Richardderus 2013 thread 16

“I like libraries. It makes me feel comfortable and secure to have walls of words, beautiful and wise, all around me. I always feel better when I can see that there is something to hold back the shadows.”
― Roger Zelazny

Jimmy Stewart's home library. So beautiful!

I have a category called Orphans, which will still catch all the other reading I do in 2013. Thinking 60 reviews as my target.

My 2013 ORPHANED books ticker:




I want to treat the Short Story collection challenge as a ticker-to-itself thread, thinking 48 reviews as my goal. I'll keep the thread over in the Short Stories forum.

My 2013 SHORT STORY collections ticker:




I'm going to keep a mystery-genre thread over in Crime, Thriller, and Mystery forum, with a goal of 50 reviews. Way way way too many of my reviews this year, in all forums, were mysteries and thrillers, and while I love them, I don't want to get too rut-ified and read only those books while keeping up my self-made review writing census.

My MYSTERY & THRILLER books ticker:




THIS THREAD is the 75 challenge for 2013, which will be non-fiction and non-genre-fiction books published in 2012 and 2013, plus recommendations from other 75ers.

My last thread of 2012.

My 2013 NEW books ticker:




Book 1...thread one.
Books 2 & 3...thread two.
Book 4...thread three.
Book 5...thread five.
Books 6 & 7...thread seven.
Books 8-11...thread eight.
Books 12-19...thread nine.
Books 20 & 21...thread 10.
Books 22-25...thread 11.
Books 26 & 27...thread 12.
Book 28...thread 13.
Books 29-31...thread 14.
Book 32...thread 15.

Books are reviewed in post:

33. Scatterbrained...#130.

34. Aurthora...#224.

It doesn't get better than this.

#3 Love it!

hey, sweet knees. well, they are sweet. they can't help it if they have crystals. anyway, happy new thread.

i like his library but the upholstery pattern makes me sneeze!

Love the Gorey!

That elephant fits right in the library. Have a lovely weekend, Richard!

Triple live the thread topper. I love books AND elephants :)
Good day to ya!

To have a book in hand and a dog at your side...It doesn't get much better than that!

I had a neck injection yesterday and couldn't sleep last night. Lilly sat on the couch with me until 4:00 a.m. She is so very comforting. Every so often she gives a soft sigh when she looks at me reading.

I am now two threads behind so I decided to just spring forward to your shiny new thread and wish you a lovely weekend Richard!

Love the bookshelves in the opening pic but it seems a little cluttered in the room... I see a dusting nightmare, what with all the little nick-nacks on all of the tables. Mind you, Jimmy Stewart most likely had staff to deal with things like that. ;-)

Richard - just to let you know I am still lurking:) Love the book porn.

Hope that those pesky crystals go away soon and that you get some cool, pain free days.

>4 gennyt: Isn't it the bee's knees, Genny? Lovely to see you!

>5 mirrordrum: Hiya Ellie...it is so of its time, the 1960s, isn't it? I don't like florals much, and the thing that saves that one for me is the fact that it's the only chintz in the room.

>6 avatiakh: I do too, Kerry, partly or mostly because it's so unusually non-cat-oriented.

>7 wilkiec: I agree with you, Diana, it does. Happy to see you! Even happier knowing your son's tests are passed, so you're less stressed.

>8 mckait: *smooch* It's the kind of room that you could just walk right in, sit right down, and feel right at home.

>9 Whisper1: Hi Linda! Lilly is such a sweet pup, and I'm so glad you don't have to sit up all alone during those miserable moments, which goddesses know you shouldn't ever have anyway. Chronic pain rots.

>10 lkernagh: Lori, hello! Thanks for the (reciprocated) weekend wishes. It's cloudy today, cooler than last week was, and probably going to thunderstorm later. So of course one side's neighbors are having their house painted and the other side's neighbors are having a BBQ.

Heh.

It's precisely the point of a room like that, staff doing the dusting and vacuuming and so on. If I moved in, the tchotchkes and the chintz would be in the garbage before I took my shoes off.

>11 calm: Hi calm! Lurk happily, post as you're moved. I'm glad to know you're around!

Know how I'm always bitching about people (read: girls) putting stupid stuff on bookshelves? Well, rule meets exception here. This is a cool tchotchke. I approve.

I'll bet porn isn't in this calculation, but still it's good news.

LoVE the tchotchke! And the word tchotchke!! And the thread topper. But most especially, ADORE you! Happy Saturday, dear.

Hi Mamie!! You're so sweet...*smooch*

Reading...well...yes, yes I've been doing that.

It's harder than I thought to review The Teleportation Accident. I love the book! Winnowing the quotes I want to use down, otherwise I'm simply transcribing the book and that's a lot of work. Also finding things to say that aren't just pointless gush. Good problems to have.

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena is very MFA. The story is deeply engaging. I soldier on. It's a bit like The Dog Stars for me...yes yes, you can write, now dim down a notch and tell me the story.

At least it's not David Mitchell-level humid.

Good morning, RD! Have a wonderful day.

*smooch* Horrible

Hi Horrible! *smooch* back

Do you have the weekend off this weekend? Work's kept you so darn busy that it's necessary to ask these days.

Jimmy Stewart's home library!

I love Jimmy Stewart. Tonight we will be watching "Harvey" again (it's one of my son's favorite movies).
My aunt actually met Jimmy Stewart once!
I am not jealous. (OK. Maybe a li'l.)

I spy a copy of Jimmy Stewart and His Poems in the forefront there too.
That'd be a fun one to read I bet.

Welcome, welcome! Harvey is a wonderful film! Son has excellent taste. I've always liked the projects Jimmy Stewart chose to make. I suspect, though, that his poetry is something I won't be searching out as I hope to continue liking all the projects he chose....

Jimmy Stewart! That explains the stuffed rabbit on the sofa!

Break another rule, RD....watch Jimmy Stewart reading his poem about his dog, Beau

>23 laytonwoman3rd: Thanks for posting that - I actually remember seeing that episode of the Johnny Carson show when I was a kid!

His book of poems is available on audio cassette. Who wouldn't want Jimmy Stewart to read to them?!?!

>22 ronincats: I wonder how many skrazillion stuffed rabbits he got as gifts after Harvey? And do you know, I'll bet a ton of money that he was gracious and grateful for each one (until he got it home, when it was pitched). He seems like he was that kind of a guy.

>23 laytonwoman3rd:, 24 *wwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*

*smooch and hug* Swell thread as always, Richard. I pray that you're feeling all right today, and I'm also hoping for more grandiloquent words. I love those suckers.

#14 - Oh dear. Girls who put things on their bookshelves? PFFFFFFT. I don't do that. Not me.

Oh, and how did you like The Dog Stars? I saw that in the bookstore last week and it looked interesting.

#25 (Part 1) He didn't pitch them, he donated them to children's hospitals or some such
and (Part 2) I KNOW, right?

>26 ErisofDiscord: You're a reader, Eris, not a Girl. Female does not equal girl! As for The Dog Stars, well, go read my review. *miff*

>27 laytonwoman3rd: *sniff*teardrop*sniff*

Oh I love the miniature library on the library shelf.

Hi RD- Love the new thread! And Jimmy Stewart's library! Jimmy in Vertigo. Does it get any better? I used that library quote too. I saw that you liked it on GR and felt like I should steal it.
I am glad you are hanging in there with Constellation.

>29 sibylline: It's the first useless little doodad I've liked in years!

>30 msf59: Hi Mark...that Zelazny quote is somethin'...he's an okay writer, but he hit that one out of the park.

14:

How do you know the room isnt's life size and just the books are giant sized?

Points to ponder

#19 not working this weekend, yay! Lunch and errands, got my nails done. Dinner out with husband and daughter in 2 hours. Reading in the meantime.....

Nice new thread, compadre! Interesting to have the master of Shadows, Mr. Zelazny, talking about holding them back with books. Love that tchotchke in>14 richardderus:.

I love libraries, elephants and pooches!

>32 magicians_nephew: HORRIBLE thought...then the books surrounding it can't be read! At least not by mere under-15-ft-tall mortals.

>33 karenmarie: Good kind of a day. Good indeed.

>34 jnwelch: Hi Joe! I thought so too, Zelazny being a writer OF Shadow. Heh.

>35 luvamystery65: Well, to be fair Roberta, all right-thinking people do as well. *smooch*

So, you made it through the day? Good.

I love the library on top, but hate the tchotchkes, as you do. Libraries should be calm, not cluttered.

Hi, Rdear. So how are you? I can't even imagine that kind of gout. Yikes!

Finally seem to have sorted out the reading blahs. Unfortunately, the most recent book I read was a wee bit Pollyanna-ish, even for me. However, the books for the class are uniformly interesting and provocative, even if I don't like them.

A happy Sunday to you, with pain relief and good weather.

