Currently reading The Silmarillion for the first time in a few years. It's a lot easier read than I remembered it being. Maybe all these Lit classes I've been taking have been toughening me up.

Speaking of Lit classes, we moved on to The Sound and the Fury. Hate, hate, hate that book. With a passion. We also read a short story by Faulkner called Barn Burning that wasn't too bad. We're a little behind time-wise, so we're skipping reading As I Lay Dying. Can't say I'm too sorry.

And, mhm, Mansfield Park wasn't my favourite Austen, but I did enjoy it, largely for the parts you mentioned. My favourite line is one near the end where the Uncle is talking to Fanny about all the mistakes they made, especially in raising the cousins. *can't recall the line and doesn't have a copy of the book*

I believe I know the line you are talking about, and I think it is one of the most profoundest actually spoken lines in the book. (Meaning, some of the themes and points that Austen was trying to bring across were lived out by the characters and events, but not actually put into words by the characters themselves)

Kate:

(in regards to your Monte Cristo spoiler)

What part are you at in the book?

I haven't been doing much reading per se, although I did finish the latest Dear Canada diary- Exiles From the War, set in WWII Canada. It was alright, I enjoyed it moreso than the other WWII diary in the series, but it probably shan't be a favourite of mine. Still, though, I was happy that there was no borderline inappropriate content in it as there was in one of the other Dear Canada diaries. That was nice.

I also recently a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys super mystery and a Cherry Ames book. (For those of you who are wondering who she is, from what I take it, the Cherry Ames series was much like Nancy Drew, published in the 40s/50s, mysteries for girls, etc). It should be interesting. And we went to the library today and I borrowed several books for school reading, which promise to be good, so I'm looking forward to beginning them, at some point.

Still, though, I was happy that there was no borderline inappropriate content in it as there was in one of the other Dear Canada diaries. That was nice.

I'm curious now, as to what the "borderline inappropriate content" was in the other books? I think I've read almost all of the Dear Canada books, and don't remember anything offensive...
*goes to amazon to check out the new one*
Looks interesting! Not only is it in one of my favorite time periods, but the location of it is only an hour away from where I live!

I finally was able to get a hold of a copy of one of Dodie Smith (I Capture the Castle)'s adult books from the library. It's called The New Moon With the Old, and I LOVED it! It tells the story of a family of four young people, and it's split up into sections telling the adventures of each person. The only annoying thing was that just when it gets interesting, it ends and starts talking about the next sibling. Even though it was adult it had less questionable content then most teen novels nowadays so that was nice. It's the sort of book you really get "into" and just want to go on and on forever.

I'm glad you're mostly enjoying A Wrinkle in Time, Warrior 4 Jesus.

'Fraid I've never read them, Liberty. Who's the author?

Glad you're enjoying The Count of Monte Christo, Kate! I still need to read that one...

Ooh. I just remembered I need to reread The Silmarillion too, Booky.

Glad you recognized what I meant, Fanny. Right. It was something about concentrating so much on their manners and such that they neglected their souls. Or something.
And isn't Cherry Ames a nurse? That's what I want to say, at least, as my elder sister always liked the one we had and I never read it because it was about a nurse, not a detective.

Do you like The New Moon With the Old more or less than I Capture the Castle, Val? I've never read either, but I've avoided the latter for some reason.

I've finished my reread of both East and Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow. For some reason I'd remembered thinking I'd like the mom better in the latter one than the former when, really, the mom has more character growth in the former than the latter. At any rate, I enjoyed them both, but felt like East dragged on more, perhaps a bit too long. I enjoyed the multiple narrators, at least at first, but after a while, they started to bug me a bit and just prolonged the story. We never really do get a good idea of what's going on inside the prince's head, except perhaps at the very end. I did like it, but I think I do prefer SaM, IaS a bit better.
I've also read both The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. I can't wait for the third one. I quite enjoyed them. I got annoyed with the narrator at times but, overall, I was a lot less annoyed with her than I could've been. And I could talk a lot more about them and the characters and what I liked and what I didn't like, but I'd have a bit of a hard time laying it all down nicely and I'd probably take up the rest of the post with it.
I've finished Gregor 3 and am onto 4. Don't get me wrong---I'm enjoying them, but they're not quite as exciting as THG and CF, so I'm thinking I did it wrong, reading those two in the middle of the Gregor series. That and I remember some talk from one of the old Books threads when Gregor 5 came out, so I've an inkling of how it's all gonna end. Oh, it's hard to pin down, but I keep thinking there's something about them that makes them stand out, just a bit, from other YA fantasy books.
And I went to the library today and picked up a few books: Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George (to re-read; a conversation I had last night reminded me of it and, well, it was in the library ), Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko (I have no idea whether it will be any good or not, but I saw it in a bookstore over Christmas break and it caught my interest, so when I saw it at the library, I decided I might as well check it out) and, finally, Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst (or, if the label is to be believed, Sharon Durst. I'm gonna have to point that one out when I return it). And I also sent in a request to have the library (finally figured out how you do this) purchase Dragon Spear by Jessica Day George. Hopefully they'll get it. If not, well, hey, I tried.

My goodness! There are so many parallels between LOST and A Wrinkle in Time. The sparse writing towards the beginning was annoying, as was the speech style of one of the angels but the story was very good and surprisingly intelligent. I'm not putting it on the same level as Narnia but it was enjoyable.

I'm reading Lost Horizon by James Hilton (a LOST library book). It's quite good so far.

I'm curious now, as to what the "borderline inappropriate content" was in the other books? I think I've read almost all of the Dear Canada books, and don't remember anything offensive...

It was in Not A Nickle To Spare, and the actual content was in relation to what two very young members of the opposite gender were involved in doing in regards to each other (the girl herself was not even sixteen). That it was only a moment in the book emphasizes the fact quite well that it was unneeded, not even in relation to the plot line, and therefore, could have (and in my opinion, should have) been left out.

*goes to amazon to check out the new one*
Looks interesting! Not only is it in one of my favorite time periods, but the location of it is only an hour away from where I live!

I remember in one of the Dear Canada diaries- Orphan at My Door it was- they mentioned the city that I was born in and spent the first 8 years of my life in (which to me is a special place), which was really neat. There was another book that also mentioned my birth place, and that was just as special, if not moreso because the book was a compilation of letters from an actual English lady who, with her family, traveled to one part of Ontario to homestead land, so it was quite historically true.

And isn't Cherry Ames a nurse? That's what I want to say, at least, as my elder sister always liked the one we had and I never read it because it was about a nurse, not a detective.

She is indeed! I find it interesting how giving the main girl an occupation allows for many different cases and such- I read a Vicki Barr mystery a couple of weeks ago, (Vicki Barr is like Nancy Drew and Cherry Ames in the 1940s girls' detective series sense), and she was an airline stewardess, so she could fly all over the place. But in the end I personally like Nancy Drew much better.

Val: The Dodie Smith book sounds good. I will put it on my list! Thanks for the recommendation.

W4J: When did you last read it and how did your opinion change this time around? I have very fond memories of my mother reading that one to me. I later read it on my own.

Valia: You've been a busy bookworm! Everyone else seems to be moving slowly.

I have finished The Count of Monte Cristo! After a half a year, it's finally done. I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading other works by Dumas in the future. I'm going to celebrate by watching the newish movie that came out a few years ago. Some final thoughts:

I've ordered The Eyre Affair from the Inter-library system, so I'll be reading something light next.

That is rather interesting, Fanny. I hadn't really thought about how making being a detective more of a side job than the main one could allow for all the different cases. You've almost got me convinced to try a Cherry Ames. I think I'd rather read a Vicki Barr, though.

Thanks, Kate. I'm about to go back to not reading almost at all, though, as break is over. *sigh*

So, I've finished the Gregor series. Turns out I didn't actually recall what I'd thought I had about the end of it. I am strongly tempted to go dig up those old posts on the old forum, if I can find them, to see what I really had read.
Into the Wild was interesting. I wasn't really sure at first, as the pace seemed a bit off/confusing. But the more I got into it, the more the pace seemed to find itself and I ended up liking it. I have a feeling the author improves with her other books, though, am I right?
It had a few slightly rough bits, but I also rather liked Al Capone Does My Shirts. I wasn't really sure what to think going into it, but, despite the title and the shenanigan or two they get up to relating to Alcatraz, it's much more a story of living with an Autistic sibling, especially during a time when Autism wasn't understood very well and there wasn't much that could be done to help. I mean, it is about living on Alcatraz during the Great Depression, but it's a lot more than that. Which completely makes sense, as the author's note mentions that the author's sister is severely Autistic. *hopes that actually does make sense to someone* I'm definitely interested in reading the sequel.
I also managed to fit in The Battle of the Labyrinth. I liked it and am looking forward to reading the fifth one sometime, hopefully soon. I actually mostly liked
I'm on my reread of Princess of the Midnight Ball and am liking it more the second time around. I liked it the first time, I mean, but I think I'm appreciating it a bit more now.
I'm probably going to take back the uni library books on Tuesday, which is good. I mean, I wish I could keep them forever, but it'll be less distracting since I keep picking up the Hunger books and rereading bits.
I still haven't got around to my reread of the Attolian books , but hopefully I'll have enough spare minutes here and there to get to that before I get the fourth book.

