inge87's Books of 2016, Part II: May Has Come at Last!
This is a continuation of the topic inge87's Books of 2016: To Every Read There is a Season.
This topic was continued by inge87's Books of 2016, Part III: Nothing Gold Can Stay.
Talk 75 Books Challenge for 2016
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1inge87
It's May, which means it's time for a new thread! In keeping with the Spring theme, here is "Here we are gathering nuts in May" by Elizabeth Adela Forbes. I don't know about nuts, but it is almost berry season. And here on my thread, every season is book season: so let's go!
3inge87
Books Read in October
228. Fashioning the Body: An Intimate History of the Silhouette by Denis Bruna (Ed.)+ (4)
229. A Deadly Thaw by Sarah Ward (4)
230. Hope for the World: To Unite All Things in Christ by Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke (4)
231. Serafina and the Twisted Staff by Robert Beatty (4)
232. An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis (3)
233. Daniel Deronda by George Eliot (3)
234. Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Book 1 by Clamp (2)
235. For the Glory: Eric Liddell's Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr by Duncan Hamilton (4)
236. Evelyn Waugh: Portrait of a Country Neighbor by Frances Donaldson (3)
237. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger (4)
238. Fame and Fortune by Horatio Alger (3)
239. Mark, the Match Boy by Horatio Alger (3)
240. Rough and Ready by Horatio Alger (3)
241. Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Yu (3)
242. Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond by Richard Jenkyns (4)
243. The Frogs by Aristophanes (3)
244. A Promise is for Ever by Denise Robins (3)
245. Serpents in Eden: Countryside Crimes by Martin Edwards (Ed.) (3)
246. The Victorian Age in Literature by G. K. Chesterton (3)
247. The Sparrow in Hiding by J. Kathleen Cheney (3)
248. Positively Medieval: The Surprising, Dynamic, Heroic Church of the Middle Ages by Jamie Blosser (3)
249. Of Bells and Cells: The World of Monks, Friars, Sisters and Nuns by M. Cristina Borges (5)
250. Shakespeare the Papist by Peter Milward, SJ (3)
Monthly Total = 23 Books Read
* = re-read
+ = owned and unread for at least a year (Mt. TBR)
^ = foreign language book
1 star = Did trees really have to die for this?
2 stars = Almost a good book
3 stars = A solid, good book
4 stars = A very good book
5 stars = An amazingly good book
228. Fashioning the Body: An Intimate History of the Silhouette by Denis Bruna (Ed.)+ (4)
229. A Deadly Thaw by Sarah Ward (4)
230. Hope for the World: To Unite All Things in Christ by Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke (4)
231. Serafina and the Twisted Staff by Robert Beatty (4)
232. An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis (3)
233. Daniel Deronda by George Eliot (3)
234. Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Book 1 by Clamp (2)
235. For the Glory: Eric Liddell's Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr by Duncan Hamilton (4)
236. Evelyn Waugh: Portrait of a Country Neighbor by Frances Donaldson (3)
237. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger (4)
238. Fame and Fortune by Horatio Alger (3)
239. Mark, the Match Boy by Horatio Alger (3)
240. Rough and Ready by Horatio Alger (3)
241. Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Yu (3)
242. Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond by Richard Jenkyns (4)
243. The Frogs by Aristophanes (3)
244. A Promise is for Ever by Denise Robins (3)
245. Serpents in Eden: Countryside Crimes by Martin Edwards (Ed.) (3)
246. The Victorian Age in Literature by G. K. Chesterton (3)
247. The Sparrow in Hiding by J. Kathleen Cheney (3)
248. Positively Medieval: The Surprising, Dynamic, Heroic Church of the Middle Ages by Jamie Blosser (3)
249. Of Bells and Cells: The World of Monks, Friars, Sisters and Nuns by M. Cristina Borges (5)
250. Shakespeare the Papist by Peter Milward, SJ (3)
Monthly Total = 23 Books Read
* = re-read
+ = owned and unread for at least a year (Mt. TBR)
^ = foreign language book
1 star = Did trees really have to die for this?
2 stars = Almost a good book
3 stars = A solid, good book
4 stars = A very good book
5 stars = An amazingly good book
4inge87
Books Read in January
1. Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice by Eva K. Betz (4)
2. Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 by Kiiro Yumi (3)
3. Girl in Dior by Annie Goetzinger (2)
4. The Pied Piper of Peru by Ann Tompert (2)
5. Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert by Gary D. Schmidt (5)
6. The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart (3)
7. Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, Jr. (4)
8. Murder by Candlelight: The Gruesome Slayings Behind Our Romance with the Macabre by Michael Knox Beran (4)
9. Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin (3)
10. Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions: Modern Martyrs of the Ukrainian Catholic Church by John Sianchuk (3)
11. Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews (3)
12. B is for Bear: A Natural Alphabet by Hannah Viano (3)
13. Americanine: A Haute Dog in New York by Yann Kebbi (4)
14. Friction by Sandra Brown (3)
15. Wickedly Dangerous by Deborah Blake (3)
16. Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books by Aaron Lansky (3)
17. Survival by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
18. The Reign of Christ the King by Michael Davies (3)
19. Migration by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
20. Marked for Death: Islam's War Against the West and Me by Geert Wilders (3)
21. Saint Nicholas and the Nine Gold Coins by Jim Forest (4)
22. Quick Curtain by Alan Melville (3)
23. The Easter Chick by Geraldine Elschner (3)
24. Regeneration by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
25. The Nativity by Géraldine Elschner (3)
26. The Gentle Traditionalist: A Catholic Fairy-Tale from Ireland by Roger Buck (4)
Monthly Total = 26 Books Read
Books Read in February
27. The Comic Book Story of Beer: The World's Favorite Beverage from 7000 BC to Today's Craft Brewing Revolution by Jonathan Hennessey, Mike Smith, & Aaron McConnell (3)
28. Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics Is Fueling Our Modern Plagues by Martin J. Blaser (4)
29. Jackaby by William Ritter (3)
30. Beastly Bones by William Ritter (3)
31. The Story of Life in 25 Fossils: Tales of Intrepid Fossil Hunters and the Wonders of Evolution by Donald R. Prothero (3)
32. An Alphabet of Saints by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
33. A Story Of St. John Vianney by Brother Ernest, C.S.C. (3)
34. Corpus Christi: Holy Communion and the Renewal of the Church by Athanasius Schneider (3)
35. Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattick (5)
36. Dreaming Death by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
37. The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon (3)
38. Saints for Girls: A First Book for Little Catholic Girls by Susan Weaver et al. (4)
39. Winterwood by Jacey Bedford (3)
40. I Sing a Song of the Saints of God by Lesbia Scott (4)
41. Wild Hearts by Sharon Sala (3)
42. Cold Hearts by Sharon Sala (3)
43. The Miracle of Saint Nicholas by Gloria Whelan (4)
44. Joseph and Chico: The Life of Pope Benedict XVI as Told by a Cat by Jeanne Perego (3)
45. A Bride's Story, Volume 2 by Kaoru Mori (4)
46. Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg (4)
47. Deep in the Valley by Robyn Carr (3)
48. Just over the Mountain by Robyn Carr (3)
49. Down by the River by Robyn Carr (2)
50. The Ghost of Flight 401 by John G. Fuller (3)
51. Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov+^ (3)
Monthly Total = 25 Books Read
Books Read in March
52. Thee, Hannah! by Marguerite De Angeli (3)
53. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming (4)
54. I'm in Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor (3)
55. A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming (3)
56. Out of the Deep I Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming (5)
57. A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays by Tasha Tudor (3)
58. Demeter and Persephone: Homeric Hymn Number Two by Homer & Penelope Proddow (4)
59. The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity by Taylor Marshall (3)
60. Thirteen Guests by J. Jefferson Farjeon (4)
61. Resurrection Science: Conservation, De-Extinction and the Precarious Future of Wild Things by M. R. O'Connor (3)
62. Winter at the Door by Sarah Graves (3)
63. The Glass Sentence by S. E. Grove (3)
64. The Girls She Left Behind by Sarah Graves (3)
65. The White Stag by Kate Seredy (2)
66. Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty (5)
67. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (4)
68. Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs (3)
69. You by Fulton Sheen (4)
70. Laurus by Eugene Vodolazkin (4)
71. Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs (3)
72. Conversation with Christ: The Teaching of St. Teresa of Avila about Personal Prayer by Peter Thomas Rohrbach (4)
73. The Golden Specific by S. E. Grove (3)
74. Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs (3)
75. Friends of God: Homilies by Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer (3)
76. Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs (3)
77. Mit brennender Sorge by Pope Pius XI^ (4)
78. Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
79. Saint Germaine and the Sheep by Eva K. Betz (3)
80. Saint Athanasius by F. A. Forbes (3)
81. On Pascha by Melito of Sardis+ (4)
82. St. Margaret Clitherow by Margaret T. Monro (3)
83. A Short History of the Roman Mass by Michael Davies (3)
84. The Seven Last Words by Fulton Sheen (3)
85. The Sadness of Christ by St. Thomas More+ (3)
86. Elijah in Jerusalem by Michael O'Brien (3)
87. Saint Pius V by Robin Anderson (4)
88. The House of Gold: Lenten Sermons by Bede Jarrett, OP (5)
89. Easter: The Passion and Resurrection by Géraldine Elschner (4)
90. The Dawn of All by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
91. The Egg Tree by Katherine Milhous (3)
92. The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine by Serhii Plokhy (5)
93. Interior Freedom by Jacques Philippe (4)
Monthly Total = 42 Books Read
1. Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice by Eva K. Betz (4)
2. Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 by Kiiro Yumi (3)
3. Girl in Dior by Annie Goetzinger (2)
4. The Pied Piper of Peru by Ann Tompert (2)
5. Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert by Gary D. Schmidt (5)
6. The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart (3)
7. Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, Jr. (4)
8. Murder by Candlelight: The Gruesome Slayings Behind Our Romance with the Macabre by Michael Knox Beran (4)
9. Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin (3)
10. Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions: Modern Martyrs of the Ukrainian Catholic Church by John Sianchuk (3)
11. Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews (3)
12. B is for Bear: A Natural Alphabet by Hannah Viano (3)
13. Americanine: A Haute Dog in New York by Yann Kebbi (4)
14. Friction by Sandra Brown (3)
15. Wickedly Dangerous by Deborah Blake (3)
16. Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books by Aaron Lansky (3)
17. Survival by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
18. The Reign of Christ the King by Michael Davies (3)
19. Migration by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
20. Marked for Death: Islam's War Against the West and Me by Geert Wilders (3)
21. Saint Nicholas and the Nine Gold Coins by Jim Forest (4)
22. Quick Curtain by Alan Melville (3)
23. The Easter Chick by Geraldine Elschner (3)
24. Regeneration by Julie E. Czerneda+ (4)
25. The Nativity by Géraldine Elschner (3)
26. The Gentle Traditionalist: A Catholic Fairy-Tale from Ireland by Roger Buck (4)
Monthly Total = 26 Books Read
Books Read in February
27. The Comic Book Story of Beer: The World's Favorite Beverage from 7000 BC to Today's Craft Brewing Revolution by Jonathan Hennessey, Mike Smith, & Aaron McConnell (3)
28. Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics Is Fueling Our Modern Plagues by Martin J. Blaser (4)
29. Jackaby by William Ritter (3)
30. Beastly Bones by William Ritter (3)
31. The Story of Life in 25 Fossils: Tales of Intrepid Fossil Hunters and the Wonders of Evolution by Donald R. Prothero (3)
32. An Alphabet of Saints by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
33. A Story Of St. John Vianney by Brother Ernest, C.S.C. (3)
34. Corpus Christi: Holy Communion and the Renewal of the Church by Athanasius Schneider (3)
35. Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattick (5)
36. Dreaming Death by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
37. The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon (3)
38. Saints for Girls: A First Book for Little Catholic Girls by Susan Weaver et al. (4)
39. Winterwood by Jacey Bedford (3)
40. I Sing a Song of the Saints of God by Lesbia Scott (4)
41. Wild Hearts by Sharon Sala (3)
42. Cold Hearts by Sharon Sala (3)
43. The Miracle of Saint Nicholas by Gloria Whelan (4)
44. Joseph and Chico: The Life of Pope Benedict XVI as Told by a Cat by Jeanne Perego (3)
45. A Bride's Story, Volume 2 by Kaoru Mori (4)
46. Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg (4)
47. Deep in the Valley by Robyn Carr (3)
48. Just over the Mountain by Robyn Carr (3)
49. Down by the River by Robyn Carr (2)
50. The Ghost of Flight 401 by John G. Fuller (3)
51. Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov+^ (3)
Monthly Total = 25 Books Read
Books Read in March
52. Thee, Hannah! by Marguerite De Angeli (3)
53. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming (4)
54. I'm in Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor (3)
55. A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming (3)
56. Out of the Deep I Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming (5)
57. A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays by Tasha Tudor (3)
58. Demeter and Persephone: Homeric Hymn Number Two by Homer & Penelope Proddow (4)
59. The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity by Taylor Marshall (3)
60. Thirteen Guests by J. Jefferson Farjeon (4)
61. Resurrection Science: Conservation, De-Extinction and the Precarious Future of Wild Things by M. R. O'Connor (3)
62. Winter at the Door by Sarah Graves (3)
63. The Glass Sentence by S. E. Grove (3)
64. The Girls She Left Behind by Sarah Graves (3)
65. The White Stag by Kate Seredy (2)
66. Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty (5)
67. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (4)
68. Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs (3)
69. You by Fulton Sheen (4)
70. Laurus by Eugene Vodolazkin (4)
71. Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs (3)
72. Conversation with Christ: The Teaching of St. Teresa of Avila about Personal Prayer by Peter Thomas Rohrbach (4)
73. The Golden Specific by S. E. Grove (3)
74. Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs (3)
75. Friends of God: Homilies by Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer (3)
76. Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs (3)
77. Mit brennender Sorge by Pope Pius XI^ (4)
78. Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
79. Saint Germaine and the Sheep by Eva K. Betz (3)
80. Saint Athanasius by F. A. Forbes (3)
81. On Pascha by Melito of Sardis+ (4)
82. St. Margaret Clitherow by Margaret T. Monro (3)
83. A Short History of the Roman Mass by Michael Davies (3)
84. The Seven Last Words by Fulton Sheen (3)
85. The Sadness of Christ by St. Thomas More+ (3)
86. Elijah in Jerusalem by Michael O'Brien (3)
87. Saint Pius V by Robin Anderson (4)
88. The House of Gold: Lenten Sermons by Bede Jarrett, OP (5)
89. Easter: The Passion and Resurrection by Géraldine Elschner (4)
90. The Dawn of All by Robert Hugh Benson (4)
91. The Egg Tree by Katherine Milhous (3)
92. The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine by Serhii Plokhy (5)
93. Interior Freedom by Jacques Philippe (4)
Monthly Total = 42 Books Read
5inge87
Books Read in April
94. The Blue Whale by Jenni Desmond (4)
95. S is for Salmon: A Pacific Northwest Alphabet by Hannah Viano (3)
96. The Big Thicket: A Challenge for Conservation by Pete Gunter (4)
97. Shackleton's Journey by William Grill (3)
98. Mesa of Sorrows: A History of the Awat'ovi Massacre by James F. Brooks (4)
99. River Marked by Patricia Briggs (2)
100. Karl I: The Emperor of Peace by Marcel Uderzo & Marc Bourgne (5)
101. I Want to Get Married!: One Wannabe Bride's Misadventures with Handsome Houdinis, Technicolor Grooms, Morality Police, and Other Mr. Not Quite Rights by Ghada Abdel Aal (3)
102. Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair (4)
103. A Procession of Saints by James Brodrick, SJ (4)
104. Wandering Whale Sharks by Susumu Shingu (4)
105. Mother Elisabeth: The Resurgence of the Order of Saint Birgitta by Marguerite Tjader (2)
106. Peacock Pie: A Book of Rhymes by Walter de la Mare (4)
107. Books Make A Home: Elegant Ideas for Storing and Displaying Books by Damian Thompson (3)
108. Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California's Farallon Islands by Katherine Roy (4)
109. Last Poems by A. E. Houseman (4)
110. When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne (3)
111. Where the Wild Things Were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanishing Predators by William Stolzenburg (4)
112. California Condors in the Pacific Northwest by Jesse D'Elia & Susan M. Haig (3)
113. Locally Laid: How We Built a Plucky, Industry-changing Egg Farm from Scratch by Lucie B. Amundsen (3)
114. How to Converse with God by St. Alphonsus Liguori (4)
115. Now We are Six by A. A. Milne (3)
116. Perelandra by C. S. Lewis (3)
117. Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey (3)
118. Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb (4)
119. Saint Colum and the Crane by Eva K. Betz (3)
120. The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown+ (3)
121. Honey from a Weed: Fasting and Feasting in Tuscany, Catalonia, the Cyclades and Apulia by Patience Gray (4)
Monthly Total = 28 Books Read
Books Read in May
122. Strangers Below: Primitive Baptists and American Culture by Joshua Guthman (3)
123. The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis (4)
124. Song of the Swallows by Leo Politti (4)
125. The Divine Romance by Fulton Sheen (3)
126. Blessed Miguel Pro: 20th-Century Mexican Martyr by Ann Ball (3)
127. C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium: Six Essays on the Abolition of Man by Peter Kreeft (4)
128. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs (3)
129. Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People by Elizabeth A. Fenn (4)
130. The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy M. Boston (3)
131. Humanist Educational Treatises by Craig W. Kallendorf (ed.) (4)
132. Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay (3)
133. The Walled Garden: Poems by Andrew Thornton-Norris (2)
134. Essays Ancient and Modern by T. S. Eliot (4)
135. Pretty-shield: Medicine Woman of the Crows by Frank B. Linderman+ (4)
136. The Paradise Project by Suzie Andres (3)
137. The Lady in the Blue Cloak: Legends from the Texas Missions by Eric A. Kimmel & Susan Guevara (3)
138. Mexican Martyrdom: Firsthand Accounts of the Religious Persecution in Mexico 1926-1935 by Wilfrid Parsons (4)
139. South Toward Home: Travels in Southern Literature by Margaret Eby (3)
140. Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers* (5)
141. Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
142. Homeschool: An American History by Milton Gaither (3)
143. Dangerous Neighbors: Volcanoes and Cities by Grant Heiken (3)
144. The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem "Pangur Bán" by Jo Ellen Bogart & Sydney Smith (3)
145. A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins & Sophie Blackall (5)
146. Robbery Under Law by Evelyn Waugh (3)
147. Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous+ (4)
148. Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
149. The Seasons: A Celebration of the English Year by Nick Groom (4)
150. Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb by May Hollis Barton* (3)
Monthly Total = 29 Books Read
Books Read in June
151. The Quest for Shakespeare by Joseph Pearce (4)
152. Vom heiligen Bonifatius den Kindern erzählt by Georg Schwikart^ (4)
153. The 100 Dresses by Eleanor Estes (4)
154. The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare (3)
155. Cosmas, or the Love of God by Pierre de Calan* (4)
156. Viking Legacy: Scandinavian Influence on the English Language by John Geipel (3)
157. First Catiline Oration by Cicero^ (4)
158. The Curé of Ars: Patron Saint of Parish Priests by Fr. Bartholomew J. O'Brien (4)
159. Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin by Nicholas Ostler+ (3)
160. The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, & Edmund Wiener* (4)
161. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien* (4)
162. Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass (4)
163. The Silver Bough by Lisa Tuttle (2)
164. The Devil Knows Latin: Why America Needs the Classical Tradition by E. Christian Kopff+ (3)
165. Pastoral by Nevil Shute (4)
166. The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer* (4)
167. Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer* (4)
168. The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories by Marjorie Barnard* (3)
169. The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer* (4)
Monthly Total = 19 Books Read
94. The Blue Whale by Jenni Desmond (4)
95. S is for Salmon: A Pacific Northwest Alphabet by Hannah Viano (3)
96. The Big Thicket: A Challenge for Conservation by Pete Gunter (4)
97. Shackleton's Journey by William Grill (3)
98. Mesa of Sorrows: A History of the Awat'ovi Massacre by James F. Brooks (4)
99. River Marked by Patricia Briggs (2)
100. Karl I: The Emperor of Peace by Marcel Uderzo & Marc Bourgne (5)
101. I Want to Get Married!: One Wannabe Bride's Misadventures with Handsome Houdinis, Technicolor Grooms, Morality Police, and Other Mr. Not Quite Rights by Ghada Abdel Aal (3)
102. Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair (4)
103. A Procession of Saints by James Brodrick, SJ (4)
104. Wandering Whale Sharks by Susumu Shingu (4)
105. Mother Elisabeth: The Resurgence of the Order of Saint Birgitta by Marguerite Tjader (2)
106. Peacock Pie: A Book of Rhymes by Walter de la Mare (4)
107. Books Make A Home: Elegant Ideas for Storing and Displaying Books by Damian Thompson (3)
108. Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California's Farallon Islands by Katherine Roy (4)
109. Last Poems by A. E. Houseman (4)
110. When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne (3)
111. Where the Wild Things Were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanishing Predators by William Stolzenburg (4)
112. California Condors in the Pacific Northwest by Jesse D'Elia & Susan M. Haig (3)
113. Locally Laid: How We Built a Plucky, Industry-changing Egg Farm from Scratch by Lucie B. Amundsen (3)
114. How to Converse with God by St. Alphonsus Liguori (4)
115. Now We are Six by A. A. Milne (3)
116. Perelandra by C. S. Lewis (3)
117. Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey (3)
118. Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb (4)
119. Saint Colum and the Crane by Eva K. Betz (3)
120. The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown+ (3)
121. Honey from a Weed: Fasting and Feasting in Tuscany, Catalonia, the Cyclades and Apulia by Patience Gray (4)
Monthly Total = 28 Books Read
Books Read in May
122. Strangers Below: Primitive Baptists and American Culture by Joshua Guthman (3)
123. The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis (4)
124. Song of the Swallows by Leo Politti (4)
125. The Divine Romance by Fulton Sheen (3)
126. Blessed Miguel Pro: 20th-Century Mexican Martyr by Ann Ball (3)
127. C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium: Six Essays on the Abolition of Man by Peter Kreeft (4)
128. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs (3)
129. Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People by Elizabeth A. Fenn (4)
130. The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy M. Boston (3)
131. Humanist Educational Treatises by Craig W. Kallendorf (ed.) (4)
132. Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay (3)
133. The Walled Garden: Poems by Andrew Thornton-Norris (2)
134. Essays Ancient and Modern by T. S. Eliot (4)
135. Pretty-shield: Medicine Woman of the Crows by Frank B. Linderman+ (4)
136. The Paradise Project by Suzie Andres (3)
137. The Lady in the Blue Cloak: Legends from the Texas Missions by Eric A. Kimmel & Susan Guevara (3)
138. Mexican Martyrdom: Firsthand Accounts of the Religious Persecution in Mexico 1926-1935 by Wilfrid Parsons (4)
139. South Toward Home: Travels in Southern Literature by Margaret Eby (3)
140. Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers* (5)
141. Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
142. Homeschool: An American History by Milton Gaither (3)
143. Dangerous Neighbors: Volcanoes and Cities by Grant Heiken (3)
144. The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem "Pangur Bán" by Jo Ellen Bogart & Sydney Smith (3)
145. A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins & Sophie Blackall (5)
146. Robbery Under Law by Evelyn Waugh (3)
147. Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous+ (4)
148. Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
149. The Seasons: A Celebration of the English Year by Nick Groom (4)
150. Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb by May Hollis Barton* (3)
Monthly Total = 29 Books Read
Books Read in June
151. The Quest for Shakespeare by Joseph Pearce (4)
152. Vom heiligen Bonifatius den Kindern erzählt by Georg Schwikart^ (4)
153. The 100 Dresses by Eleanor Estes (4)
154. The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare (3)
155. Cosmas, or the Love of God by Pierre de Calan* (4)
156. Viking Legacy: Scandinavian Influence on the English Language by John Geipel (3)
157. First Catiline Oration by Cicero^ (4)
158. The Curé of Ars: Patron Saint of Parish Priests by Fr. Bartholomew J. O'Brien (4)
159. Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin by Nicholas Ostler+ (3)
160. The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, & Edmund Wiener* (4)
161. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien* (4)
162. Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass (4)
163. The Silver Bough by Lisa Tuttle (2)
164. The Devil Knows Latin: Why America Needs the Classical Tradition by E. Christian Kopff+ (3)
165. Pastoral by Nevil Shute (4)
166. The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer* (4)
167. Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer* (4)
168. The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories by Marjorie Barnard* (3)
169. The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer* (4)
Monthly Total = 19 Books Read
6inge87
Books Read in July
170. The West without Water: What Past Floods, Droughts, and Other Climatic Clues Tell Us about Tomorrow by B. Lynn Ingram & Frances Malamud-Roam (3)
171. Eruptions that Shook the World by Clive Oppenheimer (3)
172. Merrie England: A Journey Through the Shire by Joseph Pearce (4)
173. Richard II: A Brittle Glory by Laura Ashe (3)
174. Whatever Else by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
175. The Golden City by J. Kathleen Cheney* (5)
176. American Serengeti: The Last Big Animals of the Great Plains by Dan Flores (3)
177. The Seat of Magic by J. Kathleen Cheney* (4)
178. The Shores of Spain by J. Kathleen Cheney* (3)
179. The Seer's Choice by J. Kathleen Cheney (3)
180. Dead Pool: Lake Powell, Global Warming, and the Future of Water in the West by James Lawrence Powell (4)
181. The Living Mountain: A Celebration of the Cairngorm Mountains of Scotland by Nan Shepherd (4)
182. Radical Love by Toni Greaves (4)
183. With This Curse by Amanda DeWees (3)
184. Cursed Once More by Amanda DeWees (2)
185. A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt* (5)
186. On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos by St. Lawrence of Brindisi (3)
187. A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox (5)
188. Time of Trial by Hester Burton (4)
189. Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History by Dan L. Flores (3)
190. Von heiligen Zeichen by Romano Guardini^ (4)
191. The Wolves of Currumpaw by William Grill (4)
Monthly Total = 22 Books Read
Books Read in August
192. The Way of an Eagle by Ethel M. Dell+ (3)
193. A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer* (4)
194. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
195. Venetia by Georgette Heyer* (5)
196. Shadows on the Pond by Alison Cragin Herzig (3)
197. Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart* (3)
198. Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling (3)
199. Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart* (3)
200. Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child by Anthony Esolen (5)
201. After the War by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
202. Strange Gods by Annamaria Alfieri (3)
203. Log Book: Selected Poems by Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen (3)
204. Harrington by Maria Edgeworth* (3)
205. The Georgics by Publius Vergilius Maro (3)
206. Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann^ (4)
207. Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter (3)
208. Sir Thomas More by Anthony Munday et al. (3)
209. A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda (4)
210. The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke by Rupert Brooke (3)
Monthly Total = 19 Books Read
Books Read in September
211. Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies (4)
212. Arabella of Mars by David D. Levine (5)
213. Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rinaldi* (5)
214. Sonya's Chickens by Phoebe Wahl (5)
215. The Gardener of Versailles: My Life in the World's Grandest Garden by Alain Baraton (3)
216. The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson (3)
217. First Star I See Tonight by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (3)
218. Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne (4)
219. From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple (4)
220. Nocturne for a Widow by Amanda DeWees (3)
221. The Life of Padre Pio: Between the Altar and the Confessional by Gennaro Preziuso (3)
222. The Good Comrade by Una L. Silberrad* (4)
223. Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome (3)
224. The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer (4)
225. Dutch Bulbs and Gardens by Una L. Silberrad (4)
226. Margaret the Queen by Nigel Tranter (2)
227. Laurentius von Brindisi: Apostel auf den Straßen Europas by Niklaus Kuster^ (4)
Monthly Total = 17 Books Read
170. The West without Water: What Past Floods, Droughts, and Other Climatic Clues Tell Us about Tomorrow by B. Lynn Ingram & Frances Malamud-Roam (3)
171. Eruptions that Shook the World by Clive Oppenheimer (3)
172. Merrie England: A Journey Through the Shire by Joseph Pearce (4)
173. Richard II: A Brittle Glory by Laura Ashe (3)
174. Whatever Else by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
175. The Golden City by J. Kathleen Cheney* (5)
176. American Serengeti: The Last Big Animals of the Great Plains by Dan Flores (3)
177. The Seat of Magic by J. Kathleen Cheney* (4)
178. The Shores of Spain by J. Kathleen Cheney* (3)
179. The Seer's Choice by J. Kathleen Cheney (3)
180. Dead Pool: Lake Powell, Global Warming, and the Future of Water in the West by James Lawrence Powell (4)
181. The Living Mountain: A Celebration of the Cairngorm Mountains of Scotland by Nan Shepherd (4)
182. Radical Love by Toni Greaves (4)
183. With This Curse by Amanda DeWees (3)
184. Cursed Once More by Amanda DeWees (2)
185. A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt* (5)
186. On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos by St. Lawrence of Brindisi (3)
187. A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox (5)
188. Time of Trial by Hester Burton (4)
189. Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History by Dan L. Flores (3)
190. Von heiligen Zeichen by Romano Guardini^ (4)
191. The Wolves of Currumpaw by William Grill (4)
Monthly Total = 22 Books Read
Books Read in August
192. The Way of an Eagle by Ethel M. Dell+ (3)
193. A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer* (4)
194. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers (3)
195. Venetia by Georgette Heyer* (5)
196. Shadows on the Pond by Alison Cragin Herzig (3)
197. Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart* (3)
198. Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling (3)
199. Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart* (3)
200. Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child by Anthony Esolen (5)
201. After the War by J. Kathleen Cheney (4)
202. Strange Gods by Annamaria Alfieri (3)
203. Log Book: Selected Poems by Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen (3)
204. Harrington by Maria Edgeworth* (3)
205. The Georgics by Publius Vergilius Maro (3)
206. Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann^ (4)
207. Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter (3)
208. Sir Thomas More by Anthony Munday et al. (3)
209. A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda (4)
210. The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke by Rupert Brooke (3)
Monthly Total = 19 Books Read
Books Read in September
211. Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies (4)
212. Arabella of Mars by David D. Levine (5)
213. Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rinaldi* (5)
214. Sonya's Chickens by Phoebe Wahl (5)
215. The Gardener of Versailles: My Life in the World's Grandest Garden by Alain Baraton (3)
216. The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson (3)
217. First Star I See Tonight by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (3)
218. Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne (4)
219. From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple (4)
220. Nocturne for a Widow by Amanda DeWees (3)
221. The Life of Padre Pio: Between the Altar and the Confessional by Gennaro Preziuso (3)
222. The Good Comrade by Una L. Silberrad* (4)
223. Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome (3)
224. The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer (4)
225. Dutch Bulbs and Gardens by Una L. Silberrad (4)
226. Margaret the Queen by Nigel Tranter (2)
227. Laurentius von Brindisi: Apostel auf den Straßen Europas by Niklaus Kuster^ (4)
Monthly Total = 17 Books Read
7inge87
Several Centuries of Reading (adopted from Dejah_Thoris who adopted it from souloftherose)
7th Century BC Demeter and Persephone by Homer & Penelope Proddow
405 BC The Frogs by Aristophanes
63 BC First Catiline Oration by Cicero
29 BC The Georgics by Vergil
c. AD 170 On Pascha by Melito of Sardis
13th century Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous
c. 1402-3 The Character and Studies Befitting a Free-Born Youth by Pier Paolo Vergerio
c. 1424 The Study of Literature by Leonardo Bruni
1450 The Education of Boys by Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini (Pope Pius II)
1459 A Program of Teaching and Learning by Battista Guarino
1535 The Sadness of Christ by St. Thomas More
1598 The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
late 16th/early 17th century On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos by St. Lawrence of Brindisi
1754 How to Converse with God by St. Alphonsus Liguori
1807 Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb
1817 Harrington by Maria Edgeworth
1868 Ragged Dick & Fame and Fortune by Horatio Alger
1869 Mark, the Match Boy & Rough and Ready by Horatio Alger
1876 Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
1889 Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome
1896 Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905 An Alphabet of Saints by Robert Hugh Benson
1906
1907 Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson / The Good Comrade by Una L. Silberrad
1908
1909 Dutch Bulbs and Gardens by Una L. Silberrad
1910
1911 The Dawn of All by Robert Hugh Benson / The Way of an Eagle by Ethel M. Dell
1912
1913 Peacock Pie by Walter de la Mare / The Victorian Age in Literature by G. K. Chesterton
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
1919 Saint Athanasius by F. A. Forbes
1920
1921
1922 Last Poems by A. E. Houseman / Von heiligen Zeichen by Romano Guardini
1923
1924 When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne
1925
1926 Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers
1927 Now We are Six by A. A. Milne / Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers
1928 The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers
1929 I Sing a Song of the Saints of God by Lesbia Scott
1930 The House of Gold by Bede Jarrett, OP / The Divine Romance by Fulton Sheen
1931 Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb by May Hollis Barton / Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne
1932 The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon / Pretty-shield by Frank B. Linderman
1933 The Seven Last Words by Fulton Sheen
1934 Quick Curtain by Alan Melville / Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg
1935 Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay / Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
1936 Thirteen Guests / Essays Ancient and Modern / Mexican Martyrdom
1937 The White Stag / Mit brennender Sorge / The Hobbit
1938 Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann
1939 Robbery Under Law by Evelyn Waugh
1940 Thee, Hannah! by Marguerite De Angeli
1941
1942
1943 Perelandra by C. S. Lewis / The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories by Marjorie Barnard
1944 Pastoral by Nevil Shute
1945 You by Fulton Sheen / The 100 Dresses by Eleanor Estes
1946 St. Margaret Clitherow by Margaret T. Monro / The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke by Rupert Brooke
1947 The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis
1948 Song of the Swallows by Leo Politti
1949 A Procession of Saints by James Brodrick, SJ
1950 The Egg Tree by Katherine Millhous
1951 The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer
1952
1953
1954
1955 Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart
1956 Conversation with Christ by Peter Thomas Rohrbach / The Curé of Ars by Fr. Bartholomew J. O'Brien
1957 Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey
1958 Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov / Venetia by Georgette Heyer
1959 A Story of Saint John Vianney by Brother Ernest, C.S.C. / The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer
1960 A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt
1961 Saint Germaine and the Sheep / Saint Colum and the Crane / A Civil Contract / An Experiment in Criticism / A Promise is for Ever
1962 The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart
1963 Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice by Eva K. Betz
1964
1965 Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart
1966 Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer
1967
1968 Evelyn Waugh by Frances Donaldson
1969
1970
1971 Viking Legacy by John Geipel
1972 The Big Thicket by Pete Gunter / Mother Elisabeth by Marguerite Tjader
1973 Saint Pius V by Robin Anderson
1974
1975 Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair
1976 The Ghost of Flight 401 by John G. Fuller
1977 A Time to Keep / Friends of God / Cosmas, or the Love of God / The Living Mountain
1978
1979 Margaret the Queen by Nigel Tranter
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985 Shadows on the Pond by Alison Cragin Herzig
1986 I'm in Charge of Celebrations / Honey from a Weed / Time Enough for Drums
1987 Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, Jr.
1988
1989
1990
1991 Wandering Whale Sharks by Susumu Shingu
1992 The Reign of Christ the King by Michael Davies
1993 The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson
1994 C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium by Peter Kreeft
1995
1996 Blessed Miguel Pro by Ann Ball
1997 The Miracle of Saint Nicholas / A Short History of the Roman Mass / Log Book / A Thousand Words for Stranger / From the Holy Mountain
1998 The Devil Knows Latin by E. Christian Kopff / The Life of Padre Pio by Gennaro Preziuso
1999
2000 Deep in the Valley by Robyn Carr
2001
2002 The Pied Piper of Peru / Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions / Just over the Mountain / In the Bleak Midwinter / Interior Freedom / Humanist Educational Treatises
2003 The Easter Chick / Down by the River / A Fountain Filled with Blood
2004 Outwitting History / Survival / Out of the Deep I Cry
2005 Migration by Julie E. Czerneda / Shakespeare the Papist by Peter Milward, SJ
2006 Regeneration / Moon Called / The Lady in the Blue Cloak / The Ring of Words / The Silver Bough / The Gardener of Versailles
2007 Joseph and Chico / Blood Bound / Karl I / The Far Traveler / Ad Infinitum
2008 Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 / Iron Kissed / I Want to Get Married! / Homeschool / The Quest for Shakespeare / Dead Pool
2009 The Crucified Rabbi by Taylor Marshall / Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs
2010 A Bride's Story, Volume 2 / Silver Borne / Rising Road / Laurentius von Brindisi / Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus 1
2011 The Nativity / River Marked / Books Make A Home / Eruptions that Shook the World
2012 Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert / Americanine / Marked for Death / Laurus
2013 Girl in Dior / Corpus Christi / Easter / California Condors in the Pacific Northwest / Frost Burned / Dangerous Neighbors / The Seasons / The West without Water / The Golden City / Aunty Lee's Delights
2014 Wickedly Dangerous / Missing Microbes / Jackaby / Winter at the Door / The Glass Sentence / S is for Salmon / Shackleton's Journey / Neighborhood Sharks / Encounters at the Heart of the World / Consider This / The Seat of Magic / With This Curse / Strange Gods / Nocturne for a Widow / The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière / Of Bells and Cells
2015 Murder by Candlelight / Black-Eyed Susans / Sweep in Peace / B is for Bear / Friction / Saint Nicholas and the Nine Gold Coins / The Gentle Traditionalist / The Comic Book Story of Beer / Beastly Bones / The Story of Life in 25 Fossils / Finding Winnie / Wild Hearts / Cold Hearts / Resurrection Science / Serafina and the Black Cloak / The Golden Specific / Elijah in Jerusalem / The Gates of Europe / The Blue Whale / Strangers Below / The Walled Garden / The Paradise Project / South Toward Home / A Fine Dessert / The Shores of Spain / The Seer's Choice / Radical Love / Cursed Once More / Life Under Compulsion / Sonya's Chickens / Classical Literature
2016 Dreaming Death / Winterwood / The Girls She Left Behind / Mesa of Sorrows / Locally Laid / The White Cat and the Monk / Merrie England / Richard II / Whatever Else / A Girl Like You / Coyote America / Wolves of Currumpaw / After the War / Ghostly Echoes / Arabella of Mars / First Star I See Tonight / A Deadly Thaw / Serafina and the Twisted Staff / For the Glory / Serpents in Eden / The Sparrow in Hiding / Positively Medieval
7th Century BC Demeter and Persephone by Homer & Penelope Proddow
405 BC The Frogs by Aristophanes
63 BC First Catiline Oration by Cicero
29 BC The Georgics by Vergil
c. AD 170 On Pascha by Melito of Sardis
13th century Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous
c. 1402-3 The Character and Studies Befitting a Free-Born Youth by Pier Paolo Vergerio
c. 1424 The Study of Literature by Leonardo Bruni
1450 The Education of Boys by Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini (Pope Pius II)
1459 A Program of Teaching and Learning by Battista Guarino
1535 The Sadness of Christ by St. Thomas More
1598 The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
late 16th/early 17th century On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos by St. Lawrence of Brindisi
1754 How to Converse with God by St. Alphonsus Liguori
1807 Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb
1817 Harrington by Maria Edgeworth
1868 Ragged Dick & Fame and Fortune by Horatio Alger
1869 Mark, the Match Boy & Rough and Ready by Horatio Alger
1876 Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
1889 Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome
1896 Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905 An Alphabet of Saints by Robert Hugh Benson
1906
1907 Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson / The Good Comrade by Una L. Silberrad
1908
1909 Dutch Bulbs and Gardens by Una L. Silberrad
1910
1911 The Dawn of All by Robert Hugh Benson / The Way of an Eagle by Ethel M. Dell
1912
1913 Peacock Pie by Walter de la Mare / The Victorian Age in Literature by G. K. Chesterton
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
1919 Saint Athanasius by F. A. Forbes
1920
1921
1922 Last Poems by A. E. Houseman / Von heiligen Zeichen by Romano Guardini
1923
1924 When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne
1925
1926 Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers
1927 Now We are Six by A. A. Milne / Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers
1928 The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers
1929 I Sing a Song of the Saints of God by Lesbia Scott
1930 The House of Gold by Bede Jarrett, OP / The Divine Romance by Fulton Sheen
1931 Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb by May Hollis Barton / Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne
1932 The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon / Pretty-shield by Frank B. Linderman
1933 The Seven Last Words by Fulton Sheen
1934 Quick Curtain by Alan Melville / Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg
1935 Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay / Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
1936 Thirteen Guests / Essays Ancient and Modern / Mexican Martyrdom
1937 The White Stag / Mit brennender Sorge / The Hobbit
1938 Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann
1939 Robbery Under Law by Evelyn Waugh
1940 Thee, Hannah! by Marguerite De Angeli
1941
1942
1943 Perelandra by C. S. Lewis / The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories by Marjorie Barnard
1944 Pastoral by Nevil Shute
1945 You by Fulton Sheen / The 100 Dresses by Eleanor Estes
1946 St. Margaret Clitherow by Margaret T. Monro / The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke by Rupert Brooke
1947 The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis
1948 Song of the Swallows by Leo Politti
1949 A Procession of Saints by James Brodrick, SJ
1950 The Egg Tree by Katherine Millhous
1951 The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer
1952
1953
1954
1955 Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart
1956 Conversation with Christ by Peter Thomas Rohrbach / The Curé of Ars by Fr. Bartholomew J. O'Brien
1957 Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey
1958 Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov / Venetia by Georgette Heyer
1959 A Story of Saint John Vianney by Brother Ernest, C.S.C. / The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer
1960 A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt
1961 Saint Germaine and the Sheep / Saint Colum and the Crane / A Civil Contract / An Experiment in Criticism / A Promise is for Ever
1962 The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart
1963 Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice by Eva K. Betz
1964
1965 Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart
1966 Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer
1967
1968 Evelyn Waugh by Frances Donaldson
1969
1970
1971 Viking Legacy by John Geipel
1972 The Big Thicket by Pete Gunter / Mother Elisabeth by Marguerite Tjader
1973 Saint Pius V by Robin Anderson
1974
1975 Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair
1976 The Ghost of Flight 401 by John G. Fuller
1977 A Time to Keep / Friends of God / Cosmas, or the Love of God / The Living Mountain
1978
1979 Margaret the Queen by Nigel Tranter
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985 Shadows on the Pond by Alison Cragin Herzig
1986 I'm in Charge of Celebrations / Honey from a Weed / Time Enough for Drums
1987 Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, Jr.
