Your Book Activity - April 2015

[Anna Begins]

I had a review copy of this, and gave up about half way through, pretty much because I wasn't getting on with the characters at all. 

Maybe I should be picking a different book to take with me...

[Nollaig]

Maybe I should be picking a different book to take with me...

 

I loved it!!! Apart from the ending being a bit dodgy, I loved every page of it

[Michelle]

Maybe I should be picking a different book to take with me...

Most people seemed to have really liked it, so don't take too much notice of me! lol

 

I loved it!!! Apart from the ending being a bit dodgy, I loved every page of it

We disagree on a book?! lol

[Anna Begins]

I loved it!!! Apart from the ending being a bit dodgy, I loved every page of it

 

Most people seemed to have really liked it, so don't take too much notice of me! lol

Ok I will try and read it with an open mind  And I have a warning for the end  

[Nollaig]

We disagree on a book?! lol

 

Unheard of! I'll happily admit it's not a flawless read at all, I just loved it. I also loved Twilight, once upon a time. Nobody should ever trust my judgement

[frankie]

Hurrah - I'm pleased to hear this! 

 

Do you read this, frankie? 

 

Yes, and I don't get it. I mean I'm jealous! I've tried starting the book three times and could never get past the first two pages I wish I could get into it!! 

[Janet]

Yes, and I don't get it. I mean I'm jealous! I've tried starting the book three times and could never get past the first two pages I wish I could get into it!! 

Awww, I'm sorry.    We can't all like the same things though - wouldn't life be boring otherwise.   

[frankie]

Awww, I'm sorry.    We can't all like the same things though - wouldn't life be boring otherwise.   

 

That's true. But I still haven't given up on the novel. I guess I'm waiting for the right time and mood, and hoping it will come some day  

[bobblybear]

Awww I'm sorry to hear that. The ending was a bit off-putting for a lot of people. Hope you enjoy your next read more.

 

Thanks, Noll.

 

That's really too bad, since I planned on taking it with me on vacation.

 

You may enjoy it more than I did, though. I seem to be in the minority, if you look at all the 5 star reviews on Amazon.

 

I had a review copy of this, and gave up about half way through, pretty much because I wasn't getting on with the characters at all. 

 

Yeah, I think it's probably around the halfway mark that I started to get annoyed. If you didn't like them by that point, then you probably really wouldn't have liked them at the end.

[Athena]

I've started to read Peter F. Hamilton - The Void Trilogy 1: The Dreaming Void, which takes place ~1200 years after The Commonwealth Saga which I read last year. So far it's enjoyable, but I haven't read that much in it yet. I plan to read some more later today.

 

I'm also reading a couple of Dutch (both original Dutch and translated) information / self-help type books, in shorter bursts, because I felt in the mood to do that. I hardly ever read more than one book at a time because I find it very confusing, but yesterday evening I just felt like doing so. I'll see how it goes, if I can keep it up or whether it will be too confusing.

[Anna Begins]

You may enjoy it more than I did, though. I seem to be in the minority, if you look at all the 5 star reviews on Amazon.

Oh I never look at the reviews before reading  While it is firmly on there, I have give myself permission to change the list at any moment  Now I think I might take a few short stories as well.  I'm only up to 5 books  My mom says "You're only going for 9 days" I'm like  ya AND??

 

 

I've started to read Peter F. Hamilton - The Void Trilogy 1: The Dreaming Void, which takes place ~1200 years after The Commonwealth Saga which I read last year. So far it's enjoyable, but I haven't read that much in it yet. I plan to read some more later today.

This sounds epic!

 

I am going to continue with the  Contamination books 0-3 today, a nice apocalyptic read.  I am still not feeling up to anything more complicated.

[chesilbeach]

Halfway through The Gallery of Vanished Husbands, and hoping to read some more of it this evening.

[Athena]

This sounds epic!

 

I am going to continue with the  Contamination books 0-3 today, a nice apocalyptic read.  I am still not feeling up to anything more complicated.

