Next week I'll probably be out of commission and unable to start this thread. Any volunteers? (This is very much a self-appointed "position" anyway!)

Author birthdays this week:

Aug 8
Sara Teasdale (1884 – 1933)
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896 - 1953)
Elizabeth Ann Tallent (1954 - )

Aug 9
Izaak Walton (1593 - 1683)
John Dryden (1631; d.1700)
Philip Larkin (1922 - 1985)
Jonathan Kellerman (1949)
Jeanne Larsen (1950 )

Aug 10
Lawrence Binyon (1869 - 1943)
Witter Bynner (1881 - 1968)
Jorge Amado (1912-2001)

Aug 11
Louise Bogan (1897 - 1970)
Enid Blyton (1897; d.1968)
Sir Angus Wilson (1913 - 1991)
Carl Thomas Rowan (1925 - 2000)
Andre Dubus (1936 - 1999)
Alex Haley (1921 - 1992)


Aug 12
Robert Southey (1774 – 1843)
Jacinto Benavente y Martinez (1866 - 1954)
Edith Hamilton (1867 - 1963)
Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 - 1958)
Frank Swinnerton (1884 - 1982)
Wallace Markfield (1926 - 2002)
William Goldman (1931)
Walter Dean Myers (1937)
Gail Parent (1940)
J.D. McClatchy (1945)

Aug 13
Nikolaus Lenau (1802 - 1850)

Aug 14
Letitia Elizabeth Landon (1802 - 1838)
John Galsworthy (1867 – 1933)
Russell Baker (1925)
William Kittredge (1932)
Alfred Corn (1943)

Trivia question: Which of these authors was born in Portland, Oregon?

William Kittredge is from Oregon I know. Thinking about reading some Edgar Rice Burroughs

All I can say to you, memasmb at message 253 from last week re Stieg Larsson is that I hope you weren't planning on doing anything for the next hours/days- you won't be able to put it down. When you were posting at 7:43 pm, it was slightly after 1 am in Stieg's homeland. And if I hadn't already finished the whole series, I'd probably still be up reading. Thanks all for introducing me to the Shetland Quartet Series and The Day the Falls Stood Still- looking forward to them.

The World is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman.

First there was The World According to Mimi Smartypants (handy for bitesize reading at night/between customers in the shop). Then there was Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier (beautiful, lyrical, definitely needs concentration to fully appreciate). So far, so good. Then yesterday I spotted a collection of the first three Malory Towers stories by Enid Blyton. I used to love them as a child and before I knew it I was sitting behind the counter reading them in delight. Then the postman arrived and brought (at last!) Biblioholism: The Literary Addiction by Tom Raabe, which is fast becoming a firm favourite despite me telling myself I wouldn't read it until I finished something else.

What a fantastic bookish week it will be with such diverse titles to fall into of a spare moment. Oh, this sunshine has made me so very cheerful today!

I'm still reading Mars Crossing, the hard science fiction that I was hoping would be made more readable than most because of it's short chapters. I was right, I'm loving it so far. Not usually a fan of space travel, but I'm really liking this one.

I will start In the Woods today. I purposely put it aside yesterday, as I
was tired and didn't want to start a new book. Today though..

I have heard good things about this one..

Drinking for England by Fergus Linnane. And Pillars for the group.

Dead souls by Gogol and The structure of scientific revolutions by Kuhn.

Julie and Julia is on my table right now and although I am finding it interesting, I think the hype for the movie made it sound better. We shall see.

motherless brooklyn

Wastelands: stories of the apocalypse, several stories from different authors about post-apocalyptic settings. I'm over the first half of the book and one of the stories has disturbed me a lot ("The people of sand and slag", by Paolo Bacigalupi), what I guess is something good to say.

I haven't gotten very far with it yet so I'm still reading Pyramids by Pratchett.

Nearing the end of The Steel Wave by Jeff Shaara, an excellent WWII novel centered around the Normandy invasion, and The Odyssey: A Dramatic Retelling of Homer's Epic by Simon Armitage, a surprisingly good verse retelling of that story.

I'm STILL trying to get through Prayers for Sale. It's an easy read, but it's not inspiring me to pick it up. Not a good sign, but I do need to finish it since it was a gift. I think it would have worked better as a series of short stories.

Message edited by its author, Aug 8, 2009, 3:25pm.

#7 - you are in for a treat, mckait -- I loved In the Woods and her second novel The Likeness as well. I just don't get it when I read any of the negative reviews - I thought it was fantastic! - one of the best books I read last year, regardless of genre.

I finally, after two solid weeks of toiling, have finished Shelby Foote's second volume of The Civil War: A Narrative. It was great - but long and involved and required a close read.

For a well-desrserved break, I am going to start something I suspect may be fluffyish DaVinci code-like reading with The Secret Magdalene, which I got off the bargain table in hardcover for 5 bucks.

Three nonfictions for me right now: the blind-kitty bio, Homer's Odyssey; an overview of American Chinese food, The Fortune Cookie Chronicles; and finally, from my TBRs, My Life in France ... Julia Child had such a fun, positive attitude!

>14: jnwelch- I have The Steel Wave in my tbr. Glad you enjoyed it. I loved his Civil War books.

Hitler's War.... Harry Turtledove

#18 msf59 yes, The Last Full Measure was great; I haven't read Gods and Generals yet. His dad's The Killer Angels book on the Civil War got me started on reading him. I also enjoyed Jeff S.'s American Revolution ones, Rise to Rebellion and The Glorious Cause.

I am reading Brodeck by Philippe Claudel which I just got from the library. He is an absolutely wonderful writer and I thoroughly enjoyed his previous novel By a Slow River. Brodeck is a dark read (an account of man's inhumanity to man) and it is very interesting.

Started, and finished, The Talented Mr. Ripley for my RL Book Circle...and we're not meeting until 9/2. Oh well, I guess I'll have to read it again. Boo hoo.

>2: William Kittredge it is.

I am reading Born to Rule: Five Reigning Consorts, Granddaughters of Queen Victoria by Julia P. Gelardi. It is well researched and well written.

I finished The English Stories by Cynthia Flood (loved it!) and The Order of Things by Lynne Hinton (an alright story). As it is an colder, overcast day today, I am looking forward to curling up in a chair and reading The Traitor's Wife by Susan Higgonbotham.

Last night I started The Kid from Tomkinsville by John R. Tunis. A good, mid-baseball season read. Tunis' baseball series is considered YA fiction, I think, but the quality of the writing is so good that the "YA-ness" of the novel is hardly noticeable. This is a re-read for me; I first read Tunis in junior high, so it's been a while.

My memories of this book from those days, however, were are exceedingly good, and the first 25 pages live up to those recollections.

The book is about a young man just breaking in to the major leagues. The book was written in 1940, so the novel provides a glimpse of late-Depression life in American just before World War II changed the nation's entire dynamic, as well as the state of Major League Baseball in those times.

I remember reading an essay in which Philip Roth, one of my major literary heroes, speaks of how influential this book and its two sequels were on him.

Message edited by its author, Aug 8, 2009, 3:07pm.

Huge by James W. Fuerst (it's fantastic)
Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
Tattoo Machine by Jeff Johnson (non-fiction library book)

I started with Berlijn Alexanderplatz by Alfred Döblin this afternoon. The (black) humour in the book is good, but I'm doubting about the story. Know idea where it will lead...

the Fire by Katherine Nevin Struggling through it. got it as a early review and forgot about it... Abby sent me a reminder... so need to step up and get it posted... As i did not read Eight there are a number of things in this book that I am struggling with

Finished Illywhacker last night, reading The Blind Assassin

I'm reading The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters this week.

I finished my second book in the Shetland Island Quartet , White Nights by Ann Cleeves. It is a mystery set on the islands. This book is set during the summer, when there is no real 'night'.

The characters are well done and have developed more from the first book. I love the setting and seeing it in summer now. The writing is good, the story is very absorbing. I had a slate of characters I thought had 'done it' and one of them in fact had.

I guess I believed in the first 'accidental' death, but not the rest (as being committed by that character). It doesn't detract from my enjoyment however. I can't wait for book 3 to be published in paper in the US.

Now starting The Secret of Lost Things by Sheridan Hay for another RL book group.

I'm going to shove this item into this list topic because, (a) I don't think we need another topic, and (b) because I would not know how to start one anyways, as I am a complete geek!

There is a really interesting article in today's TimesOnline (August 8) on the late Norman Mailer's home in Provincetown, Mass. The home is now the Norman Mailer's Writers Colony and draws would be writers and such from all over.

Fascinating article written by a Sue Fox, and well worth the read...

Over halfway through with Along Came a Spider, and I should be done with it in a few days, although the narration feels more and more affected and insincere the more I read. Maybe it's just me.

I'm about halfway through Abigail Adams. Unless my computer at work gets fixed and/or replaced, I'll probably get it done somewhere around next weekend.

I'm about a third of the way into Brethren, which is pretty enjoyable but not particularly original. I'm also about a fifth of the way into The Manuscript Found in Saragossa, which I'm really enjoying.

I'm reading Have Mercy On Us All by Fred Vargas which has been highly recommended by a number of LTers.

I finished two books yesterday. Time Traveler's Wife and Travel as a Political Act. One fiction and one non-fiction. Wohoo!

I really liked Time Traveler's Wife. It now joins my short list of three best books of the year.

1. Manual of Detection by Jedediah Berry
2. Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker
3. Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

#28, I found Berlin Alexanderplatz a remarkable book, both in the use of language and in the story it told; one of my favorite books of the year so far.

#10 koalamom

Regarding the discussion of Julie and Julia. I agree with you. I didn't think that book was as good as it is being hyped. I thought My Life in France was one of the best autobiographies that I have ever read. In my copy of Julie and Julia which I read about a year ago, the author stated that she had used parts of My Life in France. In my opinion that was just a nod in the direction of Julia Child as there the use of her book was very sparse in Julie and Julia. In fact I kept wondering why she even referred to it in Julie and Julia. It was a book I enjoyed but kept wondering what all the buzz was about as I read it, because it just didn't grab me like I thought it would. Or like My Life in France did. But like millions of other people I will go and see the movie at some point simply because it does sound good and if Meryl Streep does as good of a job in the entire film as the trailers seem to indicate it should be worth the price of admission just to see her play Julia Child. If the movie is any good it will be because Norah Ephron had the imagination to and determination to make a good movie from an average book.

Laid aside The Landmark Herodotus for now. Just not in the mood. Not sure what I'll pick up in it's place.

Reading my ER book, Homer and Langley. Very quick, light read. Not one of Doctorow's better efforts. Still, he could write soup can labels that read better than 99% of the books out there.

Just recently finished 800 Days on the Eastern Front by Nikolai Litvin. Not a great memoir, but interesting nevertheless. The author gives a straight forward, and unembelished, recounting of his military service during the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany. You get clear-eyed glimpse of what life in the Red Army was like for the average Soviet soldier.

I began Through the Maelstrom by Boris Gorbachevsky the day before my ER book arrived. (I'll pick it up again when I'm done with Homer and Langley.) It is also a memoir of a the GPW. However, this book stands in sharp contrast to Litvin's book. While Litvin's stories were told in a style that made you feel he was talking over beers in a bar, Gorbachevsky draws a much more complex, almost novelistic, narrative. He quotes reconstructed dialog extensively and fills the book with character sketches of his comrades and commanders.

Still working on Outlander. Swoon. . . ;) Also, probably going to put that down at some point and read Shanghai Girls for a reading group at my library next Saturday.

Today I finished Another Gulmohar Tree by Aamer Hussein, and started reading Blood and Guts: A Short History of Medicine by Roy Porter. Tomorrow I'll start reading a proof copy of Love and Summer by William Trevor, which is on the current Booker Prize longlist.

I'm enjoying One Fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell. While I've always liked her work, I've found her a bit uneven. This one, however, is really a pleasure.

Just picked up The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

exicted to start!!

Finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and absolutely enjoyed every word! I wouldn't have picked it up if ya'll hadn't recommended it so - Thanks! Now I'm reading Appetite for Life, the Biography of Julia Child, I have read both Julie and Julia and My Life in France and I agree with #40 on those - My Life was great and Julie was o.k. but not stellar. Anyway with the movie coming out I was inspired to read this biography.

Last night I finished Teacher Man by Frank McCourt - each of his memoirs have been great reading. May he rest in peace.

Today I have started Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld... I seem to have a school theme lately!

Heres a bit of advice for all those who struggle to finish a book that is considered to be a classic or "important" work. Mark Twain once said and I'm paraphrasing here: A classic is a book that everyone wants to say they have read but no one wants to read. I advise my children to read what interests them. If you like the stars read science fiction; if you like horror/ suspense read King or Poe or Lovecraft, etc. But never read from a sense of obligation,it will only make you hate what you are trying to enjoy. Hawthorne aint for everyone. Always enter a book with a sense of adventure and wonder and never to just feel superior. Also if you have kids encourage them to read anything including comic books. My dad read me comics as a kid and I have never lost the love of reading. Now I look at my son with love and pride as I watch him intently reading comics, and I know that his mind will go on many journeys in the future, I envy him.

I am now reading The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester.

Slogging through The Mysteries of Udolpho. I totally agree with the above post about reading what interests you vs. what sounds impressive, but I really want to read (and hopefully like) this book, so I am going to keep reading for a while hoping that it will get more interesting.

The three Ray Bradbury books I ordered from the library came today. This evening I started Death Is A Lonely Business. Holy smokes, but Bradbury is not only a poet but a black belt enchanter. I haven't read too many of his, and am bolled over anew each time.

The Martian Chronicles is in this batch too. Thought I'd see if I enjoyed it as much on a reread as on the first read at about fifteen.

Still working on The Portable Jung but can only read that in shortish bursts. Absolutely fascinating, but also somewhat mind scrambling.

Also still slogging through Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams. Man, talk about a creeky antique. I know he was a pioneer, but really! Dickens reads better and is loads more modern seeming. Dickens also had an excellent grasp of human psychology, seems to me, a rather more realistic grasp than Freud's. However, one persists. As I may have mentioned, I'm reading Freud in order to understand where Jung is coming from and what he is in some cases expanding and in other cases correcting. So, it's not as if I have to enjoy The Interpretation of Dreams, thank goodness.

Message edited by its author, Aug 8, 2009, 9:52pm.

The Stars My Destination is an excellent book, but at times a difficult read. Enjoy.

I finished God of Animals this morning. The end left me in tears - amazing story! I've had The Time Traveler's Wife for awhile but I started it today since I found out on here last week that it's been made into a movie which will be out soon.

The Plague by Camus, The violent bear it away, Shiloh (The Civil War Battle Series, Book 2) on audio CD during my daily commute

I've started The Oracle's Queen by Lynn Flewelling and continue to make my slower than snail's pace way through Bio of an Ogre by Piers Anthony.

It's been several weeks since I posted to this thread, and I'm still reading Joseph and His Brothers but breaking it up with shorter, easier-to-carry-around books, including Dangerous Games: The Uses and Abuses of History by Margaret MacMillan and My Life in France by Julia Child, which I've had for a year or so but was inspired to read by the movie (and no, I have no intention of reading Julie and Julia). Have also recently finished a reread (some 40 years later) of To Kill a Mockingbird, inspired by this thought-provoking article in this week's New Yorker, The Russia House by John le Carré (not up to his best work), Revolution in Mind: The Creation of Psychoanalysis by George Makari, and The Thing around Your Neck, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's new book of short stories.

49 - I have always felt that way about reading, but I have discovered since I have been on LT that there are a lot of books that I have come to enjoy when I gave them a chance, which usually just meant starting them, but that doesn't mean I haven't stopped reading a book when it didn't catch me by, say 50 pages or so.

jhowell... I too loved In The Woods and look forward to beginningThe Likeness today. Sometimes I think reviewers think that if a book isn't a classic, or one that will "improve your mind or spirit" they shouldn't like them. PSHAW!

I like what I like. Sometimes I learn, sometimes I just enjoy.

I am a bit of a Magdalene fan. I have read several books and have a few yet to go. I am not a Christian, but I do srt of feel an affinity for her.. I see that I don't have all of my Magdalene books listed.. wonder why??

ficus , I am going to have to have a look at those books for my wishlist...

Catreona, Bradbury is a favorite of mine, as well...

oooo you'll love The Likeness. I really enjoyed In the Woods but The Likeness I thought was even better. I'm waiting for her next book already!

thanks for that star :)

I will start it as soon as I step away from this computer... :P

I will be finishing Julie Julia today. I am in a random reading challenge, so all my ARCs and TBRs are numbered and am using random.org to pick my next book. Makes getting through the stack much easier.

PS Hosting several giveaways on my blog... www.booknerdextraordinaire.blogspot.com

I finished and reviewed Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, and posted the review on the book's page as well as in my own "75-Books Challenge" thread.

I can't recommend it...too much of a commitment required simply to hold it up, and its pleasures aren't as great as I feel they should be to justify the required effort.

ETA: link to my thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/68941

Message edited by its author, Aug 9, 2009, 11:13am.

#45 - I just finished One Fifth Avenue as well! It was a fun summer read. I think I'll read just about anything that has to do with New York City. Obsessed with NYC? Yes, I am.

I also read The Sunday Philosophy Club, which I didn't enjoy. It was like he was trying to imitate Sophie's World but didn't quite succeed. He kept dropping the story entirely to give us philosophy lessons. Meh.

Now I have to choose the all-important airplane book for a trip to B.C. next week. Far more important than deciding how much underwear to pack!

Message edited by its author, Aug 9, 2009, 2:13pm.

I am now into The Likeness and liking it a lot. ..

I am still on a Faith Sullivan kick. I read The Cape Ann earlier this year and have been following the same characters in The Empress of One and my current read, Gardenias. Not sure why I am hooked on these. Maybe because summer is winding down and I need a break before I get back to "heavier" reads.

I just finished I Say a Little Prayer by E. Lynn Harris.

I am currently reading When Everything Changes, Change Everything by Neale Donald Walsch

I need to finish up The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneger

I'm still reading Best African American Essays 2009.

And I'm slowly reading Physics of the Impossible by Kaku and Chaos by Gleick...

I'm about halfway through The Well of Lost Plots and I am going to start Locked Rooms. I haven't read the first book in either series, but I'm finding TWoLP to be pretty easy to follow so far.

well i started reading The Bronze horseman yesterday methinks and my word i wish i had enough time to read in extended gulps! No doubt i will be reading it in dribs and drabs for the rest of the week until i fly home saturday at which point i will read til my eyes bleed ;)
heck i am really far behind with the group read of Pillars i will have to catch up when i get home.

I actually started reading Brixton Beach, the new novel by Roma Tearne today instead of Love and Summer by William Trevor. Brixton Beach starts out in London just after the 2005 bombings, then moves to Sri Lanka, before the onset of the Sri Lankan civil war. So far it is excellent! I'll still start the Trevor today, as I'm in the midst of my personal Bookerthon.

Finally managed to finish Prayers for Sale - probably my top clunker of the year so far. Now I'm going to start Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult because I'm borrowing it from my Mom and she wants to pass it on to others. Based upon what I've read on these threads, I'm expected it to be a not-as-good, recycled version of My Sister's Keeper, but at least with Picoult I know it will be fast and easy.

I'm also going to start listening to Grayson by Lynne Cox today. It's a true story and read by the author. So, that will be my "laundry" book for the week (I've found that if I listen to a book while folding the endless amount of laundry that accumulates in my house, I get much less resentful about it).

I expect to finish up To Hold the Crown today, and start somethng new. I have enjoyed the Plaidy, but look forward to Rosa or A Trace of Smoke or maybe Twilight of Avalon. Still working on Emma. Touchstone for Rosa not right.

I finished Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld. I could not put it down, I really liked it.

Next up is The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell.

Finished Michael McGarrity's "Death Song" this morning.
Next up: "Friend of the Devil" by Peter Robinson.

I'm reading Management Rewired by Charles Jacobs interspersed with A Certain Justice by P.D. James. Makes for interesting connections in my brain...

Finished the Linda Olsson book, Sonata for Miriam- much disappointed and reviewed it as such. Have to start on Hillary Waugh's 1954 book A Rag and a Bone and expect to be sent back in time to when police wore uniforms now in museums, chewed on cigar stubs and said things like "Yeah?". Plus a 1 hour read: The Cat Who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth- a children's Newberry Medal Award book that I re-read once in a while.

Finished Along Came a Spider, and I still hold to my original impressions: good crime thriller, although the writing wasn't exactly top notch. Overall, I enjoyed it, and I plan on reading the second book in the series at some point.

I'm now moving on to Jurassic Park for some good old comfort reading - my copy's been used so many times, I've had to resort to packing tape to hold the spine together.

Like 61, I just finished Julie and Julia. I wasn't blown over by it; it was OK. It did inspire me to want to read My Life in France, though.

I will now take on Portrait of an Unknown Woman and Lord Jim.

Message edited by its author, Aug 9, 2009, 7:11pm.

#59,64 - Agree, The Likeness is every bit as good, in some ways better. French is the best mystery writer I have come across in a long, long time.

This The Secret Magdalene though is crappy. Some interesting philosophy and subject matter - but not well written. I guess I'll finish it since I am typically too stubborn to abandon.

I finished A River Runs Through It and other Stories this weekend -- enjoyed all three stories. I am almost done with A Piece of Justice, a mystery by Jill Paton Walsh, and hope to begin The Insufficiency of Maps by Nora Pierce tomorrow.

Colorado I think you will like Jurassic Park I read it actually before I saw the movie. Its always fun to compare the movie with the book I recall there were several glaring differences. Comfort reading is always the best.

kiwiflowa - Good luck with The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox - I thought it was one of the worst books I ever read.

Still working on Oryx and Crake, having been interrupted by cataract surgery on Thursday and still mucking around with what glasses to wear for what. The right glasses always seem to be in the other room. It will be a month before the other eye is done and everything settles down so I'm a bit off.

ooo mckait, i'm excited for you! :) enjoy it!!

I am just starting Angel's game tonight because I just finished reading The Clearing which I wanted to finish first. Cooler today, I wish I had a cup of hot chocolate to go with my books.

#78> koalamom, I'll be curious to know what you think of Lord Jim. It is my single favorite novel, although it's been a while since I read it, now. I studied Conrad in grad school and really fell in love with his insights and his style. Be forewarned, however, that the novel doesn't start out all that strongly, but picks up steam after the first section.

#80 - mollygrace - A River Runs Through It is as close I get to having an absolutely favorite book. Glad you enjoyed.

Finished Aracoeli by Elsa Morante...finally. A tough read. The writing is really beautiful, in some ways masterful, but it's also a bit overwhelming, and the the story gets monotonous at times. On the other hand, for better or worse, it's a book that will stick and give me something to think about.

Started The Master and Margarita today. It has a good beginning and isn't choppy (like I find many translated novels), and got me interested right away. Looking forward to reading more of it.

Reading Stranger in a Strange Land by the Grandmaster

83: Hope you feel better soon. Maybe reading isn't the best activity till the other eye gets done? Might be a good time to check out the world of audiobooks. *hug*

88: I loved Stranger in a Strange Land.

Did you finish The Stars My Destination?

Message edited by its author, Aug 9, 2009, 11:58pm.

Yes It was excellent. Gullys the man.

>73 kiwi - I loved Esme Lennox. But goddessladyj hated it. Go figure. I always find it so fascinating when people have such different reactions to a book. Now I'll really be curious to hear what you think of it.

I'm still reading and enjoying In Hovering Flight. Slow going as I'm preparing to go under the knife on Tuesday; lots to get done before I'm out of commission for awhile.

I'm reading The Historian for my book club. It took me about 100 pages to get into it but now I can't put it down.

85 - rocketjk - LT is turning me more eclectic than before I came on board - thanks for letting me know that Lord Jim starts out slow but gets better, sometimes a slow starter can turn one off, but I will persevere.

88-ivekilled - Heinlein is the only author that I still have all the books of and Stranger was the first one of his that I read - I think it was a cult favorite back in the last 60s (does that date me?) and though I feel some of his later works got to be a bit much, his earlier stuff was spot on - and I have read it all (I think - some authors keep publishing long after they have died, it seems)

68: loved, loved The Bronze Horseman. Do you know that it is a trilogy? followed by Tatiana and Alexander (awesome too) and The Summer Garden (the later I only discovered recently thanks to LT and have yet to read)

93: That book is one of my all time favorites, not only did I enjoy it for the story but also made me proud of European history and culture.

edit for touchstone

Message edited by its author, Aug 10, 2009, 8:15am.

Finished Capitol Men, a history of Reconstruction through the lives of the first black congressmen. I found it an understandable and thorough look at a very chaotic time. It's a piece of American history that is often skipped over with a summary dismissal but one that is crucial to understanding today's world. Definitely worth reading.

#78, koalamom, I definitely recommend My Life in France, which I just finished.

Still in the middle of Have Mercy On Us All, which has gotten really good, but had to stop for a little while to finish Tangling with Tyrants: Managing the Balance of Power at Work by Tony Deblauwe. I owe a review on it by Tuesday, so had to get to it. Plus I work for a couple so wanted to see if I could learn how to better deal with them. First part of book was a bit annoying (bec. it seemed the onus for change was put on the employee, not the boss), but second half had some solutions that just might be helpful. I can review it now, but I'm going to have to reread it more slowly in order to put its suggestions to use.

Also on my reading stack is My Name Is Will, which I've almost finished, and Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman, one of my all-time favorite historical authors.

BTW, Ms. Penman is participating in Author Chat here on LT through 8/21, in case anyone else here likes her work: http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.ph...

I have read 3 copies of Stranger in a Strange Land to tatters.. so far.

I finished The Likeness, loved it.. and will start The Day the Falls Stood Still today.

>95 Viviane - Yes i do know about the other books thanks although i wasn't quite sure what order they were in. I am loving The Bronze Horseman so far and half kicking myself for not reading it sooner since i bought it a while back when it was rec'd on another forum i frequent. Gah i am glad that there are three books because i think i would cry if there was only one book of this brilliance *squees like a total softie*

#94 koalamom, I agree with rocketjk that Lord Jim is very good. I read it on my own in high school and still remember it fondly 40+ years later. I also remember that about a year after I read it Mad Magazine did a parody called Lord Jump. Hilarious.

Finished Cutting for Stone which was terrific. Started The Lost City of Z and Yellow Raft in Blue Water. Also reading Hide-and-Seek With Angels, about J. M. Barrie

Still reading Pride and Prejudice, on page 174, chapter 44. Also now reading One Scream Away by Kate Brady, on page 50. My third read is The Moon Looked Down by Dorothy Garlock, page 106. I like all of these quite a lot and each one seems to fit a different mood. It does feel weird to be reading three at the same time.

Just beginning The Day The Falls Stood Still,and it looks good so far...

whymaggie, I look forward to hearing what you think about Z.

> 82: goddessladyj & 92: teelgee: When I read goddessladyj's comment I was already half way through The vanishing act of Esme Lennox and really enjoying it. The rest of the book didn't change my mind and I give it two thumbs up. The only thing I wished was different is if the author had fleshed it out a bit more and made it a longer book. Teelgee I agree it surprises the heck out of me when someone posts how fabulous a book is when I hated it (or it made me literally sick in the case of The Road)

So now that I finished The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell I have started reading The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. The summary on the back interested me but upon reading the first few pages I am not convinced yet that I'll be able to continue with it.

>98: Storeetllr I just saw last night that Penamn was going ot be on LT! I can't believe it - she is one of my favourite authors and I own all of her books which I re-read all the time.

Still slogging through The Black Star Passes. I usually like older SF, but this one doesn't like me.

Started Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith.

>104, kiwiflora, good luck with The Plot Against America. I read it a couple of years ago for book club. I enjoyed it, but I found that his sentences would wander in such a way that I had a hard time following.

Kiwiflowa and AMQS

I read Plot Against America for a book discussion group. It wasn't a bad book, but I didn't really like it that much and the ending? I'll just leave it there since Kiwiflowa hasn't read it yet. The author did lots of research and the notes at the end about the reality of many of the characters were really helpful. After reading it I talked to my parents about Walter Winchell and one couldn't even remember who he was, and the other said "oh yeah. We listened to him." For me the importance of the book was in the subject of historiography. And this raised many questions. The whole book was an example of what just a little tweaking or twisting of history can do. Abbracadabra and history is changed! Maybe not to the extent it was in this book but through more subtle propaganda. It will be interesting to me to find out what you think if it when you get it read.

I've posted my review of The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith in my "75-Books Challenge" thread, http://www.librarything.com/topic/68941 and on the book's review page. I'm up to sixty-four of the seventy-five books for the challenge!

#104, 107, 108 I am a big Philip Roth fan but I didn't like The Plot Against America at all, but I will wait to see what Kiwiflora thinks before saying why!

Re: The Plot Against America, I too am a huge Philip Roth fan. I found the first half of the book extremely compelling. The description of how the narrator's family was treated while vacationing in Washington DC, for example, I found almost excrutiationgly true to what I know of the nature of anti-Semitism in America at that time. The second half of the book falls off, in my opinion.

AMQS, it's funny you should say that about Roth's sentences, because I find his sentences often exquisite works of art unto themselves. It's one of the aspects of his work I look forward to most, in fact. Just shows you how tastes differ!

At any rate, I wouldn't want anyone deciding ye or nay on Roth as an author based on Plot Against American. My advice is to try The Human Stain or American Pastoral if this book doesn't move you but you want to give Roth another go.

Best,
Jerry

>111, rocketjk, I agree with you about the second half of the book falling off.

Regarding his sentences, perhaps I'm only feeble-minded, or was when I read the book. I remember reading sentences like (totally making this up now...) "In the morning, my aunt, who long before she met her husband or had even begun to date the handsome boys from around the neighborhood used to arrange her hair in perfect ringlets and practice movie-star poses in the big mirror that adorned the hall in the carpeted upstairs hallway between the bedrooms and imagine herself a glamorous starlet, made pancakes." Then I would be confused about the pancakes and have to go back and figure out that he was saying "In the morning my aunt made pancakes" with a backstory about the aunt in the middle.

It was probably just me being confused. It didn't turn me off Roth forever, though, and I am interested to read American Pastoral or another of his books.

This week I'm reading Blackberry Wine, One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Depending on my mood, may read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows too, busy week for me.

Jules Ive always been curious about the phenomenon that Harry Potter has been. Can you tell me what you think is the reason it has been such a hit. I'm on the fence about starting the series.

The thing to remember about the Harry Potter books is that the first couple of books are much more obviously children's books. They become increasingly more sophisticated as the series progresses. So if you start the series, don't be surprised to find yourself wondering how adults became so hooked on them. I came to the series late. I actually read the fifth book (Order of the Phoenix) first. If I hadn't started there, I probably would have been hesitant to continue the series after the first volume.

I think one of the reasons for Harry Potter's success is that the books manage to reinvigorate your own youthful enthusiasm. They're really entertaining stories.

Message edited by its author, Aug 10, 2009, 10:13pm.

ivekilledpeople - I like the series because its an easy read, but also a un guilty pleasure, and its filled with characters you fall in love with. The first two books are childish (at least compared to others) but still something fun. Rowling has built up a great world of Wizards and Magic.

For adults out there, I think the pull of it is because it becomes a guilty pleasure, they want to know what happens to Harry, what will he do, what adventures he'll go on. I was reluctant to read it at first, and for a while refused to. But the third movie and story behind it, was what convinced me to give it a try. I've been a fan since.

The writing isn't what you find in some books out there (literary etc) but she is a great story teller, and I think that's what sold it to the world, the story of Harry and her ability to tell it.

To say the same thing another way: The books grow up with the children they follow. That's one thing I've always admired about Rowling; The first book, when Harry is eleven, captures the world of an eleven-year-old. In each subsequent book, the world Harry and his friends inhabit grows wider and deeper and darker just as the evolving teenaged awareness and psyche do.

ETA: I agree. I've always said Rowling is not a particularly good writer, but she is a very good story teller. Also she has a captivating story to tell. Of course, it's not till near the end of The Deathly Hallows that we find out what the story is actually about. But, that's OK, especially since thinking we know all along is one thing that keeps us reading.

Message edited by its author, Aug 10, 2009, 11:42pm.

Jules & Cat I have avoided the movies so far, should I continue to until I have read the novels?

Message edited by its author, Aug 10, 2009, 11:41pm.

I just finished Zombie by Joyce Carol Oates. It was.... weird, Grotesque.
I also read The Collector by John Fowles. I'm glad i read it before seeing the movie. It was a great book! I loved it.
Tonight I'm starting on The Time Traveler's Wife. I've heard it was great!

118: Yes!

114 & 118: ivekilledpeople: The first few books reminded me of a modern/fantasy version of the Enid Blyton books which were written in the 60's (I think) and about about English children who more often than not attended boarding school. As I grew up reading those books I quite enjoyed the first Harry Potters. Books 5 - 7 became more focused on the good vs evil plot of the story rather than the boarding school aspect.

I would definitely read the books before the movies. I remember when the first HP movie came out it was the first time I even heard of HP. As a teenager I had not known about the books which at that time were marketed to a younger audience. I watched the movie and thought wow that's really dumb I'm not reading those books. Then years later a few months before the last book was released I finally read the first one and quickly read the rest.

In regards to Harry Potter:

I started the series when I was 10 or 11, so I started reading at the optimal age and basically grew up with the characters. I second what everyone else has said so far: the first two or three books are really meant for children, but they're such entertaining stories that adults can easily enjoy them as well. I would suggest reading the books before the movies simply because the books are so much more intricate and involved - one of the things that I LOVED about the series was how JK Rowling was able to make small, seemingly innocent details into huge plot points in the later books - they make for some really, really interesting twists!

I've finished The Honourable Schoolboy and am halfway through Smiley's People . I loved the first in the trilogy, but found the HS a slog. I think it's because I haven't been to Hong Kong or Cambodia or Laos, so I couldn't visualise the setting. But I'm loving Smiley's People.

#61 and #78, I read Julie and Julia earlier this year and was disappointed, mostly because I felt that she whined a lot. I'd like to read Julia Child's book though. (And #61, Jaimehuff, that is a very cool way to choose your next book!)

Yeah you probably should read the book first, although, I had seen the first 3 movies before I read the books, and the third movie made me pick up the books, theres so much back story that is important, that is left out.

Can you please tell me what was the book nr. 9 before Tea Time for the Traditionally Built? Thanks.

I just started The Finishing School by Muriel Spark. It was near the top of my TBR pile to begin with (I lovelovelove me some Spark) but reading the recent reviews in the Guardian about the plays for "Miss Brodie" and "Girls of Slender Means" inspired me to grab this one. So far, so good- it's about writers and I can't wait to see what her sharp wit has to say about them! :)

I started, finished, and reviewed The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie yesterday evening. It's funny, it's good, and it's so evocative of adolescent angst that I think I broke out.

My review is in my “75-Books Challenge” thread in post #154.

edited/post number wrong, how dim I am this early

Message edited by its author, Aug 11, 2009, 5:46am.

Richard, If you click on the phrase 'Message #' on the thread it puts the URL to that message in the bar at the top and you can copy it and provide a link to the specific message.

I am still reading The Secret of Lost Things and not enjoying it. It is a RL book group read. The writing is good and sucks you in, but the characters and story are exceedingly bland and rather uninteresting to me.

I know its about the Strand, and I have been there, but I can't abide such disorder. So I can't wait to finish it.

Sonechka by Ludmila Ulitskaya and One Piece by Eiichiro Oda.

I just finished Enna Burning, a YA novel by Shannon Hale, and I didn't particularly care for it. And I am still reading and enjoying Bread Alone by Judith Ryan Hendricks. Also, since I usually alternate between reading two at a time, I just began Zapped by Carol Higgins Clark.

>125 HugoReads The Miracle at Speedy Motors was nr. 9 in the Precious Ramotswe series.

Re: Harry Potter - the books are better than the movies, which aren't bad in and of themselves. My daughter recommends that you view the books and the movies as two separate entities. I think it is better to read the books first but then go into the movies knowing that there will be editing - or again think of them as something apart from the books.

Either way, I cannot think of another 700-odd paged book that I have read in 24 hours - with a couple of hours off for sleep and breakfast.

>131 jnwelch: I have all of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series - thanks, I missed that one when I put all the series together on one shelf and only counted up to 8- sorry.

I finished Pillars of the Earth last night and am still plugging away at Dangerous Liaisons.

But I just booked a trip to Dubai and Jordan for the Fall, so I want to read more about the region and the culture. As the LT audience are my book gurus, any suggestions? Fiction, nonfiction... Anything good goes for me. Thanks!

I loved the HP books. I read the first 4 in 8th grade, and then the following 3 books throughout high school and early adulthood. I would recommend staying away from the movies if you plan on reading the books. Seeing the movie first always makes reading the book a much less enjoyable experience. And, in my opinion, I don't think the HP movies are that great. The problem with them is, while the books became more and more mature, the movies feel like they are still intended for children. There is also just a LOT of missing stuff in the movies. This, of course, is normal with movie adaptations...but Order of the Pheonix was just a mess for me. It was aweful, and the only reason I haven't seen the Half-Blood Prince is because it was my favorite book of the series, and I'd hate to see it butchered by the movie directors. :(

Message edited by its author, Aug 11, 2009, 10:25am.

I passed a milestone last night. I entered my 1,000th, 1001th, and 1002nd, books into LT. They were old Pat Conroy titles - Beach Music and Prince of Tides. Along with that came the realization that I simply must stop filling my house with books!

It a point of fact that I don't really have that many books in the house. One of the things I love about LT is that I can keep track of my reading even if I don't have the book anymore. I really like the new collections schema. The "Read but Not Owned" was particularly useful for me. About 300 of the books I have listed in LT aren't in my house. (Some of them are in my mobile storage unit - my car.) :-) I do have a rule that unless a book is very very good once I have read it I give it away. Lately I have been leaving the books at work because people see me reading them and ask about them, so I just put them on the break room table with a sticky note attached to just pass it on when they get done with it.

With the shock of seeing that number last night I have resolved to use my library more. What do you do with books you have read?

I finished Mars Crossing, and I thought it was really good for a hard science fiction novel. I don't normally like the stuff, but all the technical talk was wrapped around a nice and 'cozy' adventure/survival story that kept my interest throughout. Very enjoyable.

Later today I'll start Disquiet by Julia Leigh

Like you, I pass my books along to friends and family. If they are very, very good and to be treasured and read again, I keep them in my house. Sometimes they live for a few years in my house and have to make way for others, but usually not. Anything that is not given outright to friends or family, or that makes its way back to me, is given to our Friends of the Library for its annual book sale.

The Friends support the library in dozens of ways, so I can feel good about where my books (and the dollars I spend on them) are going.

>136 Sorry, should have referenced your post in my #138.

#135 - I agree with you completley with OOTP. HBP movie version is much the same, if the book is your favourite, stay away from it, they butchered it. (Many claim they didnt, but they did).

Started Dragons of Autumn Twilight and I'm really liking it so far. I also got my copy of Paradiso the other day so I'm rereading Inferno.

I just finished Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn.

>134, Bridget770, what a great trip! I read Staircase of a Thousand Steps by Masha Hamilton a few years ago -- I think it's set in Jordan.

Passionate Nomad: The Life of Freya Stark by Jane Fletcher Geniesse

Freya Stark wrote hugely popular books about the region -- they're on my wishlist:
A Winter in Arabia
Valley of the Assassins (This one's set in Persia, I think)

>136 Along with that came the realization that I simply must stop filling my house with books! Why? What else is a house for, if not to keep the rain off of books?
What do you do with books you have read? I donate the good ones to the liberry and the bad ones to Salvation Army and the heinous ones to the Catholic charity. (Ensures I will never see them again.)

My brother-in-law spent a lot of time in Jordan last year on a job, said it was very interesting. I second the suggestion of Freya Stark's A Winter in Arabia because it was riveting!

I just finished Isabella Moon. Won't give a spoiler here but has anyone else read it and really disliked the ending? Ugh!

#128- I'm with you- I *adore* books about books and ones set in bookstores (especially used) but this one just didn't have much soul in it and didn't really capture the deep love of books that can happen with people. Has a great cover though! :)

>HugoReads No problem on the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. I've got the series, too, so that was easy. I'm reading the new one, Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, right now.

#134 Bridget 770

There is new fiction book out that is set in Jordon. Land of Marvels. It is an archeological mystery. I haven't read it but have a copy among my 1,000 books.

There is also a recent biography of Gertrude Bell that got good reviews. Gertrude Bell is really important in the development of the Middle East. Some say even more important than T. E. Lawrence or Winston Churchill because Roosevelt liked her. There is little new stuff written about her, but if you are interested in the history and politics of the region you have to read about her.

>130 chinquapin I also found that i didn't like Enna Burning as much as The Goose Girl but the third book in the series River Secrets is really good and worth a read IMHO. Frankly I am happy to read anything Shannon Hale writes but it was slightly disappointing that Enna Burning wasn't as enjoyable as the first books.

I finished The bronze horseman a bit earlier and oh holy moly why do i have to be in France when i desperately need an english bookstore so i can buy the other two books??? ARGH!!! It is going to kill me if i don't get them soon I *need* to find out what happens!!!!
Next methinks i will try to read one of the books I bought the other day but seeing as they are in french it may take me a while...

Finished A Matter of Degrees which is a layman's presentation of science using temperature as the central theme. It included both history and present research and did a good job conveying the excitement of discovery.

dial me for murder by Amanda Matetsky. Final book in the Paige Turner mystery series

>149 I really liked The Goose Girl as well, and I have also read and enjoyed Hale's The Princess Academy. But sadly, I found the mood in Enna Burning to be too dark and oppressive overall. I am glad to hear that you thought River Secrets was good. I'll get that one next.

Finished Under This Unbroken Sky by Shandi Mitchell , started The Devlin Diary

#78 koalamom I too was not impressed w/ Julie and Julia so much so I quit at page 100. The author was whiny and I just didn't enjoy the writing or the story that much. I do want to read My Life in France also. I have heard Julie and Julia movie is much better than the book.

Congrats #136 - that's a lot of reading.

I'm almost finished with Portrait of an Unknown Woman. I've put off reading it for quite a while and now am wondering why???

Next will be Lord Jim unless my son finishes that library book he got today before I finish Portrait and lets me have the book to read myself - it's the latest Dune book.

Message edited by its author, Aug 11, 2009, 8:14pm.

I am reading Enders Game by the wonderful Orson Scott Card. I recently(a year or so ago) took in a lecture from this brilliant man. I would recommend all of you hear this man speak. I think you would like him Richard. He is like a beacon in the night. Best speaker I have ever sat in front of. And no side to side teleprompter talk;which was refreshing! Wiki this master you will not regret it!

The best way to get reading time with an infant, I have discovered, is to take them on an airplane. My baby slept the whole Milwaukee to Los Angeles flight last week and back again today. That let me finish a LOT of books this week - that and the fact his grandparents stole him all week. Since last Tuesday I read:
The Last Beach Bungalow by Jennie Nash
The Virgin's Daughters by Jeane Westin
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The Mom's Guide to Growing Your Family Green by Terra Wellington
The Embers by Hyatt Bass

While I was on the airplane today I started Melissa Marr's Fragile Eternity. However we were way too tired and lazy to haul our suitcases and other stuff up the stairs to our 3rd floor condo after a long day of travel, so that's still in the car and now I'm reading Erica Eisendorfer's The Wet Nurse's Tale.

Richard my wife yells at me about having too many books? How does your wife handle it?

I finished Serge Gainsbourg: A Fistful of Gitanes by Sylvie Simmons and I'm starting We Have Always Lived In The Castle.

That's a lot of books, DevourerOfBooks! I have a great picture of you reclining in the sun somewhere, reading, while grandparents tend to the baby.

bookgirl,

Unfortunately it was mostly reclined in my old bedroom at their house, but still really nice!

Just finished Shop Class as Soulcraft and reviewed it. Started Privilege: Harvard and the Education of the Ruling Class. Books on education-- particularly the ones that are highly critical of elite education--particularly those that are memoirs of college years at ***Harvard*** or ***Princeton*** are my Nora Roberts and John Grisham.

When I'm done with this book, I think I'm going to try reading more education philosophy and sociology, in an attempt to ground some of the memoir fluff. I've already read Jonathan Kozol, I should probably read some Dewey.... if you have any suggestions, feel free to comment on my profile!

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time for summer reading , and Mates, Dates, and Inflatable Bras , just for fun.

The Hungry Tide - Amitav Ghosh

Finished Pillars of the Earthby Ken Follett, have started a re-read of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams and I am still reading Unicorn Variations by Roger Zelazny.

I finished Persona Non Grata last night and really enjoyed it. I've liked the entire series.

Then I began something I found on my TBR bookcase, A Box of Matches, evidently lent me by a dear friend whose taste I trust completely. I have no recolletion of getting this book. It's off to a quiet start, but I'm interested in seeing where it goes.

I should be able to finish When I Forgot today. Next up: When You Reach Me -- a book I'm eagerly anticipating: a mystery for young people in which one of the characters is reading A Wrinkle in Time. Hmmm ... sounds like a good time to revisit that old favorite, too.

I need to finish Portrait of an Unknown Woman because I just found out that Cat in a Topaz Tango, which I had on hold is on its way to me and I type this.

And my son got the latest Dune book yesterday from the library and since he's half done with it, I should be getting that one too and these library books will have to go back in two weeks and you can't renew books that have a hold on them.

After reading Julie and Julia, I decided to get My Life in France - that's on hold, too. I guess the movie got people wanting to read it.

#157- are you from Milwaukee? I spent 4 great years there as a student at Marquette- Milwaukee has a very special place in my heart

To aliay, who wants to dabble in philosophy et al: try the Alain de Botton books- perhaps The Consolations of Philosophy to start.

#169
NW Chicago suburbs, actually, but it was cheaper to park for a week at Milwaukee and fly from there than to be dropped at O'Hare. After going through that airport, though, I never want to fly out of anywhere else again. I would sort of like to move there, actually.

#149 Lady violet

I have a copy of the Bronze Horseman! Maybe I should move that one up on my TBR pile. Thanks for the recommendation.

I've got about 150ish pages left of Outlander - put it down to read a book for a book club @ the library- Shanghai Girls.

Message edited by its author, Aug 12, 2009, 5:22pm.

New here. Looks like a fun conversation. Just finished Proust-- whew! A labor of love, an astonishing marvel of literature. Took me 7 1/2 months, approx. 10 pages a day. What to read next, before starting Proust all over again? I got together a pile of possibles and have been exploring them for a couple of weeks now. Some of the options, in rough order of more probable to less probable: Cien Anos de Soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude, in Spanish); The Man Without Qualities; Middlemarch; Tale of Genji (Murasaki); Buddenbrooks (Mann); Emma; finally finish Faust; War and Peace. And while messing around like this, I've revisited and reread Overstreet's The Mature Mind, and am starting his The Mind Alive. This guy is so clear-headed (written in that simpler time, 1949)you feel cleansed after reading him. Anyone else use, as a guide, Fadiman's Lifetime Reading Plan essays? JB

>174 Greetings JBurg, and welcome to a very interesting group of readers. I hope you'll enjoy it here!

I'd like to put in a plug for my favorite of the books you mentioned: The Tale of Genji by Lady Murasaki. I have gone on at length about the wonders of reading an eleventh-century Japanese lady's novel, which ability still leaves me a little dazed, so I won't go into that. I think reading Genji is one of the most important rites of reading-passage available to us. It's a foundation document, arguably the first and inarguably among the first works describable as a novel.

And besides, it's got sex and violence and several dozen wicked plot twists! A cast of characters that "All My Children" can't match for complexity of relationship and fluidity of boundaries! And Genji himself...that ol' horndog...but with a heart as pure as the driven slush!

Worth reading, I'd say.

I finished Portrait of an Unknown Woman and thought it was pretty good.

My hold from the library Cat in a Topaz Tango came in so I drove over and picked it up. I'll start that next and then (or at the same time) will read the Dune book. I guess Lord Jim will have to wait until next week, but libraryy books come first.

Just finished The Secret Magdalene. I'm sort of speechless which is not me at all. Brilliant book with a profound message. I don't think Oprah will ever push it. Not a bad thing.

#177 - Oh dear - I also just finished The Secret Magdalene and quite disliked it! Interesting content, horrible execution, IMHO. But based on all the LT reviews, I am the odd one - not you. Everyone else seems to love it . .

I am reading The Ghost Road - the last of Pat Barker's WW1 trilogy. So far, so good - in that tense, understated, bit disjointed way of hers.

About to finish Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned, a book of short stories by Wells Tower and American Gospel by Jon Meacham. I don't know what I think of Tower's stories yet, but Meacham's book has been very enjoyable. And concise!

I finished Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake last night. I gave this book four stars and rank it with the best of Atwood's other novels. The final test of a good book to me is that the characters and their dilemmas stay with me and I continue to puzzle over them afterwards. A little too early to tell, but 24 hours later, I'm still thinking about Jimmy, Oryx, and Crake.

Now for something totally different from the Border's buy-two-get-one-free table, The Little Book by Selden Edwards, a story of time travel and Vienna in its glory days at the turn of the twentieth century. Looks very promising at 22 pages in.

I finished Brixton Beach, the latest novel by Roma Tearne (review forthcoming). I'll start either The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt or The Glass Room by Simon Mawer on the flight back home today.

Since everybody finished Pillars of the Earth ahead of schedule I finished it off too...

Started Shadows and Light by Anne Bishop. I like to read her books in between other reads and refrain myself from gorging them all at once.

I'm such a loser. I'm bogged down somewhere in the mid-600s of Pillars. It's not so much that I'm not enjoying it but more that I'm too easily distracted...I'll get back to it now.

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I just started Dear Husband by Joyce Carol Oates-I love her short fiction so I have high hopes for it.

Narrow Dog to Indian River by Terry Darlington Incredibly LOL funny
Also July ER book, The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny

I just finished Book of Clouds by Chloe Aridjis and have started The House at Sugar Beach by Helene Cooper.

ivekilledpeople- Um... anything you wanna get off your chest, there?

jburg- Man I really need to get started on Proust, I have the new Penguin translation of Swann's Way just sitting on my shelf waiting... I do use Fadiman's Lifetime Guide, but I also use a bunch of other literary guides for recommendations, I guess I'm a bit addicted.

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Welcome jburg, look forward to hearing what you are reading. You have my admiration, finishing Proust then reading something else heavy before starting again! I'd need something light and fluffy to clear my head.

where was my greeting?

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I'm about 100 pages into The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer. So far I'm finding it fairly 'eh.' LT reviewers seem to have liked it, so I'm hoping that means it will improve. One reviewer did say that the first 100 pages are mostly set-up, so I'm optimistic that the rest will be better.

Okay, 'ivekilledpeople' - I didn't see the last couple of messages (this time) but evidently you have quite the way with words... whatever you're doing to keep antagonising everyone, could you just pack it in, please?! I'm sure I'm not the only one who's sick of seeing multiple red flags every time your name comes up. This is a friendly community full of friendly book lovers so stop dragging the forums down and try to blend in a bit if you want to contribute.

Flagged posts aren't deleted, there is a "show" button that you can click to see what was said.

"This message has been flagged by multiple users and is no longer displayed (show)."

The posts definitely deserved being flagged.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 7:16am.

Message 195 Elliepotten, Bless you for concisely writing what I've been thinking. I've killed people is starting to annoy and depress me. Not the feelings I'm in search of when I trapse downstairs in the morning to check out my posts and groups I'm watching. I'm not even going to read his flagged posts because it is more of the same and he will get no satisfaction from me.

Whoah - WORSE than more of the same, in fact. Thanks Ape, hadn't spotted the link on this old computer we've got in the shop.

MEANWHILE back on topic, I have given up my nostalgic reading of Malory Towers for a woman who was looking for the books for her daughter. Onwards with The World According to Mimi Smartypants which has actually turned out to be a sharply observed and absolutely giggle-out-loud funny diary of a Chicago woman-about-town. Plus Frenchman's Creek which is just delicious, and Biblioholism by Tom Raabe which has me sighing and whispering 'Yes, that's me' after each page. Next up: well, I've 'borrowed' so many books from the shop recently I hardly know! I might just close my eyes, walk into my flat and read whichever book I trip over first.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 8:06am.

Non-fiction for me this week: The structure of scientific revolutions - Kuhn

195 - I concur - this is happening on two of my threads (and one I started was abandoned) - we may have some "heated" banter here, but it is usually in fun and no one gets hurt and I'd hate to have to stop reading threads because of this

Just finished two: Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith (on the train), another charmer in the series, and The Odyssey: A Dramatic Retelling of Homer's Epic by Simon Armitage (at home), which the title explains and which was surprisingly good, a modern verse/play version for radio.

#186. I'm curious to hear what you think about Dear Husbands. I really liked it, even though it was not a feel good book. I love Joyce Carol Oates.

I finished an ER yesterday of Lost Past Stopping. Very interesting.

I'm still plugging through Dangerous Liaisons.

Touchstones acting wonky.

#171- Milwaukee is a great town- I miss it

I started Duma Key and The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane this week

This week I am starting Becoming Jane Austen by Jon Spence.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 10:23am.

#203 - Let me know what you think of Duma Key - it's on my list of King novels yet to be read, and I want to know if I should make it a priority!

I just picked up The Rossetti Letter by Christi Phillips. I found it for $1 at Half Price Books, how could I resist? I'm also reading LotR for the nth time.

Found myself sitting on the couch with nothing to read in my hands. Gunman's Rhapsody was sitting on the coffee table so picked it up and started reading it. Got 30 pages read before I quit. That makes four concurrent reads going since I finished reviewing the last section of Pillars of the Earth for the group read. I saw the movie version of Appaloosa last spring and put the book on my TBR pile. While on vacation I read it and then went on to Brimstone thinking it was number two in the series. I was wrong. So now I have to wait for Resolution to come back to the library. Instead of Brimstone picked up Gunman's Rhapsody. I just couldn't keep my itchy fingers off of it. At least I didn't buy this one! When I am done with it, it can go back to its home at the library. Just when I thought the western was about dead along comes these books by Parker. For us fans of westerns they are wonderful. How can Parker, who writes city detective stores, write such good westerns? I just have to get more information about him.

I'm re-reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I'm finding that even after so many re-reads I still don't want to put it down.

I also started on Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea in audio. Her funny, snarky humor is great, and probably made even better because it is read by the author. Some of her childhood stories remind me of Me Talk Pretty One Day.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 12:07pm.

Shadows and Light is great, just the kind of read I was looking forward after pillars. Anne Bishop is a terrific writer I'm passing myself with her books so that I always have a next one to read :)

... ah and you know who, please go elsewhere for your rant you're just annoying. Don't try and send another threatening message I already blocked you.

#205-I'm 85 pages into Duma Key and enjoying it so far- it looks like it'll be a quick read-what others are on your King list?

Finished Before They Are Hanged and started Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie. I've really enjoyed the first two books in the First Law trilogy. I rather like the subtle change of voice when the POV changes between the chapters.

#202-I will definitely let you know. I'm only about two stories in so far, but they are so well written.

I just picked up The Last Kashmiri Rose, by Barbara Cleverly, the first in a series I hope I'm going to like.

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> 213

I am reading the Joe Sandilands series and enjoy them. They are light but fun, and the settings are interesting.

wow what gives with ivekilledpeople? is it the shock factor? ugh!

Not sure.. but I think The Midwife's Tale is next...

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 3:37pm.

Sorry to the fans of Philip Roth but I have given up on The Plot Against America for now... I have renewed the book and will read later when I don't feel much pressure. For some reason I have a load of books all due at the same time so I'm trying to get through them all. I will return to The Plot Against America next month.

On that note last night I read An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. A witty YA book which was fun to read. Today I am finishing up Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz.

I'm trying to get through "LaceMakers of Glenmara". It is just not moving fast enough for me, and I'm losing interest fast. I just finished "Sarah's Key". It is our August club selection...and it was ok, despite horrific situation for the Jewish children in France at the time. Character development was predicitable and left alot to be desired. Good lesson, however, on Jews in Paris.

Sarah's Key was difficult, I agree :) but good...

For the record: I've just suspended ivekilledpeople's account, based on messages on this and other threads.

Thank you, Abby. It's a relief.

I second Jennie - massive relief! Now we can get back to being our happy bookish selves again... :-)

* sigh of relief*

thank you :)

Thank you, Abby.

A big thank-you from me too, Abby.

#206 - I picked up The Rosetti Letter the other day but wasn't sure about it - please let me know if you think it's worth a read.

I'm reading 2 right now - Appetite for Life - A Biography of Julia Child and Hungry Woman in Paris.

#227 I'm only about three pages into it at the moment. I'll keep you posted.

#177 & #178 Hasn't it always been true that some love a book that others hate? Some hate Lolita, one of the greatest works of literature (to me) ever written. Some love Catcher in the Rye which I find nothing much except for its timing. When it was written it struck a huge chord. Some admire Ernest Hemingway who leaves me cold. Some have no time for Jane Austen who wrote stories of acute observation. And I love The Secret Magdalene enough to consider it one all of my all-time favorite books. I recommend it to everyone who wants more than a beach read. And most thank me. But not all. Our differences makes the world interesting. And great books preserve what is the most interesting of all, our ideas. The Secret Magdalene is full of ideas that I had not thought until I read them in the pages of this book. I treasure that.

Thanks, Abby! That handle alone should have been a dead give away...

Finished Death is A Lonely Business night before last. Now reading a volume of Bradbury short stories, I Sing The Body Electric.

I'm finishing Denton Welch's A Voice through a Cloud

*sigh* of relief
thanks abby its nice to know you are all paying attention.

edit because I forgot to say thanks

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 6:15pm.

#219, Don't let The Plot Against America turn you against Philip Roth -- you might try American Pastoral, which I consider his masterpiece or any of a number of other books if you don't like The Plot Against America (I realize that isn't why you put it down, but stilll . . .).

#222, I echo you all in thanking Abby -- the name alone creeped me out.

Thanks, again Abby!!

I am reading currently The Great Santini by Pat Conroy. So far so good. I just gave up on Julie and Julia around page 100. I just didn't like the characters whinyness. I hear the book is just ok while the movie is pretty good.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 6:20pm.

Still reading Cat in a Topaz Tango and will probably take it with me tomorrow as we go up to my nephew's wedding in Rochester. Maybe I'll take Lord Jim, too just is case, but I hope I am not so idle that reading is the best part of the trip.

I have started and am a little way into House of Leaves. I find that I am reading slowly, even for me, and taking on only short bits at a time, especially for me. I will not be sure that I will finish it until I do (I mean much more than with other books; I am of course constantly dodging meteorites).

There is a story to it, and I think only one story. The story in footnotes tells us what's happening in the main story, and the main story tells us what's happening in the story in footnotes. With footnotes, with the word house in blue, and with a number of other serious factors, I think the work is much more to be taken as a performance than many long works of fiction. I think attending to that performance is what is slowing me down.

It is a long performance.

Robert

I've just finished Ripley Under Ground and posted a review on the book's page, as well as in my "75-Books Challenge" thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/68941

Charming Billy by Alice McDermott. But I left it at work yesterday, so I started reading It wasn't all dancing by Mary Ward Brown. I went to her reading on Wednesday. I read Fanning the Spark a few months ago, so I couldn't wait to go to her reading. I bough It wasn't all dancing so I would have something for her to sign for me. She's wonderful. I've read about 3 of the stories. Tonight I'll have to choose between McDermott and Brown. I'm close to finishing Charming Billy which is wonderul, the first time I've read McDermott, so I guess I'll finish it then go back to dancing.

#219, Don't let The Plot Against America turn you against Philip Roth -- you might try American Pastoral, which I consider his masterpiece or any of a number of other books if you don't like The Plot Against America (I realize that isn't why you put it down, but stilll . . .).

Seconded.

I finished David Copperfield today after over two months of reading (happy dance!). I really enjoyed it, and the characters - the Micawbers, Uriah Heep, Aunt Betsey Trotwood - were fabulous, but it was one looooong book!

Now I'm reading Rebecca and listening to Born to Run, and contemplating starting another book...perhaps Labor Day, but I'm not sure yet.

Right now I'm reading Jingo by Terry Pratchett. My husband loves his books and finally talking me into reading some of them.

Message edited by its author, Aug 13, 2009, 9:51pm.

>229: Thanks, ShaggyBag, for your post and recommendation for The Secret Magdalene. I have read so many pro and con opinions about it, I'm going to have to read it for myself. I've often thought about what makes certain books and authors so appealing to different readers. That's one of the main attractions of LT to me. I never tire of reading about books and the comments from people who love them.

Right now I'm reading Dangerous Liaisons for a group read and will be starting When We Were Romans after that.

Finishing The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan...Haven't read a book that has creeped me out in a long time, reminds me a little of Salem's Lot... how the vampires were almost feral like, not pretty and sweet talking

Next up is Ghost Story by Peter Straub...

I just finished Foundation by Isaac Asimov, then I started The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett.

Message 240 Bell 7: I promise that you will not be sorry if you read Labor Day. It reminded me a little bit of Stand By Me just because it is narrated as the speaker's 13-year-old self. The ending will make you think you were hit by a heavy object and thrown for a loop...like in bumper cars.

I'm currently reading Secret Story by Ramsey Campbell as well as The Coyote Road: Trickster Tales edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling.

I stayed up all night reading When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. It's wonderful -- an amazing book.
I want to spend some time rereading parts of it today. Tonight I'll begin Devotion by Howard Norman.

For the record, I reported ivekilledpeople's activities to Abby & Tim last Friday. However, at that point, they felt that he hadn't crossed the line to have his membership revoked. I agreed with their thoughtful decision, but I thought he would continue to cause problems, which of course he did. I am very happy to see him gone!

I finally finished The Secret of Lost Things by Sheridan Hay. It was for a RL book group. The writing was lovely, but the story and the characters were poor, and bland.

I am now reading Tsotsi by Athol Fugard. It is set in South Africa during apartheid and follows a nameless killer in a Johannesburg township. It is also for a RL book group.

Peter Brown's "Augustine of Hippo" below is where I have posted review and reading selections I have made:

http://payingattentiontothesky.com/2009/...

the site is where I place poems, article summaries, reading selections, my own stuff and links to stuff I like. I am Catholic so a strong religious orientation.

jayd

I finished Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and have decided not to continue with the series. My problem was that I couldn't separate it from the television series. Still enjoyed it but ...

Have decided to continue with the re-reads and I am just about to start The Dark is Rising Sequence the omnibus version of Susan Cooper's series.

I'm currently reading The Hour I First Believed, by Wally Lamb. Hopefully I'll be able to finish it up this weekend.

I wanted to add my thanks to Abby. The guy struck me as a fifteen year-old who had more time than friends...
I've started Marilyn and Me by Susan Strasberg while still reading We Have Always Lived In The Castle.

Another kudo to Abby. Glad all is back to normal.

I finished Dragons of Autumn Twilight. It's always nice to have an easy fun read.

I'm going to read through my copy of America: The Book now.

I'm reading Knowledge of Angels by Jill Paton Walsh. It's very good.

#227 I was not grabbed by The Rossetti Letter but I see it got pretty good reviews here. Maybe I was just in a bad mood . . .

I finished Worst Nightmares by Shane Briant. If you are looking for a fun and scary ride, this might be the horror thriller for you! I'm on the home stretch with The Pillars of the Earth for the group read.

>245 scarpettajunkie, very cool, I look forward to reading it. I've decided to focus on Rebecca first - I'm about halfway through and enjoying the evocative mood of the book.

New boardie just saying hi!

I am reading How to Live With a Huge Penis by Richard Jacobs. So far it has been a God send.

Beginng new thread for the week of August 15, 2009.

See new thread for this topic ... http://www.librarything.com/topic/70995

Happy trails,

WH

Uh Oh again

i don't have time for this..again...see y'all later...

damfino, just . . . start! It is painful, laborious, exhausting at first. But once you get into the cadence of the sentences, learning to remember the subject-verb link (just look back from time to time!) you will, I am confident, find yourself widening your eyes frequently and saying, whether to yourself or to the person nearest you within earshot, "OMG!" or "incredible!" or something similar which fits your personality and age. (Me, I kept saying "whoa!" and "unbelievable!") Then, little by little, let go of the idea of quickly "getting through" the book, suspend the rest of your reading list for . . . a while, and allow yourself to read 10-15-or 20 pages (only) in a day. If you are disposed to sip and savor your literature, like I am (it's not the only way to be, of course) you will LOVE reading Proust. Let me know! JB

richardderus-- thanks for the boost towards Genji. I've been on the verge of reading it for a year now. I must know, however, before I take your advice, of other documents you consider "foundation." Do tell! JB

bookgirl, reading heavy stuff is a muscle just like anything else. Start slowly and build up. I'd be happy to help you get going on that if you'll give me an idea of what you think is "light and fluffy" and what you'd like to read but consider "heavy." I will tell you that reading Proust seems to have changed me for the better. JB

#242 It always amazes me when people don't like something I LOVE (like The Secret Magdalene, a book of tremendous beauty in so many ways) or when they LOVE something really bad (so much I won't even bother listing). In the case of The Secret Magdalene it seems I am not alone. But in the case of so many others...The Time Traveler's Wife for instance, I am the odd one out. I like to think I am tolerant and that I think: each to her own taste, but I am still amazed. And then I recall that most books come for a moment and then are quickly forgotten. But others keep quietly being read.

I am almost done reading Sworn To Silence by Linda Castillo. This is a LTER. I love it so much I temporarily stopped reading Pride and Prejudice and my other murder thriller by Hatchette publishers. I also just finished reading The Moon Looked Down by Dorothy Garlock.