What Are You Reading the Week of 8 March 2014?

drawing of Kenneth Grahame by John Singer Sargent

Kenneth Grahame (8 March 1859 – 6 July 1932) was a Scottish writer, most famous for The Wind in the Willows (1908), one of the classics of children's literature. He also wrote The Reluctant Dragon; both books were later adapted into Disney films.

He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. When he was a little more than a year old, his father, an advocate, received an appointment as sheriff-substitute in Argyllshire at Inveraray on Loch Fyne. Kenneth loved the sea and was happy there, but when he was 5, his mother died from complications of childbirth, and his father, who had a drinking problem, gave over care of Kenneth, his brother Willie, his sister Helen and the new baby Roland to the children's maternal grandmother, in Cookham Dean in the village of Cookham in Berkshire. There the children lived in a spacious, if dilapidated, home, "The Mount", on spacious grounds in idyllic surroundings, and were introduced to the riverside and boating by their uncle who was curate at Cookham Dean church. This delightful ambiance, particularly Quarry Wood and the River Thames, is believed (byhis biographer) to have inspired the setting for The Wind in the Willows. He was an outstanding pupil at St Edward's School in Oxford. During his early years at St. Edwards, a sports regimen had not been established and the boys had freedom to explore the old city with its quaint shops, historic buildings, and cobblestone streets, St Giles' Fair, the idyllic upper reaches of the River Thames, and the nearby countryside.

Grahame wanted to attend Oxford University, but was not allowed to do so by his guardian on grounds of cost. Instead he was sent to work at the Bank of England in 1879, and rose through the ranks until retiring as its Secretary in 1908 due to ill health, which may have been precipitated by a strange, possibly political, shooting incident at the bank in 1903. Grahame was shot at three times, all of them missed. An alternative explanation, given in a letter on display in the Bank museum, is that he had quarrelled with Walter Cunliffe, one of the bank's directors, who would later become Governor of the Bank of England, in the course of which he was heard to say that Cunliffe was "no gentleman", and that his retirement was enforced ostensibly on health grounds.

Grahame married Elspeth Thomson in 1899; they had only one child, a boy named Alastair (whose nickname was "Mouse") born blind in one eye and plagued by health problems throughout his short life. On Grahame's retirement, they returned to Cookham where he had lived as a child, and lived at "Mayfield", now Herries Preparatory School, where he turned the bedtime stories he told Alastair into his masterpiece. Alastair eventually committed suicide on a railway track while an undergraduate at Oxford University, two days before his 20th birthday on 7 May 1920. Out of respect for Kenneth Grahame, Alastair's demise was recorded as an accidental death.

Grahame died in Pangbourne, Berkshire, in 1932. He is buried in Holywell Cemetery, Oxford. Grahame's cousin Anthony Hope, also a successful author, wrote his epitaph, which reads: "To the beautiful memory of Kenneth Grahame, husband of Elspeth and father of Alastair, who passed the river on the 6th of July, 1932, leaving childhood and literature through him the more blest for all time".

While still a young man in his 20s, Grahame began to publish light stories in London periodicals such as the St. James Gazette. Some of these stories were collected and published as Pagan Papers in 1893, and, two years later, The Golden Age. These were followed by Dream Days in 1898, which contains The Reluctant Dragon.

There is a ten-year gap between Grahame's penultimate book and the publication of his triumph, The Wind in the Willows. During this decade, Grahame became a father. The wayward headstrong nature he saw in his little son Alastair (also known as "Mouse") he transformed into the swaggering Mr. Toad, one of its four principal characters. Despite its success, he never attempted a sequel. The book was a hit and is still enjoyed by adults and children today, whether in book form or in the films, while Toad remains one of the most celebrated and beloved characters of the book. Wind in the Willows won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958. In the 1990s, William Horwood came up with a series of sequels.

