Maggie1944's reading journal beginning in 2014

I am starting a new reading journal. I don't know when it will end.... I guess we, none of us, know when anything will end.

Oh, my.

I am reading Death Comes to the Archbishop by Willa Cather and she writes so vividly that it makes me want to fly to the southwest and soak up some sunshine.

My wonderful pacific northwest is not suffering the cold that much of the USA is suffering this January and I'm grateful, but today it is pouring rain, on and off, and it does make me want to soak up some dessert sun.

I am also "reading" The Guns of August as it is the centennial year for World War I and I want to know more than I do. I am doing Audible for the first time as my reading eyes are not working as well as I'd like them to work. Need to go see the optometrist.

*waves*
I'll be here, my dear. :o)

Starred!

Enjoy!

I am watching from the threshold!

I'm here too! I've read lots of Cather's books, but not Death comes for the archbishop. I must remedy that - it sounds perfect for a stormy winter, from what you say!

We're on a big Cather excursion here in the Green Mountains. My partner and I have been (gently) kicking ourselves for thinking she was just another American regionalist. The regionalism in such pieces as Death comes . . . or "Neighbor Rosicky" is obvious, but is almost a side-issue to the real themes, whereas in The Song of the lark the cosmopolitanism is striking -- and delightful.

I enjoy Audible very much!

I have you starred and will be back.

*shoves @pgmcc through the doorway* You're blocking traffic, mister.

I have you starred and I'll be interested in what you think of Guns of August

Well, I am having a tough time keeping my focus while listening. I've said many times that I think I have "adult onset attention deficit disorder". I think teaching gives a person ADD, if not ADHD. But I know that I've tried listening in bed, sitting in a chair, while walking on the treadmill, and while washing dishes. My mind just wanders off and then I stop myself and think, "dang, I don't know what she just said". I think when I have my hard copy at hand, I can keep track of where I am listening, and check back and skim stuff I'm missing.

I think I also need to set some time limits, and say "I'm going to really concentrate for 10 minutes". And then do it again for a few more minutes and train my monkey mind to behave itself.

That said, I'm enjoying The Guns. She is quite clever in her descriptions of the mind set of the military and political leaders without coming right out and saying "what a bunch of fools". And yet with our 20/20 hindsight we certainly can see how misguided being infatuated with Glory and The Fatherland was. Sigh.

Still is.

I think that some people's minds just don't come naturally wired for audio attentiveness. I know I've never been an auditory learner, and it isn't helped by the fact that I'm starting to develop some minor hearing loss. But I also think that our wonderfully elastic brains can be trained to improve in our weak areas. In the last couple of years I've started listening to audiobooks, and I've been finding that I'm gradually taking in more of what they're saying. I prefer to listen to nonfiction books that can be broken down into bite-sized chunks.

Thanks, Sylvia. I hadn't thought of it as "chunking down" but you are right! That is a great idea. I can't wait to try it, but I think I'll take the Kindle to bed with me tonight, and not the audio.

Have you read The Brain That Changes Itself? It's an excellent book on brain plasticity. A little overly heavy on Freudian theory, but otherwise very interesting.

Thanks for the suggestion. I think I'll pass for now, my brain has been stretched, and poked, and pulled for a few weeks just now and I need to settle in for some comfortable times. But I know that the brain is very capable of marvelous feats. Thank goodness for that, or I'd be depressed.

11: I'm one of those as well. Notetaking in college was so important for me because it turned lectures into something I could see. I've always loved to be read to--still do--but it's a totally different experience from reading a printed page, and I miss a lot. Audiobooks aren't for me until they're my only choice.

15: Yes, I really needed notes, too, but found it difficult to keep up with the lecture. My brain and hand couldn't keep up with the professors' words. Textbooks were my lifeline.

I was an excellent note take in college and occasionally am sad to learn I am not as good as I think I was "back in the day". But, yes, I think the reason I was good at note taking was because I needed to have the experience of writing the information, and being able to see the information, before I could feel like I was learning it. Listening is pleasing however it does kind of go in one ear, and out the other. I'd not thought of that in evaluating if I want to do audio.

I will continue to try to focus and get more out of it.

I find it easier to listen to audio books if I have a long drive, and I know the directions. If I ever veer from the usual path and really think about where I'm going, I have to stop listening. I can listen in the morning when I'm ready for work and when washing dishes. Those are my usual times.

Some books I have found were much easier to listen to than read. I had a difficult time reading A Confederacy of Dunces, but I hated to stop listening when I tried it as an audio book. On the other hand, a bad or mediocre narrator can kill an audio book.

Like GeorgiaDawn, I listen on my commute to and from work. Some books I can't do the audio though. I couldn't on Ivan Doig's Dancing at the Rascal Fair, because of the heavy Scots accent, and I recently quit trying on a Jasper Fjorde book, too. Too many details that I would be able to handle if I were reading it slowly from the page, but they skipped by while it was being read to me.

Cindy, and MrsLee, I think I need to find just the right time. And The Guns of August may just not be the right book. Maybe I need to listen to the light fiction genre and save the history tomes for sitting in a comfy chair, with a Kindle, or a big book on a TV tray. With a blanket on my lap. (Ha ha ha... that's what I'm doing right now with the computer....TV tray, blanket on my lap...it is cold today, here)

I'll be here too Maggie. I've been thinking about reading The Guns of August this year too. Right now I'm reading The Return of the Soldier and am really enjoying it.

Hi Maggie. *waves*

I tend to listen to lighter stuff, and save the more involved stuff for eyeball reading, otherwise I'm constantly rewinding because I've missed something. I find I prefer listening to cozy mysteries, young adult or kids novels, and Terry Pratchett, but I've been branching out to some longer, heavier fare. Heh. Maybe I'm learning to be a better listener.

Katherine, and Sandragon! My Canadian buddies. How great to see you. I think I neglected my Dragon thread last year and I need to pay more attention in 2014! Happy New Year.

I am within two weeks of being in my old house and getting to the unpacking phase of this big life transition. My really big challenge is going to be settling into this house without buying a bunch of stuff I'll have to get rid of when, and if, I am able to move into the retirement place. This morning my first thought is Oh, No! because my RA is flaring up in my right shoulder. It has been a long time since I've had the painful inflammation in my shoulder. Damn!

I remember that photo! Beautiful.
I hope your RA eases up soon. Sounds awful :o(

This morning the shoulder is decidedly less ouchy. I think RA responds to what I eat but frustratingly I do not know what foods trigger it, and which ones are safe to eat with no inflammatory response. Need to do more experimenting.

Thanks for you good wishes.

I meant for the photograph to post here without having to follow a link but have not have time to puzzle it out.

Thanks to LunaticDruid for help with posting the picture.

Happy to be of assistance :) Looking forward to more of your pictures!

I finished reading Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather. She writes descriptions of landscapes in a way which makes me long to be there; and grieve for the loss of the wild landscapes which used to be the West of the United States. I am just old enough that I remember a time when we could walk into the mountains and not meet any one else there. She describes just such a time for the southwest part of the USA and I am sad for the passing of that landscape.

The "story" she tells is of the lives of a couple of Catholic priests who were friends and who had come to Santa Fe together from France. She sketches their learning the ways of the Mexican people who lived there before they came, and the ways of the native peoples who had lived there before the Mexicans, or the French, or the Americans came. Her sketches are barely sewn together with the lives of these priests and this style was not much to my liking. I am fond of books which tell a story however I will also admit I loved her descriptions and the end of the book (the last 5% according to my Kindle) was a gift of story telling. I just wish I'd be caught up in the story before then.

31 - Sigh. I will most definitely have to read that book. It might possibly even be on my shelves or in my Kindle now, but January is too full of other reading to begin it.

I am going to start reading Maisie Dobbs now for the World War I as a part of the World War I group, commemorating that great (huge) war.

Tonight, I will find out what my real face to face book group will be reading in these coming months.

I liked Maisie Dobbs a lot. The characters are complex, and aspects of the war and its aftermath were raised that I hadn't been aware of before.

* Waving, trying to reach around or above Peter and all these others *

Hi, Jim, I see you

Sylvia, good to know. I have only read a few words so far... but it seemed like I was going to like it.

33, 34> Oh, yes. Maisie Dobbs was good.

The Guns of August is terrific, but as with all Military History kinda tedious. For more of a 'you are there' perspective try To the Last Man by Jeff Shaara or War Story by Derek Robinson. (available in hardcover from KCLS)

Books read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop
2. Maisie Dobbs

A delightful, well written book which sadly suffers somewhat from so many novels having been written and movies having been made about both WW I and WW II. The jolt that The Great War dealt Great Britain has also been treated by many authors and writers, the story is told over and over. The end of the previous era with its upstairs/downstairs drama has provided many humane stories. And surely Maisie Dobbs is one.

