Annual Reading Challenge--2020

[monarchsfan16]

22/30: Apeirogon by Colum McCann: From Goodreads:
Bassam Aramin is Palestinian. Rami Elhanan is Israeli. They inhabit a world of conflict that colors every aspect of their daily lives, from the roads they are allowed to drive on, to the schools their daughters, Abir and Smadar, each attend, to the checkpoints, both physical and emotional, they must negotiate.

Their worlds shift irreparably after ten-year-old Abir is killed by a rubber bullet and thirteen-year-old Smadar becomes the victim of suicide bombers. When Bassam and Rami learn of each other's stories, they recognize the loss that connects them and they attempt to use their grief as a weapon for peace.

McCann crafts Apeirogon out of a universe of fictional and nonfictional material. He crosses centuries and continents, stitching together time, art, history, nature, and politics in a tale both heartbreaking and hopeful.

This is a brand new book that caught my eye right as it was coming out, and I was able to get my hands on it pretty quickly through the digital library system. 5/5. Really unique writing style, and requires full consciousness as you're reading, but it is powerful, heartbreaking, and yet beautiful.

 

[OKW8297]

16. Maude by Donna Mobry. Excellent account of the life of the author ‘s grandmother written in the first person. Read it based on recommendations on here. I totally agree with them.

 

[Colleen27]

#29/156 - The Spellbinder's Sonata by Stephanie Keyes

Sometimes a Facebook ad actually leads me to a fun read. This was one of them. The ad mentioned it being a cross between Phantom of the Opera and Beauty and the Beast - two of my very favorite stories of all time. It was definitely more Phantom than Beauty, with a cursed hero and a talented young woman who comes to his rescue, all set within a school of music. The romance was well developed, though sometimes the characters' ages (high schoolers) felt a bit implausible, and the conflict centering around a curse that both the ghostly hero and the modern heroine had a very personal connection with. All in all a perfect late-night read.

#30 - The Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

Continuing my Outlander re-read with the start of my favorite part of the story arc, where Jamie and Clare settle in the wilderness of North Carolina. Wonderful as always, but loooong! I'm falling behind my Goodreads challenge pace because I'm spending so much time with these thousand-page tomes.

#31 & 32 - Pestilence & War by Laura Thalassa

The first two books in a four book series about the horsemen of the apocalypse, these are dystopian "new adult" romances set in a world where the horsemen came to life and destroyed the world as we know it, only to vanish for a time and reappear one by one, bringing their judgment with them. There is little of the political and social commentary that makes for a good dystopian novel, and what there is is non-specific and heavy handed (characters musing about whether mankind deserved their fate), but these stories aren't trying to be 1984 or even The Hunger Games. They're primarily paranormal romances, stories of how love redeems and tempers the judgment of the horsemen as they attempt to carry out their missions of destruction on Earth. I enjoyed Pestilence better than War; the violence in War was harder to set aside, and made it harder to understand the heroine's ability to forgive the horseman. But both stories were page-turners that kept me interested from the first page to the last, and I look forward to the release of the third book, which will be about Famine.

 

[tiggrbaby]

#18/90: American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson (4.5/5) (nonfiction)
The story of Edward Oscar Heinrich, who was America’s first forensic scientist.

#19/90: Someone Knows (3.5/5) (suspense) by Lisa Scottoline
Twenty years ago, Allie and other local teens were witnesses to a deadly prank. This secret has haunted her all these years, and she now wants to discover the truth. But someone is out to silence the survivors.

#20/90: The Stranger (4/5) (suspense) by Harlan Coben
Adam is living a suburban life with his wife and two sons when a stranger approaches him and shares a secret that threatens to tear apart his life. Adam’s desire to learn the truth could not only destroy his world but bring harm to others.

Netflix series of the same name is slightly different, but still enjoyable.

#21/90: What Rose Forgot (4.5/5) (suspense) by Nevada Barr
Rose wakes up and realizes that she has been committed to an Alzheimer’s unit. When she overhears someone say that she won’t last the week, Rose realizes her only hope is to escape and find out why she was committed. With the help of her granddaughter and recluse sister, Rose tries to discover the truth before she can be eliminated.

Started slow but glad I stuck with it.

#22/90: Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and A Mother’s Will to Survive (3.5/5) (memoir) by Stephanie Land
A young single mother writes about her struggle to provide for her daughter while working as a cleaning woman.

#23/90: A Cold Trail (Tracy Crosswhite #7) by Robert Dugoni (4/5) (mystery)
Tracy is back in her old hometown while her husband tries a case. She helps to investigate the recent death of a police officer’s wife that may have been a murder to cover up an old crime.

I really enjoy this series!

#24/90: The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes (4/5) (romantic historical fiction)
Alice has a whirlwind marriage and is whisked off to her new husband’s Kentucky hometown. But the marriage is far from happy, and She decides to volunteer as a packhorse librarian, delivering books to people in the Appalachians.

Will be interested to see how this compares to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek when that one comes in.

