Book a Week 2018 - BW20: Happy Mother's Day

[Kareni]

I've finished two books recently. 

For my book group which meets this evening, I read The Alienist by Caleb Carr.  My copy had this cover which is quite different from this new cover.  The book was lengthy and dismal though interesting; it came across as incredibly well researched.  It's not a book that I see myself re-reading.

"When The Alienist was first published in 1994, it was a major phenomenon, spending six months on the New York Times bestseller list, receiving critical acclaim, and selling millions of copies. This modern classic continues to be a touchstone of historical suspense fiction for readers everywhere.

The year is 1896. The city is New York. Newspaper reporter John Schuyler Moore is summoned by his friend Dr. Laszlo Kreizler—a psychologist, or “alienist”—to view the horribly mutilated body of an adolescent boy abandoned on the unfinished Williamsburg Bridge. From there the two embark on a revolutionary effort in criminology: creating a psychological profile of the perpetrator based on the details of his crimes. Their dangerous quest takes them into the tortured past and twisted mind of a murderer who will kill again before their hunt is over.

Fast-paced and riveting, infused with historical detail, The Alienist conjures up Gilded Age New York, with its tenements and mansions, corrupt cops and flamboyant gangsters, shining opera houses and seamy gin mills. It is an age in which questioning society’s belief that all killers are born, not made, could have unexpected and fatal consequences."
**

I also read and enjoyed Betsy James' fantasy Roadsouls  which was very different from the book above.  This came to me via inter-library loan.  I have absolutely no idea now why I requested it but I'm glad I did.  (Did someone here read it?)

"“Say yes to the Roadsouls, and you can’t unsay it.”

Even when that yes has sucked you out of your old life and hurled you into a world that will strip you and change you forever. Timid Duuni has spent her life as abused and guarded property. Blind, arrogant Raím is determined to be again what he once was: hunter, lover, young lord of the earth. Desperate to escape their lives, the two life up their hands to the passing Roadsoul caravan—and nothing is as it was. Lost to their old lives, hating each other, they are swept out of their cruel old certainties into an unknown, unknowable, ever-changing world of journey and carnival, artists and wrestlers and thieves."

Regards,
Kareni

[Robin M]

On 5/13/2018 at 11:29 AM, Quill said:

Happy Mother’s Day back to you. My stack of to-be-reads is growing and my number of halfway-reads and abandoned books is increasing. I am something like four books behind the BAW goal. My partial and abandoned books are at least part of the reason, plus I have spent a good bit of moments loom-knitting a baby blanket for my niece. (It is complete now, but my nephew’s wife is also pregnant, so I am starting another.) 

At church this morning, I bought the little book Letters from a Modern Mystic. This is a compilation of journal entries from Frank C. Laubach. Interesting, I once did an experiment following Laubach’s original experiement of striving to always bring his mind back to God, always, throughout the day. I did do this little experiment and had one very remarkable and somewhat mystical experience. It is strange that I soon ceased the experiment. But the speaker at church today spoke of this same experiement, so I wish to resume it. We’ll see how that goes. It dovetails with something I was already doing in my meditation practice, as I have been meditating upon Gratitude. I endeavor to catch myself as I say or think, “I want...” or “I wish...” because those expressions generally do not come from a place of gratitude but rather, come from the always-something-better idealist within me. It would be good to train my brain to express gratitude for what I have and not habitually look for what would be better, what else I want, what I wish could be different. 

I seem to be abandoning books as well. Don't know if it is just not in the mood right now or demands too much concentration.  I've added Letters from a Modern Mystic to my want list.  Sounds quite a bit like Brother Lawrence's Practicing the Presence of God.  Helps to be reminded to live in the moment and be grateful for what we have.  Something I need to do more often. 

On 5/13/2018 at 7:59 PM, Teaching3bears said:

I did not not finish Hold On To Your Kids.  I had to return it to the library and there is a waiting list if I want it again.  I was really struggling with it as a parent.  I know I attached to my peers growing up.  My youngest does not seem attached to peers but he is more and more disrespectful.  I ask myself:  Is there something I could be doing better?  I found what I read of the book so far a bit vague though it made sense.

