CBL Hums Along in 2015

My 2015 categories are inspired by songs. I plan to read a minimum of five books in 15 categories, with a bonus category for free reading. I only need to read 75 books to complete my challenge, but I'll continue adding books after I reach the minimum threshold. The 2015 categories are:

Daisy Jane by America - Books by, about, or inspired by Jane Austen
Mystery Lady by Billy Ocean - Books by Agatha Christie
God Save the Queen - Books by British authors for @PaulCranswick’s British Author challenge
My Country ‘Tis of Thee - Books by American authors for @msf59's American Author challenge
Old Days by Chicago - Books read for the HistoryCAT and/or Reading Through Time
In My Life by The Beatles - Family history/genealogy
Daniel by Elton John - Books about war
Second Hand News by Fleetwood Mac - Borrowed books
If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot - Books picked for me
Fantasy by Earth, Wind & Fire - Books for the SFFFCAT
Sing by Gary Barlow & the Commonwealth Band- Books for my Commonwealth challenge
People by Barbra Streisand - Biographies
Everybody’s Talkin’ by Harry Nilsson - Audiobooks
Sweet Little Mystery by Wet Wet Wet - Mysteries
New Kid In Town by the Eagles - New books& ARCs
Bonus category: Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free reading

Daisy Jane (America) - Books by, about, or inspired by Jane Austen

1. The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su & Kate Rorick (4.5) - completed 1/3/15

Possibilities:
Sense & Sensibility by Joanna Trollope
Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid
North by Northanger by Carrie Bebris
Jane Fairfax by Joan Aiken
A Visit to Highbury by Joan Austen-Leigh
Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale

Mystery Lady (Billy Ocean) - Books by Agatha Christie

I'm in the middle of a years-long project to reread Christie's books in publication order.

1. Sparkling Cyanide (3.5) - completed 2/18/15

God Save the Queen - Books by British authors for @PaulCranswick’s British Author challenge

1. Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall by Kazuo Ishiguro (3.5) - completed 1/21/15
2. The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (3.5) - completed 2/16/15

My Country ‘Tis of Thee - Books by American authors for @msf59's American Author challenge

1. The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers (3.5) - completed 1/24/15
2. Daisy Miller by Henry James (4) - completed 2/16/15

Old Days (Chicago) - Books for the HistoryCAT and/or Reading Through Time

1. In Search of a Homeland: The Story of the Aeneid by Penelope Lively; illustrated by Ian Andrew (3.5) - completed 1/2/15
2. Confessions by Augustine (4) - completed 2/28/15

In My Life (The Beatles) - Family history/genealogy. "Some are dead and some are living, In my life I've loved them all."

1. The Porcelain Thief: Searching the Middle Kingdom for Buried China by Huan Hsu (3.5) - completed 1/16/15

Daniel (Elton John) - Books about war

1. Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris (4.5) - WWII - - completed 1/25/15

Second Hand News (Fleetwood Mac) - Borrowed books

1. Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth (3.5) - completed 2/26/15

If You Could Read My Mind (Gordon Lightfoot) - Books picked for me. I'll probably try LT's Random feature to pick a random book from my library. If I do the Bingo Dog challenge I'll need someone to pick a book for that square.

1. A Timely Vision by Joyce Lavene and Jim Lavene (3) - picked by Dejah_Thoris - completed 2/8/15

Fantasy (Earth, Wind & Fire) - Books for the SFFFCAT
1. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Sing (Gary Barlow & the Commonwealth Band) - Books for my Commonwealth challenge

1. Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin (4) - completed 1/23/15

People (Barbra Streisand) - Biographies

1. Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5) - completed 1/12/15
2. Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff (3.5) - completed 1/31/15

Possibilities:
Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth
Thomas Becket: Warrior, Priest, Rebel by John Guy
The Black Count by Tom Reiss
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff
Shakespeare by Anthony Burgess

Everybody's Talkin' (Harry Nilsson) - Audiobooks

1. Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (4.5) - completed 1/31/15
2. 1984 by George Orwell (3) - completed 2/20/15

Sweet Little Mystery (Wet Wet Wet) - Mysteries

1. Through the Grinder by Cleo Coyle (2.5) - completed 1/4/15

New Kid In Town (The Eagles) - New books & ARCs

1. Beethoven's Tenth by Brian Harvey (4) - completed 1/17/15
2. Whiskers of the Lion by P. L. Gaus (5) - completed 2/21/15

Bonus Category: Free Bird (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Books I want to read that don't fit other categories. :)

1. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith (4) - completed 1/1/15
2. The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope (3.5) - completed 2/12/15

Great to see you all set up and ready, Carrie. You seem to have all the bases covered. I set my thread up before I knew about the British and American Author Challenges and so I will be scrambling to fit them into my categories. Looks like my Overflow Category will be put to good use.

Excellent categories - seems you have everything covered! Looking forward to following along.

2015 - Bring it on! Happy reading!

>18 DeltaQueen50: >19 -Eva-: >20 mamzel: Thanks everyone!

Yay, Gordon Lightfoot! I saw him in concert last week. Nice to see him here too :)

Great theme!

>22 rabbitprincess: Another Gordon Lightfoot fan! I would love to see him in person. He was in Knoxville not too long ago and I wasn't able to go. :(

Great songs! Especially Gordon Lightfoot. Now you've got me humming.

Love your categories and theme!

>24 MissWatson: >25 countrylife: Thanks! And it's nice to discover yet another Gordon Lightfoot fan!

Looking forward to continuing to follow your reading.

I was tempted to use songs again this year, but I didn't want to do the same theme in back to back years.

>27 LittleTaiko: Glad to have you along!

>28 thornton37814: I may end up doing songs again next year. I like @countrylife's idea of using songs from a single year. I could use songs popular in the year I turned 16.

I love your theme and categories! Looking forward to seeing what you read this year.

>30 jlshall: Thanks!

Love the categories!

>32 Hanneri: Thanks!

Hi Carrie! I am looking forward to following your reading in 2015!

>34 lkernagh: Thanks Lori! I'm looking forward to following yours, too! I haven't quite made it around to all of the threads yet, but I hope to catch up in the next few days while I'm off of work.

Wow. That's a lot of categories. Very ambitious. I am humbled. ;)

Hi Rachel! 15 + overflow may be more than I can handle. We'll see!

I have officially begun my 2015 reading. I finished an audiobook last night and started another that I will not finish until January. Call the Midwife is the quarterly biography group read for the first quarter. I love the TV series based on the books, and the book promises to be just as good. I can already tell that it's going to be one of those books where I look for more chores to do so that I can keep listening.

Book 1 in my Free Bird category: Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith

Precious Ramotswe, proprietor of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, takes on an unusual case for the owner of a football team. Once the best football team in Botswana, the Kalahari Swoopers are on a prolonged losing streak. The owner believes someone on the team is deliberately causing the team to lose. It's Mma Ramotswe's job to find out who. She will need help from her assistant, Grace Makutsi, to interview the many team members in a timely fashion. However, Mma Makutsi is distracted by her nemesis from the Botswana Secretarial College, Violet Sephotho, who has just been hired by Mma Makutsi's fiance, Phuti Radiphuti, to sell beds in his Double Comfort Furniture Shop. Mma Ramotswe must also deal with the loss of her beloved white van.

Nothing much happens in these gentle African mysteries, yet I find these books difficult to put down once I start reading. Precious Ramotswe's musings about her beloved Botswana, her late father Obed Ramotswe, and human nature in general, always remind me of the non-material blessings I enjoy in my own small corner of the world – health, a comfortable home, a supportive family, good friends and neighbors, and the companionship of my sweet dog.

4 stars

This was supposed to be my last book of 2014 but I didn't quite manage to finish it yesterday. I don't feel too bad about starting out with a "bonus" book since it wasn't planned for this year anyway! (It would fit in my Commonwealth Challenge category, but I've already visited Botswana so I won't count it there.)

Now reading: The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su & Kate Rorick

While I'm waiting for the roast and sweet potato pudding to cook, I thought I'd post my end-of-year meme that floats around every year. I'm not sure who to credit for it. Here it is, using titles of books I read in 2014:

Describe yourself: The Uncommon Reader

Describe how you feel: Joy in the Morning

Describe where you currently live: A Room of One's Own

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: In Search of Our Roots

Your favorite form of transportation: All Roads Lead to Austen

Your best friend is: Strawberry Girl

You and your friends are: Middling Folk

What’s the weather like: Heat Wave (not really, but we've had a mini-Castle marathon over the last couple of days!)

You fear: The Devil's Workshop

What is the best advice you have to give: Unusual Uses for Olive Oil

Thought for the day: Kindness Goes Unpunished

How I would like to die: Once

My soul’s present condition: Golden State

Great year end meme answers!

>41 lkernagh: Thanks Lori!

>40 cbl_tn: Middling Folk! I love it!

>43 christina_reads: I almost missed it, too, since I read it in January last year!

My SIL took this picture of Adrian & me as they were loading up to leave this morning:

Adrian looks so serious. Did he want to go too?

Finally found your thread - love the new categories!

(And the photo)

>45 hailelib: I think he did want to go. Adrian has been spoiled with attention this week. It's going to be an interesting weekend as I try to get him back into his routine.

>46 sjmccreary: Thanks Sandy!

What a great picture!

Book 1 in my Old Days category (HistoryCAT): In Search of a Homeland: The Story of the Aeneid by Penelope Lively; illustrated by Ian Andrew

This illustrated retelling of the Aeneid for middle readers also works as a review/summary for adults. It would be easy enough to picture the action without the illustrations thanks to Penelope Lively's descriptive language. Ian Andrew's color pencil illustrations have an impressionistic feel. The text and the illustrations could each stand on their own, but they don't mesh as well as they should. Some of the text details are either different or missing in the illustrations. The map and the pronunciation guide are both useful. I would have liked a character glossary as well.

3.5 stars

>44 cbl_tn: - Wonderful picture, Carrie!

>50 lkernagh: Thanks Lori!

Love your meme answers! And that adorable pup!

>52 countrylife: Thanks Cindy! Right now that adorable pup is curled up and snoring on the sofa. He's a sweet and funny little guy!

Book 1 in my Daisy Jane category: The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su & Kate Rorick

It seems there is no end to the popularity of retellings and re-imaginings of Jane Austen's novels. This one stands out out above the rest. Pride and Prejudice receives a 21st century update, with graduate student Lizzie Bennet creating a video blog as a new media project. The vlog takes on a life of its own with unforeseen consequences for Lizzie's life and that of her family and friends. The book is a companion to the web video series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, and it fills in gaps from the videos. I didn't notice any inconsistencies between the book and the videos or between this book and the original Pride and Prejudice. I like the book better than the videos. However, I don't think I would have liked the book nearly as much if I hadn't already watched the video series. I didn't take the time to re-watch any of the videos this time through. I'd like to reread the book and rematch the videos together at some point. I think there's still more to be discovered and enjoyed.

4.5 stars

Waiting until 2015 to start reading the threads here is leaving me somewhat daunted! I'm interested in your Daisy Jane category as I'm a sucker for modern retellings of Austen's novels.

>55 RidgewayGirl: I waited until January too and I feel hopelessly behind on threads. There are still several people whose threads I haven't found.

I'll be reading several Austen retellings this year for my book club. The next one will probably be Pride and Prejudice and Kitties.

Book 1 in my Sweet Little Mystery category: Through the Grinder by Cleo Coyle
RandomCAT

Clare Cosi, manager of the Village Blend coffeehouse, is concerned when her adult daughter, Joy, shows an interest in an online dating service. The divorced Clare signs up for the service herself in order to assess its suitability for her daughter. She also participates in the singles night held at the Village Blend a couple of times a month. Clare wasn't expecting to meet a potential love interest, especially one as perfect for her as Bruce Bowman seems to be. When he becomes a suspect in a string of deaths of single women, Clare sets out to prove her friend, homicide detective Mike Quinn, wrong.

This book really pushes the cozy envelope with sexual innuendoes throughout most of the book. Clare takes matters into her own hands because she is certain that Mike Quinn is focusing on the wrong person. However, Clare ends up pursuing a different innocent person. Clare doesn't figure out who the real killer is until she's alone with that person and her life is in danger, by which time the police have already correctly identified the killer but haven't been able to take the suspect into custody. I do like the coffeehouse setting. This is just the second book in what has become a popular series, so I'll try one or two more and see if they're able to turn me into a series fan.

2.5 stars

Happy New Year, Carrie. I love your meme answers and I have taken the liberty of copying your meme and now I am off to fill in the blanks with my 2014 books.

>55 RidgewayGirl: & >56 cbl_tn: I too waited until January before reading any threads in this group and I'm so far behind I don't think I'll catch up until about April.

>44 cbl_tn: Great picture of you and Adrian.

>58 DeltaQueen50: Thanks Judy! I'll be watching for your meme answers. It's fun to play with every year.

>59 VivienneR: Thanks Vivienne! I was simply trying to hold Adrian's head still. My SIL kept trying to take his picture and he would turn his head just as she snapped his photo.

>54 cbl_tn: Great, how in the world didn't I know about The Lizzie Bennet Diaries ? I've seen the first two videos, seems great, it's gong on the TBW list ... I've just finished the book, it was as great as I though it will be from the movie adaptation with Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen; even more so, of course :)

>61 electrice: I hope you continue to enjoy it! It should be fun to watch while the book is still fresh in your memory.

I discovered the last time I came for my allergy shots that the hospital's wireless works in the doctor's office! (The office in in a building across the street from the hospital.) Yay! Now I have something else to do while I sit inthe lobby the required 20 minutes after the shots! I usually bring a book, but I can't concentrate on it too well since I keep checking my watch to see how much longer I have to wait.

I don't know how much I'll be able to do when I get back to work. My video driver isn't working and I have trouble waking my monitor up when it's gone to sleep. I spent 15 minutes trying to wake it up this morning. The IT guy got it working a little better, but it's not fixed yet.

I'm about halfway through The Porcelain Thief, and I am about 3/4 finished with the audio of Call the Midwife. The audio of Nocturnes became available overnight and Overdrive automatically checked it out to me. I'll start it as soon as I finish Call the Midwife.

>63 cbl_tn: I like the automatic checkout on Overdrive! It's like magic. Especially when I've forgotten I placed the hold at all and then suddenly my "items checked out" total on my account goes up by one ;)

>57 cbl_tn: I almost gave up after that book too, but I liked the next one better.

>64 rabbitprincess: I love it when the email notice pops up in my inbox!

>65 thornton37814: Good to know! I will keep going...

When I walked Adrian this morning, I decided that I must have quickly adjusted to the frigid temperatures. I was proud of myself until I got in my car to drive to work and discovered that it was 30 degrees, well above the predicted low in the teens. I guess my tolerance for the cold isn't as impressive as I thought it was!

I've lost my ability to handle cold when I moved from Sweden - 30 is really painful to me.

>68 -Eva-: Hear, hear but in my case 0°C is already way too painful which means that I'm more often than not the subject of bout of laugh as +30 °C is way too warm; 20°C should do it nicely, thanks you very much :)

+24°C for me, please, year round...! :)

I'd be happy with 70s year round (that's low to mid-20s C)!

I'm not going to get as much reading done this weekend as I thought. My uncle's DNA results came in today so I'll be looking through the matches and seeing what I can learn.

It seems I've only been visiting your 75 thread - I should move over here!

I really like your Songs/Categories - and I'm a Gordon Lightfoot fan, too!

>72 Dejah_Thoris: Yay! Another Gordon Lightfoot fan! I didn't realize there were so many of us hanging out here.

Yesterday evening I started Leviathan for the SFFFCAT. It's not a book I would have otherwise considered reading. I picked it because it's set at the beginning of WWI and I thought it would be a good follow-up to last year's WWI reading. I love it so far. I hope to finish it this afternoon. Despite the large page count (440), it has large-ish print and at least one page of illustrations per chapter so it reads very quickly.

Adrian now has a Chinese name. A visiting teacher from China attends my church. This morning I showed her some pictures of Adrian and she gave him a Chinese name - Fúwá, which translates to "blessed baby". I like it! I'll have to see what Adrian thinks...

Book 1 in my Fantasy category: Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
SFF/SpecCat

Dylan Sharp is a young midshipman in the British Air Service and Alek is being hunted by the German army when their paths collide. They both have secrets. Dylan is really Deryn – a young woman. Alek is really Aleksandar Ferdinand, son of Austro-Hungarian Archduke Ferdinand and his wife Sophie. Deryn is on her way to mastering flight in the air ships fabricated by the Darwinists out of living organisms. Alek is on his way to mastering the mechanical walking beasts used by the Clankers as war machines. If they are to have any hope of achieving their goals, they must become unlikely allies.

This was my first venture into the steampunk genre and I had no idea it would be so much fun. The time period is recognizable as the early weeks of World War I, although Westerfeld changes many of the historical details to fit the alternate world he's created. The afterword identifies which parts of the story are real and which parts are imaginary. I see more steampunk in my future, even if it's only the other two books in Westerfeld's trilogy. Although the ending isn't exactly what I would call a cliffhanger, there are secrets left to be revealed in the other books in the trilogy. Since Deryn and Alek are both 15, middle school students would seem to be the target audience for the book. There's plenty of action and adventure for boys, a strong female protagonist for girls, and an alternate world/history with crossover appeal for adults.

4 stars

>75 cbl_tn: Glad you enjoyed your first foray into steampunk. Although I've not read them all I've yet to read a bad book from Scott Westerfeld though I can't say the same about the genre itself.

>76 AHS-Wolfy: It probably helps that I started with an award winner. Since I seem to like Scott Westerfeld, are there similar authors I should try?

Neal Shusterman writes some mighty good YA stories, too. Unwind's last chapter is one of the most intense and disturbing I have read in any book, adult or YA.

I keep thinking about reading Leviathan and then not getting around to it. Maybe this will be the year!

I'm glad you were pleasantly surprised by steampunk.

>77 cbl_tn: I'm not that well read when it comes to steampunk myself. I have read (and enjoyed, mostly) 3 of the 4 Hungry Cities books by Philip Reeve which starts with Mortal Engines. Aimed at a slightly younger audience than the Westerfeld books but still enough there for adults to enjoy also. Other names I keep seeing get mentioned but haven't tried as yet are Cherie Priest and Kenneth Oppel. Looking more at the YA element would include Patrick Ness and perhaps some of Paolo Bacigalupi's books and Hugh Howey.

>78 mamzel: Intense and disturbing sounds like it would be way out of my comfort zone.

>79 _Zoe_: It reads very quickly for 400+ pages because of the large typeface. You'd probably want to make sure you have access to the next two books before starting it since the plot apparently flows into the next book.

>80 AHS-Wolfy: Thanks for the suggestions! Mortal Engines looks like fun, as does Airborn. I will keep an eye out for them. Maybe one or both will fit one of the SFFCAT themes later this year.

Book 1 in my People category: Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth

Some of us are lucky to have defining periods in our lives, a time that forever remains the center and from which we measure the rest of our lives as “before” and “after”. For Jennifer Worth, that time seems to be the 1950s when she worked as a midwife in London's East End while living in a nun's convent. This was a transitional period for the community as well. Many of the tenements had been condemned and residents were biding their time until their relocation. Worth recalls the difficulties of adjustment, the primitive working conditions by today's standards, the lessons she absorbed through observation of the nuns and their methods, the occasional interpersonal conflicts that result from living and working in close quarters, and the joy she experienced as she formed deep and lasting friendships.

Readers familiar with the television series based on the books will notice a few small differences between the book and the show. The book itself has an episodic feel, with each chapter describing specific incidents from Worth's experiences. The books and the television series remind me of a much-loved favorite, All Creatures Great and Small. They have similar nostalgic elements that recall a community and a way of life that now exist only in memories. Worth has captured her memories with words that have the power to transport readers to that place and time.

Next up in audio: Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall by Kazuo Ishiguro

I haven't read as much as usual this week. I haven't been feeling well and I've watched TV more than I've read. It seemed to be more than allergies and not progressing like a typical cold. I ended up making an appointment to see my doctor today. I didn't have the right symptoms for flu, but the doctor did a flu test anyway. I don't have flu. Just an upper respiratory infection. Hopefully the antibiotic will kick in quickly and I'll be back to normal by Monday. I'm fixing chicken and rice soup for dinner. I hope to finish The Porcelain Thief this evening and then start on Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death. I wasn't planning to read it just yet but then I learned that Mystery on PBS will be showing a British series based on this book starting on Sunday. I want to finish at least the first of the six stories before watching the first episode of the TV series.

I hope you feel better soon! The chicken soup should help.

>84 rabbitprincess: Thanks RP! I'm counting on the soup working!

I hope the soup does the job, Carrie (and I suppose the drugs might help a little, too). I hate it when I'm so sick I don't want to read, so you have my sympathy. I hope you and Adrian have a restful night.

>86 Dejah_Thoris: Thanks Dejah! The antibiotic has already kicked in. I don't have as much congestion this morning. It's at the level I'm used to with allergies. The pressure around my eyes has reduced and they're not watering and burning this morning. (That's the main thing that has kept me from reading more.) I was wide awake before 5 so I was able to finish The Porcelain Thief before breakfast. The review will have to wait until after work.

>87 cbl_tn: It's great to hear you're feeling at least a little better! And I'm really looking forward to your review of The Porcelain Thief - it sounds fascinating. I hope the antibiotics get you through work today - maybe you'll feel even better by the time you get home.

>88 Dejah_Thoris: I do feel a little better this evening than I did this morning! I get another dose of antibiotics this evening. It also helps that the sun was out for the first time in ages today. Molds are my worst allergy and the rainy, damp weather isn't good for me.

I liked but didn't love The Porcelain Thief. I'm still gathering my thoughts for the review.

Book 1 in my In My Life category: The Porcelain Thief: Searching the Middle Kingdom for Buried China by Huan Hsu

Author Huan Hsu became interested in his family history as an adult. He was particularly fascinated by the stories he heard of his great-great-grandfather's porcelain collection that he was said to have buried on his property before fleeing from the Japanese in the 1930s. Some of Hsu's relatives believed that the porcelain was still there. Hsu became obsessed with finding the porcelain. He moved to China, got a job in his uncle's company, and devoted most of his free time to interviewing older relatives to learn more about his family's history and especially about the porcelain collection. Hsu intersperses histories of China, Taiwan, and porcelain manufacturing with his family's history.

I found the historical and travel narrative portions of the book more interesting than Hsu's description of his relatives and the family porcelain. Readers learn bits and pieces of Hsu's family history in the same order that Hsu discovered it. What's missing is a synthesis and interpretation of the information. There is a strong current of hostility throughout the book, and at some points it's disturbing. I think he could have written a better story if he had been able to resolve his anger.

This review is based on an advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

>90 cbl_tn: Ah...well. I can probably do without the hostility and anger. Thanks for the review.

>91 Dejah_Thoris: I could have too. No one else has mentioned it in the reviews that have been posted so far. Maybe I was just overly sensitive to it, but it's definitely there.

I read the first of 6 stories in Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death today and I think I'm going to stop with that one. The mystery is pretty elementary, the dialogue is off, and the cultural/historical references are heavy handed. A couple of examples:

Sidney had recently been to see the film Young Man wiith a Horn and noticed that Mrs. Morton's voice had all the sultriness of Lauren Bacall's.

