Marie H Posted June 5, 2016 Share Posted June 5, 2016 Glad that you loved Dan Rhodes' This is Life. He certainly is a quirky author, and I've only read Anthropology: And a Hundred Other Stories of his work, and it started okay, but soon I loathed it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 Frankie, I'm glad you enjoyed This Is Life. Your favourite book of the year so far, that's high praise! I love that cover. Thanks Anna! I'm feeling okay today... Not my normally self, but at least I think I'm not coming down with anything more sinister. Maybe it was just a bit of a cold. I'm glad it probably won't be anything really bad . I just found a pic of my x online and it sorta makes everything better . I mean, like MUCH better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 14, 2016 Author Share Posted June 14, 2016 (edited) Well, she did cry and weep and all, but... Well she'll be damned if she does and damned if she don't? If she cries, people will say she's pitying herself and drawing attention to herself, and if she doesn't, people will think she's a cold hearted b/witch. Some ask why she did the interview in the first place, and others will ask why the families never spoke about it sooner. It's really a lose-lose situation for the parents of the two boys, innit? And I personally, having read the book, find that so annoying. The parents have to come to terms with what their children have done, and grieve for their loss, as well as the loss of other people, and then everyone is out to get them. It's a burden too big for any human being in my opinion. And I'm not in any way saying the burden of having one's own child killed in a school shooting is any less worse. Not in the least. I'm just talking about this re: the point-of-view of the mother of one of the shooters, as that's the book I've just read. It is so rare to have an opportunity to read about this from this particular point-of-view. Oh I just might as well turn this post into the 'review' ... 26. A Mother's Reckoning - Living in the Aftermath of the Columbine Tragedy by Sue Klebold Amazon: On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold walked into Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. Over the course of minutes, they would kill twelve students and a teacher and wound twenty-four others before taking their own lives. For the last sixteen years, Sue Klebold, Dylan’s mother, has lived with the indescribable grief and shame of that day. How could her child, the promising young man she had loved and raised, be responsible for such horror? And how, as his mother, had she not known something was wrong? Were there subtle signs she had missed? What, if anything, could she have done differently? These are questions that Klebold has grappled with every day since the Columbine tragedy. In A Mother’s Reckoning, she chronicles with unflinching honesty her journey as a mother trying to come to terms with the incomprehensible. In the hope that the insights and understanding she has gained may help other families recognize when a child is in distress, she tells her story in full, drawing upon her personal journals, the videos and writings that Dylan left behind, and on countless interviews with mental health experts. Filled with hard-won wisdom and compassion, A Mother’s Reckoning is a powerful and haunting book that sheds light on one of the most pressing issues of our time. And with fresh wounds from the recent Newtown and Charleston shootings, never has the need for understanding been more urgent. All author profits from the book will be donated to research and to charitable organizations focusing on mental health issues. ... And the book was so well written, too. I really felt for Sue. I don't know how she's coped. This is going off-topic, but in some other reality none of this would've happened, and she would've written some whole other book, as I think she has a gift. What a vocabulary! Well, that was a short review. But it's hard to review a book like this, and I've been finding it hard to write decent reviews for many months now, and besides, I'm sick Woe is me! 4/5 Edited June 14, 2016 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 14, 2016 Author Share Posted June 14, 2016 Glad that you loved Dan Rhodes' This is Life. He certainly is a quirky author, and I've only read Anthropology: And a Hundred Other Stories of his work, and it started okay, but soon I loathed it . He's such a quicky author, isn't he I love his characters and the stuff and situations he comes up with! Why did you loathe Anthropology? I've not read that one yet. I'm bad at short stories I want to read the Timoleon Vieta book next, and I have my eyes on When the Professor Got Stuck in the Snow (First wrote Stud instead of Stuck ) Frankie, I'm glad you enjoyed This Is Life. Your favourite book of the year so far, that's high praise! I love that cover. High praise indeed! I miss that book... I'm jealous of all the people who get to read it for the first time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 14, 2016 Author Share Posted June 14, 2016 27. The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarty Amazon: Ellen O’Farrell is a professional hypnotherapist who works out of the eccentric beachfront home she inherited from her grandparents. It’s a nice life, except for her tumultuous relationship