Miriam

I hated this book in HS, but loved it the second time round. It took me about six weeks to read because I've been so busy, but my interest never flagged and it read well despite the slow pace (no surprise there I guess).

I'm always aware that Reich is working with a formula, but it was really obvious with this one. Still it got me through a miserable day with a cold.

This was a really fun read on the whole. I liked the mix of fantasy (Unseelie Court) and history (Spain's attempt to invade England) and the non-stop action sword fighting action meant the pages were turned fast. I wish it was shorter, the endless sword fights are fun, but they are not enough to hold the weight of a 500 page book. All the characters were cliches, but the women were particularly annoying, and I hated the italicized flashbacks. A more sophisticated story would have integrated those bits of past history into the narrative.

This has been on my shelf since it was first released, and I am determined to read it in 2010. Summer camping trip seems ideal. Lots of pretty scenery to counteract the bleak story.

The ending was abrupt but interesting, and I quite liked the book. I was surprised, I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did.

Not bad. I think, in the end, I liked this one somewhat better than The Calling, simply because I the ending was stronger. My one issue is a spoiler, so I won't bring it up, but I think the author has a tendency to go for easy plot devices. I really like Hazel, and the various supporting characters, but I would have liked more Wingate.

I really loved this book. The narrative voice was dry, funny, bemused. Exposition was non-existent and I loved following Helmer as he worked on becoming more than half.

We got a puppy yesterday, so I'm seeing if Cesar has any extra wisdom. So far, its more about his breeder friends than anything else. He sure likes his purebreds. But I'm just about to read the socialization chapter and I'm expecting it to get better.

on edit: Not bad, but not great. If you've read Ceaser, than this book is nothing knew. Lots of re-hash.

I was wildly tired last night, so picked this up. Pretty compulsive read so far.

It was compulsive in parts, but once you got all the pieces, less so. I like the idea behind it - very scarey and he's good at pushing the concept - but the books is too dependent on action verbs and caractures. I skimmed pages and pages. Still I'll probably, at the very least, skim the second to find out what happens.

My eldest picked for his solo book report, and I usually read the books he's working on - it helps when he brainstorms (and so on). It's kind of fun, and I'm not hating it.

The boys would give it 3 to 3.5 stars. I just felt it was largely a re-hash of the first book. Nonetheless, the boys enjoyed it, and as my youngest said “any book with Thorgil in it is a good book.”

This one was hard to star. I think it is quite a masterful book, which stays true to it's narrative form and for that it deserves at least 4 stars. But I dreaded reading it. I think that was a combo of the increasing anxiety that pervades the book combined with how slowly it builds that anxiety. It did manage to completely scare the crap out of me at one point though.

Nothing new, nothing really innovative, but I was quite happy reading this collection. I thought several essays were very good, his “coming out” piece was particularly good. Plus as I'm growing older I don't entirely hate doing it along with Sedaris.

I read the first 3-4 stories when I first picked this book up, and then finished the rest this past week. I was really impressed by this collection. His stories are funny, complex, sometimes profound, and very relevant (how many review bingo words did I get there?). I expected quirky but I really don't think they are.

The last piece reminded me of a Kelly Link story (there are lots of other similarities there) and would like to read both of them again back to back.

I liked this book, but I didn't love how craft-like it felt. I have trouble with over-plotted books, and although I appreciated how he provided a reason for all the actions (and reactions) I got tired of seeing that happen in the book. Plus, what a missed opportunity, with “Ordinary Thunderstorms” as the title and a main character who studied clouds for a living I expected that science would play a bigger role.

This book, at times, reminded me of Robinson's Housekeeping (and not just because of the flood); its not as strong a novel, but it is as ambitious. Termite's voice doesn't work - she uses him to fill in narrative holes and subverts his voice as a result. There is also a deus ex machina ‘twist' at the end that I didn't like - I liked where she was going, just not how she got there. All that said I really enjoyed reading this book (thus the 4 stars) and would happily recommend the book to others, and I will get a print copy (read it in e form) for my shelves.

The final chapter was lovely too.

I bought this via Kobo (formerly Shortcovers) impulsively after a Pat/Kat recommendation. It's been sitting on my iPhone for awhile, but I'm now well and truly hooked. I had no idea it was written by the Stoner author - just didn't make the connection.

An odd, surprisingly sweet book that I was really glad that I read. I picked it off the TOB's long list and am sorry it didn't make the short list. I'm really liking this spate of non-cynical books.

All other reading was ditched, for this. There are a zillion holds on it at the library so it's read it or lose it.

I've waffled back and forth between 2 and 3 stars, but decided on 3 because if my sons were reviewing it they'd give it 5 stars. They love these books and I can see why. Percy is an appealing character and Riordan writes with lots of energy.

The pink poodle was hard to take though.

Meh. It could be I was missing what put this book on the Booker shortlist, but I was finally bored with it. I ditched it at 250 pages, so I certainly tried to like . . .

Almost done. A completely absorbing study of Altman - very clever, I thought, to have the multiple voices. Obviously Altmanesque. I wanted more on the making of the movies, but I thought it did a decent job of providing a relatively balanced view (not that I know him at all) of the man.

I can see the reviews are polarized. I'm only about 40 pages in, but suspect its my kind of book. I'm loving it. We're reading it for next month's book club and it will interesting to see how the group responds to it.

Finished it. I suspect not everyone in the book club will, but I thought it an very interesting book with the layering narrative.

A friend sent this too me because she thought I'd enjoy it, and I did. Orphans, gore, monsters, mad scientists and crazy bounty hunters all made for very much fun. And I'll be more than happy to read the sequel when it comes out.

This was more of a slog than I anticipated, although I suspect I'm in the minority and had more to do with my energy level - her language demands close attention. Plus, after bringing on the Tudors in my late teens I've had little patience for any kind of narrative that concerns them (I still haven't seen Blanchett's Elizabeth for example), but I thought that Mantel's re-visioning of Cromwell was worth the effort. Her portrait was too positive with only hints at what makes a man that successful (and at what costs), but I willing to go along and enjoy my time with Cromwell. I was also completely taken with Mantel's use of language - I adored her bit on Cromwell's metonymies - and her insistence on keeping religious persecution in the forefront.

I was frequently blown away by Thomas' use of language and the books general smartness. Told almost entirely from Lily's point of view (there are a couple of sections that tell the story of her father's arrival in Canada that provide a break from Lily) I felt that the novel's energy was hampered by Lily's inability(?) to emotionally (and to a certain extent intellectually) engage with the people that surround her. Even the England section were Lily is seemingly happy is restrained. I wonder if maybe the control over the language and the ideas did in the overall development of the novel? Nonetheless, I thought it a stellar read, if for the language alone, and will recommend it to others.