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SU11 Reading w/Style Completed Tasks - Summer 2011
Leviathan (Leviathan, #1) by Westerfeld, Scott+10 Task
Post Total: 10
Summer Total: 10
The Sword Thief by Peter LerangisThis is another installment of the 39 clues series….Amy and Dan Cahill are traveling all over the world trying to discover a great secret about their family history…left to them with one single clue from their supposedly dead grandmother. I am really enjoying this series…I love a good puzzle to solve. While this book did not have nearly the historical connections and information as the others have so far, it was still a good read with a lot of adventure. This clue/search is about ancient swords and they have formed an alliance with their (still very suspicious) Uncle Alistair Oh.
+ 15 points
= Total Summer Reading Points: 225
Shanghai Girls by Lisa SeeI so loved this book. I have been a fan of Lisa See for some time. This is the story of two sisters, May and Pearl, who are part of the “upper class” of Shanghai until their father loses the majority of their money through bad gambling choices. This story shows the strength of the women in a culture where the woman is seen as weak and not so valuable. It is set during the war and we see the sisters as they come to America, reveal their secrets, make peace with each other, and their lives, and grow into women. I encourage anyone to read this that has a love of Chinese culture or anyone that has a sister…it is such a great book. There is a part two, Dreams of Joy, that I am reading now!
+15
= Total Summer Reading Points: 240
Sisterchicks on the Loose by Robin Jones GunnThis book was such a fun read. It is written by a Christian author and the focus is friendship between women. This particular book is about two fourty-ish women who take a trip to Finland (and other places along the way). This book spoke volumes to me…no matter how we look on the outside, on the inside, women are still those silly, giggly teenagers who love to have fun with their friends. Penny is on a search to find some of her only remaining relatives in Finland…but through this discovery, she discovers more about herself and her best friend than she could ever imagine.
+ 15 points
= Total Summer Reading Points: 255
Warped by Maurissa GuibordThis is a young adult fantasy novel that played with the Norns, who are the Germanic version of the Fates. It's a new release and the author's first novel, although she's also written mystery short stories for magazines. This is one of those books that puts modern characters in historical settings I said I didn't like in my last review. What helped this book was that it was a fantasy novel, so it wasn't realistic anyway. The author also didn't put much effort into expanding the past as a setting so it didn't clash very much. The epilogue left it open enough for another book, but it isn't marketed as a series.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Grand Total=190
Poppy Done to Death by Charlaine Harris+ 10 points
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
+ 10 points
Grand Total = 105
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho+10 Task
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
+10 Task
Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters
+10 Task
China Witness: Voices from a Silent Generation by Xinran
+10 Task
The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America by Bill Bryson
+10 Task
Points this Post: 50
Grand Total: 75
Piratica: Being a Daring Tale of a Singular Girl's Adventure Upon the High Seas (Piratica #1) (2003) by Tanith Lee (Lexile: 760L)(YA) pirate story with a teen female heroine - and a twist - I enjoyed it :0)
+ 10 Task
The Stone that Never Came Down (1973) by John Brunner
1970's optimistic science fiction -- optimistic even in the face of pessimistic conditions
+ 10 Task
Eiffel's Tower: And the World's Fair Where Buffalo Bill Beguiled Paris, the Artists Quarreled, and Thomas Edison Became a Count (2009) by Jill Jonnes
The Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris. True-life tales of the 1889 Exposition Universelle; of the building of the Eiffel Tower (and its problematic elevator); of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (and one of its stars, Annie Oakley); important painters of the time (including Vincent van Gogh, whose works were NOT represented!); and Thomas Edison (and the phonograph he was promoting). The pace is meandering; lots of anecdotes but no over-arching themes. I found it interesting.
+ 10 Task
+ 05 Review
Task Total: 15
Juliet (2010) by Anne Fortier
Self-consciously picturesque Italian, plus a very silly American heroine, and highly improbable events. Beach read -- don't ask why, just go with the flow.
+ 10 Task
Post Total: + 45
Total Summer Reading: 140 + 45 = 185
I've finally managed to finish something. I've just moved and have been traveling and keep starting and not finishing books.The First Twenty-Nine Days by Johnny L. Ellis
Task: +10
Review +5:
This book tells important stories, but unfortunately not in the most compelling or easy to follow way. More editorial guidance could have helped the former inmates and family members express themselves in ways that would be more clear to readers without losing the authentic voices sought to be expressed in this collection of autobiographical essays.
