Reading up a storm

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

19 October 2004 – Not quite sure what keeps me hooked, but there is something below the surface that I’m finding very intriquing about this book.
20 October 2004 – I read about 70 pages. It’s getting really good and the stuff “below the surface” is starting to bubble up but I’m still not sure what’s has happened. The narrator doesn’t know either so it’s not that I’m clueless it’s that I’m along for the ride with narrator. I didn’t realize this book was going to have a mystery wound into it.
22 October 2004 – I finally found out what’s been “below the surface” for a while. I’m not going to say what, if you want to know, read the book. It’s really good. It’s a 500 page book and I’m on page 260. I started it about a week and a half ago.
Will update as I continue to read.
27 October 2004 – I’m still reading but don’t have much to comment on. It’s still definitely holding my attention. I’m on page 365.
11 November 2004 – I finished this book last night. It was an enjoyable book but had some disturbing things happen in it. Not disturbing to me, but disturbing to the characters. The spiraling down of the characters after the death of one of their friends (this isn’t giving anything away, it’s in the synopsis of the book) was what was disturbing, they all coped in different ways and did things that were ultimately destructive to themselves. I’m trying not to give too much away here. It could have been about 100 pages shorter. It’s a first novel, so I am more forgiving about that.
(12 October-10 November, 2004)

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Midnight Champagne by A. Manette Ansay

For the time before and after my wedding, I thought it would be appropriate to read a book about a wedding. It was an enjoyable book, but it wasn’t really about the wedding as much as it was about the guests at the wedding and what happens to them.
(16 September – 11 October, 2004)

The Perfect Age by Heather Skyler

Enjoyable. It seemed to drag a bit in a few places. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I wasn’t trying to read it quickly and finish it before I left for my wedding.
(30 August – 15 September, 2004)

An Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn’t put it down, it was fascinating in how a woman who was unhappy in her life and expressed it through creativity was considered to be mentally ill. The odd love story woven through the book didn’t hurt either.
(10 August – 16 August, 2004)

Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

I found the early part of her life absolutely fascinating.
(21 June – 15 July, 2004)

The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown

I’m glad I read this. Now I know what all of the controversy is about. I tend to lean towards the ideas that Leonardo did paint Mary Magdalene into the Last Supper. It brings up a lot of points that need to be further explored.
(17 May – 26 May, 2004)

Bushwhacked : Life in George W. Bush’s America by Molly Ivins, Lou Dubose

Molly Ivins delivers once again! She’s always so great in her wit. It’s amazing to me that she can make utterly irritating things funny. Just when I thought I was outraged enough, I read the next chapter and became even more outraged. This President has been so reckless and he needs to be voted out of office!!
(29 April – 21 June, 2004)

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I really enjoyed this book. I read it in two days while I was sick. I had a hard time finding a book that I could enjoy after reading The Time Traveler’s Wife. This book was definitely worth the read. I felt like I knew the characters.
(7-8 March, 2004)

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Oh, this book! I LOVE this book! This is my favorite new book. Bryan was reading it at Christmas and would go up to his room to read for hours on end. I had to find out what was so wonderful about this book. So I bought my own copy, since he was reading a copy from the library. When I started reading, I knew why he was reading for hours on end. I totally fell in love with both Claire and Henry. I think I really identified with both characters so well, which is what contributed to my love for this book. It’s the only book that has ever made me cry at the end. I had a very hard time finding a novel to read after finishing this one because I was looking for the next novel to fall in love with. It took me almost two months to find another book to read. Also because I was having such a difficult time finding another novel to read, I started reading a lot of non-fiction.
I recently loaned this to my sister, I had to share my love for this book, and she also loved it too. She said she’s never read a 500-page book so quickly. And she’s not sure what to read next either.
I highly recommend this book!
(26 December, 2003 – 10 January, 2004)

Girl Talk by Julianna Baggott
(22-26 December, 2003)

Babyville by Jane Green
(3-22 December, 2003)

The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by Elinor Lipman
(27 November – 2 December, 2003)

The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich
(3-24 November, 2003)

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken
(October – 26 November, 2003)

Life of Pi by Yann Martel
(6 August – 28 September, 2003)

Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market by Eric Schlosser
(28 June – 13 August, 2003)

The Dirty Girls Social Club by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez
(April – 26 June, 2003)

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
(1 April – 21 April, 2003)

