Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

- What are you reading this week?
The Moon Sister

- What period of history is it set in?
2008 Scotland: Tiggy who is trying to find out about her ancestors and why she was adopted.
1920/30/40... in Grenada Spain: her ancestors story

- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.

You hear about Tiggys great-grandparents, grandparents and her mother and father up through the years and why she ended up being given away instead of with the family. You hear about the gypsy community and the hardness of growing up in property but also about rising from nothing to being one of the most famous flamingo dancers.
It's a great story that really develops and you switch between Tiggy and her ancestors story throughout the book as the pieces comes together for Tiggy while she learns about her family history.

The other books in the series can be used for this prompt as well. I especially loved the first one in the series The Seven Sisters

Rachelnyc wrote: "I was all set to to go old school with either Roots: The Saga of an American Family or The Thornbirds but now I'm super intrigued by The Old Drift"

Oh wow The Old Drift indeed looks very interesting. Too many options :-)

I have no idea what to choose for this. I like multi generational sagas but have read those I can think of. I could use some recommendations. Books I liked that I think fit this challenge
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
The Island by Victoria Hislop
I don't really trust the lists since there are many books that I personally wouldn't consider multi generational sagas

Ira did you read Middlesex? I am reading it right now and I am really enjoying it, I read only the first 100 pages or so but so far so good...

Today I started reading Rocky Road
"The incredible true story of the troubled family behind the Darrell Lea chocolate empire."
Interesting story and very readable. Really enjoying it so far.

For me this is the hardest one (followed by psykological thriller), I'm a SFF reader full stop. And if I'm not really feeling it I tend to get bored with books that don't have that element in it. :(
So for me this might be a Wild card one… Unless someone has an suggestion that's not Ava Lavender (a DNF for me)? Might otherwise use Shadow of Night for the time travel and meeting older generations and count that. ;-P

Sabrina wrote: "Would the graphic novel “Saga” work for this prompt?"

Imo it would work as you don’t really follow what happens to several generations, only Hazel and her parents.

Stefanie wrote: "For me this is the hardest one (followed by psykological thriller), I'm a SFF reader full stop. And if I'm not really feeling it I tend to get bored with books that don't have that element in it. :..."

I had a look at books I read, but couldn’t find hard SFF books with a family saga, which is crazy because it would definitely go well together! Seveneves could maybe kinda work if you’re willing to twist the prompt a little bit? There’s also One Hundred Years of Solitude that has magical realism, not sure it’s your jam.

They’re still sitting on my TBR, but maybe Guy Gavriel Kay has books with a saga? I think they’re like historical fiction set in a fantasy world.

Couldn't you say Game of Thrones is a family saga? (following several families but still).

Stefanie wrote: "For me this is the hardest one (followed by psykological thriller), I'm a SFF reader full stop. And if I'm not really feeling it I tend to get bored with books that don't have that element in it. :..."

Dune ? It fits this category, only question is if you want to read it.

I just finished The Pillars of the Earth and now I'm trying to figure out where to fit other Ken Follet! I loved it.

It is set in Medieval Europe and follows several families and their interactions revolving around the building of a church.

I am going to read Homegoing for this week. The book begins with half-sisters Effia and Esi in Africa in the late 1700s. Both are daughters of "Big Men" in different tribes but didnot know of each other growing up. Effia was married to a British officer because the woman who raised her wanted her out of the village. Esi's village was attacked, and Esi was sold into slavery and sent to America. The novel tells the story of several generations but I don't know where it ends.

I listened to Middlesex for this prompt. This is far from my usual genre (I'm more of a SF/F person), but I really enjoyed this. Kristoffer Tabori’s narration was excellent. It covers 3 generations of a family. The first half focuses on the first generation who flees the Greco-Turkish War to America in 1922, and then the second generation who is born and raised in America. The second half focuses more on a single member of the third generation (the narrator) and discovery of his intersex nature.

