I've decided to start a Tumblr page, because it seems easier to use/follow than this, so head on over to my new page: http://noellewittkop.tumblr.com/
I'm also about six books behind, so hopefully I'll be better about updating my new blog! See ya over there!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
4. Water For Elephants, Sara Gruen
Yep, that's right, I read this book in one day. Because it was amazing!
I not only loved this story, I love how it came about. The author was planning to write a story for The Chicago Tribune (I believe, I need to check that) and became interested in this subject and ended up writing this book.
I love this book for so many reasons. Mainly, because it's about something that I know so little about, but it's written so well that I feel I know it. It makes me miss something I've never known: the classic circus. I've never seen a circus train. I don't think they set up a big top anymore, because now the circus comes to a convention center and you get your tickets through Ticketmaster.
For a book about the circus, this book is very gritty. There's a great love story, along with some really rough scenes between the employees, etc. I also love the way the story is crafted, as memories from Jacob, who is "ninety or ninety-three" and living in a nursing home. I like that his spunky attitude and the comments he makes, both as a 23 year old, and an old man.
I don't want to be all Reading-Rainbowish about it, but I would highly recommend this book to anyone. I've talked with both guys and girls who enjoyed the book and I'll leave you with the best movie trailer ever: Water For Elephants Trailer. Who's coming to see the movie with me?
I not only loved this story, I love how it came about. The author was planning to write a story for The Chicago Tribune (I believe, I need to check that) and became interested in this subject and ended up writing this book.
I love this book for so many reasons. Mainly, because it's about something that I know so little about, but it's written so well that I feel I know it. It makes me miss something I've never known: the classic circus. I've never seen a circus train. I don't think they set up a big top anymore, because now the circus comes to a convention center and you get your tickets through Ticketmaster.
For a book about the circus, this book is very gritty. There's a great love story, along with some really rough scenes between the employees, etc. I also love the way the story is crafted, as memories from Jacob, who is "ninety or ninety-three" and living in a nursing home. I like that his spunky attitude and the comments he makes, both as a 23 year old, and an old man.
I don't want to be all Reading-Rainbowish about it, but I would highly recommend this book to anyone. I've talked with both guys and girls who enjoyed the book and I'll leave you with the best movie trailer ever: Water For Elephants Trailer. Who's coming to see the movie with me?
3. The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest, Steig Larson
I hate to say it, but I'm really relieved that I'm finished with this series. It's so cumbersome, I don't see a ton of character development, and it's s-l-o-o-o-w.
In this book I was so bored by the fact that Lisbeth was in the hospital the entire time. It's not like her to be sitting in one place for a significant period of time, and she didn't have the opportunity to do anything. Of course Mikael finds a way for Lisbeth to be computery. I actually had a dream that I was on some random website and clicked inside of the "O" or something and all of a sudden I was in their little weird chat room.
Speaking of their chat room, I can't believe how much technology has evolved since 2002-2003ish. They all have cell phones, but not smart phones, so when Lisbeth needs to be online (or on the Net, capital N), she uses her Palm. I admit I did have a separate PDA that wasn't a phone, back in 2005ish. That was right when smart phones were becoming popular, but only important businesspeople needed them, therefore I as a college student couldn't justify it. But apparently I could justify a $500 PDA? Hmm.
My overall grade for this series is C-. It's fine, I'm not going to run out and recommend it to everyone. If you're interested in Swedish culture, this may be a more interesting read.
In this book I was so bored by the fact that Lisbeth was in the hospital the entire time. It's not like her to be sitting in one place for a significant period of time, and she didn't have the opportunity to do anything. Of course Mikael finds a way for Lisbeth to be computery. I actually had a dream that I was on some random website and clicked inside of the "O" or something and all of a sudden I was in their little weird chat room.
Speaking of their chat room, I can't believe how much technology has evolved since 2002-2003ish. They all have cell phones, but not smart phones, so when Lisbeth needs to be online (or on the Net, capital N), she uses her Palm. I admit I did have a separate PDA that wasn't a phone, back in 2005ish. That was right when smart phones were becoming popular, but only important businesspeople needed them, therefore I as a college student couldn't justify it. But apparently I could justify a $500 PDA? Hmm.
My overall grade for this series is C-. It's fine, I'm not going to run out and recommend it to everyone. If you're interested in Swedish culture, this may be a more interesting read.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
2. The Girl Who Played with Fire, Steig Larsson
Somebody edited this one! I liked this book much more, for the readability factor if nothing else. The story was much more congruent and I was able to follow it without a lot of filler.
