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Karen T
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| Posted: May 08 2009 at 7:29pm | IP Logged
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boy, this topic has been very quiet lately - anyone reading anything good? I've recently finished Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby - absolutely fantastic. It's gotten me interested in exploring more of Dickens that I avoided all these years  I also read Have a New Kid by Friday by Kevin Leman - pretty good.
and The God of Jesus Christby our Holy Father - good but somewhat over my head.
Karen
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Chari
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| Posted: May 09 2009 at 11:05am | IP Logged
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Thanks, Karen, for waking us up!  I have been intending to do so..........but kept forgetting!  I even had my post below already written!
So, we have not really posted since before Lent ended..............WHAT HAVE YOU FINISHED since your last post????
I have a list.......of course
75 Year Round Hikes in Northern California by Marc J. Soares.........I WANT to own this book. See if YOUR library has anything like this for YOUR area. An incredible find. I want to explore everything recommended in this book. I MUST have my breathing improved so I can hike!
Also read in a day.....Bloomability by Sharon Creech .......I cannot vouch for any of her other novels......but for a modern day junior novel....this was kind of fun. Since the main character is an American who ends up going to school in Switzerland....and my American son is planning to go to school in Switzerland......I borrowed it from the library. Matthew read it, too and did not mind it.......I am going to have the girls read it also. Do not take this as a direct recommendation. If you ever think you want your kid to read it....just read it first to see if it matches what you want your kids to read. I probably would not have handed it Anne at 13...but the other girls are "older" than Anne at 13 and more "exposed" to the world....and it is sweet. I think they will enjoy it enough.
Finished Those Who Love by Irving Stone. This is John and Abigail Adams' story, from her point of view. It was my second time through it........I loved it the first time. I rarely re-read books.....other than Tolkien, CS Lewis, LMMontgomery.........but I have been thinking about re-reading this book for about two years.....I first read it in Oct of 2001.........I know EXACTLY when, because I read it while I was nursing my last newborn. 
Also finished an amazing and wonderful book: The Family and the Cross: The Stations of the Cross and Their Relation to Family Life by Joseph Breig. It is one of the BEST books I have ever read. I want to see if it has been republished......it is from 1958, I think.
I have read "S.T.A.B.L.E.," a textbook for a STABLE class I was supposed to have gone to with the topic being for post-resuscitation of the newborn and stabilization of the infant being transported. We cancelled the class because all of our nurses were being used as we had three women in labor, plus, on the day before and the day of the test.
And, I quickly read Child of the Jungle by Sabine Kuegler. This is the story of this woman's life..........her parents raised her and her siblings in a very remote jungle of Indonesia, as the first white people ever to interact with many of the inhabitants. I feel she wrote it well.........I enjoyed it. I just feel bad that her parents sent all three of them as mid-teens back into the "world" for education.......but had not really prepared them for it. Not only that, but teens need their parents just as toddlers need their parents..........and these teens had to fend for themselves. I think if their parents wanted them to get a Western education......they should have sacrificed a few years out of the jungle..........to care for their burgeoning young adults. A lot of heart ache could have been prevented.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester. I read this book when I was in fifth grade........Mrs. Tansey gave the book to me.....one of many. She was WONDERFUL! She gave away prizes for various things....very frequently.......and most of the time, it was a book from her collection. Oh, I was such a happy fifth grader! I read it aloud to my two younger boys recently.........the first time I have read it since fifth grade. It is about a "bored" boy who "drives" through a magic tollbooth, to visit a parallel world...........where word play, grammar play and number play makes for a very interesting world. My 12yo and 7 yo loved it. I highly recommend it!
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame I had never read it before...........and as I do not want to re-read aloud too many books to my younger kids, I am trying to read books I never got to read to the older set. We LOVED it! It is not necessarily "exciting," it just held us. Grahame was a contemporary of Tolkien & Lewis......I love that. You really grow to enjoy the friendship between Rat and Mole....in fact, they are a good example OF a friendship. And Toad..... I think even the kids want to smack him up side the head in order to get him to stop being so full of himself and such a drama queen.
Trying to decide what to read next, to the little boys........looking at George MacDonald.
As for Dickens.......this is MY summer to finally read one of his enormous novels.........just not sure which one I want to start!
Any advice?
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Chari...Take Up & Read
Dh Marty 27yrs...3 lovely maidens: Anne 24, Sarah 20 & Maddelyn 17 and 3 chivalrous sons: Matthew 22, Garrett 16 & Malachy 11
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insegnante
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| Posted: May 09 2009 at 11:44am | IP Logged
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I finally finished my second book of the year, Amazing Grace for Married Couples: 12 Life-Changing Stories of Renewed Love. I'm quick to add that I was reading this for "inspiration" and not because my marriage remotely resembles the kind of situations in the book! I would recommend it ... it's "easy to read" in spite of the subject matter. I did notice a lot of errors in (I guess the term would be?) the copy editing.
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Theresa
mommy to three boys, 3/02, 8/04, and 9/10, and a girl, 8/08
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Karen T
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| Posted: May 09 2009 at 2:05pm | IP Logged
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Chari wrote:
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Jester.
As for Dickens.......this is MY summer to finally read one of his enormous novels.........just not sure which one I want to start!
Any advice? |
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Thanks for the reminder of Phantom Tollbooth. I keep meaning to read it to my youngers, 7 and 9. I think they'd enjoy it. dh has been reading to them more at night lately and it might be a good one to have him read with them!
As for Dickens, I just loved  Nicholas Nickleby and highly recommend it. I did listen to it as an audiobook from audible and I think the narrator made a tremendous difference, as he did wonderful different voices. I've downloaded Little Dorrit read by the same narrator, for my next audio Dickens, but just began reading Great Expectations in print, so if either of those appeals to you we can do a little read-along!
Karen T
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DivineMercy
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| Posted: May 09 2009 at 3:11pm | IP Logged
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Not sure if got the recommendation for this book here or maybe from Melissa Wiley, but I just read "The Daughter of Time". It was so much fun! My husband and I had some great conversations about historical perspective from the book.
I also just finished "In Defense of Food". Good common sense talk.
Not sure where I will head next. Maybe a parenting book.
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Natalia
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| Posted: May 09 2009 at 8:13pm | IP Logged
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Lately I have read:
Slumdog Millionaire: It is the novel the movie was based on. This was the pick for my book club last month. I loved it! It as very different from the movie.
Real Food- this is the second book (after Omnivore Dilemma) that I read trying to explore the topic of food.
Bringing Up Geeks- A good book but it is not telling me anything I didn't know. I think homeschoolers tend to be, by her definition, geeks  .
I am in the middle of reading Zorro by Isabel Allende.
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Natalia
http://pannuestrodecadadia.blogspot.com
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Carmie
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| Posted: May 14 2009 at 11:01am | IP Logged
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Are any of you at GoodReads. GoodReads has been a really cool tool to organize all my reading. I post a lot over there.
I've been reading Jane Austen Ruined My Life which so far is intriguing. A Jane Austen scholar discovers some possible letters by Jane Austen that have not been published. So far, it's a quick read and I hope it doesn't let me down.
I'm also reading Real Food for Mother and Baby by Nina Planck. I really liked her other book, Real Food and if you're into Weston A. Price, you will enjoy it too.
I'm reading Revolutionary Road too and I'm about 100 pages in and so far, it's a big downer. It seems mostly about a couple that seems to blame the suburbs for their problems although the wife is severely depressed. I don't think I want to see this movie.
I picked up Nicholas Nickleby at my church book sale and I've put it into the stack.
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Carmie
mommy to Luke(10), Sam (4) and Tess born 12/02/08
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Karen T
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| Posted: May 14 2009 at 3:53pm | IP Logged
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I am on Goodreads, too, just to keep lists of what I read. I had been doing that in my Palm Pilot (just a memo) for the last few years but I like Goodreads b/c it helps me find a lot of books I've read in the past and add them in. I have no idea how you add "friends" or anything there; I'm not on Facebook or any other type of network.
I hope you like Nicholas Nickleby; don't be discouraged in the beginning when it's rather gloomy (as I think most Dickens books are at first).
I am still undecided about Great Expectations, liking it I mean. I'm sure it gets better as you go on, considering it's a classic and one of the most popular of Dickens' works. I'm also in the midst of one of the patrick O'Brian books The Surgeon's Mate as well as re-reading Diana Gabaldon's Outlander for at least the 4th time. And I just picked up the 3rd book in the Fablehavenseries (Brandon Mull). I never used to have so many books going at one time but I'm finding that I like switching back and forth a bit. Some are in print and some are on audio, too, so depending on whether I want to sit and read, or listen while walking or knitting, I can have a choice.
karen
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Natalia
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| Posted: May 14 2009 at 4:45pm | IP Logged
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Carmie,
I am on Goodreads but have never done much with it. How does it help you to organize your reading?
Karen, what is Outlander about? I have seen this title come up over the years but have never read it.
I don't have much time to read these days so I am reading some YA reading. I am reading a book by Carolyn B. Cooney called What Janie Found. It is engaging but not great literature. I have not enjoyed it as much as other of her books.
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Natalia
http://pannuestrodecadadia.blogspot.com
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Carmie
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| Posted: May 14 2009 at 5:45pm | IP Logged
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GoodReads is awesome because it allows you to create virtual bookshelves. For instance, you have a Currently Reading, already read and To Read shelf. You can also create other shelves that are more specific. You could have a cookbook shelf for example. I have shelves for my older son's reading. I have a MP3 shelf so that I can keep track of what I'm listening to as well. It's also fun to have friends because you can see what they're reading as well. It's a place to review and/or read others' book reviews. I'll try to find you and friend request you. It's been a great homeschool tool for me since there are so many books we use, but only check out from the library. This is a way to keep track of those books I don't personally own as well.
I tried to read Outlander and it seems so cool, but I just kept putting it down. Should I give it another try??
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Carmie
mommy to Luke(10), Sam (4) and Tess born 12/02/08
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Karen T
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| Posted: May 14 2009 at 8:33pm | IP Logged
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Natalia,
Outlander is the first of a series of books of historical fiction of Scotland in the 1700's during the Jacobite rising, etc and continues onward from there. It has an interesting twist, as the heroine of the story is actually from the 1940's and goes back in time (accidentally). I think most people either love or hate the books. I found the story extremely interesting but have to warn you that there are quite a few, well, rather graphic love scenes!(and some rather unsavory stuff in later voumes) When I first read them, there were 4 in the series and I read them right through. Now there are 3? more and they are huge books - the last few I have slogged through but didn't find quite as good.
Carmie, I'd give it another try before giving up on it. It's not terribly exciting until she goes back in time, but then things pick up quickly. I've already read them in print many times, and this time I'm trying them on audio b/c I've heard that the narrator, Davina Porter, is just wonderful. I'm still debating on that, and I'm not sure whether I really want to hear some of those scenes read out loud KWIM? might have to fast forward a bit since I know what's going on.
I know the author does a ton of historical research in writing these and tries to make them pretty accurate but I'm sure there are picky details that just don't fit. I still enjoy them. Great beach reads!
Karen 
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Karen T
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| Posted: June 08 2009 at 8:37am | IP Logged
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Y'all must all be at the beach reading, huh?? I finished Great Expectations and it was good, but not as good as NN, IMO. Lately, I have read:
The Place of the Lion by Charles Lamb, one of the Inklings who hung around with Tolkien and Lewis. Pretty good book, and I've picked up a few others of his to try next.
My Own Two Feet a memoir by Beverly Cleary. It was not as good as I'd hoped. We love her kids' books. This book is about her college years and just a few years after, up to the point where she published her first book, then it ends. She is very resentful of her mother, who is rather controlling, but also pitiable IMO.
The End of Overeating by David Kessler, MD. It's about how the food industry has created these superfat, super-sugar foods, both packaged and in restaurants, that pretty much stimulate addictions in the same way that drugs can. The huge rise in obesity beginning in the early 80's is not only due to just increasing availability of food, but specifically these foods which for some people, lead to more cravings even when they are physically full. As someone who struggles with a terrible sweet tooth, I can relate to this!
