Book a Week 2016 - BW43: Happy Birthday Robert Bridges

[Kareni]

Here's something interesting that my daughter saw on a Tumblr account concerning the ordering of adjectives in English ~

 

 

Take a look  here.

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .  :001_rolleyes:

[idnib]

Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .  :001_rolleyes:

 

DH and DS are. This is DH's 3rd year and DS's first. DS has been gearing up by working on his novel for a few hours on Saturdays, plus some evenings.

[ErinE]

Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .  :001_rolleyes:

 

I am though the timing is off. I'll take a few weeks to finish up my current project and start on the one I'm planning now.

 

ETA: Also added to Rothfuss advice: thou shalt stay off the internet. Internet research is fun, but not writing. Falling into the rabbit hole of little known cultural myths and octopus social interactions must make way for writing.

Edited October 27, 2016 by ErinE

[Chrysalis Academy]

I am though the timing is off. I'll take a few weeks to finish up my current project and start on the one I'm planning now.

 

ETA: Also added to Rothfuss advice: thou shalt stay off the internet. Internet research is fun, but not writing. Falling into the rabbit hole of little known cultural myths and octopus social interactions must make way for writing.

 

Oops, I liked your post again when I read your ETA, not realizing I had already liked it. So I accidentally unliked it. Then liked it again.  Twice the likes!  :D

[aggieamy]

This is off-color and funny.  I don't particularly think it's political even though it's making fun of politics so hopefully it won't get me kicked out of BaW.  (There's also some cussing and DON'T scroll down to the bottom to see the links.)

 

Destruction of Walk Of Fame star leaves Donald Trump down to his last six Horcruxes

Edited October 27, 2016 by aggieamy

[aggieamy]

Hah!  A Thread of Grace is the first (earliest?) book on my TR list too!  I *loved* The Sparrow.  But then, I had a fair amount of Jesuits as teachers in my youth...

 

 

Well that is a bizarre coincidence.  I'm checking it out from the library now with the hope that it will get read if it's in my house. 

 

I didn't join goodreads till January of 2015 (right after joining the BaW thread, in fact!) and I have 21 books on my to-read list added on that day.  I added ~160 books to my TR list that first month that I still haven't gotten around to reading! As the TR list stands at 804 currently, I am clearly adding them much more quickly than I'm removing them.  :001_rolleyes:

 

That's impressive.  I thought mine was overflowing with 190.  My goal is to keep it below 200.  I have a friend who keeps hers under 100 but she's a reading machine and selective of what goes on her to-read list. 

 

Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .  :001_rolleyes:

 

I'm in for this year.  I have a story that I've outlined and want to write.

 

The last time I attempted it was in 2013.  I don't know if anyone remembers that year but John was born on October 30, 2013 so I didn't get much written that NaNoWriMo and haven't attempted since then. 

[Lady Florida.]

I'm a good deal behind and even still thinking about last week's thread. 

 

Thank you for the photos Jane and Stacia. I enjoyed all of them.

 

Last week I finished the audio book version of A Mortal Taste for Bones. I'll be adding the other to my list, either to read or listen to.

 

I also read We Have Always Lived in the Castle as it was being discussed. It was a little better than The Haunting of Hill House but I guess I don't really care for Jackson's style. Fuzzy events of the past make for spooky present but I'm not going to tell you exactly what happened or even why it happened. Just trust me. It makes the book's time setting spooky. No, it doesn't. At least not for me. It just makes the story confusing and poorly thought out. Just my opinion. :)

 

 

 

I don't read a lot of thrillers & I'm on the fence on this book. I both liked it & didn't like it. Some chapters were great, others less so. There were some weird inconsistencies -- maybe some were there to create an aura of mystery, but I think some were just editing errors. Some characters were likeable/relatable, but most were not (imo). The author has written tv & movie scripts & it shows -- I'm not really a tv fan & this reads like a made-for-tv movie.

Hmmm. A reasonable 'beach' level read, but not a favorite of mine. A solid 3 stars.

 

Uh-oh. I downloaded the sample and thought it would be interesting. I haven't yet put it on hold at the library. I probably will at some point but I won't be expecting a blockbuster. I know what you mean about a book reading like a tv script. A few years ago I read the Overdrive Library Big Read (I think that's what it's called) and that book read like a tv movie script, and I found it to be a disappointing read.

 

Question for ladies with online to-read lists -  What is your oldest book on the list?  How long has it been on the list?

 

I have one from August 2012.  A Thread of Grace.  I read the description and still want to read it but I just never seem to put in on the library list.

 

I have two from 2011, which is probably when I first joined Goodreads. One is the Steve Jobs biography. I started it twice and just couldn't get into it. I should probably just take it off my list. The other is Like Water for Chocolate, which I still want to read, but it's just not a priority.  I have quite a few from 2013 on that are still on the list. I do clean it out occasionally but haven't done it in a while.

 

This is off-color and funny.  I don't particularly think it's political even though it's making fun of politics so hopefully it won't get me kicked out of BaW.  (There's also some cussing and DON'T scroll down to the bottom to see the links.)

 

Destruction of Walk Of Fame star leaves Donald Trump down to his last six Horcruxes

 

I saw that this morning and thought it was hilarious. Dobby's free!  :lol:

Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .  :001_rolleyes:

 

I might. If I do it will be my first time. I'm just not a rah-rah you can do it! type, and would rather have quiet motivation than have the world telling me to get writing. 

[Jane in NC]

OK, this one brought tears to my eyes.

 

Many of us have read Pym by Mat Johnson.  His essay on his mother and her battle with Multiple Sclerosis aired on NPR's program Fresh Air today.  You can read the essay, but I would listen to it if you have a couple of minutes. 

 

Pass the tissues.

 

 

[Lady Florida.]

I started listening to the second Royal Spyness book, A Royal Pain. BTW, Audible is having another 2 for 1 sale - 2 books for 1 credit on selected titles. The sale ends Monday Oct. 30th. I got the 2nd and 3rd Royal Spyness books. I still have one credit left to spend but I think I'll let it sit for a while. 

[Chrysalis Academy]

This is off-color and funny.  I don't particularly think it's political even though it's making fun of politics so hopefully it won't get me kicked out of BaW.  (There's also some cussing and DON'T scroll down to the bottom to see the links.)

 

Destruction of Walk Of Fame star leaves Donald Trump down to his last six Horcruxes

 

Super funny. 

 

Also your other post inspired me to cut back my TR list. Maybe I can get it under 500?  :tongue_smilie:

 

ETA: 684 it is.

Edited October 27, 2016 by Chrysalis Academy

[JennW in SoCal]

Kareni -- thank you for the link on adjective order.  Just sent it on to my English-teaching ds thinking it might inspire a lesson.

 

About the those TBR lists. I don't take mine terribly seriously, as in I don't assume I will read each of those 100 books in my lifetime. I use it more like a shopping list for when I'm in the library and not sure what I want to read. I find the Goodreads list more difficult to use than I had thought, and instead prefer the list I keep in the "notes" section on my smart phone because I can easily group the titles and authors I jot down. I haven't gone and deleted any books I've finally read, so the list never shrinks!

 

I'm wondering who recommended Still Life with Murder, the first Nell Sweeney mystery by PB Ryan. It must have been a free kindle someone recommended as I was pleasantly surprised to find it in my phone's kindle library when I was twiddling my thumbs at a rehearsal recently. It is the right sort of diversion this week. My rehearsal was for tonight's choir concert at a local high school. The director is a friend who has hired me to play on a couple of songs in the program. Oh my.  High schoolers!! They seem a great group of kids, and they sound great, but I can't imagine herding them and coaching them all day everyday.  I have a lot of down time between my songs, so will be sitting backstage again tonight & reading my book on my phone.

[Stacia]

Thanks, Rose, for sending The Elementals.

 

I opened it & sat down & started reading it right away. Omg, it is so morbidly funny & Southern Gothic. I'm a little worried since both you & idnib didn't like the ending, but I'm definitely enjoying the beginning.

 

 

After a bizarre and disturbing incident at the funeral of matriarch Marian Savage, the McCray and Savage families look forward to a restful and relaxing summer at Beldame, on Alabama’s Gulf Coast, where three Victorian houses loom over the shimmering beach. Two of the houses are habitable, while the third is slowly and mysteriously being buried beneath an enormous dune of blindingly white sand. But though long uninhabited, the third house is not empty. Inside, something deadly lies in wait. Something that has terrified Dauphin Savage and Luker McCray since they were boys and which still haunts their nightmares. Something horrific that may be responsible for several terrible and unexplained deaths years earlier — and is now ready to kill again . . .

A haunted house story unlike any other, Michael McDowell’s The Elementals (1981) was one of the finest novels to come out of the horror publishing explosion of the 1970s and ’80s. Though best known for his screenplays for Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas, McDowell is now being rediscovered as one of the best modern horror writers and a master of Southern Gothic literature. This edition of McDowell’s masterpiece of terror features a new introduction by award-winning horror author Michael Rowe. McDowell’s first novel, the grisly and darkly comic The Amulet (1979), is also available from Valancourt Books.

 

[Kareni]

Kareni -- thank you for the link on adjective order.  Just sent it on to my English-teaching ds thinking it might inspire a lesson.

 

You are quite welcome.  And that has me wondering ~ how is your son enjoying his time abroad teaching English?

 

I'm wondering who recommended Still Life with Murder, the first Nell Sweeney mystery by PB Ryan. It must have been a free kindle someone recommended ...

 

I shall take the credit as I posted that it was free back in April of this year.  Sadly, such is no longer the case.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Stacia]

Ok, ladies. I have stuff to do & yet I just keep ignoring it to sit here & read The Elementals. I'm halfway done & need to make myself stop, otherwise I know I'll be up for hours finishing the book tonight.

[Just Robyn]

 

I also read We Have Always Lived in the Castle as it was being discussed. It was a little better than The Haunting of Hill House but I guess I don't really care for Jackson's style. Fuzzy events of the past make for spooky present but I'm not going to tell you exactly what happened or even why it happened. Just trust me. It makes the book's time setting spooky. No, it doesn't. At least not for me. It just makes the story confusing and poorly thought out. Just my opinion. :)

 

For me, any withholding of details of what happened in the past is not what makes We Have Always Lived in the Castle spooky. For me, the spookiness comes from the total dysfunction. The forgetful, sometimes bedridden man who can't dress or feed himself living with the young adult who acts like a child (and is called one by her sister) and believes magic exists and the shut in who wraps her face in a shawl and cowers in the bushes *near the burning house* so no one will see her. And that's not mentioning the rest of the town, childish, creepy, threatening bullies. It's the standstill. There was a murder, and afterward, the people didn't grow up or move on - neither the Blackwoods nor the townspeople. Refusing to move forward with time, to grow, change and mature, to do new things (rather than always (not usually - always) the same schedule, the neatening, the weekly tea date, etc.) goes against nature and is therefore uncanny. 

 

Just my experience with it - and I have not read The Haunting of Hill House.

Edited October 28, 2016 by crstarlette

[Angelaboord]

Question for ladies with online to-read lists - What is your oldest book on the list? How long has it been on the list?

My oldest book is from September of 2009. A Shilling for Candles, by Josephine Tey. It's survived several virtual declutterings, but I still haven't read it.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[mumto2]

I have 35 books on my to read list which were entered on March 8, 2013 which is probably the day I signed up for Goodreads. I have 378 books on the list and have never decluttered it. I don't really use it much either. I tend to use my overdrive wish lists which are much easier imo.

