lit_chick's 2014 Reading (4)

Hi again, everyone! I'm always a little blue to say goodbye to July, the one I live for! But you know what they say about all good things. Here's to the remainder of summer, our roll into autumn, and continued fabulous reading adventures!






October

55. The Big Rock Candy Mountain, Wallace Stegner
54. Benediction, Kent Haruf
53. The Long Way Home, Louise Penny
52. Moll Flanders, Daniel Defoe

September

51. Cat Daddy, Jackson Galaxy
50. The Son, Philipp Meyer
49. The Natural Cat, Anitra Frazier
48. Olive Kitteridge, Elizabeth Strout

August

47. Love and Forgetting, Julie Macfie Sobol/Ken Sobol
46. Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe
45. A Thread of Grace, Mary Doria Russell
44. Longbourn, Jo Baker
43. Outrage Arnaldur Indridason
42. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Bernières
41. History of the Rain, Niall Williams

July

40. The Undertaking, Audrey Magee
39. The Burgess Boys, Elizabeth Strout
38. The Other Side of the Bridge, Mary Lawson
37. Our Mutual Friend, Charles Dickens
36. Calling Out for You, Karin Fossum
35. An Unnecessary Woman, Rabih Alameddine
34. The Meadow, James Galvin
33. The Stubborn Season, Lauren B. Davis

June

32. The Rosie Project, Graeme Simsion
31. Hypothermia, Arnuldar Indridason
30. A Dry White Season, André Brink
29. The Lowland, Jhumpa Lahiri
28. The Cuckoo's Calling, Robert Galbraith

May

27. The Portrait of a Lady, Henry James
26. Eventide, Kent Haruf
25. The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd
24. Wives and Daughters, Elizabeth Gaskell
23. Plainsong, Kent Haruf
22. The Colour, Rose Tremain
21. Listen to the Squawking Chicken, Elaine Lui

April

20. The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt
19. Winter of the World, Ken Follett
18. The White Lioness, Henning Mankell

March

17. Fall of Giants, Ken Follett
16. Arctic Chill, Arnaldur Indridason
15. When the Devil Holds the Candle, Karin Fossum
14. Tamarind Mem, Anita Rau Badami
13. As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
12. How the Light Gets In, Louise Penny

February

11. The Beautiful Mystery, Louise Penny
10. Jude the Obscure, Thomas Hardy
9. The Beauty of Humanity Movement, Camilla Gibb
8. The Pilot's Wife, Anita Shreve
7. The Purity of Vengeance, Jussi Adler-Olsen
6. The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton

January

5. Rhett Butler's People, Donald McCaig
4. Moon Tiger, Penelope Lively
3. Light on Snow, Anita Shreve
2. Middlemarch, George Eliot
1. The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton

Happy new thread Nancy, hope you're having a good Monday my dear.

Happy New Thread, Nancy. I know what you mean about August being bittersweet -- (I have a feeling all teachers understand). :)

Love the new thread, Nancy! That thread topper is perfect.

#2 Thanks, John : ). Always lovely to see you.

#3 Thanks, Beth. Yes, I expect all teachers find August bittersweet.

#4 Thanks, Lori. I found a site with several paintings of the Okanagan, which is where I got the thread topper. Unfortunately I didn't add a bookmark to the site, so I might have a time finding it again.

Oh, yes, bittersweet indeed. Beautiful painting up top, Nancy, and happy new thread to you!

#6 Hi Anne, thank you for adding the sentiments of another teacher : ).

Happy New Thread, Nancy!

>5 lit_chick:, Think I'll have to have around here more often Nancy.

Happy New Thread, Nancy! Love the picture. Retire! August is still our hottest month of the year, and I dread it a bit for that reason, but at last, it's the only reason!

#8 Thanks, Amber : ).

#9 That would be lovely, John.

#10 Thanks, Peggy. August can be very hot here in the Okanagan, too, but July is our hottest. I dread it a bit for that reason, but at last, it's the only reason! … ah, yes, retire!

Happy new thread, Nancy. I really love that painting up top. I can feel the sun on my skin....

As I type this post, clouds that might take the form of rain or thunderstorms are forming where I am. Rain is so long overdue but something tells me Mother Nature is just teasing me. Again.

;-)

Happy New thread, Nancy! Hope you are having a great August.

#12 Thanks, Katie. I hadn't thought about the painting that way; love your take on it : ).

#13 Hi Lori, we desperately need some rain here, too. The weather forecast is threatening rain for the next couple of days, but I'm not so sure. Today was very overcast and very humid, but nary a raindrop.

#14 Thanks, Mark : ). You, too.

A very beautiful painting of your area, Nancy! I've been busy attending my niece's wedding and it was wonderful! And Poppy did fine with an overnight at dog walkers place. That was a huge relief! In the meantime I read a book that I think you - and many other people would love. I toyed with giving it 5 stars - but then I gave it 4.5 stars. It's called Everything I Never Told You: A Novel by Celeste Ng. It was such a fabulous read that resonated with me. Essentially it is the story of a family who has lost a daughter to what would seem to be suicide. But it is so much more than that. It's really about all of things that we wished we'd said, meant to say, weren't brave enough to say or weren't conscious of our expectations of others and the impact that can have. I think we can all relate to those sorts of things.

And yesterday I got into Chapters Downtown and after 2 hours of browsing, came home with The Burgess Boys - thanks for the bullet - and my first long listed Man Booker, To Rise Again At a Decent Hour by Joshua Ferris. I could not find really any other Man Booker books at that Chapters and this one struck me as humourous and readable, so I purchased it. So far I'd say it's quirky, fast paced and interesting, but I'm really not sure why it made the Man Booker list. I'll hold back on a recommendation to you. I'm only on page 35, but at least so far I'm enjoying it.

We had bit of rain and even a couple of claps of thunder last night. I've forget ten what rain is like and that is saying something for Vancouver and area!

Good morning Nancy, bit of a mixed bag here weather wise, quite breezy with short rain showers and then the sun comes out for a short while, think this is the pattern for today. Hope you have a lovely day my dear.

What a lovely thread topper, Nancy. You live in a very scenic part of our beautiful world. School has already started here. I was doing the happy dance knowing that my classroom days are over!

>16 vancouverdeb:: You got me, Deborah! The book about suicide is timely as we are mourning the loss of Robin Williams.

#16 Hi Deb, glad you had a lovely time at your niece's wedding, and that Poppy got through her overnight with the dog walker : ). Everything I Never Told You: A Novel sounds like an excellent read!

Can't wait to hear how you like The Burgess Boys, and hope you enjoy the remainder of the quirky To Rise Again at a Decent Hour.

Wow, if you are living in Vancouver and have forgotten what rain is like, things are dire!

#17 Morning, John. Your day sounds like a bit of everything, at least weather-wise. We having a cooler, overcast day here, a welcome reprieve actually. We desperately need some rain.

#18 Thanks, Donna. The Okanagan Valley is fabulously scenic. Oh, I envy you doing the happy dance knowing that my classroom days are over! Several more years for me, yet.

I, agree that a book on suicide is timely given Robin William's tragic death. How very well he masked his pain, given the tremendous joy he brought to so many millions.

Happy New-ish Thread! The tree in that painting is so real-looking!

We had some rain for you today. A sudden crash, bang and hail thunderstorm that seemed rather out of nowhere... :) Hope you get your rain.

What a perfect August painting you have put up top!

Happy new thread.

#20 Thanks, Jenn. Mal Gagnon is a Kelowna artist, and a popular one from what I've read. Still hoping for rain today.

#21 Thanks, Lucy. Gagnon's Okanagan series of paintings are really lovely.

Nancy, I just love Mal Gagnon's paintings! I went and looked on his website. 31 years ago Dave and I had our honeymoon in Kelowna. Of course it was a different place back them -we went canoeing, Dave went sailing, we cycled and just plain had a lot of fun - mini golfing - doesn't take much to amuse me :) And we went to a wine tasting place, but drinking is not really my thing and even those little samples put me to sleep for the afternoon. Anyway, I have a really fondness for the Okanagan. Gorgeous paintings - sort of reminiscent of the group of seven in some ways.

Don't laugh but on our honeymoon I was so taken with Kalamalka Lake and it's name, I thought we should name a daughter after the Lake. :) It was a great place to holiday with young kids too - paddle boats, brrrr - cold beachs, - lots to do. Now Kelowna is a little too citified for my tastes - though I think I could live there. Beautiful scenery - the barren hills , tumble weeds - such different flora from my delta rainforest here in Vancouver.

Ohhh- you are reading Longbourn by Jo Baker. I got that one from the library a while a back and really enjoyed it. Nice change from my usual fare.

#23 Hi Deb, how fun that you honeymooned in the Okanagan. Funny, I thought the same thing about Gagnon's paintings, that they were reminiscent of the Group of Seven. Yes, our part of the province is vastly different from the flora and rainforest of Vancouver. BC is just absolutely gorgeous, breathtakingly gorgeous.

#24 Longbourn is a decent read, but it really hasn't grabbed me to this point. We'll see; I'm not yet to half-way. Emma Fielding is a fantastic narrator.

How is it I didn't realize you had a new thread Nancy? Seeing you and Deb talking about your province makes me wonder how far away Vancouver is from where you are. I was in Vancouver a few years ago and thought it was a beautiful city. But your locale looks stunning and you certainly seem to love it. Love the picture at the top.

ET undo horrible typos

#26 Hi Bonnie, it's not hard to lose track of threads around here! Vancouver to the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior is roughly a five-hour drive (one-hour flight). It is stunning! The mountains, the lakes, and the climate all figured in my decision to relocate here, some twenty-five years ago now. I'm so pleased to have discovered the BC artist featured at the top.

43.
Outrage, Arnaldur Indridason



Rating: 4/5

“Nobody took any notice of them in the bar, nor when they left a little over an hour later and headed back to his place, taking deserted side streets. By then the drug was working. He had offered her another margarita, and as he’d returned from the bar with her third drink he’d slid his hand into his jacket pocket to palm the pill and slipped it into her glass. They were getting along fine, and he was sure she would give him no trouble.” (Ch 1)

… predictably, when they arrive at his place, and he gets her inside, she gives him no trouble. Two days later, the Criminal Investigation Department is called to the scene at the house in Thingholt. Most unpredictably, when Elinborg, the first of Erlendur’s Department on site, gets to the scene, it is the murdered body of a man approximately thirty years old which she discovers. And his toxicology report reveals that his body contains the date rape drug, Rohypnol – a lot of it. Also at the scene is evidence of a sexual assault and an expensive woman’s cashmere shawl, smelling of Tandoori cuisine. The deceased, Runolfur, was a telecoms engineer: fit, good looking, well liked by colleagues, and often out in the field installing broadband internet. This last disclosure leads Elinborg to wonder whether there have been other women; and if so, how many? and when? Erlendur is away on a rare leave, having finally decided to visit his childhood home, the place where his brother was lost to him. And Sigurdur Oli is on another case, all of which means Elinborg is going to be a very busy detective.

I’m almost through Indridason’s Reykjavik series: only one more to go. I’m going to miss his writing, his characters, and his storytelling. He has become my favourite Scandi-crime author, after having discovered the inimitable Larssons some years ago.

Wow! I've yet to get into the Indridasons, but you whet my appetite, Nancy.

Does this mean the series is finished or just that you are caught up Nancy? This sounds like such a good series and one I'm sure I'd like if only I could make room for it. Thumbs up.

#29 Hi Peggy, I've really enjoyed this Indriadson series : ).

#30 Hi Bonnie, there is one more novel to go in this series. If you enjoy Scandi-crime, it's a very good one to keep in mind (the series, that is).

Glad that Erlendur and his team are still going strong - thumb.

I think there are still four Erlendur novels after this one. Black Skies and Strange Shores - which wraps up the series. And then Indridason have decided to write some more Erlendur - but going back to his formative years as a detective: The Match and Reykjavik Nights.

The "young Erlendur" books are still to be published.

In danish Myrka or Outrage is the last one that have been translated. But I hope they will continue to translate the whole series.

