Book a Week 2018 - BW35: Sigrid Unset and the Kristin Lavransdatter readalong

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday and welcome to week thirty-five in our Open Roads Reading Adventure. Greetings to all our readers and everyone following our progress. Mister Linky is available weekly on 52 Books in 52 Weeks  to share a link to your book reviews.

Sigrid Unset, born May 20, 1882, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928. During the presentation speech, by the chairman of the Nobel committee,  Per Hallstrom said of Unset's works:  

Quote

 

"Her narrative is vigorous, sweeping, and at times heavy. It rolls on like a river, ceaselessly receiving new tributaries whose course the author also describes, at the risk of overtaxing the reader’s memory. This stems in part from the very nature of the subject. In the series of generations, conflicts and destinies assume a very concentrated form; these are whole masses of clouds which collide when the lightning flashes. However, this heaviness is also a result of the author’s ardent and instant imagination, forming a scene and a dialogue of each incident in the narrative without taking the necessary backward look at the general perspective. And the vast river, whose course is difficult to embrace comprehensively, rolls its powerful waves which carry along the reader, plunged into a sort of torpor. 

But the roaring of its waters has the eternal freshness of nature. In the rapids and in the falls, the reader finds the enchantment which emanates from the power of the elements, as in the vast mirror of the lakes he notices a reflection of immensity, with the vision there of all possible greatness in human nature. Then, when the river reaches the sea, when Kristin Lavransdatter has fought to the end the battle of her life, no one complains of the length of the course which accumulated so overwhelming a depth and profundity in her destiny. In the poetry of all times, there are few scenes of comparable excellence."

 

Unset wrote a number of historical fiction novels including the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy - The Wreath, The Wife, and The Cross. 

 

 

Which are available individually or in the complete Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy edition translated by Tina Nunnally

 
 

Quote

 

"In her great historical epic Kristin Lavransdatter, set in fourteenth-century Norway, Nobel laureate Sigrid Undset tells the life story of one passionate and headstrong woman. Painting a richly detailed backdrop, Undset immerses readers in the day-to-day life, social conventions, and political and religious undercurrents of the period. Now in one volume, Tina Nunnally's award-winning definitive translation brings this remarkable work to life with clarity and lyrical beauty.

As a young girl, Kristin is deeply devoted to her father, a kind and courageous man. But when as a student in a convent school she meets the charming and impetuous Erlend Nikulaussøn, she defies her parents in pursuit of her own desires. Her saga continues through her marriage to Erlend, their tumultuous life together raising seven sons as Erlend seeks to strengthen his political influence, and finally their estrangement as the world around them tumbles into uncertainty.

With its captivating heroine and emotional potency, Kristin Lavransdatter is the masterwork of Norway's most beloved author, one of the twentieth century's most prodigious and engaged literary minds and, in Nunnally's exquisite translation, a story that continues to enthrall."

 

A number of Well Trained Mind 52 Books readers are taking the plunge with Unset's Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy  and we will begin  on September 2nd.  Grab your hubbies and get them reading along as well.  Tyler Blanski of the Catholic Gentleman in his enthusiasm for the story asks "Are you Lavrans, or are you Erlend?"

We're going to take it slowly with plenty of time built in to talk about the story.  Each book has three parts and vary in length from 92 to 160 pages approximately. We'll read one part a week with an extra week or two thrown in for variations in chapter length in Book three if needed, plus reading speed and discussion.  

 Book One -The Wreath

Part I  – Jorungaard   Ch 1 to 7 ( 92 pages)

Part II – The Wreath      Ch 1 – 8 (92 pages)

Part III – Lavrans Bjorgulfson  Ch 1 – 8  (100 Pages)

Book two – The Wife

Part I – The Fruit of Sin  Ch 1 – 6  (114 pages)

Part II – Husaby  Ch 1-  8 (158)

Part III – Erlend Nikulausson Ch 1 – 7 (126 pages)

Book Three – The Cross

Part 1 – Honor Among Kin  Ch 1 – 6  ( 116 pages)

Part II – Debtors  Ch 1 – 8 (160 pages)

Part III – The Cross  Ch 1 – 7 (140 pages) 

Join me in reading Kristin Lavransdatter. 

*****************************************************

Our Brit Trip continues  on Akeman Street to Oxfordshire.

 One of the most visited counties in England. It’s home to Oxford College and a place we literary ladies can all be jealous of – The Eagle and Child, famous for being the meeting location of ‘The Inklings’.

 Rabbit trails: Bodleian Library,  Uffington White Horse, Blenheim Palace – Winston Churchill   

 What are you reading this week?

Link to week 34

[Robin M]

About 2/3rd's of the way through Burn Bright by Patricia Briggs  Slow progress lately as diverting reading time into writing time.  ? Just started YA paranormal ebook Intraterrestrial by Nicholas Conley.

"Adam Helios is a bully magnet without many friends. When he starts hearing a voice that claims to come from the stars, he fears he’s losing his mind, so he withdraws even further. On the way home from a meeting at the school, he and his parents are involved in a horrible car crash. With his skull cracked open, Adam’s consciousness is abducted by the alien who has been speaking to him for months.

After surviving the wreck with only minor scratches, Camille Helios must deal with her guilt over the accident that left her husband badly injured and her son in a coma. When the doctor suggests letting Adam go, Camille refuses to stop fighting for her son’s life.

Lost among galaxies, Adam must use his imagination to forge a path home before his body dies on the operating table. But even if he does return to Earth, he may end up locked inside a damaged brain forever."

[Ali in OR]

I'm in the middle of Life of Pi which is my youngest dd's summer reading for her English class. Enjoying it.

I read the whole Kristin Lavransdotter series a few years back and enjoyed it, but I think I did a book a year, so good luck to you all!

[Matryoshka]

Robin, a question about the Kristin Lavransdatter readalong - should we start reading Part I on Sept 2 and the discussion will be the following week, or should we have Part I done by Sept 2 and the discussion on it will start then?