history. She’s stoic about it, but at this point, Ellen wouldn’t mind a lasting one. When she meets Patrick, she’s optimistic. He’s attractive, single, employed, and best of all, he seems to like her back. Then comes that dreaded moment: He thinks they should have a talk. Braced for the worst, Ellen is pleasantly surprised. It turns out that Patrick’s ex-girlfriend is stalking him. Ellen thinks, Actually, that’s kind of interesting. She’s dating someone worth stalking. She’s intrigued by the woman’s motives. In fact, she’d even love to meet her.Ellen doesn’t know it, but she already has. Thoughts: Even though I didn't enjoy What Alice Forgot by the same author all that much, I did love The Husband's Secret and Big Little Lies, and so I was hoping to enjoy this one, too. I didn't. Once again, I found the premise interesting (that's what I always say! I guess I only read books whose premise I find interesting, and then again, why read them if they didn't?), and was looking forward to a good yarn with twists, and a bit of drama. But it was so boring. I didn't like any of the characters, and maybe I wasn't supposed to, but it wasn't only that: I didn't care what happened to them! And I'm not one who has to always love at least one character in a book, as long as there's at least a good story or the writing's great. There has to be one good element in the book at least. But this didn't have any! I might've given it 1/5 but at least it didn't take a turn I was expecting and while the turn it took wasn't anything amazing, it was still at least something. I don't think I will bother with the two other Moriarty novels that I've still not read, which are the first two by her. I have a feeling she's an author who makes excellent progress by each novel that she writes, and so the first novels would only get worse. I am, however, very much looking forward to her new release, Truly Madly Guilty, which will be out in July! 2/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 It's a shame this one wasn't so great, while you loved The Husband's Secret and Big Little Lies so much . I hope Truly Madly Guilty will be good . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 15, 2016 Author Share Posted June 15, 2016 (edited) 28. The Vintage Springtime Club by Beatrice Meier Blurb: Newly retired Philip returns home to Cologne and is thrown into emotional turmoil upon bumping into his long-lost sweetheart. In the midst of a domestic crisis, Ricarda confides in Philip that she is looking for somewhere to live. And there and then, Philip suggests that she move in with him - he is setting up a flatshare. Will she join him and his mischievous dachshund named Ralf? To Philip's surprise, Ricarda agrees, leaving him to scramble together a crew of retirees in time for spring, for the most unlikely of social experiments. There's grumpy cigarette-smoking Harry; quiet and discreet Eckart, curiously carting around his late wife's headstone; Uschi, brimming with life, harbouring a passion for leotards and aerobics; and then, ever-practical and warm-hearted Ricarda, towards whom Philip is developing real feelings. Despite their differences, the flatmates thrive and embark on a series of new adventures. But when Uschi falls unwell, familiar cracks begin to show and this uniquely spirited club of friends must work together in order to survive - and truly blossom. Thoughts: I was so ready to love this book. It's was a new release at the library and I loved the title and cover. I like reading about older people, and I like reading about different sorts of people coming together in different ways, of which a flatshare is an interesting example. And there's even a dog. I thought this was going to be a really adorable book about quirky and lovable characters. But it wasn't. I found the book so forced! The only thing I liked about the book was that the chapters were short and therefore the book was quick to finish (and the most interesting part was finding out how many chapters the author could fit in the 328 page book. The answer is... 71! Excluding the epilogue.) However, the short chapters took away from the actual story and any real development of the characters I didn't really learn anything about them and I didn't even manage to start getting interested in some of them! I also thought the book was going to be funny... It wasn't. It tried to be, at times, but that felt forced, too. On top of everything, this is a German original that I read in English, and I found the translation rather awful at times. I don't know if it's just me, because what do I know about translating from Germany to English. However, there were a few expressions that I thought were all too regional, and I thought that as a German novel, the translation should stick to a very 'middle of the road' English, the sort that gets understood in all the English speaking continents. (Edit: I'm rather sure that the expressions could be understood all around the world, but they'd still be considered as belonging to a certain country rather than be part of the 'general' English known by all.) When I marked the book as 'read' on Goodreads, I found out that the average rating for it was 4.04. How?? After my 1/5 it came down to 3,94 There were only 28 ratings, though. But as I was having a look at the reviews, people had seemed to really love this book! I don't know how. 1/5 Edited June 15, 2016 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 Awww, what a shame you didn't enjoy this book at all. I agree that it's better to use more 'general' expressions in English rather than region specific ones, in a translated work. I hope your next read will be more enjoyable! (it shouldn't be so hard to surpass the 1/5). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 16, 2016 Author Share Posted June 16, 2016 Shouldn't be too hard, no Although I tried getting into a few different books last night and failed... I don't know what to read next! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 I hope you find something nice you feel like reading . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 When I marked the book as 'read' on Goodreads, I found out that the average rating for it was 4.04. How?? After my 1/5 it came down to 3,94 There were only 28 ratings, though. But as I was having a look at the reviews, people had seemed to really love this book! I don't know how. Anything under a few hundred ratings gives you a biased rating. A chunk of those 28 are going to be friends of the author or people who are reviewing it for the author/publisher and are up-rating to be nice. I've found a couple of duds that way too, and would never again pick up a book with less than a couple hundred ratings unless someone I knew told me it was good. Congrats on finishing it though hahaha! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 16, 2016 Author Share Posted June 16, 2016 Wow, I didn't even think that could be it! You've certainly cracked it for me, Nollaig Now I don't have to wonder about it.. I wish I'd had this knowledge and the insight to go and see the ratings before I started to read the book ... One must sometimes learn the hard way... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppyshake Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 #25. This Is Life by Dan Rhodes Blurb: In Paris, art student Aurélie Renard throws a stone and sets in motion a chain of events that will turn her life upside down. Suddenly finding herself in sole charge of a stranger's baby, and with no idea how babies work, it's only thanks to the help of her adoring professor and her gun-toting heartbreaker of a best friend that Aurélie Renard is able to navigate her way through the most extraordinary and calamitous seven days of her life. Meanwhile, in a Pigalle cinema, a naked man is doing his best to show the people of Paris, Aurélie among them, what it means to be alive... Thoughts: Such an odd blurb! But I've read one Dan Rhodes novel before, Gold, and that was odd and quirky, too, and I loved it. So I should love this one, aye? I should and I did I had absolutely no idea where this novel was going most of the time, but I went with it and found that as I'd hoped, it all made sense by the end. Do I think some of it was far-fetched, as some have said in their reviews? I don't care! It's fiction, it's supposed to entertain me, and that was what the novel managed to do just fine! And more than just fine. I was reading this at home in bed, I was reading it on the couch, I was reading it on my way to work, and I always forgot where I was in real life and got totally sucked into the story and found myself in Paris. I gasped aloud on several occasions, going 'No you didn't! :o' and 'No way!!' I loved the characters, and I rooted for them I love books where you have a number of characters and at first you have no idea how it's all connected, but then the author works his/her magic and things come together. This is the type of book I love reading. My favorite book so far this year! And thanks to tunn300 and his review of the novel which made me add it to my wishlist! 5/5 Edit: I wonder what made Dan Rhodes set the book in France, as he's British himself. It didn't matter, though, as I like book set in France. And there were things he was able to do in the novel for it. A comical commentary of cultures... Edit2: I don't like the cover of the novel in tunn300's review... I had a different cover and much preferred that one! Here's the cover of the library book I have: Love this review! I really must push it up my list. Al enjoyed it too and what with you and Tunn .. it's practically guaranteed that I'll love it especially as I've loved nearly all of Dan's books so far. The 'far-fetched' thing is funny isn't it? Sometimes I think a book is far fetched and other times I couldn't give a hoot that it is. It so depends on the writer/story. I don't know the reason behind Dan setting the novel in Paris but it wouldn't be the first time .. Little White Car was also set in Paris and Dan wrote it under the pen name Danuta de Rhodes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 16, 2016 Author Share Posted June 16, 2016 Love this review! I really must push it up my list. Al enjoyed it too and what with you and Tunn .. it's practically guaranteed that I'll love it especially as I've loved nearly all of Dan's books so far. Oh Alan's read it? I'm in good company then! I think tunn said that he's read other books by Rhodes, and they didn't fair as well as this one and Gold. Or rather, This Is Life was just as good as Gold, and far above the rest. I'm fearing that his others won't be so great, but your words of the contrary give me faith I want to read more by him! I