Sibyx (Lucy) Reads in April

Not my photograph! Too depressing for that with 90% snow cover and the bit of ground that is bare, frozen solid. However, there are some bushes in the big field that will soon have nice little pussy willow-ish buds and that will be one of the very first "signs of spring."

One sure sign of spring is that the muskrat "perfume" has ratcheted up around the upper field and pond. They've taken to wintering a couple of hundred yards away on a sunny slope in our huge brush pile but I saw tracks and the odor(!) around the pond this morning was intense. Evidence that someone is thinking about spring and moving to his or her summer abode.

***April Current Reads***
♬

♬ Symphony of Echoes Jodi Taylor
✔ In Sunlight and In Shadow Mark Helprin contemp fic
✔ Desolation Road Ian McDonald sf

Ongoing
Murdoch Marathon: See you in 2015! IM readers group is HERE
Virago Soon?
Reading the New Yorker 2014 Read my reviews here: HERE
currently reading: December 1, 8, 15, 22&29

41. The New Yorker: November 2014
42.✔ Slow Money Woody Tasch nf econ **
43. ✔ The Circle Dave Eggers contemp fic ****
44. ✔Chi Running Danny Dreyer nf health ****
45. ✔ Excession Iain Banks sf *****
46. ✔ Black Irish Stephan Talty mys ***1/2
47. ✔ The First Betrayal Patricia Bray fantasy ***1/2
48. ♬ How to Train Your Dragon Cressida Cowell fant ****
49. ✔ The Sea Change Patricia Bray(Josan 2) fantasy ***1/2
50. new Ancillary Sword Ann Leckie Imperial Radch-2) sf *****
51. new Raven Black Ann Cleeves mys ***1/2
52. new Hounded Kevin Hearne fantasy ***1/4
53. ✔ Freedom Jonathan Franzen contemp fic ***1/2
54.♬ Terra Incognita Ruth Downie (Medico Ruso 2) mys ****
55. ✔ The Idea of Perfection Kate Grenville contemp f ****1/2
56. ♬ Persona Non Grata Ruth Downie mys ****
57. ✔ Between the Woods and the Water Patrick Leigh Fermor memoir *****

Guide to symbols
♬ = audio
✔ = Year plus on shelf

March Reads
31. ✔The High Lord Trudi Canavan fantasy (Black Magician 3) ***1/2
32. ✔Kindly Light A.N. Wilson contemp fic ****
33. The New Yorker, October 2014
34. ✔ Medicus Ruth Downie hist mys ****
35. ✔Reflections on a Marine Venus Lawrence Durrell nf Greece (Rhodes) ****
36. ✔Use of Weapons Iain Banks sf ****
37. Ancillary Justice Ann Leckie sf *****
38. ♬ The End of the Affair Graham Greene contemp fic ***1/2
39. new A Natural History of Dragons Marie Brennan fantasy ****
40. ✔ Telegraph Avenue Michael Chabon contemp fic ****

March Reflections
At first glance I would say this was an all around average reading month in number and content. Scattershot in quality, type, genre too. I'm surprised by how much less I read this month than last month, but I have been working extremely diligently on my book with no breaks and that might have something to do with it, plus the LD home for spring break and a houseguest or two. That said, it was a solid month of good reading. Only the Leckie sf was outstanding and only one book was disappointing, the Greene. I did have my first Enough Already book though and I confess it felt wonderful! There is something very satisfying about making the decision to stop reading a book I am not enjoying. Gives me the illusion of control!

March Reading Stats
Total: 10
Men: 5
Women: 4
Non-fiction: 1
Fiction: 3
SF/F: 4
Mystery: 1
YA or J: 0
Poetry: 0
New author: 3
Months of NYers: 1

Housekeeping
*In: 2 2015 Total=8
**Out: 0 2015 Total=5
From library or borrowed: 0
Audio: 1
New: 1
Old: 6
Read it or Get Rid of It: 1

March Books In
7. Deceiver C.J. Cherryh pbs
8. The Crucible of Time John Brunner free HPL

*N.B. This is not entirely correct. I brought home some donated books from the library to 'look over'. But I haven't decided which to keep. I will log them on as I make up my mind. There are about 15 of them! It IS true I haven't bought any, although I have a few in mind!
**I have a box of books that I am planning to log out and pass along, but I haven't gotten around to it!

ENOUGH ALREADY! I QUIT! 2015
1. ✔The Club Dumas Arturo Perez-Reverte mys (March)
2. ✔ In the American Grain William Carlos Williams essays/Am hist (April)
3. gift/new Archaeology in Romania Andrew Mackenzie nf (April)

Series Tally 2015

Started in 2015
Shetland Ann Cleeves (1 of 5) NEXT UP: White Nights
Medicus Ruth Downie mys (3 of 6 READ) UP NEXT Caveat Emptor (4)
Lady Trent's Memoirs (1 of 3) NEXT UP : The Tropic of Serpents (3)
Chronicles of Josan (2 of 3) NEXT UP: The Final Sacrifice (3)
Iron Druid Chronicles Kevin Hearne (1 of 9) NEXT UP: Hexed

Continued in 2015
Culture Iain Banks (10) NEXT UP: Inversions (5th of 10)

Completed or caught up with in 2015
The High Lord Trudi Canavan (3 of 3)
Cormoran Strike (2 of 2)
Pegasus 1 of 1 (more forthcoming.....)
Serrano Legacy Elizabeth Moon(3 of 3)
The Old Kingdom Garth Nix(4 of 4)
Imperial Radch (2of 2) Next Up - 3 coming out in Nov 15.

Completed or caught up with in 2014
1. Good Daughters Mary Hocking (3)
2. Chronicles of Tornor Elizabeth Lynn (3)
3. Witch World - set goal of reading first three in series. Completed.
4. Mistborn Brandon Sanderson (3) 3 of 3 Completed
5. The Skolian Empire (14 of 14)Catherine Asaro (There are assorted novellas and ss)
6. ✔ Dublin Murder Squad 4 of 4
7. Quantum Gravity Justina Robson (5 of 5)
8. Green Rider Kristen Britain (4 of 4) (Mirror Sight
9. Divergent (3 of 3)
10. Sleepless (3 of 3)
11. Inspector Gamache (10 of 10)!

To be continued? (from 2013 or earlier)
1. The Seven Kingdoms Kristin Cashore (2 of 3) Next up: Bitterblue
2. Liaden Universe Sharon Lee Steve Miller Let's say I've read 11 of 19!
4. Flavia de Luce Alan Bradley (5 of 6) The Dead in their Vaulted Arches audio only!
5. KingKiller Chronicles Patrick Rothfuss 2 of 3. Doors of Stone forthcoming (undeclared)
6. Rivers of London Ben Aaronovitch (3 of 6) Next up Broken Homes

I'm posting this list as an aide-memoire as I've decided to stop hoarding the Culture series. I think I have them all except #4.
1. Consider Phlebas -READ Reread? Barely remember it.
2. Player of Games READ ages ago, but I remember it quite vividly.
3. Use of Weapons READ
4. The State of the Art (stories) PROLLY WILL SKIP
5. Excession READ
6. Inversions NEXT UP
7. Look to Windward (did I read this?)
8. Matter
9. Surface Detail
10. The Hydrogen Sonata READ

Hi, Lucy!

Hi from this corner, too, Lucy!

Happy April, Lucy! Hope your spring settles in soon. We're due for another heat spike in a couple of days. I'd like spring to settle in for a while and quit jumping up to summer once a week :(

April will bring spring, Lucy. It is probably just around the corner bringing flowers and warmer days.

Happy new thread, Lucy!

Happy New Thread, Lucy! I keep thinking about "June is Busting Out All Over" for you. Unfortunately, it says, "April sighed and stepped aside and along come pretty little May." I hope that April does you better than that.

Hello Lucy!

Happy new one, Lucy!

Happy April Thread, Lucy. I hope spring will finally come to you soon.

Happy Easter, Lucy! Have a great weekend.

Happy new thread and Happy Easter weekend, Lucy!

