JeanneD in 2011

I have been diligent in counting the number of books I read per year since 2005 (118). There was a bit of a downturn when I returned to postgrad study: 74 in 2006, 81 in 2007, 83 in 2008, 63 in 2009, and 70 in 2010. Now that I've left those studies behind and moved to the country, we'll see what I can do.

This year's parameters (REVISED): (a) 21st century fiction (b) I haven't read before (c) that was nominated for an award or listed as a notable book and (d) available from the Far North District Council library, or that I read for an LT challenge.

January 2011
1. Amis, Martin: The Information
2. Attanasio, A. A.: Hunting the Ghost Dancer
3. Aycliffe, Jonathan: A Shadow on the Wall
4. Archer, Geoffrey: Fire Hawk

February 2011
5. Abercrombie, Joe: Best Served Cold
6. Bauer, Belinda: Blacklands
7. Berry, Jedediah: The Manual of Detection
8. Bannister, Jo: Breaking Faith
9. Amis, Martin: House of Meetings

March 2011
10. Banks, Iain M.: Matter
11. Barlow, Toby: Sharp Teeth
12. Barry, Sebastian: Annie Dunne
13. Beaton, M. C.: Kissing Christmas Goodbye
14. Barclay, Linwood: No Time for Goodbye
15. Beckett, Simon: The Chemistry of Death

April 2011
16. Baldacci, David: The Collectors
17. Barker, Nicola: Darkmans
18. Barry, Sebastian: The Secret Scripture
19. Belben, Rosalind: Our Horses in Egypt
20. Benioff, David: City of Thieves

May 2011
21. Bellow, Saul: Ravelstein
22. Benn, James R.: Billy Boyle
23. Bigsby, C. W. E.: Beautiful Dreamer
24. Black, Benjamin: Christine Falls
25. Berlinski, Mischa: Fieldwork
26. Billingham, Mark: Scaredy Cat
27. Berry, Steve: The Charlemagne Pursuit
28. Hill, Joe: Heart-Shaped Box

June 2011
29. Block, Lawrence: Hit and Run
30. Black, Ingrid: The Dead
31. Stevenson, Robert Louis: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
32. Chabon, Michael: The Final Solution
33. Barnes, Julian: Flaubert's Parrot
34. Palahniuk, Chuck: Pygmy
35. Reichs, Kathy: Cross Bones
36. Vargas, Fred: Wash This Blood Clean from My Hand
37. Vargas, Fred: This Night's Foul Work
38. Bloom, Amy: Away
39. Burdett, John: Bangkok 8
40. Johnson, Diane: L'Affaire

July 2011
41. Trevor, William: Reading Turgenev
42. Trevor, William: My House in Umbria
43. McCallum, Mary: The Blue
44. Maron, Margaret: Last Lessons of Summer
45. Walter, Jess: Over Tumbled Graves
46. Carver, Raymond: Where I'm Calling From
47. Beagle, Peter S.: The Innkeeper's Song
48. Hart, John: The Last Child
49. Sittenfield, Curtis: American Wife
50. Box, C. J.: In Plain Sight
51. Peters, Ellis: The Potter's Field

August 2011
52. Zelanzy, Roger: Jack of Shadows
53. Adams, Richard: Watership Down
54. Bradbury, Ray: Driving Blind
55. Golding, William: Rites of Passage
56. Niven, Larry: A World Out of Time
57. McCarthy, Cormac: Cities of the Plain
58. Buckell, Tobias S.: Ragamuffin
59. Palahniuk, Chuck: Lullaby
60. James, P. D.: The Lighthouse
61. Heinlein, Robert A.: Have Spacesuit, Will Travel
62. Niven, Larry & Pournelle, Jerry: The Mote in God's Eye

September 2011
63. Cherryh, C. J.: Cyteen
64. Asimov, Isaac: Foundation and Empire
65. Dean, Debra: The Madonnas of Leningrad
66. Morrison, Toni: Beloved
67. Card, Orson Scott: Ender's Shadow
68. Gaiman, Neil and Pratchett, Terry: Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch
69. Sachs, Brad: Emptying the Nest: Launching Your Young Adult Toward Success and Self-Reliance

Welcome to the group, Jeanne!

Thanks, good to be here!

Yay, you made it over here! Welcome!

Thanks for the tip, drneutron.

Welcome to the group.

I noticed the names of all the authors you've read so far start with A or B. Are you reading in alphabetical order?

Not entirely. But my to-be-read list is in alphabetical order, and I'm searching through the library catalog that way. Then I read things as they come in.

May 2011
21. Bellow, Saul: Ravelstein
22. Benn, James R.: Billy Boyle
23. Bigsby, C. W. E.: Beautiful Dreamer
24. Black, Benjamin: Christine Falls
25. Berlinski, Mischa: Fieldwork
26. Billingham, Mark: Scaredy Cat
27. Berry, Steve: The Charlemagne Pursuit
28. Hill, Joe: Heart-Shaped Box

A few more months like this and I'll be back on track!

Hi Jeanne. I found your thread and starred it. I haven't read anything by Saul Bellow for about 30 years. I probably need to get back to him.

Welcome Jeanne. You're still further along than I am so I'm sure you have a pretty good chance of making it.

#10: Thanks Lara, for the welcome and the encouragement! It really depends on how many mysteries on my TBR list I can find in the local library. It isn't that I prefer them to anything else I read, but I do seem to tear through them.

#8: Looks like May was a good reading month for you, Jeanne. I am trying to figure out how Joe Hill snuck in there with all those 'Bs' though :)

#12: Poor planning on my part, Stasia. I waited too long to order the next batch of books from the library and had to scrounge through the few books that have been unpacked since our last move to find something on my list. Luckily, my DH had ordered Heart-Shaped Box from Better World Books a few months ago and I found it in his office!

I was so excited this morning to start TIOLI, measuring tape in hand and a growing stack of books under my desk, and then my keyboard wouldn't work. (Having to pull up the onscreen keyboard and enter my password by mouse should have been a clue.) This was followed by the need for a hard reboot (battery pulled and replaced). Then I learned how to make entries, all the while a voice in my head ramped up frustration and excitement in equal measure with the refrain "You could be reading. You could be reading."

Now I have a reading list for the month to meet some challenges:
The Dead - Ingrid Black
The Final Solution - Michael Chabon
Cross Bones - Kathy Reichs
Flaubert's Parrot - Julian Barnes
Pygmy - Chuck Palahniuk
Mirror Mirror - Gregory Maguire
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson (I've read this one before, but decades ago.)
The Fields of Grief - Giles Blunt
Away - Amy Bloom

Overly ambitious, I'm sure, which is why I only pulled the shorter books from the bottom shelf. They were there, waiting patiently for another of those moments when my reading pace didn't match those carefully spaced special orders from the library. But I have a decent stash of these emergency books, so no anxiety over THAT today.

29. Hit and Run: Lawrence Block

Looks like a great list for June, Jeanne! Good luck with TIOLI this month.

30. The Dead: Ingrid Black

Ex-FBI Special Agent Saxon works as a consultant for the Dublin Metropolitan Police when a serial killer she researched for a book appears to have returned after a 5 year hiatus. There was enough misdirection to keep me guessing right up to the end.

As my DH knows, I am a sucker for female investigators, and Black's Saxon is no exception. She is sarcastic, short-tempered, and single-minded. First-person narration provides delightful insights into her snarky personality:

I'd never liked him, and he knew it, probably because I'd failed on every occasion we'd ever met to get to the end of the conversation without pointedly reminding him of the fact. I just felt that he was the kind of person who might benefit one day from being repeatedly told that he was unlikeable. It hadn't had the desired effect so far, but I lived in hope.

And:

What I had left of good sense told me I should wait till I heard from Fisher -- but I told what I had left of good sense to go to hell.

And Black's writing has its wonderful moments:

I waited as he set to, stabbing fussily at the eggs like some ancestral hunting memory had flashed into his mind and he was worried lest they make a break for freedom before he could free his spear.

On the other hand, and here I am the snarky one, all of the American characters in the book use the word "whilst" instead of "while." For the past 8 years I've lived in a country where English still belongs to the Queen, and I can't bring myself to say "whilst." Every occurrence grated.

I rate this largely enjoyable 2005 Shamus Award winner at 7 of 10 stars.

#30: I am going to have to give that one a try! Thanks for the recommendation, Jeanne.

#17: Let me know what you think, Stasia.

Unfortunately, my local library has not got the book so it may be a while before I can get to it.

Oooohhh Jeanne - I love the discipline of your alphabetic approach! Some great choices in there too - The Secret Scripture (such gorgeous lyrical wriiting), The Information (I've enjoyed a lot of Martimn Amis' work). Intrigued by your review of The Dead. I used to read loads of murder-mystery novels, and do love a snarky female hero. Great quote from the book. I think I might add it to the wishlist (darn, you!). Lawrence Block was a big favourite, too. Like you, I am trying to broaden by horizons again - and also like you, using the Pulitzers and Bookers as a guide. I read Foreign Affairs recently, a recent Pulitzer by Alison Lurie. And I just received A visit from the Goon Squad to add to the TBR. I get almost all of my books via Book Depository. I see you are in rural NZ - can't be easy to get books where you are, either. Though I must say I found that NZ libraries were EXCELLENT (well, the Wellington library anyway). I lived there for 2 years with my family about 8 years ago. Well, now that I have found your thread Jeanne, I will call by more often! happy reading, Prue

>20 PrueGallagher:: Glad to see you here Prue. I read Egan's The Keep a few years back. A Visit from the Goon Squad sounds like it has an entirely different style and feel, and an unlikely Pulitzer winner. But it's on the TBR.

I don't know about the discipline of the list. Sometiimes I feel like I'm missing things, so some years I don't start at the top to discover new authors and revisit old favorites. (Like that year I caught up on all the nominated Stephen King I hadn't yet read.) I have noticed as I'm scrolling through nominee and short lists that there are a disproportionate number of authors whose last names begin with A B or C, so maybe I'm not the only one. But with the move, new library card in hand, it seemed like the thing to do.

And now that I've discovered TIOLI, those criteria have flown out the window!

Sounds like you're having fun all the way around, Jeanne - well, except for the computer crisis.
I'm more impressed than I can say by the alphabetical lists.
And I am looking forward to the time when I can also read *Goon Squad*!

31. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson

I last read this book for a university assignment and visited it again for a TIOLI challenge.  On this reading, I did not enjoy the style and structure nearly as much as previously.  But I come away considering the imprint this work has had on our society.  I am struck by its origins in a dream and its historical position as a precursor to Sigmund Freud's conceptualization of unconscious, socially unacceptable urges as drives of the id.  And I consider Stevenson's warning as, in this century, we embrace an ever-increasing pace of scientific and technological advancement:

But the temptation of a discovery so singular and profound at last overcame the suggestions of alarm.

