You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

Once you have finished reading/discussing the June reads/theme, please report here - don't forget to include a couple of lines as to what you thought about the book!

I read In the Shadow of Blackbirds. It received the Bram Stoker Award in 2013. The book definitely earned all the awards its been given. Four stars.

Edited to add - I really enjoyed this book. It kept my attention with its gothic language and tense moments. I had no idea about how serious the Spanish influenza pandemic was in 1918.

Lanelle wrote: "I read In the Shadow of Blackbirds. It received the Bram Stoker Award in 2013. The book definitely earned all the awards its been given. Four stars."

Can you tell us why you liked it? I know you added your comments in the discussion thread, but we need a brief overview in the reporting thread too. Thanks!

Finished The Miniaturist

"There must be no more secrets, so I said." This story/world is full of secrets which complicate our lives as the characters of The Miniaturist so aptly demonstrate. Do those secrets help or hinder? Compelling read

Lanelle wrote: "I had no idea about how serious the Spanish influenza pandemic was in 1918..."

Here is a book you might be interested in reading. I am going to get to it someday!
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History.

I finished reading Holes - 1999 Medal Winner (Newbery). It was on my TBR and real life shelf since a long while. I finally picked it up from the library (I'm touchy about my copies and would prefer to read a library copy if given a chance. I know, weird!).

It was a such a quick and good read that I hated myself for not waiting until the toppler! It would have a made a good choice. Anyhow, a breezy read, well written. Innovative plot and loved how it went through. I just might pick up the next in the series. And watch the movie, that's on my list as well.

I finished The Miniaturist and discussed it in its thread. I have yet to write my review. This is a story that doesn't give you all the answers. The reader has to look in all the little nooks and crannies of the story to glean all the tiny details. It makes you think of all the possibilities. What really happened? Who was the miniaturist and what was this person's real agenda?

Well thanks to the toppler, I have managed to complete the group read for this month, although it was an alternate selection. I read The Road, which won a Pulitzer prize for Cormac McCarthy. I have never read any of his other nine books, and I think the only one I might consider after this would be No Country for Old Men. I have watched scenes from the movie with Tommye Lee Jones, but not the whole thing.
The Road definately took me outside of my normal comfor zone, but I stuck it out to the end. It was so stark. I did not enjoy it, but I will probably never forget it either. I doubt I will ever watch the movie.

I read Last Call, which won the Mythopeic Fantasy Award, World Fantasy Award, and the locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel.

Even though it's over 20 years old, it still presents a unique version of our world.

Almost forgot! I finished The Miniaturist last week and really enjoyed. Lots of secrets and intriguing from the beginning. I was still a bit confused at the end though.

I read my book so quickly for the Toppler and finished last night that I only now realised I should say something here as well, LOL! Anyway, I chose The Road, which I could use for a couple of other challenges as well. It won the Pulitzer price in 2007.

As I mentioned in the discussion thread, I found the text a bit hard to follow, as at least in my Finnish version a lot of commas were missing (I think it was a conscious decision by the author, not bad editing). I also didn't like the writing style too much. The story was very grim and sad, although there was some hope in the end. I have seen the film and remember it fairly well, so I also noticed some changes that had been made to the film compared to the book, but they didn't bother me too much. I ended up giving the book two stars, mainly since although I liked the story per se, the writing style just put me off.

A lot of The Road readers for some reason ;-)

For me it was a re-read - I didn't enjoy it as much as the first time around, probably because 1) I read it when I was first getting into PA novels and a lot of books have passed through the shelves since and 2) I kept comparing it to the movie.

I agree Camilla, the changes were not necessarily bad, I just kept picking them out!

The style is indeed a little more difficult to get into, and McCarthy gets a little carried away with the prose at times, but I'm glad I re-read it!

I started The Road a few months back but never got to finishing it. Maybe one of these days...

I read Darmer in the Sky by Heinlein. Hugo Award SF 3* book

Mariab wrote: "I read Darmer in the Sky by Heinlein. Hugo Award SF 3* book"

You meant Farmer in the Sky, right?
I reread this a couple of years ago. I was rereading Robert A. Heinlein's older books that I had read when I was in middle and high school. Never did finish my list.

