Book a Week in 2014 - BW34

[shukriyya]

What I want to know is why didn't anyone let poor Paul Hogan know that Buckingham had a dress code?!?! The guy to his right is in a tux and ONJ is in an evening gown. Boy, I bet he was embarrassed all night.

He doesn't look embarrassed to me...he looks rather pleased with himself though if one were to analyse the situation through the lens of body language then the placement of his hands suggests a possible inner discomfort with his...revealing outfit :lol:

[Pam in CT]

Now I'm really intrigued and will be eager to see how both ds and I feel about 'Call of the Wild'. Why does everyone dislike it so? I'm wondering how much will come back to me as I reread it.

 

Not everyone loathes it.  My son mostly liked it, for instance.  It's an extraordinary literary feat, to tell a straight story from the point of view of a mostly-abused dog; and there's a good deal of rather interesting Gold Rush / Klondike background.

 

My tender-hearted animal-loving daughter couldn't stand the abuse, and I couldn't stand the moral nihilism.  I can take the (magnificently described) unrelenting landscape, but a worldview that bleak just makes me

 

:leaving:

[Uff Da!]

You all are cracking me up with Paul and his short shorts.  

 

I finished "I Capture the Castle" yesterday.  Here's my favorite quote from book:

 

"It seems to me now that the whole day was like an avenue leading to a home I had loved once but forgotten, the memory of which was coming back some dimly, so gradually, as I wandered along, that only when my ome at last lay before me did I cry: “Now I know why I have been happy!â€

            How words weave spells?  As I wrote of the avenue, it rose before my eyes- I can see it now, liked with great smooth-trunked trees whose branches meet far above me.  The still air is flooded with peace, yet somehow expectant- as it seemed to me once when I was in King’s Crypt cathedral at sunset.  On and on I wander, beneath the vaulted roof of branch and leaf...and all the time, the avenue is yesterday, that long approach to beauty.  Images in the mind, how strange they are......"

 

The book made me long for England, ruins and this place:

http://www.aboutbritain.com/images/attraction/NewsteadAbbey-E609-276.jpg

 

 

[shukriyya]

Not everyone loathes it. My son mostly liked it, for instance. It's an extraordinary literary feat, to tell a straight story from the point of view of a mostly-abused dog; and there's a good deal of rather interesting Gold Rush / Klondike background.

 

My tender-hearted animal-loving daughter couldn't stand the abuse, and I couldn't stand the moral nihilism. I can take the (magnificently described) unrelenting landscape, but a worldview that bleak just makes me

 

:leaving:

Oh dear, this doesn't bode well for a happy literary experience. Tender hearted ds won't do well with an abused animal situation.

[shukriyya]

You all are cracking me up with Paul and his short shorts.

 

I finished "I Capture the Castle" yesterday. Here's my favorite quote from book:

 

"It seems to me now that the whole day was like an avenue leading to a home I had loved once but forgotten, the memory of which was coming back some dimly, so gradually, as I wandered along, that only when my ome at last lay before me did I cry: “Now I know why I have been happy!â€

How words weave spells? As I wrote of the avenue, it rose before my eyes- I can see it now, liked with great smooth-trunked trees whose branches meet far above me. The still air is flooded with peace, yet somehow expectant- as it seemed to me once when I was in King’s Crypt cathedral at sunset. On and on I wander, beneath the vaulted roof of branch and leaf...and all the time, the avenue is yesterday, that long approach to beauty. Images in the mind, how strange they are......"

 

The book made me long for England, ruins and this place:

http://www.aboutbritain.com/images/attraction/NewsteadAbbey-E609-276.jpg

I spent so many happy hours with this book. It's always a delight to hear of someone else enjoying it so intimately.

 

Apologies for the multi posts, I'm on my tablet and can't multi quote.

[JennW in SoCal]

stubby shorts, the Queen and Paul Hogan in stubby shorts, whack-a-wolf with a Russian tome....all before the first cup of coffee...

