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Book a Week 2016 - BW17: darwin's bards


Robin M
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Happy Sunday dear hearts!  Chag Sameach to all who are celebrating Passover. This is the beginning of week 17 in our quest to read 52 books. Welcome back to all our readers, to those just joining in and all who are following our progress. Mr. Linky is all set up on the 52 Books blog to link to your reviews. The link is also below in my signature.

 

52 books blog - Darwin's Bard:  

 

Darwin%2527s%2BBards.jpg

 

 

Seeing as April is National Poetry Month, figured I'd highlight one of the Poets mentioned in Darwin's Bards written by John Holmes: 

 

"Darwin's Bards is the first comprehensive study of how poets have responded to the ideas of Charles Darwin in over fifty years. John Holmes argues that poetry can have a profound impact on how we think and feel about the Darwinian condition. Is a Darwinian universe necessarily a godless one? If not, what might Darwinism tell us about the nature of God? Is Darwinism compatible with immortality, and if not, how can we face our own deaths or the loss of those we love? What is our own place in the Darwinian universe, and our ecological role here on earth? How does our kinship with other animals affect how we see them? How does the fact that we are animals ourselves alter how we think about our own desires, love and sexual morality? All told, is life in a Darwinian universe grounds for celebration or despair?

 

Holmes explores the ways in which some of the most perceptive and powerful British and American poets of the last hundred-and-fifty years have grappled with these questions, from Alfred Tennyson, Robert Browning and Thomas Hardy, through Robert Frost and Edna St Vincent Millay, to Ted Hughes, Thom Gunn, Amy Clampitt and Edwin Morgan. Reading their poetry, we too can experience what it can mean to live in a Darwinian world. Written in an accessible and engaging style, and aimed at scientists, theologians, philosophers and ecologists as well as poets, critics and students of literature, Darwin's Bards is a timely intervention into the heated debates over Darwin's legacy for religion, ecology and the arts."

 

 

 

Still by A.R. Ammons

 

I said I will find what is lowly

and put the roots of my identity

down there:

each day I’ll wake up

and find the lowly nearby,

a handy focus and reminder,

a ready measure of my significance,

the voice by which I would be heard,

the wills, the kinds of selfishness

I could

freely adopt as my own:

 

but though I have looked everywhere,

I can find nothing

to give myself to:

everything is

magnificent with existence, is in

surfeit of glory:

nothing is diminished,

nothing has been diminished for me:

 

I said what is more lowly than the grass:

ah, underneath,

a ground-crust of dry-burnt moss:

I looked at it closely

and said this can be my habitat: but

nestling in I

found

below the brown exterior

green mechanisms beyond the intellect

awaiting resurrection in rain: so I got up

 

and ran saying there is nothing lowly in the universe:

I found a beggar:

he had stumps for legs: nobody was paying

him any attention: everybody went on by:

I nestled in and found his life:

there, love shook his body like a devastation:

I said

though I have looked everywhere

I can find nothing lowly

in the universe:

 

I whirled though transfigurations up and down,

transfigurations of size and shape and place:

 

at one sudden point came still,

stood in wonder:

moss, beggar, weed, tick, pine, self, magnificent

with being!

 

 

Find out more about A.R. Ammons  in The Paris Review interview as well as with Philip Fried of the Manhattan Review.  Meanwhile continue your voyage following in the HMS Beagles wake.

 

*****************************************************************

 

History of the Renaissance World - Chapters 25 and 26 

 

*****************************************************************

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

Link to week 16

 

Edited by Robin M
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I just finished T.M. Causey (aka Toni McGee Causey of the hilarious Bobby Faye Series)  newest book,  The Saints of the Lost and Found.  The story is a dark thriller which is chilling and finger nail nibbling good.  Hence the slight name change for Causey.  I read it through the first time way too fast and it was so good, I turned around and read it again, much  more slowly.  Somewhat creepy, but scary good.  (Caution- contains child abuse, abduction and murder)

 

Avery Broussard has the curse of seeing lost things (and make no mistake about it, it is a curse). Missing belongings and beloved pets, lost love and loved ones—she sees it all. Long ago, that curse destroyed her own chance at true love, causing her to flee her Louisiana home, vowing never to return. She’s kept that promise too, until a phone call from her estranged grifter father forces her hand. Her big brother is dying, and she may be his last remaining hope. 
Avery wants nothing more than to rescue her brother, but doing so pulls her into a labyrinth of lies and deceit rooted in her own lost love and her family’s twisted history. It doesn’t help that a little girl has gone missing, and the abduction is tied to a killer Avery failed to help the FBI catch. With no time to spare, Avery realizes her curse might well be the only thing she can trust. Is it too much to hope that she might save her brother and find the missing girl before she becomes the killer’s next victim? 

 

 

Edited by Robin M
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With my comings and goings of the past week, I did not do a lot of reading although I am making steady progress through The Voyage of the Beagle. Darwin continues to delight. One of my favorite lines: "It was snowing butterflies."

