Challenge: 50 Books discussion

Ready to start, even though there are a few more days left in 2019.

Good luck on your reading for the year!

I swore I started this list earlier. The first book I started I had to abandon because I just couldn't get into it. And I don't even remember what it was.

1. The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty I find her books so readable, and what I've read so far is also very cinematic. They should all be adapted.

2. The Cockroach by Ian McEwan Ian McEwan is one of my favorite writers, and while this isn't my favorite (or his best, IMO) it's a topical story about the current completely F***ed political situation in both the UK and the US.

3. The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer Meg Wolitzer is another author that I have recently come to appreciate.

4. What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty What would you think of your current self if you had to examine your life from the person you were 10 years ago? This is the question that I asked myself constantly while I read this book about a woman who suffers a brain injury and completely loses the last 10 years of her life. For me, actually, not that much has changed in 10 years, but if my 20 year old self saw me now, I think she wouldn't be too very disappointed. (Except in my appearance! OLD, GREY!)

5. The Secret Life of the Owl by John Lewis-Stempel I've been reading so many more non-fiction nature books and this was a treasure. I love owls and enjoyed this short book that was very thorough in its discussion of owls.

6. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty I'm going to run out of Liane Moriarty books really quickly at this rate. This is another winner that I read in record time.

In spite of supposedly having 'extra' time to read while sheltering in place, I haven't read that much. I'm working from home so I'm tied to the computer most of the day for work, so my reading hasn't been as productive as I would have liked.

I wish everybody health in this perilous time. Every day I go back and forth from feeling hopeful and then dreadful, but every morning I wake up grateful that my husband is well, my family and friends are well, and I am well. Take care, everybody!

Naomi V wrote: "... In spite of supposedly having 'extra' time to read while sheltering in place, I haven't read that much. I'm working from home so I'm tied to the computer most of the day for work, so my reading hasn't been as productive as I would have liked.

I wish everybody health in this perilous time. Every day I go back and forth from feeling hopeful and then dreadful, but every morning I wake up grateful that my husband is well, my family and friends are well, and I am well. Take care, everybody!"

Ditto to the work-from-home vs. reading. I was all excited to use this time to do some MASSIVE reading, but working from home is cutting into my reading time! (I know it could be worse: I could be sick or have lost my job! But why can't I have it all: still be healthy, still be employed, but not have to work so I can read the piles of books I was eyeing? :) )

Take care, Naomi. Maybe when you're beginning to feel dread coming on, you should grab a good book and immerse yourself in that for a while :)

(Oh, and it looks like you started your list over in this thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...)

Tiffany wrote: "Naomi V wrote: "... In spite of supposedly having 'extra' time to read while sheltering in place, I haven't read that much. I'm working from home so I'm tied to the computer most of the day for wor..."

Thanks, Tiffany. I deleted the duplicate list.

Tiffany wrote: "Naomi V wrote: "... In spite of supposedly having 'extra' time to read while sheltering in place, I haven't read that much. I'm working from home so I'm tied to the computer most of the day for wor..."

Hi, Tiffany. Forgive my belated response. I appreciate your gracious comments and hope that you and your loved ones are well. It does seem rather selfish for me to bemoan my situation when I do, in fact, have a job and my husband and I (and the cats) are healthy in this horrid time. Thank you for reminding me of that. I'm not going to worry any longer if I read "enough" or meet my goal. I'm happy to be alive, happy to be healthy, and will read as much or as little as I feel like. In the meantime, I've been knitting, which has been a life-saver as it requires just the right amount of concentration and repetition.

7. Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow I thought this was an excellent book, but much later I read some reports that Ronan may have made mistakes (?) (or deliberately did not report correctly?) (or lied?) about some of the circumstances in the book. Apparently, the discrepancies were about how much support (or not) he received when he was investigating this story for TV news. In any case, I don't believe that this miserable piece of s**t (whose name I will not write) may not be paying the penalty (small as it is, compared to his crimes) for his treatment of so many women.

