Pat (phebj)'s Reading Life--Chapter 3

Welcome to my third thread for 2011. (My first thread is here and my second thread is here.)

I read my first Moomintroll book (from a series of Finnish fantasy stories for children of all ages by Tove Jansson) last year and loved it. Here’s a picture of Moominpappa reading:

I'm currently reading:

In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming (May: Murder & Mayhem)
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (75ers Group Read starting April 15th) (May TIOLI)
Hemingway: The Paris Years by Michael S. Reynolds
Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell (May TIOLI)
Everybody Was So Young: Gerald and Sara Murphy: A Lost Generation Love Story by Amanda Vaill
Qigong Illustrated by Christina J. Barea (ER)

Other books for May TIOLI Challenges:

Dissolution by C.J. Sansom
Family Album by Penelope Lively
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes
Radioactive: A Tale of Love and Fallout by Lauren Redniss

Other books to be read in May:

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver

To be read in 2nd Quarter (Reading Globally Group Read--War and Regions in Conflict)

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell

To be read in June:

The Book Thief by Markus Zukas (reading with Lynda starting June 1)
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell (75ers Group Read starting June 15th)
The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James

Read in January (7)

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

Read in February (3)

8. Love and Summer by William Trevor
9. Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman
10. The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner

Read in March (9)

11. Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began by Art Spiegelman
12. The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle
13. Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine (graphic novel)
14. The Girls by Lori Lansens
15. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett
16. Gone to New York: Adventures in the City by Ian Frazier
17. 101 Great American Poems
18. The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn
19. The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan

Read in April (8)

20. Lizard Music by Daniel Pinkwater
21. Let's Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell
22. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
23. Paper Towns by John Green
24. Britten and Brulightly by Hannah Berry (graphic novel)
25. Living Well is the Best Revenge by Calvin Tompkins
26. Sempre Susan: A Memoir of Susan Sontag by Sigrud Nunez
27. The Master by Colm Toibin

Read in May (1)

28. Stitches: A Memoir by David Small

Hi There!

Jane Eyre is one of my top three all-time favorites. I'll anxiously await learning about your thoughts/feelings regarding this book.

I've added The Country of the Pointed Firs to the tbr pile. Your review is wonderful.

Hi, I'm here, Pat! Can't wait to see what you have in store for us this month :)

BTW: I've not heard of Moomintroll but I could see how children would like to gaze upon him and that mysterious house in the background. Hey, he likes to read and drink Kool-Aid, what's not to like.

Hi Linda. I'm hoping I love Jane Eyre. It's one of many classics I've never read. I loved reading Middlemarch last year but had no luck with Sense and Sensibility in January. I hope you like The Country of the Pointed Firs. I seem to remember you liking Maine so I have high hopes you will.

Lynda, I've only read the one Moomintroll book but I really liked it; enough that I went on an internet search for buying a Moomintroll doll. Fortunately or unfortunately, I didn't find anything I wanted. I'm hoping to start A Moveable Feast tonight.

I almost forgot. I went to our library's Spring book sale today and brought home the following (for $24.38):

All But the Waltz: A Memoir of Five Generations in the Life of a Montana Family by Mary Clearman Blew
Counting My Chickens . . by Deborah Mitford, Duchess of Devonshire
Straight on till Morning: The Biography of Beryl Markham by Mary S. Lovell
Doubt: A History by Jennifer Michael Hecht
A Charmed Life by Mary McCarthy
The Given Day by Dennis Lehane
East is East by T.C. Boyle
Falling Man by Don DeLillo
Reading I've Liked by Clifton Fadiman
Idaho Nuggets: A Medley of 100 Golden Reflections

Pat, I love your opening picture! Moomimpappa looks so relaxed despite his jaunty top hat.

>7 phebj:: Of course, I'm salivating over your book finds! The titles are all so interesting. Loved The Given Day and very much liked East is East. Our book sale begins the Monday after Easter. I'll be in Kansas City with my daughter's family anticipating the LT meetup on April 26 so will miss the opening for the first time in years. I think I'll wait and go on half-price day hoping that there will be something left. I love a bargain.

Just waving hello, Pat!

I love Jane Eyre too, so I hope you enjoy it!

Here! I'm not losing your thread again.
Nice haul from the library book sale.

I really like Jane Eyre. One of the few books I have actually cried so much I needed a Kleenex. The last time I read it I read it along with Wuthering Heights for a book club. Wuthering Heights is very high on my list of most creeepy books ever. I know there's an extra e - it's extra creepy.

Great haul at the book sale, Pat! I hope you enjoy Jane Eyre. I keep hearing people around here rave about Middlemarch (I think it was a group read right?) and I know we have it around the house somewhere. Now when will I get to it ... there's just no shortage of reading material ...

What a great haul of books. I really like the bookStraight On Till Morning and I'm interested in knowing what you think about it when you read it.

Hi Pat, I'm very envious of your haul especially the Beryl Markham bio which I wishlisted right after I read West with the Night. I read Jane Eyre for the first time last year an absolutely loved it so I think you will too. Hmmm Wuthering Heights seems to be calling my name now.

Hi Pat- Nice New Thread! I hope you enjoying Let's Take the Long Way Home. I listened to that one a few months ago and loved it. Nice haul from the Spring sale and another reminder, I need to get to The Given Day, it's been stuck on my shelf forever! And I love Lehane's work.

Hi Pat! I loved Jane Eyre -- I'll be following the group read as well. I also love the Moomin Family books! What a wonderful, whimsical picture at the top of your thread! Last year (or was it two years ago?) I read The Summer Book by Tove Jansson, the author of the Moomin books. The Summer Book is a collection of loosely connected vignettes of a young girl and her grandmother as they spend their summer on a small Finnish island. I was reminded of it earlier this year when I read The Country of the Pointed Firs, though the characters could not be more different! I was thoroughly captivated by the quiet rhythms of island summer life.

Donna, I owe The Given Day and East is East to you. I wishlisted them both after reading your favorable reviews.

I'm thinking I can't go wrong with Jane Eyre with Stasia, Jenn, Laura, Bonnie, Linda and Anne all recommending it!

Linda, I'm glad you liked Straight on Till Morning. It caught my eye because of Bonnie's recent review of West with the Night and Becky's recommendation for a biography of the Mitford sisters by the same author--Mary S. Lovell. I'm looking forward to reading it.

Mark, I remember you liking Let's Take the Long Way Home. Several friends have read it recently and wanted me to read it too. We should be discussing it this Thursday when we get together. I've never read anything by Dennis Lehane. Sometimes I feel like I'm treading water--it seems like I'm reading alot but somehow there are always writers out there that people love that I've never read.

Anne The Summer Book was actually the first thing I read by Tove Jansson and I loved it too. I hadn't thought about the comparison with The Country of the Pointed Firs but you're right about "the quiet rythms of island summer life." I'm hoping to get to more of the Moomin books soon.

" it seems like I'm reading alot but somehow there are always writers out there that people love that I've never read." Hey, welcome to our world!

Hey Pat! I'm getting the feeling that McLain of The Paris Wife borrowed heavily from A Moveable Feast. Did you get that feeling too?

Glad I'm not alone Mark!

Lynda I definitely have gotten that impression. I want to get back to reading the biography of Hemingway in Paris to see what the similarities are there too.

I was thinking this morning that Hemingway's comment in the preface - something about - oh, hang on. I'll just go get my book so I get it right. BRB.

OK. Here's the quote:
If the reader prefers, this book may be regarded as fiction. But there is always the chance that such a book of fiction may throw some light on what has been written as fact.

If we were to write our own biographies, would we fictionalize, perhaps without even knowing it? I know my sister's version of how we grew up is quite different from mine.
I am really enjoying A Moveable Feast. I quite like Hemingway in the 1920's.

Hi Pat!!! Starred. Someday I'll get to the Paris books.

You did great at the library sale!
Our library opens in May - sale will be July or August. That's too long to wait. :(

#20 If we were to write our own biographies, would we fictionalize, perhaps without even knowing it? I know my sister's version of how we grew up is quite different from mine.

Jenn after taking my Stegner course and reading some of his comments about writing about his own life (which were similar to Hemingway's), I'm more convinced than ever that it's hard to know what really happened in the past--even in one's own. Memory is too unreliable and there's different kinds of truth. Like you said, siblings can experience the same events but have different interpretations. I have that same experience with my brother. I'm glad you're enjoying A Moveable Feast. I am too.

Hi Claudia. Wow, no library until May. When does it close for the season? I've become really dependent on my library to keep my book buying in check.

Pat,
The library in my town closes Oct-May.
There is one we can use about 15 miles away in next town. But I don't know when they have book sales. Duh.... maybe I should ask! :} I think it's in the summer.
Other than that library, I don't know of any others. Must make this a mission to find out.

Book No. 16 Gone to New York: Adventures in the City by Ian Frazier--4 1/2 stars

In a roundabout way I have Rebecca to thank for reading this book. She had recently reviewed Frazier’s Travels in Siberia and Great Plains and I saw this in a book store on the Oregon coast of all places. It’s a collection of essays that Frazier wrote over the period 1975 to 2005, a number of which originally appeared in The New Yorker. As the title suggests, they’re mostly about New York City.

As with most collections, I liked some of the essays better than others and I struggled a bit with my rating. They started off captivating me, especially the one about Canal Street (“The traffic on Canal Street never stops. It is a high-energy current jumping constantly between the poles of Brooklyn and New Jersey”). In the 1970s, Frazier lived in a loft above an Army Navy store on Canal and he describes the whole length of the street ending with a history of the Holland Tunnel.

There are three essays on his efforts over the years to remove plastic bags from trees. He creates a Bag Snagger and has it patented and spends his free time plucking bags out of trees (“The snagger worked great--a twist of the crooked metal fingers would inveigle the bag, then the sharpened hook would cut it free. . . . The sensation was like having your arm suddenly extended sixteen feet, and the satisfaction like getting something out of your eye”). Eventually, he also creates a device to retrieve the helium balloons that people let go in the main concourse of Grand Central Station where they mar the beauty of the constellations on the ceiling.

