Around the World discussion

Here's the start of my list:

Albania - Chronicle in Stone
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - Bogotá: A Novel
France - The Perfume Collector
Ghana - Ghana Must Go
Greece - Eleni
Hungary - The Lost Wife
Iceland - Burial Rites - READ
India - The Sleeping Dictionary
Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq
Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - READ
New Zealand - The Luminaries
Palestine - The Almond Tree
U.S. - An Invisible Thread: The True Story of an 11-Year-Old Panhandler, a Busy Sales Executive, and an Unlikely Meeting with Destiny
Hungary - The Invisible Bridge
U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - READ

Lilisa wrote: "Here's the start of my list:

Albania - Chronicle in Stone
Australia - The Husband's Secret
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - [book:Bogotá: A No..."

I loved Burial Rites and The Luminaries! Two of my favourite books of last year. I also liked Ghana Must Go (but maybe a little less than I thought I would).
The Almond Tree looks very interesting, I think I will add that one to my own list.

Updated list with what I've read so far and added some countries/books:

Albania - Chronicle in StoneREAD - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ - 2 stars
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - Bogotá: A Novel
France - The Perfume Collector
Ghana - Ghana Must Go
Greece - Eleni
Czech Republic - The Lost Wife
Iceland - Burial Rites - READ - 4 stars
India - The Sleeping Dictionary
Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq
Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - READ - 4 starts
New Zealand - The LuminariesREAD - 5 stars
Palestine - The Almond Tree
U.S. - An Invisible Thread: The True Story of an 11-Year-Old Panhandler, a Busy Sales Executive, and an Unlikely Meeting with Destiny
Hungary - The Invisible BridgeREAD - 5 stars
U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - READ - 4 starts
U.K. - Me Before You - READ - 4 stars
Macau (China) -The Red Pole of Macau: An Ava Lee Novel - READ - 3 stars
Russia - Child 44
St. Lucia - Omeros
??? - The Golem and the Jinni
U.S. - Twelve Years a Slave
Egypt - Palace Walk
Lithuania - Between Shades of Gray
China - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze

Lilisa wrote: "Updated list with what I've read so far and added some countries/books:

Albania - Chronicle in StoneREAD - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ - 2 stars
A..."

Nice list, Lilisa! Glad to see you're going to be reading River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze - it was definitely a favorite for me. I believe The Golem and the Jinni takes place in NY and Syria. I just bought that one for my Kindle, but I'm not sure when I'll get around to reading it. Happy reading!

Suzanne wrote: "Lilisa wrote: "Updated list with what I've read so far and added some countries/books:

Albania - Chronicle in StoneREAD - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - R..."

Suzanne - looking forward to reading RT. Thanks on the locations for the other - not sure when I'll get to it either - it's sitting on my Kindle. Not my usual read but heard good things about it.

YLTO's challenges and group read have been helping with the Around The World challenge this year - Australia, now Russia and next month is looking very Native American/Canadian!

Sarah wrote: "YLTO's challenges and group read have been helping with the Around The World challenge this year - Australia, now Russia and next month is looking very Native American/Canadian!"

Yeah, killing two birds with one stone. We need to continue stacking the decks at YLTO for Around the World!

*makes notes*

Haha Judy and Rusalka!

Updated list:

Afghanistan - A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story - READ - 5 stars
Albania - Chronicle in Stone READ - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ - 2 stars
Czech Republic - The Lost Wife - READ - 4 stars
Iceland - Burial Rites - READ - 4 stars
India - The Sleeping Dictionary - READ - 3 stars
Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - READ - 4 stars
New Zealand - The Luminaries READ - 5 stars
Hungary - The Invisible Bridge READ - 5 stars
U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - READ - 4 stars
U.K. - Me Before You - READ - 4 stars
Macau (China) -The Red Pole of Macau: An Ava Lee Novel - READ - 3 stars
Russia - Child 44 - READ - 4 stars
Ireland - Dark Witch - READ - 2 stars
U.S. Aluetian Islands - The Wind Is Not a River - READ - 4 stars
Israel/Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq- READ - 4 stars
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - Bogotá: A Novel
France - The Perfume Collector
Ghana - Ghana Must Go
Greece - Eleni
Palestine - The Almond Tree
U.S. - An Invisible Thread: The True Story of an 11-Year-Old Panhandler, a Busy Sales Executive, and an Unlikely Meeting with Destiny
St. Lucia - White Egrets
Syria - The Golem and the Jinni
U.S. - Twelve Years a Slave
Egypt - Palace Walk
Lithuania - Between Shades of Gray
China - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze
TBD - The Book of Life
Poland - The Puppet Boy Of Warsaw
Singapore - Soy Sauce for Beginners
Austria - The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
Chile - The House of the Spirits
Brazil - Brazil
Nigeria - The Thing Around Your Neck
Somalia/Saudi Arabia/Kenya - Infidel
Algeria - The Bridges of Constantine
Granada - The Return
Turkey - Memed, My Hawk

