Aga's Challenge

Even if I joined today I'm somehow sure I'll manage to reach this number ;) So, I remember that I read until now these books:

1. The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber
2. Past Lifes by Ken McClure
3. Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler
4. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
5. Sons by Pearl S. Buck
6. Revenge of the Rose by Nicole Galland
7. Bay of Souls by Robert Stone
8. The bad girl by Mario Vargas Llosa
9. Treasure of Khan by Clive Cussler
10. In Our Hearts We Were Giants: The Remarkable Story of the Lilliput Troupe--A Dwarf Family's Survival of the Holocaust by Yehuda Koren and Eilat Negev
11. Desert Governess: An Englishwoman's Personal Experience With the Saudi Royal Family by Phyllis Ellis
12. The Drowning People by Richard Mason
13. Raise the Titanic! by Clive Cussler
14. The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella
15. The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan
16. Mine Are Spectacular! by Janice Kaplan and Lynn Schnurnberger
17. City of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers
18. Merde Actually by Stephen Clarke
19. The Jester by James Patterson and Andrew Gross
20. Tideland by Mitch Cullin
21. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
22. The Men I Didn't Marry by Janice Kaplan and Lynn Schnurnberger
23. The Emperor by Ryszard Kapuscinski
24. Travels with Herodotus by Ryszard Kapuscinski
25. The Brotherhood of the Holy Shroud by Julia Navarro
26. Brethren by Robyn Young
27. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
28. Cruelest Journey: Six Hundred Miles To Timbuktu by Kira Salak
29. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby
30. My Sweet-orange Tree by Jose Mauro de Vasconcelos
31. Polar Shift by Clive Cussler
32. The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
33. Ben, in the World by Doris Lessing
34. Memoirs of a Survivor by Doris Lessing
35. Peril at End House by Dame Agatha Christie

Hey, somebody else who's read City of Dreaming Books! It's on my recommend list these days, for sure. What did you think?

Oh, and welocme, by the way. 8^}

I loved this book very much! I could hardly stop reading :) In the middle of it I was unhappy as I needed to travel and could not take it with me (too big ;))

Very well written book, interesting storyline, cool idea in general. And also the edition here was very nice published :)

Max points from my side.

And thank you for a nice welcoming for me here :)

A very warm welcome from New York. Hope you have fun reading and getting to know everyone here. Its a fun group and they read very good stuff.

By the way what was your take on the Kapuscinki books that you read? I have been meaning to read some of his work but I have not gotten around to it.

Also what did you think of Buck's The Good Earth? Its on my short list to be read next week. I believe Cariola who is a member here is also reading it.

Thank you for warm words! Yes, I like LT and this group as well :) And I love reading, since I remember I was reading a lot. And before that - my mother was having a hard time as she was asked all the time to read me more ;)

Well, coming to Kapuscinski - I live in Poland, so it's difficult (sooner or later) not to read his books, he is very famous around. I've got first book quite late, already after his dead. Until now I read 3 of them and each of them I liked more than previous. So, I'm waiting for the next one to come ;) He traveled a lot in his life, worked as a journalist often, wrote a lot of books. A wise man with a gift of writing interesting books with a lot of deep obsevations, small typical stories, sentences which are worth to remember. For me 4-5/5 (depened which book).
I know you may find his books for example on Amazon website.

Coming to The Good Earth. I read the 2 books out of trilogy (so, also "Sons") and waiting for the last one. It's a specific literature I would say. It's a story of the family, going through very bad and very good times, but perceived by different members of the family in a very different way. I found it interesting. Also because of the cultural differences which you could easly find (between Europe and Asia, but I'm sure also USA and Asia). For me it was an interesting book to read. 4/5

Ufff... that was a long post ;) Hope I fulfilled your expectations ;)

Greetings!

36. Dreamboat by Judith Gould

37. Skinema by Chris Nieratko

Thanks Aga for your review of both Kapuscinki and Pearl's The Good Earth. You make them both sound like they are worth reading. I am starting The Good Earth either tonite or tomorrow on my ride to work. Happy reading!!

38. Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie
39. Monsieur Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt
40. Oscar and the Lady in Pink by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt

I'm just amazed with last two positions!