I could go on about my favorites (the stories about the manual typewriter repairman, Frazier’s 12 mile walk along Route 3 in New Jersey to the Lincoln Tunnel, the quiet oasis of Butler Library at Columbia University, Frazier’s childhood growing up in Hudson, Ohio) but I’ll stop. As I mentioned, I struggled with my rating because there were occasional essays that didn’t engage me and I put the book down for a month but the last 100 pages were so good that I’m going to give the book 4 ½ stars.

Highly recommended for anyone with some knowledge or affection for New York City.

I think I got about 200 messages behind on your thread Pat! You've been doing some great reading and I enjoyed your review of The Girls on your last thread.

Hi Heather. Hope you get a chance to read The Girls sometime. Good to see your name on the threads again.

Book No. 17 101 Great American Poems edited by The American Poetry & Literacy Project--4 stars

The purpose of this slim volume (just 80 pages) is to make great poetry more available. The book is currently selling for $1.50 on Amazon. The poems are arranged in chronological order starting in the 1600s and ending in the late 1900s and each is introduced with a short paragraph about the poet. A number of them I had read back in grade school but many were new to me. My favorites ended up being by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Edna St. Vincent Millay. This is a book that could easily be carried in a purse or briefcase and read when time permitted. I loved it and will be keeping it on my shelves. Thanks to Linda (Whisper1) for kindly passing it on.

Pat - You fell below my radar screen somehow or other! Then I thought, where the heck has Pat gone, then I realized I had to hunt around for a new thread.

What a great haul! Your reading summary is exciting!

Great review of Gone to New York: Adventures in the City and a thumb from me. The poems look good too. I have a copy of The Collected Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay on my nightstand and I often read a few at night before going to sleep.

That's always my fear when I start a new thread--losing people. Glad you found me Lucy!

Hi Bonnie. Thanks for the thumb. I think I'm going to look for The Collected Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay at the library. I also like to read a few poems before going to bed. Right now I'm working my way through the Collected Poems of Jane Kenyon.

Book No. 18 The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn--3 1/2 stars

Lately I’ve needed to read lighter more entertaining books and this thriller fit that bill. The main character is something of a loser until he gets ahold of a “smart drug”--akin to a steroid (or as another reviewer called it, Viagra) for the brain. The recently released movie “Limitless” is the film adaptation of this book. I became somewhat disenchanted as the book progressed because it started to seem like it might have been written to cash in on a movie deal and the main character isn’t as smart as he thinks he is. I’d recommend it for a plane ride. It’s a good but not a great book and doesn’t require a "smart drug" to enjoy.

Book No. 19 The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan--4 stars

A love story told as dictionary entries that can easily be read in one sitting. Sometimes funny, sometimes melancholy. Like a dictionary, the entries are in alphabetical order but the story they tell jumps around and it is only gradually that you develop a picture of what is going on. By the end you’re not sure where the relationship is going but the fault lines are clear.

Here are some entries I flagged that give an idea of what the book is like:

arrears, n.

My faithfulness was as unthinking as your lapse. Of all the things I thought would go wrong, I never thought it would be that. “It was a mistake,” you said. But the cruel thing was, it felt like the mistake was mine, for trusting you.

autonomy, n.

“I want my books to have their own shelves,” you said, and that’s how I knew it would be okay to live together.

ineffable, adj.

These words will ultimately end up being the barest of reflections, devoid of the sensations words cannot convey. Trying to write about love is ultimately like trying to have a dictionary represent life. No matter how many words there are, there will never be enough.

scapegoat, n.

I think our top two are:

1. Not enough coffee.
2. Too much coffee.

Recommended, especially as a “palate cleanser” after a really long or difficult book. Thanks to Joanne for bringing this book to my attention. I’ll be looking for more of Levithan’s books.

I love that bookish definition of "autonomy" and I'm still trying to envision a bag snagger from your review in Msg. 24. That actually sounds like a great idea. I have some Ian Frazier books that I need to read one of these days...Great Plains and Family. Sooooo many books...

Pat- Nice review of The Lover’s Dictionary. It sounds interesting, a different approach.

Donna here's a little more description (hopefully not more than you wanted) of the Bag Snagger:

. . . we bought one eight-and-a-half-foot and one seven-and-a-half-foot length of stout aluminum tube about one inch across. One length of tube just fit inside the other. Tim . . . drilled holes in them so they could be held together by a bolt and nut, and he made a device to fit into the other end of the narrower length. This device was a configuration of short, bendable steel rods soldered to a piece of brass pipe. It looked, very roughly, like a hand with crooked and spread fingers, the middle finger longer, upright and sharpened into a cutting hook.

Mark I'd definitely recommend The Lover's Dictionary but because it's such a quick read, it's probably best taken out of the library.

Book No. 20 Lizard Music by Daniel Pinkwater--3 stars

I got hooked into buying this book by an Amazon email which raved about it but the real lure was that it was part of the New York Review of Books Children’s Collection. I loved Thurber’s The 13 Clocks that is also part of the collection and own another Thurber book from it that I want to read--The Story of O. These are all beautifully bound hardcover books with illustrations and I love just looking at them.

Lizard Music is about the summer 11 year old Victor is left home alone and discovers just how crazy the world is. Victor is a major fan of Walter Cronkite (the book was published in 1976) and after the late night news and the late night science fiction movies he watches, he notices that a group of lizards have their own TV show playing music. This discovery leads down a number of unlikely paths which Victor successfully navigates.

Initially I was charmed by the book but I eventually became bored with it. Of course, it is aimed at 9-12 year olds, a category I hardly fit. The writing is good so I’m giving it 3 stars but would not recommend it to anyone 13 or older.

Hi Pat - I love the illustration at the top of your thread. Glad you like The Lover's Dictionary. It makes for a good little read.

I've checked out Frazier's Gone to New York several times from the library but have never gotten to it, even though I figured I'd like it since I enjoy his New Yorker pieces. But now that I see that one of the essays has him following Rte 3, well, I'll have to pick it up again and actually read it. I grew up just a few blocks from Rte 3 and went to sleep summer nights listening to the trucks rumble over the Passaic River bridge (a drawbridge, no less, and pretty exciting as a kid. (It was the 60s...). Not to mention that it was my route to the city when I was older. Should be...interesting. Thanks Pat!

I'm adding Gone to New York to my ever growing tbr pile...

Joanne I forgot you were from New Jersey. That actually sounds kind of romantic about listening to the trucks rumble over the Passaic River bridge. You should love that essay about Route 3.

Linda I hope you like Gone to New York when you get a chance to read it.

I am adding Gone to New York to the BlackHole too. Thanks for the recommendation, Pat!

Hope you like it Stasia!

Hi Pat -- I went to look at the NYRB list and while there are many other great ones -- these are the three stand-outs for me besides the Thurber. (that maybe you haven't read): An Episode of Sparrows Rumer Godden, Mistress Masham's Repose TH White, The Peterkin Papers Lucretia Hale.

Pinkwater is boring.

Just passing through to say Hi! Love the discussions here.

Lucy thanks for those recommendations. I've WL'd all of them. None of them ring a bell except The Peterkin Papers which I'm not sure if I've read or not so might as well give it a shot. I was so mad at myself for falling prey to Amazon's sales pitch. Oh well, lesson learned (again).

Hi Becky. Nice to see you here. I'm hoping one of these days your book reorganization project is going to rub off on me and get me to give away books I know I won't read again. So hard to remove books from my shelves even though I have piles of them behind my chair that could easily fill their place.

I'll definitely have to check out Gone to New York. They sound like just my kind of essays. Like Joanne, I'm a NJer and Route 3 is something I have traveled hundreds of times.

The Peterkin Papers still have what it takes --- my daughter read them one summer and loved them. I'm not sure, actually, if she's read the other two. She's not as adventurous a reader as I was, I would read literally anything.

Tad I think you'd love Gone to New York especially the essay about Route 3. Frazier even talks about the Burr-Hamilton duel in that essay. ("Aside from the construction of the Lincoln Tunnel, the duel is the biggest thing that ever happened in Weehawken or nearby.") I love these kinds of essays that are both quirky and educational.

This article was mentioned on the Interesting Articles thread and I thought I'd repost the link here because it was quite interesting:

http://www.finebooksmagazine.com/issue/201104/cullman-1.phtml

Here's the first sentence: "Located on the second floor of the New York Public Library’s Schwarzman Building on Fifth Avenue, behind heavy polished wood doors, is heaven for the fifteen men and women chosen to spend the academic year at the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers."

Here's a picture of where the Cullman Fellows work:

#50: I want to work there! Of course, I seriously doubt I would get any work done in such a setting. I would be over in the next room checking out all the books.

I think I would move in permanently!

>43 sibylline:: You've mentioned two books I love and that I feel are so underknown (is that a word?)—An Episode of Sparrows and Mistress Masham's Repose—but I've never read, or even heard of, The Peterkin Papers.

>48 phebj:: Aaron Burr...not quite NJ's proudest citizen I would say. Though, his father was the president of Princeton, so the family isn't entirely bad! ;-D

You are in for a treat, and it is to be hoped at least one of your girls will also find them deliciously silly (but clever).

I have to give Episode to my dau. to read. It's packed up in one of the Vermont storage unit boxes --- but it is, cough choke, over forty years old..... and her birthday is in a couple of weeks. I think I could manage it!

The Alexander Hamilton - Chernow -- bio I read last year is very sympathetic to the complexity of Burr's character. He seems to me a very 'modern' man, would have lived in NYC and would have been up to his eyeballs in schemes.... he might have gone to low-security prison but probably wouldn't have died in a duel.

Another indication of just how many threads I follow. Here's a link posted on the LTers with Dogs: Pictures of your Dogs thread. It's a collection of pictures of writers with their dogs done in connection with the Westminister Dog Show.

http://www.newyorksocialdiary.com/node/205235#nysdtop

Ah, Pat. I'm delighted to find you again and to gallop through all the good reading you've done since the last thread. I think I'll go read some of my own, but I'll never catch up.

I love the pictures of the writers with their dogs. Funny how they run away with our hearts.

Adding the New York book to give to my son and daughter-in-law, confirmed, if adoptive, New Yorkers.

Hi Pat! *big waves*
Have been pretty busy this week...now I have some catching up to do on threads...and reading! Have my grandkids coming this weekend, so I might not get back in the groove till next Monday. Oh well. Happy reading! I'll still be lurking. ;-)

*Waves hello* You've been doing some great reading!

hey Pat! does Hemingway mention the lost valise in A Moveable Feast? Does he use the same sickeningly sweet pet names for everyone..lol? (it seems to have been all the rage at the time) (reminds me of the Seinfeld episode-- "Schmoopy"!)

Hello Pat. The Moomin picture brought back memories - I read and loved those books as a child...

Pat, thanks for posting the link with the writers/dogs pics. I loved all of them! I'm going to "borrow" one of the pictures for my thread to liven it up. Hope I don't get sued!

Loved the dog photos Pat. Where would we be without our pooches?

Hi Peggy. Always good to see you here!

Deborah, I hope your son and DIL like Gone to New York. It certainly sounds like they'd be perfect readers for it.

Happy reading to you too, Claudia, although with grandkids visiting for the weekend it sounds like you may have other priorities.

Hi Ardene. Thanks for the compliment on my reading. I kind of feel like I've been going in for easy reads lately. All that required reading for my Stegner class brought out the rebel in me.

Jenny, Hemingway does talk about the lost suitcase with all his writing in it in A Moveable Feast but doesn't seem to be upset about it. Of course, he wrote A Moveable Feast 30 years after it happened and was a famous writer by then so obviously it all worked out in the end for him. I'm about halfway through and Hadley repeatedly refers to him as "Tatie" but I don't remember him using any pet names for her.

Hi Genny. I really need to read some more of the Moomin books. I absolutely loved Finn Family Moomintroll and can't believe it took 50+ years to even hear about these books.

Donna and Bonnie--I'm glad you liked the dog pictures. I just had to repost that link. I just finished reading Let's Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell about her friendship with the writer Caroline Knapp and their shared love of dogs and it really struck a chord.

Hi Pat. Just passing though trying to catch up on the threads--haha. I love the discussions here.

Book No. 21 Let’s Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell--4 ½ stars

This is a short book about some profound topics: the close connections we make with friends and dogs, loss, grief, alcoholism. Gail Caldwell’s closest friend was Caroline Knapp (the author of Drinking: A Love Story and Pack of Two: The Intricate Bond Between People and Dogs). They were “fixed up” by their dog trainer and instantly connected on multiple levels. Besides being dog lovers, they were both single, writers, recovering alcoholics, and “moody introverts.”

Their time as a “pack of four” was short-lived in the scheme of things (7 years) but Caldwell does a great job of recreating their days together, when after walking their dogs for hours they purposely took the long way home to continue talking. The loss of Caroline was brutal for Caldwell but she manages to convey how even though she didn’t always want to go on, she did. The following quote is about one of the many things they had in common but it also addresses what helped Caldwell see her way through to the other side of her grief:

“If our individual pasts with alcohol were familiar, the more intricate and lasting truth we shared was about the ability to change--the belief that life was hard and often its worst battles were fought in private, that it was possible to walk through fear and come out scorched but still breathing.”

There is no getting around the fact that this is a very sad book at times but it’s also hopeful and beautifully written. Highly recommended (and you’ll need the Kleenex).

Another favorite quote (just before Caldwell decides to go into treatment for her alcoholism):
“He asked me why I was so frightened, and I told him, weeping, the first thing that came into my mind: “I’m afraid that no one will ever love me again.” He leaned toward me with a smile of great kindness on his face, his hands clasped in front of him. “Don’t you know?” he asked gently. “The flaw is the thing we love.”

>66 phebj:: Pat, I read a NY Times review of that book and the review alone made me feel sad. I can only imagine the book ... but it does sound good.

Awesome review of The Long Way Home, Pat. Thumb!

I have that book - bought it right away after reading a few other reviews and it's been sitting on my shelf. Forgot why I wanted to read it. Now that you have reminded me, I'm taking it out and adding it to my highly visible - not too tall pile of "read-me-now" books! Thanks! This book sounds wonderful!

Wow! If Let's take the long way home is just as powerful as your favorite quote then it certainly seems that it is a must read.

Oh, Pat, what a powerful and heartfelt review! The book looks wonderful, but I;m not sure I can so it just now. Thank you.

Pat, Thumbs up from me for your excellent review of Let's Take the Long Way Home. It is now on my tbr pile.

I hope you are having a lovely Sunday evening.

Hi Pat, nice review of Let's Take the Long Way Home and am glad you enjoyed it. I listened to the audio sometime last year and it was excellent (and I did cry in the car on the way to work, never a good idea). Have you read any of Carolyn Knapp's books? I loved Pack of Two and recommend it to any dog lover.

I picked up Gone to New York from the library and read the Route 3 essay. My goodness - I cannot imagine WALKING that road, expecially east of the Hackensack River. Yikes!

What a review! I can't say anything better than the others did. Wow.

Terrific review Pat! Thumb! I'd like to read it but it certainly sounds like a book that I'd have to be in the right frame of mind for.

Joanne, it was your review and then Mark's that encouraged me to read this book and I'm so glad I did. I will have to get to Pack of Two. It'll be interesting to read something by Caroline Knapp after reading Caldwell's book. I agree about Frazier and that walk along Route 3. It definitely does not seem like a road to walk along especially the sections with no shoulder.

Laura, Anne and Bonnie, I hope I didn't discourage you from reading the book. The sections that are sad are more than balanced out by Caldwell's recollections of their satisfying friendship and her success in going on with her life. It's also a very quick read because it's so well written.

Claudia, Lynda, Linda and Lucy I hope you all get a chance to read Let's Take the Long Way Home and that you end up enjoying it as much as I did.

Picture of Caroline Knapp and Lucille (a shepherd mix):

Picture of Gail Caldwell and Clementine (a samoyed):

Hi Pat- Loved the review of Let’s Take the Long Way Home. I'm a big fan of the book too! Thanks for posting the pix!

I already have Let's Take the Long Way Home in the BlackHole. I hope to get to it soon. Great review, Pat!

Thanks Mark and Stasia!

Waving hello. Happy Monday.

OK, you convinced me - I just put a hold on Let's Take the Long Way Home at the library. (So glad I realized today I had lost your thread and hunted it down.)

#64 What a great review of The Long Way Home! It sounds a bit sad for me to read at the moment but I've added it to the list for later.

Hi Jenn! Thanks for stopping by. Hope you have a good day too.

Laura and Heather, I hope you both end up enjoying Let's Take the Long Way Home when you get to it.

That photograph looks like a stretch of Wellfleet Beach (on the Cape) that I know well -- do you know where it was taken? A bit startling to see it, as I just got here to spend a few days in 'retreat'.

Lucy, I searched for pictures of Caldwell and her dog and this was one of them. It's from Oprah's website and this is the link: http://www.oprah.com/relationships/Coping-With-Loss-Gail-Caldwell. The caption says "Gail and Clementine at the beach on Cape Cod, 1995" so it sounds like you're right.

It's on a stretch of the outer beach called 'Newcomb Hollow.'

Hi Pat- Just a quick heads-up, I landed my copy of The Handmaids Tale and plan on starting it, probably early next week. Also, I'm really enjoying The Paris Wife. It looks like she's done her homework.

Hi Pat ... just popping in to say hello .... will try to keep up with your thread now that I'm back home again.

Mark, I'm sorry I won't be able to join you for The Handmaid's Tale but glad you're enjoying The Paris Wife. I just finished A Moveable Feast and need to write a review. It was great reading that with The Paris Wife still fresh in my memory.

Hi Caroline. Glad you're back stateside.

Just speaking, having thumbed your review. I don't think I'll read the book however lovely, but I'm glad to know it's in the world.

Pat- No problem! Maybe I'll inspire you to read it sooner than later. I'll be done with "Paris Wife" tomorrow. I've been enjoying it and it's a good companion to "Moveable Feast".

I currently am reading the following books:

Hemingway: The Paris Years by Michael S. Reynolds. This is part of a five volume biography and very good but I've been dipping in and out of it and have only gotten about a third of the way through. I'm hoping to finish it this month for the April in Paris TIOLI challenge.

Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell. This is also very good and relatively short so it shouldn't be hard to finish it this month. Also for the April in Paris challenge.

Collected Poems by Jane Kenyon. I like Kenyon's poems but I didn't realize how big this book was going to be. This is for Darryl's National Poetry Month TIOLI challenge and I'm not sure if I'll finish it this month just because I haven't been reading it lately and have alot more to go.

Paper Towns by John Green. Amy (Porch_Reader) recommended this YA book about the last days of senior year in high school when a popular girl mysteriously disappears. It's good and I'm almost done.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (75ers Group Read starting April 15th). I started this a couple of days ago and am loving it. I can't believe I've never read it before. I bought my copy at Christmas time as a present to myself. It's one of the new Penguin Classic hardcovers with no dustjacket but sort of an engraved design and a ribbon bookmark. I love both the look of the book and the story.

The Master by Colm Toibin. I started this one a couple of weeks ago and loved it at first then it slowed down and I haven't gotten back to it. It's a fictionalized account of the life of Henry James.

