Thanks for this great video, Greg!🌷The first title I find very exciting among these is Mina’s Matchbox. I’ve loved The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (have also gifted it to friends). The second is Playground by Richard Powers. The Overstory has become a favourite, and I still have Bewilderment unread on my shelves. However, the plot of Playground sounds indeed like the … maritime version😉of The Overstory and that makes it almost irresistible! I am not particularly looking forward to a new Sally Rooney. Normal People was OK, but I don’t feel I need to read more. I hardly dare say that I find the cover so attractive that I may give Entitlement a chance just on account of it!😅
I was led to Richard Powers through "The Overstory" and it is, I believe, a really remarkable work, but since then I have read nearly all of Powers' other novels and have become a real devotee of his work. Some of them are very difficult and unusual, but in each he displays almost unimaginable breadth and depth of the subject matter, seeming to merit the title of polymath by his mastery of so many fields of thought. My favorite is "The Time of Our Singing" which I highly commend to you if only as social history. Powers is a really remarkable talent.
@@AvAlanchian I also have limited musical ability, but I still found it fascinating and the account of the social milieu of the time was striking. "The Gold Bug Variations" I found to be quite challenging, but worth the effort. Each of his books seems meticulously researched! Thanks for sharing your reaction!
I just finished the other two books in the Pat Barker Women of Troy Trilogy. I do think they are a strict trilogy. The first book is about the battle, the second is the aftermath and I gather the third is about the journey back. It is told mostly from the perspective of Briseis at this point. I have enjoyed the first two books and will read the third.
Hello Greg, I love your honesty and you make me feel less alone and odd with similar likes and dislikes. I’ve tried all once and not inspired to read Kate Atkinson, Sally Rooney, Richard Powers (DNF Overstory) or Murakami. Not judging, they simple do not work for me. Many others I love and a very long tbr list at age 64! It took me some time to DNF books but I don’t hesitate now. No time to waste reading books I am not enjoying or interested in. Always enjoy what you have to say. Thank~you & Happy reading! 📚 😊
@@SupposedlyFun You inspired me to take Tin Man off my tbr list and I loved it! I loved all three characters and shed both happy and sad tears. Fabulous! Thank~you 👍🏻
I might look at the Pat Barker book because I have enjoyed her work in the past. I think it’s so funny to watch your thoughts though. We tend to be unimpressed equally by the same books. What’s funny to me is that we don’t have the same taste in books… we just have the same books that we DNF or don’t like as much as everyone else. I love your attitude about not being judgy to other people who do love a book you don’t love too.
For new Ann Patchett readers I would recommend Bel Canto, Commonwealth and Dutch House. Her non-fiction is also lovely. I am a big Kate Atkinson fan, but the new Jackson Brodie was really not great.
Hi Greg, I respect your dnf. I read The Overstory when it came out right after reading The Secret Life of Trees, and I much preferred the sciencey book about trees vs. cramming several stories about people into a book that ends with an eco-terror plot. I wanted the trees to be more like characters vs. a device to loosely move from one story to the next. Btw, for a multi-story book with (apple!) trees, I'll pick North Woods any time. Immediately after reading The Overstory I read Barkskins, which as a book that focuses on the human story but contains trees, I much preferred to The Overstory. So, my rankings of these four "tree-ish" books are 1) North Woods, 2) The Secret Life of Trees, 3) Barkskins, 4) The Overstory (did not dnf, but would not recommend over these others). As for Playground, the cover looks attractive, but the idea of "colonizing" the ocean makes me cringe, especially when there's already a plastic island out there called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), which is a collection of ocean plastic that's three times the size of France.
Hi Greg! Love your videos. I really think that Normal People is the best Sally Rooney book. Like you I felt underwhelmed and a little bit meh with Conversation with Friends. I read Normal People first and love it (also I love the TV adaptation of that book). Then I read Conversation with Friends and Beautiful World, Where are You... I recommend you give Normal People a chance when you have time 😉😊... Also my favorite Almodovar film is Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
I have preordered Death at the Sign of the Rook; I have been rereading the Jackson Brodies to gear up for it. I did like Leave the World Behind although it stressed me out; I'll be interested to learn more about Entitlement. I can't remember if you mentioned this in your previous video, but Louise Erdrich has a new novel coming out in October.
