Reading with Style discussion
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Winter 13/14 RwS Completed Tasks - Winter 13/14
10.6 Beginnings and EndingsThe Impersonator by Mary Miley
+10 Task (first published work)
+5 Combo (10.5)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 195
10.8 BINGO!The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
+10 Task
+5 Combo (10.5)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 210
20.1 1964Herzog by Saul Bellow
+20 Task (first published 1964)
+5 Combo (10.9)
+5 Oldies (1964)
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 240
20.7 Group Reads ReduxThe Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
Review: This is a masterful story set in Dejima, the Dutch trading enclave in Japan, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It involves characters--Dutch, Japanese, British, Irish, Malay--conflicted, evil, righteous, dedicated, curious--facing cultural differences, temptations, matters of conscience, fear, loneliness. The story quietly brings little pieces of history into the story without being pedantic--the determination of the Japanese to keep out Christianity, hidden Christians in Japan who have been severed from teachings for centuries, the impact of the Napoleonic Wars in Asia, the hunger among educated Japanese for western learning, slavery as practiced by Europeans in Asia, etc. I will be happily researching these pieces of history for awhile.
And it is a rousing good story!
+20 Task
+10 Combo 20.5 (shelved 5 times as disturbing), 10.6 (I haven't gotten a ruling yet from my question on the board but I believe this is Mitchell's most recently published book)
+10 Review
Task total: 40
Grand Total:
20.1 1964American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis (born 1964)
Review
Whhhaaaatttt??????!!!! Gross, nauseating, scary, shallow, perplexing, confusing, opaque, disgusting, evil as well as disturbing. I am not really sure what was going on in this story. First it seemed like a tale of the shallow materialism of the 1980’s given with excruciating details of the make and cost of clothes, food and accessories. Then the creepy thoughts of the narrator slither in followed by his sickening descriptions of the torture that followed the obscene telling of perverted sex. Lastly, these gruesome scenes increase rapidly, along with death and torture of animals and street people, and finally an acquaintance. Who is this narrator? Is he Patrick Bateman as he introduces himself? Why is he called by so many different names by others in the story? Then there is the end in which it seems as if he dreamed up at least one of the murders and the victim is alive and well. I’ve been scratching my head on this book. I feel like I should read it again and see what I missed but I haven’t the stomach. I’d also be wary of ever meeting the author just because he can imagine and write about all the diverse and horrific details in the mind of this nut.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - review
+10 pts - Combo (20.5-# 1 on Disturbing List, 20.6- #222 On Best Books of 20th Century List)
Task Total - 40 pts
Grand Total - 365 pts
10.6 - Beginnings/Endings: Read an author's debut book or most recently published book as of December 1, 2013.The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt 12/21/13
This is Donna Tartt's most recently published book..
Review:
I just finished The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt and can say that I found it quite interesting. She demonstrates that she has a vivid imagination, producing an original work rather than a cookie cutter formula-driven mystery. Her character development is very good, and the story has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader motivated to finish this book, which is over 750 pages long. Set for the most part in New York City, with departures to Las Vegas and Europe, this book has a marvelous mix of characters, including the rich and poor, loveable and despicable, and those who are simply broken souls. For those who have not read the book, think young boy, art museum, tragedy changing his life, and let Donna Tartt take it from there.
Combo: 20.9 Daytona 500 - over 500 pages - this book has 771 in the most reviewed copy. I listened to the audiobook.
+5 combo (20.9)
+10 task
+10 review
+10 jumbo (771 pages)
Task total: 35 points
TtPR Total: 15
RwS Total: = 215
Grand Total: 230
20.4 – Travel:Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson
Well, this was quite a ride! I listened to the audio narrated by the incomparable Ron McLarty and so it was a pleasure as he is one of my favorite audio book readers. I graduated from high school in 1971, the year Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was published, but I never knew anyone so drug happy as these two main characters. I'm amazed they survived, since Thompson actually took this trip into craziness. My son has been suggesting this book for years and I am glad I read it. Gonzo journalism itself is an interesting form of reporting as the reporters become the main characters in the "story". Las Vegas was the perfect setting for allowing me to believe that all this could actually happen to two drug-crazed immature guys. I have been a few times and it exists as its own little world away from reality as I know it day to day. This book was disturbing, but also entertaining. I'm glad to have finally read it!