You can read about it here:

http://www.crimefictionlover.com/2014/01/a-guide-to-arnaldur-indridasons-detecti...

Hi Nancy - I still haven't gotten to Indridason, but I have to soon. Thanks for the reminder.

#32 Woot! Carsten, I had no idea that there was more Indridason after Black Skies, so thank you for that! I've just checked my library and Strange Shores is available here in Canada : ). I followed the link you provided and read about the "young Erlendur" books still to be published; they will be worth exploring, too! You're the best!

#33 Beth, if you enjoy Scandi-crime, I think you will really like Indridason. I'll be looking forward to your thoughts.

HI Nancy!
Hope you are having a wonderful summer!

#35 Thanks, Chelle! Summer is my favourite season; I try to always make them wonderful!

While you are looking at winter coming, I am looking forward to a summer coming! This winter here has been long and wet, so some sun would be good for my vitamin D levels!

#37 Hi Megan, I'll bet you are looking forward to summer. I hear you on the Vitamin D, too. I take a supplement through the wet, gray winter months.

44.
Longbourn, Jo Baker



Rating: 3/5

2013, Random House Audio, Read by Emma Fielding

Longourn is Austen’s Pride and Prejudice told from downstairs, from the point of view of the house staff. It is an respectable read, if somewhat dull, but truthfully I was far more interested in trying to determine what was going on upstairs, at any particular point in the novel. Emma Fielding, narrator, did a superb job; I will look for more of her work.

Hmmm...I have so far stayed clear of all the modern Austen "sequels" and other novels trying to imitate her. I guess this is a slighter different take on it. Sounds interesting

Still I guess I would feel as you, Nancy. Get me upstairs in a jiffy :)

#40 Get me upstairs in a jiffy : ) … Exactly, Carsten, well said! I've also stayed clear of other modern Austens, and will continue to do so.

Hi Nancy: I've been looking at Longbourn but don't really feel compelled to read it. I think it can stay off the list.

#42 Hi Beth, you might like Longbourn better than I, but there is so much wonderful stuff out there ...

There is wonderful stuff out there, Nancy. There's even wonderful stuff right in this house. HOWEVER. If I ever come across a cheap copy of Longbourn, I'll almost certainly get it and try it.
The only Austen pastiche that I really love is the video Lost in Austen. Love it!

#44 Make me smile, Peggy! Yes, to go through the wonderful stuff in our own homes! I'd be interested to know what you think of Longbourn. Not familiar with the video Lost in Austen, but it sounds like a need to be! *and I just checked my library … yay! have put a hold on it* Thanks, Peggy : ).

I'm going to keep Longbourn in mind as a potential good listen!

Longbourn is on my future read/listen to list of books and I have been making note of the varied reviews Longbourn has received here on LT. Trust you to insert a 'twig' into your review, Nancy. Now I want to know about the bit that had you more intrigued with what was happening upstairs! ;-)

#46 Hi Lucy, Emma Fielding is a wonderful reader.

#47 Lori, I hope you will enjoy Longbourn more than I did. I know the reviews have been varied. I wanted to know more about the downstairs view of the upstairs comings and goings … there's some of this, but I wanted more!

Sorry you did not enjoy Longbourn more than you did. I guess I quite enjoyed the goings on of the downstairs crowd and when I read it I was looking for something different from my usual read and it fit the bill. I just finished a new Can Lit book called Pastoral by Andre Alexis . I started out being not to keen on it, but in the end it was well worth the read, at least for me. I thought of you when I read it, in that is of the pastoral genre, and takes place in a small town , with a few characters and a new Catholic father in town. I was not aware that there was such a genre. It takes place sometime in the 1900's , in small town Ontario. Overall, quite an enjoyable and interesting read. You may not like it though.

I had to quit reading my one long listed booker , To Rise Again at a Decent Hour . I read just over 100 pages and I found it very repetitive
and the main character to be totally self - involved. But really turned me off was the repetitive nature of the narrative. Perhaps it was written that way as the main character is supposed to be obsessive, but after 100 + pages I could not bear to read any more. I'm undecided as to my next book

#49 Hi Deb, I wanted to enjoy Longbourn more than I did, too. I didn't dislike it, just wasn't as taken with it as I'd hoped to be. Pastoral I am not at all familiar with, or Andre Alexis; must look it up. (I see you've added it to LT).

Darryl, whose thread I follow, also did not like To Rise Again at a Decent Hour at all! (something of an understatement, LOL!). Well, I'm glad to have one that I can dodge : ). Honestly, sometimes the choices for these book prizes is positively mystifying.

45.
A Thread of Grace, Mary Doria Russell



Rating: 4/5

"A reminder, nothing more: they are practiced at this, the Jews of Sainte-Gisele. For most, this is the second or third or fourth time they've fled the Wehrmacht or Gestapo or local police, moving from Austria or Czechoslovakia or Poland to Belgium or Holland or France. Many carry children. Most carry suitcases. Some have fashioned knapsacks from blankets and string. Leaderless, they will attempt to climb the Alps in street clothes, wearing whatever shoes are still intact after years on the run, one step ahead of the Nazis ... (24)

Sep 8, 1943: fourteen year old Claudette Blum is a Belgian Jew who has taken refuge in Italian-occupied southern France with her father, an accountant who worked for a metal-ore company. When the Italians surrender their occupation, the Germans' arrival in France is eminent, and Claudette and her father, along with thousands of others, are again on the move. Claudette’s mother Paula and brothers David and Jacques have not yet arrived to France, and her father attempts to leave word for them. So begins their dangerous journey over the
Alps towards Italy, where they hope to find safety now that the Italians have broken with Germany and forged a separate peace with the Allies; but they will discover that Italy is anything but peaceful. It has become a battleground for the Nazis, the Allies, resistance fighters, Jews in hiding, and Italian civilians trying to survive.

Set against this dramatic historical background, A Thread of Grace follows the lives of several enticing characters: a disillusioned German doctor, a priest, a charismatic Italian resistance leader, and an Italian rabbi's family. Through these, it tells the little-known story of the vast underground effort of Italian citizens who saved 43,000 Jews during the final phase of the war.

What I Liked/Didn’t: The novel is superbly written, its history rich, and its plot complex. Prior to reading, I did not even know of Italy’s WWII covert movement to save Jews from persecution. That said, I found this one very difficult to follow – in spite of a two-page list of characters at the front of the book. The characters, while interesting, were difficult to keep straight; and the locations within Italy changed every couple of pages. But history is not my forte, so others will undoubtedly have an easier time with it.

"Immense, intractable, incomprehensible, that conflict remains the pivot point of two centuries, the event that defines before and after. Hundreds of millions killed, wounded, maimed, displaced. The last survivors dying now. Their children and their grandchildren are fulfillment of Ezekiel's prophecy that the dry bones shall live again, but the poison still seeps down, contaminating generations. So much evil, so much destruction." (425)

Uh oh.... I saw the words "very difficult to follow" in your review. I think I will stick with trying to get around to reading her novel Doc before I tackle something else by the author. I can be in the mood for a difficult to follow kind of read but usually I am already comfortable with other works by the author and can enter the story with some comfort that the author won't steer me wrong.

#52 Lori, I absolutely loved Doc! In fact, it is one I would like to reread. A Thread of Grace is excellent, too, but I did have trouble keeping track of the characters and the similar locations in Italy. It was almost too broad, IMO. That said, it is only my opinion. Many other LTers have given it 4.5 or 5*

So, maybe it makes more sense for me to read her books in publication order as I think Doc was a debut novel for the author. I am good with that approach!

Nancy, I am one who gave A Thread of Grace a bit more love than you did. It was in my Top Ten in 2005. I also liked Longbourne. It kept me completely satisfied during a long road trip.

Now back to Indridason. I think I've finally learned how to spell his name! Knowing he is your No. 2 Scandi-crime writer makes me want to read his books. I fell in love with Iceland when I read Independent People and would like to read about the more populated part of the country. Hmmm, I think I've seen Judy post about September Sequels and Series. It might be a good time to start on this one!

I also really love A Thread of Grace, and I'm glad that you liked it worth 4 stars too.
Lori should know that Doc was written after *ATofG* and the 2 *Sparrow* novels.
And Donna reminds me that I took Independent People off the shelf and then put it back. I should make room for it. I declare I have to live with eyes and mind intact until I'm 110 to get through all of these wonderful books!

#54 Lori, Peggy has made a note about publication order at #56.

#55 Hi Donna, glad you were able to give both Longbourn and A Thread of Grace a bit more love than I. I expect Longbourn would have been a great road-trip companion; I enjoy my audiobooks tremendously, but I listen to them in shorter spurts, 30-50 minutes usually.

Independent People is one I will have to put on my list. And I love that Indridason's novels are set in Iceland. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I do.

#56 Peggy, I learned a great deal in reading A Thread of Grace. Still, I liked Doc better. Haven't read the The Sparrow, but may do so at some point.

You are so right that I have to live with eyes and mind intact until I'm 100 to get through all of these wonderful books! Hear, hear!

So far the Mary Doria Russell bug has to hit me , but love your review. It interests me in that my grandpa fought in the trenches in WW11 and I belive when the surrender came, he was in Italy and was awarded some medals . So, I might look into that one.

It's been a challenge for me finding books, since my local Chapters closed! I used to browse there about once a week and I had some pretty serendipitous finds there.

Lately I've been relying on library. That is where I got Pastoral - which is " new and hot' as the sticker says on front of the book. It's a little like a Kent Haruf book, but not as good. It's in that vein though. I am quite sure Carsten would like it.

I've been quite good at reading my own tomes this summer and using the library. I've started another library book that I think I"m going to enjoy - We are Called to Rise by Laura McBride. I'm in the early stages though and when it's a library book if it doesn't measure up quite quickly I give it the toss! ;)

>56 LizzieD: and >57 lit_chick: - Good to know. Thanks! As the Sparrow books don't quite appeal to me based on a read of their summary/synopsis, I think I will stick with trying her historical westerns first..... I see she has a new one, Epitaph - darn touchstones! - around the OK Corral, so I think I will keep to my plan to read Doc as my first Russell book.

#58 Deb, how interesting that your grandfather was in Italy at the end of WWII. You might very much enjoy A Thread of Grace.

I read about so many of our Chapters closing. Shame! I know you were there often and discovered many great finds! I rely a lot on my library, too, including BC Library Without Walls, which has quite a good selection of e-titles, both book and audio.

Very interested in your mention of Kent Haruf in terms of Pastoral. Standing by to see what you think of We Are Called to Rise.

#59 Lori, I think you just hit me with a bullet for Epitaph, around the OK Corral. *checked on MDR's site: due out spring 2015*

*checked on MDR's site: due out spring 2015*

Well, that would explain my problem with the touchstone. ;-)

#61 LOL, yep!

Nancy - Nice comments on A Thread of Grace - I've never read anything by Russell, and she gets a lot of love around here. I'll have to try one. The time period is one I enjoy...

#63 Hi Beth, Russell does get a lot of love around here! I learned of both Doc and A Thread of Grace from LTers. But Doc remains my favourite.

Very interesting part of WWII history I don't know much about. Great review. I don't like stories with such a vast set of characters that you almost drown in them. That's too bad. But I remember your glowing review of Doc a while back. I have to get to that Western at some point.

#65 Thanks, Carsten : ). When I can't distinguish between characters, I lose interest, but A Thread of Grace was fabulous in that it was an all new aspect of WWII history for me; had no idea of the Italian underground movement. Doc is a western you MUST read.

Interesting..... I have Doc waiting in the wings. Maybe I need to boost it up in line a bit.

Hi Nancy!

>39 lit_chick: Interesting thoughts on Longbourn. I was also a bit underwhelmed but I enjoyed the below stairs bit.

I still haven't read anything by MDR but I have The Sparrow which appealed to me as I like my sci-fi.

#67 Oh, Lucy, I encourage you to move Doc up the line!

#68 Hi Heather, sounds like you enjoyed Longbourn a bit better than I, in spite of being underwhelmed. The Sparrow is not on my list, sci-fi not being an attraction here; but MDR is a fabulous writer, isn't she?

46.
Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe



Rating: 3/5

2008, Blackstone Audiobooks, Read by John Lee

I’ve been wanting to read this classic, first published in 1719, for some time. It is in 1001 Books and it is widely acknowledged at the first English novel.

Defoe presents readers with a fascinating scenario: the prolonged and intense solitude of Robinson Crusoe, shipwrecked on a deserted island. Crusoe’s grappling with his new existence is captivating. First, of course, he needs to learn how he will feed himself; but in time he develops a relationship with the natural world of the island which allows him not only to survive but to fashion a quite comfortable, if solitary, existence. And he develops a personal connection to God that is both rich and rewarding, where before his mishap, he had none. Crusoe’s encounters with the native islanders date the publication in terms of master/slave relations with the savages – and and I found it difficult not to squirm, reading from my twenty-first century chair (what’s more, I could not but notice that such relations are left absent from the most recent re-telling of Robinson Crusoe, the 2000 film Castaway.

Good read. Not one I will revisit, but one that is certainly worthwhile.

47.
Love and Forgetting, Julie Macfie Sobol/Ken Sobol



Rating: 4/5

"Chronic disease is an uninvited guest that moves into your home and then proceeds to act as if it's the host and you're the guest. 'I'll set the rules,' the intruder tells you, standing in front of the door with arms folded tightly. 'And please to remember, there is no room for reasonable now. There is only this is the way it is.'"

Julie and Ken Sobol have had a long, happy marriage and raised a well-adjusted family, all successful adults with their own children. They are writers, and have been writing partners, as well as life partners, for some forty years. When Ken gets Lewy Body Disease (LBD), they decide to co-write about their experiences. Julie will continue the narration on her own as Ken, eventually ravaged by the “fatal fog of Lewy Body Disease” becomes becomes unable to participate any longer. She shares her sadness, frustration, and tireless attempts to find the best care for Ken.

Intelligent, enlightening, and even humourous, Love and Forgetting is at its heart a love story. For me, the book was also educational: I confess I had not heard of Lewy Body Disease. Highly recommended.

I've never read Robinson Crusoe and maybe one day I will, but I appreciate you reading it for me! Great review. Thumb applied. I never had the faintest desire to see Castaway. Perhaps that means I should not bother with the book. However, by lounging on the couch one night I watched the cheesy The Perfect Storm ( updated movie from about 20 years ago - I think that was still a remake ). I was strangely enthralled and now whenever I see a fishing boat, which is about every day lately when I walk the dog along the mouth of the Fraser, I think - I know what fishing is like! Pretty rough with some pretty rough characters. Perhaps the Perfect Storm is not entirely true! ;) But I look at the fisherman with a new respect/ fear.

Love and Forgetting sounds sad and true to life. I have a dear close friend with ALS and that has been forefront in my mind lately. I've heard of Lewy Body Disease but not all of the details . It sounds like a dreadful disease. My mom has two first cousins -sisters - that died of Pick's disease in the past couple of years. Here is a link - http://www.alz.org/dementia/fronto-temporal-dementia-ftd-symptoms.asp. First one sister got it at age 58 or so - and she had a Masters Degree and two kids in their twenties. Then about a two years later another sister also died of the same neurological disease at age 64. The other two sisters are carrying on , but wondering if they could be next. I'm not sure if it's inherited, but if you have two siblings die of the disease, I guess you would worry.

Glad you enjoyed.

Hi Deb, I enjoyed the movie Castaway, but I once watched it once many years ago. Saw The Perfect Storm many, many years ago. Yes, respect for fisherman, fishing boats, and the sea!

Love and Forgetting is sad but, as you point out, true to life. I think these stories need to be told by those courageous enough to share them. My goodness, how devastating to you mom's cousins to die so young with such a debilitating neurological disease. Lewy Body Disease is easily mis-diagnosed as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, with which it shares many symptoms. If that weren't bad enough, it is also characterized by recurrent visual hallucinations, sleep disorders, and more.

Great reviews Nancy. I liked Robinson Crusoe better than you did - being surprised that it was not just a good adventure-story but a spiritual "biography" of sorts - of course modern anthropologists should not read it if they want to avoid fits of anger and resentment. But again it was the worldview back then - for good and bad.

I do remember that Robinson in the beginning tried to make money of slaves - but ending up treating Friday with respect and recommend his good qualities and calling him a better Christian than himself. In that way there was some redemption (although Friday was still the submissive servant).

I love the movie Cast Away - seen it several times - Robert Zemeckis is a clever artist. Interesting to compare the modern version - no savages - or any other people on the Island - but also no prayer or providence of God to be found - Cast Away is much more man left to himself to figure out what his place is in an indifferent universe. It's a though-provoking movie. In Robinson Crusoe he finds s lot of useful supplies and of course a Bible and there finds his outlook on life and his destiny or purpose.

Well, I could go on - did a study on the book and movie a few years back for a film seminar in my church using several scenes from both novel and movie :)

Now it's my turn - a review to thumb, please :)

#74 Carsten, how interesting that you did a study of Robinson Crusoe and the film, Castaway. That would be a great project! It's true that Crusoe certainly did not mistreat his man, Friday, and also true that his view was the worldview at the time. It's incredible to me that Robinson Crusoe is over 300 years old. Truthfully, what I enjoyed most about the entire read was Crusoe's ability to invent new tools for living, for crops, etc. He even verges on engineering problems when he needs to get the boat to the water and contemplates a canal. Amazing how adaptive we humans are! Castaway I have not watched for many years, but did thoroughly enjoy; yes, absent of both human and biblical contact.

The adventure part of the novel are in deed its strongest feature, Nancy - and whv it has gripped the imagination of so many.

However Defoe disappointed me with Moll Flanders.

#76 Yes, Crusoe's adventures have been re-told numerous times; they grip the imagination still, I think. I read Moll Flanders in university and remember very little of it; because it is another in 1001 Books0, I want to listen to it. But it will be the last Defoe I will take the time for, I expect.

So far behind...

>39 lit_chick: I just picked up Longbourn at the library. I have a tendency to avoid sequels and revisions of classics, but I was intrigued by the idea of a sort of Downton Abbey look at P&P. We'll see.

>51 lit_chick: A Thread of Grace drops into the pile. I have read tons about Germany and France and Russia in WWII, and absolutely nothing about Italy. Good Grief.

I have very fond memories of Robinson Crusoe, but it's been years since I read it. I wonder what I'd make of it now.

I hope that you get a nice long, cool, but gentle fall. :) I hear summer was hot this year. We had a very lovely Spring-like day today, and I am ready for summer. Not that I can really complain about winter much. It's been pretty mild.

Hi Nancy! I always enjoy your book choices. Smiles. Good review of A Thread of Grace. I've been meaning to get to this one forever. I better move it up to the Must Read Now shelf.

#78 Hi Jenn, hope you enjoy Longbourn; yes, it is a Downton Abbey look at P&P. Apt description. It's funny, I'd not read anything WWII about Italy either, until A Thread of Grace.

Lovely cooler day today. Our summer has been very hot, so while I don't welcome fall, it is nice to work/walk outside when it's a little cooler.

#79 Thanks, Mark, smiles to you, too : ). I'll be interested to know what you think of A Thread of Grace.

Just a speak...........
Have I read Robinson Crusoe? If so, it was so long ago that I've completely forgotten it, so I don't think that counts. Thanks for a fine review.

#81 Thanks, Peggy. I was trying to remember whether or not I had read Crusoe prior to this reading, too. I don't think I had.

Hi Nancy, can't remember whether I have read Crusoe or not but will add it to the list. Hope you are well my dear and have had a good day.

#83 Hi John, I think you will enjoy Crusoe. Hope you day is lovely, too, my friend.

Happy Labour Day Nancy - or what is left of it anyways! ;-)

I haven't read Robinson Crusoe yet, even though I have read other shipwreck themes like Lord of the Flies, which had a different impact on my childhood first impressions read and my more recent adult read. Having enjoyed the Tom Hanks movie Cast Away and more recently, have experienced a different take on the shipwreck theme with Umberto Eco's The Island of the Day Before, I guess you could say I have a bit of a fascination with the whole "stranded" concept. Robinson Crusoe will stay on my future read "bucket" list for completeness purposes if anything else.

I hope your end of summer long weekend has been an enjoyable one!

#85 Thanks, Lori. Robinson Crusoe made me think of Lord of the Flies, too. That is a grade 11 English novel, and it has so many great themes. It's not a personal favourite, but students seem to enjoy. Not familiar with The Island of the Day Before, but will look that one up. I got Robinson Crusoe audio from our BC Library Without Walls, so it is probably available to you, too.

Hi Nancy, hope everything is well with you my dear.

>85 lkernagh: I have a bit of an interest in tha 'genre't as well, I think, the stranded concept. Typee and Omoo have a little of that flavor too - although it isn't raw survival.... both very accessible Melvilles and I feel I have read several others that I can't think of off hand. I loved The Island of the Day Before too.

#87 Hi John, always lovely to "see" you.

#88 Hi Lucy, interesting that you and Lori have the stranded on a desert island genre in common. I must look up The Island of the Day Before.

Hi Nancy. I read and loved a very abridged edition of Robinson Crusoe as a child but then was disappointed in the spiritual memoir six of the book when I read the unabridged edition as a teenager. It's definitely something I'd like to reread one day to see if I can appreciate it more.

Hi Nancy. I read and loved a very abridged edition of Robinson Crusoe as a child but then was disappointed in the spiritual memoir side of the book when I read the unabridged edition as a teenager. It's definitely something I'd like to reread one day to see if I can appreciate it more.

#90-91 Hi Heather, would be curious to know how you would enjoy and appreciate Robinson Crusoe reading from your present perspective. Certainly, Defoe offers up lots for both, a testament I think to the continued re-telling of this classic.

48.
Olive Kitteridge, Elizabeth Strout



Rating: 4.5/5

"A scared old woman is what she is; all she knows these days is that when the sun goes down, it is time to go to bed. People manage. She is not so sure. The tide is still out on that one, she thinks." (174)

From the Publisher:
"At times stern, at other times patient, at times perceptive, at other times in sad denial, Olive Kitteridge, a retired schoolteacher, deplores the changes in her little town and in the world at large, but she doesn’t always recognize the changes in those around her: a lounge musician haunted by a past romance; a former student who has lost the will to live; Olive’s own adult child, who feels tyrannized by her irrational sensitivities; and Henry, who finds his loyalty to his marriage both a blessing and a curse.

As the townspeople grapple with their problems, mild and dire, Olive is brought to a deeper understanding of herself and her life – sometimes painfully, but always with ruthless honesty. Olive Kitteridge offers profound insights into the human condition – its conflicts, its tragedies and joys, and the endurance it requires."

My Review:
An unapologetic atheist, prone to dramatic mood swings, Olive is ferocious, complicated, kind, and sometimes cruel – she is the human in all of us, and, interestingly, the character who Strout reveals was the easiest to write: "Whenever she walked through a door, took a ride in her car, or walked along the river, I felt lucky to follow her." (275)

It’s certainly not difficult to understand how Strout won won the Pulitzer Prize for Olive Kitteridge, or how the novel made so many Best of 2013 lists. The small town of Crosby, Maine came easily come to life under her guidance, as did its numerous and fabulously real characters – all remarkably unremarkable in and of themselves. Olive herself is unforgettable! Highly, highly recommended.

"... oh, what young people did not know. They did not know that lumpy, aged, and wrinkled bodies were as needy as their own young, firm ones, that love was not to be tossed away carelessly ... she had not known what one should know: that day after day was unconsciously squandered." (270)

So glad to see you enjoyed Olive Kitteridge! When I read it a few years ago I found it to be refreshingly different.

#94 Hi Lori, refreshingly different is an apt description of Olive Kitteridge.

Hi Nancy - I loved Olive Kitteridge, too. Glad to see another fan.

Are you back at school?

#96 Beth, glad you enjoyed Olive Kitteridge as much as I did!

