Book a Week 2015 - BW39: book news

[Guest]

 

 

Robin, thanks for the reminder re: Banned Books.  I think I'll take on Absolutely True Diary of Part-time Indian if I can persuade Stella to do it with me....

 

****************

 

Re: Ta-Nehisi Coates' Between the World and Me - I largely agree with Stacia's assessment -- I think it's an important book, not quite that I "enjoyed" it... the NYT Book Review reviewed it a few weeks ago, after I'd read it and after I'd passed my copy around to my eldest and two teens of the family we were traveling with in August... I can't remember the reviewer, but s/he made the observation that (I'm paraphrasing here) it's not written for a white audience, and -- if you're white -- that's going to, uh, color your reading experience.  I agree with that, too... the  family we were traveling with are Chinese-American, and I think that reading lens was different, again, from my daughter's and mine... anyway, the man writes beautifully, and now we know he's a genius! so there's that! ... and I do recommend it.

 

Eliana, glad you enjoyed Painted Alphabet! Let me know when ('cuz I know you will, it's just a matter of time) find the Balinese originals...

 

 

 

 

re: Sherman Alexie's book: I look forward to hearing your reactions.  I just finished his short story collection Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.  I started it near the beginning of the year, but it was too depressing to read much of at a time.  I've wondered where his YA book(s?) fall on that spectrum.... 

 

*********************

 

re: Between the World and Me: Thank you (and Stacia!) for reflecting on this book several times... each time I get closer to ready/certain that I should read it.

 

****************

re: Painted Alphabet: I might have to go to Bali and watch a performance.... I only seem to have two Balinese-related books I can put my hands on here in the house: A House in Bali:

 

"This is a book about passion, obsession and discovery in an amazing land, but also about the voyage of a highly talented composer and writer.

A House in Bali remains one of the most remarkable books ever written about the fabled island of Bali. This classic book tells the story of Balinese culture through a history of Balinese music.

First published in 1947, it tells the story of the writer and composer Colin McPhee's (1900–64) obsession with a music once unknown to the West, and of his journey to Bali to experience it firsthand. In 1929, the young Canadian– born musician chanced upon rare gramophone recordings of Balinese gamelan music which were to change his life forever. From that moment, he lived for the day when he could set foot on the island where the clear, metallic music originated. He was able to realize his dreams and spent almost a decade there during the 1930's. Music of Bali and dance, as McPhee discovered to his delight, are second nature to the Balinese, and his subsequent writings and compositions proved seminal in popularizing Balinese gamelan music in the West.

In A House in Bali, McPhee unfolds a beguiling picture of a society long established, staggeringly poor in Western terms, but rich beyond belief in spiritual values and joy. The young composer writes about his discoveries of music in Bali and growing understanding of an astonishing culture where the arts are a prime preoccupation, and of the arts, music is supreme. Much has been written on Bali, but this classic work from 1947 remains the only narrative by a Western musician."

 

...and (less intriguing looking and less connected to my current interests): Kinship in Bali

 

...neither of which was what I am looking for, but both are now on my bedside bookshelf (and I am left marveling at the sheer randomness of our personal library.... though I suspect both of these came from the assortment of books we were given by a downsizing bookstore.)

 

 

 

For another Russian backup, I'd also highly recommend a lovely book from Archipelago (Eliana & I both read it a year or two ago): A Dream in Polar Fog by Yuri Rytkheu. I loved it & I believe Eliana did too.

 

 

Oh, yes!  ...and now I have another book by him in my TBR piles: The Chukchi Bible.  It isn't (I think) a novel, but rather a collection of myths and stories.  I am very excited about it (and thanks again to you and Jane for bringing Archipelago to us all.)

 

[mumto2]

Wales and Scotland, as the Welsh and Scots will zealously inform you, are countries which, with England and Northern Ireland, make up the sovereign state of the United Kingdom.

Totally agree....cultural identities are very strong here. Many people don't really travel between the countries. People are surprised that we have been to Ireland.

 

Traveling with poor internet connections. I am having problems liking and things take forever to load.

[Stacia]

re: The Saramago: It is a tiny book - more a short story than even a novella, and I don't know how well it represents his work... but I've had him on my 'ought to read' list for a very long time and haven't been sure I wanted to really, but I found this delightful and intriguing and want to see what he does with a larger canvas. I think the the only one I own is a nonfiction book about Portugal, so it might have to wait.

 

 

 

Blindness and History of the Siege of Lisbon are the two on my tentative list.... I was leaning more toward the latter because apocalyptic type novels often make me stressed (and blindness scares me much more than zombies ever could.), but Blindness seems the more compelling story, from the little I've seen.

 

I've kind of purposely steered away from Blindness. I'm not keen on dystopian/apocalyptic novels either.

 

The History of the Siege of Lisbon has been on my to-read list as another possibility by him.

 

You might also like All the Names.

 

ETA: Looking forward to your feedback on The Chukchi Bible.

 

[Butter]

Totally agree....cultural identities are very strong here. Many people don't really travel between the countries. People are surprised that we have been to Ireland.

 

Really?!?!  My husband's aunts, uncles, and cousins travel a *lot* between the UK countries and, since his mom lives in RoI, they go there a lot, too.  They live in England.  They are often on holiday to Wales or Scotland.  Northern Ireland not so much, but they've gone there, too.  When we visited Jamie's mom a couple years ago we went to church there and in order to go to the Temple, LDS people have to fly to England.  Several of the members do it regularly.  I have a Scottish friend who goes to England and Wales regularly as well.  I've never heard that many people don't travel between the countries since everyone I know personally over there does!  Interesting.

[Chrysalis Academy]

My  copy of Handful of Dust arrived and I started it.  It actually seems pretty funny, satirical, and interesting so far, I think I'm going to give it a go.  I don't even remember what I disliked so much about Vile Bodies - I think I just found all the characters totally morally reprehensible and unsympathetic, but I don't even really remember the story.  But this one has been quite cleverly satirical so far, so we'll see how it goes.

 

 

 

Wow. Well, it sure took a dark turn halfway through. Not sure how he is going to manage to carry on with the humor.