ETA: I just requested both the huge combined tome and the first book of the trilogy from the library; will see which seems more readable (font/white space/hugeness of book)... lol.

Edited August 26, 2018 by Matryoshka

[marbel]

I just requested the first book from the library too, even though I have almost no hope of reading it.  Just can't resist the pull of the BaW readalong...  :-)  :-)

[Negin]

I read Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story - 5 Stars - I’m so happy that I read this. Carson’s story is wonderful and uplifting. He experienced so many struggles and yet became a better person and his faith in God has been strengthened. I love how grounded he remains despite all of his incredible contributions to the field of neurosurgery. He attributes most of his success to God, his mother, and his medical team. His perseverance and humility are truly admirable. To me, this book should be required reading for all high school students, as well as all those who like to focus so much on blaming one’s circumstances and personal situation. 

Some of my favorite quotes:
“I have strong feelings on the subject of American youth and here’s one of them. I’m really bothered at the emphasis given by the media on sports in the schools. Far too many youngsters spend all their energies and time on the basketball courts, wanting to be a Michael Jordan. Or they throw their energies toward being a Reggie Jackson on the baseball diamond or an O.J. Simpson on the football field. They want to make a million dollars a year, not realizing how few who try make those kinds of salaries. These kids end up throwing their lives away. 
When the media doesn’t emphasize sports, it’s music. I often hear of groups – and many of them good – who pour out their hearts in a highly competitive career, not realizing that only one group in 10,000 is going to make it big. Rather than putting all their time and energy into sports or music, these kids – these bright, talented young people – should be spending their time with books and self-improvement, ensuring they’ll have a career when they’re adults. 
I fault the media for perpetuating these grandiose dreams.” 

“I came to realize that if people could make me angry they could control me. Why should I give someone else such power over my life?”

“Success is determined not by whether or not you face obstacles, but by your reaction to them. And if you look at these obstacles as a containing fence, they become your excuse for failure. If you look at them as a hurdle, each one strengthens you for the next.”

I also read The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise - 3 Stars - A while back, I was watching a well-known travel show on You Tube about the Andalusian area of Spain. Once they started going on and on about wonderful it all supposedly was under Muslim rule, I was about ready to pop. My blood pressure went up a couple of notches, I’m sure! I kept mumbling to the screen, “Brother, please!” I’m tired, so tired of hearing the same old narrative about that period of time, the supposed multiculturalist paradise, the so-called “Golden Age”. I’m just not buying into all that political correctness. As a Persian, I know what they did back in my old country. 

I recently read “The Force of Reason” by Oriana Fallaci. While reading that, I became interested in reading this one. Oriana addresses the truth about history in Europe during the time of the Muslim invasion and the Crusaders. She says it like it is, as opposed to some romantic version of a time when everyone supposedly lived in a time of tolerance, harmony, and peaceful coexistence. 

“Whoever believes in the myth of ‘peaceful coexistence that marked the relationships between the conquered and the conquerors’ should reread the stories of the burned convents and monasteries, of the profaned churches, of the raped nuns, of the Christian or Jewish women abducted to be locked away in their harems. He should ponder on the crucifixions of Cordoba, the hangings of Granada, the beheadings of Toledo and Barcelona, of Seville and Zamora. (The beheadings of Seville, ordered by Mutamid: the king who used those severed heads, heads of Jews and Christians, to adorn his palace). Invoking the name of Jesus meant instant execution. Crucifixion, of course, or decapitation or hanging or impalement. Ringing a bell, the same. Wearing green, the colour of Islam, also. And when a Muslim passed by, every Jew and Christian was obliged to step aside. To bow. And mind to the Jew or the Christian who dared react to the insults of a Muslim. As for the much-flaunted detail that the infidel-dogs were not obliged to convert to Islam, not even encouraged to do so, do you know why they were not? Because those who converted to Islam did not pay taxes. Those who refused, on the contrary, did.”

This book does a fabulous job of setting the record straight on all the propaganda. The amount of research and evidence is amazing. I only wish that it had been written in a more engaging style, and definitely with less repetition. This book is not an easy read, but I don’t think it was meant to be either. It was written by an academic and is quite scholarly. 

Some of my favorite quotes:

“Professional self-preservation as well as political correctness and economics has affected academic research in certain fields of study, in contrast to the fearlessness demonstrated by professors when unmasking horrors in such dangerous areas of investigation as Christian Europe (the burning of witches! colonialism!) and Catholic Spain (the ubiquitous Spanish Inquisition!). Islamic Spain is no exception to the rule. University presses do not want to get in trouble presenting an Islamic domination of even centuries ago as anything but a positive event, and academic specialists would rather not portray negatively a subject that constitutes their bread and butter. In addition, fear of the accusation of ‘Islamophobia’ has paralyzed many academic researchers.”

“Those who portray Islamic Spain as an example of peaceful coexistence frequently cite the fact that Muslim, Jewish, and Christian groups in al-Andalus sometimes lived near one another. Even when that was the case, however such groups dwelled more often than not in their own neighborhoods. More to the point: even when individual Muslims, Jews, and Christians cooperated with one another out of convenience, necessity, mutual sympathy, or love, these three groups and their own numerous subgroups engaged for centuries in struggles for power and cultural survival, manifested in often subtle ways that should not be glossed over for the sake of modern ideals of tolerance, diversity, and convivencia.”

“It is significant that Muslim leaders punished their own if they suspected a lack of Islamic zeal. Muslim warriors could be punished with death for apostasy, which contributed to the fervor of the invaders. According to al-Qutiyya, when Musa Ibn Nusayr’s son was named governor, he married the wife of King Rodrigo and began adopting Christian ways—and military leaders cut his head off in the mihrab of a mosque and sent his head to the caliph.”

   

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.