I wish I was back at school! The BC Teachers' Union, which I have no choice but to belong to in order to teach in the public school system, has had us out on strike since mid-June. There is much bad blood and distrust, all for good reason, between union and present provincial government. The union is militant, which is not my style at all, so it is very discouraging to be caught in the middle of a political showdown. There will not be any winners on the teachers' side, I can say that much. It has been a very anxious time.

Somehow, I had missed the fact of the strike. I'm sorry. I wish there were some magic way to get to a good solution fast.
I guess I'm going to be persuaded to read *OK* in spite of myself. I don't know why this one has never reached out to me.

Great last quote, Nancy. And a true sentiment. Seems like a novel I would enjoy.

I visit regularly an old lady 90 years old - and I often think of this. The same needs. As she sits there telling her life stories she has the same basic needs as everybody else - to be heard, understood, recognized, appreciated, loved.

...she is the human in all of us - that's what great literature is all about - to expound the shared experiences of all of us.

Sorry to hear about the strike. Hope you'll be able to go back to school soon and teach again. I guess the students are suffering as well.

>97 lit_chick: - For some reason it never registered with me that you are affected by the strike that is going on. Not good, although the kids in our neighbourhood are continuing to enjoy this never ending summer they are having, both school and weather wise. I remember the Alberta teacher strike way back when I was in junior high. That strike also started in May/June and if memory serves me correctly, it wasn't settled until October. I remember my Mom buying us exercise books in math, etc and having to sit at the dining room table for the morning in an impromptu home schooling. Here is hoping things get resolved soon!

#98 Hi Peggy, I haven't previously posted about the strike. It's too anxious a time, and I like to keep LT a stress-free place!

I've had the same experience as you where a book just does not speak to me, irregardless of rave reviews. Will be curious as to whether you decide to try Olive Kitteridge.

#99 Thanks, Carsten, I hope I am back to work soon, too. The students, like the teachers, are caught right in the middle of a political showdown between union and government. So discouraging.

How lovely that you visit an elderly woman regularly, and recognize that her needs are like the needs of all of us: to be heard, understood, recognized, appreciated, loved. So true! And you're right, I think, that great literature is about the human in all of us.

#100 Hi Lori, yes, I'm having a hard time with the strike. I am so angry with both government and union. The duelling press conferences and the ongoing blame game are getting us nowhere. Sit down, grow up, and negotiate until it is DONE!

Hi Nancy - Sorry to make you bring up the strike. I hadn't heard anything about it. I hope things get resolved soon. But you're right - teachers never come out of these things very well.... Good luck. Read a lot of good books.

#102 Thank you, Beth, please don't worry about my bringing up the strike. It was lovely of you to ask about the start of my school year. Your support is appreciated. I am hoping desperately for a resolution soon, but things are not looking positive. The reading time is lovely, but I'm so distracted …

Nancy, I just have to tell you that I've had a couple of great reads. The first was We Are Called to Rise: A Novel by Laura McBride. It was an excellent read, bringing together a child from Albania, a soldier with PTSD, a mom who recognizes that her son has returned from Iraq with PTSD but has been allowed to join the police, a caring caseworker from Child Services. Each narrator has his/' her own convincing voice, and it all comes together at the end. 4. 5 stars. It was so well down - so touching and sad, each voice rang so true. Then I read on my NEW IPad Mini from the library, Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey. What a fab book - it's a sort of a psychological mystery, but more than anything I understood how frightening and scary it would be to live with dementia - in fact it scared me. It is well worth the read , and a fairly quick read at about 220 pages.

I've been thinking of you during this past week. The strike. Like you, I'll be glad when it's done, but I'm not seeing a resolution any time soon - but we can keep hoping. Take care, my friend.

#104 Hi Deb, thank you for your support, my friend. Appreciated.

And I appreciate two more book recs! These sound fabulous! Elizabeth is Missing is already on my WL though I don't remember putting it there, LOL. Someone here on LT has no doubt reviewed it. We Are Called to Rise I've just added … *off to the library site to see if we have these* … and we do! Elizabeth is Missing is quite popular and has a substantial queue, but We Are Called to Rise should be in transit before too long. Problem is actually reading them once I get them. I've hardly been reading at all, though not for lack of trying. I'm anxious and distracted.

Yes, Nancy, I don't doubt that your are anxious and distracted. Not quite sure why Iker called for a vote on binding arbitration that comes with pre - conditions and the government has already said no to. I'm not sure how this stand off will all end. I'm stressed by it and my kids are already though school and I'm not on strike either. Tense times in the province.

I was able to get Elizabeth Missing straight away from my library via my Ipad! Oh how hip and intelligent I felt ! ;) I'm still not entirely sure if I just have my Richmond Library e- books access, or if I also have library without walls too. So, not so hip or intelligent after all! ;)

I know what you mean about trying to read when you are anxious. Hmm- chocolate bars, good tv - is there any ? It's hard to focus I can imagine. Let's hope that you are back to work soon and some how this whole mess is solved. Not sure how, but somehow. I think you'll enjoy We are Called to Rise. Really an interesting book and well done.

#106. Hi Deb, I am another, and there are many of us, questioning the union on its ineffective strategies. Teachers need to get back to work!

I forgot to comment on your new iPad mini! Yay! I love my iPad, and we can borrow books from BC Library Without Walls : ).

Chocolate bars and TV, hmm, good ideas. I can say with certainty that, going through all of this mess, it is a good thing I am not a drinker, LOL.

Hi Nancy! Just popping over here after stumbling across your hot review for Olive Kitteridge. I loved that book, too and also rated it 4.5 stars. Do you have HBO? They are showing a dramatization of Olive in early November, starring Frances McDormand, who I love. Richard Jenkins and Bill Murray are also in it. I can't wait.

#108 Hi Laura, welcome! Glad that you also enjoyed Olive Kitteridge. Have you read Strout's The Burgess Boys? I read it first and loved it, also a 4* or 4.5* read. There were many recommendations here on LT for Olive Kitteridge, and I'm glad there were! I just read recently that HBO will have a dramatization of Olive, but I don't subscribe to cable at all any more. Hoping that eventually my library or Netflix will pick it up. I also love Frances McDormand.

HI Nancy, I too LOVED Olive Kitteridge. I liked her most recent book too The Burgess Boys although I found the relationship of the brothers painful. I am retired now but I was involved in the last strike of B.C. teachers so I understand what you are going through. It is such a hardship for teachers not to be able to work. Hope it's over soon. I am fan of Frances McDormand too and think she will make a great Olive!

I've not read The Burgess Boys. Will have to be on the lookout for it!

#110 Hi Mary, wonderful that you also enjoyed Olive Kitteridge. The relationship between the brothers in The Burgess Boys was painful, but I think also very real. Appreciate your kind words about the teachers' strike.

#111 Hi Laura, I think you would really enjoy The Burgess Boys. Will be following along for your thoughts if you decide to pick it up.

Hi Nancy! I just posted my review of And the Mountains Echoed :)

>97 lit_chick: We had a bit of a kerfuffle a few years ago in our school district. We had a fairly militant branch of the teacher's union operating in our district and when the school district opened the union negotiation meeting to the public and invited the other representative bodies to the table, the union representative basically said that they would be the sole representatives or nothing. I thought it showed very little consideration for the teachers and students they purported to represent. Our school board set a deadline for the negotiations to take place and when that passed they dissolved the collective bargaining agreement with the union. They then turned to the teachers and offered them the same arrangement in terms of contract and rights, along with a pay raise. It worked beautifully. I am a huge fan of local control and local representation. There should be no issue with teachers, etc. having the right to belong to a union, but ...

Good luck getting back to school. These kinds of things are hard on everyone.

#113 hi Jenn, appreciate you sharing your experience with teachers' strike. Local bargaining worked far better in BC too, until the government mandated several years ago that the union must bargain provincially. It has not worked, to say the very least. And you're right, These kinds of things are hard on everyone.

*off to Jenn's thread for review of And the Mountains Echoed.

Hey Nancy - I forgot to say - my husband is in BC at the moment. He's been working up in Lillooet. You guys can wave at each other, sort of. ;)

#115 *waving at Jenn's husband in Lilooet* LOL!

>70 lit_chick: did Tom Hanks come across any 'natives' in Castaway? I can't remember. All I remember is that damned volleyball he kept talking to :)

>18 Donna828: oooh, Frances McDormand would be great as Olive Kitteridge! I must try and see that somehow.

#117 Hi Megan, I remember that damned volleyball, too! It's the first thing I think of when I recall Hanks in Castaway. He did not run into any natives.

Hi Nancy, hope you have a lovely Sunday my dear.

Hi Nancy - Olive Kitteridge with Frances McDormand? Stellar! I'll have to watch for that.

#119 Thank you, John. You, too : ).

#120 Hi Beth, I'll be watching for Frances McDormand as Olive Kitteridge, too! Hope Netflix will pick it up as I don't subscribe to cable.

Hi Nancy. Well, let's hope the talks end the strike this weekend . Fingers and toes crossed. I purchased The Burgess Boys, but I'm currently reading A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash. Really a very good read so far, but a sad one too.

Always a sad state of affairs when teachers are on strike from whichever perspective you view it. My sympathies are usually aligned with labour although of course I know little or nothing about the nature of the dispute but I do hope it is settled in favour of the teachers and children and parents soon. xx

#122 Deb, fingers and toes crossed here, too. Hope you will enjoy The Burgess Boys as much as I did. Funny, I've presently got A Land More Kind Than Home sitting on my dining room table … great minds, and all that, you know! No, seriously, it was a rec I took from Mark. Don't know whether I'll get to it this time round.

#123 Hi Paul, your supported is appreciated. There are, IMO, no innocent parties in this dispute between union and government. I too hope it is settled soon so that we can all get back to school.

Good luck with everything....

I loved Olive Kitteridge too but somehow haven't read any other Strout. I hope to though.

#125 Thanks, Lucy. Tentative deal finally reached in the wee hours this morning. Ratification vote is Thursday. I hope we will be back to work next week.

If you enjoyed Olive Kitteridge, I think you would enjoy The Burgess Boys.

Glad for you with this strike news. Fingers crossed.

I also have my fingers crossed you will all be back to work next week.

#127-28 Thanks, Mary and Lori. The support team here on LT is the best!

Even my eyes are crossed (and I can't tell you how hard that makes reading and typing) hoping that school will be back in session next week! That will be a big relief, I'm sure.

#130 Hi Peggy, oh, you made me chuckle! I appreciate your support, and appreciate how impossible reading must be with crossed eyes. a big relief is for certain!

Great news, Nancy. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

#132 Thanks, Beth.

49.
The Natural Cat, Anitra Frazier



Rating: 3.5/5

I am a novice cat owner and caught a reference to The Natural Cat on one of Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Mojo videos. Certainly Frazier is an experienced pet guardian and has extensive experience caring for and working with cats. There is ample good information here to return to for future reference.

Most Useful: Cat behaviours; litter box use and problems/solutions; scratching post use and problems/solutions; cats and the human family; common ailments and diseases; grooming. The latter section is superb, very comprehensive in terms of tools and how to groom different parts of a cat.

Not So Much: New age theories such as cat ESP were interesting (I think?), but fell flat on me as a novice guardian. Similarly, Frazier advocates feeding a raw diet which is not something I’m doing right now. Suggestions regarding holistic/conventional veterinarian care whereby the conventional vet can propose medicines and treatments, but these must be approved by the holistic vet were, I thought, a bit unrealistic.

Interesting. We have had numerous feline companions in our family over the years - decades actually - and we never once bought a scratching post. All cats retained their claws because they were allowed outdoors and there was no way they were not going to be able to defend themselves so we invested time and effort as a family to train them to claw tree trunks when they were outdoors and to leave the furniture in the house alone. I am curious about the grooming section and how your new feline friend takes to things like grooming and not clawing the furniture. Our cats loved to be brushed. All we had to do was tap the brush on the floor and they would come running. Could never figure out how to stop them from attempting to chew on the brush from time to time but overall, a positive experience. They never had any dental complaints so all good from my perspective, but we also never fed them a raw diet as Frazier advocates.

#135 Hi Lori, Cairo is an indoor cat, although I will tether him on the patio with me when I'm outdoors. I first bought a corrugated cardboard scratching post which he did not like/use. When I brought home one wrapped with sisal, he loved it! Gratefully, he does not bother with the furniture. As for grooming, he doesn't mind the grooming experience at all, but he refuses to sit still! Friends have older cats and say they also love to be brushed; perhaps this will change with time? Dental is good. He does eat a spoonful of wet food at each meal, but mostly thrives on good quality kibble. The wet food is recommended for hydration; apparently, cats often don't drink as much as water as they need. Based on what I'm hearing in pet food shops, raw diet for felines is very popular right now; something to think about later?

What exactly would a raw diet consist of? I have a former boss who would make her own dog food for her two dogs and it sounded like a bit of work and was considerably more expensive than the dog food she could purchase from her vet. We don't have a pet at the moment so who knows, if we did get one I would probably be trying the raw diet with them.

#137 Raw diet is meat, as close as possible to how a cat would eat in the wild. Ground meals contain bone fragments, organs, enzymes (supplements), etc., replicating a cat's "natural" diet. Also, I've discovered that raw diet is available frozen to purchase locally. More excellent information at Feline Nutrition

Hi Nancy, just popping by to say hi from over the pond, love and hugs to you my dear.

#139 Hi and hugs back to you on the other side of the pond, John : ).

>140 lit_chick:, thanks Nancy, I just like to have a mooch around friends threads my dear.

Hi Nancy, I was wondering when you would be reading a cat care book. I'm glad that the teacher's strike in your area may be settled soon. At least having the extra time at home has given you and Cairo more time to settle into a routine. Any cute cat stories to share?

I am so looking forward to the HBO production of Oliver Kitteridge, one of my favorite books about aging women. Frances McDormand will make a perfect Olive. Can't wait!

Oh careful discussing anything dog/ cat related in public, Nancy! The fur can fly! :) I know with Poppy, being out and about with her twice daily walks some folks preferences/ opinions on raw food diet, vaccinations , when to neuter / spay/ etc can be very touchy! I was at the small off leash dog park a few days ago with a couple of other dog owners and one of the dogs was not neutered at the age of 1 year old and the three of us had a good natured discussion of raw diet/when to neuter / spay , vaccinate, while chuckling about how these very subjects can be worse then discussing politics or religion. It was fun to have some open minded people who realized how intense the discussions could get , though we all had different ideas. For me , no way am I feeding my dog a raw food diet. She kisses me on the mouth and I don't want any salmonella or e coli germs coming at me, but I do feed her a " fancy kibble" mixed with dried medallions" of raw food." Acana and Orijin. Sourced in Canada! :) I'll stop there with my dog opinions , except to say we had her spayed just before 6 months of age, because the last thing I wanted was a dog in season .

I really enjoyed A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash. I think you would enjoy it very much. It takes place in rural/ small town South Carolina. While on the surface it might seem to be about " religious fanaticism" , it is so much more than that - perhaps like the Can Lit fav Our Daily Bread by Lauren B. Davis. Really a most interesting gripping read.

When the Giller prize long list came out a week ago, nothing really struck me, but I've I'm about 1/3 of the way through one of them Watch How We Walk by Jennifer Lovegrove and it's really fascinating and very sad. Essentially about a family who are Jehovah's Witnesses in small town and how painful that is to the daughters - in fact a very dysfunctional family. I recommend it.

If you go raw diet with Cairo, we can still be besties, Nancy! :)

Hi Nancy, did you say you are back at work now? I feel for you. Things are getting really ugly in my district right now, too. A lot of anxiety -- more so for my kids than for my job.

I have The Sparrow in my pile, and Doc looks wonderful, too. I also have Olive Kitteridge in the pile. I am one who loved Independent People. Hope you do as well when it comes your way.

Hoep you're having a great weekend!

#142 Hi Donna, back to work full time tomorrow. Of course, it feels like the first of September when in actuality we have missed most of that month. In any case, I am grateful the dispute is settled. And you're right about the bright spot being that it gave me time with Cairo to settle into a routine. He is such a charmer, I'm wrapped exactly where he wants me to be. Will post some more photos below.

I think McDormand will make a perfect Olive, too. Have to figure how I'll get hold of the HBO adaptation. Hopefully, my library will eventually get a copy?

#143 Deb, I can well imagine the politics and nonsense around discussing raw diet, holistic vet care, etc. Have no intention of going there, LOL! I also feed an excellent quality kibble, Orijen, and yes, I love that it is sourced in AB. Most importantly, Cairo likes it, and his coat is beautiful : ). Glad we're still bests, even if I go raw … make me chuckle!

Think I will love A Land More Kind than Ours and will also look for Watch How We Walk. Am close to finishing The Son which is going to be a 5* read. So fabulous!

#144 Hi Anne, back to work full time tomorrow. The dispute was an ugly one: lengthy, anxious, with no real winners. I do hope things will settle in your district without such volatility.

I predict you will really enjoy Doc and Olive Kitteridge. Haven't read The Sparrow. Donna at #142 says Olive Kitteridge is her favourite story of women aging, and I agree that's an apt descriptor.

Cairo loves to observe what's happening in the kitchen from the back of the counter. He is charming and inquisitive, and needs to be wherever the action is happening. Favourite watering hole: the kitchen tap.



Favourite toy is this rainbow cat dancer. It's part of our morning ritual.

Wonderful pictures Nancy. And a funny morning ritual :) glad you found some useful tips on cats behaviour in The Natural Cat. raw food or not.

I'm not on LT so much at the moment. Are in Vienna enjoying the remains of the Habsburgs glory days. Indeed a beautiful city - And "Der Berg Ruft", as they say, and I'm going hiking in the alps in a few days.

#147 Carsten, have been thinking of you. Your holiday sounds fabulous! I know it was hard-earned and is well deserved. Vienna and hiking in the Alps sounds perfect. Hope you will post photos to your thread.

What a handsome fellow you have there, Nancy! I can see why Cairo has captured your heart! He's a nice small sized fellow, judging by the picture by kitchen sink- or that is my guess. If he's drinking from the kitchen sink, he truly has you where he wants you to be :) The rainbow cat dancer is perfect too! I know my sister , became a cat guardian/ parent via the SPCA ,loves her feathered cat dancer . My sister tells me that since during the week she gets up at 5:45 for work, even on the weekend, Harriet the cat wakes her up shortly after 6 am for a 20 minutes session of chase the cat feather dancer. These indoor cats need a lot of exercise and human attention. My sister praised The Son too, so I'll have to look into that one more carefully.

I'm 3/4 of the way through Watch How We Walk and loving it more by the moment. It's kind of gritty and hard to read, but so interesting. I looked into the author's bio and apparently she was raised in a JW household , but left the religion at age 14, and she says for her, it was not big deal leaving the JW's because her family was easygoing , but I imagine that gave her a lot of insight into the religion.

I'd say you were right about the teacher's strike - acrimonious and no one really came out a winner. Well, back to the salt mines tomorrow for you. Try to enjoy it and I hope the days go well. It must be challenging having left things without finishing in June and then going back to school in mid -late September. Hard on the kids too - especially for those who are post secondary bound. Hugs to you and have a good Monday!

Hi to Carsten!

Hi Nancy - Glad things are settled. Have a great first day back.

#149 Hi Deb, yes, Cairo has me exactly where he want me, sigh. Love that Harriet wakes your sister at o-dark-thirty on weekends to play feather dancer, LOL! *eta: good eye, there Deb. Cairo is 10 lbs*

I've added Watch How We Walk to my list. Gritty appeals to me, though hard to read is not something I can manage right now. Still trying to establish calm after a long stretch of acrimony. I'll get there.

Grateful to be returning to work. There will be no shortage of challenges, but I made sure my year-end report cards were done before we walked out. I simply refused to leave things in that kind of mess; it's not right for the students, and it would have made my return nightmarish. The fight has been very hard on our students; I'm glad to there for them again.

#150 Thanks, Beth : ). Looking forward to tomorrow.

50.
The Son, Philipp Meyer



Rating: 5/5

2013, Harper Collins Publishers, Read by Will Patton, Kate Mulgrew, Scott Shepherd, Clifton Collins Jr.

"By 1846 we had moved past the line of settlement, to my father’s headright on the Pedernales … Grass up to the chest, the soil deep and black in the bottoms, and even the steepest hillsides overrun with wildflowers. It was not the dry rocky place it is today. Wild Spanish cattle were easily acquired with a rope – within a year we had a hundred head. Hogs and mustang horses were also for the taking … the country was rich with life the way it is rotten with people today. The only problem was keeping your scalp attached.” (Ch 1)

The Son is an epic multi-generational saga of the McCullough family and a fabulous account of the settling of Texas over a period of roughly one hundred fifty years, beginning in 1849. MuCullough patriarch, Eli, the ruthless, driving force of the novel, opens the narrative. Kidnapped as a young teen, he spent several years as a member of the Comanche tribe, returning home later to join first the Texas Rangers and later the Confederate Army. Eli makes his fortune in cattle ranching and forges the way to the McCullough dynasty which will subsequently include enormous wealth from oil. A generation later, his son, Peter, will accept the burden for the cruelty with which his father mastered the land; and will pay for the sins the family accumulated along with its riches. Speaking to readers through diaries he wrote pre-WWI, Peter is the voice of human decency: he despises the racism he witnesses towards those of Mexican and Native American descent. Unlike his father in every imaginable way, Peter is as weak as Eli is ruthless. Finally, we hear from Peter’s granddaughter, Jeanne, who has much in common with Eli in terms of personal grit. Jeanne is made to feel out of place running an oil company as well as several other business interests in the Texas boys' club. Eighty-six years old at the point of her narration, she is enormously wealthy and powerful, and has achieved monumental success as an "oil woman" but the path was fraught with difficulty: deceit, arrogance, snobbery, cruelty.

Meyer’s tale swept me up immediately, and I remained fascinated with the characters and the Texas frontier throughout its substantial length. Lyrical, brutal, and raw, The Son is an American story for the ages. The narration of this audiobook by Patton, Mulgrew, Shepherd, and Collins is magnificent. Most highly recommended.

“It occurred to me, as I watched the oil flow down the hill, that soon there will be nothing left to subdue the pride of men. There is nothing we will not have mastered. Except, of course, ourselves.” (Ch 39)

Man Booker Short list announced Sep 09:



To Rise Again at a Decent Hour, Joshua Ferris
The Narrow Road to the Deep North, Richard Flanagan
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, Karen Joy Fowler
J, Howard Jacobson
The Lives of Others, Neel Mukherjee
How to be Both, Ali Smith

Great review, Nancy! I have The Son on my wish list at PBS, but I'm #64. Somehow I thought that I was closer to the top. I have yet to try *Olive K*. My short story phobia has me in its grip. I realize that they are intertwined, but I just can't quite make the jump...... It's not as though I have nothing left to read.
Hope school is settling down, but I'm glad that you're back!

#154 Thanks, Peggy : ). Oh, I hope you will enjoy The Son as much as I did. I'm not a huge fan/reader of short stories, either; but Olive Kitteridge worked for me. That said, none of us are short on reading material, as you point out, LOL!

It's good to be back at school. Startup is crazy, but that's to be expected given the gong show that resulted from walking out Jun 17 and not returning until Sep 25.

>153 lit_chick: I see the Booker shortlist and I am reminded that this time last year I was feverishly reading the nominees. I finished The Luminaries the day before it was announced the winner! This year, I am not engaged with it :( But I am finishing off a lot of books that I started in previous months. The payoff !

#156 Hi Megan, not engaged with the Booker its this year either, just too much going on with strike and now finally getting back to work. I am still so distracted for reading! It's discouraging, but I know eventually my focus will come round (at least I hope so). And you are a very busy and fabulously successful student!

Hi Nancy! Some very fine reading going on over here. Grins...I loved your review of Olive Kitteridge. I was also a huge fan of that book and would love to do a reread, (possibly on audio) before the HBO show begins, in early November.

Good review of The Son. I also liked this book. I loved the first half, with young Eli but the 2nd half wasn't as strong, IMHO.

