Pat (phebj)'s Reading Life

Hi, Everyone. Thanks for visiting my thread. If you’re interested in what I’ve read recently, the link to my last thread of 2010 is here. It has a list of every book I read last year.

I’m mainly a literary fiction reader but also like non-fiction books. In 2011, I’m planning on continuing to explore poetry, graphic novels, mysteries and children’s/YA books--all new to me last year and discovered because of LT. I’m also planning to read more classics and biographies/memoirs, some literary correspondence, non-fiction books on American history and the American West, and a lot of Wallace Stegner (I’m taking a course on his writing in February).

I'm currently reading:

101 Great American Poems (that Linda was kind enough to pass on)
The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner
A Victorian Gentlewoman in the Far West: The Reminences of Mary Hallock Foote
Qigong Illustrated by Christina J. Barea (ER)

And for my Stegner course (2/4 thru 3/4):

Angle of Repose
Crossing to Safety

Read in January (7)

1. Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli (graphic novel)
2. So Much for That by Lionel Shriver
3. The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney
4. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (graphic novel)
5. A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
6. 31 Hours by Masha Hamilton
7. The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

Read in February (2)

8. Love and Summer by William Trevor
9. Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman

I love Stegner and am jealous of your taking a course...with him??? is it? Cool.

I'll star your thread and follow along and look forward to reading about your reading.

Hi Karen! Thanks for stopping by. I'm not taking the course with Stegner (unfortunately). It's taught by a professor at Boise State University. I plan to be posting on what happens in the course because it helps me remember what I learn, so that should start February 4th.

Welcome back!

Thanks, Jim!

Well, so much for that fantasy. But I know we will enjoy what you post and maybe even pick up an idea or two. Carry on...

Pat, I hope you enjoy your read of Tenderness of Wolves. perfect winter book-- on my blog I posted this video of the author discussing her work:http://books.simonandschuster.com/Tenderness-of-Wolves/Stef-Penney/9781416571308

I saw on your end of the year thread that you didn't like Gate at the Stairs. I wonder why. I seem to be the only one around here that was greatly moved by it.

Hi Pat!

Gotcha starred for 2011!

I'm here for the Stegner class (rushes in to sit down). Am I early?

#9 Jenny, I did like, even love, parts of A Gate at the Stairs but I thought Tassie often went off on rambles about things that went on for too long and detracted from the story.

There were also things that didn't make sense to me but I'm afraid if I say specifically what they were it would be too much of a spoiler for other people who might want to read the book (the two main things were Tassie's relationship with her brother didn't seem to be that close in the beginning of the book so her actions at the end didn't make sense to me and I didn't understand why the storyline about Mary Emma just stopped at a certain point). I guess I would say I liked the book "with certain reservations." I would definitely read more of Moore's writing but will probably try her short stories next.

Thanks for that link to Stef Penney talking about The Tenderness of Wolves. I'll have to check it out.

Hi Claudia and Jenn! Happy New Year!

Pat, Thanks for the link to Lucy's Hepzibah! How did I miss that? Lucy needs to be discovered!

Claudia, I totally agree. I was blown away by her writing.

Hey, Pat! Just taking my seat for the Stegner course. I am on the front row - you know, the geek with her glasses taped together :)

I've never heard of Stegner, so I better take a seat up the back (as usual).

Hi Pat! Happy New Year! I am really looking forward to the Stegner course, and the rest of your reads/news as well!

Hi Pat. Happy New Year to you!

I may be the only one here who isn't all that fond of Stegner. I know that he's hugely well thought of, lots of academic awards and all of that. But I have to be honest and say that I wouldn't go out of my way to read anything more by him. I'll probably have my eyebrows singed here at LT for saying that, because everyone else here seems to loooove him. That's fine--different strokes. I just somehow felt the need to "come clean" about how I feel about him, beings as how this is a New Year and all.

(Don't you love that "beings as how" construct? I just read that in my mother's diary, the one she kept when she was a high schooler in Kansas in the 1940s. I never, ever heard her actually say that though.)

I love your beginning set-up! Happy New Year.

Pat, I really want to know: What course in Stegner? Are you doing continuing ed, or seeking a new degree? Is it a formal (what I call face-to-face classes, it's an old prejudice) course, an online one...?

I am very seriously interested in getting an MFA, but am tied to my house, so that's why I have more questions than Margaret Mead in Samoa.

#21 Richard, the Stegner course is taught at an organization called The Osher Institute that's associated with BSU. Essentially it's their extended studies arm geared towards people 50 or older. All the courses are noncredit but they're generally taught by BSU professors or the equivalent. I took a Hemingway course there in the Fall taught by a Hemingway scholar that was one of the best courses I've ever taken in my life believe it or not. My theory is these professors have figured out the best students are older ones in terms of the interest and participation level. Anyway, I'm not seeking any new degree, I just like learning new stuff if it's well taught.

I know people though that have done their degrees online and that seems like more of a viable thing than I thought it would be. One women I was talking to said she loved it because of the flexibility of when she had to be online and the fact that they give you audio discs so, if you want to, you can also listen to the class materials in a car or commuting on a train. They also seem to demand a certain level of participation and interaction on the computer with the teacher and other students in a way that you could probably avoid in a real life class setting. For ex, you have to answer a certain amount of questions about each class online and then discuss certain topics with a small group of other students. I know I daydreamed my way through alot of classes in my life and it didn't seem like that would work with these online courses. Oh, and the other thing was, they periodically had to show up in person to talk with RL people about how they were doing.

If I were you, I'd definitely check out getting your MFA online. It seems like you'd take to it like a duck to water. Aren't you near Adelphi?

Btw, I was thrilled to see you posting on my thread. :)

#19 Becky, that's interesting that you don't like Stegner that much. For me, so much depends on the first book I read of an author's and the circumstances I read it under.

My first Stegner was Crossing to Safety and I loved that book. I then read Angle of Repose and wasn't as thrilled. If the order had been reversed I may not have read anything else by him.

With Where the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs, I probably would have put that book down somewhere in the middle section if not for the LT group read. But that GR was a big part of my experience reading that book and I ended up loving it.

For me, being relatively new to living in the West, his books have helped me develop a better appreciation for living out here and what the issues are. For ex, before I read him I never gave much thought to how much development the land could support and just how beautiful it was. The whole discussion in Where the Bluebird Sings about Easterners not being able to "see" the western landscape really struck home with me.

Pat,
Your course sounds so great! I went more towards science in college and now feel that I have missed out on so much in literature. I have to snoop around and see if there's something like that available in my area. I have taken several courses on line and did well with them so if there is something on line I could go there. I work in a h.s. library and we have some Stegner. I have never read this author but you have given me an urge to try. Good luck with your course.

>23 phebj:. Good points, Pat. My favorite line from Stegner is where he makes the point that to understand the West, for those coming from the chlorophyll-infused East, "You have to get over the color green." That is spot on! There are certain things that I like about Stegner. He's certainly an excellent writer. And I agree with you, Crossing to Safety is a great book. I grew up in Colorado, so I understand his point of view about a lot of it. I guess--well, in the past this sort of thing has gotten me into trouble on LT, but I know I can say this to you--I don't appreciate his politics. I guess that's mainly what it is. For newbies to the western scene who want to understand what the heck it's all about, I think he's a must-read.

Wow, that's an excellent line from Stegner! Another author whose works I want to discover this year...

Wow I have to jump in here on the Stegner conversation. I fell in love with his writing in the late 80's-early 90's and read The Spectator Bird,Crossing to Safety, Big Rock Candy Mountain and Angle of Repose. Loved them all but Angle of Repose was my favorite which is why I'm starting to reread Stegner with that title later this year. I'm looking forward to your class Pat.

#24 Thanks, mamzel. I hope you end up liking Stegner.

#25 I don't have any problem with (what I know of) Stegner's politics but I was a bit taken aback when we were doing the GR of When the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs about his comments that the population of the West should be limited. He wrote that almost 20 years ago and I moved to Idaho in 2007 and live in a new housing development on what used to be farm land. I figured that was just the sort of thing he would hate.

#26 Hi Suzanne. Hope you end up liking Stegner too.

#27 Hi Bonnie. I'm just about to start a re-read of Angle of Repose. I'm curious what I'll think of it the second time. The first time it seemed incredibly slow going.

Book No. 1 Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli (graphic novel)

Highly recommended--4 ½ stars

This is my third graphic novel and I have to say I’m very impressed with this method of storytelling. It's the story of the mid-life crisis of Asterios Polyp, an arrogant architect who’s designs have never been built. When his apartment is struck by lightning and burns on his 50th birthday, he sets out to construct a new life for himself. What’s interesting is how Mazzucchelli uses the art to enhance the story. Each character has a distinctive font they speak in and the colors change as the characters' emotions change. The story is told partly in flash backs and dreams and at times I wasn’t really sure what was going on. Because it’s a graphic novel, it’s a fast read (even at 344 pages) and it wasn’t until after I finished it that some of the aspects of the plot became clear to me. What impresses me the most about the graphic novels I’ve read is how surprisingly powerful and thought provoking they are. This one in particular would make a great choice for a book club because there is so much going on and I'm going to re-read it because I know I missed things. Thanks to Mark and Stasia for recommending it.