[TravelingChris]

Hi all..  Just finished reading Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. I have only read one other book by her and that was also because it was a book club selection.  I so disliked this book.  I do not like her style of writing. multiple first persons, switching points of view in every chapter.  I thought the main character was a horrible person.  I do not know what this genre is called because a tragedy has to have a likeable character who has a terrible flaw.  The main character wasn't likable at all.  Maybe someone chose this book because of issues but I do not even think I want to discuss how anti-abortion I am and how despicable I think people are who abort their Down's Syndrome, OI , etc. children.  I am a super defender of disability rights and this book just really bothered me. I had a chat in the library when I was getting a book.. Both of us had just come from a class called Armchair Travel (that time Antartica and a bit of Argentina) and she just loves Jodi Picoult because she researches well her topics in these fiction books.  Okay  I can grant you that but I would much rather read a non fiction book about whatever topics she is writing about then this melodramatic cr*p/  We had congenital diseases, shoplifting, bulemia, cutting, and ,more sensational topics.  I have to give this book one star.

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

[mumto2]

@Negin I really need to read the Ben Carson book and will search my libraries for it tomorrow.  From your quotes I suspect I can easily join his fan club. ? It’s been a surprising couple of weeks around here with the kid’s friends (slightly exam results fueled) and the quote regarding the facing of obstacles really resonated.  

For the Brit Trippers, we are finally in Oxford!  Looking over my lists there are some great books set there. Colin Dexter, Barbara Pym, and Connie Willis, all have popular series set in Oxford.  One of my favorite historical mysteries from years past is set in Oxford, Heresy by SJ Paris https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6611809-heresy.  My favorite Dorothy Sayers book Gaudy Night is set at Oxford.  Unfortunately I have three books to read in my Sayers in order reread before Gaudy Night so I won’t be reading it this week.  But the second book in the Ariana Franklin historical series Is set a Nunnery near Oxford Uni and I read it earlier this year.  I plan to use The Serpant’s Tale for the Oxford Bus Stop because it was perfect, I love that series. ?

I am currently listening to Sophie’s World for my philosophy square.  I’m not far enough in to know if I like it bu Simon Vance is the narrator which is the best thing about it so far!  I just finished two Patricia Briggs audiobooks for my Mercyverse reread and have to say I am hugely impressed at how well they fit together.  I originally read the two series separately and my current path merges them.  Thank you Kareni.....btw, have fun camping!

I have several books started.....Adrift by Tami Oldham Ashcroft for my memoir square and Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers are the two I suspect I will actually finish.

 

[-M-]

Hello, BaWers! Robin, thank you for putting together the readalong!

Since my last post, I've finished the following:

■ The Outsider (Stephen King; 2018. Fiction.) Meh.
■ Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century (Jessica Bruder; 2017. Non-fiction.) Formed part of a sobering trilogy for me: Janesville, Squeezed, and Nomadland.
■ Hope Never Dies: An Obama Biden Mystery (Andrew Shaffer; 2018. Fiction.) Silly and fun. My older daughter and I listened to this while walking and running errands.
■ Things We Lost in the Fire (Mariana Enriquez; 2017. Fiction.) From Amazon: " Written in hypnotic prose that gives grace to the grotesque, Things We Lost in the Fire is a powerful exploration of what happens when our darkest desires are left to roam unchecked, and signals the arrival of an astonishing and necessary voice in contemporary fiction."
■ Outcast, Vol. 6 (Robert Kirkman; 2018. Graphic fiction.)
■ The Aeneid (Virgil. (Trans. Robert Fagles; 2006.) Poetry.) Finally finished.
■ When You Reach Me (Rebecca Stead; 2009. Fiction.) Beautiful Newbery Award winner that reminded why I love to read.
■ Proof (David Auburn; 2001. Drama.) I agree with my daughter: It must be the cast that elevates this material because you know the conclusion by page three.

That puts me at ninety-two books read to date.

In addition to KL, I am currently reading The Third Hotel by Laura van den Berg.

[Mothersweets]

I didn't finish anything this past week. Looking forward to the Kristin Lavransdatter read-a-long! I have my copy off the bookshelf and waiting for me on the nightstand. ?

[Guest]

@Negin, the Force of Reason book sounds interesting. I might have to check that out. I also read Gifted Hands years ago when Carson was more obscure. I think he had another book - was it Think Big? Or something like that? I read that one quite a while back. I remember having a lot of regard for his mother, who made an unpopular decision and really sort of “after-schooled” him by requiring him to do book reports every week and to no longer play with the street gangs. 

I read the full Kristen Lavransdatter trilogy (in one volume) a few years back. I quipped on Facebook that I “like big books and I cannot lie” and that was the book a friend recommended. 

So, I just started reading Girl, Wash Your Face on a FB friends insistent urging. I am on chapter 3 and I mostly hate this book. I don’t think I will quit it because it’s really short anyway and I might as well have a well-formed opinion on it. But I do not get all the gosh-wash hype from friends and other readers. It is bad. She humble-brags. She braggety-brags. She contradicts herself with her rah-rah motivations; i.e., “Make a promise to yourself and run that half marathon! Get up an hour early! Give up Diet Coke!” But then, “Be lazy sometimes! Give yourself a break! Make sure you get enough sleep! Don’t be a workaholic overachiever, like I am braggety brag!” She also keeps sounding like she has collected all the wisdom she needs, thanks-very-much. All done! Gossiping is bad; finally realized how bad that is and now I’m all fixed and I now never do that. But, guys, I also fail ALL. THE. TIME. So give yourselves a break! 

God, I’m dizzy! What is her message, exactly? I think she still needs to work out several issues and she sounds foolish and very blind to her privildege. 

Also reading Guitar Zero, which is good. I had started reading this a while ago, but decided to finish it because it will go in my “Music” square on 52-week bingo. I almost have Bingo on that vertical square. I just haven’t read the “red shoe” book (though I have two that could go there) and the music one. 

[Matryoshka]

I was on vacation last week, so since I missed updating then, I'll just bore you all with two weeks' worth of books. ?  Finished 8 books in the last two weeks:

77. Circe by Madeline Miller (audiobook) - just loved this one.  Started a bit slow for me, with her early years just hanging about the obsidian halls of her father Helios, but once it got going, so good!  Looking forward to Song of Achilles which I hear is also very good. 5 stars.