Before you read any other Ogawa, proceed directly to Revenge, her sublime short story collection. I think you will become a fan after that one, like I did. I also loved The Memory Police, but I think if you start there, you might not get her. I have a couple other of her books I want to read, including The Housekeeper and The Professor, but haven’t gotten to them yet. I’m on the fence on Mina’s Matchbox based on the description and will definitely head to other backlist titles of hers first. Ah, Rumaan Alam. When I listened to Leave the World Behind in 2020, it freaked me out so completely, I couldn’t even give it a rating! With some distance, I would rate it 4 or 4.5 stars. I hated the way it freaked me out (maybe not recommended for those with anxiety), but I also loved how it freaked me out in retrospect. Not at all interested in watching the Netflix show though. I can’t really tell whether I’m interested in Entitlement from the blurb. If I can get it on Scribd, that’s the way I’d go. Really not waiting on any of the other books on your list. Sally Rooney is a permanent no-go for me. But thanks for putting this together! I’ve got a few books I’m still waiting on this year. I think I may have put them in a comment on your first most anticipated video last week.
I'll remember to look for Revenge. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Ogawa. It's funny that we had opposite reactions to Leave the World Behind over time. I liked it less the more time passed. 😂
Mina’s Matchbox is definitely on my list since I’m working slowly through all her books. I would absolutely recommend starting with the Housekeeper and the Professor. Ogawa is a very diverse writer and that one feels the most down to earth, which makes me think it may be more your speed. That said, I’ve only read that one, Revenge (which is also really good) and Hotel Iris (which I don’t recommend). It’s perfect for Shorty September since it’s only 180 pages.
@@annegibson6072 Finally he is being recognized! If you have never read anything from him, start will Deacon King Kong and never mind the title of the book.
Must tell you about the recently published “Anyone’s Ghost” by debut novelist August Thompson. It’s the story of two teenage guys who meet in rural New England, and the friendship (and more) that develops. So far, it’s very good. Almost “unputdownable!”🤣As for the books you’ve talked about today, I might be swayed to read them if a friend or BookTuber raves about them but I have no immediate plans to add them to my TBR.
I didn't think I knew anything about Anyone's Ghost, but when I looked it up just now I recognized the cover. So funny when that happens! Thanks for the recommendation.
I do hope you try The Overstory as an audio book someday. I know you like to read the Pulitzer winners on the written page but it would be worth a shot. I have only read two Richard Powers books. Bewilderment, which I liked but not as much as the Overstory. My brother loved Bewilderment and could not get into The Overstory. Go figure. Too many books out there to get stuck on stuff that does not pull you in... I am hopeful to read more of his works. I am interested in Kate Atkinson's novels. But truly, just get in the pile Kate... I'll hopefully get there some day. 😣 ahh, loved Kafka on the Shore. I have Wind up Bird Chronicles in the "wings" (ba-dump bump 🤪🌽) so... I got me some reading to do.
Of these I’d probably read the Almodóvar book first because I do love his films. Obviously that’s not a guarantee for the books quality but I’d intrigued enough to try.
❤ Tom Lake converted me to Ann Patchett. Her earlier books were not my preferenced reading however I’ve decided her more recent books have developed better stories. Also, I suggest Palmares may have been spoiled for you based on someone playing to your sense of “fairness” perhaps? I have discussed this with a Brazilian expat who read Palmares and liked it. I enjoyed the story as an amazing adventure of one woman. There is magic and myth incorporated into the ethnology of the time period. Try it one day. This story is not one I will forget. My best .
I would encourage you to watch the video linked in the description--I think she did an excellent job with her critique of Palmares. If I remember right, she said that if you remove Brazil's actual history with the slave trade, you might enjoy the book, but it still feels weird that she decided to set her novel somewhere other than the United States because she didn't want to be held to accurate history, but then selected a different real place that has a real history with the slave trade.
