Athena's Reading List 2015

[Athena]

Some new second hand books from the charity shop:

John Grisham - The Summons
Mike Gayle - Mijn Legendarische Ex (My Legendary Girlfriend)
Simon Montefiore - Sashenka
Patricia Cornwell - Kay Scarpetta 11: Het Eindstation (The Last Precinct)

When I got home I wasn't sure anymore about these books. I did have the Mike Gayle on my wishlist (yet to be revised) and I've enjoyed other Grisham books in the past as well as Cornwell's. I mistook the author of the Montefiore book for another one. I've been feeling sick so my judgement was probably off, but gladly these books cost me only ~2 euros in total.

 

I received in the post:

Graeme Simsion - Don Tillman 2: The Rosie Effect

(which I'm now reading)

 

Yay!

 

Also I received an email saying a pre-order is on its way, it's the newest Shopaholic book, by Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic to the Stars), so I'm excited for that one too.

 

In other news, I gave my brother 17 of my old books, for his new apartment. I will miss my books but I know he will give them a good home. I gave him 12+4 books he really loves and one that he hadn't read yet but that I think he will like.

[Anna Begins]

 

I received in the post:

Graeme Simsion - Don Tillman 2: The Rosie Effect

(which I'm now reading)

 

Yay!

 

Also I received an email saying a pre-order is on its way, it's the newest Shopaholic book, by Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic to the Stars), so I'm excited for that one too.

 

In other news, I gave my brother 17 of my old books, for his new apartment. I will miss my books but I know he will give them a good home. I gave him 12+4 books he really loves and one that he hadn't read yet but that I think he will like.

Oh wow- I didn't know you gave him that many      I'm glad you finally got TRE and whoohoo for the Kinsella.  I hope it arrives soon.

Edited March 22, 2015 by Anna Begins

[Signor Finzione]

Shame you're not too keen on your charity shop purchases (still, what a bargain!), but yay for your other new books! Hope you enjoy them.

 

Just had a look at the stuff on Sanderson's website you posted (nice, succinct reviews by the way ). It's great that there's so much extra reading material on there! And I love the little writing progress monitor in the top right corner. I might seriously have to think about making Mistborn #1 my next read (after the Feist book I've just started), and maybe getting hold of Elantris into the bargain. 

[BSchultz19]

Yay for finally getting The Rosie Effect in the mail!  I hope you're enjoying it!! 

[Athena]

Emoticons removed.

 

Oh wow- I didn't know you gave him that many   I'm glad you finally got TRE and whoohoo for the Kinsella.  I hope it arrives soon.

Thanks ! 

 

Shame you're not too keen on your charity shop purchases (still, what a bargain!), but yay for your other new books! Hope you enjoy them.

 

Just had a look at the stuff on Sanderson's website you posted (nice, succinct reviews by the way ). It's great that there's so much extra reading material on there! And I love the little writing progress monitor in the top right corner. I might seriously have to think about making Mistborn #1 my next read (after the Feist book I've just started), and maybe getting hold of Elantris into the bargain.

Thanks ! Yeah it's a great website, I love all the extras. I hope you enjoy Mistborn if you read it, and Elantris too if you get it ! I plan to read the Mistborn books later in the year, hopefully. 

 

Yay for finally getting The Rosie Effect in the mail! I hope you're enjoying it!!

I am ! Though I'm not enjoying it as much as the first book, there are a few things I have issues with. It's still enjoyable, though .

[Timstar]

Glad you enjoyed it, I haven't read any of the extra content (it's impossible to keep up with Brandon Sanderson) but I did enjoy the Mistborn series more than any other of his work so far.

[Athena]

Glad you enjoyed it, I haven't read any of the extra content (it's impossible to keep up with Brandon Sanderson) but I did enjoy the Mistborn series more than any other of his work so far.

 

That sounds good! I've heard a lot of praise for the Mistborn series, so I think I will like them too .

[Athena]

Graeme Simsion - Don Tillman 2: The Rosie Effect

 

 

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Age-range: Adult

Format: Paperback

Pages: 421

Date read: 21-02-2015 <-> 23-03-2015

ISBN: 9781405918060

Synopsis: (no synopsis because it's a sequel)

 

My thoughts: I absolutely loved book 1 in this series, The Rosie Project, it was one of my favourite books of 2014 (funnily enough, I read it in March 2014, so about a year ago!). I was very eager then to read the sequel. I waited until there was an edition of the book that matched my copy of The Rosie Project, in both size and cover (both paperbacks, of course.). With lots of people talking about this book, I really wanted to read it so even though I can't afford to spend much money on entertainment, I decided to buy the book because I really wanted to read it and own it. I started to read it on the day I got it in the post.