42. econ **
Slow Money Woody Tasch

What is slow money? Recall slow food? It's a related premise, that detaching production of goods from the community in which the products are to be sold, particularly if these commodities are food, leads to a disconnection with . . . everything. The disconnection leads to carelessness that will, eventually, lead to the ultimate disaster, lifeless ash instead of bountiful microbe-rich soil. Along the way communities are destroyed, quality is low or nil and so on. In short, healthy soil is at the root, is the basis, of a healthy economy and we forget that at our peril. Tasch worked for a big foundation and his big aha moment was realizing that although this foundation had admirable aims--there were two major problems. One--they invested their actual principal abominably--ways that did not reflect their philosophy. The justification? Making as much money to give away as possible. Two--they chose to give the money to the sorts of enterprises that 'look good' next to mainstream investing. In short, the whole thing was a sham, more out of lack of courage and real thought and commitment than any hoodwinking. This is a brilliant insight. Fifty, sixty years ago, somebody at Harvard et al woke up and said, "Diamond mines in South Africa? Are you effing kidding me? My scholarship is supported by THAT?" BUT for all that the few ideas sprinkled about here are good ones, there isn't enough content. Although it pains me to say it, this is a tedious even terrible book that would likely do the opposite it intends to all but those who already agree with his thesis. Tasch is a talker--not a lecturer even--and he delivers peppy exciting talks on this subject to investors and whoever will have him I guess. The editors did not FORCE him to rework rethink and rewrite the talks into something a person could bear to read. **

Why now and why didn't I quit reading it?
The book was a gift from some people I respect very much and I'm meeting with them next week. . . it'll be the basis for some good conversation. I might even be tactful about how painful a read it was.

So many visitors! Too many to name.

Thank you for new thread wishes (it's like having a birthday on the first of every month!) and a very very Happy Easter to all of you who celebrate it!

SIGNS OF SPRING!
The Canada geese were honking up in the aether this morning when I went out. I've switched to my 'summer mode' of exercise, which is to go out before breakfast. You do see a lot more, deer and so on. I have to take a leash and keep Posey on it in some areas. The deer are so stressed out this end of winter, it is a kindness not to make them run away from a very silly little corgi! NOT chipmunks, I keep telling her.

We are having a jolly good thaw at the moment, however there is snow woe in my future. Tomorrow that is. I just hope it doesn't last more than a day or two. Ugh.

Happy New Thread Lucy! Love the birdie up there in the branches.

I must say ever since I started dropping books without compunction, I've gotten sort of... I don't know if 'addicted' is the right word, because I certainly don't make a regular habit of it, but let's say it's a freedom I don't hesitate to uphold when I feel any sort of oppression when I'm reading something that really doesn't work for me, and I always feel like I've used the 'get out of jail' card when I make that decision to drop a book and move on to something else.

We're having one blessed day of temperate weather today, with some sunshine and blue skies thrown in for good measure, so there'll be a nice long walk sometime today, but then we're back to end-of-winter yuckinness too by tomorrow and for most of the rest of the week, I gather. But Spring is here, so the nice weather MUST be around the corner! :-)

>18 Smiler69: Ilana, I think we have pretty much the same forecast. They say the snow will only stick above 1000 ft.. We're at 700, so we'll see. I've decided to spend tomorrow reading and NOT looking out the window!

I've decided to spend tomorrow reading and NOT looking out the window!

That's probably the best anti-depressive one can manage considering everything. I think I'll follow your example. But then there's the inevitable dog walks, what about those?

I know! I know! I don't know what I'll do! Endure bravely? Posey could care less what the weather is although she doesn't like driving rain much.

The worst is that I've gone on my 'Summer' schedule - that is - going out for one of my big walks BEFORE breakfast. It's stupid, but I like to do that for six months of the year, usually starting April 1 I think I might have to forget that tomorrow and Sunday and go totally back on 'Winter" schedule, when hunting season starts in November. NOT a good time to be out early!

Back to add further comment to >18 Smiler69: when I realized I hadn't! I am encouraged that deciding not to quit a book that isn't working gets easier. It is, after all, a pleasure (unless you are in school or whatever, like I had to with Slow Money just now) and like dessert, you don't eat it just because it is there, you eat that dessert because you really really like it.

43. contemp fic ****
The Circle Dave Eggers

From the beginning, when Mae spends her first day at The Circle, on the idlyllic California campus near San Francisco, you kind of know, from the headlong pace and Mae's own delight in everything she encounters, where this is headed and it's nowhere good. This is a near-future dystopic novel and under Mae's chirpy cheerfulness it is really really creepy, the message being that you don't lose your right to privacy all of a sudden, but one gizmo cool app at a time . . . This one tracks kids, that one tracks your health, why not wear a camera all the time, why not put mini-cameras everywhere, why not track criminals, why not . . . Mae quickly becomes the 'face' of The Circle, and she thrives on all of it, on being part of something big, on having several million followers. Meanwhile her parents and her former boyfriend are unable to get through her enthusiastic endorsement of everything The Circle does with terrible consequences. I love Library Thing and I have many connections on the internet that I highly value, but I also know, so far, when it is time to check out, maybe even for a day or two. It's when you get on to see who has come by and you were on just ten minutes ago, or you find who's reading your blog lately and start looking at where they live. . . signing up for this and that, liking on FB . . . you can waste a whole day . . . or maybe even a whole life. The style of the writing I would characterize as breathless--any bit of independent Mae can't sustain itself against the idea of being connected to so many people and such a cool thing ..... Mae is, in fact, horribly boring and quite horrible, so there is a weird tediousness to the book, but that is the point! I appreciate The Circle. The four stars are for the perfectly pitched execution of an idea, not because I enjoyed it. It's a sobering 'it-could-happen' and well done. ****

Why now? I think the red jacket caught-my-eye. Turns out the jacket is important too, containing a hint of the inevitable. I have the hardcover and the paperboard design under the cover is eye-catching.

>23 sibylline: I read The Circle for One LibraryThing, One Book (which seems to have faded away), was not so enthusiastic. I do like the cover though. :-)

Hmmm I can't say I was enthusiastic, more, I recognized or appreciated (or I think I do) the point Eggers was making and think he did so successfully. It's an unpleasant book to read because Mae becomes a monster--and Eggers is clever so it there is an ambiguity-- the language of it is a perfect echo of all the nicey speak you hear on the teev. I'm going to see if I can squeeze a little of this thought into the review.

>23 sibylline: the point Eggers was making
Seemed kinda "get offa my lawn" to me...

Thank you for reading and reviewing The Circle, Lucy. I do beleive I can safely pass it.

Hi Lucy, I wish you Happy Easter.

>26 qebo: My stupid, but I don't quite get?

>27 LizzieD: You certainly can, it is a 'one message' sort of book that is then played out in excruciating detail. I just thought for what it was, it was done well. 4 ratings have a neutral aspect with me, often a recognition of worthiness of some sort or other.

Meanwhile for an hour or two it rained and then . . . it went quiet. Yeh, snow. 1/2 inch so far and sticking.

>29 sibylline: Kids these days... Grumbling about the younger generation, what's the world coming to, etc.

Snow? EEEEEEEK! Though our 25mph wind today isn't making me want to rush outdoors.

>30 qebo: Really? You don't worry about the internet becoming Big Brother? Those algorithms that tell you, based on tracking you incessantly, what you want and what you like? Everyone always asking you to fill out questionnaires, how'd we do? I've told them "Great, now get lost!" just to get rid of them. I loved the bits where people would go totally bananas if they weren't replied to immediately. I also thought it was well done about the transparency issue - twisting it into assumption of guilt - if you want to keep your life private, doesn't it just mean you have secrets you don't want people to know? Hillary is being ripped to shreds over exactly that issue. Maybe she has secrets, or maybe she just likes having some stuff off the record. Yes yes, it was illegal, no argument, but why? Why can't she have any privacy? Why do we think that is the way to go? Why her and not the Supreme Court? The Supreme Court Justices never have to show anyone anything, they still have total privacy. Why them and not her? Will they keep it? Should they? I don't know the answers, but I liked Eggers bringing this kind of thing out into the open I kept thinking, while reading, that Eggers was writing the prequel to Brave New World, updated, of course, and with our new technology. I've talked a lot at dinner table when my daughter's friends are here - and I am happy to say many of them do think about these issues and agree that one of the huge things their generation faces is balancing privacy and technology.

going on and on aren't I? Blame it on the snow.

>31 sibylline: Sure. I guess I'd separate the issues from the quality of the book. The book didn't engage me enough to evoke indignation.

Re balancing privacy and technology, yes. very much an issue. And the problem is both huge pros and huge cons, difficult to disentangle.