Ms Winspear write a taut novel with realism mixed with romanticism in a way which makes you love the characters and their story, and you pray they survive the war without too much damage, but of course their lives are totally changed; and the mystery Maisie Dobbs solves is the mystery of how war ravages people and turns good folk into someone else. I recommend this book to lovers of romance, and of historic fiction.

Oh, I am giving it four stars.

Hmm, I think another one to add to the list. :) It sounds like a wonderful read.

I haven't read any more of the Maisie Dobbs books, because I felt like it was complete enough in itself. I'm reluctant to go farther in case the series drags on, or the characters are taken in directions I don't like.

I have heard that the follow up books are, in fact, better and more fun to read.

Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz


The higher of these two numbers below indicates which side of your brain has dominance in your life. Realising your right brain/left brain tendancy will help you interact with and to understand others.

Left Brain Dominance: (4) Right Brain Dominance: (6)

Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz

Seems to indicate I am moderately creative, and not very logical, or rational. Yup. Neither very dominate. Yup.

Mine was the opposite: 7 left, and 4 right. I guess I'm moderately logical, and not very creative. Putting us together should make a perfect whole. :)

Hmm, I got 12 for Left brain and 9 for Right brain. I didn't really expect these results - I've always preferred English and the arts over math and science.

Heh, I'm 8/8.

I got 11 for left and 10 for right.

Good luck today, Karen!

Jeesh, I got 8-8. Guess I'm evenly divided.

Game On!

9 left/3 right

However, I wish they had an option "I don't know" because several of the questions left me clueless.

Yes, I frequently feel as if these "quizzes" are too stupid in asking either/or questions!

THE SEAHAWKS WON THEIR VERY HARD FOUGHT GAME! WOO HOO! THEY ARE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL.

OK, I really only care enough for one little yelling announcement here. No more than that.

Now, time for Downton Abbey. Bye

Book #3 for 2014: Stardust by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess A graphic novel for adults, not looking like a comic book, it has delightful illustrations and a good story. I love Gaiman's ability to tell a "fairy tale" with freshness and intelligence and humor. I liked this book and would recommend it to anyone who likes a little fantasy.

#53 @maggie1944, we watched the film of Stardust at the weekend. It is very funny. A dark fairy tale.

Loved Robert Deniro in Stardust. That character was even more entertaining on film than in the book.

MrsLee you must read Death Comes for the Archbishop.

Hey maggie, do you think you'll read more now that you're home again?

Yes, I noticed yesterday that I actually had room (time-wize) to get captured by a book. I set out to read 40 pages a day for the book group meeting on Monday, in Redwall, but I was captivated and read over 150 pages! Yay!

I've always wanted to read those. Do you think you'll keep going?

Maybe.... I have several series going right now.... so .... why not another?

I enjoyed the Redwall books I read, about two. I think I could read one every long now and then. Mostly they make me hungry.

Willa Cather is a marvelous read. I enjoy her short stories more than her novels, although O, Pioneer was excellent.

Book 4 completed: Redwall I loved it. I liked its whimsey and its ability to tell a story of medieval warfare without the blood and gore of real peasants, knights, and princes having to die.

Book 5 for the year is Cinder and I'll say I enjoyed it. Delightful romp through a retold fairy tale, now set in an alternate world with familiar characters redrawn in new colors, and new levels of evil, naiveté, age and youth. New definitions of what it means to be human, what sacrifice might look like in a different world and a new telling of the old story that the course of true love never running smoothly. Some of the teenage angst and doubts were all too familiar and not redrawn as was the rest of the novel, but perhaps that is the price one pays when reading young adult books. I'll give it a 3.5 set of stars and recommend it to those who like YA, and to those who are young.

#61 - maggie1944. I remember being pleasantly surprised at Redwall. It's a children's book, I gather, but I liked how they didn't "clean it up". It told the tale as it should be. The villain was evil - he hurt his own men. People (or animals) died. Things didn't always work out for the hero - but good triumphed in the end.

Side note: My husband and I tried to watch the 80s cartoon based on the book. I spent the first 3 episodes going "no, that's wrong. And that's wrong...and that's not like the book at all" and was subsequently banned from watching it with him.

oh, good. I'm glad to know the TV shows are not worth digging up.

I agree with your assessment of the book. Liked it, but not enough I don't think to carry on with the series, as many youngsters do. Do you remember discovering an author, or a series, that you loved as a kid. Heaven!

#63. Oh, yes! Although, looking back, I think I had rather questionable taste. I was obsessed with Laura Ingalls Wilder. My mother was a seamstress and I insisted all my dress be made of calico "just like Laura". My other favorite authors were along those lines, even though they were no where as good. You know, lots of pioneers and go West and fight the Indians sort of books.

But then, my childhood reading was strange. My parents were rather lax regarding what I read, which was odd, considering how strict they were with my TV viewing. Saturday Morning Cartoons were out because they would "give me bad ideas" but I was plowing through James Micheners's Centennial at 11.

Sadly, it wasn't until High School that I discovered Science Fiction and Fantasy. Anne McCaffrey's Dragonsong was in my Freshman English Text book, and I remember reading it with an avid wonder.

What were your favorite childhood authors?

Ah, me. Well, yes I think questionable taste is a hallmark of youth. I loved Walter Farley and all the Black Stallion books. Before that, it was Freddy the Pig. They were very funny. Then at age 8 I was sent to spend the summer with some family friends, on a ranch in Idaho, who had a large bookcase full of Book-of-the-Month club historical fiction. I began to inhale them. Don't remember too many titles or authors but oh, my, I loved reading about the kinds and queens, and the princes in the tower, and so forth. Thomas B. Costain (not spelled correctly, I'm sure). I went on to read Michener, too. I remember sitting on the front porch in summer having a root beer float and reading Hawaii.

As a teacher I began to discover some of the series that so many others loved. Where the Red Fern Grows delighted me. And of course the McCaffrey books were a revelation, and then we went on to Dune. And so on and so forth. Wouldn't it be fun if we had started a reading journal at age 8 or so and kept it until late adulthood. We could have many a good chuckle.

I enjoyed Cinder and will probably continue with the rest of the books.

I tried Redwall but couldn't get into it.

I am sorting through the books in my second bedroom "library". I love the space, and I hope to get all the books in some sort of order within a couple of days. There are still boxes to be unpacked with nonlibrary type stuff and I need to get that done, too. I'm stressing myself a bit today, but it will work out.

I also have 4 ER books to read and review. First I have to find them. Every journey begins with the first step so I wrote down the titles of the 4 books and I'm going to go look for them. I am pretty sure I have 3 of the 4, may still be waiting on one of them.

I've been enjoying sitting in my reading chair, under the reading lamp, in my "library". It is so easy to hold focus and read the more challenging stuff such as my Faulkner "Light in August".

Ahhh, someday I'll have a reading chair. (I usually end up sharing the loveseat with a dog.) Actually, I'd love a pair of them by the fireplace, but my husband's roll top desk is hogging a lot of space there.

I'm so happy for you that you're back in your home, maggie. :o)

Thanks, clam. Even though there are still tens of boxes to unpack; and no where to put all my stuff; I am a happy girl. It feels very comfortable here. It was a good choice to sell the house and move back here. More friends, closer to Seattle, etc. etc.

It sounds so nice and cozy. I'm glad you're getting settled in.

Someday I want a proper "reading place", with a comfy chair, good light, and NO TV! Different spots in my house can provide one or two of those criteria, but no place has all three.

Yes, it is just about perfect. The only distraction from reading is the chore of organizing and shelving the books just so! I'll get that done, too, no doubt. It even has a space heater so as the evening progresses and the rest of the house cools, with central heating turned off for the night, then I can turn on the space heater and the doggies and I will be snug as bugs in a big ole rug!

So I'm catching up my list

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)

I've heard the movie was not impressing people but the book was just fine with me. I love history especially when we are talking about individual experiences. This book did a good job of following several men as they wandered through Europe during the last days of WWII and the first days of the post-war period, hunting for the caches of European Art which had been stolen by the Nazis from art museums and individual collectors through out the countries the Nazis overran. I definitely come away with a strong impression that the American troops and leaders were very respectful of the art, and made huge efforts to not damage things, and to return items to the correct owners.

Sadly, we all know there continues to be art pieces which are in museums and not returned to the private individuals who owned these piece before the war. In some cases the legitimate owners are all dead. In other cases, there are museums which have not made much effort to find the rightful owners. But nonetheless, the story was very interesting and I ended up wondering if I should buy the hard book as there might be some good pictures and maps. I'll have to look for it in the book stores.

