What are you reading the week of November 12, 2012?

Birthdays this week:

November 12

Ben Travers
DeWitt Wallace
Roland Barthes
Wallace Shawn
Tracy Kidder
Naomi Wolf

November 13

Robert Louis Stevenson
George V. Higgens

November 14

Adam G. Oehlenschlager
Astrid Lindgren
Harrison Salisbury
Norman Alexander MacCaig
P. J. O'Rourke

November 15

Gerhar Hauptmann
Marianne Moore
Sacheverell Sitwell
Time Pears
Tibor Fischer

November 16

Alexandrovich Blok
George S. Kaufman
Michael Arlen
Colin Thiele
Jose Saramago
Julian Thompson
Chinua Achebe

November 17

Joost van Den Vondel
Shelby Foote

November 18

Sir William Gilbert
Clarence Day
Johnny Mercer
Margaret Atwood



Merry reading.

Robert

I continue in Travels in Siberia by Ian Frazier which strongly represents the author. Siberia gets some attention too.

Robert

Thanks for starting the new thread! What an absolutely adorable picture! Just makes you go "awwww".

I've finally finished my ER book Zeina.

Now into Robopocalypse.

Thanks for starting us off to another great week, Robert!

I'm reading my ER book, The Western Lit Survival Kit by Sandra Newman, and am having a grand old time! It's wonderful fun!

Awww.... love the starting picture Robert!

Last night I finished The Time Traveler's Wife - I fall into the loved it reading camp - and have now started The Night Circus.

I finished Grass Roots of Anderson Valley by Blanche Brown. This is a collection of brief, and very interesting, sketches of the early settlers of this valley in Northern California where my wife and I have lived for the past three years.

I've just started Blue Dreams by William Hanley, a comedy written in the early 1970s. Ah, the good old days! This book has been on my shelf forever and a day. I'm interested to see whether it will hold up or is entirely a period piece.

Just finished The Stranger's Child by Alan Hollinghurst. I loved it but wonder who I would recommend it to. Anglophiles with an interest in stately homes, the descent of the aristocracy and the revelation of family secrets will enjoy it. Lovers of beautiful, lyrical prose will have a fine time. It's essentially a book about memory, as is the new Booker prize winning The Sense of an Ending, but a better book in my opinion.

>7 NarratorLady: I have gone back and forth about The Stranger's Child but from what you describe, I should love it. And I did love The Sense of an Ending so a book that's even better....how can I go wrong?

Thanks for starting the thread, Robert. What's with the kitty? Is he/she all wet or what???

From last week's thread:

(149) jnwelch wrote "fuzzi I believe I did read A Little Princess when a wee lad. It comes back as I read it, e.g Becky the scullery maid, the awful Ms. Minchin, doting Lottie, poor Captain Crewe, and on and on. It's a charmer.

It has got me thinking about re-reading The Secret Garden."

They made a really good short series of A Little Princess a number of years ago, which I thought was rather good.

Yes! Reread The Secret Garden! Another delight!

A book from my childhood is The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. I remember it having a similar plot to A Little Princess, but I'm not sure how it would reread some 40 years later...

I'm reading Zone One by Colson Whitehead. Literary zombie apocalypse.

I finished Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon. It was one of the fastest reads I've had in recent memory.

Then I started What Is the What, which I only remembered as having something to do with Africa and sounding interesting. It's also a fast read, and thank goodness it doesn't sound much like Dave Eggers to me. I really, really, really hated A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.

And because that is on my Kindle and I'm not ready to tempt fate by reading that in the bath, I also started a paper book I had around, Disgrace. "Spare" doesn't begin to describe the prose, and I'm not sure I'm meant to enjoy the book, exactly, but I'm drawn in at least.

#8 brenzi: I wasn't a huge fan of Sense of an Ending so perhaps we won't agree about the two books. The plot fell apart for me a bit although the writing was fine. Very interesting that these two writers would explore similar themes; shadows too of Ian McEwan's Atonement.

Just finsished the oh so readable Franklin and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage by Hazel Rowley. I continue listening to Cathedral of the Sea and I am about to read The Clouds by Aristophanes.

Robert, thanks for starting the thread. The picture reminds me that I'm going cat-looking if my house repairs ever get finished. #9, fuzzi, a friend of mine and I read Wolves of willoughby Chase on vacation a few years ago and enjoyed it very much. I've thought about looking up Aiken's other children's books. Am reading The three musketeers

Awwww! Love the picture :)

Finished The Confidential Agent this morning, sadly my least favourite of his "entertainments", although really I think part of it was my fault for picking it up too impulsively and not really being in the right mood for it when I started. This evening I plan to dig in to Musicophilia, by Oliver Sacks, which I spotted at the library and thought would hit the non-fiction spot nicely.

I am reading A Good Man and also listening to the audio version of The Secret Life of Bees which is an excellent audio production.

