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  • Elizabeth1959
    Elizabeth1959 Member Posts: 346
    edited June 2011

    I just finished hotel on the corner of Bitter and Sweet: A novel by James Ford. It is a love story about a Chinese American boy and a Japanese American girl set in Seattle during WWII. The story is told through the voice of both the teenage Henry and the 50+ year adult henry. it is romantic yet bittersweet. The description of the Internment of the Japanese Americans is historically interesting. I had a professor in.college who spent part of her childhood in a camp. I highly recommend this book



    elizabeth

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  • Elizabeth1959
    Elizabeth1959 Member Posts: 346
    edited June 2011

    I just finished hotel on the corner of Bitter and Sweet: A novel by James Ford. It is a love story about a Chinese American boy and a Japanese American girl set in Seattle during WWII. The story is told through the voice of both the teenage Henry and the 50+ year adult henry. it is romantic yet bittersweet. The description of the Internment of the Japanese Americans is historically interesting. I had a professor in.college who spent part of her childhood in a camp. I highly recommend this book



    elizabeth

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  • ktym
    ktym Member Posts: 2,637
    edited June 2011

    Loved the Twilight series (couldn't take the book out of the house though since the library had a big "teen romance" sticker on the spine of the book)

    Corner of Bitter and Sweet was very good

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  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,891
    edited June 2011

    kmmd- LOL!

    I agree, loved Hotel on The Corner of Bitter and Sweet.

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  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 57,235
    edited June 2011

    I read the Twilight series because I teach middle school & thought I should know what all the girls were talking about. I was pleasantly surprised by the books (but not enough to see the movies). I liked 'The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo' but was tired of the series by the time I got to the third book and just skimmed through it. Right now, I am coming to the end of Barbara Kingsolver's 'The Lacuna'....I have laborously slogged through it.....I didn't care for 'The Poisonwood Bible' either, so I must just not like her writing style.

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  • ktym
    ktym Member Posts: 2,637
    edited June 2011

    ruthbru, I couldn't get through the Poisonwood Bible either.  So many people liked it and raved about Lacuna I almost picked it up to try.  Almost, I really thought trying to get through poisonwood was torture.  Sounds like I'm glad I didn't pick it up afterall

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  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 57,235
    edited June 2011

    Torture would be a word I'd use for 'The Lacuna' also. The only reason I finished it was because it the pick of the month for my book club. It will be interesting to hear what the other ladies have to say. I am going to start 'Cleopatra-A Life' today.

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  • AnneW
    AnneW Member Posts: 4,050
    edited June 2011

    Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is our local bookclub selection this week. I found the story sweet, but the writing turned me off. So, it was truly bitter and sweet for me!

    Loved Poisonwood Bible but could not handle her Prodigal Summer, and I skimmed through The Lacuna. That was torture.

    Somehow or another I ended up with Sophie's Choice by William Styron on my Kindle. The writing is dense yet lyrical. The story is hanunting. I read this in college, but remember nothing about it.

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  • lwd
    lwd Member Posts: 1,084
    edited June 2011

    I enjoyed Poisonwood Bible, but I think I'll wait a bit on The Lacuna.  

    Lane 

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  • wenweb
    wenweb Member Posts: 1,107
    edited June 2011

    I too loved the Poisonwood Bible. The Lacuna I did enjoy, although it was a bit difficult getting into.  Different strokes for different folks!!

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  • Elizabeth1959
    Elizabeth1959 Member Posts: 346
    edited June 2011

    I skimmed my way through The Poisonwood Bible. I liked it but thought it was overly long. I bought lacauna on sale. It doesn't sound like anyone likes it. I'm currently reading Running with Scissors. I love hearing people's suggestions

    elizabeth

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  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,891
    edited June 2011

    I liked the Poisonwood  Bible- something about Laguna didn't appeal to me when i read the jacket/looked at the cover so I didn't get it at the library.  I've liked all her other books...hmmm.  I'm glad now that I did after hearing everyones thoughts on it!

    I started reading Room by Emma Donoghue.  I am about 100 pages in and it 's about a young boy and his mother locked in a room and living that way.  It's told by the 5 year olds perspective- somewhat strange, but keeping my interest so far.  Anyone else read it?

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  • msmpatty
    msmpatty Member Posts: 818
    edited June 2011

    I just finished Anne Patchett's latest...State of Wonder.  I didn't like the story as much as I did Bel Canto, but she is such a beautiful writer that I'm willing to over-look a lot.

    Wenweb - I liked The Lacuna too!   I recently saw an exhibit of Frieda Kahlo's works and felt like I sort of knew her after this reading this novel.  Perhaps the problem everyone has with it is that the main character is so blah ... an observer, not a participant.

    Ruthbru - I hope you enjoy Cleopatra - A Life.  I found it somewhat miraculous that with so little real information about Cleopatra, the book really brings her to life.