Each of the twenty essays in this short collection is written by a member of "Voices Beyond Bars," a Madison, Wisconsin organization that seems to do important work helping former inmates reintegrate into society. But it appears that the writers were asked to tell their stories and little to no editorial assistance was provided. Many of the essays provide almost no background about the author and many jump around from recounting the first twenty-nine days out of prison to general autobiographical information to general complaints about the prison system or the reintegration services offered.
Critiques aside, I'm glad to read that there is an organization like Voices Beyond Bars in Madison and hope that similar organizations are out there doing the difficult work of helping former prisoners in other communities.
= 15 points
Total: 45
The Help by Kathryn StockettI listened to the audiobook, which was read by four different people. I read this book because my Mom really liked it. She has an account here on Goodreads and she gave it four out five stars, the highest rating she's given any book. I really liked it. By the end of it I was listening it for its own sake instead of as a distraction while doing something else. The answers to some of the "mysteries" the author kept putting in like what was wrong with Miss Celia were obvious enough that I wondered why the characters never guessed them.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Grand Total= 205
The Trial by Franz Kafka***
This is the first book by Franz Kafka I have read, and to be honest, were it not for the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list, it would quite possibly be my last. The value of The Trial as an addition to the literary canon is unquestionable, but I did not enjoy reading it. It raises great and classic questions about the law and judicial system and what role they should be permitted to play in the lives of people, as well as about the nature of guilt, but it never resolves them. I understand, in a way, that that is part of the beauty of the work, but I still found the reading tedious. I also understand that it is an unfinished work that the author never wished to be published, but my understanding is that was the way he felt about everything he wrote. Most of all, I think the thing I found disappointing was the extent to which the book felt dated. It did not have the timelessness and relevance which I expected, and I think that is the root of my disappointment.
+10 Task
+5 Review
+5 Oldies (1925)
Task Total: 20
Pox: An American History by Michael Willrich
***
I first heard of Pox: An American History from an interview Michael Willrich did on NPR. It sounded like it could be interesting, and I was not disappointed. Overall, the book only gets 3 stars from me because of some writing style issues and a certain degree of repetitiveness. The fascination of the story, however, kept it interesting. The tying together of the anti-vaccination movement and the idea of enforcing public health measures for the protection of the greater public with the civil rights movement which followed was well done and an area of history which was entirely new to me. The way the present day's current vaccine "controversy" and the danger in which people are placed because of ignorance and those who deceive the ignorant is chilling, but was in no way overblown. Then there is the topic itself, and the fact that smallpox, once one of the greatest killers of our species has been eradicated is in itself a subject of fascination and a testament to what technology has been able to do. By contrast, there were many people infected by unsanitary vaccines, which presents a stark picture of the origins of today's pharmaceutical industry. Overall, this book interested me, but I think its audience will remain small.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Task Total: 15
Post Total: 35
Grand Total: 285
Empire Falls by Richard Russo+10
Black Dogs by Ian McEwan
+10
Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime by Mark Halperin
+10
Post Total: 30
Summer Total: 485
The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama+10 task
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
+10 task
+5 oldies (1798)
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (lexile 710)
+10 task
+5 oldies (1943)
Unbearable Lightness by Portia de Rossi
+10 task
Points this Post: 50
Grand Total: 140
Ingathering: The Complete People Stories of Zenna Henderson by Zenna Henderson (Hardcover, 577 pages)Gentle, uplifting stories of an alien race making a home for themselves in New Mexico.
+ 10 Task
+ 05 Jumbo (more than 500 pages)
Task Total: 15
Kill the Dead by Tanith Lee
A different kind of ghost story.
+ 10 Task
Task Total: 10
Post Total: +15 + 10 = +25
Total Summer Reading: 185 + 25 = 210
"One Good Dog" by Susan Wilson+10
Review + 5
Where do I start? This is one of the best books I read about a dog story. Both man and dog are down on their luck. Two most unlikely souls meet and find out they both need something from each other. The dog is a breed that isn't very loveable (pit bull). He was born and breed to fight by people who have no business owning dogs. Then they get a second chance. The dog is the sweetest and breaks down breed conotations. A book a loyalty, friendship, and love, it is worth five stars. I highly recommend it.