41. L`Enfant De Noe by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt

42. Ordeal by Innocence by Agatha Christie

43. Something borrowed by Emily Giffin

44. Partners in crime (Petits crimes conjugaux) by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt

45. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Hi agatatera

Checking your list made me smile. Regarding your numbers 32, 33, 34, I see that you do what I do in that when you find an author you like, you read their books successively.

Currently I'm on a Joyce Carol Oates marathon.

I'll give Doris Lessing's books a try. What do you like about her writing?

Hi agatatera

Checking your list made me smile. Regarding your numbers 32, 33, 34, I see that you do what I do in that when you find an author you like, you read their books successively.

Currently I'm on a Joyce Carol Oates marathon.

I'll give Doris Lessing's books a try. What do you like about her writing?

Hi!

Well, I wanted to try the writting of the Nobel winner, before I did not know her books at all. I need to tell that I was surprised with The Fifth Child and I really liked the idea for the story and her writting. Then, Ben, in the World still kept the 'spirit'. But Memoirs of a Survivor was a bit of dissapointment for me. It was not easy for me to continue to read it during the first half, but then it kept my attention and finally I liked it quite much. Her books are for sure not an easy reading, light, nice books. They are dealing with the 'dark side of life', but also a lot with emotions, values, fears, which each human has. Probably, sooner or later, I will read another books of her.

Hi Aga,

I'm a big Lessing fan - I started out a couple of years ago with The Grass is Singing, which I'd recommend whole-heartedly. I still retain very vivid images of the scorched African landscape shimmering in the sun. I didn't get round to trying anything else until she was awarded the Nobel, and then I read The Fifth Child; like you, I really enjoyed it. The Summer before the Dark I liked less - I don't know, it just didn't draw me in like the others did. I'm currently in the middle of a short story collection - I forget the name - and I don't think it'll be long before I read Mara and Dann, which has been on my shelf for a while. I'll let you know what I think...

Whisper, in answer to your question about Lessing's style, I'd agree with Aga. I also like the fact that her style is very sparse - she manages to say things using very few words, and you know exactly what she means. It's as if she comes along and shines a light on something that was there all the time, only you couldn't quite see it before.

46. Snow Flower and the secret fan by Lisa See

47. Compro, luego existo by Guadalupe Loaeza

48. Bollywood Nights by Shobhaa De

49. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome

Hi.
I note that a number of library thing members have read or are reading snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Did you like this book?

After reading it I'm quite big fond of it. I really enjoyed it a lot. But the whole opinion about the book you may find on my blog:

http://zyciowapasja.blogspot.com/

If you will decide to read it - please, give me know how did you like it :)

50. Berlin Alexanderplatz by Alfred Doblin

51. Toujours Provence by Peter Mayle

52. Porte de la Paix Celesle by Shan Sa

53. The Woman Who Rode Away by D.H. Lawrence

What did you think of Berlin Alexanderplatz? I've added this to my list of books to look for due to its inclusion in a 100 best list I am working from but know very little about it.

The plot itself is interesting. But personally I could not stand the style :/

You may find my opinion after reading this book here:

http://zyciowapasja.blogspot.com/2008/08/berlin-alexanderplatz-by-alfred-doblin....

54. White Teeth by Zadie Smith

55. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

56. Cat Who Knew a Cardinal by Lilian Jackson Braun

57. Trzepot skrzydeł by Katarzyna Grochola
58. The Nanny Diaries by Nicola Kraus and Emma McLaughlin

59. South of the border, west of the sun by Haruki Murakami

Hello Aga!

> 34 what a coincidence - I just bought Trzepot skrzydel while I was in Poland, as my teacher in Sopot recommended it. When I entered it in my library I saw that only you owned it on LT other than me, and I read your review -I'm really looking forward to reading it now. My teacher said exactly the same thing, that Grochola writes chick lit with a bit more substance than usual.

60. Tata, one i ja by Manula Kalicka
61. Witches abroad by Terry Pratchett
62. Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore

Rachel - have a good reading then! It's cool you decided to buy some new books in Polish :) If you want - I may add some more of my Polish books to my inventory on BookMooch, maybe you would find something interestng. But whould probably need to know what interests you most.

63. Promise me by Harlan Coben
64. Cosmetique de l'ennemi by Amelie Nothomb

65. Sourcery by Terry Pratchett
66. The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett

67. Różowe tabletki na uspokojenie by Krystyna Janda

congratulations! You are near completion of the 75 challenge goal!

