TLOeffler takes on 2012

Even though I am still reading like a maniac to reach my 2011 goals, I'll be like everyone else and start a 2012 thread. But I refuse to promise to keep up.

And here are my answers to Stephen's questions, based on books I've read so far in 2011:

Describe yourself: Matchless

Describe how you feel: Unbroken

Describe where you currently live: Elsewhere

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: In Pursuit of Reason

Your favorite form of transportation: The Memory of Running

Your best friend is: The Hero With a Thousand Faces

You and your friends are: A Test of Wills

What’s the weather like: A Great Deliverance

You fear: The Edge of Reason

What is the best advice you have to give: Carry On!

Thought for the day: Nobody Said Not to Go

How I would like to die: Going Home to Glory

My soul’s present condition: On My Honor, I Will

Good answers, TLo!

hi Terri
I hope to be a more regular contibuter here in 2012 ;-)

Hi Terri! That meme is so fun to fill out, isn't it?

Hoping for lots of good reading in 2012! :)

Welcome, Richard! Welcome, Anita!

Thank you, Stephen. It was great fun! And I have my Christmas gift pile just waiting for me to dig in on Sunday, as soon as they start counting for my 2012 off the shelf challenge! So I can guarantee there will be some good reading, at least in January!

Hey, TLo!

Stasia! *big hug* Welcome!

((Hugs)) back at you!

Hi Terri! dropping in to leave my star

Hey, Terri!

Those are some great answers, Terri. I might use Stephen's meme as my recap for 2012. Carry on indeed! Got ya starred!

Welcome back!

Chelle, Sandy, thanks for stopping by!

I figured I had to wait until the end of the year, Donna. What if I read some great book in December and miss out on a fun answer? That would just be disastrous.

Thank you, Jim! It's great to be here!

found you !

Happy New Year, Terri!

Happy New Year, Terri!

Happy New Year, Terri and all the best for 2012!

Hi, Terri, and Happy New Year!

Unlurking to drop a star and wish a Happy New Year.

And a peaceful and prosperous New Year to all of you, Stasia, Darryl, Tiffin, Terri, Tina! And now. It's time for books.

1. S Is For Silence by Sue Grafton. Still one of my very favorite series. Kinsey is asked to investigate the disappearance of a woman in a small town 34 years ago. I start reading these and just can't put them down. So I make it a once a year pleasure so I don't run out too quickly, like I do with the Three Pines books.

2. 100 Unique Eats and Eateries in Missouri by Ann Hazelwood. Between this book and my Missouri Wine Country pamphlet, I could wander this state for a year. Also great fun to see Pio's (one of my favorite local restaurants) in the book.

3. The Cat Who Went Back In Time by Kim Day. You may have heard the story of the crazy lady who sat by me on the plane to NYC last year. My son gave me all 4 of her (self-published) books for Christmas. Oh. My. Goodness. This story was about, well, a cat who went back in time to ancient Egypt "where cats are highly regarded and considered royalty." She saved the cats of the future. Blessedly short.

4. A Society Gone Forever by Kimberly Kay Day. About "the last human who survived the destruction on Earth in 2020 to awake in the year 2500." A very strange book. I gave myself a stomach ache from laughing out loud. I have great respect for anyone who is brave enough to put their thoughts out for the world to see. Most of the time. This was just insane. I can't wait to read her next two books.

For more information on these books, look them up on Amazon. They each have one review, written by the author. Perhaps you'll see what I mean...

Looks like your new reading year is off and running, Terri! Four already?! Seriously! Wow.

Fixed the Threadbook!

Hey Terri, any KC area places in that book?

Hey, Terri, Happy New Year!

Really, Stasia, except for the Grafton book, they were all pretty short. I'll slow down once I graduated to bigger books...

Thank you, Jim! I didn't think I'd ever find myself!

Sandy, there are several Kansas City restaurants in the book. Twenty of the 100 are in the northwestern to midwestern part of the state. Unfortunately, The Red Onion in Joplin isn't included. I ought to send her a letter...

Happy New Year, Roni! Hope all is well in your part of the world!

And I finished my last two books from Keith:

5. Michael in Foreverland by Kim Kay Day. Wow. Just, wow.

6. A Family History Embedded in Her Soul by Kimberly Kay Day. Not what I was expecting (hoping for?) from her autobiography. Mostly about her relatives. "There are some things in my life that were too painful to put in this book that I have omitted." Dang. That's probably what I was hoping to read.

Anyway, I'll start on some serious books now. I've got my Andrew Jackson biography to finish plodding through, and four or five Early Reviewers, not to mention all the books I got for Christmas. I need something to get the taste of poor writing out of my mouth...

I have a bunch of ER books to read too, Terri, but I have no idea when I am going to get to them!

Oh god ER books *eep* how is it I have fallen into the pit of sloth and never reviewed them?

Gah, as the kids say.

Oh my good grief, I just read the REVIEWS for the Kimberley Whatsherface books and they had me in stitches! And you say you survived an entire plane trip with this woman? *shakes Terri's hand admiringly* For anyone who can't be bothered to go find them, here are the links:

A Society Gone Forever:
http://www.amazon.com/Society-Gone-Forever-Kimberly-Kay/product-reviews/14241727...

Michael in Foreverland:
http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Foreverland-Kim-Kay-Day/product-reviews/1448985137...

The Cat Who Went Back in Time:
http://www.amazon.com/Cat-Who-Went-Back-Time/product-reviews/0805942696/ref=sr_1...

A Family History Embedded in her Soul:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/1456004506/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=U...

Brilliant... :)

I didn't think I'd ever find myself!
Story of my life... :)

6 books already! Wow, I have two half finished ... I feel I am already behind >:s

*snork!* I'm oh so very tempted to buy those books, but I'm a little afraid to encourage the woman...

TLo, next time you move, I'll get you one of these bookcases for your new place:

Well, Richard, at least you're not alone in the pit of sloth. And OMG, WHERE can I get one of those bookcases? I would burn furniture to make a place for shelves like that.
*stops to wipe drool off the keyboard*

I've got to tell you, Ellie, that as we stepped off the plane, I turned to my son (who had been sitting by the window with his earplugs in) and said, "You owe me a drink." And if you ever get a chance to see her on The Bill Cunningham Show (I've searched & searched & can't find the episode online): "Reality Star Wannabes" you will totally die laughing.

Mine too, Jim, mine too.

They're very short books, Chelle, but they were really difficult for me to get through. My jaws hurt from clenching them to avoid screaming out loud.

Amber, I had to laugh. Apparently, on January 2, she went on a real tirade and started sending out all kinds of press releases about this "great new book" (the Michael Jackson one). I told Keith that she was probably encouraged by the single-digit sales of her book in December! So, really, don't encourage her.

I have to say it again, Richard. Wow.

I have to say it again, Richard. Wow.

Yeah, they look *great* here next to my bed. The lads have nights off, I'm not *that* mean.

>33 richardderus: hey, I'm getting deja vu! Im sure I just saw that pic somewhere else .... :)

>35 richardderus: lol, the nights "off" what? Holding books? So that means they need a lie down.....let me guess, you'll move over for them?

Terry, did you say you were coming to NYC this month? Jim and I would love to see you, if schedules permit.

Hi, Terri! Happy New Year and got you starred. Enjoyed your tales of the crazy lady although I don't think I'm brave enough to read her books lol.

Those reviews are all by the author.. she gave her own books five stars..
I hope people notice :P

Personally, Megan, I'm thinking of plastering my wall with that picture...

And Richard, I'm not moving, but Keith & I are going to be rearranging bookshelves this weekend. What a great time it would be for me to get a new bookcase.

Judy, it's going to be a short & sweet trip. We're driving to Easton PA, taking (I hope) a bus into NYC the morning of the 17th, hanging out there till the evening, then going to see "The Book of Mormon" again. Back to Easton after Keith gets his M & M/Hershey's jones taken care of, then home the next day. If you'll be around town on the 17th, I'd love to meet you somewhere!
(his birthday present is me driving there. he plans to knock out a ton of movies on the way to reach his goal of 50 movies watched in January. We have to be back by midnight on the 19th because he spends from midnight to midnight on 1/20 watching movies. Can you spell OCD?)

Trust me, Marcia, it took a great deal of fortitude.

Kath, how could anyone not notice??? She used her own name! One of her press releases refers to her as a "creative genius." Keith & I got quite a laugh out of that. She's nuts, but she's given us a ton of entertainment!

agreed... nuts..

My fear is people just looking at the five stars and not investigating further...

That's a lot of movies!

So, how close will you be getting to Ohio then? Let me check Google ....NOOOOO! I better get to work building my bombTerri shelter! :P

I'll talk to Jim and see if we can clear our calendars for part of the 17th. Are you going to the theater that night?

You'll be sorry, Stephen. I'm a very nice person. Just ask Judy.

Yes Judy, we have tickets for the 7:00 show. I suspect we'll get into the city around noon and hang out. It would be great fun to see you guys again, even for just a little while!

7. The Life of Andrew Jackson by Robert Remini. It seems I've been reading this book forever. It's a "condensation" of his three-volume biography of Jackson (but I don't have the energy for a three-volume biography of Andrew Jackson). It was clear that Remini is a diehard Jackson fan, but I thought he did a good job of remaining fairly even-handed. The book was well-written and interesting, but I find I don't like Andrew Jackson very much. It appears that his presidency was an important precursor of our current government/political system. I'm just not quite sure yet if that is a good thing or a bad thing.

Congratulations on finally finishing up the Jackson book, Terri! I hope your next read does not take as long.

#44 Love your analysis of the Jackson presidency. I found that I didn't like him much, either.

21: I really like Pio's too. I go there almost every time I visit my dad, since he only lives a couple of blocks away. I get most of my STL delights, when I go there (e.g. toasted ravioli, STL style pizza, and the "house salad" that you can only get in STL).

