The Wild movie was worth seeing and fairly true to the book (and Laura Dern is fabulous). I saw the movie with my book club from work. Our only complaint was that the movie put a little too much emphasis on the sex scenes.
Has anyone read The Nightingale by Krisitin Hannah? Sounds intriguing.
I have been quiet lately because I have been working my way through several books by the same author (and HOPING the trilogy would continue as strongly as it started so I could recommend it out here). It has!
The books are by Jo Walton, who we talked about on this thread a year or two ago when she wrote a book that won the Nebula (Fantasy) and Hugo (Sci Fi) awards for the same book (that almost never happens, usually a book is one or the other). I recently realized she had written quite a few other books before that, and decided to go back and read some of them.
The trilogy that I found really compelling is what she calls her āSmall Changeā trilogy. The titles are Farthing, HaāPenny, and Half A Crown. The first book seems to start out as a fairly ordinary British murder mystery (sort of a ācozyā mystery if you know what those are), but the series is really an alternate history in which Britain makes a treaty with Hitler and WWII essentially ends before the US gets involved ā with Facism gaining a stronger hold throughout Europe, and creeping into Britain as well. Each book has a young upper class British woman as a heroine (different woman in each book, although the past women are mentioned in the later books). In each case they start out as somewhat naive and unsure of themselves, and morph into something quite sturdier and more compelling. The books get very dark, as you can imagine they might. There is also an inspector from Scotland Yard who is a main character in all 3 books. Each book starts a bit slowly (maybe 50-75 pages in before I am completely hooked), but then I couldnāt stop reading. A few too many late nights with these, but I found the second one was tense enough that I had to read only during the day! You might need to go to an interlibrary loan to get them (I had to), but I really, really liked these books.
I also read another stand alone book by Jo Walton called Tooth & Claw. Umā¦ a story somewhat similar to Pride & Prejudice, although different enough so I didnāt know what would happen. But the characters are all dragons. I also liked this one quite a bit. 
It might not be for everyone, and like those above, started a bit slowly for my taste. But once I was hooked, again, I really had to get to it. I keep wanting to stay home from work to readā¦
And I read her most recent book called āMy Real Childrenā. I wasnāt planning on recommending it, but I have found that is a āstickyā book. The premise and story come back to me at the oddest times. I donāt think I will forget it any time soon.
She has written some others I havenāt gotten to yetā¦ so many books, so little time!
^^^ The trilogy sounds good but I hated her Among Others, the Hugo and Nebula winner. In my humble opinion the book won its awards for the ignoble reason that it serves as a paean to early science fiction/fantasy books - sort of a self-congratulatory pat on the back/wink wink/insider nod to each other on the part of the committee members. I rarely get as disappointed in a book as I felt while reading that one, and yes I finished it. (If I could sound more negative about Among Others, Iād probably go for it.)
Nice to see your thumbs up on her other books but I have to ask: did you read and like Among Others?
I did read and like Among Others. But I can also say these other books are quite different, really nothing like Among Others at all.
Iāve been wondering what Jo Waltonās writing was like - sheās doing the reread at Tor of the Patrick Rothfuss Kingkiller Trilogy. Alas only two books out so far. The re-read is pretty amusing - everyone speculates like mad about all the mysteries of the books and there are a lot of them, from peopleās true identities, to whether their any significance to the names of the characters (which occasionally change), to just what sword that is hanging on the wall of the inn, to just what king gets killed any way?
nrdsb4 - I am about halfway through āThe Nightingaleā right now. Enjoying it so far.
I got waylaid and am now reading 1Q84. I searched to see if it had already been mentionedāit has. What surprised me though itās mentioned several times by high school posters as a good bookāgives me hope :)! Itās definitely strange, but oddly compelling.
I read two new books I liked a lot lately. Nick Hornbyās āFunny Girlā and Colm Toibinās āNora Webster.ā Quite different stories and styles, but both authors I always enjoy.
I have the Patrick Rothfuss books on my list ā actually accidentally got the second one from the library, but quickly realized that I needed to read the first one before reading the one I got. I was intrigued by what I saw when I started it, though, and definitely plan to read them.
I just came back from a near 2 week vacation. I read The Nightingale - I really enjoyed that, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats, The Girl on the Train, The Bakers Daughter. Everything I Never Told You. The autobiography of ā¦Iām drawing a blank - the guy who plays Eli Gold on The Good Wife. I just started a JoJo Moyes book on the plane home.
The Art of Hearing Heartbeats was probably my favorite of all. Set in Burma where a daughter who is a lawyer in NYC follows the trail of her father who disappeared one day to the village where he grew up.
I read 5 books on vacation and Iām thinking I didnāt do as much reading as normal.
Regarding Rothfuss: I found the first book started really slow. I actually stopped reading until a friend AND HER MOM told me to push through the first 50 pages. Now those two are some of my favorite books and I stalk PRās blog waiting for news of the final book.
I bought The Nightingale for my Kindle and started it last night. I bought the first The Last Policeman as an audiobook for my i-pod. That one isnāt the kind of book I normally read, but people raved so much, I decided to move out of my literary comfort zone, ha ha. I started that today while walking my dog and will listen to it while working out, etc. I donāt think Iāve ever had two books going at the same time.
Thanks for the suggestions!
- Reading Peter May's first series set in China, beginning with The Firemaker.
- Fascinating book called An Insider's View of Mormon Origins by Grant H. Palmer, a former director of LDS Institutes of Religion in CA and UT. A well-written, intensely footnoted history that doesn't hide things.
@intparentā , I also read Jo Waltonās My Real Children and really enjoyed it. I have a āthingā for those alternate realities books (like Life After Life), and that was a good one.
I heard great reviews of and just started āAll I Love and Knowā by Judith Frank. Has anyone read that one yet?
No, but I just it looked it up and it does look very intriguing.
I finished The Nightingale today. I enjoyed the book.
Still listening to The Last Policeman on audiobook.
If you like fantasy Iām seconding The Goblin Emperor. TempeMom recommended it here - post #2674. (Thanks!) Definite thumbs up from me.
The Goblin Emperor is a nominee for the 2014 Nebula Award: http://reviews.libraryjournal.com/2015/02/books/genre-fiction/sf-fantasy/out-of-this-world-reading-nebula-nominees-2014/
Woo hoo!