Works

Pagan Papers (1893)
The Golden Age (1895)
Dream Days (1898)
The Reluctant Dragon (1898)
The Headswoman (1898)
The Wind in the Willows (1908), illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard
Bertie's Escapade (1949), illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard

An oldie but a goodie. I'm reading a newly republished edition of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane which includes the author's (Henry Farrell) short stories which include Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte. I never knew they were written by the same person! Also, in the introduction, there are stories of the famous Joan Crawford/Bette Davis run-ins during and after the filming of the movie.

It will be hard to get those two out of my mind while reading the book!

This week I am listening to Wildflower Hill and reading The Enchanted

Still working on Ancillary Justice and The Eye of the Leopard.

>4 seitherin: I also am still working on Ancillary Justice and should finish it tomorrow. I just finished The Coldest Girl in Coldtown and liked it very much. I'd never heard of Holly Black before. She's already won 1 Andre Norton award for YA science fiction, and, if I have anything to say about it, this will be another. Alas, I have nothing to say that has any bearing on any award, so she's on her own. My next E-audiobook is going to be the Nebula Award nominee by Karen Joy Fowler, We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves which has something to do with chimpanzees, but I don't know what. Also still working on Outlander, which just gets better and better, and Sense and Sensibility in which the characters aren't nearly as appealing as they are in Emma Thompson's movie. Hugh Grant is not making an appearance.
Having never, in all my 67 years of existence, read the Wind in the Willows, I've ordered a copy from the library.

This week started The Imperfectionists and got today from the library The Missing Ink: the lost art of handwriting.

>5 Citizenjoyce: ...
...
...
...
...no.

Not *really*.

NEVER?!



*there there, pat pat* I know it's cold comfort to you now, but there are organizations and laws that prevent the innocent and vulnerable from suffering as you had to.

...never...wow

It's been a long time since I read The Wind in the Willows although I know I do still have a copy somewhere, pretty sure I also read The Reluctant Dragon, but none of the others.

This weekend I've just finished listening to Octopussy and the Living Daylights read by Tom Hiddleston (I really enjoyed this for how much he seemed to enjoy reading it and getting into the characters) and started on The God of the Hive by Laurie R. King. I'm making headway with Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman and wondering how indicative of his style it is as this is the first time I've ever read anything by him and I can't quite decide on my thoughts on the book so far - possibly because it's short stories and poems and so each is different. I've stalled a little over halfway through Oh Dear Silvia by Dawn French which to my mind isn't the rip-roaring read the person who gave it to me said it was. The 'side-splitting' and 'hilarious' comments on the book's cover make me think I'm missing something - I'm not saying that there haven't been amusing bits - but maybe my sides are not in a splitting mood right now?

Richard I must admit I never read Wind in the Willows either but I plan to rectify that ASAP. Lol-I love Cameron!!!

Have always wanted to read Wind in the Willows, will put it on my TBR list now! Currently reading 2 books, The Ming Storytellers which has a grisly chapter on castration and also The Last Wife of Henry VIII. Hope to finish one of them this weekend.

Thank you for another wonderful start to the week, Richard! Love your headers, even if the author doesn't always impress me. Threy are always interesting.

I did not read The Wind in the Willows until I was an adult. I know thmany will consider this blasphemous, and I'm sorry Richard, but I didn't honestly didn't see the big deal. Perhaps had I read it as a child I'd have seen the magic. The same happened for me with The Water Babies by Charles Kingsly. At least I was able to finish The Wind in the Willows! I couldn't even hack The Water Babies and pearl ruled it without regret.

Now I am reading East Along the Equator: A Journey up the Congo and into Zaire by Helen Winternitz. I know it was experienced and written in the 1980's, but it is so relevant and helpful to understanding much of Africa's problems today. I love the blend of so much history and politics along with high adventure travel. I also love Winternitz's clear, journalistic style, and her wealth of knowledge of the region. I am hooked!

Travel writers like Theroux also offer interesting regional history and politics bavkground in their books, but, somehow, Winternitz does it so much better.

