tymfos sails through more books in 2012 -- voyage 2

Well, it's February and time for another thread.






I'm also doing the 12 in 12 category Challenge.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/127962#t

Here are my 12 in 12 Challenge Golden Oldies Hit Parade Categories and some ideas as to kinds of books that might fit each category.

1. American Pie - Don McLean (for all things USA)
2. Color My World - Chicago (world literature, world history, and books with colors in titles)
3. Jambalaya (On the Bayou) - Jo Stafford (James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux books will fit here, along with other books set around New Orleans or other bayou areas)
4. What's Goin' On? - Marvin Gaye (Current events and mysteries)
5. Help! -- The Beatles (disaster-related, and maybe some crime-related, books)
6. King of the Road - Roger Miller (Stephen King books would fit here; travel books might work, too; anything about royalty)
7. Spooky - Classics IV (self-explanatory)
8. On and On - Stephen Bishop (for series)
9. Doctor, Doctor - Thompson Twins (for books with a doctor in the house!)
10. Magical Mystery Tour - The Beatles (for more assorted mysteries)
11. The Winner Takes it All - Abba (sports & award-winning books)
12. Spirit in the Sky - Norman Greenbaum (religion/spirituality)
and also a catchall for things that don't fit:
Anything at All - The Beatles (miscellaneous)

I'm also doing the BOMBS (Books Off My Book Shelves) challenge for 2012, with a goal of reading AT LEAST 53 books from my shelves this year.




Books acquired this year, with an attempted limit of 53, and an even more sincere attempt to not get more than I actually read off the shelf this year:


(note the snake and apple, symbolizing temptation, as in the 3rd chapter of the book of Genesis),

I've decided to do the "side challenge" on the 12 in 12 category challenge: one book for each month that includes the name (or maybe number) of the month in the title or author (and, in at least one case, I'm probably using a series name).

January: Graveyard Dust: a Benjamin January Mystery by Barbara Hambly

I'll probably also continue to have monthly themes, or at least give special emphasis to certain topics in certain months. I'm almost certain of these ones:

January -- First things First!
February -- Terrible Two's -- and special February occasions!
Mystery March (or is it March murder & mayhem, and Mystery May?)
Autism Awareness April
May Murder and Mayhem

September Series & Sequels
Halloween Read for October

I plan to include most of this info on my book posts:

Title:
Author:
Copyright/Year of original publication:
Subject:
Setting:
Series:
Dates Read:
Number of pages:
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?:
Category for 12 in 12 challenge:
How does it fit the category?
Alternate category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit?
My Rating:
Notes:

Books read in January

1 Think of a Number by John Verdon (AUDIO)
2 Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter
3 Dixie City Jam by James Lee Burke
4 Iron House by John Hart (AUDIO)
5 Graveyard Dust: a Benjamin January mystery, by Barbara Hambly
6 Sin Boldly: A Field Guide for Grace by Cathleen Falsani
7. Winter Blues by Norman E. Rosenthal
8. The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney
9. Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon
10 The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie (AUDIO)
11 The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill

abandoned
Weird Tales, Vol. 1, by E.T. Hoffman -- trans. from the German (e-book, deleted from e-reader along with Vol. 2!)

Books finished in February
12 He Who Fears the Wolf by Karin Fossum (E-BOOK)
13 The Fitzgerald Ruse by Mark de Castrique (AUDIO)
14 Drowning in Oil by Loren C. Steffy (non-fiction / current events)
15 Birds of a Feather By Jacquiline Winspear (fiction)
16 The Cypress House by Michael Koryta
17 Dead to You by Lisa McMann
18 Between Heaven and Mirth Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, by James Martin (E-BOOK)
19 The Great American Gamble: How the 1979 Daytona 500 Gave Birth to a NASCAR Nation, by Joe Menzer ("Speed Weeks" read!)
20 At the Altar of Speed: the Fast Life and Tragic Death of Dale Earnhardt, by Leigh Montville
21 The Civil War: A Narrative, Vol. 2: Fredericksburg to Meridian by Shelby Foote

Books finished in March
22 Appalachia: a Self-Portrait ed. by Wendy Ewald
23 Boundary Waters by William Kent Krueger (fiction -- 2nd in Cork O'Connor series)
24 Red Bones by Ann Cleves (3rd in Shetland Quartet)
25 Butchers Hill by Laura Lippman
26 He Chose the Nails by Max Lucado (devotional)
27 When the Devil Holds the Candle by Karin Fossum
28 Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin (non-fiction -- Spring Training read)
29 The Dirty Secrets Club by Meg Gardiner (AUDIO)
30 The Gods of Gotham by Lindsay Faye

currently reading
And the Angels Were Silent by Max Lucado (devotional, e-book)
Sherman's March by Burke Davis (non-fiction -- March Month read)
I Was Right On Time by Buck O'Neil
The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

SOME STATS:

Books Off My (TBR) Book Shelf (BOMBS): 17

regular? 17
e-books?
audios?

Books Acquired 2012:

Purchases: 10
New: 5
Used: 5
ER: 2
Gifts: 7
Freebies: 0

Total: 19

regular: 19
e books?
audios?

Ratio BOMBS read/total books acquired: 17/19

---------------------------------------------------------------

more stats

Borrowed Books Read: 13

Library 12
Friends 1

regular:6
e-books: 2
audios: 5

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Total books read: 30

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Fiction: 20
Non-Fiction: 10

US authors: 22
non-US authors: 8

male authors: 14
female authors: 16

It's worth noting that, as of 2/2/12, my newly acquired books are all non-fiction, whereas my reading has been mostly fiction. What's wrong with this picture?

Congrats on shiny new thread Terri. Happy to be the first to drop by

Hi, Paul, thanks for dropping by. I do wish you'd waited until I was done with the place holders. ;)

Oh, I guess that will do anyway.

ETA to add Sorry to complain. I just thought I was so darn clever with that (temporary) construction graphic. Silly me! All guests are welcome!!!

Terri....so sorry I was in such a rush to be first to post I overlooked your request not to do so until it was too late....I only noticed when I scrolled back up to go back to the group page.

It's OK, Paul, really. I think I've got enough room to fit my top-of-thread stuff. Yeah! We're good. :-D

Phew! *RELIEVED MOPPING OF BROW*

Don't sweat it! :)

I always get hyper about starting a new thread. I need to chill out a bit. I think I've got it together now. The tickers are working, and I've even added a Valentine picture . . . a photo I took of some cookies I baked last Valentine's Day!

Can I have a cookie? I know they are not on my diet, but they look excellent (and chocolate free, a bonus!)

Oh, Stasia, they are definitely NOT chocolate free -- at least the real ones weren't. And the photo probably doesn't taste very good.

Kath, love the cardinal!

75 Challenge book #12
Title: He Who Fears the Wolf
Author: Karin Fossum
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1997
Subject: insanity, bank robbery, murder
Setting: rural Norway
Series: Inspector Sejer
Dates Read: 2-1-2012 through 2-2-2012
Number of pages: 271
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, library download
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: What's goin' on?
How does it fit the category? mystery -- and really starts out with reader wondering what is going on!
Alternate category color my world or any mystery/series category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Terrible Two's / book is 2nd in series
My Rating:4.2 stars
Notes:

The book was great! The initial chapter or so had me scratching my head because it was clearly told from a mentally ill person's point of view; soon the narration became a bit more conventional and the mystery drew me in and I could barely put it down.

It's a really neat mystery involving a murder, a bank robbery, an escaped mental patient, a bank robber, and a troubled kid with a bow and arrow. All the people and crimes manage to intersect. The result is a suspenseful treat for the reader.

I almost gave this 4.5 stars, but dropped it because of the last paragraph. Just when one thought everything was settled, Fossum leaves the reader with a bit of unresolved suspense, though it's probably of a personal rather than crime-related nature.

I have yet to read a Karin Fossum, but I can see that I will have to give her a try. (Another new series!!!)

I've been getting the word out about Mystery March, Terri!

I need to get back to Fossum. I really enjoyed the book or two of hers that I've read.

Wow...I'm behind, but had to delurk to say your thread ALWAYS gives me good ideas on what to buy for the library. I've actually read 2 of your currents (the Winspear and the Mark de Castrique. BOth are parts of great series. Til later..............

Terri I'm here!
sorry I'm late....RL stuff and all
I have not read any Fossum, yet! These are series books but can they stand alone?
Sun- *fingers crossed*

Hi Terri, nice new shiny thread you've got. I haven't read anything by Karin Fossum but you are certainly tempting me. So many interesting series out there.

Hi Terri!
Maybe Karin Fossum could have given Faulkner a few tips. He started a book like that - but it never straightened out. The whole thing was mental, imho! Can't remember the name of it? :P

ETA - The Sound and the Fury :P~ That was the one.

I am not being drawn to either Fossum or Faulkner....and that suits me fine :)
So many other letters in the alphabet to pursue !

Ooh, lots of visitors since my last post. It'll take me a few posts to catch up here. . . :)

18 Fossum is definitely worth trying, Judy!

19 Lori, I've read two so far, and plan to continue -- maybe one per month?

20 Glad to help with the library decisions, Tina. Those are great series, though I'm struggling a bit with the Winspear right now. Just not in the right frame of mind for Maisie. The Blackman series audio book kept me company on a lengthy drive last night, coming home after a long out-of-town meeting.

21 Kara, I'd hardly call you late. This thread is just getting rolling! I've just read the first two of the Fossum series. I felt that the second could easily stand alone without having read the first -- and I don't remember any real spoilers for the first book, either.

I gave my husband his Valentine's Day gift early, so he'd have it for use during the Super Bowl: a NY Giants drinking glass. (He'll probably think his cola tastes better in it ;)

22 Bonnie, I think there are really quite too many good series out there! I do wish I had time to read more of them. Like it was embroidered on the sweater our assistant librarian wore to Staff Meeting the other day: So many books, so little time!

23 Cee, one of these days I'm going to read something by Faulkner. I have The Sound and the Fury sitting on my TBR shelf. In the right mood, I could read well-done crazy . . . . (In the right mood, I probably am well-done crazy.)

24 Kath, lots of letters . . . and words . . . and pages . . . and books . . . so many . . .

Getting way behind reading LT posts. Life is crazy right now.

Good news -- my library card from the Free Library of Philadelphia arrived, and I've taken a little time to explore their online e-book and audio offerings.

It's easy to get way behind on reading LT posts these days. I'm going through starred posts only at the moment tonight so that I can get a little reading in before bedtime. I had to work until 9 so I only got home about 20 minutes ago.

Wow, long hours for you today, Lori!

I rarely get beyond my starred threads these days, and fall way behind even on those.

I am a bit bummed out. I was able to check out & download items with my new Philadelphia library card; while the audio book transferred easily to my Mp3 player, I CANNOT get the e-book to transfer to my Sony Touch. If I want to read it, I guess I'll have to sit at my computer to do so. Not what I had in mind. . .

Popping in to say Hi! Love the cookie photo. How do you manage to keep track of all your stats? I was almost sort of contemplating keeping track of pages read and am not sure I can manage that!

31 Hi, Kim! Thanks!

I tried keeping track of pages read last year, and didn't manage it. Right now the stats are fairly easy because it's early in the year, the numbers are small, and I still remember the books that I've read pretty clearly. I suspect that as the year goes on my stats shall become less reliable, and I wouldn't be surprised if I abandon them altogether.

The one exception that I'm determined to keep track of is the ratio of books bought to books read from the TBR shelf, since one whole challenge I'm enrolled in is about that. But I already had to simplify my counting (count any book I own that I've read, rather than just the pre-2012 ones) in order to simplify keeping track of that ratio. I figure since the goal is to keep unread books from piling up on the shelf, any book I own that I read (however new) works toward that goal. If I read more from the shelf than I buy, I'm more or less on track.

Terri.. do you have adobe digital editions to do the book transfer from computer to sony?

Kath, I have Adobe Digital Editions installed and authorized, but when I donwload the book it's not opening in ADE -- it's opening in Reader for PC, which is the Sony Reader's software. It won't transfer to the e-reader from that; when I try, the program pretty much freezes up and I have to do CTRL+ALT+DEL to get out of it, then do an improper disconnect of my reader from the computer. (I lose all access to the button in Reader for PC that allows me to properly disconnect the reader.)

Also, when I open the Adobe Digital Editions program directly and try to import the book into the program from the file on my computer where it is saved, it acts as though the file isn't there, even after I've double-checked where the file is located.

It's all very discouraging. I've never had this much trouble with either our local library's e-books, nor with Carnegie's. They all have worked pretty well transferring from the Sony software.

Have you tried googling the problem?
IS it an epub? I had trouble transferring PDF to my nook..

Kath, it is PDF. I admit, I haven't done many of them -- tend to use the epub when possible. Think maybe I've had issues before but not this bad. I have not googled it; good idea, may do when I have time. Don't have time to hassle with it more right now.

Technology can be wonderful, but too often it is a pain.

Good luck!

Hi Terry - your review of the Fossum book reminds me I have one of hers out from the library and still have not got round to it - I haven't read any of hers yet but do hear good things about them.

And I noticed you read The Murder in the Vicarage recently. I have a coffee mug with the Penguin Classic Crime cover design for that title, which I bought last year at our London LT meet up, having read that book for the first time myself last year. I recently, without thinking, gave the mug to one half of a couple who had come to my vicarage to talk about getting married. He read the side of the mug and looked rather worried and unsure whether he should drink his tea!

37 LOL, Genny! Love the story -- and the mug! I hope you read (and like) the Fossum.

Hallelujah! After a lot of trial-and-error playing with my computer, I have (ta-da!) downloaded 2 e-books (1 each in PDF and epub formats) from the Free Library of Philadelphia and successfully transferred them to my reader.

It's just lovely that Pennsylvania has such wonderful reciprocal agreements between libraries, allowing people from all over the state who have a library card with an ACCESS sticker from their local library to apply for and receive cards from other libraries -- free of charge. (Of course, being a library fan, I'm planning to donate to the libraries I use regularly, wherever they may be.)

Yay for free ebook (and audiobooks) from the library! I get most of my content from the online library.

39 Hi! They are a great convenience, aren't they?

Well, I was doing really well keeping my books-read-off-the-shelf to books-acquired ratio in the proper balance. Then I went to Ollie's again last week and bought 3 books. Now, since I gave my hubby his Valentine early (a NY Giants pub glass, to enjoy with the Super Bowl), he has reciprocated and given me an early Valentine -- six books from my Amazon wish list. I'm lovin' the books -- but now I'm behind in my shelf ratio!

The haul:

From Ollies:
The Simple Faith of Mister Rogers by Amy Hollingsworth
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller
My Thoughts Be Bloody by Nora Titone

From hubby:
Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey (he knew I needed this ASAP for February's month-book sub-challenge)
Curse of the Narrows by Laura M. MacDonald
Now You See Me by S.J. Bolton
Harbour: A Novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist
And the Laugh Shall be First by William H. Willimon
Drowning in Oil: BP & the Reckless Pursuit of Profit, by Loren C. Steffy

I also received an LT ER book today:
The Gods of Gotham by Lyndsay Faye

So now my ratio is suddenly 11 books acquired vs. 7 books read. To make matters worse:
a) one of my off-the-shelf books this month is a 900-page chunkster that will take a long time to get through
b) I just got my new library card giving me access to the e-book and audiobook collection of the Free Library of Philadelphia; and I had to try it out to make sure I could successfully download and transfer material to my portables!

I think I am fighting an uphill battle.

ETA to add I keep typing the word "ration" instead of the word "ratio." Perhaps it's a Freudian slip, as deep down I know I must ration my book-buying!

75 Challenge Book #13
Title: The Fitzgerald Ruse (AUDIO book)
Author: Mark de Castrique
Copyright/Year of original publication:
Subject: murder, war profiteering, and other assorted nastiness
Setting: Asheville, North Carolina, USA
Series: Sam Blackman #2
Dates Read: finished 2/7/12
Number of pages: n/a (audio)
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, library loan download
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: On and On
How does it fit the category? series
Alternate category any mystery category, or even color my world (his name)
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Terrible Twos/ #2 in series
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes: Narrated by William Dufris

I love this series featuring former US Army Chief Warrant Officer Sam Blackman, who lost a leg in the Iraq conflict. I love the characters, the setting (Asheville, NC), the back-story. I love the way de Castrique manages to include explanations which make even obvious coincidences in the story make sense. It's fascinating to hear how Sam copes with life minus one leg -- how the prosthetics work, how he compensates for the lost leg in different situations. I also like the literary element that's included in each story, involving a famous author from Asheville's past.

As Sam and his partner Nakayla celebrate the opening of their new PI agency, they are hired by a homebound elderly lady to retrieve a lock box from her safe deposit box. Sam is also contacted by a former colleague from Iraq and warned that a ring of criminals they dealt with in their military work together is now gunning for them. Of course, before you know it, there's a body lying in Sam & Nakayla's new office -- and the story takes off. These are intelligent mysteries, but they have a fair amount of action, too. They are not cozies but not hard-boiled, mile-a-minute action tales, either; they contain moderate, but not excessive, violence.

I can hardly wait to get my hands on the third installment, The Sandburg Connection.

Hooray! Glad you managed to make the transfer...
Well done! I hate it when electronics defeat me !

Thanks, Kath! Have a great day!

#40 I don't think books that are given to you count as "purchased. " You can just put them in the bookcase and read them guilt-free under the "off the shelf" category. :)

Kim, I track all books "acquired," though I do separate them, in my statistics, into three sub-categories: purchased, gifts, and ER books. I have to keep a handle on all of the ones acquired, as (even with the purchase of a new bookcase last year) I am OUT of shelf space!

However, I will take your suggestion about dispensing with guilt over the gift goodies. :) And, even if I read them as soon as I get them, I count them as off-the-shelf (TBR shelf, at least) once they are read. I used to have a "purchased before this year" rule, but that is gone -- though I do aim to read at least 2 older books each month.

The big problem is that I keep too many of the blasted things after I read them. I rather fear that, one of these days, the house is going to collapse under the weight of all these books. At least I have them spread out around the house, to equalize the load a bit!

Ah! I am glad you have abandoned the "purchased before this year" rule. Whew! I was worried there. And, yes, I think books should be sprinkled all about the house. Purely for architectural safety reasons, of course!

books should be sprinkled all about the house.

Indeed!

75 Challenge Book #14
Title: Drowning in Oil: BP & the Reckless Pursuit of Profit
Author: Loren C. Steffy
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2011
Subject: BP safety issues & disasters, including the Deepwater Horizon / Macondo oil well blowout & Gulf oil spill and the Texas City BP oil refinery fire of March, 2005
Setting: Worldwide
Dates Read: finished 2/8/2012
Number of pages: 259 plus sources, notes, & index
Off the Shelf? Source?: Barely hit the shelf, but owned; gift
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Help!
How does it fit the category? disasters
Alternate category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? n/a
My Rating: 3.6 stars
Notes:

This was a pretty interesting account of BP operations and how their corporate culture may have led to some very public failures: the massive oil spil in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, and the Texas City refinery fire of 2005 being the most prominent. Sometimes I got the feeling that the writer had too much of an agenda. There were sections that I found a bit sketchy. But most of what he said fit with things I've read elsewhere. The account of BP history was a bit sketchy, but sufficient for the purposes of the book. The accounts of the disasters were gripping but not overdone. There were notes and a list of sources, but the author acknowledges using a number of anonymous sources inside and outside BP who were afraid to have their names known.

Hi Terri - I'm so glad to see you liked the Fossum book. I have the first two in the series here just waiting for me to read them.

Also glad to see you got your ebook download problem solved. Technology is wonderful when everything runs smoothly! I've had a nook color for about a year now and love it. This past Christmas someone gave me a Sony Reader and it's really starting to grow on me. I like that I can download books directly from my library e-account (the nook has to go through Adobe) and I can put my library ebooks on both readers at the same time.

Joanne, when I got my Sony, it had the old Reader Library software where the Adobe software was more prominently involved in the download process. Then I finally (and somewhat reluctantly) downloaded the new PC reader software, and am getting used to it -- it seems to work much better than the old software. But the old Sony Reader software was still on my computer. I think somehow that wasn't a good thing.

I still have the Adobe Digital Editions software on my computer -- the library says it's needed to use their site (though the books don't open in Adobe the way the library says they will -- they open in the Sony software). I don't know if the Adobe is still a required part of using the Sony with the new software for other downloads, as it was with the old. It doesn't seem to play an obvious role.

I love what technology can do, but I find it confusing.

I am such a slug. I do not have statistics...
just *read* or *not read*.. maybe some *want*.

I agree that I do not like random things on my computer..
it was with great reluctance that I put anything adobe related on my macbook.
I loathe all things adobe.

Simplicity is a good thing, Kath.

I have no strong feelings about things Adobe. It's the general state of technology that I can't keep up with.

technology issues drive me insane! new things make me nervous- like if I download something or click on something I'm going to screw something up and be in a bigger hole then I already was :/ glad you got it all worked out :)

The big problem is that I keep too many of the blasted things after I read them me too :( but I love them, I become attached :) I give away the ones that I read and really didn't care for but everything else stays.

new things make me nervous- like if I download something or click on something I'm going to screw something up and be in a bigger hole then I already was

Exactly!!!

I always google first....

Good for you for figuring out your download issues. Good for you and your givers that you got such a nice haul for Valentine's!
Interesting to me that *Rose* is set in Asheville. Too many series though, and I'm studiously ignoring Fossum. Nope. Not going there.
But Genny's story with the coffee still has me grinning.

I downloaded my first library e book yesterday Terri, onto my iPad and had to go through the Adobe software. I didn't have any trouble but last week when I tried to download an audio book it was a disaster. For whatever reason, it won't allow you to download audio directly to the iPad. You have to download it to your computer and then transfer it to your device. Too much trouble. Then I discovered I don't really care for audio books. Geesh!