--------------------------------

He turned on the wireless and listened to the news. The Queen had just arrived in Canada on her Commonwealth tour. The Piltdown Man had been exposed as a hoax; and the Salvation Army were about to copen a cafe in Korea. Sidney listened, ate his sausages and wondered what impact any of this information would have on the people of Cambridge.

------------------------------------

Then there is the obsession with spelling. We have characters harping on the difference between whiskey and whisky, and between discrete and discreet.

I hope the TV adaptation is an improvement over the book.

Book 1 in my New Kid in Town category: Beethoven's Tenth by Brian Harvey

Piano technician Frank Ryan becomes a hunted man after one of his clients gives him an old manuscript in lieu of payment for his services. When he examines the document, he discovers that it is an unknown symphony that can only have been composed by Beethoven. He can't ask his elderly client about the manuscript because she died soon after she gave it to him. Frank was one of the last people to see her alive. Before he can make up his mind what to do with the manuscript, he finds out that someone else is after it. That person seems to be willing to do just about anything to get hold of the manuscript – including murder.

This fun mystery is part of the Rapid Reads line of books aimed at adult ESL readers and adult readers with lower levels of literacy. It will work equally well for most mystery readers whose taste runs to short stories with a bit of a noir or hard-boiled flavor. I have a fondness for mysteries with a music or a hidden treasure angle, and the local color of Nanaimo adds even more to the appeal. Other than a disturbing incident involving a small dog, I really liked this book. The information on the back cover of my ARC indicates that this is the first of a series featuring Frank Ryan. I will keep an eager eye out for the next one.

This review is based on an advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

4 stars

>94 cbl_tn: It sounds as though you enjoyed this Rapid Read more than I enjoyed the one I got! This one actually sounds pretty good.

>95 Dejah_Thoris: I don't read many mystery short stories because it seems to be difficult for writers to develop a good mystery in that format. This author did it well!

Getting caught up here and glad to see you enjoyed your first foray into steampunk, Carrie!

Since I seem to like Scott Westerfeld, are there similar authors I should try?

I am currently reading a new steampunk that makes me think of Leviathan as I read it - The Firebird Mystery: A Steampunk Detective Novel featuring Jack Mason by Darrell Pitt. The main protagonist is a 14 years old orphan in an alternate reality Victorian England, where he goes to apprentice with a consulting detective, Ignatious Doyle. Lots of steampunk vehicles, Nazis, airship adventures and really strong linkages to Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.... if the consulting detective's name wasn't a clue. ;-) That is about as similar to Westerfeld's Leviathan that I have come across so far in my steampunk reading.

>97 lkernagh: That one looks like fun! I've added it to my wishlist. Thanks!

I was very happy to see that you enjoyed Leviathan, Carrie, as I have it scheduled for reading later this year. This will be my first Scott Westerfeld book.

>99 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy! I think you will like Leviathan. How soon do you plan to read it?

>94 cbl_tn: Was Beethoven's Tenth set in Nanaimo, British Columbia? If so, it would be a good addition to our local library system.

>101 VivienneR: Yes, it was, mostly! There are a few pages in Vancouver and a few pages on Protection Island. The rest is in Nanaimo.

>93 cbl_tn: Too bad about Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death! Did you end up watching "Grantchester" on Sunday? I actually liked it a lot! But thanks for your review -- now I know I can skip the books. :)

>103 christina_reads: I didn't stay up late enough to watch it on Sunday. I just finished watching it. The basic plot is the same as the story I read, but there are improvements over the book. No harping on spelling, for one thing! There are some characters in the show that weren't in the first story. Maybe they appear in some of the stories I didn't read. The dog wasn't in the book, either. I loved the shots of Cambridge.

>83 cbl_tn: I had to tape it and watched it last night. I loved watching him wiz around on his bicycle with his coat tails flapping. I hope the series continues as good as the first.

>105 mamzel: The bicycle looked fun! As long as the TV series continues to be better than the book I will be happy!

I just got back from getting my weekly allergy shot. The weather is gorgeous outside today. It's sunny and in the mid to upper 60s. This is why I love Tennessee so much. We get these occasional breaks from the cold during the winter. It's supposed to be colder the rest of the week. I'm glad the nice weather hit a day when I had to be out in the middle of the day!

Carrie, I have Leviathan penciled in for July. I was thinking of using it for the "Subject of Which You Are Unfamiliar" Bingo Square as I believe it is considered Steam Punk and I don't know much about that genre.

>108 DeltaQueen50: I don't know much about it, either, but I did enjoy my first sample! I haven't decided what book I'll use to fill that square. Maybe something from my Commonwealth Challenge will fit there.

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We got a good laugh this evening over two books on the new book cart: Taken at the Flood by Waterfield and Fire and Light by Burns. One of the student workers suggested putting the books next to each other in the new book display to see if anyone would notice! :)

Book 1 in my God Save the Queen category: Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall by Kazuo Ishiguro

When I Google the definition of Nocturne, I find it is “a short composition of a romantic or dreamy character suggestive of night”. This collection of short stories is aptly titled. The stories have a “romantic or dreamy character”, and they capture their subjects at midlife making perhaps their final attempt at realizing the dreams and ambitions of their youth.

Some of the stories are melancholy, while a couple lean more toward farce. Simon Vance seems to channel Basil Fawlty in his reading of “Come Rain or Come Shine”, and that's probably why it ended up being my favorite story in the collection. Kirby Heyborne's reading of “Malvern Hills” brought former teen idol Davy Jones to mind. I think the audio version enhanced my experience with the collection and I would recommend this format to others considering this book.

3.5 stars

Next up in audio: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

I finished Leviathan, Carrie! It was pretty good - I'm never sure what to expect from YA. Thanks for suggesting it for the SFF Cat.

I'm not a big audiobook person, but I can easily imagine how the reader could influence what stories in Nocturnes you like the most. I was not a big fan of "Come Rain or Come Shine" but "Malvern Hills" was my favorite after "Crooner."

>111 Dejah_Thoris: I'm glad you liked Leviathan. Are you going to continue with Behemoth?

My order of preference is:
Come Rain or Come Shine
Cellists
Crooner
Nocturnes
Malvern Hills

Book 1 in my Sing category: Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin

”Rwanda has suffered a terrible thing. Terrible, … bad, bad, bad. Many of the hearts here are filled with pain. Many of the eyes here have seen terrible things. Terrible! But many of those same hearts are now brave enough to hope, and many of those same eyes have begun to look towards the future instead of the past. Life is going on, every day. And for us the pluses of coming here are many more than the minuses.”

Tanzanian Angel Tangaraza is in Rwanda with her husband, Pius, a Special Consultant at the university. Both of the Tangarazas' children have died and they are raising their five grandchildren. To bring in some extra money, Angel has a cake business. A special occasion wouldn't be complete without one of Angel's cakes, and people of all backgrounds and walks of life come to her to order cakes – from diplomats to prostitutes. As they fill in their Cake Order Forms over a cup of tea, they unburden themselves to Angel. She takes an active interest in her clients' lives and she keeps her eyes open for opportunities to make them better.

The author captures Rwanda's capital as its residents begin to heal from the horrors of the 1994 genocide. Angel's position as an outsider who knows the pain of loss has the effect of inspiring confidences. Angel and her cakes become the glue that unites the international residents of her compound and its neighborhood. Angel is a lot like Alexander McCall Smith's Precious Ramotswe, and I think fans of the No. 1 Detective Agency novels will want to meet Angel, too.

4 stars

I really like your music theme and the categories. I've been thinking of something similar for next year, but let's see, there are 11 months until I have to decide.

Thanks for your review on Baking Cakes in Kigali. I read about it and forgot it again, so now I'll add it to my official wishlist and BB list. :)

Baking Cakes in Kilgalisounds good but my local library doesn't have it. Still, I'll keep an eye out for it.

>114 Chrischi_HH: Thanks! And it's not too early to be thinking about next year's challenge. Not in this group. We're known for planning waaaay ahead!

>115 hailelib: I'm sorry your library doesn't have it! It's worth keeping an eye out for.

I seem to recall a couple of us already have ideas for 2016.

I have an idea for 2016 I'm mulling over myself!

Book 1 in my My Country 'Tis of Thee category: The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers

One August, during the dog days of summer, 12-year-old Frankie's soldier brother Jarvis comes home from military service in Alaska to marry his fiancee, Janice. Frankie, now calling herself F. Jasmine, becomes obsessed with her brother's wedding, and she is determined to go away with her brother and his new wife after the wedding. F. Jasmine will tell this to anyone who will listen to her, which really boils down to her African American housekeeper Berenice and her 6-year-old cousin John Henry. It's obvious from the beginning that this will not end well.

***Slightly spoilerish comments below***

Frankie/F. Jasmine/Frances is at an awkward period in her development. She no longer considers herself a child, but adults still treat her as a child. It's normal to feel lonely and left out at that age. It is not normal act out on those feelings with kitchen knives or loaded pistols. I didn't identify with Frankie; I was scared of her. I felt the absence of parental authority and guidance. Frankie's father is barely present in the novel. I'm not sure what responsibility Berenice has for Frankie. She makes suggestions about what Frankie should do, but she doesn't seem to have the authority to make Frankie do anything or to restrict her movements. Frankie is uncomfortable with her sexuality, and this is projected onto her cat, Charles/Charlina, and onto John Henry, who plays dress-up in women's clothes and plays with Frankie's doll. Frances latches onto her new friend, Mary Littlejohn, with the same fervency she exhibited for the wedding. I'm left with a feeling of dread about how this relationship will end.

3.5 stars

I may be a Southerner, but I'm no fan of Southern Literature myself. I'm glad I finally read Member of the Wedding and there were aspects of it that were incredibly well done, but I didn't particularly enjoy it. Frankie's relationship with Bernice was a point of consternation for me.

>120 Dejah_Thoris: I couldn't figure it out either. Does Frankie's father think Berenice is in control in his absence? Is Berenice afraid she'll lose her job if she tries to exercise authority over Frankie? Is she afraid of Frankie? If she is afraid of Frankie, why does she let John Henry spend so much time there? Does she feel safer with John Henry there? So many questions. I figured out the math and it seems like Berenice is only 34 or 35.

It seems to me that some of Frankie's issues went well beyond those of 'coming of age;' not the sexuality/gender issues, but the lack of control of her behavior. The potential for violence expressed, especially toward Bernice, was quite disturbing. I'm in no hurry to read more.....

>122 Dejah_Thoris: The latent violence disturbed me, too.

Count me as another Southern who isn't a fan of a lot of Southern literature. There are a few exceptions. I usually enjoy Fannie Flagg. I also enjoy a lot of the Carolina "chick lit" authors, who I suppose are not strictly adhering to the Southern literature genre.

>124 thornton37814: I'm glad I'm not alone! I loved To Kill a Mockingbird when I read it in 8th grade. I haven't tried Fannie Flagg yet. Is she the same Fannie Flagg from all the 70s game shows? I've always liked her.

>125 cbl_tn: She is. She adds a bit of Southern humor to her writing. Fried Green Tomatoes At the Whistle Stop Cafe is the first one I read. I saw the movie first though.

I think I'm going to read Fried Green Tomatoes At the Whistle Stop Cafe in February - it'll count for the RandomCat. I'm a short drive from the very small town of Juliet, GA where most of the movie was filmed and believe me they play it up for all it's worth and then some! I go to the Juliet Festival every year and visit other times as well. There is a Whistle Stop Cafe and I have had their excellent fried green tomatoes.

>126 thornton37814: >127 Dejah_Thoris: I love the movie. Just haven't read the book. I will have to let others enjoy the fried green tomatoes since I'm allergic to them. I used to love my great aunt's pickled green tomatoes.

I did finish Five Quarters of the Orange before going to sleep last night. I wouldn't have been able to sleep if I hadn't. The writing is 4 star, but I gave it an extra half star because I enjoyed the story so much. The review will have to wait until I get home from work.

