Book a Week 2020 - BW27: Whodunit Potpourri

[Robin M]

Happy Sunday, dear hearts! I was looking over our 52 books bingo categories and realized I built in quite a few crossover categories.  Some of which are quite apropos to the present as well as the past.  I couldn’t decide which direction to go so, sending you all on a scavenger hunt. From the top of the mountains, to the bottom of the sea, you can go off the grid, look for some enlightenment or something more elemental.  Be predictable or dance in the rain to the rhythm and blues. Explore the universe with Captain Kirk, or learn the ways of the force with Luke Skywalker.  

Choose a locked room mystery with a twenty something, or get a reality check from a femme fatale, who's really groovy, baby. Or maybe get involved with a computer hacker, discover a case of mistaken identity, or pick a number and dive into the world of the unpredictable.

But wait!  Include an outlaw, cowboy, lawmen or a soldier, from any different time period, from the past to the future for a whodunit potpourri. Oh, the drama of it all.

Pick an author's name  and plug it into the Literature Map (used Nora Roberts as an example) and choose a different author to explore. Type their name into What Should I Read Next or explore books from their popular subjects lists.  Pick a book at random from your own shelves or use the Random Books for Everyone generator. 

Have fun! 

 We have reached the third quarter in the year which bring us to  J.R.R Tolkien’s 2^nd book in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Two Towers.  Coincidently the book is available for free on Kindle Unlimited. Take your time. Read it fast or slow, by yourself or aloud with your family. We have the whole quarter of July through September to read it.

 

Link to week 26

 

Visit  52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges, as well as share your book reviews with other readers  around the globe.

 

[Violet Crown]

Took a break this week from reading I enjoyed to re-read Upton Sinclair's King Coal, part of Middle Girl's history reading. I'm afraid it will leave her with the impression that the greatest failure of Socialism is that its propaganda is so boring. At least it helped me toward one of my personal challenges: filling in my reading timeline, as it's my first 1917 book since I started BaW. Still missing 1910 and 1919.

Now resuming the Lausiac History by Palladius for 5th-century reading. I'm not extending my Timeline Challenge back this far, but it would be only my third book from the fifth century, and the first with a definite date.

[Robin M]

Quote

@Violet CrownWould this be a good time for a General Invitation for joining (or re-joining) BaW?

Sounds like a good idea. Do you want to post something?

[Robin M]

I'm currently reading a kindle unlimited selection by T. Hammon - Blind Seduction (#1 Team Red)  which just so happens to have a guide dog who talks in the main character's head.

"An accident changed Teresa March's life. Within a heartbeat, she lost her sight and her independence. Her scars are still healing when life takes a turn for the better and she receives Red, a companion German shepherd, from her friend Janey. Red is a typical dog...well, except for the whole talking-in-Teresa's-head thing. They develop a bond, forged with humor, love, and not just a little snarky sarcasm. If a smart-alec dog isn't enough to hold your attention, Sebastian and David came to town and both have set their sights on Teresa. Neither of the sexy ex-Navy men are above using military tactics to secure their target--and so begins the siege of Teresa March. When you stop drooling over the two gorgeous men, consider the implications of a talking dog...the police department certainly has. Laugh-out-loud, steamy romance with a paranormal twist."

 

ETA: 

When my FIL heard I was reading The Far Pavilions, he recommended I read  The Live of Others by Neel Mukherjee. Have anyone read it or any other books by the author? 

 

Edited July 5, 2020 by Robin M

[Violet Crown]

38 minutes ago, Robin M said:

Sounds like a good idea. Do you want to post something?

I'm not the hostess now, am I? 🙂 But I will if you'd like. 

[Kareni]

1 hour ago, Robin M said:

I'm currently reading a kindle unlimited selection by T. Hammon - Blind Seduction (#1 Team Red)  which just so happens to have a guide dog who talks in the main character's head.

I read and enjoyed this series two or three years ago. I recall being surprised at how the main relationship developed. I liked the dog!

Regards,

Kareni

[Lori D.]

44 minutes ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

Amazon’s going to wonder why there is a sudden algorithm spike in Dog-centric fiction. 😂

lol!

And I got caught at the thread change before I could add one last dog-related book -- All Creatures Great and Small! Not exclusively dogs, but quite a few wonderful dog stories in veterinarian James Herriot's book. 💕🐶

Edited July 5, 2020 by Lori D.

[Kareni]

I recently finished Brother, Can You Spare a Crime?: Another John Pickett Mystery by Sheri Cobb South which I quite enjoyed. It had the side benefit of meeting one of my summer reading program challenges in that it was set in a foreign country.

 "When one of his colleagues witnesses a robbery in which one of the participants, a child, bears a striking resemblance to a certain Bow Street Runner, John Pickett realizes he has a young half-brother who has been “apprenticed” to a criminal gang. The brutal murder of the pursuing constable makes the crime far more serious than a simple robbery would be—and ten-year-old Kit is linked to the crime by the toy soldier he dropped while fleeing the scene.

