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Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at

Good books

My dear readers, have you guys read any good books lately? I just finished my book, and I'm searching for a new one. Any recommendations? I'd love to hear! xoxo

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317 comments:

  1. I just read the Hunger Games and Catching Fire (two in a series). They're for young adults and sucked me right in.

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  2. I'm reading The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee, it's about a group of British and American expatriates living in Hong Hong during the 1940's

    it is beautifully written... i've been staying up way past my bedtime so i can finish it :)

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  3. Finally cracking open Infinite Jest... I know its going to be good, and I'm excited to find out what everyone always talks about but its really a stay-home book. Too heavy for daily subway reading!

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  4. I recently really enjoyed:

    Good Evening, Mrs Craven: The Wartime Stories of Mollie Panter-Downes

    They were wartime stories of British life during the war written for The New Yorker, it's a really good read.

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  5. The Gathering, anne enright
    Netherland, joseph o'neill
    Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name, vendela vida

    all beautiful in their own right.
    lots of mentions of the elegance of the hedgehog. count me as a fan as well.

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  6. The Hunger Games, Fire, and The Lost Symbol-great books! different authors.

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  7. I'm in the middle of "The Crimson Petal and the White" and can't put it down!

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  8. Drooooooooool. Can I please have one of everything on this blog?

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  9. I'm currently reading "People of the Book" by Geraldine Brooks, and I'm enjoying it immensely!

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  10. My favorites this year weren't new, but I loved every minute spent with them.

    Three Cups of Tea - Greg Mortenson
    Long Way Round - Ewan McGregor

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  11. you HAVE to read starvation heights...it's fascinating non-fiction by a crime reporter. the best part? i found it n ebay for $1 :)

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  12. I loved "The Help" and "The Guernsey Literary..." - I really loved both actually. Currently am reading "Loving Frank", and really enjoying that.

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  13. Have you read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society? Don't be put off by the ridiculous title. I gave this book to lots of different folks last Christmas and all LOVED it.

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  14. A dear friend of mine just wrote a gorgeous book called "It's Never to Late To Dance" it is a memoir by Rosann Levy and simply inspiring!

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  15. i just finished

    man of my dreams by curtis sittenfeld (author of PREP). it was interesting to see how her writing changed from her first novel to her second.

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  16. "Everything is Illuminated" by Jonathan Safran Foer. It is simply wonderful - insightful, funny, and sad.

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  17. Wow. You have a lot to sort through here. It all depends on what you like though. I concur with History of Love, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and The Book Thief. I'm finishing my first semester of my PhD, so my xmas break reading list is super long since I don't have time to read for fun during school- now it's a bit longer after stopping by here. In my to-be-read pile: Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann and Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. Good luck!

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  18. How about Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris? Actually, anything by him will do.

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  19. Doing School by Denise Clark Pope. Or Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol. They're both about different issues in the current American education system. They're quick reads. :)

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  20. 1st time commenting, because I had to recommend David Byrne's Bicycle Diaries. Even the author pic is amazing.

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  21. 1st time commenting, because I had to recommend David Byrne's Bicycle Diaries. Even the author pic is amazing.

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  22. the yiddish policeman's union by michael chabon

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  23. With 221 responses (so far!) you probably have this covered, but just in case...look here:

    http://eatingthedaisies.blogspot.com/2009/11/more-books-for-grown-ups.html

    and here:

    http://eatingthedaisies.blogspot.com/2009/06/books-on-my-bedside-table.html

    Happy reading!

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  24. Thank You for this!!! I just finished my last final for the quarter and am about to partake in my favorite - after-finals indulgence - the public library! Now I have a long list to take with me

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  25. jillian10:18 PM

    I just finished The Forgotten Garden and was tempted to start it all over again, but instead started The Help and am loving it!

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  26. I love going through this list, I'm salivating at the idea of new reads!

    "Kafka on the Shore" by Haruki Murakami. Shameless plus I know, but it takes place exactly where I live now in Japan, and it's just so beautiful!

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  27. "Loving Frank" by Nancy Horan

    Really good about a woman who has an affair with Frank Lloyd Wright.