I'm almost finished with The Four Ms. Bradwells. It has a lot to say about rape and the different ways the actions of men and women are viewed. Some people might find it preachy, but it's my kind of preachy. If you ever think you might want to read it, do so, but make sure you don't listen to the audiobook. Horrid narration. Next up will be The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Perhaps I should do Tom Sawyer first, but I'm not in the mood. I'm getting toward the end of The Shadow of the Wind and agree it's a wonderful book, but I must be the antithesis of a Latin lover. The romance part, the intense "I will die without her love" view of the male characters just seems silly to me, maybe because of the accompanying idea that they should try to feel up any woman who comes near.

I am reading Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason, it's very good so far. And I am about to start Shanghai Girls by Lisa See which I approach with some trepidation. I loved Snow Flower and the Secret Fan but hated Peony In Love.

DeltaQueen, Shanghai Girls isn't like any of Lisa See's other books. It's not as wonderful as Snow Flower, could she possibly write another book to compare with that one? But it's interesting. When I met Tess Gerritson I was surprised to see the similarities between her real children and the ones in Shanghai Girls.

That kitten picture makes me sad, actually.

I'm still working my way through A Dance with Dragons, but I'm looking forward to The Night Circus. It's really caught my fancy, for some reason. Probably by the time I finish ADWD, it will be out in paperback.

I remember loving The Wolves of Willoughby Chase as a kid, though I have no recollection of the story or the plot.

I finished The Go-Away Bird in bed last night and predictably find myself wanting to recommend it to everyone who loved The Other Hand. I never imagined it could be anything but a weak imitation and I was utterly wrong - that isn't the case at all. It's a wonderful book that had me in tears several times and it will definitely be among my 'books of 2011'. I need a while to get over that one before I can start something else so I'm finishing off my book of short Ghost Stories while I weigh up what kind of novel I want to read next.

Robert- Thanks for kicking us off! Good job!

Neverwithoutabook- I'll be watching for your thoughts on Robopocalypse. I haven't seen to many comments on this one and I have it slated to read, very soon.

Nancy- I have my spanking new copy of Zone One waiting nearby but I won't be getting to it for a few weeks. Hope you enjoy it.

AlaMich- Hope you are enjoying ADWD. I liked it but boy was it LONG! We are having a Group Read of The Night circus, which starts Tuesday. If you can find a copy, we would love to have you. I'll come back and post a link.

I finished and loved Mudbound. I started Priest. This is the 5th Jack Taylor book and like the others it can be very grim but no one does grim like Mr. Bruen. This one takes on a Catholic priest & the horror of child abuse. Like I said...grim but oh so delectable.
And speaking of grim, my audio was This Beautiful Life and it also sits firmly on the dark side. On the graphic front, I began American Vampire. It's the 1st of a series.

Okay, that picture up top actually made me well up... *feels very hormonal and attacks a chocolate bar*

This week I'm attempting to catch up with one of my TBR blog challenges this year, which has suffered horribly thanks to my epic summer reading slump. So I'm taking 'em two at once in an attempt to finish - or at least, not fail quite so badly. I'm right near the end of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (and I just ordered the movie... I think...) and smack bang in the middle of The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz.

Just Practical Magic, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, A Moveable Feast and A Fish Caught in Time: The Search for the Coelacanth and City of the Beasts to go... :(

#9, #14, & #20 I loved The Wolves of Willoughby Chase when I was young, too. My memories of it are very special. My dad, who I lost 20 years ago, read it to my brother and me. (He always, deliberately, I think, messed up Mrs. Slycarp's name, calling her Mrs. Slycrap...which made for many giggles). I reread it last year or so, and it just wasn't the same.

#17 Whe I read Shadow of the Wind, I just didn't pay attention to all that silly "I'll die without her" stuff. There's some of that in the Angel's Game, too. You just know that these are exactly the kind of guys that, if they manage to hook that girl of their dreams, will cheat on her as soon as they've got her!

#22 msf59...That sucker is LOOONNG! And heavy! But I'm enjoying it. Thanks for the notice about the group read of The Night Circus but I think I'm going to have to finish ADWD first (and I'm only slightly past the halfway mark). I'm not that good at reading two books at once, especially GRRM books, because it's a struggle for me to keep track of what's going on. Do post the link, though, because I will surely check out the thread when I do read it. Thanks!

Pleasantly surprised by Clouds! Aristophanes was quite the wit! Moving on to a collection of Palestinian short stories, Men in the Sun by Ghassan Kanafani....and yes....still listening to Cathedral of the Sea.

14 Bjace - Good luck finding a cat!

24 elliepotten - I'm doing the TBR Challenge too. I have 5 books to go from my list so I'm not sure if I'm going to make it.

I'm reading Homer and Langley by E. L. Doctorow for my TBR Challenge. Wow, I really love this book! I've read City of God which I didn't care for so I was a little worried, but Mr. Doctorow has completely redeemed himself.

