Book a Week 2017 - BW7: Happy Valentine's Week

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday my lovelies!  This is the beginning of week 7 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 - Happy Valentine's Week!:   Cheers to candy hearts and chocolate wishes, champagne and diamond dishes, and lots of mushy kisses for the mister and the missus.  Whether you are  into the grey, hunting for  light, caught in the dark, or perhaps searching for the unknown, may you find the book you seek for this lovely week.

 

 

 

Laughing Song

 

by

 

William Blake

 

 

When the green woods laugh with the voice of joy,

And the dimpling stream runs laughing by;

When the air does laugh with our merry wit,

And the green hill laughs with the noise of it;

 

When the meadows laugh with lively green,

And the grasshopper laughs in the merry scene,

When Mary and Susan and Emily

With their sweet round mouths sing “Ha, Ha, He!â€

 

When the painted birds laugh in the shade,

Where our table with cherries and nuts is spread,

Come live & be merry, and join with me,

To sing the sweet chorus of “Ha, Ha, He!â€

 

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

 

The Story of Western Science - Chapter Three 

 

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

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

Link to week 6 

 

Edited February 12, 2017 by Robin M

[Robin M]

I finished J.D. Robb's newest Echoes in Death and John Crowley's The Translator last week.  Diving into a dusty e book that has been sitting on my virtual shelves since 2013 - Robert Charles Wilson's Axis (#2 spin series).

[Kareni]

A one day only currently free classic ~

 

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

 

"Wisdom from one of the greatest philosophical minds in all of Roman history

Divided into twelve books, these meditations chronicle Aurelius’s personal quest for self-improvement. This enduring text from one of history’s greatest warriors and leaders has been compared to St. Augustine’s Confessions for its timelessness, clarity, and candor. These writings, composed between 161 and 180 CE, set forth Aurelius’s Stoic philosophy and stress the importance of acting in a way that is moral and just rather than self-indulgent."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Robin M]

Violet Crown: Oh and a question for Robin, re: Bingo squares - does the minimum-page rule only apply to fiction and drama? Or to nonfiction and poetry as well? I ask because I find a book of essays or poems of less than 200 pages can take me weeks to get through. But then I'm a slow reader anyhow.

Minimum page rule generally applies to all, however I'm not going to be draconian about it if one or two books fall below.  

[Narrow Gate Academy]

Finished This Week (reviews linked) - Books 11 and 12

• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens  by Covey - This makes my second nonfiction book of the year. :thumbup1: I will definitely be passing this one to my teens to read.
• Samantha Watkins: Chronicles of an Extraordinary Ordinary Life  by Venem - I enjoyed myself until the abrupt ending.  If only I had taken French not Spanish I could finish the series.  Still it counts as my translated square for bingo.

Long term reads:

• ESV Bible - almost done with Leviticus
• History of the Ancient World - finished chapters 11 and 12 this week

 

Current reads (always subject to change on a whim) - I've been feeling a bit overloaded with all of the ideas from all of the new books I've been reading, so I decided to add in a couple of rereads this week.

• Audiobook:  The Graveyard Book  by Gaiman - I picked this one from Robin's to the moon challenge list.  I'm only a couple of chapters into this one, but am looking forward to having an audiobook again this week.
• Fiction books:
  • Slathbog's Gold by Forman - More than halfway finished with this one.  Definitely want to finish this week.
  • Murder of Crows  by Bishop - I have a few weeks until the newest book is out, so I'm hoping to reread a book a week in anticipation. :toetap05:
• Nonfiction book:  Getting Things Done by Allen - This will be a reread for me.  When I use his techniques, my life works much more smoothly. :001_rolleyes:

 

Finished for the year

12.  The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Covey

11.  Samantha Watkins:  Chronicles of an Extraordinary Ordinary Life by Venem

10.  The Happiness Project by Rubin

9.  Adventures of a Vegan Vamp by Lawely

8.  The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher (Bingo:  prime number)

7.  A Red Herring Without Mustard by Bradley (Garnet book and bingo: mystery)

6.  The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Adams (Bingo: outer space)

5.  Stormbreaker  by Horowitz (Bingo: one word title)

4.  Moon Dance by Rain (Bingo: flufferton)

3.  The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Doyle (Bingo: collection of short stories)

2.  The Strange Library by Murakami

1.  Written in Red by Bishop

[Jane in NC]

After finishing Arnaldur Indriadason's Arctic Chill last week, I immediately launched into the next in the series, Outrage.  I suspect that I may stay in Iceland when this current novel wraps up. I hear the call of Black Skies.

 

I have an ulterior motive for hanging with Arnaldur.  For a while, the mysteries that I had not read in the series were checked out by another borrower.  I have my hands on them now so I don't want to pass up this opportunity.

 

 

[Negin]

I read A Gentleman in Moscow - 4 Stars - “He has been known to hop like a rabbit and prance like a buckâ€: If a book has gorgeous writing like this (describing a man’s dancing skills, by the way) and characters that I love, I know that I’ll enjoy it, even if the story is not a page-turner and lacks a strong plot. Mind you, this is coming from me. I’m usually far more interested in plot and character versus word choice and prose.

This is a story about a Russian Count living in the palatial Metropol Hotel in Moscow. I didn’t even know that this hotel exists in real life. It does and it looks beautiful! I wanted to include some images in this review, but don't think that I'm allowed to do so here, since the images are not mine. I included them in my Good Reads review if anyone's interested. 

Starting in the 1920s, the Count is placed under permanent house arrest for the crime of being a wealthy, intelligent, and gosh, ever so classy aristocrat. He is an absolute delight. 

I would give 5 stars for his beautiful writing, 3 stars for the story, averaging it out to 4 stars. I loved the characters, particularly the main character, the Count. The entire story has a dreamy quality about it and is ever so atmospheric. However, I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re looking for an engaging plot-driven story. Meanwhile, I just love that hop like a rabbit and prance like a buck description and keep repeating it to myself and to everyone around me, annoying them, I’m sure!

 

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

 

“Two succinct pieces of parental advice. The first was that if one did not master one’s circumstances, one was bound to be mastered by them; and the second was Montaigne’s maxim that the surest sign of wisdom is constant cheerfulness. But when it came to expressing admissions of heartache, the Count had not held back. He told her exactly how sad he would be in her absence, and yet, how joyful he would feel at the slightest thought of her grand adventure.â€

 

“Simply put, the Count found political discourse of any persuasion to be tedious.â€

 

“For all the varied concerns attendant to the raising of a child—over schoolwork, dress, and manners—in the end, a parent’s responsibility could not be more simple: To bring a child safely into adulthood so that she could have a chance to experience a life of purpose and, God willing, contentment.â€

 

 

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.