For those on the fence about trying graphic novels, I’d suggest taking one out of the library. They are very fast reads and I’m so glad I tried them. Besides Asterios Polyp, I also loved The Arrival by Shaun Tan. The next one I’m going to read is The Invention of Hugo Cabret which at least 10 LTers raved about.

Only just found you and you've already completed a book! Asterios Polyp was already on the wishlist but I've added your recommendation to Stasia's.

I read The Invention of Hugo Cabret last year and really enjoyed it. It was quite what I was expecting from a graphic novel because it's not solely told in picture format but it was really good. Just don't be alarmed by its size!

Heather, I saw that The Invention of Hugo Cabret was one of your favorite reads for 2010. I've already got it home from the library so I know how big it is but I now realize how fast you can get through graphic novels so I'm no longer intimidated. Thanks for stopping by.

I read Hugo Cabret in two sittings -- I was so entranced, then I had to go back and read it again. Stunning.

Hit by your first Book Bullet, which is only fair since I'm a contributor to your checking out Hugo Cabret. Asterios will be in my hands shortly!

Pat, I'm looking forward to following your Stegner course, too. I never heard of him until last year. I might try to read Angle of Repose or I might just follow along without reading. Your other planned reads look good, too!

Pat

Happy New Year. I'm so glad to star your thread. This group just would not be the same without you.

I'm anxiously awaiting your Stenger class. I enjoy learning vicariously through you.

Pat - Add me to the list of people who are excited about your Stegner class. I'm starting the year by reading several books by people associated with the Iowa Writers' Workshop (since I live near Iowa City), and Stegner was an early graduate of the Workshop back in the 1930s. Angle of Repose is the only Stegner book on my shelf, so I think I'll start there, but will be interested to see what you read in your class.

Me too! Me too!! I first read Stegner last year and did love Crossing to Safety. I'm a bit bemused because I held a Stegner in one hand and a Trevor in the other to see which I'd read first, and there you have Trevor listed for January. I hope to get to him later in the year.

I'm also quite interested in your Stegner class. I've only read Angle of Repose but really loved it -- it was one of my top 5 in 2009. I should read more ...

Pat- You are a sneaky one! I just noticed you started your new thread! Congrats!
Great review of Asterios Polyp! You are quickly becoming one of my favorite reviewers!
Hugo Cabret! Hugo Cabret!

And here you are, Pat ... finding all my friends in this group is starting to resemble a search for the proverbial needle in the haystack. Starred you so I don't lose you.

love your review, Pat. can't quite bring myself to read a graphic novel (yet)-- a bit too much like what I read for my day job-- lol

#29: I am glad you liked that one, Pat!

Good morning, Pat. I've found your new thread and have nothing much to add other than I hope you're enjoying The Tenderness of Wolves and I also plan on enjoying your Stegner course. Happy new year!

Great review of Asterios Polyp, Pat!

Hi Pat! I'm a little late, but here I am! :)

I've got my pencils sharpened and notebook ready for the Stegner course. Maybe you should charge us a lurking surcharge to help with your tuition!

Hey Pat, I'm here.

I am glad you enjoyed The Birds of East Africa. I agree, it's a good one to end the year on.

I am over half-way through Crossing to Safety and really like it. Thank you for introducing me to Wallace Stegner!

#46: Maybe you should charge us a lurking surcharge to help with your tuition!

Shh, Donna! Do not give her any ideas! :)

Yikes, this is my first visit since the new year began. Book #1 looks like a good beginning. I still have read any graphic novels as yet, but I've requested a Terry Prachett form the library and looks like I'll be requesting Asterios Polyp as well.

Oh no, I'm not lurking, I just happen to be passing through....

I thought it might be a good idea to actually post something in my own thread. I've been galavanting around checking out all the new 2011 threads and shamelessly neglecting my own.

I've got 4 books going at the moment and unfortunately am not totally into any of them. Sometimes I think reading too many books at the same time is not a good thing but you guys give me so many good recommendations, I'm in a constant state of wanting to get on to the next book.

Anyway, my two main reads right now are The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney and So Much for That by Lionel Shriver.

Tenderness of Wolves is good but a little slow. Each chapter is about a different main character's (I think there are 4) take on a murder of a French trapper in the northern territory in Canada in 1867. Most the stories are told in the past tense but one is told in the present tense and it's a little disorienting. Overall, though I think I will like this book.

As long as the books are sufficiently different, I find it pleasant to have different books for different moods. I used to read this way, then for years I pared down to one book at a time. Last year when I started in here, it took a little while but I more or less happily returned to reading several books at once. In the end I think I read more..... but you are right that it isn't so great when you aren't that interested or absorbed in any of the books you are reading. I try to have at least one 'easy' read going -- although it is true that I maybe end up reading more of those than I should.....

continuing . . .

I had very high hopes for So Much for That because I've read two previous books of Lionel Shriver's that I loved (We Need to Talk About Kevin and The Post Birthday World). So Much for That is about the healthcare crisis in the US and it's become a very tough read. It focuses on two families, one where the wife is just diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and the other where the 16 year old daughter was born with a disorder called familial dysautonomia (FD). I've never heard of FD before but the descriptions of it are heartbreaking.

I like Shriver's writing but in this book she uses the characters to rant about the healthcare system a little too often and for a little too long and it's been annoying me because it's pulling me out of the characters' lives. I'll finish this one but at the moment I'm disappointed in it.

When I'm not reading LT posts, I'm also trying to read a graphic novel from the library--The Invention of Hugo Cabret and a book of poems that Linda passed on to me--101 Great American Poems. Both of these are very good and I'm looking forward to finishing them.

#52 Hi Lucy. We must have cross-posted. I agree with you about having some easy reads going if I'm reading a number of books at the same time and I guess my current graphic novel and book of poems would fall into that category.

Hi Pat- I'm about 220 pages into Tenderness. It definitely takes it's time, maybe a little slow but I do like the characters and find myself moving right along.
I seem to be happy with one regular book going, one audiobook and one graphic. It's a perfect system for me.
I'm glad you are enjoying Hugo Cabret. It's amazing isn't it?

Hi Pat, hmmm I have great hopes for So Much for That so I hope it picks up for you. I think you'll end up liking The Tenderness of Wolves at least I did.

Hi Pat! I (selfishly) hope that you finish So Much for That; I'm wondering if it's a book that I should read, even though it seems to be flawed and a bit unpleasant.

I liked The Tenderness of Wolves, but it took a little to get in to. Hopefully after she's done with intros it will get better for you.

I ended up taking Tenderness of wolves back to the library because it just wasn't clicking for me. The charcters were interesting but it didn't hold my attention.

Glad to know it's not just me having some trouble getting into The Tenderness of Wolves. It's a slightly strange experience because I can't put my finger on why it's not grabbing me.

What did end up grabbing me was So Much for That. I have one more chapter to go and will finish it tonight. It is an incredibly tough book though in terms of the subject matter--serious illness and the US healthcare system. The ranting stopped for the most part (or at least stopped bothering me so much) after the first 200 pages (it's 433 pages long) and except for a slightly ridiculous plot line about botched plastic surgery, I'm "liking" it.

Shriver isn't shy about discussing some very sensitive topics such as what the value of a life is in monetary terms, how people fight dying much harder than you would think, and how humiliating some ailments are.

I'll have to think about how I'm going to rate it because it's better than I first thought it was but it's definitely a book I'd recommend taking out of the library if you think you're interested in it. I could easily see how someone would decide it was too grim to finish.

#60: Well, my local library does not have So Much for That, so I will not be reading that one any time soon. I will be interested in seeing what you think of it when you are done with it though, Pat.

Pat- I hope you hang in there and finish Tenderness. I think it does end in a satisfying way. I think the problem is, at least for me, is there were to many characters and the narrative kept losing it's rhythm.
Sorry you won't be able to tag along for Cloud Atlas. Sad face.

I'm only quiet because I haven't read any of these books -- but I'm reading with interest.

I'm watching the comments about The Tenderness of Wolves and trying to make up my mind whether to Wish List it. The story sounds good...but there are so many people commenting about losing the threads as they tried to read it. I don't usually mind multiple-POV books, so maybe I'll just go ahead.

Another vote for hanging in there with The Tenderness of Wolves. I thought it was a very enjoyable read!

Me too - I really liked The Tenderness of Wolves. I think it's worth finishing Pat, unless you're really hating it. Keeping track of the characters wasn't too bad. I only had a little trouble with the Indian families toward the end. I thought it ended so that there could be a sequel. Did anyone else think so?

I'm glad So Much for That turned around for you Pat. I had no trouble getting into and really liking The Tenderness of Wolves so I hope it turns around for you too.

I'm just going to be on LT sporadically for the next couple of days. We're out at our favorite place, Cannon Beach OR, but the internet connnection at the place we're staying is flaky at best.

We're just about to head out to The Cannon Beach Book Company to shop for books. Now to see how long my husband can hold out before he gets bored browsing in a bookstore ("Not long!" he says as he looks over my shoulder).

I love Cannon Beach, especially at this time of year. I envy you. Have a relaxing time!

Have fun! We'll all be here chattering away until you get back!

Hi, Pat. Just checking in and being envious of a book store visit. I'll be excited to see what you find!

Pat- Have a great time! Enjoy!

