Kaaterskill Falls by Allegra Goodman

Excellent characterization; no plot.

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress : A Novel by Dai Sijie, Ina Rilke (Translator)

meh

Second Mrs. Gioconda by E.L. Konigsburg

I read this to the boys. I wasn't impressed.

The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

meh

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

I think I liked this.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

I was not real impressed with this.

Last Man Out : The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster by Melissa Fay Greene

Moderately interesting.

The NIV Application Commentary: Proverbs by Paul E. Koptak

I didn't love this book, but it isn't easy to comment on Proverbs so my expectations may have been too high.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

I'd never read any Agatha Christie before this. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and didn't anticipate the twist(s) at the end.

The Private Patient by P. D. James

I enjoyed reading this but found the conclusion vaguely unsatisfying.

Nixonland : The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America by Rick Perlstein

I'm just young enough to have spent my entire life hearing about The Checkers Speech, Spiro Agnew, and Hanoi Jane without knowing the details. I loved this book for filling in those gaps. I found the stories in it completely amazing. The author had, I think it is fair to say, an anti-Nixon bias, but I'd wager that that is a good bias to have. Highly recommended.

In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a Language, and a Culture by Alister Mcgrath

This was pretty good.

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

A pre-read for Simon. I thought this was an excellent book. (Although I'll probably have a conversation with him about the racist overtones in the depiction of the cannibals.)

Door in the Wall by Marguerite De Angeli

A pre-read for Simon; good but not extraordinary.

An Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance

This was a pretty good novel. And it would be good for book groups--lots of interesting topics to discuss.

World Without End by Ken Follett

I found myself increasingly annoyed with each page. It's like he forgot that these people lived in the Middle Ages--their sensibilities were almost entirely modern. There was actually a dialogue about a character's self-esteem. Ugh.

Little Green Men by Christopher Buckley

meh

No Way to Treat a First Lady : A Novel by Christopher Buckley

All of his books are goofy fun.

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

Completely engrossing.
Too vulgar in some places.
Somewhat soap-opera-ish.

Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

I read this to the boys; it was worth reading but not extraordinary.