>37 mckait: I did. Fireworks tonght, and the neighbors had a party, so Stella was a bit excitable. Me, I felt pretty blah about it all. *smooch*

>38 ffortsa: Even if the item itself is kinda cool (the elephant above), having it sitting around is...pointless.

>39 Matke: Happy Sunday dear Danny! I'm soldiering on in the summer heat, wishing for a true English summer, aka New York spring. Where is that Ice Age I was promised?

Books more popular than porn? Wow wonders never cease.
Congratulations on your latest dear fellow and I'll be following along as out of breath but enjoying the wheezy atmosphere as I do so.

Love this word. Can't think of a use just now, but I will.

I'd like to be thought of as malapert, but mostly I'm just pert. Or a wise-aas; take your pick.

Awfully tired the past two days. Just an effort to get anything done. No appetite either. Hmm...I feel a wee depression settling in.

Must read more books!

>41 PaulCranswick: Thanks Paul! I'm pretty sure that info is old...women's clothing outsells books now...and I'm POSITIVE it doesn't include porn.

>43 Matke: Oh dear, depressions don't do good things for a lady's reading, so banish it with copious drinking and carousing! With books, of course.

*smooch*

#28 - Oh, thank you for the review! For some reason my derp eyes couldn't find it.

I'm just catching up from your last thread... Happy NEW thread, btw.

I just have to comment on that woman who gave birth to you.... Some people should never be called "mothers" even if they are biologically your parent. I am sorry she said all those terrible things to you.

It's amazing you are so wonderful and kind! I would have been jailed for assault and battery at least!

(((RD))) We LOVE you!!

Drinking limited to coffee, teas, and water, but lots of carousing going on.

Please explain the electronic reasoning that turned malapert into jalapeno.

Geeeez.

Smoochings.

>45 ErisofDiscord: Happy to help...xo

>46 TinaV95: Thanks, Tina! Plenty around here don't much like me, but them as do are gold. *smooch*

>47 Matke: I kind of like "jalapeno" for "malapert" but it was a wee tidge surreal. *smooch*

>47 Matke: I kind of like "jalapeno" for "malapert" but it was a wee tidge surreal. *smooch*

ditto

Book porn!

I like the ceiling. Wish I could carve that design into my popcorn ceiling.

Also, my room deserves a chandelier.

Loving the book porn Richard.

>42 richardderus: I aspire to be impudently bold in speech and manner. I think it'd suit me. It'd make a change anyway....
Then they could call me Malapert Megan (Maude, Mildred, Myfamwy.....etc)

>50 richardderus: too much tchotchke though....

:)

>50 richardderus:: Beautiful, but would require repeated callings of, "Maude! The ceiling, please, dear. Have Perkins get the ladder and help you."

Would that we could...

Richard, the homeopathic "doctors" in my family swear by dark cherries and dark cherry juice to relieve gout. They say it helps dissolve the crystals - and who doesn't like cherries, really?

Hi RD- How is my favorite "Malapert"? Hope it's cooling off there. It was heavenly here. I love the book porn in # 50. Wow!

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

>49 mckait: Hiya smoochling!

>51 ErisofDiscord: While I agree in principle that your room deserves a chandelier, THAT chandelier is about the size of a normal bedroom.

>52 johnsimpson: Oh good, John! There are some beauts already.

>53 LovingLit: ANY tchotchke = too much, so I'd stand next to the shelves & pretend I was a cat..."oops oh dear how DID that fall gracious goodness me there goes another one dear dear dear look at the three-handled family gradunza in pieces...."

Marlene the Malapert Mom!

>54 Matke: Amen, your mouth to the Tome Home Goddess's ears!

>55 nmcognito: Back 33 years ago when this was gettin' cranked up, it helped a little. Now it's just expensive but pleasurable snacking. I do love black cherries! *hugs*

>56 msf59: Moi? Malapert? La, monsieur, but you have mistaken me for some OTHER bold, forward baggage!

Not my fave among your book porn. Too fussy. Give me rough hewn book shelves and a comfy chair by a fireplace anytime. The chandelier give me hives.

So did I miss something? Are the meds not helping this time? That would be bad :(

*looks lovingly at the memory-laden tchotchkes on the shelves in front of me* Remind me never to invite RD into my study. There are some books I'd part with quicker than, say the milk bottle from the creamery where my Dad worked when I was a kid, which reminds me of riding along with him in the truck to pick up milk from farms all over the county...neither the creamery nor most of the farms exist any more. That bottle practically is a book, to me, and it belongs right where it is, among my treasured volumes.

Good morning, RD. I've finally been able to find time and concentration to catch up with you. I love the word "tchotchke" and I have a lot of them. Too many, by half. And I am getting rid of some...slowly, slowly, slowly. We'll have to agree to consider it a "character flaw" in me. And I am trying to focus on important stuff like books, and my photographs.

We have hot weather, here, and it is so funny. We long for warm, sunny weather and then when it arrives we all complain, "too hot, too hot". But really, you know, 90 degrees is too much, especially when there is good deal of humidity, too. Yesterday: 93. Today should be about the same or a little cooler. Maybe 92 at 5 pm. I go to the medical people today for an infusion which will be a relief as it will be in air conditioned clinic and the infusion itself is cooling. And I will be able to sit comfortably and read! I am reading Hood by Stephen R. Lawhead. Pure escapism, I think.

Hope your week goes well.

Drive by smoochies with nothing more to add :)

Tip o' the Hatlo Hat to my bud Richard

>60 mckait: ...oh dear...hives eh...hello Chandeliers "R" Us, I need to cancel an order STAT

Meds are helping keep the condition from getting worse, no pain meds so no help there. *sigh*

>61 laytonwoman3rd: *removes Linda3rd's file, stamps GIRL on cover* Do come in and sit down! May I get you some tea? A cat? Perhaps a fluffy cardigan and some knitting?

>62 maggie1944: Hi Karen44! I never, ever long for warm weather, so I don't really "get it." My ideal climate is cool, chilly, frosty, and cold: Summer, fall, winter, and spring.

>63 BekkaJo: *smooch* for Bekka

>64 magicians_nephew: Hi Jim!

I totally understand not liking hot weather. Totally. I'd prefer to spend the day in the bathtub, full with tepid water, reading a light weight (in all senses) book.

Wonderful advice.

You stay cool, Karen44!

Love "malapert"! Who, I wonder, thought of applying it to a moon crater? That's an oddball connection.

I'll try to take that advice in >67 richardderus: to heart. You're right, it's wonderful.

What could be saucier and sassier than a moon-crater?

hmmmmmmmmmmm

No, you're right, that's just weird.

It really is good advice...such a rough thing to do, not take one's situation overly seriously.

Any goodies making the rounds over here?

How was your day? Are you feeling ok?

Jimmy Stewart is a perennial favourite of mine, especially Harvey, It's A Wonderful Life and Philadelphia Story. The later westerns not so much.

Here I am in Tennessee in June and it's hotter in Seattle than here. Go figure.

Chandeliers "R" Us!!

lol

Doing the rounds here is smoked chicken and salami pizza (with capers, olives, capsicum, onion, mushroom and herbs)- if you hurry you can get a large chunk. I have just finished an entire pizza! It was delicious. And definitely without pineapple :)

Book porn!

>70 mckait: There's the cake buffet, if you're a mite peckish:



>71 Emrayfo: Westerns are, in general, a love-'em-or-leave-'em proposition. I like them. I grew up when there were DOZENS of them on TV and then the afternoon movies were westerns too. Then in the early 1970s it went to medical and crime shows. Mystery shows are fun. Medical shows, well, I get kinda queasy...

>72 EBT1002: That's excellent luck, Ellen, and I hope it remains that way for the whole trip.

>73 LovingLit: Take off the chicken and put on sausage, and I'll eat the pineapple on the side. The rest sounds YUM!

Love the color of this bookcase. Needs to be de-tchotchkefied.

More book porn!

>74 richardderus: that quote has hit the nail on the head!!! I love it.

>75 richardderus: spectacular book porn- could lose the shields above the shelves though, and the piano and the lampshade, and of course Id have normal books on there.....that secret door is the stuff of my dreams, I am such a kid.

Good Tuesday Morning to you Richard Dear :) Once again catching up. Loving the book porn. I want some of those rooms full of books and comfy reading spaces. Hope all is well with you and Stella. Hugs and smooches to both you and Stella from myself and My Angel Baby.. ;)

*saunters in on high heels, skirts swishing* That's a very manly spot in No. 78. Oh, wait! What are those...those...adornments hanging in front of the books.

Breathtaking variety of book porn here - from the studied chateau chic to the Gatsbyish library - I like the book door though (and note the heater to the left - forgot the heat vents??) All four of these including the last two the 'artist loft' and the 'eclectic' got me thinking about how, for so many, the way they arrange their library and books is a huge statement about who they are - I feel I could write a story about each one.

Don't miss what looks like a nanny-cam in the blue one! On the ceiling!

75 & 77 Now you're talking!

>79 LovingLit: *smooch* I love secret doors!