 

 

 

 

[Kareni]

FYI - my confession of having a crush on Paul Hogan does NOT leave the thread. 

 

 

It's like Vegas.  What happens in the BaW thread stays in the BaW thread!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Onceuponatime]

Oh dear, this doesn't bode well for a happy literary experience. Tender hearted ds won't do well with an abused animal situation.

Has he read Black Beauty? Or Old Yeller? Now that I think about it, these kinds of stories were probably deliberately crafted to produce visceral emotional responses. It seems strange to me now, but at one time I loved reading books that would draw me into that place where the tears of empathy would start flowing. My children just seemed to feel like they were being manipulated by the author, (and maybe their mother) which I guess is true. I stopped assigning those books and just put them on optional reading lists instead.

[mumto2]

I finished another Sebastian St. Cyr mystery last night.  I think this is #4 in the series Where Serpents Sleep.  It was wonderful.  My favorite of the whole series so far.

 

  

 

Amy you will love the next one too! At least the start, if I remember right the mystery element is a bit of a snooze but you won't care because the personal life is good. :)

 

Not everyone loathes it.  My son mostly liked it, for instance.  It's an extraordinary literary feat, to tell a straight story from the point of view of a mostly-abused dog; and there's a good deal of rather interesting Gold Rush / Klondike background.

 

My tender-hearted animal-loving daughter couldn't stand the abuse, and I couldn't stand the moral nihilism.  I can take the (magnificently described) unrelenting landscape, but a worldview that bleak just makes me

 

:leaving:

 

 

The chapter in our course was titled something like "naturalism in literature". Dd does not like that term now.

 

 

 

You all are cracking me up with Paul and his short shorts.  

 

I finished "I Capture the Castle" yesterday.  Here's my favorite quote from book:

 

"It seems to me now that the whole day was like an avenue leading to a home I had loved once but forgotten, the memory of which was coming back some dimly, so gradually, as I wandered along, that only when my ome at last lay before me did I cry: “Now I know why I have been happy!â€

            How words weave spells?  As I wrote of the avenue, it rose before my eyes- I can see it now, liked with great smooth-trunked trees whose branches meet far above me.  The still air is flooded with peace, yet somehow expectant- as it seemed to me once when I was in King’s Crypt cathedral at sunset.  On and on I wander, beneath the vaulted roof of branch and leaf...and all the time, the avenue is yesterday, that long approach to beauty.  Images in the mind, how strange they are......"

 

The book made me long for England, ruins and this place:

http://www.aboutbritain.com/images/attraction/NewsteadAbbey-E609-276.jpg

We have been to Newstead Abbey but I can't remember much about the Abbey. We went on a walk in the surrounding countryside. The footpaths were really poorly marked. Our four mile walk ended up being at least eight, almost got locked in. They let us out special. We haven't been since. Is I Capture the Castle set there? I might need to read it sooner rather than later if it is. ;) I know the surrounding countryside quite well. :lol:

[shukriyya]

Has he read Black Beauty? Or Old Yeller? Now that I think about it, these kind of stories were probably deliberately crafted to produce visceral emotional responses. It seems strange to me now, but at one time I loved reading books that would draw me into that place where the tears of empathy would start flowing. My children just seemed to feel like they were being manipulated by the author, (and maybe their mother) which I guess is true. I stopped assigning those books and just put them on optional reading lists instead.

 

He hasn't read either of those books because I have purposely avoided them for the very reasons you mention. I read 'Black Beauty' as a child and enjoyed it and would reread it from time to time less for the emotional reaction and more for the author's ability to see the world from the horse's pov which I found fascinating.

 

I've gotten myself into a pickle now with Call of the Wild, it seems. Oy!

[aggieamy]

  

 

Amy you will love the next one too! At least the start, if I remember right the mystery element is a bit of a snooze but you won't care because the personal life is good. :)

 

 

DH and I will be going on a bit of a drive across town to get it from the library this afternoon.  He doesn't know it yet but that's the plan.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

[Uff Da!]

