Reading with Style discussion
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SU 2016 Completed Tasks
10.9 It's Personal Alex by Sawyer Bennett
Review: Alex is the first in a series of books chronicling the love lives of a fictional hockey team in Raleigh, NC. It started out really interesting to me –gruff hockey player with a bad childhood meets a well-adjusted therapist. At the beginning, they got to know each other, were intrigued, talked, explored, and took it slow. I didn’t mind when they started having sex, because they were both interested adults, but from that point forward it seemed like they used sex to communicate at the expense of true understanding. It was still a cute romance, but the characterizations felt rushed in the second half of the book.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 295
10.3 HolidayThe Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
+10 Task
Lexile 750 – no styles
Task Total: 10
Grand Total: 305
20.4 Go for the Gold!Ink by Isabelle Rowan
Review: It’s been a while since I’d read a vampire novel that wasn’t part of a series I started years ago. This is in a lot of ways not all that much different than a lot of the “fated love” type of books that proliferated around the time of Twilight, but it is definitely better written and deeper than most. I found myself not loving that trope all that much, and it kind of prevented me from fully engaging in the story. I did like the characters and their backgrounds – I’d just have preferred that the central romance revolve around more than “we need to be together so I’ll become a vampire after thinking about it for a day.”
+20 Task (set entirely in Australia)
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.7)
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 340
Post 154 Rachelccameron wrote: "10.7 First LetterCart and Cwidder by Diana Wynne Jones
This is definitely a YA book but it is only listed as an e-book on BPL and has no lexile score. Hopefully it is..."
You can claim YA/Juv for the 10- and 20-point tasks, they just don't get style points.
15.4 - 5 Years Time Traveler1999
Marcel Proust by Edmund White
task +15
non-fiction +5
total = 20
grand total = 245
20.5 London CallingWhose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers
Snap with Don, this was also my fourth outing with Sayers, and perhaps I had a little bit better response, and I suspect that it is because I was listening to an audiobook ( I have great suspicions about enjoyment levels being different between the written and audio versions).
What strikes me most about this is that I think Sayers may not have been quite sure at the start of her writing of this series which character may be the lead, or perhaps she was going to make it a shared thing between Wimsey and Detective Parker. Parker's presence is a lot greater in the earlier books, from what I am noting, so it could have gone wither way, or he could have been an equal presence (he features a lot less in Murder Must Advertise and The Nine Tailors).
That said, I think the Wimsey character is definitely fleshed out a lot in this , we are given a lot of insight into who he is, but perhaps not so much with Parker. It certainly sets the scene for the development of Wimsey, his interests and past are given a lot of space, so we get to know him very well.
It's clever, but perhaps not as well done as later books, but still very enjoyable.
+20 task
+10 review
Task Total = 30
Grand Total = 185
20.9 PoliticsSisters in Law: How Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World by Linda Hirshman
Review:
Nearly five stars. This is a book with an agenda. This is not merely a biography of these two Supreme Court Justices, though it does cover quite a bit of biographical information. This is a book about feminism and the women's legal civil rights movement. The decisions and careers are described through the lens of the effect on women and women's rights. The author is unapologetic about her view that women should be treated as full, dignified, equal participants in setting their own destinies. That women should have control over their own reproductive decisions as a facet of that equality. That women should be treated as equals under the law, protected from harassment and discrimination in the workplace. These positions are the starting point here. They aren't open to debate in this book - Hirshman isn't here to discuss whether it wouldn't be better for society if women were protected in their roles as mothers. She's openly critical of decisions that veer from this path. Thus, this is a book that praises Ginsberg more than O'Connor as the bolder advocate of women's rights.
There's plenty of gossipy stories here - information from former clerks and from the private papers of various Justices. Sometimes the book veers into chattiness instead of a more academic examination of a body of law. Sometimes (but not often) the author oversimplifies the issues being decided in the cases described. But these are minor quibbles in what is really an impressive and generally academic book.
But mostly, there's a really interesting and compelling theme of how the life experiences of these women impacted their opinions. And how their opinions (and changes thereto) can be tracked through their decisions. And how different approaches to the politics of decisions complemented one another.
The narrator for the audiobook does a good job with the text, though not a particularly memorable one.
Highly recommended, especially to lawyers, and especially to women lawyers.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.7 - S)
Task total: 35
Grand total: 300
Karen Michele wrote: "Kate S wrote: "Karen Michele wrote: "Menagerie was a surprise to me, too. I'll post some more info tomorrow when I'm on the computer instead of my phone."Perfect, thanks, Karen!"
The main charac..."
This works perfectly, thank your for the additional information!
15.3 FYTS: Time Traveler1965-2015
The Computer Connection by Alfred Bester
+15 Task
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 195
Task 10.2 Picador/ViragoRead any book by one of the authors (including introduction writers) mentioned in this Picador blog, or any of these Virago authors.
A Virago Author
The Heart Goes Last (2015) by Margaret Atwood (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover, 308 pages)
+10 Task
+10 Combo (#20.7 “MA” = Massachusetts, #20.10)
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 110 + 20 = 130
10.7 First LetterCity of Secrets by Stewart O'Nan
Great Britain had been occupying Palestine after World War II, and issued quotas allowing only 75,000 Jews to immigrate to Palestine over five years. Brand is a Latvian illegal refugee who survived both German and Russian concentration camps because he had good mechanical skills. In the mid 1940s he shipped off to Jerusalem where the Haganah underground gave him a new identity, and an occupation of a taxi driver.
Brand had lost everything--his beloved wife, his family, and his identity. He feels survivor's guilt, and has painful memories of the atrocities he has witnessed. He's falling in love with another survivor who is also a member of the resistance--a former actress who now works as a prostitute.
The Haganah carries out attacks on British property to protest the British blockade of Jewish refugee ships and British immigration restrictions. But things become more violent and lives are lost when the Haganah joins with the Irgun. Brand is carrying out missions planned by their leaders, transporting explosives and other resistance workers in his taxi. He's a good man who is becoming increasingly uncomfortable as the violence escalates. The underground fight, which started with good intentions, now possesses moral ambiguities. As Brand witnesses the carnage from a terribly violent attack, he wonders who he is becoming and what kind of a man he wants to be.
Brand is a wonderful conflicted character who has experienced too much tragedy in his life. This thriller is based partly on actual historical events, mainly in 1946 Palestine. The author showed the complexity of the political situation while creating an exciting work of fiction.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 225
20,5 London CallingA Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark #60 on list
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.10, 20.7 - MS - Mississippi)
Task total - 30
Grand Total - 30 pts
10.3 Holiday - Friendship DayAngry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik #16 on first list
+10 - Task
+ 5 - Jumbo (512 pgs)
Task total - 15
Grand Total - 45 pts
20.3 Winners!The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
+20 Task (David Gemmell Legend Award for Best Fantasy Novel 2012)
+20 Jumbo (994 pages)
Post Total: 40
Season Total: 235
20.4 Go for the Gold!The Dead of the Night by John Marsden
Low Lexile - no styles
+20 task
Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 205
10.7 First Letter Somebody Killed His Editor by Josh Lanyon
Review: Josh Lanyon has become comfort reading for me, and this one was actually available at the library! The first in the Holmes and Moriarity series is basically a locked room mystery with lovers reunited, and it’s fun if a little predictable. Christopher Holmes is a writer with just the right amount of cranky, and J.X. Moriarity is an ex-cop with just the right amount of swagger for me. I look forward to reading the second book, since this had a lot of plot involving Kit’s being accused of murder and getting locked in his cabin. The side characters were a trip, and so was Kit’s makeover, too.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 360
20.3 Winners!Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai (Lexile 800)
Review: I wasn’t paying attention when I put this book on my to-read list, since when I started reading and saw it was a novel in verse I was totally surprised. I might not have picked it up had I realized that – poetry and I have a complicated relationship – but I really enjoyed it. I think it’s possible I missed some of the beauty, since I have never been great at slowing down and listening to the words in my head, but the story Lai tells is beautiful and tragic and just a little hopeful. I know it’s partially autobiographical, but I still kind of wanted a sequel, just to see the connective tissue between the child described in the book and the adult writing today.
+20 Task (Newberry Honor 2012)
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.7)
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 395
10.7 First Letter Shades of Gray by Brooke McKinley
Review: Shades of Gray didn’t really stick with me all that much, although I did enjoy the read. It’s the story of an FBI agent who falls in love with the key witness in the high-profile case he’s working on. The witness, Danny, is a criminal, basically middle management in the drug trade. Agent Miller Sutton has been denying he’s gay for years, and really shouldn’t fall for his charge anyway. The situation is kind of unbelievable, but McKinley wrote it well, and the end was well earned. I wish it were a series, but the author hasn’t even written any other books, which is a shame.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 415
10.9 It's PersonalScarlet by Marissa Meyer
810 Lexile
This is book 2 in Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles series. I was hesitant to pick up the series at first, because I don't generally like fairy tale retellings, and this was clearly that (the first book is called Cinder). However, the series came highly recommended to me so I gave it a shot - and am glad I did. I would describe book 1 as a post-apocalyptic Cinderella with cyborgs, and Scarlet is basically a post-apocalyptic Red Riding Hood with cyborgs and space ships! Meyer does a good job of using the fairy tale elements without feeling beholden to make everything fit, which might make some readers annoyed but made me happy.
+10 task (Scarlet is the main character's name)
+5 combo (10.7)
+10 review
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 85
10.7 First LetterLast Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan
Manny De Leon is spending a double shift working his last day as the manager of a Red Lobster. The bosses at the corporate headquarters have decided to close this older restaurant. Lacking the holiday spirit, the bosses picked December 20th as the last day of operation.
The book follows Manny, hour by hour, in the restaurant while a blizzard dumps snow on the parking lot outside. Some of his crew show up in spite of the weather because they have a sense of loyalty toward Manny. Manny is kind and decent to his employees, and the restaurant is a bit of a home for him. He works hard, pitches in to keep everything running smoothly, and keeps the crew's spirits up. He's one of many unrecognized workers who shows up, does their job well, has pride in their work, but never gets any glory. As the hours tick down to closing time, we also find out the complications in Manny's personal life. There is also resentment by some of the crew members who will not be hired by another restaurant in the chain.
"Last Night at the Lobster" is a low key novella about the working class. The book will make the reader appreciate the people who come to work with a smile on their face day after day. Even though it's a quiet book, it kept my interest since I cared about the characters and the writing was excellent.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 245
20.8 KotickThe Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle
I am feeling myself get on a bit of a Sherlock Holmes kick, since last season I read what I found out later was technically book 3 of his stories. I remember when I was growing up being fascinated by my parents' complete Sherlock Holmes -- a huge brown book with a pipe smoking detective on the spine. Now that I'm finally diving in, I'm enjoying the stories just as much. I think I prefer the short stories, though -- this novel was interesting but almost too drawn out, despite being relatively short. It tells the story of Holmes and Watson tracking down an ages-old plot formed in colonial India, involving stolen pearls and treasure and some pretty awful weaponry. A quick, enjoyable read, but I may stick to the stories for a while!
+20 task (#29 on first list)
+5 combo (20.5 - #70 on list)
+10 review
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 120
10.2 Picador/ViragoWish You Were Here by Graham Swift
This was an impulse pick-up at the library - the audiobook was practically leaping off the shelf for me to borrow. Unfortunately, it also stopped working halfway through Chapter 26, so I had to finish it off in the traditional format.
I have found Swift to be very hit and miss. My earliest exposures to him are among my favourite books, but then there are those of his works that really don't grab me at all.
I preferred listening to the audiobook in this case, and it helped set up a voice for me, which made the last few chapters easier to read. I think if i had read this one through all the way I wouldn't have liked it as much as I did (and it was only a 3 star read for me). Perhaps there was too much misery for me (although Swift is never particularly cheerful), or maybe it was just that the characters were very stereotypical and without too much depth, so I didn't really care all that much about how they would respond to the death of Jack's younger brother, Tom.
+10 task
+10 review
+5 combo (20.10
Task Total = 25
Grand Total=230
10.8 Come to the Fair (Karen Michele's Task)Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman
+10 Task / low lexile
Grand Total: 230
10.10 Group ReadsLife: A User's Manual by Georges Perec
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.7 First Letter (Tien's Task)
+10 Lost in Translation
+ 5 Jumbo: 581
Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 260
20.5 London CallingA Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark by Muriel Spark
+20 Task
+10 Combo: 10.10 Group Reads / 20.7 U.S. (MS)
Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 290
20.7 U.S.The Bells of Times Square by Amy Lane
Review: I’m not sure this was really the best book for me to read at this time in my life, but I made it through. From the beginning, you know it’s not going to have a happy ending – the entire story is about a lost love. What I didn’t really realize is that the vast majority of the story is set in the past – ostensibly, the book is about two relationships (the grandfather’s in the past and his grandson’s in the present), but really it’s pretty much only about the past. Gay romances set in the past are difficult for me even when they’re not actually doomed, since the obstacles to a happy ending were just so insurmountable. Regardless, it’s actually a well-written and touching story, with a decent amount of hope in spite of the grim reality of the tale.
