July 6th, 2007 |
12 award-winning books. July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008
1. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (Booker 2000)
2. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (Booker 1997)
3. The Sea by John Banville (Booker 2005)
4. A Death in the Family by James Agee (Pulitzer 1958)
5. The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron (Newbery 2007)
6. The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli (Newbery 1950)
7. The Known World by Edward P. Jones (Pulitzer, IMPAC, NBCC)
8. The Hours by Michael Cunningham (Pulitzer)
9. The White Stag by Kate Seredy (Newbery 1938)
10. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (Pulitzer)
11. Lisey’s Story by Stephen King (Bram Stoker 2007)
12. Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Orange 2007)
13. Bud, not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Newbery)
14. The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo (Newbery)
15. Buying a Fishing Rod for my Grandfather by Gao Xingjian (Nobel Laureate)
16. The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx (Pulitzer)
17. The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder (Pulitzer)
18. Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath by Sigrid Undset (Nobel laureate)
19. Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky (Prix Renaudot)
20. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon (Costa/Whitbread)
21. Independent People by Halldor Laxness (Nobel)
22. Life & Times of Michael K by J. M. Coetzee (Booker Prize)
23. Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! by Laura Amy Schlitz
July 6th, 2007 |
The Door in the Wall
by Marguerite de Angeli
(1949, 121 pp.)
Newbery Medal
Rating: 4
My favorite passage sums up this book nicely:
“Fret not, my son. None of us is perfect. It is better to have crooked legs than a crooked spirit. We can only do the best we can with what we have. That, after all, is the measure of success: what we do with what we have.”
Robin is a boy whose father expects him to be a knight. When his father goes off to war, Robin is left alone and falls ill. His legs are slightly crippled afterward. Some monks come to his aid and he learns to “do the best with what he has.” Recommended.
- 1. Nicola – July 7, 2007
- Oh, I remember this one. I read it to my oldest son a long time ago. Skippack School by her is also very good.
- 2. Debi – July 9, 2007
- This one has never caught my eye before, but it sounds wonderful! Thank you!
July 6th, 2007 |
The Sea
by John Banville
2005, 195 pp.
2005 Booker Prize
Rating: 2
This was not my cup of tea. I don’t need an exciting plot to enjoy a book. I don’t mind older men looking back on their lives. In a similar vein, I loved Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead, although I hated Roth’s Everyman. This was closer to Everyman.
Max is a widower that is overly sensitive to smells who is grieving (I guess?) over his wife. He calls her the “c” word and admits he really didn’t know her because he preferred not to know her.
Not one character in the book was likable. I guess I was lucky this was short.
- 1. Joy – July 6, 2007
- Ahhh, I just added this onto my iPod! I didn’t like EVERYMAN either, so you not liking this one is not a good sign for me.
- 2. Petunia – July 11, 2007
- I had the same reaction as you did. Didn’t care for it.
