I've not read any of Glennon Doyle's work but her life story has never resonated with me. She seems like a mess of a human who parlayed not much of a life into some kind of deep inspirational story. I've never noticed that she's ever actually accomplished anything other than bleating about her deep emotional truths.

Meh

I read Normal People and I am really trying to digest it. It was really so unsettling, in a somewhat interesting way. I am really curious to hear what people thought of it. It was for a book club so if I make it ( zoom) maybe that will clarify a bit for me.

Parts were difficult to read, although overall I think it might be considered uplifting, but I don't know what to make of it. There were quite a few parts that were just so strange,...

I am going to (finally ) try to start Rebecca

Running, thank you — so glad to know I’m not the only one who doesn’t really “get” Glennon Doyle.

What I'm NOT reading anymore is Under Currents by Nora Roberts. Somewhere along the line this had been a recommended book, and it even had over 4000 reviews on Amazon, mostly 5 stars. I needed a new read and it was available on Hoopla. I didn't read a synopsis beforehand (a mistake!).

I listened for about an hour. When it became obvious it involved wife and child abuse I felt it would be depressing and happily deleted it.

Looked up Olychick's "Happy Reads" thread from September and downloaded Good Omens, a recommendation there.

Edited to add: Good Omens didn't last long either. Still looking for the next good one.

I’ve just started Hamnet ... just beautiful writing and I‘m loving it so far. I’m listening to it on Audible and the narrator is also fabulous. https://www.amazon.com/Hamnet-Maggie-OFarrell/dp/0525657606

I have just finished A House Divided by Jonathan Putnam. It is historical fiction based on Abraham Lincoln's early legal career in Springfield--not about the Civil War. Lincoln and Lincoln stories are dear to my heart and I loved this book. 5 stars

I'm reading the Cazalet Chronicles collection (5-book series) by Elizabeth Jane Howard. I've finished book one and am halfway through book two, and am just thoroughly enjoying it. It takes place in England as WWII is getting underway, and details (in great detail) the life of a Sussex family. The book was made into a miniseries that featured Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville, and while I have watched the first episode, decided to wait until I'm through the books before resuming the filmed series.

I'm also reading for book club On Beauty by Zadie Smith and am engrossed in it as well. It's quite wordy, but beautifully written.

Ocotillo, I have read all of the Cazalet Chronicles books and really enjoy them! I liked some of the volumes better than others, but still very good reads. I haven't yet read Smith's On Beauty although I read and enjoyed White Teeth.

I am gonna start a campaign to let publishers know that the books they are selling to us (and libraries) have significant copy errors.

Once upon a time, I did copy editing at a newspaper. I was proud of what I did and proud that the writers (journalists) did not have too many errors. However, I am sick and tired of reading books that have SIGNIFICANT errors. Too many, too often.

I think that a list should be made of those publishers who allow things like that to get into their volumes. I think that we should create a list of books and publishers that allow this egregious stuff to occur.

I will start with the book I have been reading, published in 2018, Walk in the Fire by Steph Post, published by Polis Books. Disgusting. Here is one on page 99: "But if anyone though she was going soft, they had another thing coming." WHAT? I will repeat myself - - - DISGUSTING.

I find more errors on my Kindle versions of books than I ever did with physical books. I've often wondered if that was a reflection of my ability to pick up more on this format, or a reflection of the publications. I do think it's slightly more acceptable when a small press, like Polis Books, misses something than when one of the big five (um, now 4) publishing houses does. The small presses aren't typically providing any kind of publicity assistance to the author, and their editors have many, many more books to handle than a big press. I've forgotten the number, but it was something like a dozen books coming out at one time per editor for small presses. Add to that, tight printing deadlines, and it's a wonder we don't see more errors.

To follow up- my zoom book club met yesterday to discuss Normal People. As I mentioned, I was looking forward to the discussion because I was very undecided and unclear about it. It seems that my reaction was pretty much what the other 14 thought as well. I think the consensus for star ratings was 2 or 3. Some did appreciate more of the writing, and even some of the "message" but most of us did not understand how/why it won awards and is even some sort of tv series.

I just finally began reading Rebecca. So far it's a bit of work but worth it. It really is such a different time period and the writing is so different but delicious. (just not quite effortless reading for me). I have wanted to read this book for years.

Oly and Bunny, that is exactly how I felt when I read The Lost Man. The scenes were so well-described you couldn’t help but feel that way. I finished it sometime last year and really enjoyed it.