54 I google some things, Kath . . . don't always think of it . . .

55 Good for you and your givers that you got such a nice haul for Valentine's!
My hubby is a honey!!

Too many series though,
I hear you, Peggy!

56 Bonnie, all my downloads go through my computer -- our library system requires the use of software that is computer-based, and anyway my portable devices aren't wifi-capable, or whatever you call it. I normally don't have a problem with it -- I like having them on the computer for when I'm reading/listening at home. The computer-based program has a few extra bells and whistles that make listening/reading easier, and (except for an occasional glitch like the one this week) the transfer hasn't been a problem. (Never a problem with the audios for me.)

Audios aren't for everyone -- we all process information differently. I have limits on the types of things I can listen to on audio, and what I can do while listening (as in mindless stuff only).

Today has been a very busy day, and is not done as we have a major library fundraiser tonight.

And it is SNOWING.

Snowing here too.. we need some cold.. I am anxious about the bugs not dying over winter..
We need some good cold days or nights to freeze them out.

Some great reading Terri and more jealousy in seeing your purchasing. By the way Genny would surely agree that you would have to be mug not to read Dame Agatha!

59 I'm all in favor of dead bugs, Kath. Tonight I think they can freeze their little antennae off!

60 Hi, Paul! Speaking of purchases, I purchased way too much at the library fundraiser tonight . . . not books, but CHOCOLATE.

Ya gotta love a library whose two major fundraisers involve 1) chocolate and 2) wine. :)

I don't think I'm going to be doing much visiting on threads tonight. It has been a LOOOOOONG day!

I'm about ready for some sleep!

Ah chocolate eveybody's favourite substitute for good literary fiction!

No, no. Chocolate WITH good literary fiction! Night T.

Ditto!..but with good morning attached..

In this case, chocolate as a funding source for good literary fiction. :)

Hi Paul, Kim & Kath!

I finished a book a couple days ago, and still haven't gotten around to listing it here. I can't keep up with things, here or in RL.

OK, I'll take a few moments to post at least the basics about the last book I finished. I'm having trouble finishing things this month; I keep trying different books and rejecting them after a chapter or two -- some permanently, some just for now, as I'm in the wrong mood.

I'm not sure I was in the right mood for this one, but it was good enough to carry me through:

75 Challenge Book #15
Title: Birds of a Feather
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Copyright/Year of original publication:
Subject: a missing woman and a murder, for starters.
Setting: England, early 1930's
Series: Maisie Dobbs #2
Dates Read: finished 2/9/12
Number of pages:
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, borrowed from a friend
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: on an on
How does it fit the category? series
Alternate category any mystery category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Terrible Two's / #2 in series
My Rating: 3.5 stars
Notes:

As I said above, I'm not sure this was the right book for my mood right now. But it's a good book. I like the characters, especially Maisie. It gives a good view of the time and place in which it is set.

ETA to add I'm finally adding a rating, as I see I never did. I'll give it 3 1/2 stars.

Hi There! What a great way to start a thread...chocolate cookies...yummmm

Hi, Linda! So glad you stopped by. :) If you like those cookies, you would have loved our library fund raiser last night -- all chocolate, all the time.

You've been in my thoughts. So very sorry about Simon. Hugs!

Terri.. I get that mood thing. Sometimes it isn't quite a book funk.. just a funk.
No fun.. hope it clears soon..

Thanks, Kath!

I think part of the problem is that the book I really, really think I want to read now is one I can't get my hands on at the moment unless I buy it -- and I refuse to buy any more books right now. It's sort of souring me for all the other books that I need to "settle for" at the moment.

We're waiting for one of our library's e-book download sources to become available to us again. The book I want was available through that source when that particular program was taken from us last fall. I'm a little out of sorts over it and impatient for us to get back online with it.

OK, I put down the books I was looking at and decided to disregard monthly themes, library loans, and other such limits; I started The Cypress House by Michael Koryta. Seems to be just the thing I need right now, along with watching the WKC dog show.

currently reading
The Cypress House by Michael Koryta
The Civil War: A Narrative, Vol. 2: Fredericksburg to Meridian by Shelby Foote (non-fiction/ history)

tried and temporarily abandoned
Heart Sick by Chelsea Cain
Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey (fiction book)
And the Laugh Shall Be First by William Willimon
Between Heaven and Mirth Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, by James Martin (devotional/theology)
Tasting Freedom: Octavius Catto and the Battle for Equality in Civil War America by Daniel R. Biddle
The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie

permanently abandoned
No Mercy by Lori Armstrong (ugh, right from Chapter 1!)

I'm loving The Cypress House! Very creepy and suspenseful. Michael Koryta rules!

Terri- You are always reading such interesting books over here. I read my 1st Koryta, So Cold the River, awhile back and liked it.
I am so impressed you are reading the 2nd volume by Foote. I have not got to the 1st one. I was hoping to it this year but it's been book crazy.

I like Kortya ... and I apparently have that one somewhere.. uh oh.. wonder where?
hat that. I am going to have to start adding a tag to tell me where things are...

I'm glad you're liking The Cypress House. I've read three by Koryta. I like the ones with supernaturnal elements (So Cold the River, The Cypress House) much better than the straightforward crime thriller (Tonight I Said Goodbye). I hope to read The Ridge soon.

So Cold the River I have waiting for me :)

I understand your "funk"........... having a little of it with Nightwoods right now :( about half way through it so hopefully it will start making me care a little bit. I have to read it and review it because it's an ER.
so *sigh*

Daytona coming up soon :) I want to go, they still have tickets but DH is working split weekends so not sure if it will happen.

#72"I think part of the problem is that the book I really, really think I want to read now is one I can't get my hands on at the moment unless I buy it -- and I refuse to buy any more books right now. It's sort of souring me for all the other books that I need to "settle for" at the moment."

I feel like that too. It's like I blame the books I have for not allowing me to get more. It's funny because when I got them I wanted to read them.......

Hello Terri, those cookies at the top of the thread look great!

Happy Valentines Day Terri

75 it's been book crazy.
I know how that goes, Mark! I've enjoyed everything I've read by Koryta, and I think So Cold the River was my favorite. The Foote is excellent, too.

76 I am going to have to start adding a tag to tell me where things are...
Kath, I tried that (in the private comments field). But I have to rearrange books so often for space, nothing stays where I have it marked, so the tag is pretty useless to me.

77 I like the supernatural ones better, too -- although I did like the mysteries. I want to read The Ridge soon, too!

78 Kara, I think (hope!) you will like So Cold the River. It is a creepy one!
I wish I could head for Daytona, but alas not to be. Hope it works out for you!

79 Yeah, I hear you, Carrie. I still want to read most of them . . . eventually. Sometimes it's just hard to find the right book du jour.

80 Thanks! Glad you stopped by!

81 Thank you, Kara, and the same to you! Love the gif!

Hats off to you for tackling the Shelby Foote. Book 2, no less.

I'd hoped to read all three but, for now, am quickly getting sick of Civil War reading.

75 Challenge Book #16
Title: The Cypress House
Author: Michael Koryta
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2011
Setting: Florida, September 1935 (Great Depression)
Dates Read: 2/12/12 through 2/14/12
Number of pages: 424
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Yes / purchased last year at Borders final clearance
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Spooky
How does it fit the category? paranormal element
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes:

I love Michael Koryta's writing, and I haven't been disappointed by any of his books yet. The Cypress House has a paranormal element which is significant but doesn't by any means dominate the story line. There is plenty of down-to-earth suspense and action, too. I like the blend. I love the atmosphere that he conveys. I enjoy the characters he crafts -- both the good and the evil ones.

The fact that he works into his story the massive hurricane of Labor Day weekend, 1935 was a bonus for this history loving reader!

This was a great book to ward off a reading funk!

84 Linda, you posted while I was putting together my last post, I think! You've done a lot of Civil War reading lately, and I wouldn't suggest you tackling the Foote right now if you're getting tired of it. He does a great job making history come alive -- but there's an awful lot of it for him to cover in those three huge volumes!

Now that The Cypress House has pulled me from the verge of a book funk, I've gone back to reading Haunting Violet. I hadn't realized that it was YA before I got it. It's not great, but it's not bad, either. And it is starting to get creepy now.

I hope everyone is having a nice Valentine's Day!

aaaaaamy reading taste for some things is similar to yours.. supernatural and
creepy.... Have to look at Haunting Violet. I think I am going to try Whale Song

Hi Terri!
Nice Valentine book haul from hubby :)

just keeping you on my radar...

88, 90 Good morning, Kath!

So far, I am not terribly impressed with Haunting Violet, but then I tend to get aggravated with YA books. (I didn't realize the book was YA until I got it.)

89 Thanks for the Valentine's Day greeting, Cee!

Ah, a productive day! I've made most of the arrangements for my son to switch specialists -- to a doctor closer to home (rather than driving to Pittsburgh) who is highly qualified in dealing with autism AND in-network for our insurance. (I had despaired of finding someone competent that we didn't have to pay out of pocket.) There's still some paperwork to tend to, and a bit of a wait to start with her (mid-April), but at least the appointment is made and we've cleared it with the insurance people. This doctor did a residency at Johns Hopkins, so I figure she must be pretty sharp. I imagine the competition for positions there is fierce.

Oh, and we got an appointment to get our garage door opener fixed, too. (Not a biggie, but it will eliminate one nuisance.)

Good job! I thought I heard you sighing with relief!

Was that a sigh you heard, Kath, or maybe a splat, the sound of my spaghetti sauce splattering all over when it started to boil? ;)

It will be great to be done with those trips to Allegheny Center for appointments. There's one spot where I have to merge over 4 lanes in a very short span to get to the correct exit -- works OK when traffic is light, but when it's not I've had, shall we say, some interesting detours. ;)

Good news - easier, more convenient, ins covered, and still competent healthcare! Yay!
And no cutting across 4 lanes to get there! I feel your excitement :)

Hi Terri, all caught up again. That's good news that you won't have to drive so far to see your son's specialist. I hope they connect and good things happen.

I have yet to download a library book to my iPad. I went to the workshop and waited through the different procedures for different kinds of e-readers. I was the only iPad user so I got personal attention at the end. It's an easy process but I'm still concentrating on my personal library TBRs.

95 Hey there, Cee! Yes, it has worked out beautifully so far. I hope this doctor is as good as I've heard.

96 Hi, Donna! Enjoy reading with your iPad -- whenever you get around to using it. It's very nice that they actually had a workshop for you to learn the process. I've had to rather muddle through with my e-reader and mp3 player (for audio books), but it eventually worked out. It does make it harder to whittle down my TBR shelf contents, when such resources are available!

We have been planning a major upstairs bathroom renovation since last fall. First I postponed it in order to give my son time to settle into high school before totally disrupting the household with construction work. Then the plumbing subcontractor hurt his back, and the scheduling got pushed back. Now the primary contractor has hurt his back and had a death in the family. (What a run of rough times for those hard-working folks!) So our new target start-date is in mid-March.

I am dreading the mess of renovation, but I'm looking forward to a modern tub/shower combo and pipes that don't rattle, faucet handles that don't fall off, built-in cabinet space, and a bathroom window that can be opened without shoving aside shower curtains to get to it. I love the quaintness of my old claw-footed tub, but its condition, archaic shower hook-up, and location have been a royal pain. The new layout will also be much easier to clean. Much, much easier!

