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What Have You Read Lately??

Nicole

Veteran

I suspect we have a lot of readers in this group. I'm always looking for a new good book, and I take suggestions from everyone and anyone. I brought 2 books with me to the beach. One was a Fantasy book my daughter read and loved and insisted I read too. It was long, and I was about 1/2 way thur when we left. Since fantasy isn't my thing, I was having a hard time getting into it. But it was very well written, and if you or your teenage kids like fantasy, I highly recomend it. It was called Inkheart, about characters who come out of books and live in our world and try to get back into their book world. It's the first in a trilogy.

But the other book I brought was not a fictional novel, which is what I typically read. It was sort of a real life account of a woman's journey of adopting a Chinese girl. The first daughter she adopted would be my daughter's age--so it was very close to me as I read what the abandoned children go thru, and what the women of China do to survive. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes Historical books, Books with happy endings, books with sad endings, books that make you think, or appreciate what you have, or look for ways to help other people....or books that make you aware. I'm now curious to know what has happened in China in the nearly 10 years since this book was published.

So...what books have you read lately?

General

40 replies

Latest reply was from Sophia

Ana

(website)

Veteran

Hmm...I mostly read nonfiction books. I like historical books, biographies, just about anything. I'm sort of picky about my fiction--I'll read any genre as long as I think the author is a good writer. My absolute favorite author actually writes romance, but her work is smart and funny, so she could write vacuum cleaner manuals and I'd be first in line to read those too.

Lately I've been reading a lot of nonfiction math books. I am currently reading, "Julian," by Gore Vidal, to get a head start on my reading for the Intro to Ancient Rome class I'm taking this fall. So far, this is a great book (I've only really just started it). I almost always end up reading great books for school that I otherwise probably wouldn't pick up. For my own personal reading, I've got "Breaking Dawn," on my list to finish before the 21st (a friend and I are going to a party where we will be discussing the book that day). It's by Stephenie Meyer and part of the "Twilight," series. It's teen lit, but generally well written and the plot is intriguing.

amy29

I just read Ana Quindlen's _Rise and Shine_. It was a light beach read, a story about the way sisters depend upon one another and the way those same close relationships can keep a sister relying on the other for emotional support that she should be able to provide herself.

I also recently finished _ July, July _ by Tim O'Brien, another author whose works I enjoy. It was told in typical O'Brien fashion, but there were so many characters that I had a harder time relating to them than I usually do when reading an O'Brien novel. Definitely not a mood lifter.

I'm about to delve into a Jasper Fforde book. Hardly anyone I know has read him, but if you enjoy reading fantasy and are familiar with the characters and stories of classic fiction, his Thursday Next series is a real treat. Very witty. I'm about to read the _Fourth Bear_ which is a light-hearted retelling of the Goldilocks story as a crime scene investigation. It's fun.

julijuli

Amy, I love Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series! I'm a big fiction reader. I do read non-fiction but usually it's because someone in my book club selected it. I've just finished reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. I loved it. I thought the writing was very good and I enjoyed learning more about the culture and the practice of footbinding - very glad that's not happening anymore! I'm going on vacation tomorrow and taking The Post Birthday World by Lionel Shriver. I hope it's good - we'll see.

amy29

Yea! I'm so excited to meet another Fforde reader. I have yet to read any See, but I like Amy Tan quite a bit and have read all of her stuff. It seems like the authors write on similar story themes. I haven't heard of _The Post Birthday World_. You'll have to tell us if you like it.

Inge

(website)

Oh boy, I could go on and on about this!-)
You know when people say they 'live and breathe...', I often think 'hm isn't that a bit exaggerated?!', but that's truly how I feel about books. I don't think I've ever been without one since I was a toddler, I worked for a publishing company for eight years, have translated a number of books as a freelancer (mostly non-fiction up until now), and now I'm in a new stage, and am starting up my own business as a personal book shopper.

I read almost everything, not only because I'm expected to keep up with what's being published, I just love to read, so it's never a chore. Horror is about the only genre I'm not so fond of.
When I want a relaxing read I usually grab a detective story (e.g. the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich - complete fluff really but highly entertaining, you don't read these for the plot, but for the over the top characters and the hilarious one-liners - the Inspector Lynley mysteries by Elisabeth George, the Amelia Peabody mysteries by Elisabeth Peters (set in 19th century Egypt), the Rei Shimura mysteries by Sujata Massey (an antiques dealer in Japan, the quality of the stories varies, but there's lots of tidbits about Japanese life) and the Kathleen Mallory novels by Carol O'Connell (she has created and eerie and interesting character there!).