[Stacia]

Ok, ladies. I have stuff to do & yet I just keep ignoring it to sit here & read The Elementals. I'm halfway done & need to make myself stop, otherwise I know I'll be up for hours finishing the book tonight.

Amending my earlier statement.

 

Now it's creepy enough that I *want* to stop for the night.

 

Otherwise I might not be able to sleep. :eek:

 

Thinking I need to read the rest of this during daylight hours. (Lol.)

[Kareni]

My husband has been sharing some fascinating (and frankly frightening) facts from a non-fiction book that he's been reading.  Others here might be interested in reading it or sharing it with their children.  It's a highly visual book that Amazon considers a children's book.

 

Your Water Footprint: The Shocking Facts About How Much Water We Use to Make Everyday Products  by Stephen Leahy

 

"The average American lifestyle is kept afloat by about 2,000 gallons of H2O a day.

 

The numbers are shocking.

 

Your Water Footprint reveals the true cost of our lifestyle. A "water footprint" is the amount of fresh water used to produce the goods and services we consume, including growing, harvesting, packaging, and shipping. From the foods we eat to the clothes we wear to the books we read and the music we listen to, all of it costs more than what we pay at the check-out. The 125 footprint facts in this book show the true cost of our lifestyle and what it is doing to Earth, including draining it dry.

 

The "Virtual Water Concept" shows the amount of water used in human activities. Presented in clever, understandable graphics, Your Water Footprint raises readers' awareness of how much water is used to make the things we use, consume and grow.

 

What we put on our dinner table has a very high cost. Nearly 95 percent of our water footprint is hidden in the food we eat:

• One pound of lettuce costs 15 gallons of freshwater; mango 190 gallons; avocado 220 gallons; tofu 244 gallons; rice 403 gallons; olives 522 gallons; pork 1,630 gallons; butter 2,044 gallons; chocolate 2,847 gallons; and beef 2,500 to 5,000 gallons.
• A slice of bread costs 10 gallons but if you eat it with a slice of cheese, it takes another 13 gallons.
• One glass of beer takes 20 gallons of water, and just one standard cup of tea costs 120 same-sized cups of water.

A cotton t-shirt takes almost as much water as beef, a pair of jeans even more. In fact, all aspects of our daily lives require water in some way, shape or form. The saying that "nothing is free" applies more to water than anything else we consume, considering just three percent of the world's water is drinkable and that we are using more of it than ever before. Factor in climate change, population growth and pollution and we have an unsustainable situation. Many experts predict dire water shortages if we continue on our current path.

 

Your Water Footprint is riveting. Consumers of all ages will be stunned by what it reveals. It is an excellent reference and an exciting way to introduce the resource-consumption equation to students."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Chrysalis Academy]

Amending my earlier statement.

 

Now it's creepy enough that I *want* to stop for the night.

 

Otherwise I might not be able to sleep. :eek:

 

Thinking I need to read the rest of this during daylight hours. (Lol.)

 

Oh yeah, I remember that part. I did the same thing, stopped for the night and then finished it the next day.  In daylight.

[Mom-ninja.]

Question for ladies with online to-read lists -  What is your oldest book on the list?  How long has it been on the list?

 

I have one from August 2012.  A Thread of Grace.  I read the description and still want to read it but I just never seem to put in on the library list.

Jan 2013. However, I prune the list at the end of every year. 

 

 

I love that you and your husband listen to audiobooks together.  We do on car trips.  I've tried to do that on errands around town or at home but it never seems to work out.  DS has started listening to audiobooks in the car but he's only interested in Curious George and not cozy mysteries. 

I do not like Curious George. At all. I simply do not like that little monkey (where is his tail? there are arguments that is an ape....just sayin') and I really don't like the man in the yellow hat. However, my youngest loved that darn primate and I read, listened to, and watched WAY more Curious George than I care to think about. 

