ROOTing Around My Bookshelves
Talk 2015 ROOT Challenge - (Read Our Own Tomes)
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1Limelite
I'm a sinner when it comes to reading my ROOTy TBR pile. Temptation is my nemesis. Like a magpie, I get distracted by the next new book I don't own and rush to buy it. The result is they can stay unread until they're as dusty as the books that have been in my family for three generations.
Since I've come late to this topic, I won't set a goal for myself to read a certain number before the old year is out and the new one heralds its arrival. That whole sentence is a euphemism for I'm letting myself off the hook challenge-wise.
Now to get down to bass tracks. . .to the ROOTs of 2015
1. Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
2. Madame Verona Comes Down the Hill
3. The President's Hat
4. The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon
5. Roman Games: A Plinius Secundus Mystery
6. Truman
I didn't really read all of the McCullough biography of our nation's most modest president because, not even he could make such a dull man interesting. There is much to admire in Truman's character, but little to entice a reader to find out more about him as a personality, or leave the book wishing she could have lunch with him. Truman pretty much arrives to adulthood as a young man packed with solid Mid-Western values, his mind set and formed, his honesty on him like a second skin. He experiences no great personal epiphanies or thrilling moments in his life. Serious conflict outside of politics was not to touch him. His life is an example of a good man who finds himself in the right place to be remembered in history. He is the embodiment of the saying, "events made the man." But his very righteousness plays as a continual example to us all, rather than as the nature of a crusader striding against a scarlet sky. Consequently, a pretty dull biography results in spite of Truman having been president in this country's most dangerous and difficult time.
Catherine the Great is a stark contrast to Truman as an historical personality. Her intelligence is brilliant, her wisdom settled on her early and served her well. Her ambition for power was well-regulated by her self-discipline and ability to defer her entrance on center stage to the precisely right moment. An uncanny ability to attract and keep good servants to the throne and state in terms of military leaders, ambassadors, and political advisors is probably unequaled in Russian history. But Massie focuses on the Woman, not just the Empress, and we learn that she was passionate, requiring twelve lovers to shower her affections on. She was generous, highly educated, and longed to enlighten her subjects to the degree she herself was influenced by the Enlightenment, a desire in which she was frustrated. Her political moves on the world stage largely were complete successes because of her pragmatism and careful planning. She was courageous, verbal, and serially constant to her "favorites." Her life is one of the most exciting of the monarchs of her era and the biography leaves no doubt in the mind of the reader that Catherine is the Great.
I hope I'm not the only ROOTer who's read the books in my little list, and certainly not the only one who was left with strong impressions from them, and most definitely not the only one who wants to share impressions of them. I look forward to your comments, too.
Since I've come late to this topic, I won't set a goal for myself to read a certain number before the old year is out and the new one heralds its arrival. That whole sentence is a euphemism for I'm letting myself off the hook challenge-wise.
Now to get down to bass tracks. . .to the ROOTs of 2015
1. Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
2. Madame Verona Comes Down the Hill
3. The President's Hat
4. The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon
5. Roman Games: A Plinius Secundus Mystery
6. Truman
I didn't really read all of the McCullough biography of our nation's most modest president because, not even he could make such a dull man interesting. There is much to admire in Truman's character, but little to entice a reader to find out more about him as a personality, or leave the book wishing she could have lunch with him. Truman pretty much arrives to adulthood as a young man packed with solid Mid-Western values, his mind set and formed, his honesty on him like a second skin. He experiences no great personal epiphanies or thrilling moments in his life. Serious conflict outside of politics was not to touch him. His life is an example of a good man who finds himself in the right place to be remembered in history. He is the embodiment of the saying, "events made the man." But his very righteousness plays as a continual example to us all, rather than as the nature of a crusader striding against a scarlet sky. Consequently, a pretty dull biography results in spite of Truman having been president in this country's most dangerous and difficult time.
