DorsVenabili's 75 in 2012 (Part Five)

Geezer doing his hound dog thing.

***CURRENTLY READING***



Read in January:
1. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running - Haruki Murakami (audiobook)
2. A Visit from the Goon Squad - Jennifer Egan (ebook)
3. The Gospel Singer - Harry Crews (print book)
4. The Orange Eats Creeps - Grace Krilanovich (print book)
5. Eating Animals - Jonathan Safran Foer (audiobook)
6. Diary of a Bad Year - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
7. Hand Me Down World - Lloyd Jones (print book)
8. The Kinks' The Village Green Preservation Society (Thirty Three and a Third series) - Andy Miller (audiobook)

Read in February:
9. God on the Rocks - Jane Gardam (print book)
10. Velvet Underground's The Velvet Underground and Nico (Thirty Three and a Third series) - Joe Harvard (audiobook)
11. The Good Terrorist - Doris Lessing (print book)
12. The Optimist's Daughter - Eudora Welty (print book)
13. Life and Times of Michael K. - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
14. American Salvage - Bonnie Jo Campbell (print book)
15. Inside Scientology: The Story of America's Most Secretive Religion - Janet Reitman (audiobook)
16. Zoo City - Lauren Beukes (ebook)

Read in March:
17. County: Life, Death and Politics at Chicago's Public Hospital - David Ansell (audiobook)
18. The Enormous Room - e.e. cummings (ebook)
19. Woman on the Edge of Time - Marge Piercy (print book)
20. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea - Barbara Demick (audiobook)
21. Lost Memory of Skin - Russell Banks (print book)
22. The Lives of Animals - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
23. Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing Is as It Seems (The Blackwell Philosophy Series) - James B. South, Ed. (audiobook)
24. The Old Man and Me - Elaine Dundy (ebook)

Read in April:
25. Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother - Amy Chua (audiobook)
26. The Pride of Chanur - C.J. Cherryh (print book) Not Rated
27. Bad Intentions - Karin Fossum (ebook)
28. City of Night - John Rechy (ebook)
29. Library and Information Center Management - Robert D. Stueart and Barbara B. Moran (print book)
30. Information and Records Management: Document-Based Information Systems - Robek, Brown, and Stephens (print book)

Read in May:
31. The Warmth of Other Suns - Isabel Wilkerson (audiobook)
32. The Caller - Karin Fossum (audiobook)
33. Jake’s Thing - Kingsley Amis (print book)
34. The Flatey Enigma - Viktor Arnar Ingolfsson (audiobook)
35. The Roots of the Olive Tree - Courtney Miller Santo (print book) (Booklist, July 2012)
36. A View of the Harbour - Elizabeth Taylor (print book)
37. The Keeper of Lost Causes - Jussi Adler-Olsen (audiobook)
38. In the Heart of the Country - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
39. The Bookshop - Penelope Fitzgerald (print book)
40. Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood - Marjane Satrapi (print book)
41. On Writing Well - William Zinsser (print book)
42. The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham (audiobook)

Read in June:
43. The Prisoner of Heaven - Carlos Ruiz Zafon (print book) (Booklist, August 2012)
44. Hyperthought - M.M. Buckner (audiobook)
45. The Red House - Mark Haddon (print book)
46. The Crossing Places - Elly Griffiths (audiobook)
47. Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey (audiobook) Not Rated
48. Illywhacker - Peter Carey (print book)
49. The Children of Men - P.D. James (audiobook)
50. The Siege of Krishnapur - J.G. Farrell (ebook)

Read in July:
51. Safe Area Gorazde: The War in Eastern Bosnia 1992-1995 - Joe Sacco (print book)
52. Jar City - Arnaldur Indridason (audiobook)
53. Waiting for the Barbarians - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
54. Schroder - Amity Gaige (print book) (Booklist)
55. Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein (audiobook)
56. The Quest for Christa T. - Christa Wolf (print book)
57. Generosity: An Enhancement - Richard Powers (audiobook)
58. Bicycling Magazine's New Cyclist Handbook - Ben Hewitt (print book)
59. Elizabeth Costello - J.M. Coetzee (print book)
60. Last Letters from Hav - Jan Morris (print book)
61. Ride Your Way Lean - Selene Yeager (print book)
62. Thomas Hardy: The Time-Torn Man - Claire Tomalin (audiobook)

Read in August:
63. Skios - Michael Frayn (print book)
64. Narcopolis - Jeet Thayil (print book)
65. Faceless Killers - Henning Mankell (audiobook)
66. A Five Year Sentence - Bernice Rubens (print book)
67. Swimming Home - Deborah Levy (print book)
68. Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel (ebook)

Read in September:
69. Salome of the Tenements - Anzia Yezierska (print book)
70. The Promise of Stardust - Priscille Sibley (print book) (Booklist)
71. A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin (audiobook)

Read in October:
72. The Lighthouse - Alison Moore (ebook)
73. Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn (audiobook)
74. Methland: The Death and Life of an American Small Town - Nick Reding (audiobook)
75. Babel-17 - Samuel R. Delany (print book)
76. Finding Camlann - Sean Pidgeon (print book) Not Rated
77. The Redbreast - Jo Nesbo (audiobook)
78. Yonnondio - Tillie Olsen (print book)
79. The Coroner's Lunch - Colin Cotterill (audiobook)

Read in November:
80. The Story of My Purity - Francesco Pacifico (print book) (Booklist)
81. Secret Historian - Justin Spring (audiobook)
82. Madame Sousatzka - Bernice Rubens (print book)
83. Bent Road - Lori Roy (audiobook)
84. The Social Life of Information - J.S. Brown and P. Duguid (print book)
85. Harvard Business Review on Knowledge Management - Peter Drucker, ed. (print book)

Read in December:
86. The Polish Boxer - Eduardo Halfon (print book)
87. Mastering Organizational Knowledge Flow: How to Make Knowledge Sharing Work - Frank Leistner (ebook)
88. Notes from a 12 Man - Mark Tye Turner (print book)
89. The Stone Diaries - Carol Shields (print book)
90. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafón (audiobook)

I don't have any books to report on, but I was reminded of this wonderful recording today. It's the most heartfelt and magical cover of "Boulder to Birmingham" that I've ever heard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LJP3pO6kEU

Kerri, congrats on your latest thread and a good recording to kick things off - the song was not familiar to me but I liked it.

Hi Paul! That's an Emmylou Harris song. She wrote it too (she doesn't write a ton). It's one of my favorites. It's kind of about Gram Parsons. She wrote it after he died. You have all the Gram Parsons stuff, right?

Just in time for a new thread! :)
I hope you have a super productive day tm, but not so much so that you are exhausted by the end of the day!

Hi Kerri! All caught up on your old thread, and now on the new too. Can you show me how to do the green stars? I use the multi coloured ones, but like your green ones better. And I never figured out how to do the fraction either, any clues?

All your October books (bar the 2.5 star one) look like they have been hits for you? Looks like a great reading month.

A new thread--and still in the single digits! I'm also reading Binocular Vision at the moment and read The Coroner's Lunch a couple of months ago. Now I'm trying to squeeze in the 3rd book in the series before it has to go back to the library.

#8 - Hi Valerie! I hope to have a super productive day as well...or maybe just a marginally productive day. Wish me luck! : )

#9 - Hi Megan! I originally got them from the LT reviews. You can just right-click on mine and then insert them into the html image thingy like this (I put {} around it, so you can see it, but you should use the angle brackets.):

{img src="http://www.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif"}

#10 - Hi Anne! Binocular Vision is taking a while, but the stories have been excellent. I read them sporadically. I'd definitely like to finish it by the end of the year.

