It's March - what are you reading?

[Rowan]

I abandoned Seizure partially because it was due back at the library and partially I wasn't really into it.

I'm 2 pages into The Accident by Linwood Barclay. I've read a few of his in the past year and am always happy with the choice. Hopefully I can find a chunk of time to read this weekend - I'm really a miserable human being when I don't read.

[mellenhead]

I'm about halfway through The American Way of Eating - Undercover at Walmaft, Applebees, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table by Trace McMillan. It's like a cross between Fast Food Nation and Nickel and Dimed. It's pretty good but there really isn't any new information.

[Spudd]

I can't remember if I mentioned this or not, but I'm reading "The Mad Cook of Pymatuning". It's pretty enthralling, especially now I'm getting close to the end.

[Sílvia]

I'm finishing The Age of Innocence. I should start believing myself when I say I don't like the classics (even modern classics). The story line may be interesting, the characters well-developed, but the pace... oh God. I can't stand the never-ending social calls to 500 different characters throughout these books, the boring dialogs, without a single fact to add to the story for 50+ pages at a time. I skipped whole paragraphs in this one. That said, I do like the basic story, I just don't have patience for the pace.

[mellenhead]

I finished up The American Way of Eating. It was ok but if you've read FFN or Nickel and Dimed this is basically the same thing.

I also finished Talking with My Mouth Full by Gail Simmons, she's one of the judges on Top Chef but has had a ton of other jobs in the food and hospitality industry. It was an interesting and quick read.

Up next is Human Cargo.

[Bugsy]

Just read "Food Rules," by Michael Pollan; it was excellent and a quick, easy read. Cool illustrations too! I'm 4/5 done with listening to his "In Defense of Food" as well, and it's also excellent. These two books have overlapping information, but "In Defense..." is much more in-depth. It really is crazy to consider how much our diet has changed since even most of our grandparents were children.

Next up will now really be the second book in the "Game of Thrones" series.

[Rowan]

mellen!

The new one from Deborah Harkness, Shadow of Night is coming out soon (or is out?). I read her first Discovery of Witches (?) at your recommendation.

[Spudd]

I finished "The Mad Cook of Pymatuning". I found the ending unsatisfying.

Then I whipped through "Shopaholic & Sister" in about a day. I really did not like it. I mean, it had some amusing moments, but I spent most of my time thinking the heroine was a complete idiot.

Now I'm reading "Startide Rising" by David Brin. So far it's good but I'm only one chapter in.

[Sílvia]

I'm finishing The Age of Innocence. I should start believing myself when I say I don't like the classics (even modern classics). The story line may be interesting, the characters well-developed, but the pace... oh God. I can't stand the never-ending social calls to 500 different characters throughout these books, the boring dialogs, without a single fact to add to the story for 50+ pages at a time. I skipped whole paragraphs in this one. That said, I do like the basic story, I just don't have patience for the pace.

I feel exactly the same way.

You mean about this book or about classics in general?

I'm reading Fall of Giants by Ken Follett. So far it's intriguing, let's see how it'll develop.

[mellenhead]

mellen!

The new one from Deborah Harkness, Shadow of Night is coming out soon (or is out?). I read her first Discovery of Witches (?) at your recommendation.

Ha! I just added myself to hold list this weekend!

I cannot get thru Human Cargo. It's about refugees and seemed interesting but it's so DRY. I just can't do it.

Next up is either Kingdom of Childhood or Behind the Beautiful Forevers.

[Sílvia]

I finished Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. Are all her books the same basic plot: something happens to a kid, husband and wife think differently about it and it strains their relationship, then there's a trial and then husband and wife make up? Because I was predicting the story from the getgo.

The ones I read, yes.

[mellenhead]

I finished Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult. Are all her books the same basic plot: something happens to a kid, husband and wife think differently about it and it strains their relationship, then there's a trial and then husband and wife make up? Because I was predicting the story from the getgo.

YES. My Sisters Keeper was the one that sent me over the edge with her.

I finished Kingdom of Childhood by Rebecca Coleman. It's about a 40 something female teacher having an affair with a 16 year student. I was quite good in a creepy kind of way.

Next up is Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo. This books seems to be getting rave reviews so I'm hopeful I like it.

[mellenhead]

I finished Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo. It was decent and quite sad. The way it was written I had a hard time remembering that it was a nonfiction book.

Right now I'm about halfway through Ali in Wonderland. It has it's funny parts but it's nothing great.

I have the next 3 The Walking Dead comics waiting for me at the library. Those ought to put me right into a nice depression. I need to wander around and find a few other books since nothing else is in off of my hold list.

[Beverly]

I just finished A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian, a novel by Marina Lewycka that my mom got for me a couple of months ago. All the reviews say that it's a comic novel -- it even won a comic prize -- and words like "hilarious" and "jaunty" are used to described it. I thought it was good, definitely worth reading, but it wasn't funny AT ALL. There were funny-ish moments, sure, but mostly it was bittersweet and poignant. I found an interview with the author where she said that she hadn't intended to write a comic novel, but rather to say something "profound about the human condition." That much better describes the book I read.

In any case, now I'm on to What Alice Forgot.

[mellenhead]

I read a couple of older books - Smart Women by Judy Blue and Chasing Harry Winston by Lauren Weisberger. Both were mindless and generally ok reads.

I just got Defending Jacob and Gods of Gotham from the library so I need to pick one to start with.

[Rowan]

I finished Girlchild by Tupelo something or other. I had to force myself to finish it. Gah. It has gotten such crazy good reviews. I found it disjointed and I was constantly confused as to where I was in the story. I'm traveling next week so hopefully will get some reading in on the plane. Yay!

[Rowan]

Blush, any insight in Girls in White Dresses? I can get it from the library for my Kindle and wondered how it was...

[Beverly]

I'm almost halfway in to What Alice Forgot (another Blush recommendation!), and so far I like it a lot.

[mellenhead]

I finished Defending Jacob by William Landay. Meh. It was ok, but it was farily easy to figure out the twist. Not sure why I bother reading mystery/thriller books because I always end up annoyed.

I still have Gods of Gotham to read but then I realized it has a 5 page glossary of words used in the book (it's set in 1895, I think) .

I reread The Hunger Games yesterday in anticipation of seeing the movie this weekend. Still loved it and now I'm tempted to reread the next 2 as well.

[Beverly]

I just finished What Alice Forgot, and I really liked it. Now I'm on to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy so that my husband will finally stop mocking me for not having read it.

Mellen, I really want to read Gods of Gotham since it's been compared to Caleb Carr's The Alienist, which I LOVED. I'll have to wait 'til it's out in a cheaper format, though.