Almost finished with Scarlet and have been enjoying it a great deal.

-73 - How did you like Cinder? I've heard good things, but never picked it up. And what about Stardust? Yea or Nay?

I enjoyed both. Stardust is a graphic novel but still was of adult interest, not a comic book for adolescent boys and girls. Cinder is a sci fi reworking of Cinderella. Not too heavy on the science part, it puts its emphasis on the technology we are all getting used to: artificial hips, and iPhones are stars in this book although they are not called that, and they might be a different part of the body.

Any way. Don't like to tell the story. But yes, I did enjoy them both, and I am now enjoying Scarlet which is the second in the trilogy started by Cinder.

deleted

You know that Stardust is also a full-text novel, right? Not just a graphic novel. See http://www.amazon.com/Stardust-Gift-Neil-Gaiman/dp/0062200399/

Nope, did not know. Thanks.

btw, Bill, I have lots of boxes, but they will be getting pretty damp soon if we don't figure out a way for you to get them absent our regular meeting. Do you want to come over to my place in Bothell and pick them up? Send me a PM, and I'll send you directions, and phone number, etc.

>76 maggie1944: I mean to pick up Cinder the next time I see it in the Used Bookstore. I expect to see it soon, as it's been out a while. Thank you!

Umm, does the graphic novel version of Stardust contain the entirety of the text that the book version does?

81 - Yup. I think of it more as an illustrated version rather than a graphic novel.

We had a lovely Meet-Up at Elliott Bay Book Company with Joe (jnwelch), Debbi (walklover), Mr. Jessie, Ellen (EBT1002) and yours truly. Benny and Greta Garbo were happy to meet everyone and I think from the laughter I'd say the feeling was held by all.

Book haul: Behind the Beautiful forevers, Kafka on the Shore and Blonde: A Novel. Can I just say that having been here and reading threads made shopping for books so much easier. I know for a fact that I have three excellent books and I picked two of them up from a sale table. It is so easy in a book store to lose control and spend oodles of money, well, this time there was some money spent but I know I got some good books!

Then it was out to dinner and a very contented night's sleep!

I am becoming a great fan of Murakami and Kafka on the Shore is likely to be my next Murakami read.
That looks like a nice haul. Enjoy working your way through the books.

Peter, there are a bunch of folks in the 75 Books group who have been praising Murakami and I am excited to try one of his books. It may be a while, though, I need to read Blonde: A Novel first for my book group's next meeting in the middle of April. Oh, boy, time does fly.

Thanks for stopping by and I appreciate your telling me of your appreciation of Murakami.

Ah, maggie. You're bringing back such fond memories! Such a lovely bookstore...such a beautiful city...such delicious seafood...such delightful company!

I must return someday.

I was just thinking that, MerryMary.

That was the Meet-Up to remember! I loved having the chance to "host" such good LT friends in Seattle. Ivar's and his Clam coffee cups! I'd love it if we could get another one put together.

MerryMary, you know I've moved back into that little home I had in Bothell. And the room we used for your bedroom is now my library/reading room! So cool!

Sandragon, I'm thinking of selling my Worldmark points, maybe to my Niece, and then I'll have to find another way to visit your fair city without that great fun place. But I am finding I am more able to fund vacations when I want them, and I don't always want to go where Worldmark has gone.

Thanks, both of you, for stopping by.

Finished "reading" (listening to) Cress last night. A delightful little series. I liked it, but I confess at some point I get a little tired of reading YA books where everyone is either bright, and chirpy, or evil evil evil. I like books where the opponents are both somewhat believable and not cartoonish characters. I found the main characters in the series to be quite fun, not perfect, with some flaws, and yet growing and learning; however, oh my, the bad guys were so unsparingly, totally, evil. Not growing, not learning, no motivation other than the pure unadulterated exercise of power.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer

I feel as if the reading this first quarter of the year has been very "light" and I account for this by reminding myself that my eyes were not being the most efficient and helpful. Now, new reading glasses should help change this!

Good luck with the new reading glasses. I am sure you are correct in believing that using different glasses will improve the quality of the material you are reading. ;-)

Thanks, Peter. I hope you and I are right about this. My next book is huge! Blonde: A Novel by Joyce Carol Oates is the next book for the book group and the meeting will be in early April.

Now I need to practice my newly renewed skill in posting my photographs. This picture is one I took while in Hawaii this past December.

Lovely picture. I love close ups of flowers.

Hawaii must be beautiful. It is one of the handful of places I would love to visit.

Beautiful shot, Maggie!

Thank you. I like it, too.

I've been to Hawaii a couple of times and would go back in a heartbeat. The picture is evocative of such good memories. Thanks for sharing, maggie.

So pretty, I leaned toward the screen to smell it, but no luck. :)

Mary, and Lee, wouldn't it be wonderful to have a great LT Hawaiian Meet-up. Trouble is with hotels and such being booked we'd have to plan it five years from now....

Thanks for stopping by, and I'll try to post a few more Hawaiian shots to work our way out of northern hemisphere lingering winter woes.

Greta Garbo loves to stare out windows. This is at our former home. Now, she has a lovely yard with trees and a wooden fence, and there are some squirrels who hang around. She loves watching for them.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon

I need to write a review of Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon, c. 2011

I am partial to biographies, and history, and historical fiction. I love peeking into others' lives. And this, of course, was just up my alley. The writing was good enough that it did not distract but was not lovely, or wonderful. The Countess who wrote the book did a fair amount of research, and of course, it was her family. She was not overly prejudiced in favor of the family but she also could not be described as having written a critical book.

The book runs from abut 1895 to 1925 covering Edwardian era, World War I, and early recovery from the war. It is based in the family who inhabits Highclere Castle which is the "castle" pictured in the TV show, Downton Abbey. It means to tell both the story of upstairs and of downstairs, but truthfully it was about The Family. And more than any one, it was about Lady Almina. And I do agree she was a fascinating woman, worthy of having had a book written about her.

I enjoyed the fact that many of the story threads in Downton Abbey do indeed have their foundation in the stories in this family. None of the TV characters can be said to be based on real people, but there are composites, no doubt.

I do recommend it to those who like history, and biography, and the TV show. It is a bit too pedestrian to recommend it to just everyone.

I quite agree! Pedestrian is exactly the word to describe Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey. I enjoyed it as a quick read, but it's been sitting in a box upstairs as I ponder whether or not to just send it on to Goodwill. It doesn't really seem like something I'll read a second time...

Yes, Goodwill, or a friend who loves Downton Abbey, the TV show. I do think there's some good history in it.

Second time? nope, not me either.

> 99 & >100 jillmwo: - Ack. It's on my TBR pile. My husband (who reads endless tomes on postal history for fun) couldn't make it through Lady Almina. :o(

That is funny. It was not that dry! but perhaps would appeal more to women. Her life was quite taken with doing as she must as a woman of her class and position.

That's probably it. Some men just can't deal with things of that nature for 100s of pages. Oh, but give them some postal history and they're good to go. ;o)

I am one of those weird folks who can read the history of almost anything and I'm interested. Probably not car engine history, but almost everything.

I'm loving Guns of August.

>102 clamairy: Has your husband read Masters of the Post?

http://www.amazon.com/Masters-Post-Authorized-History-Royal/dp/1846143241

>106 pgmcc: - No he has not. Up until now he's confined himself to US Postal History. I'll see if he's interested in this one. Thanks, @pgmcc. :o)

>107 clamairy: Not strictly postal history, but has he read Charles Bokowski's Post Office?

ETA: It is not the most politically correct book I've read but it was pretty honest.

Nope. I haven't either. I'll keep an eye out for it.

ARE there endless tomes of postal history?! Being married to a postal clerk, you would think I would know, but maybe it is a subject he avoids. :)

*I just asked him, he said, "I could write a book..."

a quotation from Blonde: A Novel - "There was a move in which Aunt Jess and Uncle Clive were married and Norma Jean would be there little girl. But this was not that movie."

I remember feeling as if I could be living in a movie, escaping from the non-that movie which surrounded me. How many of us felt misplaced in our family life when we were young?

Another quotation for guiding my day -

>112 maggie1944: Good one

Here's another one for me to remember!

Written Saturday, April 19th in the evening: Well, I am home after a day at Seattle Center and the Pacific Science Center with Alex, my oldest of the the two great nephews. Our seeing the film about the invasion on Normandy beaches was great! The relationship between U.S. troops on two beaches, the Canadians on another, and the Brits on two more was wonderfully illustrated and the intended battle lines were clear and fascinating. Three dimensional depiction of airplanes dropping bombs on trains was very believable. The kid loved it, and so did I.

We also walked through the exhibit of Spy paraphernalia, U.S. and U.S.S.R., which included the Enigma machine, and ice pick that was used to murder Trotsky, and Frances Gary Power's flight suit. Also, Wild Bill Donovan's boots, and forged German visa. Such good history but I was sad that there were so many people and it would have taken forever to read all the captions on all the displays. They had put together a room with laser beams shooting across it and challenged the kids to see if they could get through without being hit. Alex did great! Got on his belly and wiggled his way through. I on the other hand am not the stuff of which the French Underground was made: I walked straight through the laser beams - dead am I. At which point I was tired and worried the dogs had been cooped up in my house long enough.

Oh, I got carried away... sorry. So, now, 6:09 pm, its time to crack open another book.

I spent 90 minutes finishing The Wives of Los Alamos.

Next up: The Steady Running of the Hour by Justin Go

I don't think I would have gotten down on the floor and tried to wriggle past the laser beans, either! But it sounds as if you had a great time with Alex!

>115 maggie1944: The relationship between U.S. troops on two beaches, the Canadians on another, and the Brits on two more was wonderfully illustrated
We visited the Normandy beaches in 2009. We stayed in the area about four days with the intention of visiting a number of the beaches, museums and cemeteries. As it happened we visited one beach and found the Canadian war museum there. We found that to be enough. After seeing the history there and reading the stories of the events in the area we didn't want to go through the same again.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl

I thought The Wives of Los Alamos to be interesting; kind of a thought experiment. The author used a very unusual style which in the end was off-putting for me although I can see where some readers might really like it. It was interesting to think about what it must have been like, in the 1940s, to be wives of men working on a Top Top Top Secret and to be not allowed to ask questions, or know anything.

The Steady Running of the Hour was, for me, two books. The first set during World War I was very good. I felt the author did a superior job of describing what that war must have been like for the average person fighting in it - horrific, soul killing, pointless, and deadly. The second set during an epic assault on Mt. Everest - and although I thought it was well written and interesting it did not captivate me and seemed strangely attached to the earlier story.

I don't know if I can write my review of Gone Girl yet. I did not like the book. I had to force myself to read it. It was convoluted and I guess I can say I admire the author's ability to write a very complicated book, and relationships inside of marriages are, as far as I can judge, very complicated.

Now I'm off to read an Alan Furst novel. Whippeeeeee!

Enjoy!

Have a good time with Alan Furst, Karen. Sounds like you're ready for some high quality, straightforward storytelling after those reads that were a bit unsatisfying for one reason or another.

I did not like Gone Girl either. I hated both main characters. They were not very good people. And I felt the man kept making really stupid choices.

I guess I am kind of a pollyanna but I did not think the two characters in Gone Girl were believable. I don't think people can spend as much time obsessing as she did (although if she had a mental illness perhaps it could have been possible) and yes, he did make some unbelievably stupid choices. I think the book, in the end, was an exercise in how to write a complicated mystery and keep the readers guessing. To me that is not enough of a goal. I want the books I read to do more than "entertain" usually. Even fantasy and sci fi books can have characters who are believable.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst

An actor, born in Vienna, living and working in Hollywood is sent to Paris to act in a film just before World War II. Paris is filled with intrigue, foreboding, corruption and espionage. Alan Furst is excellent at putting ordinary people down in the middle of those extraordinary times and showing how even regular people can become heroes or villains. And to my reading, the story is very believable as if Furst had found diaries, letters, or other documents which sketched out the characters and the action and he merely wrote the story. But I am sure he has done much more than that.

It helped my enjoyment of this book that I love Paris as much as Furst does although he has the advantage of having lived there; my appreciation of Paris is mostly imaginary and based on reading many historical fiction books about French history pre-revolution. I did enjoy walking with Furst through some of the streets I've visited.

I definitely recommend Furst's books to any one who enjoys a bit of mystery set in history.

So, Book #14 is Batwoman: Hydrology, Volume I. Ah, don't quite know what to say. Art work is remarkable. So many different perspectives on one fight and in the end I'm not sure who is fighting who, much less who is winning. The City of Gotham is overrun with so many gangs that it is hard to know if there are any good guys and gals any where. And I didn't even know that Gotham had a waterfront, and boathouses. Boy, live long enough and you see everything.

Book # 15 is The Night Bookmobile. A very interesting concept of a bookmobile encountered while wandering about in the very early morning hours, and discovering that it contains all the books ever read. Unfortunately, that very promising beginning does not deliver much more. The illustrations are OK, a bit stark, and certainly make the book look as if it were suitable for children but it is not a children's book.

I'm glad to have it. It will look good on my shelf next to The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore - a much superior and happier book about loving books. It I was to make a recommendation I'd say read the latter, not the former.

ETA: gave it 2 stars

Sounds right to me, Karen. I was a bit disappointed by The Night Bookmobile, particularly the ending. Her Raven Girl sounds like it may be better.

Thanks, Joe. I am always a little concerned when I write a not wonderful book comment, concerned that I am the only plebeian who did not understand the book, the only galumph who did not have the brains to "get it." ha ha ha

I'm reading and loving I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and loving it. Angelou's voice is so powerful.

I am sorry I struggled so to find time to read this delightful small book. Ms Angelou took me back to much of my life as a young adult working in The Civil Rights Movement. It was all in capital letters in those days.

She does a master's job of describing her young life among her extended family in Arkansas, Missouri, and California. Her experience of living in turn with her grandmother and uncle, her mother, and her father was not unusual for American blacks in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. Her description of learning how black people are treated differently than white people reminds me of all the indignation young white college kids felt in the 1960s when learning of these realities from afar. The book was for me a very personal visit to an earlier age and I enjoyed it.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

I really loved this book. It was one of those which called me from the bedside table all through the day: come back, and read; come back and read! It is an accounting of the rowing crew of young men from the University of Washington who went to the Olympics in 1936 and against incredible disadvantages, some engineered by the Nazi men on the Olympic course, won the gold metal for an 8 man crew with a coxswain. This book appealed to me because it was filled with wonderful Seattle history, some stories I heard as a kid growing up in Seattle. And finally it pleased me because it is an excellent epic adventure of these young men and their coaches. A travel into unknown territory, overcoming huge challenges, meeting monsters and prevailing, this story which really belongs with the best of epic hero tales. One more thing: the author knows his craft very well and built the tension and joy of watching races right into the pages, time after time, and even though the reader knows the end of the story it is a book which demands to be read to the end of the race. Five Stars from me, and a hearty recommendation to all readers who love history, and sport, and epic tales.

That does sound like a delightful book, maggie. Glad you found it to read!

>128 maggie1944: One of my favorites! I really should reread it, too. (Or possibly pick up something else of hers.)

I think I am going to read more Angelou, for sure.

*lurking*

I have Cinder in that stack of books right over there. *pointing* I should move it closer to the top of the stack.

Oh, gosh, I'm afraid I don't do as well as I'd like at keeping up with two threads. I've been neglectful. I am sorry.

I just finished meeting #5 in the count down.... I think. Let's see: 1 more in July, 2 in August, and 2 in September. Whoops. I guess I finished #6. I have five more to go. Tonight's meeting was relatively pleasant. One of the worst pains in the b*** was absent. And another of the bad Pains was relatively nicer than usual.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The 8:55 book is an author attempting to follow, and recreate, Agatha Christie's travels in the Near East: the Balkans, Turkey and Iraq. I liked it well enough to finish it as it is my Book Group's book for July meeting; however, I think the author inserted himself, his life, and his interests far too often. His accounting of Agatha Christie's life was adequate and did not provide me with anything I'd not already learned. I think I've read her autobiography, and perhaps a biography also. He did not add anything. And sadly, he did not add anything much about the modern day realities of the countries he traveled. So, my final judgment was that it was a little like eating hors d'oeuvres - a little of this, a little of that and it left me longing for a real meal.

On the other hand, The Language of Flowers was delightful. It was a bit hard for me to get into but I think that is more the fault of my life, and not the fault of the book. I was often confused but that could be caused by my only reading a page or two at each sitting. Once I got into the story I loved it. It is a basic story of a young woman who is moved from pillar to post, one foster home after another, and her angry way of getting kicked out of each place. She does have huge anger, justifiably so, and it is poorly controlled as would be normal for teenager, and young adult. She also has a gift with flowers and stumbles into a part time job in a florist shop. The book is delightful in that it tells of the language of flowers which was popular in Victorian days and which she uses to begin to build relationships which might, just might, last; that is, if she doesn't destroy them with her anger, and worthlessness.
I do recommend this book strongly. It tells a common story but in a very charming and unique way.

I like your ongoing list. I'm going to borrow (steal) your idea.

Hi, GD, I'm glad you think it is a good idea. I like being able to easily see how many books I've read. I'm no way near 75, or even 50, but I certainly am reading more than I did before I joined up with the 75 Books Challenge. I like it!

You are welcome to steal it!

I like see them all at a glance rather having to search. I did this a couple of years ago. I'm not sure why I stopped!

I'm not close to the 75, either. I'm watching too much Netflix!

I have the same problem...

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker

A remarkable small novel set during World War I in England, set in a "mental" hospital where troops are sent after suffering from "battle fatigue", or as we might call it now - Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. The main soldier being "treated" is there because he has become strongly Anti-War and a friend pulled strings to have him "treated" for such an unusual stance rather than suffer Court Martial. There is a good depiction of the mind set in England during the war, and how totally unusual it would be to become Anti-War and remain an officer and a gentleman. The novel also explores homosexuality and poetry. The doctor providing the treatments is also drawn sympathetically, and his views on the War and all the rest are explored equally as are those of the other characters.

A remarkable novel in that it deals with so much in so few pages. Deep. Thought provoking. Well written.

Recommended.

I'll put that one on my list.

Book 2: The Eye in the Door

Barker is exploring the effects of world war's battles, trenches, and inhumane conditions on the soldiers who came back to England to rest and recover from "battle fatigue". The books do not have a plot to drive from one chapter to another, just more and more about several characters. Issues of homosexuality and pacifism are identified as major barriers to acceptance of some of these soldiers. Evidently, England did have a wave of anti-homosexual hysteria during the war, and these "nancy" men were blamed, in part, for the poor progress of the war. England did, after all, expect to just march over there and sent the enemy running in short order, and as we know, that did not happen. Scapegoating is not a surprising reaction to this frustration.

I am liking the books because I have a life-long fascination with psychology and why people do what they do; the fact that these men were treated by a psychiatrist steeped in Freudian methodology makes some of the explanations interesting from a historical point of view. I appreciate the fact that Barker does not spare her psychiatrist from analysis also. He has his neurosis and it is occasionally analyzed and his resistance is noted. Barker has succeeded in making her characters, even the hard to love ones, attractive to the reader, in my case. I am rooting for them all to somehow survive this cataclysm, if not whole, at least still able to function and find some joy in living. It was a hard time to continue to see value in living, and this despair certainly makes recovery from "battle fatigue" a daunting journey.

I am interested to see what book 3 has to add.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker

I believe these three books by Pat Barker are sometimes published together as one book, and I certainly felt that they were, one book. Not a trilogy. Don't really know what an official, academic, dictionary definition of trilogy is so, truth be told, I do not know whether to call them trilogy, or the work "a book".

I liked all three. Thought the work gave a very fresh look at World War I and how the homosexual and pacifist, and anti-war folks were seen. Several of the main characters followed by the book through war experiences, being unfit for duty due to "shell shock" or "battle fatigue", being treated; and living long enough and successfully enough to be sent back to war. Oh, my, so brutal. So totally unnecessary.

I definitely recommend all three to those readers who are using the World War's Centennial to explore the literature exploring that "Great" War which was supposed to end all wars, being so unbelievably brutal, and pointless. Unfortunately, as we all know, the seeds for World War II were being sown.

Completed reading of The World Inside by Robert Silverberg. Interesting. Premise is the opposite of the "population explosion theory" of the 1960s and 1970s when people feared the planet would become over populated, and there would be mass starvation. This book postulates that if you create high density centers, and make them vertical, the majority of the earth's land could be dedicated to agriculture, and therefore everyone could eat.

One description of how wonderful such a world could be uses a description of the past as a contrast, "He understands the awful chaos of the past. The terrifying freedoms; the hideous necessity of making choices. The insecurity. The confusion. The lack of plan. The formlessness of contexts."

Of course, the author has the story peppered with a few rebels who die in pursuit of this awful freedom of the past.

The book is dated, for sure; but still the world building is moderately interesting and I found a couple of characters who I could care about. Some of the values being touted in the 1960s and 1970s certainly do show up in this author's depiction of a future "utopia"; the sexual life is quite "free". And the description of a music concert was funny as a parody of a rock concert.

I would only recommend this book to people who love Science Fiction and who wouldn't mind some of the more dated elements.

>145 maggie1944: Interesting commentary on The World Inside. I have enjoyed a couple of Silverberg's pieces. He has been quite prolific.

The idea of the cities being vertical to accommodate agriculture is interesting. Your comments reminded me of Ken MacLeod's book, Night Sessions, in which there are high-rise farms, a concept that some countries are experimenting with. Basically it is a skyscraper with grass and crops grown on the various levels and livestock grazing on different levels.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin

Delightful. A Quick and Entertaining read. I was about 25 when the 1970s started, and living in Seattle. I watched San Francisco from afar, although not too far afar. I was running around people people a little bit like the characters of this lovely series. And we likewise were hunting for love, meaning, and a place to belong. I read t his book then, and now in re-reading it I am charmed all over again. Maupin has a wonderful knack for picking up the very phrases, and expressions of that time. I can't recommend this highly enough.

What did you think of the Regeneration series? Those books have stayed with me over the years, so many haunting images.

I liked it. Such good writing! In just a few pages, the author painted a panorama of action and drama. I especially appreciated the treatment of issues, events, and social attitudes seldom treated in most World War books.

Yes indeed. Barker's writing is very powerful and poignant.

Louise Penny will be at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park on August 31st! I am so excited.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron

If you remember laughing your fool head off when watching "When Harry Met Sally" you know how funny Nora Ephron can be. She delivers in this book, too. I don't know whether the reader must be over the age of 45 to "get the jokes" but since I am I laughed out loud more than once, and was tempted to pick up the phone to read a section or two to friends. This is a humorist I love having in my life.

She also appreciates a good book: "There's something called the rapture of the deep, and it refers to what happens when a deep-sea diver spends too much time at the bottom of the ocean and can't tell which way is up. When he surfaces, he's liable to have a condition called the bends, where the body can't adapt to the oxygen levels in the atmosphere. All this happens to me when I surface from a great book."

Isn't that a great way to describe the feeling of having to come back to reality when it is past time to put that book down?

Love that description of reading a great book, maggie. I read that book, and enjoyed much of it, as I recall.

ETA: Here's a quote from my review of that book, "Where she won my friendship was in the chapter titled, "Rapture." About her love and relationship with books."

Yes, I felt "at home" with her when I read that chapter, too.

That's a brilliant description of the dislocation I get when coming out of a really immersive read!

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin

>151 maggie1944:, so jealous! I love Louise Penny!
Oooh, Nora Ephron sounds good.
*rushes off before being struck by more book bullets*

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr

I have a very sweet spot in my heart for country living in the summertime. I spent about 8 summer vacations on a cattle and wheat ranch in Idaho. I have vivid memories of hot summer days, the rustle of the wind through the tall trees, the slow trickle sound of a creek, chickens scratching in the yard, and calves calling for their mothers. I remember the smells of hay and wheat harvests. I would spend at least a month in the country, sometimes more. I ached to return each year. I still have that spot in my heart.

This is a very sweet book describing a veteran returning from war with some mental wounds, spending a few months working to restore art on walls in a country church, and getting to know the country and its people. A delightfully moving description of summer in a slower time, in a simple environment. His interaction with the art, and with the people, and most of all with the environment helps him heal; and the author offers some of the same to his readers. There is a plot but it is not of central import. And even the characters are somewhat like the characters in the mural. They are real. But the author does not spend his words describing their reality in much more than a few very talented brush strokes.

One feels a little bit more whole after reading these wonderful descriptions of a life which follows the natural cycles. I was able to read the book in just a couple of sittings. I recommend it especially to those who love good writing.

>158 maggie1944: Your descrption of the country is very evocative. I could be persuaded to read that book by your written word regardless of whatever the author wrote.

>159 pgmcc: Peter, thank you very much for your kind words. I think you would enjoy this small book! Do it.

To this point I would have considered myself grazed by this book bullet but now you are standing over me pointing a Magnum 45 at my head and saying, "Make my day, punk!"

I may have to surrender and come along "peaceable like".

(-:

Your summers at the ranch sound wonderful, Karen. Beautifully described.

Thank you for the good review of A Month in the Country, too. I'm going to get it.

Oh, good, Joe. I am quite sure you will like it. The writing is lyrical, I think. (I do not have a professional's definition of lyrical, so I'm guessing based on what I've read here and there).

