It's March: Sibyx says "Enough winter!"

A painter friend took some photos of me playing and then painted a marvelous series of portraits. This is my favorite, note all the pets lurking around the edges! I only have one corgi, but I don't blame her for painting two - we can pretend one of them is the tan cat, or maybe it is supposed to be the tan cat! This is just a photo of a photo, btw, not very good!

March Reads
25. (new) The Well of Ascension Brandon Sanderson bk 2 Mistborn/ fantasy ***1/2
26. Ascendant Sun Catherine Asaro Bk 5 Skolian ****
27. ✔Dersu the Trapper V.K. Arseniev biography/natural history ****
28. (new) The Quantum Rose Catherine Asaro sf / Bk 6 Skolian
29. ✔Restless William Boyd contemp fic ****
30. (new) The Hero of Ages Brandon Sanderson Bk 3 Mistborn/ fantasy ****
31. ✔The Probable Future Alice Hoffman contemp fic ***1/2
32. ✔Every Last Cuckoo Kate Malloy contemp fic
33. (new)The Hare with Amber Eyes Edmund de Waal nf /memoir ****1/2
34. ✔ Celestis Paul Park sf ***
35. newSpherical Harmonic Catherine Asaro sf ****
36. new The Moon's Shadow Catherine Asaro sf ****

***March Current Reads***
✔Thursday Next: First Among Sequels Jasper Fforde mys
✔True Believers Kurt Anderson contemp fic
✔Every Story is a Ghost Story: A Life of David Foster Wallace D.T. Max biography
VMC Read QUIT see >75 sibylline:
♬ Ashes of Victory David Weber sf
Monthly Murdoch: Next one in April
IM readers group is HERE

Ongoing The New Yorker December 2, 9, 16, 21-28 Read my reviews here: New Yorkers 2013

*Read It or Get Rid of It For books that have lingered here too long.
4. Gone to Earth - and I did quit, 3.10 see review or this thread >75 sibylline:
5. Celestis Finished - see review or this thread : >217 sibylline:

Guide to symbols
♬ audio
✔ On Shelf Over One Year
VMC Virago-of-the-month

February Reads
14. ✔The Dancers of Arun Elizabeth Lynn fantasy ****
15. October 2013 New Yorkers
16. new Welcome Strangers Mary Hocking bk 3, Good Daughters contemp fic ****
17. ✔The Horse, the Wheel, and Language David Anthony archaeology/linguistics ****
18. library The Northern Girl Elizabeth Lynn fantasy ****
19. newThe Last Hawk Catherine Asaro bk 3 Skolian Empire sf *****
20. new The Unicorn Iris Murdoch ***1/2
21. new The Radiant Seas Catherine Asaro sf ****
22. (SEL library)Witch World Andre Norton fantasy/sf blend ***1/2
23. (SEL library) Web of the Witch World Andre Norton fantasy ***
24. (SEL library) Three Against the Witch World Andre Norton fantasy ***1/2
25. November 2013 New Yorkers.

OTHER STUFF 2014
Read it or Get Rid of it! TBR clearing out!
1. ✔A Mirror For Witches Esther Forbes see comment 155, thread one.QUIT
2. ✔Jennifer Government Finished. See review page. FINISHED
3. The Saliva Tree Brian Aldiss sf/ss See review page. FINISHED
4. ✔ Gone to Earth Mary Webb QUIT see >75 sibylline:

February Reflections
The cold weather helped keep me in the house and more or less pasted to the sofa for the first half of the month. I tackled a long and dense non-fiction book about some aspects of the origins of western culture and language that took up all my nf reading for two months! I seem to be more obsessed than ever with fantasy and sf but did manage to do some of my 'background/historical' reading of the genres with a dips into Andre Norton and Elizabeth Lynn. Lynn was groundbreaking in that her books have a strong lesbian content. Norton was surprisingly determined to create strong women characters - but there is an assumption of male/female quest to dominate one another as a theme and plot driver. Not that it isn't yet, but many contemporary novels make an assumption that the more 'advanced' cultures have sorted these issues well - respect for the individual being paramount. - That assumption is ENTIRELY absent in most (I won't say all, as I am not that widely read) pre-eighties sf where gender roles/friction are always present in some form or other. These days there is more playing around with these issues too - the Skolian/Asaro books do that well. The Last Hawk has a fascinating matriarchal society, for example. Fabulously done, so that you are so indignant for the men! The only other fiction I read was the one Murdoch, an ultra-gothic, and finishing up the marvelous trilogy by Mary Hocking, the story of three sisters coming of age in the world war 2 generation in Britain. Despite my brilliant Read it or Get Rid of It start in January, the fantasy/sf obsession sort of took over this month so nothing much happened in that sphere.


February Stats
Categories:
Total: 12
Men: 1
Women: 6
Man-Woman Team: 0
Non-fiction: 1
History: 1
Memoir: 0
Virago: 0
Classic Fiction: 0
Contemporary fiction: 1
Historical fiction: 0
Short stories: 0
Graphic: 0
SF: 2
Fantasy: 4
Thriller: 0
YA or J fantasy: 0
F/SF hybrid: 1
F/SF/Mys hybrid:
Mys: 0
Humor: 0
Poetry: 0

Housekeeping
New (to me) Authors: 2
New: 4
✔: 2
Library or Other: 4
Audio: 0
Months of NYers: 2
Read it or Get Rid of It: 0
Acquired: 7
Released: 0

February 2014 Books Acquired

February
9. Sundiver David Brin RFL sale
10. Rameau's Niece Cathleen Schine BB, h-burg
11. The Financial Lives of the Poets Jess Walter BB, h-burg /sale
12. audio Storm From the Shadows David Weber RFL sale
13. audio War of Honor David Weber RFL sale
14. audio Mission of Honor David Weber RFL sale READING
15. audio Ashes of Victory David Weber RFL sale

Total = 7

January Reads
1. newWigs on the Green Nancy Mitford contemp f ***
2. new Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors Nicholas Wade science*****
3. ✔The Sparrow Mary Doria Russell sf ***
4. New Yorker - September
5. new The Widower's Tale Julia Glass contemp f ***1/2
6. ✔Mistborn Brandon Sanderson fantasy ***1/2
7. Catch the Lightning Catherine Asaro sf (book 2 Skolian Empire) sf ***1/2
8. new Good Daughters Mary Hocking contemp f ****1/2
9. Read It or... Jennifer Government Max Barry sf/near future ***1/2
10. Read It or... The Saliva Tree Brian Aldiss sf/ss
11. new Indifferent Heroes Mary Hocking contemp f ****1/2
12. ♬ Death of a Snob M.C. Beaton ***
13. ✔ Watchtower Elizabeth Lynn fantasy ****

Series started in 2014
None at present.

Series continued in 2014
1. The Skolian Empire (6 of 11) Most recent: The Moon's Shadow. next up bk 9: Skyfall

Series completed or caught up with in 2014
1. Good Daughters Mary Hocking (3)
2. Chronicles of Tornor Elizabeth Lynn (3)
3. Witch World - set goal of reading first three in series. Completed.
4. Mistborn Brandon Sanderson (3) 3 of 3 Completed

Ongoing Series started or continued in 2013
1. The Seven Kingdoms Kristin Cashore (2 of 3) Next up: Bitterblue
2. Liaden Universe Sharon Lee Steve Miller Let's say I've read 11 of 19!
3. Quantum Gravity Justina Robson (4 of 5) Next up: book 5 of 5
4. Rivers of London 2 of 5. Next up: Whispers Underground
5. Flavia de Luce Alan Bradley (5 of 6) The Dead in their Vaulted Arches audio only!
6. Green Rider Kristen Britain (4 of 4) (Mirror Sight out May 2014
7. KingKiller Chronicles Patrick Rothfuss 2 of 3. Doors of Stone forthcoming (undeclared)

I love the painting--how cool is that!!

25. fantasy ****
The Well of Ascension Brandon Sanderson

With my new method of reading the push-pull bits with one eye shut worked beautifully. (The main magic in this story is 'allomancy' - the ability to 'burn' metals to do various things and one is using metal to either push or push metal objects to fly or as weapons or whatever you can think of. Each metal does something - burning tin enhances senses, burning something else makes you really, or able to affect the emotions of others. A few, 'the mistborn' can burn everything and do all those things, but most allomancers only have one 'gift'.) This second book takes on a life of its own, focusing on Vin, the young king Elend Venture, and Sazed the 'keeper'. It is clear that something doesn't make sense about certain foretellings, and Sazed strives to puzzle them out while Elend tries to figure out how to be a decent king and Vin comes to terms with who and what she is. She also has to contend with the arrival of a new Mistborn (I think maybe he turns up near the end of Book one, can't recall already) and what that means to her. There are fewer fight scenes but all throughout it is clear events are building to a major attack on Luthadel and this is a whopper and a half. At then end, there is, naturally, a twist and a develop which makes the next book inevitable! But I'm ok with it. The characters and overall energy of the story, with some good innovations and ideas make it a four star read for me. ****

It's nice to start a new month with a book done - I really finished it last night before turning the light out - having read it most of the day on my plane ride!

So glad you made it in the house without freezing solid. I do like that painting! And what on earth are "push-pull bits"?

Happy new thread, Lucy!

Well - tui - The main magic in this story is 'allomancy' - the ability to 'burn' metals to do various things and one is using metal to either push or push metal objects to fly or as weapons or whatever you can think of. Each metal does something - burning tin enhances senses, burning something else makes you really, or able to affect the emotions of others. A few, 'the mistborn' can burn everything and do all those things, but most allomancers only have one 'gift'.) And so on. Some of the other magical creatures in the series, such as the kandra (who can eat an animal and 'become' that animal and thus also keep alive themselves) are while a bit creepy also intriguing.

Hmmm I think I'll just add a little mention to the review.

