Books on the Nightstand discussion

I'm reading The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks a friend gave it to me and im in page 322 :D

I just started one of those Lee Child "Jack Reacher" novels to appease my father-in-law. 50 pages in, reads like it was written by a 10 year old. Sigh.

Also re-reading "Life, the Universe, and Everything" by Douglas Adams for good humor and escape.

Tanya/dog eared copy wrote: "I had a fast start to 2012, reading or finishing a book within a couple of days of each other; but then "real life" interfered and I've trouble getting much accomplished book-wise. So far, I've rea..."

I've tried to start "The Unit" a few times but never got into it. Is it a worthwhile read?

I'm reading The Last Werewolf, a book I first heard about on the Books on the Nightstand podcast. Prior to picking up this I read One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson.

Dennis wrote: "'ve tried to start "The Unit" a few times but never got into it. Is it a worthwhile read? "

The Unit (by Ninni Holmqvist) is a dystopian novel dealing with gender and age issues and; marginalizing people by taking away their freedoms or rights for the good of the commonwealth. This is about a way of enslaving a population segment with their knowledge and even, consent and; the impact it has on the psyche of the those ensnared in the system. The Unit is easily accessible: straight forward language and has short chapters. The first time I read it, it took me five hours...

I would say it was a worthwhile read if you like dystopian fiction Margaret Atwood and/or are interested in what I was talking about above.

@Dennis - I loved The Gone-Away World; in fact, it was my favorite of any book I read last year.

I finished last week and am now less than 100 pages away from finishing .

11/22/63

I just finished East of Edenand it absolutely blew me away. It's long but such a page turner. The character of Kate/Cathy is so evil she scares you and Lee is so wonderful you wish he was your friend. There's so many great themes about family and betrayal, it's so complex. So much happens that the last 150 pages feel like you're on a run away horse. he setting is the county next door to where I grew up, my hometown of Watsonville even makes an appearance as the place where a whore runs off to. My father knew Steinbeck's sister and she said that he often took several years to edit his books. You can tell this was written with great attention and care. I can't believe my high school didn't make us read this, there's even a surly teen character! Anyway, for those of you with "12 classics" as a reading challenge consider picking it up if you haven't already read it!

Becky wrote: "I just finished East of Edenand it absolutely blew me away. It's long but such a page turner. The character of Kate/Cathy is so evil she scares you and Lee is so wonderful you wish he w..."

I just love Steinbeck and most of the schools where I taught always had sophomores read which is excellent, but is a definite "Wow!" as is

It's a decent coming of age novel set in the late 80s, having as a backdrop the hardcore punk scene at the time, specifically, the "straight edge" movement. Straight edge rockers didn't smoke, drink, or do drugs, and tried to abstain from sex as well.

When we first meet Jude and his best friend Teddy, they are anything but straight edge: snorting, smoking and huffing everything in sight. But when Teddy dies (I'm not giving anything away--you find out on the first page that he's doomed), Jude slowly begins to re-evaluate his priorities. Jude and his hometown buddies resemble the aimless losers in a Raymond Carver story. The older generation of free-living parents recalls the bewildered aging hippies from Ann Beattie's stories. Along the way, we are offered both squalid and upscale NYC scenes, Krishna Consciousness, same sex romance, teen pregnancy, a marriage of convenience, and rampant AIDS.

I can't say this is the best book of its type I've ever read. I guess I never connected with any of the characters.

Linda wrote: "Becky wrote: "I just finished East of Edenand it absolutely blew me away. It's long but such a page turner. The character of Kate/Cathy is so evil she scares you and Lee is so wonderful..."

I soooo agree. Steinbeck is one of my favorites. While many of his books are hefty his shorter stories are wonderful as well. Think The Pearl and The Red Pony. Hope you read some of his others.

Becky wrote: "I just finished East of Edenand it absolutely blew me away. It's long but such a page turner. The character of Kate/Cathy is so evil she scares you and Lee is so wonderful you wish he w..."

This is one of my all time favorites. I've read a couple of his shorter works, too, but, shockingly, never Grapes of Wrath. It is sitting on my shelf, giving me the eye. Maybe this is the year...

