(no subject)

[filmstar]

To be updated as often as necessary:
(last update 26 April 2006)


Books I am currently reading:

No Doubt About It by Sheri Dew


Books I have started but not yet finished:

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
The Giant Joshua by Maurine Whipple
Between Husband and Wife by Stephen E. Lamb and Douglas E. Brinley
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
The Power of Habit by Jack D. Hodge
To the Edge of the Sea by Christina Hall
Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams


Books I've read this year (in reverse chronological order):

The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom ***
The American Boy by Andrew Taylor ***
The Divide by Nicholas Evans ***½
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby ****
A Million Little Pieces by James Frey ***
The Christmas Moment by Carol Lynn Pearson ***


Books I'm planning to read soon:

The Piano Shop on the Left Bank by T. E. Carhart
A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain
Good Harbor by Anita Diamant
Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Songmaster by Orson Scott Card
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
The Valley of Horses by Jean M. Auel
The Mammoth Hunters by Jean M. Auel
Twice Around the Bay by Christina Hall
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
The Beach by Alex Garland^
The Fanatic by James Robertson
The Education of Little Tree by Forrest Carter^
Touching the Void by Joe Simpson
The Trespass by Barbara Ewing
Watership Down by Richard Adams
The Far Pavilions by M. M. Kaye
Small Island by Andrea Levy
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky^


Books I'd like to read but don't have my hands on yet:

Forever Peace by Joe Haldeman
'Tis by Frank McCourt
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett^
I Am The Cheese by Robert Cormier
Singularity by William Sleator
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
On The Road by Jack Kerouac
The Alchemist by Paul Coelho
Hominids By Robert J. Sawyer
The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
Pippa Funnell: The Autobiography by Pippa Funnell
Godless by Pete Hautman
Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger


Books I read in 2005 (in reverse chronological order):

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee^ *****
Breaking the Surface by Greg Louganis^ *****
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver ***
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger *****
Night Watch by Terry Pratchett **
The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough *****
The Best of Friends by Joanna Trollope ***
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald ***
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd ***
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini ****
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling *****
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling^ ****
In The Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith ****
The Full Cupboard of Life by Alexander McCall Smith ****
The Kalahari Typing School for Men by Alexander McCall Smith ****
Morality for Beautiful Girls by Alexander McCall Smith ****
Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith ****
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling^ ****
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult ****
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire **
Kitchen Table Wisdom by Rachel Naomi Remen ****
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith ****
If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things by Jon McGregor ***
A Mormon Mother by Annie Clark Tanner ****
Goodbye, I Love You by Carol Lynn Pearson^ *****
The Princess Bride by William Goldman ****
Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card ****
Shadow Puppets by Orson Scott Card^ ****
Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card^ ****
Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card^ *****
The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks ***
Rachel and Leah by Orson Scott Card ****
You Shall Know Our Velocity by Dave Eggers ***
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis ***
The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud ***
Hart's Hope by Orson Scott Card ****
Consider the Butterfly by Carol Lynn Pearson ****


Books I read in 2004 (in reverse chronological order):

Deception Point by Dan Brown ***
Foundation by Isaac Asimov ***
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver ****
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman ***
A Gathering Light by Jennifer Donnelly ***
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving ***
The Greatest Stories Never Told by Rick Beyer *****
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov ****
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut ****
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers ****
The New Confessions by William Boyd ***
Lost Boys by Orson Scott Card ****
Kelly + Victor by Niall Griffiths ***
The Crystal City by Orson Scott Card ****
Day of Confession by Allan Folsom *
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon *****
Digital Fortress by Dan Brown ***
Homebody by Orson Scott Card ***
The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart **
Rebecca's Tale by Sally Beauman ****
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman ***
The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman ***
Northern Lights by Philip Pullman ***
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown ****
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier ****
The Summons by John Grisham ***
First Meetings by Orson Scott Card ****
The Cider House Rules by John Irving ****
The Day after Tomorrow by Allan Folsom ***
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant ***


Books I read in 2003 (in no particular order):

Seventh Son by Orson Scott Card ****
Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card ****
Prentice Alvin by Orson Scott Card ****
Alvin Journeyman by Orson Scott Card ****
Heartfire by Orson Scott Card ****
The Memory of Earth by Orson Scott Card ****
The Call of Earth by Orson Scott Card ****
The Ships of Earth by Orson Scott Card ****
Earthfall by Orson Scott Card ****
Earthborn by Orson Scott Card ***
Saints by Orson Scott Card *****
The Folk of the Fringe by Orson Scott Card ***
Rebekah by Orson Scott Card ****
Pastwatch by Orson Scott Card *****
Treasure Box by Orson Scott Card ***
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card^ *****
Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card^ *****
Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card^ *****
The Fourth Hand by John Irving ***
A Widow for One Year by John Irving *****
The World According to Garp by John Irving ****
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold ***
The Sigma Protocol by Robert Ludlum ***
The Visitor by Lee Child ***
Prozac Nation by Elizabeth Wurtzel ****
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt *****
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling ****
Life of Pi by Yann Martel ****
Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel ***
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams ***
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams **
Life, the Universe, and Everything by Douglas Adams **
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish by Douglas Adams **
Big Mouth and Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates ***
Eva by Peter Dickinson ***
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown *****
Passage by Connie Willis ****

^ indicates books read for a second (or third or fourth) time.

