It's July...what are you reading?

[Rowan]

This weekend I read: 50 Shades Darker - meh; Bruiser by Neal Shusterman (YA) - pretty good read; and The Life Boat by Charlotte Rogan which I really enjoyed; it was pretty much unputdownable so I read it in nearly one sitting. It's the daily account of a woman who's boat sinks and is on a lifeboat. Ending was rushed but definitely worth reading.

Not sure what's next as I finished Lifeboat just last night....

[mellenhead]

The Receptionist - HATED HATED HATED. Hated the writing, hated the stories. I gave up on the last 50 or pages.

Next up: The List, then The Game of Thrones

[Rowan]

mellen, why don't you tell us how you really felt? Ha!

[mellenhead]

I keep reading reviews raving about the the book and I just don't get why. I hate it when I get excited about a book and it sucks.

[Rowan]

mellen, I hate that too. It's the same with movies that everyone loves and I just think "seriously"?

[Sílvia]

I'm still reading Under the Dome. Mellen, I'm finding it pretty good and VERY gripping, but it's a liiiitle too violent for my taste. Sometimes I have to put it down for a break. Have you read The Stand? Amazon readers keep comparing them.

[Rowan]

Looooove The Stand!

In my younger years, I would re-read it every summer (as it starts in June). I haven't read it in 20 years maybe I should.....

[mellenhead]

Sil, yeah there are some intense parts in there for sure. I did read The Stand a loooooong time ago. I don't remember enought about it to compare though.

[Rowan]

Yay, Jen Lancaster has posted her summer reading list on her blog Jennsylvania. I swear I love almost everything she recommends!

Started The Running Dream - YA novel about a teen runner who loses her leg in an accident. So far it's really good....

[Sílvia]

Get this: I went to my favorite bookstore today and they didn't have The Stand, which I'd seen there the other day, so I ordered it. It would take weeks to get here. But then I remembered Niko must be at the airport in San Francisco right then and texted him and asked him to check the bookstore there. He said "I'm running late, but I'll try. If not here, maybe at the stopover in Dallas". 30 minutes later he texts me: "got your book"! I love technology

I also got The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton at the store. It seems right up my alley. Have you guys read it?

[Blush]

Get this: I went to my favorite bookstore today and they didn't have The Stand, which I'd seen there the other day, so I ordered it. It would take weeks to get here. But then I remembered Niko must be at the airport in San Francisco right then and texted him and asked him to check the bookstore there. He said "I'm running late, but I'll try. If not here, maybe at the stopover in Dallas". 30 minutes later he texts me: "got your book"! I love technology

I also got The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton at the store. It seems right up my alley. Have you guys read it?

Technology is awesome.

I've read The Forgotten Garden. It was good, but I liked The Distant Hours better.

[Rowan]

Finished The Running Dream - cute YA, glad I read it.

Started Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which so far is awesome. The writing is incredible; great dialogue. I"m only 100 pages or so in but I'm hooked.

[Bugsy]

Jason and I recently went on a 4-night camping trip to a state park that was 285 miles away, in the far northern part of WI. While I drove we listened to the "Ender's Game" audiobook. Jason says it was his favorite part of the trip. I liked it too; I had read it about 10 years ago and had liked it, but I'd forgotten a lot of it. It was cool to listen to the commentary by Orson Scott Card, especially the part when he was explaining why he felt that audiobooks were the best formats for experiencing his writing. That was fascinating, IMO. And it was definitely entertaining and helped to drive the looong 5-hour drive each way.

Spudd, you'd said that you and Kenneth loved it too. Have to read/listened to any of the others in the series? I've heard from coworkers and friends that they're much more "adult" books than "Ender's Game," but that they're more-or-less worth the read.

In the two drives I've made to my hometown (~150 miles) in the last month or so I've also finished the audiobook of "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot. That was also excellent--very emotional--it definitely made me both laugh and almost tear up. My friend T found that reading it was a bit tedious, but I thought it was pretty great in audiobook format.

On the way back from my hometown today I started "Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim" by David Sedaris. It's my first experience with his material, and I'm finding it sort of "meh" overall. There have been funny moments for sure, but the overall impression is "meh." It's definitely a nice light diversion from the more serious tones of the other two books, that's for sure!

[Spudd]

Yeah, we liked "Speaker for the Dead" which we also listened to. After that I felt like things kinda went downhill. And then there's a Bean series set at the same time as Ender's Game but from Bean's point of view... not worth it IMO.

[Rowan]

I finished Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn this morning. I actually told dh that I had to finish it this morning before we did anything else! Big thumbs up; lots of twists and turns; highly recommended. I'll be looking for more from her.

I won't start anything until tomorrow. I was down and out yesterday so I need to make more of an effort to be with the family today.

[mellenhead]

Rowan I have Gone Girl on my hold list, I can't wait to read it.

I'm halfway through Game of Thrones and loving it. Can't believe I tried to read it months ago and thought it was boring.

[Sílvia]

I finished Under the Dome a few days ago. I liked it, but didn't love it. Pro: it was VERY gripping. I couldn't wait for a free minute to read a little more. Cons: like I said before, WAY too violent. Disturbingly so. I don't think that was necessary. I thought the ending was ridiculous. I expected a lot more. The explanation for the dome was just silly and some things were just not explained. AND it was rushed. After 1000+ pages, I thought I deserved better. But I'd still give it 3.5 stars. The man can certainly keep you hooked.

I started The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton, but I haven't read much yet.

[Blush]

Well, I finished "This Beautiful Life" by Helen Schulman. It ended with a whimper. It wasn't that long but I just wasn't excited to read it so I did no more than 10 minutes before bed every night.

Now I've got "Lost Innocence" by Susan Lewis. At first glance it seems a bit like a Maeve Binchy novel.

[Spudd]

I finished my boating around the Baltic book. Meh. Now I've started reading "Matterhorn" which I believe was Mellenhead's recommendation. So far it's good.

[mellenhead]

Yeah, I didn't want to mention that the ending for Under the Dome is . I was still glad I read it because I thought the writing/ story was so gripping. I was pissed for awhile after I got done with it at the ending. It almost felt like he didn't know what to do with the story or how to wrap it up.

Spudd, I loved Matterhorn!

I finished Game of Thrones today. SO GOOD. I'm chomping at the bit to read A Clash of Kings. There are still a shit ton of holds on it at the library.