I just finished Before I Go to Sleep which I really liked and I am now starting The Passage.

>29 Kwidhalm: The Passage just appeared on my Kindle yesterday (I had a hold on it). Will hopefully be starting it around the end of the week.

I'm another fan of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. I read it aloud earlier this year to my girls, and loved it every bit as much as when I was a child.

I'm currently reading The Whole World Over by Julia Glass. Nearly finished with The Brandons on audio by Angela Thirkell, and about 1/2 way through And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie aloud.

I am loving 2001: A Space Odyssey.

I put aside William Hanley's Blue Dreams after about 35 pages. The writing was good, but the subject matter, a man obsessed after 10 years of marriage with getting his wife, whom he still finds attractive, to spice up their sex life was not moving me. The book was written in 1971, so the backdrop is the then fully raging "sexual revolution." I don't know. I just didn't like the guy, or care enough about his angst on this topic, to want to read through another 300 pages of his worries.

I've picked up Diplomat, by Charles W. Thayer. This is a non-fiction account, written and published in 1959, of the inner workings of foreign embassies. At the time of the book's release, Thayer had been in the U.S. Diplomatic Service for 25 years and had first-hand knowledge, as well, of the workings of Soviet diplomacy, as well. Should be quite interesting!

Finished Fanny Hill this evening, with some relief. I was going to read Emma Donoghue's Room next for the reading group, but my wife, who runs said reading group, told me she was winding it up for now due to poor attendance. The book has divided LT readers, hasn't it?

As the great Joe Frazier has just passed away, perhaps I'll read Sting Like a Bee by Jose Torres for the umpteenth time. I used to follow boxing avidly and read dozens of books about the sport; but this is far and away the best, in my view.

#22 - msf59 - I'm quite enjoying Robopocalypse so far. I'm not all that far into it yet. I'm very interested to see how it plays out.

Oops, posted in the wrong week. I did indeed finish The Four Ms. Bradwells today and the ending was perfect for the story. I like when that happens. I've started The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and am finding it delightful. Finn's dad wouldn't quite win father of the year, would he?
Mr. Durick, you need to get that cat a towel because it's sure looking like a friendly, cold rat.

About the cat: It apparently was wet by flooding in Vietnam a few years back. Cute Overload would like more information about the photo, although they apparently have found some of that information since posting it.

Robert

Two books...count 'em!

Ashes to Dust......a very good ScandiCrime that does not have the perfume of Steig Larsson about it...reminds me of P D James...though I couldn't tell you "why?"...if you held a gun to my head!

Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie...has been languishing on my Kindle for too long..thoroughly enjoyable read.....I want this Flavia in my home to liven things up!

;-}

I'm extremely close to finishing the wonderful Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie. I also just started The Taker by Alma Katsu

That photo is so incredibly sad.

I took a break from my regularly-scheduled program to read an Early Reviewer book that just arrived, Wine to Water by Doc Hendly. It is very poorly written, but so far (I'm 51 pages in), it does tell an amazing story of a regular guy doing an enormous amount of good bringing fresh (life giving) water to the people of Darfur. So I give really, really wide bearth to writing for people who make the world a better place.

I've just finished The Western Lit Survival Kit by Sandra Newman, and loved it! Review to come in the next day or two.

I'm a sucker for a book that makes me add more books/authors to my wishlist. It's both a blessing and a curse, though, because I should be trying to whittle down Mt. TBR instead of thinking about looking for Stendahl, Balzac or The Decameron at the library! It makes me ache to read an infinite number of books all at once, too!

I'm going to try to get back into The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, but the momentum and the atmosphere have been broken - perhaps irreparably.

I just finished Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. Young adult fiction has come a long way!

I picked up a copy of The Moose that Roared yesterday at a used bookstore. It's the story of the creation of Bullwinkle--I've always been a huge fan of that cartoon, so I can't wait to get started on this.

Awh, kitty!

>9 fuzzi: Oh, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase! The moment I read that title it reminded me of Jackinory (Sorry, no idea how to spell it, but no doubt any Brits on this thread will know what I mean). Thanks for bringing back happy memories. Just ordered the book from the library. Should get it sometime next week.

I loved A Little Princess, though I knew it as Sarah Crew and The Secret Garden as a little girl. Was so pleased to find them at Blackstone Audeo a few years back.

Last night I finished Rendezvous with Rama, a five star read. Tonight will probably go back to Troublesome Young Men: The Rebels Who Brought Churchill to Power and Helped Save England. Probably finish it tonight or tomorrow. Really enjoying it. Of course, I am an Anglophile.

>24 elliepotten: I read City of the beasts a few years ago and enjoyed it, though I wouldn't call it a standout.

>31 AMQS: And Then There were None is a good, suspenseful read. Enjoy.

