Smiler: Speedier than Lightning in 2011. Part Deux.

My first thread, Part Un, is here.

My rating system is as follows:
★ - hated it (and/or didn't finish it)
★★ - it was just ok
★★★ - enjoyed it (good)
★★★★ - loved it! (very good)
★★★★★ - all-time favourite (amazing)

Currently Reading:
La Fortune des Rougons by Émile Zola
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
Tales From Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

Books completed in January:
1. Barney's Version by Mordecai Richler (TIOLI) ★★★★ (review)
2. La Belle au Bois Dormant (Sleeping Beauty) by Tahar Ben Jelloun (TIOLI) ★★★★ (review)
3. Regeneration - 1st of the Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker (TIOLI) ★★★★★ (review)
4. Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane ★★★ (review)
5. Sanderson: The Essence of English Decoration by Mary Schoeser ★★★★½ (review)
6. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart (TIOLI) ★★★ (review)
7. Doors Open by Ian Rankin (TIOLI) ★★★ (review)
8. The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson ★★★★ (review)
9. A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon ★★★★ (review)
10. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt (TIOLI) ★★★★ (review)
11. Egon Schiele: The Leopold Collection by Rudolf Leopold (TIOLI) ★★★½ (review)
12. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (TIOLI, Group Read) ★★★ (review)
13. The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket ★★★ (review)
14. The Arrival by Shaun Tan ★★★★★ (review)
15. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak ★★★★ (review)
16. The Bells by Richard Harvell ★★★★ (review)
17. Black and Blue by Ian Rankin ★★½ (TIOLI) (review)
18. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens ★★★ (TIOLI) (review)
19. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney ★★★★ (review)
20. The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom ★★★★ (review)

Books completed in February:
21. Through a Glass Darkly by Donna Leon ★★★ (review)
22. Skellig by David Almond ★★★ (review)
23. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman ★★★★★ (review)
24. Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe ★★★½ (review)
25. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman ★★★★★ (review)
26. The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West ★★★★½ (review)
27. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins ★★★★⅓ (review)
28. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll ★★★★½ (notes on the audiobook version)
29. Three Seconds by Roslund & Hellström ★★★ (review)
30. a) The Turn of the Screw by Henry James ★★★¾
30. b) The Aspern Papers by Henry James ★★★★
31. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

My 11 in 11 thread is here.

My categories are:
1. The Classics
2. Émile Zola's Rougon-Macquart Series
3. Mysteries & Crime Fiction
4. Visual Arts
5. Books Published Since 2009
6. New To Me Authors
7. Big and Scary: books over 400 pages
8. The Two World Wars and the Time In-Between
9. En Français
10. Sooner Than Later: Recent Acquisitions
11. The Film Might Be Good But the Book is Better

Ok, so this message is sort of an ongoing *note to self* because I have countless book lists in my head that I need to get down somewhere. Which doesn't mean I'll actually stick to this list in any way! So:

Books I'd like to complete in February
1. The Turn of the Screw and the Aspern Papers by Henry James
2. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman - (Fantasy February, TIOLI)
3. La Fortune des Rougons (The Fortune of the Rougons) by Émile Zola - reading
4. L'élégance du hérisson (The Elegance of the Hedgehog) Muriel Barbery - (TIOLI)
5. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski - (TIOLI) - reading
6. The Eye in the Door (Regeneration Trilogy 2) by Pat Barker - (TIOLI)
7. War Horse Michael Morpurgo - (TIOLI)
8. The Difference Engine by William Gibson - (Fantasy February)
9. *Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe - (BM, TIOLI)
10. *Dead Souls by Ian Rankin - (BM, TIOLI)
11. *Three Seconds by Anders Roslund - (ER)
12. The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West - (TIOLI)
5 down, 7 to go!
* must read

*****

Books I'd like to read in March
1. Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko - (library book)
2. Coraline by Neil Gaiman - (library book)
3. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - (group read)
4. The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James - (group read)
5. My Reading Life by Pat Conroy - (library book)
6. Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot - (library book)
7. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - (library book)

Mystery March possible reads:
Caught Stealing By Charlie Huston
Fleshmarket Close by Ian Rankin
The Hanging Garden by Ian Rankin
The Naming of the Dead by Ian Rankin
The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri
Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood (on audio)
The Kill Artist by Daniel Silva
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

*****

Books I'd like to read this year
1. Prodigal Summer and/or The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
2. Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky
3. Of Mice and Men and Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
4. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
5. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
6. Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
7. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
8. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
9. La Fortune des Rougons by Émile Zola (Rougon-Macquart 1)
10. La Curée by Émile Zola (Rougon-Macquart 2)
11. Le ventre de Paris by Émile Zola (Rougon-Macquart 3)
12. The Moment of Seeing by Stephanie Comer
13. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
14. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
15. The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
16. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
17. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
18. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
19. A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
20. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
21. The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
22. Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky
23. Samarcande by Amin Maalouf
24. La vie devant soi (The Life Before Us) by Romain Gary
25. Stupeurs et tremblements (Fear and Trembling) by Amélie Nothomb
26. L'enfant de sable (The Sand Child) by Tahar Ben Jelloun
27. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
28. Crete by Barry Unsworth
29. Blindness by José Saramago
30. Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
31. Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh
32. The Difference Engine by William Gibson
33. The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi
34. One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
35. The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (start reading little by little)
36. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

(ongoing editing)

Two thumbs up!!

No, make that three thumbs up!

Adding it to my wishlist!

Hottie!

Ha! You haven't even posted a link to this thread on your old one and you've already got 7 posts! Somebody sure is popular... :)

#4-7 You guys are so funny! :-D

Just you wait, when I DO post an actual review up there, I'll make sure it's for a truly awful book! Lol!

I honestly didn't think anyone would stop by here yet. I'm so embarrassed now, I feel like I've been caught with my pants down. Boxes everywhere and floors dirty and furniture hasn't been delivered yet and no pictures on the walls... and I don't even have any tea to serve to my guests yet! I'm calling my interior decorator and setting up an appointment asap. Right after I'm done with read-a-thon #3 hosted by Ellie. Woo-hoo! Me loves readathons!

ETA: Added link to the readathon. Join us! Or just leave a comment to encourage our troops!

#8 Me? Popular? That would be a first! lol. Besides, look who's talking Mr. Studmuffin Apeman! ;-)

Hey, I only post those pictures as a warning. "Here be monsters" and all that. It's not my fault everyone has a morbid curiosity. :P

No tea?! I'm leaving this thread!!

*stomps out*

#11 I scrambled over to your thread thinking I'd find a picture of you as a Chippendale dancer or something. Imagine my disappointment! What monsters? Where??

#12: Madeline: I'll run over to the store and get some right now! COME BACK! (pleeeaaase?)

I somehow managed to lose your first thread, but I'll try to better keep up with this one!

No worries Cait, the first one is winding down and I've yet to finalize the move into this one still.

I'm halfway through Doors Open by Ian Rankin. I'm enjoying it except for that huge groaner moment when a inspector of police and his informer are sitting in a café at different tables and talking on their mobile phones so they won't be spotted together. So far... ok, maybe, although I was wondering why they'd even be in the same establishment if they're worried about detection. But then half their conversation is like:

"so how's your tea?"
"mine's so so, how's your coffee?"
"well I've had better but you know, they put too much foam in it..."
"oh yeah I know, that's so gross, don't you hate that?"
"yeah, like, tell me about it, so annoying"

Ok, it's not verbatim, but it's that sort of thing. these guys aren't buddies. this is supposed to be a tense situation and they're talking about the drinks they're having like a couple of teenage girlfriends??? Oh puhlease!

6. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart ★★★
(Read for my 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI Christmas Gift)

The time is the near future, as in possibly next week. Lenny Abramov, a thirty-nine year-old New Yorker and the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, is balding and visibly going grey, neither short nor tall at five foot nine, and going soft around the middle. He's a salesman for Post-Human Services, a company which offers miraculous rejuvenation treatments and eternal life to HNWIs (high net worth individuals) and is obsessed with the fact that he can't afford the treatments for himself.

America is now a police state and bankrupt, with the devaluated dollar pegged to the Chinese yuan. The only thing more important than being young and beautiful in this society is having a good line of credit, being an active consumer and being plugged into the latest model äppärät at all times. A futuristic smart-phone-like device which, presumably to reflect how much room it takes in people's lives, also takes lots of room in the novel, the äppärät allows strangers to view each others personal information and history, including the all-important credit ranking, places of study, employment and residence, sexual preferences, and desirability score, actually referred to as 'f***ability score', in keeping with the general unsubtle attitude toward sex in this society. To wit, the latest fashions include nipple-less bras and 'onionskin jeans' which leave nothing to the imagination. The only thing that Lenny loves more than his 740 square-feet condo in downtown Manhattan and its wall of books—now out of print since nobody reads anymore—is Eunice Parks, a beautiful, slender, superficial and cruel twenty-four year-old Korean girl. Undeterred by the continuous jibes she throws his way about being a nerd and an unattractive loser, our sweet-natured Lenny is convinced that he can help Eunice become a kinder and gentler person simply by loving her with everything he's got.

The book is told from their individual point of view, with Lenny's diary entries alternating with transcripts of Eunice's personal incoming and outgoing communications with her mother and sister, and also her best friend, whom she affectionately calls names most appropriately used in porno-speak, which is apparently the way all young people communicate with each other in a society where pornography has been completely assimilated into the mainstream. Things become dangerous when bands of LNWI (low net worth individuals) try to mount an uprising and are violently quashed by the national guard and the whole country enters in a state of emergency.

I'm having a hard time deciding what I thought about this book. There's no question that it was entertaining. No question either that it was disturbing, as it was intended to be, with Shteyngart describing a future which is not that far removed from the realm of likely possibilities. It was slow going as far as the reading of it went, in large part because of the language used, with countless expressions and acronyms that are a common mode of communication in a visuals-driven society where 'talking' is now referred to as 'verballing'. This book was given to me as a Christmas present along with a gift receipt in case I didn't find it to be quite my thing, and take this as you will, but I've decided to take advantage of the store's generous no-questions-asked return policy and exchange it for something that I'm likely to find ultimately more satisfying. I was going to give a lower rating, but gave this book three stars in the end because of the sheer entertainment factor.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

#17: I read Super Sad Love Story and did not care for it. I just think my sense of humor does not jive with Shteyngart's. Nice review, Ilana!

Nice review, Ilana - won't be reading that one. I finished The Grapes of Wrath - thanks for insisting that I read it. Don't know why I never did before now. Would have been a good high school read, I would think - better than some of the stuff we were required/forced to read.
Love the pictures of your beautiful children. How cool - you caught Coco in mid nose lick!

Morning Ilana- Another terrific review! Opinion seems to be a very divided on this one. I think I'll still give it a try, at some point anyway!
I've never read Ian Rankin.

#18 Stasia, I'm with you. I didn't laugh at any part of the book. Didn't see anything funny about it. Didn't realize it was even supposed to be funny in any way.

#19 Charlotte I'm so glad you enjoyed Grapes of Wrath. But where's your review? I'm dying to see what you have to say about it. Of course Ezra is missing from the pictures. He's just not all that keen on posing for the camera or of getting close to Coco for that matter. But yes, Coco's a pretty cool little guy all around!

#20 H'lo Mark. I definitely encourage you to read Super Sad. Not surprised at all that people are divided about it since it doesn't shy away from controversial subjects. Hurry up and get it already! I can't wait to see what you think about it. I'm surprised you haven't read any Rankin.

> 13

I'm back. I'll settle down with a book while you heat my tea. Thanks, Ilana! You're the hostess with the mostest!!

I'm visiting today too. I've been trying to read books rather than the threads but still need to check in from time to time. I like your review of Super Sad True Love Story, it sounds interesting.
Definitely will add it to my list so i can check out some more reviews about it.
Love your photos, what cute companions.

Liked your review of Super Sad True Love Story. Although it sounds "interesting", you have confirmed my view that I don't want to read it. I read The Russian Debutante's Handbook and wasn't sure what I thought about that one, so now not in a big rush to read another by him. But it was a great review!

#22 Enjoy you book and tea Madeline. You're welcome to drop by anytime!

#23 Kerry, I know exactly what you mean about trying to read books more than threads. I'm doing the same thing, or at least trying to. It's hard striking that balance between enjoying the sociable aspect and then spending time doing the activity that presumably brings us all together!

#24 Thanks Janet, I'm glad you liked the review. I too won't be in any great rush to read his other books, though I am intrigued by The Russian Debutante's Handbook. Goodness knows I've got plenty of other great selections before I get back to Shteyngart!

7. Doors Open by Ian Rankin ★★★
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI: Book ranked below 10,000)

Mike Mackenzie, a self-made software mogul, is rich and bored and looking for excitement. He's become somewhat of an art connoisseur while spending him time in auction houses and building up a private collection of Scottish art. With all his millions, there is one portrait he wants which he can't have since it belongs to the national collection. Until one day one of his friends, the head of the local college of art Robert Gissing, approaches Mike with a plan for the perfect crime. They will steal works of art from the national archive on 'Doors Open' day, a special yearly event when various institutions open their doors to the public. The brilliance of Gissing's plan is that the theft will go undetected since they will simply substitute the works of their choosing with copies made to order by a talented art student. Mike is tempted to go along with it, but the only thing holding back the gang is their lack of criminal experience and access to weapons and vehicles. When Mike runs into an old school mate, 'Chib' Calloway—who just happens to be Edinburgh's head of organized crime—it seems like all the elements have fallen into place to perform the heist of his dreams.

This was an amusing enough premise, but I can't say there were all that many surprises along the way. Everything just seemed to fall into place a little bit too easily and then there were a few truly cringe-worthy sections such as a bit of dialogue when an inspector of police meets his informant—one of 'Chib' Calloway's bodyguards—in a café. They're sitting at different tables and talking on their mobile phones so they won't be spotted together while exchanging sensitive information. I was wondering why they'd even be in the same establishment if they're worried about detection but then things got truly ridiculous when they started discussing the merits of the drinks they were having, as if they were two girlfriends taking a break during a shopping session. Maybe that was Rankin's sense of humour at work and I missed the point for all I know. I won't say this is a must-read, but as far as brain candy goes, it's a fine way to spend a few easy reading hours.

I think I'm going through some kind of thread burnout along with general depression. I've been sleeping some 12 hours a day or more and reading the rest of the time, and whenever I start looking at the threads I just get totally discouraged with the sheer volume of those I want to stay abreast of, and never mind trying to keep up with the new arrivals! Sigh. It's kind of silly of me to stress about it since the whole point is to enjoy participating in the group, I do realize. But the fact is I just won't be able to be as present here with my classes starting up next week especially since I barely have any energy for those either. I guess I just wasn't cut out to be a social butterfly.

I have learned the hard way that it is impossible to keep up with all the threads, Ilana. What I have started to do is try to read 15 or from every group, or even time myself on how long I can stay on LT. I think everyone understands especially as they are dealing with the same volume. Don't drive yourself crazy over it, do what you can, and what keeps the whole experience fun. I think over the course of the year, things will fall into place.

Thanks Judy. Of course you're right, and I think I'll have to adopt some kind of system too. I also think it wouldn't bother me as much if I was feeling ok but when I'm down... everything seems to be that much worse. I'm going to get off the computer now and try to do some things in RL to make myself feel better. Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it.

Ilana, when you started here, you jumped in full force with both feet. Slow down! We'll be here for whenever you want a few minutes to just relax.

Do turn off the computer and find something fun to do in RL in addition to LT. Get some rest and enjoy your classes. When you have a few free minutes, just tell us what's going on with you on your own thread. I promise we'll find you!