>40 agatatera: Hey Aga,
What did you think of your book number 67? I like Krystyna Janda a lot as an actress - is her book worth reading, do you think?

Rachel

Hey Rachel,

Next point which we have in common :) I love Krystyna Janda as an actress! And it was my first book of her, which I've read. It's a collection of stories, which I've found interesting to read. Some laughter, some emotions, some remarks to think about. I would love to send it to you, but unfortunately it was already "booked" by other person on Polish website similar to BM and I already sent it today :(

68. The Cat Who Played Post Office by Lilian Jackson Braun

69. Burned alive by Souad

>43 agatatera:
Never mind - thanks for the thought. I'll have to look out for it next time I'm in Poland.
Did you enjoy Burned Alive, by the way? A friend left a copy here ages ago, but I've never felt like trying it. What did you think?

It's not an incredible masterpiece, but it's an interesting book in my opinion. Maybe because I'm interested in the literature coming from this part of our globe. Or maybe becuase it's such an amazing and cruel story and what's worse it's real and it's happening still all over the world (not only in the so called Arabic countries). It's was sometimes hard, but good read.

70. Maskerade by Terry Pratchett

71. Das Haus der Schwestern by Charlotte Link

72. The stupidest angel by Christopher Moore
73. The virgin blue by Tracey Chevalier

congratulations aga
You are very near the completion of the 75 book challenge!

Yeah, probably after coming back from the seminar in Hungary I should deal with it ;) I should at least finish one book during my travelling ;)

74. Someone to Run With by David Grossman

Only 1 more to go, agatatera - congratulations!

75. Generation 'P' by Pelevin Viktor

So, 20th of September and I'm done. What I should do now? Move to another challenge or continue here? What do you think?

Alcottacre - thank you :)

congratulations for reaching *75* agatatera !

just keep reading and see how far you get in 2008 ;-) So we can keep adding books to our TBRs

Please add me to the list of well wishers! Congratulations agatatera!

Thank you both :) I will definatelly keep reading, that's sure :) Can't stop it :p

Congratulations....keep reading! I've read more books than ever because I'm so inspired everytime I come on here and see how much someone else has read!

Hey, definitely stick with this group! Even though you have reached your goal - and congrats on that, btw - I do not think you will find a better group of people with more appreciation of books than this one. Several of us have completed the 75 book challenge but are continuing to challenge ourselves to go even further.

76. The Broken Bridge by Philip Pullman

Alcottare - thanks :) Yes, I like the group very much as well, so I will rather stay here ;) Don't feel the motivation for looking for other cool groups ;)

77. Widma w mieście Breslau by Marek Krajewski

What did you think of the Krajewski? I'm still ploughing my way though Koniec swiata w Breslau, but obviously you don't share my problems with the rich vocabulary...

Congratulations aga! Really interesting collection of books here.

Hey, cool! You made 75. Congrats!

Rachel - the vocabulary is often oldfasioned there. And he is also using a lot of old German names, surnames, names of the streets and places and so on. It's not so nice to read it even in Polish ;)
Well - basicly I read it and that's it. I think I'll not continue my adventure with this author. I didn't like the book very much, the plot and the characters as well. Maybe one day I'll give another try, with another book, but today I doubt about it ;)

FlossieT - thank you very much :)

#61 - other cool groups on LT - yes. But none is cooler than the 75 book challenge. Congrats for reaching 75. Hope to be there myself, some day.

78. Wszyscy mężczyźni mojego kota by Karolina Macios

Fourpawz2 - thanks! I'm sure you'll reach your goal and will have a lot of joy during doing it :)

79. The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver

Congrats on reaching 75!!

80. Big Breasts, Wide Hips by Mo Yan

Trish - thanks :D

81. Niosąca radość by Krzysztof Czarnota

82. Fade away by Harlan Coben
83. Kaddish for an Unborn Child by Imre Kertész

What did u think of book #83? It's next on my list.

Well... It's an interesting concept with a lot of interesting thoughts, but... I hate the style so much - in general. I really dislike the books when you have one sentence going for 2,5 page... Brrr... It's bothering me a lot while reading, I can't focus very well on the book then. But it's my subjective opinion, so just try, maybe you're fond of this kind of writing, so let's see :) Give me know how did you like it!

