Reading with Style discussion
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SP 19 Completed Tasks
10.6 Public Domain New Hampshire by Robert Frost
+10 task
+10 review
+10 Oldie
+5 Combo 10.8 Megafinish
Task = 35
Season Total = 200
Mid-year 2018 I received an email ad from Thrift Books that they would be publishing this Pulitzer Prize winning collection of Robert Frost's poetry. I pre-ordered a copy. It was not what I expected. I own a lovely hardback edition of the complete poems of Robert Frost (which I still have not completely finished) but wanted to see the order and selections in this his first prize-winning publication. I am glad I purchased this edition. I was surprised to see it divided into three sections. The first was a long narrative poem entitled "New Hampshire". The second section "Notes" was filled with chatty, narrative poems filled with a definite sense of place and time: New England, United States, turn of the Twentieth Century. They were enjoyable, but not what I think of when I think of Frost's poetry. The third section "Grace Notes" holds his "greatest hits" with poems like "Nothing Gold Can Stay" and "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening". In English class I believe that students will often try to find more in "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" than is meant to be there. After completing the entire collection we see that sometimes the description of time and place with mood of poet is the message and it is enough. I read this collection slowly; no more than a few poems at a sitting. There is no need to rush through them.
10.9 - Katniss and PrimMockingjay by Suzanne Collins
+10 task
+10 combo (10.8 - M, 20.7 -#167)
Task total: 20
Grand total: 80
10.1 Square PegUnder the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes
Obviously, you will gather that we will be dipping into Tuscany on our trip. However, we will be mainly in Florence so there will be no temptation to buy a dilapidated old ‘fixer-upper’.
Mayes, and her husband, decided after spending many holidays in Italy to buy an old house near the small hill town of Cortona. Of course, I knew this would be a romantic version of undertaking this type of venture. However, I did think there would be more about the actual renovation. I suppose because I’ve been through both building a house and a full renovation that I feel like the Mayes’ had a real naive and slap-dash approach. I kept wondering how many people were fooled into thinking it is just this easy! However, you do get a general sense of renovating the house, and really the whole farm.
That said this is a very charming book. Mayes is a good writer and she easily evokes the seasons, the town and the rhythms of life there. I enjoyed reading about the progress of their farm and the various seasonal dishes. She includes some of her favorite recipes. 3.5*
10 task
10 review
_____
20
Running total: 225
10.3 ScrabbleFascism: A Warning by Madeleine K. Albright
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.8
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 305
10.8 Megafinish (Lagullande's Task via Tien)The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
This book was emotional to read. The writing is engaging and the ideas about society’s norms backing up the ideas in the story are fascinating and always hovering just beneath the surface of the tale. When my son was born (a wonderful child and man), he had a cleft lip and palate. My husband and I immediately bonded with him, but I noticed that the nurse covered his mouth and talked about what beautiful eyes he had. We later found out that parents did reject babies with that defect, hence the caution of the hospital staff. All this emotion came rushing back as I read of the birth of the fifth child. This was my first Doris Lessing book and the writing continued to have power over me even when the details became quite different from my personal experience. The choices the parents had to make were brutal and “no win” and the book left me drained, but impressed.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 190
Kate S wrote: "From Post 65Rebekah wrote: "20.6 Ellen Foster
Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts Combo (10.8, 20.1)
Task Total - 30 pts
Season Total -55 pts"
+5 Ol..."
Thanks
20.3 Ella Minnow PeaEuphemia by Charlotte Lennox
+20 Pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.8, 20.1)
+ 15 pts - Oldies (1790)
Task total -45 pts
Season Total - 105 pts
Kate S wrote: "From Post 47Rebekah wrote: "20.9 True Crime
The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 ..."
Thanks but that only brought me up to 30 pts but the Readerboard says 35 pts
20.1- Moll FlandersOlive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Task: 20
Combo: 5 (10.7)
Post total: 25
Season total: 70
20.10 AsiaGo: A Coming of Age Novel by Kazuki Kaneshiro
3.5/5 I like any book that teaches me something I didn’t know before picking it up (like: racism in Japan?! I don’t know why I’d always been under the impression that they had escaped that particular human ill—silly me, no one is immune—but was blown away to see how real and deeply-ingrained it is to this day) or reframes a topic I’m familiar with (immigration, what it means to be part of a country or people, the artificial creation of a divide) or says something beautiful about something we all know (in this case, for me, it was love...there’s a bit about a retirement home for service animals that tore me in two). It was violent and fast and confusing at times, but it worked for me in the end. Though, speaking of endings, this one was a little too “happily ever after” for my taste...but it really did need a silver lining after some pretty bleak moments leading up to it. It was a quick read and had some interesting philosophical veins...I’m glad I read it.
