Summer reading lists....

C

clareMc

Cathlete
Well folks, it's time to turn our attention once more to more literary pursuits, now that Summer is here and we all feel the need to lounge around on a weekend afternoon after a gruelling Cathe workout and enjoy the lazy Summer feeling.

So, what do you recommend?

I have just finished 2 books that I think are well worth reading:

"The Time Traveler's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger

This is an unorthodox love story about a young man named Henry with chrono-displacement disease, and his love affair with a girl and woman named Clare. A genetic malfunction causes Henry to depart his reality and travel forward and backward in time to other moments in the history of his romance with Clare, where they meet up at some very strange ages and create a one-of-a-kind relationship. It is a complete page turner, although 517 pages long, I read it in 2 days, absolutely could not put it down, fell in love with the characters and wept for them both at the end.....

I am about to finish also "The Birth of Venus" by Sarah Dunant, who mixes an affair between a young Florentine woman and a painter in a time of political turmoil in 15th century Florence. It's a gripping thriller, another page turner, and the only thing I can say I dislike about it is the annoyance I feel at women's powerlessness throughout history: bad marrriages or convents, what a choice! This is not the author's fault: it's history!!!

After that I am moving on to "Brick Lane" by Monica Ali and am steadfastly ignoring the winner of this year's Man Booker prize cos' it seems like a load of old cobblers to me......

So, what do the rest of you recommend? Any absolute musts?

Clare :)
 
I don't know about recommending any books. But, I bought a stack of books in 2003, some for me and some for my kids, and didn't read even one. Some are literary (I am Dutch so I don't get to read in school what you do). I am not allowing myself to buy another book till I have read all books. It is hard though to find the time to sit down and read. I usually don't have more than 1 hour each day and then I have to skip my daily hour of TV. It takes me weeks to read a book. And I prefer to read a book in one go!

Sofar this year I have read:
Carpe Jugulum - Terry Pratchett (very funny book)
Catcher in the Rye - Salinger (for my kids)
Emperor, Gates of Rome - Conn Iggulden (historically based on Julius Ceasar)
HItchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams (very funny book)
Night Watch - Terry Pratchett (detective type book)
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee (very impressive)

Still to read:
The island of the day before - Umberto Ecco
Sofie's World - Josten Gaarder (takes you thru the history of philosophy)
The selfish gene - Richard Dawkins (explains several scientific theories in a popular way so everyone can understand)
Tom Jones - Henry Fielding (for my kids)
Watership Down - Richard Adams (for my kids)
Origin of Species - Darwin (evolution)
Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson (for my kids)
Wind in the Willows - Grahame (for my kids)
The Virgin&The Gypsy - DH Lawrence
Northern Lights - Philip Pullman (fantasy)
Human Instinct - Robert Winston (title says it all)
Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
Animal Farm - George Orwell (for my kids)

At the moment I am reading Shadowmancer by GP Taylor (fantasy).

Dutchie
 
If you like mysteries/humor, I would highly recommend reading:

1. The Janet Evanovich series. Start at "One for the money".....
In Fact, she also has a website. They are about a lady
private investigator and at times, you will find yourself
laughing. Excellent series.

2. Another good series is by Sue Grafton. Once again, start
with "A" and continue on... Also a lady private investigator.

Patti
 
I don't really know if I should be recommending titles here, since we all have different interests, but after going through the clearance bins at my favorite used book stores, I have this stack of books on my writing desk (from $.50 to $2 each):
The Sex Life of My Aunt, by Mavis Cheek
Perdido, by Rick Collignon
Cosmopolis: Urban Stories by Women, edited by Ines Rieder
Icy Sparks, by Gwyn Hyman Rubio
East of the Mountains, by David Guterson
The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
Fear of Flying, by Erica Jong

Books that have been waiting for me for the last year or so:
Selected Poems 1965-1975, by Margaret Atwood
Half Angel, Half Lunch, another collection of poetry by Sharon Mesmer
Dance of the Spirit, The seven Steps of Women's Spirituality, by Maria Harris (I sincerely hope I can take this one seriously.)
A Circle of Quiet, an autobiography by Madeleine L'Engle
The Man Made of Words, by N. Scott Momaday

Pinky
 
Hey Dutchie:

"To Kill a Mockingbird" is aan absolute classic novel: have you seen the film version wioth Gregory Peck? You have to see it, it is a must, and the film Greg Peck was most known for!

Clare
 
HI Clare,

No I haven't seen the film with Gregory Peck. But while reading the book it sounded vaguely familiar. Was there maybe a miniseries? Or a tv-movie?

I have to say after I read it I couldn't focus on another book for a while. I kept thinking about it. One of the best books I ever read.
Dutchie
 
Of course you should recommend titles! What harm can it do? You may have read something fabulous I have never heard of before and I would be so grateful to you for bringing it to my attention!!!

Most of the writers you list I have never heard of, but Toni Morrison is fabulous. I read one of hers recently and now I can't remember the title, but Bluest Eye and Tar Baby are books I must read, definitely.

Anyone else?

Clare
 
I don't have favorite titles, Clare, but I do have my favorite writers: Julia Alvarez, Barbara Kingsolver, Carol Shields, Ursula Hegi, Margaret Atwood, the already mentioned Toni Morrison, Emily Dickinson, Anne Sexton, Nancy Gibbs (she's an editor for Time magazine -- I don't know if she's written any books, but her write-ups are fabulous)... I love to read books about women's lives (of course, I can relate), hence, many of my favorite writers are female.

