December 2025. What are you reading?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dutch House audiobook was narrated by Tom Hanks, who is of course a great narrator. I thought the story itself was ok, but I enjoyed his narration so much I kept at it.

This kind of thing makes me wonder about the financial status of celebrities.

--actress who has done book narration (it can be sort of fun, but it is actually pretty tiring and a bit tedious and not interesting compared to making films).

I posted above about being disappointed in the Dutch House, but I've heard other people say they enjoyed listening to it. I can definitely imagine Hanks's voice reading that story. As far as his financials, they're pretty solid, I'd guess. He and Ann Patchett are friendly; she and her husband were very kind to his assistant when she was dealing with a health challenge. (She then wrote about this experience in an essay.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir

Listening on audio (Audible), and so far I really like it. The MC has an interesting “voice”, and the audio reader is good, too.

Fingers crossed it keeps my attention. I’ve been in a slump lately when it comes to finding books that grab me - lots of DNF last month.

I think this is a love it or hate it book. I hated it but know I was in the minority. I did not finish.

I think there are certain readers who won't like Andy Weir. They are the ones who need to read and understand every bit of a book, but don't have a hard science background. Me, I have middling scientific literacy, but a lot of the technical details are over my head. I'm happy to skim those bits. His storytelling is worth it. Actually looking forward to the movie!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m about 2/3 of the way through The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro. I love it. The scene in the Roman villa haunts me days later.

And I just read that Guillermo del Toro is adapting it into a stop motion animation film!

I really really struggled with the slow pace and repetitive nature of this particular Ishiguro.

Same. It was not a hit for me. I did finish it, but I didn't immediately go looking for his entire back catalog the way I do with some books.

[Anonymous]

I just finished I, Claudius, a 1939 historical fiction book of early Roman emperors. It was really fantastic.

Now on to Culpability which I finally got from the lucky day shelf at the library.

[Anonymous]

I just finished The Incredible Kindness of Paper. Such a sweet, easy read and a great story. I really enjoyed it.
Also just listened to The View from Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani. I have loved almost all of her books and this one was also excellent. It's narrated by Mira Sorvino and I didn't love her but it didn't ruin the story for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started reading Patti Smith's second memoir, Bread of Angels, last night. I loved Just Kids.

I loved Just Kids. But I can’t get into Patti Smith otherwise. Unsure why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just finished I, Claudius, a 1939 historical fiction book of early Roman emperors. It was really fantastic.

Now on to Culpability which I finally got from the lucky day shelf at the library.

I loved “I, Claudius!” Though in some ways it made me feel depressed, reading about a crumbling empire with a bunch poisonous leaders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir

Listening on audio (Audible), and so far I really like it. The MC has an interesting “voice”, and the audio reader is good, too.

Fingers crossed it keeps my attention. I’ve been in a slump lately when it comes to finding books that grab me - lots of DNF last month.

I think this is a love it or hate it book. I hated it but know I was in the minority. I did not finish.

I think there are certain readers who won't like Andy Weir. They are the ones who need to read and understand every bit of a book, but don't have a hard science background. Me, I have middling scientific literacy, but a lot of the technical details are over my head. I'm happy to skim those bits. His storytelling is worth it. Actually looking forward to the movie!

YES! (and I am the poster you're responding to). That would describe how I felt about it. It's like when my 12 year old boy talks at me about coding...I do not need to listen to the audio of that about space.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am 33% in to Broken Country and I don't love it yet.

I just finished listening to this and enjoyed it. The twists and turns were a bit over the top, but it certainly kept me engaged.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dutch House audiobook was narrated by Tom Hanks, who is of course a great narrator. I thought the story itself was ok, but I enjoyed his narration so much I kept at it.

This kind of thing makes me wonder about the financial status of celebrities.

--actress who has done book narration (it can be sort of fun, but it is actually pretty tiring and a bit tedious and not interesting compared to making films).

I posted above about being disappointed in the Dutch House, but I've heard other people say they enjoyed listening to it. I can definitely imagine Hanks's voice reading that story. As far as his financials, they're pretty solid, I'd guess. He and Ann Patchett are friendly; she and her husband were very kind to his assistant when she was dealing with a health challenge. (She then wrote about this experience in an essay.)

Ah, that explains it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just finished I, Claudius, a 1939 historical fiction book of early Roman emperors. It was really fantastic.

Now on to Culpability which I finally got from the lucky day shelf at the library.

I forget about this book, because I read it so long ago. It is sooooooo good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started reading Patti Smith's second memoir, Bread of Angels, last night. I loved Just Kids.

I loved Just Kids. But I can’t get into Patti Smith otherwise. Unsure why.

Yeah, I'm having trouble finishing Bread of Angels. I'm more than halfway through, but it might be a dnf for me.

[Anonymous]

I’m reading Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, and I’m really enjoying it—his depiction of characters and time/place, and the way the different cultural groups interact and interweave.

[Anonymous]

I just finished re-reading Maggie M. Lily’s Building the Circle series and it’s spin-off Peacekeeper’s Harmony. It’s a fun supernatural romance series, hardly the serious literature that some DCUM readers tend to favor. Personally, I lean toward light entertaining reads.

I would note that the first book “The Call” reads more as a straight romance and only has a bit of oddity here and there, with more towards the end. As the series progresses, more and more weirdness is revealed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m reading Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, and I’m really enjoying it—his depiction of characters and time/place, and the way the different cultural groups interact and interweave.

I loved Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. Yes — McBride creates this amazingly real and vivid place and populated it with characters who have so many layers to their stories. Even more, though, the theme of so many kinds of love is beautiful. One pf my favorite books ever.