October 2009 Book Challenge - Page 3

[Jenifer76]

After the Rice by Wendy French

Megan Ismore’s bungalow isn’t big enough to house her problems---or her relatives.

Married just ten months, Megan’s life with Matt would be grand if it weren’t for a fast-growing secret she can’t bear to share. As if that weren’t enough, she’s dealing with Matt’s belching Uncle Tony, who is residing on an air mattress in the basement, and her sister Andrea, a roving hippie, who is nesting on their couch. Plus dueling mothers-in-law hell-bent on double-booking the newlyweds, an incontinent terrier, and a randy best friend. As midterm exams are about to begin, Megan’s unweaned infant niece (a.k.a. The Pink Tyrant) is left in her care, and there’s no time to spare for reexamining her life. Between the demands of her family and a gigantic decision only she and Matt can make, Megan finds herself in a state of marital chaos that she never imagined but must somehow manage.

I started this book thinking that French is a pretty humorous story. She has a knack for describing people that makes for a good read. But then she threw in this curve ball at the end that made me feel tricked. If not for this, I might have liked the book. Instead, it left me with a bad feeling.

[kaliki_kila]

85. In the Woods by Tana French

I had heard great things about this book last year and I was saving it to read for the R.I.P. Challenge on the book blogs. The book is mostly a lot of detective work and the ending was disappointing. The biggest mystery of the book wasn't even answered. I was expecting something spooky and fun and this wasn't it, although her descriptions of the children playing in the woods and on top of the old castle were very vivid and beautiful. I wonder if The Likeness is worth it?

[fremontmama]

Originally Posted by kangamitroo

i've never heard of it, and it sounds completely up my daughter's alley. thanks for this one!

I think it was out of print for a while, I couldn't find it until recently. It was fun though. Cute illustrations too.

Originally Posted by friendtoall

Schools That Do Too Much: How Schools Waste Time and Money and What We Can All Do About It by Etta Kralovec

This book made me angry. Angry that our kids' education is thought so little of. Maybe even angry enough to do something about it - and luckily the book gives lots of ideas of how to make changes.

Make Your Creative Dreams Real: A Plan for Procrastinators, Perfectionists, Busy People, and People Who Would Really Rather Sleep All Day by Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy

Though SARK does inspire, I'm just not ready for this book.

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

It's been awhile since I read a book that made me want to rush through it. This was an enjoyable read.

Flip! for Decorating: A Page-by-Page, Piece-by-Piece, Room-by-Room Guide to Transforming Your Home

While there were a few good ideas in the book, I didn't like any of the rooms or most of the furniture. Just not my taste, I guess.

I sorta liked that flip book, but felt somewhat the same about the aesthetic, and I also wish there were decorating books out there for your average person, instead of for the wealthy. I guess that might be why I'm enjoying checking stuff out on blogs instead of in books these days, when it comes to decorating.

Also, the school book at the top of your list sounds interesting!

Originally Posted by mammastar2

#59 - The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

Collins' 'sensationalist' novels are often seen as a Victorian precursor to modern detective novels or thrillers, and The Woman in White is one of his best known efforts. Although over 600 pages, this Victorian novel was immensely readable. It begins with Walter Hartwright, a poor drawing master, encountering a mysterious woman in white as he is walking back to London one night. He is startled to find that she is familiar with the country home at which he has just been engaged to teach two young women to draw, and to which he will be travelling the next day, Limmeridge Hall. After he leaves her, he learns that she has seemingly just escaped from a lunatic asylum. He goes to Limmeridge, and finds himself falling in love with one of his students, the beautiful Laura Fairlie, who is engaged to marry the much older (and evil, natch) Sir Percival Glyde. What is the connection of the woman in white to Limmeridge? Will the beautiful Laura be saved from the evil Sir Percival?

This was awesome! It is written from multiple perspectives, full of fascinating characters (well, Laura and Hartwright are rather drippy - but Laura's intrepid half-sister and the dastardly Count Fosco make up for it), and full of suspense. Also some interesting food for thought about gender roles in Victorian society.

Originally Posted by Jenifer76

Brooklyn by Colm Toibin



This book is not fast-paced or action-packed. Instead, it is a thoughtful story about a young girl who must leave her home in Ireland to find her way in America. I was concerned about 3/4ths of the way that Eilis was going to be cheated out choosing her own path. In the end, though, she is able to make her own decisions. A good read.

Both of those sound fun! Thanks!


I'm almost done with Gone Away World, which took me about 150 pages to get into, and digresses so often, that I just had to accept it. The story has been worth it though, and the writing is nice too. I'm excited to see how he wraps this up. It was a Nancy Pearl recommendation, and as usual, she is right on the money.