 

Edited February 12, 2017 by Negin

[Loesje22000]

I finished 'Ik zag Menno' this week (I saw Menno), a book shortlisted for the debuteprize 2016.

It was an easy read but not really enjoyable.

 

I am still working on 2 other books:

'Post voor mevrouw Bromley' (mail for mrs. Bromley)

This is the first piece of Flemish literature I really, really like.

It is set in the UK during WWI and after a while set in Belgium.

So far a really lovely read.

 

The other book is about the children colony of the colonies of benevolence in the Netherlands & Flanders (at that time being 1 country): http://www.kolonienvanweldadigheid.eu/en

It is not fiction, but a sketch of life and problems with lot of citations from primary documents.

I like this type of books that makes historical research accessible for laymen.

We have such a colony nearby and I must confess some travel documentaries made a romantic picture of the colony.

But of course life was hard, and the discussion of 'who take care of .... (orphans, beggars, invalides)' and who will pay for that care is a discussion of all ages.

Hard to realise that the roads we drive on, the area we live is cultivized by men / women / children forced to do so.

[Lady Florida.]

Thank you once again, Robin. Do any other east coast gals check the thread obsessively on Sundays to see if the new one is up yet? I usually start checking around 11 am my time even though I know the general time Robin usually gets the thread started is later than that.  :D

 

# 14 for the year - Yesterday I finished Brat Farrar, and really enjoyed it. I did think there were some things left unexplained at the end but it didn't take anything away from the story IMO. I'll be reading more Josephine Tey, probably starting with the Inspector Alan Grant series. 

 

Still currently reading:

 

-I'm moving right along in A Place Beyond Courage, and loving it. 

 

-Alexander Hamilton, by Ron Chernow - I finally reached the part about "The Room Where it Happened" :)  BTW, Orlando has been added to the list of cities for the tour. My friends and I are already making plans for fall 2018. We bought memberships to the theater so we can get advance ticket purchase rights. 

 

-Lab Girl audio book. I love how she mixes memoir and science and I'm gaining a new appreciation for trees, though I've always loved them.

 

-Hidden Figures - Dh and I saw the movie Thursday night and we both thought it was wonderful. I had hoped to be farther along in the book (maybe even finished) before seeing the movie, but the opportunity came up and because of his crazy work schedule we had to take it. I'm at 26% in the book (for you non-ebook folks - nine chapters, page 93) and am still not at the point where the movie begins. 

 

New additions to my currently reading or about to start reading list:

 

-Song of Solomon, Toni Morrison. It's been a few years since I read Morrison and I almost forgot how beautiful her writing is. Even when the subject isn't beautiful, or is difficult the writing is just soooo good. This one was a planned bingo choice - child or spouse birth year. My stepson was born in 1977, the year it was published. This was a library hold that came in so I had to start it. (My other library hold that suddenly came available is These is My Words. I won't start that for a while, and might have to leave my wifi off on the Kindle in order to finish both of these.)

 

-Parable of the Sower, Octavia Butler. I know some of you love her but this is so not my style. It's the next book club book, and I always try to read those (not everyone in the club will try every book). I realized that this can also count for bingo. I've seen it categorized as both science fiction and dystopia (Goodreads, Amazon, Wikipedia all list both genres). I haven't decided where to put it yet.

 

I'd like to add a mystery for some lighter reading but with 5 currently reading plus an audio book I really should wait a bit.  :lol:

 

 

A one day only currently free classic ~

 

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

 

 

I wondered how this was different from the free classic I "purchased" years ago, other than possibly better ebook formatting. Then I saw that the one I already have is no longer available. I grabbed this one in case the formatting is better - I do hope to get to this sometime in 2017. 

[Chrysalis Academy]

I've started a couple of new things: Neverwhere, Half of a Yellow Sun, and Sometimes We Tell the Truth, which is a surprisingly interesting (so far) modern YA retelling of The Canterbury Tales. Yep, you heard that right. I found it when I was searching at the library for books on the C.T. as that's our next read (selections from) for English. Then I looked on goodreads and it's got a bunch of highly rated reviews. Speaking of pairings, it's always good to have something modern to pair with a classic, sort of an instant piece of evidence that it is indeed still relevant. It's dovetailing nicely with my read of Katherine, which is a historical fiction by Anya Seton about Katherine Swynford, mistress then wife to John of Gaunt during the reign of Edward III/Richard II. She was sister in law of Geoffrey Chaucer.  For fans of The Sunne in Splendor this is a book I'd highly recommend - a well-researched novel that really gets the details right: what they ate, what they wore, how they lived. 

 

Finished in Feb:

35. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell. 5 stars. Looking forward to seeing the movie and reading more books by this author

34. The View from the Oak - 4 stars. A great read aloud for animal-loving kids, not only a nice introduction to ethology, but some practical advice in how to see things from other (creatures) POV

33. Three Gothic Novels: The Castle of Otranto, Vathek, The Vampyre - 2 stars. The introductory material is fascinating and it's nice to see how these pieces fit into the historical progression of the novel in English (and what Jane Austen was satirizing in Northhanger Abbey) but boy, as literature, they are stinkers.

32. The Fire This Time - Jesmyn Ward - 5 stars. Already reviewed here, recommended again

31. Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey - 4 stars. A re-read of the first Dragonriders of Pern novel, all of which I read in high school. I liked it again and am enjoying seeing dd get into this series

30. The Bear and the Nightingale - Katherine Arden. 4 stars, recommended

29. Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain - 4 stars. this book helped get me off the couch and back into an exercise habit!

28. The Color Purple. 5 stars. Amethyst & Black History Month. Brilliant and beautiful book

Edited February 12, 2017 by Chrysalis Academy

[Lori D.]

Radiance by Cathyrnne Valente

 

Oh my goodness! I can't even begin to express how much I loved this book! It is a meta-fiction of early film history and imagery mixed with alternative history late 19th/early 20th century and with space travel/living on other planets in the Solar System, blended into a whodunnit mystery with film noir touches, and a dose of self-discovery...

