Book a Week 2016 - BW27: sailing west of the prime meridian

[Stacia]

Stacia, do you have the link to the original book bingo post? I remember thinking my reading was too narrow to play it, but now I'm thinking I might be able to shoehorn some books into the categories. Today I actually bought a book for its cover for the first time, I think, in my life!

 

From Robin's blog:

http://www.read52booksin52weeks.com/p/blog-page_20.html

 

Shoehorn away! (And let us know the results, please.)

 

[Kareni]

Today I read the contemporary romance Fly With Me (A Wild Aces Romance) by Chanel Cleeton which I enjoyed; it also had me crying at one point.  (Adult content)

 

"U.S. Air Force fighter pilot Noah Miller—call sign Burn—loves nothing more than flying hard and fast. When he meets a gorgeous and sassy woman while partying in Las Vegas, he immediately locks on to her.

Jordan Callahan owns a thriving clothing boutique, but her love life is far less successful. Her luck changes when six feet, two inches of sexy swagger asks her to dance and turns her world upside down. 

One scorching weekend becomes an undeniable chemistry that they can’t leave in Vegas. But the long distance relationship and their different lives threaten to ground their romance. And when the dangers of Noah’s job become all too real, Jordan learns being with a fighter pilot means risking it all for a shot at love…"

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

 Today I actually bought a book for its cover for the first time, I think, in my life!

 

Enquiring minds wish to know what book....

 

 

Yes our yearly trip (for dh's work) has had some rough travel years. Was it when British Air let us check our bags at Heathrow without mentioning that they knew the luggage wasn't moving for three days, and Wee Girl's important stuffed penguin Ogo was in it?

 

That was indeed the situation that I remembered.  I'm glad that this year's homecoming went more smoothly.

 

 

The Atlantic:  Women are Writing the Best Crime Novels

 

Personal interest:  My husband's art is the splash page of that article.  He has done other things you might know: Jasper Fforde, Jane Hamilton, lots of others, lots of magazine work; he's an artist and an illustrator and yes uses books/pulp novels. 

 

Very nifty!  Thanks for sharing both the article and your husband's part in it.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[Kareni]

I recall that Jane in NC has spoken highly of  Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles.  I see that one of her other books is currently on sale for $1.99 for Kindle readers.  Is this a book you've read, Jane?

 

Niccolo Rising: The First Book of The House of Niccolo  by Dorothy Dunnett

 

"With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.

Niccolò Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccolò Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault."

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[Kareni]

I don't believe anyone posted here about the recent death of Elie Wiesel ~

 

Elie Wiesel, Auschwitz Survivor and Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Dies at 87

 

In Elie Wiesel’s Work, Many Found Words That Seared, and Soared

 

Elie Wiesel Is Recalled at Funeral for a Legacy Beyond His Moral Voice

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Jane in NC]

I recall that Jane in NC has spoken highly of Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles. I see that one of her other books is currently on sale for $1.99 for Kindle readers. Is this a book you've read, Jane?

 

Niccolo Rising: The First Book of The House of Niccolo by Dorothy Dunnett

 

"With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.

Niccolò Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccolò Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault."

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

I still have a couple more volumes to finish in the Niccolo series but I would say that is a steal at two bucks. Edited July 8, 2016 by Jane in NC

[JennW in SoCal]

Any cool magazine suggestions? Aimed toward either teens or adults? Not looking for the popular, run-of-the-mill magazines... looking for some that are off the beaten path. (Want ones that would be available for subscription/paper versions, not just digital versions.)

 

Thanks!

 

I've really enjoyed Piecework, the magazine that Jane has often talked about.  It is a needlework magazine with patterns, but each issue has lots of interesting articles on the history of a particular style of needlework, or on the history of the women -- and men -- who carried on a tradition or started an industry.  I just sent in a renewal for it.

 

Definitely a 70's "back to the land" kind of thing. Gibbons actually made a famous television commercial for Grape Nuts cereal.

 

"Ever eat a pine cone? Many parts are edible."

[Jane in NC]

I've really enjoyed Piecework, the magazine that Jane has often talked about. It is a needlework magazine with patterns, but each issue has lots of interesting articles on the history of a particular style of needlework, or on the history of the women -- and men -- who carried on a tradition or started an industry. I just sent in a renewal for it.

