The Book Vipers discussion

Just finished Galina Petrovna’s Three-Legged Dog Story. Set in 1990s Russia, it's a quirky story both humorous and poignant. Reminded me of The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared

If you like fantasy give this a whirl.. Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Finished Towelhead. The author just tried to tackle a little too much:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished this one. Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Just finished Watership Down. I never read it in childhood, so I wasn't traumatised by the violence at a young age and as a jaded adult I found it really tame with only a few instances of genuine peril.

That is one I have never read Kirsty.

Kirsty wrote: "Just finished Watership Down. I never read it in childhood, so I wasn't traumatised by the violence at a young age and as a jaded adult I found it really tame with only a few instances of genuine p..."

I read it numerous times as a teen / young adult (well over 30 years ago) and remember it as being dramatically well-constructed and the characters fully realised. I should re-read it.

At my interview for university i was asked which character from Watership Down i felt i had most in common with and remembering my reply of Fiver makes me cringe with embarrassment!

Not often that I would say that the movie was better than the book. But in the case of The War of the Worlds, I'd say this was true. And not the old version of the movie. I like the Tom Cruise version.

Finished A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson. It gets 5 stars from me, I loved it. Her characters are always great & her writing has real warmth, imo.

Jackie wrote: "Finished A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson. It gets 5 stars from me, I loved it. Her characters are always great & her writing has real warmth, imo."

I loved it too.

I finished The Book of Lost Things earlier this week. Great book and very glad I read it.

Sophie wrote: "I finished The Book of Lost Things earlier this week. Great book and very glad I read it."

That is on my TBR, so that is good to hear Sophie

Finished two non fiction books in the last couple of days the first was The Weather Experiment: The Pioneers who Sought to see the Future by Peter Moore. It is an interesting book on how the men of the 18th century sough to understand the weather. Worth reading if you are fascinated by the weather or enjoy history; my review is here

The second was For the Love of Radio 4 An Unofficial Companion, and interesting little book stuffed full of facts about the station that is now one of our national institutions. My review is here

I rarely read non-fiction as actual books (I tend just to look up information about anything that sparks my interest) so I don't know why I picked up The Magic of Reality: How We Know What's Really True at the library. It was in the adult section, so I didn't realise, until I'd finished, that it was intended for a 'younger audience'. As it was most of the science was very basic, so more suitable for a young / mid-teen age-group.
Richard Dawkins says his intent was to create a sense of awe at the science of the natural world and I think he did this best when he was writing about evolution. When he strayed off into physics he just didn't have the knowledge or ability to transmit his knowledge in such a convincing way. As a biologist I felt he should have stayed within his area of experitse.

The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine was good. Great job of taking a complex subject and making it entertaining and informative. However, of the Michael Lewis, books I've read so far, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game still remains my favorite.

Just finished Research. My review is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
It's the first book I've read by this author and I liked it enough to try another.

Every Michael Lewis book that I have read has been worth it. haven't read Money ball yet though

Murakami from the beginning Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Good review, Tracey! I liked it too and agree about the introspection. Lots of signposts to his later themes going on.

Finished Boundless: Tracing Land and Dream in a New Northwest Passage by Kathleen Winter yesterday. Really liked it, and was the closest that I have come to giving five stars to a book this year, but didn't quite make it. My review is here

Just finished Animal Farm (finally!) - I much preferred 1984

I read Animal Farm several hundred years ago at school. It had some good points, but I preferred 1984 too

Not long finished The Emerald Light in the Air: Stories by Donald Antrim for the book hunter challenge. The writing was good, but although all the stories were interesting there were only a couple that truly engaged me.

Colum McCann slayed me with this Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Finished The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century this morning; it is a book on language and writing that aims to enlighten us on the modern style. Not bad, but it is quite dense. My review is here

The art of racing the rain book 45 this year :) Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

If you haven't read The Shepherd's Life: A Tale of the Lake District yet, and have even the slightest interest in the British landscape then you should do. My review is here

Lost in Shangri-la: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II. Well told story of survival and rescue in the Pacific Theater in WWII. Not terribly suspenseful, but very well told.

It took me all last week to read Anna Karenina. I found it very meandering, typical of books originally written in installments. I liked parts very much - I felt Tolstoy had a great ear for conversation - but didn't care very much about Anna and Vronksky themselves. Mind you it seemed to me that most of the story was about other characters, who I did care about, so that was ok, but I can't understand why the book has this title.

Here are my thoughts on Eve Green Here is a review by Tracey: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Joy wrote: "It took me all last week to read Anna Karenina. I found it very meandering, typical of books originally written in installments. I liked parts very much - I felt Tolstoy had a great..."

I felt the same after reading Anna Karenina. I really disliked the character of Anna (I felt the same about cathy\wuthering heights), and didn't enjoy those parts about her and vronsky at all. She just struck me as a very spoiled selfish vain person, and i pitied her husband. The other characters were far more interesting to me. Although, it took me *weeks* to read!! (If not months) i've considered re-reading it, but skipping the anna\vronsky bits. :-) not sure i've time in my life otherwise :-)

Just finished the first 200-some pages of "The Lost Time Accidents." Not my cup of tea. I had to put it away.

I am amazed that you made it to page 200!

Paul wrote: "I am amazed that you made it to page 200!"

whats wrong with the book?

Finished Being a Beast: Adventures Across the Species Divide by Charles Foster a couple of days ago. It was an interesting book, as he describes his attempts to get into the mind of five different animals by living the way that they do. Worth reading I think. My review is here

Jason wrote: "Paul wrote: "I am amazed that you made it to page 200!"

whats wrong with the book?"

Jason: I just didn't really care about any of the characters and what was happening to them (and what might happen to them). First I read 125 pp and put it down for lack of interest. Then thought, well I paid money for this sucker, better give it some more time. But after 230(?) pages, I still didn't care. But that's probably just me. You know, when it comes to taste...

Finished The Moth Snowstorm: Nature and Joy by Michael McCarthy yesterday. Well worth reading, but also terrifying. My review is here

Finished Pavane. it's an alternate history novel that depicts the world controlled by a repressive Church:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I have read that Jon, it is not a bad book

I've just finished reading Drown and I really enjoyed it! What a strong voice.

Finished two books recently, both travel. The first was Last Tango in Buenos Aires: Sketches from the Argentine about David Marsh travelling around Argentina and Patagonia. My review is here

The second was a travelogue and memoir called The Fish Ladder: A Journey Upstream by Katharine Norbury. Not bad overall, she a a wonderful way with words. My review is here

Just finished a Kindle First free book. I love historical fiction, I love 14-18th century settings, and I love free books. But The Secret Healer was not worth the read. The writing struck me as amateurish. The dialogue was bland, the descriptions were almost absent. Maybe it lost something in the translation. Two thumbs down.

During the last week I've been 'comfort reading' - feeling unwell so rereading old and undemanding favourites. The Well of Lost Plots and Lords and Ladies cheered me up!

Hope you feel better soon Joy

Finished Terra yesterday. Great debut book by the comedian Mitch Benn. My review is here

Finished Wild by Nature: One Woman, One Trek, One Thousand Nights yesterday. Not a bad book on Sarah Marquis walking 10,000 miles, but it did have some flaws. My review is here

Just finished Under the Skin by Michel Faber. I've come late to this, having loved the film.

It shares the film's DNA, but is also very different. Loved the book too - five star review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I have only read The Book of Strange New Things by him Richard. Liked it, but the plot was a bit underwhelming.

Just finished Cold Blood: Adventures with Reptiles and Amphibians by Richard Kerridge. Great little book all about the reptiles that inhabit the UK. My review is here

Just finished Old Man's War by John Scalzi. I don't usually read sci-fi but it ticked two boxes for two challenges so why not? Really enjoyed the writing style, and it turns out it's a series.

Keep hearing good things about John Scalzi