Ellen reads 75+ in 2015 (part 1)

Abby and me: Go Hawks!

My Rating Scale:

= Perfect. An all-time favorite read! I shall remember this.
= A wonderful read, among my favorites of the year.
= Very good. Definitely recommended.
= Quite good, has several redeeming qualities.
= Pretty good, with a few things done well.
= Average, and life is too short to read average works.
= A bit below average. A waste of time.
= Nearly no redeeming qualities. Really rather bad.
= Among the worst books I've ever read.

Planned January reads

Nemesis by Jo Nesbø shared read with Roberta

British Author Challenge:
How It All Began by Penelope Lively
Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively (with Megan)
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

American Author Challenge II:
The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers

Australia/New Zealand Challenge:
Wanting by Richard Flanagan

Global Reading Challenge (1st quarter = Indian Subcontinent):
The Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee
On Sal Mal Lane by Ru Freeman
The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh

Real Life Book Group:
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

COMPLETED IN JANUARY

1. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming audio
2. The Ballad of the Sad Café {stories} by Carson McCullers
3. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
4. Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively
5. Nemesis by Jo Nesbø
6. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

Seattle in January
Space Needle
Witch Hazel in bloom

Favorite Reads of 2014

How to be both by Ali Smith
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
Crossing the River by Caryl Phillips
Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast
Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukasonga
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

Here we go!! Making my rounds, finding my friends. :)

>7 jolerie: Hi Valerie! Thanks for being my first visitor!

Many of you know that P and I walked 100 miles (or so) on the West Highland Way in Scotland in 2014. We're starting to talk about a walking tour in Tuscany in 2016.





Or maybe a trip to Peru where we would walk the Incan Trail to Machu Picchu...

Dropping in to say hello and leave a star for the future :)

Dropping my star and drooling over the future plans of you and P, Ellen. LOVE the thread topper!!

>10 evilmoose: Hi Megan, and I look forward to getting to know you a bit in 2015!

>11 Crazymamie: Mamie, my dear friend. SO good to see you here!

More planned reads for the year:

Mark's AAC-II Challenge:

January: Carson McCullers - The Ballad of the Sad Cafe and maybe Clock Without Hands
February: Henry James* - Washington Square
March: Richard Ford* - The Sportswriter
April: Louise Erdrich - reread Tracks?
May: Sinclair Lewis* - Babbitt
June: Wallace Stegner - reread Angle of Repose or Crossing to Safety or both (happy sigh)
July: Ursula K. Le Guin - A Wizard of Earthsea
August: Larry McMurtry - Comanche Moon
September: Flannery O' Connor - still undecided
October: Ray Bradbury - Something Wicked This Way Comes and reread The Martian Chronicles
November: Barbara Kingsolver - Reread The Bean Trees, her first and still my fave.
December: E.L. Doctorow* - Ragtime

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Paul's British Author Challenge: (I'm obviously still doing some deciding here.)

January:
Penelope Lively* -- How It All Began and maybe Moon Tiger
Kazuo Ishiguro -- The Remains of the Day

February:
Sarah Waters -- The Paying Guests
Evelyn Waugh* -- Men at Arms

March:
Daphne Du Maurier* --
China Mieville* -- The City & the City

April:
Angela Carter* --
W. Somerset Maugham* --

May:
Margaret Drabble* --
Martin Amis* --

June:
Beryl Bainbridge* --
Anthony Burgess* -- Nothing Like the Sun

July:
Virginia Woolf -- To the Lighthouse
B. S. Johnson* --

August:
Iris Murdoch* -- The Sea, The Sea (and The Bell?)
Graham Greene* -- The End of the Affair

September:
Andrea Levy* -- The Long Song
Salman Rushdie* -- Shame (recommended by Paul)

October:
Helen Dunmore* -- The Siege
David Mitchell -- Cloud Atlas

November:
Muriel Spark* --
William Boyd* -- Restless and/or Waiting for Sunrise

December:
Hilary Mantel -- Bring Up the Bodies
P.G. Wodehouse --

* Author whose work I have not read.

Dropping off my star! And my vote (I get one, right?) is for the walking tour of Tuscany. I love it there....

Happy new year, my friend!

Hi Ellen - Starred. You have very ambitious reading planned for 2015. Good luck!

Hi Ellen! Good luck with your impressive list of potentials!

Gorgeous pic of the Space Needle. I have lived at Ft Lewis twice and have many fond memories of the area. Good luck in the coming year

Hi, Ellen!

Your reading for next year looks good. The AAC seems doable, but Paul is certainly putting me on my mettle with the BAC.

Just thinking about hiking the Machu Picchu triail makes me want to lie down and soak my feet.

I'm looking forward to keeping up with things a bit better in the coming year.

Hi Ellen! Dropping a star, of course.

>3 EBT1002: Very cool that you're reading Station Eleven for the real life book club. I want to get to that one soonish.

>13 EBT1002: Of course, it's none of my business, but have you considered Brideshead Revisited for your Waugh selection? Just curious. :-)

Welcome back! Looking forward to hearing about your 2016 walking plans - Tuscany is a fave of ours!

>14 katiekrug: Katie, nice to see you here and -- of course you get a vote! I'm leaning toward Tuscany myself but P keeps noting that we might want to tackle the Inca Trail before we get too old.... hmph.

>15 BLBera: Hi Beth and thanks for stopping by. I am a bit daunted by my own reading plans for 2015. I reserve the right to fall short, change plans, or just go rogue. I will be determined to make the 75 mark; other than that, whatever.

>16 The_Hibernator: Thank you, Rachel, and see my note to Beth above. :-)

>17 xymon81: Thanks, xymon81! I feel lucky to live in such a beautiful city. Of course, right now we all have Seahawks fever, big time!

>18 Matke: Hello, Gail, and nice to see you! I admit that I'm leaning heavily toward Tuscany for the next serious walking tour. I understand that the question of how many bottles of wine one can reasonably carry in one's daypack can emerge, though.... Ha!

I agree that Paul has thrown down the gauntlet with his BAC. I think a lot of people are alternating, reading one of his authors each month rather than both. I'm going to attempt both along with Mark's American author of the month. As I have said before, I reserve the right to fall short, change plans, or go rogue.

>19 DorsVenabili: Kerri, my friend, I'm glad you're here. I'm looking forward to Station Eleven. It's a bit outside my usual genre but I predict that I'll enjoy it.

I have considered Brideshead Revisited for the Evelyn Waugh selection. You have mentioned that you like it a lot, I believe. My issues is that I have this copy of Men at Arms on the TBR shelf and I'm not sure I'll otherwise be motivated to read it. (I have no memory of what led me to purchase the darn thing!) It seems unlikely that I'd want to read both in February, right?

>20 drneutron: Hi Jim and thank you! I love Tuscany. We went there in 2007, did a bit of a wine tour (primarily Tuscany and Provence, starting with the city of Florence and ending with the city of Paris). It was marvelous and I would love to go back.

I've hiked the Machu Picchu trail - and discovered that being obliged to book with a tour guide and so have my tent carried, and all my food provided for me, was something not to be sniffed at. On the 2nd or 3rd night there is a quite high altitude camp, and just about everyone seemed to be suffering from altitude sickness to one degree or another. As a result I was happily sitting at the deserted dinner table helping myself to seconds and thirds and fourths of the most delicious dinner :)

It's quite beautiful country, but I suspect Tuscany is probably gorgeous as well!

Hi Ellen, dropping my and looking forward to your readings.

>22 EBT1002: I've never read anything else by Waugh, so I can't compare, but, yes, Brideshead Revisited is superb and a favorite of mine. It would definitely make my top ten of all time list. Of course, perhaps Men at Arms will be a wonderful reading experience. Reading from the shelves always seems like a good idea to me. (Also, I'm trying not to be pushy.) :-)

Hi Ellen! I love several of the books on your 2014 favorites. Looking forward to seeing what you read in 2015.

I love that thread topper pic! Stopping by to drop a star. I am looking forward to following your reading in 2015, Ellen!

I will admit that for the BAC I am thinking about choosing to read one monthly author's book and then watch the film adaptation - if one exists - of the other author's book. That is my plan anyways to keep sane with all of the challenges I have committed myself to. ;-)

>23 evilmoose: Megan, I admit to being a bit daunted by the altitude issues. P assures me that we would settle in at about 7K for a few days before heading into the clouds. I love the idea of getting to enjoy all the great food while everyone else was passed out with altitude sickness!

>24 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. I believe we are all in for another stellar year. (heh)

>25 DorsVenabili: Well, how about this? I'll read Men at Arms to get it off my shelf, and if I love it (or even like it), I'll get around to Brideshead Revisited in the next year or so. Top ten all time is quite high praise. And no worries about being pushy. Around here we are always trying to influence one another to read what we love. It's one of the best things about LT! I mean, where else do you get to say to someone, "hey, just read this, okay?" and have them actually do it!!??

>26 porch_reader: Hi Amy! Thanks for the drive by! 2014 was a good reading year and I have high hopes for 2015!

>27 lkernagh: Thanks, Lori! Your tentative alternative plan for approaching the BAC is interesting. One of my vague plans for 2015 is to see more films which will, of course, cut into my reading time. I like that you're thinking of how to manage that while attending to the ambitious challenges here!

Dear Ellen, always comforting to see my good friends back in the group for another year. I hardly need say that I shall be a regular visitor here. xx

Nice new thread and great photos, Ellen! I look forward to your reading and traveling plans for 2015.

>29 PaulCranswick: I'm looking forward to another year of excellent reading and talking about reading, Paul! I'm glad you're back in a robust way. You're a pillar of LT for me.

>30 kidzdoc: Hi Darryl! I'm glad you like the photo of Abby and me as well as possible travel destinations for 2016. We won't do a lot of traveling in 2015 (first week of March on Kauai notwithstanding) as we save up money and days, and make some plans for our next big adventure. My 2015 birthday does end in "5" so we'll have to do something special, but it may just be a couple of weeks in British Columbia by the side of a peaceful lake, stack of books at hand.

I can't help it. I just love this photo.

Hi Ellen! Love your photos, and how exciting to be considering such wonderful travel destinations! Superbowl repeat... not so much, but as I feel this is not the Broncos' year, you may as well:)

Happy New Year!

Posted my star, I've started Station Eleven and like its beginning, and feeling jealous about a hiking trip in Tuscany. For some reason the alternative is not one which calls to me so I'm hoping for Tuscany and I can enjoy the vicarious thrills, and photographs.

I loved Sunday's game, first half not counted. The second half more than made up for the "oh, no" and "what are they doing?" in the first. I've found myself a nice spot in front of my friend's big screen TV (50 inches); I need to be sure to bring the good snacks so I don't wear out my welcome.

Machu Picchu is on my bucket list but whether I ever get there is another matter. I'm not a fan of walking at all, I hate the plodding and I have very little stamina, but I'd make an exception to see there.

>35 lunacat: You could always get to Machu Picchu the easy way - you can just catch a bus there, then you just have the walking around the site to do, which is too distractingly interesting to be ploddy.

Hey there, Ellen. I love your big reading and walkabout plans! My plans are less intensive. I may alternate between the AAC and BAC some months…and my walking is the neighborhood trail six days a week with DH and Lucky! A star for the new year…

Hi Ellen! Looking forward to being more active on LT in 2015. I think I've also seen a few comments about a possible Portland meetup in the New Year. If that happens, I'm going to try my best to get there. I loved meeting up with all the LTers at 2014 Great Portland Meetup.

What, there's a bus? How did I not know this? I shall go and wait for said bus at my nearest bus stop right this second.

Me, too. Just trying to find out where that Machu Picchu connection is.

Hi Ellen--I was mostly absent from LT in 2014, and your busy thread was one of the hardest to keep up with. I'm planning to do better this year--we have very similar reading tastes and I did enjoy vicariously accompanying you to Scotland briefly last year.

Hi Ellen, I love the photos you've shared. I think a walking tour of Tuscany sounds absolutely amazing! I hope you and P do embark on this tour so I can walk vicariously through you.

I just learned that I'm getting a copy of The Accident by Chris Pavone from the December Early Reviewers. We shall see how I like it.

>33 AMQS: Anne, you should not give up on your Broncos so quickly. They made it to the playoffs (and don't they get a first-week bye?). You never know what's going to happen.

