Shannon’s Comments (group member since Jan 08, 2010)

Shannon’s comments from the Challenge: 50 Books group.

(12.). (Eleanor & Park) byRainbow Rowell

It was enjoyable. She definitely excels in non-fiction, but it was a pretty solid effort. Fast and easy. It took me two nights and was a bit of a vacation from heavier fare. I like her too, which is why I decided to go it a go!

(11.) (Where'd You Go, Bernadette?) by Maria Semple

(10.) (The Silver Star) by Jeannette Walls

(9.) (Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital by Sheri Fink

(8.) (The Cobra) by Frederick Forsyth

(7.) (Victims) by Jonathan Kellerman

(6.) (VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV's First Wave) by Nina Blackwood, et al

(5.). (The Round House) by Louise Erdrich

(4.) (The Husband's Secret) by Liane Moriarty

(3.). (True Detectives) by Jonathan Kellerman

(1.) (Avenger) by Frederick Forsyth

(2.) (W is for Wasted) by Sue Grafton

(4.) (Cutting for Stone) by Abraham Verghese
Read for book club. Loved, loved, loved this one! I highly recommended it!

(5.) (Little Bee) by Chris Cleave
I am determined not to get behind on book club selections this year, so I have already read the book for March. For all of the hype on the book cover and the pleas not to spoil the shocking events, this was rather disappointing. One of the protagonists is thoroughly unlikable.

(6.) (The Other Boleyn Girl) by Philippa Gregory
One of my other resolutions is to read book club selections that I skipped or didn't finish over the years. This is one that the book club read in the month the girls arrived. It was very readable, but not particularly great literature.

(1.) (Save Me) by Lisa Scottoline
Listened to as audiobook. Pretty unbelievable, but isn't that what reading is all about? Had a definite Paretsky flavor.

(2.) (Before Women Had Wings) by Connie May Fowler
Read for book club (finished a bit late). Interesting story...reminded me of The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls to a certain extent. Found myself wanting desperately to know what happened after the book ended.

(3.) (The Politician: An Insider's Account of John Edwards's Pursuit of the Presidency and the Scandal that Brought Him Down) by Andrew Young
Listened to as audiobook. Juicy and riveting. Completely shocking. Glad that Edwards is not our President!

It is mid-July, and I am not even halfway there...don't think that I am going to make it this year. Oh well.

(11.) (The Book Thief) by Markus Zusak

I've kinda gotten out of the habit of going to my library book club, but I was snooping on its Meetup page and saw that they were reading this book. I remember hearing some of my regular book club friends talk about it, so I decided to give it a go. From talking to people, it seems like either one will love it or hate it, and I definitely fell into the former category. I thought that it was one of the most innovative Holocaust-era books that I have read.

(12.) (Schooled) by Gordon Korman

Read this one for book club...another young adult fiction piece. It was kinda cute, and a funny take on the typical school outcast story.

(13.) (Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture) by Peggy Orenstein

I read this one after hearing about it on NPR. The snippet I heard was about how the Disney Princess phenomemon started. Although, I did agree with some of what Orenstein said and it was a thoroughly readable non-fiction piece, I have to admit that I rolled my eyes alot and felt that she really needed to get a grip and quit taking things so seriously. My girls play with both Disney Princess and Thomas the Tank Engine and have fun with both.

(14.) (The Outsiders) by S.E. Hinton

I read this on the recommendation of a book club friend who decided it to read it along with our Schooled/Catcher in the Rye monthly selection. I had never read it and was totally surprised to learn that the author was a teenaged girl at the time of writing it (though not surprised in retrospect after thinking about it for a while). I can see why this was such a provocative book at the time it was first published. Now, I am eager to check out the movie...

(15.) (Winter's Bone) by Daniel Woodrell

I had never heard of this book or of this author until my mom and dad gave me this book and told me to read it in anticipation of their book club meeting that they were hosting during my visit. All I can say is that YOU HAVE TO READ THIS BOOK. It is incredibly provocative and so very well-written. I haven't read this book this good in a while.

(16.) (Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly) by Anthony Bourdain

We are discussing this book at August's book club meeting. I missed the bulk of the book selection meeting in January and inwardly groaned when I saw that consensus had been reached to read another food book. I have intensely disliked both of the other food books that we have read (i.e., French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, and was worried that this would be the same. However, I really enjoyed this...in sort of that guilty reading People magazine way! At first, I didn't like the guy but he really grew on me and actually made me feel guilty (as did the other two food books did) about my eating habits. The guilt felt different, though...instead of feeling like a punished child, I just felt like I was missing out on something great. So, when I was offered a dish from South America the other day that was made with octopus or squid or some other sort of sea creature that freaks/grosses me out (I deliberately did not ask for clarification), I tried it. And, guess what? I liked it!!!

(17.) (Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth) by Jeff Kinney

I took the children to the little library here and browsed the shelves while they were trying some computer games. I knew that a movie based on this series was being made and was curious. Fun!

(18.) (Change of Heart) by Jodi Picoult

I enjoy Jodi Picoult in the same way that I enjoy some of my favorite mystery writers. She is familiar and comfortable and easy to read, albeit somewhat formulaic. I do appreciate her research and this one did not disappoint.

(9.) (The Burning Wire) by Jeffery Deaver

(10.) (Edge) by Jeffery Deaver

Catching up on some releases from one of my favorite authors over Mother's Day Weekend. Deaver is exciting as always, but I have to admit that I liked the Edge alot more than I liked The Burning Wire, which is a Lincoln Rhyme novel. I loved reading and thinking about game theory...it made the story believable and fun!

(8.) (Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother) by Amy Chua

I have to admit that I couldn't resist putting in a request at the library for this one. Considering that I was number 94 when I placed the request, the read is in high demand. A desire to learn the secret? Morbid curiosity? Not so sure...but I fell for it too. Enjoyable, but I have to admit that reading the book made me feel very sorry for this family. I was a high-achieving child too...I never talked back to my parents or misbehaved, but my parents never screamed at me or threatened to throw my toys away and I went to plenty of sleepovers. If this is how I have to treat my children to compete with China...they win...I don't have the stomach for it.

(6.) (Spider Bones) by Kathy Reichs

(7.) (206 Bones) by Kathy Reichs

Two fun and easy reads that I just happened to see at the library one day when the girls and I were there. Great literature...no. Relaxing brain fluff...yes. I do have to admit that I think that Reichs is going the same way as some of my other favorite authors have (i.e., Cornwell, Patterson, etc.) in that the stories are just not as good. I sometimes wonder if the pressure to put out books becomes so great as these writers become very popular and stretched thin that the creative "juices" that attracted everyone to them flows a bit more reluctantly.

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