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  28. THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy. I think it's, by far, the best book of our time. I do however disagree with Ains who said that it was depressing. I mean yes it is depressing, but it's so hopeful. I read the 300 page book in 2 days because I just could not put it down. There were a couple of points where I had to wipe the tears from my eyes because it was blurring my vision and I had to find out what happened. Read anything by McCarthy... he's an amazing writer.

    For a lighter book, read Freakonomics. I just finished that. It's a great book to read on the subway.

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  29. Dreams From My Father by Barack Obama.

    My favorite book!

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  30. Definitely read The History of Love by Nicole Krauss. It's a non fiction book and has fantastic portraits of two very different lives coming together in very clever ways. The title refers to a book that is important within the book.

    Also Nicole Krauss is married to Jonathan Safron Foer so for everyone who likes his writing style, his wife's is similar and also great.

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  31. Hi Joanna, so happy to hear from you on my blog!! Thank you!!

    Book recommendation:
    What The Dog Saw - Malcolm Gladwell

    :D

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  32. To make you rethink the way we eat our way through life:

    Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - Barbara Kingsolver

    So lovely and heart warming!

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  33. it's kind of a funny story by Ned Vizzini

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  34. Anonymous12:46 AM

    some of my all time faves

    A Fine Balance - Mistry
    The God of small Things - Roy
    Confederacy of Dunces - O'Toole
    The Shipping News - Proulx
    For Girly reads I love the Barbara Trapido book Brother of the More famous jack and the novels by mary Wesley including The camomile Lawn etc (sexy novels set during WW II)

    Recently I enjoyed The Time Traveller's Wife and Water for Elephants.

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  35. Recent ones that I just loved were...
    Julie & Julia by Julie Powell, La's Orchestra Save the World by Alexander McCall Smith, Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan, Chocolat by Joanne Harris, Lips Touch by Laini Taylor, Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Pretty in Plaid by Jen Lancaster, and The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
    ...all are amazing!

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  36. check out - "I Was Told There'd Be Cake" by Sloane Crosley
    excellent & hilarious collection of essays.

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  37. Anonymous1:53 AM

    Chris Cleave: The other hand

    - Camilla

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  38. I am also putting in a vote for:
    The Art of Racing in the Rain
    East of Eden
    The Steig Larsson Girl Who... books (just picked up #3 in the airport in Amsterdam and devoured it)
    Shantaram
    The Book Thief
    My Life in France
    Glass Castle
    Kavalier and Clay

    Other Old Favorites include:
    Brideshead Revisited
    Middlesex
    Empire Falls
    Cider House Rules
    Comfort Me With Apples
    Garlic and Sapphires
    The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
    Love in the time of Cholera
    Scribbling the Cat
    Fall on Your Knees
    I Know This Much is True
    Loving Frank

    And lastly, I DO NOT suggest "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" I just read it on vacation and was tempted to hurl it in to the ocean when I finished. It started out great, but the ending was so incredibly terrible that I lost faith in Oprah and her book club!

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  39. Rebecca U.1:54 AM

    "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" by Kim Edwards and "The Glass Castle" by Jeanette Walls

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  40. All of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's book are amazing - Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun and The Thing Around Your Neck.
    Zadie Smith is a favorite, too.
    Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

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  41. You have tons of comments so I'm sure you're covered for the next decade but I read The Hunger Game series and didn't think I would be into it b/c it is sci-fi but I was completely engaged. Fun, quick, young adult read that has many layers.

    Happy reading!

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  43. "Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight" by Alexandra Fuller. An amazing and moving read!

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  44. I've just started reading "The Disappeared" by Kim Echlin. It's lyrical, beautiful and touching.

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  45. The world of yesterday,
    by Stefan Zweig.

    Absolute perfection. Exquisite. Brilliant.

    Merry Xmas from Barcelona!
    Carmen
    buscut.blogspot.com

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  46. I just read my first Camus (The Stranger) and I loved it.

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  47. I have finished The News from Paraguay. A Novel
    by Lily Tuck. Loved every word. At the moment reading A Romance of Lady Hamilton's early years by Henry Schumacher. Super super!!!