>34 maggie1944: I'm with you, Karen. I'm truly more interested in Tuscany but I do think Peru would be very interesting. I mean: Inca ruins. It would lead to some good reading in preparation, I bet.

Sunday's game was half fun! Thankfully, it was the second half that was fun. The Seahawks are definitely a second-half team and I'm still very impressed with our defense. And yes to snacks. We toasted our own pita chips (cut them in triangles, sprinkle or spray with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, bake for 8-10 minutes at 275F, flipping them over halfway through). Those and good hummus and we were all set!

>35 lunacat: Jenny, P has been to Peru and Machu Picchu and loved it. It's why she wants me to get there.....

>44 EBT1002: Ellen, we were on our honeymoon (more than 25 years ago) for six months travelling through South America. We spent one months in Peru and were the most time in the Andes also on Machu Picchu. We were travelling on our own not with a group and for visiting Machu Picchu this was a real adventure but worth every minute.

We were not so virtuous, re: snacks for football game, we ate full suit potato chips, with salt! And a spinach cream cheese etc. dip. I drank a root beer! Party time!

I've been reading Station Eleven today and I'm about half way through. It has grabbed me and I keep wanting to get back to it.

Love the photo of you and Abby! Happy New Year, Ellen, and happy reading!

Happy New Beginning, Ellen! I swear I thought I had stopped by and left a message but I must have just starred it, early on. I am sure you will forgive your pal.
I am looking forward to sharing another fantastic reading year with you. I still can not believe the friendships that have developed over here. What a wonderful thing.

>39 lunacat: >40 jnwelch: Pretty sure there was something about clicking your heels three times and then some sort of password, then the bus would be able to collect you from most available bus stops. The instructions seemed kind of complicated, so it didn't really look into it.

>49 evilmoose: Hmm, perhaps I'll go along to my bus stop and try various different things in order to summon the Machu Picchu bus. Maybe dancing anti-clockwise under a full moon with a flip-flop on each ear might do it?

>32 EBT1002: Me too!

Happy New Year to you and P! Your walking plans sound out of this world fantastic! Can't I come along as your walking stick repair person?

Happy new year,Ellen! I'm going to try to keep up with your thread much better this year. I love the walking in Tuscany idea - do you know where in Tuscany it'd be? We had a month in Italy in 2003 and Florence, Siena and Assisi were some of the highlights.

May all your wishes come true.

Happy New Year, Ellen!

Dear Ellen



Happy New Year from your friend in Kuala Lumpur

Happy New Year, Ellen. Go Seahawks -- although Denver is my back up team, so I might have to cheer against you at some point. Still friends, though, right?

I hope you're having a relaxing start to the new year and that you have a great year of reading. And you will if you read even half of your planned reads!

Popping in straight to the bottom of your thread to say "howdy" and Happy New Year!

I'm working today. Boo. See you around. :-)

Happy New Year, Ellen! May it be filled with fabulous!

Happy New Year, Ellen!

Happy New Year, Ellen!

Currently reading:

Currently listening:

>45 Ameise1: Hi Barbara. It feels like I need to decide between adventure and relaxation. I love both but I need one or the other at different times.
In addition to our musings about Peru and Tuscany for a walking adventure, we're starting to think about a shorter trip for this coming August. I'll be turning 55 and I'd like to do something fun for just about a week. London? Alaska?

I'm already so far behind I can't stand it. I will say, however, that your Abby looks for all the world like my dear departed Dandy - what a darling he was!
And I'll be back to see what you think of Station Eleven. It's in my price range for Kindle, but I'm trying not to buy stuff just because I can.
Oops. I forgot....... HAPPY 2015!!!!

>46 maggie1944: It sounds like you devoured Station Eleven, Karen! I will start it later this evening.

>47 lit_chick: Thank you, Nancy!

>48 msf59: Hello Mark and thank you for the new year's wishes. I agree that the friendships that have developed here are wonderful. I hope to manage another meet-up with you when I come through Chicago again this spring!

>49 evilmoose: LOL, Megan --- P has told some amazing and terrifying tales of bus rides in Peru, as well as in Ecuador. I think these rides are not for the timid. Or perhaps not for the sane!

>50 lunacat: "Maybe dancing anti-clockwise under a full moon with a flip-flop on each ear might do it?"
Maybe. Ha.
And thank you for the New Year wishes, Jenny!

>51 DorsVenabili: I thought you might. :-)

>52 Carmenere: "Can't I come along as your walking stick repair person?"
Oh, Lynda, absolutely! Or you could just carry my day pack. :-)

>53 cushlareads: Hi Cushla and thank you! I believe the walking tour we're looking at is centered around Montepulciano. We had a lovely time in Tuscany in 2007. I agree about Florence and Siena being highlights. I also loved Pienza and the whole area around Montalcino and Montepulciano. And of course, we loved hiking through the Cinque Terre.

>54 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara!

>55 maggie1944: and Karen!

>56 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul!

>57 ronincats: Thank you, Roni! How fitting that your wishes come via a lovely sandy beach!

>58 BLBera: Hi Beth and thank you for the new year's wishes! Yes, if my Seahawks and your Broncos meet, we'll be enemies for just one day. But really, yes, still friends!! Darryl and I survived the Seahawks' defeat of his Eagles, so I know it can be done. :-)

So far my new year is off to a good start with a walk around the zoo today, taking down our tree, and a bit of LTing, but I haven't yet read a single page. I'll soon fix that.

>59 luvamystery65: Roberta, I'm sorry you had to work today! Happily, I have today and the next three days off. Tomorrow is an Ellen-day. P has to work and I get to do whatever I want! There are a few things I want to pick up at the store (and it's exciting stuff, mind you --- I want a small hand-held vacuum cleaner), but I do plan to do some serious reading!

>60 Crazymamie: Mamie showed up! How lovely! Happy New Year to you, as well, my friend!

>61 scaifea: Thank you, Amber!

>62 DorsVenabili: Thank you, Kerri! That is a charming champagne-drinking robot. Anything to do with your username? (lord, do I feel silly)

>66 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I know you miss your darling Dandy, as I still miss my departed Edgar every single day. Thank you for stopping by and for the 2015 wishes!

Found you and starred again. Happy New Year and may it be a happy, healthy book-filled year. : )

Happy new year! I love the space needle picture.

Happy New Year Ellen - I spent today watching football and not reading. Happy for my Ducks!

Decided to get here and star threads. Looking forward to another fun year here. Hope we can work out a meetup again at some point.

Hope 2015 is good to you and yours.

>72 Berly: thanks, Kim! Glad you're here!

>73 banjo123: hi Rhonda! Cool picture!

>74 SuziQoregon: Hi Juli! I was actually cheering for your Ducks today, odd though that is. I'm a former Beav & now a Husky but I'm getting on the PAC-12 train. Best to you in 2015!

I've started reading The Ballad of the Sad Cafe this evening. What a gift with language McCullers has! (had)

Happy New Year and new thread! :)

Happy New Year Ellen. I love the sound of your 2016 walking plans. If it were me I would opt for Tuscany but that is probably because I am a wimp when it comes to physical exertion!

I'm going to be reading Ballad of the Sad Cafe, too, Ellen. Good to hear your early positive reaction. It's going to a challenge (well, duh) to do both Mark's AAC and Paul's BAC this year. Lots of good reading, though.

I hope Station Eleven draws you right in. Well-written page-turners don't come along every day.

We are practically reading twins, Ellen! I am also reading Station Eleven, and I am listening to The Ballad of the Sad Cafe. You are so right - Carson McCullers used her words well; she has a lovely way with telling a story. Hoping that today is kind to you, my friend.

>77 saraslibrary: Thank you, Sara, and Happy 2015 to you, as well!

>78 SandDune: Hello, Rhian! It will be interesting to see where we land on the walking-in-2016 question. Now our conversations have turned to Alaska-in-2015. I might have to make that the theme for my 2015 threads!

>79 jnwelch: Hi Joe! I've read the first two stories in The Ballad of the Sad Cafe. I have to admit that I'm not sure I completely "got" the ending of the first ("The Ballad of the Sad Cafe") but it was lovely and moving and beautifully written. "Wunderkind" was also lovely and heartbreaking.

>80 Crazymamie: Of course we are, Mamie! :-)
I haven't actually started Station Eleven yet but I will do so today. I also plan to listen more to my Alan Cumming memoir as I drive around on my errands.
Carson McCullers was a serious talent, in my mind. I wish she had lived longer to create more beautiful literature for us.

I have today off. It's a legitimate vacation day. P is at work and I have the whole day to myself. A few errands to run: take some things to the Good Will, pick up a couple of books on hold at the library, shop for a mini-vacuum, pick up a take-and-bake pizza for tonight's Husky bowl game..... This morning I plan to go for a good long walk with Not My Father's Son in the earbuds. This afternoon I plan to read: The Ballad of the Sad Cafe and Station Eleven are on the docket.

But here is the thing: when I have a day like this, I get so anxious! It's really odd. I feel like I should be "doing something" and I feel very at loose ends. I long for these days and when I get them, it's hard for me to fully enjoy them. Regular holidays, weekends --- I'm fine with those. But solo stay-cation days are weirdly disorienting.

Still, I'll give it my best shot. :-)

Ellen - I know EXACTLY what you mean about days of leisure. My theory is that I've lost the ability to relax. It sounds like you have a lovely day ahead. I do have to go to work, but it will be quiet, and I should get a lot done.

Enjoy your day of just reading and not being busy. Such days are like a treasur.

>70 EBT1002: Darryl and I survived the Seahawks' defeat of his Eagles, so I know it can be done. :-)

Hmph. *grumbles bitterly*

Carson McCullers was an amazing writer. I'm reading her fifth and final novel, Clock Without Hands, and it's superb so far.

>83 BLBera: Thanks for the validation, Beth. I just got back from a vigorous (and chilly) 55-minute walk, listening to Not My Father's Son along the way. It was just what I needed.
I do hope your day at work is quiet! And productive. :-)

>84 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara. So far, it's turning out to be a good day. I think running a few errands, now that I've exercised with an audio book, will help me feel I can enjoy it.

>85 kidzdoc: Maybe next year, Darryl. Unless the Seahawks decide to try for a three-Pete. :-)

I purchased a copy of Clock Without Hands last week and may read it as well this month. The themes are of particular interest to me. Really, my goal is to read everything she wrote, although not necessarily this month. I can't say that I've done that with very many authors and she is a good one to add to my (hopefully growing) list.

Is there a word for that? For reading an author's complete oeuvre?

I assume you're not looking for "obsession"? :)

Chiming in to say that your walking plans sound fantastic. I have always wanted to do some of the Camino de Santiago. Not that I am especially religious but the walk looks really fun.

Shall be interested to hear what you think of Station Eleven. I liked it MUCH more than I thought I would.

I'm going to be reading a novel by a friend about a medieval walk along the Camino de Santiago this year, "Pilgrimage", by Lucy Pick. (no touchstone??)

(love the pic. It's as if you accidentally grew a cat on your shoulder...)

>86 EBT1002: I like the word "completist," but I don't think it's actually a word. However, that doesn't stop me from using it. Ha!

I hope you've managed to enjoy your free day. I do know what you mean regarding the anxiety caused by a day without obligations. I hope you managed to have a nice, lovely, relaxing day anyway.

I'll be starting The Ballad of the Sad Cafe soon. Probably tomorrow.

1. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming




Some of you will be surprised that my first completed book of the new year is an audiobook!
This is a memoir of childhood abuse. It is also a memoir of the discovery, catalyzed by Alan's planned appearance on the British television show, "Who Do You Think You Are?" of tremendous family secrets. It was narrated by the man himself and I believe this added significantly to my enjoyment as he was naturally able to express important nuances of emotion as he tells the story of exploring heartrending questions of his own paternity. As this journey of discovery is unfolding, Alan also learns through the television show's research about his grandfather, Tommy Darling, who died somewhat mysteriously while working for the police force in Malaya (now Malaysia) long before Alan was born. At times funny, at times painful, and almost always poignant, Alan shares these parallel aspects of his life experience and his family history without bitterness or rancor. His deep love for his brother, Tom, and his mother, Mary Darling, provides the foil for his raw rage at his father. He is only occasionally self-promotional; when he is, it is with an edge of cynicism as well as gratitude for his own ability to turn his terrorized childhood into a successful career and a happy adulthood. This memoir was a delight to listen to and I will now consider memoirs as a genre perhaps well-suited to the audio format.