Nadine wrote: "Dune ? It fits this category, only question is if you want to read it. "

I didn't even Think about that one… I also saw someone mentioning Semiosis so I will check for those at my libary.

Pachinko is about 4 generations of a Korean Japanese family.

One of the prompts I have troubles figuring out what I want to read.
I stumbled across Soviet Milk by Nora Ikstena, but I'm not really sure, so I will just leave it here, maybe someone will be interested :)

Sophie wrote: "Sabrina wrote: "Would the graphic novel “Saga” work for this prompt?"

Imo it would work as you don’t really follow what happens to several generations, only Hazel and her parents.

Stefanie wrote:..."


Seveneves is a good one! Have been intressted in it to. Have heard good things about it too. ^.^

I read Hey, Kiddo because I wanted to read it but it was a finalist for the national book award and that is where I'm slotting it in. however, I wondered if it was also a multi generational saga. It goes back and tells the story of the grandparents, the mom and the kid.

I'll probably read Homegoing for this, though. It has been on my list forever.

What are you reading this week?
I read We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter
What period of history is it set in?
1930's through current but mainly WWII
Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.
A Jewish family from Poland - Mother/Father/grown Children with spouses and their own children - how they were separated as a family in different areas trying to survive the murders and starvation, often individually, and then eventually one of the great-grandchildren puts the story altogether.

Hello everyone! I just wanted to drop in and say thanks for the diverse suggestions. I'm normally not a fan of multigenerational sagas, but The Old Drift and Soviet Milk look super interesting, in addition to introducing me to literature of new countries (always something to be excited about). So thanks!

What are you reading this week?

Pachinko

- What period of history is it set in?

The early 1900's through 1990ish, in Korea and Japan.


- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.

It starts with a family whose only surviving son was deformed, so was thought to never marry, however the local matchmaker found a girl from an impoverished family to make the marriage. It mostly follows their daughter, to her sons, and her grandchildren.

It really opened my eyes to the history of Korea and China.

Would a book with 2 different Timelines do this promt justice?

I was thinking of maybe using The Pearl That Broke Its Shell for this.
It follows Rahima in 2007 while her aunt tells her the story of her Great Grandmother Shekiba in the early 1900.

I'm not really sure if that qualifies as a 'multigenerational saga'
Opinions?

I keep picking these up accidentally, even though I'm reading in order and can't use them for this prompt.

Currently reading Salt Houses for the Mediterranean prompt, but it would definitely work for this prompt, and is on the shorter side, if you're looking for that. I recommend!

Nicole wrote: "Would a book with 2 different Timelines do this promt justice?

I was thinking of maybe using The Pearl That Broke Its Shell for this.
It follows Rahima in 2007 while her aunt tell..."

When I think of multigenerational sagas, I tend to think of a book with a more linear structure that shows at least three generations... so, for me, two timelines wouldn't really work because you only get a glimpse at two people, rather than a span of generations. I guess the linear doesn't matter as much, but that's just one of the arbitrary rules I put on myself when choosing books for this prompt.

So, I wouldn't use it, but it's your challenge so it's really up to you. I don't think it's so far from the prompt that it doesn't make sense at all.

What are you reading this week?

City of Dreams: A Novel of Nieuw Amsterdam and Early Manhattan

What period of history is it set in?

It starts in the 1660s and ends in the 1780s.

Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.

It starts with Lucas and Sally Turner, brother and sister, coming to the New World from Amsterdam and follows the descendants from their marriages. The family has medical talents so it is showing the history of medicine along with the history of New York City.

Salt Houses by Hala Alyan

What are you reading this week?
Behind the Scenes at the Museum, by Kate Atkinson


What period of history is it set in?
Early 1900s to early 1990s

Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story
It’s about the Lennox family. Beyond that, I’m not sure - I’ll need to read it.

What are you reading this week? A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
What period of history is it set in? The Great Depression through around current day
Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story. A pretty normal family living in Baltimore with much of it focusing around a house that the earliest generation of the novel built that has stayed in the family. I really enjoyed the novel and recommend it to people who like TV shows like Parenthood.