What kind of dog is yours? My daughter is baby-sitting for a miniature poodle named Audrey next weekend. Audrey is the same color as you dog, but my daughter says your dog looks like a different kind. I said that they both have the same hair-do! I guess they use the same fur stylist. :)

Anyway, I love the picture of both your cat and your dog. They look so sweet!

Oh, I so know what you mean, Ilana. I open up the 75 book group and thousands (o.k. - hundreds) of unread messages unfold before me! Where do I start? I am avoiding the threads that are gynormous - can't cope with that and instead I find myself clicking on the tiny ones of people I have never visited before, hoping against hope, that I will be completely disinterested in what I find there so that I can red 'x' them and never have to go there again. I know this is awful, but I need to see order and not the chaos of unread messages. However, inevitably I usually decide that it is too soon to tell whether it is time to send them spinning off into the stratosphere - that I have to give them a little longer to get interesting.

When do I bring the hammer down and make a decision?? This is my dilemma. Must do so soon, or I will soon be so discouraged that once again I will only visit a dozen or so on a regular basis.

Anyway - I suppose I will live - whether or not I find a good system for dealing with it. Won't I?

> 32

Pick a few people (2 to 10, your choice) to follow and red x everyone else. Don't even open the threads of others. You won't miss what you don't know. Be heartless and cruel with those red x'es. You will be much happier and less frustrated in the end.

Ilana- I've seen this happen to many others here on LT! They get overwhelmed and frustrated and sometimes just disappear. We don't want that to happen to you. So slow down and take it easy. Madeline has a good suggestion or just set a limited time you want to be on and stick with it.
I've enjoyed ours chats and our book sharing! Hope you feel better! :-}

#30-31 & 33 Madeline, I do tend to jump into thing full force as you say and then get upset when I find I can't sustain the pace. I'll figure it out eventually. I'll have to start using that mean little red 'x' soon too keep it all manageable. Coco is some kind of happy mix. He's definitely part toy poodle (smaller than miniature) and some kind of terrier. One thing that gives him away as not just poodle are his ears that make him look like a gremlin, which I love about him. :-)

#32 Charlotte, if it means you'll keep mine among the threads you'll come back to visit this year, then I'll do everything in my power to keep this one as small as possible!

#34 Mark: I'll try to find a happy medium that works so I won't be tempted to throw the baby out with the bathwater! I'm a moody gal and sometimes I just get discouraged about every little thing. The good news is books don't care what mood I happen to be in, which is part of the reason I enjoy their company so much!

Madeline, Charlotte and Mark: I appreciate your support and encouragement.

Totally understandable problem, Ilana. Do not beat yourself up about it. Madeline, Charlotte and Mark have made some good suggestions. Just find a system that works for you, that you can keep up with without feeling guilty.

Thanks Stasia.

No problem. There is no sense adding more stress to your life than there needs to be.

You're absolutely right Stasia. It's always been a challenge for me to take things easy and not stress out about every little thing and find things to feel guilty about. I know I'm far from the only one in that respect, but I'm pretty certain this problem doesn't affect guys so much. One day I'll take up daily meditation and find ways to float above all the worries. In the meantime, I just do the best I can.

I just went to visit Stasia's thread where she mentions a site where you can enter you date of birth and get a list of New York Times bestsellers for that week (http://www.biblioz.com/best_sellers.php). Here's my list:

Fiction1: THE LOVE MACHINE Jacqueline Susann
Fiction2: PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT Philip Roth
Fiction3: THE GODFATHER Mario Puzo
Fiction4: ADA Vladimir Nabokov
Fiction5: THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN Michael Crichton
Fiction6: SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE Kurt Vonnegut
Fiction7: EXCEPT FOR ME AND THEE Jessamyn West
Fiction8: THE WAVES OF NIGHT Harry Mark Petrakis
Fiction9: BULLET PARK John Cheever
Fiction10: THE GOODBYE LOOK Ross MacDonald
Non-Fiction1: JENNIE Ralph G. Martin
Non-Fiction2: THE PETER PRINCIPLE Dr. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull
Non-Fiction3: BETWEEN PARENT & TEENAGER Haim G. Ginott
Non-Fiction4: ERNEST HEMINGWAY Carlos Baker
Non-Fiction5: THE KINGDOM AND THE POWER Gay Talese
Non-Fiction6: MISS CRAIG'S 21-DAY SHAPE-UP PROGRAM FOR MEN AND WOMEN Marjorie Craig
Non-Fiction7: THE MONEY GAME "Adam Smith"
Non-Fiction8: THE 900 DAYS Harrison E. Sailsbury
Non-Fiction9: A LONG ROW OF CANDLES C.L. Sulzberger
Non-Fiction10: THE JOYS OF YIDDISH Leo Rosten

I think I'll pass on Miss Craig's 21-Day Shape-Up Program for Men and Women, but there's a few titles in there I'll look up for sure!

I love The Joys of Yiddish!

It sounds like a fun book. Have you read it?

Oh, yes!

Adding it to the WL.

While you are at it, add The Education of Hyman Kaplan to the WL too. It is by the same author although he used a pseudonym.

I always felt guilty about red "x" ing people, so I just starred the threads I most wanted to follow. If you don't let your "starring" get out of control (uh...something I had trouble doing, even now in Club Read) you can just read your starred threads. Occasionally, I would get more ambitious or curious about what I was missing and check out the whole group's postings, but if I did that every day, I would never finish a book. Overall, I'm just so glad to have "met" so many kind, interesting people here in LT that trying to balance it all out feels worth it.

Eta: I think I've read most of your "birthday books," Ilana. :-)

I'm following Madeline's advice and being "heartless and cruel". But don't worry, Ilana - I would never red 'x' you. Your threads are one of the places I would not fail to come to. Always something entertaining and interesting here. Besides, I have to get my necessary fix of Coco pictures, lore and news. (Willie would be jealous if he were not a cat and far, far above jealousy of a mere dog.)

So funny... I think we were posting on each other's threads at the same time Charlotte. I have no doubt that your Willie is above the fray. Cats tend to be at a remove from mere trivial feelings. In our family, I think Ezra is a bit jealous (don't tell him I told you so), but that would only be because he was used to being an only child for quite a few years and then had siblings forced on him. Coco always feels insecure when I give the others attention, but that would be because he's a dog and as an especially cute member of the species, is used to hoarding all the adoration in any given situation.

So I'm four chapters into Sense and Sensibility which I'm reading along for a group read and have to say I'm immensely relieved so far that I'm enjoying it. I just found it intimidating that Jane Austen is so universally liked and thought it would really be awrful (sic) if I didn't feel the same way about her. So far so good. Am about to plunge back in...

I've also made a big decision and have taken Migraine off my 'currently reading' collection and removed it from the TIOLI wiki. I got maybe 80 pages into it but it was rough rough rough going... certainly didn't help that the regular typeface was small to begin with and that the footnotes took up half the pages at an even smaller font size. That combined with lots of jargon just made me all too conscious of the constant headache I endure at all time so... enough of that! Phew. I feel better just saying that!

Plodding along with The Children's Book. There's plenty I enjoy about it, plenty I don't understand, and parts that I'm indifferent to, but it's definitely interesting!

Hi Ilana, I love your opening pictures. Coco and his buddy are such cuties! You are also making great progress on your projected reads for the month. Right on track, I'd say with the month almost half over and your list almost half done! Kudos to you.

>40 Smiler69:: I'll have to visit the site and maybe read a few of the oldies that were popular when I was born during my birth month. August is a long time away, so I will probably forget...and be off the hook!

>49 Smiler69:: I'm following your progress on The Children's Book. I bought it in a weak moment last year and now will have to carve out the time to read it. I am a big Byatt fan which will give me some motivation. Maybe this spring?

> 40, 41

I'm reading The Joys of Yiddish now! I'll be reading it over years, though, as it is a huge book full of Yiddish words and phrases and jokes (and I get too distracted by other, shorter reads). Anyway, it's wonderful!!

#50 Donna, my lovely Mimi certainly seems to love the camera and she's also the least disturbed by Coco's presence of the two cats and it always makes me happy to see those two lying side by side like that. I'm pretty happy about the way my reading is going so far, but then again I've had all the time in the world to do nothing BUT which will change as of tomorrow when I start a painting class and then other classes during the week.

#51 Madeline, some books are best enjoyed when read little by little as you're doing with this one. Maybe if I let a few hints float about, my father would eventually get it for me which would give it that much more significance for me.

Now here's a portion which is another 'note to self'... a list of books I'd like to read next month, which are essentially all those I won't likely have time for THIS month.

Books I'd like to read in February
1. Of Mice and Men and Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
2. La forme de l'eau (The Shape of Water) by Andrea Camilleri
3. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
4. The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (start reading little by little)
5. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
6. La Fortune des Rougons (The Fortune of the Rougons) by Émile Zola
7. L'enfant de sable (The Sand Child) by Tahar Ben Jelloun
8. The Moment of Seeing by Stephanie Comer
9. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
10. The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
11. The Eye in the Door (Regeneration Trilogy 2) by Pat Barker
12. The Bad Beginning byLemony Snicket
13. War Horse Michael Morpurgo
14. The Kill Artist by Silva, Daniel
15. The Difference Engine by William Gibson

Best to stop here for now!

#52: Wow! That is quite a February line up, Ilana. Good luck to you!

Steinbeck is my favorite author, and you'll love both of the ones you have listed. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle was a favorite for me last year. As you read it, notice the re-tellling of Hamlet in the story.

Ilana- I liked your list too! You can never go wrong with Mr. Steinbeck. Both are classics. I loved The Golden Compass. Maybe you can join us on the "Fantasy February" Thread and read that one?

#53 Thanks Stasia. I'm sure there'll be plenty more temptation between now and then so the list will likely get re-edited a few times!

#54 Mac: after re-reading Grapes of Wrath, I decided I want to read lots more Steinbeck this year. Of Mice and Men is a re-read for me too, but the last time I read it was in high school so it'll be like a new story to me. I've not read Cannery Row yet so I look forward to that too. Edgar Sawtelle I'm really excited about since dogs play a big part in the story as I understand it.

#55 You can never go wrong with Mr. Steinbeck
I have to agree with you there Mark! I have to tell you, as far as lists go, I can write up plenty of good ones. The trick is to actually manage to read everything I put on them! lol. Like your idea of joining the Fantasy thread with Golden Compass. That's another one I look forward to. I saw the movie last year and loved every bit of it and in this case, something tells me having seen it won't take anything away from the reading of the book.

Starting my art classes this week with a painting class today. I'm excited about it but also a bit apprehensive. It's been ages since I've done something on a canvas (and have a bunch of paintings at various stages of progress to prove it!) The fact that I'm scared must prove that it'll be good for me, right? Or anyway, something like that...

Mark's one of my Steinbeck buddies. East of Eden and The Winter of Our Discontent are my favorites by a lot, but I dig all of the others a bunch.

Oh, and if you're up for a bit of a stretching of your reading interests, one of Stephen King's recent best, in my opinion, is Blaze, a re-telling of Of Mice and Men with a ghost playing one of the main characters.

#58 I guess we'll just have to form a Steinbeck Club if there isn't one already! I read East of Eden back in the 80's and I'd like to read again sooner than later. Haven't read Winter of Our Discontent yet, so on the WL it goes! I'm not averse to the odd stretching exercise and have read a couple of Stephen King books (my favourite so far is On Writing though I know it's not exactly typical!) and really like the premise of Blaze as you've described it so... gee, thanks Mac, another one for the WL! :-P

I finally decided to give audiobooks a try and downloaded a few inexpensive stories from iTunes to see how I like it. So far I've listened to The Gruffalo and A Bad Case of Stripes, both children's books that I'll just have to get on paper because I'm sure the illustrations are well worth it! I got Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass read by Christopher Plummer (you can never read those too many times, I don't think). I've also started listening to Oliver Twist as it's been aaaages since I've read it, but since it's the unabridged version it's over 15 hours long. Yikes! Personally, I don't see the appeal of abridged versions, but I'm listening if somebody feels otherwise. It was loads of fun to listen to as I prepared a nectarine and apple crunch and wouldn't you know it... was even tempted to do a bit of much needed tidying!

Hi Ilana. Librovox is a site for free audiobooks, they are narrated by volunteers. I've listened to a few from there and while the quality can vary, overall it is pretty good. Does your local library have e-digital audio books, I can download direct from my library's website.
I hope you manage to balance the thread reading, I've also been drowning in unread posts though on the plus side I've managed to finish a few books. I skim read a lot of the busier threads and only comment from time to time, though I'm way behind again. Last year I kept discovering great threads throughout the year and joined in from time to time but RL does mean you can't follow everything all the time.

Ilana- Like Mac mentioned, I am also a huge fan of Steinbeck, but I've neglected him, this past 10-15 years. Sad, I know. Let's push each other to read more of his stellar work.
Good luck with the audios. Actually 15 discs isn't bad. My current, Angelology is 17, that takes some time.

#61 Thanks for the referral to Librovox Kerry, I'll be curious to see what they have on offer. I haven't gone to a public library since my student days. One of the reasons being, I don't like to have time restrictions when I can avoid them and until recently didn't feel the need to go when I could either mooch or buy the books myself. But I may change my mind soon, especially if I can obtain and download audiobooks directly to my computer.

About the threads, I've already de-starred quite a few, not because I didn't find them interesting, but just so I could feel I had a reasonable amount of threads I can visit more or less regularly. It's already easier to handle. I'll obviously go visit other threads when I have time/inclination/energy to do so. But I do appreciate the sympathetic response I got from you and others. It seems to be a problem common to most of us who've joined this group!

#62 Mark, I'm all for encouraging each other to read (or re-read) more of Steinbeck's work, especially since I'd like to read quite a bit from him this year. Maybe we can start a page and encourage group reads? There are other books and authors I'd be interested in reading in a group context maybe, but I don't know how to go about organizing that, so am open to your suggestions. I had in mind, among others, Carson McCullers, whom I discovered 20 years ago and have been wanting to read again, specifically The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. Agatha Christie is another one I'd like to re-discover again, and I'm sure plenty of others would be happy to join along for her work.

Angelology looks interesting. I'll be curious to see what you have to say about it.

ETA: made lots of changes along the way. I edit therefore I am.

Today I received The Arrival by Shaun Tan and A Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket in the mail. I'm really excited about discovering them both.

Following a few exchanges on a few threads, I started thinking of having some months during the year in which I'd read several books across various genres based on a main theme. Then I thought if I create threads so people can join in, anybody could give suggestions of books on various themes, or just stop by to pick up suggestions and read them whenever they like. What gave me the idea is that in the past couple of weeks alone, I've picked up several recommendations for a variety of books having to do with Vermeer, whether directly or indirectly. I'm thinking of I Was Vermeer (non-fiction), Chasing Vermeer (YA), Girl with a Pearl Earring (fiction), just to name a few. I'm sure many other books that mention Vermeer in some way, including of course many art books showing his works! Another artist I'm intrigued with is William Morris. I've always loved his work and didn't know until a few days ago that he was also a writer and involved in political debates. He's referred to in my Sanderson: The Essence of English Decoration book (rather predictably in that case), and again with The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt which I'm reading right now, and again, I'm sure he's mentioned in quite a few other books, including books about him specifically and in his own novels and non-fiction too of course.

But it doesn't have to be just artists or famous people; another theme I might do is 'Animals' and we could base the themes on specific animal, like Dogs, Cats, Horses, Elephants, etc. There's also a specific kind of crime fiction called 'Noir' which might make a good theme, and would of course include classic works by (insert name of your favourite noir writer), but could also be comprised of illustrated books or graphic novellas, YA books inspired by noir, and non-fiction books, be it about noir movie directors, actors, writers and so on.

I'll name the threads Books By Theme. Each theme will have it's own thread and will be included in the 75ers group wiki so they won't get lost.

If you've read this message, and think you have ideas to contribute, I love to have your feedback! Have ideas for themes based on books you've read, are currently reading or in you tbr or wishlist? The BBT Main Thread is here.

Ilana- It looks like you came up with some interesting ideas! I'll try to see if I can come up with anything.
You will love The Arrival. It's a beautiful book. One of the 1st graphics I read.

For instance, do you think we should have specific months for specific themes

Preferably not. We already have many, many challenges that do just that. In contract, BBT would be a great place for people to stop by because they're interested in the theme regardless of the month (although it would be confined to the year because of how the 75 Book Challenges are set up).

#67 Mark, I look forward to your suggestions. AND to 'reading' The Arrival.

#68 Madeline, I completely agree with you, in fact I had meant to come back and edit that part out as I did on the main thread, but got caught up on the other threads. I did wonder about the fact that the threads are only good for the year, but maybe we can carry over the most popular themes somehow. Haven't tried wrapping my head around that issue yet.

8. The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson (on audiobook) ★★★★
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge)

This is a very cute children's story about a mouse who invents a scary creature called a Gruffalo to intimidate predators it comes across in the forest to avoid getting eaten, only to eventually come across an actual Gruffalo. The mouse then manages to convince the beast that it's the toughest animal around! Very cute little story in rhymes. It was my first audiobook experience and I quite enjoyed it, but seeing the book and the illustrations would definitely add to the experience.

9. A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon (on audiobook) ★★★★
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge)

Another very fun children's story. Camilla Cream loves lima beans, but she doesn't dare eat them because she's worried about what the kids at her school will think, since none of them like them. Then she wakes up one day with multicolour stripes all over her body, and when she finds none of her clothes look good with her new look, she stays at home while a bunch of people try to help her regain her usual appearance. Her condition only keeps worsening until she figures out how to just be herself. Again, I got this as an audiobook and thought the story was very well told. It's descriptive enough to be enjoyable as is, but I'm sure the illustrations make it more than worthwhile to get the book version.

Participating in Deborah's read-a-thon. I won't bog down my thread with a bunch of updates, but here's the first hour check-in and meme.

HOURS 0-1 (6-8 pm)

I've been reading: The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt
Books finished: 1
Pages read: 40
Posting time: 15 minutes
Reading time: 93 minutes (1 h 33)

Total books finished: 1
Total books read from: 1
Total pages read: 40
Total time read: 93 minutes (1 h 33)
Total time posting: 15 minutes

Comments: Glad I finished this one. It was good and/but very dense and quite long at 617 pages.

1. Where are you reading from today?Montreal, Québec, Canada. In my living room on my comfy recliner with my dog Coco more or less lying on top/next to me and my cat Mimi wandering by occasionally.
2. What three literary characters would you most want to meet?Walt from Paul Auster's Mr. Vertigo, Holly Golightly (because in my mind she'll always be Audrey Hepburn) and Mr. Ibrahim for Eric Emanuel Schmidt's Monsieur Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran (Mr. Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran). This one was tough to answer because I've never really thought about it before.
3. How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?I've finished one book so far. So anywhere between five and three hundred and twenty-eight.
4. Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on threads)?As I wrote in an earlier post: Finish The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt (done!). Try to finish or at least come close to finishing Sense and Sensibility. Finish my Egon Schiele book and start another art book (optional.) Start a new crime fiction book. Get started on one of the YA books I got this week, i.e. War Horse, The Bad Beginning or The Arrival. Continue with my Oliver Twist audiobook when I can't sit down to read. But other than that, no goals really. :-)
5. If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, do you have any advice for people doing this for the first time? Just have fun, that's the most important part. Also, stop and get some sleep when you need it.

Which Deborah? Arubabookwoman Deborah? Sounds like you've got a good mix of book--good luck!

#73 Bonnie, it was Cariola who did the hosting this time. We just finished at 6 pm. Here are my final stats and comments:

HOURS 22-24 ( 4-6 pm)

I've been reading: Sense and Sensibility and The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
Books finished: 0
Pages read: 81
Posting time: 20 minutes
Reading time: 77 minutes (1 h 17)

Total books finished: 2
Total books read from: 6
Total pages read: 390
Total time read: 593 minutes (9 h 53)
Total time posting: 188 minutes (3 h 18)

The End-of-Event Meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
Between 11 and 4 today when I had a hard time staying awake (and gave in to sleep finally).
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a reader engaged next time?
I was so intent on trying to finish books that I didn't think about that aspect too much.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the next read-a-thon?
No, everything was fine.
4. How many books did you read?
Finished 2 books, read out of 6 books total.
5. What were the names of the books you read?
The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt (finished)
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (almost finished)
Oliver Twist (audiobook)
Black and Blue by Ian Rankin (started)
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
Egon Schiele: The Leopold Collection (finished)
6. Which book did you enjoy most?
It's a tossup between The Children's Book and Sense and Sensibility
7. Which did you enjoy least?
I'm sorry to say that would probably be the Lemony Snicket so far as it sadly isn't living up to my expectations.
8. Did you learn about any books from other participants that you plan to put on your Wish List?
Been hearing lots of good things about Howards End is on the Landing.
9. How likely are you to participate in another read-a-thon?
Very good chance I will.

The moment I had feared has come. I started finding Sense and Sensibility and it's heroines insufferable sometime yesterday. I'm almost finished with it and feeling like a monster of cynicism for not being willing to suspend disbelief long enough to fully appreciate every nuance of feminine concern that Miss Austen describes in her book. Then I've picked up The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket and am almost halfway through, and not finding it funny in the least. I was expecting something altogether darker. I fear I may have a cold, cold heart. Where has the innocence and the romance gone to? Does it make me a bad person if I've let life knock the innocence out of me? Am I the only one to worry about these things?

Oh boy. That's what messing around with my sleep will do. Sure enough.

I'm totally with you on the insufferability of Elinor and Marianne. But we seem to be in the minority on that front.

#75 Mac, I've just got just a few pages to go and I have to say I'm not looking forward to rating and reviewing this one. I found plenty to enjoy about it, but ultimately I just feel like the whole thing is too silly... it's like a 19th century soap opera!

Wait 'till you see my review of Women in Love!

I'm looking forward to it!

10. The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt ★★★★
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI: books between 2.8 and 4.2)

In the opening pages, Olive Wellwood and he son Tom are visiting South Kensington Museum. Olive, a popular writer of children’s fantasy and fairy tales, is looking for an object to which she can attribute magical properties in her next novel, while her son Tom is on the trail of a young boy, Phillip, who is busily sketching some of the objects on display. When it is discovered the boy has made his temporary home in the museum’s basement, Olive offers to take him into her home, a sprawling property just South of London called Todefright. There, her banker husband and fellow Fabian Humphrey and their seven children are busily preparing decorations and costumes for their yearly Midsummer party, to which they invite their friends and neighbours, a jolly mix of socialists, anarchists, Quakers, Fabians, artists, editors, freethinkers, and writers. After the festivities, it is decided that the boy Phillip will go stay at Purchase House with the Fludds, to become an apprentice to the mercurial and brilliant potter Benedict Fludd, who’s work is on display at the museum.

The story follows the progress of the adults and children, their extended families and numerous friends and relations from the end of the Victorian era in 1895 through World War One, so it’s clear from the beginning that things are going to go horribly wrong eventually, and they do. Olive’s dark fairy tales form a central motif throughout, the book title referring to a collection of notebooks she has created for each of her children, each containing ongoing adventures, though it is Tom’s story which she works at the most and it takes on larger than life implications. Through these characters, many issues of great relevance in England during that period are encompassed, including women’s higher education and the suffrage movement, the class wars, anarchism and socialism. The Arts and Crafts movement is a recurring theme, and various historical figures are incorporated into the story such as William Morris, Edward Carpenter, J.M. Barrie, Oscar Wilde, Auguste Rodin, Emma Goldman and Rupert Brooke.

I found this book by turns fascinating and frustrating. The main story elements were engaging and the unfolding drama was captivating, but my limited understanding of several of the issues broached prevented me from gaining a fuller appreciation for the many ways in which Byatt wove historical and fictional elements together. At the same time, for one interested in that period, the book provides plenty of threads one can pick up on for further reading. Recommended for those interested in works of great scope and intellectual stimulation. As an aside, I have to say that the cover design in itself is a work of art and played a large role in my decision to purchase this book. Glad I did.
This review can also be found on the book's main page.

11. Egon Schiele: The Leopold Collection by Rudolf Leopold ★★★½
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI: books about art)

Egon Schiele (June 12, 1890 – October 31, 1918) was an Austrian painter. He was a protégé of Gustav Klimt, and as such his early work showed strong Art Nouveau, or Jugendstil influences, though very quickly, his use of strong expressive lines, twisted body shapes and unusual colour combinations became closer in style to that of the Expressionists. During his lifetime, Schiele was accused of producing pornographic imagery, and there's no denying that he had a fixation on the female sex. Partly because of this, his work was not given full recognition until much later on in the 20th century. Rudolph Leopold began collecting art in the 1950's, including works by Gustav Klimt and Oskar Kokoschka, but he especially favoured works by Egon Schiele, which could be had inexpensively at the time. The Austrian government purchased his extensive collection in 1994 and the Leopold Museum in Vienna, which was opened to the public in 2001, now houses the world's largest permantent collection of Schiele's work. The book features works from Schiele's student days in 1907 to 1918, the year of Schiele's death during the flu pandemic. The works are arranged chronologically, with large, high-quality reproductions, each accompanied with notes by Leopold, and there is a short biography of Schiele's life at the end of the book.

I've only become recently interested in this artist. I re-discovered him at the museum bookstore during a trip to view an exhibition of the work of Otto Dix. Schiele's work is disturbing. He was fascinated with death and distressing imagery—even his landscapes and cityscapes can be unbearably oppressive—but I was drawn by the many drawings and watercolours in the book which show Schiele's undeniable strengths as a draughtsman and bold colourist, which are of interest to me as an art student. I was only able to look at this book a few pages at a time, and while I found some of Leopold's commentary interesting, it suffered from a lack of objectivity, as Leopold was likely one of the artist's biggest fans. While I still can't be counted among Schiele's strongest supporters, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in influential early 20th century art.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

I finished Sense and Sensibility last night and will take a couple of days to think it over before posting my review about it. It's been a long time since I've read a romance and I can't say I missed it so much. I loved the irony in Austen's writing but the chick-lit saccharine sweet components didn't go down so well. I'm off to read about nasty murderers and the grumpy and unkempt inspector Rebus in Black and Blue. Somehow, I can relate to him a lot better than to Marianne and Elinor and their romantic trials and tribulations.

Morning Ilana - two great reviews, both are thumbed.
I have The Children's Book on my watchlist, but after reading the latest reviews (all saying something like 'good but not great') I will keep it there a little longer.

I just had a look at some of Schiele's works and found them strangely intense. I might take a trip to Vienna this year, I'll make sure to visit the Leopold museum then.

Ilana- Loved the reviews! I've had Byatt on my radar forever. I've not read her and I don't think I have any of her books either. Sad. I plan on getting to Sense and Sensibility soon. Have a nice Sunday.

Hi Ilana: I love your idea about listing the books you'd like to complete in an upcoming month. Great idea to put that front and center and then see how you're doing with it. I may give that a try for February.

I figure I'd probably veer off somewhat but it'd be a nice target.

Laughing at your comments on Sense and Sensibility - I really did not enjoy my reread of it either, though in general I love Austen. Interesting stuff on The Children's Book, which was one of my favourite books in 2009. It is definitely dense, and I know I had to look up a lot of the references as I read it, but I thought Byatt's writing was amazing, and her characters wonderful to read about.

#83 Thanks for the thumbs up Nathalie! I can see why The Children's Book would attract less than glowing comments. What I didn't say in my review is that based on what little I knew about this book, I had quite different expectations from it. Much is made about Olive's children's stories and especially about the fact that she devotes a small book to each of her children in which she writes an ongoing fairy tale, which is what the book's title refers to. I was expecting the story to have a lot more to do with that, but of course it is much wider in scope. In the end, we find that Olive's stories are of great importance in the overall scheme of things, but it took quite some time for that to become clear. When came time to write my review, I could hardly fault Byatt for giving me more than what I had expected!

As for Schiele, 'intense' is a good word to describe him and I'm sure it's well worth seeing his work in person. I'd be curious to know what you think about it once you see it for yourself. I passed through Vienna once as a child and was very sorry that we didn't have time to wander about because it must be a wonderful place to visit.

#84 Mark, glad you liked the reviews. I've been curious about Byatt's Possession for a long time, but the fact that the main subject was poetry put me off somewhat since I'm not a big fan of poetry generally, though I've been told one can enjoy the book regardless. I have Angels and Insects which I look forward to reading because I saw the movie based on that short story once and thought it was brilliant. Very disturbing, but brilliant. I picked up The Children's Book because the main topic really appealed to me, but as I said to Nathalie above, I ended up getting a lot more than I expected! I look forward to your Fantasy February—can't wait to get my nose into The Golden Compass and I've got a couple of Steampunk novels lined up as well!

#85 The only reason I decided making lists like that is I start off with these intentions of reading certain books and before I know it, they get pushed aside by whatever else I have the impulse to order in the meantime! Like you say, it's not a binding obligation, though I have to say surprisingly I've kept pretty close to my goals for January so far!

#86 Cait, you know every time I make comments on S&S—on the spoiler thread and here too for instance—I worry that I'm really going to offend people because I know that some Austen fans are incredibly devoted to her and since I've never read her before I don't want to step on anyone's toes! But then again I'm more interested in having intelligent conversations about what I'm reading than just blindly agreeing with everyone and I'm glad to see that you also felt some reservations this time. As for The Children's Book, I never mark up a book as I'm reading it and don't like to interrupt my reading to look things up, but there were many times when I was tempted to underline things in this one for further study later. I can't say how grateful I am for the existence of wikipedia as a reference tool!

ooh I love Rebus, miss him so much. I've read all Rankin's novels but now am in love with Salvo Montalbano. I skimmed your review of The Children's Book because I intend to read it and want to go in knowing as little about it as possible.

#89 Kerry, I tend to skim reviews also for certain books I'd rather go into with no preconceived ideas. I'll be very curious to see what you have to say about it once you've read it. I started reading the Rebus series sometime last year and am reading them all out of order since I've obtained 95% of them via BookMooch and also listed them again on BM before I'd read them to sort of 'force' me to read them and not put them aside in favour of more 'serious' literature. I'm greatly enjoying Black and Blue so far, probably more than the others even, and will have 4 more Rebus books to read between now and February, so you'll probably be hearing about them! I'll probably want to take a break from them for a while afterward and want to start reading Montalbano soon!

12. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen ★★★
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge, TIOLI: 3.8 to 4.2 and for Group Read)

Sisters Elinor Dashwood (the elder and reasonable one) and Marianne Dashwood (the younger and impetuous one) are at the heart of this romantic novel. Their father has passed away, leaving the bulk of his fortune to his son John from a previous marriage, entrusting him with the care of his sisters and step-mother. But John's wife Fanny, a selfish and wonderfully disagreeable woman, soon convinces him that the best he can do is to give them nothing at all and store away the bulk of his inheritance for their young son's future prosperity. Money plays a large part in this novel, as does the importance of marrying into it, and the sisters, with their limited fortune must consider marrying well. While taking a walk one day, Marianne trips and falls to be immediately rescued by the dashing young Willoughby, who conveniently happens to be walking by at that moment. With all the ardour of her immaturity and spirit, and with Willoughby's constant attention, Marianne falls hopelessly in love and it is quickly assumed that the young couple are engaged to be married, but Marianne is soon bitterly disappointed by the young playboy and much drama ensues. Meanwhile, Elinor discretely pines after her Edward only to discover one day that he is secretly engaged, but she suffers in silence as Marianne stomps around pouting and crying bitter tears and falls dangerously ill from a broken heart. Many complications ensue. Then, many sudden convenient plot twists occur, and both ladies find love and eternal wedded bliss and material comfort after all. The End.

This was my fist Jane Austen novel and I was at first immediately charmed by her irony and the witty dialogue, in particular when describing the unpleasant Fanny Dashwood and other secondary characters, such as Edward's fiancée Lucy Steele. But the drama! The bitter disappointments! The dashed hopes which are magically restored! It was too much like a soap opera for me and I couldn't help but groan and wish for zombies to come in and bite people's heads off, even though zombies really aren't my thing. Will I read more Austen novels? Yes, I plan on reading Pride and Prejudice next. Am I likely to be counted among Austen's legions of devoted fans? Not likely, if I don't find a stronger injection of irony thrown into the mix. But one can always hope.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

Once again a great review though I liked the book more than you did.

"Marianne trips and falls to be immediately rescued by the dashing young Willoughby, who conveniently happens to be walking by at that moment"

I always wondered about this scene. There isn't a single young man to be found in this area, but just when Marianne falls and twists her ankle, Willoughy turns up for the rescue. Isn't it beautiful? It must have been fate! No wonder she falls in love with him.

>80 Smiler69:: I found this book by turns fascinating and frustrating...exactly why The Children's Book sits on my shelf unread. One of these days I'll be in the mood for a long, frustrating read I hope. Possession by Byatt was a memorable read for me so I will get to it someday.

all my comments to transfer here. This is my last try. ;-)

Weird stuff happening this morning on LT!

It's been a long time since I've read a romance and I can't say I missed it so much.

LOL! Me, too!

I have much the same reaction when attempting to read Austen -- too much like a soap opera. You seem to tolerate it all better than I do. It's not at all interesting to me.

#94 Terri, I'll come clean and admit that I had a brief (very brief) period as a teenager when I read a handful of Harlequin romances. Even then I viewed them with cynicism, and though I moan and groan a lot about the occasional The Bachelor show that I'll watch here and there, there's part of it that fascinates me, much like one can't resist looking at an accident on the road or observe an ant struggling upwards with a huge burden on it's back. But in all seriousness, I just had to take the plunge and discover Jane Austen for myself. After all, she is mentioned so often and has been influential for so many authors since then that I just felt the need to go straight to the source.

Ilana- I just started Sense and Sensibility today on audio and it's been okay. My opinion might be close to yours, we'll see. My first Austen was Pride and Prejudice, which I read recently and loved, so don't give up.

Mark, I'll look forward to read your review of S&S when you finish with it. Everyone seems to agree that P&P is far superior, so I'm actually looking forward to it.

I joined in on Ellie's read-a-thon today and have made progress on The Bells and Black and Blue and enjoying both quite a bit, and then couldn't resist devouring the graphic novel The Arrival which is absolutely gorgeous and wonderfully imaginative. Loved it! I'm a couple of reviews behind but will get there soon enough.

Hi Ilana, I'me echoing Deern in saying great review of S&S although it sounds like it's one I like more than you did.

Enjoy the readathon!

Ilana- I'm anxious to hear your thoughts on The Bells. When I first heard about it, (on BOTNS of course), it really sounded interesting.
I'll stop by after work and check out your list.

#98 Thanks Heather, glad you enjoyed my review!

#99 I'll be sure to write a review about The Bells, especially since it was an Early Reviewer book I got wayyyyyyy long ago. I keep forgetting about ER books, or just putting them aside forever and of course I do review them eventually, but I'm just surprised they still keep sending me any at all! Maybe they like my reviews? Maybe I'm just lucky... who knows?

Will post my list shortly. You've just reminded me about it, thanks!

BOOKS TO GIVE AWAY ON BOOKMOOCH

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
The Manticore by Robertson Davies
The Surf Guru by Doug Dorst
This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Still Alice by Lisa Genova
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Le rocher de Tanios by Amin Maalouf
Be the Pack Leader by Cesar Millan
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

If you are a BookMooch member, I'll be happy to reserve the books for you on BM where you can then mooch them from me. I do encourage taking more than one book, as will save me on postage. I've just created a temporary collection in my library called To Give Away on BM. That way you can see the editions and covers and only those that are actually still available as I will remove those that get reserved as we go.

A few things to know:

1. I can only mail out a few books every month as shipping from Canada is ridiculously expensive. So if you aren't in a hurry and don't mind waiting anywhere from 1-6 months, I'll gladly send them as soon as I can.

2. To view the available selection, go to my library and select the 'To Give Away on BM' collection. Along with the others I've also listed The Historian and A Suitable Boy, both of which are huge and very expensive to ship. If you're interested in either one, please contact me so we can agree on some kind of arrangement so that I don't have to ruin myself to send them.

3. I can only send books to BookMooch members at this time, sorry (see #1).

4. You can post here or send me a comment to ask for books.



Thanks, and happy browsing!

First off..I love Ian Rankin's REBUS series...have just begun collecting them on the Swap sites...don't know squat about the British isles, per se...except that my friend Sidonie LeBeque lives in Lunnon/London

I also love A S Byatt...have read most of her work..have The Children's Bookon board...i thought Possession was a masterpiece..only because i could never figure how she wrote two-books-in-one.....but then, i don't 'write" any more

;-}

I don't know much about the British Isles either. Have been there (i.e. England) twice but definitely not been to Scotland which must be very much worth the visit, and have the hardest time 'hearing' the Scottish accent when am reading Rebus, which is a shame. Maybe an audiobook would cure that? I've gotten 95% of them on BookMooch myself.

As for Byatt, I'll read Angels and Insects and if she continues to rub me the right way, then I'll commit to reading Possession. I get scared of big books, so have to get mentally prepared for them!

Ilana- Only 2? What a tease! I've read The Historian and A Suitable Boy is on a distant wishlist. It's so damn big!
I'll wait for your next teaser list!
BTW- I need to get to Byatt!

Angels and Insects is good....so is Elementals if you want to go for shorter pieces...i have read both...they are worth the time

The accents in the REBUS books don't bother me..i have a harder time with the hillbilly ones i hear every day, where i live...go figger..i don't do Audiobooks myself...but i wouldn't slag 'em....might help you

;-)

I had an appointment at the Montreal Neurological Hospital today to see my neuro about my migraines. He says the best we can hope for is to slightly reduce the pain levels but not likely I'll ever get less of them. Why am I not surprised? Wouldn't know who I'd be without them anyway!

Anyway, what I actually wanted to write about is that whenever I'm in that general area I always drop by my favourite used book store which is The Word on Milton Street. Every time I decide to go I think I'll just get one or two books, that's it. and inevitably they're received a whole bunch of books which are already on my wishlist or should be and I walk out of there with a huge bulging bag!

Today I got:
The Big Sleep and The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
The Best of Roald Dahl
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers, which will be a re-read
The Interpreters of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
Carry On, Jeeves, my first Wodehouse!

and I also received The Messenger by Daniel Silva via BookMooch today.
Not bad for one day. Now, where will I put them all?

#104 Mark, now I understand. There are 14 books right now, but you have to go view them in my library. I thought I made that clear but maybe not.

#105 Jude, what I meant to say is I wish I could 'hear' the Scottish accent when I read those books to add to the local flavour because when I read them, I just hear a normal North American accent instead, which isn't quite right. That's why I said audiobooks might help in that regard.

Nice rake!

13. The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket ★★★
I wasn't enthralled with this one. I guess with all the warnings by Lemony Snicket himself about how 'unpleasant' this story will be, I was expecting the tale of the three Baudelaire orphans to be much darker—in a funny way—and I it was dark in many ways, but I was left wanting. Still not bad, but I won't be looking for the others in the series.



14. The Arrival by Shaun Tan ★★★★★
This wordless graphic novel is an absolute jewel. It tells the tale of a man who emigrates to another land, leaving behind his wife and young daughter. When he arrives in a strange city on board a ship along with hundreds of other travellers,
he encounters a surprising and mysterious cityscape beyond the harbour. The immigrants are taken through a place very much like Ellis island, and once having been processed through all the proper bureaucratic channels, our hero lands in a dwelling with mysterious apparatus where a friendly and bizarre creature starts showing him around. Everything is different in this new place, from the writing to the cityscapes, to the methods of transportation, the plants, the food and the many creatures that accompany everyone. Only the people look like regular humans, but otherwise this might as well be another planet. The countless exquisite illustrations tell the story of what it feels like to be a stranger in a different country with a completely unfamiliar culture, where even the simplest things are incomprehensible to a newcomer. Wonderfully imaginative, the whole book—including the blank pages—is a work of art. It’s one of my all-time favourites already. This review can also be found on the book's main page



15. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak ★★★★
I perused this classic children's book at the bookstore and couldn't believe that I hadn't done so before. It tells the story of a naughty little boy who is sent to his room and imagines himself travelling to a distant land where he encounters scary monsters who declare the boy to be their king, as he is the wildest of the wild creatures. Again, gorgeous illustrations. Good thing it's never too late to enjoy children's books!

#108 Mac, I must be really tired because I have no idea what you mean. I'll probably kick myself when you tell me, but I don't mind looking stupid in the process of trying to 'get' a joke! :-P

ETA: x-nay that. I think I got it. Referring to my new bundle of books I guess. Sorry, I'm a bit dense tonight!

Not a joke, just slang for nice haul on the books you got.

Yes, I figured it out finally. I must be on Pacific time.

Okay, we won't agree on the Lemony Snicket books...because i own the entire series...and wish I had these/those books when i was but a child...many years ago..I wouldn't give up these books if you held a gun to my head...

The Arrival..i must check out...onto The (massive) List it goes

Where the Wild Things Are...i gave my Dainty Thumb to your review...I nicked my copy from the Library when i was in College...my copy is old and well-loved...thank you for not making me look a fool....."Children's Books" is often a cruel misnomer (did i just type that?)

>107 Smiler69: I figured that is what you meant...

;-}

We can agree to disagree on Lemony Snicket. I really wanted to love it and almost bought a bundle instead of just the first one because felt sure I'd love the whole series from what I heard about it and some recommendations I got. but book love is such a personal thing. The Arrival is an absolute treasure. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone. Where the Wild Things Are: I think I'll have to buy a copy for myself eventually too. It's so wonderful. And the illustrations are so rich that I can't ever imagine tiring of them. 'Children's Books' doesn't bother me as a label, I figure they speak to the inner child in all of us, right? ;-)

"Inner Child"???

I'm 60..haven't grown up yet

so, sue me....LOL

There, we have that in common for sure! :-D

Yesssssssss

...Are these your pets??? in the Pics above?

The doggie makes me nervous..i don't like "Lap Dogs"...but that's me...i am not a Dog Person

The cat is something else...when i was in college i had a cat with coloring the exact opposite of yours..and his eyes were "almost blue"....my LAZARUS was a spawn of the devil..but i loved him and hated to give him away when i graduated.,,,

Jeesh, talk about TWILIGHT ZONE moments!

666666666

Ilana- I found your BM list! I'm slow sometimes! Now I know! Have a good day!

I wasn't enthralled by the first Lemony Snicket book either - I just read it earlier this month. It was okay, but I think, like you, that I was expecting something different.

#117 Yes those are two of my kids up there, Mimi and Coco. I have another cat, called Ezra who doesn't like to be near Coco, so he's never in 'group' shots. Coco is quite a fun little fellow, very trusting/loving and also very mellow so even people who don't like 'lap dogs' tend to quickly fall in love with him. Mimi is full of energy and purrs like a Mac truck. They are both rescues, meaning that I adopted them and gave them a loving home but they are the ones who rescue me on a daily basis.

#118 I hope you'll find something that interests you in there Mark. I sort of wanted to give you first dibs, so I'll broadcast it more when you let me know if you want anything or not.

#119 Hi Angela. I felt so badly about not loving that book since I know the series is incredibly popular. But then again there are so many books out there that theres no sense sticking to those the don't appeal to us, right? By the way, my Ezra looks a lot like your Ms. Stripes. I'll upload pictures of him on my profile page soon.

I definitely recommend getting The Gruffalo with illustrations. There's also The Gruffalo's Child, Monkey Puzzle, Room on the Broom among many by this team, and I also like the one about the musician's cat, and the new one, Zog about a dragon. And Julia Donaldson has also done books with other illustrators, I recommend Tyrannosaurus Drip with David Roberts, and Cave Baby with Emily Gravett is lovely.

>120 Smiler69:...I give you props for the RESCUE...my uncle David rescued two dogs and he loved them so much..over the past year...both of them died...he is seriously sad...If my old MISS KITTY would die...i'd go "very weird"

You added some GOTHIC TALES....no?

;-}

#121 Thanks so much for the recommendations! I'll have to make my way to a library and spend some time in the children's section eventually so I can see all these great books. It's been decades since I visited a library last, so it'll be quite a special outing when I do!

#122 Jude, I had a gf over today and she was telling me that she discovered Elizabeth Gaskell recently and quite likes her work. So I came here on LT to see what titles she's written and when I saw Gothic Tales, I added it to my wishlist. I'm participating in the Austenathon and someone suggested we read true Gothic novels before reading Northanger Abbey so we can fully appreciate the references Austen makes in her book, but I'll definitely look up your suggestions!

My two eldest 'kids' are going on 8 and Mimi is only going on 3, so they all still have quite a lot of good years in them. Also, the smaller the dog, the longer they live usually, typically around 15 years or more. Fingers crossed. I hate to think of the day they'll depart because they really are like family members to me, but I've decided that when that happens, I'll immediately adopt other kids, both to help me through the grief and also to give other animals a loving home. There are so many out there who aren't so lucky... I just try to help in small ways when I can.

Oh, Ilana

Elizabeth Gaskell...I haven't read since College...but i think i have one of her books...somewhere in the BOOKWORLD

Jane Austen??? Do You want a Story??? Okay

My brother..in college..10 years older than MOI.....calls me on the phone (this is way before email..maybe 1963)...he is supposed to read Emma for an EnglishLit class..he offers me $20...to read the book and send him my "notes".....long story short...he passed the class on my "notes".....go figger

I still love Emma...but i can't do Group Reads

oh Seven Gothic Tales.is excellent

;-}

I haven't read any of Karen Blixen's work yet, although I do mean to and Seven Gothic Tales seems as good a place as any to start with! Adding it to the WL.

16. The Bells by Richard Harvell ★★★★

This historical fiction novel tells the story of Moses Froben, born in the mid 18th century to a deaf-mute woman who rang the "Loudest Bells on Earth" atop a small church in the mountains of Switzerland. Those who got too close to the church lost their hearing, but not so Moses who spent his life directly under the bells and from the earliest age had the ability to isolate sounds and hear things not audible to the average person. When the local priest learns that Moses in not in fact deaf like his mother and is therefore aware of mortal sins he has committed, he attempts to drown the boy. Moses is saved by two Monks who bring him back with them to the Abbey of St. Gall against the Abbott's wishes, and he soon joins the boy's choir when his exceptional voice is discovered. The choirmaster, obsessed with his gift, takes him under his wing until one day he has Moses castrated against his will in order to preserve his voice.

