 Icelandic cafe decor. These are color coordinated books that look cool, but the books have been cut away about 3 inches from the spine so that they can be displayed. The bookshelves don't need to be full sized this way, but the books are unreadable.
|
|
Lee: Tuesday’s with Morrie
Me: I read that many years ago. My chosen grandfather gave it to me & it resonated so much. Wow, that’s probably been like 25 years ago now. You’ll have to pick another one *** Kristi: a prayer for owen meany by john irving. Me: Great suggestion, but I’ve read it. Give me another one. *** Nancy: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Me: I absolutely loved this & can’t wait to see him live in April. Do you have another suggestion? Nancy: ha! I loved this book too! Couldn’t stop thinking about it after and I don’t even watch his show. I have relatives in South Africa so it was fascinating to learn more about it Nancy: I’m not an avid reader like you. I also mostly loved Educated by Tara westover but I suspect you have already read that too. For better or worse I don’t invest time in mediocre books so I check reviews before I dive in Me: I haven't read that yet, so I am adding it. Sarah: it is a riveting story *** Wendy: Three Cups of Tea *** Ryan: The brother’s K by David James Duncan Me: That is agreed one, but I’ve already read it. You are going to have a tough time beating The Girl From Corona Del Mar from the 2018 recommend list. I really loved that one. Ryan: Yeah that one was great! How about The Mysteries of Pittsburgh? Me: Never heard of it. I’ll read it. *** Sarah: Circe by Madeline Miller. Me: Read it. Try another! Sarah: It's my standard recommendation right now. Station Eleven by Emily St John *** Dodie: The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah Me: Stephanie already claimed this one. Do you have another suggestion? Dodie: another book by her, The Nightingale, historical fiction about the German occupation of France during WWII and 2 sisters fight for survival. I like her books in that the 2 I’ve read are not only well written but have strong women characters. Also, The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn is a real page turner. Me: I've read and absolutely loved The Nightingale. I will put The Woman in the Window on the list. *** Amy: Sing Unburied Sing by Jesmyn Ward. Me: Read it. Another? Me: One Long River of Song: Notes on Wonder by Brian Doyle Me: Alas, One Long River is not available in audio... Amy: Trust Exercise, Susan Choi. It was also on President Obama’s favorite books list from 2019. I agree. It has a surprising twist. Also can add that I don’t recommend Topeka School, even tho it’s getting f lots of press. It’s supposed to be an exploration of toxic masculinity, but it feels a little too celebratory for my taste *** Tiffany: How to change your mind. Michael pollan Me: Molly already did this one, so pick another one. Molly: My family and other animals Gerald Durrell Me: Molly, you don't get another one. You already have How to Change. Tiffany had to pick another one. *** Janay: Along with your rules, could you list all the books you've already read so we don't accidentally recommend one of them? I'm afraid of what the sanctions might be . . . !!!! Me: I cannot imagine how long it would take to list all the books I have read. If you pick something I read, you just have to pick another one until you hit on one I haven’t read. Janay: I'm really old now, y'know! i could just keel over at the keyboard, finger poised above the send key, never sending my list of 25,000 possibilities! Just assume that the last year was so unpleasant that I read the entire Michael Connelly oeuvre and all of the No. 1 Ladies Detective series for anesthesia. Me: I’ve read the first one. Should your recommendation be for book 2 or do you want to pick an alternative? Janay: My days are numbered. I'll just let myself be attracted by some random shiny object. Or chocolate. Anesthesia has a big role in my life. *** Karen: Mink River by Brian Doyle. I read this as a prompt for a book set in Oregon. It is something I wouldn’t have normally read, and it really stuck with me. Me: I read that one two years ago on this same recommendation list. Do you have another one? Edit or delete this Karen: The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner. One of my favorites from the Oregon Battle of the Books list last year. I got lots of recommendations for things I have already read. I'm including those conversations here. At some point, I'd like to go back and write reviews for these, but I haven't gotten there yet.
*** Just Mercy, recommended by fellow Quaker lawyer, Wendy. She ended up selecting The Girls From Atomic City. Wendy: Just Mercy, an amazing book that our book club thought was the best book we read all year. *** Pillars of the Earth, which I read in 2017 while traveling in Europe. I didn't love it and so didn't read the rest of the series. To rapey for me. Tasha recommended Morrgain's Cross instead. *** The Garden of Evening Mist: Read it and loved it. Raul from law school days recommended anything by David so I picked Cloud Atlas. *** Leah: Have you read Octavia's Brood yet? Me: Yes. The stories were hit & miss, though. The hits were big hits & worth it. *** Nadine made many suggestions: "Bel Canto by Ann Pachett, All the Light We Can Not See, Fall On Your Knees by Ann Marie MacDonald (and/or The Way the Crow Flies) A Prayer For Owen Meany. I have more..." Rules are rules and you only get one, but but luckily I had read all of these except for Fall on Your Knees, so that ended up being her contribution. *** You Don't Have to Say You Love Me, recommended by former OSU colleague and dance class buddy, was rejected: "One of my FAVORITE reads from last year. I LOVED it. Try again...It is so good. He narrates the book himself & is amazing. There’s one part where he’s clearly crying while he’s reading. I totally lost it. At the grocery store in the produce section. So powerful." *** Erin first suggested, "(Re-read) A Wrinkle in Time before the movie comes out. I read it to my kids and we all loved it, but it's been a long time." Since I had already read it, though, she tried, "Country Grit: A Farmoir of Finding Purpose and Love by Scottie Jones. Brand new book, just out, by local author. Easy, enjoyable read. It's about a couple from Phoenix who gave up city life and moved to Alsea, pretty much sight unseen, and became farmers. Trials, tribulations, and trying to find a way to be sustainable, which they have. These are the owners of Leaping Lamb Farms. I really enjoyed their story." None of these had an audio version, so they were rejected. Next, she suggested The 100-Year Old Man Who Climber Out the Window and Disappeared, which I had already read and liked. Finally, she recommended The Tour. *** Gabriel suggested Game of Thrones. I hated GOTs. I got about 1/3 of the way through the first book and game up, which is really rare for me. I just could not get into the universe. |
AuthorI'll read anything a friend recommends & I love telling people what I think about it. Every year, I read 50 books recommended by 50 different friends. Welcome to My 50 Bookish Friends Blog. SearchCategories
All
|
RSS Feed