Girlybooks: What are we reading in November 2013?

I just started The Language of Flowers.

sounds interesting; i hadn't heard of that one.

i'm just about finished with my invented country which is a bit of a mishmash, but has charming parts. or allende is charming in parts anyway.

I'm about 1/2 way through My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor and am pretty surprised at what a writer this Supreme Court Justice is. We're lucky to have her.
I'm also reading The Hearts of Horses about a woman "horse whisperer" in the early part of the 20th century.
(I don't know why, but often touchstones don't work when I post from my iPad.)

>#3. I LOVED The Hearts of Horses. As a lifelong equestrian, I appreciated this book, about the trade offs we make in life, on several levels. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

And good to know about My Beloved World. I have been wondering whether it was a good read. I will put it on my list.

Am enjoying Orange Is the New Black, about a third of the way in. Ironically, read this right after finishing Frederick Douglass's autobiography.

I'm reading a lot of books I feel I should have read, but never encountered in school or college (Douglass), as well as new fiction. It sometimes makes for interesting juxtapositions, and one can't help affecting the other.

rereading the women's room; it's a slow go but i'm wanting to mark almost every page so far so that says something...

I just finished a memoir, Stolen Innocence: my story of growing up in a polygamous sect, becoming a teenage bride, and breaking free of Warren Jeffs, by Elissa Wall. The title pretty much sums up the book! Fascinating story and one that everyone in the US and Canada should know.

Nicki, Amity and Sorrow is a fairly good treatment of that topic in novel form.

Just finished Women in Wonderland: Lives, Legends and Legacies of Yellowstone National Park. I really liked it (even though it could have used better editing). It's got me interested to look for some of the primary sources and other information about the women who lived and worked in Yellowstone in the early part of the 20th century.

Helcura, I bought that book about a month ago but haven't had time to read it yet. How fascinating if primary sources are available!

I also bought a memoir of living in a remote part of Yellowstone in the '70's called Yellowstone Has Teeth.

ETA: These were both purchased at the Montana Festival of the Book which had a panel called 'Babes in the Woods' for women authors of outdoor books. (The panel's name was roundly abused by all the panelists).

I just finished Maddaddam and really enjoyed the third part of the trilogy.

I'm Currently reading a classics in its field On Death and Dying by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.

Next up will be a classic mystery, Dorothy Sayer's Nine Tailors for a group read in the Green Dragon.

I started the month with Mrs de Winter, a sequel to Rebecca written by Susan Hill. While it's beautifully written and chock full of great gothic atmosphere, the plot was pretty thin. Disappointing, although I do usually enjoy Susan Hill's books.

And I'm now reading Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. Steampunk with zombies. I'm having fun. :) (And they're scary zombies! Fast, which I don't always approve of, but scary!)

I finished My Beloved World and have gained enormous respect for Sonia Sotomayor. I have to say, I can't imagine any child wanting to be a lawyer when she grows up, but she shows how that could happen. There's lots of information about getting into then through Princeton then Yale law school, about job interviews and moving through the world of lawyerdom. There's also a little look at living with type 1 diabetes, and so much about her pride in being Puerto Rican that I'm amazed she ever got confirmed as a supreme court justice. I'm glad I read this one.
I can see why you liked The Hearts of Horses so much, vwinsloe. It's delightful so far.

>Citizenjoyce, I am glad that you are enjoying it.

I have My Beloved World in audiobook on my list at the library and will put a hold on it when I come close to the end of the book that I am listening to now. I am a lawyer, so I imagine that it will be interesting to me from a professional standpoint, although I became a lawyer by default. Because I got my BA in philosophy, law was literally the only thing that I could go into without going back and taking more undergrad classes. Once I started studying law, I was surprised that it was not boring, and that there are so many different ways to use a law degree.

I usually avoid books about lawyers because it is too much like work! But Justice Sotomayor intrigues me as a person.

Yesterday I started We Need to Talk about Kevin, which I seem to recall drew mixed opinions from this crowd. I didn't actually have a burning desire to read it myself, but it was a book club pick so I'm giving it a try.

Sweetiegherkin, gird your loins and have Xanax at the ready.

Hah, yeah I wasn't in any way anticipating that this was going to be a "feel-good" read.