[Ali in OR]

Would love to hear any other thoughts you have about this one.

 

After reading Brave New World (& in anticipation of starting Slaughterhouse Five in the next couple of days), I've been mulling them both over since both have faced various bannings/challenges.

 

I did see this but haven't answered because I don't think any of my thoughts are coherent! Not enough sleep, spend all my time driving kids places--think the brain cells are dying off faster and faster. But if I was a young student again and had time to THINK, the two things I can think of that grabbed me are the "so it goes" after every death, and the effect that has on the reader (do we become more calloused?), and also the comparison of war to the children's crusade which I had never heard of. I tried to find out a little more on Wikipedia and it seems there's no firm evidence that such a thing really happened (collecting children in 13th century to fight a crusade against the muslims but really selling them into slavery for your own gain). And what is he saying with his time travel device? Is that a self-protection mechanism to deal with horrific memories? 

 

I would love to jump into BNW next, but I have a couple of holds that just came in at the library (and not enough reading time). But in other news, we did get our purple cat decoration out yesterday (we're pretty mild here) and I bought my first pumpkin! 

[Guest]

You.are.awesome.

 

And, see, doesn't the Dalyrymple look intriguing?  Prime example of BAW broadening my world.

 

Kareni is amazing!! 

 

I have a number of Dalrymples around the house, I should see if I have this one... 

 

...and oh,yes!  Being here is a continual stretching and growing process... for which I am enormously grateful.

 

 

 

 

 

All together now!  I need the collective good vibes of the BaWers to assist in mentally pushing Joaquin out to sea.  Princess Jane is just not in the mood for a hurricane at the moment.  Further, my world is already squishy--this before the possible five or six inches of rain we could get in the next couple of days. So join me in saying adieu to Joaquin before his outer bands reach these shores.  And let's hope that I don't have to evacuate.  Ugh...

 

:grouphug:

 

 

 

 I've always wanted to read a Brave New World so this is a good time to do so since it's popular on this thread at the moment. 

 

Read it with my 14 yr old...yes? 

 

I wouldn't, but ymmv.  (and I haven't reread it since I was a teen, so I might be misremembering things)

 

 

Banned book news:

 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/new-zealand-bans-into-the-river-teenage-novel-outcry-christian-group

 

My mind boggles.

 

Stacia, you'll have to share with us what is so shocking about this book.... 

 

 

:hurray:

 

 

Having never read Proust, I still have an unsatisfied curiosity. Maybe someday!

 

 

:iagree:   Proust is on my bucket list... but not for this year.

[Guest]

 

 

I haven't been posting because I haven't been reading. Because dh is out of town for a week and I'm an exhausted lonely mess by evening, capable only of binge-watching awful brain-deadening things on Netflix until I fall asleep in the empty bed.
 

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:

 

I can't imagine.  

 

Is he gone often?  (and would that make it harder or easier?  I can imagine it both ways)

 

Can we help?  (Obviously we aren't close enough to be physically useful, which would be the best...)

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:

 

 

Scratching my head, wondering if we are talking about the same books. I'm having a brain fart because all I remember is that it was a silly, but weird off beat series. So I did a bit of Internet browsing and found this

http://www.avclub.com/article/revisiting-the-sad-misogynistic-fantasy-of-xanth-104382

Understand now. That's what comes from reading so many books. Some are best forgotten. Maybe that is why I stopped reading after a while. And here I thought it was that I got bored with the series.

 

 

I think the ones I picked up several years ago were a little further into the series.  My impressions could be distorted by time and shock, but I remember what I encountered as significantly worse.  

[Guest]

Interesting idea, that some of the "country" delineations are more autonomously based vs. colonially imposed... of course to try an A-Z round the world is so artificial in the first place... so many M's, so few Y's... yet I'm enjoying the prod to go to places like Yemen, that I might not otherwise get around to exploring.  Perhaps another year I might try indigenous groups A-Z and see where that might lead (I expect a great deal more choice in the Q's, for example...)

 

I'm still working my way through your list, but if I cant get to the Karamazov finish line, Our Lady of the Nile may be the one.  I've never read anything set in Rwanda.  Jane, what did you think of it?

 

And Purge, I already sent to the Kindle.  The Baltics are calling me, these days.  Although now you're scaring me a bit...

 

Re: Andrea Host - at some point during the summer when I was trying to read off the things piled onto my Kindle, I came across Stray.  I assumed one of my kids had put it on -- we all share an account and I give them "budgets before trips so they can load whatever they want -- but they all denied it.  I read it anyway, staying up late into the night, and the next morning got the other two in the series and read them straight through as well... upon returning, I relayed this and Kareni sleuthed you down as Reader Zero!  :laugh:

 

 

Well, the Wales/Scotland/England thing highlights another issue with how we define "country".  Do we use the 197 official (ish?) list?  (Which does not include Wales, frex, as a "country")  

 

What is a "country"?  How is it different than an ethnic group, a tribe, a people?  What about Tibet?  Or Macedonia before Yugoslavia disintegrated?  Or "Palestine" (pre and post State of Israel...)?

 

Africa is the most extreme (to me) example of how official designations didn't work well for me.  ...but the last straw was actually Wales and Scotland.... 

 

 

Our Lady of the Nile is an amazing book.  Disturbing, but I think you would appreciate it.

 

Purge... I have trouble talking about it... but I wouldn't be scared... just aware that you are entering a narrative that means experiencing some very harrowing things.  It isn't a grim, hopeless book, but it deals unflinchingly with things we are rarely forced to acknowledge happened/are happening.  

 

re: Host: that sounds familiar - sorry!  Anyway, the loan offer still stands, if you ever want to borrow any of the others.

[Stacia]

I did see this but haven't answered because I don't think any of my thoughts are coherent! Not enough sleep, spend all my time driving kids places--think the brain cells are dying off faster and faster. But if I was a young student again and had time to THINK, the two things I can think of that grabbed me are the "so it goes" after every death, and the effect that has on the reader (do we become more calloused?), and also the comparison of war to the children's crusade which I had never heard of. I tried to find out a little more on Wikipedia and it seems there's no firm evidence that such a thing really happened (collecting children in 13th century to fight a crusade against the muslims but really selling them into slavery for your own gain). And what is he saying with his time travel device? Is that a self-protection mechanism to deal with horrific memories? 