+20 (set 100% in Japan)
+10 LiT
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.8)
Task total: 45
Season total: 185
10.8 Megafinish:Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz
This is the second novel by Horowitz, based on the famous fictional detective, and apparently approved by Conan Doyle's estate. As a long standing fan of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes novels, I really enjoyed the first one, The House of Silk. I thought the first novel was written very much in the style of Doyle himself, and I couldn't put it down, staying up long after my bed time to know what happens next.
I wanted to like this one too. It picked up the story after the events at Reichenbach Falls and followed two detectives, one newly arrived from USA and the other one from Scotland Yard, trying to figure out the aftermath of both Moriarty and Holmes being dead. Alliances in the criminal underworld were shifting, power was changing hands, horrible crimes were being committed. Unfortunately, with no clear central direction and a specific mystery to solve, the plot of this one was not as gripping. Pacing appeared a bit off at times. The book also suffered from not actually including Holmes or Watson.
But the main problem was that just before the end, there was a clever twist that I suspect was supposed to shock and impress the reader. Well, the problem is that if you take it too far, the reader will often feel cheated, and that's what happened here. With there having been no way to figure the twist out, I just felt like I was made to look stupid, and no reader likes when the author makes them feel stupid. That just kind of spoiled the entire thing even more, and I couldn't even care enough to go back and try to see if I could have figured it out from the tiny clues the author claims to have left.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 50
20.2 RebeccaA Dark-Adapted Eye by Barbara Vine
This is part of my mystery focused A-Z classic authors challenge. This is Ruth Rendell writing as Barbara Vine. I’ve only read one Rendell previously, so it was interesting to read under her nom de plume.
I found the style of writing here stilted. I don’t think I’m the only one, since this copy (of a library book no less) had ‘editing’ from a previous reader changing word choices! At first, because of the style, I found it a chore to read the book. This made it a bit hard to get into. However, once the story became a bit more clear I enjoyed it and was interested in what would happen next. This book was published in 1986, but the writing and the story itself makes it seem quite a bit older.
I gather Rendell started writing under the name Vine in order to write ‘psychological crime novels’ (rather than her Insp. Wexford novels). This is her first novel of this type. I’m sure I found it on a list of ‘classic mystery/crime’ novels as the/an archetype. I do feel like she is still finding her way here though. I did appreciate that there were no gory or extremely suspenseful bits. 3.5*
20 task
10 review
5 oldie
5 combo 10.3
____
40
Running total: 265
I would like to move my 10.1 Square Peg to 10.8 Megafinish10.8 Megafinish
The Hills Have Spiesby Mercedes Lackey
Task + 10
Total: 10
10.3 ScrabbleThe Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.8
+10 lost in translation
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 330
20.1. Moll FlandersLucy by Jamaica Kincaid
Lucy is a 19 year old au pair newly arrived in New York. Through her eyes we see the life of her employers and the disconnects she sees between her experience of life growing up in the West Indies and the life of well to do New Yorkers. She does not understand the (as she sees it) unrealistic expectations of Mariah that are based in a life of privilege that has never been examined to determine how it compares to the struggles of the rest of the world.
At the same time this is a coming of age story based on Kincaids life and Lucy is trying to find her path as an adult in a strange place. She knows she wants something different from the life she has known growing up and is trying to balance the need to fill gaps in her life with starting down a new path she will define for herself.
Highly recommend
20 pts. 20.1 Moll Flanders
5 pts 10.2 Decades. 1990
10 pts Review
5 pts Oldies
Task total. 40 pts
Season total. 270 pts
Task 10.2 DecadeRead a book first published in xx81-xx90 (any century will be accepted.)
