Hello! *waves to everyone in the virtual livingroom* Hate to post and dash but things are a bit wonky around here, so... #118 Lost Weddings (Maria Beig; 1983 (1990 translation). 143 pages. Fiction.) #117 The Gap of Time (Hogarth Shakespeare) (Jeanette Winterson; 2015. 288 pages. Fiction.) #116 A Monster Calls (Patrick Ness; 2013. 224 pages. Fiction.) #115 Outcast, Vol. 2: A Vast and Unending Ruin (Robert Kirkman; 2015. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) The two Beig novels translated from German to English, Hermine and Lost Weddings, are not to be missed. (I posted a Paris Review link last week; it's what set me onto Beig.) This week, in between this thing that's driving me a bit batty and that thing that could send me over the edge, I am reading Jeff VanderMeer's second Southern Reach novel, Authority. I quite enjoyed Annihilation last year and cannot explain how I did not leap right into the next book. It's rather like LOST as a book. Heh, heh, heh. My world this week is a bit like LOST.

Dreiser's Sister Carrie and Willis' Doomsday do this, too -- depict conditions so realistically that a reader wrinkles his nose in disgust. Oh, and the non-fiction work Close to Shore, too.

Over the last week or so, I've completed the following: â– Hermine (Maria Beig; 1984 (2004 translation). 186 pages. Fiction.) â– The Blue (Lucy Clarke; 2015. 336 pages. Fiction.) â– A Head Full of Ghosts (Paul Tremblay; 2015. 304 pages. Fiction.) This article/post set me on the Beig novel. Highly recommended. I also really enjoyed Head Full: psychological horror, mental illness, possession, and the meltdown of the middle-class through the lens of a reality television camera. Haunting. The narrator was beguiling, too -- damaged but funny and smart. Recommended. Among other things, I'm (re)reading 1984, Agamemnon, and Schiff's The Witches.

Was Branagh's production mentioned re: The Winter's Tale project? Our family already has tickets. *grin* http://www.fathomevents.com/event/the-winters-tale I will join this challenge, as I'm always up for a rereading of Shakespeare and a good reimagining of his stories. If you haven't already indulged, consider complementing your project with Saccio's lectures on the play.

Stoner easily earned a spot on my "Top 100 Shelf." From my commonplace book (November 2010): p. 26 He began to resent the time he had to spend at work on the Foote farm. Having come to his studies late, he felt the urgency of study. Sometimes, immersed in his books, there would come to him the awareness of all that he did not know, of all that he had not read; and the serenity for which he labored was shattered as he realized the little time he had in life to read so much, to learn what he had to know. COMMENT: How accurately this passage describes those who, like me, like William Stoner, arrive at the scholar’s banquet late: We resent any activity that keeps us from reading, thinking, learning, synthesizing, writing. And we are occasionally all but undone by the realization that there will never be enough time to read all that we want — all we must read. ________________________ p. 74 Within a month he knew that his marriage was a failure; within a year he stopped hoping it would improve. COMMENT: In a sentence formed with the deceptive simplicity of a Shaker rocking chair, Williams establishes how Stoner’s inherited stoicism has and will inform his entire life — a life that the author maintains wasn’t “such a sad and bad†one, despite the ineffable melancholy the sentence above may evoke. After all, he continues in an interview about Stoner: He had a better life than most people do, certainly. He was doing what he wanted to do, he had some feeling for what he was doing, he had some sense of the importance of the job he was doing. COMMENT: Yes, since William Stoner is a man of so few relationships, the failure of his marriage before it even begins presages how essential his work will be. ________________________ p. 113 He suspected that he was beginning, ten years late, to discover who he was; and the figure he saw was both more and less than he had once imagined it to be. He felt himself at last beginning to be a teacher, which was simply a man to whom his book is true, to whom is given a dignity of art that has little to do with his foolishness or weakness or inadequacy as a man. It was knowledge of which he could not speak, but one which changed him, once he had it, so that no one could mistake its presence. COMMENT: The maturity, the wisdom of this self-realization and the quiet but essential way in which it strengthens Stoner will startle readers accustomed to the angsty navel-gazing that masquerades as penetrating insight in more contemporary novels. ________________________ p. 138 Almost from the first, the implications of the subject caught the students, and they all had that sense of discovery that comes when one feels that the subject at hand lies at the center of a much larger subject, and when one feels intensely that a pursuit of the subject is likely to lead — where, one does not know. COMMENT: I’ve experienced this sense of scholarly delight, intensity, and, yes, urgency more frequently in my autodidactic pursuits and in our family-centered learning project than in my undergraduate and graduate studies. ________________________ p. 179 He had come to that moment in his age when there occurred to him, with increasing intensity, a question of such overwhelming simplicity that he had no means to face it. He found himself wondering if his life were worth the living; if it had ever been. It was a question, he suspected, that came to all men at one time or another; he wondered if it came to them with such impersonal force as it came to him. The question brought with it a little sadness, but it was a general sadness which (he thought) had little to do with himself or with his particular fate; he was not even sure that the question sprang from the most immediate and obvious causes, from what his own life had become. It came, he believed, from the accretion of his years, from the density of accident and circumstance, and from what he had come to understand of them. He took a grim and ironic pleasure from the possibility that what little learning he had managed to acquire had led him to this knowledge: that in the long run all things, even the learning that let him know this, were futile and empty, and at last diminished into a nothingness they did not alter. COMMENT: This meditation occurs after Walker’s sham of a graduate examination and the repercussions of Stoner’s evaluation of his performance but before Katherine Driscoll’s re-entry into the professor’s life. Sandwiched, as it were, between these two defining moments in Stoner’s chronology, it may have read as midlife crisis and cliché had it not been for the stoicism and scholarly detachment with which Stoner examines and then dispatches the basic question of life: What does it all mean? ________________________ p. 232 And Stoner looked upon it all — the rage, the woe, the screams, and the hateful silences — as if it were happening to two other people, in whom, by an effort of the will, he could summon only the most perfunctory interest. COMMENT: In other words, one’s stoicism not only yields penetrating self-evaluation but also diminishes the effects of emotional gales. Like any philosophy, stoicism has its limits and disadvantages, but Stoner manages to employ it effectively. ________________________ From “The Inner Lives of Men†(NYT, June 17, 2007) This is the story of an ordinary man, seemingly thwarted at every turn, but also of the knotty integrity he preserves, the deep inner life behind the impassive facade.