Just finished
which I didn't love as much as the multiple people who had recommended to me. I think this is maybe a case of the reader being off, rather than the work.

Dipping in and out of which I am enjoying very much. I am having to time my reading/listening sessions around kids/life, etc since I'm trying to listen to each of the songs he's decoding as I go.

Just wrapped up last night. This was Gladwell's latest book and it was interesting, but not as compelling reading as his previous since this was a collection of his articles from The New Yorker magazine over a few years, instead of an in depth exploration of a single topic.

Now, going to get off the shelf and curl up on the couch. Can't wait. I never would have heard of this book were it not for Michael and Books on the Nightstand. Thanks!

Becky wrote: "I just finished East of Edenand it absolutely blew me away. It's long but such a page turner. The character of Kate/Cathy is so evil she scares you and Lee is so wonderful you wish he w..."

Becky, I am glad you enjoyed East of Eden . It was one of my selections at the last Booktopia in Two Books I Can't Wait For You to Read.

I'm a big fan and I got this one as a Christmas present.

Finished The Hare with Amber Eyes: A Family's Century of Art and Loss this week-end. Really wonderful. Also decided I hadn't read a play in a long time so picked up
I've never read Tom Stoppard before - he's really brilliant. I'm also returning to which is slow going but worth every step.

Deanna wrote: "I just finished, The Night Circus. I was so captivated by this book!"

I am about 90 pages into The Night Circus, and I agree, it is captivating, intriguing, and so different from anything else I've read!

Time flies. Even though I read the conversations daily that are sent to my email I haven't been on the site in ages. Anyway, I don't want to make anyone mad but I finished Cutting for Stonefor my bookclub and though I liked it, it wasn't as good as I had hoped based on all the raves I had heard about it. I think it got a little too involved on the medical side of things for my taste.

I also got the non-fiction ball rolling by listening to Open: Das Selbstporträtwhich was really fun to listen to. This was from a time period when I really liked watching tennis. I really felt like he revealed a lot about himself in this and in many ways, not to his benefit.

After seeing a blurb on ESPN I read The Last Great Game: Duke vs. Kentucky and the 2.1 Seconds That Changed Basketball. Being a long time Duke fan (again don't hate me)as well as basketball junkie, this was like high quality book crack. It was really one of those reads that I could not put down unless forced.

I just started The Count of Monte Cristo. I always wanted to read this but I didn't realize what a tome I was getting myself into. I hope it lives up to its reputation because this could take a bit of time.

I also managed to squeeze in the last three Fables trades. Fables, Vol. 13: The Great Fables CrossoverFables, Vol. 14: WitchesFables, Vol. 15: Rose RedAs many people I know have stated, the Vol. 13 is a dud but it picked right back up with the next two volumes. They have been really fun.

I love seeing what everyone else is reading. Here is to a good reading year.

on Kindle and in paperback.

Just finished and in the middle of

I finished Outlander and found that I was captivated by Jamie and the story despite finding Claire's ease of assimilation preposterous and the fact that parts of the book read far too much like a trashy romance novel. I wish someone had warned me about that before I started the book, but I have been assured that the trashy romance issues go away after the 2nd or 3rd book in the series. I liked it enough that I will probably keep reading for now, but I'm not sure I can keep reading if that keeps up throughout the series....

I'm now halfway through The Name of the Wind which is supposed to be somewhat like the Harry Potter series and somewhat like 1001 Arabian Nights. I'm not entirely convinced it's too much like either except that part of it takes place in a magic (? this is somewhat unclear) school. Of course, the main character doesn't even reach the school until somewhere around page 230.... mixed feelings, but it's pretty good.

just starting Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Now reading, .

Still working my way throughAlfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light; and somehow, I've found myself in the midst of reading three novels at the same time - not a foreign concept in my reading life. I've got The Invisible Bridge, The Art of Fielding and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest all going. In my organizational defense, Bridge is in hard copy, Fielding is on the iPad and Hornet's Nest is on the Nook Color. All. Bases. Covered.

