Any Good Books Read Lately?

[Kelly71]

I am looking for a good book to read over the holiday break from school. Any recommendations? My last book read (for pleasure) was The Red Tent. I loved it!

Peace to all,
Kelly

[miasmom]

I really enjoy Mary Higgins Clark, she has a lot of books out all are great. They are murder mysteries but are very clean.

Jan Karon has the Mitford series out they are heartwarming.

I am reading John Grishams books at the moment. Sometimes it is hard to find new authors that I think are worth my time.

[3 little birds]

I read a lot of books while nursing ( I don't know what I would do without the public library), and I too, am cautious about new authors because many times the book is boring or poorly written.
I just finished a book called. The Nature of Water and Air by Regina McBride. It is her first novel and I was very impressed. I could not put it down. It takes place in Ireland and has an intensely interesting and heartbreaking story. There is lots of great breastfeeding though:D and it explores the importance of relationships between mothers and their children.

I also just finished a great book called Pasquale's Nose by Micheal Rips. This is his first book also. It is sort of a travel/memoir and it is hysterical. It is the experiences of the author living in a small town in Italy as an outsider.

I am always looking for book suggestions, so keep 'em coming!:)

[mellie-bellie]

I've been quite the book worm lately, especially since we did away w/ the TV about 2 weeks ago and I needed/wanted something to do w/ all my extra free time. I've finished reading "Living Joyfully with Children", I thought I needed to get a jump start on how do deal w/ children since my 1st and only child just turned one and he's not quite a baby anymore. This book is an AP must IMO. I'm currently reading "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenence", which is kinda philisophical, but it's intertwined in a plot...I'm reading this on just for fun, but it's also helping me view things in different ways. I'm also reading "A Mother's Guide to Homeschooling", just to get a jump start on things since we're planning on HS, and "How Children Learn", which from the little that I've read, seems to be a really good book.

[babynell]

I'm reading the Red Tent now and I'm enjoying it. I recently read a book called The Ladies Auxilliary Tova Mirvis it's her first book and I LOVED it! My friends that have read it also like it a lot. It takes place in an orthodox Jewish community, but the book is more about the relations between mothers and daughters in a small changing community. There are a lot of Jewish details, but you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy it (I'm Catholic).

For those of you that like funny fiction, I highly recommend the Janet Evanovich series, starts with One For The Money. These books made me laugh out loud and often!

Cheers!
Marilyn

[3girls1boy]

"Expecting Adam" by Martha Beck

true story about when the author was expecting her Down Syndrome child, Adam. Not really a book about a special needs child though. Both she and her husband experienced many mysterious and magical things when she was carrying her boy, and also about how what was important to them changed.

Felt almost sad when I finished it, like I was saying goodbye to some wonderful friends.

[SoHappy]

I just finished "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" by David Eggers. If you want to laugh and cry and be touched by wit and wordplay, I recommend it. He's very clever as he tells the story of his life while parenting his younger brother after they were orphaned.
For a light read (interesting story, but not really "literature") I liked "The Prizewinner of Defiance, Ohio -- how my mother raised ten kids on twenty-five words or less" by Terry Ryan. It tells how a mom in the '50s kept her family going by winning jingles contests, often providing for her family when her alcoholic husband was incapable of it.
I also read "The Magus" by John Fowles this summer. Don't bother. With a 700 page investment, I expect a bigger payoff. I felt jerked around by the author, even tho' I know the book has a bit of a cult following.:confused:
Keep the suggestions coming -- I'm quitting my job at the end of the year and will have more time to read!!

[3 little birds]

SoHappy, I also read David Eggers book, and I thought it was great, too. Very funny, but heartbreaking too. I was suprised by how young the author is.

[jtsmom]

Robert Morgan, Sandra Dallas, Wally Lamb.

I also read In the Fall by Jeffery Lent, it was really good, his only book that I know of. Robert Morgan and Sandra Dallas write about turn of the century housewives, which I love, Wally Lamb has two books out that take place in more modern times but are beautifully woven together.

[Elphaba]

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[lilzmama]

I love this discussion, as reading is one thing I do have the energy for these days. I just finished Having Faith, by Sandra Steingraber, an ecologist writing about her experience with maternity, birth, and breastfeeding. She writes from the perspective of herself as an ecosystem, and , since she researches and otherwise writes about environmental toxins, a large part of the book is about environmental influences on the fetus. Fabulous book. It opened my eyes to the vunerability of nursing infants and the incredible levels of toxins fetuses of even the most careful moms are exposed to. It also looks at fetal growth on a microscopic level, detail by detail --just what i wanted to read when i was pregnant.

[SoHappy]

Shoshanna's Mom -- I loved Confederacy of Dunces, too! It's one of those books you either love or you hate. I'm always suspicious of people who hated it ;) "Oh, my valve!" I like your other choices, too, so I'll have to check out The Lucky Gourd Shop.
Lilzmom, good for you for reading Sandra Steingraber! She's awesome. We just did an interview with her at work. What an amazing woman. If only more people would read/listen to what she has to say.

[Julie]

LOL I feel bad...all Ive read lately is fluff, free fulff from eharlequin (http://www.eharlequin.com). Im currently rereading Clan of the cave bears, Im going to read the series again because the new one is suposed to be comming out in May, its been 10 or 11 years since the last one!

[glh]

I read the latest Anne Tyler book "Back When We Were Grownups" and really enjoyed it. I recommend it, especially if you have previously enjoyed any of her books. "Breathing Lessons" by Tyler is one of my all time favorite books. Also enjoyed "The Red Tent" and "Bee Season" very much.

I also heard that two new books, "The World Below" by Sue Miller and "Blue Diary" by Alice Hoffman (two of my favorite authors) are very good. They are next on my reading list.

[peggy]

These are all great suggestions!
If you are looking for something light and funny I would recommend David Sedaris. I am reading his book "Naked" right now, but my 21 yr. old says his earlier work is even better.

peggy

[LEmama]

Recent awesome reads...

Mittens Strings For God - Reflections for Mothers...?/Katrina Kenison

Blackbird/Jennifer Lauck

The Poisonwood Bible/Barbara Kingsolver

For 'lighter' reading, try Mothers Who Think - a collection of essays from salon.com edited by Moses and Peri.

[dfoy]

A few good books I've read lately:
The Saving Graces by Patricia Gaffney (one of my favs!)
The Pull of the Moon by Elizabeth Berg
The Hours by Michael Cunningham (won the Pulitzer)
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach (a great way to look at life!)

[saganaga]

Would anyone be interested in joining an online book club? It's called Journey Through Books, it's for reading, sharing & discussing books, go to:
http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/journeythroughbooks

[Corriander]

I loved the Red Tent!

I've also recently read A Prayer for Owen Meany, Wicked, Confessions of an Ugly stepsister (by the same author as Wicked but not nearly as good), Plain Truth (sort of a murder mystery set in Amish country, very good).

Now I'm really into mysteries

[jfatton]

due to an unexpected (and unwelcomed) reduction in hours at work, i read a book last week....first one in a year or so. Corriander, you would like it if you liked "Owen Meany". It is "The Fourth Hand" by John Irving.

Joe

[Peggy O'Mara]

I love these suggestions. I read a lot at work, obviously, and like non-fiction but it is unusual for me to find fiction that I love. Recently I've found some old classics that I'm crazy about. A Story Like the Wind and A Far Off Place by Laurens Van der Post. About Africa in the early 1900s and the genuine magic of life lived in tune with nature. I also love the writing of Gabriel Garcia Marquez in Love in the Time of Cholera. I love the gooey, yummy, lyrical language both these men use. :cool:

[Dovesong]

I echo the comments about The Red tent and books by Elizabeth Berg and Patricia Gaffney. I also love books by Gail Godwin, especially the ones with Spiritual threads (the Good Husband, Father Melancholy's Daughter).
The book I just finished which I thoroughly enjoyed and touched me deeply was Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells. I believe there is a book that came before this about the same characters which I did not know about when I picked it up.
For a spicy read for the person who likes books aobut southern women, try anything by Micheal Lee West.
And speaking of Jewish fiction, I love Chaim Potok, especially the ones about Asher Lev.
Happy Reading!