I will maintain my previous rating of 8 out of 10 stars, not for reading pleasure or literary structure, but as acknowledgment of its continuing legacy and provocative portrait of man's duality.

Hi Jeanne, stumbled across your thread and was also struck by the alphabetical reading list, it makes for a striking list. I really enjoyed the quotes you included in your review of The Dead above. I've added to the wishlist as I love the attitude shown by the lead character.

Good luck for your challenges in June, I'll be interested to see what you think of the Gregory Maquire book as I've read a couple of his books and found both very frustrating and annoying.

>24 KiwiNyx:: It won't be striking for much longer. DH picked up Mirror Mirror a few years ago because the back cover blurb intrigued him and he thought our teenaged daughter might like it. But she continues to refuse anything he recommends (and most of what I do). But at least she's reading. I dusted it off this week for a TIOLI challenge. By the way, just had a peak at your profile. "A beach town in the north of New Zealand"--we could be neighbors.

Ah, I'm not that far north but that would have been fun. Was actually camping up your way in january just off the Whangaroa harbour. Beautiful area. I'm Hibiscus Coast although I don't own any hibiscus plants, something I really need to remedy.

How old is your daughter? It's interesting that you say she doesn't take your recommendations, I wonder if it's an age thing. I have 2 girls (12 and 14) and we often read each others books, it's fun to have someone close by to talk books with.

We don't have any hibiscus yet either...on my to-do list as well. We lived in Torbay for 8 years before moving up here in January.

My daughter is 16 1/2. When she was much younger, she didn't like to read at all but was happy for me to read to her. So I developed a TBR list specifically for her and gave her $5 for reading anything off that list. But she still preferred my reading to her. I started reading Inkheart to her, and something came up that I wasn't able to keep up with it every night. She was involved enough with the story that she finished it on her own and has been a steady reader ever since. I developed another list of YA titles but she wasn't as consistent with that one. Now sometimes she'll ask to read a book after me if something I say intrigues her, but not if I make an overt suggestion. It must be her age.

32. The Final Solution: Michael Chabon

An unnamed, retired, pipe-smoking, beekeeper is engaged by local police to investigate a murder at a Sussex Downs vicarage.   The murder coincides with the theft of an African grey parrot from a young Jewish orphan, and it is this crime on which the beekeeper agrees  to apply his formidable, yet failing, powers of observation and deduction.  Chabon's descriptions of the old man's episodes of blankness are horrific:

The conquest of his mind by age was not a mere blunting or slowing but an erasure, as of a desert capital by a drifting millennium of sand.  Time had bleached away the ornate pattern of his intellect, leaving a blank white scrap.

Yet there is also humor, particularly in the single chapter told from the point of view of Bruno the parrot, driving his kidnapper mad through the application of sleep deprivation techniques.

While some questions are answered for the characters of this book, greater mysteries are left for the reader to ponder, unpunished crimes reduced to numbers whispered by a young boy and his parrot.  I rate this novella, filled with exceptional descriptive narrative, at 8 out of 10 stars.

(Aside:  The author helped me put a name to a phobia of mine, or at least its cousin:  gephyrophobia is the morbid fear of crossing bridges; I am afraid of those roller-coaster-like, curving overpasses at the apex of which, hood of car pointed toward the sky, the horizon is no longer visible.)

*deep sigh* I've read only one M. Chabon and liked it well enough to definitely want this one too sometime. And a thumb from me for a good review!

>29 LizzieD:: Thanks for the thumb, Lizzie.

#28: I have enjoyed several of Chabon's books, that one included. I am glad to see that you liked it, Jeanne!

Excellent review, have added to my list now. The bridge fear is unusual, is it just the arched bridges that bother you or flat ones also? I have phobias too which I'm sure must have a name for them but I've never discovered it yet so it is kind of cool that this book helped you name your one.

16, could be an age thing. My 12 year old is already resisting some recommendations, my 14 year old not so much but she is quite the little mini-me when it comes to reading.

>32 KiwiNyx:: Thanks, hope you enjoy it.

It isn't bridges. I don't think there's anything in NZ to compare to the interstate exchange loops in the US...and then it's only the ones with a certain height and curve.

33. Flaubert's Parrot: Julian Barnes

This novel tries to be, and is, many things: an exploration of the relationship between writer and reader; a treatise on postmodern life; a view of history as reflections in a rippling pond; a story about the displacement of grief in intellectual exercise. While ultimately I appreciated the fractured presentation, I found this Booker Prize nominee and New York Times Editors' Choice to be a difficult and unsatisfying read. I rate it at 6 out of 10 stars.

Thanks for the review of Flaubert's Parrot. I think I will pass on that one.

I am sorry to see that you did not enjoy Flaubert's Parrot more, Jeanne. I hope your next read is a better one for you!

>35 mks27:: You seriously shouldn't rely on me, Michelle. There are a lot of well-reviewed, critically acclaimed, best-loved books that I just don't like. I browsed through your list and was thinking that with the history and historical novels you've got on there, you might enjoy it more than I did.

>36 alcottacre:: Stasia, there were parts that I found to be quite thought-provoking, that would have been good if expanded into essays on the reader-writer relationship, the role of critics, and the multiplicity of historical perspective. And parts of it were funny. It just didn't work for me as a novel. Barnes tends to leave me thinking, "That was really clever/ well-written/ intellectually stimulating", yet unmoved. Still, I read in hope.

#37 I will put it on the bottom of the pile, there is enough on the top of the pile to keep me reading a long while.

34. Pygmy: Chuck Palahniuk

The anti-hero whose name we never learn, but who is referred to by his American host family and school mates as "Pygmy", arrives in the US on a mission of destruction. The novel is structured as a series of dispatches back to Pygmy's unnamed totalitarian country of origin and are written in an initially humorous yet ultimately tedious pidgin English. Pygmy's language doesn't improve after months in America, but I got more adept at reading it. A taste:

"Calibrated tasks assigned to destroy all self-esteem. For official example, purpose lesson titled 'Junior Swing Choir' many potential brilliant youth compelled sing song depicting precipitate remain pummel head of operative me. Complain how both feet too large size for sleeping mattress. Idiot nonsense song. Next sing how past visited arid landscape aboard equine of no title."

Satirical jabs at American culture are interlaced with disturbing scenes of violence and sex, making this book definitely off-limits for the squeamish and faint-hearted. I rate this novel, which probably served as source material for the 2010 terror-baby conspiracy, at 5 out of 10 stars.

Ooohhhh great to see a book reviewed that I don't want top rush out and order! And thanks for doing the 'sifting' for me...

>40 PrueGallagher:: Glad to be of service, Prue. Life's too short to read bad books, but how do you know if SOMEONE doesn't do it!?! That said, the only book I've picked up in the past decade and NOT been able to finish is Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore. National Book Critics' Circle Award...they should be ashamed.

#41 For me the only unfinishable has been (and just between you and me, so I will whisper this) - Wolf Hall. Boring, boring, worthy I'm sure, but boring, boring, boring.

35. Cross Bones: Kathy Reichs

Juvenile diaglog, flat characterization, and poor plotting sum up this murder mystery. The book follows forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan and her ever-so-dreamy romantic and professional partner from Montreal to Israel. They are on the hunt for both a murder suspect and the identity of a set of 1st-century skeletal remains discovered at Masada. In this latter mystery, Reichs rather unsuccessfully explores the clash between religious foundations and scientific discovery. It's been years since I read an installment of the Temperance Brennan novels, and perhaps I've become spoiled by my enjoyment of the the TV series Bones. I rate this book at 3 out of 10 stars.

Hi Jeanne, I've read about 3 of Reichs Temperance Brennan novels and been underwhelmed every time. I enjoyed Flaubert's Parrot perhaps I was influenced by reading it soon after Madame Bovary so I was in a good headspace for it?

>44 avatiakh:: I agree with you on both counts, Kerry. This is the first time that I didn't find one of the Temperance Brennan novels at least entertaing. As for Flaubert's Parrot, it has been soooo long since I read Madame Bovary. I think if I had been making my way through Flaubert as well, I would have enjoyed it more. That being said, I keep reading Barnes because he is so well-reviewed. But I haven't found anything yet that has really grabbed me.

I had a look at your 75 thread and see that you've read a number of books this year that are on my TBR. Starred it! And I see we have Cleopatra's Nose as a book in common. That's...uncommon!

Very uncommon - I got Cleopatra's Nose because several of the New Yorker people including Judith Thurman came to Auckland's Writers and Readers Festival a couple of years ago. I still haven't read the book though - my tbr pile is starting to squeeze me out of my home.
I liked Arthur and George by Barnes and have had The Lemon Table recommended to me. I see we also share Martin Booth's wonderful Industry of Souls.

I'm going to add my 'two cents' worth and cast a vote in favour of Arhur and George - which I really enjoyed. Have yet to tackle Madame Bovary. Cleopatra's Nose is a fabulously intriguing title!

#39: As I am decidedly one of the squeamish, I will give that one a pass.

#47: I vote in favor of Arthur and George too!

So is someone going to put me out of my misery and tell me what Cleopatra's Nose is about?

#49: Prue, this is the blurb I found on Goodreads about Cleopatra's Nose:

"Cleopatra's Nose is an exuberant gathering of essays and profiles, representing twenty years of Judith Thurman's writing, particularly her fascination with human vanity, femininity, and "women's work"—a term that, in her definition, encompasses haute couture, literature, and ruling empires. The subjects are varied—Cleopatra, Jackie Kennedy, Anne Frank; tofu, performance art, pornography—but as a whole these essays hint at the central preoccupations of a uniquely inquisitive mind."

#50: Thanks for that Stasia. All the essays except one first appeared in The New Yorker between 1987 and 2007.

#51: No problem, Kerry.

#50 Oh no, Stasia! What are you doing to me! You make these sound so 'have to read'. Yikes! I feel the pull of my mouse dragging me to Book Depository...must not...wish list too big....mouse has mind of its own....arrrghhh

#53: Drat that mouse! :)

Darn, my entry last night on Cleopatra's Nose: 39 Varieties of Desire didn't post. So what did I say...that I don't usually read non-fiction and picked this up during one of my efforts to rectify that. It was not a likely choice for me because I'm not a fashion afficionado, but even through essays that I had no real interest in, I stayed with it because of Thurman's strong writing. I especially enjoyed the ones about tofu and kimonos, and the biographic essay on Yves Saint Laurent.

Cleopatra's Nose sounds fascinating and has snuck onto my wishlist, I am especially interested to read an essay on tofu. I love tofu..

I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on it, Leonie

Hello Jeanne - I am thinking that House of Meetings must be a relatively new Amis? I read a lot of his 80s and 90s books - would you recommend House of Meetings?