You have gone and done it again, haven't you, Nancy? Come on, admit it..... you have deliberately hit me with yet another western style BB. That's alright. I am tough. I can take any epic multi-generational saga you throw my way.

Well, hey, lookitthat.... it is only 561 pages. I don't have to put my wrists through any pre-reading exercises for this one. ;-)

Glad to see you are happy to be back at school.

you have deliberately hit me with yet another western style BB Good Grief. Me too. I will add The Son to the list. It can come up after Lonesome Dove...

Glad to hear your routine can return to normal, sorry that the outcome wasn't a win-win.

#158 Hi Mark, I think Olive Kitteridge would be wonderful on audio. Great idea to listen to it before it airs on HBO in November. I too loved young Eli in The Son, but the book held my attention to the end. He was one ruthless character!

#159 Lori, make me chuckle! I don't have to put my wrists through any pre-reading exercises for this one. Actually, I found this audio at either my library of BC Library2Go … can't recommend the audiobook highly enough. It was fantastic!

#160 Hi Jenn, apparently epic frontier novels appeal to me, LOL! Hope you enjoy The Son as much as I did. It is good to re-establish a routine … who would ever have thought I'd be so happy to be at work, LOL.

Great review of The Son, Nancy! Thumbed as soon as you put it on your thread. I know my sister loved it too, so eventually I will get to it. How can I escape such glowing reviews as yours and my sister's?

As for the Booker List I can assure you that you can skip To Rise Again at Decent Hour for reasons I have listed above somewhere in your thread. A complete and utter dud. I do have We Are Completely Beside Ourselves , from the library and I hope to get it. I'm currently reading a bit of Can Lit, a book called Interference by Michelle Berry. Well, my puppy has chosen to come and lick me and nibble at me so we can get out on a walk! Back later to finish my post :)

#162 Deb, hope you will enjoy The Son as much as I and your sister did : ). I've not read any of the Booker nominees yet. But I have on hold and will read The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Will take your suggestion to skip To Rise Again at a Decent Hour; and from Darryl's thread, I will also forego We Are Completely Beside Ourselves. I'm just not getting much reading done right now; distraction will calm down eventually. Our first week back to work has been pure madness!

51.
Cat Daddy, Jackson Galaxy



Rating: 3.5/5

Jackson Galaxy has an amazing affinity for and connection with cats, a great deal of which he learned from his well-loved, incorrigible Benny, a broken-down throwaway discarded unceremoniously at the Boulder shelter where Galaxy was working. Turns out the human in this story was as broken as the cat, he just hadn’t bottomed out quite yet. That would come, and Benny would be there …

Thoroughly enjoyed Galaxy’s valuable insights into cat behaviour. I enjoyed the descent into drug addicted hell much less, but to be fair, I was reading for information on cats, not addiction/recovery.

“If you want to love them, learn to love like they do – firmly in the now.”

Hi Nancy - Great review of The Son - thumbed. Nothing like a good classic family saga western story to immerse yourself in, eh?

I'm back again from the hiking-trip in Austria - was thinking of the hikes when I read your review of Cat Daddy. I did tours with a group and some of the people I got to learn a little bit. One man had his dog with him every day to great amusement for all of us. It always stopped up and came running back the trail to see if his "daddy" was still there - The man had recently retired - and shortly after his wife had left him for another man. Now he travelled with his dog - and he admitted that the dog had helped him a lot in his sudden loneliness and crisis.

#165 Thanks, Carsten, The Son is one you would really enjoy. You're right: Nothing like a good classic family saga western story.

Have been thinking of you on your hiking adventure in Austria. I love the story of the man travelling with his dog, and telling you how his dog had helped him through loneliness and crisis. I have to admit having little Cairo in the house has changed my life; he's brought me so much joy and laughter; and he's lovely company.

Enjoyed Interference by Michelle Berry really quite a bit. It's a debut by a Canadian author, and I suppose it's about a number of things. The interference that can happen in our neighbours live that we don't know much about - for example, cancer, an abusive spouse, an anxious child, poverty that we can't see and how we either judge our neighbours or don't actually know much about what is going on. Also about how we interfere sometime int the wrong way and what ties the book altogether is a the short bits of time that the neighbours spend on the ice as a Senior Woman's Team and how interference on the ice can also bring people together. Overall a worth while read. Now for a " humble brag". You remember that I read Pastoral by Andre Alexis, well it's now shortlisted for the Rogers Writers Trust! :) Maybe I have kept my literary status a secret from you! Perhaps I am a member of the Giller Panel, if not the Booker Prize Panel! Do I ever know how to pick them, even on a whim at the library.

Currently reading The Rosie Effect, the sequel to The Rosie Project , quite enjoyable if a bit below my high literary level of my usual high falutin' reading! :) I purchased All Saints by K.D. Miller for my kindle. Well, touchstones don't seem to be working for that one, but I understand it to be another Rogers Prize Shortlist, a interlinked short series of short stories about a falling apart small Anglican Church in Toronto and the stories of some of it's congregants. Appealed to me. I'll find some reviews later on.

Thumbed Cat Daddy and the title made me chuckle! Poppy is off to doggy daycare with our dog walker as I a leaving shortly to drive into VGH to pick up Dave from another retinal tear appointment. I hope that they find all is healing well. I suspect it is, but I guess they have to check -and keep checking both eyes from here in.

Fancy that - doggy daycare! What next? I'm so glad that you are enjoying Cairo so much! I read that black cats are more affectionate and perhaps even smarter then other cats. Cairo chose you wisely. :) Well, it's always rush hour in Vancouver, so I best fluff up my hair etc and go set off to pick up Dave. The estimated that the appointment would take 3 hours, but I've read the the retinal guy runs late, so wish us luck.

#167 Hi Deb, you literary guru! Interference sounds interesting; it's so true what you say about the lives of our neighbours and others we think we "know." I do remember you reading Pastoral. Delighted you are currently into The Rosie Effect. I must get a hold put on that one at our library … oops, just remembered it is presently undergoing huge software upgrade and holds have to wait until Oct 08. I need another Rosie read, something very light and humorous. Still in my distracted reading funk, I'm afraid. It'll come.

Tickled that you got a chuckle out of Cat Daddy, the title. And, oh my, doggy daycare, huh? Well, you're certainly living on the right side of the tracks, and so is little Poppy! I think Cairo chose me well, too : ).

Do hope that Dave's appointment goes well. A three hour appointment with a habitually late doctor, groan. Keep me posted.

Cat ESP? Did I say once that I dreamt I was eating a mouse and I woke up and the cat of that era, Leon, was lying on the pillow next to me, like, pressed against my head and I am pretty sure I had his dream!

Cairo is so handsome!

#169 Lucy, what a fabulous dream experience with mouse and Leon! Would love to have been a fly on the wall watching both you! Sounds to me like you did indeed have his dream.

Aw, Cairo thanks you : ).

Hi Nancy. Just trying to catch up with one of my favorite LTers:-) I loved The Son when I read it last summer and followed it up with a NF book that dealt with similar subject matter, Empire of the Summer Moon. Love a good western. Thanks for the excellent review.

I've reflected on whether Poppy lives on the right side of the tracks and I can't say if she does or not. As it turns out, in Richmond we have two sets of tracks, and we are in the middle of two of them :) Now, one set of tracks is no longer used , whereas the other set of railway tracks is used twice daily to transport cars that come into the port into Vancouver via rail. That set it used and I suppose we live on the right side of those tracks. Decided to a be a " literal fool " today :) Dave's appointment went well, more lasering , but he is doing well. Back in two weeks with strict instructions that if he ever sees black , go right away to Emergency.

Sorry you are still finding yourself in a reading funk. I guess we all go through that from time to time.

In other news, Poppy has a new Boysenberry Raincoat for fall, and is awaiting an order for a fleece lined raincoat for more extreme weather. What are the well dressed cat's wearing this fall - Burberry? plaids? I imagine Cairo has a Giorgio Armani vest on order for those chilly indoor days of winter. Perhaps a "Cat Apartment " at his disposal? You know, those multiered cat sitting things?

Dave and I are hoping to go and see Gone Girl, the movie , perhaps tomorrow evening. I never read the the book and I've read good reviews about the movie - so here's hoping! :)

Here's a wonderful link to fall Cat Fashion - http://catnipsum.com/blog/shop-kitty/designer-clothing-for-your-feline-friend/67.... I picture Cairo in say the outfit that resembles the academia regalia accorded to those who earn a MA or PHD, given your status as Lit Chick, or perhaps the comfy grey walking jacket! :)

Poppy's dog wear is rather more utilitarian in nature, http://www.rcpets.com/All-Products/Coats/Venture-Outerwear/Product.aspx?ProductI... , but if it didn't rain so much here I'd look into the Robson Street coat, or the Yaletown Slicker! :)

#171 Hi Bonnie, lovely to see you here : ). Delighted that you enjoyed The Son as much as I did! Empire of the Summer Moon sounds excellent. The Comanches, as you now, featured largely in Meyer's writing. I know a bit about Canada's Chipewyan people, and a bit less about the Cree here, but nothing at all about the Comanches. Like you, I love a good western. Looking forward to your take on Vanderhaeghe when you feel up to exploring his work.

#172 Hi Deb, very glad to hear Dave's eye is healing. That was a scare!

Tickled that Poppy has a new raincoat and will soon be in possession of a heavier one for Vancouver's winter wet. What a lucky little girl she is! One of my sisters has a Miniature Pinscher, and she has a little raincoat and a pink life jacket. Crack me up! As for Cairo, he is allowed to sleep under the blankets, LOL … something new for him. So I'll forego a winter wardrobe for him in favour of washing linens : ).

#173 LOL! I can't imagine trying to "dress" Cairo; he won't even sit still long enough to be brushed. Link to Poppy's duds is not working, but I am familiar with RC pet products and was able to view some of the coats. Loved the west-coast themed names.

52.
Moll Flanders, Daniel Defoe



Rating: 3/5

Moll Flanders
1996, Recorded Books LLC, Read by Virginia Leishman
Want to Read
“I am giving an account of what was, not of what ought or ought not to be.”

Having read Moll Flanders many years ago in university, in the usual panicked rush which characterized that time, I wanted to visit it again for a clearer sense of it. Too, it’s in 1001 Books, and I like to make some effort to read a number of these each year. I decided to listen to Defoe this time, and am happy to highly recommend Viriginia Leishman as a wonderful narrator.

What struck me about Moll’s character in the first half of the story were her contrasts: she has experienced a great deal of life and yet is naïve; she is an intelligent woman and yet a foolish woman – or at least one who makes foolish decisions. As her story unfolds and as she matures, she becomes much more weathered in the ways of her world: a seasoned con (and later convict), bold thief, wary whore. I wondered whether Moll chose her way of life, or whether having set out on that wrong path, albeit perhaps unintentionally, it was impossible to find her way back. Part of me thinks the latter, particularly as a woman living in the 17th century; and yet I believe she enjoys her wily, wicked ways. In the novel’s concluding chapters in which Moll falls into favour with the gift of a grown son and a handsomely profitable plantation in Virginia, I was amused at her humility and penitence in the face of Providence – after all, what’s a woman to do? Whatever the case, I don’t intend to spend any more time with the character.

Having read Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders within a few months of one another, I’ve decided that I can appreciate Defoe for his contribution to the form of the modern novel; but he really is not one I can treasure. I’m glad to have read and reread some of his work presently, but probably with leave him with this final word.

Good thoughts on Moll Flanders, Nancy. I didn't like the character and grew rather impatient with her many foolish choices and her desperate situation. But I guess it would have worked better if I had listened to a woman reading it.

I think you can safely let this be Defoes final word :)

#176 Thanks, Carsten. I also found myself growing impatient with Moll's character, but you're right, that I did enjoy a woman reading the story. Here's to the final word on Defoe, LOL!

I enjoyed the energy and wit of Moll Flanders too - and Crusoe, but agree. Ultimately there is something 'cold' about Defoe - compared to Smollet and Fielding, both of whom I cherish.