 

I hear you on the brain cell thing. I feel like mine are jumping ship pretty quickly.

 

Re: 'so it goes'. I don't see it as making me more callous to the message. I almost see it as a statement that says death is inevitable; also one that points out that sometimes people are just little cogs in bigger machinery, working/living/dying as a result of something bigger that the individual can't always control. Billy was a pretty passive POW, mostly observing what the war was inflicting on him. It's maybe also a coping mechanism. I think it goes along with the serenity prayer Billy had posted on his office wall & then the sentence, "Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future." I don't see it as a fatalistic view either, maybe just one more of passive acceptance?

 

Re: the children's crusade. It's interesting you looked that up as a factual thing. That did not occur to me. I took it in a bigger context that all too often, it is really young people who are the cannon/gun/missile fodder in a war. Who has traditionally been sent to the front lines in any war? Mostly young people. Old men plan the wars, young men fight them. Sadly, it's not unknown or even that uncommon for younger teens, even tweens, to be conscripted into fights around the world. It's happening today. Sometimes, young people join of their own free will -- I think quite a few American soldiers in WWII were underage because they lied about their ages on their enlistment forms. Anyway, I took it as a very strong statement that we (or anyplace) should not be sending children to fight. Period. And, yes, an 18yo is still a 'child' in those circumstances. Really, why do we as humans want to kill off so many youth by fighting wars? Are their lives really expendable? It's trying to make a statement that war is not glamorous, it's not 'manly', it's not pretty, it's not even honorable. It's really just a killing mechanism because that is often what a war churns people down to -- expendable beings. Maybe humans need to come up with a better way to solve problems than by fighting wars.

 

I did just look up the children's crusade since you mentioned doing that & it seems like it was perhaps considered factual until the late 1970s when some of it was discredited. Slaughterhouse-Five was written & published in the 1960s, so as far as Vonnegut would have known then, it would have been considered historical fact, I suppose.

 

 

But in other news, we did get our purple cat decoration out yesterday (we're pretty mild here) and I bought my first pumpkin! 

 

Sounds good to me. We only have 'nice' Halloween decorations here because neither my dc nor my dh like 'spooky' stuff.

[Ali in OR]

Yes, that pretty much sums up what I was thinking re: comparing war to the children's crusade (but much more eloquently that I can muster!)

 

[Kareni]

Yesterday I mentioned having read My Dearest Enemy which the author Connie Brockway published in 1998; last night I read her latest historical romance which was released just a few weeks ago ~ 

Highlander Undone by Connie Brockway

 

"While recovering at his uncle’s estate from wounds sustained in the Sudan, Jack Cameron—a loyal Scottish captain in the British army—is haunted by the words of a dying officer: one of Her Majesty’s Black Dragoons is aiding the slavers they were sent to suppress. But how will he find the traitor without sending the culprit to ground? He finds a way while listening to the voices beneath his open window—particularly those of Addie Hoodless, a beautiful widow, and her brother, Ted, a famed artist commissioned to paint portraits of the Black Dragoons’ senior officers.

 

Posing as an artist, Jack decides to infiltrate the close circle of friends at Ted’s studio to listen in on the unguarded conversations of the officers. But first, he must win Addie’s trust despite the emotional wounds of her past. Will Jack dupe the only woman he has ever loved or stand down from hunting the traitor? If his real identity is exposed, Addie’s life will be in terrible danger."

 

 

It was an enjoyable read, but My Dearest Enemy remains my favorite Brockway romance.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[idnib]

 

:iagree:   Proust is on my bucket list... but not for this year.

 

Let me know if you decide to go for it. We did manage to get through Ulysses at more or less the same time!

[mumto2]

Really?!?! My husband's aunts, uncles, and cousins travel a *lot* between the UK countries and, since his mom lives in RoI, they go there a lot, too. They live in England. They are often on holiday to Wales or Scotland. Northern Ireland not so much, but they've gone there, too. When we visited Jamie's mom a couple years ago we went to church there and in order to go to the Temple, LDS people have to fly to England. Several of the members do it regularly. I have a Scottish friend who goes to England and Wales regularly as well. I've never heard that many people don't travel between the countries since everyone I know personally over there does! Interesting.

National identities are strong here. When we fill out census type info here it is legally by country of origin, dh and dc's are Scottish, I am English. Doesn't matter where you live now.

 

For travel it isn't so much a lack of willingness not to leave their country it is more of a just have never gone or had the opportunity. Too be honest I know people in the US who have never ventured further than a couple counties from home. It just depends on the people but most people in England have been to London and visited Wales and Scotland a few times. The big one is N. Ireland......friends who have literally travelled the world have never been. According to an Irish acquaintance their moving to England was a huge, really huge event. Family members say that they will never see them again because they have never been to England. But many people are like your family and travel between contries frequently.....just realized we haven't actually left England for the other countries in the past year as far as travel within the UK but I have been to a few other EU countries and the US.

[Jane in NC]

 

:iagree:   Proust is on my bucket list... but not for this year.

 

 

Let me know if you decide to go for it. We did manage to get through Ulysses at more or less the same time!

 

I have committed myself to Knausgaard.  Not sure I can handle Proust in the same time frame.

 

A friend recently mentioned the Neapolitan series of books by Elena Ferrante that are also being called "Proustian" in scope. She is strongly encouraging me to read them.  :willy_nilly:

[Butter]

Too be honest I know people in the US who have never ventured further than a couple counties from home.

 

I know exactly zero people like that.  I used to know one person who had never left Maryland, but then she went to Virginia once.  I grew up in the mid-Atlantic where people live in one state and work in another.  I live in Texas now.  It takes a full day of travel just to get out of this state.  I guess I just know people who travel a lot.

[idnib]

I have committed myself to Knausgaard.  Not sure I can handle Proust in the same time frame.

 

A friend recently mentioned the Neapolitan series of books by Elena Ferrante that are also being called "Proustian" in scope. She is strongly encouraging me to read them.  :willy_nilly:

 

All Proustian, all the time!