+20 Task: #35 Favorite Travel Books
+20 Combo: 10.10 Group Reads / 20.2 – Picaresque / 20.5 – Disturbing: (29 shelvings) / 20.6 – 20th C (#93)
+10 Review
+10 Not a Novel (gonzo journalism)
+. 5 Oldies
Task Total: 65
Grand Total: 510
20.10 - Between the WarsSnow Country by Yasunari Kawabata
+20 Task (Kawabata born 1899)
+ 5 Combo (10.9 received Nobel Prize for Literature 1968)
+10 Oldies (first published in 1935)
Task total=35
Grand total=190
TtPR - Seafarer15.5 (5th stop): Australia
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
+15 task (born and lives in Australia)
+10 Seafarer bonus
Task total: 25 points
Grand Total: 610
20.9 Daytona 500Phineas Redux by Anthony Trollope
+20 Task
+10 Oldies (pub 1874)
+10 Jumbo (MPE 768 pgs)
Task Total = 40
Grand Total = 135
10.3 - Edgar Allan Poe: In honor of Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday, read a book by a detective fiction author . The Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton 12/22/13
M.C. Beaton is on the linked list of detective fiction authors.
Review:
The Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton is a cute tale featuring Agatha Raisin, a newly retired publicity firm executive now living in the Cotswalds area of England. As the title implies, someone in the town dies after eating a quiche, and Mrs. Raisin is involved in ferreting out the truth behind that death. Was it in fact an accident or was it murder? While this is no Agatha Christie case (though there is reference to her in the book), the book had a good following from those liking cozy mysteries, with #24 in the series it started just published in October 2013. I am not a big follower of books in that genre, but it was a bit of fun for a Sunday morning read.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20 points
TtPR Total: 15
RwS Total: = 235
Grand Total: 250
20.4 Travel(# 59 on Favorite Travel Books list)
The God Complex by Chris Titus
Review:
I got this free from a Kindle promotion months ago and didn’t get to read it until now. This was quite the strange reading experience. It started out with me thinking on the lines of “Oh, I like this writing style … it flows fluidly and draws me in on the first page”. Then, a few pages later the perspective shifted and I began to get bored. Don’t get me wrong. I liked the integration of eastern medicine into the story and that it was deeper than just your normal mystery/thriller. But it did lack somehow in the execution. There were large passages quoted from a diary of a person who committed suicide, detailing his long-term illness years previously, his disappointment with western medicine and how he was eventually cured by eastern medicine. It was just a bit too much. After a while the mystery-part of the story took second row and the ending was taking on a bit of a unbelievable turn. Oh, and sometime in-between there was another shift in perspective, leaving the previous narrator far behind.
I did finish it and I don’t really regret having read the book. However, it didn’t quite live up to expectations. It is advertised as a thriller. Well, this it certainly is not. Even during passages where I felt like I should be “thrilled” I was only vaguely curious. It is a nice work to point out some of the flaws in modern medicine and how alternative methods might sometimes give better results, but that is just about it.
+ 20 Task
+ 10 Review
+ 10 Combo (10.5, 10.6: as far as I can tell this is the author's only book so far)
Task Total: 40
Grand Total: 215
20.1 - 1964(published in 1964)
Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe
Review:
Chinua Achebe delivers another intriguing insight into African culture. This last book in his African trilogy (chronologically it is the second book) details the conflict between the African tribes and the Europeans, who have just arrived to colonize the continent. Not only does this cause problems between the different nationalities, it also causes conflicts within the tribes, who are separated by the desire to uphold their traditions and to cope with the colonization. I enjoyed this opportunity to read this book.
As I “read” this as an audiobook, I have a few words on that as well: The last book in the series I quite enjoyed as audiobook. I felt it was easier to follow the story when somebody tells it who pronounces the names properly. This time around I had the impression that I should have read it instead. It was the same narrator, so that can’t be the reason. Perhaps I just wasn’t in the mood for the audiobook this time.
+ 20 Task
+ 10 Review
+ 5 Oldies
+ 5 Combo (20.3)
Task Total: 40
Grand Total: 255
20.7 Group Reads ReduxBossypants by Tina Fey
I listened to this as an audiobook and was super entertained. I really enjoyed listening to the author read her own work. I also liked that she adapted a few things to be more audiobook friendly. It also came with a PDF which I couldn't look at since my laptop doesn't have a disk drive. I am not familiar with 30 Rock or with SNL particularly but listening to her stories and experiences was still funny. She comes across as being really down to earth and pragmatic and is very honest in her storytelling. Her pieces are concise, quirky and definitely brought smiles to my face.