I am over halfway through Grisham’s A Time for Mercy. It follows the character Jake Brigance from A Time to Kill through another legal mess. In some ways it is a compelling story, and in others the book seems to get bogged down as the characters go through all the legal minutiae. I will finish it, but so far I give it 3 stars.

Finished Whiskey When We're Dry by John Larison.

Cut & paste from Amazon reviews because the book isn't worth any more of my time:

"My book club read this book and I regretted every minute it took me to read the book. I found no redeeming value to it and it was cruel and much of it not believable."

"I read a lot of books and am a very fast reader this book I read over half way and could not finish it ...it rambled on and on makes no sense ...poorly written the characters are not believable ...wasted my money."

ZERO stars.

I finished The Good Daughter and it was 4 star, but I wouldn't recommend it for book group unless everyone agrees they can stomach some pretty violent scenes. But the plot and the ending was good.

Have we stopped READING? Come on, KT people. I need more titles! I'm nearly finished with The Nest, and we're expecting 6 - 10 inches of snow tomorrow night.

I have finished two in the last few days--the first another John Grisham entitled The Guardians which was a tale about a group who works to free wrongly convicted prisoners. A good story but not my favorite subject matter 3 stars.

The other is One by One by Ruth Ware, a mystery surrounding murders at a ski lodge after an avalanche. Lots of twists 4 stars

I am close to finishing Rebecca ( and loving it- WOW!!!!). Next will be The Vanishing Half for book club, and also Above The Bay of Angels.

I have 2 books that I would highly recommend if you haven't read them-

Hamnet

and, This Tender Land

Just finished The Testimony and I'd give it 3+ stars. I guess it would be good for book group as it has the "book discussion" questions in the back, but I thought the initial scene around which the story is based to be uncomfortably pornographic in its description that would not sit comfortably with some of the ladies in our group...nor feel comfortable discussing in front of the gentleman in our group.

Next up with be Untamed for one of my book groups.

salonva, so glad you are enjoying Rebecca. Then you'll have to see the hitchcock version.

Cilantro, I thought Whisky When We're Dry was a better book than you or the book club reviewers did LOL. While the theme and plot were definitely sad and dark, I was very impressed by the male author's ability to inhabit a young woman's mind and by the picaresque view of life in the American West in the 19th century.

I"m almost done with World Without End and didn't realize when I started it that half the book deals with the Black Death...interesting to be reading a historical novel during this particular time! I have become completely absorbed in Follett's world although these books do seem to be without end sometimes; a thousand pages is a lot to commit to reading.

Next up for me is The Push which has been getting some good buzz. I don't want to read too many reviews for fear of spoilers but it's about a dysfunctional mother/child relationship. Talk about going in a completely different literary direction.

I've also got to start The Great Alone, our February book club pick. I'm dreading that one a bit because I found the author's WWII book The Nightingale a huge bore-formulaic, clunkily written and utterly sophomoric.

That may have been a matter of timing because I'd just finished All the Light We Cannot See, so my standard for a mind bogglingly beautiful written book about WWII had been set before I had the misfortune of encountering Ms. Hannah's opus.

Who knows, maybe this one will surprise me.

i‘ve just discovered Ivan Doig , and am enjoying THE WHISTLING SEASON a lot!

From the NYT review:

Set in 1909 in rural Montana, this evocative novel records, in measured bursts of illumination, what happens when Oliver Milliron, the widowed father of three boys and in need of a housekeeper, answers an ad placed by Rose Llewellyn, a charmer whose claim “Can’t Cook But Doesn’t Bite” proves true.. Doig offers a gentle appreciation of the secrets beneath the surface of everyday life, set against a Western landscape that is described in concrete detail: a field is ready for plowing “when you can’t see the frost on the ground by the light of the first full moon...”

I just finished a couple of really good books. Troubles by J.G. Farrell takes place in Ireland beginning in 1919. Major Brendan Archer travels to the home of his fiancee which is a hotel of more than 300 rooms and which is slowly decaying. The book describes the desperate poverty of the Irish and their rebellion against the attempts of the British to maintain rule over the population. The crumbling hotel almost stands in as another character in the book, so well is it described. The novel won the Booker Prize in 2010, the writer's second prize after winning for The Siege of Krishnapur, another of my favorites.

I also read the latest in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books, How to Raise an Elephant by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Botswana. As comforting and soothing as a warm bath, all mysteries are solved and difficulties smoothed away with gentle and wise Mma. Ramotswe in charge.

