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Buddy Reads
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Alissa and Lea's Informal Monthly Buddy Book Read - Others are Most Welcome to Join in!
Book CalendarWe will try to pick two months out so that we can get the books in time and we will alternate who gets to select off the list.
November 2021
The Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson - Picked by Alissa
December 2021
Never Let You Go by Chevy Stevens - Picked by Lea
January 2022 -
Stay Close by Harlan Coben - Picked by Alissa
A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler, Reading with Lindsey and Ioana...and possibly Denise and Kim E.!
February 2022 -
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi - picked by Lea, Reading with Carolien!! and Ann_R considering...and Renee will join the discussion, she has already read the book! Maybe Kim E. too. And Patricia's real life book club is reading this also, so she might chime in!
Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family by Robert Kolker - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Ioana! Patricia's real life book club is reading this also, a little bit after us, so she may post her thoughts late.
March 2022 -
The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams - Picked by Alissa, Reading potentially with Emily and Ann_R and Denise!
April 2022 -
The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman - Picked by Lea, Reading with Carolien!
May 2022 -
The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Denise!
June 2022 -
The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas - Picked by Lea, Reading with Beth!
Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Denise!
July 2022 -
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Kim E.!
August 2022 -
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton - Picked by Lea, Reading with Denise!
September 2022 -
No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War through Afghan Eyes by Anand Gopal - Picked by Alissa - Reading with Ioana!
October 2022 -
Sula by Toni Morrison - Picked by Lea - Reading with Carolien and Ioana!
November 2022 -
The Cocktail Waitress by James M. Cain - Picked by Alissa - Possibly reading with Ioana!
December 2022 -
Wanderers by Chuck Wendig - Picked by Lea - Reading with Ioana!
January 2023 -
The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart - Picked by Alissa
February 2023 -
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood - Picked by Lea
March 2023 -
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Ioana maybe!
April 2023 -
The Camel Club by David Baldacci - Picked by Lea
May 2023 -
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Patricia!
June 2023 -
A Summer Affair by Elin Hilderbrand - Picked by Lea, Reading with Denise and maybe Patricia!
July 2023 -
Beaches by Iris Rainer Dart - Picked by Alissa, Maybe reading with Patricia!
August 2023 -
Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered: The Definitive How-To Guide by Karen Kilgariff - Picked by Lea
September 2023 -
The Hero Two Doors Down: Based on the True Story of Friendship between a Boy and a Baseball Legend by Sharon Robinson - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Ioana and Patricia!
October 2023 -
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt - Picked by Lea, Reading with Patricia!
Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer - Picked by Alissa and Lea
November 2023 -
Vox by Christina Dalcher - Picked by Alissa
December 2023 -
The Alice Network by Kate Quinn - Picked by Lea, Reading with Denise!
January 2024 -
Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Ioana and Linda!
February 2024 -
Daughter of Moloka'i by Alan Brennert - Picked by Lea
March 2024 -
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Patricia, Pam, Jackie and Linda!
April 2024 -
No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden by Mark Owen - Picked by Lea
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren - Picked by Alissa
May 2024 -
The Break-Up Book Club by Wendy Wax - Picked by Alissa, Reading with Denise!
June 2024 -
Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly - Picked by Lea, Reading with Ioana and Denise!
July 2024 -
The Island by Elin Hilderbrand - Picked by Alissa
August 2024 -
The Passengers by John Marrs - Picked by Lea
September 2024 -
He Started It by Samantha Downing - Picked by Alissa
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales - Picked by Lea
October 2024 -
You Love Me by Caroline Kepnes - Picked by Lea
November 2024 - Prophet's Prey: My Seven-Year Investigation into Warren Jeffs and the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints - Picked by Alissa
December 2024 - Ring Shout - Picked by Lea
January 2025 - Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts - Picked by Alissa
February 2025 - The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez - Picked by Lea
February/March 2025 - The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf
March 2025 - The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson - Picked by Alissa
April 2025 - The Pecan Man by Cassie Dandridge Selleck - Picked by Lea
May 2025 - Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner - Picked by Alissa
June 2025 - Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions - Picked by Lea
July 2025 - One Summer - Picked by Alissa
August 2025 - The Impossible Girl - Picked by Lea
September 2025 - Girl with the Pearl Earring - Picked by Alissa
October 2025 - Six Years - Picked by Lea
November 2025 - The Little Prince - Picked by Alissa
December 2025 - Alias Grace - Picked by Lea
To Do List/Next Steps:READ, READ, READ!
I'd also be interested to join for The Henna Artist. I should consider Sula, but I'm still traumatised by Beloved. I'll see how I feel in February.
Carolien wrote: "I'd also be interested to join for The Henna Artist. I should consider Sula, but I'm still traumatised by Beloved. I'll see how I feel in February."Carolien, I felt the same way after reading Beloved in 2020. I had to take a year off reading Toni Morrison. I only picked it for February because Alissa is always reading seasonal books in the right month and February is Black History Month. However, we'd love to have you join us. We could also read The Henna Artist in February instead and then read Sula together later in the year once your heart has recovered?
I really am hoping to join this buddy read! I plan-or hope to-purchase The Reading List in January or February for the read if my upcoming challenges don’t swamp me! 😅Depending on my time frame of “life” and such, I will definitely let you know if I can or cannot join this fun.
Fingers crossed! 🐾
Happy reading!
Carolien wrote: "I'd also be interested to join for The Henna Artist. I should consider Sula, but I'm still traumatised by Beloved. I'll see how I feel in February."We do try to mix it up with different genres so I hope people would join us =)
And Carolien, I agree with Lea- We can always move Sula
(Or Lea, we can always add Henna Artist to our February list as we already doubled up in Jan- I'm game for whatever!)
Emily wrote: "I really am hoping to join this buddy read! I plan-or hope to-purchase The Reading List in January or February for the read if my upcoming challenges don’t swamp me! 😅Depending on my time frame of “life” and such, I will definitely let you know if I can or cannot join this fun.
Fingers crossed! 🐾
Happy reading!"
Emily, I am thrilled to hear that you are even considering joining us. No worries if it doesn't work out, but I'm excited that you're going to try. Let us know how things are going. In late February, we'll probably start discussing whether we should read it early March, mid March or late March, and if you can join us, your vote is very important. Looking forward to this! :-)
Ioana wrote: "I'll keep an eye on this 😉"Yes, if you see something you like in upcoming months, please join in.
And if there's a book we need to add to our list, just whisper in our ears...Alissa is the next person to provide me with 5 options in February...so be sure to enable her. :-)
Madeline wrote: "This is awesome! Thanks for doing this. I loved the The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle."Thanks for creating a space for us to play in, Madeline!
Evelyn Hardcastle has been staring at me for almost two years now, I'm excited that you loved it, and hope that we all do as well! :-)
Alissa wrote: "We do try to mix it up with different genres so I hope people would join us =)And Carolien, I agree with Lea- We can always move Sula
(Or Lea, we can always add Henna Artist to our February list as we already doubled up in Jan- I'm game for whatever!)"
Yes, we absolutely love having people join us, so if you have any book suggestions for our consideration, let us know.
And Alissa/Carolien, I'm totally good adding Henna Artist to February. I was just thinking that if Carolien wanted some extra time to recover from Beloved and she wanted to join us reading Sula that we should move Sula later? But we could for sure do both in February. I'm flexible. Except when I'm not. LOL. :-) :-) :-)
I'm going to lurk this and see if life ever allows me to participate this year, Nice choices by the way.
Lea wrote: "January 2022 -Stay Close by Harlan Coben - Picked by Alissa
A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler, with Lindsey!!!."
I might join you for the 2nd book in January.
Kim. E. wrote: "I'm going to lurk this and see if life ever allows me to participate this year, Nice choices by the way."Thanks, Kim. You are always welcome to join us anytime you are willing and able. Alissa and I are having fun with this for now. The only problem is that I want to read all of these books now. :-)
Ioana wrote: "Lea wrote: "January 2022 -Stay Close by Harlan Coben - Picked by Alissa
A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler, with Lindsey!!!."
I might join you for the 2nd book in January."
Yay, that would be great if it works out! I always love your thoughts. We're starting that one in early January right after the New Year with Lindsey.
Thanks, Alissa and Lea. Could we move Sula to September/October and do The Henna Artist in February? That would definitely work for me.
Lea wrote: "Yay, that would be great if it works out! I always love your thoughts. We're starting that one in early January right after the New Year with Lindsey."Perfect! The library had it available and I snatched it.
Reading now and recommending it as a fascinating description of the 50s and some society changes: American Baby: A Mother, a Child, and the Shadow History of Adoption. I'm about 50% into it, wow!
Ann_R wrote: "I am going to lurk here too. I recently bought The Book List and might join in with the discussion if possible. Also, The Henna Artist sounds interesting."Ann, that sounds great. It sounds like we are going to try to read The Henna Artist in February now, so if you're interested in that book and want to join us, that would be so fun. It sounds like The Book List is in March, so you could potentially be buddy reading with us two months in a row. Even the idea of that happening sounds super fun! :-)
Carolien wrote: "Thanks, Alissa and Lea. Could we move Sula to September/October and do The Henna Artist in February? That would definitely work for me."Yes, we can move it to October, no problem, since that would be my month to pick the books. I'll make that change right now and look forward to those months!