You finished it! You go, girl!! Nice review - thumb from me if you posted it to the book's page. Adding it to my giant WL.

>87 BLBera: Ha, Beth! I definitely have a bit of obsessiveness in my personality but it hasn't manifested all that much in completing authors' oeuvres.

>88 Oberon: Hi Oberon (and I'll have to go find out who you are). I am also very interested in walking the Camino de Santiago. I have a friend who walked it this past fall; she had just retired and went with a friend for the whole 500 miles in 7 weeks. It sounds wonderful! Nor am I religious, but the history, culture, and the landscape would be my focus. I'd probably try to do some relevant reading, of course. :-)

>89 Chatterbox: Hello Suz. I can't wait to hear how you like that novel about the medieval walk of the Camino de Santiago! Lucy Pick --- I'll have to keep an eye out. (the touchstone for her takes me to Lucy K Pick.... not sure if that is correct.)

>90 DorsVenabili: Hey Kerri. I like "completist" too. My computer, at least, doesn't give me a red squiggly line when I type it, for what that is worth.

I have managed to enjoy my day. I think it helped that I went for a long walk (you know, that feels "productive") and then ran some errands. It's not raining but it is a gray day, bitterly cold by Seattle standards, so I hereby get to spend the rest of the day inside in sweats with LT and books!

How was your day off?

>92 Crazymamie: Okay, Mamie, I'll post it, although I don't think it's one of my better "reviews." But a thumbs-up from you is worth it!

This, to me, is a classic example of Carson McCullers' descriptive style:

"As he watched, the jockey raised his chin and tilted his head back to one side, his dwarfed body grew rigid, and his hands stiffened so that his fingers curled inward like gray days."

The emphasis is mine. It's that last passage that I particularly love.

Ellen - Nice review of the Cummings book - I just picked it up from the library -- must get to it soon. Ah, the pressure. Completist is very nice. You're also making me want to reread some McCullers. Or maybe I should pick one of hers that I haven't read...

2. The Ballad of the Sad Café by Carson McCullers




Composed of the eponymous novella and a handful of accompanying short stories, this collection provides the expected pleasure of reading. Her descriptive style is beautiful.

The novella is set in the "dreary" town of Cheehaw where Miss Amelia, a tough independent woman with an interesting past, provides the region's best moonshine liquor to local residents. Her liquor is described thus:

It is clean and sharp on the tongue but once down a man it glows inside him for a long time afterward. And that is not all. It is known that if a message is written with lemon juice on a clean sheet of paper there will be no sign of it. But if the paper is held for a moment to the fire then the letters turn brown and the meaning becomes clear. Imagine that the whiskey is the fire and that the message is that which is known only in the soul of a man -- then the worth of Miss Amelia's liquor can be understood.

As far as anyone knows, Miss Amelia doesn't have much in the way of kin and everyone in town is flabbergasted with Cousin Lymon comes along, claims to be a distant relation, and immediately moves in with Miss Amelia. The two of them build a regular café around the thriving liquor business and for a few years it's the best place to be on a Friday night. The mood changes, however, when Miss Amelia's husband of several years ago shows up. Marvin Macy has been released from the penitentiary, where he landed after several armed robberies. His marriage to Miss Amelia hadn't lasted but ten days, and those weren't happy ones, but he comes back to see what's happening at the old place. The way things shift is surprising and eccentric. I'm still not sure I understand the ending but it is, again, most beautifully descriptive.

"Wunderkind" is the story of a teenage girl coming to terms with the end of her dream of being a concert pianist. What's especially tender about this story is McCullers' way of presenting the problem. We've all heard of musicians who are technically talented but can't effectively inject emotion into their performance; McCullers weaves this tragedy into Frances' interactions with her teacher in a way that is both touching and terrible. One wonders how heavily she drew on her own experiences as a talented teenaged pianist.

"The Jockey" takes place in the space of an hour or so in the upscale dining room of a racing venue and is really just an illustration of a jockey's frustration and grief. It includes one of my favorite descriptions: "As he watched, the jockey raised his chin and tilted his head back to one side, his dwarfed body grew rigid, and his hands stiffened so that his fingers curled inward like gray days" (emphasis added). That is classic Carson McCullers.

"Madam Zilensky and the Kind of Finland" is a delightful short story. Mr. Brook, a professor of music, is certain that something is "wrong" as he gets to know the new instructor, Madame Zilensky. Still, her teaching is so effective that Ryder College is lucky to have her. What, it turns out, is "wrong" is so subtle that the reader can't help but laugh. The nature of truth and the permeability of reality are questioned so charmingly in less than ten pages!

The final three stories in the collection follow suit. I particularly liked "A Domestic Dilemma," with its compassionate exploration of the nature of marital commitment, and the intricately intertwined rage, disappointment, compassion, and love.

If you enjoy a finely wrought descriptive passage and beautiful similes and metaphors, this collection is highly recommended.

Two books down already - aren't we all doing well!

Have a lovely weekend, Ellen and don't strain your eyes. xx

>91 EBT1002: Ellen, I have this on my Kindle TBR list (I wish I had the audio) and I think your review has moved it up quite a bit.

Ellen, I wish you a fabulous weekend full of reading.

I believe you are still "on vacation" today and so I wish for you a day full of doing exactly what you want to do, and enjoying that freedom! I'm working with Instacart, and now that I'm an experienced shopper I do not get those long hours of sitting in the car, in the parking lots, reading. Boo. I like the additional money, but I do miss my hours of "enforced reading time". Oh, well, it probably was too good to continue.

I'm nearing the end of The Member of the Wedding and totally agree that McCullers use of language is a wonderful treat. She is describing a small southern town in summer and I am warmed by her descriptions despite our cold weather.

Ellen, just stopping by to casually mention (and twist your arm a little) that reading Brideshead Revisited is a great idea! It's on my top 10 list as well...a great book followed by a nearly-perfect adaptation (the original with Anthony Andrews and Jeremy Irons). It's an amazing reading experience, and holds up to re-reading.

Not that I'm pushing or anything...

>96 BLBera: Beth, if you have not yet read The Ballad of the Sad Café, I do recommend it. I have now posted my review in >97 EBT1002:.

>98 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! It helps to have been almost done with that audio book and then to pick up a delightful and very short collection of stories! I'm off to a good start this year. :-)

>99 CDVicarage: Kerry, I do hope you read and enjoy Not My Father's Son very soon. I know that others have read rather than listened to it and still liked it quite a bit. I just love Alan Cummings' voice and Scottish accent.

>100 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara. I do love that you so regularly find adorable lambs or sheep to leave for me. Perfect for the woman who trekked across Scotland last year. :-)

>101 maggie1944: Karen, it's cool that your Instacart business has taken off a bit! It seems like it would be a bit cold sitting in the car waiting for an order, anyway, although with good gloves the reading could be nice.

I have a copy of The Member of the Wedding as well as Clock Without Hands and I'm tempted to prioritize them this month. However, you'll be happy to know that I started reading Station Eleven last evening and I'm effectively sucked in. :-)

>102 Matke: Gail! Actually, you are pushing (which is fine with me!) and you know I can't resist when two or more of my reading buddies gang up on me like this. If both you and Kerri have Brideshead Revisited on your list of all-time top ten novels, how can I not read it? Maybe I can get a used copy.....

Loved your review of Not My Father's Son and thumbed you. I also added this to my OWL. I am very picky about memoirs that I'll read and I think since I respect this man as an artist and from your review that I'll enjoy reading this.

I hope you managed to have a really relaxing day to yourself yesterday.

Wow, excellent reviews of the Alan Cummings memoir and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, Ellen. Both duly thumbed. I'll be reading the latter soon for the AAC. You've piqued my interest in hearing memoirs on audio; it makes sense that the author's voice would add to it.

Finally got round to your thread and all caught up with you Ellen! Tuscany sounds like such a huge sacrifice to make! Of course I can't wait to see the pictures. You get two thumbs up on those reviews. I loved the Alan Cumming too as you know and you did a fine job describing it. I revisited Ballad of the Sad Café in 2013 and still remember it faintly; your review helped bring it back to me. Something I'll eventually revisit. I'll look forward to your comments on Clock Without Hands, haven't read that one and don't own it either.

I see several people are reading Station Eleven this month and enjoying it too. I'll try to fit it in if I can.

Happy New Year dear friend!

Ellen, congratulations on beginning the year with two HOT reviews. Slow down, Woman, I don't want you to run out of steam! As for relaxing without guilt... I don't think that happens until retirement. I am getting quite good at it.

>91 EBT1002: Impressed that you finished it so quickly! I agree that memoirs work well as audiobooks. Another good one (I was just saying this to Rhian too) is Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal with the author reading it.

>97 EBT1002: Sigh. I think you may have convinced me to read the stories too, especially the two about musicians.

>102 Matke: and >103 EBT1002: Ok. I was going to totally drop it, but see?! I told you, Ellen. :-)

Lots of great reading and listening going on Ellen! We may turn you into an audiobook lover after all.

I picked up a copy of Nemesis from the library. I'll be ready whenever you say Go.

Currently listening:


I started listening to this while running several car errands today and it's quite engaging. I can't believe I'm listening to a novel which is, so far, a lot of chemistry and engineering and botany.... Nerd heaven!

>110 EBT1002: I knew you were converting into an audiophile. Bwahaha!!!

How am I 111 posts behind already!

Happy New Year of reading, Ellen. I also loved the Chast book and bought a copy of A Tale for the Time Being not too long ago so I'm glad to see it on your favorites list for 2014.

Ballad of the Sad Cafe is up next for me. It's been years and years since I've read Carson McCullers.

>1 EBT1002: Adorable!

>104 cameling: Hey Caro. I hope you enjoy Not My Father's Son. I'm not a huge reader of memoirs, although I have forayed rather happily into graphic memoirs in the past couple of years. This is a really good one.

>105 jnwelch: Hi Joe. I predict that you'll like Ballad of the Sad Café when you get to it. I'm really pleased that Mark selected McCullers to kick of the year!

>106 Smiler69: Hi Ilana and thank you for the New Year wishes! I feel like my year is off to a very good reading start. I've completed two excellent books and now I'm deeply engaged with two more, neither of which falls into my usual genres.

>107 Donna828: Hi Donna. Have no fear, I will keep going for the whole year although perhaps not at this pace. I'm a turtle, not a hare.

"As for relaxing without guilt... I don't think that happens until retirement."
Sigh. I figured that to be the case. I'm glad you're enjoying retirement and I will hope that I get to fully enjoy it in about a decade. :-)

Meanwhile, I will relish weekends and vacations. We are now planning Alaska in August 2015, putting Peru and Tuscany on hold for another year.

Nerd heaven sounds good! I have heard of that one around the place- OK, obviously I mean this place :)
Oh, and Happy New Year and Happy new thread and happy Christmas (yes, it has been that long). Nice to be back! I have been more off than on lately, with festive nights away and the like.

>108 DorsVenabili: I have a copy of Why Be Normal When You Could Be Happy in print form and I hope to read it sometime this year, remembering that you liked it a lot. I'll have to keep an eye out for another memoir narrated by the author.

I'd be interested in your take on the stories in The Ballad of the Sad Café. Music plays a very minor role in "Madam Zilensky and the King of Finland" but it's an interesting study.

And yes, you did tell me. I usually listen to you but it always helps to have an ally!

>109 luvamystery65: Hi Roberta! I just got the word that my hold on Nemesis has been activated to I expect to get it sometime in the coming week. I'll give you a shout!

>111 luvamystery65: As I am having to transition from running more to walking, I expect the audiophile hidden deep within me to emerge! :-)

>112 Copperskye: Hi Joanne! The Roz Chast book really took off near the end of the year and I think it well deserved the attention. Not everyone loved A Tale for the Time Being but it spoke to me nicely.

I'm glad you like the photo of Abby and me! :-)

>114 LovingLit: Well, hello Megan and happy belated solstice, christmas, and new year to you, as well! I'm glad you're back although "festive nights away" sounds like a good enough excuse.

