The Inseparables by Stuart Nadler

My rating: 2.0

Three women (mother, daughter and granddaughter) face three different problems. It was hard at times to know if I should feel sorry for the characters or be laughing.

Despite the beautiful writing, mainly due to lack of liking the characters, this story couldn't keep my attention.

Barkskins by Annie Prouix

Rating: 2.4

The story of seventeeth century Frenchmen in New France working as wood cutters. There is a lot of hardships and great writing in this novel that spans three centuries.  I do not dispute that Prouix (author of The Shipping News and Brokeback Mountain) is amazingly talented and captures the era so well. For myself, the characters throughout the many generations ran together and I just couldn't see continuing for all 700+ pages. Let me know if I should revisit this book.

The Heavenly Table by Donald Ray Pollock

My rating: 1.5

I am the outlier....again. The writing was wonderful and it felt like I was reading a lot but the story wasn't going anywhere. For me, it was way too much detail about every single character that it dragged.  It was also really dark.

I really wanted to like this book but every night when I wanted to sit down and read I would almost groan out loud realizing what book I was reading. Reading should be a pleasure, not a struggle.

The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel

My rating: 1.0

I know others have said the first section was the most trying but, I just couldn't get through it. I am the outlier....again.

The Last Painting of Sara de Vos

My rating: 1.5

In 1631 Sara de Vos is the first woman painter to be admitted to the Guild of St Luke’s in Holland. It’s the Dutch Golden Age, the time of Vermeer, Rembrandt and Hals. This is the story of Sara's painting In The Edge of the Woods.

I know so many loved this book and I hate being the outlier but, I didn't care for it at all. I didn't find any of the characters were likable and the story line dragged.  I got half way through and decided to stop torturing myself and move onto other books I would enjoy in my queue

The Light of Hidden Flowers by Jennifer Handford

My rating: 1.0

This was a book club read. I wanted to like it but I didn't. In fact, I hated it. The characters were very flat and poorly developed.  The writing was very juvenile with "she said..." "he said..." "They went..." and no creative prose at all. The character describes herself with repeated negative traits and sums it up by saying "If I were a company, I wouldn't buy my stock". If she hates herself so much, how are we supposed to like her? If she hates herself and her life so much, why didn't she change? I could have understood if she was contented with her life and others found it boring but for her to describe herself  without any redeeming qualities seemed bizarre. I don't know why it took her father's letter to make her wake up.  Also, she knew all along that was how her father felt as she said she resented it and wanted his praise - again, why was the letter such a revelation.

If this had been in the hands of a skilled writer, the story line could have had hope but, it felt so stilted and implausible that I finally gave up on it. I have to call out that I was listening to the audio version and I believe a narrator can make or break a book so it is entirely possible that the printed version might be more palatable.

Everyone Brave Is Forgiven by Chris Cleave

My rating: 2.0

I absolutely loved Cleave's first book Little Bee (which I strongly recommend) so initially I was happy when this book about WWII was picked for a book club.  I tried.  I really did. I got almost 60% of the way through before I gave up.  

Cleave can be a wonderful writer but I didn't care for any of the characters. So many of the story lines were recycled.  Everything felt flat and contrived and I truly did not care. It is so sad when Cleave is talented that this comes across as trying too hard and just didn't grab me.

Midwife's Confession by Diane Chamberlain

My rating: 1.0

This is the story of three women who have been best friends since college...and one implausible thing after another (I won't write any spoilers) continues to happen time and again throughout this book.  

Due to the decent writing, I kept trying to just go with the flow and consider it an entertaining beach read and not get too hung up on the far-fetched contrived story lines.  I am kicking myself that I read this till I only had a couple of chapters left and it took yet another turn South before I gave up on it. 

Slade House by David Mitchell

My rating: 1.0

Despite David Mitchell's wonderfully readable writing style, this was another book that is just not for me. A couple reasons were:

• Each chapter read like a short story and I don't generally like short stories;
• He would start using 'magical terms, phrases and references that you didn't know what they meant.  If you hung in there long enough he would explain them but, he did this all too frequently for my taste
• The characters felt very fluffy and superficial. If this was supposed to be scary, I felt it was more silly and childish with the characters

All in all, I am happy to let this go and move on to other books.