What a great list! There are several that I've read and loved, and several that I should to add to my own list!

Thanks Suzanne - I know I stole at least one book - River Town - from you if not more. Which are some of the others you enjoyed?

Look at you rip through all those books! I'm rather impressed.

I enjoyed Burial Rites and Palace Walk. Another friend raved about My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq, so I have that on my TBR list as well. I'm also current reading (and enjoying) The Invisible Bridge.

Oh and now I have had a good look, I've added a heap too.

I loved The House of the Spirits and was a bit meh about Between Shades of Gray. I am wondering if I was a bit harsh on it on reflection though.

Thanks Rusalka :-)

And yes, Suzanne and Rusalka - I enjoyed BR as well. PW and THOS have been on my list for some time and looking forward to reading them. MFP is looking promising. I started it but realized March is half over and I needed to read The Round House to put it aside for a bit. I lovedTIB. BSOG - hmmm, thanks for the heads up, it's set in Lithuania and needed one from there. Shout if there's a better one.

I added a couple to my list too! I see that The House of the Spirits is number 3 in a series - I've not read any of them - is the first one set in Chile too? Any good? Do you think the other books need to be read before this one?

Not at all. I didn't even know it was tied to any others!

Another way of thinking about it, is the publishing dates is House of Spirits is 1982, and the others are 1999 and 2000.

Interesting since The House of the Spirits is the first book she wrote I believe. I've read a few of her others and haven't been wowed, but Chrissie highly recommended this one to me so I thought I'd give it a whirl.

Ok cool - I didn't look at the publication dates of the books in the series! I don't think I've read a book set in South America yet. I did try One Hundred Years of Solitude but I didn't get on well with it and abandoned it early on. I see The House of the Spirits is also a family saga so I'm slightly wary but on the whole it sounds good.

I agree with you Sarah - I read OHYOS years ago and I was hard pressed to give it two stars - that was rather generous. Whenever critics rave about a book I generally don't enjoy it. Recent exception was The Luminaries. It won the Man Booker prize but I really enjoyed it.

Updated 4/23/14

Afghanistan - A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story - READ - 5 stars
Albania - Chronicle in Stone READ - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ - 2 stars
Czech Republic - The Lost Wife - READ - 4 stars
Iceland - Burial Rites - READ - 4 stars
India - The Sleeping Dictionary - READ - 3 stars
Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - READ - 4 stars
New Zealand - The Luminaries READ - 5+ stars
Hungary - The Invisible Bridge READ - 5 stars
U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - READ - 4 stars
U.K. - Me Before You - READ - 4 stars
Macau (China) -The Red Pole of Macau: An Ava Lee Novel - READ - 3 stars
Russia - Child 44 - READ - 4 stars
Ireland - Dark Witch - READ - 2 stars
U.S. Aluetian Islands - The Wind Is Not a River - READ - 4 stars
Egypt - City of the Sun - READ - 3 stars
France - An Officer and a Spy - READ - 5 stars
Israel/Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq- READ - 4 stars
Lithuania - Between Shades of Gray - READ - 3 stars
Palestine - The Almond Tree - READ - 4 stars
Spain - Guernica - READ - 5+ stars
Austria - The Story of the Trapp Family Singers - READ - 3 stars
St. Lucia - White Egrets - READ - 4 stars
Egypt - The Cairo Affair - READ - 3 stars
Spain - The Return - READ - 2 stars
France - The Elegance of the Hedgehog - 3.5 stars
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - Bogotá: A Novel
France - The Perfume Collector
Ghana - Ghana Must Go
Greece - Eleni
U.S. - An Invisible Thread: The True Story of an 11-Year-Old Panhandler, a Busy Sales Executive, and an Unlikely Meeting with Destiny
Syria - The Golem and the Jinni
U.S. - Twelve Years a Slave
Egypt - Palace Walk
China - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze
TBD - The Book of Life
Poland - The Puppet Boy Of Warsaw
Singapore - Soy Sauce for Beginners
Chile - The House of the Spirits
Brazil - Brazil
Nigeria - The Thing Around Your Neck
Somalia/Saudi Arabia/Kenya - Infidel
Algeria - The Bridges of Constantine
Turkey - Memed, My Hawk

