Have you read any good books lately? I just finished mine, and I'm looking for something fun to read. Any ideas?! The other day I saw a little girl reading a Roald Dahl book in a cafe, and it made me nostalgic; maybe reading the BFG would be fun. I also loved The Glass Castle and Cooking for Mr. Latte, if you want a rec!P.S. Another great book...
(Illustration by Peter Steiner for the New Yorker)
Just finished Gone Girl and the Night Circus, and those were both enjoyable and gripping. I am also working my way through a great bio of Teddy Roosevelt if that's your thing!
ReplyDeleteHave you read Moonwalking With Einstein? It's a fascinating look at the place of remembering and memory in our society, and the past! Great read, and gives you lots to think about! Also, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson is a classic, just fabulously and beautiful written.
ReplyDeleteHave you read "This is Where I Leave You" by Jonathan Tropper"? or anything by him really. His books are funny and sweet and insightful and play out in your head like a great movie.
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend "The Age of Miracles" by Karen Thompson Walker. It's a coming of age tale of a young girl and is set during a time when the earth begins to slow the spinning of its axis. It's beautifully written and I could not put it down.
ReplyDeleteThe Night Circus, The Lock Artist and anything by Tanna French (her newest is being released this month!)
ReplyDeleteI also keep a book blog where I write very short reviews of everything I read:
www.underthedresser.blogspot.com
For a summer read I would recommend 'When God was a Rabbit'. I have just started the Hunger Games though, the words run off the page as quick as the adventure but I'm enjoying it.
ReplyDeletei just picked up mwf seeking bff (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11104030-mwf-seeking-bff) about a woman's search for a new best friend... honestly, alex's NYT article about making friends is what inspired me to buy it!
ReplyDeleteYou may have read it already, but I'm reading David Lebovitz's The Sweet Life in Paris and having a good chuckle.
ReplyDeleteThe Glass Castle was one of my favorite books. Have you read her other book, Half Broke Horses? Also and amazing read.
ReplyDeleteI've just bought Cooking for Mr Latte-looks lovely. Another book I recommend is 'A sense of an ending'-quite moving and beautifully written. I wrote a review of it here-
ReplyDeletehttp://robynsafricanadventures.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/what-ive-been-reading-lately.html
The Art of Fielding -- best book I've read in awhile. Do it!
ReplyDeletedefinitely go for some Roald Dahl! I'm an elementary teacher and when I was in school, I had to read a lot of children's lit (much of which I somehow never read as a kid--even Charlotte's Web!) children's lit is fantastic to read as an adult, it feels like there's so much more to appreciate. one of my favorites is The Watsons Go to Birmingham, by Christopher Paul Curtis. it's up there on my lists of favorite books, ever.
ReplyDeleteoh -loved the art of fielding-but remembered you mentioning you read that...right?
ReplyDeleteI have been reading the Outlander series all summer. Normally I don't like books like these, but I work at a bookstore and people have been asking for them a lot so I figured I would give them a try. They turned out to be super fabulous! The first book is called Outlander and the author is Diana Gabaldon. Enjoy!
ReplyDeletei wouldn't call any of those listed "fun" books, but i do second (and third) the night circus (amazing and whimsical) and the age of miracles (thought provoking and easy to read). for fun, how about some david sedaris? i could spend hours on the beach reading his books!
ReplyDeleteGone Girl! Just finished it. IT was amazing!!! I am not reading the rest of her books.
ReplyDeletexo,
Lindsey
www.caviartaste.com
Night Circus is gorgeous, like everyone else has said! Also, Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead seems like it would be right up your alley!! I'm hallway through and absolutely loving it.
ReplyDeleteThe Art of Racing in the Rain, The Art of Fielding, and Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal.
ReplyDeleteI recommend The Good People of NY by Thisbe Nissen and Eve's Apple by Jonathan Rosen - you should be able to get both of these at the library.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite novel is The Master and Margarita by Bulgakov. it's Russian, crazy and I adore it!!!!! Try it,
ReplyDeleteI can't recommend "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn enough! I wish I hadn't read it yet so I can reread it with a fresh mind.
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ReplyDeleteFor memoirs, I would recommend Home by Julie Andrews which is a memoir of her early years. Totally fascinating and humble. Jesus Land is also rawly compelling, and quite the opposite from Home. In terms of fiction, I loved The Historian. It took me a while to actually pick it up, but the fiction and historical nature mixed perfectly. So well written that sometimes I was sure Vlad Drakul was out to get me!
ReplyDeleteI'm reading American Wife, and it has been a beautifully written fiction novel about the life of a First Wife of the US.
ReplyDeleteI read pay it forward recently and it was great.. id also recommend the paris wife, very good read x
ReplyDeleteHAve you read any of Roald Dalh's adult stuff? It ia amazing. Try Kiss Kiss or My Uncle Oswald for a laugh.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I just read in The Age of Small Miracles which was great.
Happy Reading.