Understanding achieved! Eggers may have erred with Mae's character, I do agree--if she had more doubts, or we liked her better -- or those two sides of her character were more in conflict. I think I was impressed overall though with his thoroughness at exploring the subject. I'm thinking of.... a novel I read recently ... let me think, where people were dyed different colors depending on their crimes, When She Woke - the character was slightly more interesting, but really she was a vehicle for the thematic content. It does tend to wreak havoc with characters this sort of focus.

>33 sibylline: Yeah, I don't think we have much difference of opinion re issues, but do have different approaches and reactions to novels. I certainly would've preferred Mae to be not necessarily likeable, but to have a strong character so watching her succumb to the forces of The Circle would be distressing. When She Woke interests me, though I'd want to read The Scarlet Letter around the same time (I did read it in high school, but that was some time ago).

Hi Lucy -- hope you're getting a lot of reading.while.not.looking.outside done and that you have a lovely Easter weekend.

I too read The Circle when it was chosen for 'One LibraryThing, One Book', and I think for me it suffered from being too cleverly done, in the sense that, as you say, Mae is so convincing and creepy about how she gets sucked into the that whole corporation and the 150%, 24/7 exposure, and I couldn't help but identify a little bit with her, just a teeny bit of course, which I guess was Egger's idea, since in our internet age we're now all playing around with various apps and sites that expose us to various degrees and we are all having to make choices about how much or how little privacy we want to hold on to. I was surprised to see I hadn't reviewed it, but then last year I was hardly reviewing anything. On the other hand, I gave it a very low rating—just 2.5 stars, and I've just raised that to 3, because I do think in retrospect it was very well done, but at the time I was so turned off by Mae and horrified by the whole extreme that Eggers was pushing the notion to, perhaps because so many elements seemed too plausible and scary.

As for freedom to abandon books, I don't do it all that often; 14 books last year, but 5 of them I definitely want to pick up again as it was just a question of bad timing or not liking the narrator of the audio and wanting to read them in print—out of 225 read over the year. That being said, most of the time when I'm not sure if I'm enjoying a book or not, I usually persevere and end up being hugely gratified at some point when there is some kind of breakthrough and it all starts falling in place.

The sky is gorgeous and blue, sun shining, buds on the trees outside my window, but I looked out on the grounds and there is an even layer of snow everywhere which evidently fell overnight. I don't want to look at the weather because yesterday we took a long walk, I in my Barbour autumn/spring jacket, no hat, no gloves, which won't be the case today I'm sure. *Sigh*. SOON though. Soon...

-Q - I agree! And while we have difference we also overlap a good bit in our taste so it still is surprising when we differ! Although we do, of course, have some strong preferences most of those are quite delineated in my mind! (Like no space opera, puh-leez)

-Reba - I ended up working, what a silly I am, but I am now preparing the draft to send to the agency and I am OBSESSED. Totally, to the exclusion of everything else. The fam. is trying to be tolerant! I sneak onto LT for breaks. So almost no reading yet, but I plan to start in a minute.

-Ilana. What a great response that is - and the fact that it is all so vivid yet and gave you that sort of icky, uh oh feeling of self-recognition -- that is exactly what Eggers was going for. To make your skin crawl. I'm so glad I'm done with it!

It turned lovely this afternoon, way ahead of the weather prediction! Half the snow has already melted away. Yay!

And, I was so obsessive today that I forgot I finished Chi Running last night!

44. health/fitness ****
Chi Running Danny Dreyer

This isn't really the sort of book you 'finish' with. It will be a resource for me for some time to come. Dreyer outlines his running technique and it is convincing. Our physical therapist is a Chi Running instructor so I've already had an earful or two. The first few chapters had me worried, he talks on and on about what will be in the rest of the book, but then it gets serious. He outlines the method, offers exercises to help you prepare to change the way you run, offers excellent advice about how to avoid and prevent injury. I loved reading about his method for running up or down hills. The last couple of chapters are about racing and diet and I skimmed them. For anyone thinking about taking up running, or who is sure their technique is not right (frequent injury would be an indicator) this is the book to get. I've been reading it for a couple of weeks, a few pages at a time and trying things out. The reality is that it will be several months of patient effort before I 'get' it. Let's hope I can stay the course. Probably I should buy the Chi Running dvd, but I am annoyed that I have to. I mean, jeez, I bought the book already! ****

Why now? I used to run a lot, I've slacked off and gotten lazy. This summer I will be starting my 'Walk all of Vermont's Long Trail' promise to myself, so I need to seriously get more fit! Come to Vermont and walk a day on the trail with me!

>38 sibylline: I got this book last week, based on your previous thread. For similar reasons; in 2010 & 2011 I ran a few half marathons, but since then I’ve been fading... to shorter races, then no races but a regular schedule, then just enough to maintain a minimal sluggish ability. So I need inspiration. I’m glad you and Ellen said to stick with it through the first few chapters of puffery. I’ve now arrived at chapter 4, which I gather is where the nuts and bolts begin.

Come to Vermont and walk a day on the trail with me!
This is not without appeal... Maybe you could convene an LT meetup...

Some new reads for this week:

♬

I suspect the Williams will be dated, but I've had it around forever.

45. sf *****
Excession Iain Banks

Science fiction doesn't get better than this, although I would caution anyone new to trying out the genre to start elsewhere than plunging into the convolutions and complexities of Iain Banks' plots, the Culture, and ship Minds. This time an anomaly appears, what the Minds call an 'excession' meaning, something they do not understand. Naturally, being Minds, they are piqued and challenged when something they don't understand turns up. So they race to get there and meet and greet . . . only . . . another culture, the Affronters get wind of the excession and want in and it turns out the Special Circumstances, the MI6 of the ship Mind 'verse has been 'up to something' and it all comes to a head, naturally, around this enigmatic visitor. There is a strong human plot as well, a love affair gone very bad, a spoiled brat of a young woman, the usual very funny drones, an obnoxious raven . . . *****

>41 sibylline: I must read some of Iain Banks' Sci-fi stuff someday soon, Lucy. It isn't really my bag but I would have thought that he was a good enough writer to get me into it.

Trust your Easter weekend has been going splendidly.

I forget, Paul, do you like any sf? I suspect Banks is an acquired taste. . . although the ship Minds are wonderfully appealing from the get-go.

Being lapsed entirely and with no child in residence, our Easter was very quiet. An excellent afternoon ramble and lots of reading.

Despite the 5 stars I guess I won't read the Banks any time soon, but should I ever get into SF, his books will be the next ones I'll read after you know which ones. :)

The Eggers now... I fear I must get to it at some point. And now I feel even worse about the first big advice in the "Parachute" book about keeping your social media profiles clean and ever updated and communicating with as many people as possible in a friendly and prompt manner - i.e. building a glossy spotless identity and not accidentally liking the wrong books or TV shows or say you're feeling depressed.

The premise of the Tasch book sounds really interesting, what a pity that it was executed so badly.
I confess I never thought about how my future pensions are invested until a couple of days ago, and now this is another worry I can't do much about added to a long list of similar worries. Which could bring me back to the Eggers, but no! :))

Happy Week and Happy Spring!

Well. . . . I wouldn't worry too much about some of the Parachute advice! The main thing is if it can help you pinpoint what it is you hope to do.

The premise of the Tasch book is excellent. I think it was a case of trying to make a whole book out of a couple of ideas -- and bad editing choices.

I have The Circle sitting on the TBR shelf at work and I just never get around to reading that one. The discussion here has me more curious than I have been. I bought it, I think, because I still remember What Is the What so vividly but I'm not sure any of his other works are going to satisfy as fully as that one did.

I'm glad you found ChiRunning to be a good resource. I agree, it's one to dip into now and then when you need inspiration or reminding.

How's Miss Posey these days? Enjoying spring?

Miss Posey is developing a sideline (main focus is still chipmunks) in rousting grouse out of their roosts -- got two flapping off on a walk this afternoon. Extremely please with herself.

I'm perfectly delighted that you were so delighted with Excession - my favorite IM Banks for sure!
What a versatile dog person is Miss Po!