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  49. I just started "The Geography of Bliss" which is a philosophical humorous self help travel memoir...he's searching for the happiest place. i'm only in the 2nd chapter and i'm loving it!

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  50. Let the Right One in by Swedish writer John Ajvide Lindqvist is a good, unconventional vampire tale. It's perfect.

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  51. The Luminous Life of Lilly Nelly Aphrodite by Beatrice Colin was wonderful - read it in one weekend. Also really enjoyed People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.

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  52. I just finished 2 amazing books and thought I would share.

    1) The Beatles by Bob Spitz - it's a very thick book, but if you like the Beatles it's a great read.

    2) Loving Frank by Nancy Horan - it's an historical fiction account of Frank Lloyd Wright's affair with Mamah Cheney, early in his career. As the jacket says "You will start reading because of Frank but because of Mamah you won't put it down."

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  53. I just finished, "The Road" by Cormac Macarthy. I know it was published in 2008, but I just got around to reading it. It was the perfect humbling book to read around this time of year.
    And I LOVED, "Water for Elephants" which I already see in your repertoire!
    I recently also tried reading, "The Tin Drum" but I wasn't feeling it this time of year so I'll start it in the summer time when I need something on the beach :)

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  54. loooove margaret atwood books. i would read the handmaid's tale or Oryx and Crake! you will not be disappointed!

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  55. "Olive Kitteridge" is sad and hopeful at the same time. I adored it.

    I'm currently rereading "Franny and Zooey" by jd salinger and remembering why I love it so much.

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  56. "the help" is great!

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  57. high fidelity!
    then watch the movie afterwards ;)
    gotta love john cusack.

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  58. I just finished these three which I absolutely loved.

    Her Fearful Symmetry (from the same author as The Time Traveler's Wife)

    Holidays On Ice (absolutely hilarious)

    The Wild Things (based on the screenplay for Where The Wild Things Are)

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  59. "The Book Thief" is the best book I've read in a long time. It's young adult, so I was shocked by how emotional it was (I cried through a large portion of it). The author's writing has a very nice rhythm/style that makes it fun to read, even with the heavy subject matter.

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  60. THE WHITE TIGER by Aravind Adiga. It won the Man Booker Prize a couple years ago. I also can't wait to read LORRIE MOORE's and AMY BLOOM's latest.
    Oh, and you would love COLD COMFORT FARM by Stella Gibbons, on which the Kate Beckinsale movie is based. I named by blog after the heroine's favorite book.

    But I must confess, the cold weather makes me want to shun mind-improving fare and grab the nearest AGATHA CHRISTIE or P.G. WODEHOUSE (and I might re-read LITTLE WOMEN for Christmas).

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  61. I'm abstaining from any reading that's not medical (being a medical students is difficult stuff!) but because I am living in the UK at the moment, I will say that one of my favourite books is "Till We Have Faces" by C.S. Lewis. You could also read "I was told there would be cake" by Sloan Crossley for some light-hearted fun and I always think that everyone could do with reading some Eliot, Thackeray, or Wilde (different blokes but awesome writing!)

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  62. The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet by Reif Larsen. Captivating read, plus there are illustrations in the margins that tie in with the storyline.

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  63. I'm working my way through the best american nonrequired reading series, edited by dave eggers. also just read his book zeitoun which is eye-opening.
    I loved the guernsey literary & potato peel pie society, which some other people have mentioned... it would be right up your alley!

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  64. "Like water for chocolate". I had to read it in college and it is still one of my favorite books. Or "The Eyre Affair"...that one is great!

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  65. I know everyone read this ages ago, but I just read The Lovely Bones and it was amazing. I started it on Saturday and finished it the next day, couldn't put it down. A little depressing for the holidays but beautifully written.

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  66. I capture the castle - can't remember the author. Great book! Set in England maybe 1930's or 50's?

