Book a Week 2017 - BW15: Armchair traveling through India

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday and welcome to  week 15  in our 2017 adventurous prime reading year. Greetings to all our readers and those following our progress. Mister Linky is available weekly on 52 Books in 52 Weeks  to share a link to your book reviews.

 

 

My armchair travels took me to India this week. I discovered the caves of Meghalaya while exploring and searching for diamonds, and ended up following a variety of rabbit trails through India. I enjoy epic novels delving into the history of India and was quite pleased to discover M.M. Kaye's The Far Pavilions:

 

 

 

Ashton Pelham-Martyn's parents die young. He is raised primarily by a Hindu hill-woman who dies, too, a few years later while the two are fleeing from one deadly peril while another one, the 1857 Sepoy Rebellion, drenches the land around them in blood. By a stroke of fortune, good or bad, his English identity is at last discovered, and he is whisked away to aristocratic relations in England who see to it that he can never again think of himself as wholly Indian. Nor will he ever be accepted as truly English. On his return to India as a new Army recruit looking forward to "soldiering among the wild hills of the North-West Frontier," 122 pages of the novel have slipped past, but it's only just beginning. Yet to come are a dangerous trek escorting a native bridal party across India, a forbidden love affair, and a harrowing effort to warn the British authorities against meddling in Afghanistan, a land Ash understands better than his "superiors" do. The last few chapters find him in Kabul in 1879 during the Second Anglo-Afghan War and feature a heroic last stand by an undermanned British garrison.

 

 

 

This one may take a while to read as it is quite chunky.  Somehow that lead to Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and her magical realism story - The Mistress of Spices which is quite intriguing.  

 

 

 

A classic work of magical realism, this bestselling novel by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni tells the story of Tilo, a young woman from another time who has a gift for the mystical art of spices.  Now immortal, and living in the gnarled and arthritic body of an old woman, Tilo has set up shop in Oakland, California, where she administers curatives to her customers.  But when she's surprised by an unexpected romance with a handsome stranger, she must choose between everlasting life and the vicissitudes of modern society.

 

 

 

 

 

Divakaruni newest book Before We Visit the Goddess in which she explores the relationship between mothers and daughters is currently available in India and is coming out April 25th in the U.S. 

 

 

One particular bunny trail introduced Tarquin Hall and his character Vish Puri, India's most private investigator in the Case of the Missing Servant which is now waiting in my virtual stacks right after I finish reading Mistress of Spices.    

 

 

 

 

 

Meet Vish Puri, India’s most private investigator. Portly, persistent, and unmistakably Punjabi, he cuts a determined swath through modern India’s swindlers, cheats, and murderers.   In hot and dusty Delhi, where call centers and malls are changing the ancient fabric of Indian life, Puri’s main work comes from screening prospective marriage partners, a job once the preserve of aunties and family priests. But when an honest public litigator is accused of murdering his maidservant, it takes all of Puri’s resources to investigate. With his team of undercover operatives—Tubelight, Flush, and Facecream—Puri combines modern techniques with principles of detection established in India more than two thousand years ago, and reveals modern India in all its seething complexity.

 

 

 

Non fiction wise, there are plenty of trails to follow from ancient dynasties to the partition of India to culture and traditions to Indian cuisine.  Check out Lonely Planet travel guides as well as Goodreads popular non fiction books, Culture Trip's 10 Best Bookbooks for Traditional Indian food, and 10 Must Read books on Indian History.

 

 

Have fun following rabbit trails! 

 

 

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

 

Story of the Western World – Chapter 10

 

 

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

 

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

 

Link to week 14 

Edited April 9, 2017 by Robin M

[Robin M]

I started Mistress of Spices last night and it immediately captured me.  Stayed up way too late reading which is why I'm posting so late.   :tongue_smilie:

[Jane in NC]

Y'all were right:  We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson is an excellent read.  I still shudder with horror from her short story, The Lottery, which was assigned in 10th grade.  Vivid recollection! How to describe the novel though.  Hmmm...psychological thriller?  "Psychological" seems right but "thriller" may go too far.

 

Graphic novels are one of those genres which I do not visit often.  Pretending is Lying by Belgian artist/writer Dominque Goblet  jumped off the new book shelf of the library though.  It is on the New York Review imprint. Lovely artwork and an engaging story translated from the French.  And that led me to look up Belgian language statistics.  According to Wikipedia, about 55% of Belgians claim Dutch (with all of its Flemish dialects) as their first language, while about 36% are primarily French speakers.  It is a north/south divide with German as the main language on the eastern border.  This makes sense but I had assumed that most Belgians spoke what I would call "Flemish".

 

Finally--I have finished The Right to be Cold by Inuit activist Sheila Watt-Cloutier. Admittedly, this book was a slog for me.  There were parts that were quite interesting but in between there were pages of minutia.  How does an everyday woman rise to international prominence?  With help and with determination.  Watt-Cloutier recognizes that she did not do it alone and so many pages of this book explain how she built coalitions and with whom.  We hear about steps forward and back, the infighting among environmental, political and tribal groups.  It gets old.

 

But..I do think that Watt-Cloutier does explain the complexity of the situation well.  Take for example Paul McCartney and his wife being the spokespersons for environmental groups that want to ban seal hunting.  Traditional foods of the Inuit include seal, the skins of which are used in clothing.  She notes that McCartney called seal hunting unnatural whereas she contends that kissing a seal (which Sir Paul's wife attempted to do) was the unnatural act.

 

The challenge for the Arctic is climate change--and not only because of the loss of ice hence the loss of traditional fishing and hunting grounds.  Climate change has opened up the Arctic for mineral and petroleum extraction.  The irony is that anthropogenic climate change could make Arctic people very wealthy financially--at the cost of losing traditional lifestyles. Watt-Cloutier saw this coming two decades ago.

 

Next up is Scholastique Mukasonga’s Cockroaches which has been nominated for the 2017 French-American Foundation's translation prize.  Mukasonga is Tutsi.  She lost a number of family members in the Rwandan genocide, something which obviously has had a profound influence on her writing.  Her first book that was published in translation by Archipelago, Our Lady of the Nile, was very moving.

 

I hope all my bookish friends have a great week!

[Penguin]

Fandango is offering a free audible version of The Zookeeper's Wife if you purchase your movie ticket through the Fandango site with a registered account.

