Book a Week 2015 - BW37: Waiting Afield at Dusk

[mumto2]

I've been reading for my book group which meets this Thursday. I'm now past the halfway point in A Tale for the Time Being: A Novel by Ruth Ozeki.

 

My mad searching skills tell me that Stacia, Pam in CT, LostSurprise, ElaineJ, Kim in Appalachia, and mumto2 (and perhaps others) have all read this over the past few years.

 

It took about fifty pages for me to be drawn in, but I'm engrossed in the story now. I'll report again after I finish the book.

 

 

"“A time being is someone who lives in time, and that means you, and me, and every one of us who is, or was, or ever will be.â€

 

In Tokyo, sixteen-year-old Nao has decided there’s only one escape from her aching loneliness and her classmates’ bullying. But before she ends it all, Nao first plans to document the life of her great grandmother, a Buddhist nun who’s lived more than a century. A diary is Nao’s only solace—and will touch lives in ways she can scarcely imagine. Across the Pacific, we meet Ruth, a novelist living on a remote island who discovers a collection of artifacts washed ashore in a Hello Kitty lunchbox—possibly debris from the devastating 2011 tsunami. As the mystery of its contents unfolds, Ruth is pulled into the past, into Nao’s drama and her unknown fate, and forward into her own future."

 

Regards,

Kareni

I hope you enjoy it. Not sure what I said about it at the time but I really enjoyed it and remember it fondly. Occasionally, especially when visiting the seaside, I remember odd bits and pieces. One of the best books in recent years for me.

 

I have been busy with my hexagon quilt. Pretty therapeutic with all hand stitching. I am trying to get all the parts I have done attached to each other before my patchwork meeting tomorrow night for show and tell. I am going to be starting the hard part soon, turning my giant hexagon which is made of small hexagons into a rectangular shape. I have studied lots of patterns so hopefully know how. Jane and Jenn listen to books while they craft but I watch telly. Making huge progress on Alias by watching/listening to several episodes a day!

 

Currently reading Cora Carmack's Losing It. Pretty good. I like har characters once again. It is a New Adult romance with adult content. I prefer her Rusk Universty books I think.

[Stacia]

Kareni, looking forward to your review of A Tale for the Time Being. I loved it. It resides on my 'favorites' list (over on Goodreads).

 

indigomama, welcome. And, unsinkable, nice to see you here too.

 

Jane, it's funny that you mention the Hans Fallada book. I think heard about it in The Garden of Beasts, looked it up & thought I might like it. One of my library systems has it & I requested it. It sat on my request list for months & months (there's just a single copy), which leads me to think that the library *had* one copy that is now lost/gone/destroyed or something. Maybe I'll try adding it again & see if it ever appears.

 

Jane & idnib, do you think I would like the Archipelago book you've been discussing? Can't quite decide based on your final comments. Lol.

 

TeacherZee, glad to see you checking in & knowing that you're hanging in there!

 

Wishing for rain for you CA gals. :grouphug:

[Stacia]

Hey, Angel. Are we planning to do a 'banned books' read together this year? If so, it's your pick this year. Any ideas of what you want us to read? (Just asking so I can plan ahead & find a copy of the book....)

[Jane in NC]

Stacia,

 

The Folly does not delve into magical realism but there is an interesting question of what is real--the knickknacks that Mrs holds or those that Mr "sees" in a mythical plan.  I suspect that you might like this book.  It will at least entertain you.  I'll send it to you and perhaps you can forward it another who wants to share in the bewilderment.

[unsinkable]

Kareni, looking forward to your review of A Tale for the Time Being. I loved it. It resides on my 'favorites' list (over on Goodreads).

 

indigomama, welcome. And, unsinkable, nice to see you here too.

 

Jane, it's funny that you mention the Hans Fallada book. I think heard about it in The Garden of Beasts, looked it up & thought I might like it. One of my library systems has it & I requested it. It sat on my request list for months & months (there's just a single copy), which leads me to think that the library *had* one copy that is now lost/gone/destroyed or something. Maybe I'll try adding it again & see if it ever appears.

 

Jane & idnib, do you think I would like the Archipelago book you've been discussing? Can't quite decide based on your final comments. Lol.

 

TeacherZee, glad to see you checking in & knowing that you're hanging in there!

 

Wishing for rain for you CA gals. :grouphug:

I'm a dedicated lurker...it seemed like a good time to post.

[Angel]

Hey, Angel. Are we planning to do a 'banned books' read together this year? If so, it's your pick this year. Any ideas of what you want us to read? (Just asking so I can plan ahead & find a copy of the book....)

 

My pick!  Hmm.  Let me think about it.   ;)

[indigomama]

The domestic goddess checks in.  ;)  More on that later.

 

Welcome Indigomama!  Love Among the Chickens, along with the four Psmith (the P is silent) novels, are my favorite Woodhouse books.  Excellent introduction to Wodehouse!