I'm glad you're enjoying the Dr. Siri books. For some reason, The Coroner's Lunch is not sending me over the moon, so I'll probably have to get back to the grim Scandicrime soon.

And here is my reading plan for November. As usual, I probably won't get to them all:

Print Books/Ebooks
*The Story of My Purity by Francesco Pacifico - New book. For a review.
*Union Dues by John Sayles
*The Polish Boxer by Eduardo Halfon - LT Early Reviewers.
*King Coal by Upton Sinclair
*Madame Sousatzka by Bernice Rubens

Audiobooks
*Secret Historian: The Life and Times of Samuel Steward, Professor, Tattoo Artist, and Sexual Renegade by Justin Spring - Non-fiction.
*The Forever War by Joe Haldeman - Sci-fi classic. I'm hoping it's not too action-adventury.
*Bent Road by Lori Roy - Mystery.

Happy new thread, Kerri! I've added all three current reads to my wishlist. The just look good, like their concealng great stories.

Hi Kerri :-)

Sorry to hear things have been so busy lately - I hope work and school pressures ease up so that you can get some good reading done!

I still haven't read any Jo Nesbo although we have most of his books as my husband's a fan - perhaps I should make The Redbreast a goal for 2013?

I found The Forever War to be very thought-provoking when I read it a few years ago so I hope you enjoy it. Also hope you enjoy Madame Sousatzka.

Hi Kerri - Nice, shiny new thread. Woo hoo. Have a great week. I hope you have time for some reading.

#13 - Hi Lynda! Well, I just started the first one, so I'm not sure. The second one has been a disappointment and the third is quite good. So there it is.

#14 - Hi Heather! I hope you enjoy The Redbreast. It's excellent. And I'm not usually wildly interested in WWII stuff.

Glad to hear that The Forever War has promise. I have deep respect for your sci-fi opinions, and know next to nothing about this novel.

I got the Madame Sousatzka recommendation from you! I was impressed with my first Bernice Rubens a few weeks ago, so I'm really looking forward to this one. Plus I used to teach piano, so there's that.

#15 - Hi Beth! Good to see you! I should get a bit of reading done this week on the train. Back to work tomorrow.

Kerri - It is actually quite pathetic as I realised I have Emmy-Lou's Pieces of the Sky on which it appears. I realised that:
1 I have far too many CDs
2 I don't listen to Emmy Lou half as much as I should do.

I have Gram's Byrds stuff and his album GP but not yet the Flying Burritos or his swansong Grievous Angel.

#17 - Oh, I have that problem too! Do you have Blue Kentucky Girl? That's my favorite Emmylou, along with Evangeline. I LOVE EMMYLOU.

I would definitely get Grievous Angel, but I'd only get the Flying Burrito Brothers stuff if you love Gram a lot. Other than a couple of songs, I don't think they are as great as people like to think, retrospectively.

Hi Kerri- I'm not familiar with any of your planned November reading. Of course, I've heard of a couple of the authors, but not the works. You'll have to enlighten me.
And yes, GP Rules! I loved his work with the Byrds too!
BTW- I loved your Kenny Powers reference over at the Cafe!

Hi Kerri - I love the Emmy Lou song. Thanks for sharing that. I'll be interested to hear how the audio of Bent Road is. I read it in paper format earlier this year and it was pretty good.

#19 - Hi Mark! A few of my planned reads are authors I've never read (all but Upton Sinclair and Bernice Rubens, actually), so it should be interesting.

Another Gram Parsons fan. Yay! I like Sweetheart of the Rodeo a lot too. Especially many of the bonus tracks on the reissue.

I don't watch that goofy show, but Joe does!

#20 - Hi Katie! I'm glad you enjoyed the song. That young lady writes her own songs as well. I was listening to her today. It's pretty good stuff.

I'm hoping I enjoy Bent Road. I can't remember why I have it, or who recommended it. Maybe it was you?

I just saw that Dorothy Allison (one of my favorite writers) will be speaking at the Chicago Humanities Festival tomorrow. And I'll be in class!!

http://www.chicagohumanities.org/Genres/Literature/2012f-Dorothy-Allison-Writers...

Which brings me to the following point: One of my goals after graduation - along with reading more books, writing more reviews, and getting a proper amount of sleep each night - is to keep up with author talks in the area and attend as many as possible. I've also missed Colson Whitehead in the past year and probably Junot Diaz, but I'm not entirely sure. But the Dorothy Allison thing hurts the most. Poop.

Hi Kerri - I wish more authors came here -- I'd love to see any of the ones you mentioned. I hope school is going well. What are you reading now?

Hope you enjoy Madame Sousatzka, I read a lot of Rubens' books last year and enjoyed all of them.

Kerri just dropping by to wish you a lovely weekend.

#23 - Hi Beth! We get so many authors here that it's a shame I never see any.

Right now I'm reading The Story of My Purity (no touchstone yet) for a review. It's kind of odd. It's a translated novel by an Italian author and it's about a devout Catholic who works at an extremist Catholic publishing house. I'm not exactly sure where it's going yet, but it's well-written.

Then I'm listening to The Secret Historian which is about the fascinating life of Samuel Steward, who started as an English professor and modernist writer and hung out with all sorts of interesting characters (Gertrude Stein, Thornton Wilder, Thomas Mann, Andre Gide), but then became a tattoo artist and pornographer. He also had a longstanding friendship and working relationship with Alfred Kinsey, the sex researcher and that's where I'm at now. He also took very elaborate notes of his wildly active sex life. It's interesting and well done. I think I saw it on a list of excellent non-fiction, or else it was on a shortlist for an award? I can't remember.

#24 - Hi Kerry! So wonderful to see you here! We corresponded in the 12 in 12 group, but then that all petered out for me. I'll have to check out your 75 thread again.

I thought A Five Year Sentence was wonderful and am interested to know what you thought of it. I'd like to read The Elected Member as well, as part of my plan to read all of the Booker winners.

#25 - Hi Paul! Thanks for stopping by. I have no choir accompanying this morning, so I'll spend it working an a project. Then it's all football and zombies for the rest of the day.

Hi Kerri - Both The Secret Historian and The Story of My Purity sound interesting. I'll wait to hear your final comments.

Morning Kerri- "it's all football and zombies for the rest of the day." I love it! We are having a family get-together for Sue's b'day. It will be at her brother's house in Plainfield. We are going to race there at half-time, so I can watch the rest of the game, with a couple beers. I wish it was Zombie Dust.
We went to Rock Bottom last night. The food is very good but the beer is just okay. Some of them tasted a bit "thin" to me. Maybe Solemn Oath spoiled me. All of their stuff rocks.

#27 - Hi Beth - I will try to pull together some comments about The Secret Historian. The other is for a Booklist review, so I can't actually post my review, you have to read it in the magazine. Ha!

#28 - Good morning, Mark! I LOVE Zombie Dust. I like it better than Alpha King, and I think it's in my top 5 beers of all time.

Sorry the beer at Rock Bottom was disappointing. I haven't been there for a while, but I remember them having only really basic stuff - a pale ale, a wheat, a brown ale, a stout. I think they are trying to please a wide audience and don't get a lot of hardcore beer nerds. It's better than a Miller 64, I suppose. : ) (My sister LOVES Miller 64 and I always make fun of her.)

Ah Geezer, what a cute picture!

#30 - Hi Chelle - Thank you!

