12 New Authors Challenge

[Cailin]

Count me in - longtime absent poster determined to get involved again!

So far this year, 2 new authors:

Philip Roth (hangs head in shame at never having read him) - Nemesis
Hans Fallada - Alone in Berlin

3. Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games - teach teens so had to read this to see what they were all raving about.

4. Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart - been meaning to read this - such a seminal text for so many African writers.

Quite pleased I've managed to do this much so far! Not a lot of spare time in my life for reading these days

[suprematist]

1. Pnin - Vladimir Nabokov 8/10
2. Side Effects - Woody Allen 7/10 It has its moments of brilliance, but reads often, as how I imagine it anyway- like Woody Allen sleep-talking.
3. Orphee & Antigone - Jean Cocteau both 7/10
4. Diary - Chuck Palanhiuk 7/10
5. On Photography - Susan Sontag 10/10 highly informative
6. No Exit & The Respectful Prostitute - Jean-Paul Sartre 9/10

7. Demian - Hermann Hesse 7/10
8. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote 10/10

[Dark Muse]

1. Jules Verne - Around the World in Eighty Days: Overall an enjoyable story, though at I found it a little hard to get into. It was a humorous and fun adventure story but his writing style did not really captivate my attention.

7/10 stars

2. Jennifer McMahon - Don't Breathe A Word: A very eerie, haunting, and suspenseful tale. I really enjoyed reading this one and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I really liked the way in which the authors portrayal of fairies touched back to traditional folklore, opposed to what has become the more modern portrayal of the fairy.

8/10 stars
3. V. S. Naipaul - A Bend in the River : An interesting book. I really enjoyed the narration style and thought the ending was beautiful.

7/10 stars

4. Salman Rushdie - Midnight's Children: A very interesting book. I found the narrative style to be engaging and I enjoyed reading.

7/10

5. Siteg Larsson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: It started out a bit slow, but than it really picked up speed and became quite the page turner. I loved the characters, particularly Salander.

8/10

6. Robert K. Massie - Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman: This was part of my efforts to read more non-fiction. I did not really know much about Catherine or this particular period of time and I have to say all in all I found the book quite enjoyable to read. The very last section felt a bit dry compared to the rest and slowed down becoming more difficult to get through, but there rest was easy to read and entertaining while giving a glimpse into the life of this woman.

7/10

7. Pearl S. Buck - The Good Earth: I have to say I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. I had been on the fence about wanting to read this one, and I found it was beautifully written, and a well told story which I found interesting to read.

8/10

8. Dashiell Hammett - The Maltese Falcon: I do not usually read detective books, or crime fiction and mysteries, but I do like Film Noir, so I was intrigued when this book was described as a Noir Detective novel. I have to say that I quite enjoyed it. It was a fun, entertaining book to read.

8/10

9. Betty Smith - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn: I found this a very enjoyable book.

9/10

[Dark Muse]

1. Jules Verne - Around the World in Eighty Days: Overall an enjoyable story, though at I found it a little hard to get into. It was a humorous and fun adventure story but his writing style did not really captivate my attention.

7/10 stars

2. Jennifer McMahon - Don't Breathe A Word: A very eerie, haunting, and suspenseful tale. I really enjoyed reading this one and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I really liked the way in which the authors portrayal of fairies touched back to traditional folklore, opposed to what has become the more modern portrayal of the fairy.

8/10 stars
3. V. S. Naipaul - A Bend in the River : An interesting book. I really enjoyed the narration style and thought the ending was beautiful.

7/10 stars

4. Salman Rushdie - Midnight's Children: A very interesting book. I found the narrative style to be engaging and I enjoyed reading.

7/10

5. Siteg Larsson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: It started out a bit slow, but than it really picked up speed and became quite the page turner. I loved the characters, particularly Salander.

8/10

6. Robert K. Massie - Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman: This was part of my efforts to read more non-fiction. I did not really know much about Catherine or this particular period of time and I have to say all in all I found the book quite enjoyable to read. The very last section felt a bit dry compared to the rest and slowed down becoming more difficult to get through, but there rest was easy to read and entertaining while giving a glimpse into the life of this woman.

7/10

7. Pearl S. Buck - The Good Earth: I have to say I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. I had been on the fence about wanting to read this one, and I found it was beautifully written, and a well told story which I found interesting to read.

8/10

8. Dashiell Hammett - The Maltese Falcon: I do not usually read detective books, or crime fiction and mysteries, but I do like Film Noir, so I was intrigued when this book was described as a Noir Detective novel. I have to say that I quite enjoyed it. It was a fun, entertaining book to read.

8/10

9. Betty Smith - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn: I found this a very enjoyable book.

9/10

10. Choderlos de Laclos - Dangerous Liaisons: A delightfully deviant story. I loved the fact that it was written in the form of letters, as well becasue of that there were asepcts of it which I could personally relate to. As well there is a touch of Merteuil and Valmont in myself and a former Dangerouls Liaison of my own. I much enjoyed reading this book

9/10

[Tallulah]

This sounds like a good challenge and one that I have a chance of accomplishing!

So far...

Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe - really didn't enjoy this one too much. It seemed rather tedious.

The Boleyn Inheritance by Phillippa Gregory - really liked this one. I'm a fan of historical fiction and that particular time period so it's odd that I waited so long to read one of Gregory's books.

The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx - very easy to read. Didn't agree with anything he said (lol!) but overall it wasn't bad.

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin - loved this book. Read it in one day. Couldn't put it down. The sequel was a huge disappointment however.

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo - good book. Felt like it got a little bogged down in sections. Definitely feel a sense of accomplishment just for finishing something so big!

[TheFifthElement]

6. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill A real disappointment this one. Not scary, a bit boring. Nicely written, though. 6/10
7. The End of the Affair by Graham Greene Really good book. Short and tightly written, it really packs a punch. 8/10

8. Battle Royale by Koushun Takami gruesome J-pop kid killing spree. Interesting concept, clunky translation. 6/10

[Dark Muse]

1. Jules Verne - Around the World in Eighty Days: Overall an enjoyable story, though at I found it a little hard to get into. It was a humorous and fun adventure story but his writing style did not really captivate my attention.

7/10 stars

2. Jennifer McMahon - Don't Breathe A Word: A very eerie, haunting, and suspenseful tale. I really enjoyed reading this one and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I really liked the way in which the authors portrayal of fairies touched back to traditional folklore, opposed to what has become the more modern portrayal of the fairy.

8/10 stars
3. V. S. Naipaul - A Bend in the River : An interesting book. I really enjoyed the narration style and thought the ending was beautiful.

7/10 stars

4. Salman Rushdie - Midnight's Children: A very interesting book. I found the narrative style to be engaging and I enjoyed reading.

7/10

5. Siteg Larsson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: It started out a bit slow, but than it really picked up speed and became quite the page turner. I loved the characters, particularly Salander.

8/10

6. Robert K. Massie - Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman: This was part of my efforts to read more non-fiction. I did not really know much about Catherine or this particular period of time and I have to say all in all I found the book quite enjoyable to read. The very last section felt a bit dry compared to the rest and slowed down becoming more difficult to get through, but there rest was easy to read and entertaining while giving a glimpse into the life of this woman.

7/10

7. Pearl S. Buck - The Good Earth: I have to say I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. I had been on the fence about wanting to read this one, and I found it was beautifully written, and a well told story which I found interesting to read.

8/10

8. Dashiell Hammett - The Maltese Falcon: I do not usually read detective books, or crime fiction and mysteries, but I do like Film Noir, so I was intrigued when this book was described as a Noir Detective novel. I have to say that I quite enjoyed it. It was a fun, entertaining book to read.

8/10

9. Betty Smith - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn: I found this a very enjoyable book.

9/10

10. Choderlos de Laclos - Dangerous Liaisons: A delightfully deviant story. I loved the fact that it was written in the form of letters, as well becasue of that there were asepcts of it which I could personally relate to. As well there is a touch of Merteuil and Valmont in myself and a former Dangerouls Liaison of my own. I much enjoyed reading this book

9/10

11. Tea Obreht - The Tiger's Wife: I was a bit disappointed by this book. I was on the fence about wanting to read it, and I have to say I just found it lacking. While there were aspects I enjoyed, during my reading I found myself waiting to see if it would start to get better, but it never really did.

6/10

[RicMisc]

I'll join in in this one to keep myself reading different things. So far:

1. The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins) 7/10
2. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald) 8.5/10
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) 8/10
4. Pride And Prejudice (Jane Austen) 7.5/10

Currently reading: Hamlet

5. Hamlet (William Shakespeare) 8/10
6. Il Principe (Niccolo Machiavelli) 10/10

Il Principe deserves to be mentioned separately from the rest because I loved the book so much! There is so much truth to what he says and I loved how he backed every thing he said with a historical example. Just an amazing book.

[Seasider]

1. I'd like to try Sir Walter Scott. I have a vague recollection of a film of Ivanhoe so Ill try that.

2. I have heard good things of Villette by Charlotte Bronte...and I loved the other one.

3. I was agreeably surprised bu how much I enjoyed Somerset Maugham's short stories,so I think I'll try The Painted Veil.

[Helga]

I have been doing this without realizing it. the books I have been reading for school are mainly by people I don't know.

1.Gunnlaðarsaga-Svava Jakobsdóttir 7/10
2. The Antelope wife- Louise Erdrich 5/10
3. Wide Sargasso sea-Jean rhys 7/10
4.Ilium-Dan Simmons 6/10
5.weight- Jeanette Winteson 9/10
6. beouwulf- ? don't know how to grade it....
7. die letzte welt-Cristoph Ransmayr 6/10

right now I am reading Gods Without Men by Hari Kunzru

if you count plays and short stories I think I am up to a lot more though.

8. Gods without men - Hari Kunzru 8/10
9. Candide- Voltaire 10/10
10. Hounded- Kevin Hearne 6/10 (very bad research mistakes!!)

[suprematist]

1. Pnin - Vladimir Nabokov 8/10
2. Side Effects - Woody Allen 7/10 It has its moments of brilliance, but reads often, as how I imagine it anyway- like Woody Allen sleep-talking.
3. Orphee & Antigone - Jean Cocteau both 7/10
4. Diary - Chuck Palanhiuk 7/10
5. On Photography - Susan Sontag 10/10 highly informative
6. No Exit & The Respectful Prostitute - Jean-Paul Sartre 9/10

7. Demian - Hermann Hesse 7/10
8. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote 10/10

9. Notes on the Cinematographer - Robert Bresson 9/10

[TheFifthElement]

1. Murasaki Shikibu - The Tale of Genji 9/10. Long but worth it; would have given it 10 apart from the ropey beginning and some off chapters in the middle.

2. J W von Goethe - The Sorrows of Young Werther 8/10. Been meaning to read this one for a while. Reminded me a lot of the style of Kafka/Hamsun. A sad but interesting read.

3. Joyce Carol Oates - Black Water 9/10. Joyce Carol Oates was one of the female writers I didn't get around to last year. Black Water is a poetic interpretation of the events leading to the death of Mary Jo Kopechne in the car accident with Teddy Kennedy, which I didn't know anything about. Names changed to protect the innocent, of course. A really beautiful, sad book. I loved it, and am keen to read more by Oates as a result.

4. Gunnar Gunnarson - The Good Shepherd 7/10. An odd, short little book about an Icelandic man who goes looking for lost sheep in a bad winter storm. Both his life and faith are challenged. I suspect there as a lot I missed about this one, so maybe a re-read would be in order at some point.

5. Salman Rushdie - Midnight's Children. Hmm, really torn on this one. It's a well written book, funny, interesting story, clearly Rushdie is an intelligent and creative writer but, well, really I found this one a chore. On technical skill I'd give it an 8/10 but on enjoyment/engagement I'd give it a 4/10. I just felt excluded, in every way, from the story. Glad to have finished it, to be honest.

6. Susan Hill - The Woman in Black - A real disappointment this one. Not scary, a bit boring. Nicely written, though. 6/10

7. Graham Greene - The End of the Affair - Really good book. Short and tightly written, it really packs a punch. 8/10

8. Koushun Takami - Battle Royale - gruesome J-pop kid killing spree. Interesting concept, clunky translation. 6/10

9. Anita Brookner - Hotel du Lac - absolutely perfect little book. Well written, surprisingly deep and very enjoyable 9/10

[Gilliatt Gurgle]

1. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. 6/10. Easier to read compared to a couple other books I've read recently. I particularly enjoyed the historical aspects centered around WW I. Something had to give in the end, following the nearly wearisome run of romance, good luck in near brushes with death and discovery.

2. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass. 9/10. I lack the gift of literary gabb, so I'll just say this was a great read. Douglass' mastery of writing is superb which is saying a lot considering the hardships of his life as a slave.

3. Finished two plays by Oscar Wilde; The Importance of Being Ernest and [i]Lady Windermere's Fan". 8/10 and 6/10 resepctively. The first one had me luaghing out loud at several points. The second one did not appeal to me as much as Ernest, the outcome was predictable, but still entertaining. I will continue on with a A Woman of No Importance

4. Salman Rushdie; Midnight's Children Started this for the February "Booker Award" reading thread and obviously missed the deadline, since I finsished last night. The narrative approach was interesting but tended toward the erratic. I was having difficulty keeping up with who, what and where. On the other hand I learned more about the history of India. 7/10.

[RicMisc]

1. The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins) 7/10
2. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald) 8.5/10
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) 8/10
4. Pride And Prejudice (Jane Austen) 7.5/105. Hamlet (William Shakespeare) 8/10
6. Il Principe (Niccolo Machiavelli) 10/10

7. The Stranger (Albert Camus) 8/10

Currently reading: A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens)

[Venerable Bede]

1. Stardust by Neil Gaiman 7/10 - Fun, whimsical fairytale that kept me interested throughout. It is a little lacking in plot, but otherwise good.

2. Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay 8.5/10 - Very good historical fantasy novel. Kay successfully transports the curt, realistic style of the Norse sagas to the genre of the modern novel. I look forward to reading more from him in the future.

3. A Shadow in Summer by Daniel Abraham 8/10 - I was pleasantly surprised by this fantasy novel recommended to me by my brother (we have very different tastes in reading). I will definitely be reading the next three installments in the series.

Up next: Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner