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books2010-09-02 11:59 am
sweet_sparrow) wrote in books2010-09-02 11:59 am
Reading Antics: What've you been reading?
But first, a quick question for everyone: should I find a way to remember asking this every month, would people rather I stop asking alltogether, or should I just continue on and make it a bi-monthly thing as it's been the past few months?
I can make it a poll if people prefer, but it'd detract from the main reason I'm posting.
Basic gist, as always: what've you been reading the past two months and would you recommend it to others? Have you made any reading plans for this September? (Course work reading, perhaps.)
I've had an extremely productive July. I read 21 (!) books. So you'll have to forgive me if I link what I actually read. (It's a long post. Be prepared to do a little scrolling.) Most of the books were books for my courses and most of them were also sorely disappointing, but the non-course literature I read was pretty amazing. My favourite reads from this month include Potiki by Patricia Grace and Voodoo Dreams by Jewell Parker Rhodes, both of which are gorgeously written.
My August reading dropped back to the average amount of books I read in a month, mostly because I'm almost through my course books and decided to take a break that turned out longer than it was supposed to. (I'm still on break. Bad Shanra. Uni starts next week.)
- Clementine by Cherie Priest
- Chocolat by Joanne Harris
- Dracula by Bram Stoker (reread)
- In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente (dnf)
- The Merlin Conspiracy by Diana Wynne Jones
- Idylls of the King by Lord Alfred Tennyson
- Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
- The Rose and the Beast by Francesca Lia Block
- Seven Men and Two Others by Max Beerbohm
- Perfume by Patrick Süskind (reread, dnf)
Of those, my favourite would have to be Clementine, I think. It was action-packed, it was fun, it was fast... I had a blast with it. It's not been a great reading month. I've enjoyed a fair few of the books I read, but fell head over heels for none of them.
Reading plans for September include finishing up Ancient Irish Tales by Tom Peete Cross and Clark Harris Slover, reading The Swan Maiden by Jules Watson, Graceling by Kristin Cashore and Oscar Wilde's short stories. Beyond that all's game. ^-^ I'm hoping to balance my genres a little better again too, though it probably doesn't seem it...
I can make it a poll if people prefer, but it'd detract from the main reason I'm posting.
Basic gist, as always: what've you been reading the past two months and would you recommend it to others? Have you made any reading plans for this September? (Course work reading, perhaps.)
I've had an extremely productive July. I read 21 (!) books. So you'll have to forgive me if I link what I actually read. (It's a long post. Be prepared to do a little scrolling.) Most of the books were books for my courses and most of them were also sorely disappointing, but the non-course literature I read was pretty amazing. My favourite reads from this month include Potiki by Patricia Grace and Voodoo Dreams by Jewell Parker Rhodes, both of which are gorgeously written.
My August reading dropped back to the average amount of books I read in a month, mostly because I'm almost through my course books and decided to take a break that turned out longer than it was supposed to. (I'm still on break. Bad Shanra. Uni starts next week.)
- Clementine by Cherie Priest
- Chocolat by Joanne Harris
- Dracula by Bram Stoker (reread)
- In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente (dnf)
- The Merlin Conspiracy by Diana Wynne Jones
- Idylls of the King by Lord Alfred Tennyson
- Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
- The Rose and the Beast by Francesca Lia Block
- Seven Men and Two Others by Max Beerbohm
- Perfume by Patrick Süskind (reread, dnf)
Of those, my favourite would have to be Clementine, I think. It was action-packed, it was fun, it was fast... I had a blast with it. It's not been a great reading month. I've enjoyed a fair few of the books I read, but fell head over heels for none of them.
Reading plans for September include finishing up Ancient Irish Tales by Tom Peete Cross and Clark Harris Slover, reading The Swan Maiden by Jules Watson, Graceling by Kristin Cashore and Oscar Wilde's short stories. Beyond that all's game. ^-^ I'm hoping to balance my genres a little better again too, though it probably doesn't seem it...
no subject
My reading in July and August
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: Or The Murder at Road Hill House by Kate Summerscale (loved it. Lots of interesting threads about the social context of the crime and the development of the modern police detective)
An Unconventional Woman by Jean Tahija (interesting look at a cross-cultural marriage and the early days of Indonesian independence)
Wheel of the Infinite by Martha Wells (terrific fantasy story with a non-European setting and a middle-aged black heroine)
King's Dragon, Prince of Dogs, The Burning Stone (Crown of Stars, #1-3) by Kate Elliot (I'd heard good things about these books and I kept trying ... but no. I just couldn't care about any of the characters.)
Bonds of Justice (Psy-Changeling, #8) by Nalini Singh (not the best of them but a good addition to the series)
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (excellent kids' book)
Have His Carcase, Murder Must Advertise, The Nine Tailors, Hangman's Holiday by Dorothy L. Sayers (MMA was my favourite but all good Wimesy novels plus some short stories)
A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
Dracula/The Lair of the White Worm/Dracula’s Guest and other stories by Bram Stoker
Naked Once More by Elizabeth Peters (fourth Jacqueline Kirby book. Silly but fun)
A Stitch in Time by Penelope Lively (gorgeous book about trying to figure out the world and your place in it as a child)
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken (fun adventure book for kids)
She and King Solomon's Mines by H.Rider Haggard (very much of their time)
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (I'd never read it before. Enchanting but with plenty of barbed comments)
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber (disappointing. Insipid heroine and a confused plot)
The Hero and the Crown, The Blue Sword and Spindle's End by Robin McKinley (The first two are good girl-centric adventures and the third has a marvelous magical setting. But all of them bogged down in the last third. It was odd. And I thought McKinley was known for strong heroines. I found Harry(TBS) and Rosie(SE)quite passive in cetain respects)
Mistress of Dragons (The Dragonvarld Trilogy, #1) by Margaret Weis (I just didn't care)
I've also been rereading the Tomorrow When The War Began series by John Marsden and I've started another reread of the In Death series by J.D. Robb. As to what else ... my TBR stack is huge. Actually there are several of them. I've just started Leviathan: The History of Whaling in by Eric Jay Dolin which looks to be very interesting.
no subject
I'm tempted to jump up and down going "I have that book on my TBR pile!" every time I spot The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher. ^-^ Hopefully I'll get to it before long. ^-^ (Like yours, my TBR pile is huge. :/)
What's the setting for the Martha Wells book based on? *curious, looks it up* South-East Asia? (I'm going by an Amazon review there.)
no subject
I loved The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, thought it was really good. Just a note - if you have the US edition it has a different subtitle (The Undoing of a Victorian Detective) which is quite misleading and I've seen some unhappy reviews from people who thought they would be getting quite a different book.
Yeah, I think South-East Asia is the major inspiration for the setting in TWotI, with Buddhism and tribal religions as an inspiration for the dominant religion. If there are specific cultural references, I'm not familiar enough with the region to pick them. I do recall reading ... somewhere, that the temple city is based on Angkor Wat. The world-building was pretty interesting.
no subject
Thanks! ^-^ I've been trying to compile a list of fantasy books using non-western culture as basis for their worldbuiling and I don't think this is on there. Not 100% sure. (Once I have a sizeable chunk of new books/suggestions to add I want to revamp it somewhat and turn it into a more useful resource for people who aren't me and do mind suggestions being all over the place. ^-^)