>80 MonicaLynn: Hi Monica! We're both in yucksville today. *smoochslurp*

>81 laytonwoman3rd: Girlie! How nice. You can take the stupid butterfly thingies with you!

>82 sibylline: Heh nanny cam! It's a home theater projector. Nanny cam *chortles*

>83 mckait: I try to please all palates.

I've got a fever and feel completely wretched.

We need a book porn book.

I like that idea, John.

New LT
Im cool
Im not freaking out
I can handle change
Yes I can
*coffee*
*deep breathing*
*yoga class*
*therapy*
There, all better. Its cool huh?

A book porn book would give us some ideas for great storage and would also make us madly jealous but what a talking point it would be, can you imagine what visitors would be thinking if they saw a large book on the coffee table with the title "Book Porn" in large script staring at them, priceless.

>87 LovingLit: Hey, the salmon-dinner-vomit color's mostly gone, so I am the camper happy. The home page redesign is a little more involved than I'm accustomed to, but it looks pretty good.

At least they didn't make it all puce or aubergine, let's be grateful for small things.

>88 johnsimpson: Ha! That would make some eyebrows meet some hairlines all right.

Why do you have a fever?
Is it gone?

Ditto above question and a vote for the book porn in #77

Hey Richard! Hope your fever is gone. It's nasty to have a fever in the summer particularly.

I like the new look of LT. I think it looks rather spiffy!

>90 mckait:, 91, 92 I'm not sure, and no.

I too adore #77!

>92 Cobscook: It's growing on me the more I look at it, and I was okay with it from the get-go.

Headache has joined fever. Oh the joy, the rapture, the unbridled whinnying whoopee of it all.

Whatever this is needs to kill me or get over with. I'm in favor of B, but A is fine too.

Hi RD- I am trying to get used to the new home page. I am getting there. Did they dump the Hot Reviews? I like those. It was a quick reference point.
It was barely 70 today. Can you believe that? I hope you are getting some of this cooler stuff too!

#94 - Nope, the Hot Reviews are still there! Just go to Zeitgeist, and underneath the main website bar will be another bar, and one of the selections is Reviews. http://www.librarything.com/zeitgeist/reviews Tada!

94, 95 Or, more quickly, click on "Reviews" on the left hand side of your home page, and there they are. You can add that module to your home page as well.

#96. Oh, now I see! For some reason I couldn't see the Reviews section on the homepage. Never mind! :)

I love 77 and 78, too, for that matter. 78 looks very comfortable. I sure could sit down there and read.

I think I like the new look. I like being able to engineer it a bit, recently added books first, and all the chatter comes pretty near the top.

Ok, I'm off to bed now. Tired. I hope your headache, fever, and assorted "not feeling well"s all go away and that you will feel chipper and worthy tomorrow! Well, of course, you are always worthy.

Better today? I hope?

Thanks guys! You are never stuck long, here on LT, someone is always there to pull you along!

Big loving waves to RD!

yuck
ick
ptui

100.6

bleurgh

Really, I quite dislike this.

I wish I could send you our weather today. Its 70 (barely) and overcast. Not so great for Independence Day celebration stuff, but rather comfortable all the same.

Book porn!

I hate fevers. They make me feel like I am dying. I hope yours goes away soon.
Drink stuff. Lots of it.

hugs

eta

thumbs up for 103

fever + hot weather = insupportable

Hi love - hope the temp has come down and you are feeling better :/ Sending icy winds your way.

100 degrees! Yick.
I hope you have a cold compress and a cool breeze from ....somewhere. Do you have a shaded wood next to your house? Or a giant refrigeration plant?

No no the 100 degrees is ME. I have a fever. It's horrible.

I think it was 80-ish today but humid and icky. The dog wanted to do two islands of our usual four then come in and have some cold milk and water.

Fireworks AGAIN, mostly the bloody bedamned firecrackers that I hate loathe despise and detest. Stella isn't made upset by the noise, particularly, she's just annoyed by the ruffians running up and down the street. She's deeply suspicious of people running.

I'm going back to sleep now.

Well, I didn't. Y'all who don't follow me on Facebook won't have seen this YouTube video of Steve Grand's "All-American Boy." He has one video, made for about $1.59, about which he says this:

"I fought with who I was for most of my life. In every way a young person can fight with himself.
But starting today... I'm laying it out there. I'm done playing it safe."

His Independence Day is singing about the All-American Boy he loves, to a country tune, with a countryfied video of summer shenanigans among a bunch of kids.

It's sweet, and it's worth five minutes of your life to watch.

RD- Sorry you are not feeling good my friend! I hope your recovery is quick. Where is all this cool weather going? It must stop before it hits the East coast.

Yes, please. All of them, please. Now, please.

So sorry you are sick and miserable. I hope all temperatures in your vicinity drop appropriately.

Hmm. I think I saw it fly by, but didn't have time to listen. I will hunt it down.

Wishing you wellness today....and some lovely cake.

Beautiful books! wishing for that like button.. or star, or heart of thumb or something on that post.
Wonder if it's worth asking again.

#109 I watched the video, I like the song for sure, but the video does NOT end the way it is supposed to! I like happy endings too much and that is way too sad!

Those books do look lovely. I'd like a set, too, please.

In honor of Independence Day the dogs dug a escape hole under my fence. Luckily, at 5:30 ish AM, I became suspicious when the trip out to the back yard took a little too long, and then the baby, Benny, came back by himself and herself, Queen of all She Sees, was absent....

So, I slipped some chicken into a plastic bag, took her jingle jangle collar and leash, and went out front to whistle quietly, and call for her. She is a champ. She loves her treats and she knows when I call for her there is a treat in my hand. Thank god for the training. I don't know what would happen if she was out of the yard when the fireworks start because she is a scared puppy with the noises. We took a little walk in the quiet of the morning and saw a black cat stalking a little bunny rabbit. Ah, the wildlife will always be around in the quiet.

Nice start to the day. Thank goodness. (I did plug up the hole)

I hope your day is starting well, too.

Happy Independence Day, one and all.

It's time for the next review in my ‎Jay Wake Pre-Mortem Jay Lake Read-a-thon! And today, Lake does what so few others in my 53 years have done: Used the word "God" and not made me screechingly furiously attack-mode angry. MAINSPRING, reviewed at Shelf Inflicted, is a good book for many reasons. That one is mine. Others include elegant phrasemaking, deft plotting, and a re-imagining of the laws of the Universe that's breathtaking.

I'm very happy I've read, and re-read, this book.

Morning dear! I've skipped about 14 of your threads in my absence, but I am semi caught up now.
Happy 4th to you!

Naturally, since it's hot and miserable, so am I. The fever seems to have calmed down, settling in at a piffling 99.

Ugh. I'm happy, though, that my review of Mainspring made Jay Lake smile! He's a good writer and a mensch, I'll miss him when he's dead.

Hope today brings health relief, Dearie.

Man, those book sets are pretty, eh? Be good to know what the titles are. Or am I the only one who peers at online bookshelves, vainly trying to read the titles?

Me too, Danny. It's got a long way to go. Eye grit, scalp sweat, infected toe throb...I can tell it's not serious, all I want to do is crab and whinge and grouse. If I'm really ill, I skip all that and move directly to the "take me now, god" silent prayer.

Maybe I should just drink myself into a stupor and forget this day ever happened! Hey! What a GREAT idea!!

Happy Independence Day Richard!

I'm sorry you have been sick. I am sending you pure healing vibes right now.

Mom recovered from the pneumonia and the other yuck stuff caused by antibiotics. She had her knee redone on Monday and today she took her first two steps in ten months on that left leg!!!

Hugs and kisses to you and Stella!

Thanks Roberta! Glad Mumsy is improving so much, and walking better.

It's been a YUCK few days. I want summer to be over until 2122, when I feel confident I'll be dead and rotted. Then y'all summer folks can have at it! A nice volcanic eruption triggering an ice age would suit me down to the ground.

Stella agrees with me. Puppymommy is here, normally a cause for doggie celebration and play, and where is doggie? Why, lying right here in the AC! The heat-o-philes like the house roasting. Poochie and me hide until it's time for dinner.

Oh dear, a large book bullet just got me for Mainspring. I'm trusting you on this one--reviews on Ammy are very mixed.

Hoping for a speedy end to your summer! Or at least the uber-hot temps.
I didn't watch the video as this (so-called) computer isn't fast enough to have sound at the same time as movement.....no one said I was high-tech!

eta: oh, and I addressed your punctuation complaint over on my thread

gradunza! wonderful word! and, i say it and run from the room, based on your imitation (#59), you've got cattitude down to a T. bumptious malaperts the lot of 'em.

*zooping out to avoid flying tchotchkes*

zooping back with cool cloths for the fevered brow, lightly touched with lavender and lemon zest and left in the icebox for a bit.

Reading Life and Fate an amazing Russian novel about the siege of Stalingrad.

One of the commanders comes down with a fever in the front lines.

His men roll in a fifty gallon oil drum, fill it with boiling hot water from cans over the fire, and dip him in it until the fever breaks.

Have Fifty Gallon Drum, Will Travel. Just let me know, OK?

Hope you're having a good holiday, Richard, and Ellie's ministrations are helping you feel better. That may be a better approach than the shots we lined up for you on the cafe bar.

>123 ronincats: It's got something special, Roni. I don't think you'll dislike it.

>124 LovingLit: ...just COULDN'T give up the Dickens...*sigh* I'll tell Lenny and Wilby about the nice crazy lady who gave birth to them when they're old enough to understand WHY the International Court of Child-rearing placed them with me.

*smooch*

>125 mirrordrum: I've had many a moss-covered three-handled family gradunza in my life. Funny thing is that I don't miss a-one of 'em.

>126 mirrordrum: Fever's back. Most of the afternoon, I slept; I awoke in time to drink heavily of the fruit of the juniper, eat heartily of the homemade pesto, and munch mightily of the melon of the waters. I pretty much didn't care that I was ill.

Now? Fever 100.9. Nothing to distract myself. I can tell I'm ill because I don't want to watch porn or read a book. I re-watched My Family and Other Animals on YouTube. (Hilarious.) I watched David Attenborough nature documentaries to bore myself to sleep. The Life of Birds is pretty much guaranteed to put me out like a hammer to the skull. Not tonight! Want to know anything about cuckoos? Like how they convince other birds to raise their babies? I know this now. My raison d'etre is established. Please, will someone either make me well or kill me? Don't care which, just pick.

>127 magicians_nephew: Oh hey, that's so thoughtful of you Jim, but I don't want to put you to any bother what with lugging the 55-gallon drum on the train and all. Appreciate the offer though I do, I believe I shall pass on the chance to join the missionaries to Africa in the cooking pot.

>128 jnwelch: Hi Joe! No amount of sweet and kindly ministrations can replace a bottle of gin, a pair of lemons, a jar of pickle juice, some Worcestershire, some Tabasco, a splodge of horseradish, and lashings of V8. AKA Papaw Richard's Summer Cold Tonic and restorative elixir.

Review: 33 of seventy-five

Title: SCATTERBRAINED: Trivia Stun Gun

Author: MENTAL FLOSS

Rating: 3* of five

The Publisher Says: The bathroom read to end all bathroom reads!

What does Greece (the country) have to do with Grease (the movie)? And what does Grease (the movie) have to do with greasy food? Plenty, if you ask the folks at mental_floss.

Based on the magazine's "Scatterbrained" section, the mental_floss gang has taken on the Mount Everest of trivia challenges: connecting the entire world through the juiciest facts they could find. How do you get from Puppies to Stalin; from Humpty Dumpty to Elizabeth Taylor; from the Hundred Years' War to 8 Minute Abs; or even from Schoolhouse Rock to Abstract Expressionism? You'll just have to open up the book to find out.

My Review: This was the perfect book to read while in the throes of this bloody cold. Perfect amounts of information, useless, and ideal amounts of stupid humor.

For example, St. Fiacre (an Irish dude) is the patron saint of de-hemorrhoiding one's self. Did you ever, even one time in your entire life, stop to ponder the existence of, or need for, such a saintly specialty? Apparently Fiacre (how on earth does one say this collection of letters?) healed the sick (men only!) by laying on of hands. Give that a minute to sink in.

The old perv.

I'd vaguely heard tell of the existence of a shadowy Dowager Empress with a lot of power in Chinese history. Didn't know she was called Cixi (suppose that rhymes with Trixie?) and didn't realize that, within months of her death in 1908, the Imperial part of Chinese history was history. She dies, the Emperor loses the throne, and China starts on the path to being our banker via a horrible stint under Mao (an engineered population-reducing famine, his INSANE edict to kill all dogs! The Rotten Shitheel!) (BTW these facts came from this weird little book, too).

Bite-sized morsels of interesting factlets (does anyone besides me remember a rice-paper-wrapped candy called Aplets, or Cotlets? I loved those things), many of which make me curious to go in search of context and depth (Cixi being a good example) for the stories. Perfect for a restless-brain day.

On the other hand, really not much use in the thing. I got it as a sale book. I wouldn't pay $12.95 for it!

Hope you're finally feeling better. Fevers are the worst :(

Hey! Aplets and Cotlets are one of Washington State's biggest products! Really! I love them.

OMG, I LOVE Aplets and Cotlets. Got them in a goodie basket at the office here once.

Aplets and Cotlets? LOVE them.

Richard, I'm sorry you've been under the proverbial weather lately! Hopefully you start feeling more chipper as the fever has broken. Meanwhile, your thread is still its usual self and I love the Alan Bennett quote.

*smooches* for you and Stella

>131 mckait: So far today, ~meh~ which is better than bleurgh. The fever's low, so no strange sense of being in someone else's body having their dreams.

>132 maggie1944: Oh! I must get myself some. I adored them as a kid. So fresh-tasting, not sicky-sweet, and I loved the nuts. A fast google tells me where to get them! W00t!

>133 laytonwoman3rd: We got them at Easter when I was a tiny tot in California. Memorable things, since that was 50 years ago. yyyuuummm

>134 EBT1002: Thanks, Ellen, it's heading in the correct direction at least. Stella sends slurps. Such a sweet puppygirl.

...why is there a lamp on the floor...?

For reading whilst lying on that very inviting rug, no doubt. Why is there a hat on that pile of books?

I think it got knocked off when a normal-sized person (ie, 6ft or taller) sat in that short-legged little chair.

I like the old NYC subway signs on the cover of the seat cushion.

Perfect chair for me. I'd like a footrest, too. But why is the fireplace blocked?

And why is the desk lamp on the floor?

#141 See #137

>142 laytonwoman3rd: Ah. I missed that entirely. Apparently my memory center was damaged when I read the first few pages of Dead Until Dark.

>139 kidzdoc:, 141, 142, 143 I know, right?

>140 ffortsa: I have no idea what would lead a person to block that pretty fireplace, unless maybe it's non-working?

I love the Steve Grand video, Richard! Tear in my eye :'(

>145 TinaV95: I know, right? It's amazing: when I first watched it on YouTube, I was view #600 or something like that. BuzzFeed did a piece on him less than three hours later. As of now, he's had over 219,000 views in LESS THAN 24 HOURS.

I want him to blow up big. What I wouldn't have given to've had him around in the 1970s!

Here's that tonic and restorative elixir you asked for up in >129 richardderus:, Richard. Hope it helps.

Remote-controlled mountaineer's harness for browsing a two-story bookcase. Brilliant.

>147 jnwelch: *gurglegurglesluuuurpbelch* aaaaaaaahhhhhh

Perfect, thanks.

#136 is it me or is there a seagull in that room? Odd.

>148 richardderus: what the? Surely there are easier ways.

St. Fiacre, patron saint of.....omg.....if they have a patron saint for that, they must have one for every conceivable thing. Ah, you have to bless the Irish.

OH! St. Fiacre, patron saint of gardeners and etc. Mary Carl once had me traipsing all over two states looking for a statue of him. ye gods... the bad old days...

oh .. we did find one in Ohio...

Good afternoon, dear. I am finally all caught up here. I loved the quote in post #67 and the Alan Bennett quote. Also all the book porn - especially the blue/turquoise bookshelves. Lovely. But so sorry to hear that you are still not feeling well. Please feel better soon. *smooch for you, scratch behind the ears for Stella*

St. Fiacre, ew. Ew. EW.

Hi Mamezers! *smooch*

I imagine your home is as entertaining as your thread, at least sometimes, when there's food... and talk about books...

Hope you are feeling a tad improved.

A dear friend is here for the weekend, and brought with her the *most*scrumptious*sirloin* I've ever ever ever had. I ate almost a half pound of it. Dinner was superb: Grilled rosemary veggies (red pepper, zucchini, red onions, eggplant), the *woozy-with-delight* steak, avocado-tomato-cucumber salad, and a good Pinot Noir.

It is Good to be me.

I still feel like run-over cow dung. But I defy anyone to be in a bad mood after drinking scotch, eating Maytag blue cheese and Camembert with crispy buttery-flavored crackers, and moving on to that dinner.

>150 ChelleBearss: Hi Chelle! *smooch* so glad to see you.

>151 LovingLit: Maybe there are easier ones, but there AREN'T cooler ones. As to blessing the Irish, well, the ones who moved to Scotland and invented uisgebaugh have my eternal adoring gratitude.

>156 maggie1944: I hope one day you'll come find out! I'm thinking I'll do another birthday bash this September, because the book circle is coming out to have the monthly meeting here. Too short notice for you, I know, but one day soon.

birthday bash!!!!! Watch out, now we know how to find you.

I'm sorry you aren't feeling well.

Hi Linda! Yeah, thinkin' about it. I'll post something here when I know. *smooch*

“Read a thousand books, and your words will flow like a river.”

— Lisa See

I just heard Wilbur quoting a book we read, about a fat cat. TO give you the context, he used the quote to call his little brother "a pudding with feet".
Thought you might like to know that.

>158 richardderus: Too short notice for you...
Well now, I wouldn't say that....
*looks up flights*
Oh, you weren't talking to me? Shucks.

"A pudding with feet"!!! Oh how adorable!

JFK is less than 20min from my house. Just sayin'

Cool! That means I have been to (20 minutes away from) your house already!
Convenient location....*considers a second mortgage*

I got the bus from the airport into the city, and sat at the front *for safety* (going to NCY all on my lonesome, afterall), and the driver asked me if I was in town for the Spice Girls tryout!! (they had just hemorrhaged a member I think). He thought he was hilarious. I didn't get it til later :)

...Spice Girls tryout...? I still don't get it...

I finished an author acquaintance of mine's debut story collection, Blue Ice, and reviewed it on my Stories thread. Hey, four stars from me is a good rating!

Morning RD- That meal sounds amazing! Wow! Hope you are feeling better. And thanks for sharing that info on Spielberg tackling The Grapes of Wrath. I just hope he doesn't "soften" it at all. It needs to be appropriately hard & gritty. And who would tackle the Tom Joad role? Is there a modern version of the great Henry Fonda?

Oh! a new movie of The Grapes. Fascinating. Very appropriate to our times, methinks.

Hi, Richard. Wishing you an excellent Sunday. *contemplates a fast trip to JFK and neighborhood*

Hi rd. I'm happy to hear about your friend, and your lovely dinner. Good things make life so much brighter!

>167 msf59: Casting will be Spielberg's major hurdle, Mark, don't you think? He can't pretty it up! But he has to put butts in the seats, so pretty it up! And on and on. But this will be fascinating.

>168 maggie1944: Hiya Karen44! Last birthday bash was pretty darn fun. Maybe you can spend a weekend off from downsizing, given a month's notice...?

>169 mckait: *smooch* They do! And tonight's dinner is a fabulous Portuguese poached fish recipe that makes me slaver just thinking about it, and I'm making pineapple upside-down cake for dessert.

So sleeping in hour-long stints is pretty annoying. I gave up at noon. I feel crummy. Wah poor me.

#167 My immediate reaction to "is there a modern version of the great Henry Fonda", would be Tom Hanks, but he's probably too old for the role now.

As it's a miserably hot summer day here, this command is no problem for me to follow.

>171 laytonwoman3rd: Too old indeed.

Good advice in >172 richardderus:, RD. I'm going to do it.

Hope you're surviving that miserable heat okay, and that pal Stella is, too.

Hi Joe, we're surviving thanks to the "Eskimo Old Person on Ice Floe" setting on the AC.

Hi RD and happy Sunday! Happy indeed with Murray beating Djerko at Wimbledon. Thanks for the post on my thread.

*smooches* from Horrible

If DiCaprio wasn't so damn ubiquitous, he might make a good choice for Tom and he would help put butts in seats. I think the character actor John Hawkes would be ideal as the Preacher:



I always remember John Carradine playing that character in the original John Ford film and nailing it.

TEARDROP as the Preacher?! Mark you *genius* you! Sleazy menace is this actor's stock-in-trade!

And for Rose-of-Sharon, I nominate Tamzin Merchant (Daenerys on GoT):

Actually, Emilia Clarke, a British actress plays Daenerys:



I have seen this Merchant actress before and I think she would be a good choice for Rose-of-Sharon.
And how about Margo Martindale as Ma Joad:

I think Tamzin Merchant played Catherine Howard on "The Tudors", at least that's where I remember her from.

>165 richardderus: well, a member of the Spice Girls had left the group, so they were down a member, the bus driver joked that I was in some way going to become that 5th member. Maybe they were in town to perform or something, I dont know. I certainly wasn't interested or qualified to try out anyway!

Hour-long sleeping stints sounds horrendous! Yuck yuck, hideousness. ((hugs))

I think all the actors in any Grapes of Wrath movie must be thin. No one living through the dust bowl migration to California had any excess weight on them. None.

>178 msf59: Emilia is a lovely young thing! I saw Daenerys mentioned with Tamzin's name, so assumed she was it, my bad. And Margo Martindale is another excellent choice.

>179 nmcognito: Oh really? I've only seen Tamzin, to my knowledge, as Margot Durrell in the film of My Family and Other Animals.

>180 LovingLit: OIC Well, as jokes go, that one's pretty darn lame, ain't it? Still, he was a bus driver chatting up a pretty foreign chickie, so it's understandable his best stuff wasn't available to his star-struck brain.

Polite smiles, vague murmurs of oh really mmmm well well, extended fiddling with tchotchkes...

*Polite smiles, vague murmurs of oh really mmmm well well, extended fiddling with tchotchkes*

Pretty much describes me when movies are the topic. I don't have much interest in most of them...

So is the weekend extended through today?

Yep - I've been there, the sudden awkward silence......

Sissy Spacek doesn't seem to work much in film these days, but if you want a thin Ma Joad, I think she could do it.

>184 mckait: Good morning, sweetness! No. They've been here since Thursday. Ausgehen omnes in about 15min.

>185 sibylline: Howdy cuz! One *almost* fees sorry for their philistine asses, the desperation with which they view the need to say something NOT ABOUT A BOOK!

>186 laytonwoman3rd: Interesting! Permaybehaps, and she's the proper age now! #scarythought

Can't imagine a new Grapes movie, although the previous one had some serious flaws. Still, Joan Darnell(?), Fonda, and Carradine were memorable.

Feeling any better yet, Sweetums? Summer colds are the worst. Sending Crone Healing Vibes your way, Dear Man.

Ma was played by Jane Darwell in the original movie, and it didn't occur to me at the time that she shouldn't appear so well-fed. It's been ages since I read the book, and now I really want to go back and see how Steinbeck described her physical appearance. I think in the movie her pillowy- grandmother shape worked to convey her status as matriarch of the Joad family. ( Jane Darwell also played the bird woman in Mary Poppins, btw.)

>188 Matke: I sure hope those Cronevibes get here soon. *grump* I need all the help I can get! *smooch* for being so sweet

>189 laytonwoman3rd: I've always thought that Darwell's *look* was perfect for Ma Joad. She wasn't fat, she was one of those naturally heavy women. Renee Zellweger is that type, too.

#190 "zoftig" is the word we want, I think.

Yes it is, trust the Germans! They got a word for it, even if it's nineteen words trainwrecked into one.

Pretty.

Ah. Jane Darwell indeed. She seemed so right in that role. I used to really admire the book, now a bit less. It could be quite a project.

And how is Himself today? Hope there's been some relief from both weather and pain.

I'm sorry you've been unwell, but I love your barometer for confirming illness. Smooches, Padre.

>194 Matke: It's a super-tendentious book, isn't it. It can feel a bit wearing to be hollered at by your book. I agree with him, and so I'm a little less likely to sigh and roll my eyes than most, I think.

>195 London_StJ: Hi Crypto! What barometer? The fever one, like being in someone else's body and dreaming their dreams?

#193 Mine!

>197 BekkaJo: A late-twentiesish cute boy who reads.

Dream. On. Silly. Cow.

MINEMINEMINEMINEMINEMINEMINEMINEMINE

OK, perhaps the Ma does not have to be thin, but I don't know... zoftig? While the rest of the tribe is starving?

The boy is pretty, Richard, you are right. And I hope your health has returned in full measure. If not, we'll send some more crone created vibes and mojo, too, your way!

No health return, Karen44, no change at all. Big bummer.

Ways To Ruin My Day, #10456515546: Put ginger ale, the only good soft drink, in the fridge and then lace it with aspartame/NutraSweet. 3 liters, more or less, down the drain. Literally. Side note to bottlers: Putting high-fructose corn syrup AND aspartame in one product is basically sending the message "hurry up and die" to your consumers.

The Millions put out a list of a zillion or so books pubbed from now until 31 Dec. I saw five I cared about at all, and one I want to read. All kinds of whoop-de-dooo about nonce writers and has-been po-mo bores milking the last waning moments of celebrity to fatten the estates their heirs will squander. (I mean really, does the world need another Pynchon book? It didn't need any, in reality.)

And NOBODY say "Elizabeth Gilbert" or "Donna Tartt" in my hearing without expecting a swift and violent response.

I'm still drooling over the dinner you had with that amazing friend! Now, that's what I call a keeper of a friend!!

:)

Hugs to you, dear sir... I hope you are sleeping in more than one hour shifts by now. That really stinks.

Hi Tina! No, an hour or so then wakey-wakey for a while, then down an hour or so...I hate this.

Whew!!! Just got caught up after losing you (and several others) for what seems like months!!! No guarantee I'll stay caught up, but you know I'll be lurking thru at least to see the book porn. I'd love to have the recipe for those yum yums you left on Gail's thread (made from Pillsbury cresent rolls?) PRETTY please.....