Stolen from Jen who stole from Kath:

1) Find out the song that was #1 the week you were born.
2) Find that song on YouTube.
3) Post that video on your thread without shame.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URayWTkEPYM&feature=fvst

Oh, I like that Elvis song.

8. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. This was recommended to me by a local friend whose judgment I respect. I'm not completely sure exactly how I felt about it. It is a book about witches and vampires, but there was enough history and intelligent information in it to pique my interest. Diana Bishop, a witch who doesn't want to be a witch, refuses to use her powers, until one day, she manages to call up an enchanted book in the Oxford library while doing research. She returns the book, only to find herself being followed by other "creatures" (witches, vampires, and demons), all of whom want that book. They believe it explains their origins. Interesting enough so far. But then, of course, she falls in love with the vampire, and vice versa, and from there, it's like riding a roller coaster. For a chapter, it's a very interesting book. Then, it gets weirdly descriptive (how many times can a vampire be described as "cold?" why would she refer to the man she loves as "the vampire" when he has a name?). I almost felt like I was reading a book written by two authors. But the last straw was the ending. It was so abrupt, and so dissatisfying, that I nearly screamed. I paid 50 cents to keep it overdue when I wasn't finished and couldn't renew it. The ending made me wish I had taken it back on time and made up my own ending.

Interesting comments on A Discovery of Witches. I have yet to dip a toe into the witch-vampire pool. I have a librarian friend who says many of them are quite good, well written and "researched" (whatever that means). I guess using the paranormal as a vehicle for a story is valid, it just depends on the story, the quality of writing and the point of the novel. I'm always open to new (to me) genres, but I don't have any witches lurking anytime soon.

9. The Interrogation Chair by Scott L. Miller. Mitch Adams is a St. Louis psychologist in a relationship with Kristin Gray, an administrative secretary and psychology student. When she is found murdered after they have had a public spat, the police start considering him a suspect. This isn't helped by the fact that someone is planting evidence that points to Mitch. He starts receiving phone calls from the murderer, and suspects it may be one of his clients. There are plenty of suspects among them. Mitch has to find out which one it is before he finds himself in prison for murder.

As nearly as I can tell, this is a first book by this author. It's not perfect, and there are some minor errors, but overall, it's compelling reading, and I found it to be a very satisfying read.

TLO...hadn'theard of The Interrogation Chair and while I'm not jumping to put it on the TBR pile, at least your comments will give me more to go on when I come across it.

Tina, forgot to mention, he's a St. Louis boy, so you may not "come across it," but I like to say nice things about local authors when it's warranted. I met him on my last "bookstore cruise" and he was quite personable, and I was glad I that I liked his book!

I hope you are having a great trip, Terri. That's a lot of driving (and movie watching for Keith). I'm sure you can both handle it. It seems like I know someone in Easton, PA. ;-) It's good to have friends living in strategic areas. Take pictures!!!

I have seen good and bad reviews on A Discovery of Witches.I have been attracted to it myownself
but have managed to avoid any commitment thus far..

Hi, Donna! We did have a great trip! It was so wonderful to spend time with Linda, and to have dinner with Judy and Jim. Keith was very well-behaved for a young man whose mother threw him into the company of her friends! I didn't really have a problem with the driving until about the last hour on the way home last night. I didn't take very many pictures (I was too busy talking!) but I'll post the ones I did take tomorrow (probably). On the way home yesterday, my niece sent me a text telling us that The Book of Mormon is going on tour in Denver in August, so now we'll be going to Denver in August!

Kath, I thought of you a lot when I was reading it. I think you'd probably feel the same as I did. I really liked parts of it, and really didn't like other parts, so I can't say I was sorry I read it. But I didn't like the ending...

All of that driving this week and I only completed ONE audiobook! And it wasn't that long...

10. Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler. I can't remember where I heard of this series (I think it was in a magazine), but it was on my TBR list, and my library has the whole series on audiobook, so I got the first two to listen to on our trip this week. I loved it! Arthur Bryant and John May have worked together in London's Peculiar Crimes Unit since 1940, and when their building explodes with Arthur inside, John reminisces about their first case, while trying to figure out what caused the explosion, and what Arthur was working on at the time. I am absolutely in love with Arthur Bryant. This is one of those series where you learn a little bit at a time about the characters as it goes along. Good stuff.

*smooch*

Upset that I missed you...but the doc...

*smooch*

I wish I could have tagged along on the trip. I got updates from both Linda and Judy regarding all the goings-on. I am glad you had a good time and are now home safely.

That's okay, Richard. I'll just be sitting here waiting for you to come to St. Louis and visit me. Hope the doctors visit went well for you! *smooch* back atcha!

I wish you could have, too, Stasia. Although I don't know where we would have fit you. The back seat was packed to the brim with the cooler and bags of snacks and movies and audiobooks. But if you'd been able to, we'd have fit you in!

I could have used the roof. Just tie me down! lol

Glad you are safely home, even though I was insanely jealous about your trip and visits with LTers.

*Peeks out from under covers* Sooo it's safe now?

Just ask Linda and Judy and Jim, Stephen. Keith and I are an absolute delight to be around. Your loss.
:-p

Hi, Roni! It was a fabulous trip. Maybe next time, we'll take more time so we can stop off in OH and visit Stephen...

Hi. Remember me? I read some books....

11. The Chronicles of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg et al. 14 popular authors write stories based on a bizarre picture, a title, and one line. Fabulous! Some better than others, of course (some I wanted to try because I thought I could do better!). But great fun. Thank you, Miss Linda!

12.The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. One of the saddest books I've read in a long time. But it was a good story, even though I had to put it down several times. The ending was...unexpected, but still, very thought-provoking.

Yes, remember you.. ehhh Terri, isn't it? LOL!

Agee on The boy in the striped pyjamas, good but sad story with an unexpected ending. I read it too this month.

Glad you like Harris Burdick. I bought it for my nephew for Christmas without reading it first. Oops.

Hi, Anita! I listened to the audiobook, and I kind of think that might have been better for me. At least I could still "read" even though my eyes were watering.

Shame on you, Jen. It wasn't that long--you could have finished it before you gave it to him. Or you could be like me--half the books on my "short stack" are ones I gave my sons & borrowed back. My youngest son even offered to let me read the copy of The Invention of Hugo Cabret that he bought for his brother for Christmas--"you'll finish it before I need to wrap it." I refrained, and was rewarded with my own copy from my mother!

13. Heavy Words Lightly Thrown by Chris Roberts. Back in the Middle Ages, when I first started college (the first time), I had to do a report for a Brit Lit course about the origins of nursery rhymes. It was a great report, and I often wished I hadn't lost it to time. So I was excited to read this book, subtitled "The Reason Behind the Rhyme." It was a fun book, and somewhat interesting, but I just felt it could have been better researched (having done that same research when I was a punk). He did seem to be wildly distractable (made-up word), and by the end of the essay, I wasn't sure which rhyme we were even talking about. But it was kind of fun anyway.

14. The Water Room by Christopher Fowler. Second in the Bryant & May series. I really can't believe it's taken me so long to read these books. This is a great series (at least, so far). This time, the PCU is investigating a series of odd deaths on Balaclava street in London. I love how he intertwines history & geography in the mysteries. I'm listening on audiobook, and Tim Goodman does a fabulous job of narrating.

15. War Horse by Michael Morpurgo. A touching story about a boy and his horse and World War I, told from the horse's point of view. It didn't make me want to run out and see the movie (I'm not sure how they made a whole movie out of it, but I guess if they expanded the war part...).

Oops, I missed one.

16. American Presidents: Martin Van Buren by Ted Widmer. Short, but as much as I really needed to know about Van Buren, one of the presidents that, frankly, I had forgotten about. What I like about the presidential challenge is seeing how the political system we have now has developed. Van Buren had a good deal to do with that.

Terri, I haven't read the book of War Horse. Much of the stage play was set in the war zone during the war, and the production was a very effective evocation of some of the horrors of that war - along with being a marvel portraying the horses. I would hope the movie would do the same justice to the war that the play did.

War Horse sounds very sad to me.. I think I will be passing on that one..
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas fell off my radar a while back... I think I will just leave it be...

Glad you had a great trip :) and I am absolutely sure that you are wonderful to be around :) lol

#69 tloeffler > I tend to avoid series, which is perhaps not wise. I don't like stumbling into an ongoing plot in a subsequent book, nor do I like to read the first of a "trilogy" only to find it incomplete until I invest time in the last two. There are some exceptions, of course, such as mystery writers in which one story is not necessarily connected to another except for character development perhaps. I did read the Harry Potter series and Tolkein's ring series, but not much else. I'm having way too much fun switching authors and genres to get bogged down with one author or one long series. I hope some of you here can enlighten me on obvious exceptions.

> 73 oh... you do not know what you are missing with the Three Pines series by Louise Penny..
perhaps you would consider an exception? Each is better than the last...

Terri, I haven't made it over here in quite awhile. I realize that it's been quite some time since you read it but I've long meant to give that Christopher Fowler series a try. Thanks for the insights.

As for that Widmer book about Martin Van Buren...I like these because they give me the basic facts, along with some interesting tidbits. I remember reading in that one that MVB was the first (current or former) president ever to visit my state of Illinois. He also met with a young Abe Lincoln.

I'm going back to read the new William Henry Harrison bio in the American Presidents series, written by Gail Collins. Sometime soon, I'm aiming to get back on the presidential reading bandwagon. I've got to get going beyond Lincoln.

#74 mckait > I am always open to suggestions and opinions. And I will read series that appeal to me, such as some of Asimov's sci-fi work which I haven't had time to investigate for example. I guess my avoidance would be to any new, relatively unknown authors. Many indies today seem to be baiting readers with a free first book of a trilogy, and I don't take that bait. I'm not saying all series are bad. I'm just saying that I will need some very good recommendations from people I know before investing time and money in a series.

And thank you. I will investigate Louise Penny.

Hi, Terri - emerging from my usual lurking to let you know that I love the variety of books you've been reading and that I've added the Peculiar Crimes Unit series to the wishlist.

