Mark's Reading Place: Winter is Still Coming #23

"Leaves are falling all around, It's time I was on my way.
Thanks to you, I'm much obliged for such a pleasant stay.
But now it's time for me to go. The autumn moon lights my way.
For now I smell the rain, and with it pain, and it's headed my way.
Sometimes I grow so tired, but I know I've got one thing I got to do... Ramble on."

-Led Zeppelin

Audiobook:


Graphic:


Books Read So Far... (You can always go to my profile page and check earlier threads for my complete reading list. I don't like to make this to cumbersome.)

September:

113) Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks 5 stars (audio)
114) Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford 3.8 stars Booktopia
115) Point and Shoot (A Charlie Hardie) by Duane Swierczynski 4 stars (audio)
116) Raven Girl by Audrey Niffenegger 3.6 stars Illustrated Novel
117) Crashed (Junior Bender #1) by Timothy Hallinan 4 stars (audio)
118) Nine Inches: Stories by Tom Perrotta 4.6 stars ARC
119) Another Man's Moccasins by Craig Johnson 4 stars
120) Life After Life by Jill McCorkle 3.7 stars Booktopia
121) A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny 4.2 stars
122) Not Your Mother's Meatloaf: A Sex Education Comic Book by Saiya Miller 4 stars
123) Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb by Melanie Benjamin 4.2 stars (audio) Booktopia
124) Volt: Stories by Alan Heathcock 5 stars
125) Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch 4.2 stars (audio)
126) Children of God by Mary Doria Russell 3.7 stars Booktopia
127) Love Songs From a Shallow Grave by Colin Cotterill 3.8 stars (audio)

October:

128) Tilt-a-Whirl by Chris Grabenstein 3.7 stars (audio)
129) Harvest by Jim Crace 4.2 stars
130) Boxers by Gene Luen Yang 4.5 stars (GN)
131) Bel Canto by Ann Patchett 4.2 stars (audio)
132) Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink 4.3 stars
133) The Son by Philipp Meyer 4 stars (audio)
134) Dracula by Bram Stoker 4.3 stars (audio)
135) The Maid's Version by Daniel Woodrell 4 stars (audio)
136) Richard Stark's Parker, Vol. 2: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke 4 stars GN
137) Countdown City (Last Policeman Trilogy) by Ben Winters 3.6 stars (audio)
138) 2666 by Roberto Bolaño 3.5 stars
139) A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again by David F. Wallace 4.5 stars (audio)
140) The History of Love by Nicole Krauss 4.8 stars
141) MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood 4.2 stars (audio)
142) Sanctuary by Ken Bruen (book #7) 4 stars (audio)

November:

143) The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vásquez 4 stars E.R.
144) The Returned by Jason Mott 3.7 stars (audio)
145) Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey 2.5 stars (audio)
146) Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson 4.5 stars
147) Alex: Camille Verhoeven Trilogy by Pierre Lemaitre 4 stars (audio)
148) More Than This by Patrick Ness 3.7 stars ARC
149) Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem 4.6 stars (audio)
150) The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury 4.3 stars (audio)
151) The View from Castle Rock by Alice Munro 4.8 stars
152) Citizen Vince by Jess Walter 4.3 stars (audio)

First-Time Author Challenge 2013

Gabriel Garcia Marquez- Love in The Time of Cholera- Feb (Chelle)
John Fowles- The Collector-March (Pat)
E.M. Forster- April (Katie)
Mario Vargas Llosa-The Feast of the Goat May (Caro)
Dinaw Mengestu- How to Read the Air June (RD)
Rohinton Mistry- A Fine Balance- July (Donna)
Pearl S. Buck-The Good Earth- Aug (AnneDC)
Ann Patchett- Bel Canto- September (Lisa)
Nicole Krauss- The History of Love- October (Nancy)
J.G. Farrell- Troubles- November (Ellen)
Tim Winton- December (Paul)
Zoe Heller
Tom McCarthy

**This was easily one of my favorite reading ventures of the year. Thanks for contributing. Poor Zoe & Tom. Hopefully, I can make room for them.

Me first? Me first?!

Okay, but I get to be second!

Third! I was thinking that if the picture above is your work route, I'd imagine you might enjoy it on some days. I am anxiously awaiting your list of Am. Authors so I can begin the search around my packed away house to see if I have any books by the selected authors. Please…… or is it too early, kind of like shopping for Christmas stuff before Thanksgiving?

OMG I love LOVE LOVE the gorgeous warm autumn theme here!

I second wanting to see your list Mark. ;)

Yeah, there's no rush, but where is it?

American Author Challenge 2014

Willa Cather- January
Cormac McCarthy- February
William Faulkner- March
Toni Morrison- April
Eudora Welty- May
Kurt Vonnegut- June
Mark Twain- July
Philip Roth- August
James Baldwin- September
Edith Wharton- October
John Updike- November
Larry Watson- December

Mark's picks:

Willa Cather- Death Comes for the Archbishop *
Cormac McCarthy- Suttree (anyone here, read this?) *
William Faulkner- Light in August
Toni Morrison- Undecided. Tar Baby *, Paradise, a reread?
Eudora Welty- The Collected Stories *
Kurt Vonnegut- Mother Night. Possibly a second title. *
Mark Twain- Life on the Mississippi- Thanks to RD *
Philip Roth- The Plot Against America *
James Baldwin- Giovanni's Room- Thanks to Kerri *
Edith Wharton- The Custom of the Country
John Updike- Rabbit Run *
Larry Watson- Orchard or White Crosses or both. *

* On shelf

Of course, I can only select 12 and there are a multitude of other deserving authors but I thought this was a solid list. I left my favorite American author, Mr. John Steinbeck off the list because we recently dedicated a whole year to that Author Deity. I left off Hemingway this time around, because I didn't want RD calling 911. He has had a hard enough time lately with Chuckles the Dick.
You can read whatever you want by that particular author but I was thinking of suggesting 2 or 3, since it is much more entertaining reading the same work with others. I will list my choice(s) and I would like everyone else to chime in too.

I tried to shuffle them up with past and present but that wasn't always easy. I liked Cather leading off the year, because her books are spare and I have a Bleak House G.R. to do, that month. Sorry, RD. Here are a couple Rolaids.

Yeah, there's no rush

I'm so very sorry to disagree with you Mamie, but there is a rush!

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Mark Mark Mark
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Mark Mark Mark
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Mark Mark Mark

ETA: That was very snappy service Mark!

Well, thank goodness, We have been waiting for hours minutes. And we need to get Roberta a drink. Something strong.

Rolaids are as piffling dust-motes to soothe a Dickensed stomach. A bottle of old, expensive scotch and a charmingly unclad young man to serve it would *almost* assuage my outraged digestion.

RD, Mamie & Karen- The perfect 1,2 & 3! Hugs to all!

Roberta- I wasn't planning on starting a new thread but fall colors seem to dominate my days lately, so I had to include them. I keep forgetting to bring my camera along, to work. The colors have been gorgeous.

Mamie & Roberta- May your wishes come true! I hope I did not disappoint.

RD- Remedy noted. I hope you can tag along on a couple of the AAC selections. I wanted to include Flannery O' Connor too. Shucks!

Nice autumn pictures up there :)

Thanks for the 2014 American Author list, Mark :)
I will probably skip March unless I see about 100 LTers agreeing that one of his books (which I obviously have not read yet) is truly great!

Anyway, good idea! I have read books by most of these authors - and I think it's a great list.

Mamie - I think I'll have what Richard's having!

LOL! I was thinking that, too, but you beat me to the punch!

Hey, this is a family thread! Keep it clean.

*eye roll* at the King of naughty librarians

So, we're going to need soap, Roberta.

I am in for the challenge Mark. As you know I am also planning a ridiculously overambitious and over heated challenge next year to read a book from each of the last 150 years in one year. Some of the authors listed will help me fill in some of the earlier years.

I am also planning to read a book from an author from each of the US states as well as my 1001 and Nobels and Series challenges and a poetry anthology a week. If my head doesn't explode I'll enjoy it I'm sure.

Congratulations on your latest thread. I believe that yours is the fastest moving at present and if it was September instead of November you would surely overhaul RD and myself's numbers.

Have a great weekend buddy.

We posted exactly together!!

Nice author list, Mark. I'll have to partake except for March.

Had a nice visit with Laura tonight and the mystery conference with her all day tomorrow, too.

<3 Nice 2014 list- a lot of authors I'd like to read!

That's an interesting list of American authors, Mark. I know that I won't be able to participate every month, and I certainly will avoid March, but I hope I can join in with a few of the monthly reads.

I wasn't going to be at *all* encouraging about your American authors list (like I need *more* reading commitments...) but then you listed Edith Wharton and I do have a soft spot for her. Damnit.

Took Miss Boo to a crafts event at the local library and helped her a bit with her scrapbook. Ended up covered in glitter. How does that always happen??

Also managed to snaffle NOS4R2 off the shelves, yippee! And a Nancy Drew for Miss Boo, I hope they haven't aged badly.

It is funny that Tania posted. I was so reminded of her facebook photo by your cover shot - I thought you had somehow got her to pose!

Mark, you did a great job distilling all the author suggestions into a good year-long reading plan! I'm going to try to participate every month for sure.

Will there be a separate thread in the 75ers group for this next year? I've never done one of these group themed read thingys before. :-)

#27> LOL! Only I didn't have a glass of wine or a book to hand (or a nice toasty fire) when I took that silhouette photo. :)

:) But it was one of those pictures which rang a bell for me immediately and called Tania to mind.

Happy Saturday! I hope we are not to over-burdened and under-staffed today. It can sometimes be tough, just before a holiday. Well, it is getting dark here around 5, so I would rather not trudge around in the darkness. Health hazard.

I am enjoying both my current books, More Than This and a French crime procedural, "Alex".

Claudia- Good to see you! I like doing these Challenges. It gives just the right of motivation, helps clear those books off the shelf and I get to share the experience with others. Win, win, win!

Roberta & Mamie- Did someone mention naughty librarians and soap. Interesting visual.

Paul- Wow! You have quite a mountain to climb next year. Good luck. I think I will limit myself to AAC, a couple monthly themes and a scattering of Group Reads. I was also toying with tackling Infinite Jest next summer. Talk about a whopper!

Linda- Have a great time in Muskego. Take some photos and get some good recs. You know, I love my crime books.

Tamara- Wow! 2 visits. 2 days. How are you? Like to know what you've been reading.

Judy- Not many Faulkner fans around these parts. No question, he is one of the most difficult American authors but he does intrigue me.

Tania- "like I need *more* reading commitments..." I think we could all agree with this, but sharing the experience and getting those books off shelf, are great motivations.
Yah, for snagging NOS4R2!

Julia- Thanks! I've been toying with what to do next year and then this started to take shape. I am so glad to see everyone interested, except for the March people. Rolls eyes...
Yes, I will be adding a Challenge thread for each month.

Paul & Tania- I didn't think about the similarities between my topper and Tania's profile photo, until you mentioned it. Cool!

Tentative Reads (mostly from TBR)

Willa Cather- January - Death Comes for the Archbishop
Cormac McCarthy- February - All the Pretty Horses
William Faulkner- March - Light in August (recommended as least offensive)
Toni Morrison- April - (read Beloved, didn't like it. Need help. Something short? Tentative The Bluest Eye)
Eudora Welty- May - (no clue - tentative A Curtain of Green)
Kurt Vonnegut- June - Cat's Cradle
Mark Twain- July - (no idea, couldn't finish Huckleberry Finn - any ideas? Tentative Life on the Mississippi)
Philip Roth- August - (I'm open, tentative The Plot Against America)
James Baldwin- September - Go Tell It on the Mountain
Edith Wharton- October - The Age of Innocence
John Updike- November - The Witches of Eastwick (loved the movie)
Larry Watson- December - Montana 1948

Oh, Morphy, I will be joining you on some of those! For Morrison, I would say also not Paradise - I read that years ago, and it is good but so hard to keep the characters separate and it flashes back and forth between time and places. I would love a recommendation for that author as well and would prefer not Beloved.

Morning, Mark! Hope work goes smoothly for you today - may the mail be light and the dogs friendly!

I love your 2014 challenge. As you know, I am not good at planned reads, but maybe I will join you a for a month or so.

#33 - Mamie - I love the early Morrison novels - The Bluest Eye, Sula, and Song of Solomon. Beloved is my least favorite of the ones I've read.

Hi Mark! What a lovely challenge you've put together! I've read tons of Faulkner, Morrison, and (especially) Baldwin, but would like to read a lot more Cather.

Oh, thanks for that, Kerri!

I think I'll not join you on the American Authors challenge, although I'll be interested to see what you read and what you think of them. There are too many names on your list that make me say, "Ugh!" I'll take the esteemed much-and-wrongly-harrangued Mr. Dickens any day.

Woo, the party is on, Mark, and I'm late!

Love the autumn thread-toppers; the very top one was my wallpaper for a good while. It really draws you in, doesn't it? And Ramble On is one of my favorite Led Zep tunes - nice choice!

The Ammie 12 list is solid, indeed. I'm not an Updike fan, but Morphy may have solved that with her Witches of Eastwick idea. I believe I'll be on a month-long trip (or the equivalent) in March, so I may miss that one.

Looking forward to it - great to kick it off with Cather. I haven't read The Professor's House, so I'll probably start with that.

Are you working today? It's a crispy fall day out there, so it should have its good points if you are, and if you aren't. Have a great weekend, mon frere.

>32 Morphidae: May: A Curtain of Green -- her first, some perfectly gorgeous stories. If you must have a novel, The Optimist's Daughter. None of her novels are as good as her stories.

July: Life on the Mississippi -- non-fiction, essays, just absorbing as all hoolally.

August: The Plot Against America -- the only one of his humid, onanistic ouevre that didn't make me want to unswallow.

April: The Bluest Eye was her first book. Not as fraught as Beloved.

You guys are fantastic! I am so glad I decided to do this. Got to hit the pavement. I'll be back...

>39 richardderus: Thanks! I've added them as tentative tentatives.

Hi Mark! Basically this year has been abysmal but I'm gearing up for a fab 2014!

I'm in - should we pick books ahead of time? My inclination is to pick as I go, but I'm flexible.

Hi, Mark. I think I'll join your American Authors read for at least some of the months. In fact, I may make it a category in my 2014 Category Challenge, if I can find a way to shoehorn it into my category theme.

Hearty waves from the windy Midwest. Not bad out here, just a bit gusty. I am wolfing down some Chinese takeout for lunch and doing a quick check in. I'll have to reply to everyone later.

Jim- I am not sure how to do the book choices for each author. Maybe I'll ask everyone what book they plan to read and then we can list them and that way people can use that to guide them into making a selection, if they are clueless where to start. I hope that makes sense. LOL.
Of course any ideas are welcome.

Morphy- That is a killer tentative list. And looks eerily similar to mine. I am also kicking off with Death Comes, although I would love to book horn in, another of her titles, since I am so far behind with her.
I plan on reading the same Faulkner too.

I will likely participate in the American Authors challenge during some months as there are several authors in your list I still need to read for my classics challenge. Death Comes for the Archbishop and Go Tell It on the Mountain are two that I still need to get to. I also have As I Lay Dying on the list so there's one for Faulkner. I've never read him before but all the hate is making me very very nervous! LOL

Happy new thread, Mark!

I like the look of that American Authors list and will definitely plan to participate.

I second (third? fourth?) all the recommendations for The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Heartbreaking but beautiful.

Mark, that is a fantastic lineup of American authors. I am particularly looking forward to March. Seriously!