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin

More laughing out loud, more thoughtful pauses when remembering some of the awful stuff that happened back in the day, more caring about this merry band of people who populated San Francisco in the 1970s. Maupin sticks a genuine mystery into this book, and there were moments when I did not know if I put the book down because I did not want to find out "what happens", or if I was too excited to read "what happens". How he pulls an impossible story together at the end is a wonder to behold. And the heroes are totally lovable!

>151 maggie1944: I'm excited about seeing LP here on the 26th. Saw her last year and was enthralled.

That is great. I am glad to hear that you enjoyed her!

29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin

Well, that was a fun romp. Maupin finds silly ways to put his characters into predicaments and then even sillier ways to extricate them. I read this book in one day, a few hours. I am not a fast reader any more. Used to be one. Not now. But his books are easy reading. And fun. And make you laugh out loud.

You've been reading a lot of Armistead Maupin. Of what you've read of his so far in 2014, what have you enjoyed the most? I never really thought of him as a light-hearted or funny author, but I must admit that I've never read any of his novels (because I always thought of them as being too sophisticated and literary to be enjoyable leisure reading). So, if I were to sample something of his, maggie1944, what would you recommend as an intro?

Jill, the books are a series and really reading the first one, Tales of the City, is the way to go. It is a stand alone as well as the beginning of the series. I don't think any of the books is totally dependent on the others. You could read the first one you find, and then decide if you want to be a "completist" and try to read them all. I'm stuck right now after the first four, waiting to find or receive the fifth. I forget if I have it coming from a used book shop.

Nonetheless, his series about San Francisco is not "literary" in my mind. A light a breezy read! And now I'm into an Alan Furst book, also one where the books stand alone but I have a desire to read his whole body of work. Not light, or breezy, his work is all about Europe just before world war two starts. Fascinating. He explores places and people I have not read about before and I love the atmosphere he builds.

OK. All my reading is due to my new job. Yesterday, I had a seven hour shift and did get one order to shop and deliver. It was so much fun. This person was definitely reading the ads from the grocery store so buying was a little challenging as the things advertised were not necessarily on the shelf - moved to end caps. Oh, my, it was good I found an employee who was willing to walk the aisles with me hunting down the last bottle of Windex that the lady had ordered, and the special no fragrance TP which was totally not in the TP section... it was down the way on the end cap.

And then off I go following the directions from the iPhone, Siri gives me exact directions to the customer's house. A delightful woman who has kids home during summer vacation and because her two boys were having an epic argument, she just felt she did not want to leave them while she went shopping. So nice to be able to help her with eggs, and milk, and TP.

All that, and a bunch of pages finished in Midnight in Europe. Today, I have another long shift.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst

Fascinating exploration of what it might take to get heavy armaments to the Spaniards fighting against the fascists in the Spanish Civil War just before the next world war breaks into being. Furst uses a Spanish lawyer living in Paris as his protagonist and he balances his regular, and fascinating, legal work with helping smuggle arms to the Spanish Civil War. The atmosphere is again spot on following ordinary people as they navigate the dangerous boundaries between countries and encounter criminals, frightened refugees, and overbearing petty officials full of self importance. And Furst adds some believable and heart breaking romances which lighten the oppressive times experienced by his main characters. I love his writing and if I don't read his books one right after the other I am happy to revisit his atmospheric books. I believe they might become oppressive if read to close together.

I've just started on the 3rd of Alan Furst's series so I have a way to go before catching up with that one. He really does set the scene very well for his stories.

I think it is quite OK to read the Furst books in whatever order. I've read Midnight in Europe because it was given to me; there are many previously written Furst books which have yet to read. Fully intend to read them!

#31 - Renegade Champion by Richard R. Rust. Oh, my, what to say? You remember in Black Beauty the story is one of an abused horse taken and given a better home? Well, this is kind of like that + a young woman proving to her father's Army colleagues that she could do what they could not. So this little, runt of the litter horse, a thoroughbred gelding was to be trained to be an officer's horse, before World War II; however, Fitzrada had other ideas. When he would "not learn" the Army decided to give up but first a general with some common horse sense suggested that a daughter of a major who loved horses and worked in the barn as a volunteer be given a chance to train this horse. He said, "I wonder if a girl's demeanor might be a way to reach this horse?"

How can I not love this story? Lovingly told by Jane Pohl's son it follows her heartbreakingly patient schooling of the horse as a jumper over five years. It took that long for the horse to decide to trust her. And then they had a lovely career with him as a jumper and a hunter and Jane as a world class rider. Jane Pohl was a gutsy woman when it was not fashionable to be so. Fitzrada was a talented and gutsy athletic horse when no one thought he could be.

There are many twists and turns in this story of the American horse culture during the 1940s, 50s and after. I was emotionally entraped and enjoyed the book immensely, not able to put it down even when there were other things to do. Don't you love it when that happens?

#32 The Fault in Our Stars - I listened to this book over a number of weeks which was probably the wrong way to listen to it. I should have focused my mind on it and listened to it whenever I could. A lovely book exploring all sorts of stuff most Young Adults would enjoy reading about as they explore their world and their place in it. Family, Love, Friendship, Reading, communicating, Truth, Justice (and the American Way - no just kidding). The author definitely hooked me into liking the three young people, all of whom suffer from some sort of debilitating, and potentially fatal, disease. Despite this gloomy prognosis for the kids they carry on just like teenagers and you gotta love them. And better yet, he makes them carry on like wise teenagers. I appreciated the author's use of humor and pseudo-philosophy just as kids would do. I was touched with the affection and love all the characters some how find ways to express. ( )

>175 maggie1944: The author was definitely good at hooking us into liking the characters. It was great that he portrayed them as intelligent, thoughtful teenagers, because, yes, there are intelligent, thoughtful teenagers out there, despite what pop culture is trying to convince us. I loved that he gave us so much to laugh about, even in such a dire situation.

Yes, Sylvia, I agree with you. The kind and thoughtful teenagers are the ones who become the kind and thoughtful adults, and some of the others learn to be kind and thoughtful, too.

Wow. I've been very neglectful of this thread.

I finished reading Graham Robb's The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography. Loved it.

A remarkable book digging into the history of the land, rather than a history of important people, and wars, and inventions, etc. I loved it. I realized that those of us raised after World War II think of the nations of western Europe as pretty much settled, set in stone. Many are woefully ignorant of the reasons why Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, France, and Norway and Sweden, are "nations" today. The very fact of a group of people finding enough in common to create a nation is fascinating, and the U.S.A., Canada, Mexico and all of the S. American countries followed a very different path.

France did not follow an easy path to the "finding enough in common" to build a nation. This book gives light to many of the interesting challenges the French faced. I recommend it to any one who finds history fascinating.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography by Graham Robb

I finished reading In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes and loved it. Love, love, loved it because it reminded me of the wonderful land I knew as a kid, of the dry prairie, the hawks circling in the sky above the wheat fields, the magpie's playing in the trees by the creek.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes

Kim Barnes grew up in a part of Idaho within a short drive of the part of Idaho where I spent my summers. The Idaho she knew was of the loggers, and the rivers, and hunting in the woods, small towns, and fundamental Christian churches. My Idaho was only in the summers, and was hot and dry, and filled with wheat fields, and barley fields, and hay fields and cattle, chicken, pigs, and long long days. I loved my Idaho and continue to love the great outdoors because of those summers. Kim Barnes loved her Idaho with a passion, too, her forests, deer, fish, creeks, rivers, and long cold winters. She did know a different Idaho but she expresses her love for country so clearly and with such luminous language that I am grabbed by the heart, and grieve with her for our loss of the great wild west. The forests are not the same with so much clear cutting, the rivers are not the same due to dams to give us electricity, and the prairies are not the same as they are farmed by corporations, not families.

I felt a deep sadness for my lost childhood, and hers.

Her books are more than that, too, as she goes into depth about her family's participation in a fundamental Christian church, and her experiences as a child and teenager. I do not share this with her and I feel she was abused by this church, and her father's unwavering commitment to his version of the Christian bible, where women are told to follow their men, and submit with no talking. Women find their glory, according to this view, by submitting to their husband's leadership, no matter how misguided.

I don't want to make this review a review of my thought about all that. I'll just say that Kim Barnes does a remarkable job of describing her upbringing and her path out of there.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore

I really appreciated Mikal's book; he had the courage to open his heart as well as his mind to his readers. Having a family with so much dramatic dysfunction, and living within a culture which unfortunately reinforces some of those dysfunctions, made for fascinating reading. Mikal was born the last of the four sons and did not experience some of the worst physical punishments his other brothers experienced, from both father and mother. Your heart is broken for these children as they are beaten and punished completely out of proportion to any thing the child did, or did not do.

And yet Mikal is clear that he knows that this family background in no way justifies the criminal behavior some of the brothers chose. And he also knowns that he believes that society's way of dealing with criminals which includes abuse, physical harm, and complete lack of any understanding of the individual's personal challenges, is one more factor which contributes to the increasing criminality of some of the men after they are set free from incarceration.

His brother, Gary Gilmore combined the worst possible responses to all these influences in his life. His response to his father's unreasonable and arbitrary authoritarianism, to the schools' efforts at teaching him some self discipline in arbitrary ways, to the police assumption that once a kid begins to flirt with criminality that the die is cast, to the prisons many abuses, and eventually to anything which he perceived as blocking his desires results in his acts of murder.

The heart of the book is Mikal's efforts to understand why his brother insisted on giving up on all legal challenges to his death sentence, and walking to the firing squad with a sense of having finally won. It is a fascinating question which attracted attention from Bill Moyer, and Norman Mailer, as well as much media attention; but, in the end I think Mikal's effort brings real light to a puzzling and dramatic event.

Highly recommended.

36. The Alienist

Loved this book. Combined a really good mystery, serial killer, with excellent and well researched history of New York City, and history of the development of psychology, and modern methods of detective work.

37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull is a book given me by the Early Reviewer program. I don't know why it took me so long to read it, but probably I can chalk it up to eye surgery and recovery. My reading was definitely on and off this year. Selling my house and moving back to my "manufactured home" might have been at fault also.

She wrote Almost French also which I did read and enjoyed. I think I'm a little put off by what might be termed "rich people writing memoirs as if they were literature"..... and in both this book and the earlier one I did find spots where I felt ennui of reading about her "hard life in Paris, and Tahiti".

But she does write well, and I was curious about her life (which I'd love to try to live), so I carried on; and then, she did a switcheroo on me and began to plumb the depths of a personal challenge. I do not want to spoil the book for someone who might like to read it, but I was converted. I began to like Sarah, and care about how her life was turning out. So, I think I'll give her four stars and suggest people who liked Eat, Drink, Pray* will like this book.

*what was the name of that book??? I obviously have remembered the wrong title.

ETA: ha ha ha The book is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

*snort* Eat, Drink, Pray sounds like a guide to living in a college fraternity house. ;)

yup.

It was Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. You might have an equally marketable title there with your variation. Start with the frat house and see where it leads you, perhaps?

*snort* "I knew that* >183 maggie1944:

*giggle* thank you - I was feeling all worn thin by the day, and a good giggle is just what I needed :)

oh, my, I lost track of this thread and have not posted for way too long. I am sorry.

This is my friend, Robin, who has introduced me to the fine habit of going to Kaua'i once every year, if I can figure out how to twist my budget to afford it. We will leave on Monday, and we rented a house, so we can stay for two whole weeks. I am getting so excited.

>190 maggie1944: Sounds great. Hope you have a wonderful time!

Thank you, Jim. I am pretty sure we will. Lots of relaxing, sitting quietly and reading in the shade, on a beach. Yup. My idea of perfection.

Sounds - and looks - wonderful, Karen. Soon!

>190 maggie1944: I am feeling envious. Have a great time.

Peter, you are in Ireland, yes? It is a long ways from Ireland to Hawaii, but you're closer to some places I'd love to visit for a little sun and relaxation. How about the Riviera of Spain or France? Where do you go when you need to escape the climate of rain, and clouds, and winter weariness?

I am pretty sure we will have a great time! My travel buddy knows the island really well, and we can find beaches which are not too busy.

>195 maggie1944: I have a confession to make. I spent last week in France. I didn't do much other than sit on the veranda, read books, drink wine, eat cheese and fois gras, and take pictures. We had no rain, plenty of sun, and temperatures in the low 20s, and even high 20s on Halloween.

My eldest daughter made the trip to Hawaii and she and her now husband got engaged in a pineapple plantation there.

I hope you have a great time. As someone who studied Geology, Hawaii would be on my "would love to visit list", primarily for the volcanoes.

Ah, yes, that volcano which is eating people's homes, as we read. Fascinating.

My great uncle Hardy was a State Senator in the Territory of Hawaii, and then The State of Hawaii, back in the day. He lived in Hilo and they now have something they call vog, as in similar to smog but initiated by the volcanic smoke and fall out. Not very good for lungs.

But I can certainly see the appeal of wanting to see it all. The geology of Kuau'i is also very interesting and has made it the site for several movies including parts of Jurassic Park.

South of France, eh? I would like that, that's for sure.

>197 maggie1944: Central France, actually, but still beautiful and full of lovely food and wine.

I have just put up a few pictures from last week on my reading thread.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/178162#4911116

Vog does not sound too nice.

My daughter has a college friend who is a physicist and he has been based in Hawaii for a few years studying the Sun. That was the excuse she used for going to Hawaii on holiday.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
36. The Alienist by Caleb Carr
37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull
38. Hansel and Gretel by (wait, I've got to fix this title so the touchstone is correct.)
39. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami

This was not an easy read for me, but many of my friends really, really liked it and so I persisted and I am glad! Yup. The author does create a clever, fantastical, story populated by some bizarre but ultimately likable characters. There is elements of dreamscapes, and mystical fantasies, and philosophical conundrums, which in turn are captivating and exasperating. And then for flavor there are some musings about classical music which definitely were fun to come upon.

A fifteen year old boy runs away from his father, who appears to be neglectful, perhaps even cruel. He finds his way to a place where friendly people are willing to "take him in, providing employment, and room/board"; parallel is the story of a mentally challenged man who seems to have some sort of communication with the mystical side of life. He also befriends a friend who assists in a spiritual quest of sorts, and participates for his own well being, too. And then our friend, the author, weaves these parallel stories together and ends up creating a delightful story of people who finally figure out some of the oldest lessons of humanity. One cliché which I love, and which is here, too, is "wherever you go, there you are". And another: "every boy wants to kill his father, and sleep with his mother". Its in there, too. I especially enjoyed learning that in extreme surfing the surfer must learn to let go, and let the nature of the beast take charge.

I do recommend this book. And I am very likely to pick up another by this author.

>199 maggie1944: Which book are you referring to?

#39, Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Marakami

>199 maggie1944: I am delighted you liked Kafka On The Shore. I have loved all the Murakami books I have read. (1Q84; The Wind-up Bird Chronicle; Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki; Norwegian Wood). I find his use of surreal ideas to highlight emotions and feelings is wonderful. He always makes me think about my own life and makes me view the world around me with different eyes.

yes, I like your comment that he makes you think about your own life. I felt that, too, and was laughing at myself a bit because I like to read and think about philosophy; he certainly adds that stuff in there, doesn't he.

I'm glad you liked Kafka on the Shore, too, Karen. Nakata is one of my favorite literary characters, and was almost my LT name! (Instead I riled up our kids by being supremely unimaginative with it - you don't use your real name, Dad!)

You are right. Nakata is a character to remember and think about for a long time.

Have a wonderful trip!

We're getting the tail of the typhoon that hit lower Alaska. It's bringing lows down to zero and highs predicted in the teens this week. The next sound you hear is me sobbing and thinking of Hawaii.

ah, poor Janet. We must do this sometime soon, go to Kaua'i and have a Meet - Up!

It is cold here this morning, too, not as cold as you certainly, but colder than we are used to having. I'm glad to be flying outta here. It is 3 o'clock in the morning now, and I'm beginning to put the bags together, eat and have my coffee, and then we'll leave.

See you on the other side of 1/2 of the pacific ocean.

40. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith, in audio.

A captivating scandinavian mystery story which survived my listening to it, falling to sleep, searching backwards to see what I could remember from previous session of listening, and repeating time after time after time. Finally, I've had some concentrated listening and was able to finish listening on the airplane yesterday. A very satisfactory ending although I do take some issue with one part of solving all the mysteries. It seems as though finding a way to explain the run away girl was tricky. The chosen solution feels a bit too hard to believe, in my humble opinion.

I finished reading book #41 Expecting Someone Taller and I can't say much in its favor. The mythology of The Ring is retold with a modern world, and a modern, hapless "hero". I read some of the reviews for the book and many people thought it was very funny, and very clever, but to me it appeared to be a retelling of the myth with new names, and not much creativity, nor humor. I read it for my book group and I'm glad I finished it but I'll not read more by this author.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
36. The Alienist by Caleb Carr
37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull
38. Hansel and Gretel by Neil Gaiman and Lorenzo Mattotti
39. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami
40. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith, in audio.
41. Expecting Someone Taller by Tom Holt
42. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
43. Gracefully Grayson by Ami Polonsky

Ms. Polonsky has written a delightful tale of kids in school learning how to deal with real diversity. Having taught Middle School aged kids I feel I have a perspective to judge how well she captured the kids' world, and I am very pleased with this book. It felt very real, and the main character is revealed slowly and carefully. In the end the reader will love Grayson/Grace. I am sure if these events occurred in a real school, the real people would act in many more diverse manners however Ms. Polonsky certainly captured many normal ways the kids and adults might behave. And I think most readers will be cheering them all on to reach their highest potential in this school.