46. mys ***1/2
Black Irish James Talty

This is the second book I've read set in Buffalo in less than a month . . . after a lifetime of never reading a book set in Buffalo. The first was an historical novel set in the early 1900's, at the peak of Buffalo's greatness, and this the second is set in the present in the depressed near-ruin that Buffalo became over the last century (word is that it is improving, slightly, again). In any event, Absalom Kearney, adopted daughter of the great police detective, retired, John Kearney is following in his footsteps. A series of gruesome murders that seem to target particular members of the area, Irish, in the County and she is assigned. As Absalom (Ab) weighs through evidence and rockets around, the murderer begins to appear to be someone very close to home. It's very gruesome. This is Talty's first mystery and accomplished as it is he has room to improve. There were small glitches and abruptnesses. Ab switches from the Royal Crown Vic (of the police dept? never explained) to her green Saab and rockets around Buffalo at dangerous speeds, like, 90 over the Peace Bridge, say. Not cool, actually. Z, her partner, is and isn't an integral part of the story. If t'were me, I would have focussed on their relationship, had the mystery in this first book further out, and saved this story for a later one. Her father, for example, is a great character, under-utilized. It felt rushed and like too much got stuffed in but I have no doubt that Talty will learn. I likely will not read more of them as the violence factor felt overdone. But it is solid work and if you like mysteries it's totally worth reading. Again, I think we needed a book in which to get to know Absalom more slowly and thoroughly. Most of us read these for the characters not the crimes, right? ***1/2

Why now? I swear I wasn't trying to make some 'novels set in Buffalo' personal record. It was the tallest book on my mystery shelf and didn't quite fit in . . . is that a good enough reason to choose a book?

Actually, Buffalo is great setting because it is such a ruin and there is a terrific line about that in the book which I was sure I had marked, but of course, I can't find it now.

>47 sibylline: I love the image that created for me. :-)

"...is that a good enough reason to choose a book?"
As good as any.

I love the image of Miss Po and the grouse too!

I love that reason for choosing a particular book!

Mamie and I also agree about getting rid of books with awful covers. I did a little of that this winter, too. My mystery shelf is looking MUCH better now.

Did I mention two inches of snow? It won't last long, but still! Next week a lot of 60's are in the forecast, so I'm a hopeful one.

"Next week a lot of 60's are in the forecast..." Yay!

47. fantasy ***1/2
The First Betrayal Patricia Bray

Josan is a member of the Learned Brethren assigned to to operate a lighthouse at the far edge of the Ikarian Empire. His mind damaged by a bad fever, he has slowly recovered his sense, although at times he feels oddly not like himself . . . . because in fact his 'soul' has been placed inside the body and mind of another man so entirely different from himself. The other main character is Lady Ysobel, a trader of the Seddon Federation, a group of islands just off the coast of Ikaria. Dropped off of her ship as a huge storm blows in, she meets Josan and is startled to see he resembles someone once hugely important in the empire. If I say any more I'll start giving stuff away, but the main interest of the novel is watching Josan and his host become aware of one another and begin to work out how to . . . if not share, then tolerate, the presence of the other. Lady Ysobel is out to make her fortune any way she can, even if it involves stirring up a hornet's nest of trouble. There is little magic and much intrigue and both Ysobel and Josan are reasonably developed characters and reasonably entertaining, and I have book 2 around, so I will read on. ***1/2 with a chance of upgrade depending on how the story develops.

Why now? Tough one, totally random, basically. In lieu, perhaps, of starting one of the series I know will be better, yah, hoarding. Crazy. Maybe it is the fact that he KEEPS ON SNOWING OUT THERE. whywhywhy

>55 sibylline: whywhywhy
You shoulda stayed in Philadelphia.

>56 qebo: LOL!

I deserved that!

So overrepresented is the picture of Posey? That's what I want to know.

Aiiee! Gone all day - have to load it from my phone!

48. ♬ fantasy j ****
How To Train Your Dragon Cressida Cowell

Sorry we missed out on this one when our daughter was little, although it is rather boy-Viking oriented, still, it was fun to meet Hiccup of the Hooligan tribe and his dragon Toothless. I would not have listened to this but for the fact that the reader is David Tennant, and he was excellent! ****

Why now? I don't load up on Audibles, at least, I haven't yet, load up a new one when I am close to the end of the previous. Someone praised David Tennant's rendering of the book, and rightly so.

Book give-away on my thread, message #120.

Just finished Medicus which you recommended - loved it, will look out for the rest of the series - thank you.

Hi Lucy, I wish you a fabulous weekend.

>62 ronincats: I'm running over!

>63 charl08: So glad you loved Medicus! I just started listening to the second one.

>64 Ameise1: Thank you and same to you, Barbara.

Sorry to read you have received another dumping of snow, Lucy. So glad to see the love for How to Train Your Dragon continues here. Such fun!

Mud Season has begun!!!!!

>66 lkernagh: Happily the snow has melted mostly - we have lots of huge piles, of course, and icy patches too. The pond is thawing grudgingly, but that is normal. I'll be curious to see if we make the April 15 wood- frogs-quacking-opening day, with the temps well above forty in the day and close to it at night, it'll be close. I keep track of these things and it's been like clockwork - pay those taxes and those frogs start quacking. The week after the wood frogs come the spring peepers and I have to get out my ear muffs because they are so loud. The wood frogs make a creaky sweet sound.

And I'll just bet Miss Po LOVES the mud!

OMG that might just be the most adorable Miss Po pic ever!

49. fantasy ***1/2
The Sea Change Patricia Bray

Okay, so I sort of galloped through this second of three of the Chronicles of Josan because I was hoping at some moment Bray would relent and warm her people up a bit. But, nope. Josan, in the very beginning, promised so much more. Have to say these might the coolest (as in chilly) characters I've met in the fantasy genre, perhaps ever. There is no humor, no fun to it, is my problem, even though the story is a good one and well worked out, the characters are frustratingly mechanical, I guess I would have to say, entirely devoted to the task Bray has given them of working out the plot. Utterly maddening when the writing is so solid and everything is so well set up. It makes me realize that a major part of the pleasure I take in fantasy is the sheer delight the writers themselves take in making up their stories and inhabiting their characters. I'd never thought of that before, but its absence here, or almost like a wilful damping down of it, has brought it into relief for me. Those who read for intricate plot may like it, that part is very well done. I'd like to just give it a three-star rating, but the fact is, there is only this one elusive element missing. ***1/2

Why now? It was book 2 and I just couldn't believe that it wouldn't get better. I got the 3rd as a swap and I'll probably read that one the same way as this one, kind of speedily.

> Oh yeah! This photo is illustrates:


>70 lauralkeet: Pretty bad, isn't it! I had her in my lap and just held my camera up over her and took a bunch of photos. Most were terrible, all but this one.

I guess she loves being in the mud, doesn't she? Lovely photos of her.

Reading as of today:

♬

So far I've been reading up a storm in April - some of it deceptive as I finished up a bunch of books last week that I started in March and read very slowly. Doing that again with the Williams - impressionistic essays on American history. Interesting to compare to the Tony Horwitz A Voyage Long and Strange I read a year or two ago. The Franzen captures my attention off and on--it's awfully long! It's all I can do not to find a corner to disappear in to read the Leckie . . .

And, people, it really is happening out there. A turkey, I think courting, was making extraordinary noises in the hemlock wood behind the house (have to go check somewhere if that is what was going on) starting at dawn. Robins everywhere, Canada Geese in the field (I wonder if we will get our pair nesting here again?). Up in the high 50's today, so it's all good!

>67 sibylline: Oh my, such happiness!

Oh my, how cute is Miss Po looking in that photo! I'm interested in all the discussion around The Circle - it's near the top of the TBR pile and I should get to it fairly soon. The husband read it and had mixed feelings, very similar to those expressed here I think. I'm also interested to hear what you make of Freedom. I read it a while back and liked it, but it was odd - I gave it four stars when I reviewed it, but then looking back on it I struggled to remember what I liked about it. One of those books that reads well but doesn't leave a strong impression, somehow.

I suspect I will feel the same about Freedom. Yet it does read very smoothly and easily and entertainingly and not in a stupid way.

Book Trading Alert
Okay so here is a list of books I'm planning to list on PBS, but I thought I'd give you all a crack at them first:

5 David Eddings - Magician's Gambit, Castle of Wizardry, Queen of Sorcery, Enchanter's End Game, Pawn of Prophecy Please take them all!
The first 6 of the Michael Scott series The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel Please take all!!!
Josephine Tey Brat Farrar
These are all dupes that somehow got into my shelves!
David Brin Sundiver
C.J. Cherryh Precursor
Alfred Bester The Computer Connection
Samuel R. Delany Tales of Neveryon
Other
Patricia Bray The First Betrayal, The Sea Change, and after I read it, The Final Sacrifice
Sjowall Wahloo The Locked Room
Barbara Kingsolver The Lacuna

I'll wait a week or so.