 

 

"Ever eat a pine cone? Many parts are edible."

Nice to hear that you enjoy Piecework as much as I.

 

Snort! We must be of a certain age if we remember Euell Gibbons!

[Kareni]

A book that I like (and have re-read several times) is currently free to Kindle readers ~

 

Fatal Affair (The Fatal Series Book 1) by Marie Force

 

"Washington, D.C., Metro Police Detective Sergeant Sam Holland needs a big win to salvage her career--and her confidence--after a disastrous investigation. The perfect opportunity arises when Senator John O'Connor is found brutally murdered in his bed, and Sam is assigned to the case. Matters get complicated when Sam has to team up with Nick Cappuano, O'Connor's friend and chief of staff...and the man Sam had a memorable one-night stand with years earlier. Their sexual chemistry still sizzles, and Sam has to fight to stay focused on the case. Sleeping with a material witness is another mistake she can't afford--especially when the bodies keep piling up."

 

 

The prequel novella is also currently free ~  One Night With You (The Fatal Series Book 0) by Marie Force

 

Regards,

Kareni

[JennW in SoCal]

I have to rave about a book.

 

 

Beethoven for a Later Age by Edward Dusinerre is probably the best book about music I've ever read. Written by the first violinist in the Takács Quartet, the book is about life in a string quartet interwoven around the story of Beethoven's quartets, Beethoven himself and history and performing and recording. It is fascinating reading for a string player, but I suspect it would be equally readable and enjoyable for non-musicians, too. I've marked up my copy quite a bit already, and in getting ready to write this out I found myself re-reading and marking anew.  

 

What makes it the best book? It is the conversational way in which he talks about the actual music, describing the give and take among quartet members in rehearsal, and capturing exactly how it feels to tackle the music. He does all of this using terminology and similes that makes it accessible to both musician and the average Joe. 

 

For instance, after a vivid description of a train wreck of a performance, he explains the musical challenges that triggered the wreck:

In this finale excitement and danger went hand in hand. ...we threw a three note figure frantically around the quartet, each counting like mad so as to enter at the right moment.

 

Every entrance was critical; missing your turn would put off the next participant, the music suddenly faltering like a time-delayed conversation on a transatlantic phone line, each person waiting for the other to begin, then both talking at once. ... This was music that required both a cooler head and a hotter heart.

 

He then goes on to describe the history of that particular quartet, its first performances, public reaction. There's talk of Napoleon, and all the royal benefactors who commissioned these works from Beethoven.

 

The whole book is like this, covering 20 years of Dusinberre's work with the quartet as well as the 25 or so years of Beethoven's life when he composed these works. It's delightful for me personally because I play these works -- in the comfort of my friend's living room. (Many string quartets were written not for performance, but for friends who gather to make music.) I know intimately the challenges he is describing above, frantically throwing that three note figure around the group.

 

But most of all I'm just delighted in the way he writes about it all -- clear, accurate but interesting and absorbing. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in classical music or in early 19th century history in Vienna. Read it and listen to recordings of the music by the Takács Quartet that are available on Youtube.

 

 

 

[Violet Crown]

Enquiring minds wish to know what book....

 

 

The Cecil Day Lewis Aeneid, with the Edward Gorey cover.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/The-Aeneid-of-Virgil-Translated-by-C-Day-Lewis-/201508375438

 

 

"Ever eat a pine cone? Many parts are edible."

  

Definitely a 70's "back to the land" kind of thing. Gibbons actually made a famous television commercial for Grape Nuts cereal.

Ah - I'm just a couple years too young for the phenomenon then. Though I probably was gnawing on pine cones at the time.

[Loesje22000]

 

   

 

 

 

I just finished the book above.

Although not terrible bad, it is not my cup of tea...

(it has too much TEA in it? I'm not that interested that I would like to know what Josephine and Napoleon did in their bedrooms...)

[Ethel Mertz]

I have to rave about a book.

 

 

Beethoven for a Later Age by Edward Dusinerre is probably the best book about music I've ever read. Written by the first violinist in the Takács Quartet, the book is about life in a string quartet interwoven around the story of Beethoven's quartets, Beethoven himself and history and performing and recording. It is fascinating reading for a string player, but I suspect it would be equally readable and enjoyable for non-musicians, too. I've marked up my copy quite a bit already, and in getting ready to write this out I found myself re-reading and marking anew.  