Still another Southerner who isn't fond of "Southern Literature".

>130 hailelib: I'm in good company then! Are there any Southern novels you've read and liked? I'd like to have at least a mental list ready for the next time I'm "forced" to try one!

This morning I remembered that I recently saw an old Love Boat episode with Fannie Flagg. She had smuggled her pet dog onto the boat. I enjoyed that story, but I'm not sure I would want to take Adrian on a cruise. I'd be terrified that he would fall or even jump overboard.

Book 1 in my Daniel category: Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris

Framboise, a middle-aged widow, returns to the town on the Loire where she spent the first decade of her life. During the German occupation in World War II, Framboise, her older brother and sister, and their mother were involved in an event so terrible that they fled the town. Framboise's mother has died in the intervening decades. She left an album filled with her recipes and with seemingly random notes. Framboise returns to the town and restores the family's old farmhouse which she bought from her brother. She supports herself by opening a cafe where she serves her mother's recipes. The life she has built depends on keeping her real identity secret. Framboise is known by her married name, and she looks nothing like the child she was when the family left. A greedy nephew threatens to dig up the secrets that Framboise has tried so hard to keep.

This book was longlisted for the Orange Prize and I can see why it didn't make it onto the shortlist. It doesn't have the weight that judges of literary prizes would expect. However, it does have the right ingredients to transport readers to another time and place and hold them spellbound until the end. I read this book in a day. I couldn't sleep until I had finished it.

It's not really a mystery. Framboise knows the secret at the heart of the book. It's no mystery to her. She just won't give the secret up easily. It's part coming of age, as Framboise remembers events from her 10th year. It's part family drama, exploring sibling dynamics and the conflict between Framboise and her difficult mother. It's part historical fiction, dealing with the German occupation of France in World War II. There's even a little romance sprinkled in the book. The descriptions of French farm cuisine, the smells and sounds of summer, and the feel of the river delight the senses. It's a rich, rewarding reading experience that I highly recommend.

4.5 stars

>133 cbl_tn: I see you loved that book as much as I did.

And yet another bullet hits this target!

The Orange Prize does sometimes go very light in the books they shortlist. I have to be careful to look closely at a book if I'm in the mood for something substantial. I have one Joanne Harris on my TBR and I really do need to try her.

I'll be the lone voice in favor of southern literature. I think that The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is brilliant and heart-breaking, and many of McCullers' short stories are amazing.

>133 cbl_tn: BB taken. I've watched the movie Chocolat several times, but I was not aware of other books from the author. This will go directly on my "need to buy" list.

>134 thornton37814: Yes, I did!

>135 VivienneR: I hope you enjoy it as much as Lori and I did!

>136 RidgewayGirl: Five Quarters of the Orange isn't exactly insubstantial. It's a great story well told. It's just not the kind of book that wins general literary prizes, if that makes any sense. It's the type of book that wins genre prizes, but it doesn't fit neatly into any genre.

I might give McCullers another try someday, but I will have to be in the right mood.

>137 Chrischi_HH: I will probably try Gentlemen & Players next since it was nominated for an Edgar and I love mysteries.

>133 cbl_tn: I haven't read anything by Joanne Harris, but clearly I should. Thanks!

>139 Dejah_Thoris: I've read one more than you then! I will definitely give her another try.

>138 cbl_tn: - I've haf Genrlemen & Players on my shelf for several years. Really need to read it soon.

>141 LittleTaiko: Have you read any of her other books? Chocolat seems to be the most popular, maybe because of the movie.

I've had Joanne Harris' books on my wishlist for ages. I really need to give her a try.

>143 DeltaQueen50: **Nudge**. ;)

Thanks, Carrie, I needed that!

>131 cbl_tn: Two Southern authors I really like are Flannery O'Connor and Walker Percy (try The Thanatos Syndrome). I also enjoyed A Confederacy of Dunces. But I'm not a huge fan of "Southern literature" in general.

>145 DeltaQueen50: Any time! ;)

>146 christina_reads: I will get to Flannery O'Connor later this year in the 75 Books Group's American Authors challenge. I think she's on the calendar for September or October. My plate is too full to join the Confederacy of Dunces group read, but I might peek at the discussion thread and see if it sounds like something I want to add to my TBR list. The Thanatos Syndrome sounds intriguing and I've added it to my list. Thanks for the recommendations!

My little Adrian has had a rough evening. First the smoke alarm went off several times while I was cooking supper, even though I had the fan above the stove turned on. Nothing was remotely close to burning. I cooked salmon baked in melted butter and steamed Brussels sprouts. The combination of the smoke from the butter and the steam from the Brussels sprouts must have set off the alarm. I sat in the recliner for a few minutes while I waited for everything to finish cooking. Adrian disappeared down the hall and he was gone so long that I started to get up to look for him. Somehow he came back without my seeing or hearing him because he was under the recliner. I lowered the footrest right into him. The poor little guy has been glued to my lap ever since. I finally got him to eat dinner a few minutes ago, but he's back on my lap now. Work was pretty stressful today so all the cuddling has been therapeutic for me, too.

>148 cbl_tn: I'm sorry you've both had a rough day, but the cuddling sounds good. Dinner, too, actually.....

Poor guy.

The neighbor's car finally moved him off of my lap and onto his perch in front of the window. Now he's playing with his puppy-sized stuffed lamb. I think he's finally on his way to recovery!

>142 cbl_tn: - No, I've never ready anything else by her but have seen Chocolat the movie which was pretty good from what I remember.

Hope you and Adrian recovered from your tough day. The smoke alarm used to send one of my dogs into a full on panic attack where he either shot out of the house quite quickly or dove under a bed.

>152 LittleTaiko: The alarm is probably why Adrian ended up under the recliner. Usually he ends up under the dining room table when I vacuum, but apparently he prefers the recliner's footrest. However, it's difficult to vacuum from the recliner!

Poor Adrian, he must have wondered what you were trying to do to him. About the smoke alarm, mine goes off every time I cook mushrooms, no matter what I do to avoid it.

>154 VivienneR: I'll have to remember the mushroom thing. I'm not eating them right now because of my mold allergies. I hope I'll be able to add them back to my diet when I finish with the allergy shots.

I have two books that I hope to finish today. I should be able to finish Julius Caesar while I work in the kitchen. I'll be putting a roast and veggies in the Nesco roaster. I have about 150 pages left in Cleopatra: A Life. It's pretty easy going for non-fiction and it's a good companion for Shakespeare's play. I have an ambitious list for February and I really don't want to carry over any unfinished reading from January.

Good luck with the end-of-the-month reading, Carrie. I have an ambitious list for February too.

>157 DeltaQueen50: Thanks Judy! I finished both books before I went to bed last night. I just need to review them to wrap up January.

Congratulations on finishing up your January books! I'm looking forward to your thoughts on Cleopatra: A Life.

>159 Dejah_Thoris: Coming soon. See below.

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Instead of writing reviews for the two books I finished yesterday, I've been struggling to transfer an Overdrive audiobook to my iPod Nano. My computer seems to be viewing my iPod like a flash drive. The audio files transfer to the iPod, but they don't show up in the Music or Audiobooks menus, or any other menu I can get to through the interface on the device. I can only play the file while it's connected to the computer. I can see the audio files in Windows Explorer, and I don't think I should be able to. I can't see the audio files for any of the books that were on my iPod prior to the iTunes upgrade and they all appear where they're supposed to on the device itself. I think it may have something to do with the latest release of iTunes. I can listen to the book on my iPad, but it's not as handy. I use my iPod mostly for listening to audiobooks. It's going to be nearly useless to me if I can't transfer audiobooks to it.

ETA: I finally figured out a way to get the audiobook into my iPod's menu system. It's a hassle, but it seems to have worked. I really hope this will be fixed soon.

Nothing like struggling with technology to do something that should be simple. Glad you figured out a solution.

>161 RidgewayGirl: It was much more difficult than it should have been. I hope I can remember what I did the next time I try to transfer an audiobook.

Book 1 in my Everybody's Talkin' category: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
HistoryCAT

“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. Et tu, Brute. Beware the ides of March.” I'm a little embarrassed to admit that this is all I knew of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar up to this point in my life. There's so much more to this play. Shakespeare captures the tension and drama of the last years of the Roman Republic and the role of Julius Caesar's ambition in hastening its end. The L.A. Theatre Works audio production is outstanding. The cast includes Richard Dreyfuss, Kelsey Grammar, Stacy Keach, John De Lancie, and JoBeth Williams. I will listen to this recording again. Next time I will plan to do my listening when I'm able to follow along in the printed text.

4.5 stars

Book 2 in my People category: Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff
HistoryCAT

Cleopatra is one of those legendary figures from history that I've heard of all my life but knew nothing about beyond cultural references. She was the last of the Pharaohs, she was romantically connected with both Caesar and Mark Antony, she died from an asp's bite, and she looked just like Elizabeth Taylor. Stacy Schiff's biography has changed that.

The biggest problem for all of Cleopatra's biographers is the absence of contemporary accounts of her life. The earliest historians are at least a generation removed from her lifetime, and they all have a Roman bias. It seems to illustrate the old saying that history is written by the victors. Schiff compares different accounts of events in Cleopatra's life and weighs their likely accuracy. It's the kind of analysis that calls for footnotes or end notes to allow her readers to look at the sources to test her conclusions. The end notes are there – pages and pages of them – but they are unnumbered, conforming to the current trend for histories and biographies aimed at a general audience rather than an academic audience. It's OK for background reading or to satisfy a casual curiosity about Cleopatra's life. Academic readers may find it lacking for their purpose.

3.5 stars

January recap

Daisy Jane by America - Books by, about, or inspired by Jane Austen – 1/5
The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su & Kate Rorick (4.5)

Mystery Lady by Billy Ocean - Books by Agatha Christie – 0/5

God Save the Queen - Books by British authors for @PaulCranswick’s British Author challenge – 1/5
*Nocturnes: Five Stories of Music and Nightfall by Kazuo Ishiguro (3.5)

My Country ‘Tis of Thee - Books by American authors for @msf59's American Author challenge – 1/5
The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers (3.5)

Old Days by Chicago - Books read for the HistoryCAT and/or Reading Through Time – 1/5
In Search of a Homeland: The Story of the Aeneid by Penelope Lively; illustrated by Ian Andrew (3.5)

In My Life by The Beatles - Family history/genealogy – 1/5
The Porcelain Thief: Searching the Middle Kingdom for Buried China by Huan Hsu (3.5)

Daniel by Elton John - Books about war – 1/5
Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris (4.5)

Second Hand News by Fleetwood Mac - Borrowed books – 0/5

If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot - Books picked for me – 0/5

Fantasy by Earth, Wind & Fire - Books for the SFFFCAT – 1/5
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld (4)

Sing by Gary Barlow & the Commonwealth Band- Books for my Commonwealth challenge – 1/5
Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin (4)

People by Barbra Streisand – Biographies – 2/5
*Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5)
Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff (3.5)

Everybody’s Talkin’ by Harry Nilsson – Audiobooks – 1/5
*Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (4.5)

Sweet Little Mystery by Wet Wet Wet – Mysteries – 1/5
Through the Grinder by Cleo Coyle (2.5)

New Kid In Town by the Eagles - New books& ARCs – 1/5
Beethoven's Tenth by Brian Harvey (4)

Bonus category: Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free reading
Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith (4)

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris
Worst of the month: Through the Grinder by Cleo Coyle

Physical books – owned: 6
Physical books – borrowed: 5
Audiobooks – owned: 1
Audiobooks – borrowed: 2
ARCs: 2

Excellent reading in January, Carrie! And really superior book distribution amongst your Categories.

Re: Cleopatra: A Life - the lack of citation numbers in the text was maddening, wasn't it? It definitely had a negative impact on my feeling for the book.

