Ellen reads 75+ in 2015 (part 9)

Snowy Shadow by Thomas Stream
Thomas Stream is an Aleut artist who lives on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington. He often paints animals wearing an Aleut hunting hat.

Snail's Pace by Thomas Stream

My Rating Scale:

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

I was overwhelmed by challenges in 2015, but I'll keep tracking my participation until the bitter end!

American Author Challenge-II:

January: Carson McCullers - The Ballad of the Sad Cafe √
February: Henry James* - Washington Square √
March: Richard Ford* - Wildlife √
April: Louise Erdrich - Love Medicine √
May: Sinclair Lewis* - Babbitt √
June: Wallace Stegner - reread Angle of Repose didn't get to it
July: Ursula K. Le Guin - A Wizard of Earthsea didn't get to it
August: Larry McMurtry - The Last Picture Show - abandoned
September: Flannery O' Connor - A Good Man is Hard to Find √
October: Ray Bradbury - reread The Martian Chronicles √
November: Barbara Kingsolver - Reread The Bean Trees, her first and still my fave. √
December: E.L. Doctorow* - Ragtime

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

British Author Challenge:

January
Penelope Lively* -- Moon Tiger √
Kazuo Ishiguro -- The Remains of the Day √
February:
Sarah Waters -- The Paying Guests √
Evelyn Waugh* -- Brideshead Revisited √
March:
Daphne Du Maurier* -- Rebecca √
China Mieville* -- The City & the City √
April:
Angela Carter* -- The Bloody Chamber √
W. Somerset Maugham* -- The Painted Veil √
May:
Margaret Drabble* -- The Peppered Moth √
Martin Amis* -- Success nope
June:
Beryl Bainbridge* -- The Bottle Factory Outing √
Anthony Burgess* -- Nothing Like the Sun nope
July:
Virginia Woolf -- To the Lighthouse nope
B. S. Johnson* -- nope
August:
Iris Murdoch* -- The Sea, The Sea √
Graham Greene* -- The Power and the Glory √
September:
Andrea Levy* -- The Long Song
Salman Rushdie* -- Shame (recommended by Paul)
October:
Helen Dunmore* -- A Spell of Winter - √
David Mitchell -- Cloud Atlas
November:
Muriel Spark* --
William Boyd* -- Restless √
December:
Hilary Mantel -- Bring Up the Bodies
P.G. Wodehouse --

* Author whose work I have not read.

Global Reading Challenge

1st quarter = Indian Subcontinent:
The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh √

2nd quarter: Spain and Portugal:
The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Baltasar and Blimunda by José Saramago
The Time in Between by María Dueñas
Nada by Carmen Laforet
Outlaws by Javier Cercas √

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

I'm also committed to reading at least six NonFiction works this year.

1. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming √
2. Following Atticus by Tom Ryan √
3. Being Mortal by Atul Gawande √
4. Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson (audio) √
5. H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald √
6. Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates √

Personal Reading Challenge: Every winner of the Booker Prize since its inception in 1969

1969: P. H. Newby, Something to Answer For
1970: Bernice Rubens, The Elected Member
1970: J. G. Farrell, Troubles (awarded in 2010 as the Lost Man Booker Prize) √
1971: V. S. Naipaul, In a Free State
1972: John Berger, G.
1973: J. G. Farrell, The Siege of Krishnapur
1974: Nadine Gordimer, The Conservationist and Stanley Middleton, Holiday
1975: Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Heat and Dust
1976: David Storey, Saville
1977: Paul Scott, Staying On
1978: Iris Murdoch, The Sea, The Sea √
1979: Penelope Fitzgerald, Offshore
1980: William Golding, Rites of Passage
1981: Salman Rushdie, Midnight's Children
1982: Thomas Keneally, Schindler's Ark
1983: J. M. Coetzee, Life & Times of Michael K
1984: Anita Brookner, Hotel du Lac
1985: Keri Hulme, The Bone People √
1986: Kingsley Amis, The Old Devils
1987: Penelope Lively, Moon Tiger √
1988: Peter Carey, Oscar and Lucinda
1989: Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day √
1990: A. S. Byatt, Possession: A Romance
1991: Ben Okri, The Famished Road
1992: Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient √ ... and Barry Unsworth, Sacred Hunger
1993: Roddy Doyle, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
1994: James Kelman, How late it was, how late
1995: Pat Barker, The Ghost Road √
1996: Graham Swift, Last Orders
1997: Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things
1998: Ian McEwan, Amsterdam √
1999: J. M. Coetzee, Disgrace
2000: Margaret Atwood, The Blind Assassin √
2001: Peter Carey, True History of the Kelly Gang
2002: Yann Martel, Life of Pi √
2003: DBC Pierre, Vernon God Little
2004: Alan Hollinghurst, The Line of Beauty
2005: John Banville, The Sea √
2006: Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss
2007: Anne Enright, The Gathering
2008: Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger √
2009: Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall √
2010: Howard Jacobson, The Finkler Question
2011: Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending √
2012: Hilary Mantel, Bring Up the Bodies
2013: Eleanor Catton, The Luminaries
2014: Richard Flanagan, The Narrow Road to the Deep North √
2015: Marlon James, A Brief History of Seven Killings

COMPLETED IN JANUARY (9)

1. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming audio NF
2. The Ballad of the Sad Café {stories} by Carson McCullers
3. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
4. Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively
5. Nemesis by Jo Nesbø
6. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
7. The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh
8. The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers
9. A Test of Wills by Charles Todd

COMPLETED IN FEBRUARY (5)

10. The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
11. Snow in May: Stories by Kseniya Melnik
12. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
13. Washington Square by Henry James
14. Eventide by Kent Haruf

COMPLETED IN MARCH (10)

15. My Education by Susan Choi
16. Following Atticus by Tom Ryan NF
17. Report for Murder by Val McDermid
18. The City & the City by China Miéville
19. The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown NR
20. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
21. The Thing About December by Donal Ryan
22. A God in Every Stone by Kamila Shamsie
23. Wildlife by Richard Ford
24. Being Mortal by Atul Gawande NF

COMPLETED IN APRIL (7)

25. The Bloody Chamber and other stories by Angela Carter
26. Snowpiercer, Volume 1: The Escape by Jacques Lob
27. The Martian by Andy Weir
28. Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
29. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
30. Displacement by Lucy Knisley
31. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham

COMPLETED IN MAY (7)

32. Outlaws by Javier Cercas
33. Psychiatric Tales by Darryl Cunningham
34. Junkyard Dogs by Craig Johnson
35. The Peppered Moth by Margaret Drabble
36. Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina García
37. Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis
38. God Help the Child by Toni Morrison

COMPLETED IN JUNE (9)

39. The Orenda by Joseph Boyden
40. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
41. Among the Ten Thousand Things by Julia Pierpont
42. Academy Street by Mary Costello
43. The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro
44. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
45. Yo, Miss by Lisa Wilde
46. The Bottle Factory Outing by Beryl Bainbridge
47. el deafo by Cece Bell

COMPLETED IN JULY (9)

48. Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932 by Francine Prose
49. Stumptown Volume 1 by Greg Rucka
50. The Shore by Sara Taylor
51. Fifth Business by Robertson Davies
52. The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter by Malcolm MacKay
53. One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
54. Stumptown Volume 2 by Matthew Southworth
55. Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir by Liz Prince
56. Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

COMPLETED IN AUGUST (10)

57. Strong Female Protagonist Book One by Brennan Lee Mulligan
58. The Hummingbird by Stephen P. Kiernan
59. The Sage of Waterloo by Leona Francombe
60. The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
61. Lumberjanes: Beware the Kitten Holy by Noelle Stevenson
62. The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch
63. Pleasantville by Attica Locke
64. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
65. After the Quake: Stories by Haruki Murakami
66. Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera

COMPLETED IN SEPTEMBER (10)

67. The Bone People by Keri Hulme
68. The Moor's Account by Laila Lalami
69. The Woman I Kept to Myself by Julia Alvarez
70. H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald NF
71. Hell's Bottom, Colorado by Laura Pritchett
72. Happy Birthday, Turk! by Jakob Arjouni
73. Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson NF audio
74. A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
75. Satin Island by Tom McCarthy
76. A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories by Flannery O'Connor

COMPLETED IN OCTOBER (8)

77. A Thousand Mornings by Mary Oliver
78. Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
79. Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
80. The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
81. All That Followed by Gabriel Urza
82. This Dark Road to Mercy by Wiley Cash
83. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
84. The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma

COMPLETED IN NOVEMBER

85. A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore
86. The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon
87. How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell audio
88. The Scapegoat by Sophia Nikolaidou
89. Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans
90. Restless by William Boyd
91. The Architect's Apprentice by Elif Şafak
92. The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
93. Death and Judgment by Donna Leon

Currently reading:



The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma

Happy Sunday, Ellen! Happy New Thread! Love the Snowy Shadow topper. Hope you are enjoying your day.

What gorgeous artwork up top Ellen. I love the colors.

Hi Ellen - I love the Stream art! I want one. I hope you had a great weekend.

>12 msf59: Thanks, Mark! It has been a good weekend. Today, P and I walked about 2 miles to Cheeky Cafe where I got my all-time favorite breakfast: a "onesy." One egg, over medium, one piece of bacon, and one piece of French toast. Yum.
The we spent about 90 minutes cleaning house and the rest of the day has been given over to grocery shopping, a trip to the library, reading The Fishermen and etc.

>13 luvamystery65: I'm glad you like Thomas Stream's work, Roberta. His work can bring tears to my eyes.

>14 BLBera: Beth, I feel very lucky to have a high-quality print of his work in my office. I'm SO tempted by a framed print of "Snowy Shadow" that is in the Stonington Gallery, but..... I would, of course, love to own an original but I don't have $8K lying about. Worth it? Absolutely. But still....

Here is the one I have in my office. It's called "Facing Fear."

Beautiful!

Hoping for an excellent week coming up for you, and for me, too.

>16 maggie1944: Thanks, Karen! I love that it's precipitating!

New baby Orca, named J53, in J Pod.
J Pod is one of the resident pods of the endangered Orcas who live in Puget Sound.

Is "Facing Fear" an original, or a print? If there are prints, I think I want one, too. I need to go to the Stonington Gallery.

I also want a LIKE button. Love the new orca baby.

Here is J53 with mom; you get a good sense of his size next to her. Mom is 38 years old.

>19 maggie1944: The one I have is a print, Karen. It's a matter of hundreds vs thousands in terms of cost. I would love to own an original more than almost anything on Earth. Thomas Stream won't allow all of his works to be produced in prints, but he mostly says yes. I definitely recommend a trip to the Stonington Gallery. They are friendly, informative, and low-pressure. And the art they have is beautiful. Thomas Stream is my favorite.

I know this is weird but I am SO HAPPY because it is raining, raining, raining. A steady light-to-moderate precipitation.
I hope it lasts for days.
Hallelujah!!!

Hi Ellen - I have missed threads 2-8! I really love the Thomas Stream paintings.

I haven't read any Booker longlist or shortlist books but now that I'm starting to emerge from my cave (our school year is slooooowly starting to wind down as our senior kids leave for exams in 2 weeks) The Fishermen looks interesting. Will be back soon to see what you think.

I really, really love the Thomas stream art--it's brand new to me.

Yes! Love the normal feeling of northwestern autumn. Halloween is the beginning of a long gentle cool slide into Winter with plenty of water falling on us, our plants, and our fields, and if we are lucky lots of snow for those who love to play in the mountains.

The Thomas Stream art toppers are beautiful. How lovely to have art you love in your office.

Happy new thread, Ellen! I love the toppers - beautiful!

Wow - Thanks for sharing Thomas Stream's artwork. I just spent a fascinated half hour at the Stonington Gallery web site.

And a baby orca! (Had to go read the news accounts of that, too)

Your thread was a lovely start to a Monday morning.

I saw the good news about the new baby orca earlier this morning---that's just joyous. And also, thanks so much for sharing Thomas Stream's art...I have a new favorite!

Congratulations on the new thread, Ellen! I like them toppers, too. And the orcas!

>20 EBT1002: Love the orca photos.

Happy New Thread, Ellen. I love the drawings and of couse the orca photos.

I just love the artwork in >1 EBT1002: & >2 EBT1002:. Very cool!
ETA: also >15 EBT1002:

Happy new thread, Ellen. Loving the news about the new baby Orca in J Pod! So sweet!

>20 EBT1002: baby animals. They get me every time. Here, of course, there are ducklings and chicks around the place looking all cute and fluffy, waddling about after their mums. I was as fascinated by them as I was by the gorillas the other weekend at Orana Park (zoo).

I have handed in my final report for university this year, and have scored myself some part time work updating lecturer's p.point slides to comply with new copyright rules. Yay! Still in talks about potential further study, too...I am thinking a masters.

84. The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma




"Hope was a tadpole: The thing you caught and brought home with you in a can, but which, despite being kept in the right water, soon died."

Nine-year-old Benjamin tells this heartbreaking story of he and his brothers as they take up fishing at the forbidden Omi-Ala, a river wrapped in mystery and intrigue. One day a madman accosts them and, heard only by one of the brothers, he makes an ominous prophesy. The complicated series of events that ensues capture the love and envy between brothers, feelings so strong they can lead to unthinking disaster. Set in Akure, a Nigerian village, in the last decade of the 20th century and the early years of the 21st, this novel is a beautifully written parable of destiny and self-fulfilling prophesy. Being truly a tale of brothers, and only of brothers, it resonated with me less deeply than I had hoped. But it was a worthwhile read.

Currently reading:



A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore

..........................................................

Currently listening:



How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

I have many guest posts to which I want to respond but, unfortunately, it's time to go to work and I'm doing a 13-hour day today. It will be another day or two before I can check in more fully.

Meanwhile, I wish everyone a wonderful Tuesday!!

Ah! Goodness! My first instinct is to send you, virtually, extra strength and patience for the long, long work day! ******** (those are the little virtual bullets)

My sympathy, Ellen. :-)

Nice comments on The Fishermen, Ellen. I've had my eye on it. I guess it can wait. Good luck making it through your long day. Think...light.

Okay, I have some time this morning, allowing myself to arrive a bit later than usual.

First things first: I will be receiving a copy of Where My Heart Used to Beat by Sebastian Faulks from Early Reviewers. I vaguely remember putting in a request for this one (and I think it's the only one I requested from the October batch). I haven't been stellar in completing reviews of ER books. I still haven't read, and have to admit to little motivation for The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin, which I received last month. Anyway, I've never read anything by Faulks but I will make a sincere effort to get to this one once it arrives. It looks like his "French Trilogy" is somewhat known around these parts.

Yesterday in the middle of my long workday, I started reading The App Generation: How Today's Youth Navigate Identity, Intimacy, and Imagination in a Digital World by Howard Gardener and Katie Davis. I can't find it in any of the LT search engines (even though it does show up with a site search) so I'll have to add it manually later. Anyway, it will be another NF book for me for the year and it's pretty good so far.

>23 cushlareads: Cushla, I'm just glad to have you visit thread number nine!
I think this year's collection of Booker nominees was pretty good, overall (not having read all of them, including the actual winner, A Brief History of Seven Killings). I'm not sure I can order them and I was surprised when I went back and noticed that I had rated The Moor's Account lower than the others. I think that novel's aftertaste has been more positive.

>24 ronincats: Oh good, Roni, I'm glad to introduce Thomas Stream's work to people!

>25 maggie1944: Karen, I'm really hoping we have a more normal fall and winter. I think that on Sunday, when it was raining here, the snow level was 7500 feet. We need that to drop! And it will. As you say, this Halloween season is the start of the long slow slide into our damp several months. :-)

>26 charl08: Charl, I feel really lucky to have that Thomas Stream print in my office. It's perfect for the work that I do! :-)

>27 scaifea: Thanks, Amber!

>28 streamsong: Janet, that is very gratifying for me to hear. Browsing the Stonington Gallery, whether in person or on line, is a worthwhile investment of a half hour or so.

I continue to be tempted by another Thomas Stream print for our home but the bathroom remodel (contractor came by yesterday to give us a bid) and the siding replacement (that visit occurs this evening) are higher on the priority list. We're at the stage where we think about the house, impending retirement, and how to make things happen in the way we want. Shorter timeline, you know.... I'm starting to long for mornings with no alarm clock and an easy couple of hours with a book before I have to be at whatever volunteer work or meeting I have that day. And I have at least another decade to work! Ha.

>29 laytonwoman3rd: Linda, I am also feeling very joyful for the addition of the baby Orca. I love those creatures and really want them to make a comeback. I worry about the changes we are imposing on the Puget Sound: increasing water temps and increasing noise levels that make it hard for marine mammals to communicate with one another. Sigh.

I'm glad you like Thomas Stream's work!

>30 jnwelch: Thanks, Joe, and I'm glad you like my toppers and Orcas! :-)

>31 Oberon: I'm glad, Erik! Thanks for visiting my thread!

>32 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. I wish the photos here did Thomas Stream's work full justice. The colors and intricacy, and whimsicalness, are just breathtaking in person.

>33 lauralkeet: I'm glad, Laura. Thomas Stream is (clearly) a favorite of mine!

>34 lkernagh: Thanks, Lori, and I agree. New baby Orcas are good news!

>35 LovingLit: Megan, I am a pushover for baby animals of (almost) all sorts. I once saw a baby Orca playing with its mother -- and yes, in the wild. S/he was breaching and splashing about. It was so CUTE!

Congratulations on turning in the final report! WOOT!! And yay! for part time work. I'll be interested in what you decide about further study. My advice (not that it's requested often) for anyone considering an advanced degree is just this: know what your motivations are. There are no bad or good motivations, but getting through the process of a masters or a doctorate will be more enjoyable and more successful if you're clear at the outset about why you're doing it and what you hope to get out of it. There. Unsought advice offered once again. :-)

>39 maggie1944: Thank you, Karen! I needed some stamina yesterday. It wasn't bad, really, once I got there despite a few hiccups in the day that made my blood boil (I won't go into the details here other than to share my desired response to a faculty member: "You've read a couple of articles in The Chronicle of Higher Education and The Washington Post. Good for you. But I've been doing this work for more than twenty years!! It's just possible that I know a thing or two about the issues we're discussing.") Sigh. I really hate arrogance.

>40 jnwelch: Thank you, Joe! That was, indeed, me when I got home last night. Skipped the glass of wine, watched a bit of the World Series (can anyone tell me why I'm rooting for the Mets?), and took my book to bed.

>41 BLBera: Hey Beth. You know, I do think The Fishermen was a very good novel. But it wasn't my favorite read of the year.

Now that it's Wednesday and I can see the light at the end of the week's tunnel, I'm in pretty good spirits.

This weekend we'll be going to various places to look at bathroom tile and fixtures and such.

And so far I'm enjoying A Spell of Winter quite a bit. Helen Dunmore won the first-ever Orange Prize with this novel so that's kind of a fun fact.

Okay, off to work now. Happy Hump Day, everyone!

Happy Hump Day, Ellen! Hooray for baby orcas!

Good review of The Fishermen. I will get to it eventually.

Glad to hear you are enjoying A Spell of Winter. I am too. I expect to read a healthy chunk today.

Good luck with your bathroom remodel. I just finished one. It went smoothly and I am so happy with it. Good luck with yours. The choosing of the materials was the hardest part.

>50 msf59: Today was not a good reading day for me, Mark. I drove to work, so I did listen to a bit of How to Train Your Dragon which is delightful. I hope to read a couple of chapters before turning out the lights.

>51 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. It's good to hear that you're pleased with your bathroom remodel. I think we have a pretty clear vision and it's just a matter of some of the details. If we go for it, mid-to-late January is the earliest the contractor can fit us in (which just gives us a couple more months to save up for it!). We also had a guy come out this evening to give us a quote on new siding for the house. That is probably more of a pipe dream but I'm curious to know about how much it would cost.

>47 EBT1002: I seek out unsought advice all the time! ;) So thanks.
You know, I have been thinking about my motivations, it is so interesting that you mentioned that in particular. I talked with 3 people at uni today as part of my research into what to do and why and with one of them (a PhD student) we mainly talked about why we are/would be doing it. It seemed an oblique conversation, but obviously one important to have. Seeing as we did, that is.
One thing I am keen NOT to get out of it is a 13 hour work day! I hope you don't get too many of those.

>52 EBT1002: - Glad you're enjoying the audio of How to Train Your Dragon! Such fun, thanks to the fantastic narration.

Happy new thread , Ellen! A thirteen hour day! Ugh! As my husband works shift work, he does 11. 5 hours , 4 on, 4 off and it's not fun . He'd much prefer to have the 7.5 hour or 8 hour shifts, 5 days a week , with weekends off. But that is life. I hope you are enjoying A Spell of Winter. Like Mark mentioned, there are those " yucky parts."

Interesting about your siding and bathroom. I am trying to figure out some of that as well. There was a hail storm in Kansas that damaged the roof and siding of my Mother's house. She is on Social Security and is one of those recipients who gets the minimum. The insurance check isn't going to cover the damage so I am trying to figure out how to pay for the repairs and buy a car that will last well into my retirement at the same time. Add to that the fact that we need to put a handicapped accessible bathroom in the house and it is all adding up to more than my Dad left in his retirement account. The monetary side of life gets to be very interesting at times.

Just getting caught up here Ellen and I couldn't help but notice as I scrolled down the number of green stars next to your 2015 cxompleted reads. So many 4 stars and better! 2015 has been a great reading year for you and I hope that continues on!

We did a bathroom remodel a couple of years ago, and I couldn't believe how much it cost for such a tiny little room. But it was definitely a good investment.

Cheers to your new thread, Ellen! Thanks for introducing me to Thomas Stream. Facing Fear is certainly great in an office. Since I no longer have an office it would be great in a child's room or teenager's for that matter.
I walk away unscathed with not a single book bullet :0)

85. A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore




I love Dunmore's prose. Catherine and her brother Rob are being raised by their inattentive grandfather and a handful of servants and hired assistants on an English estate in the early part of the 20th century. Their mother has abandoned them and their father has died, so the siblings' bond is viscous and ineluctable. Blinded by their privilege, resentful and spoiled, but also neglected and left to their own impulsive play, they cleave joyfully to one another until events necessarily shake their world. Scandal in the community, the war in Europe, and their own adolescent disregard for the feelings of others -- all combine to divert their story from its peaceful path. Dunmore writes in the first person -- Catherine is our unreliable but compelling narrator -- and she lingers in what seems a random manner over scenes, characters, moments in time. The novel moves at a rather leisurely pace but not without intrigue and intensity. This is not a cozy victorian novel. Rather, the author explores a dark side of privileged English country life, starting with the unexplained absence of the children's mother. The gothic effect makes for a very good read and I admire Dunmore's unconventional approach to such common themes as love, loss, family, and the terrible power of secrets.

October was a surprisingly slow month for me with only eight completed reads. I expected to read more while in Salt Lake City at my conference but I read very little during those several days. Still, with two months to go, I need to read 15 more books to make my not-so-secret goal of 100. I think I'll make it.

Toward that end, I'm almost done listening to How to Train Your Dragon, a delightful audiobook! It's perfect for the days I drive to work. I have been feeling the loss of bus-commute-book-time with the increase in my driving, so I'm pleased to find an audiobook that really holds my attention and requires just about the right number of brain cells to still be able to drive. :-)

>53 LovingLit: Megan, it sounds like a great conversation to have with other students pursuing various degrees. I came very close to quitting my graduate program around the time that I completed my masters degree (my program was a PhD degree but most of us picked up the masters along the way), and I'm very glad I decided to hang in there. For me, an important aspect of that was realizing that, given my particular ambitions and talents, along with my weaknesses, finishing the degree was important. It enabled me to pursue the career trajectory that has been a good fit for me. Figuring out that motivation made a huge difference in getting the degree done.