Catherine the Great is a stark contrast to Truman as an historical personality. Her intelligence is brilliant, her wisdom settled on her early and served her well. Her ambition for power was well-regulated by her self-discipline and ability to defer her entrance on center stage to the precisely right moment. An uncanny ability to attract and keep good servants to the throne and state in terms of military leaders, ambassadors, and political advisors is probably unequaled in Russian history. But Massie focuses on the Woman, not just the Empress, and we learn that she was passionate, requiring twelve lovers to shower her affections on. She was generous, highly educated, and longed to enlighten her subjects to the degree she herself was influenced by the Enlightenment, a desire in which she was frustrated. Her political moves on the world stage largely were complete successes because of her pragmatism and careful planning. She was courageous, verbal, and serially constant to her "favorites." Her life is one of the most exciting of the monarchs of her era and the biography leaves no doubt in the mind of the reader that Catherine is the Great.
I hope I'm not the only ROOTer who's read the books in my little list, and certainly not the only one who was left with strong impressions from them, and most definitely not the only one who wants to share impressions of them. I look forward to your comments, too.
2Limelite
LTER books are ROOTs that got transplanted into my reading garden and should probably be kept track of separately, since they are obligations rather than "just because" selections that I read without any kind of coercive pressure. So I'm going to separate them and note them down here. The LTER books are more of an experiment with higher risks attached to them than the books I purposely buy for myself. They find their way onto my bookshelves by a lottery system that sometimes comes up winner and other times doesn't.
Here are my LTER ROOTs from 2015 so far. . .
1. Selected Letters of Norman Mailer
2. Life on the Edge: The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology
3. The Americans by Chitra Viraraghavan
4. Thousand Pieces of Gold
5. Tyger: A Kydd Sea Adventure (received but not yet read)
6. Without You, There Is No Us (selected but not yet received)
Without doubt, Mailer's collection was both my Titanic and the iceberg that very nearly sunk me at over 700 pp. But his writing was so captivating, I read every single letter. By the end of the book I felt drowned by his personality and suffered a literary hangover of sorts, being unable to unravel any critical opinion from the tangle of my brain that was fully parasitized by the powerful ghost of Mailer speaking to me in his own from across the Styx. What I did know before I was half way through his life in letters is that I might have been enthralled by Mailer the letter writer but I doubt I'd have liked Mailer the man in the least. Collections of letters, correspondences, and diaries of literary figures are some of my favorite books to read. Basically, I'm no better than a voyeur. And Mailer is the kinda guy who stands at his front window naked.
I'm glad that the LTER algorithm selects so much nonfiction for me. Otherwise, my reading life would be lopsided in favor of fiction. And mostly historical fiction at that. That's not a bad thing, I think, but it is another reason I value belonging to this community.
Here are my LTER ROOTs from 2015 so far. . .
1. Selected Letters of Norman Mailer
2. Life on the Edge: The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology
3. The Americans by Chitra Viraraghavan
4. Thousand Pieces of Gold
5. Tyger: A Kydd Sea Adventure (received but not yet read)
6. Without You, There Is No Us (selected but not yet received)
Without doubt, Mailer's collection was both my Titanic and the iceberg that very nearly sunk me at over 700 pp. But his writing was so captivating, I read every single letter. By the end of the book I felt drowned by his personality and suffered a literary hangover of sorts, being unable to unravel any critical opinion from the tangle of my brain that was fully parasitized by the powerful ghost of Mailer speaking to me in his own from across the Styx. What I did know before I was half way through his life in letters is that I might have been enthralled by Mailer the letter writer but I doubt I'd have liked Mailer the man in the least. Collections of letters, correspondences, and diaries of literary figures are some of my favorite books to read. Basically, I'm no better than a voyeur. And Mailer is the kinda guy who stands at his front window naked.
I'm glad that the LTER algorithm selects so much nonfiction for me. Otherwise, my reading life would be lopsided in favor of fiction. And mostly historical fiction at that. That's not a bad thing, I think, but it is another reason I value belonging to this community.
3avanders
Welcome!
