Book a Week 2017 - BW24: Happy 20th Anniversary Harry Potter

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday and welcome to week 24 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.

 

In 1990 the imaginary world of Harry Potter began while J.K. Rowling traveled on a train from Manchester to King's Cross.  J.K. Rowling was twenty five at the time and over a five year period, mapped out the seven books in the series.  The first book was published on June 26, 1997 by Bloomsbury Children's books, titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.  A year later,  the book was published in the United States as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  

 

 

This month Bloomsbury is celebrating the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and has released four new editions, in both hardback and paperback of  The Philosopher's Stone, each with the crest of the family houses on the cover. The books are also available on Amazon.uk and I've ordered the whole set. (Thank you Mumto2 for pointing me in the right direction)  Beginning October 2017, the British Library will launch an exposition, inspired by and including Harry Potter and the history of magic.  

 

 

The story caused quite a turmoil within many religious communities leading to debates over the the use of witchcraft and magic and how it would influence children.   The controversy stirred my curiosity so I read the book and fell in love with Harry Potter's world and went on to read the whole series.  When my son was old enough to read the series, we read them together and currently listening to the series in audio book.  We're just finished Harry Potter and the Half Book Prince.

 

 

If you haven't had the opportunity to listen to the books yet, they are available on Audible.   Jim Dale is an awesome narrator who has captured the character's voices which brings the story alive and pulls you into their world.  

 

 

Join me this month is reading Harry Potter! 

 
Happy Reading! 

 

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

 

Story of Western Science – Chapter 19

 

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

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

Link to Week 23

 

Edited June 11, 2017 by Robin M

[Robin M]

I finished The Girl Who Played with Fire which ended but with some things unresolved and the story picks up at the same point in time in The Girl Who Played with the Hornet's Nest. So James and I will be going to B&N to pick it up along with some father's days reads.  Also finished the 4th book in the October Daye series by Seanan MacGuire Late Eclipses - non stop action as October is battling to help Lily and Luna who have been poisoned as well as stay one step ahead of the Queen. 

[Negin]

Robin, thank you for this thread, as always. I've loved all the HP books and have read them twice. 

 

I'm catching up on reviewing some of the books that I've been reading.

 

Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic - 5 Stars - This is the third book in the Jennifer Scott boxed set, and as with the other two, I enjoyed it immensely. This one focused on living with dignity, poise, and grace, something that’s sadly often lacking today. This book even inspired me to buy a lovely apron on our recent visit to France.

 

The French Beauty Solution - 2 Stars - I didn’t learn much from this book at all. She is quite pushy about her own skin care line (Caudalie), but to be fair, I knew that she would be before I even read it. I may try her grape detox and am curious to see if it works.

 

What irritated me is her overall attitude that Americans need to pretty much become French in order to be beautiful. That sort of mentality rubs me the wrong way. There’s one part in particular that I thought was particularly condescending, where she refers to “the prudish Americans†and that being one of the reasons why American women apparently hide behind a ton of makeup. Since I personally don’t favor the idea of nudity or sunbathing topless I’m sure that she would consider me a prude, which quite frankly, I don’t mind, since I wear my badge of prudishness with honor :D! The funny thing is that she would likely be baffled by the fact that I don’t wear any make up at all really.

 

Some of my favorite quotes:

“The key for me is keeping it simple, with an emphasis on the best skincare rather than makeup.â€

 

“There should be a palpable pleasure in pampering your skin.â€

 

A Year in Provence - 2 Stars - I read right this before our visit to Provence, which has turned out to be one of my favorite places on earth. 

 

I was quite excited to read this since I’d always heard such great stuff about it. The book started out nicely enough but then became rather repetitive. Most of the stories were about renovating the author’s home in Provence and various dinner parties. There wasn’t much of a plot at all. I ended up skipping lots of pages and being quite bored, except of course for the parts describing food, since I really do love food! According to the author, the French simply adore their food, something that I can fully relate to.

 

Some of my favorite quotes:

“The French are as passionate about food as other nationalities are about sport and politics."

 

“We remembered being told that the French spend as much of their income on their stomachs as the English do on their cars and stereo systems, and we could easily believe it.â€

 

   

 

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.

 

[Negin]

I finished The Girl Who Played with Fire which ended but with some things unresolved and the story picks up at the same point in time in The Girl Who Played with the Hornet's Nest. 

I loved that series. 

[Loesje22000]

I finished four books this week:

 

- a biography about C.S. Lewis by A. McGrath

I liked it very much and gave me several new insights in this author and his writings.

I would like a biography about Tolkien by his hand as well.

 

- a Judge Dee mystery

They are finally in Dutch reprint now and I was finally able to share this serie with dd.

For the first time she likes books I liked when I was her age :)

 

- I started and finished Outlander #1 (in Dutch renamed)

I like it very much - for a summer reading.

I stayed up too long to read the book, but I am happy to read something 'light' along War & Peace....

 

- Jane Austen onder vier ogen (in private)

A very well done historical fiction based on a fictional lost diary from Jane Austen that mentions her probably best but lost book.

The writing style was very appropiate for those times.

Chapters change between Cassandra's memories and Janes (fictional) diary.

Unfortunetly for you, so new there are no translations available (yet)

 

Are we starting this week with War & Peace or next sunday?

Just wondering:)

 

Currently reading:

The Glass Palace (promising!)

Roman Fever ( short stories by Edith Wharton)

[Lady Florida.]

We're a Harry Potter family. Ds wasn't among that first group of kids who grew up along with Harry and his friends. He was born the year the first book was published and there were already four movies out by the time he read the first book (though I think we had only seen the first two). When ds was 9 dss started dating a Potter fan (she's his wife now) and for Christmas that year they gave ds the first book. Dh was the one who did read alouds with ds, so he read all the books to him while I read them on my own. We all became huge fans. In addition to reading and rereading the books we've also listened to them numerous times. We love Jim Dale! The series became our go-to audio books whenever we took long road trips. We used to repeatedly check out the cd's from the library because they were super expensive to buy, so I was thrilled when they finally became available on Audible. We own all of them now in print, ebook, and audio book form. 

 

Though we love the books we're also fans of the movies. (Dh gets annoyed about some things that were left out, but I try to remember that it's rare for a movie adaptation to be completely faithful to the book it's based on.) Anyway, when we went on our getaway weekend a few weeks ago, there was apparently a Harry Potter weekend on one of the networks. When we were done for the day and relaxing in the hotel room, we also were watching whichever movie was showing. On check out day I had to turn off the tv because ds, almost 20, couldn't stop himself from watching. :)

 

We often comment on how we have dss and ddil to thank for our Harry Potter obsession. Our grandsons, at 5 and nearly 3, are still too young for either the books or movies but their parents look forward to the day when they can share their HP love with their kids, starting with reading the books aloud to them. 

 

 

[mumto2]

Last week was spent reading books I didn't really like so I plan to read fun things this week! I plan to work on my birthstone challenge which means I have done a bit of planning. I decided to do June's three birthstones with enthusiasm mainly because both Mary Balogh's The Secret Pearl and Wilkie Collin's The Moonstone were already on this year's list. So that leaves Alexandrite to spell! I think I can......the requires X which is problematic...

 

The search for X turned up I am Princess X by Cherie Priest. I was excited because she was my Steampunk for Bingo author. I didn't pay proper attention beyond 200+ pages and had quite a surprise......it's a graphic novel. Oh my, I just entered a whole new world. They can be checked out on my Kindle Fire apparently because that one worked. It was a great story and seriously good fun. When I went to Goodreads after I discovered Aggieamy has read and loved it.https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17408897-i-am-princess-x

 

The story starts with two childhood friends create a cartoon character called Princess X and become a bit obsessed creating boxes of notebooks with their tales. When one of the girls dies in an accident and the other moves the tales are lost. Three years pass and the girl returns to their hometown, Seattle, and discovers that Princess X is the star of a long running web cartoon. At first she thinks someone has the missing notebooks but as she reads she learns that her dead friend must be the author..... It was great! It did take 2 or 3 hours to read so I'm counting it for Alexandrite. ;) X is hard.

 

Currently reading the latest in one of my favourite cozy series Devil's Breathhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29939369-devil-s-breath?ac=1&from_search=true and continuing to listen to my Tom Clancy audiobook with 4 hours to go!

[Lady Florida.]

I finished A Dead Bore (a John Pickett mystery) this morning which put me at 52 books. 

 

As much as I wanted to like The Moonstone I'm finding it tedious and will most likely abandon it. I loved The Woman in White and wanted to like this book, especially since it's famous for being the "first English detective novel". I often find those books that were originally printed in serial form (as this was) can be tedious when the author obviously tried to stretch out the story over many issues. Dickens is certainly guilty of that but he still manages to keep my attention enough for me to finish his novels (and I'm never sorry for sticking it out with his work). I might try to read a bit more but probably not. I can't see myself wanting to finish this book so why keep trying?

 

I'll start my reread of War and Peace soon -either tonight or some time tomorrow. I just have to decide which translation to read. I can't decide if I should stick with the one I read before or try a different one. My library has several and I'll read the samples before I decide. I really did like the Pevear/Volokhonsky translation and that's the one I own.

 

Currently reading -

--The American, Henry James - audio book

--Floodpath - still slowly working through this one

 

The Moonstone was going to be one of my June birthstone books. I'll start reading The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck this week. Although I don't expect to abandon it, if for some reason I don;t finish, I won't try to find another June birthstone book. I wasn't planning to do this challenge anyway, but just thought I'd give it a go this month. I'd rather work on getting BaW bingo blackout.

 

ETA: I'll probably start a mystery novel so I have something light to read when I need it.

Edited June 11, 2017 by Lady Florida.

[aggieamy]

Last week was spent reading books I didn't really like so I plan to read fun things this week! I plan to work on my birthstone challenge which means I have done a bit of planning. I decided to do June's three birthstones with enthusiasm mainly because both Mary Balogh's The Secret Pearl and Wilkie Collin's The Moonstone were already on this year's list. So that leaves Alexandrite to spell! I think I can......the requires X which is problematic...

 

 

I read this part of your post and thought "I have a book to recommend!"

 

Then I read on ...

 

 

When I went to Goodreads after I discovered Aggieamy has read and loved it.https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17408897-i-am-princess-x

 

 

Yep. That was the book I was going to recommend. I'm glad you liked it.

 

I also read The Secret Pearl earlier this year. I think you'll like it also. It has some *saucy* bits in it but they were well done. 

[Happy]

I do enjoy reading about everyone's reading adventures each week. It's June and as a real estate agent, my life is buzzing like a beehive. It's good and exhausting--reading is my stress relief and escape.

 

In the past couple of weeks, I've read ''News of the World" because so many of you had such good things to say about it.  I enjoyed it very much. My only negative was her lack of quotation marks. Didn't that drive anyone else bonkers? Otherwise a very good book.

One of the fun aspects was I live where this book is set and/or I've traveled in those same areas. I've even ridden horses over some of that land or camped. It made it especially personal on that level. On another level, I'm fascinated by the Comanches and Kiowas in my part of the world. There's history that I never truly understood. News of the World tipped me off to reading more about captured white children.

 

Which led me to the 'The Captured' by Scott Zesch. Fascinating historical look at several children in Texas who were captured by the Comanche or Apaches. The author is a descendent of one of them. Very interesting how these kiddoes were forever changed by their (mostly positive) experiences with the Native Americans. I related this to things I've learned about Third Culture Kids--kiddoes who live in another country for a time. My sons are TCK because of living in Europe for a few years.
I found the book interesting and compelling. It's got some violence, so be warned.
 

If you are interested, Empire of the Summer Moon by S.C. Gwynne is a good look at the last years of the Comanche. I was born, raised, and have lived in Comanche country all my life. Most of the history I've studied throughout my life happened elsewhere--the east coast, the deep south, Europe, etc. Even south Texas when it comes to Texas history. Once again, way more personal to understand what happened here.

To break up things, I read Nora Roberts new book, "Come Sundown." It's always a pleasure to sink into a NR story. Yes, I've read everything the woman has written so I do see echos of other stories and characters in her newer work, but hey it's still a fun ride.

I reread Barbara Delinsky's "Blueprints," too. BD is a favorite author but this book isn't my favorite. I did like it better this time--but it's still going to the used book store this week.
 

Currently reading 'Braving It" A father, a daughter, and an unforgettable journey into the Alaskan Wild, by James Campbell. There are still wild places on this earth. This is a good read so far. Makes you want to chuck everything and head into the wilderness for a while. While it's warm anyway--I don't do winter like that. :)

Happy reading everyone!

[mumto2]

Harry Potter and I got to know each other when ds was a baby. I could walk to a huge upscale mall from our house and went for a weight reducing stroll on hot days through the mall pushing my double stroller. There was a PBS store where dd and I did much of our shopping with a huge HP display. At some point I remember buying the first HP book there. I was hooked and soon owned the three that were out. I added the next within days as they were released. Each new book has meant that I reread the series up to the new release so I have read the first ones lots of times.

 

Fast forward a few years and ds was about 6. We are moving to England and all the Home Education group information is talking about HP with kid's younger than ds as huge fans. Pen pals were big in the publications of that time! I had been planning to wait but Sorcerer's is sort of mild so cultural immersion began. They needed to be able to speak the language! :lol: We read through the death of my favourite character then I handed the books over to the dc's. They had to wait for the last one too. Reading hp and being huge Dr. Who fans did help them fit in with their new friends. Something to talk about.

 

We love Harry Potter. Everyone in the family except me loves the movies. We watch them frequently with me complaining that this or that part got left out. We have been to the studio and a few film sites.

[aggieamy]

Here's my list of books read in the last few weeks:

 

Knots and Crosses (Inspector Rebus #1) by Ian Ranking - Mystery set in Edinburgh. Liked it.

 

The Blackhouse (Lewis Trilogy #1) by Peter May - Mystery set in Scotland. Really well written and interesting. It flashes back between present day - first person and the past - second person. That was really cool.

 

Make Your Bed: Little things that can Change Your Life by William McRaven - I read this because of Laura's (Mothersweets) recommendation and agree with everything she said. It's great life inspiration.

 

Create Character Arcs by KM Weiland - Most people here know how big a fan I am of KM Weiland's writing books. This is no exception. I would consider it a must read for any aspiring author.

 

Resurrection Row (Charlotte and Thomas Pitt #4) - Mystery set in Victorian England. It was okay. I've read other in the series I liked better.

 

DH recommended Waverly to me and I enjoying it but it is dense and I'm reading it slowly.

[Kareni]

...

 

This month Bloomsbury is celebrating the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and has released four new editions, in both hardback and paperback of  The Philosopher's Stone, each with the crest of the family houses on the cover.

 

Very nifty covers!

 

My daughter is another fan of Harry Potter.  We've been giving her copies of Harry Potter books in different languages as she has studied them.

 

She has Latin versions

 

Harrius Potter et Philosophi Lapis (Latin, book 1)

 

Harrius Potter et Camera Secretorum (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Latin Edition)

 

 

and classical Greek

 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Ancient Greek Edition) (1st First Edition)

 

Here's an interesting article from the translator of the Greek version:

Harry Potter in ancient Greek by Andrew Wilson

 

and Korean

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (Korean Edition): Book 1 of 2

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (Korean Edition): Book 2 of 2

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

[aggieamy]

I was in high school when HP came out and it wasn't on my radar but my parents bought the first three for my elementary school aged sister and she loved them. I still didn't bother reading them because my little sister was also reading RL Stine.  I didn't think she could possibly be reading anything I would be interested in. If they were already a craze by then I didn't realize it. Eventually I picked it up from her room and read it on a whim. I was hooked to say the least. They were generally released around the time I went to Minnesota on vacation with my grandmother and extended family. Book five was released the day before we left so I picked it up at midnight and then read it on the car trip up there while my aunt drove. The seventh book was released while we were in Minnesota and I had to drive with a cousin about an hour at midnight to pick it up from the closest bookstore. My grandmother thought I was crazy. She loved reading but never got into the HP books.

 

I've since put them in my DH and DD's hands.

[Lady Florida.]

I finished The Girl Who Played with Fire which ended but with some things unresolved and the story picks up at the same point in time in The Girl Who Played with the Hornet's Nest. So James and I will be going to B&N to pick it up along with some father's days reads.  . 

 

That series was my first encounter with Scandinavian noir. It was at times graphic and gruesome yet I couldn't stop reading it. If you like parody, here's a piece written by Nora Ephron some years ago. There's no series spoilers. It's just fun, and if you've even only read one book in the series you'll still get the jokes. There's some language, but it's necessary.

 

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/07/05/the-girl-who-fixed-the-umlaut

 

Oh, wait. I just skimmed over it and realized there's a spoiler from the final book. You might want to hold off until after you finish the series.

 

reading is my stress relief and escape.

 

In the past couple of weeks, I've read ''News of the World" because so many of you had such good things to say about it.  I enjoyed it very much. My only negative was her lack of quotation marks. Didn't that drive anyone else bonkers? Otherwise a very good book.

 

One of the fun aspects was I live where this book is set and/or I've traveled in those same areas. I've even ridden horses over some of that land or camped. It made it especially personal on that level. On another level, I'm fascinated by the Comanches and Kiowas in my part of the world. There's history that I never truly understood. News of the World tipped me off to reading more about captured white children.

 

Which led me to the 'The Captured' by Scott Zesch. Fascinating historical look at several children in Texas who were captured by the Comanche or Apaches. The author is a descendent of one of them. Very interesting how these kiddoes were forever changed by their (mostly positive) experiences with the Native Americans. I related this to things I've learned about Third Culture Kids--kiddoes who live in another country for a time. My sons are TCK because of living in Europe for a few years.

I found the book interesting and compelling. It's got some violence, so be warned.

 

If you are interested, Empire of the Summer Moon by S.C. Gwynne is a good look at the last years of the Comanche. I was born, raised, and have lived in Comanche country all my life. Most of the history I've studied throughout my life happened elsewhere--the east coast, the deep south, Europe, etc. Even south Texas when it comes to Texas history. Once again, way more personal to understand what happened here.

 

 

 

Reading is my escape too!

 

News of the World - The lack of quotation marks was distracting to me at first but I got used to it and eventually didn't even notice they were missing. Although I've never been to the areas in the book, I went off on some rabbit trails researching the history of the area and a few of the actual historical people referenced in the novel. I also added The Captured to my to-read list. 

Edited June 11, 2017 by Lady Florida.

[Lady Florida.]

 Everyone in the family except me loves the movies. We watch them frequently with me complaining that this or that part got left out. We have been to the studio and a few film sites.

 

You and my dh should get together. The rest of our families can watch the movies while the two of you sit in another room and complain about everything they left out or changed. :D

 

If we ever get to the UK we want to go to the studio. We love HP World at Universal and never get tired of it.

[Kareni]

After posting about this currently free Kindle book yesterday, I was compelled to re-read it.  I enjoyed it once again.

 

Dark Horse (Class 5 Series Book 1)  by Michelle Diener

 

"Some secrets carry the weight of the world.

Rose McKenzie may be far from Earth with no way back, but she's made a powerful ally--a fellow prisoner with whom she's formed a strong bond. Sazo's an artificial intelligence. He's saved her from captivity and torture, but he's also put her in the middle of a conflict, leaving Rose with her loyalties divided.

Captain Dav Jallan doesn't know why he and his crew have stumbled across an almost legendary Class 5 battleship, but he's not going to complain. The only problem is, all its crew are dead, all except for one strange, new alien being.

She calls herself Rose. She seems small and harmless, but less and less about her story is adding up, and Dav has a bad feeling his crew, and maybe even the four planets, are in jeopardy. The Class 5's owners, the Tecran, look set to start a war to get it back and Dav suspects Rose isn't the only alien being who survived what happened on the Class 5. And whatever else is out there is playing its own games.

In this race for the truth, he's going to have to go against his leaders and trust the dark horse."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Mothersweets]

Happy Sunday everyone!

 

I'm looking forward to the War and Peace read-a-long - I have the Maude version on my kindle and also ordered the Dunnigan translation. I went to B&N to look through the different translations but they only had three different ones - Briggs, P & V, and Garnett? I think. I liked the Briggs and almost bought it but it was soooo heavy! I just couldn't see myself lugging that around or even reading in bed with it so hopefully the Dunnigan will do the trick. When are we starting?

 

Amy, so glad you enjoyed the book!

 

And Happy - that is so neat that you live in the area where News of the World is set! It really brings the story to life, doesn't it?

 

Last week I read:

 

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/693208.The_Absolutely_True_Diary_of_a_Part_Time_Indian Great story - I loved Junior and was so proud and happy for him. 

 

Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - #6 in the wonderful Inspector Gamache series. This one was different from the rest and while I liked it, it did feel a little forced what with all the different storylines. I did enjoy getting to know Jean-Luc more and wonder where his story is  headed. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7945049-bury-your-dead

 

For Fukui's Sake:Two Years in Rural Japan by Sam Baldwin. Did I already talk about this one? I didn't have it in my GR list so I'm adding it in for this week. A young British man decides to change his career and goes to Japan to teach English for two years. He ends up loving it and eases into rural village life fairly easily. I liked this but did wish the author had talked more about his day-to-day teaching experience. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12666040-for-fukui-s-sake

Edited June 11, 2017 by Mothersweets

[aggieamy]

We love HP World at Universal and never get tired of it.

 

We went a year before DS was born and loved it. This was before the train was added and a bunch of other cool things. We keep wanting to go back but each time we run the numbers we get a bit of sticker shock. Right now we're looking at going next summer because DS will be almost five and that should be big enough to enjoy more of it.

[Chrysalis Academy]

My highlight from last week was reading Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. I don't usually read contemporary fiction that isn't genre fiction - I tend to be bored or put off by modern people and their problems - but I picked this up because it was on a Best of 2016 list (Bingo-worthy) and it's the next selection for a book group I'm considering joining. It was surprisingly fantastic. I got sucked in by the characters right away, and by the last 1/4 I was reading through sobs, so many things in the book hit me right in the gut in terms of life situations I could relate to. I don't really want to spoiler it, but I thought it was wonderful. The right book for the right time, for me.

 

I'm off to take a bunch of 11-15 year olds to the pool this afternoon, so should have some time to read. I love that I don't have to watch them so closely any more! So I'll post more booky stuff later. I just wanted to say that my house is completely clean from top to bottom, so you are all invited over. Come soon before it gets messy again.  ;)  :D

 

[Lady Florida.]

Does anyone have a pdf (or text doc) of Rose's big bingo board? Would you mind posting it here or pm'ing it to me?

 

I thought I saved it. I got a new computer and put all my documents on our shared external hard drive but I can't find it. I don't see it either on my old computer or new one's internal hard drive. I promise not to lose it this time. :)

[ErinE]

The lack of quotations in News of the World bothered me as well, but it's proof that if you're a good enough writer, the reader can forgive much.

 

I'm waiting on Pevear's translation of ​War and Peace​ to arrive from the library so I'll start reading it once it arrives.

 

I enjoyed the Harry Potter books for many reasons, the main one being the importance and prominence of love. All forms of love are realistically portrayed, in families, friends, mentors, teachers. DS14 read the first two before kindergarten and continues to re-read them every few years. DD11 refuses to read them, claiming she's seen the movies already. Imagine me collapsing to the floor when those words came out of her mouth. She likes Pratchett so I'm hoping to convince her to give Rowling a try. She's the type of person to resist the more I push her. I can only give her time to realize the error of her ways.

 

I just realized my books read last week were heavy on the fantasy genre. Dragons, dragons, and more dragons:

• The Dragon Keeper (Rain Wild Chronicles #1) by Robin Hobb. Fantasy. The river traders escort disabled dragons to a mythical city. A continuation of sorts from the Liveship Traders​ series, I didn't enjoy it as much. Like the ​​various Fitz and Fool series, you need to read the related series in order, the Liveship Traders before Rain Wild Chronicles​.
• Dragon Haven (Rain Wild Chronicles #2) by Robin Hobb. Fantasy. It's taking a long time for the dragons to make their way upriver. The library doesn't offer the next two books on an e-reader so I'll need to find the physical copies if I want to read on.
• Ship of Destiny (Liveship Traders #3) by Robin Hobb. Fantasy. A woman sailor reunites with her stolen liveship. A satisfying end to the series.
• Dragonflight (Dragonriders of Pern #1) by Anne McCaffrey. Fantasy. With her birthright stolen from her, a girl is selected to become the rider for the dragon queen. Originally published in 1968, I think my reading suffered from the distance of fifty years. This was my first McCaffrey read, but she has such prominence in the genre, I will try more.

I'm nearly finished with ​The Future of Violence​ audiobook. Thus far it hasn't told me anything I don't already know and offers few proposed solutions. I had to return The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers​​​ unfinished. It was an interesting book, but all my reading is in fits and starts as my toddlers and puppy do their best to maim if not kill each other. I may try again in the fall.

 

I'm also trying to finish the Pevear Pushkin translation along with ​Seven Short Novels​ by Anton Chekhov. I had several audible credits so I picked up A History of Russia and ​Classics of Russian Literature​ from the Great Courses. I'll start them once I finish a Russian history book from the library. I finally picked up more Pratchett, ​Thief of Time and Equal Rites​, and I'm looking forward to reading them. It's been too long since my last Pratchett book.

Edited June 11, 2017 by ErinE

[Narrow Gate Academy]

We've been taking turns being sick at my house, so while I have been reading, I haven't managed to spend much time online.

 

Finished for the Past Two Weeks

📚 The Switching Hour by Peterman - I've enjoyed books from the author's vampire and werewolf series, so I thought I would give this a try. I really didn't like the main character, so this one fell flat for me. 2 stars

📚Strange The Dreamer by Taylor - I liked the premise of this young adult book, and it was well written, but the prologue made the ending too obvious, too early in so I had to force myself to finish. 3 stars

📚Darkside Blues by Carven - A nice novella in the Dark Warriors series 4 stars

📚Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Fluke - A nice start to a cozy mystery series with some very tempting cookie recipes spread throughout the book 4 stars

📚Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by Rawling - A fun reread for the twentieth anniversary. 5 stars

📚Hexed by Hearne - As delightful as the first audiobook, I'm really enjoying this series 5 stars

📚Equal Rites by Pratchett - This one was only so-so for me. I enjoyed the first two books more. 3 stars.

📚Midnight Riot by Aaronovitch - An interesting start to this combination police procedural and paranormal series. Thanks for recommending it Stacia. 4 stars

📚Filthy Witch and Dead Famous by Goodfellow - I borrowed a compilation of the first five cozy mysteries based solely on the eight black cats on the cover. It was fun to see their personalities and magical contributions to the tale. 4 stars (This also works for my gemstone read since the author's first name is Pearl.)

 

Long term reads

ðŸ¢ESV Bible - finished Job and began Psalms

ðŸ¢The History of the Ancient World - finished chapter 56, which puts me at 48%

 

Currently reading or on deck

📚Mort by Pratchett

📚Hammered by Hearne

📚Blade Bound by Neill

 

I don't currently have an audiobook or nonfiction, but hope to find something this week.

[ErinE]

Kathy, here you go, all 240 books on Rose's Super Bingo

 

Set in Asia
Local Author
Random book from the 240 shelf in your library
Female villain
Book translated from a non-European language

Astronomy
Dorothy Dunnett
Cheesy! (Cheese or type of cheese in title)
Book you remember reading during high school
Royalty

Middle East
Book selected by your younger daughter
Seaworthy
Yellow is the predominant color on the cover
Prime number

Essay Collection
Mountain-climbing
A book about books
Mars
Made into a movie

A woman in heels on the cover
How-to book
Published in the year you were married
Epistolary
Kraken!

Russian Revolution
Agatha Christie
Basque
Indie publisher
Selected by a friend

Zadie Smith
Dystopian
Textiles
Set on a tropical island
Happy ending

Book from a Bogota39 author
Fashion
I need a tissue bos for this one!
Modern retelling of a classic or myth
Written in your older daughter's birth year

Hmmmm.....
An original Grimm's fairy tale
Biology
Pulitzer Prize winning poet
The Borgias

Travel gone wrong
Neil Gaiman
Make 'em laugh!
Has a cemetery in it
Book set in Oceania

Cartels
Opera
South Africa
Outer space
Murder, Mayhem, & Madness

Book by a sinner ;-)
I would be embarrassed to be seen reading this on the subway...
Published in at least 5 different languages
Type or brand of beer, wine, or spirits in the title
Michael Ondaatje

Voodoo
Free Space
Written by a blogger
Free Space
Something silly

Record-breaker
An insect in the title
Oscar Wilde
As your librarian to select a book for you
Vietnam

A rose on the cover
Character smokes
Art
Edgar Award
I want to be or to know the main character of this book

Sherlock Holmes
Manga
Book from an Africa39 author
Autobiography
Narrated from multiple viewpoints

Etiquette
I fell down a wormhole, the rabbit hole, or into a black hole
Book you see someone else reading in public
Desert
Talking animals

I cannot believe there's a book about this!
Set in North America
People wearing pantaloons
Pyramids
Jeanette Winterson

Birthstone in the title
Donald or Hillary
Book you remember reading during elementary school
Author's first published book
UNESCO World Book Capital

Written by an author who uses a pen name
Ancient (BC) up to 100 AD
Free Space
Eastern Europe
One-word title

Magical Realism
Wrath
Book with chickens on the cover
Paranormal
Crimean War

Museum-related
Book by an author named Rose
Buddhist
Classic
Book that makes you hungry when you read it

Your favorite holiday as the main theme or timeframe of the book
Rainforest
Book from a friend's "read" list on Goodreads
Medical
Elves, sprites, or other impish creatures

A book listed on onegrandbooks.com
France
Book selected by your spouse
A Roosevelt (Teddy, FDR, or Eleanor)
Book by a saint

Nebula Award
"Cake" in the title
A sword fight might break out. En garde!
Set in Antarctica
Short story collection

Clouds or type of could on the cover
Female adventure
Part of a series
Book I would buy for a friend
Author who is the same age you are

Free Space
Unicorns!
"Night" in the title
Cuba
Free Space

Set on a Pacific island
"Crazy" in the title
Published in 2017
Chemistry
Tudor

LBGTQ
Free Space
Kurt Vonnegut
Free Space
Book recommended by NPR

Book with a Duke as a main character
Has pretty pictures in it
Mystery
Translated from a language you have not read previously in translation
Oprah book club selection

Arctic
Book made into a musical
Free Space
Italian Renaissance
Book involving magic tricks/illusions

Translated
Thriller
Banana!
Finance
Set in the 1970s

"Sun" in the title
Set in a country bordering the Indian Ocean
Written by a comedienne
Jane Austen fan fic
Disease

Newsworthy
YA
Bootlegging
Your name in the title
Cooking

Random pick from the 700 section of the library
Man-hunk on the cover (a bodice-ripper)
A book you would recommend to a stranger
Banned
Book from a Beirut39 author

Alien protagonist
Shape in the title
Set in a country bordering the North Sea
Folklore
Swashbuckling

Women's suffrage
Gothic
Vampires
Set in Africa
Dinosaurs

Philosophy
Mythological character in the title
Made into a musical
Western
Philately

Book you remember reading during middle school
Has a caravan in it
"Chocolate" in the title
Somerset Maugham
Female world leader

Set in South America
Middle Ages
Climate
Classical composer or musician
De. Seuss compilation

Maya Angelou
An author you think you hate
Novella
Book selected by your older daughter
Cozy mystery written in the 1960s

Booker Prize
Argentinian author
Charlemagne
Book bought used
Pilots

Characters need saddles in this book
Set underwater
Flufferton
Cold War
Noir

Written in your younger daughter's birth year
Curse word in the title
Icelandic
On a 2016 "Best of" list
Set in your state of birth (or country of birth if outside the US)

Set in a major American city
Botany
Olympian
"Queen" in the title
Gold Rush

Civil Rights
Your favorite animal on the cover
Lewis & Clark
Ugly cover
I laughed until I cried....

Steampunk
Sci-fi
Geography or Maps
Haruki Murakami
Silk Road

Written by a comedian
Book from Emma Watson's Feminist book club
Set in Europe
Over 500 pages
No human characters          

[Lady Florida.]

Kathy, here you go, all 240 books on Rose's Super Bingo

Thank you!

[JennW in SoCal]

 

For Fukui's Sake:Two Years in Rural Japan by Sam Baldwin. Did I already talk about this one? I didn't have it in my GR list so I'm adding it in for this week. A young British man decides to change his career and goes to Japan to teach English for two years. He ends up loving it and eases into rural village life fairly easily. I liked this but did wish the author had talked more about his day-to-day teaching experience. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12666040-for-fukui-s-sake

 

My ds is an English teacher in Japan, also in a fairly rural area, through the same JET program as Sam Baldwin. I probably wouldn't read this as I'm getting plenty of stories from ds, but cool to know some have turned their teaching experiences into books. It is a shame he doesn't write more about his classroom experience. These JET teachers don't run classes as they are officially teacher aides, and the amount they are expected to do varies from school to school and can be varied within a school. Sometimes my ds has to do lesson planning and teach, sometimes all he does is grade papers for several classes, and sometimes he is stuck sitting in the teacher's office with nothing officially to do the entire day. His biggest frustration is getting the students to speak -- they are all shy perfectionists who just won't try talking. Second biggest frustration is the lack of feedback from the teachers and principals who just won't tell him if they like what he is doing or how he could do a better job. 

 

 

I've been listening to War and Peace and am really enjoying it. I'm just letting it wash over me as I drive, not worrying too much about remembering which character is which, and it is working as I'm keeping track and getting quite involved with them. The way reader pronounces "Bezukhov", though, made me want to make horse-whinney sounds at first because for some reason it sounded like Frau Blucher's name in Young Frankenstein. 

 

I'm staying in my jammies today and reading In Bitter Chill by Sarah Ward, which one of you enthusiastically recommended last week. Perfect mystery for a lazy day! Lazy til my 5 hour rehearsal tonight in an outdoor theater. It is cold, damp and windy and the musicians have been all bundled up in various layers and blankets! 

 

We are a family that loved Harry Potter in every form. I read the first 4 aloud, then after that long, tortuous wait for the 5th book, my boys either read it themselves or let Jim Dale do the reading. The tradition for the last 3 books was for oldest to read the first chapter aloud as I drove us home from the midnight release parties. I can remember showing up to homeschool park day to find all the kids in their Harry Potter robes, running around pretending to play Quidditch. 

[Jane in NC]

- a Judge Dee mystery

They are finally in Dutch reprint now and I was finally able to share this serie with dd.

For the first time she likes books I liked when I was her age :)

 

 

I love the Judge Dee mysteries!  Thanks for the reminder that I should reread them. It has been a few decades...

 

 

In the past couple of weeks, I've read ''News of the World" because so many of you had such good things to say about it.  I enjoyed it very much. My only negative was her lack of quotation marks. Didn't that drive anyone else bonkers? Otherwise a very good book.

No, the lack of quotations did not bother me, probably because this seems to be the thing these days.  One grows accustomed.

 

I was in high school when HP came out...

Ahem. Aren't you the youngster? ;)

 

My body still doesn't know what time zone it is in.  I am reading Helen Simonson's The Summer Before the War, the perfect book for Downton Abbey fans.  One of my favorite books last year was Major Pettigrew's Last Stand.  This book is enjoyable but not quite the delight of Pettigrew.  I am finding conversational language to be a bit stilted--but perhaps this is just Jane being a little grumpy since she is sleep deprived.

[Jane in NC]

Time for more photos.  First, a view from the top of Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon. There is a well maintained path about a kilometer long that takes a walker to the viewing bridge.

 

 

I realized today that when I was chatting with a friend that what I called "a field" in Iceland is not quite a field by other standards.  An undulating landscape without a steep gradient seems to be "a field". 

 

 

[Matryoshka]

Only finished two books this week.  I feel like I've been slowing down - how is it I'm having less time to read now that it's summer??!!

 

59. The Green Road (audiobook) - I already reviewed this last week. 2.5 stars

 

60. Too Like the Lightning - still loved it.  5 stars.  Will be starting the next one this week. :D

 

Currently Reading:

 

- Lincoln in the Bardo (audiobook) - glad I'm listening to this on audio.  I glanced at the hard copy in B&N and I think it might make me a bit nuts.  It's overall quite odd!  The audio is full-cast (116 narrators).

 

- Song of the Dodo - Must finish this this week so I can start the W&P read-a-long (which I hope still isn't officially starting till next week, though I know some people are jumping in already)

 

- Ficciones by Borges (ebook) - started it because it was ready on Overdrive.  Not sure if I'll finish it up now or perhaps put it aside in favor of other stuff.  I'm thinking this will be my Argentinian Author book for Big Bingo.  But I've got lots of other books I want to get to this month!  This is one of those books I know I'm 'supposed' to read at some point, but not really in the mood right now...

 

Coming up:

 

- Seven Surrenders, the sequel to Too Like the Lightning.  

- The Vegetarian came in on ebook from Overdrive, so I may start that and drop Ficciones for now.  

- Got Pavilion of Women by Pearl S. Buck out of the library for my birthstone read.  

- Almost done with my audiobook, I'm hoping the next one in my queue (Round House by Louise Erdich) comes in soon.

 

I can fortunately put off reading All Our Wrong Todays, my other SciFi book club book, because this month's book club date got cancelled because our host is apparently heading off for a Southern Cross adventure.  Sounds exciting, and gives me time to squish Seven Surrenders in while I still remember what happened in the first book...

 

One of my Recommendations for Overdrive actually got picked up!  Radium Girls - I'm #3 in the queue, so hopefully in the next month or two I can get to that. :)

 

I've almost got blackout on my regular BaW bingo - the only squares left are SciFi (ironic but I keep using all my many SciFi books for other squares!  Although if I could use a SciFi book that's something else on BigBingo I could call it done...) and Middle Ages for which I'm planning Sunne in Splendour because everyone says it's so good, but I see no way I'm going to get to that till after W&P?  So close but no cigar...

Edited June 11, 2017 by Matryoshka

[Kareni]

Any fans here of The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery?  If so, you might enjoy reading this from the SBTB site ~

 

Guest Squee: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery  by Erin M.

 

"The Blue Castle was one of those random, magical finds that prove the importance of idle browsing in libraries and bookstores. I picked up the paperback in my high school library just because I liked the color of the cover; I’d never read the Anne of Green Gables books, so L.M. Montgomery’s name also didn’t ring any bells for me. But it only took maybe a chapter and a half before this book all rang my bells. Thoroughly.

 

The story’s set in a small town in turn-of-the-century Canada, and the main character, Valancy Stirling, isn’t young, or pretty, or confident, or charming. At twenty-nine, she considers herself an ugly, timid failure, and everyone and everything in her shabby-genteel life reinforces her self-hatred. What she does have is an innate love of beautiful things and a dramatic inner life: her recurring fantasy of life in a romantic “Blue Castle†gives the book its title.

 

She also nurses a burning desire to tell her extended family where they can shove their endless “old maid†jokes and backhanded advice. But things have never been bad enough to make her risk being ostracized and becoming even more alone than she already is...."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Shawneinfl]

My ds is an English teacher in Japan, also in a fairly rural area, through the same JET program as Sam Baldwin. I probably wouldn't read this as I'm getting plenty of stories from ds, but cool to know some have turned their teaching experiences into books. It is a shame he doesn't write more about his classroom experience. These JET teachers don't run classes as they are officially teacher aides, and the amount they are expected to do varies from school to school and can be varied within a school. Sometimes my ds has to do lesson planning and teach, sometimes all he does is grade papers for several classes, and sometimes he is stuck sitting in the teacher's office with nothing officially to do the entire day. His biggest frustration is getting the students to speak -- they are all shy perfectionists who just won't try talking. Second biggest frustration is the lack of feedback from the teachers and principals who just won't tell him if they like what he is doing or how he could do a better job. 

 

 

 

Jenn, I have been teaching for VIPKID since April. I teach English onliine to Chinese students. It is so interesting to me to get to experience a different culture for 3 to 4 hours every day right inside my own home. My main job is to get the students to speak English - they can read it beautifully but speaking...well, I understand what your son is dealing with. Also, the parent feedback is hilarious after it is run through the translator.

 

Does your son speak Japanese or is it total immersion with his classes? This is a whole new world to me but one I'm finding fascinating. :)

 

[Matryoshka]

I am loving all the pics of Iceland.  Our family spent a week in Iceland a few years ago, and it was just wonderful.  One of my dds had been Iceland-obsessed for a while (started with Sigur Rós and snowballed from there), and even spent a bunch of time learning Icelandic - so she planned the itinerary, which involved lots of waterfalls (they really are spectacular!) and a trek out to an abandoned US plane on a volcanic beach on the south coast.  I wasn't  feeling well and stayed in the car along with another dd; they ended up being attacked by Skua birds on the way there and had to try again from another direction.  Anyway, a fantastic place to explore - just wish it weren't so darn expensive!

 

And of course we love Harry Potter here.  Everyone (except dh who doesn't read things that aren't about coding or schematics) has read the books, and everyone (even dh) has seen the movies.  My most HP-obsessed kid is one of my twins, who spent hours and hours in middle and high school on a site called Hogwarts online, which has classes and professors (all role-playing), as well as role-playing characters you send through the classes.  If you get a character through 7 'years' of classes you can have them be a professor and run classes (which have actual content on things like Runes and Numerology and Mythology).  Two of my dds and i (including that one) went to Harry Potter World this January.  Lots of fun. :)  Youngest dd got obsessed with movie #3; I think I've seen that pumpkin patch scene more times than I can count!

[Jane in NC]

I am loving all the pics of Iceland. Our family spent a week in Iceland a few years ago, and it was just wonderful. One of my dds had been Iceland-obsessed for a while (started with Sigur Rós and snowballed from there), and even spent a bunch of time learning Icelandic - so she planned the itinerary, which involved lots of waterfalls (they really are spectacular!) and a trek out to an abandoned US plane on a volcanic beach on the south coast. I wasn't feeling well and stayed in the car along with another dd; they ended up being attacked by Skua birds on the way there and had to try again from another direction. Anyway, a fantastic place to explore - just wish it weren't so darn expensive!

 

The Black Beach near Vic is stunning. Apparently landowners have closed the road leading to the airplane fuselage. Not that I was interested, to be honest. The rocks on the beach and the basalt columns on the cliffs held my attention.

 

Darn expensive is right! Prices in Iceland are rising due to the popularity of the destination. Yarn remains a good value though.

[Ali in OR]

I just finished The Complacent Class by Tyler Cowen and did not enjoy it. I thought it was poorly written and that his logic was pretty screwy. There was media buzz about this a couple of months ago when the book came out, including a thread here with people arguing against his views. I put it on hold thinking I too would like to argue with his views, but the logic isn't tight enough to argue much with anything. He says things that I think are outrageously stupid (we need to go back to the era of wars and prison riots to bring more dynamism to America, the poor caused the last financial collapse with all of their risky mortgages, etc.), he contradicts himself, he never really seems to make a coherent point. But I'll count it as a finance book for bingo to redeem something from the experience.

 

I have to read our book club pick this week, Jess Walters' Land of the Blind. It finally came available at the library and we meet next week to discuss it. Maybe I'll be able to start W&P too, but probably that will wait until next week.

 

Many fond HP memories here. I started the series maybe a year or two after the first came to America and read them all as they came out. I enjoyed my time alone seeing the movies when they first came out--dh would watch the kids for me. By the time the last movie came out I was taking my two youngest with me. I read the first 3 or 4 books aloud to them, thinking youngest was too young for the darker turn of events in the later books. But I let my older dd get them from the library, and then youngest read them for herself with no problem at all with the darker events!

[Mothersweets]

My ds is an English teacher in Japan, also in a fairly rural area, through the same JET program as Sam Baldwin. I probably wouldn't read this as I'm getting plenty of stories from ds, but cool to know some have turned their teaching experiences into books. It is a shame he doesn't write more about his classroom experience. These JET teachers don't run classes as they are officially teacher aides, and the amount they are expected to do varies from school to school and can be varied within a school. Sometimes my ds has to do lesson planning and teach, sometimes all he does is grade papers for several classes, and sometimes he is stuck sitting in the teacher's office with nothing officially to do the entire day. His biggest frustration is getting the students to speak -- they are all shy perfectionists who just won't try talking. Second biggest frustration is the lack of feedback from the teachers and principals who just won't tell him if they like what he is doing or how he could do a better job. 

 

 

I've been listening to War and Peace and am really enjoying it. I'm just letting it wash over me as I drive, not worrying too much about remembering which character is which, and it is working as I'm keeping track and getting quite involved with them. The way reader pronounces "Bezukhov", though, made me want to make horse-whinney sounds at first because for some reason it sounded like Frau Blucher's name in Young Frankenstein. 

 

:laugh: which audio version are you listening to? 

 

Ooops, I did this backward - I didn't really pick up on the fact that he was a teacher's aide but that makes sense now. There were a few scenes where I expected him to take charge of the classroom and he seemed to be content to let the tiny female teacher step up and stop the much-larger-than-her boy from being a problem. How does your son like teaching? and does he feel comfortable living there? I find it so interesting!

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Jane in NC]

Just got back from my travels too. It's a one-year late graduation trip for my dd, who opted to do an Alaska cruise. We made it a girl trip, so it was dd, my mom, my sister, dd's friend, & me. We had two days in Seattle, then boarded the cruise & visited Juneau, Glacier Bay, Sitka (my favorite), Ketchikan, & Victoria B.C. (also my favorite). We were back in Seattle for a long-ish/partial day before getting a red-eye home, so I'm kind of floaty (sea-legs still but also travel exhaustion). Because of prep/travel times & such, we kind-of started the trip on 48-hours of almost no sleep & ended it on a similar note. If my post is disjointed, that's why! I'm just trying to stay up a few hours before I totally crash & have to go to work in the morning.

 

I've been to these places before but it was fun to go again. It was a life dream for my mom who had never visited the NW, Alaska, or Canada. Dd & her friend had a blast. My sister was along for the ride as she likes neither cold nor being on boats, lol.

 

Will try to post a few photos but they will not be as picturesque or as professional-looking as Jane's. (Iceland is on my bucket list! Btw, Jane, the top photo in post #28 is stunning. Stunning. I absolutely love it.)

 

 

Welcome back, Stacia!

 

To give credit where credit is due, my husband is the photographer although I did take the occasional pic with my phone.  Even with my phone that canyon looked stunning because it is!  No manipulation of color or light.  That photo is reality.

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

Yes, welcome back, Stacia. All three of your books are on my TR list so I will be glad to hear what you think of them.

 

I've abandoned a few more books since I posted last night. I'm having trouble committing to anything at the moment, which is another reason W&P is not going to work for me right now. I have a whole stack of 70s/80s feminist utopian fiction to tackle, and I'm not super excited about it. I think maybe I'm in the mood to read Dune again.

 

Books completed in June:

123. One - David Karp

122. Commonwealth - Ann Patchett.

121. The Summer Book - Tove Jansson

120. The Iron Heel - Jack London

119. Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely

118. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck - Mark Manson

117. Walden - Henry David Thoreau

116. Imperfect Ideal: Utopian & Dystopian Visions - Great Books Foundation

Edited June 12, 2017 by Chrysalis Academy

[-M-]

Hello, BaWers! Since my last post, I have finished eight books:

 

â–  The Good, the Great, and the Unfriendly (Sally Gardner Reed; 2017. Non-fiction.)

â–  A.D.: After Death, Book 3 (Scott Snyder; 2017. Graphic fiction.)

â–  Shylock Is My Name (Howard Jacobson; 2016. Fiction.)

 

p. 16

He knew what she was nudging him about. One of the traits of his character she had always disliked was his social cruelty. He teased people. Riddled them. Kept them waiting. Made them come to him.

â–  American War (Omar El Akkad; 2017. Fiction.)

â–  The Book of Joan (Lidia Yuknavitch; 2017. Fiction.)

 

p. 13

It’s a perfect and terrifying consumer culture, really. His early life as a self-help guru, his astral rise as an author revered by millions worldwide, then overtaking television — that puny propaganda device on Earth — and finally, the seemingly unthinkable, as media became a manifested room in your home, he overtook lives, his performances increasingly more violent in form. His is a journey from opportunistic showman, to worshipped celebrity, to billionaire, to fascistic power monger. What was left? When the Wars broke out, his transformation to sadistic military leader came as no surprise.

We are what happens when the seemingly unthinkable celebrity rises to power.

Our existence makes my eyes hurt.

People are forever thinking that the unthinkable can’t happen. If it doesn’t exist in thought, then in can’t exist in life. And then, in the blink of an eye, in a moment of danger, a figure who takes power from our weak desires and failures emerges like a rib from sand. […] Some strange combination of a military dictator and spiritual charlatan. A war-hungry mountebank. How stupidly we believe in our petty evolutions. Yet another case of something shiny that entertained us and then devoured us. We consume and become exactly what we create. In all times.

â–  The Power (Naomi Alderman; 2016. Fiction.)

â–  The Merry Wives of Windsor (William Shakespeare; 1602. Drama.)

 

...and you may know by my size

that I have a kind of alacrity in sinking; if the

bottom were as deep as hell, I should down.

"A kind of alacrity in sinking." A family fave.

 

â–  Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (Tom Stoppard; 1966. Drama.)

 

p. 51

ROS: To sum up: your father, whom you love, dies, you are his heir, you come back to find that hardly was the corpse cold before his young brother popped onto his throne and into his sheets, thereby offending both legal and natural practice. Now why exactly are you behaving in this extraordinary manner?

p. 60

GUIL: Wheels have been set in motion, and they have their own pace, to which we are… condemned. Each move is dictated by the previous one—that is the meaning of order. If we start being arbitrary it’ll just be a shambles: at least, let us hope so. Because if we happened, just happened to discover, or even suspect, that our spontaneity was part of their order, we’d know we were lost. (He sits.) A Chinamen of the T’ang Dynasty—and, by which definition, a philosopher—dreamed he was a butterfly, and from that moment he was never quite sure that he was not a butterfly dreaming it was a Chinese philosopher. Envy him; in his two-fold security.

p. 61

GUIL: We cross our bridges when we come to them and burn them behind us, with nothing to show for our progress except a memory of the smell of smoke, and a presumption that once our eyes watered.

p. 63

PLAYER: […] Don’t you see?! We’re actors—we’re the opposite of people!

p. 66

PLAYER: Uncertainty is the normal state. You’re nobody special.

p. 68

GUIL: I think I have it. A man talking to himself is no madder than a man talking nonsense not to himself.

ROS: Or just as mad.

GUIL: Or just as mad.

ROS: And he does both.

GUIL: So there you are.

ROS: Stark raving sane.

p. 71

ROS: I wouldn’t think about it if I were you. You’d only get depressed. (Pause.) Eternity is a terrible thought. I mean, where’s it going to end?

p. 79

PLAYER: […] There’s a design at work in all art—surely, you know that? Events must play themselves out to aesthetic, moral and logical conclusion.

p. 80

PLAYER: […] Now if you’re going to be subtle, we’ll miss each other in the dark. I’m referring to oral tradition. So to speak.

[…]

ROS: I want a good story, with a beginning, middle and end.

I have also seen five plays:

 

â–  Relativity (Northlight Theatre)

â–  Shakespeare in Love (Chicago Shakespeare Theater)

â–  Not about Nightingales (Raven Theatre)

â–  Pass Over (Steppenwolf Theatre Company)

â–  Great Expectations (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company and Silk Road Rising)

 

Six, if you count National Theatre Live:

 

â–  Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

Edited June 12, 2017 by M--

[Chrysalis Academy]

I finished One by David Karp, a 1953 dystopian novel about a fascist state which doesn't accept individuality in its citizens. It was kind of interesting, but not up to the standards of the other biggies of its time: 1984, A Clockwork Orange, Brave New World, etc.

 

Now I'm starting The Female Man by Joanna Russ. We'll see how far I get.

Edited June 12, 2017 by Chrysalis Academy

[Stacia]

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Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Robin M]

Are we starting this week with War & Peace or next sunday?

Just wondering:)

 

We are starting next week.

 

 

 

Very nifty covers!

 

My daughter is another fan of Harry Potter.  We've been giving her copies of Harry Potter books in different languages as she has studied them.

 

She has Latin versions

 

Harrius Potter et Philosophi Lapis (Latin, book 1)

 

Harrius Potter et Camera Secretorum (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Latin Edition)

 

 

and classical Greek

 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Ancient Greek Edition) (1st First Edition)

 

Here's an interesting article from the translator of the Greek version:

Harry Potter in ancient Greek by Andrew Wilson

 

and Korean

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (Korean Edition): Book 1 of 2

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (Korean Edition): Book 2 of 2

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

How neat. Never considered collecting in different languages.  Amazing she's studied so many different languages and is able to read the books too! Thank you for sharing! 

 

That series was my first encounter with Scandinavian noir. It was at times graphic and gruesome yet I couldn't stop reading it. If you like parody, here's a piece written by Nora Ephron some years ago. There's no series spoilers. It's just fun, and if you've even only read one book in the series you'll still get the jokes. There's some language, but it's necessary.

 

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/07/05/the-girl-who-fixed-the-umlaut

 

Oh, wait. I just skimmed over it and realized there's a spoiler from the final book. You might want to hold off until after you finish the series.

 

Check, I'll wait. Thanks!

 

Happy Sunday everyone!

 

I'm looking forward to the War and Peace read-a-long - I have the Maude version on my kindle and also ordered the Dunnigan translation. I went to B&N to look through the different translations but they only had three different ones - Briggs, P & V, and Garnett? I think. I liked the Briggs and almost bought it but it was soooo heavy! I just couldn't see myself lugging that around or even reading in bed with it so hopefully the Dunnigan will do the trick. When are we starting?

 

 

We are starting next Sunday.  I have Briggs and yes it is quite hefty, however very readable but you can't read it in bed.  I read propped up on arm of couch last time. 

[Shawneinfl]

Time for more photos.  First, a view from the top of Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon. There is a well maintained path about a kilometer long that takes a walker to the viewing bridge.

 

 

I realized today that when I was chatting with a friend that what I called "a field" in Iceland is not quite a field by other standards.  An undulating landscape without a steep gradient seems to be "a field". 

 

 

Jane, these photos absolutely took my breath away. Adding this to my bucket list.

Edited June 12, 2017 by Shawneinfl

[Just Robyn]

We are HP fans here, too, though most in my house have only seen the movies. My middle ds and I read the books together and loved them, but no one else is interested. I'll skip the 20th anniversary editions. I sometimes eye the illustrated editions of the first two books when they're on display in bookstores, and I've warned dh that once they've got 'em all done, he can expect me to buy the set. 

 

I finished The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which was enjoyably iconoclastic. I am continuing to read Freud: The Key Ideas, and I am starting in on The Six Perfections: Buddhism and the Cultivation of Character.

 

I am going back and forth on joining you all for War and Peace. Are any of you trying to read a certain number of pages/chapters a day/week or is everyone just digging in?

 

Beautiful photos, Jane!

Edited June 12, 2017 by crstarlette

[Angelaboord]

I was parenting solo all last week and trying to also work on the annual switch of the school years (which involves emptying a wall of shelves onto the kitchen table), so I didn't read very much. I finished Jane and Prudence by Barbara Pym and mainly spent the rest of my reading time doing online reading, trying to figure out how exactly everything is going to fit in the schedule next year. (It probably isn't).

 

I enjoyed Jane and Prudence very much. Based on the Amazon description, I thought it might count for the Flufferton square but after reading it, I don't think it does. It's a very quiet book with very little in the way of external plot, mostly driven by the internal development of the characters. All I can say is that Barbara Pym is a very shrewd judge of character and I enjoyed the wry humor she used to characterize English village life. (Of course I know very little about English village life, so she could have told me anything and I probably would have enjoyed it! Mumto2 would probably get more out of it, I'm sure. [emoji2])

 

I do hope to get more reading done this week. But I think I am going to have to be very stern with myself about the electronics.

 

Love all the travel photos!

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Robin M]

I am going back and forth on joining you all for War and Peace. Are any of you trying to read a certain number of pages/chapters a day/week or is everyone just digging in?

I'm going to break it down by volume and parts so volume one which has three parts will be broken into three weeks, then a week to discuss. Something like that.  We're looking at about 15 to 25 pages per day depending on the density of the chapter, so going slowly.  

[mumto2]

Stacia, Glad to have you back! Regarding Gold Fame Citrus, I couldn't believe it when I saw it in your post. It's a book that I check out of Overdrive every couple of months and keep having to let go back unread. I keep my covers for my "really want to read so check out again" and was just looking through them for Birthstone letters. Almost checked it out but knew I wouldn't read it with War and Peace on the horizon because the letters aren't right! Looking forward to your review.....

 

Angela, I've came to the conclusion that my understanding of village life is actually rather poor. I have the practical aspects down but the politics are weird. We've had big church blow up last month with the church dividing viciously to the point of name calling after service etc. Shudder, horror. Glad we missed that service! But I have decided that much of what I read in my cozies actually maybe could happen. I promise never to defend a church council again! New eyes. Blinkers off!

 

As some here know it's been building for a year. Our family was at the heart of the situation because it involved the bell tower and our house location. Never have I even imagined such behaviour in a church. The thought of going back is beyond me and my side actually won?????? My dh told them at the start that in the end there would be no winners......all for a tiny amount of money. Many have just sucked it up and are back on Sundays. We are just quietly gone missing along with others because the behaviour was shocking. My dc's have wanted to go back to the church we came from because it's overflowing with young adults from the local Uni so we've done that. They have agreed to keep the bell tower staffed for special events but that's it for the dc's and my family with the village church life for now. I have been close to panic attacks over seeing people from the village church because I knew they would want an explanation of where we are. Impossible to answer without being offensive or being stuck going back somehow. I have been on the high street once this month by myself. Confrontation is not something I do well so I have been in seclusion. ;( A friend who moved away from here that I consulted (updated with the gossip really) gave me the advice of one word answers and a smile. No one would dare ask beyond the initial question apparently. I ran the gauntlet with 20 or so the other night at a social club meeting and it actually worked. Very short conversations with church people but I came home without having to say much totally unscathed.......Other person. " Haven't seen your family for awhile...." Me "Yes" as I got more comfortable it became more "Yes, we haven't been around." Move on to weather....:lol:

 

Now I just need to make new village friends......as dh puts it the church is actually a small percentage of people in this village and I mistakenly made most of my social friends from that small group....he is feeling pretty smug because he diversified early. ;) :lol:

Edited June 12, 2017 by mumto2

[Lady Florida.]

Jane, those photos (last week's too) are beautiful! 
 
I loved seeing all the vacation photos especially the ones where BaWers meet.
 
Welcome back, Stacia.



 

I am going back and forth on joining you all for War and Peace. Are any of you trying to read a certain number of pages/chapters a day/week or is everyone just digging in?

I'm just going to dig in, but it's a reread for me. I decided to stick with my Pevear/Volokhonsky translation. After reading Richard Pevear's notes on the translation last night and sampling two other translations, I like that one best.

[Granny_Weatherwax]

I love this reading group. Absolutely love you all!

 

Robin does such a wonderful job beginning the threads each week. I love her tidbits, factoids,  and encouragement.

 

The reviews and recommendations each of you posts are inspiring. I have a long list of books I want to investigate or read although I forget about most of them when I'm at the library, a bookstore, or browsing on my Kindle. I think I need to create a new page in my Bullet Journal for book recommendations. :)

 

I love the discourse and the openness, the acceptance and the respect shown to and by everyone.

 

I love the sharing of adventures and life experiences and the deep sense of friendship that is found in this group.

:grouphug:

 

 

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

I started something last night that finally stuck! Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. It's not even for a Bingo square! It was mentioned in the Writing Great Fiction class and I picked it up on the dollar rack at the library. It's just perfect for my mood - slow moving, mostly characters and not much plot so far, a coming of age story about a girl and the women who raised her. It's set in rural Idaho, and I can't even tell exactly when (it was published in 1980) - there haven't been any major markers like wars to help me place it exactly, although there is an elderly character who lived through the SF earthquake, so early-mid 20th century I'm guessing. So, not contemporary  ;) .