 

I had a bit of trouble getting into this book. For one, some people had spoiled some events in the book for me, and knowing about these things beforehand, made it less fun to read about. I don't like to be spoiled for a book (or a film, TV show or video game), if I ever intend to read (or watch or play) it. Anyway, I had a few other issues with the book, but I can't talk about them without revealing something that happens in book 1, so for those who would like to read book 1 and don't want to be spoiled, I'll be putting my thoughts in spoiler tags.

 

The following spoiler is for two things that happen in the first ~30 pages or so of the book.

 

SPOILERS FOR BEGINNING OF BOOK 2 START HERE

One problem I had was in the beginning of this book. I feel a whole lot of Rosie's and Don's problems could've been avoided, if they had just communicated better with one another, in an honest way. Rosie just kind of announces she's pregnant. She never asks Don if he wants it, what shall they do and such. I know abortion and giving the baby up for adoption are not such popular options depending on perhaps a person's religion, but I feel if they had discussed the issue of children before or just after Rosie got pregnant, there would have been less problems. I take issue anyway with in a book or film or TV show a woman getting pregnant when she's not taken birth control properly. I just can't understand how people can be so lax about these very important things (and that's coming from me, with ADD, with temporary memory problems. I guess I developed coping skills for such important things.). On the other hand, it takes two to tango and all that, so perhaps Don could've helped remind her to take the pill each time. Now though, she is pregnant but she never asks Don what they shall do or whether they shall have it. She just decides she'll have it which I find a bit selfish.

 

Also, the move to New York makes sense from a plot's point of view, but I feel the New York setting is a bit overdone in books (from what I've read) and one of the many things I liked about the first book was that it was set in Australia. I didn't feel the book really added much to having it take place in New York, and I feel it could've taken place at a different location also, such as another city in the United States somewhere.

SPOILERS END HERE

 

 

I had another few issues with the book, but again it'd be spoiling bits of the story, so don't read the spoiler if you intend to read books 1 and 2 of this series.

 

 

SPOILERS OF BOOK 2 START HERE

Another problem I had was with the lying. I personally don't understand why people in a relationship lie to one another, I find honesty very important, especially in a close relationship like a marriage. Their reasons make a little bit of sense, but no where near enough for me to really understand lying to one another rather than talking about their problems (which would have solved a lot of the problems). I can just tell that this lying and other bad decisions the characters are making, that it's going to go wrong in one way or another, and that makes me feel a bit like conflict for conflict's sake. It all makes sense because the plot moves forward but "it makes the plot move forward" is not a good reason for lying. I felt if Rosie and Don had just communicated with each other, openly and honestly, and very direct about what they want, feel and think, a lot of problems could've been avoided.

 

Also I couldn't stand the character of Lydia, in the first half of the book, mainly because of the restaurant scene. I liked her more later on in the book though, but during the first half or such I really didn't like her.

END OF SPOILERS

 

 

So the first half of the book was enjoyable but not as brilliant as I was expecting it to be. I think it's a case of having too high expectations of a book. After all the hype, other people who liked it and reviews I read in various places, I just didn't enjoy the first half as much as I did the first book. Being spoiled for some plot twists didn't help either.

 

But.. the second half was better. I didn't know anything about its plot twists and I generally found it to be the more enjoyable part of the book. As things came to an end I got a better feel of the characters, and on retrospect I liked most of the side characters and I thought they were generally pretty interesting. I also enjoyed what was going on with the side characters and their part in the overall story.

 

For the most part (other than the bits in the spoilers), I really enjoyed reading about Don's thinking. I loved the lists for example, that are in the book in several parts of the stories. I like the way he generally thinks and acts. It's sometimes funny. There was one situation in particular in the last quarter of the book, that I found quite comical and that was definitely one of the best parts of the book for me.

 

The writing style in the book was pretty good. There were a few slang words, but otherwise I quite liked the writing style. I particularly loved the lines from the book on certain comments Don gives or certain things he thinks.

 

Overall then I did enjoy reading the book, the second half more than the first half. Unfortunately being spoiled for some things hampered my enjoyment a bit, and I had a few other issues with the book that are in spoiler tags. The second half of the book though was more enjoyable and I liked most of the characters. Don is a pretty unique character and most of the time I loved reading about his way of thinking and the things he says to other people. I liked the side characters and their roles in the story for the most part too. In the end then I have to say that I enjoyed this book, just not as much as I had hoped beforehand. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first book (The Rosie Project) unfortunately. That said, I did enjoy reading this book and I think my issues with the book were mostly of a personal nature, it might not be things other people necessarily dislike.

