Wednesday, March 21, 2012

bOOKlist 2012, Chris.

1) 11/22/63- Stephen King.  Typical King, superbly detailed characters, crazy good idea for a story.  Got a bit longwinded and dry during some of the parts about Oswald but overall very good.  Tells the story of a man who goes back in time to try and stop the assassination of JFK.

2) The Exorcist- William Peter Blatty.  DO NOT READ THIS BOOK IF YOU ARE EASILY OFFENDED, or frightened, but mostly OFFENDED.  This novel is profane in the literal sense of the word, i..e. Treat something sacred with irreverence or disrespect. (the filth that comes out of this little girl's mouth, i mean, really!?!)   Irreverence doesn't begin to cover it.  This book was fantastic, I had no idea it would be so good and so thought-provoking.  Led me to seeing the movie which wasn't half as good as the novel.  Again, do not even attempt this novel if you are easily spooked or offended.

3) The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins.  Just pure fun.  The first is Hunger Games, second one is Catching Fire, and third is Mockingjay.  Mom recommended this series, knowing i share her love of trilogies and epic story lines.  This is pure candy, fun from beginning to end and a super easy read, you can likely finish all three in a week or so.  Borrows heavily from the Stephen King short story "The Running Man", but in actuallity the books resemble the movie version of this story more than the actual story itself.  Main themes are the same, specifically reliance on family and friends and the evil inherent in most any system of government.  Timely themes for this day and age. 

4) The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman.  A dark retelling of the Jungle Book stories.  The main character grows up in a graveyard vs a jungle, and interacts with ghosts and monsters rather than animals.  A really quick read and a very eerie and disquieting story.  It is hard to tell where the tension comes from in this novel but it exists the entire way through.  Would recommend brushing up on the Jungle Book prior to starting this one.

5) The Jungle Books, Rudyard Kipling.  See above.  I loved these, had been a very long time since i thought about Mowgli and Bagheera and Baloo.  I had forgoten stories like Rikki-Tikki-Tavi were in the Jungle Books.  Great read, lots of fun.

6) Shadows in Flight, Orson Scott Card.  Need to be conversant with the Ender's Shadow story arc by same author, which is in itself an arc based on the Ender's Game stories.  Loved this book though it got tough reviews (not everything can be Ender's Game).  The main themes of these stories are the ethical evolution of humanity in space.  As grandiose as that may seem, the fun comes in the characters.  I challenge any of you to read both arcs, the ender arc and the bean arc (of which this novel is the latest) and not fall in love with both of these genius children.  I plan to eventually have two lab puppies, and they shall be named ender and bean.  Furthermore, if  I am ever blessed to have a son, he will be named Andrew after the title character of these novels (Ender). 

7) Ready Player One, Ernest Cline.  Quite simply the funnest book I've read in years.  THANKS MOM!!!(man, she really gets my taste in books!)  A must read for any child of the eighties.  The pop culture references come fast and heavy and the story idea is the most clever and original I have read in a long while.  I won't ruin the story but one read through of the synopsis on the back page was enough to get me hooked.  Of  the books I have read so far this year this is the undisputed champeen! and its really not even close.  This book is just that good.  (Kevin, if you are reading this, pop over to Amazon and order this book now.  I know you don't have any time to read but if you just read one single book this year, just one, make it this one.  The 80's pop culture stuff will transport you back to green acres and sitting in front of the tv on saturday mornings watching cartoons.  Trust me.)

8) The Crook Factory, Dan Simmons.  Am halfway through this one now.  Pretty good.  A fictional narrative about the last days of Ernest Hemingway.  Takes place while 'Papa' was in Havana and mostly takes place at sea or at the legendary 'finca' among the army of cats.  The story involves Hemingway setting up a spyring for counter espionage of nazi agents in Cuba during the opening days of WWII.  Like all Simmons I have read it can be somewhat dry at times but overall I am loving it and based on the build-up the payoff should be well worth it.  Plus, I'm sorta fascinated more with Ernest Hemingway the man then most of his novels (have always loved his short fiction more than the novels, especially sutff like Big Two Hearted River, Ten Indians, and Up in Michigan) and this novel spends alot of time painting a picture of Hemingway the man.  Plus, this is a great period piece including appearances by, among others, J. Edgar Hoover, Ingrid Bergman, Marlene Deitrich, and Gary Cooper.  Final verdict to come.







CAROL'S BOOKLIST 2012
(up to March 20)