  

 

 

 

We have been to Newstead Abbey but I can't remember much about the Abbey. We went on a walk in the surrounding countryside. The footpaths were really poorly marked. Our four mile walk ended up being at least eight, almost got locked in. They let us out special. We haven't been since. Is I Capture the Castle set there? I might need to read it sooner rather than later if it is. ;) I know the surrounding countryside quite well. :lol:

 

I used to run the grounds at Newstead Abbey and also photographed it for a class.  The dirt path I walked to reach the abbey had a singular cottage along it that was originally built as part of the abbey but now is privately owned.  I dreamed then (and still do!) of owning that cottage and getting to wander around the grounds every day.  "I Capture the Castle" is not set there- but description of bare yet full ruins reminds me of the Abbey.

 

ETA:  The cottage!

http://heritagehub.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/west-lodge-looking-west.jpg

[mumto2]

DH and I will be going on a bit of a drive across town to get it from the library this afternoon.  He doesn't know it yet but that's the plan.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

 

:lol:

 

  

I used to run the grounds at Newstead Abbey and also photographed it for a class.  The dirt path I walked to reach the abbey had a singular cottage along it that was originally built as part of the abbey but now is privately owned.  I dreamed then (and still do!) of owning that cottage and getting to wander around the grounds every day.  "I Capture the Castle" is not set there- but description of bare yet full ruins reminds me of the Abbey.

 

ETA:  The cottage!

http://heritagehub.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/west-lodge-looking-west.jpg

I remember the cottage! We could have really used you as an expert tour guide. People were actually buying jams etc at a couple of houses we saw to get updated directions. I think we live about a half hour away from there. We were at Clipstone the other day for an archeology outing which I think is pretty close to that abbey.

 

Fyi. Fairly common for people to have handmade signs for produce, honey, eggs.....just knock.

[JennW in SoCal]

DH and I will be going on a bit of a drive across town to get it from the library this afternoon.  He doesn't know it yet but that's the plan.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

 

You can't wait to see what happens next in the book series or what happens next after your dh realizes you've just driven across town for a book?!  

 

The things we do for love.  Love of books that is  ;)

[Stacia]

DH and I will be going on a bit of a drive across town to get it from the library this afternoon.  He doesn't know it yet but that's the plan.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

 

Hey, maybe you can pick up a bio of Paul Hogan while you're there too! :smilielol5:  You know, for 'continental' study or some such excuse....

 

Btw, w/ him in his shorty-shorts w/ the Queen -- the page I pulled that photo from said it was a photo taken after a fund-raiser performance at the Sydney Opera House. So, I'm guessing Paul Hogan performed in that outfit & Olivia Newton-John in  her fancy dress, etc... & all the performers just lined up in whatever stage outfits they had on.

 

On a different note....

 

Shukriyya, based on what you're saying, your ds will not like Call of the Wild. I was (& am) extremely sensitive to stuff like that in stories & hated all books like that when I was a kid (when we were forced to read certain books, such as Charlotte's Web, Black Beauty, Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows, Call of the Wild, etc...). They all ripped my heart out so badly that I absolutely hated reading them. I still don't read them & never read them to my kids. Dd is fine w/ things like that & I told her there were certain stories I couldn't handle, so she just needed to learn how to read well-enough to read them on her own, lol. Black Beauty is one of her favorite books (& movies), owning various copies/versions. Whenever she would watch the movie, I had to be in an entirely separate part of the house because I couldn't even stand to overhear the movie. Ds has not read any of those books & I have never made him do so because he is just like me in that respect. Anyway, maybe I'm too sensitive to things like that, but it is what it is.... It's almost like I 'over-feel' it to the point that I can't cope with it, if that makes any sense. :mellow:

[JennW in SoCal]

Shukriyya, I had (have) a sensitive boy, too and avoided many books because of it.  I seem to think he read Call of the Wild, but can't swear to it.  But never Old Yeller, or Where the Red Fern Grows, or Anne Frank.  In time he developed a sarcastic defense to any and all dark thematic material.  For instance, near the end of a performance of Othello he hissed in my ear, "Just get a bomb already and be done with it!!!!"  Shakespeare's tragedies are tragic to him because they are overrated and bloated plays about overly dramatic people taking themselves far too seriously.  