Thank you so much for posting this! I love the music of Beethoven and used to play viola (and would like to again).

[Jane in NC]

Thank you so much for posting this! I love the music of Beethoven and used to play viola (and would like to again).

 

Ethel, you don't have a "like" button so I will repost your comment to indicate a "like".  The Beethoven book is intriguing.  Thanks Jenn!

[Violet Crown]

As a means of trying to ignore the saturation media coverage out of Dallas this morning, I've been matching books to bingo categories (thanks Stacia!). And I have only six categories unfilled: published 2016 (dh suggested his book - ho ho); picked by a friend (again with dh's helpful suggestions); a play (my two drama reads are in use in other categories); picked for cover (Aeneid should cover that); epic; and color in the title.

 

Jenn, agreed about the appealingness of the Beethoven book! Must keep an eye out for that one.

[JennW in SoCal]

Thank you so much for posting this! I love the music of Beethoven and used to play viola (and would like to again).

 

Ethel!  Love the viola!  I play both violin and viola, but especially love playing viola in quartets. 

 

It is never to late to pick it up again.  I didn't play for almost 20 years after college, then finally dusted off my violin to play in pit orchestras when my ds started doing youth musicals. Now I play all the time and sometimes even get paid to do so! 

 

Another Beethoven recommendation is the Great Courses set of lectures by Robert Greenberg on the quartets. 

[Ethel Mertz]

As a means of trying to ignore the saturation media coverage out of Dallas this morning, I've been matching books to bingo categories (thanks Stacia!). And I have only six categories unfilled: published 2016 (dh suggested his book - ho ho); picked by a friend (again with dh's helpful suggestions); a play (my two drama reads are in use in other categories); picked for cover (Aeneid should cover that); epic; and color in the title.

 

Jenn, agreed about the appealingness of the Beethoven book! Must keep an eye out for that one.

 

Me too, VC! My six remaining categories are: Play, 18th century, birth year, color in title (unless "silver" is a color, in which case I have it), Epic Novel, and Arthurian.

 

Ethel!  Love the viola!  I play both violin and viola, but especially love playing viola in quartets. 

 

It is never to late to pick it up again.  I didn't play for almost 20 years after college, then finally dusted off my violin to play in pit orchestras when my ds started doing youth musicals. Now I play all the time and sometimes even get paid to do so! 

 

Another Beethoven recommendation is the Great Courses set of lectures by Robert Greenberg on the quartets. 

Hmmm. Maybe I should put "viola" on my Christmas list...

[Onceuponatime]

I read two of the three Pop Larkin/ Darling Buds of May chronicles. I don't know if I will get around to the third. The Larkin family began weary me with all their larks. (See what I did there? That will give you a tiny taste of this book. The Larkins were relentless. :)

 

I'm going to read The African Poison Murders by Elspeth Huxley next. It is on its last library renewal.

[Kareni]

Hmmm. Maybe I should put "viola" on my Christmas list...

 

 

The Book a Week thread can be dangerous for one's wallet.

 

 

 The Cecil Day Lewis Aeneid, with the Edward Gorey cover.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/The-Aeneid-of-Virgil-Translated-by-C-Day-Lewis-/201508375438

 

I would not have recognized the art on the cover as being by Edward Gorey.  Interesting!

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Stacia]

I'll join Ethel & VC in saying that I too have only six BaW Bingo categories to fill. (Though, Ethel, to me silver *is* a color, so I'd argue you have only five categories remaining.)

 

My empty spots are: Revisit an old Friend; Written in Birth Year; Play; Classic; 18th Century; Arthurian

 

Not sure how many, if any, of those I will end up completing this year.

[idnib]

Any cool magazine suggestions? Aimed toward either teens or adults? Not looking for the popular, run-of-the-mill magazines... looking for some that are off the beaten path. (Want ones that would be available for subscription/paper versions, not just digital versions.)

 

Thanks!

 

 

My favorite "off the beaten path" magazine is AramcoWorld. If you deal the fact that it's linked to an oil company, it's really a high quality, wonderful (and non-political)  magazine about the Arab world, and it's free! Here are some examples of their articles (click the photos), and here's a general description and link for a paper subscription. It's printed on nice paper too. We enjoyed , for example, Saving Sarajevo's Literary Legacy and Capital of Baklava. Also, to keep this in the spirit of a book thread, The Poetics of Suspense, an article about crime novels.

 

This magazine is really good for getting all kinds of information about a part of the world that not often discussed in positive terms in the U.S. these days.

Edited July 8, 2016 by idnib

[Violet Crown]

Me too, VC! My six remaining categories are: Play, 18th century, birth year, color in title (unless "silver" is a color, in which case I have it), Epic Novel, and Arthurian.

 

 

So any thoughts on which books will occupy those slots? Stacia?

 

 

I would not have recognized the art on the cover as being by Edward Gorey.  Interesting!

 

Yes it's not obvious from the illustration; but his hand-lettering is unmistakable.

[Loesje22000]

I've lost my bingo form.

Can someone post it again?

The PDF link in post 1 of BW1 does not seem to work.

[Ali in OR]

Yeah, some of the bingo squares I have left aren't what I really want to read: Arthurian, 18th century, over 500 pages, can't remember what else! I'll probably finish it this year but may not do reading bingo again at least while my reading time is limited. It's more fun to read what I want to read!

[Stacia]

I've lost my bingo form.

Can someone post it again?

The PDF link in post 1 of BW1 does not seem to work.

 

Robin's blog page has it:

http://www.read52booksin52weeks.com/p/blog-page_20.html

 

 So any thoughts on which books will occupy those slots? Stacia?

 

Not necessarily.

 

For revisiting an old friend, I may re-read Dracula, Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Book of Chameleons. Or there are a few others I might like to re-read too. For birth year, I might do Richard Brautigan's Trout Fishing in America.

 

I'm definitely open to suggestions from any of you on how to fill my slots! (Revisit an old Friend; Written in Birth Year; Play; Classic; 18th Century; Arthurian) Please convince me to fill these slots. Lol.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I just finished an interesting short story collection: Pastoralia by George Saunders.  Stacia, I think you might like these, based on the fact that you like Vonnegut - the characters definitely have a Vonnegut-like feel, as does the satire.

 

Basically, the protagonists are all ineffectual, middle-aged white men who are living lives of quiet desperation at the bottom of the food chain.  Seems to be set in the midwest, in the not-too-distant future (it was published in 2000) in a world that's mostly like ours, but just a little bit more, and/or a little bit less - more polluted, more poor, more corporate greed, less individual protection, less individual dignity, weaker families, more general, inchoate despair.  the book was heading toward a solid 3 stars, but the last story was really fantastic and bumped it up to 4.  

 

And, funny but true - I discovered this book on a Tor link Kareni posted, Five Books About Sheep or some such thing! It definitely fits that theme - no actual sheep, but plenty of humans with sheep-like qualities.

 

ETA: The book title!!!  :p

Edited July 8, 2016 by Chrysalis Academy

[Stacia]

I just finished an interesting short story collection.  Stacia, I think you might like these, based on the fact that you like Vonnegut - the characters definitely have a Vonnegut-like feel, as does the satire.

 

Basically, the protagonists are all ineffectual, middle-aged white men who are living lives of quiet desperation at the bottom of the food chain.  Seems to be set in the midwest, in the not-too-distant future (it was published in 2000) in a world that's mostly like ours, but just a little bit more, and/or a little bit less - more polluted, more poor, more corporate greed, less individual protection, less individual dignity, weaker families, more general, inchoate despair.  the book was heading toward a solid 3 stars, but the last story was really fantastic and bumped it up to 4.  

 

And, funny but true - I discovered this book on a Tor link Kareni posted, Five Books About Sheep or some such thing! It definitely fits that theme - no actual sheep, but plenty of humans with sheep-like qualities.

 

Just checked on Goodreads. Are you talking about Pastoralia by George Saunders? Just want to double-check.

 

Also, it looks like you're reading Sergio Y....??? (Yay!) Hope you like it.

 

[Violet Crown]

Robin's blog page has it:

http://www.read52booksin52weeks.com/p/blog-page_20.html

 

 

Not necessarily.

 

For revisiting an old friend, I may re-read Dracula, Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Book of Chameleons. Or there are a few others I might like to re-read too. For birth year, I might do Richard Brautigan's Trout Fishing in America.

 

I'm definitely open to suggestions from any of you on how to fill my slots! (Revisit an old Friend; Written in Birth Year; Play; Classic; 18th Century; Arthurian) Please convince me to fill these slots. Lol.

Mine for those slots were:

Old friend: Hamlet

Birth year: In the Heart of the Heart of the Country (but I didn't care for it... & it's only a helpful suggestion if you were born in 1968!)

Play: (will be) Antigone

18th century: Barber of Seville & Marriage of Figaro (novellas)

Arthurian: Ivanhoe

Edited July 8, 2016 by Violet Crown

[Stacia]

Stacia--My library lacks Tail of the Blue Bird but thanks for putting it on my radar.  It might just show up at a book sale. Ah, the power of serendipity.

 

Since your library does not have that particular one, you may want to see if it has Africa39. When I looked up more about the author (Nii Ayikwei Parkes), he was one of the 39 authors included in this collection.

 

Africa39 is a Hay Festival and Rainbow Book Club Project which has selected and now celebrates 39 of the best African south of the Sahara writers under the age of 40. It was launched in UNESCO’s World Book Capital, Port Harcourt, Nigeria, in October 2014.

 

 

 

ETA: There were two other Hay Festivals celebrating authors from different areas of the world: Bogotá39 and Beirut39. I'll be busy seeing what authors on these lists my library has. I've read one of the authors on the Bogotá list -- Juan Gabriel Vásquez who wrote The Sound of Things Falling, an excellent book; it was the first book I read in 2016, thanks to idnib. From the Africa39 list, I've now read Nii Ayikwei Parkes (Tail of the Blue Bird) & Ondjaki (Good Morning Comrades), both also excellent authors based on the books I've read.

Edited July 8, 2016 by Stacia

[Just Robyn]

 Interesting that she sees poetry becoming classist as a new development; I'm just finishing The Life of Robert Burns and of course Burns was famously feted by Edinburgh high society but was quickly rejected when the Ayrshire ploughman failed to be grateful and obsequious, and insisted on continuing to write poetry (and to behave, and to marry) as one of his class.

 

Thanks for pointing that out. Perhaps she was very lucky to have not felt classism for even a portion of her life with poetry.

[Chrysalis Academy]

Just checked on Goodreads. Are you talking about Pastoralia by George Saunders? Just want to double-check.

 

Also, it looks like you're reading Sergio Y....??? (Yay!) Hope you like it.

 

 

Yeah, what a dork to not even list the name of the book I'm reviewing! I'll fix that in my post.  Thank you!

 

Yes, I started Sergio Y last night. Definitely my kind of book! I think I'm going to like it a lot.

[idnib]

I won't have time before I leave town tomorrow, but if anyone here wants my copy of Sergio Y., I'd be happy to pass it on. I enjoyed it quite a bit, and since multiple people are reading the same book, I can send it to anyone who would like a copy if they would like to read it as well. Just PM me and I'll get it in the mail week after next.

Edited July 8, 2016 by idnib

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished The Sunne in Splendour, a novel about Richard III.  It was wonderful, although I sobbed for about the last 100 pages.  The perils of reading about historical figures where you know how their story ends! After 800 pages making Richard and Anne seem real, believable, understandable people, to read of their downfall, losses, treacheries and death is so sad.  What a fantastic novel, though. It answered all the "Huh?" questions that the typical Tudor/Shakespearean version of Richard III leaves you with.  And it reminds you how that the winner gets to write the story.  So sad.

 

Also a good reminder that, despite Game of Thrones and other fantasy novels, anything that can be done has been done, by real historical people.  So much blood and treachery and death.  

[6packofun]

I think many of you might find this of interest:

 

The Atlantic:  Women are Writing the Best Crime Novels

 

 

 

 

Oh, *SOB*, this reminded me that my dear Ruth Rendell has passed on.  :(  Great article, though, thanks!

 

On my stack:

 

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley (I've heard so much good hype about this one that I'm starting it NOW, before finishing my current book which is almost unheard of for me. lol)

 

The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar  (I was captured by this on the back cover:  In The Bookman, Tidhar writes a love letter to books, and to the serial literature of the Victorian era: full of hair-breadth escapes and derring-dos, pirates and automatons, assassins and poets, a world in which real life authors mingle freely with their fictional creations--and where nothing is quite as it seems.)

 

I Am No One by Patrick Flanery 

 

The Forgotten Room by Lincoln Child (Because I read all of Child's and Preston's stand-alone novels after loving their work on the novels from Relic and following Agent Pendergast forward...some good, some just OK.  lol)

 

The Mandibles by Lionel Shriver

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished Sergio Y this morning. What a beautiful book.  Sad, yet full of hope.

 

"Many manage to improve on the first drafts of the lives they are given. But for that they need the courage to jump off a diving board fifty meters high, blindfolded, not knowing if it is water or asphalt that awaits them below."

[Ethel Mertz]

 

So any thoughts on which books will occupy those slots? Stacia?

  Yes it's not obvious from the illustration; but his hand-lettering is unmistakable.

 

18th Century - Robinson Crusoe

Play - probably a Shakespeare one

Birth Year - Around the World with Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis

Color - if I don't count "silver," Thin Blue Smoke by Doug Worgul

Epic Novel - a re-read of The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough

Arthurian - The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley (another re-read, but it's been 30+ years since I last read it)

[idnib]

"Many manage to improve on the first drafts of the lives they are given. But for that they need the courage to jump off a diving board fifty meters high, blindfolded, not knowing if it is water or asphalt that awaits them below."

 

These were my favorite lines from the book. That first sentence really made me think about the life ("first draft") my father was given, and how he managed to turn it into something so much better and different than what was expected. And I loved the metaphor in general, which if it's expanded, includes an implicit acknowledgement that some are given first drafts that are almost complete novels, and others just a few pages of scribbles of an unformed thought or vague idea.

[Stacia]

Glad you enjoyed Sergio Y., Rose.

 

Since I rarely seem to sleep these days, I stayed up late (very late) to read an entire book I picked up at the library yesterday: Kokoro by Natsume SÅseki. I originally requested this one because SÅseki (1867-1916) & is "being recreated as an android by Nishogakusha University Graduate School, and will be programmed to read material out loud and give lectures."

 

I can see why he is considered one of Japan's finest novelists. This book explores the mind-shift & emotions behind a huge change in Japan when it went from the Meiji era into the modern era & opened much more to the West. It is very low-key but compelling, told in a simple, straightforward style with melancholy overtones. A lovely work.

 

 

As this is a Japanese classic, I will probably use it for the "Classic" category on my BaW Bingo card.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished Of Love and Other Demons by Marquez.  It was beautiful writing, but a horrible, horrible story.  Marquez the journalist uncovered the story, and Marquez the novelist created it - the story of a girl ignored and neglected by her horrible parents and then victimized and ultimately murdered by the Church.  Just awful.  I'm not sure there was anything really redeeming about it. Blech.

 

Stepping away from Marquez for awhile.  I think I'm going to read some Saramago next.

 

ETA: Ok, maybe I wasn't quite fair to say nothing redeeming: it showed the decadence and depravity of the Criollo culture, and the absolute power and corruption of the Catholic church in Carribean America. I'm reminded of a quote from The General in His Labyrinth, where Bolivar says to a European offering advice "Let us have our Middle Ages."  Well, here you go, here is what the Carribean middle ages were like, smack dab in the middle of "The Enlightenment"

Edited July 10, 2016 by Chrysalis Academy

[Kareni]

Yesterday I read and enjoyed the contemporary romance Seven Nights to Surrender by Jeanette Grey.  (Adult content)  The only downside is that it's part of a two book series, and now I'm left wondering what happens next.

 

"Kate arrives in Paris hoping to find inspiration. Instead she finds Rylan. In a swirl of stolen kisses and hot, tangled sheets, Kate is quickly swept away by the sexy stranger, longing to surrender to his expert touch. With Rylan, nothing is forbidden-except the truth.

An American ex-pat worth millions, Rylan never flaunts his fortune. Rather, he guards his identity from everyone, especially women. No strings, no commitments, no complications. But the second his lips taste Kate's soft, sweet skin, everything changes. For the first time, Rylan has found someone to share his every want and need. Yet he knows that secrets stand between them. To keep her, he'll need to confess the truth before it's too late . . . even if doing so could mean losing Kate forever."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Mom-ninja.]

Any cool magazine suggestions? Aimed toward either teens or adults? Not looking for the popular, run-of-the-mill magazines... looking for some that are off the beaten path. (Want ones that would be available for subscription/paper versions, not just digital versions.)

 

Thanks!

 

Well, I love the magazine Oxygen but none of the three library systems I'm a part of have it. It's an exercise magazine for serious fitness people. It's not filled with ads and articles about beauty products. That drives me crazy about magazines such as Health, Women's Fitness, Shape, etc. is that 95% of the articles are about clothing, hair, or makeup. Um, if I read a fitness magazine I don't want to read about which lip stick is in vogue to wear in and out of the gym. I also don't want to read "20 Things He Wished You Did in Bed" in my fitness magazine. Unless they're talking about doing lunges and squats on a mattress, which would be an extra balance challenge causing thereby making lunges and squats extra challenging, it shouldn't be in a fitness magazine. I also do not care what gym clothes Jada Pinkett wears for working out. Yes, she is very fit but her clothes don't make her fit.  

 

 

Let's see for my BINGO I have these squares left:

Dusty

Birth year

Play

Nobel Prize

 

For Dusty I have plenty to choose from on my shelf. Haven't decided on Birth Year as I haven't looked. For Nobel I think I will read Love in the Time of Cholera as I have it here on my shelf, and there has been so much talk about the author. And for my Play........I will read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.  :)

 

Right now the two books I'm reading will not fill any BINGO squares. I'm reading When the Brain Can't Hear (if anyone has a kid with ADP and has tips to share please PM me) and listening to the 2nd Hitchhiker's Guide book. Loving this series. They are very light fluffy fun.

Edited July 9, 2016 by Mom-ninja.

[Ali in OR]

 And for my Play........I will read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.  :)

 

Brilliant! I already have my play, but we have this on pre-order (part of dd's birthday gift but it will arrive after her birthday).

[Kathleen.]

We read the Declaration of Independence together and several books about it.

☺

[Violet Crown]

Epic Novel - a re-read of The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough

 

Help me out with the definition of the "epic" category. I assumed it meant "epic" in the poetic sense and was thinking Homer or Paradise Lost. What is an epic novel?

 

ETA: It suddenly occurs to me that "classic" might not mean "written in Greek or Roman antiquity."

Edited July 10, 2016 by Violet Crown

[mumto2]

Help me out with the definition of the "epic" category. I assumed it meant "epic" in the poetic sense and was thinking Homer or Paradise Lost. What is an epic novel?

 

ETA: It suddenly occurs to me that "classic" might not mean "written in Greek or Roman antiquity."

Yesterday when I read your post with Ivanhoe for the 18th Century I realised I had happily read a historical set in the 18th Century and checked that one off. I think we all need to come at this card from our own perspective. Btw the place Scott lived while writing Ivanhoe is a semi local pub. So I have read it recently but not this year.

 

For Epic I googled and found a huge list. I looked at definitions and decided a quest was required. The list had many fantasy or sci fi books. LoR was on it, maybe Narnia was (does Wee Girl need a read aloud?). I ended up reading Terry Prachett's Guards! Guards!. It was OK. I can't fnd the list to link.

 

Yes, VC to me classic could easily mean Bronte or similar. ;)

[Ethel Mertz]

Help me out with the definition of the "epic" category. I assumed it meant "epic" in the poetic sense and was thinking Homer or Paradise Lost. What is an epic novel?

 

ETA: It suddenly occurs to me that "classic" might not mean "written in Greek or Roman antiquity."

 

RE Epic - I googled and got this list from goodreads. The New Yorker had this list (though in a brief glimpse, I didn't see the term "Epic"). However, I wonder if there is a better, more accepted in literary circles, definition of what constitutes an "Epic" Novel.

[Ethel Mertz]

Oh Good Grief! In my google search on "Epic Novels," there was a link listing Captain Underpants as an epic novel. No. Just no.

[Robin M]

Link to week 28 - please continue conversation in new thread