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christianreader2010-12-01 02:45 pm
kiwiria.livejournal.com) wrote in christianreader2010-12-01 02:45 pm
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Kiwiria's Books for November
I can't believe it's December already!!!
Monday's Child - Louise Bagshawe, 3/5, 437 pages
Almost every other Louise Bagshawe book I've read, I've loved and found utterly impossible to put down. Therefore it came as a huge surprise to me that not only was this not the case for this one, I was actually somewhat bored with it at times.
It had its good parts - I loved the friendship that developed between Anne and Janet - but as a whole it was predictable and unrealistic (well... even more than her books are usually ;) ), she spent far too little time on the aspects of the book that I found most interesting and about half-way through dropped them altogether, and the ending felt forced. I could have forgiven her the two first things, as it could still have been a sweet book and a fun escape from reality, but without the interesting work details and with a deux ex machina ending, it just all adds up to a book that isn't really worth rereading.
So why did I still rate it a 3 rather than just a 2? Because despite everything, Louise Bagshawe still writes well enough for her writing to keep me interested, even when her plot can't, and at the end of the day, I didn't have to force myself to finish the book, but actually did so completely voluntarily :)
The Pilot's Wife - Anita Shreve, 3.5/5, 293
Fascinating book, but also very uncomfortable on several levels.
I'd somehow gotten the impression that this and the movie "The Astronaut's Life" were somehow related - I have no clue how that happened, but it meant that I had expected something completely different from what the book was actually about. Also, I'd unfortunately managed to get myself spoiled. That turned out to be a smaller issue than I had feared though, because the signs were there very early on, so I might have picked it up myself anyway.
This is the second book I've read by Anita Shreve, and like the first (Testimony) it was fascinating and hard to put down, but also very disturbing. In a very different way though, and I definitely preferred this one, but it's absolutely not a book I'm very likely to reread. It really got me thinking though, which is both good and bad.
I'm glad I've read it, but I don't think I'll ever read it again.
Gimmerglass - Jenna Black, 3.5/5, 294 pages
Good, but with reservations. I had issues with it and felt that it could have been a lot better of certain aspects had been handled differently.
It was a fast read, and I surprised myself by how quickly I got completely caught up into it. I loved the premise and the universe, where the magical world was well known, but kept apart from the human world, and the two only interacted in Avalon - and even more that Avalon wasn't reserved for those with magic, but that people actually went there as tourists on vacation! Fascinating idea! I love book placed in "our" world / time where magic plays a part.
I really liked Kimber and Finn, but hated Aunt Grace. She reminded me too much of Prof. Umbridge from Harry Potter - and that is NOT a good thing. Dana herself... well, I mostly liked her, but I did think some of her actions were hopelessly naive taking her rough childhood into consideration. She accepted things far too quickly and without any real questioning.
Most of all, however, I really disliked the ending. Dana's father's ruthlessness was appalling, and he has yet to prove to me that he cares more about Dana herself, than the power she'll give him. I hope the next book will prove me wrong.
The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards, 3.5/5, 432 pages
Very different from what I had anticipated. I had expected some kind of suspense novel, but that was clearly not the case at all. Instead what I found was a very philosophical novel about how secrets and deceit - even from the best intentions - can build walls up between members in a family; walls that are impossible to tear down as long as the secret remains.
It's a very sad novel. Thankfully not depressing, but melancholic and with an air of resignation. I was sad to see how the Henry family slowly fell apart, but couldn't honestly see how it could be any different with everybody keeping everybody else at an arm's length.
I wish David had revealed his secret earlier. I think it would have made a huge difference in their lives.
The Story of a Soul - St. Therese of Lisieux, 3/5, 166 pages
I put this book on my to-read list after having heard and read Gretchen Rubin (of "The Happiness Project"-fame) rave about it in her book and on her blog. I was fascinated, and it was cheap, so I thought "Why not."
It was an odd book to read though, because though I found it extremely difficult to relate to St. Therese, I was still touched by her simplicity - for want of better word. I don't mean that in a condescending way. She was honestly satisfied with loving Jesus and asked for nothing more than His love in return. I could definitely benefit from trying to imitate her there. On the other hand, the book was not very well written - written, as it were, by request from her Mother Superior - as it jumps from topic to topic, leaves threads hanging all over the place and skips over what I would have considered important elements of her life.
It's very obviously the story of a soul, and not the story of a life. It's her autobiography as viewed from her way of thinking and of believing - not an account of how she lived. Since I expected the latter, I was disappointed. Had I known to expect the former, I think I would have been charmed.
Tulips, Chips & Mayonnaise - Dawn Cairns*, 3.5/5, 453 pages
This is one of those books that I'll get a craving to read every couple of years. It's not high literature - a bit similar to "Bridget Jones' Diary" in style, only better - but it's fun and good entertainment.