 

 

____________

 

I saw, but didn't have a chance to comment on Stacia's book & movie match-ups post in last week's BaW thread. Thank you Stacia! :) -- I think Enchanted April was her first listing there, and both the book and the film are wonderful! One of the rare times where I think the film's slightly different ending was actually better than the book's original ending; but that's just a small quibble. Enchanted April is one of the most wonderfully affirming films I've ever seen, about women being women, relationship with other women, but esp. how the choice to show one tiny act of grace can overflow and positively transform not only your life, but the lives of everyone around you.

 

Leading the high school Film class this year has kept me busy with watching classic films again, and I was thinking those fun pairings would be a great book challenge -- you know, like The Maltese Falcon (Dashell Hammett novel / Humphrey Bogart film), or Frankenstein (Mary Shelley novel, 1932 film). I read Never Let Me Go about 2 years back, and am really intrigued to watch the 2010 film. Anybody have a review for me? :)

 

One last Literature/Film connection -- just went to our local indy film theater and saw

last week, about a bus driver named Paterson, who lives in Paterson NJ. Oh my, how lovely! Sheer visual poetry, and contains a number of poems by poet Ron Padgett, plus references to poet William Carlos Williams who was from the town Paterson. Here's a quick article with interview bites from director Jim Jarmusch to give you a feel for this lovely film. Edited February 12, 2017 by Lori D.

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[strawberries]

I finished Winter Is Coming. A bit of a slog for a relatively short book, although it did offer food for thought.  I know Robin has asked that we leave politics out of this thread, so I can't say much more about it!  I'm still enjoying The Wise Man's Fear at almost halfway through, and I just picked up The Story of Western Science so I can catch up with the readalong.  Other than a bunch of kid-related reading (2 Warriors books for DD and a bunch of short stories for DS's upcoming lit unit) that was all for me last week.  

[Kareni]

-Alexander Hamilton, by Ron Chernow - I finally reached the part about "The Room Where it Happened" :)  BTW, Orlando has been added to the list of cities for the tour. My friends and I are already making plans for fall 2018. We bought memberships to the theater so we can get advance ticket purchase rights.

 

I had fun introducing my sister to the CD when I was visiting last month.  She recently saw the live show in NYC and said it was excellent. (I'm only slightly envious!) 

**

 

I read an enjoyable book yesterday ~ Close to You: A Novel by Kara Isaac.  This is contemporary fiction with an inspirational component, so it would be fine for all readers.  It's set in New Zealand, so it was fun to hear some place names and terms that were familiar after the trip my husband and I took in 2011 (my first trip back in forty years).  If you have an interest in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, you would probably appreciate this book even more that I did.

 

"A disgraced scholar running from her past and an entrepreneur chasing his future find themselves thrown together—and fall in love—on a Tolkien tour of New Zealand.

 

Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic who is done with love. Her belief in “happily ever after†ended the day she discovered her husband was still married to a wife she knew nothing about. She finally finds a use for her English degree by guiding tours through the famous sites featured in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies. By living life on the road and traveling New Zealand as a luxury tour guide, Allison manages to outrun the pain of her past she can’t face.

 

Jackson Gregory was on the cusp of making it big. Then suddenly his girlfriend left him—for his biggest business competitor—and took his most guarded commercial secrets with her. To make matters worse, the Iowa farm that has been in his family for generations is facing foreclosure. Determined to save his parents from financial ruin, he’ll do whatever it takes to convince his wealthy great-uncle to invest in his next scheme, which means accompanying him to the bottom of the world to spend three weeks pretending to be a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan, even though he knows nothing about the stories. The one thing that stands between him and his goal is a know-it-all tour guide who can’t stand him and pegged him as a fake the moment he walked off the plane.

 

When Allison leads the group through the famous sites of the Tolkien movies, she and Jackson start to see each other differently, and as they keep getting thrown together on the tour, they find themselves drawn to each other. Neither expected to fall in love again, but can they find a way beyond their regrets to take a chance on the one thing they’re not looking for?"

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Lady Florida.]

Minimum page rule generally applies to all, however I'm not going to be draconian about it if one or two books fall below.  

 

Oh good. I wouldn't take advantage of it or overdo it, but one book I read comes in just a bit under 200. I not only liked it, I can't find anything else for that category worth reading (your name in the title). 

 

I read A Gentleman in Moscow - 4 Stars - “He has been known to hop like a rabbit and prance like a buckâ€: If a book has gorgeous writing like this (describing a man’s dancing skills, by the way) and characters that I love, I know that I’ll enjoy it, even if the story is not a page-turner and lacks a strong plot. Mind you, this is coming from me. I’m usually far more interested in plot and character versus word choice and prose.

This is a story about a Russian Count living in the palatial Metropol Hotel in Moscow. I didn’t even know that this hotel exists in real life. It does and it looks beautiful! I wanted to include some images in this review, but don't think that I'm allowed to do so here, since the images are not mine. I included them in my Good Reads review if anyone's interested. 

Starting in the 1920s, the Count is placed under permanent house arrest for the crime of being a wealthy, intelligent, and gosh, ever so classy aristocrat. He is an absolute delight. 

I would give 5 stars for his beautiful writing, 3 stars for the story, averaging it out to 4 stars. I loved the characters, particularly the main character, the Count. The entire story has a dreamy quality about it and is ever so atmospheric. However, I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re looking for an engaging plot-driven story. Meanwhile, I just love that hop like a rabbit and prance like a buck description and keep repeating it to myself and to everyone around me, annoying them, I’m sure!

 

 

 

This looks good so I added it to my Want to Read list. While plot matters, I love character driven novels. Five stars for character and prose gets my attention. 

[thessa516]

I didn't start any new books or finish reading any old ones this week because my DH was out of town on a business trip. Hopefully this week I'll finish several of them and be able to start reading some of the books recommended here.

[Matryoshka]

I finished 4 books this week, but two I had been working on for a while.

 

The Warmth of Other Suns (one I'd been working on) and Sergio Y. (finished in a day) I reviewed in last week's thread.

 

I also finally finished The Palace of Illusions on audio.  So, so, so good, and made even better by the wonderful narrator.  I could listen to her all day.  I was already familiar with a lot of the Mahabharata, but I loved that it told things from Panchaali's point of view and only  mentions in passing some parts that have been focused on much more (she gets to the part with the Bhagavad Gita and says it's been told enough elsewhere...)  4.5 stars.  Maybe a bit more... :)

 

I also started and finished Lab Girl as an ebook.  I also really, really liked this one. 5 stars. I'm thinking of giving a copy to one or both of my 18yo dds to read.  Reading all that stuff about trees is also making me think of moving Das geheime Leben der Bäume/The Secret Life of Trees up on my to-read list, but I was really wanting to read some Spanish first - I've been waiting for El laberintu de los espíritus for.ever. (have I whined about that enough? sorry...) - and I also have Nordermooor/Jar City I want to read soon.