I recently read a book called Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. Its an autobiography! She was in kind of a terrible place in her life at the time, her mother had died a few years before, and her marriage had just ended, so at 26 she decided to hike 1100 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail all by herself, and without any prior hiking experience. Its an incredibly touching book, so so special. Definitely right up there with the Glass Castle for me =) I HIGHLY recommend it!
ReplyDeleteWorking, by Studs Terkel, is suuuuper interesting read, collection of interviews/essays from a few decades ago.
ReplyDeleteWatership Down is always good, if ya like rabbits! --not a kid's book.
Wild by Cheryl Strayed. Before I picked it up, I didn't think I would like it at all but I ended up loving it. My whole book club agreed it was lovely! I'm now excited to read her compilation of Dear Sugar advice columns, recently published in paperback.
ReplyDeleteCooking for Mr. Latte is one of my very favorite books! I would recommend Ruth Reichl's first memoir Tender at the Bone if you liked Amanda Hesser's. So funny and amazing.
Do you read on an e-reader Joanna? Or are you still a paper book person?
i'm reading "Yes, Chef" by Marcus Samuelsson and I can't put it down.
ReplyDeleteLet the Great World Spin by Colum McCann is all about New York and is mindblowingly engrossing. Also anything by David Sedaris is guaranteed to make you laugh!
ReplyDeleteI'm reading "11 22 63," by Stephen King. So far, it's not his typical creepiness. It's about time travel mostly. It's FASCINATING. I'm totally enthralled.
ReplyDeleteI also recommend "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" as a quicker read. It was fantastic!
You should read Cloud Atlas before the movie comes out - it's an amazing book, and I have a feeling the movie might make a lot more sense if you read the book first. I just read another book by the same author, The thousand autumns of Jacob deZoet, which was also great - more typical historical fiction set in Japan, instead of messing around with the novel form like Cloud Atlas.
ReplyDeleteI just started reading An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler -- it's a beautifully written love letter to food, and such a pleasure to read!
ReplyDeleteIn the Stars by Sabrina Simon! it's like sex and the city, but with some fun astrology thrown in (not your everyday back of the paper horoscope crap...)
ReplyDeleteit's funny, engaging, and just a neat look at individual personalities.
READ IT!
Fifty Shades of Grey??
ReplyDeleteJoking. Kind of ;)
Amelia @ UGLY DUCKLING xxx
Come say hey at Ducklingtoswan.com! :)
Oh and if you're looking for a good classic "kids read" I have always LOVED "The Secret Garden."
ReplyDeleteDo you like dogs? If so, Jon Katz just released a new book called "The Story of Rose." The book is about his bearded collie named Rose who works with him in a farm he owns in upstate New York. It's a beautiful story.
ReplyDeleteOops...I just commented on your old post (good book by the way!). I highly recommend "Gone Girl" - I could not put it down!
ReplyDeleteI just finished Salvador Plascensia's "The People of Paper" and thought it was just lovely. I also recently read Lauren Grodstein's "A Friend of the Family" and highly reccomend it. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge fan of non-fiction and I just finished reading A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage. It was fascinating--how beer, wine, liquor, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola shaped the history of the world.
ReplyDeleteI also recently read Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach. I initially picked it up because of the Curiosity expedition (I'm a nerd who loves a good theme) but I loved it. It's so interesting and well-written and she interviewed NASA people and had access to NASA archives.
" The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers is an excellent, heartfelt read.To quote wikipedia " It [gives] voice to the rejected, forgotten, mistreated, and oppressed." It was an Oprah's Book Club selection in '04, too!
ReplyDeleteIncendiary by Chris Cleave is amazing!!! He has a couple other books out too that are supposed to be equally as great but I have not gotten to them yet :) They actually made a movie based off the book; but the book is way better!
ReplyDeleteI adore any and all Tom Robbins books... always some kind of madcap adventure with linguistic gymnastics, rich characters, and a very healthy dose of optimistic faith in life.
ReplyDeleteI just finished "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night" by Haddon and it was a lovely quirky take on a murder mystery. Great summer reading.
Another vote for Girl Gone. Also The Lovers Dictionary by David Levithan.
ReplyDeleteIf you liked Cooking for Mr. Latte, you would also like I Loved, I Lost, I Cooked Spaghetti.
ReplyDeleteHouse of Tyneford! It's by Natasha Solomons. Sooooo good. Also, "Swan House" by Elizabeth Muesser
ReplyDeleteI just finished a very interesting book called "The Book Thief", which is about a little girl in Germany during WWII. It's a very different book and very interesting with beautiful descriptions and writing.
ReplyDeleteI also recently finished "Dandelion Wine" by Ray Bradbury which is an absolutely beautiful, mesmerizing summer read.
For something lighter, I'm now reading "Paris Was Ours", a collection of essays by authors who have lived in Paris. They all offer such unique, differing perspectives.
The Shallows/What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr -- soo interesting!
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't read Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, it's wonderful. It's a 4oo-something page book that I finished in 3 days. Just wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThey're quite different from his children's books, but have you ever read any of Roald Dahl's short stories for adults? Some of them are pretty weird, but they are really well written (of course) and interesting! I also loved his autobiography, Boy: Tales of Childhood. (There's much more to it than just the famed "mouse plot" story).