When the Abbott eventually learns of this sacrilegious deed, he gives Moses a choice: he can stay at the abbey as a novice if he agrees never to sing again, or he will be cast out into the world and starve. Moses agrees to stay, but as he grows older, love prompts him to break all the rules, and when he learns that his beloved has been married off to a rich merchant from Vienna, the young castrato* makes his way to the Austrian city to find his beloved.

Musici, or castrati, were superstars and sex-symbols during that period, when throngs of men and women fought to get a glimpse of their smooth faces and unusually developed physiques. Moses already had dreams of becoming a famous opera singer before arriving in the city and he gets close to realizing his dreams when the most idolized musico* in Vienna decides to take him on as his disciple. But his love for singing is only equal to his love for the young woman he has followed there. Moses is willing to take any risk to win her back again, and here, an even louder bell than that which he was born under will help him win back his heart's desire.

I greatly enjoyed this novel. The first person account of how Moses came to be one of the greatest singers of his time is well paced and filled with adventure. One can't help but feel sympathy for this boy who is at the heart of a story about great passions, and one about great losses as well. There were many unlikely details great and small throughout, but I was willing to overlook them for the sake of an entertaining story that touched my heart and made it difficult for me to put this book down.

*A castrato (Italian, plural: castrati) is a man with a singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto voice produced either by castration of the singer before puberty or one who, because of an endocrinological condition, never reaches sexual maturity. Castrati were rarely referred to as such: in the 18th century, the euphemism musico (pl musici) was generally used, although it usually carried derogatory implications.

Click here to hear a recording of modern-day male soprano Radu Marian singing Antonio Maria Bononcini's Vorrei pupille belle.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

Starting on Through a Glass Darkly by Donna Leon for the read-a-thon right now!

I am not even going to try and catch up, Ilana, since I am 65 messages behind, so I shall start again from this point forward.

Lol. No problem Stasia, I'm just happy to have your visit.

Super interesting review of The Bells, Lisa! So that really happened to boys? Wow!

The Bells sounds really good, Ilana - it's going onto the Giant Freaking Wishlist. I interested in learning more about the subject ever since I saw the movie Farinelli which is about a very famous castrato of the era. (Wonder if there is any non-fiction stuff written about them?)
As for Elizabeth Gaskill, I read Wives and Daughters back in 2009 and liked it very much. I have North and South still to read - hopefully someday soonish.

Love your review of The Bells...it's been on THE LIST for a while....reminds me, in a way, of Perfume crossed with Cry to Heaven..... the sensual mixed with the sensible mixed with the Church...

On the Gothic Front (the only way to fight!)...i found this gem The Angelic Avengers written by Isak Dinesen under the pen name Pierre Andrezel...written as a post-war condemnation of Hitler & Nazism...in the guise of a Poe-like horror fest

;-}

#130 Bonnie, there have been eunuchs around for thousands of years, but yes, the castrati were specifically castrated to preserve their voices. Seems unbelievable now, I know.

#131 I saw Farinelli eons ago and still have it on video, even though my ancient video player hasn't worked for years now. I agree that a non-fiction book on the topic could be really interesting.

#132 I agree with your comparison with Perfume Jude, in fact, that's exactly the book that came to mind a few times when he was describing the lengths he would go to to 'collect' sounds. Don't know about Cry to Heaven, haven't read that one but knowing Anne Rice, you must be right on the money. Am I to understand that you're a big Gothic fiction fan? I'll look this one up too. How many pen names did Karen Blixen have exactly??

How funny - I also owned Farinelli on video. I chucked it however when I finally came to terms with the fact that video is dead. Plan to replace it with a dvd, though.

Me, Gothic?? You bet!....but not what I call "Cheesy Gothic"..I like the creep show aspect just fine....but there has to be a story and decent characters to back it up!

Cry to Heaven was one of Anne Rice's books (the other was The Feast of All Saints) that I read before i dove into the VAMPIRE/MAYFAIR WITCHES series...not that the latter are "bad"...but the earlier books are real treats

Karen Blixen's pen names???? have no idea how many....but...there is a wonderful biography by Judith Thurman Isak Dinesen: The Life of a Storyteller....which i read dog years ago and can't recall a thing..DUH!

I don't mean to come across as a smarty pants/know-it-all...but I read many, many books before joining LT...and I like to share the wealth

;-)

#134: Charlotte, the only reason I'm still holding on to it is that I only have a handful of videos, most of which were given to me by my parents when they moved to France. I've gotten a few DVDs over the years, but stopped buying then when my player went on the fritz and only been getting movies via iTunes these past few years. The movies that my parents gave me were really excellent and not so easy to find, and I just can't bring myself to part with them even though I can't actually watch them. Silly, I know.

By the way, just wanted to say I was happy to see you'd dropped by, I was starting to really miss your visits and worried you didn't come because there are too many posts on my thread! :-P

ETA: I'm not very popular, I promise!

Don't fret, Ilana. Your thread never has more than a few unread messages, for I visit very often. I don't always leave a comment; I guess sometimes I don't feel witty enough. Have been slogging through The Deerslayer and hope to get it done this weekend. It's not bad - it's just from another era when styles were so different. It's too bad it's not kosher to sic an editor on it so that it could be spruced up a bit and made more readable. Of course I realize that would be treading dangerously close to tampering with a classic to make it more in tune with modern sensibilities and makes me think of that story about the clown who decided that Huckleberry Finn needed to be made more politically correct. Heresy!

Don't listen to me - I'm just maundering on, wishing for the next book. Don't dare put TD aside to pick up something I might like better, for I know I will not pick it up again and it will just become ANOTHER abandoned book. I - will - finish.

Good luck with finishing TD Charlotte. I just read the summary page and don't think I would enjoy that one so much. Personally, I decided at one point that I wouldn't force myself to finish a book that doesn't inspire me, but then again sometimes I do just that and then am grateful that I've stuck to it after all.

I just finished listening to the unabridged Oliver Twist and have to say that the whole business with 'The Jew', and the inherent anti-semitic sentiment rubbed me the wrong way throughout (even though Dickens asserted that he hadn't intended it to be perceived that way). But I had a similar conversation with someone about the dangers of trying to 'update' works for modern sensibilities; yes, some things may be offensive for modern readers, but there's no sense in trying to re-write history either. And trying to make a classic 'more readable' leaves the door open to too many potential changes, as you say. To me the idea is just as preposterous as retouching masterpieces to make the painting more 'with the times'.

Keep on keeping on, I'll be reading your review!

17. Black and Blue by Ian Rankin ★★½

In this, the 8th book in the Inspector Rebus series, we find our cantankerous inspector trying to solve several seemingly unrelated cases. There’s a man who’s been found impaled on a fence, tied to a chair with a plastic bag over his head which some are wanting to call a suicide, though Rebus doesn’t agree with that version of events. There’s a serial killer who’s offed three women so far, that the media has named Johnny Bible, since it appears he is mimicking the methods of a serial killer who was active decades earlier, then known as Bible John. There’s a snitch who turns up dead, and based on a phone number Rebus discovers at the man’s house and the finding that the plastic bag man was an oil worker on the ocean rigs near Aberdeen he decides to visit that town, where he is convinced a thug, his girlfriend and his son are selling drugs to the bored oil workers when they come off their two-week shifts. While he’s at it, Rebus accuses several policemen of being on the take and is badly beaten up a couple of times for putting his nose into affairs some people think don’t concern him. He is also put under arrest and questioned, then shadowed 24/7 by a former colleague, since he is suspected of being Johnny Bible, even though eye witnesses maintain that Johnny Bible is much younger than he is. The narration also alternates between Rebus’ and Bible John's activities as the latter attempts to find his copycat. In the midst of all this, our hard-drinking inspector decides to go on the wagon. And how could I forget? In the mix, there are also environmental groups putting pressure on the oil companies to prevent them from abandoning their rigs in the ocean.

Confused? So was I. I’ve read a few Rebus books and couldn’t make heads nor tails out of this one. It started out well enough, and I was eager to continue exploring this 500 page crime fiction novel which has won numerous awards and honours, but I got lost amidst the confusion of all the interwoven storylines that didn’t seem to connect in a plausible way (or maybe they did when I stopped paying attention). Frustrating. But there’s still plenty of intrigue and something irresistible about this unpleasant, grumpy detective that keeps me from declaring this one a total bomb.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

18. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens (on audiobook - unabridged) ★★★

I read this book some thirty years ago and decided to refresh my memory by listening to it as read by Peter Wickham—probably one of innumerable out-of-work actors—when I saw it on offer for $3.95 on iTunes.

The story follows the progress of the orphaned Oliver Twist, as he is taken from the orphanage to the workhouse and then to an undertaker as an apprentice. Cruelly taunted by another jealous apprentice, he is beaten when he lashes out, after which he runs away to London on foot—a distance of 70 miles, which he covers in one week. Upon arrival he meets the Artful Dodger who offers Oliver some food and a place to sleep and brings him to an old Jewish man called Fagins. The old man and his gang of pickpockets teach Oliver how to steal gentlemen’s handkerchiefs. Through a series of events, Oliver is taken in by a rich and kind gentleman who sees that Oliver is a sincere and gentle soul and decides to give the boy a home and offer him an education. But Fagins arranges to have Oliver brought back to him, and along with his brutal accomplice Bill Sikes, the orphan is forced to continue in a life of crime. Many many trials and tribulations and heartbreak ensue, and eventually, with a good dose of luck and serendipity all’s well that ends well.

I very much enjoyed the ironic tone of Dickens as he describes the conditions of the poor who were subject to the New Poor Law at the time, which in fact did little to help them and in many ways made their lives even more miserable. This novel is a powerful social commentary as is well known, and it’s easy to see where Dickens’ sympathies lie. The lengthy narrative of this story, which was originally published in monthly instalments is best enjoyed in small doses, and I found that trying to listen to too many chapters at once kept me from enjoying the excellent quality of the writing and quickly became tedious.

With the exception of Nancy, a young prostitute and Bill Sikes’ girlfriend who decided to do all she could to help young Oliver—and came to a very brutal end for that reason—most of the characters were shown as being either all good or all bad. This was especially problematic for me in the portrayal of Fagan—usually referred to as ‘The Jew’—who was depicted as a reprehensible, cruel and grotesque creature throughout; a real caricature of the miserly Jew at his absolute worst. When he was accused of anti-semitism, Dickens asserted that he had simply meant to depict a specific kind of criminal, who at that time just so happened to usually be a Jewish man, and he apparently tried to remedy to that by referring to him mostly as ‘Fagan’ in the last chapters of the serial. But even allowing for the fact that the novel was written at a time when prejudices were openly aired, the not-so-implicit anti-semitism was hard for me to bear and took away from my general enjoyment of the story, to which I would have otherwise given a higher rating.

This review can be found on the book's main page.

(oops! double posted! will put another review here instead.)

Another great review. I haven't read many of Dicken's books, but Our Mutual Friend I loved.
So pleased that you enjoyed The Arrival, I was lucky enough to attend a seminar where Shaun Tan presented a slide show about his artwork for the book and got my copy signed complete with cute little drawing.
Anther interesting illustrator is Anthony Browne who is obsessed with gorillas and with your interest in art I suggest looking for The Shape Game, which he created around the time he was Illustrator in Residence at The Tate or Willy's Pictures.
The correct descriptor for these is 'sophisticated picturebooks' and it's wonderful that they are in the world and available for children and teens to discover.

Nice reviews, Ilana!

#142 Kerry, I believe this is the only Dickens I've read so far, but I have a few others on my shelves: Great Expectations (which I'd like to read quite soon) as well as A Tale of Two Cities and Hard Times. I think I'll read those before I got more of his work. I wasn't familiar with Anthony Browne and from what I can see, find his work very appealing. I'll really have to make my way to the library eventually, or maybe I can just add some of the children's books you recommend to my BM wishlist as a visit to the library is not likely to happen anytime soon. I'm so envious of your signed edition of the Arrival! I'd love to see the little drawing he did, is there any way you can scan it and display it on your thread (or on this one)?

it's wonderful that they are in the world and available for children and teens to discover.
Erm... and adults too, right? ;-)

#143 Thanks Stasia. I'm behind with a couple of them but I think this will continue being the case if I keep reading at this pace.

19. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (on audiobook - unabridged) ★★★★

It might seem weird that I chose to listen to the audio version of what is described as ‘A novel in cartoons’, but when I found it on iTunes I couldn’t resist the voice of Ramon de Ocampo, who does a fantastic job with the narration. Our wimpy kid Greg is given a diary by his mother—even though he specifically asked for a journal and NOT a diary (don’t expect me to be all ‘dear diary’ this and ‘dear diary that’ he says in the beginning)—in which Greg recounts some highlights from his daily life, from his first day in middle school all through the academic year. Along the way he describes his home life, starting with Roderick his older brother who plays mean tricks on him like the time he woke Greg up in the middle of the night at the beginning of summer vacation and tricked him into believing he’d slept through the whole summer and had to hurry to get ready for the first day of school. Greg’s adventures are hilarious, and what makes them even funnier is the deadpan approach he takes to relating even the silliest stories that make him look very bad indeed. He’s obsessed with gaining any kind of recognition and is seemingly willing to try anything to reach his goal. When he decides to campaign for the class treasurer position, he creates a smear campaign against his opponent, and is dismayed when the principal takes down the hand drawn posters he’s worked hard at before anyone’s had a chance to see them, and then is even more upset to see said opponent handing out lollipops and eventually winning the coveted position. When he visits a haunted house just before Halloween, he decides that he and his friend Rowley can do a better job and make money in the process, so they advertise around the neighbourhood, then wait till the last-minute to throw together such features as a ‘river of blood’ (made from the contents of a bottle of ketchup) in Rowley’s basement without asking permission from the parents. On the night of Halloween, when they’re out trick-or-treating, the two of them hide out at Greg’s grandmother’s house after heckling some teenagers who are pursuing them, and when they find her house has been covered in toilet paper the next morning, Greg says it’s really ok since grandma has plenty of time to clean up now that she’s retired. One running gag that had me in stitches was Greg’s description of *The Cheese* which is a mouldy piece of cheese that has been left behind on the baseball court since the previous school year and which everyone goes out of their way to avoid. When further on in the story the teenagers decide to teach Greg and Rowley a lesson and make the boys eat *The Cheese*, Greg, like the real pal that he is, just watches his friend eat his half and then claims he’s allergic to milk products to avoid having to partake in it too. I really enjoyed this first book in the Wimpy Kid series, which had me literally laughing out loud.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

20. The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom ★★★★

In 1791, seven-year-old Lavinia has just arrived to America and finds herself on a Virginia plantation with no memory of her name or her background, nor of how she got there, as she is suffering from the shock of being orphaned on the voyage from Ireland and having witnessed both her parents being buried at sea. The ship's Captain having decided to take her on as an indentured servant, this is how Lavinia finds herself in the kitchen house, surrounded by black servants who wonder what a little white girl is doing in their midst. Belle, the young woman in charge of the kitchen house is at first dismayed to have to take on this strange skinny girl who keeps throwing up on her because she is unable to keep down her food. Belle is the Captain's illegitimate daughter and while she knows about her parentage, as do all the other servants, the Captain's young wife—an opium addict—is unaware of it and hates Belle, whom she believes to be her husband's mistress, as the Captain does nothing to hide his affection for his daughter. The novel is narrated by both Lavinia and Belle, who take turns telling their versions of the story, which spans from the day of Lavinia's arrival at the plantation until a time roughly twenty years later which we get a glimpse of in the prologue, set in 1810, which describes Lavinia and her own small daughter making the horrible discovery of a woman hanged from a great oak tree. At the heart of the novel are the 'Big House' servants with the matriarch Mama Mae, her husband Papa George and their children, who are in charge of looking after the Captain and his wife Miss Martha, along with their two young children. Unlike the slaves who work in the fields, who are malnourished and harshly treated by the taskmaster, the Big House servants are well fed, live in relative comfort and are respected by the Captain. At the beginning of the story their life seems almost idyllic, and this coupled with the prologue only adds to the impeding sense of doom.