The stalker aspect is definitely the most interesting part of the book, and one that I which had been explored a bit more thoroughly - we were left completely in the black regarding motivations etc. I would have liked a bit more of an explanation to the whole situation - it didn't seem properly closed off.
The Year of Living Like Jesus - Edward G. Dobson, 3.5/5, 288 pages
I read The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs earlier this year, and was really taken by it, so when I heard about this book, I was interested in seeing how it would measure up.
Unfortunately it didn't quite live up to my expectations. It's not quite as interesting as The Year of Living Biblically, and Ed Dobson has a tendency to start sermonizing which is a bit frustrating, when you really just want to read about how his year is going.
All in all, I would have been more interested in reading about him trying to live a year of following the Gospels, than of following the Christian Jews. He even says himself that the traditions of Jews now are nothing like the traditions of the Jews of Jesus' time - so why even bother?
I still consider it well worth reading though, as Ed Dobson does bring up some good points - even if he approached the year differently from what I had hoped.
Waiter Rant - A. Waiter, 4/5, 320 pages
A fun read which very vividly reminded me why I could never be a waiter! (Although I do think it's probably easier in non-tipping countries - at least it takes that option for customer_suck away - but still!).
I don't recommend it if you have a weak stomach. Like I already saw in Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, there are some things that go on 'back stage' at restaurants that we're just better off not knowing anything about. I don't have a weak stomach though, and I was already aware of many of these darker aspects, so I merely found the book extremely interesting and well-written. I could have wished for more of a comeuppance for some of The Waiter's colleagues, but since it's a memoir rather than fiction, I figure that would have made it just a tad too tidy.
One of the more fascinating books I've read recently.
No Plot? No Problem! - Chris Baty, 4/5, 176 pages
Well-written book, and it even got me motivated to try out my hand at NaNoWriMo - and I CAN'T WRITE! So that gives you an impression either of how deluded I am, or how good the book is.
Filled with good tricks for how to write a 50,000 novel in a month, it's not really relevant for anything else - so don't expect to pick up any general writing tips from it. But it's an interesting read, and one I'd recommend to others whose create juices need a swift kick.
Middlemarch - George Eliot, 3/5, ~33hrs
Took me forever to finish this! I read it as an audiobook, which I think was probably doing it a disservice, as it's very long and slow-moving, which makes it very easy for me to get distracted and let my thoughts wander. Also, since it was downloaded from Librivox, not all readers were equally inspiring to listen to, which didn't help keeping my attention captured.
I stuck with it though, and started really caring about some of the characters, wanting to see what happened to them, and feel very accomplished that I managed to finish! I do think it could easily have been quite a bit shorter though. My favourite storyline was definitely Dorothea's, whom I also thought was the most sympathetic character. I liked Rosamond well enough at first, but was really appalled by how she treated Lydgate when he came into hardship. I think Fred and Mary were the only people whose storyline I actually didn't care about at all.
I do wonder how different my opinion would have been if I had read it rather than listened to it though.
Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert, 4.5/5, 480 pages
It's a tribute to the quality of this book, that I was able to read it just two days after having seen the movie (which was great!) and still loved it! Usually I have to be careful not to read/watch a story too soon after having watched/read it, as the latter will inevitably fall short of my expectations. This is why I actually wasn't planning to read this for quite awhile yet, but after seeing the movie, I just couldn't help myself.
And it was well worth it - the book was just as terrific as the movie had lead me to believe it would be. I'm incredibly impressed by Elizabeth Gilbert's bravery in leaving everything known for so long, and travelling to three countries as different as Italy, India and Indonesia. Must admit that Italy was the only country where I really felt motivated to go myself, but I was also very inspired by her experiences at the ashram in India. Don't think I could ever do something like that myself though.
Fascinating book, and a quick read, as it's split up into a lot of short chapters (1-5 pages each), so it was really easy to convince myself "just one more chapter!" - and suddenly I had read another 50 pages!
4 BSC books - 600 pages total.
15 books read - of those 2 were rereads and 5 were non-fiction. A total of 3939 pages read. Not as much as some months, but then I did take time off to write for NaNoWriMo, so I still think I did pretty well.
Book of the month: Eat, Pray, Love. Couldn't put it down.
Dissapointment of the month: Monday's Child. I usually love everything Louise Bagshawe writes. It was odd not to.
Monday's Child - Louise Bagshawe, 3/5, 437 pages
Almost every other Louise Bagshawe book I've read, I've loved and found utterly impossible to put down. Therefore it came as a huge surprise to me that not only was this not the case for this one, I was actually somewhat bored with it at times.