H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald

My rating: 1.0

Desite some beautifully written passages, this "Misery Memoir" just didn't grab me. Rather than continue to struggle through it, I decided to move on to other books.

The House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

My rating: 1.5

This was a more challenging read than I am up for right now...and maybe ever. This is called an 'interactive' book.  Some pages have one paragraph.  Some pages have one word. Some are written upside down. Some are written in columns. There are LONG footnotes that go on for pages. It is said that if Blair Witch project was a book, this would be it.

Despite this being very well written, my brain just was not up for a piece of work that is challenging.  You can see by the reviews that people either love or hate this but, since I didn't finish it, I can't way.  Let me know if you read it what you thought.

The Zone of Interest by Martin Amis

Raring: 1.0

This is written from the perspective of the SS Officers in Auschwitz. This is a dark comedy about their lives and how they viewed the camp. I 'get' what the author was trying to show but found it too distasteful to be able to read. This author is known for controversial books and this definitely fits the bill. I guess I am naive enough to think that the Germans saw that it was 'people' in the camp and hopefully had a difficult time executing their orders rather than laughing and joking around.

I only got 18% of the way in but that was enough for me to know this book is not for me.

Like Water on Stone by Dana Walrath

My Rating: 1.0

I couldn't get in to this book as it is written in verse. It may be the best book out there but, I won't be able to say as I just couldn't get past the way it was written.
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Shadow of the Wind/Cemetery of Forgotten Books by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

My rating: 1.0

I have heard about this book for years so, I was excited to finally move this book to the top of my queue. I listened to it on my ipod (audio from my library...of course!) and the narration was wonderful.  The writing was wonderful.....for the first 75 pages. 

It quickly felt that the writer was using the overblown prose again and again and again.  The overuse of the flowery metaphors got old very quickly.  I realized that this book felt cumbersome and not enjoyable and I knew it was time for me to move on and put this in my cemetery of forgotten books.

Mrs. Hemingway by Naomi Wood

My rating: Didn't finish

My rating of this book is in no way a reflection on the writing. In fact, it may be that Ms Wood did such a fine job of writing and capturing the dysfunction that it disturbed me so much I couldn't finish the book.

I knew of Hemingway’s life, his wives, his affairs, etc and yet, this was an extremely uncomfortable book to read. If you can handle the love triangles and wreckage that was Hemingway’s life, you may enjoy this book that was put together from real love letters and telegrams.

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell

My Rating: 1.0

I wanted to love this book.  It started off ok but then quickly started to drag for me.  At 20% of the way in, I realized that I was not looking forward to reading which is a sure sign that I need to switch to a new book.

The Paying Guests by Sarah

My rating: 1

I really tried to give this a fair chance but it just droned on and on and on. When I read other reviews saying that it got worse that clinched it and I have moved on to other enjoyable books.  

Let me know if you think I made the wrong decision and should give this another chance.

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

My Rating: 1.0
I was mildly entertained by this book and got 40% of the way through.  I had met Spider and all his glorious god antics and met Daisy and Graham Coats and all of their antics

I think there were too many elements that Gaiman was trying to juggle -I normally like mythology but, right about the time that Fat Charlie checked out, so did I.

Blue Nights by Joan Didion

My rating:  1.0

I wanted to like this book but have to agree with the other readers that the name dropping is nauseating, the book is written in a convoluted meandering style and so much of it is insecure neurosis that it is uncomfortable to read.  Besides all of that, we all know how difficult grief is.  After I went through dealing with a death and dealing with my grief, I wrote it all down.  Granted I am not a writer but, I quickly realized that what may have been a catharsis for myself was definitely not anything I should subject anyone else to.  Writer or not, if only Joan Didion had the same realization.

Half Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This started off strong. This was about Sid and his relationship with his jazz friends; the war setting provides a backdrop and the situation of black people in Berlin and Paris. Then it gets droningly long and boring. I wanted to like this book but it was just to drawn out.