ReplyDeleteNot being an american girl, let me suggest you a great, great book by the portuguese Nobel Prize winner, José Saramago. It's called "Blindness" and there is a movie (featuring Mark Ruffalo and Julianne Moore) based on this novel. It's my favorite book EVER and I trully believe no one should die without having the chance to read it. Yes, it is that good!...
ReplyDeleteThe Dirty Life by Kristin Kimball...Such a beautiful story! You would like it too, being that you live in NYC
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kristinkimball.com/
I just read, Wild by Cheryl Strayed and loved it. I hear Gone Girl is fantastic and it's on my list. I also read Steve Jobs book and really enjoyed it. It is long, but it really shows what a genius he was.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read this yet, but next on my list is "The Receptionist: An Education At The New Yorker." It was written by a woman who was a receptionist at The New Yorker for 20 years and I think it sounds really interesting. Here's the Amazon link if you're interested!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.amazon.com/The-Receptionist-Education-New-Yorker/dp/1616201312
I just started "Let's Pretend This Never Happened" by Jenny Lawson (The Bloggess)and it's hilarious!
ReplyDeletewww.littleladyinthebigapple.blogspot.com
Joanna, what are YOUR book recommendations? Would love to hear!
ReplyDeleteIf you've never read Paula Fox, Desperate Characters is a fantastic and fast read. Iris Murdoch is also great. The Bell is the first of hers I read, and it made me want to read everything else she wrote.
ReplyDeleteI've been all about autobiographies and memoirs this summer: What Remains by Carol Radzwill, Most Talkative by Andy Cohen, Bossy Pans by Tina Fey, and next up is Then Again by Diane Keaton. Loving all these others ideas too!
ReplyDeleteI just read Zelda by Nancy Milford. It's a biography about Zelda Fitzgerald. It's not exactly fun, but it's incredibly interesting and a little heartbreaking.
ReplyDeletenext on my list... wild by cheryl strayed and wife 22. i hear they're both excellent. pam
ReplyDeleteI am going book shopping immediately!
ReplyDeleteI agree that Gone Girl is fantastic, but I think Sharp Objects is Gillian Flynn's best so far. However, as another commenter said, these are definitely not "fun" reading. They are very dark and disturbing.
I also think the suggestion of The Book Thief is good. It's an intriguing book and not difficult to read.
I am reading Caitlin Moran's How to be a Woman, which is similar to Tina Fey's book, except Ms. Moran is British and a lot raunchier in many ways. It is REALLY funny. In that same vein, Mindy Kaling's book is also very funny.
I'll also give an up vote for Let the Great World Spin. I couldn't put it down!
Finally, Cutting for Stone is excellent and beautifully written. And Wally Lamb's I Know this Much is True is sometimes heartbreaking, but also wonderful. Okay, I'll stop now. Happy reading!
JOANNA!! You MUST MUST MUST read the adult stories of Roald Dahl - I work for Penguin Books and we got out hands on them last list, they are INCREDIBLE and quite naughty, but written with his brilliant wit and humor.
ReplyDeleteI think there are 3 books, here's one of the best:
http://www.amazon.com/My-Uncle-Oswald-Roald-Dahl/dp/0140055770
To die for hilarious and beyond rude, you find yourself looking over your shoulder on the subway to make sure no one is reading it too!
Jo, you need to read Jeannette Walls other book, Half Broke Horses http://www.amazon.com/Half-Broke-Horses-True-Life-Novel/dp/1416586288
ReplyDeleteCaitlyn
http://birdbyebird.blogspot.com/
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I've read it three times since May and I can't seem to stop!
ReplyDeleteI just finished "So Much for That" by Lionel Shriver. She also wrote "We Need to Talk About Kevin". The book was amazing and really makes you think about life and what is important.
ReplyDeleteThe Thirteenth Tale and The Paris Wife are good books:)
ReplyDeletecurrently reading marcus samuelsson's memoir "yes, chef" and i am loving it. i also highly recommend cutting for stone by abraham verghese - it's one of the best books i have ever read.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't read it before, I can recommend my favourite book of all time, Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Heartbreaking, thought-provoking and suspenseful in equal measure. Nocturnes, his more recent collection of short stories, is incredibly moving too. I've just finished wading my way through New York by Edward Rutherfurd, I learnt so much about the amazing history of the city through this, maybe you'd enjoy it too!
ReplyDeleteI just finished Ann Patchett's State of Wonder. It is a page turner that is just beautifully written. Strong, dynamic, flawed female characters. Just love.
ReplyDeleteBel Canto, Ann Patchett's most known work, is also amazing!
fun summer reads:
ReplyDeleteThe family fang by kevin wilson
visit from the goon squad by Jennifer egan
the spellman files by lisa lutz
sense of an ending by julian barnes
Currently reading Major Pettigrew's Last Stand. I always recommend Carol Goodman (particularly The Drowning Tree or The Lake of Dead Languages) if you're looking for something that is a "beach read" that feels weightier because she writes mysteries involving "real" literature. Love book rec posts!