It had its good parts - I loved the friendship that developed between Anne and Janet - but as a whole it was predictable and unrealistic (well... even more than her books are usually ;) ), she spent far too little time on the aspects of the book that I found most interesting and about half-way through dropped them altogether, and the ending felt forced. I could have forgiven her the two first things, as it could still have been a sweet book and a fun escape from reality, but without the interesting work details and with a deux ex machina ending, it just all adds up to a book that isn't really worth rereading.
So why did I still rate it a 3 rather than just a 2? Because despite everything, Louise Bagshawe still writes well enough for her writing to keep me interested, even when her plot can't, and at the end of the day, I didn't have to force myself to finish the book, but actually did so completely voluntarily :)
The Pilot's Wife - Anita Shreve, 3.5/5, 293
Fascinating book, but also very uncomfortable on several levels.
I'd somehow gotten the impression that this and the movie "The Astronaut's Life" were somehow related - I have no clue how that happened, but it meant that I had expected something completely different from what the book was actually about. Also, I'd unfortunately managed to get myself spoiled. That turned out to be a smaller issue than I had feared though, because the signs were there very early on, so I might have picked it up myself anyway.
This is the second book I've read by Anita Shreve, and like the first (Testimony) it was fascinating and hard to put down, but also very disturbing. In a very different way though, and I definitely preferred this one, but it's absolutely not a book I'm very likely to reread. It really got me thinking though, which is both good and bad.
I'm glad I've read it, but I don't think I'll ever read it again.
Gimmerglass - Jenna Black, 3.5/5, 294 pages
Good, but with reservations. I had issues with it and felt that it could have been a lot better of certain aspects had been handled differently.
It was a fast read, and I surprised myself by how quickly I got completely caught up into it. I loved the premise and the universe, where the magical world was well known, but kept apart from the human world, and the two only interacted in Avalon - and even more that Avalon wasn't reserved for those with magic, but that people actually went there as tourists on vacation! Fascinating idea! I love book placed in "our" world / time where magic plays a part.
I really liked Kimber and Finn, but hated Aunt Grace. She reminded me too much of Prof. Umbridge from Harry Potter - and that is NOT a good thing. Dana herself... well, I mostly liked her, but I did think some of her actions were hopelessly naive taking her rough childhood into consideration. She accepted things far too quickly and without any real questioning.
Most of all, however, I really disliked the ending. Dana's father's ruthlessness was appalling, and he has yet to prove to me that he cares more about Dana herself, than the power she'll give him. I hope the next book will prove me wrong.
The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards, 3.5/5, 432 pages
Very different from what I had anticipated. I had expected some kind of suspense novel, but that was clearly not the case at all. Instead what I found was a very philosophical novel about how secrets and deceit - even from the best intentions - can build walls up between members in a family; walls that are impossible to tear down as long as the secret remains.
It's a very sad novel. Thankfully not depressing, but melancholic and with an air of resignation. I was sad to see how the Henry family slowly fell apart, but couldn't honestly see how it could be any different with everybody keeping everybody else at an arm's length.
I wish David had revealed his secret earlier. I think it would have made a huge difference in their lives.
The Story of a Soul - St. Therese of Lisieux, 3/5, 166 pages
I put this book on my to-read list after having heard and read Gretchen Rubin (of "The Happiness Project"-fame) rave about it in her book and on her blog. I was fascinated, and it was cheap, so I thought "Why not."
It was an odd book to read though, because though I found it extremely difficult to relate to St. Therese, I was still touched by her simplicity - for want of better word. I don't mean that in a condescending way. She was honestly satisfied with loving Jesus and asked for nothing more than His love in return. I could definitely benefit from trying to imitate her there. On the other hand, the book was not very well written - written, as it were, by request from her Mother Superior - as it jumps from topic to topic, leaves threads hanging all over the place and skips over what I would have considered important elements of her life.
It's very obviously the story of a soul, and not the story of a life. It's her autobiography as viewed from her way of thinking and of believing - not an account of how she lived. Since I expected the latter, I was disappointed. Had I known to expect the former, I think I would have been charmed.
Tulips, Chips & Mayonnaise - Dawn Cairns*, 3.5/5, 453 pages
This is one of those books that I'll get a craving to read every couple of years. It's not high literature - a bit similar to "Bridget Jones' Diary" in style, only better - but it's fun and good entertainment.
The stalker aspect is definitely the most interesting part of the book, and one that I which had been explored a bit more thoroughly - we were left completely in the black regarding motivations etc. I would have liked a bit more of an explanation to the whole situation - it didn't seem properly closed off.