>8 tiffin: And what on earth are "push-pull bits"?
Glad you asked; I'd gone back to the previous thread to see whether I missed a reference.

>1 sibylline: I'd say black cat, tan cat, corgi. So cool to have a painted portrait!

I was gob-smacked, Q, when she sent me the photos! Thrilled to bits. I want to ask her if I can use this image to make my business card, but I am working myself up to it.

Lucy, I love the painting, complete with the pets! Lovely!

I read the animals just as Katherine does. What a great friend! What a great picture and thread topper!!!
(Now I have to go learn how to refer to an earlier post...good stuff.)

Love the painting. Maybe the second Corgi is an omen :)

Fab painting -- Picasso/Matissey echoes there! I think you let her use your image for a painting, she should let you use the image of the painting for your cards... Fair exchange, no? (Although I'm sure you'll come up with a more diplomatic way to put it...)

Happy new thread!

Hi Lucy. I just wanted to tell you that I love the black n white photo of you and Posey on your prior thread, accidental though it may have been.

Hi Lucy! Happy New Thread!

That painting is the best! I can understand why you were thrilled.

Fantastic painting, Lucy. Is she giving it to you?

Nice painting! I recognized you and the pets right away :-)

Adding to the painting luuuv. Suz nailed it, I think, with the Matisse-y feel of the colors and the spatial manpulation. Seems less, errrmmm, wrenching than a Picasso-esque to me.

My painter friend doesn't sell her paintings! Lives up in the the Northeast Kingdom truly truly off the grid teaches art at a little state college up that way and does massage, and gets by...... she sent me photographs of the paintings, but I haven't seen the originals. I went to a show of hers once and asked what she sells her paintings for and she gave me a horrified look, "I don't sell my babies!!!!"

I love the description of your painter friend, Lucy! It was such a beautiful painting that I was hoping it was a gift. Will you see the original some day?

>24 sibylline: I like the description of the Northeast Kingdom. I am Republican by instinct and inclination but a lover of tradition and tales of kings. Better than just saying Washington State!

Congratulations on your latest thread, Lucy. xx

Happy new thread, Lucy! Love that portrait up top!

(Psst, someone should maybe correct Paul's geography up there...?)

Great portrait, I love the colours!

Paul - As ordered, geography lesson, the Northeast Kingdom is comprised of Orleans, Essex, and Caledonia counties of the ne corner of the state of Vermont. It is the worst soil but it's a tough place with a rich folklore. Those Howard Frank Mosher books I recommended to you all take place in that region along the border.
For several years I went to a camp on Lake Willoughby - some of the buildings on the right are part of the old camp, repurposed, I'm sure. The camp is no longer there although some of the buildings and cabins were part of a moose-themed B&B when I was last there!

I expect my friend's place is a bit like this:

Happy New Thread, Lucy! Lovely photos here already!

Here's what I am currently reading. I started City of Light while in Florida and while I think I will like it fine, space was limited and I felt I had to leave it there (it was there already), so I'll pick it up next time I go down.


♬

Five books!! Wow! I would have those stories so confused I would essentially write a new book lol. I bravely said I was reading three books (one poetry) the other day, but so far I've only actually opened the cover of one. I don't know why. I can multi-task with the best of them when it comes to doing things but can't seem to multi-read.

I'm not that different from you Reba - the audio book I ONLY listen to when I'm in the car which is a lot less often these days..... I make a point when I turn the car off to take a second to 'remember' where I am, that seems to help. As for the others - three is really my limit - I started The Hare with the Amber Eyes in Florida, but it will languish now until I finish the other NF book, Dersu the Trapper. The Webb I will read bits of until I get fed up with myself and finish it..... I'm totally hooked on the Skolian Empire series of Catherine Asaro, as anyone can see, so most of the time right now that is what I'm reading. It's funny - every winter since my sf/fantasy craze re-activated a few years ago, I get into some huge saga during the winter months. Often unexpectedly!

Way too much information!

26. sf ****1/2
Ascendant Sun Catherine Asaro

FIrst off, let me just say, this cover is a doozy in the 'sexy guy' cover sweepstakes! You can't see it, but he even has lovingly drawn chest hair. Now. Having pointed that out how can I get serious about reviewing the book? Kelric Valdoria is my favorite character in the Skolian Empire series: he's huge, he's gorgeous, he's all golden (metallic sheen, I mean), he's a nice guy (underlined), a math geek, and tough tough tough. To make a long story short, when we left Kelric in The Last Hawk, he was getting the hell out of Coba where for seventeen years after crashing there, he was the male version of Helen of Troy, sparking off conflict between the women of that matriarchical society. He's falling apart physically but he limps into a small planet, gets a job working on a space ship, meanwhile he learns that half his family has died or disappeared and the rest are imprisoned on Earth (mainly for their own safety, not harshly). Things go from not good to really really bad, of course, but Kelric soldiers on. It's clear Asaro is enjoying herself writing: "Sometimes he thought this niceness (italics) of the Allieds (Earth based planetary consortium) made them weak. Other times he wondered it they had achieved a higher state of civilization than Skolia or Eube. Then again, they might turn the galaxy into one big shopping mall, which hardly seemed a heightened state of anything. He supposed it was better than interstellar wars that slagged empires, though." Oh, it was jolly good fun! ****1/2

And now I must must must read one of my other books before picking up the next Skolia.

Must I?

We finished Doc Martin last night and I am also devastated. That was so much fun! Any recommendations?

There will more Doc Martin...won't there?

>34 sibylline: Must I?
You set the rules here.

Absolutely! Katherine has it in one. You reinvigorate my desire to read Asaro. As I had said, I got bogged down in Skolian 1, but I'll pick it up again.
I need to go back and watch all of Doc Martin and then maybe watch it again except that I can't make myself watch anything these days.

Yes Q - and I sometimes think half the pleasure of my reading rules is ignoring them!

There had better be more Doc Martin. Louisa hasn't quite tamed him yet. I really want to see him smile and get a joke and decide to wear something other than a suit sometime. I'm going to buy the set as soon as series 6 comes out with it, right now you can only get 1-5.

We tried Endeavor just now, a Mystery! - Inspector Morse as a young detective and it is SUPERB! Yay!

>29 sibylline: My great-great grandmother was born in St. Johnsbury, in the Northeast Kingdom. Laura Amelia Carpenter. Some day I have to set out to track down the grave of her mother, Maria Chase. It's interesting that these names carried on down through the generations. My grandmother's middle name was Carpenter; my great-grandmother's middle name was Maria.

Random babbling here...

"Endeavor" was great -- much better than I had feared at first! And it made me start re-watching the Morse series on Hulu Plus.

Another "Endeavor" fan here! Like Suz it inspired us to watch some episodes of Morse, having now see all the Lewis episodes. Great stuff.

That's a pleasing name to say, Laura Amelia. Would Maria Chase be buried in St. Johnsbury? I have stacks of Vermont ancestors - the more I poke around the more I find.... And I thought I was so original when I first moved here. Ha!

I watched a few Morse's back in the day, and liked them fine, but this could spur a renewed interest. I love the Jaguar presences right from the get-go!

Town Meetin' day - I'm only going for an hour or so as I have to go get the Little Darling who is flying home from visiting friends in Philly. The Spousal Unit as head of the Planning Commish has to give a little speech in favor of re-organizing (simplifying the steps in) the review process for house construction. He's very nervous but it looks like a no-brainer to me. BTW in our village most of these posts or committees are all volunteer, although you do have to get elected.

We have 4 thermometers scattered around here and none of them agree. In fact we have named them 'the Quitter' (won't register anything under 1 F), the Pessimist (always several degrees colder than it actually is), the Teensy (can barely read tho seems accurate), and the Optimist. Between the four of them we can come up with about the same figure as it says on the local NWS weather page. The Pessimist says it is -15, the Optimist -2, and the teensy comes in at about -11 which I think is closer to the truth.

Thermometers with personalities, gotta love it!

>38 sibylline: Did you get the "behind the scenes of Season 6" for Doc Martin? We say it Sunday evening and really enjoyed it. I can't wait for it to air. BTW I saw it in a catalog a few months ago...of course I can't remember which one at this point. I thought about ordering it but decided to just wait and see it when it airs.

We watched Endeavor a couple of years ago and liked it too. Actually there are several Mysteries we like.

Oh - Reba - will you tell me which Mysteries you like? I loathe Poirot, so that one is out. Marple is a bit bleh. I loved Lynley but we could never untangle the order of the series - Netflix gets an F for how they organize some things. In fact, overall I think Netflix is losing it.

We liked Scott & Bailey (but there weren't many of those), Death in Paradise (ditto), Foyle's War (and the sequel that also didn't have many), Morse, and Inspector Lewis. We also enjoyed Lynley and, (sorry) Poirot. I didn't like the one with the Swedish detective (way to dark for me) and I refuse to watch Sherlock. We dropped our Netflix subscription last summer. They never seemed to have what we wanted (our subscription was for streaming only) so we almost never used it.

Hope you're warm and well.

Re: Brit mysteries. Have you ever seen Cracker? Robbie Coltrane as a gambling addict/ alcoholic umm... some kind of psycho therapist who gets crafted in to help the police. I was mad for it when it first came out in the 90's, and they've been repeating it recently and reminding me how good it was. Very, very bleak though. Delving into some nasty bits of the human psyche. Also, lots of people love Prime Suspect, although I've never got into it. Everyone in the Uk seems to be going bananas for these Scandi crime programmes like "The Killing" but I've missed the boat on that one, and I'm not sure I mind particularly. Personally, I'm on a SF Tv show binge at the moment, getting through the post every episode of Babylon 5 from series one onwards. I watched a later series of it many years ago and liked it, so now I'm going back right to the beginning. (and I don't know how it ends either, so no spoilers!).

