I don’t quite know how to even summarize this book. It really is the story of one man’s life—but it’s a sprawling story. It follows the life story of Adam Trask and his family, and interweaves the stories of the people who shape Adam and his children throughout their lives.

I went into my reading having heard people say they’d really enjoyed the book, but not knowing much about it. And really, that’s enough. There’s not a huge plot hook to draw you in, but East of Eden is a really, really good book.

What stands out to me is the way the main characters are so fully developed. Yet Steinbeck does this so slowly throughout the course of the narrative, that I didn’t think about it until I finished the book and realized how well I knew each of the characters. I loved so many of them-Lee, Adam, Aron, Abra, Cal. Often, I was frustrated with them and yet I felt like I loved and understood them at the same time. There are so many parallels in the family relationships-between brothers and fathers and sons—and yet each relationship is very much distinct and different.

As I was reading it, someone asked me if it was depressing…classic question for a Steinbeck novel…and I have to say no very emphatically. If I gave a run-down of some of the many horrible things that happen throughout the novel, I guess you might think it was depressing, but the book is by no means heavy in tone. I felt like it was overwhelmingly hopeful.

Yes, there are parallels to be made between the generations of Adam’s family and the family of the biblical Adam…there are themes of good and evil…but what interested me the most was the recurring idea of growth, formation, and influence-who and what a man can become, and why. “Timshel-thou mayest!”

Don’t laugh. I read it, I liked it, say what you will. Yes, it’s chick lit. But it was…enjoyable.

The premise of this book is that it’s the chronicle of a year in the life of a passionate reader. Sara Nelson set out at the beginning of 2002 to read a book a week and chronicle her thoughts on each one. And, pretty much, she does accomplish this. Her stated goal is to do more than just this, though; her desire was to observe the reading process and the ways books intersect with our lives. And those observations are exactly what I liked about this book.

I enjoyed the way Nelson mentions various reading quirks that I often see in myself—like “double-booking,” and the aversion to re-reading (when there is the guilt of so many unread books looming overhead). Also, the way we have “public books,” you know…the ones that you’re proud of reading, so you’re more apt to let yourself be seen reading them. Unlike guilty pleasures like Good in Bed and Bridget Jones’ Diary, both of which I read at home on the weekend.

I really liked So Many Books, even though I realized that Nelson’s and my own taste in books probably don’t intersect too much. Nelson says, “If a particular book I mention makes you want to head off to the nearest bookstore, great; if not, maybe what I say about it will spark a memory or suggest a topic that seems honest or interesting or true” (7). And, it did. That’s what I love about books and talking about books—the springboard effect. Books can bring up common experiences and ideas, and provide ways for us to connect with each other personally, as well as through discussion of the book itself. And you don’t always have to have read a book to be able to have a conversation about it.

I’m kind of on hiatus from this one. I was totally in the right mood for it when I started it, but I got distracted by other books…so I’ve set it aside for now.

I liked this volume the least of the trilogy. I had few quibbles with the way the events played out, I just felt cheated by the ending. I felt like it was tacked on. It deserved much more attention, especially given the writer’s style and pace up until the last couple of chapters.

With that said, I liked this trilogy. The author relies a lot on folk tales for the supernatural creatures that appear throughout the books, and sometimes that reliance was a little too obvious. Her writing style requires patience-the narrative often gets lost in description-but I enjoyed the story. I just wanted more out of the ending. I felt like I’d invested in the story, and the first two books were far stronger than the last installment.

I’m re-reading this in anticipation of the movie. I think it’s still my favorite Harry Potter as far as the story goes.

Now that I’m coming to this one after most recently reading Order of the Phoenix, I’m noticing a difference in Rowling’s writing. As the books progress, she’s not trying so hard to make them stand-alone, and I think they’re better books for it. We don’t need a re-explanation of Quiddich in every single volume, thank you very much!

Anyway, all of that said, I love how these books can suck me in and distract me from whatever else I’m reading. Great fun.

I was initially very intrigued by the concept behind this book: the idea that you could figure out people’s problems by examining the song lyrics that run through their heads. It ends up being more than just that idea—there’s more of a story here than I expected. And in the end, I really enjoyed the story Tucker built around the concept that drew me in.

The characters were well developed-especially the teenage narrator, Leeann, and her older sister Mary Beth (the “song reader”). The story of their family drew me in and kept me reading. It did feel like a first novel in places-there were times I felt the imagery or situations were a little too obvious. But overall, it was a quick, good read.

I gave up on this one. It sounded compelling. But the characters were completely flat, and I honestly didn’t care about any of them by the time I hit page 50. So it’s going back to the library.

I really enjoyed this. I was worried that it would be more of a spoof, more cartoonish than it is. It isn’t. It’s really pretty good.

There’s a focus on art that I didn’t expect. That theme and the Dutch setting remind me-oddly enough-of Vreeland’s Girl in Hyacinth Blue and Chevalier’s Girl with a Pearl Earring.

This started out well, but I felt like Gire carried on too long with a concept that could have been dealt with in much less space. I’m glad my small group is finished with it!