Hi Terri, I'm just catching up. Yay to finding docs that are more convenient!

A bathroom remodel can really be inconvenient but it'll be short term and so worth it!!

98 Hi, Joanne! So glad you stopped by!

More adventures with library e-books -- just when I thought I had this thing figured out. One book that transferred to my reader comes up as "protected" when I try to read it -- I cannot access the text on the reader, though the title appears on the reader's table of contents. And, no, the book loan hasn't expired yet -- I'm supposed to have 11 more days, and I'm still able to read it on my computer. It's 630 pages, so I don't want to sit at the computer to read the whole thing. I should have checked to see that I could read it as soon as I transferred it -- I saw it listed on the reader, as assumed it had transferred properly.

Just can't seem to get the darn book out of the computer and into the reader properly!

Grrrrr . . . .

Grrr indeed. Glitchy things like that annoy me! I hope it isnt a book that you are
desperate to read? Hope you have good things planned for the weekend...?

Congrats. on finding a closer doctor!! she sounds like a winner to me :)

darn e-book/computer glitch thing. it's an adventure alright
love that gif by the way :)

100 No, not one I'm desperate to read, Kath. Weekend will be mostly family, church, reading, lots of laundry & housework, and some TV watching. NASCAR is gearing up down in Daytona, and I am a race fan, so much of the TV will be racing-related.

101 Kara, that gif truly fit my mood when I found it.

I was looking at a book at work, for work-related reasons, and wound up checking it out on my library card and taking it home. Flew through reading it almost all in one sitting (except for the beginning, which I read over lunch). Comments to follow shortly.

75 Challenge Book #17
Title: Dead to You
Author: Lisa McMann
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2012
Subject: 7-year-old child abducted; troubled16-year-old finally returned to family with no memory of abduction or time before.
Setting: Minnesota
Series: no
Dates Read: 02/17/12
Number of pages: 242
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, library book
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: haven't even thought about this yet.
How does it fit the category?
Alternate category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? No
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes:

I picked this up this YA thriller and could hardly put it down till I saw how it ended.

Imagine being a 16-year-old reunited with a family you don't remember. Imagine having a child abducted and, nine years later, getting back a 16-year-old who has been through who knows what? Imagine seeing your big brother abducted and, nine years later, suddenly welcoming a 16-year-old virtual stranger as roommate and family member? And how does a six-year-old girl relate to a teenage brother she never met before?

Lisa McMann's Dead to You explores the chaos that ensues following a seemingly-miraculous reunion between a family and a long-missing child. It is not smooth sailing as Ethan desperately tries to retrieve lost memories and adjust to a life very different from that which he has led for the past nine years. His brother Blake is openly hostile to him. Well-meaning people send him into panic attacks with their attention and incessant questions. Slowly, conflict escalates and the reconstituted family begins to come apart at the seams. The main thing keeping Ethan somewhat sane is his friendship -- developing into something more? -- with the neighbor girl Cami.

This book was a real page turner. The ending is a stunner. Don't look for "happily ever after."

Dead to you is now on the TBR list. Thanks for your outreach re. Simon. I still enter the door expecting to be greeted by him. It weill take time...lots of time to heal from the loss of this beloved pet.

You are a dear, sweet person and I'm blessed by you!

**blushes** aw, shucks!

Linda, you're welcome for my outreach, such as it was. And you have done quite a bit of outreach yourself in your time on LT! I wish you a peaceful weekend.

I love YA books like that! I asked on my thread but I will ask here also, you don't read much YA do you? If not I'm glad this one got you so to speak :)
added :)
enjoy your NASCAR weekend....traffic has been crazy on the interstate all week and it won't get any better next week. So I will be taking the more scenic route to work ;)

No, I don't read a lot of YA. Could it have something to do with how much I hated my own teen years? Dunno. I'm reading another YA now for a particular challenge, and it is driving me crazy -- all that teenage angst and melodrama. Whereas I was grabbed by this one because of the extraordinary nature of the drama.

I imagine traffic is a nightmare in your region during Speed Weeks, Kara! The Bud Shootout race this evening was ridiculous, with all the wrecks. They should rename it "Survivor."

All of this car stuff sounds like no fun to me. .. lol
I am going to finish a fluff today and move on to something I need to read and review..
Not sure which one though. Have fun with your races.. do they do it again today?

Enjoy your fluff, Kath.
No race today, but they did timed solo laps around the track -- part of the complicated "qualifying" procedure preparing for next Sunday's Daytona 500. There will be twin qualifying races on Thursday that will complete the process for setting the final field -- who is in the race, and in what order they start. (I know, probably TMI. ;)

no.. really... it was riveting :) lol

So youhave something big to look forward to next week then?

I finished the fluff and then another. So I am moving on yet again.

I am making lasagna for supper tonight. Must run . . .

Everyone is fed and happy and settled in for the night. This is my time for myself. I'm enjoying some old music from Creedence Clearwater Revival. I'd forgotten how much I enjoy this stuff.

I got an e-mail coupon from the Sony Reader Store for 35% off "select items." It says to click to see which are the select items, but when I click it looks like it gives me the listing everything in the Reader Store -- tens of thousands of titles -- and I know darn well that "select items" doesn't mean everything. Ah, well. Like I need more books, anyway . . .

last night they must have had something at the track....
wind was blowing just right and I could hear the cars going :)

I first thought Smoke won the shootout but second is ok I guess considering he ran the same car that wrecked during practice.

They should rename it "Survivor." Ha! nice, and they don't need sticks or flint to start fire ;)

CCR...I have a CD somewhere....been a long time since I listened to them.

Circus Fire....bad things happen to animals?
Kath wants to know
she's thinking of reading it with me :)
I told her probably.... fire+tent+circus= dead people/animals

Sadly, yes, Kara. Your logic is correct. Animals and women and children, mostly. (It was a matinee performance in progress when the fire broke out.) I don't remember a lot of detail after all these years, just that it was an absolutely riveting and tragic read.

uh oh kath
me, I will still read....maybe I can tell her what parts to skip ;)

Hi Terri! Just popping in to say hello!
Hope your renovations go smoothly!

Hi Terri, Creedence Clearwater was a favorite of mine too. When my daughter played high school softball the kids sang (at every game) "Put me in coach, I'm ready to play." (Centerfield)

Hi Terri .... delurking to say I've been enjoying your reviews.

Drat

Kara.. I love you to bits for finding out for me :)
I guess I will be giving it away.. or waiting? or?

I am not brave enough right now to see animals die.

Wow! Hi, everybody! My husband took me out for a belated birthday dinner at a German restaurant about an hour away. Yum! Nice to come home to find comments on my thread.

Kath and Kara, I do seem to remember that a lot of The Circus Fire was about the circumstances leading up to the fire. It was, literally, a disaster just waiting to happen . . . and then it did. I seem to recall a rather interesting and eerie epilogue, too. But there is a portion that deals with the fire itself; as I recall, no living thing was safe in that tent when it went up in flames.

117 Hi, Chelle! Thanks! And I hope your move goes smoothly!

118 Oh, Bonnie, I love Centerfield . . .

119 Thanks, Caroline!

It might seem appropriate that I finished this today, Shrove Tuesday, prior to the start of Lent. Or, if you take the book's premise seriously, maybe not.

75 Challenge Book #18
Title: Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor and Laughter are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life
Author: James Martin, S.J.
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2011
Subject: The role of humor in the spiritual life
Dates Read: finished 2/21/12
Number of pages: 144 plus sources, notes, bibliography, index, etc.
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, e-book loan from Overdrive, public library
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Spirit in the Sky
How does it fit the category? spirituality
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? No
My Rating: not sure yet
Notes:

I enjoyed this book about the role of "joy, humor, and laughter" in the spiritual life. Author James Martin is a Jesuit priest, and acknowledges that most of his observations come from the Christian, (and specifically Roman Catholic) perspective. But he also invokes examples from other world religions in assuring readers that holiness does not require a long face and dour outlook. Humor, he would suggest, is a gift from God. And the New Testament tells us that joy is a fruit of the Spirit. He makes it clear that there are kinds of humor that aren't godly -- mainly, those that denigrate or hurt other people. But a good-hearted laugh is good for the soul.

The author acknowledges from the beginning that this book is not intended as a scholarly work; however, he cites the works of scholars. This book has footnotes and an index, and a good list of sources to consult for further information. While he uses a lot of examples from his Roman Catholic, Jesuit tradition, he comfortably defines terms with which those from other traditions may not be familiar.

This book isn't perfect -- the author repeats himself a bit too much for such a short book. He acknowledges this, however, noting that repetition is a didactic tool commonly used by Jesuit teachers. I liked it enough that I may purchase my own copy for future use. (I read a library download loan.) I found it helpful -- and it made me laugh.

Interesting review, Terri!

Good luck with your bath renovation! We'll be going through this together. I think we will be starting in about 2 weeks. :}

Hi Terri, I couldn't wait any longer and I have started the thread for Mystery March, hope to see you over there!

Mystery March

Thanks for the link, Judy!

Winter has returned to our area. Yesterday it actually got above 60 degrees, but a cold front came through last night bringing wind, snow, and even some thunder as the unseasonably warm air yielded to much colder air.

There was another wreckfest in Daytona today, as the NASCAR Nationwide race was decided by most all of the front runners tangling in a ball of wrecked sheet metal half a lap from the end, and the at-that-time 11th-place driver scooting through the debris to the lead (and the win) just before the caution flag waved. This isn't my idea of a great race. I almost dread tomorrow's Daytona 500, given what I've seen so far from NASCAR this week. Thank heavens, at least it doesn't seem that anyone's gotten hurt yet.

75 Challenge Book #19
Title: The Great American Gamble: How the 1979 Daytona 500 Gave Birth to a NASCAR Nation
Author: Joe Menzer
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2009
Subject: The first Daytona 500 televised live in its entirety -- with lots of NASCAR history as background
Setting: Daytona Beach, FL
Dates Read: "Speed Weeks" 2012 -- finished 2/25/12
Number of pages: 279 (including photos) plus bibliography and index
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Yes, purchased at Ollies in 2010
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: The Winner Takes it All
How does it fit the category? Sports
Alternate category King of the Road
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Not part of monthly theme; read for Speed Weeks
My Rating: 3 1/2 stars
Notes:

This book was a decent read, well-written. I knew a lot of the information already; I'm sure much of it was touched on in Menzer's earlier work, The Wildest Ride, a history of NASCAR, which I read some time ago, and in other books I've read about NASCAR.

Terri - trying desperately to catch up with a free couple of hours before SWMBO surfaces. Dead to You looks a winner and I will make sure to run it to ground.

Creedence Clearwater Revival! Great stuff indeed....I was listening to some of John Fogerty's more recent work last night coincidentally - still good.

Hi, Paul! It was pretty good. Like I said, I don't normally read YA novels, but it kept me turning pages.

There was an hours-long rain delay yesterday before NASCAR decided it must post postpone the Daytona 500 for a day due to weather. The quiet afternoon (with son taking a nap and hubby channel surfing) gave me a chance to get through my second "Speed Weeks" read.


Title: At the Altar of Speed: the Fast Life and Tragic Death of Dale Earnhardt
Author: Leigh Montville
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2001
Subject: life of Dale Earnhardt/impact on popular culture
Dates Read: 2/25/12 through 2/27/12
Number of pages: 203
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: purchased 2011 used
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Winner Takes it All
How does it fit the category? he was a 7-time champion
Alternate category King of the Road
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? doesn't; it's a Speed Weeks read
My Rating: 3 1/2 stars
Notes:

This is one of the many books about the stock car great Dale Earnhardt that were hurried to press in 2001 following his death in that year's Daytona 500. I suspect this is one of the better ones. Published by Doubleday, written by a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, it seemed fairly accurate and balanced for a hurried publication. I did notice a few minor errors (mainly regarding NASCAR procedure); there may have been others that I wouldn't recognize regarding specifics of Earnhardt's life, but nothing obvious.

Montville was a "general assignment" writer, meaning not a motorsports specialist, but he had interviewed Earnhardt in his later years and developed an interest in his career and public perceptions of the man. This book opened each chapter with an example of fans' (or in some cases, fellow drivers') expressions of sorrow over Earnhardt's death, then proceeded to give part of Dale's life story. He also analyzed the nature of Earnhardt's appeal to such a devoted fan base.

I'm always a little leery of books that take advantage of interest in the death of a popular figure. In his introduction, the author was decent enough to thank those willing to talk to him in the months immediately following Earnhardt's death, and to say he understood and respected those who did not want to talk. I still probably took half a star away for the timing of the book and an element of the format: the title, and the fact that the opening segment of each chapter was titled "at the altar." It just seemed a bit over the top.

But I found the book a mostly effective telling of a true American rags-to-riches story, and an honest and respectful look at a NASCAR star who died too soon.

I am glad that you had a good book to turn to when your race didn't happen.
:)

Thanks, Kath! And how are you today? (Is it safe to ask?? ;)

Fine Terri :) Thanks for being brave enough to ask.
Everything is okay, today. Hope it is for you, too.

Beautiful day today!!! It's over 50 degrees, and has been partly-to-mostly sunny. One of my co-workers at the library is on vacation, so I'm taking over inter-library loan duties for the better part of two weeks. That happens to be a job I enjoy, so I don't really mind the extra work.

My hubby has expressed a desire for tuna-macaroni salad for supper, which sounds good to me. The Daytona 500, postponed to Monday for the first time in its history, is now (after a rainy day Monday) scheduled to start at 7 p.m. when the weather is expected to be clear at Daytona, and the track dried. So I'll go on and get the salad made now, and chilled, and fix a sandwich for my son who won't touch tuna (except for tuna steak, which we rarely have). I've got water on for the pasta and am waiting for it to boil.

Off to chop veggies for the salad -- celery, red bell pepper, carrot, sweet onion . . .

Hi Terri, just dropping by to say Hi. Your weather sounds good, your work sounds good, and dinner certainly sounds good! Have a great day.

Hi, Judy! Glad you stopped by.

I started reading my inter-library loan, Boundary Waters, and have been reading it bit by bit before the race, during commercials and caution flags, and now during an extended red flag period (race stopped to clean the track after a really freaky accident). The book is really good.

I'm within sight of the end of my long non-fiction read, volume 2 of Shelby Foote's Civil War trilogy. Very good reading, but long. I've been enjoying it and learning a lot.

I found Boundary Waters hard to put down, I had to know what was going to happen next!

Now see... drat.
Boundary Waters must be read. Now to try to find it.

Not in Beaver County or Allegheny libraries.

136 Judy, I must say, as I went along my reading was less and less confined to "down time" during the race. And I'm annoyed to not have much time to read today.

137 If I had my own copy, I'd send it to you when I finish, Kath. Alas, it's an ILL from an eastern PA library. Anyway, before you do anything rash like order the thing from Amazon or wherever, let me finish the book and see if there are any animal angles that would disturb you. It's an outdoorsy type of book, so far there are at least mentions of hunting. At this point, it looks like most of the "hunting" is aimed at humans, however.

that was a freaky accident! thank goodness no one was hurt....it could have been fatal.
I wonder if they will change any of the rules....maybe reduced speed for the drivers while the safety trucks are on the track :/
I wish Jr had taken Biffle and really challenged Kenseth, I think he could have taken him. Jr had a fast car!

I'm making a list of your racing reads for my step dad :) I think he would like your books!

Good thinking Terri. I will await your thoughts.. Our local libraries never seem to have much that I want to read. I checked for it in all formats. sigh. But seriously, if I never get to read it, I am pretty sure something else will turn up. :)

I wish Jr had taken Biffle and really challenged Kenseth, I think he could have taken him. Jr had a fast car!

That may be the most interesting, or undecipherable, or frightening ( not sure which) sentence
I have ever read!

139 Just when you think you've seen everything . . . that was one weird, scary incident.

Kara, on your list, be sure to include my all-time favorite NASCAR book (I got as an ER last year) with the marvelous title of He Crashed Me, So I Crashed Him Back, by Mark Bechtel. It's also about the 1979 Daytona 500, with forays into other aspects of NASCAR history. Really, really fun.

I wasn't thrilled with the race last night overall. The outside line just wasn't moving most of the night. Nobody could go anywhere! Jr. had a fast car, all right, but he just didn't have anyone to work with. At the end, Biffle seemed committed to working with Kenseth. Without a drafting partner, you're not going to win at that track vs. cars that are paired up.

140 So far there's been a fair amount of carnage in the book, but not of animals. I'll keep you posted.

Don't they do inter-library loans from out of county, Kath? I know, in the past, our library has sent books to Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. (More often they send to us, just a matter of their collection size contrasted with ours.) Isn't that part of Allegheny County?

That may be the most interesting, or undecipherable, or frightening (not sure which) sentence
I have ever read!

Racing at the big tracks is a really weird deal, Kath. It all has to do with aerodynamics, and how cars are faster working together. . . until they try to beat each other to the checkered flag at the very end. Very strange.

Thanks Terri, I will add that one!

Hi Terri!
Yup. That Daytona Race was something else this year. Poor Ron waited thru the rain delays for 2 days and wound up staying the course til 1:30am last night. That last crash was unbelieveable. What a mess.
Just don't understand why all those kids want to race in circles - crash - race in circles - crash - etc, etc... It seems more like a game of survival than who has the fastest car and most driving skill.
But maybe racers don't understand sitting around and reading ;-)

Cee, to be fair, racing at Daytona and Talladega is a lot different from the other racing they do in NASCAR. The other tracks aren't quite the same kind of gamble. And this year seemed particularly bad for crashes because of the new aero package and other rules changes NASCAR put in place for Daytona this season.

But maybe racers don't understand sitting around and reading ;-)

Probably not, at least most of them. I did see during the rain-delay coverage Sunday that racer Brad Keselowski was passing the time by reading a novel (I kid you not): The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. :)

Well, today started out great. I reached over to turn on my bedside lamp, and knocked over my glass of water.

This was after a rare night when I fell asleep immediately and slept pretty well through the night; so this was one of those rare mornings when the glass was almost completely full. Until I knocked it over, that is. :-{

Ah, well, off to work . . :)

I was determined to finish this book by the end of February, and I just made it -- with minutes to spare!

75 Challenge Book #21
Title: The Civil War: A Narrative, Vol. 2: Fredericksburg to Meridian by Shelby Foote
Author: Shelby Foote
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1963
Dates Read: 1/12 through 2/29/12
Number of pages: 966+
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Yes/Owned for a number of years
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: American Pie
How does it fit the category? US history
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Two's -- volume 2
My Rating: 4.5 stars.
Notes:

I'm not sure there's anything to say about this book that hasn't already been said. The trilogy of which this volume is a part is a classic work of narrative history. Shelby Foote made history come alive in these pages.

You are chugging right along with your reading.
sigh.. I hope to do the same, soon. Glad that was a good read for you.
Hope today had a better beginning !

So far so good, Kath. Honestly, I probably should re-read the last 30 pages or so of that last book. I was determined to finish it in February, but I was really too tired to process all the information by the end.

I have done that, too. Jest kept plowing through, when tired.
I will bet though, that you remember more than you think.

This was a very quick book, but very interesting. We ordered it in for a patron as an ILL at our library; the patron returned it early, so I decided I wanted a look at it:

75 Challenge Book #22
Title: Appalachia: A Self-Portrait
Author: edited by Wendy Ewald
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1979
Subject: black-and-white photography by seven Appalachian photographers
Setting: West Virginia, Kentucky
Dates Read: 2/29/12 through 3/1/12
Number of pages: pages are not numbered
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, ILL
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: American Pie
How does it fit the category? slice of Americana
Alternate category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? N/A
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes:

This was just something very different. It's a book featuring the work of the Mountain Photography Workshop, a group of seven photographers working in West Virginia and Kentucky. It consists mostly of photographs, with an introduction and also the stories of some of the people photographed. Some of the photos are cozy, some are sad, some are very strange. Many are quite haunting.

I had to put this book aside for a day or so to finish my massive non-fiction tome for February, but I picked it back up and hardly put it down (except when necessary) until done!

75 Challenge Book #23
Title: Boundary Waters
Author: William Kent Krueger
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1999
Subject: Murder and a search for a missing woman
Setting: The "Boundary Waters" -- a backwoods lake area in northern Minnesota
Series: Cork O'Connor #2
Dates Read: finished 3/1/12
Number of pages:402
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, ILL
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: On and On
How does it fit the category? Series
Alternate category any mystery category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Fits Mystery March / was meant to be part of "Two" challenge for February (2nd in series)
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes:

This one was hard to put down. It's very exciting, filled with unexpected twists, and a marvelous wilderness setting. I also enjoyed the Native American elements of the story. By the end, there was quite a body count -- but not too many grisly details.

In November, I read the first book in this series by William Kent Krueger, Iron Lake, and REALLY liked it. Between you and DeltaQueen, this one is now stashed on my wishlist. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

I read Iron Lake quite a while ago, and Boundary Waters has been on my wishlist ever since. Thanks for reminding me that I should go get it someday!

>148 tymfos:: I raced through the last few chapters of Our Mutual Friend to get it in the February TIOLI challenge, so I know what you mean about not processing and going back to read it more carefully.

>151 tymfos:: I love the description of Boundary Waters. Sounds like my kind of book. I'm putting Krueger on my list of authors to check out. Thanks, Terri!

Have you started your bathroom renovations? It sounds like the end result will be worth going through the chaos involved.

Thanks for stopping by, Cindy, SugarCreekRanch, and Donna!

I enjoyed Iron Lake so much that I was eager to get to Boundary Waters; and I think I liked Boundary Waters even better than Iron Lake. It moves between those out searching and being hunted in the wilderness, and those back in the town, which makes for some neat suspense waiting to hear what happens next in the differing locales. Cork's estranged wife, Jo, undergoes some major character development in this one. I hated her in the first book; this one moves toward making her more human.