Currently reading/listening to:
Dickens' Little Dorrit, Charles Williams' All Hallows' Eve, Diana Gabaldon's Outlander, and Patrick O'Brian's The Ionian Mission.
So glad we're done with school here, to get more reading in!
karen T in Md
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Willa
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| Posted: June 08 2009 at 10:25am | IP Logged
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I just started using GoodReads -- I joined back in 2008 sometime but had forgotten about it.
I just finished Viper's Tangle by Francois Mauriac -- good book.
I also just finished reading The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure by Juliet Schor. This was a mixed bag. She had some great points to make about the situation of Americans working themselves to death, backed by research and perceptive analysis, but her proposed solutions involved standard feminist ideology and big government intervention. So those parts irritated me, but I found the book worth reading anyway.
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Willa
hsing boys ages 11, 14, almost 18 (+ 4 homeschool grads ages 20 to 27)
Take Up and Read
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Mare
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| Posted: June 08 2009 at 10:28am | IP Logged
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Hi Karen,
I haven't been doing much fictional reading at all. I've been busy with lots of home projects.
I did read Little Dorrit this spring. I didn't think that I would like it but I did. I liked Masterpiece's adaptation of this book as well. Hopefully, things will slow down enough for me in the fall that I can get some reading in.
Mare
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SeaStar
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| Posted: June 17 2009 at 5:49pm | IP Logged
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I just finished rereading "Unforgotten", which is the sequel to Kristen Heitzmann's "Secrets". Whew- I'd forgotten how good it was.
Now I have to find the last one in the series, "Echoes". My library doesn't have it  and ILL says ir can't give it to me
Prior to that I read "Freefall", also by the same author. I thought it was good, but I really like that the main character from "Secrets" is devoutly Catholic. I love how his devotion, especially to daily mass, is portrayed.
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
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Mary G
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| Posted: June 18 2009 at 7:35am | IP Logged
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ETA: Sorry, don't know what happened ...
I just finished The Death of a Pope. What a great read! Definitely for adults (or mature teens) but really worth the read ... here's a more complete review I just posted
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MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
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Natalia
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I just finished the first two books on theBeany Malone Books What great fun! They are engaging, delightful, evocative, nostalgic. I enjoyed them very much. Too bad the library doesn't have the rest of the series. I will have to postpone the pleasure until I can dig them up from somewhere.
I also read another series Airborn and Skybreaker. I was previewing for my 12 yo boy. They are great fun but I am not sure that I will give them to him now. There is a little romance in them and, even though is all clean, I am not sure it is something I want him to start thinking about. The books are great entertainment with good character development.
I am almost finished with Northanger Abby from librivox. It is the first book I listen to on my ipod. I have been going for a walk faithfully so I can listen.
Now I am on the look out for something to read next...
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Natalia
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Rumpleteazer
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| Posted: June 20 2009 at 2:54pm | IP Logged
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The first volume of L.M. Montgomery's journals arrived at our library today! Hurrah! Mmmm... Sunday at the summer cabin by the lake, immersed in Montgomery's childhood journals... and munching chocolate if I can find any.
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~~Clare
A Maiden's Wreath -- for young Catholic ladies
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Carmie
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| Posted: June 20 2009 at 5:34pm | IP Logged
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Oooh, I almost bought a few volumes of L. M. Montgomery's journals when I was visiting Prince Edward Island a few years ago, but I didn't...I'm currently watching the 1975 Anne of Avonlea...so far, it's okay. It's not nearly as good as the Megan Follows versions.
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Carmie
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insegnante
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| Posted: June 23 2009 at 12:30am | IP Logged
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Finished my third book of the year, Not Even Wrong: Adventures in Autism by Paul Collins. Oh, this is the perfect opportunity to link people to my new attempt at blogging, even though I otherwise don't have enough there yet to be worth publicizing: mini-review of Not Even Wrong
But if you really don't have time to click my link: I'm a little more detailed there about why, but I was surprised by how much I liked the book, and would recommend it even if you have little particular interest in autism as opposed to the human experience generally.
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Theresa
mommy to three boys, 3/02, 8/04, and 9/10, and a girl, 8/08
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4Real Forums : Book Club
Topic: Our 2009 Book List!
