In which casvelyn reads, categorically, whatever she wants, with baked goods

I thought that for 2013, I would go with a baker's dozen theme. (Unlike 2012's tea theme, I'm not eating a baked good with every book. Sorry.) My categories are mostly similar to last year's, because this year I'm reading whatever I want, and these categories best reflect my reading. If I skimmed all my TBR books correctly, I think every book fits in at least one category. I'm starting this challenge January 1, 2013, and I hope to read 100 books in all.

I'm not listing possibilities for my categories, because when I decide I'm going to read a given book, I automatically doom it to not getting read that year. (ETA: I will list a few books I know I'm going to read next year, such as group reads and a couple of books I've started in 2012 but won't finish until 2013.)

ETA: I'm listing books in ALL categories in which they fit, because I'm curious how many I'll end up reading for each category. I've got a total books read tally at the bottom of this post.

The Categories

1. Hardtack: books that have been on the TBR the longest number of years (currently 3 years), because hardtack keeps forever--I've been keeping a TBR list much, much longer, but didn't date additions until March 2010, at which point I grandfathered in the entire list as it stood then (2)

2. Lembas: science fiction/fantasy, because I can’t think of any other famous SFF baked goods, except Soylent Green (eww) (6)

3. Snack cakes: mysteries, because I eat read them like… (4)

4. Tea cakes: historical fiction, because it just feels right (1)

5. Homemade bread: fiction originally published in my lifetime, because the precursor to the slow food movement was founded in 1986 (6)

6. 100% whole wheat bread: non-fiction, because it’s good for you, but sometimes a bit dense and chewy (2)

7. Sliced bread: twentieth-century novels, because bread was first sold pre-sliced in 1928 (13)

8. Cake: nineteenth-century novels, because modern cake was made possible by the invention of baking soda and baking powder, both in the 1800s (0)

9. Apple pie: books by American authors, because they’re as American as… (5)

10. Toast: British/English authors, because the English invented toast (9)

11. Chocolate chip cookies: unread books in series started prior to 2013, because I can’t eat just one (3)

12. Sourdough: books off the shelf, because sourdough is the bread I’m most likely to buy, except I don’t leave it on the shelf for 15 years before using it like I do my books—it’s just an analogy, okay??? :) (1)

13. Scones: cookbooks and culinary non-fiction, because I said so (2)

Total Books Read in 2013: 17

Average Overall Rating: 4.4/5.0

Currently Reading: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling); Institutes of the Christian Religion (Calvin); The Shield of Achilles (Auden)

Currently from the Library: The Shield of Achilles (Auden); Great Books (Denby)

Planned Group Reads
The Enchanted April - Elizabeth von Arnim (April)
Rebecca - Daphne du Maurier (May)
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee (June)
Ivanhoe - Walter Scott (September)

1. Hardtack: books that have been on the TBR the longest number of years (currently 2 years, will change to 3 years in March), because hardtack keeps forever

The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
Institutes of the Christian Religion - John Calvin

1. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (5.0)
2. The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie (4.5)

Average rating: 4.8/5.0

2. Lembas: science fiction/fantasy, because I can’t think of any other famous SFF baked goods, except Soylent Green (eww)

The Silmarillion - J. R. R. Tolkien

1. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (4.0)
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling (4.0)
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling (4.1)
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling (4.4)
5. Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede (4.0)
6. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (2.4)

Average rating: 3.8/5.0

3. Snack cakes: mysteries, because I eat read them like…

1. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear (4.1)
2. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (5.0)
3. The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie (4.5)
4. Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers (4.5)

Average rating: 4.5/5.0

4. Tea cakes: historical fiction, because it just feels right

The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
Ivanhoe - Walter Scott

1. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear (4.1)

Average rating: 4.1/5.0

5. Homemade bread: fiction originally published in my lifetime, because the precursor to the slow food movement was founded in 1986

The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova (2005)

1. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (1987) (4.0)
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling (1997) (4.0)
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling (1998) (4.1)
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling (1999) (4.4)
5. Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede (2009) (4.0)
6. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear (2005) (4.1)

Average rating: 4.1/5.0
Average year: 1999

6. 100% whole wheat bread: non-fiction, because it’s good for you, but sometimes a bit dense and chewy

Adam and Eve after the Pill: Paradoxes of the Sexual Revolution - Mary Eberstadt
Institutes of the Christian Religion - John Calvin
Revelations of Divine Love - Julian of Norwich

1. Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi (5.0)
2. The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart (4.8)

Average rating: 4.9/5.0

7. Sliced bread: twentieth-century novels, because bread was first sold pre-sliced in 1928

Descent into Hell - Charles Williams (1937)
The Enchanted April - Elizabeth von Arnim (1922)
The End of the Affair - Graham Greene (1951)

1. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (1987) (4.0)
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling (1997) (4.0)
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling (1998) (4.1)
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling (1999) (4.4)
5. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (1922) (5.0)
6. The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie (1925) (4.5)
7. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (1973) (2.4)
8. Dangerous Days by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1919) (4.8)
9. The Breaking Point by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1922) (4.3)
10. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery (1908) (4.9)
11. Anne of Avonlea by L. M. Montgomery (1909) (5.0)
12. Anne of the Island by L. M. Montgomery (1915) (4.4)
13. Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers (1923) (4.5)

Average rating: 4.3/5.0
Average year: 1946

8. Cake: nineteenth-century novels, because modern cake was made possible by the invention of baking soda and baking powder, both in the 1800s

The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas (1845)
Ivanhoe - Walter Scott (1820)

1.

Average rating:
Average year:

9. Apple pie: American authors, because they’re as American as…

Adam and Eve after the Pill: Paradoxes of the Sexual Revolution - Mary Eberstadt
The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova

1. Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede (4.0)
2. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (2.5)
3. The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart (4.8)
4. Dangerous Days by Mary Roberts Rinehart (4.8)
5. The Breaking Point by Mary Roberts Rinehart (4.3)

Average rating: 4.1/5.0

10. Toast: British/English authors, because the English invented toast

Descent into Hell - Charles Williams
The Enchanted April - Elizabeth von Arnim
The End of the Affair - Graham Greene
Revelations of Divine Love - Julian of Norwich
The Silmarillion - J. R. R. Tolkien

1. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (4.0)
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling (4.0)
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling (4.1)
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling (4.4)
5. Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi (5.0)
6. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear (4.1)
7. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (5.0)
8. The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie (4.5)
9. Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers (4.5)

Average rating: 4.4/5.0

11. Chocolate chip cookies: unread books in series started prior to 2013, because I can’t eat just one

Alan Grant -- Josephine Tey
Albert Campion -- Margery Allingham
Chronicles of Kazam -- Jasper Fforde
Dirk Gently -- Douglas Adams
Discworld -- Terry Pratchett
Hercule Poirot -- Agatha Christie
Inspector Appleby -- Michael Innes
Jeeves -- P. G. Wodehouse
Maisie Dobbs -- Jacqueline Winspear
Miss Marple -- Agatha Christie
Nero Wolfe -- Rex Stout
Rue de Grenelle -- Muriel Barbery
Superintendent Hannasyde -- Georgette Heyer
Time-Travellling Oxford Historians -- Connie Willis
Tommy and Tuppence -- Agatha Christie
Vanessa Duncan -- Catherine Shaw
Wolves -- Joan Aiken

1. Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (Discworld 3) (4.0)
2. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear (Maisie Dobbs 3) (4.1)
3. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (Tommy and Tuppence 1) (5.0)

Average rating: 4.4/5.0

12. Sourdough: books off the shelf, because sourdough is the bread I’m most likely to buy, except I don’t leave it on the shelf for 15 years before using it like I do my books—it’s just an analogy, okay???

Institutes of the Christian Religion - John Calvin

1. The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart

Average rating: 4.8/5.0

13. Scones: cookbooks and culinary non-fiction, because I said so

1. Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi (5.0)
2. The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart (4.8)

Average rating: 4.9/5.0

So many possibilities you gave up listing them??? Love the bready theme.

Delicious!

>15 cammykitty: I have this psychological hangup that if I say "Next year I want to read x, y, and z" I won't read those books because something about saying "I will read this" inoculates me against wanting to read it. It's irrational and illogical and just plain weird, but it's the way my brain works.

I totally understand!!! It's like making it an assignment.

Yes! Except there's no grade attached, so I have no incentive to actually do it.

:)

Excellent theme!! I was thinking of going with that theme as well, but I couldn't come up with breads for all of them - well done!! :) Looking forward to seeing what you fill the categories with.

mmm I am hungry now. ( I had to look up Lembas though.. yes I admit it not a LOTR fan)

LOL at "I'm not eating a baked good with every book." :D
And now I'm hungry too! Love the theme.

>17 casvelyn: - I totally understand that

no Donuts? or does that fall under cakes?

Donuts - category for police procedurals :) Ooops my granddaughter the cop will come after me for that one...

A local radio station used to have a morning show game called "Cop or Not A Cop." A listener would call in and have to declare "cop" or "not a cop" and then the DJ would call Dunkin' Donuts to find out if there was a policeman on the premises at that time. If the caller had declared correctly, they won a prize.

>17 casvelyn: There's really not a lot of uniquely science fiction/fantasy baked goods, at least not that I can recall offhand, and I'm a huge LOTR fan.

>24 psutto: No! Doughnuts are *NOT* under cake! Cake doughnuts are an abomination. Now yeast doughnuts, on the other hand, are some good eating.

Okay, okay, my unused and invisible 14th category will be "Doughnuts: books that have holes in the plot." Are y'all happy now?

Love it!

"Cake doughnuts are an abomination"
100% with you on that!

Love the "holey" books category! :)

I love your theme, but it's making me hungry!

The smell of fresh baked bread is one of the best in the World!

I think you should eat a baked good with each book!

>33 christina_reads: I certainly don't object to that, but my waistline might. I'm trying to lose weight, not gain it. Maybe I'll have a baked good of the month or something--I can even include doughnuts, because I don't plan on eating any hardtack or snack cakes.

@ 34 -- Or lembas bread, one assumes. :) And I feel your pain re: the waistline! It's probably for the best that my theme doesn't involve food.

Oh the food theme is mouth drooling! As for eating a baked good with each book, I was in a local coffee shop at lunchtime today and noticed that they offer tiny/miniature sized cookies as part of the baked goods one can buy with their coffee. Today they had tiny biscotti and these cute little lemon drop cookies the size of a button. Nice to see some places moving away from the ginormous cookies and muffins that contain 1,000 calories!

>35 christina_reads: Actually, my senior year of college, I lived in an apartment with five other girls and we used to have theme dinners and just spend an entire Saturday cooking and making a ferocious mess out of the kitchen. Anyhow, one time we did a Hobbit feast and made lembas. There are recipes floating around the internet--nothing "authentic" as Tolkien never really specifically described lembas (and from what he does say, they sound like unusually filling hardtack), but still rather tasty.

@35 & 37 - there are of course many people who have tried to create Lembas ;-) e.g.

http://lotrscrapbook.bookloaf.net/other/recipes.html#lembas

Your categories are making me hungry.

>39 thornton37814: Sorry.

I loved your Tea Theme this year, and the logical follow-up for next year is definitely the Baked Goods Categories. I admire your restraint regarding the eating of the Baked Goods but I don't know how you can resist, especially Apple Pie!

Add me to the list of hungry people - great categories!

Great categories! If only there was a way to attach the smell of baking bread to your posts...

Very clever, and a lot of fun! I look forward to seeing how the books fit in.

I had a LOTR movie marathon a couple of weeks ago and would've loved to eat lembas (to go with my tea).

>45 PawsforThought:: The theatrical versions or the extended editions? I could only sit through the extended editions once, lovely as they were. But perhaps Fellowship could do with a re-watch while I wait for The Hobbit Part 1 of 3 (!) to be released. Thanks for the reminder! ;)

Somewhat on topic, The Hobbit mentions a biscuity-type food called "cram", which keeps for ages and you don't need to eat much to keep going -- very handy attribute when on an expedition to the Lonely Mountain!

