Book a Week in 2014 - BW13

[Shawneinfl]

Dervla Murphy - I think I have a new hero, or heroine I guess it should be.

[welovetoread]

This video is neat.  Even my toddler cheered at the end :)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Np450xMSncE

 

 

[shukriyya]

Good Saturday morning BaWers, pecking this out in the dark from the iPad.

Those who haven't read Dervla Murphy are in for a real treat. She is unlike any other woman travel writer I've read in her intrepidness and no nonsense approach. Yet all that is infused with a generous spirit and warmth and a keen interest in humanity. In her earlier books her very young daughter, Rachel, accompanies her on her travels and Rachel is similarly unfazed by their various challenges, some of which are none too pleasant. I haven't read her more recent books so can't speak to those but the earlier ones are super!

[mumto2]

Odd picky question here--I don't remember the "American me" even knowing what Bespoke items are.  This made me ????when in Boy , Snow, Bird, which is set in the mid twentieth century US, Boy is talking about ordering a Bespoke cake topper. Did the Bespoke term exist in the US then?  Do people even use it now?  My SIL is having a custom kitchen which she is very proud of installed in the US,  haven't heard the term once from her.......in UK a friend told me about her Bespoke kitchen constantly during construction.  Just pondering.......wondering if the British Nigerian author had an oops due to unfamiliar setting or if  I (Midwest girl) never heard the term while living in US?

[JennW in SoCal]

Odd picky question here--I don't remember the "American me" even knowing what Bespoke items are.  This made me ????when in Boy , Snow, Bird, which is set in the mid twentieth century US, Boy is talking about ordering a Bespoke cake topper. Did the Bespoke term exist in the US then?  Do people even use it now?  My SIL is having a custom kitchen which she is very proud of installed in the US,  haven't heard the term once from her.......in UK a friend told me about her Bespoke kitchen constantly during construction.  Just pondering.......wondering if the British Nigerian author had an oops due to unfamiliar setting or if  I (Midwest girl) never heard the term while living in US?

 

 

Never, ever heard it used as an adjective. My dictionary says it means "custom made" or "made to order".  

 

I'm comfortable with it used as a verb, such as this sentence from the same dictionary  "The attractive tree-lined road bespoke of wealth"

[mumto2]

Definitely used as an adjective in UK.  I feel a bit better now.  It took me several years to figure out what people were talking about -- thought it was a brand name for awhile but never saw the corresponding store.  :lol:

[shukriyya]

I am plodding through The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan. The premise is a compelling one, the relationship between two families, one Arab, one Jewish as it arose over a lemon tree planted in a house they both lived in at different times in their loves. However the author feels compelled to fill the pages with endless historical and political details. Waaaaay too big a subject to try and do that with in a story that is ostensibly trying to present the human face to this ongoing epic. Had I wanted that I would have chosen a book specifically focused with that lens. I keep waiting for the 'story' to begin but it's getting drier and drier and reads a lot like a textbook, which isn't necessarily a bad thing I'm just not sure that's what I'm after. This is a subject that has been dear to dh's heart for the past 30 years so we've had some interesting discussions and that's always fruitful but whether I want to continue on with it I'm not sure. I'm about 25% of the way through so will likely read on a little further before deciding.

[Jane in NC]

Definitely used as an adjective in UK.  I feel a bit better now.  It took me several years to figure out what people were talking about -- thought it was a brand name for awhile but never saw the corresponding store.   :lol:

 

I have only encountered "bespoke" as an adjective in British mysteries.  A Bespoke Murder by Edward Marston comes immediately to mind.
 

[Kareni]

I am plodding through The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan. .....  we've had some interesting discussions and that's always fruitful but whether I want to continue on with it I'm not sure.

 

That word choice seems strangely apropos!

 

 

As regards 'bespoke' being used as an adjective, I encounter it not infrequently in books dealing with wealthy Europeans and British who custom order their shirts and suits.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Onceuponatime]

I must say it: Every time I see The Lemon Tree on here, my mind goes "Lemon Tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet, but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat."

 

:auto:

[shukriyya]

That word choice seems strangely apropos!

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

:lol:

[MicheleinMN]

I finished A Study in Scarlet this week, but that's about it.  I started Socratic Seminars and Literature Cirlcles for Middle and High School English, and I already find myself frustrated with it, so we'll see whether I stick it out or not.  Audible.com had a 2 for 1 sale this last week, so I have new Great Courses lectures to start too.

