March Book Thread

[rosen]

I've just wallowed thru a couple novels that were very "eh". Look At Me by Jennifer Egan (who wrote the wonderful The Keep). Just not my favorite subject matter to read about & so quit before page 50. Next was Owl Island by Randy Sue Coburn. She is a good writer, but the story was so-so. It just didn't really keep me interested enough & I ended up speed reading to the end. Brought 6 home from the library yesterday, so I hope there are a few good ones there!

DH just finished Thirteen Moons by Charles Frazier (Cold Mountain). He really enjoyed this (& it's now added to my pile). He likes the evocative phrases that Frazier utilizes. Next for him is The Keep. A total departure that I think he'll like.

[SDMomChef]

Last night I finished reading Saffron Kitchen by Yasmin Crowther. It is the story of a daughter of an Iranian mother and British father, and the mother's past in Iran and how it impacted her life and her relationships with her daughter and husband. The mother travels back to Iran to reconnect with her past. I enjoyed the writing and the characters in this book, and I look forward to reading more books by this author (this was her debut novel).

[Miss_Liss]

I just finished The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, which I really enjoyed. Somewhat historically inaccurate but a great book nevertheless :D . Before that I read The Secret by Eva Hoffman, which I was disappointed with. Fairly well written but it was a very predictable and OTT storyline. Not a great follow up to Lost in Translation.:(

[Cindy_Lou]

I just reread Kushiel's Dart in anticipation of Kushiel's Scion coming out in paperback soon. Amazing fantasy!! I wait for paperbacks on this series because they are so not appropriate for my high school library. I'm just dying for a good fantasy to read and can't seem to put my hands on one. I read Vivian Van Velde's Book of Mordred and it was an okay teen read, but I want something I can really get lost in. Anybody have any suggestions?

[Laura]

I am reading Almost French by Sarah Turnbull. She is an Australian reporter who married a French man. I had bought the book for my dd for the plane ride to Europe but it did not arrive until after we got back. It is an interesting read and gives insight as to why the French act the way they do, but unless you are planning a significant amount of time in France, I wouldn't necessarily recommend it. It is my LifeCycle book at the gym. :p

[Miss_Liss]

I just reread Kushiel's Dart in anticipation of Kushiel's Scion coming out in paperback soon. Amazing fantasy!! I wait for paperbacks on this series because they are so not appropriate for my high school library. I'm just dying for a good fantasy to read and can't seem to put my hands on one. I read Vivian Van Velde's Book of Mordred and it was an okay teen read, but I want something I can really get lost in. Anybody have any suggestions?


Have you read any of The Obernewtyn Chronicles by Isobelle Carmody? It's classed as teen fiction but I'm well past my teens and I can't wait for the next one to come out. The characters grow up as the series go on so I grew up with them :)

[Cindy_Lou]

Thanks Miss Liss! I googled The Obernewtyn Chronicles and you have peaked my interest. I'm surprised I haven't had students requesting these books. We have some very devoted fantasy readers. I may have to see if my local Barnes and Noble has them in this weekend.

[Canice]

... Before that I read The Secret by Eva Hoffman, which I was disappointed with. Fairly well written but it was a very predictable and OTT storyline. Not a great follow up to Lost in Translation.:(

I read Lost in Translation 10 or so years ago, and the only thing I remember about it is that that's the book that taught me I hate the historical present (except for Angela's Ashes).

[cumulus]

I read Lost in Translation 10 or so years ago, and the only thing I remember about it is that that's the book that taught me I hate the historical present (except for Angela's Ashes).

I'm halfway through Angela's Ashes and LOVE it. Have you read any E.L Doctorow? I see you're not a fan of historical present, but I find some of his work quite interesting!

[barbara-cook]

I decided to make a list of all the books I read this year and so far I am on #10. I'm currently reading "The March" by E.L. Doctorow, that was recommended here last month by Rosen. So far so good! I had read "Rag Time" by him some years ago and remember really struggling to get through it.
But this is about Sherman's march to the sea during the Civil War. Well written and very interesting.

My favorite book of February was "You're Not You" by Michelle Wildgen. It's the story of a young college student that answers a want ad for a caregiver. She helps to take care of a young woman with ALS (Lou Gherig's Disease). During the course of working with and for this woman, she learns about good food and cooking. It was so well written, this little blurb I'm writing is pathetic! Anyway, it was a great book, very touching, and yet very uplifting.

Can't wait to see what others are reading. I always find great recommendations on this thread. I don't always enjoy reading the "trendy" stuff and a lot of CL BBer's obviously aren't into that either.

Happy reading!

[Miss_Liss]

Thanks Miss Liss! I googled The Obernewtyn Chronicles and you have peaked my interest. I'm surprised I haven't had students requesting these books. We have some very devoted fantasy readers. I may have to see if my local Barnes and Noble has them in this weekend.

The author is Australian so that may be why. I have spoken to a few fantasy devotees in the US who had heard of them. You can definitely get them at barnesandnoble.com so they could order them in for you if they're not in-store.

[Cindy_Lou]

Actually we have a quite a few Australian authors in our collection, especially fantasy series. It may be we don't have them because the copies in print are paperback due to the age of the series and the other librarian was/is not a fantasy fan at all. I think they were just never considered when they were in hardback. We don't have a lot of paperbacks in our collection, which I find odd, and when she retires next year that may change as well. ;) I just put several of Isobelle Carmody's titles on my collection development list. I'm going to try her Gateway series as well, even though the audience looks to be slightly younger. Our fantasy readers will still pick them up. Thanks again!! I love great recommendations, especially for my students.

[rosen]

I'm currently reading "The March" by E.L. Doctorow, that was recommended here last month by Rosen.


