July and August reading
Total for the two months: 2 books, 11 audiobooks
All ratings are on how much I enjoyed the book, and don't necessarily factor in artistic merit or lack there of ;-).
Ratings (5 star rating will only be given rarely):
to
AB = Audiobook
NF = Non Fiction
(Date) = date finished
Adult
-- The House of the Seven Gables -- Nathaniel Hawthorne [AB] (July 5) -- I loved The Scarlet Letter when I read it several years ago but I had trouble getting into this one
-- Morality for Beautiful Girls (The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency III) -- Alexander McCall Smith [AB] (July 11) -- LOVED IT!
-- A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future -- Daniel H. Pink [NF] (July 12) -- I loved this book. It discussed things I've known to be true my whole life but never articulated so well. On balance, it was a little too simplistic at times.
-- Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression -- Mildred Armstrong Kalish [AB] [NF] (Aug. 8) -- I found much of this history very interesting but found the overall effect of the book lacking. Important character questions were never posed, let alone answered.
-- With Wings Like Eagles: A History of the Battle of Britain -- Michael Korda [AB] [NF] (Aug 17) -- I loved learning about all the conflicts in the leadership at the time. However, the details about the make and model of the aircraft didn't interest me so much.
-- The Kalahari Typing School for Men (The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency IV) -- Alexander McCall Smith [AB] (Aug 22) -- LOVED IT!
-- Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea -- Barbara Demick [NF] (Aug. 29) -- WOW! This is just amazing!
Young Adult
-- The Book of Three (The Chronicles of Prydain I) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 15) -- One of my favorite book series of all time! I reread the whole thing every few years. This is the first time I'd done it on audio. I loved all the Welsh accents (although the reader mixed in some other accents).
-- Hattie Big Sky -- Kirby Larson [AB] (July 21) -- Excellent book, much more complex than you usually get in young adult literature.
-- The Black Cauldron (The Chronicles of Prydain II) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 23?) -- I do love this series!
-- The Castle of Llyr (The Chronicles of Prydain III) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 26) -- Love it!
-- Taran Wanderer (The Chronicles of Prydain IV) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 28) -- This is the book in the series I've always had trouble with. When I first read it, it was a little above me. I didn't really get it. And then the absence of female characters didn't help me either. But I loved it this time. This is the first time I've been able to make it all the way through the book since first reading it.
-- The High King (The Chronicles of Prydain V) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (Aug. 1) -- As much as I love this series, this last book is my favorite.
All ratings are on how much I enjoyed the book, and don't necessarily factor in artistic merit or lack there of ;-).
Ratings (5 star rating will only be given rarely):
to
AB = Audiobook
NF = Non Fiction
(Date) = date finished
Adult
-- The House of the Seven Gables -- Nathaniel Hawthorne [AB] (July 5) -- I loved The Scarlet Letter when I read it several years ago but I had trouble getting into this one
-- Morality for Beautiful Girls (The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency III) -- Alexander McCall Smith [AB] (July 11) -- LOVED IT!
-- A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future -- Daniel H. Pink [NF] (July 12) -- I loved this book. It discussed things I've known to be true my whole life but never articulated so well. On balance, it was a little too simplistic at times.
-- Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression -- Mildred Armstrong Kalish [AB] [NF] (Aug. 8) -- I found much of this history very interesting but found the overall effect of the book lacking. Important character questions were never posed, let alone answered.
-- With Wings Like Eagles: A History of the Battle of Britain -- Michael Korda [AB] [NF] (Aug 17) -- I loved learning about all the conflicts in the leadership at the time. However, the details about the make and model of the aircraft didn't interest me so much.
-- The Kalahari Typing School for Men (The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency IV) -- Alexander McCall Smith [AB] (Aug 22) -- LOVED IT!
-- Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea -- Barbara Demick [NF] (Aug. 29) -- WOW! This is just amazing!
Young Adult
-- The Book of Three (The Chronicles of Prydain I) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 15) -- One of my favorite book series of all time! I reread the whole thing every few years. This is the first time I'd done it on audio. I loved all the Welsh accents (although the reader mixed in some other accents).
-- Hattie Big Sky -- Kirby Larson [AB] (July 21) -- Excellent book, much more complex than you usually get in young adult literature.
-- The Black Cauldron (The Chronicles of Prydain II) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 23?) -- I do love this series!
-- The Castle of Llyr (The Chronicles of Prydain III) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 26) -- Love it!
-- Taran Wanderer (The Chronicles of Prydain IV) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (July 28) -- This is the book in the series I've always had trouble with. When I first read it, it was a little above me. I didn't really get it. And then the absence of female characters didn't help me either. But I loved it this time. This is the first time I've been able to make it all the way through the book since first reading it.
-- The High King (The Chronicles of Prydain V) -- Lloyd Alexander [AB] reread (Aug. 1) -- As much as I love this series, this last book is my favorite.