#55 Hi Jeanne....not knowing anything about a topic makes non-fiction a better experience for me, I like going in unaware, sounds like an interesting read.

>58 PrueGallagher:: It's a relatively recent novel, 2005. I didn't enjoy it as much as The Information or even London Fields (although I rated both London Fields and The House of Meetings at 3 stars). As usual, his characters are down-right unlikeable, but the writing is good. I thought this one floundered around a bit. So I'm going to say that it doesn't deserve entry into the Black Hole, Prue.

>59 mks27:: Glad you found your way here, Michelle! For me, non-fiction usally has to be within a fairly broad range of interest (eg, science, politics, history). I particularlly enjoy essays that can be read in 1-2 sittings. I miss reading magazines. My favorite was The Atlantic Monthly, precisely because I never knew what I would learn.

36. Wash This Blood Clean From My Hand: Fred Vargas

Will have to come back to review. Busy day--cars to have repaired, or purchase. Bookkeeping (arrgh). Monday morning cleaning.

Love your review of The Dead by Ingrid Black; loved it enough for the WL. As I added Cleopatra's Nose that makes it two from you! Any more of this nonsense and I will have to stop dropping by!

Well, Prue, I guess it's a good thing (for you) I've read a few stinkers lately.

#36: The promised review:

This is an author with numerous entries on my to-be-read list. As I write this review on the first novel I read, I am deeply involved in a second. Fred Vargas' crime fiction seems to be written as mythology: killer as fantastical beast and the members of the Serious Crime Squad as a pantheon of eccentric, flawed gods. She builds these characters with care:

"Where the names came from, Adamsberg did not know, but probably from Danglard, whose encyclopedic knowledge seems to him sometimes to be unlimited and almost toxic.  The capitaine was capable of sudden outbursts of information, as frequent as they were uncontrollable, rather like the snorting of a horse."

In this novel, Commissaire Adamsberg's personal quest for a serial killer he has named Trident threatens his career and his freedom.  I rate this winner of the CWA International Dagger Award at 8 out 10 stars.

I just received my first Fred Vargas book from PBS the other day and am looking forward to it. I am glad to see that you enjoyed your foray into her work, Jeanne.

I delved right into a second one and am hoping the local library has more. I think there are 4 that have been translated into English. Which one did you get, Stasia?

>67 alcottacre:: That one is not currently on my list, Stasia. Not sure why. I'll be interested to know what you think.

I am not sure when I will get to the book, but I will keep you posted.

Jeanne - I'm planning on attending the Room to Read meeting that you mentioned on Suzanne's (chatterbox) thread over the weekend. Not Albany but the Auckland central one.

edit: I see that the one I wanted to attend has been cancelled. Not sure if I can drive across the city in time for the Albany one this evening.

That's great, Kerry. I wish I could have worked in a trip to Auckland this week so that I could be there too.

I've cleaned the kitchen, done a load of laundry, found and ordered that PS2 game Jason wants for his birthday, checked my FB feed and (momentarily) caught up with reading starred threads here on LT.

It's quite windy here this morning, and I do love the sound of it whistling through the valley and rustling through the pines behind the house.

I had hoped to finish digging the impatiens out of the garden bed along the front of the house, staking out the new shape and removing the grass, and maybe even filling it up with that wonderful load of dirt I got for my birthday. But the rain is coming down pretty good now.

My backup plan for today is to clean out the storage room and take some things to the local op shop. I'm not particularly motivated, but perhaps I will be able to alternate reading with organizing.

I vote for books over cleaning any day of the week!

I did go back and forth...only 30 pages left in my book. I probably worked in the storage room for about 90 minutes. I got 4 bags of clothes sorted and popped in the back of the car for my next drive past the op shop. These had been shoved into the storage room several months ago after I cleaned out my closet, then let my daughters and their friends sort through them to see if they wanted any of it. I also started a bag of books to drop off at DS's school (titles for girls in the 10-14 range). I made a clear space so that the door will swing all the way back to the wall! So quite pleased with myself, except that I still haven't finished this book and now have to go run errands. But no cooking! Picking up Thai food for dinner. Yum!

The Thai food sounds wonderful! I hope you enjoyed it!

Wow, you had a really busy day, really impressed about the sound of your storage room, really makes me want to tackle mine a bit more. I was also pleased to hear I'm not the only one who keeps bags of give-aways in their car for when they next pass the op-shops (2 in there at the moment!).

Wasn't that wind insane? I swear we almost lost the gum trees onto the roof of our house last night.

>75 alcottacre:: The Thai food was excellent. This restaurant was one of the selling features in getting DH to relocate to this particular rural area.

>76 KiwiNyx:: I do miss the drop boxes scattered around Auckland. I'm glad you didn't get a gum tree through your roof!

#37: This Foul Night's Work by Fred Vargas

In this installment of Fred Vargas' crime series featuring Commissaire Adamsberg, there is a new member of the Serious Crime Squad: a man who often speaks in twelve-syllable alexandrine verse. Adamsberg's unorthodox hunt for a dissociative serial killer produces rifts between the squad's positivists and the cloud-shovellers who maintain faith in his willingness to incorporate seeming coincidences into the investigation. Backed by a variety of characters serving as Greek chorus, this novel finds Adamsberg hauling around a pair of 10-point antlers, confronting childhood vulnerabilities, and following around a cat tagged with a tracking device. And yet he manages to take time out to tell stories and read a book to his infant son, as in this passage:

Adamsberg put the book down, meeting his son's gaze.

"I don't know what the hell the 'opus spicutum' is, son, and I don't care. So we can agree about that. But I'm going to teach you how we resolve a problem like this when it crops up in our lives. How to proceed when you don't understand something. Just watch."

Adamsberg took out his mobile and slowly tapped out a number under the child's unconcerned eyes.

"What you do is you call Danglard," he explained. "It's quite simple. Just remember that, always keep his phone number about you."

I rate this novel at 8 out of 10 stars.

I really need to move my one and only Vargas book up the stack!

Stasia, I think there are a few more at my local library. I will have to see how I can fit them in to future challenges.

I'm sitting in the dark this morning, catching up on threads and listening to the beginnings of rain. Yesterday started this way and then the sun broke out and the day was glorious. I took Jason to his netball game. His team had their first win of the season, and afterwards I went with the team and a few moms to McDonald's for celebratory hotcakes.

While at a birthday party later in the day, he punctured his great toe. He was in a lot of pain last night and we may need to drive to the hospital today for stitches. Thankfully, he had a tetanus booster earlier this year.

I spent most of the day visiting book award web sites and adding to my TBR. This may take at least one more day to complete. The Word TBR is becoming cumbersome. The thought of converting these tables into a spreadsheet of some sort is daunting, but it may need to be done.

I finished Away by Amy Bloom last night. What a gorgeous book! I know I'll want to read it again, sooner rather than later.

Touchstones still not working...I may need to investigate.

I hope your son's toe is OK, that sounds particularly painful. Have to say I love your review of the Vargas book and the passage you included.

And I applaud you for attempting to make some table for your TBR list. Mine is the white elephant in the corner of the room that I just keep adding to but couldn't possibly think of organising yet. Actually, that's quite a good name for a wishlist..

My TBR is called the BlackHole, Jeanne. I can certainly relate :)

I hope the injury to your son's toe does not turn out to be too serious.

I agree about the tbr pileup - mine needs sorting too, I hardly know whats in there. I just keep adding anything of interest to my goodreads account - fairly pointless really.

I spent all day in my robe converting Word tables to an Access database, merging them, separating notes into separate columns. Another week of this and I'll be finished (and abandoned by my family). So I won't be working on it so obsessively, just a little at a time.

Thanks for asking about the toe...It doesn't look good to me. I wanted to keep him home and take him to the doctor tomorrow, but he has school pictures and doesn't want to miss that. I'll have to look at it again in the morning.

Now time to curl up with a new book...next up is Bangkok 8 by John Burdett.

I cannot wait to see what you think of Bangkok 8. I own that one and at least one other of the books in the series. Have you read Burdett's The Last Six Million Seconds, Jeanne? I liked that one.

This is my first Burdett book, Stasia. I am really enjoying the feel he gives of Bangkok. Particularly interesting is a description of how modernization of their society and the incorporation of measured time led to national dependence on methamphetamine. Now I feel like I need to do some research to see how accurate that depiction is. Will definitely check on that recommendation.

Oh I have heard of those Burdett books! Also thinking I would like to read one in the series...I holidayed in Thailand last year and LOVED Bangkok.....

#38: Away by Amy Bloom

This little book's entry on my To-Be-Read list had no indication of having received awards or nominations by its title (although it did ), no notation of it being on anyone's list of best books in 2007 (although it was). No, the entry contained only two words -- "Buy It!" As I sped through the story of Lillian's road trip, from Russia to New York to Seattle to Alaska, I knew I would want to return, soon, for the luscious language, the engaging wit, the heart-rending story, the twin markers of despair and hope that mark her way. I have two words for you: Buy It! Absolutely 10 out of 10 stars.

Prue, I keep lobbying for our first holiday in Asia to be Thailand. DH is leaning toward Hong Kong so we will at least speak the language. After watching "Lost in Translation" I think we developed some sort of fear factor over how alien it might, that we might be totally lost. But soon, soon....

I'm really enjoying Bangkok 8 -- I love going to new places in a book.

Plan for today: Loki and Gizmo are off to the vet for their surgeries, then I go to have my annual fasting bloodwork drawn. Perhaps another hour of work on the storage room. If it doesn't rain I'd like to spend an hour working in the garden. A bit more tweaking of the TBR. And I probably need to go to the post office--but I can send DD to do that.

I am adding Away to my list and am thinking about Thai for dinner, so glad I stopped by! I hope all is well.

We watched a great episode of Rick Stein last night on TV where he was in Thailand which had us salivating with the gorgeous food and now your thread appears with all these Bangkok references and I think the universe is trying to tell me something.. Sitting for 2 hours in Bangkok airport when you are 6 does not count as a Thai experience.

#92: I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, Michelle.

#93: No food channel is the only thing I miss about not have cable/ satellite.

We had Thai on Sunday. So yummy.

I had a productive day...finished organizing the storage room and even had room to add all the unpacked boxes still in DS's room. (He's outgrown these things, and in a few more months will agree to pass them on.) Took all the rubbish and recyclables to the refuse centre, had an order of firewood delivered and got it stacked, and did some bookkeeping. Plus the usual. And now for dinner of roasted root vegies, breaded courgettes (zucchini), and silverbeet with feta. I love vegie night! Then I get to go back to Bangkok 8!

