The Next Best Book Club discussion

I just started and am enjoying it so far, although it is sad.

Hiya Claire. Am only a little way in (page 35) but really liking it already.

Just finished The Goldfinch and now reading Wolf Hall and The Fault in Our Stars

I just started (10 pages in) The Swan Gondola, . First page and my thought was lovely, lovely book. I know I'm going to really enjoy this one.

Jackie wrote: "Going to start The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom.

I loved this one when I read it, hope you enjoy it.

Have just started The Next Always by Nora Roberts.

The Rosie Project

Funny and wonderful! A professor with Asperger's syndrome finds love.

Finished reading Blessed Is the Busybody by Emilie Richards – 3***
This is a cozy mystery featuring an unlikely amateur sleuth – the minister’s wife. I liked that Aggie and best friend Luce are intelligent women with a great deal of common sense. I had guessed part of the mystery pretty early; on the other hand, I was surprised by a significant turn of events. Final verdict – an entertaining, fast read with characters I like and enough twists to keep me interested. I’ll probably read more of this series.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella

Book Concierge wrote: "Finished reading Blessed Is the Busybody by Emilie Richards – 3***
This is a cozy mystery featuring an unlikely amateur sleuth – the minister’s wife. I..."

I started reading that one last year, but wasn't getting into it after a couple chapters (sometimes you're just not in the mood for a particular book or type of book), so reshelved it for another time. Glad you liked it! ☺

I gave up Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker since I found the historic part too heavy.

I'm now reading The Red Tent by Anita Diamant for my book club.

Currently reading the breathing series by Rebecca Donovan and I have to say that it is disturbing but pretty good so far. I am also reading Fell and ashes and then I will be going to the library today so I am hoping there are some new books there.

Claire wrote: "Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella"

Read that last year. Cute story.

I just finished and was very disappointed. I have started reading and if you are familiar with the Himalaya regions, mountain climbing, and snow boarding, you might be loving it. I'm not familiar or loving it, but it's okay.

Jasmine wrote: "The Rosie Project

Funny and wonderful! A professor with Asperger's syndrome finds love."

That's on my list for February. I'm glad you liked it.

I have heard so many reviews about Eleanor and Park that I just had to try it out. I read Fangirl and really loved it. So I got Eleanor and park And like it so far. I am also still reading the breathing series and towering which has also been on my to-read list forever

Karen M wrote: "Claire wrote: "Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella"

Read that last year. Cute story."

I'm enjoying it so far :) I'm a big fan of Sophie Kinsella.

Finished The Next Always by Nora Roberts last night, getting ready to start Up From the Grave by Jeaniene Frost.

I just finished Pam Painter's The Long and Short of It (review below). About to start her next collection Wouldn't You Like to Know while also reading Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese.

It is a rare case when authors don’t unwittingly insert elements of themselves, however tiny, into their work that are identifiable to the reader; indeed, I often find when reading that I am pulled out of a story to some degree—however involved and entertaining it may be—largely because I can sense the writer’s presence within it. I had the opposite experience with The Long and Short of It. It takes great skill and talent to finesse a story so that one entirely forgets who is writing it; Painter does this repeatedly, creating singular characters for each of the 25 stories within this collection. This is also true of her seemingly effortless style; sounds and visuals brighten dramatically with the insertion of one critical word.

Yet when I finished some (not all) of the stories, I had the feeling that it was too tidy, not surprising in any sense. Muted endings have their own great power, but I definitely yearned for more of the unexpected—as in “Island Tales,” my favorite—some rise of emotion that subtle endings can certainly offer.

Just finished a collection of short shorts called Wouldn't You Like to Know by Pam Painter (review below). Still working my way through Cutting for Stone, which I am loving!

I am always amazed with writers who craft short shorts. It is a task best left to those who know how to give every word its due, to make each carry several—not just one—significant implications, creating deeper layers and greater meaning in a very small space. It therefore also requires a certain skill and awareness to read these stories, to appreciate the their full scope.

As in Painter’s other collection, The Long and Short of It, many of the endings in Wouldn’t You Like to Know—though certainly profound—did not leave me reeling with any new insights. Still, the writing is astute and witty, which definitely kept me engaged.