In this second book of the trilogy, the theme appears to be people taking the law into their own hands. There have been several murders and Lisbeth can be linked to all of them in some way or another.
Lisbeth, of course, mistrusts any authority figure, therefore she would never consider the cops to be on her side or any use to her. Mikael, being a journalist, is clearly justified in playing a police officer...wait, nope, he's just a journalist. I don't get it. Also, Dragan Armansky, who owns a security company full of rent-a-cops, also decides that he and his team need to get involved with the police investigation. It makes for an interesting story, but if you sit back and think about it, it seems pretty ridiculous that all of these people feel the need to "take the law into their own hands."
I found myself on Lisbeth's side in this book, more so than last time. She's pretty much front and center in the story, considering the fact that she's the prime suspect in three murders. In the last story I liked Mikael a lot, but his character wasn't developed at all in this story, so I found myself bored with his character doing the exact same thing he did in the last book.
This series is very dark, which I don't have a problem with, but it also feels very unpolished. Like Larsson didn't know who he wanted his characters to be. I will read the third installment (which costs twice as much, thank you very much Amazon.) because I want to stick it out to the bitter end but, Larsson's writing style-at least in his posthumously edited books-is definitely not for me.
Noelle
In this second book of the trilogy, the theme appears to be people taking the law into their own hands. There have been several murders and Lisbeth can be linked to all of them in some way or another.
Lisbeth, of course, mistrusts any authority figure, therefore she would never consider the cops to be on her side or any use to her. Mikael, being a journalist, is clearly justified in playing a police officer...wait, nope, he's just a journalist. I don't get it. Also, Dragan Armansky, who owns a security company full of rent-a-cops, also decides that he and his team need to get involved with the police investigation. It makes for an interesting story, but if you sit back and think about it, it seems pretty ridiculous that all of these people feel the need to "take the law into their own hands."
I found myself on Lisbeth's side in this book, more so than last time. She's pretty much front and center in the story, considering the fact that she's the prime suspect in three murders. In the last story I liked Mikael a lot, but his character wasn't developed at all in this story, so I found myself bored with his character doing the exact same thing he did in the last book.
This series is very dark, which I don't have a problem with, but it also feels very unpolished. Like Larsson didn't know who he wanted his characters to be. I will read the third installment (which costs twice as much, thank you very much Amazon.) because I want to stick it out to the bitter end but, Larsson's writing style-at least in his posthumously edited books-is definitely not for me.
Noelle
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
1. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Steig Larsson
The first book I read in 2011 is The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson.
Mikael Blomkvist is a journalist who has been convicted of libel against a very powerful investor. After the trial, he is given an unusual freelance assignment by Henrik Vanger, a billionaire former CEO. Vanger wants him to ghostwrite his autobiography and investigate the murder of his niece-which happened more than 40 years prior.
If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be cumbersome. Having pretty much no experience with Swedish culture, I got very caught up in the names of people and places. It's odd to me how they referred to everyone, including women, by their last names. This includes calling everyone in the Vanger family by "Vanger." Confusing much? The author also spent way too much time describing characters who are utterly unimportant to the story. I found myself distracted by the life stories of random police officers, etc who only appeared once in the story.
The theory presented to me by my brilliant friend Tasha is that this book seems like it was never edited. This is probably because this book was published in 2009, five years after the author's death. Due to the fact that book editing is a give-and-take process, this novel (and presumably the second and third in the series) didn't seem to go through this stage. There is so much filler that looks more like notes & research for the author’s sake than anything else.
The main themes of this book were violence, sex, murder, sex, gender issues, and sex. The main character, Mikael, is sleeping with his business partner Erika, who is married and all parties involved seem to be fine with the arrangement. Lisbeth's guardian (she is a ward of the state as she's been deemed mentally incompetent to care for herself) is sexually abusing her. It took me a while to get used to the idea that in Swedish culture, these casual relationships make sense.
Despite all of my negative comments, I really did enjoy this book. At least enough to start the second one. I'm hoping they get more polished over time in order to keep my attention.
Mikael Blomkvist is a journalist who has been convicted of libel against a very powerful investor. After the trial, he is given an unusual freelance assignment by Henrik Vanger, a billionaire former CEO. Vanger wants him to ghostwrite his autobiography and investigate the murder of his niece-which happened more than 40 years prior.