+20 Task
+5 Combo 10.6 author's first book
+10 review
+10 Not a Novel -non fiction memoire
Task Total: 45 points
Grand Total: 130 points
20.9 – Daytona 500: Elizabeth (Alaska)’s taskThe Diviners by Libba Bray, 730 Lexile
+20 Task: 578 pages
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 530
itpdx wrote: "TtPR-Seafarer15.2 Second stop Chile A,B,C
Tierra del Fuego by Francisco Coloane
+ 15 Task
Grand Total 75"
+10 Bonus (Books 2-10 for Seafarers)
20.2 PicaresqueThe White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
Review: I was not sure what to expect with this one. I had heard it was good when I bought it and it, but forgot about it until it fit a couple of reading challenges this season.
Blaram Halwai was born in the Darkness of India, but was not satisfied to become like the other males in his family. The reader knows he has "made it" from the start by having him tell his story as a batch of oral letters to the minister of China. For a week, Balram highlights the way he starts as an illiterate village boy to the owner of a successful startup in Bangalore. He does this by listening to those around him, observing what to do and not to do, and taking opportunities. He seems to criticize his fellow man along the way.
I enjoyed the story and the way it was told.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.4 Chinese New Year, 10.6 debut novel)
Task Total = 40 points
Grand Total = 185 points
Norma wrote: "10.1 Reading ResolutionsWinter's Child by Margaret Maron
+10 task
Task total: 10
Grand total: 20"
+5 Combo (10.5-GoodReads Authorized)
Norma wrote: "10.1 Reading ResolutionsHard Row by Margaret Maron
+10 task
Task total: 10
Grand total: 30"
+5 Combo (10.5 GoodReads Authorized)
10.1 Reading ResolutionsDeath's Half Acreby Margaret Maron
+10 task
+5 combo (10.5 GoodReads Authorized)
Task total: 15
Grand total: 55
10.2 ReindeerJames and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Lexile 870
Review:
Roald Dahl is just so clever. I listened to this audiobook in the car with my 4.5 year old and my nearly 2 year old. My 4 year old loved this -- it's the second Dahl we've listened to -- we did The BFG first. I am really enjoying revisiting these childhood classics and explaining them to my son is wonderful, even if we have to stop the CD frequently for questions (and questions, and questions). How in the world did Dahl ever think up this story? My gosh, seagulls pulling a giant peach? To Manhattan? How can you not love this book. I'd love to read a biography of the author and learn more about his writing process.
+10 Task (shelved 1347 times as fantasy)
+10 Review
+5 Oldies (1961)
Task total: 25
Grand total: 255
TtPR Seafarer15.3 Third stop New Zealand A,B
Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task total: 25
Grand Total: 150
10.6 goodreads author The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
+10 task
+5 combo 10.5 (this is her first novel)
Task total : 15 pts.
Grand total: 15 pts.
10.6 Beginnings/ EndingsThe Devil in Silver by Victor LaValle
+10 task
Task total: 10 pts.
Grand total: 25 pts.
20.3 Postcolonial AuthorMaps by Nuruddin Farah
+20 task
+5 oldie (1986)
Task Total 25
Grand Total 50 pts.
Jama wrote: "10.6 goodreads author The Age of Miracles
+5 combo 10.5 (this is her first novel)
Task total : 15 pts.
Grand total: 15 pts."
Jama, would you mind editing your posts to include a link to the author? We need that to help us with our scorekeeping. Thank you.
20.4 TravelFear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson
+20 task
+20 Combo (10.10, 20.2, 20.5, 20.6)
+10 not a novel
+5 oldie (1971)
Task Total: 55
Grand Total: 105
Jama wrote: "Sorry - this is my first time doing this. I will fix it :-)"
Not a problem - and we're happy to have you here!
20.10 Between the WarsAt the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft (born 1890)
+20 task
+5 oldie (1939)
Task total : 25
Grand Total: 130
10.8 BINGOAt the Sign of the Cat and Racket, the Ball at Sceaux, and the Purse by Honoré de Balzac
+10 Task (Sign of, Ball)
+10 Not-A-Novel (stories)
+15 Oldies (pub 1832)
Task Total = 35
Grand Total = 170
20.4 - Travel....read one of one top 125 favorite travel booksTravels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck 12/23/13
This book is #9 on the linked list of favorite travel books
Review:
Travels with Charley was a special read for me, since John Steinbeck is the only author I’ve known personally, and he began his journey in Sag Harbor, where I grew up. Dressed in khakis, a hunting jacket, and his signature British sailor’s cap, Steinbeck set out in a pick-up specially fitted with a camper in back to allow him to see America with as much anonymity as possible. His only companion on the journey was his Blue Standard French Poodle, Charley. What he found in his travels was a wide mixture of people, many good and others not. He told of a family of migrant workers from Canada who shared their dinner with him, while he supplied a good after dinner Cognac. There was a service station owner who enlisted the help of a family member to search for special tires when his blew out. On the flip side, he ran into an inept alcoholic veterinarian who was of no help when Charley became ill. The saddest tale was his eyewitness view of racism in 1960 New Orleans. I highly recommend this book.