I read Annie Proulx, Barkskins for this topic. I enjoyed it, mostly, although was shocked amd saddened by graphic accounts of the level of decimation of forests in Canada and America during the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as Proulx's analysis of the avarice that fuelled it.

'Enjoyed it, mostly': the qualification is because while I appreciated the reasons for detailed accounts of the machinations of board meetings held by a family timber company, I found these rather tedious at times.

I read The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao for this week but now I'm wondering if it really covers the "saga" portion of the prompt. There is quite a bit of storytelling about the parent and grandparent generations but I'm not sure if it rises to the necessary level. Thoughts from the group? TIA!

I’ve struggled with what exactly makes a “saga” as well. Oscar Wao covers several generations AND deals with effects of Trujillo and other issues, so I’d count it.

What are you reading this week? Pachinko
What period of history is it set in? It spans most of the twentieth century.
Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story. It centers around the family of a Korean woman who moves with her husband to Japan during the Japanese occupation of Korea. As a family that are Korean and Christian, they face a lot of discrimination. Later members of the family work in Pachinko and are assumed to be gangsters.

For this prompt I read Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald, which follows the Canadian Piper family over several decades. It was an interesting engrossing read and I really liked it.

For this prompt I have finally finished The Source by James A. Michener. Not my usual genre (like others upthread, I'm more of SF/F reader), so asked my friend group for a rec, and this one was rec'd by multiple people.

Time period is from pre-history through the 1960s, covering generations of a family from cave-man days through 20th century Israel. Alternating the historical episodes with a "modern day" archaeological dig, this title could also loosely fit the "dual timeline" prompt.

It was, however, LONG. 1100+ pages. And a slow enough read that my library loan ended when I was about 50% through, and I had to wait for it to come back around on the reserve list so that I could finish it.

What are you reading this week? Little Women

What period of history is it set in? 1860s

Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.
It is a family, the characters are 4 sisters. The book follows them growing up from children until they get married and have their own families.

What are you reading this week?
I read Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson

What period of history is it set in?
It covers the 20th century from WW1 to the present day

Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story
The main character is Ruby who is one of children of Bunty and George. She is the present day member of the family . Bunty does not like her children much or her husband, and the children feel unloved. But going back through Bunty's family we find most of them didn't feel very maternal towards their offspring either. Of course the two World Wars meant a lot of characters died, so maybe this conditioned them them to kerb their affections.
This book had so many characters if really should have included a family tree

- What are you reading this week?
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

- What period of history is it set in?
Starts in 1922 and goes through ??

- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story
Three generations of the Greek-American Stephanides family, who travel from a tiny village in Turkey to Detroit. It's excellent so far!

- What are you reading this week? The Thorn Birds
- What period of history is it set in? 1915-1969
- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.
The family moves from New Zealand to Australia and of course there are a whole bunch of secrets that are slowly coming out. Some tragedy of course too. Meggie is the only girl of the family which causes it's own problems.

- What are you reading this week? Where'd You Go, Bernadette
- What period of history is it set in? Current
- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story - Not really sure, I chose this off the 100 Must-Read Generational and Family Novels list. I am not too far along but kind of wonder if this is really a good fit or not.

I am marking down Mythos by Stephen Fry in this category since he proceeds mostly chronologically and begins with the Greek origin myths of the first and second generation titans and then to the gods and then some of the human myths like Pandora and such. It's multi-generational and takes place over a long period of time. It is a wonderful translation and I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a fresh and entertaining perspective on Greek mythology. Also, Stephen Fry's notes throughout the text are more often than not pretty hysterical. :)

I ordered Semiosis based on several recommendations in this thread. But then I read The Pearl That Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi for my book club. I really enjoyed the book!
Sagas are not my favourite.