ReplyDeleteI loved Glass Castle as well. The Night Circus was one of my favourites this year, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was really interesting and I also enjoyed The Paris Wife.
ReplyDeleteHappy reading!
I've been reading The Jane Austen Guide to Happily Ever After and blogging about it! It's delightful. Also recently finished The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb--heavy but very good.
ReplyDeleteKate
Something Ivory
I'm halfway through Shantaram, and it is excellent - completely captivating.
ReplyDeletethe Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern!
ReplyDeleteCompass Rose by John Casey. He also wrote Spartina. Both take place in coastal New England and for a man he really gets his women characters spot on.
ReplyDeleteThe Island At The Center of The World by Russell Shorto
ReplyDeletehttp://j.mp/RkzEEs
It's amazing book about New York's history and about the early days of our nation and culture. Very approachable text, too, nothing too academic or snooty.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. I can't remember who it's by, but it is positively hilarious. And a quick read, too.
ReplyDeleteJust read "Let's Pretend this Never Happened" By Jenny Lawson and it was glorious. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm reading "The centenarian who climbed out the window and disappeared" by Jonas Jonasson, a swedish journalist. It's really funny and I highly recommend it. It's great for summer read.
ReplyDeleteHemingway's A Moveable Feast!
ReplyDeleteColum McCann's Let the Great World Spin!
Nabokov's Speak, Memory!
I'm a big Tudor history fan and recently read "Mademoiselle Boleyn" which was about Anne Boleyn's time in the French court. I liked it because it was an angle of her story you don't hear often.
ReplyDeleteI also recently found "I Am Madame X" at Goodwill and liked it a lot! It's a mostly fictional story about the woman in John Singer Sargent's Portrait of Madame X.
I am quite nostalgic about Roald Dahl as well!
ReplyDeleteDid you read OUT STEALING HORSES by Per Pertterson? I live in Norway and this book totally get the norwegian atmosphere, the nature, the slow move of time. It is not new but this is a reading I really enjoyed.
Another vote for Night Circus and The Thirteenth Tale. Also, AJ Jacobs' My Year of Living Biblically and The Know-it-All, both interesting and laugh out loud funny. Finally, Outliers by Malcom Gladwell, or any of his others.
ReplyDeleteMe Before You - by Jojo Moyes. Thought provoking and amazingly well written.
ReplyDeleteYou'll love it Joanna as it's quite English in ways! Well worth a read.
Have you read Your Voice in My Head by Emma Forrest? She's an exceptional writer. Also, I just read Chris Cleave's Gold. It certainly put me in a London Olympics mindset; the beginning is a bit slow but I stayed up until 1:30 a.m. to get through the last fifth. I couldn't put it down!
ReplyDeleteTHE HUNGER GAMES!!!
ReplyDeleteTHE HUNGER GAMES!!!
ReplyDeleteThe Rules of Civility by Amor Towles (very old New York), The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach, The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Nifenegger
ReplyDeletethe guernsey literary and potato peel pie society. one of the best books of my life! and they are making a movie. also, just finished the pearl by steinbeck (it's a novella). very good as well. happy reading!
ReplyDeleteThe Art of Fielding. It's amazing!
ReplyDeleteLouise Erdrich's The Master Butcher's Singing Club; The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides; Michael Ondaatje's The Cat's Table; The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri; Alice Munro's The Lives of Girls and Women; Mrs. Dalloway, Anna Karenina
ReplyDeleteI highly highly highly recommend Anne Pachett's "State of Wonder." You won't be able to put it down (once you get past the first few pages).
ReplyDeletePlanning to start reading Le Petit Prince with my 4 year old. I read it in French years ago and am looking forward to reliving the journey in English with my little prince. (Someday we'll read it together in French.)
ReplyDeleteI'm reading "Queen of the Road" by Doreen Orion. It's a pretty charming story about a husband and wife that decide to convert an old bus into a mobile home and travel cross-country. They learn a lot about their life and begin to reevaluate how they have been living. ISo far, it has been wonderful.
ReplyDeleteGive The Fault in Our Stars by John Green a try, although it's in the young adult section. This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper is also a good read. :)
ReplyDeleteThe Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. It's set in gothic post-war Barcelona and is a very intriguing interwoven mystery about obsession in love and in literature. The author creates this amazing world where books are living forces. It has a bit of mystical realism in it too and is slightly grotesque. I couldn't put it down!
ReplyDeleteJust finished The Art of Fielding, by Chad Harbach. Overall, I liked it. Next, I'm reading The Receptonist, a memoir written by a woman that worked at the New Yorker for 30 years as a receptionist. I'm also reading Ready Player One. I don't generally go for science fiction but I've been getting into it lately!
ReplyDeleteThe Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough.
ReplyDeleteMy Secret History by Paul Theroux!!!
ReplyDeleteHa! We just finished The Glass Castle in our book club!
ReplyDeleteThe Bakers Daughter by Sarah McCoy is a good read.
