Books You’ve Read in 2023

Discussion in 'TMB Book Club' started by The Blackfish, Jan 4, 2023.

  1. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    My man did a 300 page nonfiction book like a new Harry Potter novel
     
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  2. THEBLUERAIDER

    THEBLUERAIDER Well-Known Member
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    Going to have to read this. I grew up close to Paris, and a lot of my family lives there.
     
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  3. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    1. The Trees - Perceval Everette (7/10)
    2. Stranded - Sarah Goodman (7.5/10)
    3. American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis - Adam Hochschild (10/10)
    4. Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) - Leigh Bardugo (9/10)
    5. Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) - Leigh Bardugo (7.5/10)
    6. Age of Vice - Deepti Kapoor (8/10)
    7. In the Distance - Hernan Diaz (7.5/10)
    8. Myth America: Historians Take on The Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past - Kevin Kruse (6.5/10)
    9. Guns of the Dawn - Adrian Tchaikovsky (9/10)
    10. Everybody Knows - Jordan Harper (7.5/10)
    11. The Light Pirate - Lilly Brooks-Dalton (8/10)
    12. The Library at Mount Char - Scott Hawkins (7/10)
    13. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (9/10)
    14. The Terraformers - Annalee Newitz (6.5/10)
    15. The Last Orphan (Orphan X #8) (8/10)
    16. The Wolf (Under The Northern Sky #1) - Leo Carew (7/10)
    17. The Spider (Under The Northern Sky #2) - Leo Carew (8/10)
    18. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy - 4/10
    19. Daisy Jones and The Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid (7/10)
    20. The Cuckoo (Under the Northern Sky #3) - Leo Carew (8.5/10)


    Under the Northern Sky Trilogy - Fantasy series that's not really fantasy, more of an alternative history where Neanderthals and other human species evolved and grew into their own cultures and societies, clashing with homo-sapiens like us as we know them. There's no magic system or anything supernatural. It's in a middle ages type setting. Usually not my jam, but enjoyed this for the most part. Good political strife and battle action. There are some frustrations w character development in the first book, but as a whole it's a good enough I want to read the next book. The second book is a great empire strikes back type. The third book closes strong w a unique ending. As I said there are SOME hand waivy character developments in the first book. If you can get past that - it's a good action packed and political alternative history/fantasy series. Each book gets better. Recommend it.

    The Passenger - This just didnt hit for me. My review is in the Book Club thread.

    Daisy Jones - Read this because I wanted to watch the show. Book was just ok. Glad I read it, but nothing special. Doesnt make me want to read other works by the author (but probably will when the show comes out for them too) The Show was extremely meh. Probably not the thread for this commentary - but Ive noticed shows based on books that have the author involved in the show usually turn out pretty good. Ones that dont rarely hit. This fell in the latter category.
     
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  4. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    6. The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub (6/10)
    7. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (6.5/10)
    8. Wealth and Democracy - Kevin Phillips (8/10)
    9. Black House - Stephen King and Peter Straub (7.5/10)

    Enjoyed this much more than The Talisman less homophobia and the story drew me in more.
     
  5. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Upton^2 I started Poverty, By America an hour ago and now im kicking myself. Can easily knock this out in one sitting and I want to. But Im meeting someone for a drink soon.


    Will finish tomorrow.
     
  6. Gallant Knight

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    John Adams by David McCullough 9.5/10
    A Tale or Two Cities by Charles Dickens 7/10
    The Marquis; Lafayette Reconsidered by Laura Auricchio 8/10
    The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington 10/10
    Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir 10/10
    Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 9/10
    Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    Palace of Treason by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    The Kremlin's Candidate by Jason Matthews 9/10
    Call for the Dead by John le Carre 6.5/10
    Empire of Lies by Raymond Khoury 8.5/10
    Taking Paris by Martin Dugard 7/10
    Less by Andrew Sean Greer 3/10
    The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe 9/10
    Don't Eat the Bruises by Keith Mitnik
    The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury 8/10
    At Risk by Stella Rimington 8/10
    The Sign by Raymond Khoury 7.5/10
    Secret Asset by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Main Street by Sinclair Lewis 9/10
    City of Thieves by David Benioff 8/10
    The Measure by Nikki Erlick 6.5/10
    Illegal Action by Stella Rimington 7.5/10
    Present Danger by Stella Rimington 7.5/10
    Rip Tide by Stella Rimington 8/10
    The Templar Salvation by Raymond Khoury 8/10
    The Picture of Dorian Gray 6.5/10
    The Geneva Trap by Stella Rimington 8/10
    Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth 9.5/10
    A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles 10/10
    Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 7/10
    The Devil's Elixer by Raymond Khoury 6.5/10
    The Damnation of Theron Ware by Harold Frederic 9/10
    Close Call by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Breaking Cover by Stella Rimington 8/10
    Rules of Civility by Amor Towles 10/10
    Franny and Zooey by JD Salinger 5/10
    The Paris Wife by Paula McLain 7.5/10

    A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle 8.5/10
    The Moscow Sleepers by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 8.5/10
    Dead Line by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson 8.5/10
    George III by Christopher Hibbert 8/10
    Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev 9.5/10
    The Ghost Writer by Philip Roth 8.5/10


    A Study in Scarlet was the first Sherlock Holmes Book. It's written in two parts, and at first I thought the second part was like an editor error or something because it was a completely different story. Eventaully, the last few pages tied everything together. Really fun

    The Moscow Sleepers and Dead Line are the last two Liz Carlyle books that Rimington wrote. Have talked about her already in this thread. Sad that it's over.