78. The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon (ebook) - about a college student who gets caught up in a cult; told in alternate chapters by her, her boyfriend, and the cult leader.   3 stars.

79. The Golden Days (The Story of the Stone aka The Dream of the Red Chamber vol. 1) - I read an abridged version of this in college, and wanted to finally tackle the whole thing.  I'm actually a bit surprised by how readable it is.  There's a lot of humor, each chapter tries to end on a bit of a cliffhanger.  Quite different from the contemporary European novels (written in mid-1700's), especially in its attitude to sexuality and homosexuality. There is a huge cast of characters, but fortunately there are family trees and a glossary of characters in the back.  I was planning one volume a year till done, but I'm thinking of upping the pace a bit because I enjoyed it so much.  4.5 stars.

80. 20 poemas de amor y una canción desesperada by Pablo Neruda - Not sure if 21 poems should count for a whole 'book' read, lol.  I kind of power-read them so I could return this to the library.  I hope to attempt Penguin's more measured approach to poetry, which may need books that don't have a due date... 3 stars.

81. Death of a Red Heroine by Qiu Xiaolong - Murder mystery set in Shanghai in the early 90's, with a detective who is also a poet.  Interesting also for its description of China at this time, still recovering from the aftershocks Cultural Revolution (most young people had been sent to the country to 'be educated' by the peasants for a decade or so during what should have been their high school and college years), Tiananmen Square just a few years before, and all the huge economic and societal reforms taking off at that time.  Chen Cao (the inspector) is also an interesting character, and the book also goes into his personal life and dealing with politics.  I'd like to read more in this series.  3.5 stars.

82. The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt - about the rediscovery in the 1400's of a Latin text by Lucretius (On the Nature of Things) by a Papal bureaucrat and book-hunter.  The premise of the book is that the wider distribution of this text changed people's thinking toward a more empirical and less superstitious/faith-based way of seeing the world - a bit of a stretch to hang so much on one text, imho.  Much of the 'story' told about this is wildly hypothetical - character may have visited this place (or maybe another), may have done this or that, may have thought this or that, and these events may (or may not) have led to these outcomes.  Readable enough at least, and now I want to go read On the Nature of Things. ? 3 stars.

83. The Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson (audiobook) - many stories in this story!  The main character is a comic-book artist (working for the big names).  She has a one-night stand with a Batman cosplayer at a con and finds herself unexpectedly pregnant at 38.   Before she can get up the nerve to tell anyone in the family, she finds out her grandmother is in need of an immediate move to assisted living, her step-sister's marriage blows up, and then bones are found in the attic... and a couple other twists...  I actually found it a fun read, but I might not recommend it to anyone who doesn't like comic books or sci-fi (lots and lots of nerd references ? )  Read by the author, who did a decent job of it.  4 stars.

84. Swallowing Mercury by Wioletta Greg (ebook) - A series of snapshots that seem to be memoir-y tidbits from the author's childhood (though the town is fictional and the main character's name is only similar to the author's).   I usually like short stories and vignettes (I know many others find them 'unfinished' or 'abrupt'), but these were even a bit too disconnected for me.  If a short story leaves you hanging, then fine, that's all the author had to tell you about that character/story.  But since these are all about the same character, moving forward in time, I would have appreciated a bit more follow-up to some of the bombs dropped in one story in a future story (mostly molestation based, a bit yuk).  Things happen, but are never mentioned again.  I also didn't like the translation, which was very slangy-Brit (mum, the loo - many more I can't remember).  I appreciate slangy Brit when it's set in Britain, as it gives me  a sense of place.  It's jarring when it's communist Poland.  I would have left the Polish for 'mum' and used more generic terms for the slang bits.  And they in the opposite direction, they don't bother translating or explaining some kind of Polish drug she's taking (some kind of opiod?) - when I googled it, it only gave me articles in Polish - it should have at least had a note saying what kind of drug it was...  The original Polish title was "Unripe Fruit", which makes more sense for the collection; also not sure why they picked the one they did (the title and theme of one of the short vignettes)  3 stars, maybe only 2.5.

Currently Reading: 

- Das Buch vom Meer / Shark Drunk by Morten Strøksnes - non-fiction about a couple of friends who try for a year to catch a Greenland Shark.  Lots of info about marine biology too, which means my German vocab is about to get a lot more marine bio terms - this is one place where the Lego German language doesn't help.  Eishai literally means Ice Shark, but in English it's Greenland or Gray Shark (had to Google, the dictionary didn't have it either!).

- Speak No Evil by Uzodima Iweala (audiobook) - about a rich Nigerian immigrant kid (in America) on his way to Harvard who comes out to his conservative family.

- The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (ebook) - the first in the Wayfarer series.  Everyone told me the second (that I just read) could be a standalone, but I wanted to read the backstory.  Really enjoying it so far.

[Robin M]

8 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

Robin, a question about the Kristin Lavransdatter readalong - should we start reading Part I on Sept 2 and the discussion will be the following week, or should we have Part I done by Sept 2 and the discussion on it will start then?

ETA: I just requested both the huge combined tome and the first book of the trilogy from the library; will see which seems more readable (font/white space/hugeness of book)... lol.

We start reading on the 2nd.  ?. The big book has normal size print and easy to read. At least for my old eyes with readers.

[Loesje22000]

I finished several books this week:

The accident by Ismael Kadare (a little bit philosophical mystery)

Volume 9 out of 10 of ‘Small History of the Netherlands’ now reading volume 10.

Graag zien, a biographical book by a blind author. (Graag zien = to like to see but also to love in Flemish)

Magnut for the micro history square

ETA: I also finished go,went, gone by Jenny Erpenbeck. A very readable but also impressive book

 

Readings in progress:

The Birth of Europe, book about the EU

Schemerspel (last bingo square)

Volume 10 of the Small History

[Runningmom80]

Finally finished Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.  It was completely fine. lol I have mixed feelings!