[Jane in NC]

 For instance, near the end of a performance of Othello he hissed in my ear, "Just get a bomb already and be done with it!!!!"  Shakespeare's tragedies are tragic to him because they are overrated and bloated plays about overly dramatic people taking themselves far too seriously.  

 

While my son loves Shakespeare, I do remember his complete disgust with Oliver Twist:  "Doesn't this stupid kid ever learn?"  That would have been in 8th grade, I think.

 

[Onceuponatime]

I read all the sad animal stories when I was younger, and watched the movies, many multiple times. Now, if I sense the onslaught of pathos for pathos's sake, I run the other way. It makes me feel like my head will explode, instead of making me quietly sob. I don't like that feeling.

 

Anyone remember Ring of Bright Water? Oy. I watched it every year.

 

I can't even watch It's a Wonderful Life at Christmas anymore. I wonder what happened.

[Stacia]

I can't even watch It's a Wonderful Life at Christmas anymore. I wonder what happened.

 

In my case, I think it's reality & life that happened. I know the world has many dire, depressing things (along w/ many great, wonderful things). So, reading about more stressful things in fiction that I'm choosing to read is perhaps not what I want to do. I have to keep a balance between being aware/informed & finding enjoyment. Doesn't mean that every book I read has to be ha-ha funny or happy, but that I choose the books/topics carefully. Some of it is also weighted by what is going on in my life & the world around me at the time too.

 

And, I know some people like having a 'good cry' as they feel better afterward, but that doesn't work for me. Any kind of crying gives me a horrific/migraine-level headache, so I try to avoid situations like that if I can when reading fiction. (I know I can't & shouldn't always avoid situations like that, but I do choose to avoid them in my reading.)

[Stacia]

Powell's list of 25 Books to Read Before You Die.

 

At least Slaughterhouse-Five is on there. :ph34r:  I don't think there's a single, weighty, wolf- & steppe-ready tome on the list, though.... No Paul Hogan biographies either.

[Rosie_0801]

 

What I want to know is why didn't anyone let poor Paul Hogan know that Buckingham had a dress code?!?!  The guy to his right is in a tux and ONJ is in an evening gown.  Boy, I bet he was embarrassed all night.  

 

If he was, it serves him right. A sense of humour can get a bod into trouble. Not that the queen seems to mind.

 

 

 

 

 

He doesn't look embarrassed to me...he looks rather pleased with himself though if one were to analyse the situation through the lens of body language then the placement of his hands suggests a possible inner discomfort with his...revealing outfit  :lol:

 

He's probably taken that stance so he remembers not to grope the queen. He can see she's checking him out. 

 

 

 

 

 

You all are cracking me up with Paul and his short shorts.  

 

*Stubby* shorts. Only girls wear short shorts. Dialect yeah. :D

 

 

Good morning everyone. :)

[Uff Da!]

:lol:

 

  

I remember the cottage! We could have really used you as an expert tour guide. People were actually buying jams etc at a couple of houses we saw to get updated directions. I think we live about a half hour away from there. We were at Clipstone the other day for an archeology outing which I think is pretty close to that abbey.

 

Fyi. Fairly common for people to have handmade signs for produce, honey, eggs.....just knock.

It occurred to me that "run" might mean being in charge of the grounds.  I was actually running around the grounds for exercise and scaring the peacocks and whatever ghosts might be about.   :lol:

[Jane in NC]

The London Literary Benches were mentioned a few weeks ago but I'll mention them again since that stinking son of mine spent the day running around London viewing them.  Me--jealous?  Of course I am!

[aggieamy]

The London Literary Benches were mentioned a few weeks ago but I'll mention them again since that stinking son of mine spent the day running around London viewing them.  Me--jealous?  Of course I am!

 

I'm jealous too! How long is he over there?

[Jane in NC]

I'm jealous too! How long is he over there?

 

He has been there since the end of May.  Boy graduates college, dumps stuff in room, runs off to be with British girlfriend before their archaeological dig begins. Not a bad life for a young man!

 

[Stacia]

To go along w/ Pam's earlier mention of some NYC/Jewish books: A Jewish Literary Map of New York City 

[Violet Crown]

Oh dear, this doesn't bode well for a happy literary experience. Tender hearted ds won't do well with an abused animal situation.

Call of the Wild is in its own category. I read an abridged version as a child and thought it would be fine for Middle Girl (this was a few years ago), as she's fine with sad and tragic. But as I was reading to her a passage introducing a friendly female dog that had been stolen, I glanced at the next page and saw she was about to get her face torn off gorily by another dog. We stopped. That would have been just too much for MG.

[shukriyya]

Call of the Wild is in its own category. I read an abridged version as a child and thought it would be fine for Middle Girl (this was a few years ago), as she's fine with sad and tragic. But as I was reading to her a passage introducing a friendly female dog that had been stolen, I glanced at the next page and saw she was about to get her face torn off gorily by another dog. We stopped. That would have been just too much for MG.

Oh my word...I'm feeling a decided lack of optimism about this book. And since the program starts with it I'm now scrambling to figure out what to replace it with. If it elicits such a viscerally emotional reaction why it's it always included on middle school reading lists???

[-M-]

Late again? What have you been doing with your time?!?! :laugh:

 

I love your lists. Each time you post it I will read the whole thing. What did you think of Snowpiercer?

Hello! *waving*

 

Maybe you will laugh when I tell you, but what I've been doing with my time is... figuring out what to do with my time. *wry grin*

 

I think I mentioned in June that the Misses decided to enroll in two summer courses at the local college while they were at fall orientation and registration. This effectively ended our homeschool adventure -- about 2.5 months sooner than I had planned. Early on, I filled the time with MOOCs and reading and a volunteer gig at the library and yard work and biking (Oh, my aching saddle!) and assorted adventures. As the fall semester approached, though, and as, from their work in the summer courses, it became clear that the Misses are most certainly prepared (hence, my work here is done), I felt as if I were supposed to announce my what-comes-next.

 

Darn that work ethic, right? Heh, heh, heh.

 

Fifty should bring a sort of wisdom, though, so I chose to do nothing rather than leap into something, anything, simply to fill the empty spaces.

 

Smart move.

 

Over the last ten weeks, I have determined, among other things: I really don't wish to return to school, either for a Ph.D. in my (some have said useless) field or for training in some "highly employable" field. I don't want to adopt another pet. I don't want either of the two jobs that fell into my lap.

 

I will never like cooking, but I need to acquire a few more skills in kitchen. I still wish to learn flute. I plan to read Proust. And I am still keen to earn my raptor rehabilitation license.

 

I haven't made a major market sale since *gulp* 2005. I never finished the home study course in ornithology. My camera and piano books have dust on them. And my TBR piles have TBR piles.

 

I don't want a house with more land; I may want to move back to the city. I am unconcerned about "getting thin"; I simply want to be fit and flexible and healthy.

 

I really cannot tolerate contemporary YA fiction, anymore -- nor horror fiction and movies, pizza past 8 p.m., and too much sitting.

 

And so on.

 

Actually, more accurately, what I've been doing with my time is figuring out how to best use my time. Interesting, sobering, even, to think I've spent more years than I have remaining. I'd like to use them... wisely, in ways that continue to enliven my sense of self and in ways that (continue to) benefit my family.

 

More of an answer than you wanted, I suspect, but there it is.

 

As for Snowpiercer, hmmmm. Believe it or not, I think the movie adaptation hung together better than the graphic novel on which it was based.

