1SassyLassy
Yikes! The year is three quarters done. Is it time to rethink and revise all those January reading plans?
Anyway, since some reading has been done, what were your favourites in this past quarter (July, August, September). Is there anything you think we all should read?
Let your fellow readers know.
Anyway, since some reading has been done, what were your favourites in this past quarter (July, August, September). Is there anything you think we all should read?
Let your fellow readers know.
2Landshark12000 
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Behind The Setting of a Country Club According to Inquisitive Jeff” by James Landsaw is a book that delves into the intriguing and often scandalous world of a country club. The story follows Jeff, a waiter at the club, who uncovers various aspects of life within this exclusive setting. The book explores themes such as gossip, corruption, lifestyles, sex, scandals, racism, drugs, lies, and politics, showing that these issues permeate all levels of society, regardless of class.
Jeff’s inquisitive nature leads him to discover that whether one is rich, middle class, or poor, everyone faces similar problems. The narrative provides a behind-the-scenes look at the lives of the staff and members of the country club, revealing the complexities and hidden truths of their interactions
https://www.amzn.com/dp/B0DF67MTLY/
Jeff’s inquisitive nature leads him to discover that whether one is rich, middle class, or poor, everyone faces similar problems. The narrative provides a behind-the-scenes look at the lives of the staff and members of the country club, revealing the complexities and hidden truths of their interactions
https://www.amzn.com/dp/B0DF67MTLY/
3labfs39
I didn't have any stellar 5* reads third quarter, but several solid 4* books.
Most creative: Lincoln in the Bardo
Best memoir: 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows
Best graphic work: Paracuellos
Most moving: Salt to the Sea
Most thought-provoking: Notes on an Execution
My plan to read without a plan has served me well this year. I thought I might read less as a result, but the opposite is true, I'm slightly ahead of myself from last year.
Most creative: Lincoln in the Bardo
Best memoir: 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows
Best graphic work: Paracuellos
Most moving: Salt to the Sea
Most thought-provoking: Notes on an Execution
My plan to read without a plan has served me well this year. I thought I might read less as a result, but the opposite is true, I'm slightly ahead of myself from last year.
4cindydavid4
read 18 , (22 1qtr, 21 2nd qrt )
with several powerful 5 star reads
go went gone
the book censor's library
the black count
the golem of brooklyn
the three arched bridge
the trees
good reads
lady to fox4
a man in the zoo4
madensky square4
october country4
the reign of four kings3
lords and ladies4
hester3
non fiction
the journal I did not write5
the library book5
the danube5
DNF
the parable of the sower
sightseeing
the world of yesterday not because it wasnt a great read, but I just couldnt get through it.
with several powerful 5 star reads
go went gone
the book censor's library
the black count
the golem of brooklyn
the three arched bridge
the trees
good reads
lady to fox4
a man in the zoo4
madensky square4
october country4
the reign of four kings3
lords and ladies4
hester3
non fiction
the journal I did not write5
the library book5
the danube5
DNF
the parable of the sower
sightseeing
the world of yesterday not because it wasnt a great read, but I just couldnt get through it.
5KeithChaffee
No five-star books for me this month, either, but Holly Gramazio's The Husbands came awfully close. And I very much enjoyed a pair of story collections, T. Kingfisher's Jackalope Wives and Robert J. Sawyer's Stories 3: Time.
6thorold
My Q3 highlights:
— Danube by Claudio Magris — and about three other books that spun off from his journey…
— You dreamed of empires by Álvaro Enrigue. An afternoon with Moctezuma and friends.
— Die gerettete Zunge — first part of Elias Canetti’s memoirs. I’m looking forward to the rest.
— Also fun to discover Marieluise Fleißer, another of the banned German writers of the thirties who somehow fell off the radar after the war.
— Danube by Claudio Magris — and about three other books that spun off from his journey…
— You dreamed of empires by Álvaro Enrigue. An afternoon with Moctezuma and friends.
— Die gerettete Zunge — first part of Elias Canetti’s memoirs. I’m looking forward to the rest.
— Also fun to discover Marieluise Fleißer, another of the banned German writers of the thirties who somehow fell off the radar after the war.
