Ink and Paper Blog discussion

Hello everyone! Can you believe today is the start of 2018?? I am hoping this year I read more of the books that are on my shelf. My TBR is so big. I have started reading The Observations by Jane Harris. OMG this book is so engrossing! Have any of you read it?

What are you starting the year with?

American War by Omar El Akkad. So far, so good!

and a happy new year to you!

Unfortunately, I will be finishing The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater as I started in late in 2017 and couldn't finish. Then I think I will be doing some challenges with some new authors that I haven't read before.

Since one of this year resolutions is to read more classics I started 2018 with Mariana by Monica Dickens.

I read a few books at a time. I started the New Year with But I am reading the anniversary edition with I couldn't find on the list,, I am reading the physical book, but was listening to the audio while doing boring chores, and I am glad I did, the narrator voice put a great image in my mind!
I am also reading which is a quick read and fun
I am halfway thru Stephen King IT! but the same thing that happens with a lot of his books has slowed me down,, I LOVE his writing and I suspend my disbelief,, then it goes WAY of the rails and I have to take a break to finish it,, I am about half way done,,,

I’m starting off the new year with the Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami, so far im really liking it!

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته نصيحة لكل اعضاء القروب قراءة كتب الدين للعلماء وخاصة ابن القيم الجوزية فقد شمل كل ما تريد ففيها خير الدنيا والاخرة فقال عز وجل قفى كتابه العزيز وما اوتيتم من العلم الا قليل فعلم الله واسع ولا نعرف به الا القليل علم الله هو العلم الشرعى علم الفقه علم الحديث علوم القران انما العلوم العصرية او علوم الالة لاتنفع ان لم يواكبها علوم شرعية فالتفقه فى الدين امر مطلوب حتى نفوز بخير الدنيا والاخرة وبارك الله فى الجميع

See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt is a carryover from last year. I’m really enjoying this. Why can’t we get enough of Lizzie Borden? I would even take in an opera of it. Engrossing!

I have carried over Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury from December and have just started Beautiful Animals by Lawrence Osborne. I struggled a bit a first with Bradbury's impressionistic, dream like prose, but have started to get into it now and some sections are beautifully written. Not really read enough of the Osborne to comment yet, but it has had a promising start.

I have got a couple of history books to pick up next: The Lion and the Unicorn: Gladstone vs. Disraeli by Richard Aldous and Georgian London: Into the Streets by Lucy Inglis. The former for my local history book group and the latter for a new group started by Gemma at NonFicBooks on BookTube.

Finished up The End of Your Life Book Club
Currently reading Alias Grace
then on to:
The Changeling
The Green Mile, Part 1: The Two Dead Girls (reading the as a series with a book group)

I'm reading Tuesday Nights in 1980 by Molly Prentiss and so far it's interesting. I started Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and that's good also, and I plan on picking up The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery today so I have a Non-fiction going as well.

Deb wrote: "Finished up The End of Your Life Book Club
Currently reading Alias Grace
then on to:
The Changeling
[book:The Green Mile, Part 1: The Two Dead Girls|922..."
I loved The End of your Life Book Club and Alias Grace. The Netflix series is also really good

Rebecca wrote: "Deb wrote: "Finished up The End of Your Life Book Club
Currently reading Alias Grace
then on to:
The Changeling
[book:The Green Mile, Part 1: The Two De..."

I wanted to read Alias Grace before watching the series! Glad that you thought it was good!

I finished The Changeling and now I’m reading Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson. It’s nonfiction which I don’t really read and this reads more like fiction. Bryan Stevenson is a lawyer that works with death row inmates and I’m reading it saying “I can’t believe this is real life”! I also started Night Film.

I am currently reading Priestdaddy: A Memoir and slowly it’s starting to grow on me. I wanted to read more nonfiction and memoirs in 2018’. The auhtor is known for her poetry and it is very prevalent in her writing of this memoir. I like it, but I think the need for the author to use the same style as poetry in writing a memoir becomes a bit hard to understand what she trying to say.

Currently reading White Teeth by Zadie Smith. It's my first ZS read and can she write! She has wonderful descriptions.

Unfortunately I haven't started my year off that well. Finished but didn't enjoy Lincoln in the Bardo and Guns, Germs, and Steel. I think I'll start The Changeling now and also want to read Such Small Hands.

Bah Humpug wrote: "Unfortunately I haven't started my year off that well. Finished but didn't enjoy Lincoln in the Bardo and Guns, Germs, and Steel. I think I'll start The Changeling now and also want to read Such Sm..."
I have Lincoln in the Bardo on audiobook. I’ve been debating to read it. What turned you off from it?

Francesca wrote: "I have Lincoln in the Bardo on audiobook. I’ve been debating to read it. What turned you off from it?"

I enjoyed it at first, but lost interest after the novelty of it wore off. The book is composed of two parts - dialogue from the ghosts in the graveyard and news/interview/book clips. The ghosts section was intriguing at times, but Saunders devoted quite a lot of time on the individual ghosts' stories which I felt detracted from the Lincoln storyline. I think it's his short story background poking through. I cared about Lincoln, his son, and the 3 main ghosts, but found the rest to be too much. And the clips were often very repetitive. I wonder if the audiobook might be better considering how its mostly dialogue/monologues.

I am currently reading Moby Dick as I want to read one long book per month and that is my January one, it is a tough read, but I have less than 300 pages to go now. Then I will be reading The Changeling.