I don't fully understand your LTER books system ... they are obligations.. but through an experiment where they were ... selected for you by some kind of lottery? A self-imposed lottery or .. something else? Sounds interesting, in any event! :)
Your books listed in both posts >1 Limelite: and >2 Limelite: are the ones you've *read* in 2015 so far? Or ones you've read but intend to re-read still in 2015?
Sorry... it's been a long morning already ;)
And ooooooh #6 in >2 Limelite: is on my to-read list! Was it an ER (early reviewer) through LT (LibraryThing)? I also picked that as an option, but I ended up w/ the Houdini book instead :)
I don't fully understand your LTER books system ... they are obligations.. but through an experiment where they were ... selected for you by some kind of lottery? A self-imposed lottery or .. something else? Sounds interesting, in any event! :)
Your books listed in both posts >1 Limelite: and >2 Limelite: are the ones you've *read* in 2015 so far? Or ones you've read but intend to re-read still in 2015?
Sorry... it's been a long morning already ;)
And ooooooh #6 in >2 Limelite: is on my to-read list! Was it an ER (early reviewer) through LT (LibraryThing)? I also picked that as an option, but I ended up w/ the Houdini book instead :)
4Limelite
.3
Gee, I was clear as mud.
The obligation of being an early reviewer is you must write a review within 30 days of receipt of the book. The selection process of Early Review books is a mysterious and secret algorithm known only to -- ?? owners of this site -- and factors such as kinds of books you've registered on LT, reviewing history, and books you request from the ER list. Sometimes you win a requested book, sometimes you don't. Sometimes when you "win" a selection, the publisher never delivers.
Another aspect of its lottery nature is that maybe none of the selections catch fire in your imagination and you're only lukewarm about the month's listings; many of the authors may be unknown to you and the works can vary widely in quality. But it's a good way to freely explore new works, new writers, and get gently pushed out of your comfort zone.
Yes, all the books listed have been read by me in 2015. I didn't want to write a reaction to each one. So, I chose to find a relationship between some and write from that p.o.v. about 4 of them.
Yes, ALL the listings in post #2 were awarded me by LTER and received from the publisher. I remember at least one book that was awarded but the publisher never sent it. I didn't list it. #6 book in post #2 has about 50/50 good/bad reviews already. It's hardly an early review book as it was first published a year ago.
I think that in some cases LT gets so-called early review submissions from publishers just so they can get market buzz from our reviews for the release of an e-dition of a previously published hardcover, or the reissue of a "modern classic." Nothing wrong with that, but not exactly "early" in many cases. Also, books that are first published in Great Britain may go on sale here a year later with a new cover (due to the type rights bought by the publisher). The contents are the same, but the books come to us already heavily reviewed by the British audience.
Houdini scares me! When I was a kid I read a bio of him, I've shunned other books about him -- too spooky. So, I think getting your Houdini book just before Halloween is, from my p.o.v., appropriate. Happy reading!
Gee, I was clear as mud.
The obligation of being an early reviewer is you must write a review within 30 days of receipt of the book. The selection process of Early Review books is a mysterious and secret algorithm known only to -- ?? owners of this site -- and factors such as kinds of books you've registered on LT, reviewing history, and books you request from the ER list. Sometimes you win a requested book, sometimes you don't. Sometimes when you "win" a selection, the publisher never delivers.
Another aspect of its lottery nature is that maybe none of the selections catch fire in your imagination and you're only lukewarm about the month's listings; many of the authors may be unknown to you and the works can vary widely in quality. But it's a good way to freely explore new works, new writers, and get gently pushed out of your comfort zone.
Yes, all the books listed have been read by me in 2015. I didn't want to write a reaction to each one. So, I chose to find a relationship between some and write from that p.o.v. about 4 of them.
Yes, ALL the listings in post #2 were awarded me by LTER and received from the publisher. I remember at least one book that was awarded but the publisher never sent it. I didn't list it. #6 book in post #2 has about 50/50 good/bad reviews already. It's hardly an early review book as it was first published a year ago.