wonder if Alan was able to keep quiet about some of the ... delicious details about the novel when he was reading it You're so going to like this one! The 'far-fetched' thing is funny isn't it? Sometimes I think a book is far fetched and other times I couldn't give a hoot that it is. It so depends on the writer/story. Exactly! It's totally depended on the story and the writer. And sometimes one's mood, maybe... Some can pull it off, some can not. And the 'some's are different for other people. Dan Rhodes can totally pull it off I don't know the reason behind Dan setting the novel in Paris but it wouldn't be the first time .. Little White Car was also set in Paris and Dan wrote it under the pen name Danuta de Rhodes Ah yes, Danuta de Rhodes Is Danuta a French name, then? I wonder if he's a bit of a Francophile. Clever chap, anyhoo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted June 19, 2016 Share Posted June 19, 2016 26. A Mother's Reckoning - Living in the Aftermath of the Columbine Tragedy by Sue Klebold I'm really interested in giving this one a read, after having (nearly) finished Columbine. I read those review links that you posted (I can't remember which thread they were on ), and it seems like every book about Columbine has people claiming that what was written wasn't the truth. Even the book written by Brooks Brown (who was a 'friend' of the killers) has been criticised as bending the truth, so I don't know what to believe. The two boys didn't seem to have many friends, so various classmates opinions could also be taken with a grain of salt, even though they were with them throughout their school years. When I think back to high school, I don't know if I could accurately describe what my classmates were like (beyond surface impressions), except for my best friends. Either way, it all makes for interesting reading, and I think I have to read more books on it to see what the more 'popular' opinions are. I do feel for the parents of the killers, and I genuinely don't think they saw this coming. It must have been a very hard book for her to write, and I'm sure she struggles with the guilt of her son's actions every day. When I marked the book as 'read' on Goodreads, I found out that the average rating for it was 4.04. How?? After my 1/5 it came down to 3,94 There were only 28 ratings, though. But as I was having a look at the reviews, people had seemed to really love this book! I don't know how. 1/5 I've read a few like that. I've loathed them, only to find everyone raves about them in online reviews. I don't think my taste in books is particularly far from mainstream, but there's always the odd one or two that I just don't 'get' the same way others do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Pixie Posted June 19, 2016 Share Posted June 19, 2016 Shouldn't be too hard, no Although I tried getting into a few different books last night and failed... I don't know what to read next! There must be something going round - I have the affliction too. I`ve looked at books which I`ve enjoyed lately and am looking for something similar now, to get out of a mini-slump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 24, 2016 Author Share Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) I'm really interested in giving this one a read, after having (nearly) finished Columbine. I read those review links that you posted (I can't remember which thread they were on ), and it seems like every book about Columbine has people claiming that what was written wasn't the truth. Even the book written by Brooks Brown (who was a 'friend' of the killers) has been criticised as bending the truth, so I don't know what to believe. The two boys didn't seem to have many friends, so various classmates opinions could also be taken with a grain of salt, even though they were with them throughout their school years. When I think back to high school, I don't know if I could accurately describe what my classmates were like (beyond surface impressions), except for my best friends. Either way, it all makes for interesting reading, and I think I have to read more books on it to see what the more 'popular' opinions are. Yep, it's really tricky to know what to believe, as people have different perceptions, and time can skewer those perceptions and twist things around. And some people are easily influenced by other people's opinions. There's just so much stuff out there on a case like this that it's probably fair to say no one has the 100% truth about it, except for the two boys themselves and their truths have been taken to the grave with them. And again, their truths are also their personal truths... I do feel for the parents of the killers, and I genuinely don't think they saw this coming. It must have been a very hard book for her to write, and I'm sure she struggles with the guilt of her son's actions every day. I agree. It'll never leave her. I just can't imagine the burden. I've read a few like that. I've loathed them, only to find everyone raves about them in online reviews. I don't think my taste in books is particularly far from mainstream, but there's always the odd one or two that I just don't 'get' the same way others do. I don't think my tastes are far from mainstream, either, so it's always mind-boggling Although with this particular book, I think Nollaig is right, and it's