[Stacia]

Love your answer, Mmv. I am heading down a similar path soon enough & I've been trying to spend a few brain cells now toward thinking of that time. Not that I have many to spare at this point (life w/ high school teens is busy!), but I know that many of your musings will be similar to ones I will visit in the upcoming few years....

 

:grouphug:

[mumto2]

MMV, I am also quickly approaching the stage where I am going to have to decide what to do next. Quite honestly your musings gave me a bit more to consider. Thank you (meant sincerely). Please keep us updated. I think quite a few of us are quickly approaching our teacher retirement. :grouphug:

[JennW in SoCal]

 I still wish to learn flute. 

 

I vote for this.

 

I have 3 adult students who are an absolute joy to teach.  All 3 are in their 50s and are finally realizing their dream of learning to play violin.  Music nourishes the soul like nothing else.  

 

Your posts on birdwatching were influential to me way back when the forums were smaller and formatted differently.  I never did the Cornell Ornithology course myself, though I've toyed with it.  My contributions to Project Feeder Watch have dropped since the kids graduated and moved out, I guess because it was part of the rhythm of our homeschool day.  Love the idea, though, of you being a licensed raptor "rehabilitator". 

[Jane in NC]

To MMV,

 

As one who volunteers with shore birds and raptors, I commend you for wanting to get your license.  Be forewarned though that your freezer will be filled with frozen mice and you might even be raising live ones for "mouse school", what an owl or hawk must pass before being released.  Some people love the birds but hate the rodents (which is all the more reason to love the birds!)

 

Another consideration:  your girls come home from college and they will be put to work doing bird things!  Here is an old photo of my son, maybe after his first semester of college.  The job of the day was deworming pelicans.

 

 

And for those of you who don't know it, the owl photo in my avatar was taken by my son.  This was a barred owl in rehab.

[TeacherZee]

Powell's list of 25 Books to Read Before You Die.

 

At least Slaughterhouse-Five is on there. :ph34r:  I don't think there's a single, weighty, wolf- & steppe-ready tome on the list, though.... No Paul Hogan biographies either.

I managed six books on the list :)

[shukriyya]

Raptor lovers, there is a raptor center near us that I've been wanting to take ds to for a field trip and raptor walk. Y'all have reminded me to schedule that in. I'm a bird enthusiast of the domesticated kind, too, with my cockatiel friends a constant presence here in our home.

[Stacia]

Not that I think any of the BaW Jane Austen fans are also gamers (& specifically, Call of Duty gamers), but today's shirt woot is an interesting (? or maybe odd?) mix... (Btw, I had to ask my ds what the gaming reference was, lol.)

 

The Call of Darcy.... :lol:

 

 

[Stacia]

OOOOOOOOOhhhhhh! Penguin Essentials has cool cover art for some of its Essentials Series. Like! :w00t:

 

http://www.penguinessentials.co.uk/

 

(Rosie, steel yourself. Both The Great Gatsby & Breakfast at Tiffany's are on there.... ;) )

[Jane in NC]

A walk to my mailbox is a raptor walk!  My neighborhood has a resident Cooper's Hawk that likes to remind everyone of its existence.  I see it on occasion but hear it almost daily.

 

Back to books...

 

I knew that I would not be driving anywhere for a few days, so I brought the library CDs of Howl's Moving Castle inside.  I listened to the last disc as I was cooking dinner Thursday.  Very satisfying story that is different from Miyazaki's animated film. 

 

Still reading Marina Tsvetawva's book of poetry, Moscow in the Plague Year.

 

I am moving fairly quickly through Neil Shubin's The Universe Within which my son placed in my hands.  Shubin is a paleontologist/evolutionary biologist who is best known for Your Inner Fish. The Universe Within does a nice job of showing how science is not as compartmentalized as some think, namely that physical science and life science have common elements beyond process.  This would be an excellent recommendation for your high school student.