Several versions of The Wind in the Willows, different formats and some with images, some without, are available from Project Gutenberg.

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=the+wind+in+the+willows

I finished reading Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope. This was published in 1974 and the copy I have is so old it doesn't have an ISBN number. I enjoyed the book, but wonder why it was a Newbery Honor Book. I suspect that for its time it was quite shocking and that might have been part of the reason why it considered to be noteworthy. For me it was a good historical mystery. It is a YA book and so the plot is somewhat simplistic but at least it does not suffer from editing problems. At 280 pages the length is just about right.

I think I will start reading Lips Touch Three Times by my newest favorite author - Laini Taylor.

Two big books lined up together again - The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Cutting for Stone. Surprisingly to me, so far The Hunchback is moving along faster for me.

Bored with the two books I'm currently reading so I'm taking a break from them to read Whack a Mole by Chris Grabenstein.

Early this morning I started reading The Taste of Apple Seeds by Katharina Hagena, my Early Reviewer. The touchstones are coming up in German but I can assure you I'm reading it in English.

So far it's good, not great, but I'm not too far in.

I think I read The Wind in the Willows but I can't 100% remember. Maybe time for a revisit.

Yes, thank you, Richard, for always introducing us to interesting authors. Many are new to me, which is wonderful -- that first discovery.

I don't usually have so many books on the go, but I do think my reading habits have changed due to the internet so that I read a few pages of a book and then find myself wanting to switch over to another. I do think I'm losing some of that lost-in-a-book experience so will try to curb the switching a bit.

So... still reading The Museum of Innocence, Reading Lolita in Tehran and Sedition, which is one of my 2 current ER reads.

Thanks for the great start, Richard. The Wind in the Willows is is one of my favorite books, although I only read it for the first time a few years ago. I didn't read it as a child because I didn't like the cartoon versions of it and consequently, thought the book would be dumb. Come to think of it, that happened with a lot of children's literature for me.

I started H. G. Wells' In the Days of the Comet. So far, it's quite good. I refuse to read The War of the Worlds because I thought the films were gross. Hmm, I'm seeing a trend here.

I've just finished (and reviewed) Someone, by Alice McDermott, and am about to begin Daphne Du Maurier's The Scapegoat. I haven't read anything by the author of Rebecca in decades, but I'm anticipating a good read.

I'm also progressing through a reread of the complete Sherlock Holmes stories, using William S. Baring-Gould's "Annotated" edition of 1967, which answers every question I could possibly have about the content, context, and references, and a lot that I don't have.

The Wind in the Willows was one of the first chapter books I read as a child....oh how I loved it!! Thanks for the memory, Richard!

I am about to start The Orenda. From what I've heard, I think it will be hard for me to read, but I'm hoping those parts will be easy to skip over. I'm interested in learning what the lives were like in Ontario in those days of natives meeting up with Europeans and Joseph Boyden sounds like an interesting and thoughtful guy who knows current native experiences very well.

>7 richardderus: thanks for the patting and tears, but you and Cameron won't have to sympathize much longer, the book is almost here.

Finished the amazing historical novel, Hild, this afternoon. Beautiful writing, well crafted story, interesting characters. I don't know what my next fiction read will be, but I'll miss my time in 7th century Britain.

Still reading Small Wonder and The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry, which I'm enjoying.

#21 nhlsecord - There are some pretty uncomfortable scenes in The Orenda but try not to skip them if you think you can manage. They are very relevant in the story. I really think you would miss some element of the book if you skip past them. As awful as they were, they are not sensationlized at all. I found the writing to be very straightforward. Nothing "Hollywood" about this book. I CAN'T TOLERATE torture in a film at all but I was able to read this book with only the occasional grimace. Hope it proves to be a good read for you.

I have just finished and loved Instructions For A Heatwave by Maggie o'Farrell, next up is Cape Breton Road by D.R. MacDonald.