[3 little birds]

My personal library is all old classics that I am saving for my children...
Anything by Anthony Trollope (and he's got a lot to choose from).

All of George Eliot's, Elizabeth Gaskell's, Jane Austen's and anything by the Bronte sisters.

Tess of D'Urbervilles and Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy.

A Room With A View by E.M. Forster.

Anything Edith Wharton.

The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde.

Portrait of a Lady by Henry James.

The Anne of Green Gables Series.

[dfoy]

Dovesong,
The book before Ya Ya Sisterhood is called Little Altars Everywhere by R. Wells. I read it before Ya Ya but you will enjoy it if you read it now. Its smaller than Ya Ya but very good.

I saw some reference above to Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible. It is an excellent book and so are her others; Animal Dreams, The Bean Trees, Pigs in Heaven (sequel to the Bean Trees) and Prodigal Summer. She is one of my favorite writers and I teach her literature to my summer school students.

Anyone interested in deciding on a book and discussing it through a thread? We could all give some suggestions, vote and read. Let me know!

:)

[glh]

I am interested in reading a book and discussing it. I also loved the books by Rebecca Wells, and the Bean Trees and Pigs in Heaven by Kingsolver. I have a new book "Never Change" by Berg, but I haven't started it yet.

[daylily]

I've been reading the Bridget Jones books--Bridget Jone's Diary and Bridget Jones The Edge of reason. They're easy on the brain, but very, very funny. I also enjoy Bill Bryson's books. I also recently finished The Waterfall by Margaret Drabble and I couldn't put it down.

[artemesia]

I would highly recommend anything by Tom Robbins. His books are really quirky, funny, brilliant word play, have intersting philosophical sidetracks and colorfull characters. Another great but totally different author is Sarah Orne Jewet. I especially liked her "Country of the Pointed Firs", about a small New England town in the 1800's. She was quite well known and popular in her day but has been largely forgotten, which is a shame.

[mntmama]

Reading these postings is like having a whole new stack of books by your bed! however, w/ the family bed, the stack isn't nxt to the bed any longer because reading a chapter b4 bed just never happens! I read a series of 4 books by Diana Gabaldon, that I found very fast moving and very entertaining. Great characters! Some epic adventure, historical content and romance. These aren't like some of the historical romances you see at the checkout line with the "heaving bosoms" and lots of heavy breathing, though there is some great chemistry going on here!

[truthseeker]

I loved all the Barbara Kingsolver books and am a big fan of
Margaret Atwood as well...Right now I am reading Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins and Henry and June by Anais Nin, both really great books. I think that Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott was one of the funniest books ever, and Bridget Jones Diary. I think the lighter books work best for me with two toddlers. I can't ever find the time these days to read as much as I like.

Ah, yes and The Ya Ya Sisterhood and Little Altars Everywhere are great.

I think the next book I will read is The Red Tent...everyone seems to be raving about it.

Thanks for all of the suggestions! :)

[MeMeMama]

**I read a series of 4 books by Diana Gabaldon, that I found very fast moving and very entertaining. Great characters! Some epic adventure, historical content and romance. These aren't like some of the historical romances you see at the checkout line with the "heaving bosoms" and lots of heavy breathing, though there is some great chemistry going on here!**

I loved these books as well. The first one is called Outlander. Get it. You won't be able to put it down.

[realramona]

Right now I am reading "We Were the Mulvaneys" by Joyce Carol Oates. She is one of my favorites. I also loved "A Prayer for Owen Meany", really anything by John irving is great. I asked for The Red Tent for christmas I hope dh remembers......S

[jempd]

I just have to add a book here, although there are already so many good suggestions, because it is the best and most thought povoking book I'v read in years. It is "Magical Child" by Joseph Chilton Pearce. It is by NO means a light read, in fact it is rather chewy and dense; not for escape at all, in fact it's really an academic book, but its ideas completely complement much of what goes on here on this board in general. I haven't finished it yet but so far I am blown away by the implications of what he's saying. To overgeneralize, its basically about how the creativity and enormous pøtential for intellectual growth gets squelched out of children by the time they are 7 or 8, starting with pregnancy and birth. So if you're up for something like this, it's well worth it.

On the light side, I noticed David Sedaris' book Naked mentioned that I also recently read and literally laughed out loud doing so. I've read Me Talk Pretty One Day too by him and I definitely recommend it.
I noticed, LEmama that you read Blackbird. I was excited to see that because I thought it was v. good. Have you also seen that the same author has a new book, Still Waters, which is about what happens after Blackbird ends? Sadly it doesn't get a whole lot better for her.

[peacemama]

I read like it's going out of style, so my list would be ten pages long! :)

Here are a few of the really great ones:

Blackbird by Jennifer Lauck (and then read the sequel, Still Waters)- autobiography of a girl who overcame a difficult childhood. Her writing is just so beautiful.

Anything by Anna Quindlen or Elizabeth Berg

The Invisible Circus by Jennifer Egan - story of a teenage girl who goes on a journey through Europe to uncover details of her sister's mysterious suicide years earlier

I also read a lot of "young adult" books because I teach sixth graders (on leave now), and you'd be amazed at the depth and quality of many of these books. The best one I've read recently is called Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli, about how a high school reacts to a new student who tries to spread love and joy around the school.

[bebe luna]

The Dreams of Dragons by Lyall Watson- a beautiful and elloquintly written book about the wonders of nature and humans.
Also- One Life At A Time, Please by edward Abbey,
The Yellow Heart by Pablo Neruda (poetry)
Shogun by James Clavell- a great adventure in ancient Japan

I also found the magical Child by Joseph chilton Peirce to be a great book. And so is the sequel- The Magical Child Matures.

[naturalmama]

"Diet for a New America" by John Robbins. This is the most informative book for those interested in health, the environment, and/or animals. It has so much information in it - I have never learned so much from any other book! He has a new book, I think that is along similar lines, that I have not read yet. He also has a video for diet for a new america, that I would like to see but have not yet.

[Amulet]

I just read Magical Child too! It is an amazing and thought provoking book. I'd also like to recommend Kids, Parents and Power struggles, its practical and readable.
I've also recently read John irvings, A Prayer to Owen Meaney and A Widow for one year, which I enjoyed, but then I tried reading The world according to GARP - allegedly his most famous work, I couldn't even finish it as I got bored! (Much to dh's disgust as he has read all JI's work!)

My wonderful friend Michelle just gave me Mists of Avalon for Solstice so I'll be starting it tonight!

[Epicmama]

Lots of sooo good books mentioned. The Poisonwood Bible is indeed a work of genius. Pigs in Heaven was also good. It defined the word "nation" in my mind. More:

Patricia Duncker - Hallucinating Foucault, The Dr.
James Kilgo - Daughter of My People
Jamaica Kincaid - a must read literary guru

Canadiana - hard to find, perhaps for you Americans, but maybe not if the librarians are up on their good words.
Anne Michaels, Fugitive Pieces
Nancy Huston,

My mind has now gone blank with titles, but I'll devise a list. Thanks for everyone's contributions!!

[LEmama]

Just finished Still Waters (the sequel to Blackbird) by Jennifer Lauck and then The Patron Saint of Liars by Ann Pachett - both were great. Keep the reccomendations coming!

[redheadmama]

I wish I had more time to read...but my three boys are keeping me busy these days! I have managed to read many of the books mentioned above, surprisingly, and also recommend The Poisonwood Bible, The Red Tent, and anything by David Sedaris. Bill Bryson's later stuff is good too. Right now I'm reading The Brothers K by David James Dugan which is pretty good so far. Anybody out there read Misconceptions by Naomi Wolfe? Sad but true. Girl with A Pearl Earring is a good quick read. And an excellent epic read is The Count of Monte Cristo, which I've been plugging away at for about a year now, but is well worth it.