 

I also have Knausgaard sitting on my nightstand. I think I'll jump in in November. Feels like cold weather reading.

[Kareni]

Some bookish pieces ~

 

Liberty and Literature: 7 Bizarrely Banned Books   by Meaghan Wagner

 

and

 

25 Things That Would Happen If Book Lovers Ruled the World

Aaahhh ....

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Just Robyn]

Bopping in to post this because I <3 Buffy, and surely someone else here does too.

 

The Rise of Buffy Studies 

[JennW in SoCal]

Ahhh, if book lovers ruled the world...

 

The woman helping me at the violin shop yesterday asked me what I book I was listening to, as I had mentioned I didn't mind the long drive to their shop when I had a good audiobook in the car.  I told her it was Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan, and lo and behold she had read it!  She didn't want to give anything away, but did say McEwan could be an odd author.  All too often I mention a book title and the other person responds with a frozen smile and a polite "oh".  

 

Sweet Tooth is bogging down in the middle.  The young heroine who was recruited for a specific mission at MI5 because of her compulsive reading habits is becoming really annoying. It feels like her character flaws point to a misogynistic author rather than to her innate flaws -- I'm just not buying them.  And on top of that, the book can't decide if it wants to be a spy thriller or a love story or something else. 

 

And it isn't the only unsatisfying read of my week. The most recent Inspector Gamache title was on the "new books" shelf at the library, so I grabbed it.  These books by Louise Penny are completely implausible, but I love the idea of a hidden village in Quebec, populated with eccentric characters who casually quote poetry while discussing art, music or homicide, all while gathered together over sumptuous meals. However. The large scope of some her recent novels are where she loses me -- system wide corruption or secret agents from spy agencies trying to cover up conspiracies.  Clearly there can't continue to be murder mysteries within the cozy little town, but I don't think these epic, world shaking plot lines are the answer to continuing the series. 

 

 

[JennW in SoCal]

Bopping in to post this because I <3 Buffy, and surely someone else here does too.

 

The Rise of Buffy Studies 

 

 

San Diego ComicCon winds up every year with a showing of, and sing along of, "Once More With Feeling", the musical episode of Buffy.  And of course, Joss Whedon is the god of all pop-culture! 

[Jane in NC]

Chuckling as I read this. One year when we had several tropical events close together and could not leave the island due to flooding, my husband and son amused themselves with a Firefly marathon. We are presently under a flood warning so what nostalgic thing are we doing? Watching Firefly (while IMing with my son)! Huzzah to Joss Whedon! And the Boy!

[Stacia]

I know this is the book thread, but you gals know I pop in with movie stuff every now & then.

 

And, since I've been posting in the gun threads, please go ahead & feel free to call me a hypocrite as the movie I'm going to mention had its share of guns & violence.

 

Dh & I saw Sicario tonight. (Imdb users have rated it an 8.1 out of 10.) It's harsh. And stunning. It's not just a movie for the sake of violence, it looks at some real issues plaguing the US & Mexico re: the drug cartels. Well-told, no clear-cut answers, great acting, great cinematography. Wow.

 

I think this review by Parry-3 on imdb nails it...

"Sicario" describes, with surgical precision, the fatal and bloody desecration of Mexico as a result of its decades long cartel war. And it does so by compressing this almost endless tragedy into a two-hour tour-de-force of filmmaking.

At its center we find idealistic FBI-Agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), who is recruited to pursue a Mexican drug-baron. She is being guided by a seemingly untouchable covert assassin named Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro). Their investigation and methods are pushed further into unknown territory where justice and morality are no longer valid. The end not only justifies the means, it requires them.

Denis Villeneuve's masterful piece exemplifies not only filmmaking of the highest order, but carves out a place alongside the terrible news reports as a deeply regretful, angry and at times almost unbearable look into the abyss of a socio-political nightmare that is fueled by first world-habit and global economics.

Through the powerful performances by Blunt, Del Toro and Josh Brolin in the leads as well as the excellent supporting cast, do we get a sense of the human cost (physical and psychological), which the war on drugs has caused.

From an exploding prison population, to the destruction of Mexican agriculture, to refugees and a cycle of violence that is beyond barbarity; the pull that "Sicario" exerts over the viewer is undeniable and by skirting the limits of bearable tension, without ever becoming exploitive, it is never giving an inch concerning its subject matter.

Few movies this year will have such a clear and defined structure and unflinching approach towards a situation that appears to be beyond salvation, while showing at the same time that life nevertheless continues.

Taylor Sheridan's script doesn't miss a single beat and without sidestepping anything frees itself from beaten movie conventions by using them in an extremely skillful manner.

All these themes, stories and characters are captured through the lens of veteran Roger Deakins (Skyfall, No Country for Old Men) who lets us always know how the micro- and macro-particles of any conflict are inextricably intertwined. We share the vistas of beautiful sceneries while having to witness their downfall.

Whatever ideals the likes of Emilio Zapata once had, their land has now, as it is described in the movie, become „the country of wolves".

Fifteen years ago Steven Soderbergh's „Traffic" which earned numerous Oscars, not the least of which went to Benicio Del Toro, made a clear statement about the various strands the drug trafficking business touches. Now, all those years later we see in „Sicario" that even the faintest of hopes that „Traffic" held onto have been eviscerated.

What now? One might ask.

 

 

[Kareni]

Chuckling as I read this. One year when we had several tropical events close together and could not leave the island due to flooding, my husband and son amused themselves with a Firefly marathon. We are presently under a flood warning so what nostalgic thing are we doing? Watching Firefly (while IMing with my son)! Huzzah to Joss Whedon! And the Boy!

 

What fun!  And oddly enough my husband is watching something else by Joss Whedon right now ~  Dollhouse.

He's never seen it before, so I'll be interested to hear what he thinks.  Anyone else here seen it?

 

I hope you have no flooding, Jane.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[mumto2]

What fun! And oddly enough my husband is watching something else by Joss Whedon right now ~ Dollhouse.

He's never seen it before, so I'll be interested to hear what he thinks. Anyone else here seen it?

 

I hope you have no flooding, Jane.

 

Regards,

Kareni

Dollhouse either is or was a choice on Amazon Fire tv here. I never even looked at it because I assumed it was a modern take off on Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls. The linked description has potential and I have a huge quilt to finish so please let me know what he thinks of it.

 

Another Buffy fan here....although on rewatching I might like Angel better.

 

Thanks for the Sweet Tooth description Jenn. I love it when I meet someone irl who reads my books. I have to agree that little Quebec town experiences a hugely disproportionate amount of shocking crime. Maybe once in 25 years......

 

Stay warm and dry Jane ond Onceupon a time (and everyone else).

[Rosyl]

It has been awhile since my last check in.    I've had the opportunity to read a bit more because I am riding the stationary bike at the Y weekly.

 

  16.  Orphan Train by  Christina Baker Kline    This was a fast read, and it was one of my libraries One
Book, One Community choices.  I usually read the books, but don't make it to the discussion group.  I think I need a book discussion group that is set up like a speed dating session, a couple people willing to talk about the book when I drop and p/u books as I move from the children section to the adult section.

17. The Photograph by Beverly Lewis  She came to our library on her book tour.  It was a delight to hear her speak, tell how she became a writer, and the story behind her book.  My 9 year ds old hung on her every word.  She hooked her audience.  She had commonality because we live near one of the largest Amish settlements in Ohio, and we had read her books. 
 

1.  Maggie's Mistake by Carolyn Brown 

2.  Sleeping Coconut by John and Bonnie Nystrom

3.. Becoming Bea by Leslie Gould 

4Amish Baby  Kristina Ludwig

5. Amish Bakery Challenge  Kristina Ludwig

6.Amish Awakening  Kristina Ludwig

7. The Girls o Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II by Denise Kiernan  

8. Adoniram Judson by Janet and George Benge 

9.The Ladies Room by Carolyn Brown

10.  PMS club by Carolyn Brown 

11.  The Amish Clockmaker by Mindy Starns Clark and Susan Meissner. 

12.The Trouble with Patience Maggie Brendan

13.  Twice Promised Maggie Brendan

14.  Promise of Palm Grove Shelley Shepherd Grey

15.  Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

 

[Onceuponatime]

Last night I started Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury. It is a quick read and goes at a frenetic pace, but I'm having a hard time with it. There is a sick child in the background and I know Mr. Bradbury is waiting til the end to reveal what happens to him. The mom in me is feeling anxious for him. He needs a doctor more than his friends need a fantasy filled Halloween.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh last night.  Ugh.  It definitely wasn't what I was expecting.  I thought it would be a satirical, comic look at the manners and social mores of the British lower-upper class post WWI.  The first half was, kind of, but the whole thing really resolved into a whole, bleak demonstration of the emptiness of it all.  The characters have no moral center, period. Everyone behave selfishly in not very interesting ways. No one believes in anything or cares about anything. No one is evil, really, just selfish and vain. No one connects or relates, they just see other people in the context of what other people can do for them.  No one is good. You feel kind of sorry for the main character, he is definitely getting the short end of the stick but he's so vague and ineffectual that you can't muster up too much sympathy.  Then, when he finally seems to grow a backbone and take a decisive act, you take hope: maybe he will make something of himself!  But no, he just goes on to suffer, ridiculously and ignominiously.  His wife is a selfish vapid cow. No one seems to care too much about anything or anyone.  

 

So is it a brilliant elucidation of the perils of the modern world, suffering from the horrors of war, losing its faith? Everything we used to believe in gone, floating away on a sea of moral relativism and self-involvement?  Its definitely a strong example of Modernism and everything I associate with that school.  It's a better book than Vile Bodies, which I thought was very vapid and shallow (which maybe was the point) but thoroughly depressing.

[Lady Florida.]

Hello BAWers! I've had a busy week and am finally getting back to the thread. Early on I multi-quoted and typed a fairly long response that never showed up. I'd like to say it was eaten by cyberspace but the more likely explanation is human error. ;)

 

Thursday I took a group of teens to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal. As in the past, it's not my thing so I didn't go. I stayed in the one park until they kicked out everyone who didn't have a HHN ticket, rode the Hogwart's Express to the other park and hung around there until it closed. Bought Thing 1 and Thing 2 shirts for the little grandsons. After that park closed I had plenty of time to read while I ate a late dinner in City Walk, then parked myself in a comfy seat in Starbucks with a salted caramel frappucdino (no pumpkin spice for me). My Kindle was loaded with plenty of choices for whatever mood struck me.

 

We got home at nearly 2am and it was almost 3 before I could fall asleep. The teens crashed on my living room floor. About 7am I woke up to the sound of water. I wondered why one of the teens was up taking his shower so early when I knew he wasn't getting picked up until 11. Unfortunately, what I heard was a leak. I woke dh up, who went and turned off the water at the main shut off valve. We've had 4 subterranean leaks in the past 7 years, this being the 4th. (For those who don't know, Florida houses are built on concrete slabs, so a leak under the floor means tearing up your flooring then using a jackhammer to get through the slab. Newer houses have the plumbing run through the attic rather than under the slab, but ours was built in 1969.)The last 2 were closer together and we were told after the 3rd one that when (not if) it happened again we really should have the house replumbed. It's cost prohibitive to fix another leak and then we'll still have to wonder where and when the next one will show up. So that's what's going to happen, but not until Tuesday morning. We're turning the water on and off as needed because in addition to the cost of a leak, we don't know where it is and don't want to take a chance of it getting in the walls and causing more damage. I have pitchers of water everywhere for the times in between when we turn it on. No laundry unless I go to a laundromat or call on the kindness of friends and family to let me pretend I'm coming home from college for the weekend. Ugh!

 

I still have one more page to get through and didn't even multi-quote everything I wanted to.

Angel, I'm proud of you for stretching yourself! Or letting Stacia stretch you, she's good at that!  

 

Yes, she certainly is. :D Thanks to Stacia I've read two Murakami novels, which is two more than I would have read without a nudge from her. I probably won't read any others but I'm glad I at least tried them. Also, One Hundred Years of Solitude is not something I would have read without her and I ended up loving that one. 

 

Oh, and I think I deleted the part where you mentioned Slaughterhouse Five on hold (or maybe it was another post of yours), but do you have Amazon Prime and a Kindle? I can't remember. If you do, it's free as a Kindle Owner's Lending Library book. Also Kindle Unlimited, which doesn't require an actual Kindle, just the app.

 

OK, I'll admit it.  I read/listen to Montalbano mysteries for the food.  I love how he comes in from a helluva day to find some amazing dish in the oven with an equally amazing salad in the fridge.

 

These look like fun! I just downloaded the first one from the library. 

 

  But I must confess that I have created numerous library lists entitled "Pam's recs" etc. in order to help me give credit where credit is due.  At my age, one needs some memory aids.  ;)

 

That's something I need to do for each BAW member who recommends books I read. Then I'll be able to remember who I should thank or shake my head at. ;)

 

I thought I quoted your post about good wishes regarding Joaquin, but I don't see it. My wish for you is that the news has over-hyped the whole thing and that it won't be bad at all.

 

  It is set in the early 70s, when misogyny and the Cold War still rule, so it is at once dated yet familiar. 

 

I just love that sentence because it could be true with any number of books or movies from that era. 

 

Under the weather, so spent the time lying about and reading Swann's Way. 

 

Feel better Robin!

[Jane in NC]

I "like" everything in your post but your plumbing problem, Kathy.  So sorry that you have an ordeal ahead.

[Lady Florida.]

Bopping in to post this because I <3 Buffy, and surely someone else here does too.

 

The Rise of Buffy Studies 

 

That was interesting. Thanks for sharing. I'm a Buffy fan and a Joss Whedon fan. I often pull up a Buffy episode on Netflix when I can't decide what to watch. I haven't done that in months. 

 

 

 

And it isn't the only unsatisfying read of my week. The most recent Inspector Gamache title was on the "new books" shelf at the library, so I grabbed it.  These books by Louise Penny are completely implausible, but I love the idea of a hidden village in Quebec, populated with eccentric characters who casually quote poetry while discussing art, music or homicide, all while gathered together over sumptuous meals. However. The large scope of some her recent novels are where she loses me -- system wide corruption or secret agents from spy agencies trying to cover up conspiracies.  Clearly there can't continue to be murder mysteries within the cozy little town, but I don't think these epic, world shaking plot lines are the answer to continuing the series. 

 

I really loved that series in the beginning. The more she got into darker stuff and the whole corruption story line, the less I liked it. I stopped for a long time after reading The Beautiful Mystery because I really hated that one and I had already begun to dislike the story arc. Not long ago I listened to How the Light Gets In. I'm glad she ended (or appeared to) that aspect but I had no desire to move on, even though at that time there was only one more book. I'm not sure I'll ever read the last two, and others if she keeps writing them. The series had so much promise at the start. I was disappointed at where she took the characters.

 

I finished A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh last night.  Ugh.  The characters have no moral center, period. Everyone behave selfishly in not very interesting ways. No one believes in anything or cares about anything. No one is evil, really, just selfish and vain. No one connects or relates, they just see other people in the context of what other people can do for them.  No one is good.

 

 

 

The only Evelyn Waugh I ever read is Brideshead Revisited, but the characters sound the same. 

[JennW in SoCal]

 (For those who don't know, Florida houses are built on concrete slabs, so a leak under the floor means tearing up your flooring then using a jackhammer to get through the slab. Newer houses have the plumbing run through the attic rather than under the slab, but ours was built in 1969.)

 

Replumbing? I am so sorry and yet understand all too well.  We haven't had to deal with a "slab leak" yet (knocking on wood) but neighbors have. Houses in So Cal are also built on slabs, though here it is mostly due to earthquakes -- structures stand up better if they can slip and slide. 

[Lady Florida.]

I have been reading even through the business. I always manage to make time to read.

 

Finished:

 

The Martian - This might be unpopular but I didn't think it was very good. Oh it was fun in parts, just not well-written. The characters weren't very well fleshed out, not even Mark Watney. He was too snarky and optimistic to be realistic. It was nice to know the science was researched and correct but I could have done with less of it. I gave it 3 stars instead of 2 because like I said, it was kind of fun. The trailers look good. This might be one of those rare times when the movie is better than the book.

 

Death Comes for the Archbishop - I must not have been in the right mood the first time I tried to read it because this time I loved it. Cather's writing never disappoints. I think she's at her best when describing places. She can make me see, feel, and smell the land even though I've never been there. The only other novels of hers I've read are My Antonia and O Pioneers. While My Antonia is still my favorite, this one comes in as a very close second. 

 

Currently reading:

 

Call the Midwife: Farewell to the East End - the last one in the series

 

Wives and Daughters - I've been at this one for a while because I keep putting it aside for long periods while I read other books.

 

Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories - I've been watching the Poirot series that stars David Suchet and it put me in the mood to read Christie.

 

I want to start War and Peace not just because it's been on my TBR list for a while, but because someone here mentioned a while back that it would be a good fall read. Others on my "Next" list are Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, for the October spooky read, and the Inspector Montalbano book I just downloaded this morning.

 

I'm off to have the oil changed in my van and have them do a bit of other preventative maintenance. It's not worth coming home because they never take very long (of course now that I said that I bet they'll be busy today). Pep Boys has a rather nice waiting area, so of course I'll bring my Kindle. 

[Lady Florida.]

Replumbing? I am so sorry and yet understand all too well.  We haven't had to deal with a "slab leak" yet (knocking on wood) but neighbors have. Houses in So Cal are also built on slabs, though here it is mostly due to earthquakes -- structures stand up better if they can slip and slide. 

 

That makes sense. Here it's for several reasons. The main ones are that our "soil" is just sand so it's not really stable, plus we aren't very much above sea level.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I have been reading even through the business. I always manage to make time to read.

 

Finished:

 

The Martian - This might be unpopular but I didn't think it was very good. Oh it was fun in parts, just not well-written. The characters weren't very well fleshed out, not even Mark Watney. He was too snarky and optimistic to be realistic. It was nice to know the science was researched and correct but I could have done with less of it. I gave it 3 stars instead of 2 because like I said, it was kind of fun. The trailers look good. This might be one of those rare times when the movie is better than the book.

 

 

 

 

well, finally, a kindred reader of The Martian! I totally agree, I abandoned it, not for the bad language, or the subject (which fascinates me) but because I thought it was really bad writing and I wasn't enjoying it.. I found the character was flat and unbelievable, and since you spend the whole book inside his head, that just didn't work for me.

[Stacia]

Oh, sorry to hear about the plumbing issues, Kathy! Hope the redo goes well & quickly!

 

Yes, she certainly is. :D Thanks to Stacia I've read two Murakami novels, which is two more than I would have read without a nudge from her. I probably won't read any others but I'm glad I at least tried them. Also, One Hundred Years of Solitude is not something I would have read without her and I ended up loving that one. 

 

Oh, and I think I deleted the part where you mentioned Slaughterhouse Five on hold (or maybe it was another post of yours), but do you have Amazon Prime and a Kindle? I can't remember. If you do, it's free as a Kindle Owner's Lending Library book. Also Kindle Unlimited, which doesn't require an actual Kindle, just the app.

 

Lol. Ironically, I think you liked One Hundred Years of Solitude better than I did. I liked it & am infinitely glad I read it, there are some gorgeous parts, but overall it's not my favorite magical realism book... even though GGM is considered the granddaddy of magical realism.

 

I don't actually have Amazon Prime or a Kindle, lol. I do have kindle software loaded on my ipad, though. I actually have a hard copy of Slaughterhouse-Five that I bought used at the ongoing local library used book sale about a year ago. (They actually have a little room set up & run by volunteers who sell the donated books. It's always open during library hours, so it's quick & easy to step in & try to find some book goodies.)

 

Speaking of the used books bought at the library, I was there yesterday & ended up buying a few I saw, figuring they would be good for some October spooky reading. Not that I don't already have enough on my plate that I'm already planning (Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde; Hyde; Horrorstor), but the ones I bought are:

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey (figured I could check this out from the library but decided to go ahead & buy it anyway)

The Museum at Purgatory by Nick Bantock (this one actually looks really cool & different)

Vampires: From Vlad Drakul to the Vampire Lestat by Anna Szigethy and Anne Graves (probably not much new here for me to read, but, you know, it's... vampires! Lol.)

 

Guess I was in a spooky reading mood yesterday. Lol.

 

I'm almost finished with Slaughterhouse-Five (again); should wrap it up this afternoon. Love, love, love this book. I'm prepped already for my book club tomorrow because I've printed out the list of reasons why it has been banned/challenged through the years.
 

[Stacia]

For those who don't really like The Martian... lol.

 

I thought it was uber-fun. I guess, to me, it was like a pool read. Since I don't often like the typical fare for poolside reading, I think this one appealed to me in that it seemed like mindless fun. (It was mindless to me because I didn't waste time trying to understand his science experiments or decide if they would really work or not :lol: , I just went with the flow of the book.) I don't think I was approaching it expecting great literature or fabulous plot or amazing characterization or wonderful dialogue. My standard was 'is it fun'? And it was. Very fun. Can't wait to see the movie. I expect that it will be fun as well.

 

Sorry it was a miss for you!

[Chrysalis Academy]

For those who don't really like The Martian... lol.

 

I thought it was uber-fun. I guess, to me, it was like a pool read. Since I don't often like the typical fare for poolside reading, I think this one appealed to me in that it seemed like mindless fun. (It was mindless to me because I didn't waste time trying to understand his science experiments or decide if they would really work or not :lol: , I just went with the flow of the book.) I don't think I was approaching it expecting great literature or fabulous plot or amazing characterization or wonderful dialogue. My standard was 'is it fun'? And it was. Very fun. Can't wait to see the movie. I expect that it will be fun as well.

 

Sorry it was a miss for you!

 

Oh, I totally get it. I read books like that too.  Some of my "fun" reads wouldn't be remotely fun for other people, but I read them in the exact spirit that you describe.  Some of my fun reads for 2016 have been The Cobra Event, World War Z, The LIbrary at Mount Char, Station 11, Set This House in Order, Ancillary Sword & Ancillary Justice, and the Game of Thrones series.  Not everybody's idea of fun reads, I know!  :001_tt2:  :D

[Stacia]

Oh, I totally get it. I read books like that too.  Some of my "fun" reads wouldn't be remotely fun for other people, but I read them in the exact spirit that you describe.  Some of my fun reads for 2016 have been The Cobra Event, World War Z, The LIbrary at Mount Char, Station 11, Set This House in Order, Ancillary Sword & Ancillary Justice, and the Game of Thrones series.  Not everybody's idea of fun reads, I know!  :001_tt2:  :D

 

:lol:

 

Oddly, I'd class World War Z as a fun read too. And I don't even like zombies! :zombiechase:  (But I do like zombie smiley icons!)

 

[Lady Florida.]

For those who don't really like The Martian... 

 

 

 

It was one of those odd in-between books for me. It had some fun parts and it wasn't so bad that I chose not to finish. I don't finish books I truly don't like. I just wouldn't call it a good book because there were a number of problems I had with it even after I suspended my disbelief.

[Kareni]

Dollhouse either is or was a choice on Amazon Fire tv here. I never even looked at it because I assumed it was a modern take off on Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls. The linked description has potential and I have a huge quilt to finish so please let me know what he thinks of it.

 

He's only watched the first episode which he described as Inception meets Mission Impossible.  (Does that mean more to you than to me?!)  He's decided he'll continue to watch.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Lady Florida.]

He's only watched the first episode which he described as a Inception meets Mission Impossible.  (Does that mean more to you than to me?!)  He's decided he'll continue to watch.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

This was in response to mum2 not me, but what it means to me is it very well might be the first thing Joss Whedon did that won't interest me.

[Stacia]

This was in response to mum2 not me, but what it means to me is it very well might be the first thing Joss Whedon did that won't interest me.

 

And it means the opposite to me -- I need to go look this up! Sounds right up my alley (if it's a mix between Inception & Mission Impossible; don't know anything about Valley of the Dolls).