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Hi Everyone! I've been going nuts with school stuff this past week. I'm actually off for the next three days to work on my graduation portfolio, which is due on Thursday. I made a lot of progress this weekend, but still have quite a bit of work to do. I'll definitely have a chance to visit threads this coming weekend, when I'll be done with this dreadful thing. Then I'll have two more projects to work on and I'm done. I'm still working on the same two books up there, so nothing to report reading-wise.

I did learn something new and disturbing this weekend at Target. Apparently you have to show I.D. to buy Drano. I guess kids are sniffing it? Making a new drug out of it? I can't find a definitive answer on the interwebs. Is the human race self-destructing? What's going on? Has anyone heard of this? (This sounds like it should be a facebook post, but I like to keep my facebooking chirpy and positive, for work-related reasons.)

Not that anyone cares around here, but, on a positive note, the Seahawks have had good games two weeks in a row. I think I'm getting a Richard Sherman jersey next year. This year I've just been wearing my old #12 personalized jersey. Also, the new uniforms are growing on me. I just love this guy:

Kerri, sounds like you are busy, busy, as usual! Sending you lots of energy as you juggle and keep up with everything. :) We were watching the CFL this weekend since it's apparently the playoffs, but by we, I do mean just my husband since I know squat about football..haha!

Hi Kerri - Good luck on finishing your graduation portfolio. I just finished work on my sabbatical proposal and handing it in felt excellent -- at this point I don't even care if it's approved. No new books for me either.

Hi Kerri- Thanks for checking in. Sorry, things have been so crazy. Go Seahawks and good luck with the graduation portfolio.

#32 - Hi Valerie! Actually, our other awesome corner - Brandon Browner - started his career in the CFL. Otherwise, I don't know much about the CFL.

#33 - Hi Beth! A sabbatical! I hope you get it. What are you planning to work on during it?

#34 - Hi Mark! Thanks. I'll survive, but I'll be happy when its over.

********************

Clearly, I'm procrastinating a little today, but I did just find out that Drano is being regulated in Illinois, because people are using it as a weapon and NOT because kids are ingesting it somehow to get high (The check-out lady at Target gave me the wrong info.) Anyway, should I feel better or worse? Not sure.

>29 DorsVenabili: we have a beer here called Hop Zombie, it contains ridiculous levels of hoppy flavour, and it way too intense for most people, me included. My lovely other likes it though.

Drano...that would be a cleaning product right?

Good luck with your portfolio Kerri!

#35 Ooh, that sounds nasty. :-(

#36 I had to google Drano Megan and I think it's a drain cleaning product. Probably contains bleach and other things not very good for you.

#36 - Hi Megan! I love ridiculous levels of hoppy flavor, so I'm sure I'd love your Hop Zombie! Our Zombie Juice is very hoppy as well.

Yeah, like Heather said, Drano is a drain unclogger. (Does it totally sound like I'm obsessed with Drano today? It's weird, right?)

#37 - Hi Heather! Thank you for the good luck wish. I do think I'm relieved that the youth of America are not sniffing such a dangerous chemical. Plus, I believe it's probably not even possible, due to guaranteed death. That Target lady gave me a scare!

Hi Everyone!

I finished my portfolio this past week, which was a HUGE relief. Now I have two more large projects, due by December 9, and then I'm done. FOREVER. Yay!!!!

Some book and reading updates:

*After finishing The Story of My Purity, which I actually didn't enjoy very much, although it's good, I picked up Binocular Vision and read 5 or so stories. This turned out to be a wonderful thing as I haven't picked up that collection for a while. I thoroughly enjoyed the stories I read, three of which were the Sonya stories about the American woman who volunteers in Europe during WWII. Wonderful! I've stated this before, many times, but I'll reiterate, because I think I give folks the impression that I don't like short stories and that couldn't be further from the truth: I absolutely love and am touched deeply by many individual short stories. However, I usually don't enjoy reading an entire collection by one author straight through, so this picking-up-the-book-here-and-there thing seems to be working out well. I'm about halfway through the book at this point.

*I finished Secret Historian, which is a fantastic and meticulously researched biography of Samuel Steward, a Renaissance man of sorts. Born in 1909, the incredibly bright Steward started off as an English professor, poet, and writer of literary fiction, hobnobbing with all sorts of important folks like Gertrude Stein, Thorton Wilder, and Thomas Mann. He maintained a close friendship with Alfred Kinsey and provided Kinsey and the Institute for Sex Research with a boatload of records concerning his very active sex life, much of it S & M-oriented. He then became interested in tattooing and became a successful tattoo artist in Chicago and then Oakland, CA. At one point he worked as the official tattooist for the Hell's Angels. Then, to top it all off, during the 1970s he wrote pulp, gay porn novels. Steward's strength of character and determination to live his life by his own rules and standards is impressive. Despite the hatred and persecution he experienced as a gay man during the early and mid-twentieth century, he persevered and did his thing. At turns amusing and often sad and touching, this is a very engaging, well-organized and well-executed biography. Highly recommended.

*I recently started Madame Sousatzka (Bernice Rubens) and Bent Road (Lori Roy), both of which have had promising starts.

*The audiobook version of The Absent One finally arrived for me at the library. I've been on the waiting list since late August! Since then, I've read a couple ho-hum reviews of it, so now I'm not even that thrilled about starting it, but I will at some point.

*At work in the lunch room, there are usually a couple tables piled with ARCs for employees to take. I typically don't take them, because I am in the process of weeding all ARCs out of my book collection and have implemented a "No New ARCs in the House!" policy for my bookshelves. Whenever I get one for early reviewers, it goes in the "get rid of" pile after I read it. However, I found a copy of James Kelman's upcoming book in the pile and couldn't resist, so I broke my rule and took it home. It's called Mo Said She Was Quirky. I'm hoping to read it next month. Last year, I really enjoyed his How Late It Was, How Late.

*I also found a seemingly new and non-ARC paperback copy of The Art of Fielding, so I picked that up as well. I'm not quite as excited about reading this one, but I may pick it up some day.

Ok. Now I am off to visit threads. Finally.

Hi Kerri - Congratulations on finishing your portfolio. Maybe you need a beer to celebrate?:) The Secret Historian sounds great. I wasn't that thrilled with The Absent One; maybe my expectations were too high after reading the first one. I should start Binocular Vision -- I've heard so many good things about it.

Have a great weekend. Good luck Seahawks. Vikes have a bye.

#40 - Hi Beth! I really liked the The Keeper of Lost Causes too. It had been my favorite Scandicrime until I read The Redbreast. Oh well. I'll give The Absent One a try.

The Seahawks have a bye this week too. I still watch football all day though. The Redzone Channel drove me crazy at first, but now I sort of like it. We used to flip around to all the different games ourselves, but I admit this is better.

Kerri - I haven't read The Redbreast yet -- another one to get to. Maybe on break. I find football good background for 1. grading or 2. a nap. My kids used to tease me that "watching football' was code for taking a nap. They weren't always wrong. Have a good Sunday.

Stopping by to say hi . Personally I really enjoyed The Keeper of Lost Causes and perhaps even more The Absent One. So far, Jo Nesbo's books intimidate me by their sheer door-stopper size! My fav scandicrime author remains Karin Fossum. As for football, my city does have a team, but like many others I know nothing about it! I'm afraid I don't even watch hockey! :)

#42 - Hi Beth! I do hope you like The Redbreast. Truth-be-told, during non-Seahawks games, you might find me with the laptop, working on school work in front of the TV, but then I usually pay close attention during the 4th quarter.

#43 - Hi Deb! That's right! I forgot that you liked The Absent One. That gives me hope. Like I said, I'll definitely listen to it at some point. I liked your Karin Fossum recommendation too. I listened to, rather than read The Redbreast, so I guess I didn't realize how long it was, but you're right that they are doorstoppers!

Morning Kerri- I'm glad you have the portfolio behind you. Yah! I was also a big fan of The Keeper of Lost Causes and look forward to the next one. No Bears play today, so we plan to go see Lincoln this afternoon.
Are you going to watch or record "The Dust Bowl" tonight. It's on PBS. I really liked the Art of Fielding. I hope you do too!

#45 - Hi Mark! Thank you for the reminder on "The Dust Bowl." Yes, I do want to see that. I'll probably record it and watch it later this week.

Glad to hear you enjoyed The Art of Fielding. I haven't heard much about it on LT - I must have missed when you read it. I remember seeing it on some best of lists though.

That's right! You're playing the godforsaken 49ers tomorrow. I'll have to cheer for the Bears, I suppose. : ) But seriously, who in all of football is more hateful than Jim Harbaugh? I can't stand that guy.

Hey Kerri,

Just stopping by to say hello & Happy Thanksgiving. Congratulations on nearing the school finish line!
We almost visited your neck of the woods 2 weeks ago (daughter wanted to tour Chicago colleges), but hurricane complications made it impossible. Our airline tickets will be good for a year and we intend to get there in early 2013.
P.S. Dust Bowl is terrific.

Big congrats on completing your portfolio- a lot of work has gone into it I presume? What exactly is in it? (I might be late to the party on that one- please excuse!)

#47 - Hi Peg - Happy Thanksgiving to you too! Did your home suffer damage in the storm? I hope everything is ok. And I hope you and your daughter are able to get back to Chicago next year. LT meet-up?

Glad to hear you enjoyed The Dust Bowl. I hope to watch it this week. We've been recording it.

#48 - Hi Megan! Thanks for stopping by. The portfolio was a lot of work, but not as difficult as I thought it would be. It's basically a website that showcases 15 of my projects, with blurbs that tie the projects to the program's goals. There's also an essay and resume. I do ok with fast, "blah, blah, blah" writing, so it wasn't a such a big deal for me and didn't take as long as I thought it would. And, luckily, I didn't have any technology problems, so that helped too.

How wonderful that you are almost finished with your projects, but have still managed to do some great reading. Have a Happy Thanksgiving, Kerri!

#50 - Hi Linda - Thanks for stopping by! I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving as well!

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And hello everyone else! If you are in the U.S., I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow! If you are outside the U.S., I hope you have a magical and memorable Thursday.

Joe, Geezer, and I are going to my sister's for dinner. I have it easy this year, as I only have to prepare roasted Brussels sprouts. It's always lovely spending time with my sister and her family. My only concern about tomorrow is that my father and his wife will be there and his wife is a bit loopy about politics (very conspiracy theory-oriented, etc.) and you might think her entire world has fallen apart based on the recent election results. She can't think about anything else. It's a bit sad, really. And she LOVES to start arguments, so being around her is a rather exhausting experience of always trying to change the subject to avoid World War III. I absolutely hate arguing about anything (especially politics), but my sister tends to get into it with her. I actually sent them that Sean Penn/Kid Rock video about getting along, despite our different political opinions, and my sister thought it was cute, but my father's wife never responded, so she's probably mad at me. Ha! Oops! I was just trying to promote love and understanding. What can I say?

Oh well. It should be a lovely day anyway. We're going over early to have some time with my sister and her family, before they arrive. And Geezer gets to ride in the car and spend the day with his BFF, so that's good.

Kerri - Happy Thanksgiving. Good luck with the conversations around politics. I have a brother-in-law who likes to argue, but after so many years in the family, now we all just ignore him. Every family has one.:)

#52 - Hi Beth! Happy Thanksgiving to you too!

Yeah, we'll all survive. She just has an unusually high rage level and it's not fun to be around. And, so as not to insult my right-of-center LT friends, it's not even a right vs. left issue, it's just her way of turning everything into a political issue and making people uncomfortable. I know people on the left like that as well, and they're a drag to be around too. It's like I just want to introduce her to a hobby. That's what she needs. She's retired and just looks at news all day and drives herself crazy. Knitting? Shadow-box making? Rabbits? I'm not sure.

Congrats on getting your portfolio done, Kerri and of course have an awesome Thanksgiving to boot! :)

#54 - Hi Valerie! Thank you for stopping by with kind words!

Happy Thanksgiving, Kerri! What do you guys do for the holiday? We host it, which is a bummer for Sue but we have a good time. Our daughter is bringing a couple growlers from Haymarket, including the liquid gold, Mathias!

#56 - Hi Mark! We alternate families on Thanksgiving and this year it's my family (see post #51). So we'll be going over to my sister and brother-in-law's house this year. My two nieces are on either U.S. coast and both have newborn babies, so they won't be coming home for the holidays this year : ( but my nephew will be there.

I'm SO JEALOUS that you will have a growler of Mathias. That stuff is amazing. It's the best imperial IPA I've ever had anywhere on earth.

Happy Thanksgiving, Kerri!

Kerri - Have a lovely day with your family. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours and thanks for being such a great pal this year.

Happy Thanksgiving Kerri!

Hi Katie, Paul, and Rhian! Thank you for the Happy Thanksgivings! And 2 out of 3 of you are overseas folks. That's lovely!

Thanks for sharing your books with me, Kerri..........

#62 - Thanks, Lynda!!

I'm off today and will probably do some studying, although the village is doing quite a bit of jackhammering outside my window, so concentration is a bit difficult.

Anyway, I finished Madame Sousatzka this morning and it was another wonderful Bernice Rubens offering. I see her becoming a favorite, and I look forward to reading The Elected Member sometime next year. I think I may have a brief review in me. So I'll post that today if it happens.

I also started The Polish Boxer, which I received through LT Early Reviewers. It seems to be rated highly by those who have read it, so I'm looking forward to it.

Also, will someone please buy me this new, 40th anniversary box set of The Slider?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVm7mq5P6Tc

The prize ribbon with Marc Bolan's face in the center is killing me!

Hi Kerri - I'll have to check out Bernice Rubens. I haven't read anything by here. Suggestions for a book to start with. Good luck with the studying. I hope your Thanksgiving was pleasant -- no political arguments.

#65 - Hi Beth! I've only read Madame Sousatzka and A Five Year Sentence, both of which I loved. I may have liked A Five Year Sentence just a tiny smidge more, but it's hard to say. I know that Kerry (avatiakh) read several Bernice Rubens novels last year. Perhaps if she sees this, she could chime in with her favorite, as I'd like to know too.

Thanksgiving went well. Miraculously, no political arguments!

Title: Madame Sousatzka
Author: Bernice Rubens
Publication Year: 1962
Format: Print book
Challenges:
• 75 Book Challenge
• TIOLI #8 (November 2012): Read a second-hand book from a bricks-and-mortar bookstore
Stars: 4.5

Twelve-year-old piano prodigy Marcus embarks on a student-teacher relationship with the flamboyant and slightly mysterious Madame Sousatzka. Her unconventional teaching methods quickly improve Marcus’s already impressive playing, but things quickly get strange. Marcus becomes very attached to Madame Sousatzka and her three kooky borders - Mr. Cordle, an osteopath who obsessively creates color-coded maps of the human body ; The Countess, an unkempt, chain-smoking daydreamer who prefers to be called “Uncle”; and Jenny, a young, kindhearted prostitute. Marcus looks to Madame Sousatzka as a mother figure who is, on the surface, everything his own mother is not – sophisticated, worldly, and glamorous. In return, he fills a void in her life caused by missed opportunities and crushed dreams. As a result, she desperately clings to him and attempts to live through his achievements.