It is . Though I was mistaken, it is 1500 years after, according to the book itself . I've read a bit more in it yesterday and am enjoying it so far. My only complaint is that so far all the viewpoints / main characters are male. I look forward to see where the story goes and how it all ties in together. I'm not that far in it yet compared with the whole book (since it is long). I'm enjoying it though. There are some references to events from the Commonwealth Saga and that is really nice.

 

I also started these books two days ago:

 

Barbara Ann Kipfer - 1001 Manieren om te Genieten van het Leven: Vind / Ervaar de Kracht van het Moment (1001 Ways to Live in the Moment) (so far some of it is a bit too 'spiritual' for me)

Jenny Hare - Het 1000 Vragenboekje over Liefde (Ask the 1000 Most Asked Questions About Love) (nice but some of the questions and answers are a bit obvious, others are nice)

Richard Carlson and Kris Carlson - Maak van een Mug Geen Olifant in de Liefde: 100 Nuttige Tips om Hartzeer te Voorkomen (Don't Sweat the Small Stuff in Love) (the Dutch translation uses very formal language, it feels a bit off. I'm sure this is less the case in the original as English doesn't make a distinction between 'you' and 'you (formal)', in Dutch 'je' and 'u' (the latter is used).)

Reader's Digest - Doe Meer met Minder: Praktische Gids Met Geldbesparende Ideeën[/b] (Belgian version, 2009) (based on How to Pay Less for Just About Anything) (this is okay but and because it's the Belgian version not all of the tips apply here in the Netherlands, and some information is out of date because the book is from 2009 (I mean, prices have gone up, and Netscape browser, no one uses that these days, do they??)

 

But I found yesterday that it was hard to concentrate on so many different things and I mostly just wanted to read The Dreaming Void so I did that instead. I might continue to read bits from these books from time to time though, depending on how I feel. I find it much easier to just focus on one book usually, it's hard for me to read multiple books at once. That said, these books are nicer to read bits of now and then than to read them back to back like a full length novel.

 

I hope you enjoy those books, Anna !

[frankie]

I'm still plowing through A Spot of Bother. I'm enjoying it but it feels like I'll never finish! My mind's too distracted sometimes. 

[Kylie]

I thought that might happen!

 

I was the same way when I read it  I believe I read it in a day or two. Such a gripping story

 

Yes .. well .. it was to be expected So glad you're enjoying it Kylie .. brilliant, brilliant story.

 

Hurrah - I'm pleased to hear this! 

 

Thanks everyone. And thanks for warning me that I'd get addicted! I stayed up until the wee hours of this morning reading Rebecca. I have around 100 pages to go. I've never wanted to be able to read faster so badly before. I'm desperate to know what happens! I finally got to the twist last night. I knew there'd be a big twist at some point, so I was wracking my brain the whole time trying to predict it...but I still didn't see it coming! I must admit that I flicked ahead to find it, but it was just a couple of pages away, so I really didn't ruin anything for myself. (And it took every ounce of willpower not to read ahead before I did!)

 

I've tried starting the book three times and could never get past the first two pages I wish I could get into it!! 

 

I didn't realise you had tried to read it before!

 

I can understand why you might be bored by the first couple of pages, because they basically describe the trees and plants lining a driveway (although I personally didn't mind it; I thought it set the scene quite nicely). I do hope you'll try it again one day because I think you'll really like it once you get past those pages (after all, all of your trusted friends seem to love it!). But I understand about you needing to be in the right mood for it. Forcing it might just backfire and make you dislike it again, and that would be awful (for both of us ). If it helps, I know you enjoyed Jane Eyre, and I think that's a really good indication that you'll like Rebecca. It looks like the two novels are often compared, and even before I knew that, I was noting similarities between the two while reading.

[Virginia]

I'm going crazy. I have at least 3 books that I want to read and I can't style on one so I'm thinking I may have to do all three at the same time. The Group by Mary McCarthy, The Book Of Negros by Lawrence Hill and Firefly Summer by Maeve Binchy. I've come to realize that having do many reading options have become overwhelming.

[chesilbeach]

I've made good progress on The Gallery of Vanished Husbands and will hopefully finish it this evening or tomorrow during my lunch break.  Think I'll go for another pick from the book jar next.

[frankie]

I didn't realise you had tried to read it before!

 

I can understand why you might be bored by the first couple of pages, because they basically describe the trees and plants lining a driveway (although I personally didn't mind it; I thought it set the scene quite nicely). I do hope you'll try it again one day because I think you'll really like it once you get past those pages (after all, all of your trusted friends seem to love it!). But I understand about you needing to be in the right mood for it. Forcing it might just backfire and make you dislike it again, and that would be awful (for both of us ). If it helps, I know you enjoyed Jane Eyre, and I think that's a really good indication that you'll like Rebecca. It looks like the two novels are often compared, and even before I knew that, I was noting similarities between the two while reading.

 

I don't know if I was bored, I was more confused for some reason. I will give it another try, don't worry  

 

I finally finished A Spot of Bother, hurrah! Onto a new book  

[Athena]

It is . Though I was mistaken, it is 1500 years after, according to the book itself . I've read a bit more in it yesterday and am enjoying it so far. My only complaint is that so far all the viewpoints / main characters are male.

I've made a bit of progress in The Dreaming Void yesterday and two female characters have now also been introduced, so I liked that. I look forward to read more in it, hopefully later today at least.

[frankie]

I can't decide what to read next!! I was sure I'd want to read My Madder Fatter Diary right after I'd finished my current read, but now I got Look Who's Back from the library, today, and another novel which sounded really intriguing. Too many choices  

[chaliepud]

I finished The Moon Field in the garden this afternoon, a wonderful read, very moving though.

 

Youngest son has picked The Giver out of the Book Box. Looking forward to it after hearing so many good things about it on here!

[chesilbeach]

I finished The Gallery of Vanished Husbands today, and am about to go and pick my next book out of the jar … I hope it's feeling generous towards me!

[bobblybear]

Youngest son has picked The Giver out of the Book Box. Looking forward to it after hearing so many good things about it on here!

 

I really enjoyed The Giver. I was surprised by how short it was (I think I finished it in a few hours), but there is a lot of through-provoking material in there.

 

I finished A 1960's Childhood which was ok. I suppose I would have enjoyed it more had I actually been around in the 1960's.   The book jar has chosen What's Wrong With Eating People? by Peter Cave for my next read. I attempted this one a few months ago, but didn't get far, purely because it's not 'light and fluffy' reading. It's a basic philosophy book, with each chapter giving you something to philosophise over.  It's probably more suited to reading chapters as and when the mood strikes. I shall carry on with it though, and if I need something lighter in between I shall consult my book jar.

[Alexi]

I've just polished off The Rosie Effect. Not as good as the first, and did descend into farce on occasion but couldn't help loving it anyway.

 

Now returning to The Man in the High Castle, as it needs to go back to the library in two days. Would you believe some selfish reader has requested it so I can't extend the loan. Honestly, have they no consideration of the size of my pile and wavering mojo?

[muggle not]

I will start reading tonight....Memory Man by David Baldacci..........from Amazon:

 

Amos Decker's life changed forever--twice.

 

The first time was on the gridiron. A big, towering athlete, he was the only person from his hometown of Burlington ever to go pro. But his career ended before it had a chance to begin. On his very first play, a violent helmet-to-helmet collision knocked him off the field for good, and left him with an improbable side effect--he can never forget anything.

 

The second time was at home nearly two decades later. Now a police detective, Decker returned from a stakeout one evening and entered a nightmare--his wife, young daughter, and brother-in-law had been murdered.

His family destroyed, their killer's identity as mysterious as the motive behind the crime, and unable to forget a single detail from that horrible night, Decker finds his world collapsing around him. He leaves the police force, loses his home, and winds up on the street, taking piecemeal jobs as a private investigator when he can.

 

But over a year later, a man turns himself in to the police and confesses to the murders. At the same time a horrific event nearly brings Burlington to its knees, and Decker is called back in to help with this investigation. Decker also seizes his chance to learn what really happened to his family that night. To uncover the stunning truth, he must use his remarkable gifts and confront the burdens that go along with them. He must endure the memories he would much rather forget. And he may have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

 

MEMORY MAN will stay with you long after the turn of the final page.