April book club - open to all

[Anonymous]

The Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan - wonderful Irish novel about a family of women in a small village - 5 stars

[Anonymous]

I am amazed that one of you has read 27 books so far this year. Great job!

i've got a confession. I'm a bit hooked on "Romance Suspence" which is something I didn't know existed until about October last year when I was out of credits and exploring Audible's free content.

I just finished "Taking Turns" by JA Huss. Pretty good .... for trash.

[Anonymous]

Luckenbooth by Jenni Fagan, a Scottish writer, was intriguing.

I am almost finished with a novella by Mikhail Bulgakov, Heart of a Dog, that I find utterly gripping. I am also reading Laurence Sterne's The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, one of the funniest books I have ever read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Luckenbooth by Jenni Fagan, a Scottish writer, was intriguing.

I am almost finished with a novella by Mikhail Bulgakov, Heart of a Dog, that I find utterly gripping. I am also reading Laurence Sterne's The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, one of the funniest books I have ever read.

I had to read the Sterne as an undergrad. That was probably one of the hardest reads ever for me, because I hated it so much. Well done for finding it funny, I believe that was the author's intention (but it went over my head).

[Anonymous]

Finished the first 3 Alice in Zombieland books. Started #4, not sure I'll be able to finish it. I dislike when authors take the focus away from the main characters after a few books.

I also read the Supernatural Community series, Above the Hush and The Midwife of Auschwitz this month. I have The Stranded, The Decemites and Firstlife. Not sure which I'll go to next.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just starting Birnam Wood. Really interesting premise.

This was me. Finished and really enjoyed. It starts out character-driven and you learn about these random people in an anarchist gardening collective and then suddenly turns into a thriller and moves much more quickly. I liked both parts. 4 stars.

Now reading Stolen by Ann-Helen Laestadius, which is about a community of modern-day Sami reindeer herders on the Arctic Circle in Sweden. Fascinating parallels to North American racism and resentment against government subsidization of traditional indigenous ways of life. So far so good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Can’t put it down!

Just finished this for my book club. Would never have picked this book in a million years, but enjoyed it. That’s why I love my book club, I end up enjoying books I never would have read.

I am 21% into this one on my Kindle and am not enjoying it. Will it get better if I push through?

[Anonymous]

I recently finished Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors. I liked it a lot. Didn't love the two main characters, but the writing and some of the other characters (esp Eleanor) really made the book compelling for me.

Recently started Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Very early but so far so good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Can’t put it down!

Just finished this for my book club. Would never have picked this book in a million years, but enjoyed it. That’s why I love my book club, I end up enjoying books I never would have read.

I am 21% into this one on my Kindle and am not enjoying it. Will it get better if I push through?

NP. I did finish the book, but I didn’t like it at all. You and I might be in a small minority of those who didn’t like it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Can’t put it down!

Just finished this for my book club. Would never have picked this book in a million years, but enjoyed it. That’s why I love my book club, I end up enjoying books I never would have read.

I am 21% into this one on my Kindle and am not enjoying it. Will it get better if I push through?

NP. I did finish the book, but I didn’t like it at all. You and I might be in a small minority of those who didn’t like it.

DP. I read reviews of this book and decided I didn't like the sound of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Can’t put it down!

Just finished this for my book club. Would never have picked this book in a million years, but enjoyed it. That’s why I love my book club, I end up enjoying books I never would have read.

I am 21% into this one on my Kindle and am not enjoying it. Will it get better if I push through?

I loved the beginning and hated the last 25%. HATED. If you already aren't enjoying it, I doubt it'll get better for you.

[Anonymous]

I've had a streak of fantastic books this month. I read East of Eden by Steinbeck. It's a classic I'd never read. It was excellent.

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson was great. I listened to it on audio and it was very well done.

The new Curtis Sittenfeld book, Romantic Comedy, is such a fun read, especially if you're interested in behind the scenes details about Saturday Night Live. The main character is a writer for a fictional show that's based on SNL.

[Anonymous]

I finally finished Empire of Pain - I did like it and it was a good companion read to Demon Copperhead which I read last month.

Then I got an advanced reader copy of the Five Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand and I loved it!!!!! My first ever advanced reader copy of a book - and it was all I ever dreamed of and more! I recommend it to everyone this summer!!! I might give it to all of my friends as a gift.

As a general matter - I love Elin's descriptions of food, clothing, decor, places, and just funny observations about people, etc. in all of her books. And, then I just loved the idea of the 5 Star weekend. From the book summary: "So when Hollis hears about something called a “Five-Star Weekend”—one woman organizes a trip for her best friend from each phase of her life: her teenage years, her twenties, her thirties, and midlife—she decides to host her own Five-Star Weekend on Nantucket." This book topic is just right up my alley - I love nostaglia, and friends, and thinking about your life story in friends. And, there are a lot of songs referenced in the book - I've even made my own 5 star weekend playlist - I love the idea of the soundtrack of your life too, and songs from the past bringing back memories, etc.

In full disclosure - I did go on Elin's winter Nantucket weekend, so I especially liked reading about places I went to like eating at Nautilus and dancing at the Chicken Box to the Maxxtones! I do believe they're hosting a 5 star weeekend themed one next year - I think you should contact the Nantucket Hotel if you're interested to get on their waitlist / mailing list about the next one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I finally finished Empire of Pain - I did like it and it was a good companion read to Demon Copperhead which I read last month.

Then I got an advanced reader copy of the Five Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand and I loved it!!!!! My first ever advanced reader copy of a book - and it was all I ever dreamed of and more! I recommend it to everyone this summer!!! I might give it to all of my friends as a gift.

As a general matter - I love Elin's descriptions of food, clothing, decor, places, and just funny observations about people, etc. in all of her books. And, then I just loved the idea of the 5 Star weekend. From the book summary: "So when Hollis hears about something called a “Five-Star Weekend”—one woman organizes a trip for her best friend from each phase of her life: her teenage years, her twenties, her thirties, and midlife—she decides to host her own Five-Star Weekend on Nantucket." This book topic is just right up my alley - I love nostaglia, and friends, and thinking about your life story in friends. And, there are a lot of songs referenced in the book - I've even made my own 5 star weekend playlist - I love the idea of the soundtrack of your life too, and songs from the past bringing back memories, etc.

In full disclosure - I did go on Elin's winter Nantucket weekend, so I especially liked reading about places I went to like eating at Nautilus and dancing at the Chicken Box to the Maxxtones! I do believe they're hosting a 5 star weeekend themed one next year - I think you should contact the Nantucket Hotel if you're interested to get on their waitlist / mailing list about the next one.

I was confused at first because Hotel Nantucket was about trying to get a five star review! I look forward to reading the new one. I had read that last year's was the last Nantucket weekend but if it's revived that would be fun.

[Anonymous]

I hadn't read any Fredrik Backman before, but recently finished and enjoyed Beartown.

Also liked: Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu and Fifty Words for Rain by Asha Lemmie.