1982
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant (1982) by Anne Tyler (Hardcover, First Edition, 303 pages)
+10 Task
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: (1944-1994)
Task Total: 10 + 05 = 15
Grand Total: 60 + 15 = 75
15.2 - Arthur C. Clarke Award, UKAncillary Justice by Ann Leckie
+15 task
Task total: 15
Grand total: 95
20.5 - Jack is Trans, discussed in 1st book of series (Every Heart a Doorway)Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
+20 task
+5 combo (10.9 - Jack and Jill are sisters, for a while; then still siblings, just not sisters)
Task total: 25
Grand total: 130
20.6 Ellen FosterA Tangled Tale by Lewis Carroll
Do not read this book. Even though it is short, you will be disappointed and bored to an extent unimaginable. A blurb may intrigue you by informing you that the book presents challenging mathematical puzzles. Carroll calls them "knots". The author attempts to make the problems humorous by the introduction of eccentric characters. The attempt fails.
Even though I love puzzles and have always been fairly good at math, I had no interest in trying to fathom the answer to these knots. First of all, at least one of the problems deals with old English money... and despite having read many old books by British authors, I still have no idea how to sort out crowns, shillings, sovereigns, pence, farthings, pounds and the like.
Another problem is just ghoulish... the reader is given data about 100 soldiers with some having lost an eye (70%), an arm (80%), an ear (75%), a leg (85%). How many, at the least, we are asked, have lost all four!?!!! Ugh.
1 black star.
Task=20
Review= 10
Combo= 20 (10.2-1885; 10.3-tangled; 10.8; 10.9-At least 4 of the stories/"knots feature sisters Mattie and Mad Mathesis.)
oldie=10 (1885)
Task Total= 60
Grand Total= 230
10.6 Public DomainThe Able McLaughlins by Margaret Wilson
Set on the prairies of Iowa in the mid 1860s this book is the story of Wully McLaughlin, a returned Union Civil War veteran. He has fallen in love with neighbor Christie and they marry despite scandalous circumstances. Their love and dedication center the narrative while the support of family help the young couple.
The book is reminiscent of Willa Cathers western novels. The land and the need to toil to create a prosperous future is the background to all the characters lives Margaret Wilson descriptions of both the land and the people are beautiful and provide a wonderful sense of place. The book won the first Pulitzer Prize in 1924 and is well worth reading.
10 pts. 10.6 Public Domain
5 pts. 10.8 Megafinish
10 pts Review
10 pts Oldie
Task total: 35 pts
Season Total: 305 pts
20.8 PoetryBook of Longing by Leonard Cohen
I like poetry, so thank you to Beth for this task. I am a big fan of Leonard Cohen, and finally read this book cover to cover. I bought this book after seeing him in his April 2013 concert where he recited “Thousand Kisses Deep’. I was absolutely blown away, and quite sure tears were involved! Until now, I’ve only dipped into this book mostly to read that poem again – which I always hear in his voice.
This is a collection of Cohen’s poetry, prose poems and sketches. It covers a range of time periods, mostly confined to the 1990s + 2000s. His poetry is about a life lived (as opposed to those who write about ancient times or obscure philosophy) which I appreciate. This includes love, religion, yearning, the fact(s) of growing old. It is readable, but you do have to think and sometimes the meaning is obscure. As I normally do with poetry collections (unless they are very short) I read this over a number of days – just a few at a time. I think that is the best way to savour and appreciate the work. 4*
20 task
10 review
5 combo 10.3
____
35
Running total: 300
20.10 AsiaFox Girl by Nora Okja Keller
Heartbreaking, gut wrenching, and impossible to look away. This novel gripped me by the throat and wouldn't let go even during the moments that the characters were all highly unlikable, the occasional moments when the timeline seemed to get confused, and the ultimately unsatisfying ending.
The book tells, in harsh and unrelenting detail, the story of Korean girls and women living as prostitutes in America Town, a GI camp toward the end of the Korean War. The book doesn't shy from the segregation and racism existed within the G.I. camp nor does it let the reader escape the uncomfortable and often harsh realities of life for the children chronicled here.
The beginning of the book explains that the chapters are written as letters that perhaps one character will one day deliver to the other (her half sister). This allows the chapters to be related but somewhat disjointed, a mechanism that the author couldn't always control completely.
I liked this book enough to want to seek out the author's other work.