I took a while with reading Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood so I finally finished it today. It was my least favorite Atwood so far, but since she sets the bar pretty high that doesn't mean it wasn't good. (Sorry about the double negative there.) While I think this book could probably stand on its own pretty well with an ending that would leave you thinking, I'm glad that there's follow-up and am looking forward to reading the next one in the series. However, I'm taking a slight detour to read The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith aka J.K. Rowling for my book club. Also, I'm still working on We Need to Talk About Kevin, so it might be a while before I get to the next one in Atwood's series.

17> I kind of like the second installment, Year of the Flood, best of the three for its very good drawing of the characters of Toby and Ren. It's just that YotF does get a little confusing because of time switches in the narration, but Atwood's careful to make clear by the proper use of past and present tenses. (Also, be careful to identify what year 25 is versus year 1 versus year 10 and so forth. Maybe that's where I was having a little trouble.)

I'd read Oryx and Crake back when it was first published, didn't care that much for it, and didn't bother with YofT. Now that MaddAddam just came out, though, I reread O&C and just finished the entire trilogy a week or so ago. Glad I gave Atwood a second chance.

I also think Oryx an Crake was the worst of the trilogy. Since I liked Year of the Flood and MaddAddam so much, I thought I go back and try Oryx again, but I haven't done so.
For my RL book club I just finished Look Again by Lisa Scottoline. I'd never read anything by her before, and for the most part, was pleasantly surprised. It's a good look at a reporter's life and at the process of adoption. The main character's sleuthing was well written, but there was a bit too much rose coloring for my taste.
Now I'm about to start I Am Malala.

I finished Ellen Galford's Moll Cutpurse: Her True Story (4****) a few days ago and I started reading Middleton and Dekker' Jacobean comedy The Roaring Girl on Kindle for its tie-in interest with Moll as a character.

Just read Cat Adams' latest Blood Singer book To Dance with the Devil. I particularly liked this one because it addresses some of the challenges that strong women face when the men in their lives want to take over - it's not the major plot point or anything, but just included as part of the daily life of the characters.

I checked out my library system for Moll Cutpurse and they don't have it, but I was able to order a used copy from Amazon. Checking out the author, Ellen Galford, I saw she also wrote The Dyke and the Dybbuk. I love all those Jewish supernatural creatures and recently read and loved The Golem and the Jinni so I had to order the Dybbuk book too. Evidently they're both humorous. I like that. The Golem and the Jinni is not humorous but the female golem is irresistible.

Someone recommended Prairie Bitch to me, and that's up next, mostly as a lark.

Just finished and posted a 3½***-review of Najla Said's Looking for Palestine.

20> I'm discontinuing my Kindle read of The Roaring Girl. While browsing through the UPenn B&N yesterday evening, I came across a Norton Critical of The Roaring Girl which has some positively gorgeous supplemental material, so I got that and I'm switching over.

I'm nearing the end of The egg and I, and am slowing down to try and make it last longer!

>19 Citizenjoyce: For my RL book club I just finished Look Again by Lisa Scottoline. I'd never read anything by her before, and for the most part, was pleasantly surprised. It's a good look at a reporter's life and at the process of adoption. The main character's sleuthing was well written, but there was a bit too much rose coloring for my taste.

Sounds a little bit like the book Love in the Driest Season, which I read some time ago now but recall enjoying very much, especially as an audiobook.

Bullies and Mean Girls in Popular Culture by Patrice Oppliger, which I won on early review, just came in the mail. It's got a really interesting table of contents, but it looks like there's no mention of Clarisse LaRue of the Percy Jackson series. {grrrr}

And Clarisse is a classic bully! Shame they missed her (although maybe she's in there somewhere).

(I hope Mrs Danvers is in there, she's a brilliant bully, she scares me witless. Although maybe not pop culture.)

I finished (and enjoyed) Boneshaker and have already bought the second in the series. Sigh. I don't have a book buying problem, I have a finding-enough-time-to-read-all-the-books-I-buy problem.

Next book was written by a bloke, and the eponymous character was a bloke, Jack Glass, but featured a future matriarchal culture. He didn't give a lot of depth on the culture (no Ikea world building), but a good sci-fi read.

Then a quick graphic novel, Tamara Drewe which I enjoyed. Tamara returns to the small village of her childhood from London with a new nose and wreaks havoc on the local inhabitants.

And now I'm almost finished (because I can't put down) a YA novel, Every Breath by Ellie Marney. Featuring a Sherlockian pair, (James) Mycroft and (Rachel) Watts. Quite heavy on the angst (these are teenagers), but a ripping read. And thoroughly based in Melbourne, a city I know fairly well, and it's lovely to revisit in the pages of a book.

