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July 2008 Book Challenge

post #1 of 196
7/1/08 at 3:53am
Thread Starter 
Summer is upon us, and so it is time to dust off your favorite bathing suit, iron your sunglasses and beach chair, clean your beach towel and head to the beach with your a stack of your favorite books. Ahhhh... summer reading.


Since there has been some recent confusion as to what the purpose of the Book Challenge Thread is for, let's go over the new and improved guidelines for the thread:

1) Post the books you read ... or not
2) Post a recommendation ... or not
3) Number your book ... or not
4) Make a goal ... or not
5) Have fun with books (This one, unfortunately, is MANDATORY)


So, with that, avante and a happy reading July to everyone!



January's thread is HERE
February's thread is HERE
March's thread is HERE
April's thread is HERE
May's thread is HERE
June's thread is HERE

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post #2 of 196
7/1/08 at 11:42am
#19 Pretty Little Mistakes: A Do-Over Novel by Heather Mcelhatton
This one I have been reading for a little while. It was very fun and cool, but it got old in my opinion. It seemed like i kept turning into a slut, lol. I'm not sure if any of the endings don't end in trampiness.
#20 The Preservationist by David Maine
This book is rutting awesome! I was not offended at all with the dirty parts of this adaptation of Noah's Ark, and I really thought it was very imaginative. I am eager to see what else this guy has done.
post #3 of 196
7/1/08 at 11:43am
#27 Finding Lost: the unofficial guide – Wow! I doubt the writers of the show really had all these things in mind, but it was fun reading about the different theories.

#28 American Gods: A Novel – It took me awhile to get through this book, so long that I was not able to remember little details that were important later. I loved the premise but the book didn’t really do it for me.


HAPPY CANADA DAY!
post #4 of 196
7/1/08 at 7:01pm
I'm feeling overwhelmed by the amount of requests I received all at once from the library!

Right now I am reading The Saffron Kitchen and Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo, and have waiting to be read;
The Art of Scandal: The Life and Times of Isabella Stewart Gardner
Assassination Vacation
The Teahouse Fire
Case Histories: A Novel
Love is a Mixtape
Into the Wild
Daughters of the North
:

Just wanted to get my overwhelmed feelings out : :
post #5 of 196
7/1/08 at 8:57pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by fremontmama View Post
I'm feeling overwhelmed by the amount of requests I received all at once from the library!

Right now I am reading The Saffron Kitchen and Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo, and have waiting to be read;
The Art of Scandal: The Life and Times of Isabella Stewart Gardner
Assassination Vacation
The Teahouse Fire
Case Histories: A Novel
Love is a Mixtape
Into the Wild
Daughters of the North
:

Just wanted to get my overwhelmed feelings out : :
Me too. Within the last two days, I have had the following come in:

Just How Stupid Are We?: Facing the TRUTH About the American Voter
The Brief History of the Dead
U.S. vs. Them
Musicophilia
The World that Made New Orleans
Child 44
and
Duma Key

Guess I better get reading! Luckily (or unluckily) I'm out of school (and work) until August.
post #6 of 196
7/1/08 at 10:57pm
fremontmama and NewCrunchyDaddy -- I assume you both know this but in case you don't, some library systems allow you to place a "freeze" on your holds so you don't get too many at one time. There are some restrictions, but I've found this helpful. I'm not sure what state you are in NCD but fremontmama, KCLS allows this. Forgive me if you both already know this! I am constantly putting stuff on hold since I rarely buy books. I LOVE the library. I think the Seattle has one of the highest library use rates -- or something like that. Makes me proud!
post #7 of 196
7/1/08 at 11:25pm
58. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville

Been chipping away on this one for about a month now. I enjoyed it.
post #8 of 196
7/1/08 at 11:48pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by OMama View Post
fremontmama and NewCrunchyDaddy -- I assume you both know this but in case you don't, some library systems allow you to place a "freeze" on your holds so you don't get too many at one time. There are some restrictions, but I've found this helpful. I'm not sure what state you are in NCD but fremontmama, KCLS allows this. Forgive me if you both already know this! I am constantly putting stuff on hold since I rarely buy books. I LOVE the library. I think the Seattle has one of the highest library use rates -- or something like that. Makes me proud!
I wish I was back in Seattle (that's where DW and I were before we moved too far inland) ... we were regular (and I mean regular) patrons of the Seattle Public Libraries to the point that our local branch (Magnolia) librarians would get our holds ready when we walked in the door (this was before they installed the automated system). Our two local libraries don't allow freezes and on the whole, I'm not too impressed with either (when compared to the SPL and KCLS), but they're all I've got so... (We did just come back with 33 books/magazines (in addition to the 97 we already had checked out) between the three of us (myself, DW and DS) so I guess I can't complain too much
post #9 of 196
7/2/08 at 3:03am
I would love for our library to have either the freeze option or an option to have a "wish list" of the books you want to eventually get around to reading, but don't want to put on hold yet. Then, when you are ready to read the book, you can move it from your wish list to your hold requests.

I'm currently reading The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs. It's pretty amusing. I hope he actually gets something meaningful out of the experiment, though. I tried to read his Know-It-All book about reading the entire encyclopedia and I thought it was a pretty lame experiment to do, much less to write a book about.
post #10 of 196
7/2/08 at 1:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by OMama View Post
fremontmama and NewCrunchyDaddy -- I assume you both know this but in case you don't, some library systems allow you to place a "freeze" on your holds so you don't get too many at one time. There are some restrictions, but I've found this helpful. I'm not sure what state you are in NCD but fremontmama, KCLS allows this. Forgive me if you both already know this! I am constantly putting stuff on hold since I rarely buy books. I LOVE the library. I think the Seattle has one of the highest library use rates -- or something like that. Makes me proud!
Oooh, thanks for that tip! I just moved to Seattle so this may come in verrrrry handy.
post #11 of 196
7/2/08 at 1:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy View Post
Me too. Within the last two days, I have had the following come in:

Just How Stupid Are We?: Facing the TRUTH About the American Voter
The Brief History of the Dead
U.S. vs. Them
Musicophilia
The World that Made New Orleans
Child 44
and
Duma Key

Guess I better get reading! Luckily (or unluckily) I'm out of school (and work) until August.
Ooh, you have some interesting ones coming up!

Quote:
Originally Posted by OMama View Post
fremontmama and NewCrunchyDaddy -- I assume you both know this but in case you don't, some library systems allow you to place a "freeze" on your holds so you don't get too many at one time. There are some restrictions, but I've found this helpful. I'm not sure what state you are in NCD but fremontmama, KCLS allows this. Forgive me if you both already know this! I am constantly putting stuff on hold since I rarely buy books. I LOVE the library. I think the Seattle has one of the highest library use rates -- or something like that. Makes me proud!
Yeah, I haven't ever done that, although I definitely have times when I wished I had. I never know that I am going to have a bunch of books waiting for me until they've already arrived most of the time, so it's a fun surprise usually. I dont mind the pressure too much

And definitely, the Seattle Library system rocks. It's a rarity for them to not have a book I am looking for.

And their book sale at Magnuson Park is phenomenal!
post #12 of 196
7/2/08 at 5:36pm
I am finding it hard to get reading done this week. We are at the ocean and I thought I would read tons. But so far I am still reading the same book after three days.
post #13 of 196
7/2/08 at 5:50pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by fremontmama View Post
Ooh, you have some interesting ones coming up!
Yeah ... I'm looking forward to them.

Quote:
Originally Posted by fremontmama View Post
And definitely, the Seattle Library system rocks. It's a rarity for them to not have a book I am looking for.

And their book sale at Magnuson Park is phenomenal!
We miss Seattle a lot. When I apply for grad schools this fall UW will definitely be on the list. The Orem-Provo Utah area just doesn't compare.
post #14 of 196
7/2/08 at 6:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy View Post

We miss Seattle a lot. When I apply for grad schools this fall UW will definitely be on the list. The Orem-Provo Utah area just doesn't compare.

Hope you get it! I can see how the library system (and many other things) would be strikingly different there.
post #15 of 196
7/2/08 at 7:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy View Post
Yeah ... I'm looking forward to them.



We miss Seattle a lot. When I apply for grad schools this fall UW will definitely be on the list. The Orem-Provo Utah area just doesn't compare.
UW is where I went to grad school (I have an MA in Public Administration and an MA in International Studies) and overall I was very happy with my choice to go there. I miss it now!
post #16 of 196
7/2/08 at 9:52pm
#23 - CandyFreak, Steve Almond

Quote:
Almond loves candy like no other man in America. "I had decided to write about candy because I assumed it would be fun and frivolous and distracting...reconnect to the single, untarnished pleasure of my childhood. But, of course, there are no untarnished pleasures. That is only something the admen of our time would like us to believe." Almond's bittersweet nostalgia is balanced by a fiercely independent spirit--the same underdog quality on display by the small candy makers whose entire existence (and livelihood) is forever shadowed by the Big Three: Hershey's, Mars, and Nestle.
The parts of this book where the author reports on candymaking and the state of the candy industry are very interesting. The ends of chapters, where he digresses into psychobabble or his personal ethical issues can be less so.

#1-Garden of Beasts, #2-Passporter Guide to WDW, #3-Skylight Confessions, #4 - The Secret, #5 - The Kite Runner, #6 - Gone, #7 - Hidden Mickeys, #8 - Into Thin Air, #9 - Wolf Point, #10 - Ocean Breezes, #11 - Harmony Guide to Cables and Aran, #12 - East, #13 - Getting Started Knitting Socks, #14 - Keeping Faith, #15 - The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight, #16 The Big Nap, #17 - Grave of God's Daughter, #18 - Daddy's Girl, #19 - Behind the Scenes at the Museum, #20 - America, #21 - The Little Friend, #22 - Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, #23 - Candyfreak
post #17 of 196
7/3/08 at 1:43am
24. The Purrfect Murder - Rita Mae Brown

This is my umpteenth Mrs. Murphy Mystery. I kind of don't know why I keep reading them, because they always frustrate me - her "aw-shucks" yet political "this-is-the-way-the-world-works" expositions are beyond heavy-handed and so boring her editor should be shot. I guess the appeal is that it's easy to drop into - I know all the characters so all I have to do is learn about a few new ones (who are almost always killed or end up being the killers) and then try to figure out how Harry will almost be killed trying to solve the mystery and how her pets will save her butt. A mediocre summer read.
post #18 of 196
7/3/08 at 10:51am
Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan.

Its been discussed here upteen times so I don't have much to add. I am totally freaked out by the book but that's good. I was especially intrigued by the big organic vs. small organic chapter.
post #19 of 196
7/3/08 at 5:48pm
A middle-grade novel...

#42 Me and the Pumpkin Queen by Marlane Kennedy

The best parts of this book were the ones about growing giant pumpkins. It's easy to see the author did her homework on the topic. The story was alright, but a few things bothered me: Mildred didn't always sound 11 years old—saying things like "to no avail," when it wasn't part of her character to be precocious. A few parts weren't really necessary and slowed the story down, like stepping the reader through every single thing Mildred does when she gets home from school one day. And finally, there were a few things that didn't feel resolved, like a mention of how the dad and his co-worker should go on a date but it's never mentioned again. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this unless you're really into pumpkins.
post #20 of 196
7/4/08 at 11:21am
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy View Post
. When I apply for grad schools this fall UW will definitely be on the list. The Orem-Provo Utah area just doesn't compare.
what others are on the list?

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