Now that we’ve come to the middle of the year, what do you think of your 2009 reading so far? Read anything interesting that you’d like to share? Any outstanding favourites?
The first half of 2009 has seen fruition of some of my reading goals. In the month of March I read Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell for the first time along with several bloggers. I’m sure many of echo that this book is the quintessential American classics. The current read-along takes me to 11-century Japan, when madame Murasaki Shikibu wrote The Tale of Genji, a novel that delineates palace and court life through the the sensibilities of Genji. My original goal was to read four epic classics in each quarter. That The Tale of Genji might spill into mid-autumn I might have to modify the plan and postpone Les Miserables.
The month of February has been devoted to reading literature by African American writers. Beloved, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Another Country, Sula, And This Too Shall Pass and Like Trees, Walking were read. On to the highlights of some of the best readings:
Most Memorable Character: Olive Kitteridge, Elizabeth Strout
One Book That Stays with Me: The Piano Teacher, Janice Y.K. Lee
Most Tedious But Worth the Effort: Beloved, Toni Morrison
Most Tedious But Probably Not Worth the Effort: The Satanic Verses, Salman Rushdie
One Book That is Good to the Last Page: The Writing on My Forehead, Nafisa Haji
Filed under: Blogging, Book Blogging, Books, Literature, Meme, Personal | Tagged: Books, Half Yearly Review, Musing Mondays, Personal, Weekly Events |
A Guy's Moleskine Notebook 
I’m so glad you posted about Satanic Verses because I am struggling through the first 50 pages of it now and agonized whether I should throw in the towel.
I’ve really enjoyed getting to know Lionel Shriver this year. I’ve read We Need to Talk About Kevin, A Perfectly Good Family, Double Fault and am in the middle of The Post-Birthday World at the moment. I appreciate her irreverent humor and her honesty.
Cheers!
Connie over at Constance Reader
hmmm…I realize I have no reading goals.
the good news is, I always reach them!
I’m slowly but surely making my way through OK. She really is turning out to be a very memorable character. I’ve never heard of THE WRITING ON MY FOREHEAD. I’ll have to look that one up!
I agree with your memorable character- Olive Kitteridge. I did enjoy the book immensely..thanks for encouraging me to read this one!!
Matt, so far in 2009 I have read some really terrific books. Just finished, this evening, a 2002 novel entitled Hello To The Cannibals, by American author Richard Bausch. It was quite good [lengthy]… combination of historical fiction and contemporary novel, as in, two very distinct threads.
Two books back now I read Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses and I agree with you… it seems a “relevant” book, but certainly it is tedious.
So far in 2009 I think that the best author I have sort of “discovered” is Canadian author Steven Heighton. His books Afterlands, and The Shadow Boxer were both TERRIFIC! He is currently at work on a new one and I shall SNAP IT UP when it’s out!
Colm Toibin’s latest novel Brooklyn was OK, but a bit lackluster.
I’ve got Olive Kitteridge on my stack waiting to be read.
I have a few books by African American writers too and I really need to read them sometime. I love Gone with the wind.
I just finished “Lucky Jim” by Kingsley Amis and thought it was a terrifically funny read. I recommend it to cyberspace. I’m now knee-deep in Gore Vidal essays.
And am I the only one who thinks “Gone with the Wind” is a better book than movie?
I love the catergories you’ve created for books. I might have to come up with my own set! I agree with all the ones I’ve read and I’ll have to try to find The Piano Teacher and The Writing on my Forehead as t some point.
Heres to the next 6 months!
It’s good to know that “Beloved” is worth the effort. I once tried to read it, failed, and it has sat on my shelf ever since. I suppose I’ll have to give it another try.
You’ve had a great year so far! I agree with your choice of Olive Kitteridge. She is the most memorable character I’ve encountered in a long, long time.
yay, gone with the wind!
That’s a good selection so far.
I like the idea of dedicating months to particular genres, such as African American writers. Happy new financial year ^_^
I love how you broke down the categories 🙂
I have Olive Kitteridge and am really looking forward to that book.
Connie:
Satanic Verses is quite a chore. But if you can survive the first 100 or so pages, you’re in for a treat. Salman Rushdie’s works are just tedious.
caite:
I decide to be spontaneous, satisfying my whim of the moment.
J.S. Peyton:
I think you’re doing very well on your reading this year. Afterall, it’s quality of the reading that matters. 🙂
Staci:
Sometimes I’ll have flashback of Olive Kitteridge and that makes me smile. 🙂
Cipriano:
You know I always trust your taste. Steven Heighton is on! I find Brooklyn well-written but uneventful.
Nise’:
Happy reading! Olive Kitteridge will be the next best book in book blogging world.
Violet:
I’m so proud of myself to have finished (finally) Gone with the Wind after hearing about it for so long.
filthylogician:
I have never seen the film because I want my reading to be one pure, untainted literary experience. Gore Vidal? We seem to be on the same wavelength! 🙂
Jackie (Farm Lane Books):
I am trying to be creative, and more specific. I just cannot settle with selecting “the best” books because the “best” label can be ambiguous, subjective, and cliche at times and is not very informational. 🙂
Biblibio:
I hope you will read Beloved, which is a very special novel to me.
JoAnn:
I started off the year with no reading challenge, just focusing on the books that I want to read. Sort of a “just do it” attitude. The spontaneity seems to work very well for me. 🙂
Marie:
Yay for me finishing it! 🙂
Elena:
I know I’m lacking and slacking in non-fiction. I’m contemplating devoting a month in the fall to reading non-fiction.
iliana:
If I ever have a bookstore, I will have these interesting, creative categories to introduce books to readers. 🙂
It sounds like you’ve accomplished a lot in half a year! I didn’t set many reading goals, but I was just noticing that I haven’t done very well with them! Still, I’ve read some excellent books, so I can’t complain. Now if I can just make it through Bleak House before the end of summer!
I thought Olive Kitteridge and The Piano Teacher were very good. Looking forward to reading: The Writing on My Forehead too.\
What are fabulous year (book wise) you are having.
Congrats