Good morning. I am having a real struggle finding something to read. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease yesterday. I tried four books yesterday. It is not the books but me. Looking for any recommendations to get me out of this funk.
I recommend to go through the grief and assemble a support team (partner, therapist, support group). Go easy on the Internet, it's not helpful during the initial phase of shock and grief. Believe me: I have been there and I feel for you.
I'm so sorry to hear that. I think the best thing you can do is take care of yourself, allow yourself to work through the feels, and don't apply too much pressure. If I'm stressed and can't focus on a book, sometimes a walk helps me clear my mind so I can settle down when I get back home. Kind of like a pre-distraction distraction. Or a distraction warm-up. Another commenter recommended a support group and I think that's a great idea--but if you're someone who needs to process alone first, try to manage their involvement in the beginning. But I'm a believer in support systems. I'm at a loss for escapist reading right now because my go-to used to be mysteries and thrillers, and I don't read them anymore. Sometimes a good rom-com works for me now, but I've found that the best process for me these days is trial and error. If I'm not feeling a book, I put it down and try another. That's the process I went through in January and after maybe two weeks, I stumbled on Crampton Hodnet and discovered that sharp, gossipy social observation was what I had needed. I don't know if any of that helps, but I hope it does! ❤️
Whether she’s in detective fiction or litfic mode, Kate Atkinson is a genius at structuring a complex plot and timing the epiphanies. I’m not as avid a consumer of Jackson Brodie as I once was as just became the older I get the more I find series novels annoying. I don’t like getting little gratuitous reminders about someone’s troubled early life or relationship history as the person goes about solving a crime. There’s a pretty strong chance I’ll get around to this one all the same.
Will most likely buy the Murakami at some point. Always hoping to see something Nobel-worthy from him. I'm usually a sucker for Rooney and Powers books too, even though I haven't read one. (I guess that makes me a sucker for their jacket copy writers.) Reviews for "Conversations" and "Normal People" left me with hope that I would like one (but not both). But it's Pat Barker I am most likely to get to first, though not the recent book. I still want to get to Regeneration. Greek retellings don't interest me much, though the idea of telling familiar stories from a different point of view is interesting. It's the potential anachronisms that make me wary. If you want me to believe X is a fourth wave feminist or a structuralist Marxist, then you're gonna have to set the story in the 20th century at least, not 1000 BCE.
I recently read Case Histories by Kate Atkinson and hated it. All of the characters were horrid. There was no one to root for except for Det. Brody and he *****SPOILER******* sleeps with a deplorable character, so I was barely rooting for him. I doubt I will ever try Kate Atkinson again.
Best wishes with what you choose to read and to your channel. Happy reading to you.
Thank you! I wish you the same.
Thanks for this great video, Greg!🌷The first title I find very exciting among these is Mina’s Matchbox. I’ve loved The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (have also gifted it to friends). The second is Playground by Richard Powers. The Overstory has become a favourite, and I still have Bewilderment unread on my shelves. However, the plot of Playground sounds indeed like the … maritime version😉of The Overstory and that makes it almost irresistible! I am not particularly looking forward to a new Sally Rooney. Normal People was OK, but I don’t feel I need to read more. I hardly dare say that I find the cover so attractive that I may give Entitlement a chance just on account of it!😅
Really enjoyed this. It helps to avoid being #25 on the new release hold list at my library.
Those wait lists can be so long!
I was led to Richard Powers through "The Overstory" and it is, I believe, a really remarkable work, but since then I have read nearly all of Powers' other novels and have become a real devotee of his work. Some of them are very difficult and unusual, but in each he displays almost unimaginable breadth and depth of the subject matter, seeming to merit the title of polymath by his mastery of so many fields of thought. My favorite is "The Time of Our Singing" which I highly commend to you if only as social history. Powers is a really remarkable talent.
I do think he's a tremendous writer from what I did experience of The Overstory.