Three years ago, I pressed the book My Ideal Bookshelf on anyone who would listen. “If you’re a reader,†I insisted, “you will love this book!†Well, my affection for the book continues unabated, so I’d like to recommend it once again. Your wish list will grow, as will your TBR pile. You will engage in a conversation with each contributor — even if just to exclaim inwardly, Oh! I have that, too! or to furrow your brow, Really? And you will labor over your own “ideal bookshelf.†Here is mine. Two years ago, my older daughter also drew the shelf for me. It's just perfect, and I really must figure out a way to get an image of her work without disassembling the frame. But enough about me. Have you read My Ideal Bookshelf? And even if you haven't, what would choose for yours? From Ideal Bookshelf: The books that we choose to keep and display—let alone read—can say a lot about who we are and how we see ourselves. In My Ideal Bookshelf, one hundred leading cultural figures, including writers Chuck Klosterman, Jennifer Egan, and Michael Chabon, musicians Patti Smith and Thurston Moore, chefs and food writers Alice Waters and Mark Bittman, and fashion designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte, reveal the books that matter to them most—books that reflect their obsessions and ambitions and in many cases helped them find their way in the world. Original paintings by artist Jane Mount showcase the selections, with colorful, hand-lettered book spines and occasional objets d’art from the contributors’ personal bookshelves. The paintings are accompanied by first-person commentary drawn from interviews with editor Thessaly La Force, which touch on everything from the choice of books to becoming a writer to surprising sources of inspiration. This exquisite collection provides rare insight into the creative process and artistic development of today’s most intriguing writers, innovators, and visionaries.

Hello! I've finished five books since my last post: ■High-Rise (J.G. Ballard; 1975 (2012 reprint). 208 pages. Fiction.) ■The Martian (Andy Weir; 2014. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Killing and Dying (Adrian Tomine; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Empty, Volume 1 (Jimmie Robinson; 2015. Graphic Fiction.) ■Descender, Volume 1: Tin Stars (Jeff Lemire; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) First published thirty years ago, High-Rise is a slick, smart dystopian parable. Most people are familiar with Ballard's Empire of the Sun (which was adapted by Spielberg into a film of the same title), but it's his novels that earned him the adjective "Ballardian." I liked this brisk work; it felt a bit like Lord of the Flies peopled by suburban adults. I'm not sure I can lend anything original to the general love heaped on Weir's book. It's certainly great fun, and we're looking forward to seeing the movie. What I'd like to do is press Tomine's Killing and Dying on you. Set aside any misgivings and/or preconceptions you may have about graphic works. Tomine demonstrates absolute mastery of the short story form in his newest book. Yes, this is a well drawn collection; he effortlessly demonstrates what the genre can achieve in capable hands. But more importantly, it is a terrifically told collection, one that elicits involuntary gasps when it reminds us -- as the best fiction will -- that stories often reveal far greater truths that non-fiction ever could. If I missed the conversation, forgive me, but did anyone see Hamlet on Thursday night? I could go on and on about how disappointed I was in the production's wan and rather clueless Horatio (one who fails to give us anything to which we can hold fast during Hamlet’s whirlwind tour of life, man’s universe, and everything in it), but I will spare you. Besides, there's so much to recommend here, from the unconventional star’s turn in a bucket-list role to the jaw-dropping set and its many effects, from the twitchy heartbreak Ophelia represents to the intelligent self-possession Gertrude uncovers. National Theatre Live has already announced its encore performances. If you missed it on Thursday, grab tickets to an encore. It will be $20 well spent.

