The Reader's Room

Sep 8

2016 Man Booker: The Schooldays of Jesus by Coetzee

coetzee

We made it! With this book, our shadow panel has officially completed all the Longlist books. Book Worm and I read all 13 books and our three fabulous contributors managed to read quite an astounding number of them. Our final book is The Schooldays of Jesus by J.M. Coetzee. Tomorrow we will post our overall reflections of the Longlist, Monday we will post our shortlist predictions, and Tuesday the Man Booker committee will release the shortlist. Keep reading to see what we thought of this last book and for our full rankings of all 13 books.

Sep 6

6 Comments

2016 Man Booker: Serious Sweet by A.L. Kennedy

serious sweet

We are in the final stretch with the shortlist announcement coming up soon. Friday we’ll be posting a list of our thoughts reading the list and some of our favorites. Saturday we’ll post our panel’s predictions for the shortlist. Book number 11 for our shadow panel is Serious Sweet by A.L. Kennedy. Three of our judges read this book. Here are our mini reviews and ratings… Read more

Sep 5

15 Comments

2016 Man Booker: Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien

05 do not

We are entering the home stretch for our Man Booker Shadow panel. Next up is Madeline Thein’s book, Do Not Say We Have Nothing. Only two of us read this book, in large part because it was hard to find. Check out what we thought of this nominee… Read more

Sep 2

10 Comments

2016 Man Booker: All That Man Is by David Szalay

all that man is

Next up on our list of Man Booker 2016 longlist books is All That Man is by David Szlay. Three of our judges read this book. Here are our ratings and how it ranks on our list… Read more

Sep 2

11 Comments

2016 Man Booker: His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet

his bloody project

Book number nine for our shadow panel is His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet. Three of our judges read this one. Should this book make the shortlist, we’ll repost our reviews with expanded information and any additional reviews from our judges. Check out where this one ranks on our list and let us know what you thought of the book.

Sep 1

20 Comments

2016 Man Booker: The Many by Wyl Menmuir

the many

Next up on our list our shadow panel reviews: The Many by Wyl Menmuir. All five of our judges read this book. Keep reading to see our mini reviews and ratings. Will this book make the shortlist?
Read more

Aug 30

20 Comments

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

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