Rubens does a wonderful job of articulating the loneliness and desperation of the characters and their tendency to suffocate the objects of their affection. Even Madame Sousatzka’s dilapidated house comes alive as a character, mirroring the sadness and slow decay of its inhabitants. In addition, I found myself quite touched by Marcus’s complex relationship with his mother. He loves her so much that it is painful, but he is horribly embarrassed by her, which then causes him guilt, creating a vicious cycle of love-pain-embarrassment-guilt. This novel is wonderful , and I highly recommend it. And, wow, I really like Bernice Rubens.

Great review Kerri. I will definitely seek out Rubens.

#68 - Hi Beth! Thank you. She is excellent and I'm really looking forward to reading more. I'll probably read The Elected Member next.

Ugh. Terrible football game. I don't think there's any hope for the playoffs. If we can't beat Miami, that's probably about it. And perhaps there's a good side. If we win a wild card spot, all you'll hear about is the Green Bay game and how so and so team didn't make a wild card spot because of the evil Seahawks, etc. Yes, I'm bitter.

Anyway, I finished the audiobook of Bent Road today. While perhaps not wildly exciting or suspenseful, it's a very solid mystery with well developed characters and it entertained from the start. Set in a creepy, small-minded Kansas town in the late 1960's, a young girl goes missing. There's also a sort of mysterious back-story to one of the characters.Well done. You could do much worse. It's certainly worth reading or listening to.

I also added two riveting textbooks to my list at the top: The Social Life of Information and Harvard Business Review on Knowledge Management.

And we've watched two high quality movies this weekend: Martha Macy May Marlene (at first I was disappointed with the ending, but after thinking about it quite a bit, I'm fine with it. Plus that Olsen sister did an excellent job in the lead role!) and the pretty good Rolling Stones documentary Crossfire Hurricane.

Ok, I'm going to go sulk now, while watching the end of the 49ers/Saints game.

Sorry about the Seahawks loss, Kerri. I'm a little nervous about the Giants game tonight.

I had a similar reaction to Bent Road when I read it earlier this year - not super fast-paced but really well written with a good story.

I hope you have a good week ahead!

#71 - Hi Katie! Thanks for stopping by. I'll cheer for the Giants tonight if I can stomach any more football. To top off this nightmare football day, they just announced that my two favorite players are probably getting 4-game suspensions for Adderall use.

I saw something flash up about possible suspensions for Seattle players but we were making dinner so I didn't know the details.

Um, there's always next year?

Hang in there, Kerri!

>67 DorsVenabili:: Into the Someday Swamp with Madame Sousatzka! Thanks for the review, Kerri.

Hi Kerri- Sorry about those Seahawks. What a bummer. I also really enjoyed "Martha Macy May Marlene". John Hawkes was excellent as usual.

#73 - Thanks, Katie. I've never encountered a performance enhancing drug situation on our team (that I can remember), but I just learned that the agents say Adderall, but it's most likely some sort of steroid. Well, at least the Giants are winning!

#74 - Hi Swynn - Thanks and good to see you! I'll have to pop over to your thread this week.

#75 - Hi Mark! Thanks. And yes, John Hawkes was great too. It seems like he's in everything!

Hi Kerri! Just checking in and catching up...

#77 - Hi Laura - Thanks for stopping by!

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Book updates:

I tried starting The Forever War and couldn't get into it. I probably listened to 75% of one CD. I may try it again in the future, as I know it's supposed to be quite good. I just had a feeling it was going to be a military novel disguised as a sci-fi novel, which could be ok, if something insightful and interesting is being said, but I'm not in the mood for it right now. Therefore, I started The Shadow of the Wind, which I'm enjoying.

Other exciting book news: I usually don't report ebook purchases, because someone here told me they don't count - Ha! - but I bought the following 5 books for $10.10 on Monday, during the Amazon cyber Monday sale. And they're actually books I wanted and not impulse purchases, as most of my ebook purchases tend to be:

* Tobacco Road by Erskine Caldwell
* The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron
* Bruno's Dream by Iris Murdoch
* An Unofficial Rose by Iris Murdoch
* The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark

I'm still reading the very short The Polish Boxer, which is good, but I've been working on projects and reading school stuff on the train, so I haven't gotten that far.

And I'm almost done with my final two projects....well I'll be working on them until Dec. 9, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, so that's awesome. And it's probably also awesome that I won't be going on and on about school projects any more.

Have a lovely week! I know I've not been a good thead-visitor lately, but I'll get back on track after the 9th. Please forgive my rudeness.

Love that review of Madame Sousatzka, Kerri. Thumb from me!

Wasn't there a pretty great movie of it back in the 80s?

#79 - Hi Joe! Nice to see you and thank you!

I think there is a movie, but I haven't seen it. Was Shirley MacLaine involved? I'll have to look for it.

****************************

The other thing I forgot to mention in my last post is that I finally received an LT early reviewers book that I should have received in May. However, the publisher sent a pdf instead of a print book (I requested a print book) and now I have to figure out how to load a pdf to my Kindle Fire. It will be a good thing to know, since I'll be receiving another early reviewers book in pdf format as well. I was going to try the emailing method in this article:

http://www.technipages.com/kindle-fire-how-to-transfer-and-read-pdf-files.html

Has anyone tried this? It seems silly to buy a $10 usb cord thingy to read a free book that I probably would not have purchased, so I'd like to go the free route.

The book is As Though She Were Sleeping by Elias Khoury.

ETA: Nevermind. That totally worked. I suppose I should have just tried it. I assumed it would be more complicated than it was. It does look a bit crappy, but otherwise it's fine.

Reading, buying books and sports - three of my absolute passions collected here Kerri. Great buys too. Tobacco Road holds distinction as the only book I ever ordered from Book Depository that never arrived.

Hi Paul! I was trying not to buy any more books this year (and I was doing such a good job), but I couldn't resist. See? If you take up ebooks, they'll be that much easier to hide from SWMBO.

But far more dangerous I would hazard. A click of a mouse and I have an entire collection!

Kerri - Good luck on your final projects. My last day of class is Dec. 21 -- and then I still have grading to do. We have the longest semesters anywhere. I am so ready for a break.

Stopping by to say hi, Kerri! Best of luck on your final projects! As for how to load a PDF file onto a Kindle - well, that is far past my capacity! Best of luck!

#83 - Ha! That is true. It takes a lot of discipline to not buy everything in sight, as it's so easy.

#84 - Hi Beth! Wow, that is late. My last day of class is Dec. 15th, but I give my final presentation in that class on the 8th, so all I have to do on the 15th, is watch other student's presentations. For my online class, my final project is due on Dec. 9th, so I'll be done with both by then. Yay!

#85 - Hi Deb! Thank you. I figured out the PDF thing. I used the emailing method and it worked out fine, although the type is very small, even when I enlarge it, so I'll have to read it longways, which I'm not a fan of.

No matter how busy I am, there's always time for TIOLI! My husband was laughing at me, because I came home from my rehearsal on Thursday very, very cranky (tired, bad traffic, and at least 5 neighborhood dogs barking like maniacs as I walked from the garage to the house). Then I came inside and saw that December TIOLI was up, and I was instantly giddy! Anyway, here is what I signed up for. I seem to think that once I'm done with my projects on the 9th, I'll enter a time warp that will allow me to read an unusually large number of books. Here's the list:

Print or Ebooks
The Polish Boxer by Eduardo Halfon - currently reading
Binocular Vision: New & Selected Stories by Edith Pearlman -currently reading
Notes from a 12 Man: A Truly Biased History of the Seattle Seahawks by Mark Tye Turner
The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
A People's History of the United States: 1492-Present by Howard Zinn
The Line by Olga Grushin
Iris Murdoch for Beginners by Bran Nicol
Mo Said She Was Quirky by James Kelman
Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon
They Call Me Carpenter by Upton Sinclair
Blood and Guts in High School by Kathy Acker
Company Parade by Storm Jameson
Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis
Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin
The Artamonov Business by Maxim Gorky

Audiobooks
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón - currently listening
Call of the Wild by Jack London
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
Wolf: The Lives of Jack London by James L. Haley

Otherwise, I'm making good progress with school stuff and hope to finish my projects by next Sunday!