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

#58 The Spellman Files
by Lisa Lutz

My review can be found HERE


#1 The King in Yellow, #2 Ghost Story, #3 Twilight (Audio), #4 Nice Work, #5 The Poetry of Robert Frost: The Collected Poems, Complete and Unabridged, #6 Collected Poems 1909-1962 (T.S. Eliot), #7 New Moon (Audio), #8 Selected Poems (William Carlos Williams), #9 The Pearl, #10 The Blackwater Lightship, #11 100 Selected Poems (e.e. cummings), #12 The Grapes of Wrath, #13 Eclipse (Audio), #14 A Bit on the Side, #15 East of Eden, #16 As I Lay Dying: Redux, #17 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance—Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem!, #18 Breaking Dawn (Audio), #19 A Streetcar Named Desire: 25th Anniversary Edition, #20 The Short Stories: The First Forty-Nine Stories with a Brief Preface by the Author, #21 New British Poetry, #22 Brick Lane, #23 Maps for Lost Lovers, #24 The Silence of the Lambs (Audio): Redux, #25 Pride and Prejudice, #26 Poe: A Life Cut Short, #27 Dark Banquet: Blood and the Curious Lives of Blood-Feeding Creatures, #28 The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obession in the Amazon (Audio), #29 Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America, #30 The Bloody White Baron: The Extraordinary Story of the Russian Nobleman Who Became the Last Khan of Russia, #31 Good Book: The Bizarre, Hilarious, Disturbing, Marvelous, and Inspiring Things I Learned When I Read Every Single Word of the Bible (Audio), #32 The Composer is Dead, #33 Shakespeare's Kitchen: Renaissance Recipes for the Contemporary Cook, #34 Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned: Stories, #35 The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran, #36 The Book of Totally Irresponsible Science: 64 Daring Experiments for Young Scientists, #37 The Road, #38 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, #39 How to Draw Washington's Sights and Symbols, #40 My Hippie Grandmother, #41 Alfred Hitchcock Presents 12 Stories They Wouldn't Let Me Do On TV, #42 My Favorite Horror Story, #43 Darwin Slept Here: Discovery, Adventure, and Swimming Iguanas in Charles Darwin's South America, #44 The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, #45 Dead Until Dark, #46 Indiana Jones and the Seven Veils, #47 'salem's Lot (Audio): Redux, #48 How to Survive a Robot Uprising: Tips on Defending Yourself Against the Coming Rebellion (Audio), #49 Darwinia: A Novel of a very Different Twentieth Century, #50 Why Did It Have to be Snakes?: From Science to the Supernatural, the Many Mysteries of Indiana Jones, #51 Road Rage: Two Novellas (Audio), #52 The Science of Stephen King: From Carrie to Cell, the Terrifying Truth Behind the Horror Master's Fiction, #53 Doctor Who: The Nightmare of Black Island (Audio), #54 Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, #55 Dragons of the Hourglass Mage, #56 Doctor Who: Pest Control, An Exclusive Audio Adventure (Audio), #57 The Hunger and Other Stories: A Collection of Violent Entertainments, #58 The Spellman Files

[Jenifer76]

An Exact Replica of a Figment of my Imagination by Elizabeth McCracken

"This is the happiest story in the world with the saddest ending," writes Elizabeth McCracken in her powerful, inspiring memoir. A prize-winning, successful novelist in her 30s, McCracken was happy to be an itinerant writer and self-proclaimed spinster. But suddenly she fell in love, got married, and two years ago was living in a remote part of France, working on her novel, and waiting for the birth of her first child.

This book is about what happened next. In her ninth month of pregnancy, she learned that her baby boy had died. How do you deal with and recover from this kind of loss? Of course you don't--but you go on. And if you have ever experienced loss or love someone who has, the company of this remarkable book will help you go on.

What struck -- and resonated with me -- about this book was how pitifully she was treated once it became clear she had lost her child. OBGYNs seem to want to deal with healthy, chubby - and of course, alive - babies. Anything else has to be talked about in vague medical terms and rushed through.
I appreciated McCracken's frank tone throughout the book. And while I couldn't relate to all of her feelings or actions, there are some emotions of child loss that are across the board.

[Bufomander]

Originally Posted by nancy926

Hoping to get back on here in 2010...I spent much of 2009 writing, editing and self publishing my first novel....not sure if I am allowed to "market" in these messages though! :-)


Collins - Hunger Games

Congratulations on your novel, Nancy! How fun!
And I just finished the sequel to the Hunger Games
#108 Chasing Fire by Suzanne Collins
DH and I have both devoured this. too bad about needing to wait for the final one in the trilogy -- i might re-read the first two when it comes out.