 

I love your board name too.  One of my great desires is to take an indigo dying class.

 

Thanks Pam!  Magda Szabo's novel The Door arrived in my mailbox today.  I suspect it will eventually be sent to a certain professor who apparently shares my reading tastes.  Perhaps his wife can tell me if it already resides in your household.

 

On the domestic front...I have dough rising for deep dish pizza and I have been ironing which I actually like doing.  I know.  I am weird.  Anyway, while doing these things I have been listening to a dramatization on the BBC of a novel by Hans Falleda, Every Man Dies Alone or Alone in Berlin.  Why have I never heard of this remarkable book based on a true story?  A working class couple decide to perform acts of civil disobedience in a small way by writing postcards critical of Hitler and the Nazis and leaving these cards around Berlin.  They are betrayed and arrested--you know the ending.

 

The novel was published in Germany in 1947.  It was only translated into English in 2009.  In 2016 it will appear on a screen somewhere near you with the title Alone in Berlin.

 

I borrowed Kareni's mad search skills and found that a BaW participant named Zebra read the book in 2012.  She wrote in a BaW thread:

 

 

Loved the rain/snow videos.  Now back to my ironing.

 

I'll look for the Psmith novels. I've a feeling Wodehouse is a good read for those times when I just want something light and fluffy.

And I've never used indigo dyes, but when I made my username, I had all boys and Indigomama seemed like a good moniker for someone with all little boys in the house :)

Is two people enough to start a club - a Terry Pratchett un-fan club?  :laugh:

 

 

I highly recommend Very Good, Jeeves as your next PG Wodehouse book.  I was listening to it as an audiobook and almost got into an accident I was laughing so much. 

 

On a kind a related note this is funny:

 

 

 

 

 

DH and I laugh anytime anyone mentions King Gustav of Sweden now. 

 

 

I lived in San Antonio in high school and then went to Texas A&M.  My family was from the midwest and my parents were in shock that they called off school once when there was a slight chance of snow.  I think it got down to 40 degrees that day and I enjoyed a day off of school. 

 

Was the audiobook read by someone British? It seems that Wodehouse would be fun to listen to with someone in the appropriate accent reading.

 

And those videos are very funny. I'm so used to Hugh Laurie as House, totally different character!

 

Welcome! My dh is a huge Wodehouse fan. I gather "silly and ridiculous" covers his entire oeuvre pretty well.

 

Madame Bovary is one of the few classics I've never been able to "get." I've read it twice; no charm either time.

 

I'm going to keep plugging away at Madame Bovary. I have a hard time not finishing a book once I start. 

[idnib]

:lol:  :lol:  :lol:

 

"Does this mean the drought is over?"  My dh, who works in water conservation, gets this question about 11 seconds after it rains!

 

On that note, our new roof was finished today, so bring on the rain! I felt horrible wishing it would hold off till our roof was finished, given how badly we need it with the fires and all.

 

We always laugh and say that just for once, we'd like a rain report without a reminder that this 1/4" doesn't make up for the multi-year drought. But I guess some people really do ask.

 

Our roof is getting done Oct 7 and 8. I do feel a bit guilty hoping there's no rain those days.

 

Jane & idnib, do you think I would like the Archipelago book you've been discussing? Can't quite decide based on your final comments. Lol.

 

Hmmm. I think most people would enjoy the first half. After that it's trickier to tell. I suggest taking Jane up on her offer and giving it a whirl. It's a slim volume and the reading is easy.

 

I've been thinking about the book quite a bit today and the more I reflect on it, the more impressed I am. When the book went off the rails, so to speak, I followed because I was invested in everything that had happened until that point. Reading it reminded me of surfing (not that I'm a surfer). It was as if I was always riding the crest of incredulity, no more or no less, and accepted the chaos and ad hoc swerving when the wave broke.

[Kareni]

Hello, hope you all don't mind me stopping in. I am usually a lurker, but I've had a chance to do some reading of my own lately and would love to share,and get more inspiration :)

 

Welcome, indigomama!

 

 

We don't have an evacuation plan as there's no likelihood of needing to evacuate; but we keep a mag light with fresh batteries and room to cower in the "tornado room" (under-stairs closet). Which came in useful for Great Girl this last summer. Twice. Poor thing.

 

Clearly, if Harry Potter had been set in your town, his invitation to Hogwarts would have been addressed:

 

Mr. H. Potter

The Tornado Room

...

 

 

Regarding Gary Greenberg's The Secrets of Sand: A Journey into the Amazing Microscopic World of Sand:

 

Just as I'm looking for more books for our Earth Science study. How did you know?  ;)

 

I had a dream.  You know, a visit from the Sandman.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Stacia]

Ohhh, Jane & idnib, I got a catalog from Archipelago in the mail the other day. Finally had a few minutes to sit down & look at it. Looks like the upcoming December release is A General Theory of Oblivion by Jose Eduardo Agualusa.  :hurray:  He's the author of The Book of Chameleons (a book I absolutely loved... & I think Pam enjoyed it too, lol). I don't always read more than one book by an author, but in his case, I'm thinking I'll be ordering the book & making an exception.