+20 Task (Korea, with only a few pages in Hawaii)
+10 Review
+20 Combo (10.4 - fox; 10.8; 10.9; 20.3)
Task total: 50
Grand total: 150
20.2 RebeccaIn a Summer Season by Elizabeth Taylor
In this, there is only the undertone that things are not quite right in the marriage of Kate and Dermot. Kate was widowed when she married this younger man, but professes herself to be quite happy married to him "and would do so again." But in the opening pages, Kate is lunching with Dermot's mother who doesn't withhold criticism of her son't idleness. Even Dermot acknowledges to himself that everyone thinks he married Kate for her money. The reader can only think trouble is brewing. There are other characters where Taylor shows us longing and conflict. It seemed just too much.
My quibble is that, though the trouble does seem to brew for Kate and Dermot, I had to almost read between the lines. I'm not good at that. The other conflicts were more obvious, but I found them decidedly less interesting. On the plus side, I thought Taylor's humor comes through in this more clearly than in some of her other novels. Example: Dermot was on the phone with his mother. Though we hear only part of Dermot's side of the conversation, it is obvious they are arguing. After hanging up, Dermot attempts to have an argument with his wife. Her response was "if you want to have an argument, call your mother."
I like Elizabeth Taylor, for the most part, and I liked this one. I especially liked the beginning and well beyond the halfway mark. Then, I'm almost ashamed to admit, I got a bit bored. I just wanted it to be over and be able to move on to my next read. I remember early on reading a review where someone said her novels are pretty much the same. After reading the first two or three, this seemed entirely wrong. Now that I've read 8 of them, there is definitely some truth to it. Because of a GR group, I have been reading one of her novels a month for 8 months. I think I need a break.
This is a strong 3-stars. Had I stayed as interested as I was in the first half, I would happily add another star.
+20 Task (b. 1912)
+ 5 Combo 10.8)
+10 Review
+ 5 Oldies (pub'd 1964)
Task Total = 40
Season Total = 120
10.3 ScrabbleA Hope Divided by Alyssa Cole
The second book in Alyssa Cole's Loyal League series, set during the U.S. Civil War, focuses on Marlie, a free apothecarist spying for the Loyal League in Confederate North Carolina, and Ewan, an imprisoned Union counterintelligence officer. While it's able to be read as a standalone (neither Marlie nor Ewan plays a direct role in the first book), there's some emotional weight carried by some of the information about Ewan's family that comes up in An Extraordinary Union.
Cole is an exceptionally strong all-around writer: her prose is good, she builds stories out of research and real history with themes that resonate strongly, her character work is fearlessly deep and surprising and intricate. The emotional story she builds from the details of history and characterization in this book was really satisfying; Ewan and Marlie are both very thoughtful, very intelligent people, and their similarities and differences made for a memorable partnership. The plot was tense and stressful. My only hang-up was with the pacing, especially at the very end.
+10 Task -- DIV-IDE-D
+5 Combo (10.8)
+10 Review
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 170
10.8 MegafinishThe Golden Apples by Eudora Welty
This is a series of seven stories (one of them long enough to be a novella) set in a small town in Mississippi, covering approximately the first half of the 20th century.
Each piece focuses on one particular character or family, and others reappear as secondary characters. Some are more like vignettes, taking place in one day. Others cover a few years. But they don't overlap in time, and decades may have passed between one story and the next.
I enjoyed this once I got used to the slow pace, flowing along lazily like the Mississippi river. My favourite was the last one.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Oldies (1949)
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 225
20.4 NefertitiBecoming Bonnie by Jenni L. Walsh
I did enjoy this book however it is a light read – as in LITE. It is classed as historical fiction. I would say it is a whitewashed, highly romanticized version of Bonnie Parker’s pre-‘Bonnie + Clyde” life. Walsh touches on the hard scrabble times a bit, but I would have liked more. Of course, not that many facts are known about Bonnie (or Clyde’s) pre-crime spree life however I would have liked a more critical look at the economic and social circumstance of the time. Bonnie formally meeting Clyde comes 2/3 of the way through the book, and I didn’t feel that Walsh convinced me that this was a (huge) life altering event (for Bonnie). Although I did enjoy the novel, I’m probably not the target audience. I always worry when I read this type of ‘lite’ historical fiction that someone might take this novelisation as closer to the truth than it is. 3*
20 task
10 review
___
30
Running total: 330
15.2 AbCSweden Nobel Prize for Literature
The Voices of Marrakesh: A Record of a Visit by Elias Canetti
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 345
10.4 AnimalOf Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
I read this book when I was either in high school or possibly grammar school. (I was precocious.) So, this was a re-read for me...although I couldn't remember the specifics. I enjoyed it then and enjoyed it now. A very simple story with that Steinbeck way of conveying a sense of place in the Salinas Valley of California. I've set a challenge for myself to read all of Steinbeck's works. Just read a few so far...but will be looking for future tasks to add more.