Cherie wrote: You meant Farmer in the Sky, right?
I reread this a couple of years ago. I was rereading [author:Robert A...."

Yes, the typing in the app is not always the best thing!

Read The Martian which was last year's Goodreads Science Fiction Winner.

I was wary going into because I'd heard there was a lot of science / maths talk but it didn't matter, I loved it.

I read Redshirts by John Scalzi. It won a Hugo. Absolutely ridiculous book. It definitely had me laughing out loud a few times. The dialogue was hilarious at times, partly because it sounded so real. I was never a big Star Trek fan, but I watched enough to get the gist of this book. It is pretty much a roast of Star Trek and the way they killed off their extras (actors in Redshirts).

I read Olive Kitteridge which won the Pulitzer in 2009. I'm sorry to say I was a little disappointed in this book and only gave it 2 stars. I just felt there wasn't enough closure for some of the characters and I'm thinking short stories might not be for me.

Lynn wrote: "Read The Martian which was last year's Goodreads Science Fiction Winner.

I was wary going into because I'd heard there was a lot of science / maths talk but it didn't matter, I lo..."

I'm glad you got around to reading it Lynn and that you enjoyed it so much!

I read and loved The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Very haunting!

I read Still Alice for the Golden Globe category of the Toppler. I really liked the book. The point of view of the main character was very moving. While being the caregiver/family of someone with Alzheimers must be incredibly difficult, this story gives us a glimpse of the disease from someone dealing with her own diagnosis. Very powerful.

Alot of us read the same book for this challenge it helped with the toppler too

I read The Giver which won many awards one being the Buckeye Children's Book Award for Grade 6-8 (1997), this was also my biggest shock, that this is classified as a children's book, I think it is better suited in late high school and older in order to appreciated how (unique) this community really is but
It would be amazing in a ethics class, it speaks of euthanasia and more taboo subjects.
Also pretty much all of the decisions you make in your life are chosen for you for the better of the community ---wow. I could go on and on but I don't want to give a lot away but if you love dystopian this book is for you.
I really liked it I gave it 4 stars

The Narrow Road to the Deep North

Finished Narrow road to the deep north. " Love is two bodies with one soul." I didn't enjoy this book as much as others I've read. Some of that was the subject matter - not my interests. The author writing style did not appeal to me either. I was however drawn into the main characters emotions( or lack thereof). This is, I imagine, a fairly accurate rendition of the atrocities of war and being a POW.
I gave it 3 stars, rounded up from 2.5

I read several award winners this last week. The two I probably enjoyed most were old and classic plays by Tennessee Williams and Eugene O'Neil. Here are my comments from another thread. "One of the big surprises was how much fun I had reading old plays that won Pulitzers for drama in the forties and fifties. When I was in high school, I did some acting, and I remembered A Streetcar Named Desire and Long Day's Journey into Night as being brilliant. Going back and reading them now, and comparing the view from over forty years ago was interesting. They were as great as I remembered them being, but they read so differently now that I am in my sixties and have a different perspective." I also very much enjoyed The Sea, a Man Booker winner from 2005. Here is an excerpt from my review: "The prose is beautiful, the depictions of the characters bring those characters to life, and they are individuals who do not fit neatly into normal classifications. I enjoyed reading most of the book, but I was surprised how much came together at the end that I had not given much thought to until the picture came into focus. The ending was very moving."

I just finished The Miniaturist. It was an enjoyable read. I enjoyed the historical aspect, as I was not familiar with the Dutch history. The perspective was also interesting. My one complaint is that the book leaves much unanswered. Perhaps the journey was more important than the destination. In any case, it was a great introductory book for me as a member of this group!

Brett wrote: "I just finished The Miniaturist. It was an enjoyable read. I enjoyed the historical aspect, as I was not familiar with the Dutch history. The perspective was also interesting. My on..."

Make sure you discuss this book in the discussion thread. This is the thread where you report that you discussed it. We'd love to have your thoughts in the discussion thread. We talked about the ambiguity of the story.

I finished The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century. It has won a lot of awards; Winner of the 2007 National Book Critics Circle Award in criticism, the 2008 Guardian First Book Award, a 2010 Premio Napoli prize in foreign literature, the 2011 Grand Prix des Muses, and a Music Pen Club prize in Japan.

It's a nonfiction book about the history of the twentieth century in music. Despite it's title, it's really about classical music only.
I didn't like it, it was boring and very technical. Having someone describe an opera or a movement is entirely lost on me, I just want to listen. I don't have enough musicality to get the written intent.

I read The Giver during the toppler. I discussed it over in the buddy read thread. This book was nominated for and won LOADS of awards. The one I will mention is the Newbery Medal for Children's Fiction as that is the category I read it for in the toppler. I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would and rated it 4.5 stars. I had a few questions about the mechanics of the world which were left unanswered which is why it didn't get the 5 stars for me. While I don't like unanswered questions on occasions, I didn't mind the ambiguity of the ending - OK so I'm a complex person ;-)

Read Gone with the Wind a very lengthy but well worth the time novel. Probably almost a perfect novel. To take 50 hours and never leave the reader bored is quite an accompkishment. The enjoyment was enhanced by the narration of Linda Stephens

I enjoyed reading and discussing The Miniaturist. All the secrets kept me in suspense, and I like the historical aspect of the novel. It is an engaging book.

Read :

✔Ordinary Grace 22 Jun
Dilys Award Nominee (2014)
Edgar Award for Best Novel (2014)
Goodreads Choice Nominee (2013)
✔The Miniaturist 23 Jun
Specsavers National Book Award for Books Are My Bag New Writer of the Year (2014)
Waterstones Book of the Year (2014)
✔The Map of Time 20 Jun
Premio Ateneo de Sevilla (2008) (International Novel Prize)

I read two books for this challenge.

The Left Hand of Darkness

This book is old school scifi and an after last months space reads I decided to try this one. The funny thing is I learned about it in a movie "The Jane Austne Book Club" of all places. I went into it not knowing what to expect. Some of the ideas in the book about gender identity were interesting. It takes place on a planet called Winter where the people are androgenous most of the time except when they enter a cycle where they can choose their gender and basically mate. So one person can be a male during one cycle, but the female during another. It is told from the perspective of an envoy who is very male and struggles with this aspect of their culture. The native people consider him to be an abomination because he always stays male. Not necessarily a book I would read again, but was an interesting change.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond

This is actualy a children's book that I loved. The story is interesting and fast paced. It was a quick and easy read that I would definitely read again.

I read

Extreme Exposure | June 5
Daphne du Maurier Award (2005)

Welcome to Harmony | June 14
RITA Award by Romance Writers of America for Best Novel with Strong Romantic Elements (2011)

Ella Enchanted | June 15
Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (2000)
Grand Canyon Reader Award for Teen Book (1999)
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award (1999)
Iowa Teen Award (2000)

A Kiss to Remember | June 22
Heart & Scroll Madcap Award for Historical (2002)

During the toppler I also read The Giver which won the Newberry Award among others. I discussed it in the buddy reads thread. I only thought it was OK but as we discussed it I realized how much I liked the ending and gave it 4 stars. I'm almost finished the third book now which has taken away something I liked about the first but I like the way the series is heading.

I read The Narrow Road to the Deep North. I admired the writing, and the story was heart-breaking and will not be easy to forget. The story introduced me to a part of WW2 history of which I was previously unaware.

I read The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton. As I said in discussion, I think it was a little over hyped for me, but overall I really enjoyed it and stayed up super late finishing it.

I decided to read another Scalzi book and chose Lock In (John W. Campbell Memorial Award Nominee for Best Novel (2015), ALA Alex Award (2015), Locus SF Award Nominee for Best Novel (2015)). Another good book. I was a little confused in the beginning as to how the technology in the world worked, but you catch on pretty quickly and it's explained more as the story goes on. The confusion in the beginning put me off a bit though. I would rate it 3.5 stars. I didn't love it, but did enjoy it. I would recommend it to fans of science fiction.

I read The Narrow Road to the Deep North and discussed it in its thread. I have to say that although I can see it's a good book, I didn't enjoy it so much. The last part of the book looked to me as if the author has forced things to be related in some way. That was unnecessary IMO. I rated it 3 stars, since I like some things in it. I specially think the Burma Railway construction is a very interesting episode in the Pacific War history. A very rich moment to write about.

I just finished Indische Duinen by Adriaan van Dis. It got several (Dutch) awards:
Publieksprijs voor het Nederlandse Boek (1995), Gouden Uil (1995), AKO Literatuurprijs Nominee (1995), Libris literatuurprijs Nominee (1995) .
I can understand why it got these awards, because it is a very good book. Especially for people who like to read about the Netherlands' colonial past. But I had trouble getting through it. I'm glad I finished it! I gave it 3 stars (because it is good, but I didn't like it).

Kristie wrote: "I decided to read another Scalzi book and chose Lock In (John W. Campbell Memorial Award Nominee for Best Novel (2015), ALA Alex Award (2015), Locus SF Award Nominee for Best Novel ..."
I read it for the toppler. I didn't think it was particularly good, just so-so and quick to read.

Oh, my, it's the last day of June.. and I cannot keep postponing my 'report' any longer.

I think I've read a lot of award winning books this month, mostly thanks to the toppler... Let's see:
Before the toppler I read Where Tigers Are at Home which won the Prix Goncourt 2009. During the toppler I read
Missing Person by Patrick Modiano which won the Prix Goncourt (1978), French-American Foundation Translation Prize for Fiction (2005),
The Other Windby Ursula Le Guin won World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (2002);
Later I read Starship Troopers, winner of the Hugo Award for Best Novel (1960),
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (2005);
the described above Lock In by John Scalzi (ALA Alex Award);
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman (Hugo Award for Best Novel (1976), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1975), Locus Award for Best Novel (1976), Ditmar Award for Best International Long Fiction (1976);
The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick Hugo Award for Best Novel (1963),
and today I finished Tales from Earthsea (Locus Award for Best Collection (2002), Endeavour Award (2002).

Which was your favourite Taenka and why? What did you think of the Scalzi?

Oops. I forgot to post here, too. I hope it isn't too late. I read The Narrow Road to the Deep North, and posted on its thread. I really liked some parts of it, other parts of it I loathed. Too much talk about dysentery, poop, and protruding anuses to suit me. Overall I gave it a 3.5, rounded up to 4, because the good parts were very good.

For my award winner I picked Small Island by Andrea Levy and wrote about it on the awards thread. I really enjoyed it quite a bit. It one several awards, including the Orange Prize, the Whitbread Award, and the Commonwealth Writing Prize.

Not too late Diane. Glad you found one book which you enjoyed.

Kat, I think I forgot to report here that i read and discussed Gilead in the award winner thread. Oops! I'm missing my badge.

I also forgot to report here that I took part in The Miniaturist discussion. I read the book in the summer of 2014 and absolutely loved it, it was one of my favourite books of the year and I thought it was worthy of all the hype and praise that it has received. It was great to be able to revisit it after all these months and discuss it in depth.

I neglected to report that I read The Miniaturist last month and participated in the discussion. I thought it was a very cleverly written book that interestingly enough provided the reader with somewhat of the same experience as the characters in the book. By leaving loose ends, the author allowed the reader to a have very "individual" interpretation of the story. Thanks in advance!!!!

I read two award winners:

First, I read No Hope for Gomez! which won the Foreword Magazine Book of the Year Award. It was also a GoodReads nominee for humor, but didn't win. I did not really enjoy this book. It was somewhat humorous, but there were no laugh out loud moments. Quirky, that is a better word for what this book was, the characters were quirky. But not especially entertaining. I rated it two stars.

Second I read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. It was winner of the Whitbread Award (Novel & Book of the Year), the McKitterick Prize, The LA Times Book Prize, The Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book Overall. In addition to winning these awards, it was also long-listed for the Booker Prize.

While I did like Curious, I can't say I enjoyed it. A lot of negative emotions were brought forward by this book. Christopher is obviously on the autism spectrum. The way everyone, even his parents, treated him broke my heart. I can't imagine how stressful it would be to raise a child with autism, but there are times I wanted to scream at the parents for their poor behavior towards him. I alternated from feeling sympathy for the parents, to hatred, to sadness, to disgust, to sympathy again. Mostly I feel negatively towards Christopher's parents because of a couple very big things they did that I just can't get past. I rated it 4 Stars.

No problem, you are all now badged!

Woohoo! :)