7rv1988
My top reads from Q3:
- Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent
- Zhang Yue Ran - Cocoon, translated from the Chinese by Jeremy Tiang
- Bae Suah - A Greater Music translated from the Korean by Deborah K. Smith
I also enjoyed one nonfiction pick: Judith Flanders - Rites of Passage: Death & Mourning in Victorian Britain.
>6 thorold: You Dreamed of Empires is on my desk right now. I'm glad you enjoyed it, and am looking forward to reading it too.
- Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent
- Zhang Yue Ran - Cocoon, translated from the Chinese by Jeremy Tiang
- Bae Suah - A Greater Music translated from the Korean by Deborah K. Smith
I also enjoyed one nonfiction pick: Judith Flanders - Rites of Passage: Death & Mourning in Victorian Britain.
>6 thorold: You Dreamed of Empires is on my desk right now. I'm glad you enjoyed it, and am looking forward to reading it too.
8Nickelini
I read 6 books in this quarter. The two that stand out the most are The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary and When We Lost Our Heads by Heather O'Neill
9FlorenceArt
My favorite read last quarter was How to be a Normal Person by T.J. Klune. Not a literary masterpiece but it was very funny with lovable characters.
I also enjoyed Petits Viêt-Nams about a part of French post-colonial history that I knew nothing about.
I also enjoyed Petits Viêt-Nams about a part of French post-colonial history that I knew nothing about.
10bragan
My Q3 reads that I rated at least 4.5 stars (since that's my usual criterion here):
The Power Broker by Robert Caro
The Book of Bill and Gravity Falls: Journal 3 by Alex Hirsch (because apparently I'm a Gravity Falls fan now)
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
The Power Broker by Robert Caro
The Book of Bill and Gravity Falls: Journal 3 by Alex Hirsch (because apparently I'm a Gravity Falls fan now)
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
11kidzdoc
I had several exceptionally good reads in Q3. In chronological order:
Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie
The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human
by Siddhartha Mukherjee
James by Percival Everett
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
My Friends by Hisham Matar
Orwell's Ghosts: Wisdom and Warnings for the Twenty-First Century by Laura Beers
Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie
The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human
by Siddhartha Mukherjee
James by Percival Everett
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
My Friends by Hisham Matar
Orwell's Ghosts: Wisdom and Warnings for the Twenty-First Century by Laura Beers
12dchaikin
Posting a wee bit late
Possession by A. S. Byatt - far and away my favorite
Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
James by Percival Everett
Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench & Brendan O'Hea (audio)
Held by Anne Michaels
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
Possession by A. S. Byatt - far and away my favorite
Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
James by Percival Everett
Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench & Brendan O'Hea (audio)
Held by Anne Michaels
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
13SassyLassy
>12 dchaikin: It's never too late!
I also have to say that Held was definitely one of my favourites of the quarter.
I also have to say that Held was definitely one of my favourites of the quarter.
14nrmay
OK, if it's really not too late . . .
Out of 25 books read during Jul-Sep these are my top 5.
Hamnet, O'Farrell
Devils unto Dust, Berquist
The Women, Hannah
Project Hail Mary, Weir
Psalm for the Wild-Built, Chambers
Out of 25 books read during Jul-Sep these are my top 5.
Hamnet, O'Farrell
Devils unto Dust, Berquist
The Women, Hannah
Project Hail Mary, Weir
Psalm for the Wild-Built, Chambers
15dchaikin
>13 SassyLassy: thanks. I love all these lists above. Will you post yours?
>14 nrmay: 🙂 I think I was to read Hamnet. Indecisive
>14 nrmay: 🙂 I think I was to read Hamnet. Indecisive
16labfs39
>14 nrmay: I too enjoyed Project Hail Mary back when I read it. I wonder what Weir will come out with next.
17WelshBookworm
Best of 3rd Quarter for me:
The Princes in the Tower: Solving History's Greatest Cold Case - 4 red stars.
The House With the Golden Door - 2nd of the Wolf Den trilogy - only 3.5 pink stars rounded up, but memorable.
The Last Party - 1st of DC Morgan series and won't be my last... 4.5 blue stars rounded up. Very Welsh.
A Time of Love and Tartan - a favorite series, and never disappoints. 4.5 blue stars
Go Be Free: The Story of Jacob Milliron - 5 blue stars. A short story really, but it's about one of my mom's ancestors, and she was just thrilled by it.
