Readers and Reading discussion

Sandi, I absolutely, LOVED The Tender Bar.

Sandi wrote: "Patricia wrote: "I just started reading The Distant Hours."

I read and enjoyed The House at Riverton a couple of years ago but have not read any other works by [autho..."




Sandi, I read [book:The House at Riverton|1278752] last month and the first 100 pages of The Distant Hours is better than the whole Riverton book even if I stop reading right now. I know everyone says a book is a page turner but this one truly is. I read, slept and hour and a half, woke up read until I fell asleep again. I'm already postponing any Thanksgiving plans until I finish this book. LOL! You've been warned - if you plan on reading it plan ahead, nothing will get done until you finish the book!!!

>>Sandi, I read The House at Riverton last month and the first 100 pages of The Distant Hours is better than the whole Riverton book even if I stop reading right now. I know everyone says a book is a page turner but this one truly is. I read, slept and hour and a half, woke up read until I fell asleep again. I'm already postponing any Thanksgiving plans until I finish this book. LOL! You've been warned - if you plan on reading it plan ahead, nothing will get done until you finish the book!!! <<

Sounds great, be sure to let us know how the ending holds up. I do plan on reading The Distant Hours but may read her second book The Forgotten Garden first.

Last night I finished the second Ladybug Farm book and loved every word. At Home on Ladybug Farm

I love the characters and the discoveries they have made during their year together.....discoveries about themselves and the history of the farm.

Just finished Drop Shot byHarlan Coben I am enjoying thi series.

Now reading Alex Cross's Trialby James Patterson So fare I am enjoying this story and am enjoying that it is a quick read.

Meredith

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "I am reading At Home on Ladybug Farm and loving every page! Light reading is good."


Isn't that a fun book. I am reading The Confession by Grisham and for my purse I am reading a Mary Alice Monrose book.

Meredith wrote: "Just finished Drop Shot byHarlan Coben I am enjoying thi series.

I really like the Myron and Win series too.

Just finished Deadline an earlier work by John Dunning. Will start Voices by Arnaldur Indriðason tomorrow.

Most of you know that I am not a huge fan of mysteries, but I just finished one that I think people here might enjoy. It was the first of a series by Louise Penny, entitled Still Life. It is set in a small Quebec town, and while the usual assortment of characters/suspects is there, the dialog is well written and the tone is literate. I enjoyed it. Might be worth a look.

Still Life

Richiesheff wrote: "JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "I am reading At Home on Ladybug Farm and loving every page! Light reading is good."


Isn't that a fun book. I am reading The Confession by Grisham .."

I am waiting for Grisham's from the library....should get it soon. I am saving the newest Ladybug Farm book for when I am having a hard time finding something I like! One of those dreaded times.

Sherry (sethurner) wrote: "Most of you know that I am not a huge fan of mysteries, but I just finished one that I think people here might enjoy. It was the first of a series by Louise Penny, entitled Still Life. .."

Thanks, Sherry. I do not like mysteries either (read way too many during the "brain-dead with little kids" phase of my life)

Cannot figure out why I like some thrillers so much...they are just dressed-up mysteries.

No mystery lover here either. My sister loaned me the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and I did finish it- OK and certainly nothing I would recommend or run out to read the other two in that trilogy. I just finished- a reread of course- Grapes of Wrath. It's still as amazing as ever. I'm going to start to reread Stone diaries by one of my favorite authors tonight (Carol Shields who tragically died of breast cancer a few years ago).

Sherry (sethurner) wrote: "Most of you know that I am not a huge fan of mysteries, but I just finished one that I think people here might enjoy. It was the first of a series by Louise Penny, entitled Still Life. "

I am a big mystery fan and thought Still Life was excellent. One of my top reads back in 2006.

Well, count me as a lover of mysteries as well as thrillers. I usually read one or the other between other books of many different genres. There are all levels of quality among them, just as there are in all other areas. We need different things at different times, and we know what we generally enjoy. It's not for me to consider certain genres as inferior to others. I don't care for science fiction/fantasy, for example, but I know very well-read, intelligent people who are big fans. So I think we all need to refrain from being any type of a "book snob".

By the way, Nancy, I also enjoyed The Stone Diaries very much. And, while on the subject, Stones from the River is one of my all-time favorites. :-) Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

I just don't have that much time to read genres I really don't care for unless I trust the person who is recommending it. My almost librarian daughter is branching out and reading books other than fantasy and sci fi these days. She and I both like adolescent literature too- she will make a good teen librarian. I loved Stones From the River too and have it here to reread. I have been purging my books planning for a move to a much smaller place; hence rereading before I donate them!

Sandi wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Just finished Drop Shot byHarlan Coben I am enjoying thi series.

I really like the Myron and Win series too.

Just finished Deadline an ..."

I read dealine several years ago. I remeber enjoying it.

Saving Max

I finished SAVING MAX in about 2 days, so I guess you would say that it engaged me,,,,but it was not as good as I had hoped. Interesting premise, but....poor execution. Character development was not well done at all.

I had several other problems with the book. I think it is overwritten (some of the writing is overly dramatic with lots of unnecessary similes) and somewhat repetitive. The shift from past to present tense is awkward and unnecessary. Anyone looking for a novel about autism will be disappointed because that is a very small part of it. Many of the incidents in the "asylum" are just silly/implausible and would never happen in today's medical world of high security and privacy.

I also felt that in order to have any feelings about Max, the author should have told us more about him before he was whisked off to Iowa. I have little understanding of what he was like "before", which made his mother's denial - of what he apparently did - seem unlikely. And Danielle, Max's mother, was not a very likable character - as a lawyer she was pretty flippant about breaking the law and seemed really pushy to me.

The search for the evidence in the murder was about all that kept me reading, but parts of that search were very contrived and too coincidental.

Overall, I would say that this book was "just okay"

Left Neglected by Lisa Genova

Another interesting, well-written book by this author, following her amazing novel about Alzheimer's, Still Alice. Both were novels I could not put down.

This new novel was about a brain injury I had never heard of, Left Neglect, in which the injured person neither sees nor notices the left side of anything (no, turning one's head does not solve the problem). The title of the book is double-edged and also refers to all the things in the main character's life that were neglected due to her high-powered job and frantic lifestyle.

Well-done.

I'm still reading old classics I have in my personal library. Giants in the Earth (Rolvaag) was just as good as I remembered and now I'm rereading My Antonia (Cather). I haven't started Fall of Giants (Follett) yet but it may be next.

Just finished The Strange Files of Fremont Jones by Dianne Day which was just OK. I doubt if I continue on with the series. I will start The Most Dangerous Game by Gavin Lyall tonight and am listening to Sharpe's Prey by Bernard Cornwell.

Last night I finished Air: Or, Have Not Have by Geoff Ryman and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I had never heard of the author but had joined the Beyond Reality book group here on Goodreads and it was the science fiction book of the month. I am now reading Life: Keith Richards by Keith Richards and listening to The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson on audio.

I just finished "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand, and it is the best book I've read in a long time. It's the story of Louie Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was shot down during WWII and spent years in Japanese prison camps. The storytelling is great and the story never lags. Loved it!

Karla (KLouise61) wrote: "I just finished "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand, and it is the best book I've read in a long time. It's the story of Louie Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was shot down during WWII and spent year..."

I look forward to reading this. I had it on my Christmas list, but I guess my family refuses to give me any more books.

Karla (KLouise61) wrote: "I just finished "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand, and it is the best book I've read in a long time. It's the story of Louie Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was shot down during WWII and spent year..."

Oh good! I have the audio version downloaded to my MP3 player and am looking forward to listening to it.

I just finished the audio version of Kim which was read by Ralph Cosham. Tomorrow I will start The Yellow Admiral by Patrick O'Brian. I have listened to sixteen of the previous seventeen books in this series and they were all read with great skill by Patrick Tull. Unfortunately my library only has this book on audio read by Simon Vance and even though I think he is a great narrator too, I am a bit worried that it just will not be the same.

Sandi, do you download books through your library or ITunes?

HAve enjoyed reading over the list of books in this thread. Found some favorites, some familiars-but-not-so-favorites and some promising titles. Thanks!

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi, do you download books through your library or ITunes?"

I use the library. We have the Overdrive system which is very easy to use.

bookczuk wrote: "HAve enjoyed reading over the list of books in this thread. Found some favorites, some familiars-but-not-so-favorites and some promising titles. Thanks!"

Hi Czukie, I'm happy to see you here. I've known some of these people since the 90s. It's a good group here and on Book Nook Cafe. Your TBR pile will be growing!


Carolyn

Sandi wrote: "JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi, do you download books through your library or ITunes?"

I use the library. We have the Overdrive system which is very easy to use."

How long can you keep the "book"?

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi wrote: "JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi, do you download books through your library or ITunes?"

I use the library. We have the Overdrive system which is very easy to use."

How long can you keep the "book"?"

Our library has three options 7, 14, or 21 days and after that time the audio book does expire on the computer and you can only delete it. However, if I have transferred the book to my MP3 it will never expire and I can play it until I delete it. This is with the Overdrive system only. I used to have access to NetLibrary and their audios would not play after the due date either on the computer or on the MP3 player.

Thanks for explaining that, Sandi.

I just finished reading Morning Miracle which I found to be a fast read. The author, Dave Kindred, has worked in journalism for over forty years and spent time at the Washington Post as a sports columnist and his love for the paper and the working journalists really comes through. Unfortunately he finds no quick fixes for the state that newspapers find themselves in and after reading this I am not sure that my favorite radio host Tony Kornheiser's joke, that he will not be able to explain to his grandkids what he did with his life since newspapers will no longer exist, is not true.

Last night I finished Knives at Dawn: America's Quest for Culinary Glory at the Legendary Bocuse d'Or Competition. I love when a non-fiction author keeps me on the edge of my seat, even when, as in this book, I already know the outcome. Well worth reading if you like anything to do with cooking competitions, because the Bocuse d"Or is the daddy of all food competitions!