She wasn't fat, she was one of those naturally heavy women. Renee Zellweger is that type, too.
You wouldn't know it from her bony frame these days. I wish she'd put on a few for the sake of her own seated comfort.

>193 richardderus: O. M. G.
Where does he live? I'm moving in

>197 BekkaJo:/198 I don't want to have to resort to violence, but I have to warn you that I'm not too proud to resort to biting.

Hi RD- I hope you are keeping cool out East! I am also a fan of Jane Darwell. She was a perfect Ma Joad. I never thought Zellweger was heavy. She always seemed waif-like to me.

>205 LovingLit: Heh. You lose, I'm meaner than you!

>206 msf59: Cool. It is to laugh. Ha. Ha. (Those were hollow laughs.) Cool. Zellweger starves and exercises to be that way...left on her own, she's curvy. I myownself prefer curves.

Hey, Mr. Crabby Pants, I took a look at The Millions list of upcoming books and was very impressed. I think this might end up being one of the best years for new books, in a long time. At ALA, I was able to grab at least ten advanced copies that all show promise. Did you see that description of the Rathbones? That had my name written all over it:
"The Rathbones by Janice Clark: The Rathbones is the most sui generis debut you’re likely to encounter this year. Think Moby-Dick directed by David Lynch from a screenplay by Gabriel Garcia Marquez…with Charles Addams doing the set design."
I LOVE it! And I have an ARC. Since I am just a meat & potatoes kind of guy, I had to look up "sui generis". LOL.

>204 tututhefirst: Tina...just under my response to Tina...oh dear, I missed you, I'm so sorry!

You want the cronuts recipe? of course, your wish is my command, and I shall port it to you.

>208 msf59: You let me know how that went. I'm moderately hopeful it won't be a trainwreck, but only moderately.

Movie talk leaves me in the cold. I know nothing about old ones or new ones. I did watch Lincoln. No high excitement there, but a good one. Not, however, one I will watch again and again :)

Beautiful rain today, loving it.. I do believe it will be back to True Blood. I hope you have a feel good kinda day :)

Morning RD- I agree about you with Gilbert & Tartt and I have still not read Pynchon but I think there were plenty of other hopefuls on that list. Did you see Grann had a new one on there? I know you were a fan of Lost City of Z.

RD - Way waaaaay behind due to that irritant called work. Envious sufficiently of your sirloin steak to eat two of my own (well the steaks did originally belong to a dear departed bovine) for the first day of break - fasting (ramadhan started today). Would have enjoyed it more with the pinot noir though.

The casting of the Grapes of Wrath is intriguing too. Mark is lost as a postie (or is it the post that's lost?) and Spielberg ought to employ him directly. Susan Sarandon as Ma? Joel Edgerton, Tom Hardy and Cilian Murphy for roles? Lindsay Lohan must have a chance of a role as Rose of Sharon as she is the epitome of white trash.

>212 PaulCranswick:: Oh, excellent, Paul: Sarandon as Ma Joad. Nice choice. I like Lohan for Rose, too. Is there room for Claire Danes, or is she too ethereal/intellectual for it?

Rdear, I'm reading a new book that is quite plot-driven and rivetting, but suffers from the MFA syndrome. Still, it's a first novel, so I'm cutting some slack. It's engrossed me when nothing else could...

Um, I would like the cro-nuts recipe as well, or is it on FB?

A better day is wished for you.

I'm joining in on wishing you a better day!

196 - You said you knew you were sick when you wanted neither books nor porn. ;)

>210 mckait: Morning Kath! *smooch* Back to True Blood...ah the birth of a Truebie!

>211 msf59: Ho there, Sir Marks-a-lot, yeppir I had Grann down as one of the few I'd read. He's delivered in the past, so hope exists for the future.

>212 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! Rummydong? Damn, already...soon I can ignore Yummy Kippers! How is it that gawd has so many opinions on how much, what, and when a person should eat? And what's her deal with hair?

Lindsey Lohan! Rose of Sharon as crack whore! Brilliant, these Yorkshiri Malaysians.

>213 Matke: Morning Danvers! Danes? No, there's no piss-elegant smartypants role in Grapes that I remember.

The cronuts recipe is on Tina/Tututhefirst's thread, and I've pinned it on Pinterest. I'm under a deadline today, so I'll look it up and repost it but it won't be until evening earliest.

>214 maggie1944: Hi Karen44! *smooch* From your mouth to the Ineffable's ears. Sleepy, mostly.

>215 London_StJ: Hi Crypto...yeah, that's a strong indicator I'm not well indeed.

Lindsay Lohan must have a chance of a role as Rose of Sharon as she is the epitome of white trash.

I just fell out of my chair laughing. The boss thinks I have lost my mind!

>218 Cobscook: Hi Heidi! Hope you're well, no permanent damage to the knees or nothin'.

I am no way gonna make my deadline. Oh well.

But my ponytail was longer. (It was the 60s!)

This man's blog is giving away this 5-star reviewed book by Chris F. Holm. I'd enter the giveaway, but it would only encourage him. You should enter, though, the book's wonderful.

Book porn!

>220 richardderus: Ha! Me, too. (But no ponytail).

Review: 34 of seventy-five

Title: AURTHORA: Celtic Prince

Author: R.W. HUGHES

Rating: 3* of five

The Publisher Says: This novel, Aurthora, is based on the legendary British warrior. It takes place in the years immediately after the Romans leave Britain and describes a land undergoing massive change - with no leader and no army to defend its shores. Authorora is born of noble blood - his father is a fervent supporter of the King of a small Celtic tribe called the Iceni. The Iceni, themselves are part of a large coalition who must work together to protect themselves from the Angles, Saxons and Jutes - fierce warriors who have laid claim to the northern regions. Authorora is tutored in battle skills by a former Roman Legionnaire, Orius. His training is tested during raid of coastal camps, but his successes in battle quickly bring him to the attention of the Celtic Round Council and he is promoted to the command of the Celtic forces. Authorora must be a tactician, diplomat and politician to retain his position which is under threat by jealous commanders and other tribes who are desperate to seize control of the lands he must protect.

My Review: I received this historical novel TWO YEARS AGO in a publishers' giveaway, and I haven't written a review yet. I am a Bad Man.

To rectify that horrible behavior, I'm writing the review now. I read the book in 2011, and skimmed over it now to confirm what I remember to be the case: The writing is very heavy going. The story is wonderful.

This is Arthur without myth or legend, this is a man and a king and a warrior. Yes, he's the best at what he does. Yes, he's quick-witted and bold. But mostly he's well-trained and very well-prepared for what Fate hurls at him. Chaos is inevitable when empires take their foot off the neck of a resentful people. Look what's happened in Iraq, in Syria, in Afghanistan any number of times.

Hughes makes you aware of his learning and erudition by presenting many too many details of military movements, equipment, and engagements. It's wearing. I find the same issue in many books about war. My criticism of The Kindly Ones, which I admired but did not like, and of Matterhorn, which I flat-out loved, is the same as of this book. I am not that intrigued by battle minutiae. But the flip-side of that is the amazing and immersive experience of barely post-Imperial Britannia that one gets from this book.

But, and this is the source of the three-star rating, the characters Declaim and Orate, they never speak or simply say stuff. An example from page 218:

"I have a message, Sire, from Aurthora Ambrosius, Commander of the High Town Guard and member of the Great Round Council," gasped the messenger to Neila Gilberto and his son.

Really? He gasped that little peroration to people who would or should know to whom he's referring if he simply says, "Message! Message from Aurthora!" Formality from someone who's been galloping to get a message to someone who badly needs the information the sender thought enough of to send in a hurry? No. Just no.

But then my eyes rivaled the totality of Earth's GPS satellites in their rolling orbits when, on page 349, the following Was Declaimed:

Boro Sigurd was the first to speak as Aurthora entered the inner section of the tent. "Aurthora! It is good to see you again. As you are no doubt aware, our Great King has not been well, but even so some decisions have bad to be made during this time.

Dear Goddesses, where do I begin. NO I DID NOT FORGET THE CLOSE QUOTE. Yes, it's the end of the expository speechification. It's even the end of the paragraph. But there is no close quote. So I put no close quote on. Any time the "As you know, Bob..." trope appears, I want to get out my ninja stars and polish up my flensing knife preparatory to making a trip to the editorial offices, there to perpetrate painful and condign revenge on the parties responsible for setting this, this Oration in type. I understand the battle had by an editor with an author who believes he is correct. There is a point where one says, "well, this is as good as it's gonna get" and passes the project to the production process.

THIS KIND OF DIALOGUE (in its loosest possible sense) IS NOT THERE YET. It clanks and it judders and it pops the reader right out of the narrative. Which, I believe I've mentioned before, is very involving.

After two years, I feel sure both publisher and author no longer even know to whom they sent copies for review. I'm not planning to draw it to their attention because I feel guilty about it. But the book is a good yarn, a worthy corrective to the immense body of myth on the subject of Arthur. And I can think of one person on Earth I'd hand it to and expect him to appreciate, though probably not love, it.

Prove me wrong! Try it out and come tell me how you loved it.

That is a wonderful review, Richard. It was well worth the two-year wait.

>223 jnwelch: Really, Joe? No ponytail? Huh. I'd've thought you'd've had a mid-back length one.

>225 EBT1002: Hi Ellen! I seriously doubt they'll think so...I'm just gonna see if they find it. *smooch* for dropping in!

Yeah, well, I have two ER books that I realize I don't really want to read. Given how many books I have that I do want to read, it's hard to prioritize those.
I have vowed never to request an ER book again. Too much pressure.

>227 EBT1002: I get down that road, too. "What was I *thinking*?" becomes a refrain I'm all too familiar with.

Contemplating an Olympia move.

I'd be very happy in #222 especially if #193 hung out in there as well.

Richard, I've said it before, but it is worth saying again, how I wish the students I supervise for the newspaper and yearbook could write 1/2 as good as you!

Happy, painfree day to you.

VERY enjoyable review, and what a shame as a lot of work went into the Aurothoraraa book - sorry - why not just stick with Arthur??? That is what we all call the fellow. Even you dear one spelled it differently here and there.

I forget if you read Powys? If you've read Porius? That novel evokes the 'Romans just left, and now what?' mood perfectly and I LOVED the cameo appearances of Arthur who is a brilliant soldier, gorgeous and funny and gloriously gay. I haven't finished reading 'All' of Powys' other work yet since none of the books are short or quick reads, but I may have to reread Porius soon just for the joy of it.

>229 avatiakh: If #193 hangs out there, #222 will be so darn crowded you'll never see the floor! *smooch* glad to see you, Kerry!

>230 Whisper1: *blush* Thanks, Linda, that's very sweet of you to say.

>231 sibylline: *trips over dog rushing to get Porious*

Apparently I haven't read it. I'd remember a gay Arthur! I'm glad my quiet point about the silliness of the name came through. I didn't want to make a fuss about it. I did that once, fussing over a fussy name change (believe it was Pocahontas) and got all kinds of cultural-insensitivity blowback.

Jay Lake's demise from cancer is assured. What we hope for is that it takes a long time to claim him! But in the meantime, I'm reading through and reviewing Lake's novels so I can be sure that he knows how much his books have given me in terms of reading pleasure.

This week it's ESCAPEMENT, reviewed at Shelf Inflicted, the group blog. Set in Lake's Clockwork Earth alternative reality, this is a beautifully blasphemous book. What if, and you know it's a good story when the premise starts that way, the Universe really WAS a clockwork? Pre-modern thinkers assumed the Earth and the planets were all mechanically interconnected...so, what if they were?

These books give me the happy. Read my review, and I hope you'll want to read the book.

Caring about you, Sweet Man, but running off to look into Powys.
Hoping your weekend will find you feeling better and cheerful.
Smooch

*smooch*

>234 Matke: Thanks, Danny! *smooch*

>235 EBT1002: Thanks, errrmmm...and you are...? *smooch*

RD- Just checking in. Hope the week went well and you kept the shenanigans to a minimum.

Me, too. I'm here for the *smooching* and to check on you!

xo I put in a DVD today ( season 4 ) and Duncan started to whine. uh oh!

How are ya today?

Good morning, all, it's another sticky yucky I-hate-summer day.

>237 msf59: Hi Mark, the week was okay I suppose. Not my favorite time of year. I'll be happy come Labor Day, when the weather changes.

>238 maggie1944: *smooch* for busy Karen44

>239 mckait: Oh dear...Duncan's not a Truebie. *tsk* Bad puppy-parenting, no doubt. *smoch*

Oh dear. From NPR.org's book section:

A school district in Long Island, N.Y., has flunked its own summer reading list. The Hempstead Public Schools list features authors such as "George Ornell" and "Emily Bonte," (properly spelled Orwell and Brontë) alongside dozens of other spelling and punctuation errors. Most memorably, the list — which bears the motto "Those who read more, achieve more" — refers to F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby as The Great Gypsy.

#241 ooops! LOL

Ha! Lots of ooops there all right.

>241 katiekrug:-243 And for this, we pay over $500 a month in school taxes ALONE. The graduation rate in this system is, and has been for years, under 40%.

Disgusting.

241: The scarey thing is that they think they have to tell you what the correct versions are.

My Daddy always said if you had to explain the joke - it wasn't funny

How right Daddy was. It's deeply disturbing the right answer needs any pointing up!

This Book Is AMAZING WONDERFUL GLORIOUS! Or, well, maybe not.
http://tinyurl.com/kly96g7

I feel compelled to muse today. That's what I'm musing about.

I found this on Bonnie's thread just now. Apparently The Millions perpetrated this list of the Best American Novels. Here are my responses:

1. Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain -- yeah sure, okay, whatevs
2. The Ambassadors - Henry James -- no, for realz?! James'd be horrified. Murrikin? HIM?
3. Corregidora - Gayl Jones -- who? What? Where was I that day? Who's Gayl and why should I read something about the Battle of Corregidor that's misspelled by an author who's name looks misspelled?
4. The Godfather - Mario Puzo -- *BWAAAAHAAAAAHAAAAHAAAAA*
5. Invisible Man - Ralph Ellison -- boring, repetitious twaddle
6. The House of Mirth - Edith Wharton -- agreed
7. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov -- agreed
8. The Making of Americans - Gertrude Stein -- *shocked silence* not even pretentious feminist Womyn's Studies wimmin read this ridiculous poseuese's hemidemiseminovel anymore!
9. Moby Dick - Herman Melville -- agreed

So that's 1/3 I could see putting forward to representing Murrikin letters to the world. To Kill A Mockingbird for sure and certain should be on the list. I've never read Lonesome Dove...should I? And, one wonders, why NINE instead of TEN?

>248 richardderus: This is the third or fourth time I've seen Edith Wharton mentioned on an LT thread in the last few days. Is the Book God trying to tell me something?

I agree with you 100% and more about To Kill a Mockingbird. And the movie with Gregory Peck ain't bad either!

>249 avidmom: ***oooooeeeeeeeeeoooooowwwwwwwwwwww*this is Bookgawd speaking you mustmustMUST Whartonize your braaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnns***

Heavens. Who knew Bookgawd was also a zombie?

"A library is not a luxury,but one of the necessaries of life."

Too true.

> 248 = LOL rd....

Yes, you should read Lonesome Dove. You will love Gus McCrae, a man who don't rent pigs.

>251 EBT1002: I know, right?

>252 mckait: *smooch*

>253 laytonwoman3rd: ...one can rent pigs...? Where? From whom? For what purpose? I myownself can think of no reason that I would wish to rent even a single pig.

Yes Avidmom, obey the portents.

That is a seriously bizarre list, Richard.

Where's Cather?
Where's Faulkner?
James Baldwin?
I mean Hemingway, father of curt prose? You don't have to love 'im but he is impotent, oh oh oh, I mean to say IMPORTANT.....
And Flannery?
And and and and

You could start a list with The Godfather on it called:
Most overrated ten novels of the....etc.

Seen on Twitter:

BigMetsFan tweeted "Attention Yankees fans.... you will NOT be watching Derek Jeter this weekend. : )"

I love BigMetsFan. S/he is the bomb.

>255 sibylline: I mean Hemingway, father of curt prose? You don't have to love 'im but he is impotent, oh oh oh, I mean to say IMPORTANT...

Paging Dr. Freud, your slip is showing. Heh.

That is a seriously bizarre list, Richard.

You ain't just a-whistlin' Dixie there, cuz. It feels like someone Frankensteined up Murrikin lit's moldy bits with some fresh meat just to see who noticed the mismatch.

Yep.

>258 richardderus: Agreed. Wonderful way to put it.

I will obey Zombie Book Gawd and hopefully bring back Wharton book from library.

Yes master. Must Whartonize brain. Must Whartonize brain. Will Whartonize brain. .....

#220 - So true! Silent reading time was my favorite part of public-school. Then my mom pulled me out, and silent reading time was whenever I wanted! :D

And I really love The Godfather film, but I haven't read the book. Can't comment on my opinion of most of the Million's American Novels, since I haven't read most of them.

Ethan Frome. *gasp* I read that in 9th grade! I brought home The House of Mirth. Hopefully Book Gawd is pleased .........

Dalraida still has me in its grasp.
Nothing much going on otherwise. I am thinking of baking a cake.
Angel food and pineapple. Heavenly!

>261 ErisofDiscord: It's a weird list, Eris. Very oddly assorted. The Godfather (film) isn't the same as book for all the usual reasons, not least of which is yeah, so, it's a movie, not culture (it was the 1970s! that was still true!).

>262 avidmom: Oh yes, The House of Mirth is pretty darn good at Whartonizing. You will come away Whartonic, I'm sure.