In chapter 14, Darwin offers a good home school experiment for those of you studying earthquakes in physical science:

This may be illustrated by placing books edgeways on a carpet, and then, after the manner suggested by Michell, imitating the undulations of an earthquake; it will be found that they fall with more or less readiness according as their direction more of less nearly coincides with the line of the waves.


Darwin is often in awe of the landscape:

When near the summit, the wind, as generally happens, was impetuous and extremely cold. On each side of the ridge we had to pass over broad bands of perpetual snow, which were now soon to be covered by a fresh layer. When we reached the crest and looked backwards, a glorious view was presented. The atmosphere resplendently clear; the sky an intense blue; the profound valleys the wild, broken forms; the heaps of ruins piled up during the lapse of ages; the bright-colored rocks contrasted with the quiet mountains of snow--all these together produced a scene no one could have imagined. Neither plant nor bird, excepting a few condors wheeling around the higher pinnacles, distracted my attention from the inanimate mass I felt glad that I was alone: it was like watching a thunderstorm, or hearing in full orchestra a chorus of The Messiah.

And then he arrives in the Galapagos! What a world of wonder.

 

I have three chapters (about 100 pages) left.  I should finish the Beagle this week and sail onward into other books.

 

I am loving Absolute Solitude, the new Archipelago translation of Cuban poet Dulce Maria Loynaz.  Breathtakingly beautiful.

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Robin, thank you for another wonderful thread.  :grouphug:

 

I read Night - 4 Stars - I read this incredibly powerful memoir several years ago and decided to re-read it since I didn’t even know that this is part of a trilogy, the rest of which I plan on soon reading. Elie Wiesel was fifteen when he was taken with his family to concentration camps. The story is obviously heart-wrenching to say the least. I didn’t give it 5 stars, since there are other holocaust-type books that I have found to be more compelling, “Mausâ€, for example. Nonetheless, I think that all of these books should be essential reading. A tragedy like this should never be repeated.

 

My Name is Mahtob - 5 Stars - This is a wonderful follow-up to Betty Mahmoody’s books, “Not Without My Daughter†and “For the Love of a Child.†In fact, of all three books, this one is my favorite. I loved reading the story from Mahtob’s perspective and could hardly put it down. I found it very engaging from the beginning and I went through it quickly. Mahtob strikes me as a beautiful, compassionate soul who, despite all that she has gone through, seems to feel no bitterness whatsoever. Her resilience and faith are incredible.

 

Some of my favorite quotes:

“As hard as I fought to hold on to my anger, to continue to hate my dad, the tugging of the good memories eventually found an inroad to my heart. No one is all good or all bad. The reality that my father would forever be a part of me was inescapable. A big part of making peace with myself was rediscovering the good in him and claiming that as my inheritance. The act of forgiving wasn’t like flipping a switch—forgiven . . . unforgiven . . . forgiven . . . unforgiven . . . forgiven.â€

 

“It was baffling to me that some people viewed our story as an anti-Iranian or anti-Muslim statement. That simply was not the case. The story is nothing more than an account of a piece of my family’s journey. If anyone reflects poorly on Iran and Islam, it is my dad for doing what he did, not Mom or me for talking about it. Even so, it’s unfair to judge Iranians or Muslims by my dad’s behavior.â€

 

Finally, when she talks about her struggles with Lupus:

“The body is reached through the spirit. First you have to heal the soul. Then you can work on the body.â€

 

9780374500016.jpg          9780751563375.jpg

 

MY RATING SYSTEM

5 Stars

Fantastic, couldn't put it down

4 Stars

Really Good

3 Stars

Enjoyable

2 Stars

Just Okay – nothing to write home about

1 Star

Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

 

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This week I read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck with the kids. Bonus bunny trail conversations on the n-word, brothels, euthanasia, and mercy killings. That was a lot of work for such a short story!

 

On my own I devoured Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. He tackles the topic of aging and dying and medicine and nursing homes and their alternatives so well--with the authority of a medical professional and the humanity of one who struggles with his own questions and doubts. I had the privilege of being with my dad during his last few weeks of life (he died in January) so his dying and death was, of course, with me on nearly every page of this book. I highly recommend it (though it's another one of those that everyone probably read last year; my reading lists are always behind the times :).

 

 

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Robin, thanks for the Darwin's Bards suggestion! That looks like something I'd really enjoy. 

 

Jane, we loved "snowing butterflies" too! We continue to enjoy Beagle though we're finding all the references to exterminating the Indians very disturbing.  A harsh and unpleasant reality of that time and place, but much food for thought. Darwin is quite ambivalent about the whole thing, it's hard to glean his actual opinion from what he writes. And it's hard not to read a modern sensibility into his brief commentary on the situation. 

 

I finished two books this week, The Darker Face of the Earth, a reboot of Oedipus Rex set in the antebellum South, and Lit Up by David Denby.  Lit Up was a very enjoyable read, very inspiring as I launch into teaching high school, reading and discussing more difficult books with my under-construction adult.  I liked Denby's Great Books, and I liked Lit Up. I like the questions that he wrestles with and the fact that he puts them out there. They aren't all answerable but they are worth thinking about.  

