Update

I finished the Hunger Games series in record time and have moved onto Wicked. I wanted to read it before seeing the musical next month (although I hear they are very different). Has anyone read it or seen the musical?

- Miss H.

Moving On

After failing to get through Born Round (that's right, I'm a quitter) I moved on to the wonderful Beneath a Marble Sky. Centered around the building of the Taj Mahal and the emperor's family, it made me realize that I truly know nothing about the history of India. What was most interesting to me was that the century could have remained a mystery to me for almost the entirety of the book if it weren't listed on the cover. The acceptance of concubines, sexual promiscuity and experimentation (if only for men), combined with an emphasis on the arts reminded me of ancient societies. Also similar was the disparity between the sophistication displayed by the arts and the brutality displayed by war and in disregard for life. More to come when I can get together my thoughts on the role of women in 17th century India and how it compares to the same in Europe.

Lazily yours,
Savannah

Hunger Games!!!

As Rebecca promised, I finished Hunger Games in a little over 24 hours. This was, in part, because of the fact that I couldn't leave my apartment this morning since a water main broke in front of our house causing a massive sink hole and the road to be closed. But really, Hunger Games kept me riveted, and even after I was able to navigate away from home, I didn't leave until I had finished and went out to buy the second and third books.

I will start by saying that in the Young Adult/ Tweenager Fantasy/Fiction/Series genre I am, and will always be, a happy and proud Harry Potter fan. I have also read the Twilight series, and generally enjoyed it, but never to the point that I love HP. Hunger Games falls in between the two on my enjoyment scale. Perhaps it's that I have aged out of the intended audience, whereas I read HP in my prime Tween / Teenage years, but I just don't think HG, or Twilight for that matter, holds the same... ahem.... magic. I found the romance in HG to be my favorite part of the book (by the way, I'm a HUGE Peeta fan!). It was refreshingly sweet and believable compared to the Twilight series. However, it lacked the subtlty and humor of romantic relationships in the HP series. Katniss's denial and seeming lack any ability for self-reflection in her relationships is what irked me the most. For someone who is so developed in so many skills, her utter lack of sense of self and others baffled me. In order to survive, people need to be able to clue into the thoughts and feelings of others. Katniss's ability to do so was extremely lacking. Because of this, I found myself getting frustrated that HG is written in the first person. It seemed to dumb the book down because Katniss herself was being so dumb!

Other than these complaints, I thought the book was marvelous. Not only was it a riveting story, the number of cultural references, the subtle mockery of American society, and the unrestrained violence help the book appeal to an older audience. Hopefully the next book will not disappoint!

- Miss. H.

Slight Spoiler Alert for Born Round

I finished Born Round today, and I was disappointed in the last 150 or so pages of the book. I really enjoyed the beginning. I found the parts about his childhood and family funny and interesting. Once it began focusing on his adult eating issues and career, I lost interest. I thought some of the writing about his food critic career was interesting, but that it dragged on for too long. I found myself skipping paragraphs and even pages.

In the spirit of Frank Bruni's star rating system, out of three, I give the book one star. The beginning was good enough to save it from zero stars, but it was too much of a struggle to get through the end to get a higher rating. The only reason I was able to get through it was that I have Hunger Games waiting for me. I'm glad that Hunger Games should be a much faster read. I need something exciting and action packed after Bruni's book.

- Miss H.

Tomorrow is Mockingjay day!

If you haven't read the first two books in Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games series, run out and get yourself copies immediately! They're the best YA books I've read since...well, ever! I read Hunger Games in one sitting, staying up until 1am to finish (on a school night!) and ran out the next morning to purchase Catching Fire and did it all over again. The sleep deprivation was worth it! I have been eagerly awaiting the third and final book since last August, and will hit up the local Barnes and Noble as soon as work ends tomorrow. If they sell out before four (and I have a feeling they will), I'm going to be seriously bummed out!
- Rebecca DeW

I'm looking forward to seeing all the madwomen in person this weekend! It'll be the first time we've all been together since the idea for the book club was conceived. And how fitting, considering the current book selection, that we'll meet up for a food festival! All-you-can-eat Maryland blue crab - would Frank approve?
I'm also looking forward to setting some parameters for how this blog should proceed. I was considering posting my initial impressions of the book but, like Miss Havisham, I'm afraid to spoil the ending for the other club members. That was an unanticipated kink in the system that we neglected to negotiate.
In the meantime, since I'm abstaining from discussing Born Round, here's what else is going on in my reading life. To be honest, I haven't been reading anything longer than the occasional NY Times article. I'm trying to muster up the courage to begin Jeffrey Shaara's The Steel Wave. I love Jeff, I love historical fiction, and I especially love historical fiction about World War II (or WWI or Henry VIII, but I'll save those for another post). I've been anticipating this book since June, and those of you who know me well know that I rarely hold on to a book for such a long period of time without cracking the spine. The problem is that I find Shaara's books to be extremely labor-intensive reading. I call them "historical fiction, heavy on the history," because they are so thoroughly researched and so chock-full of historical detail. I read Killer Angels (by his father) two summers ago, and last summer I read To The Last Man. It took me a solid two weeks...much slower going than my usual pace. I loved it, and learned so much about General Pershing and trench warfare, but I felt like I needed to follow up with Danielle Steele...my brain was too exhausted to comprehend anything heavier than fluff.
With the advent of summer, I felt it was time to hunker down and try another Shaara selection. The problem is that the book has been sitting in a crate in the basement since I moved, and I haven't been motivated enough to fetch it. I think the laziness stems not so much from dreading the two flights downstairs, but from knowing what I'm in for once I begin reading. However, with my new job looming in less than a week, it's now or never...once I start working again, I know I'll be chock-full of excuses! Tomorrow promises to be rainy, so perhaps it'll be the perfect day to settle down with a big mug of tea and tackle that book!
- Rebecca DeW

I started Born Round yesterday and am in the 4th chapter. So far I'm really enjoying it, especially learning about his grandma! I don't what to ruin anything. Where is everyone else?

Did anyone else catch Top Chef last night? The author of our first book was guest judge! We certainly have good timing.

How far is everyone in the book? I have been sidetracked by Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. The book is a collection of connected short stories centered around Olive, who lives in a small coastal town in Maine. It's going slowly, but it's interesting. Strout does a very good job of developing the characters. I'm wondering if I should switch over to Born Round, though, and keep up with everyone else?

Mrs. Havisham

Welcome to The Madwomen's Book Club

After six weeks of deliberation and procrastination, we finally selected our first group read: Born Round, by Frank Bruni. It’s a memoir by the former New York Times restaurant critic, and we selected it primarily because 1) none of us had read it, and 2) as Miss H. likes to say, each of the madwomen has a particularly strong love affair with food! I’m particularly eager to begin reading because I have adored Frank’s writing style since I first noticed it in a review of clam pizza he ate at Co. in Brooklyn. The sheer magnitude of vocabulary he employed in describing the shellfish blew me away and sparked my obsession with the NYT Dining and Wine section, which I still read diligently each week. I can only hope that his memoir is as vivid and stylish as his reviews. So…let the reading begin! We can’t wait to start posting and let you all know what we think!
- Rebecca DeW.