It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? (11/16/15)

Hosted by The Book Date.

I’ve been participating in Nonfiction November this month and mentioned last week that I was starting to feel a little burned out from serious nonfiction. I ended up mixing in some fiction and am now having trouble getting back into nonfiction again. But, I did read four stellar books (plus, Brave Enough by Cheryl Strayed, which I’m not really counting since it’s a book of quotes) for Nonfiction November and am pretty happy with that.

Also, I joined BJ Novak’s new social network, The List App. It’s an app where you post…you guessed it, lists…about anything and everything! I’m normally late to the social network bandwagon, but I absolutely love lists. Find me there at @sarahsbookshelves!

I finished reading…

The Three-Year Swim Club, Where All Light Tends to Go


The Three-Year Swim Club
 by Julie Checkoway (October 27, 2015)
Great pick for people interested in swimming or Olympic history/trivia. I’m not convinced this one has widespread appeal, though.

Affiliate Link: Buy from Amazon

Where All Light Tends to Go by David Joy (March 3, 2015)
Hmm…I really enjoyed it, but didn’t love it as much as I thought I would (I was convinced this would be a 5 star read for me). I’ll explain why in an upcoming mini review.

I’m currently reading…

The Fishermen, Chigozie Obioma


The Fishermen
 by Chigozie Obioma (April 14, 2015)
This debut novel set in 1990’s Nigeria was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize and was on my list of “books I must at least try before the end of the year.” I’m only 30% into it, but I’m enjoying the writing style and young boys’ hijinks so far.

I tried, but wasn’t feeling…

Train to Crystal City, Jan jarboe Russell


The Train to Crystal City
 by Jan Jarboe Russell (January 20, 2015)
At first, I thought this one was going to work for me despite being burned out from serious nonfiction. But, the farther I read (I made it to 20%), the more I found myself zoning out. I think it’s my current mental state rather than the book, so I may pick this one up again later.

Upcoming reading plans…

Now is the time of year when I power through my “must at least try before the end of the year” list. These are 2015 books I missed out on earlier in the year, but that I got excited about after reading other bloggers’ reviews. I’ll sample as many as possible, but choose just a few to actually read in the coming weeks. Here are some of the books I’m considering…

Avenue of Mysteries, Mothers Tell Your Daughters, Sweetland, Improbability of Love, Nightngale


Avenue of Mysteries
 by John Irving (November 3, 2015)
The premise of this one doesn’t really grab me, but Irving is one of my auto-buy authors and has a way of making me love a book despite not loving the premise.

Mothers, Tell Your Daughters by Bonnie Jo Campbell (October 1, 2015)
Gritty, “rural noir” short stories, which are totally in my wheelhouse. But, I haven’t seen much of this one around the blogs. 

Sweetland by Michael Crummey (December 29, 2014)
The folks at Book Riot and Shannon at River City Reading really loved this one.

The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild (November 3, 2015)
Catherine at Gilmore Guide to Books (who is proving to be my reading twin) called this London-based story involving a chef and art dealers “intellectual entertainment”. I like the sound of that…

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah (February 3, 2015)
Another book whose premise doesn’t grab me, but I’ve heard enough raves that make me feel like I should at least try the sample. 

So, tell me, have you read any of the books on my “must try before EOY” list? Which ones should I read?

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40 Comments

  1. Glad to hear you listened to your instincts and went with fiction when you needed it. I wasn’t as in love with The Fishermen as I thought I would be (or as much as many other people seem to be), but I hope it stays great for you!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      You know, I’m about halfway through it now and it lost me there for a bit, but I think I’m back into it. We shall see how the back half pans out!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  2. Mystica wrote:

    I’d like to get hold of the Fishermen. The Nightingale was good!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      The Nightingale is getting a lot of love today…that may have to be my next sample.

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  3. After seeing your thoughts, I think I’ll just give up on The Three Year Swim Club galley I have. I haven’t read anything on your must read by the end of the year list.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I’ll be posting a mini review on Thursday, but I’d say you may get bored if you’re not into swimming or the Olympics.

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  4. Sarah, I definitely felt like I was in a bit of a slump but I’m looking forward to Diana Nyad’s latest and that is keeping me excited about Nonfiction November, as well as my audiobook listening. I’m curious to see what you think of Avenue of Mysteries; it has surprised me in many ways. Around 45% in, I wasn’t sure I could stick with it and then, miraculously, it reeled me back in at around the 55% mark…leave it to John Irving, right? 🙂

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      Oooh – let me know how the Nyad is! And – I read just a little of the sample of Mysteries…and, dang it, Irving sucked me in with his writing! I’ll wait to see what you think of the whole before deciding whether I’ll tackle it, since it’s not exactly short!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  5. Amanda wrote:

    The Nightingale is one I feel I should make an effort to get to too! But it will be next year I am quite sure. Mothers Tell Your Daughters moves fast with each story. They were heavy, so I had to space it out over a few days.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I hear Mothers is heavy…but I don’t mind that. It’s kind of been my thing this year. So, we’ll see. I have the sample, but haven’t tried it yet.

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  6. Judy wrote:

    Today I am reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula for a reading group discussion this week. The closest I have gotten to vampires or Dracula was The Historian. I think Bram Stoker’s is one of the first vampire novels.
    I haven’t read any of the books on your “considering” list but I will eventually read the John Irving because I love him.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  7. Michelle wrote:

    The Nightingale – oh so good. Out of your list, this is one I would definitely attempt before the end of the year.

    Boo on losing focus on The Train to Crystal City. I hope it better captures your interest should you go back to it later.

    Have a great week!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      The Nightingale seems to be the winner at the moment! It will probably be the next on my list!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  8. Lorri wrote:

    Thanks for these awesome thoughts. Love the Nightingale idea! I’m going to pick it up. Thanks for the tip on BJ Novak’s app. Love it!!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      Oh my gosh – you should definitely get on The List App! It’s still a pretty small community, but it’s fun and might as well get in early in case it actually gets big!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  9. Oh, too bad that The Train to Crystal City couldn’t hold your attention. Sweetland has received so much praise… I definitely want to read that one. And that list app is giving me goosebumps. Gotta go check it out!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      Crystal City – it was definitely me. I’d read a bunch of serious nonfiction in a row and the book I read before Crystal City also touched on the treatment of Japanese-Americans during WWII, so I just needed a break. Hope you sign up for The List App!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  10. Carmen wrote:

    You’re doing great crossing out pretty much all your nonfiction readings. Too bad for The Train…
    The Nightingale is among Amazon’s best literary fiction books of the year, so I guess it must be sampled, at least.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      Well…Nightingale is far and away the winner of today’s post, so I’ll probably try that after I finish The Fishermen!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  11. Kathryn wrote:

    I needed a box of tissues for The Nightingale, to be honest the premise didn’t grab me either, but oh my, it was heart wrenching and so real, made me admire those brave French women.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I’m going to try it next…and I’ve definitely heard it was a tear-jerker!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  12. Rory wrote:

    I have Sweetland on my nightstand, but haven’t picked it up yet… I still haven’t picked up Avenue of Mysteries for fear of (almost certain) disappointment.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I’m so scared of being disappointed as well – I’m just not excited about this one for some reason! But, I did read a tiny bit of the sample and he managed to lull me into his writing…he does have a way like that!

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  13. susan wrote:

    Nice list. I want to get to Sweetland too and I’m a bit curious of the Bonnie Jo Campbell book as her prior novel Once Upon a River is really terrific. But this new one sort of scares me a bit. too dark or depressing?

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I didn’t know she’d written a novel! Will have to check that out! And – I heard it’s really dark, but that doesn’t bother me.

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  14. Where All Light Tends to Go wasn’t a 5 star for me, either, but I loved it. That ending! Gah! I’ve decided that my books I’d planned to read this year before the end of the year has grown so much that I’m just not going to make it, so I guess I’ll draw from a hat those that I plan to squeeze in. lol

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      Oh God, the ending. That’s the reason I didn’t like it as much as I thought…I guessed it was coming and I hate when that happens! Otherwise, I really loved it! I thought Jacob and Maggie had a Tim/Lyla from Friday Night Lights vibe.

      Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  15. NancyS wrote:

    The Nightingale and Sweetland were two of my favorites for the year. I just picked up a couple reserves from the library so have to decide what’s next!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  16. Lindsey wrote:

    I love your idea to try to fit in some much-loved books before the end of the year! I will be curious to see which ones you end up reading. 🙂

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
  17. Andi wrote:

    OMGosh so much good stuff in this post. I didn’t realize BJ Novak had started The List App, but really, I should’ve known. I love it so far. Great books on your read before the end of the year list! I can’t wait to try Sweetland.

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I was so glad to see you on there! Hopefully we can get some more bloggers to join up!

      Posted 11.17.15 Reply
  18. I’ve never heard of The List App but I adore lists! I’ll have to check it out. Enjoy your week!

    Posted 11.16.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      It’s fun – so far at least…I’m still really new!

      Posted 11.17.15 Reply
  19. I have The Nightingale sitting around here and really need to get to it! The Fisherman sounds so good, too. Happy reading!

    Posted 11.17.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I peeked at Nightingale last night…and loved the very beginning!

      Posted 11.17.15 Reply
  20. Our current reading theme is “mystereadventure” so it is with great interest that I noted that John Irving title – hope to read your thoughts about it soon.

    Posted 11.17.15 Reply
    • admin wrote:

      I’m not sure when I’ll get to it, but I know Tara from Running and Reading is reading it now..so she may have a review up soon!

      Posted 11.17.15 Reply
  21. The List App sounds awesome. Will have to check it out!

    Posted 11.18.15 Reply
  22. Where All Light Tends To Go looks so good.

    I hope you are having a good reading week

    Elizabeth
    Silver’s Reviews
    My It’s Monday, What Are You Reading

    Posted 11.18.15 Reply
  23. Catherine wrote:

    Oh my gosh- now I feel so much pressure! Especially because you’ve given me some of my best recommendations of the year. I really hope you like Improbability.

    I’m starting Savage Continent. It’s about Europe after WWII. Trying to read some non-fiction but it’s like math was in school- my brain could not compute. We’ll see how it goes.

    Posted 11.19.15 Reply

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