>166 Dejah_Thoris: I had several books that would fit in more than one category so that helped me to spread them around!

Planned reading for February:
Confessions by Augustine (HistoryCAT)
The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope (group read)
Daisy Miller by Henry James (American Authors challenge)
A Timely Vision by Joyce Lavene & Jim Lavene (BingoDog)
Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie
Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth (Quarterly biography read)
King of the Cannibals by Jim Cromarty (Commonwealth Challenge, HistoryCAT)
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (British Author Challenge)

Audiobooks:
1984 by George Orwell (SFFF CAT)
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh (British Authors Challenge, HistoryCAT)

Sparkling Cyanide was one of my favourite Christies when I was younger. Hope you like it! And I will be reading Brideshead as well this month. Book twins! :)

>169 rabbitprincess: I'm not sure I've ever read this one, but I think I've read the short story it's based on. I know I've seen the TV adaptation of the short story.

It looks like you had a great reading month in January, Carrie!

>171 lkernagh: January was a great reading month! I hope February is just as good. I'm off to a good start with Trollope.

I'm having internet problems this afternoon. My modem keeps going offline every few minutes. Resetting didn't help. Refreshing the signal didn't help. I'm waiting for a technician higher up in the chain to call and see if he can resolve the problem.

Apparently I have a weak signal going into my modem. The earliest service appointment I could get is Thursday evening. I may not be able to check in much until it's fixed.

I hope that you and Adrian are getting lots of reading done while you're forcibly offline.

Oh, so sorry to hear of your internet woes, Carrie. I am with Dejah in hoping that a few books will take the place of some internet time!

>175 Dejah_Thoris: I got a lot of reading done last night. Not so much tonight since my brother's DNA results just finished processing. I've been corresponding with cousins and finding a document that identifies an ancestor's father. It's my Stout line, and I know definitely now that I'm related to Rex Stout.

>176 DeltaQueen50: Thanks Judy!

>177 cbl_tn: Well that is seriously cool! Congratulations!

> 178 I believe Rex Stout was my great-grandfather's 3rd cousin, so that makes him my 3rd cousin 3x removed. My other relatively famous relative is Ken Kercheval, better known as Cliff Barnes. I wasn't able to go to the Kercheval reunion when I was in college, but he was kind enough to send me an autographed photo afterward.

>179 cbl_tn: That was very sweet of him. The only actor I've ever heard anyone in the family try to claim is Pernell Roberts, of Bonanza and Trapper John, M.D. fame. It's entirely possible is is a distant relative (the Roberts cousins in GA are legion) but I've never bothered to prove it. Actually, it probably wouldn't be that difficult. Maybe I'll give it a shot the next time I need a distracting project.

>177 cbl_tn: That is so cool! My husband is related (not sure of the details) to Stephen Boyd who had a part in the movie Ben Hur. There is no one of note in my family :(

>180 Dejah_Thoris: >181 VivienneR: I also share a common ancestor with Barak Obama and Dick Cheney. He's a 9th great-grandfather so we are all very distant cousins.

That's really interesting - and impressive!

>177 cbl_tn: Rex Stout?! That's cool!

My most famous relative (that I know of) was Indiana Supreme Court Justice Louis Blaisdel Ewbank, my 2nd cousin 4x removed. Plus, Steen Township, Knox County, Indiana, was named for my 5th great grandfather, Richard Steen, who moved to Indiana ca. 1806. Only minor celebrities in what what otherwise a long line of farmers.

Well, I guess there are my great uncles who got sent to prison for carjacking in the 1930s, but they're really more infamous than anything else.

>184 casvelyn: Your Steens were within spitting distance of my relatives then! They settled on the Illinois side of the river.

Very interesting to hear about your famous relations! :)

>163 cbl_tn: I liked Julius Caesar very much too. I find I need both to read the text and to watch the play to understand Shakespeare. I hadn't thought of listening to an audio production while scanning the text; that's a good idea.

>186 mathgirl40: Thanks! My public library has audio productions several of Shakespeare's plays available for download through Overdrive. If you're lucky, your library may have some available that way!

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My home internet has been dropping frequently, particularly in the afternoons and early evening. The technician who looked at it yesterday isolated the problem to one of two points in the outside line that connects to my house. Unfortunately my neighbors weren't home and their dog was. I won't be home tomorrow because it's my Saturday to work so I had to reschedule the appointment for Monday. I may be AWOL for a while over the weekend. On the bright side, that will give me more time for reading!

I've started reading Augustine's Confessions for this month's HistoryCAT. I've read the first section on Childhood so far and I'm pleased with how accessible it is. I'm reading a fairly recent translation so I'm sure that helps. So far I've learned that Augustine and the other boys played games when they were supposed to be studying, he hated studying Greek, and he loved studying Latin. I love this passage:

Why then did I hate Greek which has similar songs to sing? Homer was skilled at weaving such stories, and with sheer delight mixed vanity. Yet to me as a boy he was repellent. I can well believe that Greek boys feel the same about Virgil when they are forced to learn him in the way that I learnt Homer.

Hope your internet-woes are over soon. So frustrating!!

Hi Eva! It's working better this weekend. I think it slows down on weekdays because I live close to a school that uses lots of bandwidth. The cable company is coming back tomorrow evening and I hope they'll be able to fix it this time.

Book 1 in my If You Could Read My Mind category: A Timely Vision by Joyce Lavene and Jim Lavene (picked by Dejah_Thoris)

When Dae O'Donnell isn't busy with her mayoral duties in Duck, North Carolina, she runs a second-hand shop called Missing Pieces. Many of the items in the shop are items she's found. Dae has a gift for finding things. When elderly Miss Mildred asks Dae to find the watch she had loaned to her sister, Elizabeth, Dae has a vision that doesn't make sense – until she finds Miss Elizabeth's body with the watch on her wrist. It isn't long before Miss Mildred is charged with her sister's murder. With the help of the new owner of Duck's Blue Whale Inn, retired FBI agent Kevin Brickman, Dae sets out to find the real killer who must have framed Miss Mildred for the murder.

Although I usually avoid paranormal mysteries, I was drawn to this one because of its setting in North Carolina's Outer Banks. The authors use the setting to great advantage. Between Dae's position as the town's mayor and her grandfather's status as the retired police chief, Dae has a plausible reason to get involved in criminal investigations. Dae's psychic gift for finding things may actually be a weakness since it provides a means for the authors to dump clues and information without subtlety. It bugs me that Dae confesses to being in her late thirties and her grandfather is only 70. Unless Dae's mother had her as a young teenager, the math doesn't work. From the descriptions of the next few books in the series, it sounds like the paranormal emphasis grows stronger. I enjoyed this visit in the Outer Banks, but I'm not sure that this is a series I'll continue to read.

3 stars

>188 cbl_tn: I'm glad to hear that Confessions is accessible! It's on my list for this month, but I haven't started it yet.

>192 _Zoe_: I am looking forward to continuing with it. I think I'm going to make a push to finish The Eustace Diamonds first so that I don't have other distractions while I'm reading it.

>191 cbl_tn: I'm sorry A Timely Vision didn't turn out to be better; I have mixed feelings about paranormal mysteries, too.

I had planned to join you in Shadows of the Workhouse this month but I'm not certain I want to continue with it. The sections I've read so far are extremely depressing and I'm just not sure I'm up for it.

I hope they're fixing your internet issues as I type!

>194 Dejah_Thoris: I liked the characters and love the setting. If it was just a regular cozy I wouldn't have any question about continuing.

Sadly, no, they are not fixing my internet service. Somehow the appointment that I thought I had didn't get entered into their schedule. So I'm on the phone now trying to reschedule. They kept offering me daytime appointments, but of course I have to work. The first evening appointment they had available was for Friday. I finally got fed up and told them that it wasn't my fault that their customer service agent didn't correctly set up the appointment in their system and I expected them to have someone here to fix it Wednesday evening. (I work tomorrow evening and get my weekly allergy shot in the afternoon.) I was on hold for a while and then he finally said that he would schedule me in the 3-5 p.m. slot on Wednesday but would tell the technician to arrive at 4:30 when I get home from work. If that hadn't worked I would have insisted on a credit for the lost service.

And the saga continues. I just got a call confirming my appointment between 3 and 5 pm tomorrow afternoon. I will not be home tomorrow afternoon. The person I spoke with earlier said he was making an appointment for Wednesday. Aargh! I got a different person this time, and she is offering me Friday evening again. I'm waiting on hold for a supervisor. This is beyond ridiculous. Unfortunately I live in a rural area with no other option for a service provider or I'd be making arrangements to switch.

>196 cbl_tn: Get the service credit - you deserve it.

The latest is that they're sending someone tomorrow to look at the problem outside, and they've scheduled an inside appointment for Friday. But I already know the problem is outside. The technician who came on Thursday evening told me that. Sheesh. They are giving me a week's credit for the service problems I've been having. Meanwhile, I discovered that another company does provide service to my area now. I already have a home phone with that company and I'm going to look at switching. I would pick up a couple of sports channels that my current company doesn't offer on my plan (ESPNU and NFL Network).

I'm glad you have the option of firing your internet company.

>199 RidgewayGirl: Yes, other options are good! I'll make sure the other company is lined up before I fire this one.

You are fortunate to have choices, Carrie - I'm pretty well stuck where I am. And congratulations on getting the credit! No we just have to hope they take care of things on Friday.....

>201 Dejah_Thoris: They're sending an outdoor service technician today and they tell me I don't need to be home for that. Since the person who came last week isolated the problem to one of two outside lines, I hope that will fix it and I can cancel the Friday appointment.

I continue to have my fingers crossed that your internet woes will finally be resolved. As much fun as it would be to fire your current provider, it is still a hassle, even with another company waiting in the wings. There are really only two options where we live - unless we were to try and run everything through cellular - and I feel that both companies really don't give customer service the focus it deserves.

I feel for you Carrie, setting up service calls can be a such a nightmare. I sure hope they can fix it with the first call. Good luck.

Oops -- I totally just posted my own review to your thread by mistake! So sorry! *blush*

>203 lkernagh: >204 DeltaQueen50: As far as I can tell, the cable company did not send an outside crew to my house today. The internet is working today, but the problem is intermittent so that doesn't really mean anything.

>205 christina_reads: All reviews are welcome here! I haven't had many of my own to post recently. I started the month with several chunksters on my list.

Well, the cable saga continues. I just got a call from a customer service agent wanting to review my service with me to see if I'm getting the best value. I told him I was considering other options because of the poor service I've experienced this week. He offered some service upgrades to compensate for the problems I've been having and an assurance that he will follow through and see that the repairs to the outside wiring are completed on Friday. Somehow the upgrades are going to end up costing me a couple dollars more each month, but it's less than what they quote on their website for those services. I was too tired to argue about it. I haven't given up the idea of changing companies, and if I have any more problems I'll make the switch.

Amazing how they offer 'free' upgrades that end up costing you instead of offering you a better price on what you already have. I do understand your 'dealing with customer service' fatigue, though.

I hope you can get this resolved Friday.

>208 Dejah_Thoris: I'll be giving the other company a call today. I got an email from the cable company confirming my appointment tomorrow between 1 and 3 p.m. I will be at work tomorrow between 1 and 3 p.m. I told the person on the phone last night that I would be at work between 1 and 3 p.m. Did that matter to him? Apparently not! It also shows an in-home visit charge that he conveniently "forgot" to mention to me on the phone, even when I pressed him about any additional charges. As soon as they open I'm going to call and tell them to change everything back the way it was. I will not be giving them a penny more than I have to.

After nearly an hour on the phone with a customer service supervisor, I am now back on my original plan with a service appointment tomorrow evening to fix the outside wiring that is causing my internet problems. I asked about a credit to compensate for all the hassles I've been through this week. She offered a $10 credit for the next 6 months. Hopefully I will still have service when I get home...

I sure hope it all works out for you, Carrie. By the way, how is Adrian? I hope he is fully recovered and back in full health.

>211 DeltaQueen50: >130 hailelib: >131 cbl_tn: I arrived home to find that I do not have an internet connection, just as I feared. I don't know if it has something to do with the strong winds we had in the middle of the day or if the company has disconnected me from the internet. I'm probably a "problem customer" from their perspective. My workplace gets some of its internet service from the same company and some from another ISP. The IT manager sent out an email around lunchtime to let us know that the internet connection with this cable company has some network issues that won't be resolved until Monday and we could experience slow internet response time until then. Isn't it interesting that they'll give a corporate customer more information than a home customer? I do have an alternate wired source at home that I can use for some things, but not for wifi.

Adrian seems fully recovered now so I don't think I'll need to take him for a second antibiotic shot. That makes me happy!

It's a pain, but it may be time to switch internet providers. These guys don't sound that interested in keeping you. It's really frustrating to deal with megacorporations whose customer service personnel are ill-equiped to do anything more than tell you they understand how that might be frustrating and they will be happy to set up an appointment for a time you've already told them you will be unavailable for, for a problem different from the one you have.

>213 RidgewayGirl: You summarized that so well! I do think it's time to change providers. It's high on my to-do list. I just have to summon up the energy.

One of my coworkers shared her horror story with me yesterday. Her mother has Alzheimer's and is now in a nursing home, but this happened after her diagnosis and while she was still living at home alone. (My coworker's family lived next door.) A local business with a difference of just one digit in the local prefix changed telephone service providers. Someone made a mistake and entered my coworker's mother's number instead of the business's number. Every time her children tried to call her, they got the business instead. My coworker spent hours with the service provider trying to get her mother's service restored, explaining that her mother lived alone with Alzheimer's and the phone was her only connection to the outside world. They wanted to charge her an installation fee for the restoration of service, even though it was cut off by mistake. My coworker finally looked up the contact information for the president of this megacorporation and sent an email headed "elderly customer being ignored" in which she carefully detailed the sequence of events. Within two hours her mother's service was restored. The president of the megacorporation contacted her twice within the next week to make sure that everything was working as it should. This company is my only other option for home internet so it's a little discouraging that their customer service sounds like it's similarly dysfunctional. At least I know someone with connections to the top!

The internet woes continue. A different technician came and fully checked out the problem this evening. The distance from the pole to my house requires a different kind of cable (apparently much larger) that they don't typically carry because of its size unless they know they will need it. It is also a 2-person job. He is going to put in a special request with his supervisor to send someone out to fix it tomorrow. If they can't do it tomorrow, he will be back on Monday morning to do it. I do not have to be home when this happens because it's an outside job. Nor do I have to call customer service to make another appointment. He was not happy with the technician last week who had closed the ticket without completing the necessary work.

I just have to say that I'm glad we have Charter instead of Comcast here!

>216 thornton37814: You should be!s

Contrary to the technician's expectation, I do have working internet. I'm sure he would be shocked. When he explained things to me yesterday, he said that the signal strength was 11 at the pole (apparently very good) and either minus 2 or minus 20 by the time it reached the corner of my neighbor's house (very bad). He was surprised that I'd been getting any internet access at all.

>214 cbl_tn: What a horror story! How fortunate a well worded email to the right person got results.

I seem to be bouncing between several of your threads, Carrie, commenting wherever I happen to be, lol.

>217 cbl_tn: Just think about how fast your service may end up being once they get it fixed!

>218 Dejah_Thoris: I've already thought about the faster service. If it does improve, there will be no reason for me to switch to their fastest service, which I thought I already had. Apparently they've upgraded their network since I started subscribing.

Carrie, I too had internet woes a year or so ago. I decided I'd had enough and changed service provider. It was a case of "out of the frying pan and into the fire" as I had just as many problems with the new ISP, just different ones. I ended up having to pay a cancellation fee and went back to the original. Thankfully I hadn't cancelled the first account. Good luck.

>220 VivienneR: Thanks Vivienne! I'll need it. What's really grating at the moment is their commercial blitz highlighting their outstanding customer service.

Book 2 in my Free Bird category: The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

Young Lizzie Greystock has a taste for diamonds and other precious stones. Her brief marriage to Sir Florian Eustace leaves her with a title, an infant heir, and a diamond necklace valued at 10,000 pounds. The Eustace family lawyer, Mr. Camperdown, insists that the diamonds are part of the Eustace estate and must be returned. Lizzie claims that her husband gave the diamonds to her with no strings attached. She enlists her young lawyer cousin, Frank Greystock, to help her fend off Mr. Camperdown. The pretty young widow has a lifetime settlement from her late husband's estate. It's not an enormous amount of money, but it's enough to attract suitors like Lord Fawn and the somewhat disreputable Lord George de Bruce Carruthers. It may even be enough to tempt cousin Frank away from his beloved but penniless Lucy Morris. Trollope lets readers in on a secret that Lizzie's suitors only suspect. Lizzie is a shameless liar.

This will never be among my favorite Trollope novels. Unlike in some of his earlier novels, there is little humor to lighten the tone. Lizzie brings out the worst in her companions. In contrast, Lucy Morris brings out the best in others. There just isn't enough of Lucy in the novel. The first half of the novel hinges primarily on inheritance law that can no longer be assumed to be common knowledge. Things become much more interesting in the second half of the novel after a theft occurs.

I've always maintained that there are worse things than being single. The subplot of Lucinda Roanoke and her engagement to Sir Griffin Tewett could be Exhibit A for this argument. With money running out, Lucinda is forced to accept the first man who asks her to marry him, even though she finds him repulsive.

Even the friendships in the book are based on money. Although the Fawns and Lucy genuinely like each other, Lucy is still an employee in their household. Lizzie's friendship with Mrs. Carbuncle is measured out in pounds and shillings. I'm reminded of the old saying “money can't buy happiness”. If that's the point Trollope intended to make with this novel, he succeeded.

3.5 stars

I went in to work long enough this morning to make sure that we have enough people working to keep the library open and that we have a plan for tonight and tomorrow morning. Then I came right back home. I woke up feeling achy and slightly feverish. I brought work home with me, but I may end up just taking a sick day today. I'll see how I feel after some Tylenol and a nap.

Book 2 in my God Save the Queen category: The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

As a child, Dr. Faraday visited Hundreds Hall with his parents on a fete day. His mother used to work as a nurserymaid there, and her connections allowed Faraday to get a glimpse of the interior of the house. Years later, when Dr. Faraday is called in to treat a young servant, he is dismayed to see the deterioration that has taken place since his first visit. The second World War, heavy inheritance taxes, and family tragedies have taken their toll. The household has dwindled to widowed Mrs. Ayres; her daughter Caroline; Roderick, the heir scarred from a wartime air accident; the teenaged live-in servant, Betty; and a daily woman. As Dr. Faraday is drawn into the intimate family circle, he is increasingly disturbed by the psychological effect that the house is having on its inhabitants. The burden of its upkeep shows in Caroline's physical appearance and in Roderick's deteriorating mental state. When strange markings start appearing and odd noises are heard, are they simply symptoms of decay, or of something far more sinister?

Hundreds Hall is as much a character as any of the humans in the book. The hall and its grounds are in a state of entropy that seems impossible to stop or reverse. Postwar rationing is having a leveling effect on the social classes. The psychological tension begins to mount once the setting and characters are firmly established. Interpretations of the events described in the book will vary with readers' views of the supernatural. Is the series of events a tragic coincidence, or is there an agent driving them? If an agent is responsible, is it human or supernatural? Waters doesn't provide easy answers for her readers.

3.5 stars

We started getting sleet around 11:30 a.m. and now it's turned to freezing rain. They sent everyone home from work at noon. I hope everyone made it home OK. It will be treacherous even taking Adrian out for potty breaks the rest of the day. I have plenty of groceries. I'll be fine as long as the power stays on.

Stay warm, Carrie. Enjoy a day in to read and hang out with Adrian. You did remember to stock up on dog food, didn't you?

>226 RidgewayGirl: Yes, Adrian has plenty of dog food! And treats! We're all set for bad weather.

Hope you're feeling better soon. It's a good thing you were able to get home before the freezing rain started!

>228 rabbitprincess: Yes, I'm glad for that! My car stayed dry so at least I won't have to de-ice it before getting out tomorrow. I noticed that my neighbors' car is still wet. They'll have some serious scraping to do tomorrow morning.

Book 2 in my My Country 'Tis of Thee category: Daisy Miller by Henry James

Winterbourne is a young American who has made his home in Switzerland. While visiting an aunt in Vevey, he encounters a young American boy who soon introduces Winterbourne to his sister, Daisy Miller. After a brief acquaintance with Daisy Miller in Vevey, Winterbourne encounters her again several months later in Rome. The Millers seem to have more money than class. Mrs. Miller seems to have no control over her children. Among the expatriates in Rome, Daisy has tarnished her reputation by keeping company with an Italian man without a chaperone in attendance. Winterbourne doesn't know what to make of Daisy. Is she immoral or just socially naïve? Just as Winterbourne is making up his mind, tragedy strikes.

Daisy Miller is a study of both character and culture. The American expatriates aren't just shocked by Daisy's unchaperoned excursions. Her worst offense seems to be keeping company with foreign men. (Nevermind that the Americans are the real foreigners in the story.) The Millers have a European escort whom they treat as an equal, a social faux pas. Winterbourne is intrigued by Daisy and is torn between helping her repair her reputation and contributing to its ruin. I recommend reading this novella in a single sitting for best effect.

4 stars

I just received a call from Carrie. She is without power. She and Adrian have gone to the student activities center on her campus which has a fire going in the student activities center. She took along a couple of books. She's hoping they will get power back soon because of the proximity of a waste treatment plant. Knox County has a lot of power outages. No idea when they will regain power. I've noticed that the KUB outage map has fluctuated. They currently have just under 15,000 customers without power and the outages are mostly over the parts of county south of I-40 although there are a few along Asheville Highway and in the Eastern part of the county. She'll be back as soon as she can.

Update: Carrie's power is back on; however, she still does not have Internet. She and Adrian are home.

Glad to hear you and Adrian are home and able to be warm, Carrie. I hope the internet isn't out too long.

My internet is working now! It's cold outside, but warm in here. Our campus is closed today so I don't have to try to get to work.

Warmth, food, day off, Adrian to snuggle with and the internet - sounds like you are all set, Carrie!

>231 thornton37814:
Thank you for the heads-up!!

>234 cbl_tn:
Glad to hear your and Adrian are back home and doing well!

>235 DeltaQueen50: >236 -Eva-: Thanks! The stress from the weather caused my asthma to flare up. My doctor's office was closed today because of the weather so I went to a walk-in clinic at a local pharmacy. The nurse practitioner checked me out to make sure I didn't have an infection or another issue going on. Just the asthma. I'm going to stay home tomorrow and try to rest.

Sadly, the power outage appears to have killed my TV. It looks like I'll probably need to replace it. :(

Enjoy cuddling with Adrian, a good book and a hot cup of tea today, Carrie.

>238 RidgewayGirl: Thanks! I'll do that!

I called the customer support number for the TV last night and the very nice woman I spoke with confirmed that the TV is dead. After my experience with the cable company's customer support, it was refreshing to speak with someone who was truly helpful, even if she did have to deliver bad news.

I liked this TV while I had it, and after the positive experience with their customer support, I opted for a newer model of the same TV from Amazon. I decided it would be a lot less stressful to have it delivered to my door than to go out to Sam's Club or Best Buy in this weather and then have to worry about how to get the bulky box into my car and from my car into the house. $12 for next day delivery didn't seem outrageous for a package of this size so I did that, too. Hopefully there won't be a weather delay that will keep it from arriving tomorrow.

