Let’s dust this blog off and catch up, shall we?
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Spectacular! In my top five for the year. I related so much to Gilbert’s spiritual and emotional journey. A few years after getting divorced, Gilbert travels for a year in Italy (pursuing pleasure), India (pursuing God), and Indonesia (pursuing balance). She tells the story of this year with wit and poignancy. I aspire to love myself and God as much as she does. Also, I really want to go to Italy and India now.
Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut
Very good, but then again I haven’t met a Vonnegut book I didn’t like. Wonderful social, artistic and political satire/commentary. I liked the parallels between the characters of Circe and Marilee, and I also loved all the stories of the people in the end painting.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
You may not have heard of this novel, but it’s very good. I think Rowling’s on to something with this wizard stuff.
Thursday Next: First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde
I was so excited for this 5th book in the Thursday series to come out, and it was definitely worth the wait. It’s not my favorite in the series, but I did enjoy it, especially once the action picked up. Unlike the others, this one SPOILERWARNINGendsonacliffhangerSPOILERDONE. I went to Fforde’s site and found out he is writing Volume 2 of the Thursday series. The first four books are Volume 1, and FAS is the first installment of the next volume, which will also be four books. In FAS, fourteen years have passed since Thursday’s last adventure. SpecOps no longer exists, but Thursday is working with Bowden, Stig, and Spike on underground SpecOps work. Thursday’s also still working in the Book World, and we find out a lot more about how that universe works. And there’s a Cheese Mafia. Of course.
Smile When You’re Lying: Confessions of a Rogue Travel Writer by Chuck Thompson (To be published in December)
It’s rare that I have true mixed feelings for a book. I either like, dislike, or am “eh” on most books. I had a rare love/hate relationship with this one, however. It’s divided into three sections which comprise travel essays on various topics. I hated the first section. Thompson comes off as crass, arrogant, and unoriginal. He expects his first few essays to enlighten the travel reader, but honestly, we all know there are prostitutes in Thailand. And drugs in Tokyo. However, he completely redeems himself in the other two sections. His essays are insightful and interesting, particularly the ones on the travel writing industry, the Philippines, not-so-ugly Americans, and oil. If you do want to read this, I say skip the first section but definitely read the rest.
posted by junipar
Spectacular! In my top five for the year. I related so much to Gilbert’s spiritual and emotional journey. A few years after getting divorced, Gilbert travels for a year in Italy (pursuing pleasure), India (pursuing God), and Indonesia (pursuing balance). She tells the story of this year with wit and poignancy. I aspire to love myself and God as much as she does. Also, I really want to go to Italy and India now.
Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut
Very good, but then again I haven’t met a Vonnegut book I didn’t like. Wonderful social, artistic and political satire/commentary. I liked the parallels between the characters of Circe and Marilee, and I also loved all the stories of the people in the end painting.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
You may not have heard of this novel, but it’s very good. I think Rowling’s on to something with this wizard stuff.
Thursday Next: First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde
I was so excited for this 5th book in the Thursday series to come out, and it was definitely worth the wait. It’s not my favorite in the series, but I did enjoy it, especially once the action picked up. Unlike the others, this one SPOILERWARNINGendsonacliffhangerSPOILERDONE. I went to Fforde’s site and found out he is writing Volume 2 of the Thursday series. The first four books are Volume 1, and FAS is the first installment of the next volume, which will also be four books. In FAS, fourteen years have passed since Thursday’s last adventure. SpecOps no longer exists, but Thursday is working with Bowden, Stig, and Spike on underground SpecOps work. Thursday’s also still working in the Book World, and we find out a lot more about how that universe works. And there’s a Cheese Mafia. Of course.
Smile When You’re Lying: Confessions of a Rogue Travel Writer by Chuck Thompson (To be published in December)
It’s rare that I have true mixed feelings for a book. I either like, dislike, or am “eh” on most books. I had a rare love/hate relationship with this one, however. It’s divided into three sections which comprise travel essays on various topics. I hated the first section. Thompson comes off as crass, arrogant, and unoriginal. He expects his first few essays to enlighten the travel reader, but honestly, we all know there are prostitutes in Thailand. And drugs in Tokyo. However, he completely redeems himself in the other two sections. His essays are insightful and interesting, particularly the ones on the travel writing industry, the Philippines, not-so-ugly Americans, and oil. If you do want to read this, I say skip the first section but definitely read the rest.
posted by junipar