Atlas Shrugged

Atlas Shrugged by Ann Rand



Has anyone read this yet? I've started it a couple of times, and can't seem to get into it. Someone please give me a pep talk and tell me how wonderful it is and help me get motivated.

I'm sure it's fabulous, but the copy I have is just so long with really small print, so it's not enjoyable to read.

If no one else is reading it, then I think I'll abandon ship and not try anymore.

Anyone?

Real Life Book Club Picks

Check it out! My Public Library checks out sets of books to book clubs! So for my real-life book club, otherwise known as the Squeaky Clean Book Club, I reserved some titles for the next three months! I'm so excited and hoping that they're good books, and clean so I don't get kicked out. For September, I chose The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, October's book is Bee Season by Myla Goldberg, and November's is At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon.

I was so thrilled to find out that they carried book club sets. I'm sick of buying someone else's choice because there are never enough copies at the library. The sets have 10 books and include a binder with summary, author information, discussion questions, criticism, reviews and other information. SweeeeeeT! If someone loses a title, you have to replace it or pay $10 - but I'm making them sign a contract so I can give them major crap if they lose one.

So, are you in a real-life book club? Does your library do this kind of thing? Want to read along? Have you read any of these? Are they going to hang me by my toenails for choosing them?

Cool Book Pick

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand - highly recommended by real people. Kinda long, but very interesting concept. What if the people in our society who hold us up, decided to quit carrying the slackers? I'm intrigued. What do you think?

Summer Fun

It's time for summer reading! Let's choose a book and get started so we can discuss it in a week or two. What are some ideas for fun & frivolity? I usually read YA fiction in the summer, but nothing's coming to mind. Let's read something together! Now!

Worst book you've ever read...or attempted to read

My nomination: The Poisonwood Bible.

Seriously. I tried and tried. It was highly recommended. It was for book group. I'd read some of her other books and enjoyed them. What is with this book? I struggled and finally gave up about 1/3 of the way through. Lame. Long. Boring. Nothing caught my interest. Was it the bland characters? Long, descriptive passages? I can't even remember the part I tried to read. Did anyone besides Ophra like this?

What highly recommended, much lauded, best seller did you hate?

Time for A New Post

Welcome Kate and Laurie! Do you girls want to be contributors? Let us know and you're in like flin!
What are you all reading? I'm just starting The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory (Julie/Crazymama said to see the movie first or I'd be disappointed but I haven't done either yet) and I've been picking at Emily of New Moon by LM Montgomery - but honestly, she's no Anne (and LM tends to get a little windy with her descriptions).

So, everyone, give us a title and a two sentence book report about what you're currently reading (or have just finished). Please.

Just Finished The Star Garden by Nancy E. Turner

Loved it!!! Of course, I loved the other two (These is My Words, Sarah's Quilt), so I was ready to love this one. My sis Julie (Crazymama) said a couple of girls in her book group didn't like it. The only reason that I can see is that perhaps she wasn't as successful in building up the romantic tension in this book as she was in the others. The romance was just a side plot, amidst the family struggles and trials of life in territorial Arizona. However, I love her characters and want to know more. She left it open for the possiblity of another book in the series, but I'd really like to see her follow one of Sarah's children, with Sarah's life as the subplot.

Book of a Thousand Days Discussion

WOW, I can hardly believe it has been two weeks already!! I hope everyone has had a chance to get the book and read it. If you haven't, hurry and read it! It is a VERY fast read.

***Spoiler Alert***

I really liked this book. I loved Dashti and her humer in all things. She had a strength about her that Lady Saren didn't have. Perhaps it was because of what she saw and how she was treated by her father that took it all from her. Dashti was alot more patient then I would have been with Lady Saren.

What did you think about Lady Saren? After you found out about her youth did your perception change?

At first I thought her spoiled. I would get so frustrated with her crying on. I couldn't understand what she was so afraid of. After I found out what happened I understood more. I couldn't imagine what she went through seeing this man she is supposed to marry turn into a wolf and having a father who she couldn't even talk to. I know for a fact that without Dashti she would have died.

Book Meme

I found this book meme on my two cents,

Here are the Rules:

1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages).
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences

Let's do it!

Book of a Thousand Days

thanks michelle for picking this months book! Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale.

how about we each come up with 2 questions about the book. then we can all discuss it that way? or something else? it looks like a fun, quick read. i can't wait to start!

pick a book

i think since we have several people on this blog we need to pick a book to read together. (i hope everyone has finished Teacher by now!) i belong to a book club at home but i can juggle 3 or 4 books at a time. any ideas? i love to make suggestions but i need to expand the variety of books i read. i'm up for a good fiction for the month of february. speak up ladies!

let's read!

Supercool Mom's Squeaky-Clean Book Group Met Tuesday

(I'm calling it that in order to differentiate it from the Dirty Book Club that I'm going to start.) We talked about several that we're going to read over the course of the year.

February: The Jackrabbit Factor: Why You Can by Leslie Householder
March: FlyBoys by James Bradley
April: A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt
May: The Princess Bride by Myra Immell.
June: The Captivity and Restoration of Mary Rowlandson, published 1682 originally
July: Death comes to the Archbishop by Willa Cather
August: The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw
September: Focus on Jane Austin (probably Pride and Prejudice)


(FYI, all 6 Jane Austin's are going to be on Masterpiece Theatre in the next month. They started Sunday with an excellent new production of Persuasion)

Book Club Tonight

So. Our book was NOT a biography, in keeping with the blog's theme this month, but it was FABULOUS nonetheless! The Book Thief is a must-read. I loved the writing style--almost poetic. The author isn't overly-descriptive; the writing is rather spare and condensed, with metaphoric phrases and lyrical descriptions. I also really loved the way he went about the characterization. For example, I REALLY disliked the mother pretty much throughout the book--and somewhere towards the end I realized I understood her. Didn't like her, but understood her. The author very subtly accomplished that. And! At the end of the book, I liked the mother. I could go on & on. He (author) also draws many parallels that you find yourself discovering along the way. And the last line of the book--oh my. It was beautiful. One of the most perfect finishing sentences of a book I've ever read (and that's saying a lot). I handed the book off to Wendi, so I'm curious about your feedback. What do you think?

Not next month, but soon, my book club is reading this book:I'll count it as my autobiography, even though I'm not reading it this month. This is going to be a goodie. Maybe I'll read it before our schedule--I'm very excited to dig into it. I saw an interview with this woman on CNN with Glenn Beck and she is POWERFUL. She lives with the knowledge every day that she is on the Muslim radicals' hit list. She has bodyguards. Several attempts have been made on her life. Go look up the book on Amazon & read about it. Wow.

finally

i FINALLY got the book from the library. and i'm loving it!! i'm not a big biography reader but this one is amazing. i can see i'll be done soon!

this jumped out at me ... "I marveled at the security I felt in my spiritual home, even though Polly and I had no material habitation that we could call our own." how important is that to remember?! even when we have nothing we have that!