A lot of reading this weekend so far.
The Depression of Grief, Good Grief, dipping in to Healing After Loss, beginning From Grief to Peace.

Also, comfort re-reads The Four-Story Mistake, And Then There Were Five, and absorbing distractions Silent Song, My Friend the Professor.

I am hoping to start One Plus One today and maybe read Snapper this week.

Just finished reading the phenomenal, mind-boggling The Canvas by Benjamin Stein. About to start reading Maidenhair by Mikhail Sjisjkin. I continue listening to The Racketeer at home and listening to Doctor Sleep in the car.

# 12 Just downloaded The Wind in the Willows. Thanks for the tip.

Hi everybody, I'm having a gout flare that makes my typing slow and painful, but wanted to say how pleased I am that so many are discovering The Wind in the Willows as adults. It's likely that the story will have less of a magical, world-opening impact on adults, but I hope some of its sonorities will soothe and gentle your jangled selves.

Sending out a round of virtual hugs

I just finished the devastating, unflinching, but I feel important, clear-eyed, and honest East Along the Equator: Up the Congo and into Zaire by Helen Winternitz.

I am now just starting, and hoping to settle on My Life in France by Julia Child, as a sort of palate-cleanser or antidote.

#30 Thanks, Richard. I remember seeing the film with my grandparents. And, to me it was indeed magical. Hope you feel better. Do you have medication? David

I've started my early reviewer's book Revolutionary Russia by Orlando Figes. So far, so good. It's a relatively short book given the subject matter.

# 30 feel better richard!! Sending you back a hug

>28 hemlokgang: Your extravagant praise caught my attention. I've just ordered The Canvas.

>30 richardderus:

Feel better soon! My husband is just getting over several days of gout, and I know second-hand that it can be really miserable.

Your biography this week really touched a lot of hearts and brought good memories.

I finished The Five O'Clock Cake by Joan Sawyer Bloyd. This is a self-published historical novel about life among the ranchers in 1920s Anderson Valley, Mendocino County, California, USA, the still-rural valley that my wife and I have lived in since 2008. It was fun to learn some more about the life and attitudes of the folks who lived here almost 100 years ago.

I'm reading the last book in Anthony Trollope's absolutely wonderful series, The Chronicles of Barsetshire. Like every other book in the series, The Last Chronicle of Barset is pure delight and I will be sad to see the series end. And as with every other book in the series, it's a door stopper at well over 800 pages so I'm not sure when I will finish it, thereby putting off the end I don't want to see:-)

>24 Iudita: I'll do my best, and thanks for the encouragement. I already feel that I understand some of my friends a little better after reading as much as I have done. I saw an interview of Joseph Boyden yesterday, very interesting.

Great start this week, Richard! So sad about his son.

I finished an excellent book, Dead Water, the fifth book in Ann Cleeves Shetland series.

And even though I have stacks of newer books waiting to be read, I somehow started a reread of Anne Tyler's Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant. It's probably been 30 years since I first read it and I remember little of the story, only that I loved it. It's a wonderful book.

And on audio, I'm listening to Ann Patchett read her latest, This is the Story of a Happy Marriage.

And I just realized there is an abundance of Anns in my reading...

I started Under the Dome the other day. I'm a bit intimidated by its size, but I do really like it so far.

>41 Kathadrion:

I enjoyed Under the Dome, but then I like an occasional Stephen King fix. Some of his books are very long, but surprisingly quick to read, so don't be too intimidated. I watched a few minutes of the Under the Dome mini-series, and didn't like it at all.

Best childhood memories of reading Wind in the Willows, a gift from my English father's godmother(s) who lived in England. Years later, my son (a child actor) played Toad in the stage play. My dad was in the audience, probably laughing harder than anyone.

But these days, I'm trying to fill some of the gaps to being "well read" as well as reading for entertainment. So, Anya Seton's classic, The Winthrop Woman is what I'm reading on my Paperwhite. When in the car, I'll be listening to Adam Schwartzman's Eddie Signwriter, about Kwasi Edward Michael Dankoh, the best billboard painter in Ghana.