  1. 1.  TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD,Harper Lee*****Chris gave me a beautifully bound hardback copy of this for Christmas, one of my all time favorites,can't count the numberof times I've read it over the years.
  2. THE MAP OF TIME,Felix J Palma***Another gift from Chris, interesting twist on time travel.
  3. THE EYE OF THE DRAGON,Stephen King*****A chance conversation with a friend at work reminded me of this old favorite,downloaded it that same night and re-read it.
  4. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS,John Green ****loved this.
  5. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS,Sara Gruen***1/2Good story, beautiful writing.
  6. SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES,Ray Bradbury***My friend Trey lent me this one, one of his favorites, very dark.
  7.  THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GREY, Oscar Wilde***another loan from from Trey, good story.
  8. SLAUGHTERHOUSE 5, Kurt Vonnegut*****This was wonderful, I don't know why I've never read it before, Trey brought it to me, he's on a mission to get me to read all of his favorites.
  9. SLAPSTICK,Kurt Vonnegut****Thought provoking and sad, another of Trey's loans.
  10. NO EXIT, Jean-Paul Sartre***Collection of plays,not my favorite thing to read,but interesting and dark, loaned from my young friend at work,Trey
  11. FARENHEIT 451,Ray Bradbury ***Another favorite of Trey's
  12. READY PLAYER ONE,Ernest Cline*****Loved this so much, it really appealed to me, the eighties references were so much fun.
  13. THE ART OF RACING THE RAIN,Garth Stein***good story,told from the dog's point of view.
  14. THE PLAGIARIST,Hugh Howey****A Kindle short from one of my favorite new authors.
  15. THE DRY GRASS OF AUGUST,Anne Jean Mayhew***From Sandy's Kindle, loved this, good story.
  16. MIDDLESEX, Jeffrey Eugenides****Sandy recommended this, loved it.
  17. EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, Jonathan Safran Fuer****Very moving, from Sandy's Kindle
  18. ON THE ISLAND,Tracey Gaius- Graves One from Sandy's Kindle, good light reading.
  19. THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS, Kenneth Grahame ****Old favorite from childhood, good re-read.
  20. SHADOWS IN FLIGHT, Orson Scott Card****Newest book in the Ender/Bean Series, Loved it, loan from Chris.
  21. THE WOLF GIFT,Anne RIce**Loan from Trey, not one of her best.
  22. ANGEL TIME, Anne Rice**Another loan from Trey, had a hard time getting through it.

Monday, March 19, 2012

WORD

CONTINUED BOOK LIST SANDY

30. TAKE FIVE by Augusten Burroughs **** love him
31. TALES FROM THE DRUNK DIET by Luc Carl **hard to get through for me
32. FALLING STAR by Diana Dempsey* hated it but I'll give it one star for effort
33. MISS THEODOSIA'S HEARTSTRINGS by Annie Hamilton Donnell**** This is the kind of book I loved to read when I was in junior high

SANDY'S BOOK LIST 2012 continued

23. YOU BETTER NOT CRY by Augusten Burroughs **** I read everything Augusten writes--even his blog
24. NOBODY'S FOOL by Richard Russo ****1/2 RUSSO IS A FAVE  EMPIRE FALLS IS MY VERY FAVORITE RUSSO BOOK
25.FLAT-OUT LOVVE by Jessica Park***1/2 good light read
26.I SHUDDER by Paul Rudnick***1/2 fast read
27. ZEN QUEEN by KristyMcManus *** quick read
28. IN LEAH'S WAKE by Terry Long ***1/2 sad book
29. THE DRY GRASS OF AUGUST by Anna Jean Mayhew**** Enjoyed this

Partial List: SANDY'S BOOK LIST 2012


    SANDY'S BOOK LIST 2012

  1. AT HOME: A SHORT HISTORY OF PRIVATE LIFE by Bill Bryson ****1/2 vastly enjoyable read
  2. 11/22/63 by Stephen King****1/2 Loved this one
  3. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS by Sara Gruen****   very good read
  4. READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Cline**** nice sci fi book
  5. SING YOU HOME by Jodi Picoult ***** I love everything she writes.  A fave
  6. IN THIS MOUNTAIN by Jan Karon *** A Father Tim book-- not as good as the others in this series
  7. HARRY, A HISTORY: The True Story of a Boy Wizard by Anelli and J K Rowling***1/2 about the Harry Potter phenomenon
  8. MINDING FRANKIE by Maeve Binchy **** good light reading
  9. MY KOREAN DELI by Ben Ryder Howe **1/2 light
  10. THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins***** you're welcome
  11. CATCHING FIRE by Suzanne Collins ****1/2 very good series
  12.  MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins ****1/2 just read these books
  13. A STOLEN LIFE by Jaycee Dugard **** nonfiction  so sad
  14. A LOVE THAT MULTIPLIES by The Duggars*** Interesting nonfiction
  15. THE DOG WHO KNEW TOO MUCH by Spencer Quinn *** good light read
  16. DOG ON ITby Spencer Quinn *** light read
  17. FREEDOM by Jonathan Franzen **** REALLY LIKE FRANZEN
  18. EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE by Jonathan Safran Foer****Moving family drama
  19. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS byJohn Green ****1/2 Lovely Book
  20. CHOCOLATE AND VICODIN by Jennette Fulda **1/2 light read
  21. MIDDLESEX by Jeffery Eugenides**** interesting family dynamic
  22. I'LL TAKE IT! byPaul Rudnik***** laugh out loud book about a Jewish family
  23. THE DOORBELL RANG by Rex Stout***1/2 light Nero Wolfe Mystery

More  to come later gotta look at my amazon account

Trying to keep busy during and after dialysis!

Hello All!  Chris, Carol, and I are going to keep a list of all the books we read in 2012 on this site.  Hoping that the whole family (and friends)  will participate so we see what each other are  enjoying reading.   I'm going to rate my books like Amazon does with one to five stars. We're hoping that you will comment on the books on our lists that you have read.  You can post your list in the comments section or please email your list so far and I will post it here. norrissandy@gmail.com  You may be surprised at the length of my list so far but remember I have 4 hours of dialysis to try to fill up and when I get home all I do is read.  Josh bought me a Kindle for Christmas and I love it so much. I never thought I would because I love the thrill and magic of a new book so much.  But Kindle has its own magic.  I can hold it with one hand and turn pages since my left arm can't be moved during the 4 hours in dialysis.  Even if you've only read one book this year please tell us and rate it.  Come on people I am so bored here!!