Pamela’s Comments (group member since Jan 06, 2014)

Pamela’s comments from the Mount TBR 2014 Challenge group.

I started out on Pike's Peak (12 books) and ended up doubling that and finishing at the top of Mount Blanc (24 books.) WOOT!


Describe yourself: Bright-Sided
Describe where you currently live: In the Time of the Butterflies
If you could go anywhere where would you go?: On the Road

Every Monday morning I look/feel like: People of the Moon
The last time I went to the doctor/therapist was because: of Love in the Time of Cholera
The last meal I ate was: On Gold Mountain

When a creepy guy/girl asks me for my phone number, I: say it's Our Final Hour
Ignorant politicians make me: think of The Last of the Savages
Some people need to spend more time: Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World

My memoir could be titled: The Dewey Decimal System
If I could, I would tell my teenage self: The Meaning of It All
I've always wondered: The Meaning of Everything

Book 24 done last night: Lit by Mary Karr. Really good writing, I gave it 4 stars.

With this book done it means I'm standing on the peak of Mt. Blanc! YAY!!!

Book 23 completed today with the four star book of Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America by Barbara Ehrenreich.

One more to finish this peak, should be able to manage it.

Book 22 done! I finished On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family by Lisa See yesterday. Lots of interesting parts, but also many areas that could have been pared down. It was a little too long. I gave it three and a half stars.

I probably should have added, that Wild Seed is one of my least favorite books of Butler's. I gave her book 5 stars because as an author, she deserves more recognition. I was very sad when I learned she passed away.

Allison wrote: "78. DNF Wild Seed by Octavia Butler (2/18/2013).

I made it to p.45. This is one of the last Kindle Daily Deal purchases I need to get through. I've discovered it's not the best way for me to find..."

I really like Octavia Butler, but found that she is someone you usually have to give a lot of room before the story takes off. This one in particular I almost gave up on, but it got better as it went along. Still there is some unsettled feeling about the book, the main character is so dark!

I am considering book number 21 done, even though I could only get about a third the way through. I had high expectations for Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez, but found it uninteresting. I stopped about a month ago and haven't gone back to it, my first DNF for this challenge. Onto other more engaging books!

WOOT!! Happy cheering here. I feel lucky today!! Makes for a really good friday....and good way to start a little vacation. Thanks!!

I'm currently working up Mount Blanc and have logged in 20.35 books. I'm stalled about a third the way through one book. Since Mount Black is 15,781 feet this equals roughly 3 miles. With 0.125 miles per book read, I'm at 2.54 miles in my hike or 13,381 feet up the mountain.

In paring books I could pair the last two completed for this challenge: The Meaning of Everything with The Meaning of It All just for their title similarity.

I could also pair The Meaning of Everything with The Book of William as both discuss important books from England...the Oxford English Dictionary and the First Folio of Shakespeare.

Good going Kate! If you want to go for the next level, just create a new thread under that higher peak. Good luck!

Book number 20 completed. The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester earned three stars. Review here.

Earlier in the year I read Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages (library book, so not counted for my mountain). I think the order would have been better the other way around.

Félicitations pour monter votre montagne!!

Congrats Lisa! Sounds like lots of fun planned with vacation to DragonCon! :)

Book number 19 done. Four and a half stars for The Meaning of It All: Thoughts of a Citizen-Scientist by Richard P. Feynman. Three lectures transcribed into a short book. The book sat for years on my bookshelf and I wish I had gotten to this sooner! I listened to the audio version, somewhat like the original lecture, just different speaker. My full review here.

Been a good month for climbing, book number 18 done. A solid five stars with The Last of the Savages by Jay McInerney. My review is here. The book surprised me, mainly by being something I owned...don't remember seeing it before, and the great writing.

:-) Carolyn.


Okay, finished another book....number 17 down. This one an old classic The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. I had read a small portion for a class years ago and finally got around to reading the entirety.

C. wrote: "Four stars is a hard one because it's supposed to signify "extremely good, one thing missing from it being a best-ever favourite". I understand three can feel too neutral if there was a part you l..."

To politely disagree with your rating system... your four stars are somewhat different than what goodreads says, which is only "really liked it" and leaves much room for personal opinion.

For me, Shreve's writing in this book was good enough for four stars. I haven't read any of her other works, so maybe it doesn't hold up well compared to those books and some people may have higher expectations from Shreve. But if compared to other books by different authors, poorly written, this book shines above those. And yes, despite the shocker last sentences. For example above listed The Impressionist by Hari Kunzru. Not that it was poor writing but it was quite dull at times, thus the writing not as good as Shreve and I gave it a lower rating.

That book is on my read list too, but since I don't own a copy it won't count for this type of challenge. Sounds like I should get my own copy though, for referring back to and reading a second time. Glad you enjoyed it....maybe I'll place it higher up on my reading list.

Book 16 completed on Saturday with The Last Time They Met by Anita Shreve. The writing really pulls you into the story, so I gave the book a very generous four stars. There was much of the plot I didn't like very much and the ending was just too much. It ruined the whole book for me.

Book 15 completed with Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse. I gave it 4 stars. A book that I've owned since the mid-1990's. Happy to finally have read it.

Already working another one already so the next step should be up quickly. Owned it for ten years. Nice to get to some of these longtimers.