 

Glorious was the day when I convinced him to listen to Winnie the Pooh in the car. Also, Paddington the Bear is also a great alternative that didn't make me want to jump out the car window while driving. 

 

You may not mind the obnoxious know it all man in the yellow hat, but it's still nice to have some variation if your child will allow it.  

[Jane in NC]

I keep a TBR list on my library account but it has no dates associated with the entries.  I do know that some of the books have been on the list for years, waiting for me to find the courage to open them.  Books like King Leopold's Ghost and 12 Years a Slave.

[ErinE]

I joined in 2011 to keep track of my children's reading, not keeping track of my books until May this year. I just checked: I Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will be Killed With Our Families by Philip Gourevitch was my first TBR. The movie Hotel Rwanda was based on this book. The moment when Don Cheadle informs his bosses in Paris about the ongoing massacre was desperately sad. I'm off to request it.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

I'm mostly trying not to add or accumulate anything on my list right now. I want a clean slate for awhile.

 

I'm in a similar place, albeit perhaps for different reasons. I'm coming to the realization that I've been reading so many books I feel like I should be reading that I've forgotten what it feels like to be reading what I want to be reading. Sometimes the two overlap, of course, but I think I need a clean slate for a bit while I sort out motivations.

[Lady Florida.]

 DS has started listening to audiobooks in the car but he's only interested in Curious George and not cozy mysteries. 

 

 

 

 

I do not like Curious George. At all. I simply do not like that little monkey (where is his tail? there are arguments that is an ape....just sayin') and I really don't like the man in the yellow hat. However, my youngest loved that darn primate and I read, listened to, and watched WAY more Curious George than I care to think about. 

 

  

 

Our youngest grandson is currently fascinated with Curious George. Ddil can tell you the plot (if you can call them plots) of every episode on Hulu and Netflix. 

 

He's also crazy about Star Wars and though he barely talks, he walks around singing the storm troopers theme. It's hilarious to see a two year old walking around singing "dun dun dun dun-dun-dun dun-dun-dun"

 

 

The last time I attempted it was in 2013.  I don't know if anyone remembers that year but John was born on October 30, 2013 so I didn't get much written that NaNoWriMo and haven't attempted since then. 

 

I didn't realize (or maybe I just don't remember) that I share a birthday with your little guy. :D

To bring this post back to bookishness, we both share a birthday with Dostoyevsky.

Edited October 28, 2016 by Lady Florida.

[Onceuponatime]

The last week has been very busy with less time to read. I just finished Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. It was interesting but not spectacular. Up next is Mrs. Lincloln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini. It is for my local book club.

[Kareni]

I didn't realize (or maybe I just don't remember) that I share a birthday with your little guy. :D

To bring this post back to bookishness, we both share a birthday with Dostoyevsky.

 

Let me beat the crowd and say

 

Happy  birthday, Kathy!!

 

 

Good wishes to John as well.  I imagine Dostoyevsky does not need any birthday greeting.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Woodland Mist Academy]

The Iliad is finished.

 

What does one say about The Iliad? There are parts I imagine I will recall for years. Other parts are a blur of names and ways to die in battle. (I found myself starting to rank mortal wounds on a scale of desirability in the margins...)

 

I'm glad I read it. I'm glad it's over. 

 

(Those aren't the sum total of my thoughts on The Iliad, but they will suffice for this post.  ;) )

 

The Odyssey will need to wait until spring or summer, most likely.

 

 

[Mom-ninja.]

 

 

He's also crazy about Star Wars and though he barely talks, he walks around singing the storm troopers theme. It's hilarious to see a two year old walking around singing "dun dun dun dun-dun-dun dun-dun-dun"

 

Knowing what two year olds are capable of it's actually a quite fitting theme song.

 

 

 

 

We are listening to Julie of the Wolves on audio. It's one of the banned books I had chosen, and yes we just got around to it a couple weeks ago. This afternoon I had to quickly fast forward through a certain scene. I did not realize a sexual attack was coming up, and I caught it just in time before my 7 yr old heard anything. My teen obviously knew what was going on, and commended me on my fast reaction time. My reply, "Becoming a parent grants one with the super power of lightning speed."

 

This is one of the draw backs when you have children far apart in age listening to audio books. What is fine for the older ones is not so fine with the youngest. Now I know why this book has been banned/challenged. Again, as many here have posted and agreed, I don't condone banning, but I do believe in censoring for my children until I feel they can handle the content.  

[Kareni]

When I was younger, pre-child, I would always finish a book. Now I'm much more likely to put down a book unfinished; it's a case of so many books and only so much time. Yesterday I read close to 200 pages of Frost Line by Linda Howard and Linda Jones before putting it aside. Had I been in a different mood or, more importantly, had it been the only book available to me, I'd likely have finished it.

 

I did finish Arctic Winds (Alpine Woods Shifters series)  by Sondrae Bennett; however, I was hoping for better and was also too lazy to look for something else to read.  It's not a book I'll be reading again.  (Adult content)

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

Ok, this isn't meant to be either a political or a religious commentary, but it does seem to sum up the situation pretty well:

 

[Mom-ninja.]

When I was younger, pre-child, I would always finish a book. Now I'm much more likely to put down a book unfinished; it's a case of so many books and only so much time. 

Regards,

Kareni

 

I was the same. I despised not finishing a book. I felt like a quitter. Thanks to the people on thread I am now able to put a book down. There are at times when I still feel a residual guilt, but I come here and it goes away. 

 

Between my last post and this one I finished The Ministry of Guidance Invites You to Not Stay. I found it very interesting. I learned from the book which is always a good thing. I must say that after reading about the underlying Persian culture I would like to visit Iran. It's just another example of how the world would be so much richer if we all got along or were at least respectful. 

 

Negin, have you read the book? I'm curious what your opinion of it is. 

[Woodland Mist Academy]

:grouphug:  Thinking of you and your dd.  :grouphug:  

Edited October 28, 2016 by Woodland Mist Academy

[Chrysalis Academy]

Sadie, Jeanette Winterson pulled me through some dark times in my youth, too.  Here's hoping it's good medicine for your dd and that she's feeling better soon.  :grouphug:

[Kareni]

Sending good thoughts to your daughter, Sadie, and to you as well.

 

 

It always fascinating to learn what someone's comfort reads are.  When I went to college, I took with me a huge one volume collection of assorted Readers Digest jokes (this one, I think).  On sad days, I'd flip through it; I think it saved me the year I took Organic Chemistry.  For me, laughter proved to be good medicine.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[ErinE]

I have a sad but cute story.

 

I've been thinking of your dd and you. :grouphug: 

[Stacia]

:grouphug: :grouphug: , Sadie, for you, your dd, & your family.

[Kareni]

I thought I'd mentioned it but can't find it in the thread ....

 

After re-reading Michelle Diener's Dark Horse (Class 5 Series Book 1) (which I did mention), I went on to read the next two books in the series  Dark Deeds (Class 5 Series Book 2) and  Dark Minds (Class 5 Series Book 3).  The first book is still my favorite, but I enjoyed them all.  These are science fiction romances; they are fairly tame compared to much that I read, so I think none here would be offended by their content.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

This currently free Kindle book sounds quite intriguing ~

 

The Devil's Bridge  byFran Connor

 

Read some of the reviews to get an idea of the content.

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

[Butter]

#105: Emerge by Heather Sunseri.  I loved her other series I read (Mindspeak) so I got this book, the first in this series, for free and I loved it even more than the first Mindspeak book.  I literally couldn't put it down and read until almost 5 this morning.  It's dystopian.  99.9% of the population was wiped out by a virus six years ago and only one 12 year old girl survived.  The virus is back and they need her antibodies to find a cure.  But of course the virus's re-emergence is anything but natural.  It was just really good.

[Ethel Mertz]

Sadie - Thinking of you and your DD. I'm so sorry she is going through such a difficult time and I'm glad she has books for comfort.

[Onceuponatime]

Late to catch up with this thread...my oldest "want to read" book on Goodreads is Joheved by Maggie Anton. It still looks interesting, but who knows if it will ever happen.

 

I'm putting Elementals on my list to read next October. This one is almost over!

 

P.S. I'm quite giddy about the Christmas present I asked Dh for this year: tickets to see Hal Holbrook do his Mark Twain Tonight show, which is coming to our area in March.

Edited October 29, 2016 by Onceuponatime

[Robin M]

 
I tried half a dozen ways to make the picture smaller but no go so here it is in all its glory. Thank you Karen for the link to 15 Reading Nooks.  I have the perfect place to put this!   40 Books that Saved my Life is an intriguing list and will have to check some out. 
 
Beautiful pictures, Stacia of Chihuly artwork at the botanical garden. Thank you for sharing! 

 

Ethel - [/size]I have a copy of each of SWB's novels and am willing to send them off. Who would like  The Revolt? Who would like to read Though the Darkness Hide Thee?

Raising my hand!
 
 
Hi AllSmiles - Glad you decided to drop out of lurker mode and drop in.  
 

Little Nyssa -2. The robin in Secret Garden and the robin from Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe! As the children are following a robin through the snowy forest, Peter says, "A robin? Those are good birds in all the books I ever read." Robins who lead the way.

 
 
What a neat idea - looking for connections in your reading!    :thumbup:
 
 

Hi Mel - 'm still struggling some with memory, so I have been listening to all the series I've loved, on audiobook.  Robin got me started, and I am still working through the J. D. Robb  In Death series (that one will take a little while), currently on book 8.

Hugs!  Yes, you'll be listening to the series for another year or more.  :001_cool:    Coincidentally I'm listening to the series again and currently on Judgement in Death.  
 

 

Crslarlette: Idea 1: Read something from either the Mythic Fiction Reading List or the Fairy Tale Fiction Reading list - both   here (inspired by a Goodreads group: Into the Forest)
 
Idea 2: A Ray Bradbury month, in which we try to read one book of poetry, one book of essays and one book of short stories - probably the closest many of us will ever come to following his recommendation to read one short story, one poem and one essay every day.

Awesome ideas! Thank you!
 
 

Aggieamy:  Question for ladies with online to-read lists -  What is your oldest book on the list?  How long has it been on the list?

 

I clear out amazon at the beginning of each year now because if I don't get it immediately, I forget why I added it to the list in the first place.   :lol:   My goodreads want to read list still have books I added from 2011.   The oldest one is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo which is still sitting in the pile by my bed.  

 

 

Rose:  Anybody doing NaNoWriMo this year? Shannon is. Check out this great writing advice post from Tor.  I think the one by Patrick Rothfuss was written especially for me . . .   :001_rolleyes:     

 Great picture, Rose - Pray, Vote, Pray 

 

I'm contemplating since I need to get my writing mojo back!  James will be doing it again. 

 

As far as voting is concerned, once I made up my mind that I didn't have to vote for either tweedle dee or tweedle dumber and go with my conscience and do a write in vote, I'm much happier and no longer stressing out about the whole thing.  Whoever wins, we'll survive like always. Just a sad situation all the way round.

 

Hugs Sadie!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 29, 2016 by Robin M

[Stacia]

A review of my October spooky reading:

 

   

 

   

 

As you know, I typically like vampire-based stories the best; however, I did branch out a bit this year & delve into other spooky reading with ghosts, creepy governesses, strange family murders, & haunted houses.

 

Most of these were good, solid 3-star books. We Have Always Lived in the Castle rated 4-stars, imo -- great, understated story; sublimely wicked.

 

And, I think I saved the best for last by reading The Elementals. What begins as a morbidly funny Southern Gothic slowly morphs into into creepy, spine-tingling horror. And it's not just things that go bump in the night, but completely horrifying things even in the bright light of a clear, sunny day.

 

I know both Rose & idnib expressed some dislike of the ending of The Elementals, but I was satisfied with the ever-horrifying climax (& especially the last couple of sentences). I would love to hear more comments re: the book, especially since I am from the South -- wondering how the scenery/setting (a character into & of itself) as well as the characterization seems to those not from the South. (And, yes, one side of my family tree is the type that takes photos of the dead in their caskets, just as mentioned in this book.) The author, Michael McDowell, was from Alabama & I can say that I think he nailed the characters & setting perfectly. Just spot-on, every single one of them. Loved it so much that I'm thinking of saying it's 4.5-stars, maybe even 5. I keep few books, but I think I'll be hanging onto this one because it's one I'd love to revisit next October. From a die-hard vampire fan, that's high praise for a haunted house story. Totally worth it.

 

After a bizarre and disturbing incident at the funeral of matriarch Marian Savage, the McCray and Savage families look forward to a restful and relaxing summer at Beldame, on Alabama’s Gulf Coast, where three Victorian houses loom over the shimmering beach. Two of the houses are habitable, while the third is slowly and mysteriously being buried beneath an enormous dune of blindingly white sand. But though long uninhabited, the third house is not empty. Inside, something deadly lies in wait. Something that has terrified Dauphin Savage and Luker McCray since they were boys and which still haunts their nightmares. Something horrific that may be responsible for several terrible and unexplained deaths years earlier — and is now ready to kill again . . .

A haunted house story unlike any other, Michael McDowell’s The Elementals (1981) was one of the finest novels to come out of the horror publishing explosion of the 1970s and ’80s. Though best known for his screenplays for Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas, McDowell is now being rediscovered as one of the best modern horror writers and a master of Southern Gothic literature.

 

[Loesje22000]

:grouphug:

Sadie & daughter

 

Deppression can be so tough...

[Lady Florida.]

:grouphug: Sadie and dd and family :grouphug:

 

 

 
I tried half a dozen ways to make the picture smaller but no go so here it is in all its glory. Thank you Karen for the link to 15 Reading Nooks.  I have the perfect place to put this!  

 

I love that! I could get quite comfortable there, even with my trusty Kindle. :)

 

Yesterday I read a historical romance novella, partly because it was free for Kindle and partly because I wanted a quick read. It was decent, and is apparently a prequel to other novels. I might actually give the first one a try. The Governess Affair

[mumto2]

:grouphug: to both Sadie and her dd

 

w]The Governess Affair[/url]

I really enjoyed that series.

 

Stacia, I think you may have managed to read the most Spooky books this year. My list is really small due to the stress of my mom's memorial service. Fluffy was better choice. I did finish The Passage, Down a Dark Hall, and two books in the Sarah Booth Delaney series (it's a stretch but there is a ghost ;) ). I plan to read London Falling on my way home.

 

One book I finished that might interest someone here is Meg Abbott's You Will Know Me. I read it a couple of weeks ago but haven't posted (I think). https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25251757-you-will-know-me. I decided to read it because one of my best friends has a seriously competitive gymnast in the family and my neice trained to be a dancer. I know intense kids! This book was filled with that world but in reality I felt that was simply the setting for a story that I didn't necessarily like. Maybe a parenting guide to not ignoring one of your kids completely. I actually abandoned it but ended up reading it on a plane because I couldn't concentrate well enough to start a new book. I'll be honest and say it wasn't great but readable.

[Ethel Mertz]

 

 

Raising my hand!

 

 

Great! Will get to the post office early next week!

[Violet Crown]

Sadie, tried to pm you but it wouldn't go through. Hugs and support from this corner.