Ivy's (ivyd) 75 Books in 2012

I'm excited to be back for another year in this great group.

January

1. The Golden Bough by Sir James George Frazer
2. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, 4*
3. 11/22/63 by Stephen King, 5*
~~ Introduction & Book 1 of Hellenica by Xenophon

Reserved

And one more

Welcome back!

Thanks, Jim! And thanks for all the great work you've done in getting this group set up!

Glad to see you here again, Ivy. Welcome back!!

Ivy! Glad to see you joining us again!

Happy New Year, Ivy. Here's to a great year of reading in 2012.

>8 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia! Glad to see you here! Best of luck with your new 2012 endeavors!

>9 lindapanzo: Thanks, Linda! Happy New Year to you, too!

Happy New Year, Ivy!

Hi Ivy - I joined the group for the first time this morning. Making the rounds and happy to discover your thread here! Starred!

Happy New Years, Ivy.

Glad to see you here, Lori!

Happy New Year to everyone!

My version of the meme, copied from Lori and Linda and others, using books I read in 2011:

Describe yourself: Marjorie Morningstar

Describe how you feel: The Catcher in the Rye

Describe where you currently live: The White Cascade

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: Glastonbury

Your favorite form of transportation: The Long Walk

Your best friend is: Beloved

You and your friends are: Shades of Earl Grey who benefit from A Trick of the Light

What’s the weather like: Chill Factor

You fear: Catching Fire

What is the best advice you have to give: The Sun Also Rises

Thought for the day: State of the Onion

How I would like to die: Messenger of Truth

My soul’s present condition: The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven

I am worried about your soul's present condition, Ivy - fighting in heaven does not sound good at all :)

Clever - using two titles for an answer. When I answered, there were a few that I just couldn't resist -- like "Plum Gorgeous". There were a few that I had to use somewhere (like "Book Lust"). I may have had something that fit the category better, but the urge to use certain titles was overwhelming!

It's a fun meme and I am enjoying seeing it on the various threads. Lori (#17), I thought "Plum Gorgeous" was a great description of you!

>16 alcottacre: Stasia, I think it comes from being a Gemini!

>17 thornton37814: Lori, I too loved your "Plum Gorgeous"!

>18 DeltaQueen50: Judy, lots of fun, will have to check to see if you've done one...

But first....... We Won the Rose Bowl !!!!!! Yea, Ducks !!!!!

Argh. I was going to say something about the Badgers beforehand but now I'm glad I didn't.

The Big Ten did not do well in bowl games again this year.

>20 lindapanzo: Wondered if you were on the opposite side, Linda! But after 95 years, I think it was Oregon's turn to win! It was a great game.

I was rooting for the Ducks too - precisely because of the 95 year thing.

>22 alcottacre: We were wondering if anyone remembers the last win. Not very likely, but just barely possible.

1. The Golden Bough by Sir James George Frazer

So... my first finished book of the year was one that I started last August, and have been working on ever since. And I do mean working... I think I've averaged only about 10 pages per hour in this massive book. Almost every page is so dense with customs, rituals, beliefs -- sometimes 10 or more per page -- that my head was usually spinning after just a couple of pages.

Frazer began his study of ancient beliefs in an attempt to find the origin of the rituals attached to a sacred shrine of Diana in Italy. His research led to the publication of 12 volumes between 1890 and 1915. What I read is a single volume abridgement, made by Frazer in 1922.

Frazer's style is quite readable (far less convoluted than I had expected), and he clearly states his theories and hypotheses, for each of which he presents myriad examples drawn from all ages and all parts of the world. The difficulty for me was the sheer number of these examples, complicated by interesting spellings (Corea, Esquimaux) and references to tribes or countries no longer extant (particularly in Africa). I disliked his numerous references to "savages," "rude ignorants," etc. And I'm not sure that I agree with all of his conclusions, though I do believe that they are all worthy of consideration.

Nevertheless, this book is an amazing compendium of customs, rituals, beliefs, folk tales, legends and mythologies from every part of the world, and it includes many anthropological observations that by now might be lost or difficult to find. The similarity of beliefs and customs, from all over the world, is truly striking.

I'm glad I read this book, and perhaps should have done so long ago, since so many great writers have made use of it. But I'm also glad I've finished it.

It has been eons since I read The Golden Bough. I should pull out my copy and do like you did - read about 10 pages a day.

Kudos on finishing what you started, Ivy!

Reading The Golden Bough is an accomplishment to be proud of! Congratulations. I does sound like a worthwhile endeavor. The language used to describe certain cultures does give you insight into Frazer's time period and its thinking, which is difficult to read, but instructive. We have come a long way since then.

>25 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia! I'd never have made it without having read just a chapter (or less) at a time -- and not every day.

>26 mks27: Thanks, Michelle! I do think Frazer's appelations are very much a reflection of his time, and to do him justice, he occasionally defends the "lower" cultures. Even so, I often found it offensive -- I'm so glad we are getting beyond that today!

Ah, it's been on my shelf since - oh - about 1970 or so. Unread. Maybe 10 pages at a time would get me through.

I'm about two-thirds through the Stephen King book. Really enjoying it but I think it could've been a lot shorter.