50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Four

[southeastdweller]

Thread four of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2016, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it's not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

First thread of 2016 is here, second thread here and third thread here.

How're you getting on so far?

The Harry Dresden books sound great ChillieJeanie-I will look them up, thank you.

Cote I agree that the third part of Seveneves could have been a separate book/sequel, but I loved the world building/flight of fancy in that part of it anyway. He truly is a genius.

lookingforme I'm a Fitzgerald fan and have read Gatsby Tender the short stories and various other bits but I've never read This Side of Paradise, you've inspired me to look it out now. I guess it must just have been eclipsed by the other two.

35, 36 & 37: Fracture, Resistance and Endgame, nos 3, 4 & 5 in the Night School series by CJ Daugherty
YA series of thrillers, set in an ultra-exclusive and secretive boarding school. It's a little tricky to review this series, as the tension in the first book mainly derives from the fact that neither the reader nor Allie, the main character, have a clue what is going on, nor what the school represents.

My feelings on the series were mixed. There were lots of things I liked (hence why I read through to the end). Allie is a great protagonist who starts out as a confused, rebellious teenager and develops convincingly across the books. The setting is well done, the 'secret' plausible enough, and the author keeps up the tension across the series. The major flaw for me was the (seemingly inevitable for a certain type of YA book) love triangle - it just didn't convince, it put Allie right out of character, and IMO it was unneccesary, as either of the two would have made a good will-she-won't-she love interest. I actually wonder if the author had been encouraged to add the romance element to the book by her publishers (dd tells me this is why Throne of Glass is so awful - the author published it first on Wattpad without the ridiculous over-the-top bits).

I have the first Dresden Files in my pile too!

21. Katy by Jacqueline Wilson. This is a modern retelling of What Katy Did- there are some spoilers in this review:

On the whole I think JW is underrated as a writer, some of her books are excellent and she is always a page turner. However, although I did find this very readable, I didn't think it was one of her best. In some ways she is rehashing old ground of her own- deceased mother, step siblings, feisty heroine- and Katy is a bit of a cross between Tracy Beaker and Ellie from the Girls series. I do see why she took out the "moral lesson" part of the story, but for me as a child Katy's emotional and then physical recovery was gripping. I also felt that original Katy fell into a far more realistic "slough of despond", new Katy is almost too resilient for me (and also possibly slightly too young). I also felt that the two new male characters could have replaced the cousin Helen figure entirely, the role of the original Helen seemed to be split across the 3, leaving each a little lacking. There was also nothing as funny as Katy going OTT on the healthy living in the original books! So overall, not one of her best.

I've read one and two of the Dresden files - far preferred the second.

My Berlin book is still keeping me busy. It's a good job I haven't committed to a certain number of books this year, because this one is equivalent to about 6 normal ones!

Just finished The Galaxy Game, by Karen Lord. I'm not sure if I should have read The Best of All Possible Worlds first, as that seems to share some characters - I'll read it later, but wanted to leave a bit of space between for some easy reads.

I'm not sure how much of the plot to describe as part of the enjoyment for me was that the main character, Rafi, ends up on a different planet, different society with very different rules that he's entirely ignorant of and is essentially figuring stuff out as he bumbles along. (Or not figuring stuff out at all, to his friends' frustration). But the effect is that it kept me off-balance for the first part of the story. The pov switches between a few main characters, which allows Lord to show occasionally how much Rafi is missing entirely when she switches to another character's viewpoint.

Overall: beautifully written, character focused SF. I see I've entirely failed to capture what I liked about it though, ah well.

Satsuki Yeah, agree it doesn't seem to get much attention compared to his other stuff. Strange when you think it was his first and the one that made him famous to start with. Gatsby is understandable but I thought Tender was a bit over-rated, to be honest, and I say that as a huge Fitzgerald fan. I did like it, but it wasn't as good as I'd thought it was going to be. Love his short stories though.

Don't know if you'd be interested but I really enjoyed Careless People by Sarah Churchwell which styles itself as a biography of Gatsby the novel - lots of background about Fitzgerald's life and influences while writing Gatsby. I also liked Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler. Am a bit of a geek but I love reading around my favourite novels to appreciate them even more.

YY to Careless People. Haven't read the whole thing but enjoyed dipping into it.

22. Shopaholic to the Rescue by Sophie Kinsella- very much part 2 of the previous book, but nicely on form if you enjoyed the rest of the series (which I did).

looking I agree about Tender is the Night, I think he wasn't at the height of his powers writing it and it got to be famous more for the perceived semi-autobiographical nature of it. FSF's letters are very good too.

Have wish listed the books you mention - Z looks interesting and Careless People I have been meaning to get for a while. Sarah Churchwell was actually once my lecturer and I try and keep up with her writing as her interests overlap with mine quite a bit, and she is formidably knowledgeable.

She also wrote a book on Marilyn Monroe which is very good (even if you are not a MM fan!) as it is more about the nature of biography, and MM is a particularly interesting subject as so much has been written about her, and so much of the image we are familiar with was created after her death.

21. The Easy Way to Control Alcohol by Allen Carr re-read. Have just gone on the wagon for a few weeks, and reading this near the beginning is my declaration unto myself that I mean business. I did dry September last year and read this for the first time at the start of that, and feel it helped me succeed. However I've now crept back to the level of 'pointless' glasses of wine ('because I had a bad day at work', 'because I worked hard at the gym') and an feeling in need of a repeat. I certainly do not read it for its literary merits, for there are none. It is chauvinistic, arrogant, full of poorly researched assumptions with no evidence base, terrible extended analogies that make little sense (e.g. one about schizophrenia where he clearly hasn't even bothered to find out anything about the condition). Also, the aim is that having read the book you will never want to drink again, and I have no intention of stopping for more than a few weeks. But, despite its terribleness, it's somehow, and I don't know how, like a magic charm that means I now feel really positive about achieving what I set out to do.

glitter many thanks for the Karen Lord recommendation - she looks like a really interesting writer, and I'd never heard of her.