 

And, Pam, I noticed that the upcoming January release is another book by Elias Khoury: Broken Mirrors.

 

Actually, there are lots of goodies in this catalog that are leaving this reader drooling....

[Pam in CT]

Ohhh, Jane & idnib, I got a catalog from Archipelago in the mail the other day. Finally had a few minutes to sit down & look at it. Looks like the upcoming December release is A General Theory of Oblivion by Jose Eduardo Agualusa.  :hurray:  He's the author of The Book of Chameleons (a book I absolutely loved... & I think Pam enjoyed it too, lol). I don't always read more than one book by an author, but in his case, I'm thinking I'll be ordering the book & making an exception.

 

And, Pam, I noticed that the upcoming January releases is another book by Elias Khoury: Broken Mirrors.

 

Actually, there are lots of goodies in this catalog that are leaving this reader drooling....

 

Ya know, I think I have to get onto the Archipelago subscription bandwagon too.  I just sent Chameleons on to Eliana.  Can't wait to see how she takes that talking Amphibian That Shall Not Be Named...

[Stacia]

Ya know, I think I have to get onto the Archipelago subscription bandwagon too.  I just sent Chameleons on to Eliana.  Can't wait to see how she takes that talking Amphibian That Shall Not Be Named...

 

:lol:

[aggieamy]

My pick!  Hmm.  Let me think about it.   ;)

 

Did anyone ever ban Georgette Heyer or Robert Jordan?

 

:lol:

 

Was the audiobook read by someone British? It seems that Wodehouse would be fun to listen to with someone in the appropriate accent reading.

 

Yes it was.  That was a lot of the charm.  There are two great narrators ... Martin Jarvis and Jonathan Cecil.  Both are fantastic but my ABSOLUTE favorite is Jonathan Cecil. 

[aggieamy]

Is anyone reading any Agatha Christie in honor of the dear lady's birthday?  I'd love to do a read along and I'll even let someone else pick the book.  Caveat - None of the books from the 60's or 70's.  It makes me crazy when my favorite characters waste time complaining about "kids these days" and "those darn hippies with long hair" when they should be spending time at delightful country houses and solving murders!

[Shawneinfl]

Welcome, indigomama!

 

 

 

Clearly, if Harry Potter had been set in your town, his invitation to Hogwarts would have been addressed:

 

Mr. H. Potter

The Tornado Room

...

 

 

Regarding Gary Greenberg's The Secrets of Sand: A Journey into the Amazing Microscopic World of Sand:

 

 

I had a dream.  You know, a visit from the Sandman.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

 

[idnib]

Ya know, I think I have to get onto the Archipelago subscription bandwagon too. 

 

You know you want to....

[Pam in CT]

You know you want to....

... I did.

[mumto2]

Is anyone reading any Agatha Christie in honor of the dear lady's birthday? I'd love to do a read along and I'll even let someone else pick the book. Caveat - None of the books from the 60's or 70's. It makes me crazy when my favorite characters waste time complaining about "kids these days" and "those darn hippies with long hair" when they should be spending time at delightful country houses and solving murders!

I would love to. I don't really care which one. My overdrive library shows most of them as checked out so I grabbed Death in the Clouds because I like the bee. I also put the Secret of Chimneys on hold because of wanting to read that series in order. Honestly any will do....personal choice would be a Marple for a favourite.

 

ETA I just found The Man in the Brown Suit in at at a different library. I have never read it (I ghink) so checked that one out also.

[Jane in NC]

Ohhh, Jane & idnib, I got a catalog from Archipelago in the mail the other day. Finally had a few minutes to sit down & look at it. Looks like the upcoming December release is A General Theory of Oblivion by Jose Eduardo Agualusa.  :hurray:  He's the author of The Book of Chameleons (a book I absolutely loved... & I think Pam enjoyed it too, lol). I don't always read more than one book by an author, but in his case, I'm thinking I'll be ordering the book & making an exception.

 

And, Pam, I noticed that the upcoming January release is another book by Elias Khoury: Broken Mirrors.

 

Actually, there are lots of goodies in this catalog that are leaving this reader drooling....

 

Stacia, you know that I will be happy to share some of my Archipelago books with you.  Ahem.  Some.  Wieslaw Mysliwski is not leaving my life.  Knausgaard may be staying too--not sure. 

 

Ya know, I think I have to get onto the Archipelago subscription bandwagon too.

 

 

You know you want to....

 

 

... I did.

 

Noting that Archipelago is not paying me to promote their books although at the moment I am feeling a bit like a crack dealer...  Blame it on Stacia!

 

ETA:  Changed the member title above the profile pic because of this exchange!

[Kareni]

ETA:  Changed the member title above the profile pic because of this exchange!

 

Very cute!