Ooohhh drool...silverbeet! I think they call it chard in the US? Delicious dinner Jeanne - I'm just about top do Atlantic salmon fillets baked in tamari and maple syrup (sort of a teriyaki style) and a spinach and mushroom salad with roasted capsicums (red bell peppers). Gotta love the veggies!

Yes, chard. When I was making up the grocery list that's what I called it. Sometimes I move back and forth, but DD doesn't know it by that name since she was only 8 when we moved.

That salmon sounds yummy, Prue. Would you share the recipe?

#97 It's not really a recipe - I just marinate the fillets in a ratio of two-parts maple syrup to one part tamari (or plain kikkoman soy) - more or less to taste, and bake in the marinade at 200C for 15 mins or thereabouts. Baste once during cooking. It's very simple - but it is delicious.

Your veggie dinner sounds devine, especially tempting to a vegetarian like myself. You've got me all inspired to cook something really outstanding for dinner tonight.

#98: Thanks for that Prue. Next time I see some nice looking salmon, I'll be trying it.

Tonight, DH made lamb shanks braised in red wine with mushrooms. Absolutely amazing. Not up your alley, Leonie, but I'd be keen for any good recommendations for our next vegie night.

I finished Bangkok 8 last night. I'm still not sure what I thought of the ending and may have to mull over it for a few days before I can write the review.

I picked up the next book off the nightstand, The Fields of Grief by Giles Blunt. This was one I had ordered from the library before I found TIOLI. I like reading Giles Blunt and had been looking forward to it all month. I realized after 2 pages that I had read it before, but under a different title, By the Time You Read This. If I had just read the front flap, I would have known before this and not spent so much time looking forward to it.

Then I started L'Affaire by Diane Johnson. I don't usually read chick lit, but was a NT Times notable book and meets a challenge. I'll be interested to see if if I toss it across the room after the requisite 100 pages, I can get through it but it takes the rest of the month, or if I can get into it and finish it over what should be a very busy weekend.

We have a netball game on Saturday in Kaitaia and a tournament on Sunday in Kerikeri. Sarah's friend Holly arrives on Sunday, up from Auckland, for her first visit since we've moved here. And then we have the week-long run up to Jason's 12th birthday.

I was quite jealous that your meat loving family enjoys vegie night as my husband is very much a blue-steak man but there is one thing we all adore: dashi soup.

Japanese broth made with shitake mushrooms, vege miso, rice wine, soy sauce and sesame oil. We prepare some asian noodles and place those in each bowl, add fresh raw chopped veg like mushroom, spring onions, grated ginger, radish, bokchoy, carrots, etc and pour the broth over. Garnish with coriander. The tastiest soup ever.

I had to laugh at your description of perhaps tossing the lit-chick book over the room if it doesn't meet your standards. I would like to do this more but most I don't like are library books and I couldn't handle the guilt if I ruined the book.

Enjoy your coming week, it sounds like a super busy one.

Leonie, the soup recipe sounds amazing. Will definitely give it a try when i can get my hands on fresh coriander again.

As for book-flinging, this is a library book, so I wouldn't actually throw it. I did get past the 100 page limit last night and am wondering if I'm missing something. The author was short-listed for the Pulitzer, twice. Yet I find myself wondering why I care what happens to any of these people, who are either petty or clueless. But, I've read worse, I guess.

I found this on Stasia's thread and thought I would give my responses:

Favorite childhood book: The Mouse and the Motorcycle
What are you reading right now? L'Affaire by Diane Johnson
Bad book habit: Spending too much time maintaining a TBR database when, at this point, it would take about 55 years for me to read all the books on it.
Do you have an e-reader? Yes, a Sony Reader, which I enjoy but don't use as much as I thought I would.
Do you prefer one book at a time or several at once? Definitely one at a time.
Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog? I like the idea of sharing my thoughts, but I prefer reading to writing.
Least favorite book you read this year: Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs
Favorite book this year: City of Thieves by David Benioff, The Final Solution by Michael Chabon, The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry, and Away by Amy Bloom. Okay, that isn't one, but I couldn't choose.
How often do you read out of your comfort zone? At least once a month.
What is your reading comfort zone? Mysteries and fantasy
Can you read on the bus? Yes, I can read anywhere.
Favorite place to read: Front porch, in any season but winter
What is your policy on book lending? I'm reluctant to lend, but willing to give away
Do you ever dogear pages in your books? Yes
Do you write notes in the margins of your books? Textbooks only
What is your favorite language to read in? English
What makes you love a book? Characters that I can become emotionally involved with, combined with good writing, excellent research that doesn't overpower the plot, and a transporting sense of place
What will inspire you to recommend a book? If I love it, you will know
Favorite genre: Mysteries
Genre you rarely read (but wish you did): Biography
Favorite biography: Mary Queen of Scots by Antonia Fraser
Have you ever read a self-help book? Yes
Most inspirational book you've read this year: Away by Amy Bloom
Favorite reading snack: Chocolate
How often do you agree with critics about a book? About half the time
How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews? If I don't like it, you will know
If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose? Chinese
Most intimidating book you've ever read: Making Peoples: A History of the New Zealanders, from Polynesian Settlement to the End of the Nineteenth Century by James Belich. Coming to live in a new country where I know little-to-nothing about the history continues to be intimidating.
Most initimidating book you're too nervous to begin: Anything by Salman Rushdie, although I don't know why
Favorite poet: Emily Dickinson
Favorite fictional character: The Little Prince
Favorite fictional villain: HAL
Books I'm most likely to bring on vacation: Paperbacks
The longest I've gone without reading: 48 hours
Name a book that could not/would not finish: Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
What distracts you easily when you're reading: Family
Favorite film adaptation of a novel: The Lord of the Rings
Most disappointing film adaptation of a novel: The Mists of Avalon
The most money you've ever spent on books: Textbooks can easily cost over $150 each, but I did spend that much on a copy of The Lord of the Rings, which the dog ate
How often do you skim a book before reading: Never
Do you like to keep your books organized? Yes. Do I keep my books organized? Not since I got married.
Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you've read them? I used to keep all of my books, not so much anymore
A book that made you angry: The Christ Clone Trilogy by James BeauSeigneur...I thought I was reading an interesting bit of speculative fiction, and then it turned out to be extreme right-wing religious propaganda
A book you didn't expect to like but did: The Stranger by Albert Camus....assigned reading in high school, and I loved it
A book you expected to like but didn't: I am regularly disappointed by well-received, critically acclaimed, award-winning books. The Piano Teacher by Elfriede Jelinek, Murther and Walking Spirits by Robertson Davies, The Damascened Bride by Beverly Cleverly, Underworld by Don DeLillo, Disgrace by J. M. Coetzee. And I think I mentioned Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading: Anything by Louise Penny, Giles Blunt, Lois McMaster Bujold, Catherine Asaro, Iain Pears, Sue Grafton

I love this Q&A! I have a soft spot for HAL, too!

I was close to listing HAL as both my favorite character AND my favorite villain, but I do so love the Little Prince.

OOh good answers, I want to do this but I need to really think about my answers and dinner time is not ideal. :)

I finished L'Affaire by Diane Johnson last night. All I can say is, really? Well, I will have more to say.

I am two reviews behind. I am going to get these written today.

I started reading Two Lives by William Trevor. The first paragraph was entirely familiar, so I must have picked this up before and not really gotten into it. Hopefully I will finish it by the end of the month.

Love the answers to the meme, Jenny. I must be very nosy curious about other people's reading. And man, I hear ya about maintaining the TBR data. I can never die now; I have too many books to read!

Thanks Gail. I guess I must be nosy too. I'm a regular lurker on a couple dozen threads and only rarely chime in. As for the TBR, I've been working on it for 10 days now. It was taking forever for the Word Document to load, so I decided I would convert it to an Access database. Now I'm carefully categorizing each entry and moving all the relevant info I have on each one to its own column. Ridiculous, I'm sure, but sometimes this sort of obsessive-compulsive behavior is calming for me when I have a lot of other things going on. This time it's 3 sets of out-of-towners over the next month, plus a birthday party for our 12-year-old son with 20 attendees planned, plus parents who decide to stick around, a couple of shelters to construct because of the rain, and all the cleaning to go with that. It's certainly learned behavior. My mother used to read 10 pages and then get up to clean a room or do a load of laundry. My grandmother always had a jigsaw puzzle on the table...10 pieces and then do something on her list for the day. Right now I'm cleaning up 10 entries in the database and then doing something else that needs doing.

Life's been busy the past few days and I still haven't written those reviews. I finished shopping for Jason's birthday, got the party invitations ready to go out today, met with the accountant, had a hair cut and a pedi, and put paving tiles down on the muddy bit of ground between the front porch and the driveway.

I thought I would wake up to find the July TIOLI and start ordering books from the library. Instead, the water pump isn't filling the upper tank and I've got to call the plumber out first thing.

39. Bangkok 8 by John Burdett

Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep is the son of whore, the only honest cop in Thailand, and a Buddhist saint in this lifetime. A police procedural unlike any I have read before, Bangkok 8 begins when Jitpleecheep's partner is bitten in the eye by a meth-crazed python. The search for those responsible leads the reader through an atmospheric portrayal of Bangkok, Buddhist philosophy, and a biting social critique of the impact of globalization on Eastern culture. I rate this New York Times Notable Book of 2003 at 7 out of 10 stars: it isn't a great book, but I found it transporting and very entertaining.

Nice review there, sometimes entertaining is exactly all we need from a book. It's a pity we aren't closer, we have our old water pump just sitting here doing nothing much as we switched from tank water to town supply a couple of years ago. It would love a day job again I think.

We were just talking last week about putting in another pump, one for each tank rather than the switching system we have now. It's confusing and takes forever to run down the problem. I spend a good hour troubleshooting before I call in the professionals. The plumber has gone in search of a valve.

40. L'Affaire by Diane Johnson

Amy finds herself wealthy after her dotcom company sells, and she sets off for France for a course of self-improvement. While at a ski resort in the Alps, an avalanche puts two fellow guests in the hospital. Adrian, who is married to Kerry, is not expected to survive his injuries. Amy befriends Kerry's 14-year-old brother Kip as he shoulders responsibility for his infant half-brother Harry. Soon other of Adrian's offspring appear: Rupert, who is content to ski; Posy, who falls into bed Emile, husband of Victoire, a sister she didn't know she had. Insipid and superficial, I rate this New York Times Notable Book of 2003 at 3 out of 10 stars.