Thanks Judy. I'm trying hard to be disciplined to stay within my list but every so often I drift - Guernica was a wonderful drift!

You are really kicking this list's butt!

It helps when one is on vacation!

Updated 6/25/14

Afghanistan - A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story - READ - 5 stars
Albania - Chronicle in Stone READ - 3 stars
Australia - The Husband's Secret - READ - 2 stars
Czech Republic - The Lost Wife - READ - 4 stars
Iceland - Burial Rites - READ - 4 stars
India - The Sleeping Dictionary - READ - 3 stars
Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - READ - 4 stars
New Zealand - The Luminaries READ - 5+ stars
Hungary - The Invisible Bridge READ - 5 stars
U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - READ - 4 stars
U.K. - Me Before You - READ - 4 stars
Macau (China) -The Red Pole of Macau: An Ava Lee Novel - READ - 3 stars
Russia - Child 44 - READ - 4 stars
Ireland - Dark Witch - READ - 2 stars
U.S. Aluetian Islands - The Wind Is Not a River - READ - 4 stars
Egypt - City of the Sun - READ - 3 stars
France - An Officer and a Spy - READ - 5 stars
Israel/Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq- READ - 4 stars
Lithuania - Between Shades of Gray - READ - 3 stars
Palestine - The Almond Tree - READ - 4 stars
Spain - Guernica - READ - 5+ stars
Austria - The Story of the Trapp Family Singers - READ - 3 stars
St. Lucia - White Egrets - READ - 4 stars
Egypt - The Cairo Affair - READ - 3 stars
Spain - The Return - READ - 2 stars
France - The Elegance of the Hedgehog - READ - 3.5 stars
U.S. - The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry - READ - 3 stars
Greece - The Thread - READ - 3 stars
Palestine - Mornings in Jenin - READ -5 stars
Ireland - Shadow Spell - READ - 3 stars
Japan - The Arrow Catcher - READ - 3 stars
Thailand - Cross Currents - READ - 2 stars
Guyana - The Water Rat of Wanchai - READ - 4 stars
China - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze - READ - 3 stars
U.K. - The Woman in White
France - The Perfume Collector
Sri Lanka - Island of a Thousand Mirrors
Australia - The Rosie Project
Colombia - Bogotá: A Novel
Ghana - Ghana Must Go
Greece - Eleni
Syria - The Golem and the Jinni
U.S. - Twelve Years a Slave
Egypt - Palace Walk
TBD - The Book of Life
Poland - The Puppet Boy Of Warsaw
Singapore - Soy Sauce for Beginners
Chile - The House of the Spirits
Brazil - Brazil
Nigeria - The Thing Around Your Neck
Somalia/Saudi Arabia/Kenya - Infidel
Algeria - The Bridges of Constantine
Turkey - Memed, My Hawk

Updated Dec. 27, 2014:

Overshot 2014's challenge of 52 books - read 60 books. I visited a few countries more than once - notably France, India, Spain China, Russia, Australia, U.K., U.S. and Ireland. I had a great time traveling some of my favorite countries and visited ones I'd never been to before like Albania, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Jamaica, St. Lucia, New Zealand, Czech Republic, Morocco, Antartica, Guyana, Macau (technically part of China) Lithuania and Lebanon. I didn't get to some of the books on my original list as I got distracted as I traveled through the year. But that gives me a reason to travel the world again in 2015. Got books, will travel! My two "favoritest" books were The Luminaries and Guernica. I've reviewed all of them, which helps jog my memory as time marches on.

I read seven 5-star books, 23 4-star books, 23
3-star books, six 2-star books and one 1-star book.