I think what makes this story so unusual is that bad things are done by an essentially good person (George) and an innocent being (Lennie). Their dreams are shattered. I think the part that I didn't care for too much was the character of Curley's wife... the temptress and the cause for the ruination of the others' Paradise. A bit too obvious.
Nevertheless, 4 solid stars. (Also a 1001 Books list read.)
Task=10
Review=10
Combo= 5 (10.5-John Sedgwck)
Oldie=10 (1937)
Task Total = 35
Grand Total= 265
20.7 Anna KareninaThe Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
This was a very quick read but I loved Enzo the dog who knows he's ready to be reincarnated as a human, as well as his "owner" Denny, and Zoe, Denny's little girl. I thought Enzo was very convincing as a dog, and I liked the reincarnation explanation for why he understood all human speech while other dogs didn't.
But I think what really convinced me Enzo was an actual dog was the zebra episode when the "human" side of him lost control and was in denial about this ever after. The same with the crows. There was just enough animal instinct in him to make him real as a dog, while at the same time understanding so much about humans.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.7, 10.8 A)
Post Total: 40
Season Total: 265
10.2 DecadeThe Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. Dick
+10 Task (published 1982)
+5 Combo 10.3 (Timothy)
+5 Oldies
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 365
20.2 Rebecca Task +20
Oldie +5 (1974)
Combo +5 10.8 Megafinsh
Review +10
Task = 40
Season Total = 240
Greenwitch by Susan Cooper I really enjoyed this book. Greenwitch is the third of five books in the Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper. Her series begins with a hint of the Arthurian legends and King Mark's story set in a village on the coast of Cornwall. The series features the struggle of the Light against the Dark, or Good vs. Evil. As I read more into the series I find myself becoming more attached to the characters. This book is meant for children 8 to 12 years old and has a Lexile level of exactly 800. The other books in the series have Lexile Levels of 900+
20.2. RebeccaEvery Man for Himself by Beryl Bainbridge
The Titanic sinks again! (Sorry for the spoiler:). This is historical fiction that focuses on the rich young passengers on the Titanic and their relationships. The narrator is a nephew of J Pierpoint Morgan that through some not completely explained circumstance is born into poverty and later adopted into the main branch of the family. He is rich but still has some sense of the uniqueness of the lives of those around him. But still he seems to ignore the realities of class differences. The issues of being a young man with no clear path are more pressing.
The story is well told with characters that are engaging. And the description of the chaos surrounding the sinking is extremely well written. I would recommend it
20 pts. 20.2 Rebecca
5 pts 10.3 Scrabble
5 pts. 10.8 Megafinish
10 pts Review
Task total. 40 pts
Season total 345 pts
10.8 MegafinishFelicia's Journey by William Trevor
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.3 (journey)
+5 Oldies (published 1994)
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 385
20.5 Myra BreckinridgeWhipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity by Julia Serano
There's a lot here in the book gives one a lot to think about. Between the time this book was originally published, then republished as a second edition, and now, public opinion, feminism, and conversations about gender have shifted, shifted again, and even come full circle. For example, the author speaks at some length about feminists who exclude trans-women as "not real women" in thinking about feminists spaces and women-only spaces. Ten years ago I might've said that such people were mere fringe of the feminist movement who had been largely ignored and stamped out by modern feminism. Now, I'm not so sure. It seems that these people have gotten a stronger foothold within the ranks of feminism than I would've expected.
Serano does a great job explaining her personal experiences before, during, and after transition. She describes in some detail the process that she went through in determining that she wanted to transition, and the effects that the transition had both physically and emotionally for her. It's in these personal essays where this book really shines. Reading her descriptions gives me a much broader understanding of the experiences of a person with gendered feelings that are very different from my own. The book is worth reading for this alone.
The author reads the audiobook herself, and does an excellent job. Hearing the emotion behind the personal words in her voice made the book that much more powerful.
+20 Task
+10 Review
Task total: 30
Grand total: 180
15.1Spain - Cervantes Prize for Jorge Luis Borges 1979
Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Other Writings by Jorge Luis Borges
Task total: 15
Grand total: 295
20.7 Anna Karenina#156 on list
The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran
This was a small book of philosophy, in plain words, but often lyrically stated. The prophet of the title is asked to share his wisdom and he is a proponent of how in an ideal world we would all live in nature, in harmony with each other, experiencing both joy and sorrow, and free in a semi-Buddhist sense in our hearts. There are ideas here it would be productive to think on. And it is enjoyable to read simply as itself for the flow of it and the turn of phrase. There is a frame of a story that makes the words more relateable, but it is the philosophy that is the point.
+20 task
+10 review
+10 oldies (1923)
+10 combos (10.3, 10.6)
Task total: 50
Grand total: 345
10.2 Decade xx81 - xx90Break In by Dick Francis
I love Dick Francis! I just wanted to state that at out the outset, so you know this is from the perspective of a fan. This is the first of two novels he wrote featuring Kit Fielding. I read the second one first, years ago and immediately fell for the character. In this novel, Kit (the hero) is a jockey and as typical for Francis ‘heros’ he has a moral code, is ethical, and smart. In this story he is helping his twin sister and her husband who have undeservedly fallen afoul of damaging and libellous gossip. There is ‘water under the bridge’ between Kit’s family and his brother in law’s family and this leads to literal struggles between them and moral struggles, which makes the characters rounded. There is a love interest, for Kit, who is also a smart capable character. Of course, there are horses and racing which lends it’s own excitement. Definitely a satisfying read all around. 4*
10 task
10 review
5 oldie
____
25
Running total: 355
10.8 MegafinishAll Systems Red by Martha Wells
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.3 (systems)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 400
10.3 ScrabbleLa vieille dame qui ne voulait pas mourir avant de l'avoir refait by Margot D. Marguerite
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Points total = 65
10.8 MegafinishThe Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency by Chris Whipple
The Gatekeepers covers Chiefs of Staff and their presidents from Haldeman and Nixon to the beginning of Kelly’s term with Trump. Chris Whipple has interviewed a number of the chiefs on their own experiences and their observations of other chiefs. The emphasis is on how the job is done and successes and failures in the job. Although Whipple seems to think there are certain characteristics of good chiefs, such as organization, communication skills, and strength, he realizes that each Chief has to match his (they have all been men so far) boss, the president.
I like his observation that Nancy Reagan would have made a good chief of staff.
This is also a good brief history of the modern presidency.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total 20
Season total 40
10.8 MegafinishFlashback by Shannon Messenger
Lexile: 830
An enjoyable continuation to this series. Since this is book 7, you have no business jumping into this series and this universe at this point. If you want to read these books, go back to book 1 and start there. If you are already reading along, this is more of the same. If you liked books 1-6, you'll like this one. If you didn't like those, you should have quit this series a long time ago.
My seven year old and ten year old are loving this series. We've read all of these out loud and they are now anxiously awaiting Book 8 (not released until November 2019). I recommend this for young adult fantasy readers. My ten year old could read these by himself if he wanted to, but since we've read all of them together, he hasn't been. As the grown-up reader, I mind these books much less than some other young adult novels. That said, I don't think these have enough adult appeal to stand alone for readers not reading along with younger readers.
This series would translate well to audiobook format.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 200
20.10 AsiaIris After the Incident by Mina V. Esguerra
The strongest romance novel I've read by Esguerra yet. As the title suggests, this is a heroine-centered book, and it takes Iris's emotional well-being, and the work she puts into it, so seriously. I loved that so much.
This is also very--to use a buzzword I will probably regret--millennial. Surveillance culture, particularly social media surveillance, feels like a very millennial theme to me, and while the idea that one has a relationship to one's own sexuality--and that it is a work-in-progress cultivated with yourself and others you choose--is not exclusive to millennials, I thought Esguerra's take was very contemporary, too. Iris and Gio have both been burned by mistakes that blew up into scandals, when very private moments of theirs were exploited publicly--and due to the nature of the Internet, that exploitation continues. They're both still very young--twenty-four-ish--and Iris is in therapy (yay), and the little details Esguerra develops to demonstrate their differences in coping methods--how to protect themselves, how to make each other feel safe as they proceed, the stories of how they've been processing their experiences--were well drawn. While the book is very serious, I didn't think it tipped over into angst or overwroughtness.