I think that in some cases LT gets so-called early review submissions from publishers just so they can get market buzz from our reviews for the release of an e-dition of a previously published hardcover, or the reissue of a "modern classic." Nothing wrong with that, but not exactly "early" in many cases. Also, books that are first published in Great Britain may go on sale here a year later with a new cover (due to the type rights bought by the publisher). The contents are the same, but the books come to us already heavily reviewed by the British audience.
Houdini scares me! When I was a kid I read a bio of him, I've shunned other books about him -- too spooky. So, I think getting your Houdini book just before Halloween is, from my p.o.v., appropriate. Happy reading!
5Limelite
EEEewww. I'm winding up two ROOTs at about the same time and am at a loss what to choose next. This is always hard. So many ROOTy TBRs that I'm pulled in too many directions at once. What seems to always rescue me is the mood I'm in when my fingers trail over the books' spines. When it comes to reading the books I already own, I don't have to follow any rules (You should balance your reading life. It's time to read science fiction.); I don't feel that I have to write a review in exchange for a freebie book (but I almost always do); I can take as long as I like to read a book (No librarian is breathing down my neck, "Your two weeks is up!").
All that said, most of my ROOTs are older books, not the latest rage among readers. And I yearn to read the next new thing more than the passé book that I still do want to read, but not just yet. Sort of an Augustinian condition of the mind instead of the soul.
If anyone stumbles into this thread and wants to, take a look at my list of possible choices to become my next ROOT. I just walked around the house and put my hand on a book with no censoring of the choice. So, here they are:
Tree Books
1. Red Square by Martin Cruz
2. World's Fair by E L Doctorow
3. Sacré Bleu by Christopher Moore
4. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
5. Villa des Roses by Willem Elssehot
6. Eventide by Kent Haruff
Ebooks (starting w/ "A" authors)
1. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
2. Prague Winter by Madeleine Albright
3. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
4. Ridiculous by D L Carter
5. The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon
6. The Oysters of Locmariaquer by Eleanor Clark
It's too hard to randomize e-books so, just scrolled down the list and put my finger down to stop and pick.
Anyway, please let me know where I should go from here, especially if you read and enjoyed any of my list. Thanks in advance!
All that said, most of my ROOTs are older books, not the latest rage among readers. And I yearn to read the next new thing more than the passé book that I still do want to read, but not just yet. Sort of an Augustinian condition of the mind instead of the soul.
If anyone stumbles into this thread and wants to, take a look at my list of possible choices to become my next ROOT. I just walked around the house and put my hand on a book with no censoring of the choice. So, here they are:
Tree Books
1. Red Square by Martin Cruz
2. World's Fair by E L Doctorow
3. Sacré Bleu by Christopher Moore
4. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
5. Villa des Roses by Willem Elssehot
6. Eventide by Kent Haruff
Ebooks (starting w/ "A" authors)
1. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
2. Prague Winter by Madeleine Albright
3. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
4. Ridiculous by D L Carter
5. The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon
6. The Oysters of Locmariaquer by Eleanor Clark
It's too hard to randomize e-books so, just scrolled down the list and put my finger down to stop and pick.
Anyway, please let me know where I should go from here, especially if you read and enjoyed any of my list. Thanks in advance!
6avanders
>4 Limelite: lol well my brain's been taxed lately so I just wasn't understanding ;)
Yep, I'm an early reviewer too.. just didn't realize that that's what you were talking about when you referred to "obligations" ;)
And I agree! It is a great way to explore new works, writers, etc. Sometimes I allow myself to select more broadly... sometimes I only pick a couple because that's all I know I would really make the time for :)
Oh no - I didn't realize #6 in >2 Limelite: was already only 50/50! Well, I'll wait to see what everyone says ... It's interesting when publishers use the "early reviewer" process to garner interest on an already-published book... Though I definitely don't mind :)
Wow! I really don't know much about Houdini other than "what everyone knows"... Now I'm even more intrigued!
>5 Limelite: fun! I love the process of picking the next book when there's no pre-existing obligation! Some of your items are the same as some on my list! I'm particularly looking forward to Pessl's debut (having really enjoyed Night Film) and Sacre Bleu :)
Good luck choosing!
Yep, I'm an early reviewer too.. just didn't realize that that's what you were talking about when you referred to "obligations" ;)
And I agree! It is a great way to explore new works, writers, etc. Sometimes I allow myself to select more broadly... sometimes I only pick a couple because that's all I know I would really make the time for :)
Oh no - I didn't realize #6 in >2 Limelite: was already only 50/50! Well, I'll wait to see what everyone says ... It's interesting when publishers use the "early reviewer" process to garner interest on an already-published book... Though I definitely don't mind :)
Wow! I really don't know much about Houdini other than "what everyone knows"... Now I'm even more intrigued!
>5 Limelite: fun! I love the process of picking the next book when there's no pre-existing obligation! Some of your items are the same as some on my list! I'm particularly looking forward to Pessl's debut (having really enjoyed Night Film) and Sacre Bleu :)
Good luck choosing!
8connie53
Welcome to the ROOTers, Limelite. Good luck with the LTER books and choosing a new book to read. I see there is a book by a Belgium Writer on your list. Willem Elsschot. I'm living in the Netherlands and I had to read some books by Willem Elsschot in my schoolgirl days (long, long , long ago). But this book was not one of them.
9Limelite
>8 connie53:
Do you have good or bad memories of Elssehot? I saw a movie made of the central love story in "Villa" and enjoyed it a lot. That's what made me get the novel. I'm looking forward to the book. So, I hope your memories of the author are good ones.
Do you have good or bad memories of Elssehot? I saw a movie made of the central love story in "Villa" and enjoyed it a lot. That's what made me get the novel. I'm looking forward to the book. So, I hope your memories of the author are good ones.
10avanders
>7 Limelite: lol perhaps not.... ;)
11connie53
>9 Limelite: I've no memories at all. I'm 62 now and I was 16 or 17 when I read Lijmen; het been and perhaps Kaas. We had to read 40 or 30 books by Dutch writers from different periods in time for my school exam . And I hated having to read books obligatory. I wanted to choose my own books.
These were only small books so that was something to be happy about. But I think they are rather light and sometimes even funny.
There is one review of Lijmen; het been here on LT where PGCM tells he/she read the book while 15 or 16 and reading it now at 61. He/she says that she/he now fully understands what the book is all about. So maybe you will love it!
These were only small books so that was something to be happy about. But I think they are rather light and sometimes even funny.
There is one review of Lijmen; het been here on LT where PGCM tells he/she read the book while 15 or 16 and reading it now at 61. He/she says that she/he now fully understands what the book is all about. So maybe you will love it!
12Limelite
Thanks, connie53, I'm encouraged. You may have hated required readings, but you have the advantage over me. You've known a host of great writers who I haven't heard of until my 60s!
______________________________________________________
Well, boys and girls, I've uprooted a dusty tome from the farthest in the back of the house book shelf and selected Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl in the interests of reading something whimsical, erudite, and totally different from my most recent reads.
If you've read the book, I'd appreciate hearing your reactions. Only, I ask that you don't talk about the murder mystery that gets going at the end of the novel.
The influence of this group is already upon me. I feel reform coming on.
______________________________________________________
Well, boys and girls, I've uprooted a dusty tome from the farthest in the back of the house book shelf and selected Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl in the interests of reading something whimsical, erudite, and totally different from my most recent reads.
If you've read the book, I'd appreciate hearing your reactions. Only, I ask that you don't talk about the murder mystery that gets going at the end of the novel.
The influence of this group is already upon me. I feel reform coming on.
14connie53
>12 Limelite: I hope you love it, Limelite! I did not read it, though.