 

Books finished in April:

75. Lit Up - David Denby

74. The Darker Face of the Earth - Rita Dove

73. The Ghost Brigades - John Scalzi

72. The Golden Fleece and the Heroes Who LIved Before Achilles - Padraic Colum

71. A Masque of Reason - Robert Frost

70. Necropolis - Santiago Gamboa

69. Jane Steele - Lyndsay Faye

68. Tomorrow's Table: Organic Farming, Genetics and the Future of Food - Pamela Ronald

67. The Children's Homer - Padraic Colum

66. Oedipus the King - Sophocles

65. Lion's Honey: The Myth of Samson - David Grossman

64. Old Man's War - John Scalzi

 

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Jane, we loved "snowing butterflies" too! We continue to enjoy Beagle though we're finding all the references to exterminating the Indians very disturbing.  A harsh and unpleasant reality of that time and place, but much food for thought. Darwin is quite ambivalent about the whole thing, it's hard to glean his actual opinion from what he writes. And it's hard not to read a modern sensibility into his brief commentary on the situation. 

 

 

Rose, it is not just references to Indians. His English snobbery is annoying--i.e. if only the English had colonized first in South America (as opposed to the Spanish) or how proud to be an Englishman when seeing English type structures in Australia (as compared to those constructed elsewhere by "savages").  Darwin is a man of his time and culture, of course.  I try not to get terribly bogged down in his comments, recognizing that we here in the 21st century have not exactly succeeded in overcoming our own cultural prejudices--we just like to pretend that we have!

 

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I finished 'Blood, Sweet and Tears', a Dutch Biography about Winston Churchill by Harry van Wijnen:

9200000007349579.jpg

 

Starting with becoming Prime Minister until the day of Pearl Harbour.

It mades me wonder if his Speeches are available online in audio format.

And a good movie / documentary about him / his life..

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Good reading week here. I finished 3--And Only to Deceive which I was about halfway through when I posted last Sunday (easy-read period mystery), Vision in Silver (3rd book of The Others series), and Zinky Boys-Soviet Voices from the Afghanistan War by Svetlana Alexievich, recommended by my dad.

 

I read Vision in Silver in two days--couldn't put it down. My only minor complaint was the seemingly abrupt change in Meg that she's all of a sudden a lot more fragile than she seemed in the first two books. Seemed like a convenient change to help the author's direction of other storylines (the other cassandra sangues). But I'm enjoying the series very much and I should be getting the newest one soon--I'm number two on the hold list.

 

Last weekend my dad recommended Zinky Boys which is his pick for his book club this month. I usually read what he recommends but he really sold me when he mentioned that it was short and by the current Nobel prize winner (bingo square)! The title is a reference to the zinc coffins that the mostly young (19-20 yo) casualties were sent home in. The Afghan war sounds much like our Vietnam War; Alexievich interviewed veterans, widows, mothers, and others who were involved. Not sure if it's her writing or their voices or a combination of both, but this book is very moving.

 

Up next: The Book of Unknown Americans is waiting for me at the library--our June book club pick. I also have Frances Brody's third book in the Kate Shackleton series--Murder in the Afternoon. I should keep working on Kristin Lavransdatter III before I forget everyone again.

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I am still working on Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (for book club) & West with the Night by Beryl Markham.

 

I find little reading time these days as I'm in the middle of starting not one, but two, part-time jobs -- both having to do with books. One is working in the local library as a desk/circulation clerk. The other is working in my local indie bookstore. Though I'm learning the ropes at the store as a clerk, my position there will lean more toward marketing & events over the coming months. One of the very cool perks of working at the bookstore is being able to request Advance Reading Copies (ARCs) of books from various publishers (including Melville House, a fave of mine)! The downside of ramping up/learning & then actually doing two jobs is that I have little to no time to read anymore! It's both exciting & overwhelming right now in an already busy life (dd is finishing her senior year of high school, dh is working out of state, etc...). I really didn't intend to end up with two jobs. I applied for both, thinking I might get one. For a short while, it looked like I would get neither. And, then, I ended up getting both (& actually the bookstore job is a new one they've created, so it's a bit of an unknown). So... wish me luck, friends!

 

I will put in a plug/reminder that Independent Bookstore Day is next Saturday, April 30! Be sure to go out & support your local indie.

 

static1.squarespace_1.jpg?itok=7u-NQPgg

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I don't think I have posted these books yet.

 

Evans Above by Rhys Bowen https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17565228-evans-above. I have checked this book out multiple times over the years and never even opened the pages. I think it probably should qualify as a library dusty. I finally started reading it and learned I have been missing out. These are well done village cozies set by Snowdon in Wales. We had a lot of fun talking about Snowdon when I sort of (sunburn and heat forced our family to quit) a couple of years ago. Negin and Jane might enjoy your he of these just for the setting, although really not your type of book.

