Even though I’ve been in the Classics Club for a few years I haven’t participated in a Classics Spin yet, so I’m going to give it a try. I have until January 1, 2020 to read 50 classics from a list of my own making. I’ve read 20 so far. This is my list of the next 20 I’d like to read. On Friday the Classics Club will pick a number and that will be the book I finish by the end of the year. Fun!
Suburban New Jersey Detective Napoleon “Nap” Dumas hasn’t been the same since senior year of high school, when his twin brother Leo and Leo’s girlfriend Diana were found dead on the railroad tracks—and Maura, the girl Nap considered the love of his life, broke up with him and disappeared without explanation. For fifteen years, Nap has been searching, both for Maura and for the real reason behind his brother’s death. And now, it looks as though he may finally find what he’s been looking for.
When Maura’s fingerprints turn up in the rental car of a suspected murderer, Nap embarks on a quest for answers that only leads to more questions—about the woman he loved, about the childhood friends he thought he knew, about the abandoned military base near where he grew up, and mostly about Leo and Diana—whose deaths are darker and far more sinister than Nap ever dared imagine. from Goodreads
No one can keep me turning pages long into the night like Harlan Coben. The man has a gift and I look forward to his yearly contribution to my personal library. I love his Myron Bolitar series and although this is a standalone Myron does make an appearance at a local pick-up basketball game. There are a lot of similarities between Myron and Nap as far as geography and attitude.
Told exclusively from Nap’s point of view we learn about the worst night of his life when his twin brother was killed and the love of his young life disappeared. Years later he’s a police detective who has been mentored by the father of his brother’s girlfriend who also died that night. When Maura’s fingerprints show up at a murder scene, Nap finds himself involved in finding out what really went down 15 years ago. Coben tells us at the beginning that this is based on rumors from where he grew up in New Jersey so you know that Nike missiles are going to show up.
I really liked this one. As with all of Coben’s books it moves fast and has lots of moving parts so it keeps you on your toes. My mom read my copy before I did and I found her reading it in the car when she was waiting to pick up Gage, so I knew it was going to be good. I was a bit let down with the end for a few different reasons but that’s probably just me. I’d still recommend it because, hey, it’s Harlan Coben!
The year 1984 has come and gone, but George Orwell’s prophetic, nightmarish vision in 1949 of the world we were becoming is timelier than ever. 1984 is still the great modern classic of “negative utopia” -a startlingly original and haunting novel that creates an imaginary world that is completely convincing, from the first sentence to the last four words. No one can deny the novel’s hold on the imaginations of whole generations, or the power of its admonitions -a power that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time. from Goodreads
Unabridged audio read by Simon Prebble. 11.5 hours.
I listened to this almost two months ago, but these were my initial thoughts – “a book first published in 1949, has so much to say about today that it’s scary. The Doublespeak coming from the White House everyday should scare the crap out of everyone, no exceptions. As a story it wasn’t the best, but the world building and insight into human nature make this a worthy classic.”
Now that I’ve had some time to process, I can say that this should be read and discussed by everyone interested in being more watchful and wary of the powers that lead us. Big Brother, Thought Police, Doublespeak are ideas we all understand because of Orwell and this warning of a book. It is bleak and by the end you will feel as caught in the nightmare as Winston, especially in these times that prove Orwell a fortune teller.
“The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power, pure power.”
“War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength.”
Scary stuff. A must read.
This was my 17th selection for the Classics Club and I have until January 1, 2020 to get to 50. I am woefully behind!
In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is planned — from the layout of the winding roads, to the colors of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.
Enter Mia Warren — an enigmatic artist and single mother — who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the mother-daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.
When old family friends of the Richardsons attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town–and puts Mia and Elena on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Elena is determined to uncover the secrets in Mia’s past. But her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs. from Goodreads
We read this for my book group last night and we all liked it. It also led to great discussion. There are limitless things to talk about and over the course of appetizers, pizza, dessert and wine we touched on a lot of them. The author was in town (Shaker Heights where the story takes place) and a few of the members were able to go and hear her speak and they came away impressed with how intelligent she was.
Shaker Heights is a real place and I love it. If not for Jason being put off by the high taxes I think I could get him to live there 🙂 Ng chose to show the Shaker that she grew up in and I think it’s fair, even though it has changed over the years it does still remain a progressive hotspot with old mansions lining picturesque streets. The Richardson family embodies this perfectly.
Ng is genius at getting into the minds of so many different characters and giving them unique voices. I understood and felt for every one of the characters in the book (save one who I just did not get – Izzy) and even when I didn’t like them I understood them.
The story centers around not only the fight over a baby left at a fire station by a distraught mother but also the mysterious Mia. So many layers to this story and they were all connected by mothers. What makes a good mother? At the end of this book I just wanted to hug Gage and tell him I was doing the best I could. One of the ladies in book club commented that it forced her to do a self-check on her own parenting skills.
I loved this book because it is overflowing with gray area. There are a few areas that I felt were black or white, but the rest was left for you to decide. I admit that this one started slow for me (the only one in my group to feel this way), but by the hundred page mark I was hooked! I loved Mia the most even though she was probably the one with the most issues.
Do yourself a favor and check it out. Especially if you’re in a book club.
In this urgent and insightful book, public radio journalist Celeste Headlee shows us how to bridge what divides us–by having real conversations
BASED ON THE TED TALK WITH OVER 10 MILLION VIEWS
Today most of us communicate from behind electronic screens, and studies show that Americans feel less connected and more divided than ever before. The blame for some of this disconnect can be attributed to our political landscape, but the erosion of our conversational skills as a society lies with us as individuals.
And the only way forward, says Headlee, is to start talking to each other. In We Need to Talk, she outlines the strategies that have made her a better conversationalist—and offers simple tools that can improve anyone’s communication.
Whether you’re struggling to communicate with your kid’s teacher at school, an employee at work, or the people you love the most—Headlee offers smart strategies that can help us all have conversations that matter.
I’d never heard of radio host Celeste Headlee, but I agreed to read whatever Trish sent me and she chose this little gem of a book. It’s based on a Ted Talk, but my speakers aren’t working so I couldn’t listen, but I’d give it a try if you can since the book stems from that talk.
Headlee had me at her dedication, “For Grant: I wanted to be a better person so I could be a better mom.” I think this speaks to so many parents out there.
This book is so timely in our current politicized environment and she touches on having discussions with people who differ on politics as well as having productive discussions with your boss or employees.
Did you know humans now have the attention span of a goldfish? Technology over the last few years has made up skim and look for sound bites instead of taking the time to read or really listen. I love to blog, but to post and read other blogs it takes more time that I sometimes have. Throwing an update on Facebook takes less than a minute. This affects our conversations too. How many times have you found your mind wandering when someone is talking? Or just waiting for a break so that you could add your own story or comment? Most of us are guilty.
This book was easy to read and had great information, even for people who think they don’t need help. I like that she added lots of studies to back up her recommendations. I found so many things to work on in my own conversations.
Here are a few tips for you. Put away your phone! Even having your phone on the table inhibits conversation. Be present (meditation can help with this). Be respectful and end on a good note. It’s not about you. Keep it short and don’t repeat (especially the negative stuff). Ask open-ended questions and don’t unload your daily accomplishments on an unsuspecting acquaintance.
I really liked this one and can’t wait to try out some of the tips.
I want to thank TLC Book Tours for sending me a copy of the book so I could give you all my honest opinion.
The further we get from September the more behind I get in writing reviews for the books I read. So, I’m catching up a bit with five memoirs that I found to be good to okay.