Wishing you great weather while you're out there, Pat. Don't forget to post your haul of books from the CB Book Co. when you get a chance ... I live vicariously through other people's book purchases. :-)

Hopefully, I won't lose my internet connection.

My husband lasted for 40 minutes and I got 4 books at The Cannon Beach Book Company:

Gone to New York: Adventures in the City by Ian Frazier--a collection of essays written by a New Yorker writer. His name is fresh in my mind because of Rebecca's recent reviews of two of his non-fiction books--Travels in Siberia and Great Plains.

Reappraisals: Reflections on the Forgotten Twentieth Century by Tony Judt. I absolutely loved The Memory Chalet by Judt so this one jumped into my arms. This is also a collection of essays about how we've forgotten our recent history and "shows how much of our history has been sacrificed in the triumph of myth-making over understanding and denial over memory."

Heliopolis by James Scadamore. A novel nominated for the Man Booker Prize in 2009 that takes place in Brazil, is "darkly humorous," and "juxtaposes the sordid, mundane existence of those on the street with the bizarre, almost mythic lives of the super-rich."

Italian Shoes by Henning Mankell is a novel about the redemption of a former surgeon who mistakenly amputated the wrong arm of one of his patients.

Deborah, I have to agree with you--this is a great time of year to be in Cannon Beach. It's actually sunny today and the beach and town are almost empty. Although, last night when we came out of dinner, it was snowing!

I can't imagine what it must be like to live in a town that swings so wildly from being empty in the winter to being swamped with tourists in the summer.

Nice haul Pat; your hubby lasted about as long as mine would;-)

Hi Pat! I am so jealous you're on the OR coast! Our favorite is Rockaway. Have fun!

Nice haul. Although I couldn't help having a moment of what the Monty Pythoners would have done with the Mankell.

Enjoy!

Oh! I love, love, love Cannon Beach and I think the winter is a great time to be at the ocean. I am so envious.

I'm trying to talk my husband into a trip to Cannon Beach sometime in February. So far no luck. (In addition to the book store there, I always have to visit the quilt store.)

#78 OK, now I have to know what the Monty Pythoners would have done with the Mankell! Sorry to say I haven't seen too much of Monty Python.

This morning we spent some time in Seaside, the next town up the coast from Cannon Beach. We haven't been there in a while since it's usually packed with people but at this time of year it's virtually deserted.

My husband found an independent bookstore there from his searchings on the internet and was willing to check it out. It's called Beach Books and is a wonderful little store. The owner and her employee were in their 50s/early 60s and the owner opened it 5 years ago. Her employee said she was a customer first and then the owner hired her. Sounded like heaven to me (working in an independent bookstore on the beach).

One of the tables was full of books by authors that are currently doing readings of their books in Seaside at a local hotel. I picked up a book called Indian Creek Chronicles by Pete Fromm that won the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Book of the Year. I'm not sure what year. It was first published in 1993 and then republished in 2003. It's non-fiction about the seven months Fromm spent alone in a tent in Idaho during the winter being a contemporary mountain man and is described as a "modern-day Walden."

Besides Fromm reading from his work last Sunday, the program includes Bonnie Jo Campbell who will be there tomorrow night. Unfortunately, we head back home tomorrow or I'd be there.

This has been a goof off vacation but I've been loving it. I've made real progress with The Tenderness of Wolves and am totally into it now and will be sad to see it end. I've got about 50 pages to go and it's supposed to be a dark and stormy night--perfect for finishing up a murder mystery.

What a great haul! And what a great husband!! Enjoy!!

Sounds like a lovely vacation. Too bad about missing Bonnie Jo Campbell. That would have been fantastic.

#83 I agree; especially about the husband! :)

Pat- Sounds like you are having a great time! I loved American Salvage!

Goof off vacations are the best, Pat. ...and I love your book haul. They all sound interesting, especially Italian Shoes. Can't wait for your reviews.... no pressure. ;-)

>78 sibylline:: couldn't help having a moment of what the Monty Pythoners would have done with the Mankell.
Good one Lucy!

Hey, Deborah, I'll go to Cannon Beach and Seaside with you in February! :-)

Shouldn't all vacations be goof off ones, with beaches, or at least with bookstores?

It won't sound funny at all Pat, but they would have done something terribly tasteless involving lots of fake blood and bandages and denial of wrong-doing and stupid suggestions to the fellow to stop his whining and get on, look at the bright side, at least we didn't cut of your..... You get the idea? And somehow in those accents and with their body language and 'tude you'd be laughing.

You are just going to miss Bonnie Jo Campbell?? Total bummer! She has a new book coming out, BTW:)

>82 phebj:: "Goof Off" vacations are my favorite kind, too! I have fond memories of Seaside from an off-season trip quite a few years ago. I still wear the t-shirt I bought there on my (summer) walks. It looks like you've found some interesting bookstores to visit. It sounds like your husband doesn't mind the book excursions too much if he's searching them out for you. ;-)

Hi Pat!
Sounds like a great vacation - just what I need after Disney!
Hope you are well rested when you get back. You've got some reading to do!

:)

Book No. 2 So Much for That by Lionel Shriver--3 ½ stars

This was a tough book to read because of the subject matter--serious illness and the frustrations of dealing with the US health care industry--and that also makes it a difficult book to evaluate. I went from liking it to disliking it and finally to being totally engrossed in it.

The main characters are two friends and co-workers, Sheperd and Jackson. Even though they both hate their boss, they’re terrified of losing their jobs because they need their health insurance to take care of family members who are seriously ill. Shep’s wife has a rare form of cancer and Jackson’s daughter has a rare genetic disorder. If that isn’t enough heartache, Shep also ends up having to take care of his aging father and Jackson has to deal with the results of a botched plastic surgery. Richard often talks about depressing books as “four hankies and a pistol” reads. This one could easily be described as “four pistols and a hankie.”

I stuck with it because I like Lionel Shriver so much as a writer and have loved two of her previous books (We Need to Talk About Kevin and The Post Birthday World). This one started out well but then, from about pages 75-175, the character of Jackson spent an inordinate amount of time raving about health care, taxes, education and just generally about being a victim. He sees everything in terms of “the takers vs the taken” and Shriver has him go on ranting for pages at a time. When this finally tapered off, I got back into the story and the book became a page turner. Spoiler Alert--> Despite all the depressing aspects of the book, it actually ends pretty well so there is a payoff for sticking with it.

If you could ever convince a book group to read this, it would make for a great discussion. Two of the things that really made an impression on me were (1) the discussion of the military type of language doctors use with patients undergoing chemotherapy (being a trouper, the battle against cancer) which has the unintended consequence of making the patient feel like a failure if the treatments don’t work or they want to give up, and (2) how few family members or friends follow through on their offers to help when someone is seriously ill. The other big elephant in the room is the whole discussion of just what a human life is worth.

I could go on about all the issues this book raises but I’ll stop. If you think you’re interested in reading this, I’d take it out of the library because unless you have a stomach for depressing books, it may not be something you can finish. Despite my reservations about the book (the subject matter and the character of Jackson, in particular), I am glad I read it.

so glad to hear you liked the Shriver novel, Pat. The ending was so powerful I remember. I just finished a good book-- The Lonely Polygamist-- that I'd recommend. :o)

I'm glad you liked The Lonely Polygamist. I've heard good things about it. I'm heading over to your thread to read your commments. :)

Pat- Good Review! Good warning! I have both We Need To Talk & The Post Birthday World in the stacks, so I'll be getting to those first.

Good idea, Mark. I certainly wouldn't recommend So Much for That as the first book to read by Lionel Shriver.

Pat -- that was a great review, a great balance of what was in the book, and your own reaction. I admire you for sticking with it too, I don't know if I would or could.

I loved We Need to Talk About Kevin and I have The Post Birthday World and now with your excellent review of So Much for That I can see another Lionel Shriver in my near future.

Your husband is a saint with your bookstore shopping compared to mine. He does not even last 15 minutes, let alone 40!

As long as the store has a strong sf section my hubby is fine, in fact, I'm sometimes done before he is........

Great review Pat, but like Lucy, I'm not sure it's a book I'd want to read. I saw on Mark's thread that you'd also finished The Tenderness of Wolves - well done for sticking with it! Hope you get to some easier reads soon.

Stasia, I have to honest about my husband. Normally, he would never spend more than 15 to 30 minutes in a bookstore but Cannon Beach was pretty much closed down last Monday and there was no where else to go. I do have to give him credit for finding the bookstore in Seaside though. I think he's figured out that bookstores=happy wife!

Book No. 3 The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney--3 1/2 stars

I ended up liking this book, even loving it at times, but it didn't really grab me until about p. 130 and the ending was a little bit of a let down because some plot lines weren't wrapped up.

It's a murder mystery set in the northern territory of Canada in 1867 and the reason it took so long to get into was there were too many different characters telling their stories (at least 7 of them). I liked the characters--native Indians, a French trapper, various current and former employees of the Hudson Bay Trading Company, and a woman and her son--one of whom is the murder victim and the rest of whom are trying to find the murderer and knowing it's probably one of them.

They all end up traveling on foot through the snow and ice in the winter on their separate searches and probably my favorite part of the book was this setting. Penney does a great job describing the landscape and it's affect on people--some of whom go mad dealing with the isolation.

Penney is a screenwriter and this is her first novel (it was the Costa Award Book of the Year in 2006). In the author interview at the end of the book she talks about writing it like a film script--with many short chapters and many points of view. For me, it didn't completely work but I think she's a great writer and I will definitely be on the lookout for more of her books (and her films).

Pat- Good review! I think we felt about the same on this one! I'd like to see what she does next, or has she? Have a good weekend!

Great review Pat. I am glad you ended up liking the book. I am wondering if some of the plot lines were left unresolved because there is going to be a sequel? What do you think?

Jenn, the other thing in the author interview was that Penney said the character of Mrs. Ross was in a prequel of sorts--her first screenplay which dealt with Mrs. Ross and her husband, Angus, in Scotland up until they emigrated to Canada. I looked online, and found another interview with Penney where she said the following in response to a question about what she'll be doing in the future:

I'm working on two screenplays at the moment -- one, "Nova Scotia," the aforementioned story of Mrs. Ross in Scotland, is still "live" and being cast at the moment. The other is "Metal Heart," a road movie set in contemporary Lapland, but in summer, so there's no snow in that one. And I'm starting my next book, which I'm reluctant to say too much about at the moment! It also has a mystery -- and a search -- at its core, but in a very different setting to Wolves.

So it doesn't sound like a sequel is in the works but I'd love to see a movie about Mrs. Ross' backstory in the asylum and what her early relationship with Angus was like.

#105: that bookstores=happy wife

My hubby has that figured out too - he just does not want to have to go to the bookstores with me! :)

#106: I still have not started that one yet. I hope to soon though.

#110 Actually, neither of us really wants him to go the bookstores with me (Mike because he'd rather not be there and me because he's always ready to go before I am) but on a day when nothing else is open except some gift shops, it's the least worst option.

Hope you like The Tenderness of Wolves. It really was a good story.

Excellent review of The Tenderness of Wolves Pat. I didn't get the idea that there would be a sequel but I enjoyed the book quite a bit. I loved the atmosphere she created.

Thanks, Bonnie, I enjoyed it too and first heard about it from you so thanks for recommending it.

Hi Pat, I liked The Tenderness of Wolves a bit more than you did, but I do agree with your comments. Have you read The Outlander by Gil Adamson? It's another good one.

#109
Thanks for the info - too bad though.

Pat, The independent bookshop at Seaside sounds like my dream come true. Just a reminder that I'm not too old to make it happen........all I need is a little motivation.

#114 Joanne, thanks for the recommendation of The Outlander. My library has it so I'll check it out.

#115 Jenn, it is too bad because the ending does make you want to know what happens next.

#116 Lynda, I'll be happy to provide any motivation you need. I think it was Darryl who posted a link to an article a couple of months ago about how independent bookstores were actually doing better than the chains because they provided better service.

#116: I will come work for you, Lynda! I would love to work in a book store.

#118 Stasia, You're hired! In my dream shop, I would definately hire a few 75er's. Who else would be so knowledgable about a wide variety of books? Who else would have plates of cookies and hot beverages for the enjoyment of customers? Who else could offer hugs in good times and bad?

#119: All right! I need another job lined up. When are you planning to come to Texas to set up this dream shop?

Oh shoot, Stasia. I was hoping to bring you here to help boost Ohio's declining population. Perhaps, I could have a computer monitor in the shop permanently open to your thread. :)
I'll remain in the artic north til my son's out of school.

#121: I wonder if I could convince my hubby to move up that way. I would not mind it myself :)

Pat, just had to drop in to say hello; I've been seeing you all over LT; can't wait for the Stegner course. He's marvelous!

Oh, and excellent reviews so far. Well done!

Hi Gail. Thanks for stopping by. I see you all over LT, too!

Great review of Tenderness Pat. I second the recommendation of The Outlander .. I think you'll like this one.

Thanks, Caroline. I actually went to Amazon and read the first page of The Outlander and it looked good. I've got it on my library list and hope to get to it soon.

I'm anxious to learn with you. When does the Stenger course begin?

It starts Friday, February 4th Linda. I just started reading The Big Rock Candy Mountain for it and I'm loving it.

Hi Pat -- I'm delurking to say I have been in and out -- I'm not familiar with the books you've been reading of late -- but I am reading with interest as always.

Book No. 4 The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick--4 ½ stars

This is another fantastic graphic novel recommended by at least ten other LTers (and now me). Hugo Cabret is an orphan living in a Paris train station in 1931 desperately trying to feed himself and keep all the clocks in the station on time so no one realizes his uncle, the Timekeeper, has disappeared. He fears that if the authorities find out he’s living alone, they'll put him in an orphanage. When he meets the owner of the toy repair shop in the train station and his goddaughter, his life takes a dramatic and fateful turn.

The book is a combination of text interspersed with charcoal drawings that is similar to watching a silent movie at times; which is perfect because the story is partly a fictionalized account of a real life silent film maker, Georges Melies, famous for his special effects. Besides, Selznick’s drawings, the book includes stills of Melies’ films and some great black and white photographs (especially the one of a train accident at Montparnasse Station). Mark let me know that Martin Scorsese is making Hugo Cabret into a movie, which seems fitting--the story comes full circle.

The following picture is important in the book and is a still from Melies’ most famous film “A Trip to the Moon” made in 1902 about a spaceship that hits the eye of the man in the moon.

Pat- Great review! This book needs more fans! I love the picture!

I'm getting a new project started to get together great recommendations for books by themes. I've called it Books By Themes (BBT) and I'd love to have your suggestions! Here's the link.

Oh! Hugo Cabret! Will be back for your review! :-)

Nice review, Pat! You got me to put it on my wish list. :-)

Hi Pat,
Just ordered Hugo Cabret from Amazon. I needed to add a book to an order for a friend to bring it over $25 for free shipping. hehehe :)
Have wanted this book for awhile now. Can't wait to see it after your review. :)

I am wanting this book too but am not getting it just now...sigh.

Hi Mark, Ilana, Bonnie, Claudia and Karen. Mark was one of the first LTers to recommend Hugo Cabret to me. It's the fourth graphic novel I've read based on his recommendations and they've all been great. I took it out of the library in hardcover and would love to own a copy but was afraid it would be too expensive. Now that you say you've ordered it from Amazon, Claudia, I'm going to have to go take a look. :)

Great review, Pat! I loved Hugo Cabret when I read it a couple of years ago. I thought it was beautifully done and very cinematic. Should be perfect for a movie.

Thanks, Anne. I'm looking forward to the movie. According to an article I read it's supposed to be released in December 2011.

Oh boy, another Hugo Cabret rec (and another excellent review). I know we have it in our school library so once I get back there.....

I loved Hugo Cabret too, after resisting it....

#139 Bonnie, I hope you get a chance to try it. Don't worry about the length--it's just over 500 pages--because you can easily knock out 100 pages in about 20 minutes.

#140 Lucy, I resisted graphic novels for about a year and then took the plunge. Now I need to try an audio book, which I've also been resisting.

Pat, I'm so glad you loved Hugo Cabret! Too bad all of us couldn't meet up to see the movie. It should be great.

Since you're thinking about trying audiobooks, I wanted to recommend the first one I listened to - well, the first one that's still available, at any rate. It was Rococo by Adriana Trigiani, and read by Stephen Hoye. Really enjoyable, fun story. (The first one I truly ever listened to was an abridged version of Sense & Sensibility read by Kate Winslet. It's only available on cassette, unless you live in the UK where you can download it, so it's pretty hard to come by.) I prefer audiobooks that aren't too serious. For that matter that Stephanie Plum series narrated by Laurie King is also very good.

I agree Laura--the movie would be a great excuse for an LT meetup. Thanks for the audio recommendations. It makes sense to try something on the lighter side in the beginning.

Same - I resisted Hugo Cabret, and then my son asked me to read it. I loved it.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret sounds like a good one. I'm new to the graphic novel genre, I've only read Maus and Persepolis, I think Hugo may be the third!

Great review of Hugo Cabret, Pat! Glad to see you enjoyed it.

You have it your school library? Does that mean it's a children's or Y/A book?

It's a 'non-category' book -- in a class of its own, eh? 'For everyone'

I just put a request for Hugo from my library. They have it and consider it a pre-adolescent read which means it's good for both my son and me.

I was very surprised to find that my library has Hugo Cabret too - they don't have a big selection of graphic novels. So I will be checking it out sometime soon.

Lisa, I saw the movie of Persepolis so I haven't wanted to try the graphic novel (on the assumption it's pretty similar). How did you like Maus? It looked a little too dark to me when I looked at in the library. I'm pretty new to graphic novels myself. Besides Hugo Cabret, I've read The Arrival, The Night Bookmobile and Asterios Polyp--all of which I'd recommend.

Bonnie, Hugo Cabret is supposed to be for 9-12 year olds but it seemed ageless to me.

Hi Jenn, Stasia and Lucy. If I remember correctly, you all recommended Hugo Cabret--so Thanks!

Lisa, Bonnie, Lynda and Janet--hope you all enjoy Hugo when you get to it.

I'm just going to jump in here and say Maus and Maus II were wonderful. Stitches was also very good and worked really well as a graphic. I think I'm the only one who didn't care for The Night Bookmobile...oh well. I need to try Hugo.

