Reading with Style discussion
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SU 22 Completed Tasks
10.10 again because my 10.9 wasn't validB9-100-199 pages
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl-176p
I try to read a dozen or so books each year that are on the 1001 Kids Book You Should Read Before You Grow Up list...and this is one of them. It's a middle-grade book and a quick and easy read. Most folks probably know the story already (although I didn't). Charlie is a poor kid who is one of five kids who win a tour of Willy Wonka's amazing chocolate factory. Disasters befall the other four kids. But the reader ends with a sense that those kids got what they deserved....and the promise of more to enjoy in a sequel which I also plan to read for the Summer challenge.
Task=10
Review=5
Oldie=5
Task Total= 20
Grand Total=165
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5;___; B7; B8;B9; ___; ___: ___; ___;___; ___;
I___; ___; ___; I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___; ___; N38; ___; ___; ___; N42; N43; __; __;
G _ ; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O__; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; ___; __;
10.5 I27 Private EyeThe Rat Began to Gnaw the Rope by C.W. Grafton
10 pts 10.5 I 27 detective is a lawyer
5 pts Review
5 pts pre 1997
Almost hardboiled detective who keeps getting hit over the head and is drawn deeper and deeper into a very convoluted mystery. Everything seems to go wrong, and the bodies are piling up when our hero finally figures out who is the killer. Fun old fashioned mystery. The Library of Congress mystery series is turning out to include some great old mysteries
Task Total: 20 pts
Season total: 85 pts
B4 B6 B7
I16 I 27
N
G
O
10.10 I30 - published in 30’sA Second Home by Honoré de Balzac
+10 Task pub 1830
+5 Oldies
Task total = 15
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 160
10.4 B9 MPE Page Count of 100-199 pagesThree Tales by Gustave Flaubert
"Three Tales" is a collection of stories about characters exhibiting the saintly behavior of a strong faith and good works. 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.
"A Simple Heart" is a novella about Félicité, a 19th Century uneducated servant who lived a life of piety, service, and loss. Félicité took joy in simple pleasures and was known for her kindness. She was also devoted to her parrot, Loulou. As she aged her hearing and sight diminished, and she believed she had a vision of the Holy Spirit. Félicité had a loving heart and a strong religious faith.
"The Legend of Saint Julian the Hospitaller" was inspired by the stained-glass windows in the cathedral in Flaubert's hometown of Rouen. Flaubert changed the fable of Saint Julian to create his own story which also has roots in the Oedipus myth. Set in the Middle Ages, Julian is a young man with bloodlust who loves to hunt. The violent man is cursed with a prophecy that he will murder his parents, but he moves far away from them to prevent it from happening. However, his parents search for him and the the prophecy becomes reality. Julian devotes himself to a life of penance at a ferry crossing. He is redeemed by his selfless kindness to a leper.
The third story is "Herodias" about the decapitation of John the Baptist on the evening of the birthday celebration of Herod Antipas. His wife, Herodias, uses her daughter Salome in her quest to kill John the Baptist. Flaubert writes excellent psychological descriptions of Herod Antipas and Herodias. The tale contains much pageantry, and seductive dancing by Salome leading up to the tragedy. While it was an interesting tale, there are too many historical and Biblical characters mentioned for a story of this length.
+10 task (144 pages)
+ 5 review
+ 5 oldie (pub 1877)
Task total: 20
Season total: 70
10.4 B11 Bad GuyAmerican Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld
I tried to read this book as purely fictional. I could not. The historical setting of the story is too close to actual events to keep them out of mind. I am a few years younger than Alice Blackwell so her childhood felt familiar. The themes of privilege and racism are ones that my generation has dealt with through our lives. I felt Alice’s reflections on her sex life were out of character for my generation. Yes, there was great liberation in being able to control fertility but I have never had friends draw up comparisons between various lovers! The book is well written and the plot is interesting. It will be interesting to see the reaction of readers in the future who have not lived this history.
+10 task currently tied at #554 on the list
+5 review
+5 jumbo
Task total 20
Season total: 65
15.1- B14- Set in BrazilThe Taker and Other Stories by Rubem Fonseca
This is a set of 15 short and yet gripping stories. Almost all the stories deal with troubled or psychopathic people in Rio de Janeiro. That description alone would normally turn me off...yet Fonseca exposes raw nerves that are hard to ignore...and fascinating. He was once a police officer and Commissioner...so, perhaps the seeming reality of the tales are based in truths. Dark and pessimistic...I'm glad I didn't read these before I visited Rio three years ago...but very glad I discovered this author now. He has many other works waiting to be translated into English. BTW, my visit to Rio and Brazil was wonderful...and I never felt unsafe...but these stories will make you feel queasy.