I was deeply satisfied with the plot which describes the progress of Lavinia, Belle, the slaves, the various members of the Pyke family, and the many ways in which their lives are intertwined. I found this book absolutely captivating and could barely put it down from the very beginning. The narration moved swiftly along all the while following Lavinia on her surprising journey to womanhood and through motherhood. The characters are just fleshed out enough so that we understand their motivations and actions and the loyalties between various individuals, but no more, which is probably why I didn't give a even higher rating. I can see why this book was a top-rated selection in 2010 and would definitely recommend it to anyone.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

The Kitchen House sounds like a great read, Ilana! The Wimpy Kid books are super popular with my students, so I've read parts of all of them, including the one about the making of the movie, but don't think I've sat down and read one completely from front to back yet.

Oops! I called you Lisa. Time for bed, I guess...

Oops! I called you Lisa.

Lol. People have called me worse things Bonnie (as you well know)! :-)

Could not read all of your review of The Kitchen House - have added it to the Giant Freaking Wishlist and I don't want to know too much about it before reading it myself.

Ilana- Great reviews! I especially liked the The Kitchen House, that sounds very promising.
"Giant Freaking Wishlist ". Hey, I have one of those

#149 I know what you mean Charlotte, sometimes I don't want to read reviews on certain books I want to read. Sometimes I do want to. I'm not sure what my 'system' is, but I just go with the flow.

#150 "Giant Freaking Wishlist ". Hey, I have one of those

I thought that was a condition to joining the 75ers. Or rather... one you must fulfill as a 75er. lol

Hi There

I'm compiling a list of birthdays of our group members. If you haven't done so already, would you mind stopping by this thread and posting yours.

Thanks.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/105833

Great review of The Kitchen House and I've added it to my tbr list.

#152 Hi Linda, I did leave my b-day info on the thread a little while ago, thanks for stopping by.

#153 I hope you enjoy it when you get to it Kerry.

The Kitchen House sounds like my kind of book, Ilana. I not only read the review but gave it the thumb! I don't mind reading a review ahead of time unless I know I'll be reading the book within a short time. I hate to say it, but books can languish on my wish list for a year or more. I must learn how to get by on less sleep!

I hate to say it, but books can languish on my wish list for a year or more. I must learn how to get by on less sleep!
flag abuse

Donna, I would venture to say that for most of us books languish on our wishlists AND bookshelves for far longer than we'd like (years, in my case). And I'd kill to be able to get by on just a couple of hours of sleep per day as Stasia apparently can, but doubtful that killing would do it! :-)

I just finished listening to Skellig on audio tonight. I can objectively say that it's a very good story, but subjectively speaking, I somehow found it bleak and depressing. Probably to do with the greyness of the winter and my own low spirits lately. So many things come into play in the appreciation of a book and where we are in our own heads and timing certainly have a big role to play.

I'm pursuing The Golden Compass. Am halfway through and really enjoying it. Will probably order the 2nd book in the series before I even finish this one.

I also got The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman on audio tonight. Just got a subscription on audible.com so of course I had to get a few tracks! All three books are read in the context of Fantasy February.

Long sigh. When oh when are the touchstones coming back???

I had The Kitchen House home from the library but just could not get into it at the time - my fault, not the book's. Thanks for the reminder that I need to check it out again!

My pleasure Stasia. It's definitely worth it and I look forward to seeing what you have to say about it too.

When oh when are the touchstones coming back???

A bug report was made, but nothing's been heard about it. My guess is that when the servers went offline over the weekend, something happened with the indices and the touchstone search hasn't caught up yet. That would by why using the work number still functions - it bypasses the search, since the number indicates a known result.

But I don't know why it's taking so long for the Touchstones to work again. I may be wrong about the indexing.

Keri, what do you mean by work number? Are you referring to the following:

The Graveyard Book (i.e. typing in the number)
Regeneration

I tried it before and it doesn't seem to work...
(Murphy's law says it will this time!)
See what I mean?

ETA: Ok, you're right, I was doing it wrong.

Yes, that's what I mean by work number. It's the number that the system assigns a work in the database, and which is used in the url so that it knows which work to point to.

You have to be careful that you're using a work number and not the book number - both will show up in the URL and sometimes it gets truncated, like with "work/book/########". I think the number you used is a book number, because it's so large, and the touchstone thing shows it in red, like it's an error (but it's not "loading", so it's trying to go directly to it).

kery, you're right, I was doing it wrong in the example above (see my edit above), but then I don't understand why it's not working in message #3 where I have all the proper work numbers, and even when I try retyping the whole thing, it still doesn't work...

Huh, message #3 is weird. It might be related to how once one touchstone fails, every one following it in the same message will fail, too.

Anyway, I hear that touchstones might be repairing themselves, so if you edit the post and remove the work number on the first broken one, it might be okay now. (Fingers crossed.)

Hurray! The touchstones are (mostly) working again! Some of them inexplicably refuse to load, even with the work numbers, but for now it's better than nothing! It's cause for celebration. I think I should start a long list of books just for the pleasure of seeing the touchstones loading again!

I agree with you, Ilana. We should celebrate the return of Touchstones!

I'll never take them for granted again Stasia, that's for sure! :-)

#167: It is funny how we get used to them and then when they are not there we wonder what happened!

Goodness! I'm so behind on my reviews. I'll try to catch up as best I can tomorrow, if possible. Finished The Golden Compass last night, Doctor Faustus tonight, and probably finishing The Graveyard Book tomorrow. I wish that one could go on forever, I've been enjoying it a whole lot.

I loved The Graveyard Book too, Ilana. It was the first Gaiman book I ever read, I think.

It's my first by Gaiman, and certainly not the last. What other books of his have you read Stasia? Which are your favourites?

I have read Neverwhere, which I loved but a lot of people did not, his collaboration with Terry Pratchett, Good Omens, which I did not love but a lot of people do, and Coraline and Odd and the Frost Giants thus far.

I'll probably get all of those, plus American Gods, which I've had my sights on for quite a while. I'll probably get the last two as audiobooks since I've fallen in love with Gaiman as a narrator, he does such a great job of it and has such a beautiful voice besides!

Coco and I just went for a walk and there's so much snow out there that just walking to the street corner was like a whole nordic adventure.

We're off to bed now. Have a good rest of the night Stasia!

Sleep well, Ilana!

Ilana- I loved The Graveyard Book and I recommend American Gods too. It's amazing how many readers dislike Gaiman. That's puzzling to me. I've enjoyed all 3 books I've read by him and look forward to the others.

#174 Thanks Stasia, it was indeed a good sleep and I truly enjoy waking to all that whiteness out there. Today's another adventure in the great white North!

#175 I wasn't aware that he was disliked Mark, and that may be the case but he sure does have his fan base too. I don't know how I'll feel about his other books, but I don't think I can ever dislike him after The Graveyard Book.

21. Through a Glass Darkly by Donna Leon ★★★

This is the 15th book in the Commissario Brunetti series, which, aside from the fact that I started with the first book in the series, I've been reading completely out of sequence. In this story, a woman who is the daughter of a glass factory owner on the island of Murano approaches Brunetti because she fears that her father, who detests her husband and has often been heard to remark that he'd like to see his son-in-law dead, might take matters into his own hands and actually kill him. But when a night watchman is killed in that same factory, it becomes apparent that the crime may have been committed because of the man's frequent harangues against the dangers of working in proximity with toxic substances. I enjoyed the descriptions of how glass objects are created in this one and I've been enjoying this series so far. I find it entertaining and quite good on the whole, but can't say it knocks my socks off either.

22. Skellig by David Almond (audiobook) ★★★
(Read for Fantasy February)

A young boy who has just moved into a house with his family is distraught because his newborn sister has serious health problems and nobody is certain as to whether she will make it or not—so much so that they haven't even given a name to the baby yet. The house is in poor condition and there's an old garage behind it which Michael's dad has warned him against entering as it threatens to collapse at any moment. Of course, the first thing Michael does is explore the garage where he is startled to find a man crouched and hidden and in very poor condition, and who has apparently been surviving by eating the various insects that populate the shed. Michael keeps his discovery secret while tending to the man's needs though he eventually decides to share his finding with his new neighbour friend Mina, a spunky home-schooled girl who is fascinated with birds and likes to quote William Blake. Together they decide to move the stranger to a safer place and nurse him back to health and eventually discover that he is a strange and fascinating creature.

This story deals with feelings of fear and love and empathy, and while there is a strong fantasy component, it's wholly grounded in a reality that is far from being pretty. Maybe because of my own low spirits lately, I found it hard to cope with the ongoing threat to the baby's life, and the descriptions of the dingy, dirty, bug-infested environment that much of the story takes place in was downright unpleasant for me. I listened to the audio version and while at first David Almond's accent was perfectly charming, his somewhat monotonous and strangely paced narrative style was distracting at best. Still, I found a lot of things to like about Skellig, but the overall impression I was left with was 'ick'. But I'm sure anyone who is not as easily put off by such details will quite like this sensitively told story in which hope and magical fantasy eventually win the day.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

23. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman ★★★★★
(Read for my 11 in 11 challenge, Fantasy February, and TIOLI: embedded word)

Lyra is an orphaned girl who has been living at Oxford College for as far back as she can remember. The book begins as she is surreptitiously making her way to a forbidden room accompanied by her daemon Pantalaimon. In this world, which closely resembles our own some time in the late 19th century, everyone has a personal daemon—a manifestation of the soul—which takes the shape of an animal and accompanies it's human everywhere. The two hide to listen to Lyra's uncle, an explorer just returned from the Arctic North where he has discovered the physical manifestation of a mysterious substance called Dust. There are children all over England going missing and the rumour is that they are taken by the 'Gobblers' who perform mysterious experiments on them. When Lyra's close friend Roger disappears, she vows to find him and rescue him along with all the other missing children, said to be held by the Gobblers (or 'General Oblation Board') who are performing cruel experiments on them at a research facility in the North. Along the way in this fascinating fantasy world we meet the beautiful and treacherous Mrs. Coulter and her golden monkey daemon, both of whom are determined to keep a tight control over Lyra when she is taken on as Mrs. Coulter's apprentice. There are boat people called gyptians, armoured talking bears, there are good witches and evil witches and an air balloon, and of course, there is the Golden Compass—or 'alethiometer', a rare instrument which has the ability to answer any question, as long as one knows how to decipher it's mysterious symbols—which Lyra must keep from falling into the wrong hands at all costs.

I saw the movie version of this story a couple of years ago and thought it was great, and I absolutely loved this book, which is ostensibly geared toward children, but with a level of sophistication to keep adults wanting more. There is a great adventure filled with plenty of thrills and hurdles along the way, and there are philosophical matters to ponder, to do with the nature of the human soul and the role that religion plays in our search for greater understanding of the universe. There are brilliantly evil people, and there are heros you just want to cheer on. I didn't want this magnificent tale to end, but lucky for me, there are two more volumes in the trilogy still to discover. Once that's done, I'll probably want to read them all over again.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

You have been busy, Ilana! Great reviews.

Thanks Stasia. It's true I've been mostly reading and not doing much else lately.

Ilana- Great reviews! You nailed The Golden Compass. Fantastic job! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on the next 2 books. I also read Skellig a couple years ago and pretty much agree with your assessment.

You made The Golden Compass sound so tempting, Ilana! It's actually on the the Giant Freaking Wishlist, but so are about 1,042 other books (really - 1,042 - or thereabouts) and so I kind of lost track of it. Mean to rectify that tomorrow when it is time to buy another book. Skellig is on the GFW too, but the words 'magical realism' are kind of putting me off that one. Magical Realism and I don't like one another too, too much.

Hope you are getting along o.k. in the frozen north - you and your furry ones. Things are not too bad here in semi-defrosted southern New England. I was thinking about looking around under the brown, soaking leaves in order to see if there was any crocus action going on there this morning, but did not - leaves too disgusting.

Yep - 1,042 items on the amazon wishlist. Of course one of them is a toy for Willie, that he will never play with as he hates official toys and another is a cd of the last living castrato that I will probably never get around to buying. So that means there are 1,040 books on it. No wonder I lose track of things....

#182 Thanks Mark, I'm always a little bit nervous when I write my reviews as I try as best I can to give a balanced description and to word my opinion in ways that let people make up their own minds. I'll try to write more reviews tonight, but then I also have to prepare a bunch of books (including yours!) to send to some BookMooch members.

#183 Charlotte, you MUST get The Golden Compass asap! I thought I'd take my time getting through the trilogy, but I'm already itching to discover the next instalment, so chances are I'll get The Subtle Knife quite soon. The sheer size of your wishlist is truly scary! That being said, I should go back to have a look at it again, as I'm sure there are plenty of things on there that will tempt me as well. Wet leaves are just gross, and I wouldn't touch them unless I was wearing a solid pair of gloves. I don't know anything about gardening—do crocuses start coming out this early, in the freezing temperatures? Speaking of which the last few days have been relatively clement. Tons of snow falling every day, but I can't complain, nor would Coco since he LOVES hopping around like a bunny in the powder stuff, which makes me laugh and laugh.

My crocuses cheat a little because they are up against a more or less white foundation with a southern exposure so they get whatever warmth there is from the sun and are, at the same time, protected from freezing northern winds. I have found pale green shoots coming up at this time of year if the winter hasn't been too bad. I may be pushing things a bit - probably I am just eager for signs of life out there. I seem to have reached that point in the winter when everything is just so blah. I like winter better when it is without snow. It can be as cold and rainy (rainy - not pouring down rain) as it wants and I won't mind much. Snow, some of the time, especially when it hangs on, is like prison. The snow now, after 3 days of melting, is so ugly. And the streets are wall to wall potholes. I must look like a drunk when I'm driving - weaving down the street - first one way and down the other - trying to find my way without driving into one of them. A small child could fall into one of them and be up to his chin (slight exaggeration).

I'll bet Coco looks so super-cute in the snow! Willie does not want to go out in the serious kind of snow. He mostly just goes to the door and screams at me about how he will die, die, die if I don't open the door and then when I do he stands in the doorway staring out at the outside before - 5 times out of 10 - ducking back inside. No amount of speechifying from me about how I am not in the business of heating up the whole of the outdoor world makes much impression on him.

24. Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe ★★★½
(Read for 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI: read a book with 'Doctor' in the title)

This short play is based on a classic German legend about Faust, a scholar who makes a deal with the devil where he proposes to give his soul in exchange for unlimited knowledge, power, and pleasure. In Marlowe's interpretation, Doctor Faustus asks the Devil for twenty-four years of life during which time the demon Mephistopheles will do his bidding, in exchange for his soul which will spend eternity in the fires of hell, and he signs his pact with Lucifer in his own blood to finalize the deal. Throughout the play, we see Doctor Faustus being pulled between his craving for unlimited power and his yearning for salvation, with the Good Angel urging him to repent and the Bad Angel encouraging him to fulfill his promise. Faustus chooses to keep to the path of sin for the privileges that power affords him, such as the ability to perform magic, and is taken to hell by Mephistopheles when his time on earth is expired.

