Three recent books which tested my policy as to when to keep reading and when to quit. In all cases, I opted to quit.
The Bees by Laline Paull
Was so looking forward to this new book and excited to be one of the first on the library hold list. Man, so much good buzz (hah!) on this one and I absolutely could not get into it. Bummer but the way I look at it, it goes back to the library quicker, the next person may love it and I get to pick something else instead!
The Luxe by Anna Godbersen
I'm learning to approach young adult books with trepidation, I'm afraid. This one sounded like a fun, frothy diversion with a good premise. Sort of like The Buccaneers. But I found I just couldn't connect with the characters or situations. Next...
The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore
This is one of the biggest disappointments to me as this sounded entirely up my alley. And I've been looking forward to reading it for the longest time (pretty much since I first heard of it). Even though I gave up, I still feel a little conflicted. I found the language and turns of phrases to be so charming and funny, I wanted to keep reading just for the descriptions. But ultimately, I found the shifting point of few (first person to third person) caused me to lose track of the characters and they blurred into one blob for me. Many, many people loved this book but there were enough bad reviews that I decided to move on; didn't seem worth it.
Saturday, June 28, 2014
The Runaway Wife by Rowan Coleman
** 2 stars
Two stars might be a little generous. I really didn't like this book and I'm not sure why I didn't give up on it. There was nothing particularly wrong with it; it was just kind of "meh". I took me ages to slog through it and I found it to be quite an odd read. Apparently this author has written a ton of stuff; not sure if she's just now hitting stateside or I've missed her. She lists Marian Keyes and Jojo Moyes as two of her influences which sort of antagonizes me. They are two of my favorites and based upon this book, I'd say she is far from their class.
I found most of the characters to be pretty annoying and so quirky they weren't even authentic to me. I don't know; I found it hard to really care about what was going on. The basic premise reminded me a little of Julia's Chocolates which we read for book club not too long ago; that book was a lot better though.
Two stars might be a little generous. I really didn't like this book and I'm not sure why I didn't give up on it. There was nothing particularly wrong with it; it was just kind of "meh". I took me ages to slog through it and I found it to be quite an odd read. Apparently this author has written a ton of stuff; not sure if she's just now hitting stateside or I've missed her. She lists Marian Keyes and Jojo Moyes as two of her influences which sort of antagonizes me. They are two of my favorites and based upon this book, I'd say she is far from their class.
I found most of the characters to be pretty annoying and so quirky they weren't even authentic to me. I don't know; I found it hard to really care about what was going on. The basic premise reminded me a little of Julia's Chocolates which we read for book club not too long ago; that book was a lot better though.
The Year Everything Changed by Georgia Bockoven
*** 3 stars
I liked but didn't love this book club choice. It was very readable and I always appreciate that! I was curious how the author would "justify" a man having so many children and abandoning them. I'm not sure I was convinced; maybe I'm not supposed to be. I did enjoy the stories of the daughters and their lives and how they learned to become sisters.
This is the first book that I've read by this author. I see she has written a ton of stuff; many have been marked as to-be-read on my shelves. I'm not sure I would go out of my way to read her again but sometimes you need a good, pleasant, dependable read (airplanes, car trips, etc.). I will keep her in mind for times like that!
Totally beside the point but it bugs me so much that Goodreads has the name of this book wrong! Ugh! There's no "that" in the title. How does that happen? I would have thought the book data was an automated thing. Weird!
I liked but didn't love this book club choice. It was very readable and I always appreciate that! I was curious how the author would "justify" a man having so many children and abandoning them. I'm not sure I was convinced; maybe I'm not supposed to be. I did enjoy the stories of the daughters and their lives and how they learned to become sisters.
This is the first book that I've read by this author. I see she has written a ton of stuff; many have been marked as to-be-read on my shelves. I'm not sure I would go out of my way to read her again but sometimes you need a good, pleasant, dependable read (airplanes, car trips, etc.). I will keep her in mind for times like that!
Totally beside the point but it bugs me so much that Goodreads has the name of this book wrong! Ugh! There's no "that" in the title. How does that happen? I would have thought the book data was an automated thing. Weird!
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch
**** 4 stars
I really liked this weird, twisted and twisty book. I didn't know what to really expect but the writing style engaged me from the start. The book was a little "talky" at the start but this makes sense as the narrator dances around the edges of the main story for quite some time. We know that something has happened but we don't know what exactly or why.
It's hard to discuss a book like this without spoilers, so I won't try to recount the plot too much. I will say that if you object to anti-hero heroes, you won't like this book. The characters are all pretty horrible people. The main character, in particular, is an awful person. But I found his perspective interesting and compelling even as I found him despicable.
This was a quick read for me, too. I generally need a week or more to read a book these days, due mainly to external constraints, but I read this book in 4 days. I was always eager to pick it up again! I have not yet read The Dinner by this author but it will be moved up in my to-be-read stack.
Please note -
I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.
I really liked this weird, twisted and twisty book. I didn't know what to really expect but the writing style engaged me from the start. The book was a little "talky" at the start but this makes sense as the narrator dances around the edges of the main story for quite some time. We know that something has happened but we don't know what exactly or why.
It's hard to discuss a book like this without spoilers, so I won't try to recount the plot too much. I will say that if you object to anti-hero heroes, you won't like this book. The characters are all pretty horrible people. The main character, in particular, is an awful person. But I found his perspective interesting and compelling even as I found him despicable.