I read Hold On To Your Kids some years ago. It was quite eye opening and spent a lot of time discussing with hubby.  Stuck with me a long time. 

On 5/16/2018 at 12:15 PM, mumto2 said:

An update on the Flower challenge for April.  I finally finished Mountain Aven and because I was able to spell Mountain out of my books I decided to record the non required mountain also.

M.   Why Mermaids Sing by CS Harris

O.    A Rougue of Her Own   by Grace Burrows

U.    Unnatural Death by Dorothy Sayers 

N.    The Bat by by Jo Nesbo   

T      Tricks for Free by Seanan McGuire

A.     Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil by Nancy Atherton 

I.      Why Kill the Innocent by CS Harris 

N.      Cockroach by Jo Nesbo

 

A        Face Down Among the Winchester Geese by Kathy Lynn Emerson

V        The Virgin Widow by Anne O’Brien

E        Face Down Under the Wycherley Elm  by Kathy Lynn Emerson 

N         Borrower of the Night by Elizabeth Peters

Now I can start working on Lily!

Woot! Lots of good books and congratulations for completing Mountain Aven.  

 

On 5/16/2018 at 1:29 PM, PeacefulChaos said:

I'm back!

So truthfully, we got internet hooked up at the new house right around the end of April, but I hadn't had a chance to hop on here.  I've been trying to continue logging my progress with Goodreads, though I haven't read a ton since moving... busy unpacking and all, plus Pink turned 9 the beginning of May.

I know there's no way I'll be able to go back through all the older posts (I did go through this thread) so I'm just going to pick up here!

Welcome back. Glad you've gotten all settled in.  

On 5/16/2018 at 1:40 PM, JennW in SoCal said:

Robin: Other than the surprise change in date of the graduation, I'm so glad you are able to have a ceremony that "fits". And congratulations!! You did it!!!

Amy:  Graphic novels. Hmmmm.  I have a couple of older titles to suggest, older as in from the late 70s/early 80s. Elfquest by the husband and wife team Richard and Wendy Pini was a series my dh introduced me to back in our dating days. I liked because it is bascially epic fantasy. I also got a kick out of Rocketeer by Dave Stevens which had a great art deco style.  

Maus is amazing. I had my very sensitive ds read it during high school as I couldn't think of a better way to introduce the Holocaust to him. It is set in Germany in WWII -- the mice are the Jews and the cats are the Nazis. It sounds dumb, but it is very powerful.

If you want something superhero that my dh worked on, there is the Batman graphic novel, Hush. (Which I haven't read, ahem.) But there is also a shorter Batman graphic novel that Neil Gaiman wrote and my husband worked on called Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader. (I did read that one.)  Neil Gaiman's Sandman series (which dh did NOT do) is hugely, wildly popular in geekdom. Apparently the art gets better as the series progresses -- I've only read the first graphic novel. Someone has kidnapped and imprisoned the Sandman, and chaos ensues.

Thanks, doll!   I'll 2nd Elfquest.  My brother loved it way back when. So much, my mother painted a elf quest scene on his wall.  Hush looks really good. 

 

[Robin M]

On 5/16/2018 at 3:49 PM, soror said:

I haven't popped in forever. Life was kind of crazy for awhile, fil had been in hospice and past away. I only read 2 books in March and 1 in April. This month I've already read 3 but they were all quick reads- In May I've read- A Man Called Ove, A River of Darkness, and A Year of Pleasures. Having read 2 books about widows in the last 2 weeks so soon after my fil has passed has made me appreciate and adore dh all the more. 

I picked up Earthsea and The Tombs of Atuan by Le Guin, I've never read any of her books and have been thinking since she passed it was about time.

I'm at 18 books for the year so not far behind 1 a week, hopefully I'll catch up this month, my goal was just to read 2 a month but I was hoping to hit 52.

Hugs sweetie! My condolences. 

[Robin M]

We've had lots of progress in the past three weeks with the construction and they've cleared all the construction debris, finished concrete and joists, plus put up framing for the extension as well as fixed lots of little things from the previous contractor's mess ups.    Moving forward quickly.  Happy dance! 

James and I finished listening to the last book in the  Harry Potter series. We've been listening to the books for the past three or four years.  Now we're trying to figure out what to listen to next.  James pick is of course anything Star Wars.   

I finished Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Sigh! So good. I actually read it twice.  The duke had a stroke and was unable to speak.  His family thought him mad and relegated him to an asylum. Maddy, a young Quacker woman knew him before the illness and recognized that he could communicate and his brain hadn't been affected, so she became his nurse.  Interesting tale and so full of emotion. 

Currently debating between Lisa Jewell's I Found You or Now You See Me by Sharon Bolton for my Y book. Also looking at reading Dean Koontz Innocence as well.    But first, think I'll dive into Seanan McGuire's Once Broken Faith.

[Guest]

Quote

 

I seem to be abandoning books as well. Don't know if it is just not in the mood right now or demands too much concentration.  I've added Letters from a Modern Mystic to my want list.  Sounds quite a bit like Brother Lawrence's Practicing the Presence of God.  Helps to be reminded to live in the moment and be grateful for what we have.  Something I need to do more often. 

 

On Goodreads, many people say it is like Practicing the Presence of God. (I have not read that book and cannot say.)

The day before yesterday, I was practicing and I was enjoying it. But then yesterday and today I was “unable” to practice. (Not literally unable; just very antsy and distracted and moody.) I think I have hit upon why I quit when I was doing the experment before. It’s like I need my head space for processing everything that is happening, personally or in the world. I ruminate about news stories or something someone told me or something I read and it seems like I need to do that to make sense of the world and my experience. So doing the experiment feels like an interruption of this inner dialogue. 

I think there is a solution in there but I am not sure how I can do both to good effect. 

[Kareni]

3 hours ago, Robin M said:

I finished Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Sigh! So good.

I agree ~ Flowers from the Storm is well worth reading twice.

 

3 hours ago, Robin M said:

Maddy, a young Quacker woman knew him before the illness

Your typo made me chuckle. [Perhaps the Duke of Jervaulx is really the Duck of Jervaulx!]

Regards,
Kareni

[tuesdayschild]

My Dh gifted me with a copy of Evelina ~ Francis Burney  (pub. anon 1778  p.455 ) for Mother’s Day.  I’m quite looking forward to going through this book and wonder if anyone here has read this?

[mumto2]

17 hours ago, Robin M said:

We've had lots of progress in the past three weeks with the construction and they've cleared all the construction debris, finished concrete and joists, plus put up framing for the extension as well as fixed lots of little things from the previous contractor's mess ups.    Moving forward quickly.  Happy dance! 

James and I finished listening to the last book in the  Harry Potter series. We've been listening to the books for the past three or four years.  Now we're trying to figure out what to listen to next.  James pick is of course anything Star Wars.   

I finished Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Sigh! So good. I actually read it twice.  The duke had a stroke and was unable to speak.  His family thought him mad and relegated him to an asylum. Maddy, a young Quacker woman knew him before the illness and recognized that he could communicate and his brain hadn't been affected, so she became his nurse.  Interesting tale and so full of emotion. 

Currently debating between Lisa Jewell's I Found You or Now You See Me by Sharon Bolton for my Y book. Also looking at reading Dean Koontz Innocence as well.    But first, think I'll dive into Seanan McGuire's Once Broken Faith.

Glad to hear the project is moving forward quickly now!  Just think someday soon you will have room in your garage again. ?

Star Wars, totally not surprised that James is pro Star Wars.  When Ds physically goes to the library that is the shelf that draws him every single time........Dr. Who books are pretty good actually.........Have you already read Sea of Trolls which is more YA with Norse Mythology? How about the Eragon series?  I loved Eragon and probably should put that on my reread list.....both dc’s read and liked at least the first two.

I am another Flowers from the Storm fan thanks to Kareni.  Note to Amy, you really need to read this!

9 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

My Dh gifted me with a copy of Evelina ~ Francis Burney  (pub. anon 1778  p.455 ) for Mother’s Day.  I’m quite looking forward to going through this book and wonder if anyone here has read this?

Evelina looks really interesting and I think I would like to read it.   I have been through my library catalogues and only one library has it.  I tend to rotate my library systems so I don’t end up with lots of overdue books so I put it on my list for the next time I request from that system......  Unless you really tempt me probably mid summer for that one. ?

I am still reading my Wimsey shorts and listening to Partners in Crime by Christie.  Hugh Fraser is my narrator who I like but I am not sure that Partners in Crime is going to stay on my favorite Christie book list.  It’s another I suspect I loved because preteen Dd could read it!

[Robin M]

14 hours ago, Kareni said:

You typo made me chuckle. [Perhaps the Duke of Jervaulx is really the Duck of Jervaulx!]

Regards,
Kareni

Quack, quack, quack. 

I'd like to blame it on the spell checker. However....

[Violet Crown]

11 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

My Dh gifted me with a copy of Evelina ~ Francis Burney  (pub. anon 1778  p.455 ) for Mother’s Day.  I’m quite looking forward to going through this book and wonder if anyone here has read this?

 

A long time ago. Couldn't tell you what it's about anymore. But I do remember really liking Fanny Burney.

[Kareni]

Today only, free download ~  Limehouse Nights by Thomas Burke

"Thomas Burke paints an enduring portrait of London’s East End

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the East End of London was a filthy and violent neighborhood, a place where a man was more likely to get a knife in his stomach than a good dinner. It was worlds away from the fashionable district it has become more than a century later. In this gripping collection of stories, author Thomas Burke traverses the area and offers glimpses of life in Limehouse. One tale portrays the unusual friendship that develops between an immigrant and a girl who has recently been beaten by her father. Another follows a down-on-his-luck boxer looking for one last chance. In all of the pieces, Burke displays the beauty inherent in humanity, no matter the squalor in which it resides."
**

And currently free for Kindle readers ~

a young adult fantasy I read and enjoyed:  The Burning Sky (The Elemental Trilogy Book 1)  by Sherry Thomas

six royal romances by author Molly Jameson are free for a limited time

Regards,
Kareni

[tuesdayschild]

On 5/19/2018 at 6:45 AM, mumto2 said:

Evelina looks really interesting and I think I would like to read it.   I have been through my library catalogues and only one library has it.  I tend to rotate my library systems so I don’t end up with lots of overdue books so I put it on my list for the next time I request from that system......  Unless you really tempt me probably mid summer for that one. ?

I am still reading my Wimsey shorts and listening to Partners in Crime by Christie.  Hugh Fraser is my narrator who I like but I am not sure that Partners in Crime is going to stay on my favorite Christie book list.  It’s another I suspect I loved because preteen Dd could read it!

2

The audio version on audible is what sparked my interest in Evelina: three amazing voice actors on that production.

I saw you make this comment on another Christie book and realised it's why I loved Christie books back 'then' too.  Some of them just don't stack up so well now.

 

23 hours ago, Violet Crown said:

 

A long time ago. Couldn't tell you what it's about anymore. But I do remember really liking Fanny Burney.

Thanks VC ... I'm hoping I like her too.

Before I sign out for the weekend, a quick book update:

I noticed that others on BaW get to enjoy a quick re-scrambling of books that suddenly ‘need’ to be read too - thanks to library loans becoming available.    I’m not sure if I’ll get through them all in time but these titles hit my to-be-read basket in the last few days:

• Frozen in Time ~ Mitchell Zuckoff    N/F (audio)
• No Shred of Evidence: Inspector Rutledge Bk18 ~ Charles Todd
• A Red Boyhood ~ Anatole Konstantin    N/F
• And There Was Light ~ Jacques Lusseyran  N/F   France WWII (audio)

I’ve just completed this county harvesting read, and am listing them all for others that have it on their TBR list     The Red Door: Inspector Rutledge Bk12 ~ Charles Todd   (3) (epukapuka)     (Suffolk/ Lancashire/ Essex/ London/ Lincolnshire/ Kent/ Durham/ Cambridgeshire/ Dorset/  Worcestershire/ Cheshire/ Hertfordshire).

And have finally got back to Yorkshire with  A Death in the Dales: Kate Shackleton Bk7 ~ Frances Brody  (3)  (audio) .   I wasn’t happy with the twist the author gave to Kate’s courtship.  Content extra, for others who appreciate knowing things in advance:  a violently abusive father forces his daughter to live as his incestuous “wife’ – she ends up in an asylum.    

[marbel]

I finished a few Brit-trip books this week:  Dracula (North Yorkshire), Day of the Triffids (Isle of Wight) and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (wild card).  So today I caught up with the rebel bus in Hampshire, just as they are about to pull out.  I'm starting Damsel in Distress (Wodehouse) today so I will be left behind as everyone else heads to Berkshire tomorrow. But not too far, and I have two possible Berkshire books (The Killings at Badger's Drift and A Talent for Murder) which are on the way from the library.  

@tuesdayschild I admire your county harvesting efforts!   Thank you! 

A complication is Jar City arriving in my Overdrive holds.  We'll see.  I am also in the middle of a Mary Russel/Sherlock Holmes mystery (The God of the Hive); some of the action takes place in Cumbria.  And I'm moving along with my long-terms reads (ESV Bible, War and Peace).

I am still stuck on fiction. I feel the need for some nonfiction but can't settle! I keep getting useful books from the library but returning them having read only a little bit.  

I thought I would post my completed list for the year. The counties are in bold but they are in reading order, not Brit-trip order.   Oh!  I believe I have hit the Geoffrey Chaucer level with 20 counties completed and a book written before 1600 (Sir Gawain)!

1. A Christmas Party, Georgette Heyer
2. Closed Casket, Sophie Hannah*
3. No Wind of Blame, Heyer
4. The Namesake, Jhumpa Lahiri*
5. The Convenient Marriage, Heyer
6. Claire of the Sea Light, Edwidge Danticat*
7. Quick Service, P.G. Wodehouse
8. Footsteps in the Dark, Heyer
9. Lydia Cassat Reading the Morning Paper, Harriet Scott Chessman*
10. Ghostwalk, Rebecca Scott*: Cambridgeshire
11. The Blackhouse, Peter May*
12. The Man in the Queue, Josephine Tey Nottinghamshire
13. Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens  London (Akeman Street)
14. Missing, Presumed, Susie Steiner* Huntingdonshire
15. Whose Body, Dorothy Sayers   Wiltshire
16. Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, Maria Semple*
17. The Sunne in Splendour, Sharon Kay Penman* Leicestershire
18. Force of Nature, Jane Harper
19. Little Fires Everywhere, Celeste Ng*
20. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Agatha Christie Wild Card
21. Some Danger Involved, Will Thomas*:  London/Scotland Yard
22. To Kingdom Come, Will Thomas   Merseyside
23. The Annotated Mansfield Park, Jane Austen Northamptonshire and Rutland
24. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Gail Honeyman*
25. The Broken Token, Chris Nickson* East and West Riding of York
26. Venetia, Georgette Heyer York
27. The Language of Bees, Laurie R. King Sussex
28. Codename Verity, Elizabeth Wein*  Cheshire
29. Clade, James Bradley*  Norfolk
30. Far From the Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy Dorset
31. Henrietta's War, Joyce Dennys*  Devon
32. Dracula, Bram Stoker*  North Yorkshire
33. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Anon  Wild Card
34. The Day of the Triffids, John Wyndham*   Isle of Wight

* = new-to-me author

 

[Robin M]

Link to week 21 - please continue conversation in new thread