Re: your artist friend. Lovely painting, but it seems such a shame she doesn't want to sell her work. We artists do get attached to out artworks, but me personally, I just find that I put most of mine in storage, and they start getting in the way, so I'm always delighted to see them re-housed, especially if it's someone I know will get lots of pleasure out of it. However, there is a solution that could suit everyone. How about she gets a fine art printer to photograph her work and make prints from it? Then she can keep the originals and others can enjoy them too!

Cracker sounds a bit too grim for me. My spousal Unit likes Wallender, so he can watch those when I'm not around. I love Prime Suspect, and we should go through it from start to finish - used to randomly watch it here and there back when we had telly. Babylon 5 is one we never watched, so I should consider it. I have this hazy memory of the set being too cheesy. But maybe I didn't give it a chance? A couple of years ago we did that very dark one, Battlestar Galactica and ended up being very very hooked. Why isn't anyone making a good space adventure RIGHT NOW????? As far as I know there is nothing in the regular series department. Lots of vampires and zombies and so on. Not my cuppa.

I'm going to look into the ones you recommended Reba - why was Scott and Bailey cancelled? Or was it meant to be short? Like the story arc got completed? Foyle's War looks quite intriguing. I don't think I've ever seen an Inspector Lewis either so we have all of those to check out!

Hannah - that is a very very good idea that I will pitch to my friend. She might go for it. It would be great for her to get a little more income somehow. Heaven knows where she keeps all her work, frankly, their place is not that large.

So my friends, I am going to try to make some LT visits today, but alas I have landed home first a little under the weather, then busy, and now must jump in the car tomorrow to attend a family funeral - my sil's father - a delightful man. Going really for my brother and sil - several of my sibs, if you can believe it, can't go as they are all departing today and tomorrow for a wedding that is taking place in the Phillippines (could it be more difficult???) this weekend. (I have a brother who lives in Australia, this is his son, and he is marrying a woman born in the Phillippines - get this - the whole immed. family really live in Toronto, but all the rest of the fam is over there and can't possibly make the trip so it really does make sense, sort of.......we couldn't go because of various commitments and I was feeling bad, but now I am glad that we can be here for my bro and sil. Not glad exactly, you all know what I mean.) I will be back Friday night and over the weekend I will try to visit all of you, my LT friends - I don't think I'm even going to take my computer on this trip. Can't see the point. LT cold turkey....... yaghhhhh

Wallender is the Swedish one I couldn't think of the name of. That one is way to dark for me. Scott and Bailey seemed like a short trial series. We liked it because the two detectives (Scott and Bailey, both women) had real lives which were, if anything, more complicated than usual. Those complications were not resolved at all. We're hoping they'll make some more. Lewis was, of course, Morse's deputy and in this series has made the promotion to inspector. Death in Paradise takes place on a Caribbean Island where a detective from England is sent to help out and ends up staying. He can't quite get into the island spirit, always wearing a suit to work for example. He has a very capable and sassy female deputy. The crimes stories are good but the comedy is also fun. I hope you can find them all

Good luck on the cold turkey. Be safe! We'll miss you.

>47 sibylline: LT Cold Turkey sounds pretty scary. Why is it that 'weddings and funerals' often go in the same sentence? Major life events, obviously. On and on the cycle goes.

Have a great trip. You'll be missed. Now I'm eyeing a Penguin coffee mug which is only available to ship in the US... heh! ;-)

Sorry you aren't feeling well, but glad you can be there for your brother and his wife. Counting the days until your return!

Thought I would chime in and second some recommendations. I love Foyles War, it is such a great period piece. The actors and the plot are amazing. I can't speak to the Battlestar Galectica reference as I have only seen the 1980's TV adaptation, not the newer one. I second the rec for Inspector Lewis - it's the chemistry between Lewis, his underling Hathaway and the coroner that really makes the show, IMO. I love the Australian TV series Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries, which is based on the Phryne Fisher novels by Kerry Greenwood - total escapism in a wonderful flapper world of 1920's Melbourne Australia. For Miss Marple, the only episodes that I like are the one starring Joan Hickson as Miss Marple. The rest just do not compare. Cracker was a tad too dark and brooding for my tastes, even if I did enjoy some of his biting comebacks. How do you feel about spy agencies? MI-5 is quite a good series, or at least the first four seasons were but the continual change-over of characters did finally kill it for me.

Sorry to see you are not feeling well. Hope you are feeling better soon!

Thank you Roni and Lori - I am feeling better although by the time I get home from this very brief trip I might be a basket case again. I've written all these recommendations down and am going to refer to it! I'm so excited to have some good ideas. I've heard good things about Miss Fisher but had forgotten all about it.

I thought Battlestar was exceptional. The character, Starbuck, a woman, is worth the whole show. It got a little silly at the end, but never so silly you couldn't stick with it. I'll happily watch it again in a few years.

Meanwhile on the book front: Arseniev is trudging around the taiga with his marvelous 'Gold' friend Dersu. I'm closing in on the end and that's good too as there is an awful lot of trudging. I am mainly reading it for the delightful interactions between Dersu and Arseniev.

I'm inclined to let the Mary Webb go, even though the second I wrote that I cringed, but The Problem for me is that while the writing itself is a marvel, I get so weary of the plot iteration of two men, one good and one bad, scheming over a woman - who is 'a force of nature' , a prize, and who is ruined in the struggle, inevitably.....I'm fine when the woman is also a rounded and complex person, but Hazel is slightly too much like Elfine in Cold Comfort Farm (Gibbons might have had the Hazels of literature in mind as she wrote it, I suspect) But gosh, the language is incredible. Oh bother! I don't know what to do! I'll decide when I get back.

In the Asaro I'm reading, two men are also interested in one woman, but it is apparent that she has a mind of her own -- it isn't two men fighting over an object, but three people trying to figure out how to get on even if some of them behave badly. All the same time, great lit it aint! This one The Quantum Rose is a stand alone as it explores the life of one of the 'lesser' princes of the Ruby line.

>53 sibylline: by the time I get home from this very brief trip I might be a basket case again
Hope not, but I can see how this might be...

Lucy, hope you are feeling better. I have to third the recommendation for Foyle's War. Exccellent! I picked it up on Netflix and power-watched several seasons, it's that good.

>52 lkernagh: I absolutely ADORE MI-5, aka Spooks. Can't recommend it too highly! I watched all the way through to the final episode, and cried during it. Really. Yes, the character turnover was annoying, especially in the final series (episode 10) but frankly, it never let up in terms of suspense. I just loved it.

Rupert Penry-Jones went on to do another show, Whitechapel, which is very good. The latest, series 3, is much darker and I didn't like it as much.

Then there's "The Bletchley Circle" -- watch the first series; the second isn't nearly as good but the first is superb.

There's another series, with Trevor Eve at the helm of a cold case squad, which is excellent if you can find it here. Lotsa flawed characters and complex puzzles. Yum yum.

If you can find "Silk" with Maxine Peake, do give it a whirl. Legal mystery/thriller.

If you're OK with Prime Suspect, Cracker might possibly be OK; it's gritty but thematically darker.

>56 Chatterbox: We watched the first series of Bletchley Circle in one evening.... we just couldn't stop watching once we got started! I must go check out Whitechapel.

Such great stuff!! I'm very excited!!!!! Thank you all for giving me so many ideas. I expect we'll start by watching the grown-up Inspector Morse and then..... who knows!!!! What a smorgasbord. We're bound to like some of it, eh?

Home from the trip - about 16 hours of driving and about 18 hours in and around Philly (Chestnut Hill/Dresher area really for those of you in the know). A bit surreal. Best was that we made it to the kennel on time to pick up Miss Po. Hope to get to laze about a bit tomorrow!

>57 lkernagh: Binge-watching!!! Isn't it great? That's what I did with MI-5. Watched the first four episodes and then went out at dawn the next morning to hunt down the second season and bought the third the day it appeared. That series was single-handedly responsible for my purchase of an all-region DVD player.

Miss Po! I wonder who was happier to see the other??

27. memoir ****
Dersu the Trapper V.K. Arseniev

A more tender portrayal of a friendship between two people from unimaginably different backgrounds I haven't encountered anywhere. That friendship and a deeply observed look at what was even then a fast-vanishing landscape in far Eastern Russia a hundred years ago makes Dersu the Trapper an exceptional read. Arseniev was a surveyor, a passionate observer of nature and outdoorsman - a bit like TR and some others of that era, he behaved in paradoxical ways - if he felt like going out to shoot something he did - often, however, he would decide against it, or ask the men accompanying him to refrain - out of respect for both the animals and their endangered habitat. He could see too and mourn the destruction of this area, the animals, insects and birds particular to it, not to mention several tribes of native peoples (I'm afraid the Chinese come off very very badly in all regards in this book - although Europeans did no better in the blithe rapine of the North and South American continents). Arseniev is always even-handed and is careful to describe the helpful and kind Chinese folk he met too. But Dersu! A 'Gold' (one of the vanishing tribes) he has lived out of doors as a hunter, the majority of his life. Alone, after his family died of smallpox, he has wandered about catching a sable or finding ginseng here and there - his needs are few. He can look at a track that would mean nothing to you and me, tell you an entire story about the animal, its age, health, mood, intent..... The book has three parts, three different trips into the wild taig. In the first Dersu appears and with his quiet and unobtrusive authority enchants Arseniev and gains the respect of everyone and rapidly becomes indispensible. Arseniev never spares himself - arguing or disagreeing with Dersu about weather or which route to take - is the ultimate stupidity although he, Arseniev, never does quite come to understand fully the needs and depths of Dersu the man. In the second book Arseniev meets up with Dersu and this is a time of simple happiness in being in each other's company. In the third Dersu is declining and while they have some fine times, it is poignant. It is understandable from the first why Arseniev would value Dersu, less understandable what draws Dersu to Arseniev, but as you read you become aware that although Arseniev was a man of his time in some ways, in others he was one of those with a naturally open mind, a big heart, strong ethics and also confident in some way of himself so that he never minded admitting his own flaws and errors. Friendship is, of course, a mystery and one of the more wonderful joys of life when a true one comes your way. A lovely book. ****

This sounds beautiful, Lucy, and one to tuck away on the Christmas list for one of my lads. Good review, thank you.

Loved your review of Dersu the Trapper, Lucy. I went to see if my library has it and they do--one copy published in 1941. I just put it on hold and I'll be interested to see what condition it's in.

It's above freezing!!!! so exciting. We have this glacier at the bottom of our hill and it is softening a bit today. What I hope is that it will only go a little above freezing for a week or so, give things a chance to thaw gradually, no huge warm-up, torrential rain, etc. That would be quite bad.

O.k. Lucy, I found you.

28. sf ****
The Quantum Rose Catherine Asaro Bk 6 Skolian

Don't read this one out of order although you might think, looking at the blurb, that you could.... unlike Kelric in The Last Hawk however, this brother of his, Havryl, who is no warrior or intellectual, but has lived his life as a farmer, ends up on Balumil where the remaining Ruby military has dumped him out of the hands of the Allieds....(see what I mean? You need the context). His arrival on Balumil destabilizes the political infrastructure there when he grabs the gorgeous but affianced governor away from her fiance who is rat-mad about that, you bet, but really, he isn't all that nice to her so.... Due to off-world politics, some later action happens off-planet on Lyshriol where Vyrl grew up. Both planets share some similarities - a genetically altered population for a planet that has to be 'sculpted' (not fully terraformed) to enable the people to survive there. Kamoj's people were particularly engineered for docility and for skill with 'current' - (engineering) but they have lost their skills and are gradually declining as the planet is too harsh even sculpted for them to make it without some reliable machinery to provide warmth and light, for example during their very very long winters. What is particularly fun about this one is that Asaro wrote it using the 'dance' of particle physics as her inspiration. In a postscript Asaro offers one of the neatest explanations of that dance that I've ever encountered, I got it while reading it, although retention will be another matter. The Quantum Rose is not the best of the series as it is a wee bit labored here and there, and Vyrl and Jax the two men who are in love with Kamoj are not quite as convincing as, say, my beloved hunk, Kelric, but I read it as absorbedly as ever. I also note she has left room for a return to Balumil - lots of potential for more development of both the planet and the characters. ****

I see looking at the rest of the reviews for QR - it really is a good idea to read in order. She has set up a very complex 'verse and falling into the middle of it just isn't fun.

>64 Ameise1: Lovely to see you here, glad you found me.

Here is what I am starting out the week with:
audio ♬

Yes, despite my earlier whining I am still reading the Webb - the writing itself is too good even if I loathe the story itself.

So far I have only listened to one disc of about 21 of the Weber.... I expect it will be around for some time to come in the weekly round-up.

Hi Lucy, is it as beautiful out in your neck of the woods as it is here today? Seems a bit cold. I'm staying indoors. All that sunshine hurts my eyes, but still, it does like winter just might come to an end someday...

>63 sibylline: It's above freezing!!!! so exciting.
Yesterday in Philadelphia, it was spring! Rittenhouse Square park benches lined with people sitting and chatting, not scurrying to get inside.

>60 sibylline: You've said so much already I didn't realize you hadn't yet officially reviewed.

Sorry, I cannot even conceive of listening to the monster Webers on CD--it would take an eternity and his plots tend to be so sprawling in those later books, I'd completely lose track of what's going on. You're a better woman than I, Gunga Din.

81 degrees here at the house, and lots of iced tea.

>69 ronincats: Well - yes - Roni, I may not last. I'm on disc 2 of this first one and all that has happened so far is pretty much nothing - I'm not overwhelmed by the reader either, she's a bit artificial. On the other hand, I sort of don't need too much going on when I'm driving so maybe it will work out fine. We'lls ee.

>60 sibylline: Wonderful review. Just about as good as it gets. Brava!

From you Richard, that just makes my day! Molto grazie!

Well I have some great news about the Little Darling!!! She won her high school round of Poetry Out Loud - the national recitation competition and on this Wednesday, March 12, competes in the Vermont semi-finals with 40 other students from high schools around the state. She'll be reciting her two winning poems, George Meredith's "Dirge in Winter" and Adrienne Rich's "Planetarium" (You GO girl!). Vermont Public Radio is streaming the event from 10:00-2:30. I have no idea where she is in the line-up but if you want to hear enthusiasm for literature this is the time and place to hear it! She neglected to tell us (!!!!) for almost two weeks that she had won the first round (she did, rather casually a bit earlier on, mention she was in the competition). Her first name is Elizabeth and her school is Mount Mansfield Union High. I could burst with pride!

Here is the link to the Vermont Arts Council site which has a link to the streaming:
http://www.vermontartscouncil.org/Education/PoetryOutLoud/tabid/140/Default.aspx

There is a second day of competition - I think 20 students per day go - so we won't know results until Thursday night, or even Friday.

>73 sibylline: Congratulations, what lovely news!

Gone to Earth Mary Webb
Read It or Get Rid of It
So, I gave up on this one at long last - From page to page it was a struggle - between the marvelous writing, the descriptions of people, animals, nature - and the histrionic nature of the plot and the thematic drive of the story. I just couldn't stand it anymore and I can't begin to tell you whether it is a flaw in the book or just me.

Here's a sample of the wonderful writing:
"When Edward got home his mother was asleep in the armchair. Her whole person rose and fell like a tropical sea. Her shut eyes were like those of a statue, behind the lids of which one knows there are no eyes. Her eyebrows were slightly raised, as if in expostulation at being obliged to breathe. Her figure expressed the dignity of old age, which may or may not be due to rheumatism."

Ordinarily I love this kind of writing which skitters between pathos and humor in a balanced way. It's an odd book indeed. I'll probably keep my copy with the other Viragos, although my copy isn't a Virago..... a lovely old hard back edition from Jonathan Cape.

75: It seems... tiring to read, if that makes sense? I don't blame you for giving up... the prose does seem a bit purple.

Hooray! HOORAY!! HOORAY!!! for Elizabeth from Mount Mansfield Union High!!! I'll hope I can be listening...and this is such a great event!
(I haven't been able to face Mary Webb yet - especially since reading Cold Comfort Farm.)

>73 sibylline: I could burst with pride!
!!! Have you heard her, or does she practice in secret?

>75 sibylline: I loved Precious Bane but when I read Gone to Earth I could see why Cold Comfort Farm was written and wished Flora Poste would enter and sort out Hazel. I'm sure her methods would have been a lot more successful than Mary Webb's.

I came running right over to see what your news was - VERY EXCITING!! Congrats to you and to the Little Darling! I will try to listen - that is the day before Rae's birthday and she has a doctor's appointment, but hopefully I can listen in and catch your Elizabeth!! I am over the moon for the both of you - SO COOL!

In other news - I thought that I had commented on your March thread before but apparently not. Apparently I have just been lurking. I love the thread topper! It's delightful, and I am hoping that she will let you use the image on your business cards.

I loved your reviews of the Asaro books, and I am going to look up that series when I have finished here, as I am not familiar with it. And you'll love this - I have read my first Virago and was completely charmed by it. High Rising by Angela Thirkell - I had mentioned on my thread that I had purchased a few of these as I came across them because I had fallen in love with the covers. SO now I am happy to report that the inside of the book is just as lovely - can't wait to get to the second one, which I already have in my possession!

Happy Monday to you, Lucy dear!

Q - It isn't out of the blue by any means. At her school in Philadelphia, for three years, 6-8 grade, she had the same extraordinary teacher and they memorized a poem. or part of one, pretty much every week or so throughout. The LD always considered this a treat, not homework. When we moved here, she immediately found the local poetry slamming crowd and did that intensively for two years - distinguishing herself in the Burlington area and beyond. In slamming you write your own poems, btw, sometimes under time pressure. She's poetry mad in general and has little fear of public speaking, so this is really very much up her alley. In some ways this feels 'easy' to her - memorizing a great poem and not having to write it AND memorize it! Awe. Pure and simple.

She often does recite for me - not as often in front of both of parental units. We hear her sometimes up in her room, but we pretend not to.

Oh, Lucy, I can see why you are so excited and bursting with pride! That is wonderful news about your daughter. Even I'm proud of her!!

I am as chuffed that there actually is such a thing as a poetry out loud competition as I am that your daughter is part of one, Lucy. I hope she does well (can't get the feed up here, I don't think).

I hated Gone to Earth and don't even think I finished it. It was like wading through treacle wearing hip waders.

Congrats to you and the LD Lucy! You have much to be proud of.

I think that little sample was enough Mary Webb for me!

Very cool about your daughter! Keep us apprised of how she does, please!

Congratulations to your daughter! I was not aware of this competition and am pleased to see such a thing exists. I hope she does well this week -- do keep us posted!

And thank you for the fair warning about Gone to Earth. I have that one in my Virago collection, and given your feedback and an average LT rating of 3, it's likely to remain TBR for some time if not forever! I read Webb's Precious Bane 3.5 years ago and just revisited my review: 3 stars, thought it predictable. And yikes, looks like I own 4 more by Webb, snapped up in voracious Virago hunting. Oh well, maybe the covers are pretty. I'll have to check. :)

Do you think VPR will have that available for view afterwards? I will be driving to L.A. Wednesday morning. Can't delay it and have to leave here at 7:30 a.m. (so 10:30 your time). No way I can watch live but I would love to see her.

Wonderful news about Elizabeth's feat, and boo hiss on the Gone to Earth abandonment...I never like giving up, though I've learned how important it is to stop the agony sooner instead of later.

>87 RebaRelishesReading: I will try to find out Reba. Let's hope they have it available for a little while at least.

