Challenge: 50 Books discussion

This is my first try at accomplishing this....I'm curious to see how it goes!

January 2010:

1. The Women
2.

Velva Jean Learns to Drive: A Novel

3. Please Excuse My Daughter: A Memoir

4. An Education

This book was well-written, but not very interesting. The movie that was based on this book (primarily about the second chapter of this book) was much more interesting!

5. A Reliable Wife
on the fence about this one...I loved the story, but I found many parts that I felt were dragged out and/or unnecessary. I liked it though......

6. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
I loved this book! It was just what I needed to start off the week.

7. The Wednesday Sisters: A Novel
Another great book for 2010!!

8. The Penny Tree
Loved this book - it was a great light read. I read it very quickly and really enjoyed it.

Now, I need something with a little more substance....I guess I'll check out Meg's "read" list for some guidance : )!

9. Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls
I thoroughly enjoyed this read- the story of a very unique character told in a very authentic voiceHalf Broke Horses

10. Love and Summer: A Novel
Beautifully written - a lonely little story

11. Belong to Me: A Novel - a very nice read!

I have no idea what to pick up next, but an enormous pile of "to reads" to choose from!

12. The Piano Teacher

13.Finding It: And Satisfying My Hunger for Life Without Opening the Fridge
A quick light read that I really enjoyed. I had tried reading Straight Man, but wasn't getting into it, so I tried this one. Now, I will go back to Straight Man or maybe not.....

14. The Help My favorite book of the year so far!!

Beth, this was one of my favorites this year, too. The other being Cutting for Stone. I saw that you started the year with The Women which I have just begun for my monthly book club. Did you like it? I've been hearing mixed reviews on this one.

Hi Cathy,
I thought The Women was okay, but I liked Loving Frank much better. The Women was an interesting perspective on all of the women in Frank Lloyd Wright's life even though it is a fictional account. It was not a favorite book by any stretch though. I'm sure it will make for interesting conversation!
I have not read Cutting for Stone and will add that to my list - thank you!

15. Home Safe: A Novel by Elizabeth Berg. I really enjoyed this book and practically read the entire thing in one sitting. Elizabeth Berg is still one of my favorite authors - I love her characters and stories.

16. Once Upon a Day: A Novel byLisa Tucker This book was a good surprise - my sister handed it to me and said she liked it. I didn't even read the back, I just started reading. It's a quick read and an intriguing story that kept my attention.

Now on to Cloudsplitter for my goodreads book club!

17. The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe by J. Randy Taraborrelli

I finally finished this book after putting it down months ago. I thought it was a fairly well-researched book. I've read many books on Marilyn and it is one of the better ones in terms of her life history. The writing was a little tedious at times and I'd get bored and put it down. Overall, I'm glad I read it.

I have a little catching up to do - looking forward to a beach vacation in 2 weeks to catch up on my reading and get my list back up-to-speed!

18. Knit Two by Kate Jacobs
This took me forever to read!! It was nowhere near as good as the first one. It did tie up all of the loose ends of the characters for us, but it was not a very interesting book. I'm hoping my next choice will be better!

19. Saving Ceecee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
Read it while on vacation in South Carolina and loved it! A perfectly sweet southern novel!

20) Good-bye and Amen by Beth Gutcheon
21) Cloudsplitter by Russell Banks
22) The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

All are very different, but good. The Kitchen House was my favorite read out of these, but Cloudsplitter was beautifully written and amazing.

23) Mistress of the Revolution by Catherine Delors

I love historical fiction and really enjoyed this read~

24) A Dangerous Age by Ellen Gilchrist one if my favorite authors, but not one of my favorite books

25) An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: A Memoir by Elizabeth McCracken

26)Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok - I really liked this story!

27) A Cottage by the Sea by Ciji Ware
I really liked this historical novel with a twist. It was an intriguing and enjoyable read.

28)A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle - read this with my daughter as part of her schooling this year. I loved it just as much this time as I did when I was young. It is such a creative, fun novel! I can't wait to re-read the rest of the series.

29)The Diary by Eileen Goudge - a sweet story

30) The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory

31) Wedding Girl by Madeleine Wickham
I didn't know that Sophi Kinsella wrote under another name. I enjoyed this "chick lit" book very much. It was a good story and an easy read.

32)Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinetteby Sena Jeter Naslund
This was a lovely book - a beautifully written fictional account of the life of Marie Antoinette. I loved the voice that the author gave to Marie Antoinette.

33) The Invisible Wall: A Love Story That Broke Barriers by Harry Bernstein

Beth, you've read many books that have also impressed me--especially The Invisible Wall. You'll have to read the sequel (The Dream); I hear Bernstein is working on a third book (especially wondrous considering he's in his 90s!).

Rose

34) The Secret Life Of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain - great story!! It grabbed me and kept me. If I didn't need to sleep and work, I'm not sure I would have put this down until I finished. I'm curious to see how Diane Chamberlain's other books are!

Obsessedreader wrote: "Beth, you've read many books that have also impressed me--especially The Invisible Wall. You'll have to read the sequel (The Dream); I hear Bernstein is working on a third book (especially wondrous..."

Rose, yes, I loved The Invisible Wall! I'm looking forward to reading The Dream soon. I believe he has already published his third memoir, but I don't recall the name. I read a review that said it was very repetitive of the previous works, but still worth reading. Amazing that he published these memoirs so late in life and is still writing!!

35)An Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance -another great story that swept me away!

36)Becoming Alice: A Memoir by Alice Rene - a wonderfully written coming of age memoir. Ilse is a young girl when her family flees Vienna during WWII. Their journey to America and trials of establishing a new life there is presented in a very real and compelling style through the eyes of a young girl. I enjoyed this book a great deal.

37)Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín - another beautifully written book! It's a quiet coming-of-age novel about an Irish girl, leaving her mother and sister behind in Ireland, and moving to Brooklyn just after World War II. It is quite profound and the writing is wonderful - just a lovely book!

38)Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella - a super quick "chick lit" beach read. I liked this better than Confessions of a Shopaholic. It was more of a story even though it was very light. A great "I don't want to think and just want to be entertained" read!

""A great "I don't want to think and just want to be entertained" read!""

I love those kind when my brain just doesn't want to think, or I need to get out of a darker place into a lighter one...

39)The Good Daughters: A Novel by Joyce Maynard - this was good. Even though I had a pretty good idea of what the "twist" was very early on, it was still a remarkably good read. A story about two girls born the same day ("birthday sisters") and raised in completely different families that stay in touch on and off for years. It is told from two different points-of-view, in alternating chapters, by each "sister".

I've had so many enjoyable reads this year! I'm so thankful for all of the ratings and reviews on goodreads that help me make such good choices!!!!

40)Still Alice by Lisa Genova

41) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Beth, what did you think of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? I enjoyed it when I finally got into it (I share a lot of readers' struggle w/ the first 150 pages or so); the second book was DIVINE and I don't want to start the third b/c I don't want the series to end!!!!!!!!!

Kate wrote: "Beth, what did you think of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? I enjoyed it when I finally got into it (I share a lot of readers' struggle w/ the first 150 pages or so); the second book was DIVINE a..."

I thought it was good, but after a very hard start. I wasn't sure that I was going to move on and read the next one - after your recommendation, I will definitely pick up the second one this week. I had dinner with a good friend last night and she said the second book was her favorite and the best of all three. Now, I'm very curious to see how this trilogy progresses..... Let me know what you think of the third one when/if you decide to read it!

42)Juliet by Anne Fortier - another very enjoyable read. It twisted and turned and surprised me several times.