Starting Farrar's book today!  I have 2 poetry books to finish and also The Body Keeps the Score. That one is a tough read, but very good.

[Loesje22000]

I found a cheap dutch translation of Kristin Lavransdochter, so maybe I will join the read a long...

[ErinE]

22 hours ago, TravelingChris said:

Hi all..  Just finished reading Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. I have only read one other book by her and that was also because it was a book club selection.  I so disliked this book.  I do not like her style of writing. multiple first persons, switching points of view in every chapter.  I thought the main character was a horrible person.  I do not know what this genre is called because a tragedy has to have a likeable character who has a terrible flaw.  The main character wasn't likable at all.  Maybe someone chose this book because of issues but I do not even think I want to discuss how anti-abortion I am and how despicable I think people are who abort their Down's Syndrome, OI , etc. children.  I am a super defender of disability rights and this book just really bothered me. I had a chat in the library when I was getting a book.. Both of us had just come from a class called Armchair Travel (that time Antartica and a bit of Argentina) and she just loves Jodi Picoult because she researches well her topics in these fiction books.  Okay  I can grant you that but I would much rather read a non fiction book about whatever topics she is writing about then this melodramatic cr*p/  We had congenital diseases, shoplifting, bulemia, cutting, and ,more sensational topics.  I have to give this book one star.

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

I stopped reading Picoult because all her books were "children in peril" stories with extremely flawed characters. For "realistic fiction", the stories felt implausible. I could, in fact, trace the origin of most her stories to sensational headlines from a few years before the book's publishing. It became too much for me.

[Zebra]

3 minutes ago, ErinE said:

I stopped reading Picoult because all her books were "children in peril" stories with extremely flawed characters. For "realistic fiction", the stories felt implausible. I could, in fact, trace the origin of most her stories to sensational headlines from a few years before the book's publishing. It became too much for me.

Me too.   I used to really like her books, and frankly, her newer books always feel like they are pushing an agenda instead of being a good story.

But, YMMV ?.

[Zebra]

3 hours ago, Runningmom80 said:

Finally finished Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.  It was completely fine. lol I have mixed feelings!

 

I really liked this book, BUT, I listened to an audiobook and the reader had a very nice scottish-y accent.   So, it sounded very cool!

It's like when someone puts on a kilt.   They are instantly 37% more attractive.

[Zebra]

This week I read a book called The Taster.    It was novel about a woman who was a taster for Hitler.   She tasted his food, and then waited to see if she would die.   How many times can I use a form of the word "taste" in my description, do you think?

There was some weird stuff in it.   The story didn't ring true for a few reasons.   It was very bizarre to have this fictional novel going along, and Hitler keeps making appearances.   And you know, it's, HITLER.   Walking his dog, eating cake.    

I'm still reading A Suitable Boy and listening to Radio Girls.   I also started Lizzy and Jane which isn't that great, but is nice and mindless.   

[ErinE]

Books finished since last I updated:

• Run the Storm: A Savage Hurricane, a Brave Crew, and the Wreck of the SS El Faro by George Michelson Foy. History - Natural Disaster. A container ship finds itself trapped at sea while a powerful hurricane approaches. While the writing voice could have used a bit of editing, the tension builds to the point where, even though I knew the story, I was still hoping for a different outcome for the crew members. If you read disaster stories like The Perfect Storm and Into Thin Air, this is an interesting book. Another one from my physical TBR pile.
• Babylon's Ashes (The Expanse #6) by James S. A. Corey. Science Fiction - Space Opera. The crew of a merchant ship join forces with Earth and Mars to fight space pirates. I'm not doing justice with my short blurbs. I highly recommend this series if you like science fiction, especially space operas. I've yet to read a book I haven't enjoyed. It's very much in the style of old-school space adventures with a modern sensibility.
• Railsea by China Mieville. Fiction - Weird. A train crew travels the railsea in search of a great white mole. This was a story heavily inspired by Moby Dick, not surprising as Mieville's writing is often compared to Herman Melville. Kraken is still my personal Mieville favorite, but if you've liked Mieville's writing, it's an interesting addition to his catalog.
• Mirror in the Sky by Aditi Khorana. Young Adult Fiction. Fearing a junior year without her best friend, a teen girl ends up hanging out with the popular crowd. Ugh, please no more YA novels with a veneer of science fiction. It's a cool cover but very much a cliched story. Khorana's voice was interesting so I might read more from her. Her The Library of Fates also has a cool cover (fingers crossed it's real fantasy).
• The Long War (The Long Earth #2) by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter. Science Fiction. More travels through alternates Earth's as humanoids flee from humans. Probably my last read from this series. There isn't much story here.

I'm still trying to finish Summerland and I'm wrapping up Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-At-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work, which has been a great read thus far.

Edited August 27, 2018 by ErinE

[Carol in Cal.]

Sigh. I read that book early this year, and read it and read it and read it.  I loved it.  But it also knocked me completely out of this group because I read it for so long that I never got back in the habit afterwards of updating with books I read since then.

I am resisting giving my detailed opinion of KL with difficulty to avoid spoilers, but look forward to seeing the final discussion and joining then.

In the meantime I am currently reading Phillip Roth's book, "The Plot Against America".  It has some outstanding moments of stunning prose, such as when a character realizes that his community's despair over an election is another community's joy.  As the character is a very young (8-9YO) boy who doesn't have much experience outside of his own community, this is more shocking than it sounds, and well elucidated.  

But overall I'm not liking it.  I find the story line overwrought and the characters overdone, consistently.  Plus I know a fair amount about the era in question, and there is quite a bit of anachronistic stuff in the mix.  

[JennW in SoCal]

On 8/26/2018 at 12:32 PM, TravelingChris said:

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

 

What a fun challenge. Find an esoteric genre...

Chinese detective fiction?  The police detective series by Qiu Xiaolong is quite good.

Cookbooks based on historical fiction? There is Lobscouse and Spotted Dog, recipes from the Master and Commander series.

Musician memoirs? Beethoven for a Later Age is a great memoir by the first violinist of the Tacaks String Quartet.