Donna, the big renovation is slated to start March 12. I am looking forward to the end result, but so much NOT to the mess in the meantime!

Hi Terri- I am another one, who needs to get to Iron Lake. I've had it in the stacks forever and it looks like my kind of book too!

Oh Terri....Boundary Waters is definitely going onto the pile.

Mark, I think you would really like Iron Lake and Boundary Waters.

Tina, it's a good one. I love the sense of place in these books!

Terri, the third one, Purgatory Ridge is the last one in the series that I've read. When you get to Blood Hollow, maybe I'll join you. I'd like to get back into the William Kent Krueger books. I think I have a print copy of BH around here someplace.

Sounds like you enjoyed Boundary Waters for the same reasons I did, Terri. Don't know when I will get to the next one, maybe for Murder and Mayhem May, but this is a series I can't wait to continue on with.

Another mystery for March:

75 Challenge Book #24
Title: Red Bones
Author: Ann Cleeves
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2009
Subject: murder at an archaeological dig
Setting: Shetland Islands
Series: Shetland Quartet #3
Dates Read: 3/2/12 through 3/5/12
Number of pages: 392
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Off the shelf, bought last year at Border's closing sale
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Color my World
How does it fit the category? "red" in title, set in Shetland Islands
Alternate category any mystery or series category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Marvelous Mystery March (3M): third in series, mystery
My Rating: 4 stars
Notes:

This is another fine installment in Ann Cleeve's series set in the Shetland Islands. Like the first two, it's rather slow-paced and very atmospheric. Cleeves is great at dissecting the mixed motives, crass assumptions, and skewed perceptions that so often make human relationships a minefield. She also thoroughly understands the small village mentality that wants to know everyone else's business, but wants to keep one's own secrets. A complex mystery, and I did not guess "whodunit."

Weird. I woke up this morning wondering when our next dentist appointment is. My son and I do six-month checkups/cleanings one after the other at a local dentist's office, and make the appointment for the next one six months out. I couldn't remember when we were due to see the dentist, nor when the last visit was other than that it was before we had a 2012 calendar, so it wasn't on the wall calendar, and they hadn't sent a reminder.

So I dug in my drawer under the phone where I keep appointment cards. There was the dentist's card, buried under a ton of other stuff: Tuesday, March 6, 2012, 3:15 p.m. Today. How in the heck did I manage to think to check for it this morning? I expect that sort of thing from my son, who has a phenomenal memory for dates and times; but I was the one who thought of it. There must have been some subconscious memory of the date, but there was absolutely no conscious awareness that it was today. Weird. (And fortunate; I'd hate to miss an appointment!)

Well, it's quite a nice day, and the dentist is in walking distance from the house, and my son's school bus stop is along the way. Good! (As I recall, last time we went it was pouring rain.)

Oops! In the rush to get my latest book posted to all my challenge threads, I missed replying to a few posts.

159 & 160 Hi, Linda and Judy! I can hardly wait to get to more of the Cork O'Connor series. I must say that it is very much becoming a favorite of mine. Ooh, and I see the County Library has gotten a copy of Purgatory Ridge! I just may request it.

Blood Hollow looks like it will be available on the library's new audiobook system, if we ever get the wrinkles ironed out. . . we are having terrible tech problems lately.

I have to go back to the dentist again, as he found a cavity at my checkup. It is very small, and he said it could wait until after Easter to be filled. My son had a perfect checkup. The assistant told him he should teach me how to take care of my teeth! In spite of his occasional laziness/sloppiness in grooming, he's definitely come a long way in the self-care department.

We have been watching spring training baseball games on MLB network. This weekend they showed two Phillies vs. Yankees games, and last night hubby got to watch his Mets play the Nationals. I saw a robin in the backyard this morning, and the weather forecast calls for 60 degree temps tomorrow. Spring is really coming!

Hi Terri! Red Bones sounds good. I will get to that series someday as I am intrigued by the Shetland Islands :)
I do have Raven Black on my shelves somewhere.

Sorry you remembered that ol' dentist appt in time. :P
Oh, I know you were happy about it and at least it is done.
I have a deep dread of dentists for no apparent reason. *shrug* And since I have strong teeth, have never experienced a bad toothache - so have built up no fear of that yet. The dominant fear rules!

Hi, Cee. I had much fear of dentist when younger . . . it's more manageable now. It helps that we have a dentist that I really like -- his wife is the art teacher in our school district, and they have both been very nice to my son, even back when he was a young sreamin' meemie who could barely sit still (let alone tolerate someone even looking into his mouth). One of the ways I remind myself how much progress the kid has made since his autism diagnosis is seeing how well he handles dental appointments now -- though he still gags on the dental x-ray thingies. Of course, we are VERY LUCKY he has strong teeth and has not needed a filling yet. I dread to think how he'd react to the drill. :(

We are having an absolutely gorgeous day weather-wise today: partly to mostly sunny and temperatures in the 60's. So, on this day when it's nice enough to do some yard work, wouldn't you know I'd wake up with a sore/stiff neck and right shoulder. It's a recurring pinched nerve ailment that surfaces at the darndest times. After a hot water bottle, an almost scalding hot shower, and a day at work, it has loosened up a bit; but I'm not sure I'm up to much in the way of manual labor.

Perhaps I'll sit on the porch and read a bit -- though I really should read inside at a table. Along with neck exercises, my orthopedist recommended using a book holder when I'm having this problem -- that holding a book is not a good thing for it. Of course, that advice came back in the day when I was dealing with huge college textbooks. I can't see why holding a small paperback in my left hand would be a problem. . . .

Hi Terri! Glad to hear about the lovely weather, but sad to hear about your neck. I'm having neck problems too. It stinks.

166 Yeah, Kerri, it does stink, doesn't it? Sorry you're suffering too.

I actually did go outside and do some minor yard work. I picked up some twigs and small branches that had fallen in the yard. I think the (careful) movement may have actually helped a bit. But when I tried to pull some leftover weeds, I decided that was not a good idea at all, and retreated inside.

While waiting for my chicken stock to finish boiling down, I'll post two books I finished.

75 challenge book #25
Title: Butchers Hill
Author: Laura Lippman
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1998
Subject: Tess's first two cases for her own PI office; both deal with foster care & adoption issues, one with murder
Setting: Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Series: Tess Monaghan #3
Dates Read: finished 3/7/12
Number of pages: 275
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Off the shelf; sent by Stasia
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: On and On
How does it fit the category? Series
Alternate category any mystery or series category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? 3M -- marvelous Mystery March -- 3rd in series and mystery
My Rating:3.7 stars
Notes:

I started this book not sure if I'd like it. But before I knew it I was hooked. Kept picking it up when I should be doing other things. It's a definite improvement over the previous installment in the series, which wasn't too shabby itself.

Tess is on her own now as a PI. Her first two cases have a common thread -- dealing with issues of children's services, such as adoption and foster care. But there is murder here, too. A good story with some interesting characters. Not sure I quite liked part of how it ended. I may revise my rating -- still thinking.

75 Challenge Book #26
Title: He Chose the Nails
Author: Max Lucado
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2000
Subject: Faith and the Crucifixion
Dates Read: 2-22-12 through 3-7-12
Number of pages:
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, library book
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Spirit in the Sky
How does it fit the category? devotional
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Read as a Lenten exercise
My Rating: 3.5 stars
Notes:

Lucado almost always leaves readers with some great mental images related to the faith; he often finds new ways of talking about familiar religious concepts. I liked most of his text; the study guide written by someone else, which takes up almost half the book, was less satisfying. IMO, many of the questions would not work well for new or prospective Christians using only the Bible citations given as reference; they require a fair familiarity with theological/biblical concepts.

Sorry to hear that neck pain was giving you a hard time last night.
I hope it fades away today...

Thanks, Kath! At least it's not as bad as it was yesterday morning. But last night was a bear. I probably should stay away from the computer, but that really doesn't seem to be affecting it. I have a very well-designed computer desk and chair in my den that I bought on sale at Office Depot a while back. Keyboard is just the right height for comfort. (Unlike the horrible setup we have for computers at work . . .)

Thanks for the review on Butchers Hill! I've read some of Lippman's stand-alone books and really liked them, but have yet to start on the Tess Monaghan series. I do have the first one around here somewhere, and will get to it someday.

You're welcome, Carol! It's a pretty good series, overall. Thanks for stopping by!

I've been planning to read E.L. Doctorow's The March this month for the 12 in 12 categories March sub-challenge. But I'm thinking that before I read that novel (knowing that Doctorow does play loose with the facts in his historical fiction) I might want to read a non-fiction account of General Sherman's march to the sea. I have the book Sherman's March by Burke Davis on my shelf; it's gotten rather poor ratings here on LT, but the reviews on Amazon are better, and an excerpt from the Library Journal review of the book made it sound OK. I'm thinking I may try it.

My ER copy of Voyagers of the Titanic arrived today.

**fake exasperated sigh**
Another book keeping me up late, that I couldn't put down!

75 Challenge Book #27
Title: When the Devil Holds the Candle
Author: Karin Fossum
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1998 (Norwegian) 2004 (English Translation)
Subject: the tangled webs of destruction that people weave
Setting: Norway
Series: Inspector Sejer #3 English Publication order (#4 in Norwegian)
Dates Read: finished 3/10/12
Number of pages: 259
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Yes, purchased 2011 at Border's closing sale
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: What's Goin' On
How does it fit the category? mystery
Alternate category any series or mystery category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? 3M/ Mystery March & Third in Series
My Rating: 3.8 stars
Notes:

My, the tangled web that people can weave! This book has a little of everything: greed, selfishness, bigotry, homophobia, violence, madness. Fossum does madness with style. In the earliest part of the book, she throws out assorted story lines and POVs, allows them to dance a bit, and when the dust settles -- abracadabra! -- a compelling thriller emerges.

Andreas and Zipp, best friends still in their teens, are out on the town and raising some hell. Oh, and hell is pretty much what is in store for them -- especially one of them -- when they take on first a young mother, then a strange old woman. (Harmless, is she? NOT!!)

This is not so much a "whodunit" as a "what is it," "what's going on," "what happens next," and "how will it all sort out -- or will it?"

Terri - finally on a Saturday filled with gentle showers I am able to catch up with some of my friends.... in the last week or so your reading has been pretty impressive - of course I've read the Fossum - I'm not with Deb who thinks that Fossum is at the very top of Scandi - she doesn't have the grimness or sullen snowbound quality of Mankell or Indriadason for me nor the impact of a Jo Nesbo.

Love the look of Boundary Waters and will try my best to hunt this down.
Have a lovely weekend.

Terri- Glad you liked the Fossum. This was also the last one I had read. Looking forward to book 4.

Glad you had another good read, Terri...
How are you feeling?

Just when I'm trying not to add more to the tbr pile, I visit here and find another great addition.

Thanks for the excellent review and comments re. When the Devil Holds The Candle.

It is now on the tbr list.

Happy Saturday to you!

Glad to see that the Fossum book was a winner. I will get back to another of her novels soon.

177 Hi, Paul! I like all the scandi authors you name in different ways. Nesbo's books are so long and intricate, I don't have the patience right now to start another of his.

189 Hi, Mark! I'm looking forward to the next one in that series, too!

179 Hi, Kath! I'm feeling much better, thanks.

180 Happy Saturday to you, Linda!

181 Good morning, Lori! It's a good series.

I've been reading a lot this past week or so, and trying to catch up with LT (which is hopeless). In the next couple weeks, I don't know how reading or posting I'll do. We start our complete upstairs bathroom makeover on Monday. It is going to be a mess for a while.

Good luck with the remodeling project!

Thanks, Linda! So glad you stopped by.

Well, our renovation project is on a two-week delay. No, I'm really not upset about it. I'm just worrying that, as it looks now, the end of the remodeling is going to run very close to the arrival date of my in-laws for a visit. And I fear more delays. I sure hope the upstairs bathroom will be fully usable by the time they arrive!

Stay tuned for further devlopments . . .

I'm crossing crossables for your remodel to happen as hoped.
I hate delays!

Good luck with your project! I'm just impressed that you have a plan. We can't even get our living room redecorated, because we can't decided what to do with it.

So many good books here! I am intrigued by Dead to Me, Boundadry Waters (because I have been there and miss it), and When the Devil Holds the Candle. I think I will skip the racing books -- I am enough of a lead foot on my own! Good luck with the remodel and I think I may steel the GIF way back in #99, the little guy shaking the computer in frustration...too funny! And my computer is behaving now, too.

187 Thanks, Kath! :) And I'm hoping that your life calms down a tad. You need a break!

188 Thanks, Kerri! The space more-or-less dictated the floor plan, as it is small and hard to work with and we didn't want to tear out any walls. . . . really, no place to take space from for it, anyway. And I still haven't settled on the paint color . . . I'm having second thoughts about the floor tile . . .

I wouldn't even want to think about doing anything with our living room, as that space has too many options . . . though most of the available wall space is taken up with bookcases . . .

189 All those books were good reads that kept me turning pages, Kim. And help yourself to the GIF -- I "stole" it from GlitterGraphics.com.

Well, today I was out running some items to the recycling center and to Goodwill . . . and I found my car turning . . . turning right into a shopping center . . . (No -- the car didn't "turn into" as in become a shopping center) . . . anyway it just happened to home in on the shopping center with the used book store. How did the car know? I didn't mean to go there, really . . .and what's worse, they've EXPANDED their store and are having a grand re-opening this weekend.

And I had been so good about keeping my book intake even or less than my off-the-shelf reading . . .

And I must return, as I left my reusable shopping bag there (and I left the store with the books in a plastic bag -- dumb!)

ETA to fix typo

Hi Terri, we did bathroom remodeling last summer so you have my sympathy and wishes for a good outcome. Delays are inevitable. I also got an ER copy of Voyagers of the Titanic and am looking forward to it.

Hi, Bonnie! I'm looking forward to reading Voyagers of the Titanic, too. I was tempted to skip over my previous month's ER book to get to it, but I'm being good and getting the earlier one's review out of the way first.

My book haul today: mass market paperback copies of Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella and It's Good to Be Alive by Roy Campanella for $1 each; a trade paperback of Stewart O'Nan's Snow Angels for $2; and a beautiful-like-new hard-cover copy of Dennis Lehane's Prayers for Rain for $5.

Today has been a gorgeous day -- temps in the high 60's (F), partly sunny. Wow! I'm listening to Aretha Franklin singing "Think!" (Yeah, "Oh, Freedom! Freedom!") It doesn't get much better than this. . .

ETA a minute later to add . . . Except now, listening to "RESPECT!"

Got a chuckle visualizing your car turning into a shopping center. I love my new car but, if she were to turn into a shopping center, it had better have a bookstore and a nice coffeeshop in it, too.

Upper 60s today here, too. I sat outside at lunch. On Wed, there's talk of a record high in the low 80s. This springlike/summerlike weather is crazy.

Terri I am going to have to get one of those cars double quick - make and model if you please?!

For what it's worth, Paul, it's a Chevrolet Monte Carlo -- but I really think that the book-seeking trait is not characteristic of the model. ;)

My father's Monte Carlo rarely turns into a bookstore unless I'm in the car.

Funny how that works, huh Linda? ;)

We are getting a new cataloging/circulation system at our library. I've been through that once, and it was rough but do-able. But this time it's more than that --we're being required to make policy changes. I am stressed.

ETA in retrospect with more perspective.

Never mind about what I just posted. I've had a MAJOR priorities check.

There's been a collision between a tractor trailer and a school bus from a nearby school district. (My husband pastors a church located in that district.) They just showed pictures from the scene. Horrible. They are life-flighting victims to trauma centers -- multiple victims. Just terrible.

There is already a report of a fatality from that accident; the coronor, six medical helicopters and multiple ambulances and fire departments were called to the scene. I just heard our town's fire siren go off -- perhaps they're being called in, too. ALL parents who think they may have a child on that bus are being told to report to an area hospital.

I am so sorry! About both situations, but particularly the latter. Sending good thoughts.

Terri... You have reason to be upset about work. I am so sorry.
It makes me angy on so many levels, for so many reasons.. all people are not the same.
All libraries are not the same...

They mentioned the accident on our news, but just a blurb is all I heard.
I hope the kids are ok :( Very scary situation.

Thanks, Kim & Kath!

Are you sure there isn't a way to change the loan terms and penalty fees? The software I installed at my daughter's library leaves this option open to the head administrator's (me) discretion and I had the capability to change it by location.

Seeing photos of the accident scene, I couldn't imagine how the vehicles ended up in the position they were, on a relatively straight stretch of road without an intersection nearby. But a witness to the accident says that the tractor trailer was driving on the WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD.

ETA to add Police have indicated that the one confirmed death is the truck driver.

I just heard a report that the injured students are expected to survive. I don't know about the bus driver nor the aide from the bus who were taken to the trauma center. I know the truck driver died.

I'm sorry to hear about this.

Earlier, I mentioned that Swiss bus crash. The crash happened in a tunnel and 28 people, including 22 Belgian and Dutch kids, died.

I was just watching the national news and saw footage of the Swiss bus. Horrible! Thank heavens the crash here wasn't that bad.

Hi Terri- Glad to hear about the mini-book haul. Yah! Glad you are enjoying the early spring weather. Double Yah!

Hi, Mark! Thanks for stopping by.

I spent much of the evening finishing this book. It had a calming influence.

75 Challenge Book #28
Title: Wait Till Next Year
Author: Doris Kearns Goodwin
Copyright/Year of original publication: 1997
Subject: memoir of her life growing up in the 50's on Long Island as a Brooklyn Dodgers fan
Setting: Rockville Center, Long Island, NY, USA
Series: no
Dates Read: finished 3/14/12
Number of pages: 257 plus acknowledgments & reading group guide
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: Yes, purchased used.
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Winner Takes it All
How does it fit the category? Sports emphasis
Alternate category American Pie
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? This is part of the Spring Training Read
My Rating: 3.9 stars
Notes:

I enjoyed this memoir by historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. There is much more than baseball here -- it's her growing up experiences as a child of the suburban 1950's. But it pretty much begins and ends with baseball, and the game is a thread running through the entire book. The memory of her joy over the Dodgers' World Series victory in 1955 brought back happy memories of celebrating the 1980 Phillies with my mom.

Hi Terri, I hope today is a better day for you. As much as I love getting my house updated, the process of going through the renovations can be such a misery. Just keep telling yourself that it will all be worth it eventually.

Thanks, Judy! It was a better day today.

#212, I liked that Doris Kearns Goodwin book, too. I remember her from Ken Burns' Baseball. She was the best.

Absolutely, Linda! I, too, thought she was great on Ken Burns' Baseball. Another person I remember fondly from the Burns program is Buck O'Neil. I bought his memoir, I Was Right On Time, at a used bookstore in Cooperstown. Maybe I'll read that one soon.

from #198

I think our Library system went strange, a while ago..it takes forever for me to login to my account...I can't state specifics, since I haven't used their services for years

I think it's shitty that smaller libraries have to suffer the bureaucratic wars...

I'm glad you liked Butchers Hill...i love that series, yes i do

;-}

Hi, Jude!

The Lippman series is a goodie, for sure!

We are having major issues regarding our library's web site, totally separate from this new catalog/circulation system changeover. Technology is a real issue for small libraries with limited funds. Good and reliable tech services don't come cheap. I spend a lot of time silently cursing both our patron computers and staff computers. . .


glitter-graphics.com

Terri awful news about the trailer/school bus accident. I once wrote off a Citroen car of mine swerving to avoid a school bus on the wrong side of the road in Johor Bahru and did 540 degree flip and landed in a storm drain upside down. I remember thinking looking at the empty kiddies chair beside me that at least my boy (we only had Yassie and Kyran then) was safely tucked up in bed. I also remember being extemely surprised to get out of the car without a mark on me. Hope the kids in the bus all make a full recovery.

Thanks, Paul! Wow, your accident sounds pretty dramatic. Glad you were OK.

It sounds like all the kids are going to be OK. One of the teens who was taken to the trauma center is actually the grandson of someone we know, and my husband was told he'll make a full recovery. Last I heard, one of the adults from the bus is in critical condition (likely the driver, who was right up front, though there was an aide on board, too) but everyone else was either in fair condition or already released. I'd say it was a pretty fortunate outcome, all things considered -- but a lot of folks are understandably very shaken up!

I'm sorry to hear about the accident, but glad that the kids will be ok. Take care.

rofl at that computer gif :) but sorry for your troubles..
I have been there is doctors offices when they changed out their systems... I
assume that the problems can be similar...

wow Paul, talk about spectacular crashes!!

221 Thanks, Kerri!

222 (Waves at Kath!) :)

I finished this audio book during a long drive to and from a meeting lat evening:

75 Challenge Book #29
Title: The Dirty Secrets Club (AUDIO)
Author: Meg Gardiner
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2008
Subject: a deadly secret society
Setting: San Francisco, CA
Series: Dr. Jo Beckett #1
Dates Read: finished 3/16/12
Number of pages: n/a (audio)
Off the Shelf? (pre-2012 or ER?) Source?: No, public library download
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: Doctor, Doctor
How does it fit the category? Protagonist is a psychiatrist
Alternate category any mystery or series category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Mystery March
My Rating: 2.7 stars
Notes: audio narrated for Brilliance Audio by Susan Erikson

I downloaded this audio because it was available and I saw someone recommend it here on LT. I almost abandoned it in the first chapter, which (IMO) was way over-the-top sensational. But I'd read in the reviews that the whole book wasn't like that, so I continued. In the middle, I became rather engrossed with the story as the suspense built and I got to know the characters. But I found the very end of the book rather unsatisfying and had trouble following the final explanation of how everything fit together. It just all seemed very convoluted to me.

I had no particular issues with the quality of the audio. It was fine.

I don't think this is a series I will continue.

Today we went on a family trip to the Antietam National Battlefield, where we watched a movie at the visitor's center, did the Auto Trail of the battlefield, and took a hike on one of the battlefield trails.

I also bought a book at the bookstore (of course!). Now the Drum of War: Walt Whitman and His Brothers in the Civil War by Robert Roper was on clearance for $4.98 -- and I remembered correctly that it was on my Wishlist!

I agree with you that "over the top sensational" can detract from a book.
I have to admit that there was a fair amount of that in The Fey, and I nearly abandoned
that one. The whole book, really was like that, but for some reason I forged ahead. It was
ok.. but I won't follow the series..

I saw the news about that school bus - and was relieved that it turned out as well as it did. I heard the truck driver may have had a heart attack??

#218 gif - I think that's my Mom! They caught her in the act!

Hope that library system becomes more user friendly. I hate when policies are set at one location for all the others. Geesh!
Good luck with that.

Yeah, Kath. This book would qualify as "OK" but not a series that I'd follow.

Hi, Cee!

I heard the truck driver may have had a heart attack?
There was a lot of speculation about that, but according to the local newspaper on Friday, "the autopsy did not reveal any medical condition that may have caused the accident." His death was caused by blunt force traumatic injuries sustained in the crash.

LOL about your mom as the gal in the gif!

ETA to fix greeting to Cee -- having trouble with names today!

They had a truck and trooper incident in Knoxville the other day. The driver of the truck had fallen asleep at the wheel. In the days since we've been hearing all about truck drivers not getting enough sleep. The trooper was in critical care at the hospital the last I heard but was expected to make it.

Wow, Lori, I hope the trooper will be OK.

I'm not sure if lack of sleep was an issue in this accident -- who knows? It was a Pepsi truck, and there is a Pepsi bottling facility in the area, so I'm thinking he wasn't a "long haul" trucker, which is where long hours and lack of sleep usually come into play. But that's just a guess. I suspect we'll never know a "why."

I'm watching the Lehigh/Xavier game. Such fun!

I heard about the bus accident and was praying hard. We had a car load of kids hit a shool bus last year and the driver of the car was brought to our OR and didn't survive surgery. His aunt worked in the OR and his mom worked in the ER. My boss knew him through her kids. I never, ever want to go through a day like that again. Last week a car driven by a drunk driver struck a car full of kids coming from a church function. The drunk driver and his passenger was killed but amazingly the kids lived. My heart breaks for the friends and families involved.

Those both sound like horrible situations, Carrie!

Well, Lehigh started out strong, but then they faded. It would have been a real Cinderella story if they'd won and moved on to the Sweet Sixteen round of the tournament, but they can still feel proud to have defeated Duke on Friday night.

I started off March reading like crazy, but I seem to be slowing down now. I'm in the middle of an ER book that I don't want to be reading now, but feel I must get done. It's not bad, just not what I want to read now.

I've also been reading a book of quotes I downloaded electronically from the library. I think I had expected something different from the title, but it's just your standard reference book of quotations on different subjects. I know I won't get all the way through it before the loan expires, but I don't feel a need to finish it. I got a few good chuckles from some of the quotes. It's been a good one to read in bed, trying to get drowsy.

Just reading and nodding and wondering why people drink and drive?
Carrie.. that sounds dreadful :( worse than dreadful...

March has been a less than usual reading month for me, I think? I have no real
reading ambition.. but I do need to read. Does that make sense?
I have been finding it really hard to concentrate at times. On the other hand..
I have spend more time just sitting with this blasted ankle. Sometimes with a
book.. sometimes just staring at the laptop screen :P

I know the staring at the screen drill, Kath . . . I seem to recall that you didn't like the ER book I'm reading. I actually think it's a pretty good book so far, but so blasted GRIM. . . normally I do grim fine, but not right now.

Gods of Gotham? I did not like it much.. if I recall, the ending saves it a little.. ?
I think its the one..

Hi Terri- hope you get over your reading block soon....I have struggled a bit this year but am slowly getting into gear a bit more.

Happy Spring, everyone! Today was a housework day -- guess I've got the Spring Cleaning bug. I listened to an audio book during many of my chores, The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths. Almost no LT time, except to check my own threads.

236 Yes. I'm getting into it a bit more, Kath. I actually do think it's rather good, objectively speaking. I mean, the historical detail is stunning. I like the "Rogue's Lexicon," and some of the quotations that open the chapters just make my jaw drop -- I knew, of course, that there was a lot of prejudice against the Irish immigrants, but seeing some of what was written then just blows me away. It's just that all the subject matter is dark & depressing -- bigotry, child abuse, murder, political fraud . . . I mean, I normally lean toward dark reads, so I'm not sure why it bothers me so much.

237 Hi, Paul! It's funny how one's reading tempo can ebb and flow over time . . .

I agree with you about Gotham.. It was well written. I did know about the discrimination
against the Irish, but that did make it so graphic and real and ugly =(
I too read a lot of dark stuff.. but that one just got to me. Maybe I don't give it enough
credit? Maybe it was too good? I dont know, but I do know that I won't be revisiting it.

I enjoy Elly Griffiths :)

Hi Terri,
Unfortunately my "reading tempo" is ebbing this month... too much going on which is highly unusual for March. It's not for lack of books or desire - just a time and mood thing, I guess.
And I was going great guns in January... oh well.
April's coming soon - yikes!

Happy Spring to you too, Terri. We actually had a lovely spring like day today with lots of sunshine. Crossing Places is at the top of my list for May's Murder and Mayhem.

239 I think that's it, Kath -- Faye was almost too good at re-creating the awful aspects of that time. I did find the ending surprising and, on some levels, rather encouraging. I'm liking the Griffiths. I got over halfway through the audio on Tuesday while cleaning -- probably would have finished it if I lived alone, but when the family got home in the afternoon, I had to take a break from it and listen to them a bit . . . ;)

240 Cee, I find I'm reading more in bits and pieces these days -- a chapter here, half a chapter there -- with the exception of the above-mentioned audio. Plus I have a bunch of books going at once, so sometimes it feels like I make little progress on any of them. Then, suddenly, I find I'm nearing the end of a couple books at once. Odd.

241 Judy, that's the kind of day we had Tuesday. I had the windows all open, airing out the house. I even took a few minutes late in the day to sit and read on the front porch! Wednesday was supposed to be more of the same, but wasn't -- it was gray and misty all day, though still quite warm for March.

I actually did finish Gods of Gotham last night -- stayed up to finish it, as it was getting quite compelling near the end. This is one where I have to write a real review. I'll probably work through that process with comments here.

75 Challenge Book #30
Title: Gods of Gotham
Author: Lindsay Faye
Copyright/Year of original publication: 2012
Subject: murder, religious bigotry, origins of the NYPD
Setting: New York City, 1845
Series: No (at least I don't know that she plans a sequel)
Dates Read: finished 3/21/12
Number of pages: 414 (in uncorrected proofs)
Off the Shelf? Pre-2012 or ER? Source?: Yes, ER, LT's ER program
Category for 12 in 12 challenge: TBA
How does it fit the category?
Alternate category
Monthly theme/emphasis? / how does it fit? Mystery March
My Rating: TBA
Notes:

I received an Early Reviewer copy of uncorrected proofs of this book from the publisher through the Library Thing Early Reviewer program, and my review is based on this copy.

In this historical mystery, set in 1845, Timothy Wilde gets a job on the newly-minted New York Police Department (courtesy of his politically-connected brother). Patrolling the 6th Ward, at the edge of the notorious Five-Points slum, he encounters a blood-soaked young girl.

This tale is filled with grim realities. Author Lindsay Faye vividly portrays the wretched poverty of the immigrants, and the tremendous religious bigotry that the Irish, in particular, faced as they fled Ireland's Potato Famine. (It never ceases to amaze me, the ungodly things that some people do allegedly in the name of God.) Each chapter begins with a genuine quotation from that era which demonstrates how much the Catholics were hated by the great majority of native New Yorkers. Particularly chilling is the exploitation of children, which appears to be accepted as a routine fact of life. But what Timothy Wilde uncovers about the fate of some children is shocking even for that place and time.

This book is very well written. Faye has clearly done her homework; this novel is filled with historical detail which brings 1845 New York City alive. The characters are complex and well-drawn, defying stereotypes. The biggest difficulty I had reading the book was that it was almost too well done. The story and setting is a grim one, indeed.

I also must note that for uncorrected proofs, this was amazingly clean copy -- thus I would wager that the finished edition will be free of the spelling/grammar errors too often found in books nowadays.

After reading your review of The Gods of Gotham, I decided to check the other reviews here on LT. I'm convinced that I need to add this one to the TBR list even though I'm a little squeamish about the mutilation described in some of the reviews.

I'm stopping by to thank you for recommending Dead to You by Lisa McMann. Life you, I couldn't put it down. What a story line..what an ending...what good writing!

Incredible!

244 Lori, at least Faye's descriptions of the mutilation weren't too over-the-top, IMO. I've read some books that really seem to dwell on the gory stuff, but I didn't find this to be that way.

245 I thought you'd like that one, Linda! :) I'm glad to hear that I was right.

Today was an absolutely gorgeous spring day, once the fog burned away -- sunny and mid-70's (F). Thursday morning is my bowling league time. A good time was had by all. Then I went grocery shopping. Then I came home and tried to fit the frozen food I'd bought into an already-full little freezer. I'm proud (and relieved) to say that I managed that nicely. For supper, I rustled up some fried potatoes and cabbage (left over from my belated St. Patrick's Day feast, which was delayed several days due to us not being home for dinner this past weekend). Contentment!

Tomorrow will be a busy day at work. Tomorrow evening we're scheduled to meet with the contractor for some last-minute discussion re: the renovations now slated to start on Monday. Whenever I start to worry, I tell myself this is the same contractor who did such a nice job on our kitchen about 10 years ago -- it was transformed into my favorite room in the house. I doubt he'll turn the bathroom into my favorite room, but I'm sure it will be quite presentable. (I really should find the "before" pictures of the kitchen to fully remember the magic that was wrought there!)

I am so far behind on so many LT threads, I will never catch up -- or else, I'll have no time for reading books.

>224 tymfos:: Terri, your trip to Antietam sounds great, especially walking the trail and the new book about Walt Whitman's efforts in the CW hospital. He probably did more good there than he would have on the battlefield.

I'm glad you're enjoying spring. So far it's meant lots of rain for us. We'll do our first mowing this week end which means lots of picking up of fallen branches. I'll probably be too tired to do any spring cleaning. I'm still waiting for that particular bug to bite me!

Good luck with your upcoming renovation! I hope it doesn't interfere with your reading.

Terri- Good review of Gods of Gotham. You earned a Thumb. Funny, I just saw this title on the Preview shelf at the library. You can't take it out yet. I'm not sure of the release date.

247 Hi, Donna! Some people are starting to mow here, too, though I wouldn't say it's strictly necessary yet. I've been doing a lot of pick-up-sticks, too.

248 Thanks, Mark! According to Amazon, the official release date is this coming Monday, 3/26. I got an Early Reviewer copy, uncorrected proofs, so I got a head start on it!

I think I'm going to have to take time to start a new thread later tonight. . .

OK, my new thread is open for business:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/134646#t


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