In spite of his tender years, he will certainly hang unless Pickett can extricate him before fellow Bow Street Runner Maxwell solves the case. For the first time in his career, Pickett is obliged to work against one of his fellows, dogging Maxwell’s steps and trying to anticipate his next move in order to get to the boy first.
 

Pickett’s investigation will take him back to the rookeries of London, where his own childhood was spent. But can he return to his old haunts without being pulled back into his old way of life?"

Incidentally, the first book in this series is available free to Kindle readers: In Milady's Chamber: A John Pickett Mystery 

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Some bookish posts ~

THE MAGIC OF READING ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE'S LETTERS

https://crimereads.com/the-magic-of-reading-arthur-conan-doyles-letters/

Lose yourself in the places that inspired J.R.R. Tolkien by Elizabeth Hand

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/lose-yourself-in-the-places-that-inspired-jrr-tolkien/2020/06/08/439dcb10-a683-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html

CELESTE’S TOP 12 BOOKS OF THE YEAR SO FAR (JANUARY 1ST, 2020 – JUNE 30TH, 2020)

http://novelnotions.net/2020/07/03/celestes-top-12-books-of-the-year-so-far-2020/

Regards,

Kareni

[Ali in OR]

I'm not reading much these days. I did finish Alliance last week, the second in the Linesman series. I put in a purchase request for my library to buy the third, but so far no action on that. I wonder if they're making purchases at this time. I'm sure like schools they are probably dealing with budget cuts. I am currently reading White Fragility on my kindle. I wish I had a paper copy, but they were out of stock when I wanted to buy it so I got the kindle version. I think I would be done by now if it was a paper book. Other than that, no reading. I'll try to get White Fragility finished up this week. I think our copy of Stamped is supposed to arrive this week (the one I originally ordered from a 3rd party Amazon seller last month never came, but Amazon says it's back in stock on the 6th, so I got my refund and reordered). I'm trying to get the whole family to read both of these books this summer--our summer reading project.

[Robin M]

1 hour ago, Violet Crown said:

I'm not the hostess now, am I? 🙂 But I will if you'd like. 

Please!  I'm thinking back to when I lived in the south and southern hospitality and since we're one big happy family, you just volunteered to make a salad. If you need any help gathering ingredients let me know. I'll be in the library, writing up a new recipe. 😘

Edited July 5, 2020 by Robin M

[Lori D.]

Finished Alliance and Confluence (S.K. Dunstall), books #2 and #3 in the Linesman trilogy. Fun, light space opera. 😄 Thanks @Kareni for the recommendation in a past BaW thread. I also really enjoyed learning that the author is actually a 2-person team: Australian sisters Sharon and Karen Dunstall.

Also, just for fun, I'm doing a re-read of Megan Whelan Turner's Queen's Thief series. So far, I've knocked out The Thief (#1); The Queen of Attolia (#2); and The King of Attolia (#3). I'm into book #4 now: A Conspiracy of Kings, and will probably get through it and Thick As Thieves (#5) in short order. Jigging up and down on one foot waiting for the final installment, The Return of the Thief (#6) to be released in print this October!!

I'll get started on The Two Towers along about the end of the month, and post thoughts along the way. (You'll have to look back in the May & June BaW threads if you are at all interested in seeing my thoughts on the first volume of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. 😉)... But I'm REALLY hoping to hear thoughts on both Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers from others who are doing this book challenge! Yea Tolkien challenge readers! 😄 

Edited July 5, 2020 by Lori D.

[Kareni]

22 minutes ago, Ali in OR said:

I did finish Alliance last week, the second in the Linesman series.

 

3 minutes ago, Lori D. said:

Finished Alliance and Confluence (S.K. Dunstall), books #2 and #3 in the Linesman series. Fun, light space opera. 😄 Thanks @Kareni for the recommendation in a past BaW thread. I also really enjoyed learning that the author is actually a 2-person team: Australian sisters Sharon and Karen Dunstall.

I'm glad to be spreading the Linesman love!

You might wish to read their other series, Lori D., which is set in a different universe (no lines and no Ean ...sigh). The first book is Stars Uncharted.

Regards,

Kareni

[Lori D.]

4 minutes ago, Kareni said:

... You might wish to read their other series, Lori D., which is set in a different universe (no lines and no Ean ...sigh). The first book is Stars Uncharted.

I actually read the "Look Inside" passage on Amazon and am definitely interested! I just need to back off on the book-buying for now. The pandemic put me into a book-buying/book-reading frenzy, and it's time to get back to reality, lol. (And... I just can't do e-readers, so that means no free-for-today specials from Kindle for me, to rein in book expenses. 😉 )

[mumto2]

Late to the party as my son needed a haircut.......cutting the family’s hair has been an unexpected result of the past few months and I actually enjoy it! 😉. My son likes my haircuts too...so positive mom reinforcement!