#25/90: The Other Alcott by Elise Hooper (4/5) (historical fiction)
May Alcott was the youngest sister and desired to become an artist. She has a complicated relationship with her sister Louisa.

#26/90: Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout (4/5) (realistic fiction)
A series of short stories detailing life in smalltown Maine featuring curmudgeonly Olive Kitteridge.

 

[Simba's Mom]

#24/90: The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes (4/5) (romantic historical fiction)
Alice has a whirlwind marriage and is whisked off to her new husband’s Kentucky hometown. But the marriage is far from happy, and She decides to volunteer as a packhorse librarian, delivering books to people in the Appalachians.

That's the one I'm reading right now. I'm not very interested in it, not sure it's worth 4 stars to me. But maybe it's because I just read a book I LOVED ("Summer of '69") and this is the next book, so it pales by comparison. Does that happen to anyone else? After you read a 5 star book, the next one doesn't seem so great?

 

[tiggrbaby]

Definitely! I loved The Lilac Girls, then read the prequel and it just dragged on.

 

[willowsnn3]

#23/90: A Cold Trail (Tracy Crosswhite #7) by Robert Dugoni (4/5) (mystery)
Tracy is back in her old hometown while her husband tries a case. She helps to investigate the recent death of a police officer’s wife that may have been a murder to cover up an old crime.

I really enjoy this series!

Ohhh, I need to check my past reads & see where I left off with this series. Hopefully the library will open back up soon.....(wishful thinking).

Just checked & looks like A Cold Trail will be next for me.

 

[OKW8297]

17. Daniel by Robin Merrill. Second book in The Shelter Series. Nice Christian fiction. Comforting these days

 

[BonnieF]

12/50 - Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, Helen Simonson. An okay story of cultures clashing in England. I was put off by the author's American-bashing. I've noticed a trend in this lately. I read several British authors, and whenever there is a American character, they're portrayed as boorish and bullying. In this case, the author is British, but has lived in the U.S. for over 20 years, so I really don't understand the need to do this in her book.

 

[Simba's Mom]

17. Daniel by Robin Merrill. Second book in The Shelter Series. Nice Christian fiction. Comforting these days

Unfortunately, when I went to the library's website, they told me that there was no author or book by that name. Too bad-I could really use the comfort these days.

 

[OKW8297]

Unfortunately, when I went to the library's website, they told me that there was no author or book by that name. Too bad-I could really use the comfort these days.

That’s too bad. If you have a kindle they are $3.99.

 

[SaintsManiac]

12/30–Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber
A very sweet and heartwarming book. Loved the characters and needed something uplifting right now.

 

[OKW8297]

18. Revival by Robin Merrill. Nice end to the trilogy

 

[Simba's Mom]

That’s too bad. If you have a kindle they are $3.99.

Found it! Finally found out that the library really meant that there were mo books or authors by that name at our library.

 

[mini22]

16/35 The Award by Danielle Steel

 

[OKW8297]

Found it! Finally found out that the library really meant that there were mo books or authors by that name at our library.

Excellent! I hope you enjoy them!

 

[monarchsfan16]

23-When We Were Vikings by Andrew David Macdonald. From Goodreads:
Sometimes life isn’t as simple as heroes and villains.

For Zelda, a twenty-one-year-old Viking enthusiast who lives with her older brother, Gert, life is best lived with some basic rules:

1. A smile means “thank you for doing something small that I liked.”
2. Fist bumps and dabs = respect.
3. Strange people are not appreciated in her home.
4. Tomatoes must go in the middle of the sandwich and not get the bread wet.
5. Sometimes the most important things don’t fit on lists.

But when Zelda finds out that Gert has resorted to some questionable—and dangerous—methods to make enough money to keep them afloat, Zelda decides to launch her own quest. Her mission: to be legendary. It isn’t long before Zelda finds herself in a battle that tests the reach of her heroism, her love for her brother, and the depth of her Viking strength.

As a special educator, I was really impressed with the author's ability to develop Zelda as a character. Zelda is a 21 year old with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and the author's characterization of Zelda was on point, for an individual with her level of special needs. The book was very engaging. However, because of the nature of Gert's dealings, there is a LOT of violence in it. I found the book to be a relatively quick read, and well done, but it is one that I have to recommend with caveats. 4/5

 

[bobbiwoz]

6. Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher. This is a warm, endearing and wonderful book. I loved the characters, the setting, and the story.

27/80. Loved this book. Like you, I enjoyed it all!

 

[willowsnn3]

#20/60
The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel

Everyone wants to be a Roanoke girl.

But you won't when you know the truth.

Lane Roanoke is fifteen when she comes to live with her grandparents and fireball cousin at the Roanoke family's rural estate following the suicide of her mother. Over one long, hot summer, Lane experiences the benefits of being one of the rich and beautiful Roanoke girls.

But what she doesn't know is being a Roanoke girl carries a terrible legacy: either the girls run, or they die. For there is darkness at the heart of Roanoke, and when Lane discovers its insidious pull, she must make her choice...

 

[bobbiwoz]

Since my Library is closed...has anyone here ordered used books from Thriftbooks? Are they legitimate?

Thank you.