 

Rating: (****) (8/10)

[Athena]

I downloaded a couple of free Kindle books recently:

 

S. J. Scott - Bad Habits No More: 25 Steps to Break Any Bad Habit

S. J. Scott - Exercise Every Day: 32 Tactics for Building the Exercise Habit (Even If You Hate Working Out)

T.C. Hale - Kick Your Fat in the Nuts - A Natural Guide to How Your Body Works and How to Work Your Body

[frankie]

Graeme Simsion 

 

I had a bit of trouble getting into this book. For one, some people had spoiled some events in the book for me, and knowing about these things beforehand, made it less fun to read about. I don't like to be spoiled for a book (or a film, TV show or video game), if I ever intend to read (or watch or play) it. Anyway, I had a few other issues with the book, but I can't talk about them without revealing something that happens in book 1, so for those who would like to read book 1 and don't want to be spoiled, I'll be putting my thoughts in spoiler tags.

 

Oh dear     I hope we/I didn't spoil anything for you in any of the threads?  

[Athena]

Oh dear     I hope we/I didn't spoil anything for you in any of the threads?

I think reviews on some book blogs I follow spoiled some things, and in a thread here there were spoilers (I think I might've read them in my email which always shows the spoilers but I'm not sure). I don't remember any names exactly nor which thread(s). I did my best to blot it all out and forget about it all but when I read the book it turned out I still remembered . I guess it's one occasion where my better-than-average long term memory and my worse-than-average short term memory, doesn't come in handy . Don't worry, I did enjoy the book, just not as much as I enjoyed the first one (which I read without knowing much about the plot other than the synopsis).

[pontalba]

A nice review, Gaia.  I will be reading the second Rosie book at some point, for sure. I have the first on kindle, but am on the outlook for a second hand paper copy, I think I'll eventually find one at the Library Sale. 

[Athena]

A nice review, Gaia.  I will be reading the second Rosie book at some point, for sure. I have the first on kindle, but am on the outlook for a second hand paper copy, I think I'll eventually find one at the Library Sale.

Thanks, I hope you will be able to find a paper copy and that you will enjoy it .

[Anna Begins]

Well, at least some parts were enjoyable.  It was a good review   By now, I feel like even I have read both books

[Athena]

Well, at least some parts were enjoyable.  It was a good review   By now, I feel like even I have read both books

Thanks ! Haha , I sometimes feel the same way about books you read that you tell me about .

[Signor Finzione]

Great review Gaia! Glad you enjoyed the book despite its flaws. I've never read any of this series as it's not really my cup of tea (not enough dragons and wizards ), but I really like the cover of The Rosie Effect - it's so neat and attractive.

[BSchultz19]

Great review! I agree with some of the points you made about the book. It was almost hard to believe how terrible the relationship was in the book. Almost unrealistic because of how easily certain things could have been avoided. I kept  the whole time because things could have been done so much simpler. 

 

I'm glad you enjoyed the second part of the book better. I did as well, and I thought it had a lot more irony and funny moments whereas in the first part there was a lot of I don't even know how to describe it other than "blah". I really like the cover of your edition! The one I read is much different and hardcover. 

[Athena]

Great review Gaia! Glad you enjoyed the book despite its flaws. I've never read any of this series as it's not really my cup of tea (not enough dragons and wizards ), but I really like the cover of The Rosie Effect - it's so neat and attractive.

Thanks! Haha ! Thanks, I really like the cover too . I specifically waited for this edition to be released, because it matches the cover and size of my edition of the first book in the series. 

 

Great review! I agree with some of the points you made about the book. It was almost hard to believe how terrible the relationship was in the book. Almost unrealistic because of how easily certain things could have been avoided. I kept  the whole time because things could have been done so much simpler. 

 

I'm glad you enjoyed the second part of the book better. I did as well, and I thought it had a lot more irony and funny moments whereas in the first part there was a lot of I don't even know how to describe it other than "blah". I really like the cover of your edition! The one I read is much different and hardcover.

Thanks! It's nice to hear read your opinion as well . I agree with what you say, it seems we have some similar feelings on the book . Thanks! I waited for this specific edition with this cover to be released as it matches the edition of book one that I have.

 

P.S. I'll be posting a review now.

