If you somehow got through high school without an English teacher having this book on a required reading list you've missed out on one of the greatest books ever written. Pick up a copy and get started. J.D. Salinger is a brilliant author. He will capture your imagination from the first page and take you on a literary journey you won't soon forget. Enjoy!
Lit by Mary Karr is the third in a series of memoirs. The first book in the series, The Liars Club, was widely acclaimed. The second in the series, Cherry, was also well received. Each of the books deals with a different era in Mary's life.
Surviving a childhood filled with alcoholism, mental illness, and violence set the stage for a life of challenge for this very talented woman. Her talent for writing was her salvation. Lit deals with her own battle with alcoholism. It is one of the most honest accounts I have ever read of the journey from the jaws of death to recovery.
I love the fact that she doesn't blame her childhood or her marriage for her problems but takes responsibility for her own recovery. Her life as a single mother and aspiring writer makes for a very compelling story. Best of all, the writing is amazing. I loved this book.
I looked forward to reading this book at night. I would definitely recommend it as a book to read.
You know the saying "You never know what goes on behind closed doors"; well this is exactly what this story is all about. The author slowly brings you into the intimate world of a well-to-do family's darkest secrets. The details are divulged slowly. They become more and more tragic and haunting as you step through the story. The characters are mysterious and eerie and yet you can't wait to find out more about them.
I enjoyed the book to its end. The ending kept true to the mood of the story and was not over the top. The postscriptum? Not sure about that though. But I suppose the author had to close that part of the story because of all the references that were made throughout the book. I don't want to give anything away.
I do think that this book would be a great story to tear apart in book club. Especially to figure out who knew what and when. This book also used a lot of symbolism to tell the story. It would be interesting to hear the varied interpretations and perspectives from other book club members. I think it would spark some intriguing conversation.
I searched the web and it's seems as if the author's website (www.thethirteenthtale.com) is currently unavailable. I did however find an interview with Diane Setterfield if you are interested in finding out more about her and The Thirteenth Tale.
Much of the novel takes place in two grand estates -- Angelfield and then Miss Winter's. How are the houses reflections of their inhabitants?
As the story unfolds, we learn that Margaret and Miss Winter are both twins. What else do they have in common?
Margaret and her mother are bound by a singular loss -- the death of Margaret's twin sister. How has each woman dealt with this loss, and how has it affected her life? If her parents had told her the truth about her twin, would Margaret still be haunted?
Books play a major role in this novel. Margaret, for example, sells books for a living. Miss Winter writes them. Most of the important action of the story takes place in libraries. There are stories within stories, all inextricably intertwined. Discuss the various roles of books, stories, and writing in this novel.
Miss Winter asks Margaret if she'd like to hear a ghost story -- in fact, there seem to be several ghost stories weaving their way through. In what ways is The Thirteenth Tale a classic, gothic novel?
Miss Winter frequently changes points of view from third to first person, from "they" to "we" to "I," in telling Margaret her story. The first time she uses "I" is in the recounting of Isabelle's death and Charlie's disappearance. What did you make of this shifting when Margaret points it out on page 204?
Compare and contrast Margaret, Miss Winter, and Aurelius -- the three "ghosts" of the novel who are also each haunted by their pasts.
It is a classic writer's axiom that a symbol must appear at least three times in a story so that the reader knows that you meant it as a symbol. In The Thirteenth Tale, the novel Jane Eyre appears several times. Discuss the appearances and allusions to Jane Eyre and how this novel echoes that one.
The story shifts significantly after the death of Mrs. Dunne and John Digence. Adeline steps forward as intelligent, well-spoken, and confident -- the "girl in the mists" emerges. Did you believe this miraculous transformation? If not, what did you suspect was really going on?
Dr. Clifton tells Margaret that she is "suffering from an ailment that afflicts ladies of romantic imagination" when he learns that she is an avid reader of novels such as Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, and Sense and Sensibility. What do you think he means by drawing such a parallel? What other parallels exist between The Thirteenth Tale and classic 19th century literature?
When did you first suspect Miss Winter's true identity? Whether you knew or not, looking back, what clues did she give to Margaret (and what clues did the author give to you)?
Margaret tells Aurelius that her mother preferred telling "weightless" stories in place of heavy ones, and that sometimes it's better "not to know." Do you agree or disagree?