Within sci-fi/fantasy there are a numerous sub-genres: Space opera, such as the Vorkosigan books of Lois MacMaster Bujold; Urban fantasy -- Jim Butcher for example; alternate history; stand alone fantasy by which I mean a fantasy novel that is NOT part of a trilogy  -- Goblin Emperor is a good example, or The Last Unicorn. 

Southern Gothic? Your chance to tackle Wm Faulkner!

Mythology? The recent Norse mythology collection by Neil Gaiman is great fun. Especially on audio.

[JennW in SoCal]

I finished The Calculating Stars, the alternate history of the space program where women get to go into space much, much earlier. I may have liked it more in print as the author doing the narration over-acted everything. I wanted to slap her and say "cut it out!".  Overall I was hugely disappointed by the book and based on the Goodreads reviews I'm in the minority. At least it kept me company while I finished a quilt. 

I also finished a satisfying police procedural by Denise Mina, The End of the Wasp Season. It is set in Glasgow and features a female police detective sergeant who is 4 months pregnant with twins! Is your Brit Tripping bus crossing the border into Scotland? This would be a great addition as you not only go to Glasgow but to Perth as well (and a quick stop in London a couple of times....)

Not sure what I'm going to read next before starting Kristin Lavransdatter. 

[mumto2]

On 8/26/2018 at 8:32 PM, TravelingChris said:

Hi all..  Just finished reading Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. I have only read one other book by her and that was also because it was a book club selection.  I so disliked this book.  I do not like her style of writing. multiple first persons, switching points of view in every chapter.  I thought the main character was a horrible person.  I do not know what this genre is called because a tragedy has to have a likeable character who has a terrible flaw.  The main character wasn't likable at all.  Maybe someone chose this book because of issues but I do not even think I want to discuss how anti-abortion I am and how despicable I think people are who abort their Down's Syndrome, OI , etc. children.  I am a super defender of disability rights and this book just really bothered me. I had a chat in the library when I was getting a book.. Both of us had just come from a class called Armchair Travel (that time Antartica and a bit of Argentina) and she just loves Jodi Picoult because she researches well her topics in these fiction books.  Okay  I can grant you that but I would much rather read a non fiction book about whatever topics she is writing about then this melodramatic cr*p/  We had congenital diseases, shoplifting, bulemia, cutting, and ,more sensational topics.  I have to give this book one star.

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

A couple other ideas might be Chinese Science Fiction.  I love the Three Body Problem which I read/ listened to earlier this year.  One other idea might be The Rivers of London or whatever the first in the series is called in the US https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9317452-rivers-of-london.  There used to be an article on the web declaring it to be the first book in a new genre and the reasons why......I can’t remember the name unfortunately.  This series isn’t a typical Urban Fantasy which most people like to class it as,  it isn’t Steampunk, I think the name played off the detective/ police element but I can’t seem to locate it. I honestly do think the series is a new genre......this is one of my favorite series.

36 minutes ago, JennW in SoCal said:

I finished The Calculating Stars, the alternate history of the space program where women get to go into space much, much earlier. I may have liked it more in print as the author doing the narration over-acted everything. I wanted to slap her and say "cut it out!".  Overall I was hugely disappointed by the book and based on the Goodreads reviews I'm in the minority. At least it kept me company while I finished a quilt. 

I also finished a satisfying police procedural by Denise Mina, The End of the Wasp Season. It is set in Glasgow and features a female police detective sergeant who is 4 months pregnant with twins! Is your Brit Tripping bus crossing the border into Scotland? This would be a great addition as you not only go to Glasgow but to Perth as well (and a quick stop in London a couple of times....)

Not sure what I'm going to read next before starting Kristin Lavransdatter. 

Yeah, to the finished quilt!  ? No Scottish Brit Tripping this time.  Pretty sure I have never read anything by Denise Mina and I will have a  look through my library’s in the morning.

[ErinE]

.

Edited December 3, 2023 by ErinE

[JennW in SoCal]

1 hour ago, ErinE said:

Rivers of London is so good. Many thanks to JennW for suggesting it. I stopped checking out physical library books because I need to cull my bedside book stack but it’s on my list once I’m back to visiting the library.

 

And thanks to Mumto2 who recommended them to me!  So glad you are it! You've several more to look forward to in the series.

[tuesdayschild]

 

Just dropping in to give a small update on two books I've appreciated lately.   (Following along on everyone's reading progress and recommendations via email.)

• The Love That I Have ~ James Moloney  (Aust author) (4+) Historical Fict    Not quite 5 stars. Pre-read this as a potential English essay producing (NCEA Reader Response)  read for Dd.   A WWII story which is written from the German perspective, about two Germans.  Fuller review here:  http://tuesdaysviews.blogspot.com/2018/08/the-love-that-i-have-james-moloney.html 

• Tallgrass ~ Sandra Dallas (epukapuka audiobook) (5)  I think Lorelei King's talented narration really made this book - not sure I would have appreciated it as much in the written format.  This is one of those stories that is going to stay with me for a long time. Dh is now listening to this, and appreciating it too.  Fuller review here:  http://tuesdaysviews.blogspot.com/2018/08/tallgrass-sandra-dallas.html

[Negin]

On 8/26/2018 at 10:29 PM, Quill said:

@Negin, the Force of Reason book sounds interesting. I might have to check that out. 

Quill, I don't recommend it, I only recommend "The Force of Reason" for die-hard Oriana fans. "The Force of Reason" is the second book in a trilogy. I do, however, recommend her first book if you're interested. Her books are not for all. I've read two so far. Here's my review for her first book, "The Rage and the Pride." 

[Violet Crown]

Nothing finished. Glued to internet all week, contrary to my usual rule of life--it's like HBO did a prequel to The Young Pope, and I'm binge-watching--plus birthday celebrations (mine & dh's).

[Violet Crown]

On 8/26/2018 at 2:32 PM, TravelingChris said:

 

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

Dh just wrote a book (self-published on Amazon; OUP is interested, though!). It's the genre of Self-Teaching Formal Proof Construction. Via a sort of Yu-Gi-Oh-type game. All beasts-with-attributes illustrated by Middle Girl. It's expected to sell literally tens of copies; mostly to students to whom it's assigned.

So you could try that...

[Loesje22000]

I think I finished BINGO!

 

B	I	N	G	O
Nacht over Clarkenwell	De Openbaring	Bonhoeffer	Villa Rosa	Poison
De Glasblazers	Stille Stem	Daring to Drive	Golem & Djinn	Mary Lamb
Nootmuskaat	Spiegelmaker	Dagboek van een boekverkoper	Zand	Emotionele Flexibiliteit
Een venetiaans geheim	Schemerspel	Ik zal de laatste zijn	De tulp van het kwaad	Meesteres van de Kruiden
Een smaak van venijn	Zou je denken?	Toevluchtsoord	Irmina	De kaart die de wereld veranderde

[Loesje22000]

And the link to my BINGO shelf:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/40511334-loesje?shelf=baw-2018-bingo

[Violet Crown]

Nice job Loesje!!!

[Loesje22000]

4 minutes ago, Violet Crown said:

Nice job Loesje!!!

 

Thank you!

[Robin M]

14 minutes ago, loesje22000 said:

And the link to my BINGO shelf:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/40511334-loesje?shelf=baw-2018-bingo

 

 

Woot! Woot!  Congratulations!  Already looked up a couple on goodreads and added Zou Je Denken (If Minds had Toes) to my wishlist.  ?

 

[Loesje22000]

10 minutes ago, Robin M said:

 

 

Woot! Woot!  Congratulations!  Already looked up a couple on goodreads and added Zou Je Denken (If Minds had Toes) to my wishlist.  ?

 

 

Thank you! If minds had Toes was a fun read (for me)

[Violet Crown]

Finished Sheridan Le Fanu's sensationalist Victorian thriller Uncle Silas. It starts out with a plot device so hard to swallow it almost ruins the book: the motherless teenage heroine's adoring father dies, and in his will leaves her in the custody of his reclusive, impoverished, ne'er-do-well brother Silas, whose reputation was ruined when he was credibly accused of murdering hs bookie for his (Silas's) gambling IOUs. He also leaves his whole estate to the daughter, and, if she dies, to his brother Silas! ... and does this as a public statement that he believes his brother Silas to be innocent. Because if Silas is a murderer, it's a completely insane idea.

And yet, once you choke that down, it's really pretty good, and moves along at a brisk pace (for a Victorian novel) to a gripping conclusion. Set in Derbyshire, with the Derbyshire dialect in a starring role, in the mouth of Silas's poor daughter who, like Eliza Doolittle, can never hope to be a lady until she can talk like an upper-class Londoner.

Finishing up Wordsworth and Augustine this week, I hope, and then on to Lincolnshire with The Mill on the Floss, unread since college.

Edited August 29, 2018 by Violet Crown
Fix those italics

[Guest]

On 8/27/2018 at 10:50 AM, Runningmom80 said:

Finally finished Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.  It was completely fine. lol I have mixed feelings!

Starting Farrar's book today!  I have 2 poetry books to finish and also The Body Keeps the Score. That one is a tough read, but very good.

What is Farrar’s book? I missed this along the way...

I completed the epically awful Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis. That truly is the worst book in the self-help genre on which I have ever wasted four hours (four and a half, if you include my torching review). One thing is certain: I no longer trust reviews until I have mined the lowball reviews. Four and five star reviews are practically meaningless if the author is a social media type personality. So I’m done with reading any book by that sort of author unless I can determine with a high degree of confidence that they aren’t just review wh@res writing to expand their dang brand. 

Ever read a book so bad it just infuriates you? That happened here. But...moving on. 

[Penguin]

I am reading The Trial by Franz Kafka. It is one of my son’s current faves, and I love having shared reading experiences with my family. As a bonus, it fits the Crime square for Bingo.

We watched the 1962 Orson Welles version of The Trial over the summer, and I wish I had more distance between the movie and the book. Or that I had read the book first (like my son did). I keep seeing the film scenes as I read. Reminder to self: there is a reason that book-before-movie is a thing.

Edited August 30, 2018 by Penguin

[mumto2]

3 hours ago, Penguin said:

I am reading The Trial by Franz Kafka. It is one of my son’s current faves, and I love having shared reading experiences with my family. As a bonus, it fits the Crime square for Bingo.

We watched the 1962 Orson Welles version of The Trial over the summer, and I wish I had more distance between the movie and the book. Or that I had read the book first (like my son did). I keep seeing the film scenes as I read. Reminder to self: there is a reason that book-before-movie is a thing.

I remember really liking The Trial when I watched it so can totally imagine the problem of following it with the book.  Book first, is my rule too!

I just finished a memoir that is also a movie but if I understood the afterword the book was written at the same time the movie was in production.  Adrift was floating around on my wish list ? for several months.  I contemplated it for both the book to movie and the memoir squares.  Glad I went with memoir as I will never bother to watch the movie.  The book was a relatively quick interesting read.  I am so grateful I didn’t read the Goodreads comments first because they were a bit scathing in terms of survival when you have plenty of food and she eventually figured out her water supply.  A couple gets caught in a hurricane in the middle of the Pacific when ferrying a sailboat from Tahiti to San Diego and the man falls overboard and the woman is knocked unconscious.  Only one small sail left and no watch for navigation.  Eventually she was able to navigate properly and did sail in to Hawaii.  The fear she had it wrong was very real and supplies would not have lasted to the America’s.  The boat was pretty badly damaged and I was amazed that one of the comments was from a current owner of that boat.  I really thought it ended up as scrap!https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/957533.Red_Sky_in_Mourning. 

Eta....Apparently Adrift has another title, Red Sky in Mourning.  I guess the movie is called Adrift.

