Books #31 & #32
Book #31 was "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman. This was a re-read for me, but it'd been at least 8-10 years ago that I first read it. This was read out loud with my husband. We have our own little "Infidel's Book Club" where we spend a few minutes a few times a week reading a book out loud to one another. It's been a lot of fun. I know opinions are split on the book, with some considering it great, a classic, with others not caring for it, finding it too slow-paced. I really like the book. I loved mythology as a kid, so any book that features gods from outside the Greek/Roman pantheon or that updates the myths for today (like the Percy Jackson books) are a pretty easy sell. I understand why the pacing is too slow for some, and why some are annoyed by the many asides from the main plot, but I found the book to be just as satisfying on re-read as I did on the first read.
Book #32 was "The Kitchen God's Wife" by Amy Tan. I have a few small criticisms of the book. I found it odd how the mother's story was bookended by the daughter's tale but the chapter heads didn't alert you to the point of view change. I figured it out, and it wasn't too confusing, but I would have done it differently if I'd been her editor. Overall, though, I really liked this book and found it very touching. The plot revolves around an Americanized daughter keeping secretes from her Chinese-American mother, who is hiding a bunch of big, explosive secrets of her own. The story flashes back to tell how the mother, Winnie, left China and came to America, going through many hardships, the worst being married to a sadistic, cheating husband who squanders their money. I really liked the ending and found myself crying, so I'd have to say Tan does a really good job of making you symapthetic to the characters, even when you're a little exasperated with them at times. I really liked this a lot and recommend it to others.
1. Blue Light [fiction]- Walter Mosley
2. Titus Alone [fiction]- Mervyn Peake
3. "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?" [non-fiction]- Beverly Tatum
4. Never Let Me Go [fiction]- Kazuo Ishiguro
5. The Jehovah Contract [fiction]- Victor Koman
6. When the Phone Rings, My Bed Shakes: The Memoirs of a Deaf Doctor [non-fiction/memoir]- Philip Zazove
7. The Foreign Student [fiction]- Susan Choi
8. V for Vendetta [fiction/graphic novel]- Alan Moore and David Lloyd
9. City at the End of Time [fiction]- Greg Bear (unabridged audiobook)
10. Figuring: The Joy of Numbers [non-fiction]- Shakuntala Devi
11. Towing Jehovah [fiction]- James Morrow.
12. Black Apollo of Science: The Life of Ernest Everett Just [non-fiction]- Keith R. Manning
13. The Finster Effect [fiction]- Wednesday Lee Friday
14. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America [non-fiction]- Ronald Takaki.
15. The autobiography of my mother [fiction]- Jamaica Kincaid
16. Death du Jour [fiction]- Kathy Reichs (unabridged audiobook)
17. What Is My Cat Thinking?: The Essential Guide to Understanding Pet Behavior [non-fiction]- Gwen Bailey
18. God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything [non-fiction]- Christopher Hitchens (unabridged audiobook)
19. History of the Philippines: From Indios Bravos to Filipinos [non-fiction]- Luis Francia
20. Feynman [non-fiction/graphic memoir]- Jim Ottaviani and Leland Myrick.
21. The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson & the Olympians series) [fiction]- Rick Riordan (unabridged audiobook)
22. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World [fiction]- Haruki Murakami
23. Slowing Down to the Speed of Life [non-fiction]- Richard Carlson and Joseph Bailey
24. Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors [non-fiction]- Lizzie Collingham
25. Frankenstein [fiction]- Mary Shelley (unabridged audiobook)
26. Empty Cradle: The Untimely Death of Corey Sanderson [fiction]- Emmy Jackson
27. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil [non-fictioni]- John Berendt
28. Lucky [non-fiction/memoir]- Alice Sebold
29. Soon I Will Be Invincible [fiction]- Austin Grossman
30. For a Few Demons More (Book 5 of "The Hollows" series) [fiction]- Kim Harrison (unabridged audiobook)
Book #32 was "The Kitchen God's Wife" by Amy Tan. I have a few small criticisms of the book. I found it odd how the mother's story was bookended by the daughter's tale but the chapter heads didn't alert you to the point of view change. I figured it out, and it wasn't too confusing, but I would have done it differently if I'd been her editor. Overall, though, I really liked this book and found it very touching. The plot revolves around an Americanized daughter keeping secretes from her Chinese-American mother, who is hiding a bunch of big, explosive secrets of her own. The story flashes back to tell how the mother, Winnie, left China and came to America, going through many hardships, the worst being married to a sadistic, cheating husband who squanders their money. I really liked the ending and found myself crying, so I'd have to say Tan does a really good job of making you symapthetic to the characters, even when you're a little exasperated with them at times. I really liked this a lot and recommend it to others.
1. Blue Light [fiction]- Walter Mosley
2. Titus Alone [fiction]- Mervyn Peake
3. "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?" [non-fiction]- Beverly Tatum
4. Never Let Me Go [fiction]- Kazuo Ishiguro
5. The Jehovah Contract [fiction]- Victor Koman
6. When the Phone Rings, My Bed Shakes: The Memoirs of a Deaf Doctor [non-fiction/memoir]- Philip Zazove
7. The Foreign Student [fiction]- Susan Choi
8. V for Vendetta [fiction/graphic novel]- Alan Moore and David Lloyd
9. City at the End of Time [fiction]- Greg Bear (unabridged audiobook)
10. Figuring: The Joy of Numbers [non-fiction]- Shakuntala Devi
11. Towing Jehovah [fiction]- James Morrow.
12. Black Apollo of Science: The Life of Ernest Everett Just [non-fiction]- Keith R. Manning
13. The Finster Effect [fiction]- Wednesday Lee Friday
14. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America [non-fiction]- Ronald Takaki.
15. The autobiography of my mother [fiction]- Jamaica Kincaid
16. Death du Jour [fiction]- Kathy Reichs (unabridged audiobook)
17. What Is My Cat Thinking?: The Essential Guide to Understanding Pet Behavior [non-fiction]- Gwen Bailey
18. God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything [non-fiction]- Christopher Hitchens (unabridged audiobook)
19. History of the Philippines: From Indios Bravos to Filipinos [non-fiction]- Luis Francia
20. Feynman [non-fiction/graphic memoir]- Jim Ottaviani and Leland Myrick.
21. The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson & the Olympians series) [fiction]- Rick Riordan (unabridged audiobook)
22. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World [fiction]- Haruki Murakami
23. Slowing Down to the Speed of Life [non-fiction]- Richard Carlson and Joseph Bailey
24. Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors [non-fiction]- Lizzie Collingham
25. Frankenstein [fiction]- Mary Shelley (unabridged audiobook)
26. Empty Cradle: The Untimely Death of Corey Sanderson [fiction]- Emmy Jackson
27. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil [non-fictioni]- John Berendt
28. Lucky [non-fiction/memoir]- Alice Sebold
29. Soon I Will Be Invincible [fiction]- Austin Grossman
30. For a Few Demons More (Book 5 of "The Hollows" series) [fiction]- Kim Harrison (unabridged audiobook)