>88 richardderus: (And all other commenting on the Webb) I hate giving up too Richard, which is why, I think I am making up this elaborate ritual around it! Basically I think it might be a borderline Virago choice......

, congratulations!!! You must be very proud of your daughter.

How exciting about your daughter, Lucy!

Very cool on the poetry competition! I think Maryland's is coming up soon too. Is there a national competition the winners go to?

>92 drneutron: Yes, but I'm not going to think about that!!!

Well, mes amis, the weather forecast for Wednesday is a hoot and a half.......NOT. 10-20 inches of snow between 8 a.m. Wednesday morning into the evening...... Thursday looks pretty bad too - 20 inches does slow things down considerably around here and the snow won't stop until late in the day on Thursday and they are being cagey about just how much will fall that day...... Perhaps some of the kids will get to do their thing on Friday? Or maybe it will happen the following week? Who knows. Ah, Vermont, you have to love it.

Congratulations to your daughter, Lucy! I can't wait to hear how things progress.

Isn't March the darndest month? But 20" is a bit rude.

It's beyond rude. Plus my spousal unit is supposed to fly off to a conference in Florida on Thursday. Whatcha wanna bet that is delayed/cancelled etcetera. He should try to re-arrange his flight pronto.

Well, there's another quotation on my thread from Gwen Raverat if you need a smile.

>94 sibylline: 10-20 inches of snow
Sheesh. What will the title of your April thread be?

Now it is up to 22 inches!!!!! That is, of course, the maximum, but we tend to get the maximum with this sort of storm that isn't 'going south' of us as many of them have this winter. Poor spousal unit is trying to change his flight, but he can't until Burlington is officially declared impacted..... so far it is only at Detroit.

Maybe I can make one of these and crawl inside with a book and a blankie. Hmm. And coffee.

Do crawl someplace with a book, a blankie and a cup of hot cocoa (while there you might want to chant "spring will come")

OOoo! I could have one of those! (except that I'm so lazy that I'd rather just climb on the sofa and spend building time reading)

I'm not sure how much we got, but we got a healthy dose of snow last night. Today, seems like lots of it has melted away, but they're expecting plenty more with some snowfall warnings for later today. Your book cave above me think of this cat cave I just saw on my 'Etsy Finds' newsletter today and fell in love with:



eta: here's the link if anyone is interested in getting it: https://www.etsy.com/listing/125363718/cat-bed-cat-cave-cat-house-eco-friendly?

I love that cat cave!

UPDATE on OUTLOUD postponement - due to snow storm:


So here is the new information for Poetry OutLoud - it's been postponed until Friday - I guess they will somehow squeeze in all 40 kids in a five hour period? No lunch break? No leisurely introduction..... who knows..... I'm guessing the event will go on a good bit past 3 o'clock. Some things can't be rushed. This Vermont Arts Council includes the streaming link, so easy peasy. My daughter was/is in Region 1, so I hope she gets to go sooner than later.....

http://www.vermontartscouncil.org/

>100 sibylline: Lucy, I like this photo. Have a lovely day.

I love the cat cave, too, and I don't even have a cat, LOL.

I'm home a good bit on Friday so hope I can catch LD.

Love the pic of Posey you posted on Rae's thread Lucy!

Cat cave, check! Friday for the Poetry, check! I'm caught up!!

Sorry to hear about that unwelcome snowstorm, but glad to hear that Poetry OutLoud got rescheduled. Good luck to your daughter!

Congratulations to your daughter! What an amazing accomplishment. I hope her event can go forward on Friday as planned. I think she is very brave to participate in such a thing!

We are also being impacted by this storm....but I am on the coast so they are only forecasting up to 7" for us. We are expecting nasty mixing and ice buildup as well. *deep put-upon sigh*

Did the snow show up today as predicted, Lucy!

Yep and it is still coming down and very very very windy!

Before and after:


It's hard to say how much it has snowed because of the wind but I would guess 18 inches.

29. contemp fic ****
Restless William Boyd

This is a true four star book - a terrific story, well written, hard to put down. I can't rate it higher because while it is so good, it doesn't dig deeper and I feel that Boyd could, but chooses not to. Of course, it wouldn't have been as much fun to read, probably, because I knew it would end well, which deeper books often don't, not in the shallow way of the good guys getting to live and so on. Ruth wonders if her mother isn't going batty - already she likes to clip her lawn with shears, but when she hands Ruth the start of 'her' memoirs, not of Sally Fairchild Gilmartin, but of one Eva Delectorskaya, a spy during the war..... and a spy with a grudge......well..... The chapters alternate between present and past - Ruth's life as a graduate student working on a dissertation but caught up with her young child and the easy money of teaching ESL and her mother's story, and we follow with delight and trepidation as the two stories begin to cross paths. Nicely done, a perfect vaca read if you can find the paperback or load it on your gadget. ****

^ That sounds wonderful!

Too much snow in your neighborhood, Lucy, that is for sure. I walked home yesterday with early trees and daffodils in full bloom. This will come your way eventually, we all know this, but dang this has been a horrific winter!

I actually love snow but I know you are sick and tired of it by now.

Hang in there, stay warm, and use it as an excuse to read.

We got off lightly with only about 5" but the wind caused whiteouts and lots of drifting. It was a hairy drive home from the pool yesterday. We have a windchill factor of -30C now. This too shall pass, this too shall pass...

>113 sibylline: The table on my back balcony has a similar hearty serving of fresh snow today Lucy. It think it must have stopped snowing in the early morning because I see the street hasn't been cleared yet. Strangely enough, I don't get tired of fresh snow because it makes everything temporarily cleaner and Coco does so love running around in the powdery stuff. Yesterday he was hopping around with snow up to his ears and seemed to be having a great time about it. It's too cold though. Spring WILL come. Eventually.

Stay warm and cozy Lucy...this too shall pass.

>114 sibylline: Lucy, thanks fpr this review. I have this one as an audiobook. It looks like I should listen to it soon.

What a pity, that you"ve got such a lot of snow.

So today is the day - The Little Darling should have her turn sometime between 10 and 1 as she is Region 1 and they go first (cramming two days of recitation into one).

For info for streaming >104 sibylline:

!!!!

>120 sibylline: If you can, post here when she's on? I can't watch the whole thing, but could tune in for a bit.

She will recite twice between 10 & 12. She appears to be 9th in the line up if they go in the order on the program. That's the best I can do!!!!! Probably I'll have to turn my phone off. Bit will be rebroadcast later today.

YAY! Just heard Lucy's daughter recite her first poem - clearly the best so far! She has a beautiful voice, well-controlled drama, not even a touch over-done. She did the Meredith first. I have no doubt that she'll be back!

I'm watching! It's off to the side while I do routine clerical stuff for work. I'm not in a position to compare; I'm merely admiring presentation skills that I did not remotely possess in high school.

Oh no! Second poem not streamed; don't have rights to broadcast. :-(

With time difference I missed it!! Hope it's available later.

YAY! YAY!! YAY!!! FINALIST!!!!!!

Same here--I turned to it when I got up and on the computer but the morning session was already over. Will she be on the afternoon since she's a finalist?

:-( I turned it off shortly after the 2nd poem wasn't there, because I'm supposed to be working, clerical bit is done so now I have to think; missed the finalist announcement.

I'll post finalist photo when we get home. Vermont public teev is running it again tonight. Bummer about 2nd poem!! I'll see what i can do. She had me in tears.
Finalists will go on 7 pm vermont public teev March 20!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Abby and I caught it, Lucy - she did such a great job. Beautiful voice and inflection. So exciting that she made the finals!

You absolute darlings, all of you , to have watched! We are home now and ready to get in our pj's at 2:30...... I am so tired - I had no idea how involved I was, trying so hard to be calm and cool. I'll walk Miss Po and then I think I really might just get comfortable and... hmm.... read maybe???? I am so delighted!

Back in a sec with a not very good finalist photo - I think my hands were shaking a bit!!!


(The LD has on the long skirt, coppery shirt.)

That is so awesome, Lucy! Congrats to the LD (And to you because parents should get some credit on occasion...)

Wonderful, wonderful news Lucy! Congratulations.

Isn't this exciting? Thrilled for all of you, Lucy, but especially for the LD. It's all blocked up here so I have to rely on you for the info. A FINALIST!

So sorry I missed this but delighted will have the chance to tune in and cheer the LD on the on the 20th !!!!!

Congrats to all concerned !!!!! Woot woot woot!!!

It's funny -- glancing at the photo, I thought to myself instantly, I bet the young woman in the long skirt is Lucy's offspring... I have no idea why.

I do hope that you're able to celebrate in your igloo.

Thankfully we missed out on this latest polar vortex. There was a real toad-strangler of a downpour in NYC, all rain, on Wednesday, and then a blast of freezing air but sunshine on Thursday. Had the two been combined it would have been hellacious.

congratulations!! Do keep us posted when the finals will be.

Yay! Congratulations to LD!

Lucy, congratulations!!! I wish you a lovely weekend

Congrats to LD! I wish I had been able to watch. Will there be a rebroadcast or something on line?

Add my congratulations to the pile for LD. :)

OK FINALLY they put Region 1 up on the rebroadcast on Livestream - my daughter is at about 22 min.
http://new.livestream.com/accounts/2917722/vtpol

They have Region 1 up now. The LDs first poem is at about 22 min. The second poem (expletive deleted) can't be publicly broadcast, by order of Adrienne Rich's estate. That was the one the LD nailed 101% naturally. But the first one is darned good too and gives you the general idea. The first one was 'quieter'.

I don't know where I was all day - I mean - I was home, but somehow absent, here it is almost 11 o'clock and I have no idea how THAT happened..... and tomorrow is Sunday! It got over 40 today, but now it is cold and, alas, even snowing lightly.

Thanks for that link Lucy. I watched the first few contestants before your LD so I could get a sense of what some of the other performances were like, and she certainly shines. It was really beautiful. Too bad we couldn't see the second poem performed but I'm sure she did it beautifully too.

30. **** fantasy
The Hero of Ages Brandon Sanderson

With this third installment the story of the Mistborn is completed. -Although naturally, not without room to start a whole 'nother cycle, to be sure. My reservation about Mistborn is that it is too complicated, too worked out, too..... to pun on the allomantic theme.... forced. And yet there is terrific worldbuilding, and while the story gets almost twisted up in itself in its complexities, Sanderson valiantly unravels it all at the end although I had the feeling now and then of a story that threatened to run away with its author spinning out of control. The kandra, the Terrismen - esp the characters of OreSeur, TenSoon and Sazed lifted the story up for me, into a sort of dogged 'must read' (sorry another insider pun there). Particularly those who treasure world-building above all in fantasy, this would be worthwhile thought probably not your best read ever. ****

Starting out the week with these three plus the endless audiobook:
audio ♬

Two, the Hoffman and the Park qualify as 'Read it or Get Rid of It" - Both having lingered far far too long on my shelves.

Lucy, is your daughter the one who read "The True Blue American"?

That's amazing and wonderful news about LD, and I'm busy whammying even more good luck for the 20th! *smooch*

No Ellen, although that young woman was terrific with her first poem but fell apart, sadly, with her second, my daughter comes on just after her - a coppery top and long skirt. The poem is called "Dirge in Woods" - by George Meredith.

^ Found her. Very lovely (the young woman and her reading of the poem)! Thanks for posting the link. I'm so glad she made it as a finalist, and I'm very impressed with her poise to read poetry out loud in front of an audience.

Thanks for posting the link -- I got to see her! I've never watching an oral poetry competition before so that was quite a treat as well as hearing how wonderfully your daughter recited her poem.

Excellent! LD was astonishing... her voice, her timing, her expression. So lovely! Wish we could see the second poem, too.

Wishing her the best for the next competition. You have a gem there, Lucy ;-)

Thank you Cee - and it just occurs to me that you're the only LT person who has met the LD!

I feel pretty lucky about that;-)
And meeting her was an added benefit of meeting you! You are both shining stars in my book!

Why do I have this impression I've met her before? It's really strange... because I know I surely can't have.

Thank you Cee - that was a fun encounter. Especially that odd little bookstore in the middle of nowhere.

I've had the same thought, Ilana, and then had to realize, nope, they haven't met.

This morning the NOAA people are promising that for the indefinite future the temp won't drop into the MINUS F - today might might might might just be the LAST ONE. (It's about -6 F right now). In fact, for the next five days, until Sunday, the temp will be above 30 every day and mostly above freezing.

Am I crazy to be excited???

I so feel for you. I mean, I feel with you. I really don't mind the snow, but the cold, yes. But can't say I'm looking forward to the nasty experience that early spring usually is here in the city, when everything starts melting, including the thousands of dog turds the owners haven't bothered picking up all winter. Truly disgusting. I'll be wearing gumboots.

eta: sorry if it's tmi. I just really dread the coming of spring every year for that reason. Buying flowers and keeping them firmly in mind when out and about helps.

>142 sibylline: Congratulations to you and the LD. And thanks for sharing the link - I really enjoyed watching and listening to her recite. I don't normally read or listen to poetry but I was blown away by her performance (if performance is the right word).

>156 sibylline: Not crazy, I would be too. I really hope today is your last below freezing day.

Oh Ilana, I remember that well from the Philadelphia days - I don't know what people are thinking will happen to all that 'invisible' poop when the snow melts. It is disgusting! Although I will admit that I have to do a serious lawn clean up after the melt - half the time I put Miss Po out at night I stay on the covered porch shivering while she does whatever..... but I promise I won't be complaining about that chore this year!!!! I do go out now and then in the winter to clean it all up, but some it gets completely away from me. This being one of those winters.

Thanks, Heather, it has been maddening. Everyone, even some die-hard winter lovers, has had enough.

31. contemp fic ***1/2
The Probable Future Alice Hoffman

I zipped through this second Hoffman (for me) enjoying it more than the first one; however, I think it is a book to be read quickly and not examined too deeply......there is a disconcerting mix of vagueness and sharp detail and often a kind of delirious prose that is meant to be lyrical, I guess..... Anyway, the women of the Sparrow family (women, who, by the way, seem to all keep their maiden name about despite marriage) receive a 'gift' at 13 and Stella's is to see a person's manner of death. Her mother's is dreaming other people's dreams, yet another can stay underwater for twenty minutes, another can detect lies, and so on. However..... it seems that Stella's gift is only a 'probably' sight, one that can be altered or mistaken..... a bit conveniently, too conveniently for me. Ah well. It was the right book for this last dreary bit of bitter cold I'm enduring and needing escape from, although all the stuff about spring and bees and lilacs and so on was also maddening.... anyway, Hoffman is good for a quick getaway. ***1/2

I had this in my RIGRI category - but while it is a book that sat on the shelf for longer than I'd like, I decided it doesn't quite qualify.... can't explain that.

>159 sibylline: Thanks for the empathy Lucy. I must say, letting your own dog onto your own ground to do it's business is one thing, which I don't have anything to say about one way or another, as it's a private matter, but letting the same dog soil public places and indeed, public paths is such an utter lack of common decency which continually shocks me, though I really do try to turn a blind eye to it, but how can you when you have to be constantly vigilant? I came up with a little sing song I run in my head which goes "Only s****y people leave their dog's s**t behind". Doesn't help much, but it makes me smile in a petty sort of way, because otherwise I'm just seething with fury. Not healthy.

Oh ick, people.

>156 sibylline: Am I crazy to be excited???
I bet all of Vermont gets giddy.

We have four outdoor thermometers and they never agree about anything and they have names. Here is what they say today:
The Optimist: 16 F
The Pessimist 10 F
The Quitter: 12 (won't register anything below 0 F)
Teensy: 8 F

It's very rare that they ALL disagree like this. Also that any of the others are more pessimistic than the Pessimist.

The finals of POETRY OUT LOUD will be streamed on Vermont Public Teev tomorrow night at 7 pm. Here is the link:

http://www.vpt.org/

I fear that the Rich poem will once again be blank screened. We are SO irritated about that, but while I am there I hope to talk to someone and see if I can arrange get a private clip of it.

>163 sibylline: they have names
Love it!

Many thanks for the link to the POETRY! I plan to be here tomorrow night streaming right along!
Happy travels to you and break a leg or whatever is appropriate for your LD. We're all proud too!!!

When literary matters are involved we always say, 'Break a pencil".

When I walked Miss Po this morning the wind changed direction while I was stumping down the road across the big field, from northwest to due south. I teared up. I'm totally serious. The temp lifted by about 15 degrees in less than a half hour. Now it is above 30. Joy.

>163 sibylline: That is hilarious! I love your nicknames for each of the thermometers.

"Hoffman is good for a quick getaway."
Hrmmm, I might be needing one of those.

Oh bummer -- I have a meeting at 4:00 (our time) tomorrow so can't watch live again. Hope they repeat as they did with the last round.

They will show the second poem in the live broadcast. Not sure if it will happen again after that.
I'm in the VPT studio right now!!!!

>169 sibylline: Do you know where your daughter is in the lineup? I need to be out for awhile this evening, but hope to watch...

Eating now so that I can be present at the get-go. Yay!!!

I saw it! Yay! I went out and returned shortly before 8pm, and clicked on the webcast remarkably exactly as she was starting. So I missed the intro. Cool! Both poem and performance.

Wow, pretty exciting stuff. I'm staying tuned to find out who is going to round 3! Great job LD!

Runner up! Pretty awesome. That Sam kid was ok, but LD did a lot better. Not that I'm biased or anything! :-)

Congratulations!

Congratulations from me too! A very enjoyable hour and a half, I must say. (Ilana, I don't think you're reacting from bias at all. I had not particularly liked the winner.)

Oh, I SO totally agree! LD was better... much better than the winner. Her third poem was the best tonight, imho. Though she did excellently all the way through. You must be bursting with pride, Mom ;-)

Congrats to the runner up - Elizabeth!!!!

Ron and I hooked the computer up to the TV and watched while we ate supper. Perfect timing!

>176 LizzieD: I must say Peggy, I though the judges made strange selections for the third round. I would have picked Elizabeth of course, but probably two different candidates. The boy who won was one of my least favourite in the lot.

>177 -Cee-: Yeah, I did the same, had the computer hooked up with the TV and watched it on the big screen. I thought it was really exciting watching these kids so enthusiastic about their pieces and obviously in love with those poems. Makes me want to try harder with poetry and finally get into it. Maybe I should start reciting it out loud to get into the groove.

I JUST GOT HOME!!!!! Had to drive the long way home dropping off a couple of the LD's friends who came too. First thing, came running here!

Thank you all of you above here for watching and for your comments. WOWOWOWOWOWEEE!!! We are so thrilled. It's a mystery in those kinds of contests, involving aesthetic choices, why one kid wins..... but we are absolutely ecstatic with the outcome and wish young Sam the best of luck in D.C.!! I thought the Gilmour girl was fantastic too.

Phew, now life can go back to what passes for 'normal' around here.

x's and o's to all!!!!!

If you missed it - it will be up to be streamed on VPT probably by tomorrow. Maybe even tonight for all I know. I think they're going to archive it in the education section of on-line stuff.

Oooooo more comments...... I love it. No one expected Sam B. to win, no one - not a single person who has written me here or messaged or whatever. No argument from me.

Oh, thank goodness it will be streamed live. I fell asleep -- still fighting the Beastly Cold -- and MISSED IT, to my horror.

CONGRATS!!!

Hang on, hang on, back up: did LD come second in the final or do I have my wires crossed?

