Dawn's 75 for 2010

Hi *waves*

I'm new to library thing and the group. I love being able to track books/authors and "tour" other people's libraries. I especially enjoy reading other member's reviews. I'm not certain I will get 75 books read in 2010, but think it's a great goal.

I saw a discussion thread earlier about audiobooks. Some of the books on my list were a combination of audiobook/book--what I mean is I start listening to a book on work commute, will usually read the book while home at night and weekends (unless doing mindless chores were I need my hands free) but continue to listen in the car.

This is can be fun for all kinds of books. I have several fantasy audiobooks (love Simon Vance as the voice of the dragon in His Majesty's Dragon)and I have several of Faulkner's books that I have both read and listened to the audiobook.

My list thus far:

1. The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner*
2. Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
3. The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
4. The Third Angel: A Novel by Alice Hoffman
5. The World According to Garp by John Irving
6. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson
7. Along Came a Cowboy by Christine Lynxwiler
8. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
9. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
10. The Lightening Thief (Percy Jackson Series Book 1) by Rick Riordan
11. Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man by Joseph Heller
12. Night by Elie Wiesel
13. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
14. The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology
15. Persuasion by Jane Austen
16. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
17. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
18. A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
19. The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
20. Undead and Unwed (Queen Betsy Book 1) by MaryJanice Davidson
21. Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
22. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
23. The Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-Time by Mark Haddon
24. A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller
25. Jazz Notes: Improvisations on Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller
26. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
27. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
28. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
29. Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence
30. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
31. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
32. Cell by Stephen King*
33. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson*
34. Snuff by Chuck Palahniuk*
35. American Gods by Neil Gaiman*
36. His Majesty’s Dragon (Temeraire Book 1) by Naomi Novik*
37. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
38. Dead in the Family (Sookie Stackhouse Series) by Charlaine Harris
39.The Help by Kathryn Stockett*
40. When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris*
41. The Giver by Lois Lowry
42. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
43. Solar by Ian McEwan*
44. Sula by Toni Morrison*
45. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
46. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
47. Beauty and the Beast by Nancy Willard
48. Anthem by Ayn Rand
49. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
50. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

*audiobook or a combination of the book and audiobook

edited to update the list

Welcome! Nice set of books so far.

are we allowed to listen to audiobooks aswell, coz that would help me up to trying to get 75 done in a year! lol xx

Welcome! What a great set of books you've finished thus far... I don't think you'll have to worry about making it to 75, you're nearly halfway already!

Welcome to the group. You have a great start to the challenge. If you don't make it to 75 the earth will continue to spin and we'll probably have a chance to try again next year.

Hi. Welcome from me, too. What a great bunch of books you have already read this year! Can you give us an idea of some of your favorites?

Welcome to the group! Some good reading in your list already.

Welcome from another pediatrician! I've starred your thread.

Thanks.

There are two books I literally couldn't put down and stayed up past 2 AM to continue reading: Water for Elephants and To Kill a Mockingbird. I also loved Night by Elie Wiesel and Mother Night--shorter books and is a nice combo to read together. I enjoyed Death in Venice and would like to read more Mann in the future. I have The Magic Mountain but it is in small print so I keep putting it back on the shelf! Jane Eyre is also a favorite in the above list.

I didn't care much for the Queen Betsy book, but I loved His Majesty's Dragon and I'm excited because it is a whole series!

I saw Donald Miller speak in person. I didn't know anything about him or his books before that. I highly recommend his Million Miles in a Thousand Years book. Fast read and he has great thoughts on living.

I loved Portrait of an Artist, As an Old Man. I think I like this better than Catch-22 but some of the jokes are based on Catch, so I think it's best to read it first. Parts of it made me laugh and cry. Reminded me in some ways of Vonnegut's A Man Without a Country.

I read Miller's Blue Like Jazz a few years back, so I will give Million Miles in a Thousand Years a try. Thanks for the recommendation of that one.

Edited to correct Touchstone

Hi again. I've finished two more books this week.

37. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
38. Dead in the Family (Sookie Stackhouse Series) by Charlaine Harris

I liked them both in different ways. Reading is sort of like eating for me and the whole Sookie Stackhouse series is candy, specifically junior mints and sugar babies. Dead in the Family is book #10 in the series. It left me feeling kind of sad. There were plot points I'm not buying, but I love the characters. I got my copy ASAP and had finished it in few hours and will do the same with the next one.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being is more like dark chocolate with oranges. The main character Tomas is a sex addict--although he never identifies himself as one, but it is about much more than that. The book touches on love, Communism, Czech history and politics. I would have liked to have known more about Tomas' history (we get more history on the other three main characters it seems). I was much more interested in the characters and story than in the philosophy parts, but I enjoyed it. 5 stars

I am listening to When You are Engulfed in Flames on work commute and starting Middlemarch tonight.