Right now we are on l2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks
Bad karma by David Safier is a funny one!
ReplyDeleteHave you read Blood, Bones & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton? I really loved it and loved the style it was written in. Or Wild by Cheryl Strayed? Oh, and the BFG will always, always be one of my most favorite books!
ReplyDelete-ale
I read The Glass Castle recently on your recommendation and it was great! Thanks. Now, oscillating between Ulysses, Nine Stories, Blood Meridian, Godel Escher Bach, and the Andy Warhol Diaries. All really good.
ReplyDeleteI just finished 'Blood Bones and Butter' and loved it! I've also heard that 'Wild' by Cheryl Strayed is also really good.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great comment thread! Thank you for asking this question Joanna!
ReplyDeleteI just finished Mindy Kaling (Kelly Kapoor/staff writer on The Office)'s memoir Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and it was laugh out loud funny. I also loved Tina Fey's Bossypants.
Also reading a good one on JFK called Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero, by Chris Matthews.
I'll throw in another vote for Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, and since babies were on topic recently, Birth Matters by Ina May Gaskin is an absolutely wonderful resource (but as an aspiring midwife I might be a bit biased ;).
Hablando Sola,Daniela Rivera ZacarÃas..that's a good one!
ReplyDeletewww.luuzb.blogspot.com.ar
We love In the Fall by Jeffrey Lent. It's a beautifully written novel that takes place after the civil war. Couldn't put it down.
ReplyDeleteThe Sunkissed Sisters
www.etsy.com/shop/sunkissedsisters
The Time Travelers Wife is my favorite book, but I'd also recommend Anna Karenina if you're looking for a classic, Austerlitz by WG Sebald for something beautiful and haunting, or a Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson for something utterly hilarious.
ReplyDeletethey're old, but nothing beats the harry potter series
ReplyDeleteI just finished "Silver Sparrow" by Tayari Jones. I bought it last night.
ReplyDeleteIt was that good.
"The Innocent Anthropologist : Notes from a Mud Hut" by
ReplyDeleteNigel Barley is the funniest book i have ever read. I read it every summer and it makes me laugh out loud every time. It's a true story about an anthropologist who goes to a small tribe in West Africa to do fieldwork, and everything goes wrong. The concept is a bit hard to sell I guess, but trust me, it's SO funny!
HEFT by Liz Moore ~ set in Brooklyn, a moving story driven by unique voices, the characters steal your heart on the first page, and you'll feel for them weeks after!
ReplyDeleteTana French has a new book out Broken Arrow. I've loved all of her past books so eager to read this one. I'm also going through Anne Patchett right now, Bel Canto, State of Wonder and the Patron state of liars are all good.
ReplyDeleteGone Girl, Night Circus, Tell the Wolves I'm home were all really good. Gone girl was thrilling!
ReplyDeleteThe best of the year so far (for me) was The Age of Miracles!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Age-Miracles-Novel-ebook/dp/B005SHPWQC
Just finished Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell -- he's an amazing storyteller. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón is one of my all-time favorites!
ReplyDeletemy favouite book that i read this summer was "Clara Callan" by Richard Wright!
ReplyDeleteI just finished Calling All Invisible Women and What Alice Forgot.
ReplyDeleteBoth were nice summer reads!
I actually decided to spend the entire summer reading only kids books! I was so tired of reading morose pretentious adult lit, and its been amazingly satisfying to immerse myself in books aimed at 10-18 yr olds. You instantly get sucked into the stories but they are beautiful written and full of a wonderful mixture of sadness, joy and hilarity. I've read everything from the classics, like The Westing Game, to the more recent Mysterious Benedict Society. Amazing fun!
ReplyDeleteI feel like I'm reading this a decade late, so there's a good chance you've read it, but if not, it's a great read -- and funny: A Walk in the Woods
ReplyDeleteHi Joana!this is Blanca from Spain,I would recommend you an spanish writer who is hilarious,maybe is quite quirky humour but you must give him a chance!!He is called Eduardo Mendoza,hope you enjoy!!
ReplyDelete-Born to Run
ReplyDelete-The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
-Wild
Happy reading!
all my friends are superheros
ReplyDeletehttp://www.amazon.com/All-My-Friends-Are-Superheroes/dp/1552451305/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344354956&sr=1-1&keywords=all+my+friends+are+superheroes
and
wonder
http://www.amazon.com/Wonder-R-J-Palacio/dp/0375869026/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344354989&sr=1-1&keywords=wonder
two amazingly written, inspirational and thought provoking stories. i hope that you get the chance to read them...
I love trading book reccomendations!
ReplyDeleteThe Art of Racing in the Rain
The Lovers
The Paris Wife
The Namesake
No Cheating, No Dying
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?
The Art of Fielding
Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson is a hilarious memoir, Blankets is a beautiful graphic novel, anything by Mary Roach is funny and educational, On Writing by Stephen King is a great memoir/writing guide, and Cyrano de Bergerac is a beautiful play. Have fun reading! :) Also, if you're not on Goodreads, you should check it out. It's like Pandora for books. It's awesome.