The extended! I was ill so needed something to cheer me up (and I hadn't watched them in years so thought it'd be good to refresh the memory before The Hobbit is out).

Cram does sound like it'd be ideal for an expedition but somehow I doubt they'd be very tasty (long lasting biscuits rarely are).

I think cram is mentioned in Fellowship of the Ring as well, where it is compared unfavorably to lembas in terms of taste.

I don't remember that at all, but it's been about ten years since I read the books so no wonder...

I just read LOTR (for the 12-ish time) earlier this year.

Well, then I'm not surprised that you remember the pastries better than I do. :)

Good going on the categories! I've been mostly absent from the 12/12 threads this year, but hopefully I'll have time to do the rounds in 2013. Still need to organize myself before I can put out my own thread!

Oh your categories are making me hungrier than a Hobbit! I can't wait to see what all your possibilities are. I am doing three of your group reads listed. All, but Rebecca which I tried this month but I couldn't take it. The second Mrs. deWinter needs a backbone. Maybe down the road I will try again.

Holy *beep*! I feel sorry for you for having so many possibilities. I find it difficult with half a dozen to choose from, I can't imagine what it must be like for you. Of course, you might love having half a library to choose from, and in that case, I don't feel sorry for you at all!

>53 luvamystery65: I'm excited by the group reads as well. I've never tried Rebecca, but I like du Maurier's short stories, so I thought I'd give it a try.

>54 PawsforThought: I love having lots of options, partly because I have to start a book as soon as I decide to read it, or I get bored with the idea and move on to another book. Also, I look at my list of books to read, and they make me happy, because they are so long and so full of beautiful books, and I get to read every one!

I need a snack. Love your categories.

Hmmm...scones...I can see your thread will be dangerous not only due to book bullets but also yummy sounding categories.

I know I said I couldn't list possibilities because I usually don't read the books I list, but I forgot that a friend and I made plans to swap booklists earlier this year. Essentially, we each assigned the other six books to read in 2013, with the option to stop any book if we didn't like it, as long as we gave it an honest attempt. My assignment for next year is:

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Descent into Hell by Charles Williams
The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien
Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich
Adam and Eve after the Pill: Paradoxes of the Sexual Revolution by Mary Eberstadt

I've listed these under the categories in which they fit.

(In case anyone's curious, I told her to read Possession by A. S. Byatt, The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco, Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers, and Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis.)

I like your baker's dozen theme. It makes this seem like a nice cozy thread to be. Just need an armchair and some tea, and maybe a cat to cuddle with.

I've been seeing a lot of Connie Willis on LT lately. These are time travel books, correct? I'm tempted to add them to my wishlist.

I don't currently own an armchair, but I've got more tea and cats than I know what to do with, so I'd be glad to share! (I have only two cats, but sometimes it seems like more, particularly when I'm vacuuming the furniture.)

Connie Willis writes several different kinds of science fiction, but I've read only three-quarters of her Oxford Time Travelling Historians series. The essential premise is that in the near future time travel has been invented, so naturally historians go back in time to do research. The books chronicle the sorts of problems that the historians encounter both in the past and in the present. The series does not have to be read in order, with the exception of Blackout and All Clear, which is one book in two parts. Personally, I recommend starting with To Say Nothing of the Dog, because it's the most engaging and funny. (Blackout/All Clear is my favorite, because of the last half of All Clear, but the first half of Blackout is almost dull and doesn't really make a good introduction to the series.) I've heard that the first book, Doomsday Book, puts a lot of people off the series, but I haven't read it yet.

I haven't read any Connie Willis but To say nothing of the dog but I really loved that. I'll be curious to hear how you like the Charkes Williams novel--I have an unread copy around somewhere.

I've loved all the Connie Willis books you mentioned, including Doomsday Book. I agree that To Say Nothing of the Dog is a great place to start though. She's written a couple of non time travel books that are pretty good - Miracle and Other Christmas Stories and All About Emily. The last one is particularly great if you are a fan of the movie All About Eve.

Thanks! I'd be happy with just a cup of tea and a cat to cuddle with right about now.

Then back to my thread to see if I can fit in To Say Nothing of the Dog this year :o)

I was planning on starting with Doomsday Book since I prefer to read series in order, but it sounds like the consensus is to start with To Say Nothing of the Dog, so I'll head over and switch their places on the to-buy list. Thanks to all for the heads-up about that!

I've only read To say nothing of the Dog as well and did it by audiobook which was a total treat. I need to get started on the others.

You have some great books listed to read next year. Also, your thread is making me hungry.

sandragon - My cat is so overly social I sometimes have to kick him out to get a break from cuddling (he's really suffocating). Though most of the time, I love having him in the other chair (we have an armchair each) while I'm sipping tea and reading.

LOL, I love that your cat has his own armchair. My niece let's her cat curl around her head while she (my niece) is sleeping. Knowing this cat, I don't think I could stand the drool!

I've never had a cat, and now I'm allergic to them (developed in my 20s) so I can't have cats. But I have memories of reading while cuddling with my now MIL's cats. I used to cuddle with my dog when she was a lot younger, but now she's a 60 pound 13 year old and is too big to cuddle. And she can't get up on the couch anymore.

Well, he made it his - like cats make all furniture theirs. (Except MY armchair - that's not for him, only sometimes when I'm feeling extra kind.) I've had cats for 20 years and don't think I'd be able to manage without one. After our first cat died my family went pet-less for a while but it felt so wrong that we eventually had to get a new one (best Christmas present ever!)

Oh no, I'm late to the Connie Willis discussion! I'm a big fan of hers (currently reading All Clear, as it happens). Eva, don't be misled by the term "series" -- although all the time travel books are basically set in the same universe, they really don't need to be read in any specific order. Very few (if any) characters overlap, and all the books (except Blackout/All Clear) can be read as standalones.

Thanks! Very good to know.