 

 

Yesterday yet another Julie James' book came between me and my book group book; it was a fun re-read.  I clearly have some book group reading ahead later today.

 

Something About You by Julie James

 

"FATE HAS THROWN TWO SWORN ENEMIES...

Of all the hotel rooms rented by all the adulterous politicians in Chicago, female Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron Lynde had to choose the one next to 1308, where some hot-and-heavy lovemaking ends in bloodshed. And of all the FBI agents in Illinois, it had to be Special Agent Jack Pallas who gets assigned to this high-profile homicide. The same Jack Pallas who still blames Cameron for a botched crackdown three years ago—and nearly ruining his career…

…INTO EACH OTHER'S ARMS

Work with Cameron Lynde? Are they kidding? Maybe, Jack thinks, this is some kind of welcome-back prank after his stint away from Chicago. But it’s no joke: the pair is going to have to put their rocky past behind them and focus on the case at hand. That is, if they can cut back on the razor-sharp jibes—and smother the flame of their sizzling-hot sexual tension…"

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Butter]

I finished The Picture of Dorian Gray this morning.  I liked it.  It got wordy sometimes.  Loved the moral and the kind of angel vs. devil on the shoulder idea and killing the angel and all.

[idnib]

... I did.

 

:thumbup1:

 

Stacia, you know that I will be happy to share some of my Archipelago books with you.  Ahem.  Some.  Wieslaw Mysliwski is not leaving my life.  Knausgaard may be staying too--not sure. 

 

 

 

Noting that Archipelago is not paying me to promote their books although at the moment I am feeling a bit like a crack dealer...  Blame it on Stacia!

 

ETA:  Changed the member title above the profile pic because of this exchange!

 

Knausgaard may be staying? From your previous posts I thought he would definitely be staying.

 

As for book dealing, as long as you're not selling them out of a trench coat or the back of a van I think you're okay. I think.

 

Love the member title!

[Kareni]

A few currently free books for Kindle readers that might be of interest ~

 

Dun Lady's Jess: The Changespell Saga by Doranna Durgin (the author's first book, published in 1994)

 

"An award-winning book (Compton Crook for Best First SF/F/H of the Year) with special forward by Elizabeth Moon, and brand new remarks from Aurora-winning author Julie Czerneda

Courier mount Dun Lady's Jess accepts the hand of only one man: Carey of Anfeald. Together they race across rugged territories with the spell manuscripts no one else dares to carry, handling secrets with the potential to destroy worlds.

That is, until a treacherous wizard rips Lady and Carey apart in mid-run, tossing them across realities and turning Lady into Jess—a woman of fiery equine spirit and unyielding intent learning to be human in a new land called Ohio.

But Jess and Carey weren’t the only ones to tumble between worlds, and they aren’t the only ones looking for a way back. They definitely aren’t the only ones who want that deadly spell manuscript. And ultimately, only Jess—separated from the one person she trusts, flung into a new human form and culture—has the means to bring two worlds together and stop a wizard run amuck.

That is, if anyone can…"

 

**

 

Are you into time travel?  Solace by Therin Knite

 

"Corina Marion has a father problem—namely that her Red Cross doctor of a dad has finally returned home from sixteen years of war...

...as a body in a box to be buried.

Her mother is devastated, her friends shocked and saddened, her hometown in mourning at the loss of its local hero. And Corina, indifferent to the man she never met, is trapped in the middle of an emotional onslaught she isn't prepared to handle.

But when a strange old man confronts Corina at her father's funeral, he offers her an impossible opportunity: the chance to know the late Luther Marion. And in a moment of uncertainty, Corina makes a choice with consequences she can barely fathom.

A choice that sends her twenty-five years into the past.

Right on the cusp of the harrowing events that will shape Luther Marion's life...and death.

And in order to return to her damaged home, supportive friends, and uncertain future, Corina will have to fight tooth and nail alongside the man she's resented her entire life. Because if she doesn't help fix the past she's inadvertently changed with her presence, Luther Marion may not live long enough to become a hero at all."

 

**

 

Are zombies your thing? Until the End of the World (Until the End of the World, Book 1) by Sarah Lyons Fleming

 

"A story of survival, humor and true love. And zombies.

Cassie Forrest isn't surprised to learn that the day she’s decided to get her life together is also the day the world ends. After all, she’s been on a self-imposed losing streak since her survivalist parents died: she’s stopped painting, broken off her engagement to Adrian and dated a real jerk. Rectifying her mistakes has to wait, however, because Cassie and her friends have just enough time to escape Brooklyn for her parents’ cabin before Bornavirus LX turns them into zombies, too.

This is difficult enough, but Cassie’s tag along ex-boyfriend and her friend’s bratty sister have a knack for making everything, even the apocalypse, more unpleasant. When the two attract a threat as deadly as the undead to their safe haven, Cassie’s forced to see how far she’ll go to protect those she loves. And it’s a lot farther than she’d anticipated. This, coupled with Adrian’s distant voice on Safe Zone Radio and, of course, the living dead, threaten to put Cassie right back into the funk she just dragged herself out of.