I really loved Overstory and Bewilderment but Time of our Singing was only ok for me ( probably because I have 0 musical abilities) but I’m with you
@@AvAlanchian I also have limited musical ability, but I still found it fascinating and the account of the social milieu of the time was striking. "The Gold Bug Variations" I found to be quite challenging, but worth the effort. Each of his books seems meticulously researched! Thanks for sharing your reaction!
I just finished the other two books in the Pat Barker Women of Troy Trilogy. I do think they are a strict trilogy. The first book is about the battle, the second is the aftermath and I gather the third is about the journey back. It is told mostly from the perspective of Briseis at this point. I have enjoyed the first two books and will read the third.
That's good to know--thank you.
Hello Greg,
I love your honesty and you make me feel less alone and odd with similar likes and dislikes. I’ve tried all once and not inspired to read Kate Atkinson, Sally Rooney, Richard Powers (DNF Overstory) or Murakami. Not judging, they simple do not work for me. Many others I love and a very long tbr list at age 64! It took me some time to DNF books but I don’t hesitate now. No time to waste reading books I am not enjoying or interested in.
Always enjoy what you have to say. Thank~you & Happy reading!
📚 😊
I really appreciate your kind words. Happy reading!
@@SupposedlyFun
You inspired me to take Tin Man off my tbr list and I loved it! I loved all three characters and shed both happy and sad tears. Fabulous!
Thank~you 👍🏻
@@Sunshinysky432 Ahhhh I'm so glad you loved it! I thought it was such a good book.
I might look at the Pat Barker book because I have enjoyed her work in the past. I think it’s so funny to watch your thoughts though. We tend to be unimpressed equally by the same books. What’s funny to me is that we don’t have the same taste in books… we just have the same books that we DNF or don’t like as much as everyone else. I love your attitude about not being judgy to other people who do love a book you don’t love too.
That is funny! I think it's important to remember that people respond differently to books, so I'm glad that comes across.
For new Ann Patchett readers I would recommend Bel Canto, Commonwealth and Dutch House. Her non-fiction is also lovely.
I am a big Kate Atkinson fan, but the new Jackson Brodie was really not great.
Bel Canto just made the NY Times 100 Best Books of the Century list!
Hi Greg, I respect your dnf. I read The Overstory when it came out right after reading The Secret Life of Trees, and I much preferred the sciencey book about trees vs. cramming several stories about people into a book that ends with an eco-terror plot. I wanted the trees to be more like characters vs. a device to loosely move from one story to the next. Btw, for a multi-story book with (apple!) trees, I'll pick North Woods any time. Immediately after reading The Overstory I read Barkskins, which as a book that focuses on the human story but contains trees, I much preferred to The Overstory. So, my rankings of these four "tree-ish" books are 1) North Woods, 2) The Secret Life of Trees, 3) Barkskins, 4) The Overstory (did not dnf, but would not recommend over these others).
As for Playground, the cover looks attractive, but the idea of "colonizing" the ocean makes me cringe, especially when there's already a plastic island out there called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), which is a collection of ocean plastic that's three times the size of France.
My next Ann Patchett is going to be the Dutch House. Hubby and I are going to listen together.
Hi Greg! Love your videos. I really think that Normal People is the best Sally Rooney book. Like you I felt underwhelmed and a little bit meh with Conversation with Friends. I read Normal People first and love it (also I love the TV adaptation of that book). Then I read Conversation with Friends and Beautiful World, Where are You... I recommend you give Normal People a chance when you have time 😉😊... Also my favorite Almodovar film is Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
I have preordered Death at the Sign of the Rook; I have been rereading the Jackson Brodies to gear up for it. I did like Leave the World Behind although it stressed me out; I'll be interested to learn more about Entitlement. I can't remember if you mentioned this in your previous video, but Louise Erdrich has a new novel coming out in October.
The new Erdrich was in the other video. I can't pass a new book from her up, even if I've been pretty mixed on her last two.
Before you read any other Ogawa, proceed directly to Revenge, her sublime short story collection. I think you will become a fan after that one, like I did. I also loved The Memory Police, but I think if you start there, you might not get her. I have a couple other of her books I want to read, including The Housekeeper and The Professor, but haven’t gotten to them yet. I’m on the fence on Mina’s Matchbox based on the description and will definitely head to other backlist titles of hers first.