Originally Posted by fremontmama

#71 Twig by Elizabeth Orton Jones

Super cute children's chapter book from the early 20th century. Twig is a young girl playing in the backyard of her apartment building. She meets an elf and has an adventure after being magically shrunk to the little elf's size. They meet the neighbors the sparrows and climb up the horse and make a home in an old tomato can. My daughter loved it!

This sounds great and I think my DD would like it, too. And we need a new book to read, her and I. Sadly, my library holds account is full again so I need to pick the few things I have waiting there (Jane Yolen's Johnny Appleseed, dvd of Coraline, 31 Hours by Masha Hamilton) and then I hope to remember to put this one on hold...!

[mammastar2]

#60 - The Bully, The Bullied and the Bystander by Barbara Coloroso

This was ok. I don't usually read books like this, because I find them a little...thin. There were some good ideas, but also a lot of generalities and repetition. I also found the constant reiteration of instances where children who had been bullied killed themselves or others very depressing, and not necessarily the most helpful thing for me, as a public school parent, to keep in mind about every interaction in which someone gives my kid an unnecessary shove. I think I'll go back to reading novels now.

[cathe]

Confessions of a Closet Master Baker by Gesine Bullock-Prado

This is a memoir by Sandra Bullocks sister. It was pretty good -- interesting with some good sounding recipes.

[cathe]

Confessions of a Closet Master Baker by Gesine Bullock-Prado

This is a memoir by Sandra Bullocks sister. It was pretty good -- interesting with some good sounding recipes.

[fremontmama]

Originally Posted by kaliki_kila

85. In the Woods by Tana French

I had heard great things about this book last year and I was saving it to read for the R.I.P. Challenge on the book blogs. The book is mostly a lot of detective work and the ending was disappointing. The biggest mystery of the book wasn't even answered. I was expecting something spooky and fun and this wasn't it, although her descriptions of the children playing in the woods and on top of the old castle were very vivid and beautiful. I wonder if The Likeness is worth it?

Oh, this is on my list. The cover looks spooky, it's too bad it doesn't do it justice.

[kaliki_kila]

Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy

#58 The Spellman Files
by Lisa Lutz

My review can be found HERE

I want to see Rae at Hogwarts, too!

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

Originally Posted by kaliki_kila

I want to see Rae at Hogwarts, too!

It does make for an interesting visual, doesn't it.

[kaliki_kila]

86. Fear the Worst by Linwood Barclay

This is about a car salesman whose 17-yr-old daughter goes missing. He frantically searches for her all while being framed for her murder and being framed for other crimes. He also has to evade the police this whole time because they are looking at him as their suspect. I flew through this book in two days. It was a bit predictable, but the book moves so fast that as soon as you have something figured out, the author acknowledges it and throws something else at you. I don't think I've ever read a thriller before but I liked this a lot.

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

#59 All the King's Men (Audio)
by Robert Penn Warren
read by Michael Emerson

My review can be found HERE


#1 The King in Yellow, #2 Ghost Story, #3 Twilight (Audio), #4 Nice Work, #5 The Poetry of Robert Frost: The Collected Poems, Complete and Unabridged, #6 Collected Poems 1909-1962 (T.S. Eliot), #7 New Moon (Audio), #8 Selected Poems (William Carlos Williams), #9 The Pearl, #10 The Blackwater Lightship, #11 100 Selected Poems (e.e. cummings), #12 The Grapes of Wrath, #13 Eclipse (Audio), #14 A Bit on the Side, #15 East of Eden, #16 As I Lay Dying: Redux, #17 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance—Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem!, #18 Breaking Dawn (Audio), #19 A Streetcar Named Desire: 25th Anniversary Edition, #20 The Short Stories: The First Forty-Nine Stories with a Brief Preface by the Author, #21 New British Poetry, #22 Brick Lane, #23 Maps for Lost Lovers, #24 The Silence of the Lambs (Audio): Redux, #25 Pride and Prejudice, #26 Poe: A Life Cut Short, #27 Dark Banquet: Blood and the Curious Lives of Blood-Feeding Creatures, #28 The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obession in the Amazon (Audio), #29 Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America, #30 The Bloody White Baron: The Extraordinary Story of the Russian Nobleman Who Became the Last Khan of Russia, #31 Good Book: The Bizarre, Hilarious, Disturbing, Marvelous, and Inspiring Things I Learned When I Read Every Single Word of the Bible (Audio), #32 The Composer is Dead, #33 Shakespeare's Kitchen: Renaissance Recipes for the Contemporary Cook, #34 Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned: Stories, #35 The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran, #36 The Book of Totally Irresponsible Science: 64 Daring Experiments for Young Scientists, #37 The Road, #38 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, #39 How to Draw Washington's Sights and Symbols, #40 My Hippie Grandmother, #41 Alfred Hitchcock Presents 12 Stories They Wouldn't Let Me Do On TV, #42 My Favorite Horror Story, #43 Darwin Slept Here: Discovery, Adventure, and Swimming Iguanas in Charles Darwin's South America, #44 The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, #45 Dead Until Dark, #46 Indiana Jones and the Seven Veils, #47 'salem's Lot (Audio): Redux, #48 How to Survive a Robot Uprising: Tips on Defending Yourself Against the Coming Rebellion (Audio), #49 Darwinia: A Novel of a very Different Twentieth Century, #50 Why Did It Have to be Snakes?: From Science to the Supernatural, the Many Mysteries of Indiana Jones, #51 Road Rage: Two Novellas (Audio), #52 The Science of Stephen King: From Carrie to Cell, the Terrifying Truth Behind the Horror Master's Fiction, #53 Doctor Who: The Nightmare of Black Island (Audio), #54 Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, #55 Dragons of the Hourglass Mage, #56 Doctor Who: Pest Control, An Exclusive Audio Adventure (Audio), #57 The Hunger and Other Stories: A Collection of Violent Entertainments, #58 The Spellman Files, #59 All the King's Men (Audio)

[fremontmama]

#72 The Gone Away World by Nick Harkaway

Oh this was a good one. That Nancy Pearl, she never fails to recommend a good book. It did take about 100 pages or so for me to get into the story, and once I accepted his style of story-telling that included many digressions, I really enjoyed this book. It is a little hard to categorize the book, but I suppose you could call it science fiction. There's the flavor of a post-apocalyptic story in it, although the whole story is not like this. There are surprising turns of events and connections, and I really liked how the web the author wove was complex but all came together. I feel like I can't tell you too much about the plot without ruining the story. Really fun though. Pick it up!

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

Originally Posted by fremontmama

#72 The Gone Away World by Nick Harkaway

Oh this was a good one. That Nancy Pearl, she never fails to recommend a good book. It did take about 100 pages or so for me to get into the story, and once I accepted his style of story-telling that included many digressions, I really enjoyed this book. It is a little hard to categorize the book, but I suppose you could call it science fiction. There's the flavor of a post-apocalyptic story in it, although the whole story is not like this. There are surprising turns of events and connections, and I really liked how the web the author wove was complex but all came together. I feel like I can't tell you too much about the plot without ruining the story. Really fun though. Pick it up!

Okay, for some reason, I have been laboring under the delusion that Nancy Pearl was recommending Gone with the Wind and that's what you were reading. And I couldn't figure out for the life of me why Nancy Pearl felt that GwtW needed recommending. Now I know better.

[fremontmama]

Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy

Okay, for some reason, I have been laboring under the delusion that Nancy Pearl was recommending Gone with the Wind and that's what you were reading. And I couldn't figure out for the life of me why Nancy Pearl felt that GwtW needed recommending. Now I know better.

Nope! This book is way way better imho , I like the genre much more. I think you would probably like it too. It's a nice solid read, about 500pgs.

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

Originally Posted by fremontmama

Nope! This book is way way better imho , I like the genre much more. I think you would probably like it too. It's a nice solid read, about 500pgs.

I just put it on my wish list at the Bellingham Library.

[nancy926]

Originally Posted by Bufomander

And I just finished the sequel to the Hunger Games
#108 Chasing Fire by Suzanne Collins
DH and I have both devoured this. too bad about needing to wait for the final one in the trilogy -- i might re-read the first two when it comes out.

Have you read Battle Royale? Japanese book that some say was "cribbed" for Hunger Games... I haven't read it so I don't know. I thought HG was awesome & am thinking about getting the next one to read on an upcoming trip!

[fremontmama]

Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy

I just put it on my wish list at the Bellingham Library.

Hooray! I hope you like it!

Originally Posted by nancy926

Have you read Battle Royale? Japanese book that some say was "cribbed" for Hunger Games... I haven't read it so I don't know. I thought HG was awesome & am thinking about getting the next one to read on an upcoming trip!

Hunger Games is on my list, so this is interesting to me too! Maybe I'll add this one to my list too