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  67. The Terror by Dan Simmons. This book blew me away. I love historical fiction and this was incredible. Take the incredible hardship, suffering and massive loss of life that the British arctic expeditions caused and throw in a terrifying Inuit legend (think abominable snowman only waaaaay creepier) - I had trouble falling asleep while I was reading this and I stayed up way too late, totally immersed. If it's not your cup of tea - maybe it's Alex's! But it was SO good.

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  68. Here are some of my favorites, both new and old: "Stronger Than Dirt: How One Urban Couple Grew a Business, a Family, and a New Way of Life from the Ground Up" by Kim Schaye and Chris Losee (a couple leaves Brooklyn to start a flower farm in upstate New York); "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt (a psychological thriller at a posh East Coast college); "Relic" by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (terrible movie but terrifying book); "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez (the power of sisterhood, a must read for every woman); and the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer (a guilty read - yes, but it's actually good storytelling.)

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  69. "Happens Every Day" by Isabel Gillies

    Very quick, non-fiction read!

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  70. Oh and also "Time and Again" by Jack Finney. Perfect NYC novel. I was sad for days when I finished it.

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  71. "Love is a Mix Tape" is a great memoir by Rob Sheffield. It's a great non-fiction read if that's what you're looking for.

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  72. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Hands down.

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  73. Anonymous1:36 PM

    The Secret River by Kate Grenville,
    The Birth House by Ami McKay and The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

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  74. "This is Where I Leave You" Jonathan Tropper
    "84 Charing Cross Road" Helene Hanff

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  75. I'm currently re-reading Madame Bovary, which is always amazing.

    I'd also recommend "Note to Self: On Keeping a Journal and Other Dangerous Pursuits" by Samara O'Shea

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  76. I'm reading "The Magicians" by Lev Grossman. It's amazing. Like an adult Harry Potter but not like a tacky imitation. Really good, I recommend it if you like a cross between fantasy and reality!

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  77. So many wonderful books listed so far!
    Three I recently enjoyed...

    "The Good Women of China" by Xinran
    "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien
    "Milkweed" by Jerry Spinelli.

    All were really wonderful.

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  78. my favorite novel of all time is easily 'A Moveable Feast' by Ernest Hemingway. Its terrific in the fall/winter esp! Its his memoirs during the time he lived in paris from 1920-26. Its wonderful and romantic and so cool to hear about what it was like from a man who lived it to be hangin with all expats during that time (Joyce! F. Scott Fitzgerald! Picasso!). Fab.


    http://www.lucasjonesart.blogspot.com

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  79. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls....I'm only half way through, but it's fabulous!

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  80. I just finished 1000 splendid suns by the same author who wrote The Kite Runner.

    Amazing. Is all I'm going to say.

    www.dinasdaysblog.blogspot.com

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  81. Another vote for The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. It's marvelous!

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  82. Currently reading: Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

    Everything he does is brilliant and this book is no exception!

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  83. I just finished Wicked by Gregory Maguire and it was wonderful. I am about to read "The Very Long Engagement" by Sebestian Japrisot. It is the book after which the movie of the same name was made. Have you seen it? With the lovely Audrey Tautou.

    I do twice-a-month book reviews over at my (relatively) new inspirations blog, if you'd like to check it out.

    http://www.thebluebirdandthemountain.blogspot.com/

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  84. The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver!

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  85. White Teeth by Zadie Smith
    The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

    I'm currently reading Nabokov's short stories, and they're fantastic!

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  86. i'm addicted to the sookie stackhouse series right now, so addicting!

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  87. Gardens of water by Alan Drew =)

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  88. Not sure if anyone has already suggested this, but I cannot recommend The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold) enough! It's coming out as a movie soon too.

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  89. My husband's book - The Bone Man of Benares! The book is about his experiances during his travels in Africa, India, Nepal... in the 70s. And it is the best book I've ever read. And I read it before I met him and have thought that even then, so I cannot say that I'm in any way influenced! :D You can find out more about the book on his website http://terrytarnoff.com/books.php

    The book was even adapted into a play, here in San Franciso. Do read it, Joanna!

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  90. I have so many great books to recommend! I hope one of these is to your liking ...