    Pride and Prejudice was really good. I think in high school I probably just looked at the cliffnotes or something. I talked to my wife about it and she said it was one of her favorites. Then she said she just watched the movie. I've been reading some books that were written before cars were invented, and I think the character development in a lot of them are good because people can't really travel. Also, books written that long ago probably aren't republished unless they're good.

    Winesburg, Ohio is a series of short stories about a fictional town of about 2,000 people in Ohio in the late 1800s or early 1900s. They all kind of tell the story of different people in the town, and the editor of the towns newspaper features in most of them and that's how they're tied together. Philip Roth uses Winesburg as a setting in one of his books, so it's pretty well read among writers and critics.

    The George III biography was interesting. Hibbert has a bunch of 'popular' biographies he's written, and after reading, this, I ordered a couple more. I think his various children were probably more interesting than the King.

    Fathers and Sons is an 1850s book that introduced nihilism. It's sort of a dichotomy of youth vs old where the youth is a nihilist and sort of doesnt respect anything vs. the old people asking questions. i dunno that's not a very good explanation, but it's a fun story and a lot of the themes are still relevant today.

    The Ghost Writer is the first in the first in the Nathan Zuckerman series. in this one, Zuckerman is in his early 30s and reaches out to one of his literary heroes and stays at his house. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered the next 5 books in the series.
     
  7. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Upholding the 4 book a month pace through March!

    12. From Russia, With Love (James Bond #5) / Ian Fleming (5/10)
    11. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side Of The American Meal / Eric Schlosser (9.5/10)
    10. The Shallows: What The Internet Is Doing To Our Brains / Nicholas Carr (7.5/10)
    9. Nickel And Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America / Barbara Ehrenreich (9/10)


    8. Through The Looking Glass / Lewis Carroll (7/10)
    7. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland / Lewis Carroll (6/10)
    6. The Gene: An Intimate History / Siddhartha Mukherjee (8/10)
    5. Journey Of The Universe / Brian Thomas Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker (9/10)
    4. The Tao Of Physics / Fritjof Capra (7.5/10)
    3. The Corner: A Year In The Life Of An Inner-City Neighborhood / David Simon and Ed Burns (10/10)
    2. Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto / Chuck Klosterman (7/10)
    1. Will In The World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare / Stephen Greenblatt (8.5/10)
     
    #257 TC, Mar 31, 2023
    Last edited: Apr 2, 2023
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  8. Tangman

    Tangman Well-Known Member
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    some fine choices here
     
  9. WillySaliba

    WillySaliba Well-Known Member
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    Tell me a bit about the fast food book please.
     
  10. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    It’s a bit dated, from around 2000, and probably nothing you haven’t basically heard before. Just really well written on a bunch of aspects of the fast food industry and why it’s bad for everything. The American west is the setting for a lot of it
     
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  11. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    1- The Master – Colm Tóibín (1/10)
    2- Crime and Punishment – Dostoevsky (5/10)*
    3- Mao II – Don DeLillo (8/10)*
    4- Last Night – James Salter (8.5/10)
    5- A Piece of My Heart – Richard Ford (8.5/10)*
    6- Cosmopolis – Don DeLillo (5.5/10)*
    7- Dusk and Other Stories – James Salter (8.5/10)*
    8- The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter – Carson McCullers (10/10)*
    9- No Country for Old Men – Cormac McCarthy (10/10)*
    10- Blood Meridian – Cormac McCarthy (10/10)*
    11- Carpenter’s Gothic – William Gaddis (9.5/10)*
    12- The Rabbit Hutch – Tess Gunty (8/10)
    13- Hamnet – Maggie O’Farrell (7.5/10)
    14- Fishing the Sloe-Black River – Colum McCann (6.5/10)
    15- How to Get Filthy Rich In Rising Asia – Mohsin Hamid (6/10)
    16- A Thousand Moons – Sebastian Barry (10/10)
    17- How German Is It – Walter Abish (8/10)

    18- In Paradise – Peter Matthiessen (5.5/10)
    Published in 2014, the novel revolves around a Polish American academic in attendance at a spiritual retreat at Auschwitz. Among the participants are Germans, Jews, Muslims, etc. They all have different emotional reactions to the experience and reasons for visiting. There are poignant chapters in the first half of the book but then it transitions into a love story

    19- Foster – Claire Keegan (8.5/10)
    A novella, it won the 2009 Davy Byrne Irish Writing Award. It’s a touching story about a young Irish girl who's sent to live with relatives on a farm while her overwhelmed parents prepare for the birth of a new child. The girl blossoms during this time but a sense of uncertainty hovers over the surface

    20- Life & Times of Michael K – J.M. Coetzee (7/10)
    Winner of the 1983 Booker Prize, it’s about a South African man who attempts to take his aging mother back to her rural home during a civil war in the apartheid era. He witnesses violence in Cape Town, evades roving armies in the countryside and faces the constant threat of arrest along the way

    21- Old God’s Time – Sebastian Barry (8/10)
    Recently published, it’s a painful and powerful look into the sideways mind of a retired Dublin detective who saw horrors at war, on the streets during The Troubles and as a child in the care of the Catholic Church. Forced to revisit an old case, he confronts painful memories from his past showing the long-lasting effects of abuse and violence

    * = re-read
     
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  12. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    <3 Matthiessen
     
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  13. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Just kopped “Poverty, by America” at local indie bookstore :chan:
     
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  14. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    Really want to read Shadow Country

    Dude lived a fascinating life. Working for the CIA while co-founding The Paris Review? The non-fiction work he did and his wilderness experiences? Sheesh
     
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  15. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    Snow Leopard is one of my favorite reads ever
     
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  16. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    1. How To Do the Work by Nicole LaPera - 8/10
    2. Dead in the Water by Matthew Campbell & Kit Chellel - 8/10
    3. In the Distance by Hernan Diaz - 9/10
    4. Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King - 6.5/10
    5. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin - 9/10
    6. Call For The Dead by John Le Carré - 8/10
    7. A Murder of Quality by John Le Carré - 6/10
    8. We Don’t Know Ourselves by Finan O’Toole - 7.5/10
    9. Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey - 8.5/10
    10. The Escape Artist by Jonathan Freedland - 9/10
    11. The Guest Lecture by Martin Riker - 7/10
    12. The Measure by Nikki Erlick - 8/10
    13. SPQR by Mary Beard - 6.5/10
    14. Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber - 8/10
    15. Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond - 9.5/10

    16. How to do Nothing by Jenny Odell - 6.5/10. Saw she was coming out with a new book so wanted to go back to this one. I appreciate her point of view and agree with the takeaways but just didn’t enjoy finishing it for some reason idk

    17. The Passenger by Cormac McCarthy - 9/10. Loved it. Expanded in the book club thread
     
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  17. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    Reading all these Irish authors has me saying "togged out" to myself whenever I'm getting dressed in the morning. Seen it in like six books since last summer ha
     
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  18. Pasta88

    Pasta88 Canes, Bruins, Raps, Jays and Sunderland.
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    1. Pond by Claire-Louise Bennett - 8.5/10
    2. Fire and Blood by George R.R. Martin - 9/10
    3. Normal People by Sally Rooney - 8/10
    4. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen - 8/10
    5. Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh - 2/10
    6. Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout - 8.5/10
    7. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe - 9/10
    8. The Survival of the Princes in the Tower: Murder, Mystery and Myth by Matthew Lewis - 8.5/10

    I’m on holiday which means I only have my kindle, which means that I only read books (typically non-fiction) I buy for $0.99 from some kindle store bargain books newsletter.

    If you’re familiar with the story of the Princes in the Tower*, this book aims at disproving the popular theory that they were murdered and goes through the plausibility of various survival theories. I thought it was really well argued and has me leaning to be on the team of the author, though I will read some other authors’ perspectives before I announce a formal commitment. The only strange part is that it feels oddly personal for the author, like he would berate Henry VII in person if given the chance.
    *You’d probably want to be familiarized before reading since the book dives right into its arguments and doesn’t have much of the background story.
     
  19. Bruce Bowen

    Bruce Bowen Well-Known Member
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    Finished my first book in maybe over a decade. Hitchhikers Guide. On to #2. Hooray!
     
  20. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    1. The Trees - Perceval Everette (7/10)
    2. Stranded - Sarah Goodman (7.5/10)
    3. American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis - Adam Hochschild (10/10)
    4. Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) - Leigh Bardugo (9/10)
    5. Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) - Leigh Bardugo (7.5/10)
    6. Age of Vice - Deepti Kapoor (8/10)
    7. In the Distance - Hernan Diaz (7.5/10)
    8. Myth America: Historians Take on The Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past - Kevin Kruse (6.5/10)
    9. Guns of the Dawn - Adrian Tchaikovsky (9/10)
    10. Everybody Knows - Jordan Harper (7.5/10)
    11. The Light Pirate - Lilly Brooks-Dalton (8/10)
    12. The Library at Mount Char - Scott Hawkins (7/10)
    13. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (9/10)
    14. The Terraformers - Annalee Newitz (6.5/10)
    15. The Last Orphan (Orphan X #8) (8/10)
    16. The Wolf (Under The Northern Sky #1) - Leo Carew (7/10)
    17. The Spider (Under The Northern Sky #2) - Leo Carew (8/10)
    18. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy - 4/10
    19. Daisy Jones and The Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid (7/10)
    20. The Cuckoo (Under the Northern Sky #3) - Leo Carew (8.5/10)
    21. Poverty, by America - Matthew Desmond (9.5/10)
    22. Waco Rising: David Koresh, the FBI, and the Birth of America's Modern Militias - Kevin Cook (7.5/10)
    23. Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingslover (9/10)



    Poverty, by America - Great short read about how poverty is a set of policy decisions. The only thing that kept this from a ten is framing of certain things. It only happened a few times, but it didnt sit well with me. The rest of the book is well stated and objective rebuttals to all the terrible excuses and justifications for the unacceptable level of poverty we have in this country.

    Waco Rising - I think I'd like this book much more if I hadn't just watched the Netflix Doc on Waco. About 85% of the book is the same stuff as the documentary. The book goes a little more into the history of the Branch Davidians, and a little more of the aftermath. But there wasnt really too deep of an investigation into how it sparked the rise in militias. That was the aspect I was most interested in when I saw the title of the book. It kind of just took it for granted as a 'no duh' type thing. Also there was a few times where the author was a little too charitable to the BR's that rubbed me the wrong way, but also maybe it's just punching the confirmation bias about everything I knew. Good book. I recommend it. Probably would have been in the 8 range if I hadnt just watched that doc.

    Demon Copperhead - Loved it. More thoughts in the Book Club Thread
     
  21. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    I will prob read the Waco book and skip the doc. Truman idk how you keep up with tv and shows so well at the same time
     
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  22. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    I was gonna wait to watch the doc until after I read it. But it was just staring at me one night I ripped through it.

    We dont watch that much tv tbh.
     
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  23. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    You are a beast of the printed and recorded word, just admit that
     
  24. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    recorded as in podcasts - guilty!
     
  25. lomcevak

    lomcevak The suck zone
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    1. Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez (8/10)
    2. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9.5/10)
    3. Myth America: Historians Take on The Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past - edited by Kevin Kruse and Julian Zelizer (7/10)
    4. Tinkers by Paul Harding (8.5/10)
    5. Empire of Shadows: The Epic Story of Yellowstone by George Black (8.5/10)
    6. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (9/10) - Started a bit slow, but I generally enjoyed it. I was never into fantasy stuff growing up, but a friend dragged me to see the first movie and I was hooked. I very much enjoy the movies and have no doubts I'll like the books better.
     
  26. Trip McNeely

    Trip McNeely Guys like us....we are a dime a dozen
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    1. A Darker Domain (Karen Pirie #2) - Val McDermid (6/10)
    2. An Immense World - Ed Yong (9/10)
    3. How to Do the Work - Nicole LePera (8/10)
    4. The Investigator (Letty Davenport #1) - John Sandford (7/10)
    5. Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby Van Pelt (8/10)
    6. A Heart That Works - Rob Delaney (9/10)
    7. One Summer: America, 1927 - Bill Bryson (9/10)
    8. The Hive - Gregg Olsen (4/10)
    9. The Crossing (DI Louise Blackwell #1) - Matt Brolly (6/10)
    10. Hide (Detective Harriet Foster #1) - Tracy Clark (7/10)
    11. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland - Patrick Radden Keefe (9/10)
    12. Exhalation: Stories - Ted Chiang (8/10)
    13. Invisible Storm: A Soldier's Memoir of Politics and PTSD - Jason Kander (7/10)
    14. The Wars of the Roses: The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors - Dan Jones (8/10)
    15. The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself - Michael A. Singer (9/10)
    16. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon - David Grann (7/10)
    17. The Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead (9/10)
    18. Shadows Reel (Joe Pickett #22) - C.J. Box (7/10)

    19. The Maidens - Alex Michaelides (7/10)
    Murder mystery at Oxford surrounding an American professor of classics and his cult-like following on campus. This had all of the ingredients to be a favorite of mine but it managed to miss the mark a bit. I read Michaelides' previous book (The Silent Patient) which included a huge twist, so I was expecting one the whole time I read this book. Unfortunately it affected my enjoyment of the ride.

    20. Essex Dogs - Dan Jones (8/10)
    I believe this is the author's first fiction offering. It follows a group of mercenaries during the early stages of the Hundred Years War. The Essex Dogs are in the vanguard of the English forces, so they witness or play a part in some major historical happenings. It took me a while to get immersed in the 14th century, but I ended up really liking it.

    21. Storm Watch (Joe Pickett #23) - C.J. Box (6/10)
    This series is losing quite a bit of steam in my opinion, but I'm pot committed so I'm going to keep reading.

    22. Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages - Dan Jones (9/10)
    Dan Jones is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. This book is large and sprawling, covering over 1,000 years across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. I loved it and it's one I will probably return to more than once.

    23. The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World - Dalai Lama XIV and Desmond Tutu with Douglas Abrams (9/10)
    I really loved this one. It's essentially a conversation between Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu documented by Douglas Abrams. Two remarkable men (current Dalai Lama controversy notwithstanding) on finding joy and happiness in a world full of grief and suffering.

    24. The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida - Shehan Kaunatilaka (9/10)
    Winner of the 2022 Booker Prize. This one is wild, brutal and wonderful. The narrator, Maali Almeida, "wakes" up dead in war-torn Colombo, Sri Lanka in 1990. He finds himself in the In Between, filled with ghosts, ghouls, and demons. He has seven moons to make it to The Light. Maali was a photographer (amongst other salacious traits) who was in possession of explosive photographs that could alter the course of the civil war and Sri Lanka, and he desperately tries to communicate with his friends from the In Between in order to bring the photos to light. Highly recommend.

    "Evil is not what we should fear. Creatures with power acting in their own interest: that is what should make us shudder."