[Athena]

Nina Rauprich - Lena is Anders (Lena ist Anders) (re-read)

 

(note: yes, that's my Easter tablecloth, a gift from my mum)

 

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Paranormal * (contains some spiritual elements)

Age-range: Young-Adult

Format: Paperback

Pages: 107

Date read: 24-03-2015

ISBN: 9789060697566

Synopsis (back of the book, loosely translated by me): Lena loves to walk around barefeeted in the wet grass in the morning. Only when she is alone she feels right and then she can think. Lena is different than others, a misfit. Her father Jens left for India just after she was born and she now lives alone with Inge, her mother. Inge lays tarot cards and believes in witches and reincarnation. But just because of that you don't need to be a witch yourself? When Lena becomes ill after reading about witch prosecutions in the Middle Ages, she has a dream that doesn't let go anymore...

 

My thoughts:

 

I wanted to read something short and familiar, because I planned to go to the library soon, and while I plan to get only short read-a-thon reads, I wanted to not be in the middle of a long book just in case I'd borrow a lot of nice longer books that aren't read-a-thon material, from the library. I haven't read this book in a long time, so I thought I'd re-read it now.

 

I quite liked re-reading this book. Before I started it, I didn't remember a whole lot about the book (I just remembered liking it) but a lot of it came back to me as I read it. I read this YA book when I was a young teenager, several times, but I haven't read it since then I believe. Every chapter starts with an illustration of a tarot card and is titled as such (no numbers, just the name of the card). I really liked the writing style of the book. It's translated from German into Dutch, the Dutch writing flows very well and reads so nicely.

 

I think I identified with the book because the main character, Lena, feels she is different from other teenagers. I thought she was a really interesting character. The other characters in the book are interesting too. I should point out that the book includes some spiritual elements and thoughts on certain subjects (such as reincarnation and witches), so for those who don't like that sort of thing, I wouldn't recommend this book. The book in essence, is about finding out who you are. Lena feels she is different from other people, and other people tell her so, too. Sometimes she likes this, sometimes she doesn't. While I might have different thoughts regarding these spiritual subjects than Lena the book was still very enjoyable. I have to say though my thoughts have changed over the years, and when I was a young teenager I was much more interested in these type of things. The book was still good though and I quite enjoyed re-reading it.

 

Overall then I quite enjoyed re-reading this book. It's well written and I like how the tarot plays a part in the story. While it's not a book for everyone I found it quite enjoyable and interesting. The book also contains some information on witch prosecutions back in earlier centuries, which was interesting to read (when Lena and her mother talk about these things).

 

Rating: (*****) (9/10)

[frankie]

I think reviews on some book blogs I follow spoiled some things, and in a thread here there were spoilers (I think I might've read them in my email which always shows the spoilers but I'm not sure). I don't remember any names exactly nor which thread(s). I did my best to blot it all out and forget about it all but when I read the book it turned out I still remembered . I guess it's one occasion where my better-than-average long term memory and my worse-than-average short term memory, doesn't come in handy . Don't worry, I did enjoy the book, just not as much as I enjoyed the first one (which I read without knowing much about the plot other than the synopsis).

 

This might be a silly question but why did you read the thread in an e-mail...? I didn't even know one can do that  

 

I'm glad you were still able to enjoy the book to some extent, even if not as much as you'd hoped!  

[Athena]

This might be a silly question but why did you read the thread in an e-mail...? I didn't even know one can do that  

 

I'm glad you were still able to enjoy the book to some extent, even if not as much as you'd hoped!

Thanks, I did enjoy the book !

 

Well I had subscripted to said thread, so when there is a new reply I get an email with the contents of the reply, sometimes when I'm not on the computer, I read the email instead of going behind the computer, particularly if it's turned off or I'm busy doing something else but I am sometimes curious what the reply is. Here is an email of an email (some links removed):

 

Athena,

 

frankie (http://www.bookclubforum.co.uk/community/index.php?/user/4458-frankie/) has just posted a reply to a topic that you have subscribed to titled "Athena's Reading List 2015".

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------

------------ QUOTE ----------

I think reviews on some book blogs I follow spoiled some things, and in a thread here there were spoilers (I think I might've read them in my email which always shows the spoilers but I'm not sure). I don't remember any names exactly nor which thread(s). I did my best to blot it all out and forget about it all but when I read the book it turned out I still remembered . I guess it's one occasion where my better-than-average long term memory and my worse-than-average short term memory, doesn't come in handy . Don't worry, I did enjoy the book, just not as much as I enjoyed the first one (which I read without knowing much about the plot other than the synopsis).

-----------------------------

 

 

This might be a silly question but why did you read the thread in an e-mail...? I didn't even know one can do that

 

I'm glad you were still able to enjoy the book to some extent, even if not as much as you'd hoped!

----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

The topic can be found here:

 

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email for each reply made to this topic. Otherwise, only 1 email is sent per board visit for each subscribed topic.

This is to limit the amount of mail that is sent to your inbox.

