Books Brought Home - July, 2011

Just got back from Hastings with The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbø and The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley.

Another package from amazon:

The Concise Oxford English Dictionary
Hardcourt Confidential by Patrick McEnroe
Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt
Doc by Mary Doria Russell
Between the Woods and the Water by Patrick Lee Fermor
The Highest Tide by Jimy Lynch

I received a copy of River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh from The Book Depository yesterday.

New Age revisionism is easy enough to find in the New Age section of the bookstore, but I was in the history section of one of Barny Noble's outlets yesterday and found multiple copies of The Secret History of the World by Mark Booth. Thinking it necessary to my collection of doodah I scooped it up and left the book on the XB-70 on the shelf.

Robert

With a rapidly expiring Borders coupon I headed to the neighborhood store:

Abigail Adams by Woody Holton. A woman in our book group at church yesterday said that she planned to recommend this book on Wednesday. The name Woody for a serious biographer was suspect, but on-line people all over rave about this book. So I decided I would get a copy.

Stalingrad 1942 by Peter Antill. I've read a few novels including and some history about this siege or battle. It is pivotal. It is complicated. I thought copious illustration might bring out some spatial understanding of what so far has been entirely verbal for me.

I got Kentucky Fried Chicken and Jamba Juice and was headed home to be happy, and the low oil light came on in my car. I think I'll take a nap instead of being happy.

Robert

Just pre-ordered Forever by Maggie Stiefvater! Can't wait to get it :)

Earlier this week I received a copy of Bali: Art, Ritual, Performance, the catalog from the exhibit at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco that I attended last month. I ordered it from Amazon, as I didn't want to lug that heavy book on the plane.

There was a surprise in Wednesday's mail which I brought in yesterday: American Journal of Numismatics, volume 22 (this is a link not a touchstone; the touchstone brought up the wrong volume) edited by Peter van Alfen. This is an annual hard cover volume that is a perquisite of membership in the American Numismatic Society.

Looking for something at Borders for a 30% coupon or a free book under $30 coupon availed me nothing yesterday, so I went to Barny Noble's store across town and bought a book that I've been wanting since I saw it: Valkyrie: North American's Mach 3 Superbomber by Dennis R. Jenkins and Tony R. Landis. I'm not a bomber; I just like big, hot airplanes with good pressurization systems.

Robert

CURSE THE TOUCHSTONES

Went to the library after work today. Snagged Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz, Pretties by Scott Westerfeld, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling (about time I read them!). Also snagged an audio book, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.

Another one of those enabling Borders Coupons! lol. Stopped after work yesterday and picked up The Map of Time - Have heard good things.. shall see. :) Happy weekend all!

Guess what is on my Nook today ... A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin. Yippee!!!

Just retrieved from the post office - I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore and Naked City edited by Ellen Datlow.

In the mail today I received part of my recent Book Depository Order:

Bad Boy by Peter Robinson
Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
The Night Following by Morag Joss
War for the Oaks by Emma Bull

Traffic caused me to miss a movie yesterday, so I found myself in a Borders store instead with a coupon number in my notebook. My interest in war is very idiosyncratic and spotty. I picked up a couple of books of interest:

Greek Hoplite, 480-323 BC by Nicholas Sekunda. This is for Socrates.

Boudicca's Rebellion, AD 60-61 by Nic Fields. This is for some of my female and cultural ancestry. I also hope without high expectation that the book will explain the variants on the heroine's name.

Robert

I was out and about yesterday.

I planned a stop at Borders because I had a coupon for a free book to be selected from a small lot:

Great Migrations by K.M. Kostyal. This is not beyond the boundaries of my interests, and the book has good heft.

I also allowed for some Barny Noble browsing time at the mall where I planned two visits to the multiplex:

Noetic Science by Michael Kerrigan. I am not entirely beyond New Age wishful thinking, and this book has stared at me from the bargain book rack for a few weeks. So far I am the only owner of it on LibraryThing. I will say, "Om."

The Language of God by Herman Wouk. Here's a novelist better known in my childhood than now, I think, who is taking on the subject of science and religion. I wish him the best of luck and hope that he says something substantial.

Robert

IT finally arrived - A Dance With Dragons by George R. R. Martin.

From Amazon:

Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates

Books selected using a BN gift card:

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
The Clockwork Universe by Edward Dolnick
Bitter in the Mouth by Monique Truong

I received an email from AbeBooks, about some books available for NO shipping charges! Wow! I discovered copies of one of my most favorite childhood series, "Silver Chief", and ordered three of them, hardcover, for about $25.00. I'm thrilled, as many times I've looked for these the individual cost was $25 or more (books were published in 1930s and 1940s).

I can't wait to reread them: Silver Chief: Dog of the North, Silver Chief to the Rescue and Return of Silver Chief.

happyhappyjoyjoy

A Day in the Life of a Smiling Woman: Complete Short Stories by Margaret Drabble -- a lovely little book (226 pages, 14 stories) with a charming cover image of a woman writing.

Perhaps it's time for an intervention -- I seem to be in some sort of book-buying frenzy of late. Part of this order came from an amazon gift card, so that makes it okay, right?

Short stories:

Saints and Sinners by Edna O'Brien
Burning Bright by Ron Rash

Novels:

The End of Everything by Megan Abbott
Jamrach's Menagerie by Carol Birch
The City of Your Final Destination by Peter Cameron
The Night Train by Clyde Edgerton
Wanting by Richard Flanagan
A Wild Surge of Guilty Passion by Ron Hansen
The Girl in the Blue Beret by Bobbie Ann Mason

After reading Francis Steegmuller's book about Flaubert and the writing of Madame Bovary recently, I decided to reread that classic and discovered my copy was in very bad condition, so I bought a new copy -- with translation by Lydia David.

Nonfiction:

George, Being George edited by Nelson W. Aldrich, Jr.
Julian of Norwich: A Contemplative Biography by Amy Frykholm
Nothing Daunted by Dorothy Wickenden
Field Notes on Science and Nature edited by Michael R. Canfield

I'm not sure why I bought that last one on the list -- I'm not much into science -- but I couldn't resist the titles of some of the essays:
"One and a Half Cheers for List-Keeping", "Note-Taking for Pencilophobes", and "Letters to the Future"

#20- of course it does Mollygrace!! I went to the Borders in Columbus Circle and came home with these
Folly Island and Low Country Summer by Dorothea Benton Frank
Sisterhood everlasting by Ann Brashares
The Land of Painted Caves by Jean Auel
I am going to miss that store so much-- this is very very saad

21 cdyankeefan -- I believe you're what's known as an "enabler" -- not that I'm criticizing, you understand. A person like me (spoiled, self-indulgent, totally spineless) needs all the enablers she can get -- and from what I've seen, this LT place is just chock-full of them (enablers, not nuts, though we may have a few of those, too).

Taking advantage of Borders' going out of business discounts, I got:

Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett
Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen

and travel books for Seattle and Australia.

I'll go back again as the discounts start increasing.

Yes mollygrace i am an enabler and i will support you in your endeavors

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
Mountbatten by Karl Marlantes

Picked up while 'killing time' at the local Books-A-Million, the only bookstore within 100 miles.

I went to my neighborhood Borders for the first time since the announcement of the closing. Most items were 20% off, not enough to encourage spending now rather than later, but philosophy and economics were 30% off, so I picked up two books:

Capitalism and Freedom by Milton Friedman. He is taking a good bit of the blame for the collapse of the American economy. I want to know exactly how much blame he deserves.

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion by David Hume. Lucid disbelief is important even if it is not likely fully to convince me. Hume is lucid. Hitchens, Dawkins, Harris and their ilk are not lucid, or are they important after all. It is time for me to look to Hume.

Robert

Went 'yard-saleing' this morning, found a hardcover Complete Stories of Sherlock Holmes and a paperback Oliver Twist. I've read the latter, but not the former.

Mr.Durick, I'm not sure how that book by Friedman relates to the recent financial woes: Milton died a number of years ago.

Keeping the Moon was a good YA title, with Colie learning about belief in herself and not allowing the cruelty of others to distract her from friendship and life's possibilities.

Next is Parnassus on Wheels.

fuzzi, Friedman was a monetarist and a free market advocate with a lot of clout back in his Newsweek days. A good bit of what has happened was blamed on his influence in financial thinking. I should not neglect to mention that as I understand him he would predict great inflation from the $700 billion dollars added to the economy, so I don't know that he would have favored a bailout.

Robert

I was across town to see a movie and for some other things and got into the Barny Noble store there.

Wuthering Heights, the Norton Critical Edition, by Emily Bronte. I have been meaning to get this for awhile. I checked the price, and it was cheaper in the store than on-line so I picked it up.

Ancient Religions edited by Sarah Iles Johnston. I hope to see some of the religious possibilities that I haven't so far been exposed to in this book. It is not very fat for a book with as many essays as this.

Robert

(29) Robert, I remember him from a television series "Free to Choose" (about 1980), and I agree that he would not have supported the idea of a bailout.

IMO, if they would stop messing around and let the market stabilize, things would get better a lot sooner. However, my opinion and a dollar will get you a cheeseburger at McDonalds... :grin: