MobileRead Forums - View Single Post

ElspethB · 12-16-2016, 11:35 AM

Fun thread!

I track on an Excel spreadsheet all the books I read or listen to and rate them on a half-point scale from 0 to 5. Although, to be honest, I rarely rate a book less than 2.5 because if I dislike it that much I usually give up reading it. Life is too short and the number of books I can read in this world is finite so I have no desire to waste time on anything subpar. 4.5 stars is the highest I'll give a book I'm reading for the first time. I only give 5 to books I love and have read more than once.

I listened to a number of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels this year and gave most of them a 4.5. I have no doubt I will listen and/or read them again, so I fully expect them to attain a 5-star status on the next go-round.

One of my 5-star books I reread this year (I like to read it around Christmas) is Doomsday Book by Connie Willis. Here's my capsule description from my reading log:

Set about 50 years into the future and over 650 years in the past, this is one of my all-time favorite novels. An Oxford historian travels back in time to 1320 but inadvertently ends up in 1348, the year the Black Death hit England. I love everything about this flawed yet still so irresistible book, both futuristic Oxford (despite the perplexing lack of mobiles or other communication devices) and the medieval setting.

Here are some of my 4.5 star books from this year:

Everybody's Fool by Richard Russo, a follow-up to his classic Nobody's Fool (one of my 5 star novels): I had a bit of trouble with the first half of this book because it was not enough Sully and too much of other characters I didn't at first care about. However, by the second half I was riveted and could not stop reading because I was dying to know what would happen. Russo's depiction of small town life in the Northeast is bang on.
The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North. A memorable novel about a forgettable woman. At the age of 16, Hope begins to disappear from people's memories. Once she is out of someone's sight, she is completely forgotten. Even her own family (with the exception of her brain-damaged younger sister) forget all about her. How can she hold down a job, procure housing, lead any kind of normal life if no one can remember her? She can't, so she turns to crime: shoplifting food at first but gradually working her way up to becoming a master thief pulling off elaborate heists. Along the way she encounters "Perfection," an app that takes self-improvement to the nth degree as well as Byron14, a woman almost as elusive as herself who is determined to bring down Perfection and its creators. One of the rare novels that is both a riveting character study and a page-turning thriller.
Christodora by Tim Murphy. One of the top five new novels I read this year. The title refers to the name of an early 20th-century building in the East Village gentrified in the 80s. Residents of the building include Milly and Jared, an artist couple, their troubled adopted son Matteo (a boy whose mother died of AIDS when he was a baby), as well as Hector, a meth addict and former AIDS activist. Set between the late 80s and 2021, the stories of these Christodora residents and their friends, lovers, and families weave together to form a poignant narrative of love, loss, and redemption. I like the way Murphy's vignettes jumped around in time, circling ever closer to some surprising revelations, and I really came to love the characters. Beautifully written. I know I'll read this one again.
Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. A generous look inside the life of one of America's best musicians. I was impressed by both his honesty about himself and his own failings and his generosity and tact in depicting others in his life. Reading this autobiography, especially so soon after that phenomenal concert in September, has given me a renewed appreciation for his music. I think I'm going to have to obtain the albums of his I don't already have.
The Last One by Alexandra Oliva. Survivor meets The Stand. A woman competing in an extreme reality tv competition is unaware that much of the rest of the U.S. has been hit by a virulent pandemic. The chapters alternate between her point of view in her current situation and flashbacks to the beginning of the competition from the point of view of the director and editor of the tv footage. Although at times I wanted to shake her for her persistence in believing that every experience was part of the show, still I was fascinated by the situation and found this one very hard to put down.

I look forward to seeing everyone else's most enjoyable reads of 2016!

12-16-2016, 11:35 AM	#12
ElspethB Passionate Reader Posts: 276 Karma: 1829152 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Central Jersey, USA Device: Samsung Galaxy Tab S3, Kobo Clara HD, Fire HD 8, Voyage, Oasis 3, PW5	Fun thread! I track on an Excel spreadsheet all the books I read or listen to and rate them on a half-point scale from 0 to 5. Although, to be honest, I rarely rate a book less than 2.5 because if I dislike it that much I usually give up reading it. Life is too short and the number of books I can read in this world is finite so I have no desire to waste time on anything subpar. 4.5 stars is the highest I'll give a book I'm reading for the first time. I only give 5 to books I love and have read more than once. I listened to a number of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels this year and gave most of them a 4.5. I have no doubt I will listen and/or read them again, so I fully expect them to attain a 5-star status on the next go-round. One of my 5-star books I reread this year (I like to read it around Christmas) is Doomsday Book by Connie Willis. Here's my capsule description from my reading log: Set about 50 years into the future and over 650 years in the past, this is one of my all-time favorite novels. An Oxford historian travels back in time to 1320 but inadvertently ends up in 1348, the year the Black Death hit England. I love everything about this flawed yet still so irresistible book, both futuristic Oxford (despite the perplexing lack of mobiles or other communication devices) and the medieval setting. Here are some of my 4.5 star books from this year: Everybody's Fool by Richard Russo, a follow-up to his classic Nobody's Fool (one of my 5 star novels): I had a bit of trouble with the first half of this book because it was not enough Sully and too much of other characters I didn't at first care about. However, by the second half I was riveted and could not stop reading because I was dying to know what would happen. Russo's depiction of small town life in the Northeast is bang on. The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North. A memorable novel about a forgettable woman. At the age of 16, Hope begins to disappear from people's memories. Once she is out of someone's sight, she is completely forgotten. Even her own family (with the exception of her brain-damaged younger sister) forget all about her. How can she hold down a job, procure housing, lead any kind of normal life if no one can remember her? She can't, so she turns to crime: shoplifting food at first but gradually working her way up to becoming a master thief pulling off elaborate heists. Along the way she encounters "Perfection," an app that takes self-improvement to the nth degree as well as Byron14, a woman almost as elusive as herself who is determined to bring down Perfection and its creators. One of the rare novels that is both a riveting character study and a page-turning thriller. Christodora by Tim Murphy. One of the top five new novels I read this year. The title refers to the name of an early 20th-century building in the East Village gentrified in the 80s. Residents of the building include Milly and Jared, an artist couple, their troubled adopted son Matteo (a boy whose mother died of AIDS when he was a baby), as well as Hector, a meth addict and former AIDS activist. Set between the late 80s and 2021, the stories of these Christodora residents and their friends, lovers, and families weave together to form a poignant narrative of love, loss, and redemption. I like the way Murphy's vignettes jumped around in time, circling ever closer to some surprising revelations, and I really came to love the characters. Beautifully written. I know I'll read this one again. Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. A generous look inside the life of one of America's best musicians. I was impressed by both his honesty about himself and his own failings and his generosity and tact in depicting others in his life. Reading this autobiography, especially so soon after that phenomenal concert in September, has given me a renewed appreciation for his music. I think I'm going to have to obtain the albums of his I don't already have. The Last One by Alexandra Oliva. Survivor meets The Stand. A woman competing in an extreme reality tv competition is unaware that much of the rest of the U.S. has been hit by a virulent pandemic. The chapters alternate between her point of view in her current situation and flashbacks to the beginning of the competition from the point of view of the director and editor of the tv footage. Although at times I wanted to shake her for her persistence in believing that every experience was part of the show, still I was fascinated by the situation and found this one very hard to put down. I look forward to seeing everyone else's most enjoyable reads of 2016!