If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be cumbersome. Having pretty much no experience with Swedish culture, I got very caught up in the names of people and places. It's odd to me how they referred to everyone, including women, by their last names. This includes calling everyone in the Vanger family by "Vanger." Confusing much? The author also spent way too much time describing characters who are utterly unimportant to the story. I found myself distracted by the life stories of random police officers, etc who only appeared once in the story.
The theory presented to me by my brilliant friend Tasha is that this book seems like it was never edited. This is probably because this book was published in 2009, five years after the author's death. Due to the fact that book editing is a give-and-take process, this novel (and presumably the second and third in the series) didn't seem to go through this stage. There is so much filler that looks more like notes & research for the author’s sake than anything else.
The main themes of this book were violence, sex, murder, sex, gender issues, and sex. The main character, Mikael, is sleeping with his business partner Erika, who is married and all parties involved seem to be fine with the arrangement. Lisbeth's guardian (she is a ward of the state as she's been deemed mentally incompetent to care for herself) is sexually abusing her. It took me a while to get used to the idea that in Swedish culture, these casual relationships make sense.
Despite all of my negative comments, I really did enjoy this book. At least enough to start the second one. I'm hoping they get more polished over time in order to keep my attention.
Monday, January 3, 2011
New Year, New Plan
A thought occurred to me as I was reading Pride & Prejudice this weekend...I don't particularly care for Jane Austen. Her writing style isn't for me, and I'm having a tough time getting into the story. Just as I have every time I've attempted to read any of her books.
So, I've made a decision...I'm still going to read 100 books in 2011, but I'm not going to limit myself to any certain list. I am always open to suggestions, but I'm going to treat myself to more contemporary lit, possibly with a few classics thrown in for good measure.
I'll still review the books here as I finish them, so stay tuned for more.
So, I've made a decision...I'm still going to read 100 books in 2011, but I'm not going to limit myself to any certain list. I am always open to suggestions, but I'm going to treat myself to more contemporary lit, possibly with a few classics thrown in for good measure.
I'll still review the books here as I finish them, so stay tuned for more.
Monday, December 27, 2010
100 Books in 2011
This blog finally has a point! I recently came across this list of 100 books that everyone should read. There are several "Top 100" book lists, but this is the one I'm going to start with. One of the books included is the Bible, and I've chosen this version, The One Year Bible, NLT. This will be an ongoing project, it will take me all year. In the meantime, I will read approximately 1 book every 3-4 days and review it here.
I'll be reading on my Kindle, which as a reader, I love, love, love!! Some of the books are even free, since they're out of copyright. For instance, I'll be starting with Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.
Without further ado, here's the list:
1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6. The Bible
7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials Series - Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
12. Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. Complete Works of William Shakespeare
15. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16. The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19. The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20. Middlemarch - George Eliot
21. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23. Bleak House – Charles Dickens
24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33. Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34. Emma -Jane Austen
35. Persuasion - Jane Austen
36. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40. Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48. The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50. Atonement - Ian McEwan
51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52. Dune - Frank Herbert
53. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68. Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69. Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72. Dracula - Bram Stoker
73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75. Ulysses - James Joyce
76. The Inferno - Dante
77. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78. Germinal - Emile Zola
79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80. Possession - AS Byatt
81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87. Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White
88. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94. Watership Down - Richard Adams
95. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Tool
96. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo
Here's to 100 books in 2011!
I'll be reading on my Kindle, which as a reader, I love, love, love!! Some of the books are even free, since they're out of copyright. For instance, I'll be starting with Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.
Without further ado, here's the list:
1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6. The Bible
7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials Series - Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
12. Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. Complete Works of William Shakespeare
15. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16. The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19. The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20. Middlemarch - George Eliot
21. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23. Bleak House – Charles Dickens
24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33. Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34. Emma -Jane Austen
35. Persuasion - Jane Austen
36. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40. Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48. The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50. Atonement - Ian McEwan
51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52. Dune - Frank Herbert
53. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68. Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69. Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72. Dracula - Bram Stoker
73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75. Ulysses - James Joyce
76. The Inferno - Dante
77. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78. Germinal - Emile Zola
79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80. Possession - AS Byatt
81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87. Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White
88. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94. Watership Down - Richard Adams
95. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Tool
96. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo
Here's to 100 books in 2011!
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