Pixie

I'd love to. What do you say, Kylie?

I'm glad to hear you are enjoying it, Brida. It's in my TBR pile. But then, what isn't?

All this talk of Little, Big has made me want to read it again.

I'm finally going to do it. Once I finish and give my thoughts on The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt, I am going to plunge into The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. I read the first three books years ago, and then never finished it because Stephen King's later books have really disappointed me. I haven't liked anything I have tried since Misery came out in print. However, I do want to read this entire series. I am quite apprehensive about it, though. I fear that my hopes will be for naught and it won't end to my satisfaction. We will see.

The more people that read Little, Big and love it, the happier I will be. You're welcome, Kylie.

Kylie, while I'm alive, bookshops will survive. I just can't bring myself to use an e-reader. Years from now, I'll be the batty old woman wandering the streets with an actual book in her hands that everyone whispers about as she passes.

Definitely pick up a copy of The Children's Book when you can. It was a bit confusing at first for me as there were so many characters to get straight in my wee brain, but now that I know who is who, I am fascinated by these people. Plus, there are enchanting fairy tales within that move the story along. I am so looking forward to when you start reading Little, Big. It is my favorite. The book evoked such emotions in me it was almost a spiritual experience. Such is the power of language and prose and story when it is done well. Oh, and I will definitely post my thoughts about What Dreams May Come when I get to it. (Not sure when that will be.) I also loved the film, so I hope the book won't disappoint me.

I promised myself only two new books for every ten I read, but does it count when my sister sends me books in the mail without consulting me? She sent me these today: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden What Dreams May Come by Richard Matheson A Thread of Grace and Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell I am a little over half way through The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt and I am unexpectedly loving it! Oh, lovely, Bookjumper! That is my all time favorite book. I hope you will love it as much as I have.

Hi, vodkafan. Yes, it certainly does. You should check out Passage. It is excellent. And print will never die, at least not in my lifetime.

I have only 7 more books to go, and I can purchase 2 more!

I want to read more by her as well. I have added Blackout and All Clear to my wishlist.

Yes, I have! It's one of my favorites, probably only second to 1984 by George Orwell. Both books made frightening predictions that are still relevant today. If you are considering reading Brave New World, I would definitely recommend it.

That is a good idea, and maybe I will try it again someday. I still have the book, as I can't quite get myself to part with it, because it's a dytopian novel, and I generally love those.

Really nice review of A Clockwork Orange, Ben. I never could finish the book. While I understood the reasons behind the way it was written, the made-up language irritated me to no end. I tried to read it twice, as the the themes of the book have always interested me, but I just couldn't do it.

You're welcome, Ben. Glad you added it to your wishlist. This was my first Connie Willis book. I will have to check out more by the author. And now, must check into what others are reading.

I just finished the brilliant Passage by Connie Willis. Loved it, loved it, LOVED it! Can you tell I liked it? I will now be reading The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt.

Passage by Connie Willis Product Description from Amazon: A tunnel, a light, a door. And beyond it ... the unimaginable. Dr. Joanna Lander is a psychologist specializing in near-death experiences. She is about to get help from a new doctor with the power to give her the chance to get as close to death as anyone can. A brilliant young neurologist, Dr. Richard Wright has come up with a way to manufacture the near-death experience using a psychoactive drug. Joanna’s first NDE is as fascinating as she imagined — so astounding that she knows she must go back, if only to find out why that place is so hauntingly familiar. But each time Joanna goes under, her sense of dread begins to grow, because part of her already knows why the experience is so familiar, and why she has every reason to be afraid. Yet just when Joanna thinks she understands, she’s in for the biggest surprise of all — a shattering scenario that will keep you feverishly reading until the final climactic page. My thoughts: I loved this book! It really is a page turner, even though you can sort of see where it is going and it can sometimes be redundant. Although, I believe the redundancy adds to what the book is really about, so it really wasn't that big of an issue for me. The final chapter was a bit of a surprise for me, but it ended the way I would have wanted it to. The book is long, just short of 800 pages, but it is so engrossing, it didn't feel like a long book at all. If you find the idea of NDE's fascinating, this book poses one theory that I found very interesting and possible. The characters were not fully three-dimensional, in my opinion, but they were likable enough that I did feel for them. It was the story that really kept me hooked. Get it. Read it! That's all I have to say. My rating: 5/6 stars

I am almost halfway through Passage by Connie Willis and still loving it.

I'm a few hundred pages into Passage by Connie Willis and so far this book is excellent, excellent, excellent! Very difficult to put down.

I'm not in the mood to do a full review, so here are just a few thoughts about Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas. Just like The Three Musketeers, this was a fun adventure with lots of political intrigue, although I do believe this one was a bit darker. Don't let that drive you away, though. The humor is still there between our beloved heroes, and the book was very difficult to put down. Not quite as good as the first, but still a great read. My rating: 5/6 stars

I finished Twenty Years After by Dumas. I will post my thoughts in my thread. I'm going to start Passage by Connie Willis next.