Survival’s great and all, especially when you have leather armor, good friends and home-brewed beer, but there’s something Cassie must do besides survive: tell Adrian she still loves him. And to do that, Cassie has to find faith that she’s stronger than she thinks, she’s still a crack shot and true love never dies."

 

**

 

How about unicorns?  Unless You Can Be A Unicorn by Delphina Henley

 

"Always be yourself

 

That was the last advice Scout's Grandma Nora gave her before she died. Scout has spent her life trying to be anything but, but she has a chance to start anew as she moves several states away to college. She had always thought the glowing aura she saw around some people was a childhood fancy, but when it starts coming back just as she's starting her new life, she learns there was much hidden about who she truly is.

 

Thankfully, she has a motley crew to help her along the way: a spunky bookseller, a trustworthy pub owner, a commanding grandmother, a possible best friend, and a hot rocker boy who only has eyes for her."

 

**

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[aggieamy]

I would love to. I don't really care which one. My overdrive library shows most of them as checked out so I grabbed Death in the Clouds because I like the bee. I also put the Secret of Chimneys on hold because of wanting to read that series in order. Honestly any will do....personal choice would be a Marple for a favourite.

 

ETA I just found The Man in the Brown Suit in at at a different library. I have never read it (I ghink) so checked that one out also.

 

Let's do The Man in the Brown Suit!  I haven't read it yet. 

 

Is anyone else going to join Sandy and I in the Agatha Christie read along?

[Violet Crown]

As for book dealing, as long as you're not selling them out of a trench coat or the back of a van I think you're okay. I think.

 

You know we would all be totally buying them from a shady book dealer out of the back of a van if the Apocalypse came to that. And Jane would be the one handing them out. Giving kids free copies of A String in the Harp, just to hook them... moving her regulars up to the hard stuff out of Eastern Europe....

[mumto2]

Let's do The Man in the Brown Suit! I haven't read it yet.

 

Is anyone else going to join Sandy and I in the Agatha Christie read along?

I just thought I would put the goodreads linkhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209194.The_Man_in_the_Brown_Suit?from_search=true&search_version=servicein for The Man in the Brown Suit. Written in 1924 it looks good. Apparently it was turned into a movie starring Stephanie Zimbalist at some point....pretty sure I have watched it.

 

So when do we start?

[idnib]

You know we would all be totally buying them from a shady book dealer out of the back of a van if the Apocalypse came to that. And Jane would be the one handing them out. Giving kids free copies of A String in the Harp, just to hook them... moving her regulars up to the hard stuff out of Eastern Europe....

 

:lol:

[Kareni]

You know we would all be totally buying them from a shady book dealer out of the back of a van if the Apocalypse came to that. And Jane would be the one handing them out. Giving kids free copies of A String in the Harp, just to hook them... moving her regulars up to the hard stuff out of Eastern Europe....

 

Since I've never read A String in the Harp, I'm either a very strong personality capable of withstanding bullying and enticement ... or an infant!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Jane in NC]

You know we would all be totally buying them from a shady book dealer out of the back of a van if the Apocalypse came to that. And Jane would be the one handing them out. Giving kids free copies of A String in the Harp, just to hook them... moving her regulars up to the hard stuff out of Eastern Europe....

 

:lol:

 

I recently had a fantasy of meeting up with some of you BaWers in real life. This involved renting an RV and going to several national parks out west.  Your post has me reconsidering...Maybe that RV should be a bookmobile.  BaWers on tour with favorite volumes to dispense?

 

VC's post reminds me to tell you that I recently listened to A String in the Harp again--my third encounter with this book.  My son and I listened to it on the first go around, back when The Boy was in 7th grade or so.  A couple years later I read the book, savoring many of the passages in print.  Then, a few weeks ago, I recognized that I needed a vicarious trip to Wales and there is no better way than to be led by Taliesin in the hands of Nancy Bond. So A String in the Harp has accompanied me in the car on my travels out and about in the world.

 

I still love this book.

[mommymilkies]

Since we pre-ordered Library of Souls (third Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children book), we were able to get a sneak peak at the first 100 pages.  My daughter and I devoured it.  That book is going to be SO good!  The problem?  It's still another 8 days before the book is released and I really, really want to know what happens next!

 

Also, yesterday I discovered it is absolutely impossible to explain what Miss Peregrine is about.  It makes no sense, but the books are so very good!

 

Ohhhh I need to get the third! I can't wait!

 

I finished The 8th Day and The Inquisitor's Mark.  Both quite excellent juvenile fantasy, but enjoyable for adults. :) 

 

I started The Bones of the Earth by Scott Hale and it is...weird.  I like weird, but this was beyond my weird limit.  I sat it aside and I'll think about finishing it later. Instead I picked up Swan Song by McCammon.  I'm barely started, though, so no review yet. 