15Limelite
Please grant me 5 degrees of arc on my halo; I'm on my way to becoming a saint instead of a sinner. Just finished and reviewed Jade Dragon Mountain, and enjoyed it very much. There are only three other reviews but we all rate it highly. For exotic murder mystery fans, this is the book for you! I added a rec for another historical murder mystery I had read a few years ago, just as good and fascinating that is similar to this novel. The Corpse Reader is by Antonio Garrido, and I read it in translation. If you like historical fiction based on real people, you'll enjoy this novel about the Chinese Father of Forensic Medicine.
I don't know why I thought my conversion would be a painful lesson. How was I to know that books I found intriguing by title alone, could be so delightful?
As a result, I'm going to add another of my dusty tomes, acquired off the $1 for hardcovers local library sale shelf: The Secret Supper by Javier Sierra. Anyone read it and care to post some encouraging words to me about it? They'd be appreciated! Plus, between writing the beginning of this post and these words, I started reading my e-book title, Circling the Sun by Paula McLain. I'm not sure I should count it as a ROOT as I obtained an uncorrected proof off Net Galley months ago. For all I know, I may not be reading the actual published version of this novel about Beryl Markham. A long time ago, I read her biography, Straight on Till Morning: The Biography of Beryl Markham, written in the eighties by Mary S Lovell and her memoir, West with the Night. When I was young, she enthralled me. One of those intrepid women who do extraordinary things while behaving ordinarily by their own lights that Britain seemed to produce until the last I can think of, Jane Goodall. Another whose name comes to mind is Gertrude Bell. I've read more than one bio of her but not her letters, which are available in two e-volumes by Project Gutenberg.
Hmmmm. . .how one thing leads to another. Will I resist acquiring those volumes of Bell's letters to advance my ROOTing?
I don't know why I thought my conversion would be a painful lesson. How was I to know that books I found intriguing by title alone, could be so delightful?
As a result, I'm going to add another of my dusty tomes, acquired off the $1 for hardcovers local library sale shelf: The Secret Supper by Javier Sierra. Anyone read it and care to post some encouraging words to me about it? They'd be appreciated! Plus, between writing the beginning of this post and these words, I started reading my e-book title, Circling the Sun by Paula McLain. I'm not sure I should count it as a ROOT as I obtained an uncorrected proof off Net Galley months ago. For all I know, I may not be reading the actual published version of this novel about Beryl Markham. A long time ago, I read her biography, Straight on Till Morning: The Biography of Beryl Markham, written in the eighties by Mary S Lovell and her memoir, West with the Night. When I was young, she enthralled me. One of those intrepid women who do extraordinary things while behaving ordinarily by their own lights that Britain seemed to produce until the last I can think of, Jane Goodall. Another whose name comes to mind is Gertrude Bell. I've read more than one bio of her but not her letters, which are available in two e-volumes by Project Gutenberg.
Hmmmm. . .how one thing leads to another. Will I resist acquiring those volumes of Bell's letters to advance my ROOTing?
16Limelite
AAaarrgghh!! My September LTER book arrived today -- Without You, There Is No Us -- and I'm eager to read it after dipping into the first 12 pp. Question for ROOTers who may also be LTERers: Do Early Review books count as OTs? (I hope so!)
Besides the LTER, my local library notified me that To Rise Again at a Decent Hour is ready for me to pick up. Natch, I'm all anticipation for it, too. This book, I know, does not count as a ROOT. It counts as a Sore Temptation that will divert me from reading my ROOTs. I make myself feel better for falling off the wagon by rationalizing that I only get two weeks with the library book that I'd requested before joining this group. Then it's back on the wagon for me.
Besides the LTER, my local library notified me that To Rise Again at a Decent Hour is ready for me to pick up. Natch, I'm all anticipation for it, too. This book, I know, does not count as a ROOT. It counts as a Sore Temptation that will divert me from reading my ROOTs. I make myself feel better for falling off the wagon by rationalizing that I only get two weeks with the library book that I'd requested before joining this group. Then it's back on the wagon for me.
