Books 1-8
1. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris - The story of all the quirks and drama of an average office - an advertising company in Chicago - as layoffs come to a head. I didn't find it as hilarious as all the reviewers said it was, probably in good part because I'm too young to appreciate all the cracks at office life. Still quite enjoyable, though.
2. Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde - Second book in the Thursday Next series, sequel to The Eyre Affair. Thursday's suddenly got to deal with blackmail from the wonderful Goliath corporation, in the form of her recently eradicated husband. To meet their demands she has to enter a world where words are sacred and book-jumping is commonplace. Still quite as good as the original.
3. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig - A long excercise in philosophy (most of which I did not get), motorcycles (which I never liked in the first place), stamina (luckily I had lots), and a little bit of story thrown in at the end. An autobiography? Who knew?
4. The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama - A wonderful, well-crafted story about two brothers in Japan who are poised to become accomplished - in sumo and mask-making, respectively - when the war intervenes. Well-written, engaging, and really enjoyable.
5. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini - I liked this story of two drastically different women in Afghanistan, and their unlikely friendship much more than I did The Kite Runner. Very well done, and highly recommended.
6. The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd - When a woman returns to her island childhood home to look after her mother, she falls in love with a monk and discovers a new part of herself and her past. A heartwarming story.
7. Sarah's Key by Tatiana DeRosnay - When an American-born journalist living in Paris is instructed to research the 1942 Vel' d'Hiv roundup for its 60th anniversary, she is surprised to find how little people know, remember, and want to talk about the event that they took part in. What she finds changes her view about Parisians, her relatives, and herself. Very interesting picture of a little-examined issue of the Holocaust era.
8. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque - A moving anti-war novel depicting life in Germany's trenches in WW I. Must-read.
So far, I'm 8% of the way there toward that lofty goal of 100. I doubt I'll make it, considering I won't be able to keep up this reading speed once classes start again on Tuesday, but I'll keep trying anyway.
2. Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde - Second book in the Thursday Next series, sequel to The Eyre Affair. Thursday's suddenly got to deal with blackmail from the wonderful Goliath corporation, in the form of her recently eradicated husband. To meet their demands she has to enter a world where words are sacred and book-jumping is commonplace. Still quite as good as the original.
3. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig - A long excercise in philosophy (most of which I did not get), motorcycles (which I never liked in the first place), stamina (luckily I had lots), and a little bit of story thrown in at the end. An autobiography? Who knew?
4. The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama - A wonderful, well-crafted story about two brothers in Japan who are poised to become accomplished - in sumo and mask-making, respectively - when the war intervenes. Well-written, engaging, and really enjoyable.
5. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini - I liked this story of two drastically different women in Afghanistan, and their unlikely friendship much more than I did The Kite Runner. Very well done, and highly recommended.
6. The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd - When a woman returns to her island childhood home to look after her mother, she falls in love with a monk and discovers a new part of herself and her past. A heartwarming story.
7. Sarah's Key by Tatiana DeRosnay - When an American-born journalist living in Paris is instructed to research the 1942 Vel' d'Hiv roundup for its 60th anniversary, she is surprised to find how little people know, remember, and want to talk about the event that they took part in. What she finds changes her view about Parisians, her relatives, and herself. Very interesting picture of a little-examined issue of the Holocaust era.
8. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque - A moving anti-war novel depicting life in Germany's trenches in WW I. Must-read.
So far, I'm 8% of the way there toward that lofty goal of 100. I doubt I'll make it, considering I won't be able to keep up this reading speed once classes start again on Tuesday, but I'll keep trying anyway.