Challenge: 50 Books discussion

2010 TALLY: 19 original reads (excludes rereads)
Finished 9/3 -- "The Rembrandt Affair" by Yann Martel

CURRENTLY READING
written book: "Pride & Prejudice & Zombies" by Robert Harris
audiobook: "A Visit From the Goon Squad" by Jennifer Egan
bonus book (rereads): none

Star ratings are out of five stars

My original goal was to read one book a week, but that hasn't happened. So I'm just trying to read as many as I can in what's left of the year.

You can checkout my goodreads profile here: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/13...

JANUARY


None (How very sad)

FEBRUARY


1) Shades of Grey: The Road to High Saffron -- Jasper Fforde (2/5/10)
4 stars


2) The Lightening Thief -- Rick Riordian (2/10/10)
2-1/2 stars (adult readers), 4 stars (youth readers)

MARCH


3) American on Purpose -- Craig Ferguson (3/4/10)
3-3/4 stars


4) The Hunger Games -- Suzanne Collins (3/16/10)
3-3/4 stars

APRIL


5) The Princess Who Believed in Fairy Tales -- Marcia Grad (4/24/10)
3-3/4 stars


6) The Glass Castle -- Jeannette Walls (4/29/10)
3-3/4 stars

MAY


7) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks--Rebecca Skloot (5/10/10)
4-1/4 stars


8) Catching Fire--Suzanne Collins (5/12/10)
3-3/4 stars


BONUS BOOKS (rereads)
The Help--Kathryn Stockett (the audiobook is FANTASTIC!!!)
4-1/2 stars


Lost in a Good Book--Jasper Fforde
3-3/4 stars


The Well of Lost Plots--Jasper Fforde
3-2/3 stars

I'm TRYING really hard to finish Julie and Julia. My recommendation...if you *have* to read it, get it from the library or borrow it from a friend, but DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY. While the sheer amount of swearing is a turn off for me and the sexual references are out of place, others don't have a problem with them. The writing, while not amateurish, isn't professional. The story doesn't flow well. She goes off on tangents a lot, and I feel jerked in and out of the story. She could have cut a quarter of the book out, made it more concise and focused, and it would have been better. My rating right now (unfinished) is 2-1/2 stars. *Here's hoping I get it read by Wednesday. Book Club is on Thursday.*

May offer a suggestion? Try "My Life In France" instead or as a contrast. Sweet, lots of great history and will may you want to move to France and cook soufflés

JUNE


9) The Secret Garden--Frances Hodgson Burnett
4 stars (for Youth, ages 8-12)


10) The Host--Stephenie Meyer
3-1/2 Stars (represented for Adults, but it reads more like a YA novel)


11) Julie & Julia--Julie Powell (6/30)
2-1/4 stars

The Glass Castle has been on my list for a while. What did you think? Is it worth moving up my list?

I'm excited to read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - I heard the NPR story about the author's interview process with the family...fascinating!

"The Glass Castle" will break your heart. The neglect the children suffer due to the selfishness of their parents made me angry. When the children were younger didn't know better and were having fun. But then they grow up and begin to yearn for stability and food and adequate shelter. It's DEFINITELY worth the read. If it wasn't for the language in some parts, I would have rated it four stars.

I really enjoyed "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks". It's several different stories rolled into one. It's the story of Henrietta, her family, the author researching the story, and the science behind it all. They aren't told one at a time. The stories are intermingled. I found all of them interesting.

Thanks, I'll move "The Glass Castle" up on my list.

JULY


12) When the Sacred Ginmill Closes--Lawrence Block (7/2/10)
3 stars


13) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy--Douglas Adams (7/3/10)
3-1/2 stars (It doesn't live up to the hype, but it's not bad)


14) The Lost Symbol--Dan Brown (7/5/10)
2-1/2 Stars (Plot holes so big you'd lose your car)


15) He's Just Not That Into You--Greg Behrendt & Liz Tuccillo (7/10/10)
4-1/2 stars


16) The Art of Racing in the Rain--Garth Stein (7/13/10)
4 stars

I just finished "He's Just Not That Into You." I really wish I had this book when I first began dating my soon-to-be ex-husband. Of course, that would have required the self-confidence to walk away, which I didn't have at 22. But I recommend this book to any woman in a relationship who is having any sort of doubts or wonders why their man doesn't treat her the way she feels she should be treated. Men are not complicated.

oh, they can be!

I'm not saying men aren't complex. We all are. But when it comes to finding out if they're interested in someone, it's not difficult to figure out. I saw my ex in a lot of descriptions in the book. In hindsight, it all makes sense.

My ex was like being married to a crazy woman, all the damn head games he played. So when I saw your comment about men not being complicated, I had to say something!

Connie, I know what you mean. My ex was superb at head games. He had a way of turning something he did into my fault. He was a master at twisting words around. My "not complicated" comment related to figuring out if a guy is interested in you. If I had had this book when I first began dating him, I would have recognized right away that he didn't want to be with me. He liked the stability and security I provided (which I believe is why he stayed) but he wasn't happy being "stuck" with me. Good riddance for both of us!

AUGUST


17) Life of Pi--Yann Martel (8/1/10)
3-1/3 stars (my short review: http://bit.ly/b1EnaO)


18) Mockingjay--Suzanne Collins (8/25/10)
4 stars (review pending)

SEPTEMBER
Personal Note: I'm not going to reach my goal of 50 books this year, but I'm going to keep reading.

19) The Rembrandt Affair--Daniel Silva (9/3/10)
4 stars (review pending)