Category Archives: Abandoned

Thoughts on Abandoning Umbrella

Posted on February 2, 2013 by

For the past week or so, I’ve been dipping in and out of Umbrella by Will Self. It’s not a bad book, and although it’s not an easy read, I’ve not found it as difficult as I thought I might. … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Fiction | Tagged | 27 Comments

Bloodmoney (abandoned)

Posted on March 28, 2012 by

I don’t post about every book I try and then give up on. If I only read a few pages — say, fifty or so — I don’t think it’s enough to write anything about. But I forced myself through … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned | 9 Comments

Sunday Salon: A DNF Round-Up

Posted on December 11, 2011 by

It feels like ages since I’ve written a review—and it has indeed been over a week. The reason is that I’ve been working through my pile of review copies and finding the books unsatisfactory. My policy about unfinished books is … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Sunday Salon | Tagged | 31 Comments

The Book Thief (abandoned)

Posted on August 25, 2011 by

My usual rule, when reading a book that’s just not doing it for me, is to give a book 50 pages or 10% of its length, whichever is longer. I allowed Markus Zusak and his narrator, Death, twice that long … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Children's / YA Lit, Fiction | 57 Comments

Drop City (abandoned)

Posted on February 2, 2011 by

In the early 1970s, T.C. Boyle’s Drop City is a hippie commune: LTWAIDNO (Land To Which Access Is Denied No One.) Everyone is welcome, the heads and the straights, the cats and the chicks, those who want to contribute to … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Fiction | 20 Comments

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume 2, The Kingdom on the Waves (audio, abandoned)

Posted on October 6, 2010 by

Last month, I listened to and enjoyed the audio version of the first of M.T. Anderson’s two Octavian Nothing books. As much as I liked the first book, The Pox Party, I did note that I think it would have … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Audiobooks, Children's / YA Lit, Fiction, Historical Fiction | 6 Comments

The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise (abandoned)

Posted on September 6, 2010 by

Before you read this post, there is something you should know about me. I have an incredibly low tolerance for quirkiness, sweetness, cuteness, and sentimentality. I can tolerate all of these things in small doses, but usually I need a … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Contemporary, Fiction | Tagged | 34 Comments

Star Island (abandoned)

Posted on August 10, 2010 by

Apparently I am humor-deficient because I just didn’t find anything funny about the first 120 pages of Carl Hiaasen’s new novel, Star Island. The premise is promising. A hot young singer with the stage name Cherry Pye is trying to … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Contemporary, Fiction | Tagged | 24 Comments

2017

Posted on May 17, 2010 by

Apathy. Complete and utter apathy. That’s the only thing I can bring myself to feel about 2017 by Olga Slavnikova, winner of Russia’s equivalent of the Booker Prize in 2006 and translated into English this year by Marian Schwartz. I’ve … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Fiction | Tagged | 14 Comments

The City & The City (abandoned)

Posted on December 12, 2009 by

I’ve fallen a bit behind on blogging — and on reading, too, actually — in the past week or so. That’s partly because this is the busiest time of year for me, between students’ final projects, papers, presentations, and exams, … Continue reading →

Posted in Abandoned, Fiction, Speculative Fiction | 21 Comments