If you'd like any of these, check availability and if you're first, I'll let you know and you can PM yr. address.

I read the first of the Nicholas Flamel series and never followed up. If you think they are worth reading, I'll take them and then donate the series to my elementary school when I'm done.

Also, I'd take Precursor--although I haven't started that series yet, I'm starting to collect the books.

Already have the Eddings, Brin, and Delany.

>67 sibylline: Lovely pictures of Posey! I'm hoping that mud season is coming to an end here! We've just be down to see my mother for the weekend, which has the advantage that even if Daisy gets wet she doesn't get muddy, as it is too sandy.

I've read a couple of Iain Banks's non-Culture SF novels. Where would you start with the Culture ones?

Love the pictures of Posey. We have an aging mixed-breed who has a lot of Pomeranian in him, but must also have some Corgey, 'cause his face, now turning white, lots a lot like that closeup of Posey.

This http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-of-the-day/dog-yawn-... by the way is a photo of him in his younger days--the image was quite prevalent on the internet a while back.

>78 ronincats: I've been collecting the Foreigner series too - haven't started reading them. Not sure how I ended up with two - probably by forgetting to remove it from PBS when I found it somewhere else. When you've got them all or enough to begin let me know, that would be fun to do more or less at the same time, eh? - I can't recommend the Scotts, didn't work for me. I'd be happy to send them all to you then you can decide for yourself and pass them along to your school? Our library has them -- and so does the library in the next town and they have them at the middle school library, so no takers here. My other choice is the sale table at the library, but I'd rather they moved along to a good home. Let me know and I'll box it all up!

>79 SandDune: Sand is good that way.

> 80 What a wonderful funny photograph! Re Banks: I don't know! I'm not sure it matters much what order you read them in, but there is a chronological order so I'm following that. The other option I suppose is the order in which they were written . . . if it's different, which I don't know. Hmm. Not sure I've been very useful. But go to The Culture series page maybe? Peggy? Anybody else want to weigh in?

NOTE - I've added some links to a comment below (>86 sibylline:) to sites that discuss this matter!

>67 sibylline: Oh yes! Absolutely the sweetest yet! What wonderful eyes!
>80 arubabookwoman: Deborah, dog-yawnit! That's a darling picture!
>80 arubabookwoman: >81 sibylline: I really don't think order matters in *The Culture*. Just don't read Consider Phlebas first. I'm not the only one who wouldn't have read anything else in the series - or maybe even anything else by Banks - if it had been my first.

Maybe you could bring Posey to this next year: http://mashable.com/2015/04/11/500-corgis-beach/.

> 83 I think there might be another one on the east coast as well, in New Jersey, maybe. What a trip!

On reading Culture books:

http://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2009/03/reading-order-of-culture-novels.html

Some sites that discuss Culture reading order (and I'll bet there are discussions here too if you know where to look!)

http://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2009/03/reading-order-of-culture-novels.html

http://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/11ihjs/suggested_reading_order_for_the_...

http://www.quora.com/Where-should-I-start-with-Iain-Banks-culture-novels

I would say that there is an overall consensus that it doesn't actually matter that much as each book stands alone, but there is a lean towards reading either Consider Phlebas (the first Culture book) or Player of Games (the second) first. PoG is considered 'simpler' -following one character, you can sort of get the picture (it was the first one I read, I think???) Most people pick up Consider Phlebasfirst but if you are new to the 'verse don't expect to know what is going on for quite some time. You're dumped into it and have to figure it out. But that might be the case with everyone's first Culture experience! I plan to reread it when I get to the end. I remember little pieces of it, but I also remember being totally confused half the time.

Thanks Lucy! (And Peggy). I've liked what I've read by Banks in the past (including his non-scifi books). I'll probably just end up jumping in with one that sounds intriguing to me.

Hi Lucy! I'd take the Brin, Delany, Bester, and Kingsolver, but I don't want to be too greedy in case other people are interested too.

I hope you're liking Ancillary Sword.

I am loving it! Hard to do any work, in fact!

They are all yours! PM yr address?

QUIT ALREADY!
2. ✔ In the American Grain William Carlos Williams essays/Am hist

One reviewer here wrote: I'm really not sure whether I hated In the American Grain, or whether I quite liked it. I think if I made it to the end I would feel the same way, however, since I am not taking a required class in, say, "Writing History Through the Ages" I am not going to make it to the end. In some fundamental way these essays are dated even though the effort to blend original documents and imagined scenarios was original at the time, I'm just not with the stories he crafts. Out of respect for Williams I made it well over 50 pages but last night I looked at it and felt despair. It could well be my own limitations, but the prose has a tangled elegiac quality that instead of enhancing, say, Montezuma's tragic downfall at the hands of the ruthless Cortez, just made it muddled. Anyhow, much as I love Williams' poetry, I can go no further.

I think I picked this up in the Swap Shop at the transfer station. Back it goes.

I should add that I've been perusing The Crooked Stick: A History of the Longbow Hugh D. Soar as a reference resource and if you want to know more about the longbow it's fun. I've only read the first few chapters because that was all I needed. Some of it gets a little too technical for anyone except a mad passionate archer or bowyer but it is decently written.

50. sf *****
Ancillary Sword Ann Leckie

Well boo and hoo, I'm already done. Now that I am familiar with the Radch 'verse, I could plunge into the world with relish. In this second novel, Breq now Captain of her own ship, the Mercy of Kalr, is sent to an out-of-the-way station by the Mianaai she has sided with, the compassionate one who accepts she made a mistake. She has to take a young Lieutenant at the last minute. The Medic is a grouch but a good doctor and when she realizes who and what Breq is still accepts her as her Captain, not just Captain, but Fleet Captain, meaning, once she arrive at Athoek station she will outrank everybody even the Captain of the Sword of Atagaris, who of course, is NOT pleased to see her. Things are clearly not right out here, there is a 'ghost gate' that seems to be in use although it shouldn't be, there is much hostility toward Breq and her ship, and the people on the planet are being exploited and are in a bad way. In some ways this is a classic 'middle' novel, lots happens but it doesn't appear to lead much of anywhere, but I have faith that Athoek Station, the ghost gate, and the mysterious Presger will come to the fore in the third book which I await greedily. I love this genderless world with its odd mix of directness and formality. *****

Why now? This series is far too good for any sort of hoarding!

Sunshine streaming in the windows and I've (probably prematurely) rearranged the furniture into 'summer' mode . . . . but we had the garage door open for part of two days . . . it was bliss. So we're no longer clustering around the woodstove and instead connecting with the great outdoors or positioning to be able to connect with the great outdoors at a moment's notice. Pond is about halfway thawed. Normally today is the day that the wood frogs start quackling but they won't yet, not until every bit of ice is gone. They start up one second after.

My mood has improved so much it's almost embarrassing. But I am getting less work done.

You have me itching to go ahead and get *Sword*, but I'll wait just a little bit longer.
Hooray for SPRING!!! Even in outer Vermont! Listen for the frogs ---- I know the effect. After a good rain here, it sounds as though they had been freeze-dried and the water released them.

Yeah, Ancillary Sword was definitely much slower and actually lowered the stakes from the previous book, but I liked it a lot. I can't wait for Ancillary Mercy! Also, there's going to be a standalone Radch-verse book coming out in 2017, I'm pretty excited about that too.

>92 sibylline: My mood has improved so much it's almost embarrassing.
I had that experience last weekend, with two glorious mornings out in the garden. Long may it continue!

Hooray for sunshine, Lucy!! And what fun photos of Miss Posey!

Good to know that the second Ancillary book holds up - I have the first in the stacks!

Saw this and thought of you! Those are some super cute Corgis... http://tv.cheezburger.com/video/70119681

Better go to Hannah's thread for some special news!!

I popped in to say the main pond is almost entirely free of ice and the 'feeder' pond which doesn't get quite as much sunlight is close. I am hoping for wood frogs and lots of quackling tomorrow or at the latest Saturday!

Thank you Hannah for those corgis - they really have the greatest happy faces.

Thank you, Roni ,for sending me over to Hannah's!!!!