    "History is people with ships and weapons wiping out those who forgot to invent them. Every civilization begins with a genocide. It is the rule of the universe. The immutable law of the jungle, even this one made of concrete. You can see it in the movement of the stars, and in the dance of every atom. The rich will enslave the penniless. The strong will crush the weak."
     
  27. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    I love Dan Jones but was apprehensive about Essex Dogs. Almost every time a good Non fic writer tries their hand in fiction, I come away disappointed. Your review gives me optimism. Although Ive waited this long to read it - I think I may just wait a little longer until it's closer to the next book's publication date. Some time in the Fall, I think.
     
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  28. Trip McNeely

    Trip McNeely Guys like us....we are a dime a dozen
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    I ended up liking it but I was unconvinced for probably the first half of the book. I don’t know if it was the dialogue or his prose but something was kind of off for me for awhile. Once I bought in though I thought it was fun.
     
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  29. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Not sure what this is from but feel compelled to add:

    Sure, conflict is endemic to nature. But so is cooperation. None of us/this is here without things working together as well as competing. There’s yin and yang; hopefully nobody buys into a full on “life=struggle and that’s all there is to it” philosophy
     
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  30. Trip McNeely

    Trip McNeely Guys like us....we are a dime a dozen
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    It’s from The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida. I don’t disagree with you, but some context is probably appropriate. The narrator is a deeply flawed individual in a former British colony which is wracked with racial and ethnic violence and brutality. He knows for a fact that the spies, arms dealers, government, and military have no real interest in stopping the violence. He was living in a hell created by the people in power.
     
    #280 Trip McNeely, Apr 11, 2023
    Last edited: Apr 11, 2023
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  31. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    Need to KOP that Booker Prize winner
     
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  32. Trip McNeely

    Trip McNeely Guys like us....we are a dime a dozen
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    Truman - FYI just realized Dan Jones has a podcast called This is History if you weren’t aware. Haven’t listened but it’s now on my list.
     
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  33. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    I’ve been listening. It’s quick episodes on the Plantagenets
     
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  34. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    Walked over to downtown and took advantage of a great sale at the dispensary and got a copy of the 2022 Booker Prize winner

    :smug:

    PXL_20230412_022829789.jpg
     
  35. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    1. Inhibitor Phase (Revelation Space #5) - Alastair Reynolds (7.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8.5/10)
    3. The Alloy of Law (Mistborn Era 2, #1) - Brandon Sanderson (9.5/10) (reread)
    4. Shadows of Self (Mistborn Era 2, #2) - Brandon Sanderson (9.5/10) (reread)
    5. The Bands of Mourning (Mistborn Era 2, #3) - Brandon Sanderson (8/10) (reread)
    6. The Lost Metal (Mistborn Era 2, #4) - Brandon Sanderson (9.5/10)
    7. Starfish (Rifters, #1) - Peter Watts (6/10)
     
  36. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
    Staff Donor TMB OG
    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    6. The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub (6/10)
    7. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (6.5/10)
    8. Wealth and Democracy - Kevin Phillips (8/10)
    9. Black House - Stephen King and Peter Straub (7.5/10)
    10. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy (9/10)

    Loved it. More thoughts in the book club thread.

    11. A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman (7/10)

    Really quick enjoyable read. Sad but feel good. Without spoiling too much I just felt like everything worked out really easily and everyone who he came in contact with was exactly who he needed to come into contact with at the time.

    12. The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving
    Medieval England - Brandon Sanderson (6.5/10)

    Very quick read - enjoyed it but there were plenty of conversations and occurrences that just made no sense to me. I had fun reading it but its definitely not one of Sanderson's stronger works. This is his 2nd "Mystery Project" where he wrote 4 unplanned novels during his Covid quarantine.
     
  37. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    6. The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub (6/10)
    7. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (6.5/10)
    8. Wealth and Democracy - Kevin Phillips (8/10)
    9. Black House - Stephen King and Peter Straub (7.5/10)
    10. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy (9/10)
    11. A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman (7/10)
    12. The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England - Brandon Sanderson (6.5/10)
    13. Cycle of the Werewolf - Stephen King (7.5/10)

    I think he calls this a novel but its really more of a short novella / long short story. Understanding that I really enjoyed it. Quick fun read told through multiple narrators who encounter the werewolf over the course of a year.
     
  38. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    6. The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub (6/10)
    7. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (6.5/10)
    8. Wealth and Democracy - Kevin Phillips (8/10)
    9. Black House - Stephen King and Peter Straub (7.5/10)
    10. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy (9/10)
    11. A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman (7/10)
    12. The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England - Brandon Sanderson (6.5/10)
    13. Cycle of the Werewolf - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    14. Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingsolver (6.7/10)

    Thoughts in the book club thread but for those who don't read that, I liked it but David Copperfield is one of my favorites so I had trouble getting that out of my head.
     
  39. Cornelius Suttree

    Cornelius Suttree the smallest crumb can devour us
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    1- The Master – Colm Tóibín (1/10)
    2- Crime and Punishment – Dostoevsky (5/10)*
    3- Mao II – Don DeLillo (8/10)*
    4- Last Night – James Salter (8.5/10)
    5- A Piece of My Heart – Richard Ford (8.5/10)*
    6- Cosmopolis – Don DeLillo (5.5/10)*
    7- Dusk and Other Stories – James Salter (8.5/10)*
    8- The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter – Carson McCullers (10/10)*
    9- No Country for Old Men – Cormac McCarthy (10/10)*
    10- Blood Meridian – Cormac McCarthy (10/10)*
    11- Carpenter’s Gothic – William Gaddis (9.5/10)*
    12- The Rabbit Hutch – Tess Gunty (8/10)
    13- Hamnet – Maggie O’Farrell (7.5/10)
    14- Fishing the Sloe-Black River – Colum McCann (6.5/10)
    15- How to Get Filthy Rich In Rising Asia – Mohsin Hamid (6/10)
    16- A Thousand Moons – Sebastian Barry (10/10)
    17- How German Is It – Walter Abish (8/10)
    18- In Paradise – Peter Matthiessen (5.5/10)
    19- Foster – Claire Keegan (8.5/10)
    20- Life & Times of Michael K – J.M. Coetzee (7/10)
    21- Old God’s Time – Sebastian Barry (8/10)

    22- TransAtlantic – Colum McCann (6/10)
    Longlisted for the 2013 Booker Prize, it’s an ambitious novel focusing initially on the first non-stop transatlantic flight, Frederick Douglass’ visit to Ireland, and George Mitchell’s efforts to broker the Good Friday Agreement. McCann then connects these events while looking into the lives of several fictional women spanning four generations

    23- Union Atlantic – Adam Haslett (5/10)
    Published in 2010, it’s set mostly in Boston in the wake of 9/11 and revolves around a dispute between a young banker and a retired schoolteacher. It’s a commentary on an American political and business culture that led to the invasion of Iraq and Great Recession

    24- Timbuktu – Paul Auster (0/10)
    I’m out on Auster. Published in 1999, it’s told from the perspective of a dog who belongs to a dying homeless man in search of a new home for his companion. The NYTimes called it emotionally accessible but it reads like someone tried to tackle life on the streets through the lens of a children’s book. I needed a palate cleanser after this

    25- Child of God – Cormac McCarthy (10/10)*
    McCarthy’s third novel, it’s his quickest read and a classic of the southern gothic genre

    26- The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida – Shehan Karunatilaka (9/10)
    Winner of the 2022 Booker Prize, it’s a supernatural murder-mystery with political and social commentary woven around a LGBT love story. It manages the rare feat of reading like a thriller while exhibiting the excellent prose and sentence construction of fine literature. Bonus points for a Cormac McCarthy quote introducing one chapter and working the University of San Francisco into the story <3

    * = re-read
     
  40. GrizzliesDrew

    GrizzliesDrew Fuck Freeze
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    Just finished this. Very funny, scary and gory as hell.

    IMG_5636.jpeg
     
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  41. Pasta88

    Pasta88 Canes, Bruins, Raps, Jays and Sunderland.
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    1. Pond by Claire-Louise Bennett - 8.5/10
    2. Fire and Blood by George R.R. Martin - 9/10
    3. Normal People by Sally Rooney - 8/10
    4. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen - 8/10
    5. Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh - 2/10
    6. Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout - 8.5/10
    7. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe - 9/10
    8. The Survival of the Princes in the Tower: Murder, Mystery and Myth by Matthew Lewis - 8.5/10
    9. How to Survive in Ancient Rome by LJ Trafford - 7/10
    10. How to Survive in Ancient Greece by Robert Garland - 7/10

    Still stuck with only my Kindle so I knocked out these two quick reads. Learned a lot but maybe reading them back-to-back wasn’t the best idea, as now it’s hard to remember which random fact was about which civilization.
     
  42. hudson

    hudson Oh, you know...stuff.
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    I've been behind this year and didn't finish strong last year. signed up for good reads though. The "friend" that talked me into downloading good reads was reading the hunger game series so I ended up doing it as well, It was interesting to compare the books to the movie but meh.


    1. Hidden War - John Nores - 7/10
    (How Special operations game wardens are reclaiming America's Wildlands from the drug cartels)
    2. The hunger Games - Suzanne Collins - 5/10
    3. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins - 5/10
    4. Mocking Jay - Suzanne Collins - 5/10
    5. Can't Hurt Me - David Goggins - 10/10
    (master your mind and Defy the Odds)
    6. My life in and out of the rough - John Daly - 6.5/10 - I'd say most of the stories I'd already heard before.
     
  43. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    15. Heart Of Darkness / Joseph Conrad (6/10)
    You too can say you read one of Modern Library's 100 greatest novels if you can make it through 75 pages.

    14. Poverty, By America / Matthew Desmond (10/10)
    It's great, it's depressing, I need a support group now.

    13. The Beach: The History Of Paradise On Earth / Lena Lencek and Gideon Bosker (8/10)
    Interesting read before going on vacation next month.
    12. From Russia, With Love (James Bond #5) / Ian Fleming (5/10)
    11. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side Of The American Meal / Eric Schlosser (9.5/10)
    10. The Shallows: What The Internet Is Doing To Our Brains / Nicholas Carr (7.5/10)
    9. Nickel And Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America / Barbara Ehrenreich (9/10)
    8. Through The Looking Glass / Lewis Carroll (7/10)
    7. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland / Lewis Carroll (6/10)
    6. The Gene: An Intimate History / Siddhartha Mukherjee (8/10)
    5. Journey Of The Universe / Brian Thomas Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker (9/10)
    4. The Tao Of Physics / Fritjof Capra (7.5/10)
    3. The Corner: A Year In The Life Of An Inner-City Neighborhood / David Simon and Ed Burns (10/10)
    2. Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto / Chuck Klosterman (7/10)
    1. Will In The World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare / Stephen Greenblatt (8.5/10)
     
  44. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
    Staff Donor TMB OG
    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    6. The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub (6/10)
    7. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (6.5/10)
    8. Wealth and Democracy - Kevin Phillips (8/10)
    9. Black House - Stephen King and Peter Straub (7.5/10)
    10. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy (9/10)
    11. A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman (7/10)
    12. The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England - Brandon Sanderson (6.5/10)
    13. Cycle of the Werewolf - Stephen King (7.5/10)
    14. Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingsolver (6.7/10)
    15. Thinner - Stephen King (8/10)

    Probably my favorite of the Bachman books. Enjoyed all of it

    16. Us Against You (Beartown #2) - Fredrik Backman (6.5/10)

    I enjoyed this less than the first book, but still flew through it. Felt like a lot of the same. Backman is a little too heavy handed with the "foreshadowing" it kinda gets old. Starting the 3rd book immediately though.
     
  45. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    1. The Trees - Perceval Everette (7/10)
    2. Stranded - Sarah Goodman (7.5/10)
    3. American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis - Adam Hochschild (10/10)
    4. Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) - Leigh Bardugo (9/10)
    5. Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) - Leigh Bardugo (7.5/10)
    6. Age of Vice - Deepti Kapoor (8/10)
    7. In the Distance - Hernan Diaz (7.5/10)
    8. Myth America: Historians Take on The Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past - Kevin Kruse (6.5/10)
    9. Guns of the Dawn - Adrian Tchaikovsky (9/10)
    10. Everybody Knows - Jordan Harper (7.5/10)
    11. The Light Pirate - Lilly Brooks-Dalton (8/10)
    12. The Library at Mount Char - Scott Hawkins (7/10)
    13. The Measure - Nikki Erlick (9/10)
    14. The Terraformers - Annalee Newitz (6.5/10)
    15. The Last Orphan (Orphan X #8) (8/10)
    16. The Wolf (Under The Northern Sky #1) - Leo Carew (7/10)
    17. The Spider (Under The Northern Sky #2) - Leo Carew (8/10)
    18. The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy - 4/10
    19. Daisy Jones and The Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid (7/10)
    20. The Cuckoo (Under the Northern Sky #3) - Leo Carew (8.5/10)
    21. Poverty, by America - Matthew Desmond (9.5/10)
    22. Waco Rising: David Koresh, the FBI, and the Birth of America's Modern Militias - Kevin Cook (7.5/10)
    23. Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingslover (9/10)
    24. Star Wars: The High Republic: Cataclysm - Lydia Kang (9/10)
    25. Star Wars: The High Republic: Quest for Planet X - Tessa Gratton (6.5/10)
    26. Fear Itself: The New Deal and the Origins of Our Time - Ira Katznelson (8/10)
    27. Antimatter Blues (Mickey 7 #2) - Edward Ashton (7.5/10)


    Star Wars Books - The High Republic series has been really good. Looking forward to the next ones :comicbookguy:

    Fear Itself - Shouts to Tangman who first reviewed this book. I enjoyed it, learned a lot. If I had any complaints - the first 25% of the book is all preamble. Wish it got to the goods sooner.

    Antimatter Blues - Didnt like this as much as the first book, but still good. I compared the first book to an Andy Weir Lite Novel . Science heavy, funny/sarcastic main character who is a science guy. This is a little more unrealistic sci-fi than real world sci-fi that Wier is based in. Still - if you have an Andy Weir itch - these books may scratch some of it
     
  46. Gallant Knight

    Donor
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    At 60 for the year

    gping to post a bunch of summaries and ratings tomorrow

    have gotten really into early 20ty century fiction
     
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  47. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    These better be quality summaries if you’re gonna make a teaser post for them!
     
  48. Gallant Knight

    Donor
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    There are a few 9+
     
  49. Gallant Knight

    Donor
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    John Adams by David McCullough 9.5/10
    A Tale or Two Cities by Charles Dickens 7/10
    The Marquis; Lafayette Reconsidered by Laura Auricchio 8/10
    The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington 10/10
    Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir 10/10
    Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 9/10
    Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    Palace of Treason by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    The Kremlin's Candidate by Jason Matthews 9/10
    Call for the Dead by John le Carre 6.5/10
    Empire of Lies by Raymond Khoury 8.5/10
    Taking Paris by Martin Dugard 7/10
    Less by Andrew Sean Greer 3/10
    The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe 9/10
    Don't Eat the Bruises by Keith Mitnik
    The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury 8/10
    At Risk by Stella Rimington 8/10
    The Sign by Raymond Khoury 7.5/10
    Secret Asset by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Main Street by Sinclair Lewis 9/10
    City of Thieves by David Benioff 8/10
    The Measure by Nikki Erlick 6.5/10
    Illegal Action by Stella Rimington 7.5/10
    Present Danger by Stella Rimington 7.5/10
    Rip Tide by Stella Rimington 8/10
    The Templar Salvation by Raymond Khoury 8/10
    The Picture of Dorian Gray 6.5/10
    The Geneva Trap by Stella Rimington 8/10
    Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth 9.5/10
    A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles 10/10
    Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 7/10
    The Devil's Elixer by Raymond Khoury 6.5/10
    The Damnation of Theron Ware by Harold Frederic 9/10
    Close Call by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Breaking Cover by Stella Rimington 8/10
    Rules of Civility by Amor Towles 10/10
    Franny and Zooey by JD Salinger 5/10
    The Paris Wife by Paula McLain 7.5/10
    A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle 8.5/10
    The Moscow Sleepers by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 8.5/10
    Dead Line by Stella Rimington 7/10
    Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson 8.5/10
    George III by Christopher Hibbert 8/10
    Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev 9.5/10
    The Ghost Writer by Philip Roth 8.5/10

    Zuckerman Unbound by Philip Roth 8/10
    The Expats by Chris Pavone 7/10
    The Late George Apley by John Marquand 9.5/10
    Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara 7.5/10
    The Anatomy Lesson by Philip Roth 6/10
    The Paris Diversion by Chris Pavone 7/10
    The Prague Orgy by Philip Roth 8.5/10
    Your Turn, Mr. Moto by John Marquand 8/10
    First Love by Ivan Turgenev 8/10
    Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson 9/10
    H.M. Pulham, Esquire by John Marquand 9.5/10
    Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson 6.5/10
    Gorsky Park by Martin Cruz Smith 7.5/10
    Thank you, Mr. Moto by John Marquand 7.5/10

    Zuckerman Unbound, The Anatomy Lesson, The Prague Orgy are the next few books in the Zuckerman series. The Anatomy Lesson was not good. I read some reviews of it after, and it's pretty much regarded as one of the worst books he's ever written. I'm glad that I continued, because the Prague Orgy was hilarious. Zuckerman goes to Prague to try to retrieve some manuscripts written by a Czech immigrant friend of his, and ends up, as you might guess, at an orgy in Prague. Stuff sort of unravels from there, but it's legitimately hilarious. Roth is awesome.

    The Expats and The Paris Diversion feature the same characaters. Pretty standard financial thriller with a few twists and turns that were surprising. Pavone was a ghost writer for like twenty years, and The Expats was his first solo novel. It won a bunch of first novel awards. If you're looking for a good/easy thriller, I definitely recommend it.

    The Late George Apley won the Pulitzer in 1927, and it's easy to see why. The format of most of the books are letters sent to and from Apley. It's a good look into old money east coast/Harvard/Boston of the mid to late 1800s and early 1900s. It was awesome. I bought copies and sent it to a few friends who like to read, and they all loved it as well. HM Pulham, Esquire features a lot of the same themes as Geoge Apley, but different characters and is set a little bit in the future. Old money/Harvard but also deals with how WW1 affected peoples professional and personal lives, and deals with expectations placed on people by old money families. Really interesting look into how the world was 100 years ago.

    Appointment in Samarra deals with the self-destruction of its main character in a smallish town in a fictional Pennsylvania town. It was blacklisted when it was published in the 20s because of its sexual content, but no one would bat an eye at it today. Revolves around relationships at a country club and with a mob boss's mistress. Really interesting.

    The Mr. Moto books are also written by Marquand. They were serialized in magazines in the 1920s-1930s and they're crime novels set in China and Japan mostly. Each book is different other than Mr. Moto, who works for Japanese intelligence, is featured in all of them. They're good, and a good weekend read that can be done in a few hours

    First Love is, as you might guess, a story about the main characters first love. Written in the 1850s, it's set in rural Russia and concerns a teenager falling in love with a down on her luck princess who has been forced to resettle in the countryside with her grandmother. Turgenev is awesome. I'm surprised he isn't as well read as the other Russian writers from that period. I've ordered his entire catalog.

    Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day was great. Set in London in the 30s, it's about a governess who goes to interview for a job and gets swept up with actresses in London and that group. It's great.

    Miss Buncle's Book is an interesting premise, but it could be better. A woman writers a novel and it's based on everyone in her small town. It's a hit, the people in the town recognize themselves, and they spend the book trying to figure out who wrote it.

    Gorsky Park is a standard Russian thriller. It had amazing reviews from like every major newspaper, but i thought it was just fine.

    Of the ones I've read over the last month, I would recommend The Late George Apley, HM Pulham Esqurie and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. They're all excellent.
     
  50. WillySaliba

    WillySaliba Well-Known Member
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    Vacation hit and because of what my wife had read I passed along All the Light We Cannot See and picked up……

    The Library at Mount Char, Hawkins, S. 10/10
    Id be hard pressed to name a book I enjoyed more than that. So weird, so good.

    Going to finish up Cormac next and get on the May book train.