- What are you reading this week? The Girl with the Red Balloon It's a bit weak on the saga side. I fully intended on reading Midnight's Children, but the hold list looks like it might not get to me any time soon. I read this, loved it, and figure it fits close enough for being a back up.

- What period of history is it set in? The grandfather's story happens during the Holocaust in the 1940s when he is a teenager with his family. The granddaughter is from the 2010s but travels back to 1988 East Berlin.

- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story. The three characters in the main time line are the Jewish time traveling girl, a Romani English teen, and a Lesbian Berliner. It creates an interesting look at the sins and the victimization of the father (or grandfather) and how long people should be punished or hold grudges (for lack of a better term) over them. The book is very much a YA novel, but it really hit some meaningful and complex subjects.

Would something like Burying the Honeysuckle Girls work for this? I originally intended to read Pachinko, but I'm kind of in the mood for something a bit shorter right now. I've heard Pachinko is amazing though, and I still want to read it, but it wouldn't hurt to have a backup.

Would Little Fires Everywhere count?

I was going to read Roots: The Saga of an American Family, but then realized how long it is and I don’t think I can fit it in with my other library due dates. I’ve gotten some good suggestions from this thread, but does anyone want to suggest something under 400 pages? I‘ve already read and loved Homegoing.

I read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. It follows the Stephanides family for the majority of the 20th Century. I'm not saying more than that, because it'd be a bit spoilery, but I don't think I could have found a more perfect book for this prompt.

For this prompt, I read Fablehaven by Brandon Mull. The Sorensons meet their grandchildren, and together they face the evils threatening Fablehaven.

I am reading American Pop by Snowden Wright for the popsugar reading challenge. Does anyone know if this book fits this prompt? It looks like it from the description but they can be deceiving.

- What are you reading this week?
Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
- What period of history is it set in?
1947 to the present
- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.
This book is a memoir of a family from Appalachia. I was having a difficult time finding a book to fit this category, multi-gen sagas are apparently not my thing. I'm not done with this one, but I'm enjoying it.

- What are you reading this week?
In This Our Life
- What period of history is it set in?
Just prior to the outbreak of World War II (1938-1940)
- Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story.
The Timberlakes are a Southern family who have lost most of their wealth and all of their influence. The main story focuses on Asa Timberlake, the first generation without money, his wife, who still has a wealthy uncle who is the subject of much kowtowing, and their two daughters, the youngest of which is a spoiled brat.

There is also a second family, upstanding and admirable blacks who have served the Timberlakes in some capacity for generations. It is the interactions of the two families that make this novel a worthy one. The book won the Pulitzer in 1942.

What are you reading this week? When We Were Orphans, by Kazuo Ishiguro
What period of history is it set in? Pre-WW2 to late 1950's
Tell us about the family, or families, featured in the story. This is mainly the story of a son, but it is a son trying to solve the disappearances of his parents (so that's 2 generations), and also includes fragments of a 3rd generation too.


I've read quite a few Ishiguro novels, and whilst I've never loved any of them (except for Never Let Me Go...I think, though for some reason I never reviewed/rated it on GR) I do respect his work. This was probably one of the ones I've enjoyed most. It has a great pace to it, and I really loved that it was shaped around a mystery but that the outcome of that mystery is really second to the story of how that mystery came about and impacted on the narrator's life. Christopher is an infuriating character in many ways - his single-mindedness in solving the case of the disappearances of both his parents being the main but not only of his quirks. But I was still rooting for him, as it became apparent that the trauma of the loss of his parents was something that, although not emotionally displayed, ran deep. That he mentions major cases he has solved in his apparently illustrious detective career but never goes into details, that he is still consumed with memories of his childhood, that he has convinced himself (and those around him) that finding his parents is the key to solving the unrest and war between countries, and that he comes close to love in various forms but turns his back and plunges naively into a war zone on the basis of a very flimsy clue is as sad as it is frustrating. For me, this is almost a parable on the virtue of letting things go, told in Ishiguro's characteristic stiff-upper-lip prose. A good read to end my year on.