50 Book Challenge 2017 Part One

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the first thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2017, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

Who's in for this year?

All Quiet is sublime. Think I'll re-read later this year. I envy anybody approaching it for the first time.

4. The North Water - Ian McGuire

This has been revised comprehensively by Cote upthread. I enjoyed it so much read it just a few hours - DD may have done a fair bit of self-directed play today.

Very atmospheric novel, the descriptions of the characters and landscapes were vivid and really helped the story come to life. A reminder of how harsh life was in the past if you weren't part of the educated, moneyed elite. It's been sitting on my kindle for months so thanks for the prod to read it.

Glad it wasn't just me, Joyless! I only really persevered ploughing through the list because I had reserved them all at the library and felt irrationally guilty that somebody had gone to the trouble of transferring them from another branch for me!

Just finished book 2 An Interrupted Life (Etty Hillesum's diaries). It is a fascinating and (to me) very moving account of her deepening relationship with God, and the personal freedom she feels this bestows upon her, eve as the Nazi restrictions on the Dutch Jews, and the subsequent deportations, become more stringent and frequent. She wasn't a "holy" person - on the contrary, she was very worldly, and by the standards of the age very immoral - an unmarried woman who had had "plenty" of lovers, and who preformed an abortion on herself when she fell pregnant by one of the three men she was sharing her bed with at the time. Her inner, spiritual life, though, became increasing rich and sustaining. She was under no illusions about the fate of the Jewish nation under the Nazis, but refused to give in to hate and bitterness. An amazing account.

So am starting book 3 tomorrow (I don't want to lose the mood of Etty's writing just yet). It is And The Mountains Echoed. Mixed reviews, so I am a bit apprehensive.

We will see.

Seconding (or maybe fourthing?) All Quiet On The Western Front Can't remember why I read it, think it was on a pile of war books at the library for one of the anniversaries, but it was brilliantly written. Can really recommend it.

I'm partway through The Painted Veil - the vipers Goodreads choice for January. Enjoying it so far although can't decide how I feel about the characters - I want to like them but they also need a good shaking! But that will only be book one - how have people managed to read so many already?!

Read All Quiet on Remus recommendation last year. Best book I read all year.

First book of the year finished.

1. Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell. Crikey. This is a book and a half! Recommended to me by Cote (I think?) last year. It was very good. Brilliantly written, unusual format, interesting themes linking the six stories. My first David Mitchell book and I'll happily scout out his others now.

Next up is either his Slade House, The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu, The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry or Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I can't seem to decide which so might need to read the first few pages of each to see which grabs me.

This thread is moving so quickly!

Thanks for those who mentioned The Year of Living Danishly upthread - I've just downloaded the audiobook, I was looking for something else to listen to so I'm looking forward to this, I think it will be right up my street. Will report back.

First two out of the way:

1. The unlikely pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce. Not sure about it - mawkish with undeveloped characters but a nice story that made me cry (but I am overly-sentimental at the best of times and recent personal events have made me more so)
2. Post Mortem by Kate London. Got off to a promising start but I found the ending deeply unsatisfying

Just started If this is a man by Primo Levi. Started it a couple of years ago and had to stop because it was so harrowing.

Meant to add that I'm also about 75% of the way through Anna Karenina, and 79% of the way through The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, both of which I am enjoying immensely.

Ready Player One is good fun (a Cote rec). I bought it for my brother for his birthday and he loved it too.

Ready Player One was mentioned by someone at my book club last night. It sounds like my sort of thing, I will have to hunt out a copy.

1. The Hedge Witch's Way by Rae Beth

A look at the spiritual side of hedge witchcraft and wildwood mysticism. It's aimed at the solitary practitioner with a focus on the more intuitive, eclectic and spontaneous side than complex ritual. Good for the curious as an introduction and written in a very engaging, easy-going style.

I'm determined to get through cloud atlas this year. I just can't seem to get past the first bit. It keeps looking at me reproachfully when I'm scrolling through my kindle library.

I'm normally a perserverer with books too - I can't recall why I stopped reading which suggests I wasn't not enjoying it...maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind.

The Fireman is still on the go, but is pissing me off quite badly. There's so many fecking plot holes. And too many references to The Stand. I don't mind literary in-jokes, but seriously - the overweight, bitter, virgin who's super smart but can't get the gal he likes to put out? He's called Harold, Harold Cross nonetheless. And is pretty much the same character as Harold Lauder in The Stand. Who in The Stand partners up with Nadine Cross.

And there's a deaf kid. Called Nick.

If you're going to try to make a connection between one of the best loved of your dad's works, at least make your work semi-decent, at least make it subtle. Just waiting for the trash can man to turn up now.

It's a shame, I really enjoyed Horns, NOS4R2 and Heart-shaped box.

MrsD

I loved Harold Fry, and the Primo Levi, If This Its A Man is excellent. All Levi's books are harrowing, but not prurient - they show the joy and kindness that can exist in the most hideous conditions, as well as the horror and cruelty. Try to finish it. It is worth it.

Clash Well said. The Harold thing made me really CROSS (see what I did there?). It's lazy and stupid.

No 2. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Started this yesterday morning on the train as my Kindle went flat and I had to borrow DD's. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I may even read the rest of the trilogy.

KeithLeMonde, my issues with NW are mostly that I rate Zadie Smith so highly as a writer and thinker that I expect more of her work than I do others', and I found some important plot points at the beginning of NW are a bit lazy and beneath her. I might accept them in other novels, but not hers. I should probably get over myself and try the book again, though.

highlandcoo, let me know how you find the podcasts. If you find any good ones, I'm always interested.

I reread Alias Grace last year. Atwood's prose and structure are so beautiful. I'm curious as to why people hated the end, but I don't want to spoil it.

I finished the second Shardlake book, Dark Fire, yesterday and enjoyed it as much as the first. I'm really looking forward to starting book 3 soon but I wanted an audiobook for this evening as I have loads of boring paperwork to do so I can't read my book/kindle. I've started The Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared which I picked up as a daily deal at some point. So far it's mildly amusing but not great. I'll stick with it for now as I'm not really paying 100% attention and it's entertaining enough while I'm working.

diamantegal - I'm about to start The Painted Veil as the January read too so I'm glad you're enjoying it so far.

Also, has anyone read Station Eleven? It's this month's book club choice, but I might skip it.

!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let's just say there are mixed reports vanderly

My advice is to skip it but others have loved it.

Don't mention Station Eleven! You'll set them off!

I keep forgetting Cloud Atlas in my reads of last year because I started it on so many occasions before that If the first story is ballsing you up, just skip to the second one and start from there, then catch up later.

I've just reserved Ready Player One from the library today, by coincidence, also North Water as they had it available so hope I won't have to wait too long.

Have DM'd you, Vander.

I thought Station Eleven was ridiculous. Gave up in disgust. It caused quite a lot of discussion on here.

Ha! Do I need to roll my sleeves up for another fight about Station Eleven?