January Book List
Feb. 1st, 2010 09:42 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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christianreaderI am terrible at finding time to be a "reader." Almost all of these are audio books I listened to at work.
Betsy in Spite of Herself (1946) - Maud Hart Lovelace
This is the second "Betsy-Tacy" book I read (and the sixth in the series). Its a semi-autobiographical account of a sophomore girl and her friends growing up around the turn of the last century. Betsy transforms herself into dramatic and mysterious "Betsye." The story is still cute, even though the appeal of finding something "new" has worn off.
Gangtokey Gandogol (Trouble in Gangtok) (1970) - Satyajit Ray
I own two big volumes of "The Complete Adventures of Feluda" and I am getting through them very very slowly. I read one short story or novella when I don't have something else on hand to read next. I like the stories a lot but I have never finished one and felt the need to immediately read the next. It just seems nicer to savor them.
Portuguese Irregular Verbs (2003) - Alexander McCall Smith
A series of vignettes about snotty and foolish Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld and his academic friends. I usually like AMS's work, but I couldn't get into these stories at all. It had a few moments I liked, but I mostly found myself skimming through it. I will not be continuing any further in this series.
44 Scotland Street (2005) - Alexander McCall Smith
However, the "Scotland Street" series was much more my cup of tea. It's made of really short chapters (originally serialized in a newspaper). It's about a group of people living in and around an apartment building in Edinburgh, Scotland --much like the later London-based "Corduroy Mansions" series. There is not really a driving plot line, but more of a meander through the characters' daily lives. The most outrageous moment was when narcissistic Bruce goes out in a kilt and forgets to put on his underwear. Fortunately, nothing indecent happens, but he does spend a lot of time trying to steal/borrow and then return underwear.
Espresso Tales (2005) - Alexander McCall Smith
This is the sequel to 44 Scotland Street. It's more of the same really. The characters go through their daily lives. There's lots of love and love loss and laughter --typical of McCall Smith. My favorite character is Bertie. The six year old virtuoso starts elementary school and his pushy mother Irene continues her rule of his life. I could take a whole book of just Bertie's life -- beating gangsters at card games, hating hispink "crushed strawberry" overalls, analyzing his psychiatrist, and just wanting to be a "normal" boy. I am really hoping that the character of Ramsey Dunbarton disappears from further books. It was funny when he was boring some of the main characters with his strange rambling stories, but giving him chapter-upon-chapter of his own killed the joke.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003) - J. K. Rowling
It's year five at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am liking these more and more as the story progresses. Although, I did like it better when I had the Stephen Fry audio books instead of Jim Dale.
Books for January: 6
Books for 2010: 6
Betsy in Spite of Herself (1946) - Maud Hart Lovelace
This is the second "Betsy-Tacy" book I read (and the sixth in the series). Its a semi-autobiographical account of a sophomore girl and her friends growing up around the turn of the last century. Betsy transforms herself into dramatic and mysterious "Betsye." The story is still cute, even though the appeal of finding something "new" has worn off.
Gangtokey Gandogol (Trouble in Gangtok) (1970) - Satyajit Ray
I own two big volumes of "The Complete Adventures of Feluda" and I am getting through them very very slowly. I read one short story or novella when I don't have something else on hand to read next. I like the stories a lot but I have never finished one and felt the need to immediately read the next. It just seems nicer to savor them.
Portuguese Irregular Verbs (2003) - Alexander McCall Smith
A series of vignettes about snotty and foolish Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld and his academic friends. I usually like AMS's work, but I couldn't get into these stories at all. It had a few moments I liked, but I mostly found myself skimming through it. I will not be continuing any further in this series.
44 Scotland Street (2005) - Alexander McCall Smith
However, the "Scotland Street" series was much more my cup of tea. It's made of really short chapters (originally serialized in a newspaper). It's about a group of people living in and around an apartment building in Edinburgh, Scotland --much like the later London-based "Corduroy Mansions" series. There is not really a driving plot line, but more of a meander through the characters' daily lives. The most outrageous moment was when narcissistic Bruce goes out in a kilt and forgets to put on his underwear. Fortunately, nothing indecent happens, but he does spend a lot of time trying to steal/borrow and then return underwear.
Espresso Tales (2005) - Alexander McCall Smith
This is the sequel to 44 Scotland Street. It's more of the same really. The characters go through their daily lives. There's lots of love and love loss and laughter --typical of McCall Smith. My favorite character is Bertie. The six year old virtuoso starts elementary school and his pushy mother Irene continues her rule of his life. I could take a whole book of just Bertie's life -- beating gangsters at card games, hating his
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003) - J. K. Rowling
It's year five at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am liking these more and more as the story progresses. Although, I did like it better when I had the Stephen Fry audio books instead of Jim Dale.
Books for January: 6
Books for 2010: 6
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