Also, we saw Mike Cooley (the least prolific, but IMHO the greatest singer/songwriter in Drive by Truckers) last night at the Hideout. It was very good, he played my favorites, and we were very close. Like this close:

Hi Kerri - That IS close. Happy December. Just a few more days. Good luck.

#88 - Thanks, Beth! I'm making such good progress that I may be done with everything on the 8th. We'll see.

Let's party, my friend. Let's party!

#90: I must combat that image with this one:



And here's an oldy, but goody - Geezer in an old Julian Peterson jersey:

I'm scared, not sure about the Bears though!

#91 - Actually, the Bears probably are afraid of those four. However, there are other elements of our team that are not quite as frightening as they could be.

But like I said, I think we'll lose, as we cannot play on the road.

Kerri - The Bears beat the Vikes last week, and they play them again next week, so this time you should cheer for the Vikes. Go Seahawks.

I'm here to catch up. Great review of Madame Sousatzka. I've never read Bernice Rubens but I keep meaning to.

I wonder if it was me that told you that Kindle books don't count--because I definitely don't count them. I bought several of the same Kindle sale books that you did, and several more besides, but I'm not fessing up to the full list. I would have bought even more, too, but using Amazon's "Buy with 1-click" feature too many times it a row invariably shuts down my credit card, which is a real pain. But it probably saves me from myself.

#94 - Oh, Miss Beth, I always cheer for the Vikings for you! Unless we're playing them, of course.

#95 - Hi Anne! I do think it was you who said that about the ebooks. And I agree. I've never shut down my credit card with the one-click option, but that totally sounds like something that would happen to me, especially with the credit union we use, who are super vigilant about unusual purchasing patterns.

Go Seahawks! Good close game. Seahawks caught a couple bad breaks too. Should be a good 2nd half.

#97 - Oh, Mark, you're so nice! Yeah - do you think we've been paid back for the Green Bay game yet?!!? Joe and I are starting to become conspiracy theorists. It's every week.

I think it's Miller time! But since I don't drink Miller, I'll have to pick something else. Aw, shucks!

#99 - Mark - I'm sorry, but that was the most exciting game of the year. I nearly had a stroke.

Of course, I'm highly irritated at my team but the Seahawks deserved to win. They played very tough and Wilson got it done!

We beat the Bears AND the NFL referees!! (Can you tell I've had a few beers?)

Hi Kerri.
Realized that I haven't been a faithful follower of your thread. You live in Chicagoland but are a Seahawks fan..... sorry I didn't stick around to watch the game but I had a good swim.
Your thread is now starred. :-)

#103 - Hi! Nice to see you! Yeah - I'm a HUGE Seahawks fan. It was a great game!

LOL! I don't even know what game the Seahawks play, nor the Bears! And I was lucky enough to marry a guy who does not watch sports! Perhaps it's genetic :) My dad never watched sports, but I must confess that our eldest son does love to watch hockey - but that has been a bust this season.

Best wishes with end of your semester!

#105 - Hi Deb - thank you for the kind thoughts regarding my semester! It's almost over!

The Seahawks and Bears are football teams. I'm slightly obsessed if you couldn't tell. My husband likes hockey too, but I don't get into it that much. They're still on strike I think?

I'm done!!!!!

And I'm so happy, I feel like doing the "Richard Sherman My Brother Dance" (had to get a Seahawks reference in there): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sjNcN3iUxU

I finished up my last paper yesterday morning, but was too exhausted to do any LTing. I ended up watching football all day (of course).

I'm hoping to get to thread-visiting this evening and getting caught up with everyone.

Book updates:
*I finished The Polish Boxer, which was quite good. It's an early reviewers book, so I'll write a review soon.

*I recently started a Seahawks history book called Notes from a 12 Man, which is full of interesting information, but somewhat poorly organized.

*I'm still listening to The Shadow of the Wind and it's a wonderful book and audiobook production. The narrator is fantastic.

Have a lovely day!!!

Congratulations Kerri! That's some happy dance.
I just purchased The Shadow of the Wind from a local booksale and I'm looking forward to your comments.
Have a relaxing day!

Congratulations Kerri!

Congrats Kerri! Very happy for you. We finally made it to Revolution yesterday. Love that pub! We WILL go back!

Congratulations! You've reminded me that I've got to submit an assignment as well. I have finished it - last week in fact - but pressing the submit buttom always seems very final!

Congrats Kerri! More time to read.

Congrats on finishing that last paper, Kerri! Hope you can relax a bit now.

I managed to miss the Bears-Seahawks discussion, but that's probably for the best. We can pass on Bears-Vikings, too. :-(

But how about the Seahawks stomping of Arizona yesterday? Holy guacamole!

#108 - Hi Lynda - thank you! I think you'll really like The Shadow of the Wind. He creates a lovely, magical atmosphere and the dialogue is great.

#109 - Thank you, Linda!

#110 - Hi Mark! Revolution is great! They opened it about a month before we moved from that neighborhood : ( The food is quite good too. Usually brew pubs don't have the most exciting menu, but they do a good job.

#111 - Hi Rhian and thank you! I know what you mean about pressing that button. Right after I do it, I always fear that I've uploaded the wrong version.

#112 - Hi Beth! Yes - I'm looking forward to getting a lot more reading done!

#113 - Hi Joe - Thank you! I won't mentioned the Bears. Yeah - that Seahawks game was crazy. Of course the Cardinals are terrible, but their defense is pretty good, so I was surprised that it got that bad, although at least three of our touchdowns were non-offense touchdowns, but still. I actually felt a little guilty and uncomfortable watching it. Ha!

Congrats Kerri!! Can you relax and enjoy December now or do you have any thing else occupying your time?
I hope that you find lots of time to read :)

Hi Chelle! Thanks for stopping by! I have a rather difficult piano piece to practice for a choir performance on Sunday, but after that, other than work, it's just the holidays, relaxing, football, and reading books. Oh, and I should probably start a more rigorous exercise regimen now that I'm out of excuses.

Congrats, Kerri!

#117 - Thanks Lori! Good to see you!

Title: Notes from a 12 Man : A Truly Biased History of the Seattle Seahawks
Author: Mark Tye Turner
Publication Year: 2009
Format: Print book
Challenges:
• 75 Book Challenge
• TIOLI #7 (December 2012): Read a book where there are more than half the letters in the alphabet in the title
Stars: Three

After reading this, I feel I have a better sense of Seahawks history, especially things like the dreadful Tom Flores era and Ken Behring, the evil owner who wanted to move the team to Los Angeles. However, the book is not well-organized (chronological might have been nice – why try to get fancy with structure when you’re writing a football fan memoir?). It's mostly endless play-by-play game descriptions, laced with segments on team rivalries, pop culture, and important events in team history, none of it in any particularly coherent order. And there was entirely too much humor. I am vehemently opposed to the mixing of humor and football! Stop! So all in all, I grew a bit weary towards the end, but I suppose I’m glad that I read it.