Ack! I can't take credit for this! Doctorow is someone I have never read... but is on The List!

For all you Criminal &/or Fantasy fans out there, there is a bookstore here in Richmond just for you! The name is Creatures 'n Crooks Bookshoppe & their web-site is www.cncbooks.com. They have lots of book reviews & interesting stuff. Just thought it might be a fun place for you guys to visit. :)

[barbara-cook]

Rosen - I guess I remembered incorrectly! I remember writing the title down after reading last month's thread with this book and that your name in the same post. Oh well, it is interesting reading. His writing is a little "stilted", probably in the attempt to make it sound as if was written at the time of the civil war. I find it a bit affected, but still interesting.

Do give "You're Not You" a try if you can find it at your library. I think you'll like it.

[stacy7272]

I got an e-mail from Barnes and Noble the other day and it had an interview with Jodi Picoult in it. I thought I would post it here for all the Jodi Picoult fans....

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/flash/vd.asp?r=1&pid=12393&nav=1&aud=1

[gertdog]

Rosen - I guess I remembered incorrectly! I remember writing the title down after reading last month's thread with this book and that your name in the same post. Oh well, it is interesting reading. His writing is a little "stilted", probably in the attempt to make it sound as if was written at the time of the civil war. I find it a bit affected, but still interesting.


I think it might have been me- I did post about The March last month. I'm glad you're enjoying it!

I read Water for Elephants over the weekend- what a marvelous book. Really well-written and evocative, and an original story. Loved the (improbable) ending, too.

Currently working on the new Ruth Rendell, End in Tears. I have a huge backlog from paperbackswap.com to work through... not sure what I'll pick up next! I've also got The Omnivore's Dilemma on my bedside table- I've been reading that a bit at a time.

[Terrytx]

My recent reads are Wild Fire-by Nelson DeMille (always good), Cold Moon by Jeffery Deaver (a favorite) and Gone by Jonathan Kellerman (another fav). I guess I have been on a "thriller" streak. I just started The Innocent Man by John Grisham.

[barbara-cook]

Terrytx - Is that Jonothan Kellerman book NEW? I love his stuff! I just plow though everything he has written! Please tell me!

Be ready to be outraged by "the Innocent Man". I was.

I gave my husband "Wild Fire" for Christmas and have that to read soon.

Let me know about the JK book, please?

[Terrytx]

Terrytx - Is that Jonothan Kellerman book NEW? I love his stuff! I just plow though everything he has written! Please tell me!

Be ready to be outraged by "the Innocent Man". I was.

I gave my husband "Wild Fire" for Christmas and have that to read soon.

Let me know about the JK book, please?

Yes, it is his latest.

The DH has read The Innocent man already and says the same thing.

I gave Wild Fire to my DH for Christmas and I read it first:p

[Minky]

I just finished The Innocent Man too, and found it hard to read before bed because I'd get so angry...

I have just started on The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian. So far (100 pages) it's very intriguing.

[Max Sutton]

I'm currently reading Illusions (1997) by Bill Pronzini. This is one of his "Nameless Detective" series set in northern California. I have the entire series and I'm reading them in order of publication. The protagonist is a PI with his office in San Francisco. I've met the author, Bill Pronzini, and he has signed many of my books for me.

A really great read that was difficult to put down was Baby Shark (2006) by Robert Fate. This crime fiction book is set in the early 1950s in Texas and deals with a woman getting revenge for being raped and beaten by several men.

[mgs]

jumping in here for some help - I WANT to be an avid reader but I just can't get into it. I need a quick read book. My sister, BIL, and mother always have stacks of books to read as does my MIL. I truly envy them, but seems like I just can't get into it. I am addicted to TV/interenet I think.:o

I have my toddler who seems to LOVE to read and I want to give him a good foundation by modeling the love for reading but man, I need a jump start!

Any ideas of books that might keep me interested? I have at times gone through chick books, mysteries, and crime solving non-fiction. Most recently I have read a few of the 'Oprah' books and enjoyed them. I got halfway through Wicked about a year ago and was loving it, but just put it down one day, got busy, and never went back....

Meg

[barbara-cook]

TerryTX - thanks for the info on GONE. It must be really, really new. I looked in BJ's last night and it's not there yet. But I'll be patient. I have a stack to get through right now, and it'll be there waiting when I'm ready.

mgs - I go through phases too where I don't read a thing. And with a busy toddler, it's tough, I know! Maybe you can have "book time" for say 10-15 minutes a day with the baby. Give him/her picture books to look at and tell him/her that Mom will be reading her book while he/she reads their books. Set a timer. If he/she lets you read in peace, you can reward him/her by reading one of their favorite books aloud. Otherwise, I would just sneak in 10-15 minutes before sleep. Good luck!

[Cindy_Lou]

mgs -- try a book by the author Jodi Picoult. My Sister's Keeper would be an interesting read for a mom and it is my favorite of all her titles. She keeps you interested. I can understand why you would put Wicked down and not go back. I finished it, but really never found it fascinating.

[rosen]

Finished Case Histories by Kate Atkinson. (I read Backstairs several years ago & remember liking it... but don't remember the style being anything like Case.) I really liked this story! Not great literature, but a very satisfying read! I'll be checking out the rest of hers, soon

Sped read thru The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. I really wanted to like this... but, well..... not so much. The copy I had was poorly edited (which drives me nuts) and there were just too many inconsistencies (which really drive me nuts). It's not that I didn't find the story unbelievable... just could never garner any sympathy for any of the characters.

Off to the library this afternoon to find yet more victims for my hard to please reading palate!

[barbara-cook]

I started reading "The Art of Mending" by Elizabeth Berg (since "Range of Motion" was out at the library) and so far I am liking it a lot. Thanks to Rosen for pointing out another excellent auther, one with a string of books already written, just waiting for me to enjoy. I may have to take the time to read through each of them.

[rosen]

Barbara-cook: If you like Berg, I rec that over time, you go back & start w/ her first ones & work your way forward. You can see the quiet evolution of a very perceptive author. She has written 3 titles about 1 character (Katie) & although they don't need to be read in order, I would rec that you do so you can see how Katie matures over the 3. #1-Durable Goods, #2-Joy School, #3-True to Form.

I came home from the library w/ 6 to try, including March (rec'd by barbara), which will probably be read first by DH since he finished The Keep last night. Now.... which one to start on myself.........................

[LakeMartinGal]

I finally finished The Falls, by Joyce Carol Oates. Having grown up in the Buffalo area, it has struck me in the past that people from that area generally suffer from lack of sunshine, and don't know it! That being said, I have met some lovely people there, who are still my friends -- but they sure enjoy coming to the sunny South for a lift!

I have, of course, heard lots of the legends of Niagara Falls, and it was interesting to be able to picture the area she was writing about. I remember standing at the Falls, and being mesmerized by the water going over (you can get closer to the Horseshoe Falls). One day we were there, a woman was purported to have dropped her chronically ill baby over. :eek:

The Love Canal case (toxic waste dump, with a school and neighborhood built on top of it :eek:) was big when we moved back there: people had finally gotten some monetary recompense which did not, of course, repay them for all the illnesses and people who died.

I found this book to be dark, as are a lot of her books, and hopeless in some undefinable way. I can't say I enjoyed it, but I did identify with it, and how the children are marred by things they didn't understand in their pasts. I am SO glad not to live in that area any more...

[bobmark226]

I thought someone here had mentioned Andrew Wilson's The Lying Tongue, but it didn't come up in a search. I finally took a break from the Child/Reacher series, since I'd at least established I was able to read again after a bad patch, and picked this up at the library. I am a fan of Patricia Highsmith (the Ripley novels) and I finished this one, very much in a similar vein from her biographer, in one sitting. Excellent, if it's your cuppa, with an amoral narrator. To quote from tomorrow's Times Book Review, a review I just found:

In genre fiction, the gold standard isn’t always measured by originality and there are times when a familiar plot can comfort and delight. Andrew Wilson, the author of the Patricia Highsmith biography “Beautiful Shadow,” proves the point with his debut novel, THE LYING TONGUE (Atria, $24), a romantic suspense story that’s no less enthralling for being a bit quaint. Like a revenant from Daphne du Maurier, the narrative beckons the reader into the crumbling Venetian palazzo of a reclusive author in need of a companion. Enter Adam Woods, a young Englishman grateful to find a way to support himself while writing his first novel and only slightly confounded to learn that his employer is a man with many secrets. Sound familiar? Wilson observes the classic conventions while taking his tale down some unexpectedly dark corridors........

Next up is The Saffron Kitchen (no, MISSINDI, it's not a cookbook! :) ) which, coincidentally, Sherri mentions above, or my last remaining Reacher.

Bob

[Schmee]

I just finished Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin.
From Publishers Weekly
Had Ellis Peters's Brother Cadfael been born a few decades later, he might have found a worthy associate and friend in Dr. Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar of Salerno, a short and short-tempered medieval coroner hired in secret by King Henry II to find out who's behind the horrific murders of Christian children in Cambridge, England. Prominent local Jews stand accused; Henry wants them freed, mostly for the sake of their tax revenue. As Adelia examines the children's bodies and gets to know the people of Cambridge, she has no trouble assembling a long list of suspects, but she encounters considerable difficulty trying to narrow it down, a struggle in which the reader gladly joins her. Not all of the plot twists are surprising and the romantic subplot is an unnecessary afterthought, but Franklin (City of Shadows) has developed a skillful blend of historical fact and gruesome fiction that's more than sufficient to keep readers interested and entertained.

I had already started Atonement before I got the other one so now I am picking that up again.

[Clover]

jumping in here for some help - I WANT to be an avid reader but I just can't get into it. I need a quick read book. My sister, BIL, and mother always have stacks of books to read as does my MIL. I truly envy them, but seems like I just can't get into it. I am addicted to TV/interenet I think.:o

I have my toddler who seems to LOVE to read and I want to give him a good foundation by modeling the love for reading but man, I need a jump start!

Any ideas of books that might keep me interested? I have at times gone through chick books, mysteries, and crime solving non-fiction. Most recently I have read a few of the 'Oprah' books and enjoyed them. I got halfway through Wicked about a year ago and was loving it, but just put it down one day, got busy, and never went back....

Meg
Well, not everybody likes to read. There's nothing wrong with that. However, there are a lot of books that are marketed as young adult or children's literature that are also good for adults, and they do tend to be quicker reads than adult books. And you can always consider it research, since you have a child and should be informed about kids'/YA books. I'm listing some below, all fiction, that I have enjoyed, that would be either in the children's or teen section of your library. You might also just browse there or ask the librarian for suggestions.

A Long Way from Chicago
and its sequel A Year Down Yonder--Richard Peck
These are both, IMO, very funny. They are very appealing to adults, but most adults will never find them because they are classified as children’s books.

Monster--Walter Dean Myers
I thought this might be grim and depressing, but it isn’t. A 16-year-old boy is standing trial as an adult for murder, accused of being the lookout in a robbery gone wrong. The narrative alternates between the diary he is keeping while in jail--and his lawyer has told him to be careful what he writes down--and the trial itself, which, to calm himself, he imagines as if he were shooting a movie of it. As readers, we never get the straight story of what happened or didn’t, but have to draw our own conclusions. Very interestingly done and thought-provoking.