I'm reading (and VERY much enjoying) The Likeness. Can't wait to find out the killer is!

yesterday i started rereading written on the body by jeanette winterson; i'd hyped this up in my head after swooning over it the first time i read it. so it can't live up to my memory of it, but it's still just beautiful and lovely and i'm really, really enjoying it.

Finished reading The egg and I, which was wonderful, if rather dated in its treatment of Native Americans. Then again, it is a memoir and the author was stating her opinions and reactions as she felt them; a modern author might feel the same, but either tone it down for the book or omit these references altogether.
Also read An academic question, not Barbara Pym's best but still a delightful read that gives an amusing look at academic life.
I've just started reading Martha Quest, which has been on my shelf unread for several years.

31... I really want to read something by Jeanette Winterson but don't know where to start. Any recommendations?

I just finished Calling Dr. Laura: A Graphic Memoir which I really enjoyed, although I love pretty much all lesbian graphic memoirs. It started a bit slow but really pulled me in and I finished the majority of the book (probably about 250 pages) in one sitting last night.

Also reading Marie Curie and her Daughters but finding it a little dry right now. It's up my alley, and I have to finish it for Early Reviewers, but these days I'm wanting to read stuff that's more immediately enjoyable and captivating.

Been in a November-inspired mood, so started Cruel Pink and At the Sweet Hour of Hand in Hand.

33... Although many people enjoy Oranges are Not the Only Fruit most, my favorite Winterson books are (in order) The Passion, Written on the Body, and Sexing the Cherry. The later work, although still gorgeous, is way too post-modern for my taste. I hear her most recent work is less so, but it's still sitting in the towering TBR pile.

>33 lemontwist: i actually have only read ... i think 3 of her books (written on the body, oranges are not the only fruit, and sexing the cherry. maybe i also read the passion? i've read oranges 3 times (it's interesting and well done but not a favorite of mine, in spite of how many times i've read it) and written now twice; didn't like sexing the cherry. not sure which book of hers, if any, is representative of her writing. if you like memoirs (although it's not graphic) maybe you'd like hers?

>35 overlycriticalelisa:

just looked up the passion (thanks touchstones!) to see if i'd read it or if it sounded familiar, and actually what i'd thought was sexing the cherry was in fact the passion. so i guess i didn't much like the passion and i haven't read sexing the cherry.

I just finished Allegiant. I wasn't planning on reading it until next month, but I heard there was lots of chatter about it and I was afraid if I waited too long it would be ruined by spoilers. Yes, well, lots to say, but I don't want to be one of those spoilers, so I won't. I will, though, include a quotation:
To me, when someone wrongs you you both share the burden of that wrongdoing -- the pain of it weighs on both of you. Forgiveness, then, means choosing to bear the full weight all by yourself. Doesn't that sound backwards?

I'm listing to an audiobook of With or Without You and don't really know what to think. Part of the time my heart goes out to this poor child raised in such a bizarre dysfunctional family, part of the time she just sounds like a whiney yuppie. I'm certainly going to finish it.

As for Jeanette Winterson, I read Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit long ago and remember liking it very much. I tried Sexing the Cherry and it didn't do a thing for me. I listened to an audiobook of Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles and liked it also, but not a book I would normally think connected to her. Best of all is her memoir, Why Be Normal When You Could Be Happy.

Incidentally, Winterson also wrote the screenplay for the miniseries production of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (IMDb).

>38 CurrerBell:

i had no idea she was a part of that. maybe i'll watch it one day after all then. thanks for that.

>35 overlycriticalelisa:, 36

this is just a conversation with myself but i find it funny (and depressing?) - i looked at my reading history which goes back to 1994 and find that i have, in fact, read sexing the cherry and have not read the passion, although it's on the tbr list. the synopses of the one i've read didn't sound too familiar, but the one i haven't read did. guess i can't rely too much on my memory...

I have read both Sexing the Cherry and The Passion and I *think* I liked the latter much more. I *think*. But I'd recommend Oranges are not the Only Fruit as a starter, definitely. (Mum gave me a copy and I read it in one sitting.)

I finished (and mightily enjoyed) Every Breath, a very fun YA novel.

And am now reading Code Name Verity which came highly recommended by other LT readers, and I suggested for my book group.