Task=15
Review=5
Oldie=5
BINGO!= 50 (B5, B7, B8, B9, B14)
Task Total= 75
Grand Total=240
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___; ___: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___; ___; I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___; ___; N38; ___; ___; ___; N42; N43; __; __;
G _ ; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O__; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; ___; __;
15.12 N32 Neighbors - on another GR group's bookshelf This is a group read for The Seasonal Reading Challenge group
The Hidden Life of Trees: what they feel, how they communicate : discoveries from a secret world. Peter Wohlleben
In the past few years, I've read several books (A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, and The Seed Keeper) that have changed the way I look at the natural world. This book falls into that category. I realized that much of what I thought I knew about trees pertains to commercially grown trees and old growth trees are a totally different species. For example, I didn't realize that trees live to be hundreds and even thousands of years old, and that at age 80, they might only be a few feet tall. However, parts of the book felt too anthropomorphic, I have trouble believing trees feel pain, that they intentionally support one another. But there is probably some degree of truth in what he says. All in all, it was an interesting read.
+15 - task
+ 5 - review
Post total: 20
Season total: 245
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B9, I17, N31, G48, O61]
10.1 I26 - InternationalAn Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten
Currently featured on GR International page, third row https://www.goodreads.com/genres/inte...
Task total=10
Season total=10
B
I 26
N
G
O
10.3 BingoO67-Owned
Acorna's Peopleby Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Scaraborough
Task +10
Grand Total: 35
10.2 B9 MPE Page count 100-199 
The Old Man and the Sea
The book is so nice. Subject is simple but the words and language are so beautiful. I guess, it's after all Hemingway's book so I am no one to judge!
+10 points : page - 128
+5 points : review
+5 points : task - pub'd 1952
Total - 20
Season total - 35
N31
B9
_
_
_
10. 3 O71 - One: First book in a seriesBound by Honor by Cora Reilly
Review - honestly, it's not my best mafia book read. i finished it in a day or two, i was hooked, yes, but there were also more than 3 times that i had to skip a scene from boredom. i honestly didn't care for 18+ scenes, too. And some scenes were also too Wattpad-esque for my taste.
i also don't get why Gianna and Matteo's story won't come next considering theirs were the most hinted ones. when Dante was just introduced as a Scotch-loving Capo and Valentina a widower.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total = 15
Post total: 15
Season Total: 20 + 15 + 15 = 50
B — 1;
I — 22;
N —
G —
O — 71;
10.3 G58 Ghosts! (or other paranormal) 
The Book of Cold Cases
“That any woman who doesn’t fit inside a neat little box, any woman who has sexuality as blatant and unapologetic as Beth Greer’s, maybe that woman is dangerous. ”
This is the main character Beth and she is everything. Simone has written her so perfectly. No other character in this book, comes anywhere near to her. I am utterly impressed.
+10 pts - ghosts
+5 pts - review
Total - 15 pts
Season total - 50 pts
N31
B9
G58
-
-
10.3 - N36, Not a NovelThe Great Man: The Ogre Gods Book Three by Hubert
Graphic novel
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 30
B:
I: 28
N: 36
G:
O: 61
10.5 G56 HumorWalking Across Egypt by Clyde Edgerton
Mattie Rigsbee thinks she might be slowing down a bit at age 78, and has no time for a stray dog that shows up at her back door. A call to the dogcatcher starts a series of events that get more and more humorous. The dogcatcher has a 16-year-old nephew, Wesley, who is in juvenile rehabilitation, and Mattie brings him some of her home cooking. Wesley escapes and heads to Mattie's house for more of her pound cake. Mattie lives by the Gospel passage about doing good unto "the least of these my brethren" and takes Wesley under her wing for a few days. Concerned family members, the sheriff, inquisitive neighbors, and hypocritical church members add to the commotion. Soon, Mattie will have more than a stray dog to worry about. The book has all the vibes of a small North Carolina country town. I would love to stop by Mattie's kitchen for a slice of her apple pie and a few laughs.
