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M Beal, here is your new thread in 2015. Happy reading in the new year.

Our Required Format:

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2015
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

JANUARY

1. by Jostein Gaarder
Finish date: January 2 2015
Genre: Fiction
Rating: A
Review: Reactions to this book. Contemplating. Standing on my balcony. Eyes open wide, bright. Thinking and seeing some parts of the world for the first time. Thinking differently that I have thought. I would have never even thought to read this book if it wasn't suggested to me. The cover art is beautiful and it might have caught my eye, but that is all. I put myself in Sophie's shoes think over what has been given to me. Philosophy was never something that I had a chance to study. I occasionally speak with my husband about the classes he took in college. Jostein Gaarder makes it very east to read of the history of philosophy, but also by writing a very easy to understand. Speaking with others I have discovered that some lesser known philosophers were left out of the book. This make me excited because there is more for me to discover on my own.

Great and auspicious start M. Only add I would make to the format is before your Review - just put the word Review following by a colon -

Review: I would have never even thought to read this book.....etc.

Philiosopy is very interesting and you learn so much about life in the process and how to think and view things differently. Sounds like a great book of fiction which helps ease one into thinking about philosophy and philosophers in an interesting way.

There is certainly a lot more to discover about philosophy than is discussed in this book. If you'd like a more substantial history of philosophy in one volume, I quite like Russell's History of Western Philosophy. . It's not without flaw (what book is) but it will definitely give you a lot of knowledge about a lot of philosophers.

If you are interested in Plato in particular, I highly recommend Plato at the Googleplex. which is a whole lot of fun.

Both Russell and Goldstein write very well; Russell's book is much more like a text.


by Bertrand Russell

by Rebecca Goldstein

Peter...good recommendation for M but please put your book citations at the end of your text for easier reading. You might also want to post those recommendation on our Philosophy thread at the link below. Thanks so much.

/topic/group...

Hi Jill

I fixed the citations but I am not sure where on the Philosophy thread they should go.

You are a gem, Peter! I think it would go best under this topic in the Philosophy thread.

/topic/show/...

One more correction, M. You need to add the month name above the book citation. (We sure are picky here.)

Thank you! I will be checking out he Philosophy thread. I appreciate your suggestions Peter, I will have to track those who down

One other thing M - try to bold JANUARY - we bold and cap the month for the first completed book in any particular month. You use the html before and after the name of the month. If you need help on this to get the hang of it - we are here to help. Great start.

2. by Sophia McDougall
Finish date: January 5,2015
Genre: Fiction, Alternate History
Rating: C
Review: This is the first book in the Romanitas series. It is a alternate historical fiction novel about the Roman Empire. The things the drew me to it was the lovely cover and the bold lettering “This is the Roman Empire. Now�

The Roman Empire never fell. Slavery is still legal, crucifixion is a common punishment, all with 21st century technology. Slavery is central to the plot and with many of the characters being escaped slaves. The main characters Marcus, Una and Sulien are interesting. They are all damaged or hurt in some way. Marcus, by the death of his parents and betrayal. Una, from he life as a slave. Sulien, by being wrongly accused of a crime and sentenced to crucifixion. The three meet and travel to refuge for runaway slaves.

My only complaint of this book is that it was long, a little to long. It seems she could have shaved off 150 pages off of this 500+ monster and not really lost anything.

I will see where book two takes me.

You are doing well M. Do you like reading about Romans in general?

Have you tried the Master of Rome series. It is very good (historical fiction) but well researched. The series starts out with the book below. We discussed the entire series here.

by Colleen McCullough

I have this book in my "to read pile". I think I will be moving up the list.

It was a great series and the folder for all of the discussion threads for all of the books is in the Romans folder.

3. by Aralyn Hughes (no photo)
Finish date: January 7
Genre: Non-Fiction
Rating: A
Review: This was a wonderful read. Having decided to not have children with my husband and he being in agreement, this book really made me realize I am not alone. Pressure from family and concerned close friends is enough to make me commit myself. This book really put many of the thoughts I have had down into a format that I can read, look at again, than pass it along. Many of the personal experiences in this book hit very close to home and I know I will be passing copies on to friends.

Only thing that I noticed M is that you forgot the words Review: (Review with the colon following) before your review and comment text.

Review: This was a wonderful read. Having decided to not have children with my husband and he being in agreement, this book really made me realize I am not alone. Pressure from family and concerned close friends is enough to make me commit myself. This book really put many of the thoughts I have had down into a format that I can read, look at again, than pass it along. Many of the personal experiences in this book hit very close to home and I know I will be passing copies on to friends.

You are missing a few things M - I think you should go back and attempt a few edits. You are doing very well however.

Let us look at the first one - message 2 - everything is fine now aside from the citation which is really close.

1. by Jostein Gaarder

Note: that you need to add the author's photo first and then the author's link after the word by. So book cover, author's photo when available and always the author's link which is the author's name in linkable text.

Then message 11 - citation issue still

2. by Sophia McDougall

Same issue as the first citation - Note: that you need to add the author's photo first and then the author's link after the word by. So book cover, author's photo when available and always the author's link which is the author's name in linkable text.

Then message 15 - citation issue still

3. by Aralyn Hughes (no photo)

Here we have a different situation - remember there is always the book cover first, then the author's photo if available and then always the author's link. Well in this instance goodreads does not have an author's photo so you simply add at the end (no photo) which are the words no photo in parentheses.

Hope the above helps.

4. by Karen Abbott
Finish date: January 11
Genre: Non-Fiction, History
Rating: A
Review: Amazing book. The civil war is really a background piece in this book. These women are brave and vary inspiring at a time when women were nothing but decoration. I know I am going to read this again.

M - everything is improving including your citations.

But here is the sample format - do you see how the review section starts with Review: and then there are two blank spaces and then the text of the review starts on the very same line. Just fix that on all four books and you have a home run.

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2015
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

5. by Frances Gies and Joseph Gies
Finish date: January 12
Genre: History
Rating: A
Review: I love almost every aspect of medieval history this book really gave me a different look of it. Histories are usually written about the ruling class, the church, or the crusades. Occasionally you will find a book about the Bubonic plague in there. This one is about the people, regular working class people. What did the house wife do with her day? What was a marriage ceremony like? How and when did people join a guild? Things that are not normally discussed unless you are reading a very subject specific book. This one is short, only 274 pages. Out of the about 20 pages are illustrations and another 20 is the index and notations. I settled down with a good cup of tea and tore through this in a afternoon. It is going to be one that I keep on my shelf for a long while.

I loved that book, M. Great stuff.

A great start for 2015, M.

I may add that one to my list

Do you know about Braudel's 3 volume epic on everyday life?

Fernand Braudel

Well thank you M & Peter for bringing up one of my favorite genre's and adding a few more to the mile-long TBR list!

6. by Sophia McDougall
Finish date: January 15
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: C
Review: Like the first one in the series I really enjoyed this book. I will have to admit that I plan on going back and reading it again later. Most was read while recovering from the flu so my memories are hazy.
Addition: I finished the second book in the Romanitas Trilogy and I can say that I am 50/50 about reading the third. I like the concept of the world and the storyline, the characters are what is not doing it for me. While a lot is going on they still feel a little two dimensional and flat. I really want to like these book and it kills me that I don't like them as much as I thought I would.

Looking good M - sorry that it did not get a higher rating - obviously did not measure up.

Thanks M for the edit. Hope you are feeling better now. Did you get the flu shot this year. I have my fingers crossed - I got mine but I heard it was basically useless.

I am going to be reading it again now that I am feeling better

7. by Daniel Easterman (no photo)
Finish date: January 22
Genre: Fiction
Rating: C
Review: It reminded me of a mix of The Da Vinci Code, Tomb Raider, and Indiana Jones all mixed together. It was alright, but not what I was expecting. Very fast paced and I found myself having to go back and re read parts because of it. The characters are also alright, a little shallow and could have been filled out some more. I gave it a 3 star rating because it entertained me, I was really expecting more when I read the back.

M wrote: "I am going to be reading it again now that I am feeling better"

Glad you are on the mend.

8. by Daniel Arenson
Finish date:January 19
Genre: Sci-Fi
Rating A
Review: After my bought with the flu I needed something a little lighter this is really it. I volunteered to read it for Daniel Arenson when it was offered on his facebook page. All of his other work is high fantasy, so had no clue what to expect when I read this book. I loved this book. I laughed through the entire thing. All of the characters were different and unique, the ship is a dragon, a little fuel eating devil and creepy bad alien's.

9. by Rand Miller
Finish date: January 25
Genre: Fantasy, Video Games
Rating: B
Review: This book took me back to my high school days. I have played the game many times. The background, history and lore of it amaze me. The first book is about Atrus and his growing up and becoming a man. Growing up in an old volcano with his grandmother his father Ghen comes back into his life. A self absorbed sociopath is the nicest thing I can say about him. He takes Atrus and teaches him of D'ni and what became of their people. There are two more books in the series, then I will see if my computer can boot up the old game.

Message 28, 30 and 31 are missing the Genre: line and category.

Please go back and add those. It is a line between Finish date: and Rating:

The citations look better.

Finally back and adding review in a huge batch post. Really hard to do on my phone when my video card goes kaputz.