Of course I know Jasper Fforde, Amy! I'm always on the look-out for 'books about books', and I think he's done an amazing job of creating an entirely different world from ours that at the same time is still so recognizable + all the literary references are great fun!
I have 'Inkheart' too Nicole, and have started in it twice now, but I just can't seem to get in to it. I can't put my finger on it really, the concept is great, but there's just something that's not working for me.
The 'most me book about books' will always be 'Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader' by Anne Fadiman. Not only because I have translated a large part of it for my thesis, but because on almost every page of the book I was exclaiming 'yes, that's me!!'.

A few of the books on my current 'to read pile': 'Gould's Book of Fish' by Richard Flanagan, 'Ghostwritten' by David Mitchell, 'The Portable Dorothy Parker', 'A Quiet Life' by Kenzaburo Oe, 'The City of Falling Angels' by John Berendt, 'The Handmaid's Tale' by Margaret Atwood and 'The Way I Found Her' by Rose Tremain.

P.S. For Lisamartin: I just realised that I never answered your book question in the 'David Yurman' thread (http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....replies=15). Sorry about that, I'll add my response there right now.

Inge

(website)

Ana: now I'm really curious about your favourite romance author: pray, do tell!-)

Nicole: something completely different, but also non-fiction (I just thought about it because I know you like to cook, and I've been listening to the audio book during ironing;-): 'Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise' by Ruth Reichl, the famous food writer.

Nicole

Veteran

Oooh thanks Inge...It does sound like something I'd like. I too had a difficult time getting going on Inkheart too--but once I sat down and let myself read multiple chapters at a time--it pulled me right in, and put me right in the middle of the story. My daughter is an avid reader--she probably reads 4 to 7 books a week, depending on how late we let her stay up. She usually has 2 or 3 books going at any given time. She volunteers at our town's library, and comes home with armloads of books every week. But this is the first time she has asked me to read a book.

I suspected we had some readers in this group.

Inge

(website)

That's very true Nicole! Some books are meant to be read in one sitting, and can have a completely different 'feel' to them when you break them up into smaller pieces. I'm going to try 'Inkheart' again when I have time for a longer read.

I like your daughter already;-) I was like that at her age (grin, I still am like that actually, and I also read several books at once).

Anonymous

My favorite reading is cozy mysteries and I love many of the authors Inge mentioned, especially the Stephanie Plum series for pure fun. I especially like historical mysteries like the Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters or anything by Anne Perry.

Inge, I'm not familiar with the Rei Shimura mysteries by Sujata Massey and will look for them. Are they in paperback? audiotape?

Inge

(website)

I have the paperback edition Joy: http://www.amazon.com/Salaryma.....038;sr=1-1
This is the first one in the series, new titles usually come out in hardback first. Do you like listening to audiobooks too?

Here are several options, but the audiobook doesn't seem to be among them (not sure if it exists).
http://www.alibris.com/booksea.....ting*title

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I knew Inge would be in heaven with this thread. This is HER thing!

I recently finished “Coco Chanel’s biography”, and “the Other Boleyn Girl” was the last huge book I’ve read. It was so much better than the movie. A GREAT book. I like historical fiction and murder mysteries. I won’t read anything that is a chore. That’s why I stopped book club – too much Dickens and Galileo’s theory (awful).

Call me a pleb but I like milk chocolate and Jilly Cooper is my favourite author. She captivates my mind like no other writer. My Dad left her latest novel “Wicked” here for me to read and I can’t wait to get stuck in. (After the Olympics!)

My favourite books are cookbooks. I read them like novels over and over again.

Nicole

Veteran

I read the Stephanie Plumb series up to 11 or 12 I think....the first half a dozen were great...then they got kind of repetitive. I have not read the last few.

I'm digging around my house looking for a good read. My mother and MIL are always passing books back and forth to each other, but they use me as the delivery person--so I end up with piles of books that don't quite interest me.

I went thru a Christopher Moore phase for a while .... not the kind of books that you carelessly recommend to people though. But if you are familiar with him, he has a dark sense of humor and pushes the taboo envelope...that's the kind of stuff I like to read.

