50 Book Challenge 2017 Part Two

I watched the Virgin Suicides film back in the day. It was very atmospheric, directed by Sophia Coppola, I believe. I don't remember much else about it though, except one of the girls waking up in the middle of the football field.

No - it's not a spoiler Cote.

Nothing as dramatic as that happens. Actually practically nothing at all.

They made a film of the Virgin Suicides, I believe, but I had some paint I wanted to watch dry, so I didn't get round to seeing it.

Thank you for your comment ecky - I didn't realise there was a follow-up - I'll have to get hold of a copy. It is one of the best books I've read for a long time (just up to where Lou has told Will about the maze).

I've found it very touching but not the least sentimental.

Checking in, blimey it's moving quickly this year! I will be back later to read through the first 5 pages of thread 2.

I have no hope of keeping up with this thread at the moment!

Songbird - thanks for recommendation of the more recent Much Ado film - I will definitely take a look to see if it'd be suitable for Year 8.

1. Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman - this is sort of a spin-off of My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologises by the same author (who also wrote A Man Called Ove). Read Grandmother last year for book group and this one is also for book group. Britt-Marie is a 63 year old woman who leaves her cheating husband and is faced with the prospect of having to make a new life for herself. Given that her entire identity has been bound up in housework and looking after her undeserving husband, this is extremely difficult for her. Backman's style is unique - he mixes humour, completely random elements and more serious messages in a way that somehow works, even though it probably shouldn't.

Am now back to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince as the date of seeing the Cursed Child is getting closer so I need to get a move on. Am also reading The Year of Living Danishly on Kindle off the back of this thread last year.

6 Forty Autumns by Nina Willner

The story of a family separated by the Berlin Wall. Hanna, the author's mother and oldest sister of 9, escaped from East Germany not long after the war. The book follows both sides of the family, including the author who became a US intelligence agent & worked in E. Germany and a cousin who became part of the E. German Olympic team.

This should have been a fantastic read, but was let down by hideously clunky writing, plus the tendency of the author to hammer home the moral (Communism bad! The Free World good!) at every opportunity rather than letting the stories speak for themselves.

First book was book 5 in the Clifton chronicles by Jeffrey archer and the one I'm starting today is The Twenty-Three by Linwood Barclay - last in a trilogy but I didn't read the first one

I read 11.22.63 a couple of years ago after finishing Doctor Sleep and remembering how much I loved a good King book. I recommend everyone to read 11.22 because it's so much fun! I now know a lot of people in real life who have read it and loved it, but nobody seems to of mentioned the TV show? Not even bothered with it myself. (Any good!)

So I'm halfway through Needful Things (I think my next choice will be a smaller novel as its taking me a while) I am still enjoying it. Poor Nettie Cobb. I am quite invested in the characters now.

Thank you for the all the great reccs. I am fully sorted for reading for the year I reckon!

Red Rising is not high literature but it has a great story and admirable world-building. I don't do chick-lit and usually can't suffer YA, so RR is what I call a fantastic "beach read"

Oh you guys , I have just bought Jonathan etc despite having looked at it before and decided it wasn't for me. As a pay off, I'll take The Night Circus off my wish list. Not quite sure why it's on there anyway (well, this thread, obviously, but beyond that).

ShakeIt I am quite relieved that you didn't love Red Rising . I have read the look inside bit on kindle before and decided I wouldn't get on with it at all, but thought it was just me, because of the previously universal love for it on here.

PassMeTheCrisps

Which Stephen King story is it where a woman accidentally kills her husband by kneeing him in the balls but is handcuffed to the bed in the middle of nowhere? I enjoyed that one

It's Geralds Game.

Oh god, I'm probably going to give it another go. I like fantasy but I just found it all a bit daft.

Wow, thread 2 already .

So, anyway, this week I have finished books 4, 5 and 6

1. Hot Milk by Deborah Levy. An audio book, narrated well by Romola Garai. I liked it, but didn't love it. Still pondering the symbolism of the jellyfish/Medusa and the continual reckless exposure to stinging attacks, connection to her mother's seemingly psychosomatic illnesses/emotional blackmail. Interesting, worth a second read sometime I think.

1. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. A series of interconnecting short stories where Olive Kitteridge is either central to the story or a minor character slightly connected. I enjoyed this very much.

1. The Midnight Gang by David Walliams. Read to DS for bedtime story. Good, but not nearly as good as Grandpa's Great Escape, which is DS's favourite so far.

I loved Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. Agree that the footnotes are so important to the story. The atmosphere in the book was beautifully created. A real masterpiece in my eyes.

I adored Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
I got it for my birthday which is in December and it was perfect for cozying up with.

I was bought the Cell as well a wee while ago. Utter garbage. Gave up and never looked back.

Actually, another book which similarly irritated me was Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Copeland. I can't explain why it annoyed me without gaving away the end but it was lazy, copout writing to me.

Which Stephen King story is it where a woman accidentally kills her husband by kneeing him in the balls but is handcuffed to the bed in the middle of nowhere? I enjoyed that one

Will you tell us what you read or should we try to guess?

One done already and starting the second today

That it is, Satsuki JS & Mr N is a great story, very well plotted and told. You must read the footnotes, because that is where much of the story happens and The Raven King comes alive.

I'm not a magic reader but loved the Gothic atmosphere, "realistic" feel, and even the humor in this book. I was reading slowly towards the end so that it wouldn't end.

Hugely recommended especially to those who thought The Night Circus was something special.

1. The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Armin. A between-the-wars story of four women, not known to each other beforehand, spending the month of April in Italy and doing a bit of self discovery. This is a gentle, charming book with some lovely evocative descriptions of the Italian countryside. At times it almost made me feel like I was wearing sandals and basking in the sunshine!

Re Stephen King books: I loved The Stand as a teenager but doubt I would find it as good now, with its "good vs evil" storyline. It might be worth a try, though.

Otherwise, my favorite SK books are never mentioned on these threads:
The Dead Zone (especially pertinent these days with Trump as US President)
Firestarter
The Shining
Duma Key

Needful Things, Pet Semetary, Carrie, It, Misery etc were not terribly special, although teenage me gobbled them up.

The Cell was fucking awful and I suspect SK should never write about technology again.

Ha ha cote, cross post

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is on Kindle daily deal. It would feature on opposite sides of the cote/remus Venn diagram, I believe.

I've read a couple of hundred pages each time and found it boring. I'm still tempted by it being a deal though

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is £1.29 on the Kindlr just for today

I've just finished 11.22.63last night, can't think straight at the moment will review later. I enjoyed it, overall.

5. The Last Policeman: A Novel (The Last Policeman Book I) by Ben H.Winters.

Excellent crime novel set in small town America with newly promoted Detective Henry Palace investigating a suspicious death. The background story is that an asteroid will hit Earth within the next 6 months or so and as well as attempting to solve the crime, there is the fallout to society of this impending event. Looking forward to reading the second in the series, my DH says it is just as good.

6. Red Rising by Pierce Brown.

I realise there is a lot of love for this series on here but it wasn't for me. Not entirely sure why not. I didn't like some of the writing ("Well I do believe I am the lightening", Cassius declares. And you, my brooding friend are the thunder. "Then what am I?" Roque asks. "The wind?"
"You're full enough of it," I snort. "The hot sort."). Then there was too much violence for me, back-stabbing (actual and political), double-dealing. It was all a bit over the top - Game of Thrones with The Hunger Games thrown in. Nothing against those, I quite liked the Game of Thrones (that is until I got fed up waiting for George R Martin to write anything). Got through 60% before Christmas, gave up and came back to finish it off last week. Ah, well.

altered images - I was going to say in my review which one I found the most interesting but I couldn't decide!

I listened to 11.22.63 on audiobook after DS2 was born and remember it being too long. I think I preferred Under the Dome except for its silly ending. Read The Shining for the first time at the end of last year and though that was great. And re-read The Stand, also good.