 

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Edited March 25, 2015 by Athena

[frankie]

Well I had subscripted to said thread, so when there is a new reply I get an email with the contents of the reply, sometimes when I'm not on the computer, I read the email instead of going behind the computer, particularly if it's turned off or I'm busy doing something else but I am sometimes curious what the reply is. Here is an email of an email (some links removed):

 

 

Ah! I don't subscribe to threads so I didn't know about the e-mails! So you read the e-mail on a smartphone? That makes sense, thanks for explaining  

[Athena]

Ah! I don't subscribe to threads so I didn't know about the e-mails! So you read the e-mail on a smartphone? That makes sense, thanks for explaining

Yes You're welcome!

[Athena]

I drove to the city today and bought a couple of books, and borrowed a lot of library books (mainly for the upcoming read-a-thon).

 

Terre des Hommes

Ally Condie - Matched 1: Matched: Laat Je Niet Meer Los... (Dutch) (ARC)

Antoine Galland, J.A. Sandfort and Sheherazade - Duizend En Een Nacht: De Vertellingen Van Sheherazade, Met Meer Dan Tweehonderd Gravures (this is a beautiful copy of the fairy tales)

 

Ex-library books

Esther Verhoef - Nouveau Riche & Andere Spannende Verhalen (I plan to read this for the next read-a-thon)

Margreet van Hoorn - Moederhart Omnibus 1-3: Morgen Zingen Alle Merels, In de Holte van je Hand, Uit Vrije Wil

 

Library Loans

Anne Frank - Het Achterhuis: Dagboekbrieven 12 juni 1934 - 1 augustus 1944 (I believe in the translated English version this is called The Diary of Anne Frank. I'm sure I've read fragments of it at school but I don't think I've ever read the full book, and I've been wanting to.)

Do van Ranst - Dina is Terug! Omnibus (Verre Vrienden en een Vlek; Boze Buren en Bikini's;Tranen van Stroop en Theater; Gedoe, Gedonder en een Wonder) (Flemish) (this book has a purple font, I've not seen that before)

Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton 13: Kaas Op Wielen (Un Camper Color Formaggio) (these and all the ones below are all read-a-thon reads)

Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton 52: De Schat van de Spookpiraat (Il Tesoro del Pirata Fantasma)

Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton 63: De Verloren Vampier (Un Vampiro Da Salvare!)

Geronimo Stilton - Oerknagers 1: Wie Heeft de Vuursteen Gestolen? (Via Le Zampe Dalla Pietra Di Fuoco!)

Geronimo Stilton - Oerknagers 4: Klaar voor de Start! (Per Mille Ossicini, Vai Col Brontosauro!)

Thea Stilton - Thea Stilton 9: New York in Rep en Roer (Grosso Guaio A New York)

Geronimo Stilton - Fantasia 5: Fantasia V (Quinto Viaggio Nel Regno Della Fantasia)

Liz Pichon - Tom Groot 4.5: Tom Groot Leest Zich Suf (Niet Dus) (Tom Gates 4.5: Best Book Day Ever!)

Chris Mould - Vreselijk Vreemde Verhalen 1: De Getijdenbrug (Something Wickedly Weird 1: The Wooden Mile)

Dee Shulman - Mijn Supergeheime Dagboek: Op het Toneel in Amerika (Polly Price's Totally Secret Diary: On Stage in America)

Rachel Renée Russell - Dork Diaries 1: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life

Lauren Child - Klaartje Boon 6: Klaartje Boon Spelt P.R.O.B.L.E.M.E.N (Clarice Bean 6: Clarice Bean Spells Trouble)

Sabine Zett - Hugo 2: Hugo's Masterplan (Dutch)

Sabine Zett - Hugo 3: Hugo Fikst Het (Hugo Hebt Ab!)

Francine Oomen - Hoe Overleef Ik... 1: Hoe Overleef Ik Mijn Vakantie?

Francime Oomen - Dit is Ezzie! (Ezzie's Dagboek en Ezzie's Wereld)

 

A photo of all the books:

 

[BSchultz19]

Thanks! Haha ! Thanks, I really like the cover too . I specifically waited for this edition to be released, because it matches the cover and size of my edition of the first book in the series. 

 

 

Thanks! It's nice to hear read your opinion as well . I agree with what you say, it seems we have some similar feelings on the book . Thanks! I waited for this specific edition with this cover to be released as it matches the edition of book one that I have.

 

P.S. I'll be posting a review now.

 

I agree, we have a lot of similar feelings about the book. I just almost never give a bad review about a book because I like them all so much even if there are some things I didn't like. All books are great!! Not saying that you don't feel that way, but I'm just very hesitant to give a bad rating.