Judy, I saw a bit of the play on the Tony Awards show, and I was amazed at the depiction of the horses! I'll bet it would be a great one to see in person.

Kath, War Horse is a bit sad, and you probably wouldn't enjoy it. Ditto The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. I'm not a completely insensitive clod, but I don't always mind the sad ones. As far as being wonderful to be around...well, I like me...

Mike, I agree with Kath about the Three Pines series by Louise Penny. They are some excellent mystery books, and she's not as prolific as some series authors are. They really suck you into the characters' lives. But I certainly understand your avoidance of series! I finally had to make myself a spreadsheet of all the series I want to read, and I read one book from each series as I go down the line. Mixes it up some, but sometimes it's hard to keep up with the story.
I think you would like the Fowler series. Not only do they solve the mysteries, but the characters are great, the books aren't interdependent (at least, not so far), and each of them includes some unusual history.

Linda, I've read the first two of the Christopher Fowler books, and I liked them well enough that I may not wait until they come around again on the spreadsheet to continue with them. There are only 8 of them.
The Widmer book was just right for me and MVB. And I heard so much about Gail Collins' Harrison book that I just went ahead and ordered it with my Amazon Christmas GCs last week. So that will be coming up when I get it. I'm a little nervous about getting to Lincoln. There's SO much! How does one decide?

Hey, Sandy! Good call. I'm really loving those books. Especially on audio. Another one of those series that won't be the same without Tim Goodman's voice reading them to me!

And I think it's important to announce that I went to a Book Fair today (smaller version of our library's annual one), and only bought 5 books. See, I can restrain myself sometimes. Although probably it was because I went on the last day, and there weren't many there that I wanted that I didn't already have. ;-)

17. The Autobiography of Mother Jones by Mary Harris Jones. Many years ago, while driving to South Bend IN with a friend along Highway 55, we saw a hand-painted sign that said "Mother Jones Monument--Next Exit." Being the adventurous sort, we pulled off, and found ourselves in Mount Olive IL at the Union Miners Cemetery. I'm quite the cemetery buff, so we spent some time looking at the graves, and found the monument. A gentleman stopped his car and gave us some history about the cemetery and why there was a monument to Mother Jones there. He told us a bit about the struggles of the miner's union, and I found it just fascinating. Eventually, my brother married a girl from Mount Olive, and a few years ago, when her father was ill, I volunteered to help her mother sort out his health insurance claims. She wanted to pay me, but I said no, she should just find a book about Mother Jones and give it to me. So she did. It wasn't this book. It was Mother Jones: The Most Dangerous Woman in America. But I found her autobiography also, and decided I would like to read them both & compare. I started with the autobiography, which was probably a good idea.

Mother Jones was one of the first union activists, focusing primarily on miners. She was not a writer. But it was interesting to read her words about her activities. It's amazing that she lived to be so old--I would have expected someone from the mine companies to have killed her early in the game. But I guess they realized, as she did, that the miners thought so highly of her, and her agitating would be nothing compared to the uprising that would come if anything happened to her. There is included a lengthy introduction by Fred Thompson "to help the reader find documented descriptions of the events in which she had been involved," which is very helpful. She was a determined woman, a bit crazy and foolhardy, but probably a key reason for the eventual success of miners' unions. I'm anxious to read the other book to compare!

Oh, the Mother Jones books sounds interesting! I look forward to your comments on the other book when you read it.

SOooooooooooooooo glad I have a goal of reading memoirs this year. Mother Jones is on the list. Can't wait to hear your comparison with the other. And thanks for sharing about the trip to the cemetery. I always enjoy hearing how people come to make the reading choices they do.

I picked up the Mother Jones book.. Dan will want to read it, too..
it looks fascinating... I love books about strong women..

I've pulled the other Mother Jones book off the shelf, and I expect to get to it in the next month. Meanwhile, I've finished a few other books:

18. A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley. Next in the Flavia de Luce series of books. Flavia is starting to get on my nerves a little bit, but not badly enough that I'll abandon the series yet.

19. Fundamentals of Project Management by Joseph Heagney. A "textbook" for a class I took last week. It was actually very helpful to me in the first week at my new job. Several more classes to go, so I guess I'll finish several more of these books.

20. Speak and Get Results by Sandy Linver. A book I pulled off my shelf in the hopes that it might also help with my job. Very interesting, although less about how to speak (THAT I can do), and more about how to create a speech or presentation (where I could use a little help).

21. Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie. I knew very little about Catherine the Great before reading this book. When I saw that it was almost 600 pages, I didn't believe there could possibly be 600 pages worth of interesting information about her. I was so wrong.
Catherine began life as a German princess named Sophia who traveled to Russia at fourteen to marry the future Peter III. During her life, she kept detailed journals and diaries, so Massie's information is comprehensive, well-assembled, and absolutely fascinating. Besides Catherine's life, there is so much information on Russian history and geography, on German history, and on her art-collecting expertise, as well as information about Voltaire and Diderot whom she admired.
Robert Massie has a way of making Russian history fascinating to me. I highly recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in Russia. You won't be sorry!

22. The Ghost in the Little House by William Holtz. I have heard stories in the past about how Rose Wilder Lane "actually" wrote the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, but nothing about Rose ever compelled me to look into it further. I had watched the TV show, but never read the books, so it didn't really matter to me. Then this book was chosen for the LibraryThing Missouri Readers group read, and I cringed at reading 400 pages about who wrote the Little House books.
That was not what this book was about.
Rose Wilder Lane was a fascinating person in her own right. The author's conclusion is that yes, she did some major editing of the Little House books. But aside from that, she was one of those women of the early 20th century who lived such interesting lives, and did some amazing things. She spent time living in Albania, she supported several children not her own, she built houses for herself and her parents. I don't know that she was a particularly likeable person, and she was extremely opposed to Roosevelt's New Deal (to the point where she refused ration cards during World War II and insisted on living off her own land). The more I read about these women, the less revolutionary the feminist movement seems to me. Feminism may have broken the boundaries set in the 40s and 50s, but the opportunities the women had who came of age earlier in the century just boggles my mind. She had no trouble making her opinions known, and I would be interested in reading some of her books. I may even read the Little House books!
Holtz had a habit of getting a little verbose occasionally, and I didn't care for Rose, but it was a good story about an interesting time in Missouri (and American) history.

a few other books? I can only dream of the day when I can flippantly refer to 5 books completed as "a few books".
(well done on the 600 page Catherine book too, and i guess you can say it didnt feel like a difficult 600 seeing as you liked it so much?)

Holy Mollie...You read 22 books thus far! Way to go girl.

It was so darn great seeing you!

Here are some photos I took of our time together:

Terri and Linda ... you two are VERY short... and beautiful!

:)

Great pictures!

Hey, wait a minute. Terri TOWERS over me!

Oh, Megan, it's not that I just sat and blew through 5 books! I just happened to finish them all about the same time. One was for school, one was an audio book, one was my "purse book" that I finished while getting new brakes, and I've been working on Catherine for months!

And Linda, it's amazing how much time I have to read since I'm not teaching any more! Although, it's also amazing how little money I have (especially when a broken tooth & new brakes pop up at the same time). And thank you for the pictures! I have copied them and they will go into my LT scrapbook! Thank you for a lovely time!

Kath, I am SO not short. It's just that Keith is VERY tall! I towered over most people in my life, until I produced giant sons. Now I have to hang around with Linda & Judy to feel tall!

PS Judy, did you see the picture I (finally!) posted on your thread! I love it! Thanks again for such a good time!

Purse book! I love it :)

Hey, I want my picture taken with Keith. I've always wanted to feel petite!

Loved your thoughts on the Little House book, Terri. I finished yesterday. There is much to talk about in that book. See you on the Missouri Reader's thread tomorrow.

TLo darling, just for you: Nearly naked Olympic divers shakin' their moneymakers to "I'm Sexy and I Know It".

Megan, I can't take a chance on being someplace with nothing to read! I always have a purse book!

Maybe someday, Donna. And I'm anxious to see what everyone else says about the book!

So THAT'S where those boys got off to! Thank you, Richard--now that I have something to dream about, I'm off to bed!

A broken tooth? Ouch....
I hope you are not in pain.

Broken tooth and new brakes - oh, that will hurt the pocketbook. I hope the tooth has been taken care of without much trauma, pain-related or otherwise.

Do I recall Keith was learning to drive? I guess the brakes are important too!

No, Linda, no pain. My teeth aren't in great shape, and this one apparently didn't have a nerve, so there wasn't any pain, just the aggravation of having to get a crown put on it, and, of course, having to pay for it.

Keith has been learning to drive, Judy, but not with my car. I have a little Sebring convertible, and he barely fits in the passenger seat, much less the drivers seat with the steering wheel in the way! No, my Dad is teaching him in his car, which is still too small, but bigger than mine. Is there a car that exists that isn't a truck (Keith won't have a truck) that has room for long, tree-trunk legs???

http://www.edmunds.com/car-reviews/top-10/top-10-sedans-for-taller-drivers-for-2...

http://tallproducts.com/2010/03/12/2010-vehicles-for-tall-drivers/

articles for sedans for Taller Drivers...

And is there a similar list for smaller drivers? Especially ones with larger passengers? Each time Jim and I go to rent a car we worry that one or both of us won't fit! He needs leg and head room, I need to be able to reach the pedals while still seeing through the windshield!

>99 ffortsa: Ive never thought of the logistical problems like that. And now that Im thinking, I cant think of a solution either, sorry ;)

Never mind. We do ok. My late father's Toyota Camry is sufficiently adjustable, and many newer cars are as well. The one we couldn't fit in recently was a Fiat - I was ok but Jim would have ended up like a cartoon character with his head poking out the top of the car! We switched to a Ford Focus - more than adequate.

And is there a similar list for smaller drivers? Especially ones with larger passengers? Each time Jim and I go to rent a car we worry that one or both of us won't fit! He needs leg and head room, I need to be able to reach the pedals while still seeing through the windshield!