Combos:
10.9 Steinbeck won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962, the same year this book was published.
20.10 Steinbeck was born in 1902.
+20 task
+10 combos (10.9 & 20.10)
+10 review
+10 Not-a-novel (non-fiction)
+5 Oldies (published in 1962)
Task total: 55 points
TtPR Total: 15
RwS Total: = 290
Grand Total: 305
TtPR Seafarer15.4 - 4th Stop - Nicaragua, A & B
Death of Somoza by Claribel Alegría
+15 Task
+10 Bonus
Task total: 25
Grand total: 280
10.8 BingoCatacombs: A Tale of the Barque Catsby Anne MCCaffrey and ElIzaBeth AnN Scarborough
Task +10
Style +10
Grand Total: 60
Review
I liked this book overall. This is the sequel is "Catalyst". It's about cats with special telepathic powers and their breed is called Barque Cats. They are expert hunters and they are bigger than your normal house cat. In this book the story continues, our main cat character Chester, is trapped on a planet called Mau where the cats live and they are taken care of by their human servants. They revere cats. Their cat leader is called Pshaw Ra. He doesn't spend much time there because he is out exploring space in his pyramid shaped kitty ship. Yes, they can fly ships. What is his goal? World domination, what else? I didn't care for this cat character. He thinks too highly of himself for a cat. I wanted to throw him out a window. The rest of the characters I liked both human and cat. If you like cats, you should read this series.
10.7 - Keep it ShortBy the North Gate by Joyce Carol Oates
+10 Task (won PEN/Malamud Award in 1996)
+10 Combo (10.3 Detective fiction author and 10.6 author's debut book)
+10 Not-A-Novel (short stories)
+ 5 Oldies (1963)
Task total=35
Grand total=225
10.9 – Nobel Prize: Theresa~OctoberLace’s taskThe Feast of the Goat by Mario Vargas Llosa
I enjoyed the structure of the story of Trujillo' era in the Dominican Republic unveiled in The Feast of the Goat. Llosa tells the story through the eyes of many different characters first transitioning among a few major players and then telling the details of the assassination and it's aftermath in shorter chunks through many viewpoints. This technique kept me on the edge of my seat, particularly as Llosa covered each plotters attempt to escape or endure punishment. In addition, the story opens with the mystery of Urania's estrangement from her father and all is not revealed until the final chapter. Some scenes are quite gruesome and difficult to read, but it is a gripping and excellently written historical fiction experience. The characters ring true and the history is accurate enough to make the fiction feel real.
+10 Task: Winner 2010
+ 5 Combo: 10.4 Chinese New Year (goat)
+10 Review
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 555
15.2 Seafarer Second Stop MexicoThe Law of Love by Laura Esquivel
This book has very peculiar style to it. It's a bit sci-fi, adventure and romance but written more like a plain work of fiction. I can't even think of an example of what it is similar to. It is exciting but not a riveting page turner because there is more depth to it. It was good though.
+15 task
+10 bonus
Task Total: 25 points
Grand Total: 155 points
10.3 - Edgar Allan PoeExpensive People by Joyce Carol Oates
+10 Task
+ 5 Oldies (1968)
Task total=15
Grand total=240
10.8 - BINGO! The letters for BINGO are found in the title and sub-title.The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee 12/24/13
The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
Review:
I just finished The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee, and I find myself in tears. This book was amazing. The author, an Oncologist himself, takes the reader through the history of cancer, beginning with the Persian Queen Atossa, who had her slave cut off her tumor-ridden breast. From there, he touches on the varied conceptions and treatments of cancer through the centuries. He informs us of the barriers to cancer research in terms of funding, politics, and social perception. Researching a potential drug or procedure is extremely expensive, not only to develop but also to set up reliable clinical trials. Progress has been made, but we have so far to go! The book is very well-written, beginning and ending with the author’s personal account of interactions with his own cancer patients. I highly recommend this to everyone.
Combo:
20.9 Daytona 500 - I used Whispersynce to alternate reading on my Kindle and listening to the audiobook. The most rated edition, The Emperor of All Maladies, has 592 pages.
+10 task
+5 combo (20.9)
+10 review
+10 Not-a-novel (non-fiction)
+5 Jumbo (592 pages)
Task total: 40 points
TtPR Total: 15
RwS Total: = 330
Grand Total: 345
Task 10.8 - BINGO! Cory (Bigler)'s task In honor of December's designation as BINGO month, read a book written by an author whose name contains the letters "b i n g o" (such as Barbara Kingsolver or Stella Gibbons).