The Partly Cloudy Patriot (book of essays) by Sarah Vowell

A wonderful book! This was so entertaining. I would finish an essay and think, I should just start the next one and next thing I know, I’ve read three or four essays in one sitting. Some of them were hilarious. I always thought she was great on This American Life, I also realized that she’s a great writer too. If you’ve never heard This American Life on NPR, I strongly suggest checking it out. Sarah Vowell rocks!
(mid-March – 11 April, 2003)

The Porno Girl and other stories by Merin Wexler
(29 March, 2003)

Behaving Like Adults by Anna Maxted
(21-29 March, 2003)

Cooking for Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser
(19-21 March, 2003)

Moo by Jane Smiley
(24 February – 19 March, 2003)

Momo by Michael Ende
(November 2002 – February 2003)

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Midnight Champagne by A. Manette Ansay

For the time before and after my wedding, I thought it would be appropriate to read a book about a wedding. It was an enjoyable book, but it wasn’t really about the wedding as much as it was about the guests at the wedding and what happens to them.
(16 September – 11 October, 2004)

The Perfect Age by Heather Skyler

Enjoyable. It seemed to drag a bit in a few places. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I wasn’t trying to read it quickly and finish it before I left for my wedding.
(30 August – 15 September, 2004)

An Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn’t put it down, it was fascinating in how a woman who was unhappy in her life and expressed it through creativity was considered to be mentally ill. The odd love story woven through the book didn’t hurt either.
(10 August – 16 August, 2004)

Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

I found the early part of her life absolutely fascinating. We know so much about the public Hillary but not so much about how she came to be the woman that she is today.
(21 June – 15 July, 2004)

The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown

I’m glad I read this. Now I know what all of the controversy is about. I tend to lean towards the ideas that Leonardo did paint Mary Magdalene into the Last Supper. It brings up a lot of points that need to be further explored.
(17 May – 26 May, 2004)

Bushwhacked : Life in George W. Bush’s America by Molly Ivins, Lou Dubose

Molly Ivins delivers once again! She’s always so great in her wit. It’s amazing to me that she can make utterly irritating things funny. Just when I thought I was outraged enough, I read the next chapter and became even more outraged. This President has been so reckless and he needs to be voted out of office!!
(29 April – 21 June, 2004)

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I really enjoyed this book. I read it in two days while I was sick. I had a hard time finding a book that I could enjoy after reading The Time Traveler’s Wife. This book was definitely worth the read. I felt like I knew the characters.
(7-8 March, 2004)

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Oh, this book! I LOVE this book! This is my favorite new book. Bryan was reading it at Christmas and would go up to his room to read for hours on end. I had to find out what was so wonderful about this book. So I bought my own copy, since he was reading a copy from the library. When I started reading, I knew why he was reading for hours on end. I totally fell in love with both Claire and Henry. I think I really identified with both characters so well, which is what contributed to my love for this book. It’s the only book that has ever made me cry at the end. I had a very hard time finding a novel to read after finishing this one because I was looking for the next novel to fall in love with. It took me almost two months to find another book to read. Also because I was having such a difficult time finding another novel to read, I started reading a lot of non-fiction.
I recently loaned this to my sister, I had to share my love for this book, and she also loved it too. She said she’s never read a 500-page book so quickly. And she’s not sure what to read next either.
I highly recommend this book!
(26 December, 2003 – 10 January, 2004)

Girl Talk by Julianna Baggott
(22-26 December, 2003)

Babyville by Jane Green
(3-22 December, 2003)

The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by Elinor Lipman
(27 November – 2 December, 2003)

The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich
(3-24 November, 2003)

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken
(October – 26 November, 2003)

Life of Pi by Yann Martel
(6 August – 28 September, 2003)

Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market by Eric Schlosser
(28 June – 13 August, 2003)

The Dirty Girls Social Club by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez
(April – 26 June, 2003)

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
(1 April – 21 April, 2003)

The Partly Cloudy Patriot (book of essays) by Sarah Vowell

A wonderful book! This was so entertaining. I would finish an essay and think, I should just start the next one and next thing I know, I’ve read three or four essays in one sitting. Some of them were hilarious. I always thought she was great on This American Life, I also realized that she’s a great writer too. If you’ve never heard This American Life on NPR, I strongly suggest checking it out. Sarah Vowell rocks!
(mid-March – 11 April, 2003)

The Porno Girl and other stories by Merin Wexler
(29 March, 2003)

Behaving Like Adults by Anna Maxted
(21-29 March, 2003)

Cooking for Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser
(19-21 March, 2003)

Moo by Jane Smiley
(24 February – 19 March, 2003)

Momo by Michael Ende
(November 2002 – February 2003)

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