The Next Best Book Club discussion

JANUARY

1. Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables No. 1), 336 pp., 1/2/09.
2. Chasing Windmills, 272 pp., 1/8/09.
3. We Are All Welcome Here A Novel, 208 pp., 1/13/09.
4. Watership Down, 512 pp., 1/19/09.
5. Sugar Daddy, 384 pp., 1/20/09.
6. Ghost at Work, 336 pp., 1/24/09.
7&8. 84, Charing Cross Road and The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, 232 pp., 1/26/09. *2 books in one
9. A Little Princess, 272 pp., 1/29/09.
10. I Am the Messenger, 357 pp., 1/31/09.

Pages read in January: 2,909


FEBRUARY

1. Outlander, 627 pp., 2/7/09.
2. Whiskey Sour, 270 pp., 2/14/09.
3. Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood. 2/18/09. 462 pages.
4. The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis, 189 pp., 2/20/09.
5. The Brass Verdict, Michael Connelly, 422 pp., 2/22/09.

Holy Lord people! What a book. If you like a good legal thriller, pick it up. BUT if you haven't read Lincoln Lawyer already (same author and main character), read that one first.

keeping track of pages...nice! I don't think I'm patient enough for that.

Well it makes you feel better about reading the longer books if you give yourself xtra credit for the pages....I've got plans for some biggies this year.

very true. Especially if you read more Outlander!

YUP

Plus I got plans to read some long Presidential biographies - trying to catch up on all that History I tuned out in school

oooo nice. I like biographies, but I don't read them much. I think the only one I have lined up right now is John Adams by David Mc...something.

That's one of the ones on my list too! Plus one on Benjamin Franklin even tho he wasn't a President he's still a Founding Father, American Lion - Andrew Jackson, the one about Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin...they're all pretty good-sized books

awesome! maybe once I see how you like those, I'll add a few of them...

I'll keep you informed!

Just adding my latest:

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood. 2/18/09. 462 pages.

Glad that one's done. The writing was really beautiful, but if it was a bus ride, I would've kept saying "Are we there yet?"

haha, I know exactly what you mean!

Now I have to go to your profile to see what you decided to read next...

I really, really like The Handmaid's Tale, so always wanted to read more of Atwood. I tried something a few years ago, forced my way through it, but hated it. I recently tried The Blind Assasin and just could not finish.
It's such a let down when you really fall in love with a book by a prolific author. You think "Lot's to read", but then you just don't get the rest of their books.

I have Handmaid's Tale and Blind Assasin. I started "Blind" but it wasn't what I was in the mood for, but I'm going to give it another go one of these days before I give up on it. (it has a very cute cover, if nothing else)

Yeah, I'm curious about the Handmaid's Tale too. I don't know. I think I'll wait awhile before I do another Atwood. She writes really beautifully, which I love, just needed more action.

Sometimes I think it depends on what you just read. I just finished and loved a mystery, 1st of a series, that I could not put down. It was sooo so good. Funny, suspenseful, creepy, everything you want in a good mystery. Then picked this one up, and it just didn't move along.

But it was apples and oranges, so I think if I'd have come off something else I may have loved it. Who knows?

I know what you mean about mood and what book your current book follows. It' just so hard to judge. I have wanted to read Oryx and Crake forever, but never seem to pick it up, because I am afraid to be disapointed. It's exactly the kind of book I like, but if it's as slow as the others, I'll be hard pressed to finish.
BTW I do not recommend the Blind Assasin!

I am reading CAT'S EYE right now. It's going slow for me too. But I like it, it's just not as quick a read as I usually like.

My boyfriend found The Handmaid's Tale in a box of abandoned books a couple summers ago and thought I might like it. I read it without any previous knowledge of what it was about, and had mixed feelings about it. I liked the premise, but some parts I just didn't get. I think I may read it again one day and see if I like it any better...

I do have Oryx and Crake here at home, and I'm looking forward to reading that one. I would have read it for the Winter Challenge if I had known that I could have used it for the "Mentally Ill" task. Apparently one of the characters has Aspergers.

But that's my own fault, I don't like to know much about a book before I read it. The more I know about a book, the more I tend to make assumptions about it. I end up not reading some really great books that way. *sigh*

In Blind, I enjoyed the "story within the story" so much better. That was my problem. I kept wanting to skip all the real story parts to get to that. I didn
t let myself, so I just quit. It wasn't that I hated it, I was just frustrated by that.