A Tale for the Time Being spoke nicely to me, too, Ellen. Some books end up being universally, more or less, liked or respected. It's interesting how this one just doesn't connect for some people.

Wow, Ellen. I have read The Ballad of the Sad Cafe and Member of the Wedding. Two books finished already? You're on track to read about 20 this year if you keep going like this.

Ellen, just wanted to make sure that you had seen my thanks on the 2014 Christmas Swap thread for the two books you sent. I am looking forward to reading both of them very much!

Hi Ellen! Another vote for Brideshead Revisited here. I listened to an audiobook narrated by Jeremy Irons that was positively spellbinding. Truly an astonishing performance, and one of my favorites.

Happy Saturday, Ellen! It looks like you are on a mighty fine book-roll, my friend. I am so glad you loved The Ballad of the Sad Café. I will start my copy tomorrow, once I finish I will return to read your review.
Glad to hear you are loving the Martian and I hope you find any excuse to keep listening. It is that kind of book. Hugs!

Days of leisure are the best... as fleeting as they may be. I hope you enjoyed the day! Not sure I am up for the Cummings book. May just shelve that away as a recommended book. I will add The Ballad of the Sad Cafe to my ever growing reading list. I am currently reading The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and I love McCullers writing style and the way she presents her characters/setting. Beautiful stuff.

Ooooohhhhh..... I loved my audio experience of The Martian! You are in for a treat, unless the over kill of science becomes a bit of a drag.... but it would in print format as well. At least with audio, you can zone ut during the science bits, which is what I did. ;-)

>117 jnwelch: Hi Joe. Yes, it's interesting that A Tale for the Time Being is one novel that connected for some and not for others. I don't really know how to account for that.

>118 BLBera: Hi Beth! I'm assuming you mean I'm on track to complete 200 at this pace, but I am confident that will not happen. I will commit to 75 and hope for 100+ but 200 is out of reach until I retire. :-)

>119 SandDune: Rhian! I did see your comments on Mark's Christmas Swap and I'm glad the books I sent are appealing to you. I hope you enjoy them!

>120 AMQS: Thank you, Anne! You are now the third vote for Brideshead Revisited and I am nothing if not a team player, so I'll be seeking out a copy for the Evelyn Waugh month of the BAC.

>110 EBT1002: Woo! I just finished the audiobook, and I really enjoyed the narrator, I think he did a good job. If you're anything like me you'll be done within a couple of days, because it's so hard to stop listening to the thing!

>124 evilmoose: Megan, I think you're right. It's totally addictive although my history with audio books is less than stellar. My life doesn't really allow for a lot of listening, although I think I could more fully embrace this medium for my bus rides. I hate listening to inane conversations around me on the bus!

Stopping by for a Sunday visit to stay caught up. Still trying to adjust to audio books, but so far only enjoy short stories in that mode. I've some Shakespeare, though, that I think would be ideal in that format, following with the text.

I listened to The Martian on audio last year, Ellen, and I absolutely loved it. SO much humor in that book, and the narrator nails the character, I thought.

Happy Sunday, dear!

Ah, you got me with a Habibi book bullet on Mark's thread. I came over to see if you'd started it (and of course to wish you the best in 2015).

Happy New Year, Ellen!

Fabulous review of The Ballad of the Sad Café, Ellen! I'm thrilled to see all of the McCullers love so early in the year.

Loved The Martian and Habibi. Trying to resist The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, but it is...so...hard!

>115 EBT1002: Someone reminded me of this yesterday: Even though memoirs work well as audiobooks, we're often missing out on photos. I bet there are a lot of great ones in Why Be Happy... that I missed. Let me know. Maybe I'll check it out at the library. There were some good ones in the Cummings memoir.

So, we're playing the Panthers on Saturday. Bring it on, I say!

I hope you're having a lovely Monday...if that's possible....

Morning, Ellen! Hoping that Monday is kind to you.

Hi there Ellen ... did you see the latest NYTimes article about How to be Both? I thought of you because the second sentence begins, "Ali Smith’s sly and shimmering double helix of a novel..." so I guess they must have read YOUR review first!

The article appeared in Sunday's Book Review although it looks like it was first published on December 31. You can find it here.

Look at all the reading you've managed, Ellen! Way to go! :D

From Station Eleven: "Hell is the absence of the people you long for."

Amen to that.

This is a wonderful read, by the way! And I'm enjoying listening to The Martian as well. :-)

Real Life (i.e., the academic quarter) has started again. I will, of course, try to keep up around here but we all know how that goes!

Morning, Ellen! I liked that quote, too. Just finished up reading that in the wee small hours of the morning.

>126 Matke: Hi Gail. I'm definitely a newby to audiobooks. It's still not my favorite medium although I listened some more to The Martian on my drive home last evening and it is both wonderful and engaging. I'm learning how to listen to the narration and focus on the road!

I think listening to Shakespeare with the text to read along would be excellent. I have Isaac Asimov's compendium of Shakespeare summaries and analysis. I plan to read his chapters about A Midsummer Night's Dream and King Lear, both of which are coming up in Station Eleven.

>127 Crazymamie: Mamie, I agree. I think the narrator is perfect in The Martian. Now that I'm listening, I can't even imagine reading this novel in conventional format.

>128 streamsong: Janet, I have not yet started Habibi but the art is lovely. I do need to read it sooner rather than later as it is a loan from a colleague..... Happy 2015 to you, as well!

>129 LauraBrook: Thank you, Laura, and Happy New Year to you, too!!

>130 kidzdoc: Thank you, Darryl. She is a remarkable author.

>131 Berly: Um, Kim. Why, exactly, are you trying to resist The Ballad of the Sad Cafe? You know it's futile, right?

>132 DorsVenabili: Oh, Kerri, that is a good point about photos in memoirs. I have here my conventional (dead tree) copy of Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (I always want to reverse that) and there is not one photo. So, you missed nothing in this particular instance. But it's something to consider in future when deciding on listening vs reading. And I will look for a copy of the Alan Cummings in the bookstore, just to peruse through and look at photos.

I hope the team is ready for the Panthers. We've beaten them the last three times the teams have met. So, as the best I can muster, I'm cautiously optimistic. Hopefully the bye week has allowed for some rest and healing.

My Monday was not so bad. I'm doing a no-alcohol-and-no-sugar-and-no-junk clear out and feeling rather good!

>133 Crazymamie: Good morning (now Tuesday), Mamie! You are being so good about visiting my thread. I will visit you today. That is a promise! (It may be this evening but I will make it happen!)

>134 lauralkeet: Ooh, Laura, thanks for the link. We get the Sunday New York Times and I didn't see that in the Book Review. I will read it later today while I eat my healthy lunch salad. :-)

>135 jolerie: Thank you , Valerie! I am off to a good start but we all know it will slow down as Real Life takes over.....

>137 Crazymamie: Good morning to you, Mamie! I had to force myself to set Station Eleven aside last night to turn out the light and go to sleep. Had it been later in the week, I might have kept going. You know: "oh, tomorrow is Friday, I can do fine for one day on limited sleep." Ha!

The new semester starts for us tomorrow. Last day of mellow work time and on to the frenzy.

Hi Ellen, I am out dropping stars and catching up with everyone. Either of your proposed walking trips sound wonderful. I am limited to mostly walking on the treadmill but hope to get more outside walking in soon. I can see plenty of audible books coming my way.

I'm going to be mainlining King Lear this weekend ahead of my RL book circle meeting next Wednesday; it seems somehow very appropriate after having read and enjoyed Station Eleven. Actually, I ended up listening to it as an audiobook, and loving it that way -- it really worked for me.

You're right in your comments re A Tale for the Time Being that while some books seem to work for everyone, others don't get the love. For me, it tends to work the other way around. It seems that everyone adored/worshipped/insert verb of choice here All the Light We Cannot See, whereas for me, it was a book that I could appreciate but that felt too mannered and carefully planned to fall in love with. I need more than beautiful and elegant -- and that was the Grace Kelly of books, I think.

>9 EBT1002: I would happily tag along to either place, but my preference would have to be Machu Picchu, a place I have long wanted to visit. I do hope your plans come to fruition, Ellen!

Lots of McCuller love popping up on the threads, I like that. I'm half way through The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and enjoying her character development.
If I see Station Eleven just one more time I have no choice but to purchase the Kindle version they've been pushing for the last two weeks. It's $5.99 and I try to keep my Kindle buys down to $2.99 but in this case I may have to bend my rule.

Morning Ellen! I think you missed me up there but I am not even mad, because you are my pal and you probably just forgot.

Hope the week is going well and I am glad you are enjoying Station Eleven. It sure seems to be a RED-HOT title right now.

>140 EBT1002: Oh, good. Glad I didn't miss any photos.

I feel good about the game. We're getting Kerse and Max Unger back too, so that's great! Really, I feel good about any game that's not against the Rams. Those darn Rams.

>136 EBT1002: Looking forward to your Station Eleven comments!

What Kerry said.

I love walking tours and thought your trip to Scotland was wonderful and probably exhilarating. I have been planning a walking trip in the UK for about a year. I choose the UK because they have a wonderful trail system and the whole country seems to be batty about walking and hiking. More so, than the Germans who are the next most enthusiastic nation of hikers that I know of - check out all the volksmarches that they do. If I were choosing a walking trip I would not choose Peru. I get altitude sickness and that part of the world is very high. For me it would make walking very difficult. Other than that it would be great. What about walking trips here in the U. S.?

Hi Ellen! Our semester doesn't start for another couple of weeks, but I'm already getting my research projects up and going. I know what you mean about having trouble keeping up with LT as the semester gets going!

I love the quote you shared from Station Eleven. I just finished that book and laughed out loud when someone changed the Sartre quote in the caravan from "Hell is other people" to "Hell is flutes." Even though I'm a formal flute player, I had to smile at that.

I bought Station Eleven on New Year's Day--everyone's enthusiasm is pushing it higher in the tbr pile! And I am so glad you are enjoying The Martian.

Oh, and I love the talk of Tuscany in 2016- why not?

3. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel




"Hell is the absence of the people you long for."

After a pandemic of "Georgia Flu" expeditiously wipes out more than 99% of the human population on Earth, those who survive go through, collectively and individually, somewhat predictable stages of grief and transition and turn to somewhat predictable means of survival. But so little about this novel is predictable. Twenty years after "the end of the world" (cue REM song here), a tight "Symphony" of musicians and actors travel from collective to collective (towns, loosely speaking), performing Shakespeare and then moving on. Among them is Kirsten. Eight years old when the pandemic occurred, she remembers nothing of the first year although she knows that she somehow walked from Toronto to Ohio with her brother. He died of an infected foot, just one example of how different things are without modern medicine, electricity, communication, travel.... In the "old world," antibiotics would have rendered a stepped-on nail relatively harmless. Anyway, the Symphony is making their way south along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, heading for a small airport where they hear that a significant community has developed, and where a Museum of Civilization can be viewed. Then a few members of the Symphony disappear while on scout. Later, Kirsten and her buddy August become separated from the Symphony and must try to continue toward the airport, hoping to be reunited. There is so much more but trying to briefly summarize this plot is impossible.

The novel moves around in time and place and the characters' stories develop at a pleasant pace. The connections among the characters emerge with a calm, almost wholesome sense of revelation. The reader is not so much surprised as validated. Paradoxically, this calm validation occurs in the context of wonderful tension and suspense. In the third quarter of the book, I found myself in that magical zone in which the mantra "just one more chapter" keeps me up far too late. And I couldn't wait to get back to it the next morning.

Emily St. John Mandel's work lost a half-star in the end because of, well, the end. It's nice enough and I understand that ending this creative and intricate novel must have presented a particular challenge. I just wanted to be ever so slightly more satisfied as I closed the book after reading the last page. It's a minor quibble I recommend the novel with enthusiasm and without reservation.

Ellen - I'm so happy you loved this. I loved the question about what to keep and what to leave behind that underlay so much of this novel.

What's next?

>154 BLBera: Funny you should ask, Beth!

Up Next:

>141 benitastrnad: I know the feeling, Benita! I hope your semester goes well.