 

We got our newly illustrated Gaiman boxed set, too! Yay!  

[Kareni]

I've now finished A Tale for the Time Being: A Novel  by Ruth Ozeki which I've been reading for my book group tomorrow evening.  As I said initially, it took me about fifty pages to get caught up in the story.  Once past that point, I did enjoy the book.  I found it interesting that the author used fictionalized versions of herself and her husband in the book.  At a certain point, the story became a tad ... more outside the ordinary.  (That's probably the magical realism of which you all so often speak.)  It did leave me with questions -- for example, we never do learn how the package came to be in the ocean.  This book is a good example of why I enjoy being in a book group.  Had I picked this up to read without a commitment to finish it, I'd have put it aside.  But, having finished it, I'm glad to have read it.

 

Now I need to see what aggieamy predicted.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

 

[Kareni]

I'm going to take a guess based on what I know of books that you like on your opinion of it .... I'll do it in white so you can come back after you finish and see if I'm right:  You'll love it and plan to read more by the author. 

 

Hmm, 'loved' is a strong word; however, I would certainly be open to reading another book by Ozeki!

 

 

It's interesting to ponder the word love in connection with my reading.  All the more so since I so often read love stories.  My temperament is a placid one with, in general, minor highs and lows.  It's probably a case of opposites attract in that my husband and many of my friends tend to have more decided ups and downs in how they express their moods.  I'm not sure I would use the word love even when speaking of the books of my favorite authors whom I often re-read.

 

What about you (all of you) ~ do you have authors or books that you love?

 

Regards,

Kareni

[aggieamy]

I just thought I would put the goodreads linkhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209194.The_Man_in_the_Brown_Suit?from_search=true&search_version=servicein for The Man in the Brown Suit. Written in 1924 it looks good. Apparently it was turned into a movie starring Stephanie Zimbalist at some point....pretty sure I have watched it.

 

So when do we start?

 

Monday?  I'm still running the flop house for family members and I'm hoping they'll be gone by then.

 

You know what they say about fish and house guests ... well, they've been here way longer than three days!!!!

[Jane in NC]

 

What about you (all of you) ~ do you have authors or books that you love?

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

Just a few posts up, I noted that I still love A String in the Harp! 

 

Yes, there are books and authors I love!  Angela Thirkell is one of my best friends.  ;)

 

[Jane in NC]

Several years ago, I was introduced to the Scottish writer D.E. Stevenson via these threads. Wikipedia says she wrote over 40 "light romance" novels. I would called Miss Buncle's Book an entertainment.  Light and fun.

 

Having purchased and read the book, I placed it in a small stack to bring to my friend who rented a place at Saint Simons Island last March.  Several months later I received an interesting note from her.  She wrote that the book was just the tonic she needed at a point when her mom had not been doing too well.  After finishing it, she gave it to her 92 year old mother who also found it to be a delight.  Her mom lives in an assisted living facility where Miss Buncle's Book has made the rounds.  All have enjoyed it.

 

My friend then ordered the sequel, Miss Buncle Married, for her mom and friends.

 

Miss Buncle Married was placed on my library list where it grew digital dust.  On my last visit to the main library that keeps the old volumes, I borrowed a well loved edition with a library card in the back pocket stamped 1946 as the earliest date.  One of my missions in life is to borrow beloved books that have not found their way off the shelves in a while to keep them in circulation.  This one is in such bad shape that it will not surprise me if I am declared the last reader of this particular copy. And then it will cease to exist in the system.  Sigh.

[aggieamy]

Hmm, 'loved' is a strong word; however, I would certainly be open to reading another book by Ozeki!

 

 

It's interesting to ponder the word love in connection with my reading.  All the more so since I so often read love stories.  My temperament is a placid one with, in general, minor highs and lows.  It's probably a case of opposites attract in that my husband and many of my friends tend to have more decided ups and downs in how they express their moods.  I'm not sure I would use the word love even when speaking of the books of my favorite authors whom I often re-read.

 

What about you (all of you) ~ do you have authors or books that you love?

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

I'm the type of person who has strong opinions so there are a number of authors that I love love love love and even a few that I despise.  The problem is that when an author I adore writes a book I dislike then it throws me into sadness for at least three hours and I wonder why they would have done something horrible like that to me! 

 

Several years ago, I was introduced to the Scottish writer D.E. Stevenson via these threads. Wikipedia says she wrote over 40 "light romance" novels. I would called Miss Buncle's Book an entertainment.  Light and fun.

 

Having purchased and read the book, I placed it in a small stack to bring to my friend who rented a place at Saint Simons Island last March.  Several months later I received an interesting note from her.  She wrote that the book was just the tonic she needed at a point when her mom had not been doing too well.  After finishing it, she gave it to her 92 year old mother who also found it to be a delight.  Her mom lives in an assisted living facility where Miss Buncle's Book has made the rounds.  All have enjoyed it.

 

My friend then ordered the sequel, Miss Buncle Married, for her mom and friends.

 

Miss Buncle Married was placed on my library list where it grew digital dust.  On my last visit to the main library that keeps the old volumes, I borrowed a well loved edition with a library card in the back pocket stamped 1946 as the earliest date.  One of my missions in life is to borrow beloved books that have not found their way off the shelves in a while to keep them in circulation.  This one is in such bad shape that it will not surprise me if I am declared the last reader of this particular copy. And then it will cease to exist in the system.  Sigh.

 

This is such a sweet story.  I just added Miss Buncle to my reading list.  Hopefully I can follow your good example and save a book or two from being taken out of circulation.

 

I love old books.  Just to think that someone might have been sitting there reading that book after the war.  She might have been so happy because her husband was finally home and they were expecting their first child and she had a moment to just curl up in a chintz arm chair and disappear into the exact same world that someone in 2015 could disappear into.  Books are magic. 

[Chrysalis Academy]

Let's do The Man in the Brown Suit!  I haven't read it yet. 

 

Is anyone else going to join Sandy and I in the Agatha Christie read along?

 

I'll join you! I have a vague sense I read this before as a kid, but I don't remember it.  I'm in a reading rut due to limited bandwidth and need something light and enjoyable.  I'll put it on hold, but it may not get in for awhile. So no spoilers!!!  ;)

[Loesje22000]

Were the retellings in Dutch or English? Care to share the titles?

 

!

In Dutch:

http://www.pluizuit.be/archief2/boeken12+/Victor Frankenstein.htm

http://www.pluizer.be/kinderboeken-jeugdboeken/dracula

 

They are both only secondhanded available

[Kareni]

 One of my missions in life is to borrow beloved books that have not found their way off the shelves in a while to keep them in circulation. 

 

 

 

I love old books.  Just to think that someone might have been sitting there reading that book after the war.  She might have been so happy because her husband was finally home and they were expecting their first child and she had a moment to just curl up in a chintz arm chair and disappear into the exact same world that someone in 2015 could disappear into.  Books are magic. 

 

 

Fun stories.  Books are magic indeed.

 

When we first began homeschooling, my daughter was in 7th grade, and we homeschooled on a shoestring.  The library was not only a friend but a necessity.  I learned that our local state university library had both juvenile and curriculum collections (presumably for teacher education programs) and that adult state residents could check out two books at a time.  We checked out many old books.  One I recall in particular was a copy of Last Days of Pompeii by Baron Edward Bulwer-Lytton.  You may recall that VioletCrown mentioned recently that Bulwer-Lytton is the author of the much quoted line, "It was a dark and stormy night ...."  Our copy, unlike the FREE Kindle copy I linked to, was an elderly copy published in 1898.  In beautiful copperplate cursive in a margin, my daughter found that a fellow reader from decades or perhaps a century ago had written, "This is the best book in the world!"  It was a neat find.  We also checked out a first edition of Genevieve Foster's Augustus Caesar's World published in the 1940s.  Fun memories!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Stacia]

Jane, as always, thank you for the nice offer to share your books. I have enjoyed so many (& have a few more still here on my shelves) because of your generous spirit of sharing.

 

Re: Kareni's question.... I definitely have books I love & a few authors too. I do think I tend to love individual books more than an author in particular.

[idnib]

I recently had a fantasy of meeting up with some of you BaWers in real life. This involved renting an RV and going to several national parks out west.  Your post has me reconsidering...Maybe that RV should be a bookmobile.  BaWers on tour with favorite volumes to dispense?

 

YES!!!

[Violet Crown]

It would embarrass him from beyond the grave to call it love, but I certainly enjoy the novels of Henry James more consistently than those of other writers. In fact I think that my next fiction choice will have to be more James.

 

And I have a strong fondness for J. Frank Dobie that may well shade over into personal affection; like that for an intelligent and endearing great-uncle. I recently picked up more Dobie at the library discard store and will make that my next nonfiction reading.

 

And Chekhov is hot. Though of course dead.

 

ETA: Jane, I say go with your obviously inspired plan.

[aggieamy]

Double post

[aggieamy]

It would embarrass him from beyond the grave to call it love, but I certainly enjoy the novels of Henry James more consistently than those of other writers. In fact I think that my next fiction choice will have to be more James.

 

And I have a strong fondness for J. Frank Dobie that may well shade over into personal affection; like that for an intelligent and endearing great-uncle. I recently picked up more Dobie at the library discard store and will make that my next nonfiction reading.

 

And Chekhov is hot. Though of course dead.

 

ETA: Jane, I say go with your obviously inspired plan.

 

Violet - I know your pain.  Some people are fan girls for those Hollywood guys (blech) and others of us are fan girls for of long dead authors (sigh).  and also 1980's Paul Hogan but I hesitate to mention that in esteemed company such as this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I recently had a fantasy of meeting up with some of you BaWers in real life. This involved renting an RV and going to several national parks out west.  Your post has me reconsidering...Maybe that RV should be a bookmobile.  BaWers on tour with favorite volumes to dispense?