The Year of Living Like Jesus - Edward G. Dobson, 3.5/5, 288 pages
I read The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs earlier this year, and was really taken by it, so when I heard about this book, I was interested in seeing how it would measure up.
Unfortunately it didn't quite live up to my expectations. It's not quite as interesting as The Year of Living Biblically, and Ed Dobson has a tendency to start sermonizing which is a bit frustrating, when you really just want to read about how his year is going.
All in all, I would have been more interested in reading about him trying to live a year of following the Gospels, than of following the Christian Jews. He even says himself that the traditions of Jews now are nothing like the traditions of the Jews of Jesus' time - so why even bother?
I still consider it well worth reading though, as Ed Dobson does bring up some good points - even if he approached the year differently from what I had hoped.
Waiter Rant - A. Waiter, 4/5, 320 pages
A fun read which very vividly reminded me why I could never be a waiter! (Although I do think it's probably easier in non-tipping countries - at least it takes that option for customer_suck away - but still!).
I don't recommend it if you have a weak stomach. Like I already saw in Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, there are some things that go on 'back stage' at restaurants that we're just better off not knowing anything about. I don't have a weak stomach though, and I was already aware of many of these darker aspects, so I merely found the book extremely interesting and well-written. I could have wished for more of a comeuppance for some of The Waiter's colleagues, but since it's a memoir rather than fiction, I figure that would have made it just a tad too tidy.
One of the more fascinating books I've read recently.
No Plot? No Problem! - Chris Baty, 4/5, 176 pages
Well-written book, and it even got me motivated to try out my hand at NaNoWriMo - and I CAN'T WRITE! So that gives you an impression either of how deluded I am, or how good the book is.
Filled with good tricks for how to write a 50,000 novel in a month, it's not really relevant for anything else - so don't expect to pick up any general writing tips from it. But it's an interesting read, and one I'd recommend to others whose create juices need a swift kick.
Middlemarch - George Eliot, 3/5, ~33hrs
Took me forever to finish this! I read it as an audiobook, which I think was probably doing it a disservice, as it's very long and slow-moving, which makes it very easy for me to get distracted and let my thoughts wander. Also, since it was downloaded from Librivox, not all readers were equally inspiring to listen to, which didn't help keeping my attention captured.
I stuck with it though, and started really caring about some of the characters, wanting to see what happened to them, and feel very accomplished that I managed to finish! I do think it could easily have been quite a bit shorter though. My favourite storyline was definitely Dorothea's, whom I also thought was the most sympathetic character. I liked Rosamond well enough at first, but was really appalled by how she treated Lydgate when he came into hardship. I think Fred and Mary were the only people whose storyline I actually didn't care about at all.
I do wonder how different my opinion would have been if I had read it rather than listened to it though.
Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert, 4.5/5, 480 pages
It's a tribute to the quality of this book, that I was able to read it just two days after having seen the movie (which was great!) and still loved it! Usually I have to be careful not to read/watch a story too soon after having watched/read it, as the latter will inevitably fall short of my expectations. This is why I actually wasn't planning to read this for quite awhile yet, but after seeing the movie, I just couldn't help myself.
And it was well worth it - the book was just as terrific as the movie had lead me to believe it would be. I'm incredibly impressed by Elizabeth Gilbert's bravery in leaving everything known for so long, and travelling to three countries as different as Italy, India and Indonesia. Must admit that Italy was the only country where I really felt motivated to go myself, but I was also very inspired by her experiences at the ashram in India. Don't think I could ever do something like that myself though.
Fascinating book, and a quick read, as it's split up into a lot of short chapters (1-5 pages each), so it was really easy to convince myself "just one more chapter!" - and suddenly I had read another 50 pages!
4 BSC books - 600 pages total.
15 books read - of those 2 were rereads and 5 were non-fiction. A total of 3939 pages read. Not as much as some months, but then I did take time off to write for NaNoWriMo, so I still think I did pretty well.
Book of the month: Eat, Pray, Love. Couldn't put it down.
Dissapointment of the month: Monday's Child. I usually love everything Louise Bagshawe writes. It was odd not to.
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What book by Louise Bagshawe would you recommend to start with? I've not read any of her stuff.
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Disclaimer: Louise Bagshawe writes very secular books (for want of better word). They're excellent chick-lit and hard to put down, but there are sexual references in all of them - both in and out of marriages. It doesn't cross the line to smut, but I just thought I'd warn you, in case you're not comfortable with that in books.
That out of the way, I'd recommend you start with either "When She Was Bad..." or "The Movie" - although I really enjoyed "Tall Poppies" and "Career Girls" as well.
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A shame that there's no audio though :(
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Glamour
Sparkles
Any of those good?
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I haven't read the two others. "Glamour" sounds good though :-)
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