I mog en Rob ertson
From the book cover: Imogen Robertson is a former TV, film, and radio director. She won the London Telegraph’s First Thousand Words of a Novel competition in 2007 with the opening of Instruments of Darkness, her first novel.
Instruments of Darkness (Crowther and Westerman #1) (2009) by Imogen Robertson (Hardcover, 374 pages)
Review:This is the first novel of a historical mystery series. The setting: West Sussex, England; the time: 1780. Our hero is an “anatomist” and a student of “natural history”. Our heroine is married with children; her husband is a ship's captain currently sailing the seas. Thrown together by circumstances, our hero and heroine investigate and solve a series of murders in the community. I found the protagonists personality and relationship believable, due to the backstory the author has invented for each of the investigators. The solution to the mysteries requires that the reader indulge in a “willing suspension of disbelief” (mild (view spoiler) I’ll be reading the second in the series *one of these days*. Recommended for fans of historical mysteries.
+10 Task
+05 Combination (#10.06 debut novel)
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 + 10 = 25
Grand Total: 175 + 25 = 200
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Jenifer, all of the letters in the word BINGO must be in either the title or the author's name, so Neil Gaiman does not qualify for 10.8. However, this book has been posted in the challenge before ..."Oh, I'm sorry. Just now seeing this. Can we repost it as 10.2, that way the combo will stay the same (goodreads author)? Would you like me to repost the whole thing?
Great! No, don't repost - Kate will get the above change in the next scorekeeping session.
Task 20.10 Between the Warsauthor born between 1866 - 1913
The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems by Pablo Neruda
Neruda was born in 1904
My Review:
A new collection of Neruda poems with some new translations. I loved the introduction to this collection. The editor describes how he came about with the idea of creating a book with new and updated translations of Neruda. This book was a work of love by the editor...the love of Neruda, the love of the Spanish language, the love of poetry.
My favorite books of Neruda are those with dual translations (Spanish on one side and English on the facing page). Although my Spanish is fairly limited, there is something magical about seeing Neruda's words in their original language.
I enjoyed the cross-section of poems that the editor selected and have only one complaint that I would have liked to see the poems were not separated in sections, perhaps by publishing dates/books they were originally published in/themes.
This would be a great addition to anyone's Neruda collection or a wonderful introduction to someone new to Neruda.
+20 task
+5 combo (w/ 10.9 won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971)
+10 not a novel
+10 review
Task Total = 45 pts
Grand Total = 80 pts
10.1 Reading ResolutionRead a book from my actual bookshelf
Buried in a Bog by Sheila Connolly
I bought this book earlier in the year because I liked the cover but never got around to reading it.
+10 task
Task Total = 10 pts
Grand Total = 90 pts
10.5 Goodreads AuthorizedBurial Rites by Hannah Kent
Hannah Kent is a Goodreads Author. This is her debut novel (combo with 10.6)
My Review:
This is Hannah Kent's writing debut and it is impressive. Burial Rites is a story of circumstance. It is the true story of Agnes Magnusdottir and is historical fiction at its best. Kent took what little was known of Agnes' story and with research and imagination was able to flesh out a compelling and thorough story.
The story is set in Iceland during the early 19th century. Kent portrays the setting as both beautiful and isolated. Family farms are spread apart from each other and must be fairly self-reliant, particularly during the long and lonely winter months. We follow Agnes as she is sent to spend her final days on the Jonsson farm.
The story is told in alternating third person and first person narrative. I found this to be a distraction as there was no obvious delineation of the switching narratives. Because of this, it was a bit of a struggle to get through the early pages of the book but the story did eventually take over allowing me to overlook the switching points of view and I ended up thoroughly being drawn into the Agnes' story.
+10 task
+10 review
+5 combo (w/ 10.6)
Task Total=25 pts
Grand Total = 115 pts
10.6 - Beginnings/EndingsThe Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison
+10 Task (published June 2013; Harrison died in April 2013)
Task total=10
Grand total=250
10.3The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
+10 task
+10 oldies
task total: 20
grand total: 270
10.4The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
+10 task
+5 jumbo
+10 combo (20.5, 20.9 - 672 pages)
task total: 25
grand total: 295
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
A Dance with Dragons (other topics)Tracks (other topics)
Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops (other topics)
The Frenzy (other topics)
The Counterfeiters (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
George R.R. Martin (other topics)Robyn Davidson (other topics)
Jen Campbell (other topics)
Francesca Lia Block (other topics)
André Gide (other topics)
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The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way by Amanda Ripley
+10 Task
+10 Not-a-Novel
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 180