What where your thoughts on The Virgin Blue? I hear that it is not as good as Girl with a pearl earring.

The "problem" for me would be that I've started my adventure with this author with The Virgin Blue, so I still can't make any comparison - I still did not managed to get Girl with a pearl earring :(

So, no comparison from my side right now. But... I like The Virgin Blue quite much - there are many books with similar plot, but it was very interesting and was keeping my attention easly. And it's well written as well.

Comparison - maybe in some time :D

Thanks for your response on The Virgin Blue. I had never heard of Chevalier until someone lent me the movie and book of Girl with a pearl earring. I thought it was good, not out of the world fabulous but definitely a worthwhile read.

84. Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
85. Life of Pi by Yann Martel
86. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

So sorry I misspoke before. The Chevalier book that I heard was not so good was The Lady and the Unicorn.

What did you think of Pride and Prejudice?

HI
So many have read Life of Pi. This book has been on my shelf for a long time. What do you think about the book? Should I move it up on the TBR pile?

87. All the World's Mornings by Pascal Quignard

Trish - I really liked it. Until now I just saw some movies made on the basis of her books, but it was my first book of her. Well written, interesting plot, real characters. I think that at some point of my life I'll mooch the original versions to read it as well :D

Whisper - hm... It's difficult to answer to be honest, as it's very individual perception ;) It's unusal book in my opinion, very unique plot. For me it was very interesting read, some things to think about them later on, well written one as well. I would read it ;)

Thanks Aga
I'll move Life of Pi closer to the top of the TBR pile.

#82 agatatera: What did you think of All the World's Mornings?

88. "Sputnik Sweetheart" by Haruki Murakami
89. "The Genesis Code" by John Case

Whisper - I wonder how you will lake it :) Give me know, please.

Alcottacre - I quite liked it, but for me it's not clear what I'm really thinking about this book. I just started to read it and it was already the end of it. Very short form. But still - interesting one.

90. The Club Dumas by Arturo Pérez-Reverte

91. The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger

92. No second chance by Harlan Coben

93. Chocolat by Joanne Harris

94. The British Museum Is Falling Down by David Lodge

Aga, I re-read #94 this year for the first time in about 10 years - what did you think?

95. Ślad po mamie by Marta Dzido

Flossie - I really like this book. I found it well written, dealing with serious issues in not always serious way. I think that even it was written quite some time ago it's still up to date, as not so much changed. I mean - for some religious families for sure situation can look similar and the official statements of the church are also not much different ;) And also the characters are well builded - especially the main one :) And I like the style of writting used in this book.

And how did you find it?

96. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore

#91: I did enjoy it - in fact, I seemed to have so little memory of it from first time round that it was almost like reading a new book!! It was bought for me by a friend as a bit of a joke, as I married a Catholic and she thought I ought to know the worst-case scenario ;-)

In the UK at least, I think the attitudes within the church have changed a little (not a lot admittedly) and things are a bit easier (for a start, there are some rather more reliable methods of natural family planning around nowadays!), so I found it interesting also as a reflection on the pressures of a particular moment in time.

It's also made me want to read The Aspern Papers, even though I have yet to enjoy a book by Henry James - it sounds like the section in which Adam is trying to procure the missing letters (diary? Oh dear, already it's fading...) from the young lady draws on that book a lot - one of the things I have always liked about David Lodge is his allusions to other books.

97. A year in Provence by Peter Mayle
98. Aneczka by Hanka Lemanska

Flossie - in general this book also made me curious about the rest of his books, so I will borrow next one from my friend in some weeks ;)

Aga, I think my favourite Lodge so far is Small World - coincidentally also the first I ever read - but Changing Places was also excellent (and introduces a lot of the characters that then appear in Small World. And if you're interested in the religion angle, How Far Can You Go? is a good one.

I re-read a lot of Lodge this year as I went to hear him read from Deaf Sentence and wanted to remind myself why exactly I had so many of his books on my shelves :-)

Flossie - thanks a lot for your suggestions :) I took some notes and will check which books are on the shelves of my friend :D

WOW
Your list of books is impressive!