39> Charlotte Coleman and Geraldine McEwan are just out of this world in the miniseries.

I've read some of Winterson over the years, but I've reread Oranges on more than one occasion and highly recommend it. I just got finished reading The Passion for the October-to-December Napoleonic challenge on the Reading Through Time group and wasn't extraordinarily impressed, considering that there seems to be a view that it may be Winterson's best book. It wasn't at all bad, mind you, but a lot of people seem especially impressed by Winterson's beautiful language in it -- which I saw more as a lot of aphoristic quotes. I didn't think the story was that strong, or at least I didn't entirely get the point of it.

On my own limited reading, I'd go first with Oranges.

Am halfway through Prairie Bitch and it is more interesting and enjoyable than I expected. Author Alison Arngrim was the horrid Nellie on "Little House on the Prairie" TV show, and used her character to help her move through a very difficult childhood. She is down to earth and often funny. Her style gets to be a little too breezy occasionally, but one senses she's telling the truth, not merely creating a persona for herself. She is adept at finding the "good stories" among many of the folk behind the scenes in the entertainment industry, which I think belies a genuine interest in people.

A good read for what it is.

>42 CurrerBell:

i've read oranges are not the only fruit 3 times so can't disagree with you. =) just finished written on the body for the second time. it's more about language than story, which might be something that is typical for her - it sounds like she often has simple stories and focuses more on the language. but my experience of her is limited so lots of that is just hearsay.

42> Speaking of Winterson's focus on language, that's a point Winterson herself make about Djuna Barnes in Winterson's preface to the New Directions paperback edition of Nightwood – that it's a book that needs to be reread because of its involved language, which Winterson intends as a compliment. I just got thinking about Winterson's Nightwood introduction because I found a lovely hardcover w/dj (minus the Winterson introduction) of the New Directions edition at a used bookstore for $15 a couple hours ago. (Nice having a hardcover w/dj to stand alongside my paperback edition.)

Lots of talk about Jeanette Winterson and no one has mentioned Lighthousekeeping, which is a clever title that has caught my eye. Hasn't made it out of the TBR yet, but I'm interested to hear what others have thought of it.

Thanks everybody! Just put Oranges are not the only Fruit on hold at the Library. Looking forward to reading it!

Currently reading Daughter of the Desert: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell which I bought on impulse after hearing someone rhapsodising about it and the woman herself on Radio 4's "A Good Read". She was a woman of the Victorian/Edwardian eras who did many remarkable things - mountaineering. travelling across Arabia - but I'm about 20% in and so far she comes across as a privileged daughter of a Victorian industrialist swanning around the world enjoying herself, with the occasional foray into playing "lady bountiful" to the impoverished wives of her father's workers. I normally like the idea of women enjoying themselves, especially in an era where they weren't supposed to, but not sure I'm going to finish this one unless she quickly develops an interest in something other than her own pleasures..

Keep reading. She went on to have a profound effect on the formation of the Near and Middle East as we know them after the First World War...and not always a positive one. Interesting woman and book.

I'm waiting for the release next week of City of Lost Dreams, the sequel to City of Dark Magic, which was enormous fun. Magnus Flyte is the pseudonym of writers Meg Howrey and Christina Lynch.

Earlier in the week I finished We Need to Talk About Kevin, which I found well written and incredibly riveting, albeit about a difficult subject. I'm also reading J.K. Rowling's book The Cuckoo's Calling (written under her male pseudonym), which is pretty standard fare hard-boiled detective fiction and not particularly stellar. Otherwise, I am reading "bloke books" -- honorable mention to Building Stories for having a believable female character at the center of it.

St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. Several of the stories seem to revolve around Russell's characters in Swamplandia!, but I'm enjoying so far.

I liked Swamplandia, I should try that one.
I just finished two good books by women. Primary Inversion by Catherine Asaro is the first in her Skolian empire series. There's interesting world building, strong women characters, telepathy, sex without guilt and psychiatrists are called not shrinks but "heart benders" (I like that so much more). There are also rocket ships and detailed descriptions of the physics involved in faster than light travel for those who like that sort of thing. The other book I finished was This Is Who I Am: Our Beauty in All Shapes and Sizes by Rosanne Olson which contains nude or nearly nude pictures of women of all shapes, sizes, ages, races and degree of health. Accompanying each picture is a page describing how the woman feels about her body.
Now I'm reading The Baby Business How Money Science, and Politics Drive the Commerce of Conception by Debora L. Spar. It's very interesting but was written in 2006. One of the proofs Spar states for the probable acceptance of human cloning and the necessity for federal standards for assisted reproduction is that such standards had allowed for the acceptance and legalization of contraception and abortion. Alas, I guess she didn't foresee the rise of the tea party.