LOL! That sounds like my hubby and me. I actually owned one car with adjustable foot pedals -- which was wonderful. So what feature did they have to do a recall for? Yeah. But it turned out OK. My present car, a Chevy Monte Carlo, doesn't have adjustable pedals, but the power seat settings are flexible enough to adjust to either of us OK.

Back in the dim past, when my kids were little.. and we had no money.. ( like now )
We bought a car from a little used car dealer. It was a blue Monte Carlo. Soon after we
were contacted and told that the car had been stolen. yeah. We had to go back to the dealer, and
give it back and get another car. LOL Funny story. I don't remember what we ended up with. I
think we might have actually bought a new ( or used ?) station wagon from someone else. Dim late 70's
and I just don't remember. Funny story though, eh :)

Hi, Terri! (from the other Terri)

103 That's quite a story, Kath. Probably in about the era you describe -- no a few years later -- a friend who had a Monte Carlo told me that his car insurance cost was through the roof because, at that time, the Monte Carlo was the most frequently stolen car model. Don't know if that was true. I know it's not the case now.

I once looked at a used Monte Carlo that was very pretty, and priced nicely, but I decided not to buy because 1) it had been used as a rental car in Boston and 2) it had a reddish-brownish stain in the trunk that creeped me out. I guess I read too many murder mysteries. . .

Thanks for the links, Kath! It's good to know someone thinks about these things.

Judy, we should have asked you & Jim when we were there what worked for you! Although my Dad's car is a Camry, and he still has difficulty with it. I suspect he isn't using all the tools available in it (raising the steering wheel, reclining the seat, etc.). Sometimes I think he just likes to complain.

I also have a Monte Carlo story. My Dad had an older model Monte Carlo, which he never drove & kept in the garage because he thought it would be a collectors' item some day. Finally, he sold it to my car-fanatic-nephew. One week later, there was a strong windstorm and Mike's tree fell on top of the Monte Carlo, totalling it. He and my Dad were both just sick about it.

I wonder if Kath's stolen Monte Carlo was the one with the blood stain in the trunk? Criminal minds....

Great pictures! looks like your visit went well!

23. We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster. Sometimes it's easy to think that Anne Frank was the only young Jewish girl who was in hiding during World War II, since she's the only one whose diary became a best-seller. But Anne had classmates, and one of them took it upon himself in 2007-2008 to produce a documentary film about a group of people in the same class as Anne Frank, each with different "adventures" during the war, the only difference between them and Anne being survival. Theo Coster wrote this book about his interviews and talks with his fellow classmates about how they survived the war and how their lives turned out. A very different perspective on the war, and one that, again, makes you wonder how these things can happen.

24. The Case of the Gilded Fly by Edmund Crispin. The first in a the Gervase Fen series. It took me a while to really get into it, but towards the end, it got better. A universally hated actress is found dead in a colleague's room, and the police determine it was suicide. Fen believes otherwise, and goes about trying to prove it. The solution seemed a little fantastic, and didn't leave me gasping with wonderment. I'll probably try one more before giving up.

25. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. I'm not always a big fantasy fan, but this book really hooked me. Rose is put under a spell by a witch that turns her into an old woman. She takes refuge in the constantly moving castle of wizard Howl, while trying to keep an eye on her sisters, escape a scarecrow, and try not to irritate the young wizard. I enjoyed it a lot.

26. William Henry Harrison: American Presidents Series by Gail Collins. Not really a stand-out president, except for being the first to die in office. He had quite a military career, but he didn't seem to distinguish himself much there either. Collins did a good job with what she had to work with. I felt like the ending was abrupt, but then, so was Harrison's ending.

Woo hoo! Another DWJ fan! I hope you'll move on to Castle in the Air and House of Many Ways, even though Howl and Sophie don't play as big a part in them.

Roni, I didn't realize there were sequels to it! Onto the list they go! Thanks!

Hello smoochiekins. Go watch this 15-minute movie. Will make you smile. And tear up a little, too.

Howl's Moving Castle sounds like a lot of fun!

Oh, Richard, where do you find these things? That was fabulous. Thank you so much!

Kath, Howl's Moving Castle IS a lot of fun.

27. The Oz Principle by Roger Connors. Suggested for me by my new boss, so I read it. An interesting and valuable principle of accountability, and I enjoyed reading it, but I wish he had been more specific about the process of getting to accountability. Instead, it was mostly anecdotal, and I felt like it was mostly filler. Also (no brag, just fact), I don't have a problem taking accountability when things go wrong (except for maybe taking too much).

28. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Recommended by just about everyone. Who can resist that? I found the beginning slow, though, and the ending weak. I felt that there were several other places where the book could have ended much more effectively. But the middle? I loved it. I got completely swept away with the circus, and the magic, and the relationships, and it was quite wonderful. Thanks, everyone!

29. Come In and Cover Me by Gin Phillips. Ren Taylor is an archaeologist, whose specialty is ancient pottery bowls, particularly those by a particular artist. Ren knows this because she can see the dead, specifically this artist and her companion, and Ren's brother Scott, who was killed in an auto accident at seventeen. Silas Cooper, a fellow archaeologist, has found what he thinks is more work by her artist, and she joins him on a dig. They fall in love, and although he believes she sees the spirits, he's not sure her interpretations are correct.

Although I enjoyed the book overall, there seemed to be too many stories going on simultaneously, and I never felt that any of them were resolved satisfactorily. The romance wasn't entirely convincing, and there weren't clear lines between the past and present. I gave it 3.5 stars.

Hi, Terri! Jim and I are back from a sojourn in San Francisco. I heard someone say St. Louis was boring, and I wanted to reel out your recent email to him right there on the spot. One of these days, Jim and I will visit.

Hi Sweetie

I'm thinking a lot of you today and deeply appreciating the fine, fine person you are.

I've added We All Wore Stars to my tbr pile.

Happy that you liked Night Circus :)
I liked Come and Cover Me too.. a little more than you did I think?

You should have, Judy! I'm a big fan of St. Louis (okay, Missouri in general)--I should be on the marketing team. If you're bored, you're just not looking.

Hi, Linda! So good to hear from you! I love your notes. I think you would like We All Wore Stars. It's not really YA, but the "friends of Anne Frank" connection makes it feel a little like it is.

Hey, Kath--it wasn't really that I didn't like it--parts of it had me riveted, and then boom! I didn't know what was happening. Just a little inconsistent. But not really bad.

Thanks for dropping by, my friends!

Hi, Terri

Speaking of St Louis, I was there this past weekend for the MVC basketball tournament. We were downtown the entire time - eating, drinking, listening to great live music, and watching one good basketball game and one not-so-good game (our team - the #1 seed WSU Shockers - being eliminated - again - in the semi-final game). We stayed at a beautifully renovated historic hotel and had a wonderful time. I waved at you as we passed through St Charles. Both ways.

I am sworn to secrecy, but my son is going to be at the Fox
on friday... he is giving away tickets for the morning event.
He can't talk about what it is. I sure wish I could be there, though.
I have not seen a lot of St Louis, but what I have seen has been nice.
The waterfront area is great! I couldn't live in the city, but it is nice
to visit.

Terri

I finished I am Scout and think that you read this book a few years ago. Am I right?

Hugs

I waved back, Sandy! Or at least, I would have if I had known....Downtown is a fun place to visit. But like Kath, I'm happy in my "little" town. And you should have called. I live less than a mile from Highway 70 down Highway 94. I probably could have heard you whistle...

You would like St. Charles, Kath. Close enough to the city to get there quickly, but far enough away to be much less hectic. We have a great waterfront too. Someday, you'll come visit me...
What was your son's secret? I didn't read your message till today, and now it's all over!

Hi Linda! I have not read I Am Scout. Or at least, not that I can recall or bring up on a spreadsheet. Surely I would have remembered if I did? Should I?

I've been doing quite a bit of reading, but I'm too tired right now to catalog anything. Maybe tomorrow?

Wish I could be there for the Midwest regional games, Terri--hopefully my team will be there at least!

30. Unseen Treasures: Imperial Russia and the New World. This is an exhibition catalog from an exhibit several years ago commemorating the Russian-American company that operated in Alaska and down the western coast of America. Interesting stories & fabulous pictures.

31. The Commodore's Palace: New Orleans. Okay, it's a cookbook. But with some really yummy sounding recipes, and a lot of stories about New Orleans and the Brennan family. I may even make something out of it someday.

32. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. Loved it.

33. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick. Loved it also.

34. Wealth Happens One Day at a Time by Brooke M. Stephens. I've been reading this over the course of a year. Daily writings about saving, budgeting, investing. It is a few years old, so a lot of the information was dated, but I credit it with making me think before I spend, and trying to find ways to save.

I remember going to see the Russian treasures exhibit - amazing.

Sandy, I saw one exhibit a long time ago called "Treasures of the Tsars" that was unbelievable (actually, I think I went to Topeka to see it). All Romanov stuff. I think that's where my fascination with all that started. It is a fascination, though.

35. The Fate of Katherine Carr by Thomas H. Cook. A very good sort-of mystery story. George befriends a young girl with progeria in her last days, and the two of them try to solve the mystery of the disappearance of Katherine Carr twenty years before.

The one I saw was also in Topeka, so it may have been the same one. I think there was at least 2 different exhibits - just a year or so apart. I only saw the first, so I don't know what the content of the 2nd was.

Oh, how I would love to see an exhibit regarding the Romanovs....

Like you, I'm fascinated about them.

>123 tloeffler: 32. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. Loved it.
33. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick. Loved it also.

Love your reviews, lol. very succinct :)

Sandy, the one I saw had beautiful Faberge eggs. I remember telling our Russian piano teacher about it, and how she described it as a horrible time in their history. I love Romanov history, but cute as he was, Nicholas II was pretty ineffectual. Very sad.

Linda, if I ever find another one happening anywhere, you and I are THERE. I'm reading The Kitchen Boy now, which I think was your suggestion.