ReplyDeleteThe Listeners by Leni Zumas. Look it up.
ReplyDeleteI read both I Feel Bad About My Neck and I Remember Nothing (Nora Ephron!) in one sitting last week and they were fantastic.
ReplyDeletePatrick deWitt's Sisters Brothers, and Chad Harbach's The Art of Fielding are my two favourites to recommend at the moment.
ReplyDeleteI just re-read "Into Think Air" by Jon Krakauer. I'm usually more of a novel girl, but this book is such a gripping, visceral take on non-fiction!
ReplyDeleteRoald Dahl's Kiss Kiss is a must. It is adult fiction so be prepared. Some captivating historical fiction that I would recommend: The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe and The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb by Melanie Benjamin.
ReplyDeleteEver since the Hunger Games trilogy, I've been into Young Adult novels... they're a quick read, plus it takes you back a bit to those days & what life was like with crushes & first loves. :)
ReplyDeleteSo, that being said, I've recently enjoyed the Divergent series from Veronica Roth & 'Gone' (another series) by Michael Grant.
Love when you do these posts - I always get so many books to add to my list!
Oh girl. My lit major college days might be over but I'm still the queen of book recommendations. For something romantic and touching, Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. For historical fiction, Cold Mountain. For you as a Michigan girl, Middlesex by Jeffrey Eudenides (just finished it -- fabulous!). For just damn good literature, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. For something cute, When in Rome... by Gemma Townley (favorite British chick-lit author). Happy reading! xo
ReplyDelete*Jeffrey Eugenides
ReplyDeleteThe Uncoupling, by Meg Wolitzer, and The Leftovers, by Tom Perrotta. Relatively light, but clever, reads.
ReplyDeleteMajor Pettigrew's Last Stand was a lovely, Jane Austen-y novel that swept me away, as did the new Ann Patchett, State of Wonder, a really nicely done and summery read about seeking the magical fertility drug in the Amazon. Another gorgeous one was The Buddha in the Attic, really just the most incredibly poetic and well written masterful little novel. Cutting for Stone was the most sweep-me-away of them all, methinks. My taste is good story and good writing--you can have an easy read without being trashy!
ReplyDeleteI loved the book City of Thieves by David Benioff, a quick read. I am currently reading Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese and am enjoying it. I have recently finished some of the Jo Nesbo books, also great.
ReplyDeleteRight now I'm reading Charms for the Easy Life and it's delightful.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.amazon.com/Coming-Age-Mississippi-Anne-Moody/dp/0440314887
ReplyDeleteMy favorite book of all time, if you like history
If you loved the Glass Castle, you will LOVE Half-Broke Horses. It might be even better. (Also Jeannette Walls). Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI most recently loved The Age of Miracles. I wrote a list on my blog of books I recommend for all my female friends: http://thecrankypumpkin.blogspot.com/2012/04/damn-good-novels-for-women.html
ReplyDeleteI've read a lot of books by Adriana Trigiani lately... The Shoemaker's Wife was good, but I'm LOVING Big Stone Gap right now!
ReplyDeleteI love Rules of Civility. Lovely writing, but also a page-turner!
ReplyDeleteIf you want a good children's book, please read the Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. Beautiful story.
ReplyDeleteAlso, We Were the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates. Also wonderful and a tad heartbreaking.
I highly recommend "Summer of my Amazing Luck," "A boy of good breeding," and "The Flying Troutmans" all by Miriam Toews. She's incredible.
ReplyDeleteThe Art of Racing In The Rain by Garth Stein, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen, Memoirs of A Geshia by Arthur Golden, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See, or Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty
ReplyDeleteThe History of Love (by Nicole Krauss) is beautiful and haunting and funny and heartbreaking. It's one of my favorite books in the world.
ReplyDeleteOr (another favorite) I Am the Messenger, by Markus Zusak. Please, do yourself a favor and read this.
(Sorry I read over 200 books last year so I'm really passionate about people reading good books.) (Insert scene from Mean GIrls: "I just have a lot of feelings." *wipes away tear*.)
ANYWAY. If I Stay and the sequel, Where She Went, by Gayle Forman, are so incredibly beautiful.
Have you read Amber Dermont's THE STARBOARD SEA yet? It's quietly lyrical tale about a boy coming of age. It's beautifully written!
ReplyDeletejust joined www.goodreads.com and it is fabulous - you rate books, get recommendations, see what your friends are reading, etc. check it out!!
ReplyDeletei just finished water for elephants...now to see the movie!
a peek of chic
I just finished Girl in Translation and it was fantastic. If you liked Glass Castle you will love this one :)
ReplyDeleteHave you read Bloom by Kelle Hampton? It's a ny times best seller. It's about her daughter's first year with down syndrome. She didn't know Nella would have DS until she born. She is the woman behind the amazing blog Enjoying the Small Things (www.kellehampton.com). I had read her blog, and thought that the book would be similar, but it was so much more in depth and so touching. I don't even have kids, but I was weeping at how beautiful the book and her story is. Check it out!
ReplyDeleteAny collection of Kurt Vonnegut's short stories!
ReplyDeleteA Year in Provence by Peter Mayle. Such an adorable, well-written, easy read. Warning: don't read on an empty stomach :)
ReplyDeleteI'm finishing up War and Peace right now... just get the cliff notes. :)
ReplyDeleteThe Family Fang is wonderful! I also just read Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey and loved it!
ReplyDeleteLove your blog!
Right now I'm reading Tess of d'Ubervilles by Thomas Hardy & I'm really enjoying it. If you like Jane Austen novels you'll like this one too.
ReplyDeleteJo, thanks for this post – I just added 20 books to my library list. Love all the recommendations!
ReplyDeleteI recently loved reading The History of Love by Nicole Krauss, The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman and Doppler by Erlend Loe.
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend "State of Wonder" by Ann Pachett and "Heft" by Liz Moore. Both are amazing!
ReplyDeletemaybe this will inspire you :) http://undergroundnewyorkpubliclibrary.com/
ReplyDeleteyou get so many comments i don't know how you keep up...
ReplyDeletei'm reading the girl with the dragon tattoo, i know its a bit behind the trend but i am really enjoying it! after i've finished the trilogy i will read cloud atlas.
as for kids books, i try to read 'alice in wonderland' once a year or so, just to remind myself of all that imagination. recently i acquired a full box set of the Chronicles of Narnia, which I have never read, so I am looking forward to reading those children's classics at some point.
I too just finished Gone Girl and The Night Circus and really enjoyed them. Gone Girl is crazy!
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you like YA but Divergent and Insurgent were really good.
a sense of an ending was a quick, provocative read that I really enjoyed. Also anything by barbara kingsolver, particularly prodigal summer or animal, vegetable, miracle (nonfiction).
ReplyDeleteCloud Atlas! The movie is coming out this fall, but reading the book first for this story is a must.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite recent reads was The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall. There were parts that made me laugh so hard I cried, and parts that just plain made me cry. You might not like the main character, Golden, but wait until you get to Rusty. He's the funniest kid in the world!
ReplyDeleteA couple of other good books are The History of Love by Nicole Krauss, and Little, Big by John Crowley.
I recommend Machine of Death. It's a collection of short stories based on the premise that a machine has been invented that will tell you how, but not when, you will die. I couldn't put it down!
ReplyDeleteSomeone Knows My Name was the best book I read all year. An easy read, beautifully written and a wonderful character. Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteANY of Anna Quindlen’s books (“Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake”) or Elizabeth Berg (love them all, but started with "The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted: And Other Small Acts of Liberation” and became obsessed with her books (new to me author). “The Good Father” Noah Hawley, "The Red Book” (hysterical but “true”) by Kogan, Deborah Copaken;
ReplyDelete"Paris Without End: The True Story of Hemingway's First Wife" by Diliberto, Gioia
and “The Secret Life of Bees” (especially if you loved “The Help”) by Kidd, Sue Monk;
"An Available Man” by Wolitzer, Hilma (her other books are good too!)
DEFINITE one all time favorites is “The Elegance of a Hedgehog” (movie too!)
I noticed a lot of people mentioning the night circus but I actually had a terrible time reading that book. I thought it was very slow and didn't keep my attention. I'm cant decide what to read next either because I have 3 books waiting on me: mockingjay, let's pretend this never happened, and a bio of Marilyn Monroe!!!
ReplyDeleteamazing books i've read lately -
ReplyDeleteAge of Mircales by Karen Thompson Walker
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead
xx
maggie
For those with a british sense of humor, "Cooking with Fernet Branca" by James Hamilton-Paterson is laugh out loud hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the books by Nicole Krauss. All three of them are good reading :)
ReplyDeleteOr maybe "Life of Pie" by Yann Martel. And recently I got into the "Game of Throne" (George R. R. Martin) books, even though I'm not into fantasy. It's just that if you start liking Game of thrones, you gotta read all the other ones as well :/
Yet another vote for Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. It's a must read this summer.
ReplyDeleteOther recommendations:
Blood, Bones, and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton of Prune
Arcadia by Lauren Groff
Wildwood by Colin Meloy (with amazing illustrations by his wife, Carson Ellis)
Spoiled and Messy, both really smart and funny YA books by the ladies over at gofugyourself.com
One Day by David Nicholls
A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg
This morning I am reading "the start-up of YOU" by Reid Hoffman (cofounder and chairman of LinkedIn) and Ben Casnocha. I am reading it for work and pleasure. The entrepreneur spirit in you will enjoy it!
ReplyDeleteHave you brushed up on your Canadian Lit lately? There are some really fantastic novels out: The Sisters Brothers, Half-Blood Blues, and The Cat's Table are all recent reads of mine and so so good. I bet Alex would really like The Sisters Brothers, too!
ReplyDeleteHaha, thank you for posting that cartoon! My boyfriend has been reading Crime & Punishment all summer and I can't let it go. That's not summer reading, lighten up!