Kidzdoc--always glad to meet another pediatrician.

Alcottacre--I think you will like it.

JanetinLonon, speciallisa, mamzel, dk_phoenix, and drneutron--nice to meet you and thanks for stopping by :-)

~Dawn

Welcome, Dawn! You are certainly farther on your way to 75 than I am. Your books look great so far, and I think you'll find many congenial people in this group. (I'm a Magic Mountain fan, small print and all.)
Peggy

Edited to try to fix Touchstones.....didn't.

Thanks for your review of The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Dawn; I'll have to add this to my wish list.

Yes, it's always good to meet another pediatrician! I'm trying to get some of my colleagues at work, or former med school & residency classmates, to join LT, but I haven't been successful yet.

I have never read anything by Kundera, so The Unbearable Lightness of Being goes into the BlackHole. Thanks for the recommendation.

Oh I envy you starting Middlemarch - first time? I would love to re-read it, but not this year, as I am really trying to make a dent in my "To Read" pile, although it has grown massively since I came on LT!

Janet--Yes, this is my first time reading Middlemarch. Just finished Part 1 of 8. I like it. This may be a book I read a few chapters a day on. I don't feel the need to rush through it, but think I will enjoy it :-)

Last night, I finished the audiobook of (#39)The Help by Kathryn Stockett. If I had been reading it, I probably would have stopped after the second chapter. At that point, the characters were too one dimensional (mean white woman, poor Christian black servant) to be interesting. I continued listening because the narrators were so awesome, and I'm glad I did. The story evolved into something more. Good story. Great narration. Four stars, maybe four and a half.

Tomorrow, I should finish (#40) When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris. Funny but Me Talk Pretty One Day is still my favorite by Sedaris.

Started reading The Giver tonight. Also, checked out the audiobook for Angela's Ashes from the library.

Oh, I love The Giver. I hope you enjoy it!

#41 The Giver
#42 Flowers for Algernon

Finished the above and loved them both. Don't know how I missed reading both of these as a teenager or young adult. FFA left me with a few tears.

I'm listening to Solar, in the middle of part 2 of 8 of Middlemarch, on chapter 5 of Sense and Sensibility(which I'm reading on my phone and really need to get a paper copy!), page 36 of The Spark by Chris Downie and page 200 of Good Omens and have two more audiobooks checked out from library. I have no idea what I will finish next!

Happy reading :-)

edited for spelling

#18: FFA left me with tears too, so I can relate!

I finished Solar on audiobook. My response is meh.

The book is about an aging physicist and his messy life. The title of the book is from his work on alternative energy. The main character isn't likable, but grew on me a bit. There were a couple of times when things happened that had me on the edge of my seat and few times I laughed. I was expecting something big for the ending, but it was somewhat of a let down. Almost like a fade to black at the end of TV episode. I don't need a completely neat everything-wrapped-up ending, but this one left me indifferent about the book.

The audiobook narrator did a fantastic job.

I am now on Part 4 of 8 of Middlemarch. I'm loving it. I read at night before falling asleep, and I swear last night, I woke up in the middle of the night convinced I was living in Middlemarch. I think that is one of the highest forms of praise for a book--when it can completely pull you into it.

edited for grammar

I am glad to hear you are enjoying Middlemarch! I think it is about time for a re-read on my part.

It is awesome. I don't know why I waited so long to read it. Oh well, I don't think I would have really appreciated it when I was younger :-)

44. Sula by Toni Morrison
45. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

Sula is a fast read (176 pages) and good story. It took several pages for me to get into it, but once I did I didn't stop until I finished (started with audiobook, then switched to reading). Story of a friendship between two women. Sad situations. Men are worthless and weak. Women are a bit on the crazy side. At least one scene with self mutilation that will stick with me. I liked this story. I recommend it. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who is depressed--but if I had read it when I was depressed, I would have loved it, but been sad.

Good Omens is a book I wanted to like. My sister loved it, thought it was hilarious and, usually, I like books she likes. I didn't dislike it, but it took me six months to finish (400 page mass market paperback). Some parts I really liked, and I love an apocalypse story, but just never got into it enough to keep from putting it down for weeks at a time. Kind of feel similar about American Gods.

edited for grammar

#23: I have not read any Toni Morrison - I tried Beloved a few years back, but just could not get into it. Maybe I will give Sula a shot. Thanks for the recommendation, Doc.