(On an minor, irrelevant, shallow note, I was VERY STRESSED about the jigsaw puzzle and the possibility of puzzle pieces having already gotten lost or STOLEN by heartless strangers and Gio not finding out until he was almost done. I mean, there's probably a big thematic metaphor there and all, and this is absolutely irrelevant, but I was seriously antsy during puzzle scenes that we'd find out the puzzle couldn't be completed after all.)
+20 Task -- set 100% in the Philippines
+5 Combo (10.8)
+10 Review
Post Total: 35
Season Total: 205
20.4 NefertitiThe Afterlives of Doctor Gachet by Sam Meekings
Review
★★★½
I have to admit that I don't know much about paintings but I'm always fascinated by what stories they could tell. Like Tracy Chevalier's Girl with a Pearl Earring and Kate Forsyth's Beauty in Thorns, The Afterlives of Doctor Gachet explores not only how this particular painting came to be but also the life of the muse. In addition, The Afterlives of Doctor Gachet also followed on the journey of the painting after it left its painter's hands and the author's research into its related history.
At first, I found the alternating chapters with different settings (time, place, and perspective) quite jarring but as I continue to read, becoming immersed in the journey of Doctor Gachet and Van Gogh's painting, I came to look forward to not only what but where the next chapter will take me to.
The longest chapters were of the life of Doctor Gachet as we learn of his childhood, his marriage and older years. While he lived in a period of turmoil of French history, we really do not hear very much of the world outside of his life. This book is very much focused on Doctor Gachet though of course, only the main turn-points in his life or this book will be a much thicker one. As life goes, his wasn't a complete tragedy or a most happy one. It's full of ups and downs and in-betweens but what the painting tells us is that his burden is rather heavy on him.
By Vincent van Gogh - Unknown, Public Domain, Link
With the second alternating chapter, there is a narrator (which I assume could be the author) who became fascinated with this painting and the sadness portrayed. He decided to research into the origins of the painting and the subject of said painting. As he shared his research journey, he also shares some life reflections which resulted from his journey.
The last alternating chapter follows the journey of the painting after it was sold. It was displayed in some homes. It missed the Nazi purge and was smuggled out of the country. It was sold for a lot (stress on the 'lot') of money. Then, the world seems to have lost its track... Where could it be? Who owns this painting now?
The Afterlives of Doctor Gachet is an immersive tale of life. It is captivating as it draws the readers to follow on this journey of many lives over a long span of time. It is a book to be savoured for its historical value and reflections of life.
Thanks to the author, Sam Meekings, for copy of book in exchange of honest review.
+20 Task
+ 5 Combo (10.8)
+10 Review
Post Total: 35
Season Total: 190
10.6 Public DomainThe Inimitable Jeeves (Jeeves #2) by P.G. Wodehouse
Review
I'm afraid I'm no big fan of Wooster & Jeeves... In a way, it was a very interesting relationship between a silly master and a brainy butler but to me, it felt rather forced. Jeeves, to me, felt more like a know-it-all which is more annoying rather anything else. Do I sound like I'm on Wooster's side? I'm not or at least, not really. I think, Wooster could be funny in his own right though again some of the situations he got into feels so unreal! Maybe that's the point of this 'humourous' book but I just don't find it funny. *exasperated sigh*
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo (10.8)
+10 Review
+10 Oldies (pub. 1923)
Post Total: 35
Season Total: 225
10.6 Public DomainThe Good Soldier Švejk by Jaroslav Hašek
+10 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.3, 10.8)
+10 pts - LiT
+10 pts - Oldies
+10 pts - Jumbo (752 pg)
Task total - 50 pts
Season Total - 155 pts
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
The Enormous Room (other topics)The Address (other topics)
The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter (other topics)
Sense and Sensibility (other topics)
My Brilliant Friend (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
E.E. Cummings (other topics)Fiona Davis (other topics)
Theodora Goss (other topics)
Jane Austen (other topics)
Elena Ferrante (other topics)
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Ru by Kim Thúy
Task= 15
Grand Total= 170