Dennis wrote: "Tanya/dog eared copy wrote: "I had a fast start to 2012, reading or finishing a book within a couple of days of each other; but then "real life" interfered and I've trouble getting much accomplishe..."

i've read The Unit and found it interesting. i don't typically read this type of novel either. a good read given the chance.

I've just finished reading , and I really want to start reading , however i'm home alone tonight and don't much fancy another night of zombie nightmares. Sooooo I think I I'll make a start on

I am reading Columbine, and listening to The Secret History. Both are captivating.

I just finished a fabulous historical mystery which is brilliantly written. My highest of recommendations!

It is the time of the Great Terror. Inspector Pekkala - known as the Emerald Eye - was the most famous detective in all Russia. He was the favourite of the Tsar. Now he is the prisoner of the men he once hunted. Like millions of others, he has been sent to the gulags in Siberia and, as far as the rest of the world is concerned, he is as good as dead. But a reprieve comes when he is summoned by Stalin himself to investigate a crime. His mission - to uncover the men who really killed the Tsar and his family, and to locate the Tsar's treasure. The reward for success will be his freedom and the chance to re-unite with a woman he would have married if the Revolution had not torn them apart. The price of failure - death.

Kevin wrote: "I just finished a fabulous historical mystery which is brilliantly written. My highest of recommendations!

It is the time of the Great..."

Ooohhhhhh .... sounds like something I would love. Must search this one out. thanks!

Kevin wrote: "I just finished a fabulous historical mystery which is brilliantly written. My highest of recommendations!

It is the time of the Great..."
Added to my TBR list - sounds fantastic.

Kevin wrote: "I just finished a fabulous historical mystery which is brilliantly written. My highest of recommendations!

It is the time of the Great..."

I've added it too! Sounds great.

I've got about 150 pages left to go of , which was due back at the library yesterday. Oops. I should be done later today or tomorrow, at least.

I finished listening to "The Submission" a few days ago. It's for a book club, and I would have preferred to have a hardcover copy so that I could look back through it before our discussion. But there were too many people ahead of me on the library's waiting list, while there were none for the audiobook. Whatever! I think we'll have a lot to talk about with this one. I'm now listening to one of the Maisie Dobbs detective series, "Among the Mad." I'm going through the series in order, not in any particular rush, and this is the sixth of nine.

In print, I'm reading "Burnt Shadows" by Kamila Shamsie. Reading this one will count toward one component of my 2012 goals, which is reading some things from a list I call "to check out again." These are library books that I didn't get around to before they had to be returned. I'm always getting more books than I can manage, so I decided to create a list to remind me to get back to some of the titles that were especially appealing.

I started my favorite mystery author's latest this morning . It's been too long since her last book, but from what I've read, she hasn't lost her touch.

Nancy wrote: "I finished listening to "The Submission" a few days ago. It's for a book club, and I would have preferred to have a hardcover copy so that I could look back through it before our discussion. But th..."


The Submission is next on my list - probably starting it tomorrow. What did you think of it?

I have just finished Everything Beautiful Began After by Simon Van Booy. This was a stunning, spectacular, romantic and heart-retching read. A journey that was so moving. Very special indeed!
I have also just read By Nightfall by Micheal Cunningham.

I started Defending Jacob: A Novelyesterday but didn't get very far...too many Saturday errands. I decided on this one because I already had a galley and because William Landay is one of the Vermont retreat authors.

In the sense that there's a very very bad man who you can't wait for Reacher to pulverize, this book fulfills the promise of any good Reacher tale. Child even manages putting 6'5" Reacher up against a 4'11" opponent and making the odds a bit more even than you'd expect.

But there are a few deal-breakers here in terms of plausibility, giving rise to some disbelief I could not suspend. First one: There's a key witness who can potentially take out a criminal cartel in a small Colorado town. She's under police protection. Unfortunately, the local cops are under a contract with a federal prison that says in the event of a prison emergency, EVERY cop must high-tail it to the prison immediately. This results in the cops leaving their witness unprotected, even though they have an inkling that the prison riot is a distraction intended to let an assassin off the witness. "But, the contract says we have to!" Sorry, but I don't believe that cops are that dumb or irresponsible. Second thing: there's a huge cache of government methamphetamine left over from WWII that apparently is still as potent as ever. Really? 60 plus years shelf life? I doubt it. Third thing: the area where the final set-piece takes place could only exist in a made up story.