The customer support agent gave me numbers for two authorized repair services and suggested I contact them to see if it might be cheaper to fix than to replace. Since it's a smart TV, I decided that the newer technology on a current model might make it worth replacing rather than fixing. It's out of warranty so I'd have to pay the repair cost. I'm going to offer to give the old TV to a retired friend who worked on electronics on navy weapons systems. He might be able to fix it and use it, especially if he doesn't have the pressure of trying not to break it because someone's going to be out of pocket as a result.

I'm so glad you had somewhere to go when the power went out, Carrie! And that you got it back so quickly. It's too bad about the TV, but I hope the new one will be so wonderful that you don't mind the loss of the old. I agree - $12 doesn't seen bad for next day delivery!

>240 Dejah_Thoris: It is snowing now, and we're under a winter weather advisory for the rest of the day. They're predicting wind gusts of up to 40 mph that may cause more power outages. The high today will be in the teens and the low tonight may dip below zero. I'm praying that my power stays on.

>241 cbl_tn: I hate fearing that the power will go out - with multiple animals, it becomes difficult to evacuate. When I was living in the frozen north, we had a scare where I had no power/heat for about 12 hours. After that, I insisted that we install a manual ignition propane/gas freestanding stove/fireplace. A few years later when our power was out for several days, it kept us safely in the house and prevented a lot of pipes from bursting. I honestly don't know what we would have done without it.

Even though I'm back in the (usually) warm South in a location with few power outages, it still makes me nervous I don't have an alternate heat source.....

>242 Dejah_Thoris: I don't have an alternate heat source and it makes me very nervous. I have neighbors within walking distance that have a fireplace and I think I could persuade one of them to take us in if it comes to that. The neighbor across the street smokes so I'm not sure I could handle being cooped up with him.

I had a brief power outage a few minutes ago - just 1-2 minutes, but long enough to give me a scare. Just heard from work that the utility company is turning their power off for about an hour while they remove a tree from the power lines. Glad I'm here and not there. I think.

I've got my fingers crossed that your power says on, Carrie. What horrible weather you are getting!

>245 DeltaQueen50: Thanks Judy! The advisory has expired for my area and the power is still on. Tomorrow is supposed to be bitterly cold but we shouldn't get more snow. We may get more snow Friday night into Saturday. I'm hoping that the early models are wrong.

Book 1 in my Mystery Lady category: Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie

It's been a year since Rosemary Barton died at a party in her honor. The inquest verdict was suicide, but someone has been sending anonymous notes to her husband, George, suggesting that Rosemary was murdered. George has a plan to unmask the murderer. He invites the same guests to a party in his sister-in-law, Iris's, honor, to be held at the same location. However, things don't turn out according to plan. Did Rosemary commit suicide a year ago, or was she really murdered? If so, who killed her? Was it her husband, George? Or George's secretary, the competent Ruth Lessing, who may have a secret passion for her boss? Or Rosemary's admirer, Anthony Browne, who may not be the man he appears to be? Or her other admirer, Conservative MP Stephen Farraday? Or his jealous wife, Lady Alexandra Farraday? Or could it have been her sister and heir, Iris Marle? George Barton's friend, Colonel Race, is on the scene, and he lends his experience to Scotland Yard as they investigate not one, but two murders.

This novel has a ring of familiarity to it even without the presence of one of Christie's more famous sleuths. The characters and plot bear many similarities to a Poirot short story, “Yellow Irises”, although Christie changed enough that one is not a spoiler for the other. There are also some structural similarities to Five Little Pigs (aka Murder in Retrospect). Even though the story lacks something in originality for readers familiar with Christie's earlier works, she gives the familiar elements a new twist that will leave readers guessing.

3.5 stars

My go-to author for comfort reading. Just what I needed today!

Glad to see you have made it through the advisory. Here is hoping things start to warm up where you are. Sorry to read that you TV decided to give up the ghost and quit on you. My other half has been nagging me that we should consider purchasing a new TV - our current one is now 8 years old and web TV is starting to become a bit of a problem with it. Considering we don't use the TV except for watching DVDs or the odd show on web TV channels like Acorn TV, I am somewhat hesitant to get a new TV, especially with all the recent ruckus about the Samsung smart TVs. ;-)

>248 lkernagh: thanks Lori! Now we are under a winter weather watch for snow changing over to sleet and freezing rain Friday into Saturday. The good news is that we'll start getting high temps above freezing on Saturday.

I didn't buy a Samsung so hopefully my new TV won't be spying on me! It's a newer model of the Vizio I had before. It's the same brand my electrical engineer brother has so I can call him for tech support. ;)

Although it's still bitterly cold, today was much more normal than the rest of the week has been. I was thankful that I didn't have to drive any farther to work than I do. I went in to town at lunch time to get my allergy shots and I was able to get a ride with a friend who had a doctor's appointment less than a block away. Her appointment time coincided with the allergy clinic hours. Her husband did the driving. They moved here from Indiana so they have more experience than I do with driving on roads with icy patches.

I finally got back to Augustine's Confessions this evening now that I'm not so distracted by the weather. I'm still on track to finish it by the end of the month. It's taken longer than I had hoped to listen to 1984 so it's looking like I may not complete the audio of Brideshead Revisited before the end of the month. I still have about 1 1/2 segments to go in 1984.

The new TV did not arrive today as promised. :( Hopefully tomorrow so I'll have it for the weekend. I will need to get the cable company to come back next week and replace the outdoor wiring, and I'll need the TV in place by then so that I can make sure it's working properly before they leave.

Our winter storm watch is now a winter storm warning. Sigh. 7 p.m. Tonight through 1 p.m. Tomorrow. I'm scheduled for a presentation tonight and I will probably have to work tomorrow since the person who is supposed to work won't be able to drive in the bad weather. I live close enough to make it in. I will not attempt it if we have freezing rain.

My presentation has been moved from 7 p.m. to 1 p.m. I worked frantically this morning to finish the PowerPoint slides and I even found time to create a LibGuide. :) I also found out that someone else will be available to open the library tomorrow if the scheduled person can't get here. That works out well for me since I'll be dog sitting this weekend. If it was just Adrian I could bring him with me so I wouldn't have to worry if I got stuck at work due to the weather. I couldn't bring two dogs. The guest dog has been known to bite.

It's amazing how some parts of the country are getting so continually slammed with horrible weather this year! It's cold down here in GA, but nothing like what everyone else is experiencing. Of course, that's why I moved South again....

RE: TV non delivery. Call amazon. They'll refund the extra you paid for next day delivery if you ask.

Stay warm, Carrie. The extended cold spell over there is making news over here, especially since we're having a reasonable winter.

>253 Dejah_Thoris: I will inquire about the refund. It's most likely a weather related delay so there may be some fine print that will keep me from getting a refund. It won't hurt to ask, though. I may get more reading done this weekend without a TV in the living room. The only other TV is in the bedroom and I don't want to spend all weekend in bed.

>254 RidgewayGirl: You know it's bad when it makes the international news! We just have to get through tonight and tomorrow morning and then we'll get a break. Apparently it may not last long.

I finished the audio of 1984 this evening for the SFFF Cat. The review will have to wait until tomorrow. I'm too sleepy to write it tonight. Next up in audio is Brideshead Revisited for the British Authors Challenge in the 75 Books Group.

Book 2 in my Everybody's Talkin' category: 1984 by George Orwell
SFFFCat
RandomCat

I can't remember a time when I haven't been aware of the theme of this classic novel. “Big brother is watching you.” Having very much enjoyed a study of Animal Farm in 8th grade, I intended to read 1984 and thought it might be assigned reading in high school. It wasn't. 1984 came and went, and I gradually lost interest in reading the novel. I finally had the opportunity to listen to the audio read by Simon Prebble. The best thing about it was that it was read by Simon Prebble. The story reads like a political treatise thinly disguised as a novel. I didn't care about any of the characters. The political discourse is interesting but repetitive. I don't regret the time I spent listening to the audio because of its cultural significance. I think Animal Farm is a better book. Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 has some similarities to this work, and I think Bradbury's book is better.

3 stars

Next up in audio: Brideshead Revisted by Evelyn Waugh

Book 2 in my New Kid in Town category: Whiskers of the Lion by P. L. Gaus

It's August, and young Amish woman Fannie Hemulth and her friend Howie Dent have been on the run since April. Holmes County, Ohio, Sheriff Bruce Robertson wants to find the pair before the drug gang that's after them. All of his employees have been working overtime to find Fannie and Howie and take them into protective custody. The case is eating at Robertson's confidence. The whole department is shaken when newly promoted Stan Armbruster discovers Howie's body. How had he come back into town without their knowledge? And where is Fannie? Is she dead or alive? When a new lead surfaces, Sheriff Robertson enlists college professor and reserve deputy Mike Branden and his wife Caroline to help locate Fannie and persuade her to testify against the head of the drug gang. Although they're not Amish, they have a sensitivity and an understanding of the Amish community and way of life.

The urgency of the search drives this tightly written procedural. I found it hard to put down. The closely knit community and the descriptions of Holmes County locations combine to give the novel a strong sense of place. Instead of a single protagonist, there is a core of well-developed characters, and I cared about all of them.

This book apparently resolves some unfinished plot elements from the previous book. Enough background is provided for readers who haven't read the previous book so that I didn't feel like I had gaps in my knowledge. If I had realized that there was such a strong connection to the previous book in the series I probably would have read it first. This isn't a cozy series, but it will have crossover appeal for many cozy readers. Highly recommended.

This review is based on an advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

5 stars

>258 cbl_tn: I've really enjoyed the Gaus novels.

>259 thornton37814: I will try to get to more of them soon. I have two more in my TBR stash.

>158 cbl_tn: You make a great argument for the Gaus novels - I may have to give the series a try. Thanks! Btw, I hope you've had a wonderful weekend! And that the TV finally showed up.....

>261 Dejah_Thoris: The Gaus series may be easier to find in libraries now that they're issued by a major publisher. They started out at an academic press.

Still waiting on the TV...

I may be going a little overboard with next month's HistoryCAT. I had planned on reading Brendan by Frederick Buechner and I pulled it off the shelf at the library this morning while I was thinking about it. I peeked at the historical note to see what sources Buechner had influenced Buechner's writing. He mentioned Navigatio Sancti Brendani, and I discovered that a translation of this medieval work is included in The Age of Bede, which we also had in the library. The historical note also mentioned The Brendan Voyage, an account of a re-creation of Brendan's voyage. While I was checking to see if the public library had this (they do), I also discovered Brendan the Navigator and Land to the West. I ended up putting holds on all three books.

I left work early today so that I could shop for groceries pick up some prescription refills, and get home before dark. My driveway is still covered in slush and I'm worried about what will happen when the temperature drops below freezing.

The new TV still has not arrived. I can see from the tracking information that it arrived at a carrier facility in Knoxville around 1 a.m. Saturday, left the carrier facility yesterday evening around 5:30, and arrived at the carrier facility this morning around 9. I hope it's enjoying the local sights. I think it would be difficult to lose a package that size, but I'm beginning to think it may be lost. Either that, or I mistakenly selected 10 day delivery instead of 1 day delivery...

I wonder if your TV will arrive bearing postmarks from Australia and Bolivia?

>264 RidgewayGirl: It might get here faster if it took that route! When I lived in England, I was surprised to get a letter from friends in California in just 4 days when it usually took a week for letters to reach me from the U.S. I noticed that the letter was stamped "missent to Jakarta". After that experience, I wished for all of my mail to travel via Jakarta.

They finally announced a 2 1/2 hour delay this morning so I don't have to be at work until 10 a.m. Maybe they'll have most of the snow cleared off the road by then. If not, I'm not sure what I'm going to do about parking since I have to park on a hill and the road is one way uphill this week due to a special event. I always park facing downhill when there is snow on the road so that I don't get stuck in the parking spot.