Ah, Rumaan Alam. When I listened to Leave the World Behind in 2020, it freaked me out so completely, I couldn’t even give it a rating! With some distance, I would rate it 4 or 4.5 stars. I hated the way it freaked me out (maybe not recommended for those with anxiety), but I also loved how it freaked me out in retrospect. Not at all interested in watching the Netflix show though. I can’t really tell whether I’m interested in Entitlement from the blurb. If I can get it on Scribd, that’s the way I’d go.
Really not waiting on any of the other books on your list. Sally Rooney is a permanent no-go for me. But thanks for putting this together! I’ve got a few books I’m still waiting on this year. I think I may have put them in a comment on your first most anticipated video last week.
I'll remember to look for Revenge. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Ogawa. It's funny that we had opposite reactions to Leave the World Behind over time. I liked it less the more time passed. 😂
Mina’s Matchbox is definitely on my list since I’m working slowly through all her books.
I would absolutely recommend starting with the Housekeeper and the Professor. Ogawa is a very diverse writer and that one feels the most down to earth, which makes me think it may be more your speed. That said, I’ve only read that one, Revenge (which is also really good) and Hotel Iris (which I don’t recommend).
It’s perfect for Shorty September since it’s only 180 pages.
That's good to know--thanks!
Just saw where James McBride won the 2024 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction.
@@annegibson6072 Finally he is being recognized!
If you have never read anything from him, start will Deacon King Kong and never mind the title of the book.
@@M.R-q9mI have read all his work.
I DNF'd The Overstory as well then came back to it about a year later and ended up loving it.
Me too!
Must tell you about the recently published “Anyone’s Ghost” by debut novelist August Thompson. It’s the story of two teenage guys who meet in rural New England, and the friendship (and more) that develops. So far, it’s very good. Almost “unputdownable!”🤣As for the books you’ve talked about today, I might be swayed to read them if a friend or BookTuber raves about them but I have no immediate plans to add them to my TBR.
I didn't think I knew anything about Anyone's Ghost, but when I looked it up just now I recognized the cover. So funny when that happens! Thanks for the recommendation.
I do hope you try The Overstory as an audio book someday. I know you like to read the Pulitzer winners on the written page but it would be worth a shot. I have only read two Richard Powers books. Bewilderment, which I liked but not as much as the Overstory. My brother loved Bewilderment and could not get into The Overstory. Go figure. Too many books out there to get stuck on stuff that does not pull you in... I am hopeful to read more of his works. I am interested in Kate Atkinson's novels. But truly, just get in the pile Kate... I'll hopefully get there some day. 😣 ahh, loved Kafka on the Shore. I have Wind up Bird Chronicles in the "wings" (ba-dump bump 🤪🌽) so... I got me some reading to do.
My favourite Murakami novel was After Dark. It’s not very famous but I loved loved loved it, a pretty perfect short novel
Thanks for the recommendation--I haven't read that one yet.
I’ve only read a short story by Sally Rooney, and I’m gonna keep it that way.
Probably smart!
I can’t really imagine you enjoying the memory police 😅
I don't think I'm sure either, which is probably why I haven't taken the leap yet.
Richard Powers on audio was great.
When I do my reread of The Overstory, I think it will be on audio.
Of these I’d probably read the Almodóvar book first because I do love his films. Obviously that’s not a guarantee for the books quality but I’d intrigued enough to try.
If you do read it, that would probably be the perfect feedback for me to know if I want to try it myself. 😉
@@SupposedlyFun It's official. Kurt will test the Almodóvar book waters and let us know if it's safe to go in.😁
I’ll take one for the team 🎉
❤ Tom Lake converted me to Ann Patchett. Her earlier books were not my preferenced reading however I’ve decided her more recent books have developed better stories. Also, I suggest Palmares may have been spoiled for you based on someone playing to your sense of “fairness” perhaps? I have discussed this with a Brazilian expat who read Palmares and liked it. I enjoyed the story as an amazing adventure of one woman. There is magic and myth incorporated into the ethnology of the time period. Try it one day. This story is not one I will forget. My best .