Edited to add that for this latest entry in the detective series, most customer reviewers on Audible.com express their dissatisfaction with the new narrator who has replaced the long-time reader who narrated all prior books.

Whistling Season is one of my all time favorite books!

I am just about to the end of This Tender Land and I absolutely can't tear myself away from it. What a book! When I read the description of it, I thought it might be a depressing read, so put it off for a while. Not so! There are some themes, scenes, etc. that are more than difficult for the characters, but the story is told with so much hope and joy and possibilities that it fills my heart. He is an amazing storyteller!

I've read some books lately that I've really enjoyed, but this one tops them all by a mile! Highly recommend.

I wished I could remember just ONE of the profound thoughts he put on paper, to quote him here. So I went searching the internet to see if I could find one...I found this page and every single one of these passages spoke to me. I don't think there are any spoilers here, but if you like the treasures you come upon unexpectedly in a book, then don't look at these. If you just want a taste of this delectable book...here they are: https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/45670651-this-tender-land

Jim, I've been finding spelling errors in the books I've been reading as well. It bugs the heck out of me.

I'm shocked at the latest boo-boo though.

I picked up one of the Outlander books again; The Fiery Cross. The aunt is getting married to her beau, who lost an arm in a battle. But Jamie and Roger pick him up by both arms to steady him. A bit later she said 'arm' when mentioning him again.

I'm reading The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. I enjoyed The Giver of Stars and this is the same subject but also involves the Blue People of Kentucky, a medical oddity that has always intrigued me.

The Lost & Found Bookstore, good so far.

I'm reading Through the Ice by Piers Anthony & Robert Kornwise. Backstory is that the novel was started by Kornwise. When Kornwise was killed in an auto accident at the age of only 16, his friends contacted Anthony about finishing the book. Which he did.

I'm enjoying it even though I don't read fantasy. Amazing that a mere kid crafted a story soooo much better than that awful Whiskey When We're Dry.

I was very impressed by the male author's ability to inhabit a young woman's mind and by the picaresque view of life in the American West in the 19th century.

Runninginplace, I had the opposite impression. I thought the author wrote a man's character and just labeled the character female. And I didn't find his view of the times or setting believable. Like the arranged 'duels'--that's where I thought Larison really jumped the shark.

I suppose it's possible that stuff really happened. Will admit that I'm not well read enough on the times to know if there is any truth there. If those duels really happened? I still wouldn't change my mind about the book as a whole.

I do concede that the book had a lot of good reviews--that's why I bought it! After I finished it, I felt like a needed a long hot shower & and maybe an exorcism & I'm not even Catholic. Or religious, FTM.

But, good for you that you liked the book & got your money/ time's worth. Me? I'd like to have a refund for what I spent on it!

Once in a blue moon, I read a book that I dislike so much that I send it to the firepit rather than pass it on. Just to save the next person the agony of reading it/ (not a political statement). That's where this one is going.

I finished Rebecca this morning and thoroughly enjoyed it. The writing, the story, everything. I don't often read epilogues, or if I do read them I more peruse them. This was a long one but I read it with care. Such a good book. I would love this for a book club and I did rate it 5 stars. I always did mean to read it, and I will thank Annie for mentioning it most recently and reminding me of it.

There are several of these sort of classics that escaped me and I have now started to read and I come away thinking " no wonder they are considered classics!". (duh). Another one I adored was Anne of Green Gables.

I will be starting The Vanishing Half next.

I didn't finish Whiskey When I'm Dry, but I didn't feel like burning it! It just felt like a waste of my time. This thread reminded me of the Cazalet Chronicles and I happened to have three of them on my kindle, so I read the first and am starting on the second. I had read them years ago and remembered liking them a lot. I still do. Her descriptions are grand and I have no idea how she made so many characters so real.

The Whistling Season is one of my all time favorites, too. Rebeca, not so much. I remember getting so aggravated at the nameless heroine for being so darned passive. I did like the mystery of it, though. I want to want to be friends with a character in a book or I don't really like the book.

Please don't ever stop these particular threads. I get a lot of wonderful ideas from them as well as a lot of good memories.

THANKS! What would I do witout youse?

Our library has In Another Time waiting for pickup, and we've started a DVD from there, the wonderful, frighteningly apropos "The Plot Against America" from HBO.

I'm halfway through The Woman in the Window, by A. J. Finn. It's a debut novel, and this guy (I assumed it was a woman, but I was wrong) is an excellent writer. Mystery, psychological thriller, whatever you want to call it, I'm fascinated.

Love all the suggestions, pro or con. I see that I had just started Fox Evil by Minette Walters, and liked it as far as I had read. Well, about 3/4 of the way through, characters were added somehow and I just got tired of the whole thing! I questioned my feelings about how I had changed thoughts on it, until I googled reviews of it.........still many people loved it BUT there were some, like me, who thought she populated the last l/4 of the book with superfluous characters.

Just finished The Guest List, by Lucy Foley. I love mysteries, and this didn't disappoint. I usually do most of my reading in the late evenings, but when a book has me reading while I'm eating, and letting the phone call go to voice mail....I know it's a good read.!! I didn't see it coming. That's a fun story for me.

Alisande, AFTER you finish A.J. Finn’s The Woman in the Window, read the article linked in the post below. I don’t want to spoil your enjoyment of the book, but it may be of interest to you.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5870075/wtf-is-the-matter-with-this-aj-finn-dan-mallory-guy

Thank you, Nutsaboutplants--I think! LOL I am strongly curious, but I'll try to rein it in and hold off. I've been reading the book in bed at night, but maybe I'll move it downstairs to finish it faster. Probably a good idea anyway as it's not exactly conducive to sleep.

Olychick and Salonva, I have placed a hold on This Tender Land on Libby. Look forward to reading it.

If you haven’t already, you should listen to Finding Cleo , a podcast produced by CBC, the Canadian Broadcast Company (Canadian version of PBS) about a family of siblings forcibly separated by the government during their childhood trying to find each other as adults It is simply excellent. It is an expert narration of this family’s attempt to solve their own case, woven into the larger context of the government’s systematic destruction of familial bonds and cultural history.

Alisande, I apologize for linking that article when you’re in the middle of the book, but this thread won’t be active after tomorrow. And I really wanted you to have the information, once you’re done with the book.

I probably don't need to comment again about This Tender Land, but you know when you read something so wonderfully written and magical that you just want to shout it from the rooftops?! So here I am! I finished it this morning and it didn't disappoint. Be sure to read the Author's notes. I've got to read more of his books.

Oly -- you won't be disappointed with them either.

Skibby, I read Ordinary Grace. Do you have other favorites you could recommend?

I've only read a few of the Cork O'Connor books and they are good but he has other stand- alones too.

Books by William Kent Krueger (Author of Ordinary Grace) (goodreads.com)

I'm not a big mystery or series book fan, but I love his writing so much, I might try one and see if I like it. Thanks

I just finished The Handmaiden's Tale. It started out so strong with wonderful descriptions of the environment and I soon realized there was hardly any dialog. It left me with so many questions as to what and where. The characters were never developed and so many story lines had no conclusion. I am not sure it really had an ending.

I just finished Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson that I liked very much. I wasn't sure about the premise at first - two main characters are young children who spontaneously burst into flames - but it grew into a convincing plot and had a satisfying ending. I would give it 4 out of 5.

I didn't finish Whiskey When I'm Dry, but I didn't feel like burning it!

See, you didn't stay with it long enough to get to the 'good parts'. :-)

ETA: But you made the right decision to jump ship! It was a boat to nowhere.

Cilantro, you are truly a reader after my own heart. I also have had reading experiences with books that left me so turned off and irritated I wanted not only to quit reading but urge the rest of the world to do so as well. Burning the book would be an extra pleasant touch LOL.

Reading is such a unique, individual and many faceted experience isn't it?!

I bail on books all the time. Life is too short to spend reading something (for pleasure) that you don't like just for the sake of finishing it.

Oly - I found that Kent Haruf writes in a similar style and he's written some gems. I recommend any and all of his books if you haven't already read them.

Thanks Skibby, I haven't heard of him, but will check.

eta: I think I may have read Plainsong many years ago, or else it's on my bookshelf waiting to be read, but it looks familiar.

I'm laughing because my "editor genes" haven't left me since I retired; they've just slowed down. I woke up this morning with the realization that I may have typed "reign" instead of "rein" in a post I wrote two days ago. It's a common mistake that always jumps out at me when other people do it, but then I went and did it myself. Correction made.

Not to worry, Nutsaboutplants--I'm still absorbed in the book. I did move it downstairs, and I actually want to finish it quickly. I'm interested enough to want to know how it ends, but I find it disturbing. It's an unsettling book.