>54 katiekrug: Katie, I totally agree. The narration in How to Train Your Dragon is excellent!

>55 vancouverdeb: Hi Deb. Luckily, I don't often work 13-hour days. In my line of work, in higher ed, I work well over 40 hours per week most of the time, but I think I usually work closer to 9-10 hours each day and I'm very protective of my weekends. I'm what's known as "exempt," which means that I'm generally expected to work until the work is done. Of course, the work is never done so it's a matter of pacing oneself. I'm not complaining, partly because I love the work and partly because I do get a pretty decent annual leave allocation.

I will have to look at Mark's comments about A Spell of Winter. I am sure the novel is not for everyone but I thought it was quite good. I love the phrase "yucky parts" to describe the less palatable aspects of the story.

>56 benitastrnad: Benita, the financial aspect of life can definitely be "interesting" to say the least! I hope you're able to sort through the house needs and still cover all that needs to be covered. We will probably not replace our siding as it's not in terrible condition. The bathroom, on the other hand, really needs this project.

>57 DeltaQueen50: Judy, I worry sometimes that I'm too generous with my stars. On the other hand, I rely on trusted LTers to make recommendations, so I tell myself I'm just avoiding all the poor-to-average novels!

>58 banjo123: Hi Rhonda. We got the email today with the estimate for the bathroom remodel. Our bathroom is really small so I'm hoping it won't be too expensive. But we haven't had the nerve to open the email attachment yet. :-)

>59 Carmenere: Lynda, I'm glad you like Thomas Stream's work.
Not a single book bullet? How is it that I have failed so thoroughly?? :-)

Up next:



The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon

Great review of Spell of Winter, Ellen. I have it in my TBR pile from a second hand shop, but I am not that keen to read due to the " yucky parts." I'm quite a fan of Helen Dunmore and I read several of her books, Spell of Winter being the exception.

>65 vancouverdeb: Deb, I just added another sentence to my review of A Spell of Winter after leaving a post on Mark's thread. In my opinion, what Mark calls the "yucky parts" should not put off a fan of Dunmore's work (of course, I say this never having read any other of her works). It's a courageous exploration of the power of the human need for love and connection. It was also, at times, hard to read without having a visceral "yuck" reaction, -- so I totally get why Mark uses that descriptor!

Excellent review of A Spell of Winter, Ellen. Thumb from me. I don't know whether I'll ever get to it. I really liked The Siege, but no other of hers is strongly calling out to me.

Hope it's a good week for you.

ETA: Oops, thumb from me if you post it.

Ellen - Well, I added A Spell of Winter to my list. Great review. The Night Sister looks a little too creepy for me.

You still read more than I did in October; it was my lowest month, too. School is kicking my butt. Still I think we should both reach 100 this year.

I confess that I often read the tags attached to a book prior to reading it, Ellen, and that is where I learn a fair bit about a book, like A Spell of Winter. Sometimes just the LT tags attached to books make for a spoiler, or a warning! I am quite careful that way with my tags, though sometimes certain tags need to be there.

Hi, Ellen! Good review of A Spell of Winter. I think I liked your review better than the book. I never quite recovered after the "yucky parts". LOL.

I LOVED The Night Sister. I hope you feel the same way.

Slightly late to the party this time, Ellen. Pleased to see that you thought A Spell of Winter was ok as I was a little underwhelmed by The Siege which others had adored. xx

Hi Ellen, too late to with you a Happy New Thread? You've definitely sold me on A Spell of Winter, the combination of turn of the century setting with gothic overtones sounds like it's just up my alley! I loved The Siege last month and look forward to moving on to The Betrayal, though I know there's been mixed feelings about it.

I've been trying to convince our library to acquire How to Train Your Dragon on audio, but haven't been successful so far... may just have to splurge on it because it sounds like a lot of fun.

>69 vancouverdeb: the tags can really give away a storyline, that's for sure.

>60 EBT1002: well, I guess I'll have to read it, yucky parts and all! Man, I am 'booked up' at the moment! My bedside table is heaving with must reads

I've downloaded the new LibraryThing app and I'm very hopeful that it will enable me to occasionally do "talk" using my phone?...

The Night Sister has me glad I don't live alone.... I expect to finish it tonight. It's a good scary suspense thriller (not my usual fare but I'm enjoying this!).

>67 jnwelch: I posted my review of A Spell of Winter, Joe, so thanks for that nudge. I really must get better about doing that. It's totally a lack-of-confidence thing.

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

More later. I'm at work and just took this moment to check in after downloading the app!

>76 EBT1002: Thumbed! Great review.

Ditto

Me too!

>74 EBT1002: the app doesn't do talk yet, it's more about cataloging (scan barcode to add to catalog for example), and managing the books in your library. The LT gods are also clear they aren't trying to duplicate all website functionality in the app. But it's pretty cool for what it does.

I hope you'll drop by my thread when you have a few minutes to spare to add your suggestion... xx

Hooray for The Night Sister. Glad it grabbed you...

>68 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. I think you'll enjoy A Spell of Winter although it has an edge to it. The writing is really lovely and the pace is perfect for her setting and subject.

I finished The Night Sister last night (more about that in a bit) and it ended up being less creepy than it was in the middle. Still, I'm recommending it with reservations for anyone (like me) who is susceptible to such things.

I shared with someone yesterday that I had a "secret goal" of reading 100 books this year and that I think I'll make it. I guess I can't really keep calling it a secret goal. :-)

>69 vancouverdeb: Deb, I have the same experience with tags and I just realized, reading your post, that I actually don't pay a lot of attention to them in advance of reading a book. It hasn't been intentional but I guess it has had the bonus of allowing me to avoid some spoilers. That said, in A Spell of Winter, it's pretty easy to see where she is heading fairly early in the novel.

>70 msf59: "I think I liked your review better than the book." LOL -- thanks for that compliment, Mark! I think the "yucky" parts offended me less than they will some. Perhaps that is my training and experience as a psychotherapist. I've heard a lot over the years.

I don't know that I would say that I "LOVED" The Night Sister but it will get an enthusiastic review from me later today.

>71 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! I had planned to read The Siege but someone's comments about A Spell of Winter got my attention and it was readily available at the library. I'm glad I participated in this last month's BAC selection!

>72 Smiler69: Ilana, it is never too late to wish me a happy new thread! I take warm greetings whenever they come. I will be very interested in your take on A Spell of Winter. I think you'll appreciate her unconventional approach, especially in the context of such a lovely period piece.

I wish you luck in your continued efforts to convince your library about How to Train Your Dragon! The audio is spectacular! I want to encourage you to splurge on purchasing it for yourself but only with the caveat that it's a short one. It's less than five hours of narration. For me, with my rather pathetic success at listening to a book in anything resembling a reasonable time frame, this is a plus. I can imagine that you might feel like it wasn't a good exchange for your money/credit. Still, the wonderful narration might make up for the fact that you can listen to it in one short afternoon.

>73 LovingLit: I hope you do read A Spell of Winter, Megan. It may not end up on anyone's "favorites" list for the year but I think it's a brave and interesting novel.

>77 charl08: and >78 jnwelch: and >79 Smiler69: Thanks, Charl, Joe, and Ilana!

(I don't mind admitting among friends that I rather like getting thumbs for my reviews.)

>80 lauralkeet: It's probably for the best, Laura, that the LT app doesn't "do" talk. And I will be very happy for the improved ease of adding books to my catalogue. Maybe I'll use my wish list more effectively.

>81 Smiler69: Ooh, now I'm curious. I'll visit your thread before I head to work this morning!

>82 msf59: :-)

86. The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon




This was an enjoyable, rather creepy novel of suspense and supernatural. I don't generally like reading about things that go bump in the night (although I was an avid reader of Stephen King in my 20s), but I'm glad I read this one. It wasn't the kind of scary that makes you afraid to be alone in your house at night (it helps that I don't actually believe in ghosts) but it gets your heart rate up just enough to be fun. It's a quick read, too.

Up next:



The Scapegoat by Sophia Nikolaidou

Oh Ellen - one of favorites this year. I'll watch for your comments. (No pressure)...

87. How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
narrated by David Tennant




I'm not much for kids' books, really, nor am I an audiobook aficionado, but this was SO delightful. It's a great story and the narration by David Tennant is remarkable. I listened to it over the past couple of weeks whenever I was driving to or from work and it was perfect for that context. Definitely recommended.

>89 BLBera: I remember you warbling about it, as Mark would say. I read a wee bit this morning and I'm already pulled in.

Tomorrow evening P and I are going to the Seattle Town Hall to hear Stacy Schiff talk about her new book, The Witches: Salem, 1692. The price of admission includes a copy of the book. :-)

>92 EBT1002: cool! What a fab way to get the book out there. And great for audiences to actually get a book :)
I know what you mean about posting reviews. I used to agonise over wording of my reviews, especially if they were going out there to the real Internet (ie to just the safe 75 group). And now my main problem is getting on to actually writing them!
Oh, and what happpend to thumbing people's reviews? We all used to thumb all the time, didn't we? Maybe people don't post reviews to the book page much anymore?

I am sad to confess I skip reading many reviews because I just don't want another BB to hit my purse. I know I could use the library or go to Half Price Books but I do that for all the book group books. Yesterday, I bought The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich for $4.89 as it was both used and a wee bit damaged. Yay! It is for the f2f group made up of the friends I've "left behind in Hollyhlls". It is great to be able to see them, and read a good book.

So I have not thumbed up any reviews for quite a while, but I'm probably an outlier.

Happy Friday, Ellen! Schiff will also be here next week but I already have the book and it is a weeknight, so I'll take a pass. I do plan on reading The Witches this month, for NFN! Sadly, I have not yet read Cleopatra, but have it saved on audio.

Have a great time in the Cascades this weekend.

>94 maggie1944: Oh, Karen, that was one of my all-time favorites. I hope your f2f group likes it as much as I did.

>92 EBT1002: Jim bought tickets to hear her at the Historical Society in January. Let us know how she is, won't you?

I read reviews all the time! I'd rather get a book endorsed by LT friends that I know, than purchase a book " blind" so too speak. Though I do purchase some books " blind" - though I try to get a good sense of the book . I'm never sure that my reviews ( if I write one ) is up to par. but I often thumb them. The Witches sounds like fun! I'll look forward to your comments.

Ellen I have finished Sacred Ground by Eboo Patel. It started out a little slow for me, but as I followed Patel's journey I became more engrossed in his struggle to make his passion of interfaith cooperation translate into measurable success without loosing his passion or making his message boring. This book has given me a lot to think about. I also got a book bullet from the book. I am currently listening to The Faith Club by Ranya Idilby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warner. Thank you for recommending this book to me.

88. The Scapegoat: A Novel by Sophia Nikolaidou
Translated from the Greek by Karen Emmerich




"...a conspiracy of good intentions, as he called it, had ruined the life of an innocent man."

"...Minas had come to realize that justice is an abstract concept. Perfect on paper. But in practice, riddled with qualifications, asterisks, interpretations, clashes of opinion. History books offered no catharsis, as tragedies did; there were no happy endings, as there were if fairytales or soap operas."

Minas Georgiou, a high school student who does not want to study for the Panhellenic college entrance exams, is assigned a research project as an alternative. He is to investigate the murder of Jack Talas, an American journalist who was found dead in the late 1940s during the Greek civil war. Manolis Gris, a local journalist with a vague historical connection with the Communist party, was found guilty and imprisoned for over a decade. To this day, the truth of Talas' death is not known with any certainty; no theory adequately addresses the various "facts" of the situation.

The novel moves nimbly back and forth from the 1940s to current-day Greece, embroiled in a devastating financial crisis with social unrest reminiscent of that which manifested during the civil war. Exploring the tension between justice for one and benefit for all, as well as the dynamics of scapegoating in the political landscape, Nikolaidou's novel is also a story of family loyalty and love. I admit that I found the narrative trajectory confusing at times but the effort was worth it in the long run. Definitely worthwhile.

>93 LovingLit: The interview with Stacy Schiff, as the event was constructed, was quite interesting. She is an impressive scholar with an enjoyable sense of humor and an exquisite sense of storytelling. I stood in line afterwards so she could autograph my copy of her book. It was a good evening.

I occasionally tell myself not to think about my "reviews" as such, but to just write comments as if it were a personal journal rather than a public internet social networking site (which is, of course, only part of what LT is!). Usually, I am aware of the possibility that people whose opinions I value will be reading what I write. And good question about thumbing one another's reviews. Has our overall thumbing rate declined? I, for one, have been admittedly more lax about it. Perhaps we have now created such a steady, sustainable on-line book community that the need for support and validation (of the social infrastructure as much as one another as individuals) has waned. Still, I will make an effort to provide more upthumbs for good reviews in addition to my compliments on folks' threads.

>94 maggie1944: The book bullet issue is a very real one, Karen. As I consider which commitments I'm going to make for my reading in 2016, I'm very aware of the need to read some of the books I've already purchased! And, as you say, there is the library. I picked up four new books at the library yesterday and I know in my heart of hearts there is no way I'll read them all before they must be returned. But reading them keeps me from the TBRs! First world problems. But still.

>95 msf59: The Schiff event was interesting and entertaining, Mark. Happily, it was on a Friday but it lasted less than a full hour in any event, so we were home by 9pm. Living in a city, I have so many opportunities to hear authors speak. Gloria Steinem is speaking at Benaroya Hall tonight as she makes the tour for her new book, but I won't be going to that. I do plan on motivating myself to attend more such events, though.

I haven't read Cleopatra: A Life yet, either, but it's on the TBR shelves.

We're not leaving for the Cascades until Wednesday but thanks for the wishes for fun! Wednesday is a holiday for us (I know that it's a holiday for you, as well, but many state schools remain open) and P gets Friday off, so we're taking advantage of the opportunity to make it a 5-day weekend. It's not the best time of year for me to abandon campus for half a week, but my colleagues are understanding and supportive.

>94 maggie1944: and >96 ffortsa: I haven't read The Master Butchers Singing Club yet but since I'm a fan of Erdrich, I look forward to reading it sometime in the coming year.

>96 ffortsa: Schiff is an engaging author-speaker, Judy. The event was constructed as an on-stage interview and conversation which mostly worked. I think she is an excellent scholar and she brings that scholarship to her storytelling and her speculation about life in 1690s New England. I think you'll enjoy hearing her speak in January.

>97 vancouverdeb: Deb, I am very much in the same boat. I still occasionally buy books on impulse because they look interesting on the shelf but my LT buddies have a HUGE influence on my book purchases (and library holds)! I worry sometimes that my star ratings are crazily inflated but then I remind myself that I'm selecting books based on suggestions from people whose opinions I respect. Since we all know that we'll never have the opportunity read every book we want to read, this dynamic is truly wonderful.

>98 luvamystery65: Roberta! You read it! Okay, you have motivated me. I know it's NFN so I'll take it off the shelf and dig in. I've been reading The App Generation during my lunches at work (this is a new thing for me, this taking 30 minutes to eat and read during the day) but I'll set it aside and give Eboo Patel a try. I'm glad my recommendation bore positive fruit for you. Hearing him speak was so moving, I really do look forward to reading his written work. Thank YOU for the nudge!

Up next:



Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans

and



Sacred Ground: Pluralism, Prejudice, and the Promise of America by Eboo Patel

Oh! You are in for a treat with Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans. I was so charmed by that story! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I am quite sure Charlotte loved it too ! Off to a to my sister's birthday party :) For a couple of months she and I are the same age - my mom managed to have two daughters in one year - January ( me ) and November - my sister - and then added three more to the clan . :)

Hi Ellen - It sounds like you at least had a good start to your weekend. I love to hear authors speak. I also have Cleopatra on my shelves.

I'm glad you liked The Scapegoat; I think we chose the same quote.

Have a great long weekend. I'll watch for your comments on Crooked Heart - one that I loved.

>104 vancouverdeb: I remember you singing its praises, Deb, along with several other reliable LT buddies, including Beth. I've only read about 5 pages so far but it's promising. :-)

Have fun at your sister's birthday party!

>105 BLBera: We chose the same quote? That's kind of cool. I promise I did not look at your review before writing my own. :-)

Another fan of Crooked Heart here - and you got me with a BB on The Scapegoat. The title is familiar but I don't think I've added it to the list yet...

So, I have two long days of work ahead of me (I don't really have to fit a whole week's worth of work into two days but it will probably feel a bit like that) and then P and I are off to the Oregon Cascades and a cabin along the Metolius River. Our SIL is house- and cat-sitting. I'm SO looking forward to this mini-vacation!


Metolius River


Cabins on the Metolius River (yes, that is the very one in which we'll be staying!)

Metolius River

Argh! I was digging through my books, looking for my copy of Sacred Ground: pluralism, prejudice, and the promise of America by Eboo Patel and I found a purchased hard cover copy of The Scapegoat. Of course, I just finished reading a copy from the library. Oh well. Someone will get a really nice gift in one of our local Little Free Libraries.

>108 EBT1002: & >109 EBT1002: Absolutely lovely, Ellen. The last one reminds me of Last of the Mohicans for some reason.

>107 charl08: Deb said she thought you were another among the warblers about Crooked Heart, Charlotte. I'm looking forward to reading it. And I'm glad I hit you with the book bullet for The Scapegoat; a number of other folks around here have rated it highly, most notably Beth (BLBera).

>111 PaulCranswick: Camp Sherman along the Metolius River is possibly my all-time favorite spot on Earth, Paul. It is, of course, hard to select just one. Kaua'i comes to mind along with Cape Perpetua (highest point on the Oregon Coast), Rannoch Moor in the highlands of Scotland, Victoria, BC, the San Juan Islands.....

>108 EBT1002: - What a perfect mini-vacation spot! Must be hard to return to reality after that wonderful tranquility.

LOL! I don't warble about the books I like , that is too delicate for me! I flog the books I like! Like a used car sales person . Giving my sister a book that she wanted for her birthday - an about Disney Book - forget the name.

>114 lkernagh: Yes, it will be hard to come back but I just remind myself that I love my life here in Seattle, too!

>115 vancouverdeb: LOL -- I love it, Deb. Flog. And with gusto! It's a good quality -- and very helpful for the rest of us!

Have a great time on the Metolius! It really is a lovely spot.

I actually like it when people write very informal "reviews." I really value the opinions here on LT, but sometimes the longer reviews are too spoiler-ish for me.

>117 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda.

I like a balance in terms of reviews. If they are too long I may not take the time to read them and I definitely want to get a real sense of the experience of reading the book (which is more important than whether it achieved some ephemeral literary goal). I tend to want to know on which dimensions it was strong: character, setting, plot, language and imagery, etc. And, if it is a challenging read, I want to know whether that reader felt it was worth the effort. I like a challenging novel but only if the reward matches the effort required.

Here's another image, at the head of the Metolius River with Mt. Jefferson in the distance.

Happy Sunday, Ellen. Glad you enjoyed the Schiff author event. I am hoping to bookhorn in The Witches, later in the month, for the NF read.

I have been curious about Crooked Heart.

Love the Cascade photos. My sis, is winging her way back to Oregon, as I type this.

What beautiful photos! I'll be there. I do get Wednesday off this week. I thought I was going to have Miss Scout for the day, but her other grandma gets here. :( I guess I have to share. It should give me some extra grading time and some extra reading time.

Go Vikes.

>119 msf59: P is going to read our signed copy of The Witches: Salem, 1692, probably while we are in Oregon. I may not get to it until next year. My November has turned out to be CRAZY with library books, challenge books, and NFN.... Impossible. (but fun)

Crooked Heart has earned some praise from trusted friends around here so I'm optimistic. I'll let you know how it lands on me.

I'm glad you're enjoying my photos of the Metolius River. I'm letting my excitement build. It will likely be cold and possibly rainy but our cabin has a fireplace and I'll be taking my reading/walking-at-night headlamp. As is often the case, the one complaint I might have about these cabins is that the light is not designed for readers. Headlamp to the rescue!

>120 BLBera: I don't see any rational reason for you having to share Scout, Beth! But, as you say, it means Wednesday is a day for grading and reading. I'm excited about our trip to the Oregon Cascades but I have to admit that having a day in the middle of the week just to sit about the house and read also has its appeal. I know, I should be attending events on campus to honor Veterans Day but I don't tend to do that. I did hear Colonel Margarethe Cammermeyer speak on campus the other day. She is droll with a sneaky and irreverent sense of humor. We have a signed copy of her book, Serving in Silence, but I've not read it.

We really appreciate your Vikings beating the Rams for us, so thanks for that! The Seahawks have to figure out a way to beat the Cardinals which will be no small challenge.

>120 BLBera: I went to the Vikings game today. The first half was great and then the wheels fell off. A pretty lackluster performance. The Vikes were lucky to get a win.

>122 Oberon: Very cool that you got to go to the game, Erik. And, as a Seahawks fan, I am well practiced at saying that a win is a win, no matter how ugly. :-)

Yes, the Vikes still have plenty of chances to break our hearts. The weather was nice for the game, but I don't enjoy them so much anymore. The noise is too much. Also, I can grade between plays...

>123 EBT1002: My son is a Seahawks fan. He has been very sad that this season has not lived up to last. To add insult to injury, the Seattle Sounders were eliminated in the MLS playoffs tonight.

>124 BLBera: broken hearts are pretty much the definition of Vikings fans. It was a nice enough day but the wind and being in the shade made the game a bit chilly.

>124 BLBera: "I can grade between plays..." Spoken like a truly dedicated educator. :-)

>125 Oberon: Yes, Erik, this season has been disappointing for those of us true to the blue and green. How is it that your son is a Seahawks fan? And a Sounders fan? (I hadn't realized that they had been eliminated -- rats!)

>126 Oberon: I've only attended one pro football game. It was the Seahawks hosting the Jaguars during the 2013 season. It poured the whole time and we were right under the edge of the roof so we had the water pouring out of the sky plus the water pouring off the roof. We clobbered them and it was a blast! But I won't be doing a lot of that, if only because I'm prioritizing the mortgage. :-)

>127 EBT1002: I am not sure. He likes the Sounders because of Clint Dempsey and became a big Russell Wilson fan last year. He has been begging to visit Seattle for two years now. I think he figures these people will meet him at the airport or something.

Oh, and that sounds really cold! You must be hardier than me. After years of playing hockey outdoors I prefer my sports venues to be comfortable.

>128 Oberon: Well. I can't say that it's likely that Clint or Russell will meet you all at the airport (although you never know), but if you bring Andrew (and the rest of the crew!) to Seattle, I will meet you at Elliott Bay Books. It's a very close second. Really.

>108 EBT1002: >109 EBT1002: woah. That cabin in that setting looks AMAZING.

>118 EBT1002: I agree that a good balance is required in reviews. Too long and I bail early...too short and what's the point?

>108 EBT1002:, >109 EBT1002:, >118 EBT1002: Beautiful, Ellen. What a great place to get away.

I know you know the problem of trying to find time to write the reviews. I've gotten to the point that, if it's one I want to highlight for folks, I'll at least do a short review. Other than that, I just let whatever comes to mind determine the length, although I do try not to go on and on and on.

Your vacation spot looks positively idyllic. Enjoy!

>129 EBT1002: Ha! That does sound like a close second! No plans to come to the Seattle in the short term but I will keep you posted.

Have a great "vacation". Ha! I'm doing something similar. Nov. 11 is my 71st Birthday, and I'm leaving on 11/10 on the Victoria Clipper. We'll stay for two nights, and have High Tea at the Empress for my birthday, Yay!

Your place looks very relaxing.

I've been very remise in even writing short reviews. Perhaps I'll have time while in Victoria to catch up.

Have a lovely break. The fire and the books.... sounds idyllic.

>108 EBT1002: What a lovely get-away spot. I hope you have a delightful break.

Oh, that cabin and locale look simply scrumptious!! I am so envious. Not that you don't deserve it...but I want it TOO!

>130 LovingLit: It's a pretty special place, Megan. We depart tomorrow and I'm looking SO forward to it!

Yep. Balance is important in reviews as in all other things.

>131 jnwelch: I'm very excited to spend a few days in that magical place, Joe.

I also find my desire to share my excitement about or appreciation for a book affects my reviews. I will definitely spend time carefully crafting my comments on a book I want others to consider. If it was, say, a fun read that didn't change my life, then a few words simply have to suffice.

>132 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura! I feel lucky that I get to spend a few days in this quiet and incredibly beautiful spot on Earth. We leave tomorrow morning and I am ready!

>133 Oberon: Do let me know if you decide to take a trip to our fair city, Erik. I think I can confidently say that it's a city worth visiting. For more reasons than Elliott Bay Books and moi!

>134 maggie1944: Karen! What a wonderful thing you are doing to celebrate your birthday! As I write, you are tucked up somewhere in Victoria (another of my favorite places on Earth) and tomorrow you shall have high tea at the Empress. So special. We had tea there for my 50th and it was memorable. Enjoy. If you find time to write a few reviews, so be it, but if the weather is nice I recommend walking. The waterfront looking over toward the Olympics is just lovely.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KAREN!!!!

>135 charl08: Thank you, Charlotte. Idyllic is what I'm hoping for! :-)

>136 laytonwoman3rd: Thanks, Linda! I'm so ready for lots of reading and lots of walking in the woods.

>137 ronincats: Roni, you deserve it too! Truly, I feel very lucky and I am planning to enjoy it as deeply as I can.

Choosing which books to pack is always one of the most enjoyable parts of planning a vacation.
Here are the books in the running (so far):

Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans because I'm loving it and need to finish it
Sacred Ground: Pluralism, Prejudice, and the Promise of America by Eboo Patel for NFN and a shared read with Roberta
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver as a delicious reread for the AAC-II
The Green Road by Anne Enright because I have it from the library
Restless by William Boyd for the BAC
The Architect's Apprentice by Elif Safak because I have it from the library
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara because I have it from the library and it was short listed for this year's Booker

I won't take all of these because this really is a mini-vacation and I'm not that fast a reader. I'll make my final decisions in the morning.

Decisions, decisions, Ellen. It looks like you can't go wrong. I'm happy that you are loving Crooked Heart - one of my favorites this year.

I'd like to reread The Bean Trees too. And I'm on the list for The Green Road.

Have a great mini vacation.

Have a great time, Ellen!

I like your list - sounds like some great reading whichever way you decide!

Have a great time in Oregon, Ellen! If you can check out my picture on FB you can see the lovely Victoria from our hotel room. Pretty. Nice time.

Vacations are the best!

Oh so glad you are enjoying Crooked Hearts. A unique story, dark but very charming! Have a great holiday!

89. Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans




Ten-year-old Noel is an orphan and a refugee, sent to the English countryside for safety. An odd and eccentric chap, he is finally fostered by Vera, aka Vee, who is hard luck personified. The two of them develop a scheme for survival and a mutual attachment that is sweet and memorable. They are two of my favorite characters of this year's reading. Wonderful.

Glad you enjoyed Crooked heart. It is a darling story!

90. Restless by William Boyd




In 1976 Ruth learns that her mother Sally, a Russian immigrant, was a spy for the British during WWII. The story of Eva Delectorsklaya is gripping, the story of Ruth and Sally (and the reasons for Sally's late-life disclosures to her astounded daughter) somewhat less compelling. And the thread of the tale is a bit loose near the end. Still, this was a can't-put-it-down spy thriller, perfect for a mini-vacation!

Thanks to Beth for sending her copy to me last year in anticipation of the BAC!

>142 BLBera: The mini-vacation was outstanding, Beth! As you can see, I enjoyed some wonderful reads. We also had three excellent days of hiking: 8 miles on Thursday, 7 miles on Friday, and 5 miles on Saturday. We saw Mule Deer, including a buck pursuing a doe (it was so cute!), bald eagles, several varieties of woodpeckers, and a few ducks. Today on the drive home it was snowing in the mountains; Santiam Pass was a bit dicey for driving. Now we're home safely and trying to muster up some enthusiasm for the crazy-busy week ahead.

Really, I sent you my copy? I didn't remember.

Crooked Heart is great, isn't it? I'm definitely going to read more by Evans. I also loved Their Finest Hour and a Half, but I thought Crooked Heart was better.

How was your weekend? Are you refreshed and ready for Monday?

>143 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! It was spectacular (see my brief summary in >150 EBT1002: above).

>144 charl08: Thanks, Charlotte. I took a stack and enjoyed the ones I read. :-)

>145 maggie1944: "Vacations are the best!" I agree, Karen! I will check out FB later this evening or sometime this week. It was pretty nice being totally off the grid for a few days. They had wi-fi but it was slooooow and I interpreted that as the universe telling me to watch the river or the fire and read!

>146 vancouverdeb: and >148 vancouverdeb: Yes, I greatly enjoyed Crooked Heart, Deb! I think that Noel and Vee are two of the most charmingly memorable characters I've encountered in a while!

I am glad that you had a nice weekend-- it sounds lovely. Crooked Heart sounds good!

>149 EBT1002: Nice to see that Restless didn't leave you too, um, restless.

Lovely to see you back safe, sound and refreshed from what was obviously a great trip.

>151 BLBera: LOL. I hadn't remembered either, to be honest, but there was your post-it note in the front of the book. See >150 EBT1002: for a summary of my weekend. In a word, it was wonderful!!!!

>153 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda! I definitely recommend Crooked Heart! I think you would like it.

>154 PaulCranswick: I'm now a fan of William Boyd, Paul (this happens when I read novelists recommended by you). And thank you, the trip was indeed a great one!

Currently reading:



The Architect's Apprentice by Elif Şafak

I started this last night and was immediately sucked in. It is, so far, absolutely delightful.
Too bad I have to go back to work tomorrow and can't spend the day reading it! :-)

We cross posted. It sounds great.

>157 EBT1002: Looks very interesting. I look forward to the review.

How about those Seahawks tonight? Quite a comeback to this point.

>147 EBT1002: that does sound good!

When I plan my holiday reading I am always overestimating the time I will have to read. In the past, when the kids were little and had day sleeps plus went to bed early, my reading plans were able to be realised. These days...not so much. But I still plan for the possible!

Good to hear re Restless. I'd intended to read that for the BAC, but I've gotten backed up. I've never heard of The Architect's Apprentice, so you've sure got me curious now.

I believe that Architect's Apprentice was longlisted for the 2015 Walter Scott Historical Fiction Prize. It did not make the shortlist but the reviews of it were great. I saw Daryl mention the Walter Scott Historical Fiction prize over on his thread and looked it up. This book was on that list and so I put it on my wishlist because I thought it sounded interesting.

According to Wikipedia the Walter Scott Prize was founded in 2010 by the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch. They share ancestry with the author Walter Scott. The prize is an award of 25,000 pounds. Eligible books must have been first published in the UK, Ireland or Commonwealth in the preceding year. For the purpose of the award, historical fiction is defined as being that where the main events take place more than 60 years ago, i.e. outside of any mature personal experience of the author. The winner is announced each June at the Borders Book Festival in Melrose. The current Duke of Buccleuch, Richard Scott, the 10th Duke, is the largest private landowner in the United Kingdom and chairman of the Buccleuch Group, a holding company with interests in commercial property, rural affairs, food, and beverages. The title originally comes from a holding in the Scottish Borders, near Selkirk and was spelled in a more English fashion - Buccleugh. The Dukes of Buccleuch are members of the Clan Stewart as they are descended from Charles II's eldest illegitimate son.

The winners of the Walter Scott Historical Fiction Prize have been:

Hilary Mantel for Wolf Hall - 2010 (novel about Thomas Cromwell)
Andrea Levy for Long Set - 2011 (set in 1820's Jamaica)
Sebastian Barry for On Canaan's Side - 2012 (set in 20th century Ireland and Chicago)
Tan Twan Eng for Garden of Evening Mists - 2013 (set in 1940's & 50's Malaya)
Robert Harris for An Officer And A Spy - 2014 (Dreyfus Affair in France 1890's)
John Spurling for Ten Thousand Things - 2015 (14th century China)

>158 BLBera: :-)

>159 Oberon: Erik, given how busy my week is, it will probably take a while for me to finish The Architect's Apprentice but so far it's really great. I am home today with Abby, the cat. She has a bandage on her left front paw and is all discombobulated so I'm trying to delay my departure for work as much as possible. Poor Bean. Anyway, it means I might get to sneak in a chapter or two between work emails and phone calls...

>160 ronincats: It was a nice comeback for a while there, Roni, but in the end we didn't have a response for the Cardinals. Disappointing. (And thanks for thinking of me!)

>161 LovingLit: Megan, I think you would enjoy Crooked Heart.
I love taking a stack of books with me on vacation, knowing I won't read all of them. But at least I have choices while I'm there. We're still talking about getting kindles for Christmas and I know that will change the travel-reading experience for me.

>162 jnwelch: Joe, Restless was an imperfect but enjoyable spy novel.
The Architect's Apprentice is really good, so far. I wish I could remember where I heard about it. I do this: I put things on hold at the library and by the time I get them I can't remember whether someone on LT (and whom?) recommended it, whether I read about it in the Seattle Times, or what... Beth may have recommended The Architect's Apprentice as I don't think I tracked it down via Darryl's thread (see Benita's comments). Honestly, however I came across it, I'm just glad to have done so. P says she read it and liked it a lot so I suppose she and I may both have read about it....

I did love The Architect's Apprentice - Shafak is a new-to-me author, and I will be looking for more by her. She does an interesting TED talk about story telling and its role in cultures.

Also interesting, she writes in English.

>167 charl08: This is on my radar too, had a copy from the library but ran out of time. I really enjoyed The Forty Rules of Love and have The Bastard of Istanbul on my shelves to be read.

>163 benitastrnad: Given how much I liked the ones on this list I've read, think I'll look out for the John Spurling.

Nice to see the love for Crooked Heart one of my favourites of the year.

Lots of good comments. Adding The Architect's Apprentice to the WL.

I know well that experience of requesting a book from the library, Ellen, and then not remembering where I got that bright idea when it shows up much later.

>163 benitastrnad: Benita, that is a great post. Thanks. Of the winners in that list, I have read only Wolf Hall and The Garden of Evening Mists. I have had Andrea Levy's Long Song (not Long Set, right?) on my TBR shelves for a long time. I almost read it for the BAC this fall but didn't get to it. It will be on the list of TBRs that I try to tackle in the coming year.

>166 BLBera: I will look for that TED talk as I think she is an interesting writer (I'm not quite halfway through The Architect's Apprentice but it is good literature so far). I am also intrigued that she writes in English. I found myself thinking about that as I was reading last night. I am pathetically monolingual and therefore, usually, dependent on translations of world literature. It's an interesting privilege dynamic to realize that, with English being my only language, I still have access to so much. Our language dominance is thorough.

>167 charl08: Charlotte, I believe I will be looking for copies of The Forty Rules of Love and The Bastard of Istanbul after finishing this one. It's really quite good. And, like you, I will be on the lookout for the John Spurling. I've not yet heard about his Ten Thousand Things.

>168 jnwelch: In my reading of it so far, Joe, I do believe you would appreciate The Architect's Apprentice.

I'm planning to come home early this afternoon, having canceled a couple of meetings. Poor Abby has a bandage on her paw from toe to shoulder. We can take it off tonight but she is SO unhappy. I just feel the need to be here to soothe her (and keep an eye on her). I tend to be a worrying cat-mom.

So, I will try to visit some threads while I'm watching over my baby girl.

Regarding books, I know there is lots of planning for 2016 going on around here and I am excited about some of the challenges. AND I know that a commonly stated goal on the 75ers thread is to make a dent in one's personal TBR stacks and shelves. AND I know that we, as a group, are often relatively unsuccessful at that latter goal. BUT I am serious. I really want to read some of the books I have purchased over the years as well as to close out some series and oeuvres of favorite authors. So. That is my umbrella plan for 2016. Beyond that, I may restrain myself from making particular commitments. My thinking is that this will help. Ha. It's an experiment. :-)

Poor Abby! What is wrong with her paw?

Yes, I missed, if you've said, what is wrong with Abby's paw?

Greta Garbo is learning to love our new home, but not every day. Sometimes she turns on her paws and walks right back inside, just as I've dressed all up to go for a walk. Gotta love our pets.

Did you get a chance to pick up Ghost Boy for the book group? I think we are meeting this Thursday. It is the third Thursday, right?

>171 banjo123: and >172 maggie1944: She had a spot that she had licked to the point of near infection. They put antibiotics on it and wrapped her up from toe to shoulder. Poor thing. HATES it. As soon as P gets home from work, the two of us will work together to take it off her. Got blood work results today -- all clear for kitty Prozac to start tonight.

>172 maggie1944: Karen, yes, we do gotta love our pets. And they are so dependent upon us!

I won't be able to attend this Thursday. We have our first of four finalists for the director position coming in on Thursday and it will be a long day, including dinner out with the candidate and a couple other colleagues. I'm bummed about book group but, of course, very excited to see the finalists and close out this hiring process!

Read Ghost Boy any way. I think you will be fascinated. And it is not long, and not a difficult read.

Hooray for hiring. I hope you have excellent candidates.

>174 maggie1944: Okay, Karen, I will do that. I'll need to snag a copy. I'll check the library. :-)

>175 BLBera: Thank you, thank you, thank you, Beth. You and others around here know how much I am yearning for the completion of the hiring process, preferably with the successful recruitment of an amazing and wonderful director to succeed me in that role. I want someone who exceeds my success!

I just posted this over on Bill (Weird_O)'s new Pulitzer Challenge thread. What am I thinking????

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

I swore I was swearing off challenges for 2016 but this one screams for at least a wee bit of attention. Thanks for setting it up, Bill!

Here are some I'd like to read in the coming year:

The Fixer by Bernard Malamud (Fiction, 1967)
The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron (Fiction, 1968)
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard (General Nonfiction, 1975)
The Known World by Edward P. Jones (Fiction, 2004 -- this would be a reread)
Gilead by Marilyn Robinson (Fiction, 2005)
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (Fiction, 2008)
The Road by Carmac McCarthy (Fiction, 2007)
Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II by Douglas A. Blackmon (General Nonfiction, 2009)
A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan (Fiction, 2011)
The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson (Fiction, 2013)
The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo by Tom Reiss (Biography/Autobiography, 2013)

I'd like to choose one of the poetry winners, too, but I feel so afloat about how to choose one. My lack of knowledge makes it feel a bit like choosing an attorney out of the yellow pages.... with perhaps less riding on the outcome.

I'm also tempted to do re-reads of A Thousand Acres and The Shipping News, two of my all-time favorite novels, but I remain undecided about that.

Okay, see? This is why I'm swearing off challenges.

Oh, and I'm swearing off chocolate and red wine, too.

Um, by the way, I have ten books to go to reach my not-so-secret century goal for the year. :-)

>178 EBT1002: Read, Ellen, read!

(some great pulitzer choices up there! You are going to love Pilgrim at Tinker Creek)

>179 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda! I'm kind of excited that this should be my second year reaching that 100 mark. I remember, years ago, thinking that 52 books a year was incomprehensibly ambitious. I had a friend who competed with her sister to read that many and I could not imagine. Now look at me!

And yes, I predict that Pilgrim at Tinker Creek will be up my alley.

I can't concentrate on my reading this evening. I don't know what's wrong with me. Does anyone else ever experience random restlessness and lack of focus? I'm really enjoying the book I'm currently reading, too, so that isn't the issue. Anyway, it's just weird.

>181 EBT1002: Me me me! I too, have lost focus. I feel, Oh heck, I don't know what I feel! It's just horrible and I can't seem to shake it. If I could put my finger on it I could fix it, but I can't. You are right, it's just weird. :0( Hope it turns around for you soon.

BTW: so glad to read you had a nice getaway and safe return.

>182 Carmenere: Well, Lynda, I won't go so far as to say that I'm glad to hear you've been experiencing the same thing, even though misery does love company. I managed to read a bit last night and this morning I read a couple of (short) chapters. I think I can chalk mine up to feeling overwhelmed at work and generally anxious as I face a lot of change in the next few months. That, and I realize that I still miss being able to shake off my nervous energy by going for a run. I'm feeling both lazy and restless, an odd combination. Anyway, I hope yours turns around soon, too!

Okay, not that anyone cares about all this navel-gazing but I did figure this out. I have one dear friend whose father is dying (he may have passed by now; she was returning to the midwest in the hopes of seeing him one more time) and another friend lost her mom quite suddenly just yesterday. Her mom had serious dementia so the past couple of years have been really rough but this sudden collapse and passing just wasn't anticipated. So. I'm feeling sad for my friends and it has generated a more pervasive melancholy. Nothing to worry about but it helps to have some sense of what's going on for myself.

Meanwhile, I'm still enjoying the reading landscape.

Currently reading:



and

Currently listening: (well, I'll start it on my commute to work this morning)

Sorry you've been feeling melancholy, but I'm glad you figured out some of the why. As you say, it happens.

>177 EBT1002: Lots of ones I've enjoyed in there. I thought Gilead and The Road in particular were knockouts.

>184 EBT1002: A Longmire book should improve your day. :-)

Morning Ellen! I was a few posts behind myself. Glad to see how your Challenge Free 2016 is working out. LOL.
Many fine titles on there. Good luck.

I have Restless on the pile but I plan on reading his latest, Sweet Caress, for the BAC.

Please give Abby a gentle hug from me.

I love the word "melancholy"---sometimes it's the only way to describe what's come over me. But I'm not pleased to know you're suffering with it. May the cloud lift soon.

>187 laytonwoman3rd: "Like"

That's a great cartoon Linda. Sorry to hear you have the blues Ellen, although it's completely understandable.

So, I guess the message could be "somedays we feel blue". Yup, and all the other days we feel rainbows.

I have several of the Elif Shafak books either in my collection or on my wishlist. Used copies of them are usually fairly cheap, so when I see them I buy them. I haven't read any of them yet ...

#169
You are correct. The Andrea Levy title that won the Walter Scott Prize in 2011 was The Long Song. I had the Dicken's of a time finding the correct title as the web site for the Walter Scott Prize isn't very good about maintaining either the long list or the short list for each year the prize has been given.

Ellen - I get that restless, can't-settle feeling if I don't get enough exercise and when I'm stressed. You described it perfectly.

I'm happy you're enjoying The Architect's Apprentice - I hope to read more by her next year.

I've seen the news about your winds! We're getting them now; I can hear it howling around my house. I hope the weather is calming down.

I've got Honour by Elif Safak sitting in one of my TBR piles. Enjoy Hell is Empty. I'm not a fan - yet , but my husband is.

Hi Ellen, I finally find time to do some weekend greetings. Wishing you a most lovely weekend.

91. The Architect's Apprentice by Elif Şafak




"Every mortal being left behind a mark, no matter how small or ephemeral, except animals. They served, they fought, they put their lives in danger for their masters and when they died it was almost as if they had never existed. Jahan didn't want Chota to meet the same end. He wanted him to be remembered with appreciation and love."

"So this was it, he thought. Centre of the universe was neither in the East nor in the West. It was where one surrendered to love."

Jahan is an orphaned boy who finds himself on a ship bound for Instanbul. Fate entwines his life with that of a beautiful white elephant who is on the same ship, a gift from the Shah to the Sultan. Becoming mahout for the Sultan's elephant and, eventually, apprentice to the Sultan's chief architect, Sinan, with whom he collaborates to build amazing mosques and tombs, Jahan also falls hopelessly in love with Princess Mihrimah. These loves -- his elephant, his master, the unreachable princess -- are the threads that weave through Jahan's life as this touching and engaging story unfolds. Illuminating for a modern audience the culture and humanity of 16th century Turkey, the story is universal and delightful, peopled with a diverse array of characters both charming and sinister. It reads quickly but deserves some uninterrupted spells of reading if one wants to truly fall under the spell of Şafak's lovely writing.

My life was busy and distracting while I was reading this. Two friends lost parents in this past week, one of my colleagues lost her dog in a somewhat traumatic manner, and my cousin lost one of her beloved horses. And work was hectic. With all this going on around me, I had a hard time settling down and losing myself in The Elephant's Apprentice. Still, last night and this morning as I read the last fourth of the novel with hardly a break (other than a good night's sleep), I found my heart rate increasing in that wonderful way that being deeply lost in a truly engaging novel makes it do. Hooray!

Message#170 "I'm serious"

Message #177 "ooh! A new challenge. I'm in!" (to paraphrase)

:)

I love it.

>185 jnwelch: Thanks for your kind words, Joe. It's been a kind of weird and surreal couple of weeks (see my second paragraph above). Getting the blues is so universally human and I am grateful that my version is relatively mild and that I am privileged enough to address it in the ways that I do (good books, good friends, good sleep, good work...).

>186 msf59: Hey Mark. And yes, LOL is just the right reaction to my capricious meanderings through intention and revised intention with regard to challenges. I even laugh at myself. It's just so hard to resist all these wonderful challenges; they consistently expose me to new authors and that is one of the very best gifts of LT. So. I will make plans and change them over and over again. :-)

I gave Abby that gentle hug. It's hard to tell if the kitty Prozac is working. The first dose went down fine and she was soooo sedated. The next three doses mostly ended up on her shirtfront and down my wrist and therefore I saw no appreciable effect. Last night's dose went right down that gullet and, other than waking us up around 6am to alert us to the empty state of her food bowl, she has been sleeping ever since. Sigh. It's hard to know what's really best for her.

>187 laytonwoman3rd: Linda, I LOVE that cartoon. Cartoon? I don't know what else to call it but it's just perfect. I think I'll use that as the topper for my next thread.

>188 jnwelch: I like, too!

Oh Ellen - I'm sorry for all the loss. It is so hard during this time of year, too. Lovely comments on The Architect's Apprentice; I want to get to more of Şafak soon.

I hope you have a relaxing Sunday.

>189 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura. I'm starting to come out the other side and looking forward to Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday.

>190 maggie1944: *chuckle* Yes, Karen, I do believe you have nailed it. :-)

>191 benitastrnad: Benita, you can see from my comments above that I very much enjoyed The Architect's Apprentice, despite reading it during a time in which my concentration was pretty lousy. I will certainly seek out more of her works.

>192 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. I'm not thrilled to hear that my description resonates so well for others but, on the other hand, I'm rather gratified that it does. I am coming out the other side.

Today is a gorgeous day here in Seattle! Sunny, still, quite cold. P is on her way to pick up FIL. BIL is playing his accordion in a show on the campus this afternoon so the whole family is attending. Nephew and his gf will be picking me up on the way. We'll meet up with P and FIL et al. After the show, we'll all go out for a meal and then I will join P in returning FIL to his home, about an hour south of here. I'm glad she was okay with me staying home for the first run down and back up the freeway.

>193 vancouverdeb: Hi Deb! I really enjoyed The Architect's Apprentice and will be interested in reading more of her works. Regarding Hell is Empty, I'm loving it in audio format (and that is saying something given my struggles with audiobooks). It has been perfect for driving to and from work each day.

>194 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara! I truly enjoy your weekend wishes and little images. I'm glad you were able to find time to drop one off on my rather dormant thread. :-)

>196 LovingLit: I know, right?

You'll love this, too: as I was preparing to go into my Friday afternoon dentist appointment (and, drum roll for sympathy, please -- I was in the dentist's chair for 145 minutes!!!!), I stopped in at the Magnolia Bookstore. It's a wee place and doesn't usually carry much outside the ordinary but in any case, I found two books to purchase under the guise of thinking P would enjoy them. I bought The Skeleton Road by Val McDermid and At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen. Both are set in Scotland and, really, they sounded like books that P would like (she is a fan of McDermid but has read less of her as the author has descended into darker and darker territory), and what more excuse did I need?

So much for getting books out of the house.

>198 BLBera: Thank you, Beth. When I got the text from my cousin last night, I was thinking "no! not one more report of death!" I must say that each of these deaths is a step or two away from me but watching people I love grieve so deeply is still hard. The colleague coming home to find her beloved dog bled out is probably the hardest one; this colleague so loved that dog and talking with her on the phone, she was just inconsolable. Sigh. I know (and, on some level, she knows) that time will ease the pain but the immediate grief is so deep and so almost-unbearable. I felt pretty helpless.

On a much more cheerful note, my Sunday is being peaceful and lovely. It's a gorgeous day, I have the house to myself for a couple of hours, and I'm just reading, doing LT, and doing laundry. Later I will do family time and that will be fine. And I have a 3-day work week ahead of me. Life is, truly, good.

So, in addition to listening to Hell is Empty (which is a great audiobook) and starting to read Neurotribes, I will be starting The Bean Trees today. This is a reread and it was one of my all-time favorite novels, so I'll be interested to see how it works these many years later.

It sounds like you have a great day ahead of you. Enjoy. I also loved The Bean Trees and it is actually on my Reread Shelf. Yes, I do have a shelf devoted to things I would like to reread. I confess, I'm a book nerd.

Happy Sunday, Ellen. I hope you are enjoying the day. It has mostly been books & football for me, which is perfect after that nasty winter blast, we suffered through yesterday.

Hope you are enjoying those books.

Nice review of The Architect's Apprentice. Very encouraging.

they consistently expose me to new authors and that is one of the very best gifts of LT Yes! Well said.

Hope this short work week eases up for you.

>195 EBT1002: Book bullet for me - and right before Christmas.

Ellen, I hope the coming 4 day weekend, (I hope your's is all 4 days) will provide you a much deserved break. Time to hunker down in a winter mode with cups of tea (or whatever) and good books, with a lap robe over your knees and a friendly, healthy kitty next to you on the sofa. In my fantasy, there is also a crackling wood fire in a cozy living room fireplace. (not a frequent occurrence in real life, these days.)

I am going to be unreasonably busy this morning but this afternoon should be more relaxed. Tomorrow is also kinda busy but after than I should be enjoying quiet time, and good T - day dinner with friends.

145 minutes in the dentist chair? Hope it's all done now. No holiday here but hope you have a good one.

>204 BLBera: "I confess, I'm a book nerd." Well, you're certainly not alone! :-D

I have assorted favorites around the house, books I'm not willing to part with because I think I might reread them. I like the idea of shelving them all together. I'm not usually quite that organized although when I bought new shelves a year or two ago, I did some sorting. But as new books come into the house (ahem), they don't necessarily get shelved according to any rational scheme. Part of that is that I've run out of shelf space (again) and so they end up in stacks!

>205 msf59: Hey Mark. I had a lovely Sunday and the short week has been fine so far. I'm thoroughly enjoying my reread of The Bean Trees -- sat in bed reading with my first cup of coffee this morning, which is my usual routine, and was chuckling out loud. I love when a book makes me do that.

Stay warm, my postal carrying friend!

>206 jnwelch: I'm loving my short week, Joe. I have several meetings today (because what I really do for a living is attend meetings!) and then tomorrow is a light day. Then it's Four. Days. Off. :-)
We're going to take REI's advice and skip the shopping on Black Friday (which, to be honest, we would do in any case) and go for a hike or a snowshoe adventure that day. I realize that it's a marketing ploy for REI to close on Black Friday and encourage everyone to Get Outside, but it's a cool marketing ploy.

>207 Oberon: It's a good novel, Erik. I'm glad that book bullet caught you in the shoulder. :-)

>208 maggie1944: Hi Karen! Yes, I get all four days and I'm very excited. Of course, Thursday will be all about food and family and being grateful. Friday will be Get Outside day (see my comments to Joe above). Then, on Saturday we plan to go see the Huskies women's volleyball team, ranked #2 in the country!, take on the Cougars in the "Apple Cup." Of course, I have some reading planned for the long weekend, as well.

Abby is doing okay although I still worry about her. She will be happy if we light our (gas, rather than wood) fire and sit quietly to read. So we'll do that. Just for her. ;-)

I hope you have a wonderful T-day, my friend.

>209 charl08: Thank you for the sympathy, Charl! My mouth is just now starting to feel like it could survive something other than macaroni or soup. Just in time for Thanksgiving!

In books:

I'm loving my reread of The Bean Trees.
I'm starting to get immersed in Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity.
I'm enjoying my audiobook, Hell is Empty. I feel like I'm perhaps getting the hang of listening to a book. It occurred to me last night that there is a certain skill involved! Go figure.

But, for now, I must go earn the Science Diet. Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Happy Tuesday to you, Ellen. I have a dental check up today -- I hope it's routine. I'll be interested in hearing about Neurotribes.

Happy Thanksgiving, Ellen.

Happy Thanksgiving, Ellen! Hope you have a great day!

It looks like you caught up with me on the Longmires. These are so good on audio, aren't they? Guidall is perfect.

>213 BLBera: I hope your dental checkup was indeed routine, Beth.

>214 BLBera: Thank you!

>215 msf59: Thanks, Mark! I agree: Guidall is perfect and that narration makes the audio work (that, and I do believe I'm "learning" how to listen to a book).

Happy Thanksgiving to you and P!

According to Johnson's Facebook page, Guidall won an award this year for his narration of Dry Bones - Best audiobook of the year

>217 streamsong: Thank you, Janet!

Yes, it was hearing about that award that made me decide to give his narration of a Walt Longmire novel a try. Hell is Empty was my next one in the series and his narration really is stellar. I will continue/finish this series in the audio format, I think. That way I'll get to Dry Bones eventually. :-)

Hi, Ellen! Thanks so much for your first visit to my thread. I thought turnabout would be a good idea, so here I am, and I'm so glad I came! Starring your thread so, after NaNo, I can come back and visit some more, get to know you a little better.

So happy you're enjoying audiobooks! When done well, they're perfect, especially for one like me whose tired old eyes are giving her a bit of trouble. I have very much enjoyed Guidall's narration of the Longmire books too and actually prefer it to reading them in print.

Well, have a Wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, Ellen!

I had a cavity! It's better than a crown, but it has been years since I had a cavity. :(

>212 EBT1002: Ellen, you nailed it when you said there was a certain skill involved in "getting the hang" of audiobooks. I'm glad I hung in there after my first few attempts that left me wondering how much I missed in listening rather than reading. Audiobooks are a great way to squeeze a few more books into our busy lives. I used to think they were 'cheating' but now I believe we should be getting extra credit for honing up our listening skills. lol.

Happy Thanksgiving!

~~~~waving hello!~~~~

145 minutes at the dentist!?
You see? That is why I don't go. Right there.
;)

92. The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver




"Mi'ija, in a world as wrong as this one, all we can do is to make things as right as we can."

Turtle remains one of my favorite literary characters and the friendships forged by Taylor, Turtle's accidental ma, with Mattie, Lou Ann, Estevan, and Esperanza, are so sweet and timeless. Exploring such themes as belonging and loyalty and sacrifice and the courage to keep going, the novel follows Taylor from her Kentucky hometown to Tucson. Driving west in a ramshackle VW, she doesn't know what she seeks but along the way she acquires Turtle, a silent and adorable toddler. Turtle needs Taylor but, of course, Taylor needs Turtle, too. As their bond grows, so does Taylor's understanding of the brutality of the world and the beauty of connection.

I'm not sure I would have given this five stars if this had been my first time reading the novel, but I remembered it as a five-star read from the late 1980s and I'm sticking with that rating due to the novel's ability to so firmly ensconce itself in my reading memory. I thoroughly enjoyed it and plan to seek out a copy of the sequel, Pigs in Heaven, for a reread very soon.

>219 Storeetllr: Mary, thank you so much for the return visit. I look forward to getting to know you better and sharing our experiences with books. I'm very interested in learning about your writing, too, so I will follow along on your thread to hear more about that.

I have actually struggled with audiobooks, managing to "read" no more than one or two of them each year. I have determined that listening to a book is a skill just as reading a book is. It requires a certain type of concentration and I'm developing that ability. I'm very pleased to be joining the ranks of those who listen to some of their books.

Good luck on closing out NaNo!

>220 vancouverdeb: Thank you, Deb! It was a lovely day and my tummy is happily full and my soul happily grateful.

>221 BLBera: Beth, I'm sorry to hear about your cavity! I suppose it means you have to go back for a filling. The materials and technology are so different now (I've had a few fillings replaced in the past couple of years -- another aspect of aging that no one tells you about!) so I hope it goes well and is relatively painless.

>222 Donna828: Donna, thank you for the validation about the skill involved in listening to a book. I'm glad I had this insight because I think it will change my relationship with audiobooks. The Walt Longmire is a very good specimen for audio and I'm actually looking forward to next week's commute so I can get back to it some.

>223 maggie1944: *waves back at Karen*

>224 LovingLit: I totally hear ya, Megan. I do love my dentist. She is warm and, I believe, very competent. AND she has three labrador retrievers who spend time in her office! One of them, the puppy, is about to complete her therapy dog training and will be trained to put her chin on the knee of patients who need and request it. I don't know that I'll need it but I will definitely request it!

I have no idea what novel to read next. I left Neurotribes at work so that will have to wait until next week. So, I think I get to choose something off the shelves at home! :-)

Here's what I decided upon (the fourth Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery):

I've realized that I'm "supposed" to read a Hilary Mantel in December for the BAC. I still have Bring Up the Bodies on the shelves so I will dig into that one soon. I also have Ragtime on hold for the AAC-II so I'll start that in the next couple of weeks. AND I have a copy of The Story of My Tits from the library and I need to read that before it's due back. :-)

I love having so many things to read!

>227 EBT1002: The dentist dog therapy sounds like a great idea. I'd be requesting that for sure.

>227 EBT1002: I dont fear much, but dogs are one. However, my fear of dentists is such that the therapy dog would probably calm me down!
*please hold while I have an anxiety attack*
;)

>230 EBT1002: I started Wolf Hall and, much to Darryl's admonishment, couldn't get very far into it at all! I'm told if I push on, itll be worth it. We'll see.

Have a great holiday weekend, Ellen!

>232 LovingLit: *wags finger menacingly at Megan*

Donna Leon is a great choice for a holiday weekend! You have many great reads ahead of you if you are on number four!

It's a small cavity -- at least it wasn't a crown. Yes, I go back Christmas week. Great way to start the holidays!

>225 EBT1002: I liked that review of The Bean Trees, Ellen, and I enjoyed the book for those reasons. I didn't see your review on the book page. If you post it, I'll thumb it.

Hope you and P had a most excellent Thanksgiving, and are setting up for a relaxing holiday weekend.

Hi Ellen! I am sorry to hear that life has been tough lately. Hopefully the thanksgiving weekend helps! And I think Donna Leon is a good prescription.

Just a quick stop by. I so agree that listening to an audio book is skill for many of us. I don't think I'm a great audio learner, but rather a visual learner. I found it so interesting with our two sons. Our eldest loved to both read books, but also would go to sleep when he was a toddler - till grade 6 or so, listening to books on tape. Our younger son never cared for books on tape , but was pretty much only an visual guy. I think some of those learning traits are genetic, at least that is how I see it. LOL! There is a visual learner' sentence.

I see that you are giving your kitty prozac. Well, you certainly aren't the only one. Our little Poppy dog, 12.5 lbs of activity and what used to be fear aggression as a puppy ( she would even bite us and snarl in a very serious way when we put her collar on etc ), we both had a fabulous positive trainer in for private sessions for Poppy and she is also on a small dose of paxil. Now at 2 years old, she is so much calmer, loves us, no more biting us - it's been quite a miracle. I can't say that the paxil made a noticeable difference right away, but I think the combo of help from a fab private " doggie psychologist" , time and the medication has really made the difference.

Sorry about the dentist time. Ugh!

Edited to add - with Poppy, our dog, she has never seemed sedated by her paxil. Just seemed to take the edge of her jumpy bitey ways, which were hard to handle! :)

I have several of the Donna Leon books on my personal shelves, so there is another series that I need to crack open.

Hi Ellen, I hope you are enjoying your holiday weekend. I haven't read any Donna Leon yet although many are on my wishlist. I did start the Andrea Camillieri mystery series which is set in Sicily this year and I am enjoying them a lot.

Happy Day After Thanksgiving. Your OR getaway looked lovely and I hope you are enjoying a little me-time this weekend. So close to 100...you go woman!!

>231 charl08: I know. This sweet puppy face resting on your knee, gazing at you as you gag on the dental dam and raise your hand to indicate that the novocaine has worn off..... it sounds heavenly, does it not? ;-)

>232 LovingLit: LOL, Megan. It has occurred to me that, for some, the idea of three labs prowling around while one is at the dentist might be enough to send some into paroxysms of terror. I will say that all three labs are incredibly calm and well-trained. One of them is blind but finds her way around the office just fine. And, for the most part, they stay out of the way. Of course, if one has allergies, this is clearly not the dentist office for you!

I very much enjoyed Wolf Hall and it does require some pushing through. My memory is that, around 1/3 of the way in, it suddenly all clicked and I couldn't put it down. So, I second Darryl's recommendation to hang in there with it. My understanding is that Bring Up the Bodies requires less of its reader.

>233 kidzdoc: Thanks, Darryl!

>234 BLBera: Beth, I'm already well past the halfway mark in Death and Judgment -- it is, indeed, an enjoyable and quick read.

I go back Christmas week to get the permanent crown to replace this temp they gave me. Happy times. :-|

>235 jnwelch: Once again, Joe, you have nudged me to post my review. I really must get over whatever it is that keeps me from posting my reviews, however short, on the book's page!

We had a lovely holiday and I'll be writing about our adventure today in just a bit....

>236 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda. I'm really doing just fine but the blues keep rearing their head for me. Go figure.

>237 vancouverdeb: Deb, that is so interesting about the differences in your two son's experiences and preferences as young boys. I think I'm very easily distractible by sounds -- my poor older brother could simply never get his stereo volume low enough to keep me from complaining to my parents, and I do think that he tried! And now, when I ride the bus, the least bit of audible conversation by others is impossible for me to block out. Thank goodness for the "white noise" app on my iPhone (I prefer the sound of boiling mud to that of anyone chatting to someone near me!) or I'd never be able to read on the bus. I don't know what this has to do with my developing skill at listening to a book, but it feels related.

"I see that you are giving your kitty prozac." Well, a more accurate statement would be that I'm giving prozac to the sofa, the rug, the scratch lounger in which she likes to rest, and the various throw blankets we have about the house. I thought I was getting pretty good at it but the last two nights have been very discouraging. It's the liquid kind and I think I'm going to have to ask for the pill. I need three hands to do the liquid: one to hold the cat, one to hold the cat's head, and one to hold (and squirt) the syringe. Needless to say, I have only the two hands and so the holding of the cat's head is neglected.

I just gave it a third try for tonight, with a half-dose since I think a drop or two might have gotten in her from my first two efforts (I'm confident most of it ended up outside the cat) and was a bit more successful. I have to wedge her between my knees in order to hold her still. Poor kitty. She just hates it. But I need her to be calmer! I'm glad to hear that it has helped with Poppy. I do know that SSRIs take a few weeks to work in humans; the vet said that the same is true with cats (and, presumably, dogs). They are such important members of our families, it's hard when they seem to be unhappy.

>238 benitastrnad: The Donna Leon series is very satisfying, Benita. I recommend it!

>239 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy! The Andrea Camilleri series is another that I hope to finish in the coming year. They are very different from one another but both quite enjoyable. My next in the Camilleri series will be Excursion to Tindari which is on the TBR shelves.

>240 Berly: Thank you, Kim! I have indeed gotten some me-time this holiday and I expect a bit more tomorrow. I'm kind of excited to be closing in on my century mark for the year, so thank you for the encouragement! :-)

Today we followed REI's marketing advice and Got Outside rather than doing any shopping. Really, the last time I shopped on the day after Thanksgiving is so far out of memory that this was hardly a radical departure but it was kind of a fun focus.

We went to the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, about an hour south of Seattle along I-5. They have a terrific boardwalk set up so that you can walk far out onto the tidal mud flats. It was a cold, crisp, sunny day and the tide was out when we were there. We saw dozens of ducks of various kinds, several bald eagles and Great Blue Herons, a Harbor Seal floating down the Nisqually River with a HUGE salmon in its mouth!!!, a Peregrine Falcon preening at the top of a very tall tree, and a handful of sweet little songbirds (a wren, several chickadees and sparrows). We walked about 6 miles all told and it was a wonderful day.

A couple of my favorite ducks were:


Buffleheads

and


Green-winged Teal

I'm trying to let it sink in that I have had the past two days off from work and I get the next two days off from work, too!!
*smile*

Tomorrow is water exercise class in the morning, breakfast at my favorite breakfast place (I get the "onesie" -- one egg, one pancake, and one piece of bacon), and then errands. We need to choose the trim tile (something interesting to go with the white subway tile we'll use in the shower) and light fixtures for our upcoming bathroom remodel. Oh, and, it being Saturday, I get to do laundry. :-)

>233 kidzdoc: wow, I can't get one past you, can I Darryl! At lest I have given it the honour of labelling it "to read" nd not "still reading", which oddly means that I might have actually abandoned it and just can't face that fact.

Enjoy your days off, Ellen. And your onsie which sounds just perfect. You will be having it with coffee, I assume?

Eta iPad auto correct! Eeurgh (it even corrected that?!)

Happy Saturday, Ellen! Sounds like you are enjoying a nice weekend. Good for you! I hope that includes plenty of reading. I started The Witches: Salem, 1692. Love me some NNF...

The following is said not to encourage abandonment of Opt Outside but having worked at Bellevue Square, standing in the doorway of L'Occitane and working the crowd to get them inside, I can say it was not horrible. The crowd was there but not uncomfortably crowded until late afternoon. There were some good bargains, and people seemed mostly intent on buying what they needed to get for their gifts. There were of course youngsters who were just out on a lark.

One thing which did impress me was how diverse was the crowd. Many Chinese, Japanese, Mexicans, East Indians, and all the others who clearly were not regular white folks but I had no way of judging from where they came. I spoke to many who had very little, or no English at all. Shopping via pictures on their Smart Phones. One delightful older Chinese fellow who was with his daughter and grandson. And a very smartly dressed Chinese woman came in to buy some face cream for her boy friend with the Smart Phone picture method.

Very interesting. And tiring.... 5 hours on my feet, smiling. I am a natural promoter and generally I was having fun, but constant smiling is an effort for sure.

Happy Saturday, Ellen!

You've sure got a lot more on the day's agenda than I do. Maybe I should get my tail in gear more.

Well, a more accurate statement would be that I'm giving prozac to the sofa, the rug, the scratch lounger in which she likes to rest, and the various throw blankets we have about the house. I read that to our daughter, and she cracked up (me, too). She goes through that with her furry Sherlock, although she's gotten pretty good at it over time. She gives him a pill, and still keeps an eye on him for a while to make sure he doesn't spit it out when she's not looking.

I've read some of the Donna Leon Brunetti mysteries, but never got hooked on them like I did with the Montalbanos. I work with a guy who loves them.

Hooray for long weekends. Have a great, productive, relaxing Saturday.

100! 100!

I have had three days off and tomorrow is the last day. I went to Barnes & Noble last night and purchased some discounted magazines, and today I went to my locally owned yarn shop and made a big purchase of a rather expensive scarf kit that I plan on knitting this next year. All of my other purchases were made earlier in the fall or from my computer. I ordered a case of organic ancient grains hot cereal for gifts for my extended family as my last Christmas gift purchase. I spent Friday working outside in my yard and it turned out to be hot work. It was very warm outside and I worked up a real sweat. At least the patio and my pot garden up close to the house makes things look like somebody cares - and it got me outside without driving my car during the day.

>247 LovingLit: LOL, Megan!
I enjoyed my onesie a great deal -- I love their pancakes with bananas in them. YUM. And water exercise class was great, and I did some yard work today (another gorgeous day in Seattle). This evening P and I went to see the #2 Huskies in their volleyball match against the hapless WSU Cougars. Very fun.

>248 msf59: It was a great Saturday, Mark.
Did you see my post a while ago that I saw Stacy Schiff speak here earlier this month? I snagged a copy of The Witches: Salem, 1692 and she autographed it for me. I'm looking forward to reading it soon.

>249 maggie1944: Your day sounds very interesting, Karen! I'm glad it wasn't awful and, of course, I'm glad you were in a venue where people were shopping without knocking each other down. I will do my shopping as Christmas gets a bit closer and I won't really mind the crowds. But I'm glad that P and I went for our walk and saw so many amazing birds. :-)

>250 jnwelch: I had a great Saturday, Joe! It included some important reading time. :-)

I'm glad my comment got a laugh from both you and your daughter. I also chuckled at the image of her giving the handsome Sherlock his pill and then waiting for about ten minutes to be sure he doesn't spit it out. That's how it used to be when I was giving a nightly pill to my old cat Casey. I will say that tonight the liquid made it into the cat. She's still licking at the spot on her upper left paw and it looked really red this evening so I'm worried about that. We may have to try the cone for a few days to let it heal. Ugh.

I finished the Donna Leon tonight and it was quite enjoyable. I will definitely keep reading this series as well as the Montalbanos.

>251 BLBera: Thank you, Beth! I think I'm going to make it to 100. :-)

>252 benitastrnad: Benita, it sounds like you have had a really nice holiday. Having four days off in a row and spending them at home has been a real treat. I also did some yard work today. I wouldn't have called it warm, exactly, but it was sunny and quite pleasant. My Tennessee cousins are knitters and they make some truly beautiful wearable art.

I really must start a new thread. But, for now, here is the book update:

93. Death and Judgment by Donna Leon




This was an enjoyable installment in the Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery series. It reminded me that I like the character and I like his family. The story moves along at a pleasant clip and the ending was only partially evident in advance. I'll certainly read the next one in the series.

Currently reading:


A graphic memoir

and


I want to read this before I see the film (and I want to see the film!).
Thanks, Beth, for sending me your copy.

Hi Ellen, when Leon started to write the first Brunetti I got each new book as a birthday present and was always looking forward for the next one. Since five years I stopped. I think it's not so gripping anymore but the first ones are enjoyable.

Hi Ellen - I like the Brunetti books for the characters and the food. I always get hungry for Italian when I'm reading these books. Did you know that Leon has a cookbook?

I'll watch for your comments on Brooklyn. I'd like to see the film , too, but these days it seems like I have to wait for Netflix.

Happy Sunday, Ellen. It slipped my mind that you saw Schiff. I am glad you have a copy at hand. It's a good one.

I hope you are enjoying TSOMT! I was very impressed with that GN.

Go Seahawks this week. I want them to win, so they are feeling mellow when they play the Vikes next week. We'll just agree to disagree for one week, right?

>257 Ameise1: Hi Barbara. It will be interesting to see how far into the series I choose to go. I can lose interest in series (I gave up on Kinsey Milhone around letter M) if the author doesn't find some way to shift gears.

>258 BLBera: I did not know that Leon has a cookbook, Beth! Her books also make me want Italian food (and Italian wine). I'm not sure that is good for the blood-pressure-lowering diet we're trying to stick to in our house.

I am not very far into Brooklyn yet but I am loving it so far! We don't get to the cinema very often, either, but I'm hoping to see both "Brooklyn" and "Carol" while they are in theaters.

>259 msf59: Hi Mark and Happy Sunday to you, as well! I will look forward to your comments about The Witches. I have to admit that I've gotten so caught up in Brooklyn (and in housecleaning and now in watching the Seahawks play like poop) that I haven't really dug into TSoMT yet. But I will. Your comments are persuasive.

P and I are finalizing our plans for a trip to Alaska in 2016 so that is the theme of my new thread.
Come on over for a visit!