None of this means that the book isn't entertaining. It's just not believable. Read it and see if you agree.

I finished The Name of the Wind , which turned out to be an okay read. Not quite as amazing as I'd heard, but good enough that I'll finish the trilogy. That makes 12 books for the month of January, I think.

Big change of pace now - starting The Submission next.

Just finished which was, in typical Michael Lewis fashion, compulsively readable and super interesting; I'm not a baseball person, but I was completely entertained. It was fascinating to see the same principles of exploiting mis-valued financial instruments applied to baseball players. I'm glad that I read the book before awards season - now I can see the movie! The part with Hatty is going to make me cry, I'm sure...

One third into The Revenge Of The Radioactive Lady and it's hilarious. I just love these characters.n It's been on my to-read list for months. I'm glad I finally started it!
I'm listening to Speaker for the Dead which I read twenty years ago. It's a multi-voice performance, very well done. I was worried that it wouldn't be engaging since I know the surprise concept, but it's interesting to see how O.S. Card put the thing together and the way he doles out hints.

Finished:
Started listening to

Linda wrote: "Finished:
"

I always liked the big lug. How was it?

Trevor is the successor to the James Joyce who wrote , but not the Joyce of the later works. His stories represent not an experiment in style, but the refinement of style. Trevor is a master of the short story form.

The stories are slow burners. Usually they start with a character engaged in a familiar routine in a given milieu (which is usually rural Ireland). Soon a twist in perception occurs and the reader finds himself aware of the characters' internal struggles. Often there's a darker element involved; homicide, incest, etc. But the focus of the stories isn't on the details of the dark happening, but on the complex emotional states that follow, and on the decisions that are made afterward. These are stories that will stay with you for a long time after you read them. You may find yourself welling up with complex feelings and considering anew things that have happened in your own life, and how you come to terms with past events that haunt you. I suppose that's the engine that motivates these stories: how the past continues to haunt.

You'd be well served to read one of these stories a week; to fully savor and consider each one, and the parallels each draws to your own life. It took me a year, off and on, to read this book for that reason.

Linda wrote: "Finished:
Started listening to "

packing for mars is great!

Finished and loved The Sandman 5: A Game Of You. Currently reading Mercy on my nook and After the Apocalypse: Stories in paperback. Liking both so far.

Eric wrote: "Linda wrote: "Finished:
"

I always liked the big lug. How was it?"

My comments are posted now, Eric which I hadn't done when I put it on this thread.

Generally, I liked it. Coincidentally, Garner is an unabashed liberal while I must be a bashed liberal. The book is slim (8 CDs, 288 pages), so I would have loved more, and I would think that since he is 83, I would have expected he would have more to share with us. That said, he comes across as a tell-it-like it is, learn-your-lines and hit-your-mark guy and that's the way the book is. It's meat and potatoes.

I was very disappointed to discover that Garner did not narrate the book. The final CD was honorifics by people Garner has known - both famous and not.

It was interesting from both a Garner admirer and as an actor learning some of the behind the scenes manifestations.

It was light enough for me to listen to while I driving through Columbus traffic but meaty enough to satisfy.

A big thank you to Eric and Jana! I just finished and I have to agree with both of you. Stephen King is one amazing storyteller!

For everyone that can't get enough of Elisbeth Salander and has a philosophical bent there is now a book called: The Girl with the Dragon Tatto and Philosophy. Very fun read and sometimes thought provoking.

Started for book club tomorrow night. Not quite sure how much of a discussion this one will provoke, but it's a quick, light read.

I'm still reading through , which I'm admittedly reading through slowly, savoring the poetic prose.

I'll be reading some travel and adventure books next month for another group theme read:



Looking forward to these reads!