Archive for

Aug 30

Terrible Reviews of Great Books: Animal Farm by George Orwell

animal farm

We are going to take a brief break from our Man Booker shadow panel to bring our regular feature: Terrible Reviews of Great Books. We’ll be back to our regular posting schedule after the shortlist is announced in mid-september.

There is no such thing as a universally loved book. Each month, we’ll feature a book from Time’s list of the best 100 English language novels of all time. From the nasty to the snarky to the downright absurd, we’ll highlight some of the strange reasons why some people hate these great reads. This month we’ll be taking a look at reviews for Animal Farm by George Orwell.

Aug 28

3 Comments

Read Diverse LGBT: The Gilda Stories Jewelle Gomez

June was Pride month and I was looking for something to read that would suit my mood and fit my “read different” goals. I came across this article 10 Books to Read for Pride Month and The Gilda Stories really caught my attention. Read more

Aug 26

22 Comments

2016 Man Booker: Hystopia by David Means

hystopia

Next up for our Man Booker shadow panel is Hystopia by David Means. This brings us past the half-way point on the list with a little over two weeks left before the shortlist announcement. Four of our judges read this one. Check out what we thought of this nominee. Does it rank in the top half for us? Read more

Aug 25

25 Comments

2016 Man Booker Prize: Hot Milk by Deborah Levy

hot milk

Up next for our Man Booker shadow panel is Hot Milk by Deborah Levy. Four of our panelists read this book. Will it live up to our love for the last one? Keep reading to see what we thought and don’t forget to let us know what you thought too! Read more

Aug 24

25 Comments

2016 Man Booker: Work Like Any Other by Virginia Reeves

work like any other.JPG

After a rather polarizing last book, we have moved onto our next longlist book: Work Like Any Other by Virginia Reeves. Three of our panelists read and reviewed this book. Did our judges come to an greater agreement on this book? Keep reading to find out and see where it ranks on our list. Read more

Aug 22

23 Comments

2016 Man Booker: The North Water by Ian McGuire

North Water

Next up in our 2016 Man Booker Longlist marathon is a book that many of the judges were excited to read: The North Water by Ian McGuire. Turns out that it has been our most polarizing book and one that generated a lot of back discussion between our panel members. Keep reading to find out what our panel of judges thought about the book and let us know with which side you agree most.

Aug 19

25 Comments

2016 Man Booker: Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh

Eileen

Our next book is one that only two of us read: Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh. Should this be one of the books that makes the shortlist, a few of the other judges may read it and we’ll repost with all our reviews. Book Worm and I both read this one. Here are our reviews: Read more

Aug 15

23 Comments

2016 Man Booker: The Sellout by Paul Beatty

the sellout

Next up on our list of longlist books is The Sellout By Paul Beatty. This was second of the two books I (Jen) predicted correctly and it is one we all wanted to read. Our panel reviewed the book on the following criteria: 1) writing quality; 2) originality; 3) character development; 4) plot development; and 5) overall enjoyment. We’ve each provided mini-reviews and ratings. Here are our ratings for The Sellout…
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Aug 10

2 Comments

1001 Book Review: Christ Stopped at Eboli Carlo Levi

It’s been a while since we’ve reviewed a 1001 book so while we wait for our next 2016 Man Booker longlist book, we decided to sneak in a 1001 review that Book Worm read a few months ago: Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlo Levi. Check out Book Worm’s review and if you’ve read it, let us know what you thought of it. Read more

Aug 9

27 Comments

2016 Man Booker: My Name is Lucy Barton

My Name is Lucy Barton

First up on our list of longlist books is My Name is Lucy Barton By Elizabeth Strout. This was one of the books that both Kate and I (Jen) predicted correctly. Four of our judges read this book. We will be rating all the 2016 longlist books on the following criteria: 1) writing quality; 2) originality; 3) character development; 4) plot development; and 5) overall enjoyment. Each of the judges reading the book will provide their brief review to explain their ratings. Here are our reviews and ratings for My Name is Lucy Barton…
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Book Worm’s rating system

★ Bah I really hated this would not even pass this to my worst enemy
★★ I really didn't like this but would consider giving it to my worst enemy for vengeful purposes
★★★ this was an enjoyable way to pass the time not great not horrendous
★★★★ really enjoyed this book there was something about it that made me think
★★★★★ wow I loved this book I am now out recommending it to all my friends, will keep to re read even though I have banned re reads