Wednesday, July 17, 2019

LIST: Six in Six



The Book Jotter  by way of Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm , has a meme, Six in Six, sort of a half way through the year check in.  It's not a highlight of the Raptors basketball season, or the six players who meant the most to their championship run, which is something you might expect to find here on my blog, being a huge basketball house that I live in. Toronto is known as 'the six' thanks to Drake, who is closely connected to the Toronto Raptors. Anyway, back to books. I haven't repeated any books, but there are a few that could fit in more than one category. 

1. Six new authors to me (and understood to mean, I'd read again)

Normal People - Sally Rooney (ebook)
I liked this unlikely romance between two young people who were continually drawn back to each other.

Inside the O'Briens - Lisa Genova ðŸŽ§
Somewhat predictable story, but well-done family drama about a tight-knit Boston family whose patriarch is diagnosed with a terrible, hereditary disease

An American Marriage - Tayari Jones ðŸŽ§
A Women's Prize for Fiction short-listed book about a marriage that faces unfortunate circumstances, where no one is right or wrong, so it was sad

The Mars Room - Rachel Kushner  ðŸŽ§
A view of women in prison, also sad, but kept me interested.

The Library Book - Susan Orlean ðŸŽ§
Great non-fiction read for book-lovers and library lovers, with a little bit for true crime fans as this book centers on a 1980s fire at the Los Angeles library

Wild Bird - Wendelin Van Draanen ðŸŽ§
YA book about a messed up fourteen year old who gets sent to a wilderness rehab situation done quite well


2. Six authors I have read before 

Daisy Jones & the Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid (Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo)
 Reid is finding a nice niche in writing tabloid-type stories about somewhat famous people. Daisy Jones was a seventies rock icon and the novel is written in interview style. Easy reading.

Nine Perfect Strangers - Liane Moriarty ðŸŽ§ (Big Little Lies)
Multiple view points, many characters (nine!) all in an isolated situation, with slowly revealed connections. I love this kind of story.

Kingdom of the Blind - Louise Penny  ðŸŽ§
Book fourteen in the Gamauche series set in Three Pines

Warlight - Michael Ondaatje  ðŸŽ§ (The English Patient)
Post WW2 London with some interesting characters, looks at what makes a family. More literature and layered than my usual fare

Who Do You Love - Jennifer Weiner ðŸŽ§ (Fly Away Home)
Pretty easy reading, with two (kinda unlikeable) characters who are drawn to each other over the years in different ways. Won't break any stereotypes but still, a great beach read book.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Annie Barrows, Mary Ann Shaffer🎧
I haven't read this author more than once, I've only read this same book twice, and it was just as charming the second time around. Next up is to watch the movie on Netflix.


3. Six books I have enjoyed the most

Where the Crawdads Sing - Delia Owens ðŸŽ§
Lives up to the hype, part nature book, part mystery, part loneliness study, this was a wonderful book.

Milkman - Anna Burns (ebook)
This won't be for everyone, but I loved it. You would know very quickly if you liked the writing style, Irish stream of consciousness, set during the Troubles

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson ðŸŽ§
Amazing novel in verse memoir. If you get a chance to listen, you should. 

The Swans of Fifth Avenue - Melanie Benjamin ðŸŽ§
I've raved about this one already. Fictional account of Truman Capote in New York City and his socialite women friends. There's another book, Swan Song, based on this story. It's ripe for writing about!

A Study in Scarlet Women - Sherry Thomas ðŸŽ§
Another play on Sherlock Holmes, but with women. I'm looking forward to reading another book in the series.

My Sister, the Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite ðŸŽ§
Black comedy maybe? It was interesting and won the Tournament of Books this March. It think it was good because it was such a surprise.

4. Six series of books read or started

Al Capone Shines My Shoes - Gennifer Choldenko (book 2 of 4)
Fun, surprisingly deep, middle school book set on Alcatraz during the '50s. 

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay - Elena Ferrente (book 3 of 4)
Continuing saga of those frenemies in Italy.

The Tainted Coin - Mel Starr (book 5 of 11)
Hugh de Singleton, 14th century surgeon and bailiff who solves murders, great for fans of Brother Cadfael

The Ruin - Devla McTiernan ðŸŽ§ (book 1 of 2, so far, it's a new series)
This feels like it could be part of Tana French's Dublin Murder Squad series, but shorter. Great start to a new series and I can't wait for the next one.

Always and Forever, Lara Jean - Jenny Han (book 3 of 3)
Dear Lara Jean and her adorable boyfriend Peter, are dealing with finishing high school and moving on to university. 

A Dublin Student Doctor - Patrick Taylor   ðŸŽ§ (book 6 of 13)
This was a flashback to Fingal O'Reilly's days in medical school, but so easy to read and so charming. 

5. Six From the Non-Fiction Shelf

Educated - Tara Westover (ebook)
Crazy off the grid family memoir about a daughter who sought education as a way out 

Everything Bad is Good for You: How Today's Popular Culture is Actually Making Us Smarter - Steven Johnson
Social science that says TV and video games are not the worst thing ever! I am becoming quite a fan of this nonfiction author.