Hello, BaWers! I reached my goal of 104 books read in 2015 late last month and surpassed it this week. Here are some stats: 43 fiction titles (does not include graphic works) Standouts include: ■Fates and Furies (Lauren Groff; 2015. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Compulsion (Meyer Levin; 1956 (2015 reissue). 480 pages. Fiction.) ■Afterwards (Rosamond Lupton; 2013. 415 pages. Fiction.) ■My Wish List (Gregoire Delacourt; 2014. 176 pages. Fiction.) ■Passing (Nella Larsen; 1929 (2003). 160 pages. Fiction.) ■The Expendable Man (Dorothy B. Hughes; 1963 (2012). 264 pages. Fiction.) ■Private Peaceful (Michael Morpurgo; 2003. 202 pages. Fiction.) ■The Water Knife (Paolo Bacigalupi; 2015. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■The Subprimes (Karl Taro Greenfeld; 2015. 320 pages. Fiction.) ■All My Puny Sorrows (Miriam Toews; 2014. 330 pages. Fiction.) ■Afterparty (Daryl Gregory; 2014. 304 pages. Fiction.) 28 non-fiction titles (does not include graphic works) Standouts include: ■Will Not Attend: Lively Stories of Detachment and Isolation (Adam Resnick; 2014. 272 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir (Diane Athill; 2009. 192 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Psychopath Test (Jon Ronson; 2011. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) ■So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed (Jon Ronson; 2015. 304 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion (Meghan Daum; 2014. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) 7 plays Standouts include: ■A View from the Bridge (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) ■The Price (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) ■Anne Boleyn (Howard Brenton; 2011. Drama.) ■The Little Foxes (Lillian Hellman; 1947. Drama.) 28 graphic works, one of which was non-fiction Standouts include: ■The Divine (Boaz Lavie and Asaf Hanuka; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Letter 44, Vol. 1: Escape Velocity (Charles Soule; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Bunker, Vol. 2 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2015. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Bunker, Vol. 1 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2014. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) That's 106 books to date, then. I'll post the complete list -- a reverse chronology of my reading year, to date -- below. In the remaining three months, I'm hoping to make amends to a number of well appreciated but recklessly abandoned books. I'm generally an unapologetically promiscuous reader -- loving one book but dashing off to another's promising pages before appropriately ending the first relationship. I'm looking at the titles left in my wake, however, and I've decided it's time to bring these partially read titles some closure. Heh, heh, heh. So that's how I will spend my reading time for the remainder of this year. The complete list, as of October 4: ■Fates and Furies (Lauren Groff; 2015. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Compulsion (Meyer Levin; 1956 (2015 reissue). 480 pages. Fiction.) ■The Admissions (Meg Mitchell Moore; 2015. 320 pages. Fiction.) ■Fit and Fabulous in 15 Minutes (Teresa Tapp; 2006. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) ■No Sweat: How the Simple Science of Motivation Can Bring You a Lifetime of Fitness (Michelle Segar; 2015. 272 pages. Non-fiction.) ■How to Teach Adults: Plan Your Class, Teach Your Students, Change the World (Dan Spalding; 2014. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The ESL Teacher’s Survival Guide (Larry Ferlazzo and Katie Hull Sypnieski; 2012. 336 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Teaching Adult ESL: A Practical Introduction (Betsy Parrish; 2004. 317 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Divine (Boaz Lavie and Asaf Hanuka; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■ApocalyptiGirl: An Aria for the End Times (Andrew MacLean; 2015. 88 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■We Only Know So Much (Elizabeth Crane; 2012. 280 pages. Fiction.) ■Incident at Vichy (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) ■A View from the Bridge (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) ■Low, Vol. 1: The Delirium of Hope (Rick Remender; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Price (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) ■Marjorie Prime (Jordan Harrison; 2013. Drama.) ■The One and Only Ivan (Katherine Applegate; 2012. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Delirium (Lauren Oliver; 2011. 480 pages. Fiction.) ■Luckiest Girl Alive (Jessica Knoll; 2015. 352 pages. Fiction.) ■Saga, Vol. 5 (Brian K. Vaughan; 2015. 152 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Walking Dead, Vol. 24: Life and Death (Robert Kirkman; 2015. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Sex Criminals, Vol. 2: Two Worlds, One Cop (Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky; 2015. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Sex Criminals, Vol. 1: One Weird Trick (Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky; 2014. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Black Chalk (Christopher J. Yates; 2015. 352 pages. Fiction.) ■Cymbeline (William Shakespeare (1611?); Folger ed. 2003. 384 pages. Drama.) ■How to Be a Good Wife (Emma Chapman; 2013. 288 pages. Fiction.) ■You Should Have Known (Jean Hanff Korelitz; 2014. 448 pages. Fiction.) ■Wytches, Vol. 1 (Scott Snyder; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The 17-Day Diet (Mike Moreno; 2013. 368 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Will Not Attend: Lively Stories of Detachment and Isolation (Adam Resnick; 2014. 272 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Afterwards (Rosamond Lupton; 2013. 415 pages. Fiction.) ■Me Before You (Jojo Moyes; 2012. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss (Joel Fuhrman; 2011. 400 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Never List (Koethi Zan; 2013. 320 pages. Fiction.) ■My Wish List (Gregoire Delacourt; 2014. 176 pages. Fiction.) ■Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll; 1865 (2008). 176 pages. Fiction.) ■The Death Class: A True Story About Life (Erika Hiyasaki; 2014. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Primates of Park Avenue: A Memoir (Wednesday Martin; 2015. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Letter 44, Vol. 1: Escape Velocity (Charles Soule; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Witch of Hebron: A World Made by Hand Novel (James Howard Kunstler; 2010. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Moon Tiger (Penelope Lively; 1987. 208 pages. Fiction.) * ■They’re Not Like Us, Vol. 1: Black Holes for the Young (Eric Stephenson; 2014. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Postal, Vol. 1 (Matt Hawkins; 2015. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Walking Dead, Vol. 23: Whispers into Screams (Robert Kirkman; 2015. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The House of Paper (Carlos Maria Dominguez; 2005. 103 pages. Fiction.) ■The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson; 1884 (2012). 144 pages. Fiction.) ■The Bunker, Vol. 2 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2015. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Day Four (Sarah Lotz (2015). 352 pages. Fiction.) ■The Bunker, Vol. 1 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2014. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Passing (Nella Larsen; 1929 (2003). 160 pages. Fiction.) ■Only Ever Yours (Louise O’Neill; 2014. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■The Expendable Man (Dorothy B. Hughes; 1963 (2012). 264 pages. Fiction.) ■Mind of Winter (Laura Kasischke; 2014. 288 pages. Fiction.) ■The Inner Circle (Brad Meltzer; 2011. 464 pages. Fiction.) ■Half Bad (Sally Green; 2014. 416 pages. Fiction.) ■Private Peaceful (Michael Morpurgo; 2003. 202 pages. Fiction.) ■Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir (Diane Athill; 2009. 192 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Parenting Out of Control: Anxious Parents in Uncertain Times (Margaret Nelson; 2010. 276 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Water Knife (Paolo Bacigalupi; 2015. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Silent Alarm (Jennifer Banash; 2015. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Anne Boleyn (Howard Brenton; 2011. Drama.) ■The Art of Stillness: Adventures in Going Nowhere (Pico Iyer; 2014. 96 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing (Marie Kondo; 2014. 224 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Psychopath Test (Jon Ronson; 2011. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Subprimes (Karl Taro Greenfeld; 2015. 320 pages. Fiction.) ■So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed (Jon Ronson; 2015. 304 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Shooting Arrows: Archery for Adult Beginners (Steve Ruis; 2012. 124 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Beginner’s Guide to Traditional Archery (Brian J. Sorrells; 2004. 122 pages. Non-fiction.) * ■The Little Foxes (Lillian Hellman; 1947. Drama.) ■Jean Luc Mylayne (Terrie Sultan, and more; 2007. 140 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Lazarus, Vol. 3: Conclave (Greg Rucka; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Joe the Barbarian (Grant Morrison; 2011. 224 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■All My Puny Sorrows (Miriam Toews; 2014. 330 pages. Fiction.) ■Container Gardening for the Midwest (William Aldrich; 2008. 208 pages. Non-fiction.) ■How to Win at College: Surprising Secrets for Success from the Country’s Top Students (Cal Newport; 2005. 193 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Read This! (Hans Weyandt; 2012 200 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Outcast (Robert Kirkman; 2015. 152 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Birthright, Vol. 1: Homecoming (Joshua Williamson; 2015. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Spread, Vol. 1: No Hope (Justin Jordan; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Woods, Vol. 1 (James Tynion; 2014. 96 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Odd Thomas (Dean Koontz; 2003. 480 pages. Fiction.) ■My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece (Annabel Pitcher; 2015. 224 pages. Fiction.) ■The Descent (Tim Johnston; 2015. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■The Stranger (Harlan Corben; 2015. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 5: For a Better Future (Nick Spencer; 2013. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 4: Truants (Nick Spencer; 2013. 216 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 3: P.E. (Nick Spencer; 2012. 240 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 2: All Will Be Free (Nick Spencer; 2011. 168 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 1: For a Better Future (Nick Spencer; 2011. 192 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Girl on the Train (Paula Hawkins; 2015. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Afterparty (Daryl Gregory; 2014. 304 pages. Fiction.) ■Howards End Is on the Landing: A Year of Reading from Home (Susan Hill; 2009. 240 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Undivided (Neal Shusterman; 2014. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant?: A Memoir (Roz Chast; 2014. 240 pages. Graphic memoir.) ■The Party, After You Left (Roz Chast; 2014. 96 pages. Graphic collection.) ■The Days of Abandonment (Elena Ferrante; 2005. 188 pages. Fiction.) ■Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data (Charles Wheelan; 2013. 302 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Storm in the Barn (Matt Phelan; 2009. 208 pages. Graphic fiction.) ■Kayak Morning: Reflections on Love, Grief, and Small Boats (Roger Rosenblatt; 2012. 160 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Reading as Therapy: What Contemporary Fiction Does for Middle-Class Americans (Timothy Aubry; 2011. 268 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Dept. of Speculation (Jenny Offill; 2014. 192 pages. Fiction.) ■The Paying Guests (Sarah Waters; 2014. 576 pages. Fiction.) ■Vodou (Mauro Peressini and Rachel Beauvoir-Dominique; 2013. 108 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion (Meghan Daum; 2014. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Shining Girls (Lauren Beukes; 2013. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Abroad (Katie Crouch; 2014. 304 pages. Fiction.) * Denotes a reread

#92 The Price (Arthur Miller; 1968. Drama.) #91 Marjorie Prime (Jordan Harrison; 2013. Drama.) #90 The One and Only Ivan (Katherine Applegate; 2012. 336 pages. Fiction.) I will finish Miller's A View from the Bridge and Elizabeth Crane's novel We Only Know So Much by the time our holiday concludes, which will put me at #94 in my quest to read at least 104 books in 2015. NOTES: We saw Timeline Theatre's staging of The Price. (Here's the Sun-Times review, if you're interested; I thoroughly disagree with the Tribune's assessment of Act II, though). If you're in or around Chicago, get there, if for no other reason than Mike Nussbaum's portrayal of Gregory Solomon, the 89-year-old furniture appraiser. Nussbaum, a Chicago treasure on the cusp of his ninety-second birthday, performs with more strength and agility, both physical and mental, than many actors half, even a third, his age. We will see Marjorie Prime at the Writers Theatre later this fall. And Ivan.... Many of you have already encountered this lovely book. My older daughter pressed it on me again this summer. Beautifully moving from first page to last. BEYOND BOOKS: So, it's been about fifteen months since our home education journey ended. Although in this same space about a year ago, I vehemently declared that I did not want another pet, I adopted a cat about two weeks later. My son's cat died unexpectedly two years ago last month. And, yes, Kenyon: "We stood and brushed each other off. / There are sorrows keener than these." That we know, perhaps better than many, how much keener sorrow can be may explain the year we left his best feline friend, our daughters' cat, with her only her thoughts and her humans. All at once, though, it seemed as if enough time had passed. In the year since my denial / turnaround, the new cat and the middle-aged cat have become, if not friends, certainly decent acquaintances. And she makes me smile. She is far more cat-like that the other two, and she's sort of a goof, splatting into walls in pursuit of birds, for example, or falling off tables while watching the other cat. As I mentioned recently, I moved into the intermediate books in my flute lessons, and there are days when I actually make something approaching music. My Spanish studies are progressing, but I have been remiss about the ornithology course. And my husband and I have jumped into ESL instruction with heart and creativity. Our current group comprises more than a dozen students who have just begun on their journey to learn English. What a grand adventure -- for all of us! EDITED TO ADD: Have you been to Broadway on Screen, Fathom Events, and/or Live at the National Theatre? I ask because my family has enjoyed Driving Miss Daisy (Lansbury, Jones), Giulio Cesare and Aida (the Met), and Frankenstein (Cumberbatch, Miller), and Cumberbatch's Hamlet is coming up next month. This seems like a group that might really want tickets for that. (And, yes, we already have ours.)

