50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Six

[southeastdweller]

Thread six 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.

The first thread of 2016 is here, second thread here, third thread here, fourth thread here and fifth thread here.

I saw Curtis Sittenfeld interviewed earlier this year, right after Eligible was published. All of the audience questions were about American Wife, which amused me greatly.

Sittenfeld is an author that I should love, given my tastes, but she leaves me cold. I can't figure out why.

Just read number 46 - Mr Mercedes by Stephen King.

This is the first SK novel I have read in years - used to read loads in my teens and early twenties and then just stopped. Don't really know why as this book reminded me of what a great storyteller he is. He really is so good at developing his characters. I'm sure it's been reviewed before but suffice to say I enjoyed it. I must admit I kept expecting something supernatural to creep in but enjoyed the cat-and-mouse element between the detective and the killer. I have the follow up to read next and have also downloaded IT which I read as a teen and loved.

I share the disappointment with this year's Booker. It has felt a bit flat as a shortlist - nothing particularly inspiring. His Bloody Project has been more popular with the public which probably doomed it from winning.

Yeah Remus agree loads of mad funny bits, really dry wit and entertaining, but the supernatural stuff spoiled it, would've been better if it was just a character piece about what arseholes they both were.

Hmm what else?

Have you read The Quincunx or Fingersmith? Apologies if you are a poster who has previously mentioned Fingersmith, it's hard to keep track.

I'm not convinced Wilkie WAS an arsehole, certainly not on Dickension scale.

I didn't like Fingersmith though am in a v small minority on here re that. Never managed to get further than 40 pages or so in Quincunx - should I give it another go?

Dickensian - oops.

I'm planning to read the Booker shortlist at some point (after Christmas, realistically) as, bizarrely, for the first time in years I thought I liked the sound of all of them. It's normally 3 tops. Have heard lots of people say they were disappointing this year though so not sure what to make of it.

Remus - I agree, I don't think Wilkie was an arsehole at all.

Songbird - see, I'm not sure I did loathe Kevin's mother. There were loads of points where I couldn't understand why she behaved in the way she did, why she didn't do something differently etc. but I sympathised - I think her PND was much more severe than she made out and it made me see everything she did after that as a consequence of that.

I don't know, it was a bit frustrating maybe a 7 for me. And really felt like a pastiche.

I'll have to look back through my records.

The Night Circus loved that total 10.

Crimson Petal And The White?

Remus, I dropped Fingersmith after the first or second part. I really like Sarah Waters but didn't find a reason to pick that one up after I had to put it down for a while.

I'm not a Waters fan. The Little Strangeris the only one I've read of hers that hasn't really annoyed me.

Couldn't get on with Crimson Petal - thought it was really boring.

Jonathan Strange?I'm just running all period type ones through my head.

Isn't it odd, how certain eras really have shit loads of books written about them, I mean, any new book set in WW2 is really surplus.So many. Same for Victorian times.

JS - another one that should appeal but that I just can't get on with.

Poor EverySong. She clearly hasn't been on any of your "Find me a new book to read" threads, Remus

Oops, you're right Remus, I guess what I mean is that - typically - a who-dunnit also ties up the why-dunnit, in that it clarifies the motive, which makes it feel like the case has been properly tied up. I read a few other Booker candidates and all had differing quirks of structure. I kinda got the feeling the judges were being drawn to that this year and it felt like not clarifying the why-dunnit was the quirk of His Bloody Project'. But as admitted previously, I am very grumpy on the Booker subject atm ...

Nope, only joined MN in March and only started using "What we're reading" when I got my reading mojo back this last month. I have read LOTS though and will continue to think.

Sorry, Songbird. I'm horrible and very awkward.

Joyless - I don't know if I'll bother with any of the others, unless The North Water drops significantly in price on Kindle.

Two finished today:

92. A Feast For Crows by George RR Martin

Concentrating on the Lannisters (except Tyrion) and the events around King's Landing, Riverrun, Sansa, Arya, Brienne, and Samwell.

93. Get Things Done by Robert Kelsey

Intended as a guide to making oneself more efficient and productive, to be honest it didn't really do a lot for me. However, next up will be Designing Your Life, the Stanford Life Design course (which I had never heard of until I came across this book...) by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans and targeted at people still looking for an answer to the question 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' It sounded interesting and I certainly need help with that question!

You're luffly, Remus Just very hard to recommend something because you have specific tastes and have already read pretty much all that's worthy

You're not horrible Remus!

I am despaired of in Book Club for being Little Miss Read That, Yeah, Read That Too

ChillieJeanie, once you've finished designing your life, you could always design your own utopia to go with it

and the more good books you read the harder it is for the new stuff to measure up!

Spoilers for HBP:

It could've been a whodunnit- he could've been covering for Jetta - her suicide was so heavily foreshadowed I thought it was going to be a misdirect- and if he didn't rape Flora, did her father? And yes, even if you do know the murderer from the beginning, the rules say you get to find out why! So it did
make me cross.

I also love the idea of a favourite dystopia! Mine is Vonda McIntyre's Dreamsnake, which I think qualifies, although it has an optimistic ending.

56. James and The Giant Peach by Roald Dahl enjoyable enough amble through the many uses of peach, with some interesting ideas thrown in on the subject of garden pests, but for greater variety I much prefer Nigel Slater's Tender: A cooks guide to the fruit garden.

57. American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld the life story of a middle class Wisconsin school teacher who ends up as First Lady of the USA. Alice Blackwell, a mild-mannered, bookish, democrat, lands a front row seat to a Republican administration widely considered to be disastrous on a number of levels. It is an obviously fictionalised account of the Bushes, and it tries to imagine the circumstances which lead an intelligent woman to become a largely silent helpmeet to a man whose politics she does not share, and examines the extent to which she could be said to be complicit in the consequences of them. This was not my usual cup of tea, and half way through it was starting to feel like an intriguing but ultimately empty enterprise - entertaining enough, but nothing to really say. However, the creation of Alice's interior world was so fully realised, the quotidian events that passed through it became strangely compelling. I read reviews which said the latter third was the weakest, when they enter the White House; I actually found it nearly lost me in the mundane middle section, but regained a sense of momentum and meaning in the last part, becoming less personal and more political. Enjoyable and engaging, but I wished it had more consistent depth. I also found the sex scenes and constant grilling of hamburgers a bit tiresome

joyless that was the impression I got from the run down - not an exciting shortlist. Be interested to hear your thoughts on The Sellout. Was looking through past winners and I've read more than I thought,a fair mix of love and loathe.

Which reminds me I hated Narrow Road to the Deep North; one I did finish and dislike intensely.

Oh and good god, The Famished Road. Terrible.

Satsuki

Am I mistaken or was there a really cringe section on farting?

I read Prep by her last year, and found it very empty and soulless, with a misery for a lead who doesn't help herself.