Good luck getting around today, Carrie.

>267 RidgewayGirl: Thanks! It wasn't as bad as it could have been. I was able to drive home for lunch. Some of the roads have improved quite a bit since this morning. I'll leave Adrian at home this afternoon since I shouldn't have any trouble getting home at the end of the day.

I just checked the tracking info for my TV and it hasn't budged since 6 a.m. yesterday morning. Meanwhile, just for fun, I once again tried to turn on my dead TV. You know, the one that would not work last week no matter what I tried, and that customer support told me was dead. Guess what? It's working now. Meanwhile I have a new TV on the way that I really don't need now. I may move the resurrected TV into my bedroom and my bedroom TV into the guest room. It came from there in the first place since it was the one my dad used, and I think the wall mount is still on the wall.

What a winter you have had Carrie! I'm just catching up and wish you all the best on your television and weather woes - especially as you were feeling under the weather to start with!

Once the new TV is delivered (late September?) you will officially be living in my son's fantasy home.

>270 VivienneR: Thanks Vivienne! At least I'm feeling better now. Yesterday was a very good day.

>271 RidgewayGirl: And if your son - or any other young person - was living here, I'd be living in my fantasy home, since it would then include someone nimble enough to crawl behind or through the bookcases to plug in the electronics! I haven't managed to train Adrian to do it, and he'd probably chew the power cords if I tried.

>269 cbl_tn: You can always call amazon and tell them that because of the extreme delay that you no longer need it. They should accept the explanation and refund your money. Don't let them drive you crazy!

>263 cbl_tn: Your reading plans for the March HistoryCat sound pretty interesting - I'll be waiting to see which one you like best!

Our winter weather advisory has been upgraded to a winter storm warning through 1 p.m. tomorrow. They're predicting 3-6 inches of heavy wet snow, which means we could have power outages. I am so over this. A colleague who was making a trip to town offered to pick up my prescription so that's one less worry.

>274 cbl_tn: I'm so sorry to hear that you're getting hit again! We've had a considerable amount of rain the last few days and it's been chilly (the cats are not amused) but we're well below the snow line. Please stay safe and warm!

Ewww! I hope that forecast is wrong.

>273 Dejah_Thoris: I'm not sure I trust the old TV now so I think I'll keep the new one if it ever gets here. I'm excited about my March plans. I'll need to work in my ER book if it gets here soon. I found out that I'm getting That's Not English. :)

>277 cbl_tn: That ER book was one I requested but didn't get! I can't remember - do you still need the language BINGO square? How perfect.

I can understand not trusting the old tv. But seriously - call amazon about the delay. This is far beyond what's reasonable for the weather.

>278 Dejah_Thoris: Yes - the language bingo square will give me a diagonal BINGO!

>277 cbl_tn: >278 Dejah_Thoris: I snagged The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook. That should be a good fit for me!

>280 thornton37814: That's a great fit for you!

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Guess what I found outside just now when I took Adrian out? My TV! It must have arrived this afternoon. My cousin was waiting for me when I got home so I was focusing on her and not on boxes left next to my steps. I probably won't try hooking it up until the weekend, just in case we have another power outage that causes "smart" TVs to do stupid things.

It's stopped snowing here and I still have power! I measured about 5 inches in my driveway. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get my car out in that or not. I'll watch and see what happens with my neighbors. The road looks like it has been plowed so I should be able to make it to work if I can get out of the driveway.

Well congratulations on the arrival of our TV! I'm sorry about the snow, though. Stay safe and warm.

>283 Dejah_Thoris: Thanks! I just came home for lunch and the thermometer in my car read 40 degrees! *Swoon* Much of the snow will be gone by the end of the day. There's a chance of a little more snow overnight tonight, but it's coming from the west so it will probably pass north of Knoxville. The end is in sight!

Here are some pictures I took before leaving for work this morning:


My driveway


Someone had already plowed my dead-end road!


The streetlamp glowing in the middle of the trees reminded me of Narnia. Can you spot it?

The snow looks lovely, but I can certainly that you are tired of it. Our OLLI adult education program follows our local county school system concerning closings, and we have already lost 7 days of classes including today -- for a class schedule that started February 2nd. Although we got a lot of snow twice this month, today we got much much less than was forecast, and the roads are fine. It's really discouraging -- my Thursday class which was supposed to start last week has not met yet, and the instructor probably will not be able to hold another make-up session. All of our instructors are volunteers.

You are lucky to have won the That's Not English book; it was the only one I requested, and did not win it. I hope you receive it and enjoy it.

>286 sallylou61: You don't think about how many activities are tied to the school system until one of these unusual spells of bad weather comes along. The last day our county schools were in session was Feb. 13. The 16th (Presidents' Day) was supposed to have been an in-service day for teachers, and the ice storm hit around noon that day. They've had 8 consecutive snow days since then. The state basketball tournaments are supposed to start next week and they haven't yet played the qualifying rounds because of school cancellations. The girls tournament begins earlier than the boys, and some of the girls teams in our part of the state are in danger of having to forfeit participation in the state tournament.

Assuming my ER book isn't one of my few no-shows, I'd be glad to pass it on to you when I've read and reviewed it. Send me a PM with your mailing address and I'll make sure it gets to you.

>285 cbl_tn: Pretty - but I'm glad I'm missing out on it!

>288 Dejah_Thoris: I wish I'd missed out on it, too!

Book 1 in my Second Hand News category: Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth
HistoryCAT

Very little midwifery goes on in this second book of Jennifer Worth's Midwife Trilogy. Instead, the author tells the story of two male patients she cared for, as the midwives of Nonnatus House also performed what we would today call home health nursing for East End residents. First she tells the story of timid Jane, a middle-aged resident at Nonnatus House who assisted the nurses with various tasks; cleaning woman Peggy; and Peggy's fishmonger brother, Frank. These three had known each other as children in one of London's workhouses. The middle section of the book is devoted to elderly Sister Monica Joan and the discovery and consequences of her kleptomania. The final section tells the story of former soldier Joseph Collett, an elderly patient whom Jenny adopted as a surrogate grandfather.

The account of the workhouse experiences presented in the first section of the book is disturbing, but also puzzling. Unlike the other sections of the book where Worth was recalling events that she experienced and stories told to her by a patient, readers are not told how Worth learned the details about the childhood experiences of Jane, Peggy, and Frank. Some of the details are so intimate and so humiliating that it is difficult to believe any of the three would have confided them to a nurse young enough to be their daughter. The children were so young when some of the events occurred that it's hard to believe they had any memories to share of those events. It's hard not to question the extent to which Worth embellished this section, or whether Jane, Peggy, and Frank were real people or composites based on people that Worth encountered as a nurse in the East End.

3.5 stars

>285 cbl_tn:, beautiful photos.

>291 Roro8: Thanks!

Re 287: The weather really is playing havoc with the school schedules. Nearly two weeks' time is a lot of time to miss. I hope that Tennessee has better laws about making up time than Virginia does. Our local school system announced a couple of days ago that they were not going to make up any additional snow days (and they have had at least one snow day since then); they are planning to use unused school make-up days from other school systems which do not use all their make-up days! Thus, our students will lose out on at least several days of school. And the school system is in a region that values education with the University of Virginia and Piedmont Virginia Community College both in the vicinity.

>293 sallylou61: Our county had 10 snow days built into the calendar. They have used 9 of them in the last two weeks. We didn't have any snow in December or January so all ten days were available at the beginning of this current weather pattern. We have had snow in March in the past, but it isn't typical.

>294 cbl_tn: It sounds as if your county did a better job of predicting the necessary number of snow days than ours did.

> 287 I met to say that I hope that the teams in your part of the state will able to compete in both the girls' and boys' state basketball tournaments. It would not be fair for teams to need to forfeit games for conditions over which they have no control.

>295 sallylou61: I think they're trying to working out a solution for the state tournament. I don't think they anticipated a situation like this.

Those are beautiful pictures - with snow exactly the way I like it: in pictures. :)
And congrats on finally receiving your 1-day shipment...

>297 -Eva-: I agree completely! The best snow is the snow in pictures that someone else takes. And that 1 day week shipping service is truly amazing.

Today I'd really like to finish Augustine's Confessions for the HistoryCAT. I just have 3 chapters to go, but they're heavy with philosophy. If only this were Leap Year! I also need to start a new thread this weekend. I think I'll wait until I've reviewed Confessions and posted my February stats so that I can make a fresh start in March.

Book 2 in my Old Days category: Confessions by Augustine
HistoryCAT

The first two thirds of Confessions are largely autobiographical. There is a tendency to think of saints as having been not quite human. Readers who have that impression about Augustine will find themselves mistaken. Among his youthful indiscretions, Augustine recalls playing games with his schoolmates when they were supposed to be studying, disliking his Greek studies, and having a live-in girlfriend with whom he had a child. As a young man, Augustine raised many of the same questions about God and Christianity that are still raised today, such as the nature of God in the Old Testament and inconsistencies between science and the Bible. He describes his surroundings and his daily activities in enough detail that it provides a window into daily life in the Mediterranean world of the 4th century.

After an account of his mother's death, the last third of the book shifts from autobiography to a blend of philosophy and theology. Augustine ponders the nature of memory and time, the mysteries of creation from the Genesis account, and an interpretation of the church through the lens of creation. This is heavy going. Readers more interest in history and biography than in philosophy and theology may choose to stop with chapter 9.

4 stars

February recap

Daisy Jane by America - Books by, about, or inspired by Jane Austen – 1/5

Mystery Lady by Billy Ocean - Books by Agatha Christie – 1/5
Sparkling Cyanide (3.5)

God Save the Queen - Books by British authors for @PaulCranswick’s British Author challenge – 2/5
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (3.5)

My Country ‘Tis of Thee - Books by American authors for @msf59's American Author challenge – 2/5
Daisy Miller by Henry James (4)

Old Days by Chicago - Books read for the HistoryCAT and/or Reading Through Time – 2/5
Confessions by Augustine (4)

In My Life by The Beatles - Family history/genealogy – 1/5

Daniel by Elton John - Books about war – 1/5

Second Hand News by Fleetwood Mac - Borrowed books – 1/5
Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth (3.5)

If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot - Books picked for me – 1/5
A Timely Vision by Joyce Lavene and Jim Lavene (3)

Fantasy by Earth, Wind & Fire - Books for the SFFFCAT – 1/5

Sing by Gary Barlow & the Commonwealth Band- Books for my Commonwealth challenge – 1/5

People by Barbra Streisand – Biographies – 2/5

Everybody’s Talkin’ by Harry Nilsson – Audiobooks – 2/5
*1984 by George Orwell (3)

Sweet Little Mystery by Wet Wet Wet – Mysteries – 1/5

New Kid In Town by the Eagles - New books& ARCs – 2/5
Whiskers of the Lion by P. L. Gaus (5)

Bonus category: Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free reading
The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope (3.5)

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: Whiskers of the Lion by P. L. Gaus
Worst of the month: 1984 by George Orwell

Physical books – owned: 2
Physical books – borrowed: 3
Ebooks – owned: 2
Ebooks – borrowed: 1
Audiobooks – borrowed: 1
ARCs: 1

>300 cbl_tn: I intended to finish Confessions today, but I did housework instead. (This may be the first and only time I'll ever say that!) Oh well, there's always tomorrow... a day late won't hurt, right? I am enjoying it thus far, although I'm still in the part I've read before, for a class in college.

>302 casvelyn: I'm dogsitting this weekend so I was not tempted by housework today. It's hard enough to do any cleaning with one dog in the house. It's practically impossible with two. I did do my dishes and one load of laundry, but nothing else.

Please join me on my new thread!