Read Any Good Books Lately?

There are a few regular check in topics when we see each other and this is one of them. Queried y'all for your best read in 2015 and here are the results:

Alma - The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

Bea - The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Betty - The Bible

Clairee- The Gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison

Clairice-The Girl on A Train by Paula Hawkins

Edna- Love Does by Bob Goff

Frances-We were Liars By E. Lockhart

Hazel-The Girl on A Train by Paula Hawkins

Nell - Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff

Pearl - Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Petunia -Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

Ruth - Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Sadie - The Clasp by Sloane Crosley

Scarlett - The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

Zelda - The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

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My intention was to get a list of 16 books but...I got a little something extra which I put below. For some of us, this was not our best reading year or reading anything beyond what a two year old likes to read but nevertheless if your plan is to read more in 2016 what a lovely list to work from...here's the something extra...

Alma 

I will say there were several suspenseful books that I could NOT put down and had to finish in 2015.  I am pretty sure I passed them to everyone so you know what they are.  (Girl on a Train, Luckiest Girl Alive, plus another I can't think of).  I liked these books because you literally could NOT put them down and had to finish them.  I can't say that I LOVED  the main women characters in these suspense novels.  This is mainly for Girl on a Train and the other one I can't think of.  I wanted to slap these women for being so weak, but I had to read it! 

Another suspenseful read with no ending and isn't even a book has to be mentioned in the blog...Seriel :)! 

I loved Alice Hoffman's The Dovekeepers.  It is a very hard read at first because it is so slow and it is very long.  Once you get into it, you fall in love with these incredibly strong women (the complete opposite of the women in the suspense novels).  It is a book about an actual event in history, but the tale is fiction.  Here is a link to a synopsis  http://alicehoffman.com/books/the-dovekeepers/synopsis/.  These women were amazing.  What can I say, women rule the world.  Then and now.  Men just think they do, but they have no idea we are holding the strings and can out survive them in even the toughest of situations!  It is one of those books that you remember where you were when you read the end.  That is how much I loved it and the ending :)!  Or maybe I remember because I was sitting in a beach chair on  the beach in Destin with the sand in my toes when I finished it!  Either way!

Honorable mentions are Orphan Train and The Book Thief.  I can't remember if I read these in 2015 or maybe in 2014.  Just had them on the mind cause I saw both yesterday when I was in Barnes and Noble. 

Clairee
For kind of a no-brainer read, and if you are a fan of the Bridget Jones series, Mad About the Boy was great.  Finally, for a very cool look into Hollywood, I read Johnny Carson's Biography. 

Pearl
I read all the kids books. I need to join an adult book club to get me to read books for me. The kids' books are great too. My favorite kids/young adult books this year are:
Smile by Raina Telgemeier
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Ruth
or The Lost Wife by Alyson Richmam

Scarlett

Non Fiction: The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer.  It sounds morbid, but I really enjoyed reading about this “layman’s version” of cancer and how it works. The book covers when cancer was first discovered, how it has been treated over the years, early theories about it, and how far we have come from since then.  There are a lot of stories that are referenced about people who have helped combat this horrible disease.  Pulitzer Prize winner.   Very well written.

Biography: Yes, Please: Amy Poehler’s book about  her life is funny, vulnerable and easy to read.  

Classic: The Count of Monte Cristo, what a great story!  Full of adventure, love, heroics.  A great book to pick up if you are looking for a wild ride. 

Fiction: The Rules of Civility:  Takes place in New York City in the 20’s.  A tale of 2 girls and their lives during that time.  Loved reading about what life was like during that period. 

Yours in the Blogosphere,
Sadie