Yes, Tui - she did. She was incredibly exciting to watch. I hope you can stream it once it is up on the education area of their on-line stuff - I'll put up a link as soon as there is one. She also asked me to thank all of you who watched last night, she's staggered, really that you did, really touched.

*wildly waving Kermit arms* while yelling hooray, hooray! Well done, LD, all the bookish nerds your mom hangs out with are delighted for you.

I'm anxiously awaiting that link. Can't wait to see her. Big congratulations on doing so well!!

AND she just got her notice that she is into Sarah Lawrence and also St Mary's in Maryland (an honors college in the state system) - a really nice place and different - the only 'out of New England' college she applied to. Now we'll have to go and properly visit instead of reading about it. Vassar is next week. Cross fingers. Her college counselor sent the info about Poetry Out Loud today!

>186 sibylline: Wow, the good news is flooding in! Does she have a preference?

Congratulations on the second place finish AND the admissions news!

Well, I think she'd like to have the choice between Vassar and Sarah L. So we'll bite our nails until next week.

>184 tiffin: We are extremely cool book nerds.

Kudos to the counselor who is getting Vassar the Poetry Out Loud Info!
And another CONGRATULATIONS on being accepted by Sarah L.!!!! What a good March you are having!

WOW! So much excitement over here. I will look for the link to watch her performance. And two college acceptances - great news! Is St. Mary's in Annapolis? Or is that St. John's? I love Annapolis.... Anyway, congrats to Elizabeth and thanks for keeping us up to date. (Is it weird how I feel personally invested in all this?!?!?!)

Not weird at all Katie - I can't think of a more supportive place for a kid who loves to recite poetry!

Oh Sarah Lawrence...in my dreams!

Hi Lucy,

*Happy weekend wave*

32. contemp fic ***
Every Last Cuckoo Kate Maloy

It's hard to pinpoint exactly where I become impatient with fiction of this kind, because it is so well-meant, first of all, carefully thought out (and it is about something important - grief and responsibility) and quite well written albeit in a mundane sort of prose, with characters who are, basically believable if not fully dimensional..... but..... what? What is missing? Is it the 'o' word as in originality? Is it Too. Much. Detail? Is it that it is both about 'everywoman' and no woman you've ever met? -Not to mention that kind of small town fake community schtick? Sarah is in her 70's is widowed early on in the book (the interplay of past and present was well done). She lives in a large old farmhouse and suddenly, instead of being alone, she begins to invite in strays, cuckoos, like the old woman who lived in a shoe. OK, so much for the story. I live in Vermont, I know it and while there is nothing here that is not accurate either about the natural surroundings or the social circumstances the sum total was too..... tidy. So - while it was a pleasant read, it was also occasionally kind of tedious and annoying. I can't quite give it a 3 1/2 - I would give it a 3 1/4 for little flashes of the kind of weird detail that makes fiction for me: "She got out of bed each morning with heavy reluctance, hating the look of her side rumpled and Charles' undisturbed. She took to lying flat in bed, pulling the covers up smooth over her outstretched form, then folding the top sheet over the edge before slipping out from underneath. Thus the bed was as good as made and the absence of Charles was less blatant before she even stood up." There were several of these 'moments' and they kept me going. A good read I think if you are in need of soothing. *** (plus the 1/4)

>197 sibylline: Sounds...passable. And passable-onable, too.

I join the throngs awaiting linkity-link, and the celebratory cheers re: Sarah Lawrence.

>197 sibylline: "indisturbed" -- really??? I'm finding myself hoping that was a typo somewhere or that I'm just becoming obsessive.

But yes, I can completely relate to your broader "issues" with this kind of book. It's an author who means well, who writes well, and who is very -- well, tidy, as you say. Sometimes, compelling fiction is untidy. Just like life.

>199 Chatterbox: Yep a typo, Suzanne, glad you spotted it. As you know, it is hard to see them - I generally notice a mistake or two when I return to look at a new review.

And today is a rare red letter day of a sort - finished two books. Topping two hundred posts only 2/3 through the month is a rarity for me, but there has been a lot of news!

Lucy, I offered SLC admissions congratulations to Elizabeth over on my thread but now I see she also did so very well in the poetry competition. Woo hoo! You all must be on cloud nine.

33. memoir ****1/2
The Hare With Amber Eyes Edmund de Waal

This being the 78th review of The Hare here on LT, I am sure I cannot do it justice, but the sentence that has been rolling around in my mind goes like this: You know a book is special when even when you don't want to read any more of it you keep on reading..... Edmund de Waal inherits 264 netsuke, those charming, witty, sensual and intricately carved ornaments, once worn as part of a formal Japanese costume, up to the Meiji times when old-fashioned dress was discouraged - and not just any netsuke, but very good ones collected originally in the late 19th century by his great great uncle Charles when the fever of Japonisme caught on among the aesthetes and intellectuals with a bit (or a lot!) of spare cash, in Paris. The netsuke are among the few surviving treasures of a vast fortune, truly unimaginably vast, and it is through the medium of the netsuke that de Waal gingerly approaches the rise and fall of his father's maternal family, the Ephrussi bankers of Odessa, Vienna, Paris.... To tell this story, de Waal adopts a slightly distant style of writing, and surely he can write it no other way, for to get any closer would be too dangerous, too painful, for it is a story both breathtaking and terrible. While I've read widely about world war 2, I am constantly brought face-to-face with new angles on the perfidy (and I don't use that word lightly) of the Nazis. The image of a priceless Louis XVI desk being heaved over the railing into the courtyard below is as appalling as anything I've read. Of course, things are just things, but .... in this case the irony is knifelike, these brownshirt louts claim to be cleansing Austria of 'dirt' but too stupid to have any idea what they are destroying. de Waal manages to convey too, with utmost tact and humility, his amazement that he could have come from a family that rose to such wealth and privilege only to have it taken from them in a matter of days. And yet, here he and his brothers and cousins are, de Waal, makes clear, prospering and letting the past be what it is. And here are the netsuke, these exquisite, intimate objects, overlooked when the Nazis ransacked the house - rescued by Anna, the austrian servant, Anna of no last name, kept under her mattress and returned to de Waal's doughty grandmother after the war. What a symbol. What a powerful book and a necessary one to the memoir literature of that war. ****1/2

>202 sibylline: Darn fine addition to the gallery, cuz.

Well, living in Maryland, I'm pulling for St Mary's College! It's in a great, but out if the way location on the Chesapeake. :)

Lovely review of The Hare, Lucy. You caught the things that made my breath stop in my throat as well. That desk! The art, the collections...the lives. It really was, at its heart, an indictment of that whole horrid, filthy regime and you expressed it so well when you say he wrote with both distance but also "utmost tact and humility".

>204 drneutron: Jim - It looks like a terrific place, but I'm concerned that it's a little isolated.

>203 richardderus: and >205 tiffin: Richard and Tui - what a book! Thank you - I hope I did it justice. I rarely try and write two reviews in one day, but I also try to get a book reviewed asap after I finish it or then it just becomes a chore.

*lurk*

Absolutely superb review Lucy. Brownshirt louts indeed.

>202 sibylline: This looked like a book that I would have no real interest in but having read some reviews on these threads it is now on my TBR list and quite near the top. This community is such a wonderful resource, allowing me to get the opinions of people that I trust, and personalising the review system.

>202 sibylline: Great review, Lucy. Don't sell yourself short my dear, you did it more than justice enough.

Have a lovely Sunday. xx

Whoops double post!

What I'm reading this week:
♬

✔True Believers Kurt Anderson contemp fic
✔Every Love Story is a Ghost Story: A Life of David Foster Wallace D.T. Max biography
new Spherical Harmonic Catherine Asaro sf
♬ Ashes of Victory David Weber sf

Banner week - finished up 4 books - that's rare!!! A couple of them had been lingering for too long, so I got busy. I'll finish up Celestis today and then indulge, I think, in a more space opera-ish read or a mystery.

I couldn't agree more with your thread title... after a nice week of Spring it's snowing right now... Your review of The Hare with Amber Eyes is wonderful. Did you know that de Waal's grandmother Elisabeth de Waal has written a novel (The Exiles Return), too? I'm thinking about borrowing it from the library.

Yes, he mentions it in the book and describes it as being, he believes, painfully close to not being fiction.... it does sound worth looking at. She is a central - maybe even the pivotal - figure to the fact that the family survived as well as they did and flourished in a new way. She was, in the early 20's one of the very first women to get a law degree in Austria. Doughty is an understatement.

Hm. I'll have to move The Hare With Amber Eyes up the stacks, looks like.

Yep - I think you will find it un-put-down-able. >209 CDVicarage: too! I never would have read it either, but for LT.

34. sf ***
Celestis Paul Park ***

For sheer imagination I'd like to rate Celestis much higher, and maybe after a time I will, but several factors right now prevent that. Primarily? I wasn't ever quite willing to suspend disbelief. Throughout I detected an 'agenda' and suspected the book of being allegorical, that is, designed to offer a warning lesson to humans in the here and now, rather than as a serious attempt to understand what humans might do upon encountering a species as peculiar and interesting as this one. Not to mention that the exotic dual species set up as well as the planet's hot-cold dichotomy was a bit too similar to Helliconia (as mentioned by another reviewer but independently thought by me as I read). Nothing wrong with that, in my view, when a writer chooses to or even is compelled to develop on a similar theme, but in this case, something about the choice felt more subordinate to the allegorical demands than a creative compulsion. (Most of fantasy is born of the compulsion to find unique ways to describe 'magic', for example.) That said - some of the concepts were quite intriguing, probably the greatest strength of the book for me, lies in the idea that this species uses all of its brain (unlike ourselves who apparently rarely use more than 10% capacity) and therefore live in an environment so rich and multi-planed and multi-faceted that humans, stuck in our limited range of apprehension and understanding, can't understand them..... and yet..... because of human expertise in manipulating that 10% are able to dominate and destroy and alter an entire culture.... never understanding the first thing about what they are destroying. The description of the 'abo' woman reverting to her roots, is also well done. If sociologically/politically oriented sf is what interests you, this is very worthwhile. As entertainment? Not so much. ***

Hmmm. I read A Princess of Roumania by Park--I think it was his first--and wasn't impressed enough to read more of that series. If you had liked one of his later books more, I'd have tried him again but this sounds like more of the same.