What did you think of Yes Please? I've been tempted by it, but I don't want to ruin the pleasant thoughts I have of Amy Poehler from "Parks and Recreation." :) Does it have any meat in it, or is it just another celebrity bio?

About Yes Please, I did laugh out loud several times but overall I think it is pretty fluffy. The best audience for this book might be young people wondering how to break into "show business" or comedy. She does a good job testifying that being a comedian is not just a matter of being born with talent. She did work hard getting to where she is today, and like most professions there was lots of work, some successes, some failures and the book gives good account of the journey.

She does try to give some advice for people like "be here now", and "be nice". I was, truth be told, in the end a bit put off and decided it was a self indulgent book, and that I did not end up liking her as a person. She probably is very funny and this does reveal that, but more than that, not so much, IMHO.

:) Thank you, that is what I was afraid of. Glad you could be my guinea pig! I will keep my illusions and read something else.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
36. The Alienist by Caleb Carr
37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull
38. Hansel and Gretel by Neil Gaiman and Lorenzo Mattotti
39. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami
40. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith, in audio.
41. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
42. Gracefully Grayson by Ami Polonsky
43. Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook by Martin Dugard

A lively, and colorful history of the explorer and captain James Cook. I read the book while in Hawaii and have visited the site of his landing on the island of Kaua'i. I also live near places which he explored on his last voyage, searching for the infamous "Northwest Passage". I recommend this book to any who enjoy historical biography as the book is entertaining and informative.

*lurking*

Your list is not good for my TBR list.

Oh, GD, you need to tell me which books suited your fancy!

I have Cinder, but have not read it. I'm interested in the sequels. I'm also interested in Death Comes for the Archbishop, Hansel and Gretel, and Regeneration. There are others that sound very good, but I'm trying to limit my list.

I saw that there is a fourth book by the author of Cinder on Audible. I think I have to go get it.

I'll get to Cinder soon!

Winter is the next book (touchstone is bringing up a different book) in the Lunar Chronicles. I have enjoyed all of them so far. A nice twist to the fairy tales.

My understanding, from the list of this series, is that Fairest: The Lunar Chronicles: Levana's Story is next and then Winter: The Lunar Chronicles. Here's the link: http://www.librarything.com/series/Lunar+Chronicles

Fairest: The Lunar Chronicles is due to be released soon. I'm looking at getting it on Audible.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
36. The Alienist by Caleb Carr
37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull
38. Hansel and Gretel by Neil Gaiman and Lorenzo Mattotti
39. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami
40. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith, in audio.
41. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
42. Gracefully Grayson by Ami Polonsky
43. Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook by Martin Dugard
44. Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell
45. Montana 1948 by Larry Watson

#45 Montana 1948 by Larry Watson: I enjoyed reading this short book set in Montana. As many of you know, I spent the summers of my youth in central Idaho living with a ranching family, friends to my family. I was there from about 1950 to 1958, I guess, so the time was similar to that described by Larry Watson. I remember the weight certain families had in the small community; families who's name was known by all, and talked about, no doubt. Of course, I was a child and only there for a few weeks so I did not get in on the gossip.

Watson's book is abut such a family, and in such a small community. He explores the very human frailties we all know of and how they play out when there are scandals and tragedies in a small community and how family can be torn apart, and how the innocent can be hurt, and the guilty seemingly get off "Scott free" and yet, not really. His prose is conversational, and clean, although there were times when his descriptions sat down in the middle of the story and would not allow you to follow the action quickly. He seems to have said "the action is not the important stuff, it is the feel of the place that you want".

I liked it. I recommend it particularly to those of us who love to read of the west, and how the land and the folks were when times were more simple, and life was more elemental.

I haven't tried Watson. I've got Let Him Go on my long list because Kirkus liked it a lot, but other things keep jumping in ahead.

There is a Watson thread going on right now over in the 75 Book Challenge group. You might enjoy looking at it.

ETA: the link: http://www.librarything.com/topic/183345

#46. The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys. An excellent little book which seems at once to be a series of fantasy vignettes and a collection of true stories set in English history. A very clever author. I think she indeed did a goodly amount of research and the stories smack of truth. The river does freeze solid when it gets cold enough. It will not do that again because its course has been changed by man, and it now flows too fast to freeze. Ms. Humphreys also ends the book with a fine short meditation on what would the world be like were we to lose all ice. Where will we look for metaphors for frozen emotions. How about describing one of "those" looks - you know, the "icy" stare.

I completely enjoyed the book, and have been enjoying thinking about to whom shall I give it.

I've been toying with this one for a while. Looks like I need to jump into it!

#47 - The Garden of Evening Mists
#48 - Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast.

This is a delightful graphic book, and Roz Chast is kind enough to share some end of life (her parents) experiences without too much sugar coating. She does not dwell, and uses a quick, tightly written style to accompany her delightful drawings. I starting thinking of Neil Simon as I read it yesterday because to my non-New Yorker eyes she seems to be talking about much of the same world he wrote about. Full of good humor, pathos, and sympathy. I recommend it highly to any one.

Just finished Django Unchained by Quentin Tarantino and I know if the film had as much mayhem and murder as this graphic novel did, I would not have been able to be interested. That much wanton violence sickens me in a movie; but, in a graphic novel I found myself admiring the drawing and the art work. Fascinating. Ended up being somewhat captivated by the story, too. So it is now my book #49!

#49 Django Unchained. The ISBN number is 9781401247096

I was caught up in the story pretty quickly and once I had some uninterrupted time to read it I flew right through. A good entertainment; good art work. I don't know enough about this type of graphic book, where a committee seems to have put it together, to judge its over all value.

#50 I finished reading The Green Man by Michael Bedard. I enjoyed this YA book which follows a young woman sent to live with her aunt, a bookstore owner, for the summer. The young woman is capable and helps the aunt refresh the store all the while living through some dark, mysterious, magical moments learning about a magician who resides in her aunt's memory, and the history of the small town where the story takes place. I loved that the dusty bookstore is populated on occasions by ghosts of the writers. And I also enjoyed the girl's growing fascination with poetry, following her aunt's eccentricity and helping organize poetry reading nights.

I would recommend this book to young readers from about age 10 up and hope they enjoy its complexity and rich references to the love of words.

OK, 2014: I did it! I was able to finish 50 books even though the year was filled with other time eating challenges.

Books Read in 2014

1. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, as a part of the American Authors Challenge
2. Maisie Dobbs, as a participant in reading about World War I
3. Stardust - read just because I bought it and it looked fun! by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess.
4. Redwall
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel (Audio CDs - read by Jeremy Davidson)
7. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
9. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon
10. The Wives of Los Alamos
11. The Steady Running of the Hour
12. Gone Girl
13. Mission to Paris by Alan Furst
14. Batwoman: Hydrology
15. The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
16. daytripper by Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
17. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
19. The 8:55 to Baghdad by Andrew Eames
20. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
21. Regeneration by Pat Barker
22. The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
23. The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
24. Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
25. I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron
26. More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
27. A Month in the Country by J.L.Carr
28. Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
29. Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
30. Midnight in Europe by Alan Furst
31. Renegade Champion
32. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
33. The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
34. In The Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country by Kim Barnes
35. Shot in the Heart by Mikal Gilmore
36. The Alienist by Caleb Carr
37. All Good Things: From Paris to Tahiti: Life and Longing by Sarah Turnbull
38. Hansel and Gretel by Neil Gaiman and Lorenzo Mattotti
39. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami
40. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith, in audio.
41. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
42. Gracefully Grayson by Ami Polonsky
43. Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook by Martin Dugard
44. Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell
45. Montana 1948 by Larry Watson
46. The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys
47. The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twang Eng
48.Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant by Roz Chast
49. Django Unchained by Quentin Tarantino
50. I am unable to remember how to force the correct touchstone for
The Green Man by Michael Bedard.

>230 maggie1944: Congratulations! That is quite an accomplishment in a year that has been very hectic for you.

Congrats on making 50!

The Green Man - the Michael Bedard one you read is the second one under "Others" in the touchstones, Karen, at least when I do it. So glad you enjoyed it.

*YAY YOU* Congrats on reaching the 50-title milestone, @maggie1944!!

Thank you, very much. I think I'll start a new year's thread. Come on over.