Whisper - thank you so much! It's very nice to hear such thing from such incredible bookworms like people around here ;) I'm happy :D

Hi aga
I was out of town for a week and I'm reading the posts I missed. I went back and checked your recent lists. I'm adding The British Museum is Falling Down to my pile of TBR. This one sounds great.

Flossie....I too married a catholic....The marriage lasted 17 years. Sadly, the combination of the effects Viet Nam and his meddling mother got in the way of a healthy relationship.

I do remember many of his funny stories about growing up Catholic. Sadly, though he thought there was way too much hypocrisy in organized religion and never went back to church as an adult.

99. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

Whisper - I'm happy that through our discussion you found next book to add to your pile :)

Well... it can be (and it is actually) a lot of hypocrisy in Catholic church. Religion itself is interesting, but the structures and behaviours etc. are full of negative emotions and actions :/ And that's telling a person raised and living in a quite Catholic country ;)

#101 agatatera: How was Norwegian Wood? I just discovered Murakami this year (I have Kafka on the Shore home from the library right now) and am interested in input on all of his books.

Regarding hypocrisy in the church, I think you will find it in any church. They are, after all, run by humans, who can be hypocritical. If someone tells me that their church is perfect, I automatically discount it. And this is from a life-long Baptist, lol.

"a life-long Baptist" Me, too! When people tell me they don't believe in organized religion, I tell 'em to come to my church. Nothing organized about it...8^}

Alcottacre - Until now I've read 3 of his books as you may see on my list. And I loved Norwegian Wood most, that's for sure.
All of them in my opinion have similar main line, it's always a story about love and friendship, about man and woman, about life and death. But each of them has something which makes it unique. And Norwegian Wood took my heart most, I don't really know why. Maybe it was most gentle in a way? Or most unique plot? I don't know, but I will recommend reading it to each person who liked other books of Murakami.

Alcottacre and Drneutron - thanks for your remarks. I do agree that hypocrisy is a human characteristic and you'll find it everywhere. I just can't understand that someone is shouting how much he is fulfilling all the 'God commandments' around him/her, but in the real life doing totally something else, against them... But that's human, you're right :)

#104: Thanks for the additional info on Norwegian Wood. Sounds like I will definitely be on the look out for it.

#103: Loved the comment, doc.

100. A walk to remember by Nicholas Sparks

I still haven't got round to reading Murakami. I bought Norwegian Wood for my mother-in-law because she loves Douglas Coupland, and I'd read somewhere that "people who love Coupland, love Murakami". She now has about 10 Murakami novels on her shelves and I still haven't read a single one... although a friend has forcibly loaned me Kafka on the Shore. I suppose I ought to read and return it before it gets embarrassing :-)

Hi to all
I've added Norwegian Wood to the pile of tbr.
And, I want to add a comment that I enjoy the exchange of opinions about religion...
What a wonderful site this is!

101. Me & Emma by Elizabeth Flock I hardly open my mouth to say something about the book (without being asked), but this time I'll just write it: it's worth to read it...

Whipser - I'm happy that by chance this discussion was held here :)

#109 agatatera: I have had Me and Emma on Continent TBR for a while now, so I will definitely have to bump it up some. Thanks for your recommendation!

Aren't you afraid of "continental shifts"?

;-) Alcottacre's in barely tremor country. Now out west....we could become beachfront property.

#112 blackdogbooks: What a way to go! Some time someone will dig me out from underneath it.

102. La aventura del tocador de senoras by Eduardo Mendoza

103. Jak wytrzymać ze współczesną kobietą by Joanna Chmielewska

104. The Secret Life of Salvador Dali by Salvador Dali

105. Autoportret reportera by Ryszard Kapuściński

106. Gdyby zamilkły kobiety by Krystyna Kofta

107. Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie

How did you like Haroun and the Sea of Stories?

Very impressive list -- obviously you are at least bi-lingual. Did you read the French titles in French? I can't even get through children's books in French, tho, surprisingly enough, the translated Agatha Christie's were somehow accessible... go figure :) And didn't I see Spanish or Italian as well?

Hadn't thought of Pearl S Buck in forever! Read her stuff when I was 10 or so -- I'm sure I didn't understand half of it!