This was a quick read for me, too. I generally need a week or more to read a book these days, due mainly to external constraints, but I read this book in 4 days. I was always eager to pick it up again! I have not yet read The Dinner by this author but it will be moved up in my to-be-read stack.
Please note -
I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear
*** 3 stars
I liked this next installment of the Maisie Dobbs series. I slogged through this one a little bit but that was due more to me than the book. Just too many books on the hook right now! I'm making a big effort to read down the stack! But I did enjoy this mystery with a unique time and place. I like the characters as well and will continue to read the series.
I liked this next installment of the Maisie Dobbs series. I slogged through this one a little bit but that was due more to me than the book. Just too many books on the hook right now! I'm making a big effort to read down the stack! But I did enjoy this mystery with a unique time and place. I like the characters as well and will continue to read the series.
Surprise-Inside Cakes by Amanda Rettke
**** 4 stars
I really enjoyed this book of amazing cakes from "i am baker". I discovered her baking blog long ago and was fascinated by the things she could do. I'm not sure I would ever try to make any of these cakes; most of them look really complicated and hard to do. But I definitely enjoyed the creativity. I passed this book on to my baking daughter and she enjoyed it too!
I really enjoyed this book of amazing cakes from "i am baker". I discovered her baking blog long ago and was fascinated by the things she could do. I'm not sure I would ever try to make any of these cakes; most of them look really complicated and hard to do. But I definitely enjoyed the creativity. I passed this book on to my baking daughter and she enjoyed it too!
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
0 stars
I read almost all of this and just couldn't force myself to finish this slim little children's novel. It appears to be much loved and I actually remember all the buzz about it when it first came out because I was in my teacher training at the time.
I tend to believe that "timing is everything" and that could be the case here. I'm clearly way out of the main demographic of this book. And the central message of the book seems to have not aged well. But I can see if someone had read this at a certain point in their life how they could have a great deal of nostalgia for it. I'm sure many of my old childhood favorites would feel baffling to me if I were reading them now for the first time.
I read almost all of this and just couldn't force myself to finish this slim little children's novel. It appears to be much loved and I actually remember all the buzz about it when it first came out because I was in my teacher training at the time.
I tend to believe that "timing is everything" and that could be the case here. I'm clearly way out of the main demographic of this book. And the central message of the book seems to have not aged well. But I can see if someone had read this at a certain point in their life how they could have a great deal of nostalgia for it. I'm sure many of my old childhood favorites would feel baffling to me if I were reading them now for the first time.
Bird Box by Josh Malerman
***** 5 stars
Okay, five stars might be a bit generous, but I guess I'm feeling generous. I haven't rated any books five stars yet this year! This book was soooooo creepy! At first I could only read it in teeny little slices because I found the whole premise so scary. There might have been a couple things that were supposed to be twists that I had figured out but that doesn't bother me at all. (Actually, I'd rather not know to expect a twist, so it's probably bad that I just said that!)
Anyway, the premise of this book was very creative and the plot unfolded in reasonable ways given a crazy situation. I couldn't put it down near the end. Such a fun read!
Okay, five stars might be a bit generous, but I guess I'm feeling generous. I haven't rated any books five stars yet this year! This book was soooooo creepy! At first I could only read it in teeny little slices because I found the whole premise so scary. There might have been a couple things that were supposed to be twists that I had figured out but that doesn't bother me at all. (Actually, I'd rather not know to expect a twist, so it's probably bad that I just said that!)
Anyway, the premise of this book was very creative and the plot unfolded in reasonable ways given a crazy situation. I couldn't put it down near the end. Such a fun read!
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King
**** 4 stars
An engaging read from King; a departure from some of his usual style. This was almost a straight-up police procedural/serial killer thing. I liked how King revisited the tropes of that genre while keeping some of his signature elements. The retired, washed-up cop, the sassy girlfriend, the insane killer. But there were also surprises and King's hallmark foreshadowing and language. This was a really good read.
An engaging read from King; a departure from some of his usual style. This was almost a straight-up police procedural/serial killer thing. I liked how King revisited the tropes of that genre while keeping some of his signature elements. The retired, washed-up cop, the sassy girlfriend, the insane killer. But there were also surprises and King's hallmark foreshadowing and language. This was a really good read.
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Colorado Dawn by Kaki Warner
*** 3 stars
This is probably my least-favorite Warner novel so far. It seemed a bit of a slog to get through and it lacked some of the author's characteristic "sparkle". It was okay, but just okay. I didn't feel as engaged with these characters, although it was nice to revisit the other residents of Heartbreak Creek again. I'll certainly keep reading Warner's books, though.
This is probably my least-favorite Warner novel so far. It seemed a bit of a slog to get through and it lacked some of the author's characteristic "sparkle". It was okay, but just okay. I didn't feel as engaged with these characters, although it was nice to revisit the other residents of Heartbreak Creek again. I'll certainly keep reading Warner's books, though.
Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
**** 4 stars
I'm glad I finally got around to reading this series. I've heard such good things about it, particularly from a reliable book buddy. Very charming start and I look forward to more (there are a lot! Yippee!) I expected more of a straight mystery, so the trajectory of the narrative surprised me a little but I appreciated the back story of Maisie and how she got to this point in her life. Nice read!
I'm glad I finally got around to reading this series. I've heard such good things about it, particularly from a reliable book buddy. Very charming start and I look forward to more (there are a lot! Yippee!) I expected more of a straight mystery, so the trajectory of the narrative surprised me a little but I appreciated the back story of Maisie and how she got to this point in her life. Nice read!
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