Since we're talking about cats, today one of mine left an odd-looking rodent in the garage. It looked like a large mouse/small rat with a tail that was flat on top and bottom and bushy on the sides. I did a bit of Googling and realized that it was a FLYING SQUIRREL! I didn't even realize that we had flying squirrels in my state (Indiana), much less the urban area where I live. Although, my neighborhood was developed 70-80 years ago, so we do have a lot more trees than most of the newer areas.

Well, there may not be flying squirrels...anymore.

:) It's true. Although, flying squirrels are mostly nocturnal, and we don't go in the wooded part of our property much at night because it's dark back there.

Flying squirrel.... kinda makes you wonder how the cat caught it in the first place. Our cat tried to bring home 'gifts' from time to time and I still chuckle when I remember the reasoned, albeit one-sided conversation my Mom would have with the cat at the back door when he wanted to bring the 'gift' into the house. ;-)

We've been wondering how he caught it. Based on what I read, when flying squirrels are on the ground, they're vulnerable, because they can't run as fast as other kinds of squirrels. I figure he surprised it, since despite being an older cat he's still a fairly good hunter. He's been bring in a lot of fat field mice lately, and he caught rabbits and birds throughout the summer. Fortunately, he usually leaves his gifts in the garage rather than trying to bring them in the house.

Good kitty! :) He just wanted to make sure the local taxidermist would have a flying squirrel but couldn't figure out how to drive it to his/her house.

Cats can really surprise you sometimes. Mine has caught a weasel, and an acquaintance's cat caught a field hare once.

#75 I can just picture that. :-) My Mom wasn't so reasonable when our cat brought a live mouse into the house and released it. It promptly ran up the Christmas tree! Mom was hysterical!

Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett
HarperTorch, 2000 (originally published 1987); 213 pages

Obtained: public library via ILL

Categories: sff, published in my lifetime, 20th century novels, British/English authors, continuing series
Rating: 4.0
.....Liked: 4.0
.....Plot: 4.0
…..Pacing/Details: 3.0
.....Characterization: 4.5
.....Writing: 4.5

Review

High in the Ramtop Mountains of Discworld, a dying wizard seeks out the eighth son of an eighth son upon whom he can bestow his power before he dies. Unfortunately, the son turns out to be a daughter, and women can't be wizards; the Lore of the Unseen University forbids it. So what's a girl with magical power to do? Travel across the Discworld and demand entry to the University, of course!

Plot-wise, Equal Rites is my favorite Discworld novel yet (mind you, I've read only three of them). I like Esk (the female wizard) well enough, but Granny Weatherwax steals the show. She's a witch (certain types of minor household magic are all that women are supposed to do) and she's hysterical, although she's certainly not trying to be, and she would probably be horribly offended if she knew I was laughing at her. I loved the story of Granny and Esk's travels to Ankh-Morpork and all the trouble they got into along the way.

However, the timing of the plot rather overshadows some of the events. There were multiple times where time jumped forward several months or years or the location of the story changed within the course of two paragraphs without any indication that this was the case. Since there are no chapters in the book, not even a chapter break gave any indication of changes in time or place. It did make the book a bit confusing and made it feel a bit rushed in certain sections.

Ah, a reminder of another series that is waiting on Mt. TBR, but which seems to get overlooked. I have made room in this year's challenge for at least the first one, but I may have to wedge in more. :)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
Arthur A. Levine Books, 1998 (originally published 1997); 309 pages

Obtained: I own it

Categories: sff, published in my lifetime, 20th century novels, British/English authors
Rating: 4.0
.....Liked: 4.0
.....Plot: 4.5
…..Pacing/Details: 3.5
.....Characterization: 5.0
.....Writing: 3.5

Review

Like I said on my blog earlier this week, the world does not need another Harry Potter review. So I'm not writing one.

Are you planning on reading the whole series?

Yep, I'm reading the whole series (well, rereading, actually).

I just read yesterday that J.K. Rowling was invited to write a mini episode for the Dr. Who 50th Anniversary. It wasn't said if she agreed to or not but I thought that might be an interesting match up.

That would be so cool!!!!! I didn't even realize that this was the 50th anniversary!

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling
Arthur A. Levine Books, 1999 (originally published 1998); 341 pages

Obtained: I own it

Categories: sff, published in my lifetime, 20th century novels, British/English authors
Rating: 4.1
.....Liked: 4.5
.....Plot: 4.5
…..Pacing/Details: 4.0
.....Characterization: 4.5
.....Writing: 3.0

Ugh! I tried to download Equal Rites onto my e-reader, but it still isn't talking to the library just right. It sounds like a great premise!

Oh, I do hope Rowling writes a Who-episode - I would love to see her take on that universe!

I should have decided to re-read Harry Potter. It sounds like your having a good time at Hogwarts. Is the food in the Great Hall pretty good. (It should be, since it's made by house elves.

Visiting your thread makes me hungry! :)

>90 Bjace: Oh yes, I'm having a wonderful time! Prisoner of Azkaban has always been my favorite, so I'm happy to start it tomorrow or Tuesday.

>91 TinaV95: Sorry? :)

Prisoner of Azkaban is probably my favorite also. I was so amazed when I first read it that Ron's pet rat turned out to be an animagus. I remember thinking that Rowling had had that one up her sleeve for 3 books and never tipped her hand once.

I also like it because it's the book in which the series first starts going somewhere. I feel like Sorcerer's Stone mostly sets up the world and the major players and Chamber of Secrets doesn't seem to fit in much at all until you get to Half-Blood Prince. So Azkaban is where you first start to really understand the overarching plot.

Azkaban is also my favourite, in both book and movie form.

I watched it yesterday. Again. For the upteenth time. Still my favorite, too.

I love them all!!

91.. No worries :)

I re-read the Harry Potter series last year, and I was surprised by how much my memory of the books had been colored by the movies. I'll probably re-read them again in a few years.

Azkaban is my favourite too - such a great book. Oh, and you get introduced to Sirius Black! :) Not my favourite film, though, I actually liked Goblet of Fire more in movie version.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling
Arthur A. Levine Books, 1999 (originally published 1999); 435 pages

Obtained: I own it

Categories: sff, published in my lifetime, 20th century novels, British/English authors
Rating: 4.4
.....Liked: 5.0
.....Plot: 4.5
…..Pacing/Details: 4.0
.....Characterization: 4.5
.....Writing: 3.5

Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London's Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi
Chronicle Books, 2011 (originally published 2010); 288 pages

Obtained: Public library

Categories: non-fiction, British/English authors, cookbooks/culinary
Rating: 5.0
.....Liked: 5.0
.....Argument: n/a
…..Pacing/Details: 5.0
.....Accuracy: 5.0
.....Writing: 5.0

Review

I always feel a bit weird writing cookbook reviews when I haven't made any of the recipes. Considering how messy a cook I am, I don't like to cook from borrowed cookbooks.

The number one thing I noticed about Plenty is the sense of joy that pervades the entire book. Every couple of pages, I kept turning back to the picture of some sort of uncooked greens on the title page, because the picture was so beautiful and just made me so happy (I'm a sucker for photographs of green plants... don't ask). There's just such a sense that food is meant to be enjoyed with all the senses, that beautiful, good-tasting foods provide a sustenance beyond mere nourishment, that makes this such a brilliant cookbook.

As I took notes for this review, I think I used up my entire quota of exclamation points for the next three months. A brief sample looks something like this:

Garlic and goat cheese tart!
Harissa! Not since that little Middle Eastern restaurant in Paris!
And a whole section on mushrooms!

I also like that the recipes don't look overly difficult, although some reviewers said they did look difficult, so I guess everyone should judge for themselves. Personally, I emulate Julia Child, who said "The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you've got to have a 'What the hell?' attitude." I'm really quite fearless in the kitchen, which is funny, because I'm not at all a risk-taker in any other aspect of life. But when it comes to food and cooking, I'll try anything once.

In one of the recipes in the book, I saw a vinaigrette that called for capers and maple syrup. I have no idea what that vinaigrette tastes like, but I love capers and I love maple syrup, and I really want to try that recipe. Ottolenghi does a lot of "odd" combinations in the book; pairing foods and spices from different cultures that seem strange, but grow on one. He even makes eggplant, zucchini, and sweet potatoes look appetizing (and I don't really care for the last two, and I HATE eggplant with an unspeakable passion). There's this recipe where an eggplant is broiled, and in the picture it looks more like fresh beef liver than anything else, and that intrigues me, because (like I said) I hate eggplant, but I love beef liver, and I love working with raw liver (I don't eat it raw--too bloody--but I like cutting it up because it's so smooth and shiny and smells funny... and is rambling on about raw meat weird? Because I like raw meat. I promise I'm not a psychopath and I'm not going to move on from cutting up chickens to cutting up people...

Okay, so that got a bit off topic. Anyhow, Plenty went on my Wishlist, because it is just that good, and I'm picky about cookbooks, so that's saying something. I guess I should also note that it's a vegetarian cookbook. I'm not vegetarian, and neither is Ottolenghi, but I really think if I were vegetarian I would have gone online and ordered the cookbook the minute I got done reading it. It's seriously that good, and books are one of the few things I don't impulse buy (which is weird, but good for my budget).

Reading your review reminds me of a quote from the late Laurie Colwin who said that she "read cookbooks as though they were novels." I am a vegetarian by turns, but the idea of maple syrup and capers makes me want to say "You're kidding?" Still, the book sounds interesting.

That was one of the weirdest, yet most fun to read, review I have read!

Like the review and although I have too many cookbooks I am tempted!

That's a great review! It made me put the book on my wishlist, even though, like Claire, I have quite enough cookbooks as it is. :)

> 102 I think I read cookbooks like picture books, which is why I don't like cookbooks without pictures, or with drawings instead of photographs. How am I supposed to get the full effect or know what something's supposed to look like from a line drawing?

> 103 Um, thanks? It's actually more of "mad ramblings written way too late at night" than a proper review.

> 104 There is no such thing as too many cookbooks. (Consider yourself absolved in advance.)

> 105 Thanks! It's a great cookbook!

I vote that you write all your reviews very late at night.

I just linked both my credit cards' reward points to my Amazon account. This could be very, very dangerous, particularly since I've got way more points than expendable cash right now (thank you, massive car repair bill, which I put on my credit card for the points). But if I spend points, it doesn't count, because it's not my money, right?

Garlic and goat cheese tart!

Well, now I am hungry! Fun review and I second the suggestion that you write all of your reviews late at night. ;-)

Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede
Scholastic Press, 2009 (first edition); 344 pages

Obtained: Public library

Categories: sff, my lifetime, American author
Rating: 4.0
.....Liked: 4.0
.....Plot: 4.0
…..Pacing/Details: 3.0
.....Characterization: 4.0
.....Writing: 4.5

Review

Set in an alternate-history America, this is the story of Eff (short for Francine), a thirteenth child. In this magical culture, birth order is commonly thought to affect one's life, with a seventh son considered lucky, the seventh son of a seventh son extremely lucky, and a thirteenth child cursed. People are so biased against Eff that her family moves West, where no one knows that she has the potential to become a very bad person. (Eff's oldest siblings were married and didn't move, so people couldn't just count children and figure it out.) In the West, Eff grows up and learns about herself and the person she is meant to be.

More than any other part of this book, I want to know more about the alternate history. Why was the Civil War fought in the 1830s? Why did the Lewis and Clark expedition fail? Why are mammoths and saber-toothed cats not extinct? It's not that Wrede does a bad job of explaining her alternate history, it's more as if the characters don't think to explain because to them nothing is different. To them, their history is real and ours is the alternate, so they just talk about things matter-of-factly and in passing, as if we all know what they're talking about. It really adds to the realism, but it's also frustrating.

As for the rest of the plot, I found it a bit dull. Thirteenth Child covers quite a few years of Eff's life at a very rapid pace, not really allowing for a lot of character development beyond what's necessary for the plot. If I hadn't been so interested in the history, I probably would have found the book harder to finish. However, my younger self would have loved it.

January Recap

Books Read
1. Equal Rites -- Terry Pratchett
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone -- J. K. Rowling
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets -- J. K. Rowling
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -- J. K. Rowling
5. Plenty -- Yotam Ottolenghi
6. Thirteenth Child -- Patricia C. Wrede
7. Pardonable Lies -- Jacqueline Winspear (review forthcoming)

Categories*
1. Hardtack/Books off the 2-year TBR: 0/7
2. Lembas/SFF: 5/7
3. Snack cakes/Mysteries: 1/7
4. Tea cakes/Historical fiction: 1/7
5. Fiction published in my lifetime: 6/7
6. Whole-wheat bread/Non-fiction: 1/7
7. Sliced bread/Twentieth-century novels: 4/7
8. Cake/Nineteenth-century novels: 0/7
9. Apple pie/American authors: 1/7
10. Toast/British/English authors: 6/7
11. Chocolate chip cookies/Series started prior to 2012: 2/7
12. Sourdough/Books off my shelf: 0/7
13. Scones: Cookbooks/culinary: 1/7

*I'm counting books more than once, just to see how many I read in each category total, because there's a lot of overlap between categories this year.

Well, I'm hoping to finally get some reviews posted this evening. I've been reading a little, but I've been rather distracted by some ongoing genealogy research. I'm getting into some interesting and frustrating research into a distant branch of my family where everyone marries someone who is related to them in some way (usually a cousin of some sort). So pick any random man (or woman) in this family, and his spouse is also his x-th cousin on both his father's and mother's sides (unless his spouse is his step-sister or step-mother (!) instead). And it's not like there was a lack of non-relatives to marry in central Missouri during this time period (roughly 1820-1950).

112. You're not the only one with "inter-breeding" in the family. About 2-300 years ago, my mum's side was riddled with fourth cousins marrying each other. Though they did live in a tiny village in a scarcely populated part of northern Sweden so there's something to balme it on. Doesn't seem to have had that big an effect on the gene-pool either as none of the typical diseases and handicaps seems to have run in the family. Phew.

>112 casvelyn: I have one branch of my family like that. They might have had more of an excuse since they lived in frontier Kentucky right after the Revolutionary War. There's a fairly young two-time widow with two sons by her first marriage and a son and a daughter by her second marriage. The young widow marries an eligible bachelor who, since his parents are dead, is the head of his family and who has several younger siblings. The widow's son from her first marriage marries the bachelor's younger sister (my 5th-great-grandparents). The widow's daughter from her second marriage marries the bachelor's younger brother. The widow and the bachelor marry. So, the former bachelor's brother and sister are now his step son-in-law and daughter-in-law. Their children are both his nieces and nephews and his step-grandchildren. (I wonder what they called him?!)

The couple who are my 5th great-grandparents had a daughter who was widowed with two very young daughters. These daughters grew up to marry brothers who happened to be the grandsons of yet another sister of the bachelor who moved to Kentucky and married the young widow. One set of the sisters who married brothers are my 3rd great-grandparents, making me doubly related to this family. I call this my soap opera branch.

ETA: These ancestors are on my mother's side of the family. They also happen to descend from a common ancestor with one of my father's lines. I discovered that my parents were 8th cousins.

I have a couple of lines that are that way. I have a case or two of first cousins marrying on one family. My mother's father's line was Amish so you can imagine that in their small communities that there were a lot of cousins marrying. When I first input one line, my genealogy software at that time got very confused because I was related to 3 daughters of this one guy and to some of them in multiple ways. I kept getting some sort of circular relationship error from it. Sorry, software, I couldn't help it. That's the way it was.

>115 thornton37814: My software is a bit confused as well; it's got the relationships down, but can't figure out how to draw the trees. In the more recent generations (post-1900), I'll find a new surname and get excited about a marriage outside the family, only to realize that someone married her 4th cousin instead of her 2nd cousin.

I've got cases of intermarriage in my family tree that are more closely connected to me (my paternal great-grandparents were second cousins). This particular group of families is only tangentially related to me, but they're so interesting that I started a separate file just so I could research in greater detail.

February Recap

Books Read
1. The Secret Adversary -- Agatha Christie
2. The Secret of Chimneys -- Agatha Christie

Categories*
1. Hardtack/Books off the 2-year TBR: 2/2
2. Lembas/SFF: 0/2
3. Snack cakes/Mysteries: 2/2
4. Tea cakes/Historical fiction: 0/2
5. Fiction published in my lifetime: 0/2
6. Whole-wheat bread/Non-fiction: 0/2
7. Sliced bread/Twentieth-century novels: 2/2
8. Cake/Nineteenth-century novels: 0/2
9. Apple pie/American authors: 0/2
10. Toast/British/English authors: 2/2
11. Chocolate chip cookies/Series started prior to 2012: 1/2
12. Sourdough/Books off my shelf: 0/2
13. Scones: Cookbooks/culinary: 0.2

*I'm counting books more than once, just to see how many I read in each category total, because there's a lot of overlap between categories this year.

So February was not a good month for reading. I just didn't feel like it. Between my part-time job, two volunteer gigs, and various projects, I'm just too busy and by the time I get home at night, I don't want to think. I'm getting some new books from the library, so hopefully that will jump start my March reading... if I don't get too distracted by my project to listen to all my music. All 81 hours of it.

The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Harcourt, 2007 (originally published 1973); 414 pages

Obtained: Public library

Categories: sff, 20th century novels, American authors
Rating: 2.4 (Incidentally, this ties A Wizard of Earthsea for lowest rated book that I still finished)
.....Liked: 2.0
.....Plot: 4.0
…..Pacing/Details: 2.0
.....Characterization: 4.5
.....Writing: 1.0

Review

(Sorry this is so long. The book made me mad.)

I've long held to the belief that the book is always better than the movie. Always. Well, thanks to William Goldman, I'm going to change to the book is generally better than the movie in most cases. Essentially, I like the film The Princess Bride so much that I've saved the book for a while now, because I knew, due to the aforementioned rule, that the book had to be brilliant. The basic plot was quite good, but the writing style really ruined the book.

Goldman starts the book an introduction (which may be only in the 30th anniversary edition; I'm not sure)about how his almost illiterate father read this story to him when he was a kid, and then when he was an adult and in the hospital and dying, his wife read him this book and it saved his life, and then when he gave the book to his son, his son hated it, and that's when Goldman realized that his father had edited the book, because Morgenstern had actually written a political satire, but Goldman's father skipped all the lengthy, boring, historio-political parts. And so Goldman edited the original book into its current form so that everybody could read it and love it as much as he does. When I finished the introduction, I thought, "Aw, that was a nice story about his father and stuff." And then I think, "Wait, but Goldman really wrote this, I mean he made up the story and pretended it's an abridgment. So what's all this stuff about his father?" So essentially, that whole long story about his father, his wife, and his son is all made up. Goldman doesn't even have a son. That kind of lost me right there, because who writes a fake introduction with that much detail (and believe me, it's very detailed)? On the other hand, Goldman writes very convincingly. I knew that really he's the author of the story, and I still believed the story about his father.

So onward to the actual story, which is more or less just like the movie, with a bit more background on all the characters, the sort of background that it's not convenient to give in movies without being boring. So I'm not going to give a plot summary, because if you've seen the movie, you know all about it, and if you haven't seen the movie, you should. In the book, however, Goldman inserts many, many, many fake editorial comments--not footnotes, but actual bracketed comments in the text. At the worst points, he's got at least one comment per page. It totally interrupts the narrative flow and makes the book difficult to read. It's not at all like the dialogue between the boy and the grandfather in the movie, which is just cute. (Another reason the movie is better--it has Peter Falk.)

Finally, as a note, this isn't exactly a children's book--there are several violent/disturbing scenes, some swearing, and some totally unnecessary racial epithets.

And so, that's my review. Now go watch the movie.

Thanks for reading the book and sparing us the pain. I do like the movie so I'll just pretend there's not a book!

119. Hmm, this is the first time I've come across someone who didn't like the book (I haven't read it).
But you didn't much like A Wizard of Earthsea either, a book I absolutely love, so maybe we're just different.

>120 cbl_tn: Not a problem! Although, there's a lot of people who like it.

>121 PawsforThought: Yeah, I'm very much in the minority about A Wizard of Earthsea. I generally like Le Guin, but her tone was just so bland throughout the book, like "Meh, he went here and did this and he went there and did that but I'm not really that excited about it."

I floved The Princess Bride, but I did read it before I saw the movie -- in fact I was upset about a few of the changes made in the movie version I thought were unnecessary. Could your dissatisfaction be because you like the movie?

123. All this talk about The Princess Bride is giving me a serious craving for the movie. Which I don't have (obviously need to get it). Aaaaaand off to YouTube I go...

Hi! Just catching up on threads. Enjoyed your review of Plenty. As a vegetarian I have been eyeing that gorgeous book on book store shelves since it was released. I keep telling myself that it's too expensive and I don't need another vegetable cookbook. If it's ever released in paperback I'm sure I'll buy it. I've never tried maple syrup and capers vinaigrette but I have made dishes that require a maple syrup and garlic mixture be poured over vegetables while roasting. So yummy.

>123 RidgewayGirl: Could be. I really liked the actual storyline of the book. It was all of Goldman's asides that got on my nerves. I mean, if you want to have some fictional backstory about how you came to edit and publish this book, fine--people do this all the time with Sherlock Holmes continuations. But don't put all these interruptions into the actual story. If you look at my ratings breakdown, it's something like 4.0 for plot and 1.0 for writing, which fairly well reflects how I felt about it.

>124 PawsforThought: I added to the Netflix queue at the top yesterday. It's on my list of movies to buy, but I never see any copies at Half Price Books and I refuse to pay more than $7 for DVDs (generally, there are exceptions).

>125 VioletBramble: If I were a vegetarian, I would say that Plenty is worth the money. Since I'm not, I'm waiting for a paperback or used copy. Of course, I'm buying it to be just as much an art book as a cookbook. The pictures are fabulous.

I am another viewer who loves The Princess Bride movie, and have never read the book. Sorry the book was a disappointment but I guess it is true: sometimes Hollywood can do a better job than the author at captivating the audience. ;-)

The Drunken Botanist: The Plants that Create the World's Great Drinks by Amy Stewart
Algonquin Press, 2013 (ARC); 366 pages

Obtained: Early Reviewers

Categories: non-fiction, American author, off the shelf, cookbooks
Rating: 4.8
.....Liked: 5.0
.....Argument: n/a
…..Pacing/Details: 4.5
.....Accuracy: 5.0
.....Writing: 4.5

Review

The Drunken Botanist is essentially an encyclopedia of the most common and interesting plants used to make alcoholic beverages, covering history, botany, zymology, and the culinary arts. However, the entries are far more interesting than your typical reference guide, making this a highly-readable book. Stewart opens with a section on the plants used to make alcohol, from grains like barley and rye to fruits such as grapes and apples and even vegetables such as potatoes. The second section covers the herbs, spices, and other plant material used to flavor alcohol, including commonly-recognized fruits such as oranges and lemons as well as lesser known plants such as mauby and quandong. Finally, the third section covers common garnishes. The book is also full of recipes featuring the beverages and plants mentioned in each section. The historical stories that Stewart tells are fascinating, as is the information on the production of alcoholic beverages.

Ah, I was wondering why people were so excited about a reference book. I get it, now that I've read your review on The Drunken Botanist. The historic bits would make me pick up the book even though I'd never be brewing anything in my basement.

I thought the Princess Bride introduction was just a reference to the Grandfather's obvious edits in the film where he skips over parts he doesn't want the boy to hear? It's been a long time since I read it though. The book was written after the film iirc to cash in on the cult status and wasn't entirely successful - I do think I didn't keep the book but have since watched the film a few times without my enjoyment being spoiled

so yeah - watch the film is the advice I'd give too

The Princess Bride was published in 1973. The movie was made in 1987.

>131 RidgewayGirl: - I should have checked it ;-)

I saw and loved the film first & hated the book. I am still convinced my copy of the book is different to everyone else's as I know few people who don't rave about it :) actually I think the humour is a bit different and also that intro put me off too, why invent such dull pointless detail!

>129 cammykitty: It's so much more than a reference book, and very entertaining if you like plants, food, or booze (or any combination thereof).

>133 clfisha: I must have gotten your copy somehow. I don't understand why he would invent such a long intro, either. I don't object to authors pretending to find manuscripts that they actually wrote themselves (as long as they're doing it in good fun and not with the intent to deceive, like they've discovered a long-lost Shakespeare play or something), but why on earth would he make up so many ridiculous details?

I've read a couple of Amy Stewart books that I really enjoyed, Wicked Bugs and The Earth Moved. They were fun and filled with interesting facts. I'll have to see about getting my hands on The Drunken Botanist.

Dangerous Days by Mary Roberts Rinehart
Public Domain Books, n.d. (originally published 1919); 335 pages

Obtained: Amazon

Categories: 20th century novels, American authors
Rating: 4.8
.....Liked: 5.0
.....Plot: 4.5
…..Pacing/Details: 5.0
.....Characterization: 5.0
.....Writing: 4.5

Review

Available as a free Kindle ebook.

I started Dangerous Days expecting it to be like other Rinehart novels I've read: a light, fluffy mystery with a bit of romance. Instead I got a commentary on modern society (modern as of 1919, although many of the points still apply today). The book is set just before the entry of America into World War I and focuses on the Spencer family. Clayton Spencer owns a munitions factory and makes good money shipping weapons to the Allies in Europe, while his wife Natalie spends the money almost as fast as he can earn it. Their adult son, Graham, has a job at the factory, but spends much of his time running with a "fast" set and flirting with his secretary. On the outside, the Spencers have a perfect life, but inside they are falling apart as individuals and as a family. Clayton is married to his work and neglects his wife and son. Natalie is shallow and immature and keeps her son tied fast to the figurative apron strings. Graham does not care for hard work and just wants to play and pursue pretty women.

Everything changes when America enters World War I. Graham wants to join the army and fight, but his mother exacts a promise that he will never go to war, because she is terrified that she would lose him forever--either through death or because he would become an independent man who no longer relies on his mother. Clayton, on the other hand, wants Graham to join the army because he sees how Natalie has infantilized their son and he wants Graham to get away from his mother's influence and from a romance with a woman of weak character. In response to the stresses on their marriage, Clayton pursues a widowed friend, while Natalie takes up with her interior designer. In the end, Graham goes to war, marries a good woman, and becomes a mature adult, while one of his parents tries to heal their broken marriage and the other refuses.

Dangerous Days is a wonderful, amazing book. Rinehart documents in great detail the slow destruction of a marriage and the results of poor parenting on a child. She emphasizes that honor, virtue, and love are important in every facet of life and that in relationships there is no room for selfishness. The entire book is simply beautiful in the explication of what love looks like and how loving people should behave. The history depicted in the book is also fascinating, particularly since Rinehart wrote the book just two years after the period in which it is set. The family problems are so applicable to today, even though the book is nearly 100 years old.

Quotations

"When a man cannot take a little wine at his own table without taking too much he fails to be entirely a gentleman."

"It was a period of extravagance rather than pleasure. People played that they might not think."

"So she reduced love to its cheapest terms, passion and jealousy ..."

"Nothing so ennobles a man as to have some woman believe in his nobility."

"She was lavish with money--but never with herself."

"They always construed love in terms of passion. But passion was ephemeral. Love lived on. Passion took, but love gave."

I might try Dangerous Days.

The Breaking Point by Mary Roberts Rinehart
Public Domain Books, n.d. (originally published 1922); 311 pages

Obtained: Amazon

Categories: 20th century novels, American authors
Rating: 4.3
.....Liked: 4.5
.....Plot: 5.0
…..Pacing/Details: 3.5
.....Characterization: 4.0
.....Writing: 4.5

Review

Available as a free Kindle ebook

Classic Rinehart here: mistaken identity, amnesia, public scandal, mysterious deaths, true love, and changed lives. In some ways this was like a Grace Livingston Hill novel, except without the exceedingly legalistic religiosity. The ending was not quite fulfilling. It ended exactly the way I wanted it too, but rather abruptly and without details or flourish.

>137 hailelib: You should. It's quite good.

I'm intrigued by The Princess Bride discussion. I've saved the book because like you, I loved the movie so much that I assumed the book would blow me away. I'm thinking I might skip the book now entirely!

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about my thread! I've been distracted by streaming Law & Order on Netflix (sadly, only the first eight seasons), and then ended up having a minor sad moment when Jill Hennessy's character got killed off, and ended up watching Crossing Jordan on Netflix just to see more of Hennessy (she has a great voice and facial expressions, and yes I notice weird things about people, like how they use their eyebrows when they talk, and no, I'm not strange). I sometimes get really attached to fictional characters, and they always manage to kill off the ones I love most. I still haven't made it past series 4 of Doctor Who because I can't bear to leave David Tennant, even though I've watched series 2-4 multiple times... well, not all of series 4, because I cannot stand Donna Noble.

Anyhow, when I'm off my TV kick (probably when I quit housesitting for my parents, because I hate streaming videos on my laptop because then it's hard to use it for anything else, and I like to waste time on the internet while I watch movies), I'll get back to reading. I don't know what I'm going to read next, but I've got a few options in mind.

One of my favorite people with expressive eyebrows is Steven Colbert. He can really rock it with his eyebrows. I've always been fascinated by Alex Kingston. I have always loved her facial features and her wild curly hair. And I love her character on Dr. Who.

I totally understand the TV kick - says the individual that has been sucked into Call the Midwife, Downton Abbey, Warehouse 13, Murdoch Mysteries and Once Upon a Time in just the past three months. ;-)

I've finally finished up being incredibly busy and can now get back to the books. I've also started a second quarter thread, which can be found here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/152589