1988
1989
1990
1991 Wandering Whale Sharks by Susumu Shingu
1992 The Reign of Christ the King by Michael Davies
1993 The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson
1994 C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium by Peter Kreeft
1995
1996 Blessed Miguel Pro by Ann Ball
1997 The Miracle of Saint Nicholas / A Short History of the Roman Mass / Log Book / A Thousand Words for Stranger / From the Holy Mountain
1998 The Devil Knows Latin by E. Christian Kopff / The Life of Padre Pio by Gennaro Preziuso
1999
2000 Deep in the Valley by Robyn Carr
2001
2002 The Pied Piper of Peru / Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions / Just over the Mountain / In the Bleak Midwinter / Interior Freedom / Humanist Educational Treatises
2003 The Easter Chick / Down by the River / A Fountain Filled with Blood
2004 Outwitting History / Survival / Out of the Deep I Cry
2005 Migration by Julie E. Czerneda / Shakespeare the Papist by Peter Milward, SJ
2006 Regeneration / Moon Called / The Lady in the Blue Cloak / The Ring of Words / The Silver Bough / The Gardener of Versailles
2007 Joseph and Chico / Blood Bound / Karl I / The Far Traveler / Ad Infinitum
2008 Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 / Iron Kissed / I Want to Get Married! / Homeschool / The Quest for Shakespeare / Dead Pool
2009 The Crucified Rabbi by Taylor Marshall / Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs
2010 A Bride's Story, Volume 2 / Silver Borne / Rising Road / Laurentius von Brindisi / Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus 1
2011 The Nativity / River Marked / Books Make A Home / Eruptions that Shook the World
2012 Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert / Americanine / Marked for Death / Laurus
2013 Girl in Dior / Corpus Christi / Easter / California Condors in the Pacific Northwest / Frost Burned / Dangerous Neighbors / The Seasons / The West without Water / The Golden City / Aunty Lee's Delights
2014 Wickedly Dangerous / Missing Microbes / Jackaby / Winter at the Door / The Glass Sentence / S is for Salmon / Shackleton's Journey / Neighborhood Sharks / Encounters at the Heart of the World / Consider This / The Seat of Magic / With This Curse / Strange Gods / Nocturne for a Widow / The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière / Of Bells and Cells
2015 Murder by Candlelight / Black-Eyed Susans / Sweep in Peace / B is for Bear / Friction / Saint Nicholas and the Nine Gold Coins / The Gentle Traditionalist / The Comic Book Story of Beer / Beastly Bones / The Story of Life in 25 Fossils / Finding Winnie / Wild Hearts / Cold Hearts / Resurrection Science / Serafina and the Black Cloak / The Golden Specific / Elijah in Jerusalem / The Gates of Europe / The Blue Whale / Strangers Below / The Walled Garden / The Paradise Project / South Toward Home / A Fine Dessert / The Shores of Spain / The Seer's Choice / Radical Love / Cursed Once More / Life Under Compulsion / Sonya's Chickens / Classical Literature
2016 Dreaming Death / Winterwood / The Girls She Left Behind / Mesa of Sorrows / Locally Laid / The White Cat and the Monk / Merrie England / Richard II / Whatever Else / A Girl Like You / Coyote America / Wolves of Currumpaw / After the War / Ghostly Echoes / Arabella of Mars / First Star I See Tonight / A Deadly Thaw / Serafina and the Twisted Staff / For the Glory / Serpents in Eden / The Sparrow in Hiding / Positively Medieval
8inge87
LC Classification Spread My reading according to the Library of Congress Classification System.
BF The Ghost of Flight 401 (1)
BL Demeter and Persephone (1)
BM The Crucified Rabbi (1)
BR Saint Athanasius (3)
BT The Reign of Christ the King (5)
BV Conversation with Christ (3)
BX Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions (20)
CB C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium (1)
D Dieser Friede (1)
DA Merrie England (2)
DB Karl I (1)
DJ Marked for Death (1)
DK The Gates of Europe (1)
DL The Far Traveler (1)
DS From the Holy Mountain (1)
E Mesa of Sorrows (3)
F The Big Thicket (3)
GR The Seasons (1)
GV For the Glory (1)
HD Locally Laid (1)
HQ I Want to Get Married! (2)
HV Murder by Candlelight (1)
LA Humanist Educational Treatises (1)
LB The Abolition of Man (1)
LC Homeschool (2)
NA The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière (1)
NK Books Make A Home (1)
PA First Catiline Oration (5)
PE Viking Legacy (1)
PG Dshamilja (2)
PL Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 (3)
PN Essays Ancient and Modern (3)
PQ Girl in Dior (3)
PR The Moon-Spinners (56)
PS Black-Eyed Susans (41)
PT Saga of the Jómsvíkings (1)
PZ Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice (57)
QC The West without Water (1)
QE The Story of Life in 25 Fossils (3)
QH The Living Mountain (1)
QL Resurrection Science (4)
RM Missing Microbes (1)
SB The Gardener of Versailles (2)
TC Dead Pool (1)
TP The Comic Book Story of Beer (1)
TT Fashioning the Body (1)
TX Honey from a Weed (1)
Z Outwitting History (1)
BF The Ghost of Flight 401 (1)
BL Demeter and Persephone (1)
BM The Crucified Rabbi (1)
BR Saint Athanasius (3)
BT The Reign of Christ the King (5)
BV Conversation with Christ (3)
BX Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions (20)
CB C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium (1)
D Dieser Friede (1)
DA Merrie England (2)
DB Karl I (1)
DJ Marked for Death (1)
DK The Gates of Europe (1)
DL The Far Traveler (1)
DS From the Holy Mountain (1)
E Mesa of Sorrows (3)
F The Big Thicket (3)
GR The Seasons (1)
GV For the Glory (1)
HD Locally Laid (1)
HQ I Want to Get Married! (2)
HV Murder by Candlelight (1)
LA Humanist Educational Treatises (1)
LB The Abolition of Man (1)
LC Homeschool (2)
NA The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière (1)
NK Books Make A Home (1)
PA First Catiline Oration (5)
PE Viking Legacy (1)
PG Dshamilja (2)
PL Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 (3)
PN Essays Ancient and Modern (3)
PQ Girl in Dior (3)
PR The Moon-Spinners (56)
PS Black-Eyed Susans (41)
PT Saga of the Jómsvíkings (1)
PZ Saint Martin de Porres and the Mice (57)
QC The West without Water (1)
QE The Story of Life in 25 Fossils (3)
QH The Living Mountain (1)
QL Resurrection Science (4)
RM Missing Microbes (1)
SB The Gardener of Versailles (2)
TC Dead Pool (1)
TP The Comic Book Story of Beer (1)
TT Fashioning the Body (1)
TX Honey from a Weed (1)
Z Outwitting History (1)
10inge87
Strangers Below: Primitive Baptists and American Culture by Joshua Guthman
Source: ILL (Baylor U.)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 6383 G88 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Strangers Below tells the story of one of America's lesser-known Protestant groups, the Primitive Baptists. Instead of a single narrative, the chapters divide the book into themes, including the establishment of the Primitive Baptist movement during the early 1800s, the story of the African-American Primitive Baptists, and the influence of Primitive Baptist musical styles in the 20th and 21st centuries. Each section stands apart, but together they give a kind of impression about what Primitive Baptism is like.
The Primitive Baptists split with the so-called Missionary Baptists over the issue of church societies and local control. They were against missionary, temperance, and other church societies because they felt they were frauds out to steal the money of honest people. They also felt that there was movement away from true Calvinism towards laxity. Based in the Appalachian mountains, their movement spread across the South, only to gradually fade as the twentieth-century went on. However, paradoxically, their musical style (as produced by artists such as Ralph Stanley) has grown in popularity even as the denomination as a group has sunk into obscurity. All of this makes for very interesting reading.
I'd never head of Primitive Baptists until I visited Smokey Mountain National Park, and even then I did not know what the difference was (my evangelical background is of the Stone-Campbell restorationist variety). Guthman's book will answer that question and many others that the reader might not realize they had. However, it's format will mean that it will appear more to academics than lay readers. Highly recommended for anyone interesting in American religion, African-American social movements, or bluegrass/"Americana" music.
First Line: This book tells an unlikely story, but it is a vital one, an American one.
Source: ILL (Baylor U.)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 6383 G88 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Strangers Below tells the story of one of America's lesser-known Protestant groups, the Primitive Baptists. Instead of a single narrative, the chapters divide the book into themes, including the establishment of the Primitive Baptist movement during the early 1800s, the story of the African-American Primitive Baptists, and the influence of Primitive Baptist musical styles in the 20th and 21st centuries. Each section stands apart, but together they give a kind of impression about what Primitive Baptism is like.
The Primitive Baptists split with the so-called Missionary Baptists over the issue of church societies and local control. They were against missionary, temperance, and other church societies because they felt they were frauds out to steal the money of honest people. They also felt that there was movement away from true Calvinism towards laxity. Based in the Appalachian mountains, their movement spread across the South, only to gradually fade as the twentieth-century went on. However, paradoxically, their musical style (as produced by artists such as Ralph Stanley) has grown in popularity even as the denomination as a group has sunk into obscurity. All of this makes for very interesting reading.
I'd never head of Primitive Baptists until I visited Smokey Mountain National Park, and even then I did not know what the difference was (my evangelical background is of the Stone-Campbell restorationist variety). Guthman's book will answer that question and many others that the reader might not realize they had. However, it's format will mean that it will appear more to academics than lay readers. Highly recommended for anyone interesting in American religion, African-American social movements, or bluegrass/"Americana" music.
First Line: This book tells an unlikely story, but it is a vital one, an American one.
11brodiew2
>1 inge87: A nice new header, indeed. This is more peaceful where the last one was more tumultuous. Both beautiful.
12inge87
>11 brodiew2: Thanks. Forbes' Edwardian Canada is certainly a far cry from the romantic drama of Friedrich's German mountains, but in the same way May is very different from January. Either way there is a time and place for both.
13inge87
I forgot to do this on the old thread, so here it is:
April Reading Round-Up!
Books Read: 28 (28 in 2013, 29 in 2014, & 12 in 2015)
Genre
Non-Fiction - 20 - 71.43%
Fiction - 8 - 28.57%
Sources
Me (other) - 11 - 26.19%
Corsicana PL - 9 - 21.44%
Irving PL - 6 - 14.29%
Austin PL (e-book) - 4 - 9.52%
Me (last month) - 4 - 9.52%
Work - 4 - 9.52%
Me (TBR) - 2 - 4.76%
Free Online E-Book - 1 - 2.38%
Me (this month) - 1 - 2.38%
Authors
Male - 17 - 56.67%
Female - 13 - 43.33%
Edition Language
English - 28 - 100%
Original Language
English - 24 - 85.72%
Arabic - 1 - 3.57%
French - 1 - 3.57%
Italian - 1 - 3.57%
Japanese - 1 - 3.57%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 23 - 82.14%
Series Books - 5 - 7.86%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 25 - 59.52%
Series Books - 17 - 40.48%
Average Original Date of Publication
1968
Median Original Date of Publication
1989
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 2 - 7.14%
3 stars - 12 - 42.86%
4 stars - 13 - 46.43%
5 stars - 1 - 3.57%
Average Rating
3.46
Discovery of the Month
The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown
Best of the Month
Fiction: Last Poems by A. E. Houseman
Non-Fiction: Karl I: The Emperor of Peace by Marcel Uderzo & Marc Bourgne
April Reading Round-Up!
Books Read: 28 (28 in 2013, 29 in 2014, & 12 in 2015)
Genre
Non-Fiction - 20 - 71.43%
Fiction - 8 - 28.57%
Sources
Me (other) - 11 - 26.19%
Corsicana PL - 9 - 21.44%
Irving PL - 6 - 14.29%
Austin PL (e-book) - 4 - 9.52%
Me (last month) - 4 - 9.52%
Work - 4 - 9.52%
Me (TBR) - 2 - 4.76%
Free Online E-Book - 1 - 2.38%
Me (this month) - 1 - 2.38%
Authors
Male - 17 - 56.67%
Female - 13 - 43.33%
Edition Language
English - 28 - 100%
Original Language
English - 24 - 85.72%
Arabic - 1 - 3.57%
French - 1 - 3.57%
Italian - 1 - 3.57%
Japanese - 1 - 3.57%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 23 - 82.14%
Series Books - 5 - 7.86%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 25 - 59.52%
Series Books - 17 - 40.48%
Average Original Date of Publication
1968
Median Original Date of Publication
1989
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 2 - 7.14%
3 stars - 12 - 42.86%
4 stars - 13 - 46.43%
5 stars - 1 - 3.57%
Average Rating
3.46
Discovery of the Month
The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown
Best of the Month
Fiction: Last Poems by A. E. Houseman
Non-Fiction: Karl I: The Emperor of Peace by Marcel Uderzo & Marc Bourgne
14inge87
The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Like Mother Like Daughter
Year of Original Pub.: 1947
LC Call #: LB 41 L665 1947
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Abolition of Man is the text of a lecture series Lewis gave at the University of Durham on education. But it is about so much more than just education. It is a defense of a way of thinking and an attack against moral relativism. In response to fads that he sees as a dangerous undermining of education and the development of children as moral beings, Lewis introduces the concept of Tao, or moral law. He splits his discussion over three lectures: the first lays out his complaints, the second he describes how those he is discussing operate, and the third discusses what would happen if the other side won. There is also an appendix of quotes at the end demonstrating what he means by Tao through examples from foundational texts from around the world. Mostly Lewis is concerned that future generations learn how to think and how to recognize truth when they see it. In a world that in which the line between truth and falsehood is only growing grayer with time, Lewis' words have only grown in importance and relevance.
Whether you are interesting in educating your family, yourself, or your society, this is a book worth reading that will definitely make you think. It's not his easiest book, but it may be Lewis' most important. Highly recommended
First Line: I doubt whether we are sufficiently attentive to the importance of elementary text-books.
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Like Mother Like Daughter
Year of Original Pub.: 1947
LC Call #: LB 41 L665 1947
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Abolition of Man is the text of a lecture series Lewis gave at the University of Durham on education. But it is about so much more than just education. It is a defense of a way of thinking and an attack against moral relativism. In response to fads that he sees as a dangerous undermining of education and the development of children as moral beings, Lewis introduces the concept of Tao, or moral law. He splits his discussion over three lectures: the first lays out his complaints, the second he describes how those he is discussing operate, and the third discusses what would happen if the other side won. There is also an appendix of quotes at the end demonstrating what he means by Tao through examples from foundational texts from around the world. Mostly Lewis is concerned that future generations learn how to think and how to recognize truth when they see it. In a world that in which the line between truth and falsehood is only growing grayer with time, Lewis' words have only grown in importance and relevance.
Whether you are interesting in educating your family, yourself, or your society, this is a book worth reading that will definitely make you think. It's not his easiest book, but it may be Lewis' most important. Highly recommended
First Line: I doubt whether we are sufficiently attentive to the importance of elementary text-books.
15inge87
Song of the Swallows by Leo Politi
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1948
LC Call #: PZ 7 P753 So 1948
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Song of the Swallows tells the story of the legendary swallows of Mission San Juan Capistrano. Every year on the feast of St. Joseph (March 19), the birds return to the mission from their winter feeding grounds. Juan is a young boy who lives near the mission and likes spending time with Julian, the gardener and bell-ringer. Julian tells him about the mission's history and together they watch the birds. The best of these are the swallows, golondrinas in Spanish, who build their nests on the side of the mission building. Every year they leave to spend the winter on distant shores, but every year they return. Juan learns some songs about the swallows and builds a garden at his house in hope of luring the swallows there as well. Will the swallows return on St. Joseph's day? And will they come and stay with Juan and his family? You'll have to read all of this fantastic book to find out.
The epitome of a classic picture book. Politti won a Caldecott Medal in 1950 for the illustrations. Highly recommended for anyone interested in California history, birds, child-mentor relationships, or vintage picture books.
First Line: At the foot of the low and soft hills near the sea, lay the small village of Capistrano.
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1948
LC Call #: PZ 7 P753 So 1948
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Song of the Swallows tells the story of the legendary swallows of Mission San Juan Capistrano. Every year on the feast of St. Joseph (March 19), the birds return to the mission from their winter feeding grounds. Juan is a young boy who lives near the mission and likes spending time with Julian, the gardener and bell-ringer. Julian tells him about the mission's history and together they watch the birds. The best of these are the swallows, golondrinas in Spanish, who build their nests on the side of the mission building. Every year they leave to spend the winter on distant shores, but every year they return. Juan learns some songs about the swallows and builds a garden at his house in hope of luring the swallows there as well. Will the swallows return on St. Joseph's day? And will they come and stay with Juan and his family? You'll have to read all of this fantastic book to find out.
The epitome of a classic picture book. Politti won a Caldecott Medal in 1950 for the illustrations. Highly recommended for anyone interested in California history, birds, child-mentor relationships, or vintage picture books.
First Line: At the foot of the low and soft hills near the sea, lay the small village of Capistrano.
17inge87
>17 inge87: Thanks!
18inge87
The Divine Romance by Fulton Sheen
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: I'm on a bit of a Fulton Sheen roll
Year of Original Pub.: 1930
LC Call #: BX 1754 S56 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Divine Romance is a series of connected essays on God, the Trinity, and divine love. We learn about how God is love and what God's love means for mankind. There is also a fairly good explanation of the traditional interpretation of the Holy Trinity. All of this is wrapped up in Sheen's trademark readable and engrossing style.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in the love of God, the Holy Trinity, or good spiritual reading.
First Line: The quest for God is essentially the search for the full account and meaning of life.
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: I'm on a bit of a Fulton Sheen roll
Year of Original Pub.: 1930
LC Call #: BX 1754 S56 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Divine Romance is a series of connected essays on God, the Trinity, and divine love. We learn about how God is love and what God's love means for mankind. There is also a fairly good explanation of the traditional interpretation of the Holy Trinity. All of this is wrapped up in Sheen's trademark readable and engrossing style.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in the love of God, the Holy Trinity, or good spiritual reading.
First Line: The quest for God is essentially the search for the full account and meaning of life.
19inge87
Blessed Miguel Pro: 20th-Century Mexican Martyr by Ann Ball
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1996
LC Call #: BX 1754 S56 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Blessed Miguel Pro is a short, readable biography of that Mexican Jesuit martyr, who was picked up in the aftermath of an assassination attempt he was not involved with and executed in a public showcase that made news around the world. But just who was Miguel, really? It turns out he was a family man who liked jokes and acting (something that came in handy after priests were banned in Mexico by the government). He joined the Jesuit order only to have to flee for his life along with his confreres and his own family due to the upheaval of the Mexican Revolution, and only returned home to Mexico after it looked like he might die, when a decline in his health meant that he might die anyway. But in spite of his health and the fact that being a priest was illegal, he made the most of it and did his best to serve the people as best he could. Until that is, he finally met his end at the end of a firing squad.
A nice introduction to one of the 20th centuries more well-known martyrs. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Mexican history, the Mexican Revolution, or 20th century saints.
First Line: There is more adventure, excitement in the life of Mexican priest Fr. Miguel Pro than in many modern spy thrillers.
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1996
LC Call #: BX 1754 S56 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Blessed Miguel Pro is a short, readable biography of that Mexican Jesuit martyr, who was picked up in the aftermath of an assassination attempt he was not involved with and executed in a public showcase that made news around the world. But just who was Miguel, really? It turns out he was a family man who liked jokes and acting (something that came in handy after priests were banned in Mexico by the government). He joined the Jesuit order only to have to flee for his life along with his confreres and his own family due to the upheaval of the Mexican Revolution, and only returned home to Mexico after it looked like he might die, when a decline in his health meant that he might die anyway. But in spite of his health and the fact that being a priest was illegal, he made the most of it and did his best to serve the people as best he could. Until that is, he finally met his end at the end of a firing squad.
A nice introduction to one of the 20th centuries more well-known martyrs. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Mexican history, the Mexican Revolution, or 20th century saints.
First Line: There is more adventure, excitement in the life of Mexican priest Fr. Miguel Pro than in many modern spy thrillers.
20inge87
C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium: Six Essays on the Abolition of Man by Peter Kreeft
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: I saw it in The Abolition of Man's work-to-work relationships and thought "Why not?"
Year of Original Pub.: 1994
LC Call #: CB 245 K685 1994
Rating: 4 stars / 5
C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium is a collection of essays about modern society based on the philosophy and writings of C. S. Lewis. Although the title implies that it is all about his book The Abolition of Man, it actually takes in a wide breadth of Lewis' work (as well as some of Walker Percy's in one particular essay). However, like that first book, it does deal with the inherent falseness of modernism. The third essay in particular deconstructs the various modern philosophies and, using Lewis as a guide, shows why they are in error. Written in 1994, it seems overly optimistic about the 21st century, but then again while we have been in a constant state of war or something like it, we haven't killed near as many people (yet) as the 20th, the genocidal quality of which Kreeft brings up several times.
Definitely a book that fans of Lewis and/or The Abolition of Man should try to pick up, as its insights are great and fascinating. Highly recommended.
First Line: As our senile, toothless, and confused culture stumbles blindly toward the third millennium; as our "century of genocide" comes to an end, having murdered more human beings (born and unborn) in a single century than the total of all men who lived in all previous centuries; as our demonic "culture of death" accelerates its sharklike feeding frenzy of human bodies and souls; and as our arrogant and impenitent planet rushes naked and defenseless through space and time on a collision course with the fearsome heavenly body of the justice of God, we wonder: "What next?"—and even whether there will be a "next".
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: I saw it in The Abolition of Man's work-to-work relationships and thought "Why not?"
Year of Original Pub.: 1994
LC Call #: CB 245 K685 1994
Rating: 4 stars / 5
C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium is a collection of essays about modern society based on the philosophy and writings of C. S. Lewis. Although the title implies that it is all about his book The Abolition of Man, it actually takes in a wide breadth of Lewis' work (as well as some of Walker Percy's in one particular essay). However, like that first book, it does deal with the inherent falseness of modernism. The third essay in particular deconstructs the various modern philosophies and, using Lewis as a guide, shows why they are in error. Written in 1994, it seems overly optimistic about the 21st century, but then again while we have been in a constant state of war or something like it, we haven't killed near as many people (yet) as the 20th, the genocidal quality of which Kreeft brings up several times.
Definitely a book that fans of Lewis and/or The Abolition of Man should try to pick up, as its insights are great and fascinating. Highly recommended.
First Line: As our senile, toothless, and confused culture stumbles blindly toward the third millennium; as our "century of genocide" comes to an end, having murdered more human beings (born and unborn) in a single century than the total of all men who lived in all previous centuries; as our demonic "culture of death" accelerates its sharklike feeding frenzy of human bodies and souls; and as our arrogant and impenitent planet rushes naked and defenseless through space and time on a collision course with the fearsome heavenly body of the justice of God, we wonder: "What next?"—and even whether there will be a "next".
21inge87
Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: continuing series
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
Series: Mercy Thompson (7/?)
LC Call #: PS 3602 R53165 F76 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Frost Burned finds Mercy alone after the entire pack is kidnapped. For once taking Jesse shopping on Black Friday may have paid off. She is willing to do whatever it takes to get them back. Meanwhile, Adam and company have to deal with their captors and try to survive until they can escape or get sprung. This split means we get Adam's POV as well as the usual Mercy, which is a fun surprise. It does feel a bit like we're setting Mercy up for the next book, but that comes with the territory in this kind of series. Recommended for fans of the previous six books; those new to the series should start with Moon Called.
First Line: “You should have brought the van,” said my stepdaughter.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: continuing series
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
Series: Mercy Thompson (7/?)
LC Call #: PS 3602 R53165 F76 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Frost Burned finds Mercy alone after the entire pack is kidnapped. For once taking Jesse shopping on Black Friday may have paid off. She is willing to do whatever it takes to get them back. Meanwhile, Adam and company have to deal with their captors and try to survive until they can escape or get sprung. This split means we get Adam's POV as well as the usual Mercy, which is a fun surprise. It does feel a bit like we're setting Mercy up for the next book, but that comes with the territory in this kind of series. Recommended for fans of the previous six books; those new to the series should start with Moon Called.
First Line: “You should have brought the van,” said my stepdaughter.
22inge87
Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People by Elizabeth A. Fenn
Source: me (6/15)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: E 99 M2 F46 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Encounters at the Heart of the World is a combination anthropological study and history of the Mandan people of what is now North Dakota, focusing on the period between the beginnings of history to the late 1830s when around seven-eights of the tribe died in a smallpox outbreak. The first half focuses on Mandan culture and how they (probably) came to arrive at the Missouri River, where White trappers and later Lewis and Clark later found them. The second half focuses more on history, particularly the Mandan's relations with various European and later American governments. Masters of commerce, they managed to hold on to a position of strength as the middle-men of the Upper Midwest for many years; however, ultimately technology and disease made them irrelevant. The epilogue brings the story from the 1830s to today, completing the circle.
Highly recommended for anyone interesting in Native American history or culture, Lewis & Clark, the Dakotas, or well-written non-fiction. It won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 2015.
First Line: The climate of North Dakota hardly ranks among North America's most hospitable.
Source: me (6/15)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: E 99 M2 F46 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Encounters at the Heart of the World is a combination anthropological study and history of the Mandan people of what is now North Dakota, focusing on the period between the beginnings of history to the late 1830s when around seven-eights of the tribe died in a smallpox outbreak. The first half focuses on Mandan culture and how they (probably) came to arrive at the Missouri River, where White trappers and later Lewis and Clark later found them. The second half focuses more on history, particularly the Mandan's relations with various European and later American governments. Masters of commerce, they managed to hold on to a position of strength as the middle-men of the Upper Midwest for many years; however, ultimately technology and disease made them irrelevant. The epilogue brings the story from the 1830s to today, completing the circle.
Highly recommended for anyone interesting in Native American history or culture, Lewis & Clark, the Dakotas, or well-written non-fiction. It won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 2015.
First Line: The climate of North Dakota hardly ranks among North America's most hospitable.
23inge87
The Children of Green Knowe by L. M. Boston
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: somewhere on the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 1954
Series: Green Knowe (1/6)
LC Call #: PZ 7 B67856 Ch 1989
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Children of Green Knowe is a classic children's story of a young boy who travels to spend summer vacation with his great-grandmother after a rather unsatisfactory year at boarding school. From the moment he gets to Green Noah, you know something special is going to happen, because the whole area is under water. He soon makes the acquaintance of the various spirits dwelling in the house, both human and animal. It turns out that his great-grandmother knows them well, and the two bond over the experience. It is also a good reason for several good stories about the adventures that a previous generation got up to in the house. You never actually know if the spirits are real or not, so it gives it a feeling more like magical realism than fantasy or horror. There is a very nice, old-fashioned high church Christmas scene and then the comeuppance of a particular cursed bush. What more could anyone ask for in a book? Highly recommended.
First Line: A little boy was sitting in the corner of a railway carriage looking out at the rain, which was splashing against the windows and blotching downwards in an ugly, dirty way.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: somewhere on the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 1954
Series: Green Knowe (1/6)
LC Call #: PZ 7 B67856 Ch 1989
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Children of Green Knowe is a classic children's story of a young boy who travels to spend summer vacation with his great-grandmother after a rather unsatisfactory year at boarding school. From the moment he gets to Green Noah, you know something special is going to happen, because the whole area is under water. He soon makes the acquaintance of the various spirits dwelling in the house, both human and animal. It turns out that his great-grandmother knows them well, and the two bond over the experience. It is also a good reason for several good stories about the adventures that a previous generation got up to in the house. You never actually know if the spirits are real or not, so it gives it a feeling more like magical realism than fantasy or horror. There is a very nice, old-fashioned high church Christmas scene and then the comeuppance of a particular cursed bush. What more could anyone ask for in a book? Highly recommended.
First Line: A little boy was sitting in the corner of a railway carriage looking out at the rain, which was splashing against the windows and blotching downwards in an ugly, dirty way.
24inge87
Humanist Educational Treatises by Craig W. Kallendorf (ed.)
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Climbing Parnassus
Year of Original Pub.: 2002
Series: The I Tatti Renaissance Library
LC Call #: LA 108 H866 2002
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Humanist Educational Treatises is a collection of four fifteenth-century essays on education, collected in a lovely Latin-English bilingual edition by the same folks who bring out the Loeb and Dunbarton Oaks series. Although published over a span of over fifty years, the works are consistant in their points on what makes one educated and how one should go about getting that education, which would fall under what we today would call the liberal arts, being the arts that free men (liberal here coming from the Latin word "liber" meaning free) should practice. All the writers were of the educate the whole person school, so besides the academics there is also advice on how to dress, fight, and speak. The first two essays were probably my favorites; however, all four are full of excellent advice on the meaning of education. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the meaning of education, the liberal arts, educational theory, the Renaissance, or interesting non-fiction.
First Line: We understand, Ubertino, that Francesco the elder, your grandfather — whose many magnificent deeds are on record just as his many wise sayings are remembered everywhere — used to say there were three ways that parents could easily serve the interests of their children, and were with good reason obliged to do so.
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Climbing Parnassus
Year of Original Pub.: 2002
Series: The I Tatti Renaissance Library
LC Call #: LA 108 H866 2002
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Humanist Educational Treatises is a collection of four fifteenth-century essays on education, collected in a lovely Latin-English bilingual edition by the same folks who bring out the Loeb and Dunbarton Oaks series. Although published over a span of over fifty years, the works are consistant in their points on what makes one educated and how one should go about getting that education, which would fall under what we today would call the liberal arts, being the arts that free men (liberal here coming from the Latin word "liber" meaning free) should practice. All the writers were of the educate the whole person school, so besides the academics there is also advice on how to dress, fight, and speak. The first two essays were probably my favorites; however, all four are full of excellent advice on the meaning of education. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the meaning of education, the liberal arts, educational theory, the Renaissance, or interesting non-fiction.
First Line: We understand, Ubertino, that Francesco the elder, your grandfather — whose many magnificent deeds are on record just as his many wise sayings are remembered everywhere — used to say there were three ways that parents could easily serve the interests of their children, and were with good reason obliged to do so.
25inge87
Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: it's set at a women's college
Year of Original Pub.: 1935
Series: British Library Crime Classics
LC Call #: PR 6015 A7928 D43 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Death on the Cherwell is golden age mystery set at a the fictional Persephone College at Oxford. A group of first years is conducting a secret meeting on the boathouse roof when they spot a canoe drifting down the Cherwell River. They drag it ashore only to discover that it contains the body of the highly disliked college bursar. She appears to have drowned, but how do you drown in a dry canoe? Our secret society decides to dedicate itself to detection work and find out—with a little help from the police. You get a strong feel for Oxford student life here. There's not a lot of studying, but there sure are student high-jinks.
The book came out the same year as another, very different, mystery set at an Oxford women's college: Dorothy L. Sayer's Gaudy Night. Despite the obvious temptation to compare the two, they are really very little alike, with Hay's novel having a much lighter feel to it. This is probably the result of having student heroines instead of older adult protagonists. So don't judge it by its contemporary, but on it's own merits. Highly recommended for fans of golden age mysteries, Oxford, or mysteries with student detectives.
First Line: A sloping roof of cold, corrugated iron, above the sliding, brownish waters of the river Cherwell and beneath the stark boughs of a willow, might not appeal to a sane adult human being as an ideal resort at four o'clock on a gloomy January afternoon.
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: it's set at a women's college
Year of Original Pub.: 1935
Series: British Library Crime Classics
LC Call #: PR 6015 A7928 D43 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Death on the Cherwell is golden age mystery set at a the fictional Persephone College at Oxford. A group of first years is conducting a secret meeting on the boathouse roof when they spot a canoe drifting down the Cherwell River. They drag it ashore only to discover that it contains the body of the highly disliked college bursar. She appears to have drowned, but how do you drown in a dry canoe? Our secret society decides to dedicate itself to detection work and find out—with a little help from the police. You get a strong feel for Oxford student life here. There's not a lot of studying, but there sure are student high-jinks.
The book came out the same year as another, very different, mystery set at an Oxford women's college: Dorothy L. Sayer's Gaudy Night. Despite the obvious temptation to compare the two, they are really very little alike, with Hay's novel having a much lighter feel to it. This is probably the result of having student heroines instead of older adult protagonists. So don't judge it by its contemporary, but on it's own merits. Highly recommended for fans of golden age mysteries, Oxford, or mysteries with student detectives.
First Line: A sloping roof of cold, corrugated iron, above the sliding, brownish waters of the river Cherwell and beneath the stark boughs of a willow, might not appeal to a sane adult human being as an ideal resort at four o'clock on a gloomy January afternoon.
26thornton37814
>25 inge87: I think I've actually read that one before, but it's been a long time.
27inge87
>26 thornton37814: It's not the most memorable book, but you do see shades of what Hay might have accomplished if she had written more than three books. Like Dorothy L. Sayers, she stopped writing mysteries with the onset of the Second World War, so we'll never know the true depth of her talent.
28PaulCranswick
Dropping by to wish you a wonderful weekend Jennifer and tip my hat at your continued reading prowess.
29inge87
>28 PaulCranswick: I hope you have a happy weekend a well. Thanks for stopping by!
30inge87
The Walled Garden: Poems by Andrew Thornton-Norris
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: NLM
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PR 6120 H6766 W35 2015
Rating: 2 stars / 5
The Walled Garden is a collection of poems, mostly written in blank verse (think iambs, lots and lots of iambs), with a focus on spiritual themes. The introduction gives a brief overview of the author's purpose in writing these poems, and then off we go. Unfortunately, while the themes are nice, the execution is lacking. I like my poetry to dance, these verse merely plod. They may be metrically correct and topically interesting, but while the body is willing the spirit appears to be in hiding. What has the promise of good, becomes merely mediocre. But still, good poetry is rapidly becoming a lost art, so I give the author kudos for making the attempt.
First Line: Standing on the headlands of the waters
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: NLM
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PR 6120 H6766 W35 2015
Rating: 2 stars / 5
The Walled Garden is a collection of poems, mostly written in blank verse (think iambs, lots and lots of iambs), with a focus on spiritual themes. The introduction gives a brief overview of the author's purpose in writing these poems, and then off we go. Unfortunately, while the themes are nice, the execution is lacking. I like my poetry to dance, these verse merely plod. They may be metrically correct and topically interesting, but while the body is willing the spirit appears to be in hiding. What has the promise of good, becomes merely mediocre. But still, good poetry is rapidly becoming a lost art, so I give the author kudos for making the attempt.
First Line: Standing on the headlands of the waters
31inge87
Essays Ancient and Modern by T. S. Eliot
Source: work
Recommendation: impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: PN 511 E426 1936
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Essays Ancient and Modern (the title is a pun on the name of a famous Anglican hymnal) is a collection of essays on various subjects, mostly dealing with literary criticism but also touching on education and religion. It is an expansion of an earlier work, For Lancelot Andrewes, given a new preface and plus/minus some essays. Eliot is always interesting, and he does have some marvelous prose. Highly recommended for those interested in Anglican divines, modernist thought, well-written essays (a lost art), or T. S. Eliot.
First Line: The Right Reverend Father in God, Lancelot Bishop of Winchester, died on September 25th, 1626.
Source: work
Recommendation: impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: PN 511 E426 1936
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Essays Ancient and Modern (the title is a pun on the name of a famous Anglican hymnal) is a collection of essays on various subjects, mostly dealing with literary criticism but also touching on education and religion. It is an expansion of an earlier work, For Lancelot Andrewes, given a new preface and plus/minus some essays. Eliot is always interesting, and he does have some marvelous prose. Highly recommended for those interested in Anglican divines, modernist thought, well-written essays (a lost art), or T. S. Eliot.
First Line: The Right Reverend Father in God, Lancelot Bishop of Winchester, died on September 25th, 1626.
32inge87
Pretty-shield: Medicine Woman of the Crows by Frank B. Linderman+
Source: me (12/13)
Recommendation: Working my way across Mt. TBR
Year of Original Pub.: 1932
LC Call #: E 99 C92 P745 2003
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Pretty-shield is Linderman's account of his visits with the Crow elder of that name and the conversations they had through finger signing and an interpreter. He had recently published the memories of a Crow chief and was interested in women's stories. Pretty-shield promptly obliged. Besides many interesting stories about her childhood games, there is a lot of interesting information about Crow culture and life as nomadic bison hunters. There is also a chapter dedicated the stories her husband told her about the Battle of Little Bighorn, which he survived while serving as a military scout. But my favorite part was the banter between the Linderman and Pretty-shield. You can tell that she was one tough lady and that the author really comes to like and respect her.
Overall an excellent work that opens a window on traditional Crow life and especially the lives of women. Highly recommended for those interested in Native American history and customs, the Crow Nation, Montana, or women's lives in other cultures.
First Line: I was kindling a fire in an old-fashioned cannon stove occupying a corner of a room in the unused school building at Crow Agency when Pretty-shield entered with her interpreter, Goes-together, wife of Deer-nose, the Indian Police Judge.
Source: me (12/13)
Recommendation: Working my way across Mt. TBR
Year of Original Pub.: 1932
LC Call #: E 99 C92 P745 2003
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Pretty-shield is Linderman's account of his visits with the Crow elder of that name and the conversations they had through finger signing and an interpreter. He had recently published the memories of a Crow chief and was interested in women's stories. Pretty-shield promptly obliged. Besides many interesting stories about her childhood games, there is a lot of interesting information about Crow culture and life as nomadic bison hunters. There is also a chapter dedicated the stories her husband told her about the Battle of Little Bighorn, which he survived while serving as a military scout. But my favorite part was the banter between the Linderman and Pretty-shield. You can tell that she was one tough lady and that the author really comes to like and respect her.
Overall an excellent work that opens a window on traditional Crow life and especially the lives of women. Highly recommended for those interested in Native American history and customs, the Crow Nation, Montana, or women's lives in other cultures.
First Line: I was kindling a fire in an old-fashioned cannon stove occupying a corner of a room in the unused school building at Crow Agency when Pretty-shield entered with her interpreter, Goes-together, wife of Deer-nose, the Indian Police Judge.
33inge87
The Paradise Project by Suzie Andres
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: Shower of Roses (I think)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3601 N377 P37 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Paradise Project is a book that revolves around a New Year's resolution and the consequences it has on one woman's life. Elizabeth Benning has been perfectly happy working at her friend's family's bookstore and babysitting her nephews after graduating college, but now the store has closed and her life is at an impass. Which is just the time to make a new year's resolution to find happiness. Which would probably have been fine, if Elizabeth's competitive (and rather cruelly obnoxious) brother-in-law hadn't challenge her to keep her resolution by challenging her to one goal a month to keep her on the straight and narrow. Toss in a man everyone wants to set her up with (which is the number one way to guarantee that will never happen) and a superior blonde who's almost as good at undermining Elizabeth's self-confidence as the brother-in-law, and we have a plot. It's a fun book, with definite Austen influences even if it's not half as much as a Pride and Prejudice-knock-off as the cover blurb makes it sound. If only some of the characters weren't quite so annoying, it would be a great book. Instead, it is merely good, but in a period in which there is little good Catholic fiction out there, it is definitely a book to be welcomed. Recommended for fans of Catholic fiction, Austin-inspired fiction, or unusual romances.
First Line: Elizabeth Benning, unmarried, unemployed, and temporarily living in the guest cottage behind her parent's house, was happy.
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: Shower of Roses (I think)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3601 N377 P37 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Paradise Project is a book that revolves around a New Year's resolution and the consequences it has on one woman's life. Elizabeth Benning has been perfectly happy working at her friend's family's bookstore and babysitting her nephews after graduating college, but now the store has closed and her life is at an impass. Which is just the time to make a new year's resolution to find happiness. Which would probably have been fine, if Elizabeth's competitive (and rather cruelly obnoxious) brother-in-law hadn't challenge her to keep her resolution by challenging her to one goal a month to keep her on the straight and narrow. Toss in a man everyone wants to set her up with (which is the number one way to guarantee that will never happen) and a superior blonde who's almost as good at undermining Elizabeth's self-confidence as the brother-in-law, and we have a plot. It's a fun book, with definite Austen influences even if it's not half as much as a Pride and Prejudice-knock-off as the cover blurb makes it sound. If only some of the characters weren't quite so annoying, it would be a great book. Instead, it is merely good, but in a period in which there is little good Catholic fiction out there, it is definitely a book to be welcomed. Recommended for fans of Catholic fiction, Austin-inspired fiction, or unusual romances.
First Line: Elizabeth Benning, unmarried, unemployed, and temporarily living in the guest cottage behind her parent's house, was happy.
34inge87
The Lady in the Blue Cloak: Legends from the Texas Missions by Eric A. Kimmel & Susan Guevara
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PZ 7 K5648 Lad 2006
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Lady in the Blue Cloak is a collection of folk tales and legends from the greater San Antonio area. San Antonio, Texas, as you may know is famous for its mission churches, and this book collects some of the stories that have come down about the missions and the local people. I was already familiar with the title story (about a bilocating nun) and the tragic love story behind the creation of the rose window at Mission San José, but the others were new to me. It should be noted that neither the author nor the illustrator are actually from Texas, but whether or not that's important depends on you. Overall, it's a nice collection of tales, perfect for anyone with an interest in Texas legends or San Antonio.
First Line: Father Damián Manzanet and his fellow padres arrived in Texas in 1689.
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PZ 7 K5648 Lad 2006
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Lady in the Blue Cloak is a collection of folk tales and legends from the greater San Antonio area. San Antonio, Texas, as you may know is famous for its mission churches, and this book collects some of the stories that have come down about the missions and the local people. I was already familiar with the title story (about a bilocating nun) and the tragic love story behind the creation of the rose window at Mission San José, but the others were new to me. It should be noted that neither the author nor the illustrator are actually from Texas, but whether or not that's important depends on you. Overall, it's a nice collection of tales, perfect for anyone with an interest in Texas legends or San Antonio.
First Line: Father Damián Manzanet and his fellow padres arrived in Texas in 1689.
35inge87
Mexican Martyrdom: Firsthand Accounts of the Religious Persecution in Mexico 1926-1935 by Wildfrid Parsons
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: It sounded interesting
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: BX 1428 P3 1987
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Mexican Martyrdom is an account of the persecution of the Catholic Church by the Mexican government from 1926 to 1935, as gathered from personal accounts of those who endured those events and managed to get word out as well as from the author's travels through that country. It is not the best-organized of books, but the material contained within its covers is remarkable in its breadth and detail.
Beginning in the 1920s, the government of Mexico was led by a series of anti-clerical dictators who attempted to end religion and bring the revolution to their country. This resulted in the banning of priests and nuns, the closing of churches, schools, hospitals and any other organization associated with the Church, and the persecution of anyone who did not fall in line with the government. The most famous of these martyrs if Blessed Miguel Pro, SJ, a young Mexican Jesuit priest who was rounded up and executed for an assassination attempt that he had nothing to do with. But there were many others. The book also documents the US government's refusal to intervene (that often looked like support for the Mexican government) as well as the delicate line that the Mexican bishops tried to balance in order to find some way to survive until things got better.
Parsons was an American priest who visited Mexico during this era and had first-hand knowledge of the situation there. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Mexican history or 20th century Christian persecution, as well as anyone who has read The Power and the Glory and wants to know more.
First Line: The town of Irapuato in the State of Guanajuato is a railroad junction where you either go straight on to Mexico City from Guadalajara in the West or change trains for the long ride north to Juarez and El Paso.
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: It sounded interesting
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: BX 1428 P3 1987
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Mexican Martyrdom is an account of the persecution of the Catholic Church by the Mexican government from 1926 to 1935, as gathered from personal accounts of those who endured those events and managed to get word out as well as from the author's travels through that country. It is not the best-organized of books, but the material contained within its covers is remarkable in its breadth and detail.
Beginning in the 1920s, the government of Mexico was led by a series of anti-clerical dictators who attempted to end religion and bring the revolution to their country. This resulted in the banning of priests and nuns, the closing of churches, schools, hospitals and any other organization associated with the Church, and the persecution of anyone who did not fall in line with the government. The most famous of these martyrs if Blessed Miguel Pro, SJ, a young Mexican Jesuit priest who was rounded up and executed for an assassination attempt that he had nothing to do with. But there were many others. The book also documents the US government's refusal to intervene (that often looked like support for the Mexican government) as well as the delicate line that the Mexican bishops tried to balance in order to find some way to survive until things got better.
Parsons was an American priest who visited Mexico during this era and had first-hand knowledge of the situation there. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Mexican history or 20th century Christian persecution, as well as anyone who has read The Power and the Glory and wants to know more.
First Line: The town of Irapuato in the State of Guanajuato is a railroad junction where you either go straight on to Mexico City from Guadalajara in the West or change trains for the long ride north to Juarez and El Paso.
36inge87
South Toward Home: Travels in Southern Literature by Margaret Eby
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 261 E39 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
South Toward Home is a combination literary history/travel memoir about various Southern writers and the places they called home. Eby's selection contains all the big names, as well as some more obscure choices, and I am mostly alright with her choices, although I do wonder that she left Walker Percy out. It's not a particularly deep or hard-hitting work, mostly she talks about the life of an author and describes her visit to their hometowns. Nothing cutting edge is going to be discovered this way, but it is a rather pleasant way to spend time if you're a fan of Southern fiction.
First Line: The South is vast.
Source: work
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 261 E39 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
South Toward Home is a combination literary history/travel memoir about various Southern writers and the places they called home. Eby's selection contains all the big names, as well as some more obscure choices, and I am mostly alright with her choices, although I do wonder that she left Walker Percy out. It's not a particularly deep or hard-hitting work, mostly she talks about the life of an author and describes her visit to their hometowns. Nothing cutting edge is going to be discovered this way, but it is a rather pleasant way to spend time if you're a fan of Southern fiction.
First Line: The South is vast.
37inge87
Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers*
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: it seemed like a nice follow-up to Death on the Cherwell
Year of Original Pub.: 1935
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (10/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 G3 1937
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Gaudy Night finds Harriet Vane returning to her alma mater for a Gaudy (reunion). Someone starts leaving her nasty notes, and then later sabotages the new library. The college asks her to look into things discretely, so that it can be solved without any public attention. However, all this seems to do is draw the poltergeist's attention to her. Lord Peter is in Italy, so it looks like Harriet will be all alone this time. And for once, she finds herself wishing that that were not the case.
Hands down, my favorite Lord Peter mystery—the discussion of women's roles over the course of the book is still very relevant today. The "I was a scholar" scene stands out to me as painfully real. Highly recommended for Lord Peter fans and those who like unusual Golden Age mysteries.
First Line: Harriet Vane sat at her writing-table and stared out into Mecklenburg Square.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: it seemed like a nice follow-up to Death on the Cherwell
Year of Original Pub.: 1935
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (10/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 G3 1937
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Gaudy Night finds Harriet Vane returning to her alma mater for a Gaudy (reunion). Someone starts leaving her nasty notes, and then later sabotages the new library. The college asks her to look into things discretely, so that it can be solved without any public attention. However, all this seems to do is draw the poltergeist's attention to her. Lord Peter is in Italy, so it looks like Harriet will be all alone this time. And for once, she finds herself wishing that that were not the case.
Hands down, my favorite Lord Peter mystery—the discussion of women's roles over the course of the book is still very relevant today. The "I was a scholar" scene stands out to me as painfully real. Highly recommended for Lord Peter fans and those who like unusual Golden Age mysteries.
First Line: Harriet Vane sat at her writing-table and stared out into Mecklenburg Square.
38drneutron
>35 inge87: Interesting. I just watched a movie about that very subject the other day. I'll have to dig up the name...
39inge87
>38 drneutron: Interesting. I know they made a movie about the Christero rebellion a few years ago. Not that I can remember the name of that one either (maybe "Viva Christo Rey"?).
40drneutron
For Greater Glory. Has a bunch of big names in it - Andy Garcia and Eva Longoria were two I remember.
41inge87
>40 drneutron: Yes, that's the one. I never saw it, but my boss made a big deal about it when it came out.
42inge87
Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: trying to finish my mystery category while the books fit DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1927
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (2/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 C5 1952
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Clouds of Witness finds Lord Peter rushing back to Britain after a long stay abroad when he reads in a newspaper that his brother has been arrested for murder. Now obviously, there's no way Gerald could have done something like that, so it's up to Peter to solve the case, which considering that the deceased is their sister's fiance and that Gerald won't give any details about why he was where he was when he was, is going to be easier said than done. But between the twin geniuses of Lord Peter and Bunter, the truth is bound to come out at the end. A nice country house mystery in which a nighttime shooting means everyone's memory is important and discrepancies must be ironed out to find the truth. Plus, since Gerald's the Duke of Denver, there's the prospect of a trial in the House of Lords to look forward too. Hopefully, as a result of of all this trouble, Gerald will never go hunting again. But somehow I doubt it. At least he has Peter to save his behind.
Highly recommended for fans of golden age mysteries, country house mysteries, or Dorothy L. Sayers.
First Line: Lord Peter Wimsey stretched himself luxuriously between the sheets provided by the Hotel Meurice.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: trying to finish my mystery category while the books fit DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1927
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (2/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 C5 1952
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Clouds of Witness finds Lord Peter rushing back to Britain after a long stay abroad when he reads in a newspaper that his brother has been arrested for murder. Now obviously, there's no way Gerald could have done something like that, so it's up to Peter to solve the case, which considering that the deceased is their sister's fiance and that Gerald won't give any details about why he was where he was when he was, is going to be easier said than done. But between the twin geniuses of Lord Peter and Bunter, the truth is bound to come out at the end. A nice country house mystery in which a nighttime shooting means everyone's memory is important and discrepancies must be ironed out to find the truth. Plus, since Gerald's the Duke of Denver, there's the prospect of a trial in the House of Lords to look forward too. Hopefully, as a result of of all this trouble, Gerald will never go hunting again. But somehow I doubt it. At least he has Peter to save his behind.
Highly recommended for fans of golden age mysteries, country house mysteries, or Dorothy L. Sayers.
First Line: Lord Peter Wimsey stretched himself luxuriously between the sheets provided by the Hotel Meurice.
43inge87
Homeschool: An American History by Milton Gaither
Source: ILL (Dallas County Community College)
Recommendation: The Year of Learning Dangerously + DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: LC 40 G34 2008
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Homeschool is a history of home education, from the beginings of colonial America to the present day. The first three chapters describe how schooling in the home went from being the norm to the exception, the next four chapters describe the creation of what we know as the homeschooling movement, while the final chapters describes how we now appear to be moving away from homeschooling to something resembling the earlier practice of schooling in the home. It's an interesting book that says a lot about the impact of immigration, population growth, and urbanisation on American culture. I docked a star though because the editor got caught napping a few too many times: Quakers≠Shakers (I actually corrected that one in pencil in the book) and the proper word for young human beings is child or children if there is more than one. A "kid" is a young goat. Not that that stopped him for using kid instead of child for all 200+ pages. I expect more from a book published by Palgave Macmillan. But if you're interested in the history of American home education, whether traditional tutoring or mother schools of days gone by or modern homeschooling, this is probably the best place to start. Highly recommended.
First Line: This book presents a history of education in the home in the United States.
Source: ILL (Dallas County Community College)
Recommendation: The Year of Learning Dangerously + DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: LC 40 G34 2008
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Homeschool is a history of home education, from the beginings of colonial America to the present day. The first three chapters describe how schooling in the home went from being the norm to the exception, the next four chapters describe the creation of what we know as the homeschooling movement, while the final chapters describes how we now appear to be moving away from homeschooling to something resembling the earlier practice of schooling in the home. It's an interesting book that says a lot about the impact of immigration, population growth, and urbanisation on American culture. I docked a star though because the editor got caught napping a few too many times: Quakers≠Shakers (I actually corrected that one in pencil in the book) and the proper word for young human beings is child or children if there is more than one. A "kid" is a young goat. Not that that stopped him for using kid instead of child for all 200+ pages. I expect more from a book published by Palgave Macmillan. But if you're interested in the history of American home education, whether traditional tutoring or mother schools of days gone by or modern homeschooling, this is probably the best place to start. Highly recommended.
First Line: This book presents a history of education in the home in the United States.
44inge87
Dangerous Neighbors: Volcanoes and Cities by Grant Heiken
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: QE 522 H37 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Dangerous Neighbors is short book that uses case studies of various cities' situations to discuss the dangers people face living near volcanoes and how they have (not) learned to live alongside these geological time-bombs. Featuring volcanoes on six continents and from ancient Santorini to the modern day, Heiken manages to tell a lot about volcanic eruptions in less than two hundred pages. His text is very readable but suffers from a lack of notes. This may make it more accessible to the lay-reader but I would have found it interesting to view some of his sources. Instead, there is a short list of further reading at the book's end. Highly recommended for anyone interested in volcanoes and human interactions with volcanoes.
First Line: It was a total disaster: tens of millions of yards of lava flowed down the volcano's lower slopes and into the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: QE 522 H37 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Dangerous Neighbors is short book that uses case studies of various cities' situations to discuss the dangers people face living near volcanoes and how they have (not) learned to live alongside these geological time-bombs. Featuring volcanoes on six continents and from ancient Santorini to the modern day, Heiken manages to tell a lot about volcanic eruptions in less than two hundred pages. His text is very readable but suffers from a lack of notes. This may make it more accessible to the lay-reader but I would have found it interesting to view some of his sources. Instead, there is a short list of further reading at the book's end. Highly recommended for anyone interested in volcanoes and human interactions with volcanoes.
First Line: It was a total disaster: tens of millions of yards of lava flowed down the volcano's lower slopes and into the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
45inge87
The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem Pangur Bán by Jo Ellen Bogart & Sydney Smith
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 B653 Whi 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The White Cat and the Monk is, as the subtitle informs us, "A Retelling of the Poem 'Pangur Bán'". "Pangur Bán" is a short verse in Old Irish found scribbled on the margins of a medieval manuscript in Germany that compares the author's work to that of his cat, the aforementioned Pangur Bán. The the cat's name seems familiar to you, that is because the poem provided the name for the cat in the movie The Secret of Kells. The book stays fairly close the the text and the illustrations are nice, with a kind of cinematic expansiveness to them. The only issue is that the number of textless pages means that it is much more fun to read with a partner or two instead of alone. Highly recommended for fans of cats, Celts, and the Middle Ages.
First Line: I, monk and scholar, share my room with my white cat, Pangur.
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 B653 Whi 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The White Cat and the Monk is, as the subtitle informs us, "A Retelling of the Poem 'Pangur Bán'". "Pangur Bán" is a short verse in Old Irish found scribbled on the margins of a medieval manuscript in Germany that compares the author's work to that of his cat, the aforementioned Pangur Bán. The the cat's name seems familiar to you, that is because the poem provided the name for the cat in the movie The Secret of Kells. The book stays fairly close the the text and the illustrations are nice, with a kind of cinematic expansiveness to them. The only issue is that the number of textless pages means that it is much more fun to read with a partner or two instead of alone. Highly recommended for fans of cats, Celts, and the Middle Ages.
First Line: I, monk and scholar, share my room with my white cat, Pangur.
46inge87
A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins & Sophie Blackall
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 J4134 Fin 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Fine Dessert is a charming children's book about four families each a century apart who made blackberry fool for dessert. We watch each make the same recipe using the technology and resources available to them, whether it involves going outside to pick the berries or going to the local grocer. Three of cooks are mother-daughter pairs, but the final story has father and son getting ready for dinner. If you like cooking or books about bonding in the kitchen, you can't go wrong with this one. Highly recommended.
First Line: A little more than three hundred years ago, in an English town called Lyme, a girl and her mother picked wild blackberries.
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 J4134 Fin 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Fine Dessert is a charming children's book about four families each a century apart who made blackberry fool for dessert. We watch each make the same recipe using the technology and resources available to them, whether it involves going outside to pick the berries or going to the local grocer. Three of cooks are mother-daughter pairs, but the final story has father and son getting ready for dinner. If you like cooking or books about bonding in the kitchen, you can't go wrong with this one. Highly recommended.
First Line: A little more than three hundred years ago, in an English town called Lyme, a girl and her mother picked wild blackberries.
47inge87
Robbery Under Law by Evelyn Waugh
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1939
LC Call #: F 1215 W33 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Robbery Under Law is Evelyn Waugh's account of his trip to Mexico and what he found there. It's not a pure travelogue, as he does focus on history and then current events like the nationalization of the petroleum industry and the ongoing persecution of Christians by the government. However, he went late enough that he missed most of the great excitement and instead had to content himself with viewing the results of over two decades of civil war and political upheaval. Suffice to say, Waugh being Waugh, he does not approve. However, he is more positive and objective on some points than I expected him to be.
This isn't a book to jump into without having some background about the issues Waugh is discussing, and Graham Green's earlier travelogue, The Lawless Roads, is arguably more exciting, but if you have an interest in Waugh or in contemporary reactions to the Mexican Civil War, you'll want to get to this one eventually.
First Line: This is a political book; the sketch of a foreign country where I spent a day or so under two months; of a country which has already provoked a huge number of books, many of them by residents of life-long experience.
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: GeoCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1939
LC Call #: F 1215 W33 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Robbery Under Law is Evelyn Waugh's account of his trip to Mexico and what he found there. It's not a pure travelogue, as he does focus on history and then current events like the nationalization of the petroleum industry and the ongoing persecution of Christians by the government. However, he went late enough that he missed most of the great excitement and instead had to content himself with viewing the results of over two decades of civil war and political upheaval. Suffice to say, Waugh being Waugh, he does not approve. However, he is more positive and objective on some points than I expected him to be.
This isn't a book to jump into without having some background about the issues Waugh is discussing, and Graham Green's earlier travelogue, The Lawless Roads, is arguably more exciting, but if you have an interest in Waugh or in contemporary reactions to the Mexican Civil War, you'll want to get to this one eventually.
First Line: This is a political book; the sketch of a foreign country where I spent a day or so under two months; of a country which has already provoked a huge number of books, many of them by residents of life-long experience.
48inge87
Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous+
Source: me (early-to-mid 2000s)
Recommendation: Working through Mt. TBR
Original Title: Jómsvíkinga saga
Year of Original Pub.: 13th century
LC Call #: PT 7282 J6 H6 1988
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Saga of the Jómsvíkings is a tale of viking daring-do on the high seas of Denmark and Norway. There are lots of feuds, raids, and bride-taking, just what everyone wants in a saga of adventure like this. The Jomsvikings were a legendary band of Vikings based on an island at the mouth of the Oder river near what is now the German/Polish border but was then the land of the Slavic Wends. We learn a lot about the family history of the important band members in the lead up to the main action, the Battle of Hjörungavágr off the coast of what is now Norway in which the Norwegians fought off a Jomsviking-led Danish force. The introduction to my edition by the translator was extremely useful in setting the reader up to understand and enjoy the text, and I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in sagas, Vikings, or the Dark Ages.
First Line: Gorm was the name of a king who ruled over Denmark and was called the Childless.
Source: me (early-to-mid 2000s)
Recommendation: Working through Mt. TBR
Original Title: Jómsvíkinga saga
Year of Original Pub.: 13th century
LC Call #: PT 7282 J6 H6 1988
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Saga of the Jómsvíkings is a tale of viking daring-do on the high seas of Denmark and Norway. There are lots of feuds, raids, and bride-taking, just what everyone wants in a saga of adventure like this. The Jomsvikings were a legendary band of Vikings based on an island at the mouth of the Oder river near what is now the German/Polish border but was then the land of the Slavic Wends. We learn a lot about the family history of the important band members in the lead up to the main action, the Battle of Hjörungavágr off the coast of what is now Norway in which the Norwegians fought off a Jomsviking-led Danish force. The introduction to my edition by the translator was extremely useful in setting the reader up to understand and enjoy the text, and I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in sagas, Vikings, or the Dark Ages.
First Line: Gorm was the name of a king who ruled over Denmark and was called the Childless.
49inge87
Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers
Source: work
Recommendation: still trying to finish my mystery category while the books fit DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1928
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (3/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 U66 1934
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Unnatural Death finds Lord Peter and Parker getting a lead on an interesting case after their conversation about medical murder is overheard at a restaurant. They then hear about an interesting case a doctor had involving a elderly spinster, a great-niece, dismissed staff, and a sudden death. The coroner had ruled that she died naturally, but the doctor disagreed and got into some hot water. The story intrigues Peter and he looks into it, only to find that the body count appears to rise the deeper he digs. Just who is doing the killing and what do they have to do with a strange woman of dubious background who may be involved with the white slave trade (what today we would call sexual trafficking)? You'll have to read on to find out.
The early Lord Peter mysteries have a different feel than the later ones, but they're still a lot of fun.
First Line: "But if he thought the woman was being murdered—"
Source: work
Recommendation: still trying to finish my mystery category while the books fit DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1928
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (3/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 U66 1934
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Unnatural Death finds Lord Peter and Parker getting a lead on an interesting case after their conversation about medical murder is overheard at a restaurant. They then hear about an interesting case a doctor had involving a elderly spinster, a great-niece, dismissed staff, and a sudden death. The coroner had ruled that she died naturally, but the doctor disagreed and got into some hot water. The story intrigues Peter and he looks into it, only to find that the body count appears to rise the deeper he digs. Just who is doing the killing and what do they have to do with a strange woman of dubious background who may be involved with the white slave trade (what today we would call sexual trafficking)? You'll have to read on to find out.
The early Lord Peter mysteries have a different feel than the later ones, but they're still a lot of fun.
First Line: "But if he thought the woman was being murdered—"
50inge87
The Seasons: A Celebration of the English Year by Nick Groom
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: GR 930 G766 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Seasons is an historical overview of various customs and traditions practiced by the English organized by season. Although evidence of former practices abound, there is much that has been lost with the transition away from an agricultural society (and for that matter, with the cultural break that was the Reformation). Still, as the author finds out, there are still places that maintain versions of customs that were once widespread and where you can participate in these cultural rituals and even make them your own. The overall tone is one of melancholy tinged with cautious optimism. But whether your interest is in Midsommer, Twelfth Night, or St. Swithin's Day, you'll definitely learn something new here. An interesting book about a neglected concept (celebrating the passing of the seasons) that has become lost in the rush of modern society. Highly recommended.
First Line: Once, the eternal cycle of seasons must have seemed eternal and indomitable.
Source: me (12/15)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: GR 930 G766 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Seasons is an historical overview of various customs and traditions practiced by the English organized by season. Although evidence of former practices abound, there is much that has been lost with the transition away from an agricultural society (and for that matter, with the cultural break that was the Reformation). Still, as the author finds out, there are still places that maintain versions of customs that were once widespread and where you can participate in these cultural rituals and even make them your own. The overall tone is one of melancholy tinged with cautious optimism. But whether your interest is in Midsommer, Twelfth Night, or St. Swithin's Day, you'll definitely learn something new here. An interesting book about a neglected concept (celebrating the passing of the seasons) that has become lost in the rush of modern society. Highly recommended.
First Line: Once, the eternal cycle of seasons must have seemed eternal and indomitable.
51inge87
Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb; or, The Queerest Trip on Record by May Hollis Barton*
Source: me (5/15)
Recommendation: felt like it
Series: Barton Books for Girls (14/15)
Year of Original Pub.: 1931
LC Call #: PS 3503 A7865 C53 1931
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb is the story of Charlotte, who gets an offer to travel to Italy if she will accompany her aunt. Charlotte works all the time in the art department of a department store but only earns just enough for room and board and to send some home to her parents, who paid for her college education. So this sudden offer is more than welcome. Her friend/co-worker/roommate warns her that her astrologer has said nothing good will come of the trip, but Charlotte is determined. However, she has underestimated Aunt Deb, who appears to be even crazier than Charlotte remembered! Deb has discovered record of a lost family treasure hidden away in an Italian castle and is determined to retrieve it. She is also determined to believe the world is after her treasure too. Which is really too bad, since Charlotte soon picks up an admirer that Deb is convinced is a thief. Just what is wrong with Aunt Deb, and is there really a treasure? You'll have to read on to find out!
A fun lark of a novel from the same people who brought you Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. Charlotte Cross was aimed at a slightly older market I think; I just can't imagine a 12-year-old wanting to read about an impoverished college graduate dealing with an apparently mentally impaired elderly woman. This is more like proto-New Adult fiction than "fiction for girls". But for those who enjoy fun vintage literature jaunts, this is definitely one to pick up.
First Line: Carol opened the squeaking door and looked into the room.
Source: me (5/15)
Recommendation: felt like it
Series: Barton Books for Girls (14/15)
Year of Original Pub.: 1931
LC Call #: PS 3503 A7865 C53 1931
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Charlotte Cross and Aunt Deb is the story of Charlotte, who gets an offer to travel to Italy if she will accompany her aunt. Charlotte works all the time in the art department of a department store but only earns just enough for room and board and to send some home to her parents, who paid for her college education. So this sudden offer is more than welcome. Her friend/co-worker/roommate warns her that her astrologer has said nothing good will come of the trip, but Charlotte is determined. However, she has underestimated Aunt Deb, who appears to be even crazier than Charlotte remembered! Deb has discovered record of a lost family treasure hidden away in an Italian castle and is determined to retrieve it. She is also determined to believe the world is after her treasure too. Which is really too bad, since Charlotte soon picks up an admirer that Deb is convinced is a thief. Just what is wrong with Aunt Deb, and is there really a treasure? You'll have to read on to find out!
A fun lark of a novel from the same people who brought you Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. Charlotte Cross was aimed at a slightly older market I think; I just can't imagine a 12-year-old wanting to read about an impoverished college graduate dealing with an apparently mentally impaired elderly woman. This is more like proto-New Adult fiction than "fiction for girls". But for those who enjoy fun vintage literature jaunts, this is definitely one to pick up.
First Line: Carol opened the squeaking door and looked into the room.
52inge87
May Reading Round-Up!
Books Read: 29 (27 in 2013, 17 in 2014, & 23 in 2015)
Genre
Non-Fiction - 16 - 55.17%
Fiction - 13 - 44.83%
Sources
Me (other) - 7 - 24.15%
Me (this month) - 5 - 17.24%
Work - 5 - 17.24%
Corsicana PL - 4 - 13.79%
ILL - 4 - 13.79%
Me (last month) - 3 - 10.34%
Irving PL - 1 - 3.45%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 2 - 6.9%
Rereads - 2 - 6.9%
Authors
Male - 15 - 50%
Female - 13 - 43.33%
Unknown - 2 - 6.67%
Edition Language
English - 29 - 100%
Original Language
English - 26 - 89.65%
Latin - 1 - 3.45%
Old Irish - 1 - 3.45%
Old Norse - 1 - 3.45%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 21 - 72.41%
Series Books - 8 - 27.59%
Average Original Date of Publication with Saga of the Jómsvíkings
1951
Average Original Date of Publication without Saga of the Jómsvíkings
1976
Median Original Date of Publication
1994
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 3.45%
3 stars - 16 - 55.17%
4 stars - 10 - 34.48
5 stars - 2 - 6.9%
Average Rating
3.45
Discovery of the Month
C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium: Six Essays on the Abolition of Man by Peter Kreeft
First Line of the Month
"Once, the eternal cycle of seasons must have seemed eternal and indomitable."
—Nick Groom, The Seasons: A Celebration of the English Year
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins & Sophie Blackall
Non-Fiction: Humanist Educational Treatises by Craig W. Kallendorf (ed.)
Books Read: 29 (27 in 2013, 17 in 2014, & 23 in 2015)
Genre
Non-Fiction - 16 - 55.17%
Fiction - 13 - 44.83%
Sources
Me (other) - 7 - 24.15%
Me (this month) - 5 - 17.24%
Work - 5 - 17.24%
Corsicana PL - 4 - 13.79%
ILL - 4 - 13.79%
Me (last month) - 3 - 10.34%
Irving PL - 1 - 3.45%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 2 - 6.9%
Rereads - 2 - 6.9%
Authors
Male - 15 - 50%
Female - 13 - 43.33%
Unknown - 2 - 6.67%
Edition Language
English - 29 - 100%
Original Language
English - 26 - 89.65%
Latin - 1 - 3.45%
Old Irish - 1 - 3.45%
Old Norse - 1 - 3.45%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 21 - 72.41%
Series Books - 8 - 27.59%
Average Original Date of Publication with Saga of the Jómsvíkings
1951
Average Original Date of Publication without Saga of the Jómsvíkings
1976
Median Original Date of Publication
1994
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 3.45%
3 stars - 16 - 55.17%
4 stars - 10 - 34.48
5 stars - 2 - 6.9%
Average Rating
3.45
Discovery of the Month
C. S. Lewis for the Third Millennium: Six Essays on the Abolition of Man by Peter Kreeft
First Line of the Month
"Once, the eternal cycle of seasons must have seemed eternal and indomitable."
—Nick Groom, The Seasons: A Celebration of the English Year
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins & Sophie Blackall
Non-Fiction: Humanist Educational Treatises by Craig W. Kallendorf (ed.)
53inge87
The Quest for Shakespeare by Joseph Pearce
Source: work
Recommendation: impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: PR 3011 P4 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quest for Shakespeare is an attempt to establish Shakespeare's Catholicism using only the biographical and historical evidence left to us, and while we famously know very little about the Bard's life, what we do know is surprisingly revealing if you know where to look. And Pearce obviously knows where to look. Working his way from Shakespeare's parents and birth to his own death many years later, Pearce reveals step-by-step the evidence that suggests that Shakespeare was born a Catholic and died one as well. It makes for very interesting reading and we learn a lot about Elizabethan and Jacobean society while we learn about Shakespeare. I read Claire Asquith's book about Shakespeare's Catholicism when it first came out and remember thinking that it went a bit overboard in looking for clues. Pearce's book feels much more realistic and grounded in obvious facts. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Shakespeare, recusancy, or Elizabethan and Jacobean society.
First Line: The quest for the real William Shakespeare is akin to a detective story in which the Shakespearean biographer is cast in the role of a literary sleuth, pursuing his quarry like a latter-day Sherlock Holmes.
Source: work
Recommendation: impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: PR 3011 P4 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quest for Shakespeare is an attempt to establish Shakespeare's Catholicism using only the biographical and historical evidence left to us, and while we famously know very little about the Bard's life, what we do know is surprisingly revealing if you know where to look. And Pearce obviously knows where to look. Working his way from Shakespeare's parents and birth to his own death many years later, Pearce reveals step-by-step the evidence that suggests that Shakespeare was born a Catholic and died one as well. It makes for very interesting reading and we learn a lot about Elizabethan and Jacobean society while we learn about Shakespeare. I read Claire Asquith's book about Shakespeare's Catholicism when it first came out and remember thinking that it went a bit overboard in looking for clues. Pearce's book feels much more realistic and grounded in obvious facts. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Shakespeare, recusancy, or Elizabethan and Jacobean society.
First Line: The quest for the real William Shakespeare is akin to a detective story in which the Shakespearean biographer is cast in the role of a literary sleuth, pursuing his quarry like a latter-day Sherlock Holmes.
54inge87
Vom heiligen Bonifatius den Kindern erzählt by Georg Schwikart^
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: It was St. Boniface Day (June 5th)
Title in English (roughly): St. Boniface Told to Children
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: BX 4700 B7 S39 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Vom heiligen Bonifatius den Kindern erzählt is a very nice picture book of the life of Saint Boniface ("Bonifatius" in Latin and German), an Englishman who travelled across the sea to evangelize the Germans. His most famous adventure is depicted on the cover: chopping down Donner (Thor's) Oak. Boniface was able to use the fact that he chopped down the tree with no ill effects to show that his God was greater than Thor. The book continues to tell Boniface's story though the rest of his life and then also introduces the Bonifatius-Werk ("Boniface Work"), a major Catholic charity founded in the 1800s that serves Catholics in what is known in German as the Diaspora, places where they are in the minority, namely North and East Germany, Scandinavia, and the two Protestant Baltic states). Although there is a picture for each page, the book is wordy enough that it is probably best for slightly older children. There aren't many books about Saint Boniface out there, so this one is certainly useful and welcome. Highly recommended.
First Line: So viele Menschen gibt es auf der Welt!
English (my translation): There are so many people in the world!
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: It was St. Boniface Day (June 5th)
Title in English (roughly): St. Boniface Told to Children
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: BX 4700 B7 S39 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Vom heiligen Bonifatius den Kindern erzählt is a very nice picture book of the life of Saint Boniface ("Bonifatius" in Latin and German), an Englishman who travelled across the sea to evangelize the Germans. His most famous adventure is depicted on the cover: chopping down Donner (Thor's) Oak. Boniface was able to use the fact that he chopped down the tree with no ill effects to show that his God was greater than Thor. The book continues to tell Boniface's story though the rest of his life and then also introduces the Bonifatius-Werk ("Boniface Work"), a major Catholic charity founded in the 1800s that serves Catholics in what is known in German as the Diaspora, places where they are in the minority, namely North and East Germany, Scandinavia, and the two Protestant Baltic states). Although there is a picture for each page, the book is wordy enough that it is probably best for slightly older children. There aren't many books about Saint Boniface out there, so this one is certainly useful and welcome. Highly recommended.
First Line: So viele Menschen gibt es auf der Welt!
English (my translation): There are so many people in the world!
55inge87
The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: childhood favorite
Year of Original Pub.: 1944
LC Call #: PZ 7 E749 Hu 1944
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Wanda Petronski hasn't been to school in a few days, but no one has really noticed. After all, she's quiet and strange and even possibly delusional (how could she even think that anyone would believe she has 100 dresses in her closet when she only ever wears the same one). But gradually it dawns on everyone that Wanda and her family are gone. The Hundred Dresses tells the story of what happens next. How gradually the girls realize how wrongly they judged Wanda and about how sometimes there are things you can never take back. It's a story that is just as relevant now as it was in the 1940s.
What is really remarkable about the book though is just how well it's aged. I first read the book in a Dallas elementary school in the 1990s, and since there aren't a lot of Poles there was unfamiliar with anti-Polish xenophobia, but Wanda's father's letter about how in the city "no one holler Pollack" has stuck with me these 20+ years long after I forgot the rest of the book. It's an honest explanation of how peer pressure and bullying happen and deserves a place on every child's bookshelf (although girls will probably appreciate it more than boys). Highly, highly recommended.
First Line: Today, Monday, Wanda Petronski was not in her seat.
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: childhood favorite
Year of Original Pub.: 1944
LC Call #: PZ 7 E749 Hu 1944
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Wanda Petronski hasn't been to school in a few days, but no one has really noticed. After all, she's quiet and strange and even possibly delusional (how could she even think that anyone would believe she has 100 dresses in her closet when she only ever wears the same one). But gradually it dawns on everyone that Wanda and her family are gone. The Hundred Dresses tells the story of what happens next. How gradually the girls realize how wrongly they judged Wanda and about how sometimes there are things you can never take back. It's a story that is just as relevant now as it was in the 1940s.
What is really remarkable about the book though is just how well it's aged. I first read the book in a Dallas elementary school in the 1990s, and since there aren't a lot of Poles there was unfamiliar with anti-Polish xenophobia, but Wanda's father's letter about how in the city "no one holler Pollack" has stuck with me these 20+ years long after I forgot the rest of the book. It's an honest explanation of how peer pressure and bullying happen and deserves a place on every child's bookshelf (although girls will probably appreciate it more than boys). Highly, highly recommended.
First Line: Today, Monday, Wanda Petronski was not in her seat.
56scaifea
>55 inge87: Oh gosh, I LOVE that one, so much. Beautifully written and so important for young ones to read, I think. And you're right that it has aged very well.
57inge87
>56 scaifea: A thousand times yes. As good as The Hundred Dresses is, it's so sad how the inability to stop xenophobia and schoolyard bullying keeps it perpetually relevant.
58inge87
The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
Source: work
Recommendation: I hadn't read this one yet
Year of Original Pub.: c. 1598
LC Call #: PR 2825 A2 P43 2009
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Merchant of Venice is what I guess can be called a comic-drama about friendship, the perils of money-lending, and the value value of a good woman. Set in Venice, the play covers what happens when Antonio, the aforementioned merchant of Venice, agrees to take out a loan on behalf of his friend Bassanio, so that Bassanio can woo the fair heiress Portia. If he doesn't repay the loan, Shylock, the moneylender, can claim a pound of his flesh, but with his ships due in port well before then, Antonio isn't worried. But this being Shakespeare, he should have.
Much of the focus on this play has been on Shylock and his Jewishness. But the play would have be received differently in Shakespeare's time and the notes to my edition point out that his forced conversion would have been seen as a good thing in those days. Portia, to me is the most interesting character, and she certainly seems to have more brains than most of the men running around trying to stop the bloodshed. A very interesting work that will make you think. Portia's thoughts on the quality of mercy are especially well worth reading. Highly recommended.
First Line: In sooth, I know not why I am so sad:
It wearies me; you say it wearies you;
But how I caught it, found it, or came by it,
What stuff 'tis made of, whereof it is born,
I am to learn;
And such a want-wit sadness makes of me,
That I have much ado to know myself.
Source: work
Recommendation: I hadn't read this one yet
Year of Original Pub.: c. 1598
LC Call #: PR 2825 A2 P43 2009
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Merchant of Venice is what I guess can be called a comic-drama about friendship, the perils of money-lending, and the value value of a good woman. Set in Venice, the play covers what happens when Antonio, the aforementioned merchant of Venice, agrees to take out a loan on behalf of his friend Bassanio, so that Bassanio can woo the fair heiress Portia. If he doesn't repay the loan, Shylock, the moneylender, can claim a pound of his flesh, but with his ships due in port well before then, Antonio isn't worried. But this being Shakespeare, he should have.
Much of the focus on this play has been on Shylock and his Jewishness. But the play would have be received differently in Shakespeare's time and the notes to my edition point out that his forced conversion would have been seen as a good thing in those days. Portia, to me is the most interesting character, and she certainly seems to have more brains than most of the men running around trying to stop the bloodshed. A very interesting work that will make you think. Portia's thoughts on the quality of mercy are especially well worth reading. Highly recommended.
First Line: In sooth, I know not why I am so sad:
It wearies me; you say it wearies you;
But how I caught it, found it, or came by it,
What stuff 'tis made of, whereof it is born,
I am to learn;
And such a want-wit sadness makes of me,
That I have much ado to know myself.
59inge87
Cosmas, or the Love of God by Pierre de Calan*
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: It's a good book
Original Title: Côme ou le désir de Dieu
Year of Original Pub.: 1977
LC Call #: PQ 2672 A347 C613 2006
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Cosmas, or the Love of God is the story of a young man who seeks to join the Cistercian monastery of La Trappe (birthplace of the Trappist Order), but can't quite seem to manage it. But it's also the story of everyone who has ever made a decision and tried to stick with it not matter how wrong that choice may have been.
The novel is narrated by the former master of novices to a visiting retreatant in the present day (i.e. the 1970s), although most of the novel occurs in the 1930s. Time has given the narrator perspective, although even now the events surrounding Cosmas trouble him deeply.
When Cosmas arrived he appeared the model novice. However, it soon appears that his ideals concerning the monastery fail to match up with earthly realities, and he suffers a nervous break down and returns to the outside world for a period. Although he maintains he has learned his lesson, events soon begin repeating themselves on his return. This time he practically runs away. Stability is one of the most important values of the Benedictine rule, but it seems the one hurdle Cosmas can't jump. Is his vocation true or not? He wants it to be, but ultimately, he is not the one who decides.
An insightful, readable novel about life, choices, and fidelity. You don't have to be Catholic to enjoy it. Highly recommended.
First Line: Cosmas's first cell was just here.
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: It's a good book
Original Title: Côme ou le désir de Dieu
Year of Original Pub.: 1977
LC Call #: PQ 2672 A347 C613 2006
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Cosmas, or the Love of God is the story of a young man who seeks to join the Cistercian monastery of La Trappe (birthplace of the Trappist Order), but can't quite seem to manage it. But it's also the story of everyone who has ever made a decision and tried to stick with it not matter how wrong that choice may have been.
The novel is narrated by the former master of novices to a visiting retreatant in the present day (i.e. the 1970s), although most of the novel occurs in the 1930s. Time has given the narrator perspective, although even now the events surrounding Cosmas trouble him deeply.
When Cosmas arrived he appeared the model novice. However, it soon appears that his ideals concerning the monastery fail to match up with earthly realities, and he suffers a nervous break down and returns to the outside world for a period. Although he maintains he has learned his lesson, events soon begin repeating themselves on his return. This time he practically runs away. Stability is one of the most important values of the Benedictine rule, but it seems the one hurdle Cosmas can't jump. Is his vocation true or not? He wants it to be, but ultimately, he is not the one who decides.
An insightful, readable novel about life, choices, and fidelity. You don't have to be Catholic to enjoy it. Highly recommended.
First Line: Cosmas's first cell was just here.
60inge87
Viking Legacy: Scandinavian Influence on the English Language by John Geipel
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: CHOICE, somehow
Year of Original Pub.: 1971
LC Call #: PE 1582 S3 G4 1971
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Viking Legacy is the story of how Danish and Norwegian settlement in the British Isles during the early middle ages affected the local languages. Although the focus is on English, there is also some discussion of the Gaelic languages as well and a nice section on Norn, the Norse language spoken in Shetland and Orkney into the early 19th century. The first three chapters are historical in character, covering the common roots of English and Norse, the history of Norsemen in the British Isles, and how the Norse invasions changed the local languages. The final three chapters have more to do with the appendices, and may have been better marked off as so, because they cover placenames and personal names found in Britain of Scandinavian origin and therefore are organised by root instead of any narrative value. There are also two actual appendices covering Scandinavian loanwords in modern English and modern British surnames of Scandinavian origin. So like I said, it's really two different books. What you are looking to get out of it will determine which part you like best, but it's the best book out there for the topic. So if you have an interest in the historical evolution of the English language, or in Old Norse, or in English dialects, this is probably the book you're looking for.
First Line: Of the many peoples who have settled in Britain since the coming of the Anglo-Saxons, only two, the Normans and the Scandinavians, have exerted any appreciable influence on the languages and place-names of these islands.
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: CHOICE, somehow
Year of Original Pub.: 1971
LC Call #: PE 1582 S3 G4 1971
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Viking Legacy is the story of how Danish and Norwegian settlement in the British Isles during the early middle ages affected the local languages. Although the focus is on English, there is also some discussion of the Gaelic languages as well and a nice section on Norn, the Norse language spoken in Shetland and Orkney into the early 19th century. The first three chapters are historical in character, covering the common roots of English and Norse, the history of Norsemen in the British Isles, and how the Norse invasions changed the local languages. The final three chapters have more to do with the appendices, and may have been better marked off as so, because they cover placenames and personal names found in Britain of Scandinavian origin and therefore are organised by root instead of any narrative value. There are also two actual appendices covering Scandinavian loanwords in modern English and modern British surnames of Scandinavian origin. So like I said, it's really two different books. What you are looking to get out of it will determine which part you like best, but it's the best book out there for the topic. So if you have an interest in the historical evolution of the English language, or in Old Norse, or in English dialects, this is probably the book you're looking for.
First Line: Of the many peoples who have settled in Britain since the coming of the Anglo-Saxons, only two, the Normans and the Scandinavians, have exerted any appreciable influence on the languages and place-names of these islands.
62inge87
>61 drneutron: I got my copy via interlibrary loan. It does seem to be rather expensive to acquire outside of libraries.
63thornton37814
>60 inge87: That one sounds interesting.
64inge87
First Catiline Oration by Cicero^
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: Brushing up my Latin
Original Title: Oratio in Catilinam Prima
Year of Original Pub.: 63 BC
LC Call #: PA 2095 H432 1997
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The First Catiline Oration finds Cicero confronting Catiline in the Roman Senate about how he has been a very naughty boy. Suffice to say, he thought he was planning a secret coup, but it wasn't that secret since Cicero knows all about it. Cicero wants to kill Catiline for his crimes, but due to politics he feels he can only demand exile. There's lots of stirring dialogue and impassioned exclamations, but the gorgeous prose just makes it easier to absorb the history. Highly recommended for anyone who can read Latin, or anyone with an interest in Roman history. Fuit, fuit ista quondam in hac re publica virtus* indeed.
First Line: Quo usque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra?
My translation: How long will you try our patience, Catiline?
*A rather fetching line from the oration. My translation: "There was, there was once such virtue in this republic"
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: Brushing up my Latin
Original Title: Oratio in Catilinam Prima
Year of Original Pub.: 63 BC
LC Call #: PA 2095 H432 1997
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The First Catiline Oration finds Cicero confronting Catiline in the Roman Senate about how he has been a very naughty boy. Suffice to say, he thought he was planning a secret coup, but it wasn't that secret since Cicero knows all about it. Cicero wants to kill Catiline for his crimes, but due to politics he feels he can only demand exile. There's lots of stirring dialogue and impassioned exclamations, but the gorgeous prose just makes it easier to absorb the history. Highly recommended for anyone who can read Latin, or anyone with an interest in Roman history. Fuit, fuit ista quondam in hac re publica virtus* indeed.
First Line: Quo usque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra?
My translation: How long will you try our patience, Catiline?
*A rather fetching line from the oration. My translation: "There was, there was once such virtue in this republic"
65inge87
The Curé of Ars: Patron Saint of Parish Priests by Bartholomew J. O'Brien
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: it was there
Year of Original Pub.: 1956
LC Call #: BX 4700 V5 O27 1987
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Curé of Ars is a short, well-written biography of the patron saint of priests: Jean Baptiste Vianney. A humble parish priest in a remote corner of France, he had little education due to the disruption of the French Revolution but went on to become famous around the world for his wisdom and piety. How he did it is told in O'Brien's work. This is one of those stories that contains so much of interest that it would be easy to overdue it and over emphasize some of St. Jean's qualities (especially the tales of his holiness), but the author manages to both capture everything and keep it realistic. Highly recommended for those interested in saints' lives, interesting biographies, or St. Jean himself.
First Line: The first saint to come to the Vianney home was St. Joseph Benedict Labre.
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: it was there
Year of Original Pub.: 1956
LC Call #: BX 4700 V5 O27 1987
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Curé of Ars is a short, well-written biography of the patron saint of priests: Jean Baptiste Vianney. A humble parish priest in a remote corner of France, he had little education due to the disruption of the French Revolution but went on to become famous around the world for his wisdom and piety. How he did it is told in O'Brien's work. This is one of those stories that contains so much of interest that it would be easy to overdue it and over emphasize some of St. Jean's qualities (especially the tales of his holiness), but the author manages to both capture everything and keep it realistic. Highly recommended for those interested in saints' lives, interesting biographies, or St. Jean himself.
First Line: The first saint to come to the Vianney home was St. Joseph Benedict Labre.
66scaifea
>64 inge87: Oh, Cicero! I have a soft spot in my heart for that old boy. It makes me happy when I discover other folks reading him, and the First Catilinarian is a doozy.
67inge87
>63 thornton37814: It was a very interesting read. I just wish it had been organized a bit differently.
>66 scaifea: It is. If I had been Catiline, the first speech would have been enough to make me want to crawl in a hole and die. Yet somehow he found the strength to put up enough of a fight to get four of them. Politicians and their giant egos . . . definitely one of the universal facts of life.
>66 scaifea: It is. If I had been Catiline, the first speech would have been enough to make me want to crawl in a hole and die. Yet somehow he found the strength to put up enough of a fight to get four of them. Politicians and their giant egos . . . definitely one of the universal facts of life.
68inge87
Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin by Nicholas Ostler+
Source: me (7/08)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT inspired TBR-clearing
Year of Original Pub.: 2007
LC Call #: PA 2057 O88 2007
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Ad Infinitum is a history of Latin and its usage from the beginning to the present day (c. 2007). Focusing on how Latin grew and changed as a language and how its user groups changed as well, it makes for fascinating reading. I particularly liked the parts about early Latin and its relationship with its neighboring languages, as well as the bits on the development of vulgar Latin as various written standards which seemed to specialize in either poetry or prose. I did feel that it lost steam and direction as we left the dark ages and headed towards the renaissance and the early modern era. But I guess it had to be included to really create a "biography" of the language. Highly recommended for those interesting in the history and development of Latin.
First Line: Nowadays Latin seems a comical language.
Source: me (7/08)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT inspired TBR-clearing
Year of Original Pub.: 2007
LC Call #: PA 2057 O88 2007
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Ad Infinitum is a history of Latin and its usage from the beginning to the present day (c. 2007). Focusing on how Latin grew and changed as a language and how its user groups changed as well, it makes for fascinating reading. I particularly liked the parts about early Latin and its relationship with its neighboring languages, as well as the bits on the development of vulgar Latin as various written standards which seemed to specialize in either poetry or prose. I did feel that it lost steam and direction as we left the dark ages and headed towards the renaissance and the early modern era. But I guess it had to be included to really create a "biography" of the language. Highly recommended for those interesting in the history and development of Latin.
First Line: Nowadays Latin seems a comical language.
69inge87
The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, & Edmund Wiener*
Source: me (c. 6/06)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PR 6039 O32 Z649 2006
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Ring of Words is a book in three parts, with the first two focusing on Tolkien's work on the Oxford English Dictionary and on his own personal word-creation respectively, and the third being essentially a kind of glossary detailing some of the more obscure words he used and those that he essentially created or gave new meaning so. It sounds like three books squished in one, but it works surprisingly well. This is a book that would appeal to anyone with an interest in the OED, the history of the English language, dictionary creation, and word and language creation, as well as Tolkien fans. If you fall into any of those groups, I can highly recommend this book.
First Line: The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography describes J. R. R. Tolkien as 'writer and philologist'.
Source: me (c. 6/06)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PR 6039 O32 Z649 2006
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Ring of Words is a book in three parts, with the first two focusing on Tolkien's work on the Oxford English Dictionary and on his own personal word-creation respectively, and the third being essentially a kind of glossary detailing some of the more obscure words he used and those that he essentially created or gave new meaning so. It sounds like three books squished in one, but it works surprisingly well. This is a book that would appeal to anyone with an interest in the OED, the history of the English language, dictionary creation, and word and language creation, as well as Tolkien fans. If you fall into any of those groups, I can highly recommend this book.
First Line: The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography describes J. R. R. Tolkien as 'writer and philologist'.
70inge87
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien*
Source: work
Recommendation: it felt like time for a reread
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: PR 6039 O32 H6 2007
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Hobbit is a book whose plot needs little describing. A stay-at-home meets a wizard and some dwarves (Tolkien popularized that plural form btw) and heads off on a fantastic adventure to drive away a dragon. In fact, what impressed me the most, not having read the book since before I read The Lord of the Rings is how optimistic The Hobbit is. I associate Middle Earth with a kind of misty melancholy, but there is really none of that darkness here. But then again, I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not. Still, it's one of those books that you are told to read that actually are worth reading. Highly recommended.
First Line: In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.
Source: work
Recommendation: it felt like time for a reread
Year of Original Pub.: 1936
LC Call #: PR 6039 O32 H6 2007
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Hobbit is a book whose plot needs little describing. A stay-at-home meets a wizard and some dwarves (Tolkien popularized that plural form btw) and heads off on a fantastic adventure to drive away a dragon. In fact, what impressed me the most, not having read the book since before I read The Lord of the Rings is how optimistic The Hobbit is. I associate Middle Earth with a kind of misty melancholy, but there is really none of that darkness here. But then again, I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not. Still, it's one of those books that you are told to read that actually are worth reading. Highly recommended.
First Line: In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.
71inge87
Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: it's about Charlotte Mason and classical education, how could I say "no"
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: LC 1011 G53 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Consider This is ostensibly a book about homeschooling using Charlotte Mason's teaching theory and the classical curriculum, but it's reach is really much greater than that small niche. It is a book about learning: how we learn and what motivates us to do so. There is also a very good section on understanding just what an education is and is meant to be. Particularly important is the focus given to Mason's belief in synthetic learning over analytical learning, and why the loss of emphasis on synthetic learning in modern education has been so devastating. Also, in spite of the book's first line, the book's first chapter is completely dedicated to discussing who Charlotte Mason was and why she's important, but then again a quick internet search will get you the same information. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the classical learning philosophy, Charlotte Mason, or education in general.
First Line: I shall not spend a great deal of time introducing Charlotte Mason to my readers, as I suppose, as a matter of course, that only those readers already at least somewhat familiar with her would pick up such a book as this.
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: it's about Charlotte Mason and classical education, how could I say "no"
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: LC 1011 G53 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Consider This is ostensibly a book about homeschooling using Charlotte Mason's teaching theory and the classical curriculum, but it's reach is really much greater than that small niche. It is a book about learning: how we learn and what motivates us to do so. There is also a very good section on understanding just what an education is and is meant to be. Particularly important is the focus given to Mason's belief in synthetic learning over analytical learning, and why the loss of emphasis on synthetic learning in modern education has been so devastating. Also, in spite of the book's first line, the book's first chapter is completely dedicated to discussing who Charlotte Mason was and why she's important, but then again a quick internet search will get you the same information. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the classical learning philosophy, Charlotte Mason, or education in general.
First Line: I shall not spend a great deal of time introducing Charlotte Mason to my readers, as I suppose, as a matter of course, that only those readers already at least somewhat familiar with her would pick up such a book as this.
72inge87
The Silver Bough by Lisa Tuttle
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: SFFKIT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PS 3570 U85 S55 2012
Rating: 2 stars / 5
The Silver Bough is the story of Appleton, Scotland, a small village on the western coast and the strange things that happened one summer as perceived by three American women. Appleton has never been the same since the the Apple Queen, a girl named at the annual apple festival, disappeared on year in the early 50s. The whole town seems to be in terminal decline. But then a landslide cuts off the town from the outside world and a fog descends to blot it out from reality. Which would all be well and good if the author could write, but she can't, so it just seems to go on interminably. By the time it we reach the point where the heroines conspire to save the town, I really couldn't find it in me to care. A book with lots of potential but poor execution. Skip it.
First Line: Ashley Kaldis leaned her head against the cool glass and gazed through the bus window at the Glasgow streets.
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: SFFKIT
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PS 3570 U85 S55 2012
Rating: 2 stars / 5
The Silver Bough is the story of Appleton, Scotland, a small village on the western coast and the strange things that happened one summer as perceived by three American women. Appleton has never been the same since the the Apple Queen, a girl named at the annual apple festival, disappeared on year in the early 50s. The whole town seems to be in terminal decline. But then a landslide cuts off the town from the outside world and a fog descends to blot it out from reality. Which would all be well and good if the author could write, but she can't, so it just seems to go on interminably. By the time it we reach the point where the heroines conspire to save the town, I really couldn't find it in me to care. A book with lots of potential but poor execution. Skip it.
First Line: Ashley Kaldis leaned her head against the cool glass and gazed through the bus window at the Glasgow streets.
73inge87
The Devil Knows Latin: Why America Needs the Classical Tradition by E. Christian Kopff+
Source: me (2/08)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT and TBR-clearing
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PN 56 C6 K67 2000 (my call#, official LC# is in PA)
Rating: 3 stars / 5
First off, it needs to be said that this is not really a book about why you should Latin or about the classical tradition of education. For that, you want Tracy Lee Simmons' Climbing Parnassus.
But for those who still want to know about this book, The Devil Knows Latin is a collection of what is essentially conservative literary and film criticism with a focus on the influence and importance of the classical tradition. Some of it is very good (the essay on The Godfather and The Lion King as well as the one on Clint Eastwood especially), some of it makes for miserable reading (like the giant one on why postmodernism is bad), and a lot of it is just average. The first section does cover the importance of learning classical languages (and an appendix covers suggested resources to doing so), but the arguments are weaker than Simmons, which really is the book to get for that.
There's also the fact that Kopff really could have used an editor, as I found at least two obvious factual errors without even trying: 1. He claimed that Tecumseh's brother invented the ghost dance and it was responsible for his defeat at Tippecanoe (he didn't and it didn't) and 2. Scar's henchmen were jackals (they were hyenas). There's no telling what else I missed, but an editor definitely should have caught those.
But especially if you're interested in classical tradition and its influence on film, there is actually a lot of interesting material here. Just don't judge the book on its title. Recommended with caveats.
First Line: In The Poet and the Lunatics, G. K. Chesterton's poet Gabriel Gale meets a brilliant scientist devoted to the cause of emancipation from tradition and social convention one evening at an informal gathering.
Source: me (2/08)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT and TBR-clearing
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: PN 56 C6 K67 2000 (my call#, official LC# is in PA)
Rating: 3 stars / 5
First off, it needs to be said that this is not really a book about why you should Latin or about the classical tradition of education. For that, you want Tracy Lee Simmons' Climbing Parnassus.
But for those who still want to know about this book, The Devil Knows Latin is a collection of what is essentially conservative literary and film criticism with a focus on the influence and importance of the classical tradition. Some of it is very good (the essay on The Godfather and The Lion King as well as the one on Clint Eastwood especially), some of it makes for miserable reading (like the giant one on why postmodernism is bad), and a lot of it is just average. The first section does cover the importance of learning classical languages (and an appendix covers suggested resources to doing so), but the arguments are weaker than Simmons, which really is the book to get for that.
There's also the fact that Kopff really could have used an editor, as I found at least two obvious factual errors without even trying: 1. He claimed that Tecumseh's brother invented the ghost dance and it was responsible for his defeat at Tippecanoe (he didn't and it didn't) and 2. Scar's henchmen were jackals (they were hyenas). There's no telling what else I missed, but an editor definitely should have caught those.
But especially if you're interested in classical tradition and its influence on film, there is actually a lot of interesting material here. Just don't judge the book on its title. Recommended with caveats.
First Line: In The Poet and the Lunatics, G. K. Chesterton's poet Gabriel Gale meets a brilliant scientist devoted to the cause of emancipation from tradition and social convention one evening at an informal gathering.
74inge87
Pastoral by Nevil Shute
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: I'd heard good things about Shute, and it's got the most fantastic cover*
Year of Original Pub.: 1944
LC Call #: PR 6027 O54 P37 1944
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Pastoral is a wartime romance between a RAF bomber pilot and a WAAF signal corps officer who have to battle personal priorities and the dangers of war if they are to find happiness. But it's not really a "romance novel", for example the first quarter of the book has a lot more to say about various characters' love of fishing than anything else. Instead, it's probably best thought of as a war novel with romantic elements. We learn a lot about nighttime bombing raids and the lives of pilots, both the things that bring them success and those that can bring their lives to an end. But the heart of the novel is the two lovers and their shared desire to do their utmost for their country in this time of crisis.
Highly recommended for anyone who likes World War II fiction written during World War II, interesting romances, or novels about pilots.
First Line: Peter Marshall stirred in the broad light of day, and woke up slowly.
*Gervase on this cover looks a lot like how I imagine Hermione Granger and the pilots look like GI Joe dolls, so therefore I think of this cover as "Hermione Granger being tormented by vintage GI Joes". Completely random, but it makes me smile. :)
Source: me (5/16)
Recommendation: I'd heard good things about Shute, and it's got the most fantastic cover*
Year of Original Pub.: 1944
LC Call #: PR 6027 O54 P37 1944
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Pastoral is a wartime romance between a RAF bomber pilot and a WAAF signal corps officer who have to battle personal priorities and the dangers of war if they are to find happiness. But it's not really a "romance novel", for example the first quarter of the book has a lot more to say about various characters' love of fishing than anything else. Instead, it's probably best thought of as a war novel with romantic elements. We learn a lot about nighttime bombing raids and the lives of pilots, both the things that bring them success and those that can bring their lives to an end. But the heart of the novel is the two lovers and their shared desire to do their utmost for their country in this time of crisis.
Highly recommended for anyone who likes World War II fiction written during World War II, interesting romances, or novels about pilots.
First Line: Peter Marshall stirred in the broad light of day, and woke up slowly.
*Gervase on this cover looks a lot like how I imagine Hermione Granger and the pilots look like GI Joe dolls, so therefore I think of this cover as "Hermione Granger being tormented by vintage GI Joes". Completely random, but it makes me smile. :)
75inge87
The Quiet Gentleman by Georgette Heyer*
Source: me (11/09)
Recommendation: Heyer is a great comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1951
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 Q5 2009
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quiet Gentleman the story of the eventful homecoming of the new Earl of St. Erth after a military career fighting Napoleon. His stepmother and half-brother wish he had died in the wars and are hardly thrilled to see him come home, but things seem to be going smoothly enough—until someone starts trying to kill him. It will take all of Gervase's wits to keep himself alive long enough to find his adversary. Maybe he should have stayed in France.
A fun historical mystery. Recommended for Heyer fans and those who enjoy Regency-set mysteries.
First Line: In the guide-books it figured as Stanyon Castle; on the tongues of the villagers, it was the Castle; the Polite World spoke of it as Stanyon, as it spoke of Woburn, and of Cheveley.
Source: me (11/09)
Recommendation: Heyer is a great comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1951
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 Q5 2009
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quiet Gentleman the story of the eventful homecoming of the new Earl of St. Erth after a military career fighting Napoleon. His stepmother and half-brother wish he had died in the wars and are hardly thrilled to see him come home, but things seem to be going smoothly enough—until someone starts trying to kill him. It will take all of Gervase's wits to keep himself alive long enough to find his adversary. Maybe he should have stayed in France.
A fun historical mystery. Recommended for Heyer fans and those who enjoy Regency-set mysteries.
First Line: In the guide-books it figured as Stanyon Castle; on the tongues of the villagers, it was the Castle; the Polite World spoke of it as Stanyon, as it spoke of Woburn, and of Cheveley.
76inge87
Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer*
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: Heyer is still a great comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1966
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 B5 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quiet Gentleman is one of my favorite Heyers. The tale of Abby, the younger of two old maid sisters raising their niece Fanny in Bath, she finds herself in a tight situation when she returns from visiting family to find Fanny possibly snared by a fortune hunter. By total coincidence, his black sheep Uncle Miles has just returned from India, whence he was banished to hush up a scandal. He could care less about his nephew or society, but Abby, on the other hand, is another matter entirely.
As is always the case with these books, there is the constant threat of elopement, even though as Miles points out, it's not half as easy to elope as you might think. If you like this one, you'll also like Lady of Quality, which is essentially the same plot, only with a runaway girl instead of a fortune-hunting rake. Highly recommended.
First Line: A little before eight o'clock, at the close of a damp autumn day, a post-chaise entered Bath, on the London Road, and presently drew up outside a house on Sydney Place.
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: Heyer is still a great comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1966
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 B5 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Quiet Gentleman is one of my favorite Heyers. The tale of Abby, the younger of two old maid sisters raising their niece Fanny in Bath, she finds herself in a tight situation when she returns from visiting family to find Fanny possibly snared by a fortune hunter. By total coincidence, his black sheep Uncle Miles has just returned from India, whence he was banished to hush up a scandal. He could care less about his nephew or society, but Abby, on the other hand, is another matter entirely.
As is always the case with these books, there is the constant threat of elopement, even though as Miles points out, it's not half as easy to elope as you might think. If you like this one, you'll also like Lady of Quality, which is essentially the same plot, only with a runaway girl instead of a fortune-hunting rake. Highly recommended.
First Line: A little before eight o'clock, at the close of a damp autumn day, a post-chaise entered Bath, on the London Road, and presently drew up outside a house on Sydney Place.
77inge87
The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories by Marjorie Barnard*
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: GeoCAT and WomanBingoPUP
Year of Original Pub.: 1943
LC Call #: PR 9619.3 B356 P47 1985
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories is a collection of short stories by Australian writer Marjorie Barnard. It has been republished by Virago with the addition of three new stories, which while still quite good, do stick out rest of the book in subject and tone. Women and their daily struggles are the main subjects of Barnard's pen and she captures the little nuances of their lives skillfully, particularly in the case of relationships between women. Love is a main theme, for both the young and the mature, with women having affairs, breaking off these affairs, breaking off their husband's affairs, falling in love and experiencing its pangs. My favorite story from the collection was "Fighting in Vienna", which is unusual in the collection that it does not take place in Australia, but Austria instead. It tells the sad story of a woman, Kathie, who lives alone with her bird during the Second World War, after her fiance, unable to deal with his missing hand, has left her years before. She is injured on a trip to get more birdseed and, while suffering feverish hallucinations in the hospital, mistakenly believes that it is the 1920s again and her fiance is standing at her bedside. The results are haunting. The parallel between the Kathie and her pet bird is beautifully rendered and the work of a master. I would have rated the book higher perhaps, if there had not been the disconnect between the main book and the added stories, but I do recommend it as a book worth reading for the way it captures of the lives of ordinary people getting by as best they can.
I wrote that review after my first reading in 2008, and I agree with a lot of it, so I'm not going to change it, just add on to say that this book rather encapsulates several of my pet peeves about short stories: namely that they're almost always depressing and frequently lack definite resolutions (if they even have a plot at all). Even "Fighting in Vienna", which I clearly remember adoring, didn't move me this time. So perhaps I just wasn't in the mood. But if you like short stories, you should try to find this one.
First Line: Because she loved him she knew when he was distressed, even when he had successfully hidden it from himself ; and because she had complete faith in him, sometimes she was afraid.
Source: me (4/09)
Recommendation: GeoCAT and WomanBingoPUP
Year of Original Pub.: 1943
LC Call #: PR 9619.3 B356 P47 1985
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Persimmon Tree and Other Stories is a collection of short stories by Australian writer Marjorie Barnard. It has been republished by Virago with the addition of three new stories, which while still quite good, do stick out rest of the book in subject and tone. Women and their daily struggles are the main subjects of Barnard's pen and she captures the little nuances of their lives skillfully, particularly in the case of relationships between women. Love is a main theme, for both the young and the mature, with women having affairs, breaking off these affairs, breaking off their husband's affairs, falling in love and experiencing its pangs. My favorite story from the collection was "Fighting in Vienna", which is unusual in the collection that it does not take place in Australia, but Austria instead. It tells the sad story of a woman, Kathie, who lives alone with her bird during the Second World War, after her fiance, unable to deal with his missing hand, has left her years before. She is injured on a trip to get more birdseed and, while suffering feverish hallucinations in the hospital, mistakenly believes that it is the 1920s again and her fiance is standing at her bedside. The results are haunting. The parallel between the Kathie and her pet bird is beautifully rendered and the work of a master. I would have rated the book higher perhaps, if there had not been the disconnect between the main book and the added stories, but I do recommend it as a book worth reading for the way it captures of the lives of ordinary people getting by as best they can.
I wrote that review after my first reading in 2008, and I agree with a lot of it, so I'm not going to change it, just add on to say that this book rather encapsulates several of my pet peeves about short stories: namely that they're almost always depressing and frequently lack definite resolutions (if they even have a plot at all). Even "Fighting in Vienna", which I clearly remember adoring, didn't move me this time. So perhaps I just wasn't in the mood. But if you like short stories, you should try to find this one.
First Line: Because she loved him she knew when he was distressed, even when he had successfully hidden it from himself ; and because she had complete faith in him, sometimes she was afraid.
78inge87
The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer*
Source: me (10/09)
Recommendation: When Georgette Heyer is good, she's very good
Year of Original Pub.: 1959
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 U55 2005
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Unknown Ajax is what happens when you have a crotchety old man who disinherits his second son for marrying an inappropriate woman and then has to eat crow when that man's son ends up becoming his heir. Hugo turns out to be a far more interesting character than the family and especially its patriarch bargained for. But in the end (as is frequently the case in books like this) he may just be their salvation.
If you like historical novels dealing with class issues and/or free-trading (i.e. smuggling), you'll like this one. The romance is not the focus here, although it does exist. Recommended for Heyer fans and anyone who likes good historical fiction.
First Line: Silence had reigned over the dining-room since his lordship, midway through the first course, had harshly commanded his widowed daughter-in-law to spare him anymore Steward's room gossip.
Source: me (10/09)
Recommendation: When Georgette Heyer is good, she's very good
Year of Original Pub.: 1959
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 U55 2005
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Unknown Ajax is what happens when you have a crotchety old man who disinherits his second son for marrying an inappropriate woman and then has to eat crow when that man's son ends up becoming his heir. Hugo turns out to be a far more interesting character than the family and especially its patriarch bargained for. But in the end (as is frequently the case in books like this) he may just be their salvation.
If you like historical novels dealing with class issues and/or free-trading (i.e. smuggling), you'll like this one. The romance is not the focus here, although it does exist. Recommended for Heyer fans and anyone who likes good historical fiction.
First Line: Silence had reigned over the dining-room since his lordship, midway through the first course, had harshly commanded his widowed daughter-in-law to spare him anymore Steward's room gossip.
80inge87
June Round-Up!
Books Read: 19 (16 in 2013, 18 in 2014, & 16 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 10 - 44.83%
Non-Fiction - 9 - 55.17%
Sources
Me (other) - 7 - 36.84%
Me (last month) - 3 - 15.79%
Work - 3 - 15.79%
Me (rest of this year) - 2 - 10.53%
Me (TBR) - 2 - 10.53%
ILL - 1 - 5.26%
Me (this month) - 1 - 5.26%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 2 - 10.53%
Rereads - 7 - 36.84%
Authors
Male - 14 - 73.68%
Female - 5 - 22.72%
Edition Language
English - 17 - 100%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Original Language
English - 16 - 84.22%
French - 1 - 5.26%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 18 - 94.74%
Series Books - 1 - 5.26%
Average Original Date of Publication with Cicero and Shakespeare
1851
Average Original Date of Publication without Cicero and Shakespeare
1977
Median Original Date of Publication
1966
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 5.26%
3 stars - 5 - 22.72%
4 stars - 13 - 72.02%
5 stars - 0 - 0%
Average Rating
3.63
Discovery of the Month
Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass
First Line of the Month
"Today, Monday, Wanda Petronski was not in her seat."
—Eleanor Estes, The Hundred Dresses
Best of the Month
Fiction: Pastoral by Nevil Shute
Non-Fiction: Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass
Books Read: 19 (16 in 2013, 18 in 2014, & 16 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 10 - 44.83%
Non-Fiction - 9 - 55.17%
Sources
Me (other) - 7 - 36.84%
Me (last month) - 3 - 15.79%
Work - 3 - 15.79%
Me (rest of this year) - 2 - 10.53%
Me (TBR) - 2 - 10.53%
ILL - 1 - 5.26%
Me (this month) - 1 - 5.26%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 2 - 10.53%
Rereads - 7 - 36.84%
Authors
Male - 14 - 73.68%
Female - 5 - 22.72%
Edition Language
English - 17 - 100%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Original Language
English - 16 - 84.22%
French - 1 - 5.26%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 18 - 94.74%
Series Books - 1 - 5.26%
Average Original Date of Publication with Cicero and Shakespeare
1851
Average Original Date of Publication without Cicero and Shakespeare
1977
Median Original Date of Publication
1966
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 5.26%
3 stars - 5 - 22.72%
4 stars - 13 - 72.02%
5 stars - 0 - 0%
Average Rating
3.63
Discovery of the Month
Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass
First Line of the Month
"Today, Monday, Wanda Petronski was not in her seat."
—Eleanor Estes, The Hundred Dresses
Best of the Month
Fiction: Pastoral by Nevil Shute
Non-Fiction: Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition by Karen Glass
81inge87
The West without Water: What Past Floods, Droughts, and Other Climatic Clues Tell Us about Tomorrow by B. Lynn Ingram & Frances Malamud-Roam
Source: ILL (U. of Texas at Dallas)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: QC 903.2 U6 I54 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The West without Water discusses the climactic future of the Western United States (focusing on California, but also Arizona and Utah) through the lens of its past weather history, both documented by the historical weather and uncovered using the paleontological record. Many have heard of the century-long drought that wiped out the Anasazi, but the region suffers equally from massive floods—and it turns out that both scenarios happen much more frequently than anyone thought. Divided into three parts, the book covers weather in the historical record, the history of the region's prehistoric climate, and finally takes those findings to predict what the future may hold. Suffice to say, I'm never moving to California.
There is a lot of really useful information here about how the weather on the West Coast is generated, and how different types of weather pattern can affect whether the year is wet or dry. The writing is on the academic side, but not unreasonable. The title is a bit misleading, as my definition of the west starts much further east than the authors', but if you are interested in the weather of California, Arizona, or Utah (but especially California), you'll learn a lot. Highly recommended for those interested in climatology, especially that of the American West.
First Line: One of Robert Frost's most famous poems asks whether the world will end in fire or in ice.
Source: ILL (U. of Texas at Dallas)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: QC 903.2 U6 I54 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The West without Water discusses the climactic future of the Western United States (focusing on California, but also Arizona and Utah) through the lens of its past weather history, both documented by the historical weather and uncovered using the paleontological record. Many have heard of the century-long drought that wiped out the Anasazi, but the region suffers equally from massive floods—and it turns out that both scenarios happen much more frequently than anyone thought. Divided into three parts, the book covers weather in the historical record, the history of the region's prehistoric climate, and finally takes those findings to predict what the future may hold. Suffice to say, I'm never moving to California.
There is a lot of really useful information here about how the weather on the West Coast is generated, and how different types of weather pattern can affect whether the year is wet or dry. The writing is on the academic side, but not unreasonable. The title is a bit misleading, as my definition of the west starts much further east than the authors', but if you are interested in the weather of California, Arizona, or Utah (but especially California), you'll learn a lot. Highly recommended for those interested in climatology, especially that of the American West.
First Line: One of Robert Frost's most famous poems asks whether the world will end in fire or in ice.
82inge87
Eruptions that Shook the World by Clive Oppenheimer
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Dangerous Neighbors
Year of Original Pub.: 2011
LC Call #: QE 522 O58 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Eruptions that Shook the World is a book with a popular science title and an academic text. Covering pretty much anything you ever wanted to know about how volcanoes can and have changed the world. From the time of the dinosaurs (the author feels that volcanism rather an asteroids caused the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinctions) to potential supereruptions of the future, if volcanoes did it, this book covers it. The first four chapters discuss how volcanoes work and the different ways they can erupt and impact the world around them, the fourth and fifth chapters discuss how we can find out what happened outside of recorded history and how some places have retained ancestral memories of prehistoric eruptions. The rest of the book is a series of case studies of different volcanoes, from Manzama to Popocatépetl to Katla to Tambora and beyond, and how they affected aspects of human life, from causing climate change to destroying civilizations and even bringing about plague. If surviving Eyjafjallajökull has made you interested in what volcanoes mean for you—and there don't have be volcanoes near you for them to hurt you—this is an academic, but not inaccessible treatment of pretty much everything you could ask for. Highly recommended for anyone interested in volcanoes.
First Line: The Earth is cooling down!
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: Dangerous Neighbors
Year of Original Pub.: 2011
LC Call #: QE 522 O58 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Eruptions that Shook the World is a book with a popular science title and an academic text. Covering pretty much anything you ever wanted to know about how volcanoes can and have changed the world. From the time of the dinosaurs (the author feels that volcanism rather an asteroids caused the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinctions) to potential supereruptions of the future, if volcanoes did it, this book covers it. The first four chapters discuss how volcanoes work and the different ways they can erupt and impact the world around them, the fourth and fifth chapters discuss how we can find out what happened outside of recorded history and how some places have retained ancestral memories of prehistoric eruptions. The rest of the book is a series of case studies of different volcanoes, from Manzama to Popocatépetl to Katla to Tambora and beyond, and how they affected aspects of human life, from causing climate change to destroying civilizations and even bringing about plague. If surviving Eyjafjallajökull has made you interested in what volcanoes mean for you—and there don't have be volcanoes near you for them to hurt you—this is an academic, but not inaccessible treatment of pretty much everything you could ask for. Highly recommended for anyone interested in volcanoes.
First Line: The Earth is cooling down!
83inge87
Merrie England: A Journey Through the Shire by Joseph Pearce
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: I don't think I've ever read anything by Pearce I didn't like
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: DA 632 P43 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
First off, in spite of the subtitle, this is not a book about about J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, or The Hobbit. But Pearce has written some other very good books on those subjects that you should totally check out, if that's what you're looking for.
What Merrie England is, is a rather oddly worded account of the author's travels around England written in the third person. Beginning in Norwich in the east, he journeys north and west and south before returning to Norfolk and ending at the Marian shrine of Walsingham. He visits a lot of cathedrals and churches, but also takes time to go out into nature and wonder at its vastness. Mostly though, he thinks of England and its Catholic past, and how much that past has been rent asunder. At times it's awkward going, but at times his prose is pure lyric beauty. I think my favorite part was York and St. Margaret Clitherow, but there are many other good parts, especially when Gerard Manley Hopkins and Hilaire Belloc get involved. That being said, this is definitely a book best appreciated by those who agree with Pearce philosophically, or who are fans of his other work. For those people, this book comes highly recommended.
First Line: The romance of Gothic architecture was brought to life for me by G. K. Chesterton.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: I don't think I've ever read anything by Pearce I didn't like
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: DA 632 P43 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
First off, in spite of the subtitle, this is not a book about about J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, or The Hobbit. But Pearce has written some other very good books on those subjects that you should totally check out, if that's what you're looking for.
What Merrie England is, is a rather oddly worded account of the author's travels around England written in the third person. Beginning in Norwich in the east, he journeys north and west and south before returning to Norfolk and ending at the Marian shrine of Walsingham. He visits a lot of cathedrals and churches, but also takes time to go out into nature and wonder at its vastness. Mostly though, he thinks of England and its Catholic past, and how much that past has been rent asunder. At times it's awkward going, but at times his prose is pure lyric beauty. I think my favorite part was York and St. Margaret Clitherow, but there are many other good parts, especially when Gerard Manley Hopkins and Hilaire Belloc get involved. That being said, this is definitely a book best appreciated by those who agree with Pearce philosophically, or who are fans of his other work. For those people, this book comes highly recommended.
First Line: The romance of Gothic architecture was brought to life for me by G. K. Chesterton.
84inge87
Richard II: A Brittle Glory by Laura Ashe
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: The cover
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: DA 235 A85 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Richard II is a short but solid biography of a monarch made famous mostly by Shakespeare. Richard II became King of England at age ten upon the death of his grandfather Edward III, and in many ways like Peter Pan, he never grew up. A believer in the power of the monarchy, he was constantly picking favorites and isolating everyone else, never caring that his image of the monarchy was becoming increasingly detached from reality. Preferring peace to war, his reign was nevertheless buffeted by rebellions, until he lost all support and was forced to give up his crown to the man who became Henry IV. This lead directly to his death in captivity less than a year later.
Like all the books in the Penguin Monarchs series, this one is just around 100 pages, but the author's unique organizational method, in which each chapter describes Richard's actions in a different sphere: parliament, battlefield, city, and shrine, allows her to use the page count to her advantage and build a comprehensive portrait of a man most know only as the tragic protagonist in a Shakespearean play.
First Line: In the act of resigning his crown to Bolingbrooke, the future Henry IV, Shakespeare's Richard asks for a mirror, and stares disbelievingly at his unchanged face.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: The cover
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: DA 235 A85 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Richard II is a short but solid biography of a monarch made famous mostly by Shakespeare. Richard II became King of England at age ten upon the death of his grandfather Edward III, and in many ways like Peter Pan, he never grew up. A believer in the power of the monarchy, he was constantly picking favorites and isolating everyone else, never caring that his image of the monarchy was becoming increasingly detached from reality. Preferring peace to war, his reign was nevertheless buffeted by rebellions, until he lost all support and was forced to give up his crown to the man who became Henry IV. This lead directly to his death in captivity less than a year later.
Like all the books in the Penguin Monarchs series, this one is just around 100 pages, but the author's unique organizational method, in which each chapter describes Richard's actions in a different sphere: parliament, battlefield, city, and shrine, allows her to use the page count to her advantage and build a comprehensive portrait of a man most know only as the tragic protagonist in a Shakespearean play.
First Line: In the act of resigning his crown to Bolingbrooke, the future Henry IV, Shakespeare's Richard asks for a mirror, and stares disbelievingly at his unchanged face.
85inge87
Whatever Else by J. Kathleen Cheney
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: I ♥ J. Kathleen Cheney
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 W53 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Whatever Else is a short story featuring a woman who discovers her husband has been keeping secrets, only to discover that the truth is far beyond her wildest dreams. Maia married her husband five years ago as part of a treaty between neighboring groups. Luckily for her, the marriage is happy and she has two young daughters and a happy life in her new home. But when her brother shows up one day claiming her husband is an imposter and says he knows this because he murdered the "real" Arras a few days before the marriage, Maia doesn't know what to think. And then her father-in-law starts trying to break up her marriage and all of a sudden her brothers are trying to break the treaty it sealed. Just what is going on? Will this chaos bring anything but war and suffering? And will Maia stay with her husband, real Arras or not? You have to read to the end to find out.
A very nice story overall, and a successful use of first-person narrative. It's set in a kind of medieval-feeling other world, but the stage is small enough that the author is able to engineer a proper worldbuild within the constraints of the short story format. Maia herself is a compelling narrator, and her gift of being able to watch others from afar using what she describes as her "spirit-self" helps to drive the plot along without seeming contrived. Arras is any woman's dream husband (and of course there are reasons for that), and like the narrator you can just feel the secrets inside of him trying to get out while he tries to keep them in for as long as possible. A tale of love that knows no boundaries and the perils of political marriages. Highly recommended for those who enjoy interesting fantasy short stories and well-written first-person narrators.
First Line: "Who is this man you married?" my brother asked, folding his arms over his broad chest.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: I ♥ J. Kathleen Cheney
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 W53 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Whatever Else is a short story featuring a woman who discovers her husband has been keeping secrets, only to discover that the truth is far beyond her wildest dreams. Maia married her husband five years ago as part of a treaty between neighboring groups. Luckily for her, the marriage is happy and she has two young daughters and a happy life in her new home. But when her brother shows up one day claiming her husband is an imposter and says he knows this because he murdered the "real" Arras a few days before the marriage, Maia doesn't know what to think. And then her father-in-law starts trying to break up her marriage and all of a sudden her brothers are trying to break the treaty it sealed. Just what is going on? Will this chaos bring anything but war and suffering? And will Maia stay with her husband, real Arras or not? You have to read to the end to find out.
A very nice story overall, and a successful use of first-person narrative. It's set in a kind of medieval-feeling other world, but the stage is small enough that the author is able to engineer a proper worldbuild within the constraints of the short story format. Maia herself is a compelling narrator, and her gift of being able to watch others from afar using what she describes as her "spirit-self" helps to drive the plot along without seeming contrived. Arras is any woman's dream husband (and of course there are reasons for that), and like the narrator you can just feel the secrets inside of him trying to get out while he tries to keep them in for as long as possible. A tale of love that knows no boundaries and the perils of political marriages. Highly recommended for those who enjoy interesting fantasy short stories and well-written first-person narrators.
First Line: "Who is this man you married?" my brother asked, folding his arms over his broad chest.
86inge87
The Golden City by J. Kathleen Cheney*
Source: me (11/14)
Recommendation: Oriana is the fictional character I'd most like to invite to dinner
Series: The Golden City (1/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 G65 2013
Rating: 5 stars / 5
The Golden City is a fantastic fantasy set in a alternative early 1900s Porto, Portugal, where people can have magical powers and selkies and sirens (known as sereia) live in hiding. Because for the last 20 years, non-humans have been banned from the Golden City on pain of death because the Prince believes that they are going to kill him. That doesn't mean that they aren't there though. Oriana is an agent for the Sereian government posing as the paid companion to a young socialite. But then, just as her charge is about to elope, they are kidnapped and left for dead in part of mysterious underwater art project known as the city under the sea that replicates one of the best neighborhoods of the city under the waives. Having gills, Oriana is able to escape, but Isabel, her only friend in this hostile environment drowns unleashing a kind of magic Oriana has never seen before. She had come to the Golden City to somehow avenge her sister's murder, so Isabel's death becomes just one thing Oriana has to fix in order to find peace. But now she is friendless, homeless, and rapidly becoming penniless, and justice is seeming ever more unlikely.
Enter Duilio, a young Portuguese man of leisure, who spends his time helping with police investigations while trying to figure out what happened to his mother's most prized possession. A seer, he knows Oriana is important and that something is wrong with the city under the sea. Together, the two team up to solve the mystery, but someone with a lot of power does not want their quest to succeed, and Oriana's superiors are putting pressure on her to return to the Islands. But these two are not going to quit until they get to the bottom of things.
I love this book. I love, love, love, love this book. Oriana is the best kind of strong heroine, flawed but determined. Nothing in her life has gone right since her mother died when she was twelve and her father was exiled for sedition four years later. But no matter how desperate her circumstances or hopeless she felt, she never let it get her down. And Duilio is her perfect foil, patient and understanding where she is impatience and temper. Together they make a great team. Every time I read it I discover something new to like. Wonderful characterizations and excellent world building, make you feel like there really is a place in Portugal where magical creatures clandestinely walk the streets and magic has the potential to change the world. Highly recommended to anyone who likes historical fantasy, strong female leads, or mysteries with a touch of magic.
First Line: Lady Isabel Amaral plucked another pair of drawers from the chiffonier and tossed them in her companion's direction.
Source: me (11/14)
Recommendation: Oriana is the fictional character I'd most like to invite to dinner
Series: The Golden City (1/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 G65 2013
Rating: 5 stars / 5
The Golden City is a fantastic fantasy set in a alternative early 1900s Porto, Portugal, where people can have magical powers and selkies and sirens (known as sereia) live in hiding. Because for the last 20 years, non-humans have been banned from the Golden City on pain of death because the Prince believes that they are going to kill him. That doesn't mean that they aren't there though. Oriana is an agent for the Sereian government posing as the paid companion to a young socialite. But then, just as her charge is about to elope, they are kidnapped and left for dead in part of mysterious underwater art project known as the city under the sea that replicates one of the best neighborhoods of the city under the waives. Having gills, Oriana is able to escape, but Isabel, her only friend in this hostile environment drowns unleashing a kind of magic Oriana has never seen before. She had come to the Golden City to somehow avenge her sister's murder, so Isabel's death becomes just one thing Oriana has to fix in order to find peace. But now she is friendless, homeless, and rapidly becoming penniless, and justice is seeming ever more unlikely.
Enter Duilio, a young Portuguese man of leisure, who spends his time helping with police investigations while trying to figure out what happened to his mother's most prized possession. A seer, he knows Oriana is important and that something is wrong with the city under the sea. Together, the two team up to solve the mystery, but someone with a lot of power does not want their quest to succeed, and Oriana's superiors are putting pressure on her to return to the Islands. But these two are not going to quit until they get to the bottom of things.
I love this book. I love, love, love, love this book. Oriana is the best kind of strong heroine, flawed but determined. Nothing in her life has gone right since her mother died when she was twelve and her father was exiled for sedition four years later. But no matter how desperate her circumstances or hopeless she felt, she never let it get her down. And Duilio is her perfect foil, patient and understanding where she is impatience and temper. Together they make a great team. Every time I read it I discover something new to like. Wonderful characterizations and excellent world building, make you feel like there really is a place in Portugal where magical creatures clandestinely walk the streets and magic has the potential to change the world. Highly recommended to anyone who likes historical fantasy, strong female leads, or mysteries with a touch of magic.
First Line: Lady Isabel Amaral plucked another pair of drawers from the chiffonier and tossed them in her companion's direction.
87inge87
American Serengeti: The Last Big Animals of the Great Plains by Dan Flores
Source: ILL (Texas Wesleyan U.)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: QL 155 F55 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
American Serengeti is a study of the last surviving large mammals of the Great Plains, their histories and their futures. After a chapter describing the prehistoric plains and the incredible wealth of animals that lived there before gradually disappearing, the rest of the book contains chapters dedicated to particular animals before ending with a discussion of rewilding the plains in view of the ongoing human depopulation of the region. Animals covered include pronghorn (who evolved to survive the extinct American cheetah), coyotes, horses (mustangs), grizzlies, bison, and wolves. I have to say the mustang chapter was particularly interesting because most books of this type don't include horses as native species, when technically they are. Horses evolved in North America before crossing a land-bridge to Eurasia, so technically the Spanish horses were a reintroduction of something lost rather than the introduction of something new.
These kinds of books are always slightly depressing, because it's impossible for stories of near mass extinction and the kill-mindset of many modern ranchers to be anything but sad. Still, Flores remains optimistic for many of these species chances, particularly in a Great Plains region that is generally hemorrhaging people to places with greater opportunity. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the large mammals of the American West, the history of American conservation, or the Great Plains.
First Line: In the summer of 1843, four years after dazzling the world by completing a gigantic book that presented 435 American birds glorious painted life size, the now world-famous artist John James Audubon was traveling up the Missouri River for an ambitious new project.
Source: ILL (Texas Wesleyan U.)
Recommendation: CHOICE
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: QL 155 F55 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
American Serengeti is a study of the last surviving large mammals of the Great Plains, their histories and their futures. After a chapter describing the prehistoric plains and the incredible wealth of animals that lived there before gradually disappearing, the rest of the book contains chapters dedicated to particular animals before ending with a discussion of rewilding the plains in view of the ongoing human depopulation of the region. Animals covered include pronghorn (who evolved to survive the extinct American cheetah), coyotes, horses (mustangs), grizzlies, bison, and wolves. I have to say the mustang chapter was particularly interesting because most books of this type don't include horses as native species, when technically they are. Horses evolved in North America before crossing a land-bridge to Eurasia, so technically the Spanish horses were a reintroduction of something lost rather than the introduction of something new.
These kinds of books are always slightly depressing, because it's impossible for stories of near mass extinction and the kill-mindset of many modern ranchers to be anything but sad. Still, Flores remains optimistic for many of these species chances, particularly in a Great Plains region that is generally hemorrhaging people to places with greater opportunity. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the large mammals of the American West, the history of American conservation, or the Great Plains.
First Line: In the summer of 1843, four years after dazzling the world by completing a gigantic book that presented 435 American birds glorious painted life size, the now world-famous artist John James Audubon was traveling up the Missouri River for an ambitious new project.
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Taking a break from the reviews, I have a DNF to report. The Water Knife, while having an interesting premise, could not get me past the first five chapters. I mostly blame its unrealistic portrayal of Texas and Texans. There may have a good explanation for the situation later in the book, but each allusion was so annoying that I could not make myself read on to find out.
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The Seat of Magic by J. Kathleen Cheney*
Source: me (11/14)
Recommendation: continuing series readathon
Series: The Golden City (2/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S43 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Seat of Magic is the sequel to the absolutely amazing The Golden City. It's been over two weeks since Oriana left the Golden City, and Duilio is starting to get nervous. Especially once it turns out that he is not the only one concerned about the situation. His quest to solve that mystery leads him to the palace where he makes some new friends and gets the key to bringing Oriana back. Meanwhile, someone is killing magical creatures in the Golden City, and our dynamic duo quickly find themselves pulled back into the world of police investigation. Plus, after ten years of separation and two years of actively avoiding each other, Oriana's father has decided that he wants to reconcile, which opens a whole new can of worms for a sereia already facing the important decision of whether or not to remain in the city and play at being human the rest of her life. It kills her to hide her sereia nature, but the heart wants what the heart wants.
What makes this a good middle volume, something fairly rare in trilogies, is how it manages to build on the world Cheney built in the first book without merely being filler and a set up for book 3. Now that we know Oriana and Duilio, it's time to learn more about them and the things that make them tick. It turns out that not all the bad guys were caught in The Golden City, so it's time to make some new friends and do some mopping up. So that by the time the book's done, we know so much more than when we started. And are totally primed for book 3.
More fun adventures with everyone's favorite siren and her half-selkie partner-in-crime-fighting. If you liked the first book, there's no excuse not to pick this one up.
First Line: The library of the Ferreira home housed a collection of items Duilio's father had brought back to the Golden City from his travels on the sea.
Source: me (11/14)
Recommendation: continuing series readathon
Series: The Golden City (2/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S43 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Seat of Magic is the sequel to the absolutely amazing The Golden City. It's been over two weeks since Oriana left the Golden City, and Duilio is starting to get nervous. Especially once it turns out that he is not the only one concerned about the situation. His quest to solve that mystery leads him to the palace where he makes some new friends and gets the key to bringing Oriana back. Meanwhile, someone is killing magical creatures in the Golden City, and our dynamic duo quickly find themselves pulled back into the world of police investigation. Plus, after ten years of separation and two years of actively avoiding each other, Oriana's father has decided that he wants to reconcile, which opens a whole new can of worms for a sereia already facing the important decision of whether or not to remain in the city and play at being human the rest of her life. It kills her to hide her sereia nature, but the heart wants what the heart wants.
What makes this a good middle volume, something fairly rare in trilogies, is how it manages to build on the world Cheney built in the first book without merely being filler and a set up for book 3. Now that we know Oriana and Duilio, it's time to learn more about them and the things that make them tick. It turns out that not all the bad guys were caught in The Golden City, so it's time to make some new friends and do some mopping up. So that by the time the book's done, we know so much more than when we started. And are totally primed for book 3.
More fun adventures with everyone's favorite siren and her half-selkie partner-in-crime-fighting. If you liked the first book, there's no excuse not to pick this one up.
First Line: The library of the Ferreira home housed a collection of items Duilio's father had brought back to the Golden City from his travels on the sea.
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The Shores of Spain by J. Kathleen Cheney*
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: continuing series readathon
Series: The Golden City (3/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S56 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Shores of Spain is the final book of the Golden City trilogy and marks a return to the high quality of the first volume. Oriana and Duilio are hard at work trying to re-open ties with the Sereian government, so when a new series of problems emerge he has to call upon his favorite relative for help. When the evidence sends Joaquim to Spain, things spin out of control very quickly, but as a police inspector he is not one to be easily daunted. Soon facts emerge both in Spain and the Sereian islands that explain quite a few events of Oriana's past and reveal a web of lies and intrigue far beyond what anyone ever imagined.
A wonderful conclusion to one of my favorite series, it manages to wrap things up without tying things up in a too perfect bow. I did feel that there was too much Joaquin and Company towards the end. I no longer think his beloved is too stupid to live like I did in the second book, but they're really not my favorite people and I would have preferred more of Oriana and Duilio's story. I was also rather sad there were no scenes between Oriana and her father, because I felt their relationship wasn't quite sorted out at the end of The Seat of Magic. But other than that, it's a fantastic read and everyone who enjoyed The Golden City should definitely seek it out.
First Line: Marina Arenias curled up in one of the upholstered chairs in the front sitting room of the Ferreira home, the room in the house with the best light even now, past sunset.
Source: me (7/15)
Recommendation: continuing series readathon
Series: The Golden City (3/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S56 2015
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Shores of Spain is the final book of the Golden City trilogy and marks a return to the high quality of the first volume. Oriana and Duilio are hard at work trying to re-open ties with the Sereian government, so when a new series of problems emerge he has to call upon his favorite relative for help. When the evidence sends Joaquim to Spain, things spin out of control very quickly, but as a police inspector he is not one to be easily daunted. Soon facts emerge both in Spain and the Sereian islands that explain quite a few events of Oriana's past and reveal a web of lies and intrigue far beyond what anyone ever imagined.
A wonderful conclusion to one of my favorite series, it manages to wrap things up without tying things up in a too perfect bow. I did feel that there was too much Joaquin and Company towards the end. I no longer think his beloved is too stupid to live like I did in the second book, but they're really not my favorite people and I would have preferred more of Oriana and Duilio's story. I was also rather sad there were no scenes between Oriana and her father, because I felt their relationship wasn't quite sorted out at the end of The Seat of Magic. But other than that, it's a fantastic read and everyone who enjoyed The Golden City should definitely seek it out.
First Line: Marina Arenias curled up in one of the upholstered chairs in the front sitting room of the Ferreira home, the room in the house with the best light even now, past sunset.
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The Seer's Choice by J. Kathleen Cheney
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: The Golden City (4/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S44 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Seer's Choice is a novella featuring minor character's from Cheney's Golden City trilogy that takes place during the same time period as The Shores of Spain. While Oriana and Duilio are busy in the Sereia Islands and Marina and Joaquim are running around Spain, Genoveva is coming to terms with the discovery of her true paternity in The Seat of Magic. Her mother's husband was bad enough, but it turned out that her real father was an actual monster. So now she works for the police as a healer, trying to use her unwanted gift for the public good. But it seems that someone has decided to come after her, and he has powerful magic on his side. No one in her unit of special police has ever seen anything like it, which does not bode well for Genoveva's future. Luckily, she has friends in magically talented places, and together they may be able to get to the bottom of things after all.
This is basically the follow-up to Rafael getting all touchy about Duilio and Genoveva in The Seat of Magic. It's a fun return to the mystery-based plots of the first two books of the trilogy, but darker and much more adult with discussions of things like birth control and whether or not to have children. But then again, both protagonist have legitimate reasons not to want to pass on their genes. I'm not sure I'd hand this one to a teen looking to move beyond YA the way I would the actual trilogy, but if you want more Golden City, you can certainly find it here.
First Line: Captain Rafael Pinheiro regared the young woman sitting across from him, her hands clenched in her lap and her straight brows drawn together.
Source: me (4/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: The Golden City (4/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S44 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Seer's Choice is a novella featuring minor character's from Cheney's Golden City trilogy that takes place during the same time period as The Shores of Spain. While Oriana and Duilio are busy in the Sereia Islands and Marina and Joaquim are running around Spain, Genoveva is coming to terms with the discovery of her true paternity in The Seat of Magic. Her mother's husband was bad enough, but it turned out that her real father was an actual monster. So now she works for the police as a healer, trying to use her unwanted gift for the public good. But it seems that someone has decided to come after her, and he has powerful magic on his side. No one in her unit of special police has ever seen anything like it, which does not bode well for Genoveva's future. Luckily, she has friends in magically talented places, and together they may be able to get to the bottom of things after all.
This is basically the follow-up to Rafael getting all touchy about Duilio and Genoveva in The Seat of Magic. It's a fun return to the mystery-based plots of the first two books of the trilogy, but darker and much more adult with discussions of things like birth control and whether or not to have children. But then again, both protagonist have legitimate reasons not to want to pass on their genes. I'm not sure I'd hand this one to a teen looking to move beyond YA the way I would the actual trilogy, but if you want more Golden City, you can certainly find it here.
First Line: Captain Rafael Pinheiro regared the young woman sitting across from him, her hands clenched in her lap and her straight brows drawn together.
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And that, for better or worse, is the last of the J. Kathleen Cheney. If you like historical fantasy, you really have no excuse not to check her stuff out. She's got another novella set in the same world as the Golden City trilogy due out in August, featuring characters first introduced in The Shores of Spain, which I am very excited about even though it doesn't seem Oriana will make an appearance. So stay tuned for the review that will inevitable end up here. :)
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Dead Pool: Lake Powell, Global Warming, and the Future of Water in the West by James Lawrence Powell
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: The West without Water
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: TC 557 C62 G54 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Dead Pool is an important study of the futility of the Western water reclamation projects focusing on the particular boondoggle that is the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. This was a dam that not only did not need to be built, but should not have been built to begin with. How and why it still came about is the story that forms the spine of the narrative, but the book ventures far beyond its little corner of the Arizona desert to study the history of water management in the Western United States in general, a subject full of politics, local booster-ism, and pseudoscience. It also tells the story of the Colorado River, the source of water for a huge region that lives in denial that the measurements taken during a wet period in the 1920s fail to represent anything other that the river's average flow. But the fact remains that they don't, and that sooner or later the Colorado River reservoirs like Lake Powell are going to drop to dead pool levels, where the water level in a lake falls below the outlet pipes in the dam and makes the dam essentially useless. They also don't take into effect the fact that all lakes silt up and render dams useless or that damming rivers doesn't create more water, it just stores the water that would pass through the area anyway.
But its not just a reliance on bad science that got us to the point where we are now, there was a lot of politicking and pork barrelling behind it too (at one point there was a serious push to dam the Grand Canyon, of all things). All of this is documented in the book, from the first prehistoric irrigation projects to that of the pioneers to the giant dams of the 20th century. Unfortunately, the book was published in 2008, well before the megadrought the West is in right now set in, so we cannot know the author's thoughts about the future (although we can very well guess them). If you have any interest in the history of the American West and its relationship with water, the Colorado River, hydro-engineering, or the joys of domestic American politics, you really should read this book.
First Line: By 6 June 1983, operators of Glen Canyon Dam on the Arizona-Utah border had run out of options.
Source: ILL (U. of North Texas)
Recommendation: The West without Water
Year of Original Pub.: 2008
LC Call #: TC 557 C62 G54 2008
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Dead Pool is an important study of the futility of the Western water reclamation projects focusing on the particular boondoggle that is the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. This was a dam that not only did not need to be built, but should not have been built to begin with. How and why it still came about is the story that forms the spine of the narrative, but the book ventures far beyond its little corner of the Arizona desert to study the history of water management in the Western United States in general, a subject full of politics, local booster-ism, and pseudoscience. It also tells the story of the Colorado River, the source of water for a huge region that lives in denial that the measurements taken during a wet period in the 1920s fail to represent anything other that the river's average flow. But the fact remains that they don't, and that sooner or later the Colorado River reservoirs like Lake Powell are going to drop to dead pool levels, where the water level in a lake falls below the outlet pipes in the dam and makes the dam essentially useless. They also don't take into effect the fact that all lakes silt up and render dams useless or that damming rivers doesn't create more water, it just stores the water that would pass through the area anyway.
But its not just a reliance on bad science that got us to the point where we are now, there was a lot of politicking and pork barrelling behind it too (at one point there was a serious push to dam the Grand Canyon, of all things). All of this is documented in the book, from the first prehistoric irrigation projects to that of the pioneers to the giant dams of the 20th century. Unfortunately, the book was published in 2008, well before the megadrought the West is in right now set in, so we cannot know the author's thoughts about the future (although we can very well guess them). If you have any interest in the history of the American West and its relationship with water, the Colorado River, hydro-engineering, or the joys of domestic American politics, you really should read this book.
First Line: By 6 June 1983, operators of Glen Canyon Dam on the Arizona-Utah border had run out of options.
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The Living Mountain: A Celebration of the Cairngorm Mountains of Scotland by Nan Shepherd
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: the internet, years ago
Year of Original Pub.: 1977
LC Call #: QH 141 S54 2011
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Living Mountain is the author's love song to the Cairngorm Mountains, near her home in Aberdeen. A devoted hiker, Shepherd describes all aspects of her favorite spot: the geography, the weather, the plants, and the animals. You really feel like you're hiking with her, taking in the majestic sights, blundering your way through the fog, and generally enjoying the mountain air. Originally written during World War II, she didn't publish it until the late 1970s. My edition has a very nice long introduction by Robert McFarlane that really helps the reader get to know Nan Shepherd and understand the motivations behind the work. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Scotland, nature writing, hiking, or mountains.
First Line: Summer on the high plateau can be delectable as honey; it can also be a roaring scourge.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: the internet, years ago
Year of Original Pub.: 1977
LC Call #: QH 141 S54 2011
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Living Mountain is the author's love song to the Cairngorm Mountains, near her home in Aberdeen. A devoted hiker, Shepherd describes all aspects of her favorite spot: the geography, the weather, the plants, and the animals. You really feel like you're hiking with her, taking in the majestic sights, blundering your way through the fog, and generally enjoying the mountain air. Originally written during World War II, she didn't publish it until the late 1970s. My edition has a very nice long introduction by Robert McFarlane that really helps the reader get to know Nan Shepherd and understand the motivations behind the work. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Scotland, nature writing, hiking, or mountains.
First Line: Summer on the high plateau can be delectable as honey; it can also be a roaring scourge.
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Radical Love by Toni Greaves
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal (plus it's about the Soap Sisters!)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 4337.5 S86 G74 2015
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Radical Love is a photo-essay about cloistered nuns and vocations. Following the story of Sister Lauren (who later took the religious name Maria Teresa of the Sacred Heart), Greaves was given rare access to the cloistered Dominican Monastery of Our Lady of the Rosary in Summit, New Jersey, for several years as Laura advanced from postulate to novice to professed sister. There is no text beside the introduction and chapter heads, so you receive the photos as a series of images without context and are able to form your own ideas about what a vocation is and what life is like behind the cloister walls. Instead of following captions and working though the framework of the author's titles, you create the text and capture the ideas behind the images yourself, which is a very freeing way of viewing art/photography. The titles and years of each image are given at the back of the book, but it is best enjoyed without peeking at the credits, I think. My favorite photo is probably the one of the Jesus statue having a close encounter with a soccer ball, because epitomizes the simple joys of the cloister and the fact that the nuns are just like you and me, even if they have taken the radical step to reject the world outside the monastery. It is these everyday events of living that life that really come out in Graves work, enhancing and supplementing the more conventional nun or religious images. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in photo-essays, images of religious life, or nuns.
First Line: n/a
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal (plus it's about the Soap Sisters!)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 4337.5 S86 G74 2015
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Radical Love is a photo-essay about cloistered nuns and vocations. Following the story of Sister Lauren (who later took the religious name Maria Teresa of the Sacred Heart), Greaves was given rare access to the cloistered Dominican Monastery of Our Lady of the Rosary in Summit, New Jersey, for several years as Laura advanced from postulate to novice to professed sister. There is no text beside the introduction and chapter heads, so you receive the photos as a series of images without context and are able to form your own ideas about what a vocation is and what life is like behind the cloister walls. Instead of following captions and working though the framework of the author's titles, you create the text and capture the ideas behind the images yourself, which is a very freeing way of viewing art/photography. The titles and years of each image are given at the back of the book, but it is best enjoyed without peeking at the credits, I think. My favorite photo is probably the one of the Jesus statue having a close encounter with a soccer ball, because epitomizes the simple joys of the cloister and the fact that the nuns are just like you and me, even if they have taken the radical step to reject the world outside the monastery. It is these everyday events of living that life that really come out in Graves work, enhancing and supplementing the more conventional nun or religious images. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in photo-essays, images of religious life, or nuns.
First Line: n/a
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With This Curse by Amanda DeWees
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal review of a different DeWees book
Series: With This Curse (1/2)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 W58 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
With This Curse is a very nice Gothic historical in the style of Victoria Holt. Set in the Victorian era, it centers around Clara, a talented seamstress who has overcome a lost love and difficult past to find success working for an actress. One day and face from the past arrives and asks her to pretend to be his wife for a short while to appease his dying father. Clara only remembers Atticus as the lame twin (he had a clubfoot) of her lost love, and refuses. But the next thing she knows, her actress employer is leaving the stage to get married and a vindictive former employer has made Atticus' offer her only choice. So it's off to his family estate, a place she thought she'd never see again, to play gentlewoman for his awful father. It soon becomes obvious that Atticus wants Clara, or does he really want his "ward", a young girl just out of the schoolroom that he foists on Clara with little notice. And now someone is leaving her threatening notes and her father-in-law is becoming increasingly angry at the world, his son, and at Clara. Whatever is she going to do?
One of the best things about this book is that the author can write, DeWees' style is superb (especially compared to most modern romances) and her pacing excellent. She did reveal some plot points earlier than I expected—normally in this genre I don't expect the actual truth until the second-to-last chapter or so. You really get to feel for Clara, forced into something she doesn't really want to do and then quickly finding herself in over her head, as well as for poor Atticus perpetually stuck in the shadows of his able-bodied younger twin. A modern book that has the feel of a mid-century Gothic classic. I can highly recommend it for anyone with an interest in the Gothic suspense genre, well-written romances, or good historical dramas.
First Line: "The house is cursed," my mother said.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal review of a different DeWees book
Series: With This Curse (1/2)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 W58 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
With This Curse is a very nice Gothic historical in the style of Victoria Holt. Set in the Victorian era, it centers around Clara, a talented seamstress who has overcome a lost love and difficult past to find success working for an actress. One day and face from the past arrives and asks her to pretend to be his wife for a short while to appease his dying father. Clara only remembers Atticus as the lame twin (he had a clubfoot) of her lost love, and refuses. But the next thing she knows, her actress employer is leaving the stage to get married and a vindictive former employer has made Atticus' offer her only choice. So it's off to his family estate, a place she thought she'd never see again, to play gentlewoman for his awful father. It soon becomes obvious that Atticus wants Clara, or does he really want his "ward", a young girl just out of the schoolroom that he foists on Clara with little notice. And now someone is leaving her threatening notes and her father-in-law is becoming increasingly angry at the world, his son, and at Clara. Whatever is she going to do?
One of the best things about this book is that the author can write, DeWees' style is superb (especially compared to most modern romances) and her pacing excellent. She did reveal some plot points earlier than I expected—normally in this genre I don't expect the actual truth until the second-to-last chapter or so. You really get to feel for Clara, forced into something she doesn't really want to do and then quickly finding herself in over her head, as well as for poor Atticus perpetually stuck in the shadows of his able-bodied younger twin. A modern book that has the feel of a mid-century Gothic classic. I can highly recommend it for anyone with an interest in the Gothic suspense genre, well-written romances, or good historical dramas.
First Line: "The house is cursed," my mother said.
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For everyone like me who enjoyed the first two Jackaby books and can't wait until Ghostly Echoes comes out next month, Amazon has the first six chapters available for free as a Kindle download. My Tuesday afternoon just got a little bit brighter.
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Cursed Once More by Amanda DeWees
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: With This Curse (2/2)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 C87 2015
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Cursed Once More is an inferior sequel to a very good Gothic historical romance. Now that Atticus and Clara have gotten the events of With This Curse, they are moving on with their plans for his supposedly "cursed" estate when Clara receives two very curious letters from her mother's estranged family none of whom Clara has ever met. One from her uncle and one from her grandmother, the two letters are very different, but both invite her to visit them in Yorkshire. Where Atticus is promptly confused with a vampire by the family's Romanian servant, because—yes you read that right—her grandmother is Romanian. What follows is a lot of suspenseful melodrama that in no way justifies a plot. I was so excited to continue Clara and Atticus' story, but this is not nearly as good as the first book. Read at your own risk.
First Line: In eight months of marriage, I had not yet grown accustomed to the pleasure of being awakened each morning by my husband.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: With This Curse (2/2)
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 C87 2015
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Cursed Once More is an inferior sequel to a very good Gothic historical romance. Now that Atticus and Clara have gotten the events of With This Curse, they are moving on with their plans for his supposedly "cursed" estate when Clara receives two very curious letters from her mother's estranged family none of whom Clara has ever met. One from her uncle and one from her grandmother, the two letters are very different, but both invite her to visit them in Yorkshire. Where Atticus is promptly confused with a vampire by the family's Romanian servant, because—yes you read that right—her grandmother is Romanian. What follows is a lot of suspenseful melodrama that in no way justifies a plot. I was so excited to continue Clara and Atticus' story, but this is not nearly as good as the first book. Read at your own risk.
First Line: In eight months of marriage, I had not yet grown accustomed to the pleasure of being awakened each morning by my husband.
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A Man for All Seasons: A Play in Two Acts by Robert Bolt*
Source: me (3/08)
Recommendation: I love this play (plus RandomCAT)
Year of Original Pub.: 1960
LC Call #: PR 6052 O39 M3 1962
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Man for All Seasons is hands-down my favorite play ever. It is even one of those plays that reads as well in book form as it does not the stage (or screen, the movie's amazing). Telling the story Sir Thomas More and his doomed attempt to serve his country and his conscience at the same time, the play uncovers some of the darker corners of the human psyche, from the psychopathic evil of Cromwell to the weak but ambitious Richard Rich (who memorably sells his soul for Wales) to the entitled demands of King Henry, it is all set out on display for the reader. The use of the Everyman character also allows the less privileged to get their two cents in. More himself comes out as a saint, but a modern one, fit for the times. A light to the darkness of the 1960s and today, who knows what is right and refused to bend for money, ambition, or even friendship's sake. I could quote lines from this play forever (but I won't), because you need to go out and read it yourself! Highly, highly recommended.
First Line: It is perverse!
Source: me (3/08)
Recommendation: I love this play (plus RandomCAT)
Year of Original Pub.: 1960
LC Call #: PR 6052 O39 M3 1962
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Man for All Seasons is hands-down my favorite play ever. It is even one of those plays that reads as well in book form as it does not the stage (or screen, the movie's amazing). Telling the story Sir Thomas More and his doomed attempt to serve his country and his conscience at the same time, the play uncovers some of the darker corners of the human psyche, from the psychopathic evil of Cromwell to the weak but ambitious Richard Rich (who memorably sells his soul for Wales) to the entitled demands of King Henry, it is all set out on display for the reader. The use of the Everyman character also allows the less privileged to get their two cents in. More himself comes out as a saint, but a modern one, fit for the times. A light to the darkness of the 1960s and today, who knows what is right and refused to bend for money, ambition, or even friendship's sake. I could quote lines from this play forever (but I won't), because you need to go out and read it yourself! Highly, highly recommended.
First Line: It is perverse!
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On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos by St. Lawrence of Brindisi
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: The Feast of St. Lawrence of Brinisi is July 21
Original Title: De Admirabilitate Virginis Deiparae ex verbis visionis: Signum magnum apparuit
Year of Original Pub.: late 16th/early 17th century
LC Call #: BT 608 L39 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos is a Marian sermon by the Doctor of the Church, St. Lawrence of Brindisi, based on the passage in Revelations about the woman crowned with stars. As such, it is unexceptional. What is exceptional is the way this edition is formatted. The publishers are apparently trying to be pan-Christian/non-denominational, which means that the title of saint is always in parentheses (e.g. (St.) John) and is probably responsible for the odd use of "Theotokos" (a term the author would never have used) in the title. This would be odd enough if the editors also didn't randomly include bits of Latin in square brackets to show the author's original words (do they have so little faith in their translation that they feel this is necessary?). I'm fairly certain that this is why God invented facing page bilingual editions, or footnotes, or both. Either way, it's quite distracting and really poor style. But there is so little by or about (St.) Lawrence of Brindisi (see what I did there) in print, that anyone English-speaker looking for something is almost forced to end up with this. Which, considering what a remarkable figure he was, is actually a bit sad. Still, if you're interested in him or in Counter-Reformation Mariology, you might as well pick it up since it costs less than five bucks. At that price, one can afford to ignore its disastrous formatting as a mere annoyance.
First Line: When St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist, the beloved disciple of Christ and after the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos {Virginis Deiparae}, the singular son of the Cross of Christ, having been relegated to the island of Patmos, suffered many things for the Faith of Christ, he was consoled in the same place by God with many celestial and divine revelations.
*NB: The brackets in that quote should be square but that doesn't work with LT's touchstone system.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: The Feast of St. Lawrence of Brinisi is July 21
Original Title: De Admirabilitate Virginis Deiparae ex verbis visionis: Signum magnum apparuit
Year of Original Pub.: late 16th/early 17th century
LC Call #: BT 608 L39 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
On the Admirability of the Virgin Theotokos is a Marian sermon by the Doctor of the Church, St. Lawrence of Brindisi, based on the passage in Revelations about the woman crowned with stars. As such, it is unexceptional. What is exceptional is the way this edition is formatted. The publishers are apparently trying to be pan-Christian/non-denominational, which means that the title of saint is always in parentheses (e.g. (St.) John) and is probably responsible for the odd use of "Theotokos" (a term the author would never have used) in the title. This would be odd enough if the editors also didn't randomly include bits of Latin in square brackets to show the author's original words (do they have so little faith in their translation that they feel this is necessary?). I'm fairly certain that this is why God invented facing page bilingual editions, or footnotes, or both. Either way, it's quite distracting and really poor style. But there is so little by or about (St.) Lawrence of Brindisi (see what I did there) in print, that anyone English-speaker looking for something is almost forced to end up with this. Which, considering what a remarkable figure he was, is actually a bit sad. Still, if you're interested in him or in Counter-Reformation Mariology, you might as well pick it up since it costs less than five bucks. At that price, one can afford to ignore its disastrous formatting as a mere annoyance.
First Line: When St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist, the beloved disciple of Christ and after the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos {Virginis Deiparae}, the singular son of the Cross of Christ, having been relegated to the island of Patmos, suffered many things for the Faith of Christ, he was consoled in the same place by God with many celestial and divine revelations.
*NB: The brackets in that quote should be square but that doesn't work with LT's touchstone system.
101inge87
A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Series: Henrietta and Inspector Howard (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 O965 G57 2016
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Girl Like You is a very good historical mystery with romantic elements set in 1930s Chicago. Henrietta has been the breadwinner for her mother and seven siblings ever since her father killed himself after losing his job after the market crash of '29. It hasn't been easy, but she's been scraping by working as a twenty-six girl at a local bar and taking odd jobs on the side to make extra cash. A friend made through one of these jobs leads her to work as a taxi dancer—she's making more money, but if her mother ever found out she'd be in big trouble. Thus begins the lie that she's working the night shift at the factory and she gets her unwanted local admirer, Stanley, who does work at the factory, to play along. What seems like a good things suddenly goes bad when her manager is found murdered and the club closes. That's when an offer by the police inspector investigating the murder makes Henrietta an offer she can't refuse: go undercover at a music hall suspected of mob ties for the police at double pay. However, her desire to prove herself soon finds her in over her head, and not even the police may be able to save her.
I really, really liked this one. The 1930s working class Chicago feels real (the author is a local) and has just the right combination of grit and glamour you'd expect. What I particularly liked was the fact that the author tried to make Henrietta and Inspector Howard true to their era, instead of making them modern people living in the past the way many historical novels do. Henrietta is concerned about her reputation, has very strong ideas about proper behavior that she struggles to maintain throughout her trials, and when she encounters situations that would be shocking then but nothing now she is properly shocked. Not to mention the fact that she's such a strong character all the way around. This promises to be the first book of a series, although the ending is such that it can stand alone. Since the inspector's people and Henrietta's mother's estranged family appear to be the same kind of people, I imaging we'll be having a nice big family reunion in the next book. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction, mystery or romance, the 1930s, or the city of Chicago.
First Line: Henrietta stole another look at her compact before she snapped it shut and hurried out from behind the bar.
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Series: Henrietta and Inspector Howard (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 O965 G57 2016
Rating: 5 stars / 5
A Girl Like You is a very good historical mystery with romantic elements set in 1930s Chicago. Henrietta has been the breadwinner for her mother and seven siblings ever since her father killed himself after losing his job after the market crash of '29. It hasn't been easy, but she's been scraping by working as a twenty-six girl at a local bar and taking odd jobs on the side to make extra cash. A friend made through one of these jobs leads her to work as a taxi dancer—she's making more money, but if her mother ever found out she'd be in big trouble. Thus begins the lie that she's working the night shift at the factory and she gets her unwanted local admirer, Stanley, who does work at the factory, to play along. What seems like a good things suddenly goes bad when her manager is found murdered and the club closes. That's when an offer by the police inspector investigating the murder makes Henrietta an offer she can't refuse: go undercover at a music hall suspected of mob ties for the police at double pay. However, her desire to prove herself soon finds her in over her head, and not even the police may be able to save her.
I really, really liked this one. The 1930s working class Chicago feels real (the author is a local) and has just the right combination of grit and glamour you'd expect. What I particularly liked was the fact that the author tried to make Henrietta and Inspector Howard true to their era, instead of making them modern people living in the past the way many historical novels do. Henrietta is concerned about her reputation, has very strong ideas about proper behavior that she struggles to maintain throughout her trials, and when she encounters situations that would be shocking then but nothing now she is properly shocked. Not to mention the fact that she's such a strong character all the way around. This promises to be the first book of a series, although the ending is such that it can stand alone. Since the inspector's people and Henrietta's mother's estranged family appear to be the same kind of people, I imaging we'll be having a nice big family reunion in the next book. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction, mystery or romance, the 1930s, or the city of Chicago.
First Line: Henrietta stole another look at her compact before she snapped it shut and hurried out from behind the bar.
102inge87
Time of Trial by Hester Burton
Source: ILL (Texas A&M at Commerce)
Recommendation: Like Mother Like Daughter?
Year of Original Pub.: 1963
LC Call #: PZ 7 B8786 Tim 1964
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Time of Trial is a smashing juvenile historical novel set during the Napoleonic Wars. Margaret Pargeter is the daughter of a reform-minded bookseller in London, who loves her family and the handsome young medical student across the way. But when her father's politics result in his arrest and the destruction of the family's property, Margaret alone is there to hold things together as his friends do their best to ameliorate his situation. Eventually, to be closer to her father while he is imprisoned, she moves to Suffolk where she finds herself lonely and shunned by those she thought were her friends. But she makes the best of her waiting and begins to find things better than she thought they were, even as the waiting and uncertainty weigh on her. But not all is as peaceful in Suffolk as it appears, and a night of violence will may change everything, for better or worse.
They don't make books like this one anymore. A politically conscious, historical novel in which the heroine stands on her own two feet even when she doesn't think she has the strength, I couldn't put it down. Watching Margaret maturing into a woman worthy of the respect and admiration of her chosen love is truly an experience to enjoy. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in vintage teen fiction, life in England during the Napoleonic Wars, or honest historical fiction that doesn't pull political punches.
First Line: On that unlucky Monday late in the summer of 1801, Margaret Pargeter awoke to the chimes of the City churches striking six.
Source: ILL (Texas A&M at Commerce)
Recommendation: Like Mother Like Daughter?
Year of Original Pub.: 1963
LC Call #: PZ 7 B8786 Tim 1964
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Time of Trial is a smashing juvenile historical novel set during the Napoleonic Wars. Margaret Pargeter is the daughter of a reform-minded bookseller in London, who loves her family and the handsome young medical student across the way. But when her father's politics result in his arrest and the destruction of the family's property, Margaret alone is there to hold things together as his friends do their best to ameliorate his situation. Eventually, to be closer to her father while he is imprisoned, she moves to Suffolk where she finds herself lonely and shunned by those she thought were her friends. But she makes the best of her waiting and begins to find things better than she thought they were, even as the waiting and uncertainty weigh on her. But not all is as peaceful in Suffolk as it appears, and a night of violence will may change everything, for better or worse.
They don't make books like this one anymore. A politically conscious, historical novel in which the heroine stands on her own two feet even when she doesn't think she has the strength, I couldn't put it down. Watching Margaret maturing into a woman worthy of the respect and admiration of her chosen love is truly an experience to enjoy. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in vintage teen fiction, life in England during the Napoleonic Wars, or honest historical fiction that doesn't pull political punches.
First Line: On that unlucky Monday late in the summer of 1801, Margaret Pargeter awoke to the chimes of the City churches striking six.
103inge87
Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History by Dan L. Flores
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: QL 737 C22 F63 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Coyote America is an interesting history of coyotes and their relationships with humans. Not just focusing on the scientific facts, Flores also looks to folklore, Native American religious traditions, and popular cartoon to analyze our relationship with this remarkable animal. One of his more interesting observations is the pronunciation gap: people who pronounce coyote with three syllables generally view coyotes much more favorably than those who pronounce it with two. He also looks at their amazing adaptability, moving taking advantage of man's wiping out wolves to take over the continent and the removal of feral dog packs to become urban transplants. They also have a an amazing ability to increase their litter sizes when under population stress. Therefore they can be poisoned out of existence in an area (unfortunately still legal and not uncommon) and be back at 75% of previous levels within a year thanks to immigration. The pointlessness of the efforts to wipe out coyotes is well described in the book. Unfortunately, some people have a visceral hatred of coyotes and won't listen to science. But it looks like the tide is turning in the coyote's favor, and that they will still be here and hanging out with humans for many centuries to come.
A very nice popular science book. Perfect for anyone with an interest in coyotes, books that merge social science with natural science, or interesting non-fiction about American culture.
First Line: Here is a vivid memory.
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: QL 737 C22 F63 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Coyote America is an interesting history of coyotes and their relationships with humans. Not just focusing on the scientific facts, Flores also looks to folklore, Native American religious traditions, and popular cartoon to analyze our relationship with this remarkable animal. One of his more interesting observations is the pronunciation gap: people who pronounce coyote with three syllables generally view coyotes much more favorably than those who pronounce it with two. He also looks at their amazing adaptability, moving taking advantage of man's wiping out wolves to take over the continent and the removal of feral dog packs to become urban transplants. They also have a an amazing ability to increase their litter sizes when under population stress. Therefore they can be poisoned out of existence in an area (unfortunately still legal and not uncommon) and be back at 75% of previous levels within a year thanks to immigration. The pointlessness of the efforts to wipe out coyotes is well described in the book. Unfortunately, some people have a visceral hatred of coyotes and won't listen to science. But it looks like the tide is turning in the coyote's favor, and that they will still be here and hanging out with humans for many centuries to come.
A very nice popular science book. Perfect for anyone with an interest in coyotes, books that merge social science with natural science, or interesting non-fiction about American culture.
First Line: Here is a vivid memory.
104inge87
Coyote America shares a lot of overlap with the coyote chapter of American Serengeti, both of which were published this year, to the extent that there were some things that I couldn't remember were in one, the other, or both books. CA is definitely targeted towards a more popular audience, but AS is also a very readable book. Which one you read will probably depend on availability or whether you are interested in native mammals in general or just coyotes. Either way, you'll learn a lot.
105inge87
Von heiligen Zeichen by Romano Guardini^
Source: ILL (Drew U., NJ)
Recommendation: NLM
English Title: Sacred Signs
Year of Original Pub.: 1922
LC Call #: BX 2295 G83 1927
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Von heiligen Zeichen is a very interesting short book about the meaning behind many Catholic actions and symbols. Less than sixty pages long, it is a mediation on why Catholics do what we do and how we should do them. From the sign of the cross to the Name of God, Guardini helps bring you in to the mysteries of the Faith. That his prose is gorgeous helps a lot. Due to its short length, it's a great book to space out over a period of time as spiritual reading (there's a cheap English edition widely available through Amazon), and it will really help you grow in understanding and enrich you participation in the mass. Highly recommended for Catholics or anyone else interested in the meaning of ritual and the mysteries of faith.
First Line: Die Kapitelchen dieses Buches sind im Laufe von etwa zehn Jahren entstanden.
My Translation: The chapters of this book came into being over a period of some ten years.
Source: ILL (Drew U., NJ)
Recommendation: NLM
English Title: Sacred Signs
Year of Original Pub.: 1922
LC Call #: BX 2295 G83 1927
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Von heiligen Zeichen is a very interesting short book about the meaning behind many Catholic actions and symbols. Less than sixty pages long, it is a mediation on why Catholics do what we do and how we should do them. From the sign of the cross to the Name of God, Guardini helps bring you in to the mysteries of the Faith. That his prose is gorgeous helps a lot. Due to its short length, it's a great book to space out over a period of time as spiritual reading (there's a cheap English edition widely available through Amazon), and it will really help you grow in understanding and enrich you participation in the mass. Highly recommended for Catholics or anyone else interested in the meaning of ritual and the mysteries of faith.
First Line: Die Kapitelchen dieses Buches sind im Laufe von etwa zehn Jahren entstanden.
My Translation: The chapters of this book came into being over a period of some ten years.
106inge87
The Wolves of Currumpaw by William Grill
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 G755 Wol 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Wolves of Currumpaw is a quality picture book about a powerful wolf, his mate, and Ernest Thompson Seton—the man who would hunt down and kill them both. We begin with a brief overview of how the Westward migration changed the country and then focus on a small corner of New Mexico where one small wolf pack still reigns supreme. Smarter than any hunter, Lobo and his mate Blanca lead their pack and have learned to work around the inevitable traps and poisons. A reward is posted for Lobo's death, but no one is successful until Seton comes along. But even this hunter has met his match, and his life will never be the same.
Based on Seton's story about the events of 1893-4, it has a distinct conservationist tone. Gill's trademark color pencil illustrations are perfect for capturing the wide expanses of the American West. As you might guess from the subject matter (wolf hunting), this is probably not a book for the younger picture book set or the faint hearted. Many animals die in this book, and there's even a panel illustrating how a coyote's body contorts as it is killed by strychnine poisoning. But for older children, this a good resource for those wanting to introduce concepts like extinction, ecosystems, and conservationism. Those who like hunting and think all wolves, coyotes, etc. should be killed off to protect livestock are not going to like this, even if a hunter is one of the "heroes" because of the distinctly anti-hunting, pro-wolf conservation message. An excellent book, but not one for all audiences. Highly recommended.
First Line: Half a million wolves once roamed freely across North America, but with the arrival of European settlers the habitats of the animals began to change.
Source: me (7/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7 G755 Wol 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Wolves of Currumpaw is a quality picture book about a powerful wolf, his mate, and Ernest Thompson Seton—the man who would hunt down and kill them both. We begin with a brief overview of how the Westward migration changed the country and then focus on a small corner of New Mexico where one small wolf pack still reigns supreme. Smarter than any hunter, Lobo and his mate Blanca lead their pack and have learned to work around the inevitable traps and poisons. A reward is posted for Lobo's death, but no one is successful until Seton comes along. But even this hunter has met his match, and his life will never be the same.
Based on Seton's story about the events of 1893-4, it has a distinct conservationist tone. Gill's trademark color pencil illustrations are perfect for capturing the wide expanses of the American West. As you might guess from the subject matter (wolf hunting), this is probably not a book for the younger picture book set or the faint hearted. Many animals die in this book, and there's even a panel illustrating how a coyote's body contorts as it is killed by strychnine poisoning. But for older children, this a good resource for those wanting to introduce concepts like extinction, ecosystems, and conservationism. Those who like hunting and think all wolves, coyotes, etc. should be killed off to protect livestock are not going to like this, even if a hunter is one of the "heroes" because of the distinctly anti-hunting, pro-wolf conservation message. An excellent book, but not one for all audiences. Highly recommended.
First Line: Half a million wolves once roamed freely across North America, but with the arrival of European settlers the habitats of the animals began to change.
107inge87
July Round-Up!
Books Read: 22 (24 in 2013, 26 in 2014, & 20 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 11 - 50%
Non-Fiction - 11 - 50%
Sources
Me (this month) - 10 - 45%
ILL - 5 - 22.5%
Me (other) - 4 - 18%
Irving PL - 1 - 4.5%
Me (last month) - 1 - 4.5%
Me (rest of this year) - 1 - 4.5%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 0 - 0%
Rereads - 4 - 18%
Authors
Female - 9 - 52.94%
Male - 8 - 47.06%
Edition Language
English - 21 - 95.5%
German - 1 - 4.5%
Original Language
English - 20 - 91%
German - 1 - 4.5%
Latin - 1 - 4.5%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 14 - 63.64%
Series Books - 8 - 36.36%
Average Original Date of Publication
1984
Median Original Date of Publication
2015
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 4.5%
3 stars - 9 - 40%
4 stars - 9 - 40%
5 stars - 3 - 13.5%
Average Rating
3.64
Discovery of the Month
Time of Trial by Hester Burton
First Line of the Month
"The house is cursed," my mother said.
—Amanda DeWees, With This Curse
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox
Non-Fiction: Dead Pool: Lake Powell, Global Warming, and the Future of Water in the West by James Lawrence Powell
Books Read: 22 (24 in 2013, 26 in 2014, & 20 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 11 - 50%
Non-Fiction - 11 - 50%
Sources
Me (this month) - 10 - 45%
ILL - 5 - 22.5%
Me (other) - 4 - 18%
Irving PL - 1 - 4.5%
Me (last month) - 1 - 4.5%
Me (rest of this year) - 1 - 4.5%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 0 - 0%
Rereads - 4 - 18%
Authors
Female - 9 - 52.94%
Male - 8 - 47.06%
Edition Language
English - 21 - 95.5%
German - 1 - 4.5%
Original Language
English - 20 - 91%
German - 1 - 4.5%
Latin - 1 - 4.5%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 14 - 63.64%
Series Books - 8 - 36.36%
Average Original Date of Publication
1984
Median Original Date of Publication
2015
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 4.5%
3 stars - 9 - 40%
4 stars - 9 - 40%
5 stars - 3 - 13.5%
Average Rating
3.64
Discovery of the Month
Time of Trial by Hester Burton
First Line of the Month
"The house is cursed," my mother said.
—Amanda DeWees, With This Curse
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox
Non-Fiction: Dead Pool: Lake Powell, Global Warming, and the Future of Water in the West by James Lawrence Powell
108inge87
The Way of an Eagle by Ethel M. Dell+
Source: me (10/08)
Recommendation: I was looking for camping books for RandomCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1912
LC Call #: PR 6007 E375 W3 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Way of an Eagle is one of those books that's so bad, it's good. A stirring melodrama of courage, cuckolding, and colonialism, it starts in a besieged fortress and never lets up until the very end. The British commander of the fort knows the gig is up and that his reinforcements will not arrive in time, therefore he asks one of the three other surviving officers to make sure his daughter is saved. Nick volunteers and promptly drugs her and hauls her out during the relative safety of the night. Now Nick is not only ugly as sin, he is a man's man: people do what he orders because he's the kind of man you can't disobey. Upright and principled, he refuses the Victoria Cross for saving Muriel because all he did was "run away". Muriel, meanwhile is both attracted and repelled by her savior, which is good, because if she weren't conflicted this book would be very short indeed. They become engaged while she is recovering in Simla, only to be torn apart when Muriel believes gossip coming from one of Nick's enemies. She returns to England and he soon becomes engaged to another siege survivor—a man as handsome and charming as Nick is ugly and uncouth. And naturally, because this is that kind of book, he is just as weak and unprincipled as Nick is willful and honorable. Not that Muriel can bring herself to admit that for 100+ pages. Because naturally Nick has lost an arm in India and comes back to recover in the same corner of England as Muriel. Meanwhile, we have some adultery, scarlet fever, and nervous hysteria to keep us entertained. Muriel now realizes that she was wrong to ever reject Nick, but now she is back in India and he is nowhere to be seen. Whatever is she to do? Cue the suspense.
I love bad books. I once went out an bought a particular one solely because a book named it as an example of non-literature. So therefore, this book is right up my alley. Those who demand quality plots instead of potboiling drama, will not enjoy it nearly as much. But it does show some interesting light on pre-Great War attitudes toward India and Indians as well as a lot of middle class Edwardian values. Not to mention that it has some of the most amazing purple prose you are ever likely to meet. A bestseller in its day, it's the perfect book for the hopeless romantic or anyone who is looking to add more drama to their life. Definitely a marmite book, but it's my kind of marmite.
First Line: The long clatter of an irregular volley of musketry rattled warningly from the naked mountain ridges; over a great grey shoulder of rock the sun sank in a splendid opal glow; from very near at hand came the clatter of tin cups and the sound of a subdued British laugh.
Source: me (10/08)
Recommendation: I was looking for camping books for RandomCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1912
LC Call #: PR 6007 E375 W3 1996
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Way of an Eagle is one of those books that's so bad, it's good. A stirring melodrama of courage, cuckolding, and colonialism, it starts in a besieged fortress and never lets up until the very end. The British commander of the fort knows the gig is up and that his reinforcements will not arrive in time, therefore he asks one of the three other surviving officers to make sure his daughter is saved. Nick volunteers and promptly drugs her and hauls her out during the relative safety of the night. Now Nick is not only ugly as sin, he is a man's man: people do what he orders because he's the kind of man you can't disobey. Upright and principled, he refuses the Victoria Cross for saving Muriel because all he did was "run away". Muriel, meanwhile is both attracted and repelled by her savior, which is good, because if she weren't conflicted this book would be very short indeed. They become engaged while she is recovering in Simla, only to be torn apart when Muriel believes gossip coming from one of Nick's enemies. She returns to England and he soon becomes engaged to another siege survivor—a man as handsome and charming as Nick is ugly and uncouth. And naturally, because this is that kind of book, he is just as weak and unprincipled as Nick is willful and honorable. Not that Muriel can bring herself to admit that for 100+ pages. Because naturally Nick has lost an arm in India and comes back to recover in the same corner of England as Muriel. Meanwhile, we have some adultery, scarlet fever, and nervous hysteria to keep us entertained. Muriel now realizes that she was wrong to ever reject Nick, but now she is back in India and he is nowhere to be seen. Whatever is she to do? Cue the suspense.
I love bad books. I once went out an bought a particular one solely because a book named it as an example of non-literature. So therefore, this book is right up my alley. Those who demand quality plots instead of potboiling drama, will not enjoy it nearly as much. But it does show some interesting light on pre-Great War attitudes toward India and Indians as well as a lot of middle class Edwardian values. Not to mention that it has some of the most amazing purple prose you are ever likely to meet. A bestseller in its day, it's the perfect book for the hopeless romantic or anyone who is looking to add more drama to their life. Definitely a marmite book, but it's my kind of marmite.
First Line: The long clatter of an irregular volley of musketry rattled warningly from the naked mountain ridges; over a great grey shoulder of rock the sun sank in a splendid opal glow; from very near at hand came the clatter of tin cups and the sound of a subdued British laugh.
109inge87
A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer*
Source: me (1/12)
Recommendation: Rereading my way through my Heyers
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 C58 2011
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Civil Contract is a rather different kind of historical romance than we usually expect from Heyer. Instead of a determined heroine driving the hero crazy, we have a hero giving up his great love to enter into a marriage of convenience after his father's death reveals that his family is facing ruin. Adam has nothing to offer but his title, while Jenny has lots of money and a father who wants to see her marry a title. And what a father he is, driving Adam crazy with his meddling and "surprises". But little by little things begin to thaw between the two of them. Adam manages to lose some of his resentment and Jenny learns to make her way in her new world. All of which would be much easier if his previous love could keep her emotions under control.
Like I said, this is different from your average Heyer: much more melancholic and almost a downer at times. It's a book about being content with what you have, instead of aspiring for the heights. But when it comes to the everyday realities of life, it can be quite beautiful. So don't come into to it looking for the next The Grand Sophy or Frederica, because it is absolutely nothing like. But if you want a quieter romance, this may be for you.
First Line: The library at Fontley Priory, like most of the principal apartments in the sprawling building, looked to the south-east, commanding a prospect of informal gardens and a plantation of poplars, which acted as a wind-break and screened from view the monotony of the fen beyond.
Source: me (1/12)
Recommendation: Rereading my way through my Heyers
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 C58 2011
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Civil Contract is a rather different kind of historical romance than we usually expect from Heyer. Instead of a determined heroine driving the hero crazy, we have a hero giving up his great love to enter into a marriage of convenience after his father's death reveals that his family is facing ruin. Adam has nothing to offer but his title, while Jenny has lots of money and a father who wants to see her marry a title. And what a father he is, driving Adam crazy with his meddling and "surprises". But little by little things begin to thaw between the two of them. Adam manages to lose some of his resentment and Jenny learns to make her way in her new world. All of which would be much easier if his previous love could keep her emotions under control.
Like I said, this is different from your average Heyer: much more melancholic and almost a downer at times. It's a book about being content with what you have, instead of aspiring for the heights. But when it comes to the everyday realities of life, it can be quite beautiful. So don't come into to it looking for the next The Grand Sophy or Frederica, because it is absolutely nothing like. But if you want a quieter romance, this may be for you.
First Line: The library at Fontley Priory, like most of the principal apartments in the sprawling building, looked to the south-east, commanding a prospect of informal gardens and a plantation of poplars, which acted as a wind-break and screened from view the monotony of the fen beyond.
110inge87
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers
Source: work
Recommendation: Filling in the 1928 slot on my timeline
Year of Original Pub.: 1928
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (5/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 L6 1964
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club finds Lord Peter getting involved in a murder investigation after a man is found dead at his club. The Bellona Club is for military veterans, and the general was a standby. Until, of course he died. At his age and with his heart the doctor believes it was a natural death, until events force an autopsy and it is discovered that the police have a medical murder on their hands. Just how did the general ingest so much digitalis? And who wanted him dead? Luckily for the police, Lord Peter and Detective Parker are on the case.
A nice addition to the series, nothing amazing or outstanding compared to the others, but the medical element does provide a bit of novelty. If you like the other early books in the series, you'll like this one. But generally speaking, I feel the later in the series you go the better the books are. Recommended for Lord Peter fans and those who enjoy vintage medical mysteries.
First Line: "What in the world, Wimsey, are you doing in this morgue?" demanded Captain Fentiman, flinging aside the "Evening Banner" with the air of a man released from an irksome duty.
Source: work
Recommendation: Filling in the 1928 slot on my timeline
Year of Original Pub.: 1928
Series: Lord Peter Wimsey (5/11)
LC Call #: PR 6037 A95 L6 1964
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club finds Lord Peter getting involved in a murder investigation after a man is found dead at his club. The Bellona Club is for military veterans, and the general was a standby. Until, of course he died. At his age and with his heart the doctor believes it was a natural death, until events force an autopsy and it is discovered that the police have a medical murder on their hands. Just how did the general ingest so much digitalis? And who wanted him dead? Luckily for the police, Lord Peter and Detective Parker are on the case.
A nice addition to the series, nothing amazing or outstanding compared to the others, but the medical element does provide a bit of novelty. If you like the other early books in the series, you'll like this one. But generally speaking, I feel the later in the series you go the better the books are. Recommended for Lord Peter fans and those who enjoy vintage medical mysteries.
First Line: "What in the world, Wimsey, are you doing in this morgue?" demanded Captain Fentiman, flinging aside the "Evening Banner" with the air of a man released from an irksome duty.
111brodiew2
>103 inge87: This looks really interesting. I have had a passing interest in coyotes, mostly in children's books. The trickster is fun to follow. I also read Christopher Moore's Coyote Blue, which is a zany more adult oriented look at the trickster.
I think this book sounds good for the layman (me). I'll check it out.
I think this book sounds good for the layman (me). I'll check it out.
112inge87
>111 brodiew2: Coyote America is written with a lay audience in mind. What I liked is how the author not only dealt with the natural science aspect (i.e. what is a coyote and how do they live), but also with the social science aspect. The parts where he compared Native American perceptions of coyotes with White perceptions are particularly interesting, but he also compares different Native traditions with each other. These discussions really help bring out the coyote's personality. I think you'll enjoy it!
113brodiew2
>112 inge87: I did not notice the publication date of 'Coyote America'. I was expecting to have the library send it straight away, but now I'm number 7. :-)
114inge87
>113 brodiew2: It happens. Hopefully, you'll find it worth the wait. :)
115inge87
Venetia by Georgette Heyer*
Source: me (12/11)
Recommendation: It was the logical next Heyer after A Civil Contract
Year of Original Pub.: 1958
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 V46 2009
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Venetia is an orphan who runs her family's estate, while her brother shirks his duties and idles on the Continent having fun in the army, and is also responsible for her extremely studious younger brother who was born with a hip defect and walks with a limp. She has two devoted suitors, on extremely righteous and worthy, the other young with a severe case of puppy love. Then one day the absent lord of the estate next door comes home and everything changes. Lord Damerel is a rake and not fit to be acquaintances—much less friends—with a lady of quality like Venetia, but of course that is exactly what happens. And then the fun really starts.
A charming tale of late starts and second chances, both of our heroes are flawed and have had life throw them some serious curveballs. Damerel is a rake, who realizes that his previous career has made any relationship with Venetia an unachievable dream. Whereas, Venetia, keep hidden away from the world at her father's whim finally finds the strength to fight for what she wants after essentially giving up most of her life to supporting her family. How they manage to find a way together, in spite of the various pitfalls life throws at them, is a joy to read. Quite possibly my favorite Heyer novel, it's the perfect blend of bitter and sweet.
First Line: 'A fox got in amongst the hens last night, and ravished our best layer,' remarked Miss Lanyon.
Source: me (12/11)
Recommendation: It was the logical next Heyer after A Civil Contract
Year of Original Pub.: 1958
LC Call #: PR 6015 E795 V46 2009
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Venetia is an orphan who runs her family's estate, while her brother shirks his duties and idles on the Continent having fun in the army, and is also responsible for her extremely studious younger brother who was born with a hip defect and walks with a limp. She has two devoted suitors, on extremely righteous and worthy, the other young with a severe case of puppy love. Then one day the absent lord of the estate next door comes home and everything changes. Lord Damerel is a rake and not fit to be acquaintances—much less friends—with a lady of quality like Venetia, but of course that is exactly what happens. And then the fun really starts.
A charming tale of late starts and second chances, both of our heroes are flawed and have had life throw them some serious curveballs. Damerel is a rake, who realizes that his previous career has made any relationship with Venetia an unachievable dream. Whereas, Venetia, keep hidden away from the world at her father's whim finally finds the strength to fight for what she wants after essentially giving up most of her life to supporting her family. How they manage to find a way together, in spite of the various pitfalls life throws at them, is a joy to read. Quite possibly my favorite Heyer novel, it's the perfect blend of bitter and sweet.
First Line: 'A fox got in amongst the hens last night, and ravished our best layer,' remarked Miss Lanyon.
116inge87
Shadows on the Pond by Alison Cragin Herzig
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: Impulse library grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1985
LC Call #: PZ 7 H4793 Sha 1985
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Shadows on the Pond is an interesting 1980s novel of family, friendship, and beavers in rural Vermont. Jill and her family spend every summer at their summer home in Vermont, except this year her father and sister have stayed in New York City. Her parents are arguing and her sister seems to have left her behind, but she still has her local friend, Migan, and their pond with its massive beaver dam. Except this year an aunt's boyfriend has announced he is going to trap beavers. Jill and Migan immediately go on the offensive, springing his traps to save the animals. They also meet a new boy, Ryan (named for Nolan Ryan) who goes to Jill's school and takes an interest in their adventure. An adventure that becomes dangerous when the hunter catches on to them. Turning 14 has never been so dangerous.
A nice bit of proto-YA. It's survived the past thirty years remarkably well, although there is something about the treatment of the parents' marital problems that seems particularly 1980s to me. Jill, Migan, and Ryan get to run around the countryside having grand adventures and learning about life. Plus there's the environmental aspect, which is nicely done. I grabbed this on impulse from a library book display, and it turned out to be a solid read. Best for younger teens interested in close female friendships and saving the environment.
First Line: Part of the road was gone.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: Impulse library grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1985
LC Call #: PZ 7 H4793 Sha 1985
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Shadows on the Pond is an interesting 1980s novel of family, friendship, and beavers in rural Vermont. Jill and her family spend every summer at their summer home in Vermont, except this year her father and sister have stayed in New York City. Her parents are arguing and her sister seems to have left her behind, but she still has her local friend, Migan, and their pond with its massive beaver dam. Except this year an aunt's boyfriend has announced he is going to trap beavers. Jill and Migan immediately go on the offensive, springing his traps to save the animals. They also meet a new boy, Ryan (named for Nolan Ryan) who goes to Jill's school and takes an interest in their adventure. An adventure that becomes dangerous when the hunter catches on to them. Turning 14 has never been so dangerous.
A nice bit of proto-YA. It's survived the past thirty years remarkably well, although there is something about the treatment of the parents' marital problems that seems particularly 1980s to me. Jill, Migan, and Ryan get to run around the countryside having grand adventures and learning about life. Plus there's the environmental aspect, which is nicely done. I grabbed this on impulse from a library book display, and it turned out to be a solid read. Best for younger teens interested in close female friendships and saving the environment.
First Line: Part of the road was gone.
117inge87
Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart*
Source: me (9/11)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1965
LC Call #: PR 6069 T46 A5 1984
Rating: 3 stars / 5
When Vanessa uncovers evidence that her husband is not on a business trip in Stockholm but rather in southeastern Austria, she knew her life was suddenly about to be more interesting. She just had no idea how interesting it was going to be. But soon enough she finds herself escorting the son of a family friend to Vienna and discovers the wonders of the Airs Above the Ground that are the trademark of the Spanish Riding School and its Lipizzaner horses. But her husband's business is more complicated than she knew and it seems like this time she is going to get dragged into it too.
A fun period thriller. This is rather unique for Stewart in that the couple sort out their issues quite quickly and work together to solve the bigger problem. The circus angle is interesting, as is everything you'll learn about Lipizzaners. Highly recommended for fans of Stewart or the genre.
First Line: Carmel Lacy is the silliest woman I know, which is saying a good deal
Source: me (9/11)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1965
LC Call #: PR 6069 T46 A5 1984
Rating: 3 stars / 5
When Vanessa uncovers evidence that her husband is not on a business trip in Stockholm but rather in southeastern Austria, she knew her life was suddenly about to be more interesting. She just had no idea how interesting it was going to be. But soon enough she finds herself escorting the son of a family friend to Vienna and discovers the wonders of the Airs Above the Ground that are the trademark of the Spanish Riding School and its Lipizzaner horses. But her husband's business is more complicated than she knew and it seems like this time she is going to get dragged into it too.
A fun period thriller. This is rather unique for Stewart in that the couple sort out their issues quite quickly and work together to solve the bigger problem. The circus angle is interesting, as is everything you'll learn about Lipizzaners. Highly recommended for fans of Stewart or the genre.
First Line: Carmel Lacy is the silliest woman I know, which is saying a good deal
118inge87
It was 105 today (40.6 C) and absolutely miserable. I was sitting in a hot car waiting for someone and reading Madam, Will You Talk?, when I got to the scene when Richard takes Charity to the restaurant and, among other things, they eat "a froth of ice and whipped cream dashed with kirsch". It sounded like the greatest thing I'd ever heard. Actually, hours later it still sounds fantastic.
This weekend's rain and cold front cannot come soon enough.
This weekend's rain and cold front cannot come soon enough.
119inge87
Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: Life Under Compulsion
Year of Original Pub.: 1896
LC Call #: PZ 7 K5655 Cap 1994
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Captains Courageous is the tale of a spoiled mama's boy who gets sick smoking a cigar and ends up overboard in the North Atlantic. Luckily for him, he is picked up by the crew of the "We're Here", a fishing boat out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. They don't believe him when he says he's the son of a multimilionaire, and put him to work just like any other member of the crew. It's hard work and builds character—which is exactly what he needs. He makes a true friend in the captain's son and soon begins to see the others on board as equals instead of uncouth idiots. This being well before the age of social media, it's not until the ship returns to harbor weeks later that he is able to get word to his parents, who have believed him dead since he disappeared from the ship.
If you've ever had an interest in old-fashioned fishing vessels and life on the Grand Banks, this is the book for you. But there's more to it than that. It's also a well-spun tale of a boy growing up and learning to become a man—often against his will—and discovering that it's a lot more fun than the perpetual indolence of youth. Recommended probably more for boys than girls, but definitely a classic adventure that the young or young-at-heart may want to pick up.
First Line: The weather door of the smoking-room had been left open to the North Atlantic fog, as the big liner rolled and lifted, whistling to warn the fishing-fleet.
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: Life Under Compulsion
Year of Original Pub.: 1896
LC Call #: PZ 7 K5655 Cap 1994
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Captains Courageous is the tale of a spoiled mama's boy who gets sick smoking a cigar and ends up overboard in the North Atlantic. Luckily for him, he is picked up by the crew of the "We're Here", a fishing boat out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. They don't believe him when he says he's the son of a multimilionaire, and put him to work just like any other member of the crew. It's hard work and builds character—which is exactly what he needs. He makes a true friend in the captain's son and soon begins to see the others on board as equals instead of uncouth idiots. This being well before the age of social media, it's not until the ship returns to harbor weeks later that he is able to get word to his parents, who have believed him dead since he disappeared from the ship.
If you've ever had an interest in old-fashioned fishing vessels and life on the Grand Banks, this is the book for you. But there's more to it than that. It's also a well-spun tale of a boy growing up and learning to become a man—often against his will—and discovering that it's a lot more fun than the perpetual indolence of youth. Recommended probably more for boys than girls, but definitely a classic adventure that the young or young-at-heart may want to pick up.
First Line: The weather door of the smoking-room had been left open to the North Atlantic fog, as the big liner rolled and lifted, whistling to warn the fishing-fleet.
120inge87
Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child by Anthony Esolen
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: HQ 769 E767 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Life Under Compulsion is a very interesting study of the ways in which modern society restricts and guides people to act a certain way and how you can free yourself (or your children) from its grasp. The goal is true freedom of thought and an escape from the rat race, with a focus on reading and classical thought and the quest for beauty in the mundane. Each chapter is dedicated to a specific area of modern society, how it is problematic, and what one can do to break out and forge your own path. Some of this has been heard before, but some is new, and there is a lot to chew on. It's definitely the kind of book to savor slowly as to get as much out of it as possible.
The one thing you can say about Esolen is that he knows how to write. His prose is worth reading for its style even if you think his thoughts are nonsense. Whether this preaching will reach anyone but the choir is questionable, but Esolen gives the reader much to consider, whether or not they agree with him. Highly recommended for anyone who thinks that modern society is turning humans into cloned automatons and has wondered what to do about it.
First Line: The trouble with language is that you can use it not only to tell the truth but also to conceal it or distort it.
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: HQ 769 E767 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Life Under Compulsion is a very interesting study of the ways in which modern society restricts and guides people to act a certain way and how you can free yourself (or your children) from its grasp. The goal is true freedom of thought and an escape from the rat race, with a focus on reading and classical thought and the quest for beauty in the mundane. Each chapter is dedicated to a specific area of modern society, how it is problematic, and what one can do to break out and forge your own path. Some of this has been heard before, but some is new, and there is a lot to chew on. It's definitely the kind of book to savor slowly as to get as much out of it as possible.
The one thing you can say about Esolen is that he knows how to write. His prose is worth reading for its style even if you think his thoughts are nonsense. Whether this preaching will reach anyone but the choir is questionable, but Esolen gives the reader much to consider, whether or not they agree with him. Highly recommended for anyone who thinks that modern society is turning humans into cloned automatons and has wondered what to do about it.
First Line: The trouble with language is that you can use it not only to tell the truth but also to conceal it or distort it.
121inge87
After the War by J. Kathleen Cheney
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: The Golden City (5/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 A38 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
After the War is set twenty years after the end of the The Shores of Spain and tells the story of "João" a young laborer who lost his entire memory during World War I. A chance encounter at a café changes his life when he bumps into people who knew him in his previous existence—one of whom claims to be his wife. But somewhere in the depths of his memory lurks a secret, one which someone appears to be desperate to uncover. Can he remember himself in time, or will he and his new old friends be able to improvise their way to the bottom of things? You will have to wait for the end to find out.
A fun novella, possibly the best installment in that world since The Seat of Magic. I had hoped for more news of our old friends from the trilogy, but the novella format really didn't allow for much (except that Marina and Joaquim appear to have finally grown up sometime in the last twenty years). If you like your fantasies with a bit of history and mystery, this may be for you, but to truly understand everything, you'll want to start with The Golden City.
First Line: The Café Martinho da Arcada at the Parça do Commercio had a sign in their window, advertising that Serafim Palmeira would be singing there that evening.
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: The Golden City (5/3)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 A38 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
After the War is set twenty years after the end of the The Shores of Spain and tells the story of "João" a young laborer who lost his entire memory during World War I. A chance encounter at a café changes his life when he bumps into people who knew him in his previous existence—one of whom claims to be his wife. But somewhere in the depths of his memory lurks a secret, one which someone appears to be desperate to uncover. Can he remember himself in time, or will he and his new old friends be able to improvise their way to the bottom of things? You will have to wait for the end to find out.
A fun novella, possibly the best installment in that world since The Seat of Magic. I had hoped for more news of our old friends from the trilogy, but the novella format really didn't allow for much (except that Marina and Joaquim appear to have finally grown up sometime in the last twenty years). If you like your fantasies with a bit of history and mystery, this may be for you, but to truly understand everything, you'll want to start with The Golden City.
First Line: The Café Martinho da Arcada at the Parça do Commercio had a sign in their window, advertising that Serafim Palmeira would be singing there that evening.
122inge87
Strange Gods by Annamaria Alfieri
Source: ILL (Dallas PL)
Recommendation: GeoCAT + either Kirkus or LibraryJournal
Series: Vera & Tolliver (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3601 A4454 S77 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Strange Gods is an historical murder mystery set in colonial British East Africa (now Kenya). Vera is the daughter of Scottish missionaries living on a coffee plantation. She struggles with the pressure her mother puts on her to act a proper lady, and longs to see the handsome Inspector Tolliver, with whom she enjoyed a very nice dance at a recent party, again. She gets her wish, but only because her uncle is found murdered in the garden. His death sparks a racial and political firestorm, when a local Kikuyu elder is arrested for the crime, even though the evidence suggests he didn't do it. It is up to Tolliver and his assistant to get to the bottom of things in time to save him, but will their efforts be enough?
Not the best-written book—the mystery is constantly warring with melodrama for front billing—it is nevertheless a satisfying read. The heroine, as well as several other characters deal with issues of belonging and split loyalties, which makes for some extra drama in the plot, as well as the obvious race and class issues. Recommended for anyone with an interest in historical fiction set in colonial Africa or that have plots involving social issues.
First Line: They never went out in the dark because of the animals.
Source: ILL (Dallas PL)
Recommendation: GeoCAT + either Kirkus or LibraryJournal
Series: Vera & Tolliver (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3601 A4454 S77 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Strange Gods is an historical murder mystery set in colonial British East Africa (now Kenya). Vera is the daughter of Scottish missionaries living on a coffee plantation. She struggles with the pressure her mother puts on her to act a proper lady, and longs to see the handsome Inspector Tolliver, with whom she enjoyed a very nice dance at a recent party, again. She gets her wish, but only because her uncle is found murdered in the garden. His death sparks a racial and political firestorm, when a local Kikuyu elder is arrested for the crime, even though the evidence suggests he didn't do it. It is up to Tolliver and his assistant to get to the bottom of things in time to save him, but will their efforts be enough?
Not the best-written book—the mystery is constantly warring with melodrama for front billing—it is nevertheless a satisfying read. The heroine, as well as several other characters deal with issues of belonging and split loyalties, which makes for some extra drama in the plot, as well as the obvious race and class issues. Recommended for anyone with an interest in historical fiction set in colonial Africa or that have plots involving social issues.
First Line: They never went out in the dark because of the animals.
123inge87
Log Book: Selected Poems by Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen
Source: ILL (TCU)
Recommendation: Either Ana Sofia or Carolina, on Facebook (naturally I can't find the post now)
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: PQ 9261 A6893 A289 1997
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Log Book is a collection of the modern Portuguese poet Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen's oeuvre translated into English. The book is divided into sections based on the collection in which the poems were originally collected, from 1944's Poetry to new poems published between her last collection and the publication of this volume in 1997. Most of her work deals with the sea and/or classical mythology. They are short poems, but pack a lot of meaning into a few lines. It's interesting stuff, and one could only wish that more of it was available in English.
First Line: Midday. A corner of the deserted beach.
The huge, deep, open sun on high
Has chased all the gods from the sky.
Source: ILL (TCU)
Recommendation: Either Ana Sofia or Carolina, on Facebook (naturally I can't find the post now)
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: PQ 9261 A6893 A289 1997
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Log Book is a collection of the modern Portuguese poet Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen's oeuvre translated into English. The book is divided into sections based on the collection in which the poems were originally collected, from 1944's Poetry to new poems published between her last collection and the publication of this volume in 1997. Most of her work deals with the sea and/or classical mythology. They are short poems, but pack a lot of meaning into a few lines. It's interesting stuff, and one could only wish that more of it was available in English.
First Line: Midday. A corner of the deserted beach.
The huge, deep, open sun on high
Has chased all the gods from the sky.
124inge87
The poem that introduced me to Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen
Mar (1944)
De todos os cantos do mundo
Amo com um amor mais forte e mais profundo
Aquela praia extasiada e nua,
Onde me uni ao mar, ao vento e à lua.
as translated in Log Book
Sea
Of all the corners of the world
I love with a stronger, deeper love
That naked and enraptured beach
Where with the sea, wind and moon I was one.
Mar (1944)
De todos os cantos do mundo
Amo com um amor mais forte e mais profundo
Aquela praia extasiada e nua,
Onde me uni ao mar, ao vento e à lua.
as translated in Log Book
Sea
Of all the corners of the world
I love with a stronger, deeper love
That naked and enraptured beach
Where with the sea, wind and moon I was one.
125brodiew2
>120 inge87: Very nice review of Life Under Compulsion. I had not heard of this title and find the subject interesting. The fact that you enjoyed his writing style is encouraging. I'll check it out.
126inge87
>125 brodiew2: Thanks. This particular subject is of great interest to me too, whether the author is writing from the conservative side of things, as Esolen is, or from the left. I do think that there is much in modern society to find fault with, but real solutions to these problems seem quite elusive.
127inge87
Harrington by Maria Edgeworth*
Source: me (7/08)
Recommendation: TIOLI #16: Read a book with a one-word title staring with H
Year of Original Pub.: 1817
LC Call #: PR 4644 H3 2004
Rating: 3 stars / 5
"Unless I shut my eyes, how can I avoid seeing vulgar people, madame..."
Spurred on in part by a letter she received from a Jewish educator living in North Carolina, Maria Edgeworth's Harrington exposes the vulgar hatreds, which simmer beneath the surface of an otherwise "civilized" society. The book itself is the engaging story of a man's experiences with anti-Semitism and his ultimate rejection of it. Harrington has been an anti-Semite since he was a young boy, when his nurse threatened him with "Simon the Jew" and being turned into sausage to get him to behave. His parents and their friends also dislike Jews, so no one puts a stop to his antics until it is almost too late. After he is sent to school he befriends a young Jewish boy named Jacob as well as his future rival Lord Mowbray. It is during this time with Jacob that Harrington begins overcoming his fear, which proves convenient when as an adult, he falls in love with Berenice, daughter of a Spanish Jew. Things come to a head and romantic rivalry, threats of disinheritance, and even a full scale city riot promptly ensue. In the process, Edgeworth makes a pointed commentary on the nature of prejudice and freedom and how they can be manipulated for political gain. While the work at times strays into the predictable and cliché, Harrington never looses its enjoyability and makes for a interesting view of theme largely ignored by other writers of her time.
Note: In spite of the cover, this book actually takes place in the late 18th century.
First Line: When I was a little boy of about six years old, I was standing with a maid-servant in the balcony of one of the upper rooms of my father’s house in London — it was the evening of the first day that I had ever been in London, and my senses had been excited, and almost exhausted, by the vast variety of objects that were new to me.
Source: me (7/08)
Recommendation: TIOLI #16: Read a book with a one-word title staring with H
Year of Original Pub.: 1817
LC Call #: PR 4644 H3 2004
Rating: 3 stars / 5
"Unless I shut my eyes, how can I avoid seeing vulgar people, madame..."
Spurred on in part by a letter she received from a Jewish educator living in North Carolina, Maria Edgeworth's Harrington exposes the vulgar hatreds, which simmer beneath the surface of an otherwise "civilized" society. The book itself is the engaging story of a man's experiences with anti-Semitism and his ultimate rejection of it. Harrington has been an anti-Semite since he was a young boy, when his nurse threatened him with "Simon the Jew" and being turned into sausage to get him to behave. His parents and their friends also dislike Jews, so no one puts a stop to his antics until it is almost too late. After he is sent to school he befriends a young Jewish boy named Jacob as well as his future rival Lord Mowbray. It is during this time with Jacob that Harrington begins overcoming his fear, which proves convenient when as an adult, he falls in love with Berenice, daughter of a Spanish Jew. Things come to a head and romantic rivalry, threats of disinheritance, and even a full scale city riot promptly ensue. In the process, Edgeworth makes a pointed commentary on the nature of prejudice and freedom and how they can be manipulated for political gain. While the work at times strays into the predictable and cliché, Harrington never looses its enjoyability and makes for a interesting view of theme largely ignored by other writers of her time.
Note: In spite of the cover, this book actually takes place in the late 18th century.
First Line: When I was a little boy of about six years old, I was standing with a maid-servant in the balcony of one of the upper rooms of my father’s house in London — it was the evening of the first day that I had ever been in London, and my senses had been excited, and almost exhausted, by the vast variety of objects that were new to me.
128inge87
The Georgics by Virgil
Source: work
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Original Title: Georgica
Year of Original Pub.: 29 BC
LC Call #: PA 6807 A1 F35 1999 v. 1
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Georgics, whose name ultimately derives from the Greek word γεωργικά (geōrgika) meaning "farm things", is Virgil's great poem on agriculture. Divided into four books, it covers farming, horticulture, animal husbandry, and beekeeping, and is filled with interesting tidbits about traditional practices and ancient mythology. Much of what he wrote is no longer current (obviously), but the poem gives the reader many insights into ancient life and how people once lived and provided for themselves. An interesting read, but probably for Vergil fans and those interested in Classical life only.
First Line: What makes the crops joyous, beneath what star, Maecenas, it is well to turn the soil, and wed vines to elms, what tending the cattle need, what care the herd in breeding, what skill the thrifty bees—hence shall I begin my song.
Source: work
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Original Title: Georgica
Year of Original Pub.: 29 BC
LC Call #: PA 6807 A1 F35 1999 v. 1
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Georgics, whose name ultimately derives from the Greek word γεωργικά (geōrgika) meaning "farm things", is Virgil's great poem on agriculture. Divided into four books, it covers farming, horticulture, animal husbandry, and beekeeping, and is filled with interesting tidbits about traditional practices and ancient mythology. Much of what he wrote is no longer current (obviously), but the poem gives the reader many insights into ancient life and how people once lived and provided for themselves. An interesting read, but probably for Vergil fans and those interested in Classical life only.
First Line: What makes the crops joyous, beneath what star, Maecenas, it is well to turn the soil, and wed vines to elms, what tending the cattle need, what care the herd in breeding, what skill the thrifty bees—hence shall I begin my song.
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Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann^
Source: ILL (Rice U.)
Recommendation: comments under a FAZ article on Facebook (suffice to say the Erdoğan comparison was someone else's brilliant idea)
Title in English: This Peace
Year of Original Pub.: 1938
LC Call #: D 443 M29 1938
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Dieser Friede is a 1938 essay by the great German author Thomas Mann about the catastrophic politics that lead up to the Munich Agreement and Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland. Interestingly, he lays a lot of blame on Britain, saying that for their own reasons the British government supported Germany's increasing aggression instead of trying to stop it. They preferred Fascist Germany as an anti-communist bulwark and did not particularly care who got hurt in the crossfire. Mann also has some rather strong words about the Anschluss, which he points out was not really an "Anschluss" (in the sense of union) at all but rather an annexation of foreign territory. And all of this in his trademark style of wonderful prose.
It is an interesting first-hand document of the beginning of one of the darkest corners of the 20th century. Some of his arguments were new to me, but none of them were outrageous. You can tell he is looking at the world around him from his American exile and wondering at how wrong things are going. It's very short, only 28 pages in the German edition, but it certainly gives the reader a lot to think about, especially considering the parallels between 1938 and the way that, for example, Turkey's President Tayyip Erdoğan uses the Turkish population in Germany for his own political ends. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the early days of World War II or how political situations can be manipulated or get wildly out of hand.
First Line: In den letzten Tagen und Wochen haben Ereignisse sich vollzogen, die einen immer noch beträchtlichen Teil der Welt – man darf ihn den besseren nennen – in tiefste Enttäuschung, Entmutigung, ja Verzweiflung gestürzt haben.
My Translation: In the last few days and weeks events have taken place that have sent a considerable part of the world—one may call it the better part—into the deepest disappointment, discouragement, and despair.
Source: ILL (Rice U.)
Recommendation: comments under a FAZ article on Facebook (suffice to say the Erdoğan comparison was someone else's brilliant idea)
Title in English: This Peace
Year of Original Pub.: 1938
LC Call #: D 443 M29 1938
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Dieser Friede is a 1938 essay by the great German author Thomas Mann about the catastrophic politics that lead up to the Munich Agreement and Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland. Interestingly, he lays a lot of blame on Britain, saying that for their own reasons the British government supported Germany's increasing aggression instead of trying to stop it. They preferred Fascist Germany as an anti-communist bulwark and did not particularly care who got hurt in the crossfire. Mann also has some rather strong words about the Anschluss, which he points out was not really an "Anschluss" (in the sense of union) at all but rather an annexation of foreign territory. And all of this in his trademark style of wonderful prose.
It is an interesting first-hand document of the beginning of one of the darkest corners of the 20th century. Some of his arguments were new to me, but none of them were outrageous. You can tell he is looking at the world around him from his American exile and wondering at how wrong things are going. It's very short, only 28 pages in the German edition, but it certainly gives the reader a lot to think about, especially considering the parallels between 1938 and the way that, for example, Turkey's President Tayyip Erdoğan uses the Turkish population in Germany for his own political ends. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the early days of World War II or how political situations can be manipulated or get wildly out of hand.
First Line: In den letzten Tagen und Wochen haben Ereignisse sich vollzogen, die einen immer noch beträchtlichen Teil der Welt – man darf ihn den besseren nennen – in tiefste Enttäuschung, Entmutigung, ja Verzweiflung gestürzt haben.
My Translation: In the last few days and weeks events have taken place that have sent a considerable part of the world—one may call it the better part—into the deepest disappointment, discouragement, and despair.
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Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
Series: Jackaby (3/?)
LC Call #: PZ 7 R516 Gh 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Ghostly Echoes continues the story of our favorite New England paranormal investigators. After a series of events that greatly resemble what happened ten years earlier, Jackaby and company reopen Jenny's file and begin trying to figure out what happened to her. The trail takes them to a scientific and magical abomination, a deadly vampire, and a secret society with ties to a figure from Jackaby's mysterious past. I had thought this was going to be trilogy but judging from the ending definitely going to be at least a book four.
An improvement from Beastly Bones, the book sets up what is sure to be an exciting confrontation in the next book. Abigail's long-distance relationship with Charlie is also given some space to grow, and we get to learn a lot more of Jackaby's past than has ever been revealed before. Only the author knows what will happen next, but I'll certainly be one of those waiting to find out. I've heard comparisons for this series with Doctor Who but to me it reminds me more of a paranormal Sherlock Holmes with Abigail as the female Watson. If you like your detectives eccentric and your mysteries paranormal, you'll definitely want to pick up this series. But you'll want to start with Jackaby first.
First Line: Mr. Jackaby's cluttered office spun around me.
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: continuing series
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
Series: Jackaby (3/?)
LC Call #: PZ 7 R516 Gh 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Ghostly Echoes continues the story of our favorite New England paranormal investigators. After a series of events that greatly resemble what happened ten years earlier, Jackaby and company reopen Jenny's file and begin trying to figure out what happened to her. The trail takes them to a scientific and magical abomination, a deadly vampire, and a secret society with ties to a figure from Jackaby's mysterious past. I had thought this was going to be trilogy but judging from the ending definitely going to be at least a book four.
An improvement from Beastly Bones, the book sets up what is sure to be an exciting confrontation in the next book. Abigail's long-distance relationship with Charlie is also given some space to grow, and we get to learn a lot more of Jackaby's past than has ever been revealed before. Only the author knows what will happen next, but I'll certainly be one of those waiting to find out. I've heard comparisons for this series with Doctor Who but to me it reminds me more of a paranormal Sherlock Holmes with Abigail as the female Watson. If you like your detectives eccentric and your mysteries paranormal, you'll definitely want to pick up this series. But you'll want to start with Jackaby first.
First Line: Mr. Jackaby's cluttered office spun around me.
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Sir Thomas More by Anthony Munday et al.
Source: ILL (Baylor U.)
Recommendation: The Quest for Shakespeare? I know I had no idea Shakespeare was involved in a More play until a couple of months ago, so it was probably there or in related background reading.
Year of Original Pub.: c. 1591 to 1604
Series: The Arden Shakespeare
LC Call #: PR 2719 M6 S53 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Sir Thomas More is a play that was initially written around 1591 to 1593 by Anthony Munday but was later revised for performance around the beginning of the 17th century by a group of playwrights, among them Shakespeare. The manuscript left to us is an chaotic draft with contributions and corrections in a number of different hands, including that of the censor. After all, a play about Sir Thomas More, a man executed as a traitor by Henry VIII could hardly be seen as noncontroversial in Elizabethan or even Jacobean England. The author(s) tried to make the play more acceptable by avoiding the divorce issue entirely and focusing on more arcane reasons for dissent, but the censor was definitely not a fan. No one knows if the play was ever performed, but the manuscript allows us to witness the creation process as it existed over four hundred years ago.
The plot begins with the "Evil May Day Riots" of 1517, in which resentment of the privileges of wealthy foreigners living in London broke out into violence. Thomas More was instrumental in calming the unrest, and in the play this is presented as the moment his star really begins to rise. He is appointed to the Privy Counsel and receives a visit from Erasmus; however, the king wants him to sign some articles that More disagrees with (what they are is never actually stated) and he is arrested along with John Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester, and imprisoned in the tower. Both are later executed, and it is indeed with More being led away to his death that the play ends.
The fact that Shakespeare was involved guarantees continuing interest whatever the actual merits of this play, but I find the fact that Munday, who himself was an active participant in the persecution of Catholics would try to write a play in which one of the most iconic Catholics of his day is the hero, to be even more intriguing. Whatever your motivation, this is not a play to read for its plot, because as I stated before all we have is a draft version, but those interested in play creation, in accounts of the life of Sir Thomas More, or in Elizabethan/Jacobean theatre beyond the great names, may want to pick this one up. The Arden Shakespeare edition contains a nearly 130 page introduction and numerous appendices, which give the reader all the background knowledge needed to understand the play and its background.
First Line: "Whither wilt thou hale me?"
Source: ILL (Baylor U.)
Recommendation: The Quest for Shakespeare? I know I had no idea Shakespeare was involved in a More play until a couple of months ago, so it was probably there or in related background reading.
Year of Original Pub.: c. 1591 to 1604
Series: The Arden Shakespeare
LC Call #: PR 2719 M6 S53 2011
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Sir Thomas More is a play that was initially written around 1591 to 1593 by Anthony Munday but was later revised for performance around the beginning of the 17th century by a group of playwrights, among them Shakespeare. The manuscript left to us is an chaotic draft with contributions and corrections in a number of different hands, including that of the censor. After all, a play about Sir Thomas More, a man executed as a traitor by Henry VIII could hardly be seen as noncontroversial in Elizabethan or even Jacobean England. The author(s) tried to make the play more acceptable by avoiding the divorce issue entirely and focusing on more arcane reasons for dissent, but the censor was definitely not a fan. No one knows if the play was ever performed, but the manuscript allows us to witness the creation process as it existed over four hundred years ago.
The plot begins with the "Evil May Day Riots" of 1517, in which resentment of the privileges of wealthy foreigners living in London broke out into violence. Thomas More was instrumental in calming the unrest, and in the play this is presented as the moment his star really begins to rise. He is appointed to the Privy Counsel and receives a visit from Erasmus; however, the king wants him to sign some articles that More disagrees with (what they are is never actually stated) and he is arrested along with John Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester, and imprisoned in the tower. Both are later executed, and it is indeed with More being led away to his death that the play ends.
The fact that Shakespeare was involved guarantees continuing interest whatever the actual merits of this play, but I find the fact that Munday, who himself was an active participant in the persecution of Catholics would try to write a play in which one of the most iconic Catholics of his day is the hero, to be even more intriguing. Whatever your motivation, this is not a play to read for its plot, because as I stated before all we have is a draft version, but those interested in play creation, in accounts of the life of Sir Thomas More, or in Elizabethan/Jacobean theatre beyond the great names, may want to pick this one up. The Arden Shakespeare edition contains a nearly 130 page introduction and numerous appendices, which give the reader all the background knowledge needed to understand the play and its background.
First Line: "Whither wilt thou hale me?"
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LibraryThing has a new list in honor of their 11th birthday for books that were your favorites when you were around 11-years-old. Here are my eleven, from which you can tell that my eleven-year-old self was a romantic who loved historical fiction. Some things never change . . . :)
1. These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder - My favorite Little House book. I still have the beat-up copy I bought from Scholastic Book Club (remember that?).
2. Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rindaldi - The book that introduced me to Rinaldi, who became one of my tween-self's favorites. I totally wanted my own John Reid when I grew up. Her older books (pre-late 1990s) are much closer to YA than her later ones and in my opinion much better.
3. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare - Do I really need to explain? No, I didn't think so.
4. Be Ever Hopeful, Hannalee by Patricia Beatty - A reconstruction Atlanta-set mystery featuring a working-class heroine. It was technically a sequel, but I read it first and loved it so much it became the first book I ever ordered on Amazon.
5. A Paradise Called Texas by Janice Jordan Shefelman - Historical fiction about German immigrants in Texas, we read this in fourth grade Texas history and I liked it so much I sought out the rest of the trilogy on my own.
6. Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell - Romance among the Navajos in the mid-1800s. Like I said, my 11-year-old self was a bit predictable.
7. Calico Captive by Elizabeth George Speare - Pierre. Years later I found myself talking to a high school friend about this one andwe both agreed that the heroine's decision-making skills were somewhat lacking in that regard. Why leave Quebec when you could have Pierre, who is—I don't know—rich, handsome, and madly-in-love-with-you? Really, she needed a good knock on the head! Plus, it's based on a true story.
8. Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink - I used to run around my backyard pretending that I was Caddie living in the wilds of Wisconsin.
9. Hitty, Her First 100 Years by Rachel Field - What girl didn't wish that her life could be as eventful as Hitty's?
10. Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski - Another historical adventure, this one featuring the heroine adapting to life among the Delaware. Remarkably respectful of Native Americans considering its age.
11. The Ramsay Scallop by Frances Temple - Eleven is way too young to really appreciate this one, but I read it then anyway. Two betrothed strangers come together on the road to Santiago de Compostela during the Middle Ages.
1. These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder - My favorite Little House book. I still have the beat-up copy I bought from Scholastic Book Club (remember that?).
2. Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rindaldi - The book that introduced me to Rinaldi, who became one of my tween-self's favorites. I totally wanted my own John Reid when I grew up. Her older books (pre-late 1990s) are much closer to YA than her later ones and in my opinion much better.
3. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare - Do I really need to explain? No, I didn't think so.
4. Be Ever Hopeful, Hannalee by Patricia Beatty - A reconstruction Atlanta-set mystery featuring a working-class heroine. It was technically a sequel, but I read it first and loved it so much it became the first book I ever ordered on Amazon.
5. A Paradise Called Texas by Janice Jordan Shefelman - Historical fiction about German immigrants in Texas, we read this in fourth grade Texas history and I liked it so much I sought out the rest of the trilogy on my own.
6. Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell - Romance among the Navajos in the mid-1800s. Like I said, my 11-year-old self was a bit predictable.
7. Calico Captive by Elizabeth George Speare - Pierre. Years later I found myself talking to a high school friend about this one and
8. Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink - I used to run around my backyard pretending that I was Caddie living in the wilds of Wisconsin.
9. Hitty, Her First 100 Years by Rachel Field - What girl didn't wish that her life could be as eventful as Hitty's?
10. Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski - Another historical adventure, this one featuring the heroine adapting to life among the Delaware. Remarkably respectful of Native Americans considering its age.
11. The Ramsay Scallop by Frances Temple - Eleven is way too young to really appreciate this one, but I read it then anyway. Two betrothed strangers come together on the road to Santiago de Compostela during the Middle Ages.
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The Poetical Works by Rupert Brooke
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: I like Brooke and it was available for just over $5 at BookDepository
Year of Original Pub.: 1946, but the poems were written between 1904 and 1915
Series: Faber Poets of the Great War
LC Call #: PR 6003 R4 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke is a collection of all his poems the editors found fit to print organized from last to first with a collection of fragments from his final journey to Gallipoli in an appendix at the end. The problem with collections ordered this way is that all the good stuff is at the beginning, and the drift towards juvenilia makes for increasingly tiresome reading. Considering that Brooke's best work was done in a few short years before his early death from septicemia on the Mediterranean front of World War I, at times it becomes quite a slog. But Brooke wrote poems worth reading: including his war sonnets, "Grantcester", and some very interesting pieces set in Polynesia. And he deserves to be remembered, as a minor poet, perhaps, but as someone who had genuine poetic talent. It helps that both he and I are fans of the poets of the 90s. At times you can feel a bit of their rhythmic musicality come through his more modern style. So if you are interested in poets who died in World War I or just 20th century poets in general, Brooke is one you will want to bump into, and this volume is a good way to do so.
Plus, aren't the covers of the Faber "Poets of the Great War" series great?
First Line: I strayed about the deck, an hour, to-night
Under a cloudy moonless sky; and peeped
In at the windows, watched my friends at table,
Or playing cards, or standing in the doorway,
Or coming out into the darkness.
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: I like Brooke and it was available for just over $5 at BookDepository
Year of Original Pub.: 1946, but the poems were written between 1904 and 1915
Series: Faber Poets of the Great War
LC Call #: PR 6003 R4 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Poetical Works of Rupert Brooke is a collection of all his poems the editors found fit to print organized from last to first with a collection of fragments from his final journey to Gallipoli in an appendix at the end. The problem with collections ordered this way is that all the good stuff is at the beginning, and the drift towards juvenilia makes for increasingly tiresome reading. Considering that Brooke's best work was done in a few short years before his early death from septicemia on the Mediterranean front of World War I, at times it becomes quite a slog. But Brooke wrote poems worth reading: including his war sonnets, "Grantcester", and some very interesting pieces set in Polynesia. And he deserves to be remembered, as a minor poet, perhaps, but as someone who had genuine poetic talent. It helps that both he and I are fans of the poets of the 90s. At times you can feel a bit of their rhythmic musicality come through his more modern style. So if you are interested in poets who died in World War I or just 20th century poets in general, Brooke is one you will want to bump into, and this volume is a good way to do so.
Plus, aren't the covers of the Faber "Poets of the Great War" series great?
First Line: I strayed about the deck, an hour, to-night
Under a cloudy moonless sky; and peeped
In at the windows, watched my friends at table,
Or playing cards, or standing in the doorway,
Or coming out into the darkness.
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That's probably it for August. I'd hoped to get through The World that was Ours for GeoCAT, but I'm starting a new job tomorrow and staying at my sister's until I find an apartment, and all I really feel like reading is the copy of Time Enough for Drums I grabbed when I left my house this morning. So it's "yes" to comfort reads and "no" to Apartheid memoirs. I'll probably do the monthly round-up tomorrow, if I can manage to survive day one with any brain cells intact.
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>135 susanj67: I did! For a while it looked like I might not make it back due to a flat tire, but as you can see by the fact that I'm posting this, my emotionalness did not in fact cause the world to end. :)
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Ooops, I forgot one! This actually belongs before poor Rupert. :)
A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda
Source: me (1/16)
Recommendation: Czerneda is one of my go-to authors, and I hadn't read this series yet
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: PR 9199.3 C946 T46 2007
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Thousand Words for Stranger was Julie E. Czerneda's first novel. As such it is a little rougher around the edges than her other books, but it also contains all the elements that make her stories so good: real science and interesting aliens combined with a compelling plot and strong female characters. In this case, we are introduced to the Clan, a mysterious humanoid species with great powers, the secrets of which they keep close to their chests. Sira may or may not be clan—she can't remember a single thing about herself, but she knows she's in danger. So she seeks shelter on Justin Morgan's ship and together they find adventure and some answers as they travel through space. But every answer they find brings them closer to danger, because there are those who want Sira badly and will do whatever it takes to get her, no matter who or what is standing in their way.
I really liked this one, but I've liked everything by Czerneda that I've read. This is the first in its trilogy and the first published book in the overall series, it actually falls in the middle of the projected nine-book series (ennealogy?) chronologically. So depending on how you like to read series, you can start here or with Reap the Wild Wind, which takes place before this book but was published ten years later. Whatever you choose, if you like science fiction that takes women seriously you need to read Czerneda.
First Line: The sign was rain-smeared and had never been overly straight.
A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda
Source: me (1/16)
Recommendation: Czerneda is one of my go-to authors, and I hadn't read this series yet
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: PR 9199.3 C946 T46 2007
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Thousand Words for Stranger was Julie E. Czerneda's first novel. As such it is a little rougher around the edges than her other books, but it also contains all the elements that make her stories so good: real science and interesting aliens combined with a compelling plot and strong female characters. In this case, we are introduced to the Clan, a mysterious humanoid species with great powers, the secrets of which they keep close to their chests. Sira may or may not be clan—she can't remember a single thing about herself, but she knows she's in danger. So she seeks shelter on Justin Morgan's ship and together they find adventure and some answers as they travel through space. But every answer they find brings them closer to danger, because there are those who want Sira badly and will do whatever it takes to get her, no matter who or what is standing in their way.
I really liked this one, but I've liked everything by Czerneda that I've read. This is the first in its trilogy and the first published book in the overall series, it actually falls in the middle of the projected nine-book series (ennealogy?) chronologically. So depending on how you like to read series, you can start here or with Reap the Wild Wind, which takes place before this book but was published ten years later. Whatever you choose, if you like science fiction that takes women seriously you need to read Czerneda.
First Line: The sign was rain-smeared and had never been overly straight.
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And this one goes between Captains Courageous and Life Under Compulsion. Goodness I was distracted last month!
Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart*
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: It was the only Mary Stewart thriller I hadn't reread recently
Year of Original Pub.: 1955
LC Call #: PR 6069 T46 M33 1956
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Madam, Will You Talk? was Mary Stewart's first thriller, and while it is not perhaps as perfectly crafted as some of her later works, it contains all the elements you expect and enjoy from her work. Our heroine is war widow, spending her holiday in the south of France with an old friend, when she accidentally becomes involved with something much bigger and darker than herself. A murderer has her in his sights, and there is a child in danger. But who is hunting whom? And just what do they really want? It may cost her her life, but our heroine is going to find out!
A fun, romantic thriller. It's not quite Stewart at her best, but it is very good. The slightly older, widowed heroine makes it stand out from the rest of her oeuvre, as does the fact that she has a close female friend with her for most of the book. If you like Mary Stewart, you need to pick this one up.
First Line: The whole affair began so very quietly.
Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart*
Source: Corsicana PL
Recommendation: It was the only Mary Stewart thriller I hadn't reread recently
Year of Original Pub.: 1955
LC Call #: PR 6069 T46 M33 1956
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Madam, Will You Talk? was Mary Stewart's first thriller, and while it is not perhaps as perfectly crafted as some of her later works, it contains all the elements you expect and enjoy from her work. Our heroine is war widow, spending her holiday in the south of France with an old friend, when she accidentally becomes involved with something much bigger and darker than herself. A murderer has her in his sights, and there is a child in danger. But who is hunting whom? And just what do they really want? It may cost her her life, but our heroine is going to find out!
A fun, romantic thriller. It's not quite Stewart at her best, but it is very good. The slightly older, widowed heroine makes it stand out from the rest of her oeuvre, as does the fact that she has a close female friend with her for most of the book. If you like Mary Stewart, you need to pick this one up.
First Line: The whole affair began so very quietly.
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August Round-Up!
Books Read: 19 (19 in 2013, 33 in 2014, & 19 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 17 - 50%
Non-Fiction - 2 - 50%
Sources
Me (other) - 5 - 26.32%
ILL - 4 - 21.05%
Me (this month) - 4 - 21.05%
Corsicana PL - 3 - 15.79%
Work - 2 - 10.53%
Me (rest of this year) - 1 - 5.26%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 1 - 5.26%
Rereads - 4 - 21.05%
Authors
Female - 10 - 58.82%
Male - 7 - 41.18%
Edition Language
English - 18 - 94.74%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Original Language
English - 17 - 84.22%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Portuguese - 1 - 5.26%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 14 - 73.68%
Series Books - 5 - 26.32%
Average Original Date of Publication
1836
Median Original Date of Publication
1958
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 0 - 4.5%
3 stars - 13 - 40%
4 stars - 4 - 40%
5 stars - 2 - 13.5%
Average Rating
3.42
Discovery of the Month
Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann
First Line of the Month
"Carmel Lacy is the silliest woman I know, which is saying a good deal."
—Mary Stewart, Airs Above the Ground
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda
Non-Fiction: Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child by Anthony Esolen
Books Read: 19 (19 in 2013, 33 in 2014, & 19 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 17 - 50%
Non-Fiction - 2 - 50%
Sources
Me (other) - 5 - 26.32%
ILL - 4 - 21.05%
Me (this month) - 4 - 21.05%
Corsicana PL - 3 - 15.79%
Work - 2 - 10.53%
Me (rest of this year) - 1 - 5.26%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 1 - 5.26%
Rereads - 4 - 21.05%
Authors
Female - 10 - 58.82%
Male - 7 - 41.18%
Edition Language
English - 18 - 94.74%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Original Language
English - 17 - 84.22%
German - 1 - 5.26%
Latin - 1 - 5.26%
Portuguese - 1 - 5.26%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 14 - 73.68%
Series Books - 5 - 26.32%
Average Original Date of Publication
1836
Median Original Date of Publication
1958
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 0 - 4.5%
3 stars - 13 - 40%
4 stars - 4 - 40%
5 stars - 2 - 13.5%
Average Rating
3.42
Discovery of the Month
Dieser Friede by Thomas Mann
First Line of the Month
"Carmel Lacy is the silliest woman I know, which is saying a good deal."
—Mary Stewart, Airs Above the Ground
Best of the Month
Fiction: A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda
Non-Fiction: Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child by Anthony Esolen
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Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies
Source: ILL (Tarrant Co. College)
Recommendation: Mention of Father Coyle's murder on Facebook. I'd never heard of it before.
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: F 334 B657 D39 2010
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Rising Road is the true story of the 1921 murder of Father James Coyle, a Catholic priest, by Edwin Stephenson, a Methodist minister, in Birmingham, Alabama. Stephenson, an anti-Catholic like many Americans in that day, was angry that Coyle had married his daughter to a Puerto Rican named Pedro Gussman—in spite of the fact that he himself made a living by marrying run-away couples at the county courthouse. Ruth Stephenson Gussman comes out as the other victim in the story, she clearly suffered years of abuse by her parents and her marriage was just the latest of her many attempts to escape them and live life the way she wanted to. Stephenson shot Coyle in broad daylight and turned himself in to law enforcement, but went on to be defended by future Supreme Court justice Hugo Black and be acquitted in a trial that was probably rigged by the KKK. Davies' book describes how events unfolded and gives important background on the political and social movements of the time that allowed it all to happen. A very readable work on an event that should not be forgotten, this book comes highly recommended for those interested in true crime, the history of Catholic America, or in this history of race, religion, and justice in the American South.
First Line: The sorest misfortune of Ruth Stephenson's young life was not that she was born (and died) a decade or more too soon to ever really enjoy the promises women's suffrage would bring.
Source: ILL (Tarrant Co. College)
Recommendation: Mention of Father Coyle's murder on Facebook. I'd never heard of it before.
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: F 334 B657 D39 2010
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Rising Road is the true story of the 1921 murder of Father James Coyle, a Catholic priest, by Edwin Stephenson, a Methodist minister, in Birmingham, Alabama. Stephenson, an anti-Catholic like many Americans in that day, was angry that Coyle had married his daughter to a Puerto Rican named Pedro Gussman—in spite of the fact that he himself made a living by marrying run-away couples at the county courthouse. Ruth Stephenson Gussman comes out as the other victim in the story, she clearly suffered years of abuse by her parents and her marriage was just the latest of her many attempts to escape them and live life the way she wanted to. Stephenson shot Coyle in broad daylight and turned himself in to law enforcement, but went on to be defended by future Supreme Court justice Hugo Black and be acquitted in a trial that was probably rigged by the KKK. Davies' book describes how events unfolded and gives important background on the political and social movements of the time that allowed it all to happen. A very readable work on an event that should not be forgotten, this book comes highly recommended for those interested in true crime, the history of Catholic America, or in this history of race, religion, and justice in the American South.
First Line: The sorest misfortune of Ruth Stephenson's young life was not that she was born (and died) a decade or more too soon to ever really enjoy the promises women's suffrage would bring.
141inge87
Arabella of Mars by David D. Levine
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Series: The Adventures of Arabella Ashby (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3612 E923834 A88 2016
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Arabella of Mars is a fun interplanetary regency adventure set in a world where man has colonized Mars and made peace with the Martian people. Arabella is a tomboy and much more interested in the things her father and brother do than the "proper" things her mother would like her to, When she goes too far one too many times, she finds herself put on a ship back to Earth in the company of her mother and younger sisters. Her mother wants to get her married off (this is a regency), but Arabella just wants to go back to Mars—especially when the family receives word that her father has died. A cousin's drastic actions soon make her return imperative, so Arabella disguises herself as a boy and joins a crew on a trade ship bound for Mars. It turns out that life as a cabin boy is nothing like she thought it would be, harder and more dangerous than she ever dreamed, whether the threat is hateful crew-mates or deadly French privateers. But Arabella has to get to Mars, no matter what it takes or what she finds there upon her arrival, so she's willing to do whatever it takes to survive. And learns a lot about herself in the process.
An exciting journey that will surely be appreciated by fans of steampunk or woman-positive science fiction, the book has excellent plotting and Arabella along with the captain and his navigator are characters I cannot wait to meet again. Luckily, although it stands very well on its own, it appears to be the first in a series. So who knows where Arabella will end up next.
First Line: Arabella Ashby lay prone atop a dune, her whole length pressed tight upon the cool red sands of Mars.
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Series: The Adventures of Arabella Ashby (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3612 E923834 A88 2016
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Arabella of Mars is a fun interplanetary regency adventure set in a world where man has colonized Mars and made peace with the Martian people. Arabella is a tomboy and much more interested in the things her father and brother do than the "proper" things her mother would like her to, When she goes too far one too many times, she finds herself put on a ship back to Earth in the company of her mother and younger sisters. Her mother wants to get her married off (this is a regency), but Arabella just wants to go back to Mars—especially when the family receives word that her father has died. A cousin's drastic actions soon make her return imperative, so Arabella disguises herself as a boy and joins a crew on a trade ship bound for Mars. It turns out that life as a cabin boy is nothing like she thought it would be, harder and more dangerous than she ever dreamed, whether the threat is hateful crew-mates or deadly French privateers. But Arabella has to get to Mars, no matter what it takes or what she finds there upon her arrival, so she's willing to do whatever it takes to survive. And learns a lot about herself in the process.
An exciting journey that will surely be appreciated by fans of steampunk or woman-positive science fiction, the book has excellent plotting and Arabella along with the captain and his navigator are characters I cannot wait to meet again. Luckily, although it stands very well on its own, it appears to be the first in a series. So who knows where Arabella will end up next.
First Line: Arabella Ashby lay prone atop a dune, her whole length pressed tight upon the cool red sands of Mars.
142inge87
Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rinaldi*
Source: me (sometime in 2000 (this copy, I've had the first edition since the 90s))
Recommendation: comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1986
LC Call #: PZ 7 R459 Ti 2000
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Time Enough for Drums is a classic novel of the American Revolution. In it we watch Jemima Emerson grow from a childish fifteen-year-old to a mature woman as she attempts to hold on to whatever parts of her life she can in the face of the chaos of war. Trenton, New Jersey, in December 1775, is a place standing on the brink of change and Jem's family is no exception. Her elder brother is forming a regiment for the Continental Army and her younger brother wants nothing more than to join the fight as well. All Jem really wants to to somehow escape her tutor, the Tory John Reid, and do her part for what she sees as her country. Whether that's helping her friend Nathaniel Moore or rebellion against the demand's of John Reid, it all seems a bit like a game. Until an accidental discovery dramatically raises the stakes and war comes to Trenton. With everything changing, is it any surprise that Jem changes too?
Probably Rinaldi's best work, it's what we would now call YA, but covers Jem's early adulthood as well as her teen years. Full of adventure, family, romance, and a lot of growing up, it manages to show the hardships of war and the power of human resilience without ever losing heart. Highly recommended for those who enjoy historical fiction, well written teen-centered novels, and novels set on the homefront.
First Line: The cold wind stung my face and brought tears to my eyes when I turned into it to look at my brother Dan, who stood next to me on the hill.
Source: me (sometime in 2000 (this copy, I've had the first edition since the 90s))
Recommendation: comfort read
Year of Original Pub.: 1986
LC Call #: PZ 7 R459 Ti 2000
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Time Enough for Drums is a classic novel of the American Revolution. In it we watch Jemima Emerson grow from a childish fifteen-year-old to a mature woman as she attempts to hold on to whatever parts of her life she can in the face of the chaos of war. Trenton, New Jersey, in December 1775, is a place standing on the brink of change and Jem's family is no exception. Her elder brother is forming a regiment for the Continental Army and her younger brother wants nothing more than to join the fight as well. All Jem really wants to to somehow escape her tutor, the Tory John Reid, and do her part for what she sees as her country. Whether that's helping her friend Nathaniel Moore or rebellion against the demand's of John Reid, it all seems a bit like a game. Until an accidental discovery dramatically raises the stakes and war comes to Trenton. With everything changing, is it any surprise that Jem changes too?
Probably Rinaldi's best work, it's what we would now call YA, but covers Jem's early adulthood as well as her teen years. Full of adventure, family, romance, and a lot of growing up, it manages to show the hardships of war and the power of human resilience without ever losing heart. Highly recommended for those who enjoy historical fiction, well written teen-centered novels, and novels set on the homefront.
First Line: The cold wind stung my face and brought tears to my eyes when I turned into it to look at my brother Dan, who stood next to me on the hill.
143inge87
Sonya's Chickens by Phoebe Wahl
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PZ 7.1 W35 Chi 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Sonya's Chickens is the story of Sonya, a young girl living on what appears to be a small farm or homestead. One day she is given responsibility for the family's new chickens. Sonya takes this responsibility very seriously until one night something terrible happens.
This is an amazing book for a whole host of reasons: the excellent narrative, the fantastic illustrations, and the character of Sonya herself—what a wondrously determined young mother she is to her chickens—but it is also notable for being an example of the best kind of diverse books. The kind that features diverse characters in normally everyday situations, and doesn't actually mention it. The only way we know that Sonya is biracial is that we see her parents. What Sonya does could be done by any child, but here it is done by Sonya. In an era in which there is an increasing call for truly diverse books (versus books people read during diversity/heritage months), Sonya's Chickens is up to the task. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good, well-rounded picture book.
First Line: One day, Sonya's papa came home with three fluffy chicks.
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: Kirkus
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PZ 7.1 W35 Chi 2015
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Sonya's Chickens is the story of Sonya, a young girl living on what appears to be a small farm or homestead. One day she is given responsibility for the family's new chickens. Sonya takes this responsibility very seriously until one night something terrible happens.
This is an amazing book for a whole host of reasons: the excellent narrative, the fantastic illustrations, and the character of Sonya herself—what a wondrously determined young mother she is to her chickens—but it is also notable for being an example of the best kind of diverse books. The kind that features diverse characters in normally everyday situations, and doesn't actually mention it. The only way we know that Sonya is biracial is that we see her parents. What Sonya does could be done by any child, but here it is done by Sonya. In an era in which there is an increasing call for truly diverse books (versus books people read during diversity/heritage months), Sonya's Chickens is up to the task. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good, well-rounded picture book.
First Line: One day, Sonya's papa came home with three fluffy chicks.
144inge87
The Gardener of Versailles: My Life in the World's Grandest Garden by Alain Baraton
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: This Guardian Top 10 List
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: SB 466 F83 P3719513 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Gardener of Versailles is Alain Baraton's memoir of his life and Versailles, the place where he has long worked as head gardener. We learn a lot about the gardens and their history and that of Versailles, a world full of politics and intrigue. We also learn about Baraton and how he stumbled into what would be a dream job to many, a job that bureaucratization would keep him from obtaining if he were to attempt it today. There is also a lot about the great storm of 1999 that destroyed so much of the garden and allowed them to begin again with almost a clean slate. If you're looking for a book about the nuts and bolts of gardening in great gardens, this is not the book for you. But if you want a book about the joy of gardening and one man's love for Versailles and its history, you'll want to pick it up.
First Line: I sleep like a log, which is fitting for a gardener.
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: This Guardian Top 10 List
Year of Original Pub.: 2006
LC Call #: SB 466 F83 P3719513 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Gardener of Versailles is Alain Baraton's memoir of his life and Versailles, the place where he has long worked as head gardener. We learn a lot about the gardens and their history and that of Versailles, a world full of politics and intrigue. We also learn about Baraton and how he stumbled into what would be a dream job to many, a job that bureaucratization would keep him from obtaining if he were to attempt it today. There is also a lot about the great storm of 1999 that destroyed so much of the garden and allowed them to begin again with almost a clean slate. If you're looking for a book about the nuts and bolts of gardening in great gardens, this is not the book for you. But if you want a book about the joy of gardening and one man's love for Versailles and its history, you'll want to pick it up.
First Line: I sleep like a log, which is fitting for a gardener.
145inge87
The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Christina
Year of Original Pub.: 1993
LC Call #: PR 6059 B3 M67 1993
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Morning Gift is a very nice piece of historical fiction set during the lead-up to World War II. The Nazi's have annexed Austria, and Ruth is trapped in Vienna, while the rest of her family has managed to escape to Britain. A fake marriage to an old family friend promises a way out, but once they arrive the complications only seem to multiply. Will they find a way out of the net of they created? Or will the path to happiness take another course?
The first part of the book is excellent, but then it goes off the rails as Ruth's romanticism gives way to ridiculousness. But overall it's a great read, so if you've liked other works by Ibbotson, you'll probably want to read this one too.
First Line: Vienna has always been a city of myths.
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Christina
Year of Original Pub.: 1993
LC Call #: PR 6059 B3 M67 1993
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Morning Gift is a very nice piece of historical fiction set during the lead-up to World War II. The Nazi's have annexed Austria, and Ruth is trapped in Vienna, while the rest of her family has managed to escape to Britain. A fake marriage to an old family friend promises a way out, but once they arrive the complications only seem to multiply. Will they find a way out of the net of they created? Or will the path to happiness take another course?
The first part of the book is excellent, but then it goes off the rails as Ruth's romanticism gives way to ridiculousness. But overall it's a great read, so if you've liked other works by Ibbotson, you'll probably want to read this one too.
First Line: Vienna has always been a city of myths.
146inge87
First Star I See Tonight by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: I'd liked another book by the author
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3566 H5578 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
First Star I See Tonight is an alright romance about a retired sports star and a struggling private investigator. Cooper left football at the top of his game and is now looking to take on a new challenge by owing and running a nightclub. Piper is trying to build a business as a private investigator. Watching Cooper should help make her career—until he catches her in the act. What follows is a somewhat formulaic romance with a bit of suspense as we try to figure out who has it out for Cooper. It's fun, but it's nothing special.
First Line: The city was his.
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: I'd liked another book by the author
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3566 H5578 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
First Star I See Tonight is an alright romance about a retired sports star and a struggling private investigator. Cooper left football at the top of his game and is now looking to take on a new challenge by owing and running a nightclub. Piper is trying to build a business as a private investigator. Watching Cooper should help make her career—until he catches her in the act. What follows is a somewhat formulaic romance with a bit of suspense as we try to figure out who has it out for Cooper. It's fun, but it's nothing special.
First Line: The city was his.
147inge87
Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Kikus?
Series: British Library Crime Classics
Year of Original Pub.: 1931
LC Call #: PR 6045 I626 M87 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Murder of a Lady is a Scottish mystery in which the strange murder of a local institution sparks a series of similarly bizarre events. Mary Gregor, sister of the local laird, was a society fixture until her sudden death in a locked room. No one can figure out how she was killed, but gradually secrets begin to leak out and suggest that she was not as beloved as people would make her seem. But none of that explains why the murderer has suddenly decided to act or why he seems to be leaving herring scales wherever he goes.
A nice locked-room mystery and an excellent addition to the British Library Crime Classics series. Fans of that genre and of golden age mysteries will definitely want to pick it up.
First Line: Mr. Leod McLeod, Procurator Fiscal of Mid-Argyll, was known throughout that county as "the Monarch of the Glen".
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Kikus?
Series: British Library Crime Classics
Year of Original Pub.: 1931
LC Call #: PR 6045 I626 M87 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Murder of a Lady is a Scottish mystery in which the strange murder of a local institution sparks a series of similarly bizarre events. Mary Gregor, sister of the local laird, was a society fixture until her sudden death in a locked room. No one can figure out how she was killed, but gradually secrets begin to leak out and suggest that she was not as beloved as people would make her seem. But none of that explains why the murderer has suddenly decided to act or why he seems to be leaving herring scales wherever he goes.
A nice locked-room mystery and an excellent addition to the British Library Crime Classics series. Fans of that genre and of golden age mysteries will definitely want to pick it up.
First Line: Mr. Leod McLeod, Procurator Fiscal of Mid-Argyll, was known throughout that county as "the Monarch of the Glen".
148inge87
From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple
Source: work
Recommendation: Tim
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: DS 49.7 D24 1998
Rating: 4 stars / 5
From the Holy Mountain is an excellent travel narrative that starts off a bit slow but once it gets good, is really good. Dalrymple travelled from Greece through the Middle East to Egypt in the footsteps of the Byzantine monastic chronicler John Moschos in 1994. This was a world in which much was the same as now (Turkey's southeastern unrest) and much was different (Assad's Syria was an oasis of stability). But the situation among Christians has changed little since then except that it has become worse, so the stories of persecution and resilience ring true even twenty years later. But since there are still Christians being persecuted there, the predictions of total extinction made by various people he encounters have proven to be premature. But at this rate, given a bit more time it will probably happen sooner or later. By far the concept that has stuck with me the most is the idea that Islam was originally perceived as another heterodox version of Christianity instead of its own religion, which had an interesting effect on its relationship with preexisting Christian communities once it had taken over an area.
Definitely a book to read if the subject of Middle Eastern Christians interests you. A nice follow up is Gerald Russell's 2014 book Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms, about minority religions in the Middle East, which includes a section on Christians. The situation for religious minorities in contemporary Islamic society has long been fraught. Dalrymple's story shows just how much has been lost and how much there is left to lose. Highly recommended.
First Line: My cell is bare and austere.
Source: work
Recommendation: Tim
Year of Original Pub.: 1997
LC Call #: DS 49.7 D24 1998
Rating: 4 stars / 5
From the Holy Mountain is an excellent travel narrative that starts off a bit slow but once it gets good, is really good. Dalrymple travelled from Greece through the Middle East to Egypt in the footsteps of the Byzantine monastic chronicler John Moschos in 1994. This was a world in which much was the same as now (Turkey's southeastern unrest) and much was different (Assad's Syria was an oasis of stability). But the situation among Christians has changed little since then except that it has become worse, so the stories of persecution and resilience ring true even twenty years later. But since there are still Christians being persecuted there, the predictions of total extinction made by various people he encounters have proven to be premature. But at this rate, given a bit more time it will probably happen sooner or later. By far the concept that has stuck with me the most is the idea that Islam was originally perceived as another heterodox version of Christianity instead of its own religion, which had an interesting effect on its relationship with preexisting Christian communities once it had taken over an area.
Definitely a book to read if the subject of Middle Eastern Christians interests you. A nice follow up is Gerald Russell's 2014 book Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms, about minority religions in the Middle East, which includes a section on Christians. The situation for religious minorities in contemporary Islamic society has long been fraught. Dalrymple's story shows just how much has been lost and how much there is left to lose. Highly recommended.
First Line: My cell is bare and austere.
149inge87
Nocturne for a Widow by Amanda DeWees
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 N63 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Nocturne for a Widow is the Gothic tale of what happens when an English actress decides to retire and accept a marriage proposal from an American, only to have her husband die shortly after her marriage leaving her only a doubtful ownership of a house deep in the country and a stepson. Suffice to say, nothing is as it seems, either the house or the stepson. Because someone or something is unhappy in that house and wants our heroine to fix things—if only she could figure out just what went wrong in the first place.
A fun story, if a bit formulaic, but it comes with the excellent style I expect from the author. If you like contemporary Gothics with an only-fashioned feel, you'll want to check DeWees out, whether it's this one or one of her other books.
First Line: The ability to lie persuasively is one of the greatest gifts a woman can possess in this life.
Source: me (9/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: PS 3604 E9447 N63 2014
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Nocturne for a Widow is the Gothic tale of what happens when an English actress decides to retire and accept a marriage proposal from an American, only to have her husband die shortly after her marriage leaving her only a doubtful ownership of a house deep in the country and a stepson. Suffice to say, nothing is as it seems, either the house or the stepson. Because someone or something is unhappy in that house and wants our heroine to fix things—if only she could figure out just what went wrong in the first place.
A fun story, if a bit formulaic, but it comes with the excellent style I expect from the author. If you like contemporary Gothics with an only-fashioned feel, you'll want to check DeWees out, whether it's this one or one of her other books.
First Line: The ability to lie persuasively is one of the greatest gifts a woman can possess in this life.
150inge87
The Life of Padre Pio: Between the Altar and the Confessional by Gennaro Preziuso
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: RandomCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1998
LC Call #: BX 4700 P7755 P7413 2000
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Life of Padre Pio is a good account of the life of the man who was born Francesco Forgione and eventually joined the Capuchin Order to become Father Pio of Pietrelcina. A mystic who demonstrated such powers as bilocation, foresight, and, most famously, the stigmata, Father Pio struggled with poor health his entire life, but still managed to become one of the most famous and revered religious figures in Italy.
Although definitely sympathetic to St. Pio, the author mostly manages to tread the fine line between history and hagiography. I read it shortly after I finished William Dalrymple's From the Holy Mountain and was struck at just how much Father Pio would have fit in with monks and culture of Eastern Christianity. Which just reminds us that Italy's culture is in many ways more Mediterranean than Western. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in this modern saint.
First Line: Set in the midst of an enchanting panorama and surrounded by the barren hills of Sannio, some twelve kilometer (7.5 miles) from Benevento, Pietrelcina greets the eye of the visitor spread out on a rocky projection some 350 meters or 1200 feet above sea level.
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: RandomCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1998
LC Call #: BX 4700 P7755 P7413 2000
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Life of Padre Pio is a good account of the life of the man who was born Francesco Forgione and eventually joined the Capuchin Order to become Father Pio of Pietrelcina. A mystic who demonstrated such powers as bilocation, foresight, and, most famously, the stigmata, Father Pio struggled with poor health his entire life, but still managed to become one of the most famous and revered religious figures in Italy.
Although definitely sympathetic to St. Pio, the author mostly manages to tread the fine line between history and hagiography. I read it shortly after I finished William Dalrymple's From the Holy Mountain and was struck at just how much Father Pio would have fit in with monks and culture of Eastern Christianity. Which just reminds us that Italy's culture is in many ways more Mediterranean than Western. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in this modern saint.
First Line: Set in the midst of an enchanting panorama and surrounded by the barren hills of Sannio, some twelve kilometer (7.5 miles) from Benevento, Pietrelcina greets the eye of the visitor spread out on a rocky projection some 350 meters or 1200 feet above sea level.
151inge87
The Good Comrade by Una L. Silberrad*
Source: me (8/15)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1907
LC Call #: PR 6037 I45 G66 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Despite the connotations of its title, The Good Comrade is not a book about communism, instead it is an excellent work about self-worth, personal honor, and social class with a healthy touch of romance. The Polkington's live life constantly on the edge of insolvency: the mother and two of her daughters want to live as they are accustomed and the father is a retired officer prone to drinking and gambling, which leaves only the middle daughter to hold things together. All she wants is to live a decent honorable life, but her family's refusal to be realistic about their situation makes it impossible. Especially once her father gambles off this quarter's check. An argument with one of his creditors leaves Julia desperate to prove her family's worth by coming up with £30 (roughly £2800 in today's money). So she decides to steal a rare daffodil bulb and joins the grower's family in the Netherlands as a companion. Naturally, she cannot bring herself to follow through with it, and a renewed acquaintance with her family's creditor leaves her feeling more awkward than ever while also offering her a way to prove her worth.
Not just a romance, but a serious look at the foibles of the middle-class values of the day (the part about the younger sister's marriage's "breaking-in" period is positively chilling). The love story is remarkably realistic and compelling, while not overwhelming Julia's overall search for self-respect and happiness. I'm surprised Persephone Books never picked this one up, as it's very much in their line. Highly recommended.
First Line: The Polkingtons were of those people who do not dine.
Source: me (8/15)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1907
LC Call #: PR 6037 I45 G66 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Despite the connotations of its title, The Good Comrade is not a book about communism, instead it is an excellent work about self-worth, personal honor, and social class with a healthy touch of romance. The Polkington's live life constantly on the edge of insolvency: the mother and two of her daughters want to live as they are accustomed and the father is a retired officer prone to drinking and gambling, which leaves only the middle daughter to hold things together. All she wants is to live a decent honorable life, but her family's refusal to be realistic about their situation makes it impossible. Especially once her father gambles off this quarter's check. An argument with one of his creditors leaves Julia desperate to prove her family's worth by coming up with £30 (roughly £2800 in today's money). So she decides to steal a rare daffodil bulb and joins the grower's family in the Netherlands as a companion. Naturally, she cannot bring herself to follow through with it, and a renewed acquaintance with her family's creditor leaves her feeling more awkward than ever while also offering her a way to prove her worth.
Not just a romance, but a serious look at the foibles of the middle-class values of the day (the part about the younger sister's marriage's "breaking-in" period is positively chilling). The love story is remarkably realistic and compelling, while not overwhelming Julia's overall search for self-respect and happiness. I'm surprised Persephone Books never picked this one up, as it's very much in their line. Highly recommended.
First Line: The Polkingtons were of those people who do not dine.
152inge87
Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Judy (DeltaQueen50)
Year of Original Pub.: 1889
LC Call #: PR 4825 J3 T57 1999
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Three Men in a Boat is the thrilling tale of three men who take a week's vacation to go boating on the Thames. Oh, and they bring along a terrier, one of nature's most ferocious beasts. Suffice to say, nothing quite goes as planned but a good time is had by all. Interspersed with the narrative are reminiscences of previous river journeys and other humorous anecdotes typical of those experienced by young men. Never before has travelling the Thames been so interesting, so funny, or so dominated by fox terriers. If you like your fiction funny, this is the book for you.
First Line: There were four of us - George, and William Samuel Harris, and myself, and Montmorency.
Source: Irving PL
Recommendation: Judy (DeltaQueen50)
Year of Original Pub.: 1889
LC Call #: PR 4825 J3 T57 1999
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Three Men in a Boat is the thrilling tale of three men who take a week's vacation to go boating on the Thames. Oh, and they bring along a terrier, one of nature's most ferocious beasts. Suffice to say, nothing quite goes as planned but a good time is had by all. Interspersed with the narrative are reminiscences of previous river journeys and other humorous anecdotes typical of those experienced by young men. Never before has travelling the Thames been so interesting, so funny, or so dominated by fox terriers. If you like your fiction funny, this is the book for you.
First Line: There were four of us - George, and William Samuel Harris, and myself, and Montmorency.
153inge87
And now a quote (complete with a photo of my fox-terrier mix being ridiculous):
"Fox-terriers are born with about four times as much original sin in them as other dogs are, and it will take years and years of patient effort on the part of us Christians to bring about any appreciable reformation in rowdiness of the fox-terrier nature."
—Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men in a Boat
"Fox-terriers are born with about four times as much original sin in them as other dogs are, and it will take years and years of patient effort on the part of us Christians to bring about any appreciable reformation in rowdiness of the fox-terrier nature."
—Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men in a Boat
154inge87
The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer
Source: work
Recommendation: somewhere on or via NLM
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: NA 3860 M45 B73 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière is the first real study of one of the most important American muralists of the twentieth century. You may never have heard of her before, but if you've ever seen a picture of Radio City Music Hall, you've seen her work in the three medallions of song, drama, and dance. I'm more personally acquainted with her neo-byzantine mosaics at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church in that same city, which are beyond impressive. It turns out, there was a period in which she was the go-to designer for public buildings, churches, or corporations when they wanted that modernist touch. Yet within fifty years of her death, she has been almost completely forgotten. This necessary and remarkable volume goes a long way to change that. Dividing her work into basic categories like public buildings, churches, corporations, and non-deco style, the author takes a comprehensive look at Meière's work and the methodology that supported it. It's very interesting reading and I have a sudden urge to go visit the Nebraska State House that I didn't have before (it appears to be a wonder of modernist decoration). If you are interested in art deco design, building decoration, or interesting women artists, you really should seek this one out.
First Line: At the time of Hildreth Meière's birth in 1892, few American artists identified themselves as muralists.
Source: work
Recommendation: somewhere on or via NLM
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: NA 3860 M45 B73 2014
Rating: 4 stars / 5
The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière is the first real study of one of the most important American muralists of the twentieth century. You may never have heard of her before, but if you've ever seen a picture of Radio City Music Hall, you've seen her work in the three medallions of song, drama, and dance. I'm more personally acquainted with her neo-byzantine mosaics at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church in that same city, which are beyond impressive. It turns out, there was a period in which she was the go-to designer for public buildings, churches, or corporations when they wanted that modernist touch. Yet within fifty years of her death, she has been almost completely forgotten. This necessary and remarkable volume goes a long way to change that. Dividing her work into basic categories like public buildings, churches, corporations, and non-deco style, the author takes a comprehensive look at Meière's work and the methodology that supported it. It's very interesting reading and I have a sudden urge to go visit the Nebraska State House that I didn't have before (it appears to be a wonder of modernist decoration). If you are interested in art deco design, building decoration, or interesting women artists, you really should seek this one out.
First Line: At the time of Hildreth Meière's birth in 1892, few American artists identified themselves as muralists.
155inge87
I normally keep my CAT stuff on the other thread, but I'm so thrilled with myself for completing my BingoDOG card with The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière that I thought I'd share it here too!
1. Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions by John Sianchuk
2. Senior protagonist: Elijah in Jerusalem by Michael O'Brien
3. Survival Story: The Golden City by J. Kathleen Cheney
4. Airplane Flight: Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg
5. Writer: Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
6. Enviroment: Resurrection Science by M. R. O'Connor
7. Author Born in 1916: The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart
8. Memoir: Outwitting History by Aaron Lansky
9. Adventure: Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous
10. One-Word Title: Survival by Julie E. Czerneda
11. Musical Reference: The Ring of Words by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, & Edmund Wiener
12. Wordplay Title: Where the Wild Things Were by William Stolzenburg
13. CAT: Migration by Julie E. Czerneda
14. Body of Water: Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay
15. Indigenous: Pretty-shield by Frank B. Linderman
16. Food: Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews
17. Published Before I was Born: The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon
18. Theatre: Quick Curtain by Alan Melville
19. Debut: In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming
20. Translation: Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov
21. Art: The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer
22. Coming of Age: Time of Trial by Hester Burton
23. Manga: Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 by Kiiro Yumi
24. Self-Published: The Walled Garden: Poems by Andrew Thornton-Norris
25. I Want Her Job: Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair
1. Blessed Bishop Nicholas Charnetsky, C.SS.R. and Companions by John Sianchuk
2. Senior protagonist: Elijah in Jerusalem by Michael O'Brien
3. Survival Story: The Golden City by J. Kathleen Cheney
4. Airplane Flight: Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg
5. Writer: Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
6. Enviroment: Resurrection Science by M. R. O'Connor
7. Author Born in 1916: The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart
8. Memoir: Outwitting History by Aaron Lansky
9. Adventure: Saga of the Jómsvíkings by Anonymous
10. One-Word Title: Survival by Julie E. Czerneda
11. Musical Reference: The Ring of Words by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, & Edmund Wiener
12. Wordplay Title: Where the Wild Things Were by William Stolzenburg
13. CAT: Migration by Julie E. Czerneda
14. Body of Water: Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay
15. Indigenous: Pretty-shield by Frank B. Linderman
16. Food: Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews
17. Published Before I was Born: The Z Murders by J. Jefferson Farjeon
18. Theatre: Quick Curtain by Alan Melville
19. Debut: In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming
20. Translation: Dshamilja by Chinghiz Aitmatov
21. Art: The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer
22. Coming of Age: Time of Trial by Hester Burton
23. Manga: Library Wars: Love & War, Volume 1 by Kiiro Yumi
24. Self-Published: The Walled Garden: Poems by Andrew Thornton-Norris
25. I Want Her Job: Mary's Monster by Ruth Van Ness Blair
156thornton37814
>147 inge87: I want to read more in that British crime classic series. I'm taking the book bullet on that one.
157inge87
>156 thornton37814: It's a good one. I've never read a book in that series that was a true flop. The editors are doing a great job at selecting them.
158inge87
Dutch Bulbs and Gardens by Una L. Silberrad
Source: Project Gutenberg
Recommendation: WomanBingoPUP
Year of Original Pub.: 1909
LC Call #: SB 425 S6 1909
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Dutch Bulbs and Gardens is a brief overview of the Dutch way of growing bulbs as it existed in the first decade of the 20th century. Silberrad knows her flowers and her bulb growers, and she comes across as clearly knowing her stuff. If you were wondering what flowers were big at the time, she talks a lot about what is popular now and what has gone out of fashion but was popular in the mid-to-late 19th century. It's interesting stuff and comes complete with some very lovely illustrations on Project Gutenberg. This seems to be the author's only non-fiction work, she was a fairly prolific novelist and even wrote a novel, The Good Comrade that features the bulb growing business and an extended stay in the Netherlands as major plot points. All in all it's a good book, but probably for those who need it for research rather than the average leisure browser.
First Line: Undoubtedly the way to go to the Bulb Gardens of Holland is to go the way by which the bulbs come to England.
Source: Project Gutenberg
Recommendation: WomanBingoPUP
Year of Original Pub.: 1909
LC Call #: SB 425 S6 1909
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Dutch Bulbs and Gardens is a brief overview of the Dutch way of growing bulbs as it existed in the first decade of the 20th century. Silberrad knows her flowers and her bulb growers, and she comes across as clearly knowing her stuff. If you were wondering what flowers were big at the time, she talks a lot about what is popular now and what has gone out of fashion but was popular in the mid-to-late 19th century. It's interesting stuff and comes complete with some very lovely illustrations on Project Gutenberg. This seems to be the author's only non-fiction work, she was a fairly prolific novelist and even wrote a novel, The Good Comrade that features the bulb growing business and an extended stay in the Netherlands as major plot points. All in all it's a good book, but probably for those who need it for research rather than the average leisure browser.
First Line: Undoubtedly the way to go to the Bulb Gardens of Holland is to go the way by which the bulbs come to England.
159inge87
Margaret the Queen by Nigel Tranter
Source: me (1/16)
Recommendation: Margaret of Scotland is my confirmation saint
Year of Original Pub.: 1979
LC Call #: PR 6070 R368 M37 1993
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Margaret the Queen is a Scottish historical novel set during the reign of Malcolm III. The Margaret of the title is Margaret Ætheling, sister of the exiled last Saxon King of England. She washes up along with her family near the Malcolm's war camp after their ship to Hungary was blown off course, and soon catches the king's eye—even though he's already married and there is no way a woman of her piety would have agreed to an affair out of wedlock. What follows is a fictionalized retelling of the rest of Malcolm's reign with the narrators reaction to Margaret a major driver of the plot. If only Maldred were less of a stick-in-the-mud and a more interesting character and if only Tranter hadn't filled the book with a very dated concept of the Celtic Church as it existed in Scotland before Romanization. The theology is so bad and Maldred's whining/pouting are so annoying that there were parts that I started skimming in order to avoid them. If only there were more Margaret and less Maldred, things might have been better. But that's not the case. For fans of Tranter only, it's just not worth the time otherwise.
First Line: Maldred, sickened at it all, turned away.
Source: me (1/16)
Recommendation: Margaret of Scotland is my confirmation saint
Year of Original Pub.: 1979
LC Call #: PR 6070 R368 M37 1993
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Margaret the Queen is a Scottish historical novel set during the reign of Malcolm III. The Margaret of the title is Margaret Ætheling, sister of the exiled last Saxon King of England. She washes up along with her family near the Malcolm's war camp after their ship to Hungary was blown off course, and soon catches the king's eye—even though he's already married and there is no way a woman of her piety would have agreed to an affair out of wedlock. What follows is a fictionalized retelling of the rest of Malcolm's reign with the narrators reaction to Margaret a major driver of the plot. If only Maldred were less of a stick-in-the-mud and a more interesting character and if only Tranter hadn't filled the book with a very dated concept of the Celtic Church as it existed in Scotland before Romanization. The theology is so bad and Maldred's whining/pouting are so annoying that there were parts that I started skimming in order to avoid them. If only there were more Margaret and less Maldred, things might have been better. But that's not the case. For fans of Tranter only, it's just not worth the time otherwise.
First Line: Maldred, sickened at it all, turned away.
160inge87
Laurentius von Brindisi: Apostel auf den Straßen Europas by Niklaus Kuster^
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: The feast of St. Lawrence is my birthday
Title in English: Lawrence of Brindisi: Apostle on the Streets of Europe
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: BX 4700 L64 K87 2010
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Laurentius von Brindisi is a concise biography of St. Lawrence of Brindisi, one of the most interesting saints you've never heard of. Born in Brindisi on the tip of the heel of the Italian boot, he later travelled to Venice to stay with an uncle, where he discovered and later joined the Capuchin Order. Imbibed with this Franciscan theology, he travelled around Italy and Central Europe, growing his order, fighting heretics, and even leading armies into battle against the Turks. The most amazing thing was that he did most of this while following his order's edict against travelling any way except by foot. The Counter Reformation resulted in a flowering of interesting personalities, and St. Lawrence, whose writings later led to his being named a Doctor of the Church by Pope John XXIII in the 20th century, was at the heart of things. Kuster's writing makes of this accessible in a very readable way. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in St. Lawrence or the Counter Reformation who can read German.
First Line: Lorenzos Weg beginnt im äußersten Süden Europas und in der apulischen Hafenstadt Brindisi.
My Translation: Lorenzo's path begins on the southern edge of Europe in the Apulian port city of Brindsi.
Source: me (8/16)
Recommendation: The feast of St. Lawrence is my birthday
Title in English: Lawrence of Brindisi: Apostle on the Streets of Europe
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: BX 4700 L64 K87 2010
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Laurentius von Brindisi is a concise biography of St. Lawrence of Brindisi, one of the most interesting saints you've never heard of. Born in Brindisi on the tip of the heel of the Italian boot, he later travelled to Venice to stay with an uncle, where he discovered and later joined the Capuchin Order. Imbibed with this Franciscan theology, he travelled around Italy and Central Europe, growing his order, fighting heretics, and even leading armies into battle against the Turks. The most amazing thing was that he did most of this while following his order's edict against travelling any way except by foot. The Counter Reformation resulted in a flowering of interesting personalities, and St. Lawrence, whose writings later led to his being named a Doctor of the Church by Pope John XXIII in the 20th century, was at the heart of things. Kuster's writing makes of this accessible in a very readable way. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in St. Lawrence or the Counter Reformation who can read German.
First Line: Lorenzos Weg beginnt im äußersten Süden Europas und in der apulischen Hafenstadt Brindisi.
My Translation: Lorenzo's path begins on the southern edge of Europe in the Apulian port city of Brindsi.
161inge87
September Round-Up!
Books Read: 17 (26 in 2013, 23 in 2014, & 25 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 10 - 58.82%
Non-Fiction - 7 - 41.18%
Sources
Irving PL - 5 - 29.42%
Me (rest of this year) - 3 - 17.65%
Me (this month) - 3 - 17.65%
Me (other) - 2 - 11.76%
Work - 2 - 11.76%
ILL - 1 - 5.88%
Project Gutenberg - 1 - 5.88%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 0 - 0%
Rereads - 2 - 11.76%
Authors
Female - 8 - 50%
Male - 8 - 50%
Edition Language
English - 16 - 94.12%
German - 1 - 5.88%
Original Language
English - 17 - 82.36%
French - 1 - 5.88%
German - 1 - 5.88%
Italian- 1 - 5.88%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 15 - 88.24%
Series Books - 2 - 11.76%
Average Original Date of Publication
1982
Median Original Date of Publication
1998
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 5.88%
3 stars - 6 - 35.29%
4 stars - 7 - 41.18%
5 stars - 3 - 17.65%
Average Rating
3.71
Discovery of the Month
Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies
First Line of the Month
"I sleep like a log, which is fitting for a gardener."
—Alain Baraton, The Gardener of Versailles
Best of the Month
Fiction: Arabella of Mars by David D. Levine
Non-Fiction: From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple
Books Read: 17 (26 in 2013, 23 in 2014, & 25 in 2015)
Genre
Fiction - 10 - 58.82%
Non-Fiction - 7 - 41.18%
Sources
Irving PL - 5 - 29.42%
Me (rest of this year) - 3 - 17.65%
Me (this month) - 3 - 17.65%
Me (other) - 2 - 11.76%
Work - 2 - 11.76%
ILL - 1 - 5.88%
Project Gutenberg - 1 - 5.88%
TBR and Rereads
TBR books - 0 - 0%
Rereads - 2 - 11.76%
Authors
Female - 8 - 50%
Male - 8 - 50%
Edition Language
English - 16 - 94.12%
German - 1 - 5.88%
Original Language
English - 17 - 82.36%
French - 1 - 5.88%
German - 1 - 5.88%
Italian- 1 - 5.88%
Series
Stand-Alone Books - 15 - 88.24%
Series Books - 2 - 11.76%
Average Original Date of Publication
1982
Median Original Date of Publication
1998
Ratings Distribution
1 star - 0 - 0%
2 stars - 1 - 5.88%
3 stars - 6 - 35.29%
4 stars - 7 - 41.18%
5 stars - 3 - 17.65%
Average Rating
3.71
Discovery of the Month
Rising Road: A True Tale of Love, Race, and Religion in America by Sharon Davies
First Line of the Month
"I sleep like a log, which is fitting for a gardener."
—Alain Baraton, The Gardener of Versailles
Best of the Month
Fiction: Arabella of Mars by David D. Levine
Non-Fiction: From the Holy Mountain: A Journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple
162inge87
Fashioning the Body: An Intimate History of the Silhouette by Denis Bruna (ed.)+
Source: me (5/15)
Recommendation: Clearing the TBR pile, plus the exhibit was fantastic
Original Title: La mécanique des dessous: Une histoire indiscrète de la silhouette
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: TT 677 M4313 2015
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Fashioning the Body is the catalogue to a fantastic exhibition on the history of fashion as body modification that ran in Paris in 2013 and then at the Bard Graduate Center of Decorative Arts, Design History, Material Culture in New York City, where I saw it, in 2015. Beginning in the early modern era and continuing through today, the book covers how people have used fashion to modify and change their silhouettes, whether it is adding to the body through padding and frameworks (e.g. false calves, crinolines) or by modifying the body itself (e.g. corsets, shapewear). What is nice is that it focuses both on male and female fashion, instead of just being lazy and only covering women's wear, as if women were the only ones who did crazy things to look good.
The historical sections of the book are fantastic and full of all kinds of interesting information. The contemporary section is far weaker. Perhaps because of the focus on fashion as art, it does not seem to capture the motivations of those who wear wonderbras and spanx the way it did panniers. The pop culture references are also a bit odd: it discusses Mr. Pearl but not Dita Von Teese and talks about a rapper named Marky Mark without mentioning he's also had a rather successful acting career as Mark Wahlberg. There is also a rather perceptible feeling throughout the book that the authors have a dichotomy in their minds of freedom versus confinement, which I'm not sure is the best one to have when discussing this subject. But overall it's a wonderful work and I can highly recommend it.
First Line: Our perception is that the clothes we wear are simple and supple, reflecting our mobile, dynamic, liberated way of life.
Source: me (5/15)
Recommendation: Clearing the TBR pile, plus the exhibit was fantastic
Original Title: La mécanique des dessous: Une histoire indiscrète de la silhouette
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: TT 677 M4313 2015
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Fashioning the Body is the catalogue to a fantastic exhibition on the history of fashion as body modification that ran in Paris in 2013 and then at the Bard Graduate Center of Decorative Arts, Design History, Material Culture in New York City, where I saw it, in 2015. Beginning in the early modern era and continuing through today, the book covers how people have used fashion to modify and change their silhouettes, whether it is adding to the body through padding and frameworks (e.g. false calves, crinolines) or by modifying the body itself (e.g. corsets, shapewear). What is nice is that it focuses both on male and female fashion, instead of just being lazy and only covering women's wear, as if women were the only ones who did crazy things to look good.
The historical sections of the book are fantastic and full of all kinds of interesting information. The contemporary section is far weaker. Perhaps because of the focus on fashion as art, it does not seem to capture the motivations of those who wear wonderbras and spanx the way it did panniers. The pop culture references are also a bit odd: it discusses Mr. Pearl but not Dita Von Teese and talks about a rapper named Marky Mark without mentioning he's also had a rather successful acting career as Mark Wahlberg. There is also a rather perceptible feeling throughout the book that the authors have a dichotomy in their minds of freedom versus confinement, which I'm not sure is the best one to have when discussing this subject. But overall it's a wonderful work and I can highly recommend it.
First Line: Our perception is that the clothes we wear are simple and supple, reflecting our mobile, dynamic, liberated way of life.
163brodiew2
>161 inge87: Hello Inge87! you got my attention with Arabella of Mars. It sounds like fun and that is what I need at the moment. I'm curious about Rising Road as well.
164inge87
>163 brodiew2: They're both very good (but very different) books. Arabella of Mars is basically one big interplanetary Regency romp and a lot of fun. Rising Road is a lot more serious, but provides a some very interesting insights into the position of Catholics and immigrants in the industrial South of the early 20th century
165inge87
A Deadly Thaw by Sarah Ward
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: I loved the first book
Series: Inspector Francis Sadler (2/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PR 6123 A717 D43 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Deadly Thaw is the second book of a brilliant mystery series set in Derbyshire, England (probably most famous as the home of one Fitzwilliam Darcy). Lena was arrested and convicted of her husband's murder almost a decade ago. But if she killed him, then how did he end up freshly dead in a disused World War I era mortuary? Lena's sister, a therapist, has no idea, but feels betrayed. Meanwhile, the police are in a state of minor panic because obviously someone botched something all those years ago. Things get even crazier when Lena disappears and not ever her sister knows where she went. But then the packages start arriving for Kat, clearly meant as messages from her sister but making no sense. It will take all the efforts of the police, Kat, and their allies to get to the bottom of things. But it turns out the bottom is darker and more pervasive than anyone could have dreamed.
I loved In Bitter Chill when it came out last year, and this is a worthy successor, completely avoiding the sophomore slump. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys contemporary British police mysteries, books about family secrets, or mysteries with a hint of thriller. You don't have to read the first one to understand this one, but they're both so good, why wouldn't you want to?
First Line: Lena felt his emotional withdrawal before the physical.
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: I loved the first book
Series: Inspector Francis Sadler (2/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PR 6123 A717 D43 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
A Deadly Thaw is the second book of a brilliant mystery series set in Derbyshire, England (probably most famous as the home of one Fitzwilliam Darcy). Lena was arrested and convicted of her husband's murder almost a decade ago. But if she killed him, then how did he end up freshly dead in a disused World War I era mortuary? Lena's sister, a therapist, has no idea, but feels betrayed. Meanwhile, the police are in a state of minor panic because obviously someone botched something all those years ago. Things get even crazier when Lena disappears and not ever her sister knows where she went. But then the packages start arriving for Kat, clearly meant as messages from her sister but making no sense. It will take all the efforts of the police, Kat, and their allies to get to the bottom of things. But it turns out the bottom is darker and more pervasive than anyone could have dreamed.
I loved In Bitter Chill when it came out last year, and this is a worthy successor, completely avoiding the sophomore slump. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys contemporary British police mysteries, books about family secrets, or mysteries with a hint of thriller. You don't have to read the first one to understand this one, but they're both so good, why wouldn't you want to?
First Line: Lena felt his emotional withdrawal before the physical.
166inge87
Serafina and the Twisted Staff by Robert Beatty
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: Serafina (2/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7.1 B4347 Sts 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Serafina and the Twisted Staff finds Serafina honing her hunting skills in the woods one night, when she realizes that a great evil is coming. Thinking it the safest way, her mother rejects her overtures and sends her back to the humans at Biltmore where she "belongs". This leaves her daughter hurt and confused and right in the path of trouble as it appears the danger is headed straight towards the estate. What other choice does she have but to try and save her beloved home as best she can? But animals are attacking at random, and someone wants Serafina dead. If only she could identify the villain before it becomes too late. It is only by finding herself that she will be able to overcome the greatest challenge she has faced yet.
Another fun installment in the series. You can feel the author's love for Biltmore and the North Carolina countryside in the narrative. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good story.
First Line: Serafina stalked through the underbrush of the moonlit forest, slinking low to the ground, her eyes fixed on her prey.
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: Serafina (2/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PZ 7.1 B4347 Sts 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Serafina and the Twisted Staff finds Serafina honing her hunting skills in the woods one night, when she realizes that a great evil is coming. Thinking it the safest way, her mother rejects her overtures and sends her back to the humans at Biltmore where she "belongs". This leaves her daughter hurt and confused and right in the path of trouble as it appears the danger is headed straight towards the estate. What other choice does she have but to try and save her beloved home as best she can? But animals are attacking at random, and someone wants Serafina dead. If only she could identify the villain before it becomes too late. It is only by finding herself that she will be able to overcome the greatest challenge she has faced yet.
Another fun installment in the series. You can feel the author's love for Biltmore and the North Carolina countryside in the narrative. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good story.
First Line: Serafina stalked through the underbrush of the moonlit forest, slinking low to the ground, her eyes fixed on her prey.
167inge87
An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis
Source: new work
Recommendation: Impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PN 85 L48 1961
Rating: 3 stars / 5
An Experiment in Criticism is a collections of essays by Lewis discussing the relationship between readers and the books they read. In his mind there are no good or bad books—only good or bad readers. For if a "bad" book can deliver meaning to the reader than it really can't be said to be bad at all. There is also a nice discussion of how to read a book well. Lewis spends most of the book discussing the meaning of literary and there's lots to chew on here. I mostly enjoyed it because I can use his arguments to defend my love of bad literature. Who could complain about that?
First Line: In this essay I propose to try an experiment.
Source: new work
Recommendation: Impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PN 85 L48 1961
Rating: 3 stars / 5
An Experiment in Criticism is a collections of essays by Lewis discussing the relationship between readers and the books they read. In his mind there are no good or bad books—only good or bad readers. For if a "bad" book can deliver meaning to the reader than it really can't be said to be bad at all. There is also a nice discussion of how to read a book well. Lewis spends most of the book discussing the meaning of literary and there's lots to chew on here. I mostly enjoyed it because I can use his arguments to defend my love of bad literature. Who could complain about that?
First Line: In this essay I propose to try an experiment.
168inge87
Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
Source: new work
Recommendation: finishing a category on my other thread
Year of Original Pub.: 1876
LC Call #: PR 4658 A1 1964
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Daniel Deronda is a book I have been meaning to read for years, because I enjoyed the miniseries. Having read it once, I don't think I'll need to again, but that doesn't mean the experience wasn't enjoyable. Daniel is a young man seeking a meaning and a purpose to his life. He is literally not sure who he is, and this has had a knock-on effect on some of the choices he has made. Gwendolen Harleth, on the other hand, has always known exactly where she stands, until her foundation is taken out from under her when her family suddenly loses most of its money. The two meet, and most people would expect them to fall in love and get together, but George Eliot obviously missed that memo. Instead, Gwendolen embarks on a disastrous marriage, and Daniel discovers his past as well as a mystical form of Judaism. It's interesting stuff, but gets trying after a while. I think everyone would have benefited from some time with a therapist. But I'm perfectly content imagining Gwendolen eventually ending up with her cousin and Daniel coming back to London after his travels or settling down in Palestine. If only it didn't venture so close to melodrama and ridiculousness. I think I'll stick with Silas Marner in the future when I feel the urge to read Eliot.
First Line: Was she beautiful or not beautiful? and what was the secret of form or expression which gave the dynamic quality to her glance?
Source: new work
Recommendation: finishing a category on my other thread
Year of Original Pub.: 1876
LC Call #: PR 4658 A1 1964
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Daniel Deronda is a book I have been meaning to read for years, because I enjoyed the miniseries. Having read it once, I don't think I'll need to again, but that doesn't mean the experience wasn't enjoyable. Daniel is a young man seeking a meaning and a purpose to his life. He is literally not sure who he is, and this has had a knock-on effect on some of the choices he has made. Gwendolen Harleth, on the other hand, has always known exactly where she stands, until her foundation is taken out from under her when her family suddenly loses most of its money. The two meet, and most people would expect them to fall in love and get together, but George Eliot obviously missed that memo. Instead, Gwendolen embarks on a disastrous marriage, and Daniel discovers his past as well as a mystical form of Judaism. It's interesting stuff, but gets trying after a while. I think everyone would have benefited from some time with a therapist. But I'm perfectly content imagining Gwendolen eventually ending up with her cousin and Daniel coming back to London after his travels or settling down in Palestine. If only it didn't venture so close to melodrama and ridiculousness. I think I'll stick with Silas Marner in the future when I feel the urge to read Eliot.
First Line: Was she beautiful or not beautiful? and what was the secret of form or expression which gave the dynamic quality to her glance?
169inge87
Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Book 1 by Clamp
Source: me (10/16) – but returned to the store
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: Cardcaptor Sakura (Omnibus 1/4)
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: PL 872.5 L366 C3713 2010
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Book 1 is a book that I remember enjoying reading (in the initial English translation, not this one), but upon returning years later I discovered that I had missed quite a bit. Objectively speaking, it's about Sakura, a girl who discovers she has magical powers and has to help recapture the Clow Cars, which are a kind of magical tarot. Her devoted best friend has a romantic crush on her, and she along with a rival compete for the affection of her older brother's best friend. Which would be fine if they weren't ten years old. Toss in a classmate who is in a relationship with their teacher, and it was all I could do to finish the book. It just leaves you feeling dirty. How I missed all this the first time through, is a mystery that I do not want to solve, but I definitely won't be seeking out the second omnibus volume, that's for sure. Definitely one to avoid, which is a shame, because if we were dealing with teenagers, some of it (but only some) might be okay, and the rest of the plot is quite good. But sexual ten-year-olds are a no-go, and therefore so is this series.
First Line: Who . . . who are they?
Source: me (10/16) – but returned to the store
Recommendation: continuing series
Series: Cardcaptor Sakura (Omnibus 1/4)
Year of Original Pub.: 2010
LC Call #: PL 872.5 L366 C3713 2010
Rating: 2 stars / 5
Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Book 1 is a book that I remember enjoying reading (in the initial English translation, not this one), but upon returning years later I discovered that I had missed quite a bit. Objectively speaking, it's about Sakura, a girl who discovers she has magical powers and has to help recapture the Clow Cars, which are a kind of magical tarot. Her devoted best friend has a romantic crush on her, and she along with a rival compete for the affection of her older brother's best friend. Which would be fine if they weren't ten years old. Toss in a classmate who is in a relationship with their teacher, and it was all I could do to finish the book. It just leaves you feeling dirty. How I missed all this the first time through, is a mystery that I do not want to solve, but I definitely won't be seeking out the second omnibus volume, that's for sure. Definitely one to avoid, which is a shame, because if we were dealing with teenagers, some of it (but only some) might be okay, and the rest of the plot is quite good. But sexual ten-year-olds are a no-go, and therefore so is this series.
First Line: Who . . . who are they?
170inge87
For the Glory: Eric Liddell's Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr by Duncan Hamilton
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: LibraryJournal(?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: GV 1061.15 L53 H36 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
For the Glory is a very nice biography of the sprinting legend whose actions inspired the film Chariots of Fire. It manages to maintain a balanced portrayal of one of the most famous sprinters of the 20th century, a man who may have been made to run fast but also believed he was called to higher things in China. Liddell had actually been born in China to Scottish missionaries and his plan was always to return. The hubbub of the 1924 Olympics was really more of a detour to his desired final destination. And, thanks to the Japanese invasion of China and the incompetence of his missionary board (who failed to see it coming), China became his final resting place as he died of in an internment camp. His faith was clearly what drove Liddell to such great heights, and the author manages to discuss it respectfully without ever venturing into hagiography, so it should be noted that this is a secular biography of a religious man. Those looking for a faith-based appraisal should look elsewhere. But Liddell is such a remarkable man that you don't have to be religious to appreciate him. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in athletics, missionaries, the Chinese-front in World War II, or interesting biographies about interesting people.
First Line: He is crouching on the start line, which has been scratched out with a stick across the parched earth.
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: LibraryJournal(?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: GV 1061.15 L53 H36 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
For the Glory is a very nice biography of the sprinting legend whose actions inspired the film Chariots of Fire. It manages to maintain a balanced portrayal of one of the most famous sprinters of the 20th century, a man who may have been made to run fast but also believed he was called to higher things in China. Liddell had actually been born in China to Scottish missionaries and his plan was always to return. The hubbub of the 1924 Olympics was really more of a detour to his desired final destination. And, thanks to the Japanese invasion of China and the incompetence of his missionary board (who failed to see it coming), China became his final resting place as he died of in an internment camp. His faith was clearly what drove Liddell to such great heights, and the author manages to discuss it respectfully without ever venturing into hagiography, so it should be noted that this is a secular biography of a religious man. Those looking for a faith-based appraisal should look elsewhere. But Liddell is such a remarkable man that you don't have to be religious to appreciate him. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in athletics, missionaries, the Chinese-front in World War II, or interesting biographies about interesting people.
First Line: He is crouching on the start line, which has been scratched out with a stick across the parched earth.
171inge87
Evelyn Waugh: Portrait of a Country Neighbour by Frances Donaldson
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: Eastern Christian Books
Year of Original Pub.: 1968
LC Call #: PR 6045 A97 Z67 2012
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Evelyn Waugh: Portrait of a Country Neighbour is a light, highly readable memoir of the author's experiences as the friend and neighbor of one of Britain's more remarkable 20th century writers. It's a bit on the gossipy, colloquial side, but it's fun and makes Waugh sound like fun (and a pain-in-the-behind). What makes it particularly interesting is that the author was an avowed Socialist, which Waugh was definitely not, so you are looking at him from a completely different point of view than if the author were one of Waugh's fellow Catholic travellers. Not a book for those looking for serious research, but if you want to know what Waugh the man was like, it's a good place to start.
First Line: We went to live in the Gloucestershire Cotswolds in the autumn of 1947.
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: Eastern Christian Books
Year of Original Pub.: 1968
LC Call #: PR 6045 A97 Z67 2012
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Evelyn Waugh: Portrait of a Country Neighbour is a light, highly readable memoir of the author's experiences as the friend and neighbor of one of Britain's more remarkable 20th century writers. It's a bit on the gossipy, colloquial side, but it's fun and makes Waugh sound like fun (and a pain-in-the-behind). What makes it particularly interesting is that the author was an avowed Socialist, which Waugh was definitely not, so you are looking at him from a completely different point of view than if the author were one of Waugh's fellow Catholic travellers. Not a book for those looking for serious research, but if you want to know what Waugh the man was like, it's a good place to start.
First Line: We went to live in the Gloucestershire Cotswolds in the autumn of 1947.
172inge87
Ragged Dick, Fame and Fortune, Mark, the Match Boy, Rough and Ready by Horatio Alger
Source: Project Gutenberg
Recommendation: boredom
Series: Ragged Dick (1-4/6)
Year of Original Pub.: 1868-9
LC Call #: PZ 7 A5537 Rag 1868, PZ 7 A5537 Fam 1868, PZ 7 A5537 Mar 1869, PZ 7 A5547 R68 1869
Rating: 4 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5
If you have read one Horatio Alger story, you've pretty much read all of them (or at least gained the ability to predict where the plot will go). So you might as well start off with his early ones, before the plots went stale. Ragged Dick was the book that made him (with Fame and Fortune, Mark, the Match Boy and Rough and Ready following soon after), and it's a smashing read if you like escapist fiction. Although, interestingly, Alger was actually raising awareness of a major social issues of street boys and worked his entire career to improve their situation. All of his books are available free at this point, so there's no reason not to pick one up.
Source: Project Gutenberg
Recommendation: boredom
Series: Ragged Dick (1-4/6)
Year of Original Pub.: 1868-9
LC Call #: PZ 7 A5537 Rag 1868, PZ 7 A5537 Fam 1868, PZ 7 A5537 Mar 1869, PZ 7 A5547 R68 1869
Rating: 4 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5, 3 stars / 5
If you have read one Horatio Alger story, you've pretty much read all of them (or at least gained the ability to predict where the plot will go). So you might as well start off with his early ones, before the plots went stale. Ragged Dick was the book that made him (with Fame and Fortune, Mark, the Match Boy and Rough and Ready following soon after), and it's a smashing read if you like escapist fiction. Although, interestingly, Alger was actually raising awareness of a major social issues of street boys and worked his entire career to improve their situation. All of his books are available free at this point, so there's no reason not to pick one up.
173inge87
Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Yu
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: Kirkus
Series: Singaporean Mystery (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: PR 9570 S53 Y84 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Aunty Lee's Delights is the first in a series of mysteries set in Singapore. Aunty Lee is a wealthy widow, who decided to open a restaurant instead of live off her husband's fortune. She is a nosy busybody and doesn't care who knows it. So when a mysterious body washes ashore right after a guest fails to appear at a party hosted at her restaurant, she can't help but get involved. After all, the police need all the help they can get, right?
Written by a native, the book gives an interesting window into Singaporean society from the high class tai-tais at the top to the Filippina maids at the bottom and everyone in between. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys their mysteries set in unusual places or an interest in Singapore.
First Line: It was early morning and the rain had stopped.
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: Kirkus
Series: Singaporean Mystery (1/?)
Year of Original Pub.: 2013
LC Call #: PR 9570 S53 Y84 2013
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Aunty Lee's Delights is the first in a series of mysteries set in Singapore. Aunty Lee is a wealthy widow, who decided to open a restaurant instead of live off her husband's fortune. She is a nosy busybody and doesn't care who knows it. So when a mysterious body washes ashore right after a guest fails to appear at a party hosted at her restaurant, she can't help but get involved. After all, the police need all the help they can get, right?
Written by a native, the book gives an interesting window into Singaporean society from the high class tai-tais at the top to the Filippina maids at the bottom and everyone in between. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys their mysteries set in unusual places or an interest in Singapore.
First Line: It was early morning and the rain had stopped.
174inge87
Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond by Richard Jenkyns
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal / interest in the subject
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PA 3001 J46 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond is a good, readable overview of the history of Greek and Latin literature from Homer through the AD 100s. He touches on all of the major authors: Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, Thucydides, Vergil, Ovid, Horace, inter alios. There's an entire chapter dedicated to Greek drama. But at the same time he also remembers the writers who are less well known, mostly because their work has not come down to us, but were key to the development of literature at the time. I, for one, appreciate that. I also really enjoyed his section on the Apostle Paul and his place as a classical writer. All too often, I think we forget that the New Testament was not written in a vacuum and that it has a place in literature as well as religion. So if you're at all interested in classical literature, this a book worth picking up. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Greek or Latin literature, the Classics, or the history of literature.
First Line: Wrath! – European literature begins not with the whimper of infancy, but with a bang.
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: LibraryJournal / interest in the subject
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: PA 3001 J46 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond is a good, readable overview of the history of Greek and Latin literature from Homer through the AD 100s. He touches on all of the major authors: Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, Thucydides, Vergil, Ovid, Horace, inter alios. There's an entire chapter dedicated to Greek drama. But at the same time he also remembers the writers who are less well known, mostly because their work has not come down to us, but were key to the development of literature at the time. I, for one, appreciate that. I also really enjoyed his section on the Apostle Paul and his place as a classical writer. All too often, I think we forget that the New Testament was not written in a vacuum and that it has a place in literature as well as religion. So if you're at all interested in classical literature, this a book worth picking up. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Greek or Latin literature, the Classics, or the history of literature.
First Line: Wrath! – European literature begins not with the whimper of infancy, but with a bang.
175inge87
The one actually belongs further up; I just forgot to write it before now.
Hope for the World: To Unite All Things in Christ by Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke and Guillaume d'Alançon
Source: me (09/16)
Recommendation: I'm a fan of the format
Original Title: Un cardinal au coeur de l'Église : entretiens
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 2350.3 B8713 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Hope for the World is a very well-thought out interview book between American Cardinal Burke and a French author, Guillaume d'Alançon. The book covers Burke's life growing up in Wisconsin, as well as his views on current issues in the church, both liturgical and administrative (i.e. what is the role of a bishop). It makes for interesting reading and he comes out as a very articulate advocate for his views. Unfortunately, rather like last year's God or Nothing by Cardinal Sarah, I think that only those who already agree with him will read it, which is a shame, because he says a lot about the Church worth think about and pondering over. Highly recommended.
First Line: As soon as your enter the apartment of Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, your glance is drawn to a good-sized picture of Pope Francis.
Hope for the World: To Unite All Things in Christ by Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke and Guillaume d'Alançon
Source: me (09/16)
Recommendation: I'm a fan of the format
Original Title: Un cardinal au coeur de l'Église : entretiens
Year of Original Pub.: 2015
LC Call #: BX 2350.3 B8713 2016
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Hope for the World is a very well-thought out interview book between American Cardinal Burke and a French author, Guillaume d'Alançon. The book covers Burke's life growing up in Wisconsin, as well as his views on current issues in the church, both liturgical and administrative (i.e. what is the role of a bishop). It makes for interesting reading and he comes out as a very articulate advocate for his views. Unfortunately, rather like last year's God or Nothing by Cardinal Sarah, I think that only those who already agree with him will read it, which is a shame, because he says a lot about the Church worth think about and pondering over. Highly recommended.
First Line: As soon as your enter the apartment of Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, your glance is drawn to a good-sized picture of Pope Francis.
176inge87
The Frogs by Aristophanes
Source: new work
Recommendation: Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond
Original Title: Βάτραχοι (Bátrachoi)
Year of Original Pub.: 405 BC
LC Call #: PA 3611 A752 F76 2002 Vol. 4
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Frogs finds Dionysius and a companion travelling to Hades to find the best playwright. The frogs of the title have a very nice chorus in the middle as the god rows himself and Charon down the Styx. Naturally all of their krikrikrikrik and kroax-ing drives Dionysius to distraction, but that's what Greek choruses do best. Once in the underworld Aeschylus and Eripides have a theatre-slam as each attempts to prove that he is the better writer. Sophocles, wisely, stays out of it. It's a fun look at Greek theatre from an insider's perspective, but probably of interest mostly to Classicists or historians of drama.
First Line: Shall I crack any of those old jokes, master, at which the audience never fail to laugh?
Source: new work
Recommendation: Classical Literature: An Epic Journey from Homer to Virgil and Beyond
Original Title: Βάτραχοι (Bátrachoi)
Year of Original Pub.: 405 BC
LC Call #: PA 3611 A752 F76 2002 Vol. 4
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Frogs finds Dionysius and a companion travelling to Hades to find the best playwright. The frogs of the title have a very nice chorus in the middle as the god rows himself and Charon down the Styx. Naturally all of their krikrikrikrik and kroax-ing drives Dionysius to distraction, but that's what Greek choruses do best. Once in the underworld Aeschylus and Eripides have a theatre-slam as each attempts to prove that he is the better writer. Sophocles, wisely, stays out of it. It's a fun look at Greek theatre from an insider's perspective, but probably of interest mostly to Classicists or historians of drama.
First Line: Shall I crack any of those old jokes, master, at which the audience never fail to laugh?
177inge87
A Promise is for Ever by Denise Robins
Source: Read at Half-Price Books while I was killing time
Recommendation: It looked promising
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PR 6035 O256734 P76 1961
Rating: 3 stars / 5
A Promise is for Ever is a period romance novel in which the main obstacle to love is the woman's husband and her non-belief in divorce. Fern and her husband have been living mostly off her family income, when a sudden scandal in her father's firm means that they are in sudden need of actual jobs. She quickly finds them live-in positions as housekeeper/cook and chauffeur for a nouveau riche business magnate from the North. Fern settles right in, while his inherent laziness and selfishness make things difficult for her. Things get even harder when his mother returns from a trip abroad and takes an instant dislike to the heroine. But she needs the job and sticks with it, and her employer admires her all the more for it. Can we say drama? Oh, yes!
Nothing special, but fun if you like reading retro romances for their retro-ness.
First Line: When Fern first told her husband about the disaster that had just befallen her parents, it was for her a personal tragedy.
Source: Read at Half-Price Books while I was killing time
Recommendation: It looked promising
Year of Original Pub.: 1961
LC Call #: PR 6035 O256734 P76 1961
Rating: 3 stars / 5
A Promise is for Ever is a period romance novel in which the main obstacle to love is the woman's husband and her non-belief in divorce. Fern and her husband have been living mostly off her family income, when a sudden scandal in her father's firm means that they are in sudden need of actual jobs. She quickly finds them live-in positions as housekeeper/cook and chauffeur for a nouveau riche business magnate from the North. Fern settles right in, while his inherent laziness and selfishness make things difficult for her. Things get even harder when his mother returns from a trip abroad and takes an instant dislike to the heroine. But she needs the job and sticks with it, and her employer admires her all the more for it. Can we say drama? Oh, yes!
Nothing special, but fun if you like reading retro romances for their retro-ness.
First Line: When Fern first told her husband about the disaster that had just befallen her parents, it was for her a personal tragedy.
178inge87
Serpents in Eden: Countryside Crimes by Martin Edwards (ed.)
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: I've liked other books in the series
Series: British Library Crime Classics
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PR 1309 D4 S46 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Serpents in Eden is a collection of short stories from the golden age of mystery-writing in the early 20th century. The common theme binding them together is that they are set in the British countryside, where everyone knows everyone—or at least thinks they do until someone turns up dead or blackmailed. Not all are of the same quality (but when is that ever the case?). If you like golden age mysteries or have enjoyed other books in this series, you may want to seek this one out.
First Line: Bishop's Crossing is a small village lying ten miles in a south-westerly direction from Liverpool.
Source: Austin PL
Recommendation: I've liked other books in the series
Series: British Library Crime Classics
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PR 1309 D4 S46 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Serpents in Eden is a collection of short stories from the golden age of mystery-writing in the early 20th century. The common theme binding them together is that they are set in the British countryside, where everyone knows everyone—or at least thinks they do until someone turns up dead or blackmailed. Not all are of the same quality (but when is that ever the case?). If you like golden age mysteries or have enjoyed other books in this series, you may want to seek this one out.
First Line: Bishop's Crossing is a small village lying ten miles in a south-westerly direction from Liverpool.
179inge87
The Victorian Age in Literature by G. K. Chesterton
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1913
LC Call #: PR 461 C5 1963
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Victorian Age in Literature is an overview of the Victorian philosophical epoch as defined and described by one of the great writers of his age, G. K. Chesterton. He argues that the Victorians were dominated by compromise that promoting a spirit of progressive rationalism that imbued their work. He then goes on to give examples of paragons and exceptions to this rule. It's not the most scholarly of literary criticism forms but it has a great deal of heart and enthusiasm. For anyone with an interest in Victorian writers and ideas or a love of Chesterton.
First Line: A section of a long and splendid literature can be most convenient treated in one of two ways.
Source: me (6/16)
Recommendation: DeweyCAT
Year of Original Pub.: 1913
LC Call #: PR 461 C5 1963
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Victorian Age in Literature is an overview of the Victorian philosophical epoch as defined and described by one of the great writers of his age, G. K. Chesterton. He argues that the Victorians were dominated by compromise that promoting a spirit of progressive rationalism that imbued their work. He then goes on to give examples of paragons and exceptions to this rule. It's not the most scholarly of literary criticism forms but it has a great deal of heart and enthusiasm. For anyone with an interest in Victorian writers and ideas or a love of Chesterton.
First Line: A section of a long and splendid literature can be most convenient treated in one of two ways.
180inge87
The Sparrow in Hiding by J. Kathleen Cheney
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: I've read almost everything else she's written, so why not this
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S63 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Sparrow in Hiding is a short novella set in a post-Napoleonic Russia where magic is real, even if society doesn't believe in it anymore. Irina believes that her mother is a tree, even if her father and brother don't. She comes to the dacha to escape society's glare every summer. One summer she discovers that her brother has hired a new worker with a mysterious past for the aviary. Just who is Evgeny and what is the story of his past. Irina can't help but try to figure it out.
A short novella with good plotting that feels like it ends a bit too suddenly for my taste. If you've liked Cheney's other work or have an interest in historical fantasy set in Russia, then you'll want to pick this one up. Otherwise, you may want to start with her Portuguese novels or Saratoga Springs-set short stories to get a feel for her good stuff first.
First Line: Irina stared out the window of the library.
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: I've read almost everything else she's written, so why not this
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: PS 3603 H4574 S63 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
The Sparrow in Hiding is a short novella set in a post-Napoleonic Russia where magic is real, even if society doesn't believe in it anymore. Irina believes that her mother is a tree, even if her father and brother don't. She comes to the dacha to escape society's glare every summer. One summer she discovers that her brother has hired a new worker with a mysterious past for the aviary. Just who is Evgeny and what is the story of his past. Irina can't help but try to figure it out.
A short novella with good plotting that feels like it ends a bit too suddenly for my taste. If you've liked Cheney's other work or have an interest in historical fantasy set in Russia, then you'll want to pick this one up. Otherwise, you may want to start with her Portuguese novels or Saratoga Springs-set short stories to get a feel for her good stuff first.
First Line: Irina stared out the window of the library.
181inge87
Positively Medieval: The Surprising, Dynamic, Heroic Church of the Middle Ages by Jamie Blosser
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: Impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: BR 162.3 B56 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Positively Medieval is a collection of brief biographies of major medieval figures organized thematically that together provide an impression of the richness of the medieval world. Each person feature is given a short biography and then a small section of short readings of primary sources both by and about their lives. The format is interesting and useful, and the section on the Eastern Church is original and appreciated for the added scope it offers. For fans of the middle ages and those who are looking for an accessible taste of original texts in translation.
First Line: The term Middle Ages, or its adjectival form medieval, refers to a chronological period covering roughly a thousand years, from AD 500 to AD 1500.
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: Impulse grab
Year of Original Pub.: 2016
LC Call #: BR 162.3 B56 2016
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Positively Medieval is a collection of brief biographies of major medieval figures organized thematically that together provide an impression of the richness of the medieval world. Each person feature is given a short biography and then a small section of short readings of primary sources both by and about their lives. The format is interesting and useful, and the section on the Eastern Church is original and appreciated for the added scope it offers. For fans of the middle ages and those who are looking for an accessible taste of original texts in translation.
First Line: The term Middle Ages, or its adjectival form medieval, refers to a chronological period covering roughly a thousand years, from AD 500 to AD 1500.
182inge87
Of Bells and Cells: The World of Monks, Friars, Sisters and Nuns by M. Cristina Borges & Michaela Harrison
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: *Juv* BX 2436 B67 2014
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Of Bells and Cells is a solid synopsis of Catholic religious and their lives. A picture book aimed at children it is actually a brilliant explanation/overview for Catholics of any age who are curious about what exactly monks, nuns, brothers, sisters, priests, et al. do. The book covers their lives as well as the process of joining a religious order. It's excellent stuff and highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the topic. The fact that the illustrations are fantastic only makes things better.
First Line:
Source: me (10/16)
Recommendation: the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 2014
LC Call #: *Juv* BX 2436 B67 2014
Rating: 5 stars / 5
Of Bells and Cells is a solid synopsis of Catholic religious and their lives. A picture book aimed at children it is actually a brilliant explanation/overview for Catholics of any age who are curious about what exactly monks, nuns, brothers, sisters, priests, et al. do. The book covers their lives as well as the process of joining a religious order. It's excellent stuff and highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the topic. The fact that the illustrations are fantastic only makes things better.
First Line:
183inge87
Shakespeare the Papist by Peter Milward, SJ
Source: work
Recommendation: the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 2005
LC Call #: PR 3011 M478 2005
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Shakespeare the Papist is an in-depth look at the Catholic elements in Shakespeare's plays seasoned with a good chunk of criticism. Organized thematically and chronologically, the author looks at each play for Catholic representations within them. It's interesting stuff, but it does seem to go on forever because it covers everything. So it's probably better dipping in and out as needed than as a book to read cover-to-cover. But for anyone with an interest in the topic of Catholicism in Shakespeare, it really is a go-to volume.
First Line: In the history of Shakespearean scholarship it has long been the received wisdom to lay emphasis on the plays themselves, without paying overmuch attention to their historical context—according to Shakespeare's own principle, "The play's the thing."
Source: work
Recommendation: the internet
Year of Original Pub.: 2005
LC Call #: PR 3011 M478 2005
Rating: 3 stars / 5
Shakespeare the Papist is an in-depth look at the Catholic elements in Shakespeare's plays seasoned with a good chunk of criticism. Organized thematically and chronologically, the author looks at each play for Catholic representations within them. It's interesting stuff, but it does seem to go on forever because it covers everything. So it's probably better dipping in and out as needed than as a book to read cover-to-cover. But for anyone with an interest in the topic of Catholicism in Shakespeare, it really is a go-to volume.
First Line: In the history of Shakespearean scholarship it has long been the received wisdom to lay emphasis on the plays themselves, without paying overmuch attention to their historical context—according to Shakespeare's own principle, "The play's the thing."
184PaulCranswick
250 books already is as impressive as always, Jennifer.
Some interesting reading on the Catholic church and the Middle Ages and I particularly like the look of the one giving an "accessible taste of original texts in translation." in >181 inge87:
Have a lovely weekend.
Some interesting reading on the Catholic church and the Middle Ages and I particularly like the look of the one giving an "accessible taste of original texts in translation." in >181 inge87:
Have a lovely weekend.
185inge87
>184 PaulCranswick: It wasn't what I was expecting (i.e. a history of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages), but it was much better than the horribly punny title would suggest.
This topic was continued by inge87's Books of 2016, Part III: Nothing Gold Can Stay.
