Tag: Mount TBR

2014 Challenges, Books

Book 321: Twilight (Twilight Saga #1) – Stephenie Meyer

Geoff W

I think the text I sent to Alie when I was nearing the finish sums up my thoughts perfectly about this novel: “I hate you. The 14 year-old idiot girl in me loves this book.” Seriously, I hope you’re happy Alie!

I did enjoy the novel more than I thought I would, but there were times where I was so frustrated at Meyer’s writing and the idiocy of the characters/story that I was tempted to abandon it. I didn’t and have even downloaded the remainder of the series to finish while on vacation.

Aside from Alie’s numerous submissions on here for me to read the book the primary reason I read it is that Alie’s agreed to be Episode 4 of my podcast Come Read With Me if it was this book. So get ready for that release in early 2015.

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Books, Coursera, Personal Project

Book 310: Through the Looking Glass – Lewis Carroll

Geoff W

I honestly didn’t think I would get back to Alice and her adventures. The Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was so ho-hum that I had no desire to read this one, but this was the second book I read as part of my first short-lived Coursera course. Unfortunately due to entirely way to many commitments and needing to read FOUR books for my 30 x 30 list over the next two months, I just couldn’t give up 10 weeks of reading time. I will most definitely take the course at a later date though!

I definitely found this book less whimsical than the first, which is funny as I’m convinced there are so many more made-up words in this novella. Honestly, I have no idea what it is that made me appreciate this one more. Was it that Alice actually started feeling the pressures of adulthood in this book? Or was it that the doom and gloom of the “chess match” of the looking-glass world spoke to me.

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Books

Book 301: Chocolat (Chocolat #1) – Joanne Harris

Geoff W

This book has been on my to-be-read shelf for so long it took quite a while to trace where and when I bought it! I apparently picked it up way back in October 2012 when I helped out at the Somerville Public Library book sale! I’m glad I grabbed a copy. I own a copy of the film, but for some reason I never realized they adapted it from a novel!

Add in that when random.org selected it as my next book and I prepared to read it I found out it was a trilogy, my mind was BLOWN! I was a little grumpy at first, because I had a plan worked out to read more of my to-be-read shelf and was trying really hard not to add more in between the books, but I do love a good trilogy! I plan to read two and three, The Girl With No Shadow and Peaches for Father Francis, in the next few weeks and am VERY excited about them!

Now on to the story and my response!

2014 Challenges, Books

Book 289: The Devil and Miss Prym (And On the Seventh Day #3) – Paulo Coelho

Geoff W

Of the three books in the On the Seventh Day trilogy, this was my favorite. It has been almost two years since I read By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept and Veronika Decides to Die was too institutional for me, but this novel was great and approaches the simplicity and beauty of The Alchemist, but kept the idea of an external catalyst which Veronika Decides to Die had.

As with the last novel it’s difficult to go into this one without revealing too many details. A stranger visits the unchanging village of Viscos and creates an ethical/spiritual dilemma that the entire village must agree or disagree to participate in, all or nothing. As with Coelho’s other novels this novel focuses on very few people, but they are ordinary. He said it best in the author’s introduction, Click here to continue reading.

2014 Challenges, Books

Book 255: The French Lieutenant’s Woman – John Fowles

Geoff W

So I finally got around to reading The French Lieutenant’s Woman. I won this book as part of Robert’s blogoversary give away almost two years ago back in August of 2012. And all I have to say is shame on me for waiting this long to read it. Not only am I ashamed because it was such a wonderful book, but I am ashamed because it inspired one of my favorite posts of 101 Books of all time: 101 Books Guide to Carrying an Embarrassing Book in Public.

I’d love to say that Fowles’ mentioning of Jane Austen didn’t sway me, but of course it did a little, but overall that was minuscule compared to the mastery Fowles showed in this novel and he mentioned Austen and her works MULTIPLE times! But it wasn’t this that made the book so great, it was the omniscient unidentified narrator and the breaking of the fourth wall (I guess it’s called that in reading as well).

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