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Book a Week in 2014 - BW10


Robin M
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Happy Sunday, my dears.  Today is the start of week 10 in our quest to read 52 Books.  Welcome back to all our readers, to all those who are just joining in and to 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 below in my signature.

 

52 Books Blog - Armchair Traveling through France: Nous allons cĂƒÂ©lĂƒÂ©brer toutes choses franĂƒÂ§ais.

 

Welcome to March which is beginning to look like a full month with Lent beginning on the 5th, daylight savings time beginning on the 9th,  St Patrick's day on the 17th and the first day of Spring on the 20th.  Plus the very first Nobel Prize winner in Literature in 1901 went to Frenchman Sully Prudhomme whose birthday is March 16, 1839. Which is what lead me to choose France as the next destination.  There are 13 more Nobel winners who are french or ended up residing in France and the list with links is here.

 

I do seem to have one foot stuck in Italy and the other foot in France and have both Italian and French authors in my backpack.  And since I've delving into the 14th century this month,  Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose, fits the bill perfectly. As well as his Foucault's Pendulum which actually is set in Paris.  Another author I've been meaning to try is Marcel Proust and discovered Swann's Way available for free on Kindle.  For fun I have 3 of Cara Black's books in her Aimee Leduc investigation mystery series as well.

For those who prefer a culinary approach to France, Nancy Pearl from Book Lust to Go recommends checking out Julia Child's My Life in France or Kathleen Flinn's The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry.  Take a food tour through France with Balzac's Omelette by Anka Muhlstein or Ann Mah's Mastering the Art of French Eating. 

For more ideas, check out Goodreads popular French Literature list with includes Camus, Voltaire, Dumas, Balzac, Verne and Sartre to name a few. 

 

And a discovery this week - Le French books.  French mystery and thriller writers books translated to english

Join me in reading all things French, with a little bit of Italian thrown in on the side.   And for those looking ahead this month - March is all things French, Spring Reading, and the 14th Century.

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

Link to week 9

 

 

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I finished Inferno and spent a good amount of time, reading through the analysis on Sparknotes and looking people up.  It was educational, a bit scary, and at times made me feel woefully ignorant when it came to history.  But that's not such a bad thing because I can see where it will lead me on plenty of rabbit trails.  Not sure if or when I'll go on to Purgatorio.  Need to clean my brain with bleach and feed my soul with something positive first. 

 

Almost done with James Rollins Amazonia, then will be moving on to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose. My 14th century book, plus fits in perfectly with my A to Z challenge because I really do need to move on from the D's. :lol:.  

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We finished Birds, Beasts, and Relatives (one of our many read alouds). We'll be staying in Greece with Fauna & Family: More Adventures of the Durrell Family of Corfu. (AKA The Garden of the Gods)

 

Well, that's not entirely true, I'm not staying completely in Greece. . . I am still spending some time in England in Bleak House. I put it down for a few weeks when some other books became more pressing, but I'm hoping to finish it soon. Part of me hates to see it end.

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CAMom

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Posted Yesterday, 11:17 PM

Hi Everyone!

 

I'm late.  ;)

 

My dd and I traveled back down to So CA this week for a speech and debate tournament and I came home sick so I've basically been in bed for 2 days.

 

<snip>

 

I'm also listening to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. Having one kid who is high functioning with Asperger's and another that I suppose is the same, it is an interesting trip into the mind of those who think differently. 

 

I've been listening to audio books lately when I need to multitask and can't hold a book. Any recommendations for some good ones?

 

oooooh, I am so thrilled both to be the first poster on the new week's thread, and also, to have successfully cut-and-pasted from the old thread.  Wowza!

 

CAMom, I hope you feel better soon...

 

My daughter and I recently finished Curious Incident.  I'm finding that it's sticking with me more than I might have guessed as we were reading it... it sparked a lot of conversations as we were going through it about "what can we see, as the audience, that the narrator can't see because of his condition" that have proved to be a launching point for subsequent discussion...

 

ETA to add:

 

awww, not quite first.  Almost.  And:

 

On audio books: One that I recently finished and really enjoyed was You Know When the Men are Gone, by Siobhan Fallon, interlinked short stories about the women left behind at Fort Hood TX when their husbands are deployed in Iraq -- excellent; and I'm currently in the middle of A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar, by Suzanne Joinsen - two interlinked stories, one modern-day and the other an intrepid missionary in the 1920s -- marvelously read.  

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Ooh, french month. My education in middle school was a french immersion program switching into a bilingual program through high school. Perhaps I should try my hand at some of the books I read back then though a lot of them were dry and weighty to my teenage self--Moliere's 'Le Malade Imaginaire', 'Tartuffe' and the like though I do recall enjoying Camus's, 'L'Etranger.' As for March being full...birthday month for moi :D Okay on to books and I must say I'm feeling a little :willy_nilly: trying to keep it all straight...

Finished ::

The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley--bogged down 1/2 way through but saw it through to the end

Newly Immersed in ::

Bright Felon--It's a sort of autobiography done in the form of prose-poetry by the poet mentioned in this post

Ongoing Love ::

Untold by Tamam Kahn
Conference of the Birds by Attar--taking this pretty slowly, reading a little each day and digesting it at a leisurely pace

Intentionally Wending my Way Through ::

The Well Educated Mind :: focusing on the history section as I prepare to begin Herodotus's, The Histories
A Little History of the World by H. E. Gombrich -- very accessible

Tripping Merrily Along With ::

Blackout by Connie Willis--I'm finding this very choppy and fragmented. Too many extraneous details, this book needs some serious editing! The actual story seems to be taking *forever* to get started. Does it get better? Does the writing even out? I'm willing to stay with it if that's the case but a number of reviews indicate otherwise. I want to like it but am having a hard time hanging in with it.
This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart--this is a delight! Similar in retro-tone-feel to The Moonspinners. Once again her descriptions of the landscape of Corfu are wonderful.  

I found this website dedicated to Mary Stewart with a bio, a map of all the places she wrote about and a wonderful photo montage of her book covers through the decades. And for fun here's a link to a quiz to find out which book of hers you'd most like.