 

I saw the movie last night, and thought it was great. And I got my free audiobook, easy peasy.

 

https://www.movietheaterprices.com/fandango-free-audio-book-zookeepers-wife/

 

https://www.fandango.com/thezookeeperswife_188135/movietimes?intcmp=IMA_zoowifegwp_merch

Edited April 9, 2017 by Penguin

[Granny_Weatherwax]

I finished another book. Yay me! I'm relying on free Kindle books through Amazon or Prime.

 

I'm finding that reading on the Kindle is much easier than trying to read print books. I still haven't ordered my prescription readers and I just can't read the font in print books. :(

 

This weekend's book was An Accidental Death by Peter Grainger. I selected it due to the cover (which I believe was a choice a few weeks back). It had a person kayaking on it and I assumed it would be about a kayak adventure. Well, it wasn't. It was about a stolen canoe, an accidental death, and British policework. Since I like Inspector Morse, Endeavor, and Inspector Lewis, I rather enjoyed this easy-to-read book. It's the only one by this author that's on Prime so I doubt I'll read any more of the series (unless they become available).

[Loesje22000]

I finished 2 books last week.

 

'In the winterpalace' for the Eastern Europe bingo field.

It was a pretty neutral reading, but I discovered I had read already several bingo fields so I decided to make a 'bingo field to read list' for the next library visit.

 

I also read Portret of a Lady (in Dutch) and I really LOVED the book.

It will be difficult to find another great book.

[Kareni]

A one day only currently free classic for Kindle readers ~

 

The Red Thumb Mark (The Dr. Thorndyke Mysteries Book 1) by R. Austin Freeman

 

About the Author

R. Austin Freeman (1862–1943) was a British author of detective stories. A pioneer of the inverted detective story, in which the reader knows from the start who committed the crime, Freeman is best known as the creator of the “medical jurispractitioner†Dr. John Thorndyke. First introduced in The Red Thumb Mark (1907), the brilliant forensic investigator went on to star in dozens of novels and short stories over the next decades.

 

 

 

"The clever and thrilling debut of literature’s first forensic detective

In all of London, there are few who know more about science than Dr. John Thorndyke, and fewer still who know more about crime. A “medical jurispractitioner†equally at home in the lab or the courtroom, he has made his name confronting the deadliest criminals in England with irrefutable proof of their guilt. In the case of the red thumb mark, however, Thorndyke must set his singular mind to saving an innocent man.
 
A cache of diamonds has been stolen out of a shipping firm’s safe, and the only evidence is a perfect thumbprint left in a pool of blood. The print is a match to Reuben Hornby, nephew of the firm’s owner. Hornby insists that he had nothing to do with the theft, however, and asks Dr. Thorndyke to find the real culprit. With all the evidence pointing in one direction, only he is brilliant enough to look the other way."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Some book-ish posts that might be of interest ~

 

Five Offbeat Quasi-Fantastic Novels of the 1930s by John Kessel

 

Addictive Sci-Fi: 5 Books with Fictional Drugs by Chris Howard

 

 

and some currently free Kindle books that look intriguing ~

 

 

Chosen Different  by Nat Kozinn

 

"An utterly unique and captivating tale that explores what the world might look like if super powers were real. Tired of the same old superhero stories? Try something Different.

The second industrial revolution is upon us. The Age of Machines has been usurped by the Age of Differents. Humans with extraordinary abilities now power our trains, heat our homes, and fill our bellies.

 

Gavin Stillman is a Different, but he is not extraordinary, at least no one else thinks so. They think he bears a curse and they may have a point. Gavin has no subconscious - he must actively control the systems in his body. He has to tell his heart to beat, his hair to grow, or his eyes to blink. He’s relegated to a job as a human lab rat, but he knows he can be so much more. When he finds a trail of half-eaten human remains littering Los Angeles, he sees his chance to show what he can do. But will he survive long enough to prove he can be a hero?"

**

 

4 Years Trapped in My Mind Palace by Johann Twiss (for young adults and up)

 

"A captivating double premise with his story of a locked-in boy and time travel via dementia. The author skillfully weaves these threads together with another double story about Aaron's and Solomon's progress, one toward health, the other toward acceptance. Not only that, Twiss handles Solomon's Yiddish-inflected voice and Aaron's teenage sensibility nicely, develops the youthful romance sweetly, and provides exciting scenes of danger, daring, and escape." - Kirkus Reviews

 

 

"Diagnosed with a rare form of meningitis, fourteen-year-old Aaron Greenburg is paralyzed from head to toe. Doctors believe he is essentially brain dead and unaware of his surroundings, but Aaron is very much aware—trapped in his own mind with no way to communicate.

To cope with his imprisonment, he retreats to an imaginary world called his Mind Palace, but the lines between reality, and time itself, start to blur when he receives a new patient as a roommate—an old, outspoken, Jewish jazz musician, named Solomon."

**

 

Shifting Dreams (Cambio Springs Book 1) by Elizabeth Hunter  (I've read and enjoyed other paranormal romances by this author)

 

"In Cambio Springs, everything--and everyone--changes.

Most days, widowed hawk shifter Jena Crowe cannot get a break. Work at her diner never ends, her two boys are bundles of energy, and she's pretty sure her oldest is about to turn into something furry or feathery.
 
Caleb Gilbert was looking for change, and the quiet desert town of Cambio Springs seemed like just the ticket for a more peaceful life. He never could have predicted just how crazy his new life would become. 

When murder rocks their small community, Caleb and Jena will have to work together. And when Caleb isn't put off by any of Jena's usual defenses, she may be faced with the most frightening change of all: lowering the wall around her carefully guarded heart."

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[Mothersweets]

The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Gamache #5) by Louise Penny was my one and only read this week. I started and finished it this morning all in one sitting. There is so much in this series besides the murder - the food, the personalities, and the looking into a person's motives and deepest recesses of the mind. 

[Kareni]

A book review that might interest you especially if you have an interest in American history  ~

 

Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

 

"Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge is a nonfiction book about the efforts of one of George and Martha Washington’s slaves, Ona Judge, to secure her freedom. In the process, the book describes the struggle the new nation had with slavery and how different states and different individuals dealt with the matter.

 

When Martha Washington married George, she was a widow with about 100 “dower slaves†(slaves that she inherited from her previous marriage that would have to be passed down to the children she had with her deceased husband). George also owned slaves at the time of the marriage, and after the marriage he acquired more through purchase or because of births.

