Annual Reading Challenge--2020

[willowsnn3]

This is my book 11 of 80 and agree that it was a good read. It was a bit of a slow start because I had to get into the author's style but worth sticking with.

I agree with the slow start. I read the first couple chapters then read something else then back to this one & it got better.

 

[willowsnn3]

#16/60
Lost You by Haylen Beck
Libby needs a break. Three years ago her husband split, leaving her to raise their infant son Ethan alone as she struggled to launch her writing career. Now for the first time in years, things are looking up. She's just sold her first novel, and she and Ethan are going on a much-needed vacation. Everything seems to be going their way, so why can't she stop looking over her shoulder or panicking every time Ethan wanders out of view? Is it because of what happened when Ethan was born? Except Libby's never told anyone the full story of what happened, and there's no way anyone could find her and Ethan at a faraway resort . . . right?
But three days into their vacation, Libby's fears prove justified. In a moment of inattention, Ethan wanders into an elevator before Libby can reach him. When the elevator stops and the doors open, Ethan is gone. Hotel security scours the building and finds no trace of him, but when CCTV footage is found of an adult finding the child wandering alone and leading him away by the hand, the police are called in. The search intensifies, a lost child case turning into a possible abduction. Hours later, a child is seen with a woman stepping through an emergency exit. Libby and the police track the woman down and corner her, but she refuses to release Ethan. Asked who she is, the woman replies:
"I'm his mother."

Psychological thriller. I thought it was good. A couple unexpected twists. Guess that is what makes it 'psychological', lol.

 

[Colleen27]

#22/156 - Prozac Nation by Elizabeth Wurtzel

I'm really not sure how I feel about this one. It was interesting, for sure - a memoir of mental illness, primarily depression but later also a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, that coincided with the debut of the SSRI class of anti-depressants that has become so ubiquitous in American society. At times the author was profoundly relatable, at other times entirely unlikable. And the whole narrative raises some interesting questions about the interplay between experience and brain chemistry in "causing" mental disorders. But it wasn't a particularly engrossing read for some reason, and I sort of struggled to stick with it at times.

#23 - The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Although this is one of my favorite movies of all time, somehow I'd never read the book. And despite my love of the movie, which I've surely seen dozens of times, the book was better. The whole framing of the story as a translation of a historical narrative, interspersed with Goldman's commentary on the "manuscript" he was translating and abridging, is really clever and allows for a level of humor that could only work on the page. It was a really fun read, familiar enough to be light and relaxing but different enough to want to keep reading.

#24 - Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community by Martin Luther King Jr.

MLK's last book-length work, written less than a year before his assassination, this was a tough book to read. His writing is both inspired and aspirational and it is hard to take in just how little has changed - and how many things have actually gotten worse, proceeding along lines that MLK assumed would be intolerable to men of conscience and morals - since he penned what is largely a scathing indictment of a wealthy society that is disinterested in alleviating poverty and offering truly equal opportunity to all. It goes far beyond the racial politics that we associate with his activism, though race is certainly a focus, and into the structure of our systems and his hopeful but entirely unrealized vision for how they could be changed to make the American dream attainable for the oppressed and disadvantaged.

#25 - Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon

Continuing the reread of the Outlander series, which remains one of my favorites.

 

[Simba's Mom]

17/30: Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate: This was a really well written historical fiction novel that focuses on a piece of history (an adoption scandal in TN) that I'm not really surprised happened, but had never heard of. This is the 2nd book I've read by Lisa Wingate, and she is a master at switching back and forth between time periods. This was a VERY engaging read. 5/5

One of my favorites also!

Update, I've read 3 more-
8. The Lost Letter-Jillian Cantor, 5 Star. Loved it-I had it sitting on my shelf to read, for months-don't know why I waited so long
9. Come Homicide or High Water, Denise Swanson-3 Star, typical cozy mystery, just OK
10. The Honeymooners, by Christina Lauren, 5 Star. So cheesy, predictable, etc. and I loved it. If you're a Sophie Kinsella fan, you've got to read this. I kept thinking of her, same style.

