Random books from alaskabookworm's library

About me VOTE BARACK OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT IN 2008!!!!

Sorry. Until this year, I was the most nonpolitical person you'd every meet.

On to books.

I am a 37-year-old happily-married mother of four, whose greatest passion (other than family) is books and reading. For the past four years, I have lived in Anchorage, Alaska, a haven of leisure and contemplation.

LibraryThing has both saved me from my obsession, and empowered me to "run with it."

My friends are "deeply concerned." (And yet, these same people often come to me for book recommendations... An oddly satisfying dichotomy.)

I have led a "literary" book club for the past 4 years. I am so delighted that members actually READ the assigned books - and they aren't always easy. (It was for book club that I was reading Dostoyevsky's "The Brother's Karamozov" while in labor with my 4th child back in 2004 - my OB walked into L&D and did a double-take when she saw what I was reading; she thought I was insane. The very fact she was asute enough to recognize my insanity pegged her up more than a few notches in my book.)

Since I joined LibraryThing, I have volunteered to be "head librarian" at my church, which has given me yet another library to obsess over (LibraryThing user name: abchurchak).

Meanwhile, I continue to debunk the myth that motherhood destroys the ability to read. I have four gorgeous, healthy kids, and still try to read 100+ pages per day. My two oldest kids read well above grade level. So, I console myself that my neglect of them while I read is not a total loss.

I desire to be a spiritual person, and a great deal of what I read is an exercise in better trying to understand the "human condition". In recent years, it has been my profound delight to find there are amazing writers who are thinking people of faith - I used to not think this possible.

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About my library According to my mother, my first sentence was: "Read-a-book". This used to be a clever anecdote she would share at cocktail parties (back in the 70s: in those days, all it took to entertain were salted nuts and dinner mints). Now I think she's troubled by where this initially-innocent phrase has taken me.

Every few months, I go to LT's Zeitgeist tab and calculate how large my library is compared to the entirety of LT users. Once I am reassured of continuing along in the top 1%, I can sleep at night.

When my first child was born in 1998, I had a "to read" pile of about 25 books. Now, that pile is around 2,500. I can neither stop buying books, nor can I get rid of any. (I love the concept of a library, but typically only use it twice a year when they have their "Friends of the Library" book sales.)

The weird thing about LibraryThing is that it came along at EXACTLY THE RIGHT TIME. I was just beginning to amass "troubling" numbers of books (with ever-increasing numbers of duplicates); I could no longer remember what I had; the savant-like ability to find any book anywhere in my house was being crippled by the sheer numbers I am now required to keep track of. My discovery of LT was the result of an Internet search, employed in a moment of desperation.

I rarely loan books out for fear they will return damaged, or not return at all (I daren't give examples for fear of horrifying you and exposing the worst offenders).

I realize that there are people who have far more books than I. I salute them. Some day when I'm 60, and have been amassing books at 100+ per month, those same folks can weep at my feet. I will not give up; I will not give in....

My personal library is a blend of Toni Morrison and Charles Colson; Neil Gaiman and G. K. Chesterton; Christopher Moore and C. S. Lewis.

That's the way I like it.

My dream is to have a dedicated room in my house JUST for my lovely books and me.

Homepagehttp://www.alaskabookworm.blogspot.com

Also onBlogger

Membership LibraryThing Early Reviewers

Real nameLinda

LocationAnchorage, Alaska

Emaillindajo528hotmail.com

Account typepublic, lifetime

URLs http://www.librarything.com/profile/alaskabookworm (profile)
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/alaskabookworm (library)

Member sinceApr 29, 2006

Comments from other LibraryThing-ers

(Leave a comment.)

Oh, I guess we inhumane secularists look just like any other joe or jane at a book sale, but our First Communion portraits, moldering in the attic, by now have enlongated canines, horn bumps, and Midnight-Kohl eyeshadowing. Of course, what kid doesn't these days?

I shy away from the pressboard shelves. I have a theory that they are like little Asian industrial democracies, eternally spewing formaldehyde into the clear skies of my living room. And like people, they tend to sag over time. Sigh, I'll probably have to take measurements, go to the lumber yard, and mutilate a few thumbs. Better safe than Sudafed. :-) But thanks for your reply.
- G

posted by Ganeshaka at 4:25 pm (EST) on May 8, 2008

Linda, damn! We have nothing in common except books, Obama, and Anchorage. (Just goes to show you - Obama is a unifier)I'm a secular humanist, or an inhumane secularist, and that's being generous. Still, I admire your bibliophilia. You're probably one of those people I scrimmaged with last Saturday at the Loussac (I always file my elbows to bone spear point before entering the Assembly meeting area):-) Anyhow, my question for you is: Can you recommend anyplace in Anchorage for bookshelves? How have you solved that problem?

posted by Ganeshaka at 11:39 am (EST) on May 8, 2008

Absolutely move it up!!!!! It's a good read, rewarding and one which, while not light, is not too dense. Prepare for a little spooky. One night while reading it, my wife was making a noise behind me and I didn't know what it was. I was reluctant to turn around because the book had gotten inside my head. Enjoy your visitors!

posted by blackdogbooks at 8:13 pm (EST) on May 7, 2008

Hello alaskabookworm,

Just finished Duma Key and wondered if you ever got to it? If not, you should really love the read. It's spooky and sad and very well written. Cheers on accepting the librarian position at your church! Big responsibility but lots of fun to work with books! Especially with LT!!

Also, I am a big Obama supporter. Have you read The Audacity of Hope yet. Good read and good distillization of his thoughts. I haven't read his other one about growing up yet.

posted by blackdogbooks at 12:21 pm (EST) on May 7, 2008

Sorry about that - you *are* getting America America

Abby

posted by ablachly at 1:06 pm (EST) on May 6, 2008

Righteous political statement! (Or should that be Lefteous?)

I saw we've got a bunch of book in common, so I thought I'd drop by. Being an outdoors lover, except when reading, of course, I'd enjoy visiting your part of the planet one of these days. My wife is a Librarian and with both of us loving books as much as we do, it is no wonder both of our kids also love books. My daughter is working on a project to get one of her favorite authors, sorry, I can't remember the author's name but she writes about "undeads", to come to my wife's library for a talk.

Love your morph at the top . . . uh . . . it is a morph, isn't it?

posted by PghDragonMan at 9:29 am (EST) on Apr 21, 2008

A protocol thing: If I am going to be sharing book excitements with you frequently, should we be doing that by email, rather than on this public forum? I am fine either way of course. For now then, just my recent reading: I have always at least four books on the go immediately. I have just finished David Guterson's Snow Falling on Cedars. I will soon be done with Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres. My current YA book is Nick Hornby's Slam. My YA before that was William Bell's The Blue Helmet. I am also reading Pablo Casals' Joys and Sorrows and a collection of mystery stories edited by Lawrence Block, called Master's Choice. Oh yeah, and a memoir by Bill Cooper about his father.

posted by polutropos at 7:30 pm (EST) on Apr 17, 2008

And just a few hours after reading your profile I have come across a book that I think you'd love. It is called The Things That Matter: an Anthology of Women's Spiritual Poetry. Edited by Julia Neuberger, published by Kyle Cathie in 1992, ISBN 185626078X. Many well-known poets, among them Browning, the Bronte sisters, Dickenson, Rossetti, H.D., Bishop, and Stevie Smith.

posted by polutropos at 3:00 pm (EST) on Apr 17, 2008

Hi Linda:

I LOVE your About Me. We have so much in common. OK, so I am a man, so not THAT in common. But I am happily married, and a book nut. I have somewhere between 8,000 and 10,000 books on shelves everywhere, in piles everywhere and in boxes filling all closets. I read all the time and add books all the time. My To Be Read pile is in the thousands, of course. I have just started putting my books into my LT library; time is of course always an issue. Returning from a grocery shopping trip, I will sneak into the house just a few books picked up at the local Goodwill or garage sale. And as of yet my long-suffering wife has not divorced me or thrown me out of the house. :-) I am working on reforming, honest. Let's talk books. Can we be friends?
Andrew

posted by polutropos at 11:53 am (EST) on Apr 17, 2008

Well, I have picked up Satanic Verses several times but been unable ot convince myself to buy it. The concept in the flap description seems just a little odd.

As to Joe Hill, I am a big Stephen King fan and I also had no idea of the relation. I had already bought the book and had it in my TBR stack before learning of the connection.

Now, how's that for backwards. I am a Stephen King fan but think Satanic Verses might be odd. Oh well, we're all a bundle of contradictions!!!! So far, about 100 pages into The Heart Shaped Box and loving it. I can see some similarities in their styles. Wonder if I would have noticed if I'd readit without knowing the connection?!?!?

See you are also a 75'r. But, with 100 pages a day goal, you should have no trouble exceeding the 75 books this year. I jsut like the idea of eavesdropping on other people's reading to expose myself to other books!!!

posted by blackdogbooks at 8:50 pm (EST) on Apr 6, 2008

Good to hear from someone who snagged an Early Review Book. I just got my first, Dream Lucky, a Non-Fiction sort of slice of life focusing on the late 1930's. I enjoyed it and reviewed it favorably. But, then I looked at the other reviews to find that most panned it. I thought the other reviewers expectecd too much from it, hoping for an in-depth historical account of either the time or some of the people of the time. Anyway, like I often say, that's the best thing about books, you don't have to agree with everyone about one book because there are so many available.

I haven't read any Rushdie, though he is on some of my 100 best lists and I intend to get there. Have you read other Rushdie works? Any favorites or ones you didn't enjoy?

posted by blackdogbooks at 9:49 am (EST) on Apr 6, 2008

alaskabookworm,

Hey! I live in Eagle River and I was eager to run into your name through the 75 books a year group. I'm new to Librarything and don't even begin to have one shelf of my library entered here. Nevertheless, I wanted to give a hello to a fellow Alaskan reader!

posted by lutheranjulia at 1:41 am (EST) on Apr 6, 2008

Hello,

I am enjoying learning about the different possibilities of this website and just learned how to use the Interesting Libraries section. You and I share over 350 books, which is largely due to your extensive catalog. I am not yet your equal in books owned but I aspire. Anyway, I will enjoy picking thorugh our common works and may shoot your a comment now and then to ask about a book you've finished to see if it makes it to my TBR stack. That is, if you don't mind the bother.

posted by blackdogbooks at 8:30 pm (EST) on Apr 5, 2008

I'm not sure about links, but I saw your query about how to put images in threads, and I'll pass along what "frogbelly" told me in response to that same query from me:

"Go to www.photobucket.com and create an account there. It's free. Then you upload pictures that you have saved on your computer to your account there. Then wherever you want to post one of those pictures, use the code
7img src="x"7
where the x is the direct link to where it is saved on photobucket. Also, in the above code use an opening and closing < and > in place of the 7s. It wouldn't have shown up on this message if I'd put it in the correct way."

I hope this makes sense to you--I've been posting pictures like crazy since finding out how less than two weeks ago!

posted by ejj1955 at 4:55 pm (EST) on Mar 29, 2008

Hi there - better late than never. You sent me a (very funny) message months ago and I'm now responding; I'm usually a bit more punctual than that. So am I still on top of your list or have you managed to escape me yet? I've been trying to downsize lately because I just do not have room in the house anymore, although I have bookshelves in every room, and my guest room has become a library - yet for some reason my total number of books still manages to creep up. Although I still seem to be acquiring at a rate greater than disposing, at least it's not quite the disparity it used to be. Reading anything good these days?

posted by obsessedbybooks at 2:48 pm (EST) on Mar 17, 2008

thanks! it's true, i am lucky in the mountains of ARCs i receive!

posted by advancedreader at 11:05 am (EST) on Mar 1, 2008

Glad to see you on GoodReads! I just accepted your friend request. I haven't bothered importing my book collection into GoodReads since I don't use it to keep track of my library. I use it to track books I've read, whether or not I own them, and for social networking. I love LibraryThing and use it to keep track of my actual collection as well as social networking; I don't use LT for tracking books I don't own.

I'm still learning to navigate GoodReads. I haven't figured out how to add books unless I go to Home and then use the Add Books link. I wish the add books feature had its own tab or something a bit more obvious.

posted by TerriB at 5:22 pm (EST) on Feb 28, 2008

Hi Linda,

You are adorable and kind. I love your profile and library descriptions--they're warm and genuine and hilarious.

I read your Danny Gospel review, too--you were much kinder than I was. I felt a little conflicted about writing such a tough review, because I don't want to hurt feelings--but in the end I decided that a book review is not an attack on a person, just my honest assessment (for what it's worth--and I've never actually written an entire book!) of a literary attempt.

I'm reading The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins because I want to review it on my blog; and I'm also reading The Translator for the LT/ER program. Unfortunately, I left my copy in a restaurant (because I can't go anywhere without a book! I'm sure you know what I mean) and it'll take me a few days to get back there. I'll end up spending $10 in gas to retrieve my free book. Such is life.

Thanks for connecting with me and honoring me by tagging my library as interesting. Let's be LT friends--how do you do that, anyway?

Eve

posted by eba1999 at 10:23 am (EST) on Feb 26, 2008

Hi Linda thanks for the welcome and I think I might like Sara Miles so I'll check it out. Just finished Quindlen's Rise and Shine which might enjoy although you may have already read. I find I cant go wrong with Berg Quindlen and Lamott although after a while you notice recurring themes and characters

posted by kateblu at 4:18 pm (EST) on Feb 16, 2008

Hi Linda, I just joined library thing, was having fun listing my most memorable books tonight trying to remember titles then found it fascinating connecting to others who have read the same books. So far, when I found that you and I had read 52 of the same books I was astounded, maybe that isnt unusual, I dont know yet... just figured we had to be somewhat kindred spirits...

posted by kateblu at 10:25 pm (EST) on Feb 13, 2008

I just read your comment at gveach. Rockstars! I like that! I'm glad someone appreciates us.
Congratulations on your Charles Williams books. I hope you like them. It's been a loooong time since I've read them. It's about time to pull them out and read again. They have a definite atmosphere. I'll be curious to see what you think.

posted by TerriB at 4:15 pm (EST) on Feb 9, 2008

So cool! I just wrote a Master's thesis on Charles Williams' poetry. But I haven't read the novels since college (more years ago than I want to admit). I had a professor who got me started with him. Let me know how you like them. I really like the Greater Trumps, but also Descent into Hell and All Hallows eve.

posted by gveach at 3:05 pm (EST) on Feb 9, 2008

Linda, it looks like Terri and you and I share a lot in common. I also love Prayer for Owen Meany, Charles Williams (all the Inklings, actually), Madeleine L'Engle, Anne Lamott! Right now I'm reading a lot of Alexander McCall Smith-- I was lucky enough to see him lecture last week, loved it, and my mom got the 5-book set of Ladies No.1 Detective Agency for Christmas, so she lent them to me. I also like his Isabel Dalhousie books.

posted by gveach at 7:44 am (EST) on Feb 7, 2008

I really should add these authors to my favorites list: Madeleine L'Engle, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, and Charles Williams. See what I mean? Hard to pick just a few!

posted by TerriB at 11:21 pm (EST) on Feb 3, 2008

Linda, Nice to meet you! I'm from Arizona but I live in So. California. I've lived here for so long now that I should probably get used to calling myself a Californian, but I still love and miss Arizona and hope to return someday. I'm currently reading two books: Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell (reading for the LibraryThing early reviewers; I love her books and was thrilled to get my hands on this one before it's publishing date) and Developing the Leader Within You by John Maxwell. I find it difficult to pick favorite authors since the list would be so long, but I do love Mary Doria Russell, Terry Pratchett, Nikolai Gogol (though I haven't read him in ages), and Connie Willis ... just to name a few.

posted by TerriB at 11:17 pm (EST) on Feb 3, 2008

I have to agree with your comments regarding John Irving's book A Prayer For Owen Meany. Like you, I categorize this as one of my favorites. I have three favories, not necssarily in order: Jane Eyre, A Prayer for Owen Meany and To Kill a Mocking Bird.

Thanks for your posts.

Linda in Bethlehem, PA

posted by Whisper1 at 10:43 pm (EST) on Jan 21, 2008

My tastes ARE very eclectic. Right now I'm reading "Legacy of Ashes: a History of the CIA" and " The Second Civil War: How extreme partisanship has paralyzed Washington and polarized America." I got these from reading the recommended book lists at the NY Times end of the year article. Plus I live near DC (for better or worse). Recently I was reading biographies of Tolkien.

posted by lesleyap at 9:25 am (EST) on Jan 15, 2008

Love your picture! Very funny. We share some of my favorite books. My book obsession has raised some "concern" too amongst my friends. ;) Looking forward to preusing your wonderful library.

posted by lesleyap at 2:01 pm (EST) on Jan 13, 2008

Goodness Linda, we share 167 books and I have not finished entering mine yet. You sound like you have the writing bones as well. Nice bio read. I will check out the rest of your books with interest. Keep your dream alive, mine came true and I have a lovely book lined room with an antique armchair and reading lamp. Hope it comes true for you, it's such a joy. regards huni

posted by huni at 1:31 am (EST) on Jan 8, 2008

Goodness, we share 167 books and I have not finished entering mine yet. I loved reading about you and sensed a person with true writing bones. I will check out what other books you have and if I may, put you on my watch list. regards huni.

posted by huni at 1:25 am (EST) on Jan 8, 2008

Hi again...nearly a month after you wrote me I am back to write you! Believe me I am usually on LT more often but for various reasons I have not been on lately. It is so exciting to hear from someone in Alaska and to know you love books like I do. The last books I have read are Love In The Time Of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez( He is definitely a favorite of mine and I want to read more of his books) and Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All( Which has been a great book). You know I guess we could all read a lifetime and never come close to reading all that is out there. What a shame to know that we will have to miss some wonderful books and authors. Who would think about something like this but a bookaholic like me! LOL! You sound like a very interesting person and I have read some of your blog. Right now I am trying to go back and pick up books that I have missed reading that were on my "to be read list"! All the books I list are books I have read except the reference books. I JUST KEEP FINDING BOOKS I HAVE TO OWN OR THEY KEEP FINDING ME!!!! Hope to hear from you and I promise not to take so long to answer! God Bless!

posted by wordwanderer at 6:06 pm (EST) on Dec 3, 2007

Hi Linda,
I am also a Linda in Anchorage! And a librarian here too. You have a very impressive library, and I enjoyed reading your reviews.
Regards,
Linda

posted by librarianlk at 4:54 am (EST) on Nov 29, 2007

Hello from Texas! You will absolutely get no criticism from me because of all your reading and book collecting...only deep admiration! You have a wonderful library which I just visited. It is filled with such a variety of books! Do you have one book that is your all time favorite or is that too difficult a request with such a grand and staggering collection. I have heard Alaska is beautiful. Just so you know....I can't quit buying books either. My house is filled, I am still adding them to LibraryThing and I am trying to find creative ways to display them in every room because I even like to just look at them. I call it Bookitis but it really isn't a sickness...or an addiction. It is more of a lifelong quest in discovery, experience and enjoyment! See, you are among friends of a like mind!

posted by wordwanderer at 1:31 pm (EST) on Oct 30, 2007

Great to meet you. Looking forward to checking out your library and I hope you enjoy mine.

posted by lisaunger at 3:12 pm (EST) on Oct 24, 2007

You seem like a kindred soul! At least, you could be my new idol! Four Kids and you still read that much! I am scared of having kids at all because I am afraid that I am never going to get any reading done! Thanks for the reassurances. :o)

posted by wizardsheart at 3:21 pm (EST) on Oct 21, 2007

Wow. We share 335 books, including classic literature, biographies, and random other finds. Even your library description sounds eerily familiar. Pray tell, what's one of the most recent books you finished?

posted by benjfrank at 11:13 pm (EST) on Jul 28, 2007

Greetings Alaskan Bookworm, We seem to share 155 books in common. I wandered your fair state last spring, but didn't make it far enough up to anchor up in Anchorage. They alledged at the time that the bears were waking up in May in search of skunk cabbage to eat and should wear a bell when roaming. True? That's quite an interesting breed of kitty in your pic, unique to Alaska? ;-) Phyllis

posted by varielle at 9:55 am (EST) on May 24, 2007

Hey Linda,

I was just perusing libraries of those with a lot of books in common with mine (fun little pasttime) - We have 190 shared books! So naturally I had to browse around a little. Had to first gird my courage to get past that seriously scary ...uh, cat? Nice collection of Ray Bradbury. Have you read his recent sequel to "Dandelion Wine" yet? And if you liked "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" as much as I did (even though I suspect 52-year old men are not the intended demographic), the three sequels are nearly its equal. Very nice collection of Anne Tyler too; I rarely see Tyler collections this extensive. And I was curious about "To Sir With Love", mainly because the movie first inspired me to go into teaching. Was the book a novelization of the movie? Or was the book first, and was it as good as the movie?

Anyway, very enjoyable library to browse through, even though I only got up to the "D"s before it was time for beddy-byes.

posted by burnit99 at 7:53 pm (EST) on May 23, 2007

Hey Linda,
I'm sorry I never got back to you. It's been crazy around here and I haven't checked library thing for awhile. Newbigin - well, I have to be in the mood. If my brain is outta practice it takes me awhile to engage. I'm gonna go back and try Gospel in Pluralist Society again. As for Lamott. I didn't enjoy Grace (Eventually) as much as I did her other books. Operating Instructions and Traveling Mercies were my favorites. I can't quite put my finger on why this one wasn't as good. If you read it, let me know what you think. And thanks for stopping by my blog! :)

Karen

posted by gerbmom at 4:04 pm (EST) on May 3, 2007

Don't know if you ever still check this, but I am amazed at the 80 or so books we have in common. I too am an avid reader that can't stop buying, with piles of books that fall over when I walk by. I was intrigued by the fact that we both seem to like history (Cahill) and faith related books such as those by Anne LaMott, B, McLaren and Donald Miller. Awesome! If you're ever interested stop by my blog - http://fluctuatingcertainty.blogspot.com/
to learn more about me!
Karen (in Illinois :) )

posted by gerbmom at 10:56 am (EST) on Apr 10, 2007

You share over 135 books with my pal, Jenny??? Damn! That's quite a few. And here I thought our 24 shared books were a lot. You must admit, though, that our shared books are a bit eclectic, eh? Cheers!

- Scott

posted by scottcholstad at 11:50 pm (EST) on Mar 9, 2007

Hello!

We share quite a few books (137). I'm also reading The Historian, which you recommend so highly. I liked your review of The Chronicles of Narnia...I read those books as a kid, so our perspectives are different, but I still agree with you about how moving they are. I like to reread them every couple years or so. :)

~Jenny

posted by goddessladyj at 3:31 pm (EST) on Mar 7, 2007

Hey, another Alaskan! I am fron the northern region of the state, and on these cold days (-37 today) there is NOTHING better than curling up with a good book by a warm wood stove...well maybe a few things, but not many. (Maybe a good MLT sandwich.)

My dream is to have a totally dedicated HOUSE for books...

Have you read Drop City yet? Just wondering what you think of it.

posted by Arctic-Stranger at 5:59 pm (EST) on Feb 28, 2007

Re: Radical Wisdom, I've not gotten into it too far, but what I've ready I really like. I bought it primarily because I'm interested in how Medieval mysticism gets into gender-bending in ways that seem so far out to contemporary ways of thinking. I work with undergraduates and so it's kinda fun to direct them to stuff that blows their minds and modern categories!

posted by BlackBerry at 4:40 pm (EST) on Jan 19, 2007

Hello again from New Brunswick! My husband slipped up badly and forgot to get me any books for Christmas so I had to go to the used book store and pick up a few. I bought Sylvia Plath's Bell Jar and a couple of British mysteries. However, if you want to try a great Canadian author try No Great Mischief...it's my favorite Canadian book. It is all about family loyalty and describes the closeness (that transcends generations) of the Scottish community in the Maritimes. Another favorite of mine is Who Has Seen the Wind, a beautiful coming of age story of a boy in the Canadian prairies who is searching for answers about life and death. Are you enjoying Exodus? I read it years ago and really liked it. Happy reading!

posted by brendaough at 6:38 pm (EST) on Jan 2, 2007

Hi from Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada....just new to Librarything---it's so exciting. I too have around 1000 books....I can't stop buying either and if I see a great book (especially in a used book store or a yard sale, I HAVE to buy it for a friend if I already own it! We share over 300 books....I am just starting to do tags for mine; it's obviously going to take a while. Drop in and see my library sometime!

posted by brendaough at 3:43 pm (EST) on Dec 23, 2006

Wow! I just learned about this web site and entered the 120 or so books that I can remember reading recently. I couldn't believe that you have read 71 of those books.I hope you don't mind, but I've added you to my "Watch List." Although I'm totally new here, I'm hoping the site will let me know whenever you add a new book.

Best wishes to you . . .

John-Mark

posted by Stensvaag at 12:32 pm (EST) on Dec 6, 2006

I clicked on your profile because we share quite a few books in common, but I must say, it's the photo that I need to comment on! My gosh, that is the funniest thing I've seen in a while. Thanks for the giggle!

-Snoopingbunny
(real name: Beverly)

posted by SnoopingBunny at 1:46 pm (EST) on Oct 7, 2006

Hi there - well, I had an easier job of it than you'd think because I already had a written list of most of my library - I started keeping a list when I realized I was buying duplicate books. But I did run around the house one weekend writing down isbn's of my husband's and daughter's books to add to the list - and yes I did find it rather soothing!

posted by obsessedbybooks at 9:03 am (EST) on Oct 4, 2006

I read the Count of Monte Cristo last summer and absolutely loved it. We also read A Suitable Boy this February and although it is rather daunting you will find when you get to the end that you want another 100 pages as ironically the end seems a bit rushed!! I have seen reading these books as 'exercise' as I do a lot of my readung on the bus to and from work so lugging these Tomes around in my bag must have strengthened some muscles!!!

I have to confess that I really dont get the Terry Pratchett thing...tried reading one of his books and really didn't like it and abandoned it fairly quickly. His genre just doesn't do it for me.

I'm about to start reading Sebastian Faulks Birdsong and I've heard that's really good. I need to fit in some book cataloguing first though as I have loads still to put in my library.....my husband sarcastically asked me last night whether he needed to bring down all my boxes of books from the loft now I'm cataloguing them. He just doesn't get it.

posted by redhead17 at 8:18 am (EST) on Oct 4, 2006

Hi! I noticed that you mentioned that you were trying to buy books in the BBC's Top 100 Books. Myself and a couple of friends have a bookclub and we are trying to read our way through the Top 100. I'm lagging behind a bit as Ive read about 35 but a couple of the others are past half way. Do you agree with all the books in the 100??? We are struggling with the fact that Terry Pratchett gets so many entries and what happened to good old Enid Blyton???

posted by redhead17 at 4:32 pm (EST) on Oct 3, 2006

just wanted to give you a shout out since we share 369 books. i also have a dream of one day having a room just for my books and i and as fast as they are accumulating i will need one in the near future. happy reading! :)

posted by amanaceerdh at 10:07 am (EST) on Oct 2, 2006

I live in Juneau, AK. But I use to visit Anchorage ALLLL the time when I lived in Valdez. I miss those trips, it was soooo exciting to be able to get away for a weekend -minus- the five philistines. Mine are twin girls 11 - then the next two girls 12 & 14yrs and then the only boy going on 16.

Yes ~ I completely agree regarding the "addiction" to this Librarythingy... when I'm finally done w/my books - I am going to continue on to the philistines books - because honestly their library is bigger than mine.

Ha!

posted by DieKia at 1:42 pm (EST) on Sep 19, 2006

Okay - I just recently joined Libraything and haven't finished putting in all my books - but we already have 43books in common... we BOTH live in Alaska... I have five children/ but the last two were twins so it was a two for one AND we both have the same name Linda.

Is it just me?? Or is that just weird?

Ha!

posted by DieKia at 1:15 pm (EST) on Sep 19, 2006

Hi Linda,
After reading your profile, I realized you are quite a lady. I live and teach in the Arizona desert near the Mexican border. I have a good friend in Anchorage, and New Year's 3.5 years ago,i was in Anchorage. So disappointed that I did not see a moose.

So wonderful to find people who have read the same books as I. Which book is your favorite.
Memphisbelle

posted by desertiris at 11:06 pm (EST) on Sep 10, 2006

Hi Linda,

You seem like a kindred spirit! I totally recognize the addiction to books, and I can hardly pass up an interesting one. And Alaska!!! Wow!!! I am from Norway and miss the northern lights and midnight sun... How are the temperatures in Anchorage these days?

But how do you find the time to read (and write) with 4 children running around? You are an inspiration! Also, how often does your book club meet?

Take care,
Karin

posted by kattepusen at 11:51 pm (EST) on Jul 17, 2006

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