Among the males (let's have equal opportunity here:) ) are Joel Stein (his essays and reports in Time leave me teary-eyed from cracking up), Garrison Keilor, Charles Krathaummer (all writers for Time), N. Scott Momaday, Chang-Rae Lee (still have to get more of his books), and T.S. Eliot.

Oh, if you're looking for something funny, try The Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. I read it many years back, and it's in my to-read-again-when-life-doesn't-overwhelm-me-anymore list.:)

Pinky
 
I also don't have favorite titles, just favorite authors, they are Mary Higgens Clark, Dean Koontz, I love the mysteries books.
I decided to after years of not reading to read last night after working on a favorite hobby of mine, Cross Stitching.
I used to own 1000 books, collecting and reading them was a favorite hobby of mine till my hubby said enough of that time to throw them away:( so I don't have all those books anymore.:( Time to collect again LOL
 
Hi Ladies! My favorite authors are:

Philippa Gregory
Anita Shreve
Rosalind Miles
Patricia Cornwell
Sarah Dunant
Andrea Di Robliant

Just to name a few. Kathy:D
 
What have you read by Sarah Dunant? What was it like? Can you share? You know, she's adapting some of her novels into screenplays.....something to look out for!

Clare
 
Pinky...

I just finished The Confederacy of Dunces. I read it many years ago too, and I think I liked it better then. I must have been more fun in my younger days ;-) I kept feeling like *I don't get it* now.

Has Carol Shields written anything other than the Stone Diaries? I loved that book. Barbara Kingsolver is great! Love her books. HAve you listened to any Maeve Binchy? You might like her too. And Amy Tan.. I like her too.

Pam
 
Pam

Carol Shields is one of my favorite writers! Unfortunately she died last year from cancer. Here is a llink to an obit

http://www.nwpassages.com/author_profile.asp?au_id=1234

She has written some books since the Stone Diaries. I think that she has a wonderful ear for dialogue. Some of her books that I have read include
Larry's Party
Small Cermonies
Swan
The Republic of Love

I was really sad to hear of her passing!

I, too, read Confederacy of Dunces many years ago and loved it then. I wonder how I would feel about it now.

I recently read "Life of Pi" and "The Secret Life of Bees," both of which were terrific reads.
 
>Pinky...
>
>I just finished The Confederacy of Dunces. I read it many
>years ago too, and I think I liked it better then. I must have
>been more fun in my younger days ;-) I kept feeling like *I
>don't get it* now.

Hmmmm, Pam.... I just might feel that way, too. I read Dunces in my late 20's, pre-husband, pre-baby, pre-business, pre-mountains-of-obligations.:) Children do alter your perceptions, reactions and longings. I was also about to suggest Youth in Revolt by C.D. Payne. Real funny, but sophomoric-funny. I read that in my EARLY 20's, when I was also in revolt and could relate. Think Catcher in the Rye with too much sex and the characters from Wayne's World...

>Has Carol Shields written anything other than the Stone
>Diaries? I loved that book. Barbara Kingsolver is great! Love
>her books. HAve you listened to any Maeve Binchy? You might
>like her too. And Amy Tan.. I like her too.

Carol Shields' other books are: Happenstance, The Republic of Love, Swann, The Orange Fish, Various Miracles, and Small Ceremonies. I can never get her books on sale, even in the used book store. They must be in hot demand. I've never read or listened to Maeve Binchy. Oh, another female writer I love is Linda Hogan.:)

Pinky
 
Maeve Binchy is fabulous, "Scarlett Feather" and "the Copper Beach" are my faves, and I forgot, I actually OWN "Life of Pi". This is the problem with the eternal bookpile by the bed: after a few months, it becomes part of the furniture, covered with its own laayer of dust and mutant life forms, ;-) and I no longer remember that it is in fact a pile of books that at some point I meant to read..... time to dig it out!

Clare
 
WOW angie, lol, we must have the same reading lists. I recently read the Life of Pi and Secret Life of Bees too. I liked the Life of Pi, the way he talked about and related to animals, and his life in India, but that time on the boat with Richard Parker just took forever! Secret Life of Bees was great.

And Claire, I loved Scarlet Feather too.
 
Clare, I know what you mean about that list of books by the bed!!!

If you like Maeve Binchy, you might like someone named Cathy Kelly. I just recently finished a book called Someone Like You by Cathy Kelly. In addition, you might like Marian Keyes. Marian Keyes has had a lot of popularity recently, so you may have heard of her.

I also like mysteries by Elizabeth George and Anne Perry.

Good luck....my favorite saying (that you see on T-shirts, etc.) is "So many books, so little time".

Sandra
 
>Hi Ladies! My favorite authors are:
>
>Philippa Gregory
>Anita Shreve
>Rosalind Miles
>Patricia Cornwell
>Sarah Dunant
>Andrea Di Robliant
>
>Just to name a few. Kathy:D


I loved Rosalind Miles' Queen Guenevere series. I've read the first two Tristan and Isolde books - is the third one out yet?

I just read two Dean Koontz books. I've always been a fan of his books, but hadn't read his stuff in a while. I enjoyed The Face and Odd Thomas:7
 
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