The History Book Club discussion

Samanta, this is your thread for 2017. I have included the link to the required format thread and an example. If you had a 2016 thread - it is archived - but you can still add books to it for the last few days of December.

Please follow the standard required format below - I hope you enjoy your reading in 2017. Here is also a link for assistance with the required guidelines:

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Our Required Format:

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2017
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

IMPORTANT - THE REVIEW SHOULD BE SHORT AND SWEET - THERE ARE NO LINKS OF ANY KIND IN THE BODY OF THE REVIEW ALLOWED. NONE. DO NOT REFER TO ANY OTHER BOOK IN YOUR BRIEF REVIEW. THE ONLY BOOK CITED IN YOUR REVIEW IS THE ONE YOU ARE REVIEWING - NO OTHERS. ALL LINKS TO OTHER THREADS OR REVIEWS ARE DELETED IMMEDIATELY - THERE WILL BE NO WARNING. WE CONSIDER THIS SELF PROMOTION AND IT IS NOT ALLOWED AND IS IN VIOLATION OF OUR RULES AND GUIDELINES.

JANUARY

1. by Oscar Hijuelos
Finish date: 02.01.2017.
Genre: Fiction
Rating: C+
Review: I picked this book in my library trying to find a LIGHT Christmas read. I came to a conclusion that, unless it's a historical/contemporary romance (a genre I am well versed in), I'm terrible at finding light reads. I finished the book, because, in a way, it kept me interested, but the main character's issues and his way of dealing with grief were too much for me (especially since I'm very familiar with this type of loss). Actually, this book might be used as a manual on what not to do to yourself when you lose a loved one.

Everybody is off to a great start

2. by Erin Watt
Finish date: 04.01.2017.
Genre: YA
Rating: A
Review: I finally have the whole trilogy, so I'm doing a reread of the first book, to get acquainted with the story again. The book is still very dear to my heart and I can't wait to start reading the rest of the series.

3. by Erin Watt
Finish date: 05.01.2017.
Genre: YA
Rating: A
Review: The second book in the series which reveals a lot of new details, but still ends with a cliffhanger (like the first one, and the only thing I don't like about the series). Onward to the last one.

4. by Erin Watt
Finish date: 06.01.2017.
Genre: YA
Rating: A
Review: This whole series is an emotional rollercoaster. This book had some dry parts, but the overall impression is definitely positive.

5. by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
Finish date: 13.01.2017.
Genre: American History
Rating: C+/B-
Review: I you don't have an extensive background knowledge of this topic (Nixon's presidency, the 1972 elections, who all the president's men actually are), this book might be just a bit too much for you. I felt assaulted by too much data thrown at me in a too fast pace. There were some very interesting parts, and just like a lot of reviews say, it read like a detective thriller, but by the end of it, the story just dragged, and I lost track of who is who, and what is what and whodunit. On the other hand, it spurred enough interest for me to want to learn more about Nixon and the whole affair.

The book may drag a bit, but the story is fascinating. If you haven't seen the movie that might help to orient you to characters. I'll never forget those heady days of watching the Ervin committee and the impeachment hearings.

I didn't know there was a movie until two days ago. I think I'm going to watch it, because this left me with too many questions.

6. by Robert Louis Stevenson
Finish date: 19.01.2017.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: B+
Review: I read this book because one of my favorite shows, Black Sails, is supposed to be a prequel and I wanted to see where the producers got the idea for this amazing show. In the book, the characters I got to know in the show, are 20 years older, and, in a way, so very different from what they were in the show. In the show, I found myself siding with the pirates, but here I played a completely different tune.

7. by Laurell K. Hamilton
Finish date: 22.01.2017.
Genre: Supernatural Fiction
Rating: B
Review: I take up one Anita Blake book every few month because I need rest every time I finish one. I honestly do not know if I should admire Hamilton's imagination or question her sanity. I still like her strange world, though. On the other hand, I like Anita Blake less and less. Still, this book was very good, although things finally started happening only in the last 40 pages....of a 500+ page book.

You're not making this an easy sell, Samantha. What Anita Blake would makre a good first ?

You need to start from the first book if you want to get into that world. Each new book has a new case/dire situation for Anita, but the core story and characters are developing through every book.

8. by J.K. Rowling
Finish date: 22.01.2017.
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: A
Review: This was my first time reading a screenplay and I must admit it was a bit weird. I am used to full sentences and description. But, Rowling did a great job of writing this screenplay. It was very vivid, and I could just imagine everything as it was described (having watched the movie before reading this, helped a lot).

FEBRUARY

9. by Giles Kristian
Finish date: 02.02.2017.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: B
Review: An action-packed historical novel of the Early Middle Ages Norsemen. For the most part the book dragged a bit, and that is why, up until the last 40 pages, I wanted to give it a C+, but the last pages were much more interesting, so I decided on a B. The religion was a very important part of the story, and it was interesting to read how men justified murder (and still do, unfortunately) with faith in their respective god(s).

10. by Georgette Heyer
Finish date: 05.02.2017.
Genre: Regency romance
Rating: B+
Review: This is re-read as part of a group read. I find the book equally as funny and equally as exasperating as last time, though this time I have less patience for Miss Farlow. The ending was abrupt, and all of this is reason for lowering the grade.
A lot of things in the book remind me of Jane Austen, and I wonder if she had any influence of Heyer.

Jane Austen

11. by Georgette Heyer
Finish date: 06.02.2017.
Genre: Regency romance
Rating: A-
Review: I find Heyer's books very interesting and funny. I've read only 3 books so far, but this one was my favorite. There are quite a few similarities with number 10 on this list, but this one was much better. I also like that the characters are a bit older, 28+, and not in their teens or early 20's. I find I can't connect with that age group anymore.

12. by W. Bernard Carlson (no photo)
Finish date: 12.02.2017.
Genre: Biography
Rating: B
Review: I consider finishing this book an achievement (still debating putting that to my achievement list). The author did his best to summarise the life of Nikola Tesla into one book in a way that it made sense. You can see that the author did a very detailed research and that he put a lot of effort into it. I enjoyed the parts about Tesla's life and his character, but as the author is also a scientist, he included detail descriptions of Tesla's (and other important people from Tesla's time and before) inventions, which just went over my head. This was the main complaint of a lot of reviews of the book here on GR. Hence, this would be a perfect book for all the admirers of Tesla who also happen to be well-versed in science. For the rest of us, it's a wonderful insight into Tesla's mind and life.

Tesla was an incredible man and one I admire in his fight against Edison, but I know what you're saying about understanding some of the scientific ideas. That's a problem for me too.

Tesla was, as you say, an incredible man, but his genius, I think, made him think about himself above everyone else. That was his downfall, the inability to see the world through the eyes of the "mere mortals". They say the geniuses always end up alone, poor and misunderstood, and that is what happened to him.

Good progress Samanta

Samanta, will you share your rebelious toughts with us on by Vladimir Nabokov?

Thank you for following the group's rules and guidelines regarding books being discussed or scheduled.