 

Okay, our commute week begins. We're off to several hours of kathak class soon :driving:

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Okay, our commute week begins. We're off to several hours of kathak class soon :driving:

 

Would you mind sharing how you prepare yourself for the waits during classes? I think you mentioned a thermos in another post. Do you carry a bag with books or a Kindle? Any other goodies? Our commuting is getting ready to increase, and I want to make the best use of the time.

 

Thanks!

 

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A couple of days ago I went to renew my library stack and discovered someone had requested an entire series that was in my really really want to read portion of my stack. I have finished all that had to be back by the 5th and am loving the Sebastian St. Cyr series. These must be read in order because the underlying character thread/storyline is fabulous. CS Harris has a Phd in European History and an undergraduate degree in classics. They are well written and from what I can tell very a very accurate snapshot of life in London cira 1812.

 

I completed these this week:

 

 

 

Why Mermaids Sing by CS Harris

Where Serpants Sleep by CS Harris

What Remains of Heaven by CS Harris

Where Shadows Dance by CS Harris

 

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich my number challenge/insomnia read ;)

 

Currently reading:

 

When Maidens Mourn CS Harris

The Dinosaur Feather by SJ Gazon

 

I just want to add that the CS Harris books are great historical mysteries with a bit of romance. I suspect many of you would love them! :)

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Fell behind on my reading the past two weeks as I had a horse show to go to AND I was participating in the Ravellenics (knitting Olympics). I did manage to finish -

 

The Nutmeg of Consolation #14 in the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian. So much happens in this one! Loved it, as usual. :)

 

I also read two completely forgettable Regency romances that were both meh so I won't bother listing them here.

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I finished Gail Carriger's Etiquette and Espionage on Friday.  I was pleasantly surprised to find this a true YA book.  No s*x.  No foul language.  No adult themes.  I actually handed it over to my 13yo to read.  I think she may like it.  I adored Sophronia!  I have to admit that if I was born in that time period, I may have resembled her  :D  Although I am sure I was never so brave, I just liked to think I was  ;)  I think of my modern day self arguing with my mom to be more lady-like, wear a slip and pantyhose, sit appropriately in a dress when all I was interested in was climbing trees and keeping up with the boys  :lol: The story line kept moving and kept me interested.  I'm still processing the Steampunk-ish-ness of the novel.  All the mechanicals are still a bit weird to me.  I do prefer real people.  Like her adult novel, Soulless, that I read earlier in the year, I found the vampire/werewolf theme interesting, a different take on this genre.  Though E&E mentioned them, and the part they were playing in Victorian London, they were not as big a part of this novel as it was in Soulless.  E&E definitely focused more on the mechanical aspect.  All in all another 4 star book.  I'm still waiting for that book, the one that will sweep me away and I'll forget to make dinner  :laugh:

 

In progress is one of my dd19's favorite books, Wrapped.  And up next is The Magician's Nephew for my Narnia class next week.  I haven't picked up Dante all week, but I do want to finish him.  Dd13 and I are reading Beorn the Proud out loud.  I don't normally have this many books going on at one time.  It makes me kind of crazy.  I feel like I can't connect with the characters and get lost in a book if I have more than one set in my mind.  :rolleyes:

 

*1 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ The Women of Christmas by Liz Curtis Higgs (Isarel)

 

*2 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans (USA)

 

*3 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis

 

*4 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey:  The Rise of the Elgen by Richard Paul Evans (USA/Peru)

 

*5 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Soulless by Gail Carriger (England, BaW rec)

 

*6 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Speaking from Among the Bones by Alan Bradley (England)

 

*7 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters (12th Century, England/Wales,BaW rec)

 

*8 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey: Battle of the Ampere by Richard Paul Evans (Peru)

 

*9 - Divergent by Veronica Roth (USA)

 

*10 - Anna of Byzantium by Tracy Barrett (Turkey, 11th/12th Century, Dusty Book)

 

*11 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Austenland by Shannon Hale (England, Dusty Book)

 

*12 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis 

*13 - Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger (England, BaW rec)

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I began reading My Year of Meats last Sunday while visiting friends on Saint Simon's Island.  A number of you may have enjoyed participating in a conversation that occurred on the screen porch Monday.  My friend was reading a book written in first person plural.  She thought it noteworthy since first person as a voice usually takes the singular form. I commented that initially I was disconcerted by the structure of My Year of Meats. We have two parallel stories.  Jane, here in the US, tells hers in first person.  This is juxtaposed with Akiko's story (from Japan) told in third person.  Of course there is a thread connecting the two women. 

 

Enjoying our tea, we chatted about the idea of voice in the novel, a conversation heard only partially by my friend's husband who thought we were talking about real people and not fictional.

 

Ruth Ozeki's latest novel, A Tale for the Time Being, was well received by BaWers.  Since I am on a personal quest to read five food novels this year, I chose her earlier work.  Documentarian Jane (mother Japanese, father American; raised in Minnesota) accepts a job with a Japanese television program, My American Wife, sponsored by the American beef industry in order to promote American beef sales in Japan. My Year of Meats is vast in scope--perhaps there is too much on this dinner plate.  Issues on hormones in meat and violence towards women enter this story with the cultural clash expected when Japanese television cameras are rolling in small town America.  It is not a bad novel but it did not sweep me away.

 

Note to Stacia:  Praise for the novel on the back cover comes from John Sayles.  My friend was looking at my book and said, "Oh. I haven't thought of John Sayles in years.  I wonder how his movies have fared over time."  I chuckled and said he is now writing novels.  Really?

 

Violence towards women is depressing me though after Meats and Purge.  I need cheerfulness.

 

Solution:  Angela Thirkell to the rescue! Time to reread Cheerfulness Breaks In, an old friend indeed.  But this Thirkell novel was published in '41--not exactly a cheerful moment in the history of Britain.  Nonetheless an escape to Barsetshire should amuse me.

 

Also, I am still plugging away on The Time Travelers Guide to Elizabethan England.  In the chapter on "Where to Stay", the author points out differences between town and country as well as the residences of the haves and have nots.  One thing that I had not really thought about though was the issue of potable water for Londoners of the time period. Get your pair of buckets and yoke ready, then stand in a queue at a conduit.  Mortimer closes the chapter by noting that city life has its challenges over country life; however:

 

...the quality of their lives does not primarily depend on easy access to water or having glass windows.These things might strike you as being crucial factors in deciding where to stay but, after you have spent an evening in the Mermaid with Jonson and Shakespeare, enjoying the repartee, oysters and double beer, you frankly won't give a damn that there is no running water in your chamber.  In fact, you might be amazed at the discomforts you can tolerate.