Hurray for spring on the pond! I one the wildlife that shows up about now. We have our usual nesting pair of geese and have seen a few migratory waterfowl in the past few weeks. I sent them on their way to visit you :)

Spring is lovely isn't it? The weather here over the last few days has improved dramatically, and I saw my first set of ducklings on Wednesday. Not too sure about their chances of survival as their parents have picked a very small pond to rear them on (and one which is usually patrolled by a cat) but there is something about ducklings which always lifts my mood!

Ducklings are wonderful - I assume the lovely American book, Make Way For Ducklings was a it in GB too? Ducks haven't tried nesting by our pond-only the larger tougher geese. Not sure how they'd do here. We have a fox living barely 100 yards away, and I think any ducks looking for a nursery figure that out. The geese feel equal to it and did successfully rear two last year (out of either 3 or 5, we never quite figured that out).

Anyway, it is now pouring rain, which is a novelty, believe it or not. Last night our cat Simon gave us palpitations when he didn't come in when he should have and I spent quite a bit of time outside in the dark with my headlamp on looking for those little telltale of two glowing orange eyes . . . well just when I was getting hysterical, I saw the two little eyes in the truck, which had been out today.... the little scamp got in somehow. BUT the point is that I heard the first wood frogs quackling and even a couple of sort of weak peeps from the spring peepers. Also - within a couple of hours crocuses appeared yesterday, none, then there they were.

3. Quit already
nf
Archaeology in Romania Alexander Mackenzie

This could have been interesting, but it is a laundry list. It is also a book that is answering one side of an argument but in such a way that the reader coming in knowing zip about the subject feels at a loss since the other side of the argument is barely laid out. I gleaned it has to do with the Slavic'ness versus the European'ness (read Roman, Greek) of Romania. And that is political, no doubt part of the Russian (then Soviet) campaign to justify annexing/dominating countries of Eastern Europe ( this book came out in the 80's) by insisting they were Slavic au fond. Anyway, I read as much as I could, but it is more of a catalogue of sites and what has been found in them than anything else. I got through The horse, The Wheel, and Language reading about 'bit-wear' in horse tack because it was full of interpretation and it had a point! Clearly there are lots of roman ruins in Romania, but only doing the MtDNA would prove the matter of origins of the actual population. The site of a 2nd century city that the Romans sacked, Salmizegusta is remarkable - shares some features with Stonehenge (but of wood -) in circular building. Also mention of the Glycon, a curious snake god, possibly even a hoax at the time. Only one sculpture of it ever found, in Romania, of course. And on a coin or two, I should add that the quality of printing and the photos is terrible. But it's off my shelf.

Why now? I've been thinking of reading the next Patrick Leigh Fermor and the two books were near to one another on the shelf, and since Fermor will be traveling through Romania I thought, well, why not read this first in case he mentions anything about ruins. My sister gave me this book, I have no idea why, but she did say she didn't want it back.

>102 sibylline: I don't think I've ever come across Make Way for Ducklings. I'd believe the geese could fend off a fox though - we were walking somewhere last week where there were lots of geese and they were more than happy to fend off Daisy!

>101 SandDune:, >102 sibylline: we kept ducks on our pond for a few years -- domestic ones from a hatchery. They only bred once, but none of the ducklings survived very long, and over time all of the ducks disappeared. Although I suspected foxes, we rarely saw evidence (feathers, etc.). Much later we discovered a ginormous snapping turtle in the pond and he became Prime Suspect. Needless to say, as much as we loved having ducks we couldn't bring ourselves to get a new batch. We do have wild ducks (mallards and wood ducks) who seem to do quite well, but if they have young, they keep them hidden.

I love Make Way for Ducklings and actually pretty much anything by Robert McCloskey.

>104 SandDune:


Make Way For Ducklings is a huge American classic. The setting is Boston. Mr and Mrs Mallard look for nesting spots but nothing will do. They end up on the Charles River and make friends with a policeman. The ducklings hatch etc, When the time comes Mrs. Mallard wants to move to the Boston Public Garden . . . . but how? My daughter was obsessed at different times with all of his books (mostly written in the forties) Blueberries for Sal(a little girl and a bear cub), Burt Dow, Deep Water Man (a man, a boat, and a whale) andTime of Wonder (homage to the seashore and summer) set in Maine. I must have read them each well over a hundred times. And Time of Wonder is LONG.

I love love love Make Way for Ducklings and I love love love Patrick Leigh Fermor.

>103 sibylline: Ooh, Patrick Leigh Fermor. I was lucky enough to see the building in Cluj where (just some of the) exciting things that happen for him, happened (I think it was a hotel when he was there, and I can't remember what it was by the time I got there, only that somehow it had escaped all the bonkers communist love for knocking down beautiful old buildings and putting up concrete blocks). Gorgeous country.

>106 sibylline: said ducklings are in fact immortalized in sculpture at the Boston Public Garden!

I was more of a Blueberries for Sal kind of girl, myself :)

And I think it is the "Massachusetts State Book!"

I've read too many boring non-fiction books of late, well meaning and all that, but just not much of a thrill. So I'm treating myself now the Fermor memoir #2, been hoarding it!

I've been hoarding all my Fermor and should try one, I know. I confess that I'm spending time in my comfort zone, rereading a vast Dean Koontz (Strangers, in fact). This is down to stress about May, I'm sure. I'm not in worst case because it's not Pride and Prejudice. I'll be happy to feel better about pursuing better things.
Hooray for ducklings! I'd hiss snapping turtles except for our pet Spot, who stayed in the spa here while she grew back a crack in her shell. Our roses were glorious that year, having been watered with Spot water. She'd raise her head every time the door opened. If she saw me, she'd go back in the water. If it were my DH, she'd wait for him to toss her slices of golden delicious apples, which she'd snap out of the air like a dog. (I think I've told this story before. Sorry.) He finally released her in the river about as far away from human habitation as it's possible to get.
As for Simon, I'm glad he's home safe and sound. I've spent many hours calling and searching for cat Phoebe, who would watch the proceedings with great interest from under the steps or an azalea. Cats!

I almost miss having a long winter with all the excitement that your spring is bringing.

Ooh, the second Fermor. I read it last year and loved it! Lots of great detail about my second home - Hungary. Romania sounds wonderful too. Or sounded. I guess that's the main point about his books - the world was a very different place then, a rather special and magical one. Sigh. Must get on to the third part soon...

Coming back to add - stop hoarding the Foreigner series and start reading! Roni too! I'm up to about book 8 now and loving it! It takes a little while for the full scope of the world building to unfurl, but it's a great journey along the way! And the speed at which you and Roni read means you'll catch me up in no time and we can swap thoughts on the adventures of Bren, Jago and Banichi like they're old friends! Come on! It'll be fun, I promise! ; )

Wishing you a very happy weekend and hoping that all the mud is drying out now - although Miss Po obviously has enjoyed it very much!
Never heard of the Ducklings book, it sounds cute and easy to read, so it sounds like something I might enjoy despite my reading funk. But the ER book will have to come first.

I read Make Way for the Ducklings a couple of weeks ago. It was an adorable book.

Happy weekend Lucy!

Hi Lucy, I wish you a wonderful spring weekend.

51. mys ***1/2
Raven Black Ann Cleeves

Set in Shetland, this is the first in a series of mysteries feature DI Jimmy Perez, who, despite his last name is very much a local boy. In this first book a young woman is found strangled lying frozen in a field. In a nearby house lives a man, somewhat simple, who was once suspected of doing away with a little girl who went missing about eight years earlier. Everyone suspects the man, of course, although for many, Jimmy P. among them, the pieces don't fit. Catherine, the young woman, emerges as a complicated and cold young person who was not as innocent as she appeared to be. Perez and the English DI sent to take charge can't let it go, even when the body of the first missing girl is found and the simple man is implicated and that seems to be enough grounds to take him in for the murder of Catherine. It has some of the awkwardnesses common to the first mystery in a series, but unlike the last mystery I reviewed does not suffer from 'too much'. Some relationships are a bit glossed--such as Jimmy and the DI from the mainland--I'm not sure what the purpose was of even having him there, although, it was refreshing to have two DI's not in conflict. I will keep on with them in any case. ***1/2

Why Now? These were an xmas gift from spousal unit. I think he was anxious for me to try one to see if I liked it. So no hoarding allowed!