Megan, I think everyone else has said all that can be said about the Selznick books. I really, really enjoyed reading them, and I did them on two consecutive nights. Great fun!

36. St. Joseph Church History by Lawrence Lovasik. A disappointment. It covered all the years, but brushed over a lot of the controversial times, blaming problems on everyone else, or skipping controversy entirely. I was hoping for something a little more detailed and even-handed.

TLo...a must-read book alert: THE SONG OF ACHILLES. I reviewed it, but since I know you don't read my reviews, I came to tell you that the future happiness of each of your children and the fate of all the muscular dancing boys in America rests on your immediate reading of this beautiful, beautiful book.

Oh, yes - the Faberge eggs were at the exhibit I saw, too. Weren't they wonderful?

Ah, Richard, please don't take it personally. I've been spending a lot more time reading lately (still wallowing in the awesomeness of not having to prepare to teach classes all the time), and I just can't sit at the computer when my reading chair is in view. But, since I respect your judgment (whether or not I always agree with it), The Song of Achilles is now on reserve for me at the St. Charles City-County Library, Kathryn Linnemann Branch. My shelf books are glaring at you.

Sandy, some day, when I'm filthy rich, I'm going to buy one of those for myself. Really.

And here are some of the books I've been reading in the above-mentioned chair:

37. John Tyler by Gary May. I would have liked to have had a more fleshed-out version of Tyler than this one (so I have The Presidencies of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler on the table), but this was a good start. Moving right along.

38. What the Dog Saw: and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell. I've never read any of Gladwell's stuff before, but I really enjoyed these essays on...well, I don't know. Whatever caught his fancy. Very enjoyable, though.

39. Singled Out: How Two Million British Women Survived Without Men after the First World War by Virginia Nicholson. What a fascinating book. In all of the WWI reading I've done, it never occurred to me to consider the women who would never marry because so many men had died. But this book does it. I think that her writing is a little haphazard--I couldn't find a lot of rhyme or reason to the sequence of it--but it really didn't matter a lot. There are stories of fairly famous women (Vera Brittain, Winifred Holtby, Elizabeth Goudge) and some who I had never heard of before, but all with the same theme: "This is what we've got. Let's see what we can do with it." Here are the original seeds of feminism. I had commented on the MO Readers group that this attitude could account for a lot of the women we have read about who were so independent and adventurous in the early 20th century. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who thinks the women's movement started in the 60s. There may have been a lull after WWII, and they thought they were the instigators, but they were wrong. Great book!

#133 tloeffler > The Virginia Nicholson book sounds fascinating. Is it a well researched book, or just speculation? An interesting and important topic, nonetheless. I'll put it on my long 'to read' list.

>133 tloeffler: Singled Out sounds terrific! Thumbs-upped your review.

Must read Singled Out ...

Mike, it is extremely well-researched. Apparently, Nicholson interviewed some women who are still alive, and many of the others left diaries and letters. There is very little speculation, really. VERY interesting.

Richard, Kath, you absolutely must read it. It's one of those books I just stumbled across it, and I really think you would enjoy it. A fascinating look at something you just don't think about.

Although, that does bring up another point. What about all the German women left behind? The Germans lost easily as many men as the British, didn't they? That would be another great story. If it's been written already, would someone tell me the name of the book so I can find it please? Thank you!

Or will I have to write it?

I went to the Easton Public Library today and passed the pub where you and I and Will had dinner. I smiled and then missed you terribly.

I was just thinking about you yesterday, and wishing we lived closer to each other. What fun we'd have!

40. The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander. The entry in the diary of Tsaritsa Aleksandra Fyodorovna on July 16, 1918, read: "Suddenly Leonka Sednyov was fetched to go and see his Uncle & flew off." So one of their servants, a young kitchen boy who had been present throughout their captivity, survived the carnage. Robert Alexander uses this as the basis of this historical novel. An old man in Chicago records the story of the captivity and the massacre on a tape left for his granddaughter. We live through the entire ordeal, until a strange twist at the end leads us down another path.
A great historical novel that has enough truth in it to make it read like a biography!

Hello there schmoopie, I'm flying through on my broom!

I really liked The Kitchen Boy. I thought it was creatively written.

Hugs to you!

I have The Kitchen Boy sitting in a TBR box at home. Glad to hear it is worthwhile.

Oh, Richard, while you're here with a broom, would you sweep up for me? I think I have a broom someplace, but heaven only knows where...

Hello, Linda! I agree. I have a copy of Rasputin's Daughter somewhere (probably wherever the broom is) that I should pull out. Did you read that one?

Lori, you should pull it out. It really was a worthwhile read.

Singled Out sounds like exactly what I want for my WW I read this year, but boyo is it hard to find - only one copy in all of Maine!!! and no Nook or Kindle BOO HISS...

I don't recommend Rasputin's Daughter. IMHO, it was lackluster and kind of boring.

Singled Out sounds great, Terri! And The Kitchen Boy has been on my radar for a while, but I hadn't added it to the list. Maybe I will now. Very helpful comments on both books!

Tina, I ended up buying it from Amazon, and I'm really glad I did. It's a keeper.

Hello, my friend Linda! Well, then, I won't throw it out, and if it comes up in the random lottery, I'll read it, but I won't pull it to the top. Thank heavens. My short stack doesn't stay short for very long. In fact, I don't believe I've done a random book pull all year. I need to do that...

Thank you, Terri! I hope you enjoy them--I did.

41. Lunatics: A Novel by Dave Barry and Alan Zweibel. This was an LT Early Reviewer book.
Mild-mannered Philip Horkman is the owner of a pet store called The Wine Shop. Jeffrey Peckerman is a forensic plumber and (dare I say it?) a bit of a redneck. Philip is the referee of a soccer game,and puts the wheels in motion when he calls an offside on Jeffrey's daughter Taylor when she kicks the tying goal. One thing leads to another, and in a story told alternately by both men, they end up pursued by everyone from the police to Chuck E. Cheese, along the way going from Most Wanted to Great American Heroes. It's a fun romp, but I have to say that the characters both really got on my nerves. Especially Peckerman. And having the perspective change every 5 pages got to be very annoying.
It's not a bad book, and it's a fairly easy read. Just not up to the standards I would have expected. I'm a big Dave Barry fan, and this just wasn't up to what I had hoped for.

42. The Waste Land and Other Poems by T. S. Eliot. I like Eliot's work in general. And although I have read The Waste Land before, I don't think I ever read it with the perspective of it being a WWI poem. So it was a fairly new experience for me, and I feel like I got quite a bit more out of it. I enjoyed the other poems too, but The Waste Land was the standout this time.

43. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. Richard, you are redeemed for any disappointing book you may have ever recommended to me (not that there have been very many). This was easily one of my top reads, and although I got it from the library, it is one that I will purchase soon just to have my own copy. I stayed up late two nights to finish this.
This is one of the greatest (and most tragic) love stories I have ever read. It is a retelling of the story of Achilles, told from the perspective of his friendship with Patroclus. The writing is absolutely magical, and it just glides you right through the book.

Can't say enough about it. I'm with Richard: READ IT.

P.S. Thank you Richard!

Based on your recommendation and that of Richard, I'm adding The Song of Achilles to the tbr pile.

Happy Sunday to you my friend!

Just catching up with you :)
Nothing to worry about here !
All seems well..

44. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides. I'm generally a fan of Jeffrey Eugenides, but I wasn't so keen on this book. It was well-written, but I have to say that I didn't like a single one of the characters until the very end. And then only one. Set in the 80s, self-centered dilettantes flit from college to fellowship, to Europe travel, to real life, and every decision they made caused me to scream "NO! Don't do it!"--sometimes out loud. That being said, it was probably true to the times, and given the characters, they acted exactly as they would have in real life. If you can get past characters you want to slap, it's really not a bad book. I can't.

45. Woe to Live On by Daniel Woodrell. Read for the Missouri Readers, so if you don't want to know what I think until Monday, stop reading.
Pause.
Okay. Not your typical novel of the Civil War. There are no great battles--this is guerrilla warfare in Missouri and Kansas, and boy, is it a mess.
Once again (although this was one of his earlier works), Woodrell has put together a story of the grainier side of the Ozarks, during the Civil War, in a state that doesn't really know what side it's on. Jake Roedel is a sixteen year old "secesh," riding with his best friend and a group of other outlaws determined to eliminate as many Federalists and Jayhawkers as they possibly can, and as brutally as they possibly can. Jake begins to question what's really important to him, but how do you escape this kind of war?
Woodrell's writing is magical. He has a way of moving the story along at a pace that makes it nearly impossible to put down, even when you don't think you can handle one more description of a gunshot wound. It's rough, but worth the read. And I especially love the Runyonesque speech of these characters: "I don't know that the time is yet right for robbing wholesale" and "I think it is as right as two rabbits." None of this pretend "y'all" kind of contracted speech that you see in some Ozark books. Good stuff, this.

46. Wobble to Death by Peter Lovesey. I accidentally read the last book in the series first (I didn't know it was part of a series), and I liked it so well that I added it to my series books. Nothing fabulous or earth-shattering, just a good old 19th century detective novel, that takes place at a "wobble," or six day "Go As You Please Contest." These were walking contests, where the participants walked at their own pace, took their breaks & rest when they wanted, and competed to be the first to complete 500+ miles in the time allotted. There is foul play afoot (pun intended), of course, or there wouldn't be a story, and Sergeant Cribb and Constable Thackeray are there to tie up the loose ends. Good enough that I plan to keep the series on my list!

46 books thus far! What an accomplishment!

Yeah, at this rate, you can take the end of the year off... :-)

Hi, Terri. If you enjoyed reading The Wasteland, some time you might get a kick out of The Wasteland: A Facsimile and Transcript of the Original Drafts Including the Annotations of Ezra Pound. You'll see why he dedicated the poem to Ezra Pound as "Il miglior fabbro", the greater craftsman. It started out as quite a different poem.

