AlexandriaLibraryVA discussion

Hi my name is Katie and I am the moderator and one of the Adult Service librarians for the Alexandria Libraries.

I am currently reading The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy.

Hi! I'm reading Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton.

Hello there! I'm reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

Hi, I'm reading Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon and Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley.

Hi All,

Thanks for joining us!

Ramses by Christian Jacq.

Hello! I am reading The Angel Court Affair by Anne Perry. :)

I was happy to find the new Anne Perry when I was shelving a few weeks ago. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I hope she never stops writing.

Jane wrote: "I was happy to find the new Anne Perry when I was shelving a few weeks ago. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I hope she never stops writing."

Jane, she's coming out with two more in September--Corridors of the Night (Monk) and Lancaster Gate Terror (Pitt). :D

I can't wait to read them!

Jane have you tried the bio The Search for Anne Perry by Joanne Drayton? Her real life could be a crime novel.

I have and you're right. She definitely knows her subject matter!

Hi, I'm Camilla. I just finished "The Girl With All The Gifts" by M.R. Carey.

Hi Camilla

Welcome! I wasn't familiar with that title and I just looked it up. It seems like a really good book. What were your thoughts? We have it listed with a subject of zombies and I do enjoy a good zombie book.

Alexandria Library wrote: I am currently reading The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy. [bookcover:The Dead Lands..."

I have finished the Dead Lands and it was a really interesting dystopian take on the story of Lewis and Clark.

I just finished The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri, which was shortlisted for the 2013 Man Booker. Loved it. I learned about an interesting part of India's history.

Hey Lane,

Thanks for stopping by. That one is definitely on my to be read list.

Hi, I just finished The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi, and started Cardboard Gods, by Wilkes.

Hi Mary-Jane,

Thanks for stopping by. How did you like the Water Knife?

I really liked this book. I have enjoyed his books before. This one really made me think about the viability of the southwest. I want to read Cadillac Desert which is featured in this book.

Hello! I am reading Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews.

Mary-jane wrote: "I really liked this book. I have enjoyed his books before. This one really made me think about the viability of the southwest. I want to read Cadillac Desert which is featured in this book."

I had trouble connecting with the characters. It might have been because it was a shortened loan period and I had two other books I needed to read as well. I have definitely kept the Water Knife on my to be read list and hoping for a chance when I can give it the time it deserves.

Alison wrote: "Hello! I am reading Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews."

Hi Alison,

Thanks for joining us. I hadn't heard about Red Sparrow but it looks really interesting. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts when you finish.

hi! I'm amanda and I just finished Destiny of a Republic by Candace Millard for one of my book clubs, and I'm in the middle of A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore :)

Hi Amanda,

Thanks for stopping by. Christopher Moore's books look really funny and I have A Dirty Job on my To Be Read List but I haven't had a chance to get to it yet. I would love to know what you thought of it when you finish.

I'm reading The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. I don't usually like this type of true crime novels but it is well written and I'm really enjoying it.

Hey Rachel,

Erik Larson's Best Selling new book Dead Wake is about the sinking of the Lusitania.

Find it at the library

Hi! I'm a recent transplant to Alexandria from Colorado and originally from Minnesota.

I'm nearing completion of Unto a Good Land, by Swedish author Vilhelm Moberg for my translated book for the Summer Bingo.

I've mostly been reading lot of what I call popcorn fiction while life has been crazy/in flux readying for our move (we knew it was coming for about 2.5 years). Small town romances sprinkled with a cozy here and there have been my mainstay. It has been nice to stretch my wings once again into something with a bit more substance. I'll need to do that more often as life settles into a new normal. Though I'm not yet ready for really heavy topics.

Hey Kristi,

Welcome to Alexandria! Thanks for taking up the Summer Reading Challenge. Alexandria is a great city to live in and I hope you enjoy it too.

Hello,
I'm a recent transplant from the Chicago area, and I just finished Donna Leon's Death at la Fenice-her first Guido Brunetti mystery set in Venice.
Margot
www.mjustes.com

Hi,

I'm Carolina and I'm currently reading The Girl With All the Gifts.

Hello Margot,

Welcome to Alexandria. The Brunetti series is a good one.

Hi Carolina,
Another member of the groups page recommended The Girl With All the Gifts and I read it and it was great.