Key:

***** = Absolutely fantastic! Don't miss it!
**** = A very good read; recommended to most.
*** = Not a favorite of mine, but an okay read and probably very appealing to many others.
** = Definitely not my cup of tea. Proceed with caution.
* = Is there any way to get the hours of my life wasted on this rubbish back? Definitely skip it.

Comments

[nimawhey.livejournal.com]

I love the Ender Series by Orson Scott Card. In general I like fantasy and not space stuff, but my brother insisted I read Ender's Game. It's like crack! I read the whole series in a matter of months.

[pastaqueen.livejournal.com]

Now I feel bad that I don't read enough.

[stefibles.livejournal.com]

I could send you my copy of the Dave Eggers book if you want.

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

That would be lovely. :) Is it worth it?

[yrsuchariot.livejournal.com]

I just finished Rebecca. I started reading it for a class last semester.

Anna Karenina is a wonderful book and definitely worth the 800+ pages.

I have A Little Princess sitting on my shelf waiting to be read.

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

I thought Rebecca was wonderful. It's not the sort of thing I normally read, but I really enjoyed it. A friend lent me Rebecca's Tale, which is next on my list to read. I hope it's as good.

I have started Anna Karenina no less than three times. Each time I get about 200 pages in, and then just lose interest. This time, I'm going to make it through.

A Little Princess was one of my favorite childhood books. I've been thinking about it a lot lately; I'm not sure why.

[alchemi.livejournal.com]

I love Philip Pullman!

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

He is Alasdair's brother's fiancee's sister's boyfriend's dad.

[davidfrazer.livejournal.com]

That must make him almost family. :)

(Hi. I'm a friend of weedlover.)

[bdspitapit31.livejournal.com]

I'm reading the Douglas Adams books now. I checked them out from the library all in one book. I read the first one on my flights to Tampa, and the second and most of the third (well, maybe only half?) on the flights back.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_waywardgirl/]

You've read a lot of Orson Scott Card's books! Have you read the whole series? I'd like to read at least Ender's Game before summer ends... And did you enjoy Anita Diamant's Red Tent? It's been sitting on my nightstand for weeks now, but I haven't started it yet! I should really get on my summer reading list! Oh, and this is Alison from alitoid.

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

Everything by OSC is wonderful. I thought The Red Tent was okay. I don't want to taint your perception of it, so let me know what you think of it when you've read it and I'll tell you what I thought (I do think it's worth a read). If you like that sort of book, I think OSC's Women of Genesis series is much better.

[hypomnesis.livejournal.com]

You should check out Catch 22 early on. It seems consonant with the affairs of the day. If you like The Da Vinci Code (which I've never read, honestly), you may want to check out Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco or The ILLUMINATUS! Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea. Both really good books in the whole "strange occult conspiracies to take over the world" theme.

The Red Tent

[yoko.livejournal.com]

Every once in awhile I have to take a peek at your list to make sure I'm not missing out on something fabulous! :)

I just finished The Red Tent recently. I started it fairly soon after having read Rachel & Leah and had a hard time getting into it. I actually set it aside and read a few other books in between and then picked it up again. I didn't really like the way that these ancient patriarchs were portrayed- as these crude, vulgar men who just wanted lots and lots of sex.

I guess the Mormon teachings & beliefs comes out in me as I loved how Card incorporated the ancient priesthood, records and seemed to have respect for what callings the Lord gave them. I also wasn't really into all the idol worship portrayed. And I didn't really like the older Joseph. I guess I just think of all these people so differently!

I did like the book the farther I got into it and loved the people connections that she made later in the book. I thought it was a creative way to tie the story together.

Obviously these two authors have different backgrounds and different viewpoints on just a few short chapters in Genesis.

I would love to hear what you thought of it!

Re: The Red Tent

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

I felt much the same way you did about The Red Tent. I thought it was a good story for its own sake, and that it was an cool way to bring a story like that to life. But I did not (NOT, NOT, NOT) like its treatment of men, particularly the prophets. I do not believe that prophets would behave in that way (not least marry a wife who practiced another religion. Hello? That's why he went back to Laban to find a wife).

I read The Red Tent after I read Sarah and Rebekah, but before Rachel & Leah. It made me really impatient for OSC's book to come out, so that the story would get told right! I have to wonder whether OSC has read The Red Tent and whether he sees Rachel & Leah and The Wives of Israel as kind of a rebuttal. Because I do!

Re: The Red Tent

[filmstar.livejournal.com]

Also, if you're looking for something good to read, try The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough. Absolutely breathtaking. That, along with The Time Traveler's Wife, was one of my top two reads of 2005. Both highly recommended.