 

P.S. Ann Mah's Mastering the Art of French Eating has been living in my library bag for a couple of weeks now.  I guess it is time to crack it open.

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Fell behind on my reading the past two weeks as I had a horse show to go to AND I was participating in the Ravellenics (knitting Olympics). I did manage to finish -

 

The Nutmeg of Consolation #14 in the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian. So much happens in this one! Loved it, as usual. :)

 

I also read two completely forgettable Regency romances that were both meh so I won't bother listing them here.

Tell us about your knitting, either here or in the craft thread!  Pretty please?

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Well, my reading week was largely shaped by Shukriyya's recommendations - like her, I read Attar's Conference of the Birds, on which I'll post separately; and Taman Kahn's Untold: A History of the Wives of Prophet Muhammed.  I enjoyed this, but I expect I would have gotten a lot more out of it were I more familiar with the underlying hadith that Kahn explores and explicates in her poetry.  Something else to look for...

 

I also finished VS Naipul's Magic Seeds.  Didn't love this.  I'd read Half a Life a long time ago (half a life ago), and once I was into Magic Seeds I remembered feeling a similar frustration, that the author wasn't really revealing his protagonist, just showing us the top inch or two, and given the heft of the book and the extent of the commitment he was demanding of the reader, I felt, I dunno, rather cheated at the lack of reciprocity... if the author won't commit to this character, why on earth should I?

 

and my daughter and I finished Black Radishes, a YA novel set in occupied France, with a Jewish boy as protagonist.  This went well with Code Name Verity; and although it is not as good, it is, still, good.

 

 

Speaking of CNV, at my daughter's request we are now reading its sequel, Rose Under Fire.  We're just getting going.  My kids and I are also gearing up for a road trip we're soon to go on with the new dog (!!), and so have begun listening to Philip Pullman's Golden Compass.  My son and I have read these before, but it will be the first time for my daughter.  I'm also listening to Suzanne Joinson's A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar, which is marvelous.  Finally, I'm reading Robert Alter's translation and commentary of the biblical David story.  (I am a lifelong fan of his Psalms translation, and have high hopes for this.)

 

 

 

 

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Tripping Merrily Along With ::

 

Blackout by Connie Willis--I'm finding this very choppy and fragmented. Too many extraneous details, this book needs some serious editing! The actual story seems to be taking *forever* to get started. Does it get better? Does the writing even out? I'm willing to stay with it if that's the case but a number of reviews indicate otherwise. I want to like it but am having a hard time hanging in with it.

This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart--this is a delight! Similar in retro-tone-feel to The Moonspinners. Once again her descriptions of the landscape of Corfu are wonderful.  

 

I found this website dedicated to Mary Stewart with a bio, a map of all the places she wrote about and a wonderful photo montage of her book covers through the decades. And for fun here's a link to a quiz to find out which book of hers you'd most like.

 

 

 

I read Doomsday Book   Connie Willis a few years ago and thought the exact same thing! Choppy and desperately in need of some editing.

 

I love the link you posted for Mary Stewart - she has some great stories!

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Would you mind sharing how you prepare yourself for the waits during classes? I think you mentioned a thermos in another post. Do you carry a bag with books or a Kindle? Any other goodies? Our commuting is getting ready to increase, and I want to make the best use of the time.

 

Thanks!

 

 

I carry the large basket you see below and it waxes and wanes in weight depending on how long we'll be out. On days we leave early in the morning and breakfast is eaten on the road I take two thermoses, one for breakfast coffee and one for afternoon tea along with a pretty porcelain mug to complete the experience as I can't abide drinking from the plastic cup that comes with most thermoses. Chocolate is ubiquitous :D and necessary. Along with thermoses, standard take-alongs these days are my kindle, my current knitting project, breakfast if we'll be out early, lunch if we'll be out long, my phone plus a water bottle. Sometimes I take along a hard copy book if I think I'll want to dip into it and occasionally my laptop if there's a comfortable wifi situation.

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I wanted to share a passage from Conference of the Birds that I'll be mulling over for some time:

 

 

When Malek Dar bought Joseph as a slave,
the price agreed (and which he gladly gave)
seemed far too low -- to be quite sure he made
the brothers sign a note for what he'd paid;
and when the wicked purchase was complete
he left with Joseph and the sealed receipt.

At last when Joseph ruled in Egypt's court
his brothers came to beg and little thought
to whom it was each bowed his humbled head
and as a suppliant appealed for bread.
Then Joseph held a scroll up in his hand
and said: "No courtier here can understand
these Hebrew characters -- if you can read
this note I'll give you all the bread you need."

The brothers could read Hebrew easily
and cried: "Give us the note, your majesty!"
(If any of my readers cannot find
himself in this account, the fool is blind.)
When Joseph gave them that short document
they looked -- and trembled in astonishment.
They did not read a line but in dismay
debated inwardly what they should say.
Their past sins silenced them; they were too weak
to offer an excuse or even speak.
Then Joseph said: "Why don't you read? You seem
distracted, haunted by some dreadful dream."
And they replied: "Better to hold our breath
than read and in so doing merit death."

The Conference of the Birds, by Farid ud-din Attar, translated by Afkham Darbandi and Dick Davis, pp. 217-218

There is so much in this passage that astonishes me, but the top-line is that -- and this is different from the many other parables embedded throughout the epic -- the author steps in and directly instructs us where we're meant to empathize: not with Joseph, who's either shaming or testing his brothers... but rather, we are explicitly directed to put ourselves in the sandals of the brothers.  To force ourselves to acknowledge our willingness to sell our own into slavery.  Our denial that we have done so.  Our vigorous repression of any nagging concern about the misery for which we're responsible.  Much better just to hold our breath...

... it actually connects in my mind to the endless circles I've been spinning over Cloud Atlas, and clarifies things for me a little... I love it when the dots connect like that...

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Well, my reading week was largely shaped by Shukriyya's recommendations - like her, I read Attar's Conference of the Birds, on which I'll post separately; and Taman Kahn's Untold: A History of the Wives of Prophet Muhammed.  I enjoyed this, but I expect I would have gotten a lot more out of it were I more familiar with the underlying hadith that Kahn explores and explicates in her poetry.  Something else to look for...