Bull Run--Paul Fleischman
Seed Folks--Paul Fleischman
These two novels have the same format. They are a collection of first person narratives by multiple and diverse characters about a single subject. Bull Run is about the thoughts and expectations of people from all walks of life and both sides of the conflict about the impending battle. In Seed Folks, the characters are all somehow involved in a community garden that begins when a child plants some seeds in a vacant lot in her run-down urban neighborhood.

Here’s some more.
Fantasy:
Skellig--David Almond
The Sea of Trolls--Nancy Farmer
Howl’s Moving Castle--Diana Wynne Jones

Historical fiction:
The Shakespeare Stealer--Gary Blackwood (first of a series)
Bud, Not Buddy--Christopher Paul Curtis
Our Only May Amelia--Jennifer L. Holm
Bloody Jack--L.A. Meyer (first of a series)

Chick books:
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants--Ann Brashares (first of a series)

[mgs]

thanks for everyone's thoughtful replies!

I put a hold on My Sister's Keeper at the library. And I love the idea of telling DS to read his books for 10-15 min while I read mine. He loves his books so I guess I need to take a cue from him!

Clover, thanks for the list of books. I will write them down and see if they can spark a new interest in reading for me.

Meg

[HejazSunKat]

Sped read thru The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. I really wanted to like this... but, well..... not so much. The copy I had was poorly edited (which drives me nuts) and there were just too many inconsistencies (which really drive me nuts). It's not that I didn't find the story unbelievable... just could never garner any sympathy for any of the characters.


Would have to agree with you. My book club just read this and many people liked it and we did have a good discussion on it but it was an 'eh' book for me. I thought that in the hands of a better writer it could have been much more powerful but, to me, Edwards missed the mark in exploring some of its themes.

I'm in the middle of The Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance and before that just read Susannah Morrow by the same author. I've found both to be so-so and won't be seeking out future books by this author.

Next up for my book club is The Secret and I'm already thinking I'm going to hate it after a couple of pages. I guess it's been getting quite alot of buzz in the news but I think I'm going to have a hard time buying into it's premise but, we'll see. I'll try to be open minded about it!

I'm intrigued by the reviews on 'Water for Elephants' and think I'll try to pick that one up at the library.

[LakeMartinGal]

thanks for everyone's thoughtful replies!

I put a hold on My Sister's Keeper at the library. And I love the idea of telling DS to read his books for 10-15 min while I read mine. He loves his books so I guess I need to take a cue from him!

Clover, thanks for the list of books. I will write them down and see if they can spark a new interest in reading for me.

MegIf you have a fanciful turn of mind, there are books by Anne McCaffrey (some of hers are YA... try any of the books of Pern), Elizabeth Ann Scarborough and others that are classified as science fiction, but are really human-interest stories set in "other worlds." More fiction than scientific... Marion Zimmer Bradley writes some like that, too.

ETA -- try some short stories in different genres... at least the chapters will be a whole story. Maybe you can find something that you like!

[barbara-cook]

Rosen - thanks again for the good recommendations. I really liked "The Art of Mending" and I will definitely pick up the other three Elizabeth Berg titles you recommended. When I went to the library last time, I was looking to pick up "Range of Motion" which you commented on at one point. But not finding it, and finding lots of other titles, just picked "Art of Mending" as a place to start... I could not determine from "other titles by" in the front of the books which came first! But I'm glad I did I picked that title. Now I am looking forward to reading the rest of her books.

Just wanted to comment that reading other's recommendations on these threads and jotting down the titles/authors does save a lot of time when visiting the library. Just look for the good ones and you don't have to search all day for something you might like! This is one of my favorite threads and I have yet to be disapponted by a book recommended here.

Thanks to everyone for their input!

[tennisashoe]

LOVE Elizabeth Berg. Was turned on to her when I was looking for more Sue Monk Kidd, but couldn't remember her name when I aimlessly wandered into a bookstore one day. Bought "Talk before Sleep" and found it to be a gem. "What we Keep" was the next one I read. Both are very thought provoking. I appreciate my friends and sisters even more because of them.

If you haven't read Sue Monk Kidd, I'd recommend "Secret Life of Bees." It's a treat.

[stacy7272]

However, there are a lot of books that are marketed as young adult or children's literature that are also good for adults, and they do tend to be quicker reads than adult books. And you can always consider it research, since you have a child and should be informed about kids'/YA books.
Good point. I'd recommend the Harry Potter series. Those are easy to read, interesting, and fun books!

[RebelsLGB]

I hardly venture over here to the "other stuff" boards, but am happy to see a book thread, as I am an avid reader!

Right now I'm in a little over my head with reading. My fiance and I have agreed to "switch" favorate series. He is reading the Harry Potter books (since i am a huge harry potter fan) and I'm reading Stephen Kings Dark Tower Series. Its a perfect switch since both series are 7 books long. So right now I'm reading the 1st book in the Dark Tower Series, The Gunslinger, which I am struggling to get through. Stephen King is way too wordy for me. I've never read an author that uses as many adjectives that he uses. By the time I'm done reading a sentence I've forgotten what it was that he was describing and have to read it again.

I am also re-reading the Harry Potter series in anticipation of the last book being released in July. I'm on the 4th book, The Goblet of Fire, Which happens to be my favorate of the series.

And last but not least I'm also a big Jodi Picoult fan (I also recoment My Sisters Keeper), and am reading Plain Truth right now, in my ongoing attempt to read all of her books.

[erin elizabeth]

Tearing through Nigel Slater's The Kitchen Diaries. He wrote about all the meals he cooked for an entire year. I am realizing that the way he eats in England is soooo different from the way I eat here in the USA. Very interesting and the pictures are beautiful! Highly recommend this book for foodies.

[Canice]

I'll have to pick that one up, Erin - sounds like a great read.
Have you read "Toast", his memoir? I had a little trouble getting into it the first try but ended up thinking it a great read. I'm sure I'll enjoy Kitchen Diaries.

[erin elizabeth]

It is, of course, advertised on this book, but that was the first I'd heard of it. Love the title, because I love toast :) so I'll have to check it out, too.

[Romandub]

Just finished Notes on a Scandal, which was our book club selection for this month. We were given a choice of seeing the movie or reading the book and since I was going on an overseas trip, I bought the book. After reading the book, I really wanted to see the movie just to see how they compare, but alas, the movie is gone from the theaters in Austin! And the movie won't be out on DVD until mid-April! I really wanted to see it before our book club meets next week. Oh well! The book was an easy, but dark, read. The cover said "laugh aloud funny". Huh? Not my kind of humor....

Last month we read The Boleyn Inheritance, a follow-up to The Other Boleyn Girl. Our entire club LOVED The Other Boleyn Girl, but The Boleyn Inheritance received mixed reviews. It just wasn't as spell-binding...

[CompassRose]

I'm reading Jane Smiley's Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Novel, which is kind of fun (a good way to get the speed-dump version of a lot of classics I "should" have read, too). She went through a writer's block, after 9/11, and decided she'd read instead, and think about how and why writers write, and what makes a novel a "novel", and all suchlike questions. Then she read a hundred classic, or more or less classic, novels, starting with proto-novels like Egil's Saga and moving on, and wrote capsule summaries of her impressions.

Interestingly enough, of the ones I have read, she likes and dislikes many of them for the same reasons (dismissing Conrad, for instance, because of his contempt for women).

I've been reading it over breakfast, rather slowly for me... and funnily enough, it has induced in me a great desire to read Proust's In Search of Lost Time (now there's a project!).

However, I will not, at least not right now. There was a fat envelope in the mail for me today full of review copies for the SF Site. Apparently, I am next going to be reading George R.R. Martin's The Armageddon Rag, Kim Stanley Robinson's Sixty Days and Counting, and Caro Soles' Drag Queen in the Court of Death, which I've never heard of -- but who could resist that? :D

[nanco]

Just finished Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult . Love this author and this is my least favorite book I read of hers. Just starting The Glass Castle for book club. Looks heavy!

[RebelsLGB]

Just finished Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult . Love this author and this is my least favorite book I read of hers. Just starting The Glass Castle for book club. Looks heavy!

Really your least favorite? That is my 2nd favorite, I loved Keeping Faith!


For those of you in a book club, I've always wanted to be in one. How did you find your bookclub? Or did you and some friends just decide to start one one day?

[nanco]

I should clarify that I have so far only read Jodi Picoult's Tenth Circle, Plain Truth, Keeping Faith and My Sister's Keeper. I am going to see her in person at our Barnes & Noble this weekend. My Sister's Keeper was my favorite and then Plain Truth. She is an amazing story teller.

My girlfriend has been in a Book Club for 4 years. She invited me in a year ago. I am the only one w/o kids and it is fun to see these women have a fun night away. We have social hour for the first half hour and then a serious talk for 1 hour. We rate the book at the end. We choose 3 books going forward. Some people will only do the library thing. I don't mind buying then and I pass them around.

Churches & Book Stores are good resources to find a club. Ask around, you are bound to find one. It is fun and I can't believe how much I am reading now.

[RebelsLGB]

I should clarify that I have so far only read Jodi Picoult's Tenth Circle, Plain Truth, Keeping Faith and My Sister's Keeper. I am going to see her in person at our Barnes & Noble this weekend. My Sister's Keeper was my favorite and then Plain Truth. She is an amazing story teller.

My girlfriend has been in a Book Club for 4 years. She invited me in a year ago. I am the only one w/o kids and it is fun to see these women have a fun night away. We have social hour for the first half hour and then a serious talk for 1 hour. We rate the book at the end. We choose 3 books going forward. Some people will only do the library thing. I don't mind buying then and I pass them around.

Churches & Book Stores are good resources to find a club. Ask around, you are bound to find one. It is fun and I can't believe how much I am reading now.

Oh have fun at Barnes & Noble, she does a great book signing. I went when she released the tenth circle (which I have yet to read), she was at my barnes & noble this past monday but I couldn't make it. I'm reading Plain Truth now, it will probably rank pretty high on my list, I am really enjoying it. The Pact is a really good one too, if you have a chance to pick it up. Also, bring all your books with you to the signing, she will sign anything you want her to, one girl had her sign hardback editions of every book she has ever written when I was there, and she didn't mind.

[tbb113]

I just finished And She Was by Cindy Dyson. It was an interesting story about a woman who follows her boyfriend to a small village in Alaska.

Here is the blurb from Amazon

Brandy "was thirty-one, the daughter of a bum and a slut, saddled with a liquor name." It's with these dubious credentials that our heroine finds herself—yet again—drifting after a man. This time she follows her latest boyfriend, Thad, a tenderhearted fisherman she keeps at emotional arm's length, to remote Dutch Harbor, Alaska, in the Aleutian Islands. Brandy finds a gig as a cocktail waitress at the local roughneck bar, the Elbow Room, where brawls are the evening's entertainment and fishermen drink with Aleut women, including Bessie, a coke *****, and Little Liz, a hostile drunk. Between drinking, drugging and deciphering mysterious graffiti on the bathroom walls, Brandy delves into the past of the native Aleuts, who were brutally decimated by the Russians in the 18th century. She stumbles upon their mythology and hidden powers—Bessie and Little Liz, for example, are more than what they seem. Dyson expertly interlaces Brandy's story, set in 1986, with the vibrant history of the Aleuts, hundreds of years earlier. While relishing the smart prose, bawdy humor and '80s references, readers will find themselves rooting for the hard-as-nails blonde as she wrestles her demons and begins to redirect her fate. Dyson delivers an original and provocative first novel.