Ioana wrote: "Perfect! The library had it available and I snatched it.Reading now and recommending it as a fascinating description of the 50s and some society changes: American Baby: A Mother, a Child, and the Shadow History of Adoption. I'm about 50% into it, wow!"
Oh, wow, we are for sure following our only rule - this will be a lot of fun. I hope we all like the book. :-)
The book with the history of adoption sounds very interesting. I can only imagine how many changes have happened since the 1950's. Several of my cousins were adopted in the 1960's, maybe not too far removed from this time period. Thanks for the suggestion, I think I have to come up with another list of 5 books for Alissa, as we get this all planned out. I need all the help I can get, I feel as though this will be my third list in a short time frame! :-)
Mod
Everything else is just suggestions and guidance.
The Master List is below. We will try at all times to keep this list at 20 books that we've b..."
This is fabulous!! I knew you guys would come up with something!!
Thank you for posting your buddy read goals/lists. 💕💕🤗
Lea wrote: ".Alissa is the next person to provide me with 5 options in February...so be sure to enable her. :-)"
Umm excuse me ma'am but I believe we're missing a #20 on our master list... lol
Ann_R wrote: "Thanks, Lea. I will see if I can fit in those two books during those months."Excellent. Of course, no pressure, and no worries if it doesn't work out, but I think it would be very fun to hear your perspective. And having fun is our only rule around here. :-)
Alondra wrote: "This is fabulous!! I knew you guys would come up with something!!Thank you for posting your buddy read goals/lists. 💕💕🤗"
Thanks for finding us a little space for this playground. Maybe we'll even get some horror on this list, although not from the five options I just sent Alissa. There's too many good books out there and I want to read them all!!! :-)
Alissa wrote: "Umm excuse me ma'am but I believe we're missing a #20 on our master list... lol"Yes ma'am, please check your inbox.
I was hoping one of the books I got for Christmas would inspire some options for our list, but none of them are going to work.
I guess I'll just have to read more books.. Not a problem, I'm on it!
Ok, so now I need to know what books you got for Christmas Lea. I got a gift card for B & N and was more excited about it than anything else
Kim. E. wrote: "Ok, so now I need to know what books you got for Christmas Lea. I got a gift card for B & N and was more excited about it than anything else"I got Grimm's Fairy Tales, (not a good buddy reading book, it will be hard for us to all get the same version) H.M.S. Surprise, (Book #3 in a 20 book series, so not a good buddy reading book) and Suttree (which is by Cormac McCarthy - we already have one of his books on our list - having a diverse set of options on this list is best, I think). I got a gift card too, and am trying to figure out how to spend it. Tough choices are going to have to be made.
So, Alissa and I have decided to also read Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family in February, after we finish The Henna Artist. Ann_R, I know you were considering reading The Henna Artist with us, we're all ready to start it early February, maybe that will work for you? If you still want to read with us and another time will work better, let us know; otherwise, we are going to start early in the month. We'll try not to read too fast, I think Denise is still reading our January choice. :-)
Renee has also said she will join the The Henna Artist discussion since she has already read the book. She rated it five stars, no pressure! :-) :-) :-) I think the great thing about books is that they grab us all differently, so hopefully we will all have a five-star read, but even more than that, I hope we have a good discussion. I'm looking forward to this!
The first three messages in this thread have been updated with our current calendared buddy reads and our new selections for our list!! :-)
I will definitely be in for May's read and maybe March's.
Ioana wrote: "I'm in for Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family"Yay! When would you like to read it? I was thinking mid-month, but can be swayed whenever it works for you and Alissa.
Lea wrote: "Ioana wrote: "I'm in for Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family"Yay! When would you like to read it? I was thinking mid-month, but can be swayed whenever it wor..."
Anytime, I don't have advanced reading plans (like some other people I know) 🤣
Denise wrote: "I will definitely be in for May's read and maybe March's."Sounds great, Denise! I've got you down. I'm looking forward to both of those! :-)
Ioana wrote: "Anytime, I don't have advanced reading plans (like some other people I know) 🤣"Yikes, Alissa is ready to start it tomorrow. I better make us a thread to discuss it. I'm looking forward to this one! Let us know if that works for you.
Another book I've read - so I will have to follow the discussion on this one.I need to look through your list and strongly encourage one onto the schedule :-)
Kim. E. wrote: "Another book I've read - so I will have to follow the discussion on this one.I need to look through your list and strongly encourage one onto the schedule :-)"
Yes, obviously I don't speak for Alissa, but you can certainly suggest some books for us to add to the list. I need to send Alissa a list of five books in March for her to pick between. I'm highly suggestable - there are soooo many good books that I want to read. :-)
And if you see anything already on our list that you want to read with us, let us know. We are going to read at least one book a month, but if we can squeeze in a second book, we might just do it. Like last month and this month. :-)
Was looking at the schedule again and saw you’re reading The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams . I just finished this last week for a challenge group on Goodreads (have to pre- identify 30 books for a bingo card), and will look forward to reading your thoughts. It’s getting almost funny the books you guys are choosing and where they stand in my “I’ve read” or my “want to read” life.