Hello and Welcome,

To all of our new members. We'd love to hear what you're currently reading. Also feel free to let us know what you'd like to see on the Group Page.

I'm reading Golden Age by Jane Smiley and A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin -- both are Alexandria library books! :)

Hello!
Just joined this group today -- I'm glad to connect with others in Alexandria!
I'm currently reading Four Kitchens, by Lauren Shockey.

Hi Marjorie & Hannah,

Welcome to the group.

Marjorie, Jane Smiley is a good pick. Thanks for supporting the library.

Hannah we did a past discussion on favorite cooking memoirs if you are liking Four Kitchens.

Hi all! New to the group this week. I just finished The Book of Life (3rd and book in the All Souls trilogy), and now I'll be finishing off my Harry Potter re-read with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Not new to the group but excited to be reading The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma. Shortlisted for Man Booker in 2015. It's an amazing book. Just finished Eligible, which is the latest in the Austen Project. It's a re-telling of P&P. If you have to read anything Austen related, go ahead. I just can't give it a glowing review.

I just finished reading Othello first the time ever and am currently reading Ripper which is part of the David Lynn Golemon sci-fi series.

Hello-- I am currently reading "Down and Out in Paris and London" by George Orwell.

I just finished Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar. A classic read that I enjoyed. I imagine it was an unusual subject for its time. My book group just picked Moore's A Dirty Job. Amanda said you were reading it a few months ago. What did you think? It looks like it will be a light read and nice change after a book about depression.

Hello! I'm reading John Green's Looking for Alaska.

I'm reading Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld, a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice, and enjoying it a lot.

Hi Megan - Welcome. How did you like the All Souls Trilogy? I have read A Discovery of Witches and liked it. Can you believe that next year it will have been 20 years since the first Harry Potter book was published?

Hi Lane - Thanks for the post. :-) The Fisherman does look really interesting.

Wow a lot of classics being read.

Hi Sarah - Welcome. I have to admit I have never read Othello either. I lean towards the comedies, Much Ado About Nothing being my favorite.

Hi Michael - Welcome. How are you liking it so far?

Hi Mary-Jane - I also read A Dirty Job and I really liked it, and I have Second Hand Souls on my to be read list. It is a light quick read.

Hi Crystal - Welcome. How are you liking it?

Hi Maya - I'm also reading Eligible right now and so far I like it a lot.

I just joined the group today. I am currently reading Dear Leader by Jang Jin-Sung, a memoir of escaping from North Korea.

Hi, I just finished To Live by Yu Hua, which, unfortunately the library doesn't seem to carry, so I had to buy as I was reading it for a book club. It wasn't a style I typically like as it wasn't really character driven. It's apparently a classic, although it only came out 20 years ago. I always thought of classics as being much older than that!

Last night I started a book I've been meaning to read for many years, the first in the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett.

Rebecca wrote: "Hello there! I'm reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr."

I read that a few months ago & didn't delete it from my player so I can easily re-read in the future. Not usually drawn to war stories but this had a totally different feel and I liked it better than The Nightingale which I read shortly after.
My name is Elaine & I just joined this group. I alternate between Alexandria Central & George Mason Regional (Fairfax County). Currently I am listening to A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman and reading Booked to Die by John Dunning.
I am addicted to audio books as I am constantly knitting, but I can also listen as I walk the dog or do chores. I read fiction almost exclusively, mostly mysteries.

Elizabeth wrote: "I just joined the group today. I am currently reading Dear Leader by Jang Jin-Sung, a memoir of escaping from North Korea."

Hi Elizabeth, Welcome to the group, thanks for posting.

Elaine Cook wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "Hello there! I'm reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.""

Elaine, I just wanted to let you know that the Alexandria Burke Branch Library will be discussing Anthony Doerr's book on Aug 18 @ 2:00 pm for its monthly book club, if you are interested in joining in the discussion!

craige wrote: "Hi, I just finished To Live by Yu Hua, which, unfortunately the library doesn't seem to carry, so I had to buy as I was reading it for a book club. It wasn't a style I typically like as it wasn't r..."

Hi Craige I'm sorry you weren't able to find the book at the library. It definitely looks like something I should order.

I have also been meaning to read Terry Pratchett's books.