June 2011
29. Block, Lawrence: Hit and Run
30. Black, Ingrid: The Dead
31. Stevenson, Robert Louis: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
32. Chabon, Michael: The Final Solution
33. Barnes, Julian: Flaubert's Parrot
34. Palahniuk, Chuck: Pygmy
35. Reichs, Kathy: Cross Bones
36. Vargas, Fred: Wash This Blood Clean from My Hand
37. Vargas, Fred: This Night's Foul Work
38. Bloom, Amy: Away
39. Burdett, John: Bangkok 8
40. Johnson, Diane: L'Affaire

MID-YEAR REVIEW

My Favorite Three
City of Thieves by David Benioff
The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
Away by Amy Bloom

Unexpected Pleasures
Bangkok 8 by John Burdett
The Final Solution by Michael Chabon

Requiring a Certain Headspace
Fieldwork by Mischa Berlinski
Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes
Pygmy by Chuck Palahniuk

Bottom of the Pile
L'Affaire by Diane Johnson
Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs
Hunting the Ghost Dancer by A. A. Attanasio

Reading Plan for July 2011

Challenge #1 (a book with 1-13 words in the title): Reading Turgenev by William Trevor
Challenge #1: My House in Umbria by William Trevor
Challenge #2 (a book whose title ends with my middle initial): Where I'm Calling From by Raymond Carver
Challenge #3 (double double letter): The Innkeeper's Song by Peter S. Beagle
Challenge #4 (title/author containing the word 'summer'): Last Lessons of Summer by Margaret Maron
Challenge #6 (country or region in adjectival form): American Wife by Curtis Sittenfield
Challenge #7 (America the Beautiful): In Plain Sight by C. J. Box
Challenge #10 (in honor of Edgar the cat): The Last Child by John Hart
Challenge #12 (a direction in the title): Over Tumbled Graves by Jess Walter
Challenge #13 (National Blueberry Month): The Blue by Mary McCallum

Interesting list for July, Jeanne. I am completely unfamiliar with all of them (so I will watch with interest) except that I have read American Wife and found it completely entrancing. Fascinating take on Bush.

Nice list, you've got some good reading ahead. I have to ask, is the author David Benioff the same as the producer and scriptwriter?

I read Mary McCallum's book when it first came out and thought it was a good first novel.

#120: Yes, Leonie. GofT, assorted superheroes, that's generally his thing. This novel was completely different from all of that, though. I really enjoyed it. If I could get my hands on another of his books, I'd be reading it for the hot author challenge. He's kind of dreamy in a young, artsy sort of way.

#121: I'm looking forward to this one, Kerry. I read quite a few books by NZ authors in the first few years we lived here and got side-tracked by studies. Now's a good time to get back in there.

41. Reading Turgenev by William Trevor

Mary Louise marries an older man to escape the boredom of her rural lifestyle. To escape his ineptitude as a husband and the hatefulness of his sisters with whom they share a business and household, Mary Louise becomes increasingly enmeshed in a fantasy world built upon her childhood affections for a sickly cousin. Trevor employs two alternating chronologies, one describing her increasing isolation and the other her return to a changed world. This novel was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize, and the volume containing this novel and My House in Umbria, entitled Two Lives, was named to the New York Times Editor's Choice list in 1991. I rate it at 8 out of 10 stars.

Hmmmmm...interesting Jeanne - I'm going to put it on my Maybe list!

42. My House in Umbria by William Trevor

On the surface, this novel tells the story of the recuperation of four victims of a terrorist attack: a retired British general, a young German man, an American child, and the owner of a house in Umbria. Lurking beneath, as in all of our lives, are the stories we tell--to ourselves, of ourselves--that combine to produce a reality not always grounded in fact. I rate this delicately layered book at 8 out of 10 stars.

Well, I have exhausted myself today. Cleaned all the outside windows, plus the insides in the living areas: lounge, dining room, kitchen, my office, and at the front and back doors. Now it's starting to rain and I want nothing more than to curl up with a book and read myself to sleep until dinner.

Lingering chest cold, bleh.

Your result for What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test...

Balanced, Secure, and Realistic.

9 Impressionist, 1 Islamic, 0 Ukiyo-e, -1 Cubist, 1 Abstract and -22 Renaissance!

Impressionism is a movement in French painting, sometimes called optical realism because of its almost scientific interest in the actual visual experience and effect of light and movement on appearance of objects. Impressionist paintings are balanced, use colored shadows, use pure color, broken brushstrokes, thick paint, and scenes from everyday life or nature.

People that like Impressionist paintings may not alway be what is deemed socially acceptable. They tend to move on their own path without always worrying that it may be offensive to others. They value friendships but because they also value honesty tend to have a few really good friends. They do not, however, like people that are rude and do not appreciate the ideas of others. They are secure enough in themselves that they can listen to the ideas of other people without it affecting their own final decisions. The world for them is not black and white but more in shades of grey and muted colors. They like things to be aestically pleasing, not stark and sharp. There are many ways to view things, and the impresssionist personality views the world from many different aspects. They enjoy life and try to keep a realistic viewpoint of things, but are not very open to new experiences. If they are content in their live they will be more than likely pleased to keep things just the way they are.

Take What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test at HelloQuizzy

I am way behind on threads, but catching up a bit, Jeanne.

I got the same as you on the art quiz thingy :)

Always happy to have you drop by, Stasia! I stay behind on threads.

Pure Nerd

83 % Nerd, 35% Geek, 43% Dork
For The Record:

A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia.
A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one.
A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions.
You scored better than half in Nerd, earning you the title of: Pure Nerd.

The times, they are a-changing. It used to be that being exceptionally smart led to being unpopular, which would ultimately lead to picking up all of the traits and tendencies associated with the "dork." No-longer. Being smart isn't as socially crippling as it once was, and even more so as you get older: eventually being a Pure Nerd will likely be replaced with the following label: Purely Successful.

Congratulations!

Thanks Again! -- THE NERD? GEEK? OR DORK? TEST

43. The Blue by Mary McCallum

This is a gem of a novel. Part adventure, part domestic drama, part romance. The characters are caught between land and sea, between world wars, between love and duty. 9/10

44. Last Lessons of Summer by Margaret Maron

A disappointing stand-alone by Maron. I thought she captured the spirit of the large Southern family and their gatherings, but the female characters were a bit insipid. 4/10.

45. Over Tumbled Graves by Jess Walter

A sprawling police procedural. Could have, should have, been tighter. 4/10

#131: Interesting results! Were you surprised at all?

#132: The Blue looks terrific. I will have to see if I can locate a copy. Thanks for that recommendation, Jeanne!

Well, Stasia, I was actually expecting to test as a nerd-dork hybrid. Can it be that as I've gotten older, I've become less socially awkward?

I hope you can find a copy of The Blue. It is a first novel by a New Zealand author. It certainly deserves a wider audience.

#134: No luck on The Blue. I checked each of the 6 libraries from which I regularly receive books :(

Too bad about The Blue. I wish I could share it with someone.

46. Where I'm Calling From by Raymond Carver

I can only muster 5 of 10 stars for this collection of short stories. It felt like the same story, the same character, over and over and over again, superficial examinations of alcohol abuse and turning points in relationships. I enjoyed the recent stories, written in the 1980s, more than the earlier works.

'The Blue' looks amazing, on to the list it goes, in fact I'll see if our library system has it seeing as it comes so highly rated..

Okay, requested.

I'll be waiting to hear your reaction to 'The Blue', Leonie. I hope you enjoy it.

#37: Sounds like one I can safely skip!

As always, glad to be of service, Stasia. I usually enjoy short stories more than I think I'm going to. This time I was looking forward to them,, Carver being said to be 'the master'. and....no.

#141: Ah, well. Now you never have to read it again, right?

My new mantra....I never have to read THAT again! LOL!

#143: That is one way to look at it! LOL!

'Never have to read again' is sort of a category all it's own, don't you think? Definitely not in the same pile as 'couldn't get past the first 100 pages' and also not as bad as 'why the heck did I wever waste hours of my life on THAT'. No, 'never have to read again' is more in the form of a large tick and a big sigh.

I agree, Prue. But there are only a few things that I'd put in the 'never have to read again' category: Dante's Paradiso, The Piano Teacher or any introduction to statistics. While I'd prefer to finish with 'Wow!' or 'Let's do that again!', 'that was a perfectly pleasant way to pass the time' is good too, like a well-deserved nap or having a cup of coffee on the front porch while listening to the birds wake up.

47. The Innkeeper's Song by Peter S. Beagle

This standard fantasy fare is complete with warring wizards, some shapeshifting, and journeys into an abstrusely described alternate world/ reality. Beagle's use of language, however, is gorgeous: from the comic turn-of-phrase ("He always sighed like that to inform his students that their answers to his last question had shortened his life by a measurable degree and filled his few remaining days with quiet despair.") to Lal's full name, which I wanted to say aloud every time it appeared on the page (Lalkhamsin-khamsolal). But, because I fell asleep 10 times while trying to read the last 50 pages, I can only rate this book at 6 out of 10 stars.

#147: I have heard good things about Beagle's books. One of these days I might actually read one.

Hi Stasia. I read The Last Unicorn as a teenager and remember enjoying it. But nothing since. Some of his writing is quite lovely.

Yes, I have seen several good reviews of The Last Unicorn. I have watched the film version but have yet to read the book.

I'm pretty sure I read a Beagle once long ago, A Fine and Private Place. Since I don't remember anything at all about it, I guess it doesn't count.
I was way behind on posts, so I'll say that I enjoyed your answers to the book meme, that I scored "abstract" on the art quiz, and that I suppose that your son's toe is completely O.K. since I never saw the resolution of the doctor/no doctor question. I'm a Margaret Maron fan, but I have to agree with your assessment of The Last Lessons of Summer.

Hi Peggy. Thanks for dropping by. I know how easy it is to fall behind on threads...we're such a chatty bunch it's amazing we actually have time to read a book or two. You're the first person I've heard who came up as 'abstract' on the art quiz. The toe was disgusting and worrisome for several days but, yes, now all is well. I'm glad because he has grown up in the kiwi tradition of rarely wearing shoes and insisting on them for a week was traumatic enough without doctors and stitches.

48. The Last Child by John Hart

I read this 2010 winner of the Edgar Award in honor of Ellen's cat. Hart throws the reader a tangle of unpleasantness and proceeds to unravel the various loops and knots in unexpected yet satisfying ways. I rate it at 8 out of 10 stars.

#153: I have had that one in the BlackHole for a while now. I will get to it eventually I am sure. Glad to see you enjoyed it, Jeanne.

About halfway through American Wife. The sex scenes have a certain ick factor. Maybe if I didn't know who the book was about...

Also starting on Watership Down today for a group read. I rarely read more than 1 book at a time, so we'll see how it goes.

Plus I still haven't started In Plain Sight for Challenge #7. Only 6 more days left. Must get cracking.

DH bought tickets for our niece so that she can visit for a month. She arrives on Thursday, so I've got things to do.

I have decided American Wife is not going to be a book for me. It is firmly planted on my 'do not read' list.

I hope you have an enjoyable visit with your niece, Jeanne!

Stasia, your "Do-Not-Read" list is an idea that should gain more attention. DNR, perhaps it will be the most-used tag on LT!

Oh Stasia - sorry to hear you have put American Wife on the DNR - (perhaps also Do Not Resuscitate? . I really enjoyed it...

49. American Wife by Curtis Sittenfield

In this fictional autobiography, Alice Blackwell wants us to believe that she is a good person, that the mistakes and missteps of her life were a matter of circumstance, a byproduct of her ideals concerning self and family. In an effort to assure the reader of her honesty, she provides detailed descriptions of her sexual encounters and the crudity she tolerates in those around her. But why provide an autobiography if she truly believes her motivations to be private? "No one's true self was the business of more than a very small number of family members or close friends." Her simultaneous capacity for both justifying her behavior and deceiving herself regarding the consequences of her inaction are the defining aspects of Alice's personality. "There was rarely anything I wanted more than I didn't want to keep fighting."

What makes Alice interesting and tolerable as a fictional character is that her husband becomes President of the United States. She says of her husband, "He seemed to be someone who found his own flaws endearing and thus concealed nothing." Alice could say just the opposite of herself. I rate this Booklist Editors' Choice selection at 6 of 10 stars.

Hi Jeanne, an interesting sounding book but one that doesn't sound like my cup of tea.

I was intrigued with hearing that Peggy came up as abstract on the art quiz. As an abstract/expressionist painter, I came up impressionist with a very negative abstract mark which I am quite puzzled with.

I also had to laugh at your comment on 'that great kiwi tradition' of not wearing shoes. I avoid shoes if I possibly can and only wear jandals if I absolutely need to go out. I had to wear shoes on the weekend and my left ankle is still sore because of it!

#157: Feel free to borrow the idea, Jeanne!

#159: I think I am going to stay away from that book for sure.

I hope book #50 turns out to be a terrific read for you!

Leonie, I still have a 'thing' with the kids not wearing shoes. You'd think after 8 years I'd get over it, and really I'm much better. It still makes my feet hurt to see Jason playing rugby without shoes on chilly spring mornings. Sometimes I think all he carries in his backpack to and from school are shoes and a rain jacket. That said, I only wear shoes when I go to the shops, and in the summer I'm likely to be in jandals all the time.

Some people really liked American Wife, Stasia, but it wasn't for me.

Yeah, I have seen good reviews of American Wife, but I do not think it is for me either, Jeanne.

50. In Plain Sight by C. J. Box

The matriarch of the Scarlett family disappears, and the residents of Twelve Sleep County are forced to choose sides as her sons begin a battle of succession. In the meantime, game warden Joe Pickett and his family are the target of an escalating series of threatening acts. While the source of these entwined situations are well-telegraphed, I found the climax, including Box's incorporation of nature's fury, to be thrilling and suspenseful. I rate this 2006 Library Journal Best Book at 7 of 10 stars.

#164: I do not think I have read that one yet. I will have to check it out. Thanks for the recommendation, Jeanne!

I am glad book 50 turned out to be a good read for you.

I have compiled a ridiculously long list of books to read for August:

Jack of Shadows by Roger Zelanzy: Challenge #1 (adjective tag = weird)
Rites of Passage by William Golding: Challenge #2
The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch: Challenge #5
The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven: Challenge #5
Cyteen by C. J. Cherryh: Challenge #11
Have Spacesuit, Will Travel by Robert A. Heinlein: Challenge #12
Cities of the Plain by Cormac McCarthy: Challenge #13
Driving Blind by Ray Bradbury: Challenge #14
The Lighthouse by P. D. James: Challenge #14
Ragamuffin by Tobias S. Buckell: Challenge #15
All the Weyrs of Pern by Anne McCaffrey: Challenge #16
A World Out of Time by Larry Niven: Challenge #16
Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk: Challenge #18
The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler: Challenge #19

And I will be finishing Watership Down by Richard Adams for a group read: Challenge #1 (adjective tag = wild)

ETA: Additions/deletions.

Jeanne, if you don't read anything else on the list, do read Cyteen. It took 217 pages to become good for me, and then it became GREAT! I loved/love it and trust that you will too! You have some other good stuff there (I've read the Murdoch, James, and Chandler), so you should have a great month. If you get through even 2/3 of those, you'll be doing marvelously!

Thanks Peggy. I have so much C. J. Cherryh on my tbr, I could read only books for Challenge #11 and keep busy. I had been planning on trying to fit as much older sci-fi into the challenges as I could because my husband bought several bundles for the ebook a while back and I haven't even dipped into the collection. Should be fun!

I'm going to put in a plug for Rites of Passage - Golding seems to have been a bit out of fashion in recent yearsbut he is a wonderful writer.

I am really spoiled for choice with this list. I thought of starting with the shorter works and reading big bits of Cyteen in between as it is quite the chunk at 696 pages. Or I could list the series installments separately and try to fit them into challenges over the next few months. Either way, Rites of Passage is one of the shorter books on the list and so I will definitely be able to get to that one, Prue. Thanks for the plug.

51. The Potter's Field by Ellis Peters

I'm not sure how this series has managed to stay off my radar for so many years. There are 20 entries in the Cadfael Chronicles, and some of them have been adapted into a TV series by the BBC. The Potter's Field is the 17th in the series and can be read as a stand-alone. Brother Cadfael, herbalist and Benedictine monk, assists his friend Sheriff Hugh's investigation when a woman's skeleton is unearthed on a piece of land that has been acquired by Shrewsbury Abbey. The language is important to the atmosphere of the book, as in this passage: "He heard the change in their tread as they emerged upon the solid ground of the Foregate, and saw as it were an agitation of the darkness, movement without form, even before faint glints of lambent light on steel gave shape to their harness and brought them human out of the obscurity."

The series takes place against the backdrop of the struggle between King Stephen and Empress Maud as well as the Crusades, from 1135-1150. The attention given to this historic period would emerge as an influence in Cadfael's life if the series were read in order. I rate this installment at 7 of 10 stars.

July 2011
41. Trevor, William: Reading Turgenev - 8/10
42. Trevor, William: My House in Umbria - 8/10
43. McCallum, Mary: The Blue - 9/10
44. Maron, Margaret: Last Lessons of Summer - 4/10
45. Walter, Jess: Over Tumbled Graves - 4/10
46. Carver, Raymond: Where I'm Calling From - 5/10
47. Beagle, Peter S.: The Innkeeper's Song - 6/10
48. Hart, John: The Last Child - 8/10
49. Sittenfield, Curtis: American Wife - 6/10
50. Box, C. J.: In Plain Sight - 7/10
51. Peters, Ellis: The Potter's Field - 7/10

52. Jack of Shadows by Roger Zelazny

This is a story that has so many layers, so many interpretations. Not only the characters, but the plot and settings can be peeled back...all is metaphor for the dualities of existence. Only Jack, who draws his power from shadow, is able to move between the two hemispheres of his planet: light and dark, west and east, scientific and magical, progressive and conservative, egalitarian and feudal, mechanistic and organic. I rate this classic of fantasy and science fiction at 10 out of 10 stars.

53. Watership Down by Richard Adams

My second reading as part of a group read. You can find my review on the spoiler thread .

So many interesting books here, adding Jack of Shadows to my list. I'm joining you on a shared read of Have Spacesuit will travel, though I won't get to it for a couple of weeks as I need to get going on the group read of Life: a user's manual and another George Martin doorstopper.

Sci-fi has changed so much since Jack of Shadows. The social intrigues, the planet's history, the science...all are left for the reader to imagine. I hope you like it, Kerry.

We'll probably get to Have Spacesuit, Will Travel at about the same time.

Wow Jeanne, what a great list for August. Have just wishlisted your 10 our of 10 book, Jack of Shadows, you don't get a higher rating than that so it must be good! I'm also adding the Cadfael series as I didn't have this on my radar either and apparently I need to.

I am torn when I hear someone is going on my recommendation, knowing that my tastes are pretty eclectic and may not be someone else's, and then really psyched to hear their impressions of a book I enjoyed. Hope you like them, Leonie.

54. Driving Blind by Ray Bradbury

This book of short stories turns largely on themes of memory and potential: who we were, who we thought we might become, who we actually become, and, having become that person, how we remember ourselves and others and the moments we inhabited together. Some of the stories have a feel of magical realism, while others drift into fantasy or horror and at least a few have their beginnings in the sci-fi genre. I rate this collection of tales at 7 of 10 stars.

Hi *waves* I thought I'd return the visit.

It's interesting that in the last post you made you're reviewing a short story collection. Not that long ago I had a discussion with someone over on the 50 Books Challenge group about short story collections, about whether you miss out on some of the underlying theme if you don't read a collection cover to cover, only a story here and there with other books/short stories in between. And if that would impact how you think of a short story. What do you think?

#179: I have not read that book by Bradbury. I will have to give it a shot. Thanks for bringing it to my attention, Jeanne.

Hi Samantha_kathy, thanks for stopping by.

I think that if I had read only one of the stories in this collection by Ray Bradbury, the overall theme might have been lost. When reading a collection, and I think especially a single-author collection, the theme can resonate like alliteration, or the rhythm of a poem, as a skilled writer changes the angle, the filter, on a particular variation. Reading a single story from such a collection, the theme would probably not be as prevalent and the reader come away with more of the sense of scene, or moment, or character.

Some authors don't do it as well, or the theme across a group of stories may not sit well with a particular reader. This is probably what happened for me when I read Raymond Carver's Where I'm Calling From in July. His testosterone-laced perspective on relationships and substance use/abuse did nothing for me, and in the end I found the individual stories less powerful than some of them might have been in isolation.

#182> I guess all things have its pros and cons, including themes :).

JeanneD and Samantha_kathy - You make an excellent point about theme continuity, but (and I definitely think this is a flaw in me that I wish I could get over) I never truly enjoy reading a single author's short story collection from start to finish. The most recent disappointments were Drown by Junot Diaz and a Raymond Carver collection (I can't remember which one). It's frustrating because there are short stories that I truly love, but I've always discovered them in a compilation, or read them in a class. I think it's probably something really simple, such as I'll like one story a lot and I'm sad when it's over, but then the next three stories will be clunkers. (That just sounded really dumb, but I think that's what it is.) Anyway, I've been trying to just pick up a collection from time to time and read just one story. I finished a Nelson Algren collection that way and it seemed to work out for me.

I will have to admit, the only short stories I've read are those y Agatha Christie and a bundle of short stories by Susan Wittig Albert, all featuring China Bayles, the main character in my favorite mystery series. I'm generally not a fan of short stories at all, because, well, they're short.