>263 mckait: I am thinking of baking a cake.
Angel food and pineapple.

...so these thoughts are unrelated...? "Angel food" isn't cake. It is poofy pliffly pap. It sticks to the roof of your mouth. *shudder*

It is poofy pliffly pap (LOLBTW)

nope

especially when you just mix it with a can of pineapple. it is goodness .
it is cake

( lack of caps totally intentional)

I loved Ethan Frome. I know that some did not.

And I love post 258.

It's morning! Wake up and smell the coffee :)

#268 that is the truth!

Edith Wharton is wonderful House of Mirth is a very nice start.

RD you have not read Lonesome Dove? I am a little shocked. Try it.

xoxo to you and Stella

Good morning to Ellen and Roberta!

I see some posts in between y'all's, but can't make out if they're from a person or if a cat simply walked on someone's keyboard since there are No Capital Letters, those well-understood signals to the reader that A Sentence Is Commencing. Undifferentiated letters...how odd....

So, this is a thing: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/12864.Novels_mentioned_in_Among_Others_by_Jo_...

162 books supposedly mentioned in Among Others, but as I understand it the Walton book is set in ~1980, so how could The Five People You Meet In Heaven be in there? Anyway, I've read 59 of the titles listed.

I have to agree that there were some seriously useless choices in that list of "Best" American novels.

The Grapes of Wrath
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Last of the Mohicans
Ethan Frome
The Great Gatsby
Manhattan Transfer
O'Pioneers!
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Sister Carrie
Native Son
As I Lay Dying
The Catcher in the Rye
Wise Blood
The Old Man and the Sea
Go Tell it on the Mountain
On the Road
Rabbit, Run
Catch-22
The Naked and the Dead
Slaughterhouse-Five
Gravity's Rainbow
The Big Rock Candy Mountain
Sometimes a Great Notion
Ragtime
The Fixer
Beloved
Bonfire of the Vanities
The Shipping News
Sophie's Choice
Infinite Jest
Lonesome Dove

All have been more influential than at least a third of the selection. Thank you RD for your typical pulling of the punches with your opinions.

Don't think Nabokov or James could really qualify as American novelists. Saul Bellow is another falling across national boundaries.

59 is impressive RD. I have only 26 to my name, but then again Sci-fi and I don't often see eye-to-eye.

>272 PaulCranswick: Your list is more like what I'd expect from someone trying to represent AmLit in a POSITIVE light. I'd agree that James isn't the most Murrikin of the Murrikins, but I wanna keep Nabokov! He's OURS!!

>273 PaulCranswick: A lot of my reading from 1970-1980 was SF. I've tapered off since then. I suspect that list is, well, enhanced somewhat, but it's very interesting.

I agree about Nabokov!

I like the buzz about the Walton - I loved it. I read gobs of sf from around 66 to ..... mid-late 70's then the balance tipped to literahtooor with forays into Mr. Sib's incredible sf collection. Then, for some unknown reason, in the mid 90's the whole thing started up again. I think I read a Banks. And that did it.

>275 sibylline: It seems to me that the buzz around Among Others is ramping up here on LT. It's a book by a writer I enjoy reading, so permaybehaps I'll give it a go, but buzz isn't usually a good thing for me vis-a-vis bookpleasure.

I am just a contrary old coot.

I think there has been quite a bit of buzz about Among Others here on LT. I have read a mere 14 of the books listed but I also agree that the list is a bit odd. Paul's list in post 272 is good (although my tally is still embarrassingly low). I don't have any idea whether I want to spend time reading Among Others but the lists can be fun because they generate good conversation.

I am just a contrary old coot.
I don't think you're old, Richard.

*smooch*

RE: #254 and the renting of pigs....that's just the point, isn't it? As Gus said, "Well we don't rent pigs and I figure it's better to say it right out front because a man that does like to rent pigs is... he's hard to stop."

RD- I think the Walton list is flawed. I think there are several repeats in there as well, but it was a fan generated list, so mistakes happen. There were several I don't remember being mentioned, including The Five People You Meet In Heaven. That doesn't even fit.
I am still very impressed by your 59. Are there a couple old-school sci-fi books, that are must reads?

Richard:
I sat down back in the day with Lonesome Dove and counted the pages (a lot!) and said "I ain't never a gonna finish this sucker".

A week or so later I got to the last page and said "That's all??????? Isn't there are more?"

It's a Great Murrican Novel, and no two ways about it.

Works effortlessly on a dozen levels as well as being laugh out loud funny.

My Other Book Group wants to read it and I'd love to but we just read a 871 page doorstop and I want to give 'em a change of pace.

BTW the Wharton you ought to read is The Custom of The Country. The lady is out for blood. This ain't no Ethan Fromm.

And any Great American Novel list that doesn't include Huckleberry Finn and The Great Gatsby ain't worth the the water you'd use to flush it down the terlit

I myself do not rent pigs either. Richard. Just so you know.

nope. no pig rentals so far, never know though...

Embarrassingly low total of books from the Among Others list. Guess I'll need to do a good bit of reading to catch up if I ever intend to read the novel.

57 RD??? Amazing!

PIGSNEY, n.

Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈpɪɡzni/ , U.S. /ˈpɪɡzni/

Now rare.
1.

a. A specially cherished or beloved girl or woman, a sweetheart. Freq. as a term of endearment. In later use also as a term of contempt. Now arch.

b. A specially cherished or beloved man or boy. Now arch.

Go home,OED. You're drunk.

>277 EBT1002: Of COURSE you don't, fellow Second Eisenhower Administration baby!

>278 laytonwoman3rd: *nods vigorously to show (nonexistent) comprehension*

>279 msf59: ERMAHGERD Mark!! The list is 4872635475867635-googolplex long! What a question...I could talk for days. So I won't. I can already see and feel the eyes glazing over.

Read The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress.

>280 magicians_nephew:, 281 Your piglessness makes sense to me, Jim.

The Custom of the Country is MORE bitter than Ethan Frome? OOO!!

>282 mckait: I understand pigs eat ANYthing, Kath, ANYthing one doesn't wish to have found or discovered or, well, *detected*.

Just sayin'

>283 TinaV95: What can I say? I've been a read-a-holic all my life.

The Among Others list is strange, I noticed some duplicates/omnibus editions. I think I filtered those out and got 67 read for sure and a few I might have read as well but I don't remember all the SF/fantasy I devoured in the 70's and 80's:) Then there are the children's books and Greek Classics and Shakespeare and Eng. Lit. generally. So things that I read at school bump the total up.

There is a slightly shorter list on the LT lists and that says I have 50 of them!

It does sound like a book I would enjoy though.

rd, were you awake all night? Terrible, that. I see little rd posts at all hours :(

*noted btw

RE# 278 Comprehension will come when you read the book. Just sayin'.

>287 calm: I am sure there are some more I've encountered along the way, but my golden rule is if I can't remember at least a sentence-worth of plot or character description, it's not worth counting as read.

>288 mckait: Heat. Ugh! *smooch*

>289 laytonwoman3rd: *further sage nods*

A thumb for your review of Aurthora: Celtic Prince.

It's too early in the summer to be this hot.

Thank you, Darryl!

It is too early in the lifespan of the earth for it not to be another Ice Age.

I have not yet read Among Others but I've read somewhere around 20 on the list generated because of it. I lost count somewhere in scanning the list....

Hope you are not melting today but I imagine it is just as hot and sticky where you are as where I am.

It is, Heidi, but the dog and I are holed up in my bedroom with the AC blasting cold air on us. Don't melt!

Yeah, this about sums up my day.

Blessedly addictive things, books. Cheaper than meth.

>296 richardderus:, And no bad side effects.

*looks down at broken toes*

Dunno about that, John.

Checking in to see what's happening here. Very few threads have much activity... this one is moving despite the heat :) 90F here, today...

Thanks for the Heinlein rec! I'll have to read something by him, one of these days. It was a HOT ONE, here today. I hope you fared better.

296/297/298
lol

Get yourself a cold flannel and a refreshing alcoholic drink, and iced water. That should help the heat.

>299 mckait: Hiya Sweetness. I've had a lovely Benadryl sleep. The dog woke me up about 45min ago to have her last walk, so here I am. In the sweltering 90% humidity, may I add.

>300 msf59: Hi Mark, enjoy the book. I remember it quite fondly, libertarian right-wing nutballness aside.

>301 LovingLit: *smooch* Just send up an Antarctic blast for me and I'll be a box of birds!

*weather bomb whammy*
Coming your way.

:)

Good morning, RD! I hope you have a good day with lots of good reading.

*smooches* Horrible

>303 LovingLit: Oooo thanks! I await the Antarctic's sub-zero (Fahrenheit!) finest chill Yum!

>304 karenmarie: Thanks, Horrible, back at'cha. I'm more likely to get it than you are, I fear, since you're working and I'm not.

>305 richardderus: Truer words were never written!

>307 Cobscook: And ain't it GRAND?