 

And I am reading one of my favorite authors who is probably well known to all here for his children's books, the Madeline series.  Ludwig Bemelmans also wrote novels and travel essays.  I am currently reading How to Travel Incognito, a fictional story with autobiographical elements. Bemelmans is so delightful!  He did much for European travel as the continent rebuilt itself after WWII.  Incognito is the tale of a guy named Ludwig Bemelmans who hooks up with fallen aristocrat Monsieur Le Comte de St. Cucuface, producing quite the travelogue of a France long gone. Always the critic, he notes about a French chef who recently achieved publicity that "he becomes obese with acquired personality".

 

For those of you unfamiliar with Bemelmans' novels, they have titles like The Street Where the Heart Lies; I Love You, I Love You, I Love You; Hotel Splendide.  Of course, libraries that have disposed of old books have probably disposed of Bemelmans' novels with their lovely illustrations.  Sigh.

 

Sending everyone wishes for a happy weekend!

[shukriyya]

Jane, I'm intrigued by your mailbox raptor walk, what a gift! Not a raptor but the second smallest of the parrot family (budgies being the smallest) here's one of our guys...

 

ETA :: birdie moved on :D

 

 

[TeacherZee]

OOOOOOOOOhhhhhh! Penguin Essentials has cool cover art for some of its Essentials Series. Like! :w00t:

 

http://www.penguinessentials.co.uk/

 

(Rosie, steel yourself. Both The Great Gatsby & Breakfast at Tiffany's are on there.... ;) )

Dam it! I have a weakness for beautiful book covers

[shukriyya]

OOOOOOOOOhhhhhh! Penguin Essentials has cool cover art for some of its Essentials Series. Like! :w00t:

 

http://www.penguinessentials.co.uk/

 

(Rosie, steel yourself. Both The Great Gatsby & Breakfast at Tiffany's are on there.... ;) )

 

Great link, Stacia! My three faves for their cover art...the latter two are wonderful reads btw.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Stacia]

I think I'm giving up on the Evel Knievel biography. It's an ebook (not my favorite mode of reading) & I'm about a fifth of the way through it. At this point, I feel like I have a pretty good picture of Evel -- adrenaline-junkie, daring/crazy guy, charmer, criminal, brawler, con-man, survivor of enough broken bones to get in the Guinness Book of World Records, self-promoter.... Maybe he was P.T. Barnum's long-lost son. The bio itself is not very well-written, sort-of a cheesy style (which fits for a daredevil icon of 1970s America, I suppose), and I'm getting tired of the author writing, "A story," & then launching into another personal tale. Personal tales are the bread & butter of a bio, but always prefacing them with "A story" is just plain irritating.

 

Am now starting Elias Khoury's White Masks (published by Archipelago Books). Khoury is a celebrated Lebanese author.

 

Why was the corpse of Khalil Ahmad Jaber found in a mound of garbage? Why had this civil servant disappeared weeks before his horrific death? Who was this man? A journalist begins to piece together an answer by speaking with his widow, a local engineer, a watchman, the garbage man who discovered him, the doctor who performed the autopsy, and a young militiaman. Their stories emerge, along with the horrors of Lebanon’s bloody civil war and its ravaging effects on the psyches of the survivors. With empathy and candor, Elias Khoury reveals the havoc the war wreaked on Beirut and its inhabitants, as well as the resilience of a people.

Review in The Telegraph

 

Interview with Elias Khoury in Haaretz

 

Short blurb in The New Yorker in 2010 -- love the following from the article...

"...Khoury pointed out that the censorship of books in Lebanon is, and always has been, almost non-existent. “We are practically living in a big margin of freedom which makes it possible for us to write whatever we want.†This tradition of freedom is a point of pride for Lebanese citizens, but while Lebanon has always had a thriving publishing industry (an old Arab adage goes, “Cairo writes, Beirut publishes and Baghdad readsâ€), the country’s writers haven’t always taken advantage of their literary liberties...."

