Book a Week 2017 - BW43: Prime Time Reading Fun

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday and welcome to week 43 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.

 

It's time for a bit of Prime Time Reading Fun as we begin week 43 of our Adventurous Prime Reading year.  Since 43 is a prime number, let's play. 

 

 

·         Find a book with forty- three in the title. 

·         Create an anagram from forty-three and read a book with the word or words in the title.

·         Read book #43 in your bookshelves counting from the left.

·         Read a book set in 1643, 1743, 1843, or 1943.

·         Read a book about a person born in 1943

·         Read a book set in or about Idaho, 43rd state.

·         Read a book about 43rd president.

·         Read a book set in the 43rd city and/or state, country or region on any continent. 

·         Read a book in Dewey Decimal category within 300 or 400 and in  the subsection .43 

·         Read a book set in the country by the scientists who discovered Technetium - Element 43 on the periodic table. 

·         Austria country code 43 allows you  to call Austria from another country so read a book set in Austria or written by an Austrian Author.

·         Go to your current read, find page 43. Count down to line 4, then left to the 3rd word.  Read a book with that word in the title or a book about that word.

·         Count the letters in your name. Did you end up with a prime number?  Read a book with a character with the same name as you. 

·         Are you 43?  Read a book published in your birth year. 

·         4 + 3 = 7.  4 x 3 = 12.  7 + 12 = 19.  12 - 7 = 5.  4 - 3 = 1.  Plug in any of the resulting prime numbers instead of 43 to the above quests and have fun following rabbit trails.

 

 

Kudos to whoever can match it up with a spooktacular read!

 

 

What are you reading this week?

 

 

Link to week 42

[Robin M]

I'm still deep into the world of Rand and company in Winter's Heart and contemplating my 43 read.  

[Kareni]

 

·         Are you 43?

 

No, sadly.

**

 

Good morning from Paris!

 

Bonjour!  I hope you're having a wonderful time, Jenn.

 

It was my first BaW meeting :)

It was good to meet someone IRL

 

What fun, Loesje!  I'm glad you had this opportunity.

**

 

A one day only currently free classic for Kindle readers ~

 

The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad   

 

"A young sea captain tests his mettle off the coast of Siam in this nineteenth-century psychological tale from the author of Heart of Darkness.

 

When his sailing ship is anchored in the Gulf of Siam—now Thailand—a first-time sea captain questions his ability to command. Anxious and eager for his crew to like him, he takes the first shift of the night watch. Alone in the dark, he encounters a mysterious man swimming alongside the vessel. The captain allows him to board and learns that the stranger, Leggatt, was first mate on another ship and he claims to have accidentally murdered a man.

 

Torn between arresting Leggatt for his crime and secretly harboring him in his own cabin, the young captain faces a choice more difficult than any he has ever known. Forced to determine Leggatt’s fate, the captain must consider the safety of his crew and the ramifications his decision will have on his own future.

 

As in his classic works Heart of Darkness and Lord Jim, author Joseph Conrad crafts a gripping read, endowing a nautical adventure with questions of morality and self-discovery."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Ali in OR]

Not much reading time. I'm about 2/3 of the way through Mink River which I am enjoying. And it's book #47 for me which is also prime. I'm probably aiming for 53 this year, because I don't think I can make it to 59! But we'll see how much December fluff I can get through and if I pick up any more reading time.

[Chrysalis Academy]

This week I finished a re-read of 1984, plus reading the Bloom's Guide. I listened to The Patience Stone.

 

Currently I'm listening to The Moonstone, and reading Why Buddhism is True, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Snow Crash, Death With Interruptions, and some of Orwell's essays.

 

I finished another Bingo row:

Set in Asia –The Patience Stone – Atiq Rahimi

Local Author – The Terranauts - TC Boyle

Random book from the 240 shelf at the library –Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers, Anne Lamott

Female Villain – A Feast for Crows – GRR Martin

Book translated from a non-European language – The Vegetarian – Han Kang

 

That's 12 rows completed. I've decided to keep working on the Bingo, but not try to finish it by Dec. 31, because at this point It's come down to some of the less-compelling (for me) categories, and there are other things I want to read - both new fiction, and my Utopian/Dystopian reading project, which I've expanded. So I'll probably have 1 Bingo book going at a time, which means I'll only read another 10-20 this year. I have 61 books left to complete . . . so yeah, it will spill over.  I have finished 214/241 books for my 2017 Reading Challenge, so I will hit that . . . just not all my "assigned" Bingo books.

 

Ok, I'm done obsessing over lists and numbers. Carry on with talking about books  ;)  :D

[Violet Crown]

This week I read Vladimir Nabokov, Pale Fire, and Philip K. Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Thanks, dh; you may return them to your office now.) Very odd books, and yet utterly unlike. And the science fiction bingo square achieved, ha ha!

 

Read a book set in 1643, 1743, 1843, or 1943.

Does written/published in --43 count?

[Violet Crown]

Wikipedia tells me that Poe's "The Black Cat," "The Gold-Bug," and "The Tell-Tale Heart" were published in 1843, as was Dickens's ghostly "A Christmas Carol." For that Spooky October tie-in.

[Loesje22000]

I am reading several books now, nothing finished yet, but I really love The Thibaults by Roger Martin du Gard:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/46466.Roger_Martin_du_Gard

I am almost longing to bedtime now, so I can read further :)

[Robin M]

This week I read Vladimir Nabokov, Pale Fire, and Philip K. Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Thanks, dh; you may return them to your office now.) Very odd books, and yet utterly unlike. And the science fiction bingo square achieved, ha ha!

 

 

Does written/published in --43 count?

Yes ma’am.

[Jane in NC]

Hello everyone!

 

Not much reading accomplished this week with house guests, food prep and cleaning before house guests arrived and other distractions. It has been a great week though.

 

Readingwise:  I had too many books going so I decided that I needed to finish something.  The Girl in Berlin by Elizabeth Wilson is an espionage novel that is not quite an Alan Furst.  More of a police procedural in temperament despite its Cold War theme.  A fine distraction but not one I'd recommend if you were asking me for one or two great espionage titles.  (Not that I am asked that question often.)

 

I also finished listening to Augustown by Jamaican author Kei Miller.  The audio version of this compelling tale is great.  I have been thinking about suggesting a Caribbean book for a readalong in 2018 and this one might be considered.

 

Now I can focus on Loving Day...

 

Non-book notes:  We walked into a monarch butterfly migration this week!  How cool is that!  There were monarchs everywhere, fluttering by, disguising themselves as leaves, hanging in bunches like grapes. Absolutely magical.

 

Our house guests wanted to see Venus Flytraps growing in the wild so we also did a swamp tromp as part of their tour.

 

 

And here is another scene we came across:  pelicans, terns and black skimmers.

 

 

 

[Negin]

I read The Secret History - 2 Stars - Oh boy, I ended up not liking this one much at all. The only reason that I’m giving this two stars rather than one, is that she is a great writer. Initially, it was promising and I could barely put the book down in hopes that it would improve. It didn’t. The plot became more and more predictable and the characters were pretentious and abhorrent. I’m not exactly tolerant when I don’t like a single character. I need to feel sympathy for at least one person. I didn’t care for any of them. At the end, I asked myself, “What was the point?†and felt frustrated that I had wasted time on it. This is the second book that I have read by Donna Tartt and it will be the last one. One thing that I have to say for her books is that you don’t forget them easily. They really do stay with you, which is not necessarily a good thing. 

 

 

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.

[Shawneinfl]

Finishing up the audio version of  Scythe by Neil Shusterman, author of the YA series Unwind.

[Violet Crown]

Ooooo nice photos, Jane. "Feed me, Seymour!"

[Chrysalis Academy]

Negin, I listened to The Secret History, read by the author. I absolutely loved her voice, her accent, and how she read the book. I think that's really a big part of what made me like that book so much. I'm always surprised by how much a voice can make or break a book for me. And while I generally like an author reading their own book the most (but not always - I'm looking at you, EL Doctorow), I also like it when an author who is great at differentiating the characters with accents reads. OTOH, I don't love having different characters read by different people. I wonder why?

[Kareni]

Ooooo nice photos, Jane. "Feed me, Seymour!"

 

Now that made me laugh aloud!

 

Coincidentally (and now I'm seeing dental as part of that word and thinking of another song), I was listening to Little Shop Of Horrors just a few days ago.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Jane in NC]

Ooooo nice photos, Jane. "Feed me, Seymour!"

  

Now that made me laugh aloud!

 

Coincidentally (and now I'm seeing dental as part of that word and thinking of another song), I was listening to Little Shop Of Horrors just a few days ago.

 

Regards,

Kareni

On our insectivorous plant tour, we walked along a couple of muddy paths, eventually backtracking to return to our car. In one of the muddy areas was a fresh bear paw print--not something we saw on the way in.

 

Seymour aside, I'll take flytraps over bears anyday.

[mumto2]

I've been having a bit of an Ilona Andrews bookrest. First I read Wildfire which is the third in her Hidden Legacy trilogy https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27422533-wildfire. I hope they continue with some of the other characters in these books. Anyway I liked this one so much and I noticed that someone (Laughing cat I think) had just finished one of the books in her Innkeeper trilogy. I was able to get Clean Sweep and enjoyed it. These have Vampires, werewolves, and other things but are not particularly scary.

 

I also finally got around to reading the right ;) book by Tanya Huff. It was definitely the first in the series that I read in 2000 and loved. It was still quite good.https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/740042.Blood_Price I have already downloaded the second.

 

Loesje and Jenn, What fun. I wish I had been there.

 

I haven't been seeing my hedgehogs. It's been cold and windy. I have a feeling we are going to have to wait for spring. Dd hopes to have hoglets in our garden this summer!

[SKL]

Well I have finally read, skimmed, and scanned my way through the horrible book my brother gave me for my birthday years ago.  It is in the "donation" pile at last!  I don't think I got anything out of it; it read to me as a long series of "I think this, therefore it has to be true" arguments.  They even put it into mathematical form:  For every MB (My Belief), the trueness ratio of MB = 1" and so on all through the book.  But probably I am just to dumb to see the amazingness of that book.  :P  [PS the name of the book is Natural Theology in case anyone needs a self-flagellation tool.]

 

So now I am reading a book that was recommended to me by a fellow mom:  "Untangled:  Guiding teen girls [bla bla bla] to adulthood."  The first chapter sounds a lot like my 11yo, which is somewhat of a relief, since my 11yo is a real pill these days.  :P

 

Our current audiobook is Lois Lowry's Number the Stars, which is new to me; my kids had it read aloud to them in 5th grade.  Since we just visited Denmark and nearby countries this past summer, I think it is more meaningful to my kids the second time around.  (This is their current Middle School book club selection.)  We just finished Walk Two Moons, and before that Johnny Tremain.  Not sure what we will do next.  I'm thinking Jane Eyre would be a good one, if it is read well.  Or another Newberry book if I can find one.

 

Our lame read-aloud is Superfudge.  This is really way too young, but my kids wanted it and I was willing to take a break from complex books.

[ErinE]

[Removed incorrect sentence] I wasn't feeling the reading love last week and yesterday a cold appeared in full force. So maybe the illness was brewing and my mood was a reflection of that. I forced myself to read/listen through a few horror books in honor of October.

 

My son and I went for a walk yesterday. Our local park was having a haunted campout, with kids dressed in costume and tents covered with spooky decorations. We are in full teen mode so some days are rough, others are wonderful. Yesterday was both, but man, do I love that kid.

 

Books read last week:

• The Faces of the Goddess by Lotte Motz. Mythology and Fables. An academic refutation of the Goddess cult and its primacy before written records. A fascinating read, Motz argues that there was never a primary goddess religion prior to the rise of farming societies and goddesses were more complex than a life-giving, earth mother archetype. The author pulls from multiple mythological traditions and provides strong support for her reasoning.
• Agents of Dreamland by Caitlin Keirnan. Horror. A federal agent searches for the source of a mysterious infection inflicting cult members. It felt like mash-up of Lovecraft, Kurt Vonnegut, and Stephen King. I wish it had been longer in length.
• What's Next: Dispatches on the Future of Science edited by Max Brockman. Science. A collection of essays, heavily focused on biology, especially neuroscience. There were some fascinating topics here, particularly how language influences our perception of time and space. I also enjoyed the essay on the relation between genes and personality. The essayist argues that Christianity and Buddhism traveled far from their origins until the religions could find populations with a genetic disposition to adopt them. I wish there had been more science beyond biology, and the book is approaching eight years old, a long time in science writing. Speaking of readers, the audiobook alternated between a man and woman depending on who wrote the essay. The man's voice here was soporific.  The woman's voice was much better, but she doesn't read as many essays. I was driving when I first began listening and had to stop the audiobook, because it made me so tired. I ended up finishing the book while doing chores.

 

I'm trying to finish Quicksilver, which is Diana Gabaldon book in length without the benefit of interesting characters. I've never be drawn to the English Restoration time period so this book is a slog for me. I'm about halfway done and hope to finish this week. I'm listening to a collection of horror short stories called Lovecraft's Monsters edited by Ellen Datlow which has a fantastic reader, Bernard Clark. I picked up the audiobook earlier this year, but saved it for an October listen. It's pretty bloody so no listening in the car while children are there. It's fifteen hours so it may take me awhile. I have Horns by Joe Hill in the queue as well as The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle..

Edited October 22, 2017 by ErinE

[Lady Florida.]

Hello everyone!

 

Not much reading accomplished this week with house guests, food prep and cleaning before house guests arrived and other distractions. It has been a great week though.

 

 

Non-book notes:  We walked into a monarch butterfly migration this week!  How cool is that!  There were monarchs everywhere, fluttering by, disguising themselves as leaves, hanging in bunches like grapes. Absolutely magical.

 

 

 

 

Glad you had a good week with your guests. Thank you for the pictures - I always enjoy seeing your nature photos. Your monarch butterfly encounter sounds magical! 

 

I'm having the same issue with too many books. I want to put some aside for another time but the problem is that several are library books.

 

I read The Secret History - 2 Stars - Oh boy, I ended up not liking this one much at all. The only reason that I’m giving this two stars rather than one, is that she is a great writer. Initially, it was promising and I could barely put the book down in hopes that it would improve. It didn’t. The plot became more and more predictable and the characters were pretentious and abhorrent. I’m not exactly tolerant when I don’t like a single character. I need to feel sympathy for at least one person. I didn’t care for any of them. At the end, I asked myself, “What was the point?†and felt frustrated that I had wasted time on it. This is the second book that I have read by Donna Tartt and it will be the last one. One thing that I have to say for her books is that you don’t forget them easily. They really do stay with you, which is not necessarily a good thing. 

 

 

 

 

I felt the same way about this book and have also decided to be done with Donna Tartt. I don't know what her other book was that you read, but for me it was The Goldfinch. That one's also full of unlikable characters but the writing was so lovely I gave it a pass while reading it. I did feel like it needed some editing but otherwise was enjoying it. It was only after I finished it and started thinking about it that I began to realize I disliked it.

 

Negin, I listened to The Secret History, read by the author. I absolutely loved her voice, her accent, and how she read the book. I think that's really a big part of what made me like that book so much. 

 

Oh boy, that's part of what made me dislike it so much. The setting is a snobby college in Vermont, the main character is from California, IIRC, most of the other characters are from the northeast or midwest, and there was Tartt with her strong southern accent reading these characters. It just didn't work for me. I hear southern accents all the time so it's not that the accent bothered me but that it was so wrong for this book. OTOH I wish I had chosen the audio version of True Grit instead of reading it. Donna Tartt narrates it and I can imagine her being perfect for the voice of Mattie Ross.

[ErinE]

Stacia, my husband and I watched Baby Driver last night. Since neither of us read reviews before watching a movie, we weren't sure what to expect, but we both really enjoyed it. Just as I like reading "brain candy", sometimes I enjoy watching it as well. This wasn't the typical shoot-em-up movie. It is bloody and violent, but unlike Tarantino, I didn't feel like the director reveled in the violence. It was just part of the story. Really well done if you like action movies. 

 

We also introduced Leon (in the US, it was released as The Professional) to our oldest son. It has stood up well over the years, but my son wasn't too sure. "Yeah, it was good," was his comment, but he likes the Transformers movies and the Star Wars prequels so I find his taste a bit questionable.

Edited October 22, 2017 by ErinE

[Kareni]

I also finally got around to reading the right ;) book by Tanya Huff. It was definitely the first in the series that I read in 2000 and loved. It was still quite good.https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/740042.Blood_Price I have already downloaded the second.

 

I read Blood Price and a few more in that series some years ago; I enjoyed them, too.

 

I've been having a bit of an Ilona Andrews bookrest. First I read Wildfire which is the third in her Hidden Legacy trilogy https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27422533-wildfire. I hope they continue with some of the other characters in these books. Anyway I liked this one so much and I noticed that someone (Laughing cat I think) had just finished one of the books in her Innkeeper trilogy. I was able to get Clean Sweep and enjoyed it. These have Vampires, werewolves, and other things but are not particularly scary.

 

I read and enjoyed the Hidden Legacy trilogy also.

 

Have you read On the Edge (A Novel of the Edge Book 1)  by Ilona Andrews?  I liked it quite a lot; however, the next two books in the series were a tad too icky (how's that for being specific?) for my taste.  I also liked the fourth in that series.

 

Curiously, the Kate Daniels series for which the authors (yes, plural) are best known lost me after about the third book.  I'm thinking I should try that series again sometime.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Mothersweets]

Hi everyone! This past week I read Red Bones (Shetland #3) by Ann Cleaves. Love  the character development and the Shetland Islands are almost a character in themselves. It sounds like a lovely place to visit - cold weather, dramatic ocean, knitting, etc. - maybe someday? 

 

I also want to say Thank You! to everyone for the great response to my plea for help with birthday books for my girls. I was out of town for a few days last week but now I'm going through all the suggestions again and I appreciate each and every one - thank you! :)

 

just wanted to add - Strawberry, I'm agreeing with everyone else in recommending  True Grit for your western read. It's a great story! and the reader for the audio is perfect. https://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/True-Grit-Audiobook/B002V5GORK/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1508706137&sr=1-1

 

SaveSave

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Edited October 22, 2017 by Mothersweets

[ErinE]

I'm thinking about joining my library's book club. I was part of a book club a few years ago, but it ended up with us reading mainly Philippa Gregory's books. It wasn't to my taste and I stopped going after a year or so. It meets once a month on a Wednesday and for the first time in a long time, we don't have any commitments as a family on that day. Has anyone joined a book club like this before?

[Shawneinfl]

I read The Secret History - 2 Stars - Oh boy, I ended up not liking this one much at all. The only reason that I’m giving this two stars rather than one, is that she is a great writer. Initially, it was promising and I could barely put the book down in hopes that it would improve. It didn’t. The plot became more and more predictable and the characters were pretentious and abhorrent. I’m not exactly tolerant when I don’t like a single character. I need to feel sympathy for at least one person. I didn’t care for any of them. At the end, I asked myself, “What was the point?†and felt frustrated that I had wasted time on it. This is the second book that I have read by Donna Tartt and it will be the last one. One thing that I have to say for her books is that you don’t forget them easily. They really do stay with you, which is not necessarily a good thing. 

 

 

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.

 

I felt pretty much the same way about The Goldfinch. I kept waiting for redemption but it never quite happened. I remember slogging my way through the last few chapters just to get done.

 

[Jane in NC]

Hi everyone! This past week I read Red Bones (Shetland #3) by Ann Cleaves. Love  the character development and the Shetland Islands are almost a character in themselves. It sounds like a lovely place to visit - cold weather, dramatic ocean, knitting, etc. - maybe someday? 

 

 

The Shetlands and the Faroes are both on my list. Adding to your list of attractions:  birds. 

 

Of course, I'd also like a tour of Mumto2's garden with hedgehogs!!

 

[mumto2]

I read Blood Price and a few more in that series some years ago; I enjoyed them, too.

 

 

 

I read and enjoyed the Hidden Legacy trilogy also.

 

Have you read On the Edge (A Novel of the Edge Book 1)  by Ilona Andrews?  I liked it quite a lot; however, the next two books in the series were a tad too icky (how's that for being specific?) for my taste.  I also liked the fourth in that series.

 

Curiously, the Kate Daniels series for which the authors (yes, plural) are best known lost me after about the third book.  I'm thinking I should try that series again sometime.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

 

I appear to have read through book 6 in the Kate Daniels series. I appear to have missed book 5 which probably explains why I didn't continue. Out of order tends to stall me, I never know which book to read next!

 

I haven't tried On the Edge yet but suspect I will. ;). I really like The Innkeeper's. Clean Sweep was actually good enough to read in my browser because it wasn't available on kindle. I suspect you would like them. I am on wait lists for the next two.

 

 

 

I'm thinking about joining my library's book club. I was part of a book club a few years ago, but it ended up with us reading mainly Philippa Gregory's books. It wasn't to my taste and I stopped going after a year or so. It meets once a month on a Wednesday and for the first time in a long time, we don't have any commitments as a family on that day. Has anyone joined a book club like this before?

My village library runs three and they are very popular. The library system buys between 12 and 15 copies of books by a variety of authors just for the clubs, which limits the size of the clubs to 12. Generally our head librarian has about five sets waiting for the clubs at our branch. I think they pick from what she has ready. Mainly what I would class as popular fiction but a pretty wide variety. I know they have read everything from Alan Bradley to Sharon Bolton. I think you would enjoy it, maybe find some new author's. Pretty low pressure because the books are handed to you to check out.

[Stacia]

.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Stacia

[Kareni]

I've recently finished a couple of books.  The first is Good Boy by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy.  This was an enjoyable contemporary romance that featured characters I've encountered in the authors' other books.  (Adult content)

 

"Hosting her brother’s wedding for an MVP guest list is the challenge of Jess Canning’s life. Already the family screw-up, she can’t afford to fail. And nobody (nobody!) can learn of the colossal mistake she made with the best man during a weak moment last spring. It was wrong, and there will not be a repeat. Absolutely not. Even if he is the sexiest thing on two legs.

Blake Riley sees the wedding as fate’s gift to him. Jess is the maid of honor and he’s the best man? Let the games begin. So what if he’s facing a little (fine, a lot) of resistance? He just needs to convince the stubborn blonde that he’s really a good boy with a bad rap. Luckily, every professional hockey player knows that you’ve got to make an effort if you want to score.

But Jess has more pressing issues to deal with than sexy-times with a giant man-child. Such as: Will the ceremony start on time, even though someone got grandma drunk? Does glitter ever belong at a wedding? And is it wrong to murder the best man?"

**

 

I also read the alien romance Roark (Women Of Earth Book 1) by Jacqueline Rhoades.  This was an okay read; in its defense, I read it to the end which is more than I can say about any number of others books I've recently left unfinished!

 

"The people of planet Earth have suffered the tides of war for six long years, but it’s not their war. Earth is the battleground for the thousand year conflict between the invading Hahnshin and the Godan warriors of the Galactic Confederation.

 

Mira Donazetto’s only concern is for her family’s survival, so when she’s offered work as a translator for the Godan, she jumps at the chance and right into the arms of the new First Commander, Roark. Her heart says she should trust this alien warrior, but how can she when he has the power to take away everything she holds dear.

 

Roark’s new command post is a disaster with a long list of problems that he must address, including dissension among his officers. The last thing he needs is to have his heart touched by a woman who may be a traitor."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Butter]

Our current audiobook is Lois Lowry's Number the Stars, which is new to me; my kids had it read aloud to them in 5th grade.

 

I love that book so much.

 

Random thought about Lois Lowry: When I was 9 I read the Anastasia Krupnik series and decided that I was going to name my first daughter Anastasia.  Twelve years later she was born and right from the start we've called her Ani.  In one book in the series, all her friends have nicknames ending in i, but there was no way to make a nickname out of Anastasia ending in an i.  Well, we proved that wrong.  When my daughter was around 12ish, she emailed Lois Lowry and told her how much I loved the series as a kid and that she was named after Anastasia Krupnik and her nickname ends with an i.  Ms. Lowry emailed her back a very sweet reply.  It really made Ani's year to hear back from her.

 

Stacia, my husband and I watched Baby Driver last night. Since neither of us read reviews before watching a movie, we weren't sure what to expect, but we both really enjoyed it. Just as I like reading "brain candy", sometimes I enjoy watching it as well. This wasn't the typical shoot-em-up movie. It is bloody and violent, but unlike Tarantino, I didn't feel like the director reveled in the violence. It was just part of the story. Really well done if you like action movies. 

And it stars Ansel Elgort.  I have a thing for Ansel Elgort.  Baby Driver was excellent.

 

 

For some reason this week I decided to switch to reading a bunch of books at once.  Sometimes I do that.  Currently, I'm reading Texas by Michener, Don Quixote, The Host by Stephenie Meyer, One Nation by Ben Carson, and The Feud that Sparked the Renaissance.  Kind of a weird grouping of books there.

[Matryoshka]

Finished five (!) books this week.  This is what happens when I read skinnier books and W&P is no longer hanging over my head. :lol:

 

114. El capitán Alatriste by Arturo Pérez-Reverte - Lots of swashbuckling with some 17th century Spanish history thrown in.  Enjoyed it enough that if I need another sword-fighting adventure book, I'd be happy to read one of he sequels. For the En garde square. 3 stars

 

115. The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie - Rather a silly mystery, but fun. For the Agatha Christie square. 3 stars.

 

116. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (ebook) - Quite liked this one.  I'd already seen the IMAX about the same disaster, although they were a bit further down the mountain when it happened.  It was interesting to read more about the details from someone in the thick of it. For the Mountaineering square. 4 stars.

 

117. Something Wicked This Way Comes (audiobook) - I disliked the narrator less as I got used to him, and he did Mr. Dark's voice very well - creepy!  I do like Ray Bradbury, though I think his motto is - if one metaphor is good, twelve is better. ;)  For the 'Set on/about your favorite holiday'.  Okay, it was near Halloween... 3.5 stars.

 

118. The Empress of Mars by Kage Baker - I had no idea what to expect from this; I just picked it because I needed a "Mars" book for BigBingo and I'd already read all the obvious ones.  I ended up really liking it - the odd bunch of characters, the future world she describes.  The only tiny quibble I have is that a major plot point is that a character develops robot bees (biis) to pollinate the crops on Mars - which are listed as being mainly barley, oats, and sugar beets, all of which are wind pollinated.  But a very enjoyable read nonetheless.  I wouldn't mind reading other books by this author (and apparently she's written others set in this 'universe', though with different settings/characters). 5 stars. 

 

Currently Reading:

 

- The Imitation of Christ (ebook) - this is really not my cuppa.  But I'll get through it.  

 

- Love Among the Chickens by Wodehouse (audio) - more British silliness.  I'm actually liking it better than Jeeves & Wooster.

 

Coming Up:

 

I'm going to start Opal today for my birthstone read; next hardcopy book will be Die Verwandlung/The Metamorphosis - weird if not spooky.  I'm thinking my next ebook will be Cloud Atlas.  Generally as we wind up the year I'm going to focus on knocking off as many BIgBingo rows as possible - I've got 10 done and 10 more with only 1 book left.  If also manage the 1 row with 2 more and the 3 with 3 more I'll have my goal of 1/2 of the rows done.  I will admit to picking slim titles for some of these 'finish up the row' selections, but there's at least 1 and maybe 2 chunkys to go before the end of the year to balance that out.  And I want to finish the Birthstone challenge, and don't know if my IRL SciFi book club will continue to pick books that I manage to squish into Bingo categories. ;)  So... slim ones and/or fun and or easy reads for the git 'er done selections... 

 

Oh, and thanks to all who weighed in on the 1960's cozy. :)  I think I'm going to go with The Cat Who Could Read Backwards.  I've always wondered about that series, just because I like cats (are there actual cats in all the mysteries, or is it just a title theme?)

Edited October 22, 2017 by Matryoshka

[Matryoshka]

Not sure what we will do next.  I'm thinking Jane Eyre would be a good one, if it is read well. 

 

If you end up choosing Jane Eyre, try the narration by Juliet Stevenson.  I sampled something like 5 other narrators before I found hers, and they were all dull as bricks. If I hadn't known already that the book was one of my favorites, I might not have realized it was the narrator's fault, but for some reason all those other ones managed to put me to sleep.  But I really liked Juliet Stevenson.

[Mom-ninja.]

I have started The Chemist  by Stephanie Meyer. I never read the Twilight series and don't plan to, but I did read The Host  and like it. So far, I like this book as well. It's my spooky October read. It's not vampires or monsters type of a book, but the protagonist is trying to stay alive so plenty spooky for me. 

[Butter]

I have started The Chemist  by Stephanie Meyer. I never read the Twilight series and don't plan to, but I did read The Host  and like it. So far, I like this book as well. It's my spooky October read. It's not vampires or monsters type of a book, but the protagonist is trying to stay alive so plenty spooky for me. 

 

Please tell me The Host picks up.  I'm 15% in and I'm finding it terribly slow.  So far, it's only slightly improving my view of Stephenie Meyer.

[Kareni]

This evening I finished the contemporary romance Montana Heat: Escape to You: A Montana Heat Novel by Jennifer Ryan.  I had to push myself to finish it, so it's not a book I'll be likely to reread.  (Adult content)

 

"He discovered her during a Montana blizzard, freezing cold, impossibly vulnerable, a little boy by her side. Undercover DEA Agent Beck “Trigger†Cooke is astonished to recognize Ashley Swan—award-winning actress, famous beauty—and missing for over a year. To keep her and the child hidden from a sadistic madman, he secrets the pair away to his isolated home.

 

No longer a prisoner, and protected at Hope Ranch, Ashley recovers and learns the tall, tempting federal agent may have a dark past, but it hasn’t destroyed his sense of honor.

 

As they shed past roles and find common ground, Ashley and Trigger can’t help but fall slowly, carefully, in love. But danger still lurks outside the boundaries of Hope Ranch, for until her crazed captor is brought to justice, and Trigger’s undercover past is laid to rest, none of them will ever be truly safe…"

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Several currently free books for Kindle readers ~

 

This one has an intriguing description that mentions Kurt Vonnegut.:  Wallflower  by Robert Chazz Chute

 

Legends of the Grail: Stories of Celtic Goddesses  by Ayn Cates Sullivan

 

An Unexpected Afterlife: A Novel (The Dry Bones Society Book 1) by Dan Sofer

 

Breaking the Storm (Credence Curse Book 1)  by Sedona Venez

 

Star Hunter  by Andre Norton

 

Keeper of the Wolves  by Cheree Alsop

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Granny_Weatherwax]

I'm up to 44 books!

 

41 - Beneath a Scarlet Sky Mark Sullivan

42 - The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood

43 - Wreakage Emily Bleeker

44- 7 On Court Strategies to Experience the Play State Styrling Strother

[Loesje22000]

Loesje and Jenn, What fun. I wish I had been there.

 

!

June 2018 we will go to the Peak District and take the ferry to Hull.

Are you more Northern then that?

Otherwise I could meet you too :)

Not sure how to pm you as my wtm board pm is still dysfunctional.

 

 

Bookish -Filmish note:

 

We watched yesterday 'Walking Invisable' a new movie about the Bronte Family.

DH considered it hard to follow in the beginning as he hasn't read any biographies about them.

We both liked it and considered it well done.

 

Looking forward to the new Churchill movie :)

[mumto2]

Loesje, That's pretty much the perfect area for a visit with us. Can't wait to meet you! We'll figure the emails out later.

[Negin]

I felt the same way about this book and have also decided to be done with Donna Tartt. I don't know what her other book was that you read, but for me it was The Goldfinch. That one's also full of unlikable characters but the writing was so lovely I gave it a pass while reading it. I did feel like it needed some editing but otherwise was enjoying it. It was only after I finished it and started thinking about it that I began to realize I disliked it.

 

 

I felt pretty much the same way about The Goldfinch. I kept waiting for redemption but it never quite happened. I remember slogging my way through the last few chapters just to get done.

Yes, the other book that I read by her was "The Goldfinch". Again, I do believe that she's definitely a good writer, but I just don't care for her stories and characters at all. 

 

 

Loesje, That's pretty much the perfect area for a visit with us. Can't wait to meet you! We'll figure the emails out later.

You are both so lucky to be able to meet up soon! :)

[Negin]

The Kindle version of Getting Things Done is on sale today. 

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

 

 

Coming Up:

 

I'm going to start Opal today for my birthstone read; next hardcopy book will be Die Verwandlung/The Metamorphosis - weird if not spooky.  I'm thinking my next ebook will be Cloud Atlas.  Generally as we wind up the year I'm going to focus on knocking off as many BIgBingo rows as possible - I've got 10 done and 10 more with only 1 book left.  If also manage the 1 row with 2 more and the 3 with 3 more I'll have my goal of 1/2 of the rows done.  I will admit to picking slim titles for some of these 'finish up the row' selections, but there's at least 1 and maybe 2 chunkys to go before the end of the year to balance that out.  And I want to finish the Birthstone challenge, and don't know if my IRL SciFi book club will continue to pick books that I manage to squish into Bingo categories. ;)  So... slim ones and/or fun and or easy reads for the git 'er done selections... 

 

Oh, and thanks to all who weighed in on the 1960's cozy. :)  I think I'm going to go with The Cat Who Could Read Backwards.  I've always wondered about that series, just because I like cats (are there actual cats in all the mysteries, or is it just a title theme?)

 

I *love* Cloud Atlas, and dh did too. I'm looking forward to having dd read it later in our Dystopian year. I kind of really hated what they did with the movie, but only because I liked the book so much and it really watered down/changed the message. 

 

I might read The Cat for the cozy square too, unless I re-read Unnatural Causes which is my favorite Adam Dalgliesh novel. Granted, it's not *exactly* cozy, but it's as cozy as that broody poet-policeman gets.

[Penguin]

I started The Antelope Wife by Louise Erdrich and was curious about the opening statement about the death of her husband. Cue Google. Well, perhaps I am the only bookish person who was unaware that after her husband's suicide (1997) it was revealed that he was under investigation for sexually abusing their daughters. And perhaps not.

 

I became so unsettled by this family's story that I admit I am having trouble putting the author's life on the shelf while reading this book . Ever since, I have been obsessively thinking about separating authors and works, where I place my line of separation, and whether or not I am content with the line's location.

 

Meanwhile, I am about 2/3 done with The Antelope Wife and I am overall unimpressed. There are some shining moments, but I am often bored. My only previous encounter with Erdrich was The Beet Queen but that was in the 1980s. I vaguely recall that I liked it.

 

ETA: Oh, and then I found out that L. Erdrich rewrote The Antelope Wife and published a new version in 2013. I have the 1998 version. This is turning into an odd reading experience on multiple fronts.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 23, 2017 by Penguin

[fastweedpuller]

Multiquote not working for me today so I will muddle:

Jenn and Loesje and Mumto2, how great that you met/are making plans to meet!  (I know a lot of you have met IRL and I remain jealous.)  SKL, I really liked Untangled, hope you glean something from it.  Negin and every other Donna Tartt admire-the-writing, hate-the-characters person, I wave my hand MeMeMETOO!  VC, wow that was a quick turnaround on your Philip K Dick novels.  Hubs want them back on his shelves?  And Penguin, yes, yuck.  I had always admired Louise Erdrich and had read her hubs' Yellow Raft on Blue Water and had not made the connection, did not know they were married...even though I lived in Minneapolis and frequented her wonderful bookstore.  Quite a bomb going off in small MPLS book world, let me tell you.

 

So last week I finished Lincoln in the Bardo, much discussed last post.  My problem with it, coming from a Roman Catholic (Irish too) background is its setting was one of the many ideas of purgatory that I wrestled with as a teen/college student.  It really was a ghost story, purging the characters of their last bits of detritus prior to entry through the pearly gates.  (I remember as a 1st grader being completely terrified by the concept of purgatory, as I was convinced my white lies were leading me there should I die prior to First Communion.  I envisioned purgatory as a big waiting room full of crying babies who died before baptism and bunches of other 1st grade aged souls, heavy with sins of commission and omission...! DIdn't help that our nun teacher was way old school and encouraged such worries.)  I was in the dark about the Buddhist concept of the Bardo prior to reading the book (sometimes, yes, I read books without pre-reading content, that is just Me Living On The Edge rotfl).  I just felt the book was just a wee bit of Saudners' normal odd quasi-supernatural writing fluffed out with all his primary source research.  Shrug. 

 

But: the book put me over the Goodreads challenge, so there's that.  Erin, I can see how an audiobook might make it more...well.

[Jane in NC]

For the writers who frequent this thread:  The BBC offers some of Philip Pullman's Rules of Writing.

 

By the way, Pullman returns to the world he created in His Dark Materials.  Le Belle Sauvage is now published!

[Chrysalis Academy]

For the writers who frequent this thread:  The BBC offers some of Philip Pullman's Rules of Writing.

 

By the way, Pullman returns to the world he created in His Dark Materials.  Le Belle Sauvage is now published!

 

Nice! I will have to share that with Shannon.

 

Already got the book on hold, I'm #4 so should get it soon.

[aggieamy]

·         Find a book with forty- three in the title. 

·         Create an anagram from forty-three and read a book with the word or words in the title.

·         Read book #43 in your bookshelves counting from the left.

·         Read a book set in 1643, 1743, 1843, or 1943.

·         Read a book about a person born in 1943

·         Read a book set in or about Idaho, 43rd state.

·         Read a book about 43rd president.

·         Read a book set in the 43rd city and/or state, country or region on any continent. 

·         Read a book in Dewey Decimal category within 300 or 400 and in  the subsection .43 

·         Read a book set in the country by the scientists who discovered Technetium - Element 43 on the periodic table. 

·         Austria country code 43 allows you  to call Austria from another country so read a book set in Austria or written by an Austrian Author.

·         Go to your current read, find page 43. Count down to line 4, then left to the 3rd word.  Read a book with that word in the title or a book about that word.

·         Count the letters in your name. Did you end up with a prime number?  Read a book with a character with the same name as you. 

·         Are you 43?  Read a book published in your birth year. 

·         4 + 3 = 7.  4 x 3 = 12.  7 + 12 = 19.  12 - 7 = 5.  4 - 3 = 1.  Plug in any of the resulting prime numbers instead of 43 to the above quests and have fun following rabbit trails

 

I've been a big fail on the reading challenges this year but I'm going to attempt this and Opal. Right now I'm 0/4 for OPAL but I've got big plans to do some serious reading in the next few days.

 

Hello everyone!

 

Not much reading accomplished this week with house guests, food prep and cleaning before house guests arrived and other distractions. It has been a great week though.

 

Readingwise:  I had too many books going so I decided that I needed to finish something.  The Girl in Berlin by Elizabeth Wilson is an espionage novel that is not quite an Alan Furst.  More of a police procedural in temperament despite its Cold War theme.  A fine distraction but not one I'd recommend if you were asking me for one or two great espionage titles.  (Not that I am asked that question often.)

 

I also finished listening to Augustown by Jamaican author Kei Miller.  The audio version of this compelling tale is great.  I have been thinking about suggesting a Caribbean book for a readalong in 2018 and this one might be considered.

 

Now I can focus on Loving Day...

 

Non-book notes:  We walked into a monarch butterfly migration this week!  How cool is that!  There were monarchs everywhere, fluttering by, disguising themselves as leaves, hanging in bunches like grapes. Absolutely magical.

 

Our house guests wanted to see Venus Flytraps growing in the wild so we also did a swamp tromp as part of their tour.

 

 

And here is another scene we came across:  pelicans, terns and black skimmers.

 

 

What a fun expedition. Thanks for sharing your pictures.

 

Our current audiobook is Lois Lowry's Number the Stars, which is new to me; my kids had it read aloud to them in 5th grade.  Since we just visited Denmark and nearby countries this past summer, I think it is more meaningful to my kids the second time around.  (This is their current Middle School book club selection.)  We just finished Walk Two Moons, and before that Johnny Tremain.  Not sure what we will do next.  I'm thinking Jane Eyre would be a good one, if it is read well.  Or another Newberry book if I can find one.

 

 

 

I love the Richard Peck audiobooks for that age. They also are a hit with the mom and grandparent crowd. (Perhaps I've suggested these before. If I have then please just ignore me!) Start with this one ... A Long Way From Chicago.

[ErinE]

And with Quicksilver done it's a bingo blackout.

 

Prime Number: Full Fathom Five by Max Gladstone

Flufferton: Emma by Jane Austen

Eastern Europe: Oblomov by Ivan Goncharov

Bestseller in Spouse's Birth Year: Roots by Alex Haley

Steampunk: Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

 

Science Fiction: Virtual Light by William Gibson

Your Name in the Title: Song of Erin by B.J. Hoff

Collection of Short Stories: Kingston Noir edited by Colin Channer

Seaworthy: Hemingway's Boat by Paul Hendrickson

Middle Ages: When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman

 

Western: Giant by Edna Ferber

Ancient (BC) up to 100 AD: I, Claudius by Robert Graves

Free Space: Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim

Dystopian: Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke

Mystery: Jackaby by William Ritter

 

Translated: Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

Outer Space: Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie

Finance: Double Entry: How the Merchants of Venice Shaped the World by Janice Gleeson-White

One Word Title: Xenocide by Orson Scott Card

Debut Author: Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

 

Over 500 pages: Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

Local Author: Terms of Endearment by Larry McMurtry

Female Adventure: Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

Classic: Ulysses by James Joyce

Selected by a Friend: Mort by Terry Pratchett

 

And a final book for the A-Z Challenge: Zorro by Isabel Allende.

 

Whew. In December of last year, I decided to complete the A-Z challenge while also hitting the bingo squares and pulled together the list above. When I started the year, I thought I would finish the bingo early because most of the books were ones I wanted to read anyways. Yet as the year wore on, I found other books pulled me down rabbit trails I enjoyed following. Finishing my planned reads felt more like a chore than something enjoyable which was a marked difference from last year. This month I made it my goal to finish, but I definitely won't plan my bingo reads next year.

Edited October 23, 2017 by ErinE

[Kareni]

For the writers who frequent this thread:  The BBC offers some of Philip Pullman's Rules of Writing.

 

Thanks for the link, Jane.

 

The article begins:

 

"Author Philip Pullman is returning to the world of Lyra Belacqua with his new trilogy The Book of Dust, the first instalment of which was released at midnight.

 

La Belle Sauvage: The Book Of Dust Volume One is published on Thursday, Pullman's 71st birthday, and comes 17 years after the last instalment of his previous trilogy."

 

and, thinking of this week's theme, the first thing I noticed was the presence of prime numbers 17 and 71. 

 

Regards,

Kareni

[aggieamy]

Finished two books so far this week. Both big hits.

 

The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes. This was delightful. Not spooky at all .. just fun and witty. What's the October equivalent of a beach read? That's the category this fall in. Robin and Stacia - this might be a book you'd enjoy.

 

 

“I missed the days when I would silently judge seemingly crazy people in a park, instead of being one of them.â€

 

 

“Vampire strength might not let me lift cars, but I will tear up some shrubbery all day long.â€

 

Revision and Self-Editing by James Scott Bell. The writing part is good but the editing part is the real winner in this book. It's the last 20% or so. High recommend for Erin, CStarlette, Robin and the other writers on here. I'd also love any recommendations you have for other books on editing. I have five novels written and zero edited to be readable. I need major help.