+10 task
+ 5 oldie (pub 1987)
+ 5 review
Task total: 20
Season total: 90
15.2- G47-GothicThe Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
This Legend is so ingrained in the American psyche that I'm not sure I ever really read it before or just absorbed it through other popular culture media. I didn't recall that the headless horseman was a Hessian soldier...or that Ichabod Crane was a teacher. Anyway, this story is now over 200 years old.... but it doesn't seem so. A good tale with the appropriate level of eeriness for both children and adults to enjoy. Consider visiting or revisiting this American classic.
Task=15
Review=5
Oldie=5
Task Total= 25
Grand Total=265
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___; ___: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___; ___; I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___; ___; N38; ___; ___; ___; N42; N43; __; __;
G _ ;G47; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O__; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; ___; __;
10.8 - B9 - MPE page count 100-199The Cutting Season by M.W. Craven
A novella in the Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw series, where Poe is called to the gory murder of the director of a charity. I enjoyed the story, but I was confused by the writing style, which seemed that of a children’s book except for the blood and gore… until I reached the end and saw it was intended for people who don’t generally read much or well. Then it all made sense.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 15
Season Total = 185
10.9 - G49 - MPE page count 400-499Life of Christ by Giovanni Papini
I read this because it’s on the ‘1001 books you must read before you die’ list, but I don’t think it belongs there. It’s not a biography on the lines of Hesse’s Siddhartha, but a work of popular theology, explaining the gospels from a Catholic point of view. The writing is lively and mostly interesting, but there is a lot of intolerance towards other religions, especially Judaism. I was not altogether surprised to read that the author later became a supporter of fascism.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
+ 5 Oldies (1921)
Task Total = 20
Season Total = 205
10.2 G58 (main character sees ghosts)Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes
Review:
This was candy for sure, but good fun. I can't say too much without spoiling, but it was a good ride that held my attention. The answer to the main question in the book surprised me, and that was good. There's plenty of satisfaction to be had here, which you don't always get with horror.
If it hadn't been for the unnecessary and unnatural seeming romance in the story, I would probably have given it 4 stars. It would have been much more effective and less forced to keep the "couple" as friends and partners on the job. It felt like the author thought we needed that for some reason, but it felt contrived the whole way through to me. Also, it's one of those things where you get why one person likes the other, but not what makes it mutual.
If you like fast-paced sci-fi thrillers, this one is pretty enjoyable.
+10 task
+5 review
Task total = 15
grand total = 30
Bingo Progress:
B9
I
N
G58
O
15.13 B15 Boxall's 1001 Books (any on shelf)This was my carryover book from the spring challenge.
A Prayer for Owen Meany. John Irving
I loved this book, even though it was literary fiction, which I normally don't enjoy because I don't understand much of the symbolism. This is full of symbolism, and is beautifully written, and well worth a second read.
If I had no complaint, it would be that Owen's narrative in the book is written in all-caps, which I found exceptionally difficult to read. I got around it, though, by alternately listening to it on Aubible, and reading it in print.
+15 - task
+ 5 - review
+5 - prior to 1997 (1989)
+5 - more than 500 pages
Post total: 30
Season total: 275
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B9, I17, N31, G48, O61]
15.15 N37 Non human main characterFishbowl by Bradley Somer
Fishbowl is a delight! I find myself in many of the characters, even Ian, the goldfish. “....terrifying cycle of his memory. In this cycle, Ian thinks, Now . . . what was I doing?” the quote is on page 94. I love Somer’s ability to juggle so many characters in so many dire situations as their lives all tumble together.
+10 task - Ian the Goldfish
+5 review
Post total: 20
Season total: 325
15.14 B1 Title has 1 wordGeekerella. Ashley Poston
+15 - task
Post total: 15
Season total: 290
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B9, I17, N31, G48, O61]
10.3 N37 (Main character is an artificially intelligent machine built to look human-ish, but nevertheless is not human)Artificial Condition by Martha Wells
Review:
Artificial Condition is the second in the Murderbot Diaries. I enjoyed the first one, but absolutely loved this one. Although Murderbot is not human, it is charmingly human-like due to all that goes on its head. It's awkward, a little depressed, and it likes to escape into pointless entertainment to comfort itself. It's pretty easy to relate to actually. These books so far are action-packed, enjoyably violent, humorous, and strangely sweet. In this one Murderbot makes several new friends of both the human and machine variety, and learns more about itself in the process.
+10 task
+5 review
task total = 15
grand total = 45
Bingo Progress:
B9
I
N37
G68
O
10.8 - N38 NICKEL: first letter of title is found of "nickel"Kittyhawk Down (Inspector Challis #2) by Garry Disher
+10 Task
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 145
15.11 B15 - Boxall’s 1001 booksThe Castle of Crossed Destinies by Italo Calvino
+15 Task
+5 Oldies pub 1973
Task total = 20
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 180
10.9 - I16 Author name does not contan the letter "I"The First Fleet by Rob Mundle
+10 Task
+5 (512p)
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 160
10.4 - G59, GYPSUM: First letter of title is found in "gypsum"Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 40
B:
I: 28
N: 36
G: 59
O: 61
10.10 - G58 Ghosts! (or other paranormal)Hollow City (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children #2) by Ransom Riggs
+10 Task
+50 BINGO
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 220
10.6 O74 Title has On, Off, Out, Over, Only Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour
+10 Task
Task total = 10
+50 Bingo: First Bingo; O64, O67, O68, O69, O74
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 110
10.7 N31 New to Me AuthorWhere We Once Belonged by Sia Figiel
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 120
10.8 N43 Title has 3 wordsThe Beautiful Mystery: by Louise Penny
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 130
10.7 - I21 - INFLOW Fireborne by Rosaria Munda
Task: 10
Post: 10
Season total: 115
B4,7
I 21,24
N34
G56
O65
15.19 I27, Main Character Is a Private EyeBlacksad by Juan Díaz Canales
This was a great noir graphic novel which references Sam Spade, McCarthy era madness, and missed chances at love: all the best aspects of noir...but all of the characters are animals. At first I was wary--really? animals? why!? But in the end I loved it--you know exactly what sort of character you're getting based on the characteristics ascribed to each of those animals. The wily fox is Weekly, the indefatigable reporter. The wise owl, Liebber, is a venerated scientist and erstwhile philosopher. Our eponymous P.I., John Blacksad, is a cat--good thing he's got nine lives cuz he's gonna need every one of them to navigate the dark underworlds he encounters.
Without even intending to, I'm picking up a lot of noir...guess it's gonna be that kind of summer and I am A-OK with it.
+15 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 20
Season total: 490
B 9, 11, 12
I 16, 17, 18, 27
N 35, 38, 39, 43
G 49, 52, 53, 56
O 61, 63, 65, 74
15.20 B6, BEARDSBetween the Lines by Jodi Picoult
I kept seeing the banners for this one on Goodreads (thought it was going to be an upcoming series...nope: they were pushing the musical...I need to pay more attention to those things, I guess) and this has been on my TBR for a while so I decided now was as good a time as any... I've loved other books by Picoult, but this was a serious departure--it was her daughter's book idea, her characters, her plot, and her daughter "co-wrote" it. Yeah. It definitely reads like a book written by a sixteen-year-old.
I love the concept: when a reader closes the book, the characters go on with their "real" lives...pursuing their hobbies, falling in love with their true hearts' desires rather than the people dictated by the Author, having sometimes menial sometimes meaningful conversations which have nothing to do with the Author's narrative.
Prince Oliver is dissatisfied with the narrowness of his life, of having to jump into character every time his book is opened, of having to fall for a princess that he is not at all interested in. One day, he decides to interact with his reader and that is the beginning of this adventure.
It was a fun fairy tale and I would gladly recommend it to my thirteen-year-old niece...but not really for anyone older than that.
+15 Task
+5 Review
+50 Fourth Bingo: B6, I27, N39, G49, O65
Task total: 70
Season total: 560
B 6, 9, 11, 12
I 16, 17, 18, 27
N 35, 38, 39, 43
G 49, 52, 53, 56
O 61, 63, 65, 74
10.10 - N38 - NICKEL: first letter of title found in "nickel"Life Is a Caravanserai by Emine Sevgi Özdamar
The experiences and thoughts of a girl growing up in Turkey in the 1950s and 60s. She's in a poor family, with her father mostly out of work, and the family of parents, four children and grandmother move from city to city getting by on whatever her father can earn or borrow. But what we hear about mostly is the life of the street, the traditional tales of the grandmother, the numerous neighbours who visit, the dead, and the girl's feverish illnesses and dreams.
It's sometimes confusing, sometimes sad, often raunchy, with a strong sense of place and, despite the references to politics and world events, a timeless quality.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
+ 5 Oldies (1992)
Task Total = 20
Season Total = 225
15.3- G54- 4 word titleBurnt Sugar Cana Quemada: Contemporary Cuban Poetry in English and Spanish
My Spanish is rudimentary...but Spanish is my husband's primary language. This book presents poems from many different authors....most of which are translated from the original Spanish to English...and a few vice versa. A few are untranslated. So...this was a nice way for my husband and I to explore the same text simultaneously. Almost all the poems anchor themselves in something concrete about Cuba, her people and customs. My favorite was "Memories" by Eugenio Florit which includes this portion-"Lord, let me be aware of all my rivers, the ones I know, the ones I should know; because to know rivers is to know the land through which they flow; because to know rivers, is to know the trees they reflect, the stones which kiss them, the birds nesting on their shores and the fish darting through their waters. To know rivers is to know the blood of your native land."
Task=15
Review=5
Task Total= 20
Grand Total=285
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___; ___: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___; ___; I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___; ___; N38; ___; ___; ___; N42; N43; __; __;
G _ ;G47; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___;G54; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O__; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; ___; __;
10.4 I17 title word ends in -ingThe Moving Toyshop by Edmund Crispin
Another fun installment in the Gervase Fen series. It is my understanding this is Crispin's most well-known of the series and that it has been made into a movie for television. As I read, I thought it probalby made a good film. There was more action than I recall in other installments I've read.
It starts with Richard Cadogan, a poet, wanting a vacation. The vacation was needed because, basically, he was bored and wanted an adventure and some excitement. He definitely got more than he bargained for. His "vacation" didn't take him far - only to Oxford. The train schedule got changed on him and he arrived near midnight due to the kindess of a lorry driver. On the edge of town, Cadogan found the door of a toyshop open and went in. (We don't ask motives here.) Anyway, Cadogan found a dead body - and promptly got hit over the head. Next morning he reported the body to the police, but when he tried to show them where, the toyshop had turned into a grocery store.
This series is filled with many literary references and Crispin likes to share his large vocabulary. I'm sure I missed many of the references and I looked up words, and was still able to find some parts amusing. Maybe if I were more well read of early British literature I would have been further amused. But did I say there was lots of action? I suspect I'll read more in this series eventually. This one was 4-stars.
+10 task
+ 5 Review
+ 5 Before 1997 (1946)
Task total = 20
Season total = 80
15.12 N34 - Nebula AwardFlowers for the Sea by Zin E. Rocklyn
+15 Task
Task total = 15
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 195
15.11 - G56 Get the giggles: HumorAgatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came (Agatha Raisin #12) by M.C. Beaton
'Humor' on MPG (17x)
+15 Task
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 235
10.4 N34 - NebulaThis Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar
Everyone I know loved this book, so I'm distinctly in the minority here, but I found it frustrating and somewhat dull through most of the book. Perhaps it would have been better in print rather than audio format, though usually epistolary novels work well in narration.
The ending neatly brought the story around, so an extra star for that. And I wanted more of the universe and how the time war worked. But I cared little about Red or Blue or their supposed romance. Maybe I'm just feeling jaded right now.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 15
Grand total: 60
15.16 B-3 Booker Prize WinnerMilkman by Anna Burns
I am “1st sister” to seven other siblings. I like the way Burns writes; her characters are well defined though they lack a common element. This is a Booker Prize winner. Milkman shows you a life affected by neighborhood prejudices, family attitudes and national loyalty. Our setting is Ireland at a time of turmoil; in a neighborhood full of double standards and assumed truths. But in the end, I feel it is about believing in yourself.
+15 task Winner 2018
+5 Review
+50 3rd bingo B3, I16, N31, G54, O69
Post total: 70
Season Total: 395
10.4 - O63 - First letter in title is in ORPHAN Hidden in Plain Sight by Jeffrey Archer
+10 task
Task total: 10
Grand total: 40
15.4- N36-Not a NovelThe Pillowman by Martin McDonagh
This is a play that really makes you think. It would be interesting to see it staged...because I can imagine it being played as a dark comedy...or straight up eerie. The premise is that a writer of weird stories is arrested and being tortured by authorities because several recent child murders resemble plots in his stories. The writer's brother is also arrested..but he's simple-minded. The investigators have apparent authority to be ruthless...in this unnamed country. The writer is willing to sacrifice himself if his stories will survive. So many questions swirl in the reader's mind as this play progresses about what one would do in any of the character's shoes.