 

 

This is a short MC Beaton novella for her Hamish MacBeth series that I ran into last night. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28361707-knock-knock-you-re-dead. It was a less than 15 more nuts read but I enjoyed it. Comes right before Death of a Nurse in the series.

 

 

This was a great historical which I am sure Kareni has read, The Heir. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8696975-the-heir. In the back it implied it was Burrowes first book. Not sure because a couple of characters are from other series. I've been busy tracking down the prequels. Good fluffy escape. Adult content.

 

I spent quite awhile this afternoon trying to get my reading life in order. Figured out my bingo card. Because of travel I have just been putting things on a bingo shelf in goodreads. I have one row completed and several holes. :lol: I did some requesting and dusted off (literally) my planned Dusty. For those looking for birth year books Christie has one most years until the 70's. I was amazed.....http://www3.nd.edu/~rwoodbur/christie/chrono.htm

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I am still working on Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (for book club) & West with the Night by Beryl Markham.

 

I find little reading time these days as I'm in the middle of starting not one, but two, part-time jobs -- both having to do with books. One is working in the local library as a desk/circulation clerk. The other is working in my local indie bookstore. Though I'm learning the ropes at the store as a clerk, my position there will lean more toward marketing & events over the coming months. One of the very cool perks of working at the bookstore is being able to request Advance Reading Copies (ARCs) of books from various publishers (including Melville House, a fave of mine)! The downside of ramping up/learning & then actually doing two jobs is that I have little to no time to read anymore! It's both exciting & overwhelming right now in an already busy life (dd is finishing her senior year of high school, dh is working out of state, etc...). I really didn't intend to end up with two jobs. I applied for both, thinking I might get one. For a short while, it looked like I would get neither. And, then, I ended up getting both (& actually the bookstore job is a new one they've created, so it's a bit of an unknown). So... wish me luck, friends!

 

I will put in a plug/reminder that Independent Bookstore Day is next Saturday, April 30! Be sure to go out & support your local indie.

 

static1.squarespace_1.jpg?itok=7u-NQPgg

Congratulations on the jobs!!!! I think you will be great at special events at the bookstore. They are super lucky to have you! I know I like working in the library as a volunteer. It can be fascinating to see peoples taste in books. In BaW we kind of know each other by our books. At the library I already know most patrons from other things. It's fascinating to see what books they pick. And I get to chat about books!

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On my own I devoured Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. He tackles the topic of aging and dying and medicine and nursing homes and their alternatives so well--with the authority of a medical professional and the humanity of one who struggles with his own questions and doubts. I had the privilege of being with my dad during his last few weeks of life (he died in January) so his dying and death was, of course, with me on nearly every page of this book. I highly recommend it (though it's another one of those that everyone probably read last year; my reading lists are always behind the times :).

I loved this and plan on reading it again. 

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I am still working on Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (for book club) & West with the Night by Beryl Markham.

 

I find little reading time these days as I'm in the middle of starting not one, but two, part-time jobs -- both having to do with books. One is working in the local library as a desk/circulation clerk. The other is working in my local indie bookstore. Though I'm learning the ropes at the store as a clerk, my position there will lean more toward marketing & events over the coming months. One of the very cool perks of working at the bookstore is being able to request Advance Reading Copies (ARCs) of books from various publishers (including Melville House, a fave of mine)! The downside of ramping up/learning & then actually doing two jobs is that I have little to no time to read anymore! It's both exciting & overwhelming right now in an already busy life (dd is finishing her senior year of high school, dh is working out of state, etc...). I really didn't intend to end up with two jobs. I applied for both, thinking I might get one. For a short while, it looked like I would get neither. And, then, I ended up getting both (& actually the bookstore job is a new one they've created, so it's a bit of an unknown). So... wish me luck, friends!

 

I will put in a plug/reminder that Independent Bookstore Day is next Saturday, April 30! Be sure to go out & support your local indie.

 

static1.squarespace_1.jpg?itok=7u-NQPgg

Congratulations!  Sounds like a lot of fun and get to make money while doing so!

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs

 

I've only read three from the list

 

Stephen King on writing (awesome)

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)

Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)

 

Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.

 

I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.

 

Which ones have you read?

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
 
I've only read three from the list
 
Stephen King on writing (awesome)
Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)
Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)
 
Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.
 
I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.
 
Which ones have you read?

 

 

From the list, I am currently reading:

West With the Night by Beryl Markham (1942)

 

From the list, have read:

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (2000)

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls (2005)

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (2006)

Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir by Jenny Lawson (2012)

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates (2015)

 

There are some others on there that have been on my to-read list for awhile.....

 

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I find little reading time these days as I'm in the middle of starting not one, but two, part-time jobs -- both having to do with books. One is working in the local library as a desk/circulation clerk. The other is working in my local indie bookstore.

 

Congratulations on acquiring both jobs; I think that your new bosses can both count themselves as fortunate.

 

This was a great historical which I am sure Kareni has read, The Heir. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8696975-the-heir. In the back it implied it was Burrowes first book. Not sure because a couple of characters are from other series. I've been busy tracking down the prequels. Good fluffy escape. Adult content.

 

I have indeed read The Heir as well as the rest of the Windham series and a few others by Grace Burrowes.  She has also written several contemporary romances which I've enjoyed.

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
...
 
Which ones have you read?

 

 

and I've read five.

 

Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen

 

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (2000)

 

Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi (2003)

 

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (2006)

 

Heads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles and So-Called Hospitality by Jacob Tomsky (2012)

 

There are certainly some intriguing titles listed.

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Some recently finished books here:

 

 

a re-read of Joanna Bourne's historical romance The Spymaster's Lady (The Spymaster Series Book 1); this author and this book in particular are big favorites of mine.

 

"She's never met a man she couldn't deceive...until now.

She's braved battlefields. She's stolen dispatches from under the noses of heads of state. She's played the worldly courtesan, the naive virgin, the refined British lady, even a Gypsy boy. But Annique Villiers, the elusive spy known as the Fox Cub, has finally met the one man she can't outwit."

 

**

 

the contemporary romance Sacred Waters (McCullough Mountain Book 1) by Lydia Michaels.  (Some might have issues with this romance as the hero is on the verge of becoming a Catholic priest.  Some adult content.)

 

"Colin McCullough has always known the path his life would take and at summer’s end he will finally make his Holy Orders. But what should have been a relaxing summer in the mountains with his large Irish family turns into an interlude plagued with temptation the moment his brother brings home the enchanting Samantha Dougherty.

When Samantha agrees to spend her summer break with Braydon McCullough she soon realizes his intentions are not what they seemed. While coping with Braydon’s assumptions that they are in a relationship, Samantha’s vacation only becomes more complicated when she meets his older brother, Colin, the soon to be priest! What was intended to be a peaceful holiday turns into an unforgettable experience of loyalty, lust, sacrifice, courage, and love."

 

**

 

and Ice Planet Barbarians: A SciFi Alien Romance by Ruby Dixon.  This one is currently free to Kindle readers, but be warned that it has adult content.

 

"You'd think being abducted by aliens would be the worst thing that could happen to me. And you'd be wrong. Because now, the aliens are having ship trouble, and they've left their cargo of human women - including me - on an ice planet.

And the only native inhabitant I've met? He's big, horned, blue, and really, really has a thing for me..."

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
 
I've only read three from the list
 
Stephen King on writing (awesome)
Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)
Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)
 
Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.
 
I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.
 
Which ones have you read?

 

 

I'm not a big fan of memoirs so I was surprised to see how many I actually read. There are others I feel as though I really should read, but have just never gotten around to it.

 

Girl, Interrupted - saw the movie first, then read the book

 

On Writing, A Memoir of the Craft - didn't care for it but didn't hate it

 

Me Talk Pretty One Day - I was hoping it would be funnier, like many of his other stories

 

The Glass Castle - dh is a cousin of her husband (the good husband) though the families were never close. My MIL and Walls' MIL are first cousins. They apparently were close as young girls, but each married and moved out of the area and more or less lost touch. It was quite exciting when she came to dh's family reunion in Tennessee not long after the book was published.

 

Dreams from My Father, A Story of Race and Inheritance - Read it for book club during Obama's first term. I didn't hate it but he's not much of a writer. And if he had a ghost writer, he didn't pick a good one.

 

Orange is the New Black - I probably would not have read it if it hadn't been for the Netflix show.

 

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness

 

I tried but couldn't get through both Eat, Pray, Love and Cheryl Strayed's Wild.

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs

 

I've only read three from the list

 

Stephen King on writing (awesome)

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)

Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)

 

Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.

 

I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.

 

Which ones have you read?

Probably not a huge surprise but I don't know if I have read any of these all the way through. I know I abandoned The Glass Castle. I know I read at least some of Angela's Ashes and Out of Africa. That's it.

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I've read 10 of the memoirs--kind of surprised myself.

 

Night

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Angela's Ashes

Reading Lolita in Tehran

The Glass Castle

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Aspergers

Wild

I am Malala

Between the World and Me

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The memoirs I have read from the list:

Out of Africa

Night

Animal, Vegetable, Mineral

 

DH has read the Haruki Murakami one on running, because he is a runner. He didn't know who Murakami was until I told him.

 

ETA: Does anyone else keep mistaking the thread's title for Darwin's Beards?

Edited by Onceuponatime
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The funny thing about memoirs and biographies was that I used to devour them as a teen. Absolutely gobble them up. I think they functioned as some kind of 'ideal self' giving me ideas of what and who I wished to become.

 

As an adult, I feel positively uncomfortable about them, unless they are highly fictionalized. I often avoid that section of the library. Weird.

 

Dh teaches the memoir, and I definitely have an abstract appreciation for the form. But gosh, I can't even think of the most recent memoir I read. Perhaps it would be a good challenge to seek one out.

 

Anyone have a recommendation for a memoir in the last 5 years or so, preferably with a huge splash of 'I made some of this stuff up' ?

Are Some of Bill Bryson 's books considered memoirs? That's the kind of memoir or personal account I like to read, one with humor or special interest. I avoid the tell-all and the depressing childhood ones. I looked over my lists of the last five years and found that I read a few engaging memoirs a year without even trying.

2011: Marley and Me, The Wilder Life, All Things Bright and Beautiful

2012: I'm a Stranger Here Myself, Summer at Tiffany, Tuesday's With Morrie, In A Sunburned Country

2013: My Family and Other Animals, A Zoo in My Luggage, Fatu Hiva

2014: A Year in Provence, A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, The Faith Club, Drop Dead Healthy,

2015: Encore Provence, A Moveable Feast, A Walk in the Woods

 

Those aren't very recent, but there must be some more recent ones along similar lines.

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
 
 

 

 

I've read five from the list, pretty much the same ones you guys have read.

 

But I've started, and abandoned, probably 3 times that many. I don't love memoirs or autobiographies, I guess.  I love nonfiction generally, but I think I don't enjoy the personal-ness, the specificity, that you get in memoir. I think I'd rather read about Everyperson, more than about a specific person.  But then, that can't be right, because I do enjoy biographies of people who are dead. I guess the self-referential-ness of memoirs kind of turns me off? I have a hard time thinking that a person could think that their own life is that interesting to other people. I guess this is the reason I don't do well with Facebook or other social media, either.  :001_rolleyes:

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Listened to Peter Pan in Scarlet which is narrated by Tim Curry. He does a fantastic job.. I want to see if he did more books. The writing is very Barriesque and rich. Tim Curry's voice carries that richness marvelously. I want to curl up in his voice and get lost in it. He's in the top 5 best narrators, imo. McCaughrean is wonderful as usual. 

 

 

Stacia, good luck with your jobs. 

 

 

Memoirs from the list I've read:

Me Talk Pretty One Day

Reading Lolita in Tehran

I Feel Bad About My Neck

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me

Let's Pretend This Never Happened

 

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I finished Songs of the Kings by Barry Unsworth - a modern retelling of the story of the sacrifice of Iphigenia at the launch of the Trojan war. I thought it was wonderful. A wonderful interaction of modern sensibility with an old, old story. It was witty and funny and surprising and irreverent. The kind of books that reminds you that the oldest stories are still releveant. A *highly* irreverent take on Odysseus. 

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Finishing up--less than 200 pages to go!--the third book in Trollope's Palliser novels, The Eustace Diamonds. It may be time for a nonfiction break other than the slowly progressing Newman. Middle Girl just acquired the memoirs of General Phil Sheridan, which I might borrow. And I have a long-enough-to-count-as-book Tennyson poem, "The Princess," waiting in the wings. And J. Henri Fabre. Or maybe more Henry James. Which shall it be?

 

It surprises me that touring artists pass your Very Cool City with Big State U by!

Oh, musicians of a certain sort come for $X$W; but yes, it is a sad fact that generally Culture, whether local or visiting, is a thing of other cities.

 

ETA: Checked the list of memoirs and Gen. Sheridan's somehow didn't make it. Rose, last year I read E. F. Benson's memoirs, As We Were, which aren't so much about him as about the Victorian era from the well-placed vantage point of his famous family. Anyway it might be a kind of memoirs better suited to you, if you like the Victorians that is.

Edited by Violet Crown
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Anyone have a recommendation for a memoir in the last 5 years or so, preferably with a huge splash of 'I made some of this stuff up' ?

 

I'm reminded of recent 'memoirs' that were not indeed memoirs.  A number are listed in this wikipedia entry on Fake memoirs.

 

I remember when this one hit the news: "James Frey, A Million Little Pieces, Doubleday Books (a division of Random House) (2003) is a bestselling memoir in which the author created and exaggerated significant details of his drug addiction and recovery. The author appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and in September 2005, the book became an Oprah's Book Club selection. However, when the book's authenticity was called into question, the author and publisher Nan Talese were invited back and publicly scolded by Winfrey in a live face-to-face confrontation."

 

and

 

I see that one of them is a book I've read: "Forrest Carter (pseud. Asa Earl Carter), The Education of Little Tree, Delacorte Press (1976), was presented as the author's memoir about growing up among the Cherokee, but is in fact fiction written by a former white supremacist.[27]"

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs

 

I've only read three from the list

 

Stephen King on writing (awesome)

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)

Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)

 

Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.

 

I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.

 

Which ones have you read?

I've read On Writing which I agree was awesome, Look Me in the Eye a few years ago, and I read Wild before we watched the movie. It was okay but I didn't see what all the hoopla was about. I thought everyone but me had read Angela's Ashes. Someday, someday.

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs

 

I've only read three from the list

 

Stephen King on writing (awesome)

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)

Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)

 

Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.

 

I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.

 

Which ones have you read?

I know why the caged birds sings and 'wild swan' are the ones I have read.

 

But your list made me curious to:

Mennonite in a little black dress.

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Book #41: Tracked by Heather Sunseri.  This one is related to the Mindspeak trilogy with the same "world" and some of the same characters, but it's in a totally different place and mainly about a new character.  It can be read as a standalone book and she left it open to write another book (and I hope she does), but it could end there.  It was a bit slow to get started (as was the first book of the Mindspeak trilogy), but once it got going, it never quit.  I enjoyed it very much.

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
 
 
 
Which ones have you read?

 

 

I've read five of them.

 

Night by Elie Wiesel

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby

Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir by Jenny Lawson

 

There are some others there that are on my to-read list, some I've never heard of, and some I've heard of, but I thought they were fiction. I suppose I probably just assume a book is fiction until I look into it - unless it's called A Biography of Abraham Lincoln or The Eat Clean Cookbook or something like that.

 

 

I finished The Book Thief. My opinion of it remains the same. Great characters, great pace, touching story - horrible style - overwrought, cliched, sometimes just confusing. Despite my opinion of the style, it's a book I would recommend. One of my children is reading it, and I'll try to get the others to, also. (Or maybe I'll just read it to them.)

 

I also read Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and saw a local performance of it. The book was great. (The performance was so-so, but that's to be expected around here.) I definitely want to read more about it, thoughts or analyses written by people who have given it more time and attention, and I hope to get an opportunity to see it performed again sometime.

 

I started Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose and Distant Light by Antonio Moresco. 

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I recently finished the paranormal romance White Tiger (A Shifter's Unbound Novel) by Jennifer Ashley; it was an enjoyable read though I do recommend starting this series in order.

 

"Wanted and on the run...
 
For twenty years, Kendrick, a white tiger Shifter, has been the Guardian of un-Collared Shifters who spend their lives living in secret—and in fear of being shunted into Shiftertowns. When Kendrick’s group is discovered and forced to flee, Kendrick is more desperate than ever to protect them
 
His only salvation was in a beautiful stranger.
 
In a diner in the middle of nowhere, lonely waitress Addison Price has seen a lot of unusual drifters come and go, but none has ever captivated—and intimidated—her like the imposing fugitive who wields a broadsword with incredible skill. But when he risks all to protect her, Addison’s fear turns to empathy—and empathy to desire as she learns more about her savior. Soon she’s more than willing to help the crushingly sensual white tiger and his cubs in a passionate bid for freedom. Whatever the cost."

 

 

Jennifer Ashley writes in a number of genres and under a few names. 

 

She writes a historical regency mystery series as Ashley Gardner.  Her first book in that series is free to Kindle readers ~

The Hanover Square Affair (Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Book 1)

 

She writes historical romances under the name Jennifer Ashley.  You can read a free novella here: 

Mackenzie Family Christmas: The Perfect Gift (Mackenzies Series)

 

And she also writes paranormal fantasy under the name Allyson James.  A free book (mid-series) is available to Kindler readers ~

Nightwalker (Stormwalker Book 4)

 

Regards,

Kareni

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I'm finally reading Catcher in the Rye. My 16yo self rejected it as "obscene" after the first chapter and I never picked it up again. After getting through about 1/3 I am a little embarrassed at my former self-righteousness. Granted, this is not a book I would choose to read, and I will probably never read it again. However, as a mother of four boys, it is breaking my heart. Then I look at my silly, happy, sweet, seventeen yo and think how lucky I am.

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Robin, the Ammons poem gave me literal shivers. 

 

Stacia, these bookish places are so lucky to have you. I know from experience that your taste is trustworthy. 

 

Sadie, My ideal self would be better at book curating for myself and my kids :lol: . I am mostly at the mercy of thrift stores and book sales when I am in the U.S. I try to pick good books, but also just lots of books, because when we return to our corner of the world it is impossible to find anything.This is the first year ever that I gave myself a nice budget for purchasing books on the Kindle. I am having to learn how to curate. 

 

I have spent a long time since reading your post trying to decide if ideal self is the same thing as authentic self. I have decided that my ideal self and my authentic self are different but have grown closer over the years. In any case, literature is a great way to explore these parts of me safely. With my kids, I definitely see them identifying with, and idealizing characters. Sometimes they act these characters out or they talk about them a lot. This seems to me a way of both celebrating and internalizing what makes these characters special. There is a lot to this question and I need even more time to digest. Thanks for bringing it up. 

 

Here are my books from the memoir list:

 

Out of Africa

West With the Night

I know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Angelas Ashes

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius 

Me Talk Pretty One Day

Dont Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight

Reading Lolita in Tehran

The Glass Castle

Eat, Pray, Love

Animal Vegetable, Miracle

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Wild

 

As I said above, I am at the mercy of thrift stores and book sales, and I end up with a lot of popular literature. 

 

This week I read Girls and Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape by Peggy Orenstein . It was recommended by Pam on another thread. It was excellent, and I vowed after reading it to talk with my kids about sex more openly, more joyously, more everythingly. If you are interested in listening to the author talk about the book with Terry Gross on NPR here is a link http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/03/29/472211301/girls-sex-and-the-importance-of-talking-to-young-women-about-pleasure. I have not listened to it yet but my dh did and gave it a thumbs up. 