10. Helter skelter by Vince bugliosi

This book is about the Tate-labianca murders committed by Charles Manson and "family" in August 1969. The book is written by the prosecutor in the case so gives a really good insight into the evidence and behind the scenes of the trial. The book (as you would expect) is a tough read in the first part where the murders were described. But I found the court room part fascinating especially how Manson was still trying to control everything around him even though he had been caught.

If you are a fan of true crime I would highly recommend.

book 13 A Nation not a rabble, The Irish Revolution 1913-1923 Diarmaid Ferriter In light of the recent 1916 Easter Rising commemoration I decided to broaden my mind and read this book and fill some gaps in my knowledge.
This book started off very slowly (so slowly in fact I was going to abandon it). I am however glad that I did continue with it.
This book is an incredibly well balanced and informative book, particularly in light of the difficult subject matter. A Nation not a Rabble covers the main events from the Dublin lock out, the third home rule bill, the Easter rising and the subsequent civil war. The book then examines the implications of these events to the fledgling state up to the present day. Ferriter does not shy away from the comparison between Eamon de Valera and Michael Collins leaving the reader with the view that de Valera was not as treacherous as history paints him or that Michael Collins was the hapless victim as some historians would have it.
This book is definitely a must for any one interested in modern irish history.
Having read a number of heavy duty books book 14is going to be a little bit lighter as I shall be reading the lady in the van which according to you lot is a very good read. I can't wait.

Book 43
Faust's Metropolis by Alexandra Richie
Finally finished this absolute beast of a book! It’s much like Berlin itself – vast, sprawling and meandering in places, containing parts some people might hate, parts that people will find beautiful or astonishing or terrifying or saddening or exciting. I didn’t like the intro or the first 10% or so, but am so glad that I persevered. Once it hit 1910 or so it was absolutely brilliant and got better and better through the two World Wars, the Soviet atrocities and then the horror that was the Berlin Wall. I've read an awful lot about Germany, but this taught me lots that I didn't know, especially about artists, writers and the cabaret scene. Highly recommended for anybody interested in European history, especially post-1900.

I'm going to move onto some Poirots now, I think, for a bit of light relief!

book 14 the lady in the van by Alan Bennett I read this in an hour. I won't summarise it as many of you have already read it. An intriguing but very short read. The story left me wanting to know about Miss S. and her relationship with Alan Bennett. The end of the book was very poignant. I am not sure what to read next

Muskey -I'd recommend reading Writing Home by Alan Bennett. It's the first part of his memoirs which cover the years when Miss Shepherd lived in his front garden. It's currently 99p in this month's kindle sale and well worth a read. Also, his A Life Like Other People's, which is about his parents' marriage is an interesting and very poignant read.

Thanks Remus,I will definitely read the Berlin book now.

Thanks quog I have just purchased it now.

Since there is a whole thread devoted to this book and I like horses, book number 11 for me is Riders by jilly cooper. My first jilly cooper book.

38 Social Class in the 21st Century by Mike Savage & others.

One of the new 'Pelican Introduction' series. A very good read, thorough and interesting, very much in the vein of the old style Pelican books.

The authors refer frequently to Piketty's Capital in the 21st Century, and this is an interesting companion to that book. They look at the way the class system has changed, and in particular consider the way the top (the 'elite' in their terms) and the very bottom (where they use the relatively recent concept of the precariat) have in many ways separated off from the more fluid centre ground.

I'd definitely recommend this, it's a pretty easy read, and I think would be interesting to most people even if they don't agree with all the conclusions. For anyone concerned about rising inequality (whether left or right politically), I'd say Piketty, this book and Tony Atkinson's recent book 'Inequality' are three basic texts.

Into Thin Air is 99p on the Kindle just for today

24. Stepping Back by Shelby Locke

This is the sequel to Stepping by the same author, in which Steven is sent back in time to correct history and make sure the Titanic sinks. I think this sequel would be rather confusing for someone who hasn't read the first book.

The sequel focuses on Steven, but not the Steven from the first book. This Steven, despite never having time travelled, gets caught up in all sorts of far fetched and highly coincidental carrying ons as a result of other Steven's dabbling in the time stream. I didn't dare think too hard about it as I think all the paradoxes and circular logic and things vanishing or reappearing at points convenient to the plot would destroy any hope of enjoying the story.

Aside from that, it's a fairly standard and unexceptional adventure type story with a dollop of romance.
And what I felt was an excessive use of exclamation marks. There seemed to be at least one a page! Even attached to ordinary sentences! A minor but irritating thing.

Stitches I feel your pain on the exclamation mark overuse - it is a writing feature I find highly irritating too.

#17. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton The tale of the destroyed dreams of the eponymous Ethan Frome, an American farmer of yesteryear. Having typed this summary, I realise it makes the book sound dreary and worthy, but actually this was a fantastic read. The characters were really well drawn and I very much cared what happened to them.

#18. The Crossing by Michael Connelly one of a series featuring Detective Hieronymous Bosch. I used to love this series but guess I have just read too many of them to get excited about them any more.