17connie53
>16 Limelite: You can make up your own rules, Limelite. If you want to count a LTER as a Own Tomb (if that is what you mean with an OT), just do so!
18avanders
>16 Limelite: wooo hoooo! Congrats! I was poking my nose in that book earlier today in Barnes... Very much looking forward to your thoughts!
Also, I echo Connie... your rules are your rules. I've done it both ways... My rule this year (which is pretty lax ;)) is: it's a ROOT if I'm reading it in a month other than the one in which I received the book.... But I don't count ERs this year. I just didn't need to bc I actually ended up reading quite a bit more than expected this year (yay!).
Also, I echo Connie... your rules are your rules. I've done it both ways... My rule this year (which is pretty lax ;)) is: it's a ROOT if I'm reading it in a month other than the one in which I received the book.... But I don't count ERs this year. I just didn't need to bc I actually ended up reading quite a bit more than expected this year (yay!).
19Limelite
>18 avanders:
Which book: "Without You" or "Rise Again"? Did you get "it"? If yes, I look forward to hearing what you think, too!
OK, I'm gonna count LTER books. After all, they're my own tomes once they're delivered.
Which book: "Without You" or "Rise Again"? Did you get "it"? If yes, I look forward to hearing what you think, too!
OK, I'm gonna count LTER books. After all, they're my own tomes once they're delivered.
20avanders
>19 Limelite: Without You.. I didn't get it... I'm sure I will - just waiting... :)
21Limelite
Finished one of my ROOTs via LTER, Without You, There Is No Us. If you'd like to know what I thought of it, please find my review below.
https://www.librarything.com/work/15050668/edit/122364555
I've arranged a book swap of it with LTer, hubblegal. She gets my book about North Korea, I get her ER copy of The Vegetarian: A Novel set in South Korea and written by Han Kang. By swapping, I get another ROOT!
However, it will probably have to wait as I somehow came in the possession of three (3!) library books that need to be read first. They are. . .
To Rise Again at a Decent Hour
Small Island
and a HUGE tome, topping out at over 900 pp, the historical novel about Richard III, The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman.
All of the novels had been hold requests before I joined this Group and made my Vows of ROOTery. Therefore, I don't need to ask forgiveness, do I?
https://www.librarything.com/work/15050668/edit/122364555
I've arranged a book swap of it with LTer, hubblegal. She gets my book about North Korea, I get her ER copy of The Vegetarian: A Novel set in South Korea and written by Han Kang. By swapping, I get another ROOT!
However, it will probably have to wait as I somehow came in the possession of three (3!) library books that need to be read first. They are. . .
To Rise Again at a Decent Hour
Small Island
and a HUGE tome, topping out at over 900 pp, the historical novel about Richard III, The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman.
All of the novels had been hold requests before I joined this Group and made my Vows of ROOTery. Therefore, I don't need to ask forgiveness, do I?
22connie53
I somehow came in the possession of 3 books
I'm so glad that happens to you too! Strange isn't it?
No, you don't!
I'm so glad that happens to you too! Strange isn't it?
No, you don't!
23readingtangent
>21 Limelite: I read The Sunne in Splendour maybe twenty years or so ago and it always stuck with me. I don't remember details, just remember loving it! It's odd to see it mentioned here, really, because I'd just been thinking about it and added it to my Amazon wishlist, thinking I'd re-read it next year. I think it's haunting me :).
24avanders
>21 Limelite: that was fast! Appreciated your review!
25Tess_W
>23 readingtangent: >21 Limelite: I love books that "haunt." Going to put Sunne in Splendour on my wish list!
26Limelite
I removed temptation yesterday, returning three books to the library, badly overdue and one of them still unopened. I was overly ambitious. The Sunne in Splendour remains terra incognita for future exploration.
And now I'm returned to the company of the blessed and am back to reading three of MOTs: Circling the Sun, The Secret Supper, and The Visitors: A Novel.
No more trips to the library for me except for audiobooks to listen to in the car. But only once I finish the CD of Numero Zero for LTER, one of my own tomes.