On the Kindle Fire are two books borrowed from the library at the same time (BIG mistake!): Madison and Jefferson by Burstein and Isenberg, which I only have read the preface. I plan to alternate reading it with reading Ian McEwan's Amsterdam. Wonder how that plan will work.

Of course, sitting in the tree-TBR pile is Cathedral of the Wild by Boyd Varty, which is due to receive a not-so-early review from me. Guilt waves just washed over me.

In case you thought I'd forgotten about your wishlist, here's a list of some of the most toothsome SFnal goodies expected in March!

You can thank me later.

Jeeze like we needed more enabling Richard... :) THANK YOU!

Just started The Museum of Extraordinary Things - enjoying it very much so far, will post review when I am finished. =:)

I've now finished The God of the Hive on audio and Oh Dear Silvia in tree. I also listened to Warship : Blakes 7 but that was a quick audio drama rather than a full book in audio.

I'm struggling a bit with Fragile Things - not sure whether it's the 'short story' side of the book or whether I'm just not suited to Neil Gaiman's writing as this is my first foray into his writing.

New audio is The Prestige by Christopher Priest narrated by Simon Vance.

>44 richardderus: some of these look great, drat and blast you, Richard.

>47 Citizenjoyce: Sending hugs! And not a few self-satisfied smirks.

Still working on The Drowning Spool by Monica Ferris

I've reviewed another short non-fiction Kindle Single, Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma, in my thread...post #52.

I'm all in favor of recognizing the wrongs done to people in the past, under different laws and different codes of "morality." But the story behind the recent pardon granted posthumously to Turing is as queasy-making as his original persecution for the "crime" of being gay.

Finished listening to The Racketeer.....not bad at all...nice plot twists.

Next up to listen to at home is Mystery by Jonathan Kellerman.

New Blog Review! BRIDGE OF SNOW by Marie Rutkoski is a four stars-of-five fantasy story, free at Tor.com. Wait...what? I reviewed a fantasy story?!

Yes. The moment in time that this story reveals is a simple and profound one: What is my place in the Universe? Where do I belong, who do I belong to?

What could be more profound?

My review is here and has a link to the story itself.

I read Lips Touch Three Times by my new favorite author Laini Taylor in three days. This was an excellent book made up of three novellas. The book flap calls them short stories, but they are longer than short stories so I will call them novellas. Parts of the stories are illustrated and the printing of the book is interesting as well. Parts of it are printed in red ink and this contrast really makes the printed work something unusual. Taylor really knows how to twist a plot and make take it in a direction that I did not see coming. It is safe to say that these are not your standard goblin and demons stories.

I started Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood over lunch. I have had my little trade paperback copy for so long that the pages are starting to turn yellow. This title is my real life book discussion group's book for April. So far it is good, but I am only on page 20.

I did finally finish The Great Influenza (informative but maybe trying to pack in too much) last week, but haven’t yet written a review. Nearing the end of The Thing with Feathers (superficial but intriguing anecdotes) and Death Comes to Pemberley (plodding).

I am reading the rather addictive The Paris Review Book of People With Problems. Some great writing in this collection.

Finished Dom Casmurro which presents a fascinating narrator, exposing his inadequacies and incongruity via the telling of his story. It's a story that can be read psychologically or sociologically; about being out of touch with reality. An excellent and enjoyable book.

I read Nebula-nominated novella WAKULLA SPRINGS and gave the Tor.com original a good going-over.

Lots to think about, said in lush prose, and plotted beautifully. Since I'm not counting it towards my goals, it lives on my blog.

Allowed myself to quit my ER read Boy, Snow, Bird after 100 pgs. Too bad, I really wanted to like it.

One-third of the way through The Boy Who Could See Demons, a fast read with interesting characters; the opposite of Boy, Snow, Bird. Just what I needed.

