I just finished the 4th Ferrante book. Wow. I loved them. The writing is so rich, complex, multidimensional, multilayered, thought-provoking. How do our friendships shape us, and how do we shape our friendships, our communities? In close relationships, where do we stop and where does the other start, when we are continually influencing each other and carrying each other inside our very being? What is the role of autonomy?
I wanted to shake the (fictional) narrator sometimes. She is intensely reflective and articulate but short on empathy, being at times very hurtful and not noticing it.
Definitely written for women. Not recommended for someone who likes a clear âgood guy.â These are very complex characters.
As someone mentioned above, we are all very different when it comes to books!
I agree with you @doschicos --that the Ferrante books could use editing. Book Twoâall the different permutations on who was working at which shop?âI had to plow through with great effort. The first half of each book tends to wear me down. havenât gotten to Book Four yet.
My book club read Geek Love by Katherine Dunn last month. I hated it. Supposedly others loved it (but someone told me they had heard not many had finished it). Plot line: Family drama about circus freaks, including children intentionally poisoned/damaged in utero to make them into better freaks.
Almost done with Book Two of the Ferrante series. It was a little slow going in the beginning but then gets really interesting.. on a mission to finish by the end of the week. It raises such interesting questions about friendship and how friendship changes and evolves.
No one has mentioned The Girl You Left Behind, by Jojo Moyes. Not fabulous, but a very good read.
My neighborhood Bookclub just did The Circle , by Dave Eggers. Lots of conversation and strong opinions. My son, a former Google intern, said his colleagues were disgusted. In Bookclub, we addressed how many new parents would gladly put a chip in their newborn, in case of kidnapping. But at what age would you remove said chip? If you donât, the fictional Circle would always be able to track your child. The book brings up many ideas, which sound good on the surface, but can have long term negative consequences.
@bookworm, I thought I had mentioned it but maybe not. I read it a few months ago and enjoyed it. I am now reading The Nest and like it so far, about a third of the way throught. Not great literature but an interesting, character-driven novel. Love the NYC locations.
Just looked at Amazon and the Kindle $2.99 version of The Nightingale is condensed version, not the complete edition which is $6.99, not a bad price at all. I had read from the library on Overdrive but would like to own a copy to revisit at my convenience, just deciding about Kindle or buying print as I am on my way to Barnes & Noble with a few 20% off coupons tonight to pick up Book Four of the Ferrante series.
Hi @bookmama22, my post above referred to the complete novel, but it was available for $2.99 for one day only, on June 12th. It was one of Amazonâs Daily Deals. As of this moment, only a few hours after your post, the Kindle version is $9.99. There certainly is a lot of fluctuation in price!
Does anyone know if they make âdealsâ based on your views of stuffâŠat least once it seemed like that prompted a now for less1 kind of a response.
Sorry I missed that. Actually since I order so little from Amazon, I think that I have dropped off their email list. I donât think that I have gotten any recent emails from them. Will have to continue to check.
I have been reading Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner over the last few days. Iâve never read him before slthough of course Iâve heard many extremely positive things.. This one I picked up at a charity shop.
Quite a riveting book. Will most likely read more. Fiction and/or non-fiction.
Crossing to Safety is wonderful. I loved it so much when I read it when I was younger and then even more when I read it recently. Angle of Repose is also fabulous.
Crossing to Safety is one of my favorite books. I like to say itâs a âquietâ book. I find with Stegnerâs works, I have to pause every so often just to appreciate the beautiful writing.
