I'm still behind on reviews so here are a few quick thoughts on some of my recent read/listens. For a summary of these books please click on the title.
The Bonesetter's Daughter, by Amy Tan - audiobook (11.9 hours) - narrated by Amy Tan and Chen Joan Tan - I
enjoyed THE JOY LUCK CLUB year ago and haven't read anything by Tan since then. This was available for download from my library so I decided to give it a listen. And it was ok. Not great, but ok. Parts of the book were very moving and other parts were very intriguing, but the story as a whole didn't capture me. I think in part this was because I didn't identify with the relationship between the mother and daughter main characters. Still, it was generally enjoyable to listen to, even if it won't stick with me long-term.
Heart of Lies
, by M.L. Malcolm - 352 pages - I've had this book
since BEA in 2010 - sad, right?! I met the author and really enjoyed chatting with her, so I was definitely looking forward to reading this. Unfortunately I didn't end up loving the book. The story is strongly based on the love between the two main characters, but I wasn't convinced of that love so the story didn't really work for me. I picked up the follow-up book,
Heart of Deception,
at BEA 2011 and I still plan to read it, but I'm not in any hurry to do so.
The Gunman's Rhapsody
, by Robert Parker - a
udiobook (5.3 hours) - narrated by Ed Begley, Jr - This is a retelling of the Wyatt Earp story. Although it was well-written and I enjoyed listening to it, I can't say that it gave me any new insight into the story or the people involved.
The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid, by Pat F. Garrett - audiobook (5.5 hours) - narrated by Daniel Luna - Alright, I have to admit that I didn't finish this one. My husband and I started listening to it on a long drive and we made it about halfway through. Once we got home, we never got around to listening to the rest of it. It wasn't bad but it didn't really pull me in either, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on much by not finishing it.
The Gunman's Rhapsody
The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid, by Pat F. Garrett - audiobook (5.5 hours) - narrated by Daniel Luna - Alright, I have to admit that I didn't finish this one. My husband and I started listening to it on a long drive and we made it about halfway through. Once we got home, we never got around to listening to the rest of it. It wasn't bad but it didn't really pull me in either, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on much by not finishing it.
7 comments:
It's too bad that none of these were spectacular reads for you. I have read several other reviews of The Bonesetter's Daughter which say much the same thing about it just being okay.
I have owned The Bonesetter's Daughter for who knows how long... One day I am going to try Amy Tan!
Heart of Lies sounds good, so I am sorry to see you didn't enjoy it more.
Oh my, I still have to write my review of Heart of Lies from last year. Like you, I didn't love it. Although, I did enjoy it.
Sucks that The Bonesetter's Daughter wasn't fantastic. I enjoyed tJLC too, so it's too bad this isn't as good.
Alyce - I have actually read/listened to a few good books lately - it will just take me longer to get my thoughts together on those.
Kailana - I was sad that I didn't love Heart of Lies because I certainly do love the author - she's fabulous!
April - I liked parts of Heart of Lies but it wasn't believable enough for me.
I read The Bonesetter's Daughter years ago and think I liked it more than you did. Having said that, it didn't live up to The Joy Luck Club.
Glad to hear you liked The Joy Luck Club. My sister recently suggested it, and I've been thinking about checking it out from the library.
I felt the same way about Bonesetter's Daughter.
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