Additional notes added: One of the crazy things about this pandemic has been the addition of podcasts to my life from several areas - and true crime really has become a steadfast, to the point I’ve even become a Patreon supporter for one. I’ve listened to MFF some and had no idea either had written a book! And how have I missed James M Cain all this time?? Quickly added several to my tbr list
Kim. E. wrote: "Was looking at the schedule again and saw you’re reading The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams . I just finished this last week for a challenge group on Goodreads. (have to pre- identify 30 books for a bingo card), and will look forward to reading your thoughts. It’s getting almost funny the books you guys are choosing and where they stand in my “I’ve read” or my “want to read” life.
Additional notes added: One of the crazy things about this pandemic has been the addition of podcasts to my life from several areas - and true crime really has become a steadfast, to the point I’ve even become a Patreon supporter for one. I’ve listened to MFF some and had no idea either had written a book! And how have I missed James M Cain all this time?? Quickly added several to my tbr list"
What did you think of The Reading List? I hope it is a good read. Please drop into that thread, like you did with Hidden Valley Road, if you get a chance. We'd love to hear your thoughts.
I had no idea that MFF had written a book either; the title on that book was so amazing that when Alissa recommended it, I went down a long long rabbit hole.
James M. Cain is a favorite of mine, I love his writing style. I picked one of his books out of a reading list, because I was in a hurry and it was super short, and I came to love his writing style, it seems like he never wastes a single word. His stories are all dark and awful, but still so good. Double Indemnity is my favorite of his books, but I hesitate to recommend it, because it is so dark.
Lea wrote: "Kim. E. wrote: "Was looking at the schedule again and saw you’re reading The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams . I just finished this last week for a challenge gr..."
I’m definitely going to check him out now. Nothing can be as dark as the book I just finished American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis . I still can’t decide even how to rate it
Lea wrote: "Yes, obviously I don't speak for Alissa, but you can certainly suggest some books for us to add to the list. .."
Yes u do, u can be my representative when I don't respond lol
Kim. E. wrote: "I’m definitely going to check him out now. Nothing can be as dark as the book I just finished American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis . I still can’t decide even how to rate it"Someday I'll read American Psycho, but it won't be today. I can't imagine that I will know how to rate it either. :-)
Alissa wrote: "Yes u do, u can be my representative when I don't respond lol"Alissa says that Lea should get extra chocolate today.
I am liking this already. :-)
Lea wrote: "Alissa says that Lea should get extra chocolate today."I know Alissa, she says you should share.
Ioana wrote: "Lea wrote: "Alissa says that Lea should get extra chocolate today."I know Alissa, she says you should share."
I love you girls so much lol
Kim. E. wrote: "I’m definitely going to check him out now. Nothing can be as dark as the book I just finished American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis . I still can’t decide even how to rate it.."I rated it 2 stars. I remember thinking I'm glad I read it but I don't ever want to read it again =)
Alissa wrote: "I rated it 2 stars. I remember thinking I'm glad I read it but I don't ever want to read it again =)."It's on my TBR, but so are so many other books...
Ioana wrote: "Lea wrote: "Alissa says that Lea should get extra chocolate today."I know Alissa, she says you should share."
Please, come and join me in my Snack-Thirty chocolate habit. What kind of chocolate would you like? (Snack-Thirty is 3:30 PM)
On The Same Page
Books mentioned in this topic
Alias Grace (other topics)Six Years (other topics)
American Dirt (other topics)
The Little Prince (other topics)
Girl with the Pearl Earring (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Sandra Cisneros (other topics)Rebecca Stead (other topics)
Mary Higgins Clark (other topics)
Julie Orringer (other topics)
Jeanine Cummins (other topics)
More...
Everything else is just suggestions and guidance.
The Master List is below. We will try at all times to keep this list at 20 books that we've both agreed we want to read.
1. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
2. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
3. The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead
4. The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer
5. The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros
6. Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty
7. A Quiet Retreat by Kiersten Modglin
8. Chasing Redbird by Sharon Creech
9. The Unsinkable Greta James by Jennifer E. Smith
10. Silver Girl by Elin Hilderbrand
11. The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian
12. The Midnight Children by Dan Gemeinhart
13. Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West by Cormac McCarthy
14. Wings of Starlight by Allison Saft
15. The Wives: A Memoir by Simone Gorrindo
16. We Are All the Same in the Dark by Julia Heaberlin
17. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
18. Everyone's Thinking It by Aleema Omotoni
19. Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
20. Weep No More, My Lady by Mary Higgins Clark