Of course, there is much more that can be said about this play, but I am not a scholar and have found that Wikipedia gives a very interesting—and thorough—analysis of it. I did have a little bit of trouble understanding some of the old English and numerous Latin quotes and expression, although these were translated in my annotated version. I was expecting a very serious and dark approach to this story, but was pleasantly surprised to discover that it was in fact treated with quite a lot of humour. I initially became interested in the legend of Faust when I was reading The Master and Margarita, which is why I got this book, forgetting all along that Bulgakov had based himself on Goethe's Faust, written much later, but am glad I did read the Elizabethan classic interpretation first which will give me something to compare Goethe's version to when I get to it.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

#186: No amount of speechifying from me about how I am not in the business of heating up the whole of the outdoor world makes much impression on him.

I wonder why. Oh yeah, I forgot, Willie is cat :)

Hey, Ilana! *waves*

#186 Lol about Willie and your attempts at using logic with him. My Ezra kept asking for the door in the dead of winter for many, many years, until he finally realized he really didn't like the cold one bit. He'll go out maybe once, but it's rare he even bothers to ask to go out anymore and if he's being a brat about it, I just open the door a little to remind him how much he dislikes winter.

I like the snow when it's fresh and white and glimmery and beautiful, but that's mostly because I don't own a car and don't have to drive in it. I HATE when it melts though, always have hated slush, but now that I've got Coco I dislike it being wet outside even more since he gets filthy in no time flat.

#188 Oh, hey Stasia! *waves back*:-)

How I wish that I didn't own a car. I do so envy those who live in the big city - a decent city with decent public transportation. If I lived in one of those big cities, why I'd give the car up in a heartbeat. But down here at the ass-end of Massachusetts, there's no doing without one. Nothing is within walking distance - a very poor arrangement if you ask me. Living in a small city is the worst.

I do admit that living in a big city like Montreal has it's advantages. I also live practically next door to a major metro station which is really convenient, though most of the time I'm late to get everywhere and have to get cabs. I miss having a car for things like getting out of the city, trips to IKEA and Home Depot and Costco and just getting to an out-of-the-way places (like the nearest, yet not so near library), stuff like that. I hardly get out of my place unless I have a gun to my head (only slightly exaggerating), but sometimes I think I may as well live in the suburbs since I hardly take advantage of all the city has to offer. I guess if I cut back on some of my crazy spending I could afford one, but I'd rather go without and keep buying more books! :-)

Popping into say you've been doing some good reading lately! I also loved The Golden Compass when I read it, but I liked Skellig a lot more than you did. I wonder if the audio track had a bit to do with your overall impressions.

#192 Hi Faith! Thanks for stopping by. I think you're probably right that this particular narration likely affected my response to the story. I kept trying to imagine how I would have felt about it were I reading it instead, but in the end, the darker elements of the tale had a big role to play as well. At least, I can still say objectively that it's a very good story. Different strokes for different folks! :-)

Wow, I drop out for a few days and you really got busy with the reading and reviewing! I am really looking forward to your thoughts on The Graveyard Book as I have just picked it up to start.

Great books...good conversations and drat, I am behind on the threads so I missed out on the party here.

I really enjoyed The Graveyard Book.

Sorry your spirits are low lately. I'm sending a spot of cheer your way.

#194 Hi Judy! I keep falling behind with the reviews and so have to do them in batches which must give the impression I've been reading much more than I actually have. I'll be writing up my review of The Graveyard Book soon enough. I always find it especially difficult to review books I'm in love with as I'm especially eager to do them justice!

#195 Nice to have your visit Linda. Don't worry about being behind, the year's just started so I'm sure there'll be plenty more happening over the remaining 11 months! My first Gaiman book was a smash hit and I look forward to reading more by him. My moods tend to be mercurial, with low spirits more or less the norm, but I sure thank you for the encouragement! :-)

25. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman ★★★★★
(Read for Fantasy February and 11 in 11 challenge)

This is the story of Nobody Owens, who as a baby crawls out of his crib and make his way to the nearby graveyard one night, thereby narrowly escaping sure death while his parents and sister are murdered by the sinister Man Jack. The graveyard is ancient and abandoned, but is nonetheless teeming with 'life' (so to speak), since the ghosts of all those who were buried there throughout the centuries and millennia rise from their tombs and socialize with each other at night-time. Almost as soon as he arrives there, Baby Bod (short for Nobody) is adopted by the Owens, who in life never managed to have children of their own, and the couple positively dote on the boy. As the only live inhabitant of the cemetery, he is given the run of the place and soon befriends most of the spirits he comes across. Bod grows up to be a curious, smart, and thoughtful boy. When he meets a woman accused of witchcraft who has long been buried in an unmarked grave outside the consecrated grounds, he risks breaking the supreme rule of never crossing the graveyard gates to go pawn a treasure so he can get her a headstone bearing her name, and gets into a whole lot of trouble in the process. When he eventually convinces his caretakers to let him go to school, he confront the class bullies and terrorizes them into leaving their evil ways by using tricks he has learned from his graveyard companions.

I found it impossible not to like Bod, and was cheering him on throughout this wickedly fun and clever tale, filled with adventure and peopled with a cast of eccentrics and weirdos. This was my first Neil Gaiman book and my only problem with it is that it eventually had to end. I got the audiobook version which is narrated by Gaiman himself, and I would heartily recommend it even to someone who doesn't normally listen to audiobooks, as Gaiman's brilliant narration greatly added to the overall experience. This one is going into my limited all-time favourites collection, and I already look forward to listening to it all over again.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

Ilana- Great review! See, I failed to write a review of this one and you nailed it perfectly. Nice introduction to Gaiman!

Goodness knows I let it stew long enough! Always a bit nerve wracking when so many people have read and loved a book to pen these things. I'm glad you agree with my take on it Mark. :-)

Loved your review too. I've already read The Graveyard Book but will look out for the audio.

#197: Nice review, Ilana!

#200 Kerry, I know you won't be disappointed when you do listen to it.

#201 Thanks Stasia! :-)

Great review Ilana, I loved this book. A hard book to review as once I summarized the plot, I was afraid most people would tune out. What a mind that Neil Gaiman must have!

#203 Thank Judy, nice of you to say you liked my review, though I have to say that having read yours, I feel mine doesn't do the book justice quite so well as your brilliant review does. I've given it the thumbs up!

I've had my second EEG (electroencephalography) recording early this morning and this time they asked me to sleep as little as possible in the night so I could sleep during a portion of the test. I'm a night creature, so that part wasn't too hard as I tend to get my best hours of sleep in the morning, but I have to say that when I woke up after sleeping for an hour with those wires all over my head, I felt more disoriented than ever. I didn't ask anyone to come pick me up, though they told me that I should, but I ended up with a really nice cab driver who offered to walk me up to my 3rd floor apartment, but I managed it on my own. I don't mind living alone one bit, but sometimes it's a bit scary when I don't have all my wits about me. Anyway, had a long long nap afterwards, and I'm more or less back in the saddle and have LOADS of threads to catch up with. It's a pleasure having enough energy to be able to do so!

Sounds like you have been through a lot these days. Gentle hugs to you Ilana.

Great review of The Graveyard Book. It was one of my favorite reads last year.

Thanks Linda, that's really sweet of you to say, and hugs are always appreciated. Sending some your way too.

>205 Smiler69:: Hi there, Ilana, I hope all is well with you and you get good results from your EEG. Hmm, I don't think I could manage to sleep with wires attached and people telling me to sleep! How courtly of your cab driver to offer to walk you up three flights of stairs. He sounds like a guardian angel.

I've filed away your recommendations for the last two fantasy books you've read just in case I ever get out of my reality phase. I listened to Skellig last year on a trip to Kansas City and thought it haunting, both in a good and a bad way. Like you, I was disturbed by parts of it, but I thought the friendship story between the two children was charming.

I hope you sleep well tonight after your morning nap. ;-)

#208: What Donna said!

Got my copy (used) of The Golden Compass yesterday, Ilana. Apparently it used to belong to an eight year old girl (judging by her printing inside) and came with her review - a lovely gold star stuck on the inside of of the cover.

Hope you are snoozing peacefully. I would be too, but Willie caught sight of the retreat of the night sky at about 5:50 and so my night was over. I just realized that he and Ezra kind of look alike - that whole brown tiger-y look.

#208 Hi Donna, you're right, I liked the development of the friendship between Michael and Mina in Skellig as well. I quite liked Mina and wouldn't have minded if she'd taken up even more room in the story. In fact, there was a short story narrated by a woman as told by Mina herself on my audiobook and I quite enjoyed that, perhaps even more than Skellig.

I'm not too concerned about the EEG results, although maybe I should be? My neurologist thought we shouldn't take chances and ordered that and an MRI when I told him about a seizure I had last summer—I only get to see him every 6 months, and I had quite forgotten about it within a few days after it happened. I've never had one before or since, so I'm thinking it was just a one-time occurrence, but of course it's safest to rule out more serious conditions.

#209 Stasia, I guess my reply above is directed to you as well then. :-)

#210 Charlotte, I hope you enjoy The Golden Compass as much as I did. I can't wait to get my hands on the second part in the trilogy, The Subtle Knife. I'll probably get that from The BookDepository as I like to get pristine copies of books I know in advance I'll want to keep in my collection to read and re-read eventually.

I did get a good sleep, though only closed my eyes at 5 am. Not that I wasn't exhausted before that, but I was reading Three Seconds, a thriller I got through ER, and as I'm getting towards the end, it's getting very hard to put down. I only have about 60 pages left, but I thought I should be reasonable so have saved the rest for today.

In other news, as some of you might know, I've not borrowed library books for a very long time. So I spent a good portion of yesterday evening looking up the website for the Montreal library system. As it turns out, there's a very nice library not 10 minutes walk away from me. I'd passed by it often enough with Coco, but somehow assumed that most public libraries here didn't carry much English titles, as French is the official language in Québec. I do read books that are originally written in French, but on the whole, there are many more English books out there and I refuse to read translations when I can avoid it. So when I saw on their website that they had recent arrivals in English, I decided it's time to break my 20-year ban of public libraries and go check it out. I'll be going there this afternoon. I'm quite excited about it for some reason—it feels like a whole new adventure is ahead! :-)

How exciting, Ilana. I haven't been to the library in a while. Think I might make a trip when the sand/salt barrel is gone from the corner. I misjudged its location last year, smashed into it and knocked the passenger side mirror right off my car. Thank goodness for super glue.

Good thing you didn't get hurt or do more damage. I've just spent a couple of hours on the library network website to reserve and wishlist a bunch of books. Maybe I should do other things now. Like read. And, oh yeah, eating might be a good idea!

I saw that you picked up Al Capone Does My Shirts on your visit - I hope you like it! I somehow discovered that book years ago when it was new, in the recent arrivals at my own library, and it was a fun read. Well, not all fun and games, but I thought it was really well done, and the setting was kind of fun.

#215 Al Capone Does My Shirts came highly recommended, so I look forward to finding out what it's all about.

When you finish it, I'm interested in your thoughts on Al Capone Does My Shirts.

Me too!

#217-18 I'll let you know when my review is up!

Ilana- Hope you are having a nice weekend and getting some rest!

Thanks Mark, I'm getting lots of sleep and plenty of reading done, and I'm off to a painting class this afternoon, so I can't complain.

Phew! I just caught up on about 100 posts here. Lots of good reading.

Thanks Zoe! Lots more to come as I'm about to put my nose to the grindstone and put up a few overdue reviews.

26. The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West (audiobook) ★★★★½
(read for 11 in 11 challenge and TIOLI: embedded word)

Our narrator recounts the homecoming of her cousin, Captain Chris Baldry who, while fighting in the First World War, has been sent home due to shell shock. Chris, who is suffering from amnesia, has had a good portion of his memory wiped out and believes he is sixteen years younger. He doesn't understand his cousin Jenny's older appearance, doesn't recognize his beautiful young wife Kitty, and instead demands to see his first love, Margaret. While Kitty believes that her husband is just playing a clever trick on everyone, she still agrees to have Margaret brought over to him, but she becomes furious that Chris treats her like a stranger and instead prefers to spend his time with Margaret, a lower-class, physically unappealing woman, who nevertheless makes him very happy. A specialist is brought in who proposes a radical approach that is sure to cure the Captain so that he can return to the front. There is a strong divergence of opinions as to whether that is the best option for his wellbeing, but Kitty is adamant that she wants her husband back to his normal self.

I absolutely loved this story and it was of special interest to me since I started the Regeneration trilogy by Pat Barker recently, which is set during WWI, with a psychiatrist who specializes in treating shell shock as one of the principal characters. One of the central issues there is the question of what actually constitutes mental health when men are only considered 'normal' if they are willing to put their lives on the line to fight in a brutal war with countless casualties.

As an aside, I found out on wikipedia that The Return of the Soldier was made into a movie in 1982, starring Alan Bates as Captain Baldry, Julie Christie as Kitty Baldry, Glenda Jackson as Margaret, and Ann-Margret as Jenny.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

ETA: Forgot to mention that I got this short novel as a free audiobook from LibriVox. Just click on this link if you'd like to download it. Running time is less than 3 hours. You can also listen without downloading by just clicking on one of the sound file links.

Nice review, Ilana!

Thanks darling! I was going to write up the one for The Hunger Games and am almost done with it, but too pooped to finish it.

Ah, well, the review can wait until tomorrow, right? :)

Most definitely. In fact, I'm going to curl up with Coco in a minute and read myself to sleep while you keep watch for the rest of us. Don't do anything I wouldn't do! (which leaves you quite a bit of leeway) ;-)

ETA: Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope you have a terrific Valentine's day too, Ilana!

Morning Ilana- Excellent review of The Return of the Soldier. I'll have to add that to the WL.

Hi Ilana, I'm thumbing your review of The Return of the Soldier. Maybe your hot review will become even hotter! I added this to the dream book yesterday on Stasia's rec; I'll make sure to give a nod to you as well if and when I get it read.

Happy V-Day!

#229 Thanks Stasia, I have to say I mostly ignore V-day as only reminds me of what an old maid I've become, but then again, any excuse to spread around a little love has got to be a good thing, right?

#230 It was an excellent story which I'm sure I'll go back to again and again. I forgot to mention in my post that I got this short novel as a free audiobook from LibriVox. Just click on this link if you'd like to download it. Running time is less than 3 hours and the narrator Elizaeth Klett does a very good job. You can also listen to a sample before downloading it by just clicking on one of the links.

#231 Donna, thanks for giving an extra push to my review. I'm always so happy when I see a review from someone I know on that hot review panel, so seeing mine there is really quite a treat! I guess by 'dream book' you're referring to your wishlist? If so, it's a lovely way to call it. As Stasia mentioned, this book well deserves to be called 'a small masterpiece and I'm sure you'll love it too . (please see my note to Mark, above)

I've been participating in Mark's Fantasy February thread this month and it's been great. Some people thought it would be fun to follow up with a Mystery March thread so I've just put it up.

Hope you join in! :-)

Thank you for your post on my thread..

VALENTINE'S DAY is a serious bugger for Single Women (what are single-by-choice)......