    Black Mirror by Gail Jones

    Sixty Lights by Gail Jones

    In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje

    Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse

    Once Upon the River Love by Andrei Makine

    The Submerged Cathedral by Charlotte Wood

    and my favourite: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

    and many, many more ...

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  91. Anonymous7:25 AM

    Cold Comfort Farm is my current favourite-hilarious and very British - set on an odd farm in 1930s England. It is very charming and a real hoot from cover to cover.

    I adore your blog Jo-keep up the good work!x

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  92. Time Traveller's Wife was a great escape. As soon as I finished my library copy, I went out and bought my own copy. Then, I promptly lent it out to a friend.

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  93. Home by Marilynne Robinson
    I read about 4-5 books a week and this one stood out amidst all the inferior tat. Highly recommended for it's sparse but gorgeous prose.

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  94. I'm a little late with this, and you've probably already chosen a book--but The Dark Tower is amazing. It's not my usual genre, and I'm not really a Stephen King fan, but it blew me away.

    It consists of seven books and the first one is a little slow.

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  95. Anonymous5:38 PM

    "The shadow of the wind"
    Carlos Ruiz Zafòn

    Gaëlle from Belgium

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  96. Oxygen by Carol Cassella was really good!! I picked it up in barnes and noble one day and couldn't put it down!

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  97. The Face on Your Plate (The Truth about Food) by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson.

    @Vanessa & Jesse: I read about Foer’s book. I’m courious, does he really advocate vegetarianism? While it may sound pretty extreme at first, let me note, that veganism is indeed the only way-to-go – regarding an ethical way of living. I learned to know so much great foods the last 1.5 years since I decided to go vegan… forget those menus from dead animals or their milk, eggs, whatever… animals suffer and die for totally unneeded products – how is that justifiable?

    A recommendable site, to give a great overview (and much in-depth information in the following):
    http://www.abolitionistapproach.com/text/ (start with the Abolitionist Approach Pamphlet).

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  98. I must recommend The Book Thief (and echo the five or six who've already mentioned it).
    It's miraculous. It surprised and amazed me.

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  99. Trudi7:10 PM

    A Tree grows in Brooklyn is wonderful. I just finished "East of Eden" by Steinbeck... it was like watching a great movie for the entire read of this thick book.

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  100. JecDogg9:04 PM

    I looove the Harry Potter books of course! So naturally, my next move was to Percy Jackson and I loved them all. I lean toward youth series, but I have to agree that The Time Travelers' Wife was great. I can't believe how much better the book was than the movie. That's usually how it is though. My oddball book as of late was titled "My Enemys' Cradle" by Sara Young. It was a suprisingly good book that I found at at Odd Lots for $3. It delves into the struggles during the Nazi times and their Lebensborn programs. Very hard to put down, I must say!

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  108. 'Jailbird' and 'Breakfast of Champions' by Kurt Vonnegut.
    Incredible writer.

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  110. Anonymous7:44 PM

    the red leather diary. amazing.

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  112. Elizabeth Bard's, Lunch in Paris. A love story with recipes. Not so much the love story you would expect, but the perfect love story of a frenchman, a fresh baked loaf of bread, a trip to the market and discovering what life is all about. Elizabeth's memoir is a delight, leaving with a smile and dreaming of Paris.

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  113. Janet4:01 PM

    Memoirs of a Beatnik by Diane Di Prima. Rebellious and blunt

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  114. Well, I don't really think it may have success.

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  115. Stuart7:18 AM

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    catering breakfast | nursing schools | Flowers Indiana Polis

    ReplyDelete

  116. I have just read an incredible political thriller ebook. I was browsing around at
    amazon.com and found this ebook called The Cain Sanction, I read the preview and a
    few chapters. It really was a page turner can’t put it down kind of book.
    I didn’t know how it ends until the last sentence of the last page.. great read!!
    Usually I don't read this genre but someone recommended it and WOW, loved it..

    Amanda

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  117. Anonymous9:48 PM

    I really recommend a political thriller by new author Mary McNally Ratto. It's called The Cain Sanction and it's available on Amazon.com. It's a real page turner and she really raises some questions about how much power money can buy; especially in an election year. Great read!!

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