December! What are you reading?

[Rowan]

I just finished Hologram for the King by Dave Eggers. Holywasteoftime.

I have a big pile...not sure what's next. I'm also working my way through the Little House series too.

[mellenhead]

I'm still working on Double Down. I thought I would have a shit ton of time to read over Thanksgiving but I didn't.

[Bugsy]

I'm working on The Best Food Writing of 2012, and it's really great so far. The "Fat, Sugar, and Salt" one from last month's thread was excellent for the most part. It really laid things out pretty starkly regarding the deliberate marketing that happens at food companies, and the fat part was very interesting. It had some very eye-opening moments wrt the dairy marketing in this state.

[Rowan]

Finished On the Banks of Plum Creek. Read On the Shores of Silver Lake. Now I'm on The Long Winter which was always my favorite!

I also started Parasite by Mira Grant. Writing is just meh. Not sure if I will continue. I will give it a bit more time.

[mellenhead]

I also started Parasite by Mira Grant. Writing is just meh. Not sure if I will continue. I will give it a bit more time.

I just picked up Parasite at the library last night. The reviews I read either raved (and more seemed to be raving over her earlier books) or said the writing was pretty slow and boring.

[mellenhead]

I finally finished Double Down. It was excellent.

I also read After Dead by Charlaine Harris. It's a follow up to the ending of the Sookie Stackhouse books - to recap what ended up happening to all the characters - it was terrible and a total money grab. I'm so glad I didn't go out and buy this and just go it from the library.

[Rowan]

Still moving through the Little House series. Finished Long Winter and Little Town on the Prairie. These books are so comforting to me which is really what I need right now.

Will probably bring Parasite to hockey tonight. Don't want anyone to think I'm crazy for reading Little House.

[Rowan]

Thumbs down on Parasite. I should have stopped but I felt I had gone to far to turn back.

Started Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson. I usually like her books so I'm hopeful. I'm in a bit of a rut of bad books lately.

[Spudd]

I finished "Zero Day" by David Baldacci, which I quite enjoyed. It was far from being high literature, but it was a page-turning thriller.

Now I'm reading "Matched" by Allie Condie (sp?). I think if I'd read it before the Hunger Games / Divergent / Cinder, I would have loved it, but I'm finding it a bit formulaic. It's still a fun read, though.

[Beverly]

Rowan -- The Long Winter is my favorite, too.

I just read A Discovery of Witches and was a little disappointed, only because I didn't realize before starting that it was about vampires. Still, the writing was pretty good, and I've ordered the second book, so obviously it wasn't all bad.

A couple of weeks ago I read The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce, and it was FANTASTIC!

[Spudd]

I finished "Matched" by Allie Condie (sp?). I'm annoyed, because it didn't really have an ending. It basically felt like "OK, now go buy the sequel".

Just started "Dogfight: How Apple and Google Went to War and Started a Revolution" by Fred Vogelstein. So far it's REALLY fascinating (but I'm only like 20 pages in).

[mellenhead]

Ok, I tried to reread The Hobbit. It didn't go well. I think I made it to page 30 and just couldn't.

So, I'm about halfway though Empty Mansions by Bill Dedman. It's about a reclusive heiress name Hugette Clark. It's good but I'm in the boring ( to me) part where they recap the beginning of her life.

[mellenhead]

I finished Empty Mansions. It was good, but sad in some parts.

I just started The Love Song of Johnny Valentine. It about an 11 year old pop star and how he deals with life. So far it is amusing but I'm not far in.

[Sílvia]

I finished Night Film. It took me over a MONTH to finish it, so Mellen, I'm sad to report I didn't like it. I actually put it down halfway through and went online looking for spoilers, but then the spoilers got me intrigued and I decided to finish it. I would have liked it if it had been 200 pages shorter. I just thought it dragged and dragged. I also put it down for a few days to read a book about a woman who lost 122 lbs. I think we've established we don't have the same taste in books!

Last night I started Goodnight, Beautiful by Dorothy Koomson.

[mellenhead]

I'm sorry Silvia! Now you will know to stay away from anything I like!


I finished up The Love Song of Jonny Valentine by Teddy Wayne. It was pretty good. Funny but sad in parts, it's easy to see that this could be the real life of some of these kids pushed into fame at a young age by their parents.


Now I'm reading From Scratch: Inside the Food Network by Allen Salkin. I'm enjoying it so far.

[Beverly]

I'm reading Perfect by Rachel Joyce. I'm about a hundred pages in, and it's so good!

[mellenhead]

Finished up From Scratch: Inside the Food Network. It was really well written and interesting. Also changed my opinion of Bobby Flay being a douchebag.

I was going to start The Rosie Project but I just got a notification that The Goldfinch is on the hold shelf. I've been dying to read it.

[mellenhead]

Didn't realize my library was closed 12/31 and 1/1 so I still don't have my grubby hands on the Goldfinch.

So, I read The Rosie Project. I wasn't really a fan and wouldn't recommend it.

I have Want Not and may read that as I don't know when I'll manage to get to the library at this point.