 

<snip>

 

 

Yes, I wondered whether that might be an issue. I often take so much context for granted when I read material with that as its focus and forget that some folks mightn't have familiarity with it. Nevertheless I'm thrilled you read it and I'll pass along your enjoyment of it to her. We are thinking of doing a writer's conference together this summer :D

 

 

I'm also listening to Suzanne Joinson's A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar, which is marvelous.

 

I read this a few weeks ago and almost ditched it. I was so glad I stayed with it. I really enjoyed it.

 

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I carry the large basket you see below and it waxes and wanes in weight depending on how long we'll be out. On days we leave early in the morning and breakfast is eaten on the road I take two thermoses, one for breakfast coffee and one for afternoon tea along with a pretty porcelain mug to complete the experience as I can't abide drinking from the plastic cup that comes with most thermoses. Chocolate is ubiquitous :D and necessary. Along with thermoses, standard take-alongs these days are my kindle, my current knitting project, breakfast if we'll be out early, lunch if we'll be out long, my phone plus a water bottle. Sometimes I take along a hard copy book if I think I'll want to dip into it and occasionally my laptop if there's a comfortable wifi situation.

 

 

Thanks so much for the detail! Inspiring! I'm now actually looking forward to getting my routine and supplies in order. (As opposed to just sitting around wringing my hands and weeping while looking at our schedule with its ever increasing number of days out of the house. . . )

 

Now, off to find the perfect bag and mug. . .

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Would you mind sharing how you prepare yourself for the waits during classes? I think you mentioned a thermos in another post. Do you carry a bag with books or a Kindle? Any other goodies? Our commuting is getting ready to increase, and I want to make the best use of the time.

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

I carry the large basket you see below and it waxes and wanes in weight depending on how long we'll be out. On days we leave early in the morning and breakfast is eaten on the road I take two thermoses, one for breakfast coffee and one for afternoon tea along with a pretty porcelain mug to complete the experience as I can't abide drinking from the plastic cup that comes with most thermoses. Chocolate is ubiquitous :D and necessary. Along with thermoses, standard take-alongs these days are my kindle, my current knitting project, breakfast if we'll be out early, lunch if we'll be out long, my phone plus a water bottle. Sometimes I take along a hard copy book if I think I'll want to dip into it and occasionally my laptop if there's a comfortable wifi situation.

 

Aside from reading and either knitting or crocheting, one of the things I enjoyed while waiting for kids was exploring new neighborhoods.  I found new library branches to haunt and places to get groceries, and I found nice places to walk.  We had a new puppy during my youngest's senior year, and during his community college classes I took all kinds of fun walks with the pup.  She was a hit at the drive-thru Starbucks!  

 

I took my laptop computer along some days, too, and would sit either in a coffee shop or in the library and, after wasting time on these boards, would write actual blog posts and book reviews.  But the car is a wonderful cocoon for sitting and reading, or listening to an audio book while knitting.  I even have fond memories of one year where I did algebra problems every Sunday night in the car while the oldest was at a rehearsal.  I had a small book light, and a blanket (for those really cold San Diego winter evenings) and relearned algebra in the quiet embrace of the surrounding darkness.  

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I've got two very fun books keeping me company this week.  The Ionian Mission, which Paisley Hedgehog was reading a week ago or so, is a very entertaining entry in the Aubrey/Maturin series.  It is a character driven story, at least to this point in the book, filled with all kinds of delightful vignettes and quotable quotes.  Of course as I'm listening to it while driving I don't get to underline or reread a nice turn of phrase, but it is keeping me driving with a smile on my face.

 

And thanks to whoever it was who wrote about the Iain Pears art-detective mysteries.  I'm about half way through the Raphael Affair, would be done with it if life didn't keep interrupting!  But what a fun set of characters running around in a nicely conceived plot.  My library has more of this series on the shelves, too, so I'll be reading more this year.

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Finished a couple this week. The Chaperone, by Laura Moriarty, is our next book club pick. I enjoyed it. I also have my little quibbles to share during book club. The main character is a chaperone for 15 year old Louise Brooks going to a dance school in NYC a few years before she makes it big as a silent film star. There are things about the book that make me feel like I'm reading about a contemporary character--that's something that seems to be hard to get right when trying to write historical fiction. And her metamorphosis into a modern-minded soul literally happens over night. I also got a little tired of hearing about her corset, and for the constant attention it demands, one expects something pretty dramatic to happen with said corset, but no. But really these are just little complaints; I did enjoy the book.

 

I really, really enjoyed Georgette Heyer's The Grand Sophy, my first by this author. I'm excited to find a whole new world of books to explore. When I don't have other books demanding my time, I intend to be checking out many more Heyers from the library.

 

I have a stack of library books to try to get through (thankfully no 14-day books among them). In progress is Ursula LeGuin's Lavinia which is well-conceived and well-written. I'm close to half-way through, and while there have been a few descriptions and scenes from the war (from the Aeneid), I'm hoping it doesn't go headlong into the war in the second half. War is weighing on me. We're in the middle of WWII in our home school studies, and the news of Russia and the Ukraine is hitting me hard. Putin is acting a lot like Hitler (Austria, Sudetenland). I think I need a break from war, but I will try to finish this book first. Favorite line so far, Lavinia speaking with "her poet" Virgil:

"Why must there be war?" (Lavinia)

"Oh, Lavinia, what a woman's question that is! Because men are men."

From a home school of women (or future women), we can relate to Lavinia!

 

Also in the library stack: The Fault in Our Stars (recommended by my dad & sister), God's Hotel (recommended by my dad & his wife), Winter Garden (recommended here).

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So far this year I have been reading nothing but fluff--some of it was well-written fluff but fluff nonetheless.  My brain has been mush for the last 5 months and I just couldn't handle anything that required more than mush.  I just needed to fall into other people's  stories.  I think that I just may be coming to the end of  'an all fluff'  period.  I am feeling little twinges to tackle some things that lean more to the spiritual and academic side of life.  Whew!  I am relieved by that.