>32 divinenanny: I felt a bit ambivalent about 2001: A Space Odyssey, finding it enjoyable but also rather puzzling. Maybe my mind just isn't flexible enough.

I have a bare start on the Norton Critical Edition of Persuasion by Jane Austen for discussion in the Austenathon in the 75 books in 2011 group and in my church book group. From the introduction and the first chapter this is going to become a favorite, which will mean that all of her adult novels will have been favorites at one time or another.

Robert

>44 Catreona: As it happens I just realised that one ISN'T on my challenge - or at least, only as a standby if I hate one of the others. It's been on my shelf for far too long though, so I'll make an effort soon. Atonement was the last challenge title I was looking for. Just finished Percy Jackson anyway - I loved it! Makes me want to go and brush up on my Greek mythology all over again.

Decided to get over The Go-Away Bird with a re-read of an old favourite, South Riding. I first read this about 30 years ago and have since watched the BBC drama, which was excellent despite having many key characters cast very much against Holtby's descriptions, so it'll be interesting to see how much my reading is affected by that.

Ed for typos

Now I'm just starting Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. I'm not at all far in...about 10 pages, but I'm liking what I'm reading so far.

Finishing Empire Falls for a book discussion group Thursday and will begin Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil for another reading group next week.

The Sending by Isobelle Carmody I have waited so long for this!

Finished Cathedral of the Sea.....I thought it was boring. Started listening to The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton.

A Little Princess was an old-fashioned pleasure.

#39 Thought Catherine the Great was wonderfully done. Almost finished A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd, an ER mystery involving a World War I nurse, quite enjoyable. I will be writing a review. Next is Outwitting Trolls the last book written by William Tapply. I went to Lexington High School with Bill and was surprised to hear about his demise. He wrote some gritty mystery novels. And, I'm sad this is his last.

#33 rocktjk

I laughed when I read that you just didn't care enough about the guy writing the book Blue Dreams to finish reading it. You put it very well.

I finished reading Berlin Game this weekend. I have been reading lots of spy novels in the last year, and enjoying the time I am spending in the Cold War world of espionage. Some people think that these novels are dated, but I question that thinking. All novels are dated in a way. If a novel is well written and asks some central questions it will stand up over time. The question in this book was can a spy trust his wife? Secondary was Can a spy have a family life especially when his spouse is also a spy? These are questions that are not time dependent. I enjoyed this novel and will pick up the second one in the Bernard Samson series later this week.

Just finished the last lie by Stephen White. Pretty good...he always entertains me, although this one went on a bit. And am reading one of my early reader wins: dogs of war. So far so good with it.

OMGosh that pic is so sad I just want to snuggle the poor thing. lol
I am still making my way through all of M.J Rose's books I am so addicted. I have read 4 so far. Thankfully I still have many to go. The books are fabulous. Sexual thrillers that have it all: Suspense, romance, mother daughter conflict, crime everything.
I finised up reading Here, Home ,Hope by Kaira Rhoudy I have now read this twice once on my own then this last time with a few of my friends. I find it very entertaining and super inspirational. The lead character is in her midlife trying to figure out what to do now that her kids are not needing her as much. She is also helping her friends anorexic teen. Really makes you think about your own life.

#56> Well, I didn't really have any issues with the guy writing the book. It was the character narrating the book I had issues with. But probably that's what you meant! :)

Finished excellent short story collection, Men in the Sun and I am about to start reading The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald, one of my favorite authors!

I finished and loved 2001: A Space Odyssey. #46, Catreona, I can imagine. Maybe it is that I have been reading about 50% scifi this year, that the idea at the ending didn't seem that "out there" to me. I could also imagine some scenes from tv shows that I had seen before (especially the Doctor Who episode The God Complex). I am curious for the two sequels now.

Last saturday I found The Neverending Story in a second-hand shop. I read this book many times when I was little, and I love the movie. So that had to be my next book to be read, and it is gripping me like before. LOVE.

No change from last week:

On Audible: World Without End by Ken Follett
On CD: The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
On Kindle: The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas
On paper: Letter from America 1946-2004 by Alistair Cooke

>47 Mr.Durick: Robert, Persuasion is my favorite Austen. Enjoy!

After a wonderful day of lazy, cozy reading, I have also finished the utterly charming novella, The Bookshop, by Penelope Fitzgerald! Mmmmm........Now on to The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks.

>51 mldavis2: I enjoyed Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil though it might not be to everyone's taste. The Johnny Mercer tie-in is what first attracted me to the book.

<61 divinenanny, I didn't know The Never Ending Story was a book. Loved the movie, so will definitely look for the book.

Catreona, I read half of Persuasion yesterday, and so far it is holding my attention. I usually turn out the light at midnight. Last night I looked up to see how much more time I had left, and it was twenty to one. I'll have the novel itself done pretty quickly, but there will still be the criticism at the back of the Norton Critical Edition.