#152 - A little support for you, Joanne, I didn't like The Night Bookmobile either. I read it when it was serialized in The Guardian newspaper, so maybe it's better when read as a book, but I thought it was just silly, to be honest (how's that for a deep insight!).

Thanks for the other graphic novel recommendations, Joanne. I think you'll love Hugo.

What I ended up "liking" about The Night Bookmobile was the twist at the end. I found it thought provoking and it reminded me of a comment in Alan Bennett's An Uncommon Reader about reading being a selfish activity. I know the time I spend on reading and on LT, for that matter, often borders on the excessive and excludes my husband (who is often in the same room with me and interested in having a conversation) so I need to be careful about that.

Fine, twist my arm, Pat .... I'll add Hugo Cabret to my obese wish list... it sounds too good to pass up.

#106 I think I felt the same about The Tenderness of Wolves Pat. I don't think she's written anything else yet.

#130 Ooh, a Hugo Cabret movie! That does sound good.

I second what Joanne says - I thought Maus was wonderful.

Maus was wonderful! It was required reading for me in college, and I never forgot it. What a compelling way to tell a story.

Hi Pat!

The artistry of Brian Selznick is incredible.

I also enjoyed Hugo Cabret.

I hope my library has a copy of Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner. Since you will be discussing it in your class, I hope to read it soon so that I can follow what you are learning.

Hugo Cabret update. I picked up Hugo from the library on Friday, brought it home with the intention of reading it sometime during the weekend and began glancing through the pages, read the first paragraph and like a fish in trouble I was completely hooked. Finished it Saturday morning loving it.
If you don't mind, Pat, I would just like to have people refer to your review when I post the book to my thread. It says everything I would say only better.

Hey - I lost your thread for a week, and had to hunt you down.
You are the final push over the edge on The Invention of Hugo Cabret, I put a hold on it at the library so I'll have it soon.

I have wondered if the books by Lionel Shriver were as good as they looked and now you have convinced me I need to give her a try.

Hugo Cabret is a special book, no question.

I just put Maus on hold at the library. Thanks for the recommendation Joanne, Jenn and Anne.

Caroline and Laura--I hope you both end up loving Hugo Cabret.

Laura, I hope you like Lionel Shriver. I just wouldn't start with So Much for That--it's too depressing (and I don't say that lightly because I generally "like" depressing books).

And Lynda, I'm so glad you liked Hugo. I loved your description--like a fish in trouble I was completely hooked. Has your son read it yet? (Please feel free to refer to my review, although there must be better ones out there.)

Hi Linda and Lucy! Good to see you.

Book No. 5 A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis--4 stars

I first heard of this book on the “What are We Reading: Religion” thread on LT. It describes Lewis’ journey through grief after the death of his wife (“H”) from cancer. He writes very honestly of his anguish and loneliness and how surprisingly little consolation he finds in other people or his religion in the first days after H’s death.

It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong and sound as long as you are merely using it to cord a box. But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a precipice. Wouldn’t you then first discover how much you really trusted it? . . . I thought I trusted the rope until it mattered to me whether it would bear me. Now it matters, and I find I didn’t.

Lewis’ initial goal in writing this book was to describe the “state” of sorrow but he discovers that it’s more of a process and by the end of the book, while he is still on his journey, he’s made alot of progress and, when he turns “to God, my mind no longer meets that locked door.”

I haven’t experienced the kind of grief that Lewis describes nor am I religious so I was surprised to like this book as much as I did. I think it was a combination of how good a writer Lewis is and how honest he was about what he was going through that attracted me the most. In comparison to how detailed Lewis is about his initial grief, I was somewhat disappointed that it wasn’t clearer how he was finally able to move on to a better place. As he says, “there was no sudden, striking and emotional transition. Like the warming of a room or the coming of daylight. When you first notice them they have already been going on for some time.”

Pat
I read A Grief Observed after the loss of my beloved grandmother. It help me....

I'm not religious either, but I love Lewis's writing on his own faith and experiences.

A Grief Observed is definitely going on my wish list. Thanks for that excellent review, Pat.

I think C.S. Lewis is the first author I ever thought I would like to actually meet.
I am not "religious" either, but spiritual - seeking - wanting desparately to know the truth - open. Lewis has much food for thought and offers much comfort in his writing. I loved A Grief Observed.

Pat, that one's going right on the WL; very enticing review.

I'm on the library's wait list (6 holds!). Thanks Pat - it sounds wonderful.

Linda and Claudia, I can see how A Grief Observed would be a comforting book, how it would make you feel less alone in going through the grieving process and let you know what is "normal" in terms of the feelings experienced.

Lucy, Stasia also recommended Lewis' Surprised by Joy. Are there any other books of his you'd recommend?

Darryl, Bonnie and Joanne, I hope you like A Grief Observed. It's actually a very fast read. It's a small book, about 90 pages long, and, because it's essentially short journal entries, there's alot of blank space.

#164 Glad you liked that one Pat. I've found it to be one of the most helpful books I've read dealing with pain/suffering probably because of his honesty. I always feel sad to think it was actually first published under a pseudonym rather than his real name.

I'm not sure which other Lewis books I'd recommend from this one. I have by no means read all of his books (Surprised by Joy is still in the TBR pile) but the others I've read have been less personal and more theoretical than A Grief Observed.

Heather, do you know why he published A Grief Observed under a different name? I think I read on Wikipedia it was because it was so personal but something else I saw on the internet said it might have been because of his doubts about God (which contrasted so sharply with his writings in defence of Christianity.)

Hi, Pat. Signing in as one of the religious, by which I think I mean Christian. C.S. Lewis is one of my loves - except for his apology (Mere Christianity, for example...which makes me a heretic, but that's what I think), so I don't recommend those. Anything else though, is good.

I liked The Screwtape Letters and The Space Trilogy. And really almost anything about or by Lewis.

Hi Peggy and Claudia. Thanks for the recommendations for reading more of C.S. Lewis.

I got the syllabus for my Stegner class today. It's called Wallace Stegner and His Sources because the focus is on how Stegner tended to use real life sources as an inspiration for his novels. This is the schedule:

Week One (Feb 4): Angle of Repose--discussion of this novel on its own merits, independent of any criticisms or comparisons.

Week Two (Feb 11): Angle of Repose--discussion of the extent to which Stegner borrowed from the writings of Mary Hallock Foote, the 19th century author and illustrator whose life inspired this novel.

Week Three (Feb 18): The Big Rock Candy Mountain--discussion of how Stegner transformed his own life experience into fiction in this pre-Angle of Repose novel.

Week Four (Feb 25): Crossing to Safety--discussion of how Stegner transformed his own life experience into fiction in this post-Angle of Repose novel and what he learned from the criticism of Angle of Repose that changed the course of this book.

Week Five (Mar 4): Conclusions about Stegner's use of sources over the course of his career and about his writing in general.

Pat- Just swinging through to say hi. Hope you enjoying both the Stegner book and S & S. I've been listening to the latter, over half-way done. It's been pretty good.

Oh how I wish I could attend your course. It sounds wonderful!

#177 Oh my, looks as if I need to take a look at Mary Hallock Foote too.

You must be getting excited about your class! The only one I haven't read is BRCM -- I have a feeling I will be.......

Hi Mark. I am enjoying my current Stegner read--The Big Rock Candy Mountain--but I'm really struggling with Sense and Sensibility. I may cheat for now and just watch the DVD, which I just took out of the library, and hope it gives me renewed enthusiasm for the book.

Hi Linda!

Lynda, I ended up buying Mary Hallock Foote's book A Victorian Gentlewoman in the Far West. I haven't gotten too far with it but it looks good. Hopefully, you can find it in the library.

Hi Lucy. I am getting excited about the class and so far am really enjoying The Big Rock Candy Mountain. That was the only one I hadn't read either.

On Saturday, I had a temper tantrum of sorts and totally rebelled against my "required reading" (Stegner, Austen and several ER books) and decided to read a thriller instead.

Book No. 6 31 Hours by Masha Hamilton--3 1/2 stars

I’d describe this book as an understated thriller which is more focused on the characters' internal thoughts than on their actions. As the title suggests, it takes place over 31 hours in New York City as the parents and close friends of 21 year old Jonas Meitzner realize that Jonas is missing and while they weren’t paying attention, his life was taking an ominous turn. Suspense builds as you wonder if they’ll be able to find him in time to stop him from going ahead with his plans.

The interesting thing about the book is that his plans are not described in detail (although it's easy to fill in the blanks up to a point) and the ending leaves the reader with more questions than answers. The book and the ending, in particular, are both thought provoking and anxiety inducing.

31 Hours is a relatively quick read at 229 pages and I might have liked it better if it was a little longer. There are six different narrators and I was left wishing I had heard more from them. Hamilton is a good writer and I’ll look for more of her books but there was something about this one that I can’t quite put my finger on that prevents me from giving it more than 3 ½ stars.

My library does not have anything written by Foote. I did, however, find this website which gave me a brief idea of the Foote Stegner connection Here it is

>176 phebj:: Pat, I've read a few books by C.S. Lewis and was totally blown away by The Great Divorce. If you've ever wanted to know what Heaven and Hell might look like, I'd advise you to get on this bus! It's great fun and very thought provoking. I'd like to find a class that does an in-depth analysis of his life and works. He's one deep thinker and writer.

>177 phebj:: I'm salivating all over you syllabus. Sorry 'bout that. How long are your classes? You're certainly doing a lot of reading for them. Just the opposite of what I'm doing...short readings and long discussions in my class. I can't wait for the online version to begin. It looks like I have to to read Candy Mountain, the only one I haven't read.

>184 phebj:: A reading temper tantrum. I love that image! I know what you mean, though. Sometimes you just get overloaded with heavy tomes and need some relief. A thriller sounds like the perfect soothing medicine for your tantrum.

>185 Carmenere:: Lynda, thanks for that homework assignment! Silly me didn't even know of this connection so I'd better go check it out.

I'm so glad you gave in to your tantrum! I've been reading all kinds of nonsense lately. Reading more than one book at a time again has made me so aware that I read for many many reasons..... not the least of which is simply to be entertained.

Thumbs up for tantrums and fluff reading. I'm due for both.

Lynda, thanks for the link! I've never heard of that online literary magazine and it's based in Portland, OR. I put it on my favorites list. I read about half of the article and it's perfect for this class. It was interesting to see that Foote's family was mainly concerned about the implication that Foote did things in her life she really didn't and it was the critics that were so exercised about Stegner's possible "literary theft."

Donna, thanks for the recommendation of Lewis' The Great Divorce. I think I'll try that one next.

My Stegner classes are two hours each. I won't know until the 4th how many students there are or how much discussion. In the Hemingway course, the teacher did most of the talking. Besides the books I mentioned above, the syllabus listed two Stegner biographies (one by Fradkin and one by Benson), Mary Hallock Foote's book (A Victorian Gentlewoman in the Far West), Stegner's memoir (Wolf Willow) and two articles that we will be "consulting."

#186-188 It was amazing how long I struggled on Saturday to get into my required reading. It was making me very cranky. Finally, the light went on that I was an adult(!) and could choose not to do it. (Duh!)

I'm making decent but slow progress with Stegner's The Big Rock Candy Mountain and enjoying it but still rebelling at times at the fact that I have to read it.

Last night I picked up the ARC copy of The Paris Wife that Lynda so kindly passed on to me. I am LOVING it. It's a fictionalized account of the relationship of Hadley Richardson and Ernest Hemingway which lasted from 1920-1927. I just got up to their wedding in 1921 and soon will be joining them in Paris. Can't wait!

So it sounds like even though you didn't care much for A Farewell to Arms you're loving the story of his life written by someone else. Hmmm.

Your review of 31 Hours is sooo interesting Pat. The author never revealed what the plans were that the parents were trying to stop? How in the world does that work?

#192 Hi Bonnie. That was a bit of an overstatement on my part about the plot of 31 Hours. You suspect pretty quickly that this kid has gotten involved with Islamic terrorists so you can fill in the blanks pretty easily up to a point. It's more that the focus is on the characters' internal states of mind rather than what this kid's specific plans are. He's cut off contact with his family and friends so they know he's missing but they don't know why. It's only when they start putting some pieces together that one of the characters becomes truly alarmed and tries to do something about it. I think I'll try to clarify that a bit in the review.

The Paris Wife is told from the point of view of Hadley Richardson (and occassionally from Hemingway's) so it's more her story than his although obviously he's a big part of it. But I am interested in reading more about Hemingway's life. I'm considering reading A Moveable Feast after this book because it's Hemingway's account of the same time period and, if I remember correctly, Darryl reviewed it favorably.

I remember enjoying A Moveable Feast although I'll be darned if I can remember much of it.

I am glad you enjoyed A Grief Observed, Pat. C.S. Lewis has been one of my favorite writers for as long as I can remember.

Pat, it's you who just discovered PBS!!! You mentioned it once before, and I thought it was Becky and said something to her about it that she didn't understand in the least!
I'm delighted that it's working for you. They do try very hard to be fair and keep all participants happy. What's your user name? I'd love to look at your bookshelf, and I'm UrsulaLiz if you want to look at mine - not that you're going to find anything I'm afraid!

Peggy, I just sent you a friend request via my PBS account. I'm afraid you won't find anything on my bookshelf either. Right now I only have 8 books listed. My procedure now is to specifically look for books that people have wishlisted and post them and then they get requested pretty fast and I get a credit and immediately order a new book. I'm getting books in the mail several times a week and loving it. One of the ones on the way is Remnant Population which I heard about on Janet's thread and which she said she heard about from you.

I should have just asked you for your PBS username. I occassionally look for people over there using their LT names but most of the time it doesn't work and I gave up. Glad you found me. :)

#191 So happy you are enjoying The Paris Wife, Pat. I own A Moveable Feast but have not yet read it. If you decide to, perhaps we can have a little group read.

#198 That would be fun to read A Moveable Feast together, Lynda. Hopefully sometime in the Spring.

I meant to tell you that I went online to The Paris Wife website (http://www.randomhouse.com/rhpg/features/paula_mclain/) and under News they listed a couple of bookstores in Cleveland where Paula McLain would be to sign the book (and discuss it). One is the end of February and the other the beginning of March. Unfortunately, I didn't see any in Boise or I'd be there. Thanks again for passing the book along. It's so much fun to read something great before it's published. I can't wait to tell the friend I took the course with about it. I'm seeing her next week at the Stegner course.

Hi Pat! I was lurking on your thread, saw you mention you were on PBS and decided to friend you there! I only know 2 other LTers there. Looking forward to your notes on your Stegner class!

Thanks Laura! It's good to finally have friends on PBS. Now hopefully they'll stop telling me I need some friends (which always sounded slightly pathetic).

I know what you mean ... even now, after a few years, I still get the occasional plea to get some friends there. Never a good moment, that. Looking forward to checking out your bookshelf!

what great timing ... I have A Moveable Feast in my TBR Tower and I was thinking to get to it some time this year. If y'all are doing a group read, Pat, count me in

#203 OK, that sounds great. The more the merrier. I made it to the halfway mark with The Paris Wife tonight. It just gets better and better. Hadley has just lost all of Hemingway's work for the last 3 years (it was stolen when she left it behind on a train) and gotten pregnant which Hemingway wasn't ready for. Trouble ahead!

Sounds like fun, Pat.

#204 Oh, what a great part, Pat. What a way to start a vacation! Hemingway really put up with alot where Hadley's concerned, he must have loved her very much.

ETA: A moveable feast in spring sounds great........after OUR Stenger class.

I know exactly where that B&N is located. I'll have to find out what time and see if it's doable. I'd love to meet her. Thanks for the heads up.

Just popping in to say hello! Nothing to mention except that I just heard that MORE snow, like a BIG one is due Tuesday night, so now I'm thinking I have to go to the pharmacy to pick some stuff up, no lolly-gagging...... ugh.

#173 Sorry for losing your thread. I'm not sure why he published A Grief Observed under a different name. Whether it was because he was writing on a subject so personal to him or was concerned about what the reaction would be to such an honest book, I don't know. One link I found on the internet said some friends who read the book thought it would be helpful for Lewis to read, not realising it was written by him, and sent him copies of his own book.

Wow - I got way behind!

Love the Stegner syllabus. A very interesting approach.

Regarding C.S. Lewis - I recommend Surprised By Joy and Mere Christianity. Those are two of my favorites. Also, if you have not seen the film Shadowlands, I recommend that too. I want to say it was out in 1993? It's biographical - about his falling in love, marrying and subsequently losing his wife to cancer. A beautiful film.

ETA: touchstones not working

Hi Becky, Lynda, Lucy, Heather and Jenn!

I finished The Paris Wife the other night and loved it. It's a fictionalized biography of Hemingway's first marriage to Hadley Richardson told from Hadley's pov. Hopefully, I'll post a review later today. My Stegner class starts tomorrow so I want to clear the decks.

Of course, instead of doing a re-read of The Angle of Repose (which I should be doing for my class) I've been spending my time reading Love and Summer by William Trevor for a book group on Sat. and diving right into Michael Reynolds biography of Hemingway: The Paris Years which I ordered in the middle of reading The Paris Wife. Both books are good but the biography is surprisingly good. It reads like a novel. There are four other volumes to this biography and I'm thinking I may read them all if this one continues to be so good.

Thanks for that story about Lewis, Heather, and his friends telling him to read his own book.

I'll have to look for Shadowlands on Netflix, Jenn. Thanks for the recommendation on that and on Lewis' other books. Did you ever get back to Hemingway's short stories. I picked up a 1953 edition of his stories in an antiques shop the other day. They all seem to have been written in the 1920s in Paris.

I bought the Michael Reynolds biog of Hemingway in the 1930s, recommended by your Hemingway prof. It looks very good and I hope to get to it reasonably soon--heh. I have the Finca Vigia edition of his short stories--highly recommended. I find that I like his short stuff better than his novels. I'm going to have to look for The Paris Wife. I wish these darned touchstones were working.

One last thing: I have a biog on my shelf of C.S. Lewis titled Jack: A Life of C.S. Lewis by George Sayer. I haven't read it. The author was a long-time friend of Lewis's, so I imagine that it's a "friendly" biog. But the up side is that he knew him well.

Becky, The Paris Wife was an ER book that Lynda kindly passed on to me. It won't be published until March 8th. I'd send it to you but I have 4 friends who have already asked to read it so I'm not sure when it will come back to me. I would highly recommend it. And I think you'll love the Hemingway biography. I picked it up yesterday to see what it was like and immediately read the first 60 pages when I should have been reading something else.

I'll have to take a look at the Lewis biography. Thanks for mentioning it.

Book No. 7 The Paris Wife by Paula McLain--5 stars

I was totally swept away by this book. It’s a fictionalized account of the marriage of Ernest Hemingway and Hadley Richardson told from Hadley’s point of view that reminded me of what Nancy Horan did with the relationship of Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Cheney in Loving Frank.

Hadley was almost 30 years old in 1920 when she met Hemingway, who was nine years her junior (Hemingway was only 22 when he and Hadley were married). She has been described as “well on her way to being a spinster” at the time they met and it’s an understatement to say her life took a dramatic turn when they fell in love.

Shortly after their marriage in 1921, they moved to Paris at the urging of Sherwood Anderson (Winesburg, Ohio) so Hemingway could advance his writing career. Their circle of friends quickly included Ezra Pound, James Joyce, Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas, Ford Maddox Ford, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, and Gerald and Sara Murphy. Socializing with this crowd included professional and sexual jealousy, heavy drinking and drugs.

Hadley was a stablizing influence on Hemingway that allowed him to focus on his writing and it was mostly money that she had inherited that paid for their living expenses and gave them the ability to travel around Europe. Part of the author’s goal in telling this story was to show how crucial Hadley’s influence was in launching Hemingway’s career.

Ernest and Hadley’s marriage only lasted from 1921 to 1926 and it’s heartbreaking to see it start as a true love story and then see it unravel under the pressure of Hemingway’s obsession with his writing and his betrayal of Hadley with one of her good friends.

This book was a page turner for me. It’s extremely well written and I felt like I was transported to Paris in the 1920s. The author does a great job portraying the complexities of Ernest and Hadley’s relationship and I’ve already started on a biography of Hemingway during the Paris years and am looking forward to getting to A Moveable Feast which is Hemingway’s account of his first marriage. I would highly recommend this book.

woosh! That sweeping sound is appealing.

Great review, Pat - I'm tempted.

Pat- Great review of The Paris Wife! You made it sound very appealing.

Thumbed, of course! So happy you enjoyed it Pat.

I came here to wish you a great first class tomorrow, but was so distracted by reading your great review that I forgot -- I was in such a rush to go thumb and wishlist it! But I came running back!

Wow, hard to resist a book that sweeps you away. It actually sounds very good; off to thumb it now and then wishlist it.

It is on my wishlist!

Wow, that sounds amazing! Not one I think I'd have found on my own either, so thanks for the great review :)

Absolutely! Another thumb!!

#214 thru 221: Thanks everyone for your kind words on my review. I was so happy to receive this book from Lynda. It hasn't been published yet and although I WL'd it after Lynda's positive review I'm not sure when I would have gotten around to it. It has definitely sparked my interest in continuing to read about Hemingway and to give his writing another chance. I never cared that much for For Whom the Bell Tolls but I'm motivated now to try A Moveable Feast. He really does seem to be a larger than life personality.

This is a quote I marked from The Paris Wife which is Hadley reflecting on her knowledge of Hemingway:

He was such an enigma, really--fine and strong and weak and cruel. An incomparable friend and a son of a bitch. In the end, there wasn't one thing about him that was truer than the rest. It was all true.

I'm glad to hear it's so good -- I've been thinking about springing real $$ for it, too. Although, since I'm going to get an Amazon gift cert. for being an ABNA reviewer, maybe I'll feel less guilty about that!

It has definitely sparked my interest in continuing to read about Hemingway and to give his writing another chance

That's exactly how I felt after reading The Paris Wife. I truly began to like Hemingway, the person as well as the writer, very cool guy. I'm even contemplating re-reading the, on first reading, dreadful For Whom the Bell Tolls

Congrats on your hot review :)

A thumb from me too! Yeah, love him or hate him, Hemingway was a real guy. His letters are absolutely wonderful, by the way, and I think they reveal his personality better than any of the biographies because they're written in his own voice. There are lots of different editions of them: Ernest Hemingway Selected Letters, ed. by one of his biographers, Carlos Baker; Dear Papa, Dear Hotch, correspondence between Hem and A.E. Hotchner; The Only Thing That Counts: The Ernest Hemingway-Maxwell Perkins Correspondence. Perkins was Hemingways editor at Scribners, and he wrote the most wonderful letters to his authors. Hemingway was a very creative curser in the letters. I simply love the guy. However, if being un-PC offends anyone, then these letters probably aren't something you will enjoy.

The Paris Wife looks like one I might enjoy. Does one HAVE to have knowledge of Hemingway before reading this book? I have very little, sadly...

Hemingway is/was my eighth cousin, 2x removed! (Trivia fact that will NEVER appear on Jeopardy...)

I'll take Unbelievably Distant Relative for $400, Alex.

Lynda, I think Hemingway's life is more interesting than most fiction.

Becky, one of my goals this year is to try some correspondence. I'll have to give some of Hemingway's a try. That way I'll know if I want to invest in the first volume of his letters coming out this year from Cambridge Press.

Angela, you definitely do NOT have to know anything about Hemingway to enjoy this book. But it will make you want to know more about him. :)

Suzanne, I thought I remembered you saying you were related to Hemingway. Pretty neat connection.

Hi Tad!

#210

Hemingway - You had to ask... it's been on the bedside table looking at me. I will get back to it this month. I have been reading the 700+ page John Adams. I just finished it today. Phew! I have A Moveable Feast to read as well, and it looks like I've just added The Paris Wife.

Looking forward to hearing about the Stegner class. I have Crossing to Safety on audio ready to go. For some reason I have not read that one. Anyway, I am excited to hear everything!

Sorry I have had such a busy few weeks I am now just catching up. In answer to your post #151 Maus it wasn't too dark for me. I generally refuse to watch holocaust movies or fiction because it makes me ill so I was a bit wary of Maus but it was so well known I decided to give it a go. I think what made it bearable for me was that it was a story being told by Art Speigelman's dad to Art and interspersed was the progress of their present day father-son relationship. So that and the story telling form put a bit of distance between the reader and the experience.

eta touchstones not working

Hi Jenn. Unfortunately, not much happened at yesterday's Stegner class. We spent most of the time reviewing the syllabus, introducing ourselves (there are 40 of us) and writing down questions to submit to the teacher that we wanted answered over the 5 week course. We talked about Angle of Repose for about 30 minutes but it was more like a book group discussion with everyone participating than the professor imparting her knowledge. Of course, I was expecting something along the lines of the Hemingway course so I felt kind of deflated afterwards. I have alot of reading to do for next week so if there's anything noteworthy, I'll post something on it. Hopefully, more will happen next week.

Lisa, thanks for your thoughts on Maus. I took it out of the library after so many people said they liked it on LT and actually started it last night. It looks good and I agree about the storytelling device putting distance between the reader and the experience.

So I'm guessing it's not the same instructor that you had for Hemingway? Hopefully it will pick up.

I'm so glad you're reading Maus! Maus II is well worth reading as well. I apologize of I've told you this already, but Maus was assigned reading for me in college about 20 years ago. It was a gripping and engaging complement to scholarly texts and literature about the same time period.

Hi Anne. You're right--it's not the same instructor I had for the Hemingway course.

I had no idea Maus was more than 20 years old. Amazing that I just heard about it on LT last year. I'll definitely read Maus II.

Hope all is well with you these days.

Book No. 8 Love and Summer by William Trevor--4 stars

This was a quiet story of the inhabitants of the small farming village of Rathmoye in Southern Ireland during an unspecified time that I assumed was the 1950s. Trevor takes us inside the lives of a number of the residents many of whom are haunted by their pasts.

The main story is of the somewhat one-sided love affair of Ellie, a married woman, and Florian, a careless single man who is just passing through on the way to the next stage of his life. One of the things I loved about the book was how the author seamlessly weaves the stories of the other characters into this love affair.

Trevor’s writing is beautiful and often poetic. Alot is left unsaid with the reader needing to fill in the blanks.

I read this for a book group and about half of the participants didn’t like the book and had trouble getting engaged with it. They felt it was too insubstantial and probably should have been a short story. I thought it was very well done and was impressed with how the author conveyed a depth to the characters and the story with very few words. Recommended.

A favorite quote: Almost everything sounded wrong as soon as he said it and for a moment he felt that he belonged in his own created world of predators, that he was himself a variation of their cruelty. He had taken what there was to take, had exorcized, again, his nagging ghost. And doing so, in spite of tenderness, in spite of affection for a girl he hardly knew, he had made a hell for her.

Whew! Thank goodness I've already got The Paris Wife in my obese wish list but I did thumb your review, Pat.

Love and Summer sounds interesting .... I'm trying to resist .......

Pat, I gave Love and Summer 4 stars too, I think. I loved your review of The Paris Wife. I enjoyed a couple of Hemingways last year (the audio of The Sun Also Rises narrated by William Hurt was wonderful!), so I'd love to try this new one. :o)

Pat, I think first classes or meetings or dates...or whatever...are usually kind of stilted and awkward. Your class sounds like mine with lots of discussion. My professor jazzes it up occasionally with things like the art slides he showed, but mostly it's talking about what we read. I'm enjoying it, although it sounds like you had the 'rock star' teacher for your Hemingway class so I can see why you might be disappointed.

Hi Pat, I really liked Love and Summer although not as much as The Story of Lucy Gault but it was good. Excellent review BTW. I hope the Stegner class picks up for you.

Thanks, Caroline. Hope you like The Paris Wife when you get to it. I almost started Sanchez Across the Street last night but I have so many other books going right now that I decided to wait. It looks good though and I'm hoping to get to it in March.

Hi Jenny. I never thought of trying Hemingway's books on audio. I'll have to see if my library has The Sun Also Rises with William Hurt.

Donna that may be the downside of loving the Hemingway instructor so much. It may not get any better. I don't think I would have minded all the introductory/getting to know you time if it was a semester length course like yours. But this is only five classes.

Bonnie, I have The Story of Lucy Gault sitting on my shelf waiting to be read and am looking forward to getting to it. The only other book by William Trevor I've read is Felicia's Journey which I also liked. Someone at the book group today said he has a new collection of short stories out.

Hi Pat,
Sorry the first day of class was disappointing. I hope the next one is better.
Love and Summer sounds good. I'm adding it to the pile.

Great review of Love and Summer, Pat! I already have it in the BlackHole or I would be adding it again. William Trevor is one of my LT discoveries. I loved his The Story of Lucy Gault, so I hope you enjoy it too.

It can be tough to have a laid-back teacher after having an intense one. Not all teachers feel comfortable doing all the talking -- she/he may know a huge amount about Stegner but have a different approach or style...... wanting students to work at dredging up their own ideas before bringing in his/her stuff??? I guess the second class will tell it all!

My first tai chi teacher was, I realize now, incredible -- so devoted and detail oriented -- I'm finding it very hard to attend the new class I signed up for, I feel it will 'corrupt' me, in fact, that I am better off practicing alone. Then I worry I am being sort of stuck up about it. The new teacher moves in a fluid way, does tai chi very well, but she doesn't communicate what she is doing so well...... I feel particularly bad for the newbies in the class. Anyhow. Fingers crossed for you.

I've added The Paris Wife to my wish list, and mine is the 13th thumb of your great review of it. I read A Moveable Feast last year, so it will be especially interesting to read about Ernest and Hadley's marriage.

I'm glad that you also enjoyed Love and Summer. It was the first book by Trevor I've read, and I'm planning to use my Borders coupon today or tomorrow to purchase Selected Stories, a compilation of his most recent short stories that was selected as one of the 10 Best Books of 2010 by The New York Times.

I've started Angle of Repose, Pat. So far, very much enjoying Stegner's narrative. Also finished The Arrival last night and will review it soon. Your thread is becoming as dangerous as Stasia's, yet I mentioned to my hubsters this morning that I have been introduced to so many author's on LT that I never would have known about otherwise. I'm simply ignoring Love and Summer because my wishlist and TBR piles are large enough, for now at least.

Jenn and Stasia, I hope you both enjoy Love and Summer if you get a chance to read it. The people at my book group also raved about The Story of Lucy Gault. I'm glad you liked it too, Stasia.

Lucy, I don't think I realized how much I was expecting the Stegner teacher to be similar to the Hemingway instructor until I got to the class and was disappointed. I think I'll be in a better, more open, frame of mind about it next week. She's given us a ton of reading to do (which we didn't have for the Hemingway course) so I may actually learn as much if not more. It was interesting to hear about your experiences with your tai chi teachers and the different teaching methods. I do think it makes a difference who your first teacher for something is.

Darryl, thanks for the thumb! I remember reading your positive review of A Moveable Feast. I'm looking forward to getting to it. I feel like I'm going to be doing a version of Redbook magazine's recurring feature "Can This Marriage Be Saved?" (which had each partner tell their side of the story before the shrink stepped in with their opinion) by reading The Paris Wife from Hadley's pov and A Moveable Feast and the Hemingway bio about EH's pov of this marriage.

Lynda, hope you continue to enjoy Angle of Repose. I'm looking forward to hearing what you thought of The Arrival.

#228 -- Tad, I'm chortling away. The weird, weird things one discovers when doing genealogical research. Of course, all the ancestors who were illiterate Celts more than offset this, or the Tiffany connection!

Book No. 9 Maus I: A Survivor’s Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman--4 stars

Art Spiegelman uses a comic book format to tell the true story of his parents’ lives in Poland from 1936 to 1944. As Jews, their lives gradually became more and more dangerous until they were playing a real life game of cat and mouse with the Germans and some of the Polish people who felt compelled to support the Nazis. Spiegelman portrays this literally. The Jewish people are drawn as mice, the Germans as cats and the Polish people as pigs.

The story from the past is related in the present as Spiegelman interviews his father for the book he wants to write about his experiences during WWII. When things get too intense the narrative switches to the present time and some of the strains in the relationship between father and son are revealed.

This was an interesting way of telling the story of the holocaust as well as what it’s like to be a child of a holocaust survivor. The book ends just as Spiegelman’s parents are caught in the “mouse trap” in the past and Spiegelman and his father part ways in the present.

This story may have been too hard to read in another format and I think that was part of the point of doing it this way--to make it more accessible to more readers. I would definitely recommend this book and will be reading Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began as soon as possible to see what happens next to both generations of the Spiegelman family.

Hi Pat, I'm glad to see you liked Maus. I think the format worked perfectly but never would have believed that I would read a comic about the holocaust. But then I guess, as a cartoonist, it was the best way for Spiegelman to tell his story. You'll like the second one, too!

#248: I loved both the Maus books, which I know that without LT I would never even have heard of. I am glad to see that the books are gaining more fans here in the group!

229- Thanks. The Paris Wife is firmly on the wishlist now. :)

227, 228 - LOL at Suzanne and Tad...

Hi Pat. First: happy birthday to you!

Although comics is not my cup of tea, I think I'm gonna lend the Maus books from the library. Recorded Persepolis from tv last sunday, haven't seen it yet. Do you know it?

glitter-graphics.com

Best Wishes, Pat........Have a great day!

Happy birthday Pat! Hope you have a great day.

Happy birthday! Hope your day is all you want it to be.

Hi Pat. Happy Birthday wishes from me as well.

Good Morning, Pat. Happy Birthday to you!!

I hope you have a wonderful day and a great year.

Have Fun today!

Hi Marieke. Thanks for stopping by and for the birthday wishes! I just started reading graphic novels/comics at the end of last year after hearing so many people rave about them here on LT (Stasia being one of the biggest cheerleaders). I hope you like the Maus books. I saw the movie of Persepolis and wasn't expecting it to be so depressing but it was very good. The other graphic novels I'd highly recommend if you haven't read them are: The Arrival, Asterios Polyp and The Invention of Hugo Cabret.

Lynda and Claudia, thank you the birthday wishes and for the gifs with CAKE! I'm a sugar addict so I love all things cake.

And Laura, Lucy, Becky and Joanne thanks so much for all the good wishes for my birthday, too. I have to say almost better than today being my birthday is that it's my 1st Thingaversary. So much more fun to be 1 than 57. :)

Thingaversary and birthday!! Wow! Celebrate my frend! And have a wonderful day!

Thanks, Bonnie! I'm celebrating by taking myself out to a bookstore today (if I can just get off of LT). :)

Happy Birthday!!

Get off LT and go celebrate! :-)

Cool...a double celebration and a trip to the bookstore. Be good to yourself! Ahhhh, to be 57 again. ;-) Enjoy your special day!

Dear, dear Pat! I hope you have a wonderful birthday. Cheers!

Happy Birthday - Hope you had a great day and made it to the bookstore.

Happy Birthday Pat! I've really enjoyed sharing books with you this past year! Let's do more of it!! Hope you are having a great day!

*delurks*

Happy Birthday!!!!! :D

Thanks for all the birthday wishes Laura, Donna, Anne, Bette, Mark and Stephen. Bette, I see you're another February baby. :)

I did make it to the bookstore--Barnes & Noble because it was close to some other places I needed to go. Here's what I came home with:

Fiction:

The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis (LT inspired and on the 3-for-2 table)
The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle (LT inspired--Donna)
The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer (LT inspired--Bonnie and Suzanne)
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (a re-read and on the 3-for-2 table)

Nonfiction:

Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, The End of Civilization by Nicolson Baker (looked interesting but boy is there a controversy about this on the Amazon reviews. Some people consider it unrealistically pro-pacifist)
A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present by Howard Zinn (looked interesting and on the 3-for-2 table)

I also received Until That Good Day: A Novel from Linda as a birthday gift (thank you, thank you!) and Dissolution by C.J. Sansom arrived in the mail today (a used book from Amazon).

I'm surrounded by new books and very happy!

O WOW! Pat this is a great day! Birthday & Thingaversary. And all those good books... What a treat! Enjoy!

Color me jealous, that a great haul!

Happy Birthday Pat! Looks like you got some great books to celebrate with.

Hi Claudia, Lynda, and Deborah!

My new thread is over here. Hope to see you there!

>259 phebj:
Thanks for your recommendations, I copied them.
Had also, after I took Maus(part 1 & 2) from the library, a lovely talk on the subject with a colleague I've mostly political discussions with. He turned out to be a real buff on the subject. Quite infectious, all this. :)