 

Please let me know when you'll be arriving.  I'll have dinner ready.  :laugh:

[Angel]

Did anyone ever ban Georgette Heyer or Robert Jordan?

 

:lol:

 

If only.... :laugh:

 

Is anyone reading any Agatha Christie in honor of the dear lady's birthday?  I'd love to do a read along and I'll even let someone else pick the book.  Caveat - None of the books from the 60's or 70's.  It makes me crazy when my favorite characters waste time complaining about "kids these days" and "those darn hippies with long hair" when they should be spending time at delightful country houses and solving murders!

I would love to but I'm in a reading drought because I've been too busy with life  :glare:   Therefore, I can't.  It's so annoying.

 

Stacia - Twilight is on the Banned Books list in 2010 and 2009  :lol:

 

Just kidding  :lol:   I actually like it but read it more than once already  :leaving:

 

Let's see what else I can find...  Does Captain Underpants count?  That might be about my level right now  :lol:

 

Seriously now - stop messing around ...

 

Brave, New World

Roll of Thunder Hear my Cry

 

Read in 12th grade and 5th or 6th grade respectively but don't remember much.  Brave, New World was controversial even in 1990.  The Christian parents chose a different book for the kids to read (I became a Christian after high school so don't know what the controversy was about).  

 

Either of those sound good?

[Angel]

 

Are zombies your thing? Until the End of the World (Until the End of the World, Book 1) by Sarah Lyons Fleming

 

"A story of survival, humor and true love. And zombies.

Cassie Forrest isn't surprised to learn that the day she’s decided to get her life together is also the day the world ends. After all, she’s been on a self-imposed losing streak since her survivalist parents died: she’s stopped painting, broken off her engagement to Adrian and dated a real jerk. Rectifying her mistakes has to wait, however, because Cassie and her friends have just enough time to escape Brooklyn for her parents’ cabin before Bornavirus LX turns them into zombies, too.

 

This is difficult enough, but Cassie’s tag along ex-boyfriend and her friend’s bratty sister have a knack for making everything, even the apocalypse, more unpleasant. When the two attract a threat as deadly as the undead to their safe haven, Cassie’s forced to see how far she’ll go to protect those she loves. And it’s a lot farther than she’d anticipated. This, coupled with Adrian’s distant voice on Safe Zone Radio and, of course, the living dead, threaten to put Cassie right back into the funk she just dragged herself out of.

 

Survival’s great and all, especially when you have leather armor, good friends and home-brewed beer, but there’s something Cassie must do besides survive: tell Adrian she still loves him. And to do that, Cassie has to find faith that she’s stronger than she thinks, she’s still a crack shot and true love never dies."

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

Hey Karen - do you happen to know if this is tame.  Don't know if you just found it or have actually  read it.  I'm careful about what I put on Aly's Kindle even if it is for me.

 

ETA:  Found my answer!  Nevermind!

[Butter]

Roll of Thunder Hear my Cry

 

I love that book.

 

 

I'm almost halfway through the 5th Michael Vey book (Storm of Lightning).  My son listened to the whole thing yesterday.  He said it wasn't as good as the first four because nothing super exciting happened (um... some exciting stuff has happened so far in my reading, but, whatever, I guess it's not like blowing up the Ampere).  He said it was filler like he only had stuff for 6 books and he is making it a series of 7.  I can kind of see what he means, but everything that is happening is clearly setting up the final two books and everything is very necessary.  These book are 300ish page books.  Without this "not so exciting" book, he'd have to add 150 pages to the next two books, but Richard Paul Evans clearly wanted to keep these books within the same ballpark length of each other.

[Kareni]

I fully expect that some here will appreciate these bookish/grammar items  ~

 

A Diagrammatical Dissertation on Opening Lines of Notable Novels

http://popchartlab.com/collections/prints-all/products/a-diagrammatical-dissertation-on-opening-lines-of-notable-novels

 

A Diagrammatical Dissertation on Closing Lines of Notable Novels

http://popchartlab.com/products/a-diagrammatical-dissertation-on-closing-lines-of-notable-novels

 

 

Pride and Prejudice Sentence Diagram Tote Bag

 

A Pop Culture Primer on Parts of Speech

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Rosie_0801]

I read 'Will I Ever Be Rid of You?'

 

Sadly the answer is "probably not."

 

I was very angry with the way the book ended. A book about an abuse dynamic ended with therapy recommendations that support the abuse dynamic. How stupidly, nauseatingly stupid is that?

[KathyBC]

And I have a strong fondness for J. Frank Dobie that may well shade over into personal affection; like that for an intelligent and endearing great-uncle. I recently picked up more Dobie at the library discard store and will make that my next nonfiction reading.

 

 

 

I didn't expect to run into that name on this forum. The Ben Lilly Legend is another of dh's favourites.