*************************************************
Other book updates:

I’m about 20 pages into The Stone Diaries, which I started as the first book in my coffee can challenge for 2013 (I started a month early.)

Explanation of the coffee can challenge: Using the "If You Like" feature on the Library Thing author pages for authors I love, I created little slips of paper with an author and several of that author's book titles on it. Then I put them in an old (empty) coffee can and will draw one each month and read that author/novel. Eek! I'm a nerd! I thought this would be a good way to discover new authors, who are similar to the authors I already like. And I only included those authors I've never read before. I used the following favorite author names to get the results: Iris Murdoch, Jane Gardam, Keri Hulme, Kate Atkinson, Dorothy Allison, Bernice Rubens, and Colson Whitehead (the lone male). I do have other favorite authors, but, for example, when I put in Toni Morrison, it brought up authors I've already read, so I didn't include her. By the way, The Stone Diaries, by Carol Shields, popped up on the Kate Atkinson "If you like" page.

I still have to write a review of The Polish Boxer, but I'll have to devote more than three minutes of my lunch hour to it.

Hi Kerri - Congrats on finishing up with school. That must be a wonderful feeling! I hope you like The Stone Diaries. I read it last year and it is now one of my all-time favorites. It's just such a lovely, thoughtful, quiet story.

I'm another one who loved The Stone Diaries - I've read quite a lot of Carol Shields and that one is definitely my favourite, followed by Larry's Party. Your coffee can challenge sounds a great idea, by the way.

Hi Katie and Rhian! Glad to hear so much enthusiasm for The Stone Diaries. I'm quite pleased so far. It sort of reminds me of Behind the Scenes at the Museum, which I love.

I think the coffee can project will be fun. I'm looking into other read-a-like databases and may include other authors/books in the mix.

Morning Kerri- I've had The stone Diaries sitting on a shelf for several years ago. I was attempting to wade through the Pulitzer winners and stalled out. I'll blame a place called LT for distracting me.
Have a great weekend!

Wow. What a horrendous tragedy yesterday. My friend posted this on facebook yesterday and I found it helpful - "26 Moments That Restored Our Faith In Humanity This Year":

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/moments-that-restored-our-faith-in-humanity-this-...

*********************************************

#123 - Hi Mark - I think you would like it. I keep track of the Pulitzer too and may focus on them one of these years. However, 2013 will be another Booker winner year.

>124 DorsVenabili:: Thanks for that, Kerri. It was needed.

A slightly belated congrats on finishing up, Kerri.
Hoping for another Seahawks win tomorrow!

Kerri - your link was really touching and it is good to note that amid all the bad things the essential decency of most people can still illuminate the darkness. The image of the little girls's expression when the All Black rugby player enters her hospital room brought an immediate lump to my throat as did many of the other shots.

Have a lovely weekend. x

Congratulations Kerri on finishing. And thanks for the link above--I'm in need of some faith-in-humanity restoring.

I love the sound of your coffee can challenge. And I need to get to Shadow of the Wind sometime.

Hi Kerri - Thanks for that link. I posted it on Facebook, too.

Good luck to your Seahawks this afternoon!

#125 - Hi Swynn - I'm glad it's appreciated. It's good to remember stuff like that in times like these.

#126 - Thanks, Ellen. Go Seahawks! We have our Gardettos and beer ready!

#127 - Thanks, Paul. I agree, that's a lovely one.

#128 - Hi Anne - Despite several rather cheesy love story threads within the novel, I'm thoroughly enjoying The Shadow of the Wind. I read the third book in the series earlier this year and they say the order doesn't matter, but I disagree.

#129 - Hi Katie - thank you! We must win this one. I'm so sorry for what is happening to the Giants at this particular moment. Perhaps they will turn it around.

Bah! The Giants are breaking my heart yet again. It's so lopsided that they changed our TV coverage to the Bears-Packers game :-(

#67 Great review of Madame Sousatzka Kerri, really pleased you enjoyed that one :-)

#78 Sorry The Forever War wasn't working for you. I've stalled on another science fiction book which is supposed to be a real classic (The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester) but I've been really struggling with it too.

I loved The Shadow of the Wind - I've been meaning to reread it again.

Good ebook haul! Especially The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and the Iris Murdoch's.

#87 " I seem to think that once I'm done with my projects on the 9th, I'll enter a time warp that will allow me to read an unusually large number of books."

I do the same thing every month!

#107 Woo hoo! Congratulations!

#124 Thanks for the link Kerri. Those were some really touching stories.

#131 - Oh, Katie! That was a terrible game. I'm sorry. What is going on with the Giants?!

#132 - Hi Heather! Madame Sousatzka was your recommendation, of course. How could I resist a crazy piano teacher story?

I have The Stars My Destination on my shelf as well, but haven't gotten to it yet. I was just saying on Swynn's thread that male-authored sci-fi from certain eras tends to be a bit problematic for me lately. However, I keep trying for some bizarre reason. That being said, my 2013 sci-fi reading will focus primarily on female-authored sci-fi and Tiptree award winners, which I just heard about on another thread. It awards sci-fi and fantasy books "that expand or explore our understanding of gender." Sounds interesting. Here is a link to the website: http://tiptree.org/

#133 The Tiptree Award definitely sounds interesting Kerri - I'm looking forward to picking up some good recommendations from you :-) I thought I would do better with male-authored 1950s science fiction because of liking Asimov so much.

So glad that you are finished with school! Hmmm I enjoyed The Stone Diaries but it never occurred to me that it would have any similarities to Behind the Scenes at the Museum. I'll have to get on to that book soon - I love Kate Atkinson and her books!

#134 - Heather - that's my exact problem. I love Asimov, so I think it's a good idea to read other sci-fi from the 50s and 60s. Then I end up being horribly disappointed and/or offended. Sigh. The only exception I can think of is The Day of the Triffids, which I read earlier this year and found delightful.

#135 - Hi Deb! Well, I said that after 20 pages, but, as it turns out, the two novels are not significantly similar in the way that I thought they would be. I am thoroughly enjoying The Stone Diaries though. I do hope you read Behind the Scenes at the Museum some day. It's one of my favorites and, in my opinion, her best novel.

****************************************

I must admit that I'm not getting as far with my December reading and thread-visiting as I'd hoped. I blame it on last minute Christmas shopping, post-school extreme laziness, cookie baking, family parties, and football. I've been completely obsessed with football lately and have been spending a large amount of time reading articles, watching press conferences and footage, and keeping up with Twitter. I may need an intervention. We'll see.

Hey Kerri!

Just stopping by and trying my best to keep up with the threads. Congratulations on the end of school.
Also wanted to add my vote for The Stone Diaries in particular and Carol Shields in general. Loved her (last?) book Unless too.
Happy holidays.

Hi Kerri - a long time no words, but I'm slowly getting into LT-mode again. And reading again.

Enjoying the Seattle Seahawks photos. I only get excited about american football when we get close to the playoffs - and I see there's a chance Seahawks will be in it. Have to watch the 49'er game. Good luck :)

A late congrats on finishing the paper - what a relief, ehh?

Merry Christmas

My reading has really taken a nosedive as well, Kerri. Cookies, pies, get together's , cleaning and chaos. But I love it! I'll make up for reading time after my Christmas Eve party is in the books! Have a great day!

Hello Kerri! I am sorry that it is has been forever since I made it over here. The Hawks are doing quite well! Did you get your Sherman jersey? I think the new unis are growing on me too - as is Russell Wilson!!! So excited for Sunday's game - I just hope I can stay up for the whole game!

Hope you have a good weekend!

#137 - Hi Peg! Thank you! I finished The Stone Diaries yesterday. It was very good and I should have a review done at some point soon. Thank you for the recommendation of Unless. I'll put that on the list as well.