 

Ona was one of the dower slaves. She became Martha’s personal maid as well as one of her most skilled seamstresses. When the Washingtons left Mount Vernon for Philadelphia, where the capital was located, they took Ona with them. Philadelphia was a hub for abolitionists and the Washingtons were careful to keep their slaves isolated from anyone who might “lure†them into escaping. They also made sure to periodically send their slaves back to Mount Vernon for a short while, so that none of the slaves would reside in Philadelphia for six consecutive months (according to Philadelphia law at the time, slaves that resided in Philadelphia for six consecutive months were entitled to manumission)...."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Raifta]

I read Radiance by Catherynne Valente this week and like others here, I found it a bizarre and unsettling romp.  Mostly my thoughts revolved around the following:

  - if you have to pick a book to read right before and during a fever and hallucination this is probably not the one (it was a very interesting 48 hours last weekend)

 - I felt like I was reading a script more than a book, but this is true to the spirit of the book I feel

  - finally I think was strongly reminded of Guy Maddin movies and couldn't help but picture the whole book as if it was a movie directed by him as I was reading - I feel that perhaps he should option the book and actually make it into a movie.

 

Aside from that, I didn't finish anything.  I couldn't read to the kids as talking set off a coughing fit and I spent a lot of time sleeping hence not reading.

 

I've got a few on the go.  Got back to Wild Swans which I started in February but put aside.  I'm going to give this one priority.  Started reading Tribe by Sebastian Junger for my book club, tried to listen to Howards' End by Forster as my new audiobook but can't seem to get the copy to stop being glitchy so I'm reading the actual book now - this is the next one on The Shelf.  Also reading The Lotterys Plus One by Emma Donoghue to the kids, now that I can speak again, and we are all enjoying it.  

[JennW in SoCal]

I finished another book. Yay me! I'm relying on free Kindle books through Amazon or Prime.

 

I'm finding that reading on the Kindle is much easier than trying to read print books. I still haven't ordered my prescription readers and I just can't read the font in print books. :(

 

This weekend's book was An Accidental Death by Peter Grainger. I selected it due to the cover (which I believe was a choice a few weeks back). It had a person kayaking on it and I assumed it would be about a kayak adventure. Well, it wasn't. It was about a stolen canoe, an accidental death, and British policework. Since I like Inspector Morse, Endeavor, and Inspector Lewis, I rather enjoyed this easy-to-read book. It's the only one by this author that's on Prime so I doubt I'll read any more of the series (unless they become available).

 

I'm reading this, too, thanks to Amazon Prime! I can never remember the title, so didn't realize you were talking about the same book until the words "stolen canoe".  It's been a bedtime read or lunch time read, so my reading pace is a little pokey, but I'm enjoying it. And I'm happy to read a detective story that isn't about the mutilated corpse of some beautiful young woman.

 

My other reading this week is Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah, which is just fantastic. Still a few hours to go.  

 

The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Gamache #5) by Louise Penny was my one and only read this week. I started and finished it this morning all in one sitting. There is so much in this series besides the murder - the food, the personalities, and the looking into a person's motives and deepest recesses of the mind. 

 

Oh the food in that series!!  It always makes me so hungry.

[Matryoshka]

Finished a whole bunch of books this week.  A couple had been simmering for a while, and just happened to get finished now...  some I wrote about last week, but I'll recap. ;)

 

36. No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency - Lovely cozy mystery set in Botswana for my April birthstone book. 4 stars.

 

37. Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City (ebook) - Very well written and researched. I had no idea how rampant evictions had become.  Compelling.  5 stars.

 

38. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer - sci fi thriller.  Lots of creepy, spooky weird stuff, not a lot of every explaining what's going on; have to read two more books to find out, not sure I care.  2 stars.

 

39. Together Tea by Marjan Kamali (ebook) - One of my favorite books so far this year.  :001_wub:  5 plus stars.  Someone else read it! :)   Lots of warmth and heart, and even some romance. :)  

 

40. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (audio) - I liked the premise and setup of the book, I can see how it helps to make connections over the years and generations. It was well enough executed, but it also meant I felt like the book moved on just when I started to get to know a character.  3 stars.

 

Still... reading... ugh...

 

- Beast to Blonde - did 1.5 chapters this week, so I'm a bit behind again.  Please let the 2nd part about the stories get better...  1.5 more chapters till part 2...

 

- Exiles of Erin - well, I got to the third and final part.  Chipping away...

 

Currently reading

 

- Please Look After Mom by Kyung Sook-Chin (ebook) - Elderly mother disappears from a metro station in Seoul, S. Korea.  Frantic family realizes they were all so self-centered that they took this self-sacrificing and self-effacing woman completely for granted for years, and have spent the book so far doing some self-flagellating.  Written in 2nd person present tense, which is kind of annoying.  But reads quickly and there's some backstory that's fairly interesting, so I'll finish it up.

 

- The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic by Steven Johnson - About the 1845 cholera outbreak in London.  Very interesting so far.

 

- News of the World (audio) - not that far in, so don't have much of an opinion yet. :)

 

Coming up:

 

Truman just showed up from my Overdrive waitlist queue, so I'll start that as soon as I finish my other ebook. Roadside Picnic is waiting for me at the library (other book for my sci fi book club)  Not sure whats' next after that. :)

 

 

[Butter]

What are you reading this week?

 

I'm still working on The Man Called Intrepid.

 

I've read 45 books so far this year.

[JennW in SoCal]

How about a little arm chair traveling to Japan?  Japan is a wonderful place to visit. In the big cities there are enough speakers of (limited) English, the train and subway signage is Japanese, Chinese, Korean and English, so it is easy to navigate and get what you need. It is a first world country, but still very exotic for most Westerners so you feel like you really are some place foreign. Tokyo is crowded and huge, Kyoto is charming.  I'll post some others in a bit, including food and books. 

 

Tokyo's Akihabara district, the home of all things electronic and lots of maid cafes -- a haven for young Otaku (the pop-culture obsessed) 

 

 

Kyoto, view of a temple building through some peach blossoms 

 

The popular temple complexes in Kyoto were packed with tourists from around the world. We missed peak cherry blossoms by a couple of weeks -- they are in bloom now, and it is quite spectacular, judging by the pictures I'm seeing on line. Actually, all the gardens are planted for the best color all year -- flowering fruit trees and camellias for late winter, hydrangeas galore for the summer, and of course maple and other trees for autumn color. What I loved about Kyoto is that you could just turn down a side street and suddenly be away from all the crowds. 