The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump - Andrew G McCabe ðŸŽ§
You've heard McCabe called down by Trump on CNN, now read his side of the story. (hint, someone is more credible sounding than the other) One cool thing in this book was the reference to a 2006 incident with a terrorist trying to get on a plane with a liquid bomb. It was cool because my sister and mother and I were travelling during this time period and our trip back home with no carry-on luggage was significantly different than our trip over. 

Murder at McDonald's: The  Killers Next Door - Phonse Jessome  (ebook)
Just like we are encouraged to #eatlocal, #readlocal also applies. I loved this true crime read about  horrific murders in nearby Cape Breton that I remember from a distance. 

Force of Nature: The Frontier Genius of Ernest Rutherford - Richard Reeves
Great biography of one half of Bohr-Rutherford fame, for you students who remember your chemistry. 

Bad Blood - John Carryroo ðŸŽ§
Fascinating read about the biggest fraud in the bio-tech industry. You will want to learn more about Elizabeth Holmes after this investigation.

6. Six Canadian Authored Books

The Italian Teacher - Tom Rachman  ðŸŽ§
The vanities of art, and the troubles of family. 

The Golden Tresses of the Dead - Alan Bradley  ðŸŽ§

The last of the Flavia de Luce mysteries was well done, but I'm ready for the series to end.

The Lost Girls of Camp Forevermore - Kim Fu  ðŸŽ§

Premise was good and it started strong, but I found it fizzled out by the end

Blink & Caution - Tim Wynne-Jones  ðŸŽ§

I enjoyed this young adult adventure through Toronto about two runaways

French Exit - Patrick deWitt  (ebook)
deWitt's follow-up to The Brothers Sisters, the author shows he can write different styles. This was more of a Oscar Wilde comedy of manners? 

I Am a Truck - Michelle Winters 
This was the winner in this section - cute little book set in rural New Brunswick about a husband who goes missing and his wife picking up the pieces. Quite a bit of French in this but my high school French came through enough.



Tuesday, July 2, 2019

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Books on My Summer 2019 TBR



Once again, I'm a week behind. Last week's topic for Top Ten Tuesday was to list your Summer TBR, which is a list I love to make. Unfortunately, June in high schools is a crazy month and I wasn't able to get my act together and make my list. It's been made in my head, but not on paper. Last Monday was our graduation, so that was why I didn't get this written for last week. There is a lot involved in getting 300 graduates across the stage with the correct diploma handed to them, and I was completely wiped the next day as well.

Check out That Artsy Reader Girl for other blog posts on this topic, or for future topics or this week's topic!



Meet Me at the Museum by Anne Youngson
recc'd by Melwyk, the Indextrious Reader 



Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers by Deborah Heligman
a YA Sync book


Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach
Mary Roach writes the best science nonfiction


The Tainted Coin by Mel Starr
5th in the Hugh de Singleton 13th century mysteries


Sovereign by C.J. Sansom
book 3 in the Shardlake series
I like to try one big ole book in the summer and this series is always top-notch


The Color of Bee Larkham's Murder by Sarah J Harris
a publisher freebie, I've been meaning to get to it, and then heard it recc'd on CBC, on one of those 'books to read this summer'


The Island Villa by Lily Graham
described as 'the perfect feel good summer read' 


Ordinary People by Diana Evans
a Women's Prize for Fiction short-listed book


The Suspect by Fiona Barton
looks like a fast paced suspense type book



Monday, July 1, 2019

ETC: Happy Canada Day!



Duke Caboom, Canada's Greatest Stuntman, says Yes We Canada!

(What a great surpise in Toy Story 4, to have Keanu Reeves voice Duke!)

Happy Canada Day!


I didn't officially complete this challenge, because having to write the reviews is always my downfall. I read 20 and reviewed maybe 4. Still, reading these Canadian books makes me a winner in many ways.

 Blink - Malcolm Gladwell (audiobook)
A Jest of God - Margaret Laurence
Golden Boy - Grant Matheson (ebook)
A Bird in the House - Margaret Laurence
The Boy on the Bicycle: A Case of Wrongful Conviction in Toronto - Nate Hendley (ebook)
The Nest - Kenneth Oppel
The Boundless - Kenneth Oppel 
No One Tells You This - Glynnis MacNicol 
French Exit - Patrick deWitt
The Italian Teacher - Tom Rachman
Kingdom of the Blind - Louise Penny
Murder at McDonald's: The  Killers Next Door - Phonse Jessome 
Run Hide Repeat - Pauline Dakin
Warlight - Michael Ondaatje
The Golden Tresses of the Dead - Alan Bradley
 The Lost Girls of Camp Forevermore - Kim Fu
A Dublin Student Doctor - Patrick Taylor
Blink & Caution - Tim Wynne-Jones
The Beggar's Opera - Peggy Blair 
The Morningside World of Stuart McLean - Stuart McLean

My favourite book from this group was Murder at McDonald's: The Killers Next Door by Phonse Jessome. A close second is Golden Boy by Grant Matheson. Interestingly, both are nonfiction, and both are from the Maritimes. 

Margaret Laurence is reliably awesome, with understated but satisfying reads. I'm just left to read The Diviners by her.

Ongoing series by Alan Bradley, Louise Penny, and Patrick Taylor never disappoint.

There is another edition of the Canadian Book Challenge, #13, so head on over to Canadian Bookworm for all the details.