Anne, Yes I do love the story of the family. Now wondering how it will end. I have 88 pages left to read of the story, but I have to stop and go to Wal-Mart….. the last place I want to go but I need to beat the crowds.;… it’s terribly hot 
outside. The heat wave has been awful!!
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Wow! You are really knocking down the Booker List. The only one I plan to read for now is May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry. It arrived in the mail today (yay!) so hopefully, I can find time for it this weekend. Hope it’s good - I rarely buy actual books much anymore but this one sounded good.
Excited to listen to Kutchinsky’s Egg. May have to move it up in my list.
I seem to be in a literary rut. After reading TOO OLD FOR THIS for the BB discussion, I started KILLS WELL WITH OTHERS. Four trained assassins reunite to complete new orders. These women have very different personalities but work well together. It’s not dark; more of a story about their strategies. Waiting in the wings is SOMEBODY WORTH KILLING. Oh well. 
This is the most of the Booker list I have ever read. They have all been pretty readily available from the library so I’ve been trying them out. I’ll probably go back to past practice of reading only the winner or maybe some of shortlist if there is something everyone is raving about.
May We Feed the King sounds good to me also but I think it’s not out til Sept. I’ll wait. In the meantime I should be getting the list of our Texas Book Fest authors so that will keep me busy.
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RE: May We Feed The King
I would be happy to send you my hard copy once I’m done. Just let me know. I am only a few pages in but have found it engaging. Hope that feeling holds true to the end.
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That would be amazing @Gabi_J . If you are sure you want to get rid of it. I’ll happily pay for it, pay for shipping, or send you something in return.
No need for payment or anything in return. It is my pleasure. Books are to be shared. Here is my email if you would like to send me your address.
I would imagine it will be in the mail Monday, Tuesday at the latest. It’s a short book.
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Pets and the City by Amy Attas DVM
The Day After. by Brian Tyler Cohen
Franny and Zooey/Salinger. The Lion’s Run by Sara Pennypacker. Remarkably Bright Creatures. Book of Lives /Margaret Atwood. The Education of An Idealist /Samantha Power. Regime Change / Maggie Haberman
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I am reading Under the Falls by Richard Russo and really liking it so far. It’s short and I have only read about a fourth of it. I seem to like all of his books with Nobody’s Fool and Empire Falls being at the top of that list!
Getting to work on my TBR list this week. About 1/4 into “John of John”. Finding a bit slow and the Irish language unfamiliar. Also started this week the “Dungeon Crawler,Carl” These two books are as different as night and day, so I am curious to see how it goes.
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I finally finished No More Tears by Gardiner Harris. It’s a really strong indictment of not just J & J but also the FDA and anyone who puts profit over people. I’m wondering what can I do to help push for change?
Thank you to everyone who had mentioned this book here on the forum, or else I’d have delayed reading it (it is a downer, which is why I avoided it, but it IS important).
I planned on reading something lighter next, but a hold came in for The Invincible Brain: The Clinically Proven Plan to Age-Proof Your Brain and Stay Sharp for Life by Majid Fotuhi. Maybe it’s a sign from the universe as I don’t recall putting it on hold! 
To be fair, I do look up a lot of books, always searching for my next read.
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I’ve taken a step back in time and read a couple of older books. MAESTRA by L.S. Hilton and
WILD SWANS by Jung Chang. Totally enjoyed both, although MAESTRA was a bit racy!
Am now deeply into THE CHOICE by Edith Eger and SHANTARAM by Gregory David Roberts. Also enjoying!
Wild Swans has sat unread on my bookshelf for many years. Should I read it or donate it? Now she has a new book out on the same subjects. Maybe a new generation? I haven’t looked into it.
I read Shantaram years back but I really liked it a lot. Then it was made into the tv series which was good but seemed much darker to me.
Strange Pictures by Uketsu Different than my usual but I really enjoyed it. Finishing up The Last Resort
Anne. I really enjoyed what you had to say about Strout’s latest. Wish I’d been so clear about my own feelings on this one. I often enjoy what you said you detest in a book - dysfunctional families (fictionalized, yes; my own IRL, not so much) and non-linearity. I find both aspects believable, relatable, interesting. Having read only Olive Kitteridge from Strout’s backlist, and having actually loved that one, I’d thought I was a forever fan and looked forward to diving into another of hers someday. Was delighted to find The Things We Never Say on one of the very few shelves in our smalltown, currently-under-construction library. Why had some soul returned such a gem well before its due date? Took it home, dove in, then an hour later put it aside, thinking, “I’m just not in the mood for this right now! Done.” Perhaps I was feeling . . . well, you know. Yet, the next day, I picked it up and blew through to the finish line. And felt a bit out of sorts. Did I like it? Not really. But parts of it I loved. And I’m still thinking about this book and its characters two weeks and three book completions later. So, ****/5 in my nerdy little reading journal. I reserve the right to change that should the mood strike. Oh, AI doesn’t know how many times loneliness is mentioned in the book.
Glad I’m not the only one sometimes feeling out of sync with the Booker folks. Yet, we keep trying, don’t we?
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Just finished (and enjoyed): McConaghy’s Wild, Dark Shore, Evans’ The Correspondent, French’s The Searcher, and journalist Bob Green’s Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen (for IRL book club).
Currently reading: Benedict and Murray’s A Pair of Aces, Smiley’s 13 Ways of Looking at the Novel (bits and pieces of this one - it’s looooong), and Mungi Ngomane’s Everyday Ubuntu: Living Better, the African Way (for a local women’s service organization).
Next Up: Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (for IRL book club), and Brunt’s Tell the Wolves I’m Home.
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Good luck with Theo, Anthony. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Hope you’re one of those in the first category you mentioned. I did enjoy it very much but couldn’t help feeling a bit uneasy in parts, wondering if I’d feel that way in different life circumstances. Gave our daughter my copy and am looking forward to hearing her young(er) woman’s perspective. Heard there’s a sequel in the works (Ellen of Golden). Not sure I’m interested so soon on the heels of Theo.
Ah, Jane, I’m now regretting putting that well-worn copy of Wild Swans back on the shelf at our library’s recent used book sale. Seemed interesting but a tad longish for my attention span these days. So many books, so little time. Maybe if it’s still there next year . . . .
This is such a perfect readerly message. I liked it but I didn’t love it yet it lingers in my mind, etc.
Yes, there are a few things that I pretty routinely dislike in books but when an author lands on several of them at once it’s likely gonna be a loser for me. I was kicking myself that I returned the ebook without running a search to see how many times she used loneliness. I know it was A LOT!
I really enjoyed several of last year’s Booker list but this year’s list just seems so weird and almost experimental.
I checked out the book and counted the following:
Lone, alone, lonely, loneliness
31 times in 224 pages
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