I had Boy, Snow, Bird on my wishlist, but after hearing so many not so great reaviews, I am taking it off.

>59 alphaorder: Agree, I've decided to go with Mr. Fox.
Well, Richard, I've finished 3 of your recommends. First of all, the Kindle single Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma and I share your outrage. In fact, if this were a novel, I would find it unrealistic. A genius joyfully explores creation in various and astounding ways benefitting his country and the world in the meantime and is hounded to death because of his sexual preference. Naw, that's way too far fetched. It's still hard for me to believe it could have happened. Chemical castration! No, that's just beyond the possible, isn't it?
I also read the weird short stories in Men and Cartoons, what a creative mind: permanent traffic jams covering hundreds of miles, suicidal sheep and goat men, and not a happy ending among them.
Lastly, as for The Wind in the Willows, I can't help but think that some of our crazier celebrities could have benefitted enormously by having been exposed to Mr. Toad in their childhood.
On my own decision I read and was transported by We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler. I happened to combine that with a viewing of Blackfish and see it belongs in that unbelievable Alan Turing world of inhumane sadism.
I found Ancillary Justice a bit too hard science fiction for my taste. I prefer more social interaction and less weaponry.
Now I've started The Odyssey and am about to start Wide Sargasso Sea.

>60 Citizenjoyce: LOVE your observation about modern-day celebrities needing a dose of Mr. Toad, Joyce! It might make a difference at that.

I'm pleased the recces are working out well. The Karen Joy Fowler is glowering at me even as we speak. It's starting to scare me a little, in fact....

I just finished The Fault In Our Stars a few minutes ago. It gutted me, in a cathartic way. I value books that give me such experiences, even if the book itself is not stellar. And this one wasn't, at least insofar as I took issue with one of the plot points toward the end. It was solidly good and enjoyable, all the same.

starting Blackberry Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke

I'm just starting Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. Sor far, so good.

Finished Whack a Mole by Chris Grabenstein. My favorite Ceepak mystery to date. Started Unfettered, edited by Shawn Speakman.

Still reading Platinum Pohl by Frederik Pohl, which is a collection of his best short science fiction stories. It's really good.

Also reading A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle, which is very inspiring. It's about recognizing and leaving behind your ego to discover your soul.

In the midst of winter : selections from the literature of mourning, The Mysterious Howling (first book in The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place), and A governess of distinction. The first is helpful, the second two are nice, light distrations. All worth the time spetn reading them.

I'm reading Words of Radiance the second book in Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive. If you like long, really well written, fantasy with perfect world-building, then the Stormlight Archive is it! Admittedly, at over a thousand pages the ebook is an easier read than the hardback - though the hardback is a must for its included artwork and beautiful layout.

Babel 17 Samuel R Delaney
I haven't read any Sci Fi in years. Starting to catch up on the ones I always meant to read (30 odd years ago!) It's quite a list.
Really enjoying this one but had a bit of a double-take moment early on when our heroes set off for a bit of interstellar travel but get completely lost somewhere between Earth and the Moon. Eh?! When was this written?! 1967?
There was an explanation though. The lack of a porthole and a sextant was part of it.

Happy weekend ahead, everyone. The new thread is up!

Hello again, everyone! Well, I'm a little behind with posting my week of reading for March 8th, but to be fair, I only finished two books. :)

On Tuesday, March 4th, I started reading Class Reunion by Rona Jaffe. This book took me slightly longer to read, although it certainly brought me back to my college days. I finished reading this book on Saturday, March 8th! ;)

On Sunday, March 9th, I started reading The Rose and the Yew Tree by Mary Westmacott. This was a pseudonym for Agatha Christie, and I honestly didn't know what to expect when I started reading this book. It was a book that I borrowed from my daughter Mareena - and I was expecting a fast read for such a short book. I think the mystery was much more intricate than I was expecting - I finished reading this book on Thursday, March 13th! ;)