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

#4 The Plots Against Hitler by Danny Orbach
Had recently seen Valkyrie and thought I'd read this. I would say roughly a third of this book was about that project. All in all interesting read though at times I felt it was a little to much telling me who was at every meeting and event discussed in the book.
I found some of the breakdown of the character interesting as there seemed to be more than one reason people were part of resistance. I found the earliest attempt interesting as it was a lone vigilant, very elaborate plan by a lone wolf, and I was surprised how early on attempt was.


If anyone is interested in reading any of my works. I would gladly send a kindle gift versions of any of them: “Written for You”, “Three Twigs for the Campfire”, “Cemetery Girl” or “Reigning”.
You can see them all reviewed at Goodreads (Click on link to view books). If you are interested in reading any of them please message me here or at Goodreads.

 

[melk]

8/25 The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

i can’t believe I never read it in school but all my kids have. Barring any travel restrictions we’re supposed to visit Amsterdam in a couple of months and are planning to visit the Anne Frank house so I thought I’d better read the book.

This to me was heartbreaking to read, knowing the outcome. It starts as any young girl‘s diary, complaining about classmates, schoolwork, her family, things like that. Then as they go into hiding of course the topics change. I was impressed at the depth of writing and insight for such a young girl. Of course some things she writes comes across as the young teenager she was but other things were remarkably introspective.

 

[bobbiwoz]

20/80 Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv

“Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder” is the sub title and it was written in 2005. It’s a lot to take in, but important things to think about and act upon.

 

[drwitz]

#23 - The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Although this is one of my favorite movies of all time, somehow I'd never read the book. And despite my love of the movie, which I've surely seen dozens of times, the book was better. The whole framing of the story as a translation of a historical narrative, interspersed with Goldman's commentary on the "manuscript" he was translating and abridging, is really clever and allows for a level of humor that could only work on the page. It was a really fun read, familiar enough to be light and relaxing but different enough to want to keep reading.

Love love love this book. I actually read it before the movie was released. I have one of the original paperbacks. Were Goldman’s commentaries in red ink in your version? They were in mine. I thought the Fred Savage story kind of worked in the movie as a framing device but it paled in comparison to the brilliance of the book (and I loved the movie).

Thanks for this memory. It was fun to remember this one!

 

[OKW8297]

10. The Other Family by Loretta Nyhan. A woman adopted as a baby needs medical history to help her sick daughter. It was quite good with several sub stories.

 

[willowsnn3]

 

[mini22]

12/35 Curious Minds by Janet Evanovich

 

[bobbiwoz]

21/80. The Whispers of War by Julia Kelly

In Britain, between the two World Wars, three friends met and became as family to each other. One of the friends was of German heritage, and when she was threatened to be sent to an internment camp, her friends found a way to save her.

 

[Shellsbutt]

8/25- The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda. This was an interesting mystery book set in Littleport, Maine. Easy beach read.
9/25- Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This was a great book about a fictional rock band in the late 60's to late 70's. The story is told in a unique interview style, very interesting and different.

 

[willowsnn3]

#17/60
Maid--Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive by Stephanie Land
At 28, Stephanie Land's dreams of breaking free from her Pacific Northwest hometown to attend university and become a writer were put on hold by an unexpected pregnancy. Turning to housekeeping to make ends meet and provide for her daughter, Stephanie worked days and took classes online to earn a college degree, and began to write relentlessly. She wrote the true stories that no one told: those of the overworked and underpaid.

Meh, altho the book was interesting & supposedly based on author's own life, I didn't have a lot of sympathy for her. Altho she seemed to be a hard determined worker, she came off as kind of whiny to me. I guess because I know many single, struggling mothers (and fathers) who don't have as many resources as she did.