Task=15
Review=5
Task Total= 20
Grand Total=305
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___; ___: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___; ___; I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N___; ___; ___; ___; ___;N36; ___; N38; ___; ___; ___; N42; N43; __; __;
G _ ;G47; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___;G54; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O__; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __; ___; __;
15.15 B5 Biography, Autobiography or MemoirThe Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness. Meghan O'Rourke
This was a hard one to rate. On the one hand, I feel for people who suffer and have no answers, for whom just making it through the day is an accomplishment. On the other hand, some of it made me skeptical. Also, it felt too all over the place.
+15 - task
+5 - review
Post total: 20
Season total: 310
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B9, I17, N31, G48, O61]
15.13 O64 - Orange Prize & Women’s PrizeThe Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki
+15 Task this year’s winner
+ 5 Jumbo 548 pages
Task total = 20
+50 second bingo B03 I23 N35 G56 O64
Post Total: 70
Season Total: 265
10.9 N32 Neighbors - on another GR group's bookshelfAn Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten
+10 Task (Seasonal Reading Challenge Bookshelf)
Task total = 10
Post Total: 10
Season Total: 140
10.10 N41 Title includes a number (either numerals or letters)Seven Lies by James Lasdun
+10 Task
Task total = 10
+50 Bingo: Second Bingo; N31, N32, N41, N42, N43
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 200
15.15 I23 Set in Iceland. (Hesteyri and Ísafjörður)I Remember You by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
YAY! This was a scary book! This is one of the genres that really gets me when it’s done well - malevolent spirit and creepy kids… whispers and creaking floorboards…
The night before I finished this, my child who should know better by now crept up to me as I was sleeping and shook me awake. Yes, I screamed. And today as I was finishing it my other child drifted silently into the room and went to look over my shoulder and I jumped a MILE. I hate that and I also love it.
At first the POV shifts were abrupt and annoying. We start with a trio of desperate house-renovators, then flip now it’s a sad-sack psychiatrist who is terminally boring. BUT it quickly gets better, and the alternating POVs allow suspense and tension to build really well.
The DIYers are exceptionally stupid, but the stupidity has motive. The book is set in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. This vacation cottage scheme cannot fail, which explains why they are messing about in the depth of winter in an abandoned village - they need to have the house ready for guests come summer because they have no options.
The mystery storyline is not as engaging as the haunting, at least not until it starts to come together. Then I was all in.
+15 task
+5 review
+50 BINGO
Task total = 70
Season total = 405
B8
I23
N43
G49
O62
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
When Bad Things Happen to Good People (other topics)The Lord Is My Shepherd: Healing Wisdom of the Twenty-third Psalm (other topics)
The Fairy Caravan (other topics)
Before the Coffee Gets Cold (other topics)
Fascination In France (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Harold S. Kushner (other topics)Beatrix Potter (other topics)
Toshikazu Kawaguchi (other topics)
Barbara Cartland (other topics)
C.J. Sansom (other topics)
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Claude & Camille: A Novel of Monet by Stephanie Cowell
On the first page of the Prologue, which is dated July 1908, is "Why do you write to me after all these years, Monet? I still hold you responsible for the death of my sister, Camille. There can be no communication between us." Then Monet goes into a part of his studio he hasn't visited recently and gazes at Camille, painting after painting of her. Among his thoughts is "I loved you so. ... These gardens at Giverny are for you, but I'm old and you're forever young and will never see them."
Some might consider this novel a romance. I thought, instead, it is a love story. Claude Monet had not one, but two, great loves in his life: painting and Camille. He was most definitely the one great love in her life. But he couldn't live without painting and there were times when Camille wondered if he even truly loved her. As such this read is almost an emotional roller coaster.
I am drawn to historical fiction, but especially to biographical fiction. Perhaps I'd be drawn to biographies themselves, but my encounters of those have been academic. Fiction allows more latitude and is better able to let the reader inside the person, rather than our merely learning his/her accomplishments. For some reason I feel like witholding a star on this, but it is very good and I might be stingy today. I will definitely be looking at/for some of her other titles.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total = 15
Season total = 60