My book club pick this month is Finding Freedom, a memoir by Erin French. She has what is apparently a famous restaurant in Maine, but I've never heard of it or her. The book chronicles her struggles with addiction and freeing herself from an abusive relationship. It was ok but not particularly well written; I think she should stick to cooking. I did find her love of food and hospitality very relatable and she's accomplished a great deal against bad odds. I was hungry almost the whole time I was reading it.

I'm reading Alex Trebek's autobiography.

Alex Trebek The Answer is........

I'm really enjoying it, it's a light read. He's done a lot of things over the years, always on tv. He's very witty, doesn't smoke, drink or do drugs. And he's a heck of a handyman. He believes strongly in thinking things through and working it out. He'd rather learn how to do something and do it himself.

He completely re-did his wife's bathroom. And he said they have a 3-car garage with no cars in it because it's full of tools. He has every tool and power tool imaginable.

I finished The Gown. 3 stars. I don't belong to a book club.

It was slow at first, setting up the character development, but there really wasn't that much revealed about them. Miriam had lost her family in the Holocaust and was in a camp herself, but the author seems to assume the readers can fill in the blanks as to the impact on her life. Aside from a couple of the male characters (i.e., Walter and Daniel), there isn't a lot of warmth or depth to anyone.

One thing bothered me towards the beginning of the book and I just couldn't get past it. Heather's mom (Ann's daughter) wasn’t even sure if Hughes was Ann’s maiden name. That's seems totally ridiculous and implausible to me.

I did enjoy the parts about making the wedding gown and the wedding day activities. I watched some black and white film of the royal wedding on YouTube.

It's a shame that England still suffered so much two years after the war had ended.

@Feathers11 I had a copy of Migrations but the DH needed a book and I handed him that one. He initially proclaimed that he didnt live it but now, 6-9 months later he still talks about and says he misjudged it. It has really stayed with him. I will have to get it from the library again.

I am reading The Overstory by Richard Powers. Not sure yet, it was highly recommended to me, so I am plugging away.

On my daily walks I pass a good number of Little Free Libraries, and I usually stop to see if there’s something interesting. Today I was happy to see our Virgil Wander making the rounds.

I am listening to Richard Paul Evans new book "The Christmas promise". I had to start it again since I don't remember anything about the last 7 chapters I heard. So far this is the worse book he has writing, I am just not getting into it at all. :^ ( I am am also reading

Hooked: How crafting saving my life by Sutton Foster it's Good so far.

Localeater, I'm about 1/3 way through, and it's getting better. My sister advised me to stick with it. I'm glad your DH enjoyed it.

I didn't read anything for about a week,; just needed a break. Yesterday I started Blacktop Wasteland. I typically have no idea what any book is about when I start it but mostly just go by hearing recommendations and goodreads ratings. So this is a good book so far, but I think it's another one that is not the most pleasant or uplifiting ( so far) and I have had more than enough of those. I will see how it goes. In the very beginning I thought about ditching it but it's a good read.

I liked Shuggie Bain quite a lot, but that was so horribly depressing. As I said, I had a long run of those and while they were very good, sometimes enough is enough!!

Olychick, thanks so much for recommending The Guncle! Just as you said it is warm and tender and very, very funny.

Particularly given the bad-horror-movie Omicron news (monster rises again), this is a wonderful way to escape virtually for a little while.

Running, glad you enjoyed it! I sure did, too.

Salon, I wouldn’t characterize Blacktop Wasteland as uplifting. It‘s good for the genre it is, but may not be what you’re looking for.

I just finished The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (like really JUST THIS MINUTE finished it). It was Incredibly moving and sad. I started with the earliest English translation--not recommended--too literally done and difficult to follow, but I found the Everyman edition of 2005, and was enthralled. I give it a high 4. I have tickets for an opera that is based on the book, and I think imusic will lend itself perfectly to the emotional story.

I'm thisclose to finishing The Lager Queen of Minnesota, Stradal. Charming, and not as 'shallow' as it first appears, but the author is no Jane Smiley. It could have used tighter editing -- a bit of a slog just past the middle before it picked up. I could red pencil 100 pages. My MIL was raised in the state, a daughter of Danish immigrants. The characters are spot on. (Virgil Wander mined some of the same territory...and better.)