>142 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy. I'm glad you came by and dropped off a star.
I think both Peru and Tuscany will stay on our walking-tour bucket list but our attention has oddly turned to Alaska for August 2015. More about that in future posts. :-)

>143 Chatterbox: Hi Suz. I am thinking that I need to do a refresher on King Lear before I get too far beyond my reading (see review above) of Station Eleven. I know I missed some things because it's been too long since I thought about Lear.

I love your comment about All the Light We Cannot See. Grace Kelly indeed. :-)
All the Light We Cannot See is one of those books that I enjoyed but that didn't stick with me very well. It did not end up on my best-of-2014 list and I know it ended up on a lot of them.

>144 alcottacre: Hey Stasia and thanks for stopping by! Machu Picchu will have to wait, as will a return to Tuscany. Alaska has taken center stage around our house. This is not a bad thing.

>145 Carmenere: Lynda, I'm glad you're enjoying The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. I will eventually reread that one but I'm glad I'm trying some of her other works for this month.

If you see Station Eleven for $5.99 and you think you'll read it before the price drops, I'm here to tell you that the extra $3 will be worth it. I bought it in hard cover, something I rarely do, and I'm perfectly pleased with this decision. I plan to send it to my sister in order to ensure that she reads it sooner rather than later!

>146 msf59: Uh oh Mark, I am so sorry! This is what happens when I check in on my thread and I have 15 or 20 unread posts. I try to respond to them all in one fell swoop and I am prone to missing someone.

SO --- >121 msf59: Mark!! I'm so glad you recommended The Martian as an audiobook. It's totally working in this format.

Yes, Station Eleven is one of the hotter titles around here these days. I found myself thinking last evening, as I read the little bio of Emily St. John Mandel, "well, this woman is feeling like she hit the jackpot!" I'm glad for her.

>147 DorsVenabili: Hi Kerri!
I'm excited about this week's football game and not just because I get to have a beer! :-)
I am trying to be confident. I'll certainly wear Seahawks gear to work on Friday to show my faithful love for the team.

(BTW, in case anyone wonders about that comment, P and I are doing a "clear out" for two weeks: no alcohol, no refined sugar, no "junk".... We gave ourselves permission to have a drink during the football game, though.)

>148 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. :-)

I haven't read Moon Tiger yet. I'm tempted to pick it up while others are reading it. I have a few Livelys on my shelf to get to...

>150 porch_reader: Hi Amy! Station Eleven had many delightful moments and quotes, and I'm sure I missed many of them! I hadn't even realized that the quote I shared harkened to a Sartre quote. Sometimes I wonder if I was even paying attention in college.....

I hope your semester starts off smoothly when the time comes! I do wish my university would make the transition to semesters, but I doubt it will happen any time soon.

>151 ronincats: Hi Roni. Well, here I am to encourage you to push Station Eleven even higher on your TBR pile! And The Martian is so different from my usual reading and I'm quite enjoying it. It works well as an audiobook. I'm not sure I would have hung in there for the first 5 chapters if I were reading it. The narration actually made the long science(?) narrative quite entertaining.

>152 LovingLit: Hi Megan! We'll definitely be returning to Tuscany one of these days and I am excited about the walking possibility. But for now, we're turning our attention to Alaska.

Hi Ellen, your review of Station Eleven is the second that's got me. Nice review!

>154 BLBera: Beth, the idea of what to keep and what to leave behind resonated deeply with me. There are actually a number of themes that resonated. It's early but I suspect this one will stay high on my faves list for 2015.

>158 BLBera: I have How it All Began on my shelf but Moon Tiger is from the library so I'm reading it first so I can return it on time. IF I have time, I will try to read HIAB this month, too, but the stack by my bed is a bit high.

You know, if I were able to stop by LT more regularly, I might not spend 2+ hours here in one evening and still. not. be. caught. up.

There are so many threads I have not visited but Moon Tiger and bed are calling.

Soon, my friends, soon.

Great review of Station Eleven, Ellen! I did succumb to the Kindle sale of it last week, so I'll read it fairly soon.

Georgia flu? Yikes. I clearly would have been one of the victims.

>156 EBT1002: I agree with you about Alaska, Ellen! Hawaii I can completely do without, but I would love to visit Alaska.

Station Eleven is already on hold for me at the library, thank goodness. I have seen too many good reviews of that one to ignore it.

Yay, great review of Station Eleven, and it's brilliant how much love it's getting.

Hopefully you'll enjoy Moon Tiger. I liked, but didn't love, my first adult Lively, but others have seemed to get a lot out of Moon Tiger so I might give it a go at some point.

Great review of Station Eleven. Glad to spread the joy on that one. I am picking up my copy of Moon Tiger and hope to get to it next week.

Hope the week is going well.

Speaking of Hawaii, do you and P do any hiking when you visit Kaua'i. My travel partner is not much for hiking, but I've been tempted to try out some short, not difficult trails. The really challenging stuff looks so cool, but I don't think I am up to it these days. I am happy to report though that the earlier sciatic nerve troubles have all resolved, and with a little more exercise in the mornings, I seem to be doing fine with Instacart's level of walking about.

I'm looking forward to Monday's meeting and a discussion of where we are going next with our book choices.

>163 kidzdoc: Thanks, Darryl. I hope you enjoy Station Eleven. I hope the hype doesn't lead to disappointment for you.

The flu is going around our office and the university and I admit that it makes me a wee bit nervous. St. John Mandel does an excellent job of highlighting how unknown the end is. Such and such is occurring in a character's life and "four days later she will be dead." True all the time but yikes!

>164 alcottacre: Hi Stasia. "Hawaii I can completely do without." Well, as excited as I am about finally visiting Alaska, I cannot agree with you regarding Hawaii. We'll be returning to Kauai in March and I absolutely love it there. It's a very different sort of vacation (can you say snorkeling and reading?) but it's one place where I can deeply relax.

>165 lunacat: Hi Jenny and I agree: I'm rather pleased for St. John Mandel that her novel is taking off so beautifully! I only worry about the hype undermining some readers' ultimate enjoyment of Station Eleven.

I'll comment about Moon Tiger in a moment.....

>166 msf59: Good morning, Mark! (I see you there.)
Station Eleven has gone viral around here! Much deserved and a bit dangerous for those who haven't yet read it.
Moon River is my first Lively and so far, well, as I said to Jenny, in a moment....

>167 maggie1944: Hi Karen! We have done some hiking on Kauai. Last time we did a long hike along the south shore, east from Poipu, to an isolated beach that was just lovely. We have also done a couple of hikes in the canyon. The one we did last year was really beautiful but I don't remember its name. I don't know that I would hike much in the canyon by myself although we did encounter other hikers. It's probably absolutely safe but the terrain is a bit rugged and it can be muddy (of course).

I'm definitely excited about Monday's meeting!

Reading update:

I'm in the middle of listening to chapter 8 of The Martian. Very good so far.

I'm in the middle of reading chapter 3 of Moon Tiger and I'm completely enchanted. Chapter one sets it up well but I was unconvinced. Now I'm all in.

And now I must go earn the Science Diet.

Pleased to see that Moon Tiger has its hooks into you, Ellen. xx

Nice review of Station Eleven, Ellen. I had a similar positive reaction to it, and ended up giving it to my brother-in-law for Christmas.

Very glad to have finally finished Schindler last night. By comparison, any book will seem like light reading, and I think I'll pick Moon Tiger next. I was telling Mamie on her thread that I'll try to fit in Station Eleven this month if I possibly can. I've got it on audio and have a bunch of other audiobooks planned, so we'll see about that, but everyone so far seems to agree it's amazing.

Stay healthy and strong!

I finally succumbed and requested Station Eleven from the library. It'll be a while before I get it but that's OK. Since it does seem to the hot book right now I'd rather wait until the buzz dies down a bit. I've been hesitant because I had very mixed feelings about the two books of hers that I've read but this one does seem to have everyone praising it.

When we were on Kauai 20 years ago, we hiked about a mile and a half in on the Na Pali coast--starts at the northwest corner of the island. All up and down, quite difficult. Now your route around Poipu sounds much more horizontal and pleasant.

Moon Tiger it is. After I finish my current read.

I start the audiobook of The Martian in the morning on my commute to work. I got the CDs from the library so that is the format I will listen in. I'm so spoiled by the digital audio now.

I'm probably going to start Nemesis very soon. As early as tonight and as late as Saturday. I know you are reading Lively but I need to read this before I start The Monk by Matthew Lewis which will take a bit of studying for me as well as reading.

>170 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul. Moon Tiger is certainly a shift from Station Eleven. I continued to enjoy it during my morning bus commute. I keep finding myself rereading a passage, savoring the many layers of Lively's writing. Thanks for selecting her to kick off the year!

>171 jnwelch: I hope your BIL enjoys Station Eleven, too, Joe!

>172 Smiler69: Hi Ilana. I'm glad you're done with Schindler!! I believe you will find Moon Tiger appealing. It seems like a novel you will appreciate! But perhaps I'm biased because I'm enjoying it so much.

Station Eleven is also excellent, and very different. I read it this month for RL Book Club and I'm very glad I did.

>173 SuziQoregon: Hey Juli. Interesting that you've read her other two works and been somewhat ambivalent. I have a feeling this is the novel that will mark her career. I do worry about the hype leading to a disappointing reading experience for those who are just now queuing it up.

>174 ronincats: Hey Roni. You've reminded me! We did a hike along the Na Pali coast last year, too. It was gorgeous! I think we did about 4 miles out and back. Waterfalls, amazing ocean views, intense vegetation. I loved it. This year we are toying with the idea of a boat ride along the Na Pali coast. We'll see.

>175 BLBera: Oh good. I think you'll enjoy it, Beth. I hope so! :-)

>176 luvamystery65: Hi Roberta. I have The Martian downloaded onto my iPhone. It's so easy! I will still probably be a bit slow at completing audio books although now when I'm in the car by myself, I'm getting more likely to listen.

It's okay for you to start Nemesis. I haven't yet gotten my copy from the library so I probably won't get to it until next week. You can just tease me with what a treat I have ahead of me. :-)

It is nice to have back to back winners, isn't it, Ellen! It is what we live for. I heard the film version of the Martian, directed by Ridley Scott comes out in November.

>179 msf59: Mark, I feel like 2015 has started out about as well as a year can (in terms of reading, at least). My first three books have earned 4 - 4.5 stars each. Nice.

I think a film version of The Martian sounds great and Ridley Scott is just the director to do it.

Nice review of Station Eleven, Ellen! Good to hear that you are all in for the Lively because I have that coming up very soon. See? We are practically twins!

Ellen, you are totally not ALONE when it comes to collecting BD bookmarks. I've been doing the exact same thing with their latest batch. Makes me feel so wonderful that I'm not alone in doing it..haha!

My evidence....I have a couple of duplicates and I'm always disappointed when my books don't come with a bookmark!

Ellen, I just want you to know that I come by from time to time. I'm not reading much, not visiting here - I don't know what's happening!
Anyway, if I can finish the 2 ahead of it, I hope to get to Moon Tiger this month. And if Amazon ups the $5.99 price of Station Eleven before I break down and buy it, I'm going to be really put out.
Glad you enjoyed your stay-day. You earned it!

>183 LizzieD: Station Eleven $5.99? After all these great reviews? Done!!

Glad to hear you're enjoying Moon Tiger Ellen - it's very much my favourite book by Penelope Lively. And a great review of Station Eleven - another one I really enjoyed.

>182 jolerie: Now I want to go and order something, just so I can get a pretty. I'm sure it must be an illness ;)

>153 EBT1002: Great review! It does seem like sci-fi/speculative fiction is the hardest thing to wrap up properly. The endings are typically my least favorite part, and usually a tad disappointing. Not sure what that's about exactly and it's too early for deep thoughts. This is true for tv shows too (see Battlestar Galactica, the best tv show EVER).

>169 EBT1002: So, glad you're enjoying Moon Tiger! I LOVED it! Looking forward to your final comments.

Hello, Ellen. You are certainly setting a fine reading pace for the new year! I have been dodging reviews of Station Eleven with a glance and a "yeah, yeah, not my thing"...but you may have finally pushed it in my path one time too many...I think I've been caught in its tractor beam and may have to read it. *scuttles off to the library's website, adjusting Borg implant*

I tend to try to wait to read the highly buzzed books - for example I just started The Martian last night. For me with the heavily talked about books I need to either read very early before a lot of people do or wait 6-12 months. Otherwise I go into it looking for nitpicky reasons to go against what the crowd thinks and that's rather unfair to the book.

