Book suggestions for vacation?

[LadyBlue]

Thanks ladies

 

[lala2332]

jasper fforde''s The Eyre Affair..its 1984/hitchhiker''s guide to the galaxy/classic literature

The Other Bolyen Girl...its been out a while, but is so good (way better than the movie)

A Great and Terrible Beauty by libba bray

True Blood- Charlene Harris (better and different than the tv show!)

 

[Mannequin]

LaLa - Have you read that whole series by Libba Bray? They are all pretty good.

Hoofbeats - I second The Host. I read that in a day and could not put it down, liked it better than Twilight and its sequels, actually.

Upgradable - I like historical fiction, too. I am reading Steinbeck''s East of Eden currently and LOVING it. I also just finished two books by Marisa De Los Santos, Love Walked In and Belong to Me. They were outstanding fiction, I love her writing style and her characters are well-developed and funny.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 7/20/2009 9:14:37 PM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
MC-I'm assuming you're talking about the Jamie character? I think the chemistry between Claire and Jamie is awkward in the first book. Almost like the author wasn't sure which direction she was going to take things. Claire quickly grows a backbone though and the story gets better. The first book is probably my least favorite.

Yes, it was the "Jamie" character. I'm rather surprised how popular the series is here among everyone! It was just not my thing. Also, didn't like the Time Traveler's Wife (another book being recommended here - lol - I'm not even that picky, but I read a lot, so I'd say for every 7 books there is one I cannot get into and I'm vocal about it - I love writing reviews on Amazon.)

For historical fiction:
The Other Boylen Girl is good

Fantasy/kind of odd & satirical fiction:
(I just finished this) Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut. It is comprised of tons of mini chapters so it goes by very fast.

If you're looking for an ultra light silly book - if you haven't read it - Bridget Jones's Diary

Someone mentioned Water For Elephants. I LOVED that book!

There are so many more. . .I'd have to run down to my book shelf to find them all.

If you're looking for a really long book, The Poisonwood Bible is excellent! Also, a fun book would be The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan.

 

[lala2332]

Date: 7/21/2009 5:01:04 PM
Author: equestrienne
LaLa - Have you read that whole series by Libba Bray? They are all pretty good.

Hoofbeats - I second The Host. I read that in a day and could not put it down, liked it better than Twilight and its sequels, actually.

Upgradable - I like historical fiction, too. I am reading Steinbeck''s East of Eden currently and LOVING it. I also just finished two books by Marisa De Los Santos, Love Walked In and Belong to Me. They were outstanding fiction, I love her writing style and her characters are well-developed and funny.

eq--yeah, i read the whole series. I agree...pretty good.

I will have to try The Host, since everyone recommends it.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 7/21/2009 12:00:19 AM
Author: Haven
Here''s another vote for The Glass Castle. We used to have that on our school''s summer reading list and my students always loved it. It''s pretty fascinating.

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides is fabulous, so far. I''m about 60 pages in.

The Glass Castle was absolutely crazy! I do recommend the book. It''s interesting and reads quickly. Still, I wonder how much of it was embellished. (and I have to say that reading it made me feel much more confident in my parenting abilities. . .I may not be perfect, but nobody could possibly be as incapable as that mother was!)

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I recommend The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb. Great book, and honestly my favorite book of all time....it''s beautifully written, and does have a lot of historical fiction--so I believe you''d enjoy it too. Not to mention, it''s a big ol'' thick thing...so if you have a lot of down time, you''ll be able to fill it easily. It''s hard to put down!

Basically, the story is about this man who is a high school teacher at Columbine. He leads a pretty unremarkable life, he''s married--not happily, but not will to quit his marriage either. His aunt dies the day before Columbine, so he is out of the classroom on the day of the tragic events...however his wife, a school nurse, is in the library. That''s just the leap pad for the book...it''s a richly written novel, with highly developed characters--some you''ll love, some you''ll hate...some are heartbreaking, others are hopeful. The plot is a wild ride with twists and turns...it''s exciting, engaging and its a thinker--esspecially for women, it''s a great "womens" book. It''s a fantastic read--every single page keeps you wanting more. It''s truly one that when you close it, you''ll wish it went on and on and on. I remember dying to know the ending...and also trying to stretch it out.