Great reviews! I am looking forward to the time when the *Hare* comes my way as it certainly will.

Congrats on the daughter's college acceptances, Lucy. Decisions, decisions..... :-)

Great review of The Hare with Amber Eyes. Not a book I'm familiar with but, thanks to your review, will seek out. It's a bit ironic to read your review on the day I saw Monument Men...which is a pretty decent movie itself.

>218 ronincats: Uh oh, I have that one around Roni. Guess it's going to go on my RIGRI list pronto......

>219 LizzieD:, >221 RebaRelishesReading: You will both be absorbed by it, guaranteed!

>220 EBT1002: Thank you Ellen - we still have a couple more to hear from! But I am guessing SLC is going to be the one. Little acorn not falling far from this mama tree, apparently. I didn't push the place at all, by the way!

It is freaken' minus TEN F here this morning and I am flipping my hairdo, what there is of it. I really would like to draw the curtains and take to my bed until this. weather. starts. to. act. seasonal!!!!

>217 sibylline: Good review of Celestis, Lucy. I fear though, if you were not able to suspend belief, I would have no chance whatsoever!

Getting caught up here and very impressed with the LD's performance in Poetry Out Loud!

>217 sibylline: Oh dear, I believe I shall pass pass pass that dutchie on the left hand side.

35. sf ****
Spherical Harmonic Catherine Asaro

Was this #7 or #8? Hardly matters, I am addicted to this series, and that is that. Some of the Skolian novels can be read separately (The Last Hawk, my favourite so far, comes to mind immediately), others are best read more or less in the order in which the series was written. (Although I think there is an early one that is chronologically wayyyyy in the future of the others, but I'm not 100%.) There is an organic logic to the chronological order so that is what I am going with. In this one Dhiyanni Selei, the Ruby Pharoah, the psion (super gifted telepath) with the highest ability to extend her thoughts into Kyle space (a kind of parallel thought universe and I will say no more) returns from being IN Kyle space, where she went with her son to escape the fiendish Traders..... she drops onto one of her 'safe' planets, except it isn't safe..... but from this inauspicious start, she travels the breadth of human-settled space to try to rescue and reshape how the Skolian Empire treats her gifted family, the Ruby Dynasty. You just have to have read most or all of the others to get anything out of it, as characters from many other books and stories have somewhat cameo appearances. My dear Kelric, included. Sigh.
****

My only excuse for my indolent self-indulgence with this series is this endless endless unceasingly obdurate winter. Today it might be getting slightly 'warmer' (twenties as opposed to tens and lower) but it is windy as all get out, huge gusts, cold and unpleasant. After this, tomorrow, it does look from the forecast as if there is going to be genuine amelioration - twenties at night, forties in the day. I'll believe it when I feel it.

>224 lkernagh: Thank you!

>225 richardderus: Definitely Richard, keep clear. My real problem is what to do with it. List it on PBS? Take it to the bookshelf in the ReUse Shed? I'm certainly not giving it to the library for 'my' collection. It is an interesting book, but somehow..... I'm not softening toward it as it settles.

You keep waving series carrots under my nose! I know I'm going to give in about the Asaro books. Just got started on the St. Mary's series so I'm going to dig my heels in for a bit longer. But no thanks indeedy for "Celestis".

We'll trade, Tui - I've got the St. Mary's on my WL!

Such a happening March! Congratulations to you and your daughter on the poetry reading & college admissions. And I love the painting your friend did as well. I think the idea of putting a copy on your business cards is a great one.

I just learned that Legends of the Celtic Harp is performing near me at the Hungry Ear in April. I think I'm going to go for my "artist date" that week.

Ardene - Patrick Ball and Aryeh Frankfurter play the harp beautifully - however the true genius of Irish harp is Grainne Hambly (my harp goddess!) who performs with William Jackson, an equally brilliant Scottish harper and composer. They tour often in the States. If you EVER hear they are giving a concert within thirty miles of you, I urge you to try to go!!!!! She is unreal.

Nice to hear from you!

I have little on my mind beyond the weather the weather the weather. My hopes are pinned on Tuesday which promises: Mostly sunny/47 F. Between now and then we will be treated to snow, sleet, rain and freezing drizzle.

For heaven's sake!

Ugh! It's raining here, but we're not getting any sleet. Hope the weather changes for the better soon!

Raining here, too, but at least that means it's not snow. Wow, you see how low my expectations are?? Blech.

Very belated congratulations to the LD for the poetry and SL!

36. sf ****
The Moon's Shadow Catherine Asaro

Well, rightly or wrongly, this series has gotten under my skin - I think I have four or five to go and given how this winter has been lingering, I'll probably finish them all before the snow is gone. I've noticed that most winters I do this, fall for a series, and as long as it has some of the ingredients I like, that does it for me. This latest follows Jay Rockwell's impulsive decision to reveal himself to the Traders, the Eubians, his father's people, as the heir, Jaibriol III, their new emperor, after he thinks his parents have both died. He is a 'provider' - a empath/telepath and a very strong one, a Ruby psion through his mother, Sauscony, in fact, and he has to hide this from the Eubians. What makes this book fun is how long and hard Asaro has thought about the Eubian character. They are essentially sociopathic, they do not feel pain (emotional, not physical) - genetically engineered to be 'perfect' by an earlier and much mistaken Skolian. Over time this characteristic instead of making them formidably logical and rational and 'good' has given rise to a culture where like vampires, the pureblood Eubians prey on strong empaths and telepaths for 'transcendence' - a 'feeling' that fills the void in them where normal emotional responses are lacking. They call these psions, Providers and regard them as having no purpose but to serve their needs. It's quite awful, but also compellingly done - how a culture can develop and then believe in its superiority with absolute blindness to the ethics of their ways. Great lit, of course, it ain't, but winter lasts a long long time here in Vermont, and I really can't be reading, say, Kafka, so I'm happy! Anyhow, Jai falls for Tarquine, who herself is a rare Eubian who has ended up sickened by transcendence. Interestingly, the Eubians who develop a distaste for transcendence also tend to be older and to have their hair turning white (although most would die it black again, some don't) - I just read somewhere that one thing that happens to animals who are domesticated, is that they tend to develop white splotches and patches. Of course, we older folks acquire plenty of white hair too, hopefully along with some wisdom! ****

I can't move on to the next one until it comes!!!!!!! So I guess I'll have to behave myself and read my other books for a few days. Although, I do have the one AFTER the next one if I get desperate......

Well, so much for 'enough winter' eh? I imagine it's been snowing continually for you too? Maybe we really have entered the long winter, just like in Game of Thrones. Must say I do look forward to that show though.

I am NOT going to start the Skolians until I get a few other series off my slate--but I will get back to them based on your reviews.

It is raining raining raining - last night and all today. The snow has become this weird mush - a few crystals here and there holding the water in. It's still over a foot deep in many places however. Po' gets completely stuck in this muck. We can't even walk down the road as there is a HUGE puddle, well, several of them. Po' would have to swim through the worst one. I'll take a photo when we go out for our very short afternoon walk. It is rather impressive.

Uck. We went through that phase, snow like a sponge and then it froze.

I am hoping hoping hoping Q that this is the turning point - the forecast looks hopeful. A week of weather solidly in the 40's in the day should get rid of all but a few patches of snow. I will be ecstatic.

Back to say why did I open my big mouth - we have up to an inch of ice in the form of freezing rain coming our way tonight...... OH GOLLY!! OH WOE. It truly does just keep going from worse to even worse. We left bad behind a long long time ago!

So here is a little photo gallery of my dreary landscape.

This is one of three flooded areas on the driveway.

This is the state of the pond.

Here is the river in full spate - note bluish chunks of ice in mid-ground.

That looks like A LOT of snow around that pond.

And finally - and I may make this my April opener, it wouldn't be right to have a bunch of photos without the STAR of the SHOE around here being in one. We're calling this area 'the glacier' - it's this place where water has been oozing and freezing over the road since January:

They were sugaring at the farmhouse in the background......

>246 sibylline: Everyone will appreciate the star at the center, but what a downer for April.

"April is the cruellest month..."

#248 Indeed! Good grief, Lucy! Love the one of Po, as always.

Oh, that's miserable. Hug Po and the cats and each other and persevere. As I've said before, Robert Jordan ain't in charge, and spring will come.

Just transpose all that to the city, and we have a similar scenery. Early spring has never been a great season, as far as I can recall. Hang in there!

Oooh - looks cold!

There is hope, Lucy. Even these snow-filled and road rutted parts are starting to experience warmer temps. The snow banks have gone down by half, the thermometer is above freezing, and *be still my heart* the sun has shone for two days in a row! Love Miss Po on the glacier. We can do it!

It is cold Rhian.

I know there is Tui, but it is hard to believe it. I know that one of these days, without a by your leave, the sun will shine and the wind will be dulcet and sweet. And I hope I will remember every single day to be grateful. The rest of the week is supposed to be quite nice.

My daughter said yesterday we're all going to have winter-related PTSD. And I laughed, first, then I thought. Yes, really. If next winter is like this I'll go to pieces.

I wouldn't mind this cold so much if the snow and ice didn't make taking a decent walk out of the question. Even getting up and down our road, over the glacier etcetera, is a challenge. I feel very closed in.

And now I really really have to get to work on the Wallace bio, I started it on March 22nd!!! Only half-way. It isn't difficult to read or anything, but somehow I only read a few pages of it at a time, much slower going than I expected.