ReplyDeleteI've been reading 'Notes On A Small Island' by Bill Bryson as well as 'Live From New York', the history of SNL. Loving both.
I'm holding off on buying any new books until I get a handle on the ones fill my shelves now. What do I want to read? What do I want to save? What do I want to pass along?
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I've most recently wishlisted How To Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran after her Fresh Air appearance and The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker.
I just read Gold , by Chris Cleave. It's fantastic. And so apt for my Olympic fever :-)
ReplyDeleteI think you'd love the bio of the food writer M.F.K. Fisher that I just read. It is called An Extravagant Hunger: The Passionate Years of M.F.K. Fisher
ReplyDeleteThe Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a young adult novel narrated by death during Nazis Germany. It's a charming and quirky book. Home by Marilyn Robinson is one of my latest favorites. Poignant and beautifully written.
ReplyDeleteI'm reading David McCullough's biography of Harry S. Truman and it's epically good (Pulitzer Prize!). His biography of John Adams was so inspiring and well done.
ReplyDeleteI re-read the Grapes of Wrath in the Spring and it became my new favorite novel... I appreciated it so much more as an adult than as a teenager.
The Last Nude by Ellis Avery.
ReplyDeleteIf you have ever read Girl with a Pearl Earring, it is a similar concept. It is about 1920s Art Deco painter Tamara de Limpicka, and the whole art scene in Paris at that time and the fictitious (or is it?) story behind one of her most famous paintings. Quick chapters (so easy to read before bed, if you tend to fall asleep like I do) and so scandalous...
For a fun read - Alexander McCall Smith books are wonderful, especially the Isabel Dalhousie Series or 44 Scotland Street - although I may be biased as they are based in my home city!
ReplyDeleteAlso Ben Mezrich books are great especially Bringing down the house and Sex on the Moon
I'm reading the Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubenstein and am loving it! It's a bit like Eat, Pray, Love except about how to maximize happiness. It has a lot of good goals, rules to being happy, and research on what makes people happiest. Just wish I had read it sooner!
ReplyDeleteJust last night I picked up Cloud Atlas from my local bookstore after watching the movie trailer. I've only read about 20 pages so far but the writing style is beautiful (and at times overwhelming).
ReplyDeleteJust finished Left Neglected by Lisa Genova (author of Still Alice, another great book). A wonderful story about how the life of a very driven career women changes after a traumatic brain injury. And a very quick read!
ReplyDeleteGone Girl was a great thriller/mystery - also The History of Love is very moving and amazing writing
ReplyDeleteDahl wrote short stories for adults, too! Currently reading his "Tales of the Unexpected". Love!
ReplyDeleteI'm about a third of the way through How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran, and I'm already in love. Hilarious memoir/feminist manifesto, and something every lady should read!
ReplyDeleteMy Homemade Life by Molly Wizeberg
ReplyDeleteParis, My Sweet: A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate) by Amy Thomas
Lunch in Paris: A Love Story, with Recipes by Eliabeth Bard
My Life from Scratch: A Sweet Hourney of Starting Over, One Cake at a Time by Gesine Bullock-Prado (yes, sister of Sandra Bullock)
Jo, what are the last 5-10 books you read? That would give me an idea what you like!
ReplyDeleteI always recommend The Time Traveler's Wife.
Someone just recommended Night Circus to me, and I see it on here too. I think I will borrow it this week!
Billy Flynn's Long Halftime Walk - best book I've read all year. About a vet coming home from Iraq; moves quickly and amazing writing.
ReplyDeleteI recently read Unbroken (true story of a WWII POW survivor) - amazing! My husband also just finished it and loved it so great for men or women to read. Also read Little Bee, story of a Nigerian refugee which was a moving read. And now I'm in the middle of Gone Girl, can't put it down, great thriller/mystery!
ReplyDeleteI love, love, love engrossing books with well developed characters. My favorites this summer have been House of Prayer #2 by Mark Richards, a wrenchingly poignant memoir by this author of coming of age as disabled in the South; The Floor of Heaven, the true story of the Klondike Gold Rush by Howard Blum--a thrilling, true life crazier than fiction, tall tale, adventure of the Old West and Gold rush. Also loved "The Coal Tattoo" by Silas House, about 2 sisters in Applachia Kentucky, very moving about sisterhood. Currently reading "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand and it's awesome...Happy Reading!!
ReplyDelete"How to be a Woman" by Caitlin Moran. Definitely. Funny, feminist stuff.
ReplyDeletei cannot say enough good things about arcadia by lauren groff. i hugged it to myself when i finished; i just adored it.
ReplyDeleteDeborah Harkness' A Discovery of Witches (and the sequel, Shadow of Night) is fantastic! Also, if you like crime/mystery, I really enjoy Camilla Lackberg. The first one of her series is The Ice Princess. You can only get the first three in the states, but more translations are available in the UK.
ReplyDeleteBoth series have fantastic characterization :)
Blood, Bones, and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton is one of my favourites, it´s a lovely and delicious summer reading!
ReplyDelete