    Patty

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  • wenweb
    wenweb Member Posts: 1,107
    edited June 2011
    msmptty I am a big Frieda Kahlo/Diego Rivera fan,  I think this enabled me to enjoy The Lacuna as much as I did.  The main character was kind of blah yes, but I really liked the ending of the book.  Sometimes that's where I get stuck-love a story, can't integrate the ending with the rest of the book.  Cleopatra is on my to read list.
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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    Ruth... I started the Cleopatra book a month or two ago and keep promising myself that I will get back to reading it. Let me know what you think. It is already an instant classic.

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  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,891
    edited June 2011

    mspatty- I alos like Ann Patchett- I 'll add it tom my list to read!

    Bu the way I am loving Room- read more than half the book in one day and stayed up waaay too late.  Anxious for ths kids to go to bed so I can get back to it!

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  • ginadmc
    ginadmc Member Posts: 263
    edited June 2011

    wenweb - I finished A Reliable Wife. I didn't hate it but I didn't love it either. I stayed with it because I wanted to see what happened at the end. It had a promising story but it was strange and I thought the writing was overdone.

    I just started  A Law of Similar by Chris Bohjalian.

    The latest O magazine featured many book recommendations. I put a few of them on hold at the library. I can't remember all the titles and authors right now but I'll post them soon.

    Happy Summer Reading! Gina 

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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    Thanks for the heads up about the Oprah summer reading list. I am usually not a fan of her book choices... But I am impressed with her selections. I already read Mark Seal's The Man in the Rockefeller Suit. I couldn't put it down. And I can't stop recommending Eric Larson's In the Garden of Beasts. That just leaves a dozen more books on her list...

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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    The Year We Left Home is mentioned on Oprah's list. Has anyone read it. I read many wonderful reviews.

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  • wenweb
    wenweb Member Posts: 1,107
    edited June 2011
    ginadmc Thanks for remembering!!  I agree with you that the writing was overdone.  I like Chris Bohjalian too.  Enjoy!
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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    Although not a lover of fiction, I did enjoy reading The Reliable Wife because I thought the author was a good wordsmith.  Was the writing overdone?  Yep!  That's the only thing that kept me going until the last page.  The story...Meh.

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  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,891
    edited June 2011

    I just finished Kent Haruf Eventide and loved it.  It is the sequel to Plainsong and was just as good.  I wish there was another one to read!  I think I will try to get my hands on the other two books he has written.  The characters draw you in and make you like them and feel what they feel.

    I'll have to check out The Reliable Wife as well.

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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    I just read...An Exclusive Love....

    http://www.amazon.com/Exclusive-Love-Memoir-Johanna-Adorj%C3%A1n/dp/0393080013

    OMG...It just blew.me.away.   Really.

     http://www.npr.org/2011/02/16/133775017/after-theyre-gone-understanding-an-exclusive-love

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  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 57,235
    edited June 2011
    I just finished and really enjoyed Cleopatra-A Life by Stacy Schiff. It was interesting to learn about the real woman, not the Hollywood version. I thought it gave a fascinating portrayal of life in ancient Egypt and Roman, the role of women, the crazy family structures (worthy of Hollywood!), and the physical setting of the time. Plus you get to know some of the other major players of that time and get a feel for how far the history of Eygpt stretches (for instance, the Spinx was already very, very old by the time Cleopatra was in the picture). If you like history, I'd recommend it.
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  • moogie
    moogie Member Posts: 499
    edited June 2011

    Just finished " Just Kids" by Patti Smith ( poignant, tells the story of idealistic youth in such a powerful way, also the strength of love...over time and space) and Margaret Atwood's "The Year After the Flood" ( futuristic, dystopian...too unrelentingly dark for me. Preferred " THE ROBBER BRIDE"  and " CAT'S EYE" 100% over this novel. Highly recommend them.).

    Any funny books out there that y'all have read? I like David Sedaris, but any style of funny is appreciated after that bleak Sci-fi Atwood novel!!!

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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    Ruth... Thanks for the update on the Cleopatra book. I will definitely finish reading it now that I know how much you enjoyed it. Take a peek at the book I just read, An Exclusive Love. My friend and cousin both started reading it yesterday and could not put it down. The author looks into why her grandparents chose to take their own lives together, having survived the Holocaust. It is a true story that leaves you aching and shaking when you finish reading it. The author is a German writer and the book has been translated into a number of languages.

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  • voraciousreader
    voraciousreader Member Posts: 7,496
    edited June 2011

    Moogie... You want hilarious? Jonathan Tropper's This is where I Leave You.

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  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,891
    edited June 2011

    Voarcious- I will definitely pick up the book.

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  • Elizabeth1889
    Elizabeth1889 Member Posts: 1,036
    edited June 2011
    I read This Is Where I Leave You about a year ago and I absolutely loved it.  Laughed out loud a couple of times.
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  • wenweb
    wenweb Member Posts: 1,107
    edited June 2011
    I was going to mention This is Where I Leave You.  Have you read Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck?  That too was LOL funny. 
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