Well, I will start this thread off with -

I did not snag anything!!! I only checked one book and I was really a pretty good match for it (in my opinion) but there were only 15 copies and something like 1000+ requests *sigh*.

Nothing for me either. I'm not too surprised because I also only requested one book. Maybe next month :-)

Got The Housekeeper and the Professor! Woot.

A Song in Stone is on the way here. I'm excited!

I'm getting Fault Line.

The Piano Teacher for me. Yay!

Without warning! yay!

Sima's Undergarments for Women! It's been a year since I've won, so this is exciting!

I also got Without Warning

The Flying Troutmans by Miriam Toews

How exciting! I haven't gotten an ER book for months!

Nada. I guess this means that the algorithm doesn't consider birth-month an important factor.

*sniffle*

Nothing here either. I had hoped I'd get the Lit Report since I was told I needed to 'request it' through LT when I contacted the publisher. :(

I received Fault Line. Looks like a good thriller.

Etta for me!

My library must read more "newagey" than I think it does ... month in and month out I request various "serious" non-fiction books and get squat ... this month I snag a book, but what is it? Another "2012" vision from a space-brother navel-gazer, Patricia Cori's The Starseed Dialogues.

Sure ... if I'm this grumbly about it, I probably shouldn't have checked the box, but "Starseed" was the name of a friend of mine's center about 20 years ago, and I guess I was hoping this might have something to do with their work (on further delving, it doesn't, as this is about the author's, uh, "discussions" with "the Speakers of the Sirian High Council").

Now, I, admittedly, have read extensively in the "2012" sub-genre (although not in the "Sirian High Council" end of the wading pool), so am very likely to be in a good position to discuss the book in a review ... so I suppose on that level "The Algorithm" is working ... I just wish that one of these months I'd snag some history, science, or math books!

 

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 1:28pm.

Sweet - Gomorra! The one I checked and told husband, "I bet I get this one if I'm chosen for a book this month." It may have something to do with the 14 books tagged "mafia" in my library...

:)

I'm getting The Book of the Unknown: Tales of the Thirty-Six by Jonathon Keats.

Patient Zero YAY! It's the book I really really wanted this month- woot woot!

How to Profit from the Coming Rapture: Getting Ahead When You're Left Behind, by Steve Levy.

This is two in a row after a long dry spell! (Last month, I got Isaac's Torah, by Angel Wagenstein, which I am currently reading (and enjoying very much).

A Rose By Any Name, which looks awesome! I'm very excited -- this is two books in two months, after going a while without winning anything. Can't wait to read it! Though I'm still waiting on Cracked Up To Be from the October batch . . .

The Highly Intuitive Child which I hope is not too technical to be dry.

Pinocchio, which is perfect because I've never read this classic. Can't wait to start it :)

I'm pleasantly surprised to be getting After the Floods. I thought it looked interesting, but I was afraid my library wouldn't be a match, or at least not the best match of all my picks, especially when there were only 15 copies; shows what I know about the algorithm! At any rate, I'm looking forward to reading it.

16>

Sure ... if I'm this grumbly about it, I probably shouldn't have checked the box

Yep. ;) At least it sounds like you'll be well-qualified to review it, if you can force yourself to finish it.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 1:52pm.

I actually got a book that I'd read good things about beforehand: The Warded Man. My two prior ER books (Any Given Doomsday and The Black Whole), I signed up for because they looked interesting at the time, and I've since learned my lesson: to only to request stuff that I actually want.

#18 inge87 - I'm also getting The Book of the Unknown. I'm intrigued.

I am finally getting another book after a 6 month dry spell! -- The Bad Girl by Mario Vargas Llosa. Hope its good - I haven't had much luck with liking my ER novels.

I'm still stunned! I got the one book I really, really wanted - Bestseller! by Jane Daniel.

The book touchstone is weird though.

I'm so thrilled about this book!

I got a book! I got a book! Yes, I am excited. I haven't been chosen since May, and that book never came. I am getting A Greener Christmas by Sheherazade Goldsmith. I doubt it will get here in time to use this christmas, but there is always next year.

I got Fault Line. I'm excited as it's my first ER book! Looking forward to reading it. It snagged my interest as it takes place in the Silicon Valley/Bay Area.

I snagged Going to See the Elephant!

29>

There is no need to accept a "bad" touchstone (if nothing else, you can leave off the touchstone!) The touchstone algorithm is just a guess, and you can usually force the right choice. Bestseller is a difficult case -- there's a more popular book with that exact title, and your book doesn't even make the list of "others" (instead, lots of books that *were* bestsellers, and that presumably have that in the title field of some copies, show up), but you can always do a direct link. If you don't want to go to the trouble, no touchstone is better than a bad touchstone. Many people have strongly suggested that exact title matches should be forced to the top in the touchstone algorithm, but that approach hasn't gained any traction. This is, I think, a particularly illustrative case. Is it really more likely that when someone touchstones the single word "bestseller" they're referring to Teach Yourself Visual Basic in 21 Days or Jurassic Park -- both of which show up on the "more" list -- than to, well, a book actually titled Bestseller?

Got the one I really wanted Bestseller! by Jane Daniel Can hardly wait for it to arrive.

The Centurion's Wife - I'm excited!

I'm getting Canvey Island by James Runcie, and am very excited about it.

I got Patient Zero. Can't wait to read it. It sounds interesting. Also, I'm a big fan of zombie fiction, so there's always that.

How to Profit from the Coming Rapture: Getting Ahead When You're Left Behind. The algorithm keeps giving me finance books. Does it know something I don't?

I am getting The Returning by Ann Tatlock! I'm looking forward to reading it. I still can't figure out how I get matched up with the books that I do...but so far I have enjoyed all of them!

How did I know that I was going to get Great Expectations The Graphic Novel? My intuitive juices must be flowing or is it because I snagged Jane Eyre The Graphic Novel last month!

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 2:30pm.

38: That's not a finance book; it's humor.

For me, nada this time. I'm still waiting for September's book, Museum of Human Beings and I'm just finishing up my review of October's Waiting for Coyote's Call. What with the holidays, I'm OK with not having an obligation to get a book read and reviewed. It's not like I don't have enough books to read.

Didn't snag anything...doesn't surprise me though, hehe. There are a few that I might pick up on my own, however.

I snagged Why the Long Face? by Ron MacLean. Not sure exactly what the Almighty Algorithm was picking up on in my library to make the connection. We shall see! :-)

Oooh! I got The American Journey of Barack Obama by the Editors of Life Magazine.

What really confuses me is that in the touchstones it says that The American Journey of Barack Obama is by the Editors of Vogue Knitting Magazine......

But, I'm a yellow-dog Democrat, so regardless of who it's by, it's pretty exciting to me.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 2:39pm.

I was notified my book is: Look Before You Leap: A Premarital Guide for Couples by Sandra L. Ceren

41 - Financial humor then.

I'm very excited to be getting Honeymoon in Tehran by Azadeh Moaveni. I'm fairly sure I will like it, as I really liked her first memoir, Lipstick Jihad of which this seems to be a continuation. I may have to reread Lipstick Jihad in anticipation, though, as it has been awhile.

I got Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka. I'm really excited.

I'm getting Tender Grace, which looks really good. That makes the second month in a row of what look like books I could enjoy. I better read the Oct. book soon.

I got Circumference, and I'm excited, in no small part because it broke a seven-month drought of no books.

Karenmarie, that's just the character length limit for author names -- the firstname, lastname structure does this a lot for institutional names (these resolve to "magazinetheeditorsof"), and Vogue Knitting was probably just the first one in the system.

Nothing for me this month. I'm still waiting for last month's book so I'm not really disappointed.

I got The Way of Ping.

Re. #25: "if you can force yourself to finish it"

Ah, one of the possible benefits of being a bit on the obsessive-compulsive side is that I always finish books (OK, unless they get lost somwhere ... I was about 1/3rd of the way through the 600-page "lost" 3rd volume of Blavatsky's Secret Doctrine when it managed to disappear in a pile of "other stuff" about a decade or so back, only recently coming to light here ... it may be a while before I pick that up again!).

 

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 3:10pm.

Nothing for me from November but that is okay since I won 3 books from Brooke Taylor's blog in October and also won Gods Behaving Badly from another blog contest so I have plenty in my TBR pile at the moment.

(edited to correct author touchstone)

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 3:24pm.

Got Song in Stone by Walter H. Hunt for November ER. Can't wait to read it.

I got The Flying Troutmans which is two in a row after a long gap. I was sure I wouldn't get it, as I have read other books by this author but not owned them, so there weren't any reviews in my library. I guess I own enough similar books.

Really looking forward to it!

Got How to Profit from the Coming Rapture: Getting Ahead When You're Left Behind, by Steve Levy.

Now I have to figure out how to fit it into my 999 challenge since I doubt I get it before the New Year!

I'm on a roll. Snagged for October and now November. I'm very excited. The Way of Ping

Nothing!!! Again!!! And Abby's message also tells me not to despair :(

Oh well, I'm still enjoying the choosing and waiting, strangely.

I'm getting Walking the Dog by Charles Davis. The book description sounds really weird! I'm excited to see what its all about.

Nothing this time. But that's ok. I haven't finished my last snag yet. The subject matter is interesting, but I've had a lot on my mind, and I am more easily distracted from nonfiction.

Nothing again after 8 tries. I picked 4 this time with two really matching my library. I'm just going to buy the books.

Nothing, with only Great Expectations Graphic Novel requested.

The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet

I've been very fortunate as this is my 6th book in 7 tries. Almost too much for me to keep up with.

Love's Civil War: Elizabeth Bowen and Charles Ritchie by Victoria Glendinning
Just delighted, as it has been a while!

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 4:12pm.

Nothing for me, which is okay as I wasn't crazy excited about any of the books on offer. And I've got a totteringly tall stack of books in the TBR pile to read, and a number of reviews to post. I may not be ready for another ER book until Spring. Glad for everyone who did get something. Enjoy! I'm looking forward to reading everyone's reviews.

#35 GeorgiaDawn ~ The Centurion's Wife was one of the only ones I was interested in getting from the list. I'd love to know what you think of it.

Nothing this time around. I'm a little bit surprised, to be honest. But it's okay, I've got three books coming from publishers who asked me to review them on my blog. I'll be plenty busy, I'm sure!

Mario Vargas Llosa's The Bad Girl.

I've been looking for The Feast of the Goat for awhile, but have never been able to find a used copy. Why I don't just get it from my library - I do work in one after all - I can't say... In any case, I look forward to reading this one.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 4:31pm.

I gotJoker One. I must be fortunate, this is my third since April. Sacrifices to the algorithm work!

I'm getting A Greener Christmas, which sounds interesting. I hope it comes before Christmas!

I got Etta which I'm excited about. This is the first time I've participated, so I'm looking forward to getting started.

As the Spanish say, "Nada."

I got Eclipse, Richard North Patterson, which I am pretty excited about. This is my first time snagging a book.

Nothing for me, but I'm okay with that since I'm still waiting for the books I snagged in September and October, plus the TBR pile seems to be reproducing on its own when I'm not looking. ;-)

I got Love's Civil War: Elizabeth Bowen and Charles Ritchie by Victoria Glendinning. I have read all four of Ritchie's early memoirs so I'm glad to have the chance to read this book.

w00t! I'll be getting Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation by Eboo Patel! Like Georgia, I am very excited about what the Almighty Algorithm has picked for me.

After long-time-no-books I'm getting "Firmin" (a book that's been out a while, and well-reviewed) ~~~ look forward to reading it.

>40 The Tortoise, Interesting! I also got Great Expectations The Graphic Novel a month after getting A Christmas Carol The Graphic Novel.

I got Honeymoon in Tehran which looks really good. I haven't read Lipstick Jihad so I just ordered it so I would be ready since I hate to read books out of order!

Etta for me that makes 2 months in a row that I've won a book!!!! Yeah!!!

The American Journey of Barack Obama And I really wish someone would fix that author field!! But, as I discovered earlier today, there is a group known as Knitters for Obama.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 6:42pm.

#82:

See #50.

I snagged The Returning by Anne Tatlock. Really looking forward to it.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 7:06pm.

Wow, I am getting Knitting for Good - one of 15 copies. I'd about given up applying since the numbers have gotten so big- but my faith is restored and I do think I'm a reasonable match for it. This makes three ER books and a bonus for me in a bit over a year. Not bad playing the statistics, since I don't select many. Now to finish several other ARCs I got through other sources that have backed up on my pile. Maybe I should combine forces with the Obama book reviewers with the Vogue Knitting authorship.

I got Returning, Ann Tatlock

I got The Book of the Unknown -- not one I expected, but not really surprising either. I'm looking forward to it!

Three Minutes On Love. I guess because I have some music book. I honestly don't remember requesting it!

I got my first ER charge, Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation by Eboo Patel...Looking forward to it. I think I'm a pretty good match with my background in religious studies...Anyone else who got that one--maybe we can compare notes? :)

Congrats to everyone who got something, I was one of the many who, once again, didn't snag a book.

Lucky two months in a row -- Bringing Tony Home!

Garner on Language and Writing - This was my second try in the ER program, and my first review book. (Maybe it helped I just reviewed another book he wrote....)

I'm shocked and very pleased to be receiving Toni Morrison's A Mercy.

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2008, 8:09pm.

#93 Lucky! Tell me how it is!

I received Honeymoon in Tehran Azadeh Moaveni Thank you so much Abbey !!!!!!!

I'm getting Sima's Undergarments for Women. Yay!!!!! Thank you LT!!!!! Woo-hoo!!!

None for me this month, although it's not as if I don't have anything to read. :D

ETA: I'm not unhappy, though, because Andrews McMeel Publishing Company sent me a huge and gorgeous cookbook to review this month. That should take me a bit of time and baking. Thank you, Andrews McMeel!!

Message edited by its author, Dec 5, 2008, 9:17am.

So glad I am not alone in not getting a book....or should I say never getting a book! I had someone send me one, Lindsey, because she felt sorry for me and that was very kind but it looks like there is no rhyme or reason to who gets books so if it is luck, then I know why I never get one. However, like someone said, it is kind of fun to pick them out and then hope for a whole month...and I also have a huge pile of TBR and review so can't complain....guess this is just a challenge now to get one from LT someday. All of you who snagged, enjoy!

I snagged The Way of Ping I am excited to be a part of this reader group.
This is my second book. I reviewed The Fire back in the summer. One a season ain't so bad, eh?

I asked for three, I think, but struck out.

I snagged The Only Guide to Alternative Investments You'll Ever Need by Larry E. Swedroe. 329 members requesting 20 copies but I did think I had a good shot as I have 4 of his other 6 books listed on LT as well as a number of other books on personal finance/ index mutual funds etc.

PS. I probably shouldn't admit that I finished and posted a review of the LAST ER book I recieved (that I had been unforgivably dragging my feet on) just so I might have a better chance at it.

I am getting Circumference. This is the first time I've snagged a book two months in a row, but I did have a long stretch with nothing so it all evens out.

Gah!!!!! I didn't get anything, and this was the first month I've been majorly psyched about!! And I thought either of the two books I requested (Circumference and Pluto Files) would have been a fantastic match for my library :-( :-(

I'm getting Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet! I'm very excited to be getting a book in only my second month of requesting.

I'm thrilled to be getting Etta which seems like a perfect fit for me!

Yeah! I'm getting Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. I can't remember why I picked it but I sure like the title. (I'm also one of those people who's a real sucker for covers.) Anyway, this was only my second time requesting and I'm really new to LibraryThing, so I would have been excited to get any title I requested. Happy reading to you all!

Nothing for me which is sad because so many looked like books I would want to read. That said, I have a huge TBR pile from Vine and SA, and the holidays are coming up, so this may be the universe telling me to calm down a bit...
I'm definitely looking forward to reading reviews of some of these offerings because they may get added to my to be purchased list. Congrat to everyone who picked up a book!

#59 Abby keeps telling me not to despair too, but I hope she doesn't mind if I do it a little *G*

Oh well, more books to add to the "To Buy" list

I'm getting A Song in Stone. It's my first ER book, so I'm excited.

I, too, got zip this time. However, I got 4 in the mail from another site so I shall be busy anyway. However, I did want at least on of the ones I checked. Oh, well....maybe in January

I got The Warded Man and looking forward to it. I also just got one through First Look on Barnes & Noble. Happy reading!

I got The Warded Man—I'm psyched.

Message edited by its author, Dec 5, 2008, 1:30am.

I got Etta!

Nothing for me - oh well.

I got Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. I'm looking forward to that one!

I got Throw out 50 Things: Clear the Clutter, Find your Life, very excited! Something I need to do:)

My first month as an Early Reviewer and I got The Flying Troutmans by Miriam Toews. Very pleased to have received something.

Great Expectations the graphic novel for me - I'm still writing about A Christmas Carol- graphic novel - so I must get on with that!

#23 & 36 You've snagged two wonderful books! I envy both of you your first readings - you're in for a treat (two treats?)

Without Warning! Thanks!

Message edited by its author, Dec 5, 2008, 8:23am.

I'll be getting The Centurion's Wife. My first ER book. Yay!!!!!

I got Genius and Heroin-not sure if all the random historiographies or all the Irvine Welsh had anything to do with the match there, but I'm excited to read it.

I'm getting my first Early Reviewer book, Joker One by Donovan Campbell. I'm so excited!!

Message edited by its author, Dec 5, 2008, 9:28am.

I will be getting The Returning by Ann Tatlock. Thanks!

Yikes! I thought I took it off ... guess I was too excited.

I was chosen for the The Economist Book of Obituaries - looking forward to reading it!

I am joining the ranks of yankeefan1, bonniebooks, and JGoto in being chosen to receive Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. I am looking forward to reading this book by an author who is a fellow LT member.

Fault Line! woo hoo!

My first ER book! I'm getting The Centurion's Wife! I'm very excited to get any book, and this one is even by authors I know and like! Life is Sweet!!

I picked up Why the Long Face? - my second early review book! I enjoyed my first, so hopefully that trend continues.

none again for me. I'm starting to get depressed over not getting a book so many times in a row...

132>

It's getting harder to get books, certainly, but I just got one after a six-month dry spell, so it's still possible.

I hadn't gotten any my first few months trying, but I guess since I've been more active on the site as of late, it has helped bump me up a little.

The Centurion's Wife, I'm beginning to think that whatever GeorgiaDawn gets, I'll be receiving too! Not that I'm complaining! I'm looking forward to this series.

I got Tender Grace. It sounds good. Now if October's book would show up.

Honeymoon in Tehran! It arrived today and I hadn't checked the website in days so it was a complete and happy surprise.

#67 Storeetllr - I'll let you know!

I got Authors Access: 30 Success Secrets for Authors and Publishers -- I'm excited! it's not about death, dying, and abuse!

The Flying Troutmans, which I'm really pleased about - it sounded right up my street. Guess that ought to make A Complicated Kindness my next read as I mooched it several months ago and still haven't managed to read it...

Didn't get anything as usual. I was wondering, who got Drood:A Novel?

Joker One by Donovan Campbell

Marines, Iraq, nonfiction...sounds tight. This would be my third Early Reviewer book. I'm not horribly big on fiction, so it's good to know that this book is one I could very well like. I mean it's by a Marine. That alone should be worth a couple of stars.

Wondering if there is a trick to getting a particular book you might want. Usually just go down the list clicking as I go. This month and last, and I believe August, I got the first books I clicked on. I think. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure this is the case.

Something to keep in mind.

I got the Starseed Dialogues. Not sure whether I'm actually looking forward to reading this or not. There were other books I marked that I was more interested in, but this seemed intriguing.

I got The Economist's Book of Obituaries, which should be enjoyable breakfast table reading. I like to read short essays and such with my cereal, and obits are really just short bios of interesting people. I'm guessing it's because I have The Dead Beat: Lost Souls, Lucky Stiffs, and the Perverse Pleasures of Obituarieson my shelf.

142: This wasn't the first book I clicked on, I only decided to try it at the last minute, so that theory hasn't held for me.

I snagged The Returning by Ann Tatlock.

Nothing for me. Congrats to everyone who snagged books!

I'm getting Three Minutes on Love- it's my first early reviewer book so I'm pretty excited.

Message edited by its author, Dec 6, 2008, 10:15am.

I snagged Garner on Language and Writing. I have a copy of his Dictionary of Modern American Usage in my Philology Reference Collection.

Can't believe I snagged two months in a row!! Last month I got Low Man and it's actually pretty good so far. This month I'll be getting Fault Line.

I picked up Joker One. My first early reviewer snag!!!

Message edited by its author, Dec 6, 2008, 2:04pm.

I got Fault Line by Barry Eisler...my second review book, but my first REAL one since my other one was Any Given Doomsday.

Etta by Gerald Kolpan for me. Yay!

I got The Starseed Dialogues. It looked interesting, so now I shall get to find out! Yay!

#141 - I'll be getting Drood. Looking forward to it!

I'm getting Fault Line... Can't wait!

#154 - Good for you! I look forward to reading your review.

Fault Line for me. The husband just started reading his books, so he is excited to get this one, too.

Honeymoon in Tehran for me...I am really looking forward to it. I have enjoyed a lot of books lately about the middle east, India and other parts of the non-western world.

I haven't seen anybody snagging the book Lit Report which is the only book I had requested. I know there were only 15 copies.

I cold requested Lit report from the publisher when the er list first came out and got it

Honeymoon in Tehran for me... and it ALREADY ARRIVED! Wow.

(After waiting *months* for the only other ER book I've received, Weaving a Way Home, I'm thrilled by the speed.)

I got Canvey Island, which was my top choice. That's two in a row after a few months' dry spell. I feel very lucky!

I got A Rose by Any Name which is great - gardening books are one of my guilty pleasures (especially in the winter when I can't do anything in my own garden) plus I'm laid up at home for the next 6 weeks so I hope it comes soon.

No book for me (*sniff*). Not that I'm not used to not snagging books by this time... I think the last one (the ONLY one) I ever got was in... February?

I, too, snagged Honeymoon in Tehran. It arrived the day after I found out I got it!!!

I, too, snagged Honeymoon in Tehran. It arrived the day after I found out I got it!!!

I snagged Fault Line and am so excited!!

Interesting to read everyone's comments. Seems like there is much suspense, joy and disappointment involved in being an ERer.

I signed up in Nov. and clicked on maybe half a dozen books. To my surprise and great amusement I am getting Look Before You Leap: A Premarital Guide for Couples by Sandra L. Ceren.

It's funny because I have just started dating again, three years after The Big Heartbreak. I am hardly one who could be accused of leaping! But maybe there will be some Timely Advice.

You'll be the first I tell!

I snagged Honeymoon in Tehran: Two Years of Love and Danger in Iran by Azadeh Moaveni and suprisingly The Mistress of Mellyn by Victoria Holt came as well, when I had all but given up hope that it would.

I snagged Great Expectations: The Graphic Novel. I also got Jane Eyre last month. Early Reviewers is really helping me build up my graphic novel collection. Makes a girl happy.

I'm getting A Mercy by Toni Morrison!

>168, Maybe the Great Algorithm thinks you should be out there doing more Looking? ;-) Congratulations on jumping back into the fray.

#36 - I'm getting Canvey Island by James Runcie, and am very excited about it.
-----------

ShootingStarr -- I'm supposed to get that one too, which I think is funny because I have another book by James Runcie in my library that I rated one-star. I guess no one looks at that when they award the books.

I've only ever snagged one book before, and it never arrived. Now I've snagged another one and I don't have much hope for liking it. Not sure this Early Reviewers program is going to work for me!

Message edited by its author, Dec 9, 2008, 4:37pm.

#26 - I've since learned my lesson: to only to request stuff that I actually want.
---------------
Indeed! That's usually my mantra, but I guess I slipped up this time.

#173>

Well, no, it doesn't look at ratings, probably because the idea that people would request books they didn't want never occurred to them. (Was this a case of clicking on the wrong book accidentally, or what?)

I have no idea what I was thinking! I must not have recognized the author's name. But hey, I am willing to give him another chance--it looks like an entirely different book, and my complaint on the one I read was quite specific.

>172, You have a point. I hadn't even thought to consult the Great Algorithm in this. Will get on that.

And thanks!

#173 Think positive! I think you're gonna like it - it's a great book and it had me hooked from page 1 - especially because, until I read it, I knew nothing at all about the main event that informs the whole of the story. I can't hear the name of Canvey Island now without thinking of that terrible time.

The Only Guide to Alternative Investments You'll Ever Need : The Good, the Flawed, the Bad, and the Ugly by Larry E. Swedroe.

Surprised to see it's already in the LoC catalog.

I found Love's Civil War: Elizabeth Bowen and Charles Ritchie Letters and Diaries in my mailbox today. Looks interesting - I hope I can find the time to read it.

I snagged To Buy or Not to Buy which, considering the currently stalling consumer economy, seems like an ironic choice. I requested it because I tend to make impulse purchases and hope it will help me make better decisions.

I got The Pluto Files as well. I am really excited about this one!

#97 - Do you mean they sent it to you without a previous request? That is so cool!

I got Ten Powerful Phrases for Positive People by Rich DeVos.

At first, I was wondering how I got it because I don't mention that I've been an Amway distributor since 1992. But then I realized that I have one other book by DeVos. In checking his author page, I see only 95 people have him in the libraries and I bet many MANY fewer people try to be an Early Reviewer! LOL

"Firmin" which arrived this morning. (It is the paperback reprint. . . ARC version.)No one else has mentioned it. Surely I'm not alone with this rat?

Re: #184 Thanks weebaby! I'm lying here sick and really needed to laugh!

141 - I'll be getting Drood.

#185 I actually bought a first print of Firmin a year or two ago - it too was paperback and I believe it might have only ever been printer in pb? I have to admit I have yet to read it - I hope to get to it in the next couple of months. Certainly a positive few reviews would make it more enticing.

188: The Coffee House Press edition was a paperback original. Excellent book, too.

I got nothing. Again!

Well, Alirambles, it looks like I am just going to have leap. For some reason the publisher is no longer participating so I won't be getting Look Before You Leap, after all. My first review book! C'est la vie.

Did anyone else get Pinocchio?

I got Knitting for Good too, but I'm not too happy with it. I've only skimmed it thus far, but the dark gray areas with white print in them, smaller type, turn me off a tad. I won't make a decision on it yet. It's not the final printing, so perhaps when the printing is done, it will be improved. I would think they would want to show their best face to a reviewer, especially since there are only 15 review copies sent out. This "Advance Reader's Edition" isn't great, and I'm hesitant about the "creating personal, social, and political change stitch by stitch."

I just received Love's Civil War and am starting it today. It's a gorgeous book, looks like a full-fledged hard-cover bookstore edition, not an ARC at all. What a treat!

I snagged Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. It arrived yesterday by UPS and is next in the reading line. Can't wait to start it!

Just received Acts of Faith and it looks like an excellent read...Skimmed the introduction. Am looking forward to spending time with it this week.

Here's my review of "Firmin"
Savage, Sam : “Firmin” Delta trade paperback, 2009. Illustrated by Fernando Krahn.

At a time when readers are recovering from the shock of disclosures of faked autobiographies, Sam Savage gives us a gift: an inauthentic autobiography we can choose to believe! Delta brings us his “Firmin,” first published in 2006, making it available now for those who missed it then.

For 163 pages we follow our hero, a literate rat, whose motto, “Good to eat is good to read” evolves as he explores literature (and, tangentially, both real life and that of the cinema). Firmin, runt of the litter, is the 13th of a mother with 12 tits. The key to his survival? He’s nourished by eating fragments of books in the basement of a Boston bookstore.

There is basic truth in the background: Scollay Square was an actual place, and it had shops and a movie house AND it was demolished. The life of Firmin? We can choose or not to believe.

I admire him for trying to learn sign language, and for singing Gershwin while playing a toy piano (and being honest enough to admit his efforts fell short of the real thing). I’m charmed by his opinion that toilet paper tasted like Emily Post. I’m delighted that there is one human who befriends him.

The full-page illustrations by Fernando Krahn which include Firmin in scale with his surroundings add a touch of reality to his narrative.

Firmin is no Mickey Mouse, and nothing like the hero of the film “Ratatouille.” He is special for having survived against great odds, and demonstrating an acquisition of literacy hitherto undocumented in any of his species.

P. S. In his wonderful book, “Too Loud a Solitude,” Bohumil Hrabal’s protagonist speaks of mice having “a vital need for literature with a marked preference for Goethe and Schiller in Morocco bindings. . . the older the paper the tastier it is, like a well-aged cheese or vintage wine.”

This was my first try and I was lucky enough to get The Economist Book of Obituaries, which I am really enjoying. Hope to get it done within the next few weeks and post my review. It was very exciting to get my first book. I didn't think I would get anything and when it arrived, I was really surprised!

I just received my copy of Why the Long Face? on Friday - I'm going to try to finish the three books I had been reading by tomorrow night to start on this one!

I received HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET Friday! I started reading yesterday and even though I'm only about 70 pages in, I'm really enjoying the story. Its an easy read that is interesting and Jamie Ford's storytelling ability is evident.

OK, I'm jealous! I'm supposed to be getting Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet too, but haven't received it yet. Maybe because my hill has been unnavigable in the snow, but I want it! Waaah!

Update: I saw on the other thread that someone in JAPAN got their copy while I'm still waiting in Seattle! :((

Message edited by its author, Dec 29, 2008, 4:17am.

Still no copy of Patient Zero here, though 26 other people have gotten it. Hey, there wasn't that much snow in Las Vegas! I got my other two Early Reviewer Books mere days after getting Abby's message.

>201 bonniebooks, I received Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet through a request from Shelf Awareness, not through LT. I received it about 2 weeks ago and can't wait to read it. You might want to try the publisher directly.

>203 caroline123, I got my book the day after I complained--that always happens, doesn't it. I was going to wait until New Year's to read it, but... Now, I just have to figure out where to review it. Do I just post my commentary under "reviews" or is there a special place for ER reviews?

>bonniebooks, Add the book to your library and then click on the pencil icon. That will bring up a screen where you should add your review.

Oh, thanks! I thought I had to post ER reviews in a special place.

>202 Got my book and have already posted a review. It's a great read!

RE #29 or #34

Still waiting on Bestseller! by Jane Daniel.

Quick message from the publisher to those who snagged "The Way of Ping." We had production delays, but books are in, and early copies are being sent out this week!