What Would Martin Say? by Clarence B. Jones. Finished 9-26-17, 3.75/5 stars, non-fiction, 232 pages, pub. 2009
Martin Luther King Jr. was a man taken to soon by a madman’s bullet (too common even today because of the NRA). What would have happened if he lived (would he still be attending RNC conferences?)? How different would America look? See what I did here by adding pointless political comments that add nothing to the conversation? Clarence B. Jones, King’s personal lawyer for eight years, couldn’t seem to stop from adding these asides to illuminate the Republican party in a positive light. The first half was so interesting and I loved the behind the scenes look at history. It led to great discussions with Jason as I was reading. This was pretty much a play by play of the conservative view of race and how it should be handled. I recognized all of the talking points, but the stories and the ease of the storytelling made it fresh. Then halfway in he turned to immigration, anti-Semitism, and terrorism and it felt more like Jones justifying how he felt and using King to do so. The problem is that these are different problems than when Martin was alive and Jones was too adamant about putting words in King’s mouth, understandable since he helped write King’s speeches. I no longer felt like he was channeling King.
So, it was a mixed bag for me. I loved the history and personal stories. The beginning about how King recruited him was fun and also showed a lot about King himself. It was worth reading for sure, but it did disappoint in the end, not because I agreed or disagreed, but because he never really convinced me that he knew with certainty what Kings’ views would be. It was a discussion starter for sure.
I’m not sure why I was expecting something funny, but I was. Although Waldman does write with humor this book was heartfelt and dealt with some heavy topics. Sex, abortion, bipolar disorder, sexual identity, social media pushback, four kids with different needs. There’s a lot to take in and appreciate. Her honesty was admirable, her battles recognizable, and her love of family inspiring. I really liked this one even though it wasn’t the barrels of laughs I was hoping for.
Gill was successful ad man in New York City who met lots of famous people growing up. His father, a writer at The New Yorker, ran in some pretty interesting circles. But one day in his 50’s Gill is let go from his job, has an affair and gets her pregnant and then must come clean to his wife and four children. He wasn’t exactly eliciting a great deal of sympathy. After several years of trying to make it on his own he was out of money. He happened into a job at Starbucks and turned into a walking advertisement for the company. I don’t doubt his sincerity and I loved the connections he made, but he was still a man who loved to name drop and still seemed a little oblivious to the real world. But, all in all, it was a heartwarming story and made me want to be reading it at a Starbucks!
I have never read anything by Hermann Hesse, but on my mom vacation I saw this out of print book and was intrigued. It is seriously like an Hesse Instagram. Pictures, drawings, and book covers on every pages with captions to tell his story. I thought this translation was fun and loved to see the pictures from pre 1900’s in Europe with the captions that told his story. It didn’t necessarily make me want to read his classic Siddhartha, but I did find it interesting. Instagram before its time.
Jason and I binge watched Harlan Coben’s The Five on Netflix and really liked it.
How as your movie month? Anything I need to see?
Add your 5 words (or less!) to mine in a comment and earn $1 for charity. Once we get to $100 the person with the most reviews will choose the charity. Click here to see the past winners, the charities they chose and the other reviews you can add to. Anyone is welcome to join in at any time.
We’re at $59.
I hope that you will take a few minutes to participate when you can each month. It’s fun for me and for everyone else who reads it. I’m not looking for a critical review, just a few words about how you felt about the movie. This is ongoing so you can leave your 5 words anytime.
Wind River, 2017 (Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Graham Greene, Gil Birmingham) Grade B+
Atmospheric Reservation Murder Mystery.
Lego Ninjago, 2017 (Jackie Chan, voices-Dave Franco, Justin Theroux, Fred Armisen, Abbi Jacobson, Olivia Munnm Kumail Nanijani, Michael Pena, Zach Woods) Grade B
there were 9 people who got them all correct and my son pulled WishfulfillmentSylvia for the $20 B&N gift card win.
Booknerd Queen won the second drawing and has a $10 B&N gift card coming her way!
Thank you all so much for playing!
Hi read-a-thonners! I hope you’re all still awake and having fun. There are two ways to play this mini-challenge
1- I made a fall Read-a-thon Clock. Just tell me the titles and you could win a prize, the reader with the most correct answers wins a prize. (in the event of a tie the first person to submit their answers will win) If you get even one title correct I’ll throw your name in the drawing for a second prize. Keep in mind that each number on the clock is correctly represented and don’t forget about the book in the center.
I’ll periodically hide the comments so don’t be worried if your answers disappear until I draw a winner in Hour 20.
Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen, Two From the Heart by James Patterson, et al., The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, Four Weeks, Five People by Jennifer Yu, Fives and Twenty-Fives by Michael Pitre, Six Impossible Things by Fiona Wood, The Seventh Function of Language by Laurent Binet, Orphan #8 by Kim van Alkemade, Sweetness #9 by Eirik Clark, The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware, 11/22/63 by Stephen King, The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawlry by Hannah Tinti2-Make your own clock and post it on your blog. Make sure each of the titles has something to do with time. Make sure to leave a link in the comments. You’ll be eligible for the second prize.
Wanna know what you’re playing for? First prize (reader who guesses the most correct titles in my clock) will get a $20 Barnes & Noble gift card. The second randomly chosen winner will receive a $10 Barnes & Noble gift card. (If you are not in the US I can do Book Depository).
Take a look at the clock @exsixtwosix made! https://twitter.com/exsixtwosix/status/921956565267238913
Last month while reading a book a day, I had very little time to review books on this blog, so I’m going to group these four with the reviews from my 30 day challenge. The rest of the books I’d like to take some time with and will post about later.
We are working on yeast issues in the house so I’m trying to convert over to this diet, but it is a very difficult thing to force on a 6 year old.
This book is an excellent resource and surprisingly progressive in it’s knowledge. Highly recommended if you suspect you have a candida problem. You can treat at home without a doctor using diet and supplements. It has lots of recipes. The two I’ve tried so far have been big hits with all three of us.
Candida Albicans is a parasitic yeast that is present in all of us, but in most people it does no noticeable harm. This book provides a comprehensive and non-drug programme for its control. from Goodreads
This was a fine overview of the issue, but dated. There are better, more current books out there. I only read this one because a friend loaned it to me.
Finished 9-24-17, rating 4/5, current events, pub. 2017
Between the two, Why We March: Signs of Protest and Hope by Artisan Press and Why I March: Images from the Woman’s March Around the World edited by Samantha Weiner and Emma Jacobs, I preferred the former (on the bottom in the picture). It had quotes from the march in Washington DC that the other didn’t. Both were great and took me back to one of the most inspiring days of my life. This country needs a little more protesting and a little less sitting on our butts and complaining about people who don’t agree with us. There were marches on every continent – even Antarctica – and no arrests. I will always support a peaceful protest. I was inspired all over again. Here are a few of my favorite signs.
Winesburg, Ohio (1919) is Sherwood Anderson’s masterpiece, a cycle of short stories concerning life in a small town at the end of the nineteenth century. At the center is George Willard, a young reporter who becomes the confidant of the town’s solitary figures. Anderson’s stories influenced countless American writers including Hemingway, Faulkner, Updike, Oates and Carver. This new edition corrects errors made in earlier editions and takes into account major criticism and textual scholarship of the last several decades. from Goodreads
I’m glad that I decided to add in classics this month. When I asked Jason how I was going to fit in a book today he told me he thought the challenge was too hard. But by focusing on books on my shelves that I haven’t take the time to read I discover gems that if I hadn’t given myself a deadline may have sat on the shelves for several more years. Winesburg, Ohio is one of those. It takes place in Ohio, check. It’s on my Classics Club list, check. Fellow book blogger Care sent it to me years ago, check. Desire to read it, not so much. It’s a series of short stories and looked pretty boring. It wasn’t.
Winesburg, Ohio is a series of 22 stories set in the fictional town. Anderson wrote them in 1915-1916 and Winseburg was a small farming town in northern Ohio. Newspaper reporter George Willard is in most of the stories as a main character or in the periphery. Life in this town left no one unscathed, but the stories were beautifully intertwined, like a puzzle. I was always happy to pick it back up to see who I’d be hearing about next. The structure was unique at the time and it credited for influencing many writers like Hemingway, Faulkner, Updike, and Bradbury. I loved it!
This was my 16th selection for the Classics Club and I have until January 1, 2020 to get to 50. I am woefully behind!
This was my 17th selection for the 
Finished 11-5-17, rating 4.25/5, 244 pages, pub. 2017
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Finished 9-24-17, rating 4/5, current events, pub. 2017
Stacy's Books 