Now that I've finished my first 75 books for the year, it's time to start trying for another 75 books.

The first 75 books are listed and discussed at:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/60959

Message edited by its author, Jul 2, 2009, 11:24pm.

Here are my July-August books read:

My September-October books are at post 69.

My November-December books are at post 147.

July 2009

74. My Life and Hard Times by James Thurber
75. Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich
76. James Madison by Garry Wills
77. The Right Place, The Right Time by Donald Peck
78. The Thing of It Is by John Callaway
79. Category Five by Philip Donlay
80. In a Dark House by Deborah Crombie
81. The Good Doctors by John Dittmer (Early Reviewers book}
82. The Johnstown Flood by David McCullough
83. Indemnity Only by Sara Paretsky
84. The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel
85. Trio for Blunt Instruments by Rex Stout

August 2009

86. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron
87. The Second Confession by Rex Stout
88. Murder Begins at Home by Delano Ames
89. Red and Me: My Coach, My Lifelong Friend by Bill Russell
90. Deal Breaker by Harlan Coben
91. The Look of Architecture by Witold Rybczynski
92. Fergie: My Life from the Cubs to Cooperstown by Fergie Jenkins
93. The Gardner Heist: The True Story of the World's Largest Unsolved Art Theft by Ulrich Boser
94. Dare to Die by Carolyn Hart
95. Goody Goody Gunshots by Sammi Carter
96. Racing Odysseus: A College President Becomes a Freshman Again by Roger H. Martin
97. Drop Shot by Harlan Coben
98. Cooperstown Confidential by Zev Chafets
99. Christmas Is Murder by C.S. Challinor
100. Dead Hot Shot by Victoria Houston

Message edited by its author, Nov 3, 2009, 2:00pm.

Congratulations on reaching the 75 challenge goal!

Thanks. Today is the first day of the second half of the year so I'm only one day behind. I can surely catch up!!

75 books already - Congrats!!

Congrats on reaching 75! I'll be watching for your thoughts on the next 75 for this year!

Congrats!

Book #76

James Madison by Garry Wills

This is a short overview of James Madison, particularly as to his presidential years. The book is part of the American Presidents series and, for what it aims to do, it's not too bad.

More than half of the book is on Madison's presidency, though, even there, it seems to be more of a history of the times and less about Madison's role in it.

After reading the Wills book, I see Madison as skillful in legislative matters and a giant at the Constitutional Convention but not particulary adept as our nation's Chief Executive. There, he was naive, provincial, and seemed to flip flop quite a bit in his views.

This book did make me want to read more about Madison, though there's a scarcity of good biographies about him. As a result, I intend to read something about the making of the Constitution and also about the War of 1812. This book was a decent start to my Madison reading.

Message edited by its author, Jul 5, 2009, 1:02am.

Linda
I think the mark of good historical biographies and/or fictional novels is that it challenges us to read more.

Your most recent read sounds like a good book. A&E did a wonderful series on the Presidents and I learned a lot.

Whisper1, I am reading my way through the presidents over at the presidential challenge. For Washington, Adams, and Jefferson, there are plenty of good, full-length biographies. Well, less so for Jefferson anyway--I had to read several books about him to get a more complete picture.

But for Madison, not so much, though Lynne Cheney is said to be working on one. I think my next presidential-type book will be the new book about the making of the Constitution called Plain Honest Men by Richard Beeman.

I've contemplated joining the presidential challenge, but right now my life is very busy and keeping abreast of two challenges might be tough. I'll stop by your thread more often though so that I can get a sense of American Presidents through your comments and books you are reading.

Book #77

The Right Place, The Right Time:Tales of Chicago Symphony Days by Donald Peck

Besides visiting Wrigley Field to watch the Cubs play, my favorite thing to do in Chicago is to go to Symphony Center to hear the world-renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra so, when I saw this book, I knew I had to read it.

Peck was the principal flutist of the CSO from 1957 to 1999 and he provides an insider's view to what a musician in a major orchestra does. Besides the rehearsals and the actual performances at the Symphony Center fall through spring and at Ravinia during the summer, they record albums, they go on tours, they teach etc etc.

Peck offers some occasionally interesting insights into the trips, the recordings made, and working with world-famous conductors like Georg Solti and Daniel Barenboim. He also talks about performing with the greatest musicians and singers.

This book is ok, I thought, though the topical approach detracted from the book since Peck constantly needed to refer to later chapters or refer back to earlier ones. For instance, when talking about making a recording with a famous conductor, half the story would be in the "working with conductors" chapter and the other half in the "making recordings" chapter.

The book is at its best when Peck gets a bit more personal and less so, for example, when he merely recites one tour stop after another, with little insight.

Book #78
The Thing of It Is by John Callaway

John Callaway, a long-time Chicago TV broadcaster and interviewer was probably my favorite newsman. Unfortunately, he died in late June so I tracked down his book and read it.

I had the chance to meet him twice. Once, he came to our company and gave a talk about the changing workforce. Once, I met him at a book signing for this book, back in the mid 1990s or so. (I need to find my signed copy!)

This book is a collection of 57 essays on Chicago and on other topics. In one, for instance, he talked about how his toughest interview ever for Chicago Tonight was his interview with Margaret Truman, daughter of Harry Truman. He wanted to talk about her, not her father, and she was responding only with brief answers. He realized the problem was that she wanted to talk about her father and, when he started going that route, she really opened up.

To my astonishment, in one essay about Chicago street names, he even talked about the tiny street I lived on until I was 8 years old. Amazing.

Even though most of the essays were from the late 1980s/early 1990s, many were ahead of their time. It's amazing to think how many are still timely because what he wrote about is still true--only the names have changed over the years.

Very interesting!!

Message edited by its author, Jul 14, 2009, 1:14pm.

Book #79

Category Five: Hurricane Force by Philip Donlay

I recently read Code Black by Donlay, which is his second thriller, after Category Five. Category Five is another thriller with a similar (unbelievable plot) involving crippled airplanes, unbelievable weather, and other calamities. I thought it started even slower than Code Black but, not surprisingly, really picked up.

It's definitely a quick read, though. I read most of it on the long bus ride to and from Wrigley Field, as well as some during a rain delay.

Message edited by its author, Jul 11, 2009, 10:43pm.

#15: Finally one from your thread I do not have to add to Planet TBR. I read that one several years ago and have no desire to reread it, although I did enjoy it at the time.

Book #80

In a Dark House by Deborah Crombie

For years, I diligently read each new Deborah Crombie mystery almost as soon as it came out. For some reason, I don't even remember why, I stopped doing this. (Last read one in 2003.)

In a Dark House, which is the 10th book in the series, reminds me of why I used to l like Crombie's books so much. There are many complex sub-plots here--a missing child, arsons, matters involving the private lives of Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James, just to name a few.

Though at times, some of her concepts are personally troubling to me, such as the missing child, once I start a Crombie mystery, I have trouble putting it down. Very nicely done!!

#17: That is a series I have always meant to start, but never have. I will have to look for them!

> 17 A friend loaned this book to me out of order, but I really enjoyed it anyway. I am currently reading the first in the series A Share in Death. I'm a stickler for reading series in order, so now that I know I like Crombie, I'm reading them the OCD way.

Book #80 looks like a good one, been added to the TBR mountain. Thanks.

Book #81
The Good Doctors by John Dittmer
(Early Reviewers book)

This is the story of the Medical Committee for Human Rights (MCHR), an organization founded in 1964 to provide medical care for civil rights activists. At times, such as when the author is describing the actual medical efforts of the MCHR, such as in providing medical care to the protestors at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the book is somewhat interesting.

More often than not, however, the book is tedious, one of the dullest books I've read in quite some time. If it were not an Early Reviewers book (and so one I strongly aimed to finish), I would have put it aside after about page 25. Instead, I somehow slogged my way to the end.

The book placed way too much emphasis on the in-fighting at the MCHR, including page after page of information such as x chapter disbanded in protest or Dr Y took over Z organization only to move on to a job at ABC Hospital 6 months later.

The lack of an index or even a list of organizations and individuals mentioned is ridiculous. It's almost impossible to keep track of who's who or what's what.

I cannot recommend this book at all. It's an extremely disappointing book on what should've been a fascinating topic.

I am sorry you did not enjoy it more! I hope your next read is better for you.

Thanks Stasia. I'm about one-third through both the first Sara Paretsky mystery and David McCullough's book on the Johnstown Flood of 1889.

The Good Doctors was hanging over my head for quite some time but at least I got the book read and the review done so my ER slate is clean. I haven't received my latest ER book, the new Kathy Reichs mystery, yet.

I am anxious to see your take on the McCullough book. The Johnstown Flood book has been on Planet TBR forever, one of the few of his I have not already read.

I'm sorry it was such a disappointment; it does sound rather tedious. But now you can move onto to something that you'll really enjoy! Hooray for clean ER slates.

I have The Good Doctors on physical TBR as the next nonfiction read. I have worked in healthcare, so I hope I enjoy it. The premise really sounds good.

I LOVE the David McCullough book on The Johnstown Flood. The volume I own was my father's and I read it many times growing up, even as a young history-phobe. I also read a YA novel of the Johnstown Flood which I checked out of the library way back when, and can't remember the title now.

profilerSR, I would be curious to hear what you think of The Good Doctors. Amost everyone else who has reviewed it has loved it.

If he had focused on what they did and the discussion over whether they should provide a medical presence at civil rights marches or else provide community health services, I would've been happy. Those things are interesting to me, which is why I asked for this ER book. Hearing about what they had to overcome and how they had to fight the established medical groups was interesting, as well.

I thought he spent way too much time talking about in-fighting between the chapters and the national HQ and other types of internal dispute.

Book #82
The Johnstown Flood by David McCullough

On May 31, 1889, a dam at the South Fork Fishing & Hunting Club above Johnstown, PA broke, flooding the town. It's believed that 2,209 people died in this catastrophe. David McCullough, in one of his earlier books (from 1968), does a masterful job explaining what happened and why.

I thought the book started out slowly, but later realized that all this background was necessary. Some of the stories he includes were amazing. I guess I always assumed that a massive flood would be a wall of water, but never really considered all the debris that it could contain, like here, where there were train cars, lots of barbed wire, houses, and people in the big wave. One of the more heartrending stories, I thought, was how debris piled up at the stone bridge, trapping people inside the pile when fire broke out.

This was the ninth book I've read this year about disasters and I believe it's one of the better ones.

I've added The Johnstown Flood to my tbr pile. Thanks for your excellent review!

#28: I need to find that one. It has been on Planet TBR far too long.

I've been reading a lot of favorable reviews of The Johnstown Flood here on LT. I think I'll give it a try. I've got John Adams on the TBR pile by the same author and have heard that it is very good as well.

Book #83

Indemnity Only by Sara Paretsky

This is the first in Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski series and is set in Chicago in 1979. As a lifelong Chicagoland resident and mystery buff, I guess it was a bit surprising that I really hadn't read this series but I finally did and am glad.

The book is grittier than my usual but I love the Chicago setting and, in particular, the references to the Chicago Cubs of the day. (I haven't thought about those late 70s Cub players like Kingman or Biitner in a long time).

The mystery itself was just ok but there's definitely enough potential here, along with some engaging characters, to keep me interested.

>32: I enjoyed the Warshawski series quite a bit when they were first being published. Then Paretsky took a break and, when she returned to them, I wasn't really able to reconnect. I don't know why. I the last one still sitting on a shelf, unread. Maybe I should re-start from the beginning...I don't know.

Book #84

The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel

The is a, at times, delightful book filled with the author's ramblings on all things library-related. The most moving to me were sections dealing with bookburning/bookbanning as well as the role of books in the Nazi concentration camps.

This book has gotten rave reviews and I can certainly understand that. However, Manguel spends quite a bit of time on ancient libraries, a subject that is not of all that much interest to me. At times, I wanted to say out loud "all right, already, let's move on to something else" because I was bored with it. Overall, though, I thought it was pretty good.

#33--Tad, I'm in the same boat vis-a-vis, Warshawski. I've had the latest book on the shelf for a while, but feel a need to reconnect from the beginning.

Book #85

Trio for Blunt Instruments by Rex Stout

This is a collection of three Nero Wolfe/Archie Goodwin novellas, written in the 1960s. Maybe because they're written/set 20 years later than most of the others I've read in this series but, for some reason, these stories lack the zing or spark of others I've read.

They're not bad but just not what I'd usually expect. I liked the first one, involving a boot black who is accused of pushing a corporate executive (at a bobbin company) out of a window, killing him, the best.

The second one, involving the murder of a man who delivered corn to the Wolfe household, was a bit odd, as it involved a woman from Archie's past. This one did not hold together well.

The third one, involving a blood-stained tie set via the mail to Archie, was ok.

Book #86

Dewey by Vicki Myron

I read this charming book about the much-loved library cat of Spencer, Iowa, pretty much in one sitting and I don't even like cats. It's hard not to be touched by Dewey Readmore Books and how much he meant to the people of the town. I really enjoyed this one!!

#37: I read it last year and thought it was just a charming, quiet book. I am glad to see you enjoyed it.

Book #87

The Second Confession by Rex Stout

I've read most of the books in the Nero Wolfe series, but not all, and lately, the ones I've read have been a trio of novellas. It was great to get back to the real thing.

This had a great, though dated, plot (it was written in 1949). I was put off by all the "is he or isn't he a communist" talk but even so, the story was very interesting. I love the interplay between Wolfe and Archie Goodwin and, in a full-length novel like this, there's more of an emphasis on that.

Now for the negatives and there are a few. Part of why I like mystery series is that they're comfortable.

For most, like the Wolfe books, I have expectations. For the Wolfe books, I expect that most of the action will take place in Wolfe's brownstone, though Archie will run off to get information and then come back and report it to Wolfe. That doesn't really happen here.

I also expect that all of the main characters and all of the usual secondary characters will play a role. If they don't, I expect to hear why not. For instance, in a Perry Mason book, if Della Street is not Mason's secretary, I want to know if she hurt herself skiing in the Alps or whatever. Again, that doesn't happen here and a recurring character was left out.

Despite these two "problems," this was an interesting, well-plotted Rex Stout.

Message edited by its author, Aug 7, 2009, 11:51am.

Book #88

Murder Begins at Home by Delano Ames

This is a newly-rereleased (by the Rue Morgue Press) mystery originally written in 1949. In all, he has written a dozen Jane and Dagobert Brown books. In the mid-1980s, I read the other four Ames books that were available then--She Shall Have Murder; Corpse Diplomatique; Murder, Maestro Please; and For Old Crime's Sake--and thoroughly enjoyed them, never understanding why these aren't available.

The Jane and Dagobert Brown books are a light-hearted, almost comically screwball (at times) series from the late 1940s/1950s. This is the second one in the series and, uncharacteristically, it's set in New Mexico (the Browns were travelling by car from New York to Detroit so naturally, they ended up in New Mexico).

This one started out slowly and, just after I'd mentioned to a co-worker (who is a fellow Delano Ames fan) that this one wasn't as good as the others I remembered, it really picked up.

I wish they were all in print but, until they are, I will have to bide my time waiting for new ones in this enjoyable series to be re-released.

Book #89

Red and Me: My Coach, My Lifelong Friend by Bill Russell

This is the story of a 50-year friendship between basketball star, Bill Russell, a player for the Boston Celtics from the mid 1950s to the late 1960s, and his legendary coach, Red Auerbach.

I've read plenty of memoirs and books discussing women's friendships but have rarely ever read one talking about men's friendships.

Though much of the talk is what they didn't do or what was left unspoken between them, I enjoyed this inside look at their friendship and also at how it first evolved as player/coach. This was an interesting book, one that, I think, even a nonsports fan might enjoy.

#40: Yet another series for me to track down. Thanks (I think) for the recommendation, Linda.

Same here, Linda. It sounds like a great mystery series. If I can find them...

They are hard to find, that's for sure.

They remind me a bit of the Leonidas Witherall series from Phoebe Atwood Taylor, which I absolutely loved. (The PAT books are a bit more slapstick, though.)

I need to send a note to Tom and Enid at Rue Morgue Press urging them to reprint more of the Ames books.

Book #90

Deal Breaker by Harlan Coben

So many family members (who aren't even mystery fans) foisted this one on me that I thought I'd read it. This is the first of the Myron Bolitar, Yoo-Hoo-drinking sports agent, mysteries.

I'm glad I finally read it. Not the greatest mystery ever but it kept me guessing and I liked many of the characters and want to read more.

Book #91

The Look of Architecture by Witold Rybczynski

This short book, consisting of three lectures given for the NY Public Library and Oxford University, was, at times, interesting, and at times, way over my head. I've read several of his other books and loved them so this one was a disappointment to me.

In one, he talks about the tension between various architectural elements: sheltering, firmness, and delight. Overall, he talks about the importance of style in architecture and how details don't complement architecture, they are the architecture.

My problem is that he offhandedly refers to a number of architects and architectural movements and I know little about that. This is a book that would've been better had I read some of the others on my list first.

Book #92

Fergie: My Life from the Cubs to Cooperstown by Fergie Jenkins

This was a fairly standard baseball autobiography of famed Chicago Cubs pitcher and Hall of Famer, Fergie Jenkins. When I was growing up, he was my favorite pitcher so I enjoyed getting some inside scoop on his career, particularly the years with the Cubs.

Fergie is the first (and so far, only) Canadian in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

I would like to have read more about some of the challenges in his life, such as his drug bust as well as the suicide of his fiancee (who also took the life of one of Fergie's young daughters).

Overall, though, for a diehard baseball fan, this is a treasure trove of information on all aspects of his Hall of Fame career, as well as his post-baseball activities.

#47: I have got to find that one!

Book #93

The Gardner Heist: The True Story of the World's Largest Unsolved Art Theft by Ulrich Boser

The Gardner Heist is one of the most interesting books I've read this year, or any year. I was genuinely sorry when it ended.

The subject is the March 1990 art heist at the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum in Boston in which two thieves, dressed as cops, stole artwork valued at $500 million, including a famous Vermeer, several Rembrandts and others.

Beyond just talking about the Gardner theft, Boser talks about the seedy underbelly of the art world, as well as "art detectives" who often work for insurance companies (though not in this case since the Gardner didn't have insurance) and lax security procedures at major museums. Absolutely fascinating!!

#49: Since you liked that one, you might want to give The Forger's Spell by Edward Dolnick a try.

I am adding The Gardner Heist to Planet TBR. Thanks for the recommendation!

#94

Dare to Die by Carolyn Hart

Way back when, when I was still in college and law school, I read mysteries in my occasional spare time but they were always old-time, classic mysteries. Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Dorothy L. Sayers and the like. In those pre-internet days, I never realized that any current authors were writing good mysteries, too. Not until I came across Carolyn Hart and her Death on Demand series.

Dare to Die is the 19th in the series featuring Broward's Rock, SC mystery bookstore owner, Annie Darling, and her husband, Max. I can always count on these being consistently good, and Dare to Die did not disappoint.

They are as cozy as can be, though this one was a bit darker than usual. I love the recurring characters, especially mystery reader extraordinaire, Henny Brawley. I love her monthly "guess the title" display of books at the bookstore, in each novel. In this one, I didn't especially care for the suspects but I did enjoy the plot element whereby crimes from the past impact the present.

Enjoyable, as always.

Thanks, I'm going to check out that series!

Book #95

Goody Goody Gunshots by Sammi Carter

As usual, I enjoyed this light, breezy mystery featuring Abby Shaw, small-town Colorado candy store owner. It's got a somewhat interesting plot, though the clues always seem pretty obvious. It's a quick read, populated with a lot of likeable recurring characters.

Even so, as far as candy store mysteries go, I prefer the JoAnna Carl series set in Michigan.

#53: I am not starting another series . . . I am not starting another series - oh, who am I kidding? On to Planet TBR the JoAnna Carl series goes.

Glad to hear the the Carl series are good, I have them on the list for next year.

Racing Odysseus: A College President Becomes a Freshman Again by Roger H. Martin

During his sabbatical, Martin, a 61-year old college president and cancer survivor, decides to become a freshman again, this time at a Great Books College in Maryland, St. John's College. Though he talks only about freshman seminar, rowing in the college crew, and a bit of the social life, which is all I think he did, not the full academic schedule, Martin offers an entertaining look at going back.

Quite a bit of the time is spent talking about the reading required in the freshman seminar so, in many ways, this is more a book about books than anything else. I found the parts in which he thinks back to his own undergrad years at Denison University in Ohio and weaves that in to the present to be especially interesting.

I really enjoyed reading this book.

#56: Ha! I do not need to add that one to Planet TBR, since it is already there :)

Racing Odysseus was my 96th book of the year. I was looking at last year's list. I didn't read my 96th book until about December 5th.

I am way, way ahead of last year's pace.

#58: Congratulations, Linda!

Hi! Just wandered onto your thread, and you've read some interesting books!

I just added The Gardner Heist to my Wishlist. Great review -- sounds like something I'd enjoy.

#97 Drop Shot by Harlan Coben

A few weeks ago, I read the first Myron Bolitar book and enjoyed it so much that I quickly followed up with this one, set in the world of professional tennis.

Another enjoyable read!! In fact, I think I liked this one a bit more than the first one. Also, I am definitely liking the recurring characters, like Esperanza.

Message edited by its author, Aug 26, 2009, 1:00pm.

Cooperstown Confidential by Zev Chafets

This is a breezy look at the Baseball Hall of Fame, warts and all. If you've ever read anything about baseball before, you probably won't learn much. This is especially disappointing for a book that purports that it's giving the inside dirt and blowing the lid off the Hall of Fame.

Baseball writers turned a blind eye to Babe Ruth's off-the-field antics. Some Hall of Famers are less than perfect. Not exactly any newsflashes here. Some guys in the Hall of Fame don't belong there; others who do belong aren't there. That kind of stuff.

People who've never read anything about baseball and the HoF might enjoy this. The author writes well and it's easy to get sucked into this book. For me, it was a big waste of time.

#62: For me, it was a big waste of time.

Sounds like it would be for me, too. Maybe your next book will be an improvement for you!

I have a lot of great baseball books ahead. I grabbed this one b/c I figured it'd be quick.

Once we get into Sept, I will likely read some longer, heftier books for awhile. That's all subject to change since the Rue Morgue Press catalog arrived yesterday, always a highlight for me. I should stop bending over the pages in that catalog with books I want and start bending over pages that have no books of interest.

#64: Have you read Bob Costas' book, Fair Ball? You might have a gander at it if you have not had a chance to read it.

Book #99

Christmas Is Murder by C. S. Challinor

This is the first in a series featuring Queen's Counsel Rex Graves as the sleuth. It has the feel of an old-fashioned mystery--people are stranded in a small English hotel shortly before Christmas and, one by one, the guests start getting murdered.

Despite the old feel, it actually occurs in the present day. The hotel proprietor has a fax machine, the sleuth waits has a cell phone and waits for an email.

A quick read and, when it ended, I thought it was ok. A day later, the more I think about it, the more I like it. Definitely want to read more by this author.

#65--Yes, I've read the Costas book. I like him a lot.

BOOK #100

Dead Hot Shot by Victoria Houston

Dead Hot Shot is the 9th in the Loon Lake Fishing mysteries series by Victoria Houston. I don't hunt or fish but this is probably my favorite series that you've never heard of.

These mysteries, including Dead Hot Shot, are spot on in capturing the look, feel, and attitudes of the Wisconsin Northwoods, which, along with the U.P. of Michigan, is a Panzo family favorite vacation destination. For years such as this year, when we're not going up north, Victoria Houston makes me wish that we were going.

The series features retired dentist Doc Osborne and the love of his life, the town's Chief of Police, Lewellyn Ferris, a woman who, loves to fish as much as Doc does. This particular mystery is set at Thanksgiving.

Though I sometimes wish an editor would tighten up her writing a bit, Houston is one of my favorite currently-writing mysteries authors and Dead Hot Shot did not disappoint. I'm looking forward to Dead Renegade, the 10th in the series, which is due out in October, 2009.

My November-December books are at post 147.

September-October books read

Read in September
101. Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz
102. Lost in the Meritocracy: The Undereducation of an Overachiever by Walter Kirn
103. Death at Crane's Court by Eillis Dillon
104. Tony La Russa: Man on a Mission by Rob Rains
105. Navy Wife by Debbie Macomber
106. Elvis Presley by Bobbie Ann Mason
107. Skull Duggery by Aaron Elkins
108. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
109. When Did We Lose Harriet? by Patricia Sprinkle
110. In the President's Secret Service by Ronald Kessler
111. American Gothic by Thomas Hoving
112. 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs
113. The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny
114. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

Read in October
115. Sheer Folly by Carola Dunn
116. Open Ice: Confessions of a Hockey Lifer by Jack Falla
117. American Gothic by Steven Biel
118. Frank Lloyd Wright by Ada Louise Huxtable
119. Blackwork by Monica Ferris
120. Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
121. The Chocolate Cupid Killings by JoAnna Carl
122. Plum Pudding Murder by Joanne Fluke
123. The Complete Game by Ron Darling
124. Tornado Hunter: Getting Inside the Most Violent Storms on Earth by Stefan Bechtel
125. A Christmas Promise by Anne Perry

Message edited by its author, Nov 3, 2009, 2:01pm.

Book #101

Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz

I rarely read fiction, except for mysteries, but, even so, Admission is probably my favorite work of fiction this year. I suspect this is a book I will still be thinking about years from now.

The narrator, Portia Nathan, is a 38-year old woman who is a long-time admissions officer at Princeton who is trying to deal with the events from her past and troubles in the present, all while reading/reviewing thousands of college applications for the next year's freshman class.

This may sound mundane but oh, what a book!! I've stayed up way past my bedtime the last few nights reading this masterpiece.

It's rare that a book with a great plot also offers so much fascinating detail like this one does about the Ivy League admission process.

Admission has more than one meaning and, so too, does this book. Absolutely loved it!! I've already foisted it on several co-workers.

#70: OK, I will look for that one!

#70 It doesn't sound like the sort of book I'd normally be interested in, but you said it wasn't your usual thing either and you loved it. So, I've added it to the wish list.

As one of the family members who foisted this on you :), I still say that Harlen Coben's non-Myron books are infinitely better.

My sister!! She lives!!

I will have to try a non-Myron book at some point. Which do you suggest?

Book #102
Lost in the Meritocracy: The Undereducation of an Overachiever by Walter Kirn

This is Kirn's memoir of how his ability to win prizes at school (such as aceing the SATs) led to his admission to Princeton, which he absolutely hated. His often hilarious attempts to fit in with just about every type of student sub-group was the best part of the book.

On another thread, I was griping about how disappointed I was with this book early on but soon realized, once I started seeing the humor of the situations Kirn faced, it wasn't a bad book at all. Not great but funny in spots. I'm glad I didn't quit on it, as I'd been thinking of doing.

Anyone who's ever gone to college would probably find some parts of this enjoyable.

>75: That sounds like it's right up my alley. Thanks.

Book #103

Death at Crane's Court by Eillis Dillon

This is the first Irish mystery written by Eilis Dillon back in 1953 and recently re-released by the Rue Morgue Press. (I read her second and third mysteries--Sent to His Account and Death in the Quadrangle--way back in the mid 1980s and, until recently, was unaware that she'd written a third mystery. According to a new foreword by her son, though she wrote extensively--mainly childrens and literary fiction--she wrote only three mysteries.

Death at Crane's Court is a charming little mystery set at a small hotel on Galway Bay, filled with older people who live there permanently. After the death of his uncle, the new owner moves and starts to shake things up at the hotel, quickly making enemies out of almost the entire staff and all the guests.

Ultra cozy mystery, even by my standards, and one that is pleasant, okay but not great.

Book #104

Tony La Russa: Man on a Mission by Rob Rains

This new biography of manager Tony La Russa is a typical sports biography. Not bad, but not great either. What makes it so interesting is La Russa himself. He's a fascinating guy who put himself through college and law school while he was playing. I've long thought that, if I had the chance to sit down and talk with one major leaguer, it'd be La Russa. He's my favorite manager and a really smart guy.

His major league playing career was short but he spent quite a bit of time playing in the minors. He has also managed for more than 30 years, including long stints with the White Sox, the A's, and, since the mid 1990s, with the Cardinals.

I learned a fair amount about La Russa but, since the author talked only to about 50 former players and other associates and not to La Russa himself, apparently, this book could've been much better.

If you want to learn more about La Russa, I'd recommend Buzz Bissinger's book from a few years ago called Three Nights in August which really gets inside La Russa's head and is one of the better sports biographies I've read. This one wasn't nearly as good.

Book #105

Navy Wife by Debbie Macomber

I rarely read romances but, every once in awhile, I'll read something by Debbie Macomber. Navy Wife is the first in a series of six books.

Lindy's engagement has been broken off and her brother, a navy officer, invites her to live in his Seattle apartment that he shares with another navy officer while they're both deployed. The other roommate, Rush, has just headed out to sea when his ship encounters a problem and has to return to port. When he returns to the apartment unexpectedly, he finds Lindy, a woman he thinks is his roommate's girlfriend. They argue, they fight, they fall in love.

I doubt I could read a steady stream of romances but I liked this one well enough to want to read the second one, Navy Blues.

Book #106

Elvis Presley by Bobbie Ann Mason

This is one of those short Penguin Lives biographies. Good if you want to know the basics or as a starting point into someone's life.

It was interesting and I learned quite a bit about Elvis. Before this, I knew his music but not much at all about his life. For instance, I never knew he had a twin brother who was stillborn. Never knew he'd failed a music class in high school. Wasn't aware that he'd turned down parts in several movies, such as West Side Story and Midnight Cowboy. Never knew he was an avid reader, though those around him tried to discourage this.

When the author kept to the facts, she was pretty good but, unfortunately, spent a lot of time speculating about his intentions or bringing in her own Southern background to generalize on "we Southerners." This was distracting.

In the end, though I learned a lot, with how his life disintegrated, I almost wish I hadn't read this book.

>78 Thanks for your review of the La Russa biography. I think I'll take your advice and read Three Nights in August. I'm a huge Cardinals fan, but I don't know much about La Russa.

#107

Skull Duggery by Aaron Elkins

One of my very favorite mystery series of all is the Gideon Oliver series by Aaron Elkins. Skull Duggery is the newest in this long-running series and among the better ones.

Gideon Oliver is a forensic anthropologist and professor in the Pacific Northwest but many of the books are set elsewhere. In Skull Duggery, his park ranger wife, Julie, needs to head down to Mexico to help out at her relatives' hacienda ranch for a few days. Gideon goes along with her and, as usually happens, there are remains of dead bodies that need to be examined nearby. Because the bones are often from the distant or not so distant past, as is usual, the past and the present intersect, once again.

I've enjoyed his golf mystery series that Elkins has written with his wife. His standalone books aren't bad, either, but a new Gideon Oliver book is a reason to jump for joy.

This is one of my favorite mysteries of the year, so far. First in a long line of new mysteries by favorite authors.

>82: I may give that a try. I used to read the Gideon Oliver series religiously; then I burned out on a bit and stopped. I'll have to pick one up and re-acquaint myself.

#82: I like that series, too.

Book #108

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

I've read an enjoyed Alexander McCall Smith's other series, particularly the Sunday Philosophy Club series, so I thought I'd finally give his main series a try.

This was a gentle book filled with (mostly) small episodes as Precious Ramotswe tries to make a go of it with her detective agency in Botswana. It was ok but even cozier than my usual cozy books.

I probably will give this series a chance and read another in this series but I'm not rushing out to buy a bunch or anything.

Message edited by its author, Sep 15, 2009, 1:20pm.

I've been in a weird reading mood lately. I want to read but nothing is really holding my interest. Help!!
Actually, part of the problem is that I'm biding my time til I can get my hands on the two books I want to read right now--the new Dan Brown book and also True Compass, the Ted Kennedy memoir.

I've got several good books going but nothing that grabs me. Before LT, I used to read one book at a time. Now I've got 5 books going.

Plain Honest Men continues. Really long but something I'll pick up and read for a few pages at a time. 11 percent finished.

In the President's Secret Service is interesting, though not exactly what I'm in the mood for right now. 9 percent finished.

Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay continues. Roughly 15 percent finished. Again, just not in the mood for this right now.

When Did We Lose Harriet? is a bit of an unusual (for me) mystery--definitely cozy but with religious undertones. My copy is published by Zondervan, the religious book publisher, which seems to be an unusual publisher for a mystery. Not far along, maybe 10 percent. Might be tonight's read.

The Healing of America is yet another partially read book, comparing the health care systems around the world. 9 percent finished. This one is too work-related for me right now.

Message edited by its author, Sep 15, 2009, 7:22pm.

#86 Linda, don't you just hate these reading funks? I can tell when I'm getting into one when I keep starting new book after new book without finishing any of them. Nothing holds my interest. Usually, I have to take all those half finished books right back to the library and go do something else. Maybe watch DVD's with the family for a few evenings or something, or else get some mindless paperback romances for a week. Hope your new books come soon - I've been seeing lots of build-up from Borders on the Dan Brown book.

>86 Linda - I had the same experience with The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. It went really slowly for me until I got a good 100-150 pages in. Once I got into the flow of the book, it read more quickly, but it definitely wasn't one that I read in one big long marathon. I'd read 50 pages or so a night, and then pick up something else.

I'm hoping to read Ted Kennedy's memoir soon too.

Book #109

When Did We Lose Harriet? by Patricia Sprinkle

This is the first in a cozy mystery series featuring sleuth MacLaren Yarbrough. Set in Montgomery, Alabama, it showed a lot of Southern charm and had more religious undertones than the typical mystery. (In fact, it's published by Zondervan, a religious book publisher.)

It's the story of Harriet, a missing 15-year old who disappeared right after school ended for the year and, oddly, no one in her family seems to care. I had to totally suspend my disbelief on that.

MacLaren is in town because her brother is in dire need of heart surgery and, through a somewhat miraculous series of events, she's the only one who's really interested in what happened to the missing Harriet.

Despite needing to suspend disbelief much more than usual, I actually really liked this mystery, once I got into it. It's got what I think of as a good story. Lots of interesting characters (I hope I see more of some of them) and twists in the story, too.

I definitely plan to read more in this series. Thanks to Cheli for recommending it!!

Message edited by its author, Sep 16, 2009, 11:16pm.

#86, porch_reader, I'm glad to hear you say that. I was just about to put Kavalier aside because I'm right about that point, too. I may just put it on hold for a bit and get back to it.

Book #110

In the President's Secret Service by Ronald Kessler

Oh boy, this is a tough book to review. In a nutshell, it's a current bestseller about how the U.S. Secret Service operates to protect the president, vice president, their families, others in the line of succession, visiting dignitaries, and other "protectees."

The fairly straightforward, nonfiction look at the Secret Service and how it operates, is the best part of the book including such topics as the training they undergo, how protectees dodge their protectors etc. Lots of fascinating information.

What I did not especially care for is how the author "dishes dirt" on the presidents, going back to JFK. Actually, I don't mind so much reading the dirt about the presidents themselves, but he goes way beyond that to talk about the First Ladies as well as their families, too. Much of it involves things I already knew, like how Nancy Reagan was really controlling. Some of it was surprising. In some cases, I'm surprised he hasn't been sued.

The book operates on a third level, as well, pointing out a lot of the flaws in the Secret Service and how, since it's become part of Homeland Security, they've started to "cut corners." At one point, he used the phrase "cut corners" so many times, I thought I'd scream.

If half of what he says is true about how they've "cut corners," it's terribly scary. You'd think the protectees would be getting bumped off often.

In many cases, this book has the tone of sour grapes coming from disgruntled former employees. Yes, I understand that having a restrictive transfer policy and making agents work long hours would, in fact, be bad for morale and this, would, in turn lead to less effective protection for the president and other protectees. Even so, restrictive transfer policies don't need to be mentioned in every situation.

I think I've gone on way too long. If you want to read something that is, at times, fascinating, but are willing to overlook the occasional sloppy writing and some disorganization, this would be a good choice. I'm glad I read it because I learned a lot. I just wish the writing had been better organized and tidied up and that the book had been more informational and less agenda-based.

Message edited by its author, Sep 18, 2009, 1:07pm.

#91 Oh dear. I was hoping this would be a really good one - the topic sounds interesting enough. Maybe I'll pick it up if I see it laying around at the library.

Sandy, it's actually a quick read.

Most of the "dirt" is early on so you can get swept into it. I was reading it on my Kindle while waiting for the doctor to come into the examining room when I got to the part about LBJ's sexual escapades in the Oval Office. At that point, my doctor walked in and she asked what i was reading. I stammered and told her a book about the secret service and she laughed and said "it must be some book."

The dullest parts are at the end, when he constantly harps about the "cutting corners." By then, you've already been sucked into the book and may as well finish, at that point.

Message edited by its author, Sep 18, 2009, 6:37pm.

Ok - I've added it to the wishlist and will give it a try. Just as long as it sucks you in before you get to the dull part!

Absolutely. My eyes glazed over a bit when he complained about Secret Service transfer policies, repeatedly.

Before that, there's a lot about which presidents are nice guys and which weren't. Not always who you'd think. Which first ladies were. The parts about the First Kids were a bit too much about people who ought not to be in the public eye so much, though. I'm sure that most of us had our bratty moments, like Amy Carter, when we were kids.

I had to laugh. At one point in the dull section, he keeps complaining about how some USSS administrator could not be telling the truth and then he launches in about how he heard from the guy's lawyer. I'll bet.

I don't understand how some of these things get published - doesn't anyone read this stuff and encourage the author to edit out the redundancies?

Chariots of the Gods got published. Everything else is pretty much a step upwards....

;-D

Book #111

American Gothic by Thomas Hoving

Okay, this one was all a misunderstanding. I thought I reserved Steven Biel's American Gothic but instead, I managed to reserve Thomas Hoving's book of the same name. Oops. I read the whole book, inputted it and thought "that's not the cover I had."

I have to go back and reserve the Biel book. I suspect I'll like it more than this book. I expected a cultural history of American Gothic and got only one chapter on this--that should've been a big clue that I had the wrong book.

The Hoving book talks about how to interpret art, particularly American icon, American Gothic, by Grant Wood. Frankly, I did not often understand or see the nuances he was talking about, though I now look at the painting in a different way.

Hoving also includes biographical information about the artist, along with the sources of his inspiration and his creative process. He includes a lot of reviews--from newspapers and the art world--and provides a bit of the cultural history of the painting.

Oh well. The Hoving book was somewhat interesting and, when I do read the Biel book soon I'll have more insights into the painting.

Message edited by its author, Sep 20, 2009, 12:23pm.

Book #112

206 Bones by Kathy Reichs
(Early Reviewers)

206 Bones is the newest in the Temperance Brennan series by Kathy Reichs, set partially in Chicago but mainly, as usual, in Quebec. It's an absolutely riveting page-turner. Besides the usual forensic angle and the solving of a number of old murders, Brennan has to confront what happens when a lab co-worker is bent on sabotage.

If, like me, you haven't read a Reichs book in awhile or if you've never read one of her mysteries, you'd be in for a real treat with 206 Bones. This one definitely makes me want to resume reading this series. Excellent.

Message edited by its author, Sep 20, 2009, 5:57pm.

> 99 Thank you for the review of 206 Bones. I stalled at Break No Bones and have tried to start that book twice and can't get into it. Now, I have incentive to push through it to get to the next ones.

profilerSR, I read the first one years ago and own the second Reichs book, but haven't gotten to it yet.

What was tricky in this book was keeping track of who was who in the lab. The names meant nothing to me.

I definitely want to get back into this series, though.

>99 Echoing the thanks for the review of 206 Bones. Added to Wish List!

Yep, I need to get a copy of 206 Bones, too. Thanks for the bump, Linda.

#113
The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny
(Early Reviewers)

On the surface, one could say that The Brutal Telling is the fifth entry in a police procedural series set in Three Pines, a small village in Quebec and featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and other memorable characters. But that's only part of the story.

As far as I'm concerned, this is a masterpiece in the contemporary mystery field. With most mysteries, I want to gulp them down, find out whodunnit. However, this mystery is meant to be savored, every page, every paragraph, every word.

In the past 30+ years, I've read almost 1,700 mysteries and I'd put The Brutal Telling in the top 10. Easily my favorite mystery of this year or from many recent years.

It's got elegance, it's got depth. Stunning!! Truly magnificent.

I, too, LOVED The Brutal Telling. I had never read Louise Penny before, but I've made it a point to go back and start reading the Three Pines series from the beginning. I was on the web site for the Agatha award, and I gather she's won it two years in a row. I'm amazed that our county library system doesn't have any of her books.

Okay, that does it! I HAVE to read book #1 in that series, ASAP. It seems like everyone here in the 75 book challenge just raves about Louise Penny - so she must be good...

I hope you like her books. They are police procedurals but not like the usual ones. A lot of memorable characters, too.

Hard to believe that 10 days ago (see message 86), I was in a huge reading lull. Now I've suddenly got about a dozen books I want to read RIGHT NOW.

Of course, now there's no time to read them all. However, I am engrossed in the new Dan Brown book, The Lost Symbol right now.

In many ways, I like this Dan Brown book better than the other books featuring Robert Langdon. I've been to Rome only once but have been to D.C. many times so this one hits home a bit more. I can visualize it all, this time.

Message edited by its author, Sep 25, 2009, 1:32pm.

#104: I have read the first four in the Three Pines series and think they have improved from book to book. I cannot wait to get my hands on that one!

Book #114

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

This is the new bestselling thriller. Langdon is back, this time in a situation involving Masons and Washington DC.

Not the greatest book ever but fast-paced and interesting. There's a lot of talk about little-known D.C. so I enjoyed this one a bit more than The Da Vinci Code.

Message edited by its author, Sep 27, 2009, 10:18pm.

Book #115

Sheer Folly by Carola Dunn

This is about the 18th book in the Daisy Dalrymple series set in 1920s England. Much earlier on, Daisy, aka Lady Dalrymple, marries Alec Fletcher, Detective Chief Inspector of the Scotland Yard. Daisy also has a career of her own, writing magazine articles. Oftentimes, such as in this one, she works in tandem with her friend, Lucy, aka Lady Gerald, who is a photographer.

In this book, Daisy and Lucy head off to a country house of a plumbing magnate, to do an article about his famous grotto.

This series is great for information about the times, about how the gentry and the commoners treat each other etc. It's an ultra cozy mystery series, one of the coziest I read.

While I love this series, Sheer Folly takes forever to get going. Until about halfway, it's all about who's visiting at the English country house weekend houseparty. It was tough keeping all the characters straight.

Not one of the better entries in this series. It's okay, but nothing to write home about.

Book #116

Open Ice: Confessions of a Hockey Lifer by Jack Falla

This is a wonderful collection of hockey essays (13, I think). I'd say it's probably the best hockey book I've read in many, many years. In fact, this was a library book but I'm thinking of buying my own copy, which I rarely do.

Falla has a knack of tying his hockey observations to life and vice versa, such as his "Life Lessons Learned from Tending Goal." Many of his hockey essays focus on the Original Six teams, which is music to my ears as I'm an old school kind of fan.

One essay addressed, for instance, Maurice "Rocket" Richard's funeral and what he meant to French Quebec. Another talked about fantasy hockey (I'm an avid fantasy league sports participant so I enjoyed that one.)

Other favorites included an essay about skating the Rideau Canal in Ottawa and another about the rinks the Original Six played in. I loved the Chicago Stadium so it was interesting to hear someone else's observations about it.

Very interesting and informative, both where I knew quite a bit about the topic, such as the late 50s/early 60s Montreal Canadiens, and also where I knew very little, such as about Hobey Baker.

Book #117
American Gothic: A Life of America's Most Famous Painting by Steven Biel

A few weeks ago, I accidentally read the "wrong" book on the cultural history of the famous Grant Wood painting, American Gothic. This one, the Biel book, is the one I intended to read.

I think this one is the better book and I probably would've really enjoyed it if I'd read it first. As it is, I'm American Gothic'd out. I did enjoy the portion of the book dealing with parodies of American Gothic.

#113 Too bad you didn't have this book back when you were reading the wrong one by mistake. It didn't occur to me that you might be burnt out on the subject before getting to the book you really wanted to read in the first place!

We are, again, at exactly the same place in our YTD reading - I posted my book #117 just 20 minutes after you posted yours! It will probably be several days before I post #118, as the two books I've still got in progress were only begun yesterday.

I have several books that I'm sort of dabbling at--the Ted Kennedy autobiography and the one about the making of the Constitution--as well as my regular reads.

I have to say that my interest in art history and architecture has increased since I started this topic for 999, which is a good thing. Probably not enough to make it an entire 1010 category again but certainly enough to read a few books each year on this topic.

Message edited by its author, Oct 6, 2009, 12:02pm.

btw, I just saw that Timothy Egan, who wrote that absolutely wonderful book about the dust bowl has a new one due out later this month called The Big Burn which is about our worst forest fire.

#116: Thanks for the info about the new Egan book. I will definitely look for that one since The Worst Hard Time is on my memorable reads list for the year.

Book #118
Frank Lloyd Wright by Ada Louise Huxtable

This is a good biography of the life and the work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Though it's an entry in the Penguin Lives series, it's got quite a bit more depth than the usual overview-type biography.

From it, I learned that Wright was both a genius and, in many ways, a crackpot and Huxtable does a good job addressing both the great work Wright did and the character problems--the aversion to truth, for instance. As Huxtable said, "character and creativity run on separate tracks."

Many books encourage me to read more about a particular topic. This book has encouraged me to go seeking more information in local Wright landmarks and at the Chicago Architecture Foundation.

#119
Blackwork by Monica Ferris

This is the 13th (and newest!) installment in one of my favorite cozy mystery series, featuring small town Minnesota needlecrafts shop owner Betsy Devonshire.

Blackwork presents an interesting modern "locked room" mystery. It's also a great read for fall as much of the book revolves around fall festivals, Halloween parties/poetry readings, witches' spells etc.

Very enjoyable, as usual.

I have seen that series several times, but never read any of the books. After your recommendation, I may have to pick one up!

Book #120

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

This is an amazing book. It starts out very slowly. In fact, I almost put it down but I'm really glad that I stuck with it as it turned out to be one of the better "first in series" I've read in awhile.

The first quarter or so is set in 1929 England and involves the title character, a woman who is starting out as a sort of a private investigator. Nothing very exciting, somewhat dull.

Then, there's a flashback to her pre-World War 1 and WW1 life. I don't want to give away too much here but Maisie was a maid to a rich family who is caught sneak reading books in their library. During World War 1, Maisie was a battlefield nurse in France. The entire roughly 50 percent of the book that was a flashback was the best part, I thought.

The final quarter or so moves back/ahead to the 1929 mystery and the reader has a much better understanding.

I don't think I'm doing this book justice but it really is fabulous in how it deals with the ravages of war. Though I'd call it a mystery, it's not a typical whodunnit.

I am definitely going to continue reading in this series, and soon. I think Birds of a Feather is the second one.

#121 I've seen this author's name, but never knew anything about her - this book sounds pretty good, and I'm adding it to the wishlist.

Maisie Dobbs is on my TBR mountain - glad to hear you enjoyed it so much!

#122, Sandy, after reading this, I now want to go out and read some of the other World War 1 mysteries, such as the Charles Todd series and that one Anne Perry series I've never read.

I really like the Maisie Dobbs series. Glad to see it has found another fan.

#124 It's funny how - after never coming across a single book set in the WWI period - I've been exposed to several in only a few months. What is the Anne Perry series?

#126, Sandy, it's not her Pitt or her Monk series, it's her other one. I think it's just called her World War 1 series.

According to fantasticfiction, there are 5 books in the series, one for each year of the war, looks like. The first one, which I own in pb, is No Graves as Yet. A friend at work absolutely raves about these.

Book #121

The Chocolate Cupid Killings by JoAnna Carl

The Chocoholic series is yet another long-running cozy mystery series I enjoy, though, with this one, I am getting just a bit tired of it.

Lee McKinney Woodward works with her Aunt Nettie at her luxury chocolate business in western Michigan, along Lake Michigan. There's a whole town of the usual type of characters found in cozies. This time, a focus is the "underground railroad" used to help abused women escape.

Maybe I've read just too many cozies lately but this one was a bit disappointing to me.

#127: I am also a fan of Perry's WWI series.

#128: I just bought the first book in that series (and I do not even like chocolate), so I hope it is better than the one you just read.

STOP IT all of you!

Everytime I sneak in to read a thread, I end up wanted to put down the books I'm reading and pick up yours instead, you have got to stop talking about books, you're getting me into trouble!

Heh. Our work here is done...

#130, Cheli, now I'm reading Plum Pudding Murder by Joanne Fluke, the cookie lady's holiday mystery.

I've also tried to read a bit more on Plain Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution since that one seems to be taking forever.

#132 I was nodding in agreement at Cheli's comment in #130 and when I read your first title, I began puffing up with pride that I was going to be able to resist becoming envious. Then your second title did me in - I know you said it's taking forever to read, but it sounds so interesting!

So, Cheli, try mine: Alexandria Link - which I think you just finished yourself and Venona Cable which, like Linda's constitution book, is taking forever. Even though it's a thriller. And I'm actually liking it. But I can't seem to stick with it for more than a dozen pages at a time. I bet I've started and finished 3 other books since I started this one. I'd give it up, with the thought that I could always come back to it later, except that it's an ER book, so I've GOT to finish it. You don't want that, do you?

Same here with Plain Honest Men. I think I started it around Labor Day and actually hadn't looked at it for a few weeks.

It's interesting but on the Kindle, extremely long--10,000 Kindle things. In print, it's only 500 to 600 pages.

#134 Labor day. Wow, you've got me beat! Since most of my books come from the library, there is a limit to how long I can take to read a book before I finally have to (literally) let it go. For every book I take back, there two more begging to come home with me. I don't have a problem abandoning books that don't reward my effort!

#135 Plain Honest Men is a good book, quite interesting. Just a bit heavier than what I have in mind these days. I'm about a third of the way through. Hopefully, I will finish it by the end of the year.

Book #122

Plum Pudding Murder by Joanne Fluke

The Hannah Swensen, Minnesota cookie maker series by Joanne Fluke is probably one of my favorite cozy mystery series and this one could well be my favorite in this series, so far (I think there are 13 books so far).

As the name would indicate, this is a Christmas mystery. I loved the fact that Christmas was not just an afterthought in this book. The whole book was Christmasy. I thought the mystery itself was fairly obvious but I love these characters--reading a Joanne Fluke book makes me feel like I'm visiting old friends. (I just wish that Hannah would make up her mind, once and for all, between the two guys.)

Next spring's Joanne Fluke mystery is Apple Turnover Murder, due out in March and, of course, added to my TBR list.

#137: I am supposed to be getting that one as an ER book. I hope it shows up soon!

Book #123

The Complete Game: Reflections on Baseball, Pitching and Life on the Mound by Ron Darling

This book by longtime NY Mets pitcher and current baseball color analyst is one of the better baseball books I have read in awhile. Darling, a Yale graduate, writes really well and offers a tremendous amount of insight into what a pitcher thinks, how he develops, and even what he's feeling as his career is in a downward spiral.

If you like baseball, you would probably enjoy this book. Loads of interesting insights and great stories about life in the big leagues.

#139: You know me - I cannot resist anything baseball related. I will look for that one!

Book #124
Tornado Hunter: Getting Inside the Most Violent Storms on Earth by Stefan Bechtel

I love to read pretty much anything about storms and weather but the first few chapters of this one, when the author talks about storm chasers, were almost too breathlessly written. Then, he moved on to other tornado-related topics, including just about anything you'd want to know about tornado science and tornado history and I was hooked.

Who knew that, when storm chasers get together to show off their tornado pictures and videos, this is "torn-porn"?

Several chapters were exceptionally interesting, including the one about the Marine Corps pilot who was trying to go over a violent thunderstorm only to have an onboard emergency causing him to parachute out of his jet at high altitude right into an incredible storm and get buffeted about by updrafts, downdrafts and all sorts of weather phenomena for 40 minutes.

The chapter about the "father of tornado science" Ted Fujita was interesting as well, as was the chapter on storm chasing tourists.

If you can get past the at times breathless writing and the at times scientific jargon, this is quite an interesting book.

Even if you don't want to read it, it's worth it just to pick it up at the bookstore or library (it's a 2009 release) just to look at the astounding tornado pictures, including a series of photos taken from inside a tornado. Amazing!!

#141 This does sound like a great book to browse. I've been fascinated by them as long as I can remember, but never actually saw one in real life until I was 30 years old. I'm going to look for this book!

I saw a tornado about 10-12 years ago, heading towards the house. I commented "hey, that looks like a pencil in the sky" but it wasn't rotating much. It touched down about a mile away and ended up doing only minimal damage.

Book #125

A Christmas Promise by Anne Perry

I love Anne Perry's Christmas novels but this one was a big disappointment. I had a lot of waiting time in various places today and read this in its entirety over the course of the afternoon and early evening so it's quick read.

Her usual Christmas novellas are usually in the nature of heartwarming stories with Christmas as a key focus and some mystery elements. This time, however, I didn't really enjoy the story, which featured a little 8-year old girl with a dead uncle whose much-loved donkey is missing, set in 1800s England a few days before Christmas. The little girl enlists a slightly older girl who lives a few streets down and they "investigate."

A good part of the book is written in Cockney and, after a few pages of that, I was annoyed at reading things like "ooo eee? I never saw 'im wif you before."

Good series but a disappointing new entry in that series.

#141: I will look for that one. Living in Tornado Alley as I do, I am very interested in the subject.

#144: Too bad about that one. I think the Cockney would put me off as well.

I added Tornado Hunter to my wishlist! It's a fascinating topic. Our area is not generally tornado prone, but in one three-day time period some years back, there were 3 tornadoes that touched down in neighboring towns and the countryside.

Books Read in November and December

November
126. A Few Seconds of Panic by Stefan Fatsis
127. The Raphael Affair by Iain Pears
128. A Rumpole Christmas by John Mortimer
129. Kindred in Death by J.D. Robb
130. Fly by Wire: The Geese, The Glide, The Miracle on the Hudson by William Langwiesche
131. Under the Sabers by Tanya Biank
132. The Ice Bowl: The Cold Truth about Football's Most Unforgettable Game by Ed Gruver
133. SuperFreakonomics by Steve D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
134. Mrs. Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings by Emily Brightwell
135. The Ninth Daughter by Barbara Hamilton
136. The Final Season by Tom Stanton
137. Leonardo da Vinci by Sherwin B. Nuland
138. Jean Beliveau: My Life in Hockey by Jean Beliveau

December
139. A Wee Christmas Homicide by Kaitlyn Dunnett
140. Under the Tree by Susan Waggoner
141. Sixty Feet, Six Inches by Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson
142. When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird and Earvin Magic Johnson
143. Slay Bells by Kate Kingsbury
144. Journey of a Thousand Miles by Lang Lang
145. The Mirror and the Mask by Ellen Hart
146. Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy by Jane Leavy

Message edited by its author, Yesterday, 12:06am.

Book #126
A Few Seconds of Panic by Stefan Fatsis

What an enjoyable book this is!! As the subtitle indicates, the author is a 5'8, 170 pound, 43 year old sportswriter who trains, learns how to kick, and goes to training camp with an NFL team, the Denver Broncos. Sort of a modern-day George Plimpton. (I loved Plimpton's books way back when, including Paper Lion, Out of My League, and Open Net, in which Plimpton worked out with the NFL, Major League Baseball, and the NHL.

By doing all that the players do, Fatsis earns a lot of respect from the players and they really open up, providing a tremendous insight into the National Football League and the people who play in it--what happens, how they deal with stress etc. After reading it, I have a lot of respect for all that the players go through.

#148: I will add that one to the BlackHole. Have you read Fatsis' other book Word Freak? It is already in the BlackHole.

#149, no but I think I will add Word Freak to my list. I think Carolyn and I were talking (must've been on my 999 thread) that part of the attraction of this is the danger involved. Trying to be a Scrabble champion somehow seems more do-able.

In this one, he is always playing Scrabble with some of his Broncos teammates.

Book #127
The Raphael Affair by Iain Pears

I've had this mystery, the first in the Iain Pears Art History Mystery series, on my bookshelves for a long time. Though it's slow-going at times, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of these.

It's charming, sometimes clever, and has a few characters I really liked and hope to see more of, including the General, who is the head of the Italian National Art Theft Squad, his assistant Flavia, and bumbling British art historian, Jonathan Argyll.

I always like a mystery where I learn about something, in addition to enjoying the mystery and I certainly did here. Art history, art forgery, and even a bit of a travelogue.

Book #128

A Rumpole Christmas by John Mortimer

One of my very favorite fictional characters is British barrister, Horace Rumpole, and, since author John Mortimer died earlier this year, I didn't think I'd be able to read any new Rumpole novels or short stories. I was excited when I learned that this book of 5 short stories featuring Rumpole would be available.

Overall, this collection was disappointing. I think I had already read several of them in The Strand Magazine. Even though the stories were somewhat light on Christmas elements and really light on mystery elements, I was still glad to have read them and visit, once again, with Rumpole, She Who Must Be Obeyed (Hilda) and all the others.

I hope there are more Rumpole stories.

Book #129

Kindred in Death by J.D. Robb

Kindred in Death is the latest in the long line of futuristic mysteries by J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts).

After an overly gory, graphic beginning detailing the rape, torture, and murder of a 16-year old girl, the book settles in nicely. I really enjoyed it (once I got past this disturbing part) and thought this was one of the better recent books in this series.

My only gripe is that they're getting just a bit too predictable. I think she needs to shake things up more.

#130

Fly by Wire: The Geese, The Glide, The Miracle on the Hudson by William Langwiesche

I love disaster books and so I had high hopes for this book about Captain Sullenberger and the airplane crash earlier this year in which he landed his jet in the Hudson River. I read another book by Langwiesche years ago about 9/11 and thought it was excellent.

For this one, though, I had mixed feelings after reading it. In some ways, it was disappointing and, in other ways, it was pretty good. If you think Sully is a hero or you are an airline pilot, this might not be the book for you.

(He praises Sully but points out that ability to concentrate intently does not equal coolness under pressure and points out that a lot of the credit for the safe landing should go to the engineers who created a "fly by wire" airplane.)

The good involved general aviation issues and how the prestige of airline pilots has declined over the years.
Discussions about major pilot blunders, how the NTSB conducts hearings, how planes are evacuated were all interesting to me. A bit over my head, technically, but still interesting was how the Airbus has made "fly by wire" planes, which basically are semi-automatic and leave little control for the pilot, especially as to overriding.

The less than stellar parts of the book, I thought, were the parts dealing with the "Miracle on the Hudson" itself. Those parts sounded like they were slapped together quickly. Lots of long, block quotes from reports and testimony seemed like filler to me.

I almost got the impression that he was writing another book about aviation when this accident happened and he expanded the book to make the accident the focus.

Message edited by its author, Nov 13, 2009, 12:20pm.

#154 So was the crash caused by mechanical failure or pilot error? Or environmental forces? Lots of your disaster books look interesting, but not this one! ;-)

#155, this is the crash this past year when, soon after takeoff from New York's LaGuardia Airport, the jet hit a flock of geese and both engines shut down. They had to glide down and didn't have enough power to turn back to the airport so they landed in the river.

The crash discussion bothered me. Way too succinct. For instance, the 293-pound woman in seat 28B exited through this door. The man in 15D held the baby of the woman in 15C when he braced for impact and then they headed out that door.

No effort whatsoever to develop any characters or add anything beyond the simple facts.

I'm actually looking forward to reading Sully's book soon. I'm sure that'll be more in-depth.

I almost got the impression that he was writing another book about aviation when this accident happened and he expanded the book to make the accident the focus.

That wouldn't surprise me in the slightest! Classic marketing tactic. I think I may pass on this book, and wait . . . did you say Sully is writing a book? That, I would probably like to read when it comes out!

#156 I remember the crash, but had forgotten what the cause was. Good to be reminded that no one was at fault. It seems like the other book coming out can't help but be better than this one was.

I think Sully's autobiography, which is called Highest Duty, is already out.

Among other things, I've always been fascinated by people who've gone to one of our service academies and made a career out of the military. Sully went to the Air Force Academy so I think I will like to read his book.

Thanks! I've added it to my wishlist. Somehow, I missed that it was out. I'm surprised no library in our county has it -- it seems like the kind of book a lot of folks around here would be interested in.

I have put Sully's book on hold at my local library - thanks for bringing it to my attention. The other one I will pass on.

Book #131

Under the Sabers: The Unwritten Code of Army Wives by Tanya Biank

Written by a former reporter, this book focuses on wives of Army soldiers at Fort Bragg, in North Carolina. The book was originally written in response to the murders of numerous Army wives at Fort Bragg in 2002, though the author goes beyond that to focus on four Army couples--one officer and his wife and three enlisted men and their wives, including a Command Sergeant Major who son is an Army private.

As a former Army brat herself, Biank provides a warts and all look at the military and how the wives, often called the backbone of the army, deal with all kinds of day to day and other challenges.

The book is quite interesting at times but, at other times, unexpectedly depressing.

>154: The author of book #130 caught my eye. Many, many moons ago I got my pilot's license and one of the books I read at that time was Wolfgang Langewiesche's classic Stick and Rudder. Given the subject and the unusual last name, I wonder if William is Wolfgang's son or something...

#163, I think he is the son.

I did it, I read your thread and didn't have to add one book to my TBR list

***Not telling her they were already there**

I am not surprised, Cheli. I've been reading a lot of duds lately. I wouldn't recommend them.

#166 Well no wonder you're not reading as fast as usual. Who wants to read a bunch of duds? Chuck them out and get some good books! :-)

#167, I'm actually read two good books right now. One is about the famous 1967 "Ice Bowl" game between the Packers and the Cowboys. The other is a follow-up to the book, Freakonomics.

Lack of time is a problem but at least I've finally got some good books again.

>>>154 Here is a link to an article about the "controversy" between Sully and Langewiesche. I found it inadvertently no more than 2 minutes after reading your review and the subsequent discussion.

edited for grammar.

Message edited by its author, Nov 17, 2009, 1:02pm.

#169, thanks, I will have to take a look.

#168 What's the name of the "Ice Bowl" book, pleeeease???? :)

(I don't see it under "currently reading" on your profile.)

#171, it's an excellent book. It's called The Ice Bowl: The Cold Truth About Football's Most Unforgettable Game. The author is Ed Gruver and it's from the late 1990s.

I went to college (undergrad) in Green Bay, was on the Packers season ticket waiting list for 25 years since then before I finally got the small package. Even went Christmas caroling at Bart Starr's house when I was in school. I'm a lifelong Packers fan but was awfully young on New Year's Eve, 1967, so this book is quite interesting to me.

I've read Jerry Kramer's Instant Replay but this book puts that game into better context. I never realized, for instance, that Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry were co-coaches for the NY Giants before that. I've also heard plenty about the "The Drive" but never heard much about the rest of the game. This book fills in a lot of those gaps.

Message edited by its author, Nov 17, 2009, 3:31pm.

Book #132

The Ice Bowl: The Cold Truth about Football's Most Unforgettable Game by Ed Gruver

This is an interesting book about one of the most famous games in NFL history, the "Ice Bowl" game at Lambeau Field in Green Bay on New Year's Eve, 1967, between the Packers and the Dallas Cowboys. By the end of the game, the temperature was 20 below and the windchill was 50 below.

Though the second half of the book focuses mainly on the game itself, including the game-winning drive, the book goes way beyond that. Of particular interest were stories about the two coaches, Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry, and how they coached together for the NY Giants. Lombardi was considered the great offensive coach in the 1960s and Landry the best defensive coach. Also interesting was a discussion about how TV was just starting to impact the game.

As a lifelong Packers fan who spent my college years in Green Bay but was too young to really remember the Ice Bowl, this is one fascinating book at how football was played back then. I would definitely recommend this one!!

That book is DEFINITELY going on my wishlist. I'm not particularly a fan of either team, and I was very young when it all happened, but that game was an absolute classic (and those two coaches, of course, among the all-time elite of the coaching field)! Thanks for the recommendation!

I agree with Terri. I will be looking for it too!

#173 It sounds like you enjoyed this book so much more than the last few you've read. I have to admit, you make it sound enticing, and I'm not even any kind of footfall fan! Hope your next book is another good one.

Sandy, I'm almost finished with Superfreakonomics which is very good. Then, I hope to start a new mystery (first in the series) set during the Revolutionary War era and the sleuth is Abigail Adams. That one is called The Ninth Daughter.

As for the Ice Bowl book, I know what it's like to stand outside in bitterly cold weather and not be able to feel your feet etc so I could relate to a lot of what was in this book. I try to avoid outdoor games during the winter. The Winter Classic hockey game last New Year's at Wrigley Field was the exception.

Message edited by its author, Nov 18, 2009, 7:03pm.

Book #133
SuperFreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

This is a follow-up to their bestselling book, Freakonomics from a few years ago. While I enjoyed SuperFreakonomics, I absolutely loved the original and this one didn't quite measure up, though it was still very good.

People respond to incentives and these economists challenge how people think about everyday, ordinary things, showing their hidden sides. They talk about prostitution, terrorists, global warning, and apathy, among other things, in ways you wouldn't expect.

#177 "the sleuth is Abigail Adams" - THE Abigail Adams? :-) I thought at first that this looked familiar - I saw a book on the library's catalog recently that I thought might this one - but on closer look, I don't believe I've ever heard of before.

#178 I saw Freakonomics when it came out a while back and, for some reason, it has never interested me. Unusual, since I normally love that sort of stuff. I guess eventually I'll give it a try.

I see that you're catching up, only 2 books back of me now. I expect to finish the audio book in the car today, but after a short burst a couple of weeks ago, I've slowed back down again. Of my other 2 books, one is pretty good while I'm reading, but as soon as I put it down I forget about it and don't remember to pick it up again. The other is just OK - another audio and the reader was a bad choice for the book, which doesn't help to overcome the mediocrity of the story. And I've been carrying a paperback around in my purse all week but haven't opened it once. No real incentive to finish any of these because the stack I have home from the library doesn't excite. Probably, they'll be fine, but I'm not dying to read any of them. *sigh* I guess I ought to be cleaning house or something instead of reading, anyway.

Here's what I've spent a lot of my time reading...

http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Cartoons...

#180 Ugh. I'm so sorry for you. I've seen you make comments about the health care bill and your work - what is it that you do? And people think the things I read for work are dull. ;-)

#181: I write about/analyze employee benefits laws, regs, cases, rulings--on pensions, 401(k) plans, health benefits, and other types of benefits.

I am feeling a lot better today. I had some sort of 24-hour bug yesterday or something. I think it was something I ate. Went to sleep at 7 pm and slept for over 12 hours. Feeling a whole lot better now. I was pretty miserable yesterday afternoon.

#182 I'm a CPA and can be interested in a lot of generally un-interesting things. But I have to admit that your topic would put me to sleep! (Just like your cartoon) Probably that's only because I know nothing about it. I had a job once where I researched tax laws and then formulated procedures for my employer to keep us in compliance. I spent quite a bit of time one year on taxable employee benefits, especially personal use of company cars and travel reimbursements. What was most satisfying about it was the knowledge that I was an "expert" (so to speak) on a subject that was important to folks, but that no one really understood (nor did they want to). But I never got into the kinds of issues that you deal with - they are just too complicated to wrap my mind around. I was more of a generalist - we had specialists for that.

Glad you're feeling better - I hate those 24-hour bugs. Something from bad food is worse, but at least that usually goes away quickly. Lucky for you that you were able to spend all evening sleeping. And the weekend starts this evening, so you just have this afternoon to get through.

Glad you're feeling better!

I do not think I would enjoy your job, especialy right now! Just dealing with my own insurance coverage makes my head ache sometimes!

#183/184, thanks. I am feeling better and yes, the week is winding down and next week is only 3 days so things are looking up.

I am looking forward to going home and reading The Ninth Daughter (the Abigail Adams mystery). I'm not too far in yet but have encountered Samuel Adams and Paul Revere, so far.

Setting a mystery in the Revolutionary War era is pretty unusual. The only Rev War era mystery series I can recall reading was the excellent series by Margaret Lawrence. I think the first one of those was Hearts and Bones. I'm pleasantly surprised that I haven't read all of those yet (but I will).

My "personal best" in terms of books read in a year was 153 in 1993. There was a built-in advantage that year due to the fact that I was on short-term disability for several months and basically had little to do but read and recuperate.

This year, with less than 6 weeks to go, I am aiming for 154 books read. In particular, I want to finish the roughly 20 books I'd need to read for my 999 x 2 challenge (i.e., second 999 challenge), plus one additional book, which I'm thinking might be Under the Tree: The Toys and Treats that Made Christmas Special by Susan Waggoner, which should prove to be a walk down memory lane.

To reach this goal, I would need to pick up the pace, just a bit. I do have about 11 vacation days/holidays during these last 6 weeks so that might help.

Message edited by its author, Nov 23, 2009, 6:29pm.

My Goal: finish 21 books during the remainder of the year. Though these are subject to change, particularly when it comes to the baseball books (#17 to 21), these would (could?) include the following:

1. Mrs Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings by Emily Brightwell--finished on Nov 23
2. Slay Bells by Kate Kingsbury
3. The Ninth Daughter by Barbara Hamilton--finished on Nov 26
4. Murder with All the Trimmings by Elaine Viets
5. The Mirror and the Mask by Ellen Hart
6. The Titian Committee by Iain Pears
7. Under the Tree: The Toys and Treats that Made Christmas Special by Susan Waggoner--finished on Dec 2
8. A Wee Christmas Homicide by Kaitlyn Dunnett--finished on Dec 1
9. The Body in the Sleigh by Katherine Hall Page
10. Mrs Malory and Any Man's Death by Hazel Holt
11. Jean Beliveau: My Life in Hockey--finished on Nov 30
12. When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson--finished on Dec 6
13. Journey of a Thousand Miles by Lang Lang
14. Bookplate Special by Lorna Barrett
15. Leonardo da Vinci by Sherwin Nuland--finished on Nov 28
16. The Death of Sweet Mister by Daniel Woodrell
17. The Final Season by Tom Stanton--finished on Nov 27
18. The Echoing Green by Joshua Prager
19. Sixty Feet, Six Inches: A Hall of Fame Pitcher and a Hall of Fame Hitter Talk About How the Game is Played by Reggie Jackson and Bob Gibson--finished on Dec 4
20. Baseball and the Mythic Moment: How We Remember the National Game by James D. Hardy
21. El Birdos by Doug Feldmann

Possible Substitutions:

--Holidays on Display by William L. Bird
--A Plateful of Murder by Claudia Bishop
--Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by Robert M. Edsel
--True Compass by Edward Kennedy
--The Greatest Ballpark Ever by Bob McGee

Message edited by its author, Dec 7, 2009, 1:15pm.

Book #134
Mrs Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings by Emily Brightwell

This is an extremely cozy mystery set in Victorian England and features Inspector Witherspoon and his servants, led by Mrs Jeffries, who secretly investigate cases simultaneously to the Inspector's investigations. In this 26th entry in the series, as usual, Witherspoon pursues leads via official channels and the servants (and some well-heeled friends) do so via informal channels.

Very light, pleasant, and enjoyable.

I'll be cheering you on as you count down these last 20 books! Good luck!

#189--thanks, Sandy. Except for the Ted Kennedy autobiography and maybe the Lang Lang autobiography, most of these aren't too long. The Kennedy one reads well so far, though. If Lang Lang isn't that good or interesting, I could always switch that one.

Otherwise, having 70 percent of them as mysteries or baseball books is not bad at all, for me.

Book #135
The Ninth Daughter by Barbara Hamilton

The Ninth Daughter, featuring sleuth Abigail Adams and set in Boston in 1773, is one of the best "first in the series" mysteries I've read in a long, long time. It's not perfect--there are parts in the middle that seemed to go on forever--but it has so much series potential, has some terrific characters, and brings the era to life that I'm eagerly awaiting the next one in the series.

Abigail, John Adams, Sam Adams, Paul Revere, and both British soldiers and the Sons of Liberty are all a part of this book as Abigail tries to investigate a murder without betraying the Sons of Liberty, all while getting assistance from an unexpected source.

Excellent book, one that even a non-mystery fan might love. I'd definitely recommend this one!!

#191: I am game to give that one a try. Thanks for the recommendation.

Good luck with your goals for the rest of the year!

Book #136

The Final Season by Tom Stanton

This is an enjoyable book about the author's lifetime of Detroit Tigers fandom and various memories that arose when he attended every game during the final season at Tiger Stadium in 1999. Though it's a baseball book, it's less about the actual games and more about family memories and baseball memories.

Message #187. Good luck in completing your goal.

#194--thanks!! Down to 17 now.

Book #137

Leonardo da Vinci by Sherwin B. Nuland

The combination of a book in the Penguin Lives series and a subject about whose life, or at least many aspects of it, are not that well known made for a less than exciting book. I kept wavering between thinking "okay, this is tedious" and "whoa, that's interesting." Overall, I'd say this bio of artist da Vinci was only so so.

The author is a doctor and, indeed, the most interesting parts came towards the end, as Nuland spoke of da Vinci's amazing anatomical studies (amazing for occurring in the late 1400s). Despite, the at-times mind-numbing tedium, the author did do a pretty good job of touching on how many interests da Vinci had, as well as how he took a scientific approach to art (and an artistic approach to science).

LP - 137, SM - 137

I knew you'd catch up. And since your goal is 154 and mine is 150, I don't expect to pull ahead of you again before the end of the year. :-)

#197 I saw that, Sandy.

I have only 15 days at work in Dec (and 16 days off) so I expect I will be picking up the pace. Of course, a lot of festive activities, too.

I'm confident that you'll meet your goal. I'm hopeful of making mine, too, but lately I seem to be almost totally stalled, so I could end up a little short.

#199, Sandy, I am getting my second (third?) wind now. I'm just about finished with another and notice that, of my 16 remaining books, 13 are either baseball or mystery books. The 3 that aren't are quite interesting to me.

Sixteen books in one month is a lot but I'm feeling sort of confident that I can make it.

Book #138

Jean Beliveau: My Life in Hockey by Jean Beliveau

I've been a lifelong hockey fan but love the old-time game, back in the days before they wore helmets and there were only 6 teams in the league. One of the greatest players of that era--the 1950s and 1960s--was the star center of the Montreal Canadiens, Jean Beliveau.

It was a real treat to hear his life story told in his own words, his pre-hockey days, his days in juniors and his career, of course, but also of his post-hockey career as an executive for the Montreal Canadiens. I also loved hearing his insights on how the game has changed.

Best of all were his comments about other players of his era and later. Beliveau was called "le Gros Bill"--the Gentle Giant--and he seems like a wonderful guy, one who deserves all the accolades that came his way.

Book #139

A Wee Christmas Homicide by Kaitlyn Dunnett

I read enough cozy mysteries to know all the cliches. Many times, those types of cliche-ridden cozies start to become tedious. Other times, despite the cliches, the book is charming and fun. A Wee Christmas Homicide, the third in the series, is one of those charmers.

This was the first Dunnett book I've read and I enjoyed it. It features Liss MacCrimmon, owner of the Scottish Emporium in Moosetookalook, Maine. There's a run on the hot toy of the Christmas season, Tiny Teddies, but, amazingly, there's quite a supply of these treaures in Moosetookalook.

Yes, the amateur sleuth bumbles into things, does stupid things. All the usual. But somehow it works and I'll be looking for the other two in the series.

#202: I will have to look for that one!

Book #140

Under the Tree by Susan Waggoner

There were so many pictures in this one that I almost feel guilty counting this one but it is sort of a payback for all those densely-packed, narrow-margined texts in some of the others.

This is a fact-filled book with lots of photos of toys that we grew up with and received under the Christmas tree. I don't think it's up to the standard of her other books but it's somewhat interesting. I was never a girl who liked dolls but, even so, read the doll section with interest (who knew that Barbie's full real name is Barbie Millicent Roberts?).

I was always more interested in board games and read that chapter with particular interest. The memories came floating back as I read about other old favorites like viewmasters, Matchbox cars, Silly Putty, Play-Doh, Colorforms, and pretty much any toy I could think of. No mention of one of my old favorite board games, Go for Broke, though.

A fun read though not very substantial.

Message edited by its author, Dec 3, 2009, 12:06am.

Book #141

Sixty Feet, Six Inches by Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson

Structured in the format of a conversation between two of the greatest ballplayers ever, Sixty Feet, Six Inches is a master class in anything and everything baseball. Of all the many baseball books I've read in recent years, this is one of the more insightful, interesting books.

There is a bit too much of a mutual admiration society going on and certainly plenty of "things were better back in our day," but that's probably to be expected. Where else can you get two great Hall of Famers offering opinions on the game, and its players, then and now?

This is a book that baseball fans won't want to miss.

Message edited by its author, Dec 5, 2009, 12:09am.

#205: This is a book that baseball fans won't want to miss.

Then I will see if I can track down a copy!

I think I'm putting Sixty Feet, Six inches on my Wishlist. I just wish one of our in-county libraries had it . . .

Fortunately, I got word this week that, despite budget cuts, our local library will continue to participate in state-wide Interlibrary Loan, so I can eventually get hold of it that way. (I've got to cut back on my own book purchases. . .)

Sixty Feet, Six Inches is a treasure trove of insights into baseball. Since it really is just a long conversation between Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson, I think it'd be great on audio as well.

Have you heard this interview? I think it was rebeccanyc who alerted me to it on another thread, and I found the link:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...

I'll have to go take a look. I think I saw a mention of it somewhere but I'm in the midst of my Christmas card writing blitz and my head's practically spinning.

Thanks!!

(Back to work!!)

Interesting interview. Thanks.

This afternoon, I started reading what I thought would be a similar kind of book by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson called When the Game was Ours.

It's interesting, though it overlaps somewhat with a book I read earlier this year, When March Went Mad which is about the NCAA March Madness game where Bird and Johnson faced off. Their competition in the pros is the main reason I'm reading.

One annoying thing: it's said to be written by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson but it's all in the third person.

Book #142

When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird and Earvin Magic Johnson

I thought this book was going to be much like the Sixty Feet Six Inches book I just read. Two of the greatest ever in a particular sport collaborating on a book. I thought it would be as terrific as Sixty Feet Six Inches but I was really disappointed.

Even though Bird and Johnson are listed as the authors, I suspect that they provided some background info and detail and it was written by the other person shown. Though there is some interesting "in the know" kind of information, particularly about the events surrounding Magic Johnson's disclosure that he has HIV, for the most part, this is a surprisingly bland biography. I can't even call it an autobiography.

Not a bad book but very disappointing nonetheless.

I'm now down to a dozen books left to read this year in order to reach my personal best (154 books). As of now, here's what I've got planned for the remainder of 2009:

1. Slay Bells by Kate Kingsbury--finished on Dec 8
2. Merry, Merry Ghost by Carolyn Hart
3. The Mirror and the Mask by Ellen Hart--finished on Dec 12
4. The Titian Committee by Iain Pears
5. The Body in the Sleigh by Katherine Hall Page
6. Mrs Malory and Any Man's Death by Hazel Holt
7. Bookplate Special by Lorna Barrett
8. Journey of a Thousand Miles by Lang Lang--finished on Dec 10
9. The Death of Sweet Mister by Daniel Woodrell
10. Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy by Jane Leavy--finished on Dec 16
11. Baseball and the Mythic Moment: How We Remember the National Game by James D. Hardy
12. Three Strikes You're Dead by Robert Goldsborough

might substitute El Birdos by Doug Feldmann for #11 or #12

Message edited by its author, Yesterday, 12:23am.

#212: Sorry that one was not a better read for you. Hope the next one is better!

#213: I just picked up Slay Bells at the library this afternoon. It seems like a good Christmas read.

Thanks, Stasia. I read all of Kate Kingsbury's other series, the manor house one, but never anything in this Pennyfoot Hotel series.

Slay Bells is the 14th in the series so there are a lot of references to earlier cases, which sort of went over my head. Nearly halfway in and now I'm really getting into this one.

If you're interested in any more Christmas mysteries, I've got a bunch over at my 999 x 2 challenge. It's one of my categories.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/73858

Message edited by its author, Dec 8, 2009, 8:09pm.

Book #143

Slay Bells by Kate Kingsbury

I love Kate Kingsbury's other cozy mystery series, the Manor House series, which was set during World War 2. This one is set earlier (I think it's set in about 1913). This particular book is a Christmas mystery and is the 14th book in Kingsbury's Pennyfoot Hotel series. I believe there are 16 in all, so far, with the recent ones being Christmas mysteries.

That said, this was my first Pennyfoot Hotel mystery, featuring sleuth and hotel owner Cecily Baxter. Not sure that it was wise starting in the middle of the series as there were a lot of references to earlier crimes and I had a hard time, at first, keeping the characters straight.

About halfway in, though, suddenly everything clicked and I started to like it a whole lot more. This has the potential to be a series I might like but I believe that, next year, I will start with the first one in the series, Room with a Clue.

Message edited by its author, Dec 8, 2009, 11:57pm.

#215: Thanks for the heads up regarding the references to the earlier books. Unfortunately my local library only 2 of her books, Slay Bells and Room with a Clue, so the chances of my catching all the references are nonexistent.

Thanks for the link as well. I doubt I will do any other Christmas reading this year, but I can certainly have something to look forward to next year!

TEN BOOKS TO GO!!!

Book #144

Journey of a Thousand Miles by Lang Lang

I love listening to classical music and attending the symphony so reading this autobiography of one of the greatest young classical pianists today was a big treat for me, especially since he got his big break with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the nearby summertime Ravinia Festival.

Though the language of the Chinese born and raised pianist (who is now 27) was a bit stilted at times, this book really conveyed how driven Lang Lang was and is to succeed, driven both internally and by his at times brutal father. I know very little about Chinese culture but I got some good insights into the impact of the one child rule and the 1966-1976 Cultural Revolution.

In China, classical music performers are like rock stars here, widely adored. Classical music is extremely competitive there but Lang Lang is one pianist who succeeded in Chinese and international competitions and then further developed in the somewhat more laid-back American training methods. Now he is a worldwide sensation.

This is an excellent book that is not only an interesting autobiography but also an insightful book about music and Chinese culture.

Woo Hoo - getting close!!

I am adding Journey of a Thousand Miles to the BlackHole. Thanks for the review and recommendation!

Book #145

The Mirror and the Mask by Ellen Hart

I've been reading the Jane Lawless series by Ellen Hart for years and The Mirror and the Mask is the newest in the long-running series, the 17th book, I think. Jane is a lesbian Minneapolis restaurant owner, assisted by her quirky friend, Cordelia Thorn, stage theater director.

As is always true in the Hart books, the crime somehow involves the past. Though Jane is an amateur sleuth, this series is far from cozy, much less cozy than most of the others I read. In this instance, while it's a wonderful book, I just plain didn't care much for the non-recurring characters that were unique to this book.

Great series and a great book though.

#220: I am not starting another series right now especially as my local library only has 4 of the titles in that one, but I have a feeling I will eventually break down and start reading them :)

Message edited by its author, Dec 13, 2009, 2:15am.

#221, Stasia, Ellen Hart has a secondary series featuring Sophie Greenway, also set in Minneapolis. Greenway is a food critic so, sometimes, Jane Lawless or her father, Raymond, a criminal defense attorney, appear in the Greenway series.

There are only eight books in that series--the first was This Little Piggy Went to Murder in 1994 and the most recent one was No Reservations Required in 2005.

I enjoy Hart's Sophie Greenway series as well. I wish she'd do another book in that series. However, I just notice on her website that she says that she just signed a contract for two more Jane Lawless books so maybe her Greenway publisher doesn't want any more.

I've signed up for 75 books in 2010 and hope you'll join me over there for a discussion of 2010 reads.

I'm at: http://www.librarything.com/topic/79040

I will see you on the 2010 threads that is for sure!

Linda- I found you! With your love of crime fiction, our paths should cross frequently!

#225, glad you found me here, Mark.

Today, I discovered another Chicago baseball mystery. What could be better than a mystery involving the Cubs.

It's called Three Strikes You're Dead and it's by Robert Goldsborough, the guy who did those additional Nero Wolfe books after Rex Stout's death. I believe that there are something like four of these Snap Malek books, though the others don't deal with baseball.

You will have to let me know how Three Strikes You're Dead is - I am a lifelong Cubbies fan, too.

Stasia, Three Strikes You're Dead does not sound like my usual. Definitely not a cozy. It involves the Mob, Al Capone etc and it's set in the 1930s but it involves the Cubs. Enough said.

I was thinking--the only other Cubs-related mystery I can recall was Murder in Wrigley Field by Crabbe Evers. Oh wait, there's also Murder at Wrigley Field, one of the Mickey Rawlings mysteries by Troy Soos.

Linda- Of course I've been a Cubs fan, since I was a kid! (lowers head for a moment of silence) but I can't believe there are mysteries, involving the team. So they are worth reading, huh?

#228: I will check those out! Thanks for the mention, Linda.

#229, Mark, I don't remember much about the Crabbe Evers series but I loved those Troy Soos historical baseball mysteries. I've met and corresponded with Troy. He's a huge baseball fan and even a member of SABR.

I'm a life-long Cubs fan who's had her heart broken in 1969, 1984, 1989, 2003, 2008, and just about every year in between. (1969 and 2003 were the worst though.)

Book #146

Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy by Jane Leavy

I'd have to go back and look at the 20 or so baseball books I've read this year to be sure, but I think that this Sandy Koufax biography was probably the best baseball book I've read this year.

All of the biographical details are here, of course: how this Jewish kid from Brooklyn made it to the majors, to become one of the most dominant, though not durable, lefty pitchers ever. How he walked away from the game, after the 1966 season, at age 30. How he and fellow Dodger pitching star, Don Drysdale, jointly held out before the start of the 1966 season, which led, in part, to the rise of the baseball players' union.

But Leavy's book goes way beyond the typical sports bio and really examines Koufax's role in the American Jewish community and how he changed what it meant to be Jewish by refusing to pitch Game 1 of the World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur. She also examines how Koufax remains the iconic ballplayer, even to this day.

Interwoven throughout the book is an inning-by-inning account of probably the most famous game Koufax pitched, the Sept 9, 1965 perfect game against my Cubs (in which Cub pitcher Bob Hendley himself gave up only one hit).

This was a treat for me because, even though I'm a lifelong Cub fan, I am too young to remember this. I enjoyed seeing some of those Cub players I know only from baseball cards come to life, players such as young Cubs catcher Chris Krug who made the key error for the Cubs in that game. However, in his post-baseball career, he went on to become a landscape architect and, in fact, designed the famed Field of Dreams in Iowa.

Leavy did a good job of showing how quiet and introspective Koufax was and is, how he shunned publicity and never really fit in as a ballplayer because, in part, he read too much. For instance, Leavy says, after his baseball career ended, Koufax is "as well travelled as he is well read."

One interesting thing I learned is that, in middle age, Koufax somewhat resembled author Phillip Roth. Leavy talked of how Roth believes that a serious reader is a person "who thinks not only about they read but about they are going to read." For Koufax, Leavy suggests, everything was of interest to him except Koufax himself.

Excellent baseball biography!!

Linda- Terrific review! I still have my Ernie Banks autograph around here, from the early 70s! It's a treasure!

#232: Definitely putting that one in the BlackHole. Like you, I am too young to remember much about Koufax's career. Thanks for the recommendation, Linda!