Reading Books For Pleasure

[AlwaysFara]

I went to pick up the first HP book in the library to get a head start on my next years Harry Potter project, and saw Michelle Obama's Becoming sitting on the shelf there.

I never particularly wanted to read it, but it was right there, so I thought I'd give it a go.

And I'm loving it! The writing is really engaging and for someone who's not in the least familiar what the lives of (some) black people in Chicago in the 60s looked like what she describes is utterly fascinating. Such a vivid picture into a reality that's so different from what I've ever experienced. It's also a little heartbreaking at times. And makes me want to learn so much more about it all.

I adore her. It’s so sad that we had such class and intelligence running out country 3 years ago and now we have this fascist pig.

 

[seela]

I'm dying to read Becoming! I have it on hold. Also have just gotten Hope Never Dies an Obama / Biden mystery! Squee!

I adore her. It’s so sad that we had such class and intelligence running out country 3 years ago and now we have this fascist pig.

Ok, the book is really good, I'm almost finished with it now.

I never really knew anything about her before now. Interesting life! I wonder if she and I could become BFFs if I just showed up to knock on her door with a cake.

 

[AlwaysFara]

Ok, the book is really good, I'm almost finished with it now.

I never really knew anything about her before now. Interesting life! I wonder if she and I could become BFFs if I just showed up to knock on her door with a cake.

She seems like it, yes?

 

[twister947]

Ok, the book is really good, I'm almost finished with it now.

I never really knew anything about her before now. Interesting life! I wonder if she and I could become BFFs if I just showed up to knock on her door with a cake.

I'll be glad to provide a letter of introduction.

 

[AlwaysFara]

seela, tell me how you like Harry Potter.

 

[seela]

seela, tell me how you like Harry Potter.

I'll let you know once I get the HP project going!

I've read the first book in high school for an English class, and I didn't find it awesome then. So that's why I've never been too interested in reading the other books or watching the movies. But I thought I'd give it another chance!

 

[KamaKamaSutra]

Harry Potter has some amazing scenes in it! There is only one book that I felt was too slow, but that is my opinion I loved every bit of it, and some of the reveals that the movie handled are many times better in the books.

If any of you girls like fantasy/mythology books try the October Daye and Iron Druid books. Both series are fascinating to me and I can't wait till a new book comes

 

[AlwaysFara]

Harry Potter has some amazing scenes in it! There is only one book that I felt was too slow, but that is my opinion I loved every bit of it, and some of the reveals that the movie handled are many times better in the books.

If any of you girls like fantasy/mythology books try the October Daye and Iron Druid books. Both series are fascinating to me and I can't wait till a new book comes

I love all things HP. I think the characters are well developed and very shades of grey. The heroes have flaws.

 

[KamaKamaSutra]

I love all things HP. I think the characters are well developed and very shades of grey. The heroes have flaws.

I did love that. The only place I think Rowling could have been better was how they revealed things to each other. Sometimes it was like the characters would come to conclusions without any preamble.

 

[AlwaysFara]

I did love that. The only place I think Rowling could have been better was how they revealed things to each other. Sometimes it was like the characters would come to conclusions without any preamble.

My love is LOTR, but it doesn’t seem to translate well to younger folks. The English is very formal.

 

[KamaKamaSutra]

My love is LOTR, but it doesn’t seem to translate well to younger folks. The English is very formal.

LOTR wasn't bad, I still think it's pretty accessible if you just try a bit. Tolken just liked to rhyme his names and that gets confusing quick when he is talking father and sons. You want something had read The Silmarillion.

 

[seela]

My love is LOTR, but it doesn’t seem to translate well to younger folks. The English is very formal.

I recently read both The Hobbit and Fellowship in English. I had only read them in translations before. I quite enjoyed the language. I'll have to read the remaining two books of LOTR too.

I generally prefer scifi over fantasy, though. It's a weird fantasy kick I'm on lately!

 

[AlwaysFara]

LOTR wasn't bad, I still think it's pretty accessible if you just try a bit. Tolken just liked to rhyme his names and that gets confusing quick when he is talking father and sons. You want something had read The Silmarillion.

