CBL hears the Sound of Music

Welcome to the first thread of my 2016 Category Challenge! This year's challenge is inspired by the soundtrack of The Sound of Music, one of my favorite musicals. I hope to read a minimum of 6 books in each category, but will likely exceed that number in most of the categories. This year's categories are:

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks
Maria - Books by women authors
I Have Confidence - Challenge reads
Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children’s books
My Favorite Things - Mysteries
Climb Ev’ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT
The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads
Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT
Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books
Edelweiss - Local/regional/national history
So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks

1. The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill (3.5) - completed 1/25/16
2. Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold (5) - completed 2/29/16
3. Celebrations at Thrush Green by Miss Read (2.5) - completed 3/11/16
4. Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler (2.5) - completed 4/2/16
5. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (4) - completed 4/10/16
6. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein (4) - completed 4/23/16
7. Oedipus the King by Sophocles (4) - completed 5/9/16

Maria - Books by women authors

1. The Upstairs Wife by Rafia Zakaria (3.5) - completed 1/15/16
2. The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys (4) - completed 2/15/16
3. Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler (4) - completed 3/16/16
4. The Social Life of DNA by Alondra Nelson (3.5) - completed 3/21/16
5. Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (1.5) - completed 4/1/16

I Have Confidence - Challenge books (American Authors, British Authors, Canadian Authors, Commonwealth Challenge, Reading Through Time, RandomCAT, Bingo Dog, Pulitzer challenge)

1. Land of Marvels by Barry Unsworth (3.5) (BAC) - completed 1/5/16
2. Elsewhere: A Memoir by Richard Russo (4) (AAC) - completed 2/18/16
3. Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela by Conrad Rudolph (3.5) (Non-fiction challenge) - completed 3/8/16
4. How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson (4.5) (Reading Through Time) - completed 3/25/16
5. The Journals of Susanna Moodie by Margaret Atwood (4) (CAC) - completed 4/2/16
6. Pollution and the Death of Man by Francis A. Schaeffer (3.5) (RandomCAT, Non-Fiction Challenge)

Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children's books

1. Boxers by Gene Luen Yang (4) - completed 2/20/16
2. Saints by Gene Luen Yang (4) - completed 2/20/16
3. James and the Giant Peach by Julian Rhind-Tutt (3.5) - completed 3/4/16
4. Then by Morris Gleitzman (3.5) - completed 3/25/16
5. Emma, Volume 1 by Kaoru Mori (4) - completed 4/3/16
6. Emma, Volume 2 by Kaoru Mori (3.5) - completed 4/17/16
7. Emma, Volume 3 by Kaoru Mori (3) - completed 4/26/16

My Favorite Things - Mysteries (of course!)

1. The Hooded Hawke by Karen Harper (3.5) - completed 1/2/16
2. The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny (2.5) - completed 1/10/16
3. Crooked House by Agatha Christie (3.5) - completed 2/21/16
4. The Cursed Canoe by Frankie Bow (3.5) - completed 4/6/16
5. Divorce Horse by Craig Johnson (4) - completed 4/7/16

Climb Ev'ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT

1. Willoughbyland: England's Lost Colony by Matthew Parker (4) (Suriname/South America) - completed 1/20/16
2. Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan, 1839-42 by William Dalrymple (4.5) - completed 2/29/16
3. Bury Me Standing by Isabel Fonseca (3.5) - completed 4/4/16
4. The Orchid House by Phyllis Shand Allfrey (4) - completed 4/24/16
5. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (4.5) - completed 5/7/16

The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads

1. Hell Is Empty by Craig Johnson (4.5) - completed 2/7/16
2. Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture by Adam McHugh (4) - completed 3/13/16 (shared with @VictoriaPL)
3. As the Crow Flies by Craig Johnson (4.5) - completed 4/9/16 (shared with @VictoriaPL)

Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT

1. The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel (5) - completed 1/31/16
2. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain (3.5) - completed 2/5/16
3. The World According to Mister Rogers (3.5) - completed 2/28/16

Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books

1. Ru by Kim Thuy (4) - completed 1/9/16
2. How to Be Both by Ali Smith (4) - completed 2/7/16
3. A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley (4) - completed 3/14/16
4. The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami (4) - completed 4/10/16
5. A Few Figs from Thistles by Edna St. Vincent Millay (4) - completed 4/23/16
6. The House by the Lake by Thomas Harding (5) - completed 5/7/16

Edelweiss - Books about local, regional, or U.S. history

1. The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach (2) - completed 2/2/16

So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash

1. Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler (4) - completed 1/27/16
2. The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes (4.5) - completed 2/14/16
3. Work Song by Ivan Doig (3.5) - completed 5/8/16

Great theme! I've got you starred.

This sounds lovely! Have a great reading year!

Very inventive! Looking forward to your reading this year.

Great setup! Good luck with all your challenge reads. Looks like you'll have a very interesting reading year!

>13 VivienneR: >14 MissWatson: >15 dudes22: Thanks everyone! I will catch up with your threads soon. Other than planning for the CATs and the Bingo Dog, I'm still focused on finishing my 2015 challenge.

>16 rabbitprincess: Hi RP! You slipped in there while I was posting!

Fun theme! One of my favorites too! It should be airing before too long.

Great theme!

Great to see you all set up and ready for 2016, Carrie. Looking forward to following along.

>19 thornton37814: >20 Tess_W: >21 DeltaQueen50: Thanks everyone! I'm ready to watch the movie again. I just missed the stage production in Knoxville right before Thanksgiving. I've seen it on stage at least twice. When I was in 8th grade I saw the high school's performance. I saw it in Knoxville about 15 years ago with Barry Williams (aka "Greg Brady") playing Captain Von Trapp.

Another music-themed challenge, fantastic! And very promising categories, I'm looking forward to follow along once again. :)

Nice theme. Welcome back!

>23 Chrischi_HH: >24 majkia: Thank you! This theme fit very nicely with the categories I wanted to include this year. :-)

It's amazing to think that the movie is enjoying its 50th anniversary this year! Nice way to honor it.

>26 mamzel: Thanks! I think it will be a fun challenge.

I just saw the stage production! I've been humming The Lonely Goatherd for days.

>28 sturlington: The Lonely Goatherd is just about my favorite segment of the film!

Beautiful challenge! I love it (and the movie)!

>30 countrylife: Thanks Cindy!

What a lovely setup! Gives me ideas for my challenge next year.

>32 LittleTaiko: Thanks! I'm excited about getting started in January!

Since it's taking me longer than usual to finish the 2015 challenge, I haven't been over here much.

Glad to see you back for 2016 and with such a clever challenge, too.

>34 lindapanzo: Thanks Linda!

I've been avoiding the 2016 Challenge, but you're amassing posts so quickly, I had to stop by and take a look. I'll set my own challenge up during the holidays (if I can wait that long). I'm looking forward to following your reading again this year. Please don't forget to post updates on Adrian's doings!

>36 RidgewayGirl: There will certainly be Adrian pics and updates. He loves to be the center of attention. ;-)

Love your theme! When my other half and I were in Seattle last weekend we saw that the 5th Avenue Theatre was running a production of the Sound of Music. Looking forward to following your reading in 2016.

>38 lkernagh: Thanks Lori! I'm glad to see you back for 2016!

What a fun theme - and great categories to go along with them.

>40 -Eva-: Thanks! I hope it will keep me entertained all year!

A great musical theme.

I'm trying to catch up on the 2016 threads before everyone posts their first books ... glad to see you are stayiing the course.

>42 hailelib: Thank you! I'm already behind on threads. I hope to catch up over the holiday weekend. We'll see!

LOL! love the theme. And is there a way to keep up on threads? I'm always hopelessly behind.

>44 cammykitty: Thanks! And if you figure out a way to keep up, please share it with me. I haven't discovered it yet!

A long paid vacation? That only works for so long though.

>46 cammykitty: If it's long enough it could stretch into a permanent unpaid vacation! ;-)

I'm excited about my January reading plans, which include:

Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler (AAC author, TBR)
The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel (DeweyCAT, TBR)
The Hooded Hawke by Karen Harper (Reading Through Time, TBR)
Willoughbyland by Matthew Parker (GeoCAT, RandomCAT, TBR)
Land of Marvels by Barry Unsworth (BAC, library wishlist)
The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes (Reading Through Time, TBR)
The Upstairs Wife by Rafia Zakaria (Early Reviewers, NFC)
The Christmas Virtues edited by Jonathan V. Last (Review copy)
Ru by Kim Thuy (CAC)
The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny (library audiobook)
The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill (BAC, library audiobook)

Great reading list! I can highly recommend Ru, for the writing as well as the story.

Happy New Year and best wishes for 2016!

>49 lkernagh: Thanks Lori! I'm looking forward to Ru!

Wow, I love your theme and categories. Very clever!

>51 tymfos: Thanks Terri!

I finished my first book for the year! The Hooded Hawke by Karen Harper is the first book in My Favorite Things. I guess it's appropriate to start the year with one of my favorite things - a mystery!

A skilled archer is making repeated attempts at Elizabeth I's life during her summer progress through Hampshire. Or is Captain Francis Drake the target? The queen's new friend has been at her side at each attempt. Is Elizabeth's Catholic cousin, the Duke of Norfolk, in league with the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, to seize control of the kingdom? Have Spanish spies invaded the heart of England? Or is Francis Drake's cousin, Captain John Hawkins, seeking revenge against him? Sooner or later, the Queen will discover the person or persons behind the arrow attacks with the help of her Privy Plot Council, comprised of her most trusted guards, advisers, and servants.

The author explains in the afterword that each book in this series focuses on a different aspect of Elizabethan life. This book's focus in on sports and games. I enjoyed learning about this aspect of Elizabethan civilization. One of my favorite books in C.J. Sansom's Matthew Shardlake series, Sovereign, uses a progress as the setting for the action, and I found this setting nearly as enjoyable in this book. Like Stephanie Barron does in her Jane Austen mystery series, Harper has woven a mystery plot around historically accurate locations and dates. There really was a summer progress in 1569. This book could be classified as historical espionage/thriller with its royal setting and focus on plots against the throne and international intrigue.

3.5 stars

I love your theme! Very imaginative, I'm so impressed with people's creativity in this group!

>53 cbl_tn: sounds interesting. I'm not much of a mystery type myself, and am not a fan of royalty, but it does sound like that book would keep you hooked. That era does seem ideal for mystery, given that there was always so much plotting going on!

Happy New Year, Carrie.

>54 Jackie_K: Thanks! I've read two of the books in this series and enjoyed them both. The setting and characters are as prominent as the mystery plot in this series, and I enjoy learning about that era.

I had some good news this afternoon. Next week I have to go to the main allergy clinic to get new vials of serum. I called this afternoon to make sure they'll be ready for me next week and to find out what the hours are next week. I found out that I'll be at full strength in all 3 shots, which means that I have finally reached maintenance level! It's been a long road to get here. I still have several years of allergy shots ahead of me, but this is a milestone event!

>57 cbl_tn: Hurray!!! :D

>58 rabbitprincess: Thanks for joining my celebration!

The Hooded Hawke sounds like a fun start to the year!

Congratulations on the allergy news! (Sounds oxymoronic)

Book #1 in my I Have Confidence category: Land of Marvels by Barry Unsworth
British Authors Challenge

With the Ottoman Empire in decline and with the threat of war in the spring of 1914, British archaeologist Somerville feels the pressure of time to find something of value at the Mesopotamian site he has chosen for excavation. He is certain that the railway the Germans are building will soon reach and destroy his site. Just when items of significance start to turn up at the dig, Somerville is persuaded to add an undercover American geologist to his crew. The geologist isn't interested in archeology; he's only interested in the abundance of oil that lies not far beneath the surface. Somerville's Arab guide/scout, Jehar, will say or do anything to earn enough money to allow him to marry the beautiful young girl who's been enthralled by his stories. The elevation of ambition and desire over reason will lead to disaster.

Unsworth delves deeply into archeology, the history of the ancient Near East, and geology while avoiding the feel of an “information dump”. The land and its history are at the core of the novel. The characters seem more like types than like real people. None of the characters are sympathetic, except perhaps the teenage girl who is the object of Jehar's devotion. This novel nearly fails the Bechdel test. While there are three female characters, one of them never meets the other two, and the two at the archaeological site dislike each other so much that they hardly speak to each other. Unsworth's descriptive writing held my attention and leaves me interested in trying some of his award winning and nominated works.

3.5 stars

>60 VivienneR: Thanks Vivienne! I like to start the year with a fun read if I can.

>57 cbl_tn:
I don't even know what that means, but you sound happy and "maintenance level" is a good thing in other areas, so congrats!! :D

I am not a fan of shots so anything that means you might be getting closer to that turning point on the allergy shots sounds like a good thing to me!

>63 -Eva-: Maintenance level means that I've reached the maximum strength level for the allergy serum. The dosage won't increase on a weekly basis as it has been. I have more options for where I can get the shots. I may be able to get them at my GP's office, which could save time. (However, I will have to weigh that with the possibility of sitting in the waiting room in close proximity to sick people and catching something from them.) When I started my shots nearly 2 years ago, they told me that I might be able to give myself the shots when I reached maintenance. If that's still a possibility, it means I would only have to go to the allergy clinic once every 10 weeks or so when I need new serum.

>64 lkernagh: I'm afraid I'm still facing years of shots, but I'll have more flexibility about where I need to go to get the shots.

>65 cbl_tn:
Ah, gotcha. If you could give yourself the shots, that'd be brilliant!

I was looking at photos of adoptable Shih Tzus today (not that I'm looking to adopt another dog) and came across an interesting photo. Many of you know that Adrian's best friend is a Cairn terrier named Stella. They came home from the Humane Society together. When I go out of town, Adrian stays with Stella's family. When Stella's family goes out of town, she stays with me. (In fact, I'll be keeping her overnight this weekend.) Here's a photo of Adrian and Stella on adoption day a couple of years ago:



One of the adoptable dogs I came across today looks like what Adrian and Stella's offspring would if they were able to breed. (Both dogs have been fixed.) Here's what a Cairn terrier/Shih Tzu mix looks like.

>67 cbl_tn:
I want one! But, that's my normal reaction to any picture of a cat or dog... :)

>68 -Eva-: My friend volunteered at the Humane Society this week and she said they had a Shih Tzu looking for a home. He was exactly the same age and size as Adrian except gray and white instead of tan and white. She thought he was going home last week, but the potential adopter must have changed his/her mind. There were three people on the waiting list for him by the time she went home.

>69 cbl_tn:
Fingers Xed that he gets his forever home soon!

Book #1 in my Something Good category:



Ru by Kim Thuy
How do you leave a country with only what you can carry on your body and make a new life in a new country using a new language? Through episodic memories that move back and forth through time, the narrator tells of her childhood in South Vietnam, of life in a reeducation camp, of a boat journey to a new land, of living in a refugee camp in Malaysia, of arriving in Canada and adjusting to a new culture and a new language, of returning to work in Vietnam years later, and of motherhood. Anyone old enough to remember images of the Vietnam War or the boat people will have no trouble visualizing what Thuy so movingly describes. It's short enough to read in a single sitting, and I think this factor is a key to its impact. Thuy pulls readers into her world and keeps them there just long enough to feel the weight of Vietnamese history before releasing them back to their own worlds.

We often forget about the existence of all those women who carried Vietnam on their backs while their husbands and sons carried weapons on theirs...They were so weighed down by all their grief that they couldn't pull themselves up, couldn't straighten their hunched backs, bowed under the weight of their sorrow. When the men emerged from the jungle and started to walk again along the earthen dikes around their rice fields, the women continued to bear the weight of Vietnam's inaudible history on their backs. Very often they passed away under that weight, in silence.

4 stars

Book #2 in My Favorite Things:



The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny
While retired Surete Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his friends are gathered in the Bistro in Three Pines, a little boy with a big imagination comes running in with a tale of a big gun in the forest. They all think it's just another one of his make-believe stories, until he's found dead. Even then it's hard to believe the boy has been murdered until a discovery is made in the forest. It seems that this was the one story that Laurent hadn't made up. While his former Surete colleagues take the lead on the murder investigation, Gamache pursues a troubling connection. The head of a local theater group intends to produce a newly discovered play written by someone Gamache knows all too well – a man who still has the power to haunt Gamache's mind from a secure prison cell. Why here, and why now?

This is the first book in Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series that has disappointed me. Penny usually achieves a balance between reason and emotion. She lets emotion get the upper hand in this one, particularly horror and fear. The plot is based on real events and real people, and perhaps that affects the writing process more than I would have imagined. I will still be eager to read the next book in the series when it's released because I know what Penny is capable of. I just hope it's more like the best books in this series and less like this one.

2.5 stars

Next up in audio: The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill

I got my allergy shots today with the new vials of serum and had it confirmed that I have reached maintenance level. I asked about my options and one option is giving the shots to myself. I want to continue getting the shots at the doctor's office for this first round of full strength serum, then transition to giving them to myself at home. I came home with a prescription for needles so I will be all set to go.

I just talked to my brother, who lives in a Fort Worth suburb. He and my SIL went to the premiere of 13 Hours at Texas Stadium last night. My SIL's Mexican niece is living with them this year and studying English at a local university. She went with a friend and arrived pretty early. She was pulled out of line to stand next to the red carpet, and then she was given a pretty good seat for the movie. (I'm not surprised that this happened to her. She is beautiful and very photogenic.) My SIL just sent me a photo of her niece with one of the stars. I think it's Pablo Schreiber.

I'm still making it around the 2016 threads and I was happy to see yours - I love The Sound of Music and now all the songs are going through my head.

>75 LisaMorr: I haven't made it around to all the threads yet either. Maybe by the end of January? *Fingers crossed*

>76 cbl_tn: That's my goal as well...good luck to both of us!

I really like your 2016 theme. The Sound of Music is one of my favourite movies too. I saw a stage version at the Stratford Festival of Canada this summer and it was incredibly good.

>77 LisaMorr: :-)

>78 mathgirl40: Thanks! I love the movie, and I've seen it on stage a couple of times, too. I never seem to get tired of it!

Book #1 in my Maria category:

The Upstairs Wife by Rafia Zakaria

Author Rafia Zakaria was born in Pakistan to a Muslim family that had immigrated from India after the Partition that created Pakistan. She tells the story of Pakistan's history, focusing on the experience of women and Muslim immigrants from India and the former East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). Zakaria juxtaposes the life of her aunt Amina, an immigrant whose husband took a second wife when she remained childless for several years after their marriage, with the life of Benazir Bhutto, daughter of a prominent political family, who twice served as Pakistan's Prime Minister. Zakaria's Aunt Amina followed all the rules of Islam and social custom and failed to find happiness. Benazir Bhutto pushed the boundaries of the acceptable role of women in an Islamic republic and ended up spending years in exile before returning to Pakistan, only to be assassinated just weeks after her return.

Zakaria's explanation of Pakistan's social structure based on ethnicity makes its history more understandable. The Muslim immigrants from India and Bangladesh were unable to assimilate into a society where one's status is dependent on ethnicity and place of birth. The first-person, insider's perspective makes fascinating reading, but it's also the book's greatest weakness. Zakaria tells her readers what various people in her family thought and felt as well as what they said and did. However, she doesn't explain how she knows what others were thinking and feeling. Did they tell her? If so, when? At the time the events she described happened, or more in more recent interviews as she prepared to write this book? Did some of them keep diaries or journals? Did she overhear conversations she wasn't meant to hear? (She acknowledges this at one or two points in the book.) Or, more likely, did she make inferences and judgments about what she saw and heard over her lifetime with her family?

Recommended for readers with an interest in Pakistan's history (particularly Karachi) and in the experience of Muslim women.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

I just saw a news alert that Glenn Frey of the Eagles has died. I've been an Eagles fan since my middle school days. He wasn't my favorite vocalist, but he co-wrote most, if not all, of my favorite Eagles songs.

The Upstairs Wife sounds worthwhile. I'll look for a copy.

>82 RidgewayGirl: Yes, I think it would be worthwhile for most readers. I hope you can get hold of a copy!

I am still making the rounds - so many threads! I adore your theme, so creative! Good luck with your Challenge!

>81 cbl_tn: I'm so sad about this. The Eagles are one of my mom's favorite bands, so I listened to their albums all the time growing up, and I still have a huge soft spot for them!

Gosh, 2016 is taking a toll on our entertainment artists! I also was a big fan of the Eagles and was saddened to learn of Glenn Frey's passing.

>81 cbl_tn: "Listen to the Music" was always my motivational song. It would get me moving and productive every time.

Too many people dying ...

>84 VictoriaPL: Thanks Victoria! I'm still making the rounds too.

>85 christina_reads: I didn't own any of their albums until just a few years ago. I didn't need to. They were always on the radio. So many great
songs...

>86 DeltaQueen50: I know! I don't like the way this year is going so far.

>87 mamzel: I think "Listen to the Music" was the Doobie Brothers, but I loved them, too. "Black Water", "Long Train Running". Good stuff!

>88 hailelib: I agree! The nurse who gave me my allergy shots this afternoon said the same thing. One of my co-workers lost her brother on Sunday. They didn't expect him to live until Thanksgiving, so these extra weeks with him were a gift.

>89 cbl_tn: Doh! Of course!

Climb Every Mountain #1
Willoughbyland: England's Lost Colony by Matthew Parker
GeoCAT
RandomCAT

Suriname may be the smallest country in South America, but it has a larger-than-life history. While the English were busy colonizing North America and the Caribbean in the 17th century, Sir Francis Willoughby established his own proprietorship on the Suriname River. The history of this short-lived English colony is filled with explorers searching for El Dorado (including Sir Walter Ralegh), Cavaliers and Roundheads, and author Aphra Behn. The maps and illustrations enhance the text. While it's aimed at general readers rather than scholars, the end notes and bibliography reflect the author's use of primary sources in his research. If you're interested in 17th century colonial history, the search for El Dorado, or Aphra Behn, it would be worth the effort to get hold of a copy of this book.

4 stars

Hi, Carrie! Great news about the allergy shots.

Sounds like you liked the latest Penny book a lot less than I did. I did find it . . . a bit . . odd.

I, too, was sad to learn of Glenn Frey's death. I love The Eagles' music.

>92 tymfos: Hi Terri! I'm excited about the allergy shots. This milestone was a long time coming!

The Louise Oenny was a little too odd for my taste. I hope the next one will be more typical for the series.

I've never listened to the Eagles (I do know Hotel California, but that's it...), but I have to agree with >88 hailelib: - it seems far too many good people are dying right now.

>94 -Eva-: I agree! If things like this really do come in threes then maybe it will stop for a while.

I liked the latest Penny book more than you but agree that it wasn't one of her best. I definitely liked it more than her previous book which so far is my least favorite of hers.

It was sad to hear about Glenn Frey's death. I do own the Eagles Greatest Hits songs and particularly love "Desperado" and "Take it to the Limit." Like you said maybe it will stop for a while. One can hope!

>96 LittleTaiko: I liked the previous book a bit better, but not much. I never liked Peter. I really wasn't sorry to see the last of him.

Book #1 in my The Sound of Music category: The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill

While most of the Lafferton CID is focused on a drugs case, recent transfer Detective Sergeant Freya Graffham almost single-handedly pursues the disappearances of women who have gone missing near “The Hill” in recent months. In her limited free time, Freya participates in a community choir, which unexpectedly brings her into social contact with the mother of her DCI, Simon Serrailler. Seeing Simon outside their professional surroundings sparks Freya's interest in developing more than a professional relationship with her chief. However, Simon has a reputation for keeping women at arm's length. Meanwhile, Simon's physician sister, Cat, is becoming concerned about some of the alternative health practitioners who seem to be preying on her most vulnerable patients. Then one of Cat's patients becomes one of the missing women and part of the police investigation.

Simon Serrailler was mostly absent in the first book in the series that bears his name. I thought that was odd. I didn't see enough of him to form an opinion about his personality. Although much is made of his rapid advancement within the ranks of the CID, I wasn't impressed with his job performance. His total absorption in the high profile drugs case resulted in his neglect of the missing persons cases, with tragic consequences. I wonder if this book was originally conceived as a standalone novel that the author later decided to continue as a series. Fans of the series say that it improves as the series progresses, so I'll give Simon at least one more chance before giving up on it.

3.5 stars

Next up in audio: The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach

>98 cbl_tn: That's the only book in the series I read. I predicted the killer 2/3 of the way through and thought it extremely unfair that Freya was killed off. I have a memory of reading that part on the train and wanting to open the window and chuck the book out, I was so mad. I hope you have more success with future installments!

>99 rabbitprincess: Thanks! I would happily continue reading a series with Freya as the central character. I feel like it's largely Simon's fault that she was killed. He should have given her some help with the missing persons cases. Although I did wonder that she didn't have a chain on her door, or a peephole. She suspected killer knew she was onto him. Why wasn't she more careful?!

Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler
#1 in my So Long, Farewell category

The Bedloes seemed to be a perfect family. When oldest son Danny married a divorcee with two children, they found a way to accommodate his less-than-perfect choice into the family image. The baby born less than nine months after the marriage was just premature, wasn't she? Youngest son Ian has a growing awareness of the difference between the facade the family presents to the world and the reality of their lives. One fatal night Ian can't hold his tongue any longer, and life changes forever for the Bedloes. Ian will spend the rest of his life trying to atone for his thoughtless words and their consequence for his family, with the help of the Church of the Second Chance.

In a Harlequin novel, a young, handsome, single man raising his brother's children would meet a beautiful woman who bonds instantly with the children. After a few ups and downs, they would fall madly in love, marry, and live happily ever after. Anne Tyler didn't write a Harlequin novel. She takes a pivotal event in the life of an average family and traces its effect over succeeding decades. Years lapse between chapters. While the characters age, they're still living out the consequences of a single choice. Or maybe two choices. When Ian stumbles upon the Church of the Second Chance, it becomes his lifeline. However, it's a non-traditional church with unorthodox doctrine, and instead of providing solace and healing, Reverend Emmett's faulty teaching sentences Ian to a lifetime of penance.

”...Don't you think I'm forgiven?”

“Goodness, no,” Reverend Emmett said briskly.

Ian's mouth fell open. He wondered if he'd misunderstood. He said, “I'm not forgiven?”

“Oh, no.”

“But . . . I thought that was kind of the point,” Ian said. “I thought God forgives everything.”

“He does,” Reverend Emmett said. “But you can't just say, 'I'm sorry, God.' Why, anyone could do that much! You have to offer reparation—concrete, practical reparation, according to the rules of our church.”

“But what if there isn't any reparation? What if it's something nothing will fix?”

“Well, that's where Jesus comes in, of course.”

Another itchy word: Jesus. Ian averted his eyes.

“Jesus remembers how difficult life on earth can be,” Reverend Emmett told him. “He helps with what you can't undo. But only after you've tried to undo it.”

4 stars

>101 cbl_tn: Interesting! And I love the quote. Thanks for the review!

>102 VictoriaPL: Hi Victoria! A lot of the people reading Anne Tyler this month are just lukewarm about her books, but I have really liked both of the ones I've read. Her characters seem like they could be my neighbors.

Read but not counting toward my challenge:

The Christmas Virtues edited by Jonathan V. Last

I reviewed this collection of Christmas essays for publication, so I won't repeat that review here. The editor is a senior writer for the Weekly Standard, and the authors of the original essays are all affiliated with other news outlets on the center to right end of the political spectrum. Some of the essays were more enjoyable than others, as is typical in a collection like this. It's one to borrow from the library rather than purchase, IMO.

3.5 stars

>103 cbl_tn: I didn't realize there was a group. I am out of the loop on group reads, LOL. Just a tadpole swimming in my own little puddle.

>105 VictoriaPL: She was the January author for the American Authors Challenge in the 75 Books group. You didn't miss anything here! You might notice some reviews of her books on threads for those of us that are in both groups.

>106 cbl_tn: Ah ha! Thanks for explaining.

>98 cbl_tn: Carrie, I'm a fan of the Simon Serrailler series. But I admit, I don't know why Simon played such a small part in the first book. He is much more prominent in later installments. But he's never really a very likeable character. He's very complex, and some of the complexities aren't particularly nice. (Isn't that true of most real people?) I think the strength of these books lies in the interwoven relationships of people in Lafferton and environs, and the complex plots and characters.

ETA to add It took me three tries to get your name right! First I got mixed up which thread I was on, then I just got it wrong the second time. I guess I'm spending too little time on the threads these days, Carrie.

>108 tymfos: Hi Terri! I will try another Simon Serrailler and see how it goes. I really liked his sister. Does the other triplet ever appear in the series, or do they just talk about him?

Hmm... No, I don't think so. I don't recall the other triplet actually appearing, though I wouldn't swear to it. The sister is definitely a major character in most, if not all, of the books so far.

>111 cbl_tn: That makes me think of Jenny Piccolo on Happy Days. Up until the last couple of seasons, she was mentioned frequently but never seen.

Book 1 in my Do-Re-Mi category: The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel
DeweyCAT

Contemplation of his own library built from the ruins of a French barn leads Alberto Manguel to ponder the history and philosophy of libraries. Classification, architecture and design, selection and censorship, and many more aspects of libraries and the books they contain are illustrated by examples both personal and historical. Aby Warburg and the library that resembled a map of his mind, to Jorge Luis Borges, who was blind when he was appointed director of the Buenos Aires National Library, to the clandestine children's library in the Birkenau concentration camp – all have something to teach us about the nature and importance of books and libraries. This book could be used as a textbook for courses in the history and philosophy of libraries and librarianship, yet it will appeal to all readers with a love for books and libraries.

We pick our way down endless library shelves, choosing this or that volume for no discernible reason; because of a cover, a title, a name, because of something someone said or didn't say, because of a hunch, a whim, a mistake, because we think we may find in this book a particular tale or character or detail, because we believe it was written for us, because we believe it was written for everyone except us and we want to find out why we have been excluded, because we want to learn, or laugh, or lose ourselves in oblivion.

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

The fact is that a library, whatever its size, need not be read in its entirety to be useful; every reader profits from a fair balance between knowledge and ignorance, recall and oblivion.

5 stars

January Recap

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks – 1/6
*The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill (3.5)

Maria - Books by women authors – 1/6
The Upstairs Wife by Rafia Zakaria (3.5)

I Have Confidence - Challenge reads – 1/6
Land of Marvels by Barry Unsworth (3.5) (BAC)

Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children’s books – 0/6

My Favorite Things - Mysteries – 2/6
The Hooded Hawke by Karen Harper (3.5)
*The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny (2.5)

Climb Ev’ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT – 1/6
Willoughbyland: England's Lost Colony by Matthew Parker (4) (South America)

The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads – 0/6

Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT – 1/6
The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel (5)

Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books – 1/6
Ru by Kim Thuy (4)

Edelweiss - Local/regional/national history – 0/6

So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash – 1/6
Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler (4)

Books that don't fit a category:
The Christmas Virtues edited by Jonathan V. Last (3.5)

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel
Worst of the month: The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny

Physical books owned: 6
Physical books borrowed: 1
Ebooks borrowed: 1
Audiobooks borrowed: 2

Book 1 in my Edelweiss category: The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach
Woman BingoPup

In the introduction to her biography of Mary Shelley, Muriel Spark states that she “ha{s} always disliked the sort of biography which states 'X lay on the bed and watched the candle flickering on the roof beams,' when there is no evidence that X did so.” I took note of this comment because I happen to agree with it. Unfortunately, this biography of Hetty Green is that sort of biography. Apparently there is a dearth of primary sources documenting Hetty Green's life. The author relied on secondary accounts from newspapers and the like. The biography was embellished with all sorts of little actions like skirt brushing and hair smoothing that aren't likely to be documented anywhere. The biography was also padded with lists of national and international news events that occurred at various times in Hetty's life. It made me wonder if the author had a YA audience in mind since most adult readers wouldn't need such long lists in order to understand the events in Hetty's life in their historical context. The reader for the audio version wasn't very expressive or engaging, and her voice magnified the book's flaws instead of diverting my attention from them the way a good narrator can do. Disappointing.

2 stars

I said the same thing about The Richest Woman in America when I read it back in 2012. I also though the book lacked focus, since some passages read like an academic work while others read like a popular work, and some of the oddest details were emphasized while things that seemed of real importance were glossed over.

>115 casvelyn: I think there as a good article/essay in there somewhere, but not enough material for a full length book.

>112 cbl_tn: - this sounds very interesting so I'm going to take a BB for sometime in the future.

>117 dudes22: The Library at Night is a lovely book, and it has a permanent home in my library!

#2 in my Do-Re-Mi category: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
DeweyCAT
Woman BingoPup

Why would a book about introversion become a bestseller? Would the author have anything to say about this topic that I didn't already know from experience?

The four sections of the book are “The Extrovert Ideal”, “Your Biology, Your Self?”, “Do All Cultures Have an Extrovert Ideal?”, and “How to Love, How, to Work”. The middle sections seemed to drag for me. There was more biology and physiology than I wanted or needed to know. On the other hand, I was very interested in her comments about introverts in the church, at work, and at school. The generic congregant, employee, and student for whom these environments are designed are extroverts. Many introverts may feel like something is wrong with them if they don't perform as expected in these environments, and many extroverts would probably agree with them. Cain succeeds at explaining why introverts often don't work well in open plan offices and why introverted students often don't perform well in group work. Cain suggests ways that introverts can adapt their circumstances or schedules to make these situations work for them, as well as ways that employers or educators can accommodate the needs of their introverted employees or students.

The author doesn't break any new ground in this book. She just summarizes others' research. The value in the book is in the awareness it fosters and the conversations it stimulates. Introverted readers will realize that they're not alone in their experience of the world. Extroverts will realize that there isn't something “wrong” with introverts; they just process their experiences differently. Cain points out the gorilla in the room and gets readers to pay attention to it.

3.5 stars

>101 cbl_tn: - Interesting review, Carrie! I thought about Saint Maybe and then thought not but it looks like another Tyler read that would work better for me than Digging to America.

>114 cbl_tn: - Sorry to see the Hetty Green biography was a disappointing read. She is a historical figure that I would want to read about, but even a biography needs to be written in a way that can capture and keep my interest.

>119 cbl_tn: If you're looking for more depth on the subject of introverts, Introverts in the Church by Adam S. McHugh is an excellent book about, well, introverts in the church. I think Cain mentions it in the church section.

>121 casvelyn: I made note of that one and I definitely want to read it! Conveniently, my library has a copy and the 200s are up next month in the DeweyCAT. :-)

#1 in The Lonely Goatherd category: Hell Is Empty by Craig Johnson
BingoDog

When a federal prisoner exchange goes horribly wrong, Wyoming's Sheriff Walt Longmire sets out on the trail of the escaped prisoners and their hostages. The escapees seem to be headed toward Cloud Peak in the Bighorn Mountains. So is a late winter storm. Backup is on the way, but will Walt succumb to the elements before help arrives?

Survival stories typically don't appeal to me, so I was very surprised to enjoy this book so much. Despite the ever worsening conditions, Walt never lost his characteristic dry sense of humor. I also loved the parallels to Dante's Inferno. I can even see myself re-reading this after my next reading of the Inferno. Although there's nothing about the plot or the story that would be too obscure for readers who haven't read the earlier books in the series, I think it would be better to read the earlier books first. There are references to events from the earlier books in the series, and to The Cold Dish in particular. The book includes an appendix with each of the main characters' reading lists for a deputy who's trying to fill in the gaps in his education. I borrowed an ebook through the public library, but I'm considering buying a copy just to have access to the book lists!

4.5 stars

>123 cbl_tn:
I'll be reading Hell is Empty soon. Maybe I can catch up and we can read #8 together.

I'm also interested in Introverts in the Church. It's been on my TBR for awhile and my library has a copy too!

>124 VictoriaPL: That would be fun! I'm reading along with a 75 Books group readof Tony Hillerman's Navajo mysteries and Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire series. I'm not doing the Hillerman books - just the Walt Longmire series. They alternate months so #8 in the Walt Longmire series comes up in April. Will that work for you?

I'd love company with Introverts in the Church next month, too! I have a feeling that I'll want to talk about what I'm reading.

>125 cbl_tn: April works for me! That will give me time to read Hell is Empty.

Yes, I'm an introvert in person but love to chat online, LOL

>123 cbl_tn: - I'm planning to start this series when we go on vacation in a couple of weeks.

>126 VictoriaPL: Great! You know, one of the interesting things Cain said in Quiet is that introverts are more likely to open up on social media. That's true for me to an extent. I'm not necessarily unwilling to open up with people I know well, but sometimes it's hard to get a word in edgewise in a group of extroverts!

>127 dudes22: I think you will like the Walt Longmire series. I think it will make a good vacation read! Are you going somewhere warm?

Yes, we are. There's a little resort we go to in Mexico every year just north of Playa deal Carmen. There are a group of us ( about 5 or 6 couples and a few kids) from all over that gather every year the same time. We met there because we were all there at the same time not that we knew each other before. We stay @ 9-10 days and basically do nothing but read. We don't even get a car and we don't sightsee. We overlap so some come a little earlier and leave a little later. Some years some one will miss (one couple is awaiting their grandchild this year and won't be there), but it's very relaxing. My husband usually does take a fishing charter while we're there and if he catches a fish, the kitchen will cook it for us.

Can you tell I'm getting excited to go...blathering on and on....

>129 dudes22: Betty that sounds wonderful! I am always on vacation with non-readers. When we're at the beach I can get maybe 15 mins of a novel in before they are chatting me up or wanting me to go for a walk or a swim.

>129 dudes22: Ah yes, I remember you making a trip there before! I love the Mayan Riviera!

>129 dudes22: >130 VictoriaPL: The last time I was in Mexico (Christmas 2012) I got through lots of books. I stayed at the hotel and read during the day, then did things with my SIL's family in the evenings. It worked well!

>129 dudes22: That sounds perfect. Enjoy yourself and bring enough books!

I would love to be somewhere warmer than here right now! I guess I just need to be patient. Apparently *here* will be warmer by the end of the week!

So Long, Farewell #2: The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes

Bryan Sykes made several breakthroughs in the extraction of DNA from ancient remains and in the use of mitochondrial DNA to map human origins. While this book is no longer at the cutting edge of genetic research, it retains its value as historical documentation of genetic research. This book won't add names to the branches of your family tree, but it will help you think about the ancient past and your connection to it. Of course, there are always exceptions. I learned that Sykes belongs to mitochondrial haplogroup T. I also belong to haplogroup T, which means that Sykes and I share a common maternal ancestor within the last 17,000 years.

4.5 stars

Maria #2: The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys

The 40 vignettes that comprise The Frozen Thames are like time capsules that give the reader a glimpse of (mostly) ordinary life in extraordinary circumstances. It's an unusual theme for a book, but the format and the color art reproductions interspersed through out make it work. The collection as a whole evokes nostalgia and melancholy for bygone eras. The reason for this is explained in the last vignette (excluding the postscript). Many Anglophiles would be delighted to receive this beautifully illustrated book as a gift, and it's small enough to fit in a Christmas stocking.

4 stars

>135 cbl_tn: The vignette about the ship and the pub may have been one of my favourites. The collection as a whole was most interesting!

>136 rabbitprincess: I liked the two connected stories about the woman and her son who walked across thin ice and how it was remembered several years later. I also liked the story about the sparrows.

I Have Confidence #2: Elsewhere: A Memoir by Richard Russo
RandomCAT

Two themes pervade novelist Richard Russo's memoir: his Gloversville, New York, hometown, in an economic decline that paralleled the decline of the glove industry, and his relationship with his mother, who settled near him with each move beginning with his university education in Arizona and extending to his subsequent career moves to Illinois and Maine. Russo's parents divorced when he was very young, and his mother became emotionally dependent on her only child. His mother's difficult personality added another dimension to the challenge of providing care and support for her as her health declined. It was only after another family member was diagnosed with a mental disorder that Russo realized that his mother had a mental illness. Russo seems to have worked out his memories and emotions in this memoir. He does briefly touch on his writing life and some of his novels, but the focus never shifts from his relationship with his troubled mother. Russo reads the audiobook version himself, which makes listening a very intimate experience. If he ever tires of writing, he could probably make a living from audiobook narration!

4 stars

Next up in audio: Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold

I saw a review of a couple of graphic novels that might be a good fit for our library so I stopped and picked up copies from the public library on my way home from a doctor's appointment. They're about the Boxer Rebellion. I've started Boxers by Gene Luen Yang, and I also have the companion novel, Saints. Anyone read these?

>138 cbl_tn: I'll be interested in your thoughts on Anne Frank Remembered...

>139 cbl_tn: I've read them and saw Yang speak. He is a very likable young man very much in touch with his audience. He decided to write two books about the Boxer Rebellion since he felt there was no clear good guy or bad guy. I have them in my high school library and highly recommend them.

>140 VictoriaPL: It's good so far!

>141 mamzel: Thanks for the information! It's helpful. I've read the first couple of sections of Boxers and I'm enjoying it.

>139 cbl_tn:
I liked Boxers slightly more than Saints, but they were both very good reads - I particularly like that the author didn't shy away from difficult issues and that the art was simple without being simplistic.

>143 -Eva-: I like the art. It has just the right amount of detail.

Yesterday when I left for my hair appontment, there were a couple of county sherriff's cars near the end of my road, and the officers were talking to the neighbor who lives at the end of the road. Late last night I finally found out what was going on. A young couple in a stolen car had carjacked someone waiting at the stop sign at the end of the next road, on the other side of my neighbor's house. It happened about 20 minutes before I left for my appointment. The news reports don't identify the victim, but it's likely to be someone I know. This is a rural area and we're not used to this sort of crime. We did have a kidnapping at about the same spot about 25 years ago, so I guess this is a once in a generation type of event.

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #1: Boxers by Gene Luen Yang

Boxers looks at the history of China's Boxer Rebellion from the perspective of a young man who grows up to become a leader of the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fist. Little Bao received martial arts training and he in turn trained others. The young men from his village joined with others throughout China to fight the “foreign devils” and “Christians” that they believed were destroying China from the inside. Little Bao and his companions perform a ritual before battle, and the spirits of gods are shown to enter their bodies at the end of the ritual. They engage in battle in the form of these gods. Cultural misunderstandings and false rumors are suggested as causes of the conflict. The art has just the right amount of detail to tell the story without unnecessary distractions. There is a companion volume, Saints, that tells the other side of the story, and these two novels should be read together.

4 stars

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #2: Saints by Gene Luen Yang

Saints looks at China's Boxer Rebellion from the perspective of a Christian Chinese girl who was converted by foreign missionaries. Four Girl, whose name sounds like the Chinese word for “death”, was never given a real name by the head of her family. Her conversion to Christianity came with a new name chosen from the names of Christian female saints. She has visions of Joan of Arc, who has not yet been canonized as a saint. When the Christians begin to be persecuted by groups like the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fist, Four Girl (now Vibiana) believes she has been chosen to save others. This volume shows the Christian and western/European misunderstandings and false rumors that are suggested as motivations for the conflict. It also fills in the background for characters and events that are shown only in passing in the companion volume, Boxers. The two volumes should be read together for the complete story.

4 stars

My Favorite Things #3: Crooked House by Agatha Christie

In this stand-alone mystery, Charles Hayward meets and falls in love with Sophia Leonides when both are employed in Egypt shortly after World War II. Charles has another posting that will separate him for Sophia for two more years, and he announces his intention to propose to her as soon as he returns to England. Two years later, he arrives back in England to find the Leonides family mourning the death of its head, Sophia's grandfather, Aristide Leonides. While most people would assume that a man of his age (nearly 90) had died of natural causes, this doesn't prove to be the case. He was murdered. Sophia will not agree to marry Charles until the murder is solved, refusing to attach him to the suspicion that will hover over the family with an unsolved murder. Charles has no choice but to go to the family's estate and gather enough information to solve the crime. He'll have no trouble getting information from the police since his father is Assistant Commissioner of Scotland Yard.

This is a characteristic Christie country house mystery with a surprising twist at the end. I didn't see it coming. In the author's foreword, Christie admits that this book is one of her favorites. The characters include the murdered patriarch who controlled the purse strings, two sons and their wives, three grandchildren (the youngest of whom reminded me very much of Flavia de Luce), a very young second wife, a poor relative taken into the family fold, and the younger grandchildren's tutor. There are young lovers separated by suspicion and a missing will. I deducted points because no one really solves the mystery. They discover a letter that reveals the details of the crime that others were only beginning to suspect.

.”..Some people, I suspect, remain morally immature. They continue to be aware that murder is wrong, but they do not feel it. I don't think, in my experience, that any murderer has really felt remorse . . . And that, perhaps, is the mark of Cain. Murderers are set apart, they are 'different'--murder is wrong—but not for them--for them it is necessary—the victim has 'asked for it,' it was 'the only way.'”

3.5 stars

>148 cbl_tn: That was an astounding twist! I finished that one while pacing up and down the kitchen, preparing dinner. Couldn't put it down for a second.

>149 rabbitprincess: I wasn't expecting it at all. I guess I've read too many Flavia de Luce novels!

>145 cbl_tn: Crime close to home can be unnerving. I hope it's at least another 25 years before anything else bad happens there!

We had a killing in our town a while back. I'd had a couple of unpleasant interactions at the library with a patron who turned out to be the killer. Sheesh! Creeped me out big time!

>148 cbl_tn: & >149 rabbitprincess: - Ooh, now I'm quite impatient to get to this one as I reread them. I know I've read it before but don't remember how it ends right now. Hopefully it's coming up soon in my stack.

>151 tymfos: Your experience does sound creepy! I hope your patron is using a different library now - maybe a prison library?

>152 LittleTaiko: Apparently there's a movie version of Crooked House in production with a script written by Julian Fellowes. I'm looking forward to it!

>153 cbl_tn: - That sounds like a perfect match!

>154 LittleTaiko: Doesn't it?!

I've been thinking about some Agatha Christie next month. Crooked House sounds good.

>156 hailelib: I hope you enjoy it!

>145 cbl_tn:
Scary! Hope nobody was hurt physically.

>158 -Eva-: Definitely scary! I don't think anyone was hurt. I think I would have heard about it.

#3 in my Do-Re-Mi category: The World According to Mister Rogers by Fred Rogers

Although I was just an occasional viewer of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood as a child, I have good memories related to his show. My high school chemistry and physics teacher used to sing the theme song to us during tests. (I mostly did OK on the tests so it didn't bother me, but I'm sure it really annoyed some of the struggling students.) This compilation of quotes is organized around the themes that characterized his children's programming: “The courage to be yourself”, “Understanding love”, “The challenges of inner discipline”, and “We are all neighbors”. It's a nice little gift book that's suitable for anyone who grew up watching Mister Rogers on PBS.

My favorite TV memory of Mister Rogers isn't from his show; it's from Candid Camera. The crew hid a camera in hotel rooms, including Mister Rogers', to capture their reactions when they learned that there were no TVs in the room. This didn't bother Mister Rogers at all. Peter Funt disguised as a hotel employee wasn't able to provoke reaction from him. He maintained the same calm, courteous, and kind demeanor in what he believed was a private conversation that he had on his television show. That's integrity.

3.5 stars

Book #2 in The Sound of Music: Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold

If you're familiar with Anne Frank's story and you've ever wondered what was happening on the outside while her family was in hiding in Amsterdam, Miep Gies's memoir provides the answer. Miep (her real nickname, but not her real name) tells of being sent from her home in Vienna to live with a Dutch family after World War I so that she could regain her health and strength. She recalls working with Otto Frank in a company that sold pectin for jam making. Miep became a friend of the whole family, and she shares her memories of her first meeting with Anne and of watching her grow up. When the Franks and another family went into hiding in the firm's storage area, Miep and a few other employees were their only connection to the outside world. Unknown to the Frank family, Miep and her husband also hid a Jewish man in their home. As the months passed, it became increasingly difficult for Miep to find enough food to feed so many people. After the Franks and the others were discovered and sent to concentration camps, Miep and her husband had to endure the “hunger winter” and its extreme shortage of food, fuel, and electricity.

It always made me sad that Anne Frank and her family were discovered just months before the end of the war and the Holocaust. I thought that if they hadn't been discovered, they could have remained in hiding until the end of the war and Anne could have published her diary herself. After hearing Miep's description of the “hunger winter” and how difficult it became to find any food at all, I'm not certain that the Franks and their companions would all have survived in hiding even if they hadn't been discovered. Miep probably couldn't have continued to feed that many people. It's a tragic, but important, story, and a good complement to the more famous Diary of Anne Frank.

5 stars

>161 cbl_tn: That sounds fascinating (if harrowing). Another BB!

>161 cbl_tn: I'm hit! LOL. I knew once I saw the title alone that this would probably be a BB for me but the 5 star rating just cinched it. Thanks for the review!

>162 Jackie_K: >163 VictoriaPL: If you listen to audiobooks, it would be worth tracking this one down in audio. Barbara Rosenblat does a wonderful job reading the book.

Climb Ev'ry Mountain #2: Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan, 1839-42 by William Dalrymple

While there are other histories of the First Anglo-Afghan War, Dalrymple is apparently the first historian to use Afghan sources in his research. The result is a balanced account of the war and the decades leading up to it from both the English and the Afghan perspective. It's a tragic story from either perspective, and it didn't need to happen. Dalrymple's analysis of the many failures of leadership will make this of interest to students of leadership and management as well as military historians and readers with an interest in colonialism and the history of the British Empire. Potential readers shouldn't be discouraged by its heft. It's not dry like some histories, and it reads quickly for a book of its size.

I was particularly taken with Lady Sale, the wife of Sir Robert “Fighting Bob” Sale. While “Fighting Bob” and those under his command were under siege in Jalalabad, Lady Sale and other British dependents were in Kabul and left in the disastrous winter retreat. Lady Sale was among those taken hostage by Akbar Khan. She had as much, if not more fortitude than the British officers among the hostages, and contributed to their escape from captivity. Dalrymple quotes extensively from her published journal account of the events of 1841-42, and it piqued my interest in reading the whole thing. Project Gutenberg has a free electronic version of Lady Sale's journal that now resides in my reader app.

4.5 stars

February Recap

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks – 2/6
*Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold; read by Barbara Rosenblat (5)

Maria - Books by women authors – 2/6
The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys (4)

I Have Confidence - Challenge reads – 2/6
*Elsewhere: A Memoir by Richard Russo (AAC) (4)

Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children’s books – 2/6
Boxers by Gene Luen Yang (4)
Saints by Gene Luen Yang (4)

My Favorite Things - Mysteries – 3/6
Crooked House by Agatha Christie (3.5)

Climb Ev’ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT – 2/6
Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan, 1839-42 by William Dalrymple (4.5)

The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads – 1/6
Hell Is Empty by Craig Johnson (4.5)

Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT – 3/6
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain (3.5)
The World According to Mister Rogers: Important Things to Remember by Fred Rogers (3.5)

Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books – 1/6

Edelweiss - Local/regional/national history – 1/6
*The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach (2)

So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash – 2/6
The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes (4.5)

Books that don't fit a category:
The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare (4)

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold
Worst of the month: The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach

Physical books owned: 3
Physical books borrowed: 4
Ebooks owned: 1
Ebooks borrowed: 2
Audiobooks owned: 1
Audiobooks borrowed: 2

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #3: James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
BingoDog

Young orphan James Henry Trotter lives with his mean spinster aunts, Sponge and Spiker. His aunts keep James busy doing chores and never give him time to play either by himself or with other children. One day, James is given some magic crystals with a promise that they'll change his life, but he loses them on the ground before he can follow the instructions he's been given. Imagine his surprise when a tree in the garden where he spilled the crystals grows an enormous peach! James explores the inside of the peach and meets several creatures, including a centipede, and earthworm, a grasshopper, a silkworm, and a spider. The peach rolls away with James inside it, launching James and his companions on a big adventure.

I would have enjoyed this book more if I had discovered it as a child. As an adult reader, I'm too aware of the educational aspects of the story, such as facts about the insects that James meets inside the peach. I also couldn't help being concerned about James's willingness to accept the crystals from a complete stranger, and that he would have followed the stranger's instructions to make a drink from the crystals if he hadn't accidentally dropped them in the garden.

James's ingenuity and the way the traveling companions work together to get themselves out of difficult circumstances provide positive messages for children about problem solving and team work. This is a great story for early readers to read on their own. The audio version read by Julian Rhind-Tutt is also enjoyable, with a variety of vocal characterizations and sound effects that enhance the story.

3.5 stars

Next up in audio: Celebrations at Thrush Green by Miss Read

>161 cbl_tn: Nice review of the Miep Gies book. I'd read Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl and visited the museum in Amsterdam last year. This book sounds like a very worthwhile read.

>161 cbl_tn: I definitely want to read that one!

>168 mathgirl40: The Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam is very good, isn't it.

>168 mathgirl40: >169 LisaMorr: I visited the Anne Frank museum a few years ago on a long layover in Amsterdam. It's one of my favorite museums among those I've visited.

It's been a beautiful Sunday here. Adrian and I went on a long walk with his friend Stella and her "mom". I'm cooking a roast now, and I'll make some blackberry cobbler in a little while. I listened to more of Celebrations at Thrush Green while I worked in the kitchen, but other than that I haven't got much reading done today. It's just too nice a day not to enjoy it. I might have also watched couple of episodes of Fuller House on Netflix when I found out it's a Netflix original series.

I had a nice surprise at church this morning. My friend gave me a necklace that looks like Adrian! And it's not even my birthday!

Aww! What a cute necklace! Does Adrian approve of his likeness? ;)

It does look very much like him! Cute.

Now he can be with you even when he's not! Nice friend.

>172 rabbitprincess: Adrian is very blasé about the necklace. He's hard to impress with anything other than food or toys!

>173 -Eva-: Adrian stands just like that!

>174 mamzel: I know! I'm very lucky to have such a good friend. She is Adrian's second mama and takes care of him when I have to go out of town. She loves him almost as much as I do!

Something Good #2: How to Be Both by Ali Smith

But which came first? Her mother says. The chicken or the egg? The picture underneath or the picture on the surface? The picture below came first, George says. Because it was done first.

But the first thing we see, her mother said, and most times the only thing we see, is the one on the surface. So does that mean it comes first after all? And does that mean the other picture, if we don't know about it, may as well not exist?

The structure of this novel plays with this idea – which part comes first? There are two sections to the novel, Eyes and Camera and the print edition was issued with the sections in two different orders. The ebook edition contains both versions of the novel, and I chose to read it in the order Camera – Eyes. In one sense, the events of Eyes take place before the events of Camera, but in another sense, Eyes takes place after Camera. It's the old chicken and egg question in novel format. The author and publisher say that the novel works equally well in either order. I'm not convinced of that. I think most readers will find Eyes easier to understand if they've read Camera first. What Smith has done with this novel is impressive, but I never became absorbed enough in the writing to lose awareness of its mechanics. So, my verdict is good but not great.

4 stars

Oh, that necklace is great!!

>178 cbl_tn: I love it! I'm wearing it today with my Bark in the Park T-shirt. (I wouldn't wear a T-shirt to work, but I'm not working today due to an asthma flare-up. Spring has arrived.)

I have a guest dog today while some friends are attending a local seminar. It's not Stella, my usual guest. Sky is a chocolate lab. She's a lot bigger than Adrian and Stella. Sky was a little wary of Adrian at first when he was sniffing around her like dogs do when they meet. They've decided to at least tolerate each other. Adrian is on his usual perch on the back of the sofa, and Sky is stretched out on the floor on the other side of the living room. Here's a photo of Sky:

Awww! Sky is so pretty!

>180 rabbitprincess: Sky is a beautiful, rich brown color, and she has a sweet disposition. I'm enjoying having her around today.

The dogs seem to be content. I've taken them out a couple of times. I watched Mr. Pip on Netflix this morning and loved it. It's fairly faithful to the book. I made some peanut butter oatmeal no-bake cookies for Sky's dad (a sort-of nephew) to take home with him. Now I'm watching Chip & Joanna on HGTV. It's been a good day so far!

I Have Confidence #3 Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The road to Santiago de Compostela by Conrad Rudolph
DeweyCAT

Santiago de Compostela in Spain has been a destination for Christian pilgrims for more than a millennium. Art historian Conrad Rudolph made the pilgrimage from Le Puy all the way to Finisterre. Rudolph provides a brief history of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages, an account of his pilgrimage experience, photographs of some of the sights along the way, and practical advice for doing the pilgrimage. Rudolph points out that many pilgrims have a spiritual purpose but not necessarily a religious one.

The first three sections of the book have a timeless feel. Pilgrims make the journey on foot, and the route passes through areas that haven't changed much since the Middle Ages. At some points on the route, the original Roman road is at the surface. The final section of the book containing practical advice for making the pilgrimage has some dated elements. Rudolph repeatedly advises potential pilgrims that it would be a mistake to take books in their packs. It's obvious this was written before Amazon's Kindle ushered in the ebook era. He also advises travelers to buy film along the way and mail it home along the route, with a mention in passing of the “new digital camera”.

Many readers won't feel a need to read this book from cover to cover. Each section of the book could stand on its own. For most readers, it will be a book to borrow from the library rather than a necessary purchase.

3.5 stars

Hi Carrie, it sounds like you are having a restful and relaxed day. I will have to search out Mr. Pip on Netflicks, I loved the book and of course, I am addicted to Chip and Joanna! I need to go out to the grocery store but I just don't seem to want to leave the comfort of my home today.

>182 cbl_tn: I read that book a few years ago and think I gave it a similar rating. I couldn't quite figure out what it was trying to be - I would have wanted it to be either an account of his own pilgrimage, or a general history of the pilgrimage, or a 'how to' guide, but at times it was trying to be all 3, and I found it quite muddled. I'm glad I read it though, I find the Camino a fascinating topic and have read a few different books on it. I can at least say it's not the worst Camino book I've read (that dubious honour goes to Paulo Coelho's The Pilgrimage which I thought was dreadful!).

>183 DeltaQueen50: It's been a very relaxing day! I'm at the end of the Chip & Joanna marathon so I'll be able to get back to A Thousand Acres. Hugh Laurie plays Mr. Watts, and it was filmed on location in Bougainville. I thought it was well done.

>184 Jackie_K: Yes, the author covers a lot of territory in such a small book! I'd like to have known a little more about the author's experience and some of the other pilgrims he met on the way.

An off challenge read: The Tragedy of King Lear by William Shakespeare

King Lear makes a fateful decision to divide his kingdom between his three daughters. The reaction of one daughter, Cordelia, displeases the king so much that he cuts her out of any inheritance. The kingdom will be divided between the other two daughters, Goneril and Regan. His plan is that they will take care of him in his old age. They soon decide that they don't want to use their inheritance to support their father, and the king finds himself with nowhere to shelter in a violent storm. Meanwhile, the Earl of Gloucester's illegitimate son plots to usurp his legitimate brother's place as their father's heir. As in many of Shakespeare's plays, there are characters in disguise. It's filled with violence and cruelty without comic relief like the gravedigger scene in Hamlet. The family conflict at its heart will continue to resonate with audiences and readers as long as there are families.

4 stars

>185 cbl_tn: Hugh Laurie! Eeee! I just watched him in Tomorrowland. He's always a treat to see.

>187 rabbitprincess: Yes, and he gets the pathos of Mr. Watts just right. He's one of my favorite actors!

The Sound of Music #3: Celebrations at Thrush Green by Miss Read
RandomCAT

The village school in Thrush Green is approaching its centenary, and plans for a celebration are underway. Meanwhile, village resident Harold Shoosmith is thrilled to learn of newly discovered letters written by Nathaniel Patten, Thrush Green's most distinguished son, who had gone to Africa as a missionary in the Victorian era. Harold had lived near the African village where Nathaniel Patten had founded a church, a school, and a medical center, and where he was remembered as a hero. Harold retired to Thrush Green because of its connection with Nathaniel Patten, and he reintroduced its current residents to the dedicated missionary who had left there for Africa 100 years ago. School and church decided to combine forces and have a joint celebration of both centenaries. The book describes the year of planning culminating in the centenary celebration.

This book is somewhat disappointing compared with other books by this author. It focuses too much on the planning and not enough on the reason for the celebration. There were some side stories, like Winnie Bailey's illness, that detracted from the focus on the event planning, which already suffered from being divided between the school and the Victorian missionary. The narrator of the audio version is good, but not good enough to distract most listeners from the dullness of the story.

2.5 stars

Next up in audio: How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson

Excellent review of Celebrations at Thrush Green. I felt the same way but didn't say it so well.

Love your Adrian necklace, and your pleasant guest, Sky.

>190 VivienneR: Thanks Vivienne! I'm glad Celebrations at Thrush Green isn't the first Miss Read for me or I'd never pick up another one!

The Lonely Goatherd #2: Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture by Adam S. McHugh
DeweyCAT

After years of frustration and anguish, Presbyterian pastor Adam S. McHugh has grown to understand and embrace his introverted personality and draw on its strengths for ministry. He shares what he's learned from his reading on personality theory, his interviews with fellow introverts in a variety of ministry positions, and his own experience. McHugh points out the spiritual dangers in the emphasis on extroverted behaviors that are characteristic in contemporary evangelical Christianity, sometimes to the point that introverts are considered sinners if they don't adopt certain extroverted behaviors. This book will help introverts understand and accept their natures and give themselves permission to carve out the solitude they need for processing their thoughts and experiences. Extroverted readers will gain an awareness and insight into the different ways that introverts experience the world that will help them be sensitive to the needs of their introverted parishioners and colleagues. McHugh cautions introverts not to use their personality as an excuse for isolating themselves from the community that is integral to the church. This book would be particularly useful for those in ministry or preparing for ministry. It also offers a lot of value for lay readers. Highly recommended.

4 stars

>192 cbl_tn: highly, highly recommended! Thanks for reading it with me!

>193 VictoriaPL: I enjoyed reading it together. It was great to have someone to discuss it with as I read. There's a lot of good meat for discussion in that book!

>194 cbl_tn: I agree. A class or group would be awesome to discuss with.

>195 VictoriaPL: I will suggest it for a group study any time I have an opportunity!

Something Good #3 A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley

I was always aware, I think, of the water in the soil, the way it travels from particle to particle, molecules adhering, clustering, evaporating, heating, cooling, freezing, rising upward to the surface and fogging the cool air or sinking downward, dissolving this nutrient and that, quick in everything it does, endlessly working and flowing, a river sometimes, a lake sometimes. When I was very young, I imagined it ready at any time to rise and cover the earth again, except for the tile lines. Prairie settlers always saw a sea or an ocean of grass, could never think of any other metaphor, since most of them had lately seen the Atlantic. The Davises did find a shimmering sheet punctuated by cattails and sweet flag. The grass is gone, now, and the marshes, “the big wet prairie,” but the sea is still beneath our feet, and we walk on it.

Jane Smiley translated the timeless elements of Shakespeare's King Lear to a Midwestern farm family. In many respects, Smiley's adaptation improves on Shakespeare's Lear. Larry Cook owns one of the most productive farms in Iowa's Zebulon County – one thousand acres resulting from the consolidation of several adjoining acreages. The widower Cook farms with the assistance of two sons-in-law, the husbands of two of his three daughters. Cook's sudden decision to incorporate the farm and cede control to his daughters and sons-in-law is the first in a chain of events that leads to tragedy. The return of draft dodger Jess Clark, prodigal son of Cook's neighbor, Harold Clark, becomes a catalyst for growing feelings of discontent in Cook's eldest daughter, Ginny, the first-person narrator. As sisters Ginny and Rose and their husbands extend themselves beyond their means, the family rift grows, and their neighbors in the small farming community choose sides.

The Midwest farm crisis was an inspired choice as the modern setting for this tragedy. This was a period when many multi-generation family farms were lost to corporations. Many smaller tragedies took place throughout the Midwest during this time period. Smiley's novel carries an authenticity that will resonate with readers with ties to the Midwest and its farmers. Highly recommended.

4 stars

Maria #3 Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler
TIOLI #14 - Author's initials spell a word (at)

Twenty-something Kate Battista still lives at home with her widowed father, a Johns Hopkins research scientist, and her 15-year-old sister, Bunny. Kate is a teaching assistant at a local preschool, where she is loved by the children but barely tolerated by the parents and school administrators for her lack of diplomacy, tact, and restraint. Kate's father is about to lose his talented research assistant, Pyotr, and he has begun to act strangely. Pyotr's visa is about to expire and he'll have to leave the country. Unless, of course, he marries a U.S. citizen and gets a green card...

The plot of The Taming of the Shrew would be difficult to translate to a 21st century North American or European setting. Anne Tyler made it look easy. The Pulitzer winner demonstrates an equal talent for chick lit. It's a fun, light-hearted read that had me giggling throughout. Tyler's characteristic Baltimore setting puts her own stamp on this Shakespeare retelling. It's a solid entry in the Hogarth Shakespeare project.

This review is based on an electronic advance reader copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

4 stars

>198 cbl_tn: BB taken for Vinegar Girl! I'm very intrigued by retellings of The Taming of the Shrew.

Jane Smiley is a wonderful writer, isn't she? I am looking forward to reading more Smiley, and making note of the great positive reviews for A Thousand Acres.

>199 christina_reads: I think you'll enjoy Vinegar Girl! It's novella length so it doesn't require a huge investment of time.

>200 lkernagh: I'm also looking forward to reading more of Jane Smiley's works. Her biography of Dickens may be the next one of her works I try.

I definitely want to read Vinegar Girl.

>202 RidgewayGirl: I think you'll like it. It has the same feel as a really good Jane Austen adaptation.

>203 cbl_tn: As if I weren't sold already! :)

>204 christina_reads: Ha! I'm actually reading a Jane Austen adaptation right now and I don't like it nearly as well as Vinegar Girl. I have an advance readers copy of Eligible from NetGalley and it's a disappointment. It may end up being worse than Alexander McCall Smith's Emma. It doesn't compare with The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet.

Maria #4: The Social Life of DNA: Race, Reparations, and Reconciliation After the Genome by Alondra Nelson

DNA testing has become increasingly popular among genealogists over the last decade. Sociologist Alondra Nelson examines the use of DNA testing by African Americans, who encounter difficulty finding a paper trail for their slave ancestors. Nelson focuses on African Ancestry, a DNA testing company founded by African American geneticist Rick Kittles and business partner Gina Paige. This company compares its customers' DNA test kits against a database of samples from the African continent and provides results suggesting ethnic group and geographical origins within modern national boundaries. Nelson describes how African American activists have employed DNA to achieve social goals. These include the using DNA in reconciliation projects, which Nelson defines as using “genetic analysis...to contribute to community cohesion, collective memory, or social transformation”, as supporting evidence for reparations suits, and restoring the national and/or ethnic identity that was lost during the era of slavery. Nelson's study is more descriptive than analytical. While she does note the shortcomings of DNA for achieving these goals, these aren't emphasized as much as perhaps they should be. Recommended primarily for readers with an interest in African American studies and African American genealogy.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

Tonight is the beginning of a long weekend for me. I found a small window of time when it wasn't raining to walk Adrian quickly. Now I'm settled in watching mystery movies on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel. I'm looking forward to finally watching the Flower Shop mystery with Brooke Shields. I haven't been able to catch it when it's aired earlier. Then I'll read a little more in Bury Me Standing, which has been fascinating so far.

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #4: Then by Morris Gleitzman
GeoCAT (Poland)

Then continues the story started in Once, beginning with 10-year-old Felix and 6-year-old Zelda's escape from the trainload of Jews bound for a Polish death camp. Felix and Zelda find a place to hide and assume new identities (thanks to Felix's love of Richmal Crompton's books). Although Zelda isn't Jewish, Felix is, and his presence endangers both Zelda and the woman sheltering them both. Zelda's uncontrollable temper doesn't help matters. A Polish boy in the village becomes Felix's enemy, but Felix and Zelda find friends in unexpected places.

Just as every chapter of Once starts with the word “once”, every chapter of Then starts with the word “then”. “Once” brings to mind stories and fairy tales. “Then” just seems awkward. “Once” puts a comfortable distance between the story and the reader. “Then” makes the story more immediate and personal. Felix witnesses some horrible things, and it's difficult to read about them without the repetitive use of “once” that keeps some space between the the terrible events and the reader. Finally, it's missing a very important “then”. The book ends with Felix in hiding in the hole he dug earlier in Genia's barn. There's no “then the war was over, and Felix came out of hiding.” Readers don't know if Felix survived the war, or if he was discovered in his hiding place. Even though this book fell short of my expectations, I plan to continue the series to find out what happened next.

3.5 stars

Stopping by to wish you a Happy Easter Carrie and to make note of the Nelson DNA book.

>209 lkernagh: Hi Lori! Happy Easter to you! The Nelson book is as much about race and reparations as it is DNA. It wouldn't be all that helpful about DNA for non-African-Americans. It's very informative about issues arising from slavery that continue to affect African Americans.

I Have Confidence #4: How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson
Reading Through Time

Author Steven Johnson takes a big picture look at six areas of scientific discovery and technological innovation that have had a major impact on civilization: glass, artificial cold, sound, cleanliness, time measurement, and artificial light. As new technologies are discovered and adopted, they trigger unintended or unexpected consequences. For example, Johnson traces the history of artificial cold from ice harvesting to refrigeration to air conditioning, which made geographic regions with inhospitably hot climates inhabitable. The population shift in the United States from the colder northern states to the warmer southern and southwestern states led to a reconfiguration of the electoral college and U.S. politics. This is popular science at its best. Recommended.

4.5 stars

Next up in audio: Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler

>211 cbl_tn: Sounds interesting! Thanks for the review.

>212 VictoriaPL: I learned after I finished the audio that it's a companion for a documentary series that aired here on PBS. It's available on Netflix so I'll watch it sometime soon.

March Recap

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks – 3/6
*Celebrations at Thrush Green by Miss Read (2.5)

Maria - Books by women authors – 4/6
Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler (4)
The Social Life of DNA by Alondra Nelson (3.5)

I Have Confidence - Challenge reads – 4/6
Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela by Conrad Rudolph (Non-fiction challenge) (3.5)
*How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson (Reading Through Time) (4.5)

Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children’s books – 4/6
*James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl (3.5)
Then by Morris Gleitzmann (3.5)

My Favorite Things - Mysteries – 3/6

Climb Ev’ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT – 2/6

The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads – 2/6
Introverts in the Church by Adam S. McHugh (4)

Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT – 3/6

Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books – 3/6
How to Be Both by Ali Smith (4)
A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley (4)

Edelweiss - Local/regional/national history – 1/6

So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash – 2/6

Books that don't fit a category:
The Tragedy of King Lear by William Shakespeare (4)

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson
Worst of the month: Celebrations at Thrush Green by Miss Read

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

Maria #5: Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

Readers of this retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice will either love it or hate it. I’m in the latter camp. I enjoyed Val McDermid’s Northanger Abbey and Joanna Trollope’s Sense & Sensibility, and I found Alexander McCall Smith’s Emma tolerable. I loved Bernie Su and Kate Rorick’s The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet, a Pride and Prejudice modernization based on the Lizzie Bennet Diaries vlog. So why didn’t Curtis Sittenfeld’s take on P&P work for me?

For one thing, I do not imagine Jane and Lizzie Bennet as pushing 40 years old when the story opens. I believe it would be possible to successfully reimagine Austen’s original with a slightly older, yet still young, Jane and LIzzie. (Example: The Lizzie Bennet Diaries) The modern Lizzie of my imagination would not be gullible enough to carry a torch for a man like Jasper Wick (Wickham) for 16 years, nor would she carry on an affair with him after he had married someone else. The modern Lizzie of my imagination would not proposition Darcy for “hate sex”, nor would she get drunk and make a fool of herself in a crowd while being filmed for reality television. (Kitty and Lydia, yes. Lizzie, definitely not.) Sittenfeld substitutes political correctness for Regency etiquette, and feminism trumps romance. I can think of no other explanation for giving the self-satisfied and resolutely single Mary Bennet the last word.

This novel will be enjoyed to the extent that Sittenfeld’s fans and Austen’s fans overlap. Other readers may find it more disappointing than entertaining.

This review is based on an electronic advance reader’s copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

1.5 stars

The Sound of Music #4: Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler

Ira Wagler was the ninth of eleven children in an Old Order Amish family. Wagler shares memories of his childhood in Canada, and recalls the growing restlessness of his teenage years in Iowa. Wagler was one of several teenage boys who left the Iowa Amish settlement for life among the English. This was the beginning of a decade of departures from and returns to the Amish fold. Wagler chafed under the strict rule of life presided over by the Amish bishops. When he was away from home, he missed his family and friends, but every time he determined to give it another try, it wasn't long before he again grew restless and left.

Wagler's memoir stalls in a detailed description of a cycle of departures and returns. He might have maintained the momentum of the earlier part of his memoir by writing of his goings and comings collectively rather than serially, and selecting a few significant episodes to illustrate that period of his life.

Wagler wrestled with the guilt of disappointing his family and friends, and with his inability to do what was required to maintain his membership in the Amish Church despite his belief that it was the only path to salvation. Wagler seems to expect that the way in which his internal conflict was resolved will surprise his readers, but it's actually a familiar story. Wagler discovered a personal relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer and Bible reading. He left the Amish church for good and joined a Mennonite church, as many Amish people have done before and since.

2.5 stars

Next up in audio: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

I Have Confidence #5: The Journals of Susanna Moodie by Margaret Atwood

Susanna Moodie was a real woman who emigrated to Canada in the 19th century and settled in a rural, undeveloped part of Ontario. Moodie wrote books about her experience as a settler. Atwood's series of linked poems are inspired by Moodie's books, particularly by the undercurrent of emotion that seems to contradict Moodie's words. Atwood's poetry reveals the hardships and loneliness of a woman's life on the frontier. It's accessible to readers who rarely read poetry, and it will appeal to poetry lovers.

4 stars

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #5: Emma, Volume 1 by Kaoru Mori

Emma is a romance novel with a Victorian London housemaid as its protagonist. In the first volume, Emma is working for a widowed former governess who receives an unexpected and long-overdue visit from one of her former charges, William Jones. The young man is smitten by Emma, but their difference in class doesn't provide him with many opportunities to see her. Then there's the problem of William's father, who has a suitable match already picked out for William.

This was my first experience with manga. I love historical fiction, and particularly fiction set in England, so this series seemed like a good fit for me. I love the detail in the drawings, which are clear and expressive. I didn't notice any problems with the English translation. I knew that I needed to read this volume from back to front (from my perspective) and left to right, but I was never quite sure what was the right order for reading the panels when two shorter images are stacked to the right of a longer image on the left. I turned the last page to find a diagram illustrating the order in which a page should be read. It was placed there for first-time readers who are used to reading from left to right. It would have been more useful to me if it was placed at the beginning of the book as well as at the end. Emma's story isn't complete in this volume. It's only the beginning. Emma's story continues in the next several volumes of the series. I don't know if manga on other subjects will appeal to me, but I did like this series debut well enough to seek out the rest of the volumes in order to find out what happens to Emma and William.

4 stars

>218 cbl_tn: Carrie, I had much the same feelings about Emma, Volume 1, the story and artwork were great and I soon got fairly comfortable with the back to front style of the manga. I did plan on continuing on with series but then I got distracted by other graphics like the Fables series. Eventually I will go back to Emma. Another series by the same author is A Bride's Story set in Mongolia. The artwork is breath-taking.

>219 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy! I have already requested the next two volumes of Emma from the library. I will add A Bride's Story to my wishlist. I have friends who live in Mongolia for part of the year, and I've heard a lot about it. I think I'd enjoy manga set there.

Climb Ev'ry Mountain #3: Bury Me Standing by Isabel Fonseca
March GeoCAT

Isabel Fonseca spent several years among the Gypsies in Central and Eastern Europe, observing their way of life and listening to their stories about themselves. It reads like anthropological field work notes, yet apparently Fonseca didn't study anthropology. Wide and thorough reading about Gypsy history and culture combined with several years of personal observation goes a long way in making up any deficiencies in professional training. Fonseca identifies the origins of the Gypsies in India based on her study of the literature on this subject. Linguistic scholars in the 18th century surmised that the Gypsies had originated in India based on the similarity of the Romani language to the Indic languages. Since the publication of Fonseca's book, DNA studies have bolstered this theory of Indian origins

I learned a number of new things about Gypsies and their history from Fonseca's book. I didn't know that Gypsies had been slaves in Romania for centuries. I didn't know the extent to which the Gypsies suffered during the Holocaust. The Nazis began imprisoning them in German concentration camps in 1934. The promise of more interesting facts is what kept me reading this book. It was a more difficult read than I expected. The book seems randomly organized, and there isn't a narrative connection between chapters. It's still a worthwhile read, and its extensive bibliography makes it a useful resource for students.

3.5 stars

My Favorite Things #4: The Cursed Canoe by Frankie Bow
April GeoCAT

I love mysteries set in unusual locations, and I love mysteries set in academia. A mystery that offers both is irresistible to me. Molly Barda is a business professor at a public university in Hawaii. Molly feels guilty when a woman from the Student Retention Office dies while practicing for a Labor Day canoe race. Molly had been wishing her ill just before she collapsed and died, and now she's blaming herself for the woman's death. There were seven people competing for six spots in the paddling crew, and Molly gradually begins to suspect that the seventh person might have had a hand in Kathy Banks's death.

The mystery plot fell a little short for me. I enjoy the challenge of spotting clues and trying to solve the mystery before the fictional detective. In this case, it isn't possible because some information is withheld from the reader. The Hawaiian university setting and Molly and the supporting characters offset my disappointment in the mystery plot. I would have enjoyed reading about Molly and her friends even without a mystery. It was a fun read that had me laughing out loud at several points. I'll be on the lookout for the other books in this series.

This review is based on a complimentary electronic copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

My Favorite Things #5: Divorce Horse by Craig Johnson

This short story finds Wyoming's Sheriff Walt Longmire still recovering from the physical damage he sustained in Hell Is Empty. This time, Walt is called on to find a missing race horse. Since he's short of deputies, he's assisted instead by his best friend, Henry Standing Bear, and his lawyer daughter, Cady, who's still around to keep an eye on her father's recovery and to do some of the planning for her upcoming wedding. The mystery isn't difficult to solve for someone with Walt's knowledge and experience. This leaves plenty of time for entertaining banter between Walt, his daughter, and his best friend. Recommended for fans of the series.

4 stars

>223 cbl_tn: Sometimes the banter is the best part of the story...

>224 VictoriaPL: Yes! I love the running jokes, too, like "the usual" at the cafe.

The Lonely Goatherd #3: As the Crow Flies by Craig Johnson

Walt Longmire and his best friend, Henry Standing Bear, are on the Reservation looking at a potential site for Walt's daughter, Cady's, wedding when they see someone fall to their death. Walt is already way behind schedule with his assigned tasks for Cady's wedding, and a suspicious death isn't going to help. Although Walt is out of his jurisdiction, the new and inexperienced chief of the tribal police grudgingly accepts his help with the investigation. Walt will be in big trouble with Cady if the case isn't wrapped up in plenty of time for the wedding.

I loved the Reservation setting for this series installment. Henry Standing Bear is one of my favorite characters, and I was glad to see so much of him in this book. I love that Walt and Henry know each other so well that they each know that the other has his back without a need for verbal communication. Another of my favorite characters, Lonnie Little Bird, makes an appearance in this book. Um hmm, yes, it is so. I am not a fan of the on-again-off-again romance between Walt and his deputy, Vic Moretti, and I didn't miss her in this one. She spent most of the book at a training seminar in Omaha. Unfortunately, the tribal police chief's vocabulary is almost as colorful as Vic's, so there wasn't a noticeable decrease in profanity in Vic's absence.

I do wish that Craig Johnson would come up with names that aren't so similar. I had a hard time keeping track of Lolo (tribal police chief), Lola (Henry's Thunderbird), and Lena, (Cady's future mother-in-law and Vic's mother).

This book might work alright as a stand-alone, but it would work better if read in order. Walt's personal life is as important as his job, and his relationships with secondary characters develop over the course of the series. There are references to events from the earlier books in the series, although I didn't notice any glaring spoilers.

4.5 stars

I've skipped your 2 reviews of the Johnson books as I'm not up to date with the series. But I'm hoping to catch up soon.

>226 cbl_tn: I had trouble with Lolo and Lola too! Um hmm, yes, it is so. Although this installment didn't rank as high for me, I'm glad we read it together. I think I'm ready for a rest from Absaroka for a little while though.

I haven't heard anything positive about Eligible. The review I read speculated that the author didn't like P&P very much and wrote a sort of parody of it. Sigh. Novels based on Austen's works are increasingly common, but it's difficult to find ones that retain any of the original spirit. I tried one a few weeks ago, but gave up when, during the first meeting between the Lizzie character and the Darcy character, the Lizzie character bursts into tears.

Hope your allergies are dormant as spring kicks into high gear.

>227 dudes22: How far along are you in the series? I try not to include spoilers in my reviews, and if I do, I mark them as spoilers. But like you, if it's a book I know I'm going to read, I avoid the reviews altogether.

>228 VictoriaPL: I'm planning on the next one in June. Will you be ready to continue by then?

>229 RidgewayGirl: The review I read speculated that the author didn't like P&P very much and wrote a sort of parody of it.

I had the same thought and almost mentioned it in my review, but I found an interview with Curtis Sittenfeld where she says she fell in love with P&P when she was 16 (or something to that effect). I decided not to mention it in the review since she claims to love the book. It does seem like she has fallen out of love with it since, though.

Pollen is still high here, but the allergies seem to be under control. I guess my body has adjusted somewhat to the higher levels.

>230 cbl_tn: Maybe. Remind me?

>231 VictoriaPL: OK!

It's been a while since I posted a new photo of Adrian. I wish there wasn't a shadow on his face, but I have a very narrow window of opportunity to take a photo of him. He doesn't stay put for long!

>230 cbl_tn: - Actually, I just started the series, so I've only read book 1 so far. Although I may try to read #2 later this year. I've been thinking of finding a theme for next year that will let me indulge in those series I really want to catch up on. I saw the word "wedding" in the first sentence and skipped the rest of it. it might not be a "spoiler" but it gives me a hint of where things are going. Although it may be nothing more than I'd read on the back of the book. I agonize when I write my impressions of a book in a series, worried I'll give something away inadvertently.

>234 dudes22: I can see that! I'm usually careful not to reveal anything beyond what's in the publisher's summary on the back of the book. I include a plot summary in my reviews for my benefit, so that I can remember what I've read.

>218 cbl_tn:
I read that series a long time ago, but I think I liked it a lot. Reread time, obviously!

>219 DeltaQueen50:
I'll second that - A Bride's Tale is beautiful.

>233 cbl_tn:
Handsome as usual, I see.

>236 -Eva-: Hi Eva! I picked up the next two volumes from the library yesterday. That's all the library system has. I'll have to look at the big used bookstorexin town to see uf I can find the rest. Surely they have a graphic novel and manga section.

The Sound of Music #5: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Don Tillman is a 30-something genetics professor at an Australian university. He also has Asperger syndrome. (It wasn't clear to me if he is aware that he has Aspergers, although he is aware that social perception is a problem for him.) His only friend is Gene, a psychology professor at the same university, and Gene's wife and children. Don believes that it will be almost impossible for him to marry given his social shortcomings, and he seems to have accepted this until he gets the idea for what he calls the Wife Project. He will design a questionnaire that will help him locate a woman who is ideally suited for him. Womanizer Gene takes a great interest in Don's Wife Project and sends him a wild card candidate – a woman who is practically the opposite of Don's ideal partner. Rosie is looking for her biological father. The candidates are limited to her mother's medical school classmates. It isn't long before the Wife Project takes a back seat to the Father Project, and Don is finding more and more excuses to see Rosie again.

This romantic comedy is as much about friendship and relationships as about romance. I listened to the audio version, and the laugh-out-loud scenes made it difficult to listen to in public. There is lots of humor, but it's not at Don's expense. It reminded me of the kind of humor in my favorite TV series, Monk, with its OCD main character. I thought it was easy to assume where the plot was heading, but there was a twist toward the end that took me by surprise. I can easily imagine this as a film, so it's not surprising that the film rights have already been optioned.

4 stars

Next up in audio: Rose Under fire by Elizabeth Wein

Hee hee, your audiobook titles are thematically linked! The Rosie Project and Rose Under Fire! :)

>239 rabbitprincess: I noticed that! I'll have to see if I can find another Rose book. Or maybe Doctor Thorne? :-)

I have The Rosie Project on my shelf; must get to it!

>233 cbl_tn: Awww! Cute!

>241 tymfos: I'm so glad it was available when I was looking for something for Autism April!

It's hard to take a bad picture of Adrian unless he's moving. My guest dog, Stella, is very hard to photograph because she's completely black. She doesn't even have whites in her eyes. Most of the time she looks like a black blob, if you can even see her at all.

>242 cbl_tn: My friend had the same problem with her Scottie. The poor thing just would not photograph well.

>243 VictoriaPL: I feel bad that I haven't sent my friend any dog photos this week. She always sends a picture or two of Adrian while I'm away. I just can't get a good photo of Stella with the lighting in my house, and my hands are too full to take pictures when I take the dogs outside.

Something Good #4: The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami

Sripathi Rao lives in the house in which he was born in a coastal Indian town. The house used to be grand, but it has deteriorated due to time and lack of money for keeping up such a large house. Sripathi supports his wife, his elderly mother, his spinster sister, and his twenty-something son, who prefers activism to gainful employment. He never mentions his daughter, Maya, who lives in Canada with her husband and daughter. He shut Maya out of his life when she chose to marry a Canadian man she met while studying at a Canadian university. Then a phone call changes everything. Maya and her husband have died in an accident, leaving their 7-year-old daughter, Nanadana, an orphan. Maya's husband had no family, so Sripathi makes a journey to Canada to bring Nandana back to India. Grief takes a toll on each member of the family. Can they hold on to what they still have, or will grief drive them even further apart?

This novel reminds me of Anne Tyler's work. The author takes an ordinary family and looks at the impact of a major event on each member of the family and the changes in the family dynamic. It's not a demanding book, but it's not necessarily a quick read, either. The combination of strong characters and a vivid sense of place make this a book that will stick with me for some time.

4 stars

>245 cbl_tn: That sounds good. I'll keep an eye out for a copy. Good review!

>246 RidgewayGirl: Thanks! I really liked that one, and I'll have an eye out for more of her books.

