Oh, no! I mixed up Roost with Brood!!! It’s BROOD I loved!!! So sorry!

I do remember liking it- looked up on goodreads and I gave it 4 stars.

Brood that is, not roost. :) Oly- I did the same. Read the word roost and figured it was the book I had read, looked at goodreads and saw it was brood.

It’s really weird that when i searched in B&N’s site by author, Ali Bryan’s other novels came up but not Roost. I thought that was odd. Thanks for all your searches. I’ll have to try our library, and meanwhile i have plenty to read.

I 've finished Their Eyes Were Watching G-d and I;m not really sure how I feel about it. Parts were very difficult to get into with the speech patterns taking a lot to get used to ( for me anyway).

Parts were really beautiful prose and it certainly had a storyline to it, but I just feel like I missed something. It's a very well regarded book and I am trying to give it more but it was a 3 star read. It is for book club which will meet in mid January so I'll be curious to see if I am alone in that opinion or not .

I think ithe story of the book and the author might be what makes it have more weight.

Curious if anyone has read it and what your opinions are.

My book club read The Lincoln Highway three months ago. I hotly disliked it. Not a quick read...576 pages......looooooong. I don't want to hang out with a character on meth. I found it disappointing. I also thought the ending was not what I wanted. I want an ending to feel satisfying...not bleak. I'd give it a 2.

For November we read Their Eyes Were Watching God. I remember years ago, Oprah Winfrey had Halle Berry on her show and asked her to play the leading role & Harpo Studios would produce it. She did. I had to almost sound out the Ebonics....I couldn't just read through it...like salonva said. But.....I did like it. Glad I read it. And....I like Tea Cake taking his wife fishing in the middle of the night.....having fun. On the other hand....it wasn't that interesting a read. I'd give it a 4 .

For January we're reading, Horse by Geraldine Brooks. It's well written, also what I'd call a period novel. I'm half way through it.

Hmm, my two favorite books that i read this year were The Lincoln Highway and Cloud Cuckoo Land. Looking forward to Horse.

I read Brood and thought it was just okay. We all like different things.

I usually agree with my sister on books. She did not like Lincoln Highway and until you posted, Nicole, I thought she was the only one who felt that way. One of my book clubs is reading it in 2023 so I will definitely give it a try. She just read Horse and said it was excellent.

You can add me to the small list of people who were not big fans of the Lincoln Highway. Though there were definitely some beautifully written passages, I just did not find the story line that compelling, nor did I like having to suspend disbelief as often as I did. I did think the younger brother was endearing, but the other characters not so very likeable. @User I also thought the ending was disappointing. I think I gave it 3 stars.

I really enjoyed Horse, and initially liked how the two storylines were intertwined, but eventually thought one of the present day plot points began to distract from the overall theme of the novel and wished the book stayed more focused on the art work and horse skeleton. I don't want to say more and reveal anything, but I appreciated learning about the contribution of slaves and former slaves within the early days of horse racing. This was one of my favorite books of the year.

I think I've read 5-6 books since my last update but only one that is worth discussing, The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams. It was slow moving and at times a little bleak, but I found the historical background of the book intriguing. The plot seemed well researched, and picked up pace in the second half, but could have had better character development. The end was well done. 4 stars

Somehow I've managed to find all the bleak and depressing books this month because my current book also has a bleak setting, Gilded Mountain by Kate Manning. The plot piqued my interest as it is set in a mining town in Colorado at the turn of the 20th century. My grandfather emigrated to the U.S. alone at 18 around this time and worked in a Colorado mining town. We have no information on this part of his life but this novel sheds a little light on what life was like for miners back then. It is interesting so far.

@salonva..About Lincoln Highway. There's 14 people in my book club. 2 people really liked it, 12 of us not so much. I felt I was being dragged through the mud with low lifes. I like inspiring, analytical books....happy endings. I love a success story. I have a genre I'm drawn to.

@User I didn't care for Lincoln Highway either, too long, didn't like the ending. @4kids4us Totally suspending of disbelief. Finding needles in haystacks. I know lots of folks who loved it. One of my best friends did and she didn't like A Gentleman in Moscow, one of my 5 favorite books of all time.

This brings up an interesting point for discussion. (FWIW, I liked The Lincoln Highway, but thought A Gentleman in Moscow was a better book.)

I often prefer books that don't have happy endings: give me dark and complex! That's not to say that a happy ending can't be part of a good, complex novel, but in general I don’t feel the need to be uplifted when I read. Just give me interesting characters and, above all, good prose. What do you all prefer?