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Last night I finished Knives at Dawn: America's Quest for Culinary Glory at the Legendary Bocuse d'Or Competition. I love when a non-fiction author keeps me on the edge of my seat"

I enjoyed reading the book too. Made me really appreciate how much hard work and time goes into getting ready for the competition.

Sandi, didn't you think that the chef neglected to take advantage of all the help and time he was offered in order to prepare for the competition? I thought he waited far too late to start even thinking about what he was going to do there.

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi, didn't you think that the chef neglected to take advantage of all the help and time he was offered in order to prepare for the competition? I thought he waited far too late to start even thiking about what he was going to do there."

If I remember correctly (it has been over a year since I read the book) the chef came off as kind of ambivalent about the whole thing at times and wanted to wing it instead of really getting everything set. I never got the impression that he was really invested in that kind of competition. I do agree with your point that there were lots of people ready and willing to help and who really were invested in the success of the entire enterprise.

Sandi wrote: "If I remember correctly (it has been over a year since I read the book) the chef came off as kind of ambivalent about the whole thing at times and wanted to wing it instead of really getting everything set. I never got the impression that he was really invested in that kind of competition...."

Absolutely! My thoughts exactly.

Just Finished Still Life by Louise Penny
Rating 4/5

This was the first of a series. It was enjoyable.

Meredith, lots of people like Penny's books. Would this appeal to someone who does not "love" mysteries?

I just finished The Peach Keeper: A Novel, Sarah Addison Allen's latest. It was a quick, entertaining read. Less magical realism than her other books. Better than her last. IMHO

Meredith wrote: "Just Finished Still Life by Louise Penny
Rating 4/5

This was the first of a series. It was enjoyable."

I really liked Still Life too.

I am currently reading The Name of the Wind which is the fantasy book of the month over at the Beyond Reality Group here on Goodreads. It is a pretty long book and I am working six days a week so it has been slow going.

I am reading Fireflies in December,it is a really quick read. Southern Lit, set in 1930's and reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird in time and racial struggles.

I just finished Pray for Silence

4* mystery - My review can be read here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-48

Just finished Still Waters: A Mystery Review can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-4q

Hi everyone!

Just finished Drinking Closer to Home

A solid 4* read! Reviewed here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-4z

Hi everyone!

Just finished The Chronology of Water An amazing read. Unlike anything you will read.
Review can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-4N

Finally finished Blood, Bones, & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton on audio. Pretty good though perhaps not the "best chef's memoir ever" as Anthony Bourdain blurbed. Now listening to Saving CeeCee Honeycutt. I am also reading my first ebook The Armageddon Rag.

Hi everyone!

I just finished The Priest's Graveyard by Ted Dekker.

This was my first Dekker book, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I was a little skeptical at first as I thought it might be heavy on the Christian thing (think preachy) but it wasn't at all. Just a good clean thriller that was full of action.

I reviewed the book here on my blog if anyone's interested in reading it. http://wp.me/pTRJE-54

Sandi wrote: "Finally finished Blood, Bones, & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton on audio. Pretty good though perhaps not the "best chef's memoir ever" as Anthony Bourdain blurbed."

My cousin just finished this book, Sandy, and she had mixed feelings. This is what she said (in part) " I admire how she got through her teens but as an adult she complains too much about how her life turned out. She made choices based on romanticized dreams."

I wonder if Bourdain liked Hamilton's book so much because it was "gritty"?

Sandi, have you read any of Michael Ruhlman's chef books? I have his third watiing for me at the library The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen. He is a friend of Bourdain's.

Publishers Weekly Review

There's no rest for the restaurateur in Ruhlman's engaging account of a culinary world that's become even more frenetic in the wake of the Food Network's success and the rise of celebrity chefs desperately clinging to their stars. Ruhlman (The Making of a Chef; The Soul of a Chef) revisits some of the people he's worked with in the past and the school where he trained to see how things have changed since "chef branding, with its product lines, multiple name-recognized restaurants, and entertainment venues, has lured the chef out of the kitchen." Ruhlman points out the irony of such chefs as Wolfgang Puck, Emeril Lagasse and Anthony Bourdain becoming so successful that they no longer have time to practice the thing that brought them success in the first place. He solicits opinions on the phenomenon from an array of people in the business and also profiles some of those still shaping American cooking in the kitchen, from Melissa Kelly and her down-to-earth comfort food to Grant Achatz and his avant-garde, technical creations. Ruhlman has a light, unobtrusive style, and he brings considerable knowledge to the table when commenting on either individual dishes or the industry as a whole.

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Sandi wrote: "Finally finished Blood, Bones, & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton on audio.

My cousin just finished this book, Sandy, and she had mixed feelings. This is what she said (in part) " I admire how she got through her teens but as an adult she complains too much about how her life turned out. She made choices based on romanticized dreams." "

That is kind of how I felt. The first 2/3's of the book was very good but there at the end I just ended up feeling really sorry for her husband. I also wish she would have focused more on how she was able to make a go of Prune even though she had never been the Chef in a restaurant and did not seem to have any business background at all.

Thanks for the tip on Michael Ruhlman. I just requested The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute from the library.