Robert

>62 Grammath: Grammath, I found The Little Stranger to be suspenseful, an absorbing read. The ending seemed, hm, unexpected? strange? I'll be interested to hear what you think.

Finished Troublesome Young Men last night and was sorry to come to the end. Not only an interesting read, but an exciting one, all the more for being fact rather than fiction. Will probably go back to The House of the Seven Gables now, rereading after some thirty years. So far I'm enjoying it, though I'd forgotten how creaky Hawthorne's prose is. I'm only a couple of chapters in, so maybe the writing will settle down. At any rate, I remember it as a good story.''

Almost finished with The Shining, will probably read Chime by Frannie Billingsley next - I took her class on writing children's fiction my junior year of college, and this is her latest book. Maybe something else on top of that...I'm thinking The Lovely Bones or A Prayer For Owen Meany - both rereads for me.

I finished and reviewed Paul Grossman's debut mystery The Sleepwalkers. It was an ER book, Pre WWII Berlin detective story but his historical facts were suspect. Now I'm on to Robert Massie's new book Catherine the Great and 50 pages in it is fascinating.

(34) cappybear, did you ever read The Fight?

It's been on my TBR for a while, since a friend gave it to me. One day I will pick it up and read it.

Reading the title The Moose that Roared reminded me of a book I read many years ago, The Mouse that Roared. I remember it as being very very funny, and not at all like the movie.

Another one to add to the TBR...

Finished the enchanting Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, which was much better than the movie (though I loved that, too) and made a good start on If Today Be Sweet. Also reading Riding the Bus With My Sister, which is very interesting, but I get very tired of the author's constant yse if "I" in the sections when she is talking about growing up with her sister and how she felt having a sister who was "different." It would have been so easy for her to phrase it differently and still leave you with the impression of how young she was at the time. I began early last week, and am loving, Shiloh by Shelby Foote, but realized I was reading it too quickly and would be done well before book club (which, with my lousy memory, isn't such a good thing). So I put it aside to finish this weekend just before the meeting on Monday.

We are having a Group Read of The Night Circus and it begins tomorrow. If you would like to join us, come on down. Here's the link: Group Read

My latest is a queue jumper!! Sleeping Dogs by Sonya Hartnett, it has me in!!!. Also it is all of 130 pages, this I like.

I just finished Wine to Water and reviewed it. I ended up really liking it, and him. A lot. The writing is just terrible, but I guess I'd rather have a guy like that out continuing to change the world, than sitting in behind a computer editing his book. That said, someone should volunteer to do it for him!

I am not sure what is up next.

I am reading Tyrell by by Coe Booth. I don't really like it, but I can't put it down. It is eye opening. Just finished reading The Storm in the Barn by Matt Phelan. I really enjoyed it.

Deb

I'm almost finished Robopocalypse and have really been enjoying it. I'll be interesred to see how well they do making it into a movie.

I just finished The Shadow of the Wind. What a disappointment. A three nosed, 12 armed flying purple people eater is more realistic than any woman in a romance. A good mystery gone very wrong, as far as I'm concerned.
I'd love to join in the group reading of The Night Circus, but I'm still number 4 on a long waiting list at the library. I might not get it this month. Next up is Let's Take the Long Way Home. I need to read about some real women to get the taste of Bea, Clara, and Penelope out of my head.

>73 fuzzi: Fuzzi, Oh, yes, I read The Mouse That Roared many years ago and remember it as a side splitter. I understand there was a sequel, The Mouse on the Moon. Never did read that one. Maybe I'll get them both from the library sometime soon.

>74 whymaggiemay: Oh my goodness, Whymaggiemay, I remember reading Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH as a little girl and loving it. Yes, enchanting is the right word. Haven't thought of that one in years. Haave put it on the TBR list since I zalready have two requests in at the library for Heartlight by Marion Zimmer Bradley and The Wolves of Willoughby Chase.

>80 Citizenjoyce: Citizenjoyce - It's well worth the long wait!

I've recently finished The Sense of an Ending, which was beautifully written, and also a reread of The Woman in Black, which was just as spooky the second time around. Now I'm reading another Susan Hill book, The Shadows in the Street, the 5th entry in the Simon Serrailler mystery series.

72> I have indeed read The Fight, fuzzi, several times. It was one of the handful of boxing books I hung on to (along with Sting Like a Bee) after I tired of the sport. Strongly recommended.

I am reading and loving Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor Irish mystery set on a Famine Ship.

OH, I loved Star of the Sea #85! I actually bought and read that on a trip to Ireland! It was very exciting and wonderful.

I am reading Factory Girls by Leslie T. Chang (NF) and really enjoying it. It is a very unique, compassionate and interesting look at the women who fuel the factory industry in China. It is not at all what I thought. It is amazing how many erroneous assumptions abound (including the ones I had).

The Cold Dish is a good start to a mystery series featuring Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire, who's an appealing character.

I'm a little slow sometimes....really slow it seems. Am I the only one who just noticed that this thread is titled "What are you reading the week of November 12......2012??? LOL

I'm sorry to say that I don't know what I'll be reading then. :(

Currently, however, I've started a cute little book called Secrets of a Christmas Box by Steven Hornby. It's an easy read and suggests that it be read one chapter a night from Dec. 1st until the 24th. I might have to pass this one on to my Son to read to his daughter. :)

Love the pic by the way!! Want to wrap the little guy up and take him home... On page 199 of 11/22/63 - like it very much so far! Just listened to an interview with SK on NPR if anyone is interesting in listening - http://www.npr.org/2011/11/13/142181938/stephen-king-plots-to-save-jfk-in-11-22-... (hope it is fine to post this link - if not please let me know) =:)

Still reading Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock by David Margolick and have started 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. You can't imagine two more different books!

#80 citizenjoyce

I laughed when I read your assessment of Shadow of the Wind. I really liked that book, all that murky atmosphere and stuff, but I did agree that all that latin drama was a bit over the top. Same thing is true of the sequel Angel's Game. Still I think both are good books and not a waste of time. One thing I think the author did well, was write about the setting. In this case the city of Barcelona. Reading both of Zafon's books made me think that perhaps this is a place I would like to visit. I really got a sense of what it was like to live under Franco. I never thought Franco was all that bad, but this book really made me think about his rule in a different way. I think my favorite character in the book was the man who eventually got arrested and then terrorized and severely beaten. He was so witty and when he came out of the jail he was a changed man. Reading Night Train to Lisbon made me think about what it was like to live under the Salazar regime in Portugal in much the same way as SOTW did. The plot was silly in places, but it did a good job of making me think about other things in Spain. It is also good to read translated books because that too is a window into another culture.

(74) whymaggiemay, I loved Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. I'd reread it anytime.

Anyone know why they changed the name of Mrs. Frisby to Mrs. Brisby (??) in the movie?

(81) catreona, now that you've reminded me of The Mouse on the Moon, I'll see if the library has it or The Mouse That Roared.

(84) cappy, thanks for the recommendation. I do intend to read The Fight, and imagine I will enjoy it...just not now.

Now added to my TBR: Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, Shiloh, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, and the two 'Mouse' books by Leonard Wibberley.

This place is costing me a fortune! And abebooks loves me....

Oh, what am I reading? I zipped through an Ellis Peters mystery I'd not read before, The Heretic's Apprentice, part of the Brother Cadfael series. Light and enjoyable.

reading Out Stealiing Horses by Per Petterson, poignant.

I gave up on The Ethics of Sightseeing 3/4 through the book. There were a couple of intriguing concepts in a sea of hog wash. The social and psychoanalytical theories were apparently thrown in for effect because I could find no connection, one to another and heaven knows what the author's point was. He didn't even define ethical and used it several different ways. Points made in one chapter were refuted in the next. I could rant on but I'll stop. I just learned the book is considered a classic. Beats me.

>88 Neverwithoutabook: Neverwithoutabook, I noticed that right away, but figured that the gods of LT must have had a good reason, or possibly just a senior moment. :)

<89 My sister just gave me 11/22/63. It's dauntingly long but certainly sounds interesting.

# 93 I just loved Out Stealing Horses .

I've finished Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. I'm still trying to process how I felt about it. It seemed uneven for a while, for one thing...and I'm still trying to process how I feel about the characters, for another.

One thing is for sure. The character who I feel the most compassion for Berthe.

Now I'll be starting Roman Fever and Other Stories by Edith Wharton

Marion Zimmer Bradley's Heartlight arrived in today's mail, so that's what I'll be starting on tonight.

I have just finished reading the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I read the book in preparation to watch the 1931 movie version next week in cable tv.

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Just finished Literary Brooklyn: The Writers of Brooklyn and the Story of American City Life by Evan Hughes, and posted a short review. Getting started on Prince Philip: The Turbulent Early Life of the Man Who Married Queen Elizabeth II, by Philip Eade. Catchy titles, huh?

Also continuing with The Seance by John Harwood.

I just finished The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. Wow! Did not see that end coming. Very interesting. The philosophical discourse was a bit much for me at times, was not crazy about a lot of it. But, my enjoyment of the characters made up for the parts I had to muddle through.

Have now started The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley. Flying through it... love it so far. Flavia is a hoot.

It's been forever and a day since I've been on this thread and oh, how I've missed it! I agree with earlier assessments of Shanghai Girls - not up to the same standard as Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, but still very good.

Shadow of the Wind is one of my favorite books, but you have to be willing to go along with the whole latin drama, gothic thing. Funny comments though.

As for me, I just finished The Agony and the Ecstasy and it was as epic as the life of Michelangelo himself. Wonderful book.

I'm also in the middle of Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles. It's a good young adult book. I enjoy reading YA in between doorstoppers, which Agony certainly was.

I agree that the male characters in Shadow of the Wind were interesting. Fermin was a hoot, though your female buttocks would not be safe in his presence. Nuria had a life in spite of her misguided love, but the other women were just sperm receptacles. The idea that we should feel compassion for the hatter after his years of abuse was just too much. Romance, what a waste of words.

# 102, I like your term "muddle through" this I found was happening with me, not interested in the philosophical bits, other than that I just loved the main character Renee,and her cat.

If you would like to follow up with a book with the same setting (and cover) I can recommend Valley of Grace by Australian author Marion Halligan, I would so love my fellow posters' to read this novel. It is sooo special. All of my aussie friends that have read this novel have thanked me for recommending it.

#95 - Catreona - I figured I was the one having the senior moment since I hadn't noticed it and yet had made previous posts! Doesn't say much for my powers of observation! LOL

Yesterday I finished Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin and started An American Dream by Norman Mailer.

Now I've finished the first two stories, Roman Fever and Xingu and am on the third, The Other Two, in Edith Wharton's Roman Fever and Other Stories. I'm loving this! It's like a fabulous smorgasbord with bits of several so-delicious dishes! Every story seems a treat, in one way or another.

I highly recommend it to fans of Edith Wharton, or to anyone seeking an introduction to her work.

LOL I don't think it's anything you need to worry about.

Started Heartlight last night. Since it's four hundred some pages, it will take a while. Enjoying it so far.

Started reading Mexico Set today over lunch because I forgot Night Circus. Both are good books. I couldn't stop reading Night Circus last night and finally ahd to make myself quit so I could get some sleep.

I finished The Taker by Alma Katsu last night, but I didn't really love it. Right now I'm reading The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making by John Curran, and Wicked by Gregory Maguire.

Jen, I so loved Wicked, my introduction to Gregory Maguire, though I know lots of folks don't. I hope you will.

I am really liking The Shanghai Girls and have also joined in with the group read of the The Night Circus. Lucky me - two good books at the same time.

I have nearly finished my Jane Austen run and am putting off the home stretch, the uncompleted works, for a bit. I have turned for the moment to A Splendid Exchange by William J. Bernstein that in 30 or 40 pages has proved informative but not hugely engaging. We'll see.

Robert

CURSE THE TOUCHSTONES

>113 Citizenjoyce:,
This is actually a reread, I love Wicked - although I have yet to be particularly impressed with any other of Maguire's books. I'm going to be reading Out of Oz soon (please, God, let it be better than A Lion Among Men) and I wanted a bit of a refresher on the world.

I finished the wry and devastating Zone One by Colson Whitehead and began The Sense of an Ending the Booker winner by Julian Barnes

I finished listening to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. That Mark Twain was a treasure, wasn't he? I have several of his books on my Nook. I want to read one about travels through Europe. Anyone know which one that is? My next audiobook will be Gilgamesh by Joan London as part of my reading about friends month.

I am enjoying The Night circus for the Group Read. (Not to late folks, to jump aboard. Check out msg #75 for link). On audio, I've been listening to Robopocalypse. It's been fun. It's set up in the same format as World War Z, a book I loved.

Nancy- I'm glad you liked Zone One. I plan on starting it, the middle of next month.

116> You might consider reading Son of a Witch before reading Out of Oz if you haven't already.....

I finished reading Homer and Langley, which I loved, and am now reading Homer's Odyssey.

Completely by accident I went from reading a book about a blind man named Homer to a book about a blind cat named Homer.

>121 PaperbackPirate: PaperbackPirate - Lol. I read Homer's Odyssey a couple of years ago as an ER book and loved it. I hope you like it as much as I did.

I just finished Isabella Bird's Six Months in the Sandwich Islands. I wasn't reading it full time so it took me three or four months to finally finish. I loved it and found the book, made up of letters from her trip to Hawaii in 1873, pretty fascinating.

>118 Citizenjoyce: Citizenjoyce - The only Mark Twain that I know of, that is about his travels in Europe, would be Innocents Abroad.

# 118 and # 123 Yep, Innocents Abroad is about his European and Holy Land travels. I read it and got a real kick out of it. I'm trying to remember the connection that book has with Roughing It, which I still have to read. I think it came first. Another of his travel books that I got a real kick out of is Following the Equator. You really have to overlook a lot of attitudes and realize that the atttitudes are a product of the times, but I, personally, think he was almost at his wittiest as a travel writer.

I am reading a delighful novel Recipes for Cherubs by Babs Horton.

Thanks mybookcloset and bookwoman. The Innocents Abroad is the one I was thinking of.

Just starting Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil for a discussion group next week.

Totally off topic but does anyone know if LT is doing Santa Thing this year?

Btw, LOVING The Passage!

I read a brief article today about the Wolf Hall miniseries. Not much in the way of information, but just the idea that they're working on it is kind of exciting. I'm not usually a fan of movies/TV specials adapted from books I love, but I'm hopeful about this one for some reason.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/11/hbo-and-bbc-developing-wolf-hall-mini-with-tinke...

I'm still sailing the seven seas with Ishmael and Captain Ahab and I must say I'm enjoying myself -- Nathaniel Philbrick's book Why Read Moby-Dick? is a wonderful companion piece for Melville's classic, by the way. Just a little book, but beautifully written and full of interesting facts and thoughts that add to my reading pleasure.

Just finished Le Carre's "A Most Wanted Man." Don't know how that one had escaped me. The master is still at it. One thing I love about him is how he gets the reader inside the head of each of his characters. And the prose seems so effortless.

I'm just starting Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym. It is far too early to have more than a vague impression that I'm going to enjoy it.

As for Roman Fever and Other Stories by Edith Wharton - I absolutely loved it! (That reminds me, I need to add it to my "favorites" collection!)

I'll reiterate what I said in a previous post that I really think this is a great introduction to Edith Wharton's work.

>128 Kwidhalm: Kwidhalm - I was wondering the same thing, actually. 'Tis that time of year again! I wondered what would happen after last year's Book Depository debacle...

#129 molly grace

Oh darn! Now I will have to read that book before the mini-series comes out. I have managed to move Crimson Petal and the White to the bedside table and keep telling myself that I will read it before it gets to TV here, and now you tell me that there is another one I have to read? I just managed to squeak out the first two of the Jackson Brodie books Case Histories and One Good Turn before they were shown on TV but I didn't make it with When Will There Be Good News and now I have to add another one to the before-it-gets-on-TV list?

Do I sound like I am a drowning woman? I am. Drowning in too many good books to read before they hit the small screen.

#131 bookwoman247

I have had Pym on my reading list for some time and haven't managed to move them any closer to the top of the list. I will be curious to know what you think of her writing.

#133 benitastrnad

They haven't actually started filming the miniseries, so you may have -- oh, what? A few months anyway. By the way, Hilary Mantel has decided that there will be two books (instead of the one that was previously announced) to follow Wolf Hall. The second book, Bring Up the Bodies, is scheduled for publication next May. The author is still writing the third, The Mirror and the Light. I'm beginning to think she writes faster than I can read, so maybe your drowning metaphor is apt. And here I am on the Pequod. Water, water -- books, books -- everywhere.

>135 mollygrace:
...Nor anything to read?

:)

Haha, that's good, AnnaClaire!

I went to the library last night, and picked up two books that were mentioned here on LT: The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and Shiloh: a Novel.

I reread 'Wolves' and found it delightful, some 40 years since the last time I read it.

Shiloh is on my nightstand, tbr.

I started Sarah's Key this morning

#136 AnnaClaire

Too funny. Too true.

#128 & #132 - Discussion has been going on about Santa Thing here http://www.librarything.com/topic/123702 and from what I understand, we can look for an announcement in the near future. :)

This week I finished The Conspiracy Club by Jonathan Kellerman and Once There Was a War by John Steinbeck.

Then, I read Just Mutts by Steve Smith and Gene Hill for a short, feel-good book.

Those are library books.

I've returned to my book, The Dog Trainer's Resource 2, that was put on hold around the 1st.

Reading Nathaniel Philbrick's Why Read Moby-Dick? along with Moby-Dick has led me to Melville's 1850 essay about the stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne, "Hawthorne and his Mosses".

Melville had finished the first draft of a new book -- a story about a whaling expedition which did not include a character named Ahab -- and then, while on vacation, he met Hawthorne, and began reading more of his work, especially the short stories. Out of his reading and his talks with Hawthorne came the essay, in which he explored Shakespeare at his darkest, his most intuitive -- characters driven mad in their quest to face down the world's (and their own) demons in the insatiable quest for truth -- and in which it is obvious Melville had seen this depth, this darker aspect, in Hawthorne, had caught a glimpse of what it could mean to risk everything and challenge one's deepest fears. When he returned to his manuscript, it was with a passionate new vision.

Well, that's the idea anyway -- there's more than a bit of speculation there, and yet Melville's essay, and Philbrick's brief chapter, "Hawthorne", are compelling.

As Philbrick says in his little treasure of a book: "In writing about Hawthorne, Melville, via Shakespeare, was laying the groundwork for Ahab." And this: "What Hawthorne needed, more than anything else, was a cannibal friend like Queequeg." He points out that Melville used Hawthorne as emotional inspiration -- in much the same way Ahab used the Pequod to serve his own purposes. Moby-Dick is, of course, dedicated to Hawthorne.

Here's the new thread. It's got a pretty uninteresting date.

Robert

>140 Neverwithoutabook: Thanks!