[rosen]

Recently given up on 2 by Kate Atkinson cause they just weren't me. Sped read thru The Birth of Venus and Piece of Work. Venus was ok in that I enjoy historical fiction... but this didn't grab me the way I was hoping it would. Piece is a total brainless effort that would make a good beach read. The main thing I took away from it is the extreme effort once famous folks go to in order to re-vamp their careers. If anyone reads it, I'd be interested in who you pictured the main former famous (already can't remember her name!) character to be a parody of. I will forever forward be looking at "personalities" with much more amusement than usual.

Last night I started The Other Side of The Bridge by Mary Lawson (Crow Lake). This is starting out to be something that I think I will really enjoy. I'm ready for more substantial stuff!

[ccooney]

The author is Australian so that may be why. I have spoken to a few fantasy devotees in the US who had heard of them. You can definitely get them at barnesandnoble.com so they could order them in for you if they're not in-store.

I love these books! Alas, the most recent book in the series has been out for at least 5 years, but it's not available in the US. I tried to contact the publisher about it, but the contact info they give is wrong. You can order it from her Australian publisher, but with the shipping, the paperback version is something like $35. And I read somewhere that the US publisher is not likely to release any more books from her because the last 2 did not sell well here, even though she did a US tour when the last one came out.

The next book in the series, which she says will be the final one, has been a long time coming. I wonder if she's discouraged about US sales falling off.

[SDMomChef]

Decided to read something different than my usual this month. Finished Steve Berry's The Alexandria Link about the lost library from Alexandria. Nothing special.

Then I read my first Greg Iles book Dead Sleep. It was fun suspense book - kept me up late last night reading. I will probably read more from this author.

[ChristineVA]

Just finished Notes on a Scandal, which was our book club selection for this month. We were given a choice of seeing the movie or reading the book and since I was going on an overseas trip, I bought the book. After reading the book, I really wanted to see the movie just to see how they compare, but alas, the movie is gone from the theaters in Austin! And the movie won't be out on DVD until mid-April! I really wanted to see it before our book club meets next week. Oh well! The book was an easy, but dark, read. The cover said "laugh aloud funny". Huh? Not my kind of humor....

Last month we read The Boleyn Inheritance, a follow-up to The Other Boleyn Girl. Our entire club LOVED The Other Boleyn Girl, but The Boleyn Inheritance received mixed reviews. It just wasn't as spell-binding...

I just read both of these books. I agree; there was nothing funny about Notes on a Scandal. It was really kind of sad. I did enjoy the book though and will watch the movie on DVD.

I enjoyed the Boleyn Inheritance but not as much as the first Boleyn book. I liked seeing Jane Boleyn's POV in this lastest book as you didn't hear much from her in the first book--just that they all hated her.

I'm enjoying all of Phillippa Gregory's stuff. The Constant Princess was also good.

[ChristineVA]

Then I read my first Greg Iles book Dead Sleep. It was fun suspense book - kept me up late last night reading. I will probably read more from this author.

All his stuff is pretty good. Although I did not read "Footprints of the Gods" as it seemed different than his other books and not my "cup of tea."

[Beth H]

Tearing through Nigel Slater's The Kitchen Diaries. He wrote about all the meals he cooked for an entire year. I am realizing that the way he eats in England is soooo different from the way I eat here in the USA.

I love this - sometimes I just pick it up and flip to the day in his "diary" to see what he was cooking. It certainly makes me wish at times that I lived in London with a lovely little kitchen garden!

Let's see, what have I read recently? I read Anna Quindlen's most recent novel, Rise and Shine, which was an entertaining, light read. I also read a non-fiction book called Waiting for Daisy : a tale of two continents, three religions, five infertility doctors, an oscar, an atomic bomb, a romantic night, and one woman's quest to become a mother . It is a funny and sometimes sad look at one woman's struggle with her biological clock and wanting to have a baby.

[KristiB]

Something light and hilarious!

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0060789484.01._SS500_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

Before I start this :

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0374105235.01._SS500_SCLZZZZZZZ_V45148870_.jpg

I heard and interview with the author on NPR and it's a subject close to my heart. :(

[cminmd]

The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian

How is that? I just loved Midwives and was it Law of Similars? A friend of mine from High School was on his Oprah show because she is from VT and used a midwife. Such a different outlook on everything.

I saw the author of Long Way Gone on the Daily Show and John was blown away by the book and the young man. It is nice to know their is recovery after even the worst experiences.

[Minky]

Cminmd - I finished Double Bind in about three days and would recommend it. It was engrossing from the very beginning and I enjoyed it, probably even a little more than Midwives. Amazing ending:)


Sheila

[zackaboo]

I have read several books recently as we were on vacation last week. The one that really stood out though was Girls in Trouble by Caroline Leavitt. This is an excellent fiction book about an open adoption which basically just went wrong. I would highly recommend it.

Now I am into a murder mystery book by an author I have never read before. I am anxious to finish it as it hasn't completely enthralled me.

[SDMomChef]

Since reading my first Greg Isle book last week, I managed to read two books by him over the weekend (and I'm exhausted from many late nights of reading): Turning Angel and True Evil. Very enthralling suspense books.

I have Long Way Gone on my wishlist from Zooba. I read an excerpt from the NY Times, and I was amazed at what he has gone through in his life.

[tbb113]

I just flew through Piece of Work by Laura Zigman. Fun read about a woman who goes back to work as a publicist for stars trying to make a comeback.