[Kareni]

I've recently read and enjoyed a couple of Stephanie Tyler's paranormal romances namely Dire Needs: A Novel of the Eternal Wolf Clan and Dire Wants: A Novel of the Eternal Wolf Clan.  They have definite adult content so are not for all readers.

 

Here's the blurb for the first book; they are best read in order.  There is a third book that I'm waiting to read.

 

"Feared by humans and envied by werewolves, the Dire Wolves are immortal shifters, obeying no laws but their own bestial natures.

Rifter leads the pack, and his primal instincts have led him to claim Gwen, a woman seeking solace from the chronic pain that has wracked her body her entire life.

But whatever future Rifter and Gwen have is threatened by an enemy of both humanity and the Dire Wolves..."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Angel]

I've had a quiet day here after the rush and bustle of the past two months.  Dh took the girls to Divergent, and I got a nap and time to read.  I finished The Dead in their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley today.  5 enthusiastic stars!  I was not able to devour this book as I would have liked due to our schedule the past week.  However, I think that taking the time to read it in small chunks left me time to process and ponder it as I would not have been able to otherwise. Without giving anything away, I was shocked at the beginning of the book.  It was not the turn I was expecting.  But Alan Bradley wove the strands of this story together in such a way that I found that he wove me into this story like he had not done in the others.  After being a bit stingy with emotions in the first five books, I mean we see glimpses and hints but that's all, I found this book brimming with emotion.  Usually I deem a book 5 stars if I find it un-put-down-able, however, this is one of the few that breaks that mold.  It was just a masterfully written story.  I do hope we see more of Flavia in the future!  

 

I liked this quote:  "Each note hung for an instant in the air like a cold, crystalline drop of water melting from the end of an icicle."  

 

I'm not sure which book I will pick up next.  I need to finish Dante.  I'm listening to Persuasion.  I have Catherine, Called Birdy for my 13th Century read.  I have The Sugar Queen and The Grand Sophy that have been waiting for over a year.  And dh's pick Agenda 21.  And I need to start The Last Battle for my Narnia class.  

 

Does anyone know if Catherine, Called Birdy would be a good read aloud for me and dd13?

 

*1 – The Women of Christmas by Liz Curtis Higgs (Isarel)

*2 – Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans (USA)

*3 – The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis (Dusty, Narnia)

*4 – Michael Vey:  The Rise of the Elgen by Richard Paul Evans (USA/Peru)

*5 – Soulless by Gail Carriger (England, BaW rec)

*6 – Speaking from Among the Bones by Alan Bradley (England)

*7 – A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters (12^th Century, England/Wales,BaW rec)

*8 – 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 – Austenland by Shannon Hale (England, Dusty Book)

*12 – The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis (Narnia)

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

*14 – The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia)

*15 – Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury (England)

*16 – Imprudent Lady by Joan Smith (England, BaW rec)

*17 – Beorn the Proud by Madeleine Polland (Denmark, 9^th Century)

*18 – The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (audiobook) (USA/Italy)

*19 - The Dead in their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley (England)

[JadeOrchidSong]

I am only a few pages short of finishing Anna Karenina. The only thing I want to say is what a depressing book! Tis is definitely a book that I will not reread. I will reread To Killing a Mocking Bird, Les Miserables, Uncle Tom's Cabin for sure.
Leo Tolstoy wrote very well, but I simple do not want to suffer the torture again. Are his other books less depressing?

[JadeOrchidSong]

On the other hand, I appreciate how Leo let the readers into the depths of his characters. He was such a psychologist and could make a successful talk therapist!
Now I am onto finish Pillars of the Earth, a more enjoyable read!

[Mom-ninja.]

I love Anna Karenina. I will most likely reread at some point.

[shukriyya]

I have to say that I loved AK as well though I read it years ago. Don't know how I'd feel about it now. I've found that marriage and motherhood and probably life in general has altered my feeling towards books I once considered to be really good.

[shukriyya]

Kindle daily deal today is five different Agatha Christie mysteries at $1.99 each. A couple of Poirots, a Miss Marple, one I didn't recognize and 'Death on the Nile'.

[Robin M]

Link to week 14 - please continue conversation in new thread