join now| sign in| help
Search advanced search
 
Books
Search:

Request Friendship
Send Request Cancel

TakYak

TakYak

Hello Friends and Visitors:

I've tried to set this up so that friends can see what I am reading and what books I do and don't recommend. My rating system works like this:

Five stars = I absolutely love this book!
Four stars = I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.
Three stars = This book is good, but I did not... more »
  • Frederick, MD
  • member since September 25 2007

Friends

TakYak’s last login was Wednesday, June 17 2009.

Books I'm reading

     
 
 
 

Public Notes

  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Glad to see you read "The Thirteenth Tale" and enjoyed its twists and challenges. I joined "Curves" at the end of March and am finding it great exercise, as well as a place to swap books. A language teacher loaned me "The Sharper the Knife, The Less You Cry" by Kathleen Flinn, and I liked reading about Flinn's decision to chuck the corporate world and follow her dream to Paris, to take cooking courses at Le Cordon Bleu. Fun to exercise my French a bit, too, with the occasional phrases.
    What are you up to this spring?

    posted 6 months ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Ok, I feel compelled to search out "Revenge of the Spellmans" since you and nittanyredhawk have found such delight in its pages.

    I've just read a powerful, complex novel with many similarities to Hamet in plot and characters.
    "Edgar Sawtelle" has a YA main character, 14 in crucial confrontation scenes at climax of novel, and events are set in WI, but there's a possibly murdered beloved father, a tightly woven family of three, an uncle trying to usurp his brother's place, and a ghost calling for revenge. It's a fat book, but once momentum builds, chapters begin to fly as fast as events.

    posted 9 months ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Hi, and best wishes for wonderful reads in 2009!

    Looks like you've been challenging yourself with titles lately. I need to read Lincoln's original texts, as well the analysis of his cabinet. Have you read Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book"?

    I read it last night, and hope to pass it on to my nephew on his 11th b'day next summer.

    posted 12 months ago. ( send a note )
  • nittanyredhawk

    nittanyredhawk says

    That's my impression of them as well, but I just can't stand not to read a young adult book that so many people rave about, so I'm looking forward to checking them out. I'll let you know what I think!

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Your comment on how the Austen section in "Reading Lolita in Tehran" seemed molded to shape the author's purposes instead of delving into the analysis showed me how closely you read that text. I'm impressed!

    Do you have any favorite genres? I find that I go on "literary treks", where I focus on a particular author or genre for weeks at a time. I remember going to the city library and working my way through all the titles by an author when I was in grade school, so I apparently haven't changed my habits too much! I do read more nonfiction than I did as a child and teen, but I've always been fairly omnivorous as a reader, so maybe it is my memory that has shifted more than my choices. How about you?

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Hi, TakYak,

    I really appreciate the detailed reviews for the books on your shelf. Sometimes I browse your display to tweak my interest in some titles, or particular styles to seek out. Hope you are well!

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Speaking of films, I have a mother-daughter film night planned for TH to catch Mamma Mia. We have three mothers and their daughters planning to meet at the theater, watch the film, then go for ice cream and gabbing time after. Our daughters are now young adults--much less supervising needed and a whole lot more appreciating!

    My next title is The Zookeeper's Wife. Any thoughts on that one?

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    I'm still thinking about the ending of "Atonement"...What a powerful story about guilt/innocence in a coming-of-age narrator! Now I really want to see the film so I compare how views were handled--and that ending...! And I did register the novel on the bookcrossing site. Think I'll pass it on to some traveling friends who also love to read.
    Thanks for the mailing!

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    How's it going with Russo's "Bridge of Sighs"? I could only find "Straight Man" at the library, and I put it down after a few chapters, uninspired by the main character. I'm going to look for "Nobody's Fool", or another title, because I really thought "Empire Falls" was excellent.

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Love to read your reviews, as they help me consider titles to add to my reading and guide me to dispense with others. How do you feel about illustrations and text in "adult" novels? I fell into the pages and pictures in "City of Dreaming Books", and felt it compared favorably to "The Book Thief", but with a lighter tone and subject, for sure. I still have "Atonement" in mind for right after a four novel series by Jim Butcher, a favorite author for me and my son to read and discuss.

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    Thank you for your reference to bookcrossing.com! I've practiced sharing books all my life; nice to see it has a formal structure and a way of tracing book travels. One caveat--how do authors feel about this? Any examination of whether it enhances or depresses their book sales? I could figure out how a book could be registered w/o joining, and I can imagine the fun of tracking it as it travels from reader to reader. If I can't obtain Atonement via library, I may ask you to send me your copy for a chance to participate. May I ask the farthest a title you've passed along has travelled?

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    That's a generous offer on Atonement, but let me try our local library/interlibrary loan systems first, okay? I, too, read Anil's Ghost, which is why I picked up Divisadero. Again, the writing was beautiful, poetic, while the violence was gut-wrenching--an uncomfortable joining. Please give Mosley a try. His characters are vivid and the stories are rich in hope, even when circumstances are bitter. This author finds ways to challenge stereotypes: a cold-blooded killer can be a best friend, a perceptive detective can be blindsided by jealousy. Again, thanks...

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • homeinthehills

    homeinthehills says

    I appreciate your thoughtful reviews. I haven't seen Atonement, the film, and your analysis makes me want to find the novel and look for all the strands you teased out. From my shelf's assorted titles you can see I'm fairly ecletic in my reading.

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )
  • nittanyredhawk

    nittanyredhawk says

    Thanks for the tip! I've actually been planning on reading both of those books, but I'll make sure that I read March first. I'm not sure why I forgot to put it on my "to read" shelf.

    posted 1 year ago. ( send a note )


© 2006-2009 Shelfari | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Copyright Policy

Close