 

This is the patio in front of a cafe we stumbled up on one such side street.......

 

 There were lots of women in traditional kimono, and some men, too.

 

 

And yes, we took the Shinkansen, or bullet train, between Tokyo and Kyoto. We took trains everywhere -- they are so clean and punctual.

[mumto2]

Earlier in the week I read a few cozy mysteries and historical romances that were all parts of series that I have been reading for a while. Enjoyable and I actually should have the next ones waiting at the library tomorrow.

 

I am enjoying reading my space opera quite a bit but am finding it to be a book that requires slower reading than I expected. It was supposed to be my light book. The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet is one of those books where I have to read every description carefully because I am really enjoying them. I love one of the crew Dr. Chef who is a six armed alien from an almost extinct species who is wonderful. I have put the next one on hold.

 

I am also reading the third James Thompson Scandinavian mystery, Helsinki White. So far, which isn't far, it's good.

 

For middle of the night reading I ended up downloading one of Marie Force's Fatal series.

[Narrow Gate Academy]

I finished three books this week since receiving the new Mercy Thompson book meant I postponed any housework to read it start to finish on Saturday afternoon. This brings my total for the year to 36.

 

Long Term Reads

📚ESV Bible - finished Second Samuel and am about halfway through First Kings

📚History of the Ancient World - read chapters 30-32 covering the Shang dynasty, the Mycenaeans, and Egypt's Amenhotep III and his son

📚From The Beast to the Blonde - I finished chapters 13-16. They were okay. I enjoyed seeing the changes in the individual stories over time and culture, but honestly most of the other analysis was still tedious. (I've never had much use for Freud, and I disliked some of the sweeping generalizations about cultural norms.)

 

Finished Last Week

📚Silence Fallen by Briggs - 5 stars. I think adding more of Adam's view increased my enjoyment of the book compared to others in the series.

📚The Big Four by Christie - I didn't really enjoy the shadow conspiracy. It wasn't that believable to me; however, the book still managed to be entertaining anyway.

📚The Obesity Code by Fung - Well reasoned and clearly written.

 

Currently Reading

📚The Invisible Library by Cogman - I made some progress this week before getting sidetracked by Mercy and expect to finish this week.

📚The Golem and the Jinni - started this week on audiobook. It hasn't really caught my interest yet, but I'm only a few chapters in.The

 

I have several other books on deck, but I'm not sure which I'll start next.

[Faithr]

I am still trying to catch up on my City of God book group.  I fell 2 chapters behind because I was studying for a final I mistakenly thought I had another week to study for! And for this upcoming week we had to read 2 instead of just 1 chapter!  I have to read something like 300 pages by Thursday.

 

I finished The 101 Dalmatians which I enjoyed. That was my first April is Children's Literature month challenge.   I also started reading a book called Particles of Faith which is very interesting.  The author has a PhD in nanochemistry and a masters in Catholic theology.  It's sort of a memoir of how she handles the tension between science and faith.  Very thoughtful and informed.

[Kareni]

...Currently reading

 

- Please Look After Mom by Kyung Sook-Chin (ebook) - Elderly mother disappears from a metro station in Seoul, S. Korea.  Frantic family realizes they were all so self-centered that they took this self-sacrificing and self-effacing woman completely for granted for years, and have spent the book so far doing some self-flagellating.  Written in 2nd person present tense, which is kind of annoying.  But reads quickly and there's some backstory that's fairly interesting, so I'll finish it up.

 

I read this for my book group some months ago.  It's the sort of book that left me with questions.

 

 

How about a little arm chair traveling to Japan?  ..

 

What wonderful photos, Jenn, thanks for sharing them.  I look forward to learning more of your adventures.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

I recently finished a couple of books ~

 

I re-read Patricia Briggs' anthology Shifting Shadows: Stories from the World of Mercy Thompson  which I enjoyed once again.  I think many of the entries could be read as standalone works but that the whole is a great read for those who are already fans.

 

"Shapeshifter Mercy Thompson has friends in high places—and in low, dark, scary ones. And in this must-have collection of short stories, you’ll meet new faces and catch up with old acquaintances—in all their forms...

Includes the new stories...
“Silverâ€
“Roses in Winterâ€
“Redemptionâ€
“Hollowâ€

…and reader favorites
“Fairy Giftsâ€
“Grayâ€
“Seeing Eyeâ€
“Alpha and Omegaâ€
“The Star of Davidâ€
“In Red, with Pearlsâ€"

***

 

I also read Ready to Fall (Wingmen Book 1)  by Daisy Prescott which was by an author who is new to me.  I have another of her books waiting in Mount TBR.

 

"Tall, dark, and handsome is an understatement when it comes to John Day. With rugged good looks, his ever present plaid shirt, and a dog named Babe, John is a modern alpha male lumberjack.

After his favorite neighbor rents out her beach cabin for the winter, John finds himself playing fireman and tour guide to Diane Watson, a beautiful brunette with her own messy past and recent battle scars.

Will he be ready to fall in love? Or will he go back to his old, flirty ways?

Hold onto your heart as John Day tells his story in this male POV contemporary adult romance/romantic comedy."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[melbotoast]

I finished J. Dawn King's One Love Two Hearts Three Stories: A Pride & Prejudice Anthology. It was a nice fluffy read. I particularly enjoyed the story called In the Library, in which Darcy and Elizabeth decide to talk to each other in Bingley's library instead of ignoring each other. It was satisfying to have them communicate instead of the usual bookish frustration of thinking that all of these problems could be resolved if the characters would just talk to each other!

 

I also read Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. I thought it was very whimsical and fun. I'm hoping to watch the movie sometime although I've been warned that it is different from the book. 

 

I have only a couple chapters left in The Little Book of Hygge and am savoring each page. 

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished Spaceman of Bohemia! I ended up really, really liking it, but I have to say I was still ambivalent until about 2/3 of the way in. The story went to some really odd places, literally and figuratively. But I really like what he did with it, it ended on a very satisfying note. I can recommend it, which I wasn't sure I would be able to! It's definitely . . . gritty. An adult book, with pretty frank descriptions of sex, bodies, emotions. All the messy bits left in. Nothing egregious about it, but it was very realistic, no soft lighting and fuzzy camera angles, KWIM?