Someone else mentioned Sula recently and I put it on my mental list of books to look for, then yesterday I found it on one of my own bookshelves. After reading your comments I think I'll read it soon.

Stasia - The Bluest Eye is also a good Toni Morrison novel to start with. I loved Beloved, but it's def. not a quick, easy-to-get-into read!

I had Sula, The Bluest Eye and Paradise on my bookshelf. I got them all at half price books for $1 each. Plan on reading them all eventually and Beloved--but definitely need to be in the right place emotionally to read them.

>11 drdawnffl:: Hi, Dawn! Just found you. Still laughing over--and admiring--your candy analysis of The Unbearable Lightness of Being (not just any dark chocolate, but "dark chocolate with oranges") vs. Sookie Stackhouse Series ("...specifically Junior Mints and Sugar Babies.")

Some great books on your list so far--looking forward to following you. Loved Middlemarch (akin to homemade carmels, maybe?)

#25: I will keep that in mind, Shauna. Thanks for the input!

Thanks Bonnie :-)

Middlemarch, let's see, maybe it's apples with caramel sauce? wholesome, good, sweet and gooey.

46. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
47. Beauty and the Beast by Nancy Willard

Fahrenheit--Quick read, interesting premise, pretty amazing that (1) it was written over 50 years ago (2) it ends up on banned book lists. Perhaps this is also ironic (although I rarely call something ironic because so many peoples on the internets misuse the word and I don't want to be one of them, thus forsaking the use of the word altogether, but I think here it might actually apply. For real.)

Beauty and the Beast--nice variation on the fairy tale. Picked it up at library. Will read to step-daughter.

48. Anthem by Ayn Rand
49. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Anthem is a dystopian parable. It's around a 100 pages. It's okay. Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 were better. Ending is heavy handed. I felt like yelling, "OK, I get it. Really, I got it pages and pages ago."

Wallflower is coming of age story told in letters written by a smart kid with poor social skills who develops a circle of friends and begins facing the problems of high school, family, relationships. I enjoyed reading it.

I've been reading a few short books while I continue reading Middlemarch. Amazon delivered Being Dead and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society today. I hope to get to them soon.

I have had The Perks of Being a Wallflower in the BlackHole for a while now. I best get to it soon.

I hope you are continuing to enjoy Middlemarch, Dawn. I love The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, so I hope you like it!

Middlemarch seems a little slower page 400-500--several pages on medical reform--but I still like it, just reading slower. I dove into TGLaPPPS last night. I couldn't wait!

#32: I dove into TGLaPPPS last night. I couldn't wait!

That is dangerous - I did that with the book when I got home from work one morning and did not sleep until I had finished it.

50. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Wow. You were right. It's midnight and I just finished it! I didn't know I could read that fast. Such a fun book! Just loved it.

ETA: That book is like chocolate pie. Yum!

#34: I am glad you enjoyed it!

Hi Dawn, if you like the Potato-book, you might like Chocolat by Joanne Harris too. It's literally a book to lick your fingers and I liked it, so there's a good chance you will too :-)

I'll put it on the wishlist! Thanks :-)

#36: I loved Chocolat when I read it a couple of years ago - and I do not even like chocolate :)

# Yes, Chocolat is a very tasty book, isn't it. I guess you never tasted Belgian chocolate :-). Tourists are storming chocolate-shops when they come to Belgium, because they never tasted anything like it. They leave the shops with kilos and kilos of it. In fact, the Belgian chocolate-hysteria might be a good subject for a book. If only I were a writer (sigh).
(For any chocolate-lover out there, you might like this website of the Belgian chocolate-guru himself :-): http://www.dominiquepersoone.be/dominique-persoone-chocolate.asp?taal=uk).

#39: Yes, it is a very tasty book. Even if I liked chocolate, I cannot eat it - I am allergic.

Sorry to hear that, but I guess the world doesn't stop turning because one cannot eat chocolate. Books, on the other hand...:-) I can relate to that, because I have something similar with cheese, but it doesn't keep me from enjoying books like "Cheese" by Willem Elsschot.
May I ask you how you manage to read all those (lovely) books and still be on LT always and everywhere? I'm impressed (and a bit jealous)...

#41: I do not sleep - just ask anyone, lol.

BTW - I am jealous of you being in Belgium. My grandfather was from there, but I have never had an opportunity to visit that country.

Me too. Not the grandfather, but the being jealous. I would love to see Belgium.

Sorry, Dawn, to have "taken over" your thread. Chocolate does weird things to me.
Well, Belgium is a great country to live, although quite difficult to grasp.
I'd love to make a grand tour of the States myself. As a young child I used to dream away with the Reader's digest America the beautiful, which had pictures of every state of the U.S. I l o v e the American scenery with all its specific landscapes. You see, even before I could read English, it's a book that influenced me. I'll probably never be able to visit all the things that I want to see, but at least that book gave me a chance to get an impression.

