January: The Power by Naomi Alderman
Most people liked this book a lot more than I did (a theme that comes up over and over again in book club). I thought the idea was interesting, but the actual story was a bit lackluster. However, despite any misgivings I have about this book, it sparked a really interesting discussion about small town politics in our small town. It definitely was a good choice for book club.
March: The Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
I honestly don't remember most of this book. We spent a lot of time talking about how this seemed more like a movie script (action! animals with plots!) rather than a novel.
April: The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
This is a far-reaching family drama that follows four siblings throughout their lives. The book was dreadfully uneven, but it started off amazingly. I'd definitely recommend the first half of this book. Once you're done with the second sibling, you could probably skip the rest. It sparked lots of debates on hypothetical questions in book club, though, so I think it was a great choice for our meeting. More on my thoughts on the full review.
May: His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik
A man and his dragon. I love this book. It didn't spark huge discussions, though. If I recall, we spent most of this book club complaining about things our husbands do, so...maybe not for your book club. But definitely read it.
June: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
This book was such a page turner. I just couldn't help but enjoy the Hollywood femme fatale storyline. We spent a lot of time casting the movie for this book - that's the level of novel it is.
July: An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
I have incredibly mixed reactions to this novel. I think Jones is a brilliant writer and her characters were nuanced and interesting. Her observational writing was witty and interesting. But the tale of the criminal justice system gone awry was so sad that I just didn't want to read it. It was a great discussion, though. We talked about a lot of topics from what is marriage to race relations and interpretations of the events of the novel through different racial lenses. Fascinating book.
September: The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
I missed this book club because I was in Boston for work. Damn it all. I hate to miss. I liked this book despite myself. It was a page turner, that's for sure. But...it's only been a couple of months and I can't remember anything about it, so I don't think that's a good sign.
October: Feast Your Eyes by Myla Goldberg
I didn't care for the novel. My book club was divided over it, though. I would not recommend this to read or for your book club, though.
December: Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras
The dangers of 1990s Colombia told through the point of view of a child. I actively disliked this novel. Every time I turned the page and saw there was more writing, I groaned. I just...it's a novel for adults. Why the POV of a child? I think the story would have been much more interesting from the perspective of someone who actually knew what was going on and had more interesting thoughts about the political and social chaos of the country. Ugh. I was definitely in the minority on this one, though. Most people loved it.
No comments:
Post a Comment