[Maus]

29. "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families" by Stephen R. Covey.  Well, it's a library copy, and I've decided I need my own copy, which must mean I'm endorsing the book!  :001_smile:

 

28. "He Delivered Even Me, He Will Deliver Even You" by Misti Stevenson (LDS).  Self-published, I think.  I got it from someone at church, who got it from someone else at church, who reviews books aimed at an LDS market  professionally.  Not sure what to think.  She says she's been "healed of OCD, anxiety, and depression."  She writes well, and her story is compelling, but somehow, she didn't quite convince me she's been fully healed.

27. "Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith" (LDS).
26. "Pearl of Great Price" (LDS).
25. "The Verbally Abusive Relationship" by Patricia Evans.
24. "Doctrine & Covenents" (LDS).
23. "The 7-day Christian: How Living Your Beliefs Every Day Can Change the World" by Brad Wilcox (LDS).
22. "Gift of Love" by Kris Mackay (LDS).
21. "In Loving Hands" by Kris Mackay (LDS).
20. "The Outstretched Arms" by Kris Mackay (LDS).
19. "No Greater Love" by Kris Mackay (LDS).
18. "The Book of Mormon" (LDS).
17. "Inferno" by Dan Brown.
16. "The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches" by Alan Bradley.
15. "I Am Not Sick I Don't Need Help!" by Xavier Amador, Ph.D.
14. "How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare" by Ken Ludwig.
13. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
12. "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein.
11. "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card.
10. "With Healing in His Wings" ed. by Camille Fronk Olson & Thomas A. Wayment (LDS).
9. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" by J.K. Rowling.
8. "The Good Knight" by Sarah Woodbury.
7. "Speaking From Among the Bones" by Alan Bradley.
6. "The Continuous Conversion" by Brad Wilcox (LDS).
5. "The Continuous Atonement" by Brad Wilcox (LDS).
4. "Finding Hope" by S. Michael Wilcox (LDS).
3. "When Your Prayers Seem Unanswered" by S. Michael Wilcox (LDS).
2. "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling. (Read-aloud)
1. "The Peacegiver: How Christ Offers to Heal Our Hearts and Homes" by James L. Ferrell (LDS).

[shukriyya]

Well, I'm not sure where my head was at this week but our lit curric arrived today and 'Call of the Wild' is not part of it  :hurray:  I have no clue where I got the idea that it was but it's likely due to the fact of my spending hours poring over so many different options that they all morphed into one unwieldy pedagogical mess :lol: At any rate I'm relieved that we can move forwards literarily with an open heart :D and I know y'all are happy for me ;)

[Rosie_0801]

How do I delete photos out of my media whatsit so I can upload more?

[mumto2]

Well, I'm not sure where my head was at this week but our lit curric arrived today and 'Call of the Wild' is not part of it :hurray: I have no clue where I got the idea that it was but it's likely due to the fact of my spending hours poring over so many different options that they all morphed into one unwieldy pedagogical mess :lol: At any rate I'm relieved that we can move forwards literarily with an open heart :D and I know y'all are happy for me ;)

Yeah!!! Really glad that worked out well. Lit curriculum is always so hard to choose because I always want to combine several. Anyway glad you picked the one without CotW. Also love the photo of your feathered friend. Beautil coloring and he matches the background art! ;)

[shukriyya]

 

How do I delete photos out of my media whatsit so I can upload more?

 

 

Go into 'settings' beneath your username at the top right of this page. You'll see a bar on the left hand side, click on manage attachments and delete to your heart's content :D

[shukriyya]

Yeah!!! Really glad that worked out well. Lit curriculum is always so hard to choose because I always want to combine several. Anyway glad you picked the one without CotW. Also love the photo of your feathered friend. Beautil coloring and he matches the background art! ;)

 

Thanks. And that particular bird is the one who considers me his mate. Calls for me, pecks at me, snuggles up, chastises me and generally tries to run my life :lol:

[Rosie_0801]

 

[Rosie_0801]