500 Great Books By Women discussion

Brainstorming

B
1 1900s (year of publication) The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
2 sci fi
3 Latin America (author country of origin)
4 queer (theme/author)
5 potential classic (published after 1969)

I
1 translation (not from English)
2 play -
3 disability (theme/author) - https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1... - (careful using these suggestions, it's not all women and it's gotten unruly with public add ons)
4 pre-1800s (year of publication) -
5 novella (less than 200 pages (subject to change)

N
1 2000s (year of publication)
2 long read (600+ pages)
3 free space - Death in Fancy Dress by Anthony Gilbert
4 less than 1,000 ratings - Fell Murder by E.C.R. Lorac
5 fantasy

G
1 1800s (year of publication)
2 nobel prize laureate (doesn't have to be for lit) -
3 Africa (author country of origin) Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
4 less than 5,000 ratings -
5 mystery/thriller

O
1 Less than 10,000 ratings -
2 Asia (author country of origin)
3 poetry
4 nonfiction The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence by Anita Anand
5 short story collection

Tracking

B
1 1900s (year of publication) - The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
2 sci fi
3 Latin America (author country of origin) - Betty Boo by Claudia Piñeiro
4 queer (theme/author) - Island of the Mad by Laurie R. King
5 potential classic (published after 1969)

I
1 translation (not from English) - The Law of Lines by Hye-Young Pyun
2 play -
3 disability (theme/author) - -
4 pre-1800s (year of publication) -
5 novella (less than 200 pages (subject to change)) - S. S. Proleterka by Fleur Jaeggy

N
1 2000s (year of publication)
2 long read (600+ pages)
3 free space - Death in Fancy Dress by Anthony Gilbert
4 less than 1,000 ratings - Fell Murder by E.C.R. Lorac
5 fantasy

G
1 1800s (year of publication)
2 nobel prize laureate (doesn't have to be for lit) -
3 Africa (author country of origin) - Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
4less than 5,000 ratings - The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden
5 mystery/thriller Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

O
1 Less than 10,000 ratings - The Living is Easy by Dorothy West
2 Asia (author country of origin) The Aosawa Murders by Riku Onda
3 poetry
4 nonfiction The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence by Anita Anand
5 short story collection Orange World and Other Stories by Karen Russell

Welcome to the challenge, Carol. I'm looking forward to your choices.

B 3 complete.

I read Claudia Piñeiro’s Betty Boo. Finished 14 January.

O 2 complete. (Would work for several other tasks, too.)

I read The Aosawa Murders by Riku Onda. Finished January 22.

Both of those books look really interesting. I’ll have to add them to my to read list.

Samy wrote: "Both of those books look really interesting. I’ll have to add them to my to read list."

They are!

Betty Boo takes some time to get in to, but is well worth it. Aosawa is told by a series of unidentified first person narrators, so part of what’s mesmerizing, in addition to the art of its structure, is that the reader is constantly engaged with the mental work of determining the role the speaker plays in the finished tapestry.

If you read either or both, let me know your thoughts!

O 4 complete.

I read The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence by Anita Anand. Finished January 27.

Just finished The Aosawa Murders today (not for this challenge). Great recommendation. I agree with your review that it's a 4 rather than a 5, but it was a compelling read nevertheless. Now I'll definitely have to check out Betty Boo, especially when I read that Claudia Piñeiro is supposedly the Argentinian Patricia Highsmith...sounds intriguing.

Samy wrote: "Just finished The Aosawa Murders today (not for this challenge). Great recommendation. I agree with your review that it's a 4 rather than a 5, but it was a compelling read neverthel..."

I loved it, but please ignore that highsmith reference. It is weird and misleading. Piniero’s characters and plot remind me more of Susan Isaacs than any other author. But there’s nothing of Highsmith here.

N 4 Complete

I read Fell Murder by E.C.R. Lorac. Finished February 11.

I 5 novella complete

I read S. S. Proleterka by Fleur Jaeggy. Finished February 11.

Carol wrote: "I 1 complete

I read S. S. Proleterka by Fleur Jaeggy. Finished February 11."

How did this go? I've been hoping to get my hands on one of Jaeggy's works for a while now.

Aubrey wrote: "Carol wrote: "I 1 complete

I read S. S. Proleterka by Fleur Jaeggy. Finished February 11."

How did this go? I've been hoping to get my hands on one of Jaeggy's works..."

I found it brilliant and disturbing, and the language mesmerizing. Highly recommended.

Ooo. Glad to hear this! I've been wanting to read Jaeggy too.

Great progress on this challenge, Carol.

Kathleen wrote: "Ooo. Glad to hear this! I've been wanting to read Jaeggy too.

Great progress on this challenge, Carol."

Thanks, Kathleen. I’d love to know your thoughts if you read this or another.

Thanks for the Betty Boo recommendation. I really enjoyed it and read it for another challenge I'm doing. Parts of it had me laughing aloud. You were completely right, not at all like Highsmith. I guess (unsurprisingly) the PR people who do book blurbs are not always the best sources.

Based on your comments, now I'll have to go find and read some books by Susan Isaacs and Fleur Jaeggy!

Samy wrote: "Thanks for the Betty Boo recommendation. I really enjoyed it and read it for another challenge I'm doing. Parts of it had me laughing aloud. You were completely right, not at all li..."

Ha! Susan Isaacs is best described as really smart 1980s-1990s chicklit. I adored her back in the day. Then I had the sense that she'd told all the stories she needed to tell and was recycling, without passion. Almost Paradise remains one of the ten novels that influenced me the most and I highly recommend it to anyone. Also avoid Compromising Positions at all costs. lol

G 5 mystery / thriller

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell. Finished 22February.

G 4 less than 5,000 ratings

The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden. Finished 24February.

I 1 Translation (not from English)

I read The Law of Lines by Hye-Young Pyun. Finished 20 March.

B 1 Published in the 1900s

I read The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery. Finished 14 April.

O 1 fewer than 10,000 ratings.

I read The Living is Easy by Dorothy West.

N 3 free space

I read Death in Fancy Dress by Anthony Gilbert, a pseudonym of Lucy Beatrice Malleson.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antho...

G 3 Africa (author country of origin)

I read Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

B 4 Queer (theme)

I read Island of the Mad by Laurie R. King

O 5 Short story collection

I read Orange World and Other Stories by Karen Russell.