50 Book Challenge 2019 Part Three

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2019, 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 the year is here and the second one here.

What are you reading?

@Spieluhr I thought Beneath a Scarlett Sky and Notes from a Stranger both looked interesting, but haven't read them yet.

Oh, wonderful, that's this afternoon sorted! I have also bought a very dog eared paperback of it from eBay for 25p!
TV series adapted from books were sooooo good back in the day.

Thank you. Ritzbiscuits. I'll go and read up on those.

40. Miller's Valley - Anna Quindlen Another family saga about subsistence-level farmers in a small-town America and the liberating effects of education. Bit boring and samey unfortunately and not as close to Anne Tyler's effortless style as the author would like to think.

41 The death of Mrs Westaway - Ruth Ware like a p.p. I enjoyed this thriller/saga which reminded me of Ruth Rendell et al. I see that the author has sold film rights to all 3 of her books so she can relax now . There were a few spelling errors (cubical for cubicle etc) which nearly had me reaching for my mad library-book reader's pencil to make a few telling notes in the margin but I luckily got a hold of myself. Two different characters also referred to the same allegory i.e. boxers preparing for a bout in the ring - before facing a difficult situation. Where are the editors and proof-readers?

42. THe Doll-Master Joyce Carol Oates volume of "horror" type short stories. Not keen.

Has anyone bought anything from the Spring Kindle book sale? I haven't seen a single book that I wanted in it. I've seen some poor sales but there's never been a time when there wasn't a single book that I wanted to buy. To be fair I haven't read the synopsis of every book. Is there anything worth buying?

Hmm, there’s a few things that caught my eye but not much I can’t resist, since I’m meant to be on a strict no-buying books diet (hollow laugh), but...

The Dune collection is well worth 99p I reckon, purely for Dune alone, with the other books as a bonus. I will probably get that at some point, but apart from that it’s mostly dross.

Having said that, If anyone has a prime membership, I’ve spotted that Crone by Jeannie Wycherley is free with Prime Reading. I’ve no idea what it’s like, but the blurb is intriguing.

I can't find my last update (not really sure how to search a thread ) so am reposting my list and will review my most recent book.

1. Featherboy – Nicky Singer
2. Three Cups of tea - Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin

3. Bookworm: A memoir of childhood reading – Lucy Mangan 4. Leap In – Alexandra Heminsly 5. Half of a yellow sun – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

1. Fasting & Feasting – Anita Desai
2. The Millstone – Margaret Drabble

8. A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Shakespeare

1. After You – Jojo Moyes

10. The Bean Trees – Barbara Kingsolver
If this fantastic book isn't in my top 5 by the end of the year then I will surely have had an outstanding reading year!!

I fell in love with Kingsolver ten years ago when a friend, who was leaving the country, passed me her battered copy of The Poisonwood Bible and told me I'd love it. She was absolutely right of course!
The Bean Trees was Kingsolver's debut novel I believe - and what a story. Wonderfully vibrant and inspiring female characters, the trials of (erstwhile avoided) motherhood, the power of sisterhood, the beauty of people who are down on their luck still finding the strength and the courage to help others less fortunate than themselves. This might sound twee but with Kingsolver's prose it couldn't be further from it! I honestly think she is my favourite writer, though I have only read 4 of her books.

Decumus - Thank you, I got the Dune collection

I had a rather long period on my late teens and early 20s when Dune books were my comfort reads. My copies literally fell apart because I read them so often.

Habing read Dune again more recently, I have to say I found it a lot less impressive in my 40s which was a bit of a disappointment, but this will be a good opportunity to reread the sequels.

I don't agree that they are any less interesting than the 1st book, though. I thought one was a little too fixated on love but then I read that the author wrote it when he was caring for his wife while she was dying

10 : The Cone Gatherers by Robin Jenkins. This was a very quick read. I read this because I came across it on another thread discussing books read at school and I was bewildered as to why I had not even heard of this Scottish school staple, which seems to be the Of Mice and Men of Scottish education!

It's an interesting book , somewhat allegorical but too much of it was a bit elusive for me, really. I can't believe that Scottish teenagers really warm to it all that much as not much happens for most of the book.

Glad to hear that Now, The Bean Trees is on my TBR list, I loved Poisonwood Bible but really didn't enjoy Flight Behaviour, the only two Kingsolver books I've read. What did you think of Flight Behaviour? (If you've read it)

@Desdemona - I know you weren’t asking me but weighing in as a Kingslover fan, I wasn’t mad on Flight Behaviour either, though was glad I persevered in the end. Loved The Bean Trees

Just finished 14. Swing Time Zadie Smith
The writing is beautiful and I was enthralled by the first part of the book, then felt it meandered a bit plot wise and, whilst the writing was still wonderful, I just felt frustrated and lost interest a bit. I did enjoy it overall though.

Thanks Alias, Bean Trees moves up the TBR pile

Good review splother of After the Party. Will look forward to reading that one from the. Walter Scott Prize list.

I’ve just finished A Long Way From Home by Peter Carey, narrated by Saskia Maarleveld and Craig Baldwin, which is also on the longlist for the prize.

Set in the 1950s and starting in a small town in rural Victoria it is nominally the story of Irene Bobs who with her car dealership owning husband Titch and their next door neighbour Willy Bachhuber enter the Redex car rally which circumnavigates Australia.
I was so excited to listen to this. I love road trip novels and I love Australia (having lived there in several rural locations for nearly three years) so this book I thought was going to be right up my street. Sadly it was not the book I wanted it to be, which is hardly Carey’s fault. It’s well written and the themes of identity in this time period in Australian history looking back on the atrocities perpetuated against the indigenous population are cleverly handled.
The race probably only covers about half the book. The introduction to the main characters of Willy and Irene took forever, just get in the bloody car already, and when they do set off huge distances are covered within the space of only a few sentences.
There are too many concidences for my liking and towards the end Irene’s story seems jettisoned in favour of the politically heavy Willie’s.
The narrators didn’t really do it for me either.

If anyone does have a really good Australian road trip book (not the Bill Bryson) they can recommend that would be great.

I think I've bored on about this before but for all fans of The Bean Trees, the sequel - Pigs In Heaven - is also good.

Piggy my favourite Sarah Moss is The Tidal Zone. I loved that book, had a severe book hangover afterwards and still think about it often.

Thanks scribbly ... will add to tbr!

I'm reminded of when I read Dune at Cote's urging. It didn't end well.

23: The Fingerprint – Patricia Wentworth – this was okay. Fine for a bath read, but little else.

Scribbly sounds like you had a very similar experience with the Peter Carey as I did. It was the coincidences that killed it dead for me too.

Yes splother! Australia is absolutely bloody massive and there’s and accidental bumping into the same dude twice who is critical to the resolution of a protagonist’s story arc?
Yeah, I don’t think so.

Huge Barabara Kingsolver fan here! I loved The Bean Trees and Pigs in Heaven. I thought Flight Behaviour was also good, although it wasn't in the same league as the other two. Sadly I found her latest novel Unsheltered a bit of a disappointment. Her non-fiction is also good.

14. Shrill: Notes From a Loud Woman – Lindy West

The blurb on the back of this book drew me in, with the promise to explode the expectation that women are expected to be small in size, presence and their impact on the world. As someone who can be quite forthright and no longer worries so much about how society expects me to be, I was intrigued.

Part biography, part extended opinion piece, this was a fast paced and entertaining read. There were large sections on the rampant misogyny and trolling the writer and other women have encountered on social media which were of less interest to me because I don’t really do social media; however I understand the importance of reclaiming this space as part of the wider struggle.

15. The Western Wind – Samantha Harvey

A literary “whodunnit” set in 15th century Somerset, unreliably narrated by the local parish priest. This was a completely random purchase as the third book in a three for two at my local bookshop, just because it looked quite interesting.

This was good in parts. I liked the way the story started at the end and worked backwards, and the use of the confessional booth to introduce characters and plot twists. It’s very atmospheric and thoughtful. But ultimately a bit underwhelming and over written in my opinion. Reminded me of The Essex Serpent which I felt similarly about. So on that logic, if you enjoyed The Essex Serpent then you would probably also like this.

And another Kingsolver fan here! I loved every word of The Poisonwood Bible, The Lacuna, Flight Behaviour and Prodigal Summer and the others are on my tbr list.

The 4 Kingsolver books I've read so far are
The Poisonwood Bible - needs no introduction,
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - non-fiction account of her family trying to be self-sufficient for a year, loved it!,
Flight Behaviour - can't say I warmed quite so much to the characters but still thought it was a very good read and then
The Bean Trees.
Over the moon there's a sequel to this - thanks for that info Terpsichore :)

I've heard considerably less love around for her latest novel but have reserved it at the library nonetheless.

15. A Life of My Own by Claire Tomalin. This was recommended upthread, and got added to my list because I enjoyed Tomalin's Jane Austen biography. It is a great read, as she has led a varied and interesting life, both personally and professionally speaking. I think the fact that she is a biographer comes through in a rather detached tone - at times this felt more like a biography than an autobiography. I also bought her Hardy biography while reading this! Recommended.

Indigosalt I’ve just this moment finished downloading The Western Wind from my library’s audiobook app. I really enjoyed The Essex Serpent so that’s good to know.
It’s another longlisted book on the Walter Scott historical fiction prize list.