I just finished and I absolutely loved it. Read it in basically one setting from afternoon to evening. Review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished The General of the Dead Army by Ismail Kadare

In the 1960s an Italian general goes to Albania to repatriate fallen soldiers from WWII. The task seems plain, but the enormity of war for both sides becomes apparent and the job becomes a messy and heavy burden to bear.

This is a novel like no other I have read. The subject matter is dark, but very interesting. The writing is outstanding and the emotion that comes off of the page is so real the reader experiences it for herself/himself.

5 stars. Absolutely one of the best books I have ever read.

Just listened to and read Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy. Totally different genre, both good. Trying to decide what to read next...

Finished Up From the Grave by Jeaniene Frost and am currently reading a short classic by Horatio Alger, Ragged Dick.

Finished reading The Last Child by John Hart (Audio book performed by Scott Sowers) – 3***
What a ride! I managed to guess the bad guy, but I was still surprised by several events. Hart took a crooked path with many side trips and more than a few dead ends. Unfortunately I felt he was repetitive – a good editor might have trimmed 100 pages without losing most of the plot twists. I loved Johnny. He was intelligent, tenacious, courageous and sensitive. Scott Sowers does a fine job reading the audio version.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

by the great Robert Harris

Going to start Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese.

Finished a re-read of Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding – 3***
I re-read this for a challenge. Not so entertaining on re-read, but I'm not changing my original rating. I guess my older self is less inclined to find Bridget's ineptitude endearing. Still find the blue soup scene hilarious, however.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Jackie wrote: "Going to start Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese."

I loved this one Jackie, hope you enjoy it.

Me too Paula lol it's quite long isn't it but I don't mind that as long as it's a good read!

Jackie wrote: "Me too Paula lol it's quite long isn't it but I don't mind that as long as it's a good read!

It's one of those that doesn't seem long when you get into it.

I've just started

Just started The Inventor and the Tycoon and purchased an old copy of Anatomy of a Murder.

I will be reading Premeditated. I hope it is good

Just finished Night Watch and I'm going to read Suite Française now.

I just finished Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (review below). About to start The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brian.


Generally a sucker for stories in which the characters struggle to love and understand each other—even in the broadest sense—I was often overcome while reading this book, sometimes tearful, other times smiling, and always hopeful. Yet these feelings were at odds with my critiques of the novel’s framework.

One mark of a good story is an authority of subject matter, in Verghese’s case a wide range of medical knowledge that is woven throughout Cutting for Stone. And yet another mark of quality storytelling is discerning a balance of voice, the sense that the authority comes from the characters and not from the author himself. My biggest major criticism of this book is that there were points (whole chapters) when I felt as though I was reading Verghese’s story and not Marian Stone’s because of the heavy-handed medical jargon.

The pacing of the story was interesting: the plot sometimes cliché, but nonetheless always rich. Perhaps it wasn’t necessary to spend the first hundred pages in suspense of a tragedy we already knew was coming from the first lines, yet that was precisely what kept me turning the page. And turning the page is how I grew more and more fascinated with the characters, with an unconventional family to which I felt linked. However, the character development was not as deep as I would have liked, particularly in regards to Genet, Shiva, and Thomas Stone, the three most important relationships Marion must work through. The story entertained because I trusted what Marion said about them, but I wished I had felt more of their struggles through greater interaction. They all cause him so much suffering, and yet their presence in the novel is relatively minimal. There was also a sense of convenience around the major plot points, not much of the unexpected. And the tidy ending, the pieces all coming together as one might anticipate, did not leave me with greater wisdom or insight. But it did allow me a sigh of relief. Perhaps because of the immense losses, the long journey, a reprieve was needed, and appreciated.

Examined critically, the story is not among my favorites; in general, however, I quite enjoyed it for keeping me so emotionally engaged that I was up well past my bedtime several nights in a row, which is admittedly what any good book should do.

Currently reading Confessions of an English Opium Eater by Thomas de Quincey

Aside from interest I am also reading it for research for my 4th book. :)

just finished The Fault in Our Stars and absolutely adored it...

which kind of makes it hard to continue reading The Goldfinch and The Second-Chance Dog: A Love Story because I'm still dealing with the Fault hangover...

Finished reading The King’s Speech by Mark Logue and Peter Conradi – Book on CD read by Simon Vance – 3.5***
This is a very fine biography of Lionel Logue, speech therapist to King George VI, written by Logue’s grandson. It covers far more than the movie of the same name. The audio book is narrated by Simon Vance who is simply perfect for this book. As an added bonus the audio begins with a broadcast of the famous speech delivered by King George VI announcing that Britain was now at war with Germany. Knowing the story already and hearing the King’s halting delivery gave it a much greater impact.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I'm reading Last Evenings On Earth by Roberto Bolaño and Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out by Mo Yan. I don't jnow what to

I am reading "the Alchemist " by PAULO COELHO. It is wounded full book , I did not expect so much out of a story . It is all truth and inspiring simple wisdom ewe need to be remind of once in a while.
I am really glad I got this book someone mentioned in this group. And I just got chance to have audio copy from the library, will recommend to everyone.

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Just finished The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brian.


Echoing the sentiments of other great writers (Camus, Faulkner), O’Brian freely admits that happening-truth (actual events) is not always as reliable as story-truth, the notion of feelings being of far greater importance as a means of communicating the essence of an experience. In this admission, he sweeps aside conventional story-telling and asks his readers—without a doubt largely desensitized to the horrors of war—to really listen, to achieve the near-impossible: live the Vietnam War as a soldier, understand it as one, and go home with all its baggage. It is a highly ambitious task that O’Brian deftly and humbly manages.

O’Brian also makes clear that without stories to recount the savagery and tragedies of war, we can be lost in the frayed parts of ourselves. It is the tale that keeps us whole, the tale that allows us an outlet for the tangle of emotions that threaten to unravel us. I was atrocity, O’Brian writes, I was jungle fire, jungle drums...I was the beast on their lips—I was Nam—the horror, the war. Killing, whether to protect yourself or to hinder the enemy, getting revenge, fear, hope, trekking your things through the jungle, pictures of sweethearts—among these there is no difference. They are all one and the same. This loss of distinction is the loss of our humanity. Stories redraw the lines, give us needed definition. In all that aftermath of violence they allow us to find ourselves, to save ourselves. And this message is made more powerful when applied not just to the severity of war. Using stories in this way is possible for us all; the truth of ourselves, our salvation, lies within our own history, in our own unique stories.

Now reading The Color Purple by Alice Walker!

Just finished Lexicon by Max Barry. Excellent, thought provoking books that straddles several genres. Really makes you think. Very enjoyable.

Christine wrote: "Keeran wrote: "I am reading a two books at the moment.

The first is The October List by Jeffery Deaver. I am a big Deaver fan thanks to his Lincoln Rhyme series and ..."

Thanks for the great comments about my book . Glad so many people enjoyed it.

I've noticed a lot of people are reading the Divergent series... I've looked at that book before and I know it's being made into a movie I just wonder if it's being hyped up or is it really good? Any thoughts?

Rachel Marie wrote: "I've noticed a lot of people are reading the Divergent series... I've looked at that book before and I know it's being made into a movie I just wonder if it's being hyped up or is it really good? A..."

I was okay with the first two books, but I hated the last book, so overall I was sorry that I wasted my time reading the series. It doesn't hold a candle to The Hunger Games, IMHO.

Yeah I figured that was probably the case. That it was OK and it's just blowing up bc it's like other books.

Finished reading An Echo Through the Snow by Andrea Thalasinos – 3***
The novel moves back and forth between the 1920s story of the Chukchi peoples of Siberia and the 1993 tale of Rosalie, a young woman with a troubled past who rescues a neglected Siberian husky. I was happy to learn about the Chukchi people of Siberia; I liked watching Rosalie slowly gain confidence and begin a journey to successful adulthood. But telling two stories meant that neither was fully realized. I wish she had written two different novels rather than try to combine both stories into one book.
Link to my full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Cloud Atlas still at the beginning - so boring - im waiting for it to get interesting.

Broken Harbour- yay! i love tana french. Im super excited about this book.

Beautiful Bastard- pretty much a porn read (like fifty shades of grey) - i had no idea this book was going to be like that when i picked it up.