@Bookwoman....Remember the book The Time Travelers Wife? I loved that book! It made me think...what if...and what if....and OH I get that. It put me in a realm where I ordinarily would not be...or could not think up on my own. I was intrigued by the possibilities.

Well, I'm quite partial to dysfunctional family books, lol. I guess I find family interactions fascinating, good, as well as bad ones. How people become who they are, etc. But my #1 preference is for books with beautiful writing. I love to read sentences, phrases, descriptions that are words put together perfectly in a way I could never do, or have never seen anyone else do. The perfect simile, metaphor or analogy stops me in my tracks to reread and consider HOW the author thought to describe something in that perfect way. I swoon sometimes (The Offing, for example). For me it's almost always more about the journey to the end of the book, rather than the destination that I care about.

Bookwoman, I feel the same way, comparing the two books. The Lincoln Highway had too many unbelievable occurrences to me. A Gentleman in Moscow was and is one of my all-time favorite books.

But my #1 preference is for books with beautiful writing. I love to read sentences, phrases, descriptions that are words put together perfectly in a way I could never do, or have never seen anyone else do.

East of Eden

As for happy endings, if it turns out that way and it's believable and in keeping with the story and the characters, I'm all on board for happy endings. But not when it's forced. I prefer honest denouements. I don't care for reading for pleasure about dysfunctional relationships unless something good and noble results. I find so much of life around me to be dysfunctional that I crave anything but.

The Winners by Fredrik Backman.

LOL @olychick I also read a lot of books about dysfunctional families! I guess I find reading about complicated relationships interesting. I read a lot of different genres, but my favorite books are typically those with "beautiful" writing as described by olychick.

I don't need happy endings. But I do want a satisfying ending, which can be heartbreaking or happy, but it really just depends on what the story is about. I don't want things wrapped up too neatly in the end if it makes the conclusion seem trite.

I read The Lincoln Highway too long ago to remember exactly what I didn't like about the ending, but I don't think it had to do with what happens to one of the characters but rather I think I wanted more of ending for the brothers? I could be misremembering, but that's what I vaguely remember.

A Gentleman in Moscow is one of my favorite books as well, so perhaps I had higher hopes for Lincoln Highway.

I finished Bitter Orange, a book by Claire Fuller. She wrote Unsettled Ground, which I enjoyed. I would describe this book as a psychological/gothic/mystery novel, with a surprise ending that I didn't see coming. High 3, low 4.

faftris, I just finished Fuller's Our Endless Numbered Days, since I also enjoyed Unsettled Ground. It's the story of a young girl who is taken by her mentally unbalanced, survivalist father to live in the woods for years, telling her that the world has come to an end and they're the only ones left. It could have used some editing, but is psychologically quite interesting, especially at the end. The 'tone' of her books, for lack of a better word, can be mesmerizing. That said, I thought Unsettled Ground was a better book.

Bookwoman, my reading preferences vary with whats going on in my life. I started Shuggie Bain but just could not take a sad story right now. I put that aside and started Maid . Im only a few pages in but it got good reviews and is described as heartwarming, which is what i need now.

I find that books and movies really affect my mood. The movie Banshees of Inisherin had me depressed for days, despiebeing touted as a dark comedy. Yes to dark.

Dedtired, while I agree that Shuggie Bain was very, very sad, I thought that the writing was wonderful, and I couldn't put it down. My DD couldn't get through it. It was well deserving of the Booker, and I was disappointed that it was not chosen for the National Book Award. If you thought that novel was difficult, don't read A Little Life, which was one of the most disturbing books I have ever come across, but equally well-written and compelling.

Bookwoman, I saw that my library has Our Endless Numbered Days shelved with the mysteries. I volunteer there on Wednesdays, and I am going to grab it. Thanks for the heads-up.

I remember liking Unsettled Ground. I don't remember it too clearly now, but I know it was about quite the dysfunctional situation though overall still a good book. I read Shuggie Bain, and also thought it was really good but so upsetting. It was sort of worth it, but I remember feeling that it was overall so bleak and troubling that I would only recommend it with some warnings.

The Maid was one of those that on balance I would say was a lot more uplifting.

I will read some depressing books, but some of them really can affect me a bit too strongly so I like to at least have a balance, and even prefer uplifting.

Eleanor Oliphant, Queenie Hennessy, are two examples that were definitely not full of sunshine and happiness but overall for me had warmth and even I would say a positive note to them.(Two of my favorites , though when I just think about Queenie I can start crying).

We call it Book Stress . Demon Copperhead popped up on my Libby. I had a hold at the library, and when I was there, I saw a physical copy of Afterlives on the shelf. All three are "two-weekers". Such problems, LOL.

I finished Roost. 2 stars. You're better off reading Brood.

What was the point? Aside from some true-to-life downsides of motherhood and singlehood, and whatever gets in our way of experiencing utter bliss and perfection. I kept waiting for whatever it was--the point?--to emerge. If it did, I missed it. It wasn't that it was poorly written, but I didn't much care for any of the characters. The 2-year-old annoyed me no end. I clearly wasn't the target audience for this book.

I finished Horse by Geraldine Brooks. It tells three stories One ending let me down and was so profound, so earth shattering, it literally took over the book, making the whole book seem like a past unimportant memory.

Although I did like the writing style in Roost, I have to agree with you Bunny that as I kept reading it, I wasn't sure of the point. The book ended, and I still wasn't sure what the point was and it left me hanging a bit because I was expecting more, as in a conclusion. I did find some parts to be pretty funny though and laughed out loud. Which doesn't happen with me very often. Yeah, the 2-year old was kind of mean wasn't she?

In an earlier post this month, Salvona mentioned "popular author" Coleen Hoover. The name was new to me so I sought her out for my next book. Ugly Love had nearly 96,000 ratings on A and it was available at the library so I settled down for a good read. Perhaps it got better, but I couldn't endure another painful "Rachel, Rachel, Rachel" moaned by a besotted Miles for one more chapter. I clicked "Delete" and at least my pain was over.

To be clear, Salvona didn't recommend Hoover. She rated the book she read and commented she wouldn't be seeking out other books from the author. That makes two of us.

I had never heard of Hoover either, until an article in the NYT a few months ago (this link should work for everyone): https://tinyurl.com/mr7bsfkb

@juneroses Z9a Cntrl Fl, that was one of the best reviews I have read.

I just started The Lady and the Unicorn, by Tracy Chevalier, and felt the same as I thwacked it shut. I only recently started relying on the library (I know, I know) and one of the biggest thrills is being able to abandon books that just aren't my cup of tea.

I really liked Geraldine Brooks' Horse and thought I remembered it. But I've blanked out the earth shattering storyline ending nicole reacted to, and since it was a library borrow, I guess I won't remember. I recall researching the actual horse and I think the only thing that would have shattered me would have been an unhappy ending for him.

I love "first contact" sci-fi books and just discovered the author Peter Crawdon. He's an independent author, which is usually code for "poorly written", but not in this case! Each of his first contact books are stand-alone and so, so good. I especially have enjoyed Cold Eyes and Whereever Seeds May Fall.

@barncatz funny you forgot the ending of Horse as I did also! My mother mentioned recently she read the book so we were talking about it on Christmas Eve. I only remembered that I was disappointed at how that particular storyline distracted from the other historical plot line. My mom reminded me how it ended, so I understand what @User was referring to in her review above. I think I sort of hinted at it in my earlier post but did not want to give away the ending for those who are reading or plan to read it. I'm sure you could look up the synopsis to refresh your memory, if you so desire.

I have never read a Colleen Hoover book. I've seen them discussed enough in various reading groups I belong to that I knew they would not appeal to me.

@dimac83, the entire book felt like the jury was out and I gave it the benefit of the doubt that all the loose ends would come together. The book just ended. I turned the page and it was the Acknowledgements section. I once had a two-year-old daughter and she was not mean like this one.

Why was it called Roost? The wallpaper border strip of roosters?

@jewelisfabulous..that sounds pretty good! I have a terrible cold & need a good book to put me to sleep. I'll look into those. Update...library doesn't have that author. Any other good sci fi out there?

Bunny (I don't know how to highlight your name), I thought the loose ends would come together too. I was also surprised to turn the page and see it was the Acknowledgments section - lol - but I knew the book was coming to an end because of the 'progress line' at the bottom of my ereader. That's the only way I knew the book was almost finished. lol I thought we would find out exactly what was wrong with her father and what ultimately happened with him, or even what happened with the main character. I don't know why it was called roost. Yeah maybe the strip of roosters, and her taking it down...

Hmmm, I may have to give Roost a try. I really enjoyed Brood. Her writing reminded me of another favorite, Abigail Thomas. I just re-read The Light of the World. I realized a few pages in, "Oh, wait, I've read this," but found it so enjoyable, I continued. It's a memoir by Elizabeth Alexander, who was a prof at Yale, (now at Columbia I think). Her Eritrean husband, a larger than life, wonderful man, died unexpectedly just days after his 50th birthday. This is their story, but somehow it's not overwhelmingly sad so much as it was just lovely to have a view into this wonderful man's life. I also just started State of the Union by Nick Hornby, which already has some great humor in it -something I almost never find well done. I finished Meredith Alone, and thought it was a quiet, enjoyable book, 3.5 stars. I've started Demon Copperhead. Barbara Kingsolver's writing is always so good, but I'm not quite hooked by the story yet.

I am about 75 pages into Demon Copperhead, and I am enjoying it so much. It's 645 pages, so I've had to put aside the knitting. Happy 2023, everybody. Here's to a year of many joyful reading days and evenings. There was an article in the NYT about how reading novels helps your brain function. I hope that's true!

I recommend Trust, Hernan Diaz. Be patient. All shall be revealed. 3.5 Stars. (Would have awarded more, but there's a bit too much meandering outside the central theme.)

Michael Connelley's latest Bosch adventure is as good as ever, but without enough Joe Pike to suit me. Will there be another Bosch after Desert Star? I'mnot so sure. 3 Stars.

@Bestyears Roost and Brood are nothing alike, different authors. The thing is, some of us confused the titles. I just read a bunch of Goodreads reviews and some folks said it was hilarious. They laughed, they cried. I didn't do either. YMMV

Halfway thru the Norwegian series by Jo Nesbo, featuring Detective Harry Hole. Just got the last 5 books yesterday (used), just in time. Really good reads. Best to read in order.

I'm almost halfway through You Don't Belong Here: How Three Women Rewrote the Story of War. It's really good and I'm learning a lot as by the time I was old enough to pay attention to the Vietnam War, it was already in full swing and I never really understood the how we got here and what it was all about. And the story of the women is amazing...

Nicole___ -- Another couple of excellent first contact books are Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (rumor is that it's going to be made into a movie!) and The Peacemaker's Code by Malhotra. Both are just excellent and make me wish I could read them again for the first time!

I love Project Hail Mary and I listened to it as an audiobook from Audible. The narrator is wonderful, the main character in particular is voiced in such a believable way.

There's no release date for the Project Hail Mary movie, but I do see that Ryan Gosling has been cast as Grace!

I finished Murder and Mayhem in Manayunk and overall. I committed to reading it before I looked up anything- so it has like maybe 20 ( if that) reviews/ratings which is normally a red flag for me. Then of course, not available through tthe library but I did spring for the $1.99 for kindle.

Anyway, it was a real spy type thriller, based in Philadelphia with tons of local references. Mostly I did enjoy it and although not great literature (and really poor proofreading as well as typesetting it that's what it's called?) it was very entertaining and consuiming. Towards the end though, I was very ready for it to be done. I gave it 3 stars but if there were half star ratings I would say a solid 2,5

So I have finished out my year and will look forward to the 2023 threads. So much on my to be read list........ Happy reading everyone.

Some books coming in 2023:

I Have Some Questions For You (Rebecca Makkai, author of The Great Believers)

Crook Manifesto (Colson Whitehead--looks like a sequel to Harlem Shuffle)

Tom Lake (Ann Patchett)

For fans of Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese, he has a new book finally coming out in May called The Covenant of Water.

@faftris thanks for mentioned those upcoming releases. I have read orher novels by all three of those authors so will look for their latest novels in 2023.

as well as typesetting it that's what it's called?

Alas, there's no more actual typesetting except for some private press books. It's now just digital formatting. And don't get me started on the abysmal state of proofreading and copy editing, even at the big publishing houses. But it's especially bad in self-published books.

Yes Bookwoman- I am really not a stickler but when it's a spy novel and someone is going ROGUE but they spell it rouge- true story. Countless others and when a new chapter began, the first letter of the first word was omitted. And yes it was for sure self published. I know it's a whole new world.

Several years ago, like maybe 10 or so? DD1 wrote a book (she was in a MFA program for writing) and part of the process was actually getting publishers. It was really an accomplishment and at the time I think it was the only way to go. So, I do recognize now that anyone can have a book for sale on Amz

Details! :)