Edited August 30, 2018 by mumto2

[Penguin]

Speaking of book/movie combos, I watched The Princess Bride (1987) last night for the first time. I was nursing a low-grade fever and for me that calls for a movie-that-interests-no-one-else-in-the-family. I love fantasy movies, 80s movies, and cult classics - but this was a total disappointment. I was bored. Not that I am now planning to read the book, but I can't help but wonder if the book is better.

Edited August 30, 2018 by Penguin

[HomeAgain]

9 minutes ago, Penguin said:

Speaking of book/movie combos, I watched The Princess Bride (1987) last night for the first time. I was nursing a low-grade fever and for me that calls for a movie-that-interests-no-one-else-in-the-family. I love fantasy movies, 80s movies, and cult classics - but this was a total disappointment. I was bored. Not that I am now planning to read the book, but I can't help but wonder if the book is better.

The book is so different, though if you didn't like the movie, you may not like the humor in the book. ? It is a fantastic read if you get through it, though.

[Penguin]

6 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

The book is so different, though if you didn't like the movie, you may not like the humor in the book. ? It is a fantastic read if you get through it, though.

Yeah, I kind of lack a funny bone. Unfortunately.

[mumto2]

13 minutes ago, Penguin said:

Speaking of book/movie combos, I watched The Princess Bride (1987) last night for the first time. I was nursing a low-grade fever and for me that calls for a movie-that-interests-no-one-else-in-the-family. I love fantasy movies, 80s movies, and cult classics - but this was a total disappointment. I was bored. Not that I am now planning to read the book, but I can't help but wonder if the book is better.

I have never watched the whole movie or read the book.  My daughter has both watched, more than once, and read.  I watched a few “really good parts”  ? but never felt the desire to watch it all or read it.  

I am currently struggling to get through the latest Becky Chambers Sci Fi book, Record of a Spaceborn Few.  I keep rereading bits hoping to feel something beyond meh....it’s downloaded onto numerous devices so I simply haven’t felt the need to sync, I just read a bit from whatever device...oddly roughly 30% on all three.    My plan for tonight is to just finish it.  I hope the last two thirds is wonderful.  I loved A Long Way to a Small Planet,  enjoyed the second,  but just can’t seem to make myself connect with these characters.  I can’t even keep them straight!  

[vonfirmath]

On 8/26/2018 at 2:32 PM, TravelingChris said:

Hi all..  Just finished reading Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. I have only read one other book by her and that was also because it was a book club selection.  I so disliked this book.  I do not like her style of writing. multiple first persons, switching points of view in every chapter.  I thought the main character was a horrible person.  I do not know what this genre is called because a tragedy has to have a likeable character who has a terrible flaw.  The main character wasn't likable at all.  Maybe someone chose this book because of issues but I do not even think I want to discuss how anti-abortion I am and how despicable I think people are who abort their Down's Syndrome, OI , etc. children.  I am a super defender of disability rights and this book just really bothered me. I had a chat in the library when I was getting a book.. Both of us had just come from a class called Armchair Travel (that time Antartica and a bit of Argentina) and she just loves Jodi Picoult because she researches well her topics in these fiction books.  Okay  I can grant you that but I would much rather read a non fiction book about whatever topics she is writing about then this melodramatic cr*p/  We had congenital diseases, shoplifting, bulemia, cutting, and ,more sensational topics.  I have to give this book one star.

In other news, my library system is doing a two month long bingo but one of the spaces says read a new genre and I can;'t even think of a genre I haven't read.  Could you all suggest some really esoteric genres?  TIA

 

I really disliked that book too. I stopped reading Jodi Picoult after that book. I liked the first book. But this one - where she sued a friend about the "Wrongful birth" of her child... VERY icky.

Edited August 30, 2018 by vonfirmath

[JennW in SoCal]

1 hour ago, Penguin said:

Speaking of book/movie combos, I watched The Princess Bride (1987) last night for the first time. I was nursing a low-grade fever and for me that calls for a movie-that-interests-no-one-else-in-the-family. I love fantasy movies, 80s movies, and cult classics - but this was a total disappointment. I was bored. Not that I am now planning to read the book, but I can't help but wonder if the book is better.

 

I love this movie, love the quirky and whimsical humor. My dh, who has a great sense of humor, simply doesn't get the charm of it. I have yet to read the book, though, and probably won't. I did, however, listen to Carey Elwes' memoir on the making of the movie, As You Wish, Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride. It is definitely a "must read" for fans of the movie, in spite of all the gushing Hollywood hyperbole: "The MOST talented. The MOST beautiful. The BEST actor of his generation". 

[Violet Crown]

When Great Girl showed The Princess Bride to Wee Girl a few years ago, GG was shocked by the frame narrative: "Hey! His grandfather is Columbo! ... Hey! That's a volume of our Book House set Columbo is reading!" How different movies look as a young adult. She didn't even mind the kissing parts.

[LaughingCat]

DD the older watched The Princess Bride when she was about 8 -- and hates it still.    I haven't been able to get her to rewatch to see if she likes it better now that she is older.

Sadly I think DD the younger's movie like that will be Star Wars -- we watched the original trilogy as a family shortly before the 1st of the most recent set came out ( I wanted DD the older to see them before she heard anything from her friends) - and since then my younger hates anything Star Wars.  

Reading wise, I recently finished Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik which I really enjoyed.  The jumping 1st person narrative was odd though -- would have been better with something to indicate who was speaking IMO, but it wasn't bad enough to throw me out of the story.

Also the Productivity Project which started out extremely well, and then devolved over the rest of the book. 

Otherwise mostly rereading books plus a bunch started  just to say 'meh' and give them up 

 

[mumto2]

I didn’t manage to finish Record of a Spaceborn Few last night but woke up early this morning and made myself finish it.  For the most part the characters are straight in my mind and I understand how this book connects with the others in the trilogy which is a huge accomplishment.  ?. I think the book does have an important message at the end but it took it a really long time to get to it! I can’t say I loved it but I do wonder if I would have enjoyed it far more if I had read in closely after reading the other two in the series. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2310151023