about them reviewers being friends and family and promoters of the book and the author and therefore writing biased reviews. I just can't believe there'd be so many positive reviews otherwise. There must be something going round - I have the affliction too. I`ve looked at books which I`ve enjoyed lately and am looking for something similar now, to get out of a mini-slump. It's the worst affliction! I hope you find something totally satisfying to read soon It's Midsummer Eve and I'm wondering if I should just stay at home and read, or if I should go out to a Midsummer dance. The problem is, all my friends are either out of town visiting family or on summer cottages (as it's the number one thing to do over here during Midsummer), or otherwise engaged. I have no one to go with me! I'm wondering if I'm brave enough to go on my own... The pros are that the dance is at the amusement park that's practically next door to my building, and it's free for all. I could just go in and see what it's like, and leave if I feel too awkward... (I could also take a book with me Rory Gilmore style...) Edited June 24, 2016 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 24, 2016 Author Share Posted June 24, 2016 I ended up not going, as I went to the couch to read a book and fell asleep Also, I wasn't too keen on going alone... Especially when the sun wasn't even shining, it was cloudy and probably not that warm to begin with. Maybe next Midsummer will be more fun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Pixie Posted June 25, 2016 Share Posted June 25, 2016 It's the worst affliction! I hope you find something totally satisfying to read soon Thanks ! You too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted June 30, 2016 Author Share Posted June 30, 2016 Tomorrow's the first day of my summer holiday It's going to be a short holiday as I only started work in February and haven't had a chance for holiday days to accumulate, but I don't mind! I have a few things tentatively planned for the weekend, and then I'll be leaving for my hometown on Monday, to celebrate my Dad's 65th Birthday. Parents have rented a summer cottage for the whole week and loads of relatives are going to come by! The cottage is by a lake so there's sauna and swimming to be had if one wishes. I'll have to come back on Wednesday or Thursday at the latest as I'll have to go to work on Friday. In other news, mojo's happy again, I loved the Linwood Barclay I finished last night. Can't wait for the next book! Boss finished reading the first Elling book this week and she absolutely loved it I got her the second novel just in time before my holidays, so she didn't have to wait till I was back Her husband's reading the Elling book, too I went to the big bookshop yesterday, they are having their annual summer sale, 70% off But didn't find anything I didn't fancy any of their English titles. There were half a dozen books that were in Swedish, that I would've loved to buy in English And the Swedish translations are half the price of the English originals, to begin with, too! So they were like 2-3€ on sale. How can they be cheaper than the English originals?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted July 1, 2016 Share Posted July 1, 2016 I wish you lots of fun on your holiday . Happy birthday to your dad! How nice your mojo is happy again . Awww, shame you didn't find anything at the sale . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted July 3, 2016 Author Share Posted July 3, 2016 June25 - This Is Life by Dan Rhodes - library loan - 5/526 - A Mother's Reckoning - Living in the Aftermath of the Columbine Tragedy by Sue Klebold - library loan - 4/527 - The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarty - library loan - 2/528 - The Vintage Springtime Club by Beatrice Meier - library loan - 1/5- Sarah by J. T. Leroy - library loan - abandoned - I couldn't figure out if the protagonist was a boy or a girl and it really bothered me, even though it might have been the point of the book, although I doubt it. Couldn't get into it. 29 - Kasvonsa menettänyt mies by Kimmo Oksanen - library loan - 3/5 30 - Pertsa ja Kilu by Väinö Riikkilä - library loan - 3/531 - Far from True by Linwood Barclay - library loan - 5/5 Started out strong with a brilliant 5/5 read, then worked my way through another great read to 2/5 and 1/5 books, which was a low point, and then got back to 5/5 after two good books Got to use the whole spectrum of my rating system! A rather good reading month. Not bad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 That's quite interesting, you had the whole spectrum of ratings indeed! At least you started and finished on a high note . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share Posted July 4, 2016 Yep, that's the most important thing Also managed to read more books than in the previous few months, which I'm really happy about! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Hello my dear! Sorry I've been neglecting you lately. I've just had a lot on. I hope you're enjoying your summer holiday. Your comment about the JT Leroy book intrigued me so I went and looked it up. Doesn't sound like my cup of tea either. Did you know about the scandal involving the author? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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