I will join you in March too Mark since I want to read Light in August; had a nasty experience with Faulkner as a college student with The Sound and the Fury and As I Lay Dying but I'll give him one last chance. I'll also join you for Eudora Welty with Delta Wedding. Probably for Baldwin, Twain and Watson too.

Here's my first draft - subject to change right up to cracking the covers.

Willa Cather - Shadows on the Rock
Cormac McCarthy - All the Pretty Horses
Faulkner - The Sophisticated Cat (anthology that Faulkner contributed to - HA!)
Morrison - Song of Solomon
Welty - A Curtain of Green: and Other Stories
Vonnegut - Cat's Cradle
Twain - Roughing It
Roth - Nemesis or ???
Baldwin - Go Tell It on the Mountain
Wharton - The Custom Of The Country
Updike - The Witches of Eastwick
Larry Watson - Let Him Go

Believe it or not, I just got home a little while ago. Long day at work and then I met a pal, for a couple fine brews and now I am just about useless. But I will be back in the morning, bright eyed and bushy-tailed.

Please say a little prayer for Laura (laurabrook). Linda P told me, her father had a stroke today.

Have a good night! Thinking of Laura and her family. :(

Oh! I am so sorry to hear of Laura's troubles. I will hold her family in my heart and see a good outcome, complete recovery soon.

I have a tentative list and I'll be revising it as I approach the months, I expect. If you want to see my current ideas here you go: http://www.librarything.com/topic/157131#4356476

Have a great Sunday/Monday weekend. Did you get Tuesday off, too? I was luck to see that I have it off, too. Yay for four day weekends. I might be entertaining offers on my house tomorrow evening.. Keep those fingers crossed.

Hi Mark!
Love the American author challenge for next year. I thing American authors just might be my favourite kind! These are the ones i am excited about.

Cormac McCarthy- February- anything bar the Border trilogy, The Road or No Country for Old Men
William Faulkner- March- As I Lay Dying
Toni Morrison- April- Beloved
Mark Twain- July- any suggestions?
Philip Roth- August- The Human Stain
John Updike- November- any suggestions?

Happy new thread to you. I love the promise of a new thread...I am currently toasting my now-late-grandfather with a home-brew dark beer. It has been a lovely day here weather-wise and my beer at the end of the day is well earned.

Mark, I love your idea for an American Authors challenge for 2014. Since I have already been planning to develop a list of unread authors and start working my way through that list, this will fit well for me. I'm not saying all the American authors will be first-time reads for me, but I know some of them will be. I want to read Philip Roth, John Updike, Joyce Carol Oates (I've now read something by her, but I want to read more), another Faulkner......

Have you started Troubles yet?

I have Housekeeping ready to be picked up at the library so I can get to that in the next week or so. I'm still in the queue for The View from Castle Rock but it seems to be moving very sloooowly. I may have to read one of her collections that I have on my shelf.

I hope you're enjoying your holiday weekend, Mark!

I'll be joining in with your author challenge too Mark! At least that's my plan... If Faulkner is as bad as everyone says he is, I may only make it through March. ;)
Kidding.

Of the authors you've selected, I've only read John Updike, so this is a chance to really expand out of my comfort zone and get some classics in (a personal goal for 2014). So... Thanks for this group challenge!

Okay, enough with the shenanigans, time to get caught up around here. I do not like neglect.

Happy Sunday! All I have planned is laundry, food shopping and then parking my butt in my favorite seat, for the Bears game at noon and hopefully lots of reading. I like that gameplan. How about you guys?

I did finish Alex: The Commandant Camille Verhoeven Trilogy. It was a good solid police thriller, with the right amount of twists. If you are on the lookout for something new in this genre, give it a shot.
I am also enjoying More than This, but after 180 pages, I am still not sure where it is heading.

Mamie- I am not sure which Morrison, I'll pick. At first I was thinking of rereading her earlier books but I would still like to catch up on a few I haven't read, Paradise being one of them. Maybe I'll try to squeeze in both. I haven't seen Jazz mentioned much but that is one of my favorites.

Nancy- "I am not good at planned reads." Well, I think that might just have to change, my friend. Grins, wickedly.

Kerri- I've read the first 3 Morrison books and loved them but she always deserves a reread. Have you read Jazz? What was your favorite Baldwin? I read and loved Go Tell.

Amber- Ugh, Huh? I've read all these authors, except for Welty, (although I did read the first 2 stories in her story collection), so I admire them all. I just need a reason to get back to them.

Joe- Glad you'll be joining us on AAC, (except for March, of course). I just heard a podcast where someone mentioned The Professor's House being their favorite Cather. Death Comes will be my choice but I am going to try to read at least 2 next year.
I've wanted to get to the Rabbit books, by Updike. I read the 2nd one many years ago. I have not read him in eons. He doesn't seem to be an LT favorite, either.

RD- Thanks for your AAC comments. I will go with Welty's story collection, since I have it on shelf. I wasn't sure which Twain to read but I think I will go with Life on the Mississippi. I can not believe how under-read I am with this guy. Sad.
I think I will go with The Plot Against America. I have only read his first book. I've heard good things about American Pastoral too.

Tamara- Good luck in 2014! Hope to see you around more often. Any thoughts of starting a thread?

Terri- Glad you are interested in AAC. I really didn't expect everyone to join in every month, but I am sure many of us, would love to get a few of these off shelf.

#57 - I haven't read Jazz yet, but I have a copy. Although I'm notoriously bad at group reads, I may pop in for a few of these, especially since we can choose our own books. That usually works better for me.

My Baldwin novel order of love (of the ones I've read) is:
1. Go Tell It on the Mountain
2. Giovanni's Room
3. Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone
4. Another Country
5. If Beale Street Could Talk

You can't go wrong with the first four. The non-fiction is great too, especially Notes of a Native Son and The Fire Next Time, as is the short story collection (Going to Meet the Man). The plays are ok, but I'm not a fan of reading plays, so that could cloud my judgement a bit. I still have some of his stuff from the 70s that I must get to, so maybe I'll finally get to those next year.

Okay, Round 2:

Heidi- I've read 3 Faulkner books and liked them all, but agree he is a challenging writer. I am just surprised how many LTers dislike him. That is rare around here.
I will be kicking off the year with Death Comes for the Archbishop. Glad you'll be joining me.

Katie & Donna- Glad to see all the interest in the American Author Challenge. I see I am not alone in neglecting some of these fine authors.

Bonnie- Glad you'll be giving Faulkner another shot. I have a harder time, reaching back and reading the classics, with the continuous onslaught of contemporary books raining down on me, that I need a little motivation.

Claudia- Love that list. I am not familiar with the Cather, Faulkner or the Wharton choices. My picks may change too, but the ones I have on shelf and I am especially targeting.

Karen- I love your AAC selections. I'll be joining you on the Cather, Faulkner, Baldwin and Welty reads. I have The Collected Stories on shelf. I sampled a couple last year and they were terrific.

Megan- First off, I am so sorry to hear about your grandfather. My heart goes out. I was particularly close to both of mine. 20-25 years after their passing, I still miss them.

Glad you like those American Authors. Next year will will do an Around the World Challenge. Am I actually talking about 2015 already? What a sadist!
For McCarthy, I'll be reading Suttree, which I've had on shelf for years. Unlike you, I was crazy about the Border Trilogy. I would also LOVE to do a reread of Blood Meridian, which might be my favorite. A nightmarish western classic.
Of course, if you haven't read Huck Finn, start there. I'll probably go with Life on the Mississippi, which RD highly recommends.
I am going to read Rabbit Run, by Updike, the first of that series. He has a mixed following but I've liked the books I have read by him.

Ellen- Good to see you! Yes, this is not a first time author list, but mostly a Get Back to Author List. I've read every author but Welty. I did not have Oates on there, I think that was one of Paul's suggestions but I would like to read her at some point.
No, I did not start Troubles, (unintentional pun). That might be my last read of the month. I am going to read the Circle before that and that is another chunkster. I'll be starting Castle Rock early next week.

Tina- Wow! It looks like you have some work to do on next year's Challenge. LOL. These are all great worthwhile authors, so I hope you can give several a try. If you need any ideas, just give us a holler!

Mark I have a thread now! YAY! Come stop by my thread and have a cuppa!

I love your thread toppers! Just skimming through :)

All this great talk about American authors and your challenge, you'll be adding a new thread in no time!

I'll be joining in for the American authors' challenge, too. (Well, at least part of them).

I swear next year is the year I will get Planet TBR under control! So I'll be strapping on my bottled oxygen and go exploring on the planet before deciding what to read.

I sort of pick away at the !001 Books to Read Before You Die list and I see that the only Cather mentioned there is The Professor's House, so that may be where I start. But... well .... I don't have a copy and my resolution would be slightly bent before the New Year begins. (Maybe I need to consider another resolution).

Question: How can I be up for over 3 hours, with most of that time spent online and barely touch the other threads? Confounding!
I just made a hearty breakfast and then I want to try to read an hour before heading to the store. I demand 2 extra hours added to my Sunday mornings. Pretty please. Dammit, come on!

Kerri- Thank you so much for the Baldwin info. I love how meticulous you are. I have a beautiful single volume collection of Baldwin's work, which includes several of those. I think Giovanni's Room will be my pick.

Tam- So good to see you posting. I love it when an old pal returns to the fold.

Kath- Big loving waves!

Nancy- Yes, I am wearing myself out over here and loving every minute of it. Pant, pant. Did you see the post about Laura's father? It looks like he had another stroke. Sad.

Janet- Glad to see you'll be joining us for part of AAC. And yes, getting "Planet TBR" under control is always the mission and pretty much, one we all suck at, pardon my French.

I will certainly participate in the American Authors read...at least for most months. There are a couple authors on the list who make me cringe, but as I am about to make a case for my favorite, the much maligned and dreaded William Faulkner, I hesitate to announce that I just won't read Roth or Updike.

For those of you who shudder from Faulkner, here is how I explained my love of his world to my son-in-law a few years back, when he asked me to give him a good reason to read the man: (I've also posted this in some form or other here on LT before, so if you've read it already, I apologize.)

***

Faulkner’s genius was in his ability to create living characters, remarkable situations and tangible surroundings. They all EXIST somewhere. He created an entire county, with a history, and populated it with families of both races up and down the socio-economic spectrum, and all of THEM have histories. You can get a sense of this from reading just one of his books, but if you read a number of them, the detail is just staggering. It is comparable to Tolkien’s accomplishment in creating Middle Earth with all its glorious creatures big and small, evil and noble. (I hear you saying “create? He didn’t “create” Middle Earth----it existed! It DID” See, that’s what I mean. None of it is invented, it all happened just that way.)

Faulkner is associated with place because the Mississippi towns, plantations and wilderness are so central to his work. But he is not just a regional writer. His people are so real you can smell them. And they don’t all belong exclusively to the Old South or to the 19th or early 20th century. I recognize them as characters from my own Northeastern Pennsylvania past of 50 + years ago. Some of their counterparts still live up there. Some of them are related to me. I can visualize most of his characters as clearly as though movies had been made of all his works, starring familiar actors who “became” those people. And movies have been made, but most of them stray wildly from both story and character…the shining exceptions being The Reivers and Tomorrow (try and find that one if you can….starring Robert Duvall). He was so good at characterization that I have no trouble envisioning his Will Varner without being distracted by Orson Welles in the lousiest screen make-up ever seen, up to and possibly including The Hours (which, not to change the subject, was otherwise a fine fine film.)

Finally, Faulkner’s sense of the ridiculous was unparalleled. People who are only minimally acquainted with his work are surprised when I mention how funny much of it is. A lot of it is very dark…and a lot of it is darkly hysterical. (Mink Snopes trying to “bury” his murder victim in a hollow tree, while fighting off a dog he can’t see--I can’t do that justice. It’s the best example of black humor I’ve ever come across.) Some of it is just plain slapstick silly. Nothing has ever made me laugh more than the attempted round-up of the “wild ponies” in The Hamlet. Horses clattering through the front door of a boarding house, and out the back, trailing bits of barbed wire, dodging startled traveling salesmen and Miz Littlejohn with her washboard, the latter intent on whacking one of them (the horses, not the salesmen) across the face…..classic funny stuff. Yes, his narrative can be convoluted and difficult. He had a tendency to swop around in time in devilish fashion. He experimented with points of view and wrote from the perspective of an idiot. He was sometimes inconsistent from one work to another, changing his facts to suit a new purpose. But there are avenues into his work that do not leave you mired in Mississippi mud or hopelessly tangled in kudzu vine. It is not necessary or wise to start with Absalom, Absalom! or The Sound and the Fury. My recommendations for a "way in" would be The Hamlet, Sartoris, or The Unvanquished.

****

I really hope some of you will change your mind. March might just be your favorite month next year.

I've taken up enough of Mark's thread space, so I will post what I envision as my American reading list for 2014 on my own thread, where you'll find a very brilliant author overseeing things.

How can I be up for over 3 hours, with most of that time spent online and barely touch the other threads?
I don't know, but I have had the same experience more than once.

>65 laytonwoman3rd:: Having read and loved Light in August, I plan to read Absalom! Absalom! in 2014.

And my understanding of the American Authors challenge is just to develop a list, not that we will all have the same list of authors to read. In any case, that's how I plan to do it. Too many challenges with particulars attached make me rebellious. :-)

Mark, I hope your Bears have a good day. I hope my Seahawks do, as well.

Okay, still haven't cracked a book and I need to roll in less than a half. What can I say? This place is like a drug addiction, without the horrible side-effects.

Linda- Wow! That was a wonderful endorsement of Faulkner. That should ease a few minds. LOL. I might try to read at least 2 of his next year. I think I heard they were making a film version of As I Lay Dying, with James Franco?

Ellen- Actually, I was hoping we would read the same authors, that's why I asked a few of "the Circle" for recs. I just like sharing the experience with others and at least you can choose your own book. I think it is a manageable challenge.
Go Bears! Go Seahawks!

Yes, Mark...As I Lay Dying was released last month, I think. I haven't seen it yet, but I hope to soon.

Good gravy, man, this place is hoppin' like a toad in a beer garden! Happy day off tomorrow.

Mark, I might join in with your American author challenge as well, although as I am not very well up on some of the writers it is going to take a little thought to choose the books. Will report back when I've decided.

I'm home from the Muskego mystery event weekend. Heading off to the Blackhawks game tonight, but, maybe while football is on, I'll report on the authors and also the book freebies I got.

I think you'd like the Muskego event as it was heavier on more hardboiled mysteries. Even a cozy author I like, Julie Hyzy writes less cozy stuff under the name, NC Hyzy (for Not Cozy Hyzy).

#64 - I love how meticulous you are. Ha! Well, you did ask, right? :-)

#65 - This is wonderful, Linda! I'm a big Faulkner enthusiast too. I've not read The Hamlet or Sartoris, but I agree The Unvanguished is a good start, along with Light in August and maybe The Reivers (which really isn't a favorite of mine, but still).

The big football weekend is finally over. I ended up calling the police to make a visit to my street. The college student flog house has had a weekend long party. (This morning there were 11 cars parked in the yard and on the street.) The people who own Mustangs among the crowd were conducting drag races from the stop sign at the end of my street around the two curves to the other stop sign. Then I was treated to two different episodes of turning kitty's in the cul de sac right in front of my house and my neighbors. All I can say about that is that I am glad I am not the father who has to pay for the new tires for that car! The smoke from that repeated kitty turning was so thick that the next car in the drag race had to stop and wait for the smoke to settle.

It took the police 2r minutes to arrive and when they did, they told me and my neighbor that there was nothing they could do unless they witnessed the behavior first hand. They also asked us to please be patient with them (the police) as it was a very busy weekend! As if I didn't know that because I had to walk around on campus Friday to various meetings.