FEBRUARY
10. by Rand Miller
Finish date: February 1
Genre: Fantasy, video games
Rating: B
Review: Back before Atrus and his time with Gehn you have Ti'anna, or just Anna as she goes by now. Where she Aitrus (Atrus' grandfather) lived. The culture and civilization of the D'ni before it's fall. What happened and how. It explains the emotions of hate and contempt the Gehn had for Anna is the first book and how their lives came to be. I really enjoyed this because much more effort was put into character development ad the background than into other parts of the story. Many of the questions I had while reading the first books were answered in this one.

11. by Rand Miller
Finish date: February 3
Genre: Fantasy, Video Games
Rating: C
Review: I enjoyed the first two books in the series quite a bit so I tore into this one. Like second there was a lot on the civilization and character development The problem was that the story was not there. For over half the book not much was happening. You it 300 pages in and it starts at mach 10 and then.. Poof! Book done. I really hate that. It seemed rushed. Other than that this was a great series.

12. by Michelle E. Reed
Finish date: February 7
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating: B-
Review: This was a buddy read with my book club. Young adult is not my normal chosen genre. It was nice to branch out with this. Very interesting take on the afterlife. For Des getting on the train to the afterlife is not the wonderful thing we dream about. She doesn't have a ticket and is "flagged". She is stuck in a military type afterlife where there are more rules and regulation that an immigration application. She has to learn the in's and out's of a new way of life and a new society.

You are making great progress M and sorry about your phone's card.

13. by Norman F. Cantor
Finish date: February 12
Genre: History, Medieval History
Rating:C- to D
Review: Interesting, but disappointing. I was expecting something with a little more solid information than this. An entire chapter was dedicated to Richard III and his family. I learned more about heir history and betrothal of Princess Joan and Prince Pedro than I did about the plague. I felt like it was quickly put together and was aimed at being a quick overview of a micro-history than an academic one.

thanks M, go ahead and add Genre to number 13 and you are fine.

M wrote: "5.by Frances Gies and Joseph Gies
Finish Date: January 12
Genr..."

Thank you for your review, M. Beal! I must add this to my to-read list as soon as possible!

Bryan wrote: "thanks M, go ahead and add Genre to number 13 and you are fine."

oops sorry about that. I guess that is what I get for posting when I am tired

No worries, good job on the follow-through. Looks good.

14. by Nicole Lundrigan
Finish date: February 20
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: A-
Review: Never judge a book by it's cover. I always keep that in mind when I am shopping for books. The cover of this one is what made me pick it up and look at it. The artwork is beautiful.

The story is set in 1950s Yugoslavia, 3 friends find a cache of roman coins buried in a government owned field. Their disagree on what to do with the coins and how it effects their lives. The novel is beautifully written and I have since passed it on to a friend. I will keep and eye out for more books by Nichole Lundrigan.

15. by Steve Stanton
Finish date: February 17
Genre: Sci-Fi, Dystopian Fantasy
Rating: D
Review: This book was really confusing. Being one of three books I had to use google to discover which of the three is the first one in the trilogy. It seemed there was never a wrap up to the continuous plot that pop up. I felt like I was reading 250 pages of "What is happening?!" Vampires meet cyberpunk with some sci-fi thrown in for spice.

16. by Randel Helms (no photo)
Finish date: February 17
Genre: Non-fiction, Biography
Rating: C
Review: This is not a book about Tolkien and Lord of the Rings but give you a better look into Tolkien's essays. it was good for a personal point of view on his work, but many much better books have been printed since

17. by Priscilla Royal
Finish date: February 18
Genre: Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery
Rating: B
Review: So I was this book on the discount table at the local shop. It was enough to make me curious and buy it. A murder of a nun in a medieval priory and a possible assassian lurking about. I really liked the characters of Prioress Eleanor and Brother Thomas.

This is the 10th book in a series. I have been keeping my eye out for the other 9. I will be reading them in the future.

MARCH
18. by Kabir and Rabindranath Tagore
Finish date: March 2
Genre: Poetry
Rating A
Review: This is not the first time I have read this. Rabindranath Tagore received the Nobel prize for his translation. Beautiful words that sink into my skin. I do not read much poetry but this little volume was a wonderful gift from a friend. I will keep it and read it over and over.

Thx and good job

19. by [author:Alan Brennert|
Finish date: March 4
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: A
Review: So I sat down at 10 this morning and opened this book. It is now 3.30 and I have finished it.
Rachel Kalama was a child growing up in Honolulu in the 1890's. When she seven when she notices a rose colored mark on her leg. She is sent to Kalaupapa, the quarantined leprosy settlement on the island Moloka'i. This book is beautiful and I can say that at time reading it in am a teary mess. Going on my re-read list and passing it on to friends

Oh yes, that was a good one, M. But a long book to read in a day!