Grand Total: 145
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel+10 Task
+ 5 Big Book: 592 Pages
Task Total: 15
Girl Wonder by Alexa Martin
Task Total: 10
Luncheon of the Boating Party by Susan Vreeland
Task Total: 10
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
Task Total: 10
Points This Post: 45
Grand Total: 335
The Shining by Stephen King+10 Task
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
+10 Task
Post Total: 20
Summer Total: 505
The Rose Killer by Pat Gragg - 576 pgsThe Puzzle (Samantha Jamison Mystery) by Peggy A Edelheit
Red Blooded Murder (Izzy McNeil Mystery #2) by Laura Caldwell
The Reversal (Mickey Haller #3) by Michael Connelly
Bloody Mary (Jack Daniels Mystery #2) by JA Konrath
Something Borrowed (Darcy & Rachel #1) by Emily Giffin
Something Blue (Darcy & Rachel #2) by Emily Giffin
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling - 607 pgs
Red White & Dead (Izzy McNeil Mystery #3) by Laura Caldwell
100 points
Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran+ 10
The Cat Who Went Bananas by Lilian Jackson Braun
+ 10
= Summer Reading Points 295
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon+10 task
+5 Jumbo
=15 points
Grand Total: 125 points
Pied Piper (1942) by Nevil Shute + 10 Task
+ 05 Oldies points for any book written prior to 1950
Task Total: 15
The Ninth Daughter (Abigail Adams Mystery #1) by Barbara Hamilton
+ 10 Task
Saturn (The Grand Tour #12) by Ben Bova
+ 10 Task
Grand Total: 210 + 15 + 10 + 10 = 245
Read in June
and
.
Both are new books and are 448 and 432 pages respectively, so 20 points so far.
and
.Both are new books and are 448 and 432 pages respectively, so 20 points so far.
All The Stars Came Out That Night by Kevin King+10 Task
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
+10 Task
+5 Jumbo (529 pgs)
Post Total: 25
Summer Total: 530
Room by Emma Donoghue+10 Task
Digital Fortress by Dan Brown
+10 Task
+5 Jumbo (510 pgs)
Total: 45 points
Sideways on a Scooter: Life and Love in India by Miranda Kennedy+10 Task
Total Points: 105
btw: I had an excel glitch, so this is my actual score!! Luckily, I love the laid back approach this summer, since my reading certainly isn't what it normally is!
Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan & Bin Laden from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 by Steve Coll+10 Task
+5 Jumbo (576p)
T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton
+10 Task
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
+10 Task
Post Total: 35
Summer Grand Total: 565
Little Bee by Chris CleaveA woman and a young girl meet for the first time on a beach in Nigeria and witness a tragedy. Two years later, they will meet in London in the aftermath of another tragedy.
Little Bee is a Nigerian refugee who learned the Queen's English in a detention center where she has been held for two years. Her language, which is a beautiful mix of formal English with African rhythms, reflects her position between the two cultures. Sarah O'Rourke is a London businesswoman who is inadvertently caught up in Little Bee's fate.
This compelling book is not only an examination of how these two very different women's lives become entwined. It examines the very nature of sacrifice. How much would you give up for another human being? How much should you give up? When does your safety take priority over another's?
This is a rich, tragic, beautiful, satisfying book.
Red Riding Hood by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright + 10 Task
Task Total: 10
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson
+ 10 Task
Task Total: 10
After Hannibal by Barry Unsworth
+ 10 Task
Task Total: 10
Grand Total: 245 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 275
"Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul" by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Kimberly Kirberger+10
+5 Review
I read this because I work in a high school and I thought it would help me understand my students. As I was reading it, I felt like I could write some of the poems myself when I was a teenager. This collection has wonderful stories. I especially liked "The Christmas Card", the story about Helen Keller, and the story about Charles Schultz.
Total: 15
Grand Total: 160
The perfect challenge to join mid-way. The Empress of the Splendid Season by Oscar Hijuelos
+10
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Review:An imaginative love story, a very different science fiction tale. An involuntary time traveler who falls in love and has the experience that many lovers would like--a chance to go back and see their lover as a child. He also has the experience of meeting himself at various ages. But he also revisits his mother's death over and over; and his wife's agony over not being able to carry a child to term.
I didn't keep track of whether characters were consistent in when they knew various pieces of info. And I didn't get Gomez. For a character who played such a major role in the story, I never felt that I understood him.
10 + 5 = 15
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
Review:An interesting and lively exploration of what can happen to cadavers--from crash testing to plastination.
For many years I have wondered how medical examiners/law enforcement can come up with an estimate of how long a person has been dead when a body is found. And also whether the body has been moved. There is a chapter here on the testing that is being done to help determine that.
Roach's humor fell flat sometimes, for me. I don't think Elmer was considered a "humiliating first name" at the time of the Civil War. But maybe she knows more about the motivating power of a humiliating name than I.