[yogamama]

I just finished "Good Harbor" by Anita Diamment (okay, I'm not spelling her name correctly - the author of "The Red Tent"). This is a new novel in a contemporary setting about two women friends. Very different from "The Red Tent" AND I got it at the library!

I'm also reading "The Price of Motherhood" by Ann Crittendon (also not sure if I'm spelling her name correctly).

I need more suggestions for novels... thanks for some good ideas.
K

[daylily]

Redheadmama, I'm so happy to see another Bill Bryson fan. His books are so funny I have to be careful not to be eating or drinking while reading his books or I might choke myself laughing. Did you read "Notes from a Small Island" where he's in a pub in Glasgow and can't understand what anyone is saying to him? I laughed so hard, my kids demanded to know what was so funny, so I tried to read the passage out loud to them, but I was unable to speak from laughing.

I'm reading "The Eustace Diamonds" by Anthony Trollope. An oldie but a goodie. It's actually a teeny bit erotic in parts. Who would have thought?

[redheadmama]

Daylily--Yep, Bill Bryson is great! I saw him in Edinburgh and he's just as eloquent and funny in person. I haven't read Notes From a Small Island (which is strange, since I live here...) but I loved Notes From a Big Country (which I think came out in the States as Neither Here Nor There.) It is a collection of his articles for the Sunday Times written about America when he moved back there after being in the UK for 20 years. A must read! Down Under is also really good and actually made me want to visit Australia, a place that had never particularly interested me for some reason...

[lilypad]

I loved _The Poisonwood Bible_ by Barbara Kingsolver. After i finished it i went out right away and bought her latest book _Prodigal Summer_ (even coughed upt he $$for the hardcover) because I loved poisonwood so much and was VERY disappointed. it was just a fluffy romance novel basically, i was expecting WAY more. I love Bill Bryson too, totally laugh out loud funny. Another good one is _The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing_ by Melissa Banks.
I love travel books too and a good one is _A Woman's World_, which is travel essays. Also I _Tales of a Female Nomad_ but only read the 1st chapter when i was at B&N one day. It seemed good though.

[TripkeHughes]

I just finished reading Operating Instructions by Annie Lamont and IT WAS SO FUNNY! A must read.

[elnachick]

I love to read! :) Good to see Wally Lamb, Tom Robbins, and Edith Wharton suggested, great writers all! I just finished the most recent Tom Robbins and it was great - Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates. Tom Robbins is definitely "different" if you've never read his work, but in addition to writing incredibly creative and whacky tales, he has these gems of phrases and observations that are utterly brilliant... Makes you want to read with a pen in hand to underline!

A small but lovely little book to try to find (I bought my copy at a Barnes&Noble, so it's out there) is called "The House of Waiting," by Maria Tamor Budhros (close but prob. misspelled, title is right though). It is a really wonderful story about family and expectations and relationships among generations, etc.

Another I am reading right now, great if you have a partner who was/is a skateboarder in his/her youth or kids into skating, is Tony Hawk's autobiography, called "Hawk: Occupation Skateboarder." It's great insight into the whole skate culture, but it is also a fast, fun read. He's really an interesting person!

the original quintet of Anne Rice Vampire novels is my "guilty pleasure" reading... (not so into the newer ones)

[flutemandolin]

I just finished "My Story As Told By Water" by David James Duncan. I am a fish biologist by profession and an environmentalist at heart, so I have read lots of nature/environmental writing, but this was one of the most informed, eloquent, and passionate environmental books I have ever read.

[ladylee]

I've been on a roll lately, and fortunately have been reading some gems. Just finished "Blood Acre" by Peter Landesmann, which was excellent. Also "Force Majeure" and "I'll Let You Go" by Bruce Wagner-both very good. "Lightning Field" by Dana Spiotta was very sharp--anyone interested in LA would like Spiotta's and Wagner's writing. All about that LA underbelly. And I'm a total fan of British humor so I'm crazy about David Lodge--just recently finished "Small World"--hilarious.

On my "To be read" pile are "Blue Highways" by William Least Heat-Moon, "My Happy Life" by Lydia Millet, "A World History of Film" by Robert Sklar, and "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd.

And my list of all time favorites are:

Grapes of Wrath
Siddhartha
Growth of the Soil
Look Homeward Angel
Tender is the Night
O Pioneers
Portrait of a Lady
The Awakening
Mrs. Dalloway
A Room of One's Own

Oh, and I agree--The Hours by Michael Cunningham is fantastic!

~lee

[ladylee]

Oh, and I also have to plug "I Was Amelia Earhart!"

~lee

[ladylee]

LOL-call me manic post-happy woman, but count me in as another Bill Bryson fan!

[daylily]

"Blue Highways" is also on my list of books to be read, Lee. I love, love, love travel lit. Some good reads I've had recently, "In Baghdad Without a Map" by Tony Horwitz and Honeymoon in Purdah by Allison Wearing. I also just finished "Excellent Women" by Barabara Pym. She is one of my all time favorite authors. I've read all of her books many times over. They're good comfort literature.

[flutemandolin]

It's sooo great to see that there are other women who enjoy Tom Robbins, Edward Abbey, William Least Heat Moon, etc...I thought I was the only one!!!
I've been reading a lot of Louise Erdrich lately. Most of her books are interconnected stories about life on a ND Chippewa reservation...wonderful writing style.
Also "Refuge" by Terry Tempest Williams is a classic.

[ladylee]

I *need* to go through this thread and write everything down!
Daylily, thanks for the travel lit recommendations--you mentioned a lot of things I haven't come across yet. Sigh. My library s@x, and DH will kill me if I keep spending money on books...

~lee

[battymomma]

i am reading The HUrried Child now. it is good! actually, it was a book for a COLLEGE class, many yrs ago, that i never read. found it recently while unpacking. about how our society is forcing kids to grow up too quickly, for various reasons.
i am also reading Bury Me Standing, a book about gypsies and their history. so interesting!!
the other book i just finished is called Cunt. SO SO very good. and i think i will buy it for many women i love in the near future. a word study (the word actually used to be a title of respect, until it was taken and negatively used...), a history, the author's story, a must read for women, i think!

[Wildflower]

I loved The Ladder of Years by anne taylor...the last paragraph was this revelation that made the book for me...And Operating Instructions (at first I was so made at the author for the comments she made about circumsizing her son, but then I "got" her personality, and whole situation, and I loved her and the book sooo much, especially because this is my first year with my first child, too). So honest...I adore almost every book on this this, or will adore it as soon as it hits my library, but here's a confession...For total mental relaxation I love a roamance novel! Not Harlequin stuff, but good quality fairy tail for grown ups stories with amazing settings and lyrical writing...Nora Robert's novels that are set in Ireland were all really fun, and "Whitney, My Love" by Judith McKnaught. Those are actually the only two authors of this genre I've read...anyone else know of any! I can't belive i'm disclosing my shocking habit! But you know, I've figured out that its part of the romance novel happy ending formula that at the end a baby is always born or a pregnany is discovered--no wonder I'm hooked!

[mom at home]

What a great list! I'm excited to find some of these. I'm always looking for new authors.

Right now I'm reading a book (non-fiction) about a young Afghani woman who was 16 when the Taliban took power. It is heartwrenching to read, but an amazing tale of endurance by the women there. It's called "My Forbidden Face" by Latifa.

Also like Barbara Kingsolver, Terry Tempest Williams and many others that have already been mentioned.

[mom at home]

I just went through this list and wrote a bunch down. I'm so excited, I've been needing some new ideas.

Some of my other favs:

Imagining Argentina
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
The Hours
The River Why by David James Duncan
The Education of Little Tree
West With the Night by Beryl Markham

anything by Isabelle Allende, Willa Cather, Ed Abbey, and biographies of woman who grew up or lived in Africa.