 

(I know you gals expected that. Lol.)

[Just Robyn]

What fun!  And oddly enough my husband is watching something else by Joss Whedon right now ~  Dollhouse.

He's never seen it before, so I'll be interested to hear what he thinks.  Anyone else here seen it?

 

I hope you have no flooding, Jane.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

I have seen Dollhouse and did like it, but it is my least favorite of the Joss Whedon shows. I have not read Valley of the Dolls, but based on the description, the two are nothing alike. In Dollhouse, people give up their memories and personalities, have them stored on discs for a number of years, and then customers pay to have particular memories and personalities installed in the "dolls" for some hours or days or whatever.

 

Now, why is it my least favorite Whedon show? It's been years since I watched it, but I'm wondering if it lacked the witty banter. And maybe I didn't get to know or love enough of the characters because so many of the characters are usually in doll mode. You get some backstory for each character, but that may not be enough. 

 

Conceptually, I guess Dollhouse is more interesting than Buffy - a cheerleader type high school girl is burdened with a very uncheerleader-like fate of slaying vampires, but there's something missing on a personal level. I have never rewatched the show, and the characters don't feel like real people. But people should definitely watch it. What are you gonna do? Watch Buffy AGAIN?

[Robin M]

Thank you darlings. I'm feeling much better.  

 

I've downloaded Horrorstor after checking out the excerpt on Amazon.  Also Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,  Turn of the Screw and Lost World which are kindle unlimited books free to download and listen to on Audible.

 

The Lottery -  I read it about 5 years ago for the first time for a lit class.  Totally blew me away. Wonderful story, but can't see it being banned.  Great story for discussion. 

 

Sending Good Vibes Jane's way....

 

Happy October to you as well, Stacia.  What, no picture of you in the shirt.  Whenever I wear my shirt, all I get are strange looks. I don't think anyone gets it.

 

Thanks for checking in Rosyl. Wondered what had happened to you.  

 

Oh my Kathy! Sorry to hear about the leak. What a bad time to happen when you have a house full of teens!

[mumto2]

I have seen Dollhouse and did like it, but it is my least favorite of the Joss Whedon shows. I have not read Valley of the Dolls, but based on the description, the two are nothing alike. In Dollhouse, people give up their memories and personalities, have them stored on discs for a number of years, and then customers pay to have particular memories and personalities installed in the "dolls" for some hours or days or whatever.

 

Now, why is it my least favorite Whedon show? It's been years since I watched it, but I'm wondering if it lacked the witty banter. And maybe I didn't get to know or love enough of the characters because so many of the characters are usually in doll mode. You get some backstory for each character, but that may not be enough.

 

Conceptually, I guess Dollhouse is more interesting than Buffy - a cheerleader type high school girl is burdened with a very uncheerleader-like fate of slaying vampires, but there's something missing on a personal level. I have never rewatched the show, and the characters don't feel like real people. But people should definitely watch it. What are you gonna do? Watch Buffy AGAIN?

I am not sure who to quote but this description makes sense. No idea about Inception but love Mission Impossible.

 

Kathy :grouphug: to the plumbing problems.

 

We are on a slab too but because of coal mines potentially under us. Very few basements in coal countrt. Everyone gets insurance when they buy, a friend knows they have a mine 5 feet down in back yard. We are good per survey because we are within 100 yards of a 900 year old church but still have the insurance. It was always illegal to tunnel under churches so they literally sit on pillars of coal. We did have major plumbing problems, it ended up being a bad connection thanks to the previous owner being a self taught handyman, but they wanted to bring in a very expensive ultrasound type device to locate the leak before digging.

 

I finished my Amazon Prime/unlimited book for last month. It was one of those that leaves you withan I can't believe I read that feeling. It actually has a rating of over 4* on goodreads, I gave it a 2 only because I promised myself no 1*'s this year. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23381456-the-consequence-of-revenge. I will admit I picked it because the cover looked like a favourite tv show, Revenge combined with an odd fascination with The Bachelor.....just why? This book didn't help any of that curiosity. :lol:

[Jane in NC]

As Joaquin churns in the Atlantic, I finished Thea Astley's A Boat Load of Home Folk, a tale of a group of aging discontents in French Polynesian whose miseries surface as a hurricane nears.

 

As I mentioned earlier in the thread, Astley had won numerous Australian literary awards yet her books are unavailable here in the States. It was luck that led me to her.  I found a 1983 Penguin edition of A Boat Load (published in Australia in 1968) at the library book sale.  Her book reads like a Maugham novel--a compliment indeed.

 

A Google search led me to an article in the Los Angeles Times dating back to 1988 in which the comparison is extended to both Maugham and Greene.  I loved this paragraph in the article:

 

 

Astley's work reflects a marvelous balance between acerbic and charitable, irreverent and zealous, politically astute and mournfully romantic. She loves jazz and classical music. "I'd die to be able to play piano like Oscar Peterson or to sing good Lieder."

 

Yeah, I too would like to play piano like Peterson and entertain y'all with a few good Lieder!

 

But the question remains of why Astley is relegated to the back shelves of literary history, at least here.  She is clearly a fine writer although A Boat Load is an odd little book.

 

That said, I wonder if Pam might be interested in the volume for her reading trip around the world.  Let me know.

[Kathleen.]

I read "North and South" by Elizabeth Gaskell for the last letter of name - N.  I really love this author, her books are great.  My 9yo read "Matilda" by Roald Dahl.  She definitely likes this author.

 

We're excited to read a lot of spooky books for October:)

[Kareni]

I read "North and South" by Elizabeth Gaskell for the last letter of name - N.  I really love this author, her books are great. 

 

Does this mean you've now finished the challenge?  If so, hurrah!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Onceuponatime]

I finished The Halloween Tree. It is basically an old fashioned boy's adventure story, mixing in the history of ancient practices related to Halloween with some time travel, fantasy, and philosophy of death and dying. It had some lovely word pictures, but the story didn't grab me. I didn't like the author playing with the life of one of the boys, but I guess it fit the theme.

 

I'm picking up Good Omens by Gaiman and Pratchett next.