Reading with Style discussion
note: This topic has been closed to new comments.
Archives
>
SU 22 Completed Tasks
20.22 - N35 NoirThe Likeness (Dublin Murder Squad #2) by Tana French
Noir 17x
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 525
20.21 G56 Get the gigglesBook Lovers by Emily Henry
I am so glad I read Book Lovers when I needed to read a humorous book for a task. I laughed, more than I cried, as I followed the story of two “perfect” people. Of course, with a title like Book Lovers, I was not disappointed to find countless referrals to novels I enjoyed. But most of all the “list” fit with my life of relatives who cannot look at a clipboard without thinking of my Dad. This is one of the best books I have read so far this year .
+20 task
+5 review
Post total: 25
Season total: 545
15.19 N39 300-399 pagesBlack Hole by Charles Burns 368 pages
This was not for me.
I think the target audience for this is people who were angsty teens in the 70s, and currently-angsty teens. The former can add depth to the story with their own nostalgia and the latter will like the nudity.
The synopsis of the book is misleading with the whole “and then the murders start”. This is not a slasher or a thriller… while there are some murders they function more like an aside to the story. There’s no tension, barely even any reactions. They just happen for the artwork.
And as for the artwork… at first it is pretty interesting. For the first few pages. But almost all the main characters look alike. It must be a choice, perhaps a visual way to indicate that everyone feels alone and outcast at some point but we’re not all that different? IDK. Whatever.
The plot is scattered, characters are flat and undifferentiated, the art becomes tiresome. This probably worked better as a serial - small doses of weird and no expectations of a story - but as a collection this is far from a masterpiece of the genre. It was boring and cliche.
+15 task
+5 review
Task total = 20
Season total = 490
B3
I17
N39
G50
O
10.6 B9 Page Count 100-199 PagesAn Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten
I enjoyed this strange book - it's a collection of linked stories featuring Maud, a Swedish 88 year old who lives rent free in a large apartment, due to a condition of the sale - much to the chagrin of the building owners. Maud is very healthy, active, and quick to solve the many problems of apartment life. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her solutions, though I would not want to cross her in real life! A fast, fun read.
+10 task (178 pages)
+5 review
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 140
10.7 I26 International An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten
Second book about Maud, the 88 year old "problem solver"! This one is a bit longer and the structure is interesting - she is flying to South Africa on vacation and along the way, recalls several incidents across her life, from childhood to recently. It becomes clear that her strategies for dealing with cruel or difficult neighbors have been honed since she was young! When she gets to South Africa, a long section describes the trip itself (which I did enjoy, actually) before culminating in another problem solving adventure. This one had a surprisingly heartwarming and satisfying ending.
+10 task (shelved 4x international - takes place across a few countries)
+5 review
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 155
10.8 O74 Title Has On, Off, Out... Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working from Home by Charlie Warzel
This was a (good!) surprise. I began thinking the book would contain a few tips from working from home, a few ideas about reimagining workplaces to accommodate remote work, etc -- but it ended up being more than that. In essence, the authors are trying to urge people to make work NOT be the center of their lives, painting a picture of all the other things we might fill our days with if work became slightly less central to our identities. Work from home, they argue, could help with that - but only if we undertake these bigger changes. It was a fascinating read and I think they considered a lot of different factors pretty effectively.
+10 task
+5 review
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 170
20.24 N43 Title has 3 wordsBig Stone Gap. Adriana Trigiani
Ava Maria is a 35 year old "spinster" pharmacist who has just lost her mother when the story opens. She discovers things she never knew about herself and along the way, what she wants out of life. I liked that the story took place in 1978-79, it was a time in my life I remember well, and can relate to Ava as a young woman during that time. I loved the friendships she had with several of the people in town, but I didn't get the point of why she (view spoiler). I see that my library has the movie, I might check that out, as well.
+20 - task
+5 - review
Post total: 25
Season total: 670
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
(view spoiler)
15.13 - N39 - MPE page count 300-399Slow Horses by Mick Herron
First in series featuring Jackson Lamb and his crew of MI5 agents who have been sidelined into a backstreet office called Slough House because they have disgraced themselves or otherwise messed up. They're not allowed to run operations, but someone senior starts to involve them when a right-wing group threatens to behead a British Muslim student in retaliation for beheadings in Iraq.
I enjoyed this and will look out for the rest of the series.
+15 Task
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 20
Season Total = 295
15.20 O66 repeated wordThe Low, Low Woods by Carmen Maria Machado
Very good!
My last graphic novel took 368 pages to go nowhere. This one accomplished everything it needed to in half the pages.
The characters are instantly engaging and grounded. You feel something for them. The artwork is wonderful. Sketchy and evocative. And the story is excellent. It has a few different layers of scary, all in this-really-happens ways (just with less special effects).
+15 task
+5 review
+50 BINGO B3 I17 N39 G50 O66
Task total = 70
Season total = 560
20.1 B2 2+ Bs in titleAuntie Agatha's Home for Wayward Rabbits Volume 1 by Keith Giffen
Eh. As a break between heavier fare, this was fine I guess. But I didn’t find it cute or funny. It was background cartoon noise. I have no idea who the intended audicence is… teens or stoners I guess. The art is very comic-strip, but the excuse for a plot is about corporate greed. Said plot is: an evil developer has thugs try and force Auntie to sell her land cheaply, but the rabbits resist.
This never came together for me and even though it was very short I had to power through it.
Not the worst thing ever but definitely not recommended.
+20 task
+ 5 review
Task total = 25
Season total = 585
B2
I
N
G
O
10.8 - B9 - Page Count - 100-199Murder on the Saanich Paninsula by Kathy Garthwaite
+10 task - 174pgs
Task total: 10
Grand total: 130
10.2 B7 Best BooksEmily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery (1923) 339 pages, 4.10 rating · 46,647 Ratings
I just finished Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery (1923) which is a whole-hearted 5* read for me. I liked Anne of Green Gables, but love Emily. Emily B. Starr is the main character of a three-book series. I read Emily #1. I felt the characters were incredibly realistic and well drawn with depth and emotion. The joys and sorrows of real life were depicted. Being partially autobigraphical for the author, Montgomery was able to paint a vivid picture of what it was to live on Prince Edward Island at that point in time. Her first aspiration was to write poetry and it shows in her prose. Her writing is picturesque and she has a deep connection with Nature.
+10 task
+5 publication date (1923)
+5 review
20 for task
20 previous total
40 current total
B7
I
N37
G
O
Task 10.7 N32 Neighbors - on another GR group's bookshelfWhen the Sparrow Falls is on the bookshelf of GR group Beyond Reality. Here is the link to their bookshelf:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/books...
When the Sparrow Falls (2021) by Neil Sharpson
Review: When the Sparrow Falls is a twisty spy thriller set in the year 2210 C.E. Our narrator, Nikolai South, is a clinically depressed agent for the internal spy agency (think KGB in the Cold War days) for Azerbaijan. He gets swept up in other people’s plots. On top of the spy thriller are AI (artificial intelligence) elements and other technological advances, all of which complicate Nikolai’s life. The novel had a natural ending to the story around page 280 – then continued for another 40 pages (!). I’d only recommend this novel to people who like science fiction.
+10 Task
+05 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 = 15
[Bingo #1: B3, I6, N32, G51, O61]
Grand Total: 75 + 15 + 50 = 140
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
Just realized I've been numbering my posts incorrectly...but I suppose the mods could figure out what I had intended.20.21- B11- Rooting for the Bad Guy
The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan
Well this is a strange one. As I drew to the last two chapters, I began wondering whether this might be classified as Gothic... since I don't really know what defines that genre other than my sense of an old eerie feeling. The GR genres however did not indicate anyone shelving the book as Gothic....but I did notice a few people shelved it as "transgressive". Well, what does that mean? Well....yes...that is the correct genre....characters who break all norms and expectations....to such a degree that it is uncomfortable to read...especially the ending. Nevertheless, it is fascinating and disturbing...and deserves its place on the Boxall 1000 list. I really don't want to discuss the plot at all...since it is a short novel.... and the shocks begin at the very start...but I do encourage you to give it a try.
Task=20
Review=5
oldie=5 (1978)
Task Total= 30
Grand Total=530
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___;B11: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___;I18;I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N__;___;N33*;___; ___;N36*;__; N38*;___;__; __;N42*; N43*;N44; __;
G _ ;G47; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___;G54; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O61; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___; __;O69;O70
15.11 B6- E in BEARDSExile by Shannon Messenger
Lexile score 800
Task: 15
Over 500 pages: 5 (MPE 567 )
Post total : 20
Season total: 210
B4,7, 6
I 24,21
N34,44
G 56,52
O65,66
20.22 I20 - Author born in 20sA Shadow's Bliss by Patricia Veryan
+20 Task born 2023
+5 Oldies pub 1994
Task total = 25
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 525
10.3 G57 Guardian 1000 ListBreakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote (1958)
I just read
by Truman Capote . I rated it 5* , Holly Golightly is an icon, with good reason. I think Capote's gift is the tenderness with which he builds his characters. He treats them lovingly and then even the harshest story line become endearing and touching. He is a unique writer. Somehow I missed reading this in school, but the Guardian 1000 list and this challenge helped me correct that.+10 G57 Guardian 1000
+5 review
+5 publication date
post total 20
season total 60
B B7
I
N N37
G G57
O
20.25 B4 Before: Historical FictionA Girl Is a Body of Water. Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
Very well written and interesting piece of African literature that takes place in the 1970s, with a secondary storyline taking place in the 1940s, in Uganda, during and after the Amin regime. It is a mix of folklore, mythology, historical fiction and feminism, all rolled into one, that examines the slowly changing role of women in Ugandan culture, and the power and role of clans.
+20 - task
+5 - review
+5 - 560 Pages
Post total: 30
Season total: 700
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
(view spoiler)
20.22 I28 Time travel Alternate HistoryDark Matter by Blake Crouch
+20 task
Post total: 20
Season totals: 565
10.7 N 38 NickelCapital Crimes by Jonathan Kellerman
Two novellas by Jonathan and Faye Kellerman with cameos by Peter Decker and Alex Delaware. Mediocre mysteries that need an editor and chase red herrings that are not very interesting. Skip this even if you generally like the Kellermans writing.
10 pts 10.7
5 pts Review
Task Total: 15pts
Season total: 115 pts
B4 B6 B7
I16 I27 I29
N38
G
O
Task 10.8 B6 BEARDS: First letter of title is found of "beards"bearDs
Deadly Advice (Advice Column Mystery #1) (2007) by Roberta Isleib (Paperback, 272 pages)
Review: Deadly Advice is the first of three novels starring clinical psychologist Dr. Rebecca Butterman. She’s 38 years old, recently divorced, no children. She has recently moved to an upper middle class condominium in a small town in southern Connecticut. The mystery is about her neighbor – was it suicide, or was it murder? What I liked: (1) Rebecca had a good reason for investigating; (2) Rebecca would tell the Police detective whenever she found out something relevant to the case; (3) Rebecca has a community around her – a group of friends and a younger sister. What I didn’t care for: (1) the mystery solution was more sordid than is usual in cozy mysteries; (2) the discussions about depression and ‘family trauma’ – I was expecting a light hearted cozy mystery, not a somber morality tale! Thinking back on the novel, I don’t think anyone was happy with their life in the entire novel! (with the possible exception of Rebecca’s friend Angie). That said, I’d probably pick up the next in the series *one of these days*.
+10 Task
+05 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 = 15
Grand Total: 140 + 15 = 155
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B3, I6, N32, G51, O61]
20.23 - O69 Often: Author you have read beforeBelladonna (Ephemera #2) by Anne Bishop
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 545
10.6 B6 - BEARDS: First letter of title is found of "beards"Believe Me by Tahereh Mafi
Review - Definitely not my favorite book in the series. Not even in the top 5. God, it was just at least a 100 hundred pages worth of Aaron being dick Warner all over again! I needed Ignite Me Warner!! It was their bloody wedding day and he was acting like such an ungrateful and unfeeling dick! What the hell!! Cheers to Kenji for always bloody trying.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total = 15
Post total: 15
Season Total: 20 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 = 95
1st BINGO:
2nd BINGO:
B — 1; 6;
I — 22; 24;
N — 31;
G —
O — 71;
10.7 I23 - Set in: Italy, Iran, Indonesia, Iceland, IndiaLove & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch
Review - definitely one of my best reads of 2022. and definitely worth the hype. i just hope the adaptation wouldn't suck.
it was like reading an Italian version of Love and Other Words. i've never been to Italy, though I've always wanted to, this book only fueled that dream even more. i even know for a fact that if I get to go to Italy, in Florence specifically, I'd use this book as reference.
the whole time I was reading, it was like I was with Lina touring Florence with her, too.
tbh, when i read about the 'living in a cemetery' part, i almost closed off the book, but i was glad that i decided to carry on. loved all the characters, they were all lovable, especially Ren. loved his relationship with scary, smart Howard.
i also loved the dual pov kind of thing through reading her mom's journal entries. the plot was amazing, too. i think it was well written and delivered.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total = 15
Post total: 15
Season Total: 20 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 = 110
1st BINGO:
2nd BINGO:
B — 1; 6;
I — 22; 24; 23;
N — 31;
G —
O — 71;
15.12 I28 If, if, if ... Speculative Fiction, Time Travel, Alternate HistoryParable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
This book was first published in 1993; so when the first journal entry was dated 2024, it must have seemed to have been far into the future. Reading it in 2022, though, made me wonder if it would be true in a few years.
The background of the story is bleak. The known world has been divided off into neighborhoods that are walled, and people live in fear of others breaking in and wreaking havoc. The police and public services cannot be counted upon for those who have little or no money to pay for them. Children are home-schooled. Most are illiterate. Jobs are scarce.
Into this we have a young girl, daughter of a preacher, who understands that it will become worse...and it does. The story follows this young girl.
There is hope slyly hidden in the story...and it ends with a possible beginning again started. It is also a hidden comment on religion and belief in G-d and challenges the reader to think about what belief is in light of such a world.
Task Points: 15
Review Points: 5
BINGO: B9, I28, N32, G54, O63
Total Task Points: 20
Bonus Points: 50
Season Points: 290
B -
I -
N -
G -
O -
First BINGO (B6, I27, N31, G58, O67)
Second BINGO (B9, I28, N32, G54, O63)
10.8 G54 - Title has 4 wordsThe World’s Worst Children by David Walliams
Review - this was such a nostalgic read!! take me back to the chilly mornings of reading my books during silent reading when school was still on.
i found the stories to be so hilarious and witty. i loved the illustrations, too. it's one of the great things about Walliam's book. and his sense of humor and use of very Englishly words.
i especially liked Dribbling Drew, Bertha the Blubber, Nigel Nit-boy, and Brian Wong, who was never, ever wrong's stories. theirs were especially unforgettable.
i'm glad i took the time to read this again
+50 Bingo
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total = 65
Post total: 65
Season Total: 20 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 15 + 65 = 175
1st BINGO: B1; I22; N31; G54; O71
2nd BINGO:
B — 1; 6;
I — 22; 24; 23;
N — 31;
G — 54;
O — 71;
15.17 G46 Set in: Germany, Guatemala, Greece, Georgia (country or US)Georgia (country)
The Pear Field by Nana Ekvtimishvili
+15 Task:
Task total = 15
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 355
15.18 G54 Title has 4 wordsLay Me out Softly: Short Stories by Francesca Lia Block
+15 Task:
Task total = 15
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 370
15.19 G57 https://www.theguardian.com/books/200... 1000 (any on list)The Riddle of the Sands by Erskine Childers
+15 Task:
Task total = 15
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 385
10.4 O68 Author name does not contain the letter OMake Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World by William H. McRaven (2017) 130 pages. 4*
Admiral William H. McRaven has turned commencement speeches into an advice book. Using examples from his military career in the Navy SEALS, he gives inspirational lessons on how to achieve one's goals through perserverance. I gave this book 4*. Today it was the correct message. I needed to get off my backside and accomplish a few things. I am a strong believer in rest time and family time, so this message is sometimes appropriate. Use this book if you need a little push.
task 10
review 5
post total 15
season total 75
B B7
I
N N37
G G57
O O68
20.23 N36 Not a NovelThe Season: A Social History of the Debutante by Kristen Richardson
+20 task
Post total: 20
Season total: 585
10.8 B3 Booker Prize NomineeThe Master by Colm Tóibín
"The Master" is a psychological portrait of Henry James set in the late 19th Century with flashbacks to his earlier life. Henry James came from an intellectual American family that traveled widely through Europe during his formative years. James spent time in the great European cities of London, Paris, Venice, Rome, and Florence. He enjoyed socializing, and often based characters in his books on people he met. But he also needed private, quiet time to think and write, and he found that solitude when he bought the Lamb House in Rye along the English coast.
James was a person who kept some distance between himself and his close friends which included writer Constance Fenimore Woolson and sculptor Hendrik Andersen. James is portrayed as a man who repressed his sexuality.
His relationships with his family members were interesting. He had a difficult father, a protective mother, and a brilliant invalid sister. There was rivalry with his older brother, and a feeling of guilt from witnessing the bravery of his younger brothers who fought in the Civil War.
Author Colm Toibin shows Henry James as a complex, intelligent man who was a close observer of people, but very private about revealing his life to others. The book was an interesting look at James' midlife while ideas of his next novels were percolating in his mind. Toibin's writing is lovely, and dwells on the inner life of his subject.
+10 task
+ 5 review
Task total: 15
Season total: 145
20.24 - G50 Author born in the 50s, any centuryAssassin’s Quest (The Farseer Trilogy #3) by Robin Hobb
born 1952 -approval
+20 Task
+5 (757p)
+5 (pub 1997)
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 575
20.22-O75- Aged AuthorRed Lights by Georges Simenon
This is only the third novel by Simenon that I have read and my appreciation continues to grow. Although I love to read mysteries, at this point, I find murder mysterious to be tiresome. This novel is not about a murder. And although classified as a mystery...there isn't much of a mystery here either. This novel is more of a psychological examination of the main character Steve Hogan. Some strange and mundane circumstances combine to trigger Hogan's demons... and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. One other point- this novel takes place in New England. Simenon is a Belgian/French author.... but the reader would never know that. He seems to know the setting well. The translation by Norman Denny gives no clue that this wasn't written originally in English. 5 stars
Task=20
Review=5
oldie=5 (1953)
Task Total= 30
Grand Total=560
B___; ___; ___; ___;B5*;___; B7*; B8*;B9*; ___;B11: ___; ___;B14*; ___;
I___; ___;I18;I19; ___; I21; I22; ___;___; ___;___; ___; ___; ___; ___;
N__;___;N33*;___; ___;N36*;__; N38*;___;__; __;N42*; N43*;N44; __;
G _ ;G47; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___;G54; ___; ___; ___; __; __; ___;
O61; ___; ___; ___; ___; ___;___;___;O69;O70; ___; ___; __;___;O75
10.8 I20 Author born in the 20s, any centuryLion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters
I have to admit I did not enjoy this installment as much as the three prior ones that I have read. I'm not absolutely positive of the reason, but I think it was too soon after reading The Mummy Case. This was very much a continuation of that story having Amelia looking for the Master Criminal. This one begins with a murder and continues with the purported suspects turning up at the Emerson archeaological diggings. There follows much skulduggery and confusion.
The narrative throughout the series purports to be from Amelia's diary and published after her death. She can say what she pleases. Amelia's characterization is that of the ultra feminist. She is full of her self and her own opinions, including that men are inferior creatures. Despite that inferior creature thing, she has the hots for her husband. But this is all set in Victorian times so they must not let on in front of other people.
I have no way of telling this so that it sounds as laugh out loud funny as the author makes it. But that was also part of the problem of my reading these too close together. It is fun to laugh at and with Amelia, but the same joke told too often (or too soon!) wasn't as funny. I have several more in the series and I have no intention of abandoning it. But I might give myself some time before reading #5. This is 3-stars, probably falling toward the top of that group.
+10 Task (b. 1927)
+ 5 Review
+ 5 Oldies (1986)
Task total = 20
Season total = 200
20.24 O-63 ORPHAN title first letter in ....Nine Lives by Peter Swanson
Nine Lives has a great pace. It feels like a modern-day Agatha Christie story. Nine strangers, how are they connected? Who have they wronged? Who will solve this crime spree? You will have to read it to find out! I might just need to read another of Christie’s novels after this one.
+20 task
+5 review
Post total: 25
Season total: 610
15.14 - I19 - Author first name is Ian/Iain, Isaac, Ivan/a, Isabel, IrisLondon Orbital by Iain Sinclair
I read that this was an account of a walk around the M25 and had a vague image of Sinclair tramping around the hard shoulder with vehicles whizzing by, but of course you're not allowed to do that. Instead he walked through towns and villages close to its path. And he didn't do it all at once, as I expected, camping or B&B'ing along the way - he did it in chunks of around 10 miles at a time, about once a month, over a whole year (1999). Different people accompanied him, some just for one day, some for more, one for most of it.
This has its good points: some wonderful prose, some interesting history, but it's fragmentary in both style and content, jumping about and dropping names of people and places everywhere. I particularly disliked the cultural snobbery and the scornful tone Sinclair applies to people and places that don't measure up to his standards. It's hard to keep interested even for me as someone from within 100 miles of London who remembers 1999. I don't know what it would be like for someone younger and/or from another country trying to wade through this.
It broadened my knowledge of the outer London suburbs and their history, but I'd have preferred it in half the number of pages without Sinclair's prejudices coating everything. But then it wouldn't be psychogeography, and that is the whole point.
+15 Task
+ 5 Review
+ 5 Jumbo
Task Total = 25
Season Total = 320
15.15 - I26 - InternationalThe Word Is Murder by Anthony Horowitz
A woman goes into an undertaker's to arrange her own funeral. By the end of that day she is dead - not from illness or suicide, but murdered. Anthony Horowitz (as a character in his own novel) is persuaded by ex-DI Hawthorn to follow the investigation in order to write a book about it.
This is the first in a series and I'd already enjoyed the second. Horowitz writes engagingly about himself and his life as a writer as well as about his fictional characters. Sometimes I find his books a little obvious, but this time I didn't guess it.
+15 Task (6 shelvings)
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 20
Season Total = 340
20.23 N40 - published in the 40sThe Dogs and the Wolves by Irène Némirovsky
+20 Task published 1940
+5 Oldies
Task total = 25
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 550
10.5 B2 - Booker PrizeEverything Under by Daisy Johnson
I picked this book up on a whim at a lovely bookshop in London. I'd never heard of the book or the author, despite it having been shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2018. The handwritten note next to the book said something like, "I can't describe what the book is about and I couldn't put it down. Everyone should read this." An apt description, I'd say, though I'm not sure this book would appeal to everyone.
It's written in a highly experimental format, which I think certain readers will find confusing. You have to go with the flow of the story, shifting narrators, and flipping about in time. It's a story about a river, and the format feels sort of like river rafting--there are slow bits, then suddenly a patch of rapids where you're left spinning dizzily, then a smooth fast moving part, then another lilting bit of slowness. But the writing is dazzling. I was carries along by the beauty of the sentences and the emotional pull of the story.
I'm so glad to have read this book and will definitely now be looking into more books by this author.
+10 Task (Booker shortlist 2018)
+5 Review
Task total: 15
Grand total: 75
10.6 N31 - New to me authorCulture Warlords: My Journey Into the Dark Web of White Supremacy by Talia Lavin
I bought this book in a lovely bookshop in London. I was standing in front of the politics section feeling overwhelmed and noticing that nearly everything was written by a man. I picked this off the shelf initially just because it was one of the few books written by a woman.
I expected to learn more from this than I actually did. Maybe I just already know more about the ultra-right-wing crazies than many people, but somehow this journey didn't feel all that revelatory. I enjoyed the light and conversational tone, but I wanted less memoir of the author's own journey and more detailed information about how these groups work, how people fall down the rabbit hole, and how they find their way out. So, maybe what I'm saying is that I wanted this to be a different book than it was.
If I'm going to read a light and breezy memoir, I want a less depressing topic. If I'm going to spend several hours thinking about hate-filled-conspiracy-theorists, I want to actually learn more about how to work against them, how to rescue people from their propaganda, or more details of how they are operating. That's not mostly available in this book, though the description of her catfishing a Ukrainian terrorist was highly amusing and perhaps a bit instructive.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 15
Grand total: 90
10.9 I28 if, if, if The Candy House by Jennifer Egan
So different and so fun to read. Egan writes in little vignettes centered on different somewhat interrelated characters. She explores what it would mean to download our subconscious memories and have many people share them, as well as have them commercialized. She drops crumbs to help us tie the stories together more or less. Past, semi-present and future pieces.
So questions: would our subconscious really be accurate? Considering how poorly human memory performs?
What was in the suitcase? Some story lines seem to be left hanging.
Quite frankly, I lost the thread of the scheme to make contact using a plot to do a documentary involving country X and doing a reunion of a band.
This is one book that I would like to reread.
I listened to the audio, which was done effectively with a number of readers.
+10 task MPG speculative fiction
+5 review
Task total: 15
Season total: 190
20.22 I21 INFLOWWhen the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen
Good, atmospheric book with some truly horrific moments. Mira has spent her life trying not to see the past, trying to be good and thinking that it will keep her safe, but she has to come to terms with her own past and that of her ancestors in this ghost story. It starts out really promising, but as we get into the main story it faltered a bit… the horror comes from reality and not from the hauntings. And the ghosts were too passive for me. I wanted Marceline and Jeffery to get some revenge.
+20 task
+5 review
Task total = 25
Season total = 610
B2
I21
N
G
O
Task 10.09 G50 Author born in the 50s, any centuryGoodreads biography states that Loren D. Estleman was born on September 15, 1952
Mister St. John (1983) by Loren D. Estleman (Mass Market Paperback, 224 pages)
Review:Mister St. John is a ‘western’ novel set in 1906. The Pinkerton Detective Agency has been hired to apprehend a gang of bank robbers operating in the Wyoming-Colorado area of the country. They, in turn, hire retired lawman Mister St. John to form a posse and track down the bank robbers.
There is a Pinkerton representative who will go with the posse. Estleman spends quite a bit of the novel relating the backstories of the various characters, both Mister St. John and his posse, and the bank robbers. The violence is not glamorized (as it is in a lot of westerns). The ending fits the story. I’d recommend this one, even for people who don’t normally read westerns.
+10 Task
+05 1997 or earlier
+05 Review
Task Total: 10 + 05 + 05 = 20
Grand Total: 155 + 20 = 175
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B3, I6, N32, G51, O61]
20.24 O73 - OutdoorsThe Bear by Andrew Krivak
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 570
10.6 - B3 - Booker Prize, winners and nomineesEverything Under by Daisy Johnson
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 110
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
10.7 - G47, GothicFirst Born by Hubert
Gothic-fantasy graphic novel, as stated in the kickstarter page : https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 120
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
10.8 - I23, Set in ItalyVestales by Isaline Schreck
Set in ancient Rome, Italy
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 130
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
10.9 - N37, Non human main characterJefferson by Jean-Claude Mourlevat
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Season total = 140
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
This topic has been frozen by the moderator. No new comments can be posted.
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)
More...
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)
More...
They Called Us Enemy by George Takei & others
+20 Task
Post Total: 20
Season Total: 505