Jennie’s Comments (group member since Nov 12, 2007)

Jennie’s comments from the The Book Challenge group.

People of the Book I was so engrossed in this book that I stayed up late, got up early, did whatever I needed to do to finish it in the prescribed 7 days. Historical fiction is my favorite genre, and Brooks may be my new favorite historical author.

NightI expect stories about the holocaust to be sad and disturbing, but this book is narrated so closely, so personally, that I found it much more engaging than other accounts.

Year of Wonders was so good, I would look for errands to run so I could listen to it in the car. I listened to it, and the narrator was so good that I think it made the experience much more real and believable. I cried at the end -- I was sorry the book was finished.

Lolita I had avoided this book for years because the famous storyline is so disturbing to me. However, smut doesn't get famous on its own, so I decided to see what the fuss was all about. It was a very engaging story, though I didn't like one single character, and that is usually necessary for me to enjoy a book. I did not like the ending. At all.

Little Beewas not at all what I expected. I enjoyed the story so much, and I especially enjoyed when characters did unexpected things -- which I can't mention because I don't want to spoil anything.

Cutting for Stonemust be made into a movie. It was one of the best books I have ever read. The action sucked me in on the first page, and I fell in love with (most of) the characters by the second chapter. There is so much human decency in this book, and it also helps fill in another gap in my historical knowledge, something I always appreciate

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Womanhelped fill in some of my knowledge gaps of European history. I knew she had been born a German speaking Protestant, but that was the extent of my knowledge of her as a person. The last third of the book made me sad and angry. I guess Massie is doing a good job bringing the story to life if he is raising this kind of emotion almost 300 years after the fact.

Fahrenheit 451was one of those books that lingered around. I'm not sure why it took this long for me to read it.

A Confederacy of Duncesmade me laugh out loud. I loved so much about this book, and some of the characters were so familiar to me that I was able to visualize them immediately (is that a good thing? Maybe not)

Cloud Atlas was slow starting, but once I figured it out, I couldn't put it down. I got so attached to some of the characters and storylines that I hated to see them go. I'm interested in seeing how this movie was pulled off though I heard it didn't go well.

The Night CircusI loved this book so much that I stayed up late and got up early to read it. It might have a slow start, but I loved the characters so much, and Morgenstern is really creative, adding just enough magic to make the story interesting without going off the deep end with fantastic stuff.

All Aunt Hagar's ChildrenAfter reading the Twelve Tribes of HAttie, I had to read All Aunt HAgar's Children, and I am convinced Mathis ripped some of the structure off from this book. I love DC, and this book talks of history and social workings of a part of DC I don't ever get to see.

Artemis FowlI almost forgot I read this book. I enjoyed the adventure and cleverness very much. I'm not sure if I'll continue with the series, but this is another that I can wholeheartedly recommend to kids who like action.

Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensionsis one of those classics that I should have read long ago. I just stuck it out to have it "done", but I have to admit I didn't enjoy it very much. It's an interesting look at Victorian social strata, but I'd rather look at sociological stuff like that head on rather than developing metaphors for it.

The Giverjust helps me remember why I hate distopic novels, whether they are for children or adults. I felt the way about this that I felt about The Handmaid's Tale (hint: not good).

Theodore Boone: The Abductionwas a logical followup, and it was great to listen to while I painted the living room. It made time fly by. Great story

Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyerwas a great mystery. I usually enjoy John Grisham, and his kids' books are pretty good too.

Through My Eyes: Ruby Bridges is my favorite book about her. She did a really nice job explaining her situation in a way that is accessible to children.

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie didn't live up to the hype for me. I enjoyed many of the stories, but I was hoping for more cohesiveness. I'm not sure why everyone is making such a big deal about this book when Edward P. Jones made an equally good book in the same style 20 years with All Aunt Hagar's Children

The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash is an adorable story that is great to use with primary students to teach cause and effect. So cute!