The loverly best is that which makes us happy...with pets/furkids...good food..good libations...good DVDs

hugs & smooch

It's always nice to know that others understand the single woman's dillemas. Hugs and smooch right back at you Jude! :-)

27. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (on audiobook) ★★★★⅓
(Read for Fantasy February)

Our narrator Katniss, who is relating the story from her point of view, is a sixteen-year-old with a lot of responsibilities on her shoulders. With her father lost to a mining accident, and her mother too depressed to care for her and her beloved little sister, she is the only one who can feed the family, which she does by hunting in the woods with bow and arrow. In this dystopic future, North America has become 'Panem' and under the strict regime there are harsh punishments for those who disobey the rules; theft is punishable by death, and insurgents get their tongues cut off and are forced to become servants in the Capitol, where the citizens are well fed and living pampered lives while the majority of the inhabitants of the eleven other districts are literally starving to death. Ever since a distant revolt by the people, the Capitol have held The Hunger Games as a yearly event designed to dissuade further insurgence by reminding the citizens of how expendable they are. To this end, it is broadcast live on television and is compulsory viewing for all. All young persons from ages twelve to eighteen are entered in a lottery, from which a male and female from each of the twelve districts are chosen as contestants, or Tributes. They are turned into media celebrities, then put in an arena where they must kill each other until the last standing Tribute is declared the victor. When Katninss' twelve-year-old sister Prim is picked as a contestant, our heroine volunteers to take her place and is then further distressed when Peeta, a young man who once literally saved Katniss and her family from starvation is chosen as the boy Tribute.

I found this story so compelling that I listened to it almost in record time. I should mention that I find descriptions of animals being harmed or killed difficult to bear, but it was acceptable in the context of this story, where hunting was a matter of basic survival. The play-by-play description of the Hunger Games was told in a matter-of-fact, yet empathetic way which made the idea of all the suffering and death by turns fascinating, horrifying and oddly satisfying. The developing relationship between Katniss and Peeta—meant to kill each other yet compelled to protect one another—made the story that much more poignant. It made Katniss a believable heroine who, for all her dependability and well-developed survival instincts, is just a young girl, still discovering who she is and trying to work out her feelings amidst the turmoil and the slaughter. A winning combination. I can't wait to follow up with Catching Fire the second part of this trilogy.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

Ilana- Great review of The Hunger Games! You gotta thumb! I've turned so many people on to this series and everyone of them loved it. It looks like you are going to have an incredible FF month!

Thanks Mark, I'm sure you know a thumb or two always feel good! :-)
This Fantasy February month has definitely given me the opportunity to re-discover the kinds of stories I used to love as a child and didn't keep up with much over the years. I look forward to exploring more great books in this genre.

234/235: Wait, women, you mean I'm not allowed to be all mopey on V-Day? Wahh! *mopes*

Yes Stephen, we'll let you mope around with us. I mean I will, because Jude's got it all under control.

Yo! I heard that! Me, have "it all under control"????...well, up to a point...just don't tell anyone.

*snort*

Grand review of The Hunger Games.....a friend gave me the entire trilogy, last fall...I may have to "bump it up" the old TBR pile/mountain..

;-)

Yo! I heard that!

LOL! I was hoping you would! He he.

Re: Hunger Games, I'm itching to find out what happens in the next instalment.

I love the Hunger Games trilogy, so I hope you enjoy the other books too, Ilana (although I admit that to me, the other two did not measure up to the first.)

Hi! Just catching up. I hope your EEG results are OK. And I hope you have a great time with your library trip!

Mystery March sounds interesting! I have plans to do the Spring Training read for march . . . but I love mysteries . . . I'll have to check it out.

#244 Thanks for stopping by Terri. My next neurologist appointment is only in 6 months, so I won't hear anything unless there's an anomaly. Actually... I might be wrong there. If I remember correctly, my neuro said that if the tests come out normal, he'll have me do them again just to make sure nothing was missed. I loved my library visit last week, though it was short and sweet. I've reserved a bunch of books already on their website, so I look forward to hearing back from them.

28. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll (on audiobook, performed by Christopher Plummer) ★★★★½

I've read Alice in Wonderland several times in my life, seen movie adaptations, etc, so won't post a review about it, though do want to say that if you haven't heard this audiobook with Christopher Plummer's interpretation of it, you should get your hands on it asap. His performance of the unabridged text brings it to life in a way I've never experienced before and I know I'll come back to this recording again and again. I had previously given this book a 5-star rating because it is one of my all-time favourites, but Plummer's reading of Chapter 9: The Mock Turtle's Story with a plaintive voice throughout, reminded me that I've never much liked the Mock Turtles's complaint.

This audiobook also included the recording of Through the Looking Glass and here Plummer's performance was so over the top—almost as if he'd taken strong doses of stimulants throughout—that it quickly got on my nerves and I stopped it halfway through. I didn't let this affect my rating as this would hardly have done justice to Carroll's original work.

Hi! Your thread is such an entertaining and productive place to visit! I finished Doctor Faustus for TIOLI (thanks for putting it out there!) and I've just requested Hunger Games from my library (so many people have been recommending it and your review was the final boost for me).

Karen O.

29. Three Seconds by Roslund & Hellström ★★★
(Read for Early Reviewers and 11 in 11 challenge)

A very nervous young Polish man on board a ship taking him to Sweden is in the opening scene. Shortly thereafter, we learn that the young man is one of 15 mules who has been used to transport pure amphetamine from a factory in Poland in the linings of their stomach. Piet Hoffman is the man the Polish mafia has put in charge of receiving the drugs and distributing them to a (literally) captive market in Sweden: inmates in high security prisons. As the mules are still unloading their cargo, a man is shot by two of the thugs accompanying Hoffman, who places a call to alert the police. Inspector Ewert Grens is assigned to the case. He's a thorough investigator, but all he has to work with is a recording of Hoffman's anonymous. What Grens doesn't know is that Hoffman is an ex-con who has been hired as an undercover agent by one of his own colleagues. The 'higher ups', not wanting to compromise Hoffman's mission to infiltrate the prison system and stop the Polish mafia from spreading into Sweden, deliberately leave Grens in the dark, hoping his investigation will simply go away. But when he gets too close to discovering Hoffman's true identity, a member of government involved in the dealings decides that Hoffman must die. They uncover him as a snitch and leave him to his own devices with his dangerous prison mates, to cover up their questionable practices. With everybody out to eliminate him, Hoffman must rely on his own ingenuity, and puts together a plan that gives him exactly three seconds if he has any chance at all to survive.

The opening chapters were puzzling at first, with the narration skipping from one seemingly unrelated character to another going back and forth between the two countries. That, along with a string of long Polish and Swedish names peppering the text made it hard to get into the story. But as soon as Hoffman infiltrates the prison system, the action picks up dramatically and carries the story along. I did guess at a major twist, as is often the case, but the plot is ingenious, and since timing is an essential element in the story, it made for a good page-turner. One Swedish critic said “Three Seconds was so hair-raising that I have to put it down, pace around the apartment to catch my breath, and try to calm down.” I worried about just how gruesome things would get, but I must have read too much contemporary crime fiction by now to get much phased by the gory details, of which there are plenty. Did I think this was a good novel? Sure. Am I likely to remember it in a few months? Probably not. But then again, I don't expect crime fiction to be memorable, so in this case, good was good enough for me.

This review can also be found on the book's main page.

Good review Ilana. I read Three Seconds last December and I really liked it. I liked the way we jumped between characters and really didn't know what was going on until the author provided all the links. I thought it was clever and different from most of the other crime stories that I have read. Apparently it is part of a series, but I don't know if any of the others have been translated to English yet.

Good review of Three Seconds....and you caught me on one I never heard of. I don't think books of this genre are meant to stick in the mind for eons...serious brain candy is good enough.....IMHO

Alice in Wonderland is my erstwhile Kid sister..though she's older than me, by now.....I don't "do" audiobooks...but Christopher Plummer is..a peach!

J

*edited for inability to type*

Ilana- I only glanced at your review of Three Seconds, since I plan on reading it in the near future (hint hint) but I'm glad you liked it. You will continue the series, right?

#249 I liked the switch from one character to another too and it's a literary device I've seen used to good effect quite a few times. I liked this book well enough, but can't say I was blown away either. I don't know, maybe it was my own frame of mind... but so much was made about this writing team that I guess my expectations were too high because other than the foreign names, it didn't seem all that different to me. I really don't know if the first 4 books in the series were translated or not. Would you read the others? I did see that the first one deals with a sexual predator who abuses children and I don't think I want to expose myself to that kind of thing.

#250 Brain candy is right Jude. I really enjoy crime fiction, but somehow it hardly ever makes enough of an impression on me to get excited about it. But then again, it's nice sometimes to just be on 'neutral' and take things in without investing a lot of emotions either.

#251 Mark, I did think about you when I wrote the review and tried as best I could to present the book in a way that didn't give away much more than the back cover does, but I completely understand you holding off on reviews right now. I don't know that I'll continue with this series, there's so many others out there, and then there's new-to-me authors that I still want to explore...

ETA: Hint taken Mark. I'll have to somehow fit in The Difference Engine real soon too... though it might get bumped into Mystery March whether it fits the genre or not!

I already have Three Seconds on my radar. Nice review, Ilana!

Yep, I would definitely read more of this series. I will have to make a note to check whether any are available in English.

#253 Mercy buckets Stasia! (that's a little *frenglish* bad joke of mine, don't mind me!)

#254 Tell you what Judy, I'll wait till you've read others from the series (if at all available) and see what you have to say about them before I jump in. Still, NOT reading the first in the series. Pedophiles and child abuse... no thanks.

I just got back from the library about an hour ago. I don't know how it is elsewhere, but the Montreal library system is one big network with probably over 20 libraries. Everything is available online, so I can use the library system much in the same way I do my banking, i.e. I can do most transactions from my laptop (or iPhone), and only go to the nearest bricks and mortars location to take out my withdrawals. So cool! And I have you wonderful 75ers to thank for having encouraged me to go that route.

Today I brought back My Reading Life by Pat Conroy (got the large print edition to try out), Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot (wanted to buy it, but thought I'd check it out first), Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, and finally Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman on audio, which am copying to my 'puter this instant so I can listen to it on my iPhone. Which means I have a couple more books to fit into Fantasy February. And also means I'll have to bump off more planned reads. :-O

ETA: I also downloaded several more free audiobooks from LibriVox.org last night: Passing by Nella Larsen and Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon—both recommended by Kerry/avatiakh, The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton, The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov, A Doll's House & Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen, As You Like It by Shakespeare and Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. All plays are performed by ensemble casts so should be interesting.

#255: also means I'll have to bump off more planned reads. :-O

I always get a kick out of seeing how my 'planned' reading for any given month gets morphed into something totally unplanned!

255> Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon—both recommended by Kerry/avatiakh

Ooh, I loved that one. I hope you end up liking it, too. I've read the first of the Ibsen plays you have listed, and it was also pretty good - the audiobook is full cast, I hope?

Ilana- Wow, you have some terrific books to look forward to! Neverwhere was my 1st Gaiman and I really enjoyed it. I have My Reading Life waiting in the stacks.

Bunch of good reviews, Ilana. I will be interested to see what you think of Suzanne Collins follow-ups to The Hunger Games. Loved The Return of the Soldier when I read it a couple of years ago.

Who gives a rat's butt about V-day, anyway? It's all just shameless commercialism. There's no romance in it.

#256 Stasia: I pretend to be horrified about not being able to follow *the plan* but really, I too derive a certain pleasure out of seeing that morphing you speak of take place. Besides, if I push aside some books that are already on my shelves, it's not like they'll be going anywhere! ;-)

#257 Hi Keri, I have to say that so far, I've really enjoyed the books I've read that were recommended by Kerry and the summary for Lady Audley sounds right up my alley. I read A Doll's House too, way back in my college days when I was taking a Women's Studies class. We read A Room of One's Own and Herland too among others, though I can't say I remember any of it, save for The Handmaid's Tale which I've read a couple of times since.

#258 Mark, I'm already halfway through Neverwhere and really liking it a whole lot. I definitely see some parallels between that story and The Graveyard Book and once again, loving Gaiman's narration. The last of the 10 disks refused to copy to my 'puter properly so I couldn't put it on my iPod but I won't complain; I can listen to it from a CD player or on my laptop, after all, I did get it for free!

#259 I don't know how you feel about audiobooks Charlotte, but you might want to get your hands on this one. It's really quite well narrated, and even if it's the same reader throughout, it makes it come alive like a play.

I'm with you, V-day sucks. Even when I was dating someone around that time of year, it always felt uncomfortable and insincere. Glad it's over now and was relatively painless this year.

I found this amazing cover for The Graveyard Book that I hadn't seen before when I was surfing around this evening. I've already added it to the selection of covers on the book's page.

Great cover! Like you, I listened to this on audio. I would like to check out the book too. I didn't realize it was illustrated. Very cool!

#260: Besides, if I push aside some books that are already on my shelves, it's not like they'll be going anywhere!

True! Books are very good about patiently waiting for us to get to them.

Dropping by to say HELLO

Once I finish the Laundry, I think I'm going to make this a Reading Day!

Love the book cover! Although the "usual" one isn't half-bad..this one really does grab the eyes!

;-}

I bought The Graveyard Book this week along with a handful of other Newbery Winner and Honor books. I had a nice coupon (buy one, get one half price) at Borders and wanted to take advantage of it before they started their closeout sale. I'm so sad that our local Borders store is closing.

I bought these books to have on hand in future years for birthday and Christmas gifts, although they will have to be "screened" by me first. And, if anyone is aghast at my reading a gift book, let me say that it's common practice to let employees check out the new books in a bookstore - at least it was in CO at the two bookstores I worked in back in the 90s.

Yes, my dream book is essentially a wish list in notebook form. One of these days, I'll take a dream vacation with some of these books and do nothing but read. In fact, that's kind of the plan for this afternoon!

Happy Reading this afternoon Donna.

Ilana
I'm going to see if my local library has Alice in Wonderland on tape. The reading of the story by Christopher Plummer must be incredible. Thanks for your recommendation.

#262 Mark, I didn't realize it was illustrated either until I started looking around for cover images. I think I'll also get a paper copy. Would love to get the edition I've shown, because I find the cover expresses the story so well and am really impressed with it from a graphic designer/art director point of view.

#263 Books are very good about patiently waiting for us to get to them.

Yes they are, but then why is it I always get a pang of guilt when I set them aside? Surely I'm not the only one this happens to?

#264 Hi Jude, hope you've gotten some good reading done by now. And if not, the night is still young! About the cover, see my comment to Mark above.

#265 Your plan sounds great to me Donna, are you happy with your reading so far? Reading is all I feel like doing these days and my artwork is suffering, but I figure all those novels will feed my own creativity and eventually come out in interesting ways, once I start properly drawing and painting again.

#266 That specific recording is really worth it Linda. If you can't find it at the library, I'll see if there's some way I can share mine with you.

Oh Oh Oh......*smack me please, i'm getting silly*

I didn't see the "with illustrations by Dave McKean" in post #261......

*here i go*.........There is a humongous Graphic Novel titled Cages by Dave McKean that I have sworn by & sworn at since i first read it (here, she forgets the date)....it's basically Dave McKeans take on the Creative Process...with Political sidelines and different colours abounding

it's a film between book covers...as you can tell i Love it...but, it's out of print and I paid an embarrassing amount of $$$ for my copy...if you can find a copy in Montreal...go for it....

*rant over*

no reading yet...well, does 20 pages count..in between Laundry loads???

;-}

>246 Smiler69: I have had a huge crush on Christopher Plummer for a very long time. Strange but true. I had no idea that this audiobook existed and I can't wait to hear it. Thanks!

#268 I just went to have a look and while it's not inventoried at the library, I found Cages on BookDepository (hardcover for lotsa $$$) and also the softcover on both Amazon.ca AND Chapters-Indogo.com (our Canadian Barnes & Noble). Guess I'll just HAVE to get it with such a glowing recommendation. 20 pages ABSOLUTELY DOES count, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise! And you are most welcome to come rant & rave here as much and as often as you like Jude. :-)

#269 I'm thrilled to share the goodness. I know for sure you won't be disappointed.

The saga continues right over here.