+20 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 445
10.7 First Letter Once Upon a Marquess by Courtney Milan
Review: I love everything Courtney Milan writes – it doesn’t matter if it’s her best or worst book, I’m going to sink into it and want to reread it. Prior to this one, one of my favorites was actually a less popular novella in which the hero had completely wronged the heroine in the past, and this novel has a similar theme. My biggest complaints about the execution of Once Upon a Marquess is that the ending didn’t really live up to the buildup, and I saw the twist coming a mile away. Like all of Milan’s books, however, she set up the side characters so well that I’m totally looking forward to all of the planned sequels.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 465
20.1 South America Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
+20 Task (born in Brazil)
Lexile 580 – no styles
Task Total: 20
Grand Total: 485
20.2 The Gods!The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
+20 Task (Russia)
+5 Combo (20.3 Bailey's Prize 2012)
Points this post: 25
RwS total: 105
FYTS total: 15
Season Total: 120
20.8 Kotick (Amanda's Task)The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
Review
With this, I’m giving up on Salman Rushdie! I’ve also read Midnight’s Children which I found a bit more palatable though just as crazy. I don’t usually mind Magical Realism in my novels which could be beautiful (magical!) but I think it’s the structure of the novel which really confounded me. The beginning, both protagonists falling out of the sky, I found utterly captivating but around midway, with the transfiguration, he’s lost me. Not of the transfiguration itself but of what’s happened during that period. In the end, I wonder if I’m missing a lot of his points because of I lack knowledge of the culture though the one thing I got was that one can never truly be happy unless one accepts oneself (including one’s past/culture/descent) and therefore, loves oneself. Or maybe that was his one and only point?
+20 Task
+10 Combo (20.3 - Whitbread Award for Novel (1988); 20.10)
+5 Jumbo (561 pages)
+10 Review
Task Total: 45
Grand Total: 165
Opposite ListsMajor Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
+10 Task (Light but not (too) dumb)
+5 Combo (10.7)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 250
15.4 5 yrs through summer -time traveler (2015 - 19702000
Independence Day: A Broken Heart's Voyage Around the USA by Jim Keeble
15 task
5 bonus for non fiction
___
20
Running total 195
20.9 PoliticalSpecial Interests by Emma Barry
Review: Special Interests is maybe half romance novel, half political process novel. It definitely gets into the weeds on how Washington, DC works, so if that’s not interesting I’d definitely recommend against reading the book. The romance was in some ways very well developed and in other ways not at all, and the same goes for the characters. I think I have a hard time with contemporary romances in general – it’s maybe harder to suspend disbelief and buy into falling in love within months. Granted, it’s been a long time since I’ve been on the dating scene, so maybe it could happen – who knows.
+20 Task (politics on main page)
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.7)
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 520
20.3 Winners! The Old Man Who Read Love Stories by Luis Sepúlveda
won 1988 Premio Tigre Juan
The setting of this short novel is the Ecuadorian Amazon and my reading it just happened to coincide with my project to digitize my old 1990 photos of my travels there and other parts of Ecuador. The novel was first published in 1989...just a year before my visit so I could imagine that things, well at least the environment) were not much different than I had experienced. The story centers on a man who moved with his wife to the jungle when few others were there. When his wife dies he becomes part of the Shuar Indian community... but becomes a reluctant outcast after breaking a taboo. He begins to live an isolated life...but civilization quickly encroaches. One positive is that a dentist who comes periodically to the jungle to treat folks also brings him some romance novels. On the negative side, an ocelot has become a man-killer after an American kills its cubs and injures its mate. The old man eventually leads the effort to find the ocelot. An important parable about how man is destroying nature wittingly and unwittingly. Unfortunately, I think things have gotten much worse in the Ecuadorian Amazon since these days with American oil companies wiping out Indian tribes from their homelands with the assistance of the government in Quito.
task +20
combo +5 (20.1 - born in Chile)
LiT +10
review +10
total= 45
grand total = 290
20.10 Meta fictionMemories of My Melancholy Whores by Gabriel García Márquez
I thought I would ease myself into my second attempt with Marquez with this novella. Something not too cumbersome, that may bring up my fears of One Hundred Years of Solitude and have me running in the other direction.
This was ok, nothing special, but not fear-inducing. Pleasant prose, although the story of a 90 year old man falling in love with a 14 year old girl, as well as recounting his history of all the prostitutes he has slept with over the years is perhaps not the most comfortable of tales .