And now I'm returned to the company of the blessed and am back to reading three of MOTs: Circling the Sun, The Secret Supper, and The Visitors: A Novel.
No more trips to the library for me except for audiobooks to listen to in the car. But only once I finish the CD of Numero Zero for LTER, one of my own tomes.
27Limelite
It's time to transition to ROOTs 2016.
With that in mind, I informally joined the American Authors Challenge 2016, eyeing the chance to sweep up some of my own books and thereby kill the proverbial two birds. Well, wound them a little.
Here's my Plan
January- Anne Tyler Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant (library)
February- Richard Russo Nobody's Fool (library)
March- Jane Smiley A Thousand Acres (e-book)
April- Poetry Month own library
May- Ivan Doig Dancing at the Rascal Fair (e-book)
June- Annie Proulx Brokeback Mountain (library)
July- John Steinbeck TBD
August-Joyce Carol Oates Bellefleur (e-book)
September- John Irving In One Person (e-book)
October- Michael Chabon The Yiddish Policeman's Union (e-book)
November- Annie Dillard TBD
December- Don DeLillo Underworld (e-book)
TBD suggestions welcome. I've read almost everything Steinbeck wrote, ditto Dillard. I could choose a different author whose book(s) I already own for this Group. . .
Doctorow, World's Fair
Zafón, The Angel's Game
With that in mind, I informally joined the American Authors Challenge 2016, eyeing the chance to sweep up some of my own books and thereby kill the proverbial two birds. Well, wound them a little.
Here's my Plan
January- Anne Tyler Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant (library)
February- Richard Russo Nobody's Fool (library)
March- Jane Smiley A Thousand Acres (e-book)
April- Poetry Month own library
May- Ivan Doig Dancing at the Rascal Fair (e-book)
June- Annie Proulx Brokeback Mountain (library)
July- John Steinbeck TBD
August-Joyce Carol Oates Bellefleur (e-book)
September- John Irving In One Person (e-book)
October- Michael Chabon The Yiddish Policeman's Union (e-book)
November- Annie Dillard TBD
December- Don DeLillo Underworld (e-book)
TBD suggestions welcome. I've read almost everything Steinbeck wrote, ditto Dillard. I could choose a different author whose book(s) I already own for this Group. . .
Doctorow, World's Fair
Zafón, The Angel's Game
28Limelite
Best laid plans, blah. . . blah. . . blah.
So, I'm deeply into my LTER OT (Own Tome), Georgia: A Novel of Georgia O'Keeffe and can say that I've never read a book so deeply sensuzl, sexual, and immersive. Tripp writes in present tense, literally putting us inside O'Keeffe's head and connecting us to her artistic process.
This is a deceptive novel. The chapters are short. The sentences are spare. The effect is hypnagogic, enveloping and releasing me in a dreamlike state as I scan the pages. O'Keeffe and Stieglitz, her photographer lover, later husband, have recently moved in together. They're poor but not starving artists living in NYC at the end of WWI, which left them both relatively untouched compared to others in their circle, like Edward Steichen, who served in the war.
I'm only about one-third through it but that's sufficient to say that Tripp has produced a remarkable book.
So, I'm deeply into my LTER OT (Own Tome), Georgia: A Novel of Georgia O'Keeffe and can say that I've never read a book so deeply sensuzl, sexual, and immersive. Tripp writes in present tense, literally putting us inside O'Keeffe's head and connecting us to her artistic process.
This is a deceptive novel. The chapters are short. The sentences are spare. The effect is hypnagogic, enveloping and releasing me in a dreamlike state as I scan the pages. O'Keeffe and Stieglitz, her photographer lover, later husband, have recently moved in together. They're poor but not starving artists living in NYC at the end of WWI, which left them both relatively untouched compared to others in their circle, like Edward Steichen, who served in the war.
I'm only about one-third through it but that's sufficient to say that Tripp has produced a remarkable book.