Qigong Illustrated by Christina J. Barea. This is an ER book that I owe a review for. I stopped taking my tai chi and qigong classes at the end of 2010 so my interest in this topic is not as high as it used to be.

Best American Short Stories 2009 edited by Alice Sebold. I started this at the end of last year and just have 70 pages left so I want to finish this. I've enjoyed most of the stories I've read in it so far.

What a great combination of books. I feel like I want to read them all myself but I am not capable of reading six books at once. At least three would become neglected and eventually forgotten!

Yes, I am finding that four is about the limit -- plus an audio book. If I have more than that one of them always ends up being the one who gets picked last. Very sad, that.

Wow, Pat, I don't know how you can keep so many going all at once! For what it's worth, my 18yo daughter counts John Green among her favorite authors. She has read all of his books.

Wow, Pat -- some great reads! Enjoy!

My own assessment is that my reading is getting out of control but I don't think I've hit bottom yet. One of my concerns is that although I feel like I read a lot of good books there are not that many that are great--in the sense that I want to read that one book and no other. I think that's what I'm searching for in starting all these books at the same time. I'm hoping one will vastly outshine the others and it's not. Not a huge problem in the scheme of things.

What a great list of reads! I am so excited that you are enjoying Jane Eyre!

Jane Eyre is my favorite of all the books I'm reading now. I'm just about to start Chapter VIII. She's still at the charity school. I saw a comment somewhere on LT that after Chapter X it really takes off so this may be the book that outshines all the others.

Howdy do, Pat. I find that I am reading more than one book at a time now a days too. I'm finding I accomplish more when I switch between books. It gets me thru the slower parts of a book by knowing I'm not stuck with reading just that book.

#100: I do hope you continue to enjoy Jane Eyre, Pat!

Just stopping by! I reread Jane Eyre at some point -- and was amazed by how much I still loved it. I had thought maybe it would be one of those books you grew out of a little bit, but no.

I find I can't easily read more than one book at a time successfully Pat. I think it may be because I take a while to really get into a book and once I'm there I don't want to look back so picking up another book would be defeatist for me. That said, I read Jane Eyre for the first time last year and absolutely loved it and, yes, you're about to get to the part where it really takes off.

Wow. that's a great list of books, Pat. Do you ever find yourself losing the thread of a book if you read too many at the same time? I don't think I could read more than 2 at the same time ... brain's a little too small to allow for multiple storylines. ;-)

I usually only read one book at a time. Sometimes I'll have one fiction and one non-fiction work going simultaneously, but that's about it. Otherwise I tend to feel that I'm not doing justice to the books.

I'm also a many books at once reader except that at the moment I can't say that I'm truly reading but 4. I think it's because 3 of them are relatively short, and I think that I might finish one off more quickly than usual. Or maybe my preference is changing. Who knows? But, Pat, your books all look good. I want to get to The Master too, but Brooklyn first!!

Book No. 22 A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway--4 ½ stars

A Moveable Feast is Hemingway’s bittersweet memoir of the years (1921-1926) he spent in Paris married to his first wife, Hadley Richardson. These were the years before his big success as a writer (“when we were very poor and very happy”) and a beautiful rich young woman, named Pauline Pfeiffer, ruined it all.

Paris is where Hemingway met writers such as Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound (“the man who . . . taught me to distrust adjectives as I would later learn to distrust certain people”) and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and developed his understated writing style. One of the things I loved about this book was Hemingway’s obvious passion for the craft of writing. These are some of the comments I flagged about his writing:

After writing a story I was always empty and both sad and happy, as though I had made love.

All you have to do is write one true sentence.

. . . my new theory that you could omit anything if you knew that you omitted and the omitted part would strengthen the story and make people feel something more than they understood.

Since I had started to break down all my writing and get rid of all facility and try to make instead of describe, writing had been wonderful to do. But it was very difficult, and I did not know how I would ever write anything as long as a novel. It often took me a full morning of work to write a paragraph.

Besides his writing, it is also clear that he loved Hadley but that didn’t preclude him from falling in love with Pauline Pfeiffer, a wealthy American who arrived in Paris to work for Vogue. After a rendezvous with Pauline, Hemingway writes wistfully about returning to Hadley: “When I saw my wife again standing by the tracks as the train came in . . . at the station, I wished I had died before I ever loved anyone but her.”

I had trouble enjoying Hemingway’s writing in For Whom the Bell Tolls but for the most part I loved it in this book. The “for the most part” is why I didn’t give it 5 stars. Occasionally, I think he omitted too much and I couldn’t follow what he was trying to convey. Overall, I would highly recommend this book and I plan on re-reading it.

This is Hemingway’s explanation for the failure of his marriage to Hadley:

. . . new people came deep into our lives and nothing was ever the same again.

. . . we had already been infiltrated by another rich using the oldest trick there is. It is that an unmarried young woman becomes the temporary best friend of another young woman who is married, goes to live with the husband and wife and then unknowingly, innocently and unrelentingly sets out to marry the husband. When the husband is a writer and doing difficult work so that he is occupied much of the time and is not a good companion or partner to his wife for a big part of the day, the arrangement has advantages until you know how it works out. The husband has two attractive girls around when he has finished work. One is new and strange and if he has bad luck he gets to love them both.

Picture of Hemingway and Hadley:

Picture of Pauline Pfeiffer:

#101 I find that I am reading more than one book at a time now a days too. I'm finding I accomplish more when I switch between books. It gets me thru the slower parts of a book by knowing I'm not stuck with reading just that book.

Lynda that's definitely the big advantage to me of reading more than one book at a time.

#105 Do you ever find yourself losing the thread of a book if you read too many at the same time?

The answer is yes, Caroline, and that's the biggest disadvantage of reading more than one book at the same time!

#106 Sometimes I'll have one fiction and one non-fiction work going simultaneously, but that's about it.

That's how it started for me Liz, but it just snowballed from there!

#107 I'm also a many books at once reader

I'm glad I'm not alone, Peggy! I'll be interested to hear what you think of Brooklyn.

Stasia, Lucy and Bonnie, I am continuing to LOVE Jane Eyre and have just finished Chapter 10. Onto Thornfield Hall!

Pat- You did a great job here! Love the photos and the review. I just finished The Paris Wife and I really enjoyed it. These make terrific companion pieces.

Thanks, Mark. I read The Paris Wife about two months ago so it was still fresh in my mind when I read A Moveable Feast. You're absolutely right about them being terrific companion pieces and I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed A Moveable Feast as much if I hadn't read The Paris Wife first.

Thumbs up for your wonderful review of A Moveable Feast!

And, by the way, Jane Eyre is my favorite all-time book...right up there with two others -- To Kill a Mockingbird and A Prayer for Owen Meany.

I always have more than one - often 4-5, but I try not to have more than one of the same genre or time period, or setting. Also, at least two of those are always audios. And I'm always plodding through some sort of longish one that I'd never get through on its own.

Linda I also loved To Kill A Mockingbird and A Prayer for Owen Meany. I've got a ways to go with Jane Eyre but I expect it will be one of my favorites. Thanks for the thumb on my review of A Moveable Feast!

Tina I think your approach is wise and I try to do that as well. I probably made a mistake tossing in Down and Out in Paris and London because I'm getting confused with things Orwell has done versus things Hemingway has done in Paris in the 1920s. For example, either Orwell or Hemingway spends time looking at a statue of Marshal Ney in Paris which I didn't pay much attention to when I was reading. But today there was something on television about Ney and I couldn't remember which book I had read about him in. Not a crucial detail but it does get confusing.

Pat, what a terrific review! I have A Moveable Feast waiting for me at the library.

Great review Pat. I've read very little Hemingway; in fact, I've only read The Old Man and the Sea. I'm not likely to read him anytime soon -- there's just too much clamoring for my attention -- but I still enjoyed your take on A Moveable Feast !

Great review of A Moveable Feast, Pat!

Thank you for those photographs, Pat.

Hi Pat,
I usually read about 3 books at a time - but like you if the subject matter is too close, I tend to get stories mixed up. So now, like Tina, "I try not to have more than one of the same genre or time period, or setting..."

Nice review of A Moveable Feast. I have that one to read.

Terrific review of A Moveable Feast Pat; very thumb worthy. I like the thematic reading you're doing and hope to be able to do a little more of that in the future. The book I'm reading right now has a general WWI theme with the opportunity to move in many directions so we'll see how I'm able to take advantage of that. The pictures you've added here really add a lot to your review. Great job!

I know you weren't crazy about A Farewell to Arms but did you find that your general opinion of Hemingway has changed since reading his memoir? Will you read anything else he's written?

enjoying your posts, Pat. I'm anxious to reread The Old Man and the Sea soon.

Thumbed your review of A Moveable Feast, Pat. I haven't yet read The Paris Wife or this one, so I'm glad to read that they are companion pieces and that I'd appreciate them more if I read them in that order.

Thanks, Anne. I hope you like A Moveable Feast. It can be uneven--I liked some parts much better than others--but I ended up flagging so many things that the book looked like a porcupine when I was done.

Laura I certainly understand having too many things clamouring for your attention. :)

Thanks, Stasia! I'm anxious to check out your thread today. I saw you mention that you were re-reading Britten and Brulightly and I immediately tracked it down at my library. I really enjoyed it.

Hi Lucy. I'm fascinated by Hemingway's life and the pictures help me keep everything straight, especially the 4 wives.

Hi Claudia. I hope you end up liking A Moveable Feast when you get to it. I'd actually recommend reading The Paris Wife first. It's a fictionalized account of the marriage from Hadley's point of view and is an easier read. Hemingway's writing is sometimes hard for me to follow but having read The Paris Wife first I think I understood what was going on in A Moveable Feast better.

Bonnie I'm really enjoying reading about Hemingway during this period. I'm making slow progress with the Reynolds' biography (Hemingway: The Paris Years) but not because it isn't good, even excellent at times, but because I'm reading so much else. I've seen that you're currently reading Testament of Youth. I just ordered a used copy of that so I'm eager to hear your final thoughts on it.

Hemingway's writing is definitely an aquired taste for me and I'm still hesitant about reading more of his books. I have a book of his short stories and I think I'll try that next. Otherwise, I'll probably be checking his books out of the library. His life, on the other hand, I'm really enchanted with and I plan on reading the other 4 volumes of the Reynolds biography.

Jenny I read The Old Man and the Sea in high school and don't remember it fondly but I have a friend who loves it so I plan to re-read it at some point. Somehow, I think I'd like it much better now.

Caroline I really think reading The Paris Wife before A Moveable Feast was a big plus for me. Hope you get to read and enjoy them both.

... I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed A Moveable Feast as much if I hadn't read The Paris Wife first.

Oh no! Another book I must read. Too bad I read them in the wrong order!I knew you would like A Moveable Feast more than I did, Pat. My knowledge of Hemingway is limited. In fact, most everything I know about him comes from you!

I'm so glad you included the pictures and those interesting quotes by Hem in Post 109. I still think he's a jerk for cheating on Hadley, who seemed like the perfect wife for him.

I agree with you Donna about Hemingway being a jerk for cheating on Hadley. I was interested in his take on the failure of the marriage--like he had nothing to do with it and it was all Pauline's fault. In The Paris Wife, the fictionalized Hadley talks about the three of them living together for months because Hemingway thought that would work just fine. Of course, it was a disaster. Hard to believe Hadley would even agree to it but I got the impression that the writers and artists in the 1920s that the Hemingways associated with were doing similiar things and Hemingway was partly influenced by them. The sad thing was that Hemingway seemed to regret what happened with Hadley at the end of his life.

Great review of A Moveable Feast Pat. I own a copy of The Old Man and the Sea but I'm rather intimidated by it despite it being quite a thin book. Perhaps your reread (when you get to it) will inspire me to pick it up?

Thanks Heather. One of the reasons I'm considering a reread of The Old Man and the Sea is exactly because it's short. Hopefully I'll get to it soon.

I really enjoyed your review of A Moveable Feast, Pat but know that reading the book would be a bad idea for me. All that blaming the other woman for his affair would have me hurling the book across the room! I'm not very good at sympathising with men in that sort of situation- probably one reason why I read so many books by women!

#131 - Well, you wouldn't have to throw the book until the last bit, so you might get something out of the rest of it...

Great review/discussion! I enjoyed reading through. I am reading The Paris Wife after - so I'll let you know how that went. :)

Great review of A Moveable Feast, Pat! I read The old man and the sea as a child, and again as an adult, and definitely liked it better the second time. Unfortunately, I've been put off Hemingway by his use in a college class I hated, and criticism of his treatment of women in his life and work. Someday I may try some of his work again, but right now I have too many other things on my plate.

Dee before I took my class on Hemingway last Fall I had a vague negative impression of him, especially regarding his treatment of women. The professor for that class was a Hemingway scholar and a woman and her enthusiam for him was contagious. As a result, I now like Hemingway the person (for the most part) although I'm still on the fence about his writing. Jenn is right about his comments about the failure of his marriage coming at the end of the book and what I quoted is about the extent of it. He's a flawed person but an interesting one.

Jenn I'll be interested to hear what you think of The Paris Wife. The more people that read it the more mixed reviews I see. I loved it.

Ardene it's good to know you liked reading The Old Man and the Sea better as an adult. The way I'm going now I expect to read alot more about Hemingway's life. I've got a biography about him that I'm halfway through and a biography of Martha Gellhorn (his third wife) to read. Like I said to Dee although I find some of his comments about women offensive, I'm fascinated with his life.

Book No. 23 Paper Towns by John Green--3 ½ stars

I started reading young adult books last year but this is the first one I’ve read geared towards older teenagers and that isn’t a fantasy. It’s about the last three weeks of high school when Margo, a popular girl, disappears. Quentin, her next door neighbor who is secretly in love with her, believes she has left clues as to where she is and sets out to find her with the help of his friends.

The book dragged a bit in the middle and the characters occasionally seemed two-dimensional but for the most part I enjoyed it. It was well-written, I liked that one of the clues to Margo’s disappearance was Walt Whitman’s poem “A Song of Myself” (which meant that it was discussed in depth), and it brought back memories of making that transition from high school to the next stage of your life. At the end I felt that most of these kids would be okay but they’ve also started the process of learning some hard truths about life and other people.

I plan to try some of John Green’s other books and would recommend this one if you’re looking for an easy read.

Here’s a quote:

“Margo always loved mysteries. And in everything that came afterward, I could never stop thinking that maybe she loved mysteries so much she became one.”

ETA: Thank you to Amy (Porch_Reader) for recommending this book.

Book No. 24 Britten and Brulightly by Hannah Berry--4 ½ stars (graphic novel)

I read on one of the LT threads that Stasia was re-reading this book. I had never heard of it but figured if she deemed it worthy of re-reading it must be good. It’s a graphic novel about a suspected murder and has the feel of movies like Chinatown and L.A. Confidential.

Fernandez Britten is a private investigator who has been worn down by years of investigating love triangles and won’t get out of bed anymore for less than a murder. He has a very unusual partner named Stewart Brulightly who is a tea bag of all things.

The story is illustrated primarily in shades of gray and is dark both visually and narratively but is very well told. It’s a pretty quick read and it was no trouble to read most of it a second time when I realized I had missed some of the clues to the mystery.

This was a very satisfying read and I would highly recommend it.

Here’s a link to an interview with the author that has some scenes from the book so you can get a feel for what it’s like: http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/2008/skipping-brulightly-along-with-hannah-ber...

Stopping by to say hello.

More great reviews -- thanks, Pat!

This is a great thread, Pat.

Hi Pat- Good review of Britten and Brulightly. Hey, you've read one I haven't. Yah. I've had this one on the list forever.

I love how you are trying everything -- from Hemingway to YA to graphic. It does make your thread a joy to read, always full of surprises and thoughtful reactions!

Hey Linda. Thanks for stopping by--always good to see you here.

Thanks Anne and Becky!

Mark I was actually hoping you hadn't even heard of this one so I'd be the one recommending it to you. Not very realistic since you're my graphic novel "dealer."

Thanks Lucy. I must say it's LT that's made me more adventurous in my reading selections. I remember looking for the book The Book Thief a couple of years ago after reading a good review of it. When they told me to look in the YA section I immediately decided it wasn't something I wanted to read. Maybe now I'll actually read that book.

LT has really broadened my reading as well.

The Book Thief is one of my all-time favorites. There is some debate about whether it really should be considered a YA book. I heard somewhere that in the author's native Australia, it is considered an adult title. Don't miss it, Pat!

edited to correct touchstone

I agree, The Book Thief is indeed a book that is wonderful. I'm always perplexed re. the category of "YA".

It seems that if there is a young person telling the story, bam...it is pigeonholed in this genre.

Pat, thanks for the John Green recommendation - I think I'm going to have to start a list of light reads. I'm finding myself with less of those somehow this year, and every once in a while I want to read something not as "dense" as what I'm currently into.

>143 AMQS:, 144: my local library had a copy of The Book Thief in both sections! It's great, Pat, you should definitely read it. Perhaps I should send you the copy I gave my daughter for Christmas (after several other attempts to foist it on her), and it's gathering dust. Admittedly she suffers from the "too many books ..." problem like all of us. But I just KNOW she'd love it. Sigh.

Wow Pat you're really cranking out the reviews and look at that, another graphic novel. Very eclectic reading Pat.

Well with all of you recommending The Book Thief I will have to read it soon. My library system has 30 copies so it's obviously popular. Right now I have the limit I can have on hold but as soon as I pick up those books, I'll get The Book Thief. Thanks for the recommendation Anne, Linda and Laura!

Ardene I find I need occasional light reads or reading starts to seem like an effort to me. The graphic novels, YA and children's books generally help me balance out some of my other reading. I'm actually thinking of making a new LT collection for my library--something like "good, quick reads."

Bonnie I've been making an effort this year to stay on top of my reviews and not obsess so much about them. Last year I got weeks, even a month at times, behind and it got to be oppressive.

The next thing I need to work on is reading my ER books on a more timely basis. I've got 4 still to finish/read and have told myself that I can't request anymore until I clear up the backlog. It helped immensely this month that I didn't want anything from the list.

I'm going to add my nudge to the others for The Book Thief, Pat. It was one of my favorite reads too.

Your review of Britten and Brulightly reminded me that I should check my library for that one. It's been on my obese wish list for quite a while now, and I'd forgotten about it.

Hiya Pat, let me know when you're ready to begin The Book Thief. I bought it a couple of years ago based on LT reviews but haven't read it yet.
I had included it in my 11 in 11 challenge and would love to get to it sometime soon.

*nudge, nudge*

The Book Thief is one of my all time favorites, Pat. I hope you get a chance to read it soon.

Hi, Pat! I have to admit that I don't like Hemingway's writing and I certainly don't respect him as a person, so haven't been interested in anything else by him, but a biography? Maybe. Enjoying your reviews in any case. I can understand the confusion regarding Down and Out in Paris but I found that a really interesting and memorable book.

#135 Pat, thanks for your review of Paper Towns. I was considering buying a copy myself but after reading your review I think it's one I'll get out of the library instead.

#136 I've had Britten and Brulightly on my wishlist for a while since Stasia mentioned it last year. None of my local libraries have a copy so I think I'll need to buy my own copy.

Pat - I'm glad that you liked Paper Towns. Your comments made me realize that most of the YA that I read is fantasy too. This was an interesting change.

I'll be keeping my eye out for your comments on The Master. I just listened to a collection of Toibin's short stories, Mothers and Sons. I really liked it. That was my first Toibin. I've read a lot of good things about The Master, and I have Brooklyn on my shelf.

OK Lynda with Caroline and Joanne also recommending The Book Thief I don't think I'll be able to resist too much longer. How about reading it sometime in May or June?

Caroline and Heather--I hope you both enjoy Britten and Brulightly when you get to it. It has almost a haunting quality to it. I'm curious as to what this author might do in the future. This was her first (and so far only) book.

Bonnie, I owe my interest in Hemingway to the professor I had. I loved her and I figured if she's dedicated her life to studying him there must be something there. I'm glad you brought up Down and Out in Paris and London. I need to get back to that.

Amy I'm so glad you introduced me to John Green. I'm definitely going to try some of his other books. I've been ignoring The Master for a couple of weeks and need to get back to it. It started to slow down and I had so many other things I was reading. I love Toibin's writing and I also like short story collections so I'll be looking for Mothers and Sons and I've heard only good things about Brooklyn so that's definitely on the list.

I listened to Brooklyn last year on audio, and enjoyed it very much.

Book No. 25 Living Well is the Best Revenge by Calvin Tompkins--4 stars

This is a short biography of the lives of Gerald and Sara Murphy, wealthy Americans who chose to spend the 1920s and early 1930s living in France. They became friends with Hemingway, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Pablo Picasso and Fernand Leger among others. “Archibald MacLeish, another old and very close friend, remarked that from the beginning of the Murphys’ life in Europe, ‘person after person--English, French, American, everybody--met them and came away saying that these people really are masters in the art of living.’”

Although in many ways the Murphys lived a charmed life in the 1920s, things changed in the 30s. The love of painting that Gerald had discovered (and was very good at) was abandoned when he had to return to New York to take over the family business (Mark Cross, a leather goods store), and both of their sons succumbed to illnesses before they reached adulthood. The book contains almost 50 pages of photographs and the one I’ll remember is of the outlines of their new yacht that Gerald drew to scale in white lime on the lawn outside their son’s hospital window. It summed up for me the combination of fortune and misfortune in their lives.

This book seemed like a New Yorker magazine profile and it turned out that’s exactly how it started out. Calvin Tompkins was a staff writer at The New Yorker and their art critic for years as well as a friend of the Murphys. One of the best parts of the book is his discussion of Gerald’s paintings which were done in a “style that lay midway between realism and abstraction.” Gerald “once told a friend that he was never entirely happy until he began painting, and that he was never really happy again after he stopped.”

This is a well told, bittersweet story of some interesting people that is going into my “Good Quick Reads” collection. Recommended.

Razor by Gerald Murphy, 1922, Collection of the Dallas Museum for Contemporary Arts

deleted double post

#157 Hi Anne. From what I've been hearing on LT, Brooklyn seems to be the favorite of Colm Toibin's books. I have a feeling that's the next one of his I'll try.

Hey Pat, I enjoyed Brooklyn, too. Big surprise, right? :)

Brooklyn is the only book by Colm Toibin I've read, so I can't speak for the rest of his works, only that I enjoyed that one. Hope you do, too.

The Tompkins sounds very interesting. I browsed some of his paintings and they aren't generally to my taste. However, the one you posted above did make me smile: I had a 1920s Parker Duofold in red (until it was stolen) and I miss it. The first razor my dad gave me was one of those old Gillettes. I'm not sure I remember Three Star matches, though...for some reason I remember the ones my folks used being Diamonds.

I remember a book called Everyone Was So Young: Gerald and Sara Murphy by Amanda Vaill. But the darned thing isn't where I thought it was on my shelf and the touchstone isn't working--so, oh well. It was a good book, though.

Did you say read The Book Thief in either May or June? Ok, I'll bite. You decide both months are fine with me.

Joanne and Anne--I just ordered a copy of Brooklyn from PBS. I'm looking forward to getting to it.

Tad the book talks about Gerald being responsible for coming up with an inexpensive safety razor for Mark Cross in 1915. They were on the verge of patenting it when Gillette came out with the almost identical product. I remember the Mark Cross store fondly. I used to shop there for Christmas and birthday presents for my husband.

Becky I have Everyone Was So Young in my Amazon shopping cart. I've been hestitating because I've been buying alot of books lately. But I do want this one and your recommendation helps with the indecision. :)

Lynda how about June for The Book Thief. I can't believe how many books I'm already planning to read for May.

Pat : I read Toibin's The Master and that was excellent. It was what made me pick up Booklyn after and I didn't regret reading it. You're in for a treat.

Back to message 66, I am finishing up Let's Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell. Thank you for the photos so I can see Gail and Clementine and Caroline and Lucille. You were right about the kleenex, but what a good read.

My dad died after a battle with lung cancer a 2 and 1/2 years ago, and this book has a been a thoughtful (and sometimes hard) read this week. What a wonderful friendship they had.

Caroline for some reason I'm not getting back to The Master after reading about the first 100 pages. Of course, it might be because I'm trying to read 5 other books at the same time. I'm glad to hear you thought it was excellent because I hate not finishing something after I've read that many pages.

Laura I'm glad you liked Let's Take the Long Way Home but sorry it was hard to read at times because of your experience with your dad. Their friendship really seemed magical. Such a loss but I was comforted by how Gail Caldwell was able to go on with her life.

Pat- I want to chime in about The Book Thief. I loved that book and I hope you do too! Remember the Mitchell Group read is mid-June too!

Thanks for that reminder about the group read of The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet Mark. Lynda do you want to start The Book Thief on June 1st? That way I should be done by the time The Thousand Autumns group read starts on the 15th.

Pat, I thought of you yesterday while browsing the liner notes of Mary Chapin Carpenter's album, The age of miracles. One of the songs in it is called Mrs. Hemingway, and it's about living in Paris.

Thanks Ardene! I would never have heard of that. I googled the song and found these lyrics:

Mrs. Hemingway by Mary Chapin Carpenter

We packed up our books and our dishes
Our dreams and your worsted wool suits
We sailed on the 8th of December.
Farewell old Hudson River
Here comes the sea
And love was as new and as bright and as true
When I loved you and you loved me.

Two steamer trunks in the carriage
Safe arrival we cabled back home
It was just a few days before Christmas
We filled our stockings with wishes
And walked for hours
Arm in arm through the rain, to the glassed-in café
It held us like hothouse flowers

Living in Paris, in attics and garrets
Where the coal merchants climb every stair
The dance hall next door is filled with sailors and whores
And the music floats up through the air
There's Sancerre and oysters, cathedrals and cloisters
And time with it's unerring aim
For now we can say we were lucky most days
And throw a rose into the Seine

Love is the greatest deceiver
It hollows you out like a drum
And suddenly nothing is certain
As if all the clouds closed the curtains and blocked the sun
And friends now are strangers in this city of dangers
As cold and as cruel as they come

Sometimes I look at old pictures
And smile at how happy we were
How easy it was to be hungry.
It wasn't for fame or for money
It was for love
Now my copper hair's gray as the stones on the quay
In the city where magic was

Living in Paris, in attics and garrets
Where the coal merchants climb every stair
The dance hall next door is filled with sailors and whores
And the music floats up through the air
There's Sancerre and oysters, and Notre Dame's cloisters
And time with it's unerring aim
For now we can say we were lucky most days
And throw a rose into the Seine

Now I can say I was lucky most days
And throw a rose into the Seine.

Wow, who would have thought Hadley had a song written about her and Tatie.

OK, Pat I'll put in my dayplanner.

Pat, what a great thread here. I've decided to stop counting the adds to my TBR mountain, but I did want to say thanks very, very much for posting the Moomintroll picture; I have to read those books! They look charming.

And to add my little bit to the The Book Thief parade: it's one of those books I am an absolute pusher for. I loved it, for the style, the content, the characters, everything. It's a fantastic read.

>174 phebj: Mary Chapin Carpenter! I used to love her songs but hadn't thought about her in years. I wonder if she's still performing? Heads off to google....

Too much going on! I haven't read The Book Thief either. Oh dear. Oh dear. Have a wonderful Easter, Pat!

Not me Lynda. That's why I was so glad Ardene pointed it out.

Gail I hope you get a chance to try the Moomintroll books soon. Lucy (sibyx) first recommended them to me and while I was reading Finn Family Moomintroll I actually had a feeling of self pity that no one had introduced me to these books as a child.

Bonnie I have to admit that the name Mary Chapin Carpenter was somewhat familiar but I couldn't think of any her songs.

Happy Easter to you too Peggy!

>167 phebj:: Did they imply the idea was stolen by Gillette or just coincidence?

Mark Cross...the name sounds so familiar (something with wallets?...leather goods?), but I didn't know there was a store.

Tad they said it was a coincidence. Neither Mark Cross nor Gillette knew the other company was working on the same product and Gillette introduced theirs first and it took off.

(I apologize ahead time--the following is probably more than you ever wanted to know about Mark Cross.)

I worked in NYC from the mid 70s until 2000. The Mark Cross store was somewhere on Fifth Avenue (I think around 51st St). When I was younger it seemed like a store for those who had "made it" in the world. Most of the things I couldn't afford (which increased its allure) and I used to get my husband belts and wallets there as gifts. It originally was a harness and sadle shop in the mid 1800s and then became mainly a leather goods shop. It was taken over by Sara Lee and Coach in 1983 (if I remember correctly what I just read on the internet) and closed in 1997. They have a website here: http://www.markcross1845.com/history.htm. Apparently, they just brought out a line of women's handbags in 2010 that are selling at Saks.

This is a description of what they sold that I found in a 1967 Time Magazine article that announced they were opening a branch in San Francisco:

A famous old name will appear over a San Francisco shop window next fall. On display will be such elegant curiosities as a measuring tape encased in black baby-alligator skin, a champagne-colored leather-lined ostrich handbag, and a wine-colored pheasant-feather necktie. Inside the store, the rich smell of groomed leather will signal devotees of Mark Cross that their favorite New York specialty store has broken out of Manhattan and spread its wares before customers far from Fifth Avenue.