Pretty good series! I hope you keep going with it.

52. urban fant.***1/4
Hounded Kevin Hearne

This would fall under the category of 'muscle' or 'action' fantasy' if I were making up a sub-category, which I think I might have to. I encountered it recently in a vampire series my spousal unit sort of liked. There is no character development whatsoever, just smart asides, references and lingo, and stuff (I would substitute a more scatological word) happens non-stop. Do I sound a bit critical? Yah, I guess, because I prefer development between action. It all just ends up sounding the same to me. That said, I have a feeling that some folks might enjoy it just because of the fast pace. Plot? Well there is this 2100 year old dude, who is really, like 21, because he can brew this immortality tea and he is the LAST druid, known as the iron druid and he took a sword into his possession a while back which a member of the Tuatha de Danaan would like back. There are witches, werewolves, demons, ghouls, vampires . . . . set in Tempe. The best thing is Atticus's (the druid) relationship with his dog, 'Oberon'. ***1/4

Why now In the 2014 Christmas loot bookshelf and I was curious. I really did not hate it and we have all of them, so likely I will plow through them because I'm like that.

Lucy, I have to admit that I absolutely love the Iron Druid series, but I listen to them on audio, and the narrator is fabulous. I like to listen to them when I am walking - just pure fast-paced fun. There is character development down the road, but you have to wait for it.

>118 sibylline: BBC Scotland made a series of this recently - I enjoyed it, the settings were amazing, so bleak and wild.

>121 Crazymamie: Mamie - that is good news since we have most of them! I thought it was a good sign that he was taking on an apprentice.

>122 charl08: And that is even better news as we are always hunting for things to watch. I wonder if it is available yet in the US.

I know lots of folks have been loving these - so I'm going to keep an open mind.

Glad to hear you enjoyed Ancillary Sword so much. That one is at the very top of my library list.

*sigh* Mine too, Heather.
Just thought I'd stop and speak since I'm here early, having had a scare with my very old, much-beloved Kindle. It froze, but holding the power button on for nearly a minute finally got it to reset and all is well. BIG WHEW! Just to check it out, I downloaded a copy of today's Daily Deal, The Translator by Nina Schuyler. I'd never heard of her, but it looks well worth the $1.99.

How Terrifying! I'm glad it came back on for you. I've had one or two episodes like that with various i-pods and i-phones. So far not this computer which in computer terms is positively anti-diluvian being 5 years old . . .

Nothing much to report in the reading world. I like everything I'm reading at the moment. In the home stretch with the very very long Freedom, not sure yet what I'll say about it, and LOVING Desolation Road so far, and of course, Fermor's charm is inescapable. He does go on here and there about Romans in the area, so I am glad that I skittered through the Romanian archaeology book. It hasn't left the house yet and won't until I finish this, just in case I need to refer to it. I've looked up several of the manor houses and little castles that Fermor stayed in and have been happy to see that at least in Hungary, most of them still stand. Surely Fermor is a little bit disingenuous here and there about himself, surely he must have known that he would have carte blanche in this hinterland where life was quiet and gorgeous, well-spoken young Englishmen would be a prize worth keeping around for a day, a week, a month. His humility becomes him, of course, but for someone like me, a woman, who never could have ever contemplated doing what he did because of the way people are, then or now, it becomes, well, annoying.

Snowflakes in the air . . . and Simon (the tan cat) woke me up at 5:30. Yep, I'm grumpy. The good thing though was that I just sat and finished up the Jonathan Franzen.

>77 sibylline: BOOK TRADING ALERT
As the end of the month approaches, I will be sending the remaining books listed here on their merry way. I'm thinking I am going to add, at the beginning of each month a category of give away books (if I have any!). I'm surprised no one has taken Brat Farrar!

53. contemp fic ***1/2
Freedom Jonathan Franzen

The first question buzzing around my head is a somewhat unworthy one, but I can't help asking why was this book so long? Was it necessary that it be this long to tell this story? The second question is about the narrative choice to have the main character, Patty Berglund, tell parts of the story as a (therapeutic) autobiography, but written in the third person (Patty did this, she did that)? The problem is that it melts into other narratives, a sort of middle-third-distance, stories of the rest of the family: the two children, Jessica and Joey and husband Walter and problematical best friend, Richard (who is family of a sort). Later this autobio plays a role in what plot there is, or at least, at moving the story along. . . . It didn't exactly not work, this method, and now that I'm finished, I can see that I've gotten the whole entire story of the Berglund clan and a few others besides, and I find I can't answer either of these questions. I can see Franzen's purpose is to show a complicated person developing into middle age,(and, sheesh) wisdom, and forgiveness and I can understand that he wanted the reader (me) to see Patty from every possible angle and to see how families repeat behaviours, how behaviours can turn up embedded in a life that, on the outside, looks quite different. I liked The Corrections better, but this might be more mature in some ways. If you like a long complicated domestic novel, full of humor and smart observation, that changes pace, but never gets boring, always requires you to pay attention, you'll enjoy it. *** 1/2

Why now? Well, it's a big book and was taking up a lot of space and it had been there awhile. No better reason than that.

>67 sibylline: and >72 sibylline: I have been away for too long. I missed those adorable shots of my favorite Corgi!

>128 sibylline: I had the same questions when I read it a while back. It was before I was on LT but I probably would have given it about 3, maybe 3.5 stars. I think I prefer tighter writing.

Yikes, I've had those power-button freeze jobs with Kindle and iPod too. Sadly, neither ever came back on. But Amazon was good to me, helping me with a healthy credit towards a PaperWhite. And the iPod was still under warranty so was replaced.

>130 lit_chick: You know what? You are completely right. I just bumped down to 3 1/2.

Dropped my previous kindle on a gym trip and it gave up the ghost. Paperwhite much better for night reading though, so not a total loss. Glad yours recovered!

Heavy dusting of snow today. I mean, REALLY!

I don't have any of the e-machines yet. Maybe sometime. I briefly had the spousal unit's old Kindle but then the Little Darling took it over. Useful for some of the stuff she is supposed to read for school, apparently.

I haven't read any of Jonathan Franzen's work (although I have a copy of Freedom on my shelves), but Everything is Illuminated is by Jonathan Safran Foer, not Franzen (and I enjoyed it, too!)

> 134 Yep, thank you for helping me out! I was thinking as I wrote that that I should check. Fixed the review too!

>128 sibylline: Hi Lucy, thanks so much for this review. I've the audiobook but haven't got around to listen to yet. After reading your thoughts I probably will start listening it in May.
I wish you a wonderful weekend.

> 136 I hope you enjoy it. On the whole I am happy to have read it.

So here is one of those funny coincidences - the LD did the room lottery at school last week and lo and behold of all the several hundred rooms on campus, she is in the SAME ROOM I had as a freshman there. What are the odds? She did want to be in a house, not a dorm or slightly off campus in one of the apartments, but there are limited numbers of these houses. This one is especially nice because it has a real kitchen and in the basement, laundry machines. Across the street is the music building and she is thinking of doing a "music third" next year, so that could be quite convenient!

And with any luck if I can get the spousal unit to cooperate, I will be washing Posey today and maybe we will get some photos of it. Tomorrow I leave to visit the LD at school - her birthday present is basically me taking Posey. I probably have said this, so humor me. Snow tires are off, car has been vacuumed and tidied. Once Po is clean all I have to do is figure out what the weather might be like. I also take dressing for these visits pretty seriously. You aren't supposed to draw any attention to yourself, obviously, but you have to look . . . together. It's quite a challenge for me!

>137 sibylline: Lucy, it sounds like an advanture visiting you daughter. I hope the weather will be fine. Enjoy it.

Your same room! So cool. Hiya, cuz, BTW. Thought I'd leave a fingerprint before this month is completed.

*smooch*

Lucy, have a nice trip down to SLC. I'm sure Posey will be quite popular. Really cool coincidence about her room for next year!!

VERY cool about the room coincidence! Enjoy your visit. Is Miss Po a good traveller?

Have you ever seen such stoicism?

>142 sibylline: Didn't realize this would be an outdoor event. Flattering to be a birthday present.

There's nowhere inside that works at all without killing my back!

Oh, Po is standing so beautifully while she's being washed! Had to chuckle at your comments about dressing … I so hear you! Have a wonderful trip, Lucy!

Hope you have a great trip. Sure Posey will be a big hit. Love the expression in >142 sibylline:

It looks like she is enjoying it. Have a wonderful trip.

HA! HA! Yes, stoicism is exactly the word for that expression! A "I-know-this-is-necessary-but-at-the-same-time-can-you-believe-how-brave-I'm-being??!" look.

>142 sibylline: stoicism is right! I hope she's all fluffed and beautiful for her SLC debut. Have a great visit, Lucy.

All caught up here. I have Brat Farrar on audio narrated by the fabulous Carole Boyd, otherwise I'd be interested. I started reading The Corrections many many years ago and got just a few pages into it, found it so extremely depressing that I told myself I wouldn't be bothering with Franzen anymore since I don't need any help to do 'depressing', thank-you-very-much!

Po is very impressive. Such poise! I DO kill my back when I give Coco his daily foot-baths after each walk, which is mainly in the bathtub in a little dishwashing plastic tub. It's silly because I could just as well do it in the kitchen sink, which would be much better for my back really, but I just don't find it hygienic to do it there. But then for real allover washing which takes quite a bit longer, I cave in and do do it in the kitchen all the same because I can't be bending over that long, and he's really very good about it. I've found a spot I can hold on his neck to prevent him from shaking himself when he's wet, which avoids lots of watery soapy mess too. We use exactly the same shampoo by the way. :-)

>142 sibylline: Ah, stoicism is the word. I hope yours and Posey's visit to LD for her birthday goes well. How fabulous that she has your exact room next year!

I do know that doggy expression. To me it says, "I'm standing still for this because I love you and can't get away, but I don't have to like it. Hurry."
Have such a wonderful visit! You will look exactly right, I'm sure. Besides, everybody is going to be looking at the princess, Miss Po, and you will simply be the attendant.

54. ♬ mys ****
Terra Incognita Ruth Downie

Listened to this one. Just lots and lots of fun. I love the setting and the characters Gaius Petraeus irrepressible Tilly. The clash between cultures Roman and British is simplified, of course, but I 'feel' the essence of it is probably quite accurate. ****

Why now? These mysteries seem perfect for my Audible collection, books I don't need to physically own (but can likely pick up cheap later if I change my mind) and I was hoping for a perfect long trip car book - so happy to know I have four more!

Sorry I'm so scarce around the threads! I'm on the birthday trip!

55. ****Contemp fic 1/2

A very fine novel and deserving, I expect, of the Orange Prize (don't know who it ran against). Harley Savage, a curator at the Folk History (or something like that) museum has been sent out to a bush 'market' town (at least that is what it would have been called in New England) that has fallen on hard times and wants to try to attract tourists to help them set up a 'heritage' museum. Douglas Cheeseman has been sent to take down a beautiful but damaged bridge that would be a heritage attraction and many believe it should be saved. Both Harley and Douglas have their own baggage and they fight like mad against their own worst instincts and histories. A secondary story is less convincing about a local woman Felicity Porcelline and the local butcher Freddie Chang -- although it was very entertaining. The setting deserves a mention, I've had the privilege of spending some time in Australia and it brought it back vividly. The use of italics could have been annoying but wasn't at all, it was very effective in fact.****1/2

Why now Smallish and suitable for a little road trip by not taking up much room! So glad I picked it!

Oh dear, oh dear. The use of italics pretty much spoiled this one for me. I liked it, but I would have liked to love it.

I enjoyed the Kate Grenville I read some years ago, The Secret River, and I've had The Idea of Perfection and The Lieutenant on the TBR ever since. Thanks for reminding me!

>155 sibylline: I absolutely loved The Idea of Perfection -- it was a 5-star read for me.

Your parenthetical "(don't know who it ran against)" piqued my curiosity. The Idea of Perfection won the Orange Prize in 2001. These were the other shortlisted books -- the Atwood is the only one I've read:
The Blind Assassin, by Margaret Atwood
Fred & Edie, by Jill Dawson
Hotel World, by Ali Smith
Homestead, by Rosina Lippi
Horse Heaven, by Jane Smiley

I've read Horse Heaven which was very funny, but not necessarily worthy of the Orange. I own The Blind Assassin but haven't read it, so I guess that doesn't count. Meanwhile I am here to post a photo of the birthday party yesterday. HOWLING success I would have to say. Have to go and get it, be right back.

Oooh, I loved The Idea of Perfection too. Isn't that an interesting book cover?

The Blind Assassin is one book I would say I pretty much hated -- kept me from reading Atwood for a long time. I am very intrigued by The Idea of Perfection and have added it to the wish list. Score a hit for Lucy :)

Here is a party picture - just look at Posey - and this was after being adored solidly for two hours! Still soaking it up!

>162 sibylline: Exactly where she should be!

All hail Queen Posey!

56. ♬ mys ****
Persona Non Grata Ruth Downie

Having so much fun listening to these. This time Ruso is called home to his home in Southern Gaul and his arrival sets a host of seemingly disastrous things in motion, a sudden death, bankruptcy procedures against the family farm, and most unfortunately that 'somehow' he hasn't told anyone in his family about Tilla . . . .

Why now Long car ride, perfect listen. I have another ride coming up in three weeks, can I wait until then?????

>162 sibylline: Looks like you just had to dress to fade into the background. You definitely weren't the centre of attention!

That is the best pic ever! At last, Miss Po gets her due!!!

(Like Reba, I disliked *Blind Assassin* intensely, and I generally love Atwood. I was quite taken with both Hotel World and Horse Heaven for different reasons, but I don't think either of those was worthy to win. Most of the time, I find something on the long list that I think should have won. Looking at the 2001 list, I've also read Nowhere Else on Earth about our local Indians' 19th century hero - and I really loathed it - and The Bonesetters Daughter, which I liked a lot. Maybe The Last Samurai, which I own and haven't read, will be the one for me.)

Hmm, I might even have The Idea of Perfection somewhere in a TBR pile! OH Posey is a darling! What a fabulous name too!

>162 sibylline: Wonderful photo. She looks really royal.

I liked Fred and Edie but I can't say I remember a lot about it beyond that. Love the Posey pic: reminds me of a uni scheme that brought dogs onto campus to help exam stress (big success).

Oh, Miss Posey!! Not sure which photo I love more - the stoic bather or the campus queen. What great moments - thanks so much for sharing them, Lucy!!

I have to say that Posey was nothing short of amazing with all those kids (they were blissfully regressing, so calling them kids is ok). Po has a toy called buckyball (rubbery and looks like a buckminster fuller type object) and she chased after it enthusiastically no matter who threw it and brought it back ready for more. Half of them sat at one time or another with me (I sat just a bit apart with my book in hand, there but not there) and chattered away either about the dogs they had/have or, more sadly, didn't get to have and were more than polite, happy to connect with someone out of college life. Even the grumpy professor of chinese philosophy, smokes like s stack, never smiles, who has her office right nearby ended up coming out and playing a little bit with Po, smiling and talking her head off which was truly something!

Now I have to catch up as best I can with all of you! If I miss something personal I should know let me know - I'll mostly troll through looking at what you've been reading and reviewing!

What a fabulous day you and Po had with LD, friends, and even crotchety professors, Lucy! Love the photo of Po and the students. Yes, she is definitely soaking up the attention, regardless of how many hours. She's so lovely!

57. memoir/travel *****
Between the Woods and the Water Patrick Leigh Fermor

The middle book of Fermor's memoir of his walk across Europe to Constantinople at the age of 19, in 1934. After I read the first one, I couldn't bear to go on, knowing what happened to the people and countries through which he passed--but I finally got up the courage for the next book, and indeed, another idyll, as Fermor crosses into Hungary and then Romania. He makes a big circle through the mountains of Transylvania, traveling sometimes alone, sometimes with friends, spending nights with shepherds or alone. Towards the end as Fermor heads down towards the Danube and Bulgaria, I got so excited by his description of the Kazan and the Iron Gates, the footpath path hewn in the rocks, Trajan's bridge remains, the incredible wildlife . . . I was devastated to learn it is all gone, gone, gone buried underwater--a huge hydroelectric dam blocks the Danube there and while I am sure it brought prosperity to people who needed it (am I??) I cannot help but feel sickened by the costs--costs which may be higher than we can imagine. A lyrical introduction to a Romania that was and a time that is no more. *****

Why now? I've been eyeing it for awhile on my nf shelf. Also it was small and suitable for packing.