Books and Other Distractions

minskat30 · December 2013

Ladies, I'm dreading the flight to India in a week. It is going to be an 8 hour flight to Amersterdam, a 7 hour layover there and then another 8 hour flight to India. Last time I flew was direct (and thus 13-14 hours only) but that route doesn't fly any longer. H took the iPad with him when he left but I do have a Kindle. Can you guys recommend some great books...like the kind you stay up till 2 am to finish?

I like Fiction and honestly don't read all that much outside of work because reading in like 70% of what I do at work so any series you might know of I probably haven't read. I liked Harry Potter and the Hunger Games and read those so I was going to get Divergent (spelling?) becuase I saw a few threads on it. Anything else like that out there?

I might break down and try to steal a friend's iPad for a few weeks if she'll let me. If she does, any totally addictive shows (I loved X-Files and Alias when they were on but don't watch much TV now)?

audrewuh · December 2013

Do you like chick lit?

Swazzle · December 2013

Definitely get Divergent (and Insurgent... and probably Allegient). A lot of people also really like Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (I didn't love it as much as other people but it was good). Also, I've heard that Sharp Objects and Dark Places by her are really good.

For TV shows, try Homeland. The first season of that was so fantastic. Also, the Walking Dead and American Horror Story are great although AHS gets a little racy and Walking Dead is pretty violent and I don't know how you feel about watching those sorts of things with strangers right next to you, all up in your space.

minskat30 · December 2013

audrewuh said:

Do you like chick lit?

I had to Google that (sad, I know) but it sounds like something I would like.

minskat30 · December 2013

Thank you @Swazzle - I completely forgot about Homeland. I always see articles about it and think it would be something I could really get into. I think I picked up Gone Girl and read the back of it...it didn't really do anything for me. The Divergent series will definitely be on my list and I'll check out Sharp Objects/Dark Places.

ETA - The violent series or series with tons of sex are probably out. With my luck I'll be sitting next to a kid and get an ear-full from an outraged mom.

audrewuh · December 2013

If you're looking for tv shows, totally do Downton Abbey if you haven't yet.

For chick lit, check out the Something Borrowed/Something Blue duo by Emily Griffin.

The Bride Quartet series by Nora Roberts is really good, some of my favorite characters are in that series.

Elle got me turned on to Joshilyn Jackson, who has a good selection of books. The Girl Who Stopped Swimming kept me up for hours. Gods in Alabama was a good one too.

Heather Gudenkamph or however you spell her name wrote a good one, The Weight of Silence, that made my heart race.

Jodi Picoult writes some incredibly amazing stories.

My favorites by her have been:

- My Sister's Keeper, duh

- The Pact

- 19 Minutes

- Plain Truth

And last but not least, The Book Theif. Such an AMAZING book!

Hummingbird125 · December 2013

For TV - I've just become obsessed with Friday Night Lights. Super easy to get into and I've been plowing through two episodes a night. I highly recommend it.

Books - I will always recommend Wild by Cheryl Strayed, because its my favorite book ever. Heads In Beds was a quick and hilarious read. Currently I'm reading White Teeth by Zadie Smith, which has excellent reviews and is good so far.

Swazzle · December 2013

If you decide to read anything by Jodi Picoult, be sure that you have plenty of tissues and don't mind crying in public.

Hummingbird125 · December 2013

minskat30 said:
Thank you @Swazzle - I completely forgot about Homeland. I always see articles about it and think it would be something I could really get into. I think I picked up Gone Girl and read the back of it...it didn't really do anything for me. The Divergent series will definitely be on my list and I'll check out Sharp Objects/Dark Places.

ETA - The violent series or series with tons of sex are probably out. With my luck I'll be sitting next to a kid and get an ear-full from an outraged mom.

So, no Masters of Sex then?

suzie211 · December 2013

I second the Gillian Flynn recommendation. I wasn't crazy about gone girl, but I did like her other two. If you haven't read Devil in the White City, I would. It's a must for anyone living in Chicago. I love characters that I can follow through series and are mysteries. My library is full of Patricia Cornwell, Janet Evanovich, Kathy Reich, and David Baldacci.

The last two writers inspired the show Bones and the show King and Maxwell. So there are series with the same characters. Scandal and Revenge are both good mysteries that have a couple seasons worth watching.

blabla89 · December 2013

Last year my book group read The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. It was a little depressing, but very good, and set in India. The Help and Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood are both good for a quick and entertaining read.

Pepperally · December 2013

I read Sharp Objects a year or so ago and just finished Dark Places. I like Dark Places but thought the ending was a little...quirky/outlandish? Not sure how to describe it, but it was a good read nonetheless.

minskat30 · December 2013

Thank you

@Audrewuh (love all the suggestions...not sure I'd be in to books like My Sister's Keeper on a long plane ride (crying = headaches for me + flying = major headaches) but I'm going to check out the chick lit you mentioned)

@Hummingbird125 (Never heard of those books either so I will check them out and, yes, no Masters of Sex...I tried to watch True Blood the last trip around and the girl next to me (an adult) kept looking over so I felt a little akward)

@Suzie211 (I haven't read Devil in the White City yet...so that might be fun. The author recommendations are helpful. I've watched a few episodes of Bones and thought it was interesting)

@Lalalaurita - I'm going to check out those recommendations (I watched The Help and didn't get into it...was the book better?)

minskat30 · December 2013

Pepperally said:

I read Sharp Objects a year or so ago and just finished Dark Places. I like Dark Places but thought the ending was a little...quirky/outlandish? Not sure how to describe it, but it was a good read nonetheless.

Quirky is ok with me. So long as it isn't really depressing.

labro · December 2013

Some of Lisa See's books keep me reading but a couple have made me cry sooo again with the you have to be ok with crying in a public place.

If you haven't read the first two Bridget Jones books by Helen Fielding I'd recommend them. They're pretty funny...I'm not liking her latest one yet though.

I also recommend The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It's nonfiction but I thought the book was really fascinating.

I've seriously read so many books that I can't remember them all. If I think of any later I'll mention them.

For TV shows I also seriously recommend watching Downton Abbey. The show is amazing!!

bethsmiles · December 2013

If you like mysteries I really enjoy the books the show Bones is based off by Kathy Reichs.

If you want an absolutely hilarious book I highly recommend Let's Pretend this Never Happened by Jenny Lawson

Matched is an excellent series if you enjoyed Hunger Games and a fun/easy read.

Also Under the Never Sky is a really good YA dystopian book. I think there is a sequel to it out now too.

minskat30 · December 2013

Thank you @Bethsmiles!

HisGirlFriday13 · December 2013

Ken Follet's "Pillars of the Earth" and "World Without End" are both good. They're long, but they go SUPER-fast (at least they did for me), and they will keep you on the edge of your seat.

blabla89 · December 2013

minskat30 said:

Thank you

@Audrewuh (love all the suggestions...not sure I'd be in to books like My Sister's Keeper on a long plane ride (crying = headaches for me + flying = major headaches) but I'm going to check out the chick lit you mentioned)

@Hummingbird125 (Never heard of those books either so I will check them out and, yes, no Masters of Sex...I tried to watch True Blood the last trip around and the girl next to me (an adult) kept looking over so I felt a little akward)

@Suzie211 (I haven't read Devil in the White City yet...so that might be fun. The author recommendations are helpful. I've watched a few episodes of Bones and thought it was interesting)

@Lalalaurita - I'm going to check out those recommendations (I watched The Help and didn't get into it...was the book better?)

I think the book is more in depth but if you didn't like the movie, then you probably wouldn't love the book. The Divine Secrets book is better than the movie, though.

labro · December 2013

@HisGirlFriday13 I am always so afraid to recommend those books because they are such monsters but I love them too! Have you read the books in his Century Trilogy yet? I enjoyed those ones too.

HisGirlFriday13 · December 2013

@lmhollister -- I have not! Are they good? I should add them to my list.

And yeah...I kind of thought about not recommending them, but I love, love, LOVE them so much that I couldn't help it.

labro · December 2013

@HisGirlFriday13 I love them! I think in a different way than I loved World Without End and Pillars of the Earth but I still love them. The books follow several families during pre-WWI through WWII so far. I like that there isn't the 100 plus year gap like between WWE and PotE but he puts in enough of the gap between the two books in the trilogy so you're getting to know different characters and seeing older characters from the first book in a different stage of life. I just hate hate hate waiting around for the final book to come out. I think the second (Fall of Giants) came out either this year or last year sometime.

HisGirlFriday13 · December 2013

@lmhollister. OK, I'm adding them to my "must-read" list right now! I also hate waiting around for the rest of the books to come out, because patience isn't my virtue.

DH would probably like them, too, because he loves WW-era European history.

Peaseblossom55 · December 2013

I just finished reading The Ender's Game it was pretty interesting I liked it. Over the summer I read Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson aka The Blogess one of the funniest books I've ever read. I really enjoyed it..

JCbride2015 · December 2013

I second HisGirl on anything Ken Follett. I've read Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, and the two books that are out so far from the Century Trilogy, plus a few older ones. All amazing, and they will occupy you on a very long plane ride.

I'm in the middle of Allegiant right now, and it's totally YA lit, but it's just so good. If you like The Hunger Games, you'll like this trilogy. I get a little tired of the teenage making out, but the story's very suspenseful.

Here's my recc: Visitation Street, by Ivy Pochoda. One of the best books I've read in quite a while: it's a mystery, but it's nuanced and sort of deep. And if you like historical fiction, Philippa Gregory writes some great stuff. I just finished The White Queen and enjoyed it.

minskat30 · December 2013

Thank you very much ladies!

Books and Other Distractions

Re: Books and Other Distractions

Choose Another Board

Search Boards