I am still back in the Fellowship of the Ring and sort of enjoying my slow sipping pace.  I know the characters so picking up this book is such a joy for a spare hour or so periodically.  I can’t decide if I want to push on and finish it or not.  As it stands I sit down with the expectation of reading until an event happens........

Last night I sat down and read most of Imaginary Numbers by Seanan McGuire  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44283329-imaginary-numbers?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=c1gMryvuBS&rank=1.  It’s number nine in her Incryptid series. The main characters are the young adults from a family who are crypto zoologists fighting for the “10 percent” of humanity on earth that isn’t human.......all sorts of others in these books.  The very best characters are the very special mice who worship the family.  They are little talking creatures who live to pass the history of the family throughout their generations.......when a family member leaves on an adventure they almost always take a mouse or two with them.  This one was bout the “extra” child in the family who isn’t human but is an alien but by the end she has her own mice!😉.  An enjoyable read........definitely read this series in order because there is a continuing storyline.

I have a stack of books on my Kindle featuring dogs now but should probably concentrate on my Overdrive books that will expire soon.  😉I wonder how that happened!  Faith Hunter’s Shattered Bonds and Kwei Quartey’s The Missing American will be finished sometime this week.

Speaking of SK Dunstall, the first of my books choices from their recommendations in a recent @Kareni link arrived in my Overdrive yesterday.  Finder by Suzanne Palmer......https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40796392-finder?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=FQBnlSFZ33&rank=2  Dd plans to read it too.

 

 

[Violet Crown]

37 minutes ago, Lori D. said:

I actually read the "Look Inside" passage on Amazon and am definitely interested! I just need to back off on the book-buying for now. The pandemic put me into a book-buying/book-reading frenzy, and it's time to get back to reality, lol. (And... I just can't do e-readers, so that means no free-for-today specials from Kindle for me, to rein in book expenses. 😉 )

But this little voice keeps saying, "Support independent booksellers! Don't let the pandemic put them out of business!" And there goes another order through Bookfinder.

[Mothersweets]

Hope everyone is doing well! I've managed to finish a few books in the last month - I started several more that I read a few pages of and decided, "Nope!" and promptly took them back to the library. The few that made the cut were:

If It Bleeds by Stephen King. New book of four short stories and I was pleasantly surprised by each one. They aren't monster stories but rather more in the Twilight Zone vein. My favorite was the first one about a boy who becomes friends with an elderly neighbor.

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Beautifully written with believable characters  - I was so moved by this book. 

Stay Sexy and Don't Get Murdered: The Definitive How-Yo Guide by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark I listened to this one. I really enjoy their podcast but oh man these ladies swear like sailors. I suppose trying to listen to hours of it was just too much for my delicate ears (haha).

An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten. This was delightful and surprising and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I'm going to try to attach a pic of the cover because it is so clever. 

 

[Pen]

After  finishing the most recent Kincaid/James (hope she’s writing another!), I tested out a few samples and ended up with Cotterill’s The Coroner’s Lunch 

 

[Kareni]

I just finished reading Breakfast on Mars and 37 Other Delectable Essays edited by Rebecca Stern and Brad Wolfe which I suspect might be of interest to those of you who are teaching essay writing to your own or other children. One of my summer reading challenges was to read a book in the 300s (Dewey decimal) and this was my selection; it was an entertaining and occasionally informative collection.

 "Breakfast on Mars and 37 Other Delectable Essays will inspire students to think differently about the much-feared assignment in elementary and middle schools around the country: essay writing.

Rebecca Stern's fifth-grade students were bored to death with essay writing, and the one thing Rebecca needed to inspire them―great examples appropriate for kids―was nowhere to be found. Inspired by a challenge, Rebecca joined forces with her friend, social entrepreneur Brad Wolfe, and the two came up with a terrific proposal―to gather together a collection of unconventional essays by some of the best writers around. They have compiled and edited a collection of imaginative, rule-breaking, and untraditional essays that is sure to change the way you think about the essay.

Contributors include: Ransom Riggs, Kirsten Miller, Scott Westerfeld, Alan Gratz, Steve Almond, Jennifer Lou, Chris Higgins, Rita Williams-Garcia, Elizabeth Winthrop, Chris Epting, Sloane Crosley, April Sinclair, Maile Meloy, Daisy Whitney, Khalid Birdsong, Sarah Prineas, Ned Vizzini, Alane Ferguson, Lise Clavel, Mary-Ann Ochota, Steve Brezenoff, Casey Scieszka, Steven Weinberg, Michael Hearst, Clay McLeod Chapman, Gigi Amateau, Laurel Snyder, Wendy Mass, Marie Rutkoski, Sarah Darer Littman, Nick Abadzis, Michael David Lukas, Léna Roy, Craig Kielburger, Joshua Mohr, Cecil Castellucci, Joe Craig, and Ellen Sussman."

Regards,

Kareni

[melmichigan]

9 hours ago, Robin M said:

Pick an author's name  and plug it into the Literature Map (used Nora Roberts as an example) and choose a different author to explore. 

I absolutely love playing with this!  It might be the answer to my recent slump. 

[Negin]

I read My Reading Life - 4 Stars - for those who may be interested in recent events, if you read nothing else in my review, you may wish to scroll down where I quote him on political correctness.

Pat Conroy is one of my favorite authors and this one didn’t disappoint. The writing is gorgeous. This book is a memoir of his love of reading and writing. Reading this felt like reading a big book review, a book review of all the writers and poets that shaped and influenced Conroy in some way.

I loved how each chapter was aligned with a certain period in his life, and with the people who were there during each time – his mother, his high school English teacher, and so on.

One of my favorite chapters was the one about his mother and “Gone with the Wind”. I’d never paid any attention to Pat Conroy until a few years ago when I read that book. Conroy wrote the beautiful introduction. He describes his mother reading him “Gone with the Wind” when he was five, and then she would re-read it to him again every year.

“She read the novel aloud to me when I was five years old, and it is from this introductory reading that I absorbed my first lessons in the authority of fiction. There is not a sentence in this book unfamiliar to me since my mother made a fetish of rereading it each year.”

It was that intro that got me interested in reading his books. His mother is the one person who influenced him the most and started him on his literary journey. From the time that he was a high school freshman, he set himself a goal of reading 200 pages a day. He wrote that he learned how to be a man through books. He was a military brat growing up in South Carolina. Given his dysfunctional family life, the constant moves, and his abusive father, books were what provided healing for both him and his mother. They provided some form of stability. Another chapter that moved me was the one about his high school English teacher, Mr. Norris. I also thoroughly enjoyed reading about his time spent in Paris when he was writing one of his novels.

I doubt that I will be reading most of the books that he loved, the ones that formed and shaped him, but I still loved reading his take on them. I enjoyed the description of him writing using yellow legal pads with classical music playing in the background. If you are a Pat Conroy fan, like I am, you will enjoy this book.

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

Describing his sister:

“If I said that a sky was a pretty shade of blue, she would correct me, saying that it was lapis lazuli and only a simpleton would call it blue. She was ten when she pointed this out.”

Describing his favorite bookshop in Atlanta:

“When I die, my religion tells me I’ll go to heaven, and I hope someone got that story right. I’ll make a request that I get to live in the Old New York Book Shop on the night of a book party.”

Describing friendship with writers:

“I’ve spent most of my life avoiding the companionship of writers. I try never to be rude, just seldom available. Though I have met some of the great writers of our time, I’ve become good friends with very few of them. The tribe is contentious, the breed dangerous.”

On Political Correctness:

“Political correctness is going to kill American liberalism if it is not fought to the death by people like me for the dangers it represents to free speech, to the exchange of ideas, to openheartedness, or to the spirit of art itself. Political correctness has a stranglehold on academia, on feminism, and on the media. It is a form of both madness and maggotry.”

On Parisians:

“Parisians and polar icecaps have a lot in common except that polar icecaps are warmer to strangers.”

“There is something glacial, fishlike, and prodigiously remote about Parisians. At the sound of an approaching foreigner, their faces are as bland and expressionless as salamanders.”

On Tolstoy:

“Reading Tolstoy makes us strive to be better people: better husbands and wives, children, and friends. He tries to teach us how to live by letting us participate in the brimming, storied experiences of his fictional world. Reading Leo Tolstoy, you will encounter a novelist who fell in love with his world and everything he saw and felt in it.”

On reading:

“I find myself happiest in the middle of a book in which I forget that I am reading, but am instead immersed in a made-up life lived at the highest pitch.’

“I can’t pass a bookstore without slipping inside, looking for the next book that will burn my hand when I touch its jacket, or hand me over a promissory note of such immense power that it contains the formula that will change everything about me. Here is all I ask of a book—give me everything. Everything, and don’t leave out a single word.”

[Lori D.]

7 hours ago, Violet Crown said:

But this little voice keeps saying, "Support independent booksellers! Don't let the pandemic put them out of business!" And there goes another order through Bookfinder.

lol -- I'm trying! But I've already spend several hundred dollars OVER my usual ANNUAL book budget, and we're just now halfway through the year!

[Violet Crown]

7 hours ago, Lori D. said:

lol -- I'm trying! But I've already spend several hundred dollars OVER my usual ANNUAL book budget, and we're just now halfway through the year!

But think how much we’re saving in gasoline these days! 

[-M-]

Hello! I hope you’re healthy and safe! My count now stands at 130, with 105 read from my shelves.

■ The Amateurs (Liz Harmer; 2019. Fiction.)
Review here.

■ Postal: Deliverance, Vol. 2 (Brian Edward Hill; 2020. Graphic fiction.)
■ Ascender, Vol. 2: The Dead Sea (Jeff Lemire; 2020. Graphic fiction.)
Hoopla has enabled me to keep up on series that interest me.

■ The Tao of Pooh (Benjamin Hoff; 1982. Non-fiction.)
This is a somewhat different book now than it was when I first read it. The story of the author’s difficulties with the publisher are chronicled on his website.

■ The Pearl (John Steinbeck; 1947. Fiction.)
It seems impossible that I have not read this before, but I could not remember anything more than the horrific conclusion.

p. 25
For it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more. This is said in disparagement, whereas it is one of the greatest talents the species has and one that has made it superior to animals that are satisfied with what they have.

■ Death in Venice (Thomas Mann; 1912. Trans. Michael Henry Heim; 2004. Fiction.)
Again, how is it possible that I have not read this? The Heim translation is introduced by Michael Cunningham, who writes, in part, “All the writers I respect want to write a book so penetrating and thorough, so compassionate and unrelenting, that it can stand unembarrassed beside the spectacle of life itself. And all writers I respect seem to know (though no one likes to talk about it) that our efforts are doomed from the outset. Life is bigger than literature. We do the best we can. Some of us do better than others.”

How about this for serendipity / synthesis / synchronicity?

p. 84
The cases were kept secret. Within a week, however, there were 10 of them, then 20, 30, and in different districts to boot. […] The Venetian authorities issued a statement to the effect that health conditions have never been better then took the most essential precautions against the disease. […] But fear of the overall damage that would be done — concern over the recently opened art exhibition in the Public Gardens and the tremendous losses with which the hotels, the shops, the entire, multifaceted tourist trade would be threatened in case of panic and loss of confidence — proved stronger in the city than the love of truth and respect for international covenants: it made the authorities stick stubbornly to their policy of secrecy and denial.

Interesting aside: The word legerdemain is used in the description of one of the pearl dealers in Steinbeck’s short novel. It’s not a common word, so it struck me when I encountered it again in the Heim translation of Mann’s work.

[Kareni]

Last night I stayed up late finishing a reread of Shards of Honor  by Lois McMaster Bujold which I first read in May of last year. Since I read the rest of the series only recently, I'd forgotten some details from this first book. In fact, I was about halfway through the final book in the series before I realized that that book was taking place in the same location as this one and that the series had come full circle. I enjoyed revisiting this book.

"When Cordelia Naismith and her survey crew are attacked by a renegade group from Barrayar, she is taken prisoner by Aral Vorkosigan, commander of the Barrayan ship that has been taken over by an ambitious and ruthless crew member. Aral and Cordelia survive countless mishaps while their mutual admiration and even stronger feelings emerge. A science fiction romance by a Hugo and Nebula Award winning master. "

Regards,

Kareni

[Liz CA]

Audiobook:

"The Confessor" by Daniel Silva - This is new for me. Just started on way home from work tonight. I took a step into the unknown....LOL.

Reading:

"Who speaks for the Damned?" by C.S. Harris. Reading takes me longer these days but this one is the kind I read late into the night when I should be asleep.

I clicked on the link "what should I read next" and as a suggestion came "Murder on Bank St: A Gaslight Mystery" by Victoria Thompson. Anyone read any of her books?

[Kareni]

I just finished reading Goldilocks by Laura Lam. This science fiction novel surprised me several times. One review describes it as a mix of The Martian and the Handmaid's Tale.

 "Despite increasing restrictions on the freedoms of women on Earth, Valerie Black is spearheading the first all-female mission to a planet in the Goldilocks Zone, where conditions are just right for human habitation.
It's humanity's last hope for survival, and Naomi, Valerie's surrogate daughter and the ship's botanist, has been waiting her whole life for an opportunity like this - to step out of Valerie's shadow and really make a difference.
But when things start going wrong on the ship, Naomi begins to suspect that someone on board is concealing a terrible secret - and realizes time for life on Earth may be running out faster than they feared . . ."

Regards,

Kareni

[Ottakee]

The Night Watchman.  

I really enjoyed this story based loosely in the author's grandfather and family history.   Set in the early 1950s it shows the struggles of Native Americans in North Dakota and the way the US government wanted to once again break the treaty made with them.

So many parts of this story fit my own extended family's experiences.....Indian boarding school, balancing the traditional ways with modern white ways, extreme poverty, disappearance of a family member, etc.

Here is a link to the story on my extended family member.

If you are wanting to expand your racial/cultural knowledge this is a great book.  There are a few very brief "adult" scenes....so be warned.  Easily skipped with print version or FF on audio 

Edited July 7, 2020 by Ottakee

[aggieamy]

On 7/5/2020 at 3:15 PM, Pen said:

After  finishing the most recent Kincaid/James (hope she’s writing another!), I tested out a few samples and ended up with Cotterill’s The Coroner’s Lunch 

 

I read that as an audiobook a few years ago and really enjoyed it. Great characters! I meant to revisit the series but other books got in the way.

On 7/6/2020 at 5:49 AM, Violet Crown said:

But think how much we’re saving in gasoline these days! 

So much truth here. I don't even go to the grocery store anymore. A tank of gas lasts me like a month!

[aggieamy]

On 7/5/2020 at 11:40 AM, Robin M said:

Pick an author's name  and plug it into the Literature Map (used Nora Roberts as an example) and choose a different author to explore. Type their name into What Should I Read Next or explore books from their popular subjects lists.  Pick a book at random from your own shelves or use the Random Books for Everyone generator.  

This is great! Look at all my favorite authors and a few soon to be favorite authors!

Edited July 7, 2020 by aggieamy

[mumto2]

26 minutes ago, aggieamy said:

This is great! Look at all my favorite authors and a few soon to be favorite authors!

I have been finding these maps pretty interesting too.......that said Dick Francis appearing on the Georgette Heyer map cracks me up.  That said I have read a great deal of Dick Francis so maybe many historical romance fans read Dick Francis for the horses......he writes race track mysteries set in the U.K.

[aggieamy]

1 minute ago, mumto2 said:

I have been finding these maps pretty interesting too.......that said Dick Francis appearing on the Georgette Heyer map cracks me up.  That said I have read a great deal of Dick Francis so maybe many historical romance fans read Dick Francis for the horses......he writes race track mysteries set in the U.K.

There's a few funny things on there. It has DE Stevenson twice ... I take that to mean if you read GH then you REALLY REALLY need to read DE Stevenson too.

 

Edited July 7, 2020 by aggieamy

[mumto2]

6 hours ago, Ottakee said:

The Night Watchman.  

I really enjoyed this story based loosely in the author's grandfather and family history.   Set in the early 1950s it shows the struggles of Native Americans in North Dakota and the way the US government wanted to once again break the treaty made with them.

So many parts of this story fit my own extended family's experiences.....Indian boarding school, balancing the traditional ways with modern white ways, extreme poverty, disappearance of a family member, etc.

Here is a link to the story on my extended family member.

If you are wanting to expand your racial/cultural knowledge this is a great book.  There are a few very brief "adult" scenes....so be warned.  Easily skipped with print version or FF on audio 

Thank you for sharing the link about your family member.  I am so glad your family was able to learn what happened to him.  
 

The Night Watchman looks like a book I will enjoy listening to.  Going to put it on my wish list at the library.......

 

[mumto2]

10 minutes ago, aggieamy said:

There's a few funny things on there. It has DE Stevenson twice ... I take that to mean if you read GH then you REALLY REALLY need to read DE Stevenson too.

 

Dick Francis is by Josephine Tey......one of Tey’s mysteries ( think it was Brat Farrar) reminded me of Dick Francis.  I actually remember thinking that so maybe that is the connection.

[Kareni]

Today only, free for Kindle readers ~

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

Regards,

Kareni

[Violet Crown]

Forgot to mention earlier that I finished Evelyn Waugh's compilation of his own travel writing, When the Going Was Good, my first entry for the First to the Guillotine category. Wikipedia will be my touchstone for said category, as it seems a handy barometer for public sentiment. Here's the j'accuse entry on Waugh, tacked onto a nuanced discussion of Waugh's deliberately cultivated upper-class Misanthropic Curmudgeon persona:

Quote

Waugh has been criticised for expressing racial and anti-semitic prejudices. Wykes describes Waugh's anti-semitism as "his most persistently noticeable nastiness", and his assumptions of white superiority as "an illogical extension of his views on the naturalness and rightness of hierarchy as the principle of social organization."

To the guillotine!

[Ottakee]

1 hour ago, mumto2 said:

Thank you for sharing the link about your family member.  I am so glad your family was able to learn what happened to him.  
 

The Night Watchman looks like a book I will enjoy listening to.  Going to put it on my wish list at the library.......

 

It is a great book.  Just be aware that towards the end there are a few brief scenes not for young ears.

[Penguin]

Have y'all talked about Bookshop.org for buying books from indie bookstores?

I think it only came online during the pandemic, but I'm not totally sure about that. According to the FAQ, "10% of regular sales on Bookshop.org are added to an earnings pool that is evenly divided and distributed to independent bookstores every six months." For example, I could simply search for Louise Erdrich's Night Watchman. put it in my cart and check out.

Alternatively, you can use the Find a Bookstore function and your purchase will support a particular store. A lot of indie booksellers don't have their own online webshop, and this provided an alternative. My local bookstore is part of Bookshop.org but you can only buy the books that are featured on its page. So I can't, for example, order the Night Watchman from this particular store.   Nope! That was wrong. I just have to choose the store before I put the book in my cart, and that will make the specific store get the money.

--

I whittled my active reading for this week down to a manageable three. I'll talk about them more in another post or when I finish them.

The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischwili (fiction)

A Question of Freedom: A Memoir of Learning, Survival, and Coming of Age During Prison by Reginald Dwayne Betts (memoir)

Yahya Hassan 2 by Yahya Hassan (Danish poetry)

On 7/6/2020 at 1:55 PM, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

Finished Darkly Dreaming Dexter. 3/5 stars. Not sure it would have appealed without watching the TV series, but I've decided to continue on with Book 2. It's a quick fun read and it's different enough from the TV series I'm intrigued to see what happens in book vs. film. 

I loved the show but couldn't go beyond the first book. I felt like the writers of the show did a great job creating something impressive out of an unimpressive book. I'll be curious to hear what you think of Book 2.

 

Edited July 7, 2020 by Penguin

[Violet Crown]

3 hours ago, Penguin said:

Have y'all talked about Bookshop.org for buying books from indie bookstores?

Is it for stores selling new books only, or is it mixed new and used? I couldn't tell from the website. It seems like a good site for supporting independents.

ETA: Okay I tried the search function for my neighborhood, and it listed the new bookstores only. I was pleased to see that it listed all the ones I know of.

Edited July 7, 2020 by Violet Crown

[Penguin]

OK, I just called my local store and asked them some questions about bookshop.org.

The most important question was: Is this really a good deal for them? Answer: Yes, they love it.

And this is important, too:

If you choose a store, you will land on their page within bookshop and the store will be displayed in the upper left corner (at least on a laptop). Now I can buy ANY book (Night Watchman is as good an example as any), and that store will get the funds. The funds will NOT go into the pool. The little banner says that I have raised "$X for local bookstores" but she assured me that as long as I choose their store first, they will get the money.

So disregard what I said above about only being able to purchase featured books from my local. That was incorrect.

Edited July 8, 2020 by Penguin

[Robin M]

Thanks for the link and information on Bookshop.org. Discovered 5 indies within 50 miles that I didn't know existed and looking forward to ordering. 

 

My outlaw read for this week - Polaris Rising by Jessie Mihalik which is pretty good 

"A space princess on the run and a notorious outlaw soldier become unlikely allies in this imaginative, sexy space opera adventure—the first in an exciting science fiction trilogy."

A few finds from around the webosphere:

Outlaws and Lawmen of the Old West

15 Best Science Fiction Westerns

Good books Listopia for Outlaws

Story of the Outlaw – Study of the Western Desperado

[mumto2]

I finally had a chance to update my Ladies of Lit spelling list for June......

 

June- NK Jeminson

 

N........Visions of Heat by Nalini Singh

K.........Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison

 

J..........Credible Threat by JA Jance

E..........Network Effect by Martha Wells

M.........Breath of Magic by Teresa Medeiros

I...........The Island by Ragnar Jonasson

S..........The Gabriel Hounds by Mary Stewart

I............Caressed by Ice by Nalini Singh

N...........A Duke By Any Other Name by Grace Burrows

[Kareni]

Today only, a free book by P. G. Wodehouse ~

Unready Money by P. G. Wodehouse,

 "A penniless English lord, an inheritance up for grabs, and a beautiful beekeeper get into a hornet’s nest of trouble in this classic romantic comedy.
 
Bill Chalmers may hold the title of Lord Dawlish, but he’s too broke to marry his fiancée, who insists he become rich before they wed. So he heads to New York to make his fortune—only to have someone else’s dropped in his lap. It seems an American millionaire whom Bill once helped with golf has left him his entire fortune. What’s even stranger, the man’s own niece, Elizabeth, was left out of the will entirely.
 
Bill offers to split the inheritance with Elizabeth and is surprised when she refuses. But he’s even more surprised when he meets her face-to-face on Long Island. The charming beekeeper is the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen. And while Elizabeth is incensed at the presumptuous Lord Dawlish, she warms to Bill Chalmers like bees to honey. So begins a madcap comedy of manners and mistaken identity, in which Bill’s fortune-seeking fiancée in from England, a rambunctious pet monkey, and more bees than you can shake a stick at all add up to another hilarious yarn from immortal master of farce P. G. Wodehouse."

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Additional free books for Kindle readers ~

Love and Murder in Savannah: 1920s Historical Paranormal Mystery by Harper Lin

Deadline  by Judy McDonough

 

Regards,

Kareni

[mumto2]

I finished listening to a book of Agatha Christie short stories this afternoon for my Agatha Christie in order challenge.  The first story in the book is the title of the collection, Murder on the Mews, and was a new to me Christie.  The rest of the stories I remember from past readings but all were very enjoyable.  This was probably the best Christie collection I have read fwiw 😉 

I also gave in to my  mood and finished the Fellowship of the Ring. I have decided I don’t particularly like the second half of Fellowship.......it’s exciting but sad as Frodo becomes more isolated until............

[Kareni]

Some bookish posts ~

From Jungle Red Writers: Rhys on What We're Reading (lots of good comments)

https://www.jungleredwriters.com/2020/04/rhys-on-what-were-reading.html?m=1

and

Revisiting Old Favorites--The Secret Garden

https://www.jungleredwriters.com/2020/06/revisiting-old-favorites-secret-garden.html?m=1Adult

Wearable Books: In Medieval Times, They Took Old Manuscripts & Turned Them into Clothes

http://www.openculture.com/2020/07/16th-century-bookwheels-the-e-readers-of-the-renaissance-get-brought-to-life-by-21st-century-designers.html

**

And an additional free book for Kindle readers ~

 Dead Red Cadillac by RP Dahlke

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Today only, a free fantasy for Kindle readers ~

Code of Rainbow: Soaring Flame and the Dragon-transcending Magimal (Book 1) by Weiqi Wang

 "This is the first book of a teen fantasy book series that nurtures the bloom of MAGIC in the soil of SCIENCE. The magic in this world is different from the "traditional" concept, because it's backed up by realistic, physical scientific theories. As the story goes on, you'll enjoy the unique charm of science and magic merging into each other - something that has rarely been attempted before. The transition from magic to science will be bit by bit, so the early books do read like a "mainstream" magic fantasy.

Soarame has a pair of special eyes. He can see magic elements in this world, which are supposed to be invisible. This enviable gift of his could reveal the truth of the world, but it also puts him in danger.

Many animals in this world possess magic power, so they are called “magimals” - dragons as examples. Soarame fortunately got a baby magimal as his best friend, but they got into troubles together - troubles that were a lot bigger than dragons.

Could they survive? "

Regards,

Kareni

[Lady Florida.]

On 7/5/2020 at 3:54 PM, Mothersweets said:

 

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Beautifully written with believable characters  - I was so moved by this book. 

 

 

 

I read that several years ago and thought it was a wonderful book. Glad to hear you liked it too.

On 7/7/2020 at 3:33 AM, Ottakee said:

The Night Watchman.  

I really enjoyed this story based loosely in the author's grandfather and family history.   Set in the early 1950s it shows the struggles of Native Americans in North Dakota and the way the US government wanted to once again break the treaty made with them.

So many parts of this story fit my own extended family's experiences.....Indian boarding school, balancing the traditional ways with modern white ways, extreme poverty, disappearance of a family member, etc.

Here is a link to the story on my extended family member.

If you are wanting to expand your racial/cultural knowledge this is a great book.  There are a few very brief "adult" scenes....so be warned.  Easily skipped with print version or FF on audio 

 

Thank you for sharing your family's story. I'm glad there was closure even if it wasn't the hoped for ending. Thank you also for the recommendation. I do want to read Native American authors (I've only read Tommy Orange) and had Louise Erdrich on my list as an author to read. I thought I would start with The Roundhouse but added The Night Watchman to my list as well. Have you read The Roundhouse? Do you think one is a better place to start than the other? Both have a waiting list at my library so my plan was to just read whichever one comes in first.

[Lady Florida.]

My reading has been all over the place. At first I thought it was Covid-19 causing it but then I realized this happens to me several times a year. Each new (to me) book that comes on my radar is like SQUIRREL! and instead of adding it to my TBR list, I have to start reading it. I had too many books going. I even had a few ebooks automatically go back the the library that I not only never started, but didn't even remember checking them out. So, I've pulled back and am sticking to the few I was already reading. 

I did manage to finish The Merry Wives of Windsor and this one ended up being nothing more than a check mark on my Shakespeare challenge list. The Elizabethan idea of comedy, their sense of humor, often has me scratching my head. That was funny? People back then went to this play and laughed? Oh well, it wasn't awful and had a typical Shakespeare comedy ending of everything working out in the end. Dare I say all's well that ends well? <groan>

Still reading - The Eighth Life, The Fire Next Time, The Romanovs, and listening to Plutarch's Lives. 

I did add one book and am glad I did. People here (especially @Kareni) have been raving about The Goblin Emperor for years. I downloaded the sample and before I even finished reading it I bought the full book. I'm loving this and it's perfect for my bedtime reading. The ones above are too serious/heavy for before bed. 

[aggieamy]

29 minutes ago, Lady Florida. said:

I read that several years ago and thought it was a wonderful book. Glad to hear you liked it too.

Thank you for sharing your family's story. I'm glad there was closure even if it wasn't the hoped for ending. Thank you also for the recommendation. I do want to read Native American authors (I've only read Tommy Orange) and had Louise Erdrich on my list as an author to read. I thought I would start with The Roundhouse but added The Night Watchman to my list as well. Have you read The Roundhouse? Do you think one is a better place to start than the other? Both have a waiting list at my library so my plan was to just read whichever one comes in first.

Have you read any Sherman Alexie? I highly recommend his books.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4174.Sherman_Alexie?from_search=true&from_srp=true