I have a book recommendation from a friend..."Bitter is the New Black"....anyone read that?

Inge

(website)

Oooh Angie, cookbooks, I keep going back to them too!
I have a feeling you might enjoy the two cookbooks by Chocolate & Zucchini writer Clotilde Dusoulier (I've mentioned her blog on the forum before):
http://astore.amazon.com/choco.....70-6622411
http://astore.amazon.com/choco.....70-6622411

I recently bought this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Good-Egg.....038;sr=8-1
Mainly because the title 'The Good Egg' could have come straight out of a P.G. Wodehouse novel;-) And I do like eggs too.

Maybe you would like the Jeeves novels by Wodehouse Nicole: very dry British humour. I read them in small instalments, even that kind of wit can become tedious if administered in large doses.

About J. Evanovich: indeed, I forgot to mention it in my original post, they do seem to go downhill a bit lately.
I have Christopher Moore's 'Practical Demonkeeping' on my bookshelf, but haven't read it yet.
'Bitter is the New Black' might be fun.

Inge

(website)

One more: this is a marvellous find for anyone who likes the big classcis AND cooking:
http://www.amazon.com/Kafkas-S.....038;sr=8-1

And now back to work, I still have +3000 words to translate before tomorrow morning, but I keep getting distracted by this thread;-)

amy29

Oh, you gals might like bookmooch--or may already know about it. You list books, people request them, you send them to them via media mail, and then you get points you can use to request books from others. I love it. I love used books best of all, and while I keep a good portion of my books, there's always some reading I do that I don't hold on to. Anyway, it's fun--the idea is to make a global library. Here's the Web site.

Inge

(website)

Bookmooch is a great concept Amy, I've known of its existence for a while now but have never tried it myself.

Another good initiative is 'bookcrossing': 'the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do likewise'.
http://www.bookcrossing.com/

Nicole

Veteran

Oh Amy, I'm going to look into that site. I'll pass it on to my mother in law too.

My kid's pediatrician has a book swap in her office. I always forget to bring in books though.

Anonymous

Our local Curves has a couple of shelves where people bring in books they've read. Anyone can borrow and return when finished for someone else. It gets lots of use and generates discussion and friendships.

anne

Veteran

Well this is a thread for me. I love reading and get through mountains of books. I am one of those people who don’t just read “when they have time” but always “make time to read”. (Sadly, often to the detriment of other things I should be doing, such as sleeping!). I have already seen heaps of recommendations in this thread I’ll love to follow up on.
Nicole kind of asked 2 questions
1. What are you reading right now and
2. what do you recommend

1. My visits to the library these days, with my 3 girls in tow, give me only a few minutes to choose my books ( unless I request them online). I often get biograghies – just finished one on Australia’s new prime minister and grab a novel from the books returned trolley – so at the moment 2 chick lits – Louise Bagshawe and a Meg Cabot “Heather wells” mystery. But though readable I don’t thinks they are very good. I am also reading through Agatha Christie and a biography of Edith Wharton my Mum gave me.
I love Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell, A. S Byatt and George Eliot. I also read and collect girls stories from the past century or so
2. But for less demanding reading, I have just checked my library record of reading and come up with a few I have enjoyed recently

Up and down in the Dales / Gervase Phinn (and others by him)
Marie Antoinette : the journey / Antonia Fraser
Dead famous / Ben Elton. (and others by him)
Diaries, 1969-1979 : the Python years / Michael Palin
Climbing the mango trees : a memoir of a childhood in India / by Madhur Jaffrey

This last is by a cookbook author. I also love reading cookbooks, especially those with lots of text. My all time favourite is Nigella Lawson's How to Eat

Bye (must go to bed!)

Tanya

Veteran

I love to read, especially on the trips/planes. I like to read a lot of different things, mainly fiction, but I try to keep it on the lighter side since my daily work-related reading is as serious as it gets. I read very, very fast, my BF says that I devour books, so I tend to accumulate huge amounts of once-read books that end up at the Salvation Army.

On the planes to and from NM I have read the following: Paolo Coelho's "The Witch of Portobello","The Bourne Betrayal" by Eric Van Lustbader, " The Sanctuary" by Raymond Khoury and I have reread (again) "Lords and Ladies" by Terry Pratchett. I love that book.

Ana

(website)

Veteran

Brendan is a huge Terry Pratchett fan. He has all of Pratchett's books (brought them over from England with him).

Becky

Veteran

Well, if ever there was a thread for me, this is it! I'm an avid reader and have been all my life (or at least since I learned to read!). This summer I have been re-reading Don Coldsmith's books. He writes historical fiction set in the Great Plains and centered around early contact between Native Americans and Europeans. I would have to say historical fiction is my favorite genre, but I also love mysteries and well-written historical non-fiction. I am currently in the middle of a self-imposed reading project: Reading all the Newbery Award winning books since 1922. I have only about 10 left. There are some real winners on that list. Among my favorites: _Number the Stars_ by Lois Lowry, about a Danish family who secretly helps Jewish neighbors during WWII. On my "to read" list: _March_ and _People of the Book_ by Geraldine Brooks.

Ana

(website)

Veteran

I read "Number the Stars," as a kid. Incredible book, I love it.

Anonymous

I am very impressed with all of you. I read periodicals and a half dozen books a year so I am out of my league here.
I am picking up great ideas to read though. Becky I am very sypathetic to the history of Native Americans and now I plan to read Don Coldsmith's books.
I am going to copy this and keep for reading ideas. What better place to get recommendations.
I also love to read cookbooks.

susan

Whoooo! I love this! I teach 8th gr ade la and am always on the lookout for good teen reads to suggest to my kids. At the end of the year many of them were reading the Twilight series. I brought it home with me, but I haven't gotten to it yet. Only 1 more week of vacation, so I'd better get to it! I just read Artichoke's Heart and can't wait to suggest it-such a sweet and funny story.

On a personal level, I just finished Emily Griffen's new book-Love the one you're
With. I didn't like it as well as her other two, but it was okay. I now reading Skinny B. As the wife of a farmer, I am aggravated by some of the untruths, but I will finish it. I am also reading I feel Bad about my Neck-funny!

Thanks for the suggestions and authors I have never tried. I will!
re

Becky

Veteran

San, most of Coldsmith's books are part of a series; they don't have to be read in order, but you might want to. _Trail of the Spanish Bit_ is the first one. It's still available on amazon. Some of them are out of print, but can be purchased used through amazon.

Anonymous

Oh thankyou Becky. I appreciate that so much and I will order it right now.
I must ask you, are these books sad?
My husband and I went through a phase of reading Tony Hillerman books last winter. After that I told him I was going to learn as much as I could about American Indians. He said, "I hope you're prepared to be sad".
My best friends Mother grew up on the reservation in CA.

Lena

Ooh, great thread, Nicole!

I read a lot of nonfiction (popular science, history, biography). I'm quite picky about fiction, but collect a lot of recommendations. I don't read a lot of mysteries, except Terry Pratchett (I adore the City Watch series!) and Lois McMaster Bujold (Vorkosigan series), which are probably more fantasy/comedy anyway. I stopped reading the Stephanie Plum series at book 10, for the same reason most of you mentioned - it became too repetitive. I find that I'm a seasonal reader, for example I read lighter less demanding things in the summer, and tackle serious books in autumn and winter (with obligatory rest stops to reread Douglas Adams and Jane Austen and T.Pratchett). I used to read a lot of sci fi, mainly Arthur C.Clarke, Stanislav Lem, Philip K.Dick (in small dozes).

I'm a pretty slow reader because I tend to read both for story and style, often rereading the bits I like.

Anne, have you seen BBC's adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's "North and South"? It's fabulous. And thanks for reccing Madhur Jaffrey's biography, I just put it on hold at my library. I really like her "World Vegetarian" cookbook, it's one of my favorites.

Right now I'm reading "This is your brain on music" and "The rest is noise: listening to the 20th century."

Nicole

Veteran

My MIL gave my daughter some Terry Pratchett books. She was only 8 or 9 at the time, so we read one together. I don't remember the title, it was cute though. I think Mia was a little too young to appreciate it, but I should encourage her to reread that one--she'd love it now.

I am interested in reading "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life" by Barbara Kingsolver. I read the Poisonwood Bible, Bean Trees and Prodigal Summer and a few years ago. I tend to overload on authors, then check up on what they've written recently.

Maybe we could set up some kind of bookswap here on YLF? We could create a group at yahoo and list books that we have on hand that we'd be willing to mail to each other. Media mail is pretty cheap.

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