55. Rites of Passage by William Golding

The British navy is stretched to its limits near the end of the Napoleonic Wars as Sir Edmund Talbot makes his way from England to Australia, where his godfather has secured him a position with the Governor. As a parting gift, Talbot receives a journal in which he is to entertain his godfather with tales of his passage. These entries recount the ship's affairs through the eyes of this foppish, entitled, narcissist. No, I do not like Edmund Talbot. His fellow passengers are drawn as caricatures in support of his own superiority, including the Reverend Colley. Colley's mistreatment by all is meant to include the reader, but I felt so distanced from Talbot that I had not shared in his delight at Colley's humiliation. I found this winner of the 1980 Man Booker Prize to be technically brilliant was never emotionally engaged, so my rating is 9 out of 10 stars.

184 & 185> I always expect not to like a collection of short stories when I start it. Usually I am pleasantly surprised. One thing I love about books is that, in return for the investment of time, I can be transported to a place, a time, and come to know characters. A good short story is a totally different experience, a more immediate and poignantly brief meeting.

Highly recommended: 4.5-5
Tales from Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
Ship Fever by Andrea Barrett

Also quite good: 4.0
The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel
The Stories of Mary Gordon
Twilight of the Superheroes by Deborah Eisenberg
The Dead Fish Museum by Charles D'Ambrosio
A Good Scent from Strange Mountain by Robert Olen Butler
Dancing After Hours by Andre Dubus
Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King
Birds of America by Lorri Moore
Continent by Jim Crace
Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut
Island by Alistair Macleod

Jeanne, thanks for that list of recommended short story collections. I just "favorited" it. Sometimes, I just can't focus on a novel and I love to have short stories I can pick up.

Enjoy, Pat!

#186: I have never read anything by Golding other than Lord of the Flies. I will have to give Rites of Passage a shot. Thanks for the review, Jeanne.

#186: I read The Inheritors by William Golding and I distinctly remember his writing style. It didn't always appeal to me, but the story was quite good. It sounds like Rites of Passage might just be the other way around for you.

What a fascinating discussion on short story collections, really enjoying the great comments here and thanks for that list Jeanne, I've also favourite'd it.

190 & 191> I thought Rites of Passage was the older brother of Lord of the Flies.

192> Hope you find some in there you like, Leonie.

Wow, nice and long list! Just curious - how much do you read a day on average?

I couldn't say, page-wise. Usually 1-2 hours, but there are days that I read more. Of course, that doesn't count online news, LT threads... I have never gotten into the habit of listening to audiobooks. If I download anything to listen to, it's usually an NPR program or news.

How about everyone else?

I am making a request for recommendations of fiction for a 12-year-old boy who is an advanced, but reluctant, reader. The most recent thing he read and enjoyed was the Wolf Brother series. Thanks!

I liked The Monstrumologist When I read it earlier this year. You might want to check it out first though, it was a bit gruesome in spots.

Also The Haunting Of Alaizabel Cray was pretty good.

Im finding a lot of people I've lost track of today- nice to see you again!
I cant recall enjoying Rites of Passage.....maybe I need to reread it to see what I missed. 9/10 is a pretty good rating....

I read about 30 minutes a day. Would love to read more though!

Jeanne - you might like to browse this list by Wayne Mills a senior lecturer on reading at Auckland University. He is also well known as Quizmaster for his fantastic Kids Lit Quiz. My own recommendation would be Robert Muchamore's Cherub series or Darren Shan's Cirque du Freak series, or Louis Sachar's Holes, Melvin Burgess's The Cry of the Wolf.
From New Zealand: try Vince Ford's Chronicles of Stone trilogy, (but don't get the omnibus edition it would put your son off seeing such a big book), Ken Catran's done too many to count but possibly Talking to Blue or Jacko Moran: Sniper also Fleur Beale's Slide the Corner is great for reluctant boys.
Australia: Archimede Fusillo's The Dons, Markus Zusak's Wolfe brother books, John Marsden. Check out the South Australian website for teen readers: http://insideadog.com.au/

Just dropping by to speak, Jeanne. I favorited the list of short stories too. I don't like the genre (Did I mention that?), but maybe someday I'll try some of the best.

#195 Jeanned, has he read the Percy Jackson books? They are quite good and perfect for a teen (tween?)
The first is The Lighning Thief and there a 5 total in the series.

Chelle

I'm coming to learn (before he does) that he is a book-first sort of person. If he's already seen the movie (eg, Percy Jackson and Holes), the book doesn't grab him. He does seem to have a preference for books about animals (he liked Stone Fox) but not fantastic animals (Eragon was not a favorite). I will do a little research with this list and see what I think.

Thank you all.

Jeanne, for suggestions for your 12-year-old, you might check this group out: http://www.librarything.com/groups/readyalit

I would also suggest consulting Nancy Pearl's Book Crush, books chosen for kids and young adults.

I have a themed booklist for books about Animals but overall I'd suggest you look through Michael Morpurgo's books, as he's written several middlegrade books about animals such as War Horse, An elephant in the garden, the last wolf, and a beautiful one about a greyhound Shadow. Also Martin Booth's War Dog.

The best YA reading person I know of is Whisper1.

Here is a link to her current reading thread I'll bet she would have lots of recommendations for you.

When I was about his age, I was a huge fan of Lord Brocktree. It's a part of a rather large series, so if he likes them you'll have planty of books to supply him for awhile. I'm not sure if that counts as 'fantastical' though. They are real animals (Lord Brocktree is a badger, for example) but it's a fantasy setting, so it might not be a great fit.

Linda (Whisper) is definitely a good person to ask about YA novels.

Thanks...I have starred her thread and will have a look through and comment when I have more time.

56. A World Out of Time by Larry Niven

"In his second life CORBELL Mark II had suffered enough future shock to kill a whole cityful of Alvin Tofflers."

Jerome Branch Corbell puts his trust in future mankind to develop both a cure for his cancer and the capacity to reverse cell damage from cryogenic storage. He remembers the lethal injection, and then he awakens in a different body. Is he still Corbell? Does he owe his existence to the State that may have use for his personality? He is hurled still farther in the future in his new career as a ramjet pilot. Nominated for both the Ditmar and Locus Awards in 1977, I rate this bit of time-traveling action-adventure story at 8 out of 10 stars.

I'm either having a really good month or I've become a soft touch. Six books completed so far for August, with ratings = a 7, an 8, two 9s, and two 10s.

57. Cities of the Plain by Cormac McCarthy

It's 1952 and Mac's ranch has been purchased by the US Government. Jack Grady Cole and Billy Parham, two young cowboys who have grown up on the US-Mexican border (origin stories in All the Pretty Horses and The Crossing), face the disappearance of their way of life.

McCarthy tells us what these characters do, what they say, but not what they think. The rhythm of their deeds and speech entwines with the cadence of McCarthy's language, irrevocably leading to what must come next: "Each event is revealed to us only at the surrender of every alternate course." The best description I can give you of this NY Times Notable Book of 1998 is to call it a Literary Shakesperean American Western Tragic Romance. And say that I rate it at 10 out of 10 stars.

I wasnt sold on this third one. The first two were way better in my opinion, still, great writing. And a big star rating from you!

Jeanne--did you read the first novel in the trilogy Rites of Passage or all three novels (can't remember their names) in the trilogy? I read them several years ago, and as I recall the main character grows and changes significantly, i.e. no longer so callow.

Thanks for the lists of short story collections. I usually have a difficult time with short stories, but some of those look to be worth a try.

211> Rites of Passage is the first of the trilogy and the most well received of the 3. I've read some reviews of the next 2, but I don't know if I will finish it or not.

Hi Jeanne! I saw your question over in the kitchen. I too have a 12 year old boy who is an advanced reader. My biggest challenge with him is finding things that are both age appropriate and interesting. LOL. I'm going to jump in with my 2 cents - or a dime. I agree that Whisper1 is a good source - she is reading all the Newbery honor and award books and has great reviews of them. Here's a list of books/authors my son has really enjoyed, you will notice there are lots of series, keeps him busy longer:

The Hobbit
A Wrinkle in Time - series
How to Train your Dragon - series - not so advanced, but lots of fun
The Chronicles of Prydain - series
The Giver
Artemis Fowl - series
Louis Sachar
Peter and the Starcatchers - series
Leviathan
Howl's Moving Castle - good movie made by Hayao Miyazaki
Castle in the Air - good movie too - Castle in the Sky
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Hound of the Baskervilles
The Mysterious Benedict Society - series
The Chronicles of Narnia - series

Obviously he leans toward fantasy. Hope this is helpful. I'd love to hear what your son likes to read! Here I am - http://www.librarything.com/topic/120091

#208: Adding that one to the BlackHole. Thanks for the recommendation, Jeanne. I am always looking for more scifi/fantasy reads as I am trying to expand my reading horizon in that direction.

Thanks to everyone who has made recommendations for my son. I have been going through all the lists and reading reviews and have narrowed down to 15+ titles that I think he might like. Next, I need to see what's available at the local library and start ordering them. He's only got a book and a half left in his current series. Will let you know what strikes his fancy.

Hope you enjoy it, Stasia.

58. Ragamuffin by Tobias S. Buckell

Across the galaxy, humankind has come increasingly under the control of the Benevolent Satrapy, roach-like creatures who control the wormholes required for travel, the technology necessary to interact with information, and, in some cases, the humans themselves. As the Satrapy appears to lurch toward genocide against a number of species, the freedom-fighting League of Human Affairs joins forces with the Ragamuffins, smuggling descendants of star-faring Caribbean nationals. A few of the Raga have been enhanced with illegal nanotechnology. I give 5 out of 10 stars to this 2007 Nebula Award nominee and Prometheus Award finalist.

#216: Five out of 10 stars does not sound too good to me, so I think I will give that one a miss.

59. Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk

A journalist writing a series about Sudden Infant Death meets a realtor who specializes in selling haunted houses, nice haunted houses, over and over again. Both accidentally killed their child and spouse with a 'culling song'. With two young adults who are the ages their children would be had they lived, they form a surrogate family and go on a road trip in search of all of the books in the US that contain the culling song and the source book, a witch's grimoire. I'm not sure what to say about this book other than I feel I should read this 2002 Bram Stoker nominee again, soon. Satire, farce, social commentary, fantasy, horror--I'm not even sure what it is or how to rate it.

I just can't keep up! I can't read all the scifi that I already own, but I'm happy to say that I think I can let the Palaniuk go on its way without me. Thanks, Jeanne.

#218: That one does not look like my cuppa. I think I will give it a pass.

My husband loves Chuck Palahniuk, but I've never read him. For some reason, I don't think I'd like it, but I could be wrong.

I've only read a couple of his books, but this was the last one on my tbr. The social commentary is a sledge hammer. The situations are farcical. Palahniuk is certainly not for everyone but he does have a small and loyal following.

#218 woah, that looks like a chilling one, I'm too scared to go near it.

Just popping in to say hi Jeanne and thank you for raising the questions of books for a 12 year old. I'm actually marking a few of those titles as books to suggest to my 13yr old.

60. The Lighthouse by P. D. James

For me, this installment was the least satisfying of the Dalgliesh series. 3 out of 5 stars

Life is busy, busy. I had to switch to The Lighthouse when I discovered that the ebook will only charge on computers with its base software installed. I found that odd and want to experiment with hubs and USB ports on power strips. Now that I'm home and have a full charge, it's back to Have Spacesuit, Will Travel. I am not going to get to
The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch for Challenge #5 or Cyteen by C. J. Cherryh for Challenge #11, but I might have time for either The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven for Challenge #5 or All the Weyrs of Pern by Anne McCaffrey for Challenge #16. I haven't read a book for Challenge #5 yet, so Niven will be first.

I suppose in the future I should limit my list to 12.

#225: I suppose in the future I should limit my list to 12.

I always tell myself I should limit my TIOLI challenge books too, but somehow I never do.

I am not even pretending that I will read the majority of books on this list by the end of September.

Challenge #1:
Beloved by Toni Morrison *
Foundation and Empire by Isaac Asimov *
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett

Challenge #3:
The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch *
Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card *

Challenge #5: Demolished Man by Alfred Bester

Challenge #7:
Count Zero by William Gibson
Glory Road by Robert A. Heinlein
Protector by Larry Niven
Red Planet by Robert A. Heinlein
Ringworld by Larry Niven

Challenge #8: Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters *

Challenge #9: Waiting for the Barbarians by J. M. Coetzee

Challenge #11: Saturday by Ian McEwan

Challenge #12:
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein
Turtle Moon by Alice Hoffman

Challenge #14: Blind Man with a Pistol by Chester Himes

Challenge #15: Cyteen by C. J. Cherryh and possibly 4 other titles by Cherryh that are lurking on my e-reader.

Challenge #16:
Dying Inside by Robert Silverberg
Making Money by Terry Pratchett

Challenge #17:
Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Challenge #19: The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean

Challenge #20: Tutankamun: The Book of Shadows by Nicholas Drake

I was going to steal for Anderson Cooper and call it the RidiculList, but I've decided to name it the PotentiaList instead. I'll read the shared reads first (*) and continue adding as more challenges are posted.

ETA: to add to the PotentiaList

I like the 'PotentiaList' idea!

Wow, that is ambitious! I'm saying the PotentiaList to rhyme with the TV show the Mentalist - it has a nice ring to it.

Hello Jeanne - to go back to an earlier post, absolutely with you on the 'whilst' abuseage. A lot of senior execs I work with use it and I am forever amending their communications to 'while'. Then again, among my colleagues, I am known for being picky and pedantic (and proud of it!).

You go, Jeanne and Prue! (I note that Prue didn't write, "amongst my colleagues," another bonus for the good guys!) I had students who insisted on writing "learnt" to my displeasure. This would not be the group that said "turnt" and "lurnt" as a matter of course.
That is a huge TIOLI list!!! I'll be interested to see how many you do get through.

Hi Jeanne. Nice to be in the company of others who are picky and pedantic (and proud of it!) Works for me.

Ambitious list of challenges. I know you posted that you won't get through them all, but still ... good on you! Love your remarks about the RidicuList/PoteniaList! Very clever!

oooohhh Jeanne - I have had Beloved on the SoS forever. And recently acquired The Sea, The Sea for a re-read....I will be fascinated to hear your thoughts if you get to either of them! Good luck. *chimes in 'me too' on the RidicuList and PotentiaList"

Hi Jeanne, just popping in to say hi and hope things are all good in your neck of the woods.

Having trouble picking up with my own thread. Here goes...

August 2011

52. Jack of Shadows by Roger Zelanzy (sci-fi) 10/10
53. Watership Down by Richard Adams (fantasy) 9/10
54. Driving Blind by Ray Bradbury (short stories) 7/10
55. Rites of Passage by William Golding (historical) 9/10
56. A World Out of Time by Larry Niven (sci-fi) 8/10
57. Cities of the Plain by Cormac McCarthy (western) 10/10
58. Ragamuffin by Tobias S. Buckell (sci-fi) 5/10
59. Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk (fantasy) 7/10
60. The Lighthouse by P. D. James (mystery) 6/10
61. Have Spacesuit, Will Travel by Robert A. Heinlein (sci-fi) 7/10
62. The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle (sci-fi) (7/10)

Stasia, Leonie, Prue, and Nancy--Thanks for weighing in on the PotentiaList!

Prue--I don't think I'll get to The Sea, The Sea this month, but I did read Beloved. I thought the dissociative processes were brilliant and certainly Morrison deserved the Pulitzer for this one. Difficult subject matter, and she doesn't let the reader off lightly.

Prue, Nancy, and Peggy -- Looks like I'm in good company.

Hey Jeanne - so glad to see you gave Rites of Passage such a high rating - one of my favourite books by one of my favourite authors...

Hi Jeanne, good to hear from you again. I have to say four books in August with a 9 or 10 star rating is a very good reading month.

September 2011

63. Cyteen by C. J. Cherryh (sci-fi) 8/10: Looking forward to reading the next one. Thanks, Peggy, for the recommendation!
64. Foundation and Empire by Isaac Asimov (sci-fi) 5/10
65. The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean (historical) 8/10
66. Beloved by Toni Morrison (historical) 10/10
67. Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card (sci-fi) 7/10
68. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (fantasy) 8/10: A mash-up of The Omen and the movie Dogma.
69. Emptying the Nest: Launching Your Young Adult Toward Success and Self-Reliance by Brad Sachs (nonfiction, parenting) 2/10: The author doesn't offer any research supporting his ideas about launching children. No references at all. Everyone interested in the science of psychology will recognize my problem. The author spends the introductory chapters categorizing the pathways young adults might undertake as they launch and lists developmental tasks he believes are essential to the process. He then abandons these concepts rather than using them as a structure for the remainder of the book. He meanders through a series of clinical anecdotes in which parents are consistently identified as disconnected, inflexible, overbearing, doubt-pushing enablers.

The post in which I introduce the October 2011 PotentiaList:

Challenge #2, read a Characteristic Work
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout*
Room by Emma Donoghue*
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Challenge #9, author's name begins and ends with a vowel
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro*
Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter*
Darkness Peering by Alice Blanchard
Hotel Du Lac by Anita Brookner
The Patience of the Spider by Andrea Camilleri
Turtle Moon by Alice Hoffman
The Voyage of the Narwhal by Andrea Barrett
Maximum Bob by Elmore Leonard
Dragondrums by Anne McCaffrey
The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
Rabbit Is Rich by John Updike

Challenge #11, author's names have same number of letters
City at the End of Time by Greg Bear
Timescape by Gregory Benford
The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester
Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
A Fall of Moondust by Arthur C. Clarke
Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell
The Passage by Justin Cronin

Challenge #14, read from the ISS Legacy Library
The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson*
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris

*Shared reads first. Then we'll see what trickles in from the library wait list.

ETA: to indicate additional shared reads

Hi Jeanne....so enjoyed your September and October lists!! I have found many to add to my own library.

I really hope you get to read The Passage, it was one of my favorites from last year. It is just good storytelling, but offers some thinking as well. It was the escape I needed to get me through my last semester of graduate school.

I loved Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. It is great for some dry humor! David Sedaris is going to be in my area on October 12 and I am going, very much looking forward to it!!

Good luck with your October reading.

>242 mks27:: Thanks for dropping by, Michelle. I am glad to get a recommendation on The Passage. I was hoping to read a good thriller and it sounds like it will be. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim was also nudging toward the top of my list as I missed reading it for a previous challenge this year. I always enjoyed his NPR spots.

Hi Jeanne - love your October list too. I've listed a different Peter Carey for the same challenge but do want to read Oscar and Lucinda. I'd say let's do a shared read but on my ability to read what I list, we're probably better not going there.
I did end up finishing Have spacesuit will travel but not in time for the August TIOLI deadline.

>244 avatiakh:: Hi Kerry. I'm not certain I'll get to Oscar and Lucinda. Somehow, reading an entire novel by Carey each year is a burden for me. But books that sit around on my shelves for a year or so become their own burden, so I've started nudging them off the TBR and in to a "possibly this month" state of mind. Have Spacesuit, Will Travel was the one that broke my review streak. I had problems getting in to it as well. Kip's character--hard-working, gallant, imagination and manners unspoiled by television--seemed almost more alien than the Mother Thing!

Great lists Jeanne. I've only read Room and God of Small Things from your October Potentialist and both seem to be reads that split the opinions right down the middle so I'll be interested to see what you think if you get to them. I found 'Room' average but loved the Arundhati Roy and it seems the more common opinions fly the other way.

KN, people don't commonly love and adore God of Small Things?!?!! I'm devastated. It's one of my all-time favorite books that I haven't reread. It packs a huge wallop, but the writing is so spectacular that I could deal with the pain.
I hope you enjoy *Years/Rice&Salt*, Jeanne. It's certainly not one of my favorite KSR's, but it does give some real feeling for what reincarnation might be like. I'm delighted that you became a *Cyteen* fan too. Don't expect as much from *Regenesis*, but I was vastly happy to be back with those characters for another book. *C* is my favorite Cherryh, but everything she writes is good to a greater or lesser extent. (That doesn't seem to say very much. I think that she's a really good writer. There.) I also should read *O&L*, but not this month.

70. The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler -- editing tags and realize I haven't put this book on the list. It was actually #61 and I finished reading it on 16 August, but I'm sure it will be happy in this spot.

I wonder if there are more orphans out there?

247 - I loved it too but this does appear to be a book not everyone likes. Also, I enjoyed KSR's Years of Rice and Salt as well but then I like most of his stuff.

Jeanne - orphans? Is that what you're calling the forgotten books? I like that.

If I keep listening to all of you, my great escape via The Passage won't happen and I'll be reading The God of Small Things instead...which for years I thought I read, but evidently did not. Would that be a reverse orphan?

Orphan may not be the best term for those list-slippers.

I only have a couple hundred pages left in The Years of Rice and Salt. I've been particularly pleased with an idea of KSR's that I'd been mulling around myself before reading this book..."Strange to think that each true life was only a few years long -- that one passed through several in each bodily span."

I'm currently reading The Years of Rice and Salt too (although only on page 140 or so)! I'll be interested to read your final reaction. It's so much different from the other Kim Stanley Robinson novels I've read (Mars Trilogy, The Memory of Whiteness).

Hello Jeanne - not much to contribute except to say I am also a member of the Sedaris fan club, but did not enjoy The God of Small Things at all - though I admired her writing, it was just a bit "showy" for my taste.

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