I would encourage you to watch the video linked in the description--I think she did an excellent job with her critique of Palmares. If I remember right, she said that if you remove Brazil's actual history with the slave trade, you might enjoy the book, but it still feels weird that she decided to set her novel somewhere other than the United States because she didn't want to be held to accurate history, but then selected a different real place that has a real history with the slave trade.
Good morning. I am having a real struggle finding something to read. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease yesterday. I tried four books yesterday. It is not the books but me. Looking for any recommendations to get me out of this funk.
I recommend to go through the grief and assemble a support team (partner, therapist, support group). Go easy on the Internet, it's not helpful during the initial phase of shock and grief.
Believe me: I have been there and I feel for you.
I'm so sorry to hear that. I think the best thing you can do is take care of yourself, allow yourself to work through the feels, and don't apply too much pressure. If I'm stressed and can't focus on a book, sometimes a walk helps me clear my mind so I can settle down when I get back home. Kind of like a pre-distraction distraction. Or a distraction warm-up. Another commenter recommended a support group and I think that's a great idea--but if you're someone who needs to process alone first, try to manage their involvement in the beginning. But I'm a believer in support systems.
I'm at a loss for escapist reading right now because my go-to used to be mysteries and thrillers, and I don't read them anymore. Sometimes a good rom-com works for me now, but I've found that the best process for me these days is trial and error. If I'm not feeling a book, I put it down and try another. That's the process I went through in January and after maybe two weeks, I stumbled on Crampton Hodnet and discovered that sharp, gossipy social observation was what I had needed.
I don't know if any of that helps, but I hope it does! ❤️
It’s 13degrees here but it very muggy and overcast. Miserable weather.
It's been hovering just under 100 degrees Fahrenheit here and they don't expect that to change for the next week. 🥵
Mina's Matchbook sounds good. Don't worry, I hate the word "unputdownable." It is, of course, not really a word.
I'm glad I'm not alone!
Whether she’s in detective fiction or litfic mode, Kate Atkinson is a genius at structuring a complex plot and timing the epiphanies.
I’m not as avid a consumer of Jackson Brodie as I once was as just became the older I get the more I find series novels annoying. I don’t like getting little gratuitous reminders about someone’s troubled early life or relationship history as the person goes about solving a crime. There’s a pretty strong chance I’ll get around to this one all the same.
Will most likely buy the Murakami at some point. Always hoping to see something Nobel-worthy from him. I'm usually a sucker for Rooney and Powers books too, even though I haven't read one. (I guess that makes me a sucker for their jacket copy writers.) Reviews for "Conversations" and "Normal People" left me with hope that I would like one (but not both). But it's Pat Barker I am most likely to get to first, though not the recent book. I still want to get to Regeneration. Greek retellings don't interest me much, though the idea of telling familiar stories from a different point of view is interesting. It's the potential anachronisms that make me wary. If you want me to believe X is a fourth wave feminist or a structuralist Marxist, then you're gonna have to set the story in the 20th century at least, not 1000 BCE.
I remember really liking Regeneration when I read it in college. I would love to revisit it and finish the trilogy this time around.
Leave The World Behind- one of the rare occasions I loved the movie but not the book. The movie was great imo .
That's good to know!
Totally feel you with the election stress. I’m stressing badly about it all right now…have 5 books going and having a hard time concentrating 😩🫣
I've read the new Murakami already and have to say that, unless you're a diehard Murakami fan, it will not be on top of the best books of the year.
Oof--that's good to know! Thanks.
I've read the last 3 Rooney novels but I won't be reading this one. It's more of the same. I would read an essay collection by her though.
An essay collection could be interesting.
Did not like Leave the world behind at all!
I recently read Case Histories by Kate Atkinson and hated it. All of the characters were horrid. There was no one to root for except for Det. Brody and he *****SPOILER*******
sleeps with a deplorable character, so I was barely rooting for him. I doubt I will ever try Kate Atkinson again.
I think that was one of the things that put me off about the book.