1. Albania - Chronicle in Stone - 3 stars
2. Australia - The Husband's Secret - 2 stars
3. Czech Republic - The Lost Wife - 4 stars
4. Iceland - Burial Rites - 4 stars
5. India - The Sleeping Dictionary - 3 stars
6. Morocco - The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca - 4 stars
7. New Zealand - The Luminaries - 5+ stars
8. Hungary - The Invisible Bridge - 5 stars
9. U.S./Antarctica - Where'd You Go, Bernadette - 4 stars
10. U.K. - Me Before You - 4 stars
11. Macau (China) -The Red Pole of Macau: An Ava Lee Novel - 3 stars
12. Afghanistan - A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story - 5 stars
13. Russia - Child 44 - 4 stars
14. Ireland - Dark Witch - 2 stars
15. U.S. Aluetian Islands - The Wind Is Not a River - 4 stars
16. Egypt - City of the Sun - 3 stars
17. France - An Officer and a Spy - 5 stars
18. Israel/Iraq - My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq - 4 stars
19. Lithuania - Between Shades of Gray - 3 stars
20. Palestine - The Almond Tree - 4 stars
21. Spain - Guernica - 5+ stars
22. Austria - The Story of the Trapp Family Singers - 3 stars
23. St. Lucia - White Egrets - 4 stars
24. Egypt - The Cairo Affair - 3 stars
25. Spain - The Return - 2 stars
26. France - The Elegance of the Hedgehog - 3 stars
27. U.S. - The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry - 3 stars
28. Greece - The Thread - 3 stars
29. Palestine - Mornings in Jenin - 5 stars
30. Ireland - Shadow Spell - 3 stars
31. Japan - The Arrow Catcher - 3 stars
32. Thailand - Cross Currents - 2 stars
33. Guyana - The Water Rat of Wanchai - 4 stars
34. China - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze - 3 stars
35. U.K. - The Woman in White - 4 stars
36. France - The Perfume Collector - 4 stars
37. France/Samoa/U.S. - Under the Wide and Starry Sky - 3 stars
38. China - Three Souls - 4 stars
39. Sri Lanka - Island of a Thousand Mirrors - 4 stars
40. Australia - The Rosie Project - 4 stars
41. Jamaica - From Rum to Roots - 4 stars
42. France/Germany - All the Light We Cannot See - 2 stars
43. Yemen - Henna House - 4 stars
44. Russia - Russian Winter - 3 stars
45. Bhutan - Married to Bhutan - 4 stars
46. Syria - The Golem and the Jinni - 3 stars
47. Somalia/Saudi Arabia/Kenya - Infidel - 3 stars
48. India - Kevin and I in India - 1 star
49. The Netherlands - The Miniaturist - 3 stars
50. Turkey - Memed, My Hawk - 4 stars
51. India – The Leaving of Things - 4 stars
52. France -My Life in France - 3 stars
53. Canada - The Long Way Home - 4 stars
54. Italy - Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders - 3 stars
55. Greece - Eleni - 5 stars
56. U.K. - Scotland - Skye - Letters from Skye - 4 stars
57. India - The Fugitive - 3 stars
58. Lebanon - An Unnecessary Woman - 2 stars
59. U.K. Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance: A Mystery - 3 stars
60. Italy The Garden of Letters - 4 stars

Congratulations! You've read some terrific books this year and I'll be adding some to my TBR read list as well. Thanks for the recommendations!

Thanks and you're welcome Suzanne - more than fair as I've snuck my fair share from yours! Happy reading!

WOW! Great work... Thanks for posting your completed list with the stars. My TBR list just got bigger.

Jayme wrote: "WOW! Great work... Thanks for posting your completed list with the stars. My TBR list just got bigger."

:-)

Lilisa wrote: "Completed 2014's challenge of 52 books. I visited a few countries more than once - notably France, India, Spain China, Russia, Australia, U.S. and Ireland. I had a great time traveling some of my f..."

Congratulations! Great list. A lot of books unknown to me. I'm sure I'll use them for future reference :)

An wrote: "Lilisa wrote: "Completed 2014's challenge of 52 books. I visited a few countries more than once - notably France, India, Spain China, Russia, Australia, U.S. and Ireland. I had a great time traveli..."

Enjoy - I've done my share of that!