 

I've been getting less reading done because I've been compulsively watching 13 Reasons Why any time I'm alone in the house, which has cut down on my reading time substantially. I'm finding the show really compelling. I picked up the book but didn't read more than a couple of chapters, I found the POV and the characterizations really unreal and offputting, but the film version is really well done. So I don't know what happens, exactly, although I can guess. It's funny whenever I'm watching a good TV series that pulls me in, I'm partly enjoying it and partly wishing for it to be done already so I can get back to reading! I've got a huge stack of library books to get to before I have to return them. Not sure which I'll pick up next.

 

 

Edited April 10, 2017 by Chrysalis Academy

[Ethel Mertz]

A book review that might interest you especially if you have an interest in American history  ~

 

Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

 

"Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge is a nonfiction book about the efforts of one of George and Martha Washington’s slaves, Ona Judge, to secure her freedom. In the process, the book describes the struggle the new nation had with slavery and how different states and different individuals dealt with the matter.

 

When Martha Washington married George, she was a widow with about 100 “dower slaves” (slaves that she inherited from her previous marriage that would have to be passed down to the children she had with her deceased husband). George also owned slaves at the time of the marriage, and after the marriage he acquired more through purchase or because of births.

 

Ona was one of the dower slaves. She became Martha’s personal maid as well as one of her most skilled seamstresses. When the Washingtons left Mount Vernon for Philadelphia, where the capital was located, they took Ona with them. Philadelphia was a hub for abolitionists and the Washingtons were careful to keep their slaves isolated from anyone who might “lure” them into escaping. They also made sure to periodically send their slaves back to Mount Vernon for a short while, so that none of the slaves would reside in Philadelphia for six consecutive months (according to Philadelphia law at the time, slaves that resided in Philadelphia for six consecutive months were entitled to manumission)...."

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

Thanks for this recommendation, Kareni! I've added it to my very long TBR list and the book is sitting in my Amazon cart. Columbia University professor, Eric Foner, recommends this book, which led me to add to my cart his Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad. I'm in a phase of needing to own the nonfiction I read.

 

I finished Setting Free the Kites by Alex George. Supposedly a YA novel, I found it a bit too on the side of adultish material for DS. I've been reading bits and pieces of books, making slow headway in many. I'm still reading The Firebrand and the First Lady by Patricia Bell-Scott. I highly recommend it, even though I'm only halfway through the book. DS and I are enjoying Lord of the Rings and, as a companion to that, I am also reading  The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. I'm also more than halfway through The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. I've got the 3rd book in the Inspector Gamache series (Louise Penny) beside me and - yay! - the latest Miss Julia book by Ann B. Ross is out and I'm nearing the end of it already! (Miss Julia Weathers the Storm). 

 

DS had a paid section leader, singing gig this morning and, as I have a bad cold, I opted to sit in the car and read instead of sharing my germs (and, DS was fine with that since he didn't have a solo). I read this week's New Yorker and read more of the Bell-Scott book.

[aggieamy]

Jenn -  Thanks for sharing the pictures of your trip. It looks wonderful. I'm glad you were able to see some of the cherry blossoms and my whole family is envious of your experiences on the trains. We love traveling by train!

 

 

This weekend's book was An Accidental Death by Peter Grainger. I selected it due to the cover (which I believe was a choice a few weeks back). It had a person kayaking on it and I assumed it would be about a kayak adventure. Well, it wasn't. It was about a stolen canoe, an accidental death, and British policework. Since I like Inspector Morse, Endeavor, and Inspector Lewis, I rather enjoyed this easy-to-read book. It's the only one by this author that's on Prime so I doubt I'll read any more of the series (unless they become available).

 

 

I discovered this by accident a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it also. I think you hit it with the intended audience - if you like the Inspector Morse style of British mysteries then you'll like the series. They aren't the same but is satisfying in the same way.  

[Raifta]

 

 

I've been getting less reading done because I've been compulsively watching 13 Reasons Why any time I'm alone in the house, which has cut down on my reading time substantially. I'm finding the show really compelling. I picked up the book but didn't read more than a couple of chapters, I found the POV and the characterizations really unreal and offputting, but the film version is really well done. So I don't know what happens, exactly, although I can guess. It's funny whenever I'm watching a good TV series that pulls me in, I'm partly enjoying it and partly wishing for it to be done already so I can get back to reading! I've got a huge stack of library books to get to before I have to return them. Not sure which I'll pick up next.

 

Interesting.  I read the book but did not particularly enjoy it, largely for the reasons you described above.  So I was not at all tempted by the Netflix adaptation.  But I'm now reconsidering.  

[Angelaboord]

I finished 2 books this week... well, I finished both of them today, but it still counts, right?

 

How to Manage Your House Without Losing Your Mind: Dealing With Your House's Dirty Little Secrets by Dana K. White -- This is a book for those of us who tend to look past piles of clutter and who need to be told that we should do our dishes every day. I'm not quite in that spot anymore -- having a large family kind of forces organization upon you to some extent, because we have to do dishes 3x a day or we are drowning in them -- but I'm still that kind of person and so I found a lot of advice I could really use, particularly in the clutter arena. I gave it 4.5 stars on Goodreads.

 

From 2 K to 10K: Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love by Rachel Aaron -- Amy recommended this one last week, and I have to concur that I found what Aaron had to say very useful. In the interests of full disclosure, a long time ago when I didn't have as many kids as I do now, I wrote every day (mostly fantasy) and actually sold a handful of short stories. I had an editor request a book manuscript, too, which fortunately (!) was not accepted because it didn't deserve to be in print. Anyway, when I started having more kids, I switched to blogging instead of writing fiction (for the most part) and now I'm to the point where I haven't been writing anything at all. This is bad for my stress levels, and honestly, I would like to start writing fiction again. But my time is so limited that my goals have to be really, really small. I would like to try some of Aaron's methods, but doubling my output right now isn't going to be hard since it's zero. [emoji15]

 

I'm about halfway done with Am I Alone Here: Notes on Living to Read and Reading to Live by Peter Orner. I have recently become addicted to Kindle and BookBub daily deals. I am not sure which this was. But I have gotten pretty good at telling myself, "That's less than the cost of a drink at Starbucks!" Now I have a giant backlog of books on my Kindle app. Anyway, this book by Orner is thoughtful and absorbing, though I've only read a few of the same stories and books. These are very personal reflections on various short stories and books he has read, especially how they affected him as he dealt with his difficult relationship with his dying father and the breakup of his first marriage. Orner isn't whiny and he employs a self-deprecating, darkish sense of humor to leaven his subject matter.

