of earth. Can include climbing in a rocket and leaving our world or life on another planet or alien worlds.

 

I did miss the guideline discussions. Thanks for the explanation.

 

Karen should be back in a couple weeks. But in the meantime:

 

I still have 4 harlequin romances I saved from the 70's sitting in my shelves.  I run the gamut from clean christian romances such as Julie Lessman to the super x rated vampire series from Laurel Hamilton.  There is something for everyone out there.  Ultimately I prefer paranormal! 

 

For all who like paranormal romances - check out Deadline Dames.  I've read the majority of their books

 

Literary Escapism reviews mainly paranormal and urban fantasy.  She has a long list of authors, plus release dates for 2017

 

Heroes and Heartbreakers list of Paranormal Romance news.

 

There are cozy romances same as cozy mysteries out there.   I recently finished Debbie Macomber's Rose Harbor series which was very clean and sweet.

 

Love the links. Thanks.🙌

[Butter]

:lol:

 

I'm trying to imagine how this would go..... "As our eyes locked while reviewing the CAD designs, we knew at once things would never be the same....." 

 

It could work lol  My best friend is divorced and dating again and she was talking to her boyfriend about something to do with Star Trek and he said, "I am so turned on right now."  And she realized she feels the same when he talks nerdy to her.  Who needs throbbing members when you can have Cox-Zucker machine.

[mumto2]

Karen should be back in a couple weeks. But in the meantime:

 

I still have 4 harlequin romances I saved from the 70's sitting in my shelves. I run the gamut from clean christian romances such as Julie Lessman to the super x rated vampire series from Laurel Hamilton. There is something for everyone out there. Ultimately I prefer paranormal!

 

For all who like paranormal romances - check out Deadline Dames. I've read the majority of their books

 

Literary Escapism reviews mainly paranormal and urban fantasy. She has a long list of authors, plus release dates for 2017

 

Heroes and Heartbreakers list of Paranormal Romance news.

 

There are cozy romances same as cozy mysteries out there. I recently finished Debbie Macomber's Rose Harbor series which was very clean and sweet.

Great links Robin!!! Robin has managed to add many new series to my book lists.

 

Amy, Rosie, Sadie and our other Dr.Who fans......has anybody seen Dr. Who fairy tales? One of Robin's links featured these http://www.literaryescapism.com/48740/the-garden-of-statues-by-justin-richards. Looks like for smaller children. The review makes me wonder. At first it made me think I needed them for grandchildren that don't exist yet :lol: but then I saw the bit about the long term fan not loving these books as much.

[CadenceSophia]

Is romance one word for everything about a love story?

We dived them up in castle romance, dokter romance, country romance etc.

And when 'literature' also covers a love story it is not covered as romance - the genre.

Is that the same in English?

(Just wanting to use the right word in the right context)

I think this is right but I am not entirely sure. Definitely right about "literature" covering a love story not being considered a romance. Romance usually has little to nothing else involved in the story or it gets a qualifier or another genre.

Edited January 11, 2017 by CadenceSophia

[Chrysalis Academy]

Re: all the back & forth on various reading choices.

 

I think any book or any genre or books that each of us here enjoys is great. I support each person in the right to her (or his) choice 100%. I may not like or enjoy a genre or particular book myself, but I am totally fine with others enjoying things that are different from my own choices. (Heck, my own choices have changed throughout my life & I wholeheartedly reserve the right to change my choices down the road too! Maybe I'll get into erotica when I'm in my 90s. Maybe I'll read engineering books in my 90s. Who knows?) There is beauty in variety, in individual choice. There is beauty in having the freedom to choose! What a boring book world we would all inhabit if we all liked only the same things & the same things were the only options available. I'm pretty sure I would lose my mind.

 

:grouphug: , everyone. And :cheers2:  to your reading choices, whether they be high-brow, low-brow, or somewhere in between. (And if you want to debate a particular book that we've both read, I'm game. I have no problem having a friendly debate over a particular piece of work.)

 

Well said. As the person who inadvertently started this discussion of books you wouldn't want to be seen reading, I feel a little apologetic. But I also enjoy the wide variety of opinions such discussions evoke! I hope no one feels intimidated - we are an opinionated bunch, but we're awfully nice when you get to know us.

 

 

I used to read Danielle Steele books back in the 80s.  :ohmy:

 

My mother read a lot of best sellers and popular books of her time.  I often got bored with what was available to me (our library was so tiny then and my high school library didn't have much either) so I borrowed the books from her bedside table while she was at work. I'd keep my page number in a notebook and would put the book back where I found it before she came home. Years later she said she would have let me read them if I just asked. Anyway, using my sneaky method I read:

 

The Godfather

Peyton Place

Rosemary's Baby

The Valley of the Dolls - I didn't understand most of it but I felt like an adult because I was reading it.

Airport - The movie adaptation and the movie sequels launched an era of disaster movies. 

 

My mother read a lot, but few of her novels were classics. :D

 

 

 

I had a similar sneaky method - my mom kept a box of Harlequins and other bodice-rippers under her bed, and I would read them when I was sick (I always lay in their bed when I was sick).  I read some pretty racy books, it's kind of how I learned about sex, for better or worse.  The Calder series by Janet Daily and the Texas Rich series by Fern Michaels especially stick in my memory. Whew!  :blush5:

 

As much as I'd love to read all the posts, I don't believe that I'll be able to catch up for quite a while. 

 

 

 

 

And that's a good thing :D. "The Night Circus" was a bit overrated IMHO - mostly description and very little plot. When choosing a book, I prefer story and plot over beautiful descriptions. I love my daughter's review. 

 

 

 

Hmm, I read your daughter's review and the one she linked (her friend?) and I have to say, this book doesn't sound like my thing.  I like plot and characters! I like people to do things for well-motivated reasons, psychologically.  I will take a stab at this book but I do not promise to like it. Or finish it.  :001_tt2:

 

Speaking of romances and mothers, I started reading GH's The Convenient Marriage last night. This was the first book I can remember my mom chuckling and chortling through, and reading passages aloud to me. It's actually what got me interested in reading GH. I think I did read The Grand Sophy first, and loved it, but I probably read The Convenient Marriage second, and it's one of the few we didn't own so I probably haven't read it since I was 13 or 14 (unlike The Grand Sophy, which I've re-read multiple times). It's one of her earliest books, from 1934, a Georgian rather than a Regency era book. And it's not as good.  The characters aren't quite as good - Rule is great, but Horry is only the precursor of great young heroines to come like Hero and Arabella.  Anyway, it's fun to revisit these old friends, and thank you to Amy for recognizing this book when the only things I could remember about it was that the heroine has thick eyebrows and she stutters!

[Penguin]

Since I am new to this thread, and I mostly read classics and literary fiction...well, I don't want you to get the wrong idea about me.

 

I liked Twilight.

I liked Wuthering Heights.

When I was 18, V.C. Andrews was my favorite author.

Before that, it was Sidney Sheldon.

Self-help books are my guilty pleasure. Because the next one is going to be THE ONE that is going to teach me how to fix myself.

I pick a lot of my books from 500 Essential Cult Books: The Ultimate Guide.

I love reading diaries. All of them. From The Diary of Anne Frank to The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star by Nikki Sixx.

 

:lol:

 

 

 

 

Edited January 11, 2017 by Penguin

[Chrysalis Academy]

Is romance one word for everything about a love story?

We dived them up in castle romance, dokter romance, country romance etc.

And when 'literature' also covers a love story it is not covered as romance - the genre.

Is that the same in English?

(Just wanting to use the right word in the right context)

 

For the moment I'm not that into romance fiction (in Dutch meaning)

Just too rosey for this moment in life.

But I don't mind a happy end :)

 

So here is an interesting discussion of the romance, from Alfred MacAdam's introduction to Northanger Abbey:

 

"Gothic 'novels' are actually romances, a kind of prose fiction that differs in important ways from the true novel. They deal with passions and the characters who embody them and use settings appropriate for actions unsuited to ordinary civil society. They arouse emotions but do not seek to entrance the reader with the depiction of a mind in the process of development. That is the task of the true novel, which seeks to give us the inner lives of ordinary people who evolve over time, like the societies in which they live."

 

What do you guys think? Snobby lit crit definition, or true? It does work to distinguish a work like Pride & Prejudice,where the protagonist grows, changes, and realizes something true about the world from a work like The Grand Sophy, which while it is completely entertaining, doesn't really have the main character change in any essential way.  So I kind of buy it from that POV.

[Lady Florida.]

When I was 18, V.C. Andrews was my favorite author.

I was a young adult when I read Flowers in the Attic and I completely missed the whole creepy incest thing. It went right over my head. It wasn't until years later talking about it with some other people that I went, "Oh. Now I see it".

 

One person's comfort book is another's embarrassing reading and vice versa. That's okay. We laugh at ourselves and each other and move on. 

[Wheres Toto]

I actually belonged to the Harlequin readers club many many years ago.  And maybe the Silhouette one too.  Where they send you six books a month and charge you.  But then I also worked retail for a while and we used to take all the coverless books at the end of the month.  Considering I can read one of those romance novels in an hour, it's definitely not worth paying the current retail on them.   My main library doesn't have them except in large print editions (and a limited selection) and they are more impulse reads when I'm in certain moods, so I don't bother ordering them from other libraries.

 

I read the Flowers in the Attic series in high school.  My mother didn't censor what I read at all.  I read Amityville Horror at 12 and that started me on that genre - Stephen King, John Saul, Rosemary's Baby, The Omen.  My Catholic mother loved it when I would start talking about the anti-Christ.   I can't read horror anymore, especially not any horror that has children in it.  I guess the result of becoming a mom.

 

I read Twilight because oldest dd was.  I didn't hate it but I won't bother to reread it unless I'm truly desperate.

I read the first 3 or 4 Outlander books and then just lost interest.

 

My big "I'm in the mood for a light fluffy romance" go-to books now are Sherilyn Kenyon.  I have a bunch on Nook so I just pick one up to reread.

Edited January 11, 2017 by Where's Toto?

[Lady Florida.]

Bingo Guidelines

 

Page count minimum is 200 pages. Novellas and rereads don't count as that would be too easy.

 

 

 

Clarifications:

 

There isn't a category for play this year so no plays.

 

 

 

Does that mean we can't use a play for another category? I was planning to read The Two Gentlemen of Verona for the Prime Number square. I checked and it meets (exceeds even) the page count requirement.

Edited January 11, 2017 by Lady Florida.

[Chrysalis Academy]

Does that mean we can't use a play for another category? I was planning to read The Two Gentlemen of Verona for the Prime Number square. I checked and it meets (exceeds even) the page count requirement.

 

I was curious about that too - Shakespeare does seem to meet the other criteria, in terms of difficulty/challenge and length. Can we use Shakespeare plays for relevant Bingo categories?

[Chrysalis Academy]

Ahh, Rachel Carson: her books have entered the realm of philosophy at this point, as the science has advanced, but she speaks the Truth and with such amazing elegance:

 

"Have we fallen into a mesmerized state that makes us accept as inevitable that which is inferior or detrimental, as though having lost the will or the vision to demand that which is good?"

[Penguin]

I actually belonged to the Harlequin readers club many many years ago.  And maybe the Silhouette one too.  Where they send you six books a month and charge you.  But then I also worked retail for a while and we used to take all the coverless books at the end of the month.  Considering I can read one of those romance novels in an hour, it's definitely not worth paying the current retail on them.   My main library doesn't have them except in large print editions (and a limited selection) and they are more impulse reads when I'm in certain moods, so I don't bother ordering them from other libraries.

 

I read the Flowers in the Attic series in high school.  My mother didn't censor what I read at all.  I read Amityville Horror at 12 and that started me on that genre - Stephen King, John Saul, Rosemary's Baby, The Omen.  My Catholic mother loved it when I would start talking about the anti-Christ.   I can't read horror anymore, especially not any horror that has children in it.  I guess the result of becoming a mom.

 

I read Twilight because oldest dd was.  I didn't hate it but I won't bother to reread it unless I'm truly desperate.

I read the first 3 or 4 Outlander books and then just lost interest.

 

My big "I'm in the mood for a light fluffy romance" go-to books now are Sherilyn Kenyon.  I have a bunch on Nook so I just pick one up to reread.

I can't read true crime anymore, and I used to read it. Also likely the result of becoming a mom. The closest I can come now is historical true crime like The Devil in the White City.