Constant Reader discussion

Sherry wrote: "I'm way behind on this challenge. Damn you, Hilary Mantel..."

:) I think I should read the paper copy I have instead of the kindle...a while back I made it about 16% into A Place of Greater Safety, but couldn't seem to keep the names straight. I don't have the familiarity with them, as I did with Cromwell's bunch.

I've read a few more in my challenge with no numbers. heh.

A Month in the Country by J.L. Carr
Drive and Driven by James Sallis
The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters
Recoil by Jim Thompson
A Dish Taken Cold by Anne Perry
Slip & Fall by Nick Santora

Cateline wrote: "Sherry wrote: "I'm way behind on this challenge. Damn you, Hilary Mantel..."

:) I think I should read the paper copy I have instead of the kindle...a while back I made it about 16% into A Place o..."

I couldn't keep the names straight, either, Cateline, but I did finally finish the book. I still don't know who some of the players are, but the important ones finally engraved themselves into my brain. It was worth it. I still think it should have been shorter, but I'm so glad I finished it.

I just finished Cry, the Beloved Country. Boy, what a book.

I read it must be 50 years ago. Remember liking it a lot, but wasn't moved to read it again. Partly, at least, because I'm in the first reading slump in my life.

Ruth wrote: "I read it must be 50 years ago. Remember liking it a lot, but wasn't moved to read it again. Partly, at least, because I'm in the first reading slump in my life."

Are you in the mood for a capricious sea adventure, Ruth? I really liked The Plover. Of course if you don't like it, you may hate it. Maybe you can sample a few pages at Amazon.

Sue wrote: "Ruth wrote: "I read it must be 50 years ago. Remember liking it a lot, but wasn't moved to read it again. Partly, at least, because I'm in the first reading slump in my life."

Are you in the mood ..."

I've got that #2 on my getbacktoreading list. Thanks, Soe.

Ruth wrote: "Sue wrote: "Ruth wrote: "I read it must be 50 years ago. Remember liking it a lot, but wasn't moved to read it again. Partly, at least, because I'm in the first reading slump in my life."

Are you ..."

Good luck!

I've started another book for this challenge, although I'm not sure I own the book. Someone gave it to me, or lent it to me. But I'll count it: The Tin Roof Blowdown by James Lee Burke is next up. I'm sure it will be a quick read, at least I'm counting on it, because I have to start on The Interestings soon.

I really liked that one Sherry. One of my favorite of Burke's series.

I just started one of my own books, Willa Cather's The Song of the Lark.

Sue, I loved The Song of the Lark! I look forward to your review!

I finished The Tin Roof Blowdown tonight. One of the better Dave Robicheaux books. The next book for this challenge will be very short. I want to catch up.

Mary Ellen wrote: "Sue, I loved The Song of the Lark! I look forward to your review!"

I am enjoying it. Cather has become one of my favorites.

I just started and finished What now? by Ann Patchett. This is sort of cheating, since it's really a speech and not a whole book, but since it's in book form and since I own it, I'm counting it. She's wonderful, as usual, and now I can say that I've read everything that Patchett has published.

I recently finished The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout. It had been waiting for me on my Kindle for a long time.

It wasn't as good as Strout's Pulitzer Prize winning Olive Kitteridge, but I did enjoy it.

The novel focuses on the relationship between two brothers (and also a sister), whose personalities were deeply affected by the accidental death of their father when they were young children.

The family experiences a crisis when the sister's son becomes involved in a possible hate crime against the Somali immigrants in a small Maine town.

This is a novel where persons change and power in relationships shift. The story held my interest, although at the end I thought one of the less important characters - a divorced sister-in-law - voiced a lot more insight into the dynamics of the family relationships than seemed plausible.

Ann , I have not read the book, but sometimes a bystander can see the whole picture, so I could understand that. This book has been on my to be read, but I have not purchased it. I should run over to library and see if they have it. Then I can give a knowledgeable response. Ha!

Carol,
I think you would enjoy it. If you get around to reading it, let me know your reaction.

The former sister-in-law was not exactly an outsider. She remained her former husband's best friend, which is unusual. She was also almost a part of the family when she was in college. I don't know if that makes her a more reliable analyst of not. She said she saw similarities between herself and the older brother, which had never occurred to me. But then, that could have reflected my shortcomings rather than those of the author. :-)

I do like Elizabeth Strout as an author.

I just picked it up at the library, and will start it after I finish my other book. The library has an adult reading contest for the summer, so I enrolled.

Oh what fun! I remember all those reading contests in the summer when I was a kid.

I just finished Alafair Burke's Long Gone. It's a mystery that I had on my Kindle. She's the daughter of James Lee Burke and somewhere I read that she gave him the idea for writing, since she always wrote as a child. I really enjoyed Long Gone. It's a fast-paced kind of double mystery and she successfully tied things together in a logical, but not forced, way. I'm finally on track for this challenge, but I bet I'll get behind soon because I just started American Gods, and that's pretty long.

I started The Gift Of Stones last night. I haven't read Crace for a long time, and I am reminded why I like him so much. What elegant writing.

I didn't officially join the challenge but decided to do it a bit informally now that I've retired. So, I picked up The 158-Pound Marriage by John Irving which I bought at a second hand bookstore some time ago. I know Irving is one of those authors who is loved or hated. I like his novels, except The Son of the Circus, so this seemed like a good bet. So far, I'm having some trouble getting into it but I've only read the first chapter.

And, Sherry, I love Crace's writing too.

I've re-read quite a few books now for this and I must say the results are disappointing. The interest remains but for most the excitement of discovery has gone. I'm going to be more circumspect about fantasies of re-reading after this.

I finished The Gift of Stones today and thought it was excellent. Highly recommended. Next up is The Music Lesson by Katherine Weber. So far I'm really enjoying that one, too.

I'm on a roll. I finished The Music Lesson today, and now I'm on track. I quite enjoyed it.

Sherry wrote: "I'm on a roll. I finished The Music Lesson today, and now I'm on track. I quite enjoyed it."

I added this after seeing your rating. I will use the library when I get to it.

I've read another of my own books too, Daisy Miller. I found it just so-so. I liked Washington Square much more. I read another from my shelf today but I bought it earlier this year so It doesn't really meet the terms of this shelf.

I've started Enchantments by Linda Ferri. I have absolutely no idea why I bought this book. I think it might have been on some list or other years back. I like it okay, but it hasn't grabbed me yet.

Sue wrote: "Sherry wrote: "I'm on a roll. I finished The Music Lesson today, and now I'm on track. I quite enjoyed it."

I added this after seeing your rating. I will use the library when I get to it.

I've re..."

I read Daisy Miller in high school, maybe the same year we read The Great Gatsby and wondered if all characters named Daisy were doomed to be irritating and unlikable. (Have no idea how the book would hit me now.)

Mary Ellen wrote: "Sue wrote: "Sherry wrote: "I'm on a roll. I finished The Music Lesson today, and now I'm on track. I quite enjoyed it."

I added this after seeing your rating. I will use the library when I get to ..."

That's interesting. I've never read Gatsby and, though it's on my list, I don't have a strong urge to do so. I do like Daisy in Downton Abbey :)

Mary Ellen wrote: "I read Daisy Miller in high school, maybe the same year we read The Great Gatsby and wondered if all characters named Daisy were doomed to be irritating and unlikable. (Have no idea how the book would hit me now.) ..."

I remember how furious a former member got with me when I said I thought Daisy was a ninny.

I'm tackling a bunch of non-fiction books as research. I can read two very different fiction books at the same time, but non-fiction, on the same topic? One at a time. So I'm reading The Art of Innovation by Tom Kelley and Becoming a Life Change Artist by Mandell and Jordan.

I finished Enchantments today. It's a short memoir which I found interesting, but strangely uninvolving. I enjoyed the Paris scenes and the author's tales of girlhood, but everything was so short, there wasn't enough time to get any meat out of the story.

I finished The 158-Pound Marriage today so that's one book off my shelf. It's early John Irving and is a mass market paperback from a used book store. The cover fell off today while I was finishing it so I think it goes to the recycling center next. The book felt very much like something from the 60's and 70's when "wife swapping" was a popular idea in the media. But, it was still Irving which made it worthwhile reading for me.

I finished Jim the Boy by Tony Earley. What a wonderful little book. There was some talk of it here which was what made me want to read it. I especially wanted to read it after I found out it took place near where I live now. The era it describes coincides with my father's life. He remembers electricity coming to the farms and he had a mild case of polio when he was about Jim's age. Some beautiful writing within.

It was wonderful wasn't it Sherry.

Sherry wrote: "I finished Jim the Boy by Tony Earley. What a wonderful little book. There was some talk of it here which was what made me want to read it. I especially wanted to read it after I found..."

I've added it Sherry. It does sound good.

Happy to say that, after straying far from my good intentions in this challenge, I am actually reading TWO books off my own shelf. I will give the report when I actually finish one of them... which I am hoping to do in time to read Birdsong for our discussion. We'll see! ;)

When I read Birdsong it will fit this challenge, since I've owned it for years.

Just finished Ripley's Game by Patricia Highsmith. Ripley is a very interesting anti-hero. This is the third in her series and it was a fast read. A nice diversion, if you don't mind murder and mayhem.

Sherry wrote: "I finished Jim the Boy by Tony Earley. What a wonderful little book. There was some talk of it here which was what made me want to read it. I especially wanted to read it after I found..."

I remember liking it a lot.

I'm reading The Odyssey with a Goodreads group. I've been wanting to read this for several years and enjoying it a lot.

I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the Robert Fagels translation of The Odyssey, Sue. Is that the version you are reading?

Ann wrote: "I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the Robert Fagels translation of The Odyssey, Sue. Is that the version you are reading?"

Yes it is Ann. I thought the Knox introduction was really helpful too. This really doesn't seem like the same book I read in college.

Here's a link to our long-ago discussion of The Odyssey:

http://constantreader.com/discussions...

I honestly think the translation makes a big difference. With the Iliad, the first time through, I did not find it particularly thrilling. Later on, though, re-reading the Fagles, it was excellent. Of course I'd probably changed in the interim as well, but I think it's not just that.

I agree, Nicole. The translation can make all the difference, particularly for a poetic work like this.

Which translation should I read of the "Odyssey"? I read it long ago, but want to do a re read. On of my favorite movies is "O Brother Where Art Thou", the Coen brothers based it on the book.

Carol wrote: "Which translation should I read of the "Odyssey"? I read it long ago, but want to do a re read. On of my favorite movies is "O Brother Where Art Thou", the Coen brothers based it on the book."

The Fagles for sure, Carol.

Would an ink and paper be a better reading experience then the kindle?

Wow, what a great discussion that was! I'm so glad these are saved. And, we still had Edd and Pres around for that one. As much as I liked Fagles' translation of The Odyssey, I could never make it through The Iliad. There was more emphasis on the wars and less on the people maybe?

Carol, one nice thing about reading it on a Kindle would be the ability to use the dictionary and encyclopedia quickly.

Barbara, I actually ended up liking the Iliad better than the Odyssey, but that was a after a period where I had to read it every fall (teaching assistant for Greek Thought and Literature). It may just be that that kind of familiarity breeds love.

There was one section, where the Trojans (for whom I always rooted, uselessly) make it to the line of ships, and then they actually set fire to one of the ships....no matter how many times I read it there was still a feeling of suspense.