As for Emily St. John Mandel's other books I adored the prose. There were words, sentences and paragraphs that were simply lovely. My problem with them was that she was completely unable to make me care about what happened to the characters.

Happy weekend, Ellen! Looking forward to your comments on Moon TIger which I have also just started.

Yes, Ma'm. You are so right! Go Hawks!!

Happy Friday, Ellen! I just wanted to report that I just started All the Light and it drew me in pretty quickly. Your nudge, was one of the reasons I finally picked it up and gave it a go!

Go Seahawks!!

>181 Crazymamie: Hi Mamie! I'm so glad it's the weekend because I just want to read Moon Tiger.

>182 jolerie: Valerie, I love it! I think I have four BD bookmarks. I will have to go sort through my collection and pull out the BDs. :-)
One of the three BD books I got via the Christmas swap did not have a bookmark enclosed and I was sad about that. Happy about the book, though!

>183 LizzieD: Hi Peggy! I'm glad you stop by now and then. I certainly understand being only an occasional visitor. So far I am finding Moon Tiger to be a very enjoyable read. It has some wonderful nuances and complexities.

>184 Berly: Hi Kim! I don't have a Kindle so I don't know the landscape with regard to sales and such but $5.99 seems like a good price for a worthwhile read. I loaned my copy of Station Eleven to a colleague yesterday and she stopped by today and said it kept her up much too late last night. I was pleased. I always like it when a novel I recommend actually ends up being liked by the other!

>185 SandDune: Hello Rhian! Moon Tiger is so much better than I expected! I don't know what I expected, really, but this exceeds it. I also have How It All Began on the TBR and I hope to get to it this month but I may have overcommitted just a wee bit. Surprising, I know, because I almost never do that. Ha.

I'm glad you liked my review of Station Eleven. :-)

>186 lunacat: Careful, Jenny. If you like bookmarks, there are something about the ones from Book Depository that is just special. I think they are on to something from a marketing perspective because it would truly have made more sense for me to purchase those last three books from my local bookseller.

>187 DorsVenabili: Hi Kerri! As a relative newcomer to the sci-fi/speculative territory, this is good for me to know. And something for me to watch for. I wonder how I'll feel about the ending of The Martian. Of course, I don't know how much sic-fi/speculative literature I'm going to read, but I do think I'm taking to it just a bit.

You'll be wholly unsurprised to learn that I didn't watch Battlestar Galactica.

And I'm pleased to hear that you loved Moon Tiger so much. It's beautifully written. Even on the bus ride home tonight, I found myself savoring a paragraph, going back and reading it again. This means my progress is slower than usual but I'm allowing myself to take my time and enjoy.

>188 laytonwoman3rd: Hi Linda. Well, I don't know if you've noticed some of the talk on Darryl's thread but Station Eleven is not science fiction. It is speculative and dystopic and post-apocalyptic, but not sic-fi. I think you might be pleasantly surprised by it.
I know. Not helping. :-)

>189 SuziQoregon: Hi Juli. Yeah, I think the hype thing can be dangerous. I am listening to The Martian and your comment is making me wonder if the hype is over. I guess it is out in soft cover by now so that suggests it made its debut a while ago. I'm enjoying the audio so far.

Characterization usually matters a lot to me, so your comment about her other works failing to generate any caring about the characters is interesting. I did not come to care about all the characters in Station Eleven, and not just because they were "bad guys." I cared enough about a handful of them, and the speculative future was so well-done, that I was pulled right in.

>190 banjo123: I will finish Moon Tiger this weekend. Isn't it cool that Mark's AAC has so many of us reading the same author, and often the same novel, at around the same time? I think it has facilitated some great discussion already this year!

>192 maggie1944: Hi Karen! Woo hoo! I hope tomorrow's game results in cheerful moods at our book group on Monday!

>193 msf59: Hi Mark! I think you'll enjoy All the Light. I know the LT reaction has been mixed and it didn't make my top-of-2014 list, but it's an enjoyable and interesting read.

P has been sick for the past couple of days and is still terribly under the weather. I got home from work this evening and she asked me to go in search of Panang curry. So off I trundle, happily, to the Thai Recipe restaurant just down the road. Well. Most people had called in their orders and the place was hopping. I was told it would be a 30-35 minute wait once I placed my order!! But what could I do?

Here's the kicker: I had not brought a book with me. Dang that was a long 35 minutes. Words with Friends is a fine pastime but I could have been reading!!!

So, after a few visits around here, I will settle in with Moon Tiger. I will not be setting an alarm tonight.

Ah, gorgeous cityscape!

>199 ronincats: Isn't it lovely?

>198 EBT1002: If that doesn't pull me to Seattle I don't know what will. Have a lovely weekend Ellen

>201 PaulCranswick: I absolutely promise and guarantee it will look like this on the day you visit, Paul!

*uncrosses fingers*

Ellen, I wish you a fabulous weekend.

>202 EBT1002: You can control the Northern Lights? Wow, what a talented lady you are. All I can do is control the occasional, localised rain shower. I really must try and extend my reach ;)

" Isn't it cool that Mark's AAC has so many of us reading the same author, and often the same novel, at around the same time?"

Aw shucks, Ellen! I think that might be my favorite thing about doing the AAC.

You left home without a book?! Wha?! You poor thing.

Also, that photo in >198 EBT1002: is gorgeous!

If that photograph will result in Paul's visit, I'll endorse it, and I know Seattle looks just like that every evening (fingers still crossed behind back).

Go Hawks!

>198 EBT1002: - Pretty city all tinted in Seahawks colors. Nice!

Good luck to your Seahawks!

Touchdown!!

I may have to consider Moon Tiger. I have liked others of Lively's books, and have Cleopatra's Sister lurking somewhere on my TBR shelves of shame, but the precise location may be hard to pin down.

I buckled, and added Station Eleven to my Kindle library; I have the audiobook (which is excellent) but suspect that I'll want to read it, too.

Hi Ellen! I loved The Martian when I read it last year and I'm waiting somewhat impatiently to get my hands on Station Eleven. I'm so glad to hear you are / have enjoyed them both!

I hope you feel much better soon.

Woot! Woot!

>153 EBT1002: argh, I can't read your review as I want to read the book! It is tempting though....

I love the city scape too, are those cranes in the distance on the right, or port stuff?

I totally enjoyed that Seahawks game; and winning it, of course, made the fun perfect. Silly how we all gather and imagine the win is somehow to do with us. Oh, well, human nature I suppose, and I'll take the joy.

Yeah Seahawks! Love the landscape pic!
Ok! I couldn't take it one more day!! 'Cause I know it would be awhile before I read Station Eleven, I just downloaded the audio version to my iPhone. I'll listen to it while I jog to my Wii.
Have a great Sunday!

I really liked The Martian, Ellen, so I hope the book continues to go well for you!

What a great game yesterday - your Seahawks were full of fabulous, Ellen!! Happy Sunday, dear!

I just finished Moon Tiger. It will take time for me to digest and then to write about my experience reading it. For now, I'll just say "wow."

>198 EBT1002: Beautiful.

Great to hear your enthusiasm for Moon Tiger. I haven't read Penelope Lively. I'll wait for your further comments, but I suspect it's one I'll add to my WL.

Go Seahawks! Nice win yesterday.

4. Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively




I loved this novel! Seventy-six-year-old Claudia contemplates "the potency of life" from her death bed. She sardonically states her intention to write a history of the world and, instead, tells the history of her life. Her life is, of course, a reflection of (part of) the history of the world, and this narrative provides a mirror in which to view the terrible insignificance of any particular life in the context of the whole of human existence. Fate, destiny, self-determination. Connection, isolation, aloneness-in-intimacy. Love, loss, death, grief. It's all here, beautifully examined through Lively's remarkable prose.

Claudia is not an entirely sympathetic protagonist and that is part of Lively's point. Claudia herself names her own ambition and striving as key players in the disappointment of her life. But, on a larger level, the vicissitudes of fate or luck, the time into which one is born, the context of place in which one finds oneself -- all determines the path of one's life and there is only so much truth to the absurd notion that "destiny is what one makes of it."

"But no one likes the idea of chance, so they play games with language and talk about miracles instead." The power of language and the role it plays in defining truth, creating meaning: this is also a theme throughout this novel. And of course there is love. Love, a word that is "overstretched" and "cannot be made to do service for so many different things -- love of children , love of friends, love of God, carnal love and cupidity and saintliness."

My library copy of Moon Tiger is littered with post-it flags but there is no way to fully capture the scope of the novel's emotional field. I experienced brief moments of boredom but it's the joy that I will remember.

>203 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara! More sheep. I love sheep.

>204 lunacat: Jenny, my power is frequently underestimated (ha). And yes, you really must work on expanding your reach. It's all in the believing.

>205 msf59: It's a very cool thing, Mark. You're a difference-maker. :-)

>206 scaifea: I know, Amber, what was I thinking? I am pretty compulsive about taking a book with me wherever I go, but of course it never occurred to me that the wait would be so long! Of course, you might reasonably ask why I didn't take a book even if I thought the wait would be ten minutes. Point taken.

I do love the photo in >198 EBT1002:. I'm kind of wishing I had saved it to use as a topper on my next thread.

>207 maggie1944: Karen, we will do whatever it by golly takes to get Paul here for a visit!

Here are a few good reasons to visit Seattle:
Seafood.
Other food.
Mountains.
Elliott Bay Books.
Coffee.
Ellen.
Karen.
Elliott Bay.
Rhododendrons.

>222 EBT1002: As long as I can find some of this cuties you will get them :-D

>221 EBT1002: Great review - so glad you loved it. I can't remember the details clearly, but I loved the trippy thing she did where the same scenes were repeated from different perspectives. (Is that what happened? Am I getting books confused? I don't think so, but whatever it was I loved it.)

>223 EBT1002: Also freakishly lush greenness everywhere. You've probably lived in the PNW that you don't realize how shocking and wonderful it is when you first see it.

Go Seahawks!!

>208 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie!

>209 BLBera: Thanks, Beth! It was, from my perspective, a wonderful game. It's hard to describe how in love with itself this city is at present. It's tremendous fun!

>210 ronincats: Roni!

>211 Chatterbox: Hello, Suzanne! You will see my review of Moon Tiger above. I debated the full five stars. I mean, it's not a perfect novel. But its effect on me was perfect. The themes are those which resonate deeply with me and the writing is exquisite. I know Katie liked Cleopatra's Sister. I have How It All Began on the January TBR pile but I'm not sure I'll get to it this month. I have perhaps made too many commitments (which is about like saying "I think I must eat every day").

I hope you enjoy Station Eleven and that it hasn't been overhyped!

>212 Dejah_Thoris: Hi Dejah! I have a fair amount of driving to do tomorrow -- drive to work, drive to my dentist (whose office is in a rather distant neighborhood), drive to RL Book Group, drive home -- all of which will be time for listening to The Martian. I listened while I did a 40-minute walk yesterday. It's rather interesting for me to be looking for opportunities to walk or drive so I can listen!

On another note, the photo of the itty-bitty kitten as your profile pic is adorable!!

>213 katiekrug: "Woot! Woot!" I assume you are referencing the Seahawks impressive victory, yes?
(Duh, I know this. Thank you for so wholeheartedly cheering for my team!)

>214 LovingLit: Megan, I don't think my review has any real spoilers in it. The part I summarized is really just the stage-setting of the novel. But in any case, hold off for now and Read. The. Novel. I think you will like it a lot.

In the city scape, the cranes off in the distance on the right are in the port. They are permanent fixtures and they look like Brontosauri. Brontosauruses? Spell check prefers the latter.

>215 maggie1944: Karen, that game was tremendous fun. I was wearing my Kam Chancellor jersey and he ended up being a huge play-maker several times. I know what you mean that we get so heavily invested in the outcome when, really, what difference will it make in our lives? On the other hand, being in this beautiful city when everyone is so giddy and so pleased to live here is rather fun.

>216 Carmenere: Lynda, I hope you enjoy listening to Station Eleven. And what do you do with/on your Wii? Is there an exercise program you do?