Read it. Twice.
LOTR isn’t confusing.

 

[FurryFury]

I LOVE the Iron Druid Books!

Harry Potter was good at times but what tripped me up each book excepting the last was that he got abused and people like Dummydore kept making him go "home" to that.

Harry Potter has some amazing scenes in it! There is only one book that I felt was too slow, but that is my opinion I loved every bit of it, and some of the reveals that the movie handled are many times better in the books.

If any of you girls like fantasy/mythology books try the October Daye and Iron Druid books. Both series are fascinating to me and I can't wait till a new book comes

 

[FurryFury]

The Hobbit was required reading in high school. It took, I think 200 pages before I cared. I ended up liking it better than most required reading.

Of course I played D&D after that, and still do sometimes!

I recently read both The Hobbit and Fellowship in English. I had only read them in translations before. I quite enjoyed the language. I'll have to read the remaining two books of LOTR too.

I generally prefer scifi over fantasy, though. It's a weird fantasy kick I'm on lately!

 

[seela]

Update:

Becoming was really good, I'll give it the highly sought-after seela's stamp of approval.

My Harry Potter challenge begins tonight.

I'm cautiously curious about how this will turn out!

 

[AlwaysFara]

Update:

Becoming was really good, I'll give it the highly sought-after seela's stamp of approval.

My Harry Potter challenge begins tonight.

I'm cautiously curious about how this will turn out!

It will be wonderful.

 

[seela]

It will be wonderful.

I have my doubts, but I'm going in with an open mind. I was told it gets better if I just keep at it, so that's what I'm planning on doing.

 

[SimonDoom]

I'm going to read the Harry Potter books. D

I read them about a decade ago when my kids started reading them. I thought the first book was OK, but they kept getting better. The story grows up with the characters. It's not the best written series ever but the world building is extraordinary. I found the books to be very entertaining, and the movies did an admirable job capturing the books.

You're in for a long haul, however, because there are 7 books and they keep getting longer and denser as you go.

 

[XBeautifulSoulX]

I've just started reading the Fallen series by Lauren Kate
So far I find it mildly interesting hopefully it will pick up I'd hate to move on to something else without giving it a proper chance.

 

[FurryFury]

Hope you find a way to enjoy it or move on to something you do.

I've just started reading the Fallen series by Lauren Kate
So far I find it mildly interesting hopefully it will pick up I'd hate to move on to something else without giving it a proper chance.

 

[seela]

Ok, update on my Harry Potter project, since I was asked.

I finished the first book. Sadly, I still didn't love it. Parts of it felt waaaay too cartoonish to me, especially the beginning of it and the whole Dursley family. I really, really hope the characters evolve, because at this point most of them seem very one dimensional. And if they happen to do something that isn't totally in line with their main personality trait, it's always so heavy-handedly underlined.

Ok, it's children's lit, so maybe my expectations have been too high, but I still don't see why so many people love this so much. Maybe I'm just too old and too unwhimsical for this. But I felt this way also when I was much younger and read the first book, so I dunno.

I'm in for a long and arduous year of reading if the rest of the book are like this as well. Because I'm going to read them, I've made too big a fuss about it to give up now. I really hope I'll get into the story sooner rather than later!

I'll try to get my hands on the second book this week.

 

[Tallcajun]

They do get better.
I started with #3 because that what my son was on.
I went back to the beginning to catch up.
Very well written, I thought. But then, I do have a child’s mind.

 

[midwestyankee]

One of the things I love about the HP novels is that the writing evolves to match the ages of the students (and obviously JKRs experience). It is frustrating that most people can't get past the first two, clearly children's novels, and get to the meatier stuff. It is amazing, however, how much vital plot work she lays out in those first two novels though.
Keep going Seela! I wish I could read them for the first time again!

One of life's truly great pleasures is reading a great book for the first time, especially if you have waited a long time to do so.

 

[seela]

Keep going Seela! I wish I could read them for the first time again!

I will keep going. It has to get better, it absolutely has to. So many people can't be completely wrong.

I started to read American Notes by Charles Dickens while I wait for an email from the library to tell me I can come pick up Harry #2.