Thanks to Richard, I've also added The Song of Achilles to my tbr, too. It sounds like the old Mary Renault books I loved as a kid.

skimming your comments about Woe to Live On - it seems you liked it. Good. I hope to begin soon, but I have a whole stack of books I hope to begin soon.

I know, Linda! I should have quit teaching a long time ago! Plus I'm over half way to my goal of 50 Books off the shelf that were there on 1/1/12.
Course, I keep buying more...

Somehow, Mike, I don't see myself taking the end of the year off. Especially if I'm going to Joplin in November!

Ooh, I'll have to look for that, Joe. I really did like the poem, so I'm sure I would like that too. And I don't think you'll be sorry for reading The Song of Achilles. Richard really picked a great one to laud!

No hurry, Sandy. You've got 4 more days before we start discussing.....I liked it the way I like all of Woodrell's stuff. Horrible, but in a well-written way.

Is anyone not reading The Song of Achilles? Even Stephen is going to read it.. I am still holding out..

not me yet. I have a sort of skin allergy to books that sound too - something - sentimental? I'm probably wrong about this, but it will take me some time to get to it.

Hi Terri. I haven't started that "horrible" book either. I feel much the same way about Woodrell's work. I can't believe he's such a pleasant person in the flesh! It was kind of chilling when he said something about picking up some of his best ideas watching people in the grocery store.

#161 He sounds like a fascinating person to talk to at a party!

Oh, Kath and Judy--read it, don't read it. If I had a nickel for every book on my "Highly recommended--read right away!" list, I could quit work. You can't read everything that everyone is reading!

Donna, Sandy, get on the ball. Time's a-wastin'! You know, when my cousin & I saw him last year, and she told him that they hung out together in 8th grade, they carried on the most interesting conversation for a good 20 minutes. He was just so personable. And the stories he tells about his Ozark neighbors. Wow. Anyway, after that pleasant conversation, we sat and watched Winter's Bone. Hard to reconcile the two...but Woe to Live On is good. They have a Missouri in the Civil War exhibit at the History Museum in Forest Park. I really need to go see that.

Missouri in the Civil War exhibit at the History Museum in Forest Park -- that sounds great - is it a regular exhibit or temporary? I'd love to see that one.

Happy Eastre's Day.

Sandy, it will be there until mid-March of 2013. They also have a website about the Civil War in MO: http://www.civilwarmo.org/
Last year I went to an author signing for a book called Friend and Foe Alike: A Tour Guide to Missouri's Civil War. I had intended to read it along with Woe to Live On but forgot. I've pulled it out & put it on the Short Stack (which gets taller all the time). And it actually is a tour guide, with five "loops" through the state. My dream at the time was to follow all those loops, but I haven't gotten to that either. I'm still trying to fill up my MO Winery Passport!

Wow, Richard, those look like some of the eggs my boys have decorated over the years...

I *adore* the title Woe to Live On.

Berly put that GIF up. I cannot resist it, it so perzackly expresses my feelings about this day.

Yeah, not only does our Daniel Woodrell come up with some great books, he does pretty well in the title department too. Why they would have changed the movie name to "Ride With the Devil" is beyond me. I guess they thought no one would come to see a movie called Woe to Live On.

Winter's Bone.
The Death of Sweet Mister.
Tomato Red.

Fabulous.

Settles in to wait for Terri... must learn more about coconut toast.

Waiting with you kath, coconut toast sounds good!

Just posted the instructions on Kath's thread! Enjoy! I know I will.

OMGOMGOMG coconut toast is BEYOND fabulous I ran downstairs and made some OMG it's DIVINE and now I'm gonna weigh 400lb by Thursday.

And I Don't Care.

It sounds so fantabulously lusciously yummy~ Thank you so much!

>173 mckait: It's better than that. It's better than sex. It's better than winning the lottery.

Don't get crazy.....it is not better than winning the lottery...I mean it's really good
but lottery is lottery is lots of $$$$$$$$

If you want to save calories, you can just mix the Eagle brand and the coconut and drop by tablesppons onto parchment paper or foil on the pan and bake at 400F for about 10-12 minutes. Even better with chopped apricots thrown in but still delicious.!

175: THe same could be true for sex, if you know what you're doing! ...but yeah, I agree with you I think. :P

I told you so. This is why I'm Daddy's favorite. And it's pretty darned easy to make. As nearly as I remember, it's better than sex, but better than winning the lottery? I'm with Kath on that one.

Tina, it's coconut toast. Why on earth would you want to save calories! Although I'll bet your recipe would be good if they were dipped in chocolate after baking....I'm not a big apricot fan, but I think that Eagle Brand and coconut baked would be good with ANYTHING thrown in. I like the crunchiness of the toast part too.

Maybe you, Stephen, but the only way I'd get paid for sex is to promise to leave them alone. Maybe I'll go make some more coconut toast...

47. If I Stay by Gayle Forman. A YA book recommended by my good friend Linda. Sigh. Why are all these young adult books so sad? But, it is very good. 17 year-old Mia is in a coma, and we hear from her standpoint what her life has been up to now, and what is going on around her, as she makes the decision whether to stay or go. Sniff.

48. The Color Purple by Alice Walker. I grabbed this off the "Take One, Leave One" shelf at work because one of my nieces asked me if I had ever read it, since she was reading it for school. I couldn't let her one-up me, now, could I? So I read it. They've come a long way if they're letting them read this in high school! I didn't care for it much at the beginning, but as I read, I enjoyed it more and more. Again, sad, but uplifting all the same. I have got to find a happy book...

The Color Purple ! I read that one several times... I loved it!

Did you find a happy book?

49. Ruined by Reading: A Life in Books by Lynne Sharon Schwartz. A long essay about Ms. Schwartz' life of books. Sometimes interesting, and some great book recommendations, but no chapter breaks, and there was quite a bit of bouncing from subject to subject. It was a good read, but not as well put together as I would have liked.

50. Then Again by Diane Keaton. It can't decide if it is an autobiography or a biography of her mother. Interesting enough, but made up of diary fragments, and it became confusing to know who was speaking, even though her mother's journal notes were italicized. It wasn't horrible, just difficult to read

Is my compulsion to be organized coming across here?

51. Life: The 60s by Doris C. O'Neil. A retrospective of the 60s, with photos from Life Magazine and some narrative, loosely divided into 8 sections: Civil Rights, The Kennedy Years, Music, Protest, Fads and Fashions, Space, 1968, and Vietnam. I was too young in the 60s to be much more than an onlooker, but I was an impressionable onlooker nonetheless, and I remember all of this stuff. I was a member of the first high school graduating class that didn't have to worry about the draft, and I believe that a lot of who I am is because of that. So this was a fabulous read for me. And the pictures, although some somber, were really great.

Whew, caught up but oh boy, ye olde wishlist has plumped out quite a bit: The Kitchen Boy, in particular. I read The Wasteland every decade or so and like you, find much more each reading. Like you as well, I find the era between the wars fascinating for its effect on the women who were "left".

Glad to help keep your wishlist from deteriorating, Tui!

Hi Terri- I love your book reading choices. I have the audio of Then again and might squeeze it in soon. I've been a fan of Keaton for a long time.
I have still not read Woodrell. Sad I know. I do have a nice copy of The Bayou Trilogy waiting in the crowded wings.
I hope you are having a nice day.

Thanks, Mark! I expect you will like Woodrell (at least his writing--his subject matter is a little off-the-map sometimes).

I wish I loved your book reading choices less--every time I hit your thread I'm adding more to my list!

Have a great week!

52. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield. Very rarely do I start a book and stay up until I'm finished with it. But that's what I did last night with this book.
The first Sunday in June is always reunion day for the Moses family of Arkansas. Like it or not, Willadee Moses Lake and her three kids are driven up from Louisiana by her preacher husband Samuel, who can't stay because because if falls at the same time as the annual Methodist conference, where he will learn where his post will be for next year. It sounds kind of hokey to start, but the reunion takes a turn for the worse, and when Samuel comes to pick up his family, he tells them that he no longer has a congregation. They stay in town with the rest of the family while life happens.
Without spoiling the story, it's hard to describe what makes this book so good. The characters are flawed, and they make mistakes (some enormous ones), and it's not a sappy happily ever after story. Just a really good, compelling read. Highly recommended.

53. Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine. Another great book, about a young girl with Asperger's Syndrome whose brother is killed in a school shooting, leaving her with just her father, who is too broken to help her with what she needs. Between an understanding school counselor, and her own wits, Caitlyn turns out to be the salvation of the whole community. I listened to the audiobook, which was FABULOUSLY read by Angela Jayne Rogers. Thanks, Other Terri, for the great rec from way back in 2010!

"The Other Terri" is glad you enjoyed Mockingbird, Terri! :)

*waving* at Terri

Wow... both of those sound good...

Both of them ARE good, Kath. And not nearly as sad as some of the other books I've been reading this month!

Stasia, your wave is on your thread.

Hey, OT!! Good to see you!

54. Dog On It by Spencer Quinn. First in a "mystery" series narrated by Chet the dog. Sometimes, these animal narrations don't work so well. This one did. Bernie is a divorced private investigator. Chet helps, sometimes, when he's not distracted by shiny objects. This time, they've been hired to investigate the disappearance of a teen-aged girl. I love Chet.

55. Alone in the Kitchen With An Eggplant edited by Jenni Ferrari-Adler. My friend picked up this book at a rummage sale we were attending and said, "Here. Buy this and loan it to me when you're done" (it was a quarter and she knew I would finish it before her). I wasn't sure at first--I didn't want to read some "poor single me" story. But I did it.
This is a collection of essays, some written at the request of the editor, some reprinted with permission. by 26 writers and foodies, talking about what they cook/eat when they are cooking only for themselves or dining out alone (which I still haven't fully mastered, after 20 years). Really an interesting book. Some do it up fancy, some eat scrambled eggs. But the stories are great fun, and since this was my "kitchen book" (the one that stays on the kitchen table, to be read when I'm-surprise!-eating alone), I will now have to go on a diet, because I kept finding more to eat so I could keep reading!