 

[PinkTower]

MC, I agree,The Poisonwood Bible was great.
I kept buying and reading her books after that one, but they did not compare.

I cannot finish The Other Boleyn Girl, it is just too sad. You could trust no one back then it seems.

My next big read will be Pat Conroy''s new novel, coming out next month.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 7/21/2009 5:21:51 PM
Author: Pink Tower
MC, I agree,The Poisonwood Bible was great.
I kept buying and reading her books after that one, but they did not compare.

Yep, the majority of her other books veer into the flat-out-boring category.

 

[Mara]

i love historical fiction... philippa gregory is one that i love to read, and she has a ton of books other than the tudor and boleyn ones. the wideacre series is quite dark and interesting, there are 3 in that series, i have read two. there is another one i want to get called Teh Wise Woman by PG.

also there was a book i read recently called The Borgia Bride, can't remember who it's by but you can amazon it... it was also written in a similar vein. boy there sure was a lot of incest back in the old days...

one of my fave books is The Thirteenth Tale and i wish this gal (dianne setterfield i think) would have written more but i think it was her first book.

eta i just have to plug this site Better World Books (Google it), which sells used books in great condition and free shipping. it took a while to get to me (7 days or so) but i got 7 used books for $34...!! it is great if you are a fast reader like me and i think they have a buyback program too. also part (or all?) of your sale goes to helping further literacy which is great!

 

[April20]

Date: 7/21/2009 1:32:24 PM
Author: Hudson_Hawk

Date: 7/20/2009 10:01:21 PM
Author: April20

Date: 7/20/2009 9:52:49 PM

Author: Amandine

Date: 7/20/2009 9:14:37 PM

Author: Hudson_Hawk

MC-I''m assuming you''re talking about the Jamie character? I think the chemistry between Claire and Jamie is awkward in the first book. Almost like the author wasn''t sure which direction she was going to take things. Claire quickly grows a backbone though and the story gets better. The first book is probably my least favorite.

I agree. Love the whole series.


I just finished ''The Veil of Gold'', by Kim Wilkins and really enjoyed it.

Earlier this summer I enjoyed Ken Follett''s ''The Pillars of the Earth'', it has a lot of interesting characters and the central theme is the building of a medieval cathedral. The sequel is on my list to read soon!

I loved the entire Outlander series, though I read the first book around 1996 and don''t remember it that clearly anymore.... maybe it isn''t as good as the rest of them. I shoud re-read it.

I also recommend The Time Traveler''s Wife. Really, really loved it.


I''ve been on a Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child kick lately. I don''t know if it falls into your interests that well, but I find them rather fascinating and the plots are rather intricate without being horribly hard to follow. They''ve all been good thus far and while it is a series of sorts, you don''t necessarily need to read them in any particular order like you need to do with other series.

I looooove Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child!! Have you read their latest (Cemetary Dance???)? I''m waiting for it to come out in paperback ''cause I''m too poor for hardback right now

I just read it! It was great. I downloaded it to my Kindle, so it was only $10. I''m reading The Book of the Dead now- I got them out of order.

 

[April20]

Date: 7/21/2009 1:43:34 PM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
Hey Gaby, the order is as follows: Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, and the newest one releasing later this summer/fall An Echo in the Bone

There''s a new one coming?!? I missed that. So excited!

 

[ChinaCat]

Well, all of the ones I would recommend have already been mentioned, so I will just say I also loved:

Middlesex
Time Traveller''s Wife
Water For Elephants
The Poisonwood Bible
books by Terry Pratchett
The Hour I First Believed- I am reading this now, it''s good, but I LOVE his first two books- She''s Come Undone and I Know This Much Is True
Eyre Affair series- great fun!
Confessions of Max Tivoli- this is a very similar story to the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, but so much better

 

[Tuckins1]

OK. A great historical fiction book that I LOVE is called "One Thousand White Women, the journal of May Dodd" by Jim Fergus. It''s about the Native Americans and the US government back in the 1800''s... There was a deal between the president and a chief (Crazy Horse, I think) that said that if the tribe gave the government 1000 horses, that the government would supply the tribes with 1000 white women as brides, to help assimilate..... That deal actually never went through (obviously) but this book was written as if it did go through. It''s really a phenomenal piece of literature.

 

[Blackpaw]

I''ll ''third'' the Eyre Affair, great fun - detective/historical and comedic!

Last year i read ''This Thing of Darkness'' by Harry Thompson. I cant rave about it enough. Its the story of Captian Robert Fitzroy who was the captain of the Beagle, that Charles Darwin voyaged on and on which he developed his theory of evolution (Fitzroy did not agree). His career was amazing, and Harry Thompson does amazing things with the story, sadly he passed away not long after it was published.

The book was shortlisted for the booker prize, and its long!! But awesome, i couldnt put it down....love love love it

 

[April20]

Slightly off topic, but I saw a movie trailor for The Time Traveler''s Wife last night. It comes out in mid-August. I really want to see it, but have a feeling I''ll be disappointed, as usually happens when a book I love is made into a movie.

 

[mayachel]

I know you''ve already got lots of great rec''s here, but in the effort of adding to the list, and promoting my most recent favorite novel...

"The Shadow of The Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. I just read it, and can''t wait to get my hands on the prequel that came out in English this spring. One of the reviews describes it as "even the subplots have subplots" and that''s perfect. It is set in Barcelona in the early 1920''s-1950''s ish. And focuses around a book within the book.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I agree that Clavell''s The Shogun is a great read, just be warned that it''s not for the weak of stomach, they describe some pretty gritty and gory things in that book.

I recently read Life of Pi, Love in the Time of Cholera, and Snowcrash. All good books

 

[Amandine]

I have to second the recommendation for Three Cups of Tea, loved it! It can help change your perspective on Afghanistan.

MC--I am happy to hear you didn''t like the Time Traveler''s Wife, because I didn''t either. You are the only other person that I know of!

And as for the Outlander series, Echo in the Bone should release in September. The author, Diana Gabaldon, is coming to the Decatur Book Festival (town near Atlanta) over Labor Day weekend, and I am going to try to go see her. I did last time she was in town, and it was very interesting. She wrote Outlander sort of on a whim (if I am remembering it correctly), and I don''t think she originally intended or thought it would be published. She is trained as a scientist, and has a doctorate I believe--studying something like bones? Bugs? I can''t remember.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Date: 7/22/2009 11:33:58 AM
Author: Amandine
I have to second the recommendation for Three Cups of Tea, loved it! It can help change your perspective on Afghanistan.


MC--I am happy to hear you didn''t like the Time Traveler''s Wife, because I didn''t either. You are the only other person that I know of!


And as for the Outlander series, Echo in the Bone should release in September. The author, Diana Gabaldon, is coming to the Decatur Book Festival (town near Atlanta) over Labor Day weekend, and I am going to try to go see her. I did last time she was in town, and it was very interesting. She wrote Outlander sort of on a whim (if I am remembering it correctly), and I don''t think she originally intended or thought it would be published. She is trained as a scientist, and has a doctorate I believe--studying something like bones? Bugs? I can''t remember.

Birds. I believe she''s an ornithologist.

 

[Liane]

Date: 7/21/2009 5:06:48 PM
Author: lala2332

I will have to try The Host, since everyone recommends it.

(cough)

No... not everyone.

Stephenie Meyer is not an author I would recommend. Tastes vary, as I''m well aware, and normally I bite my tongue rather than shoot down other people''s recommendations... but IMO Meyer is not a good writer at all, and is in fact sufficiently bad that I''ll break my usual rule of silence on that one.

Charlaine Harris'' books are good-humored fun (even when dealing with death and destruction, you can''t keep a good Southern girl down), though anyone who goes searching for the title "True Blood" might come up dry.

The first of the Sookie Stackhouse books is Dead Until Dark.

 

[lala2332]

I like Twlight, so its more of the plot that I wanted recommended, rather than the writing. I understand that not everyone likes her stuff. Just seeing multiple people post that it was good was what I meant. But I understand the writing and the subject matter are not for everyone.


Thanks for posting the correct Charlene Harris title. I read all of her books in about a week and half, and all the titles kind of ran together!