STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

For Fun:

* Everyone Worth Knowing by Laura Weisberger - just read it and it's really good
* The Undomestic Godess by Sophie Kinsella - reading now and I'm enjoying it

I'm not sure how much chick-lit you've read, so I don't want to post a bunch of fun reads if you've read a lot.

 

I'm reading Dracula which isn't light but is definitely good. (my only problem is that the only time I have to read is right before bed, and I'm a big baby who lives alone, so I get thoroughly freaked out and then sit in the dark, unable to sleep, just thinking about Dracula....

Oh gosh, what am I reading this summer?

History: Rise to Globalism by Stephen Ambrose

Theory of Knowlege: Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo

English: Native Son by Richard Wright 

IF I finish all this junk, I'm open to fun reading too

I have read so many already this summer. I really like the light mysteries. My library seperates all the new books, so i just go to that section and pick up a couple that look intresting. So far I liked all the ones that I read. Right now I am reading this book "Do me, Do my roots" and it centers around three sisters. It is really good. Last week I read "crazy girls in love" which was a sequel to a book I forgot the name of, but it tracks a family over like 20 years and all the mess they get themselves into. I also recommend it.

I'm reading "Cold Comfort Farm" by Stella Gibbons. A new addition was recently released, so its all over the book stores. It is so funny! I always thought (probably based on title) it was a serious drama, but no, its one of the most humorous books I have ever read.

This summer I'm reading:

- "Bait and Switch" by Barbara Erenreich, about how the people who earn a college degree now have the same circumstances as the people who didn't a generation ago. It's a very funny take on teh corporate world and job hunting industry. I loved her book "Nickel and Dimed, Not Getting By in America" even more.

- "Fast Girls, Teenage Tribes and the Myth of the Slut," by Emily White - fascinating look at our culture and what is expected of women and how women are influenced by those expectations. For example, there's a group of teens in New Jersey known as "The Little Mothers," because they are the good, pretty girls who will eventually be mothers - and these girls do HORRIBLE things to girls labeled as sluts, girls who, ironically, aren't even having sex, but are punished because they are dirty (the little mothers are having sex). White says that society uses the girls sacrificed as "fast" to explain and understand confusion about sex... So interesting!

- "Cousin Bette" by Honore d'Balzac, the language is a little bit of a pain, but his insight into human nature is really keen.

Ok, these don't sound like light summer reading but the first two really are, I swear! They're both very fast reads. Plus, they give you something to talk about at parties and so on.

Oh, and I LOVED Johnny Got His Gun when I was in school! So good!

here's a VERY short list of what im reading this summer, just what ive picked up from barnes and noble in the past two weeks:

rabbit proof fence by doric pilkington-- the story of two aboriginal girls who were basically stolen from thier families and "adopted" by a white austrailian couple. this is thier story of thier escape back home to thier real families.

a wrinkle in time by madeline l'engle-- read a long time ago but decided i needed to read again.

hotel honolulu by paul theroux-- fiction, but he writes amazing nonfiction travel books as well. if anyone loves travel books check him out!

oracle bones: a journey between china's past and present by peter hessler-- i love reading asian history (or present, as the case may be) books.

the swamp by michael grunwald-- the story of the everglades, politics and the environmental impact of the swamp.

the handmaid's tale by margaret atwood-- not quite sure why i haven't read this before.

pope joan by donna woolfolk cross-- the (possibly true, maybe not) story of the only female pope.

pathologies of power by paul farmer-- pf is a god, 'nuf said. nicoley, this might be actually something as a pharma student you perhaps might be interested in. he talks more about inequalities in medicine in general, but all still relatable to pharma.

silent spring by rachel carson-- again, not quite sure why i haven't read this before.

a forest journey by john perlin-- the story of trees and wood in our history; how trees have shaped history.

(drum roll please)
and the coolest one of all?
midwifery: community based care during the child-bearing year by linda walsh-- not really something that i expet you to read but just wanted to throw it in there cause im super pysched to be reading this...its for my master project which i finally get to start this summer!

im also waiting on some books to come out this summer:

peter and the shadow theives by dave barry-- sequel to peter and the star catchers, its the story of peter pan before he came to never never land.

phantom by terry goodkind-- tenth in a really good fantasy fiction series.

danse macabre by laurell hamilton-- im a sucker for sex scenes and vampires and werewolves. this is the thirteenth in the series.

 

dizzy: that fast girls book sounds interesting! i just added it to my library queue.

books i am reading/have read so far this summer:

"free gift with purchase" - jean godfrey-june. i love her writing in lucky...this book is basically her column consolidated, with some added tidbits. nice, fun read.
"devil in the details" - jennifer traig. i am going to be starting this soon! it's a memoir about ocd.
"swapping lives" - jane green. i enjoy her books, and enjoyed this quick read. nothing spectacular, but a nice beach read.

in my library queue now:
"bitter is the new black" - jen lancaster. another st'er recommended this. can't wait to read it.
"not buying it: my year without shopping" - judith levine. pretty much as the title suggests.

sfcaligirl wrote:

---

this summer is all about catching up on some classics. i'm currently reading east of eden (steinbeck) and i'm really into it. next on my list is anna karenina (tolstoy).

---

Anna is on my list also!  Along with Catcher in the Rye.  I love classical literature but I have somehow missed these two.

For lighter reading I want to read Stiff, by Mary Roach.  Possibly revisit A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle.  I'm on the hunt for a fun series, we'll see how that goes.

GINGEMBRE1: I'm reading Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom.  I *definitely* recommend it.

The 5 People You Meet in Heaven was great too!

-- Edited by Sibeski at 13:37, 2006-06-16