The Princes in the Tower: Solving History's Greatest Cold Case - 4 red stars.
The House With the Golden Door - 2nd of the Wolf Den trilogy - only 3.5 pink stars rounded up, but memorable.
The Last Party - 1st of DC Morgan series and won't be my last... 4.5 blue stars rounded up. Very Welsh.
A Time of Love and Tartan - a favorite series, and never disappoints. 4.5 blue stars
Go Be Free: The Story of Jacob Milliron - 5 blue stars. A short story really, but it's about one of my mom's ancestors, and she was just thrilled by it.
18DBeecher
Love the lists above. Many of the books mentioned I have not yet come across so great to have new titles and authors to look out for.
Reading for me this year was slow however in the last few months have read and really enjoyed:
Picture of Dorian Gray
Accabadora
Americanah
We
the monk
Reading for me this year was slow however in the last few months have read and really enjoyed:
Picture of Dorian Gray
Accabadora
Americanah
We
the monk
19AnishaInkspill
for the last quater are
Labours of Hercules (Poirot # 26) fun, light, entertaining
The Florentines - really interesting
Not I by Samuel Beckett - beautiful, ends on a hopeful note but I thought sad
for the year, >18 DBeecher: mentions we, yeah that one definitely stands out, there are others but yeah
Labours of Hercules (Poirot # 26) fun, light, entertaining
The Florentines - really interesting
Not I by Samuel Beckett - beautiful, ends on a hopeful note but I thought sad
for the year, >18 DBeecher: mentions we, yeah that one definitely stands out, there are others but yeah
20Willoyd
OK, really late here (just discovered this thread, still finding my way round!). 20 books read, and an unusually high number of 6 star books - often only 2 or 3 a year!
I rate my books 1-6 stars. 6 star reads this quarter:
Thunderclap by Laura Cumming - wonderful mix of memoir (of her artist father) and the influence of Dutch art in her life (she is art correspondent for the Guardian)
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk - my read for Poland going round the world. Didn't expect it to be such a page turner.
The Book Censor's Library by Bothayna Al-Essa - the one for Kuwait, as recommended by labfs39, and cited above by cindydavid4. I'm not usually a fan of either satire or dystopian, but this gripped.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey. Could be my favourite contemporary novel of the year - read it twice back to back!
Ulysses by James Joyce. But this is likely to be my novel of the year. A major project, taking pretty much all quarter to finish, but oh boy - little wonder it's so often regarded as a contender for greatest novel of all time. Worth reading for that last soliloquy by Molly Bloom alone!
I rate my books 1-6 stars. 6 star reads this quarter:
Thunderclap by Laura Cumming - wonderful mix of memoir (of her artist father) and the influence of Dutch art in her life (she is art correspondent for the Guardian)
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk - my read for Poland going round the world. Didn't expect it to be such a page turner.
The Book Censor's Library by Bothayna Al-Essa - the one for Kuwait, as recommended by labfs39, and cited above by cindydavid4. I'm not usually a fan of either satire or dystopian, but this gripped.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey. Could be my favourite contemporary novel of the year - read it twice back to back!
Ulysses by James Joyce. But this is likely to be my novel of the year. A major project, taking pretty much all quarter to finish, but oh boy - little wonder it's so often regarded as a contender for greatest novel of all time. Worth reading for that last soliloquy by Molly Bloom alone!
21FlorenceArt
>20 Willoyd: I loved Ulysses too. Agree about Molly's soliloquy!
22dchaikin
>20 Willoyd: terrific list. Some day I’ll read Ulysses. I’m happy to see Orbital and Drive Your Plow here.
23cindydavid4
3rd quarter 14 books all together
the best fiction 5* (2)
the black count
the trees
4.5*(9)
The golem of brooklyn
the three arched bridge
madensky square
october country
go went gone
table for two
the book censor
the lords and ladies
a man in the zoo
non fiction (2)
the danube5*
the journal I didnt write5*
the library4
did not finish (4)
the world of yesterday
parable of sower
sight seeing
the reign of kings
the best fiction 5* (2)
the black count
the trees
4.5*(9)
The golem of brooklyn
the three arched bridge
madensky square
october country
go went gone
table for two
the book censor
the lords and ladies
a man in the zoo
non fiction (2)
the danube5*
the journal I didnt write5*
the library4
did not finish (4)
the world of yesterday
parable of sower
sight seeing
the reign of kings
24SassyLassy
>23 cindydavid4: Still need to read The Black Count.
the quarter isn't over yet so more to come
This is the thread for the third quarter. I suspect you mean fourth quarter when you say, the fourth quarter isn't over yet!
