Books From Before Blogging

I haven't done a Top Ten Tuesday in a really long time. This week's topic grabbed me though. This week, the bloggers from The Broke and the Bookish wanted to know the top Ten Books That Have Been On Your Shelf (Or TBR) From Before You Started Blogging That You STILL Haven't Read Yet. Since I recently started looking back at my blogging past, having passed my 10th blogging anniversary, I started to wonder, what books have been sitting on my shelf, unread, for over 10 years? My posts on Suicide Squad and The Humans are going to have to wait, because I need to know this now.

1. Appointment with Death, by Agatha Christie - I own 4 of Christie's books, why did I stop reading at 3?

2. It, by Stephen King - What is wrong with me? King is one of my favourite authors and I've read loads of his other books, but not It?

3. The House of Mirth, by Edith Wharton - I picked it up on the cheap after having reading Ethan Frome and it's just sat on my shelf.

4. Fury, by Salman Rushdie - Again, I got it on sale, after having read Haroun and the Sea of Stories, and it has just sat there.

5. Jacob's Room, by Virginia Woolf - I took a class on Woolf, but Jacob's Room was not one of the books we read. I bought it anyway.

6. Almost all of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles - My Hubby and I were both reading these books. I was also reading Rice's Mayfair Witches books. Somehow I have never made it past Tale of the Body Thief. I will soon though (maybe).

7. A Perfect Pledge, by Rabindranath Maharaj - I read Maharaj's short story collection The Book of Ifs and Buts and loved it, so I picked up this novel... and it's followed me for years.

8. War and Peace, by Leo Tolsoy (can we include Crime and Punishment & Ulysses here?) - They're long and scary. Based on length alone, I'm more likely to read Crime and Punishment than the other two.

9. The Tiger Claw, by Shauna Singh Baldwin - I don't know why. It just hasn't been read yet.

10. From Ink Lake, edited by Michael Ondaatje - It's a collection of Canadian short stories. Seems like my kind of thing, but nope. It's sat on my shelf as long as the rest of them.

I thought there would be more, but last year I started making an effort to read the books that I've had for a long time. That's part of the reason I got around to reading Tale of the Body Theif. Seeing this list has reminded me how much I wanted to read each of these books when I bought them. Hopefully, I get to at least one of them soon.

You Scare Me! Top Ten Most Intimidating Books

It's the end of the day and I'm finally getting a chance to make my Top Ten from The Broke and The Bookish.  I had a long Canada Day weekend.  It was fun, filled with family and fireworks.  I'm back home and I just couldn't resist this week's topic: Top Ten Most Intimidating Books.  Here they are in no particular order.

1. Ulysses, by James Joyce - It's HUGE!

2. War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy - It's HUGER!

3. Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - It seems a little mental, and deep, and possibly violent (and LONG). Also, it's so CANON.

4. Alias Grace, by Margaret Atwood - I LOVE Margaret Atwood and I've read so many of her wonderful books, but something about this one... I don't know if it's the LENGTH, that SO MANY PEOPLE LOVE IT or what, but I'm scared of it.

5. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hoseinni - I LOVED A Thousand Splendid Suns and And The Mountains Echoed. The Kite Runner was his first book that for some reason I didn't read.  It was made into a movie (which I haven't seen) and also a graphic novel (which I also haven't read).  I feel like I've internally HYPED this one up so much, I'm scared to be disappointed.

6. The Stand, by Stephen King - I watched the mini-series oh so long ago and I remember loving it.  The Stand is also supposed to be King at his BEST.  I've read loads of his work, so I don't know what this one intimidates me more than the other stories I haven't read yet.

7. The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum- What if I HATE it?

8. The Walking Dead (Compendium #1), by Robert Kirkman - What if I HATE it? (I LOVE the show.)

9. Wizard's First Rule, by Terry Goodkind - I've heard such good things about this book and series.  But ALL the books are so HUGE.

10. A Short History of Nearly Everything, by Bill Bryson - Again, I've heard great things about Bryson and his writing.  People LOVE his books.  What if I don't?

Honourable mentions:

Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll - Same feelings as The Wizard of Oz

Tale of the Body Thief, by Anne Rice - I started this series, but never read past Queen of the Damned.  They were great books and I've always intended to finish.  They're just so long and there are so many other books vying for my time.

So, apparently I'm intimidated by big books, in general.  I also fear being disappointed by books other people love.  Sounds pretty normal to me :)

Sorry my CAPS LOCK button kept getting stuck.

What books are you intimidated by?

The Book(s) to Read Before You Die: The Literary Blog Hop Makes Me Think!

This week Debbie Nance from ReaderBuzz asks: What one literary work must you read before you die? I’m going to follow the example of our hosts at The Blue Bookcase and talk about two books. The first is the book I recommend to everyone, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. I’ve spoken of it a few times on this blog. I just think it’s amazing.

What book do I need to read before I die? I think I’d like to read War and Peace before I die. It’s just so huge; I always turn my gaze away and head for something else.

Top Ten Books I’ll Never Read

The Broke and The Bookish have presented us with an interesting list for Top Ten Tuesday. What are the Top Ten Books I’ll Never Read? That’s really difficult. I don’t want to count any book out. However, after thinking about it, I came up with ten books, for different reasons, I don’t think I’ll ever read. This is the order they came to mind, not the order of importance, though I did want to end with number ten.

1. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy – It’s not that I don’t want to read it. I actually own it (it was 50 cents, how could I resist?). It is just so BIG. It seems like there is always something else on my shelf more appealing/less daunting.

2. A Million Little Pieces, James Frey – There was some controversy about this book when it came out. There was some lying involved. I admit to not knowing what the actual story was. I don’t tend to read something just because of media attention. It just gives me a feeling like I don’t want to read it.

3. The Firm, John Grisham – I know, I’m about to be stoned. I saw the movie, which I know isn’t always a good indicator of a book, though it wasn’t a bad movie. There’s a part of me that wants to read it, I just don’t feel like I ever will.

4. Misery, Stephen King – I know, more stoning. How could I not want to read it? As many people know, I’ve read quite a few Stephen King novels. I even own Misery. But do you know what it’s about? I do. I saw the trailers for the movie (which I also haven’t seen) and I’ve read the synopsis for the book. It’s just a tad too creepy for me.

5. The Wheel of Time, Robert Jordan – My husband owns these books (except the new ones) and has read them. He thinks, however, that I won’t like them; I’ll get bored with them. They are also really, really long. All of them.

6. The Vampire Diaries, L.J. Smith – I’ve had enough of the sugary vampires that teenage girls fall in love with. What happened to Dracula, Lestat or even Selene? The show has just put me off ever wanting to read the books (even though I think Ian Somerhalder is super sexy).

7. Confessions of an Heiress, Paris Hilton – I hope I don’t have to explain this.

8. Star, Pamela Anderson – See above.

9. Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert – Maybe if I could jet around the world to find myself, I’d be more interested in reading this book. I’m sure it’s well written to be so appealing to so many people; I just don’t think it’s for me.

10. A Shore Thing, Snooki– (Yup, it's got a title.) See 7 & 8.

Now, I’d never say never. Who knows how I’d feel about 1-6 and 9 in a year? But, if I had to choose right now, those are what I’d pick (or not pick, as the case may be.) I don’t believe in banning books, so if you’re a fan of any of these books, I support your choice to read them. Maybe your opinion on them could even change my mind. After all, I’m currently reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo because of peer pressure and really enjoying it.

Android Karenina

I’m not sure where to begin with Leo Tolstoy and Ben H. Winters’ Android Karenina. Forty pages from the end, there was a big twist and I thought I knew what I was going to say, where the rest of the story was going and how it would all end. That twist was just the beginning. I don’t want to give away the ending. The whole story comes together, unravels and come together again in these final pages. I want to say so much, but it wouldn’t be fair to everyone who hasn’t read it.

I do think everyone should read it. Unlike its Quick Classics predecessors, I haven’t read Anna Karenina. I decided that this time I would follow my own advice. I read first, to see if it would spark my interest in reading the Tolstoy original. It definitely has; it’s on my bookshelf waiting. I enjoyed Android Karenina. I think Winters did a great job of melding the past with robots, aliens and mad scientists. The story has a “what if” feel. “What if” this Miracle Metal, groznium was discovered? Is this what Russia in the 19th century would have been like? It takes the Industrial Revolution to a whole new level.

I also think Winters is an Isaac Asimov fan. Early on in the story, the characters talk about the “Iron Laws” which govern the behaviour of robots. Princess Betsy even puts them to a horrible test (in this scene you can see Anna leaning more towards robots than humans). About halfway through the novel, the characters finally bring up “Osimov”, a machine theorist, whose ideas brought about the Iron Laws. I found myself thinking of I, Robot occasionally.

For me, it’s Levin who is the hero. He begins as a shy man, turned down by the woman he loves. He grows, marries that woman and turns into a leader. His ideas and strength are a force upon this story. I know Anna and Vronsky are supposed to be the couple at the centre of everything, but Levin and Kitty steal their spotlight. Anna is a tool and Vronsky is selfish. Levin is the man, who in the end has everything, Vronsky has nothing. If you look closely, it’s even Levin who has Android Karenina. Not Vronsky, not even really Anna. I come out of the novel really disliking Vronsky, though I wonder, what is wrong with his tooth? If you like Russian literature or robots or both, you should pick up Android Karenina and find out what happens to these four characters.

Check out Android Karenina at Quirk Classics.  They have a sample chapter up.  Comment on the chapter, blog posts and let them know you read about the book here.

Check out: "Android Karenina Review Copies - Calling All Bloggers! | Quirk"

To any bloggers who also review books: Quirk is giving away free copies of Android Karenina.

Android Karenina Review Copies - Calling All Bloggers! Quirk