 

I finished reading  'This is the Story of a Happy Marriage'  by Ann Patchett--a memoir displayed through a collection of essays.  I quite enjoyed it.  I think I may even go as far as to say that I enjoy Patchett's non-fiction writing more than her fiction writing.

 

My dh took the kids yesterday for a sleepover.  For almost 24 hours, I found myself in absolute quiet.  I used that time  for reading,  just reading.  I started and finished  'Perfect'  by Rachel Joyce (the author of 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.')  As with Harold, this story will stay with me long after I closed the book.  There were characterizations that I didn't like but the story itself  endeared itself to me.  

 

I am now reading  The Circle by Dave Eggers  and  Wonderstruck  by Margaret Feinberg (of which I refer to as a 'God book.') 

 

What I read in February:

 

The Interestings  by Meg Wollitzer

Flora and Ulysses  by Kate DiCamillo (read aloud)

The Remains of the Day  by Kazuo Ishiguro

Howards End is on the Landing  by Susan Hill

This is the Story of a Happy Marriage  by Ann Patchett

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<snip>

 

War is weighing on me. We're in the middle of WWII in our home school studies, and the news of Russia and the Ukraine is hitting me hard. Putin is acting a lot like Hitler (Austria, Sudetenland). I think I need a break from war, but I will try to finish this book first. Favorite line so far, Lavinia speaking with "her poet" Virgil:

"Why must there be war?" (Lavinia)

"Oh, Lavinia, what a woman's question that is! Because men are men."

From a home school of women (or future women), we can relate to Lavinia!

 

 

Sigh.  After our discussions here a few weeks ago re: war books and re: women and men and universality, I decided to do a 5/5/5 category on women's experiences in, around, and waiting for their men to return from, war.

 

 

Also in the library stack: The Fault in Our Stars (recommended by my dad & sister)...

 

this is in my stack as well; I look forward to hearing what you think of it!

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Still working on Sayles' A Moment in the Sun. It will take me forever & is historical fiction to savor. Loving it & hoping I will be able to max out my renewals for it at the library as life keeps interfering with my reading time. (March is a very busy month for us as dd does Irish dance & there are many requests for Irish dancers for St. Pat's Day. We are on the outings/mom taxi merry-go-round in addition to our regular life.)

 

Seeing Robin's mention of French reading sent me to my huge library pile where I fished out a Europa book, A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse.

 

"*Starred Review* Ivan and FrancescaĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s idea of bliss is a bookshop selling only the finest literature: time-honored treasures as well as overlooked masterpieces, little gems, and innovative new publications. Their dream becomes reality when they open their own shop, The Good Novel, in a fine but unpretentious Paris arrondissement. Their inventory is comprised of recommendations from eight respected authors, an anonymous committee who submit lists of their 600 favorite books. With quiet fanfare, the store opens and immediately achieves great success. Notice is then taken by the mainstream press: Who are these elitists, and how dare they tell everyone what to read? Mayhem ensues. The blogosphere erupts; the Internet roils. Erstwhile competitors spring up overnight, pandering to pedestrian tastes and trumpeting their pseudoegalitarian ideals. Ivan and Francesca stoically try to take it in stride until three of their nominating committee members fall victim to near-fatal accidents. Enveloping this diabolical mystery in a delicate love story, CossĂƒÂ© crafts a luscious paean to bibliophilia, gracefully translated from the French by Anderson. Wry, sly, and coyly seditious, CossĂƒÂ©Ă¢â‚¬â„¢s piquant satire is a subtly wrought manifesto against blatant consumer manipulation and media malfeasance. --Carol Haggas"

 

Just started A Novel Bookstore & am enjoying it.

 

When sitting out waiting on the kids at classes, I always load up on books, my iPad, & a drink/snack. Great reading time. During one of ds' classes, I take a "mom PE" class at the same time. Other places, I will sometimes walk a local trail &/or track with a friend. Have some thermos suggestions, but will post those later when I'm home on my regular computer.

 

My post will have to remain on the simple side as I'm enjoying a day of beautiful weather, sitting outside at Starbucks, & alternating between my two books. :-)

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This turned out to be a pretty good reading week for me.  I finished 3 books - two that had been in process for a while, and one novel - The Raphael Affair - that I snuck in.  That was a pleasant enough novel, though it took me nearly the half of it to really get engaged!  By the end I was thinking I would pick up more by this author after all.  I had to struggle to finish Amazing Grace, about which I'd heard such raves.  I would have given up if I wasn't leading a discussion on it for our church book group on Tuesday.  I have no idea what to say, other than that I'm ready to read a real biography of William Wilberforce.

 

I've finally figured out a 5/5/5 challenge for myself.  I'd already decided two of the categories:  art-related fiction and cooking-related fiction   My third category will be non-Western fiction.  I used to read more of that but haven't in a long time. Not sure where to start that one, but I'm thinking of rereading The Mistress of Spices.  I don't do a lot of rereading of general fiction, because - who has time with so many books out there?!  But I have fond though vague memories of it.  Other suggestions? 

 

I'm starting my food fiction with The School of Essential Ingredients which has been on my list for a long time now.   It's quick - I started yesterday evening and am nearly halfway through, without rushing.  It is lovely.   I would like to be able to savor it this afternoon/evening but my kids want me to carry on with Jeeves and Wooster.  Evening church and other activities were cancelled tonight because of snow.  Maybe I can steal a little while tonight. 

 

In process:

The School of Essential Ingredients    (5/5/5, cooking #1)

Smart but Scattered Teens

The Code of the Woosters (family readaloud)

The Count of Monte Cristo

The Civilization of the Middle Ages *

A Circle of Quiet

Basic Economics *

Bible reading plan - on track

 

Complete:

1. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

2. The Book Thief

3. Have His Carcase

4.  And Then There Were None
5. The Middle Ages *

6. The Raphael Affair    (5/5/5, art, #1)
7. Amazing Grace

*Homeschool books

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Thanks so much for the detail! Inspiring! I'm now actually looking forward to getting my routine and supplies in order.

 

<snip>

 

Now, off to find the perfect bag and mug. . .

There's a lot of wisdom there :D I find it necessary to keep a series of inspiring thermoses, water bottles, handle-less mugs and lunch containers in rotation. It definitely peps me up.