#138 - Hi Carsten! Glad you're back reading and visiting! I'm like that with basketball - I watch if they're doing well or if it's close to the playoffs. However, with football, I watch every minute of every game no matter how good or bad we're doing, plus as much of the rest of the league as I can. And we've had some pretty bad years recently! I'm a little crazy about it.

#139 - Hi Lynda! It's definitely a wonderful time of the year, just horrifically busy! I should get back on track after the holidays.

#140 - Hi Brit! So good to see you over here! Yes, it's been a good year for our Seahawks. We'll see what we can do in the playoffs, but whatever happens, I'm very pleased about the future and what Carroll and John Schneider are doing up there, particularly with personnel. I think it's safe to call them personnel/drafting geniuses. I found this hysterical combine profile of Sherman yesterday. It states, "Sherman is a size prospect with some good intangibles that will help him mold into a contributing backup corner for a press-heavy team. However, he does not possess the natural coverage instincts, fluidity or burst to be considered a future starter." Ha! Wrong! (http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/richard-sherman?id=2495507)

I haven't gotten a new jersey yet. I'm thinking right before next season. I've been wearing my own number 12 this season. I love Sherman, but I fear he might be a little crazy, so I'll see what happens during the off-season before I make my decision. I like to get defensive player jerseys for some reason, so Earl Thomas, Red Bryant, and Kam Chancellor jerseys are also options, although I worry about Kam Chancellor's longevity with the team.

*****************************************************

I'm off to spend the day with one of my BFFs who is in town from Oakland for the holidays. I think we're going to go to the Hyde Park used book stores, perhaps a museum, and then dinner. So I may be back with a book haul list, unless I'm able to control myself, which is very unlikely.

I'm saying it here. Tomorrow is the day I write a couple reviews and get caught up with threads.

Have a lovely Saturday, everyone!

Go Seahawks! Gotta beat the 49ers....

Kerri - Trust that you have a lovely weekend - hope you have fun in the used bookstore (SWMBO says that one of the comforts of life in Malaysia is that there are no used bookstores as such otherwise she believes the building structure would collapse).

#142 - Hi Ellen! Yes! I'm going to be a wreck all day! Technically, we don't have to beat them to make the playoffs, but it would be a huge confidence boost. I'll be crushed if we don't, quite frankly. And thank goodness they didn't issue Sherman's suspension yet. That was a relief.

#143 - Hi Paul! Used book stores can be dangerous. Luckily the super good ones in my area are kind of a pain in the butt to get to, otherwise I'd be there all the time.

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Yesterday was lovely. My friend and I went to the Museum of Science and Industry and mostly just gabbed the whole time. I hadn't been there for years. Then we went to Powell's (the Chicago one), then we had a lovely dinner at the Haymarket Brewery where I had an imperial pilsner and a black IPA.

Here is my book haul from Powell's. I didn't go too crazy:

*The Accidental by Ali Smith
*Hotel Du Lac by Anita Brookner
*The Bradshaw Variations by Rachel Cusk
*Summer Will Show by Sylvia Townsend Warner
*The Gormenghast Novels by Mervyn Peake (This is the trilogy in one book. I'll be doing the group read in 2013)
*Life by Keith Richards (this is a little gift for Joe, but I may read it too)

I'm off to accompany the choir, but I'll be back this afternoon to get caught up on threads during the early games. And I saw that the 2013 group is up, so I'll start my new thread as well! Yay!

Some good stuff there Kerri. Read Life this year and loved it. As our rock n roll princess I think you will enjoy it.

Morning Kerri- Sounds like you had a wonderful time with your friend! Powell's and Haymarket? Sweet! Isn't that black IPA delicious? Their beer is outstanding.
Merry Christmas to you & Joe. Hopefully we can get together in the next few weeks.

#145 - I've heard so many positive comments on Life, so I'll probably pick it up eventually. I like the title of "rock n roll princess"! Thanks, Paul!

#146 - Hi Mark! Haymarket's beer is great, but I was a little bummed out that they were out of Mathias yesterday. The two that I had were excellent though. Yes! Let's get something planned. I'll message you.

Turned on the game to see the blocked field goal returned for a touchdown and thought of you. Good game so far!

Wishing you a great Christmas and New Year Kerri.

Merry Christmas Kerri!! Hope you have a great holiday season and I hope Santa spoils you!

Merry Christmas, Kerri! (and hooray for the Hawks!)

glitter-graphics.com
Have a wonderday day, Kerri!

Merry Christmas Kerri!

So glad you were my Santa in Mark's swap! Thanks again.

Just finished reading your thread - you must have twice as many hours in every day than everyone else. Don't know how you fit everything in.

I am a big fan of both Binocular Vision and Stone Diaries.

Also a football fan - I am from outside Green Bay originally... Just squeaked into my fantasy championship because Lynch got held to 2 on Sunday.

BTW - we do have some good breweries up here in Milwaukee. Ma

Will be keeping tabs on your threads from here on out.

#148 - Hi Katie! Yes! That was the Shermanator who ran it in for a touchdown. What a great game!

#149 - #152 - Hi Rhian, Chelle, Ellen, and Lynda! Thank you for the Christmas cheer! I hope you all have a lovely and safe holiday season as well!

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I'm off to visit family, but I'll be back tomorrow to finish my thread-visiting and to start my 2013 thread.
(Obviously, I got sidetracked by football this past Sunday.)

#153 - Hi Nancy!! We were posting at the same time. You're welcome - the Christmas swap was a lot of fun! I loved The Stone Diaries and I'm enjoying Binocular Vision, even though it's taking me forever to read it.

I do have to check out the breweries in Milwaukee one of these days. I haven't been there for several years.

I see that you have a thread in the Club Read group. I will check that out as well. Merry Christmas!

Hi Everyone! I've been terribly busy the past few days and did not accomplish any of my LT goals (reviews, thread-visiting). As I'm a bit overwhelmed by the thought of catching up over here, I think I'm going to move over to the 2013 group this evening or (more likely) tomorrow at some point. I'll see everyone over there!

Hi Kerri
I hope i catch you still here in 2012 (before I go finding you in 2013). I am woefully behind here Im sorry to report. But a quick fly through sees a lot of books, and football, and a stalker shot of the guitar player? ;) hehe, looks all good fun.

Hope to see you in the 2013 threads soon, and Happy New Year!

Hi Megan! I'm woefully behind everywhere, so don't worry! Thanks for stopping by, and I'll see you in the other group!

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Here is my 2013 thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/146846

Stopping by on the fourth day of Christmas to wish you a Merry Christmas Kerri!

#136 I really enjoyed The Day of the Triffids too - I have another couple of books by John Wyndham that I want to get to at some point.

#158 See you over in the 2013 group! I'm still hoping to catch up on 2012 before I start posting over there but I have you starred.

Hi Heather! I was busy during the holidays and couldn't get caught up over here, so I ran away screaming and set up my 2013 thread. I look forward to keeping up with you over there and in the Virago group. Of course.

And regarding John Wyndham, I have The Chrysalids on my iPod and hope to get to it in 2013.

This time of year is certainly overwhelming, Kerri. No matter how simple I try to make it, things still get crazy.
A littler early but sending out wishes for a happy 2013 and more wonderful adventures in reading.

#161 - Hi Lynda! This has been my first completely lazy weekend since finishing school and it's been lovely! I'll see you over in the 2013 group. Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to you and yours Rock n Roll princess! Look forward to more tunes next year.

#163 - Thanks, Paul! I will try to live up to my title.

See you next year!