:grouphug:

I say two thousand twelve, but twenty twelve also makes sense. Two thousand and twelve makes no sense to me, and sounds like it should be coming from a grizzled prospector or Abe Simpson with an onion in his belt. IMHO.

It does stain, and it's delicious. I use my the brown rice setting on my ancient electric rice cooker to prepare it, and corrals the mess nicely. People eating it, on the other hand...

Dang. I just ordered it this morning. I need less crushing in my life right now, so it doesn't sound like a good choice for me at the moment.

My first feedback is in July 1998. That's just scary. Not only did sellers once take checks, I frequently spoke both to buyers and sellers on my telephone, which was hard-wired into my wall. And my house had one phone jack.

Maybe it's just me. It's still a well-written book, and definitely worth your while if you like Alan Bradley's books and can get it from the library!

I never got around to posting last week, so am posting two weeks' worth today. I read A Red Herring Without Mustard and I Am Half-Sick of Shadows, both by Alan Bradley. I like the concept of these novels, but the first of the series, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, is still my favorite. They're getting a little too predictable for my taste. The books are still good reading, and just the thing while I was down with the flu. I loved Why Read Moby-Dick. I'm one who started Moby-Dick any number of times in my misspent youth and never finished it. It sounds so much more appealing now, and even more so after reading Philbrick's book. I have other things I need to read first, so I might not join the read-along, but Moby-Dick's definitely on my list to read soon. I'm reading Carlos Ruiz Zafón's The Angel's Game at the moment. It's very different from The Shadow of the Wind, but still wonderful. Currently reading: The Angel's Game Completed: 14. I am Half-Sick of Shadows 13. Why Read Moby-Dick 12. A Red Herring Without Mustard 11. The Prague Cemetery 10. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children 9. Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life 8. The Shadow of the Wind 7. 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel 6. Meditation of Marcus Aurelius 5. Ahab's Wife 4. The Autobiography of an Execution 3. A Midsummer Night's Dream 2. The Palace of Illusions 1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Heaven's going to be an awfully lonely place for those folks. They'll be rolling around like a few cupcake sprinkles in an empty #10 can if it's that exclusive.

Yes, all the time, and not only when reading historical fiction. I find myself reading books and looking at Google Earth constantly, trying to figure out exactly where things happened. Glad I'm not the only one!

You're just lucky they didn't take the tray as well! The first and only time I did the realtor-recommended bread baking, the potential buyer took my bread and its pan out of the oven and took it home. I called the realtor, who said that she knew the buyer had taken it, but figured that it was worth a potential sale. I told her that I guess I should count myself lucky that I still seemed to have all my underwear. And, no, the thief did not buy my house.

Thank you, Stacia!

I read The Prague Cemetery and loved it. It was beautifully written and deliciously complex, and the translation was a lot less clunky than some of Eco's other novels. It was an amazing piece of conspiracy theory fiction, with a narrator who cannot find anything good to say about anyone, resulting in rants so over-the-top offensive that they are hilarious. There are double agents, triple agents, forgeries, and delicious recipes. It really was a treat. A number of books came in from the library at the same time, so I have quite a stack at the moment: two Alan Bradley novels (I Am Half Sick of Shadows and A Red Herring Without Mustard), Why Read Moby Dick, Imaginary Jesus, and The Angel's Game. I'm starting with A Red Herring Without Mustard and will figure the rest out as I go along. Currently reading: A Red Herring Without Mustard Completed: 11. The Prague Cemetery 10. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children 9. Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life 8. The Shadow of the Wind 7. 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel 6. Meditation of Marcus Aurelius 5. Ahab's Wife 4. The Autobiography of an Execution 3. A Midsummer Night's Dream 2. The Palace of Illusions 1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone

I'm relieved that I wasn't the only one who thought Miss Peregrine's Home was a dud. :iagree: about A String in the Harp.

I'm in. It sounds wonderful. I'm getting it through ILL, so it won't be in until next week. Thanks for the recommendation!

I finished Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life and Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children this week. Whiskey Breakfast is a powerful work, but emotionally difficult (for me, anyway). Lindberg's description of his life as the product of a dysfunctional and broken immigrant home was poignant and exquisitely painful to read. It's not exactly uplifting, but Whiskey Breakfast is worthwhile if you're willing to consider that our clichéd notion of immigrant life in the US has little to do with reality. I had high hopes for Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, but I can only give it a resounding “meh.” Loved the cover, the title, and the use of weird vintage photography, but the story itself was entirely predictable. For some reason that I can't put my finger on, Miss Peregrine seemed more like a film treatment than a novel. Perhaps Ransom Riggs is waiting to be invited to write an episode of Doctor Who. Whovians, please don't take that to mean that the novel is of Who caliber: I'm thinking more along the lines of junior high fanfic (with massive apologies to most junior high fanfic). I read some horrific reviews of Umberto Eco's latest novel, The Prague Cemetery, but decided to ignore them and read it anyway. I love his work, even though I'm thoroughly exasperated with him by the end of every novel and swear that we're through, and this time I really mean it. We're still in the honeymoon stage this morning, but I'm sure I'll be feeling differently by tomorrow afternoon at the latest. Currently reading: The Prague Cemetery Completed: 9. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children 8. Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life 7. The Shadow of the Wind 6. 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel 5. Meditation of Marcus Aurelius 4. Ahab's Wife 3. The Autobiography of an Execution 2. A Midsummer Night's Dream 1. The Palace of Illusion

Yes, I certainly do. I've checked twice in the last half hour. :tongue_smilie:

I finished 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel and The Shadow of the Wind this week. About 13, rue Thérèse: I would like those hours of my life back, please. I can nearly always find some redeeming qualities in a book, but this was the exception. It wasn't very well written or particularly interesting. The whole premise of taking a box of real-life ephemera and crafting a story around it was intriguing, but the narrative she created was only possible because there were no relatives left to sue for libel. This book kind of left a bad taste in my mouth. On the other hand, I loved The Shadow of the Wind for so many reasons: gorgeous use of language, multiple parallel plots, sly humor, wonderful characters, and a starring role for Barcelona, one of my favorite cities. Ruiz Zafon does a remarkable job describing the aftereffects of Spain's civil war and life in fascist Barcelona. What a wonderful novel! I started Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life on Friday and am enjoying it very much. After Whiskey Breakfast, I'll read Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Currently reading: Whiskey Breakfast Completed: 8. The Shadow of the Wind 7. 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel 6. Meditation of Marcus Aurelius 5. Ahab's Wife 4. The Autobiography of an Execution 3. A Midsummer Night's Dream 2. The Palace of Illusion 1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone

:iagree: Custom guards are pricey, but they're worth it in the long run. I broke three teeth and two crowns before anyone thought to investigate whether I needed a night guard. Now I even wear mine during the day if I notice myself clenching.

Mine is still up. We didn't put it up until December 23rd, so we're not tired of it yet.

I think I found it, and it's GORGEOUS. Wow. If only!

I prefer not to if I can avoid it. I let my children have at it while I talk with the other moms.

Generally once a day for the four of us, but I hand wash pots.

I only clean the inside of the bowl once a week, but I give the outside and the floor around the toilet a quick swipe every day. Otherwise, it gets gross in a hurry.

I finished The Autobiography of an Execution, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Ahab's Wife, and the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius this week. After reading a few pages, I was resigned to not enjoying The Autobiography of an Execution because I didn't care for Dow's narrative style. I also thought he made it sound like anyone who doesn't think exactly like he does is an idiot, which I found off-putting even though I share his view on capital punishment. The story he told was so fascinating and horrifying that I had to keep reading, and I'm glad I did. What a powerful book! Ahab's Wife is a gem. I saw that the readalong was going to be over two weeks and was afraid I wouldn't be able to keep up because of my schedule over the few weeks, so went ahead and started it. I couldn't stop reading, and finished it in three days. Wow. I'll save my discussion for the group because I don't want to spoil the experience for anyone. Finished A Midsummer Night's Dream, although I don't seem to be participating in that group discussion. Read Marcus Aurelius's Meditations because someone recommended it on a thread on this forum recently. I don't remember who, but thank you! I don't know why I hadn't read it before. I gulped it down and am now planning to take it in smaller chunks over a long period of time. I'm currently reading 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel. I'm about a quarter of the way into it, and it's leaving me pretty much flat at this point, but I'm going to keep going to see if my opinion changes. Next up, The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. After that, I'll read Whiskey Breakfast: My Swedish Family, My American Life, by Richard C. Lindberg. I'm really looking forward to both. Currently reading: 13, rue Thérèse: A Novel Week 2: A Midsummer Night's Dream; The Autobiography of an Execution; Ahab's Wife; Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Week 1: Daughter of Smoke and Bone; The Palace of Illusions