I'm currently reading Fruit of the Lemon: A novel by Andrea Levy and am enjoying this also.

Guess I need very light, breezy stories to hold my interest right now

[rosen]

I just flew through Piece of Work by Laura Zigman. Fun read about a woman who goes back to work as a publicist for stars trying to make a comeback.

I also read this & posted a review earlier here. I'd be interested to know if you felt she had someone in particular in mind when writing the part of her former movie star client. You don't need to say who, b/c I don't want to influence anyone else... I'm just curious if you could "see" a particular person playing this part in a movie.


I finished The Other Side of The Bridge by Mary Lawson. Oh so good! If you liked Crow Lake, you will like this, too. Arthur, Ian and Jake were so well fleshed out. I ached for Arthur, hoped for Ian and wanted to smack Jake.

[Lrimerman]

Wow a lot of good sounding books out there. Seem you all read pretty deep books, not light chick lit.

I have been in a easy read mode, since I finally found time to read again (or should I say made time to read).

I read the first two in the teashop mystery series by Laura Childs (I have read some of her scrapbooking mysteries). These were nice easy reads and I enjoyed the characters. The first was Death by Darjeeling and the second was Gunpowder Green. They have already been requested on Paperbackswap.com which is where I got them from.

I also read Special Delivery by Danielle Steel, which was her typical chick lit, and not one of her best at that, but was something to read in a few hours.

I am currently reading Julie and Julia by Julie Powell. Interesting, but to some degree annoying so far. Not sure I like her writing style as it is basically her blog with more detail and it is almost too much info about her life if you know what I mean.

I am also starting and stopping with The Omnivore's Dilemma here and there. Good book, just trying to get my other pile down a bit before I really dive into it.

Lisa

[tbb113]

I also read this & posted a review earlier here. I'd be interested to know if you felt she had someone in particular in mind when writing the part of her former movie star client. You don't need to say who, b/c I don't want to influence anyone else... I'm just curious if you could "see" a particular person playing this part in a movie.


I don't think I had a specific person in mind...I think she might have just meant it as a composite, but somebody just came to mind to me now that you asked the question. I'll pm you who I could see playing the part....

[Rae]

I liked Water for Elephants too! I read a few months ago and it's slipped my mind as one to recommend. Thanks for reminding me of it!

I just finished Mary: a novel by Janis Cooke Newman. It's a "biographical fiction" account of Mary Todd Lincoln's life. I read biographies and I read fiction, but I wasn't sure the two should really mix. I really enjoyed this book though. Cooke Newman is a masterful storyteller - I'd read 200 pages in one sitting and be surprised when I came up for air! It has inspired me to put a biography of Mary Todd Lincoln on my "to read" list.

I'm currently reading Heat : an amateur's adventures as kitchen slave, line cook, pasta maker, and apprentice to a Dante-quoting butcher in Tuscany by Bill Buford.

[Miss_Liss]

I love these books! Alas, the most recent book in the series has been out for at least 5 years, but it's not available in the US. I tried to contact the publisher about it, but the contact info they give is wrong. You can order it from her Australian publisher, but with the shipping, the paperback version is something like $35. And I read somewhere that the US publisher is not likely to release any more books from her because the last 2 did not sell well here, even though she did a US tour when the last one came out.

The next book in the series, which she says will be the final one, has been a long time coming. I wonder if she's discouraged about US sales falling off.

I'm heading back to Oz for a vacation next week, so if you'd like me to keep an eye for it, let me know.

The final book has been a long time coming but the gap between the last one and the one before that was pretty huge too.

I found this info about the next books on Obernewtyn.net (a fan site). Penguin is the publisher:

Hi guys,

After all the rumors floating around regarding the Sending (or not the Sending), I went to Penguin this week and got the following email in response:

Brad @ Penguin wrote ...
Good morning Melinda - thanks for your enquiry.

I have just gotten off the phone to Isobelle's publisher and I am thrilled to confirm the following for you.

There will be two more books in this series.

"The Stone Key" to be published late 2007
"The Sending" to be published in 2008

We receive a lot of enquiries from all over the world regarding the release of the next title so it is obviously very much anticipated (especially by many of us here at Penguin!)

Enjoy!

Kind regards,
Brad Chappel
Manager Customer Service

[mgs]

Thanks to everyone who recommended "My Sisters Keeper" as a jumping back in book for me. I just finished it a few hours ago, I read it in about a week. It really touched me for some very very personal reasons, I cried a lot during the book and it was very therapeutic for me.

I was just reading some other posts and see a few of Jodi Picoult's other books are recommended. I think I will take a look

Thanks.

Meg

[Cindy_Lou]

Glad you liked My Sister's Keeper, Meg. I have read most of Jodi Picoult's books and can say that though I liked some better than others, they all kept me reading. I am almost finished with her latest, Nineteen Minutes, and it is difficult to put down. It's about a high school shooting and it is making me look at the kids at school with a different slant. I know we only see the surface of what is going on with these kids and what's under the surface is so much more.

[Tiger]

I just finished NINETEEN MINUTES and I think it is one of Jodi Picoult's best if not her best! I too couldn't put it down. I had to stop myself from picking it up at traffic lights to read a page. Last night I was sad that I didn't have something it to look forward to reading it before bed.

[SDMomChef]

I'm glad to hear that Nineteen was good - I was very disappointed with Tenth Circle.

I just finished reading The Rosetti Letter by Christi Phillips. It is a book with a story within a story about a modern historian that is writing about the spanish conspiracy to takeover Venice and the role of a courtesan, Alessandra Rosetti in preventing the overthrow of Venice. So, the story bounces between a few chapters in 1617 involving the mystery of Alessandra's role, and the modern quest by the historian to prove her dissertation. I absolutely loved her writing style - very intelligent and the modern chapters were very witty. I pretty much put the family on hold yesterday so I could finish this book.