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I wanted to share a passage from Conference of the Birds that I'll be mulling over for some time:

 

When Malek Dar bought Joseph as a slave,

the price agreed (and which he gladly gave)

seemed far too low -- to be quite sure he made

the brothers sign a note for what he'd paid;

and when the wicked purchase was complete

he left with Joseph and the sealed receipt.

At last when Joseph ruled in Egypt's court

his brothers came to beg and little thought

to whom it was each bowed his humbled head

and as a suppliant appealed for bread.

Then Joseph held a scroll up in his hand

and said: "No courtier here can understand

these Hebrew characters -- if you can read

this note I'll give you all the bread you need."

The brothers could read Hebrew easily

and cried: "Give us the note, your majesty!"

(If any of my readers cannot find

himself in this account, the fool is blind.)

When Joseph gave them that short document

they looked -- and trembled in astonishment.

They did not read a line but in dismay

debated inwardly what they should say.

Their past sins silenced them; they were too weak

to offer an excuse or even speak.

Then Joseph said: "Why don't you read? You seem

distracted, haunted by some dreadful dream."

And they replied: "Better to hold our breath

than read and in so doing merit death."

The Conference of the Birds, by Farid ud-din Attar, translated by Afkham Darbandi and Dick Davis, pp. 217-218

There is so much in this passage that astonishes me, but the top-line is that -- and this is different from the many other parables embedded throughout the epic -- the author steps in and directly instructs us where we're meant to empathize: not with Joseph, who's either shaming or testing his brothers... but rather, we are explicitly directed to put ourselves in the sandals of the brothers. To force ourselves to acknowledge our willingness to sell our own into slavery. Our denial that we have done so. Our vigorous repression of any nagging concern about the misery for which we're responsible. Much better just to hold our breath...

... it actually connects in my mind to the endless circles I've been spinning over Cloud Atlas, and clarifies things for me a little... I love it when the dots connect like that...

I'm posting from my phone so a response will have to wait till later but I'd like to return to your observations when I'm on the laptop.

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Well, it's not by design but I'll be reading Les Miserables through March. I don't think I'll be going to Italy this month, but Daniel Deronda which I recently finished, did have some of its action in Genoa. 

 

I finished 2 books in the last 2 days. 

 

This is Where I Leave You - The ending was a bit abrupt and not what I thought it would be, but it was satisfying. Some of the criticisms I read of this book said that it read like a movie script. It's true it does, and I agree with Stacia that Jason Bateman and Tina Fey were good choices to play their parts. I don't think the fact that you can picture a movie while reading is a bad thing. As long as one goes into a book like this knowing what to expect, it's fun. If you expect literary fiction you'll be disappointed. If you expect a fun story that's what you'll get. Be advised though - if sex and language are not for you then neither is this book.

 

Fever: A Novel, Mary Beth Keane. This is an historical fiction novel about Mary Mallon, aka Typhoid Mary. While I liked it as a story, I don't know how much historical accuracy it has. I do know the story of Typhoid Mary, but have never really looked at the facts.

 

Current books:

 

Les Miserables

The Orphan Master's Son - audio book

 

Though I haven't started it yet, I was on the ebook waiting list for Their Eyes Were Watching God, and it became available yesterday. I downloaded it to my Kindle and will start it tonight or tomorrow. 

 

 

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So far this year I have been reading nothing but fluff--some of it was well-written fluff but fluff nonetheless.  My brain has been mush for the last 5 months and I just couldn't handle anything that required more than mush.  I just needed to fall into other people's  stories.  I think that I just may be coming to the end of  'an all fluff'  period.  I am feeling little twinges to tackle some things that lean more to the spiritual and academic side of life.  Whew!  I am relieved by that.

 

 

One year I read almost nothing but fluff. Sometimes that's what I need. When the time comes to end it I usually know, like you with the twinges you're now feeling.

 

Sigh.  After our discussions here a few weeks ago re: war books and re: women and men and universality, I decided to do a 5/5/5 category on women's experiences in, around, and waiting for their men to return from, war.

 

 

 

I must have missed that conversation. It probably took place during the time my computer was in and out of the shop. Anyway, I don't know if Hitler's Furies was discussed, but I've been on the library waiting list for it a quite while. 

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Finished: The Act of Teaching Donald Cruickshank, Deborah Jenkins, Kim Metcalf (makes me realize how not prepared teachers are out of college)

Tahn by L.A. Kelly (I really enjoyed this book, I felt the Christian bent actually fit as opposed to other Christian books that did not fit)

A Joyful Mother of Children by Linda Eyres (Interesting read but not my fav of the ones I have read)

 

Working on:

Fiction: Ariana: The Making of a Queen by Rachel Ann Nunes

Kindle: Witches in Flight by Debora Geary

Non-fiction: Dancing with the Pen by NZ Ministry of Education

Phone: Lies, Da** Lies, and Science by Sherry Seethaler

Computer: I DidnĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t Plan to be a Witch by Linda Eyres

Well Education Mind: Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

Angel Girl: The Aesop for Children by Aesop

Sweet Boy: Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales Book

Autobook: Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith

 

Total Read for 2014: 35

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... My Year of Meats ... Jane, here in the US, tells hers in first person.  ...

 

... A Tale for the Time Being ... Documentarian Jane (mother Japanese, father American; raised in Minnesota) ...

 

Are you sure your latest 5/5/5 challenge isn't books with characters named Jane?

 

Regards,

Kareni

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I finished Inferno and spent a good amount of time, reading through the analysis on Sparknotes and looking people up.  It was educational, a bit scary, and at times made me feel woefully ignorant when it came to history.  But that's not such a bad thing because I can see where it will lead me on plenty of rabbit trails.  Not sure if or when I'll go on to Purgatorio.  Need to clean my brain with bleach and feed my soul with something positive first. 

 

Almost done with James Rollins Amazonia, then will be moving on to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose. My 14th century book, plus fits in perfectly with my A to Z challenge because I really do need to move on from the D's. :lol:.  

 

The Name of the Rose is on my nightstand.  Unfortunately it's got about 12 other books sitting there keeping it company.   Since you're reading it I'll try to make a point of getting to it before it has to go back to the library.  

 

I really, really enjoyed Georgette Heyer's The Grand Sophy, my first by this author. I'm excited to find a whole new world of books to explore. When I don't have other books demanding my time, I intend to be checking out many more Heyers from the library.

 

 

I loved that book too.  One of my favorite Georgette Heyer's books.  I also adored Cotillion.  

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Well, DD9 and I just finished reading The Hobbit.  I really loved it, in part due to reading it with DD.  Back in high school, we were assigned to read it, but I only read parts of it because the beginning didn't grab my attention.  Too bad I waited so long to read the whole book.  I downloaded it from audible.com so that the kids and I can listen to it over and over again.  Now on to the LoTR!  Next up are Jane Eyre, a re-read for a book club, and Winter Garden (Kristen Hannah), a recommendation from one of you fabulous women!   

 

Completed:

1. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, Bk 1, Lauren Willig

2. The Masque of the Black Tulip, Bk 2, Lauren Willig
3. The Deception of the Emerald Ring, Bk 3, Lauren Willig
4. The Seduction of the Crimson Rose, Bk 4, Lauren Willig
5. The Temptation of the Night Jasmine, Bk 5, Lauren Willig
6. The Betrayal of the Blood Lily, Bk 6, Lauren Willig
7. The Orchid Affair, Bk 8, Lauren Willig
8. The Garden Intrigue, Bk 9, Lauren Willig
9. The Hobbit, J.R.R Tolkien
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 I enjoyed the McCarthy's of Gansett Island series by Marie Force, but it seemed to be running out of characters and story lines. 

 

 

 

My library purchased the first in this series by Marie Force which I read.  I found it a pleasant read.

Maid for Love (The McCarthys of Gansett Island Series)

 

"Maddie Chester is determined to leave her hometown of Gansett Island, a place that has brought her only bad memories and ugly rumors. Then she's knocked off her bike on the way to her housekeeping job at McCarthy's Resort Hotel by Gansett's "favorite son," Mac McCarthy. He's back in town to help his father with preparations to sell the family resort and has no intention of staying long. When Mac accidentally sends Maddie flying over the handlebars, badly injuring her, he moves in to nurse her back to health and help care for her young son. He soon realizes his plans for a hit-and-run visit to the island are in serious jeopardy, and he just may be "maid" for love."

 

 

I'll have to admit to preferring the author's Fatal Series which starts with Fatal Affair (The Fatal Series).

 

What Marie Force series do you favor, Melissa?

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Though I intended to read Twelfth Night this weekend, I spent the last few days powering through Watership Down instead. I went to renew it and found someone else had put it on hold, so it was due back today. I got it there 30 min. before they closed. 

 

Anyway, it could be just that the book got better once I got further into it, but I think immersing myself in the story instead of just reading a chapter or two a day greatly increased my enjoyment of this book. At first I liked it, but now I love it. I hope my children will read it. So far, at least one of them is interested. 

 

Also, I wondered if there wasn't some sort of Watership Downton Abbey shirt out there. There's this one, but as I'm not a fan of formfitting shirts, perhaps the tote bag is more for me.

 

My list:

 

16. Watership Down Richard Adams

15. The Murder of Abraham Lincoln Rick Geary

14. Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert

13. Erec and Enide Chretien de Troyes

12. The Communist Manifesto Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

11. Inferno Dante Alighieri

 

10. Cloud Atlas David Mitchell

9. Discourse on the Origin of Inequality Jean-Jacques Rousseau

8. King Lear William Shakespeare

7. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J. K. Rowling

6. Lancelot: The Knight of the Cart Chretien de Troyes

 

5. Education of a Wandering Man Louis L'Amour

4. Yvain: The Knight of the Lion Chretien de Troyes

3. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle Haruki Murakami

2. The Taming of the Shrew William Shakespeare

1. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest Stieg Larsson

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I really, really enjoyed Georgette Heyer's The Grand Sophy, my first by this author. I'm excited to find a whole new world of books to explore. When I don't have other books demanding my time, I intend to be checking out many more Heyers from the library.

 

I really, really like Georgette Heyer's books.  However, I can only read two or so close together ... she is known for her character types in the Regency books and I tire of them if I push to that third book.  This is not to dissuade you - she is a favorite author- just a warning. 

 

I am finally focusing on That Hideous Strength. It is very good and getting engrossing.  The back and forth between following Mark and Jane is a fascinating way of building the plot.  For my non-novel reading, I'm continuing to work on The Liberal Arts Tradition which, in the part I'm reading, is using quite a lot from The Abolition of Man (which I read a couple of years ago), and which ideas parallel the action in That Hideous Strength.  It's fascinating to *see* what Lewis is talking about in Abolition through a lens of The Liberal Arts Tradition and worked out in That Hideous Strength.

 

I've also been following (though not participating in) the poetry discussions you all have been having, so decided to try something new.  Wendell Berry's A Timbered Choir: The Sabbath Poems 1979-1997 has been lying about, so I started it.  Pretty good so far ... I even copied one in my new Commonplace Book.

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Started reading:

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen

Follow Me by David Platt

 

 

Still reading:

The School Revolution: A New Answer for our Broken Education System by Ron Paul

 

 

Finished reading:

1. The Curiosity by Stephen Kiernan (AVERAGE)

2. The Last Time I Saw Paris by Lynn Sheene (GOOD)

3. Unwind by Neal Shusterman (EXCELLENT)

4. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty (EXCELLENT)

5. The Rage Against God: How Atheism Led Me to Faith by Peter Hitchens (AMAZING)

6. Champion by Marie Lu (PRETTY GOOD)

7. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (INCREDIBLE)

8. Cultivating Christian Character by Michael Zigarelli (HO-HUM)

9. Detroit: An American Autopsy by Charlie LeDuff (um...WOW. So amazing and sad)

10. Pressure Points: Twelve Global Issues Shaping the Face of the Church by JD Payne (SO-SO)

11. The Happiness Project: Or Why I spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun. by Gretchen Rubin (GOOD)

12. Reading and Writing Across Content Areas by Roberta Sejnost (SO-SO)

13. Winter of the World by Ken Follet (PRETTY GOOD)

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Blackout by Connie Willis--I'm finding this very choppy and fragmented. Too many extraneous details, this book needs some serious editing! The actual story seems to be taking *forever* to get started. Does it get better? Does the writing even out? I'm willing to stay with it if that's the case but a number of reviews indicate otherwise. I want to like it but am having a hard time hanging in with it.

 

 

Blackout is not one of Connie Willis's best books. I agree that it is too much.  I think she based it on one of her short stories. The books by her that I like the most are Bellwether and Lincoln's dreams.  Everyone should read Bellwether. It is a very tongue in cheek look at culture and how fads are spread.

 

____

 

The Name of the Rose is my favorite Eco book. It was the first time I felt the need to keep a dictionary handy while reading a novel.

 

I don't have any reading news to report, but boy these threads have been flying over the last few weeks!

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Blackout is not one of Connie Willis's best books. I agree that it is too much.  I think she based it on one of her short stories. The books by her that I like the most are Bellwether and Lincoln's dreams.  Everyone should read Bellwether. It is a very tongue in cheek look at culture and how fads are spread.

 

Okay, this is good to know though now I'm in a quandry as to whether to finish it or not. Is the story worth it?

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A few more to add to my list:

 

Ă¢â€“Â  This Is Where I Leave You (Jonathan Trooper; 2009. 352 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck; 1937. 112 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  GideonĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Knot (Johanna Adams; DPS new acquisition / unbound. Drama.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2013 (ed. Siddhartha Mukherjee; 2013. 368 pages. Non-fiction.)

 

No notes this time. But hello and happy reading to all BaWers!

 

Complete list:

 

Ă¢â€“Â  This Is Where I Leave You (Jonathan Trooper; 2009. 352 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck; 1937. 112 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  GideonĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Knot (Johanna Adams; DPS new acquisition / unbound. Drama.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2013 (ed. Siddhartha Mukherjee; 2013. 368 pages. Non-fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  Lexicon (Max Barry; Folger ed. 2013. 400 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Circle (Dave Eggers; 2013. 504 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Good Sister (Drusilla Campbell; 2010. 352 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Two Gentlemen of Verona (William Shakespeare (1589/92); Folger ed. 2006. 304 pages. Drama.) *
Ă¢â€“Â  Hedda Gabler (Henrik Ibsen; 1890. Drama.) *
Ă¢â€“Â  Labor Day (Joyce Maynard; 2009. 256 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Living (Matt De La PeĂƒÂ±a; 2013. 320 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  Henry V (William Shakespeare (1599); Folger ed. 2004. 294 pages. Drama.) *
Ă¢â€“Â  Henry IV, Part II (William Shakespeare (1599); Folger ed. 2006. 400 pages. Drama.) *
Ă¢â€“Â  Henry IV, Part I (William Shakespeare (1597); Folger ed. 2005. 336 pages. Drama.) *
Ă¢â€“Â  The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum; 1895 / 2008. 224 pages. Juvenile fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  Cartwheel (Jennifer duBois; 2013. 384 pages. Fiction.)
Ă¢â€“Â  The Wicked Girls(Alex Marwood; 2013. 384 pages. Fiction.)

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Well, it's not by design but I'll be reading Les Miserables through March. I don't think I'll be going to Italy this month, but Daniel Deronda which I recently finished, did have some of its action in Genoa. 

 

I finished 2 books in the last 2 days. 

 

<snip>

 

Fever: A Novel, Mary Beth Keane. This is an historical fiction novel about Mary Mallon, aka Typhoid Mary. While I liked it as a story, I don't know how much historical accuracy it has. I do know the story of Typhoid Mary, but have never really looked at the facts.

 

 

What a truth-is-stranger-than-fiction kind of character.  Let us know...

 

 

I must have missed that conversation. It probably took place during the time my computer was in and out of the shop. Anyway, I don't know if Hitler's Furies was discussed, but I've been on the library waiting list for it a quite while. 

 

Thank you -- this looks... well, I don't want to say good.. an important other facet.

 

Though I intended to read Twelfth Night this weekend, I spent the last few days powering through Watership Down instead. I went to renew it and found someone else had put it on hold, so it was due back today. I got it there 30 min. before they closed. 

 

 

No way -- you have to return the book before the library closes??!  My condolences to you... My library counts it as good, so long as the book is returned before the library opens the following day.  Many have been the times that I've scooted down to the drop box ten minutes before opening...

 

 

The Name of the Rose is my favorite Eco book. It was the first time I felt the need to keep a dictionary handy while reading a novel.

 

 

Yes... the man doesn't write beach books, does he?

 

Husband hates those.  We're watching Return of the Jedi.

 

My kind of husband... :laugh:

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I've been listening to audio books lately when I need to multitask and can't hold a book. Any recommendations for some good ones?

P.G. Wodehouse books are so fun on audio.

 

 

 

Finished a couple this week. The Chaperone, by Laura Moriarty, is our next book club pick. I enjoyed it. I also have my little quibbles to share during book club. The main character is a chaperone for 15 year old Louise Brooks going to a dance school in NYC a few years before she makes it big as a silent film star. There are things about the book that make me feel like I'm reading about a contemporary character--that's something that seems to be hard to get right when trying to write historical fiction. And her metamorphosis into a modern-minded soul literally happens over night. I also got a little tired of hearing about her corset, and for the constant attention it demands, one expects something pretty dramatic to happen with said corset, but no. But really these are just little complaints; I did enjoy the book.

I read that last year. I remember feeling a bit confused about her very quick transformation.

 

 

 

My dh took the kids yesterday for a sleepover.  For almost 24 hours, I found myself in absolute quiet.  I used that time  for reading,  just reading.  I started and finished  'Perfect'  by Rachel Joyce (the author of 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.')  As with Harold, this story will stay with me long after I closed the book.  There were characterizations that I didn't like but the story itself  endeared itself to me.  

 

You're better than me. Yesterday I had the house to myself. I ran errands most of the day, but was home around 4. My family arrived home at 8. What did I do those 4 hours? Did I read? Nope. I watched back to back episodes of "Say Yes to the Dress".  So sad. :laugh:

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No way -- you have to return the book before the library closes??!  My condolences to you... My library counts it as good, so long as the book is returned before the library opens the following day.  Many have been the times that I've scooted down to the drop box ten minutes before opening...

 

 

I'm even more fortunate at the large library I use most.  There they have a three day grace period after the due date before one is fined.    At my local library, one of the perks of volunteering is that there are no overdue book fines at all.  So, I'm doubly fortunate!

 

Regards,

Kareni

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