>217 alcottacre: Hi Stasia! So far, The Martian as an audio book is working beautifully. I will have lots of listening time tomorrow as my day will involve a lot of time in the car.
Which reminds me: I must go fill the gas tank this afternoon.

>218 Crazymamie: Mamie, "my" Seahawks were outstanding and I enjoyed watching them! I enjoyed the homemade nachos and G&Ts, too. :-)

>220 jnwelch: Joe, I believe you would enjoy Moon Tiger. I had not yet read her work and I'm worried that I started with the best.

Thank you, kind sir. We Seahawks fans are a bit full of ourselves today! :-)

>225 DorsVenabili: Thank you, Kerri. It was a hard "review" to write. I absolutely loved the novel and that often makes for a very difficult commentary.

You're not remembering wrong and that's just what I mean. I left this out of my review:
One of my favorite things was the telling of the same scene from different perspectives: third person omniscient narrator, Claudia herself, whomever else (brother, daughter, lover) was involved in the scene. It was a nifty device and she implemented it beautifully.

I actually do attend to the freakish greenness and lushness of the region. A few years ago we flew home from Albuquerque by way of Denver. Landing in Denver, I was struck by how green it was relative to New Mexico. Then we were landing in Seattle and, even as a resident, I was blown away by the lushness of the landscape!!

ETA: GO HAWKS!!!!

Happy Sunday, Ellen! Nice Seahawks win. I like this scrappy team.
Hope you are enjoying your day.

I loved Moon Tiger and am so glad you did, too. I will be reading How it all Began this month -- just need to finish Burial Rites first.

Hi Ellen, that is a great review of Moon Tiger and you have landed it solidly on my wishlist. I am another one who collected the beautiful bookmarks that Book Depository sometimes includes with it's books. I have about 6 or 7 and looking at the ones Valerie posted, I only see two that we have in common.

What a thoughtful review of Moon Tiger Ellen. I wasn't as in love with the book as you, but we can both agree, the lady can write! :)

Fantastic review, Ellen! I read Moon Tiger many years ago and loved it but I think I would like to re-visit it in the near future.

>221 EBT1002: Great review Ellen. I've thumbed it.

I'm 28% through Moon Tiger and really enjoying it. Looking forward to your review when I'm all done. xx

>229 msf59: Thank you, Mark. So far it's been a lovely Sunday. I sat up in bed reading far longer than I usually do, even on a weekend. Coffee and Penelope Lively and Abby snuggled up next to me. It was pretty heavenly.

I also went for a nice 33-minute run around noon. 49F and no rain. Perfect.

I like the scrappy Seahawks team, too. :-)

>230 lauralkeet: Laura, I'll need to come over to your thread to see how you're liking Burial Rites. It was one of my favorite reads in 2014.

>231 DeltaQueen50: Judy, I have four of the Book Depository bookmarks (and I have three new books on the way from them, so hopefully I'll have three more bookmarks, too!). None of mine overlap with Valerie's. I need to take a photo and post it.

I'm glad Moon Tiger has landed on your wish list.

>232 jolerie: Thank you, Valerie, for your comment about my review. Yes, the lady can write and the novel is bound to land on different readers differently (I guess that goes without saying, right?).

By the way, see my comment to Judy just above. None of my four BD bookmarks are duplicates of yours. If I get any duplicates (of mine) in this next order, I could send it/them along to you. I mean, I hope I get three new ones but if not....

>233 katiekrug: Thank you, Katie! For me, it's hardest to write a review of a book I love so I'm glad this review was successful!

>234 SandDune: Thank you for the thumb, Rhian!

>235 Smiler69: Hi Ilana! I'm glad you're enjoying Moon Tiger. I think it builds nicely so being 28% done means you have some very good reading ahead of you!

Next up:



This is a shared January read with Roberta. :-)

>238 EBT1002: Whoop! Harry is so brilliant and idiotic at the same time. I do love this cover. This is the one I have from the library too.

>221 EBT1002: toldja you oughta read it :)

Ellen, you can count me amongst those who've now been convinced to read Moon Tiger - it was sitting on a mental 'maybe' list, as I debated whether I should read a second Lively this month, but I'm now won over entirely :)

226: Ellen, your reaction to Moon Tiger was so well put: "I debated the full five stars. I mean, it's not a perfect novel. But its effect on me was perfect." I really want to read this book someday after those words but I have already committed to Family Album of which I know nothing except that it is available and waiting for me. Not the best reason. It's good that I like surprises!

Congrats to your Seahawks. I will be a Seattle fan for the rest of football season!

Hi Ellen!

>197 EBT1002: A 35 minute wait without a book? I would have been kicking myself too.

>198 EBT1002: Gorgeous!

>221 EBT1002: Great review of Moon Tiger - I nearly started reading it yesterday but plumped for something lighter instead (my latest book was quite intense) but I will start it soon.

I am also reading Moon Tiger and enjoying it very much. This one is a winner.

I skimmed over your review because I do want to read Moon Tiger soon. I just started Cleopatra's Sister, and I think it's a winner.

Hi everyone. I will come back and respond individually at a later time but RL has done what it does. I had a somewhat urgent dental appointment yesterday. Nothing to do with my teeth, per se (and thank heavens), but my jaw/mandible joint. I can't bite down with my back teeth. How weird is that! It turns out that I do NOT appear to have TMJ syndrome but I do have inflammation in that joint/hinge and I need to stop clenching my teeth. I think this translates to I need to relax more. Ha. It's no big deal but it has me doing a tiny bit of life assessment. What can give? I just don't know.

On the reading front, I'm still enjoying the audio of The Martian although my interest is flagging a bit. I'll finish it and I love that I'm learning to listen while I drive. It requires a suspension of my compulsive reading style (i.e., I have to be okay with missing the occasional sentence or two and trusting that it won't affect my comprehension or enjoyment).

I am also enjoying Jo Nesbo's Nemesis which I'm reading with Roberta. Another fun adventure with Harry Hole.

Real Life Book Group met last night and we decided to do "Reader's Choice" of Sarah Waters in February. This works great for me as I have The Paying Guests on my TBR pile. For February we're doing a nonfiction work the title of which escapes me. Following someone.....

Okay, I'm off to earn the Science Diet. Today is BIL's 65th birthday so we're meeting at a favorite Chinese restaurant in the International District for dinner. I hope to stop by here later today.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

BTW, Touchstones are too slow so I'm moving on.

Sorry to hear about the tooth/jaw issues. Is there something you can bring to your life that will help you with relaxation? (I'm thinking along the lines of yoga, a fortnightly massage, tai chi?) I'm in a similar boat in that I grit my teeth a LOT and it causes really bad headaches and jaw pain. My dentist says it's done damage to my teeth as well, but I can't stand the solution which is a mouth guard to sleep with. I just end up feeling like I'm choking, and if I ever get to sleep I have even more nightmares than I do already.

Anyway, I hope you can find something that gives you some relief. Have fun at dinner........I'm very jealous as I LOVE Chinese.

I am really liking Moon Tiger wonderful book. Easy to see why it won a Booker Prize.

Chicagoland friends: I will be attending a meeting in Grand Beach, MI, March 29-31. Hoping to plan some LT meet-up time on the front end of this trip as I always travel through Chicago for this one. More later. :-)

Dang! That was an amazing review of Moon Tiger!! I have 30 pages left and want to finish tonight. I think I will just refer everyone to you for my review! Thumbed.

I am only 40 pages into Moon Tiger, but I am completely engaged. And yah, for another Chicago visit. I will do my best to make this one.

>249 EBT1002: Hmm. We've got young Jesse getting married down in Houston right before that, but we may be back in time for a meetup. Looking forward to hearing more!

More reasons to visit Seattle:

Salmon
the Fish Market
Third Place Books, in Ravenna
Elliott Bay
ferries (best cheap entertainment)
Mt. Rainier
Third Place Books, in Lake Forest Park
The Olympic mountains
The Cascade mountains
Excellent restaurants, and excellent food
abundance of trees

oh, my, I do love this corner of the world

The "following someone book" is Following Atticus.

Relaxation: Tai Chi is great if you can find a group/teacher. Easy to learn, can be practiced anywhere without any equipment, or need to lie on the floor.

Sorry to hear about the jaw trouble. Hope you can get some relief soon.

>253 maggie1944: As a cafe guy, I'd add "lots of good cafes" to the Seattle list. Plus the Chihuly museum.

>246 EBT1002: So sorry to hear about the jaw business! I hope you find something that helps.

>249 EBT1002: I'll watch for details!

Ouch! Glad to hear you got to see someone quickly for it! Hope you feel better soon.

Ouch indeed! I hope you see some quick improvement.

>246 EBT1002: yikes, RL huh, it can interrupt. I hope your eating is not compromised.

>253 maggie1944: Seattle is on my top 5 list of places in Nth America to live. Not just because of this list, but it does add to my excitement ;)

>259 LovingLit: And Berly lives in Portland and you could drop down and see her and visit Powell's!!

Ellen--Hope the jaw thing heals quickly.

I hope your jaw is better soon! I had an appliance for a while, to sleep with, but decided it was too annoying.

Ellen, I wish you a relaxed weekend.

(Edited 8/29/23: LT admin removed an image from this post per DMCA request.)

Go Hawks Weekend has begun!

Morning, Ellen! Hoping that your jaw is doing better. Also hoping that your weekend is full of fabulous!

I had to finally resort to using an appliance when I sleep as well. It is annoying but ultimately worse without it so I just use it. :/

>250 Berly: Thanks, Beth. I was pleased with my review of Moon Tiger even though it still fell short of fully expressing my emotional reaction to the work. That I loved it clearly came through, though. :-)

>251 msf59: Hi Mark! I'm glad you were also sucked into Moon Tiger in a good way. I'll check out your thread for your reactions. I definitely hope we're able to schedule a beer-and-book gathering that you can attend!!!!

>252 jnwelch: Hi Joe! Well, as I said to Mark, I hope we can schedule a day and time when you can make it but if Jesse's wedding keeps you south, I'll simply give you a rain check. This will be the last time I attend this spring meeting in the area (and I will miss this committee as it has been one of the highlights of my professional life!), but it certainly won't be the last time I'm in Chicago.

>253 maggie1944: Great list, Karen. I also love this corner of the world. I feel incredibly lucky to live here and it makes it hard to consider leaving, even as my career presents the odd opportunity to move elsewhere.

Following Atticus. I saw the photo on FB and it looks wonderful. I'm looking forward to reading it for our March discussion.

>254 SuziQoregon: Thanks, Juli. It has eased a bit although I still can't bite down on the right side. It's the weirdest-feeling thing. But I'm focusing on relaxing that jaw. I had serious insomnia last night, didn't get to sleep until after 4:30 (if the clock had gotten to 5:00, I was planning to just get up and visit LT). Work seems to have me stewing a bit these days. Nothing bad, just lots of decisions to make and change to manage. It's what I do, but it does keep me up at night sometimes.

>255 jnwelch: Oh yeah, great cafés in Seattle, many of which are completely fine with customers taking their time, reading a book, chatting for hours while nursing a cappuccino or two.

>256 DorsVenabili: Thanks, Kerri! See my comments to Juli in this post. Regarding my visit, details to follow as I make plans. Tentatively, I'll try to fly in the day before (so, March 28) and hope we can get together that evening.

>257 jolerie: Thank you, Valerie!

>258 Dejah_Thoris: And thank you, as well, Dejah!

>259 LovingLit: Hi Megan. Real Life has been kind of kicking my butt and now I am down with a cold. But I'm still managing to eat! :-)

Are you thinking about moving to Seattle? If not, how about a visit? There are several LTers here who would love to meet up with you, tour you around, etc. Ask anybody. We're very nice. :-)

>260 Berly: Yes! Kim and some others are just down the road. As Karen says, it's a lovely corner of the world. I adore Portland (possibly even more than I adore Seattle).

Thanks, Kim, for the kind wishes regarding my jaw.

>261 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda! Appliance. I like that. It's kind of helping so I'll keep using it. This is a temporary so I assume a permanent one would be a bit more comfortable... Maybe?

>262 Ameise1: Yay! More sheep! And in snow! Thank you, Barbara. It's perfect because later today P and I are driving up to Mt. Rainier for the rest of the weekend. We're taking our new snowshoes and will do a bit of trekking through snowy woods. I don't feel great, so there will be much sitting by the fire with a book, as well.

