Member: oregonobsessionz

Nice of you notice, and to write. We have been very careful to photograph and upload our covers when we can't find one at LT that matches exactly. Since you care about covers, please note that if you simply adopt a default Amazon cover, if Amazon changes its designated cover yours will change as well. It's only safe to use an Amazon cover if you copy it and paste it into the URL section. (I can explain further if this is unclear)

rybie2

posted by rybie2 at 5:33 pm (EST) on Jan 13, 2013

Thank you for looking at my page. I have done several searches for Powell's City of Books and can only find the one I favorited. There are 300+ favorites along with my own. I cannot find the "other" listing you mentioned in the comment. Thanks.

posted by revisetheessay at 6:15 pm (EST) on Jan 2, 2013

Hi again,
No that wasn't my cover image for the Mt St Helens book, but I checked my copy and the member-uploaded cover matched what I have. (Thanks for the tip!) I've only uploaded about two dozen covers -- all in the last couple years and usually when I realize there's none out there already. If you spot any other blank covers I can post, let me know.

Thanks for the comment about my PNW collection. Yours is very good, too! I'm starting to put mine to a new use with a new website, http://www.WA-List.com. I've always thought WA & OR go together in so many ways, but I had to focus on just WA for this project. That doesn't mean I won't still regularly visit Powell's in Portland or bike Ashland and The Dalles.

posted by benjfrank at 5:23 pm (EST) on Jun 25, 2011

Since you're interested in history and the Pacific NW, you might enjoy this one The Oregon Desert (http://www.librarything.com/work/525711/book/8015778 ). I started reading it while visiting grandparents in Springfield but didn't finish it, and had to scrounge up a used copy a couple years later.

posted by grizzly.anderson at 11:33 pm (EST) on Apr 25, 2011

Hello, Thanks for visiting my site. Yes, I did design the quilt on my profile. I hang it in my "library" area at home.

posted by TeriLB at 3:53 pm (EST) on Feb 20, 2011

Oops, I meant to leave you a link to the Foote work to save you searching. Here it is...

http://www.librarything.com/work/1552618

posted by justjim at 12:28 am (EST) on Jan 16, 2011

Hi there,

When you get a moment, could you have a look at the recommendation you left for the Foote Civil War work? I think it may have an unclosed italic tag that is leaking out to the rest of the page.

I did try to fix it by adding another recommendation, but that got posted above yours.

It may not be your recommendation of course, but it's worth a look.

Thanks,

Jim

posted by justjim at 12:28 am (EST) on Jan 16, 2011

I'm fairly sure that you are right.
I'll have to adjust the proof reading side of my brain. That makes another side that's not working very well. I can't even remember to take my Ginko Biloba.
Thanks for the nice comment.
Stay out of the rain.
Dusty

posted by gmillar at 12:07 pm (EST) on Nov 14, 2010

Thank you so much for helping with the edit question I had. Next time I need to, I will try it the way you suggested! :)

posted by EAG-HERC at 3:19 am (EST) on Oct 6, 2010

Thank you so very much for your correction. I have fixed the mistake. I took your comment as the act of a friend and was grateful. We must not let one another go out with spinish on our literary chin.

posted by hippypaul at 6:38 am (EST) on Aug 14, 2010

That was me -- I was way up there when I joined.
The bookshelves are "floating". They start just above the baseboard. I didn't want a space that I couldn't see or get a vacuum cleaner or dust mop into. I have enough refuges for bugs and lost cat toys.
If you want to have people think you're nuts, stand in a used cd store with an Iphone open to LT and two people yelling back and forth, "Hey, do you have this?" or "Do I have this?" You get funny looks.
What I haven't yet dealt with is the vinyl albums; I think I have about 600. And I still have lots of magazine/journal issues I haven't "analyzed". I figure I'm usually keeping the mag for one particular article so I need to be able to find that article when I want it.

posted by Dragonfly at 10:51 am (EST) on Jul 10, 2010

Re your review of Stuff, you and I are running neck-and-neck for library size and I hear that remark all the time, "so many books". I think we're a long way from being candidates for pyschological treatment (she said defensively).

posted by Dragonfly at 1:08 pm (EST) on Jul 9, 2010

I would but not all of them talk about twilight and this is for the younger twilight fans since im onlt16 and there are alot of adults on the groups who talk about other things

posted by Whinniethepooh at 5:43 pm (EST) on Jul 2, 2010

Many thanks for your help. I waas very concerned that such a book, or any book I'm involved with could be labelled SPAM. This, basically is a very simple little book, of 34 pages. It is a limited edition of 400, of which this is number 159. it contains a sampl per page of original Eoropean Calligraphy. I will scan the cover, which is very dark. I'm at present working to produce a slip-case to ptotect this book .
JHB

posted by johnbratby at 7:29 pm (EST) on Jun 13, 2010

Yes I marked it as SPAM - completely unintentionally, must have hit the wrong button! This is one of the most beautiful books in my collection, and is certainly not SPAM!
I noticed immediately, and about fifteen minutes later, after trying to undo it, gave up and wrote to Librarything to ask how to do it. The sooner I can get that label off it, the better.
As far as I'm aware nobody has replied, and I'm still no wiser on the subject.
Maybe you can help?.....................or somebody?
JHB

posted by johnbratby at 10:59 am (EST) on Jun 11, 2010

oh, I recommend his work very highly, for any book lovers. And he's a most amusing speaker -- I've seen him in person, and on Book TV.

If I had to recommend a single book, it would be A Gentle Madness, on the history of bibliomania

http://www.nicholasbasbanes.com/books/gentlemadness.phtml

Happy reading!

posted by danielx at 9:55 pm (EST) on May 29, 2010

Basbanes cont'd

Here's his website. Clearly he's published essays, and my guess is that Fit for a Czar is one of them. that means you're right, it's not spam.

http://www.nicholasbasbanes.com/index.phtml

posted by danielx at 9:49 pm (EST) on May 29, 2010

on Basbanes' Czar... I just found that site myself. The links on it lead to one listing at Amazon (with no actual sellers). The posted information says

Unknown Binding: 11 pages
Publisher: Biblio (1998)
Language: English
ASIN: B0006QU06W

Maybe it's a pamphlet or published article.

posted by danielx at 9:45 pm (EST) on May 29, 2010

thanks for tracking down the question on Fit for a Czar by Basbanes. He's a favorite author, but I've never seen this work. Do you have any information perchance?

posted by danielx at 9:37 pm (EST) on May 29, 2010

thanks. Yes, I knew about being able to flag them, and usually do.
I also figure it might get the message to the spammer to desist. At least it makes me feel better!

posted by danielx at 9:14 pm (EST) on May 29, 2010

I don't thimk you get helpers badges for spam.

Yes I hate spam... if I had my way there are many more "works" that are listed that shou;d be removed but it seems that Tim does not agree. Things like catalogues for auctions etc. When you think that a blog could be printed and stored or even a webpage... u get to the absurd situation that its a published work

posted by bergs47 at 5:42 pm (EST) on May 22, 2010

Hello

No I did not combine anything. They may have been duplicate listings as I was I found a series of works I think 66 in all that all had http to start with so I added them all. I think some may have been listed twice.

Regards

posted by bergs47 at 5:19 pm (EST) on May 22, 2010

Hello

I noticed that you also are working on SPAM. I only discovered this yesterday and my method is to do searches on words like Credit rating, Insurance , lottery etc. This way I find a number of works that are obviously spam.

I wonder what your thoughts are of other "books" such as Video's or DVD's. I don't mean the CD of the book but the actual movie with the same name. I have found a number of these and was about to label them spam but they are not really that, but merely in the wrong website. There is another website www.take11.com for that purpose. So whats your opinion on how these should be treated.

posted by bergs47 at 5:37 am (EST) on May 13, 2010

No problem, I added you because of the disaster tag. You have an awesome collection of disaster books.

posted by duvee at 9:31 pm (EST) on Mar 20, 2010

Well, hey there!!
Lovely to be introduced to you. Yes, it seems just about every time I spot a juicy little natural history book you've gotten it down in your own catalog first! Absolutely splendid catalog you've got if I might say. Excellent taste you've got there. I'm gonna have to spend more time on your catalog.

Have a good night,

Stephie

posted by geohistnut at 11:19 pm (EST) on Jan 13, 2010

That's not sounding so good. Do you mind me asking what some of the titles he's requesting are. I don't necessarily think that there's such a thing as "bad" reading. Most of it's just an entrance to discussion. And to tell you the truth, 99% of what's on the airwaves or in print ain't much better. Do you really think James Bond is all that great? Yet it's still considered classic lit/cinema.

As for me, kind of the same old-same old. Still working a shit bar gig, though I think (and am hoping) that I will start working at a correctional school in a month or so. Basically, I'd be a teacher's aide at an alternative school for kids with behavioral problems (socially unacceptable behavior). Aside from that, not much going on. And you?

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 4:19 pm (EST) on Aug 8, 2009

How's the kid?

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 3:36 pm (EST) on Aug 8, 2009

Hello and welcome back. Thanks for the kind words on Cody's Fashion Thread (just by typing that, I can imagine how much things have changed since you've last been here!).

posted by Makifat at 3:19 pm (EST) on Jun 22, 2009

Say, are you actually in the craft circle bookgroup at Powells? I'm wondering what they're reading in April and the PR guy has today off ...

Thanks!

posted by kristinsdottir at 6:38 pm (EST) on Mar 9, 2009

Vielen Dank für Deine Antwort.

I was just sniffing around (I always do) when I catalogued Berendt and Klein and so came across your library. I am not always sure what actually intrigued me - maybe Oregon, history, something you wrote about old books, your cat ...

We have some documents from the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company (Zirkularmitteilungen an Aktionäre und Investoren, darunter auch Emissionsprospekte (1887-1896)) in our archives. Maybe I have a look someday. Interested?

posted by paulstalder at 6:34 am (EST) on Feb 26, 2009

Well, I like your kitty too.

I have bought books from Powells. I get their newsletter. And often enough I check for availability of books there. Their prices are not optimal, and they ship media rate by default, so it takes something special for me to order from them. Nevertheless I respect them and wish that I could get into their store.

Thanks for the suggestion,

Robert

posted by Mr.Durick at 11:50 pm (EST) on Feb 11, 2009

I don't know that I'm really as disaster "buff"; I'm curious about the way people behave in emergencies. My personal plan is to run frantically in circles and then huddle in a corner sucking my thumb.

posted by setnahkt at 10:14 am (EST) on Feb 5, 2009

Hi, yes, your list of disaster books is giving me a lot of ideas on books to look for. I am much more familiar with what mysteries and baseball books I'd like to read but, up until a few days ago, I hadn't realized that I even like disaster books. (I thought of it as liking weather books.) Many years ago, I read a lot of disaster fiction, now, it's nonfiction disaster books.

You've definitely got an interesting list.

posted by lindapanzo at 5:48 pm (EST) on Jan 28, 2009

It's the books we do not share that are interesting!

posted by anna_in_pdx at 4:34 pm (EST) on Jan 9, 2009

I'd also recommend trying him on some camp/refugee literature...

Wiesel's Night, Borowski's This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentleman, Kozinski's The Painted Bird.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 11:07 pm (EST) on Dec 2, 2008

I just moved from Oregon to Illinois, so the name caught me! But yes, the knitting and outdoor books did it. This is totally addictive! Cheers

posted by ezitron at 9:02 pm (EST) on Oct 24, 2008

Yes, well you'll note I have no quilting books! But otherwise we have a lot in common. I met Charles Mann, author of 1491, by the way. Fascinating guy. And it truly was an outstanding book!

posted by Garp83 at 10:54 pm (EST) on Oct 21, 2008

Thank you for joining Pro and Con (Religion). I hope this is a place where the comfortable are afflicted and the afflicted are comforted. Let’s go it with all seriousness, but I hope we can have great fun at the same time. If I were God, I would part the waters of distance, and instantly transport us all to this great pub I used to frequent in Germany with a group of other Auslanders, but alas, I am but a lowly mortal, and so we have to do this via the internet.

All I ask is that every one remain respectful, even if there are times when you are spewing your coffee over the screen.

posted by Arctic-Stranger at 1:46 pm (EST) on Oct 2, 2008

You are lovely! Perhaps I was trying to make up a new word -- somehow a cross between "decades" and "ages" (?) That kind of thing always got me in trouble in my essays at school. Thanks for your support--Regards!

posted by librarianlk at 10:20 pm (EST) on Oct 1, 2008

Just wanted to let you know that we've been given permission by Tim to continue the BannedBooksLibrary project!

posted by PhoenixTerran at 10:19 pm (EST) on Sep 14, 2008

Thanks for the info on the bug guy at Powell's. It sounds interesting!

Terri

posted by teelgee at 12:08 am (EST) on Sep 10, 2008

Kung Fu Monkey: The Crazification Factor

It's worth a read.

posted by AsYouKnow_Bob at 5:46 pm (EST) on Sep 7, 2008

Thank you for your kind comment. Sometimes I find the group interesting, other times - tedious, extremely tedious. But I do think political discussion is a must in these days. The statement that "if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem" haunts me from my younger days, so I'll speak my mind when I can. Sometimes I dispair that I don't have more time to seriously read some of the excellent books on current important issues.

I'll be in France for a couple of weeks so I might not be seen around here for a bit. Be well and prosper! - Karen (aka maggie1944)

posted by maggie1944 at 9:28 am (EST) on Sep 7, 2008

oregonobsessionz - Thank you for commenting about that new group I made. I've sent an email to Tim to please obliterate it if I've made a mistake there. I have to say that this thread in RSI - Book Oriented Content on Front Page ( http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=44280 ) really got me interested, so that was the impetus behind creating the new group - just making a spot to store that information all together in one place that I had gleaned through all these months of reading the threads individually, and making a place for others to add theirs. Since I'm not affiliated with any of the sites, it just never occurred to me that it might be wrong to list them altogether. I appreciate the heads-up. If it disappears, you were right! :^)

posted by countrylife at 3:30 pm (EST) on Sep 6, 2008

Oregon- Did you get my message? It goofed up as I was going off this space.

posted by omboy at 5:21 pm (EST) on Sep 5, 2008

Thanks for the response. But I don't recall saying exactly that I wanted no public interaction with liberals. I do recall saying I'd grown tired of political debate, which is one reason why I dropped out of all groups. In addition to be being not much of a joiner, that is. Unclubbable, so to speak.

One of my biggest flaws is failing to keep the audience in mind, failing to keep in mind that truth is a dangerous thing, and that we need to let people save face, esp. in public arguments. To try to take it easy, in other words.

posted by barney67 at 7:00 pm (EST) on Aug 14, 2008

Oh yes, and you write really good, informative reviews that are not just summaries.

posted by mvrdrk at 2:34 am (EST) on Aug 2, 2008

None of my hobby my books are in my LT catalog, for example Barbara Brackman's Clues in the Calico, though I'm spending all my time out in the garden these days. Yesterday's rain was most welcome.

posted by mvrdrk at 2:13 am (EST) on Aug 2, 2008

Thank you so much for the message. I had never heard of a cargo cult, but the message sounded as if it was making fun of us for scampering for free books. Sigh...I should not have assumed I understood what I was talking about! :)

And by the way...I liked your joke. It's pretty funny!

I think it was swell of you to send me a message.....thanks again!

posted by bethann at 9:41 pm (EST) on Jul 24, 2008

Hey! Thanks for your comments about Mosaic Books. I hope you get to visit them -- even with the US dollar, their prices are great.

My user name, by the way, is a combo of my surname and my husband's. It's the Italian version of my surname!

posted by Nickelini at 2:35 am (EST) on Jul 19, 2008

Thanks for the Carr suggestion, though having read it, I found it wanting after The Waterworks. The similarities between the books, however, are uncanny.

I very much want to get to "Crack in the World", after finishing "Krakatoa" and "River of Shadows". Thanks again.

posted by GotoTengo at 4:43 am (EST) on Jul 12, 2008

Thanks for the email
About those haiku reviews.
We shall tout it much

posted by timspalding at 1:11 pm (EST) on Jul 7, 2008

Hi! Thanks for the suggestion of a hardcover copy of Krakatoa ... I'll definitely keep an eye out for it. I notice you have a large collection on the Pacific Northwest; got a dear friend who's just moved to University Place, WA and I'll encourage him to check out your collection. (He's also a Library Thinger.) Best!

posted by nancygrahamogne at 11:42 am (EST) on Jul 5, 2008

thanks for the tip on urls, i never figured that out! :)

posted by theoria at 8:58 pm (EST) on Jun 25, 2008

Thanks for the suggestion about reviews. I'll try to write a few. Time is always a challenge.

posted by steiac at 11:23 pm (EST) on May 31, 2008

Nice to see you back in-thread, even if you are criticising my linking abilities.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 10:00 pm (EST) on May 31, 2008

Because of my personal Darfur burnout I hadn't even thought about reading another Darfur book for a while, but because I was so impressed with your Mossad Exodus review I thought, "well let me see if oregonobsessionz has finished The Translator and a review," and after reading it, I must say it does sound different and like something I want to read. Thanks again for another outstanding review. - ER

posted by EncompassedRunner at 10:35 pm (EST) on May 10, 2008

Hi! Nice to have a visitor.

Camassia is not well known in the UK, and I had never heard of it until we moved house five years ago, and discovered that we were doomed to wrestle with a very heavy clay soil. I started looking for plants that would thrive in clay, and the book said "bulbs: Camassia", so I hunted them out. Camassia cusickii (light blue) and Camassia leichtlinii Alba (very pale yellow, double flowered) are still in bud, but a dark blue one is flowering now. It was sold simply as "Camassia leichtinii", but as it is smaller than the others I suspect it may actually be Camassia quamash, the one grown for food by native Americans; but the Latin names are a bit confused and I have not dared to nibble any of ours! The C. cusickii is getting quite dense, and I'm planning to split it after flowering: maybe I'll risk roasting one of those then!

posted by MyopicBookworm at 8:22 am (EST) on May 4, 2008

Hi there- I'm an employee of Third Street Books and just found out about Library Thing. I wanted to send you a quick thank you for adding our store to the website! I'm very excited about it and will try to update events on a regular basis. Thanks again for putting us on the map! We wouldn't be here if not for customers like you.

posted by retrojunkee at 9:58 am (EST) on May 2, 2008

Excellent review of Mossad Exodus, thank you! I'm into books on Israel and Zionism and only today discovered that there are some Early Reviewers putting a lot of effort into reviewing some Geffen books--I remember hearing about these books coming, but I'm just very impressed with the quality of the reviews, yours included. I never imagined so much effort would be put into the Early Reviewers reviews--this is fantastic.

posted by EncompassedRunner at 12:47 am (EST) on Mar 30, 2008

No problem. Venue deleted. There was a bit more info (website, email, booksense status) on mine so I just copied it over to yours. I had just found them on the list of stores on the Booksense site and added them. I've never been there but it sounds like an intriguing place. This is making me learn about so many new bookish places in Portland. I suppose that is the point!

posted by AntiLeah at 10:01 am (EST) on Mar 10, 2008

Grandma is in fact hanging from her grandsons red helicopter, which they build from remains of planks from the cabinbuilding their father was doing for grandma. (No, the word in Norwegian is "rappelere" when climbing comes in to it.)

posted by IaaS at 11:10 am (EST) on Mar 4, 2008

Yes, I noticed you and I covering the area pretty quickly. I meant to only add the stores that I go to on a regular basis just to try it out, but once I had gone on the Borders and BN websites, I figured, well, why not add the rest in the area. Before I knew it I was hooked!

I haven't added any events from any of them because I still feel like there may be a way to hopefully add them automatically someway in the future. Might just be wishful thinking. I certainly don't want to go through all the Borders and BNs and post theirs. But maybe a few of the better independent ones would be worth the effort for awhile.

posted by AntiLeah at 9:37 am (EST) on Mar 4, 2008

Thanks for the tip! I have no idea whether I'll make it up there, but I'll definitely keep it in mind as the days pass...

posted by BGP at 10:27 pm (EST) on Mar 3, 2008

Thanks for the info on new ability to add multiple dates! That's handy. Yep, I have "only" 2000 or so books (notice some on my list are "wishlist" books, not books I own). I love Powell's, but I'm fairly broke! My favorite place in town to buy books is actually the Goodwill down on 6th -- they have a good sized book section. The cheapest place is Value Village, but they don't have a great selection. value Village does usually have beautiful illustrated kids books with original price tags of up to $25 for 69-cents.

posted by pdxwoman at 2:42 am (EST) on Mar 2, 2008

Yes I try to keep a low profile so I tend to read a lot.

posted by db_cooper at 11:39 pm (EST) on Feb 29, 2008

Oh, yes I love living in Bozeman, but it is getting crowded. I can't believe how fast the town has grown in just the last 5 years. Of course I'm one "those people" who has moved here recently, so my grousing about the high housing costs and traffic, is always tinged with a bit of guilt. But every time I look out my window and see the mountains, I know I wouldn't want to live anywhere else right now.

posted by KimberlyL at 7:20 am (EST) on Feb 12, 2008

You are welcome. I am always looking for well written disaster stories. And your library seemed a great source. I've added 4, no 5 books to my Amazon wishlist since looking it over, including the two you suggested in your comment.

I'd say Krakota is easily one of my favorites.

posted by KimberlyL at 7:16 am (EST) on Feb 12, 2008

Thanks for your comment on my review. I went back and broke it up in easier-to-read paragraphs! Hope it's better now. :o)

Trudy

posted by MissTrudy at 12:23 am (EST) on Feb 9, 2008

Thanks! You rock :)

Kris

posted by Valkitty at 12:20 am (EST) on Feb 6, 2008

You're right, the stuff we share is mostly generally popular stuff - just a couple with less than 1000 other owners, nothing really obscure.

posted by jimroberts at 5:30 am (EST) on Feb 5, 2008

I am happy to see that you have gone public, as you long ago said you would if private comments became possible. I'll be looking at your library.

posted by jimroberts at 5:33 pm (EST) on Feb 4, 2008

The writing in The Living isn't necessarily florid or anything, but there's definitely a sense that Dillard's trying a bit to hard to give local color or historical color. You end up bumping into historically correct idiom constantly and it's doubled up with an explanatory phrase or offset with something like "as the saying goes, 'xxxxxxxxxxxxx'"

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 4:10 pm (EST) on Jan 31, 2008

Thanks for recommending Ravelry! It's a wonderful site!

posted by webecca at 3:51 pm (EST) on Jan 22, 2008

You might be interested in the titles we have in our LibraryThing account, as well as our online catalog. We also have a number of books by Ezra Meeker in our collection (I saw you mention his autobiography in oregonobsessionz's profile). I'm happy to know that we can "friend" the folks that have large Northwest collections so that everyone can get connected. Hope to see your library soon!

posted by wastatelib at 5:29 pm (EST) on Jan 11, 2008

I ordered The Republic of Suffering from the History Book Club, but it hasn't shipped to me yet. However, the write-up in the little club magazine was very good. If you get it before me, let me know what you think. Take care!

posted by sergerca at 8:41 am (EST) on Jan 10, 2008

I look forward to getting to peruse your library.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 5:35 pm (EST) on Jan 9, 2008

Same old, same old... Just trying to maintain a sense of humor.

Didn't they enable a Private Comments field? Aren't you supposed to go public with the library now?

Glad to hear that things are going well with you.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 4:56 pm (EST) on Jan 9, 2008

Just a quick note to say hello. Hope the New Year is treating you well...

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 4:10 pm (EST) on Jan 9, 2008

Because of the shared history of the two states, I too am obsessed with Oregon stuff as you can see. Kesey and Stegner I also find fascinating. My Pacific Northwest includes Alaska, BC, Idaho, and the far north of California. I lean toward the antiquarian editions when they are affordable. An example would be Vancouvers Voyages; The originals aren't in my price range...though I would die to read a 1798 version. That short time Washington was a territory is also an area I collect. Nice to hear from you.

posted by Mechan1c at 10:48 pm (EST) on Jan 6, 2008

I see you left a comment in June, asking about the Cascade Alpine Guide - sorry to be so slow to respond.

the one on the shelf is volume 1, Columbia River to Stevens Pass. I'll update the catalog to reflect that. thanks for pointing out that we were incomplete.

annette.

posted by nynjtc at 1:16 pm (EST) on Dec 23, 2007

Fixed! Sorry for being ... er ... 8 months late?

I feel like if i had held out one more month i might have given birth to a book baby. Maybe a book baby with a large forehead and mustache. Aww. Adorable! And kinda depressing!

posted by trespassers at 3:01 am (EST) on Dec 2, 2007

Hi,

Sorry for delay in getting back to you. Have now amended the Byzantium item. Re. Turkey. It is completely safe travelling in the country, although one has to be alert in the major cities. Give it a whirl. I am sure you will enjoy it but will have changed after 10 years. David

posted by orientalist at 1:26 am (EST) on Nov 29, 2007

No, the photograph is from a Chicago 5k in the cold spring of 2005--I think the temperature was below freezing. My hair is longer now, and I am older-but I am also FASTER! :) I started the Chicago Marathon this year but I dropped out at ten miles--not because of the heat (though, I could tell it was going to be bad), but because of a calf/shin injury that I am still receiving physical therapy for.

That set of races among the redwoods looks wonderful. Did you run any of them this year? Have you ever run the Chicago Marathon, or do you plan to?

Cheers!

Oakes

posted by oakes at 4:44 pm (EST) on Nov 12, 2007

I love this site for reasons like this. If I could just find people like those on here in my real life, I´d have much better conversations.

Speaking of Applebaum - if I could rate a book as 6 stars, her Gulag would be one of them. That book changed me in a way I never expected.

posted by sergerca at 11:10 pm (EST) on Nov 5, 2007

Thanks for joining Pro and Con. I was hoping you get here!

posted by Arctic-Stranger at 6:00 pm (EST) on Oct 31, 2007

Yeah, I could see how Clinton might fit right in there. The photos in this book had a sort of "separated at birth" quality to them.

Anne

posted by amancine at 9:12 am (EST) on Sep 26, 2007

i'm just waiting for the silly shitstorm to blow over. i'll most likely post again once the name-calling stops.

posted by NativeRoses at 6:45 am (EST) on Sep 21, 2007

Sorry of the delay in answering... been way, way out town.

Re Jack London, Thirteen Tales of Terror it is.

Darren Courtney

posted by Pretensor at 12:39 pm (EST) on Aug 23, 2007

Oops! I'd forgotten that your library is private. I really wasn't specifically getting at you. And since you are actively being helpful in the groups, I really don't want to call you a freeloader!

posted by jimroberts at 7:49 pm (EST) on Aug 18, 2007

Hi! I didn't see your comment in pink so don't know if it's private or not, but I'm not so shy that I need privacy for the question. :-)

My copy of The Wrong Box is a Scholastic edition, the vintage kind before Scholastic went to ISBN numbers. I'm not sure if it should be part of your edition list or not--it's adapted, so I'm guessing not, unless you want to be so thorough as to add adaptations, abridgements, classic comics, Illustrated versions and such.

posted by Sasha_Doll at 3:42 pm (EST) on Aug 16, 2007

The general level of ass-hattery was getting to be a bit much for me, so I've been chilling elsewhere. Thanks for looking in, though.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 3:14 pm (EST) on Aug 14, 2007

It is good to know that someone else feels MY pain...
Thanks for taking a pique at my profile.

posted by W_J_Clinton at 1:25 pm (EST) on Aug 14, 2007

Good Morning

ISP problems at this end and it looks like a big storm is boiling over the hilltop here, so this one may be brief.

Thanks for the Holbrook lead. I will hit the public library soon and look for it. I know I am conductor on a work train on Friday...this is a train sent out with men and equipment to do track or bridge or right of way repair, and it means that the conductor and engineer don't do much work. We get to watch other people work very hard...or I can turn my back and read a good book for 7 of the eight hours on duty. Greg, the engineer, will probably bring fishing equipment and cast into the Saint Louis River, if we go to where I think we are going.

Dee Brown is certainly worth three dollars. I also have the problem of reading bibliographies and getting sidetracked into other books. Was it Coleridge who dropped what he was reading every time he hit a footnote? I can relate to that.

On Saturday our library is doing something for the kids with a Little Engine that Could event. Of course they asked for two trainpeople and I got volunteered as the railroader known to be a reader. Just got an e-mail from a colleague named Linda...so I guess she was volunteered too.

Well, time for some dinner..alone tonight...my wife volunteered at the battered womens shelter here..and they offered her a job instead...so she is being oriented tonight. Then comes the question of Monday night football or reading.

I suspect the books will win.

Dave

posted by bemidjian at 7:05 pm (EST) on Aug 13, 2007

I was really addressing Chomsky's very formalized public display of arrogance in addressing what is and isn't acceptable, internationally and domestically, in moral and legal behavior, and he is doing so as who exactly? He does it as though he is the expert on the topic, not just an intellectual or a linguist. I find it funny when I catch interviews with him where "Foreign Policy" or "International Studies" "Expert" is listed below his name. Perhaps he really is approaching the knowledge of an expert, but has he been properly vetted or educated as such?

Yes, I understand your point, but you and I are not writing novels and giving public interviews on the topic with our "intellectual" credentials listed below our names. We aren't making any such strong public statements (publishing) and then defending the correctness of our absolutist claims, are we? I thought it was just a discussion and exchange of ideas. Perhaps that's the difference, if we were publishing, I would expect a higher standard to be met.

posted by rawREN at 8:16 am (EST) on Aug 13, 2007

Good Morning

Thanks for the leads. The Killer Angels is unread on my shelves. I will move it into the rotation soon. I will also pursue Stegner. Library booksale impends locally, so I will be on the lookout for his material.

Dave in Duluth

posted by bemidjian at 3:45 pm (EST) on Aug 6, 2007

Good Morning

The bridge collapse has most of the state in shock. When I heard about it, an hour after the event, I tried to call my sister, a daily commuter over that bridge. Phone traffic overwhelmed the system and it took a long time to get thru. All of my relatives and friends in the area were not directly affected. One long time e-mail friend lives very close to the bridge but seldom stirs from her home/library.

I have seen the movies of Galloping Gertie. Amazing.

Wish I could suggest a good Hill biog. The most recent big one is by Albro Martin, but he is an apologist for any person with a lot of money. So he tends to equate the real creators of things of value, like JJ Hill with those who raid and destroy, like Jay Gould, who built very little, improved nothing, and bled the systems he did control.

In the research I did for my one book I discovered at the turn of the century Hill was being treated as a paragon of efficiency and good public relations by the midwestern press, while other railroad leaders were compared unfavorably with him. He needs a good biography.

One good delineation of the Hill personality may be found in a strange source that I can suggest to you. Larry Millett, a Saint Paul reporter, has written several pretty good Sherlock Holmes novels over the past 20 years, bringing Holmes to the States where there are gaps in the canon.

Sherlock Homes and the Red Demon has Hill as a major character in an historically sound story about a major Minnesota forest fire. Hill also appears in some of the other books too.

I promised I would swear off books with White in the title. And then as I reached blindly into the shelves of aged books yesterday I pulled out The White Nile by Alan Moorhead. Oh, well, should probably just set Didion as the next selection after that.

Any other suggestions? Even with White in the title?

Thanks.

Dave

posted by bemidjian at 10:22 pm (EST) on Aug 4, 2007

Thanks for calling my attention to The White Cascade. Finished it a little while ago and rated it five stars. It is a very balanced and well researched book.

posted by bemidjian at 8:00 pm (EST) on Aug 2, 2007

Yes. That was the reference. And it was more just a Montgomery Burns reference. Burns was Smithers monomaniacal boss. Any time that he'd start getting overly excited about some evil plot, he'd start rubbing his hands together and say "Excellent, Smithers". Believe me, I don't watch TV either. Haven't in about 8 years. But the Simpsons still kick ass.

posted by Jesse_wiedinmyer at 3:57 am (EST) on Jul 3, 2007

I've updated the author of my two volumes of "A Rebel War Clerk's Diary" to John Beauchamp Jones as you suggested.

posted by dianp at 1:35 am (EST) on Jul 2, 2007

Hi

Good to hear from you again. And after the great lead you provided to me the last time I will certainly check out The White Cascade. And then I will probably refrain from buying any more white books for a while.

I do not know how they figure the affinity. Perhaps that 10% and the shared preference for some authors make you closer in tastes to me than to 99% of the others out there. The fact that you have some railroad books must carry quite a lot of weight. And I know there are a great many people on librarything who share with me nothing except a Harry Potter or a Harper Lee.

I do not recall ever having a quilting book. I do own a quilt, however. Very useful when Duluth and Lake Superior decide that it is winter.

There is enough of the Great Northern Railway in my family that I will probably find it very interesting. I did hear from some online railroad people that the author had approached certain knowledgeable people and sought to get anti Jim Hill material about a malefactor of great wealth letting a town and a train die. From what I hear, the author quickly learned otherwise. (I am a lefty, but I have to say that if there must be filthy rich people it is good that James Hill was one of them.)

Still looking forward to seeing what the complete library of yours looks like.

Take care.
Dave in Duluth

posted by bemidjian at 7:33 pm (EST) on Jun 29, 2007

In many ways, Bush's foreign policy is moralist in the same sense as Jimmy Carter's or Woodrow Wilsons as contrasted with Kissinger. Whether people realize it or not, Kissinger represents the alternative school of foreign policy, the "realist" school, that has effectively served a lot of our presidents, from FDR to Reagan, and to simply dismiss him as a proto-Hitler for daring to practice realpolitik is just sophomoric.

posted by Kade at 12:45 am (EST) on Jun 22, 2007

Interesting that the modern copy was correct, and the older copy wrong. Anyway, it's fixed at the moment. My bride and I moved to Yachats three years ago, shifting from a 2300 sq. ft. house with a basement and three car garage,(that never had any room for cars) to an 1800 sq. ft. house. Most of my books are still in storage, which is driving me crazy. Hopefully by next year I will have my library/game room constructed, and the serious catalogueing can begin. Thanks for the note.

posted by joysgood at 1:20 pm (EST) on May 9, 2007

So which is is - poison ivy or poison oak?

Ivy. Definitely ivy. Thanks for the comment!

posted by madame_urushiol at 8:21 pm (EST) on Mar 24, 2007

I have a lot of books on the arctic and the discovery of the North Pole, but not the one by Charles Morris.

I worked at HAO/NCAR from 1968 to 1971 and again from 1980 to 1986.

posted by dhoyt at 7:38 am (EST) on Mar 16, 2007

I love the word "cryptozoology", too. It basically means "the study of hidden animals," which is as apt a description as you'll find for the investigation of critters like Bigfoot. Hope you enjoy the book. It's well written.

posted by darkstream at 5:56 pm (EST) on Feb 26, 2007

I posted my review of Gary Krist'sThe White Cascade this morning. Just thought you'd like to know. (I'm doing a few podcast reviews now, too, but haven't recorded that one yet.) Keep in touch.

posted by benjfrank at 1:16 am (EST) on Feb 24, 2007

Hi again,
Looks like your getting some more books entered. Look forward to seeing your catalog someday as well. I appreciate the work your doing with the combines. It is nice to see someone concered about the details of their library. I'm afraid i could use a little more detail oriented work on my own collection. I've entered many of the books off of amazon based on ISBN numbers and noticed that there were a few errors, which i've just let slip so far.

Regarding the Charles Morris, Alexander McClure authorship of "The Authentic William McKinley", it seems that it is truly written by both authors. Let me know if there is anything i can do to help fix your problem.

posted by ahystorian at 9:25 pm (EST) on Feb 23, 2007

I corrected the author of Technobabble to John A. Barry as you suggested. It now references the author page that only has that book.

Amazon is not entirely responsible for this mistake. The data they got from MIT Press was no good. In fact, if you go to the book page on their site, you will see that they have gotten John A. Barry the early Sun employee confused with John Barry the Irish environmentalist. So much so that they just included both their bios at the end, one after the other.

I don't even think the LoC data is clean. In addition to the John A. Barry authorities entry (86005707), there is a second John Barry 1948- one (89125718) as coauthor of Sunburst that says John G. Barry. Again the confusion comes from the publisher, in this case through a phone call.

posted by MMcM at 11:30 am (EST) on Feb 23, 2007

A biography of Charles Smith Morris can be found at http://www.niulib.niu.edu/badndp/morris_charles.html

One of my favorite books with lists of disasters is "The new tablet of memory: Or, Chronicle of remarkable events; with the dates of inventions and discoveries" by Thomas Bartlett. He mentions all kinds of things that other people don't mention such as beaching of whales in the 1500s or the many great fires where cities burned down.

I don't know if Sasquatch exists or not. It seems like it is more likely than most fortean phenomena. I thought they tested some recovered hair for DNA and found it belonged to no known species. The case remains open.

posted by dhoyt at 8:13 pm (EST) on Feb 22, 2007

I found this web page
http://webpac.clic.edu:2082/search/aMorris%2C+Charles%2C+1833-1922./amorris+char...
which lists many Charles Morris authors. Click on Charles Morris with 19 books and it says Historical Tales and the Volcano's Deadly Work were both written by him. If so, then Charles Morris is Charles Smith Morris.

posted by dhoyt at 5:22 pm (EST) on Feb 21, 2007

I tried deleting and re-entering the book as you suggested, but got the same result. Perhaps there is something wrong with the tag in the MARC record from Library of Congress. Would it be better to delete it and re-enter it manually?

This book has been in my family since it was published. At the time, my grandfather was a young, married farmer in western Missouri. He bought this one and another subscription picture book on the Boer War in South Africa. They were in an old bookcase in the store room upstairs when I was a child half a century ago.

posted by Illiniguy71 at 10:10 pm (EST) on Feb 20, 2007

Thanks for writing back. Don't be surprised I don't some of the same NW books you do. There are sooo many that fall under that topic. You've got me itching to see the books you have. (Why are you not showing them?) Are they mostly Oregon-related? Local or regional? Biographical? I do have a few books specifically dealing with women in the Northwest or bios of Northwest women, but I don't specifically collect that genre. I tend to like local histories or specific episode histories.

Which reminds me -- I just finished White Cascade. It was better than I expected and will blog about it in the next week or so. I've got a couple of other titles to write up first.

Keep in touch. I'd appreciate a tap when your catalog is public!

posted by benjfrank at 8:34 pm (EST) on Feb 20, 2007

Yes, I've read Victorian Internet, and I really enjoyed it - though it's one of the books that I count on a library owning instead of shelving a copy of my own. (though it turns out I've had to do inter-library loan for this when I went just now to check it out, so I should probably hunt down a reading copy).

Tom Standage is great on technology and history in general - see http://www.tomstandage.com/ . Another good author in a similar vein is Alex Pang (askpang) from the Institute for the Future.

posted by superpatron at 12:46 am (EST) on Feb 20, 2007

Hi

Thank you for the suggestion. I will check at Boardwalk Books, our nearest thing to Powells, on Saturday when I will be downtown. I assume this book deals with the megastorm just before WW1 when so many ships wre lost in a few days of November.

I also look forward to you making your list public.

Over two years since I last wandered the stacks at Powells. I will be on the west coast this summer, and you reminded me I need to make an additional stop.

Dave in Duluth

posted by bemidjian at 12:39 pm (EST) on Feb 14, 2007

Sorry. My links didn't work the first time: My "White Cascade blog" and Soon to be published lists.

posted by benjfrank at 3:21 pm (EST) on Feb 11, 2007

"Washington Disasters" is a thin little book that came out last year. Go to and you can see my blog about it. There is an Oregon Disasters book, too, I understand. I haven't read that one, but I'm sure Powells has it.

I LOVE POWELL'S! I'm in Portland maybe 2-3 times a year and have two must stops: McMennimans and Powells.

Want to see upcoming books? I maintain a few lists on our website. They're at .

Oh-- have you read White Cascade yet? I haven't, but it's next on my list.

posted by benjfrank at 3:16 pm (EST) on Feb 11, 2007

Nice to hear from you. It sounds like you have a nice Northwest collection. NW books make up a big chunk of my home library. And, yes, I live just down the road from Ezra's place. His mansion's still there. (He started making his fortune selling hops to guy down your way named Henry Weinhard. Heard of him?)

Yes, I work for a library and knew "White Cascade" was coming pre-publication. I was all ready for it. I've known about the story for many years but this will be the first full-length account I've ever read. (I write a book blog for the library -- there's a link on my profile -- and mentioned the Wellington avalanche in the posting for "Washington Disasters" a few months back. I didn't know about 'White Cascade' back then, though.) How did you hear about it?

Please drop me line when your catalog goes public again.

posted by benjfrank at 10:21 am (EST) on Feb 11, 2007