I see you read Middlemarch. It's on my TBR-list, next after I finish The scarlet letter. I have been meaning to read it, but never came round to it. Now LT says I will really love it and you seem to like it too, I think it can't go wrong.

Please comment and discuss on my thread anytime.

I am on page 700 with about 94 pages to go on Middlemarch. I do really like it would highly recommend it.

Since last post I've read:
51. Middlemarch by George Eliot
52. In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez (audiobook)
53. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
54. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

I've enjoyed all of the above. Butterflies reminded me of Poisonwood Bible. It's historical fiction, an account of the Mirabal sisters in Dominican Republic during Trujillo Regime. The story is told by each of the sisters. I read something about it on LT and then saw it at library.

I've abandoned Life of Pi. Just couldn't get into reading or listening to it. Still on ipod if I decide to try again. I'm 100 pages into The Picture of Dorian Gray. I've been reading it for days. It is only 170 pages long but feels like it is taking forever to read. Geisha I read in 2 days and it is 400 pages. Henrietta is about 300 pages and I read it in 3 days.

Wolverine: Violent Tendencies has been a letdown. I started listening to A Thousand Splendid Suns this morning (I have 6 hour car ride later this week). I may start reading something new today.

All great books there. Well, I haven't read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks yet, but all the others were favorites. 'Course I loved Life of Pi as well. I just haven't been able to enjoy an audiobook all that much. I have listened to a few while I was busy doing other things, but that's not the kind of experience I want with a good book.

Hi Dawn, I've added In the Time of the Butterflies to my Globally Reading-list. And I hope to start Middlemarch any day now. I've already programmed the first page on my e-reader:-). Thanks for the recommendations.

I need to bump In the Time of the Butterflies up my stack. It has been in the BlackHole far too long.

Glad to hear that you liked Middlemarch!

I read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lack this month too, and I think flissp is starting to read it.

Updating my thread after being away for awhile:

55. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde--was OK. I expected it to be a better story. I know it's literature, filled with symbolism, ect. but didn't knock my socks off.

56. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini--listened to audiobookfrom library. Enjoyed the story

57. The Blind Side by Michael Lewis--good book. More info than in movie.

58. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Yoga by Joan Budilovsky--library book, would not buy

59. The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood--audibook from library. I liked it. thought is was better than Oryx and Crake.

60. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood--book before year of flood. I read them in reverse. wouldn't have cared about Oryx and Crake characters otherwise.

61. Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer--became boring. skimmed the last 100 pages.

62. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
63. The Girl who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
64. The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson--I loved these books. Really cared about Lisbeth and Blomkist. The second book was my favorite. People can pick things apart and criticize some of writing--like how Blomkist is an irresistible sex machine and some of the minor character's background stuff could be edited, but these are great stories. They are books you stay up until 3 AM to finish. They are fun to read.

Glad to see you back, Dr. D! Looks like you have been doing some good reading.

I am looking forward to reading the Larsson trilogy in its entirety before the end of the year. I have only read the first two and plan to re-read them before I read the third.

# 51 - Well, I was wondering where's you'd gone to, but your reading-list says it all :-) I'm not a huge fan of Larsson's books (too long-winded, etc), but I do understand why most people like them. I just don't understand why this author is so much more successful than others who I think are better. But, I'm glad you enjoyed them.

I haven't been on for awhile but want to try to read 50-60 books in 2011.

Just posting the final 2010 list--

65. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
66. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
67. Throne of Jade (Temeraire Book 2) by Naomi Novik
68. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
69. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
70. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
71. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
72. Way with Words: Writing Rhetoric and the Art of Persuasion by Michael D. C. Drout
73. The First Five Pages by Noah Lukeman
74. Self Editing for Fiction Writers by Dave King
75. The Fire in Fiction by Donald Maass
76. Patient Zero by Jonathon Maberry

Congratulations on finishing your 75! I'm not sure if I'll be able to do it again next year either, but I'll give it a shot. :)

Congrats!

Congratulations, Dawn!

Congratulations on passing the 75 book mark for 2010! Way to go!

Well done on your 76 books - what did you think of Nickel and Dimed?

Hi elkie!

Nickel and Dimed is a fast read and interesting read that left me feeling lucky. The author attempts to survive (food and shelter) on minimum wage jobs in few different locations. I believe the author attempted this about 10 years ago. I would love to see the experiment repeated today, I think it would be even harder.