Sixteen Going on Seventeen#6: Emma, Volume 2 by Kaoru Mori

The second volume of Emma sees Emma's circumstances drastically changed by the end. William Jones still has feelings for Emma, but his family is actively trying to keep them apart. William's father wants William to marry Eleanor, a young woman of their class. Emma is ready to accept that their class difference will keep them apart, but William hasn't quite given up. I'll have to continue with the series to find out if William will find a way to see Emma again.

The second volume in this series wasn't quite as enjoyable as the first volume. The art work is similar to the first volume so there were no surprises there. The new characters introduced in this volume, William's siblings, are all unlikeable. I'll read volume three since it's available from the public library. Then I'll have to decide whether to stop there or purchase the subsequent volumes to continue Emma's story.

3.5 stars

>245 cbl_tn: This sounds very interesting, it goes on my BB list.

>249 Chrischi_HH: I'm glad to have discovered this author. My public library has one more of her books, so I'll read it at some point. I'll have to start looking at book sales for the rest.

I Have Confidence #6: Pollution and the Death of Man by Francis A. Schaeffer
RandomCAT

Francis A. Schaeffer was a theologian and apologist whose works addressed worldview and the problems of civilization. This book is a response to articles published in 1967, one by Lynn White, Jr. and one by Richard L. Means. Schaeffer counters White's suggestion that Christianity is the cause of the world's environmental problems, and Means's proposal of pantheism as a solution to environmental problems.

Schaeffer cautions Christians to avoid a Platonic dichotomy, where nature is valued only as a proof of the existence of God. He concedes that White is correct when “he looks back over the history of Christianity and sees that there is too much Platonic thinking in Christianity where nature is concerned.”

Schaeffer concludes that a biblical view of nature is the answer for environmental problems:

On the basis of the fact that there is going to be total redemption in the future, not only of man but of all creation, the Christian who believes the Bible should be the man who—with God's help and the power of the Holy Spirit—is treating nature now in the direction of the way nature will be then. It will not now be perfect, but there should be something substantial or we have missed our calling. God's calling to the Christian now, and to the Christian community in the area of nature...is that we should exhibit a substantial healing here and now, between man and nature and nature itself, as far as Christians can bring it to pass.

3.5 stars

Something Good #5 A Few Figs from Thistles by Edna St. Vincent Millay (Pulitzer)

This is one of the collections that earned a Pulitzer for Millay. The poems are infused with the passion of youth. They express a sense of restlessness, and a desire to live a life more full than the average woman's of her day. Whether or not it's what Millay intended, the message I took from these poems is “carpe diem.”

4 stars

The Sound of Music #6: Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

At 18 years old, American Rose Justice is one of the youngest pilots in the Air Transport Auxiliary, ferrying planes from one point to another. She longs to fly to France, but the female pilots aren't being sent there. Rose finally gets her chance, but the result isn't what she expected. Rose is captured and sent to the Ravensbruck concentration camp, where she meets the “Rabbits” - Polish political prisoners who were used in medical experiments by Nazi doctors. Rose becomes especially close to the youngest Rabbit, Roza.

I was happy that I happened to listen to this book during National Poetry Month. Rose is a poet, and there are poems throughout the novel. Poetry was a comfort to Rose during her imprisonment, and she recited poems to entertain, encourage, and comfort her fellow prisoners. Some are Rose's poems, and others are poems she had memorized. Edna St. Vincent Millay is Rose's favorite poet, and listening to this book inspired me to locate and read one of Millay's collections.

Rose's story is told in three parts. The middle section in the Ravensbruck concentration camp is the most compelling. The ending seemed anticlimactic. I listened to the audio version. The reader did an excellent job with the Polish, Russian, German, and French accents. Rose's American accent wasn't nearly as expressive. The audio production of the middle part of the book makes it a worthwhile listen. Rose Under Fire doesn't have as much dramatic tension as its predecessor, Code Name Verity. There is never any doubt that Rose has survived her ordeal in Ravensbruck. I will likely re-read Code Name Verity at some point. I probably won't read this one again.

4 stars

Next up in audio: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Climb Ev'ry Mountain #4: The Orchid House by Phyllis Shand Allfrey (Dominica)

This autobiographical novel is set during the decline of the colonial era on an unnamed Caribbean island which, if it isn't Dominica, is modeled on it. The story is mostly narrated by an English-speaking (as opposed to French-speaking) black nurse, Lally. She is called out of retirement to care for the sons of two of the three daughters she had nursed for the family when they were children. Life changed for the family after the World War I. The Master, when he finally returned, was suffering from what would today be called post-traumatic stress, from which he never recovered. The three daughters left the island when they reached adulthood. Years later, they're all returning. First comes Stella and her son, with her romantic/nostalgic bent. Then Joan with her son, bent on organizing the island's black laborers. Finally the wealthy widow, Natalie, arrives. Each daughter tries to save what's left of the family in her own way.

Although Allfrey descended from the white colonial ruling class, her sympathies were with the black laborers. Her life was much like that of the novel's middle daughter, Joan. Allfrey's novel depicts the shifting balance of power between the downwardly mobile European colonial rulers, the upwardly mobile mixed race population, the black population still stuck at the bottom, and the Catholic Church.

4 stars

Sixteen Going on Seventeen #7: Emma, Volume 3 by Kaoru Mori

Volume 3 of Emma takes the young maid out of London to a new position in Yorkshire. Meanwhile, William Jones is (somewhat unsuccessfully) trying to forget Emma by throwing himself into society to please his family. So far each volume in this series has concluded with a short afterword by the artist (in graphic form, naturally!). In this volume, Mori responds to some questions from readers about volumes 1 and 2. I thought this volume was a bit slow and somewhat disconnected. Mori must have realized that at least some readers are looking for a little more action. She explains that she was still introducing major characters in this volume. She promises more plot development in the next volume now that all of the characters are in place. My local library system doesn't have volume 4, and I don't think I'm enjoying the series enough to pay full price for the rest of the series. I'll have to look for the rest at used book sales.

3 stars

April Recap

The Sound of Music - Audiobooks – 6/6
*Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler (2.5)
*The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (4)
*Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein (4)

Maria - Books by women authors – 5/6
Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (1.5)

I Have Confidence - Challenge reads – 6/6
The Journals of Susanna Moodie by Margaret Atwood (4) (Canadian authors challenge)
Pollution and the Death of Man by Francis A. Schaeffer (3.5) (Non-fiction challenge)

Sixteen Going on Seventeen - YA/children’s books – 7/6
Emma, Volume 1 by Kaoru Mori (4)
Emma, Volume 2 by Kaoru Mori (3.5)
Emma, Volume 3 by Kaoru Mori (3)

My Favorite Things - Mysteries – 5/6
The Cursed Canoe by Frankie Bow (3.5)
Divorce Horse by Craig Johnson (4)

Climb Ev’ry Mountain - Books for the GeoCAT – 4/6
Bury Me Standing by Isabel Fonseca (3.5)
The Orchid House by Phyllis Shand Allfrey (4)

The Lonely Goatherd - Group/shared reads – 3/6
As the Crow Flies by Craig Johnson (4.5)

Do-Re-Mi - Books for the DeweyCAT – 3/6

Something Good - Award winning (or nominated) books – 5/6
The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami (4)
A Few Figs from Thistles by Edna St. Vincent Millay (4)

Edelweiss - Local/regional/national history – 1/6

So Long, Farewell - Books from my TBR stash – 2/6

*Audiobooks

Best of the month: As the Crow Flies by Craig Johnson
Worst of the month: Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

Physical books owned: 1
Physical books borrowed: 7
Ebooks owned: 2
Ebooks borrowed: 3
Audiobooks owned: 1
Audiobooks borrowed: 2

Looks like you've had a good month overall! Only a couple of really bad ones.

>257 rabbitprincess: Yes, it was a pretty good reding month! My plans were too ambitious, though, and I didn't finish several books I would have liked to read.

Something Good #6: The House by the Lake by Thomas Harding

Author Thomas Harding is the grandson of a German Jewish woman whose family left Germany in the 1930s and established homes and lives in England. His grandmother, Elsie, never forgot the vacation house that her father built by Groß Glienicke lake on Berlin's western outskirts. The family spent several happy summers there before the ever-increasing restrictions and pressures on Germany's Jews caused them to leave Germany. Several years before her death, Elsie took her grandchildren to Germany to see the house that her father had built. Two decades later, Harding returned to find the house in disrepair and in danger of being torn down for a redevelopment project. Harding set out to see if there might be a way to save the house. In the process, he researched the history of the land, the house, and all of the families that had lived in the house. The history encompasses the entire 20th century, including landmark events such as the Nazi era, the post-World War II denazification process, the Russian administration of East Germany, the construction of the Berlin Wall between the house and the lake, the East German Stasi and its monitoring and control of East Germans, and the eventual fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany. While there is an undercurrent of sadness and loss throughout the book, ultimately it's a story of reconciliation and hope. Highly recommended for readers with an interest in the history of Germany's Jews leading up to the Holocaust, the history of Berlin, the border regions in the Cold War era, and the reunification of Germany.

This review is based on an electronic advance reader's copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

5 stars

>259 cbl_tn: Ooh that's another BB for me!

>260 Jackie_K: You might be able to find it in a local library. Lots of libraries are likely to have it since it made the Costa shortlist for the biography category. The U.S. readers will have to be patient a little longer. It's not due to be released until July here.

Climb Ev'ry Mountain #5: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
GeoCAT

One night in Toronto, aging actor Arthur Leander has an attack on stage and dies during a performance of King Lear. Several participants in this event, as well as Arthur Leander's friends and relations, are affected in unexpected ways. The course of the novel spans about fifty years, shifting back and forth from Arthur's youth, to the present, to the near future when civilization as we know it has ceased to exist as the result of a devastating pandemic.

There were times as I listened to the audio that I was so caught up in the description of the post-civilization world that my own environment seemed slightly unreal. A doomsday cult in a post-apocalyptic world isn't surprising. What is surprising is that it's only one of several linked stories in the book. The Traveling Symphony is a reminder of what has been lost, but also a symbol of aspiration as civilization is rebuilt. The book isn't quite perfect. One of the story lines fizzles out well before the end of the novel, and another story line isn't developed quite enough. I would have preferred the book without Jeevan's story line and with more background about the Prophet and how his cult was formed. This book lends itself to conversation and discussion, and it would make a great book group selection.

4.5 stars

Next up in audio: Oedipus the King by Sophocles

So Long Farewell #3: Work Song by Ivan Doig
GeoCAT

When readers last saw Morrie Morgan, he was teaching in a one-room school in Marias Coulee, Montana. A decade later he's back in Montana, this time in the mining town of Butte, home of the Richest Hill on Earth. He aims to try his luck as a bookkeeper. Fortunately, he's flexible. After a short stint as a cryer, he lands a job at Butte's public library. Tension is high between the Anaconda mine executives, the local union, and both sides fear the incursion of the radical Industrial Workers of the World (Wobblies). As a newcomer, Morrie finds himself under suspicion and must walk a fine line. He's helped by the advice of his widowed landlady and his fellow boarders, two retired Welsh miners. This book isn't as weighty as The Whistling Season. The eccentric characters and the somewhat absurd situations make it a fun, light comedy that will appeal to many cozy readers.

3.5 stars

Hi Carrie, I didn't click on the spoiler, but I was very happy to see that you gave Station Eleven such a high rating as I will be starting it soon.

I loved the two books I have read by Ivan Doig, The Whistling Season and The Sea Runners so I really need to pick up some more books by this author. Work Song sounds like a good one!

I've added The House By the Lake to my wishlist. Good review!

>264 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy! I liked Work Song, but I loved The Whistling Season. Start with that one! I think you will like it.

>265 RidgewayGirl: I think The House by the Lake will interest anyone who has been to Berlin. I'm thinking about giving a cooy to my brother for Christmas.

>259 cbl_tn: Sounds interesting!

>267 VictoriaPL: I think it's one you might like.

The Sound of Music #7: Oedipus the King by Sophocles

An oracle tells Oedipus that he will murder his father and marry his mother, so he flees Corinth, vowing never to return, to avoid his fate. King Laius of Thebes is told by an oracle that he will be killed by his son, so he arranges to have his son killed shortly after his birth. You know where this is going, right? The point seems to be that you can't avoid fate. The gods are either controlling human action, or at least omniscient about the future. The Naxos audio production is very good, although I was thrown by the pronunciation of Creon as “crayon”. I kept imagining a box of Crayolas. I think P.D.Q. Bach missed an opportunity when he wrote the lyrics for “Oedipus Tex.”

4 stars

Next up in audio: The Siamese Twin Mystery by Ellery Queen