Personally I loved Lincoln in the Bardo.

I read Lincoln in the Bardo a couple weeks ago and plan to re-read for my book club closer to our meeting date. It was a tough read for me until part 2, then I started to like it (which is another reason I am planning to re-read, to hopefully like part 1). I do agree with Bah Humpug that the lives of the secondary ghosts were distracting. Let's see how I feel about it after another read. My husband was confused in the beginning when he read it but ended up loving it.

I love the first few chapters of Moby Dick in New Bedford and Nantucket. After that, there is a good story in there bogged down with technical manuals for whaling. I finished it, but it was difficult! Keep it up, Susannah!

Francesca wrote: "Bah Humpug wrote: "Unfortunately I haven't started my year off that well. Finished but didn't enjoy Lincoln in the Bardo and Guns, Germs, and Steel. I think I'll start The Changeling now and also w..."

Francesca wrote: "Bah Humpug wrote: "Unfortunately I haven't started my year off that well. Finished but didn't enjoy Lincoln in the Bardo and Guns, Germs, and Steel. I think I'll start The Changeling now and also w..."


LITB is a tough read and people either love it or hate it. I read the physical book while listening to the audiobook. It took me awhile to get into the way the book it writtten and put together. Once that happened I just flew through it.

It helps to know that the spirits are manifesting themselves as they were at the moment of death; that their death is what defines them, and will, until they accept themselves, their mistakes, and ultimately their death.

I finished The Alienist (Caleb Carr) last night and today I'm reading Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty.

Lu wrote: "I finished The Alienist (Caleb Carr) last night and today I'm reading Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty."

That is funny i am down to the last 100 pages of the Alienist hahaha

Oh wow, haha! It took me forever to get through the first half of the book! Some days, I didn't even pick it up. Anyway, I hope you're enjoying it. (although..."enjoying" seems like the wrong thing to say, given the subject matter...)

Picked up and finished a graphic novel, My Favorite Thing is Monsters. It was fantastic. Highly recommend.

Veronica and Lu - how do you like The Alienist? I've had that on my tbr for a while.

I'm currently reading Madonna in a Fur Coat by Sabahattin Ali. I'm about a third of the way in and enjoying it so far.

Bah Humpug wrote: "Picked up and finished a graphic novel, My Favorite Thing is Monsters. It was fantastic. Highly recommend.

Veronica and Lu - how do you like The Alienist? I've had that on my tbr for a while."

I thought it was really good! It's a bit graphic in a few parts, so if that kind of thing bothers you, I probably wouldn't recommend it. I'm a Victorian enthusiast and a mystery lover, so it was right up my alley.

I read White Lines by Jennifer Banash and I am currently reading A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

Lu wrote: "Oh wow, haha! It took me forever to get through the first half of the book! Some days, I didn't even pick it up. Anyway, I hope you're enjoying it. (although..."enjoying" seems like the wrong thing..."

And i just finished it this morning. I "enjoyed" the whole thing. I like crime stuff so nothing bothers me too badly-does that make me a bad person?-heheheh

Bah Humpug wrote: "Picked up and finished a graphic novel, My Favorite Thing is Monsters. It was fantastic. Highly recommend.

Veronica and Lu - how do you like The Alienist? I've had that on my tbr for a while."

I just finished and liked it alot! I wanted to read it before the series on TV!

I just picked out Sweetland to read from my shelves....anyone else read this?

I just finished The Fact of a Body and was surprised at how underwhelming it was for me. Has anyone else read this?

Loralie wrote: "I just finished The Fact of a Body and was surprised at how underwhelming it was for me. Has anyone else read this?"



Yes, I agree. I wanted more true crime and less memoir.

Just finished Priestdaddy which was HILARIOUS! A little too much on the prose side, but all in all a good read. I’m currently half way through Everything is Here Beautiful by Mira T. Lee and am sucked into the characters that Lee has created. Probably one of the most realistic fiction novels on mental health I’ve read in a long time.

I just finished The Blood of Emmett Till and wow. So amazing.

Loralie wrote: "I just finished The Blood of Emmett Till and wow. So amazing."

Loralie - I have ordered it and it should be here today. Glad you enjoyed it. I plan on reading it for Black History Month - can't wait!!

I'm about 3/4 of the way through Wolf Hall and I hate to admit that I'll be glad when I'm done. I had such a hard time getting into it, that I ended up getting the audiobook from my library and I'm reading along with the narration. Is that cheating?! I know everybody loved it and I know it won the Man Booker, but geez Louise, if I didn't know a little bit about the Tudors/Henry VIII, I'd be completely lost! Anyway, on the complete opposite side of the spectrum, I'm also reading a cozy mystery called Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander. Judge if you will, but I needed something light to add to the mix! :-D

For those wanting to plan ahead for March, the kindle version of Purple Hibiscus is on sale at Amazon for $1.99 today.

Currently reading Before the Fall by Noah Hawley and really enjoying it.

Currently reading Here We Are Now by Jasmine Warga and I'm having fun with it since this is the first book that I'm reading from this author. And Then I'm going to read Zenith by Sasha Alsberg and Lindsay Cummings, I hope this book is good!

Thankyou bah humbug I bought purple hibiscus on amazon

Currently reading under the never sky also his dark materials
Great books

Currently Reading, this monstrous thing, a natural history of dragons and the boy from the stars.