Hi Friend!

Mockingbird is long on the TBR pile. I'll try to get to it soon.

Hugs!

You will like Mockingbird Linda--it's right up your alley! Great to see you again--hope you're doing well!

And I've just finished the audiobook of one of your recommendations from way back in 2010!

56. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin. Audiobook was a fabulous way to read this book. Minli lives with her Ma and Ba in a poor village, where they work all day in the rice field and come home to only rice for dinner. Her father tells her delightful stories Magistrate Tiger and The Old Man of the Moon and Jade Dragon. One night, she decides to go to Neverending Mountain to find The Old Man of the Moon, and ask him how they can change their fortune. The journey is long, and filled with adventures and more stories, and the final effect is absolutely delightful!

Terri...I highly recommend that you find a hardcopy of Where The Mountain Meets the Moon. It is a sheer delight for the eyes...and soul!

Just got back from a wonderful three-hour breakfast with my friend Sandy! SO glad you let me know you'd be close!

Linda--you win. I can imagine it would be!

Hi Terri- Hope you are having a great weekend. I still can't get over that your son is such a big Kurosawa fan. Very cool. Is he a reader too?

That was the shortest 3 hours I've spent in a very long time! The meal was good, but the company was the best. I'm glad you were free.

Mark, he's not as much of a reader as I am, but he has his spurts. Lately he's on a Game of Thrones kick. Since he doesn't drive, he's discovered the audio books for his iPod for his walks to school & work, and he has special pizzas that he eats when he watches the show. He's kind of weird that way, but he does no harm, so I leave him alone. I asked him about the movies you mentioned as favorites. His favorites are Seven Samurai and High & Low. But he said the one you mentioned (Yojimbo?) was the first one he watched that got him hooked on Kurosawa. Funny. Maybe I'll drag him to Chicago some day and you can meet him.

I agree, Sandy. It was so much fun! I'm glad you thought to ask me if I was free!

Terri- The kid's got great taste. We just watched the latest episode of Game of Thrones. It was so good. I've read and loved all 5 books. I listened & read the last book and the audio works pretty good. You just have to keep track of the endless characters.

57. The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, or Murder at Road Hill House by Kate Summerscale. A true story of the murder of a child in 1860 in England. An interesting tale, but in the end, kind of anticlimactic. The detective accuses someone early in the investigation, but they are let off, and his reputation is tarnished. This really wasn't as much a mystery story as it was a comparison to the new genre of detective novels introduced at this time.

58. Stop The Train! by Geraldine McCaughrean. A cute little story about a group of people homesteading in Florence, Oklahoma, and stymied by the fact that the railroad company refuses to stop there. It seemed like a YA book, although I don't think it was labeled as such. Or maybe it was and I didn't notice.

59. The Presidencies of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler by Norma Lois Peterson. I needed something more to flesh out these two presidents. This, although long, fit the bill.

60. Wonder by R. J. Palacio. August (Auggie) Pullman is going to school for the first time ever, into fifth grade. Auggie was born with a deformed face, and because of all the surgeries he has needed, his mother home-schooled him up till now. This was a great book, told alternately from the points of view of Auggie, his sister, her friend, and several of the friends that he makes at school. It was great to read one person's narrative of an event, then read the others and find out how easy it is to misinterpret things, especially when you're a child or a teenager. A very quick read and highly recommended.

Linda is quite right about Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, Terry--the physical layout and illustrations of the paper book are marvelous and just add to the atmosphere of the story.

Oooh, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is coming up on one of my lists; I'm glad to hear such good things about it!

I loved Wonder, Terri, and I'm glad you liked it so much. I have Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, and you've inspired me to move it up the tbr.

Okay, Roni, you guys have convinced me to find a copy. I may even buy one. *Sigh*

I think you'll like it Amber. It was excellent.

Oh, good, Joe. I hadn't seen a lot about Wonder before I read it, but I really did like it a lot, and I'm glad to see I'm not alone. If you have Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, you should read it. Especially if the pictures are as great as Roni & Linda make them out to be! It was good even without pictures!

TLo darling...a book for you...Tall Tales with Short Cocks...$2.99 on Kindle, and who can resist such a title?!?!

I wrote an enormous post the other day, then lost it. I was so mad that I couldn't get back on the computer for several days.

So.

Richard, you know me. I cannot resist such a title, so it is now sitting on my Kindle for PC. I've started it (but I was mad at the computer, so I haven't gotten far). Definitely a noir feeling so far...too early to tell what direction I'll go with it. But thanks for the rec! Even when I don't like something you recommend, I always come away glad to have been exposed to it. I'll keep you posted!

And I've been doing quite a bit of reading, too.

61. The Warden by Anthony Trollope. A fun little regency about the kindly old warden of a hospital for elderly gentlemen, his loving daughter, and the man she loves, who is leading a campaign against her father's wardenship. I love the author's asides, and the story is sweet with a moral.

62. Lysistrata by Aristophanes. An anonymous translation of the Greek play. They were a randy bunch, those Greeks! Good fun.

63. Seventy-Seven Clocks by Christopher Fowler. Arthur Bryant and John May try to learn why the members of an upper-class guild family are being systematically murdered. A bit gory, but still, I love Arthur Bryant, and it's a great (although complex) story. And Tim Goodman, who has been narrating the books, does a fabulous job with the voices. Great series.

64. Making Mischief: A Maurice Sendak Appreciation by Gregory Maguire. Read in memory of Mr.Sendak on the day of his death. :-( With Sendak's permission, Maguire has compared some of his illustrations with some of the great artists that Sendak admired. The narrative is interesting, but looking at the pictures is the very best part!

65. I Am A Pole (And So Can You!) by Stephen Colbert. Another In Memoriam. A little while back, Colbert had Maurice Sendak on his show, and it was about the funniest thing I've ever seen. Keith is a HUGE Colbert & Sendak fan, so he pre-ordered this book right away, and it was delivered, coincidentally enough, on the day Mr. Sendak passed. Sendak had provided several blurbs ("Terribly, supremely ordinary"). Just a nice little children's book about a pole, searching for his purpose in life. My five year old granddaughter LOVED it. Me too.

66. A Handbook of American Prayer: A Novel by Lucius Shepard. A Concord Free Press publication. Interesting story of a man in prison for murder, who begins writing prayers (although not ordinary prayers) that seem to work. When he gets out, he publishes his book of prayers, and develops a huge following, earning the wrath of a televangelist. It doesn't sound exciting, but it was actually very good.

Heh. I've always wondered why women aren't modeling their lives after the plot of Lysistrata. The world would look mighty different!

Looking forward to your views of Tall Tales with Short Cocks!

I agree, Richard. We just don't put our foot (or whatever) down hard enough or often enough. And still working on TTWSC--I'm don't like reading on the computer, so I have to make myself do it. But I will, hopefully this weekend when I'm not as wiped out as I've been after work this week.

67. Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson. I know, Richard, but I like her books!
Jackson Brodie's client has requested that he help her find her birth parents. It's not as easy as it sounds. As usual, Kate Atkinson intertwines multiple stories that all come together at the end, and the fun is in watching how it happens, and trying to outguess poor Jackson.

The Sendak appreciation sounds really interesting. You've been on a tear! I'm finding it hard to keep up with reading now that gardening season has arrived. Read the Aristophanes about 40 or so years ago and can't remember it much. The Classics Society produced The Wasps back then too and I remember really enjoying it.

>210 tloeffler:: Hi Terri, I like the Kate Atkinson books too. I'm looking forward to hunting for some new book treasures with you at the JoCo Booksale in KC next month. I hope they have enough Daniel Woodrell books for both of us. ;-)

Tui, it's amazing how much reading I can get done when I keep myself away from the computer! I'll have to look into The Wasps.

Donna, you can't imagine how much I am looking forward to JoCo! I spent my whole Friday evening mapping & hotel-searching. I hope they have enough Woodrell too, because you know I will arm-wrestle you for them! And if I convince my cousin to come along, it will be a three-way. She's a bigger fan than we are, since she knew him in grade school and had a huge crush on him!

68. Floyd and the Future Frog by Paul Cook. A book for children (8-12 years, I'd guess) by a local author. Floyd finds what he thinks is a watch shaped like a frog, and once attached to his arm, he can't remove it. Suddenly text messages start appearing on the frog which seem to forewarn of coming events. Floyd is followed by a creepy man determined to get the frog.
It's a fun story, with the usual 5th grade hijinks and a little bit of faith mixed in (but not a lecture like some "Christian" books).

Hey, I got no kick with folks liking authors I don't! I just don't respond well to La Atkinson.

Floyd sounds like a hoot!

It really is a cute book, Richard. And the author was cute too, although (alas) happily married.

69. The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri. Speaking of Richard...your name is attached to this book as "recommended by." Well done, sir! An enjoyable start to a series, although I worried at the beginning when there were sentences a page long (exaggeration, but still). They got better, though, and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

YAY! Montalbano is a terrific character. He wears well. So glad you liked it!

70. The Remains of Company D by James Carl Nelson. A bit of a twist on the usual histories of WWI. Nelson's grandfather was wounded at Soissons in 1918, and based on him minimal knowledge of that, he has researched the entirety of Company D and tells of their lives before the war, during the specific battles they fought, and the ultimate fate of each of them. Never read anything like it. Fabulous. But sad.

On balance, I think it's too sad for my current mood of hopeless misery lightened up with flashes of acute angst.

No, it wouldn't be a book that would cheer you up. Back to Short Cocks with you.

Terri- Glad you liked Started Early & The Shape of Water. I read them both this month too and enjoyed them. Have a great weekend!

Thank you, Mark! I hope that your holiday is awesome as well!

And everybody else, too! Me? I'm sitting on my tail all weekend and not allowing any thoughts of work to enter my head. When they do, they are immediately put on paper and tucked away somewhere till Tuesday.

