Category Archives: Prose

Killing Mr. Griffin, by Lois Duncan

Posted on September 8, 2008 by Thistle

I first read this book fifteen or more years ago. I was on a real Lois Duncan streak then. I loved her works, especially Down a Dark Hall, which had a profound effect on me – I reread it last … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Dr. Zhivago, by Boris Pasternak

Posted on September 6, 2008 by Thistle

Spoilers. Ugh. What else can I say about this book? It’s nearly 550 pages of ugh. Somewhere awhile back we** were talking about loss in translation. I think this book is the perfect example of that. Not just because it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Nine Lives to Murder, by Marion Babsen

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Thistle

Spoilers. This book was…okay. Not my favorite, but then again, I’ve not read anything in the mystery genre since my youngin’ days of R.L. Stine’s The Babysitter (not the best recommendation for the genre, I might add). I was therefore … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Pale Fire, by Vladimir Nabokov

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Thistle

Wow. I say that in the most respectful, perfectly awed tone possible. This is, without a doubt, the most difficult book I’ve ever read. Harder by far than Don Quixote and Anna Karenina and Madame Bovary. Harder than any other … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Adult, Poetry, Prose | Tagged , | 2 Comments

The Prophet of Yonwood, by Jeanne DuPrau

Posted on August 9, 2008 by Thistle

The Prophet of Yonwood is much, much better than The People of Sparks, though not quite as good as The City of Ember. It is, like Sparks, definitely a juvenile book, complete with sections of fact completely brushed over. But … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Children's, Prose | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The People of Sparks, by Jeanne DuPrau

Posted on August 8, 2008 by Thistle

Spoilers for the first book in the series. The People of Sparks takes up where The City of Ember left off. Lina and Doon have flung down the instructions for escaping Ember, and Lina’s guardian picks them up. Within a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Children's, Prose | Tagged | 2 Comments

The Headless Cupid, by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

Posted on August 5, 2008 by Thistle

When I turned ten, a friend of mine gave me a pack of five books by various authors for my birthday. One of them was The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. I loved that book! I read it over … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Children's, Prose | Tagged | 1 Comment

City of Ember, by Jeanne DuPrau

Posted on August 2, 2008 by Thistle

The two main characters in The City of Ember, Lina and Doon, are twelve-year-olds who have just been assigned their jobs in the city of Ember. Ember is a city that lives in complete darkness, with lamps to light up … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Children's, Prose | Tagged | 3 Comments

Kabul Beauty School, by Deborah Rodriguez

Posted on July 31, 2008 by Thistle

As opposed to The Bookseller of Kabul, I really enjoyed this book. It is about an American woman who goes to Afghanistan with a relief group. She’s a hairdresser, not a medical professional or any other professional whose skills were … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Other Boleyn Girl, by Philippa Gregory

Posted on July 28, 2008 by Thistle

There can’t really be any spoilers with this book, as it’s at least loosely based on historical fact. King Henry VIII cheats on his first wife, eventually annuls their marriage, marries Anne Boleyn, only to chop off her head a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2008, Adult, Prose | Tagged | Leave a comment