 

[drwitz]

Moving on with the King re-read process:

11. The Shining by Stephen King.

It's been a while since I have read this, and my memory is colored by the Kubrick movie. I liked the movie but it is a different story than the book. Given King's struggle with sobriety until 1987 and his family's intervention due to his drug and alcohol abuse, the book also reads a bit like the negative doppelganger of King (moody writer, young wife and child, struggling with addiction). It was great though, and I loved the re-read.

12. Rage by Stephen King (published under the name Richard Bachman).

The first of the so-called Bachman books, this is a troubling book. King has taken it out-of-print now (and, in fact, it isn't even available anymore in the Bachman Book collection) given its portrayal of a school shooter. This was disturbing in large part because it puts you inside the mind of the perpetrator. As an older man reading it now (and in our current era), I understand why he has taken it out of circulation, but it is a powerful read (especially when you realize he began writing this in high school). It does express the alienation, discomfort, and anxiety of high school, but the lesson (that we all have a little evil inside of us waiting for the right time to emerge) is heavy-handed.

13. Night Shift by Stephen King

And the King reread goes on. This is the first Stephen King short story collection and it is a doozy! Many of the stories were published elsewhere, and some are new to this collection. Some of the stories have been made into full-length movies ("Children of the Corn", "Trucks", "Lawnmower Man") while others are clearly precursors for other stories ("Jerusalem's Lot" and "One for the Road" for "'Salem's Lot"; "Night Surf" for "The Stand"). All in all a wonderful collection.

14. The Stand by Stephen King

Yes, I get the irony. And, yes, it was a little uncomfortable reading this now in light of everything going on, but I felt a commitment to see this through. This is the originally published version (Doubleday) and later in the series I will read the "Complete and Uncut" version, but for now I wanted to read the book that made me fall in love with King as an author. This is a masterpiece, and I laughed at the funniest parts, sobbed at the saddest moments, and rode the journey with these characters. King's writing is brilliant in this (just see the paragraph written from Kodak, the dog's, point-of-view) and his story is (as he calls it) an American Tolkien vision (ala Lord of the Rings). If for some reason you haven't read this, you should. It will convince you that while King excels at horror, he really excels at telling stories.

 

[Disney_Alli]

15/75 - Breakaway (The Dartmouth Cobra's Book 3) Bianca Sommerland

This is the story of the GM's daughter who we met earlier in the series. I like that no matter who the main characters are we stay up to date on all the previous stories and characters we've met earlier.

 

[willowsnn3]

14. The Stand by Stephen King

Yes, I get the irony. And, yes, it was a little uncomfortable reading this now in light of everything going on, but I felt a commitment to see this through.

One of my all time favorite books! Have re-read it a few times myself & seems like there is always some kind of virus going around everytime, lol.

 

[TammyNC]

14. The Stand by Stephen King

Yes, I get the irony. And, yes, it was a little uncomfortable reading this now in light of everything going on, but I felt a commitment to see this through. This is the originally published version (Doubleday) and later in the series I will read the "Complete and Uncut" version, but for now I wanted to read the book that made me fall in love with King as an author. This is a masterpiece, and I laughed at the funniest parts, sobbed at the saddest moments, and rode the journey with these characters. King's writing is brilliant in this (just see the paragraph written from Kodak, the dog's, point-of-view) and his story is (as he calls it) an American Tolkien vision (ala Lord of the Rings). If for some reason you haven't read this, you should. It will convince you that while King excels at horror, he really excels at telling stories.

I haven't read a King book in such a long time and not sure I ever read this one...will be adding to my list.

 

[Lumpy1106]

3/20 The 5'th Risk by Michael Lewis
I absolutely love The Big Short and Moneyball, so I searched my local library e-book app and this is the only Michael Lewis book they have in the collection. It's impossible to comment on the book without getting into politics, so I'll just say if you approach it with an open mind, it is a good read.

 

[JayMass]

Do audiobooks count?