108. The Innocent by Harlan Coben

Fameulstee - I really liked this book, it's kind of fantasy fairy tale about the boy, who tries to save his father incredible skills for story telling and thanks to this land in a world of stories... It's not a long book (around 200 pages), but it's nicely written, having an interesting plot and characters, nice language. And you may find still quite some symbols in it to interpretate - like freedom of speech for example. It is a book from library, but I think I wanna have my own ;)

Suslyn - Well... Shame on me, but the titles which are not in English or Polish are here just because I could not easly find English titles on LT :/ Lazy me :p
My mother tongue is Polish, I read quite easly also books in English. I could read proably some veeeeeery easy (kids?) books in French, my German and Russian doesn't allow me to read any books still ;) That's all for the moment ;) Sorry for dissapointing you :)
I like Pearl S. Buck books quite much, did not read any since a few months only, but have some on my TBR pile ;)

Msg 122 -- I might just have to pick that one up. No, I'm not disappointed -- but I may be relieved :)

Editor's note: What's with me? I put msg 108 instead of 122 -- where'd I leave my brain? Just call me Scarecrow.

thanks aga
I will put Haroun and the Sea of Stories on my list.

109. Rocket Man by William Elliott Hazelgrove

Suslyn - ;)

Fameulstee - enjoy :)

TrishNYC and I just read and put some thoughts down on this one. What did you think?

110. Hostage by Robert Crais

Blackdogbooks - I'll write my opinion later on today or the latest tomorrow, so stay tuned ;)

Blackdogbooks - after reading both reviews written by you and Trish, I must admitt I'm closer to your opinion ;) Here is mine:

I’ve got „Rocket Man” as ARC through LibraryThing as well. And as some other people before me – I’m still not sure if I like it or not.
As you may read in many posts – it’s a story of 46 years old Dale, who moved his family out from the city, to the “land of happiness”, where the family would bloom. And it happened the opposite – everything is wrong – wife want to divorce, son hates him, his father is kicked by his wife and is moving to live with Dale, Dale has problems with everyone around him – school, neighbors, police… He is all the time repeating how much he cares about his relatives and their life, but actually is not able to do anything to change his and his family life for better and to solve the problems.
I liked the plot in the meaning of dealing with “American dream” and nowadays life. But I didn’t like half of the characters (mostly the main one) – they were irritating me most of the time ;) I know it could be planned by the author like that, but for me it makes it more difficult to enjoy the book if I’m irritated most of the time ;) The other thing is the ending – for me this situation is a bit too unrealistic, to see this one moment as a crucial change of the life of the family.
The other thing is the cover – it would not invite me for buying this book. I know it’s clearly related with the leading theme of the book, but there is plenty of nicer photos to use. But I’m quite sure the publishers already got the point from other notes about the book and re-considered the cover :)
In general – I liked the book, but without fireworks ;) It’s ok read for a winter evenings :)

111. The Nanny by Melissa Nathan

112. The Book of Proper Names by Amélie Nothomb

113. American Gods by Neil Gaiman

What did you think of American Gods?

114. A Dog's Life by Peter Mayle

#134 agatatera: How did you like A Dog's Life? I have read several of Mayle's books on Provence and enjoyed them immensely. I am curious as to how this book compares.

115. Candy by Mian Mian

Drneutron - It was a first book of Neil Gaiman which I've read and I need to admitt, that I feel conquered now ;) I really liked it - I love the plot and characters, building of the atmosphere, diversity of characters and their small stories, relations between them and between happenings in the book. It was very "real" book for me ;) And I've read it just in 5 days (around 550 pages), which says a lot about my interest in it :D For sure it was a good beginning of the adventure with this author. Now, I'm reading Anansi Boys and I enjoy it a lot as well, so I will rather continue getting to know his books. And what do you think about books of Gaiman?

Alcottacre - before this one I also read 2 of Provence books and I enjoyed them on the level of nice, easy literature read before going to sleep :) And this one suit perfectly to this category. But, to be honest, I liked it more than the usual Provence books. It's written from the perspective of Boy - one of their dogs. And it's pretty cool and quite funny :D I enjoyed it and I like this scalawag ;) It still has relations with Provence and its' characteristics, so suits to the rest, but it's well build on the life of dogs. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as well :D Give me know!

#136 agatatera: Thanks for the recommendation of A Dog's Life. I will look for it.

116. Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

Oh, good, you're reading more Gaiman! I just finished Stardust for the first time a few days ago. It was a wonderful little fairy tale. I'm gonna have to put American Gods back on the list for rereading now! 8^}

What did you think of Anansi Boys? I liked it a great deal, more than American Gods. I went back and read it a second time and got even more out of it--one of my criteria for a really good book. I think the characters were more sympathetic and the plot tighter. Have you read Good Omens? It's one of my all-time favorites.

117. The Mystery of the Bewitched Crypt by Eduardo Mendoza
118. The curious incident of the dog in the night-time by Mark Haddon

Ronincats - I liked Anansi Boys a lot. It's true, the characters are more sympathetic and plot tighther. I like the story line as well. And also the ending was quite nice :) I liked it in a different way than American gods, but I think that both of them are very good books and I enjoyed both of them a lot. Maybe I will have one day time to re-read both of them and then it may happen that I will change my opinion somehow... ;)
No, I still did not read Good Omens, but for sure I wanna continue reading books of Neil Gaiman :) Next - waiting on my TBR pile already is Neverwhere

>140 ronincats: & >141 agatatera:: I'm putting in a HUGE vote for Good Omens too. Have def. said this somewhere else on LT but - while I would be extremely hard-pushed to provide a top-ten favourite books, I know exactly which one is number 1, and it is Messrs Pratchett and Gaiman's marvellous collaboration. I have reread it (significantly) more times than any other book. It makes me laugh out loud in train stations even 10 years on from my first reading.

119. Hiperdziennik by Alicja Kraus

Flossie - Good Omens is on my TBR list after so many nice recommendations :D

120. The girl in the red coat by Roma Ligocka

121. Bajki rozne; Opowiesci biblijne; Rozmowy z diablem by Leszek Kolakowski

122. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

123. A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1) by Ursula K. Le Guin

Was this your first Le Guin?

Suslyn - yes, it was first :) But I've already order the next book from this Cycle :) Let's see how I will like it...

124. The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern by Lilian Jackson Braun
125. The God of Small Things by Roy Arundhati

126. Zapiski stanu powaznego by Monika Szwaja

hi Aga
Did you like The God of Small Things?

127. Traktor by Juhasia Kalada

127. Traktor by Juhasia Kalada

FAMeulstee - It's for sure well written and quite interesting book, but something didn't allowed me to enjoy it, I don't know what happened. Maybe it was the style of writting? Maybe wording? Maybe it was just not a right moment? I liked it, but without fireworks ;)

128. The lovely bones by Alice Sebold

129. Complete Stories by Dorothy Parker

>128 agatatera: Agate, what did you think of The Lovely Bones as it is on my 2009 Reading List?

- TT

130. Innocent World by Ami Sakurai

TheTortoise - I really liked it. It's maybe not a masterpiece of 'high literature', but I loved the conept, the plot and the "implementation" is not bad neither. For me it was full of emotions, feelings and that was most important. Enjoy! :)

131. Kuzynki by Andrzej Pilipiuk

132. PS, I love you by Cecelia Ahern

133. Love remains by Glen Duncan
134. The Tombs of Atuan (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 2) by Ursula K. Le Guin

So you found and read book 2 -- good for you!

I'm trying to catch up on all the threads. We are a very active group!

Aga, regarding message #141, I'm wondering what you thought of The curious incident of the dog in the night-time by Mark Haddon. I brought this home today from my local library.

>163 Whisper1: Linda, this was my comment on it: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is very interesting, original and strangely enjoyable. A pretend detective story by a young boy with Aspergers Syndrome. His psychological difficulties are delineated and are heartbreakingly sad. He is a maths genius but is unable to cope with life. A quick read.

- TT

Thanks TT
I started this last night and really enjoy it thus far.

>163 Whisper1:/165 Linda
I read it in April, before I joined this group, and liked it very much. I look for your thoughts about it.

135. Anna In w grobowcach świata by Olga Tokarczuk
136. Carrollblog by Jonathan Carroll

Suslyn - yeap, and I liked it, so I can hardly wait to buy and read the rest ;) But need to wait until January...

Whisper - I liked it. It's written in an interesting way, keeped my attention. It's incredibly logical, sometimes a bit too much for my non-so-much-logical and not-so-much-mathematicla brain ;)

137. Jasne błękitne okna by Edyta Czepiel
138. Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli by Wiesław Myśliwski

139. Each Day a Small Victory by Chips Hardy