 

I finished The Giver quartet. I loved the first one and thought the other three were okay but not great. My daughter and I both felt like the magical gifts that the characters had were unnecessary, that they actually took away from the story. They could have fought evil without having supernatural powers. Still there was much to discuss and overall I am glad I read them. 

 

We are reading aloud Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan. So far it is excellent. 

 

I started For Whom the Bell Tolls today. I have read it before but accidentally picked it up and already am hooked.

 

Edited by Minerva
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I'm reminded of recent 'memoirs' that were not indeed memoirs.  A number are listed in this wikipedia entry on Fake memoirs.

 

I remember when this one hit the news: "James Frey, A Million Little Pieces, Doubleday Books (a division of Random House) (2003) is a bestselling memoir in which the author created and exaggerated significant details of his drug addiction and recovery. The author appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and in September 2005, the book became an Oprah's Book Club selection. However, when the book's authenticity was called into question, the author and publisher Nan Talese were invited back and publicly scolded by Winfrey in a live face-to-face confrontation."

 

and

 

I see that one of them is a book I've read: "Forrest Carter (pseud. Asa Earl Carter), The Education of Little Tree, Delacorte Press (1976), was presented as the author's memoir about growing up among the Cherokee, but is in fact fiction written by a former white supremacist.[27]"

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

Didn't the author of Three Cups of Tea also get caught making up what he said were true events? 

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Bookriot listed what they consider must read memoirs
 
I've only read three from the list
 
Stephen King on writing (awesome)
Tolstoy and the Purple Chair (lead to huge increase in my wishlist)
Dreams of my Father (world's worst written book)
 
Have Out of Africa and Angela's Ashes in my stacks.
 
I'll be adding a few to my wishlist.
 
Which ones have you read?

 

 

I've read The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen (recently)

 

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I just finished a fantasy novel that I very much enjoyed.  The problem is that it is a new book, and now I'll need to wait for future volumes!  I've read and enjoyed several other books by this author, but I like this one the most.

 

Dreaming Death: A Palace of Dreams Novel by J. Kathleen Cheney.

 

"Shironne Anjir's status as a sensitive is both a gift and a curse. Her augmented senses allow her to discover and feel things others can’t, but her talents come with a price: a constant assault of emotions and sensations has left her blind. Determined to use her abilities as best she can, Shironne works tirelessly as an investigator for the Larossan army.
 
A member of the royal family's guard, Mikael Lee also possesses an overwhelming power—he dreams of the deaths of others, sometimes in vivid, shocking detail, and sometimes in cryptic fragments and half-remembered images.
 
But then a killer brings a reign of terror to the city, snuffing out his victims with an arcane and deadly blood magic. Only Shironne can sense and interpret Mikael’s dim, dark dreams of the murders. And what they find together will lead them into a nightmare..."

 

Regards,

Kareni

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I've finished 3 more books:

 

65. The World is a Wedding (Wilfred Price #2) by Wendy Jones. In this sequel to the first Wilfred Price book, Jones further develops the characters and crafts a story that tugged at my heart. I hope Jones plans on writing a third book in this series.

 

66. The Ladies Auxiliary by Tova Mirvis. Five stars. I absolutely loved this story about an Orthodox Jewish Community in Memphis. Mirvis has done a brilliant job of enveloping the reader into the lives of the characters.

 

67. Jane Addams: Spirit in Action by Louise Knight. This year I am trying to read books from the library or books that I already own as we have arrived at that certain age where we must downsize the number of books we own (I'm talking in the thousands of books here, people). This biography is so magnificently written that I am actually going to purchase a copy of it to add to our shelves. This is the first time I have succumbed to buying a book this year, lest you suspect I am a pushover.

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I've finished 3 more books:

 

65. The World is a Wedding (Wilfred Price #2) by Wendy Jones. In this sequel to the first Wilfred Price book, Jones further develops the characters and crafts a story that tugged at my heart. I hope Jones plans on writing a third book in this series.

 

66. The Ladies Auxiliary by Tova Mirvis. Five stars. I absolutely loved this story about an Orthodox Jewish Community in Memphis. Mirvis has done a brilliant job of enveloping the reader into the lives of the characters.

 

67. Jane Addams: Spirit in Action by Louise Knight. This year I am trying to read books from the library or books that I already own as we have arrived at that certain age where we must downsize the number of books we own (I'm talking in the thousands of books here, people). This biography is so magnificently written that I am actually going to purchase a copy of it to add to our shelves. This is the first time I have succumbed to buying a book this year, lest you suspect I am a pushover.

Hey, I'm stalking you, Ethel Mertz!

 

I pulled Wilifred Price #1 out of the dusties to read after I finish Darwin.  The Jane Addams bio is on my library list and has been in my library bag at least once but I have failed to crack it open.  I had heard that the bio is wonderful.  Jane Addams is one of those figures who was held up to us as someone to emulate when I was in elementary school yet I feel that I hardly hear her name mentioned at all these days.

 

I should be reading Darwin but I just want to take a nap after my morning of picking strawberries and my early afternoon time wasting.

 

 

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