>263 maggie1944: Woot! Woot! Go Seahawks weekend, indeed! I wore my Kam Chancellor jersey to work yesterday and I was not the only one geared up. I think the Packers will be difficult to beat, Aaron's gimpy leg notwithstanding, but I'm optimistic and excited. We'll be looking for somewhere near Longmire to watch the game tomorrow.

Yesterday I saw a woman getting on a bus, decked out in Russell Wilson jersey, Seahawks scarf, and a large cheese grater on her head. Had to laugh.

I lived in Wisconsin for three years in the early 90s so there was a period of time during which I was a Packers fan. It's in the water, along with the fluoride, in that state.

>264 Crazymamie: Thank you, Mamie! And thanks for stopping by even though I have been a mucket about visiting others' threads this week.

>265 luvamystery65: Hi Roberta! The appliance (I do love that) is helping a bit, so I'll keep using it for now.

By the way, while awake in the wee hours, I finally finished Nemesis. It was okay but not my favorite Harry Hole. More about that in a moment.
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Anyone get the reference "I've been a mucket about..."? Mucket isn't a word but I have always loved the phrase.

Oh, Ellen; very sorry to learn of the jaw problems! It must be both painful and annoying! Like others here, I grind my teeth and wear a night guard (it only goes over upper teeth) to prevent further problems. I've caught myself grinding my teeth in the daytime, but never got to the discomfort you must be feeling.

Excellent review of The Moon Tiger. Adding it to the obese Wishlist.

5. Nemesis by Jo Nesbø



This was a fun next installment in the Harry Hole series. The intrepid, alcoholic Harry is investigating a bank robbery gone wrong and finds himself in the midst of a complicated maze of heists, murders, twisted identities, and (of course) a strong woman attachment figure. Good action, interesting characters, but the series is starting to feel a bit tired already.

>271 Matke: Hi Gail and thank you! The jaw thing is annoying and weird, yes. Painful, really not much (thank goodness). I also catch myself clenching my teeth sometimes during the day. I'm working on relaxing that.

I'm glad you liked my review of Moon Tiger. I think you'd like the novel.

I'm sorry to hear about your troublesome jaw, Ellen. I hope that you start feeling better soon.

I know I need to start a new thread but, as I said somewhere above, P and I are headed to Mt. Rainier in a couple of hours. In fact, I must get up and help her with packing and other preparations. I can only milk this cold so far.... I will take my laptop and hope they have wifi up there, but I'm skeptical. Still, we'll have fun snowshoeing and reading by the fire. I'll take photos. And when we return on Monday I'll catch up around here and start my new thread.

I'm taking The Remains of the Day and The Hungry Tide with me.

>274 kidzdoc: Thanks, Darryl!

>221 EBT1002: So pleased that Moon Tiger hit the spot.
Less pleased to see that your jaw is playing up.
Hope it still allows you the very best of weekends.

>268 EBT1002: Yeh, for the snowshoe trekking. That's so great. Wishing you a lot of fun.

>270 EBT1002: & >272 EBT1002: I haven't finished yet but I hope to finish tonight. I think I need a little break from Harry myself. I think I'll get back to calm and sensible Inspector Sejer. I've also got The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson coming up. Classic Noir and a huge inspiration for Jo Nesbø.

Happy Saturday, Ellen! Sorry, to hear about the health issues. Bummer, my friend. I wish you were coming in for ALA this year. We could use another warm body. LOL. I know you are coming in, in March, so I completely understand.

I loved Moon Tiger and look forward to reading more Lively.

Oh! I want to hear all about the Mt. Rainier trip. I am so in love with The Grandmother. I need to get off my butt and spend some time on her, especially during spring and fall.

I am looking forward to re-reading Following Atticus. It is an interesting book, for a dog book.

What an amazing finish! Yeah, Seahawks!

I had to come congratulate you on the Seahawk's win tonight! Much celebration going on in the house? :-)

Whoo hoo! Seahawks to the Big Dance!

Despite not showing up in the first half, the Seahawks pulled it off in overtime. Exciting game. May I assume that you were able to watch it up in your lodge by the fire with hot coffee or chocolate?

Sorry to hear about the jaw--hope it gets better quickly.

Wild game

I think I heard you screaming from here ;-)

I know you're over the moon about your team's win--congratulations!

Thought of you yesterday during your Seahawk's awesome fourth quarter!! Congrats, dear!

Haha...I don't usually follow sports but my husband usually has some sporty recap show on before we head to bed and I heard about the Seahawks. Thought of you. :)

I hope snowshoeing was fantastic! Were you able to watch the game?

>272 EBT1002: Sorry this was a tad disappointing! Maybe you're experiencing Harry overload? I haven't gotten to Nemesis yet. As I think you know, I've only read The Redbreast, which I loved.

Hi Ellen - Congrats on the return trip to the Superbowl for the Seahawks. They really do like to keep you guessing, don't they?

Sorry Nemesis was disappointing for you. I have enjoyed all of the series that I've read so far although The Redbreast was my favorite. That's also the first one I read (sorry Kerri) because the first two were not yet translated into English when I read it. I haven't felt the need to go back and read the first two.

I hope your day snowshoeing was fun.

6. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro




I read this wonderful novel while tucked up in bed and by the fire at the National Park Inn at Longmire (Mt. Rainier). Mr. Stevens, butler for Darlington Hall, is taking an unheard of holiday, motoring across the English countryside for a few days. His destination: a meet-up with the former housekeeper for Darlington Hall, Mrs. Benn, nee Kenton. He harbors the hope that he can persuade her to return to address a staffing problem at the great house, now owned by a wealthy American, as he believes she is unhappy in her marriage and planning to leave her husband. Along the way, Stevens reminisces about events in the great house to which he has dedicated his career, especially during the 1930s when the lord of the house was playing host to a handful of eminent noblemen and politicians, hoping to broker a more peaceful Europe. He also reminisces about his friendship with Miss Kenton during her employ at the house.

This is a beautifully written wry portrait of an aging butler, a man who has carried himself through his professional life with an unflagging dedication to the dignity of the office, and who has paid the emotional price. Ishiguro's sense of irony is pitch-perfect and elegantly wrought. Mr. Stevens and Miss Kenton are richly developed characters, created wholly through Mr. Stevens' imperfect and constrained memory of events and conversations. I found myself chuckling with delight at his deadpan delivery while also feeling tremendous sadness at the emotional cost of his choices. As a "Downton Abbey" fan, I occasionally channeled Mr. Carson's voice for that of Stevens, but Miss Kenton is her own character (Emma Thompson notwithstanding). Wonderful and highly recommended.

Welcome home, Ellen! And a thumb from me for that very well written review.

>294 Crazymamie: Thank you, Mamie! I guess since I'm sitting around playing on LT (there is this very strange bright light pouring in our front window and I'm soaking it up), I should respond to posts here and start my new thread!

>277 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul. January has provided a pretty good start in the reading department. I've not yet read a dud. Even Nemesis, which I only rated 3 stars, was an enjoyable read. Everything else has been excellent. The AAC-II and the BAC are starting out on the right note!

>278 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. We ended up leaving the snowshoes in back of the car although we did take two short walks with our YakTrax on. It was warm and raining pretty much the whole time we were there. Not good snowshoeing weather. Still, it was relaxing and fun.

>279 luvamystery65: Hi Roberta. Interesting that you're having a similar reaction. Maybe we can return for the next in the series later in the spring. I don't want to give up on Harry altogether.

>280 msf59: Hi Mark! My trips through Chicago tend to be centered around a work event: a conference or a meeting of some kind. I do hope we can orchestrate a meet-up in March! I'll get on that once I make my actual travel plans.

I have two other books by Penelope Lively on my bedside table. I don't know that I'll get to them this month, but I will read them. Thank you for choosing her for the AAC-II as she is a new author for me and well worth knowing!

>281 maggie1944: Karen, our visit to The Grandmother was wonderful. It was *pouring* rain so snowshoeing was not on the agenda, after all, but it was still beautiful. So lush! We saw a couple of elk, a deer, a flicker, a chickadee, a couple of camp robbers (aka Gray Jays), and lots of green trees. The rivers and waterfalls were roaring as the snow level was at higher than 5,000 feet and it was raining so much. Still, there was a warm fire in the lounge at the inn, lots of friendly Seahawks fans, and I had good books with me. I read The Remains of the Day and started The Hungry Tide. One of the employees was stoking the fire on Saturday evening and she started talking about people who have tried and failed to climb Mt. Rainier. She said about the mountain "She don't play around." I liked that the mountain was clearly a feminine entity to this woman who lives and works in her shadow.

>282 msf59: Thanks for the image, Mark! We missed the game but are happy about the outcome!

Great review of The Remains, Ellen. I am so glad that people are discovering this gem. Try to see the film version, which is incredible.

Lively is part of the BAC, so all the credit goes to Paul, for making that wonderful choice, along with the Ishiguro.

You might be glad you did miss the Seahawks game, unless, you managed to catch the last couple of minutes. LOL.

ETA- Your trip to The Grandmother sounds fantastic!

>283 Carmenere: and >284 cameling:
Thanks for stopping by with your congratulations, Lynda and Caro! We are happy Seattleites.

>285 maggie1944: YES!!!!

>286 ronincats: Hi Roni. We actually couldn't watch the game at the inn and we chose not to drive into the nearest village to watch at the bar. I'm just as glad to have missed it as I would have been miserable for the first 57 minutes. Of course, it would have been worth it to see the last few minutes and the overtime win!

My jaw is neither worse nor better. I think I'm going to have to do PT and/or massage.

>287 SuziQoregon: Juli, I wasn't watching the game but if I had been, you'd have heard me! :-)

>288 Matke: Thanks Gail. We're quite pleased with the outcome. I suspect I'd be even more euphoric if I had lived through the first 57 minutes. As it is, I'm pleased to be flying our "12" flag off the front porch.

>289 Crazymamie: Thank you, Mamie! It's nice that so many folks are just stopping by to say congrats. I know many LTers don't care much about football and then, of course, there are fans of so many other teams. I appreciate the cheers for my Seahawks.

>290 jolerie: Thank you, Valerie! Do you know, it's nice to know when someone thinks of me (I guess we all want that, right?). If it's due to the Seahawks amazing comeback win, that's fine with me!

>291 DorsVenabili: Hi Kerri! No watching of the game but we heard about the outcome seconds after the end. We were surrounded by Seahawks fans!

I feel badly that my reaction to Nemesis was kind of "meh" but I think you're right. Roberta and I are both thinking we need a bit of a break from Harry. I might give the next in the series a try late in the spring or maybe during some summer travel time. I mean, I did still give this one three stars which is not shabby.

>292 BLBera: Hi Beth! "They really do like to keep you guessing, don't they?" Sometimes I think being a fan of the Seahawks is like choosing to get on an unpredictable roller coaster. I know fans of many teams feel that way, but this win has to be one of the most amazing in football history. While I'm playing on LT, P is watching every story and recap she can get on her iPhone. I'm enjoying vicariously.

I'm not sure why Nemesis fell a bit flat for me. I think it felt too much like the others in the series. I don't think that's unusual. I read the John D. MacDonald Travis McGee series with gusto in my late teens and early 20s and certainly they can feel a lot like one another. I'm deciding that I just need a break from Harry Hole. I wonder if this is especially pronounced because I'm not really reading any other series right now. That is, if I'm only reading one series amid lots of stand-alone fiction and literature, might that not lead the series to feel stale more quickly?

>298 msf59: Hi Mark! I saw the film of The Remains of the Day years ago and I can't remember much about it. Images and voices from the film did come back to me as I read the novel, Emma Thompson's Miss Kenton particularly so. I'm planning to see about streaming the film soon (streaming being new to this household) as I'd like to revisit it with the novel fresh in my mind.

Ellen, congrats to your Seahawks! And to you on your stellar review of The Remains of the Day. I'm sorry that it didn't resonate as much for me. I think I could have benefited from a secluded inn and a roaring fire!

>301 Donna828: Donna, reading is always benefited by a secluded inn and a roaring fire, right? :-)
Have you seen the film with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson?