this is to start a new book thread for all sowal booklovers. but, don't forget to refer to the Summer Reading List thread to see previously recommended books: http://www.sowal.com/bb/showthread.php?t=13378&highlight=books
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Books Books and More Books!
- Thread starter Teresa
- Start date
Just finished an excellent book:
Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Tan (The Bonesetter's Daughter) delivers another highly entertaining novel, this one narrated from beyond the grave. San Francisco socialite and art-world doyenne Bibi Chen has planned the vacation of a lifetime along the notorious Burma Road for 12 of her dearest friends. Violently murdered days before takeoff, she's reduced to watching her friends bumble through their travels from the remove of the spirit world. Making the best of it, the 11 friends who aren't hung over depart their Myanmar resort on Christmas morning to boat across a misty lake?and vanish. The tourists find themselves trapped in jungle-covered mountains, held by a refugee tribe that believes Rupert, the group's surly teenager, is the reincarnation of their god Younger White Brother, come to save them from the unstable, militaristic Myanmar government. Tan's travelers, who range from a neurotic hypochondriac to the debonair, self-involved host of a show called The Fido Files, fight and flirt among themselves. While ensemble casting precludes the intimacy that characterizes Tan's mother-daughter stories, the book branches out with a broad plot and dynamic digressions. It's based on a true story, and Tan seems to be having fun with it, indulging in the wry, witty voice of Bibi while still exploring her signature questions of fate, connection, identity and family.
Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Tan (The Bonesetter's Daughter) delivers another highly entertaining novel, this one narrated from beyond the grave. San Francisco socialite and art-world doyenne Bibi Chen has planned the vacation of a lifetime along the notorious Burma Road for 12 of her dearest friends. Violently murdered days before takeoff, she's reduced to watching her friends bumble through their travels from the remove of the spirit world. Making the best of it, the 11 friends who aren't hung over depart their Myanmar resort on Christmas morning to boat across a misty lake?and vanish. The tourists find themselves trapped in jungle-covered mountains, held by a refugee tribe that believes Rupert, the group's surly teenager, is the reincarnation of their god Younger White Brother, come to save them from the unstable, militaristic Myanmar government. Tan's travelers, who range from a neurotic hypochondriac to the debonair, self-involved host of a show called The Fido Files, fight and flirt among themselves. While ensemble casting precludes the intimacy that characterizes Tan's mother-daughter stories, the book branches out with a broad plot and dynamic digressions. It's based on a true story, and Tan seems to be having fun with it, indulging in the wry, witty voice of Bibi while still exploring her signature questions of fate, connection, identity and family.
NoHall
hmmmm......can't remember
I'm still stuck in Required Reading H311!
On tonight's agenda, a reflective paper on the latest book I didn't read: Political Agendas for Education: From the Religious Right to the Green Party. (3rd Edition.) It's like reading the political threads on this board with all the funn stuff cut out.
Bleh.
I've missed you lately, Toots!
I'm still stuck in Required Reading H311!
On tonight's agenda, a reflective paper on the latest book I didn't read: Political Agendas for Education: From the Religious Right to the Green Party. (3rd Edition.) It's like reading the political threads on this board with all the funn stuff cut out.
Bleh.
I've missed you lately, Toots!
oh law! I don't know what I would rather do - read that stuff or work all day in a tiny toll booth!
NoHall
hmmmm......can't remember
My choices are slightly different: Do I want to read this stuff or keep digging holes all day?
(Answer: I want some sugar daddy with a beach house in SoWal to financially back me so that I can come read books with you all day!
)BACK TO THE THREAD! Post 'em, people! I have a running list lying next to my laptop as we speak of books I'll read if I ever get done with school.
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potatovixen
Beach Fanatic
My current sensational read:
Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant: Confessions of Cooking for One and Dining Alone
Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant: Confessions of Cooking for One and Dining Alone
tistheseason
Beach Fanatic
I'm in the middle of A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. It's a good book but a little too heavy for someone with toddlers that only gets to read for an hour a week to be reading. I should have saved it for a few years down the road. But I actually bought it a few years back and it's been haunting me on my bookcase ever since.
Jdarg
SoWal Expert
Oh Tis!! This is one of my favorite books ever. I love little Owen and his GREAT BIG VOICE!!!!
NoHall
hmmmm......can't remember
I LOVE THAT BOOK! IT'S ON MY SHELF OF FAVORITE BOOKS. IT'S THE BEST ARGUMENT I'VE EVER SEEN FOR WHY ONE SHOULD NEVER TYPE IN ALL CAPS. IT LOOKS TOO MUCH LIKE YELLING. It ties for first in the category of "Greatest Book I've Read That Extensively Employs the F-Bomb." Tied with The Power of One. Both also fall into the category of "Great Book, Crappy Movie." I don't even want to talk about the movie version of The Power of One. Ick. But the Owen Meany movie was so far off that Irving made them rename it. That said, go rent "Simon Burch," knowing that the story goes straight to h311. I love the casting. Ashley Judd as the mother, Oliver Platt (before he really porked up) as the stepfather, David Straithairn as the pastor, and whoever played Simon(Owen) were all wonderful. I'm so glad you mentioned that book! Just thinking about it gives me THE SHIVERS. It is one of the best descriptions you'll ever find about all the right ways people can love each other. THE SHIVERS...
elgordoboy
Beach Fanatic
That looks very interesting as it appears I'll be eating alone if I want to eat some of the foods that are on my "list". Do you find it to be encouraging to the solo eater? or discouraging?[I said:
Am presently juggling Omnivore's Dilemma, The Soul of a Chef, and a mini book of excerpted writings by de Tocqueville (for when I am .......studying). I highly recommend Heat for a foodie read.