[generic]

:) I'm glad to hear that Nineteen was good - I was very disappointed with Tenth Circle.

Yeah, I think Tenth Circle was my least favorite of all her books I've read so far. I have to say that Nineteen Minutes is in many ways probably her best yet. I can't help but think she deliberately wrote it in such a way as to open up discussion about school shootings and the questions they leave unanswered and who is "to blame." Her perspective gave me more compassion for the parents of kids who do the shooting.

Tiger, thanks for your enthusiastic raving about Jodi Picoult a few months ago! I know other people here had mentioned her books before, but somehow your enthusiasm got me interested, and I've been working my way through them. My Sister's Keeper and Perfect Match are both excellent and thought-provoking. She certainly takes on some controversial topics, and does so with skill and compassion. Thanks again! :)

[LakeMartinGal]

I'm reading The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant, and enjoying it... it's a little different than most of my readings, but enjoyable... It is, after all, the women in a woman's life who endure...

Here's the Amazon blurb...
The red tent is the place where women gathered during their cycles of birthing, menses, and even illness. Like the conversations and mysteries held within this feminine tent, this sweeping piece of fiction offers an insider's look at the daily life of a biblical sorority of mothers and wives and their one and only daughter, Dinah. Told in the voice of Jacob's daughter Dinah (who only received a glimpse of recognition in the Book of Genesis), we are privy to the fascinating feminine characters who bled within the red tent. In a confiding and poetic voice, Dinah whispers stories of her four mothers, Rachel, Leah, Zilpah, and Bilhah--all wives to Jacob, and each one embodying unique feminine traits. As she reveals these sensual and emotionally charged stories we learn of birthing miracles, slaves, artisans, household gods, and sisterhood secrets. Eventually Dinah delves into her own saga of betrayals, grief, and a call to midwifery.
"Like any sisters who live together and share a husband, my mother and aunties spun a sticky web of loyalties and grudges," Anita Diamant writes in the voice of Dinah. "They traded secrets like bracelets, and these were handed down to me the only surviving girl. They told me things I was too young to hear. They held my face between their hands and made me swear to remember." Remembering women's earthy stories and passionate history is indeed the theme of this magnificent book. In fact, it's been said that The Red Tent is what the Bible might have been had it been written by God's daughters, instead of her sons. --Gail Hudson

[SDMomChef]

I'm reading The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant, and enjoying it... it's a little different than most of my readings, but enjoyable... It is, after all, the women in a woman's life who endure...


I also really enjoyed that book. It was a book that I had bypassed numerous times in the past, but it was selected by my book club and it reminded me why I like my book club so much - it pushed me to read books that I would otherwise have read before.

[LakeMartinGal]

I also really enjoyed that book. It was a book that I had bypassed numerous times in the past, but it was selected by my book club and it reminded me why I like my book club so much - it pushed me to read books that I would otherwise have read before.
Exactly! That's why I've joined, too... otherwise, it would be Ann McCaffrey and Norah Roberts!:rolleyes: ;)

[Tiger]

:)



Tiger, thanks for your enthusiastic raving about Jodi Picoult a few months ago! I know other people here had mentioned her books before, but somehow your enthusiasm got me interested, and I've been working my way through them. My Sister's Keeper and Perfect Match are both excellent and thought-provoking. She certainly takes on some controversial topics, and does so with skill and compassion. Thanks again! :)

You're welcomed! :) I've turned quite a few of my friends on to her. She's one of the few author's whose books really stay with me. THE PACT is one of my favorites as well so don't forget that one.

[SDMomChef]

I just finished The Lying Tongue by Andrew Wilson. It is a suspense/mystery book that is similar to the Thirteenth Tale, but darker. It was interesting - until the last chapter, which left a lot of questions unanswered. :(

Not sure which book on my TBR pile I'm going to read next!

[rosen]

DH just finished The Other Side of The Bridge by Mary Lawson & he enjoyed it just as much as I did. Her Crow Lake is now in his TBR pile.

I picked up the new one by Mark Haddon called A Spot of Bother. Ummm... I made it thru the first 50 pages & decided that it wasn't doing anything for me. His Curious Incident was soooo outstanding that I think my expectations were too much for this one.

Next was a quick read of The Guy Not Taken, the newest one by Jennifer Weiner (Good in Bed). This is a delightful book of 11 short stories. Most of them have appeared in previous publications thru the years. I was LOL at most of them & enjoyed so many of the different characters. At the very end of the book she explains when or why each story was originaly written & where it appeared (except for the one that she can't remember or find that info for!) I was very pleased to see that one of the stories has been optioned for a feature film by Dream Works Studio. I hope they do the story justice! Keep this fact in mind as you read the book & see if you can guess which one it will be!

[generic]

You're welcomed! :) I've turned quite a few of my friends on to her. She's one of the few author's whose books really stay with me. THE PACT is one of my favorites as well so don't forget that one.
The Pact was actually the first of her books that I read, since it was the ONLY Picoult book on the shelf when I decided to try her books. Certainly an emotionally charged story! I also read Songs of the Humpback Whale, one of her very early books. Worth reading, but her craft was not as well-developed back then. It's got an element of that "lovestruck, heartbroken teen runs away" theme like in Tenth Circle.
I'm getting ready to start Vanishing Acts. Anyone know if it's any good?

[Tiger]

Vanishing Acts was one of my favorites but I know others who say it was a bit down on their Jodi list.

Here's the BB for Jodi. It's like having a book club online:

http://www.jodipicoult.com/