#178 cold is a great descriptor for Defoe, I think, Lucy. I hadn't thought of that previously. I've not read either Fielding or Smollet since university … need to think about some future audiobooks. Can you make a recommendation, book or audio?

Ugh, Smollet! :)

That's probably unfair. I did dislike him very much on my first sweep through his works, but that was more than 20 years ago and I've been meaning to give him a second chance.

I have a prejudice against Defoe because a few too many (male) academics have tried to tell me that he "invented" the English novel, which is nonsense; but he's another I need to re-read, sometime - sometime - SOMETIME!!!!

No Defoe for me yet, but I have admired and enjoyed both Smollet and Fielding. More that I need to revisit.

Hi Nancy! Wow, what a beautiful cat! Our last cat, Aspen, liked her water "freshly caught" from the tap. This was a problem when we lived in Cyprus, as she could got into the kitchen sink and help herself. Never turning off the water, of course...

How are things at school?

Hi Nancy-
Not being a big fan of ye olde books I shall refrain from comment :)
Hope you are well and the enthusiasm for reading has returned to its normal levels!

#180 Hi Liz, I'm sure I've read something of Smollet decades (OMG!) ago in university, though I honestly don't remember what. *Just looked it up: Humphrey Clinker.* As for Defoe, have had enough.

#181 Hi Peggy, there are always more authors we need to revisit, aren't there? And on top of those we are visiting for the first time … this is why there will never be enough years to read all I need to!

#182 Aw, Cairo thanks you, Anne. He likes to explore the kitchen sink, too, but doesn't go too close if there's water in it. That said, watching soap bubbles form seems to fascinate him!

Things at school are going well. It is a ridiculously busy time, of course, given that we missed our first three weeks. I work with a wonderful staff. In the bigger picture, the acrimonious relations between union/government do not allow for healthy partnerships in education; it's always us and them, which I find very sad and very, very tiresome.

#183 Hi Megan, I know ye olde books are not your thing. Luckily, this does not leave one with a reading shortage, LOL. Still not reading much these days, but normal will return at some point.

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving Nancy - I bet you are enjoying a good meal or two :)

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving Nancy, hope you are having a lovely day my dear.

No word on whether or not you liked The Long Way Home, but now I have a chance to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! Loved the pictures of Cairo upthread. Such a shiny coat. Be sure and keep him inside on Halloween!

#186 Thank you, Carsten. Yes, fine eating, indeed: turkey and all the trimmings : )

#187 Thank you, John. My long weekend has been lovely.

#188 Hi Donna, still reading and enjoying The Long Way Home. Although I too am beginning to wonder how many times and in how many ways one can look at the same painting. Thank you for Thanksgiving wishes : ). Cairo does have a lovely coat, doesn't he? This in spite of the fact that he does not like to sit still more than 15 seconds to be brushed, LOL! He's an inside cat so will definitely be inside Halloween.

Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian friend(s), Nancy. Hope your day was wonderful:-)

#190 Thank you, Bonnie : ). My day was lovely. It's so good to see you here on LT.

Happy Thanksgiving, Nancy! I don't know about the weather where you are but we have definitely had autumn weather this weekend.... perfect for cooking and baking! I haven't managed to perfect my healthy carrot muffins yet but I managed a wonderful pumpkin millet muffin with raisins that my other half likes, so I will be making more of those.

just stopping in to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, Nancy!

It's late, but Happy Thanksgiving, Nancy! I believe that it was!!

#192 Thanks, Lori : ). I know you had a wonderful TG meal this weekend, too. Our fall weather has been absolutely gorgeous: clear blue skies, and warm sunshine. Just heavenly! But today fall started. Was bound to happen sooner or later, LOL.

Your pumpkin millet muffin sounds wonderful, too! Will be lurking around for your carrot ones as well : ).

#193 Thanks, Katie : ). The long weekend has been wonderful.

#194 Thanks Peggy. Yes, it was a happy one, indeed!

Yum to pumpkin millet muffins.

Happy belated Thanksgiving. :) Hope you get more reading in soon. I haven't read Moll Flanders, but several (10?) years ago I watched the movie version with Alex Kingston and found it fairly raunchy. :) I've never really been able to make myself read the book though.

I snorted and chortled my way through Humphrey Clinker - in a way it's a very 'modern' book. The 18th century has more in common with our century in many ways in its unfetteredness.

Happy Thanksgiving, belated. Happy Indigenous People's Day to us.

#196 Thanks, Jenn. Did a bit more reading over the weekend. Nearly through Penny's The Long Way Home. Haven't watched Moll Flanders, but may do so at some point.

#197 LOL, you made me smile, Lucy. I don't remember Humphrey Clinker at all, but may well decide to do an audiobook. Great observation about the 18th century!

#198 Thanks, Beth. And Happy Indigienous People's Day to you!

Hi there Nancy! I'll take your advice and skip over Moll Flanders. I'm in a bit of reading funk right now, though it is improving. I'm reading a short listed err - Giller or Rogers Writer's Trust Prize contender right now, All Saints by Kathleen Daisy Miller. It sounded promising, a story about diverse parishioners in an aging downtown Toronto Anglican Church. Now that I'm at about 75% on my kindle, it is gaining momentum. I didn't expect a plot driven story, but this is more a series of interlinked short stories. You can skip it. It's okay, but it seems everyone has some sort of sexual longing for some one else in the parish . It got good reviews that I put on the main page , but......

Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

Humphry Clinker is generally considered the most accessible of Smollett's books - he lightens up on the misanthropy and allows a variety of different POVs. (There is of course still one misanthrope, largely a self-portrait!) In a way it's a good place to start but it's not entirely representative of Smollett's works.

Oh yes, we did go see Gone Girl , the movie. I had not read the book and the movie was fairly good, but I had a bit of trouble understanding what exactly was happening in the ending. Won't give away any clues. In the book, did the ending make sense, or was it quite ambiguous?

#200 Hi Deb, thanks for reading All Saints for me. Although it does sound rather scandalous, LOL! Olive Kitteridge was also a series of interconnected short stories; good novel but not my favourite form, by any stretch. Hope your Thanksgiving was lovely, too.

#201 Hi Liz, appreciate your knowledge of Smollett and Humprhey Clinker. If I do decide on an audiobook, it's probably as far as I'll go with Smollett's works.

#202 Hi Deb, yes the ending of Gone Girl the novel made sense. But it was out there! I will see the movie too though I will wait until it is available on Netflix.

Booker Prize Winner:



This is one that is on my list. In fact, I've been in queue at the library for some time. I'm even more curious about it now!

>204 lit_chick: it's fantastic -- my best book of the year so far. I'm really glad it won the Booker.

#205 Hi Laura, delighted to hear that! Must read!!

Hi Nancy - catching up on your thread and stopping to add my belated thanksgiving wishes.

#207 Hi Heather, lovely to "see" you.

52.
The Long Way Home, Louise Penny



Rating: 4/5

“Canvases. Art. Deadly art.” (Ch 36)

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife, Reine-Marie, are happily retired in Three Pines. At least they were. Until Peter Morrow, who was due to return home to the village on the year anniversary of a trial separation from Clara, does not show. At her wits’ end, Clara enlists the help of Gamache. And so begins what will finally be the venerable inspector’s last investigation: and it’s an intriguing one. Peter’s movements over the past year include Paris, Venice, Dumfries (yes, an odd fit), Toronto, Quebec City, and finally rural Quebec: Baie-Saint-Paul, the dense Quebec woods, and the scenic shores of the Saint Lawrence River. And if this goose-chase weren’t trouble enough, Gamache and his faithful second and now son-in-law, Beauvoir, are led into the art world via two Quebecois college professors who share a suspect history: one celebrated by the establishment, and the other firmly rejected by same. And what on earth to make of Peter’s latest works? none of his signature structure, rigidity, sterility, but a wild abandoned mess of colour and texture – a dog’s breakfast.

The Long Way Home is a sound conclusion to Penny’s well-loved Three Pines series. I like that Gamache’s character has been allowed to age: the duress of a long police career and grave injury having taken their toll – so that he’s somewhat off his game here, but he’s real. And I love that he has retired in the idyllic village introduced to us so many novels ago.

"His face showed his age. It was worn with cares and concerns and worries. With pain. But the deepest crevices were made by laughter. Around his eyes and mouth. Mirth, etched deep.” (Ch 1)

Wonderful review, Nancy!But what are all of Louise Penny fans to do now that the series has come to end? I wonder, will Louise Penny come up with another book/ series ? I'm glad that it ended in a satisfy way.

Forget to tell that I very much enjoy The Rosie Effect. Perhaps not as well done as the first book, The Rosie Project still a wonderful change from all the serious books I've been reading . Currently just beginning The Soul of Discretion by Susan Hill. I've really enjoyed the other in her series, so even though this was only available as a Kindle book, I purchased it. I've just felt a need for a book or two in a lighter vein, not that Susan Hill really tackles light subjects. They may be crime books, but there is always a serious theme , such as assisted suicide, social problems etc. Still , there will be familiar characters.

Lots of rain her tomorrow!

You are welcome re : All Saints .I gave it a three. It was " earthy " and full of subtle sexual longings. In some ways I wish I had the paper version of it so I could re - read bits of more carefully.

#210 Hi Deb, I hope Penny will come up with another series. But I've not yet heard about one.

I've got The Rosie Effect on my list, and in fact was just telling a friend about it today. I thought The Rosie Project was well done … and wonderful, light, entertaining reading. Good to know that you're enjoying Susan Hill. I've got her Simon Serrailler series on a TBR list, too. Now that I've completed Gamache …

Have a great weekend, Deb. We've had such a beautiful fall!

I like the sound of the Richard Flanagan Booker-winner. I have his Sound of One Hand Clapping and have yet to read it. Go the down-under authors for Booker triumph!

A worthy farewell to Gamache, Nancy. I bet you'll miss him, now that he's retired for good in Three Pines. But hey, maybe you can reread one or two of the best ones sometime.

I said farewell to Holmes this year, but I will revisit him and Watson I'm sure.

It has been raining almost non-stop for three days here. I can't believe it. Crazy.

#212 Hi Megan, I'm looking forward to Flanagan's The Narrow Road to the Deep North, too : ). Will be curious to know how you like Sound of One Hand Clapping. Yes, GO down-under authors!

#213 Hi Carsten, The Long Way Home was a worthy farewell to Gamache. And you're right, I can always revisit him and Three Pines. I'm sure you'll do the same with Sherlock Holmes.

Argh to non-stop rain for three days!

Somehow I missed that this is the last Gamache.... good for Penny for that... it takes strength to decide to end a good thing.

We've had a lot of rain here too... little moments of sunshine, then it comes grayly back.

#215 Hi Lucy, yes I think Penny did well to decide to end her Three Pines series. I'm so curious as to what she will be up to next.

54.
Benediction, Kent Haruf



Rating: 4/5

“She turned north off the highway and drove along past the quiet night-lighted houses set back behind the front yards, some of the yards bare of trees or bushes next to vacant lots filled with weeds – tall sunflowers and redroot and pigweed … She got out and went up to the porch, a pretty woman in her mid-fifties with dark hair. The air was cool and smelled fresh of the country in the evening out on the high plains.” (Ch 3)

Like its predecessors, Benediction, the final novel in Haurf’s Plainsong trilogy is set in rural Holt, Colorado, and written in the same spare, beautiful prose – filled with flawed but decent and entirely relatable characters.

Following a cancer diagnosis, Dad and Mary Lewis are living their way through Dad’s remaining time. Their daughter, Lorraine, in her mid-fifties, is a help to Mary, who is exhausted caring for her husband. The couple’s estranged homosexual son, Frank, remains absent; and Dad regrets his role in their alienation. Neighbours of the Lewises figure largely in their lives – not surprising for a small town. Haruf introduces us intimately to Alene, her teacher-daughter, Willa; Berta Mae, who has lost her daughter, and is raising her young granddaughter, Alice; and the unconventional Reverend Lyle, with his unhappy wife and troubled adolescent son.