OK, one more for the list:

4. The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis, 189 pp., 2/20/09.

Laura you are just inhaling your books! You may pass 100 if you stay at this rate!

Yay Laura, you're moving right along!

I finished CATS EYE nad now am reading THE HANDMAIDENS TALE. I think Atwoods books are hits and misses with me. I either get them or don't. I got ORYX AND CRAKE, but CAT'S EYE frustrated me a little.

Thanks you guys! Oh, I feel so encouraged. I never ever thought I could read 100 books. I just read so many in January that i thought - what the heck???

Ann from S.C. wrote: "I finished CATS EYE nad now am reading THE HANDMAIDENS TALE. I think Atwoods books are hits and misses with me. I either get them or don't. I got ORYX AND CRAKE, but CAT'S EYE frustrated me a little."

The Handmaid's Tale is pretty straightforward, really. It's a dystopic novel, in the same vein as Brave New World and 1984. Although, IMHO, The Handmaid's Tale was far scarier. Might just be because I'm a woman and that society is a living nightmare for women.

Almost finished the newest Michael Connelly - The Brass Verdict.

If anyone has not read it, I highly recommend it!

5. The Brass Verdict, Michael Connelly, 422 pp., 2/22/09.

Holy Lord people! What a book. If you like a good legal thriller, pick it up. BUT if you haven't read Lincoln Lawyer already (same author and main character), read that one first.

6. The Stupidest Angel, Chris Moore, 2/24/09, 320 pp.

How was the Stupidest Angel?

I just finished reading Ghost at Work and noticed you had it on your list. What did you think of it? Are you familiar with any of the author's other titles? I'll admit, I was not impressed and I'm not sure if I should spend any more time on Hart.

So far this year Emilee, Stupidest Angel is the only book I really forced myself to finish. I didn't enjoy it. It's weird, because I had several truly laugh out loud moments with it, and how many books do you laugh out loud at? So I wanted to love it. But he's just too crude for me, I think that's what it is. And then he spent so much time talking about this guy w/a pot habit, and he was a police officer, and I just didn't like that. Please don't throw any rocks at me, people!

I like Carolyn Hart as a rule. I loved her Death on Demand series. But Ghost at Work was not impressive. I completely agree with you, Alycia. I liked it at the beginning, I thought it had real promise, but then it was like someone let all the air out of it.

7. Double Indemnity, James M. Cain, 2/25/09, 128 pp.
PAGES READ IN FEBRUARY: 2418.


MARCH

1. The Loop, Nicholas Evans, 3/1/09, 416 pp.
2. The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, 3/4/09, 96 pp.
3. Wesley the Owl The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl, 3/5/09, 240 pp.

Love Anne of Green Gables and The Little Prince and Outlander and Narnia, Laura, you have good taste in books! :-)

Thanks April!

more March books:

4. Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones, 3/8, 429pp.
5. Seedfolks, Paul Fleischmann, 3/12, 70 pp. A nice little upbeat read about a community garden in Cleveland's inner city.
6. Blink, Malcolm Gladwell, 3/15, 254 pp.

Laura wrote: "more March books:

4. Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones, 3/8, 429pp.
5. Seedfolks, Paul Fleischmann, 3/12, 70 pp. A nice little upbeat read about a community garden in Cleveland's inne..."

How did you like Howl's Moving Castle? (I just ordered off Amazon the other day and am curious)

Howl's was really good, April. A solid 4.5 stars. It was tad slow just at the start, but I wound up really enjoying it.

Recent updates for March:

7. Sarah's Key , 3/18, 293 pp. Highly recommended -WWII in France. Linda wasn't kidding when she said this one grabbed her from page one.

8. So Many Books, So Little Time A Year of Passionate Reading, 3/22, 242 pp. A great book about books, filled with honest reviews. A terrific way to add to Mt. TBR!

Sounds like you're reading a lot of great stuff and making good progress on your goal! I want to read more Atwood. At this point I tell myself that it's okay to buy books instead of just leaving them on to my to read list forever because that way I HAVE to read them if I own them...heehee...soo I need to buy more Atwood :)

I almost grabbed Sarah's Key on Friday. You're making me wish I had!

Laura wrote: "Recent updates for March:

7. Sarah's Key , 3/18, 293 pp. Highly recommended -WWII in Fra..."


I was thinking...not good to stick to what you want to read for years already but ahven't yet....