Next up is The Glass Hotel, Mandel. DH was impressed -- 4 stars from him.

One of our biggest concerns about Covid is how our wonderful library will be able to function! Last winter they were able to lend 'remotely'. We could order titles and pick them up in bags from the front lobby.

I’m about halfway thru Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead. I’m losing interest and finding it a bit hard to keep the characters straight.

Well I was "enjoying" Blacktop Wasteland but the last maybe 5 or 10% was a struggle for me to continue.

It was a very gruesome, raw, but interesting read for the most part. As I mentioned, I don't think I would have chosen it had I known much about it but once I started, it did draw me in. It also has very good ratings on goodreads ( over 4) so that pushed me to continue but I have to say that several times while reading it, I wondered why I was continuing.

It lost me towards the end though and I plodded along to finish it. I would give it 2 to 3 stars. It was well written but I felt like it was too much work at the end.

Well, I finished The Lincoln Highway (Amor Towles) several days ago. I had to think about the rating and finally decided it’s a 3.5-4. It’s definitely not up there with A Gentleman in Moscow. I mostly enjoyed it but parts of the story are so unbelievable it took away from the overall satisfaction with the story. It was an interesting view of Americana in the early 50’s and included a road trip with some funny moments. However how in the world some young kids could find each other in New York City so easily was hard to believe. I think someone else here mentioned this in their review. I thought it was an interesting way of counting down the chapters as if something significant or ominous was about to happen.

I am now halfway through David Baldacci’s newest thriller, Mercy, which followed an FBI agent’s search for her long-missing twin sister.

DH loved Lincoln Highway and passed it on to my best friend, who also loved it. Eventually it will get passed on to me.

I spent time perusing this list tonight — thought some of you might be intetested, too.

https://apps.npr.org/best-books/#view=covers&year=2021

Yesterday I finished The Whistling Season and I liked it a lot. 4+ stars. Thanks to those of you who recommended it. It took me a little bit to get into and then I was hooked. I think it was when the schoolteacher ran off with the fire and brimstone preacher and Morrie stepped in to take over. I liked the perspective of the late middle-aged Paul telling the story about his 13-year-old self. The ending has a twist, and early on I suspected there would be one, but I was wrong about the nature of it. I'm not sure it was necessary, but the rest of the book was so good, I didn't care that much.

I don't remember who recommended The Whistling Season but I loved it too. I have since suggested it for 2 book clubs I am in, and in each one, everyone loved it. It was such a sweet book. Another one that I loved, This Tender Land. To be honest, I think a very appealing feature of these is that they are so in another time , so different from today.

I just started reading Crow Lake

by Mary Lawson. It was available on kindle from the library this morning, and so far so good.

I remember raving about the Whistling Season a couple of years ago when my book group read it and others have mentioned liking it, too. I loved it so much and I also adored Tender Mercies. One thing I especially liked about them both was that they were told in boys' voices and from their perspective, but had a soft and reflective aspect that appeals to me very much. I felt the same about The Offing.

Well I am back to report that I finished Crow Lake earlier today. I stayed in today which was a beautiful day- to read it. It was that good. It was beautifully written, and I think the story was just so good. I rate it 5 stars and I do think it would be great for a book club.

This was the author's first book, but was written in 2003 and she has since written a few others. I will definitely be looking to read more from her.

goodreads link to the book

I'm finally getting around to reading Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, which by chance was on TV last night.

'

Too early to rate except it's slow as molasses.

I read Crow Lake years ago ,probably shortly after it came out ,and remember really loving it . Agree on the 5 Star. I immediately searched out her other one that was available at that time, Roads End which I also remember really liking. Just checked my library and see that she has a new one out this year A Town called Solace. All copies in use . Gets a 4 star rating at my library.

Her books are slow moving which might not be to everyone's liking.

I made myself read to the end of Catriona Ward's The Last House on Needless Street. I shouldn't have wasted my time -2 stars. Unless you really like the bizarre, don't.

Then I read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. A great book with a wicked twist. 4.5 stars

I finished Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy. My GFs are big fans, but I think it's ok...this book at 600 pgs took awhile to draw me into the characters to care enough, and it ended up like a Peyton Place kind of thing. I'd give it 3+ stars and too long and not enough meat for book group.

Annie - Circle of Friends is also a movie.

I just started one of my Christmas gifts last night: The Last Flight by Julie Clark. I barely read any of it because I was exhausted and fell asleep fast. It's about two women who switch lives after meeting at an airport and swapping tickets. One dies in a plane crash.

Kathsgrdn - I just ordered your book, The Last Flight. Can't wait to read it!!

Speaking of authors from yore...I just ordered a book with 3 stories from Charlotte Armstrong. She won an Edgar for one of her mystery novels and several were made into movies back in the day...

I've finished Great Circle, Maggie Shipstead. Engrossing. 4 Stars. It's very long. It's very sad. I would not have missed the movie star holding the role of 'present day character', but she's vital to the ending. I would have liked a bit more on the earlier characters. Sometimes the pilot's story seems overly detailed, but I think it is necessary for our understanding of this *driven* character.

I don't think I reported on Alam's Leave The World Behind. I'd say 3 stars (fewer than many reviewers). I haven't read him before and think he can do better.

I read several average books this month, only one that atood out but it was a novella (didn't realize that b/c I read it on my kindle)

The Other Passenger by Louise Candlish. A thriller/mystery that had a fairly decent plot but was lacking some necessary character development. 3.5 stars

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard. This book is set in the early days of the covid pandemic so that was kind of weird as a setting, but it was not a big part of the story. I really enjoyed Howard's The Nothing Man which I thought was excellent for its genre (mystery/suspense). 56 Days, however, was disappointing. 2 stars.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan. This was a beautifully written novella that ended a bit abruptly. I was longing for more. Set in Ireland in the 80s, it is about a hardworking father who ends up witnessing something heartbreaking in the days leading up to Christmas, and sets about trying to help. 4 stars.

The People We Keep by Allison Larkin. I may have already noted this book in this December thread. This one got good reviews on Goodreads and from a friend who typically likes the same books as I do, but this one fell flat for me. 2 stars.

I hope to finish 1-2 more books before year's end. i'm listening to The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths, a gothic mystery set in England. It's a decent listen while out walking my dog.

I think my next Kindle read will be Beasts of a Little Land by by Juhea Kim. Set during the Korean independence movement in the early 1900s, it "follows the intertwined fates of a young girl sold to a courtesan school and a penniless orphan she meets begging on the streets of Seoul."

I made the mistake of reading Leave the World Behind last spring, and I had to stop because the subject matter was too disturbing in light of the pandemic. I went back and agree, a 3 if that. I am reading The Whistling Season right now, on salonva's rec. Enjoyable; reminds me a tiny bit of The Offing, but not as wonderful. I have a slew of things that I got at the library yesterday--can you be a library shopaholic-- and DD1 came with an armful on Christmas, just in case I needed something. One was a new translation of The Odyssey by Emily Wilson. I have decided to treat it as if I am in college, one chapter a day. No need to rush. It's going to be a long winter! Have a happy new year everybody. See you in "What are you reading, January edition"!

I didnt feel like reading anything very deep, so last week I raced though the latest Stephanie Plum escapade, Game On, Tempting Twenty-Eight (Janet Evanovich) and then Craig Johnson’s Daughter of the Morning Star, the last in the current Walt Longmire series. Both fast, enjoyable books. I have Liane Moriarity’s Apples Never Fall queued up to read but haven't started it yet. I’ve been on a movie roll the last couple of days.

Outside, thank you for reminding me...I haven't read a Plum book in a long time...I so enjoy them...light, funny, a little adventure all rolled up with such a cast of characters.

Oakley - I love Pillars of the Earth!!

Lucky you Oakley!

For me one of the biggest charms of Follett's Knightsbridge series, including Pillars of the Earth, is that slow, immersive reading experience. The books are so good at transporting one into a time, a place and a group of people that are both so distant and so similar to our own.

Has anyone read The Reading List? Any comments? It's a January book club selection and I'm planning to start it today. Has good Amazon ratings but I'd not heard of it till it was picked.

It has a high rating on goodreads too...sounds like a nice book. Let us know next month how you liked it!

I never heard of The Reading List but also saw very good ratings on goodreads. It's a bit too new for my bookclubs where we try to get books that are readily available in the libraries.

I just started The Shadow of the Wind for book club. I had never heard of it but it's really captivating. It's translated from Spanish and is actually reminding me a bit of Love in the Time of Cholera, which I loved ,with the writing. It's not an easy read, but it's very good.

I just read The Reading List and liked it. I'd say 4 stars out of 5. I can see a good book group discussion with it.

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain details the story behind a disappearance in a small southern town during the 1940s. 4 stars. Elements in the story could be used for discussion in a book group.

OK, Olychick, I'll add it to my list if I can remember to do it.

If I forget, feel free to add it to your comment in the thread.

You guys keep me busy around here! I have the rabbit rabbit and the bury the money this month too along with the daily smiles and daily photos! Phew!!!

But typically, if I look search for "month year Edition" I can find the old threads...

Annie, you sure are depended upon here! ( I guess you can't really say you are retired because you have these jobs....) and we appreciate you.

I know where Oly is coming from because sometimes I can't remember where I heard of a particular book and try searching on the past threads here. Sometimes the search works, but mostly it's wonky. I just saw your post and thought I'd try that, thinking that would bring up the requested threads. I am with Oly in that the search here is not reliable in any way.

Not just for this reading thread, but for most other queries. I don't know if it's the browser I am using? ( I use chrome).

Anyway I would love for the link to prior thread to be included . As long as we know it won't be frowned upon, one of us can try to do that each month.

Certainly won't be frowned upon! I'm happy for whatever anyone wants to do...in fact if someone wanted to take over this thread, that'd be great.

I don't view any of these regular threads as "mine"...rather they are ours.

If I remember correctly, these threads used to be more spontaneous and someone would start one each month when they wanted to post about a book. It wasn't always the same person, but then you started doing it every month and everyone else just backed off and assumed you would do it (which has been nice for the rest of us). If you want to stop, you should just stop and I suspect others would be willing to pick up the slack. Maybe not the same person each month, maybe not on the first day of each month, but I think enough of us enjoy the threads that if we want to post and a thread hasn't been started, we will start one.

Annie, I also want to say a heartfelt THANK YOU!!!!

As noted, it's so easy when someone quietly takes on a task to assume it's handled and simply enjoy the results.

Your grace in managing this has been so deeply appreciated, I have found some amazing books I'd never have read without seeing them on this topic.

If I can help, add me to the virtual list LOL!

Oly, that's such a good idea! I can't tell you how often I do a deep dive looking for previous months' threads. It's especially useful when there's a discussion about a book in one month, but you finish it in another. Meanwhile the original thread is floating back in time. Or you read a book that was discussed several months ago and now you want to compare your thoughts with other posters. Generally I want to know as little as possible about a book before I read it, other than the very basics and whether or not it gets good reviews.

Thanks to Annie for starting new threads!

Thanks to everyone who participates! These threads right here have been the best sources of book recommendations, stuff I probably wouldn't have otherwise heard about.

I'm squeaking in one last review since I inhaled the book-Norar, I give The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams the same rating as you: 4/5.

It was a charming, moving book and once I began I quickly was drawn into the story and more importantly the characters. A book about the community that reading creates, the way that a good book can transport you while grounding you in great truths about people and life...how can a passionate reader NOT love this one?!

My only minor quibble is that it's somewhat similar in plot and characters to some other books I've read-Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows comes to mind.

But overall, highly recommend The Reading List. I found it as a book club assignment and actually volunteered to lead the discussion because I think it's perfect for this purpose!

As per my suggestion above about linking previous months in new reading posts, I thought I'd add last month's. It literally took me 30 minutes to find that thread, even going back page by page, I couldn't find it. So, after I finally found it, I thought I'd add it and if Annie or whomever starts the January thread would add a link to the December thread, we'll have some previous reading threads linked. I might try to go back and add links to previous threads if I can find them. eta: I finally hit on a search term/method that brought up the old threads, so I linked through June of 2021. I'm still snowed in, so I might try to finish out 2021 and get them all linked in the previous month's threads while I have the time and inclination. I hope others find this helpful for looking back at recommendations or their own reviews.

November 2021 What are you reading?

Bumping this up above the other reading threads so people aren't too confused.