The title of this novel is taken from the title of Miss Winter's first book, Thirteen Tales of Change and Desperation, a collection of twelve stories with a mysterious thirteenth left out at the last minute before publication. How is this symbolic of the novel? What is the thirteenth tale?
When do you think The Thirteenth Tale takes place? The narrator gives some hints, but never tells the exact date. Which aspects of the book gave you a sense of time, and which seemed timeless? Did the question of time affect your experience with the novel?
This is a great reading experience. The author, Jeannette Walls also wrote The Glass Castle, which was wonderful. Half Broke Horses is the story of her grandmother's life. It is one of those books that really makes you think about what is important in life. It is such a pleasure to read that it just flows without effort. I really loved this book.
Overall, I would say that The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is a solid read. However you have to get through the very slow moving first half of the book to figure this out. If you can go into this book knowing that you have to be extremely patient before it really picks up, then I think the long wait will be worth it.
The plot was intense and very well contrived. There were many characters in the book and were difficult to follow in the beginning since so many were being introduced. The relationships between all of the characters were extremely complex, intertwined and suspensful. Such dynamics made for interesting complications and twists within the story.
I think I can relate my lack of interest with the book to the fact that the author seemed to give description upon description of mundane, day to day happenings which made it hard for me to keep my mind on the story itself. I ended up skipping around a lot to get to the more interesting points of the story, well into pgs. 200. I did like the way that Stieg Larsson ended the book. I thought the author did a great job envisioning the entire course of events right through to the end of the story. It read like it was well thought out and planned, despite the long stalled beginning.
Stieg Larsson follows the ending with an excerpt from his follow up book, The Girl Who Played With Fire and it is just jaw dropping. A friend of mine has already read The Girl Who Played With Fire and says that from the beginning it is gripping and way better than The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Despite the slow moving beginnings of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, I would read The Girl Who Played With Fire.
I finished Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson and I wouldn't recommend the book at all. It was one of the worst books I have read so far.
I was browsing for new books at the book store and saw the cover and title of this book and gravitated towards it immediately. What convinced me to buy it was the small round New York Times "One of the 10 best books of the year" symbol. I don't know why it recieved this honor. I would be very interested to know what the reviewers based their criteria on to give this book that kind of award.
While reading, I kept thinking that at any moment the book was going to "get" really good. I kept waiting and waiting for the book to make it's point. Nope. Never did. The ending was just as plain and boring as the rest of the book. I am so aggrevated that I wasted my money on Out Stealing Horses.
If anyone has read Out Stealing Horses and enjoyed it can you please let me know why? I would like hearing about this book from another perspective.
This book was surprising! I was apprehensive about even picking this book up to read in the first place. But it was highly recommended by friends and so I went with it. I enjoyed reading the Lovely Bones after all.
I assumed that the plot of the story would upset me too much since it was about a child (14 year old Susie Salmon) whom was brutally murdered. Despite my assumptions, the author guided me through an inexplicably dark and viscious experience and showed me that out of such darkness and despair, love and forgiveness can prevail. Reading parts of the book I noticed my breathing was heavy from anticipation while other times I was actually holding my breath.Alice Sebold made me feel like I could reason and understand the actions, feelings and heartache that this family lived with during this tragedy and the years that followed.
I enjoyed being told the story through the victim's words. As grotesque as the crime was having Susie tell the story seemed to lessen the violence in the sense that you knew she was OK since she was talking to you the whole time. I realized that when I had questions about Susie's well being while reading , she would explain all of her thoughts and emotions at the same time. Susie was growing wise and learning from her tragedy just as we were. It felt eerily personal. And I wanted to save Susie.
Towards the end of the book though there was one particular instance that was very far-fetched and almost ruined the book for me. Almost. I don't feel this particular part needed to be spun into the story since up until that point the reactions and life choices from Susie and her family were enough to make the story powerful. I'm guessing here, but I think that Alice Sebold felt she needed to give some lightness to the book in order to not completely devastate her fans with a story that was so overwhelmingly ominous. Despite my displeasure for the end of the book, overall I would recommend The Lovely Bones.
In case you haven't heard, The Lovely Bones has been made into a movie and it is scheduled to premier in theaters January 15, 2010. If you plan on reading the book before watching the movie then I would recommend you not watch the trailer since it does contain spoilers.
Just finished The Girl Who Played with Fire, the second book in the "The Girl" trilogy, by Stieg Larsson. I found the second book to be even better than the first. The depth and detail of the story and characters jump off the pages.
I am looking forward to the U.S publishing of the third book The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (although I just learned you can order the U.K. edition through Amazon). It's too bad Larsson isn't alive to hear the international praise for his books.
I would have to say that Pope Joan is a book you can't put down! I read it every free minute I could find. I loved it!
The author, Donna Woolfolk Cross, spent several years researching the story of Pope Joan. I would highly recommend that AFTER you read the book that you read the Author's note. She presents incredible detail about her research findings and makes substantial arguments for the existence of Pope Joan. I really feel that by reading the Author's note, you will have a far better appreciation for the story itself.
I'm not sure if many of you tend to skip the Prologue for most books. If you do, PLEASE don't skip the Prologue in this book. The Prologue will help set the tone for the first chapter and also will introduce you to characters that will be re-visited later throughout the book.
I was absorbed into the writing abilities of the author. She has a gift in being able to setup the scenes, characters and emotions of the story while providing enough detail to keep you captivated but not so much that you tire of listening. Even the smallest details that she introduced would be seamlessly woven into later chapters. No detail was left unanswered. And mostly I appreciated the lack of predictability in the story. The author will keep you guessing and hoping right to the end. The element of surprise will be gratifying in the end for you.
The ending was not the ending I had anticipated nor expected (you'll understand what I mean--no spoilers here). I thought the ending was phenomenal. For me it felt like the book had two endings. The first was with Joan and ended at the last chapter. The second ending being the Epilogue and leaving the legacy of Pope Joan. The Epilogue gives the reader closure with Pope Joan which I think becomes very necessary.
Without a doubt, the story of Pope Joan is enthralling and Donna Woolfolk Cross tells her story masterfully. I couldn't put the book down!
Don't forget to read the Author's note at the end of the book. It will be well worth your time!
In case you haven't heard or don't know already, Pope Joan has been made into a major motion picture and premiered in Berlin, Germany on October 19th! The movie was filmed in English and dubbed into German for the benefit of German and Austrian viewers. It is still unclear as to the date for the United States premiere. Donna Woolfolk Cross is currently working on obtaining permissions from the movie Producers for the English version of the movie trailer. (Note--the movie trailer below has English subtitles.)
For more information about the book or the author you can visit the author's web site at Pope Joan.
I would love to hear what your thoughts are about the book Pope Joan!
A seasonal life. A short history of herding, and the art of making (goat) cheese.
This book was introduced to me by a recent interview with the author, on National Public Radio (NPR). When you are in a car, hear one of their (NPR) precious stories, and can't turn off the car because you have to finish hearing it, you know you have to follow up on the story. So we reserved the book at the library and just read it through.
This book is so much more than just a history. It encompasses their lifestyle change from New York City to a small New England town and their quest to live a more simple life. Their place was at the end of a dead end road with 75 acres of land. His (photographer) wife returned home one day with some goat milk from a neighbor and they decided to make some goat cheese...and 'WHAM' their lives were changed forever.
This turns into a very realistic and graphic account of our (human's) history, where we came from, our "so important" connection with animals that we as a people have herded. Brad Kessler is Jewish--But a poet, songster, and, mostly shepard at heart.
His book is strewn with the most comprehensive recent compilations of writing, song, and poetry related to our primeval reliance, and co-existence with all animals, specifically, maybe primarily the goat--this book connects food history with geographic, religious, political, mystical, lyrical, poetical, !! One small sample is an essay about the thought about origins of things like our own letter "A" coming from the Roman letter which is the Hebrew aleph derived from the word "ox". The animals head appears when the letter is inverted...with its two horns sticking straight up to heaven. Similar meanings for the letter 'C', 'H', 'L', 'I'...SO interesting. Even our own word "culture" which we are all so familiar with, is only the 5th meaning of the word which actually began with "agriculture", and on and on it goes.
It caused us to go and buy a French cheese "chevre" which is French for "goat", an appropriate name for a cheese so simple and unmanipulated, it's the closest thing to eating what the goats had been eating--herbs, grasses and hay transmuted through the art of cheesemaking. The graphic detail of the rutting season, the animals antics of the mating season and (incredibly) the making and using of the "Buck Cloth"...WOW!!! Now THAT'S some kind of 'foreplay' for sure.
The book is very interesting and entertaining and highly recommended!!