Oh, and I finished some books.

71. Being Perfect by Anna Quindlen. I just really like Anna Quindlen. This is a short and sweet, and very down-to-earth guide to life. Look at the choices you make every day, and why you are making them, and make sure the answer is always "because they are what I want, or wish for. Because they reflect who and what I am." Hear, hear. But you should still read the book, because it has some great pictures!

72. A Tour Guide to Missouri's Civil War: Friend and Foe Alike by Gregory Wolk. Gregory Wolk is a local lawyer and the president of Missouri's Civil War Heritage Foundation, and he wrote this book for the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. Did you know that, next to Virginia and Tennessee, Missouri had the most Civil War battles of any other state? So. Wolk has divided the state into 5 "tour loops" with a few connecting loops, and created 5 detailed tours of Civil War sites, including directions, maps, short biographies of the players, and a wonderful running narrative of the war in Missouri, including many of the guerrilla conflicts (and there were a lot). I can't say that I ever really thought of Missouri in terms of the Civil War, and I've lived here all my life. Shame on me.

So, my new goal is to someday follow all those tours, and in the process, get to know my home state a little bit better. Plus, I compared his maps to my MO winery maps and I can kill two birds with one stone! (Why? because it is what I want to do. It reflects who and what I am.)

Speaking of MO wineries, Richard, I visited St. James winery in person for the first time a few weeks ago. Marvelous! I thought of you, and toasted you with my Norton tasting.

May 23, 11:06pm
On balance, I think it's too sad for my current mood of hopeless misery lightened up with flashes of acute angst.

I think I have that too.... with complications :-/

Books look very interesting! Glad you are having some good reads... and the tours sound like a wonderful idea. I have two of my sons in your neighborhood this weekend! My oldest is visiting his brother, and they are ...probably getting ready to go to the ren faire..

Cheer up, guys!!!

There. That should do it.

I thought of you, Kath, when I saw an advertisement for the Ren Faire this week. You should have joined them. Then we could have found a winery after and........

....gotten another stamp on my wine passport. Oh. And drink too.

:) maybe next time~

You always say that....

73. Clair de Lune by Jetta Carleton. June Selection for the Missouri Readers Group.
It's 1941, and Allen Liles is beginning her first teaching job at a junior college in a small southwest Missouri town. She has dreams of going to New York, but for now, this is where she's at. She's twenty-five, and a bit of a free spirit, and this leads her, in innocence, to put her job and entire career in jeopardy.
Jetta Carleton's Moonflower Vine is one of my very favorite books of all time, so it goes without saying that this one did not hit the standard. It was enjoyable enough, and well-written, but it just didn't come together for me. The impending war, which tries to be a bit player, falls flat in the face of Allen's behavior (really? she didn't know that what she was doing was improper?). There is redemption in the end, when Allen finally realizes that she is "the gambler's daughter" and that sometimes taking a chance beats security.
Worth reading for Carleton's wonderful way with language, but a weak story.

hmmm true, that.... maybe sometime it will happen?

>222 tloeffler:: Terri, if and when you visit Wilson's Creek, I'll be glad to join you. It's been years since I've been there.

Re: Clair de lune...guess they all can't be 5-star books. I had high hopes for this one. Oh well, the cover is pretty. Are we going to have our Missouri Readers discussion in person next month?

Kath, I will believe it when I see you on my front porch!

I thought about that, Donna. We could, except Linda P wouldn't be there, and she was the most anxious to read the book! Unfortunately, I don't see us NOT talking about it when we're together. We could move it up to the Monday before. What do you think?

And in the back of my head, I was thinking that I would try to combine the southwest Tour Loop (#5) with Joplin this year. I can start in Springfield & we can do Wilson's Creek, then I can "take the long way" to Joplin, down to
Cassville, then up to Purdy, over to Newtonia & Granby, and on to Joplin. On my way home, I can head up Carthage way, then east on 96, and back home!

74. River of Darkness by Rennie Airth. My spreadsheet says that Stephen recommended this one. Good call, young man. This is the first book in the John Madden mystery series (another good series, dang it). This takes place shortly after WWI, in a small village, where a family has been brutally murdered in their own home. Madden doesn't accept the "burglary gone awry" theories of his Scotland Yard superiors, and uses the help of the fledgling psychological profiling industry, while battling his own leftover war demons.

I finished it--400+ pages--in one sitting? Must have been good! Thank you, Stephen!

Oh Terri.. I would love that !

What would you love, Kath? Being on my front porch? Doing the MO Civil War thing? River of Darkness? All of them? Probably all of them!

well.. I assume that you would let me in?

Ah, I guessing you saw it on my thread and added it to your wishlist without any prodding from me, seeing as how I gave it 3 stars. I remember liking it though.

Hmmm, seems I read it in 2010. Oh how I love Librarything and how it allows me to quickly access such information.

Or we could sit in chairs on the porch & have some gin & lemonade and pet Cleo the Attack Dog. Or you could come in. Especially if it was raining.

Well, you must have said something, Stephen. I probably didn't get any further than seeing "World War I." Regardless, it's been on my list a long time. And now it's off, and the rest of the series is on. So thanks, I guess.

Well, I'm glad you liked it and I'm happy I have had an impact on your list. Muahahaha...

Okay. Either. Both. I like rain :)

Terri, what a busy little reader you've been!

I picked up Clair de Lune at the library yesterday. It has a nice cover, but I was skeptical about it - I feel a little vindicated, but sorry to hear that it does not measure up to Moonflower. An in-person discussion sounds wonderful. Unfortunately, we'll be on the wrong side of the state, since Linda P will be in St Louis at the same time we're all in KC. Maybe we can get her on a speaker phone or something.

Glad you like Montalbano - one of my favorite characters. I still love the sound of the Missouri Civil War book. And River of Darkness is going on MY list as recommended by "tloeffler".

Two weeks from today!

Oh, Stephen, you have no idea of your impact.....

Some day, Kath, some day...

You know, Sandy, it's amazing what you can accomplish when you only have to work at one job! Clair de Lune is another one (like the re-release of Moonflower Vine) where I felt the cover had nothing to do with the book. Who picks these things?
Great idea--we'll call Linda while we're at lunch!

I'll bring the Civil War book with me to KC, but just for you to look at! We'll need to use it on our drive home!
Can't Wait!

Oh, Almost Forgot!!! Can I get a drum roll?

75!!! Mobs, Mayhem & Murder: Tales from the St. Louis Police Beat by Tim O'Neil of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A great coffee table book (if that's the sort of thing you want on your coffee table) comprised of, well, Tales from the St. Louis Police Beat. From the 1830's to 2008, a page or two about some notorious crimes (and some not so notorious). Divided into 7 Sections, including National Headlines, Love Gone Bad, Unsolved, Gangland, Greed, Cold-Blooded, and, of course, Politics. There are pictures and maps. I remember some of the stories, which is kind of fun. A very interesting read!

Sometime when I get around to it, I'll celebrate with a new thread...

Woohoo! Congrats!

In other news today:

Keith finally talked me into ordering my very first iPhone. "Don't get the top of the line--you won't be able to figure out how to use it." Thank you for your confidence, my son.

I also purchased 2 season tickets to the Broadway Series at The Fabulous Fox today, which means I've got two tickets to The Book of Mormon without having to work for them. Gee, I wonder who I'll take to that show? Someone who respects his mother...

Thank you Stephen! I'm very proud of myself.

Awww, c'mon, smartphones are very intuitive, surely you can go with the shiny one. ;)

I don't know, even the bottom of the line looked pretty shiny to an old fogey like me....

Fine, fine, if that's your choice. Hey, I like women that settle for less, personally. *Belches and scratches*

You have an iPhone now? You will love it. You will hate yourself for loving it.
Download words with friends ! :)

I'd love to browse through the Missouri civil war book. And, since my purse is too small to hide books in, you're pretty much assured of getting it back!

Congratulations on reading 75 books!

The older I get, Stephen, the less I care about pretty much anything except myself....not that I cared that much about anything but myself before I was old.

I don't have it yet, Kath, just ordered. I'm very nervous. For an IT manager, I'm unbelievably naive about technology. I kept asking my son stupid questions, like "Will I be able to see my book inventory when I'm in a book fair so I don't buy duplicates?" or "Will I be able to access my spreadsheet of books I want to buy so I don't miss something important?" And incidentally, "Will I be able to read my work email when I'm not there?" And I was still paying 20 cents per for text messages. Not that I sent a lot, but everyone sent them to me, not imagining that I didn't have a data plan.

Keith is especially excited, since now that we have a data plan, he can an iPhone too. He already had a text message plan, so he was the one sending me most of the text messages I got! And he knew I had to pay! Silly boy.

xoxo

I am still learning things about mine. We did not get Siri. I put my foot down.
But there are still voice commands that it will take...
I only have one book on the phone, since I can access the internet, it doesn't seem to matter
for short times out. If I will be out for longer, I take nook.

Let me know how you like it !

The older I get, Stephen, the less I care about pretty much anything except myself....not that I cared that much about anything but myself before I was old.

Well, we all know you aren't self-centered, so you must be just especially care-aboutable. :)

Congrats on hitting 75 books and on getting an iphone! I love my iphone!

xoxo right back at Richard!

I don't think I have Siri either. My boss has it, and she & I have a great time playing with it, but I already talk back to my GPS. I'm afraid we'd argue.
Book? I could put a book on the phone? Think how much lighter my purse would be if my "purse book" was in my phone! Wow!

I'm sorry to disillusion you, Stephen, but I am extremely self-centered. I care about other people too, but when it gets down to decision time, it's all about me. There may be times when I think it's in my best interests to let someone else have their way, but I learned a long time ago that if I don't think I'm exceptional, no one else will. My daughter-in-law says "You Leos..."

Thanks, Chelle! I'm pretty excited about both of them (although still a little nervous about the iPhone...).

Congrats!

Thanks, Jim!