Wednesday, May 5, 2010

I Need a New Book

Recommendations Please.

I just finished The Help on the plane. It was stunning on so many levels. Two thumbs up.

Not wanting to be left out, I was determined to pick up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo at the airport for my next read. All they had in the OKC airport was The Girl who Played with Fire by the same author. The OKC book kiosk has this deal where you can return your used book and get 50% of your money back.

I am inclined to fly back to OKC to return the book. There's math in it. Coming from someone who had to take algebra twice to pass it, I do not appreciate this. It's one of those book where I have to keep rereading pages to figure out whats going on. It's one thing if I am reading a contract and someone is paying me my reasonable hourly rate to go back and read things, but nobody is paying me anything to read The Girl who Played with Fire.

Anyway, I need suggestions. I would even plow further into the Stieg Larsson books if someone thinks it is worth it. What are your favorite books - new or old, classic, cult or otherwise? And then, of course, I will tell you with complete honesty what I thought about them after reading them.

7 comments:

  1. I am reading Love in the Time of Cholera right now...I recently read Running With Scissors too - both are enjoyable - nothing earth shattering but not dreadful either.

    I love the Outlander series!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Loved the Help. Read Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - it took me a long while to get into it, very slow start, but was utterly obsessed by the end. Haven't thought about Played with Fire yet though, so no idea. Also recently read A Reliable Wife - it was pretty good, overall, if not a bit predictable.

    I thought Love in the Time of Cholera was painful - but I generally find "literature" to be overwrought. Read the first Outlander - it was okay, story-wise, but SO much superfluous junk distracted me.

    Always looking for more good stuff though.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Help was awesome. Loved it.

    On the not-light list, have you read The Last Lecture? Read it a year ago, not a huge fan. Read it again recently and really stuck with me. Liked it very much upon second read.

    Eat Pray Love ... my. most. favorite. She has a second book now, not as good!

    Lovely Bones -- haunting.

    As for more fun summer reading: Something Borrowed (Emily Giffin), Something Blue (same author). Both fun beach reads, but not vapid. Along the same genre, I have liked all of Jennifer Weiner's books.

    I agree with Running With Scissors ... !Actually anything by A.B ... Running with Scissors, Dry, Magical Thinking, Sellevision and Possible Side Effects. He is an incredible writer.

    One more, A Piece Of Cake ... http://www.cupcakebrown.com/ ... still not sure if I LIKED her book, but glad I read it (if that even makes sense?)

    Wait ... a few more more ... I like non-fiction ... Blink, The Tipping Point, and Spook are all good non-fiction reads.

    Ok, all I got! Of course do not expect reviews for all of these! Just wanted to share some ideas ... happy reading!

    ReplyDelete
  4. One more ... http://www.amazon.com/Another-Day-Frontal-Lobe-Surgeon/dp/1400063205

    I read this before I had an vested interest in brains or people that do things to them, and found it fascinating. Cool look at an intense profession from a female point-of-view.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you lovely ladies! I hate not having a book that I am looking forward to and now I have some good ideas. I am going to try Love in the Time of Cholera first because there were two opposing recommendation. I have read A Piece of Cake. I read it on my honeymoon. We were in Bora Bora and my husband wanted to go do stuff but I was very engrossed in that book.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The best book that I've read in a long time is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. The writing is truly elegant. Absolutely LOVED it.

    http://www.amazon.com/Guernsey-Literary-Potato-Society-ebook/dp/B0015DWJX2/ref=dp_kinw_strp_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have read several books and short stories by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and loved them all. I also enjoyed The Cairo Trilogy (Palace Walk, Palace of Desire, Sugar Street) by Naquib Mahfouz. Mahfouz won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1988.

    ReplyDelete