I've just started reading The marrying of Chani Kaufman. The writing isn't amazing, considering it was longlisted for the Booker Prize (there's a lot of weirdness with commas) but I like the characters and the North London Jewish community setting. I'm inevitably going to be comparing this to The innocents in my head; already I like Chani better though.

Trying to slog through Wrinkle in Time, one of those books that I couldn't get into as a kid. Not sure I think it's that great now, but will give it a chance.

#49> Ooh, City of Dark Magic has suddenly appeared on my wishlist, wonder how that happened. :)

#54> Oh, I didn't get into Wrinkle in Time as an adult. I think one needs to fall in love with it as a child in order to like it. (And so many people *do* love it!)

I finished Code Name Verity and it was an excellent tale of two young women working during WW2 in England - one is a gifted mechanic and ferries planes and pilots all over the country (along with many other female pilots); and the other speaks fluent German and ends up in espionage. Edge of your seat writing and plotting, and a fascinating look at the war.

Now reading a not-very-great YA fantasy novel, Throne of Glass. I'll finish it, but it's not groundbreaking or anything. (I rather like the characters, but am finding it mostly fairly heavy on tropes and cliches.)

I just started The Language of Flowers.

Hope it was good! My aunt raved about it last year, and then someone recommended it for book club, so I'll be reading it early next year.

I'm currently reading The Annotated Pride and Prejudice, and loving the extra tidbits that fill out the story. And on audio book, I'm listening to Kate Atkins One Good Turn, which is just as compelling as the other book I read by her this past summer.

Oh, I didn't get into Wrinkle in Time as an adult. I think one needs to fall in love with it as a child in order to like it.

I had to read that at school when I was around 11 years old and didn't like ti much, although I think a couple of my friends did. I reread it in my 30s and thought about the same, so it didn't work for me. However, my daughter loved it when she was about 9. She read the sequels, but didn't like them. She says now she probably didn't understand them. And I remember her telling me the main character was pregnant, so what does someone that age care about pregnant women?

I loved A Wrinkle in Time when I read it as a child, and I wouldn't dare read it again!

I never read A Wrinkle in Time. The essential fantasy book of my childhood was a scholastic book entitled Shadow Castle. I was overjoyed to find it as an adult for sale on Amazon, and reading the reviews posted there, I found a community of readers who felt as emotionally attached to the book as I am. Highly, highly recommended for, as they say "children of all ages."

>55 wookiebender: I hope you like City of Dark Magic! City of Lost Dreams is a little tamer (not that I minded the first book's over-the-top qualities) but still the same blend of mystery, historical fantasy, and thriller.

I loved A Wrinkle in Time as a 10 year old, but recall being less enchanted with the sequels (though A Wind in the Door was pretty good) because I disliked the overtly religious overtones that had crept in (I was a skeptic even then).

>59 vwinsloe:: That looks like a lovely book. Can't think how I never found that as a child, it looks like one I'd have loved.

>56 Nickelini:. I liked The Language of Flowers, Nickelini, but I found it a bit too melodramatic and contrived for my taste.

>61 Sakerfalcon:. Never too late to read Shadow Castle!! It also makes a great gift for a young reader in your life.

DECEMBER thread up!

I loved A Wrinkle in Time as a child and read all the rest of the books in the series as well. But I don't know how well they'd stand up if I read them now -- although I still own my copies of them and could easily pull them out for a re-read any time.

A Wrinkle in Time was not the book I thought it was, and I enjoyed it. It's full of interesting literary and scientific allusions--which makes me think this book wasn't written strictly as YA fare--and presents a cosmology that is thought-provoking and captivating.

It does retain a bit of that didactic tone that early YA books did, but that is offset by the heroine's refreshing self-determination.

Just finished Pearl Buck's Imperial Woman, about the Empress Cixi. There is a new bio of the empress, and I thought this might make an interesting pre-read. Buck's account is highly romantic, but still a solid entry in the historical fiction genre.

I'm reading Barbara Pym in the Bodleian, an exploration of her archives by archivist Yvonne Cocking. It's really interesting so far.