 

My reading list is also getting all jumbled because of what's available on Overdrive.  I needed another ebook and audio book.  I wanted to listen to Homegoing next, but I'm #8 on the waiting list.  My ebook holds I'm #60, 39, 35, and 7 in line.   :glare:

 

So I hunted around for other stuff that was just available.  My new ebook is The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which is ending up to be really interesting.  Medical mystery, cross-cultural misunderstandings, and history I don't know much about, and well-written and well-told.  I did some training as a medical interpreter a few years ago, which makes it even more interesting (this story takes place in  the 80's, which is apparently before medical interpreters were required by law).  So that was some great serendipity - I'll probably finish it today or tomorrow.  Not sure what I'll pick next, seeing as there's no chance anything in my queue will be coming available.

 

For an audio book, I picked You're Never Weird on the Internet because someone here said it was a fun listen, I like Felicia Day well enough, and I was a bit curious what she had to say about her homeschooled childhood.  I've gotten through that part now.  She's going on about how she was such an unsocialized unschooled weirdo because she homeschooled.  Uh, you were raised by a liberal hippie family in Mississippi (I don't think you would have found more people to relate to in school), and you ended up going to college at 16 on a full scholarship and double-majoring in math and violin - I don't think your mom dropped that ball that much on academics...  I'm a bit bored by this chirpy bit of fluff.  I'm probably not going to finish it...

 

Oh, and I attempted to read Amish Vampires in Space, which despite its silly title got an average of 4.2 out of 5 stars on Amazon (87 reviews total!) and 3.74 out of 5 on Goodreads (184 ratings and 84 reviews) - and the vast majority paragraphs long and gushing about how well the author pulled this unlikely premise off.  And I did read the one and two-star reviews, where even then no one mentioned that this book IS THE MOST POORLY WRITTEN PIECE OF DRECK I've seen in print.  Sorry to yell, but OMG.  The fragments.  Oh, the fragments.  It's like 400+ pages of Magic Tree House, which I had a hard enough time with, but at least I could understand that it was written for kids who were still learning to sound out words longer than 'cat'.  WTH is going on that not one person mentioned that there are virtually no sentences in this book??!!!  

 

Here are some sample gems:

 

"Finally, freedom.  Someone to talk with. He felt a twinge of guilt, though.  The words of his father.  Jeb looked at the floor.  Shook his head.  "You first," he said.

It was clear she was struggling.  Emotions wanting to bubble to the surface.  Yet she didn't seem sorrowful.  Remorseful. She seemed giddy."

 

"The female, the young Englisher, was sliding along the right side of the ship.  Looking concerned.  She reached the guard. Started discussing something with him.  She nodded toward the back of the ship.  Toward where Jebediah should be."

 

Gaaaaaah!!! What.the.heck.is.this??!! The whole book is like that!!  I skimmed ahead to see if it got better, but it doesn't.  So... if I wanted to return this book to Amazon, what excuse could I use??  Or am I stuck with it?  

 

I may be finding it extra awful because I've just been reading such wonderfully written prose in other books?  Or... maybe it just is that bad...

 

So... first two books abandoned: this one and probably Felicia Day...

Edited February 12, 2017 by Matryoshka

[Lori D.]

I read an enjoyable book yesterday ~ Close to You: A Novel

 

... Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic...

 

...Jackson Gregory... his girlfriend left him—for his biggest business competitor—and ... the Iowa farm that has been in his family for generations is facing foreclosure... he’ll do whatever it takes to convince his wealthy great-uncle to invest in his next scheme, which means... pretending to be a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan...

 

And Jackson Gregory, as in Peter Jackson, director of the LotR movies which financially capitalized on academic professor Tolkien's Shire?? ;) Just some gentle teasing... It actually sounds like a very fun book! :) Thanks for sharing!

 

 

 

... Amish Vampires in Space... THE MOST POORLY WRITTEN PIECE OF DRECK I've seen in print.  Sorry to yell, but OMG.  The fragments.  Oh, the fragments.  It's like 400+ pages of Magic Tree House...

 

LOL! And after reading your excerpt, all I have to say, in the words/tone of Batman from the original Lego movie: "What. The Heck. Is That. ?"

Edited February 12, 2017 by Lori D.

[mumto2]

I finished J.D. Robb's newest Echoes in Death and John Crowley's The Translator last week.  Diving into a dusty e book that has been sitting on my virtual shelves since 2013 - Robert Charles Wilson's Axis (#2 spin series).

I am planning to start Echoes in Death this week. Did you like it?

 

I had Boneshaker by Cheri Priest in my Overdrive stack and it will return itself tomorrow. I try to read a few pages before a book goes back so I know if I want to request it again. After a few pages I found myself hooked but have to say it's a rather different version of Steampunk than I am used to. This series seems to have quite a dystopian edge to it which I wasn't expecting. Also I think Queen Victoria in the background....this is set in Seattle during the Civil War. I have a few other partial reads but concentrating on Boneshaker so hopefully I can leave the wifi on.....

[Robin M]

I am planning to start Echoes in Death this week. Did you like it?

 

....

Yes, it was well done although I did get an inkling of who the culprit could be halfway through and fascinated as usual with how she worked it out. More than one rape involved so is more intense and doesn't included many of the cast who are mentioned in passing, rather than being part of the story. I've been rereading the series again and just finished #24 innocence in death. Every time I read her books I pick up on something new.

[Mom-ninja.]

My head feels like it's wrapped in cotton, my ears are stuffed with it, and my eyes are not focusing well on print. So I watched Star Trek Beyond. Nothing like a nice relaxing action packed movie when you're sick. :lol:  Of course, it was better than the current Star Wars movies cause it's Star Trek. No competition there. 

 

Alas, my blind date is still waiting for me. 

 

I need more tea. I need a bell to ring for more tea. 

 

 

[Just Robyn]

Well, I missed last week's thread, but here's what I'm up to.

 

I read The Bear and the Nightingale. It was light and fun, but the characters were flat and the priest was, imo, completely unbelievable. Good for a relaxing read.

 

I also read The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which was weird. It kind of made me think of the beat poets in high school in the eighties. My one complaint after reading it was that these kids all somehow party all the time and still get perfect grades and get accepted into great colleges. I'm not asking for the author to lie and say that your life is ruined if you get high. It's just that there are only so many hours in a day. Then looking at reviews I saw someone mention how none of the *many* big issues mentioned in the book are explored in depth, and that's a great point. The way drugs, abortion, making teA with strangers and other things are just mentioned and moved on from sort of makes them seem like no big deal.

 

I listened to A Night to Remember by Walter Lord, creative nonfiction detailing the night the Titanic sank. It reminded me of John Hersey's Hiroshima. (A Night to Remember was written first, but I read Hiroshima first.) It was interesting and sometimes horribly sad, which is to be expected I guess. 

 

I re-read The Bad Beginning, the first book in A Series of Unfortunate Events. My kids and I started reading them a few years ago but didn't make it past book two or three. With the Netflix series, my youngest wants to try again, and I'll read along as far as he gets. 

 

I started reading:

 

Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction

Breakfast at Tiffany's: A Short Novel and Three Stories

 

and listening to

 

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

 

All good so far!

 

Oh, and I wanted to remind everyone that in two weeks we'll start reading From the Beast to the Blonde!

Edited February 13, 2017 by crstarlette

[Raifta]

 

 

I read an enjoyable book yesterday ~ Close to You: A Novel by Kara Isaac.  This is contemporary fiction with an inspirational component, so it would be fine for all readers.  It's set in New Zealand, so it was fun to hear some place names and terms that were familiar after the trip my husband and I took in 2011 (my first trip back in forty years).  If you have an interest in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, you would probably appreciate this book even more that I did.

 

"A disgraced scholar running from her past and an entrepreneur chasing his future find themselves thrown together—and fall in love—on a Tolkien tour of New Zealand.

 

Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic who is done with love. Her belief in “happily ever after†ended the day she discovered her husband was still married to a wife she knew nothing about. She finally finds a use for her English degree by guiding tours through the famous sites featured in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies. By living life on the road and traveling New Zealand as a luxury tour guide, Allison manages to outrun the pain of her past she can’t face.

 

 

 

 

 

Agreed with Lori D. that this sounds like a fun book.  I'm going to look for this one.

 

 

 

 

I also started and finished Lab Girl as an ebook.  I also really, really liked this one. 5 stars. I'm thinking of giving a copy to one or both of my 18yo dds to read.  Reading all that stuff about trees is also making me think of moving Das geheime Leben der Bäume/The Secret Life of Trees up on my to-read list, but I was really wanting to read some Spanish first - I've been waiting for El laberintu de los espíritus for.ever. (have I whined about that enough? sorry...) - and I also have Nordermooor/Jar City I want to read soon.

 

My reading list is also getting all jumbled because of what's available on Overdrive.  I needed another ebook and audio book.  I wanted to listen to Homegoing next, but I'm #8 on the waiting list.  My ebook holds I'm #60, 39, 35, and 7 in line.   :glare:

 

So I hunted around for other stuff that was just available.  My new ebook is The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which is ending up to be really interesting.  Medical mystery, cross-cultural misunderstandings, and history I don't know much about, and well-written and well-told.  I did some training as a medical interpreter a few years ago, which makes it even more interesting (this story takes place in  the 80's, which is apparently before medical interpreters were required by law).  So that was some great serendipity - I'll probably finish it today or tomorrow.  Not sure what I'll pick next, seeing as there's no chance anything in my queue will be coming available.

 

For an audio book, I picked You're Never Weird on the Internet because someone here said it was a fun listen, I like Felicia Day well enough, and I was a bit curious what she had to say about her homeschooled childhood.  I've gotten through that part now.  She's going on about how she was such an unsocialized unschooled weirdo because she homeschooled.  Uh, you were raised by a liberal hippie family in Mississippi (I don't think you would have found more people to relate to in school), and you ended up going to college at 16 on a full scholarship and double-majoring in math and violin - I don't think your mom dropped that ball that much on academics...  I'm a bit bored by this chirpy bit of fluff.  I'm probably not going to finish it...

 

Oh, and I attempted to read Amish Vampires in Space, which despite its silly title got an average of 4.2 out of 5 stars on Amazon (87 reviews total!) and 3.74 out of 5 on Goodreads (184 ratings and 84 reviews) - and the vast majority paragraphs long and gushing about how well the author pulled this unlikely premise off.  And I did read the one and two-star reviews, where even then no one mentioned that this book IS THE MOST POORLY WRITTEN PIECE OF DRECK I've seen in print.  Sorry to yell, but OMG.  The fragments.  Oh, the fragments.  It's like 400+ pages of Magic Tree House, which I had a hard enough time with, but at least I could understand that it was written for kids who were still learning to sound out words longer than 'cat'.  WTH is going on that not one person mentioned that there are virtually no sentences in this book??!!!  

 

Here are some sample gems:

 

"Finally, freedom.  Someone to talk with. He felt a twinge of guilt, though.  The words of his father.  Jeb looked at the floor.  Shook his head.  "You first," he said.

It was clear she was struggling.  Emotions wanting to bubble to the surface.  Yet she didn't seem sorrowful.  Remorseful. She seemed giddy."

 

"The female, the young Englisher, was sliding along the right side of the ship.  Looking concerned.  She reached the guard. Started discussing something with him.  She nodded toward the back of the ship.  Toward where Jebediah should be."

 

Gaaaaaah!!! What.the.heck.is.this??!! The whole book is like that!!  I skimmed ahead to see if it got better, but it doesn't.  So... if I wanted to return this book to Amazon, what excuse could I use??  Or am I stuck with it?  

 

I may be finding it extra awful because I've just been reading such wonderfully written prose in other books?  Or... maybe it just is that bad...

 

So... first two books abandoned: this one and probably Felicia Day...

 

I also loved Lab Girl and read the plant parts out loud to my kids (felt they might be a bit young still for the whole story) and really enjoyed The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down.  Clearly I need to keep an eye on what you are reading!  And thanks for the warning about the Vampires in Space book - that looks awful - I remember being so relieved when the first kid got old enough to read the Magic Treehouse book out loud to the second kid (he decided at 3 that those were the chapter books he wanted to read) and I never want to suffer through that writing style again.

[Just Robyn]

 

So I hunted around for other stuff that was just available.  My new ebook is The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which is ending up to be really interesting.  Medical mystery, cross-cultural misunderstandings, and history I don't know much about, and well-written and well-told.  I did some training as a medical interpreter a few years ago, which makes it even more interesting (this story takes place in  the 80's, which is apparently before medical interpreters were required by law).  So that was some great serendipity - I'll probably finish it today or tomorrow.

 

This was mentioned in Good Prose, and it sounded so interesting. I put it on my to-read list, so I'm glad to hear a favorable review.

[aggieamy]

A one day only currently free classic ~

 

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

 

"Wisdom from one of the greatest philosophical minds in all of Roman history

 

Divided into twelve books, these meditations chronicle Aurelius’s personal quest for self-improvement. This enduring text from one of history’s greatest warriors and leaders has been compared to St. Augustine’s Confessions for its timelessness, clarity, and candor. These writings, composed between 161 and 180 CE, set forth Aurelius’s Stoic philosophy and stress the importance of acting in a way that is moral and just rather than self-indulgent."

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

Wow.  This is perfect for my DH.  Thanks!

 

 

For an audio book, I picked You're Never Weird on the Internet because someone here said it was a fun listen, I like Felicia Day well enough, and I was a bit curious what she had to say about her homeschooled childhood.  I've gotten through that part now.  She's going on about how she was such an unsocialized unschooled weirdo because she homeschooled.  Uh, you were raised by a liberal hippie family in Mississippi (I don't think you would have found more people to relate to in school), and you ended up going to college at 16 on a full scholarship and double-majoring in math and violin - I don't think your mom dropped that ball that much on academics...  I'm a bit bored by this chirpy bit of fluff.  I'm probably not going to finish it...

 

 

That reminds me of a conversation my DH had when DD was little.  Someone he worked with warned him that "home schooled kids turn out weird".  His answer was that some kids will turn out weird no matter how they are educated.  I knew plenty of kids who were pretty interesting and quirky despite going to boring suburbs high schools.

 

Oh, and I attempted to read Amish Vampires in Space, which despite its silly title got an average of 4.2 out of 5 stars on Amazon (87 reviews total!) and 3.74 out of 5 on Goodreads (184 ratings and 84 reviews) - and the vast majority paragraphs long and gushing about how well the author pulled this unlikely premise off.  And I did read the one and two-star reviews, where even then no one mentioned that this book IS THE MOST POORLY WRITTEN PIECE OF DRECK I've seen in print.  Sorry to yell, but OMG.  The fragments.  Oh, the fragments.  It's like 400+ pages of Magic Tree House, which I had a hard enough time with, but at least I could understand that it was written for kids who were still learning to sound out words longer than 'cat'.  WTH is going on that not one person mentioned that there are virtually no sentences in this book??!!!  

 

 

LOL.  I can just hear it in my mind.

 

"....," Ezekiel said.

 

"...," Amity said.

 

"....," Jedidiah said.

[aggieamy]

Also.  If you see me on here liking things and posting then please PUBLICLY SHAME ME.  I'm meeting with our accountant to do taxes in 16 hours and am only up to September in my company bookkeeping. 

 

and my DH is doing all the childcare so I can work on this so it's pretty rude of me to be messing about on BaW. 

Edited February 12, 2017 by aggieamy

[ErinE]

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Edited February 19, 2018 by ErinE

[ErinE]

.

 

Edited February 19, 2018 by ErinE

[thessa516]

 

 

I listened to A Night to Remember by Walter Lord, creative nonfiction detailing the night the Titanic sank. It reminded me of John Hersey's Hiroshima. (A Night to Remember was written first, but I read Hiroshima first.) It was interesting and sometimes horribly sad, which is to be expected I guess. 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh my, this might have to be moved to the top of my list. My last book of 2016 was Hiroshima, and my littlest is currently obsessed with everything Titanic. Thanks for the recommendation!

[Matryoshka]

Oh, and I wanted to remind everyone that in two weeks we'll start reading From the Beast to the Blonde!

 

Ooo, I'm looking forward to this!  Don't forget to remind us again next week - I don't want to put my library copy on hold to early.  With all this reading, I have to manage my library churn carefully. :)

[shukriyya]

Not much of a reading week for me. Finishing up with The World's Wife which I thoroughly enjoyed. Started Alphabet of Thorn and am liking it so far. Leaving you with a poem by Carol Ann Duffy from The World's Wife.

 

Pope Joan

 

After I learned to transubstantiate

unleavened bread

into the sacred host

and swung the burning frankincense

till blue-green snakes of smoke

coiled round the hem of my robe

and swayed through those fervent crowds,

high up in a papal chair,

blessing and blessing the air,

nearer to heaven

than cardinals, archbishops, bishops, priests,

being Vicar of Rome,

having made the Vatican my home,

like the best of men,

in nominee patris et filii et spiritus sancti amen,

but twice as virtuous as them,

I came to believe

that I did not believe a word,

so I tell you now,

daughters or brides of the Lord,

that the closest I felt

to the power of God

was the sense of a hand

lifting me, flinging me down,

lifting me, flinging me down,

as my baby pushed out

from between my legs

where I lay in the road

in my miracle,

not a man or a pope at all.

[Butter]

I'm still reading The Train to Crystal City.  It's really good, but it's just been a rough week with lots of doctors appointments, me being sick, having sick kids, my oldest being hospitalized for a couple days, and still trying to figure out what's really wrong with her.  My loan period on it expired, but I discovered I can still read it as long as I don't turn on the wifi.

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[ErinE]

.

Edited February 19, 2018 by ErinE

[Mothersweets]

Hi everyone! 

 

Last week I flew through North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Unusual Family and How I Survived Both by Cea Sunrise Person. I heard of it on here last week and I want to send out a thank you! to whomever recommended it!  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1905711179

 

I am also about halfway through Truman by my favorite historian - David McCullough. I'm so envious of Amy and the other ladies that live near his (Truman's) home!! The way McCullough describes Truman's childhood and growing up (especially the summer nights) was beautifully nostalgic. HIs writing just took me right there and I could almost smell the cut grass and feel the warmth of a late summer's day.

[Raifta]

Hi everyone! 

 

Last week I flew through North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Unusual Family and How I Survived Both by Cea Sunrise Person. I heard of it on here last week and I want to send out a thank you! to whomever recommended it!  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1905711179

 

I am also about halfway through Truman by my favorite historian - David McCullough. I'm so envious of Amy and the other ladies that live near his (Truman's) home!! The way McCullough describes Truman's childhood and growing up (especially the summer nights) was beautifully nostalgic. HIs writing just took me right there and I could almost smell the cut grass and feel the warmth of a late summer's day.

 

Probably me for the former as I read it last weekend.  Glad you liked it - flying through it is an apt description as that's how I read it too.

 

Now I'm intrigued by Truman based on your review and all the other enthusiastic reviews.  I've already put Radiance by Catherynne Valente and another book mentioned today (that I can't remember off the top of my head) on hold.  So many books!  Must go read.

[Violet Crown]

Minimum page rule generally applies to all, however I'm not going to be draconian about it if one or two books fall below.

Thanks! I will strive not to abuse the gracious leeway.

 

Finished Joseph Conrad's psychological thriller and/or delayed Victorian melodrama and/or deeply symbolic comment on the isolation of the subjective self (man is literally an island) Victory, made even better (and it was awfully good) by the Edward Gorey cover art and frontispiece. Also D. H. Lawrence's Selected Poems, which would have been much improved by omitting Kenneth Rexroth's introductory essay.

 

Name:

1. Victory, Joseph Conrad

2. The Interior Castle, St Teresa of Avila

3. The Octopus, Frank Norris

4. Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov

 

A-Z Author Challenge:

1. Amis, Kingsley: The Green Man

8.Hakluyt, Richard: Voyages [vols. 1, 2, 3]

12. Lawrence, D. H.: Selected Poems

 

Random reading:

1. Twain, The Prince and the Pauper

 

Proximate travel requires a compact and disposable next book, suitable for flinging into gray NSA bins together with my shoes. Maybe that beaten-up Penguin copy of The Idiot?

Edited February 13, 2017 by Violet Crown

[JennW in SoCal]

Radiance by Cathyrnne Valente

 

Oh my goodness! I can't even begin to express how much I loved this book! It is a meta-fiction of early film history and imagery mixed with alternative history late 19th/early 20th century and with space travel/living on other planets in the Solar System, blended into a whodunnit mystery with film noir touches, and a dose of self-discovery...

 

 

____________

 

I saw, but didn't have a chance to comment on Stacia's book & movie match-ups post in last week's BaW thread. Thank you Stacia! :) -- I think Enchanted April was her first listing there, and both the book and the film are wonderful! One of the rare times where I think the film's slightly different ending was actually better than the book's original ending; but that's just a small quibble. Enchanted April is one of the most wonderfully affirming films I've ever seen, about women being women, relationship with other women, but esp. how the choice to show one tiny act of grace can overflow and positively transform not only your life, but the lives of everyone around you.

 

Leading the high school Film class this year has kept me busy with watching classic films again, and I was thinking those fun pairings would be a great book challenge -- you know, like The Maltese Falcon (Dashell Hammett novel / Humphrey Bogart film), or Frankenstein (Mary Shelley novel, 1932 film). I read Never Let Me Go about 2 years back, and am really intrigued to watch the 2010 film. Anybody have a review for me? :)

 

One last Literature/Film connection -- just went to our local indy film theater and saw

last week, about a bus driver named Paterson, who lives in Paterson NJ. Oh my, how lovely! Sheer visual poetry, and contains a number of poems by poet Ron Padgett, plus references to poet William Carlos Williams who was from the town Paterson. Here's a quick article with interview bites from director Jim Jarmusch to give you a feel for this lovely film.

 

Someone else must have loved that book because I already have it marked as "want to read" on Goodreads. I need a shelf labeled "Recommended more than once on Book a Week. Just read it already!" And then it needs to nudge me periodically to look for that title.

 

Speaking of books and movies...we saw, and laughed our way through, the Lego Batman movie a couple days ago. It pays homage to several of the comic book iterations of Batman, as well as the all the move versions. I'm thinking this Lego Batman is the only Batman you really need in life!  

 

Not as much reading accomplished last week. No illness or family issues here, just drama from my quilt guild -- I kid you not! All is well once again in the land of middle aged and retired ladies who deal in fabric and batting, so I can continue with my reading life now. Though, funny story, I was recently at lunch with a small group of quilters, and said I was looking forward to an afternoon of reading. And when they asked "oh, what are you reading?" I tried to describe By Gaslight. I made the mistake of saying that I had originally thought it might be steampunk -- and I lost them with that word. Had to explain steampunk, had to explain my love of genre literature.  I got the dismissive "oh, like Star Trek" comment and they changed the subject! I am now tainted as one of those people, lol, someone who reads all that weird stuff! I swear -- next to my peers, white, middle aged women -- I am a huge geek. Once a year among the throngs at comic-con, though, I'm just a clueless, un-hip suburban mom. 

 

I did finish the third in the Rivers of London series, Whispers Underground. It's the third book since Christmas that has drawn me literally under the streets of London and into the sewers -- Neverwhere, By Gaslight and now Whispers Underground.  I am continuing to enjoy this Rivers of London series -- they are a good, quick read in between meatier books.

 

I may never finish A Man Called Ove. Just cannot bring myself to listen to any more of it. And I'm now questioning the character of a few long time friends who raved about Ove and hated LaLaLand. This may be a tougher dividing line to cross than politics, lol!!

 

My dh and I have been listening to Niall Ferguson's Civilization, a world history that attempts to cover, in an engaging, conversational manner, the reasons for the rise and dominance of Western Europe. I'm enjoying it so far as he is touching on questions that I had to tackle as an ungrad and grad student in Asian Studies classes -- why did China, a rich, technologically advanced empire, slowly stagnate, close its doors and fade while the West exploded with the Enlightenment, and trade and all the rest? He makes a good case for his answers, so far at least.  I'm thinking I'd like to read his Ascent of Money about the evolution of finance, and to round things off by finally getting to Guns, Germs and Steel.

[JennW in SoCal]

Finished Joseph Conrad's psychological thriller and/or delayed Victorian melodrama and/or deeply symbolic comment on the isolation of the subjective self (man is literally an island) Victory, made even better (and it was awfully good) by the Edward Gorey cover art and frontispiece. Also D. H. Lawrence's Selected Poems, which would have been much improved by omitting Kenneth Rexroth's introductory essay.

 

What terrific minimalist reviews. I now want a copy of Victory with an Edward Gorey cover.

[Mothersweets]

Probably me for the former as I read it last weekend.  Glad you liked it - flying through it is an apt description as that's how I read it too.

 

Now I'm intrigued by Truman based on your review and all the other enthusiastic reviews.  I've already put Radiance by Catherynne Valente and another book mentioned today (that I can't remember off the top of my head) on hold.  So many books!  Must go read.

 

 

Thank you - I really enjoyed it! 

 

 As far as Truman goes, at this time I'm into the more political part of his life and am still enjoying it. :)

[Angelaboord]

I have discovered graphic memoirs and I am hooked.

 

This weekend I read March (Book 3) by John Lewis and Soviet Daughter: A Graphic Revolution by Julia Aleksayevna. March is every bit as powerful and amazing as everyone says it is. This is the culminating story of Lewis' trilogy of the Civil Rights Movement, as told by Lewis, who was an integral part. I was stunned by the beginning - which, as a heads up is a very powerful portrayal of the bombing of the 16th St. Baptist Church. The graphic format was absolutely the right choice for this history. Highly recommended. My dd is reading it now, and since we live in the Memphis area, I hope we can pair our reading with a trip to the National Civil Rights Museum, which was made out of the Loraine Hotel where MLK was shot.

 

Soviet Daughter was not as good, but worth reading. The author's family emigrated from the Ukraine when she was 2 not because they were hoping for a better life in America but because they were worried about radioactivity from Chernobyl. After the author's great-grandmother (who had always been a committed communist) died at the age of 100, it was discovered that she had written a memoir. Aleksayevna took that memoir and turned it into a graphic memoir, adding drawings of family photos and her own involvement in her grandmother's story. The art's not terrific and Aleksayevna is kind of still at the point in her life when everything that is wrong with her is all her mother's fault. The poor-me-ness was a little weird after reading about how her great-grandmother had to work almost 24 hours a day at one point just to afford a bottle of milk to feed her daughter.

 

Serendipitously, Bookriot just posted a list of 100 Must Read Graphic Memoirs. http://bookriot.com/2017/02/10/100-must-read-graphic-memoirs

 

I'm also almost done with Right Ho, Jeeves (my first Wodehouse) and my "professional" book, The Learning Tree by Dr. Stanley Greenspan (kind of an overview of how he treats kids with learning disabilities).

 

Heather, I hope you find some answers for your dd soon!

 

And Mom-Ninja, I hope you got your tea and are feeling a little better.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Edited February 13, 2017 by Angelaboord

[Angelaboord]

I also thought this article was interesting: The Simple Truth Behind Reading 200 Books a Year https://betterhumans.coach.me/the-simple-truth-behind-reading-200-books-a-year-1767cb03af20#.vbisqwxej

 

I sort of flinched at the average number of hours a year the average American spends on social media. I don't think I spend that much time, but I definitely still think I would be reading more if I couldn't bring the Internet with me when I sit down to nurse the baby or rock her to sleep.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Little Nyssa]

Thank you to whoever recommended Truman's vacation- my Dad is loving it! Similarly my daughter is enjoying The Wee Free Men.

 

I read Josephine Tey- the Franchise Affair, which was very well done. Better than Marsh, almost as good as Allingham. She has a beautiful description here of a midlife crisis- "a bit of childhood crying out"

 

I also read PD James Mistletoe Murder- (short stories) of course, extremely well done, but as so often happens to me with this author, there is a darkness or violence that makes me want to take a shower. I don't know why other authors do not affect me this way.

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[aggieamy]

I'm back.  Done with taxes.  I'm sure I owe this year.  I'm just hoping it's close to what I have saved to pay in taxes and not 3x that amount.  We'll have to see what the accountant says tomorrow. 

 

Hi everyone! 

 

Last week I flew through North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Unusual Family and How I Survived Both by Cea Sunrise Person. I heard of it on here last week and I want to send out a thank you! to whomever recommended it!  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1905711179

 

I am also about halfway through Truman by my favorite historian - David McCullough. I'm so envious of Amy and the other ladies that live near his (Truman's) home!! The way McCullough describes Truman's childhood and growing up (especially the summer nights) was beautifully nostalgic. HIs writing just took me right there and I could almost smell the cut grass and feel the warmth of a late summer's day.

 

Well then you should just come visit me and we'll go to visit his house together!

[Just Robyn]

Heather and Mom-Ninja, I hope everyone gets well and that the doctors can figure things out!

 

 Serendipitously, Bookriot just posted a list of 100 Must Read Graphic Memoirs. http://bookriot.com/2017/02/10/100-must-read-graphic-memoirs

 

Great list, thanks for posting!

 

I also thought this article was interesting: The Simple Truth Behind Reading 200 Books a Year https://betterhumans.coach.me/the-simple-truth-behind-reading-200-books-a-year-1767cb03af20#.vbisqwxej

I sort of flinched at the average number of hours a year the average American spends on social media. I don't think I spend that much time, but I definitely still think I would be reading more if I couldn't bring the Internet with me when I sit down to nurse the baby or rock her to sleep.

 

That is an awful lot of time spent watching television. Social media - you don't really know the people are rotting their brains. Having a discussion is not automatically "TRASH" just because it happens on the Internet. Unfortunately, I can't see sending that article to anyone who needs it; they would just get defensive and/or immediately start making excuses, assuming they must be busier or more tired than anyone who makes time to read, and I would be seen as rude, not helpful or encouraging.

Edited February 13, 2017 by crstarlette

[Shawneinfl]

Hi everyone! 

 

Last week I flew through North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Unusual Family and How I Survived Both by Cea Sunrise Person. I heard of it on here last week and I want to send out a thank you! to whomever recommended it!  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1905711179

 

I am also about halfway through Truman by my favorite historian - David McCullough. I'm so envious of Amy and the other ladies that live near his (Truman's) home!! The way McCullough describes Truman's childhood and growing up (especially the summer nights) was beautifully nostalgic. HIs writing just took me right there and I could almost smell the cut grass and feel the warmth of a late summer's day.

 

Guess what? I'm reading North of Normal on my NOOK thanks to WTM and my hubby has Truman on his nightstand. Small world.

[ErinE]

. 

 

Edited February 19, 2018 by ErinE

[mumto2]

:grouphug: Butter and Mom Ninja...I hope everyone is starting to feel a bit better. Butter tell your dd we are all sending positive thoughts her way. I hope the Drs. figure things out soon.

 

Rose and Robin and any other Bawers in the area. I keep seeing pictures of the dam. No idea at all of the geography in that area......everyone OK? San Francisco is not affected right?

 

I finished my Steampunk Bingo square with The Boneshaker. Not at all what I expected but I enjoyed it in the end. I definitely like the fluffier steampunk reads better. I have found more in the series and will probably read them. I think my dd and Stacia's dd would probably love these.

 

I also read another T book for Amethyst, A Terrible Beauty by Tasha Alexander. This was number 11 in the Lady Emily series. Overall quite good.