My neighbors are very upset. They have lived in the neighborhood for twenty years and are distraught to see it "go downhill" like this. They told me that the house in question is owned by the father of one of the boys that lives there and he claims that the other 5 people who live in the house are all cousins. That makes the house exempt from the housing regulations in the city ordinances. Thank goodness there is only one more home game to go this season.

American Author Challenge 2014 (Mark's picks)

Willa Cather- Death Comes for the Archbishop *
Cormac McCarthy- Suttree (anyone here, read this?) *
William Faulkner- Light in August
Toni Morrison- Undecided. Tar Baby *, Paradise, a reread?
Eudora Welty- The Collected Stories *
Kurt Vonnegut- Mother Night. Possibly a second title. *
Mark Twain- Life on the Mississippi- Thanks to RD *
Philip Roth- The Plot Against America *
James Baldwin- Giovanni's Room- Thanks to Kerri *
Edith Wharton- The Custom of the Country
John Updike- Rabbit Run *
Larry Watson- Orchard or White Crosses or both. *

* On shelf

Of course, these are subject to change but usually when I make up my mind, that’s all she wrote!

Excellent list, Mark!

#65 That was very insightful and persuasive. Thank you. I have questions. I'm going to PM you.

Linda- Hopefully, you turned the Red Tide on Faulkner. LOL. Do you listen to audios? I am curious if Faulkner works in that format. I am thinking not.

RD- That is one happy-ass toad! LOL. I am pleased with the list and sharing the reading experience is going to be some sweet gravy.

Rhian- Wow! It's great to see you. I'll be interested in seeing your picks.

Linda P- Welcome back from Muskego. Glad you had a good time and yes, I love my crime hard-boiled. Sorry, Laura had to leave early. I hope he'll be okay.

Kerri the Meticulous! Now, that has a nice ring to it.

Benita- Your weekends are supposed to be laid-back and quiet, not Animal House Nites! Sorry to hear it. What do you think of the American Author Challenge? Have any interest?

Hiya Roberta! You can PM me questions, if you would like.



^ I also have this problem.

Mark - I messaged Linda. Thanks for the offer. I will PM you with questions regarding your challenge in due time. ;-)

#65 Thank you for this extremely helpful post about Faulkner. I wonder how starting with As I lay Dying will work?

Hi Mark! Looks like you've stirred up lots of interest in you American Authors Challenge!!

> 74 - Great list of books for your American Author Challenge, Mark. I read Suttree last year and can highly recommend it. My spoiler free review can be found here

#74: Okay, I'll join you for some of those. In fact, probably the only ones I'll skip are Twain and maybe Cormac McCarthy. Not sure about Larry Watson. So, 9 out of 12 isn't bad! :-)

This afternoon, after the Seahawks game is done (we're up 26-3 with 2:01 left in the 3rd quarter), we're going to the team store and then to a place in town called Bottleworks. I've never been there and I'm so excited to check out their inventory and taste a beer or two.
http://bottleworksbeerstore.blogspot.com/

ETA: Do you plan to assign them to months in that order?

^I think these would make great 75er T-shirts!

The Bears lost a tough one to the Lions. 21-19. Oh well, back to the books...

Roberta- I was kidding about the questions, but if you really have some, I would be honored.

Heidi- I didn't expect the AAC to take off like this, but of course I am very pleased. I think we will have a great time doing this.

Lori- Thanks for your thoughts on Suttree. Looking forward to it. Are you going to join us on AAC?

Ellen- See what a little arm-twisting will get you? Enjoy the Bottleworks, sounds like my kind of place.
My author list is in monthly order, the same as post#10.

Don't know if I am up for the full AAC, but I might dip in on a couple of the months - I have Baldwin's Giovanni's Room and Watson's Laura both waiting on my TBR pile.

Thanks, Kerri, Roberta and Heidi...if you give him a try because of something I said, I'll be glad. I don't expect everyone to love him as I do, I just don't want them to reject him out of hand for the wrong reasons. As I Lay Dying is one that is often taught as an introduction to Faulkner, but it wouldn't be my choice. Of course, it isn't among my favorites anyway, although parts of it highlight his genius pretty well. The three I've recommended have the most straightforward story lines, I think, and give the reader a fighting chance to like him before moving on to the more challenging stuff.

>77 msf59: I haven't listened to any audio with the exception of Faulkner himself reading some excerpts from The Sound and the Fury, and I certainly can't recommend that! He did not have a euphonious voice. I'm not even sure what's out there on audio books. Now you've made me curious. Hmmm...

I'm working to find books off my shelves to complete your challenge, Mark. So far 5 out of 12. Maybe I'll be able to fill the gaps at my library sale in December. This is a great way to get to books I've put on the back burner.

>82 msf59: rofl!

Here is my tentative list for the AAC

Willa Cather- Death Comes for the Archbishop
Cormac McCarthy- All the Pretty Horses
William Faulkner- Collected Stories or The Hamlet
Toni Morrison- The Bluest Eye
Eudora Welty- The Collected Stories (Not sure what I will read)
Kurt Vonnegut- A Man Without a Country or God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian or Letters
Mark Twain- Life on the Mississippi
Philip Roth- The Plot Against America
James Baldwin- Giovanni's Room or Go Tell it on the Mountain
Edith Wharton- The Age of Innocence
John Updike- The Witches of Eastwick
Larry Watson- Let Him Go

ETA: I added Kurt Vonnegut: Letters to my Vonnegut possibles

ETA: Linda said that The Hamlet is not in Faulkner's Collected Stories so I will start with the Hamlet and see what else I can read of his short story collection.

Mark, I hope you enjoy your holiday tomorrow! I'll be thinking of you when the alarm goes off at 5:30 a.m. Grrr. :-)

I finally got some reading in and knocked out about a 100 pages of More Than This. I didn't realize this was close to 500 pages, although it does read fast. Still, very dark and creepy. Coffins, boars, abandoned prisons and a mysterious and dangerous presence called the Driver.

Lori- Hey, if you can join us for a couple, that would be great. I think there is something on there for everyone.

Linda- I will probably just read Faulkner in print, although if I do ever stumble upon an audio, I might just try it. Dense wordplay is usually difficult on audio, at least for me.

Lynda- Yah, I am glad you are considering joining us on AAC. Drop back by and let us know what you've decided.

Tam- We aim to entertain.

Roberta- Love the list and glad to see we will be sharing several reads. I see many of you are reading All the Pretty Horses. I've read it twice and LOVE The Border Trilogy.



Good night!

Mark, what a darling good night!

I'm here to say my house deal has gone through. I accepted a full price offer this evening, and now I have three weeks to do all the packing before I fly off to Hawaii. I will probably be a little bit scarce around here, but I'll be up and running after the beginning of the year and will be able to do the AAC with all of you. What fun we will have!

Happy Veteran's Day!



A salute and a thank you to all that have served.

hmmm. I think I'll just go with

> 91. Agreed.

Linda/Kerri - Bravo for your passionate defence of Faulkner. I read The Sound and the Fury many moons ago and found it indigestible clap trap. I do hope to be persuaded otherwise by As I Lay Dying next March.

Mark here are my present selections (I am also trying to read a book from every one of the last 150 years during 2014 so some juggling is required)

Willa Cather- My Antonia
Cormac McCarthy- No Country for Old Men although I am tempted to buy Suttree and join you on that one.
William Faulkner- As I Lay Dying
Toni Morrison- Beloved
Eudora Welty- The Optimist's Daughter
Kurt Vonnegut- Mother Night SNAP!
Mark Twain- Tom Sawyer
Philip Roth- Goodbye Columbus
James Baldwin- Go Tell It On the Mountain
Edith Wharton- The House of Mirth
John Updike- The Witches of Eastwick
Larry Watson- Montana, 1948 (The only author on the list I don't have).

Since there is such a huge range and choice of writers from the USA, why not have an alternate list for those who don't fancy any of the selections or don't have any available.

Possible alternates in chrono order:
Pearl Buck, Larry McMurtry, Erskine Caldwell, Zora Neale Hurston, Joyce Carol Oates, Charles Bukowski, Jack London, EL Doctorow, Richard Wright, Sinclair Lewis, William Styron, Ivan Doig.

Just a thought mate.

Alert: For anyone looking for Vonnegut titles for next June, check out today's Amazon Daily Deal. They are offering nine titles for 2 bucks each:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=pe_170810_52827010_pe_row1_b2/?docId=1...

Karen- Happy Birthday, my friend and congrats on the house sale! How very cool.

Morning Kath- Loving waves!

Paul- That is a great list. I have read 8 of them. SNAP! I also like your alternate list. All worthy authors.

Thanks for the heads up, Mark. I purchased The Piano Player, seems sort of fitting today with computer technology replacing everyone.

Morning Mark! I just read about the deal between Amazon and the USPS to make deliveries on Sundays in NY and LA with plans to expand to other major cities... what do you think of that?

As for the american authors... I'm not sure anyone can convince me me to read Faulkner again. Or most of his contemporaries for that matter. I could do for some Twain maybe. :p

Have a good un!

Enjoy your day off, Mark. My proposed reads for the much-anticipated American Authors Challenge are:

Cather - A Lost Lady
McCarthy - Suttree
Faulkner - The Hamlet
Morrison - Paradise (reread)
Welty - One Writer's Beginnings
Vonnegut - Cat's Cradle
Twain - Roughing It
Roth - The Plot Against America
Baldwin - Giovanni's Room
Wharton - The Reef
Updike - My Father's Tears
Watson - American Boy

I am looking forward to reading books by some of my favorite authors (Cather, Morrison, and Wharton) and to reading a new-to-me author, Kurt Vonnegut. He's one of my youngest son's favorites. I own a collection of some of his famous works or I'd be all over today's Daily Deal.

Great to see the AAC falling into place, Mark, and everyone's choices. This will be fun.

Hope your week is starting off well. Stupid of me - I forgot you have the day off. Happy Vet's Day! Try to avoid doing too many errands and chores.

I'm a big fan of The Border Trilogy, too.

>94 msf59:: To add to Mark's note about the Kindle Daily Deal in the US, most, if not all, the Vonnegut titles are available from the Kindle Lending Library for free if you have an Amazon Prime membership.

Lynda- I have never heard of Player Piano. There are so many of his titles I have not read. I will have to add another one or 2 for the year. At least, most of his are shorties!

Kathy- I just heard about the Amazon & US Post Office deal. I think it's good for business and it will take some of the weight off us. They won't pay us overtime to do it, so I am sure they will get the part-timers to come in and do it.

This American Author Challenge, of course, is not for everyone but like the book geek I am, I could use a little motivation, to get to some of these neglected classics, especially the ones, collecting dust on a shelf. For me, it's just one book a month. I think most of us, interested anyway, can handle that. Have a good one too!

Donna- Great AAC list! We'll be sharing the McCarthy, Roth, Baldwin and possibly the Morrison. Hey, that ain't bad, my friend. I am glad you are on board.

Joe- I hope your Monday goes fast & painless. It's pretty gloomy and damp out there now. Not a bad day, to stay home. Is that my books calling me?

Thanks, Katie! Another bonus! I am not a Prime member but that is a sweet deal.

*knock knock knock*
Is this thing on? Can anyone hear me?

#101 I am so happy I'm not the only one that knocks on people's threads! (See #11) I just knock louder. LOL

Julia & Roberta- Fear not, Marky-Mark in the house! I've been putzing around the homestead, taking care of a few things, now I would like to read awhile before doing a couple more. I am glad I am off. It is gloomy out there, with a cold light rain. Did I see some flurries? OMG!

On audio, I was considering starting Motherless Brooklyn, which I've had on my to-read list for years. I've rarely seen it mentioned on LT but I heard it is excellent.

Hi Mark: Getting any snow yet?

At home, farther north, I heard it started just after 11 am. Here, about 20 miles south, it started about 1:15. Already accumulating on the grassy surfaces.

Yes, the dreaded white stuff is coming down, dear Linda! It is not sticking....yet.

I've fallen behind on Lethem, Mark, but I did read and like Motherless Brooklyn. You can add my "excellent" to the others.

Not ready for snow!

So do you think the Sunday routes will be given to the pt workers first, or just that the senior carriers won't want them anyway? As a consumer I'd love to see Sunday deliveries (though it will be ages if and when they reach me so far out of an urban center) but as a crew manager I know those 7-day weeks are heck to schedule workers for. Everyone suddenly has to go to church on Sundays.

I'm no fan of blue laws anyway so I'm just glad to see this made it past the negotiation table. All about the $$ for both sides.

Make Sunday time-and-a-half and suddenly gawd can wait.

Here is my tentative list for the American Author Challenge. No John Updike though as there really wasn't anything of his that I wanted to read, I've got John Steinbeck instead. Is that cheating?

Willa Cather- January Death comes for the Archbishop
Cormac McCarthy- February All the Pretty Horses
William Faulkner- The Hamlet
Toni Morrison- April The Bluest Eye
Eudora Welty- May The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty
Kurt Vonnegut- June Mother Night
Mark Twain- July Huckleberry Finn
Philip Roth- August The Plot against America
James Baldwin- September Go Tell it on the Mountain
Edith Wharton- October The Custom of the Country
John Steinbeck- November Cannery Row
Larry Watson- December Montana 1948

Linda- Yes, it is snowing and sticking! Boo! It won't amount to much but STILL!

Joe- Looking forward to Motherless Brooklyn. Thanks.

Kathy & RD- I am not sure how they will handle Sunday package delivery. For regulars, I think it was just get to complicated and I don't think they would want to pay us double-time. It kind of defeats the purpose. I would think they would get the part-timers out there. We are getting plenty of hours as it is. I don't think the UPS regulars work weekends either.

Rhian- Nice AAC list and we share a few reads. Cool. I see no problem substituting. I was teasing a couple of the others. I would rather you pick an alternate, than not read anyone that month.

>108 richardderus: LOL!

The snow is supposed to be here later this evening! oh em gee!

I'm so sorry its snowing for you. Its sunny and in the 50s here….. I hope it stays nice until after I've moved but that might be asking a bit much.

#103 by @msf59> Mark, darling, I was referring to the fact that you ignored my post at #88. Not that I have much room to talk, since I have been known to miss your posts on my own thread! Just poking a little gentle fun, my friend.

My favorite local brewery, the Tap House Grill was giving free dinners away to veterans, so of course, I had to mosey on over. They also had 3.50 drafts. I went solo and of course I brought my book along to keep me warm.

Tam- "oh em gee!" is right! It's only 30 degrees out there and dropping. Winter has arrived.

Karen- How is the birthday gal? Yes, we are getting a touch of winter. Only in the low 30s tomorrow. Time to crack out the long underpants.

Julia- Blushes deeply! I really try to not skip anyone, so I apologize. I don't think any of us like to be overlooked. It is such a pleasure to have visitors. Bad Mark.

>59 msf59: Unlike you, I was crazy about the Border Trilogy.
I utterly loved All the Pretty Horses, but imo they got less great with each next book. (that may not be grammatically there, but you get the sentiment).

Thanks for the recs!

I would agree with that assessment, Megan! Loved the 'Pretty Horses' but it was all (relatively speaking) downhill after that.

I'm having a great day, Mark! Did some packing, and some pulling stuff out of closets, and organized some thinking, and did a little researching into renting a POD for in front of the house, to hold my stuff…. then the kids came over and wished both me and my dog happy birthdays. He's 4 now; and I'm 69. How did that happen?

At the book club locale now awaiting the party to arrive. I'm early as usual. The cake looks very yummy.

Back to work Tuesday and it's going to be cold. Only 34. Time to pull on the long undies. Seriously?
I have about a 100 pages left in More Than This and then onto the Munro collection. Like I mentioned I am going to start Motherless Brooklyn on audio. that should take my mind off the chill.

Megan & Julia- It's been quite a few years since I wrapped up the Border Trilogy but I remembered the 2 and 3 books being just as strong. Maybe, it's a guy thing?

Karen- sounds like you had a wonderful birthday. how did the book club go?

Stay warm, Mark! (Of course, I haven't purchased those boots yet.)

I look forward to your thoughts on Motherless Brooklyn, as it's on my radar.

Wait, I think I missed something somewhere up there: I thought there were talks about dropping Saturday delivery, and now adding Sunday is on the table?

Snow on the ground here (just on the grass, thank goodness) and 17 degrees (!!). Sigh.

I know... snow outside here. Too soon!

>109 SandDune: I think substituting Steinbeck for Updike is a sign of wisdom.

Thanks for asking, Mark. The book group went fine. Some people liked Good Omens, others no so much. We had a Black and White Cake which was chocolate with a creamy butter frosting. Yummy. We also talked about next year's books. I'll go get a link to our discussion thread.

ETA: here's the link to our thread and you can see what books we are considering. Some good ones I think. http://www.librarything.com/topic/146191

I did receive some Bookstore Gift cards! Whoot whoot! I'll have to do some careful consideration on how to spend them. All in all, a very fine birthday anniversary.

Today: packing, packing, packing and going out to Birthday lunch with some buddies!

I started a gn I may end up recommending to you, Mark, called Infinite Horizon. It features war in the Mideast, but is futuristic and also Odyssey-tied. Pretty intriguing so far.

Hi Mark! Thanks for the prod to get caught up on your thread. I'm probably going to pass on the AAC. I just don't care for 20th century American classics, and few 19th century either. I'm not sure why. I had a class that focused on authors like Willa Cather, Henry Roth, F. Scott Fitzgerald, etc. and got one of the lowest grades of my college career. It was painful! I do like Mark Twain's short stories, which I think are some of the funniest things ever written, especially The Diary of Adam and Eve. Steinbeck, McCarthy, Morrison are ok, but I'm on a "life is too short and there are too many books" kick. Gotta keep movin'!

Are you going to have a separate thread(s) for the American Author challenge?

>120 scaifea: yeah I know, right? My guess would be that adding Sunday delivery would make them more competitive with the other delivery services. Not sure if it would or not. My Dad is also a postman (retired). I didn't hear this from him, but I know he's been out of the loop.

Hi Mark, I was visiting Ellen's thread the other day and saw her comments on your American Author's Challenge, which led me to consider joining, so I thought it was only natural that I should visit you next to tell you about it. Like Ellen, I will be substituting some authors, as I intend to try reading from my tbr as much as possible, and some authors NOT on the list have been sitting on my shelves collecting dust for much too long.

Willa Cather - O Pioneers!
Cormac McCarthy - All the Pretty Horses (reread)
William Faulkner - As I Lay Dying (will also be reading Native Son with Ellen)
Toni Morrison - Sula or Home
Eudora Welty Louise Erdrich - The Master Butcher's Singing Club
Kurt Vonnegut Paul Auster - Moon Palace
Mark Twain - Huckleberry Finn (reread) or The Autobiography of Mark Twain
Philip Roth- American Pastoral
James Baldwin - Going to Meet the Man
Edith Wharton - The Custom of the Country
John Updike Sinclair Lewis - Elmer Gantry (could be another title)
Larry Watson Zora Neale Hurston - Their Eyes Were Watching God

I'll probably go month by month for your American Authors Challenge.

For January, though, I'll probably read Death Comes for the Archbishop, which I already own.

Like others, I may substitute another author. For instance, I'd like to work in a Wallace Stegner or a Zora Neale Hurston. Maybe a Saul Bellow. Not as interested in William Faulkner or John Updike.

I'll hop on board the American authors bandwagon here, though probably with some substitutions. (Life's too short; my TBR list too long...)

Willa Cather- January
Probably Death Comes for the Archbishop

Cormac McCarthy- February
Possibly Blood Meridian, which a friend of mine (Chexmix) has been raving about for oh, a decade or so.

William Faulkner- March
I was worried about Faulkner but then found myself really appreciating As I Lay Dying.
I'll try Light in August.

Toni Morrison- April
Unsure. But probably Beloved.

Eudora Welty- May -- Will almost certainly substitute. Maybe with Flannery O'Connor, another southern writer. Or even Bel Canto by Ann Patchett, if Mark thinks it qualifies??

Kurt Vonnegut- June -- Will substitute with The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger. Unbelievable, but I have never read this.

Mark Twain- July
Maybe A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Philip Roth- August
Probably American Pastoral

James Baldwin- September
Go Tell it on the Mountain

Edith Wharton- October
Probably The House of Mirth

John Updike- November
Logically, it should be Rabbit, Run. But I may opt for The Terrorist.

Larry Watson- December -- Will substitute something by Saul Bellow. Perhaps Herzog, or Humboldt's Gift.

I am loving all the posts describing what everyone is planning to read for the AAC. Can anyone recommend a good title for starting out with Larry Watson? I have never heard of this author.

Ugh! Long, long, heavy work day. I started at 630, (normally it is 7) and returned home at 620. Yes, the volume was hefty due to the holiday, but because 2 numskulls called in sick, we were forced to carry off other routes. I don't know how these guys carry mail in the dark. I can't do it and it is dangerous. Did I say, Ugh?

I am LOVING Motherless Brooklyn. It was one thing today, that really kept me moving and perfectly distracted. Once again, why have I taken so long to read this? Why, I ask you?
I don't think I've ever read a book where a character has Tourette's Syndrome and he is the first person narrator. Priceless stuff!

Kerri- It was a chilly day and it really never warmed up, despite the sunshine. And yes, move up Motherless Brooklyn. It is amazing.

Amber- I saw the article today, about the Sunday delivery. This is only package delivery. Our package business is absolutely booming and it is really gives us a well-needed boost. The Sunday delivery deal will only affect LA and NYC, this year and then expand to a few more cities next year.

Kath- I walked through a little snow today and worse, there was some ice on a few porches, later in the day. WTH?

Linda- Big Wave!

Karen- Ooh, that birthday cake sounds mighty tasty. I will check out that link. I hope you had a nice lunch with your buddies.

Joe- Thanks for the GN rec. I always appreciate those and I am rarely disappointed. I am loving Motherless Brooklyn. This guy is so my cuppa!

Lisa- No problem, my friend. I had a feeling the AAC, might not be a good fit for you. Personally, I love classic American fiction and want to use this opportunity to catch up on a few titles.

Morphy- Yes! I will be posting a monthly AAC thread, for each author. Once the 75 Challenge 2014 is posted, I'll put up a general thread, where we can list all our picks.

Adding Motherless Brooklyn to the tbr list. Thanks Mark!

Ilana- Great to see you! A nice surprise after a long tough day. I love your AAC selections. I don't see any problem with substitutions, since the theme is being continued. I did not realize, that several of these authors are so reviled. LOL.
Hope you can drop by again.

Linda P- Glad you will be tagging along on AAC. Bellow is a good choice too. I have only read one of his books. I love Stegner too and hope to read at least one of his books next year.
It looks like we will have a nice crowd reading Death Comes for the Archbishop, what a perfect way to kick off the year.

Suz- Great to see you! And I am so happy you will be joining us for AAC. Love those picks. Blood Meridian is outstanding and I've been wanting to do a reread of that one, for several years.
Patchett is American, right? No problem. LOL. I recently read and enjoyed Bel Canto. I think that is a fine choice. Sadly, I've never read A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Bad Under-Read Mark!

Heidi- I have only read 2 books by Watson but have to recommend Montana 1948. I think that is a fantastic introduction. It is amazing.

Tam- I am not even halfway through Motherless Brooklyn and know this is going to be one of my favorite reads of the year. The audio, read by the wonderful Frank Muller, is fantastic.

Mark - lunch with buddies was good. Gale is my travel partner for trip to Hawaii and we did some day dreaming…

warmth, sandy beaches, soft breezes, swim suits as all day wear, pineapple, mangoes, passion fruit

OK. I'll quit.

Started reading The End of Your Life Book Club. Hooked!

I love the USPS. Out where I am from they deliver everyday - except Sunday. UPS and Fedex - they deliver twice a week, or whenever they get enough for a load. Did I say I love the USPS? I doubt they will deliver to us on Sunday, but they don't need to since they deliver every other day of the week.

They only thing they don't do is overnight delivery or Express Mail. Out there the mail has one speed. But it does get there. What I worry about more than delivery is having the Post Office open, but that is a different matter.

I am about half done with Housekeeping and hope to finish it tomorrow. I like the story but am not sure where it is going. Guess that is part of the fun.

Under-read Mark??? splutter splutter.

My USPS guy here in Providence has taken to referring to me as his version of the full employment policy. He says he no longer fears cutbacks as I'm keeping him so busy with Amazon Vine deliveries of ARCs...

Ack to your long work day!
Do these people who call in sick really know what a strain their absence puts on the rest of the staff? I really wonder. And if they are really sick- sheesh! What a pain having a double workload!

Good morning! Fingers crossed, that today is better than yesterday, work-wise anyway. I should be wrapping up More Than This and I am looking forward to returning to the delight called Motherless Brooklyn.

Karen- We've been saving up for our first-time ever Hawaii vacation. Hopefully, for next September. I loved The End of Your Life Book Club. I hope you do too!

Benita- Glad to see the P.O. love. If we didn't have to pre-fund that ridiculous retirement plan, we would be in the black. That is sad.
Hope you are enjoying HK.

Suz- Okay, correction: I am only under-read, compared to you. LOL. Our parcel business has really soared, while so many other mailing items have dropped.

Megan- I know people get sick, especially when we've been working this hard but you know the people that are just being arse-holes. Both of these guys, were also off on Saturday. Come on! And this is also bad for our customers, who have been receiving mail, late into the evening.

MarK Cool! Saving for Hawaii. I have a big piggy bank with Hawaiian flowers on him. He's blue, like the sky and the sea. It is just about time for me to pull all the coins out and roll 'em up and see how much money I have. I think my piggy bank money should be held separate and spent only on luxuries.

I'm so glad to hear that the PO business is booming! I use the USPS exclusively for my etsy business; the local PO is staffed with wonderfully friendly people, who know Charlie and me well by now and always chat with Charlie, who of course helps mail the packages. Last year Charlie's preschool class took a tour of the PO and as part of the tour the postmaster showed them what happens to packages that they receive for shipping. I just happened to have stopped in that morning after dropping Charlie off at school to send a package, and the postmaster saw Charlie in his audience and decided to use my package as the example, pointing out that fact to the class - Charlie was tickled pink, as I was told later by his teacher.

OH NO! Called off the day after a no mail day? The rats! no.... poor rats are nicer. There are people like that in every job, I know. But that was a particularly mean/lazy thing to do. Sorry to hear it.

Happier, warmer day *whammy*

Hope it's a good one today, Mark.

I think my one gn clunker (or at least sub-par) rec to you was Joe the Barbarian, which started off well but then kinda petered out. I vowed not to recommend anything again before finishing it. So hold off on Infinite Horizon, and I'll let you know. I'll probably finish it in the next day or two.

Rough Passage to London, an ER book, is turning out to be a solid nautical adventure read. Looking forward to getting back to it.

Mark, my dad is like you- I can remember him calling in maybe half a dozen times in my childhood. There were some real jerks up there that were known for calling all the time. Day before or after a holiday to call in is always a bad idea and really hard on your coworkers.

Maggie I must say I'm jealous but I'm sure you probably deserve it! I'm always for money spent in luxuries while on vaca! With this nasty cold stuff, your vacation sounds just like what the Dr. ordered! :)

I think everyone should schedule a mid-Winter break in some area with climate the opposite of what Winter makes for you, where you live. Right?

But I must say, I doubt the pig has too much in his belly. Its all coin.

Well I guess I will post my potential reads (I don't want to paint myself into a corner):

Willa Cather- January - Death Comes for the Archbishop
Cormac McCarthy- February substitute Henry James - The Portrait of a Lady
William Faulkner- March - Light in August
Toni Morrison- April - substitute - Russell Banks - Continental Drift
Eudora Welty- May - Delta Wedding
Kurt Vonnegut- June - substitute Ivan Doig - English Creek
Mark Twain - July - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Philip Roth- August - substitute Richard Ford - The Sportswriter
James Baldwin- September - Go Tell it on the Mountain
Edith Wharton- October - Fighting France
John Updike- November - substitute Upton Sinclair - The Jungle
Larry Watson- December - American Boy

^See, Bill ain't a bad guy! Why all the hate?

Okay, today was much better, although the same 2 guys called in again. (gimme a break!) Lots of sunshine but it was cold, with a stiff southerly wind.

I finished More Than This. I wish I could have liked it more. I really like his writing style and he has so many great ideas, but this felt bloated and it diluted my enjoyment.
On the other hand, Motherless Brooklyn continues to bring joy. Lethem has made me an instant fan. Joe has read it and loved it. No one else?

Karen- We are hoping to go to Hawaii next September with my cousin and her husband. They have gone for many years, so it'll be nice to go with someone that knows the ropes.

Amber- I remember Charlie and the post office. That is cool. That reminds me of a couple of little boys, who used to follow me around on the route, pushing the cart, keeping me company and occasionally putting the mail in the box. That was quite a few years ago. Now, I wouldn't want to disturb my audiobook and I would probably tell them to get lost........Kidding!

Kath- I think you can not call in the day before a holiday, without a doctor's note. It should be the day after too. Hey, maybe it is, I never use it.

RD- It was about 40 today, but with the cold wind, it felt about 10 degrees colder.

Joe- I didn't dislike Joe the Barbarian. It just didn't follow through on a strong beginning. I really appreciate your GN recs.

Tam- I might call in 2 or 3 times a year. Sometimes, if I need to take off for something, a function or whatever and they won't give me a vacation day, I do what I have to do. I have nearly 2,000 hours of sick leave saved, so I have been banking it.

Karen- I've been taking vacation time in Jan or early Feb, for the past few years, just for a winter breather, even if I just stay home. This year, in late Jan, I hope to make a trip to Oregon. Do I sense a Meet-up in the works?

There are always stinkers in every work group. I have them here. One in particular. Can't get to work on time in the morning and then wants to stay late and make it up. The other wants to come in at 6:00 a.m. and get off early. I keep telling them that the library doesn't need workers here when the place isn't open. Our job is to help people. If the people aren't here then we shouldn't be either. This led to a big fight at one staff meeting.

Like Mark, I have over 2,000 hours of sick leave and when I retire I will use it. I have worked with people who can't keep 1 day in their sick leave without taking it. I just don't understand that kind of thinking. I go home every night asking myself if the tax payers got their monies worth out of me today, and I know that for many of my colleagues that thought never crosses their minds. I don't want the system changed because I have also seen people who work hard who needed that time they had earned. I worked with a woman who was a faithful and good employee who used every bit of her sick leave in a valiant fight against cancer. She eventually ran out of sick leave and she came to work whenever she could drag herself in the door because she was out of sick leave. Perhaps that is why my two employees make me so angry.

Just curious if anyone will be reading Vonnegut's Galapagos for the AAC? It's not his most literary but it's my favorite, followed by Harrison Bergeron. :)

We have the fake-sickies here too. One woman we had before would call in with the most horrendous diseases and afflictions and then spend all day posting pictures to facebook of her shopping and fancy-dinner exploits.

And me, I will work sick unless I'm going to contaminate everyone. The other day I couldn't hold myself upright and still felt guilty having to leave early.

I'm just sitting here imagining what it must be like to be able to accumulate sick time...I get 6 days (42 hours) per year. Use it by December 31st or lose it. Just encourages people to take it whether they're sick or not. And then someone has surgery that requires a 4 - 6 week recuperation, and what are they to do? Disability benefits, you say? Never heard of it. Of course I don't have to walk a route whatever the weather, either.

Hello Mark

Chalk me up for the AAC challenge - and I, too, would love to kick off with Death comes for the Archbishop.

Willa Cather- Death Comes for the Archbishop
Cormac McCarthy- All the Pretty Horses
William Faulkner- As I Lay Dying
Toni Morrison- Beloved
Substitute for Welty (I've read The Optimists Daughter and didn't think it was great: instead Richard Ford - Canada
Kurt Vonnegut- read heaps of KV; Substitute: Saul Bellow Humboldt's Gift
Mark Twain- Life on the Mississippi
Philip Roth- American Pastoral
James Baldwin- also read most of his output: substitute Sinclair Lewis Main Street
Edith Wharton- so depressing! John Cheever - The Wapshot Chronicle
John Updike- Rabbit is Rich
Larry Watson- Orchard or White Crosses or both. - will substitute Norman Mailer The Executioner's Song

All books off my shelves.

Sweet Thursday! I am finally starting the View From Castle Rock, my mini-tribute to Ms. Munro. Anyone else joining me? I will wrap up Motherless Brooklyn. Sad face.

Bonnie- I love your AAC list and your substitutions are perfect too. I loved both Continental Drift & English Creek. I also might read The Sportswriter with you.

Benita- Of course we have workers who call in regularly, sometimes 2 or 3 days in a row and some folks that can never get to work on time. WTH? It's lucky if I am late once a year and that would be due to weather or an accident.
I like having that sick leave in reserve. A friend, co-worker had shoulder surgery and is out over 6 months. You never know.

Kathy- I think I read Galapagos, way back in the early 80s but I do not remember it. Thanks for the reminder.

Linda- 6 days of sick leave, a year is decent. It sucks that it doesn't roll over. You are forced to take supplemental insurance, just to be on the safe side.

Yes, Mark, I've been paying for my own disability insurance for many many years. Compared to some things, it's a relative bargain, actually, since I got into it when I was quite young and not much of a risk.

I do recommend Infinite Horizon, Mark. I like this distilled description from someone on Amazon: "This is a brilliant re-working of the Odyssey, told in modern times with a U.S. officer as Odysseus fighting in Syria and not Troy. The situation there goes to hell and he has to work his way back to Upstate New York to reunite with his family. The U.S. is in a semi-apocalyptic state, order has largely broken down and his farm has been occupied by his neighbors who are intent on taking his property and the vital water supply it controls." His wife, in the role of Penelope, along with his son, are trying to retain control of the farm while waiting for his return.

It stayed good through to the end.

The AAC is really shaping up, with lots of folks joining in. Well done, buddy.

Thanks for recommending Montana 1948 for Larry Watson. It sounds very good so I will plan on reading that in December 2014! LOL

Heartily agree re having the ability to use sick leave. I don't know of anything worse than being in a place where someone is sneezing and wheezing and spreading germs all over the place, and they either don't have sick leave or have enough sick leave. On the flip side, I think it's great to be able to roll over and accumulate it for use in the case of a health crisis that requires being off for long periods of time, but am not a big fan of husbanding it to translate into early retirement or some form of financial payoff, as I've seen in some counties in reporting about pensions issues. In a perfect world, sick leave is like health insurance: there to use if you need it, as a safety cushion. I'd hate to think that someone didn't use it when they came down with the flu because they planned to use it for their vacation...

This, of course, is being written by someone with a painful sore throat, a fever and congested sinuses, sitting at my desk and slogging away on new fewer than three separate projects.

We get sick time and vacation time combined in an annual bank of "paid time off." People start with 20 days a year. As an old timer, I get 30 days. Usually 3 floating holidays, too, along with 9 regular holidays. There's a decent short-term disability plan, which I've used a few times for surgeries, and an optional, employee-paid long-term disability plan.

We used to be able to roll over one week of paid time off per year. Now, it's use it or lose it.

Quick check in. I am not quite through yet. Another long day in my outdoor office. It is weird delivering mail with the moon peering over my shoulder.
I did start The Martian Chronicles on audio and it looks like another Bradbury gem. Each of his books has a different feel, which I love.

I Will Return...

Dan never calls in either.. but after having been screwed over with this schedule, thus ruining our plans to go to my daughter's house..if he doesn't call in, it might be the last time he doesn't. Goddess knows he has missed enough over the years, birthdays, holidays.. and simple family plans. But this was scheduled so that he had no one to hurt by calling in.. not a holiday.. not anything.. I am livid with him .

We can't keep our vacation time past December 31, but I don't loose it. It rolls over to sick leave. The rules say you can't use vacation time as sick leave or sick leave for vacation time, but people do it all the time. I can't use either vacation or sick leave to reach retirement, but I can get paid 1/2 value for them when I retire. So it is a good thing. Or half of a good thing.

Lyrical. That is the one word I would use to describe Housekeeping. I finished it last night. The writing is just beautiful. I was not sure where the story was headed and found the way it unfolded to be lyrical. I don't know whether to feel sad for the narrator or not. For me the book was a way of illustrating that some people aren't meant to be the stay-at-home type and that transience has its advantages. Or perhaps its adherents. It just suits them. It fits with their inner desires and beckonings. It also illustrates that what is housekeeping for one person isn't for another. That is a revelation that my mother and I had about each other long ago.

Okay, showered, fed and have my lunch ready for tomorrow. Now, for a little LT time, until my eyelids begin to droop.
I finished and LOVED Motherless Brooklyn and like I mentioned up yonder, I started the Martian Chronicles. I have not read a Bradbury this year and I was hoping to at least read 2. I can not believe this was published in 1950.
I also started the View From Castle Rock. I did not realize it was historical stories, based on her ancestry. Her writing is exquisite.

Prue- I have missed you and it looks like I missed your post up there, as well. I am glad you are joining us on AAC. I had no idea, there would be this kind of participation. It should be a blast.
It looks like I will be joining you on a couple. I also like your substitutions, particularly The Executioner's Song, which is an outstanding book and does not get mentioned around here, nearly enough. That should change.

Linda- I have never bought disability insurance because I haven't needed it but I can see why it could be very important to some people.

Joe- I will add Infinite Horizon to the GN, WL and see if my library system is carrying it. That is a nice description. I just started The Martian Chronicles. I am sure you have read it. He grabs you immediately doesn't he?

Heidi- My suggestion, would be, read Montana 1948 in January, because it is so great and then it will make you an instant Watson fan, so you can pick something else for December. Got it?

Suz- Thanks for chiming in on the sick leave discussion. Sorry to hear you've been fighting a cold. Bummer. I owe your thread a visit. Mark has been bad.

Linda- That seems like a decent vacation, sick leave plan and I guess it forces you to use the time, instead of losing it.

Kath- Dan strikes again, eh? You are the long-suffering wife, my friend. I am sure I did a few selfish things, in my early married years but I've learned to be more considerate. Not perfect, but fairly close. LOL.
And yep, I nearly always make my lunch, (usually the night before). Once in awhile I will make Sue lunch and then she'll make me one.

Benita- At least your unused vacation time turns into sick leave, if you don't use it. No a bad idea.

I am so glad you enjoyed Housekeeping and "lyrical" is the ideal word. I also love your thoughts on what the book was about. I think that sums it up well.

You make your own lunch?!

stunned.

Hi Mark, I've been having a quiet week dealing with some family matters, but I have noticed your enthusiasm for Motherless Brooklyn and have duly added this book to my wishlist.

Everywhere I travel on LT these days I am seeing talk about your American Author Challenge for next year. Sounds like it is going to be a huge success. I am so tied up with my 2014 Category Challenge but I still hope to slip one or two of your American authors into my schedule.

Howdy, Mark! How is it I've never heard of this Larry Watson fellow that you all are raving about? I feel kinda dumb sometimes when I read LT. :-)

I hope you have a great Friday, with a light bag, a short route, good weather, and no yippy dogs.

Happy Friday, for the folks wrapping the week up. I go in tomorrow, so I am not one of the chosen ones. I hope they have things covered for the next two days, at the P.O. It is supposed to be in the low 50s the next couple of days, so that should feel good.

Judy- Expect more raves on Motherless Brooklyn. I have done an awful job in the past couple of months with my mini-reviews. I need to reverse that tide.
Yes, the AAC has really taken off, much more than I expected. If you can join us on a few, you will not be disappointed. Hope you have a great weekend.

Julia- Watson! Watson! Watson! This is one of our specialties on LT/the 75: Enlightenment! Thanks for the good wishes. Have a good week.

Good morning, Mark! So glad Motherless Brooklyn was a hit. I'm going to place it on the wishlist.

Here are my challenge possibilities (reposted from my thread):

*Willa Cather - Death Comes for the Archbishop or The Song of the Lark
*Cormac McCarthy - Most likely nothing, but possibly Blood Meridian. To clarify, I don't dislike him (I thought The Road was excellent). I'm just not in the mood for his product these days.
*William Faulkner - The Hamlet or Intruder in the Dust
*Toni Morrison - Tar Baby or Jazz
*Mark Twain - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Somehow, I've gone my entire life without reading him. Odd. I'm thinking of an audio version of this.)
*James Baldwin - The Evidence of Things Not Seen or The Devil Finds Work
*Edith Wharton - The House of Mirth (I've also gone my entire life without reading Wharton. Hopefully this is the right choice, but, if not, I'll take suggestions.)

Marky Mark! Hope you have a lovely Friday, and 50s sounds good after the cold week we've had!

Oh man, I loved Martian Chronicles when I was a young guy, Mark. He grabs you and it doesn't let up. I look forward to hearing how it does all these years later, and with a non-teen reader. I've often thought about going back and re-reading a lot of the Bradburys that had so much impact on me. Dandelion Wine was a life-changer, assigned by a teacher I liked at a time I was getting disenchanted with school.

There's a good chance your library will have Infinite Horizon; I got my copy at the Chicago Public Library.

Weather warming up, the weekend coming - this is pretty good, eh?

I still want to see a filmed version of The Martian Chronicles that really does the stories justice. Like a miniseries presentation, one with some room to flesh out the coolness.

Another late day at the PO! I'll be punching out in a little bit. And then we have a couple family members coming over for dinner, so I am not sure if I'll be able to return. If not, have a great evening everyone.

Sorry to see you have had to clock some long work hours this week, Mark. Great to see all the interest in your American Author Challenge.... I am looking forward to lurking and occasionally participating next year. I really need some insight into some of the authors listed!

Have a lovely evening tonight and here is hoping you weekend will afford you some wonderful reading time.

Happy Saturday! Sorry, I've been AWOL but I've been busy. Work today and then another family function tonight, so online time will be limited. I should wrap up the Martian Chronicles, which once again proves Bradbury's endless story-telling talent. I am also enjoying Castle Rock.

Kerri- Love that AAC list. Blood Meridian is not an easy read, but one you will never forget. I read and loved The House of Mirth. I think that is a good choice.

Tam- It's going to be a mild weekend, but with rain moving in. I need to get to the leaves accumulating on my lawn. Maybe my kids could help?

Joe- I plan on reading 1 or 2 Bradbury's a year, until I catch up with this great American writer. I requested Infinite Horizon and should get it soon.

RD- I did not realize there was a film version of The Martian Chronicles. I can only imagine how dated the earlier versions would be. These are terrific, thought-provoking stories.

Lori- I hope you can pop into AAC, now and then. I think this challenge will be a lot of fun. My R & R day will have to be tomorrow. Looking forward to it!

Have a great day, everyone. I'll see you....whenever.

There was a 1980 "miniseries" made of it, starring Rock Hudson, but it was unwatchably bad.

I've started Packing for Mars, my first Mary Roach, and I'm also reading a Vorkosigan novella I missed, Winterfair Gifts. Hope you have a good one today, Mark.

I have picked up The Martian Chronicles since you mentioned it, and I had it sitting right here. I just love how Bradbury writes. I am hoping that work goes quickly for you today. Missing you on the threads.

Hi Mark, happy drizzly, foggy Saturday. At least it's not cold out. Enjoy your family function.

Hi Mark! Happy Saturday- hope you have a good day at work- and hopefully some good reading in!

Mark, it sounds like you are in for a busy week end. I hope you have time to watch the Chiefs and Broncos play each other tomorrow. My husband is in China and will miss it. I hardly ever watch football without him but will make an exception this time.

I love how the AAC has exploded. It is interesting to see the book choices and author substitutions. I am keeping my list "pure" with all the authors you have chosen. You did an excellent job making well-rounded choices.

Just a quick check-in from the hinterlands. I should be off at 430, so that isn't horrible.
On audio, I started Citizen Vance. I love Jess Walter.

RD- Wow, a miniseries with Rock Hudson? Sounds like a camp classic.

Joe- I am so glad you are getting to Packing for Mars. What a terrific read that was and still remains my favorite.

Mamie- glad you jumped right into the Bradbury. You will not be disappointed. I can't believe it was written in 1950. Wow!

Linda- I am glad I am staying dry, so far. I only need 2 more hours! Hope you are having a great day.

If it only HAD been a camp classic! Hudson as Col. Wilder is completely at sea. Looks like he's barely seen the script and hasn't really learned his lines.

*sigh* I want a lot of money. So many things I want to see done in this world!

^Can I have a witness? I know, this sounds silly but I also slept in until 6:30 and it felt great. Okay, back in the saddle again, after a busy couple of days. My Sunday plans are simple: Read, football, read. Actually, I would like to get out there and work on that carpet of leaves, out front, but it looks to be a rainy, windy day, so we will see.

On the book front: I finished the wonderful: The Martian Chronicles. This guy never fails to delight. Now, I am on a mission to read through his vast catalog. On audio, I started Citizen Vince. I've read and enjoyed Walter's last couple of books but have been meaning to get to his earlier crime novels, which I've heard terrific things about.
I am also into the 2nd half of The View From Castle Rock. This is great stuff, (boy, I am full of superlatives this morning!). I wish a couple of folks could have joined me on this one. The only problem I have is the cover. A woman reclining on a beach? Hey, nice legs and all, but what does that have to do with anything in this book?

Tam- I hope you are having a fine weekend too! And yes, I've been loving my current reads. It helps keep me afloat.

Donna- Call us the "purists", huh? I like that. Actually, the AAC has taken off like a rocket, (a Bradbury reference) and most of these wonderful people are reading the majority of the authors. I like the idea of the substitutions, instead of skipping the month entirely. This should be a lot of fun.
Yes, it looks like a big football game and it might be the best of the week. The Chiefs are red-hot.

Morning RD- " Hudson as Col. Wilder is completely at sea." That really cracked me up. I can picture that too, against a cheesy orange backdrop. Do you have any lesser known nuggets, by Bradbury that you could recommend? I have the Golden Apples on shelf, along with the Illustrated Man, which I think I read as a kid, but I am not sure.

The backdrops on The Martian Chronicles weren't orange...they were blue skies with clouds. Ooof.

Bradbury is, to me, the Eudora Welty of SF. His novels are, well, not uniformly excellent; his short fiction almost never disappoints. I loved I Sing the Body Electric! very much, and found the title story very very moving. "Christus Apollo" also made me think hard. "The Man in the Rorschach Shirt" was pretty darn good, too.

The only problem I have is the cover. A woman reclining on a beach? Hey, nice legs and all, but what does that have to do with anything in this book?

Well, at least you've got nice legs to look at Mark ;-)

Morning!

Bradbury is one of my all time favorites, as you know.. I fear that these mentions might send me off to re-read. I have other books.. I can't give in.

Happy Sunday.

A few people had issues with that cover of The View from Castle Rock, Mark. I loved the book, and my cover was much more appropriate.

^Go Lena! Go Lena!

RD- Of course, I have added I Sing the Body Electric! to my WL. I have some catching up to do with him. Thanks.

Dina & Linda- I am not cover obsessed but I totally don't understand why you would put a "chick lit" cover on something like this. I wonder how many readers were disappointed, that they were actually reading fine literature? Then again, maybe someone had a true discovery and it changed their reading life forever. I better not have anymore coffee.

Tam- Waves & Hugs!

Kath- It was so nice being reintroduced to Bradbury last year. One of my literary highlights. I am going to try to get to one of his books, every few months.

I love Sunday as well. I got up late - 8:00 a.m. (Sleeping late for me is 7:00 am) It is my morning for coffee and books at Barnes & Noble. We can't seem to keep an independent coffee shop going in Tuscaloosa, except for the one that closes on Sunday so I go every Sunday morning for coffee. There is a crowd of us regulars and we all sit in the same place. Today I was a half hour late and the place was FULL. I have to sit by the door and it is cool. I don't understand why it is so crowded as it is not a game weekend. The regular barista said that it was shaping up to be one of their better Sundays. He thought it was due to early Christmas shopping. What? I yelped! You have got to be kidding. I think perhaps it might be because people got accustomed to having coffee on Sunday mornings after football games and they just aren't out of the habit yet. And of course, it is the end of the semester (December 2) and things are starting to come due. There is a big crowd of students who are trying to get their end-of-the-semester work done.

the barista had other good news. He got a job. He has a master's degree in Educational Psychology and has been looking for a job in a school for over a year. His job at the coffee shop in Barnes & Noble was his way of putting himself through school. He finally got a job. He will be moving in two weeks and starts December 2 at a school in Alabama but very close to Fort Benning, GA. It is only a part-time job and he will be working part-time at the Barnes & noble in Columbus, GA but it is a place for him to start. All of us regulars were really happy for him.

I finished listening to My Antonia by Willa Cather yesterday while I was out shopping. I liked it. It was peaceful and quiet. Of course, my home is only about 80 miles from Red Cloud, NE and perhaps for that reason the book had resonance as well. The descriptions of the country was right on target. I plan on reading more of Cather's work, but don't think it will be very soon as I have my reading list for the next six months in place.

Stay safe Mark. DG might be in the tornado's path.

Are you reading during the football break?

Interesting about the AAC thing. I was also surprised by the response to you queries about it. Sometimes I wonder if people would read more if books were talked about as much as sports? It seems to me that people do what they see other people doing. They want to be "in-the-know" so is we talked about books more in public perhaps others would become interested as well.

This was brought home to me when my real life book discussion group met at Barnes & Noble. We were talking about A Small Death in Lisbon and a lady sitting at the next table said the book sounded so interesting that she would like to read it. Same thing happened when we met at Panera Bread and were heard talking about Great Railway Bazaar.

Yikes! Some serious weather moving through the Chicago area, the past couple of hours. Heavy rain, wind, hail and tornado sightings. Even the Bears game was suspended and the stadium cleared. They are supposed to resume shortly. Did I say, Yikes?

Benita- I like your Sunday morning routine at B & N. Are these serious readers? Have you struck up a conversation with any of them?
My Antonia is the only Cather I have read. I remember liking it but do not remember much about it.
I think the enthusiasm for AAC, is that we love books, appreciate these authors, (or at least a few of them. LOL!) and need to get books off the shelf. That is a heady mix.

Linda & Nancy- This weather is freaky and scary! My daughter was out driving and mentioned a lot of water on the roadways. It is raining hard again, right now.
No, not much reading. To many distractions.

Hi, Mark!

I'm way behind, but skipped to the last post as I'd heard about the bad weather in your area -- we were watching the Bears game when it was suspended. It sounds like the whole midwest is in a very unstable, dangerous weather pattern. Stay safe!

We're in the basement, Mark. Debbi made it back, and says hi. All is well here. Hope you all are doing okay.

#195
The regulars are heavy duty studiers. Many of them nursing school students with families. Especially families made up of small children. It is impossible for them to study at home, so they send the spouse and the kids off to church while they repair to Barnes & Noble to study in the quiet and anonymity of the place.

The weather is freaky here to. Last week we had a hard frost. Down to 25 for two nights in a row. Yesterday it started warming up and today it is in the 70's with rain. Very humid outside. Strong winds from the south. Not good for stable weather patterns.

Cleared the stadium? WOW. Must have been serious threat.

Public Service Announcement:



And it's good!

^Cheers to Marky-Mark, for hitting 150 books! Yahoo! Why, do I feel like that is a drop in the bucket?

Hi Mark and Happy Sunday! It's one of my two favorite days of the week, too, although I fully agree with the notion of adding an eighth day to the week just for reading. Wouldn't that be heavenly?

I'm glad you enjoyed The Martian Chronicles. I read it literally decades ago (I think I was about 13 years old) and I remember loving it. I plan to reread it one of these days.

I am just about to dig into The View from Castle Rock. I love your comment about the cover; I got mine from the library and I seem to have a different edition. Mine looks like this:



Your Bears are down 17-10 late in the second quarter. I hope they come on strong in the second half.

Oh, and I did have fun at Bottleworks, but since then I have discovered two other shops with equally impressive selections of brews from all over. This is good since traveling to Wallingford takes a bit of doing and the other two places are closer to my own neighborhood. :-)

I better not have anymore coffee. Bite your tongue for that blasphemy! :P
Um, the weather is freaking me out, too. We had a clap of thunder so loud I swear the house shook and it scared the dogs big time. They are not afraid usually of thunder. It made my teeth chatter! Grant ran to the store for our usual Sunday shopping trip, I told him to pay attention and be careful.

hey Marky. heard from yr daughter again?

>200 msf59: 1) YAY!* and b) because it is. and 3rd, i love your 2nd thread topper. me! there! now!

*i note your buxom cheerleaders w/ brews. 'twere ever thus. ;-)

Congrats on reaching 150 books, Mark.

The sun was out for awhile and it turned nice. Now the clouds and thunder are back.

Bears are down 13-17 to the Ravens. The 2nd half just started. The storms passed but it's got getting dark and windy again.

Can't believe LT is back! Going to bed to read and snuggle!

Hi Mark. I'm glad your Bears came back to win that one in a muddy overtime. Stay safe.

While LibraryThing was down, I started The View from Castle Rock. It's early yet, but I am so far loving it.

Hi Mark!
PHEW that that storm hasn't got the better of your area. I heard "Illinois" on the radio news to day and that a town was pretty much flattened...and I got worried for you! You see what LT has done to me? I turned the TV news on pronto and was glad to see you have escaped unharmed. What a horrible scenario.

We sure miss our LT, don't we? Imagine life without it? Shudders...

Well, another week begins. I am taking my day off tomorrow, so at least I am not staring at 6 straight. It was one of the craziest weather days I have seen yesterday and I really feel for the areas hit by the tornadoes. Could you imagine starting your week, with your town leveled?

I give myself a D- for reading productivity, on Sunday, between the delayed Bears game and the family hanging out and bonding, I read hardly anything. So, back to the books today and I am continuing to enjoy Castle Rock & citizen Vince.

BTW- Bears pulled out an exciting win in O.T. 23-20. The players and the field were a muddy mess. Go Bears, who are 6-4 now.

Terri- Great to see you! I've missed you. Yes, it was a crazy weather day. All is well here. Hope the same on your end.

Joe- Glad you guys are safe and sound. The only disappointment yesterday, besides lack of reading time, was that my leaves didn't all blow away. Guess, what I'll be doing tomorrow?

Benita- I hope you had a relaxing Sunday.

Kerri- Bless your heart! We LOVE our Enjoy By! Thanks for the heads-up.

Ellen- Now, that is a perfect cover for Castle Rock. Actually, that is how the opening of the book starts. I am so glad you started it. It's another beauty by Munro.
Yes, it was a terrific win by the Bears! It would have been a heart-breaker if they would have lost that one.

Tam- Hope you had a nice Sunday. We sure freak out, when our LT is down. We turn into panic-stricken zombies!

Ellie- Wow! It's great to see you, stranger. You've been missed. Yes, my daughter made it home fine. Hope you had a fine weekend.

Linda- Thanks! Yep, hitting 150, with nearly 6 weeks left. Go Me! Still, without my audios, I would be less than half of that, so I am thankful for that luxury.

Megan- Yes, it was a freaky weather day. I think there were a few dozen tornadoes spotted. Most of the damaged areas were west and south of here. Well over a 100 miles away, which is good for us but bad for them.

Weird weather indeed, but glad you're safe and the Lions won! Or is it Tigers? Wait wait don't tell me, Bears! Bears won. Yeah.

Castle Rock looks good, the reviews assure that it reads more like a novel than it does short stories, I may give it a whirl. Speaking of whirling.. watch out for wild winds today Mark.. it has been scary bad out that way.

Crazy day, nice Bears win, Mark.

Meant to mention two beers I had over the weekend: Magic Hat #9, and Stone Suede Imperial Porter. First one a dry, crisp pale ale, the second unusual - dark, some coffee, some sweetness, and a hard to place bit of flavor that apparently comes from calendula flowers, whatever they may be.

Hope your week starts off well.

Hi Mark, and congratulations on hitting 150 books so far! I have finally picked up Riders of the Purple Sage, and I am hoping that my love of westerns will help carry me through.

Happy 150, my friend! Glad yesterday's storms left you unscathed.

Wow 150! You go Mark. I have no idea how you do it but that would make it so much easier to clear the shelves. Do you find that to be true;-)

It was a decent work day. Heavy volume Monday. Our favorite local watering hole is having Dollar Draft Night, (all very good beer) so we are heading over there for a bite and a few libations. Fortunately I am off tomorrow, but everyone else works, so it won't be crazy.

RD- Yes, our Bears pulled if off. Sorry to see the devastation in Illinois. Local building contractors normally don't build in the winter, so it's going to be tough getting these towns back on track.

Kath- Castle Rock does not read like short stories at all. It is very unique in that way. This might be a perfect place to start with Munro. Her writing and depth is amazing.
It was pretty windy all day, although it is supposed to diminish through the evening.

Joe- I hope you kept your hat on your head today! That wind really never let up. Yes, I am a fan of Magic Hat # 9. I think it's a nice refreshing beer. Have not tried the porter, although I have heard of that one.

Judy- Thanks! And I hope Purple Sage works better for you, than me. LOL. I hope to get to some Louis L' Amour next year. It would be nice to visit an old friend.

Lynda- Thanks! My audios really save the day. I would be barely half that number without them.

To copy Joe, I have to mention two beers I had over the weekend also.
One of the couple I stayed with on my holiday weekend (with Wilbur in tow) is a beer buff, and he took me to two craft beer havens for a taste. I had a Scotch Ale (maybe Renaissance, cant recall)- strong and delicious, and an Amber Ale made by Sprig and Fern, also very tasty. I tried a few Wheat Beers, but decided that Three Boys Wheat Beer is the only one for me.

A good tasting beer is a wonderful thing :)

Happy Tuesday! Yes, I am taking my day off and not much planned. Leaves & books. My front lawn looks like my topper up there^. So, I will alternate. It will be a cool day but the wind has finally settled and there will be sunshine.
I plan on finishing Castle Rock, which has been terrific. I am so glad I chose this title, in Munro's honor.

Bonnie- "that would make it so much easier to clear the shelves. Do you find that to be true." Unfortunately not as much as I would like. Whenever I see a title on audio, that I have on shelf, I'll grab it immediately but there is such a flood of audiobooks, that I do not own but want to read. It's a never ending battle and one I love every minute of.

Megan- "A good tasting beer is a wonderful thing." You just brought a tear to my eye. Awwwwww.. Hope you are having a great week.

Okay, time to visit a few threads...

Leaves! Forty-one bags of same in our driveway and along the curb. Plenty more blowing in the very gusty winds. Aaah. Autumn!

Leaves and books, eh? What a combo! Exercising both your physical and mental components today, Mark.

Morning, Mark! SO glad you survived that scary weather you had over the weekend. And a day off? Sounds like you have a perfect plan for that! Have fun!

The Stone porter apparently is a collaboration among two or three microbrewers, Mark, which is probably how you heard of it. Unusual.

Enjoying Packing for Mars. I knew this from Debbi, who reads a lot of Mary Roach, but Roach is not squeamish about much of anything, is she? These are details NASA doesn't like to acknowledge exist.

"Forty-one bags of leaves on the driveway. Forty-one bags of leaves!" Trills with a sinister joy. I don't think it will be that bad here. I probably will use the mower, with the catcher, on some of it and grind that stuff up.
Fortunately, our gusty winds have moved on. Good riddance.

Julia- Yep, have to keep all those faculties, sharp and limber. LOL. If I just rake, I might bring my audiobook out with me, although if I mow, it gets to loud and distracting.

Mamie- It was probably a nice light day at the P.O. but I wanted my day off. And something needs to be done with these leaves. My family keeps telling me they will blow away, but so far they haven't.

Joe- Glad you are enjoying the Roach. She is one smart cookie, plus she is funny as hell.

Good morning Mark!

Stopping by...saying hi

Hi Mark!

Anything good at dollar beer night? We stayed in to watch the game.

I'm so glad you're enjoying the Munro! I'd really like spend more time on the collection I'm currently reading (Something I've Been Meaning to Tell You), but it's a borrowed copy and it's kind of a rickety, old paperback just on the verge of falling apart, so I'm afraid to subject it to backpack abuse. Therefore, I can only read it at home. I suppose I'll have to make it a morning priority.

I'm planning on joining your American Author Challenge. Here is . . .

My (very) tentative list for the AAC:

Willa Cather- January Death Comes for the Archbishop (at local library)
Cormac McCarthy- February All the Pretty Horses (at local library)
William Faulkner- March As I Lay Dying (owned)
Toni Morrison- April Jazz (owned) or Beloved (at local library)
Eudora Welty- May Losing Battles (at local library)
Kurt Vonnegut- June Player Piano (at local library)
Mark Twain- July Pudd’nhead Wilson (at local library)
Philip Roth- August The Ghost Writer (owned)
James Baldwin- September Go Tell It On the Mountain
Edith Wharton- October Ethan Frome (at local library) or (since it’s october) a re-read of The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton
John Updike- November Terrorist (at local library)
Larry Watson- December Let Him Go (e-book available through library)

List is definitely subject to change!

I think it's going to be a dynamite challenge!

^Ugh, leaves! Sure they are pretty to look at, but after spending a couple hours in mortal combat, they become a nasty foil. I knocked out about 80% of the front yard, mostly with the mower and grass/leave catcher. We have to pay to have our leaves removed: about 3.50 a bag or can, so that adds to the misery. I still have the backyard and west side of the house, to do, (not today. thank you very much) I am hoping for assistance from my lovely adult children, who magically disappear when I send out an SOS.

Tam & Linda- Big hearty waves! Love the teddy!

Kerri- Dollar Draft Night, had a few good ones. A few different Tightheads, (a local brewery that is really beginning to shine). A few stalwarts like, Two-Hearted, Alpha King, Double Trouble and Little Sumthin'! Enough to please the palate.

Terri- Nice AAC list, tentative or not. I wish more could come off your shelf, that is one the reasons for the challenge. Maybe a substitution or 2? The only one I'll be joining you on, is the Cather, since many of your choices I have read.

Off to finish the Munro...

That's what comes of having a hundred acres or so of Rancho Msf59, Mark.

I know that children-disappearing trick very well. Mine moved away just to avoid leaf-raking.

So tell me why you rake leaves? Why not just grind them up and leave them on the lawn? All that natural compost. What's not to like about that? $3.50 per bag? Leaves in plastic bags? Why? I don't get it? Neither does the author of American Green: The Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Lawn.

Even if contractors built in the winter it won't happen that fast. In my experience - and remember - I live in a house that was 60% destroyed in 2011 by a tornado - it will take about 6 months for any thing to get rebuilt. It will take about two months to start the large scale hauling off of the debris. By that time lots of that stuff will be frozen down or it will be too muddy to get it out of the yards. Anyway you cut this pie, those people will be living in some kind of temporary housing and driving from there to work. The reason - insurance doesn't file the claims that fast, and it takes some time for cities to get things in gear to get places to take the debris.

By-the-way, due to the tornado of 2011 there isn't a tree within 5 blocks of my house. Need I say, I don't have to worry about leaves. Up until this summer, I didn't even have to worry about the lawn.

"This is the day of wonders. The land is covered with trees like a head with hair and behind the ship the sun rises tipping the top trees with light. The sky is clear and shining as a china plate and the water playfully ruffled with wind. Every wisp of fog is gone and the air is full of the resinous smell of the trees. Seabirds are flashing above the sails golden like creatures from Heaven, but the sailors raise a few shots to keep them from the rigging."

"It must have meant something, though, that at this turn of my life I grabbed up a book. Because it was in books that I would find, for the next few years, my lovers. They were men, not boys. They were self-possessed and sardonic, with a ferocious streak in them, reserves of gloom."

-The View From Castle Rock

^What an absolutely beautiful novel. This is considered a collection of stories, but I see it as a tribute to Munro's past, told in episodic chapters. It begins in 1818, in Scotland and ends up in Ontario, during modern times. Literary writing does not get much better than this. Put your dinner down or your evening cocktail, or whatever you happen to be doing, and find a copy. You will thank me later.



^A much better cover!

SOLD! I love the quotes you chose, Mark. Your thoughts on the book have me ding it to my giant WL.

Glad you liked Murno. You've read two of my favorite authors recently. :)

Manchester, Vermont registration opens on Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 12 noon Eastern Time

Boulder, Colorado registration opens on Friday, November 22, 2013 at 12 noon Eastern Time

If you considering attending, please remember these spots go FAST! Set your cell alarm and call right at 12 ET!

Here is a lot more current info on Booktopia:

http://us1.campaign-archive1.com/?u=8333a0f98c97441e276db0914&id=5b616d26d7&...

Sounds wonderful!

Joe- LOL. I wish I had a hundred acres, in the deep woods somewhere. With a nice cabin and a good supply of books. You get the idea, right?

Benita- Our garbage pick-up is a little different in our housing complex. We have to pay for our own garbage and leave removal, by purchasing stickers. Our recycled items are picked up at no cost. Normally, we only use one sticker a week.
Thanks for the tornado information. It looks like the people in those Illinois towns have a long road back.

Mamie & Nancy- This Munro is a Must-Read!

Nancy- What are a couple of your favorite Munro's? I also have Runaway in the stacks.

Tam- Were you referring to the book or Booktopia? LOL.

Castle Rock, you guys post fast! LOL

Hmm. As you know I have read abt 10, and since many are ss collections it may take me a bit to recall favs, and even that might be somewhat dependent on when I read it (like, did I meet the author, for example = LOVE :) ).

In any case, what I really stopped over here to say is that I'm considering giving up my own thread and just living here. Seems like a nice place to be.

^Thanks to Katie for the heads-up. I snagged an ebook of The Luminaries from Ammy, for 9 bucks. I plan on reading this next month, probably around the 15th. It will be my very first ebook reading experience. Of course, I am nervous. (snickers)
Anyone want to join me?

If anyone is interested, they also were offering the Worst Hard Time for 3 bucks. It was my favorite book from a few years ago and that is a steal.

Tam- You don't like Booktopia? LOL.

Nancy- Well, thanks. I try to keep it cozy, with minimal fuss. I would still like to follow your thread. Have you posted lately.

I'll probably still be reading that next month, Mark. I just picked up a copy from the library today, but I won't get to it this week.

Ohhhh the Munro sounds wonderful Mark. Next month for sure:-)

> 241 nah. It mostly for me to keep track of my reading. Not a lot of conversation, which is fine. That is what I am here for.

Reading Double Down now.

^Our obsession has been recognized. Amen.

Morning! Back to work after a sweet day off. Book turnaround day. I just cracked the Circle for the LT G.R. Some trepidation on this one, after hearing mixed reviews. At least, it looks like it reads fast. I'll be wrapping up the terrific Citizen Vince. If you are searching for a top-notch crime novel, that could keep up with Elmore Leonard at his best, give this one a shot. And then next up on audio, is Allegiant, which has also been getting a few mixed signals, but my pal Joe liked it and that is good enough for me.

Mamie- It always nice to have someone to read along with, especially on a major chunkster.

Bonnie- I am sure you will love this one. Now, I am on a mission to get caught up with Munro.

Nancy- There is always a comfy chair here for you, with a perfect reading lamp. Hope your week is going well.

Good morning, Mark. The Munro sounds like a good one. With Allegiant, if you got caught up in Insurgent, then Allegiant should play out well for you. Those who didn't like Insurgent much may want to take a pass. Divergent seemed to be a consistent hit across the board, with Insurgent the divider. As I mentioned, her writing can get wooden in parts, but the story will carry you.

Why not just grind them up and leave them on the lawn? All that natural compost. In our yard, the leaves are 90% oak, and the accumulation, even of ground up leaves, would kill the grass beneath. They're very high in acid content, there are simply too many of them, and they do not compost well unless mixed with a lot of green. We have a half acre wooded lot where we spread them out after raking or mulching, so no plastic bags and no fees, but it's still a lot of work.

Hi Mark - feel like a stranger here, I heard about your American challenge on other threads. But won't be joining in as I've already committed myself to focus on the Middle East next year which is enough for me. I have brought Roth's The Plot against America away with me and plan to read it in the next couple of weeks. I might join you on the Mark Twain month as I do want to try The Innocents Abroad.

Excuse the grammatical errors, I'm on an iPad and it has a mind of its own.

Ummm, book talk. Yeah. :P

^ I heard on FB, that the Booktopia Vermont, sold out in six minutes. Crikey! I told you these are hot-ticket items.

And speaking of Books on the Nightstand, they had a very good podcast today about culling your bookshelves, which is something we could all relate to. Oh, the pain and the horror. Here's the link:

http://booksonthenightstand.com/

I started The Circle. So far so good, but I am less than a 100 pages in and it's still setting itself up. The only problem I see on the horizon, is, does this really need to be 500 pages? Expect reports. Allegiant is moving along too, with no complaints, in the early going.

Joe- I really enjoyed Divergent but had mixed feelings about Insurgent, mainly pacing issues and a weaker story. So far, the latest has been pretty good. At least it moves along. They are at O'Hare at the moment. LOL.

Linda- Great thoughts on the mulching issue. I wonder if other types of leaves would work better for mulching? I'll have to check.

Kerry- "feel like a stranger here". Well, my friend, there is one way to cure that problem. LOL. Good to see you! I always enjoy your book selections and your comments.
I knew the AAC, would not be for everyone. Actually, I was surprised by the eager response. So, sitting that one out is perfectly okay.

Tam- I might try that line one of these days. Oh, that's right I am married. Oh, never mind.

Maybe you could try it on your wife and see if it spices things up? :P

I'll take Castle Rock with me as it might make a good travel read....

I started The Circle and am only about 50 pages into it. I seem to not have enough time to read the last few weeks.

Wah! I missed registration for Booktopia Vt. I had to take an all day HACCP class today and was not able to get online at noon. I did sign up for the wait list this evening when I finally made it home. Booooo hoooo! LOL

I finally watched Doris Kearns Godwin, who was on the Craig Ferguson Show, earlier in the month. She is smart and engaging, with a sharp sense of humor. She was promoting her new book, The Bully Pulpit. I LOVE reading about T.R. and this one seems to be getting some good buzz too. On the list it goes.

Tam- The wife and I, have not done any role-playing in awhile. That might work.

Kath- I think you would like Castle Rock. Have you ever read Munro?

Benita- I am about a 100 pages into the Circle. Make sure, you let me know what you think, as you go along.

Heidi- Sorry you missed out on Vermont. Hopefully, you are not to far down on the waiting list. Since it sold out so fast, I would think it would be a pretty long list.

Impressive haul of reading recently mate and heartiest congratulations on already passing the 75x2.

Six minutes. That is not even sane.

I'm still working my way through The View from Castle Rock, Mark, and I'm so grateful that you turned me onto this one. She is rapidly (based on one collection!) zooming onto my favorite authors list!

Also, just so you know, you and Kerri have had this wonderful terrible influence on me. I have renewed my relationship with beer. Happy sigh. :-)

Glad you liked The View From Castle Rock, Mark. It (along with several more of her books) has been waiting patiently on my shelf for me to get to it.

230 Mark, as I said, it's a tentative list. One that I am pretty sure of is the Cather, even though I'll need to use the library copy.

If I were to do substitutions in the AAC to use more books off my shelves, I'd need to do different authors than the ones you suggested.

I think these American authors and their books are substantial enough to qualify:

Thomas Wolfe, as I accidentally managed to wind up with two copies of Look Homeward, Angel
Stephen Crane, The Red Badge of Courage.
Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
Marjorie Rawlings, The Yearling
F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tender is the Night
John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany
Stewart O'Nan (I have a bunch of his -- he's a favorite of mine)
Ray Bradbury (another favorite with multiple volumes to choose from)

But I think it's more fun to read the author most of the group is reading for the month. I don't know, what do you think?

Very glad that you liked The View from Castle Rock. I live in an area on the West Coast where Munro once lived and she described it so well. Munro's a bookstore in Victoria, B.C. that she and her first husband once owned is a wonderful bookstore. I have read many of her books and loved them all.

I got out of the loop and thought The Circle meant you were reading the creepy YA by Sara Elfgren & Mats Strandberg. I haven't read Eggers yet.

^I found my tat! I found my tat! Of course, I am really not getting one but if I did...

Sweet Thursday! The week is chugging right along.

Paul- It feels like I am always reading but the TBR pile moves like a glacier. I have some BIG books coming up too and that's going to slow things down as well. Ah, the rough & tumble life of a book lover.

Ellen- I am so glad you are enjoying Castle Rock and hopefully you can inspire a few more readers to track it down. I am still amazed how good it was.
"I have renewed my relationship with beer." Ah, our mission is accomplished.

Joanne- I am so glad I had Castle Rock on shelf. This is my second Munro and she really is a Must-Read author. Please, bump it up a few spots.

Terri- Those are all perfect American authors and ideal substitutions. And picking books off the shelf, is what it is all about. I have never read Wolfe.
I would read whatever you would like off my author list, (library copies or not) and substitute an author, that you have no desire to read.

Mary- Munro doesn't mention owning a bookstore, (how cool is that?), in Castle Rock but she does mention living in B.C. Was this with her second husband?
What were a couple of your favorites by her?

Kerry- Opinion on Eggers is very divided on LT but I have liked his books so far. How was the creepy YA?

Hi Mark, happy Thursday!!

One last workday ahead of my 3-day weekend. I'm starting my alternate political history of JFK's second term today, I think.

Maybe I will try some Munro short stories some day, but she's definitely not a must-read author for me. I have to say I tried reading one of her novels and abandoned it before I was even halfway through.

Another one of 500+ pgs that could have done with an edit? it's the first of a Swedish trilogy that is very popular there! possibly it loses a bit in translation? What is interesting is showing the blue collar communities in Sweden that the story is set in.
All those question marks & exclamations are meant to be full stops but this iPad wants otherwise...???!!!!

Hi Mark...this AAC is a monster! You need to make a thread as soon as Jim sets up the 2014 group!!

Red to Black has been a very good read, though an imperfect thriller...pace slacks too often...but the story! Woo!

I've been watching the Aussie TV show Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, from the Kerry Greenwood Phryne Fisher book series. I wasn't enamored of the books, but the TV show's just beautiful!

Richard, I though the first couple of Phyrne books were only ok but then put them aside for years and years. This second time around, I'm liking the books much more, having seen a couple of the shows.

Last night, I finished the one about murder at the Gilbert & Sullivan opera. A couple of weeks ago, I read the one where Phyrne joins the circus.

I'd like to read the books before I watch the shows.

Hiya Mark! Thanks for posting something here, and for your kind words. I so appreciate them. Trying to get a little more "normalcy" back into my life, whatever that is, and catch up at my favorite place, LT. Hope the wind isn't as freezing cold down by you as it is up here. Brrrr! Can't wait to get my winter coat back from the dry cleaners! Hang in there!

The Chicago connection for the Divergent series adds to the fun, doesn't it, Mark? I know, it made me laugh, too, when they got to O'Hare. Far fewer problems with flight delays, I'm sure.

Packing for Mars was good. She has a great sense of humor, doesn't she? Debbi got to sit and talk to her before an event at Son #1's college a couple of years ago, and said she's as fun to talk with as you'd imagine.

Pretty darn nice day out there for this time of year. I hope it's going well for you.

Lunchtime check in! My usual wifi connection has abandoned me, so I am looking for other sources. Why does everyone have to be some damn secure? I am harmless. Lol!
A very mild day out here, so no complaints on that end. A cold front moves in tomorrow, so I better enjoy it.

Linda- Sweet Thursday to you! And you have a 3 day weekend to look forward to? Yahoo!

Julia- I guess not every author is for everyone. I am seeing that on the AAC. At least you gave her a shot. That is all I ask.

Kerry- I think I will take a pass on the other Circle. I am typing on a iPad too, not always easy but I am getting used to it.

Linda, it's not strictly speaking necessary to (re-)read the books, IMO, because the adaptations are so faithful. If abbreviated.

Hi Mark- your falling leaves picture in #230 reminds me so much of my childhood. We used to rake leaves incessantly and make huge piles to dive in and play over. Then they would get burned (with the help of a drizzle of petrol) to a crisp. We used to love it as kids as if a few branches were thrown in we would cook foil wrapped potatoes or apples in there too.

Love your new tattoo ;)

Good job on grabbing the Luminaries for such a bargain price- and I agree with you on The Worst Hard Time- everyone should get it for $3 - what a bargain!

Mark, here's my revised tentative AAC list. I went with even some different authors than I mentioned in my post 260 to fit in with monthly themes we usually do. I hope they are OK.

January Willa Cather - Death Comes for the Archbishop (I've wanted to read this for some time, at local library)
February Cormac McCarthy - All the Pretty Horses (I've been wanting to read another McCarthy, at local library)
March William Faulkner substitute Dashiell Hammett - The Maltese Falcon (for Mystery March, owned)
April Toni Morrison - Beloved (I really want to read this one, at local library) and/or Jazz (owned)
May Eudora Welty substitute James Ellroy LA Noir (for May Murder & Mayhem, owned)
June Kurt Vonnegut substitute Thomas Wolfe - Look Homeward, Angel (owned)
July Mark Twain substitute Ernest Hemingway - For Whom the Bell Tolls (owned -- for over 20 years, about time I read it!)
August Philip Roth The Ghost Writer (owned)
September James Baldwin substitute Ray Bradbury - A Graveyard for Lunatics (for September Series & Sequels, owned)
October Edith Wharton substitute F. Paul Wilson - The Keep (for Halloween reading, owned)
November John Updike substitute Stewart O'Nan - A Prayer for the Dying (owned)
December Larry Watson Let Him Go (I really want to read this, e-book available through library)

All titles subject to change.

ETA Already changed another one!

Forgot to say that I'll be joining the AAC next year too, though I'm not sure if I'll choose books ahead of time or not. Will have to think about that and make lists. Yay for book lists! :)

Love your tat choice, Mark, but the big question is where would you have it placed? On your upper arm or somewhere, ahem, more private? ;)

#274 I like Terri's substitutions and may join her with a few of those as well. So far I am reading Cather, Morrison, Wharton and Watson (sounds like a legal firm!)

OK I'm officially in, Mark. Here are my picks and I tried to stay true to your choices despite some involuntary gagging:

my books for Mark's AAC 2014 are.............

Willa Cather: January - O Pioneers! (I own)
Cormac McCarthy: February - All the Pretty Horses (library)
OGG Wm. Faulkner: March - As I lay dying (I own)
Toni Morrison: April - Beloved (I own)
* Eudora Welty: May - One Writers Beginnings (library)
* Kurt Vonnegut: June - Piano Player (Kindle)
Mark Twain: July - Following the Equator (Kindle)
Philip Roth: August - The Human Stain (I own)
* James Baldwin: September - The Evidence of Things Unseen (library)
Edith Wharton: October - The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton (I own)
OGG John Updike: November - Americana: and other poems (library)
* Larry Watson: December - Montana, 1948 (library)

Legend: OGG = Oh Good Grief
* = First time author

Okay, I am home. My wife made chili, with round steak and it was bubbling away in the crockpot, so guess what I am devouring? She didn't have a chance to make cornbread, (a perfect companion) and I didn't feel like messing with it, so it's whole grain wheat toast, with a hunk of butter.

Richard- I did not overlook you, my friend. My lunch break ran out and I had to skedaddle. And yes, interest in the AAC has exploded. Honestly, I thought maybe 2 or 3, somewhat wary LT pals would join me, just because they hated to say no. I did not expect this wonderful onslaught. It looks like many of us have a hard time getting to past authors, for a first look or a revisit. This is a perfect opportunity.
Thanks for the heads-up on the Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. I have not read the books. Is this available on Netflix or just cable?

Linda- Thanks for your thoughts on the Fisher series. It definitely looks more your cuppa, than my dirty gritty one.

Laura- As you know, LT is a warm, embracing place and we take care of our own. I hope you are holding up. It was actually very mild here today. Not hat. No gloves. Happy Mark.

Joe- I am already in the 2nd half of Allegiant. It is flying on audio. So far, I prefer this one over the last. You mentioned the Chicago setting. I wish she would have done more with it. She seems to just plug in known places, without any real feel for the area. Maybe, since it takes place so far into the future, she just didn't bother.
Glad you liked Packing For Mars. Will you explore others?

Megan- I also remember playing in piles of leaves, as a kid. They have banned leaf burning here, for many years. I am not sure if it is only the urban areas, but supposedly it puts toxins in the air.
Yep, I plan on reading The Luminaries mid-month December. One of my final reads of the year.

Terri- I like your AAC picks, along with the substitutions and the thought you have given it. I like the idea of a genre-based challenge too, with the American masters: King, Chandler, Hammett, L'Amour, McMurtry, ect.
Have you ever read Wharton? She really is one of the greats.

Laura- Glad you are considering, joining us for AAC. Hopefully, that will give you an excuse to visit us more often. Win, win.

Judy- "Love your tat choice, Mark, but the big question is where would you have it placed?" Unfortunately, my arms aren't very big, so no bicep tat. Maybe a Naughty Librarian on my calf?

Lynda- I am so glad you are joining us. How is the gagging? Back under control? I love your picks! And no substitutions! Yahoo! That's my girl!
I won't be joining you on any but I have read your choices for McCarthy, Faulkner, Morrison and Watson. All terrific.
How is that Wharton? I haven't heard much about that one.

Mark, I only read The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton a few years back when it was on the Halloween reading list. They were unusual.

Should I maybe keep away from the genre writers this year and keep it literary? I hesitated to add Hammett, Ellroy, and Wilson, but I know those months I will probably be immersed in mystery, murder & mayhem, and Halloween reading respectively. I especially hesitated to replace Faulkner, as I have two of his books waiting on my TBR shelf. But he and I don't get along particularly well. Maybe I should give myself a pass from the "theme of the month" just for the AAC.

Mark, the Miss Fisher TV show is only on Netflix, at least that I'm aware of...and the books, well, I'm not a fan. There are more than a dozen, and I quit after ~5. The show OTOH is very pretty and fun.

If you can get Milwaukee's PBS station down there (I know Linda P can, but she's more North than you are), it's on Saturday nights at 8:00. Just another option from Netflix, if you get our station.

Laura, that's how we watch it (Milwaukee PBS). On FB, the show said it's hoping to be brought back for another season (3rd season?).

Mark, they're probably a bit too cozy for you. Cozy with a bit of an edge, I'd call it.

Hi Mark! Dinner sounds Delish!

I wish OUR local PBSs showed it! And Montalbano. And...

Terri- I like those genre selections, so it is up to you. I only picked 12, so that leaves a hefty bunch of worthy authors, hanging in the wind.
I was considering, featuring more of the old-school crime authors, for next year's M & M. I need an excuse to revisit the masters.
Have you thought of trying one of Wharton's more popular novels? Or is that, just not your cuppa?

RD- Miss Fisher is available on streaming, through my Roku player, via Netflix. I have added it to my favorites. I think there are 13 episodes listed. My TV viewing time has narrowed quite a bit, of late, but I will try to sample a few.

Laura- Thanks for the suggestion. Right now, I can get it streaming through Netflix, so that is a perfect way to watch it.

Linda- Thanks for the warning. LOL. "Cozy with a bit of an edge." That description helps.

Tam- Yep, dinner really hit the spot.

I'd be open to trying more of Wharton, as I gave the ghost stories 4 stars. I'm just leaning toward books I have on my shelf, except for a few library books I already have on my radar. However, I'm peeking at Project Gutenberg in another browser window, and I see a whole bunch of her books to choose from; I could download one now, and then it would be on the (virtual) shelf and eligible to come off the shelf next year . . .

Marky Mark! Come to my thread- need your assistance :) with next year's reading list.

Happy Friday, Mark! Any beer plans?

Good luck on your first ebook (The Luminaries). I hope to read it some time next year. I have it as an ebook too.

^I remember hearing about this almost 2 years ago but it looks like it is a done deal. Turning one of my favorite books, Olive Kitteridge into an HBO series, with Frances McDormand playing Olive and it also stars Bill Murray. Cool! Here is more info:

http://www.deadline.com/2013/11/bill-murray-joins-hbo-mini-olive-kitteridge/

McDormand is not who I would picture as the big, stolid Olive but she is one heck of a good actress, so I am sure she will nail it.

Happy Friday! Temps are dropping here, into the 30s for most of the day. I am chugging along with both of my books. The Circle has actually been pretty good. I haven't dropped by the Group Read thread, for fear of being corrupted but I will stop in. And Allegiant has been moving along in a light & entertaining manner.

Terri- Clearing off the cluttered shelves is one of the main objectives of AAC. Most of my picks are OTS.

Tam- I might run out of time this morning but I will stop by. Always eager to help a pal, especially in bookish things.

Kerri- The son, of a friend of mine, recently graduated from the State Police Academy, so they are having a get-together tonight at The Beer Market in Bolingbrook. I've been there before. They have a decent selection but it should be much better. I won't be staying long, since I work tomorrow.
We might be going to the Bavarian Lodge tomorrow night with friends. Fingers crossed. How about you?

Well, we're going to that Kvelertak show tonight, so will probably pop in somewhere around the Metro beforehand - Goose Island, The Gingerman. Tomorrow we have a friend's party, but may stop in at Brixie's, because they have Enjoy By and something from Surly.

It seems like something called The Beer Market should be really good at beer, right? I've never been there.

McDormand and Murray: excellent! Thanks for that news Mark.

Mark - Looking at that photo McDormand is certainly versatile as I can't see the dowdy policewoman she took to the Oscars.

Have a great weekend buddy. Mine has just about started.

I'm glad Allegiant is moving along at a fast and enjoyable clip for you, Mark. That should help the day. Yes, Packing for Mars was a good one. Now I'm reading another mystery, and I picked up a couple of the YAs discussed a while back, Sarah Plain and Tall, and My Side of the Mountain. I've also got a new Spellman Files one coming into the library (The Last Word), and a gn called The Girl Who Owned a City.

Hey Mark, I'm over the top busy, so I skipped all the unread messages to just come right here and declare: I signed up for Booktopia in Colorado! Whooo hoooo!

Just breezing through on lunch. It was drizzly and chilly earlier but the sun is trying to peek out and it's not to bad. I just read a very silly sex scene in The Circle. A turning point perhaps? I hope not.

Kerri- I have not heard the band and I have not heard of The Gingerman. I should get out more often. I wish Brixies was closer. I need an Enjoy By!

Laura- Good to see you. I might have to do a reread of Olive before the show comes on.

Paul - I have seen McDormand in many guises over the years and I am sure she could pull it off. I am sure she will nail the crotchety bits.

Joe- Allegiant is bogging down a little in the final third. A bit to much gabbing and hand-wringing. Let's get to it Ms. Roth!

Yahoo for Karen!! That is great news. I wonder if any other LTers got in. Fingers crossed. Prayers being muttered.

I registered for Boulder, and Julia did, too. Sounds like it will be a decent LT turnout!

Yay!!!!

At first, I thought that was Julia Roberts not Frances McDormand haha. I can't wait for this Mark. I wonder when it will air??

Mark - I'm loving all the AAC participation going on. My library is my TBR pile so I'll stick with your author's unless I Pearl Rule after 50 pages. ;)

Okay, I know I'm in the minority, but I thought there was barely enough content for Olive Kitteridge to be book' how on Earth are they going to make it into a film? I probably need to read the book again, because my memory of it leads me to expect watching the film to be only slightly more exciting than watching paint dry.

The AAC challenge has really caught on and you know I will be participating full on. I like Lynda's use of "OGG" to mark some of them. I think I used "sigh."
xo

Katie- That is great news! LTers at Booktopia. You can't beat it. We need to RULE that event one of these days. I wish I could attend the Boulder one. It'll be a blast.

Bonnie- I don't think it mentioned the airing dates for O.K. I might just have to reread that one in preparation.

Roberta- Have you made your AAC selections? When you do, drop by and share them with us.

Ellen- There always has to be one in the crowd! LOL. I was CRAZY about Olive. And I know this will not make you feel any better, but I think this is going to be a mini-series, not a feature film. Why, Ellen, you've lost all your color!

We are out for dinner and then meeting friends. It will not be super late for this old man because my butt is working tomorrow, but I am outta here!

I know I am due a new thread but that just might have to wait until Sunday. Sticks out tongue...but in a nice way.

Mark WTHeck? #87 LOL!

>297 msf59:/303 Yep, get your behind to bed young man! :P

I just read in the Oct. 21 edition of the New Yorker mag that Alice Munro has had 57 stories published in that magazine since 1977. Isn't that amazing?
p.s. Olive Kitteridge was one of my favourites too.

Happy Saturday! Wish me warm thoughts today. It will be the coldest day of the season so far. Mid-20s with a stiff wind. Ugh! I hope my books keep me cozy and distracted. I'll be wrapping up Allegiant and then I think I'll take a trip to Three Pines, just to see what the gang is up to.

Roberta- Sorry, my friend! LOL. My little mind can only take so much. I am so glad you are joining us.

Tam- I made it to bed before 10 but boy did that alarm roll around quick.

We were out at the College Slam last night, hearing some of the folks who have grown out of the teen poetry slam. Great group of kids pulling for each other.

I'm enjoying finding out who killed the preacher and the priest in the latest in Death, then I'll move on to a couple of YA classics. Hope you're doing okay today - it's a chilly one!

#308 Joe - My son does poetry slams, too, at the Bean Cycle in Fort Collins. One of these days I'm going to have to drive up and watch. He does pretty well and has lots of fun.

Mark - I'm going!! I'm going!! Booktopia Boulder!! Yay!! I'm more than a little excited! :)

As advertised, it is COLD! Plenty of sunshine but a steady, frigid north wind. I work until 430 but at least I am moving at a pretty good clip.

Joe- I know you like your college slams. I'll have to join you one of those days.
Looks like you have some good books going.

Hooray, for Joanne! I was hoping you got in. See those positive vibes paid off. Hope you are having a nice weekend.

Mark, I feel sorry for you having to be outside. I just went out to walk to the mailbox and there's a nasty north wind. Brrrr. I pulled out my winter coat, at long last, today too.

>309 Copperskye: Very cool, Joanne. I can recommend the experience highly. One of the best parts is the community these kids create with each other. We'd love to see your son if he ever comes to Chicago or goes to Seattle to perform. Or if we get our rear ends out to Colorado. Congrats on getting into the Boulder Booktopia! That should be stellar with all the LTers going.

>310 msf59: Right you are, Mark. Yes, we'll let you know when there's a good slam coming up. The Louder Than a Bomb finals in the spring come to mind.

Keep warm Mr. Mark! I hope you get some hot coffee or tea somewhere in there. In the winter when my dad delivered he had one of those big hot beverage cannisters that he would keep coffee or hot tea in. It started snowing today- eek!

We are heading out to have dinner & beer with friends, so I will see you good people tomorrow. I'll have a new thread up too!

Go Booktopia!!

Have a lovely Sunday, Mark! I was listening to the Iowa Hawkeyes (college football) game on the radio, and they said the temperature difference between the first game of the year (late August) and today was about 100 degrees. That's nuts! And the Hawkeyes beat Michigan, too, so that certainly warmed a few hearts if not hands and noses. :-)

The WIND....OGG.

Thanks for the update on Olive Kittridge. I was surprised to read that Frances McDormand optioned the book before it was published. Is that woman a reader? or does she have friends in the publishing business who alerted her? Either way it was a smart move for her.

I am so happy to hear all the LT'ers who are going to Boulder. I hope to add my name to the wait list in the next day or two. And this time I plan on going, come hell or high water - unless I don't get off the wait list.

I wonder if LT would sponsor a Booktopia? Maybe Ann and Michael could participate instead of planning it and that way there could be more of these around the country. That would be so much fun. Lt hired a person specifically to interact with Lt members and be a liason with libraries and publishers. Perhaps I should find and e-mail address and suggest this to her. Since she came on board Lt sponsored the first One Book - One Discussion of The Circle.

It amazes me how fast these Booktopia's are selling out. I think it shows that there is lost of public interest out there in the world of books and not enough interaction from publishers to satisfy that demand.

Funny about he chili. I am making cornbread and beans for next week as it got cold down here today. Just fine with me.

I passed the 100 page mark of The Circle. I am not reading it very fast because I have lots of other things going on right now. However, so far its not bad. Like you, I experienced some trepidation going into this.

I do hope slightly warmer winds blow your way Mark and that it doesn't hamper your subsequent reading.

**With the dreaded thread police bearing down on me, I threw up the new thread. Will this be the penultimate? Stay tuned and find out. Same Bat Time. Same Bat Channel.

Julia- It supposed to be another cold one today but since it is Sunday, I give it barely a thought. Enjoy your day.

Linda- Yes, the wind was relentless.

Benita- McDormand seems to be a literary type, plus she is married to one of the Coen brothers, who also seem to be bookish. She is was of the producers on O.K. too, so she will be deep into it.
I am just over 360 pages into the Circle. I have mixed feelings. There are so many good ideas here but some of his writing is clumsy and flat.

In re to Booktopia. There are only 80 spots and for a national event, that isn't much. I would love to see LT gradually take over or at least knock out half.

Paul- My books carry me through, my friend. What a long mundane day it would be without them.

See you on #24!!