Hi Pat!
Company has dispersed - life getting back to normal (?)...
So, after flitting around in the "lurking zone", wanted to wish you a Happy Easter!

Thanks Claudia! Love the gif. Hope you're having Easter-like weather and enjoying getting back to your normal life.

I think maybe I read that book about the Murphy's -- I'll have to go and take a look at it -- they were interesting, weren't they? But couldn't settle down and take themselves seriously.

Correction -- I read the one called Sarah and Gerald: Villa America and After (I theeenk? The cover looks familiar anyway...)

I have the Amanda Vaill biography of the Murphys on its way to me. Tompkins' book was kind of a teaser in that you didn't get a complete picture of their lives but I enjoyed reading it. It made me want to know more.

The Murphys seemed like they had the money to do whatever they wanted until the early 1930s. It must be strange to have that much money when you're young and then have to face reality later on.

Do you remember whether you liked the book on Villa America?

Hi Pat - Hope you had a great Easter!

Hi Pat, I hope your Easter was lovely.

Great song lyrics!
I finished The Paris Wife and really liked it. I had to keep reminding myself I was reading a novel. I did want to fling the book near the end as the marriage fell apart. I just wanted to fling it at Hemingway himself, and he wasn't available. I was glad to have read A Moveable Feast first, I think.

I think I did -- but if it is the one I am thinking of I read it years ago and I do think it has a bit of that 'celebrity' feeling -- albeit, celebrity intellectuals. You know, she wore this, and then they ate dinner with so and so and got in the car and drove to Cannes where they danced with such and such -- but they did meet up with amazing people and they were definitely trendsetters -- bathing suits and pants and bohemian life-style -- so they weren't unimportant to the time. And I could be thinking of a different book! I was really into the 20's scene in Paris during my late teens and early twenties when all things French were magic for me.

>181 phebj:: That final quote remind me of when the real Abercrombie & Fitch closed.

Glad you liked the lyrics Pat. Mrs. Hemingway is currently my favorite song on the album. And yes, Brenzi, Mary Chapin Carpenter is still playing - she doesn't get much (if any) air play, but I think she's an excellent song writer. I suspect she doesn't get air play because she doesn't "fit" comfortably in the country western slot she was put in early on.

Songs? I'm guessing Passionate Kisses and He Thinks He'll Keep Her (remember those Geritol commercials?) might be the best known across pop/rock/country lines.

ETA to fix some typos.

Thanks, Joanne and Jenn. I had a nice Easter with extended family. Hope yours was good too.

Jenn I have to keep reminding myself that The Paris Wife was a novel too. I keep thinking that it was Hadley writing the book.

Lucy I remember reading somewhere that the Murphys introduced sunbathing to the French Riveria. That before that no one spent time lying on the beach to get the sun. You might go to swim but that was it.

Tad I forgot about the original Abercrombie & Fitch. A far cry from today's version.

Ardene I need to search for the song so I can listen to it. I usually avoid using the audio on my computer because it sets my dog off.

>190 markon: Yes, those are exactly the two songs I was thinking of. I really like her songs and wondered what happened to her. Thanks markon.

Popping up to say I'm here and enjoying -- esp the Mark Cross bit.

Enjoying the conversation about Mary Chapin Carpenter and Mark Cross---and of course your interesting reading and great reviews.

Waving hello!

Hi Bonnie, Lucy, Deborah and Jenn. Always good to see you guys!

Book No. 26 Sempre Susan: A Memoir of Susan Sontag by Sigrid Nunez--3 1/2 stars

This is the second memoir I’ve read recently by a writer that is about their relationship with another writer. In the first one (Let’s Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell), it was clear the relationship was a good one. In this book, it’s often clear that it’s not.

Sigrid Nunez met Susan Sontag in 1976 when Sontag hired her to help answer a backlog of correspondence that had accumulated while Sontag was ill with breast cancer. In a very short time, she became involved with Sontag’s son, David, and ended up living with both of them in Sontag’s Riverside Drive penthouse in New York City.

Sontag had an unusual relationship with her son. She had no desire to be thought of as his mother nor to separate from him. More than one person asked Nunez if the relationship was incestuous. It wasn’t but Sontag is certainly portrayed as being very intrusive and having little respect for David and Sigrid as a couple. “She referred to the three of us as the duke and duchess and duckling of Riverside Drive. I knew that wasn’t good.”

Despite numerous examples of things Nunez admired about Sontag, it’s the things she was uneasy about in the relationship that stayed with me and left me feeling vaguely uncomfortable after I finished the book. Toward the end she relates a story about Sontag inviting a professor that Nunez idolized over to the Riverside Drive apartment and how awkward and disappointing the evening turned out to be. Afterwards, Susan tells Nunez: “I know what it’s like when you admire someone and then see them in an unflattering light. I know it can be very painful.” This memoir gave me the impression that’s how Nunez felt about Sontag.

This is a short (140 page) book that’s very well written, and I’ll definitely read more by Sigrid Nunez, but I’m not sure I’ll be recommending this one to anyone. It painted a portrait of Susan Sontag that was unsettling.

I actually liked the lyrics of the Mary Chapin Carpenter song better than Paula McLain's novel!!

Going back to Caroline Knapp -- I can definitely recommend The Merry Recluse, a book of essays that I stumbled across.

Oh, and I want to go live in the NYPL, too. It always amazes me what the resources there are. I'll be drawing on them heavily for book #2, assuming that some publisher is fool enough to pay me money to forge ahead with it.

Hi Pat, my first time here. Will follow this thread for sure.

>197 phebj:: great review, Pat. I read about this book in the NY Times Book Review. I was intrigued, having recently read Nunez's Salvation City, although I wasn't intrigued enough to think about reading the book. Something about the article I read gave me the feeling it might be an uncomfortable read, and you've reinforced that. It does sound unsettling.

Hi, Pat, how are you?

Excellent review of the Nunez book. Sometimes I feel that the less we know about our favorite authors' private lives, the better of we are. Sounds like that might be the case with Sontag. How odd a relationship (mother/son) that must have been. Sounds like Mildred Pierce: kinda creepy.

Hi Pat- Just swinging by to hello and hope you are having a nice weekend!

Good morning, Pat!

The Sontag sounds interesting. Now my mind has gone blank, I had something more to say, but it zipped out of reach..... What got you reading it? (New replacement question!)

Suzanne I'm glad you liked the MCC lyrics but sorry you didn't like The Paris Wife more. I wishlisted The Merry Recluse by Caroline Knapp. I remember Caldwell talking about Knapp using that phrase. I wish I had gotten to know the NYPL better. I worked right next door (at what is HSBC now and was Republic National Bank of New York) but never made it past the ground floor to see a couple of exhibits. I think because it was always there I took it for granted.

Hi Gautum. It's nice to see you here. I've been seeing your name on a bunch of LT threads. I saw on your profile thread that George Orwell is one of your favorite writers. I'm currently in the middle of reading Down and Out in Paris and London and really enjoying it.

Laura I remember reading your review of Salvation City and thinking I would give that book a try. I actually have it out of the library now and am going to try and squeeze it in. I liked Nunez' writing and I also generally like dystopias.

Hi Gail. I'm doing well these days. I know virtually nothing about Susan Sontag and after reading this book I don't have too much desire to know any more. It sort of reminded me of my reaction to the Stegner class. Did I want to know that some people thought he was guilty of plagiarizing the work of Mary Hallock Foote in writing Angle of Repose? Not really. Did I really want to know about how difficult a person Sontag could be or that she did things like drink blood from the butcher as a child as a treatment for her asthma? No.

Hi Mark and Joanne! Thanks for stopping by. Hope you both have nice weekends. We have beautiful weather here but it's just a little too cool to sit outside which is what I'm hoping to be doing soon.

Hi Lucy. I saw the book about Sontag on my library's new book shelf. I'm always on the lookout these days for good short books and this one was short so I figured I'd take it home. It's not a bad book. It jumps around alot so it's sometimes hard to figure out just how much time Sontag and Nunez spent together over the years. And it's sort of like listening to a friend tell you about something that happened to them in bits and pieces so you're not always clear what happened. There was almost a 20 year age difference between the two women as well as other differences. For example, Nunez described Sontag as someone who never wanted to be alone whereas she described herself as someone who liked to spend 90% of her time by herself. I actually could go on for quite awhile about this book but I'll stop. If you're interested, it's such a quick read you can probably read it in one sitting. It's kind of like a New Yorker profile.

Hi Pat! Hope you're having a great weekend.

Hi Pat, I haven't read anything by Sigrid Nunez but it sounds like I should. I somehow thought she was younger than you're indicating but I guess not.

Hi Anne. Hope your weekend is good too. Have you gotten any warm weather yet (70s or 80s)?

Bonnie Sigrid Nunez was born in 1951 so I'm guessing she's 60. Wikipedia didn't have her full birthdate. When she met Sontag in 1976, she was 25 and Sontag was 43.

We had 70s and 80s a few weeks ago, but this past week it was in the 50s. My daughter was in the mountains at Outdoor Lab with her 6th grade class, and they had a bit of snow every day. Today was supposed to be cold and snowy, but it's sunny and nice enough that my husband just left on a bike ride. How's your weather?

The best we've done so far is mid-60s but mostly it's been in the 50s. Monday is supposed to hit 71 so I'm looking foward to sitting outside at least part of the time. Our backyard faces East which is great in the heat of the summer but usually ends up being too cool on most days in the spring.

Bah, we're expecting a week of rain next week, but at least this weekend's supposed to be nice. Today has been nice so I've spent most of the day outside doing much needed yard work. Feels great to see the yard improved, although we still have work to do.

Today has been lovely hereabouts -- the spouse is off kayaking on the very flooded fringes of Lake Champlain --

That's very interesting about Nunez and Sontag. You didn't go on too long at all. It does sound NYery.

I haven't read South Riding yet but I want to. I didn't realize it was part of PBS's Masterpiece Theater starting tomorrow night. Here's a link to the NYT review:

http://tv.nytimes.com/2011/04/30/arts/television/south-riding-on-pbs-review.html...

Hiya Pat! Sontag is not, not, not for me so no damage done on this visit. Hope you're having a great weekend :)

Gardening, kayaking . . . it all sounds great. Caroline and Lucy I hope your upcoming week isn't too wet. Are you getting the remnants of the storms that moved through the South and Midwest?

Lynda I did like Nunez' writing and hope to try something else by her soon. Hope you're having a great weekend too!

>214 phebj: Thanks for that tidbit Pat. I am reading South Riding right now so I'll record it to watch when I'm done.

Thanks for the heads up on South Riding, Pat. I'm DVRing it tonight!

Book No. 27 The Master by Colm Toibin-- 4 ½ stars

I started this book back in March and was captivated by the beginning. Unfortunately, it slowed down about 75 pages in and I put it aside for almost a month. I’m so glad I picked it up again because I ended up loving it.

It’s a fictionalized account of the life of the writer Henry James that takes place during the last five years of the 19th century when the work James was doing would earn him the nickname “The Master.” Each chapter is marked by a month and year in that period but Henry spends so much of his time ruminating about past events that you get a good picture of the course of his life up through his mid-fifties.

Toibin paints a picture of a man that was well-liked and a sought after guest at social affairs but one that relished his solitude. This was one of my favorite passages in the book:

He loved the glorious silence a morning brought, knowing that he had no appointments that afternoon and no engagements that evening. He had grown fat on solitude, he thought, and had learned to expect nothing from the day but at best a dull contentment. Sometimes the dullness came to the fore with a strange and insistent ache which he would entertain briefly, but learn to keep at bay. Mostly, however, it was the contentment he entertained; the slow ease and the silence could, once night had fallen, fill him with a happiness that nothing, no society nor the company of any individual, no glamour or glitter, could equal.

The case builds throughout the novel that James was very repressed, especially sexually, but it’s hard to know how much this bothered him. He never married, never had children and often distanced himself from close friends and family but for the most part I didn’t see him as an unhappy person. He was a great observer of life and was successful at conveying that in his writing which he obviously derived a lot of satisfaction from.

I would highly recommend this book even if you know nothing about Henry James. It’s a beautiful portrait of a unique life that’s not to be missed.

Visiting your thread is a nice way to end the Sunday evening. As always, I find great conversation, wonderful books and quick, witty banter.

Thanks!

I've got The Master lined up to read later this year. Sounds as if I have something to look forward to.

Isn't it amazing the way Toibin managed to "channel" the voice/style of James himself? A brilliant novel -- and I'm not even a big James fan...

>219 phebj:: excellent review, Pat. As Suz said, he so brilliantly captured James' voice. I knew nothing about James when I picked up The Master, so for a few days I subscribed to The Turn of the Screw on DailyLit. It was then that I realized how the voice of the book really was James. It brought an entirely different dimension to my reading experience.

Pat- Loved the review of The Master. It sounds so good. I have only read Brooklyn so far.

Just passing through and adding The Master to my ever-growing list. I lurk on your thread but don't often post, which is pretty much true for all the threads I follow these days--very interesting stuff here.

>197 phebj:. I never had much use for Sontag, but anyone who knows me in the 75 group won't be surprised by that: "The white race is the cancer of the world," or some such twat {rolls eyes}. Have you read Camille Paglia's essay about Sontag? "Sontag, Bloody Sontag"--it's in Paglia's book of essays, Vamps and Tramps: New Essays. Paglia also at one time looked up to Sontag and ended up disillusioned (I'm not sure what word Paglia would use, but not that one) by her.

Have a great Monday!

Pat, I loved The Master--here's the quote I saved:
"He loved the fixities of the morning, the familiar books, the hours alone fruitfully used, the afternoon slipping beautifully by."

Oh my, Camille! I chugged through Sexual Personae a few years ago but now I can't remember a single thing. Not good.

Pat, it always makes me happy when one of my friends loves one of my beloved books. I got a bonus 'warm fuzzy' reading about your enjoyment of The Master. This is the book that got me interested in reading Henry James, and I haven't been disappointed. Thumb from me!

This quote isn't from the book but it's one of my favorites:

"The most beautiful words in the English language are 'summer afternoon'." ~Henry James

#220 Hey Linda. Good to see you here. Hope you have lots of time to put your feet up and read all those books you scored at the AAUW book sale.

#221 Lynda you definitely have something to look forward to with The Master. I got this as a used paperback at the library for $1 and loved it so much I'm going to buy a new hardcover copy to keep on my shelves for an eventual re-read.

#222 Isn't it amazing the way Toibin managed to "channel" the voice/style of James himself?

#223 I realized how the voice of the book really was James. It brought an entirely different dimension to my reading experience

Suzanne and Laura I've never read anything by Henry James(!) and, as much as I loved the book, it looks like I missed a major aspect of it. I have a copy of The Portrait of a Lady which I want to get to. After that maybe I'll go back and try a re-read of The Master.

#224 Mark I just got a copy of Brooklyn from PBS after I saw a number of LTers rave about it. It sounds like it'll be just as good as The Master if not better.

#225 Hi Becky. I haven't read anything by Camille Paglia (that I remember anyway). My library has that book of essays so I'll track it down and read the essay. I hope you like The Master when you get to it.

#226 Hi Jenny. I like that quote too. I saved a couple of them about how much he loved to spend time alone. Here's another one:

"He . . . relished the days after a guest had departed, he enjoyed the peace of the house, as though the visit had been nothing except a battle for solitude which he had finally won."

#227 Hi Lucy. Hopefully when I see some of Camille Paglia's writing it'll jog my memory.

#228 Hi Donna this book has definitely gotten me interested in reading Henry James. Glad you loved it too and thanks for that quote. I'm looking forward to reading The Portrait of a Lady on a "summer afternoon."

Superb review of The Master, Pat! It's been on my wish list for quite awhile, and I've enjoyed the two or three other books by Tóibín that I've read so far, so I need to make room for this book.

Thumbed and thrown with gusto unto the WL! Love all the quotes - and love a man who loves solitude! :)

Thanks Darryl and Claudia! I will definitely be reading more books by Toibin. I loved his writing. I'm also looking forward to reading some books by Henry James. I think I really identified with his appreciation of solitude.

Dropping out of lurk to speak. "Hi, Pat!" I'm excited that you're going to read some James, and I think that *Portrait* is a fine place to start. Hope you enjoy him!

Thanks Peggy!

>234 LizzieD:: I agree The Portrait of a Lady is a good place to start ... especially if you enjoyed The Master. I thought the voice and pacing were very similar.

Pipes up in agreement.

Hi Pat, lost you for a bit but I know I read and thumbed your review a couple days ago (or yesterday). Maybe I saw it in the hot reviews?? Who knows. I'm pretty sure I want to read something by James before I read this one.

Bonnie I think that's probably a good idea. I'm thinking I'll read The Portrait of a Lady and, if I like it, something else by James, and then try a re-read of The Master.

Laura and Lucy I'm so glad you're recommending The Portrait of a Lady because I have a copy sitting right behind me on one of my bookshelves.

Book No. 28 Stitches: A Memoir by David Small-- 4 stars

This is a very good graphic memoir but a disturbing one. David Small recounts a confusing and painful childhood. His mother’s only emotion seemed to be anger; otherwise she was mostly silent. His father’s response to the toxic atmosphere in the house was to be absent as often as possible. When they discover David has a growth on his neck, they ignore it for as long as possible (despite the fact that David’s father is a doctor) and then decide not to tell him that the operations that leave him scarred and without a voice for awhile were necessary because he had cancer.

The best thing David’s parents do for him is take him to a psychologist when he’s sixteen. Finally, he starts to understand what has happened to him and that the abuse he’s suffered is not something he deserved.

This was a quick read (I read the entire book in about 45 minutes) and it’s another example of how powerful the graphic format can be. There’s something about the visual element that definitely adds to it’s impact.

Today, David is an award-winning illustrator of children’s books which seems fitting since drawing was one of his refuges as a child. As he says: “Art became my home. Not only did it give me back my voice, but art has given me everything I have wanted or needed since.”

I would guardedly recommend this book, not because of the writing or the illustrations which are excellent, but because of the subject matter. In some ways, it’s not a depressing book because David’s life took a turn for the better but it is difficult to read about his childhood.

Pat- Excellent review! I probably mentioned this before, but Stitches was my first graphic. I agree that it was dark and disturbing but I am forever grateful for the doors that it opened and I'm so glad you've been walking through it too!

There’s something about the visual element that definitely adds to it’s impact.

Totally agree with your statement, Pat. The pictures in graphic novels seem to have the ability to sear themselves into the readers brain, permanently leaving their mark. Another fine review!

Great review, Pat! This is one I haven't read yet - but I will!

Mark I don't think I remembered that Stitches was your first graphic but I do remember that you recommended it. I'm so glad you encouraged me to start reading this genre.

Lynda that's a good way to describe it (the pictures searing themselves into your brain). It's rare that I can recall an exact quote from a book but the pictures are much more easily remembered.

Claudia I'm pretty sure you'd like this one. I feel like you, Lynda and I are all following in Mark's footsteps with our graphic reads.

Stitches is one of the two graphics I've read Pat and I have to agree that it was pretty dark. I just can't really get into the graphics that much.

Hi Pat loved the The Master review. It goes to the TBR list.

Bonnie I've kind of taken to graphics like a duck to water. I love the uniqueness of them. I also like that most of them are very quick reads. ;-)

Hi Gautum. Hope you like The Master when you get to it.

Waving hi and passing through. :)

Hi Jenn!

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