10 + 5 = 15
Total for this post: 40 points
The Hemingses of Monticello by Annette Gordon-ReedReview: This is a moving and well-written account of Thomas Jefferson's relationship with his wife's slave half sister, Sally Hemings, and Sally's family. A lot of very interesting information about the evolution of slavery in the post-Revolution US.
I remember that when this book was published there was a lot of controversy about DNA testing living descendants of Sally Hemings to determine whether they were descended from Jefferson. None of that is covered in this book.
Interesting books that add to this picture of American history-- Abigail Adams: A Life (her husband is a contemporary and Sally Hemings passed through her household in England) and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks(which follows some of the legacy of slavery in poor black people in the 20th century).
10 + 5 (review) + 5 (jumbo 662 pgs.) = 20
Cry Of The Peacock by Gina Nahai
10
Gelato Sisterhood on the Amalfi Shore by Chantal Kelly
Review: The challenge is to read this book and NOT be planning your trip to the Amalfi Coast (or your return if you have been so lucky to have visited before). This is armchair traveling at its best. The reader joins Chantal as she guides a group of American women on a week trip to the Amalfi Coast.
When does the next flight leave?
I really appreciated the bibliography, filmography and glossary of Italian terms. But I would have liked an index also as I wanted to go back and re-read a number of items and link some of the history and it was not always easy to remember where certain things were mentioned.
10 + 5 = 15
Pink Brain, Blue Brain: How Small Differences Grow into Troublesome Gaps--and What We Can Do About It by Lise Eliot
Review:
Nobody told me that women are supposed to have trouble reading maps! I spent 13 years finding my way to addresses all over several states with maps. No problem.
I was chagrined to find out that my daughter's choice of toys was not so much influenced by my attempts at a feminist up-bringing but by the fact that she had an older brother.
This is a must read for parents and teachers. The latest in what scientists know about the difference in brains between boys and girls--men and women. What differences are "hard-wired" and which are cultural. And what we can do to raise well-rounded men and women that each have the chance to explore and develop their skills and interests.
10 + 5 = 15
Previous total: 40
Total this post: 60
Challenge total: 100
The Children of Men by P.D. JamesReview:
I really really wanted to like this novel. I just couldn't love it. I was engaged enough to read the whole story and I needed/wanted to know the ending but nothing really happened. I mean, events took place but they were expected events. Nothing took me by surprise or grabbed hold of me.
I felt that there was a lot more potential. I guess I also really wanted to know more about what happened after the book ended. I wanted to know the aftermath of the events. I kind of wish the story had started there. It was kind of interesting to read the events leading up to the end but not nearly as interesting as the aftermath could have been.
I would still recommend that people read it and I have already told people about it. Maybe I was built up to much prior to starting the story. I am looking forward to seeing the movie to compare how they did it.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 15
Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler
Review:
This is the second book by Chelsea Handler that I have read and I must say I enjoyed this collection of tales a lot better than ‘My Horizontal Life’. Chelsea Handler has a particular type of humour that may not reach out to everyone but I found that this collection of tales the flow of the stories builds up the reader’s tolerance as you read along.
Now as with most collections, there are a few stories that could have been left out or can be skipped by the reader. I always have a hard time skipping stories though as I once I read the first paragraph I want to see where the story goes.
Chelsea Handler writes her mind and is definitely not for everyone. A strong stomach and an appreciation for dirty stories are a must.
+10 Task
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 15
Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
Review:
I held off on reading Something Borrowed as a stance against all the hype it had around it when it was first released. I decided to read to recently after my mom had finished the series. And I must say I am really happy I did.
I found Emily Giffin’s approach to the typical ‘chick lit’ refreshing and enlightening. I thoroughly enjoyed her writing style and appreciated the fact that I was not 100% sure of how the story was going to play out until the end. The characters are well written and I was insistently drawn in and was able to relate to all involved in the story.
I assume that once everyone gets into the story they are either going to be a Rachel fan or a Darcy fan and I doubt that anyone will be stuck deciding between. I personally am a Rachel fan. I have already recommended this series to many friends and I look forward to reading Something Blue and seeing the movie.
+10 Task
+5 Review
Task Total = 15
New Grand Total = 160
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Garden Spells (other topics)Corduroy Mansions (other topics)
Bloodhound (other topics)
Summer (other topics)
The Song of Roland (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Sarah Addison Allen (other topics)Alexander McCall Smith (other topics)
Anonymous (other topics)
G.K. Chesterton (other topics)
Daniel Tammet (other topics)
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+10
Grand Total 130