Given Haruf’s characteristic sense of place and absolute gift for writing exquisitely about the ordinary, I was easily drawn into Benediction. Admittedly, I did not like this one as well as Plainsong and Eventide – I missed the venerable Harold and Raymond McPheron. But the writing here is certainly of the caliber I’ve come to expect from Haruf. And scene where the ladies are swimming and the so many of the intimate scenes written around Dad Lewis’ deathbed, are genius.

“And in the fall the days turned cold and the leaves dropped off the trees and in the winter the wind blew from the mountains and out on the high plains of Holt County there were overnight storms and three-day blizzards." (Ch 39)

Oh so glad that you enjoyed Benediction, if not quite as much as the first two. I really loved it! Wonderful review and thumbed! I could not seem to settle on a book, but finally I getting into Walt by Russell Wangersky, a Canadian writer. Seems nicely creepy so far, but I am still in the first 30 or so places. Someone in the Canada Lit group recommended it. I also read THE SOUL OF DISCRETION by Susan Hill. That was a wonderful read, if you like the Simon Serrallier series, which I do!

I just read Plainsong last month and loved it. I will definitely be reading the others.

#218 Hi Deb, Kent Haruf was a wonderful recommendation. That Plainsong trilogy is just exactly my culpa. Not familiar with Russell Wangersky, but I am interested in Susan Hill's Simon Serrallier series … it's on my list : ).

#219 Hi Laura, Kent Haruf is a fabulous writer. So delighted you enjoyed Plaingsong. Hope you will enjoy the other two equally as much.

Hi, Nancy. I'm not a great Penny fan, having read but the first 3. However, I'm quite committed to Susan Hill and her Simon Serrailler mysteries. She frustrates the daylights out of me, but I am always eager to read on.
Why Have I not been attracted to Haruf since everybody loves him so? I'm sure I'll break down eventually. And I'm eagerly waiting for *Road North* to come down to my price range!

#221 Hi Peggy, not everyone is a Penny fan, but I'm interested to know that you also like Susan Hill's mysteries. I absolutely adore Haruf's writing; he so much reminds me of Gerbrand Bakker and Per Petterson, whose novels I also loved: The Detour and Out Stealing Horses. *eta: forgot to say Narrow Road to the Deep North is on tap for me : )*

55.
The Big Rock Candy Mountain, Wallace Stegner



Rating: 5/5

2010, Blackstone Audiobooks, Read by Mark Bramhall

From the Publisher: "Bo Mason, his wife, Elsa, and their two boys live a transient life of poverty and despair. Drifting from town to town and from state to state, the violent, ruthless Bo seeks out his fortune -- in the hotel business, in new farmland, and, eventually, in illegal rum-running through the treacherous back roads of the American Northwest. In this affecting narrative, Wallace Stegner portrays over three decades in the life of the Mason family as they struggle to survive during the lean years of the early twentieth century."

My Review:
I was immediately and completely taken with the Masons’. Bo, dark, huge, and handsome, with a violent, brutal rage, is such a misfit for the quiet, lovely Elsa. He is a poor provider and a master manipulator, and yet I found myself wanting him to succeed – and not only for the sake of his family. For Elsa’s part, she has backbone and staying power almost beyond imagination, remaining untouched by “all the little scummy riffraff on the edge of the criminal class.” The boys are opposites too: Chester lively and adventurous; and Bruce quiet and bookish. There is a scene in which Bo loses his temper with Bruce, one that I will never forget.

The Big Rock Candy Mountain is the second Stegner novel I’ve read, after Angle of Repose, both of which I’ve given five stars. Stegner’s writing is superb, and his characters unforgettable – he is storyteller extraordinaire. Highly, highly recommended.

Favourite Quote:
“Long afterward, Bruce looked back on the life of his family with half-amused wonder at its rootlessness. The people who lived a lifetime in one place, cutting down the overgrown lilac hedge and substituting barberry, changing the shape of the lily-pool from square to round, digging out old bulbs and putting in new, watching their trees grow from saplings to giants that shaded the house, by contrast seemed to walk a dubious line between contentment and boredom. What they had must be comfortable, pleasant, worn smooth by long use; they did not feel the edge of change.” (Pt 7)

Two wonderful reviews, Nancy. It's so true that Kent Haruf has a "gift for writing exquisitely about the ordinary". I will eventually read the other two in the series, I'm sure.

And two "5's" for Wallace Stegner. I guess I better take a note of him for a future audiobook. Great quote: "seemed to walk a dubious line between contentment and boredom" - that is a fine line :)

I've been busy since coming back to work, so not much reading for my part, but I guess there will be more time to read next week.

#224 Thanks, Carsten. I am certain you will enjoy the two Ken Haruf novels which precede Benediction and also both of the Stegner works I've read: Angle of Repose and The Hard Rock Candy Mountain. Agree it is a fine line indeed between contentment and boredom.

Oh my goodness, I can hardly believe you're back to work already. That seven weeks surely flew by!

Very nice, very nice indeed. I've read 2 Stegners - one novel, one not - and like him very much. I'm not sure why I do anything at all other than read. I'll never get it all in!

Another Stegner fan here -- I also really liked BRCM. If you haven't read Angle of Repose, I highly recommend it. It was my introduction to Stegner and a 5-star read.

#226 Peggy, I've read two Stegners too. Both 5* reads! I'm with you, LOL: I'm not sure why I do anything at all other than read. I'll never get it all in!

#227 Hi Laura, Stegner is another gift I've received from LT by way of author recommendation. Am a huge fan! Angle of Repose was my first Stegner, too, and also a 5* read for me!

>217 lit_chick: you know, I read the Kent Haruf books (Plainsong and the other one!!?) before I could really call myself an appreciator of literature. But even then, I knew that I liked his style a lot. I think I will put the latest one on my list in my handbag to look out for when I am out and about 2nd hand book shopping.

#229 Megan, you've been appreciative of Kent Haruf much longer than I. Deb recommended him to me earlier this year, and I love! Great idea for your book shopping list.

Hi Nancy - Great reviews. I haven't read any Stegner yet. One of these days.

#231 Thanks, Beth. I predict you would love Stegner, but I also know that the list of books to get to is endless!

Hi Nancy! You keep nudging me to pick up my copies of Haruf's books. I scored and found 2 of them at a used book store but I can't remember if I have a copy of Benediction or not. That's how you know you've got too many books. Will have to check my catalogue later. :)

#233 Hi Val, delighted to see you! Yay to finding two Haruf treasures at a used book store : ).

Nancy, it makes me happy to see you and the other Stegner fans here. I've loved his books from the first one I read in 1997. I think I'm overdue for a reread of Angle of Repose. I read Candy Mountain last year. It was the fifth book of his that I've read. You might say I'm a fan!

Hi Nancy! I may have said this before but I love your reading selections. I liked Benediction a bit more than you and The Big Rock Candy Mountain a bit less, but we both agree these are terrific reads. I am considering Stegner for the AACII.
Hope you had a nice weekend.

#235 Donna, it was your influence that got me reading Stegner! I think it was when you read and reviewed Crossing to Safety. And I remember when you read The Hard Rock Candy Mountain, too. So far, I've only read the latter and Angle of Repose, but I loved them both. Will read more!

#236 Mark, we do share some great reading selections! Benediction was a lovely read, but I liked Plainsong and Eventide more, and I think that bias is directly related to the McPheron brothers. Stegner is exactly my cuppa. Hope you had a great weekend, too.

I was crazy about the McPheron brothers too! I have loved all the Stegner books I have read. I think Angle of Repose is my favorite...so far.

>217 lit_chick: - Thumb! I am so looking forward to reading the Haruf books!

>223 lit_chick: - I haven't read any Stegner. Not sure if I am up for The Big Rock Candy Mountain. It sounds like a bleak story like Cormac McCarthy or David Adams Richards writes about. I love their stories but I have to be in the right frame of mind for the bleakness they bring to their stories!

... Okay, I think I have convinced myself to add the Stegner to the "Right frame of mind" reading list.

#238 The McPheron brothers were some of the best written characters I've come across, Mark. Masterful! I've only read the two Stegners to date, but I also preferred Angle of Repose of the two. Can't wait to read more.

#239 Oh, Lori, you are in for a treat with Haruf! I don't find Stegner bleak at all, although I suppose another reader might. I'm sorry if my review on The Big Rock Candy Mountain gave that impression. In any case, glad you've added him to your right frame of mind list. He's great on any list!

Hi Nancy!

>209 lit_chick: So you're all caught up with the Louise Penny books now? And that's the last one? :-( I think I may reread the first few and then finish the series next year.

>219 lauralkeet: Also enjoyed your review of Benediction. I really want to read this series too.

For whatever reason, I'm able to resist the Stegner review.

#241 Hi Heather! If you enjoyed the first few Penny novels, I think you will enjoy the rest of the Three Pines series. I'll miss it, but look forward to Penny's next endeavour.

I hope you love Haruf's Plainsong trilogy as much as I did. I understand being able to resist occasionally, even when the reviews are glowing. Most of the time, I'm not even sure why I can resist … I just can.

Nancy, I am thrilled to have influenced you to read Wallace Stegner. He and Kent Haruf really float my boat. Now you will have to take a look at Peter Heller. If dystopian isn't your thing, you might want to start with The Painter, although I did love The Dog Stars. No more Penny books about Three Pines? So sad. I wonder what she will come up with next? Surely she isn't giving up writing…that would be a loss to the book world.

Stopping in. I am a Stegner fan although I haven't read Big Rock.

I was about to start a Penny when I realized, oh horrors, I was three ahead of myself and very very out of order. So back to the library!

#243 Donna, will always appreciate your putting me onto Stegner! And Deb pointed me in the direction of Haruf. Both of them also really float my boat. I think we have similar reading tastes, so I'll definitely put Heller on the list and will probably start with The Painter. I'm not big on dystopia, but I've certainly enjoyed some of the genre, Atwood's: Oryx and Crake comes to mind. I also hope Penny is not retiring! She cannot!

#244 Hi Lucy, good to have another Stegner fan on board. My reading life has been so enriched by the wonderful readers I've met on LT!

Oh, horror, hope you got the right Penny selection from the library now and can continue with Three Pines. Which one are you reading?

*sauntering in to drop a hi*
Hi!
*off again for now*

#246 Hi Megan, thanks for the drive-by wave : ).

Hi Nancy - Stopping by to say hi. What are you reading now?

Out of lurk to identify myself as a Stegner fan/novice - I've read only 2, but I will read more! (Hi, Nancy!)

#248 Hi Beth, reading The Rosie Effect presently. Will finish over the weekend. I am not finding it quite as delightful as its predecessor, The Rosie Project, but it is good fun!

#249 Hi Peggy, so glad you de-lurked! Delighted to have found another Stegner fan; and I've also only read two, but will definitely read more. Btw, did you know The Rosie Effect is out? I remember you enjoyed The Rosie Project.

Just stopping by briefly. Like you, I enjoyed The Rosie Effect quite a bit, but not as much as the first in the series - if it is to turn into a series. I finished Walt by Russell Wangersky. It was okay, 3.5 stars, but you can safely give it a miss. His previous book was nominated for the Gilller/ Scotia Bank / something prize, Whirl Away. It was okay, but quite creepy , but yet not satisfying to me.

Hi Nancy, I am about to start The Rosie Effect tomorrow (library) and returning to the library the new The Handsome Man's De Luxe Cafe that I finished in one gulp. I have read all his Mma Ramotswe books and just love them! Really like Stegner. The Spectator Bird is a huge favourite.

#251 Hi Deb, we're firmly agreed on The Rosie Effect. I'll finish it later today, I hope. Will take your suggestion and pass on Russell Wangersky. I've been reading at a snail's pace ...

#252 Hi Mary, hope you will enjoy Rosie; she's hard not to enjoy, isn't she? Delighted you are a Stegner fan, and I'm putting The Spectator Bird on the list as soon as I post this message. You've given me a fine idea on The Handsome Man's De Luxe Cafe! Thanks for that : ).

I have both books on my TBR mountain.......but that saying is starting to sound old now. ;)

#254 Hi Val! … but that saying is starting to sound old now … ah, I can so relate.