For all that, the narrator ( I can't even recall if he is named) is an interesting and relatively likable character, as is the madam of the brothel . You do not really get to know the girl as such, but this is no real hindrance to the story.
+20 task
+10 LiT
+10 review
+10 combos (10.7, 20.1)
Task Total = 50
Grand Total = 280
FYTS 15.3 Time TravelerEnlightened Power: How Women Are Transforming the Practice of Leadership by Lin Coughlin
(2005)
+15 Task
+5 non-fiction
+5 576 pages
Task total: 25
Grand total: 310
10.3 HolidayThe Color Purple by Alice Walker
#11 on the first friendship list
This book was excellent and awesome.
It was painful in so many ways, starting with a potentially triggering passage of abuse and rape told in uneducated English. But life went on and the protagonist grew and grew in her relationships with those around her. The ending is happy in many ways, but there have also been many compromises to get to that point.
The title is mentioned once, buried deep in the book, in a passage about God being in nature, or being nature itself. And when you come across it, it rings a bit like a bell.
I can understand why it's been banned frequently. It's not a comfortable read and I kind of cringe when I think of trying to predict an age I'd be okay having my daughter read it. But the language, for all it's not standard English, is clear and easy to digest. And the story is enveloping and well-done.
+10 task
Task total: 10
Grand total: 320
10.7 The Mermaid's Mirrorby L.K. MadiganM in Mermaid's and M from Olympics
Lexile score is 680, no style points
Task +10
Book Total: 10
Grand Total:
15.2 FYTS: Time TravelerPlanned for: 2014 -1964 (1979 skipped)
Australians: Origins to Eureka (Australians #1) by Thomas Keneally
Published 2009
+15 Task
+5 Bonus (Non-Fiction)
+5 Bonus (628 pages)
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 190
Task 15.1 FYTS: Time Traveler1880-1930
1880: Washington Square (1880) by Henry James (Paperback, 223 pages)
+15 Task
Task Total: 15
Grand Total: 130 + 15 = 145
FYTS 1969-201415.1 Time Traveler
1969
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
+15 Task
Grand Total: 110 pts
10.4 OppositesNeedful Things by Stephen King
#91 on Dark List
+10 - task
+10 - jumbo (790 pgs)
Task total - 20 pts
Grand total -65 pts
Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "10.7 The Mermaid's Mirrorby L.K. MadiganM in Mermaid's and M from Olympics
Lexile score is 680, no style points
Task +10
Book Total: 10
Grand Total:"
Sorry Jayme, the title must start with the letter, so would need to have started with "Mermaid", not "The".
10.1 Square PegRogues edited by George R.R. Martin
Review: This anthology is not so much short stories as they are novellas, but boy is it worth the read. There is a lot of creativity going on in these creations. Some of them are stronger than others. I haven't read any of Martin's previous work but his story lacked the sparkle that the others had. I originally took this book out to read Gillian Flynn's The Grownup (published here as What Do You Do). I wasn't disappointed. The world building in many of the stories (Tawny Petticoats, Thernadane, Caravan To Nowhere, The Lightning Tree) for example is detailed and rich. Although some of the authors used existing characters in their creation, you don't need to have read any of their previous works to enjoy the story. Being about Rogues, all the stories are full of twists and turns, where things are not necessarily as they seem and I love a good surprise! Would recommend highly.
+10 Task
+15 Jumbo (806 pages)
+10 Review
Task Total: 35 pts
Grand Total: 145 pts
Post 174 Cory Day wrote: "10.7 First Letter Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Review: Shades of Gray didn’t really stick with me all that much, although I did enjoy the read. It’s the story o..."
I want to verify the author for this. I think you mean Shades of Gray by Brooke McKinley rather than the one by Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 174 Cory Day wrote: "10.7 First Letter Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Review: Shades of Gray didn’t really stick with me all that much, although I did enjoy ..."
You're right... I'm sorry! Too many books of the same name! I'll edit the post just to make sure it's right :)
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
My Name Is Red (other topics)Pop Goes the Weasel (other topics)
Generation Chef: Risking It All for a New American Dream (other topics)
Signs of Attraction (other topics)
In Our Own Hands: Essays in Deaf History, 1780–1970 (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Orhan Pamuk (other topics)James Patterson (other topics)
Karen Stabiner (other topics)
Laura Brown (other topics)
Sara Nović (other topics)
More...
Everything, Everythingby Nicola Yoon
N.Y abbreviated for New York.
Task +20
No style points, lexile score of 610.
Book Total: 20
Grand Total: 65