 

I also picked up The Fantasy Fiction Formula on ErinE's recommendation and will hopefully be making my way through that one this week. At this point, reading about writing is a lot easier than doing it. [emoji6]

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Violet Crown]

This last week I read Conrad's great collection of short narratives: Youth, Heart of Darkness, and The End of the Tether.

 

I'm currently reading Hardy's The Return of the Native for homeschooling purposes. I hadn't noticed before how much spying and eavesdropping go on in this book. People are always lurking on the darkened heath for, peering through telescopes at, or listening up chimneys to other people.

 

For my own interest and education I started English Satire, by James Sutherland.

[Kareni]

I just finished an enjoyable fantasy novel which had been sitting on my Kindle for one year minus two days.  Those who enjoy books with a time travel aspect might enjoy it; it also contains Nephilim.  I'd happily read more in this series.

 

One Way Fare (Null City Book 1) by Barb Taub and Hannah Taub

 

"A thrilling chase through time and space, Null City is only a Metro ride away, littered with slick rock stars, stoic warriors, and Nephilim - the descendants of angels.


Superpowers suck. If you just want to live a normal life, Null City is only a Metro ride away. After one day there, imps become baristas, and hellhounds become poodles. Demons settle down, become parents, join the PTA, and worry about their taxes.

Null City is the only sanctuary for Gaby Parker and Leila Rice, two young women confronting cataclysmic forces waging an unseen war between Heaven and Hell. Gaby and her younger brother and sister are already targets in the war that cost their parents' lives. Should they forsake the powers that complete their souls and flee to Null City? Meanwhile, Leila has inherited a French chateau, a mysterious legacy, and a prophecy that she will end the world. Gaby and Leila become catalysts for the founding and survival of Null City. It just would have been nice if someone told them the angels were all on the other side."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[JennW in SoCal]

We ate so very well in Japan. I don't have enough pictures to do our gastronomic tourism justice, so a small sampler:

 

First, from Tokyo Disney Sea, these tasty little guys from Toy Story. They are creme-filled mochi, and yes, I acted it out as I picked them up,  "The claw! It moves!"

 

I thought I was an adventuresome eater til I was faced with an entire baby squid on my plate. Just couldn't bring myself to eat it, so the two times they were served either my dh or ds did the honors!

 

 

 

This was the best ramen I've ever had. I didn't know ramen could be this good -- all prepared fresh, in a small kitchen in a tiny place on a back street, and there was a line, in the rain, to get in. OMG it was amazing. 

The ramen                The kitchen....       

 

 

We spent one night in a traditional inn where we were served a 14 course "kaiseki" dinner. It was sublime, with lots of sashimi (raw fish), a problematic squid or two and lots of little tastes of the season. 

 

This was the first course, each of which was beautifully presented...

 

And finally, some offerings at a Kyoto covered street market........    

[strawberries]

I was in Florida for a week and then sick for a week. Recently I have finished:

 

Oh, Florida: How America's Weirdest State Influences the Rest of the Country by Craig Pittman - entertaining collection of Florida history, from the stereotypically bizarre (Florida Man stories) to the serious (the state's role in civil rights/gay rights movements). I enjoyed this, especially after having lived in Tallahassee for a couple of years in the early 2000's

 

Best. State. Ever.: A Florida Man Defends his Homeland by Dave Barry - meh. I am not a big Dave Barry fan, read this because DH brought it along. He LOVES Dave Barry. He sits there chuckling as he reads. It's not really my cuppa. The Oh, Florida book mentioned several of the same stories, but in a less obnoxious way.

 

Why Does the Other Line Always Move Faster? The Myths and Misery, Secrets and Psychology of Waiting in Line by David Andrews - quick little book. Not as much science in it as I would have liked, and I found the frequent multi-page sidebars annoying, but it had some interesting insights. It hadn't occurred to me that my dad might abhor lines so much because of the time he spent in the military. I'd also never thought about there being a time before lines, that someone had to come up with the idea for standing in line and enforce it in society.

 

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Big Bad Ironclad! - thumbs up for history in graphic novel form! Need to find more books in this series for DS. 

 

I'm caught up on The Story of Science but waay behind on From the Beast to the Blonde. I think I'm on chapter 6. Guess I need to bring that along while waiting at kid activities this week. But but but...my Hidden Figures hold came in!

[Mothersweets]

How about a little arm chair traveling to Japan?  Japan is a wonderful place to visit. In the big cities there are enough speakers of (limited) English, the train and subway signage is Japanese, Chinese, Korean and English, so it is easy to navigate and get what you need. It is a first world country, but still very exotic for most Westerners so you feel like you really are some place foreign. Tokyo is crowded and huge, Kyoto is charming.  I'll post some others in a bit, including food and books. 

 

Tokyo's Akihabara district, the home of all things electronic and lots of maid cafes -- a haven for young Otaku (the pop-culture obsessed) 

 

 

Wonderful pics, Jenn!  I'd love to go to Japan someday. Several of my daughters are obsessed with the country and maid cafes would be a definite must for them!

[Rosie_0801]

Oh man! I want to slap this author!

 

THE PENGUINS ARE NOT BLACK AND WHITE!!!!!

 

How on this particular corner of the earth CAN YOU MAKE THAT MISTAKE?

 

:cursing:  :cursing:  :cursing:

:smash:  :smash:  :smash:

 

 

Breathe, Rosie, breathe. Try and forget you hate being told to breathe.

 

Oh man. This is too much for me. :svengo:

[ErinE]

JennW, I love your posts! It looks like it was a fun and fascinating trip.

 

Books read last week:

• William Tecumseh Sherman: In the Service of My Country: A Life by James Lee McDonough. Biography. An in-depth look at the life of a prominent US Civil War general. Years ago, I was on a Civil War bent and read several biographies on President Lincoln, Ulysses S Grant, and even Salmon P. Chase (Team of Rivals was an especially good book). I wasn't interested in Sherman then and while I found this book informative, I wouldn't say I found him compelling. He was indifferent to slavery, even going so far as to write multiple protests over the emancipation of slaves during the war. He felt it was too difficult to feed and house them all. Though Sherman was  considered more intelligent and a better tactician, Grant led the Army for very good reasons. The description of the March to the Sea (a 60-mile wide path of deliberate destruction over 425-miles) was particularly harrowing.
• The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane. Historical Fiction-Civil War. A young boy experiences his first battle. More a character study then a complete novel, Crane takes you through the fears and joy and terror of fighting. There were several moments of excellent writing. When the men shakes hands after the first skirmish, happy to be alive. The men celebrating the boy's "fighting spirit" when he just closed his eyes and started shooting.
• Super Extra Grande by Yoss. Science Fiction. A large alien veterinarian rescues two of his former assistants. This was weird, really weird and very, very adult. Originally written in Spanish, I wish the book had been translated a bit more. Much of the dialogue was in Spanglish, and while I have some familiarity with the language, I needed a Spanish-English dictionary nearby. Giant space worms, planet size amoebas and way more than I ever thought I needed to know about alien reproductive cycles. Bizarre, but interesting read.
• Soul Music by Terry Pratchett. Fantasy. The discovery of a magical guitar causes the Discworld to descend into madness over music with rocks in. A satirical look at the music world in which Death and his granddaughter feature prominently. I didn't have any lovely passages to copy in my notebook, but it was an enjoyable read.
• The Exploded View by Ivan Vladislavic. Short stories. A group of stories set in South Africa. Late last year, I decided to read more international books and purchased a subscription to Archipelago books on the BaWers recommendations. This was the first book I completed. Each story intermingles imagination and reality, with the characters' perceptions of the external world influencing their opinion of themselves. I couldn't see the common thread until I was done. Thus, the title - The Exploded View. If anyone wants the book, I'm happy to share it.

I'm currently working on A History of India from the Great Courses. Last time I learned about a country, I read a history book first then listened to the Great Courses lectures which I think is a better process. It helped having "markers" and maps to follow the audio.

 

Speaking of maps, reading other history books makes  me appreciate SWB's writing so much more. History authors don't use enough maps, they refer to places and cities not on the map, and they don't put the maps in consistent places. With SWB, I know the map will be towards the front and the timeline towards the back of each chapter. So thank you to SWB for being consistent! It makes flipping between the narrative and the illustration so much easier.

 

Other books I'm working on Exoplanets (really interesting), Fiction Writing for Dummies (ignore the title, it's actually helpful), Xenocide, and Convergence. The last was an interlibrary loan with only two weeks (!) to finish so it moved to the top of the TBR pile.

Edited April 10, 2017 by ErinE

[Negin]

I read Chocolat - 2 Stars - I saw the movie many years ago and this is one of those rare instances where I think that the movie was far better than the book. The constant repetitions of the same themes (yes, we get it, the author doesn't care for organized religion) became rather tiresome. I also didn’t see any real plot. It was more a like a lengthy character study and I ended up not really caring for most of the characters anyway. I have to say that since I love food and also enjoy reading detailed descriptions about it, those parts were truly enjoyable. I also enjoyed the atmospheric description of being in a French country village.

 

 

MY RATING SYSTEM

5 Stars

Fantastic, couldn't put it down

4 Stars

Really Good

3 Stars

Enjoyable

2 Stars

Just Okay – nothing to write home about

1 Star

Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

[Jane in NC]

Jenn--Thank you for providing the armchair travelogue! What a visual feast! I love all the blossoms.

[ErinE]

Catherynne Valente's book Deathless (link to signup) is the Tor.com free ebook of the Month. I really enjoyed Radiance and The Boy Who Lost Fairyland.

[aggieamy]

Jenn - Oh my goodness. That looks so wonderful. I love all food. I think I would have even eaten your baby squid. :)

 

 

Oh man! I want to slap this author!

 

THE PENGUINS ARE NOT BLACK AND WHITE!!!!!

 

How on this particular corner of the earth CAN YOU MAKE THAT MISTAKE?

 

:cursing:  :cursing:  :cursing:

:smash:  :smash:  :smash:

 

 

Breathe, Rosie, breathe. Try and forget you hate being told to breathe.

 

Oh man. This is too much for me. :svengo:

 

I'm going to need to see the cover of this atrocity.

 

 

 

[Loesje22000]

Robin,

 

May I ask a question about the short stories bingo square?

Is a short story always fictional?

Or does it also cover columns or anekdotes type books (like 'a year in the provence' for the latter)

Just to be shure :)

[Kareni]

A one day only currently free classic for Kindle readers ~

 

Fantômas by Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre

 

From Publishers Weekly

"In the mode reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes and his ineradicable nemesis, the virtually immortal Professor Moriarty, Inspector Juve dedicates himself to the relentless pursuit of that evil genius Fantomas. He is, as they say in petrified Paris, "Nothing. . . Everything. . . Nobody. . . Somebody." And what does he do? He "spreads terror," diabolically, craftily beyond all imagining: slashes throats of kindly old ladies; stuffs strangled British socialites into trunks; boldly robs Russian princesses in their hotel rooms; pushes witnesses off speeding trains to their deaths. Can Juve prevail against that hellish power? Men masquerade as women; suicides return from the dead; ladies wail "What am I to do?" and faint from surprise and shock. Juve finally hunts Fantomas down. But a surprise awaits, leaving the charmed reader of this French bestseller hoping to see more of the weird pair."

 

 

 

"The shocking debut of France’s most ruthless villain

After dinner, the guests of the Marquise de Langrune amuse one another with tales of the chilling deeds of Fantômas, a fiendish criminal whose reach is limitless, whose thirst for mayhem can never be quenched. The next morning, young Charles Rambert leaves early to meet his father at the train station. When he returns, the chateau is in an uproar. The Marquise has been slaughtered in her bed.
 
She was found not long after Rambert’s departure, her body soaked in blood, her neck severed all the way to the bone. Suspecting his son may be the killer, Charles’s father insists they leave immediately. But Inspector Juve sees the hand of Fantômas in the grisly deed, and in two other dastardly crimes that have Paris in an uproar: the brazen theft of Princess Sonia’s pocketbook and the murder of Lord Beltham, whose body was found stuffed in a trunk. Juve has pledged his life to apprehending the criminal mastermind and will stop at nothing to see Fantômas hang."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[6packofun]

Happy Sunday and welcome to  week 15  in our 2017 adventurous prime reading year. Greetings to all our readers and those following our progress. Mister Linky is available weekly on 52 Books in 52 Weeks  to share a link to your book reviews.

 

 

My armchair travels took me to India this week. I discovered the caves of Meghalaya while exploring and searching for diamonds, and ended up following a variety of rabbit trails through India. I enjoy epic novels delving into the history of India and was quite pleased to discover M.M. Kaye's The Far Pavilions:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've had an online friend recommend The Far Pavilions to me for years but our library never has it so I never got around to it.  Thanks for the reminder!  The other selections look great, too!  I was just Googling last week trying to find a book I read several years ago about an Indian private investigator to see if there were any more books in the series but no luck.  Hmm, maybe it will pop up in this thread by some chance.  lol

 

I just finished Caraval by Stephanie Garber based on a friend's "want to read" tag on GoodReads.  It was pretty good.  Sort of typical teen stuff with the relationship developing over basically 2-3 days and lots of angst-y sensuality that never goes anywhere.  lol  But the premise is good--someone called it Hunger Games meets The Night Circus, but that may be a bit generous--and I may read the next one.  I thought the writing was a little amateurish and the plot needed to be tighter, but this is the author's first novel and she's still pretty young so we'll see how the next book goes!  (The reviews on Amazon and by other authors, professional reviewers are way generous, IMO.  It's good but not as mesmerizing, spellbinding, and decadent as they say...standards are getting much lower, IMO. Not to trash the book because it was decent but I was rolling my eyes at several points and thought it a little predictable, the language stilted at times in trying to be descriptive and sensual.)

 

Ho hum, what to read next. I think I'll try Old World Murder suggested here.

[JennW in SoCal]

And finally a few loosely book related Japan photos:

 

Melbotoast posted that she just read Howl's Moving Castle and was thinking of watching the movie, which is an animation classic from Hayao Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli. Being a family of animation fans, we made a point of making a pilgrimage to the Studio Ghibli Museum just outside Tokyo. Miyazaki designed the building and exhibits, and it is all wildly creative and whimsical.  Here's the family in front of a life sized statue of the robot soldier from Castle in the Sky. 

 

 

Have any of you ever read James Clavell's Shogun? It is a very well researched and enjoyable historical novel about an English sailor who adapts to Japanese culture and gets caught up in the battles for the unification of Japan led by the daimyo Toranaga. It was a wildly popular tv mini series back in the early 1980s starring Richard Chamberlain and Toshiro Mifune. We visited the castle built in the early 1600s by the actual founder of the Shogunate, Tokugawa Ieyasu. It is still standing, as Kyoto was spared from bombing during WWII due to its many important historical buildings.

 

The castle moat....         And the grand entrance...

 

This isn't all that special or unique as they are the usual Vintage International editions, but here's a shelf of Murakami books at the Kyoto Handicraft Center -- basically an upscale tourist store. I bought Wind up Bird Chronicles for myself -- figured I needed to buy a Murakami book in Japan. I also bought one of the most epic flip books I've ever seen -- which was sitting on under a sign advertising "Frip Books". L's and R's are the bane of native Japanese speakers!

 

Edited April 10, 2017 by JennW in SoCal

[Robin M]

Robin,

 

May I ask a question about the short stories bingo square?

Is a short story always fictional?

Or does it also cover columns or anekdotes type books (like 'a year in the provence' for the latter)

Just to be shure :)

Short stories can be collection of either fiction or nonfiction so anecdotal type books work. 

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Robin M]

Great pictures of your trip to Japan, Jenn.   James wants to know if you went by Toho Studios or saw Godzilla.   

 

Karen, just downloaded One Way Fare.  Thanks!    Also Devon Monk's Dead Iron: The Age of Steam and Lilith Saintcrow's Dark Watcher.

 

Finished the Mistress of Spices as well as Seanan McGuire's An Artificial Night (#3 October Day series)  Currently reading an oldie - The Adept by Deborah Turner Harris and Katherine Kurtz.     

 

He is Sir Adam Sinclair: nobleman, physician, scholar–and an Adept. A man of great learning and power, he practices arcane ancient arts unknown to the modern world.
He has had many names and has lived many lives, but his mission remains the same: to protect the Light of the world from those metaphysical criminals who prowl the Dark Road. Now his beloved Scotland is defiled by a ruthless cult of black magicians who will commit any atrocity, from murder both physical and spiritual to enslaving the dead, to achieve their evil ends. Only one man can stand against them . . .The Adept.

 

 

One more book to go to finish Aquamarine.  

 

[Rosie_0801]

I'm going to need to see the cover of this atrocity.

 

Oh, it wasn't on the cover. It was a description 300 pages in, just where I wasn't expecting it! :svengo:

[Jane in NC]

Pulitzer Prize Winners 2017:

http://www.powells.com/awards/pulitzer-prize/?utm_source=specials&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=spec_pulitzer_2017&utm_content=Main%20Image

 

Two books that BaWers have discussed (Underground Railroad and Evicted) have won Pulitzers.  One of my favorite reporters did as well. :D

 

[Matryoshka]

Another great reason to read books (as if we needed one :) )

 

http://bigthink.com/laurie-vazquez/yale-study-people-who-read-live-longer-than-people-who-dont?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#link_time=1490114317

[Narrow Gate Academy]

I finally finished reading The Invisible Library by Cogman which I'm counting for my steampunk bingo square. Not sure what I'll start next for fiction.

 

Robin, does the eastern Europe bingo square have to be set exclusively in eastern Europe or can I count Silence Fallen since part of the action is set in Prague?

[Robin M]

I finally finished reading The Invisible Library by Cogman which I'm counting for my steampunk bingo square. Not sure what I'll start next for fiction.

 

Robin, does the eastern Europe bingo square have to be set exclusively in eastern Europe or can I count Silence Fallen since part of the action is set in Prague?

Not exclusive.  Silence Fallen definitely qualifies since most of the story took place in Eastern Europe. . 

[ErinE]

Another great reason to read books (as if we needed one :) )

 

http://bigthink.com/laurie-vazquez/yale-study-people-who-read-live-longer-than-people-who-dont?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#link_time=1490114317

 

We need to live longer so we can read all the books!

 

Wasn't there a post a bit ago about the books you have left to read based on your age and reading habits? I found it depressing. I couldn't help but think, That's all? I know I have more books to read than that.