There's still almost a full month to go, so will hold off until the beginning of week three for people to get in some more reading before thinking about bests.
the quarter isn't over yet so more to come
This is the thread for the third quarter. I suspect you mean fourth quarter when you say, the fourth quarter isn't over yet!
There's still almost a full month to go, so will hold off until the beginning of week three for people to get in some more reading before thinking about bests.
25cindydavid4
Ok got it the above is for Quarter 3. get confused by the time continum at times
26rhian_of_oz
I'm super late, but for posterity here is my top 5 (out of 16 read) for Q3.
For Life by Ailsa Piper
Nettle and Bone by T Kingfisher
Starter Villain by John Scalzi
The Will To Battle by Ada Palmer
The Book That Broke The World by Mark Lawrence
For Life by Ailsa Piper
Nettle and Bone by T Kingfisher
Starter Villain by John Scalzi
The Will To Battle by Ada Palmer
The Book That Broke The World by Mark Lawrence
27kjuliff
Favorite Reads from 3rd quarter
James - Percival Everett - 4.5
Radetsky March - Joseph’s Roth - 4.5
Job, the Story of a Simple Man - Joseph Roth - 4.5 stars
Right and Left: The Legend of the Holy Drinker Joseph Roth 4.5 stars
Enemies, a Love Story by Isaac B Singer - Reviewed
Held by Anne Michaels - Reviewed
The Slaughtermans Daughter by Yaniv Iczkovits - Reviewed
Dog Island by Philippe Claudel - Reviewed
James - Percival Everett - 4.5
Radetsky March - Joseph’s Roth - 4.5
Job, the Story of a Simple Man - Joseph Roth - 4.5 stars
Right and Left: The Legend of the Holy Drinker Joseph Roth 4.5 stars
Enemies, a Love Story by Isaac B Singer - Reviewed
Held by Anne Michaels - Reviewed
The Slaughtermans Daughter by Yaniv Iczkovits - Reviewed
Dog Island by Philippe Claudel - Reviewed
28PROMO_UNIVERSAL
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29dchaikin
>26 rhian_of_oz: >27 kjuliff: good stuff guys. I hope whatever we call posterity isn’t quite here yet. Kate - Radetsky’s March is on my TBR shelves.
30arubabookwoman
Also very late to report for the third quarter:
FICTION
James by Percival Everett
A Whistling Woman by A.S. Byatt
Hangover Square by Patrick Hamilton
NW by Zadie Smith
NONFICTION
Challenger by Adam Higginbotham
The Mango Tree by Annabelle Tometich
The Longest Con by Joe Conason
FICTION
James by Percival Everett
A Whistling Woman by A.S. Byatt
Hangover Square by Patrick Hamilton
NW by Zadie Smith
NONFICTION
Challenger by Adam Higginbotham
The Mango Tree by Annabelle Tometich
The Longest Con by Joe Conason
31EMS_24
De onzichtbaren (The Unseen) - Roy Jacobsen Hard and rustic life , family on little Norwegian island, told in subdued tone
De deur (The Door) - Magda Szabó Friendship between an author and her special older maid in Hungary, 20th century
Het meesterwerk (The Masterpiece) - Emile Zola Man among the later called impressionists in Paris tries to make one impressive piece during his life
Spaar de spotvogel (To Kill a Mockingbird) - Harper Lee first time 've read that
Over de berekening van ruimte II / About the calculation of space - Solvej Balle A woman is trapped in one day in November. book 2 of 7
De deur (The Door) - Magda Szabó Friendship between an author and her special older maid in Hungary, 20th century
Het meesterwerk (The Masterpiece) - Emile Zola Man among the later called impressionists in Paris tries to make one impressive piece during his life
Spaar de spotvogel (To Kill a Mockingbird) - Harper Lee first time 've read that
Over de berekening van ruimte II / About the calculation of space - Solvej Balle A woman is trapped in one day in November. book 2 of 7
32SassyLassy
>31 EMS_24: What a great reading quarter. You have three of my favourites there right off.