Do you like The New Moon With the Old more or less than I Capture the Castle, Val? I've never read either, but I've avoided the latter for some reason.

Oh, I definetly still like I Capture the Castle better. The New Moon With the Old was different...my mom read it, and while she didn't dislike it, she said some of the stuff that happened seemed pretty random and very unrealistic. I can agree with the unrealistic part--it's the sort of book where all these unexpected adventures happen to the characters, they meet interesting people, come into money, get lost, have more adventures, and everything works out wonderfully in the end. Which never seems to happen in real life! And yeah, there were a few things in it that some people might not love but they were in no way explicit, more just the mention or idea of something.

Valia, why are you avoiding I Capture the Castle?

W4J: When did you last read it and how did your opinion change this time around? I have very fond memories of my mother reading that one to me. I later read it on my own.

I'm not sure Kate. I think I read A Wrinkle In Time for the first time several years ago. The book is obviously aimed at a much younger audience and yet it's surprisingly deep and relevant to all ages. The way people hyped it up (OMGHZZZ!) probably hurt my opinion of it the first time 'round. I didn't like the sparse language and became very frustrated with Meg. The second time 'round, I knew more of what to expect and so the frustrations I originally had with the book were more muted. It also didn't hurt that the book was a mild influence on LOST.
Still, Charles Wallace doesn't seem like any children I know of his age, even the brightest of the bright.

I was at a used book store and I found a first printing edition of LWW! it's in good condition too! I am SO glad I found it!

I was at a used book store and I found a first printing edition of LWW! it's in good condition too! I am SO glad I found it!

That's awesome Liberty Hoffman!!!!!! To quote Gandalf “ Keep it secret, keep it safe!”

Valia, I'm still confused about your McKillip books but as long as it makes sense to you, it's okay. Yep, Knot in the Grain is a collection of short stories. Overall, I think I enjoyed more of the stories in The Door in the Hedge but it's a nice little book. I have yet to read Sarah Beth Durst's newest book, (shame on me, after being all excited for it too) but I think she does improve in the Wild sequel.

I reread Mariol Trevor's The Crystal Snowstorm which I recall a friend of mine liking immensely. She had loaned it to me years ago and I wasn't impressed. Now I have no idea why, because it has characters who go around being awesome in a fictitious royal court. And the rest of the series is about the almost-most awesome character of all. Some days, I don't know what I was thinking when I decided which books I liked and which I didn't.

so cool Libby! If it's really a first edition, it's probably worth something! Not that I'd ever sell it

I recently read an Autobiography, which is quite unlike the sort of books I normally read. Normally i wouldn't dream of reading an autobiography, but this one was different. It was written by a fairly famous old Mangaka (Manga Artist) named Yoshihiro Tatsumi, which is titled; "A Drifting Life". I wasn't so much interested in the life of an artist, as I am not a very artistic person myself, but it did have some interesting bits of information about what was going on in Japan on a larger scale, at various points in the artists life, which helped influence him. Overall it was a very good book, with a few panels of content that many would not consider appropriate, however, when taken at face value, it was an interesting read.

I'm also in the middle of another book, Usurper of the Sun, which is a science fiction novel written by Hosuke Nojiri. I tend to like science fiction quite a lot, especially since this once concerns outer space, which fascinates me. The thing that struck me about this book as I finished a section last night, was some of the more intense theories of Artificial Intelligence, and the idea of 'cognitive evolution' (not the authors words, but the best way that I can think to put it). More or less, an intelligent alien species might not have a need for words, which got a lot more intense, and I cannot explain it any further.