Oh, gosh, what a lovely topic! Yes, a thousand times. If time and treasure permit, take them. We lived in Chicago for a decade before moving first to the little house in the tiny woods on the prairie and then to the "forever" home. We are still downtown two, three, four, or more times per month -- primarily for plays (and, of course, the museums) but also for Chicago Symphony programs and productions at the Lyric Opera. * The Misses, now seventeen and nineteen, are musicians, so particular highlights over the years have included live performances given by Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Joshua Bell (violin), Itzhak Perlman (violin), Leif Ove Andsnes (piano), Maurizio Pollini (piano), Chris Thile (mandolin), Kirill Gerstein (piano), and Tommy Emmanuel (guitar)** -- to say nothing of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra led by Ricardo Muti. Miss M-mv(i) is also something of an emerging opera "buff," so we indulge her. *smile* At the Lyric, we've seen The Merry Widow, Carmen, The Magic Flute, Elektra, La Bohème, Oklahoma, Madame Butterfly, and Porgy and Bess. This season, she's making a strong case for Wozzeck. We've already renewed subscriptions or purchased tickets for ninety percent of what we'll see in the 2015/16 season, but I'm dragging my feet on Wozzeck because they have so little time this semester, and none of the six performances really works in their schedule. I know. Small problems, right? You asked what shows we've taken them to. For us, that's fifteen-plus years of theatergoing (*smile*), so here's a list of the plays and musicals we've seen in the last eighteen months or so: ■The Phantom of the Opera at the Cadillac Palace Theatre (Broadway in Chicago) ■Gypsy at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■The Two Gentlemen of Verona, a Shakespeare Project of Chicago production ■Hedda Gabler at the Writers Theatre ■Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Cadillac Palace Theatre (Broadway in Chicago) ■Road Show at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■Rent at the Paramount Theater ■All’s Well That Ends Well, a Shakespeare Project of Chicago production ■The Foreigner at Lambs Players Theatre in San Diego ■Henry V at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■The Dance of Death at the Writers Theatre ■Hamlet (Globe Theatre) at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■Much Ado about Nothing at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival ■Elizabeth Rex at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival ■Antony and Cleopatra at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival ■Brigadoon at the Goodman Theatre ■King Lear at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■Cats at the Paramount Theater ■All My Sons at the Raven Theatre ■Iphigenia in Aulis at the Court Theatre ■The Testament of Mary at the Victory Gardens Theater ■Isaac’s Eye at the Writers Theatre ■The Humans at the American Theatre Company ■Pericles at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■A Q Brothers’ Christmas Carol at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■Waiting for Godot at the Court Theatre ■Dunsinane at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■The Book of Mormon at the Bank of America Theatre (Broadway in Chicago:) ■The Good Book at the Court Theatre ■Les Miserables at the Paramount Theatre ■The Little Foxes at the Goodman Theatre ■Sense and Sensibility at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater ■Doubt at the Writers Theatre ■Anne Frank at the Writers Theatre ■Moby Dick at the LookingglassTheatre ■Q Gents at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival ■Grand Concourse at the Steppenwolf Theatre I'd like to add that one need not live in or near a major city to see great theater, opera, and concerts. Fathom Events, National Theatre Live, and Broadway on Screen allow one to see all it all right in a nearby movie theater. We recently saw the Met's production of Aida while relaxing in recliners and munching on popcorn. There were only about eight other patrons in the theater. It was delightful. We've also seen a live broadcast of the Met's Giulio Cesare (Fathom Events) this way, as well as Driving Miss Daisy (Broadway on Screen), and Frankenstein (Cumberbatch as the Monster; National Theatre Live), and we have tickets for National Theatre Live's Hamlet with Cumberbatch for this fall. *We have also learned to appreciate that many of the national tours come through Milwaukee: We saw Wicked there before seeing it again in Chicago, for example. ** We actually caught Tommy Emmanuel at the ECC Arts Center.

Hello, BaWers! Here are the books I've finished since my last post (Week #29): #83 Black Chalk (Christopher J. Yates; 2015. 352 pages. Fiction.) #82 Cymbeline (William Shakespeare (1611?); Folger ed. 2003. 384 pages. Drama.) #81 How to Be a Good Wife (Emma Chapman; 2013. 288 pages. Fiction.) #80 You Should Have Known (Jean Hanff Korelitz; 2014. 448 pages. Fiction.) #79 Wytches, Vol. 1 (Scott Snyder; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) #78 The 17-Day Diet (Mike Moreno; 2013. 368 pages. Non-fiction.) #77 Will Not Attend: Lively Stories of Detachment and Isolation (Adam Resnick; 2014. 272 pages. Non-fiction.) #76 Afterwards (Rosamond Lupton; 2013. 415 pages. Fiction.) #75 Me Before You (Jojo Moyes; 2012. 384 pages. Fiction.) #74 Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss (Joel Fuhrman; 2011. 400 pages. Non-fiction.) #73 The Never List (Koethi Zan; 2013. 320 pages. Fiction.) #72 My Wish List (Gregoire Delacourt; 2014. 176 pages. Fiction.) #71 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll; 1865 (2008). 176 pages. Fiction.) Random comments: -- The Misses and I liked Cymbeline so much more than our prep reading led us to believe we would. -- I didn't like Alice when I was little, nor when I reread it in college. I still don't like it. -- Diet book: sigh. -- The Resnick book is hi.lar.i.ous but contains language and subject matter that may offend some readers. -- Lupton's Sister was one of the best books I read in 2012; Afterwards is even better. -- Me Before You, on the other hand? Blergh. I do not understand the praise. -- My Wish List was a winner for me. I know the reviews are rather split, but I liked the resolution. -- Two decent psychological "thrillers": How to Be a Good Wife and You Should Have Known. -- Since my last post we've seen three plays (Moby Dick at the Lookingglass (outstanding!), Q Gents at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival (the Q Brothers get better with each "ad-rap-tation"), and Grand Concourse at Steppenwolf (some pacing issues but fine acting and compelling material)) and an opera (Aida via Fathom Events -- popcorn and recliners are a comfy way to watch long operas, I'll tell you). We also watched the White Sox walk all over the Yankees, nursed Miss M-mv(i) though a pretty uneventful oral surgery recovery (all four wisdom teeth), and *finally* resolved the washing machine repair debacle of the century. Heh, heh, heh. -- My daughters began their fall semester at the local college. Last month, the youngest learned that she had been awarded a large merit scholarship for STEM majors. Proud parent moment, to be sure. They *still* have not decided where they'd like to transfer. I'm proud and excited to hear about all of the doors flung open to them, based on their Phi Theta Kappa membership and their college performance, and I know that, technically, they have plenty of time before the deadlines, but I'd like them to choose soon. Off to see what everyone else is reading!

Late to the party. Again. *wry grin* I hope all of the BaWers are doing well. Here are the last five books I've read: #70 The Death Class: A True Story About Life (Erika Hiyasaki; 2014. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) #69 Primates of Park Avenue: A Memoir (Wednesday Martin; 2015. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) #68 Letter 44, Vol. 1: Escape Velocity (Charles Soule; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) #67The Witch of Hebron: A World Made by Hand Novel (James Howard Kunstler; 2010. 336 pages. Fiction.) #66 Moon Tiger (Penelope Lively; 1987. 208 pages. Fiction.) Moon Tiger was a reread and was even better nearly three decades later. Because I'm a fan of Kunstler, I made apologies for his clunkily written but compellingly conceived A World Made by Hand. Well, his fiction-writing skills have improved vastly since that first go-round, if Witch is any indication. If you're looking for in-a-whimper-not-a-bang dystopia, you should check out his series. The Death Class began as one sort of book and ended as another. Meh on that one and Primates. Any graphic fiction fans out there? Letter 44 is a little jumpy but pretty cool, no? Related (sort of): We caught the Writers Theatre production of The Diary of Anne Frank. If you've seen the excellent reviews, you can believe them. The Writers Theatre is wringing all of the intimacy it can from its tiny venues while the new theatre is being built. Doubt at a nearby church. Dance of Death, Isaac's Eye, and now The Diary of Anne Frank in its birthplace, the bookstore on Vernon. The set actually puts the audience in the annex with the families. Groups of ten are ushered through a door behind a bookcase, along a narrow hallway, and up a flight of stairs. The set is as much a character as Anne herself. Good, good stuff. Next up for my group is the Lookingglass production of Moby Dick. Some of you may remember that 2013 was the year of Moby Dick for the family-centered learning project. Naturally, we're pretty stoked about the play. Unrelated: Did I mention that I nailed that long étude to close out my studies in the Rubank Elementary? *tiny bow* I got it in one, folks. So now I'm in the Intermediate book. Yay to me! And my return to Spanish is going well. I do not know where it will lead, but right now, I'm enjoying the challenge, and I think the ESL students I tutor will appreciate the empathy I bring to our class meetings.

Re: The boldfaced bit -- We have similar interactions here, especially now that the Misses are working more and, hence, bringing home more money. I'm not certain, but I think we may have done something right back in the day when they would ask if there was something they could do. For example, if my husband and I were working on a project, one of the kids might say, "Is there something I can help with?" If there were, well, sure, but when there wasn't, we would say, "No, but thank you for asking. Asking is always a big help." So now they will ask when we're heading out to dinner or a play or out buying books or whatever, "Can I pitch in?" Most recently, I replied, "Don't stop asking because it's kind, gracious, and mature, but know this: as long as you're doing your 'job' [sharing in the care of our home, studying, volunteering, working parttime, etc.], we've got whatever we've offered covered."

Everyone has experienced some doubt, and I think it may, in fact, be a bit more stressful for the home educator. It's not easy to trod an unconventional path and then hope to arrive at a conventional destination, after all. As another poster so wisely pointed out, though, even if there have been missteps, contrary to what too many maintain, it is *never* too late to redress educational "wrongs." If you can't get there this way, try that way. That way is blocked? There's another.

This: On the one hand, many of the parents in these families are extremely close to their children. They communicate constantly. But the whole situation is fraught. These parents unconsciously regard their children as an arts project and insist their children go to colleges and have jobs that will give the parents status and pleasure — that will validate their effectiveness as dads and moms. Gosh. I used to write about the "professionalization" of motherhood. This is the result. The kids become the parents' report cards or year-end reviews.

At a long-course meet two summers ago, we bumped into a young woman who had once been on the same team as our daughters. She had just graduated high school and was talking to us about going away to college. I asked about her plans. I meant her major, of course, but she seemed to take it differently. "I want money," she told us. "I want all the things my parents never gave me. I want a boat. I want to travel. I want money. A lot of it." At first, I thought she was being funny, but my daughters knew she meant it. We haven't seen her since. She never did mention what she intended to study. In the two years since, every once in a while, one of us will intone, "I want a boat." It's a sly insider remark on a display of entitlement or general brattiness that we're observing.

Edouard Vuillard The Painter Ker-Xavier Roussel and His Daughter 1903 Henri Matisse La Musique 1939 Joan Miró Carnaval d'Alequin 1924-25 Max Beckmann Hotel Lobby 1950 Miró and Beckmann are particular favorites of mine. Here is another image (and, again, the images in this post were taken by this poster) of the Hotel Lobby:

Here are the most recent additions to my list: #61 The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson; 1884 (2012). 144 pages. Fiction.) #60 The Bunker, Vol. 2 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2015. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) #59 Day Four (Sarah Lotz (2015). 352 pages. Fiction.) #58 The Bunker, Vol. 1 (Joshua Hale Fialkov; 2014. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) The Misses and I *loved* the Stevenson. Thank you to the BaWer who recently posted about it. Splendid! I am halfway through Hayasaki's The Death Class (related article here). For those of you in the Chicagoland area, "Van Gogh to Pollock: The Modern Rebels" at the Milwaukee Art Museum is worth the drive. My family spent the afternoon at the exhibit yesterday. The following are this poster's images: And are there any Renaissance Faire folk in our midst? The Bristol Ren Faire opened on Saturday. Good times, good times.

Thank you for the kind words and the "likes."

My youngest graduated high school this May, a year earlier than her same-age peers and with 34 transferable college credits completed. Last fall, she applied to three in-state universities and was offered merit scholarships with her admission offer at each. She was also invited to compete for a full scholarship (tuition, fees, room, and board) at her third choice. She completed that process and was offered a full tuition award, which was gratifying but not enough to persuade her to attend. She also applied to the foundation scholarship programs at all three schools. Receiving the letters anouncing scholarship awards from the physics departments of her first and second choices provided the most excitement during the whole traditional college admissions game in which she was engaged during her senior year. You could have read in the glow she was giving off when those letters arrived! (I need to add that she completed the college and scholarship application process while she was enrolled fulltime at the local college. I'm not sure what it's like in other school districts, but here, high school seniors are provided with at least one class period daily throughout the fall for this process. They are assisted with applications, essays, etc. They are also awarded days to attend college visits and interviews. Not so, for my fulltime college student. More, in addition to her fulltime course load, she worked ten hours weekly, completed the "Saturday Morning Physics" program at Fermi, and kept up with her music studies and lessons. Let's just say that it was a challenge. ) In the end, she decided to remain at the local college, where she and her sister were inducted into Phi Theta Kappa after their first semester. They will graduate next May and are in the process of refining their "new and improved" list of transfer schools. They will begin the transfer application process next month. We have impressed upon them the importance of seeking out merit scholarships and other merit-based awards and opportunities, and as the spring semester was concluding, they culled through the list of the local college's scholarship foundation and identified five scholarships for which they might qualify. In they end, they were actually eligible for four, and they applied for three. Earlier this week, my youngest received a letter offering her a large scholarship for the fall semester. The endowment is specifically for STEM majors, so this gave her nearly as much pleasure as those physics scholarship offers. The achievement is all hers, of course, but I can't help but feel that our unconventional path is validated by conventional successes -- their academic performance this year, their success in the admission and scholarship process (during academic year 2013/14, my middle child also was admitted to all three of the colleges to which she applied and received merit scholarship offers (full tuition) to two), and this most recent award. Frankly, I inwardly squealed, "It works! It really works!" when they applied for and were offered jobs for this summer. I don't really dabble in doubt, but one can't help but feel a tiny nudge of worry while striding down a path few others are taking. Most of the people who know our daughters have Very Big ideas about where they should be. What they don't realize is that the Misses also have Very Big ideas. They are simply taking a route that runs on their schedule, requires no debt, and yields a host of additional skills to get them through if their "dream jobs" prove elusive (or low-paying). Thanks for "listening" and for "getting" it.

Happy Independence Day, fellow readers! Two more for my list: #57 -- Passing (Nella Larsen; 1929 (2003). 160 pages. Fiction.) #56 -- Only Ever Yours (Louise O’Neill; 2014. 400 pages. Fiction.) Thank you to whoever recommended Passing last year (when I bought it) and this week (when I read it). It was the sort of book that reminded me why I love to read, and it tied in unintentionally well with The Expendable Man. My daughters studied the Harlem Renaissance in their humanities course this summer, so that was another dash of serendipity / synchronicity / synthesis.

The appeal of this book was lost on me, too. Thirty books? I remember thinking, looking around our home. Um, no.

Twice inspired by Jane. First, here is my list: ■The Expendable Man (Dorothy B. Hughes; 1963 (2012). 264 pages. Fiction.) ■Mind of Winter (Laura Kasischke; 2014. 288 pages. Fiction.) ■The Inner Circle (Brad Meltzer; 2011. 464 pages. Fiction.) ■Half Bad (Sally Green; 2014. 416 pages. Fiction.) ■Private Peaceful (Michael Morpurgo; 2003. 202 pages. Fiction.) ■Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir (Diane Athill; 2009. 192 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Parenting Out of Control: Anxious Parents in Uncertain Times (Margaret Nelson; 2010. 276 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Water Knife (Paolo Bacigalupi; 2015. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Silent Alarm (Jennifer Banash; 2015. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Anne Boleyn (Howard Brenton; 2011. Drama.) ■The Art of Stillness: Adventures in Going Nowhere (Pico Iyer; 2014. 96 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing (Marie Kondo; 2014. 224 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Psychopath Test (Jon Ronson; 2011. 288 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Subprimes (Karl Taro Greenfeld; 2015. 320 pages. Fiction.) ■So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed (Jon Ronson; 2015. 304 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Shooting Arrows: Archery for Adult Beginners (Steve Ruis; 2012. 124 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Beginner’s Guide to Traditional Archery (Brian J. Sorrells; 2004. 122 pages. Non-fiction.) * ■The Little Foxes (Lillian Hellman; 1947. Drama.) ■Jean Luc Mylayne (Terrie Sultan, and more; 2007. 140 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Lazarus, Vol. 3: Conclave (Greg Rucka; 2015. 144 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Joe the Barbarian (Grant Morrison; 2011. 224 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■All My Puny Sorrows (Miriam Toews; 2014. 330 pages. Fiction.) ■Container Gardening for the Midwest (William Aldrich; 2008. 208 pages. Non-fiction.) ■How to Win at College: Surprising Secrets for Success from the Country’s Top Students (Cal Newport; 2005. 193 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Read This! (Hans Weyandt; 2012 200 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Outcast (Robert Kirkman; 2015. 152 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Birthright, Vol. 1: Homecoming (Joshua Williamson; 2015. 128 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Spread, Vol. 1: No Hope (Justin Jordan; 2015. 160 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Woods, Vol. 1 (James Tynion; 2014. 96 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Odd Thomas (Dean Koontz; 2003. 480 pages. Fiction.) ■My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece (Annabel Pitcher; 2015. 224 pages. Fiction.) ■The Descent (Tim Johnston; 2015. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■The Stranger (Harlan Corben; 2015. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 5: For a Better Future (Nick Spencer; 2013. 136 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 4: Truants (Nick Spencer; 2013. 216 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 3: P.E. (Nick Spencer; 2012. 240 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 2: All Will Be Free (Nick Spencer; 2011. 168 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■Morning Glories, Vol. 1: For a Better Future (Nick Spencer; 2011. 192 pages. Graphic Fiction.) ■The Girl on the Train (Paula Hawkins; 2015. 336 pages. Fiction.) ■Afterparty (Daryl Gregory; 2014. 304 pages. Fiction.) ■Howards End Is on the Landing: A Year of Reading from Home (Susan Hill; 2009. 240 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Undivided (Neal Shusterman; 2014. 384 pages. Fiction.) ■Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant?: A Memoir (Roz Chast; 2014. 240 pages. Graphic memoir.) ■The Party, After You Left (Roz Chast; 2014. 96 pages. Graphic collection.) ■The Days of Abandonment (Elena Ferrante; 2005. 188 pages. Fiction.) ■Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data (Charles Wheelan; 2013. 302 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Storm in the Barn (Matt Phelan; 2009. 208 pages. Graphic fiction.) ■Kayak Morning: Reflections on Love, Grief, and Small Boats (Roger Rosenblatt; 2012. 160 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Reading as Therapy: What Contemporary Fiction Does for Middle-Class Americans (Timothy Aubry; 2011. 268 pages. Non-fiction.) ■Dept. of Speculation (Jenny Offill; 2014. 192 pages. Fiction.) ■The Paying Guests (Sarah Waters; 2014. 576 pages. Fiction.) ■Vodou (Mauro Peressini and Rachel Beauvoir-Dominique; 2013. 108 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion (Meghan Daum; 2014. 256 pages. Non-fiction.) ■The Shining Girls (Lauren Beukes; 2013. 400 pages. Fiction.) ■Abroad (Katie Crouch; 2014. 304 pages. Fiction.) * Denotes a reread I've reached fifty-five in my quest to reach at least 104. Second, the suggestion to check out some of the NYRB titles actually served as a reminder to look over my unsettlingly large accumulation of NYRB titles. We bookish folk do need periodic reminders to read -- not just collect -- books. Ahem. Thank you, Jane. Because of you, I was enthralled by The Expendable Man.

Although my youngest didn't graduate high school until last month, our home education journey ended about a year ago: While she and her sister were at the local college enrolling for Fall 2014 -- she as a dual-enrolled high school senior and her sister as a freshman -- they decided to take two summer classes, and *PRESTO, CHANGE-O!* eighteen years of homeschooling abruptly concluded. The 2014/15 academic year remained a reasonably busy one for me, though: I continued to serve as guidance counselor to both as they prepared college and scholarship applications (freshman and transfer). They enjoyed success in the process but have chosen to remain local, so my next task is to assist, as needed, when they each prepare transfer applications. I had thought the adjustment would be more difficult, but because they still live at home, it has been quite comfortable, so far. Perhaps you should ask again once they say, "Yes," to their transfer institution. If they end up moving away, I suspect I will experience a more significant adjustment. *wry grin* Since learning that both girls were fulltime students at the local college, several people -- both relatives and acquaintances -- have asked, "So, what are you going to do?" It's difficult to miss the chiding tone some of them have employed, as if they would like to ask, "When are you going back to work?" Until late 2008, I had a job -- or rather, jobs. In fact, for most of our home education journey, I worked assorted gigs in the interstices that parenting and teaching permitted, and much of my definition of self was once predicated on the pride I took in being a working writer. At some point, though, it no longer was. Shrug. It's funny that for many people -- including my own mother! -- these assorted gigs don't "count." And to be clear, their implicit "When are you going back to work?" does not seem to be about money, either; I think it's time. I can't decide, though, if they cannot imagine what they would do with their time if they weren't working, or if they can. Either way, I do wonder if they're experiencing a degree of resentment as they're generally the same folks who have always thought my life was a little too Tom-Sawyer-ish. (These are also the sorts of relatives and acquaintances, who reply, "Another play?" or "Really? Archery?" or "But you went to the Field last month" when they hear our reply to "What did you do this weekend?" I can only be grateful that these people do not comprise my regular circle, right? *grin*) So now I'm “all but retired,†from homeschooling and from work. Once upon a time ago, I would have thought this label both boring and impossibly old. Now? It feels… pretty awesome. It feels like a privilege. It feels… expansive, like I have all the time, space, and opportunity in the world to envision the what-comes-next. And I am fully embracing it. Over the last year, I have completed several MOOCs. I became a literacy volunteer and have resumed my Spanish studies as a result of that. (I am taking a conversational Spanish course this summer and am enrolled in a conventional college course for the fall.) I am learning the flute. (Tomorrow I play the long etude to pass out the Rubank Elementary book. I began playing just under nine months ago, so, yes, I am quite pleased with my progress.) I am doing more walking, biking, and birding; more reading, thinking, and learning.... As I said, though, ask me again in year. If the Misses decide to move away, well, that will be quite an adjustment for me.

This bit from the Athill memoir I read last week may interest you: Back to books. I am puzzled by something which I believe I share with a good many other oldies: I have gone off novels. When I was young I read almost nothing else, and all through fifty years of working as a publisher fiction was my principal interest, so that nothing thrilled me more than the first work of a gifted novelist. Of course there are many novels which I remember with gratitude -- and some with awe -- and there are still some which I admire and enjoy; but over and over again, these days, even when I acknowledge that something is well written, or amusing, or clever, I start asking myself before I have gone very far into it, 'Do I want to go on with this?' and the answer is 'No.' She goes on to say that this "could never apply to the giants: Tolstory, Eliot, Dickens, Proust, Flaubert, Trollope." Later she adds, "I no longer feel the need to ponder human relationships -- particularly not love affairs -- but I do still want to be fed facts, to be given material which extends the region in which my mind can wander." I've been experiencing various degrees of this dissatisfaction with "newer" novels, and after reading Athill, I wonder if it's me, not them. Is anyone else seeing a shift in his/her reading preferences with age?