9. On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong This beautifully written book is so hard to read because of the pain his family suffered.

10. The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison

11. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

12. The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarty Seriously, Liane Moriarty's books, along with knitting, kept me sane this year.

13. Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler I've always enjoyed Anne Tyler's books, but haven't read many of the recent ones. I guess it's time to catch up.

14. A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler And here's how I'm remedying that.

15. Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton by Tilar J. Mazzeo This book was obviously written after the fame of Lin Manuel Miranda's hit Hamilton. (Which, BTW, I saw three times in person and now stream about once a month.) She does have an interesting theory about the 'supposed' affair. I'm looking forward to reading Ron Chernow's book to see how it differs. The book, in spite of how interesting it was, was quite a disappointment because the author made many statements without attribution. I finally had to stop marking each questionable statement. There were too many.

16. Fair Warning by Michael Connelly I can always count on Michael Connelly for an engaging and fun books. Thanks!

17. After the Fire, a Still Small Voice by Evie Wyld Damn, I love this author. I want her to publish much, much faster.

18. A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight

19. Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir by Rebecca Solnit Rebecca Solnit is a genius and this is a small peek into her life. She is utterly and always fascinating.

I had a tough time concentrating this year and even if I read a few more before the end of the year, it would be a disappointing number of books. However, I did read a few really wonderful things and I hope my concentration returns soon so I can catch up on my backlog of to-be-read books.

24. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert Finally, on December 29 I finished this book that I started in February. I started it for the One City, One Book Chicago and in time to see the author, Elizabeth Kolbert, who made an appearance at DePaul University to discuss the book. I'm not a fast reader in any case, and when the pandemic hit and we were locked down, I didn't much feel like reading about extinction (not that I'd ever look forward to contemplating it.) Finally, in the past couple months, I've had the energy and concentration to read more, and I was determined to finish the book before the end of the year. Made it!

Kolbert writes about these scientific matters in a way that can be understood by the layman, and the scope of how humanity is altering the world is staggering. This quote was near the end of the book: "In pushing other species to extinction, humanity is busy sawing off the limb on which it perches," Paul Elrlich. Human beings aren't so bloody smart after all.

Naomi V wrote: "20. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert Finally, on December 29 I finished this book that I started in February. ... I'm not a fast reader in any case, and when the pandemic hit and we were locked down, I didn't much feel like reading about extinction (not that I'd ever look forward to contemplating it.) Finally, in the past couple months, I've had the energy and concentration to read more, and I was determined to finish the book before the end of the year. Made it!"

hehehe... I know that feeling! Congratulations on getting your reading mode back, and for finishing this book the same year you started! I have one similar to that -- big book, fairly dense, and then the pandemic hit and I just didn't feel like dealing with it anymore -- and I am NOT going to finish it the same year I started it :)

20. The Cold Millions by Jess Walter Jess Walter is one of my favorite writers and I'm always happy to see a new book by him. The Cold Millions was a wonderful read, mixing history of the early labor movement and the fictional story of two brothers involved in it. I love when a book sparks my interest and gets me researching a time, an event, or people.

21. The Searcher by Tana French Another favorite author! No wonder I'm back in my reading groove. On vacation and new books by old favorites. This one has me still pondering the end and how Cal, the main character, continues in life.

22. The Silence by Don DeLillo And yet another favorite author! Although this book was a bit of a disappointment. The concept is intriguing so I was hoping for more.

23. The Right Mistake by Walter Mosley And another! What a bonanza! This isn't a new book, though; I found it when I was packing books up to give away and had to read it right away.

To sum up, I managed to read 24 books this year. That's more than I thought I would after March. I started another book early on that I haven't finished, but I haven't given up on it either.

I hope next year is better for everybody.

Naomi V wrote: "I hope next year is better for everybody."

Cheers to that!

Tiffany wrote: "Naomi V wrote: "20. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert Finally, on December 29 I finished this book that I started in February. ... I'm n..."

Good luck! I hope you finish it soon so you can move on to something else.